Week Two in Sydney

Sunday, June 28, 2015

I started my week off with a little beach action on Sunday at Bondi





Monday
My roommates were making tacos and we set the fire alarms off twice.. oops. So we had to open all the windows and the front door to let the smoke out because this one guy (let's call him Jeff) was randomly cooking chicken on our stove, and he was causing all of the smoke. So of course I ate 3 tacos and had a marvelous time doing it.

Tuesday
on Tuesday's we get out of class at 4 pm, which is our longest day of class because we start at 9 am. The weather was decent for the first time since I've been in Sydney so it was important that we took advantage of the weather. After taking a bus to Circular Quay we started walking to Observatory Hill, one of the best places to watch the sunset in the city. The sun was supposed to set around 4:50 pm and we didn't get to Circular Quay until around 4:30. Once we realized that we might miss the sunset we started walking at a brisk pace and soon that turned into a slow jog up the various hills in The Rocks to get to the hill. Keep in mind that all of us had laptops in our backpacks and were not wearing clothing suitable for a run. After about 15 minutes we found our way to the hilltop without any directions and going off our memory after only visiting once on our first day in the city. When we reached the hill we had just made it before the sunset ended and the run was incredibly worth it. Three of our friends brought wine and cheese with them so we sat on the hill for a little while and ate our snack and had a relaxed time. After it got a bit dark we made our way down to Pancakes on the Rocks. They have the best pancakes that I have ever had, sorry dad. I had the lemon pancakes and they were gone in the blink of an eye. They're open 24/7 so I will definitely be back once more before I leave.

My friend got Coffee with Bailey's

Yum Yum



Wednesday
I finally did what most people dream of doing: I surfed in Australia
We got a winter special at Let's Go Surfing (Only $49 for two hours) so after a quick meal at The Bucket List, which is a cute beach side restaurant. Then we strolled up a short hill to the surf lesson shop. We changed into our wet-suits and walked barefoot to the beach. After doing a few stretches and going over basic beach and surfing protocol we hit the water.
Before Wednesday I had never really gone far out into the ocean so I was a bit afraid. At one point I was far out with everyone else and I stupidly lost my balance on my board (I wasn't even standing up, I was laying on it) and I fell off and the water was probably 6 feet deep, I'm around 5"5' so instantly I began to panic. My board was attached to my ankle so my board was close to me, but still out of arms reach. Thankfully after a second I was smart enough to not panic and tread water until I could grab my board. That was my only scary experience besides having waves crash down on me.
But overall I had the time of my life.




One of our instructors, Dan, is in the background





My view of the beach from the restaurant

I love the string lights!





Thursday
After getting out of class at noon I went to Paddy's Market next to Chinatown. It was full to the brim of souvenirs and random stuff galore, from phone cases to knives. I picked up some souvenirs for my mom and dad, I'm still working on what to get my little brother. It's the go to spot for buying cheap souvenirs in Sydney. We didn't have direct directions to the market from our classroom except for a map and my faint memory from visiting the market at night in the rain. But it was fun to navigate on our own free will. After spending about an hour in the market we left to visit a small section of Chinatown. We found this little whole in the wall (literally) that only served cream puffs. They're the best things I've eaten in Sydney by far! I will be back again to buy as many as possible and eat them all on the bus ride home. On our way back to the bus stop we found a small shopping complex and met the nicest lady at a beauty salon. Her name was Sasha and she was the sweetest Sydneysider I've met. Overall my afternoon was splendid





Friday 
A few of my friends went surfing at Maroubra Beach, but I wasn't up for surfing yet so my roommate Andrew sat with me while our friends surfed. I got to read my book on the beach even though there was a bit of a breeze. I had a peaceful end to an exciting week!



Honey, I'm Home- My first week in Sydney

Monday, June 22, 2015

After for traveling for 24 hours and crossing thousands of miles, I safely made it to the beautiful country of Australia. I'm so incredibly proud of myself for conquering a fear that I've faced for a good deal of time. Shout out to Qantas airlines for making my 14 hour flight super comfortable! As a girl who is mildly addicted to her phone, it was a relief to be able to charge my phone in my seat.

This was taken over LA (it gave me goosebumps) and I'm still sad that my first time in California was spent in the airport for an hour.

After sleeping on and off, starting Casablanca and Julia & Julie and not finishing either of them, actually watching Penguins of Madagascar and Mordeci, I made it to Sydney.

My first week was super eventful. I visited the Opera House, The Blue Mountains, Featherdale Wildlife Park, Observatory Hill, the Harbor Bridge, and this beautiful mall I visited in the city.




Sleepy koala

This kangaroo posed for me


A group of penguins waddling along

I don't know what kind of bird this is, but I couldn't resist taking this picture



Albino kangaroos, even their eyelashes were white!

Wombat just chilling in the clay dirt


Three Sisters rock formation


Some of my study abroad students in front of a waterfall in the Blue Mountains 

I wasn't sure if I was in a mall or a castle

Me, Myself, and I

Monday, June 15, 2015


I know I haven't posted in a while but after a week of craziness: I'm finally in Australia! I will be posting a post hopefully shortly on my journey so far, but for now an inspirational post will have to do. 

While I'm away I'm living with the other students in my program and taking my classes with them. They're great people, superb really, but I have an issue with doing things to please others and/or not speaking up so my opinions are included. In some situations I find myself doing things I would honestly rather not, but I don't speak up because I am held back by having the need to please others. 

Do it for yourself (not for them)
This is going to drive me for the next 6 weeks in hope that my inner voice can grow and prosper.
So I encourage you to speak up and do what makes you happy!

I'm A Ship

Friday, June 5, 2015

In a few days I'm embarking on the first big journey of my life. (excluding college)
I can't lie to you guys: I'm scared, but this piece of inspiration is what is going to keep me moving every time I feel myself becoming fearful.

I was not build to be stagnant, but to be a ship that uses its sail.
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