The Countdown Begins

Well the end is in sight and I don't like it. It has gone by so fast. I have just under two weeks left. After leaving Barwon Heads I drove the Great Ocean Road, which was amazing. It's a bit difficult when you're the driver and you really don't want to pay attention to the road — but, I managed, without killing or crashing into anything. Ten points for me.

After that I continued the drive onto Adelaide, stopping along the way. In Adelaide I took a day trip to the Barossa Valley for a wine tour. It was great because I got to meet some other people, and of course, drink wine. For lunch that day I tried kangaroo. It was actually pretty good — glad I tried it and can mark that off my list. The next day I went to a cricket match. It was Australia vs. New Zealand. I managed to sit through about 2 sessions. I went along with someone who explained the game to me. I still don't like the idea of watching all day long and still not knowing who wins. That's not because I didn't know what was happening — it was a three day test.

I just got into Sydney today.

left side — left side — LEFT SIDE!

Well I left the comfort of my house sitting home today. But, before I left, I sure went out with a bang. Last night was my first night out in Melbourne. I went out with family members of family members. Anyway, the first place we went to was a temporary bar that is completely recyclable. (www.greenhousebyjoost.com). There were walls that were strawberry plants, bushes and plants on the roof, and the beer glasses were from old bottles. The furniture was sweet too. There was really only one style of furniture, which could be used as a table, bar stool, or chair. People were flipping them around depending on how they wanted to use them. I believe it's only around for two months or so and then everything is recycled. From there, we went to two other great bars and drank way too much. It was a ton of fun, and I met a lot of cool people.

Today, I got dropped off to get my car. I really wasn't feeling it. I was hurting pretty bad, it might have been the mixture of beer and red wine, but why point fingers. John dropped the three of us off at Hertz, and it was the wrong Hertz. So, we marched over to the right place and there was a giant padlock on the gate. I was getting pretty pissed. My pick up time was noon and they closed at noon. How convenient. Now we had to wait in the freezing cold rain for Georgie and Em's dad to pick us up. [And by waiting, I mean swearing left and right.] After a bit, a van pulls up and it's a person that works for the company that came into work for some reason. I didn't really care, I was just happy I was able to get my car.

Driving on the left side will take a bit to get used to, but so far I've managed decently. I have a lovely Toyota Corolla. I drived a short distance today because Judy and Gary, Katrina's parents, let me stay in their holiday house for the first night, which is awesome! It is right across from the ocean. I don't think I'll find a hostel with this kind of view. Anyway, I'm super excited to be on my own and driving. [I have truly missed singing horribly in my car.]

Oh and PS. If you see any creepy mustaches in my photos it's Mo-vember here in Australia. It's huge over here, everyone's sporting a mustache. It's quite hilarious.

Goodbye, farewell . . . at least for a little bit

Well, I can't believe it, but the people I'm house sitting for are back this Thursday. Time has gone by extremely fast. I've been busy figuring out what I'm going to do for a week and a half by myself before my cousin comes. Since I'm not an amazing decision maker, this process has taken longer than necessary. Finally, today I booked a car and then booked a flight to Sydney. I'm a bit intimidated to drive on the left side of the road, but we'll see how that works out for me.

My plan, as of now, is to drive the Great Ocean Road and then go on to Adelaide, and from Adelaide, fly to Sydney. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed for good weather.

I haven't been doing too much lately. I've been laying low just enjoying my vacation. Sunday I did go to Torquay, which is a big surf city. I went with some of my adoptive Australian family. We shopped mostly, but they did want to make sure I had proper fish and chips. I have to say - not too shabby.

Anyway, my plan is to leave this Saturday, so if you don't hear from me, don't fret, I'll be on the road.

Did I mention I was a klutz?

I was the reason behind the orange tape.

So yesterday when I was posting my blog, I was thinking about not having anything too interesting to tell you without boring you. Then my klutziness kicked into high gear.

Today was my day to go swimming with the dolphins and the seals. On my way to get on the boat I managed to get my foot stuck in a hole and land in wet cement. Please notice the square metal thing in the picture. My foot goes straight through it. I struggle to get it out and no one comes to help me and there are three guys to my left. Finally a man came to see if I was ok after I had pried my foot out of the hole. Then he told me I landed in wet cement, so he moved my bag and helped me stand up. It wasn't super fresh, but my legs were covered in gray cement and blood. I kept apologizing for stepping in the hole like a moron. He just kept saying, "We should probably mark that." He really didn't think I was ok, but I was worried I was going to miss my boat for the trip, so I high tailed it out of there. All in all I ended up with a scraped and bruised hand and nasty cuts on my knee. Luckily the water we swam in was ice cold, so I'm sure it helped the swelling :)

It would have been sweet if the cement was fresh and I happened to land backwards. I would have been able to leave my mark in Australia, a giant ass print.

The trip was pretty good. It was great swimming with the seals. We didn't see any dolphins under the water which was crap because that's what I went for, but apparently 'they're wild and we shouldn't disturb them if they don't want to be disturbed.' Bullshit, I know the dolphins are getting a cut of my money. Watch your back dolphins, I'm getting my money back.

And so it goes . . .

So I've been pretty busy lately. This girl has tons to do — I have less than a week and a half left in this area. Last Thursday I went to Melbourne for the first time. It was pretty sweet — that's why I've been two more times since then. I think I might try to go at least one more time. There's just so much to do and see.

I went to the Royal Botanical Gardens today, which I was told was #6 in the world . . . that could be out of 7 for all I know. Before I actually went into the gardens I stumbled across a ceremony. Today, Nov. 11th, is Australia's Remembrance Day. I would compare it to Veteran's Day. There were a ton of people — it was pretty good to watch. Then I spent most of the morning at the Gardens, which was then followed by a prison, Old Melbourne Gaol. That was a bit creepy. They started out with pretending to arrest us. Then they lined us up and put us in a cell, shut the door and turned off the lights . . . creepy. Then we were free to roam around the old cells. There were a bunch of stories about the prisoners along with their death masks, which apparently were made after the prisoner was hung — their head was chopped off and then a mold was made from their face. It was a bit unsettling.

Here are a few photos from today. I'll have to catch up with some of the other days.

"Qu'est que sup"

Sunday I was invited to a barbeque at a family member's farm. I think I've pretty much met the whole family by now. It was a good time. We ended up playing some mini soccer . . . tiny field + tiny ball = mini soccer. They were quite brutal, so I fit right in. I had no problem with kicking the shins of the weak [anyone under ten]. The creativity meter was off the charts — our teams were the high-pants vs. the low-pants. I was lucky enough to be on the high-pants team because, like myself, ethics were lacking. In the end, there were only two injuries. I escaped unscathed.


Monday, I ventured into the lovely land of Sorrento. I walked to the bus stop, took the bus stop to the ferry, and the ferry to Sorrento. I didn't really go over with a plan, so I just walked around with my camera, went into some shops, and went to a movie. I saw the movie Young @ Heart. The documentary about the old people in a choir singing rock/punk songs. I highly recommend it. [I don't recommend Burn After Reading — I want those two hours of my life back.] I did manage to buy a pair of souvenir shoes, but not before I looked like a moron in front of the sales lady. So remember when I told you I played soccer on a farm? Well I wore the same shoes. When I took my shoe off to try the new one on, tons of grass and dirt fell out. I was hoping she didn't see it, but I'm sure she did. It went all over the dark purple carpet. Then she was like, "The strap goes over the foot not around the back." Oh, that would make sense, wouldn't it. I'm sure she was wondering who let me out in public.

On the way back home I took the ferry to the bus stop, hitch hiked to the post office and then walked home. Well, the initial plan was the bus, and I was standing at the bus stop, [in the freezing cold] when a car backed up and asked if I needed a ride. It was a family of four . . . very threatening, so I hopped in. They were great and asked me if I would be interested in babysitting. So in the end, who was the bigger idiot: the person who got in the car, or the family who asks the stranger to babysit? It's a toss up.