3 weeks. That's how long I have left in this beautiful land called Australia! There aren't many words I can think of to describe how I feel about this event in my life, other than saying I have very mixed emotions. It all just seems very unreal that my year is coming to an end, and I have very little time left in my second home. That said, I'm not wasting any bit of it, with my weekends basically all booked up until I depart and almost no 'down time' since my Safari!
I got back to Moruya, after Safari, on a Tuesday afternoon, only to move into my last host family that evening. My counsellor, Carol, and her daughter moved my stuff for me while I was touring Australia, so I just had to get picked up by my new family, Chris and Jude. The next two days were spent unpacking and moving in while my host parents were at work. The third day, however, was a car trip out West to Deniliquin, NSW, in the middle of nowhere! This was Easter Weekend, in the middle of the 2 week school holidays, so my family thought to go out there! Now, this wasn't just a trip out west, Deniliquin was hosting the Deni Blues and Roots Festival! This was a 2 day music festival featuring artists such as the Doobie Brothers, Elvis Costello, and John Mayer! The drive is a whole 8 hrs one way, so, the long drive there and back, combined with the 2 days there provided a great opportunity to get to know my family and have some great fun with them in the process. Of the 26 acts who played over the weekend, I only missed 3 due to going to Church on Easter morning. The church was a bit sad, I found, as it was only half full on Easter weekend, with the majority of people being visitors for the festival. Other than that, it was a great service, and very enjoyable, I just hope the parish can be revived. Overall, I loved the festival, and even saw some artists I didn't recognize until I heard some songs I listen to quite often on my phone!
The following week was highlighted with yet another music festival, and ANZAC Day! Anzac Day is very similar to Memorial Day in the United States, and is on 25 April every year. ANZAC, standing for Australia New Zealand Army Corps, is the greatest military tradition in Australia, getting its start during WWI. With the local Australian Army Cadets, I got the honour of marching in 2 local Anzac Day Parades, carrying the Australian Flag in the first and the Australian Navy's flag in the second. This was a great opportunity that I was given and it was really cool. During the first ceremony, they even mentioned my name as a visitor from the Marine Cadets of America! This was an awesome experience to have and through it I found a new respect for the Australian military and for the US military.
Continuing the fun, a few friends and I drove up to Canberra for the weekend. The main event was Groovin The Moo, which is a regional music festival, but we also made an educational stop to a mosque in the city. This excursion was connected to our Society and Culture class in school, but our 2 hour stop was very interesting. We even got to see what one of their daily 5 prayers looks like and what they do during it. The next morning, we caught the bus to the music festival which went from 11am - 11pm and was a very fun twelve hours. I went with friends from Moruya, but met up with exchange students from my district and some who I met on Safari! It was fantastic to hang out with these great people again and dance away to some great music as well! :D
The very next weekend we went up to Sydney! The Saturday was spent with just Chris and I taking a walk through the Botanical Gardens up to the Opera House and Circular Quay, from which we got a ferry to Manly Beach! Here, even though it was only 18 Celcius out, I decided it was ripe enough for a swim which was beautiful because the water was around 22. At least it was enjoyable until I had to get out into the cold wind... We had fish and chips for lunch on the boardwalk before getting the ferry back. That night I met the family at a small gathering and had a decent time. It was nice to meet my host family's family. :) The next day we left for Moruya midday but didn't get home until very late at night thanks to an accident which closed the highway completely for 2 hours! It was a good bonding experience though.
The next Saturday was the only time post-safari that I have not been doing much of anything, so Saturday was very relaxed, and Sunday I went for a surf out in Broulee in the morning, letting my host mum sleep in on Mother's Day. :) After surprising my parents in the US with a call to wish my mom Happy Mother's Day and my father a Happy Birthday, I went to bed late. :)
17 years I've been alive now, and it was fantastic to celebrate this birthday here in Australia! My birthday this year was very prolonged thanks to a lot of love from a lot of people. :D The night before my birthday, my family took me out to the movies and dinner, and also gifted me with a cool shirt with the names of all the surf spots along the South Coast! Then, my actual birthday became one of my best ever thanks to my fellow classmates and my brother, Will! Will had organised the entire class to throw me a little surprise party during lunch at school, which had me so stoked! Everyone did a fantastic job with not letting it on to me and it put a huge smile on my face. One of my classmates even baked a very delicious cake! :D Thank you to Will and everyone who was involved with doing that! I loved it! :D My amazing birthday continued at cadets that night when they did a very similar thing for me! The surprise wasn't quite as good because they expressed intent to do something for my birthday and they told me not to go near one of the rooms though the night, but I still loved it. :) The next Sunday, my counsellor was awesome and got [almost] all of my host families together in the afternoon for a little suprise party! This even continued more than a week after my birthday at the Rotary meeting. The Moruya Club gave me a book with panoramic pictures of Australia, which they had all signed! :) My actual birthday, thanks to some amazing friends, was probably one of the best, if not the best birthday I've ever had, and then combined with all the other festivities over the week and a half, it was astounding!
Now, skip back a little bit to the weekend immediately following my birthday, and I'll tell you about my little trip to the top of Australia! That Friday, my family drove up to a little town called Dalgetty on the banks of the Snowy River and we stayed in a pub there for the night. The next morning, we were up early to drive over to Jindabyne for breakfast and coffee before heading up the mountain. We parked at Charlotte's Pass, which is about 8km (5 miles) from the summit of My Kosciuszko, Australia highest mountain. There, we unloaded our bicycles and started pedaling up, and up, and up, for several kilometres, until finally, we went down to cross the Snowy River, but then, back up. This time the up was 2 or 3 times as steep with a headwind coming at us around 50 km/h, making that portion the slowest 500m of the trip! Once the three of us were finally up at the top, we stopped inside a little hut for morning tea and a quick warm up since it was only 8 Celcius outside. Afterward, we continued going up before my parents left their bikes at a toilet stop before the final ascent. I, however, decided to continue riding the next 500m to the summit, which gave me a much bigger sense of achievement than walking would have done! Now that I sound amazing, biking up Australia's tallest mountain and all, I'll let you know what the mountain actually is... haha. Mt. Kosciuszko is only 2200m (7300 ft) and it doesn't really have much of a peak, so to most of the world, it would be more of a large hill, and with no peak, it definitely looks like one. Anyways, It was a very fun day with a lot of exercise and adventure. We had lunch at the top, despite the wind, and even enjoyed Tim Tams! Despite just wanting the ride to end when we were riding up, once at the top, I kinda felt like I wanted the mountain to be higher so I could keep riding...I kinda liked it. Anyway, we had to ride down, and back to the car, which for something that took 2 and a half hours to go up, only took 25 min to go down! That afternoon, we felt we didn't get enough bike riding in, so when we went back to Jindabyne, we went for another 5km ride around the lake before packing up and driving back down to Moruya.
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I'll post more a bit later, but for now, its time to watch some football, or soccer, or whatever you call it! Go Socceroos! Go Australia!
18 June 2014
28 May 2014
SAFARI!
Safari. The biggest and bestest trip of the entire exchange, and what I have been looking forward to since my plane first landed in this magnificent land. It finally arrived what seemed like only a couple days ago, but come to think of it, it was already 2 months ago that it started! For those three weeks, I travelled around in a bus over 7000km with 37 other fantastic exchange students who made those many miles some of the best I may ever cover in my life!
It started on a cold windy afternoon, where everyone from my district met up in the capital, Canberra, followed by a bus, carrying the exchange students from two other districts joining us. That night was filled with a lot of socialising and being told the rules, etc for the trip. We also finally got our safari hoodies, complete with everyone's names!
The next day wasn't too exciting as far as the activities we did, but it was still a very fun ride (despite 8hrs on a bus) because everyone was still getting to know each other. We were also introduced to our 'morning song.' Our amazing bus driver had a morning song which he said we would listen to every morning when we got on the bus. This song was Sunscreen by Baz Luhrmann and we were told that if we memorised the lyrics we would be able to choose the morning song for the rest of the trip. So myself, and a couple others started working on it, and about halfway through the trip, I managed to get it in my head! However by that time, we all learned to love the song so it remained the same. (Don't forget to wear sunscreen! haha)
Day 3 consisted of roaming Melbourne! In the morning we were given a brief tour and outline of the city, then let loose at the Queen Victoria Markets. The main thing I wanted to do was go up to the Eureka Skydeck, which is the tallest viewing platform in the Southern Hemisphere! So, I went straight there with a few others, this was followed by exploring the city and a little shopping, with lunch in Chinatown. We went back to camp for dinner, before returning to see the QV Markets since they were closed that day. These markets are the largest 'under cover' markets in the southern hemisphere, and were pretty cool. Although not much there caught my eye, it was still a cool place.
Day 4: GREAT OCEAN ROAD! This day we embarked on the Great Ocean Road on our way to Warrnambool, Victoria after packing up and leaving Melbourne in the rain. Our first stop on the road was the Twelve Apostles, which are are spectacular columns of stone rising out of the cruel Southern Ocean. On our journey along the coast, we weren't lucky enough to have a clear day and it was overcast and foggy, but what we could see was still amazing and our excitement on the bus remained high and it was practically a party bus at times! When we to Warrnambool, we set up camp within two hundred metres of the beach. The night consisted of dinner (of course!) and a sound and light show displaying the history of the local coast, as it is known as the Shipwreck Coast! The show was, honestly, a bit corny, but near the end they had a cool water projection and it was an enjoyable night. :)
This next day was meant to be a morning of driving and an afternoon of relaxing and hiking, but not everything can work out the way its meant to! We had an interesting little, unplanned adventure through the town of Mt Gambier. As we were driving along, we unexpectedly stopped 7 km outside of the town because, guess what; the bus broke down! We then walked 3 km to a roadhouse where we sat for an hour or two before walking another 4 km to McDonald's where we stayed for another 3 or 4 hrs. Finally, we were able to figure out the bus couldn't be fixed quickly and we got a local charter to take us to our next stop in Naracoorte, South Australia. In the late afternoon some of us went on short hikes through the national park before we had a tour of a fossil cave that night!
Day 6 was a trip to gaol (jail)! No, I didn't do anything wrong (as far as the police know ;) haha), but in Gladstone, SA, they have an old haunted gaol, where we had a ghost tour followed by sleeping in the cells. :) I believe in ghosts, but the tour was funny at times as the gaol keepers over played it a couple times, I think. However, the next morning, I got up early for a shower, and I swear I heard sounds that didn't quite belong.
Now, we made our way up into the centre of Australia as the dirt started getting to that red that Australia is o known for. Next stop: Coober Pedy, the opal capital of the world! We arrived mid-afternoon following a stop in Woomera, where the Australian government tests long range missiles through a joint operation between the UK and Australia with support from the US. Once in Coober Pedy, we received a tour of the town, the underground Church, and a retired mine. Interestingly, the town's first tree ever was made from scrap metal and welded together! That night, coincidence brought us together with another group of Rotary Exchange students and a high school group, both from Melbourne!
We were all up early the next morning, and our bus pulled out from Coober Pedy at 0455, upon which we all fell asleep immediately, only to be woken up again in an hour, still in the car park for the underground hotel... The bus was having a 'hiccup' again! So we went back to sleep inside for a few hours to wake, and explore the town a bit more. :) Finally we left at 11, to start our long bus ride to Kings Canyon, Northern Territory! However, by now, the lack of sleep at night was starting to catch up to us, and while we had moments of fun and games, moments of silence started to become a bit more common on the bus, even if we weren't sleeping. Arriving to our destination after sunset and a time change because NT doesn't observe DST, we set up camp with our flashlights. The night gave us good fun, though, as we built a fire and danced / sung around it for a couple hours until we got yelled at!
The next morning we arrived to Kings Canyon and begun our walk after our driver and a couple of us had to carry extra water because the park rangers wouldn't let us go without 3 L/person, so, our driver, Martin, carried 40 kg (88 lbs) of water! It was a great walk with beautiful views! While it doesn't compare to the Grand Canyon, it was still very lovely. We even made a stop to the 'Garden of Eden,' which is a little oasis filled with water hidden in the canyon, and despite our leaders advising us not to, most of us went for a quick swim! After descending from the rim of the canyon, back to the car park, though, our bus decided not to start for us... It was fixed by mere luck and a nice bus driver whom we met at the border crossing into the NT. Yet, it caused us to arrive to Uluru (Ayer's Rock) late and miss the sunset....
The day at Uluru consisted of watching the sunrise over the rock from our campsite several kms away, before leaving to go to the rock itself! On the way, we even saw wild camels! At Uluru, we had a talk from the visitor centre about the area and the Anangu, the local Aboriginal tribe. This was followed by a short 1km hike around part of the rock and a description of some of the stories connected to it. We went back to our camp for lunch before going out the Kata Tjuta (Olgas) which is about 40 km away from Uluru. We had a walk and short geography lesson there before heading back to Uluru for the sunset. Sadly, it was overcast, so there wasn't a colour change, but it was still cool. It's just another reason to come back! :) I even met someone from Manhattan while watching the sunset! I didn't realize how nice it was to hear a familiar accent and talk to someone from [almost] home. That night, staying at the same camp as us were the exchange students we met in Coober Pedy!
Day 11 of Safari included driving to Alice Springs, which is a town that, while a prominent spot on the map, has only 20,000 people! On the way, we stopped at a place to ride camels, followed by a lunch of camel burgers! In Alice that night, we were visited at our camp by a reptile man who let us interact with two blue tongue lizards, a frill neck and a python similar to the one seen in this article! He also showed us a taipan, which is the world's most venomous! We were also educated on how to prevent and treat their bites, which differs from snakes in most other parts of the world as all native snakes in Australia don't have fangs long enough to get into the bloodstream. Pretty much, a decent pair of jeans is thick enough to prevent a snake bite from breaking the skin!
The next morning we explored the town for a little bit before heading to the airport for our flight to Cairns! We arrived early evening and went to our resort after ordering pizza for dinner. The next day we were brought out onto the Atherton Tablelands into the rainforest! The day was very adventurous with a stop at a giant fig tree not unlike the one in the film Avatar, a swim at a crater lake, a waterfall, and a natural rock slide! The day was full of fun and games!
Day 2 in Cairns brought us to the Great Barrier Reef! We had both breakfast and lunch on the boat and were allowed to snorkel whenever the boat was parked. I also went SCUBA diving in two sessions making a total of about an hour underwater! :) The Reef was amazing! Upon returning to Cairns, nine of us went to a restaurant where we shared 5 plates of kangaroo, emu, crocodile, buffalo, and barramundi!
Day 15 of Safari was almost entirely driving to Airlie Beach, a town very well named, as there is no natural beach in the area! In the morning, we boarded speed boats and took off into high winds and 2m waves on our way to the Whitsunday Islands. We had an hour to snorkel at a great spot with so many beautiful fish before we headed to Whitehaven Beach! This beach is one of the whitest in the world and we got to have lunch there before heading back to the mainland.
From Airlie, we left the tropics passing through Rockhampton, where, while trying to find a park for lunch, our bus broke down for the fourth and final time! However, it probably looked a bit weird to people passing by as our bus was stuck in the middle of an intersection and we ate lunch on the side of the road. O.o Sadly, this was the last time we saw our bus driver because they replaced bus and he couldn't continue with us... This was a huge disappointment because we almost had the same relationship with him as we did with each other. That night we stayed at an old homestead and had a 'Priscilla' night based on the film, "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert." The night consisted of everyone cross dressing and I looked pretty hot, if I do say so myself! haha, a bit slutty looking though... We also had karaoke which led to me embarrassing myself for a good portion of the night!
From here, we continued south to Noosa, and then on to Byron Bay, which is known for its surfing culture and for being the Eastern most point on mainland Australia! That night, a few of us had a moonlit swim in the mighty Pacific before dinner. The next day was a good sleep in before we had surf lessons! The surf wasn't that great this day and it was very crowded but still fun! :) I explored the town with some friends before heading back to camp. The next day was spent on the bus on our way to Sydney!
We arrived into Sydney just before sunset and drove over the bridge! After settling in to our hostel and getting dinner, a few of us took the train to Circular Quay and walked to the first pylon on the Sydney Harbour Bridge which offered a spectacular view of the Opera House and surrounding area. The next day we got a bus tour of the city and got an hour at Bondi Beach! About 5 of us went for a swim, while the others complained it was too 'cold' for a swim, even though the water was a lot warmer than the air. However, I'd have to say it was probably the first time I walked onto a beach with a jumper (sweatshirt) with the intention of swimming. A few of us, later, got Japanese for lunch before visiting the Queen Victoria Building (not to confused with the markets in Melbourne) before exploring a little bit and eventually heading to the harbour. We spent a little while in the Contemporary Art Museum before my friend, Yu (yes, his named was a source of confusion throughout the Safari! haha), and I took a ferry around to Darling Harbour and back from Circular Quay, which definitely became a higlight of the trip. It was just spectacular seeing the city from water, especially as the second half of our journey was after sunset! We walked back to the hostel to spend our last night of Safari with everyone. We all signed each other's flag and made our goodbyes before eventually heading off to bed late. :( The next morning, we all boarded busses and trains to went home...
Safari was some of the best weeks of my life and I loved it! Even with the bus breaking down, it couldn't have been much better than it was! :D We even raised over $100 for the Royal Flying Doctor Service which flies doctors to remote areas of Australia for emergency medical attention. We did this through a system of 'fines' similar to that which some Rotary clubs have. Basically, whenever someone did something embarrassing or funny, we would 'fine' them for it! At first this wasn't received too happy by the group, but after I took control of it for the remainder for the journey, people began to like it and would even tell me themselves when they did something worth a fine!
I loved that time, and I will truly miss the great friendships I've made on those long bus rides. Thank you to everyone who helped make my Safari and my exchange happen! Thank you so much!!! :D
It started on a cold windy afternoon, where everyone from my district met up in the capital, Canberra, followed by a bus, carrying the exchange students from two other districts joining us. That night was filled with a lot of socialising and being told the rules, etc for the trip. We also finally got our safari hoodies, complete with everyone's names!
The next day wasn't too exciting as far as the activities we did, but it was still a very fun ride (despite 8hrs on a bus) because everyone was still getting to know each other. We were also introduced to our 'morning song.' Our amazing bus driver had a morning song which he said we would listen to every morning when we got on the bus. This song was Sunscreen by Baz Luhrmann and we were told that if we memorised the lyrics we would be able to choose the morning song for the rest of the trip. So myself, and a couple others started working on it, and about halfway through the trip, I managed to get it in my head! However by that time, we all learned to love the song so it remained the same. (Don't forget to wear sunscreen! haha)
Day 3 consisted of roaming Melbourne! In the morning we were given a brief tour and outline of the city, then let loose at the Queen Victoria Markets. The main thing I wanted to do was go up to the Eureka Skydeck, which is the tallest viewing platform in the Southern Hemisphere! So, I went straight there with a few others, this was followed by exploring the city and a little shopping, with lunch in Chinatown. We went back to camp for dinner, before returning to see the QV Markets since they were closed that day. These markets are the largest 'under cover' markets in the southern hemisphere, and were pretty cool. Although not much there caught my eye, it was still a cool place.
Day 4: GREAT OCEAN ROAD! This day we embarked on the Great Ocean Road on our way to Warrnambool, Victoria after packing up and leaving Melbourne in the rain. Our first stop on the road was the Twelve Apostles, which are are spectacular columns of stone rising out of the cruel Southern Ocean. On our journey along the coast, we weren't lucky enough to have a clear day and it was overcast and foggy, but what we could see was still amazing and our excitement on the bus remained high and it was practically a party bus at times! When we to Warrnambool, we set up camp within two hundred metres of the beach. The night consisted of dinner (of course!) and a sound and light show displaying the history of the local coast, as it is known as the Shipwreck Coast! The show was, honestly, a bit corny, but near the end they had a cool water projection and it was an enjoyable night. :)
This next day was meant to be a morning of driving and an afternoon of relaxing and hiking, but not everything can work out the way its meant to! We had an interesting little, unplanned adventure through the town of Mt Gambier. As we were driving along, we unexpectedly stopped 7 km outside of the town because, guess what; the bus broke down! We then walked 3 km to a roadhouse where we sat for an hour or two before walking another 4 km to McDonald's where we stayed for another 3 or 4 hrs. Finally, we were able to figure out the bus couldn't be fixed quickly and we got a local charter to take us to our next stop in Naracoorte, South Australia. In the late afternoon some of us went on short hikes through the national park before we had a tour of a fossil cave that night!
Day 6 was a trip to gaol (jail)! No, I didn't do anything wrong (as far as the police know ;) haha), but in Gladstone, SA, they have an old haunted gaol, where we had a ghost tour followed by sleeping in the cells. :) I believe in ghosts, but the tour was funny at times as the gaol keepers over played it a couple times, I think. However, the next morning, I got up early for a shower, and I swear I heard sounds that didn't quite belong.
Now, we made our way up into the centre of Australia as the dirt started getting to that red that Australia is o known for. Next stop: Coober Pedy, the opal capital of the world! We arrived mid-afternoon following a stop in Woomera, where the Australian government tests long range missiles through a joint operation between the UK and Australia with support from the US. Once in Coober Pedy, we received a tour of the town, the underground Church, and a retired mine. Interestingly, the town's first tree ever was made from scrap metal and welded together! That night, coincidence brought us together with another group of Rotary Exchange students and a high school group, both from Melbourne!
We were all up early the next morning, and our bus pulled out from Coober Pedy at 0455, upon which we all fell asleep immediately, only to be woken up again in an hour, still in the car park for the underground hotel... The bus was having a 'hiccup' again! So we went back to sleep inside for a few hours to wake, and explore the town a bit more. :) Finally we left at 11, to start our long bus ride to Kings Canyon, Northern Territory! However, by now, the lack of sleep at night was starting to catch up to us, and while we had moments of fun and games, moments of silence started to become a bit more common on the bus, even if we weren't sleeping. Arriving to our destination after sunset and a time change because NT doesn't observe DST, we set up camp with our flashlights. The night gave us good fun, though, as we built a fire and danced / sung around it for a couple hours until we got yelled at!
The next morning we arrived to Kings Canyon and begun our walk after our driver and a couple of us had to carry extra water because the park rangers wouldn't let us go without 3 L/person, so, our driver, Martin, carried 40 kg (88 lbs) of water! It was a great walk with beautiful views! While it doesn't compare to the Grand Canyon, it was still very lovely. We even made a stop to the 'Garden of Eden,' which is a little oasis filled with water hidden in the canyon, and despite our leaders advising us not to, most of us went for a quick swim! After descending from the rim of the canyon, back to the car park, though, our bus decided not to start for us... It was fixed by mere luck and a nice bus driver whom we met at the border crossing into the NT. Yet, it caused us to arrive to Uluru (Ayer's Rock) late and miss the sunset....
The day at Uluru consisted of watching the sunrise over the rock from our campsite several kms away, before leaving to go to the rock itself! On the way, we even saw wild camels! At Uluru, we had a talk from the visitor centre about the area and the Anangu, the local Aboriginal tribe. This was followed by a short 1km hike around part of the rock and a description of some of the stories connected to it. We went back to our camp for lunch before going out the Kata Tjuta (Olgas) which is about 40 km away from Uluru. We had a walk and short geography lesson there before heading back to Uluru for the sunset. Sadly, it was overcast, so there wasn't a colour change, but it was still cool. It's just another reason to come back! :) I even met someone from Manhattan while watching the sunset! I didn't realize how nice it was to hear a familiar accent and talk to someone from [almost] home. That night, staying at the same camp as us were the exchange students we met in Coober Pedy!
Day 11 of Safari included driving to Alice Springs, which is a town that, while a prominent spot on the map, has only 20,000 people! On the way, we stopped at a place to ride camels, followed by a lunch of camel burgers! In Alice that night, we were visited at our camp by a reptile man who let us interact with two blue tongue lizards, a frill neck and a python similar to the one seen in this article! He also showed us a taipan, which is the world's most venomous! We were also educated on how to prevent and treat their bites, which differs from snakes in most other parts of the world as all native snakes in Australia don't have fangs long enough to get into the bloodstream. Pretty much, a decent pair of jeans is thick enough to prevent a snake bite from breaking the skin!
The next morning we explored the town for a little bit before heading to the airport for our flight to Cairns! We arrived early evening and went to our resort after ordering pizza for dinner. The next day we were brought out onto the Atherton Tablelands into the rainforest! The day was very adventurous with a stop at a giant fig tree not unlike the one in the film Avatar, a swim at a crater lake, a waterfall, and a natural rock slide! The day was full of fun and games!
Day 2 in Cairns brought us to the Great Barrier Reef! We had both breakfast and lunch on the boat and were allowed to snorkel whenever the boat was parked. I also went SCUBA diving in two sessions making a total of about an hour underwater! :) The Reef was amazing! Upon returning to Cairns, nine of us went to a restaurant where we shared 5 plates of kangaroo, emu, crocodile, buffalo, and barramundi!
Day 15 of Safari was almost entirely driving to Airlie Beach, a town very well named, as there is no natural beach in the area! In the morning, we boarded speed boats and took off into high winds and 2m waves on our way to the Whitsunday Islands. We had an hour to snorkel at a great spot with so many beautiful fish before we headed to Whitehaven Beach! This beach is one of the whitest in the world and we got to have lunch there before heading back to the mainland.
From Airlie, we left the tropics passing through Rockhampton, where, while trying to find a park for lunch, our bus broke down for the fourth and final time! However, it probably looked a bit weird to people passing by as our bus was stuck in the middle of an intersection and we ate lunch on the side of the road. O.o Sadly, this was the last time we saw our bus driver because they replaced bus and he couldn't continue with us... This was a huge disappointment because we almost had the same relationship with him as we did with each other. That night we stayed at an old homestead and had a 'Priscilla' night based on the film, "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert." The night consisted of everyone cross dressing and I looked pretty hot, if I do say so myself! haha, a bit slutty looking though... We also had karaoke which led to me embarrassing myself for a good portion of the night!
From here, we continued south to Noosa, and then on to Byron Bay, which is known for its surfing culture and for being the Eastern most point on mainland Australia! That night, a few of us had a moonlit swim in the mighty Pacific before dinner. The next day was a good sleep in before we had surf lessons! The surf wasn't that great this day and it was very crowded but still fun! :) I explored the town with some friends before heading back to camp. The next day was spent on the bus on our way to Sydney!
We arrived into Sydney just before sunset and drove over the bridge! After settling in to our hostel and getting dinner, a few of us took the train to Circular Quay and walked to the first pylon on the Sydney Harbour Bridge which offered a spectacular view of the Opera House and surrounding area. The next day we got a bus tour of the city and got an hour at Bondi Beach! About 5 of us went for a swim, while the others complained it was too 'cold' for a swim, even though the water was a lot warmer than the air. However, I'd have to say it was probably the first time I walked onto a beach with a jumper (sweatshirt) with the intention of swimming. A few of us, later, got Japanese for lunch before visiting the Queen Victoria Building (not to confused with the markets in Melbourne) before exploring a little bit and eventually heading to the harbour. We spent a little while in the Contemporary Art Museum before my friend, Yu (yes, his named was a source of confusion throughout the Safari! haha), and I took a ferry around to Darling Harbour and back from Circular Quay, which definitely became a higlight of the trip. It was just spectacular seeing the city from water, especially as the second half of our journey was after sunset! We walked back to the hostel to spend our last night of Safari with everyone. We all signed each other's flag and made our goodbyes before eventually heading off to bed late. :( The next morning, we all boarded busses and trains to went home...
Safari was some of the best weeks of my life and I loved it! Even with the bus breaking down, it couldn't have been much better than it was! :D We even raised over $100 for the Royal Flying Doctor Service which flies doctors to remote areas of Australia for emergency medical attention. We did this through a system of 'fines' similar to that which some Rotary clubs have. Basically, whenever someone did something embarrassing or funny, we would 'fine' them for it! At first this wasn't received too happy by the group, but after I took control of it for the remainder for the journey, people began to like it and would even tell me themselves when they did something worth a fine!
I loved that time, and I will truly miss the great friendships I've made on those long bus rides. Thank you to everyone who helped make my Safari and my exchange happen! Thank you so much!!! :D
20 May 2014
Ya...Actually, I did kinda forget about my blog...
Its probably about time I actually catch up on this blog thing. I believe my pictures are also a bit behind, so after they finish backing up, I'll add them for your viewing pleasure! Now to what my Australian life has included, I think pre-safari, will do best for this post.
Back at the beginning of March, the second of the month actually, I had a totally unplanned but fantastic day! Since I didn't have any plans, I decided I might as well go to church, which was nice, being the second time I've gone while in Australia. Yet, afterward, when I was meeting my host parents to bring me home, I ran into a rotarian who offered to take me along with him for the day, which turned out to be awesome! I helped him move a trailer before we went out for lunch with his family, a very pleasant experience. To take me home, he then offered me a ride on his motorbike! However, as we rode pass the airport, without telling me what he was doing, he just pulled in and brought me inside to his plane. This was followed by a great half hour or so plane ride around the area, where I got to fly (with the exception of takeoff and landing)! It was great to see my home (away from home) from the air and to pilot the plane. I've always wanted to fly, to this was amazing! :D
With the Australian Army Cadets during this time, we had the normal drill nights, but then some extra things. One of the nights was a swim test, so we all met at the town pool. The test consisted of a 50m swim followed by a 2min wade, which was easily done. THe rest of the night was great fun, just hanging out, playing soccer and footy. The following Saturday, we had a one day biv (bivouac), which consisted of some games, and practicing the flags for Anzac Day. THe following week, while continuing practice, we came up with a new drill movement, which we like to call the morf!
The month came to end with Safari, yet the weekend before, I had to get in a couple more great things! My host brother let me know about a UN Youth Conference up in Canberra, where I decided to join him. We left school early to go up to Canberra for the event which started that afternoon. Friday night consisted mainly of ice breakers and fun games. Saturday was an early start to the day before several workshops with discussions on things such as world order, and what that means. We also had a game called Interactive Problem Solving (IPS) based on current affairs and issues throughout the world. For this one, we were divided into several groups, each playing a different party in the affair. My group was the Secular Opposition while the issue was the ousting of the Egyptian dictator. We had to act is if we were this group, trying to represent their opinions based on the information we were given, while trying to forget everything we knew about the event from the news. The day also consisted of a guest speaker from CARE Australia, who spoke to us on what the organisation did and how they accomplished it. The Sunday consisted of another IPS, this time on something even more current. My group was representing the European Union, while the other groups represented the USA, Russia, and Ukraine. In this, as you may have guessed, we were trying to solve the Crimean Crisis. I have to say that for my group, this seemed to go really well and we were great politicians! haha We managed to avoid any major disasters and were beginning to take control of all parties though different negotiations. We had Russia and almost the US under our grasp while at the end we convinced Ukraine to join the EU! However this is how it ended since we only had an hour and a half to complete the activity, which definitely isn't enough time to solve all of Ukraine's problems! ;) Afterward, we also had a MUN, or Model United Nations, in which everyone represented a country; I was assigned to Senegal. This was followed by two resolutions being proposed and debated as these nations. Sadly though, with about 100 different people and countries, it was hard to get a position to speak within the time constraints of an hour per resolution, especially when my country didn't have strong positions on either resolution. But it was still fun!
That Saturday night, I left the conference while a Rotarian picked me up and then he dropped me back the next morning. This was so that I could go to a Brumbies game! The Brumbies are a team in Canberra who compete in Rugby Union, for those who don't know. It was a great game, and by the end of it, I got into the game almost as much as I would had it been a baseball game! THe Brumbies even won! It was great fun and I had a fantastic time. :)
THe rest of the month of March consisted of several parties, some small, some not, all of them fun. :) And of course, SURFING! Whenever I could I would be out on my board getting better and doing my best! Sometime during the beginning of the month, I even managed to stand up while at the top of the wave, as opposed to waiting til I slide to the bottom before standing up! I love surfing! :) Then came Safari, which I will talk about in the next post!
Back at the beginning of March, the second of the month actually, I had a totally unplanned but fantastic day! Since I didn't have any plans, I decided I might as well go to church, which was nice, being the second time I've gone while in Australia. Yet, afterward, when I was meeting my host parents to bring me home, I ran into a rotarian who offered to take me along with him for the day, which turned out to be awesome! I helped him move a trailer before we went out for lunch with his family, a very pleasant experience. To take me home, he then offered me a ride on his motorbike! However, as we rode pass the airport, without telling me what he was doing, he just pulled in and brought me inside to his plane. This was followed by a great half hour or so plane ride around the area, where I got to fly (with the exception of takeoff and landing)! It was great to see my home (away from home) from the air and to pilot the plane. I've always wanted to fly, to this was amazing! :D
With the Australian Army Cadets during this time, we had the normal drill nights, but then some extra things. One of the nights was a swim test, so we all met at the town pool. The test consisted of a 50m swim followed by a 2min wade, which was easily done. THe rest of the night was great fun, just hanging out, playing soccer and footy. The following Saturday, we had a one day biv (bivouac), which consisted of some games, and practicing the flags for Anzac Day. THe following week, while continuing practice, we came up with a new drill movement, which we like to call the morf!
The month came to end with Safari, yet the weekend before, I had to get in a couple more great things! My host brother let me know about a UN Youth Conference up in Canberra, where I decided to join him. We left school early to go up to Canberra for the event which started that afternoon. Friday night consisted mainly of ice breakers and fun games. Saturday was an early start to the day before several workshops with discussions on things such as world order, and what that means. We also had a game called Interactive Problem Solving (IPS) based on current affairs and issues throughout the world. For this one, we were divided into several groups, each playing a different party in the affair. My group was the Secular Opposition while the issue was the ousting of the Egyptian dictator. We had to act is if we were this group, trying to represent their opinions based on the information we were given, while trying to forget everything we knew about the event from the news. The day also consisted of a guest speaker from CARE Australia, who spoke to us on what the organisation did and how they accomplished it. The Sunday consisted of another IPS, this time on something even more current. My group was representing the European Union, while the other groups represented the USA, Russia, and Ukraine. In this, as you may have guessed, we were trying to solve the Crimean Crisis. I have to say that for my group, this seemed to go really well and we were great politicians! haha We managed to avoid any major disasters and were beginning to take control of all parties though different negotiations. We had Russia and almost the US under our grasp while at the end we convinced Ukraine to join the EU! However this is how it ended since we only had an hour and a half to complete the activity, which definitely isn't enough time to solve all of Ukraine's problems! ;) Afterward, we also had a MUN, or Model United Nations, in which everyone represented a country; I was assigned to Senegal. This was followed by two resolutions being proposed and debated as these nations. Sadly though, with about 100 different people and countries, it was hard to get a position to speak within the time constraints of an hour per resolution, especially when my country didn't have strong positions on either resolution. But it was still fun!
That Saturday night, I left the conference while a Rotarian picked me up and then he dropped me back the next morning. This was so that I could go to a Brumbies game! The Brumbies are a team in Canberra who compete in Rugby Union, for those who don't know. It was a great game, and by the end of it, I got into the game almost as much as I would had it been a baseball game! THe Brumbies even won! It was great fun and I had a fantastic time. :)
THe rest of the month of March consisted of several parties, some small, some not, all of them fun. :) And of course, SURFING! Whenever I could I would be out on my board getting better and doing my best! Sometime during the beginning of the month, I even managed to stand up while at the top of the wave, as opposed to waiting til I slide to the bottom before standing up! I love surfing! :) Then came Safari, which I will talk about in the next post!
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