Don Juan and the Wildcards

G'day Mates!

We all knew it was only a matter of time before something epic happened here in Aus... so let's start from the beggining :

We decided to spend the weekend in Brisbane. Sounds simple enough, right? All we had to do was book a hostel for 20 people, catch a bus, catch a train, all get off at the same stop, find the hostel, and navigate the city...oh wait. That doesn't sound simple at all. The bus was pretty straight forward, however myself and 4 guys, more affectionately known as the dweebs, got a bit confused when it came to getting on and off the trains. Several phone calls, panic attacks, and helpful words from the locals later, we made it to the hostel, better known as "Bunk." Bunk was pretty cool...but when you end up putting 14 people plus all of our backpacks into one, barely airconditioned room, things get a bit interesting. Oh, and did I mention the bunk was in the middle of Brisbanes Chinatown? Needless to say, that alone was a cultural experience.
We brought along a few Aussie, Swedish, and Chinese friends, and with their help, naviaged the cities nightlife, including VIP access to some pretty awesome places. At the end of the night, it felt a bit like home as we all enjoyed some hamburgers from Maccas ( you have no idea how happy we were to see those golden arches) and listened to street performers singing "closing time."
The next morning we grabbed some brekkie(breakfast) and took off exploring. The city itself is so different from any other city I've been to. Modern skyscrappers, rooftop putting greens, and sandy beaches lined both sides of the water, full of sailboats. The weather was amazing. Everything really is more vibrant and bright here. The sun is hot on your skin, but the sea-breeze keeps everything cool. Every bit of it was documented via photos, which I'll post later this week.

Overall, it was quiet the bonding experiences for us dweebs, A-teamers, and Don Juan and the Wildcards. Tonight we'll end our first week down under with a busniess casual dinner, followed by us all hitting the library to work on our papers and journals. It's such an amazing experience to get to be here, but I can't hide how much I miss the comforts of home. On top of all of all the cultural experiences and memories I'm making, I'm also gaining an incredible appreciation for all of the people and things I'm blessed with. I have such a wonderful family, loving boyfriend, and lifelong friends. I'm getting really excited for my precious Rachel to come visit and be my partner in crime as we explore the great barrier reef and Sydney!

Ps : I want to throw out there that I haven't lost a single thing yet, which we all know is pretty impressive. 

Wait... no Wi-Fi?!

G'day! ( or g'evening, or g'morning...depending on where you are) ,

So I intended to post a little something everyday, but the internet here is unbelievably limited. The only place I can connect is in the library or computer labs, and even then I have a download limit. Unfortunately for the few of you who read this, this means the posts I DO manage to make will be inconeviently long, my apologies.

Because I've gone so long, I think I'll put this first post in bullet points of the highlights :

• 21hrs in the air, 9 hours in 5 airports, 4 planes and 2 hours on a bus - thats how long it took me to get to the University of the Sunshine Coast
• I have yet to see sunshine at the University of the Sunshine Coast... better known as "The Uni"
• KFC needs to be left to the home of Kentucky, the United States of America
• On that note, America is the best country in the world, FACT.
• You can't take food "to-go." It's against the law. Seriously.
• Kangaroos really do run wild here.
• Everything here is insanely expensive. 5th of Burnetts? 32 dollars. Yeah.
• I got to see the Irwin family at the Steve Irwin zoo - Awesome.
• We also got to just hang with the roos for awhile...they're incredibly soft
• The toilets have 2 buttons for flushing. One for if you do number 1, one for number 2.
• It gets dark around 5:00.
• They drive on the other side of the road..and love round-a-bouts
• The birds here are crazy. I wake up to sounds I've only heard in Jurassic Park Movies
• The Aberiginal culture is amazing. I wish everyone could adopt some of their outlooks on life.
• We went to a Ginger Factory...Ginger is gross.
• It's amazing how quickly strangers can become close friends.
• Sometimes it's worth the 10 dollars to hear the voice of someone you love.