Surf Camp!

So last weekend Mo and I decided to go out on a limb (literally) and attempt to surf! We signed up with a group of girls to go on a weekend trip up to Seal Rocks for Surf Camp. We left friday night from Central Station in Sydney for a 3 hour bus ride full of anxious and excited wanna be surfers, not to mention some hot instructors. We finally reached camp where we quickly chose our beds, put our stuff down, and then partied the night away. The next morning we were up by 7am for breakfast then off for our first day of surf lessons at Booti Booti Beach! I was nervous to get out there, but a little spontanious rock jumping I did a few days earlier with Mo out on Bondi Beach helped calm my nerves a little haha. I finally made it up after a few too many wipe outs, the day was a success! We headed back to camp around 4pm where we showered (if you could call it that) and waited for our BBQ dinner. The next day we were up by 7am again and off to a different beach where we learned how to turn the board and ride some bigger waves. Everyone was exhausted but we got out there and surfed away! After coming back to camp to pick up our things we hopped on the bus to begin our ride home. We watched wild kangaroos jump in the fields while the sun was going down as we drove away from an amazing weekend.

Rugby/Mardi Gras

Friday I went to my first rugby match! It was between the NSW Waratahs and the Queensland Old Reds. We were rooting for the Waratahs who won 15-11, so that was pretty exciting! We had good seats, we were a few rows back and got to see many of the players close up. 19 was everyone's favorite :) We all had a couple of beers and a hotdog that we later found out was lamb. Definitely not the best hotdog I've ever had ha. The stadium was huge and the atmosphere was really fun, I plan on going to another game while I’m here. This weekend was the Gay/Lesbian Mardi Gras parade which is really big here. It was sat evening in downtown sydney on oxford street. It was super crowded and full of energy. The parade was televised and hosted by Pam Ann who we got to see close up from where we were standing. It was a pretty exciting day! After the parade me, sasha, & brit went to a bar called Trademark in Kings Cross. I start classes at UNSW tomorrow and I'm both nervous and excited. I'll be taking a Computer class, History on the holocaust, Management, and Australian cinema. I have classes mon-thurs with only 1 class on tues and no friday classes.

Bondi Junction

Since I've moved into the apartment I have made many trips to the famous Bondi Beach. The weather (besides today's rainy sunday) has been perfect. It has been bright and sunny, warm with just enough breeze, and the ocean is clear blue. The area is very clean too, which is a bonus. I've been living a dream vacation it seems, sleeping in, going to the beach all day, going out at night and exploring the city. It has been amazing! I went to a food and wine festival in Hyde Park downtown the sunday I moved in which was really cool. We walked around tasting different wines, my favorite was a sweet sparkling by Farmers Daughter. The next day my roommates and I did our first offical grocery shopping for the apartment. We went to Woolworths and shopped away. We had too much to carry so we pushed the grocery cart into our building and actually up to our room. The cart seemed to have a mind of its own, not to mention it was really windy out. It was an interesting experience haha.

Sydney

My 14 hour flight from LA arrived in Sydney on Tuesday the 24th. I spent 4 days at the World Tower in downtown Sydney where we had orientation before moving into our Apartments in Bondi Junction. We started off by taking a walking tour of the city and dinner at a restaurant on the harbour. The city is amazing! We spent the next few days exploring. We went to an animal park where we got to pet koalas and kangaroos, went abseiling in the Blue Mountains, and went on an evening harbour cruise where we saw an amazing view of the city all lit up from the water. A group of us girls went out for sushi while we were there to a place called BenBu, which was soo delicious! After orientation we moved into our apt in Bondi Junction where my roommates Mo, Sasha, Brittany, & I got all settled in. Our place is really nice and we have a pretty view of the city from our balcony. It really is absolutely beautiful here!