I decided to stay with Fiona and Kim's Aunt Jill and Unlce Trevor for a couple days, so after Fiona and I went shopping, she dropped me off with her aunt. Wednesday night is Bingo night for her and Janet, so I tagged along. I figured I would rather get out of the house and hang out with some Aussies - even if it was with old people at a Bingo Night! It ended up being a lot of fun. Their aunt and cousins also came, so it was a big group of people at our table. We played 30 games and it was going alright up until the 25th game, when I won!!! Yes, me...the girl who nevers wins at games involving luck. I actually won...my heart was racing thinking I somehow made a mistake, but they confirmed it and handed me my $50!!! I could not believe it. After that, I was so glad I went. We just hung out at the club for the rest of the night until about 11pm. It was great to hear all kinds of stories about them growing up in Australia and also stories about the UK where half their family still lives.
This family is such a nice and open family - reminds me of the Durnans and Knutsons. They are constantly inviting family, friends, extended friends, etc into their homes when there are in town. And they all seem to enjoy having visitors, so they have made me feel very welcome.
So the pool part of my blog...I'm not sure if I mentioned this in an earlier blog or not, but the pool tables here are so different from ours. They play with smaller balls and tables than the regulation sizes in America. It is a little hard for me to play since I am used to larger tables and bigger ball sizes. Jill and Trevor have one in their house, so maybe I will just practice here for a couple days!
Yes, I finally uploaded all my pictures - check them out!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Mexican Food in Australia!!!
So I have been craving Mexican food ever since I got here, but I have not been able to find anything (surprise, surprise!). I mentioned this to Fiona when I got to Melbourne and since she too is a lover of Mexican food, she knew exactly where to go. Last night, we "dined" at Taco Bill's. It totally reminded me of smaller version of a Chevy's or something - without all the flare. I got a chicken enchilada and chicken taco. For the most part, it was similar but since I was craving it so badly, it tasted great. (But in reality, it didn't come even close to the "real thing".) The funny thing too is that I had my longest/best run this morning after eating all that crap last night. I guess all I needed was a little Mexican food in me!!
Today, Fiona took me out shopping before she had to go to work. We went to three different malls, and yes Dad, I visited my 2nd Westfield since arriving in Australia - can I write it off?!?! :)
I know this sounds funny, but part of the highlight of shopping was checking out the Target, K-Mart and Big W (similar to Wal-Mart) and comparing them to the ones in America. For the most part, they are the same, but still a lot of differences - like Target doesn't sell any food, crackers, etc. Oh, and the most interesting part is the amount of chocolate displayed EVERYWHERE!!! Since Cadberry is based out of Tasmania, that is the most popular chocolate around. And the eggs here are about 10x the size of the eggs you see in the US. They even have big football shaped eggs. I mean I'm sure you can find stuff like that in the US, but it is everywhere here - they don't believe in the little dinky eggs we usually get in our baskets.
Let's see, what else...oh yes, the eateries. For the most part, everything is almost anything Oriental or else pies...and I'm not talking about dessert pies. They have their meat pies, veggie pies, quiches and all these gourmet sandwiches - very different than in the US. And, at quite a few of the places in the food court, you can buy alcohol - now Dad, would you ever see that in a Westfield Mall in America?!?
I love being immersed a little more into the Australian lifestyle, but am also really looking forward to getting out of all the big cities and heading to the outback and then the beach life.
My next task now is to find out what bar will be open at 10am Monday morning so I can watch the SuperBowl!!!
Today, Fiona took me out shopping before she had to go to work. We went to three different malls, and yes Dad, I visited my 2nd Westfield since arriving in Australia - can I write it off?!?! :)
I know this sounds funny, but part of the highlight of shopping was checking out the Target, K-Mart and Big W (similar to Wal-Mart) and comparing them to the ones in America. For the most part, they are the same, but still a lot of differences - like Target doesn't sell any food, crackers, etc. Oh, and the most interesting part is the amount of chocolate displayed EVERYWHERE!!! Since Cadberry is based out of Tasmania, that is the most popular chocolate around. And the eggs here are about 10x the size of the eggs you see in the US. They even have big football shaped eggs. I mean I'm sure you can find stuff like that in the US, but it is everywhere here - they don't believe in the little dinky eggs we usually get in our baskets.
Let's see, what else...oh yes, the eateries. For the most part, everything is almost anything Oriental or else pies...and I'm not talking about dessert pies. They have their meat pies, veggie pies, quiches and all these gourmet sandwiches - very different than in the US. And, at quite a few of the places in the food court, you can buy alcohol - now Dad, would you ever see that in a Westfield Mall in America?!?
I love being immersed a little more into the Australian lifestyle, but am also really looking forward to getting out of all the big cities and heading to the outback and then the beach life.
My next task now is to find out what bar will be open at 10am Monday morning so I can watch the SuperBowl!!!
Monday, January 28, 2008
Melbourne
Well, I made it to Melbourne at 9:30am and my friend Kim picked me up. I was so exhausted from the night before, but she was only going to be in town today, so we had a whole day planned of hanging out. Unfortunately, it is canning season in Shepparton and so she works her day job as well as nights/weekends at the cannery, so she doesn't have much free time until April. Maybe we will see each other again along the way, but it was still nice to hang out with her and catch up in the little time we had together.
Next, we drove out to her aunts' house to pick up Janet and Jill - they were going to hang out with us all day. I am so glad they did because they each had a million great ideas of things to do in the area as well as information about future travels.
So we pull up to Janet's house and it was crazy because I remembered the house. I had been here 9 years ago when we stayed in Melbourne and went to a footy game. I totally remembered the BBQ we had and the house. We also went back to the footy stadium, but I didn't really remember it.
After picking them up, we headed up to the Dandenongs. It is a forest/mountain area just north of their city with all these quaint little villages with shops and tea rooms. The trees in the area are amazing - very tall and green and you would never guess the continent is going through a drought. It reminded me of Julian and they do a similar thing of taking all the visitors to the area. We had lunch at Miss Marples Tea Room. It was really nice and I was so hungry that even my funky salmon sandwich was tasty. Here's what it was - two pieces of bread laid out with mushrooms, olives, alphalfa sprouts, other weird things, lettuce, tomato and then thin slices of cold salmon laid out over top. I felt bad picking off most of it, but oh well... :)
After lunch, we walked around into some of the shops and I got more information from the ladies of things to do while I'm here. Kim and I dropped them back off at their houses and then went to Fiona's work (Kim's sister). I am staying with her while in Melbourne, so I switched all my stuff into Fiona's car and took off with her. I had to say goodbye to Kim there, but hopefully will see here again soon.
Fiona and I went to her boyfriend, Blake's, apartment and took the train into the city to meet up with some of their other friends (Bob and Nikki) that were in town for the weekend. We went to the tallest building in Melbourne (The Edge) and took the elevator up to the 88th floor to check out the view of the city. It is a great view and was nice to see the whole city from up above. One of the coolest parts was that we were up there right when the Men's Finals for the Australian Open started, so we go to see the stadium and huge crowds all around that were in town to watch the match. Side note: Great match, very evenly matched players and lasted around 3 hours. It was cool to be just down the street from the event.
After The Edge, we went to "The Crown". It is the casino in the city, but also has food, bowling, movie theatre, an arcade and shops. We walked around, had a bite to eat, and then headed to the arcade. We couldn't go in the casino because Fiona forgot her license. We found this flight simulator ride that went upside down and sideways so Nikki and I went on it first (Bob and Blake were next). It was a great ride, but I was almost falling out of my seat so we were laughing the whole time. Oh yeah, when we were waiting to get on the ride, there were 3 Australian guys waiting ahead of us. One of them had just won a Puss 'n Boots (from Shrek) stuffed animal in one of the arcade things and he just turned to me and said "This is for you, love..." So, now I have a mascot with me. Luckily, he is small, so I should be able to keep him with me throughout the rest of the trip.
We ended up going bowling after the arcade and hung out and had some drinks. I was fun to finally hang out with a group of Australians - I just liked listening to them talk. I was also listening in to most of the groups around us conversations because I just wanted to hear their accents - I know, I'm nosey! :)
It was about midnight when we finally left "The Crown" and we headed back to the train station only to find we missed the last train out of the city. We ended up having to take a taxi back to Blake's car at the other train station. So by the time Fiona and I got home it was 2am. I was exhausted!!! And what's funny is this is the first time I have stayed up past midnight in Australia. I somehow survived, but I'm sure the soda I had helped in keeping me awake.
So the best part about being here - NOT BEING IN A HOSTEL!!!!! It was great to sleep in a queen sized bed without sharing a room. And I loved showering in a real shower where I didn't have to carry all my stuff to and from the bathroom. I actually get to settle down a little bit and not have to worry about other people using the same space as me. Also, it was quite!!! I didn't have to sleep with my earplugs or blindfold on...
When I was heading back from the Blue Mountains to Sydney, I was writing in my journal about how nice all the hostels here were. I was spoiled during my first week in Sydney and up in the Blue Mountains. We stayed at YHA's which are very clean and a top of the line hostel around Australia. Unfortunately, we made the mistake of finding a cheaper hostel on our return trip to Sydney and it was so gross and dirty and loud (right above a bar). It made the experience in the city that much worse. I am glad though that I had the experience because now I have a little better idea of what most of the hostels are like out there. I decided though that I will only stay in YHA's from now on if I have to stay in a hostel!
Today, Fiona had to work, so I slept in and got up around 9:30am. I of course went for a run around the town. What a great little town - so much better than being in the city. It was nice to not have to fight cars and yet have enough space to get a good long run in. I think I will do some more exploring tomorrow as well. I also went for a walk tonight to check out more of the area. I really have come to enjoy walking everywhere - it is amazing all the things you find out about a place by running or walking around even when you have no idea where you are going!
These next couple of weeks will mostly be me sitting around and relaxing as well as getting prepared for the next leg of my trip. I probably won't blog as much, but will try to get my pictures up as soon as possible.
Next, we drove out to her aunts' house to pick up Janet and Jill - they were going to hang out with us all day. I am so glad they did because they each had a million great ideas of things to do in the area as well as information about future travels.
So we pull up to Janet's house and it was crazy because I remembered the house. I had been here 9 years ago when we stayed in Melbourne and went to a footy game. I totally remembered the BBQ we had and the house. We also went back to the footy stadium, but I didn't really remember it.
After picking them up, we headed up to the Dandenongs. It is a forest/mountain area just north of their city with all these quaint little villages with shops and tea rooms. The trees in the area are amazing - very tall and green and you would never guess the continent is going through a drought. It reminded me of Julian and they do a similar thing of taking all the visitors to the area. We had lunch at Miss Marples Tea Room. It was really nice and I was so hungry that even my funky salmon sandwich was tasty. Here's what it was - two pieces of bread laid out with mushrooms, olives, alphalfa sprouts, other weird things, lettuce, tomato and then thin slices of cold salmon laid out over top. I felt bad picking off most of it, but oh well... :)
After lunch, we walked around into some of the shops and I got more information from the ladies of things to do while I'm here. Kim and I dropped them back off at their houses and then went to Fiona's work (Kim's sister). I am staying with her while in Melbourne, so I switched all my stuff into Fiona's car and took off with her. I had to say goodbye to Kim there, but hopefully will see here again soon.
Fiona and I went to her boyfriend, Blake's, apartment and took the train into the city to meet up with some of their other friends (Bob and Nikki) that were in town for the weekend. We went to the tallest building in Melbourne (The Edge) and took the elevator up to the 88th floor to check out the view of the city. It is a great view and was nice to see the whole city from up above. One of the coolest parts was that we were up there right when the Men's Finals for the Australian Open started, so we go to see the stadium and huge crowds all around that were in town to watch the match. Side note: Great match, very evenly matched players and lasted around 3 hours. It was cool to be just down the street from the event.
After The Edge, we went to "The Crown". It is the casino in the city, but also has food, bowling, movie theatre, an arcade and shops. We walked around, had a bite to eat, and then headed to the arcade. We couldn't go in the casino because Fiona forgot her license. We found this flight simulator ride that went upside down and sideways so Nikki and I went on it first (Bob and Blake were next). It was a great ride, but I was almost falling out of my seat so we were laughing the whole time. Oh yeah, when we were waiting to get on the ride, there were 3 Australian guys waiting ahead of us. One of them had just won a Puss 'n Boots (from Shrek) stuffed animal in one of the arcade things and he just turned to me and said "This is for you, love..." So, now I have a mascot with me. Luckily, he is small, so I should be able to keep him with me throughout the rest of the trip.
We ended up going bowling after the arcade and hung out and had some drinks. I was fun to finally hang out with a group of Australians - I just liked listening to them talk. I was also listening in to most of the groups around us conversations because I just wanted to hear their accents - I know, I'm nosey! :)
It was about midnight when we finally left "The Crown" and we headed back to the train station only to find we missed the last train out of the city. We ended up having to take a taxi back to Blake's car at the other train station. So by the time Fiona and I got home it was 2am. I was exhausted!!! And what's funny is this is the first time I have stayed up past midnight in Australia. I somehow survived, but I'm sure the soda I had helped in keeping me awake.
So the best part about being here - NOT BEING IN A HOSTEL!!!!! It was great to sleep in a queen sized bed without sharing a room. And I loved showering in a real shower where I didn't have to carry all my stuff to and from the bathroom. I actually get to settle down a little bit and not have to worry about other people using the same space as me. Also, it was quite!!! I didn't have to sleep with my earplugs or blindfold on...
When I was heading back from the Blue Mountains to Sydney, I was writing in my journal about how nice all the hostels here were. I was spoiled during my first week in Sydney and up in the Blue Mountains. We stayed at YHA's which are very clean and a top of the line hostel around Australia. Unfortunately, we made the mistake of finding a cheaper hostel on our return trip to Sydney and it was so gross and dirty and loud (right above a bar). It made the experience in the city that much worse. I am glad though that I had the experience because now I have a little better idea of what most of the hostels are like out there. I decided though that I will only stay in YHA's from now on if I have to stay in a hostel!
Today, Fiona had to work, so I slept in and got up around 9:30am. I of course went for a run around the town. What a great little town - so much better than being in the city. It was nice to not have to fight cars and yet have enough space to get a good long run in. I think I will do some more exploring tomorrow as well. I also went for a walk tonight to check out more of the area. I really have come to enjoy walking everywhere - it is amazing all the things you find out about a place by running or walking around even when you have no idea where you are going!
These next couple of weeks will mostly be me sitting around and relaxing as well as getting prepared for the next leg of my trip. I probably won't blog as much, but will try to get my pictures up as soon as possible.
HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY - Jan 26th
Saturday, January 26th, was Australia Day. This celebrates the day the First Fleet landed in Sydney Harbour. Most locals call it "White Australia Day" because they feel it is just the white Australians way of celebrating taking the land from the Aboriginals. Again, so much hostility between the two sides still to this day. Anyways, it is a huge celebration and the main reason I stayed in Sydney for this long. I wanted to experience what all the hype was about.
So the day started off with me getting up at 6:30am for a run around the city. Rebecca and I stayed at a new hostel (big mistake - I will blog on that later), so I ran around starting at Darling Harbour and did a 6-mile loop around the harbours and city. It was finally sunny!!! But also extremely hot. It was nice though to see all the sights in the sunlight.
After a shower and quick breakfast, we headed down to the Harbour Bridge to watch the Ferry Races (what a great view from along the bridge walk). The harbour areas were packed with families, tourists, young, old, you name it. It reminded me of a 4th of July celebration in America. After the Ferry races around the harbour, there was a boat parade with all these decorated boats. We just walked all over town and people watched. It was funny because people were "tailgating" all over the place. We felt a little out of place because we didn't have our "picnic baskets" and wine or beer with us. We had no idea what to expect, so we didn't bring anything but water and snacks (oh wait, Matt had his Johnny Walker water bottle too!) A lot of people were already drunk by noon - including Matt! He thoroughly enjoyed the holiday - any reason to party...
We had lunch at a Pizza parlour in "The Rocks" and got a table by the window so we were able to people watch even better. By the way, the pizza was awesome! As this was only my 2nd meal in a real restaurant, I was astounded by the service - they take your order, give you your food and then you don't see anyone again until you finally wave them down for more drinks, water, or your bill. I guess that is why no one tips.
After walking around for a few more hours and checking out all the festivities in the parks, I headed back to my crappy hostel to back up my things and get ready for Sunday morning (I had to leave the hostel at 6:00am for my flight to Melbourne).
Later that night, we all met up for drinks at Dock's on Darling Harbour. We hung out for a few hours and waited for the fireworks show. They had this huge presentation with boats, kayakers, singers, speakers, etc. Finally around 9:15pm, they had a spectacular fireworks show - better than any I have seen in the US.
A couple of the people around us found out we were Americans and had a really fun time with that - couldn't believe we would be out celebrating Australia Day. I think they were all pretty drunk though so they probably found a lot of things funny that night.
I got back to my hostel around 10:30pm and headed to bed. Unfortunately, the rest of the city did not realize this and were awake and loud in the streets until around 4:30am - needless to say, I didn't get much sleep that night.
So the day started off with me getting up at 6:30am for a run around the city. Rebecca and I stayed at a new hostel (big mistake - I will blog on that later), so I ran around starting at Darling Harbour and did a 6-mile loop around the harbours and city. It was finally sunny!!! But also extremely hot. It was nice though to see all the sights in the sunlight.
After a shower and quick breakfast, we headed down to the Harbour Bridge to watch the Ferry Races (what a great view from along the bridge walk). The harbour areas were packed with families, tourists, young, old, you name it. It reminded me of a 4th of July celebration in America. After the Ferry races around the harbour, there was a boat parade with all these decorated boats. We just walked all over town and people watched. It was funny because people were "tailgating" all over the place. We felt a little out of place because we didn't have our "picnic baskets" and wine or beer with us. We had no idea what to expect, so we didn't bring anything but water and snacks (oh wait, Matt had his Johnny Walker water bottle too!) A lot of people were already drunk by noon - including Matt! He thoroughly enjoyed the holiday - any reason to party...
We had lunch at a Pizza parlour in "The Rocks" and got a table by the window so we were able to people watch even better. By the way, the pizza was awesome! As this was only my 2nd meal in a real restaurant, I was astounded by the service - they take your order, give you your food and then you don't see anyone again until you finally wave them down for more drinks, water, or your bill. I guess that is why no one tips.
After walking around for a few more hours and checking out all the festivities in the parks, I headed back to my crappy hostel to back up my things and get ready for Sunday morning (I had to leave the hostel at 6:00am for my flight to Melbourne).
Later that night, we all met up for drinks at Dock's on Darling Harbour. We hung out for a few hours and waited for the fireworks show. They had this huge presentation with boats, kayakers, singers, speakers, etc. Finally around 9:15pm, they had a spectacular fireworks show - better than any I have seen in the US.
A couple of the people around us found out we were Americans and had a really fun time with that - couldn't believe we would be out celebrating Australia Day. I think they were all pretty drunk though so they probably found a lot of things funny that night.
I got back to my hostel around 10:30pm and headed to bed. Unfortunately, the rest of the city did not realize this and were awake and loud in the streets until around 4:30am - needless to say, I didn't get much sleep that night.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
The Ruined Castle
I am sitting here waiting for our ride back to Sydney, so I thought I would blog about my day today.
First off, I forgot to mention a story about yesterday. When our tour bus left Jenolan Caves, we actually picked up two more people at the caves. They had just completed a 42km run along a trail called Six Foot Track. It took them 8.5 hours, so I am assuming that it was a strenuous hike. This is the same trail the city uses for the annual marathon in March. (Joey - how much fun would that be!) I was really impressed with their accomplishment, but they totally looked the part, so it probably wasn't a difficult task for them. It made me miss training...
So today started off with us packing up all our gear, checking out and storing our luggage in lockers. Our ride won't pick us up until 5pm, so we decided to go bushwalking today (again!). We did a completely different trail today though and headed to the Ruined Castle. It is a 6 hour return trip, so we headed out at 9:30am to make sure we would be back on time. The weather was absolutely perfect today. Sunny and warm, but not too warm. We really lucked out finally on our last day here. So we headed out to Narrowneck Plateau and then down the Golden Stairway (very steep). I was in the lead at this point and what do you know, as I am walking along, all of a sudden I stop short because in front of me is a 2 foot brown snake (2nd deadliest in the Blue Mountain area). Okay, so I'm not 100% sure it was that type of snake, but Nackers mentioned them the other day, so I figured it must be! We took pictures and it scurried along off the path, so we were able to skirt around it - I made Matt take the lead from there!
After the stairway, we hiked along Federal Pass to the Ruined Castle. The climb up to the castle was steep and hard, but I thought "it's gotta be worth it!" Well, it really wasn't. The "Ruined Castle" was just a huge rock formation that had probably been knocked over some thousands of years ago. The sites were beautiful though and we got to see so much more of the mountains and valleys. We all climbed to the top of the rocks and got to look out over everything. Oh wait, I made it only three quarters of the way because I'm not a big fan of rock climbing and it wasn't very easily accessible.
For the return trip, we decided to go another way and hike to the Landslide area back to the Scenic Railway but it was more like rock climbing. The Landside area is an actually landslide area, so you have to manuever your way around and try to stay on the path. We almost got lost a couple times. We made our way to the Scenic Railway and again decided to hike up the 1,000 steps instead of take the easy way up. By the time we got back to the hostel, it had only taken us 5 hours to do the hike, so I guess we were a little faster than most. I like hiking with Matt because he is more my speed (Cory and Rebecca showed up about 45 minutes later).
Now we head back to Sydney for a few days before heading to Melbourne. I'm not really looking forward to being back in the city, but Saturday is Australia Day, so that should be fun.
First off, I forgot to mention a story about yesterday. When our tour bus left Jenolan Caves, we actually picked up two more people at the caves. They had just completed a 42km run along a trail called Six Foot Track. It took them 8.5 hours, so I am assuming that it was a strenuous hike. This is the same trail the city uses for the annual marathon in March. (Joey - how much fun would that be!) I was really impressed with their accomplishment, but they totally looked the part, so it probably wasn't a difficult task for them. It made me miss training...
So today started off with us packing up all our gear, checking out and storing our luggage in lockers. Our ride won't pick us up until 5pm, so we decided to go bushwalking today (again!). We did a completely different trail today though and headed to the Ruined Castle. It is a 6 hour return trip, so we headed out at 9:30am to make sure we would be back on time. The weather was absolutely perfect today. Sunny and warm, but not too warm. We really lucked out finally on our last day here. So we headed out to Narrowneck Plateau and then down the Golden Stairway (very steep). I was in the lead at this point and what do you know, as I am walking along, all of a sudden I stop short because in front of me is a 2 foot brown snake (2nd deadliest in the Blue Mountain area). Okay, so I'm not 100% sure it was that type of snake, but Nackers mentioned them the other day, so I figured it must be! We took pictures and it scurried along off the path, so we were able to skirt around it - I made Matt take the lead from there!
After the stairway, we hiked along Federal Pass to the Ruined Castle. The climb up to the castle was steep and hard, but I thought "it's gotta be worth it!" Well, it really wasn't. The "Ruined Castle" was just a huge rock formation that had probably been knocked over some thousands of years ago. The sites were beautiful though and we got to see so much more of the mountains and valleys. We all climbed to the top of the rocks and got to look out over everything. Oh wait, I made it only three quarters of the way because I'm not a big fan of rock climbing and it wasn't very easily accessible.
For the return trip, we decided to go another way and hike to the Landslide area back to the Scenic Railway but it was more like rock climbing. The Landside area is an actually landslide area, so you have to manuever your way around and try to stay on the path. We almost got lost a couple times. We made our way to the Scenic Railway and again decided to hike up the 1,000 steps instead of take the easy way up. By the time we got back to the hostel, it had only taken us 5 hours to do the hike, so I guess we were a little faster than most. I like hiking with Matt because he is more my speed (Cory and Rebecca showed up about 45 minutes later).
Now we head back to Sydney for a few days before heading to Melbourne. I'm not really looking forward to being back in the city, but Saturday is Australia Day, so that should be fun.
Jenolan Caves
Day 3 in the Blue Mountains...before I continue on, I should probably explain why they are called the Blue Mountains. Apparently, the man who discovered the mountains saw a blue hue coming off from the mountains so he named them Blue Mountains. Many years later, someone realized the color came from the eucalyptus tree oils. And that my friends is how it got its name (I know, a long and complicated story...).
FIRST OF ALL...IT WAS SOMEWHAT SUNNY TODAY AND DIDN'T RAIN!!!!!!
So today started with me getting up early and heading to the Village Gym. Yup, that's right...up here in the beautiful Blue Mountains and I went to the gym. Let me tell you, it was the best feeling ever for me! I know I'm crazy, but I guess most people just wouldn't understand. After not lifting for 2 weeks, it felt so good to get a 2 hour workout in. It was such a quaint little place and the people were super nice. Again, it felt wonderful to be there!
After I came back and showered, I headed off for my day trip to the Jenolan Caves. Today was my first day doing something alone - no one else wanted to come and I didn't want to do what anyone else was doing. It felt good to be alone, but lonely (make sense?!?!). It was good practice though for my future adventures - I won't be with the other three the rest of the time.
So I got on my tour bus and headed 75km to Jenolan Caves. I saw a lot more of the mountains and what a beautiful area this is. So many trees and very green. It is totally different type of mountains than what I am used to. I saw a bunch of cows (look Pat, dows!) and sheep along the way and many farms. Our bus driver told us a lot of history about the area so I was glad I took the tour to learn more and see more.
The road going down to the caves was crazy. It was alittle more than a bus length wide and very steep. The driver did very well to maneuver around the turns. It was have been awesome riding it on a motorcycle (Vinny would have loved it!).
The caves were amazing (I will upload photos when I get back to Sydney). It reminded me of caves I saw back in the states, but it still surprises me what nature can do when I see things like this. I wanted to touch them, but I wasn't allowed. :( The tour lasted 1.5 hours and we climbed a ton of steps in and out of them. ALL THESE STEPS HERE!!! After the tour, I walked the trail around this blue water lake at the front entrance of the caves. They saw sometimes you can see platypus, but I didn't see anything. It was still really pretty though. Oh and then an old lady stopped me and asked if I had seen her friend in a big hat. I don't know if she was serious of a crazy old lady...I never did see the other lady with a big hat.
After that, it was time to take the bus back to the hostel. We tried to go to the local Kmart but it closed at 5:30pm (surprise, surprise), so we watched a movie instead. Nothing really excited is going on tonight - I may just curl up with my book and enjoy the atmosphere here on our last night. I think we are all tired from all the bushwalking and we are planning on doing another bushwalk tomorrow that is 5-6 hours long, so we are saving energy for that.
Being alone today was nice and I finally had some time to think about life and whatnot. It was also nice to be able to just do what I wanted, when I wanted and not worry about anyone else. I think I will enjoy the moments I have like this throughout the trip.
On a side note, major tragedy in Australia today...Heath Ledger died in NYC at the age of 28. He was born in Perth, so it is big news around here. He was so young and very talented. He will be missed...
FIRST OF ALL...IT WAS SOMEWHAT SUNNY TODAY AND DIDN'T RAIN!!!!!!
So today started with me getting up early and heading to the Village Gym. Yup, that's right...up here in the beautiful Blue Mountains and I went to the gym. Let me tell you, it was the best feeling ever for me! I know I'm crazy, but I guess most people just wouldn't understand. After not lifting for 2 weeks, it felt so good to get a 2 hour workout in. It was such a quaint little place and the people were super nice. Again, it felt wonderful to be there!
After I came back and showered, I headed off for my day trip to the Jenolan Caves. Today was my first day doing something alone - no one else wanted to come and I didn't want to do what anyone else was doing. It felt good to be alone, but lonely (make sense?!?!). It was good practice though for my future adventures - I won't be with the other three the rest of the time.
So I got on my tour bus and headed 75km to Jenolan Caves. I saw a lot more of the mountains and what a beautiful area this is. So many trees and very green. It is totally different type of mountains than what I am used to. I saw a bunch of cows (look Pat, dows!) and sheep along the way and many farms. Our bus driver told us a lot of history about the area so I was glad I took the tour to learn more and see more.
The road going down to the caves was crazy. It was alittle more than a bus length wide and very steep. The driver did very well to maneuver around the turns. It was have been awesome riding it on a motorcycle (Vinny would have loved it!).
The caves were amazing (I will upload photos when I get back to Sydney). It reminded me of caves I saw back in the states, but it still surprises me what nature can do when I see things like this. I wanted to touch them, but I wasn't allowed. :( The tour lasted 1.5 hours and we climbed a ton of steps in and out of them. ALL THESE STEPS HERE!!! After the tour, I walked the trail around this blue water lake at the front entrance of the caves. They saw sometimes you can see platypus, but I didn't see anything. It was still really pretty though. Oh and then an old lady stopped me and asked if I had seen her friend in a big hat. I don't know if she was serious of a crazy old lady...I never did see the other lady with a big hat.
After that, it was time to take the bus back to the hostel. We tried to go to the local Kmart but it closed at 5:30pm (surprise, surprise), so we watched a movie instead. Nothing really excited is going on tonight - I may just curl up with my book and enjoy the atmosphere here on our last night. I think we are all tired from all the bushwalking and we are planning on doing another bushwalk tomorrow that is 5-6 hours long, so we are saving energy for that.
Being alone today was nice and I finally had some time to think about life and whatnot. It was also nice to be able to just do what I wanted, when I wanted and not worry about anyone else. I think I will enjoy the moments I have like this throughout the trip.
On a side note, major tragedy in Australia today...Heath Ledger died in NYC at the age of 28. He was born in Perth, so it is big news around here. He was so young and very talented. He will be missed...
Monday, January 21, 2008
Blue Mountains...More like Rain Forest
(sorry, photos won't upload...will try again in a couple days)
On Monday morning, Rebecca, Cory, Matt and I got up and met our bus tour for our week at the Blue Mountains. Checking out at the hostel was terrible because we all left bags in storage and the people at the front desk were not very helpful. So after a somewhat stressful morning, we got on our bus at 7:30am. Our bus tour guide showed up in a wig and fake teeth - I thought this could be interesting, but he ended up being really nice and had great stories. His tour bus name is "Nackers"...never found out why. So guess what, as soon as we started on our journey, it started raining and rained the whole way up to the mountains. It was nice though to see some other parts of Sydney and we drove past the Olympic grounds from 2000. You couldn't see much, but at least a glimpse.
So instead, Nackers took us to a 3-hour bushwalk (hike) through the Grand Canyon. Not really anything like the Grand Canyon, but was beautiful. Luckily, it stopped raining and we had decent weather during the bushwalk. So the Blue Mountains...I was expecting Mountains, like Rocky Mountains...but not so much...the highest point is 1200M and most of the terrain seems like a rain forest. The hike was nice and it felt good to get some exercise outdoors - away from the city! He told us all kinds of stories about the life up here and also about Aboriginals. I could not believe some of the horrific things that the "whites" here have done to them. Seems even worse than what the "American whites" did to the Indians. I love learning about the culture here and being around Aussies has opened my eyes to quite a bit about Australia. At one point, Nackers found some clay rocks and showed us how the Aboriginals made their colors and designs. They actually only have 4 colors - white, black, red and yellow - so if you ever find "Authentic art" with any other color, it is probably not authentic. See album for examples of the painting with the clay rocks.
When the hike was over, we drove to a cool lookout point and had lunch. It was SOOOOOOO cold, but the lunch tasted really good. While were were there, we saw these weird black and white birds and we don't know the name, so we call them Penguin Crows (see pictures). I just looked it up and I think they are magpies.
After lunch, it started raining again and got really cold, but we had one more walk to do. The Giant Stairway that would have a view of the Three Sisters and is 1,000 steps down to the bottom where you catch the Scenic Railway back up. The story behind the Three Sisters is that there were 3 sisters in a tribe who were being courted by 3 men from another tribe. It was an unwanted courtship, so the sorcerer from that tribe turned the sisters into rocks until the other men would go away. Unfortunately, the sorcerer was killed before he could change the sisters back and so they will forever be rocks.
Anyways, it was so foggy and raining so hard, we really didn't see anything at all. We just made our way down the wet path/stairs and got to the railway. IT IS CRAZY!!! The steepest railway in the world (holds the Guinness Book Record). It was awesome - like a roller coaster. We just wanted to keep riding it up and down. I tried to take pictures but it didn't do it any justice. At one point you feel like you could totally fall out of the train down, down, down. It was great!!!
After that, Nackers dropped the four of us off at the Blue Mountain YHA hostel (in Katoomba). It is a very quaint little place. Much smaller than the city and so much more laid back. I think we all fell in love right away. So after this long day, we decided to go out for some drinks. We walked around town a bit and then found the R.S.L. Club - cheapest drinks in town! We don't know what it stands for, but it totally reminded me of one of those old town country clubs where everyone knows everyone and you have to be either a family or over 60 to get in. Luckily, they gave us a guest pass and we had a few drinks. Then it was off to find dinner...but oh wait, in Blue Mountain most of the food places stop serving food at 4pm and since it was near 8pm (I hate eating so late!) we were out of luck. So after freezing our butts off, we made it to the grocery store and bought ravioli to make. We took it back to the hostel and had dinner and drinks until about 11pm. It was nice to get to know everyone more, but I felt so much older and mature after hanging out with them (I know, crazy!). At 11pm, they were all pretty drunk and I was tired, so we headed to bed.
This morning I got up and of course, went for a run! It was nice to be in a small town and not have to fight cars and stop lights. I made it to Echo Point, where I was finally able to see the Three Sisters, but it wasn't this magnificent thing like I thought it would be. I did enjoy my run though and got to see more of Katoomba. Barely anyone was on the road, so I loved the peace and quiet.
After showering and eating, the four of us heading back to Echo Point for some more bushwalking. Today was more clear and not raining, but still cold. It was a great day for 4.5 hours of bushwalking. We started at Echo Point and went along the Prince Henry Walk and then decided to continue on to end in the same place we were yesterday. The hike was great and we saw tons of waterfalls, trees, animals and cliffs. The worst part was having to watch out for leeches. Fortunately, we only got them on our shoes and caught them fast enough they did not attach to our skin. The bush (hikes) here is so different from anything I have done. They have tons of stairs and a lot of them our steel, so it doesn't feel very nature like. If it was stairs, it was rocks - which were slippery with all the rain. Things are also very steep here. In other words, I can really feel all the bushwalking in my legs - I love it!
Once we got to the scenic railway, Matt and I decided to walk up the 1,000 stairs back to the top while Rebecca and Cory took the railway. It was a great hike up, but VERY hard. Now I know why everyone takes the railway up. We were the only onces going up. On the way up, we saw more beautiful waterfalls and also a Lyra Bird. The cool thing about this bird is that they do not have their own song, but mimic all the sounds around them. They are capable of mimicking 80 other birds and can also do human sounds: chain saws, car alarms, snap shots from cameras, etc. The also dig at the ground all day long. There is an aboriginal folk lore behind them, but too long to write.
We are all pretty tired from the bushwalking today and starving. We didn't get back to the hostel until 3:30pm (left at 11am), so we decided to get food. But I first had to call my mom to wish her a happy birthday! It was great to talk to my parents - first communication with back home.
Tonight will probably just be a quiet night in - not much night life in Katoomba...but I am looking forward to relaxing.
I miss you all and love ya!
Kristen
On Monday morning, Rebecca, Cory, Matt and I got up and met our bus tour for our week at the Blue Mountains. Checking out at the hostel was terrible because we all left bags in storage and the people at the front desk were not very helpful. So after a somewhat stressful morning, we got on our bus at 7:30am. Our bus tour guide showed up in a wig and fake teeth - I thought this could be interesting, but he ended up being really nice and had great stories. His tour bus name is "Nackers"...never found out why. So guess what, as soon as we started on our journey, it started raining and rained the whole way up to the mountains. It was nice though to see some other parts of Sydney and we drove past the Olympic grounds from 2000. You couldn't see much, but at least a glimpse.
Our first stop was meant to be a wildlife area where we would be able to see wild kangaroos and koalas...BUT since it was still raining the road was flooded and closed and we weren't able to get to the area.
So instead, Nackers took us to a 3-hour bushwalk (hike) through the Grand Canyon. Not really anything like the Grand Canyon, but was beautiful. Luckily, it stopped raining and we had decent weather during the bushwalk. So the Blue Mountains...I was expecting Mountains, like Rocky Mountains...but not so much...the highest point is 1200M and most of the terrain seems like a rain forest. The hike was nice and it felt good to get some exercise outdoors - away from the city! He told us all kinds of stories about the life up here and also about Aboriginals. I could not believe some of the horrific things that the "whites" here have done to them. Seems even worse than what the "American whites" did to the Indians. I love learning about the culture here and being around Aussies has opened my eyes to quite a bit about Australia. At one point, Nackers found some clay rocks and showed us how the Aboriginals made their colors and designs. They actually only have 4 colors - white, black, red and yellow - so if you ever find "Authentic art" with any other color, it is probably not authentic. See album for examples of the painting with the clay rocks.
When the hike was over, we drove to a cool lookout point and had lunch. It was SOOOOOOO cold, but the lunch tasted really good. While were were there, we saw these weird black and white birds and we don't know the name, so we call them Penguin Crows (see pictures). I just looked it up and I think they are magpies.
After lunch, it started raining again and got really cold, but we had one more walk to do. The Giant Stairway that would have a view of the Three Sisters and is 1,000 steps down to the bottom where you catch the Scenic Railway back up. The story behind the Three Sisters is that there were 3 sisters in a tribe who were being courted by 3 men from another tribe. It was an unwanted courtship, so the sorcerer from that tribe turned the sisters into rocks until the other men would go away. Unfortunately, the sorcerer was killed before he could change the sisters back and so they will forever be rocks.
Anyways, it was so foggy and raining so hard, we really didn't see anything at all. We just made our way down the wet path/stairs and got to the railway. IT IS CRAZY!!! The steepest railway in the world (holds the Guinness Book Record). It was awesome - like a roller coaster. We just wanted to keep riding it up and down. I tried to take pictures but it didn't do it any justice. At one point you feel like you could totally fall out of the train down, down, down. It was great!!!
After that, Nackers dropped the four of us off at the Blue Mountain YHA hostel (in Katoomba). It is a very quaint little place. Much smaller than the city and so much more laid back. I think we all fell in love right away. So after this long day, we decided to go out for some drinks. We walked around town a bit and then found the R.S.L. Club - cheapest drinks in town! We don't know what it stands for, but it totally reminded me of one of those old town country clubs where everyone knows everyone and you have to be either a family or over 60 to get in. Luckily, they gave us a guest pass and we had a few drinks. Then it was off to find dinner...but oh wait, in Blue Mountain most of the food places stop serving food at 4pm and since it was near 8pm (I hate eating so late!) we were out of luck. So after freezing our butts off, we made it to the grocery store and bought ravioli to make. We took it back to the hostel and had dinner and drinks until about 11pm. It was nice to get to know everyone more, but I felt so much older and mature after hanging out with them (I know, crazy!). At 11pm, they were all pretty drunk and I was tired, so we headed to bed.
This morning I got up and of course, went for a run! It was nice to be in a small town and not have to fight cars and stop lights. I made it to Echo Point, where I was finally able to see the Three Sisters, but it wasn't this magnificent thing like I thought it would be. I did enjoy my run though and got to see more of Katoomba. Barely anyone was on the road, so I loved the peace and quiet.
After showering and eating, the four of us heading back to Echo Point for some more bushwalking. Today was more clear and not raining, but still cold. It was a great day for 4.5 hours of bushwalking. We started at Echo Point and went along the Prince Henry Walk and then decided to continue on to end in the same place we were yesterday. The hike was great and we saw tons of waterfalls, trees, animals and cliffs. The worst part was having to watch out for leeches. Fortunately, we only got them on our shoes and caught them fast enough they did not attach to our skin. The bush (hikes) here is so different from anything I have done. They have tons of stairs and a lot of them our steel, so it doesn't feel very nature like. If it was stairs, it was rocks - which were slippery with all the rain. Things are also very steep here. In other words, I can really feel all the bushwalking in my legs - I love it!
Once we got to the scenic railway, Matt and I decided to walk up the 1,000 stairs back to the top while Rebecca and Cory took the railway. It was a great hike up, but VERY hard. Now I know why everyone takes the railway up. We were the only onces going up. On the way up, we saw more beautiful waterfalls and also a Lyra Bird. The cool thing about this bird is that they do not have their own song, but mimic all the sounds around them. They are capable of mimicking 80 other birds and can also do human sounds: chain saws, car alarms, snap shots from cameras, etc. The also dig at the ground all day long. There is an aboriginal folk lore behind them, but too long to write.
We are all pretty tired from the bushwalking today and starving. We didn't get back to the hostel until 3:30pm (left at 11am), so we decided to get food. But I first had to call my mom to wish her a happy birthday! It was great to talk to my parents - first communication with back home.
Tonight will probably just be a quiet night in - not much night life in Katoomba...but I am looking forward to relaxing.
I miss you all and love ya!
Kristen
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Some blue skies!!
I actually slept in today - until 8:30am!!!! WOOHOO!!! I then got up and went for my normal run. It was actually sunny and VERY warm, so I was sweating like a pig when I got back to the hostel. I smelt really bad too...I'm starting to realize that running/working out is hard to do when you are backpacking because you have limited places to go and your clothes smell really bad. We will have to figure that one out.
So since it was sunny, Rebecca, Matt, Cory and I headed to Bondi (pronounced Bond-eye) Beach. This trip required us to take a 15 minute train ride and a 10 minute bus ride to actually get to the beach. It made me realize how lucky I am to live 2 miles from the beach. I also was reminded how much I don't like the location of our hostel.
So it was sunny when we got on the train, but of course as soon as we got there, it clouded over and was cold. Luckily we had a few spurts of sun and warmth. OH MY, the sun is sooooo hot and strong here - I guess that is because Australia does not have an ozone layer over it. You see ads for skin cancer all over because it has become such a problem here. I did go in the water, but only to my calves because it was about as warm as the water in San Diego in the summer. It wasn't hot enough outside to go swimming, but it was an amazing beach. There were tons of people trying to surf and swim, so I think it was a good idea to stay on shore. Besides, we were warned not to swim right after it rains because all the jellyfish are swept to sea. We may go back there again when we get back later this week.
I got back to the hostel around 3:30pm and met Jane and Daniel at 4:30pm for the soccer game. What a match!! It ended in a 2-2 "Draw", but was a lot of fun. We met a group of Daniel's friends and the "Die Hard Fans" all around us made it an interesting evening. When we got there, the sun was out and I was soooooo hot, but about 10 minutes in to the second half, it started down pouring on us...then 15 minutes later, it was sunny and hot again. CRAZY AUSTRALIAN WEATHER!!! The soccer stadium is in a different part of town so it was nice to see some more areas of Sydney. The more I explore other areas, I realize how much "Central" sucks and if I were to stay here, I would have to move to one of the suburbs.
So crazy things at the soccer game (Pat would have totally enjoyed this!). #1: Melbourne lit 3 flares when their team scored (see pics). The security guards had to take the flares and put them out but not before the whole stadium was covered in smoke. AND...noone was kicked out. #2: You could make bets and the "Tab" window...yes, bet on the game right there. Like something you would see at the Del Mar horse races. #3: The fans are almost as crazy as the fans at a St. Louis Rams game or Green Bay game - and it's soccer!
I am back at the hostel now (obviously) and am doing laundry and packing since I will be leaving for the Blue Mountains tomorrow. It should be a lot of fun and will be nice to get out of the city. Well, gotta go get the laundry since the room closes and 10pm and I don't want my laundry stuck in there...
So since it was sunny, Rebecca, Matt, Cory and I headed to Bondi (pronounced Bond-eye) Beach. This trip required us to take a 15 minute train ride and a 10 minute bus ride to actually get to the beach. It made me realize how lucky I am to live 2 miles from the beach. I also was reminded how much I don't like the location of our hostel.
So it was sunny when we got on the train, but of course as soon as we got there, it clouded over and was cold. Luckily we had a few spurts of sun and warmth. OH MY, the sun is sooooo hot and strong here - I guess that is because Australia does not have an ozone layer over it. You see ads for skin cancer all over because it has become such a problem here. I did go in the water, but only to my calves because it was about as warm as the water in San Diego in the summer. It wasn't hot enough outside to go swimming, but it was an amazing beach. There were tons of people trying to surf and swim, so I think it was a good idea to stay on shore. Besides, we were warned not to swim right after it rains because all the jellyfish are swept to sea. We may go back there again when we get back later this week.
I got back to the hostel around 3:30pm and met Jane and Daniel at 4:30pm for the soccer game. What a match!! It ended in a 2-2 "Draw", but was a lot of fun. We met a group of Daniel's friends and the "Die Hard Fans" all around us made it an interesting evening. When we got there, the sun was out and I was soooooo hot, but about 10 minutes in to the second half, it started down pouring on us...then 15 minutes later, it was sunny and hot again. CRAZY AUSTRALIAN WEATHER!!! The soccer stadium is in a different part of town so it was nice to see some more areas of Sydney. The more I explore other areas, I realize how much "Central" sucks and if I were to stay here, I would have to move to one of the suburbs.
So crazy things at the soccer game (Pat would have totally enjoyed this!). #1: Melbourne lit 3 flares when their team scored (see pics). The security guards had to take the flares and put them out but not before the whole stadium was covered in smoke. AND...noone was kicked out. #2: You could make bets and the "Tab" window...yes, bet on the game right there. Like something you would see at the Del Mar horse races. #3: The fans are almost as crazy as the fans at a St. Louis Rams game or Green Bay game - and it's soccer!
I am back at the hostel now (obviously) and am doing laundry and packing since I will be leaving for the Blue Mountains tomorrow. It should be a lot of fun and will be nice to get out of the city. Well, gotta go get the laundry since the room closes and 10pm and I don't want my laundry stuck in there...
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Another rainy day...
I spent the day with Ryan's friend Jane, her boyfriend Daniel and Rebecca. They took us on an adventure to Manly Beach - one of the many coastal beaches around Sydney. It was cool though because we took the ferry over to the beach. We stood outside in the rain on the boat, so after the 25 minute boat ride we all looked like wet dogs...it was a lot different than my boat ride to Catalina and back! We saw a lot of the suburbs and beachs and harbors. One of the pictures is the Prime Minister's house when he is not in Canberra. There was also a sailing race going on, so we got to see some awesome sailing around the harbor. When we got a bit further out, the boat started going over some pretty hefty waves and was rocking back and for big time. We weren't expecting it at first and almost all fell over after hitting the first way.
So once the ferry docked in Manly, we walked over to the beach and saw an amazing sand castle that had been built. I went and touched the water (much warmer than San Diego!), but before that, I had to walk around the Blue Bottles that were all over the sand. They washed up from the rain. Blue Bottles can sting and hurt bad, but won't kill you. Daniel stepped on one to show us how they pop like the seaweed on the beach in Carlsbad...it was cool...After all that, we did the short coastal walk and saw surfers, wanna-be-surfers, paddle surfers, scuba divers, snorkelers, spiders, some type of lizard, and oh yeah, did I mentioned it rained on us the whole time?!?
After the walk we got gelato for the ferry ride back to Sydney...it tasted sooooo good. Because even though it is raining here, it is still humid and muggy and hot. We said our goodbyes after the ride back, but I will see them again tomorrow because they are taking me to the Sydney-Melbourne soccer game here in town. Yes, American soccer. The only other sports in season right now are cricket and the Australian Open. Daniel did tell me he would take me to a Rugby game in March, April or May when I come back to Sydney. I can't wait!!! It will be great to experience all the sports with die hard Aussie fans. I think Jane was happy because she said I could take her place for those games - she doesn't really "fancy" it - as she says...
It was nice to finally hang out with Australians for the day. We got a lot more history on the city and were able to get a little more acquanted with the area. I also got to see more of Sydney and realized it is not all like the area around my hostel (we are right next to Chinatown). It was beautiful where we went, but would have been even better if it was sunny...maybe next week...it is supposed to be like this until Wednesday...yuck!
After we got back and hung up our wet clothes and shoes, we ate some dinner and headed to the movies with Cory and Matt. We saw Juno, which I thought was great - very funny...see it if you haven't! We almost didn't make the movie though because we had originally gone to a movie theatre close to our hostel which had some current movies playing, but I don't think any of them were in English...yes, it would have been interesting, but none of us were up for subtitles...
It finally stopped raining when we got out of the movie theater, but it is 10pm now and we didn't feel like going to the bars tonight - there is really nothing else to do here that late. They are a fun group, but we are still getting to know each other, so it isn't quite like my night's out at home. It is nice though to have company and to not have to talk to myself all the time.
Tomorrow is another day and another adventure...until then!
So once the ferry docked in Manly, we walked over to the beach and saw an amazing sand castle that had been built. I went and touched the water (much warmer than San Diego!), but before that, I had to walk around the Blue Bottles that were all over the sand. They washed up from the rain. Blue Bottles can sting and hurt bad, but won't kill you. Daniel stepped on one to show us how they pop like the seaweed on the beach in Carlsbad...it was cool...After all that, we did the short coastal walk and saw surfers, wanna-be-surfers, paddle surfers, scuba divers, snorkelers, spiders, some type of lizard, and oh yeah, did I mentioned it rained on us the whole time?!?
After the walk we got gelato for the ferry ride back to Sydney...it tasted sooooo good. Because even though it is raining here, it is still humid and muggy and hot. We said our goodbyes after the ride back, but I will see them again tomorrow because they are taking me to the Sydney-Melbourne soccer game here in town. Yes, American soccer. The only other sports in season right now are cricket and the Australian Open. Daniel did tell me he would take me to a Rugby game in March, April or May when I come back to Sydney. I can't wait!!! It will be great to experience all the sports with die hard Aussie fans. I think Jane was happy because she said I could take her place for those games - she doesn't really "fancy" it - as she says...
It was nice to finally hang out with Australians for the day. We got a lot more history on the city and were able to get a little more acquanted with the area. I also got to see more of Sydney and realized it is not all like the area around my hostel (we are right next to Chinatown). It was beautiful where we went, but would have been even better if it was sunny...maybe next week...it is supposed to be like this until Wednesday...yuck!
After we got back and hung up our wet clothes and shoes, we ate some dinner and headed to the movies with Cory and Matt. We saw Juno, which I thought was great - very funny...see it if you haven't! We almost didn't make the movie though because we had originally gone to a movie theatre close to our hostel which had some current movies playing, but I don't think any of them were in English...yes, it would have been interesting, but none of us were up for subtitles...
It finally stopped raining when we got out of the movie theater, but it is 10pm now and we didn't feel like going to the bars tonight - there is really nothing else to do here that late. They are a fun group, but we are still getting to know each other, so it isn't quite like my night's out at home. It is nice though to have company and to not have to talk to myself all the time.
Tomorrow is another day and another adventure...until then!
Friday, January 18, 2008
Getting Pissed...
Now if I were in America, I would use that phrase to describe how I felt this morning when I got poured on for about half my run...but since I am in Australia, I learned that I would use that phrase to describe what happened to the four Americans after a four hour Aussie Pub Crawl last night!
We met up with about 25 other people and went to four of the bars around town. It was fun because we got to meet a lot of other people and experience a few bars we hadn't been too. The nite started off slow since we were the only ones in the first bar, but it ended with us all in great spirits and having a lot of good stories to make fun of each other about today, tomorrow, etc! I swear though, all the bars here play cheesy 80's and 90's techno music. Very rarely do I hear some of the good stuff. BUT they do play mostly American music! Sometimes they throw in UK or Australian bands in the mix and I have no idea what they are saying or never heard of it (still trying to work out those Aussie accents...).
It was funny because most of the people I met out at the bars were Irish guys and they all said the same thing..."It's not a real party unless you party with the Irish!" I had to agree...
So like I said, this morning it is still raining. Rebecca and I are going to meet Ryan's friend Jane and she is going to show us more of the city. Hopefully it clears up. My run this morning was nice - other than the rain. I actually found out that you can run all the way around the Opera House so I got to see it from the other side. I also saw a Jellyfish in the water - or a plastic bag that was litter...but I am pretty sure it was a Jellyfish.
That's all for now...I'm off to brave the weather and explore more of the city!
We met up with about 25 other people and went to four of the bars around town. It was fun because we got to meet a lot of other people and experience a few bars we hadn't been too. The nite started off slow since we were the only ones in the first bar, but it ended with us all in great spirits and having a lot of good stories to make fun of each other about today, tomorrow, etc! I swear though, all the bars here play cheesy 80's and 90's techno music. Very rarely do I hear some of the good stuff. BUT they do play mostly American music! Sometimes they throw in UK or Australian bands in the mix and I have no idea what they are saying or never heard of it (still trying to work out those Aussie accents...).
It was funny because most of the people I met out at the bars were Irish guys and they all said the same thing..."It's not a real party unless you party with the Irish!" I had to agree...
So like I said, this morning it is still raining. Rebecca and I are going to meet Ryan's friend Jane and she is going to show us more of the city. Hopefully it clears up. My run this morning was nice - other than the rain. I actually found out that you can run all the way around the Opera House so I got to see it from the other side. I also saw a Jellyfish in the water - or a plastic bag that was litter...but I am pretty sure it was a Jellyfish.
That's all for now...I'm off to brave the weather and explore more of the city!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Rainy Days of Sydney
So it is still raining today...and is supposed to rain for the next week! It sucks!!! (How funny is this...in the newspaper, the forecast said "A Shower or two." and "Mainly fine." Seriously...instead of partly cloudy or raining...it said those two phrases...well, it was funny to me when I saw it!)
Yesterday wasn't too bad, just cloudy and windy, so Rebecca (the girl from PB) and I walked down to the Opera House and all around the city. It ended up being about 6 miles once we got back to the hostel. You can see the pictures in my album, but you will notice how cloudy it is. It was really nice to go back to the Opera House and see where I had been 9 years ago.
After we got back, we met Cory and Matt (the guys from AZ) and went out for Happy Hour at the same two bars from the previous night. One of the bars makes these crazy drinks (as you can again see in the album). We were all mesmerized by how much artistic work goes into each drink - they averaged around 5 minutes to make. After that we walked back to the hostel and stopped at the grocery store to get food so we can start making meals instead of buying everything...I know...exciting!!! I actually stayed up until 10:30pm on Thursday night!! WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!
This morning (Friday), I woke up and went for another run. I made it to the Opera House this time. I must say, there is nothing like running the steps of the Sydney Opera House to make a workout 100% better. I had to check out of my room today and check back into another that Rebecca and I share now, so we went and watched the "Daily Movie" inside the hostel. It was crappy weather anyways, so it was fine to just hang out inside.
After the movie, the four of us went to the Powerhouse Museum in Darling Harbour. It was cool, but kind of boring. Had lots of exhibits, but there were sooooooo many kids running around it was hard to really get into everything. (Side note: Dad, they had a Westfield poster - I took a picture and will upload it later.) It was only $5AUD, so not too bad...By the time we got out of the museum it was raining harder, so we went back to the hostel. I had to go out and get batteries, which was a BIG mistake. It started pouring and the streets are even flooding. I just got back and my pants, shirt, jacket, etc are soaked. I'm trying to dry off before the pub crawl tonight - hopefully the weather gets a little better.
On a more exciting note, I finally found and bought my favorite Australian candy - Violet Crunch. But by the time the coating of sugar came off my teeth, I realized it was no longer my favorite - guess I will have to find another one!
So now you might ask, what do I think of it here?
I am enjoying it (other than the weather), but I realized I don't think Sydney is the right place for me. Everyone here is from a different country (not Australia) and are about 19 years old, so I am not really getting the "Aussie Experience" I was looking for and don't really fit in. I made the decision to go to Melbourne instead, so I leave on the 27th and will stay with my friends down there. I am hoping that living with Australians will give me a better experience. I think I also decided that I don't want to work at all, but just travel. Again, we will see what happens when I get to Melbourne, but I have already pretty much planned out my "Loop Around Australia". It still will take me time to accomplish all this, but I have a feeling it will be so worth it. I look forward to writing more about all my upcoming plans.
I hope everyone else is well. Check back for updated photos...
Cheers!
Kristen
Yesterday wasn't too bad, just cloudy and windy, so Rebecca (the girl from PB) and I walked down to the Opera House and all around the city. It ended up being about 6 miles once we got back to the hostel. You can see the pictures in my album, but you will notice how cloudy it is. It was really nice to go back to the Opera House and see where I had been 9 years ago.
After we got back, we met Cory and Matt (the guys from AZ) and went out for Happy Hour at the same two bars from the previous night. One of the bars makes these crazy drinks (as you can again see in the album). We were all mesmerized by how much artistic work goes into each drink - they averaged around 5 minutes to make. After that we walked back to the hostel and stopped at the grocery store to get food so we can start making meals instead of buying everything...I know...exciting!!! I actually stayed up until 10:30pm on Thursday night!! WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!
This morning (Friday), I woke up and went for another run. I made it to the Opera House this time. I must say, there is nothing like running the steps of the Sydney Opera House to make a workout 100% better. I had to check out of my room today and check back into another that Rebecca and I share now, so we went and watched the "Daily Movie" inside the hostel. It was crappy weather anyways, so it was fine to just hang out inside.
After the movie, the four of us went to the Powerhouse Museum in Darling Harbour. It was cool, but kind of boring. Had lots of exhibits, but there were sooooooo many kids running around it was hard to really get into everything. (Side note: Dad, they had a Westfield poster - I took a picture and will upload it later.) It was only $5AUD, so not too bad...By the time we got out of the museum it was raining harder, so we went back to the hostel. I had to go out and get batteries, which was a BIG mistake. It started pouring and the streets are even flooding. I just got back and my pants, shirt, jacket, etc are soaked. I'm trying to dry off before the pub crawl tonight - hopefully the weather gets a little better.
On a more exciting note, I finally found and bought my favorite Australian candy - Violet Crunch. But by the time the coating of sugar came off my teeth, I realized it was no longer my favorite - guess I will have to find another one!
So now you might ask, what do I think of it here?
I am enjoying it (other than the weather), but I realized I don't think Sydney is the right place for me. Everyone here is from a different country (not Australia) and are about 19 years old, so I am not really getting the "Aussie Experience" I was looking for and don't really fit in. I made the decision to go to Melbourne instead, so I leave on the 27th and will stay with my friends down there. I am hoping that living with Australians will give me a better experience. I think I also decided that I don't want to work at all, but just travel. Again, we will see what happens when I get to Melbourne, but I have already pretty much planned out my "Loop Around Australia". It still will take me time to accomplish all this, but I have a feeling it will be so worth it. I look forward to writing more about all my upcoming plans.
I hope everyone else is well. Check back for updated photos...
Cheers!
Kristen
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
My 1st Day in Australia
I arrived in Australia and kind of had a hell of a time figuring out where I needed to go - big mix up with the company I was with - but it wasn't my fault because I guess it happened to quite a few people.
The hostel I am staying at is pretty nice. There are 4 of us in a room - and let me tell you earplugs and an eye mask are my new best friends at night. I don't really talk to or hang out with the girls in my room, but no biggy.
So the first night I was here, I walked around Sydney a bit and got some necessaties and dinner. Then I tried to do anything possible to keep me awake as late as possible. I was so exhausted though that I crashed at 9pm. Of course which meant I woke up at 4am and then 6am. I finally got out of bed at 6:30am and since orientation wasn't until 9:30am, what did I do...Yup, you guessed it...I went running. I found a great park that led to a path along the harbor. I ran the path again this morning and went even further and found it had great views of the Opera House and Syndey Harbor Bridge...I will have to take my camera another day to take pictures. Also along my run I found the Westfield Building...Dad, it made me think of you and felt like I was a little at home! :)
I got back and got ready for my orientation. There is so much stuff to go over...but I think I realized all I want to do here is travel - there is just so much to see. At orientation, I met two guys from Tempe, AZ and another girl from Pacific Beach (It's in San Diego - for those of you that don't know). The four of us hung out all day and got phones and a bunch of other errands ran. Then we hit up a few happy hours and got dinner. We got back around 9pm and so I did a few things and actually stayed up until 10pm!!! But still woke up this morning at 6am.. :( Hopefully I will get on a more normal schedule soon - this is too much like a "work night" sleep schedule!!
Well we are off to run some more errands today and hopefully if it clears up here, we are going to go to Bondi Beach - if not today, then tomorrow.
I haven't uploaded any photos yet from Australia, but I will try to get some up soon.
Cheers!
Kristen
The hostel I am staying at is pretty nice. There are 4 of us in a room - and let me tell you earplugs and an eye mask are my new best friends at night. I don't really talk to or hang out with the girls in my room, but no biggy.
So the first night I was here, I walked around Sydney a bit and got some necessaties and dinner. Then I tried to do anything possible to keep me awake as late as possible. I was so exhausted though that I crashed at 9pm. Of course which meant I woke up at 4am and then 6am. I finally got out of bed at 6:30am and since orientation wasn't until 9:30am, what did I do...Yup, you guessed it...I went running. I found a great park that led to a path along the harbor. I ran the path again this morning and went even further and found it had great views of the Opera House and Syndey Harbor Bridge...I will have to take my camera another day to take pictures. Also along my run I found the Westfield Building...Dad, it made me think of you and felt like I was a little at home! :)
I got back and got ready for my orientation. There is so much stuff to go over...but I think I realized all I want to do here is travel - there is just so much to see. At orientation, I met two guys from Tempe, AZ and another girl from Pacific Beach (It's in San Diego - for those of you that don't know). The four of us hung out all day and got phones and a bunch of other errands ran. Then we hit up a few happy hours and got dinner. We got back around 9pm and so I did a few things and actually stayed up until 10pm!!! But still woke up this morning at 6am.. :( Hopefully I will get on a more normal schedule soon - this is too much like a "work night" sleep schedule!!
Well we are off to run some more errands today and hopefully if it clears up here, we are going to go to Bondi Beach - if not today, then tomorrow.
I haven't uploaded any photos yet from Australia, but I will try to get some up soon.
Cheers!
Kristen
Sunday, January 13, 2008
50 MILES!!!!!
I am off tonight for Australia but before I left I decide to accomplish a new goal - completing a 50-mile Ultramarathon. On Saturday, January 12th, I did it!!! I went to Avalon on Cataline Island and competed in the 50-mile Benefit Run. Everyone who knew about it thought I was crazy - and I probably am - since I have to get on a plane for 18 hours tonight, but it was so worth it. The course was the best I have ever been on. The people there were awesome and I met so many new people and had a great time.
The legs are a little sore today but I think I am still on a high from completing this goal. I don't know if I will ever do another 50-mile race, but I do not regret doing this one - now let's see what I say in a day or two when the hurt sets in after sitting on the plane! :)
Well, that's it for now...off to LAX! Will write more once I am "Down Under".
P.S. I will add photos from the race once I figure out how to put them on the blog site...
Monday, January 7, 2008
Getting started...
Well this time next week, I will be arriving in Australia. Hard to believe it is so close - especially since I have not packed, have no idea what I am bringing and only know where I am staying for the first three nights...it is going to be quite an adventure!!!
Oh and the best part is, I have been reading these books about Australia and pretty much all they talk about are the thousands of wild animals that can kill me! But I am still totally stoked for some reason.
So this blog is mostly just to get my page started. I won't write again until I am actually over there, but will try to keep updated on the things I am doing and adventures I am having.
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