Australian Friends!

Today was a great day FULL of socializing.  It started this morning when I woke up to Skype my parents.  It was SO great to see them and get to real talk to them.  I have been in touch mostly via email, but actually hearing their voices and seeing their faces is great!... really special.  I left shortly after for church and had a nice walk there in the rain.  It was a great service, but it was also just nice to meet some new people.  Everyone is incredibly friendly and welcoming.  People are SUPER eager to meet me.  Seriously, so many people came over and said, “I haven’t seen you before, are you new?”  Then I respond and they become even more eager as they hear my “accent”.  It’s really funny.  Australians LOVE Americans!  They all want to come to the States.  It’s pretty perfect for me J.  I met a few people my age before the service and then was invited by my friend I met last week to go to their “young adults” lunch after.  We went to Box Hill (another suburb about 10 minutes from where I live).  It’s like a Chinatown city.  It’s cool.  There are lots of great restaurants and little shops.  We went to the Dumpling King and I had some great vegetarian dumplingsJ.  It was GREAT to get to know all the kids my age from church.  They are all so fun and just really cool people.  And they are Australian!  I’ve met so many exchange students from the states so far, but not many Australians.  It’s really fun to know some locals.  They had a million questions about America… is Mean Girls the way high school actually is?  Is Microsoft in Seattle?... Have I seen the Simpson’s episode where they go to Australia?... it was really funny!  I had so much fun talking to them and hearing their perspective of America.  They love to laugh and have fun… it was great!  After lunch, I went to a BBQ that my landlady hosted for all of her houses.  She has ten houses around our area where international students live, so the purpose was for us all to get to know one another.  It was really fun meeting all those people as well.  I tried a little BBQ chicken on a skewer (delicious) and a piece of Wellington cake (sponge cake, dipped in chocolate, coated in coconut shavingsJ).  It was good.  Overall, it was a great day full of good food, lively conversation and LOTS of new friends!  It was really fun.  But… I’m exhausted!  I know I’ll sleep well tonightJ.