Surfing & Byron Bay

This past weekend I took surfing lessons for two days. We got on a bus here at Bond & road for 5 hours to Spot X, a surfing camp through Mojo. We surfed twice on Saturday & again on Sunday morning. It was actually pretty hard to stand up and balance on the surf board, but I figured it I figured it out eventually. I was proud of myself...I could stand up on my own and go into shore. It was really fun & hopefully when my family comes over Johnny will be able to surf (maybe even mom and dad :)

We also went to Byron bay on the way back from surfing and went to the lighthouse. This is here the most easterly point of Australia's mainland is located. We rented bikes to ride up to the lighthouse. After we took a few wrong turns we finally made it to the lighthouse. After we parked our bikes & started walking the rest of the way to the lighthouse, we heard the storm coming in. We had just enough time to go to the most easterly point of Australian's mainland and take a few pictures of the lighthouse before it started raining. It was actually pretty fun to ride our bikes back in the rain. The ride back was much quicker than on the way up.

Overall it was a great weekend & I had a lot of fun. It was exciting to learn how to surf and actually be able to stand up on the surf board.

Alright-I fell behind again. I do have a justifiable reason though...My computer cord shorted out and I wasn't able to charge my computer very often for the past week and a half. I have borrowed a friends charger, but decided to use all my battery to talk with Ryan on skype because I felt that was more important than blogging.

Not much has been going on in the past weeks. Last weekend we went up to Surfers Paradise to see what was there & took pictures for my photography class. I am not the most creative and it was interesting how my pictures turned out. I've posted some on this blog for you all to see. I am leaving for surfing lessons this afternoon & will be gone for the weekend. I'm really excited and scared at the same time. I'm not the most coordinated person in the world, but maybe I'll be alright at the beginner stages of surfing.

Other than that, things are just normal there. I'm in class throughout the week & we're trying to explore around the area on the weekends. My family is still planning their trip over & I'm excited to figure out exactly what we'll be doing when they come over (& it'll be Johnny's birthday!!) I'm going to attempt to study before we leave for the weekend & will hopefully update this a little more often now that I can charge my computer.

Off & Running!

Wow, I fell a little behind once classes started. It is now Thursday afternoon & we started classes on Monday. I only have class Monday thru Wednesday, so I get a little break at the end of the week. My classes seem as if they will be fun and educational. I am really looking forward to the photography subject (although, I'm not the most artistic person, so we'll see what comes of it). My forensic psychology class is also very interesting & because I already love Law & Order shows, this gives me more of a truthful stance. My other two classes are my Australian studies. I have a history as well as a popular culture class. I figured if I'm going to be in Australia, I should be learning about their culture and background.

Now that classes have started and I have quite a bit to read and do, the home sickness isn't nearly as bad. I will say, I still have my moments and wish I was back home. Being away like this really makes you appreciate your friends and family & not take the time you get to see/speak to them for granted. I am very appreciative of this experience, but I still miss everyone back home. I like to keep all the cards/letters up in my room, as well as pictures to remind myself I am not really alone, just half across the world for awhile.

There are some random pictures I took around campus. I thought this flower was neat so I thought I'd include it today :)

I've decided to include "Aussie words" on all my blogs now. They do have a different way of saying some things, so when I notice them or remember to include them, They'll be on there too. Some are quite strange, but others are pretty interesting.

Aussie word of the day: Rice Bubbles (Rice Crispies)

Oh the food...

I knew eventually I'd have to talk about the food over here in Australia. They do have some different things (except in the cafeteria on campus-where they have "fake" Chinese food as well as french fries and potato wedges). They have these LIFE CHANGING cookies called "TimTams"! They have the texture of a girl scout's thin mint cookie, but they are milk chocolate. They have all different kinds (with a hint of raspberry, apricot, liquid toffee, dark chocolate, double dipped, & even in straw shaped to drink hot chocolate out of them). It's great! They could possibly be the best cookie I've ever bought (pre-packaged of course...don't worry dad, you cookies still win!). Also, they do have coke products, but I noticed on the Diet Coke's they say "Diet Coca Cola" not "Diet Coke" like back in the states. I know, it's crazy! Another random thing we saw was a "Super mum" bracelet at the shopping centre today. There were others that just said your name or something, but the "mum" really got us. Too much fun!

Other than the nice food update, there isn't a lot going on here. I've just be getting groceries and baking muffins for breakfast tomorrow. I start classes tomorrow and I'm pretty nervous. I hope all is well back home & hope to hear from you all soon.

P.S. Happy Fathers Day Dad! (It's father's day on September 7th here in Australia!)

First Australian Beach...

HEY! I just got back from our school trip to the beach. It's only about 70 degrees here, so I wore jeans and a sweatshirt (many layers) but it ended up being warm enough to swim at the beach. I only stood at the edge of the water in shorts and a t-shirt because I am a wuss and didn't want to get cold. The beaches here are beautiful, but the waves are SOOO high. I can't imagine getting into the water with the waves being so much higher than your head. In a few weeks I'm going on a "surfing lesson weekend" where they take you to the lessons, teach you for 3 days to surf. I'm thrilled and cannot wait. I keep telling myself surfing will be my new calling (but I saw people taking lessons today at the beach and I'm guessing I'm not going to be very good at it for awhile). It'll be a fun experience (as long as I'm out of the water before all the sharks come!) While we were at the beach we saw multiple helicopters fly overhead. Finally somebody asked why & they said they are shark spotters. That was some what of a relief, but slightly scary too.

I finally met another physical therapy student today (from Hilton Head, NC). I was so shocked b/c everybody here is either law or psychology students. I feel like I'm somewhat normal now that I'm not the only PT student! YEAH! I know this makes me a dork, but it's comforting.

The trip to the beach was our last adventure of "Bond Week" (Orientation week) & we'll start classes on Monday. I'm really excited to start classes & get things rolling. I've already changed one of my classes so I feel like I'm back at SLU all over again. I'm glad will be able to get a variety of classes here & still be able to learn about the Australian history/culture. I am also thrilled that I'll have a 4ish day weekend and I'll be able to relax and travel is I want to. There are so many different beaches and tourist places around Gold Coast, we won't have to travel far so a lot of sight seeing.

Most of you know I've been very homesick, but it's getting better. I've talked to Ryan quite a bit on the web cam (through Skype) & it's much better than just e-mail. Being able to see someone makes the world of difference. I've been talking to my Mom & Dad on MSN (My mom is getting used to the computer thing-I can only imagine what that is like). She'll be a computer whiz before I get home! Don't get me wrong, I still love receiving e-mails from everybody back home. It's so different not knowing how the football team is doing or what's going on back at SLU. Any news or updates from home are much appreciated. I don't like the feeling of being cut off from home (it's somewhat frightening).

I know some of you have said you've tried to comment on my blog, but I believe you have to have an account (which takes about 1 minute) to create if you want to do that. I'm trying to keep this updated, so bare with me if I fall behind. It's kind of fun to just write about all the stuff I'm doing & uploading pictures. I have a million pictures from the beach today, so I'm going to have to sift through to find a few to put on here.
I miss everyone & hope to hear from you soon!

P.S. I found a 7-Eleven & McDonalds today-it made me feel like I was back in the states :)

Arriving in Australia...

Hello all- I am somewhat behind starting this. I have been here since Sunday (It's now Friday afternoon). There hasn't been a lot going on this week except for the orientation and meetings you have at the beginning of school. I felt like a freshman all over again with the mandatory meetings and all the forms to fill out. The flight over was 14 hours, but the majority of it was spent sleeping or watching a movie. Upon arrival, I was terrified to go through customs. I knew there wasn't anything with me that would be an issue, but I had never done anything like that. Of course, I walk through & immigration takes me away. I thought I was going to die...and all it was for was to put my "other given name", aka my middle name onto my student visa. It would have been nice if someone would have told me before I almost had a stroke! Other than that, I made it to Bond University alright.
A lot about Australia and their culture is similar to the United States, but there is still so much that is different. Yes, they do drive on the left side of the road on the driver is on the right side of the vehicle. The other slightly disturbing difference is the guys that believe the speedo is a "normal" thing to wear as swimming attire. My room overlooks the Olympic size swimming pool here at Bond & many men, of all ages and weights feel the speedo a brilliant thing to wear (I have refrained from saying anything...but it's very hard).
I have wondered around campus and I'm still trying to figure out where everything is and where to do for different things. The campus is beautiful. We're surrounded by a lake and it also comes into part of the campus. We have already been warned NOT to swim in the lake because of the bull sharks (just what I needed-something else to be scared of right when I got here). I'm always extra careful when I walk anywhere near the lake!

I'm still adjusting to the time different (we are 15 hours ahead here) so my sleeping patterns are still all out of whack. Hopefully they are all straightened out when we start classes on Monday :) They do have a great selection of fitness classes on campus so that helps when I need to get my mind off the idea of being away from home for so long. The good news is that I'm adjusting and the homesickness is wearing off a little. I'm sure once school begins and I get in the swing of things, these will be more interesting & I'll be able to share all the great experiences I'm having. I miss all of you & will write more soon.