I don't think I could adequately explain how wonderful it was to have my best friend visit me in a foreign country. It's been almost six months since I've seen anyone I love from home. It happens quite a bit here that I forget who I am without them--I start believing that I don't have a personality anymore, that I'm fake and shallow and no one really knows me. Having Sara here was more life validation than I could have ever asked for. This shot was from one our first excursions: we trammed to the Shrine of Remembrance, wandered around the observation deck, and then strolled through the Royal Botanical Gardens where Sara taught me how to use T9 on my cell phone (now I actually know how to text!).
The minute it looked like the sun would last for longer than ten minutes, we hopped on a train to Brighton Beach with my IES friends Julia and Sara (not confusing at
all!). Though the sky was perfectly clear, the wind brought the temperature down to a frigid 500-below. Approximately. But we still popped off our shoes and strolled barefoot amongst the cracked shells and recently-deceased jellyfish. We didn't stick around for too long, but it was a great trip nonetheless.
Having experienced the splendor (I'd like it to be noted that the first time I typed that word I spelled it with a U. I've been in a former British colony too long!) of Australian Rules Football several months ago, I can now say with confidence that no trip to Australia is complete without attending a game. Sara and I had tickets for what I came to learn was one of the biggest games of the year: the Collingwood Magpies against the Carlton Blues. Now, I've had my issues with magpies in the past (you may recall the incident in which one of them flew into the side of my head) but I was willing to give the team a chance...and it's a good thing I did! They were amazing and pummeled poor Carlton into the ground. Plus they were definitely the more attractive of the two teams.
The stands look fairly empty in this shot, but believe me--they filled up quickly! The fan count at the end of the night was 85,000! Not too shabby if you ask me, especially for Sara's virgin footy experience!
Because IES students are prohibited from driving this semester due to insurance reasons, we had to scrap our plans to drive the Great Ocean Road. I was planning on showing Sara real live kangaroos and koalas in the wild, but we were forced to settle for seeing real live kangaroos and koalas in the Melbourne Zoo. Which was perfect because if we'd just seen them on the GOR we wouldn't have seen this koala
baby! We seriously stood and watched him (or her) for a half hour. So so cute. I can't get over it.
This was a very slippery pig. Peccary, actually. Very slippery. This was toward the end of our zoo visit, which we thought would only take us about an hour and laughed when we read on the website that it takes most people around four. Guess how long we were there. Go ahead. Guess. That would be four. Four magical hours.
I never get tired of this animal. It blows my mind how they manage to balance themselves using their tails, and how high they jump when they run. Oh, to be a kangaroo. Yes please.
I don't think I could adequately explain how wonderful it was to have my best friend visit me in a foreign country. It's been almost six months since I've seen anyone I love from home. It happens quite a bit here that I forget who I am without them--I start believing that I don't have a personality anymore, that I'm fake and shallow and no one really knows me. Having Sara here was more life validation than I could have ever asked for. This shot was from one our first excursions: we trammed to the Shrine of Remembrance, wandered around the observation deck, and then strolled through the Royal Botanical Gardens where Sara taught me how to use T9 on my cell phone (now I actually know how to text!).
The minute it looked like the sun would last for longer than ten minutes, we hopped on a train to Brighton Beach with my IES friends Julia and Sara (not confusing at all!). Though the sky was perfectly clear, the wind brought the temperature down to a frigid 500-below. Approximately. But we still popped off our shoes and strolled barefoot amongst the cracked shells and recently-deceased jellyfish. We didn't stick around for too long, but it was a great trip nonetheless.
Having experienced the splendor (I'd like it to be noted that the first time I typed that word I spelled it with a U. I've been in a former British colony too long!) of Australian Rules Football several months ago, I can now say with confidence that no trip to Australia is complete without attending a game. Sara and I had tickets for what I came to learn was one of the biggest games of the year: the Collingwood Magpies against the Carlton Blues. Now, I've had my issues with magpies in the past (you may recall the incident in which one of them flew into the side of my head) but I was willing to give the team a chance...and it's a good thing I did! They were amazing and pummeled poor Carlton into the ground. Plus they were definitely the more attractive of the two teams.
The stands look fairly empty in this shot, but believe me--they filled up quickly! The fan count at the end of the night was 85,000! Not too shabby if you ask me, especially for Sara's virgin footy experience!
Because IES students are prohibited from driving this semester due to insurance reasons, we had to scrap our plans to drive the Great Ocean Road. I was planning on showing Sara real live kangaroos and koalas in the wild, but we were forced to settle for seeing real live kangaroos and koalas in the Melbourne Zoo. Which was perfect because if we'd just seen them on the GOR we wouldn't have seen this koala baby! We seriously stood and watched him (or her) for a half hour. So so cute. I can't get over it.
This was a very slippery pig. Peccary, actually. Very slippery. This was toward the end of our zoo visit, which we thought would only take us about an hour and laughed when we read on the website that it takes most people around four. Guess how long we were there. Go ahead. Guess. That would be four. Four magical hours.
I never get tired of this animal. It blows my mind how they manage to balance themselves using their tails, and how high they jump when they run. Oh, to be a kangaroo. Yes please.
Glad you had fun with Sara. I miss you Oli. I miss my C.o.S.
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