Saturday, September 26: So today I didn't do much. I woke up, worked out, swam, ate a light lunch, then went to the mall and bought a new luggage piece since my other big one has a broken wheel and there was a sale going on. When I got back I finished reading Redeeming Love, then made marinated chicken breasts and corn for dinner. I had some popcorn and watched the season premiere of House again with Sara. Now I'm going to go journal and then head to bed. I am meeting up with Joe and Amy tomorrow, finally, and am really excited to see them! We haven't gotten the chance to meet up since before I left for break, so I'm looking forward to a good day tomorrow. Then I have to start my paper for Art History class...which I'm not looking forward too. Anyways, goodnight all! Sorry my day wasn't that exciting! Oh, although I did find out that I can fit inside my new suitcase...pictures of it will be posted soon =)!
Friday, September 27: Today was a really lazy day. I woke up, went to PUMP class, then ran after. When I got back, I was supposed to Skype with Anne, but she was unable to and I skyped with Marqui instead! It was sooo good to catch up, even though my skype was being dumb and not working properly. It's a good feeling, laughing and talking with friends from home! I also talked to Syd and Jan for a little while as well. After a long talk with Marqui, I took a nap. I haven't felt well all week so it was much needed. When I woke up I made soup for dinner and then pretty much chilled in my room all night. It was pretty boring I know, but it was nice to have a day to just relax after last weekend.
Thursday, September 28: This morning I woke up, ran, and then went to class. I skyped with Marqui I think, sorta. We chatted at least. I did some homework and then went to my other two classes. When I came back I read Redeeming Love and just chilled. I made mac and cheese for dinner, though it wasn't very good. I just didn't like the cheese I used...oh well. After that, I read a little for my Art History course (so boring) and then Daniel came over. We made brownies while our flatmates had a party haha. It was great. We pretty much chilled and talked. Aaron came over to do laundry and we all talked for a few minutes before everyone split up. Sara and I had a "moment" and got each other laughing so hard at some stupid nasty hair in the bathroom. It was soo funny...I would explain but no one would understand. Basically, she misunderstood something I said and it was great. I laughed so hard I couldn't breathe and had to leave the bathroom. Then, after thinking I'd recovered, I walked back in and saw her and started cracking up all over again! Then of course she had mouthwash in her mouth and had to spit it out, and more ended up on the mirror than in the sink! Oh wow. Hilarious, hands down. It was just a goofy night. Whew. Anyways, I finally went to bed after some hard core prayer time =). God is so good!
Wednesday, September 29: Today I woke up, attended all my classes, and then came back to Skype with Joshua. I was going to go work out, but by the time we finished talking it was too late and I didn't feel like it anymore. Instead I read Redeeming Love and then went to bed. I think this is my fourth time reading Redeeming Love...I just can't get enough of it. I know what's coming next, and it doesn't matter. Maybe it's only my third time. Who knows. Anne, I owe you sooo much for getting me this book! It's by far my favorite...the entire Harry Potter series is up there too...but different genres, so therefore I can have more than one favorite =). If you've never read Redeeming Love, I encourage you to! You can even borrow mine when I get back! It's THAT good. Even if you're a guy, you should read it. It's all about God's redeeming love, but also about what loving like Christ looks like, especially in a marriage. Such a beautiful tale! Anyways, sorry, I'll quit now. But that's all my day was.
Tuesday, September 30: Today I woke up, but didn't go to class. Oops. I ran and took my time, and then was going to be late so I didn't go. When I got back, I ran to the grocery store and then was supposed to Skype with Joshua. He cancelled, so instead I called him on the phone and got to talk to Tonya, John, and him. It was great to hear everyone's voice again and joke around just like nothing's changed. It made me slightly homesick, but I got over it when I looked at the calendar and realized how little time I have left here. It will go by swiftly for me I know. I'm looking forward to coming back to the States, but I want to make the most of my time here as well. I have almost every week/weekend planned from here on out, which is exciting and overwhelming at the same time. I just hope I will be able to do all the things I want to do still, though it's going to be crazy. Oh well. I've been searching for jobs as well...that's another scary prospect. To think that I have so much to do when I get home...I have to get "all grown up" in a matter of a few weeks. It's really crazy to come face-to-face with the realization that this part of my life is ending...no more college, no more messing around. It's real life now. AHH! I don't think I'm ready, but I don't really have a choice anymore...unless I go to grad school =). But I'd still have to wait a year since I don't graduate and therefore can't really apply to any grad schools haha. Oh jeez. Anyways, I went to my classes after grocery shopping. Colin broke his pen in our Art History class and it was by far the best thing that's happened in that class all semester! I was cracking up...he was busy trying to "fix" it and instead, the spring and everything in it flew out and across the desks and people sitting next to him! It was one of those things you see in the movies and don't ever expect to see in real life, but it happened. It was so great, I laughed so hard I cried, which hasn't happened in a LONG time! Oh wow. Anyways, I didn't do much else today.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
~/~Windy Welly~\~
Thursday: So we arrived in Wellington around 9:30, met up with Kana and caught up with her before heading to bed. Pretty boring day, although we have finally started discussing God in my Philosophy class, so it should be rather interesting the rest of my time here. I'm apprehensive about it, but am praying it will only strengthen my faith in our Savior, not hinder it. Pray that for me as well, and that He'll give me the courage to stand up for Him if need be!!!
Friday: We woke up after a crappy sleep. We slept on the floor of Kana's room, which wasn't very comfy, and woke up several times throughout the night. I don't think I really ever fell into a deep sleep at all. Oh well. We walked around downtown Wellington, then Sara and I went to Te Papa, the free museum in Wellington. It was huge and we had fun. We rode "rides" which ended up being really weird, but oh well. We met up with Aaron (fellow Canterbury Arcadia student) and the people he was staying with for a little while. After about 4 hours there and awing over the only Giant/Colossal Squid on display, we headed to the grocery store for milk, cereal, and a gift for Kana. Then it was back to her place, where we spent about an hour chilling before heading out to dinner, we hoped with fellow ArcadiaNZ. However, Kana didn't have her phone and I had no numbers, so we weren't positive where they were eating. Turns out about 4 separate groups went to 4 separate places, and we didn't run into any of them haha. Instead we ate at an Irish Pub and watched the Canterbury Rugby team on the big screen. I ordered wings that were delicious! We had heard the news about Patrick Swayze at this point and went back to have a movie night watching Dirty Dancing and Ghost at Kana's. We didn't go to bed til after 1 and Sara and I were exhausted. I couldn't help but wonder about Patrick Swayze's family and what they must be experiencing. I was hoping they wouldn't or hadn't watched Ghost, cause I was extremely depressed after and can't imagine what they would have felt.
Saturday: We woke up and headed for the zoo around 10:30. The sleep this night was the worst of the entire weekend for me, since I slept on the floor again. Sara slept on a mattress she rented for $5 NZ, but I didn't have any cash and figured I didn't care that much. The zoo was pretty cool and really interactive, and the exhibits were so much better than anywhere I've been in Illinois. They were much more open and weren't "cage-like." Instead, there were motes around "islands" where the animals were, except of course the really dangerous ones. We got to feed a giraffe, see a kiwi, and throw fruit to chimps. It was cool and a good day. Plus I got to see both a tiger and lions, which are my favorite. It makes me sooo sad and miss Zimbabwe every time I go to a zoo though. I was pretty absorbed in how much I missed it after standing and watching the lions. I always feel bad for the animals too. They live the most boring lives EVER! The characters in Madagascar had the right idea for sure haha! Anyways, we had a few hours to chill after the zoo and before the game. We dropped our stuff off at Ewelina's (pronounced Eveline) before heading off to the All Blacks rugby game!!!!!! IT WAS SO AWESOME! I LOVED IT!!! Rugby is just amazing. Anyways, we got to see the famous "haka" dance of the All Blacks at the beginning. We had a mentally handicapped man sitting right in front of us, but he was also drinking...he stood up and "danced" to the haka as well. Or tried. He was very intense, but left during half-time and never came back. We were confused. Our seats were pretty close for being the cheapest ones. After the game we went to Liz's, another Arcadian, and had an "Arcadia" reunion. It was OK. I finally got to sleep on a couch this night though, so that was nice. I was really sad about not being able to attend Joe and Amy's first service though. I thought about them all day Saturday and prayed everything would go well and God would reach out to the community through ReChurch. I'm really excited to hear about how it went and meet up with Amy and Joe before she heads back to America for a visit!
Sunday: Ewelina's flatmates are really rude and I was woken up at 7 a.m. to someone washing dishes! At 7!!! I was really angry, and there were 2 more instances after of pots banging again! If the place was clean, I could understand a "clean freak" but it was filthy, so no. It was really frustrating. Ugh. Anyways, we went to a food market and got some free samples. I bought a little chocolate turtle because it was so cute and they didn't have any chocolate frogs left ;). After that we went to the Botanical Gardens and just had a chill day, taking our time and enjoying the city. We ran into two friends also visiting Wellington from Christchurch, Nikki and Jayme. We decided to all meet up for dinner at Burger Fuel, this cool restaurant slightly classier than fast-food. They offer various kinds of burgers obviously, except these burgers are huge and the fries are delicious! Anyways, we were pretty tired and just went our separate ways after that. Sara and I read back at Ewelina's before heading to bed around 10.
Monday: We woke up early today, around 6:30. We packed and then met up with Kana again, dropping our stuff at her place since it's more central and closer to downtown where we needed to catch our bus. We then walked to the wharf, expecting to take a ferry to the Matiu/Somes Island, but we'd read the times wrong and misinterpreted the schedule. So instead we went to Wholly Bagel, which is pretty famous. I've read about it in one of my case studies for business, so I was keen on going anyways, and Sara had read about it in her little Wellington Travel Guide. It was pretty good and we chilled there for an hour and a half before heading back to the wharf to catch the right ferry. The Island was OK...slightly boring because it was windy and not sunny enough to enjoy the beach. We got to see sheep (go figure) and some cool parrots. I also held an almost-extinct grasshopper. AWESOME. It was a really awkward creature...they're so big that they can't jump or move very fast, and they're often eaten by tuatara, the lizards/iguanas native to New Zealand. The island is really strict about preservation. After riding the ferry back, Sara and I went to Parliament building, known as "The Beehive" because of its design. Google-Image it, it's cool. Anyways, the best part of the weekend happened here...we got to see the Prime Minister! Up close! He was only 5 feet away! His name is John Key and he's been the PM for less than a year I think? It was really cool because that would NEVER happen in the States! He was actually on his way to New York, supposedly to meet for a UN meeting or something. We heard a rumor that he's making an appearance on Jay Leno though, so maybe he's doing both? Who knows. Anyways, we took a tour of Parliament, and you see much more than you do in the States. It was cool but we were both really tired, so it was hard to focus. After that we grabbed our stuff, thanked Kana for the upteenth time and then headed to the airport. When finally getting back into Christchurch, we made popcorn chicken, fries, and pumpkin soup for dinner (which was delicious as usual) and then I've been trying to update pictures and read all the emails from the girls =). It was a long weekend and I'm glad to be back, although I do have to start doing some serious schoolwork this week. Oh well. Only 4 weeks left of school! Please pray for my motivation, and mainly that God will give me some! Love and miss you all!
Friday: We woke up after a crappy sleep. We slept on the floor of Kana's room, which wasn't very comfy, and woke up several times throughout the night. I don't think I really ever fell into a deep sleep at all. Oh well. We walked around downtown Wellington, then Sara and I went to Te Papa, the free museum in Wellington. It was huge and we had fun. We rode "rides" which ended up being really weird, but oh well. We met up with Aaron (fellow Canterbury Arcadia student) and the people he was staying with for a little while. After about 4 hours there and awing over the only Giant/Colossal Squid on display, we headed to the grocery store for milk, cereal, and a gift for Kana. Then it was back to her place, where we spent about an hour chilling before heading out to dinner, we hoped with fellow ArcadiaNZ. However, Kana didn't have her phone and I had no numbers, so we weren't positive where they were eating. Turns out about 4 separate groups went to 4 separate places, and we didn't run into any of them haha. Instead we ate at an Irish Pub and watched the Canterbury Rugby team on the big screen. I ordered wings that were delicious! We had heard the news about Patrick Swayze at this point and went back to have a movie night watching Dirty Dancing and Ghost at Kana's. We didn't go to bed til after 1 and Sara and I were exhausted. I couldn't help but wonder about Patrick Swayze's family and what they must be experiencing. I was hoping they wouldn't or hadn't watched Ghost, cause I was extremely depressed after and can't imagine what they would have felt.
Saturday: We woke up and headed for the zoo around 10:30. The sleep this night was the worst of the entire weekend for me, since I slept on the floor again. Sara slept on a mattress she rented for $5 NZ, but I didn't have any cash and figured I didn't care that much. The zoo was pretty cool and really interactive, and the exhibits were so much better than anywhere I've been in Illinois. They were much more open and weren't "cage-like." Instead, there were motes around "islands" where the animals were, except of course the really dangerous ones. We got to feed a giraffe, see a kiwi, and throw fruit to chimps. It was cool and a good day. Plus I got to see both a tiger and lions, which are my favorite. It makes me sooo sad and miss Zimbabwe every time I go to a zoo though. I was pretty absorbed in how much I missed it after standing and watching the lions. I always feel bad for the animals too. They live the most boring lives EVER! The characters in Madagascar had the right idea for sure haha! Anyways, we had a few hours to chill after the zoo and before the game. We dropped our stuff off at Ewelina's (pronounced Eveline) before heading off to the All Blacks rugby game!!!!!! IT WAS SO AWESOME! I LOVED IT!!! Rugby is just amazing. Anyways, we got to see the famous "haka" dance of the All Blacks at the beginning. We had a mentally handicapped man sitting right in front of us, but he was also drinking...he stood up and "danced" to the haka as well. Or tried. He was very intense, but left during half-time and never came back. We were confused. Our seats were pretty close for being the cheapest ones. After the game we went to Liz's, another Arcadian, and had an "Arcadia" reunion. It was OK. I finally got to sleep on a couch this night though, so that was nice. I was really sad about not being able to attend Joe and Amy's first service though. I thought about them all day Saturday and prayed everything would go well and God would reach out to the community through ReChurch. I'm really excited to hear about how it went and meet up with Amy and Joe before she heads back to America for a visit!
Sunday: Ewelina's flatmates are really rude and I was woken up at 7 a.m. to someone washing dishes! At 7!!! I was really angry, and there were 2 more instances after of pots banging again! If the place was clean, I could understand a "clean freak" but it was filthy, so no. It was really frustrating. Ugh. Anyways, we went to a food market and got some free samples. I bought a little chocolate turtle because it was so cute and they didn't have any chocolate frogs left ;). After that we went to the Botanical Gardens and just had a chill day, taking our time and enjoying the city. We ran into two friends also visiting Wellington from Christchurch, Nikki and Jayme. We decided to all meet up for dinner at Burger Fuel, this cool restaurant slightly classier than fast-food. They offer various kinds of burgers obviously, except these burgers are huge and the fries are delicious! Anyways, we were pretty tired and just went our separate ways after that. Sara and I read back at Ewelina's before heading to bed around 10.
Monday: We woke up early today, around 6:30. We packed and then met up with Kana again, dropping our stuff at her place since it's more central and closer to downtown where we needed to catch our bus. We then walked to the wharf, expecting to take a ferry to the Matiu/Somes Island, but we'd read the times wrong and misinterpreted the schedule. So instead we went to Wholly Bagel, which is pretty famous. I've read about it in one of my case studies for business, so I was keen on going anyways, and Sara had read about it in her little Wellington Travel Guide. It was pretty good and we chilled there for an hour and a half before heading back to the wharf to catch the right ferry. The Island was OK...slightly boring because it was windy and not sunny enough to enjoy the beach. We got to see sheep (go figure) and some cool parrots. I also held an almost-extinct grasshopper. AWESOME. It was a really awkward creature...they're so big that they can't jump or move very fast, and they're often eaten by tuatara, the lizards/iguanas native to New Zealand. The island is really strict about preservation. After riding the ferry back, Sara and I went to Parliament building, known as "The Beehive" because of its design. Google-Image it, it's cool. Anyways, the best part of the weekend happened here...we got to see the Prime Minister! Up close! He was only 5 feet away! His name is John Key and he's been the PM for less than a year I think? It was really cool because that would NEVER happen in the States! He was actually on his way to New York, supposedly to meet for a UN meeting or something. We heard a rumor that he's making an appearance on Jay Leno though, so maybe he's doing both? Who knows. Anyways, we took a tour of Parliament, and you see much more than you do in the States. It was cool but we were both really tired, so it was hard to focus. After that we grabbed our stuff, thanked Kana for the upteenth time and then headed to the airport. When finally getting back into Christchurch, we made popcorn chicken, fries, and pumpkin soup for dinner (which was delicious as usual) and then I've been trying to update pictures and read all the emails from the girls =). It was a long weekend and I'm glad to be back, although I do have to start doing some serious schoolwork this week. Oh well. Only 4 weeks left of school! Please pray for my motivation, and mainly that God will give me some! Love and miss you all!
Monday, September 14, 2009
My 9th Weekend
Monday, September 14: Today I got to wake up and talk to Joshua. It completely made my day =)! It was good to actually Skype with him and be able to see him and talk to him, since it's always been either the phone or just through chat. After he had to leave, I went to class and then finished a book I was reading. It was a cloudy day out and didn't help to motivate me at all to do anything. I went shopping for food but didn't get much, just some awesome cereal. I drank this aloe juice stuff today too...it's supposed to be really good for your skin? It was different. I also called home and got to talk to my Grandma, which was really nice and wish Mom a Happy Birthday on her birthday in the states ;). After class I got talking to Syd, so I didn't go to my workout class and will have to go tomorrow instead. It was sooo good to catch up with her today too, see her face and hear her voice as well! I miss the girls so much and it's so good when I get the chance to talk to them! Anyways, I had left-over taco meet on nachos for dinner, then had made homemade salsa since I was planning on doing it last week. It turned out OK. One of my friends said it's honestly the best homemade she's ever had, so that was nice. There's too much lime in it, but still, it's pretty good for my first time, I'm proud of myself. Then Sara and I finished her project and then watched the Bourne Supremacy. It was awesome, as usual and a good way to end the night. Now I'm off to bed!
Sunday, September 13: HAPPY BIRTHDAY IN NEW ZEALAND MOM!!!
My flatmate, Sara, ran in a half-marathon today in Christchurch. I ran to the park this morning as my workout to watch her and support her. Then I ran the last 2 laps with her, all in all about 6 miles. I'm pretty happy about it. After that, we had a brunch because it's also my other flatmate, Emma's, birthday. There was pancakes and french toast and eggs and hash browns. It was delicious! Sara and I cleaned up since Ash and Hannah had cooked. After that, I sat outside and read my book, soaking up the rays. It was such a glorious afternoon. Later that evening when I finally moved, I did some cool projects with Shutterfly and my albums, but haven't posted them yet. Then I hit the sack...sun and running wore me out!
Saturday, September 12: Today I talked to Joshua for a little while and then Sara and I headed to the market. I bought mom's gift and we walked around a small part of the Botanic Gardens! It was really pretty, but I really can't wait for the roses to bloom...there's a center area just filled with rose bushes, and I know it's going to be breathtaking and sweet-smelling when they finally do bloom! We also went into this weird house looking thing...Sara joked they kept dead people inside, haha, but when we walked in, it was like walking into a rainforest! There were palm trees and a banana tree with real fruit! It was really humid but so cool! I never knew it was there; it's not advertised at all! They also had a flower room that smelled A-MAZING! There was a desert room as well, and another room with some pretty, calming/relaxing plants. It was definitely sweet that we found it. I got a new SIM card since I lost my other one in Sydney, and I tried on some authentic New Zealand jeans. Problem is, they only come in one size for lenght: long. They were all WAY too long on me, so Sara and I had fun making fun of me and how short I looked in all the pairs! I tried on bootcut and skinny even, but the skinny were way too tight and way too long, as was everything else. The bootcut was too loose, but I couldn't go down a size since they wouldn't fit. Jeez. It was fun though. After that, we headed to the Canterbury Rugby game where they were playing for a shield or something. We had pretty cool seats for only costing us $10. There were a bunch of rowdy Otago students behind us though...that wasn't cool. Haha rugby is such a fun game. I think it's funny that I'm always in awe of how muscular their legs are...and then I realized today that it was because they all wear shorter shorts haha! You wouldn't catch anyone wearing those types of shorts in the US anymore! Cracks me up...I'm no longer in that much awe, though I still find it hilarious. The game was pretty good and Canterbury won and got to keep the shield. After the game Sara and I came back and made dinner, then watched Runaway Jury or something...it was really good! I liked it. Very suspenseful. After that, I went to bed.
Sunday, September 13: HAPPY BIRTHDAY IN NEW ZEALAND MOM!!!
My flatmate, Sara, ran in a half-marathon today in Christchurch. I ran to the park this morning as my workout to watch her and support her. Then I ran the last 2 laps with her, all in all about 6 miles. I'm pretty happy about it. After that, we had a brunch because it's also my other flatmate, Emma's, birthday. There was pancakes and french toast and eggs and hash browns. It was delicious! Sara and I cleaned up since Ash and Hannah had cooked. After that, I sat outside and read my book, soaking up the rays. It was such a glorious afternoon. Later that evening when I finally moved, I did some cool projects with Shutterfly and my albums, but haven't posted them yet. Then I hit the sack...sun and running wore me out!
Saturday, September 12: Today I talked to Joshua for a little while and then Sara and I headed to the market. I bought mom's gift and we walked around a small part of the Botanic Gardens! It was really pretty, but I really can't wait for the roses to bloom...there's a center area just filled with rose bushes, and I know it's going to be breathtaking and sweet-smelling when they finally do bloom! We also went into this weird house looking thing...Sara joked they kept dead people inside, haha, but when we walked in, it was like walking into a rainforest! There were palm trees and a banana tree with real fruit! It was really humid but so cool! I never knew it was there; it's not advertised at all! They also had a flower room that smelled A-MAZING! There was a desert room as well, and another room with some pretty, calming/relaxing plants. It was definitely sweet that we found it. I got a new SIM card since I lost my other one in Sydney, and I tried on some authentic New Zealand jeans. Problem is, they only come in one size for lenght: long. They were all WAY too long on me, so Sara and I had fun making fun of me and how short I looked in all the pairs! I tried on bootcut and skinny even, but the skinny were way too tight and way too long, as was everything else. The bootcut was too loose, but I couldn't go down a size since they wouldn't fit. Jeez. It was fun though. After that, we headed to the Canterbury Rugby game where they were playing for a shield or something. We had pretty cool seats for only costing us $10. There were a bunch of rowdy Otago students behind us though...that wasn't cool. Haha rugby is such a fun game. I think it's funny that I'm always in awe of how muscular their legs are...and then I realized today that it was because they all wear shorter shorts haha! You wouldn't catch anyone wearing those types of shorts in the US anymore! Cracks me up...I'm no longer in that much awe, though I still find it hilarious. The game was pretty good and Canterbury won and got to keep the shield. After the game Sara and I came back and made dinner, then watched Runaway Jury or something...it was really good! I liked it. Very suspenseful. After that, I went to bed.
Friday, September 11, 2009
End of the Week!!!
Friday, Sept 11, 2009 *8 years*: It's really strange to think that 9/11 happened 8 years ago. I just find it crazy that so much time has passed, yet I can still remember the events and that day vividly, and I didn't even have anyone I loved affected. I can't imagine what the families and friends of victims go through every year...It must be so hard, still.
I worked out this morning. Then talked to Joshua finally. Then to Marqui finally. I finished editing my paper, turned it in, bought food, and made dinner for the Canterbury students at Arcadia. Mox, Colin, Peter, Dan, Ashley, and Trevor all showed. It was a pretty good turn-out actually. I just made simple spaghetti, but it was still delicious and we had garlic bread too. It was good to meet up with everyone and hear about everyone's breaks and adventures. We have 5 weeks left of school...that's crazy short. I booked a weekend adventure in Kaikoura, which I'm looking forward to. It's really well known for whale-watching and its marine life. It'll be good times. Now I'm going to watch a movie with Sara possibly, or just hit the sack. I'm really tired today...overworked myself in PUMP class =). Miss you all!
Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009: I worked on my paper. Was supposed to talk to Joshua, didn't. Was supposed to talk to Marqui, didn't. I hate philosophy. I stayed up til 1 finishing it, then went to bed.
Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009: I did nothing. Went to class, was supposed to talk to Joshua, didn't. That evening I went and worked out, then Sara and I had roasted chicken for dinner and corn, which was delicious. I had a scoop of the chocolate ice cream I have left over even though I'm on a "diet." Oops. No caffeine still! Then I worked on my paper for philosophy.
I worked out this morning. Then talked to Joshua finally. Then to Marqui finally. I finished editing my paper, turned it in, bought food, and made dinner for the Canterbury students at Arcadia. Mox, Colin, Peter, Dan, Ashley, and Trevor all showed. It was a pretty good turn-out actually. I just made simple spaghetti, but it was still delicious and we had garlic bread too. It was good to meet up with everyone and hear about everyone's breaks and adventures. We have 5 weeks left of school...that's crazy short. I booked a weekend adventure in Kaikoura, which I'm looking forward to. It's really well known for whale-watching and its marine life. It'll be good times. Now I'm going to watch a movie with Sara possibly, or just hit the sack. I'm really tired today...overworked myself in PUMP class =). Miss you all!
Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009: I worked on my paper. Was supposed to talk to Joshua, didn't. Was supposed to talk to Marqui, didn't. I hate philosophy. I stayed up til 1 finishing it, then went to bed.
Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009: I did nothing. Went to class, was supposed to talk to Joshua, didn't. That evening I went and worked out, then Sara and I had roasted chicken for dinner and corn, which was delicious. I had a scoop of the chocolate ice cream I have left over even though I'm on a "diet." Oops. No caffeine still! Then I worked on my paper for philosophy.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Sydney Vaca!
So this is going to be pretty brief as I didn't do too much in Sydney. It's a beautiful city and I enjoyed walking around it. I flew Emirates over there, and it was the best flight I've ever been on. I would highly suggest them to anyone and everyone! The seats are so roomy (even for economy class), it's comfortable and there's sooo much to choose from, between games and TV shows and movies it's amazing. You can also pay to get online as well and check your email or facebook or whatever. It's fantastic. And the food's pretty ok too, obviously not great since it's air food but still. Anyways, my first night there I just stayed in Central City YHA hostel. I walked around town, found an internet cafe and got online. I found out that all the McDonald's in Sydney have free wifi, which ended up being pretty bad. After using the internet, I went back to my hostel, read a little bit, journaled, and then went to bed. The next morning I woke up and ate breakfast at McDonald's after checking out. I talked to both Chase and Cook online, which was really nice. After, I tried to figure out how to get to Coogee Beach, which is where Jeff lives. I waited for a specific bus at the wrong bus stop for 40 minutes before giving up and taking a bus that was supposed to take me to Coogee. I was trying to follow the directions on my computer, but they sucked. I got off at a bus stop not too far from where I'd been, still trying to follow the directions on my computer. I waited for 20 minutes for a bus that never came, got bored and started walking to the previous bus stop, only to watch the bus I'd been waiting for pass me. I was so done with everything by then because I'd been lugging around all my luggage as well. Finally, the next bus came, I found a hostel in Coogee and booked 2 nights on the spot. Then I went to go find internet, but really didn't want to sit in McDonald's again and eat it twice. I found a free wireless hotspot (which are all over Sydney I guess) and was able to send Jeff a quick message and get his correct phone number since I'd been texting the wrong one. We finally met up as I was ordering nachos and grabbing a very late lunch. After that he showed me his place, I dropped off my computer there and we went into downtown Sydney, near Circular Quay. I got to see the Opera house up close and we tried to break in but it didn't work. Then we walked around the botanical gardens and I fed these cockatoos, which was really cool. After, we ate at a little Indian restaurant back in Coogee and I really liked it. Grabbed some ice cream and then watched a movie at his house before heading over to one of his friends' parties. At the party, I really didn't know anyone and it was awkward and I was exhausted still from the time change (New Zealand is 2 hours ahead of Sydney). So I finally left around 11:30 and went back to my hostel and back to bed. Or was going to, until the guy that slept below me kept talking to me, and then at one point got up on my bed (which really creeped me out) before I was finally like, "It's 1 a.m. and I really need to go to sleep sorry." He kept pestering me to go swimming with him in the morning, which I refused adamantly. Then he changed the time he was going to go to later to try to get me to come. Um, no thanks. Really leave me alone. Thankfully he was out when I woke up the next morning. I got ready and then dropped my stuff off at Jeff's before heading out to another part of town to find Nick and Daniel, who were staying with a friend of Dan's in another part of Sydney. When I got to the place where he told me to get off the bus, he hadn't contacted me back yet with further directions. I ended up walking around this little suburb-type area of Sydney looking for the University of Sydney for over an hour. I finally found the place and had sent numerous texts to Dan, clearly showing I was irritated at how he hadn't gotten back to me and asking where the heck they were. When I finally found the place, it was 2:15 in the afternoon and the free BBQ I was supposed to attend at 1 was over. I sat there for 15 more minutes before giving up. I walked back to the main street (King street) and found this little Mexican restaurant that reminded me of Chipotle. I was so excited to eat there, and I also grabbed a book from this secondhand store. I rode the bus back into Sydney and walked around downtown and central city, looking at all the shops and malls. I found myself in Victoria Square, which is a quite cool mall with heaps of shops. Once everything started closing down, I rode a bus back to Coogee and got ready for the next morning. I watched the rest of a stupid movie with Eva Longoria in it. I'd asked Jeff if he could take all my stuff since it was my last night at the hostel and he came around 11 to take it back to his place. Then I went to sleep.
My 4th day there, Monday, I woke up at 5 and got ready for a day trip to the Blue Mountains. I planned for being there an hour early in case I got lost, which was a good thing because I ended up getting there right on time. I took the wrong bus at one point and had to retrace my steps. Anyways, I finally got there and got on the bus which took us to this quaint little town for brekkie. After that we reached the Blue Mountains, were able to take some pictures from a scenic spot, and then headed down closer to explore. I rode this train-type contraption that's the steepest in the world, with Indiana Jones music playing in the background =). It was really short though, and when we reached the bottom we were in a National Park. I walked around, took way more pictures than I needed, and was asked if I was traveling alone. When I responded "yes" the guy told me "HAHA no one loves you!" and then walked away with his girlfriend/wife. I was like "um, nice, thanks jerk." UGH! I do NOT like traveling alone. It's boring. Anyways, I went off-trail at one point because I got bored with everything and had time to kill. Then I realized I probably shouldn't be going tramping around off-trail in Australia with all the deadly creepy-crawlies they have there. So I went back to the trail, rode this little gondola thing back up the mountain, and then ordered chicken nuggets for lunch. After eating we traveled back to Sydney and went to the Featherdale Wildlife Reserve, which was the best part of my entire trip! I got to see heaps of animals and the little wallabies hopped around freely. I fed a kangaroo and an emu and was able to pet a koala! It was a small place, actually, but still fun. We finally headed back after that and I searched around central city/downtown to find a hostel that was closer to Circular Quay. I thought about a hotel, but the cheapest room available at the first one I walked into was $100, and I was definitely not going to pay that for the next 4 nights. I finally found Westend Backpackers and got a good deal, 4 nights for the price of 3. The place was pretty shanty and not as nice as Central YHA, but oh well, Coogee hadn't been that good either. Anyways, I was in the room alone for the first night, so I read my book, watched Friends episodes on my computer, and finally went to bed around 11. I woke up the next morning to people moving in, which was slightly disappointing at first but ended up being really nice. They were both from England and had been traveling around Australia for the past few months. The mindset about travel in Europe and Australia and New Zealand is soo cool. I love it! They just randomly quit there jobs, get a work visa, and go travel to other parts of the world, "settle down" for a month or so when they're running low on cash, and then travel around again after. It's a really laid-back view and I love it. You don't really hear about people doing it that often in the States, and if you do, you're impressed and like "wow." Most of the people staying in my hostels were from Europe doing the same thing. It was just cool.
Anywho, I finally met up with Dan and Nick on the 5th day. I went and laid on the grass in the park, and we all figured out that Dan doesn't get my text messages until 3 hours AFTER I send them, which causes problems obviously. Anyways, I'd had a little mishap that morning because I freaked out thinking I'd lost my Debit Card, but then realized I was comparing the wrong cards and expiration dates (it's kinda a long, complicated story where basically I'm just a moron) and I found that I lost my New Zealand Vodofone sim card the day before. Great, I know. Anyways, Grandpa I'm sure you're not going to like the phone bill for last month....sorry bout that! Mom said she'd take it out of my account for me to pay you for it. Anyways, Nick, Dan and I finally met up and went to the Aquarium, which we'd heard "great" things about. It ended up being small and kinda lame, although it was the first one I'd ever been to so I enjoyed it. After that I rode with them back to Newtown (the place they were staying) and met the friends they were staying with. We had some pizza and then went and saw Harry Potter again in the IMAX theater, which is the BIGGEST IMAX IN THE WORLD! It was quite awesome even though I don't really like the movie. AND the first 15 minutes were in 3-D, so I felt like I was really in Harry Potter =). AWESOME! After that I walked back to my hostel and went to sleep.
On Wednesday, I met up with Dan and Nick in the morning (around 10) and we rode the ferry to Toronga Zoo. We got some beautiful pics of the Opera House and met this little couple that was visiting Sydney. They offered us free passes into the zoo on their cousin's zoo pass, since it included up to 4 people and they only had two. That way, we only had to split the cost of 1 ticket between the 3 of us. We gladly accepted and got to pretend we had a "mom and dad" in Sydney =). They were so cute and sweet and nice, I just loved them. Once in the zoo, we went separate ways, but it was still awesome. I regret not getting their names though, I would have loved to send them a Thank You somehow! The zoo ended up being fantastic! It was so much better and bigger than the aquarium, and we got to see heaps of animals again! I really loved it! I decided, however, that I will never take an infant to the zoo unless I have an older kid that can be excited and appreciate it. I saw heaps of couples with a baby no more than 1 year old. You cannot convince me that that baby will remember "going to the zoo when s/he was 1." Really? What a waste of money! I mean, maybe the parents like zoos I guess. If it was free or cheap, I could understand, but 1 ticket was around $40 if you didn't have a discount! That's just ridiculous. AND we also walked around the corner to see this little kid peeing/pooping in the bushes on the side! We all started cracking up! There were toilets within viewing distance to this kid and his mom, and she just said "hurry up before people see you!" Oh wow it was hilarious. Anyways, we followed them to a bird show, which was pretty cool. After that we finished walking around the zoo and then headed to Manly Beach. A bus driver told us it would only take us about 10 minutes to walk to the bus stop we needed to get to the beach, and it definitely took us 40. Ugh. When we finally got there, it was late in the afternoon and chilly. I would have been disappointed, except I had brought my book and had something to distract me. Nick (stupidly in my opinion) decided to go swimming anyways. Manly Beach also has the highest amount of shark attacks in Australia, and it was getting near dusk, which is when they feed. He's a genius I tell ya. Ugh. After riding the ferry back to Circular Quay, we all parted ways. I went out to eat by myself and then went to bed rather early again after hanging out with people from my hostel. The next day I was determined to go souvenir shopping, but it rained. I was disappointed because the morning looked like it was going to be really nice. I got lost (go figure) and walked around looking for downtown Sydney for a really long time, walking in the rain. I wasn't really happy at all. None of the souvenir shops I visited even had anything cool in them either. I finally found a relatively big one compared to the rest and gave up, grabbing a few souvenirs. I then walked back to my hostel, but on my way found a book store that was closing down and grabbed 2 books. Nick and Dan went to see the orchestra play that night at the Opera house, but I didn't want to spend $70 on a ticket for something I really am not interested in. If it had been an opera, I would have gone, since I really want to see one and why not see one at the world's most famous Opera House? But it wasn't, and I wasn't interested. Instead I hung out with people from my hostel again, got free pasta (which sucked of course) and watched the girls I'd made friends with sing Karaoke. At around 11:15 I went back to my hostel, packed everything up and talked with some of the other girls, and then went to bed.
The next morning I woke up early (5:30) and went to catch my shuttle. I was really tired because I hadn't slept well the night before. We didn't lay down to go to sleep til around 1:15, and I kept waking up and thinking that I'd missed the shuttle to the airport. When I finally got there, I'd been so bored with everything and traveling alone that I thought I'd have some fun on my last few hours in Sydney, and I started talking in a French accent. It worked well and people kept asking me where I was from =). I either avoided the question (a.k.a. acted like I didn't understand) or said "Paris." Haha it was fun. I checked in and found that my flight was delayed an hour, so I grabbed some brekkie and coffee and read. Dan and Nick met up with me after customs and I was able to catch up with them before boarding. On the plane I had a window seat and the other two seats to myself :)!!! It was glorious. I watched the stupid movie The Proposal with Sandra Bullock and stretched out, but couldn't fall asleep thanks to the coffee I'd drank. I decided on the plane that I was going on a diet when I got back to New Zealand, meaning no more sweets or caffeine. So far so good :). Anyways, after landing and getting back home, I unpacked and then talked to Joshua, which was nice since we hadn't really spoken at all in the past 2 weeks. After, I had friends from my program from Dunedin stay over, and I stayed up late chatting and catching up with them. It was SOOOO NICE to talk with girls again! I mean it was fine traveling with guys, sure, and its' better than traveling by yourself, but it's nice to have a group of girls that you really get along with and are comfortable around.
The next morning (Saturday now) we went to the market in central city Christchurch. It was a lot of fun and the market is always fun to be in. The girls needed to leave around 4 and dropped me off before heading back to Dunedin. I was able to talk to Joshua again (briefly) and then my flatmate Sara was home! We caught up and went grocery shopping together, and I don't remember what we did the rest of the night, but it was probably sleep. The next day I did a whole lot more of nothing but work out, then hung out with Sara and her friends as we all caught up after break.
This past Monday, the 7th of September, I went to class, talked to Marqui, and worked out. Yesterday I started research for my philosophy paper that I really don't want to or care to do. I absolutely abhor philosophy and couldn't care-less about it. I've never vehemently hated a subject in all my life. I hate it more than geometry even. UGH! Oh well...I ate pancakes for dinner last night (tuesday) and they were delicious! Then today (wednesday) I went to class, came back expecting to talk to Joshua, instead we rescheduled for tomorrow I guess, and am now going to work out and then finish this dumb paper. It's about color and whether it's inside us or outside us...I don't really care either way, it is what it is and you can't claim it's inside you because there's physicality to it and you can't claim it's outside you because how do you know what everyone else sees is the same as you? Just like how can you know if everyone else is conscious and not just zombies? See why I hate philosophy yet? It's dumb. K sorry for complaining and sorry to anyone that really enjoys philosophy...I'd rather just have my numbers thanks. I'll try to update more often and I'm sorry this is so long. Miss you all and hope you had a good Labor Day weekend!!!
My 4th day there, Monday, I woke up at 5 and got ready for a day trip to the Blue Mountains. I planned for being there an hour early in case I got lost, which was a good thing because I ended up getting there right on time. I took the wrong bus at one point and had to retrace my steps. Anyways, I finally got there and got on the bus which took us to this quaint little town for brekkie. After that we reached the Blue Mountains, were able to take some pictures from a scenic spot, and then headed down closer to explore. I rode this train-type contraption that's the steepest in the world, with Indiana Jones music playing in the background =). It was really short though, and when we reached the bottom we were in a National Park. I walked around, took way more pictures than I needed, and was asked if I was traveling alone. When I responded "yes" the guy told me "HAHA no one loves you!" and then walked away with his girlfriend/wife. I was like "um, nice, thanks jerk." UGH! I do NOT like traveling alone. It's boring. Anyways, I went off-trail at one point because I got bored with everything and had time to kill. Then I realized I probably shouldn't be going tramping around off-trail in Australia with all the deadly creepy-crawlies they have there. So I went back to the trail, rode this little gondola thing back up the mountain, and then ordered chicken nuggets for lunch. After eating we traveled back to Sydney and went to the Featherdale Wildlife Reserve, which was the best part of my entire trip! I got to see heaps of animals and the little wallabies hopped around freely. I fed a kangaroo and an emu and was able to pet a koala! It was a small place, actually, but still fun. We finally headed back after that and I searched around central city/downtown to find a hostel that was closer to Circular Quay. I thought about a hotel, but the cheapest room available at the first one I walked into was $100, and I was definitely not going to pay that for the next 4 nights. I finally found Westend Backpackers and got a good deal, 4 nights for the price of 3. The place was pretty shanty and not as nice as Central YHA, but oh well, Coogee hadn't been that good either. Anyways, I was in the room alone for the first night, so I read my book, watched Friends episodes on my computer, and finally went to bed around 11. I woke up the next morning to people moving in, which was slightly disappointing at first but ended up being really nice. They were both from England and had been traveling around Australia for the past few months. The mindset about travel in Europe and Australia and New Zealand is soo cool. I love it! They just randomly quit there jobs, get a work visa, and go travel to other parts of the world, "settle down" for a month or so when they're running low on cash, and then travel around again after. It's a really laid-back view and I love it. You don't really hear about people doing it that often in the States, and if you do, you're impressed and like "wow." Most of the people staying in my hostels were from Europe doing the same thing. It was just cool.
Anywho, I finally met up with Dan and Nick on the 5th day. I went and laid on the grass in the park, and we all figured out that Dan doesn't get my text messages until 3 hours AFTER I send them, which causes problems obviously. Anyways, I'd had a little mishap that morning because I freaked out thinking I'd lost my Debit Card, but then realized I was comparing the wrong cards and expiration dates (it's kinda a long, complicated story where basically I'm just a moron) and I found that I lost my New Zealand Vodofone sim card the day before. Great, I know. Anyways, Grandpa I'm sure you're not going to like the phone bill for last month....sorry bout that! Mom said she'd take it out of my account for me to pay you for it. Anyways, Nick, Dan and I finally met up and went to the Aquarium, which we'd heard "great" things about. It ended up being small and kinda lame, although it was the first one I'd ever been to so I enjoyed it. After that I rode with them back to Newtown (the place they were staying) and met the friends they were staying with. We had some pizza and then went and saw Harry Potter again in the IMAX theater, which is the BIGGEST IMAX IN THE WORLD! It was quite awesome even though I don't really like the movie. AND the first 15 minutes were in 3-D, so I felt like I was really in Harry Potter =). AWESOME! After that I walked back to my hostel and went to sleep.
On Wednesday, I met up with Dan and Nick in the morning (around 10) and we rode the ferry to Toronga Zoo. We got some beautiful pics of the Opera House and met this little couple that was visiting Sydney. They offered us free passes into the zoo on their cousin's zoo pass, since it included up to 4 people and they only had two. That way, we only had to split the cost of 1 ticket between the 3 of us. We gladly accepted and got to pretend we had a "mom and dad" in Sydney =). They were so cute and sweet and nice, I just loved them. Once in the zoo, we went separate ways, but it was still awesome. I regret not getting their names though, I would have loved to send them a Thank You somehow! The zoo ended up being fantastic! It was so much better and bigger than the aquarium, and we got to see heaps of animals again! I really loved it! I decided, however, that I will never take an infant to the zoo unless I have an older kid that can be excited and appreciate it. I saw heaps of couples with a baby no more than 1 year old. You cannot convince me that that baby will remember "going to the zoo when s/he was 1." Really? What a waste of money! I mean, maybe the parents like zoos I guess. If it was free or cheap, I could understand, but 1 ticket was around $40 if you didn't have a discount! That's just ridiculous. AND we also walked around the corner to see this little kid peeing/pooping in the bushes on the side! We all started cracking up! There were toilets within viewing distance to this kid and his mom, and she just said "hurry up before people see you!" Oh wow it was hilarious. Anyways, we followed them to a bird show, which was pretty cool. After that we finished walking around the zoo and then headed to Manly Beach. A bus driver told us it would only take us about 10 minutes to walk to the bus stop we needed to get to the beach, and it definitely took us 40. Ugh. When we finally got there, it was late in the afternoon and chilly. I would have been disappointed, except I had brought my book and had something to distract me. Nick (stupidly in my opinion) decided to go swimming anyways. Manly Beach also has the highest amount of shark attacks in Australia, and it was getting near dusk, which is when they feed. He's a genius I tell ya. Ugh. After riding the ferry back to Circular Quay, we all parted ways. I went out to eat by myself and then went to bed rather early again after hanging out with people from my hostel. The next day I was determined to go souvenir shopping, but it rained. I was disappointed because the morning looked like it was going to be really nice. I got lost (go figure) and walked around looking for downtown Sydney for a really long time, walking in the rain. I wasn't really happy at all. None of the souvenir shops I visited even had anything cool in them either. I finally found a relatively big one compared to the rest and gave up, grabbing a few souvenirs. I then walked back to my hostel, but on my way found a book store that was closing down and grabbed 2 books. Nick and Dan went to see the orchestra play that night at the Opera house, but I didn't want to spend $70 on a ticket for something I really am not interested in. If it had been an opera, I would have gone, since I really want to see one and why not see one at the world's most famous Opera House? But it wasn't, and I wasn't interested. Instead I hung out with people from my hostel again, got free pasta (which sucked of course) and watched the girls I'd made friends with sing Karaoke. At around 11:15 I went back to my hostel, packed everything up and talked with some of the other girls, and then went to bed.
The next morning I woke up early (5:30) and went to catch my shuttle. I was really tired because I hadn't slept well the night before. We didn't lay down to go to sleep til around 1:15, and I kept waking up and thinking that I'd missed the shuttle to the airport. When I finally got there, I'd been so bored with everything and traveling alone that I thought I'd have some fun on my last few hours in Sydney, and I started talking in a French accent. It worked well and people kept asking me where I was from =). I either avoided the question (a.k.a. acted like I didn't understand) or said "Paris." Haha it was fun. I checked in and found that my flight was delayed an hour, so I grabbed some brekkie and coffee and read. Dan and Nick met up with me after customs and I was able to catch up with them before boarding. On the plane I had a window seat and the other two seats to myself :)!!! It was glorious. I watched the stupid movie The Proposal with Sandra Bullock and stretched out, but couldn't fall asleep thanks to the coffee I'd drank. I decided on the plane that I was going on a diet when I got back to New Zealand, meaning no more sweets or caffeine. So far so good :). Anyways, after landing and getting back home, I unpacked and then talked to Joshua, which was nice since we hadn't really spoken at all in the past 2 weeks. After, I had friends from my program from Dunedin stay over, and I stayed up late chatting and catching up with them. It was SOOOO NICE to talk with girls again! I mean it was fine traveling with guys, sure, and its' better than traveling by yourself, but it's nice to have a group of girls that you really get along with and are comfortable around.
The next morning (Saturday now) we went to the market in central city Christchurch. It was a lot of fun and the market is always fun to be in. The girls needed to leave around 4 and dropped me off before heading back to Dunedin. I was able to talk to Joshua again (briefly) and then my flatmate Sara was home! We caught up and went grocery shopping together, and I don't remember what we did the rest of the night, but it was probably sleep. The next day I did a whole lot more of nothing but work out, then hung out with Sara and her friends as we all caught up after break.
This past Monday, the 7th of September, I went to class, talked to Marqui, and worked out. Yesterday I started research for my philosophy paper that I really don't want to or care to do. I absolutely abhor philosophy and couldn't care-less about it. I've never vehemently hated a subject in all my life. I hate it more than geometry even. UGH! Oh well...I ate pancakes for dinner last night (tuesday) and they were delicious! Then today (wednesday) I went to class, came back expecting to talk to Joshua, instead we rescheduled for tomorrow I guess, and am now going to work out and then finish this dumb paper. It's about color and whether it's inside us or outside us...I don't really care either way, it is what it is and you can't claim it's inside you because there's physicality to it and you can't claim it's outside you because how do you know what everyone else sees is the same as you? Just like how can you know if everyone else is conscious and not just zombies? See why I hate philosophy yet? It's dumb. K sorry for complaining and sorry to anyone that really enjoys philosophy...I'd rather just have my numbers thanks. I'll try to update more often and I'm sorry this is so long. Miss you all and hope you had a good Labor Day weekend!!!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
PHOTOS!!!
Hey all! I will update you with Sydney stories soon, but I created a photo website as well through Shutterfly. Sorry if it's a hassle to check both sites, but it's much easier and quicker to upload them through Shutterfly than through this blog site. Hope you enjoy! The site is http://kansaspettit22photos.shutterfly.com.
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