ME, Myself and I....in Sydney :(

Alright so I believe I left off at Tuesday....On that day what did I do? Oh Yes I stayed in Saint Ives. Woke up and went on my usual run but decided to take a different route and go check out a little National Park down the road. It is called Garigal National Park, very green area and peacefully. Walked the trail a little bit then just stopped on sat on a rock and listened to the trees and birds. Came home and just organized some stuff, then later that night I met up with Rihanne and we went to Newtown area to a comedy show. It was just a small open mic night, but had a few funny people performing. Slept at my cousins house that night since I was close by and then woke up Wednesday morning and went to Coogee beach. My plan was to actually go to Clovelly beach BUT...I got on the right bus but just going in the wrong direction....SO. Had to ride that bus back to where I started from and go 30 minutes in the right direction. When I got to Coogee it was about a 20 minutes walk to Clovelly, which is really good for snorkeling (that's the only reason I was going), I was irritated and tired so just ended up staying on Coogee. I believe it is near Bondi...maybe if Cassie and I had walked all the way to Bronte beach that one day we might have been close to it. The beach was nice, but got a little cloudy in 2 hours or so. That was my cue to leave so I packed up and head to the buses, making sure I got on the right one and right direction this time. Asking questions is that best way to go! Before I say what I did that night I need to take a few steps back and explain something.

Either Monday night or Tuesday I can't remember, I was bored so I decided to download Tinder (that social/dating site). Started picking who I would like to meet and what not, and got a few messages from some fellas. One guy was James, and there were others but James is the one you need to remember. So know that I have explained I can proceed with my evening plans!

I have heard Bondi Beach is a very vibey place on a Wednesday, but no one would go with me (and I'm a little brave but not brave enough to go to a bar by myself!) So I think hey James said he'd liked to meet up if I wanted and he could show me around...Perfect! So sent a little texty text and BOOM I got a date...Now most people would be a little skeptical, in a new place and going to meet up with a random guy...my thoughts YOLO! My aunt and uncle were very nervous but I gave them his Full name and number so hopefully that eased their thoughts (probably not). James was very nice and offered to come pick me up from Saint Ives, he lives in Bondi (that's a good 30 min drive). First a little more info on James: He was born in England, moved to Aussie for work 10 years ago, works for a big bank in Aussie and does their IT stuff, owes a 2 bedroom condo in Bondi, does pretty well for himself seeing so a condo in Bondi is crazy expensive and has a cute little BWM, and lastly he is 35. Only 9 years older than me so not too bad! Plus I think he kinda hads a little Luke Bryan look going on. Ok and back to the evening, he picked me up in St. Ives and we go back to Bondi. Eat dinner at an awesome Thai Place called Rice Pot and then went down the street to a quiet bar for a drink. It was rainy so all the big places in Bondi that are usually packed on Wednesday were not so packed. At dinner and drinks we talked about everything: family, hobbies, pets and all other animals. Had some good laughs and it was a very enjoyable evening. Before taking me back to St Ives we drove to this little look out spot where you can see North Sydney, the bridge and the Opera House. It was Gorgeous! Literally like a postcard view. That was the end of the date, got returned to St Ives in one piece and went to bed. Might see him again, we talked about it but I think he is super bummed I'm leaving in a Month so we will see. If he asks me out again I will definitely say yes!

The rain stuck around the next day so I just went to darling harbor and walked around, they have a Margaritaville! Of course I had to stop and lucky for me it was happy hour. Hello $10 watermelon marg! After that I came back home and then went to eat sushi with my aunt and uncle for dinner.

This weekend I'm going to a music festival with my cousin and his friends, Its 3.5 hours south of Syndey in Canberra. Basically you go and camp out, plant trees, listen to music and have a good old time. You can read more about it on the website (http://www.re-gen.org.au/about).

http://youtu.be/JG79xOsTVaU
http://youtu.be/JG79xOsTVaU

Should be interesting!

Count down to Future Music festival though....9 days! (http://youtu.be/JG79xOsTVaU)

After movie from last year (http://youtu.be/Ir2rQFeSAIc)

Shelly beach

Today I ventured off to manly again, but think time to a smaller beach near by called Shelly beach. It is a smaller secluded beach and can you guess why its called Shelly Beach...Ding ding, you are correct if you said because the sand is mostly broken shells!!! You are so smart :). Getting there was a bit of a hassle. I decided to take the buses thinking it would be fast, which it really would be if the damn buses weren't late every time!!! Took me about 2 hours to get to Manly, but I got to see a different side of the city, so no complaints really. It was quite relaxing. Shelly Beach is also know for good snorkeling. I took one step in the water and decided it was way too cold! The water was crystal clear though and gorgeous!! Saw a few regular looking fish around my feet but nothing worth freezing over! I spent most my time at the beach relaxing, watching some cute kids and just enjoying the scenery! After the sun started to cool down I took a little hike to a cliff, where you can see all the beaches. It so peacefully being that high over looking the gorgeous water and reflecting on life. Saw a few water dragons on my way, and a HUGE spider. Luckily it was in its web high above my head! Not much of an eventful day, but I enjoyed it. Got home and ate some yummy chili, prepared by my perfect auntie and then just spent the rest of the evening looking for fun things to do tomorrow night. Might go meet Rihanne at a comedy club tomorrow and then who knows what will happen. Ready to meet some more good looking Aussie boys, since the one I had my eye on is hella kilometers away in Cairns! Sad day!

farewell cassie.

After spending the last 2 days on the beach: Bondi and Manly, little Cassie had to say good bye to Australia. It was a bitter sweet feeling. I was sad to see her go because we had been in each others company for 3 weeks, but I had a feeling we were getting on each others nerves. I know she had a good time and did not want to leave. I'm glad she got to experience the place she has always dreamed about. I on the other hand have a whole new adventure ahead of me! After dropping her off at central station I ventured on to Stanmore, where my cousin Grant lives. We hung out for a bit and then headed into Newtown for some lunch via bicycles. I was wearing a flowy dress and the bike was definitely too big for me but we made it there in one piece, with much entertainment! The place we ate at was a little pastry café and it was AMAZING!!! Not to mention cheap as well, my kinda party! Walked around Newtown a little more and then headed back to his house, for a little down time. Watch the weirdest movie ever, it was called Half Nelson....Not quite sure what was going on but it was the type of movie you want to turn off but keep watching hoping that something that explains it will happen...it ended and nothing was explained = FAIL! After the movie we met up with his roomie, Johnathon, and some other friends at a pub in Surry Hills. I met a girl who lives in Bondi and gave me her number to call whenever I need advice on where to go! Super sweet girl! I have decided that I MUST got to Byron Bay, so the tickets are only $80 each way and there is no excuse. I'll go and just meet people, explore the beautiful beaches and just live freely! This weekend it looks like I'll be going to trance party with my cousin and his friends, its 3 hours outside of Sydney and a 3 day festival. Its called Regrowth, you party and plant trees, Granty says it is in the middle of a forest. Super excited!!! I have so much to come now that I'm on my own, and can't wait to see where the wind carries me!

Elaboration of the Cairns trip.

So arrived in Cairns, waited 1 hour to be picked up by the shuttle to be taken to our backpackers....not the best start to a journey but hey at least we got picked up for free. Before I proceed let me stat that this is mine and Cassie' first time staying at a backpackers/hostel. So we check in a get show to our room, the bed had no sheets on it (which was a mistake) and I definitely could have gone all my life not seeing that mattress. Disgusting doesn't even describe it! The whole room was nasty, carpets probably had never been vacuumed, shared bathroom made me want to not shower the whole time there and I still would feel cleaner that actually showering. After getting sheets on the bed we headed out to a pub across the street called Pier bar, they have happy hour and is very vibey on a sunday. Had a much needed drink at the pub and then headed down the street to Gillians, which is the ritz Carlton of backpackers (and the place were we got our free dinner). Ate dinner and then wandered around looking at the scenery (and as is scenery I mean guys). Until finally we were approached by a very appeasing to the eye candidate. He then invited us to his table with his good-looking friends. :) These boys were from Brisbane (the REAL Australians)! Super fun guys plus they bought all our drinks. So far Australian boys are taking the lead over American guys. Night one is Cairns was going to be a hard one to beat.

The next day we woke up super early and get ready for our snorkeling trip. Got to the boat right on time and then had a nice 2 hours cruise to the reef. The boat we were on was not the best looking boat but it got us there and the crew was fun! The boat was actually going in for a make-over the next day so we caught it just in time, since it was the cheapest trip we could find. $99 on Compass Cruises, included lunch as well. Lots of nice people were aboard that we made friends with, including the crew who we met at the pub later for a drink . That night we did not do anything exciting. Cassie and I got fried being on the boat all day, so early to bed for us. The next day we took a relax day and just walked around, ended up doing a ropes course at the top of the casino. The have a little wildlife park up there too so we looked at the animals as well. The backpackers was having a free pizza night at a place down the street called The Woolshed, and you could get 5 drinks for $10. YES PLEASE! After that we then decided to go back to try our luck at the casino. Slot machines are a lot harder than you think! What the hell! I lost $5 and Cassie won $10. I don't think I want to go to Vegas anymore, it might not end well!

Wednesday was another day for adventure, we got picked up at 7:50 at the bus stop and were headed out to see the rainforest, waterfalls, lakes and whole bunch of cool stuff, The tour we went on was called On the Wallaby, and it was a great tour. Last a good 10-12 hours but you get to see a lot of pretty sights and our tour guide was a character! Got back to Cairns around 8 and then changed and went to get some dinner. This would be our last night in Cairns so we headed out to a pub. Turns out there was a pub crawl so when we got there the place was packed but 2 seconds later Cassie and I were pretty much the only girls there amongst 5-7 guys. Of course this worked out well and we got some free drinks. After that place we hoped over to The woolshed again, were the managed escorted us in and bought us a drink too! Yay for free alcohol! Chilled there talking to the manager and other people and then ended the night at Gillian's. That place was always bumping. To cap of a good night we had to end it with Mackers (McDonalds)!

Checked out our backpackers at 10 AM and then went to take a picture of us holding a koala bear! Ate some lunch, laid out on the grass near the lagoon and then off to the airport we go, back to Sydney!

All in all the Cairns trip was a successful one. I definitely would love to go back and visit some more amazing places! Plus on of the Brisy boys we met the first night had just moved there, and we are going to get married. I have already decided this but I don't think he knows yet :P.

Cairns, 4 day trip

Sorry for the delay of posting, too many fun activities and little time to get on my computer!
I'll throw a quick draft of what we did while in Cairns and then elaborate later.
Got there Sunday night went out to eat and met some Brisbane boys who showed us a great time! Next day we went snorkeling on the great Barrier reef, amazing! That night we didn't do much, exhausted from the trip. Tuesday we just walked around and did a little gift shopping. Wednesday we woke up and did a tour through the rain forest, saw some petty sites including a waterfall, and a volcanic crater. That night we went out and met some more awesome people, and then left on Thursday! Boom quick summary and like I said I'll put more details on later plus pictures, so gotta rush to the beach to Cassie's fixing of Australian sun before she heads back to USA on sun!

Activites!!

So Wed was a lazy day, caught up on sleep and then did a little gift shopping in Circular Quay. Ate dinner at one of my mom's old friends house and then went to a local bar with their son Kev, who is a year or to younger than me. He brought his bestie Justin along and we had a grand time.

Thursday was a big day planned. Went on a free walking tour through the city, learnt some really cool facts! Had a nice lunch in the rocks, which is the oldest part of Sydney. Apparently this is were the first settlers lives. If you did not know Australia was a convict colony, meaning they sent convicts out here because it was so excluded from other places and the convicts then grew to make communities and so on. After lunch we met up with some people I had met in South Africa while volunteering with the Great White Sharks. Rihanne and Nicole. Sat on the law near the water and chatted. At 4 Cassie and I had plans to climb the Sydney bridge. Super exciting and expensive but a worthy thing to cough up the bucks to do. walked all the way to the top on it and back down. Takes about 3 hours, but surprisingly easier than you think. Meet up with Granty for some grub at a local favorite pub in Surry Hills, close to where he lives.

 Friday was Valentines day and without really noticing it we booked a whine tasting tour in Hunter Valley, about a 2 hour drive outside the city. It was fun and we were not the only odd non-couple out. Started off by visiting walkabout wildlife park where we could mingle with koalas, kangaroos, emus and wallabies! Got to pet the animals, take pictures and Cassie was lucky enough to even get a love pinch by a wallaby. It obviously didn't appreciate that she said it had lots of flies on it. I would not either! So it bit her on the arm and ran away! Had some tea and biscuits at the park and then headed off to a chocolate factory. After that it was on the way to our first winery, where we tasted a handful on yummy wines and even bought a bottle! Next stop the next winery/smelly cheese shop/lunch. Tempus two is a bigger commercial winery unlike the other one we went to which it more of a boutique winery, but still really good. Lunch and the cheese tasting was great! I would buy all the cheese spreads! Last winery was called Mount View Estate, a smaller winery as well. Tasted a bunch of great wines and learn a lot of valuable information on making wine and how its done. I might give it a try at home! Probably not as easy as it sounds! Everyone was coming over to Shabbot dinner that night so we had a quick nap before dinner and then filled our bellies with yummy homemade food, and then off we went with my cousin to see some Sydney nightlife! Yay! Went to the Surry Hills area and hung out a small pub until it got over crowded with guys from LA here for a big skateboarding thing in Bondi. We then moved to a bigger place with better music and then just chilled there. Cassie caught the attention of a guy, but just like always he was an American (from LA) that had moved here for work. Where are all the aussie boys at! The only Aussie I have had interest in was Alex and he was in LA! This is crazy! Grant and his roommates are part of this veggie group where everyone throws on 40 bucks and one group got to the market and buys a whole bunch of veggies to split between the group. Its every 2 weeks so this week was their turn. So we decided that we should got sleep since we have to go to the market at 5AM, sounded like a good idea at the time but definitely caught up to everyone later! The market was great, beside being zombie tired! Lots of fruits and veggies, a fish market and everything. Kind of like a Super H mart or roids! Left the market and went straight back to Grants to sleep. Only for about 4 hours though. Had a nice brekky sandwich and then off back to the North to get ready for Cairns tomorrow and our outing with friends tonight!

 

and the solo exploring begins!

First day back from Melbs we decided to hit up Bondi. The weather was not great but that wasn't going to stop us! We bought this great city pass, which allows us to travel on the train, bus and ferried for a week anytime. So jumped on a train and started learning our way around the city. Bondi was semi busy considering it was a Monday and overcast. We spent a few hours on the beach, and then did a little bit of souvenir shopping. After the beach we had plans to meet up with my parents in double bay and go out to eat with them and my aunt's brother. Ate at a great Thai place, and then had no plans but to go home.

 

The next day was much more of an exciting day! There is a big surfing competition going on in Sydney on Manly Beach until the 16th so we headed down there to check it out. Made it to Manly a little later then we wanted but we caught the end of the guys competition and then stuck around for the girls. The day turned into a great beach day! HOT HOT HOT! We got tired of the beach and decided to go watch the skateboarding demo, which was very exciting! After the demo was over we were walking around and passed a sign for surfing lessons. Spur of the moment decision...with a little convincing, we signed up for the lesson! What the hell, surfing! On Manly beach, the iconic surf spot :)! The lesson was so much fun and we stood up on some baby waves! A nice cold drink was definitely deserved after that so our instructor told us of a cool place that has nice beers and a skate ramp in the middle to watch the skater boys do their thang! After much wondering around we found it, and was  great spot! There were giving our free burgers so who cloud complain! One skater jumped of the roof and into the ramp, but his board flew out underneath him and hit the camera dude in the head! OUCH!!! Luckily there were medics to help fix him up! At the end of the evening we met two America guys! Pierce and Shane, both surfers that had been driving the eastern coast surfing at different spots. We all left the skating bar and headed down the street to get some more drinks and a bite to eat. The last ferry was leaving Manly beach at 11PM so had to hurry and catch it, before we got stranded! Made plans to meet the boys tomorrow either for dinner or drinks and then invited them out with Ri and Nic tomorrow night. Sadly they leave on Friday, but they both live in Florida so hopefully we can all keep in touch!

 

                                                                                

 

                                                                           

Summertime sadness.

Sadly while I was in Melbourne a friend from school was involved in an accident. She was walking across the street at a pedestrian walk (obeying all cautionary signs) but a truck did not see her and hit here :(. She was rushed straight to the hospital and was put in a medically induced coma due to her injuries. She went through a few surgeries, but in the end she was not able to pull through. This girl was the sweetest, most caring girl I knew. If you haven't heard it on the news, her name was Lizzie Lomar. Although she was not part of my sorority (she was a phi mu and I was in Alpha Sigma Alpha) she was a sister to me. We were not close like talk and text kinda close but every time I went back to visit Valdosta she was so happy to see me and interested in how life was. I never saw her frown and she loved all her friends. We were both part of Sigma Nu as white roses, and she was one of my brothers best friends. Its hard to imagine she is really gone, why her? Out of all the people in Valdosta, and god chose her. We will never know his reasons, but I'm sure they have to be pretty darn good to take such a sweet and gorgeous soul from us. My prayers go out to her family, friends and the VSU community, She impacted a lot of peoples lives and will be truly missed. The funeral will be held on Wednesday and I wish I could be there to say "see you later" to my friend.

Rest in Peace Lizzie, have a ball up there. I love you!

http://www.fundourcommunity.com/en/Lizzie

Melbs

After Cassie arriving, we had a day to rest and then off to Melbourne, which is south in Victoria. Flight was great (only a short hour and 5 min). Upon landing, we scooped up our rental car and headed to meet some family friends. We went down to Saint Kilda beach and ate some lunch, walked around and got some yummy ice cream. While my parents drove my granny to her friends house, Cassie and I hung out with Tarin ( an old friend from when I still lived in South Africa) and went to the park to walk to dogs. Once my parents returned we got dropped off at my other family friends house and had a nice bbq.

 The next day we went to Brighton beach. It is a bay so its semi flat water and a darker rocky sand, but has these adorable huts that people pay thousands of dollars for! Just to have a storage place on the beach...that shit cray. They do make for an awesome picture, and some are painted very nicely. Our favorite was the Australian flag one. After the beach we went to eat lunch at a nice café called The school yard. It is an old church converted into a restaurant. It had some very delish food. Later that night at my mom's friend (Cheryl) we had a big dinner, filled with people I didn't know but none the less it was good. Danielle is my moms other friends daughter, she is a tad bit younger (21) but a really cool girl. She took us out to a bar called The George. Super fun spot and there were some very nice looking Aussie guys there :).

On Saturday we took a drive up the coast to Red Hill, where there are a lot of vineyards. Before heading to the vineyard for lunch, we stopped at a place that makes homemade pies. Such a beautiful setting. The restaurant at the vineyard was bridal shower over-kill. Literally every girl I saw walk past had a bride to be sash, and they had a wedding that night they had to start setting up for! Besides the bridal mayhem the food (pizzas) and wine was amazing! After leaving the vineyard we popped in at a small beach, hung out there for a short period of time and then headed back home. Cassie and I had plans to go out with Tarin, her wonderful boyfriend and some of his friends, so we needed a nap! We ended up going to a nice burger joint and then made our way down Chapel street ( where all the big clubs and bars are located).  We went to two places, but I can not remember the names. We made up a game to see who could get the most free drinks, the boys had their theories on how a gal could score a free drink and we had planned to test these theories. Unfortunately, Cassie and I are too shy to play this game sober, so we did not score any free drinks from random guys....Sad day.

 

We came to Melbs just in time, on Sunday there was a big festival going on called the Saint Kilda Festival. The street that we went to the first day we got there was completely closed off and there was live music on a bunch of stages ( all Aussie bands, but still enjoyable). Over 400,000 people were estimated to be there, that's 4 times more than Tomorroworld! Cassie and I took a tram to the festival, and spent most of the day there until we had to meet up with the parentals to go to the airport. Besides music there were lots of vendors selling t-shirts, jewelry and much more. we watched a volleyball tournament and just chilled on the beach. Very fun day, but our shoulders were fried ( no sunscreen was used, poor decision...) Back to Sydney we go to fill our days with everlasting fun.

          
 

 

Wedding comes to an end/Cassie arrives!

Since the wedding weekend is coming to an end, it is time to move to my aunt and uncles house in the north to an area called Saint Ives. Earlier before the move we walked to double bay to meet my other auntie and then walked with her to rose bay for some lunch. Later that evening we had the Watsons (my cousins husbands family) over for dinner, lots of food and more drinking. Everyone felt horrible about forgetting my birthday and apologized :(. They sang happy birthday to me, but it still didn't really feel like a birthday. I should feel happy, who wants to get older anyways. I'll stay 25 for another year. It wasn't too shabby of a year. I have lots of people that family members want to introduce me too (mostly males), so if I have to get older let's hope that this year I have the same year but at least meet a nice fella!

One more sleep until my best friend arrives to explore this fabulous country with me!!!

So excited, I hope I will be able to sleep tonight! It's amazing to be in a new place, but it brings joy to my heart knowing I will have someone to share all these great times with! It is her first time flying overseas so I hope it goes smoothly for her! Will be picking her up at the airport around 9:30AM!

Poor little Cas landed a little earlier than expected and we got the run around from our GPS, so she was walking around aimlessly looking for us without having a way to contact me! Finally we got in contact with each other! Once we got back to the house we showered ate some lunch and then went up the street to walk around at a shopping center. Tonight we are going over to the East for dinner with my cousins' and her new hubby. The weather today was so shitty, wet and a little chilly. Hopefully tomorrow will be better so we can do something fun!

Just relaxing.

Hello all,
Not much going on, just relaxing in Sydney. My cousins wedding was last night so lots of family stuff going on. Finally arrived in Sydney after our horrible flight delay, got settled in my cousins apartment and then had to go to the Shabbot dinner. Great food and times seeing family I haven't seen in about 10 years! The next day my parents and I woke up and went walking around the city. Ate brekky (breakfast) and cute little place called Una's, and then walked around in Kings Cross. During the day it a nice little vibey area, but at night I have been warned that people get CRAZY! Lots of bars, strip clubs and such. There was a neat little food market taking place, with people selling veggies and delicious looking things!

 Later that night we headed up to my Aunt and Uncles house for super, and then headed home for an early evening. I'm over my jet lag, but still can't sleep past 7AM! On the day of the wedding (yesterday, which happens to me my 26th birthday) I woke up to a sweet and yummy breakfast from my parents. Took a nice birthday stroll down to the park and watched all the puppies and people play. My mom and I had hair appointments scheduled at 11AM in Double Bay (which is only 10 minutes away). They did a great job doing our hair. Just simple waterfall braids with lovely curls, and then off we went to my Aunt and Uncles house again to get picked up for the wedding. Meggy looked absolutely gorgeous! Her dress was too DIE for, I mean she looked like a little china doll. I only hope I look that good on my wedding day. She was marrying her childhood sweetheart, and they could not be more perfect for each other! The wedding was a HUGE wedding, I'm talking 350 or so people! It was a great time, except it was my birthday too. I did not except anything, but my mom had to remind my granny, and after a while it started to sting a little. Did not expect 350 birthday wishes or a shout out the wedding, but just a simple happy birthday without me or my parents reminding people would have been nice. Literally I was Molly Ringwald in Sixteen Candles.

Cousins!

       

 

 

 

 None the less it was a great celebration of love and couldn't be happier to have gained a special member of the family.

No big plans for today, we have to move from my cousins apartment to my aunt and uncles house. Maybe the beach, maybe something else. Who knows....so to be continued!

P.S. Cassie will be here soon!!!!!