The Beginning of the End...

Last week was another great week, although fairly uneventful compared to some I’ve had this semester.  The biggest distinguishing factor was that it was my last full week in Melbourne.  On Monday, I went to all my classes, which was a small victory for me considering it was the last week of the semester and all my assignments were finished except for finals.  There was a lot of good review, though, so it was helpful that I showed upJ.  Later that night, I went to an “Australia/Callie’s Farewell” party with all my church friends.  It was SUCH a fun night!  Everyone brought his or her favorite Australian snacks (except for me… I represented America with some peanut butter and jelly finger sandwiches and muddy buddiesJ).  Everyone LOVED the muddy buddies!  We all hung out and then watched “Castle”… a movie full of very Australian humor.  It was fun watching it after being here the full semester – I understood and appreciated most of itJ.  On Tuesday, I slept in a bit, which felt GREAT, then had a normal rest of the day (class, run, watched a movie).  In the evening, my housemates and I were all hanging out and lamenting about the fact that our house dinner planned for Wednesday was falling apart since Michael (the cook for the week) was going to be gone.  It was about 10pm and Stefanie and I decided that we were going to save the day!  We went to the store and got everything Michael needed to make Tiramisu (his chosen dessert of the week) and we had midnight “house dinner” with everyone.  It was SO great!  It was our last full house dinner/hangout before everyone starts traveling and heading home.  The last little bit has been weird because I still have awhile before I go home and say “bye” for good, but I’ve already had to start goodbyes to some people that I won’t see between now and when I leave.  I’m definitely caught in a weird transition phase and everything about this time is bittersweet.  Anyway, Wednesday was a fun day.  I went to class in the morning, did a bit of work on campus and then met up with my friend, Marisa for coffee.  It was great to see her and hang out a bit – she’s one that I might not see again before leaving.  After coffee I went running and then got ready for dinner.  Stefanie and I decided the night before when we were saving the day that we both wanted dumplings for dinner the next night, so we made it happenJ.  Of course, we invited Camille and a few other friends and made it a party in Chinatown.  It was really fun and as always, the food was delicious!  On Thursday, I decided to spend the day in the city.  I started at the Queen Victoria Markets and then made my way to Starbucks.  I worked there for a while before getting hungry and finding lunch at Grill’d.  It is a delicious burger place in Australia!... seriously, SO good.   Thursday evening was low key – I studied a bit and finished watching Mrs. DoubtfireJ.  Friday was a workday and I spent most of it at the Library.  When I came home in the afternoon, I was so tired that I took a nap… it was the BEST!  I don’t take naps often (or really ever), but I was definitely overtired and it felt so good.  On Saturday, I woke up early and headed to the city again.  I wanted to go to a cool Egyptian exhibit at the Melbourne Museum, but when I got there, it was all pre-booked and sold out for the day.  Plan B was essentially repeating my awesome day from Thursday… went to Starbucks and read, ate lunch at Grill’d and wandered through the Queen Victoria Markets.  That night, Camille and I flipped between Sister Act and Seventeen Again – both movies were showing on TVJ.  Sunday, I woke up and went to church.  It was my last time attending as the next two weekends I’ll be out of town and then I’ll be home.  After church, we all went out to lunch and then I had to say my first round of goodbyes.  It was sad, but cool knowing that I was able to meet so many wonderful people.  Immediately after I got home that afternoon, Camille and I left to go to the Royal Botanic Gardens just outside of the city.  It was such a beautiful evening and so fun to spend some quality time together.  We see each other often, but it was nice to hang out just one on one.  On Monday, I slept in a bit and then Camille and I made homemade pancakes together.  When we were coming back from the Botanic Gardens, Camille had said they sounded good and when we discovered that we already had all the ingredients we needed, we couldn’t NOT make themJ.  It was a delicious way to start the day!  After I did a few errands, I went to the city again, got some coffee and read.  I came back and worked on some homework and then played cards with Camille and Michael before going to bed.  Today (Tuesday), I spent time at the library studying for finals (even though I only have to pass my classes, which means for most of my classes, simply showing up and putting my name on the final will be good enoughJ), and packing for Sydney.  I leave tomorrow morning and will spend the night with Holli before meeting my family at the airport Thursday morning!!  I can’t wait to see everyone… it’s going to be a GREAT two weeks in AUSTRALIAJ.  Life is good.    

A week of adventure and LOTS of new experiences.

This week has been incredible!  Nothing big except for adventure and nothing too exciting except lifeJ.  Monday was a chill day – I got caught up on some homework and correspondence after being gone in Sydney all weekend.  On Tuesday I was ready to go and had a great day.  It started with sleeping in a bit, which felt amazing and then a nice walk to my favorite café, Santucci’s (an Italian, family-owned, best coffee ever kind of place) for a late breakfast.  I brought my computer and worked on my blog and emails while I sipped my coffee from the front window bar.  After I finished breakfast, it was time to go to campus for class.  I spent the rest of the afternoon at home and then headed to the city in the early evening.  When I was reading the airplane magazine on the way to Sydney, I saw an article about a bar in Fitzroy (an area just outside of Melbourne) that has a weekly open mic night on Tuesday.  I decided that it would be the perfect opportunity to make my debut – in a foreign country where I didn’t know anyone and no one would know if I messed up – no pressureJ.  It was perfect.  I made it to the bar a little before eight and put my name down… I wasn’t singing until eleven, which was a long time to wait, but ended up being awesome because I got to see everyone else perform too.  During the night I met a couple guys from a legitimate band in Sydney who had come down to do a few performance throughout the week in Melbourne and decided to check out the open mic night.  They were really awesome.  Their music was great, but they were also just super nice.  They all stayed until the end to cheer me on.  It was really sweet.  I didn’t have a great performance, but I was proud of myself just for going and getting up on the stage by myself – it was really good.  I rushed out after I finished in order to catch the last tram of the night home (I can’t wait to have a car againJ).  On Wednesday, I woke up and decided that I didn’t want to go to class and instead I went to the city.  I took full advantage of the fact that this semester I only have to pass my classes – it’s been a truly beautiful thing for me.  I took the tram into the city and then just walked around.  I had made a plan to go to Queen Victoria Market (similar to Pike Place Market in Seattle), but when I got there I learned that they’re closed Monday and Wednesday.  That was unfortunate.  Instead I kept walking up the road toward Melbourne University and finally stumbled upon another place I’d read about in the airplane magazine.  It was called Seven Seeds and it was rumored to have the best coffee in downtown Melbourne – I really enjoyed my cupJ.  After that, I just walked around downtown Melbourne for a long time just to see what I saw.  I had no plan, but I was trying to see things I hadn’t seen before and experience things that I might not necessarily get to see for a while since I’m going home soon.  After awhile, I decided to go to the National Gallery of Victoria – a HUGE art museum.  I’d wanted to go for a long time, but never was quite in the mood to enjoy all the paintings and artwork.  It felt right, though, on Wednesday afternoon and I ended up enjoying it SO much!  It’s an incredible gallery and the artwork is so impressive.  I had fun making up stories for the paintings and imagining the artist’s thoughts as he/she created the masterpiece.  It was the perfect way to spend the afternoon.  After I finished walking through there, I headed home to help get our weekly house dinner started.  Michael was going to show me how to make tiramisu, but through a series of laughable miscommunications, we didn’t end up with the two main ingredients we needed, so that dessert is put on hold until next weekJ.  Dinner was still extra delicious, though, and the rest of the night was quiet and perfect.  On Thursday, I got up, did some work, ran, and then in the early evening, headed to the city with Camille and Michael to see the Hangover II.  It was SO funny.  I liked it just as much as the first.  It was funny seeing it in a different country, though, because some of the humor didn’t translate.  There is one part where they make a joke about P.F. Chang’s… no one laughed and I realized that it was probably because they don’t have that restaurant here and people didn’t understand what they were talking about!  After the movie, we all went to the Pancake Parlor for dinner.  It was delicious!  Pancakes here are super special – they almost always have ice cream as a topping and chocolate is involved in at least half the options… it’s my kind of meal!  It’s a cross between breakfast and dessert… my two favorite meals! J.  On Friday, I worked on homework in the morning and then headed to the city for a second attempt at Queen Victoria Market.  I stopped at Melbourne Central (a mall) for an Italian thick dark hot chocolate at Max Brenner’s.  Max’s is a chocolate restaurant and pretty much the best place on earth!  It’s SO delicious.  And Italian thick hot chocolate is a truly heavenly drink.  It’s like drinking hot chocolate cake batter… SO goodJ.  I made it to the markets and was able to get all the rest of the souvenirs I wanted and even splurged on a banana – it was pretty specialJ.  I went back home and got ready for a church dinner.  It was a fun night for all the young adults at church hosted by our pastor and his wife.  He talked to us about core values and beliefs, which was cool and then I just got to visit with my church friends – it was a really fun night!  When I got home, I decided I wasn’t quite ready for bed, so I looked up a recipe for biscuits and realized I had everything I needed to make them.  And then when I went to the living room to get started, I turned on the TV and found that Law and Order was just starting – it was perfect!  It was the perfect way to end a great day.  Saturday morning I woke up and decided that I wanted to go on a nice walk again.  I ended up at Santucci’s and ate breakfast before heading to campus to do a little homework.  I spent the afternoon working and doing other chores and then got showered and dressed up to go out.  Camille, Michael and I all went to St. Kilda to check out the Esplanade Hotel – apparently it is one of the most famous music venues in Australia.  The band I met on Tuesday was in town to play there on Wednesday night.  Anyway, I was intrigued and so we went to check it out.  It ended up being pretty sketch and definitely a “heavy-metal” night.  Every band playing fit into that genre so we headed off down the esplanade in St. Kilda to find another place for a drink.  We ended up at a really cool restaurant with great music and just laughed and enjoyed the rest of the night.  It was really fun just hanging out with Camille and Michael – they’re super cool.  Sunday has also been a GREAT day!  I woke up and got to skype for over an hour with my parents, which was so fun!  I can’t wait for my family to be here!!  After getting all caught up, I headed to church, which was also great.  I hadn’t been in a few weeks because I’d been traveling, so it was nice to really get caught up with all my church friends.  After that I went to campus and sipped a coffee while I did a bit of homework.  The rest of the night has been really chill.  I’m heading to the living room soon to watch a random VHS of Friends episodes Camille and I found in our VCR a few weeks ago.  All in all, it has been an AWESOME week and I’m SO excited for another great week to come.  Life is goodJ.  

Sydney... AGAIN.

Last Thursday, I skipped my last lecture of the week and headed to Sydney to stay with Holli for the weekend!  It was SO great!!!  We had so much fun, as alwaysJ.  It was really nice too, because I got to see and do things that I didn’t have a chance to do or didn’t know about the first time I was there.  When I got into Sydney, it was so funny to take the train to Macquarie University and meet Holli – it brought back so many memories of my first moments in Australia and the overwhelming excitement and fear I had.  It’s so strange to think that was only a few months ago and now I’m so comfortable here.  I had been texting Holli all day and hadn’t heard back from her at all.  At first I thought she was sleeping and then I realized that she was probably out of credit on her phone.  I knew she could receive my texts, but couldn’t send any back.  I told her I was getting on the train and when I got to her stop she was there to meet me.  It was really funny because when Holli and I came to Australia, we flew in together, but had to split up because she had a shuttle that took her to her apartment and I had to take the train to my housing.  We didn’t know how to meet up because neither of us knew where we were going or had a phone to text the other.  It was super stressful and frustrating.  When Holli couldn’t text me back, it was super reminiscent of that first afternoon, except I wasn’t scared and overwhelmed – I just laughed at the irony of itJ.  After she met me at the station, we went to the mall that is right next-door and got a late lunch at this place called T2.  It is a teahouse and is an awesome restaurant too.  My food and tea was delicious!  After T2, we walked back to Holli’s apartment and just hung out for a little bit before going with her roommate Candace downtown to the Imax theater.  We had tickets for Pirates of the Caribbean 4.  It was awesome seeing it on the big screen and since Candace is SUCH a big fan, her enthusiasm was a little contagiousJ.  After the movie, we all walked to a restaurant called Max Brenner’s Chocolate Bar.  It is a chocolate restaurant!  It was SO good.  I got an Italian thick dark chocolate hot chocolate.  It was the consistency of cake batter, but hot and rich and DELICIOUS!  I also got a small waffle dessert with chocolate drizzle, fresh strawberries and bananas and vanilla ice cream.  SO GOOD!  After that we went back to Holli’s apartment and watched Boy Meets World and played cards before bed.  On Friday, we slept in a bit and then went to the University of Sydney just outside the Central Business District.  It is an incredible campus and looks just like Hogwarts from Harry Potter!  Holli and I took a picture of us duelingJ and then we found some lunch at a little café on campus.  It was such a beautiful day and just sitting in the sun was such a wonderful way to spend the afternoon.  Lina and Candace (two of Holli’s roommates) came with us to the university and it was such a fun afternoon getting to know them and laughing with them.  They are such fun girls.  We got back from the university in the late afternoon and then got ready and caught the shuttle bus to the main Hillsong Church campus for a special worship service for a conference that was going to happen Saturday.  It was cool to meet some of Holli’s church friends and to get to experience Hillsong Church again.  The pastor who spoke was brought in for the conference – he’s from Miami.  He had a very American sense of humor and it was funny laughing and listening to Holli laugh when no one else in the audience was – we were so confused.  We didn’t understand why no one else was laughing with usJ.  On Saturday, we woke up and caught the train to the Blue Mountains.  Holli went with her Mom when she visited and decided that I would LOVE it and needed to see it.  I was really excited.  It took a long time to get there, but it was SO worth it.  We talked the whole time anyway, so even though it was over 3 hours, it went fastJ.  We decided to take a different path than Holli had gone on with her Mom and hiked down the Giant Staircase (they aren’t kidding)… there are approximately 900 stairs that are carved out of a cliff and lead straight into the valley below.  It was scary at times, but the scenery was so incredible and a great distraction from my fear of heights.  We made it to the bottom and hiked through the Leura Forest.  This was the most beautiful hike – everything was so green and there were tons of cool waterfalls and things to look at and appreciate.  It is such a hidden gem!  We finished our hike in the town of Leura and got to walk through all the little shops on our way to the train station.  It was SUCH a beautiful, cute little town.  I would love to live there.  We caught the train back from Leura and it took a little less time.  We got off in the city and went to Pancakes on the Rocks for dinner.  I’d heard about this place from a few people.  They all agreed that it was the best pancakes they’d ever had… I had to try it outJ.  In Australia, they do pancakes differently – there is typically some sort of fruit or chocolate and then ice cream and whipped cream!  They’re SO good.  I got the Blueberry Heaven stack (fresh blueberries, blueberry sauce, whipped cream and vanilla ice cream over buttermilk pancakesJ).  After dinner, it was such a beautiful night on the harbor that we decided to just walk around before heading back to Holli’s apartment.  It was such a great day of nature and fresh air, good food, and GREAT conversation.  I LOVED it.  On Sunday, Holli and I got up and went to the Macquarie extension service for Hillsong Church.  This was a great service and I got to meet another one of Holli’s church friends, which was really fun.  After church, we got lunch at a delicious Thai place in the mall and then went home to rest.  Holli nappedJ.  When she woke up we played some cards and then got ready for Sunday night church at Hillsong’s main campus.  It was a HUGE service, but was really cool!  The speaker was the same guy from Miami that spoke on Friday night, but this time he spoke about taking risks.  I was super inspired.  After the service, we took the bus back to Macquarie and got some quick dinner before heading back to Holli’s apartment and just talking the rest of the night.  I woke up early Monday morning (5:20am to be exactJ) and caught the train to the airport.  I flew home and spent the rest of the day in class and getting caught up on life after being gone for a few days.  It was SUCH a great weekend in Sydney and with Holli!!  I’m so glad I was able to visit again.  When I got back and checked my facebook, I saw that my friend Kim had left me a message telling me that in one month, I would be home.  I thought about it and realized she was right!  I will be sleeping in my own bed in Ellensburg in less than one month… I can’t believe it.  Time flies.  But regardless of where I am… Life is goodJ.   

Middle East Simulation and Phillip Island

Last week was a bit of a blur as most of it was dedicated to my Middle East Politics simulation.  As much as I hoped that wouldn’t be the case, it filled pretty much every second of my life.  I counted at the end, and Barack Obama (my character) had received just fewer than 600 emails and sent a little less than 300.  That’s a lot for 10 days!  I was SO ready to be done with that project… although I did learn more about the Middle East in those 10 days than I have in the rest of my life.  It is one of the coolest projects I’ve ever done.  The simulation officially ended on Friday morning and then every team presented their position paper on joint panels at our simulation conference.  People came dressed up as their character and we had some great debates.  It was funny because there were a lot of players that aren’t in my tutorial so they didn’t realize I was on an exchange from the States.  One girl told me afterwards that when I’d starting speaking, she’d thought, “wow, good accent!”  I told her I’d been practicing for a while… I just wanted to stay in characterJ.  Well, although the sim did pretty much control my life all week, I was able to have a little bit of fun.  Monday was my friend Marisa’s birthday.  She invited me, my roommate Stefanie, and another of our friends Christie, as well as a few of her Australian friends out to dinner.  We went to this really cute Italian place and had a great time.  Her Australian friends were so funny, especially about the fact that we were American.  Her one friend Dani kept saying, “oh my gosh Marisa, you are so AMERICAN!”  It was funny.  Also, highlight of the night… splitting a piece of tim tam cheesecake with Christie…. SO GOODJ.  On Tuesday night, I went to a “welcome” dinner at my church.  It was fun, the food was good, and it was nice to see my church friends mid-week.  On Wednesday night, we had a great house dinner!  It was the first one we’d been able to have for about a month because of Easter break and then crazy school schedules.  It was nice to make intentional time for one another again.  Camille said it best when she asked “when’s family dinner?... oops, I mean house dinner”.  We really have become a family.  On Wednesday I cooked.  We had burritos with homemade guacamole and then cookies for dessert.  I had intended to make chocolate chip cookies, but mid-baking, I realized I didn’t have any vanilla.  The dough tasted bland so I improvised and just added some cocoa powder and they ended up being delicious chocolate, chocolate chip cookiesJ.  Thursday evening was spent preparing for the sim conference on Friday and when that was done on Friday at noon, I was FREE!!  I decided to devote the rest of the day to celebratingJ.  I came home and saw my friend Kim was on skype and we had the BEST skype date!  It was so good to catch up and just talk and laugh together.  After we skyped, I decided that I wanted to bake and I was going to attempt some homemade bread and since my chocolate craving wouldn’t die, I decided to throw in some homemade brownies tooJ.  In order to bake, though, I had to walk to the store in the worst storm.  It was totally worth it, though.  I got all the ingredients I needed, came back, and then baked and watched a movie for the rest of the night.  It was the perfect way to end a crazy two weeks.  On Saturday morning, Camille and I woke up early and caught the tram downtown and then got on the bus to Phillip Island.  Phillip Island is famous for their “Penguin Parade” – a whole colony of little penguins comes out of the ocean every night and heads for their burrows.  At the Penguin Parade, you get to watch them come out of the water and then wander the boardwalk and follow them as they find their nests.  It’s really cool and they’re SUPER cute.  Also on Phillip Island is a wildlife sanctuary where you can go pet and feed kangaroos.  Camille and I went there and it was so fun!  The kangaroos are so cute, but a little aggressive.  They know all about the food bags that you’re carrying and will do pretty much anything to get another bite.  This includes punching other kangaroos out of the way, standing up as tall as they can to get their heads closer to the food, and grabbing you with their tiny arms.  At times, I was a little nervous, but once you start feeding them again, they were as sweet as can be and even held my hand while they ate.  It was such a cool experience!  Because the penguins only come out of the water at sunset, and Phillip Island is about 3 hours from where we live, we decided to stay the night.  We chose a cute, little hostel called the Chill House were a few of our friends had stayed before.  It was the best!  We were the only ones there because it is the winter season and so we had free reign of everything.  Camille and I went to dinner after the penguins and then just went back to the hostel and watched a movie before going to bed.  It was super “chill”J and just a really great night!  Sunday was fairly uneventful except for the fact that I got to sleep in!  Monday I spent working on two more projects.  I had to do a presentation on Iran for my Middle East Politics class and most of my preparation was spent making cookies and frosting them with three stripes to look like the Iranian flag… hopefully there were points for creativityJ.  Tuesday was spent finishing my last paper (I am officially done with all schoolwork until my finals in three weeks!) and then I went to a Hillsong Church Conference worship service.  It was incredible!  Such a great night!!  Today (Wednesday) has been fairly routine (class, gym, etc.), but tomorrow I get to fly to Sydney and stay with Holli for the long weekend!  I’m SO excited!!!  Today I was at the gym and ran into a friend I don’t see very often.  We small talked a bit and she reminded me that we both leave in a month!  I can’t believe how fast my time here has gone.  I love it here and I’m still enjoying every moment.  Life is goodJ.  

New Zealand (Days 7-9)

Day 7 (Fri. April 29^th)

On Friday, Camille and I split up for the morning.  I wanted to go on a Lord of the Rings tour and she wanted to sleep in and just walk around the city.  I had to be at my tour early, but woke up even before my alarm went off.  I got ready much quicker than I’d planned and so I had some time to grab breakfast.  I wandered around a bit and then found a precious bakery and got a pie.  This may sound deceptive – a pie in Australia and New Zealand is an individual potpie with mostly “meal” fillings.  Some examples: steak and cheese, chicken, mince, sausage, bacon and egg, etc.  I got the bacon and egg pie and it was delicious!  After I ate, I made my way to the information center to catch my bus for the tour.  There were three of us, plus the driver so he had us all introduce ourselves before we left.  The other couple started, “I’m Neil, and I’m Kate, and we’re actually visiting from the States”.  I replied, “oh me too!  Where are you from?”  They replied “St. Louis”.  They had just graduated from St. Louis University.  I told them that my brother was about to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis – I was actually wearing my Wash U sweatshirt that day!  It was pretty funny.  They were really nice and fun to get to know.  The Lord of the Rings tour was pretty cool.  I’m not a huge fan (I’ve seen each of the movies once), but it was awesome to see how they transformed areas around Wellington to make it “Middle Earth”.  At each stop we made, the tour guide took us to the place where they shot a scene or a set of scenes and helped us visualize where the set was and then showed us pictures of the movie to overlap what we were seeing in real life.  For example, he took us to a park and said, “Now here is where they created the road that Aragorn rides through… and right over there would have been the castle.”  And then he showed us a picture of the scene from the movie and pointed out a tree in the picture and then pointed it out in real life.  It was so cool to know that where I was standing was actually in the movie.  On the tour, we went to Rivendell, which is a beautiful park and where the Elves’ scenes were filmed for the movie.  We had soda and muffins as a part of the tour – delicious!  And it was sunny out – it was a beautiful day!  After the tour, I met up with Camille again.  She got some lunch and I bought some cookies to try.  Kate (from the tour) had been on exchange in New Zealand before and had gotten addicted to “Mallow Puffs”.  They are essentially a s’more cookie.  They have a graham cracker bottom, marshmallow filling and then are completely covered in chocolate.  She told me I had to try themJ.  They were pretty good, but I like tim tams better.  We ate our lunch at the waterfront and then made our way back to the information center to catch our bus for our afternoon seal tour!  We found our tour guide and loaded into the back of an old 4WD vehicle and set off for the south coast. He took us up this huge hill to the highest point in Wellington.  The views were incredible!  Then we went down the backside of the mountain and past a farm tucked into the hillside.  There were deer – multiple deer – in a pen.  They were being raised domestically.  It was so strange!  Further along the road, we came to a huge valley we could look into and see about 20 wild horses!  I’ve never seen wild horses before – that was cool.  We finally made it down the backside of this huge mountain and onto the coast.  The driver put on the 4WD and we were off.  It was REALLY bumpy, but once again, we were driving on the sandJ.  We finally made it to the leaning lighthouse and the huge seal colony!!  They were incredible.  It was so cool to see them and watch them waddle around and play in the water.  They were precious.  While at the colony, our driver gave us muffins and a New Zealand style tea – both DELICIOUS!  After watching the seals for a while, we made our way back to Wellington.  Camille and I decided to walk along the water as the sun set and ended up at a restaurant called The Fisherman’s Table for dinner.  It was good – seafoodJ.  By this point in the trip, I was really starting to notice how much closer Camille and I had become and it was awesome!  I really enjoyed getting to spend so much quality time with her.  We made it back to the hostel, showered, and called it a night. 

Day 8 (Sat. April 30^th)

On Saturday, we woke up fairly early again, got ready, checked some emails, and then made our way to “Wholly Bagel” for breakfast.  Camille had spotted it when she was walking around the city the day before and wanted to go back.  We have both been disappointed in Australia’s lack of bagel shops and couldn’t wait to eat a fresh, legitimate bagel.  They were quite tastyJ.  Afterwards, we went to the Frank Kitts Markets on the waterfront and wandered through the booths.  It was a small market, but they had lots of really cool crafts and merchandise on display.  I enjoyed just looking through it all.  Also, there was a crepe stand, so naturally I indulged in a delicious crepe.  After the market, we wandered down Lambton Quay (the upscale shopping district) and ended up at the Parliament.  Wellington is the capitol of New Zealand and they are well known for their ugly parliament building.  It is definitely ugly, but it was cool to see where the country does business.  We had just missed the start of a tour and didn’t want to wait for an hour, so we kept walking and made our way up the huge hill to the Botanic Gardens and the Carter Observatory.  We made it to the observatory just in time for their show.  It was really interesting and, like in a planetarium, the docent pointed out a bunch of stars to look for at night and helped us find some constellations.  Once we finished at the observatory, we took the cable car back down the hill and walked through Cuba street again and then made our way through Courtney Place (an area with lots of bars, restaurants, theaters, etc.).  We made our way to the waterfront and then decided to hike to the top of Mt. Victoria.  We had planned to take the bus to the top, but neither of us had checked the timetable and they didn’t run a Saturday bus to the top.  It was a great hike, though.  It was similar to hiking the Ridge in Ellensburg.  We made it to the top close to sunset and the sun was beautiful!  It was cold and windy at the top, but clear and beautiful as well.  We stayed up at the lookout for a little while before making our way back down.  Once we hit the city again, we went back to the hostel for a little while and then found dinner.  I got a sandwich from a grocery store and it was potentially the best sandwich I’ve ever hadJ.  After dinner, we decided to go star gaze and see if we could find some of the constellations we had learned about at the planetarium.  It was a clear night and I did find one – the Southern Cross!  It was cool.  After we’d star gazed for a while, Camille and I found the playground on the waterfront and decided to playJ.  We went down the slide and then we went on the swings and just talked for a while.  It was a really great night.  We decided to head back to the hostel and get packed up and then went to bed early, as we had to be up EARLY for our flight the next morning. 

Day 9 (Sun. May 1^st)

On Sunday morning, we woke up at 2:45am and caught a taxi at 3:15am to get to the airport.  We were dropped off at 3:30am and found that the doors were locked – the airport didn’t even open until 4am!  So, we stood in the cold for a half hour and then got ourselves checked in, through security and to our gate in plenty of time.  The plane ride was really quick again.  I watched a documentary on stress – very interesting! – then watched No Strings AttachedJ.  On the way back, we fly first to Sydney and then to Melbourne.  Our layover was quick and our flight from Sydney to Melbourne was quick as well.  When we got off the plane in Melbourne, a throng of middle school girls all dressed up in purple and holding signs greeted us.  They were waiting for Justin Beiber!  Apparently he was flying from Sydney to Melbourne that day so they were wandering the airport, gate to gate, as planes came in, waiting for him.  It was crazy!  Camille and I got our bags and then caught the shuttle and tram back home.  It took awhile to get back as it was a Saturday afternoon and the tram stopped a lot, but we finally made it!  I got unpacked, went to the grocery store and then got myself ready for a big week.  It was an incredible trip!  I want to go back to New Zealand the first chance I get – I LOVED it there. 

New Zealand: Day 6

Day 6 (Thur. April 28^th)

On Thursday, Camille and I woke up early and again and headed to the airport to catch our flight to Wellington.  Auckland is toward the north part of the North Island – Wellington is the southernmost city on the North Island, and also the capitol.  It was a very quick flight (only about an hour) and a quick shuttle ride from the airport to our hostel.  Right from the start, I LOVED Wellington!  It was such a quaint, quirky, unique city.  It is contained by the coast to the South and rugged mountains to the North – everything is close.  It’s like a party… if the room is too big, you lose the party atmosphere… when things are tight and contained, the energy and excitement is much more concentrated.  It was perfect - I loved it!  Once we put our things down at the hostel, we wandered around to find some lunch and ended up finding Cuba St.  This street was the bohemian central of the city.  There were a lot of cool pubs, unique shops, street performers, and just plain weird people wandering around.  It was fun!  We got some lunch and then decided to ride the cable car up the hill to the Botanic Gardens.  Wellington is a lot like San Francisco – a VERY hilly, coastal city.  The cable car was cool, though – it was like a tram straight up the side of the hill.  Once we got to the top, we just wandered through the Botanic Gardens.  They were beautiful even though they were past their prime summer season.  The trees were SO impressive and unique!  Out of all the Royal Botanic Gardens I’ve seen since coming to Australia, they were my favorite.  After the botanic gardens, we came back down the hill to the waterfront and just sat and sipped coffee for a while before going back to the hostel to claim our free “meal” for dinner.  We gave them our vouchers and were given a VERY small portion of a rice dish.  It was delicious, but definitely did not satisfy our hunger from the day.  So, after devouring that, Camille and I found an Irish pub and had a real meal for dinner.  Then we made our way to the Te Papa museum (the new Zealand national museum) and explored the exhibits.  It was SUCH a good museum.  I was really impressed.  They had a really cool exhibit on the Maori culture – super interesting.  On our way back to the hostel, Camille and I stopped at McDonalds for a milkshake and then attempted sleep despite our rooms being right above the hostel bar and the dance party they were apparently having that night.  Regardless of the noise pollution, we both fell asleep very fast!  It was a busy week and we were tiredJ.    

New Zealand: Day 5

Day 5 (Wed. April 27^th)

On Wednesday, I got up early and went to stake out a place to watch the sunrise.  Even as I was leaving the hostel in the early dawn, I could tell it was going to be beautiful.  The sky was clear, the waters were calm, and there was peace that cannot be put into words.  The sunrise was one of the most incredible I’ve seen in awhile.  I’m so glad I woke up early to catch itJ.  After I saw the sun crest the horizon, I found some coffee, ate another delicious banana and met up with Camille so we could catch our boat to head out in to the Bay of Islands.  We had booked a tour the day before that took us out on a boat to find, observe and SWIM with dolphins!  I was a little apprehensive as these were wild dolphins… in the middle of the Pacific Ocean (the ultimate in “open-water”).  I have always been scared of swimming in water I can’t see the bottom of, but I decided that this experience merited forgetting ALL my fears and just living life!  We started out on the boat at 8am and found our first pod of dolphins at about 8:30am, fairly close to the Bay.  It was SO cool to see them swimming around our boat and playing with us!  We got to sit on the front of the bow and look over into the water.  They were swimming with usJ.  After the driver and dolphin expert on board observed the pod for a little while, they got us situated to go swimming.  There were really strict rules for being allowed to get in the water with them… there couldn’t be any babies with them, we were only allowed in the water for a certain amount of time, etc.  New Zealand is very strict on environmental conservation – it’s really impressive.  Anyway, the dolphin expert had us sit on the back of the boat and the driver got us close to the pod and then they said, “GO” and we all jumped in!  Also, I want to take a quick break to mention that Camille and I chose the best time to go to New Zealand and the Bay of Islands in particular.  It’s the very end of their tourist season and summer so they are offering deals on all tours, the water is the warmest of the year, and there are WAY fewer people there.  There were only 5 total people on our boat!  It was excellentJ.  So, anyway, they told us to jump in and just start swimming toward them!  It was the most incredible thing!!  The dolphins were swimming around us, diving down and around us, calling to one another, clicking, and playing with us.  It was so cool.  The water was cold and I was pretty terrified, but once I saw them, I couldn’t help but be overcome by the experience.  After we got out of the water, we just cruised around on the boat through the Bay until we found another pod.  The dolphins we’d swum with earlier had joined this pod and there was baby!  It was precious.  The dolphin expert explained that we were lucky we’d found our pod before they’d joined with this one because we couldn’t swim with a pod that had a baby.  Not only was it unhealthy for a growing baby to be interrupted from nursing, etc. by swimmers, but also, baby dolphins were much more attractive to sharks.  Right before getting in the water, I’d asked if there were sharks… the “expert” had told me no.  I felt a little betrayed, but I was pretty glad I didn’t know about the sharks beforeJ.  I wasn’t attacked… no harm, no foulJ.  After we were done with dolphin searching, the boat stopped at a small BEAUTIFUL island in the middle of the Bay and let us off to explore for a few minutes.  There was a short hike straight up the side of the hill and offered incredible views into the Bay.  Also, the grass covering the entire island was BRIGHT green and there were sheep everywhere.  It was such a peaceful time.  I wanted to stay there all day.  After the stopover, the boat dropped Camille and I off at Russell (a town across the Bay from Paihia) so we could explore before taking the ferry back to Paihia.  Russell was so precious!  We ate at a little café – I had a salmon and cream cheese sandwich… it was SO good.  I’ve had weird food cravings since I’ve been here, especially in terms of seafood.  It’s probably because it’s everywhere and SO fresh!  I figure if I’m going to eat it, it might as well be where it’s the freshest and most deliciousJ.  After exploring Russell, we went back to Paihia and collected our things to catch our bus to get back to Auckland.  We had to make special arrangements with another bus company to take us back to Auckland on Wednesday since the tour company we’d booked our trip with didn’t offer a bus back on Wednesday… and then we got on the wrong bus!  It was crazy, but the driver of the bus we got on by mistake was SUPER nice about it and offered to just take us back regardless and dropped us at a closer spot than our original bus even would have.  Kiwi hospitalityJ.  I was really impressed with how awesome everyone in New Zealand was… it was great!  The bus ride back to Auckland was beautiful and the stars were bright even through the bus windowJ.  When we got back, we searched out internet, but it was a super weak connection and we got frustrated before we got it to work.  We ended up just going back to the hostel and going to bed.  Another GREAT dayJ.