Day 60-62: Rocks and Sunsets and Rocks and Sunsets

OK I need to get this up before my Internet time runs out and because I'm not sure what kind of Internet connection I will have when I get up into the Outback. So let's get started.

Day 60 was Day 2 of my trip. We moved on from Port Campbell and onwards to the Grampian's National Park in Victoria, Australia. Obviously in Australia because I haven't left the country. But I feel like if I just said Victoria you'd be sitting there like "wat". OK I'm just rambling.

This park was absolutely beautiful. Surprise surprise. And we saw..... MORE ROCKS. I have seen so many different rock formations here it makes my head spin. Like the London Bridge, the Australian Version.

How come erry' time u come around, my London London Bridge wanna fall down

After the rocks on the Great Ocean Road, we head up into the Grampian's. Our first stop was the Brambruk Cultural Center, which is is all about the Indigenous people who lived and do live in this part of the Grampians. We watched a movie that described these specific groups(I forgot their names, I feel like an awful Anthropologist student. But they were really difficult to remember and I didn't have anything to write with) creation myth. It was interesting, albeit the production quality was... well. Let's just say I felt like a Cub Scout again. 

Arts and Crafts time included. My skills haven't improved in the last 13 years. 

Before we checked into our(awesome) accommodations for the night, we stopped at the Mackenzie Falls. Not a rock formation, and just as beautiful, if not MORE beautiful. I would add a picture but I honestly don't have much time so I want to add other pictures sorry. As usual look at my Facebook! And we watched the sunset(get the title now?) at... uh. Crap. I don't remember. BUT I got surprised by this little fella while turning around.

 For the record he was much cuter in person. He kinda looks like an overgrown rat here. 

Mr. Wallaby here was just chilling in the bush next to where our bus/van was parked. Needless to say I was surprised to find him hanging out like 6 feet behind me. I legit jumped and almost crapped my pants. We ended the night in the Grampian Motel which was amazing and not a hostel. Own bed in a room with 3 people I knew, 1 bathroom, it was just perfect. And the motel itself was nice on its own. If you ever find yourself in the Grampian National Park, stay at the Grampian Motel!

Day 61 was Day 3 of my trip, and the last day of the Melbourne to Adelaide portion of the trip. Today was mostly driving, but there was 2 major points of interest. The first being the 4 kilometer(2.5 miles for y'all back in the States) to Pinnacle.. Point. Or Peak. Eek I need to write these things down. 

I forgot how much I like hiking. 

And then we continued driving, onto Adelaide. But on the way we took a quick stop in Bordertown. I'm pretty sure there has been some TV show named that before. Just Googled. Yes, there was. It was a Western Drama that aired between 1989 and 1991 that took place in 1880 when the Western border between the US and Canada was surveyed. Must have been riveting stuff. But anyways, we stopped here for white kangaroos.

WHITE KANGAROO

Apparently it isn't albinism either. Just.... white kangaroo. Unless my heavy research on Google was for naught. 

Day 62 was our Free Day in Adelaide, Day 4 of my trip. Otherwise known as the "Well you're trip is actually two trips and this is the day inbetween them and we don't know what to do with you so FREE DAY!" I spent most of the day relaxing, and walked along the Torres River, the Botanic Garden, and down Rundle Mall with some mates from the tour. No pictures because I haven't taken a whole lot and I don't feel like uploading. 

I really really really like what I've seen of Adelaide. I think I might... *gasp* like it more than Sydney :x Granted I've only been here for a day and a half, and I haven't seen TOO much. But if I ever make my way back to Australia, I plan to spend a lot of time here in Adelaide. For sure. 

So tomorrow we set of for Quorn, where we will spend 2 Days. Not sure what to expect, but I think its more mountainy but thats OK because the day after will be COOBER PEDY. But I will talk about that when the time comes. 

So some leaving thoughts about Hostels: I'm still not quite sure how I feel. I mean, I've seen like families and older couples(I mean senior citizen status) staying here and I'm like o_O. It's really not an environment for people like that(wow that sounds awful). I guess I can't really judge others choices without knowing their circumstances but... idk. It just feels weird. And it's better when you know someone. I don't think I could ever backpack alone, staying in hostels alone. It would drive me crazy in all sorts of ways. But I think if I went with a friend or two, it would be the most amazing thing ever. Seriously. Amazing. And I would love to backpack across Europe but like... money. Oh well. 

Til next time, adios!

Day 59: Road Trippin'

Hey everyone! This will be another short post, only because 1 day has passed. Anyways, I'm sitting here in Port Campbell, Victoria, Australia. This has been the first day of my 10/11/12 day trip. I'm not sure exactly how many days. Kinda of out of it right now, sorry.

We saw a lot, driving from Melbourne to here in Port Campbell. But part of that is because we stopped, took photos, stopped, took photos, etc. It turns out that when I was talking about how many people are on the tour, I knew nothing. There are 11 of us on the Melbourne to Adelaide portion, and only 8 of us are going to Alice Springs onwards. But we may pick up more in Adelaide I really don't know.

The first of the main highlights of today was driving along the Great Ocean Road. Basically, the drive was right along the close ocean and it was amazing. The view was.... amazing. Right along the Southern Ocean. Granted I tried really really really hard not to nod off a bit, but alas I did. Here are some pictures.

Ooooooooh

Ahhhhhhhhhh

Next, we stopped at the Otway Fly Treetop Adventures. Basically, we walked on these platforms more than 100 feet up in the air of a rainforest that looked like it was right out of Jurassic Park. And once again, it was amazing. Now the drive here was just as beautiful as the rainforest. Rolling green hills as far as the eye can see. Being from Arizona, rolling green hills are only seen on the golf courses. And then it got really foggy, which was terrifying for me because the tour guide driving was keeping normal speed because obviously he knows how to drive in the fog but fog isn't common in Arizona so I was having a silent mini-panic attack in the back there. But other than that, it was amazing.

See? Jurassic Park!

And the final part I'm going to talk about is the 12 Apostels, a famous rock formation here. Spoiler Alert: There are only 8 of them. We watched the sun set here, and once again, amazing. Beautiful. I'm sure we have stuff like this in Arizona, but when you live someplace you don't really appreciate it you know? That's why I love traveling. I feel like everything will fill more special when I get back. 

Pretty right?

Sorry I'm so scatterbrained. I'm tired, but I want to get these up as soon as possible so I don't fall behind. 

If you want to see all the pictures I've taken, look at my Albums on Facebook! If you are reading this from my personal blog, and aren't a Facebook friend yet, talk to me over there! If you're reading this from some other outlet and I don't know you.... sorry. 

Days 55-58: Flyin' Solo

OK. As I sit here on the questionable carpet of my room at a hostel, I figured I should really talk about all the traveling I've done in the last 3 days before running off on my Outback Adventure.

Let's start with Saturday, Day 55- It was the day after Conception Day, and I woke up in a much better state than most others did. I had to be up and out of my room at DLC before 10 AM, and I managed. This day would also be the very first time I stayed in a hostel. But of course, I had to get there first. I knew where I was suppose to go. Let's just say.... it didn't happen the way it was suppose to.

Shoutout to Google Maps because I'm pretty sure I have to credit them for legal purposes.

See the Black X? That was where I got off the train. See the Red Circle? That's the hostel. See the blue squiggly line? That was the route I took to get there. Now that I think about it, it doesn't look squiggly enough. For the record, I checked out all of this beforehand. I checked it multiple times, and still got hopelessly lost. I never talked about this til now because if my Mom found out it probably would have given her an aneurysm when coupled with the fact that a few days after that I would be flying to a city I have never been to in a country I'm not from and have to travel even farther. Don't worry Mom, I didn't get as lost in Melbourne! But I'm getting ahead of myself. I need to talk about what I did on Sunday first.

Sunday, Day 56, I went and visited the Blue Mountains. The Blue Mountains are a mountain(duh) range that are located behind the Sydney area. They are called the Blue Mountains because due to some freaky effects with how light reflects and bends and all the oil eucalyptus trees give off, it makes it look like a blue haze floats all around the mountains.

See. Blue! 

The train ride took 2 hours, each way. And I was quite impressed with myself because I was able to make the 7:18 AM train TO the Blue Mountains. I mean, thats a big deal. I had to wake up really early for that. Being the smart cookie I am, I planned it so I would get there for the first round of the Hop On, Hop Off explorer bus that takes you around the sites. Of course I had to pay, but y0iA0(you're only in Australia once that's the motto homie y0ia0). Now I can tend to be a loner sometimes, staying holed up in my room. Ask my family or Ashrew. They knew. But I've never really DONE anything on my own before. And especially nothing as big as taking a 2 hour train ride to the mountains and just walking around site-seeing. So this whole experience has been terrifying. And exciting. But mostly terrifying. But more on that later. Now, more Blue Mountains talk. Basically this part of Australia mixed foresty forest with rainforest, and it was amazing. I took some epic rides across the mountains and down to one of the valley floors, and it was incredible. It reminded me so much of some of the things my family would do when we did our little mini-vacations. Totally the type of place my parents and brothers would LOVE. While there, I saw a really important part of the local Aboriginal people's culture and spirituality, the Three Sisters.

Each of my fancy pictures takes like 5 minutes to upload here and now I regret uploading this one because I have at least 1 more from the Blue Mountains I want to get up ugh #firstworldproblems

I actually got stuck at this lookout point for a bit because it was lunch break for the bus drivers. Then I realized I missed the music/dance performance put on by some of the Aboriginal people from the local clan and cried on the inside not only because of the obvious reasons of missing something awesome but for the fact in a couple weeks I have a project about Aboriginal Art/Music/Dance so this was perfect. I made myself feel better by spending cash I shouldn't have on absolutely amazing gelato that I only got to eat half of because the bus driver wouldn't let me take a half eaten cone on the bus. Needless to say I was quite upset. 

I could go on and on about how awesome the Blue Mountains were but my butt is starting to hurt from sitting on the ground so I'm gonna move on.

It's a backscratcher. Made out of a kangaroo paw. Just let that sink in.

Day 57 I stayed within the confines of Sydney. I was going to hit up Oceanworld at Manly Beach and Shelly Beach(solely because they were visited on The Amazing Race 18 but whatever), but the weather was kinda gloomy and rainy, so I decided to hit up the Australian Museum instead. And if you know me(wow I say that a lot), you know I love learning. Doing work, no way. But actually learning? I love it. So I love museums. Now the Australian Museum wasn't HUGE, but I still spent a good 3 hours wondering, exploring. Wow I thought I had more to say about the museum but I guess not. 

I don't know why I keep uploading pictures this is taking forever.

Day 58, today, I flew to Melbourne. I got to the airport fine. The lax security measures surprised me. I'm use to expecting to take off shoes and take everything electronic out of the bag and get yourself patted down/checked out by TSA. And I got to Melbourne safe and sound... although I made an arm and a leg to get here to the hostel. And this time, I only got a little lost on my way. I just walked up and around. But I guess it speaks to my merit I keep finding my way... eventually. 

So that leads me to here. Sitting on the ground. Now listening to some heavy Irish accents and catching only every 4th word and adjusting so I don't lose feelings in my buttcheeks. To be honest, the whole "staying in hostels on a solo trip" has pushed me out of my comfort zone. I mean, the environment just doesn't... I'm not sure. I think most of it has to deal with the fact that I'm alone. If I had a friend with me, I think I would enjoy this 10000000x more. That way I wouldn't feel so lost and alone. I also miss talking. I've hardly ever talked to anyone the last 4 days. It's weird, you know. Don't get me wrong, I love this whole travelling thing. I just don't think I like travelling alone. 

Which leads me to my last bit, what I've been alluding to in the last post and in this post- In less than 10 hours I will be leaving for my trip through South Australia and the Outback! 

This is the route. I'm so freakin' stoked. 

11 Days, I will be traveling with Top Deck. Who was booked through Adventure Tours. Who I booked through STA Travel. Complicated, I know. Now this trip is hitting a lot, but 2 of my MAJOR, MUST DO items on my Australian Bucket List- Coober Pedy and Uluru. It's going to be interesting. It's a travel group/tour, and I think there will be 20-25 of us. And again, I will be traveling alone in the sense it's noone I know. Yet. I think this will be really good because I will get to know the people on the tour really quick- I mean we'll be on a coach bus traveling across the country. And it's an 11 day trip, which is a really long time when you think about it. So I'm crossing my fingers and hoping for the best. I'm excited and ready. This is one of the reasons why I wanted to study abroad in Australia. The idea of the Outback and Uluru played a major part in building my fascination with Australia forever ago. 

But now, I need to get into bed. And I don't know how much Internet I wil have on the trip, or how much time I will have to make a nice post about it. But give me about 2 weeks, I will have something. I won't leave you hanging. I promise. 

Days 12-54: Yeah, sorry bout that...

I know, I know. You're thinking "what the hell happened to Christian's blog". I don't really have a good excuse. BUT I'm back and updating right before my upcoming trip though the Outback(more on that in a few posts in the future). A lot has happened since I last updated a month and a half ago(yikes). So I will try to condense it into a few main key events or topics.

Classes

So since I last abandoned the blog classes started up for me. While as an International Student I am only required to take 9 credits, or 3 classes. But because ASU requires me to have 12 credits to stay full time, I have to take 12 credits, or 4 classes. Now That seems like a no brainer having to take 4 classes, but in reality the classes here at Macquarie transfere differently. I know one of my classes should be coming back as 4 credits, and that's a 100-level intro course(which reminds me, I'm so far behind on the Online Lectures and Quizes. Whoops.)! But I can't risk ONE class coming back as 3 credits, and then screwing myself majorly. So 4 classes it is. They aren't too hard.. except my Ancient Egyptian Religion's class. But I'm not too too worried about my grades. The grading system here is way different, but I think bringing back at the very least 4 B's is pretty much a given. Oh yeah, the classes I'm taking- Introducing Indigenous Studies, The World Since 1945: An Australian Perspective, Myth in the Ancient World, and like I mentioned already Ancient Egyptian Religions. It is definitely an interesting mix. 

The Ball

So not too long ago, Dunmore-Lang College held it's annual Ball. Which is basically like Prom all over again. Everyone dressed up, there was a nice fancy dinner with a dance floor, and then an after party at a club afterwards. It was an absolute blast. Wow I'm really blanking right now. I'm just tired I guess. 

Conception Day

Conception Day is the biggest event at Macquarie University. No, it has nothing to do with procreation. Intentional procreation at least. It's celebrating the founding of Macquarie University(43rd anniversary in case you were wondering). Naturally, this is celebrated all day long starting at 6 in the morning. At least, that's how DLC does it. It was cool seeing everyone I lived with wearing the same hilariously and insanely inappropriate shirt that would make almost every mother cringe. And it was a lot of fun. I'm not sure how many of you reading this are familiar with ASU events, but Conception Day reminded me  of the Undie Run. Except in this case, most the people were dressed instead of the other way around. 

I know this must seem like such an awful post, especially since I'm covering so much time. But in all honestly, things definitely got really routine here. Going to class, eating meals, watching movies with friends. Wash rinse repeat. And I haven't really had the chance to do a lot of traveling(which is changing as I type this), and I haven't really gone out and partied much. Mostly because it only appeals to me so much, and partly because I have better things to spend my money on. It turns out, those random expenses you never account for in real life back home also pop up here in Australia. Who knew? But yeah. Sorry for this entire leaving you hanging and posting a crappy post when I finally came back. But tomorrow. tomorrow I will have a post that talks about days 55-58. Which includes walking. Lots and lots and lots of walking. And flying too. And... well, you will just have to read that one too.