Wrapping Up

My study abroad trip is just about over. I was reluctant to say the long and drawn out goodbyes to my homestay family and some of the students I had gotten to know so well through this experience. The last bit of my trip was spent in Sydney and Cairns, Australia. In Sydney, I was accompanied by some of the students in my program. The city was gorgeous and reminded me of America with the hussle and bussle I had been missing in Adelaide! While there, I was able to do the Sydney Harbor Bridge Climb, visit the Aquarium, tour the Sydney Opera House, as well as indulge in some of the best food I'd had on the whole trip. I was able to add a trip to Cairns onto my program in order to go scuba diving at the Great Barrier Reef all by myself. This trip was absolutely worth the extra money and made it even harder to leave Australia. I got to swim with tropical fish and snorkel along the reef. So breath-taking. Scuba diving was a bit scary in some ways (being so far under water with a weighted belt, only relying on a hose for air), but I learned from the underwater panic, followed by a self-controlled calm, that I can tackle anything and overcome fears. After these last two cities, I headed back to the U.S. I may have been dragging my feet to come home the whole time, but it was a great feeling to see the friends and family I hadn't seen in so long. I plan to keep in contact with all of the new Australian and American friends that I became so close to over the past month. I hope to some day return to Australia, but only after I have seen the rest of the world first. :)
Cheers!

Thinking Ahead

I thought that I was busy at the beginning of this adventure. The whole program has been calm compared to recently. Within the past week or so, I have been to concerts, karaoke, internships, and midnight walks on the beach with new friends; while I still have yet to finish up school work, go to Uluru (Ayer's Rock), have farewells, and pack before heading to Sydney and Cairns. I have had the opportunity to meet so many wonderful new people. The other American students I have met on the trip will be friends forever. Even though I have been staying at a homestay, I have still managed to become extremely close with the other study abroad students. The Australian friends I have made are begging me to rearrange my flights and/or come back very soon. I would have no problem doing either of those, if only I had a job of some sort here. Since the Australian economy is extremely well-off at the moment, my American earned dollars are not going very far. This does in fact mean that I will not be rearranging flights and staying longer, but I do look forward to coming back and catching up in the future (hopefully sometime in the summer whenever the beach is not so breezy). Attached is a photo I took of an Australian sunset. I will only be able to enjoy this for one more week!

Cheers!

Slow Down!

My program is going way too fast! I only have about 2 more weeks before I come back home, and I feel like I have only been here for a few days. My politics class has already ended, and the community class' end is quickly approaching. I still have much work to finish up before coming home, and many trips to still make.
As a group, we went to Kangaroo Island last weekend. BEAUTIFUL! I could not get over the amazing scenery and wildlife. I even got to pet an echidna and sleep outside next to a fire! The whole evening, I was terrified of waking up next to a snake or spider. We went sandboarding and fit TEN people on three sandboards connected together, then went soaring down a sand dune. See attached picture! Best time ever.
This weekend, we are learning how to play footie, which is apparently a mix between football and soccer. Should be.....interesting, considering how uncoordinated I am. The weekend to follow, we will be taking a trip into the outback and camping out. I predict this outing will remind me of home. The only thing that will be missed is s'mores. They do not have graham crackers in Australia. I suppose they make up for it in having other fantastic foods. These past few weeks have been a whirlwind of fun and excitement and I am already trying to plan a return trip.

Cheers!

What have I been doing, you ask?

Aside from classes, and interning, I have been taking beach walks, attending music trivia games, hanging out with the other Americans  for the 4th of July, and meeting heaps of new people through my homestay sister, Scarlett. I have developed a wide new vocabulary that I can't wait to bring home. Aussies use word like heaps, keen, parroed, uni, capsuchin, and jumper. Sometimes, it is as if they are speaking English, but I cannot understand them! So glad I didn't go to a different speaking country. English is apparently "arduous" enough.
It feels as though I have completely settled in in Adelaide, but I can already see the end of my program coming up way too fast. I have already had many of those "I don't want to come home" moments. Wish me luck in getting on the plane back to the States. I am not looking forward to unregulated food, the accents that I grew up with, 20 degree winters, and, most of all, rude Americans. Nearly everyone I have met here so far have been prime examples of kindness, acceptance, health, and awareness. Aussies are a different breed of Anglo's; a breed that I could get used to.

Hanging at the Hub

It is about 6:45pm here in Adelaide, whilst it is 5:15am back home. I am sitting in the student Hub area on campus, working on papers and research while I wait for the clock to strike 9:00. I can explain....
Last weekend, I realized that having a cell phone with a net value of about $20 is a terrible/wonderful thing. The terrible part of the issue is that I do not value my cheap "pay as you go" phone enough to keep a close enough eye on it. From this, my phone went missing after a night in the city last weekend. Thankfully, I was still able to communicate through email and facebook for this past week, and hope and pray that my phone would be found; which brings me to the wonderful aspect of having a non-smart phone. No one wanted the phone badly enough to steal it! Hooray! Electric Circus (where I lost it) called my homestay sister and they actually found the silly thing. The business is not open until 9 tonight, so after a full day of internship at V.S.S., I patiently wait and work on homework until I can walk across town, grab the phone, and finally catch the bus home.
Today has been a pretty typical day for what I have experienced so far in Australia: Learning much, both from school and work, but also through life experiences.