New Zealand Love

Disclaimer: This entry is going to be miles long. If you have a short attention span, I suggest you just get the cliff notes version from someone.

FRIDAY
Longest day of my life. I woke up early because we had been having problems with our rental car and since it was in my name, I needed to fix it. Honestly, it being Monday now. I don't remember everything I did, but I was on the go from 9AM to 1:30PM. And I even got some homework in, which benefited me because I didn't have to do it when we returned tonight.

Our flight left Sydney at 6PM for Auckland, New Zealand. Check in took FOREVER. The line for carry on baggage only check in was just unacceptable. We arrived to Auckland around 11PM. As soon as we stepped off the plane, I was a nervous wreck about our car. I just had this fear that something was going to go wrong and we were going to be hitch-hiking around NZ instead of driving. Thankfully, our car was there and waiting! No problems there. Getting out of the car park at the airport was another story. Al was the first up to try his hands at driving on the "wrong" side of the road. All was good and dandy until the machine was faulty and it wouldn't eat his card. Oh, good laughs late at night in a foreign country. We made it to our first hostel unscathed, Base Auckland. It was right downtown, with plenty of bars around us. Too bad we were all tired and starving. So we ate Wendy's! That was exciting! I don't even think Australia has any of those. We didn't end up going to bed until 3AM, which worked out great considering we were getting up at 6AM.

SATURDAY
We left Auckland bright and early to begin the trip to Taupo. Al, Courtney & Cait were scheduled to sky-dive. I wish I could have participated, but it was not in the funds for me. New Zealand is B E A U T I F U L. I didn't sleep one time in the car because it's just too gorgeous to miss. Everything about it equals love. While those three were jumping out of an airplane, I took the car and drove around Taupo. I walked amongst the shops in search of sunscreen, and then I headed to the beach at Lake Taupo to read. I didn't do much reading. I did more picture taking and listening to the water. A m a z i n g. Oh, and driving on the other side of the road is surprisingly easy to pick up. I was scared to death at first, but it was no biggie. We all did it at some point, and we didn't die nor crash. Success!

After their crazy plane adventures, we jumped in the car to head to Rotorua. We were originally going to go to the Thermal Wonderland, but by time we got there, it was closed. I was depressed. This place really sold itself well in the brochures as one of "New Zealand's best volcanic areas with colours and hues everywhere." Sigh, at least we got to see the boiling mud pools. I have never taken so many pictures of mud in my life. After being in Rotorua for a bit, we were accustomed to the rotten egg smell of the place and hit up the thermal pools. For just $12, we relaxed in hot, natural pools. It was the best experience and the cheapest spa type place I will ever be at. Okay, it wasn't really a spa but it might've well as been!

We ended the night at Cactus Jack's Backpackers hostel. It was themed and all! I'm not sure what the theme was- Western most likely. It was the cheapest and greatest atmosphere of all of our hostels.

SUNDAY
Not quite as early of a start, but the first activity was White Water Rafting! OMG, I WAS A NERVOUS WRECK. I was so scared! I mean, me and extreme sports have a habit of not mixing well. But IT WAS FUCKING AMAZING. I can't wait to do it again! What a rush! Once I got over the fear, I had a blast. The four of us got our own raft with two guides, Wade & a handsome 18 year old named Tory. Can you feel the love already? Wade enjoyed us Americans and decided to give us a chant. Whenever we accomplished a rapid or right before, we held our paddles in the air and he yelled "TEAM AMERICA". Of course, we responded with a hearty "FUCK YEAH!" All of the other rafts were jealous.. I just know it. The rapids that we went on were Grade 5, which is the hardest that you can do like this. Can you see why I was so scared? We went down a 7m waterfall! That was the best part of the whole trip. Luckily, we didn't flip but we did get to see a boat flip. I was just happy to survive the waterfall intact. Wade also let us do a bajillion other fun things that most of the other rafts didn't do. Courtney rode on the front Cowgirl Style down a rapid. All four of us jumped out and went for a swim, only to have Wade tell us that we would be going down the next rapid with only our bodies. AWESOME! Cait and I got to "white water surf". Basically, I sat at the front of the raft facing the back on the floor. Wade then pushed the raft against the rapid and made the water fly over my head and soak everyone. It was hilarious! I couldn't stop laughing, while trying not to drown. Tory said that I was completely covered by a wall of water at some points. Don't worry, we paid the money for a CD of photos. They are the best! I was just proud of myself for not falling out, nor getting hurt. Huzzah!

After that, we went to Hobbiton aka where they filmed the hobbit parts of LOTR. I am ashamed to say, I have never seen the movies. But now I can say that I saw parts of where they were filmed. Oh, and we may or may not have seen construction for an upcoming movie which they are not allowed to discuss but everyone else knows about anyways. (If you don't know what I am talking about, that is sad. Even I knew!)

We headed to Waitomo after that to find our final hostel, Juno Hall Backpackers. This place was nice as well. There were hammocks! Which Al and I hung out in for a bit after our adventure of getting lost. We went to get dinner at the "two second town" and then we were going to go see the black sand beaches. Well, we did not quite make it there. Instead, we wound around and around for 45 minutes before deciding to turn back. The most adventurous parts were Cait running over a rabbit (I tried to make her feel better by saying it was on a suicide mission.. not funny?) and the talk of how we were in a scary movie & we shouldn't stop for anyone.

MONDAY (aka today)
Our final adventure in the Canada of Oz was Black Water Rafting. Let me just say, I was completely naive about this. I expected to just sit in a tube and float down through the caves while looking up at the glow worms and relaxing. Wrong. This was the most strenuous activity yet! We legit went hiking through a cave in wetsuits and helmets. I knew I was going to have problems from the moment that I couldn't get my wetsuit up and I needed a hike up from the muscular tour guides. To clarify: A hike up means that two men lifted me off the ground (feet dangling and all) by my straps to pull the suit up. Sadly, there was no documentation. After a crazy hike to the caves, we climbed our way down. We had to jump off a waterfall backwards with our bums in our tubes. There were some relaxing parts where we floated around in a long chain in COMPLETE darkness with only the glow worms guiding our way. It had the appeal of the night sky at points. The whole thing was phenomenal. I can't even describe in words how wonderful it was. Everyone should go black water rafting at some point in their lives. Of course, it would be better in New Zealand but just go wherever you can.The whole experience was exhausting, claustrophobic, cold, and fucking amazing!

Sadly, this is where the weekend came to an end. We had to jet our way back to the airport in time to catch our plane. We all had doubts for awhile if we would make it, but it really wouldn't have been the end of the world. We all fell in love with NZ, even more so than Australia. We did not want to leave at all. Gah, parts of this weekend are already a blur. Great people. Great fun. Great drives. Great scenery. Great activities. Everything was just amazing.

THINGS I LEARNED IN NZ: Kiwi men are sexy and very manly. I want to marry one and become the wife of a white/black water rafting instructor or something similar. Glow worms are really maggots that glow when using the toilet. Yum! Glow worm caves sound much better than glow maggot caves. Good job kiwis. I want to live in NZ more than Australia now. I never thought I'd see that day.

Well, I feel like I have forgotten about a million things to say. But this entry is miles long. I miss the adventures. Can I have them back? Oh wait, only 4 more days until Cairns & the Great Barrier Reef for spring break. I love the way we planned our trip.

A Reason To Blog

During a 50 minute snooze fest lecture about writing an essay, I realized I needed to blog. With nothing exciting to say, I have come up with a list of some things that I will miss about Australia.

*Australian techno music. It is everywhere, and I surprisingly love it. They usually take American music and add some crazy techno to it, but then sometimes it is completely unique and Aussie too.
*Barefooted Aussies galore. They roam everywhere barefoot. Lectures, tutorials, the grocery store.
*The hole in the Ozone layer. Believe it or not folks, I enjoy the hole being above Australia. It is making my hair lighter and my skin darker. Granted, I may get skin cancer but I think I was already getting that before I came here.
*Accents. Need I say more?
*Thai food on every corner. We need more in Illinois. Granted, Chicago has a lot but Belleville and Bloomington-Normal are very limited on their selection of Thai restaurants.
*Nice pants! My god, all of the men here wear GREAT pants. It's like a nice pants heaven for me.
*Not having to drive. I enjoy long drives, such as to and from school, but for the most part, I hate driving. I'm enjoying walking and public transportation.
*The "wrong" side of the road. I am getting so used to the wrong side of the road that I don't even know which side is right anymore! Today I literally was walking down the sidewalk using hand motions to try to figure out which way Americans drive on the road.

Obviously this list will get longer. I do still have 3 more months here, but this is all I could come up with during my lecture. I'm such a good student, eh?

Next update: My adventures in New Zealand. We leave Friday!

Trains & Jobs

I ventured to North Sydney this evening for a job interview. My favorite part about today was riding the train by myself. I love trains; they are much better than buses. More relaxing. Easier to navigate. Better smelling, most of the time. Unfortunately, though, I have yet to encounter crazies on the train. I await the day!

My job interview turned out to be a group interview, with 15 other people. You think they should have told us, eh? I have no idea what to expect out of it. I did meet a redhead who lives in my building. I have decided that the SUV administration put all the redheads in Old Stockade (aka the shittiest building). They are hair-acist. After the interview, a couple of Aussie girls were asking me about America. I love being questioned. And I learned that no matter where you grow up, you are not happy with it. They all want to leave Sydney and find it amusing that I love it here.

Yes, I really just used the word love. I am becoming quite infatuated with the city. I suppose I should ride trains more often to give me this state of mind.

I think tomorrow will be my first ever St. Patrick's day celebration. This week is hectic and wonderful.

Surf's Down

Yesterday I got to experience the life of a surfer chick. Let's just say, I don't foresee myself becoming one any time soon.

First, let me say that I did not kill myself unlike the last time I tried a new sport. *cough skiing cough* Yay! I was incredibly nervous and scared before our lesson, but in the end, surfing isn't scary. It is just super HARD.

I could barely balance on the board while lying down, yet alone attempt to stand up. But I gave it my all. Okay, maybe not really my all, because I just realized I couldn't do it. I wish I could say that I have some gnarly bruises and cuts, but all I have is achy muscles.

Surfing takes lots of practice. It's really a skill that you have to teach yourself. Do I have the patience to do that? No, nor do I have the muscles.

But hey, at least I can say I went surfing once in my life. Check off my "To Do List Before I Die".

Our Apartment is Shitty

The title says it all. Angelica and I have a dump of a place. Don't get me wrong, everyone we live with is nice. But I am sick and tired of the shittiness of this place.

Tonight, we came back to a non-functioning door. The key slot has been acting up, and well, it definitely wouldn't let us in. We looked like idiotic Americans at 1AM, trying to get in. We had to call security, but she was very friendly- especially when her key wouldn't even work. I felt so bad for the RA who had to come let us in. When will our apartment just function correctly and look good?!!

Also, even in Australia, we have bad nights & plans don't go as planned. The end. I'm ready for a little relief. Although, Al & I did go to this place called "The Ivy". I don't even know how to describe it. It was the coolest, fucking bar I have ever been to. There was even a pool. We definitely don't understand how we got in dressed in jeans; we were way under-dressed.

Oh, and I ate McDonalds here. I'm really upset by this because I *forgot* that I made the promise to myself. But from now on, NO MCDONALDS.

Life As Usual

I have no idea what to blog about, which is why I don't very often. Everyone seems to think I am leading this EXCITING and ADVENTURESOME life. Well, to be honest, my life is pretty normal. The only difference is that I am in Australia and y'all are in the United States. I go to school, and school is school. Although, I do have waaaaay too much free time on my hands. I have yet to find a job, but did get an interview for one that is too far away for me. But I get bored.. a lot actually. Right now, I am doing laundry. TOTALLY EXCITING.

So yes, I don't really have too much to say. I did have quite the scare the other night when we went out. I thought I lost my room key, but in reality I just locked myself out. No more drinking on a Tuesday night for me. Australians drink EVERY night of the week. I can't handle that.

I am going to New Zealand 26-29 of March! YAY! I didn't plan on traveling there, but it will be a super jam-packed weekend of fun! And then we have one week before spring break in Cairns & the Great Barrier Reef (courtesy of our program).

Life is gooooooooood, even if it is a little boring. :)

Uni & Classes

Before I begin a long entry about my first week of classes, I have a fun fact for everyone. Fun Fact #1- Australians do not bump & grind. Yep, that's it. Dancing here is difficult and weird.

I can officially say that I am back in school, and I have never been happier. Uni here is different. Let me explain. Classes are broken up into lectures and tutorials. Lectures are, you guessed, just like in the states. Most classes have 2 hours of lectures per week, but one of my classes only has 1 hour. Then you have tutorials, which are smaller group sessions where you discuss the readings for the week. Tutorials did not start this week, but I do have a bunch of reading to get started on. All in all, I do not hate my schedule yet. I do have a lot of awkward breaks. I just usual bring a book and my iPod and find a spot around campus to sit and read. I am falling in love with our campus more and more.

I am taking four classes, just like at IWU. Australian Theatre, Film & Learning; Land & Nation; Reality, Ethics, % Beauty; and American Literature. My theatre class is going to be awesome; it is an education class. We get to go see performances and such. Plus the teacher is a good looking Aussie man. Can't beat that! Although, I do find it extremely difficult to look past the accent and focus on what he is saying during lectures. Oooooops. The first day of Land & Nation scared me because I despise history courses. But then the second day I realized EVERYTHING I was learning was new to me. I really know nothing about Australian history. I am nervous about the debates later in the semester. As for Reality, Ethics & Beauty, I would never be taking this class if I didn't still need an AV gen ed at school. I may struggle a bit because I am not a philosopher of any kind, but I think if I work hard it will pay off. And finally, American Literature wasn't my first choice for a LIT class. I wanted to take Australian Literature but then it was no longer being offered. I do think it will be interesting to read the books and have them talked about from an Australian perspective. And I like that we are actually reading things that I have not read before, minus The Great Gatsby.

My first day on campus was OVERWHELMING. Uni has sooooooo many more students than IWU. It didn't really hit me until I saw everyone walking around that first day. I'm adjusting to it now, but it is still a very large change for me. Also, most of my classes have upwards of 100 people in my lectures. I've never been in a class of more than 30. I just keep telling myself that this is what I wanted. I don't hate it; just have to get used to it.

What else? Angelica wants me to go blonde. I found a place on campus that serves bubble tea; only boba is called pearls here. But tea is way cheaper than coffee, so that is my new obsession. Oh, we officially have all of our flatmates. Stephanie is a redhead too. 3 out of 5 of us are redheads. Coincidence? I think not. Totally planned. However, we still have a mound of junk that is not ours. We will be going through it and taking what we want and throwing the rest away soon.

It's been raining a lot here. Boo.