outback adventures.

"study week" part TWO

2009-06-22T04:37:00.000-07:00

- stop # FOUR: Airlie Beach
Arrived at about 5 am and reception was not open until 6:30. Hung out in McDonalds, took a walk, and got some fresh air. Katie and I were delirious and bouncing off the walls. The others probably hated us! Oh well that’s what happens when I don’t sleep. After a while Katie, Wes, and I claimed the car and passed out. Britt and Pat experienced a beautiful sunrise over the harbor. Soon enough reception at the hostel opened and we all went and took over the couches in their common area…at least we were able to get a good couple hours of sleep in us!

After deciding to get up and take advantage of the absolutely beautiful day awaiting us outside, we checked into our boat, signed some papers, and walked around Airlie Beach not shopping because we are all broke as. In itself, it is a very nice, clean, small, touristy town right on the ocean!

- stop # FIVE: sailing the Whitsunday Islands on the New Horizon

The Horrrr- our pirate ship for 3 days and 2 nights

30 or so backpackers/travelers, 6 awesome staff

Sailing the Coral Sea by day, anchored by night

great food prepared for us at each meal : )
sunsets and sunrises over the never ending turquoise waters

staring at the water for hours over the rail, star gazing, chatting with new friends

goonology

Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef, twice!

Whitehaven Beach – The world’s second most photographed beach: where the sand is so fine you can brush your teeth with it and make them a few shades whiter!

Sea turtles, stingrays, heaps of fish, and a dolphin!

card games and pirate garb

Tons of SUN, sand, and saltwater

Whale season, unlucky with the whales and sharks : (

- stop # SIX: Sippy Downs
We arrived back at our apartment complex after an all day drive back down the coast. It may have taken about 15 hours, but overall it was pretty quick.

We were once again completely blessed with the weather, so we got up early for the umpteenth morning in a row and headed to Mooloolaba for a quick surf! Pat threw on his wetsuit, Wes finally got his first shot at a surf, Britt built a ‘turtle sand castle’, and I played in the sand, took photos, and then shocked myself by standing up on my first try! Just a perfect morning on the Sunny Coast.

We hustled back to Brissy, took care of all the long anticipated car business, and 8 days later, after heaps of jokes, names, tunes, animals, people, drives, laughs, sunrises and sunsets, bodies of water, and unforgettable experiences, we called it a successful ‘study week’!

"study week" part ONE.

2009-06-22T04:05:00.000-07:00

- stop # ONE: Brisbane
Pat, Britt and I left Uni at 5:55 am in order to catch the bus, to catch the train, to get to our car rental location in the city. Everything went really well and it was a beautiful morning! We had to kill some time for Wes to arrive so we could go pick him up from Roma station. After a hard time getting around the city (fricken one ways!) we could start our journey back to the apartments to get rid of bags, grab Katie, and pack up the car to start on our adventure!

- stop # TWO: Hervey Bay
Hervey Bay is the gateway to the island. We had a free night and free meal at Beaches hostel here. We forked over some more money for park fees, ate a great meal, listened to tunes and watched old music videos, then called it a night.

The next morning we had to meet the rest of the group at 6:45 am in order to get things organized. We planned our grocery and drink lists and put certain people in charge of various tasks. After we had all of our food, supplies, equipment, and listened to ridiculously LONG speeches about the island and 4wd vehicles, we were off to the barge!

- stop # THREE: Fraser Island

Barge ride over to the world’s largest sand island!
Central Station
Wanggoolba Creek – magical waters.

Seventy Five Mile Beach

Eli Creek

'Beaches' campsite to set up tents, supper, games, a full moon, and a night at the beach.

Indian Head hike and look out

Champagne Pools that didn’t bubble for us…but we succeeded in some crab hunting.

exploring the never ending sand dunes

Maheno Shipwreck

Lake Allom and the turtles- plus our ongoing Larry scenarios

'Beaches' Campsite, supper, planning for the next day, and a short night at the beach

watched the sunrise over the Pacific

The Pinnacles

Lake Wabby hike, swim, sand dunes, and sand boarding.

Lake McKenzie: the most amazing beach and freshwater lake I have ever seen. The water there is clearer than what comes out of the tap, that’s for sure!

Dingos – apparently they are vicious?! I won’t take my chances with the wild dogs.

The barge back to Hervey Bay

A long night of driving. Everyone was jammin’ out. Great tunes, great company, great road trip. Hit a wallaby, oops! Which was a bit nerve racking and everyone was unsure what to think at the time. Granted, it is extra money none of us has to spare, but just think about the experience…We made it to Airlie Beach safe and sound otherwise!

and it I thought they spoke English in OZ?!

2009-06-20T19:11:00.000-07:00

AUSSIE terms…OZ OZ OZ oi oi oi

no worries – your welcome, it is ok
maccas - mc donalds
i reckon – i think
yous – you?
broke as or good as – no money or really good
bloke – guy
motorway – highway
salvo – salvation army
how are you going? – how are you doing?
chips – French fries
uni – university
rubbish – garbage
Oz –Australia
Aussie – an Australian
brekky – breakfast
rice bubbles – rice krispies
boardies – board shorts
hey? – what?
training – practice
mates – friends
chemist – pharmacy
long black – Americano(coffee)
buggered – tired, beat
tyre – tire
bottle shop – liquor store
whole meal – wheat
snags – sausage (brat)
heaps – a lot, many
seppos – Americans
spot on – perfect
jumper – sweatshirt
lollies – candy
chockie – chocolate bar
dead set- correct
dodgy- questionable, suspicious
sweet as - real cool
zebra crossing – crosswalk
arvo – afternoon
goon – cheap wine
keen – agreeable, good idea
post – mail
notes – paper money
a popper – a juice box
pokies – slot machines
toilet – restroom
zed – z
swimmers, bathers, togs – swim suit
lemonade – 7up, sprite
good onya - good on you- well done
footy – rugby, soccer, football
banana bender- person from Queensland
barbie – barbeque
biscuit – cookie
BYO- bring your own drinks to the restaurant
petrol - gas
rubber – eraser
sport – an activity
have a go – give it a try
gidday – hello
mucking around – playing
nappy – diaper
mum – mother
queue – line of people
tomato sauce – ketchup
tea – main meal
bush – the woods
plaza – mall, shopping center
capsicum – green pepper
rock melon – cantaloupe

Grace Christian Church

2009-05-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

The group I typically attend church with and Pastor Bob

...mid-may BLOG.

2009-05-30T22:27:00.000-07:00

May 23: German Katie’s Themed Birthday Party
Had a pretty uneventful week, but anticipated my German friends 23 birthday celebration that would be on Saturday! It had been sometime since I actually just went over to a friends place to hang out. Her theme was to come dressed up representing a country. It ended up being a really neat idea. I tried to wear red, white, and blue to be America…I had no intention of spending money on an outfit. Some people pulled off some really good looks like Spain, Greece, China, etc...along with dressing up people brought drinks and food to go along with the country, so it was really nice to have some actual food with plenty of variety!

The next week consisted of my final tutorial activity in one class where I had to do a viva, in other words, an oral presentation. That ended up going really well which was a relief! In another class I had a group meeting for our final report! In our lectures, we started exam reviews and I have been doing a lot of final exam prep on my own. This week will be our last week of the normal semester schedule, which I can not believe! Thrilled at the same time to get finals over with of course!

May 29: Sunshine Coast Turf Club- Ladies Oaks: Race Day, Caloundra
Friday was an absolutely beautiful day! We used it very effectively as well I must admit! Woke up early, got all fancy, and headed to a friends apartment for a group breakfast. We spent all day at the horse races. There were so many people, many with awesome, classy outfits, hats, and fascinators. Unfortunately, I didn’t win any money, but then again I barely bet!

May 30: Eumundi Markets- Noosa Hinterlands
After the long anticipated waiting period, I finally went to the markets! Weekend after weekend I said I would, but something would come up or the weather would not cooperate! So after buses, trains, buses, and beautiful scenery, we made it to Eumundi and experienced the life of local vendors, original Australian made arts, crafts, clothes, jewelry, and food! We took advantage of all the free samples or course and spent a beautiful day outside browsing the booths.

Time for Brissy!

2009-05-18T01:36:00.000-07:00

May 15th

This past week was full of lectures, tutorials, group meetings, presentations, and the finalizing of group projects. With all that done and out of the way, it was time to head to Brisbane for the weekend! Brisbane is just an hour from the Sunny Coast and is an easy outlet to experience some city life.

The public transportation in Australia isn’t that great, but it is still pretty easy to grab a bus and train, then before you know it your already right in the city. Our first mission was to go straight to Beaches travel agency so four of us could book our study week trip to Fraser Island and the Whitsundays. It is claimed that if we left Australia without visiting these places, we would have missed the whole purpose of our stay here! With that said, we knew we had to make it happen! Almost all the international students have already done Fraser so we did not compile a big group tour, but there will be five of us together which is perfect!

Next we dropped our stuff at the hostel, grabbed some coffee and food, and explored the city. We walked around the shops even though NONE of us have spare money to buy stuff. Some of the girls made their souvenir/gift purchases because there is an abundance of cheap tourist shops! It was then time to head back, grab some warm clothes, and trek over to purchase our rugby tickets.

Rugby is huge in Australia and this weekend was our one chance to catch a game! None of us had been before so it was a new, exciting experience for all of us. In Oz there are three types of footy: Rugby Union, Rugby XXX, and AFL. It was cool to see how many people are so passionate about their rugby! On our way back from the game we came across a pub doing karaoke, so we stopped to laugh for a bit, however know we had to do it as well! Since it was so fitting that there were five girls, we rocked Wannabe by Spice Girls for the crowd! Pretty entertaining I am sure.

Saturday was so so beautiful out so we walked around the city all day. We mostly tried to walk along the river and then up and through the botanical gardens. It amazes me that such a beautiful park can be located right in the center of a busy city. We also took a look around a local museum and were lucky enough to go up in the tower for a great sight over the city!

I was able to finish off my weekend spending Sunday at the beach relaxing! We haven’t had heat like we did this weekend for a couple weeks now so it was a really nice change. What I thought would be just me and my friend Jess turned into about 10 of us. The boys mostly all surfed, the girls layed out and listened to tunes, and we all randomly went for walks around Alex or runs down the beach. Makes for a great morning : )

Mooloolaba

2009-05-18T01:28:00.000-07:00

Britt and I taking in the view for the night at Mooloolaba

Cinco de Mayo

2009-05-18T01:24:00.000-07:00

May 5th: Cinco de Mayo

The long anticipated fifth of May finally came around and we had our excuse to eat tons of Mexican food, or in Pat’s case, to spend money on Corona! Cinco de Mayo is….A lot of others said they would like to celebrate and get together for it, however they didn’t show. It ended up being five of us with WAY too much food! It was really nice just to hang out and enjoy the night even though it was not a party.

The rest of that week, including the entire weekend was left to me and the books! I had several assessments due that upcoming week so my weekend was very uneventful, which is okay every once and a while I suppose! I save money that way : )

Visting Wezzz!

2009-05-04T18:41:00.000-07:00

May 1: Trip to Lismore-
Southern Cross University

The weekend finally came and I was able to get away and go visit one of my friends who is studying abroad here in Australia as well! On Friday I started my journey by catching the bus and train to Brisbane, where I would walk around the city and kill sometime until my next bus to Lismore arrived. After a VERY interesting bus ride the boys picked me up at the Lismore train station.

We headed to meet up Wes' roommates and friends at a local restaraunt to celebrate one of their birthdays. It was a nice evening, even though I arrived about an hour later than I was suppose to :/ All of the friends were really fun and outgoing, which was refreshing!

The rest of the night was spent playing ping pong, eating cake, and just hanging out--preparing for the next big day we had ahead of us!

Saturday was the long awaited 'Race Day' that all the Southern Cross Uni students had been very anxious and excited for! The school put on a breakfast for the residents and then shuttled us out on buses to the race track. The weather turned out to be great and the whoel experience was brand new to me! I really enjoyed meeting new people, betting on horses with Wes(even though I didn't win), and hanging around the track for the day. Of course, I can't forget to mention the very last race...which consisted of a crazy Canadian streaking right down the main stretch in front of the entire crowd, ha!
What was a really fun day turned into an even more interesting night...and that is pretty much all I have to say about that! A lot of laughing : )

The next morning Matty drove us to spend the morning and afternoon at Byron Bay. The 45 minute ride their itself was really beautiful. So much green and so many hills! We took a walk up and around the the most easterly point of Australia!! and then on to the lighthouse.

We had a great view with a lot of turquoise water, unending beaches, some turtles, stingrays, and other aquatic animals. We headed back down to have a bbq at the beach, soaked up the sun, and the boys attempted to do some body boarding!

We ended the day walking around Byron and seeing what the town has to offer! I could see myself bumming around this little surf/hippie town for a weekend again some time. Three o'clock was well on its way when I had to jump back on a bus for a long ride home. It was a really great day and the weather was on our side. It started pouring right when my bus pulled away :)

Another Weekend at the Coast

2009-05-04T18:30:00.000-07:00

April 23

Thursday-Sunday

Had a wonderful Thursday night out at the apartments and then at our UNI night location, Woombye. My friend Britt was telling everyone it was my birthday, so none-the-less it was a very comical night and I laughed every time she tried to convince randoms to buy me a drink. Since she wasn’t able to be with me on my birthday she apparently thought tonight was a good way of making up for it! It was great.

Later that weekend a large group of us took a bus to climb one of the Glass House Mountains. Just trying to find the mountain was a good portion of the adventure!

The Glass House Mountains are believed to have formed from volcanic activity. They were once plugs of lava which cooled with volcanic cones. Erosion of the surrounding limestone has revealed the existing landscape and unique structure of the mountains. There are 14 mountains in total spread over 600,000 hectares.

We climbed Mt Ngungun which is 253 M. On our walk to there we passed a pineapple field, which I loved of course! I had never seen one before and nothing screams Chelsey more than an endless supply of her favorite fruit! After the climb, we walked around a little town and played at the park while we waited for the next train back.

New Zealand

2009-04-25T23:37:00.000-07:00

New Zealand
April 3 – April 13
Easter break trip…

At about 4 a.m. on April 3, six fellow uni students and I left our apartment to head to the Brisbane airport. Later that morning, we caught our flight from Brisbane to Christchurch, New Zealand to start our Easter break trip! For our trip we were joining the Kiwi Experience, Southern Roundup tour and travelling all around the south island.

Stop # 1: Christchurch

Known for having the freshest water in all of New Zealand, it is a fairly small city with an old English feel to it. Right now it is their autumn, so the weather is crisp and chilly, but the colors are a sight for sore eyes! All we did in Christchurch was walk around and explore the city. We saw a couple markets, the casino, a botanical garden, and took a nap in a wonderful park. I was here on my birthday so we went out to supper and hung out at the bar that was part of our hostel. I definitely missed my friends and family that day!

Stop # 2: Westport and Greymouth

The ride from Christchurch to these stops was ridiculous, in a good way of course! I was intrigued the moment we got out of the city because it was our first taste of true New Zealand. We took the windiest, hilliest roads I have ever been on. It was also the most amazing scenery I had seen yet at this point in my life! If I could share the view through a video recording and let it do justice, I would! Instead, my memory will have to do for now. Little did I know, this was just the beginning with even greater things to come : )

We stayed at the Trip Inn Hostel in a small old gold mining town. It was basically a huge old farmhouse that has been transformed into a night stop for backpackers. Outside of the town was located Buller Adventure Tours where one day I went jet boating and the next did some horse trekking!

Stop # 3: Mahinapua

Our next stop was the “Poo Pub” in a town that consists of nothing, Mahinapua. To the left of the Pub was a lake with a camping area and to the right was the ocean. The ocean was a lot different then most- black sand, drift wood scattered the beach, and many rocks all over. This stop is part of the itinerary because a grumpy, hilarious old man owns the place and has been hosting it for years! They first cook a huge steak dinner for all 60+ travelers and later put on a costume party in the old run down bar.

After leaving the next morning, we take a short pit stop at the “Bushman Center” for an interesting experience, none-the-less. Basically it was to see a video about how New Zealanders hunt and trap deer. The main feature is the fact that they do it by jumping out of helicopters and wrestling them until they are contained. We also saw some possums and some other interesting animals. My favorite part of the whole experience was the ridiculous signs located all around the unique building.

We also took a stop at the "Pancake Rocks" which were some very unique rocks/cliffs/hills/formations that had built up along the coast to make for some wonderful scenic walks. As you can tell the coast itself was pretty nice!

Stop #4: Franz Josef

Franz Josef is a very small, very typical tourist town. I reckon the only reason it exists is for people to experience climbing and seeing glaciers. We stayed at a hostel/resort called the Rainforest Retreat…sounds alright hey? It was a pretty decent place with a really nice restaurant and bar. They also had a large hot tub for the guests! It was rainy and cold both nights we stayed here, so it was nice to be able to stay inside and sit by the fire, chat, and take part in some activities, such as a rock-paper-scissors contest.

Besides these, the main event here was the eight hour glacier trip we took. Quite the experience- the beginning and end were great, but the middle was a bit miserable! The day we left, a few of us had one more quick stop and that was to skydive over the Fox Glacier and next to Mt. Cook: ) which might I add has been rated the second most scenic place in the world to dive!

Stop #5: Wanaka

I feel in love the moment we drove in on the bus! Seeing all of the autumn colors with water and the mountains in the background was a, lets say, breath of fresh air! It is a rather small, very nice, ski resort town. If I had the proper attire for the situation I would have felt as though I was in a movie! I took advantage of the opportunity here and took a refreshing run! The hostel was brand new, along with everything else it had to offer, for instance the Mint Bar. We had a dinner here, followed by a fun night with an attempt at an Easter egg hunt. However, by time morning came, we were off once again.

A short time out of town, we stopped at Puzzling World. This was just to spare sometime for the others who either had or were in the process of going skydiving. It was a really fun place however. Honestly, I felt a little bit like I was on a school field trip, but there is nothing wrong with that right? We all love field trips. There was a large maze outside and all sorts of obstacle illusion mind-boggling rooms and activities inside.

Stop #6: Queenstown

Adventure capital of the world, here we come!! Getting into Queenstown was pretty exciting because it was the last stop, but the long awaited one we were all anxious for. Just outside of town was our first stop, which was when I experienced my first ever bungy jump at the world’s first ever bungy location, Kawarau Bridge. I absolutely loved it and could have done it over and over again!

We then made our way into town, took a group photo of our kiwi bus with a great view for a backdrop. Later that afternoon we took a gondola ride up to the top of a large hill and did some lugeing. Let me tell you what, go lugeing with the wrong group and everyone is going to end up hurt! Ha! It was great fun.

We took a walk around town and through the shops that day and ended it by hanging out at the hostels Altitude Bar where we had a night filled with group trivia. Not to mention it was lady’s night so I walked away with a red rose : ) We last went to The World Bar where they serve drinks in tea pots!

The next day I saved my money that I don’t have and just enjoyed the weather. We grabbed lunch at the infamous Fergburgers(delicious!! – huge burgers) where we just so happened to run into Jesse Metcalfe (aka John Tucker) and Jack Osbourne, along with a couple others who I didn’t know. Who would have thought, chatting on the sidewalk with a few famous people as if it is no big deal! This encounter turned out to be the highlight of some of the girl’s trip. We ended the night taking part in the popular “Big Night Out” pub crawl.

Stop #7: back to Christchurch

We jumped the long bus ride back to Christchurch, so we could make it in time to catch our flight back home. We got to the city in time for mass, so two others and I attended an Easter service. It was really nice to be able to still make it to church on Easter and listen to a good sermon and a ridiculous choir! Tonight everyone seemed to do a little of their own thing. So four of us girls just played cards, ate popcorn and hung out. Two boys went to the casino and won heaps! One guy went to the beach and another gal enjoyed a few drinks with our new roommate. All seven of us and our new English friend Sophie had a fun last night just having a chat and joking and laughing in our room.

N-ZEd

2009-04-19T04:30:00.000-07:00

New Zealand photos....coming soon to blogs near you!

Busy Week # 2

2009-04-02T05:41:00.000-07:00

March 23 – Monday:

When we took our free surf lesson we got to know one of the instructors some (David), so we exchanged numbers to get some more free lessons from him! So J and E called him up and he provided boards for them and they headed to Alex Headlands for a day of surf. They bought him lunch in return, became obsessed with meat pies, did a TON of walking, and had a great super at the Mexican restaurant Montezuma’s-where they fell in love with the nachos!

March 24 – Tuesday:

J and E spent another wonderful day at the beach and then we spent quite the interesting night walking around the Mooloolaba area with surf instructor David. Let’s just say it was an unexpected adventure! Can’t forget our favorite part when David flew off of his skateboard!

The girls wanted to spend one last night at Friday’s where we met some really fun local kids who happened to be the same ages as Jess and Elle.

March 25 – Wednesday:

The girls get up bright and early to grab the bus to go to the world famous (apparently) Eumundi Markets. They did a last quick shop at the Plaza to get their Oz headbands and that night we just chilled and figured out our upcoming travel plans and pack up.

March 26 – Thursday:

So before the girls came over to Oz, I did some bragging about the rainforest and waterfalls and cliff jumping, etc…I really did want them to get out of the city area and see some of the amazing countryside. You don’t have to go very far up the road to see some very natural, mind-boggling beauty. Lucky for them Kyal and some of his friends took them out to Gardner Falls for the afternoon. I was jealous that is for sure!

Early that evening we leave the Sunshine Coast to fly to Sydney for the weekend! It started as just the three of us and somehow turned into 9! It was great.

We were able to rearrange so that Jess, Elle, and I were able to sit together on the flight and it went very fast. We took an 11 person taxi into the city and checked into our hostel. We spent a while walking around the city and then hit the sack!

March 27 – Friday:

Today we jumped on a sightseeing bus. With this particular bus we are able to use it and hop on and off as much as we would like for 24 hours. We saw all the major tourist sights such as the opera house, the bridge, Bondi beach, St. Mary’s cathedral, Kings Cross, Hyde Park, etc…

Along the way, we spotted the MTV music awards and were able to watch all the stars walk down the red carpet! It was really sick! It would have been better if I had known more of the musicians, but Katie, Brittany, and Elle were freaking out!

After that we sat on the wharf at Darling Harbor and took in the view! We also watched a “magic” show that randoms put on for the public and try to get money out of us!

We took a long walk home, went on the roof to see out amazing view of the city, and lastly ran back inside after we got EGGED.

March 28 – Saturday:

Jess and Elle (lucky girls) got up bright and early to catch a bus to their skydiving sight! The rest of us took a very long walk and ended up at the famous fish market!

That afternoon we watched a show at the world’s largest IMAX theatre.

For the night, Jess and Elle spent some big bucks for a dinner at Sydney’s Tower restaurant. They said the view was well worth it! The rest of use went to a BBQ that the hostel put on at the roof! Probably the best food I ever had at a BBQ. It was really nice.

We later all went to a club down the road called SoHo. We waited in line and decided to leave because we definitely were not paying $20 to get in. They saw us all leaving and let us in for free : )

March 29 – Sunday:

Jess and Elle were able to swap their flight to fly straight out of Sydney, which was very very convenient! After we all said our sad good-byes, us other girls headed to Bondi beach to spend the afternoon relaxing! It was CRAZy busy and quite the sight. A lot of topless girls and silver foxes. Before we were all able to get our clothes of to lay in our suits, we were all fast asleep in the sand!

After a wonderful nap, we decided it was time to venture back and get some grub. All of us girls did our share of making a delicious supper at the hostel.

For the night, we ended up jumping on the tram to the casino! Some won some, some lost some…and some of us didn’t waste our money! Overall it was a really nice last night in Sydney.

busy week # 1

2009-04-02T00:08:00.000-07:00

JESS and ELLE come to AUSTRALIA…the nitty gritty of it all!

Two weeks, three girls, one bed, ridiculous rain, too many pictures, lack of food, fun in the sun, Tim tams, tons of people, kangaroos, and many great memories!

March 16 – Monday

The girls arrive at the Brisbane airport at approximately 6:45 a.m. The plan is to take Col’s Air Shuttle to my apartment complex and to call me when they get here so I can discretely get both of them and all their luggage in my apartment building without causing a commotion. Well instead, I wake up to this ridiculously annoying noise and when I peak out my window to see what it is I discover it’s Jess and Elle dragging their suitcases, walking around the apartment complex looking for my unit!

I head to class, they head to the pool, and afterwards we make a trip to Wooley’s stock up on some food!

That night Asaka and Yumeno made us some Japanese food and they taught us some traditional dances. J and E did their fair share of teaching the girls some dance moves as well.

Out of nowhere and before we knew it, a monsoon hit! The rain was insane! Therefore we realized, duh, let’s go run in it! We ran to others apartments grabbed them, hopped the fence at the apt complex next door, and before we knew it there were about 17 of use running around and swimming in the rain!

March 17 – Tuesday

J and E go to Mooloolaba(nearest beach) for the day and luck out with some great weather! Tuesdays are cheap pizza nights so we had a big pizza party and probably all Uni students went out to O’Malley’s Irish Pub for St. Patrick’s Day!

We also explored the beach some, which is beautiful at night, and we walked around the Mooloolaba Esplanade. We ended our night at The Wharf and Fridays because the girls were itching to dance!

March 18 – Wednesday

The weather today is not too bad but the girls decide to check out the Sunshine Plaza for the day and head back to meet me once I am done with Uni. For supper that night we went to the wharf to eat at Hog’s Breath for supper. It was a decent meal! Would have been better with a view of the harbor instead of Underwater World!

March 19 – Thursday

Today the girls check out the infamous Australia Zoo! I had already been their but really was tempted to skip class and join them! However, I tried to be responsible and I let J and E experience the kangaroos, koalas, and home of the crocodile hunter without me.

Thursdays are Uni nights to go out and about, we hopped a free shuttle over to Woombye’s and the girls got to experience what almost every single Thursday night is like for those of us on the Sunny Coast. I will spare you all the details of the eventful night : )

March 20 – Friday

Then comes Friday and I am free from classes! We slept in some and spent the day at the beach. Well we attempted. Some friends came with surfboards and body boards, so it was nice to play around on those awhile until we got rained out!

That night we had a BBQ for Asaka and Yumeno because they were leaving to go back to Japan early that next morning! That evening J and E also went over to their new friend Kyal’s parent’s house for an Aussie get together!

March 21 – Saturday

Lucky for us, we were out wondering two days before and had scored ourselves a free surfing lesson for 9 a.m. today! It was early and we were tired, but it was a blast! The weather started out great, then we got rained on, then it was good again, and then we got poured on! We surfed through it all and enjoyed every minute. The waves were huge! Of course we challenged each other and competed to see who could catch the biggest waves or stay on the longest! We even all three did it in unison at one point : )

We joined the group for free sausages and Tim Tams and before we knew it, the sun was shining! We spent the whole day having a great time at the beach and getting burnt while we were at it! We slept and swam and got killed by the waves and searched for daiquiris and drank slurpees. It was wonderful!

That night we hung out at both apartment complexes and then a group of us headed out to the Wharf.

March 22 – Sunday

A large group of us took a day trip to Noosa, just down the coast!

It was a gorgeous day. We saw a surfing competition, hung at the beach, and hiked some paths of the national park. It was so beautiful!!

I could have just sat in one spot all day and watched and watched, whether it was people, the ocean, or the amazing surfing skills. In that day I saw more surfers than I have seen in my whole life!

March 13, 2009 - FRIDAY!

2009-03-12T23:19:00.000-07:00

since i last wrote i have had a few things going on! first of all, this past weekend i was suppose to go to the gold coast for the Roxy Pro/Quicksilver surfing competition. i was really excited for that. however, the girls i was planning on going with decided to not make the trip...so it was a no go! that was a big bummer. to see a surfing competition with some big name surfers would have been a really great experience.

that friday i was able to go to the city(brisbane) for the night to get away! a couple guys just rented a car for the weekend so we headed there for a few hours. i saw some really amazing sights. they had a beautiful botanical garden, which was really just like a big park area in the center of town. there is also a man made beach right down town; it is called "streets beach" and it was really neat. i have never seen anything like that before! that night also happened to be their market night, so the sidewalks were lined with vendors and stalls of all sorts of great things. i saved my money however and resisted the temptations!

school is definetely underway and the lecturers have no mercy! i feel like every teacher has plenty they want the students to be doing. i am going to have to really buckle down and get organized....especially because on monday i have two friends from back home coming to visit me! which will be really great and i hope we get a lot of activity in while they are here.

this past week was rainy and windy everyday, almost all day! back home was a blizzard and here was a tropical storm. i still think i would pick the storm :) it was a result of cyclone hamish, which was taking placing right of the coast of queensland, thank goodness it ended up going the other way! also, even more recently there was an oil spill just down the coast. hopefully there isnt too much damage!

but the rain and the wind stopped and i was able to do some surfing this morning. it was really great! i enjoyed it thoroughly. unfortunetely right after that my brand new board shorts got misplaced/lost/SOMEHOW fell out of my bag. so that was a huge disappointment. oh well, money grows on trees right?! i blame the fact that it is friday the 13th and bad luck is bound to occur.

a beach moment

2009-03-05T02:35:00.000-08:00

me and a bunch of Germans! there everywhere :)

going out and about

2009-03-04T19:06:00.001-08:00

heaps of fun

2009-03-04T18:56:00.000-08:00

March 4, 2009

I can not believe it is already March! Of course it helps that February is a short month, but still…in some ways I feel like I just got here and in others I feel like my time here has already been so long.

School is well underway this week and I will have had each of my lectures and tutorials by 3:00 o’clock on Thursday! Yes, Fridays are free and make for a long weekend! The beginning is a little rocky because everything is so new and all the teachers have different styles. The setup of how they run their courses is different from UND. I will have completed a lot of presentations by time this semester is over.

Last weekend was pretty quite, however on Sunday I was able to head to Dream/Water World on the Gold Coast for the day. It was Carina, Josie, Regina, Michaela, and my self. Carina drove us down and her and Josie and had discount passes for us, so that was great! It was a really good day, enjoying each others company, the weather, and the rides. It was nice to get away for the day that is for sure.

On Tuesday it was my friend Pat’s birthday so a group of us went out to Montezuma’s, which is a Mexican restaurant down at Mooloolaba. After supper we walked the beach and it was soooo beautiful. The buildings, the lights, the moon, the beach, the water; all of it! Those are the moments when I am truly amazed at nature and how God could have possibly come up with something so wonderful.

Lastly, I just came from making some plans for my Easter break, which will take up a huge chunk of April and it looks like I am going to New Zealand! Even better I will be there on my birthday.

- the glass house mountains -

2009-02-25T19:38:00.000-08:00

school starts!

2009-02-24T22:36:00.000-08:00

It has been a week today and I am now starting to realize this is my home for the semester! It has seemed much like a quick trip or vacation so far. I am starting to catch onto some of the cultural differences, the traditions, and just in general, what it is like to live in Australia and on the Sunshine Coast. Australians really love and treasure their country. I am excited for school to start next week, but it will be hard considering I have had a very long break from it! Structure for my life will be nice however.

All though school is starting I am hoping to start some planning for trips! Just weekend visits to other big cities, hiking trips, or to see some friends. Yesterday the school prepared a trip to Kondililla Falls. It is located about 30 min away and it is beautiful! It is a very long waterfall with hiking paths winding in and out all around it. A few of us stopped to jump off the cliffs into the “rock pool” so we weren’t even able to take the whole trail. I hope to go back sometime! On our way home we stopped at a small local café that is located on the edge of the rainforest and information center. The rainforest!! Almost just as you would imagine; a lot of green, plants, bushes, crazy trees, and hanging vines. Unluckily we didn’t come across many animals.
It was really hot all day today. But once it started getting dark, the rain just started pouring down really hard!

This past weekend some students took a trip to Fraser Island that the school put on. It was full very fast however and i was unable to go. I plan on venturing up that way another day because i hear it is absolutely wonderful!

On Sunday, my German friend Regina and I went to Grace Christian Church, which is just down the road from USC. It was a very warm welcome from the pastor and a refreshing experience. Many people heard we went and would like to go next Sunday with us, so that is awesome! I am sure God will work in a way of his own through me and through that church to reach out to students, local and international!

School started this week...Monday, Feb 23. Not like I can complain, but it is a big change! Of course it is a different country and different school so the systems are a little different. Which will be a good experience, but a little stressful to make sure to do things correctly. I am sure once we get in the groove it will be no sweat, well i hope atleast! It will be nice to be on a schedule again. So far the classes have been well and some even very interesting, which is always a plus!

If i am not on campus i typically spend my time walking around, hanging out on the porch enjoying the weather, in the pool or at the beach, going for a run, grabbing some groceries, and an occasional trip to the shopping plaza.

the beginning

2009-02-24T22:26:00.000-08:00

How can I sum up my last few days w/o writing a ridiculous amount of information you all do not care to hear….I will do my best! On Monday, Feb 16 “O-week” started. This is the start of orientation for all students, but especially for international students. So we all sat through some presentations and listened to various people talk about all you would expect them to say. It is a lot and gets long, but is nice as well to feel informed! It is a prime time to start meeting others by simply introducing yourself to anyone and everyone. On Tuesday there was Market day, which includes the advertising and representation of different clubs, organizations, and local businesses. There were also tours and food and an induction ceremony. Can’t forget to mention I saw a salvation army, have to make sure to check it out of course. Ha! For those of you who will appreciate that(sarah), the building said “thank god for the salvo.”

However, once done on campus or should I say choose to be done, what else to do!? Last night was a pretty loud night with a ton of people in and around the pool and beach volleyball court. It is awesome that everyone is out and about. It will be interesting to see what it is like once Uni (school) starts!

Besides that, Sunday and Monday were very sunny days, and none-the-less Sunday at Mooloolaba(the beach) provided some definite swimsuit lines. Oops! I even defied the norm and wore sunscreen! We also walked around the strip/boardwalk and checked out some shops and grabbed some food. The wharf is right there as well, filled with big boats! It is a beautiful area.

As part of the international students at Uni, there are a lot of Germans and a lot of Asians. Besides those, there are some Americans, Mexicans, and also many Canadians. It is nice to meet people of many cultures, but a challenge as well to effectively communicate and interact with them.

To get around the Sunshine Coast we have been using the public transport system(buses), asking Aussies for rides, or using a taxi. I also have been doing some exploring by jogging and taking walks.

My apartment complex has over a hundred apartments, with four apartments to a building and four rooms to an apartment. There are two pools and a beach volleyball court. Scattered around the complex are some barbeques and there is also a pretty weak workout room. It is nice to have activity going on all around the complex, especially once you start to get to know the other students and you can just walk onto their porches to hang out!

the journey...

2009-02-14T02:16:00.000-08:00

hilary and i made it to the MSP airport with no sweat and too early!! i decided to reorganize my bags a little anyways so i did not have to pay the overweight baggage fee. it worked out wonderfully. no problems with check in and security, so i got through and did some browsing...oh and got some coffee or course! then eventually bought a book and got some food.

the flight to chicago was really fast but unnecessary. only 5 of us stayed on that flight to continue to LAX until more boarded. the other 4 had been trying to get to hawaii so the two kids could get married, but kept getting into delays! poor family! i had originally switched seats with the groom so he could sit by his fiance...not knowing at the time and later when they got the whole row to themselves i assured them that was my weeding gift to them! i then sat next to a crazy frizzed out curly haired lady who is the kind of person that doesnt care what anyone thinks. she was great! this flight took forever!!!

i stepped out and enjoyed the california weather for a bit and used some of the perfume and cosmetics at the duty free shop! brushed my teeth and felt much better after that. i decided it was time to go through security which led to pure chaos! the area was under renovations and just packed with people who had no where else to go as we were all waiting for our flights. soon enough i ran into justin and stephen from my school, and a few minutes later wes. it was a nice change seeing them!

the flight to AUS was really good! long of course....but easy. just watched some new released movies, played games, ate, listened to some tunes, and slept! some how we were able to rearrange it so me and the two boys sat next to each other, which worked out just perfectly!

finally got to sydney, transferred planes to fly out to brisbane. of course this is when we have to all get our bags, go through customs, and recheck everything! it all went great however, especially because i was with wes and his two friends the whole time. they helped me with my large, large suitcases.

next came getting to brisbane, finding our cols air transfer dude and getting to our apartments! he eventually found us and we were on our way once again. i feel as though at this point every australian we had encountered was very outgoing and upbeat!! love it. we got to the apt's, had to fill out a bunch of sheets, hand over a bunch of money, and finally were able to get in our rooms!

so yes, the trip consisted of a lot or driving, waiting, flying, busing, and sitting! but now that i am here...i dont even think about the morning i left my house! it all went so fast.

now only if it would stop raining!!!

all about it.

2009-02-02T13:00:00.000-08:00

location: Queensland, Australia

school: University of the Sunshine Coast

departure: February 11

return: June 29

study: business management/international business courses

address: 8 Varsity View Court

Apartment 07 Room 4

Sippy Downs Queensland 4556

Australia

email:chelsey.smith@und.nodak.edu

msn:littlesmith_9@hotmail.com

facebook:chelsey smith

skype:chelsey.smith09