Turkey Day in Oz

This was my first Thanksgiving away from home without family. But I did get to share it with Missy and Eric...practically family. I made my apple pie the night before. And then Missy and I prepared the rest of the meal. We were able to find a frozen turkey breast at the grocery store. Turkey is very rare in Australia. Usually the only time of year you will be able to find it is during Christmas. We also had garlic green beans, bread, and gravy and cranberry sauce to top off the turkey. And finally we had baked potatoes, but I had a sweet potato which was quite scrumptious.

Surprisingly we had no trouble making all this food in our tiny little kitchen. We borrowed an electric roaster cooker from Carmel for the turkey. We made the potatoes in our toaster oven. Green beans on the stove. No trouble at all. To top our meal off Eric made his mom's Sangria which was delicious. All in all it was a lovely Thanksgiving. I do miss being home with my mom and grandma right now cooking for the whole family. But at least I will be there for Christmas.


18 days til I'm home...very crazy. I still can't believe it.

Final Weeks at Bond

So I only have 1 week left of actual classes, a week off, and then a week of exams. Where has all the time gone? I feel like we just got here. But I'm having a great time. Last week I finally got to perform with my cheerleading squad at the Bond AFL game (Aussie Rules Football). It was lots of fun! This week has been filled with many group projects, presentations, papers, and my final speech for public speaking. It's a relief that I'm finished with it all.

Now if only I could decide how to spend my last few weeks here to make the most of my time. This weekend I'm going to Brisbane with some of my cheerleading girls. Then next week Eric will be here. But after that...a whole week off? What should I do? Where should I go? Any suggestions? The only thing I've come up with is the beach...to get really tan before I come back.

Right now though I'm actually wishing it was cold. I miss the cold weather. I want to wear my peacoat with my scarves. I want to wear boots. This has been one long summer. It's nice and all, but I'm kind of ready for a change. Eight months of warm weather is a looooong time. And next semester Missy and I have decided that we will still be traveling, but around the U.S. Anyone care to join us? We are thinking up and down the East Coast. New York City is a definite, the rest is still to be determined. Also any suggestions are welcome here too.

Well I am off now to savor the rest of my time here in Aussieland. Cheers!

I love sheeps

Wow. New Zealand. Ah-mazing. I don't know where to begin. But it was by the far the most beautiful place I have ever seen in my entire life. Missy and I spent a week traveling through the South Island with our tour group.

Our first day was spent at Flock Hill Station, a sheep shearing/herding farm. Quite interesting. We learned alot about wool...and it was very entertaining watching him call to his sheepdogs to herd the sheep. After that day we drove on towards Fox Glacier. Driving through the South Island is absolutely gorgeous, because the whole time you are driving through the Southern Alps. Yes there are Alps in New Zealand.



























In Fox Glacier we did a half day hike up through rainforest and on Fox Glacier. It was spectacular. The glacier was enormous! I don't know what I was expecting, but it surpassed everything I had imagined. Our glacier guide told us that Fox Glacier was only one of 3 glaciers in the world that was surrounded by rainforest. That evening our tour guides for our group took us on a glowworm walk through the dark forest. It was pretty sweet. And they also preceded to tell ghost stories, which sent Missy back to the hotel early. But we all met back up at the local bar where we all shared a few beers with the locals. (There are only 200 people in the town of Fox Glacier). But Missy and I did meet a couple of the glacier guides. We taught them about the U.S. and American football and they taught us about NZ and rugby...it twas interesting and fun!

We next journeyed on to Queenstown. But on our way there we stopped at Lake Matheson. Here you could see a perfect still reflection of the Southern Alps. It was gorgeous!

In Queenstown, Missy and I did Jetboating in the canyons between the mountains. It was pretty sweet. We did lots of 360 spins. It was a bit chilly and water was absolutely freezing when we got splashed, but still pretty cool. Also in Queenstown, we rode horses through the Lord of the Rings forests and past many of the filming sites for both Lord of the Rings and Narnia. My horse kept things interesting as he liked to bite the butts of the other horses around him. He was a bit feisty. While in Queenstown our tour group got to go to Minus 5 Ice Bar. And that was pretty amazing. Everything was made out of ice! The bar, the couches, sculptures, and even our glasses that had our cocktails! And when you were finished you got to smash your glass!!!




After leaving Queenstown we headed down to Milford Sound for our overnight cruise. When we arrived it was pouring rain and freezing cold! But we were then able to see an abundance of waterfalls cascading off the fiords. It was spectacular! In the morning it had cleared up and the views were stunning. We even got to see little penquins and seals!


































On our way back from Milford Sound we were even lucky enough to see it snowing! Our group now headed on to Mt. Cook, the tallest point in New Zealand. No...we didn't get to hike up to the top, but we did get to take lots of pictures! I feel like our tour bus stopped every 15 minutes for a photo op. It got a bit old towards the end of the week especially when it was so cold and windy. Our tour ended back in Christchurch where we started. Missy and I spent the next 2 days exploring the city, touring the Cathedral, and wandering around the Saturday markets. It was one heck of a week. We had the best time. I love traveling with my best friend!