I am taking Nutrition and Health, Drugs and Human Behavior, Australian Literature, and Australian Pop Culture. I don't have classes on Mondays or Fridays, so my Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday is jam packed. Very few people have classes on Friday here- they just don't schedule much on Fridays. And I just lucked out and didn't have any on Mondays either. So although my school week is short, it is very busy. For each subject I take, I have what they call the lecture and the tutorial. The lecture meets once a week and is either two or three hours long. That's a long time to listen and take notes! The tutorial also meets once a week, but only meets for one hour and only has 5-10 people in it. The tutorial is used to discuss what we learn in lecture so it is all discussion based. The classes here are pretty small (20-30 people) like High Point, so I like that! I bring my lunch to class every day because I don't have time to run back to my house in between classes and it's pretty expensive to buy it on campus- especially if I did that every day.
I really like my Nutrition and Health teacher. She works in a local hospital as a nutritionist/dietician so she's very up to date on her information. I think I will really enjoy that class! And she's even doing the whole class in the standard system of measurements in the US, instead of metric! She said in past years the majority of that class has been American students, but this semester it seems about half and half. I had no idea so many American students went here, not just for study abroad, but for their entire degree. I'm glad it'll be in the system I know though because that would have made it much more difficult! My Australian Pop Culture class is quite large, because many of the study abroad kids take it in order to learn about their surroundings. It seems like it will be interesting and it will be nice to know more about the area I am in. For Australian Literature, we are reading books that Australian people wrote. I need a literature credit for High Point and I didn't want to have to take a Bible or Shakespeare course, so I decided to try Australian lit. I think it will be ok- much better than Shakespeare! The books are pretty recent which makes it more enjoyable for me. My teacher even said, why should she teach us something none of will care about, so I know she understands the pain many people have with Shakespeare. She seems like she will be interesting and funny. My drugs and Human Behavior course will be used for me to get into PT school. Seems kind of random to me, but they want it. It's quite a bit of physiology, and a lot about different drugs and how the body reacts to many situations. All of my teachers are Australian, except for my Drugs and Behavior teacher who is from the US. Although the Australians do speak English, I do have to listen a little more carefully because sometimes I just hear hugnkdhfieofrheng. Some of their accents are very strong, but I'm sure I will get used to it.
I don't know what else to write about my classes so if there is anything you want to know just comment and I will add it on!
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
Saturday and Sunday
Fun Fact: The toilets here don't flush in the opposite direction. The water goes straight down. Weird, but true.
As part of O Week, the school was taking a a few buses to the beach. I walked over to Madison's house and I was cold. It was windy at our place, so I was assuming it was going to be windier at the beach. We didn't even put our bathing suits on and just decided to go shopping in the outdoor mall there. We started walking to school to catch the bus, and got about three quarters of the way there, when we decided it was actually nice out. There wasn't enough time for us to run back to get our bathing suits, so we just stayed at the pool in our complex. It actually turned out to be the perfect day, but our friend said it was really windy at the beach, so it all worked out for the better. We spent another day at the pool. The only thing I don't like about Australia thus far is how early it gets dark out. It is completely dark out by 6pm. This really screws me up, especially with the jet lag factor, because at 8pm I feel like it has already been dark out for a long time so I'm ready for bed. We have been told that it doesn't get darker any later throughout the year. Instead, the sun will start rising at 3am. Not good, considering the sun rises in my window and many of us know that I can't sleep when it's light out! We hung out at my house for the rest of the night with Aislynn. She said Jen (the other person staying in our house, who also has a window facing the sunrise) will start to go to bed at 8pm when the sun rises so early, because she can't sleep after the sun rises! Oh great, I hope that doesn't happen to me. Tonight was the first night Madison and I slept in our separate rooms haha sounds dumb but her housemates just got in today so her house was empty.
On a side note- the oranges here are SO good! They are Australian oranges, and they are the juiciest things I have ever eaten. They are so sweet- and quite cheap! The bananas though, are very expensive and tiny. I haven't tried them yet because they are not worth the money. Aislynn said that the floods here ruined all the bananas for the season. So sad :( They are $12 for 1kg and about half the size of a banana in the states. (They should be bigger like ours.) I weighed some and it turns out that you get can about four bananas for the $12! Yikes- no thank you.
Sunday- Well there's not much to write about Sunday. We went to the pool again (obviously our favorite spot). It was packed, but we met lots of people so that was exciting. We mostly met South African and Australian guys. They were very nice. I love how everyone says hi to each other here and just starts having nice conversations. It is refreshing and I wish the states were more friendly like this. I think we would all be happier. Later at night we made dinner- chicken schnitzel (breaded chicken), broccoli (mom-the yummy kind with garlic!), and brown rice. It was the best dinner I have made by myself- Madison and I were very excited! haha We sat down and watched the news because it was Sept 11 here, so everything was documentaries about the 11th. It was sad watching, but nice to see how far we've come. I hope everyone is safe on the 11th at home. Miss you all!
As part of O Week, the school was taking a a few buses to the beach. I walked over to Madison's house and I was cold. It was windy at our place, so I was assuming it was going to be windier at the beach. We didn't even put our bathing suits on and just decided to go shopping in the outdoor mall there. We started walking to school to catch the bus, and got about three quarters of the way there, when we decided it was actually nice out. There wasn't enough time for us to run back to get our bathing suits, so we just stayed at the pool in our complex. It actually turned out to be the perfect day, but our friend said it was really windy at the beach, so it all worked out for the better. We spent another day at the pool. The only thing I don't like about Australia thus far is how early it gets dark out. It is completely dark out by 6pm. This really screws me up, especially with the jet lag factor, because at 8pm I feel like it has already been dark out for a long time so I'm ready for bed. We have been told that it doesn't get darker any later throughout the year. Instead, the sun will start rising at 3am. Not good, considering the sun rises in my window and many of us know that I can't sleep when it's light out! We hung out at my house for the rest of the night with Aislynn. She said Jen (the other person staying in our house, who also has a window facing the sunrise) will start to go to bed at 8pm when the sun rises so early, because she can't sleep after the sun rises! Oh great, I hope that doesn't happen to me. Tonight was the first night Madison and I slept in our separate rooms haha sounds dumb but her housemates just got in today so her house was empty.
On a side note- the oranges here are SO good! They are Australian oranges, and they are the juiciest things I have ever eaten. They are so sweet- and quite cheap! The bananas though, are very expensive and tiny. I haven't tried them yet because they are not worth the money. Aislynn said that the floods here ruined all the bananas for the season. So sad :( They are $12 for 1kg and about half the size of a banana in the states. (They should be bigger like ours.) I weighed some and it turns out that you get can about four bananas for the $12! Yikes- no thank you.
Sunday- Well there's not much to write about Sunday. We went to the pool again (obviously our favorite spot). It was packed, but we met lots of people so that was exciting. We mostly met South African and Australian guys. They were very nice. I love how everyone says hi to each other here and just starts having nice conversations. It is refreshing and I wish the states were more friendly like this. I think we would all be happier. Later at night we made dinner- chicken schnitzel (breaded chicken), broccoli (mom-the yummy kind with garlic!), and brown rice. It was the best dinner I have made by myself- Madison and I were very excited! haha We sat down and watched the news because it was Sept 11 here, so everything was documentaries about the 11th. It was sad watching, but nice to see how far we've come. I hope everyone is safe on the 11th at home. Miss you all!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
O Week
O Week is what they call their orientation week. They have tons of stuff planned, some of which we are doing and some we aren't. I will tell you about the exciting things. On Tuesday night we went to see a hypnotist! I thought the one that came to High Point was good, but this one was ten times better. He was Australian and I guess he goes all over the world to do shows. The show was quite long, but very entertaining. He was making them do things that I can't imagine ever doing, let alone in front of a huge audience! Most of it was clean humor, but some parts got a little interesting. It was a great show though!
Tuesday, during the day, I met the other people living in my house. Well I met two of them; there is one more that doesn't come until next week. One is named Aislynn. She is from Canada and has been here for three years. She is doing her Law school here. Jen (the one I haven't met yet) is also from Canada and is doing the same thing. They are both almost finished with school! Caroline is the other person living in my house. She is from Norway and just studying abroad for the semester. I really like both of them so far. They have already taught me a lot about their countries. It is cool living with people who are from different places! I finished unpacking everything today and my room looks good. Madison and I went to campus to get on the internet because we haven't payed for any in our rooms yet. It's about a five minute walk to campus- not too far. We spent a few minutes checking our facebook, email, etc, and then headed for the bus stop. We eavesdropped on an Aussie explaining the bus system to someone else. Thank goodness because we finally figured out what we are supposed to look at. We are starting to understand it better now! We went to the same mall we went to yesterday to finish getting our food for the week. We stayed out for a while kind of mosying around the mall. We bought a bottle of Australian wine just to try it and because we can! Their wine is very cheap so we thought, why not? We asked the person at the store for a sweet one and he showed us a bunch. We haven't tried it yet though. We made ourselves dinner and then went to the hypnotist. We both stayed up till 10pm! That's the latest we have stayed up so far.
On Wednesday, we went to the beach early. Madison and I have been waking up at 6am every day, so we start our days around 8am. We rode the bus to Broadbeach. It took about 20 minutes to get there. There is a closer beach, but we heard this one was nice. I am sure we will make it around to many of the beaches around here! The waves are so much crazier here than at home. They are bigger waves, but they also come right after each other. There is never a lack of waves! It looks a little intimidating, but I wouldn't go too far out anyway. I love watching the surfers out there! It looks like magic the way they stay up there riding the waves. We stayed out tanning and watching the surfers all day until about 3ish. This beach had an outdoor mall too, just like the last beach. We went to yet another grocery store in the mall to get the rest of what we forgot. This beach had an outdoor mall too, just like the last beach. The grocery stores definitely have a LOT less junk food in them. Like there is not even an aisle of junk food. But I found lots of food that I would like, some things are different than at home. And let me tell you, they have great candy here! We headed to the bus stop and each had about four heavy grocery bags. We probably looked dumb on the bus, but oh well. The bags were too flimsy for the long trip back and a bunch of them were breaking. We will definitely have to invest in some of those reuseable sturdy ones. We made ourselves a real dinner and went to bed around 9pm. We didn't wake up until 8am, which was a great surprise!
On Thursday, I skyped home. It was good to see part of my family, but I'm not missing home much. No offense haha. It's just exciting being in a new place. Madison and I spent the day at the pool and we are both getting tan! Reaching that goal to be as tan as the lifegaurds! After the pool, we watched some tv and played cards. There are five tv channels here so most of the time there is nothing good on. But we made dinner and tried our wine! I thought it was ok. It was the best wine I've tried out of the sips I've had of my parents. It was sweeter than theirs which made it a little better. It still had that bittery taste as an aftertaste though. Maybe we will try another one, but who knows! There is a bar on campus, and they were having a themed party. It was called tight and bright, where everyone wears tight and bright clothing. Madison and I put on jeans and a tshirt and decided to see what it was like. So many people went all out with their costumes- it was fun to see! Most people were just socializing, meeting people, but some people were dancing. The dancing was nothing like at home- much more controlled. We didn't stay very long because we were exhausted. This time zone thing isn't too fun. I'm sure I will get used to it soon though- hopefully!
On Friday, it was our first cloudy day. We went to the pool anyway to see if we could bare the wind, and we had no such luck. It was too chilly so we went to my house and just watched tv and talked to my housemate Aislynn all day. It was nice though because we got to know her better! She's really sweet and it's nice to have someone that knows about the area. She gave us lots of tips and the best places to go around town and for travelling. The three of us had fun together. We all made dinner- chicken kabobs, rice and veggies! I am going to become a chef by the time we leave because we don't have a meal plan! And that's the end of O Week. Classes start on Tuesday for me, so there's just a few more days until the schoolwork begins.
Tuesday, during the day, I met the other people living in my house. Well I met two of them; there is one more that doesn't come until next week. One is named Aislynn. She is from Canada and has been here for three years. She is doing her Law school here. Jen (the one I haven't met yet) is also from Canada and is doing the same thing. They are both almost finished with school! Caroline is the other person living in my house. She is from Norway and just studying abroad for the semester. I really like both of them so far. They have already taught me a lot about their countries. It is cool living with people who are from different places! I finished unpacking everything today and my room looks good. Madison and I went to campus to get on the internet because we haven't payed for any in our rooms yet. It's about a five minute walk to campus- not too far. We spent a few minutes checking our facebook, email, etc, and then headed for the bus stop. We eavesdropped on an Aussie explaining the bus system to someone else. Thank goodness because we finally figured out what we are supposed to look at. We are starting to understand it better now! We went to the same mall we went to yesterday to finish getting our food for the week. We stayed out for a while kind of mosying around the mall. We bought a bottle of Australian wine just to try it and because we can! Their wine is very cheap so we thought, why not? We asked the person at the store for a sweet one and he showed us a bunch. We haven't tried it yet though. We made ourselves dinner and then went to the hypnotist. We both stayed up till 10pm! That's the latest we have stayed up so far.
On Wednesday, we went to the beach early. Madison and I have been waking up at 6am every day, so we start our days around 8am. We rode the bus to Broadbeach. It took about 20 minutes to get there. There is a closer beach, but we heard this one was nice. I am sure we will make it around to many of the beaches around here! The waves are so much crazier here than at home. They are bigger waves, but they also come right after each other. There is never a lack of waves! It looks a little intimidating, but I wouldn't go too far out anyway. I love watching the surfers out there! It looks like magic the way they stay up there riding the waves. We stayed out tanning and watching the surfers all day until about 3ish. This beach had an outdoor mall too, just like the last beach. We went to yet another grocery store in the mall to get the rest of what we forgot. This beach had an outdoor mall too, just like the last beach. The grocery stores definitely have a LOT less junk food in them. Like there is not even an aisle of junk food. But I found lots of food that I would like, some things are different than at home. And let me tell you, they have great candy here! We headed to the bus stop and each had about four heavy grocery bags. We probably looked dumb on the bus, but oh well. The bags were too flimsy for the long trip back and a bunch of them were breaking. We will definitely have to invest in some of those reuseable sturdy ones. We made ourselves a real dinner and went to bed around 9pm. We didn't wake up until 8am, which was a great surprise!
On Thursday, I skyped home. It was good to see part of my family, but I'm not missing home much. No offense haha. It's just exciting being in a new place. Madison and I spent the day at the pool and we are both getting tan! Reaching that goal to be as tan as the lifegaurds! After the pool, we watched some tv and played cards. There are five tv channels here so most of the time there is nothing good on. But we made dinner and tried our wine! I thought it was ok. It was the best wine I've tried out of the sips I've had of my parents. It was sweeter than theirs which made it a little better. It still had that bittery taste as an aftertaste though. Maybe we will try another one, but who knows! There is a bar on campus, and they were having a themed party. It was called tight and bright, where everyone wears tight and bright clothing. Madison and I put on jeans and a tshirt and decided to see what it was like. So many people went all out with their costumes- it was fun to see! Most people were just socializing, meeting people, but some people were dancing. The dancing was nothing like at home- much more controlled. We didn't stay very long because we were exhausted. This time zone thing isn't too fun. I'm sure I will get used to it soon though- hopefully!
On Friday, it was our first cloudy day. We went to the pool anyway to see if we could bare the wind, and we had no such luck. It was too chilly so we went to my house and just watched tv and talked to my housemate Aislynn all day. It was nice though because we got to know her better! She's really sweet and it's nice to have someone that knows about the area. She gave us lots of tips and the best places to go around town and for travelling. The three of us had fun together. We all made dinner- chicken kabobs, rice and veggies! I am going to become a chef by the time we leave because we don't have a meal plan! And that's the end of O Week. Classes start on Tuesday for me, so there's just a few more days until the schoolwork begins.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
The Start of Orientation Week
We woke up ready to find our way to school. We asked multiple shops about the bus system around here, and no one really knew enough about it to explain it to us. This worried us a little because it was our only way to get to school. We didn't have enough cash to use anything else. Finally, we found a very helpful man and he helped us figure it out. The bus routes are very confusing for a newbie! Madison and I decided to try an atm one more time because the visa person I called said that everything looked like it should be working with my card. And what do you know- it worked this time. I don't know why neither of our cards weren't working, but I was very glad they were now. We were trying to think what we would have done without cash for four months. It would have been difficult. We went back to check out of the hotel, and grabbed our luggage from our room. As we were waiting for the light to change to cross the street, we noticed the bus we had to take was coming. We started getting antsy for the light to change and as soon as it did, we ran across the street with all our lugguge in tow. It was probably quite funny to watch because I am sure we looked like the ultimate tourist. All that mattered was that we made it to the bus in time though. We hoisted our six bags in total into the bus and it quickly got very full. We felt bad that we were taking up so much seating because of all our luggage so we rearranged everything. We ended up only taking up one extra seat! I thought that was pretty impressive.
About an hour (?) later we got off at the Bond Uni bus stop and had to walk down the street with all our luggage. Again- it was probably a sight to see. To give you an idea of how far it was, it was around a ten minute walk I would guess. It's much faster without the hassle of huge suitcases, but it wasn't too bad. We were welcomed into Varsity Shores (the community where we are living). The people checking us in asked us our names and they said, "oh from High Point?!" We couldn't believe they knew where we were from, but I thought that was the perfect way to welcome us!
We unpacked a little bit and then headed over to Bond (our school) to get our ID cards, email addresses, and other information about the campus. They took us on a campus tour- it was weird going on a tour after we had already decided to go there! But I guess we didn't really have another choice haha. The school hired a bus and they took us to a local shopping center for some necessities we had found we needed. For example, we have closets, but no hangers, or no dressers, so we had to do something with all our clothes. We also needed some food so we went grocery shopping. The prices at the grocery stores are still higher than at home, but MUCH better than eating at a restaurant for every meal. I could definitely find food that was the same price as at home, it is just the grocery stores brand, which I have no problem with. It all tastes the same. They have Target here! And what we think is Walmart, but it's called Big W. They are very similar.
We found some food to hold us over for the next day or two and took the bus back to school. The day had drained us of our energy so we were too tired to do anything else. Madison ended up sleeping in my room and we had a sleepover!
About an hour (?) later we got off at the Bond Uni bus stop and had to walk down the street with all our luggage. Again- it was probably a sight to see. To give you an idea of how far it was, it was around a ten minute walk I would guess. It's much faster without the hassle of huge suitcases, but it wasn't too bad. We were welcomed into Varsity Shores (the community where we are living). The people checking us in asked us our names and they said, "oh from High Point?!" We couldn't believe they knew where we were from, but I thought that was the perfect way to welcome us!
We unpacked a little bit and then headed over to Bond (our school) to get our ID cards, email addresses, and other information about the campus. They took us on a campus tour- it was weird going on a tour after we had already decided to go there! But I guess we didn't really have another choice haha. The school hired a bus and they took us to a local shopping center for some necessities we had found we needed. For example, we have closets, but no hangers, or no dressers, so we had to do something with all our clothes. We also needed some food so we went grocery shopping. The prices at the grocery stores are still higher than at home, but MUCH better than eating at a restaurant for every meal. I could definitely find food that was the same price as at home, it is just the grocery stores brand, which I have no problem with. It all tastes the same. They have Target here! And what we think is Walmart, but it's called Big W. They are very similar.
We found some food to hold us over for the next day or two and took the bus back to school. The day had drained us of our energy so we were too tired to do anything else. Madison ended up sleeping in my room and we had a sleepover!
The Last Day at the Hotel
So I feel like I am on a boat. I don't know if this is normal as a part of jet lag, but Madison feels like she's on one too. It is SO annoying. Every time I stand up I get kinda dizzy and just feel like I've been on a boat for days. It's a very strange feeling!
We woke up after a very good nights sleep and got ready for the day. We headed towards the outdoor mall area and attempted to get money from an atm. Neither of our cards were working for getting cash out. Luckily we had about a hundred dollars in cash from the airport that we were able to use at the restaurants that didn't take cards. My card was allowing me to use it as a credit card in a grocery store, but not allowing me to withdrawl cash. We were very worried about this because we knew some places didnt take cards (like the bus trip we had to make the next day to get to school- not good.) We probably tried five or six atm machines and none of them worked. So we went to the beach and tried not to worry about it too much. It was very nice out and we both got a little tan already! The sand is incredibly soft here. It feels like flour between your toes! We never made it down to feel the water, but we did get to watch real life surfers! It was awesome. I couldn't believe the way they moved with the waves- it definitely looks like you need a lot of practice, but I would love to learn! The beaches here all have designated swimming spots, where lifeguards are in charge of watching for sharks with binoculars from a high up tower. There are also helicopters flying over every once in a while to do the same thing. They seem to have it down to a science. Madison and I decided our goal this semester was to get as tan as the lifeguards!
We went over to the mall thing and ate lunch at a more normal lunch time than yesterday's lunch. I thought the food would be very similar to in the US, but I am surprised at how many foods I don't recognize. We look at the menu wondering what is in this or that. For example, burgers here all come with eggs and beets on them, or a ceaser salad comes with eggs and bacon on it. All very weird to me, but we are learning what the norms are. After lunch, we walked around in circles just exploring the city. I love that this huge city is literally right on the beach. We bought a cheap cell phone so we would have it when we started meeting new people. The cell phone looks like a crappy phone, but it works and it was only 20 dollars! Definitely nothing like having my iPhone! After we figured out our phone plans, we went back to our hotel room to read. That plan was unsuccessfull and we both fell asleep without even having dinner. Oh well. We had a good day at the beach.
We woke up after a very good nights sleep and got ready for the day. We headed towards the outdoor mall area and attempted to get money from an atm. Neither of our cards were working for getting cash out. Luckily we had about a hundred dollars in cash from the airport that we were able to use at the restaurants that didn't take cards. My card was allowing me to use it as a credit card in a grocery store, but not allowing me to withdrawl cash. We were very worried about this because we knew some places didnt take cards (like the bus trip we had to make the next day to get to school- not good.) We probably tried five or six atm machines and none of them worked. So we went to the beach and tried not to worry about it too much. It was very nice out and we both got a little tan already! The sand is incredibly soft here. It feels like flour between your toes! We never made it down to feel the water, but we did get to watch real life surfers! It was awesome. I couldn't believe the way they moved with the waves- it definitely looks like you need a lot of practice, but I would love to learn! The beaches here all have designated swimming spots, where lifeguards are in charge of watching for sharks with binoculars from a high up tower. There are also helicopters flying over every once in a while to do the same thing. They seem to have it down to a science. Madison and I decided our goal this semester was to get as tan as the lifeguards!
We went over to the mall thing and ate lunch at a more normal lunch time than yesterday's lunch. I thought the food would be very similar to in the US, but I am surprised at how many foods I don't recognize. We look at the menu wondering what is in this or that. For example, burgers here all come with eggs and beets on them, or a ceaser salad comes with eggs and bacon on it. All very weird to me, but we are learning what the norms are. After lunch, we walked around in circles just exploring the city. I love that this huge city is literally right on the beach. We bought a cheap cell phone so we would have it when we started meeting new people. The cell phone looks like a crappy phone, but it works and it was only 20 dollars! Definitely nothing like having my iPhone! After we figured out our phone plans, we went back to our hotel room to read. That plan was unsuccessfull and we both fell asleep without even having dinner. Oh well. We had a good day at the beach.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Day One
So we found the train station, and hopped on with all our luggage. It was very much like the metro, but a hundred times cleaner. It took us an hour (I think?) to get to our train stop, where a car was there to pick us up and bring us to our hotel. We got in the car and the car was all backwards! This, of course, was because they drive on the left side of the road. We made it to the hotel and told them we were here, but it was only 9am so we couldn't check in yet. They were nice enough to take our luggage and put it in a back closet so we could wander around the city without dragging our two duffel bags each around. We went to look for internet to contact home, and quickly realized we had to pay to use it- not used to that one! It was $4.50 for an hour, which I thought was kind of expensive, but I wanted to contact home. I skyped my dad and let everyone know on facebook that I made it- I figured that would be the fastest way to tell a mass amount of people haha. We walked around Surfer's Paradise (the city we were staying in for the first two nights). The city is built right on the beach, with high rises and all. I will load a picture later. It is actually really cool looking! There was a mall right on the beach and right across the street from us so we looked for some early lunch (10am here). We also learned that it was very expensive to live here. A meal was easily $10 dollars, and most lunches and dinners are $15-$30 dollars, at the casual dining places. Good thing Madison and I are good bargain shoppers! We were trying to be reasonable with the money we were spending because the prices of meals were just unreal to us. We went to see the beach and just people watched for a while. It was fun and we were so tired we didn't feel like doing much else. We checked into the hotel and brought our bags up, then went back to the shops on the beach. We went to bed around 8pm and slept for 12 hours! I haven't slept that long in FOREVER!
Getting to the Other Side of the World
Ok I know it has taken me a long time to start writing about my time here, but I haven't really had internet until now! It even took me five days to open my computer- that would never happen back home. But I have been writing about my days so I wouldn't forget about the details. I left Baltimore around 6:30pm and took the five hour flight to Los Angeles. I had the cutest little girl sitting next to me and her mom next to her. She was four years old and VERY talkative! I actually liked that she was keeping me up, because I thought it would be better to be able to sleep on my flight from LA to Australia. She kept offering me her snacks and wanting me to color with her. She was very polite. I only slept for about twenty minutes on this first flight, but I was happy with that. I kept thinking it was a long flight, and then realizing I had a much longer one coming up. YUCK! We made it to LA very smoothly and I had to go figure out how to get to the international terminal at LAX. Not a simple task. I asked around and they said I had to get on a bus. I went to one level of the road and they told me I had to go to the bottom level of the road. The bus finally made it to the stop and I was just hoping it was the right one. It was also very very late at night so I wasn't fully functional. I had about two hours of layover time, but I was nervous about finding the terminal in time, just because I was so tired. I got off the bus where there was a Qantas sign and I found out I was supposed to be in the building next door. So I walked over there and checked in to my Qantas flight. I then had to go through security again but that only took about ten minutes. I got through security without a problem and Madison (my roommate back at school) was there waiting for me! It was a relief to see her. We had some time to kill so we decided to walk around the terminal. I have heard there is so much to do at LAX, but let me tell you, the international terminal has about five stores. There was nothing to look at or do so we went to sit down. There were tons of other students at the gate. We sat there telling each other about our summers and just ready to get onto the plane. We didn't end up sitting in the same row, so I had a guy my age, Spencer, sitting next to me and then an Aussie sitting next to him. Spencer and I talked for a lot of the flight because neither of us could sleep. Finally, we decided to both watch a movie and we both passed out for a little while. They fed us a lot during the flight- none of which was very good, but it held me over. Toward the end of the flight, there was SOOOO much turbulence. I didn't like it at all, and I was very surprised I didn't throw up. I felt so nauseous it was gross. I hope I never have to experience turbulence like that again. It didn't stop for about thirty minutes so I was definitely ready to land by that time. I got about five hours of sleep during the flight. It was pitch black during our whole trip, up until around 5am Australia time. We landed around 5:45am. It was weird being in the dark for such a long period of time, but I have never seen so many stars in my life. I thought there were a lot at our beach house, but this was insane! I wish I could have gotten a picture of it, but it didn't work too well. Madison and I got off the plane and realized that the plane was HUGE. I don't know how those planes get into the air. We went through customs- I had to have my bags searched because the dumb search dog was acting weird around my bags. DUMB. They didn't find anything in my bags and they said the dog probably liked the smell of my dogs at home. Don't millions of people have dogs at home?! We then went on our way to find the train station to start our journey to our hotel!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)