So this week has been less eventful due to the fact that I am trying to get all my work done before leaving for New Zealand on Wednesday!
Monday and Tuesday were spent on campus, of course. Then on Wednesday, Kate and Sophia and Blake and Souf all headed to Maroubra to try our hands at surfing. Kate and I failed miserably, but it was a good time. Sophia is Kate's friend from England located on the left. She is a firecracker that one. But we have a good time with her all week. Wednesday night, we went to World Bar to see an exchange student DJ, and of course ate delicious $5 steaks. On Friday, I spent the morning in the library, and the afternoon lounging on the beach. The weather is getting so nice these days. That night, Sophia, Lieke, Kate, and I went to this little underground Indie bar called purple sneakers. We had a great time, but unfortunately were unable to drink out of the small wellington boots. On Saturday, we headed to the Glebe Markets. It was quite a trek but we made it eventually. I didn't buy anything because I was too tempted to buy it all. I just couldn't decide. That night, Kate, Sophia, Amy, and I went to see the Marriage of Figaro at the Sydney Opera House. It was a wonderful time, except for the whole Kate and Sophia bus disaster, almost not getting a ticket situation. It all worked out in the end though and made for a wonderful night. The weather was so nice on Sunday, and there was a beautiful barbecue and party on Coogee beach. Too bad I missed it because I was in the library all day. Oh well, I guess you just have to make sacrifices. I'll try to keep you posted on New Zealand! See you next time.

Unfortunately Spring Break is over and its back to work. Sorry I have not updated in a while. Nothing too excited has happened since my last post. Basically, last week, I had a ton of school work. Wednesday, we had steak night. Thursday, I was on campus all day doing work with my Marketing and Management groups. Thankfully, the group work is dwindling down. Thursday night, our roomate's friend from France made us crepes. MMM they were delicious. Then we headed out to World Bar for the famous teapots and Indie Music. It was a good time, but I wasn't feeling my best. Possibly a strep throat. Who knows. Then on Friday, I headed into town with Anna, Kate, and Anna. I got a new dress and skirt. Saturday morning, kate's friend Sophia came into town. She is really sweet and funny. We welcomed her to the frangipani house before setting out to lay on the coogee beach. Finally, it is getting warmer here. That night, we got all dressed up and headed to the Argyle in the rocks area for this Australian girls 21st birthday. Apparently when you turn 21 here, the parents put on a bar tab. It was very classy, and completely different to every 21st birthday I have been to in Austin. After that, we met this guy named Andrew who Kendra and Logan met while traveling in Germany. Small world. We ended up at the Coogee Bay Hotel for a few drinks. Sunday, we headed to a Brazilian festival in Darling Harbour. Sadly, it was not as big as expected, but the food was delicious which is always a plus. Basically, lots of meat and lots of fried food. Since then, its just been school. Unfortunately I have two 6 page papers to write by next week before I leave for New Zealand. I am really excited about it. Till next time!

P.S. Thanks Mom for the package
Happy 21st to my bestie Danica Saxon, love you!

I decided to post this picture in honor of the Longhorns winning their first home game this weekend. Sadly, I was not there, but this is a picture from the AFL game I attended. Not too much has happened since returning from Melbourne. It was nice to be a homebody for a few days. Thursday, I spent practically all day in bed catching up with some friends and doing a little bit of homework. Then Friday, it was an early morning, as the crew headed to the Blue Mountains. The Blue Mountains are located about 2 hrs west of Sydney by train. They are a collection of small mountains. The eucalyptus trees give off a toxin in their air creating a blue hue in the sky, hence the name blue mountains. We arrived, grabbed a map, and were ready for our day of exploring. We asked a guide which walk we should do, and she recommended a 4 1/2 hr one. We are young, we were ready for the challenge. So we bought some sandwiches and headed off into the bush. Everything was good at first, until we realized everything was alot further than it looked on the map. It took about 2 hrs just to get to the cascades along the cliff walk, where we sat and hide a nice lunch. There were beautiful views along the way. The second part of our journey circled back around and went down the side of the mountain. Down, down, down we went. We had a bad feeling about the amount of stairs we continued to descend. Our legs were shaking. This was no lame hiking trail my friends. Although the waterfalls and areas were beautiful, the terrain was quite difficult, with rocks and steps and fallen trees. It was quite an adventure. So, next we came to a fork in the road. We could either walk 2km further along the trail and get to the skyrail which would cost us $11 to ride back up the mountain. Or we could take the short cut by the great staircase. (No one had the patience for 2km or the money for that matter) SO, we ventured up the staircase. This was not just any staircase. It was 900 steps up a mountain. Up steep rocky unstable steps and slippery metal. Let's just say I took my sweet little time to get up there. After this, the girls headed to a cafe for drinks and dessert. We deserved it ok. We got back home in time for dinner, a shower, and a good nights rest. The next day, Saturday, I had planned to do homework, but the weather was just too nice. 70 degrees and sunny. Perfect day for the beach. Eventually, the wind picked up and we headed back inside, where Kate and Anna and I had a gossip girl marathon. Don't judge. Sunday was spent inside doing work, and now Monday is here. A week full of fun school again. Hope all is well in Texas!

Spring Break Part 2: Melbourne

So after a long day of traveling, I made it to Melbourne late Sunday evening. There was just enough time to catch up with everyone before heading off to bed. We stayed at Urban Central hostel, which was pretty nice. Kate and I woke up early to get some free Corn Flakes and toast. MMM. But after that, we headed into town. Basically, we just spent the whole day walking around the city center. We went through these little alleyways. They were nice. Some were full of wonderful looking cafes, some were full of graffiti, and some had wonderful boutiques. Lets just say I would be so fat if I lived in Melbourne. Unfortunately, it was really cold that day. We spent the rest of the afternoon looking for a car rental place, and ended up with Thrifty. That night, we went out with Soufyan's friend Floor to a place called Turf. The music was awesome. The next day, we hopped in the car to drive the Great Ocean Road. It is a pretty famous coastal drive. It was beautiful. We drove through fields and along the coast and through a rainforest area. Through lots of national parks. I eventually got behind the wheel for my first experience driving on the left hand side. It wasn't too bad. I just couldn't get the whole blinker being on the opposite side of the wheel. The trip ended at the 12 apostles, which is this famous rock formation. Then we headed home to Melbourne, where we ate and grabbed drinks before heading to bed. The next morning we went to the Tim Burton exhibition. It was really cool. It showed his progress through school and all his sketches and his inspiration for his films. Some clips and costumes. Then we headed for lunch at a cafe. That afternoon we went to the art museum. It was really nice. The rest of the afternoon we hung out by the river drinking Lindtt hot chocolate before flying home. I am about to do some homework before heading off to the Blue Mountains tomorrow. Hope all is well in Texas despite Hurricane Hermine.

Paradise

So, I am currently in Airlie Beach writing this blog. On Wednesday, I flew to Hamilton Island with Oliver (German) and Jack (American) and met up with Jochan and Hans(Germans). We hung around the rich beautiful resort island for a few hours, basically just driving around on the golf cart. It was fun, until security pulled us over for apparently driving the cart too fast. Then the guard couldn't read the German driver's license. It turned into a pretty funny story. Basically, I think the mall cop type guard was bored with dealing with old rich people all day, so he wanted to mess with us. Shortly after this, we left on a ferry for Airlie Beach, checking into a hostel. We just explored the one street town for a little bit, checking in for our sailing trip the next day. We added the optional dive in which Jochan made a huge fiasco because his transaction did not go through apparently. German bankers, don't fight with them and their credit cards. We had a good night's rest and woke up the next day ready for our trip. Unfortunately, it did not leave until 2. So we ran some errands around town getting sunscreen and food and sunglasses. We then boarded the British Defender that afternoon with a crew named Ritchie, Lachy, and Alex. They were all very nice people. Basically, everyone on the boat was either English or German. It was fun though, hearing everyone's stories and where they had been. I have a whole new apprecation for backpacking. One guy has even been traveling for 7 months now, he plans to see the whole world. Such an amazing opportunity. The sun set early on as usual. Dinner was delicious grilled chicken and rice. After dinner, we hung out under the stars. Oh the stars. The most amazing and beautiful stars I have ever seen. It was definitely cool seeing the Southern Hemisphere's constellations. The next morning, we were up bright and early to see this spectacular sunrise. A sunrise that was actually hidden behind and island, and slightly less than spectacular. Oh well. It got everyone up and early to go to Whitehaven beach, aka Paradise. Honestly, I can say, out of all the places in the world I have been to. This has by far been the best. It is on Whitsunday Island and it is a national park, so it is untouched. Literally, not a building, road, or car in sight. Amazing. And the sand. The sand was like flour on your feet. It was so pure and white. No rocks, no seaweed. Nothing. Pure Bliss. Pure blue water. Not a soul in sight except the few people you went there with. I have never experienced anything like it. No picture can capture it. After that, we headed to Luncheon bay for some snorkeling and diving. Now, I am not much into coral and such, but it was beautiful. So colorful. The fish were huge and colorful and came right up in your face. So much fun. Then the weather turned a bit for the worse, and we spent the rest of the day on the boat just hanging out and hearing stories. The next morning we were up early to snorkel around Hook Island. Nice, but not nearly as nice as the other site. Then we headed back for shore, and here I am writing this blog. It is amazing how we keep running into the same people. I would like to backpack around some day. Anyways, I will post pictures and stuff on Melbourne next time.