Whitsundays and the greetings from Grandpa

Proof that Grandpa Wallis indeed sailed with me: First of all, getting onto the plane from Brisbane to Proserpine, I am sitting in a middle seat with Trace to my right and an empty seat to my left. An elderly gentleman comes to sit down next to me in the aisle seat and as I'm adjusting in my seat to give him some room, I see that his hands are identical to Grandpa's. And granted I was twelve when Grandpa passed, but I remember those hands. And once we're in Airlie Beach, Keri, Trace and I sit at a bar where we discuss our life stories. Keri is in the U.S. Navy. And was stationed in California. Do you believe in coincidences? Because I don't. You may take this as just a "coincidence" but I like to think this was Grandpa's way of saying "hey girl, I'm right here with you!"

Now aside with my contact with the 'other side', the islands are amazing. Our Captain Chris told us stories underneath the stars of how he's been stuck in the middle of the ocean with an approaching hurricane and how he's made a hut on a Samoan island. Talk about intense! The two skippers, Gemma 1 & 2 were so entertaining. Gemma 1 is from Scotland and she knew so much about the islands and put up the sails with an effort from me and some volunteers. Gemma 2 a.k.a Duckie is a kiwi and is the craziest person I've met from NZ. She made delicious dinners for us and told us about Elvis the fish which we got to see when we snorkeled later that day.

The beaches, islands and wildlife are so indescribable! We saw so many dolphins and sea turtles, and on the last day on the Reef, I got to swim with a sea turtle! The scuba diving was great, the coral reefs tower over you and I felt like I was in an episode of Planet Earth. These reefs with colors so bright- orange, purple, pink, red, white. These are things humans were never supposed to see. Whoever invented the concept of scuba diving: thank you.

Airlie Beach

The hostel we stayed at in Airlies called Beaches

Welcome to Paradise

Me and my Navy girl, Keri!

Whitehaven Beach, softest & whitest sand in the world!

Lookout point down onto Whitehaven

Our boat, the British Defender a.k.a The Defy!

Getting ready to put up the sail on the grinders

It's All Downhill From Here

8 weeks. That's all I have left. 8 glorious more weeks of parrots in my backyard, walking past Mt. Warning on the way to uni, eating $12 steak at the Richmond Hotel, dancing it out at the Unibar every Thursday night, and living my double life as a faux-Aussie. Can this be real? Am I really past the "hump" of my study abroad experience? The thought of leaving Australia makes my heart hurt. Literally, it's giving me heartburn. All the amazing people I've met and the beautiful things I have seen and experienced-- I'm not ready to put that in the past. So I won't.

Not for now anyways.

Tomorrow will be a great day. Besides escaping the chatty landlady as I slide out the door to class and the outdoor education exam that I've been preparing for-- tomorrow will be glorious. It marks the start of my journey to the Whitsunday Islands. My accomplices Texas and Keri will join me as we sail for 2 days/2 nights among the British Defender maxi yacht. This is what Grandpa Wallis has been leading me to, I can feel it! I have been looking forward to this trip the most because I know he would be right there with me on that boat, basking in all its glory.

And truth is, he's probably gonna be at the Whitsundays ready to go sailing with me.

Techno--Not for Me

Okay, whoever thought that blaring techno music for three hours straight had serious mental problems. A little bump, bump, bump every now and then is just fine and dandy with me- ask my friends they know I love to dance! But seriously after the 5th or 6th techno song I'm about ready to hit the hay. While we were in Sydney, we made it out to a nightclub in Darling Harbour and paid a ridiculous amount of money to get in only to find a mass amount of gay guys (and no, I don't have a problem with gays, I was just making an observation) and everyone sweatin' it out to the electronic beats and neon lights. As we were walking back from the club, we passed another house of dance and what do I hear? The sweet American hip hop I know and love. Now why didn't we go to that club? I blame it on the Canadians that were traveling with me.

But enough about techno.

Sydney and Melbourne were amazing! My travel buddies Trace (a.k.a Texas) and Thade were extremely fun to see the sights with and we managed to get some good travelling stories as well. Sydney consisted of: Sydney Aquarium, Sydney Tower, a viewing of Monsters vs. Aliens in 3D at the iMAX theatre, and the nightclub I mentioned earlier. We then proceeded to the Opera House and walked along Harbour Bridge then took a ferry back to Darling Harbour. There is so much to see in this city! The Asian population is enormous at times I felt that I was actually in an Asian country. Chinatown and all the markets are overwhelming but I was thrilled to take in all the sights. Sydney is definitely an international city with many diverse groups of people doing exactly what I was doing- being a tourist.

Melbourne is the art capital of Australia with many sculptures lining the city. I loved the atmosphere down there, very laid back, tons of historic landmarks including the Melbourne Gaol where the famous criminal Ned Kelly was hung. We even visited an ice bar where everything is made out of (you guessed it) ice! We witnessed our first AFL game (Australian Football League) and figured out what was going on by the 2nd quarter.

Needless to say, the trip was awesome and hopefully I'll be back to these cities, especially Melbourne because we didn't get to see all that we wanted to. I am now catching up on my sleep, school work, and I feel a sickness coming on. P.S. I've never seen my Australian bank account take a rapid plunge like it did after Sydney & Melbourne. Was it worth it? Absolutely.

Infront of the Opera House!

Texas and I contemplating our lives in Australia on the Opera House steps.

Standing on the Harbour Bridge at sunset.

Alex, Texas, Thade, and I with the Harbour Bridge in the background. Who knew I was so short?

The AFL game in Melbourne. This is what the goal posts look like.

Me, Texas, and Thade at the ice bar in Melbourne with cocktails in hand!

Sitting on the ice throne in downtown Melbourne.

Feels Like Home to Me

After approximately 9 weeks of living in Australia it's feeling a lot like home. The scenery, the people, the general way of life has swallowed me whole and I'm more than okay with that. I can be worry-free and not have a care in the world and the Aussies would most likely high-five me on that accomplishment alone. In fact, back at home I was always in a big worry-debate about something. Have to finish that paper, work til 11, time to study for that test, have to make a trip back home, get in some quality time with friends, orchestra rehearsal tonight, pencil in a time to call my best friend in Florida. Not this time! Aussies take it one day at time, they go with the flow and never look back. And this cultural norm has me hooked. Why can't we play a little more and freak out less? Life in the U.S. had me speeding around in my Escort (oohh how I MISS that car and driving with the music cranked up!) trying to get from one place to the other. Heck, even if I had my arm chopped off I think I would barely even notice with all the things on my plate. I know once I'm home again it's back to my speedy reality but for now, I will relish in this country and in this moment to slow down and enjoy life. My life.

This week I am off to Sydney and Melbourne for the Easter holiday with two of my good friends! Can't wait to get out and see a big city and definitely lots of action for us to get into. Have a very

Happy Easter everyone!

(my American friend Brittany and I, St. Patty's Day)

Here's to you, Australia! Thanks for showing me another good side to life.

Conversations with an Australian, Pt. 3

Australian: "This is this first time I've ever had a bagel."
Me: "Wow, really?"
Australian: "Look at me, I'm an American- I love bagels!!"

Meebun-bia: The Australian Bush

My first camping trip in Australia. 3 days and 2 nights. 20 SCU students, one teacher, and 2 camp guides. One of my favorite camping trips to date.

All of our things: food, clothes, rain gear, sleeping bag were carried in backpacks while we hiked around the bush. The bush is more like a huge forest. We had many activities including challenge courses in which we used harnesses to walk along wires tied to trees. Lots of climbing and making our way across makeshift bridges and ladders while being suspended 20-30 feet in the air. Intense!

Two of my favorite challenges that I accomplished while in Meebun-bia was the "Flying Fox" a.k.a ziplining. I ziplined across the Australian bush for over 300 ft at a height of atleast 60 feet. As soon as I jumped off the platform I yelled out over the bush (and my fellow campers), "GIRLS SCOUTS OF AMERICA!!!" Because ziplining and I have had a history throughout Girls Scouts and in particular Troop 1586. I thought of you girls the whole time and was wishing the people I camped with knew the words to "Hey Josephine" or "There Was a Great Big Moose" Don't worry, I sang to it by myself :) My other favorite challenge was the free fall, where I was attached to a rope through my harness, climbed a gum tree, and fell backwards from 40 feet in the air. It was so exhilirating!

All in all, it was extremely physical but so worth it. The possums kept getting into our food and literally hung out with us around the campfire. The possums here are a lot cuter and fuzzy but nonetheless I had trouble sleeping knowing the possums could crawl in any time looking for food. Our tents weren't possum-proof, just a bottom and top tarp with open sides.

Below are some photos I snapped between navigating through the bush and doing challenge courses (I wish I had photos of the challenge courses but no worries, our teacher, Steve a.k.a Chuck Norris, videotaped our entire trip and will be posting it online at the end of the semester) The sunset was incredible. We hiked up a hill, which in my opinion was more like a mountain because it was sooo steep, and took in the view. Our camp guides, Hollie and Feeney, told us to sit by ourselves on the hill to have quiet time to take in the sunset. Sitting there- I had no thoughts, no worries, no complaints. My sense of self got quiet and I prayed a bit- taking in all that was infront of me. In that moment, I felt truly blessed to see, feel, breathe, smell this beautiful land. Thank You (You know who You are!)

Surfer's Weekend

Academic update- okay, before I go into my weekend of learning how to surf, I thought I'd let everyone know that yes, I am still going to class! Contrary to popular belief, I am actually taking some challenging courses. I am currently trying to start my first paper in my class Australia, Asia, and The World. This class talks about Australian culture and how it is connected with other parts of the world. It is very interesting especially since we have such a diverse group (ages 18-50 something, Chinese, Americans, Australians, Kiwis, religious, non-religious, etc). We have a lecture once a week and then a small group recitation (they call it tutorials down here) once a week as well. The tutorials are extremely entertaining because we talk about religion, thought process due to cultural awareness, politics, nothing is off limits! I am also learning a lot from my 3 other classes- Communication in Organizations, Outdoor Education (we are taking a field trip this weekend to Meebun-Bia- for 2 nights/3 days in the Australian bush!), and Management in a Global Context. I am only allowed to take 4 classes as part of the study abroad agreement. I will be coming back to K-State with 15 transfered credits which is awesome. :) Now, onto the surfing...

Yes, that is me surfing!!

Went back to Byron Bay this weekend with my Canadian friend, Ashton where we both took two 3 hour lessons Saturday & Sunday. I was able to stand up on the board after my third try and it was an incredible feeling. Our instructor, Ainsle, has been teaching people how to surf for over eight years and she has been surfing for a total of sixteen years. My muscles are so sore from surfing. It exercises your arms, back, legs, everywhere! If I could, I would go surfing every weekend (might end up living by the ocean at some point after graduation... hmm). Byron Bay is a great place to get away to surf, relax on the beach, people watch, and eat some really good sushi.

Doesn't that look good?

After lunch, we were able to meet up with some friends and relaxed on the beach complete with beach towels, snacks and SPF. Our second day of surfing we were taught some tricks to move faster on the surfboard and trying to turn the board. Ashton and I thought it'd be a good idea to catch a wave together to get a great photo for the scrapbook (Note: will have several pages to make once I'm back home).

Ashton and I getting up on our boards

Looking good on our boards!

Ashton starts to lose her balance...

She bellyflops into the water right next to my board, but I decided to keep going!

My amazing surf instructor, Ainsle!

*Be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the website, I posted a YouTube video of Byron Bay so you can really see what the beach looks like!