My Final Days...

Hey all! I can't believe I have less than a week left...it went by way too fast! I can't even comprehend whats happening to me...I love it here so much, but I especially love the people and amazing friends I've made here! Its just not fair that I have to say goodbye to them...I've already had to say goodbye to like 20 people, crazyness. Its made these past couple weeks really bittersweet. I'm taking advantage of every second I have with everyone and taking in all I can of my beautiful Newcastle! I've been balling my eyes out and my besties haven't even left yet...Betsy and Stacy leave Friday...thats gonna be awful.  I don't know how I'm gonna handle it. Thank god Charlie, Pat and Itai will still be here cause I'm gonna need them to keep my spirits up...then all of us leave on Sunday...I'm going to Brisbane and they're going to Sydney. I don't even want to think about it anymore so I'll just tell ya what I've been up to.

This past week and weekend have been one of the funniest best weekends since I've been here! We've been partying it up everyday pretty much.  Everyday has been a shitshow, I love it! Drinking and going out to clubs and having farewell parties at friends' houses...My friends Steph and Kristy had a pretty great party with beerpong and the like...then went out to one of my fav bars, Finnegans, then left and went back to our friend Kyle's place and chilled/drank their til 5ish when me, Charlie, Kyle and a friend of Drew's decided to walk down to Nobbys Beach to watch the sunrise. The entire way we walked there, Charlie and I were doing shots of goon...disgusting. Finally got there and it was still dark, but it didn't take very long for it to start lightening up. Charlie and I were goofing off like usual and we had our jeans rolled up and legs in the water, well one thing led to another and we started wrestling and we both lost our balance and fell into the water completely...we were soaked! Not one piece of clothing was dry...so you could definitely say we were frickin cold! But it was probably one of the funniest moments ever! And to make it worse, I'm retarded and ate it again and fell in the water...good stuff. 

The only thing that was kinda lame was that it was really freakin cloudy so when the sunrise finally came we couldn't even see the sun haha, whatever though, worth it. We didn't stay too much longer cause we were freezing so we headed back to Charlie's and on the way we passed the train station and ran into our friends Julie and Kira who were catching a train to Sydney so they could catch their flight home...major bummer! I didn't think I was going to be able to say goodbye so I was totally stoked to run into them! After saying some more goodbyes, we finally headed back to Charlie's, took showers and went to bed...it was probably around 9am by the time we were able to go to sleep...we were obviously exhausted so we literally ended up staying in bed til 6pm...wtf...normally I would hate this, but I figured it was a well deserved rest. Anyways, we ended up drinking some more that night cause our friends Alissa and Melissa were leaving at 4am, so we drank and stayed up with them til their cab picked them up...thats probably the night I've cried the most so far...it was awful seeing them leave.

Lets see, what else...uhhhhh, this week we just continued with the parties and drinking! I've seriously spent way too much money because of alcohol, but I figure I don't have much time left so why not?! Anyways, last night Bieg's (Pat and Charlie's other roomie) mom came to town...shes awesome! Just chilled and drank with us, even came out to the bars with us for a little bit, she made me miss my mom cause I know all of my friends here would love her too! Anyways, we had a huge BBQ, such great food...my compliments to Pat who is the MAN! Then we went out for our last Wednesday night on the town...of course we followed tradition and went to good ole Customs! It was a blasty blast like always. There was some serious tussleing wars going on...if you don't know what that is than I'll explain when I see you, but basically its the best game ever besides Cheers to the Govna and Fuzzy Duck.

So yeah, tonight is my last night with Betsy and Stacy, they leave tomorrow for Sydney to go home...I'm gonna be so sad! We're going out to dinner and then drinking as a last HOORAH! Ughhh, this seriously blows. But I'll be booking my ticket to Minnesota as soon as I get back home to Florida yayayayay! Anyways, I've got to start cleaning my room and shit cause I leave soon too...this sucks balls...I wish my mom was here to help me clean and pack, oh well, I think I'll be able to do it on my own. Okie doke, peace out all and talk to you later!

Who Am I!?!? Seriously.

Alright seriously, who the AM I?!? I'm a complete moron here, but I love it...sometimes. I bet you're wondering what mess I got into this time...well, lets see...me, Charlie, Pat, Fitzy, Stevo and Bobby decided to take a last minute/random trip to Sydney on Friday to go to a comedy show at the Opera House. None of us had anything going on so we figured why not? So they call me up round 4pm and are like "Ok, we just bought the tickets...try to get to town as soon as possible because we've got to catch the train to Sydney and the show starts at 930pm." Good thing I'm not much of a girly girl cause this probably would have caused others some problems, but I hauled ass and left my dorm by 430 to catch the train from Uni into town and met up with the boys on the train at Hamilton Station...for some reason there was being trackwork done so it was going to take the train an hour longer than usual so we were going to make it to the opera house either at 930 on the dot or a little later.  To save some time and to make the train ride less boring, the boys brought along some alchy...thank god. We had to be pretty stealth about it though because you're not supposed to drink on public transport...and there were definitely transit cops at one point checking our tickets and I'm pretty sure they knew, but the one guy was cool about it and basically just gave us a warning instead of a fine, so yay! 

We finally make it to Sydney and we're all feeling pretty good at this point so we have to haul ass to the Opera House where we met up with a friend, Monica, who lives in Sydney. Oh and I totally forgot to mention pretty much the most important part of this story...because I had ZERO time to get ready, I threw my makeup bag and a nice shirt in my purse so I could change and get ready along the way...which I ended up doing so it worked out well, but we'll get back to that later. Anyways, the Opera House was SICK! It was gorgeous inside and the comedy show was pretty freakin good too so all in all it was great time! The best part was that the Opera House was doing the lighting show which is when they change the colors of the house to all these crazy-awesome designs...it was absolutely beautiful!! I was obsessed.

Okay so, this is where the night gets fuzzy...everyone is completely drunk at this point and somehow me and Charlie got separated from everyone else so we just go on our own around the city for awhile til we finally give them a ring at around 145 am...well, they answer and we're like "where the hell are you guys?" and they respond with "we're on the train now going back to Newcastle...we all said we were meeting here at this time..." So basically we were like shiiiiiiiiiit...oh well! Charlie and I explored Sydney for another three hours then caught the next train to Newcastle at 445 am...slept pretty much the ENTIRE time, it was awesome...except that when we finally woke up and got back to Newcastle it was 8 am...ughhh, so we went back to bed for 2 more hours and woke up around 10ish to meet up with Fitzy, Bobby and Stevo again to watch the Stanley Cup Finals (oh and btw, those boys got back to Newcastle at 445 am and never went to bed, just kept drinking, so obviously they were hilarious at this point). Anyways, so when I woke up I was going through my purse when I realized OH SHIT where the in god's name is my makeup bag/extra shirt?!!? Yeah, thats right...I somehow lost ALL of my makeup while retarded in Sydney, it must have just fallen right out of my purse...damn. So I had to buy some temp makeup at this discount cosmetic store hahaha awesome! So once again, who am I!?! Is this my life?!? Seriously? 

So yeah, pretty much the day continues with drinking and fun in Newcastle...there were some great memories made and pictures captured and I just figured I'd let you all know I'm still enjoying myself here and everyday with my friends here makes it that much harder to come home!! But I am, so calm down. Okie doke...I'm tired and need to sleep like a normal human being for once this week...off to bed/off to watch That '70s Show...night all, love and miss! 

Random Canberra

Okay so I know its been awhile since I've blogged, but its been crazy busy here with school ending and travelling and trying to cherish our last few weeks in Australia! Anyways, so Friday night a couple weeks ago I was drinking with the usual crew and we were trying to think of something random and fun to do for the rest of the weekend. Pretty much everyone decided to do Sydney, but me and Charlie had already done Sydney a few times so we decided if we were going to spend money travelling then we might as well go somewhere we haven't been yet. The tricky part was that we didn't want to spend too much and it was last minute at like 12am when we were deciding this, so it had to be some place where we didnt have to fly there...and so we chose Canberra. Canberra is the capital of Australia and its a couple hours south of Sydney. Anyways, so it ends up that everyone else bails and decides to do Sydney, so just me and Charlie went. We didn't go to bed that night til really late cause we went out to the bars, so basically the morning came reallllly fast...was up and moving at 830 cause we had to catch the 920 train. 

Probably the best/worst part of the spontaneity of this trip was the fact that I had NO idea I was going to be going anywhere that weekend...so when I went into town that Friday night I only brought a few things with me considering I figured I would be eventually coming back to campus before going out again...well, I was wrong. We planned the trip right then and I just had to deal with wearing the same jeans for like 3 days straight...I did randomly have an extra shirt and underwear so THANK GOD, cause that would have been too gross. So yeah, I probably looked like an idiot the whole time, but its a good story I think. 

So we had to take a 2.5 hr train ride to Sydney and then catch a greyhound bus from there to Canberra. The bus ride ended up being like 3 hours...and it ended up being one of the most uncomfortable buses ever. No joke. I'm pretty sure Charlie and I looked like awkward giants trying to fit in the damn seats...no leg room, no good. And then they played The Knights Tale during the ride and I had never seen it so I decided to watch it...I dont understand how this movie was so popular...it sucked and none of my friends better like that movie, seriously. 

Alriiiiighty, when we finally got to Canberra we had no plan, obviously, so we just walked around the city center for awhile and got some info brochures.  It was close to 4pm by the time we got there so we didnt have many options on what to do for our first night. So we went looking for this huge lake...and apparently we're both retarded cause it took us over an hour til we finally found it...which means by the time we got there it was dark as eff...whatever though, we found a random dock and just took it all in for a bit til we started freezing. Then we walked around the city center some more...Canberra is not really what I expected. Its really pretty, but it doesnt feel like a city at all, which is kinda cool. Its not noisy and there aren't crowds of people everywhere...really chill. Not much of a nightlife, so pretty much that night we went to this restaurant/pub had some dinner and amazing Guinness beers...it ended up being one of the more hopping places, so good choice then eh? Didn't have too late of a night though cause we wanted to get up early on Sunday so we could actually do some Canberra stuff.

So when I say Canberra stuff I mean we decided to see the Australian War Memorials, which were pretty cool I guess, but the best part was the War Museum they had...it was huge...we didnt have time to go through the whole thing, but they had some pretty neat stuff there.  After the museum we went to the zoo haha. I know, you'd think we would have done some other museum or something, but Charlie hadnt been to a zoo here yet and that was unacceptable so we did that. Best/worst zoo ever. They had sweet animals and shit and there wasn't like anyone there so that was tight, but I'm pretty sure I could have climbed into any of the cages and done whatever the eff I wanted without getting caught haha...there was no one around, it was sick...its was as close to being a ghetto zoo without actually being a ghetto zoo...I dont know, I can't really explain it, just take my word for it. Oh! and we got to pet some dingoes while they we were out walking them...siiiiiiick. I'm obsessed.

So yeah, thats the Random Canberra trip in a nutshell. Words of advice, dont go there for more than 2 days and don't go if you want to party party party, otherwise, pretty cool place and fun trip! I'll try updating some more, but I dont want to write anymore right now so PEACE.

Drunk And Trying Not To Get Jumped!

Hahaha, so glad this moment was captured...lets just say Jess and I are laughing at my stupidity...
Laura, me, Stac, Bets and Emma out to dinner with Betsy's mom and step dad during their visit!
Me, Stac and Michelle before our dancing night out at King Street!
Me and Emma owning at beer pong.
Charlie made me laugh...I promise nothing came out of my nose.

Get Some! The Newcastle Way...

Betsy and I doing the infamous thrusting picture...
Me and Stac apparently having a great time at a friend's 21st Bday party.
Me, Pat and Itai getting it in before Customs.
Me and my boy, PaddyWagon...Rack 'em, Rackbar!
Me and my buddy Charlie pregaming at his apartment.

The 'Real' Melbourne

So me, Stac, and Bets went to Melbourne this weekend and it was loads of fun! Once again, I fell in love. This city is amazing!! I like it way more than Sydney...nothing against Sydney cause its amazing as well, but Melbourne is just way way way more chill! We got into the airport late Thursday night and my friend Mark, who actually studied abroad at UF picked us up...I didnt know him beforehand, we had just randomly started talking through facebook right before I came to Australia and he offered us a free place to stay! Most people would find this sketchy, but he seemed totally normal so I figured why not!? 

Anyways, he and his friend Tom (totally adorable), picked us up round 11pm at the airport and drove us back to his house (he lives with his parents and older sister outside the city).  His family was AMAZING! None of them knew me and yet they were so welcoming to me and my friends! The second morning we were there, his mum made us coffee and cookies and brought them to us in bed!!! Wtf...how nice is that!?! And his dad, who was hilar, was my beer pong partner Friday night and wasn't too shabby...everytime I made one hed do a golf clap and say good girl, it was adorable! And his sister was the sweetest person ever and even dropped us off at the station so we could catch our plane on our last day in Melbourne...pretty much I fell in love with Mark and his family right away...it was home sweet home for sure!

Basically, we just walked around the city for a couple days...did some shopping and just took it all in...we definitely could have done some more sightseeing, but i wouldnt trade what we did in for the world...turned out perfectly! Oh and Friday night we decided to do a touristy thing...we went to the Penguin Parade at Phillip Island...gayest shit ever...it took almost 2 hours to get there, it was cold as eff and rainy, and there were asians everywhere, and it cost 20 bucks and you couldnt see shit...basically, the smallest penguins come swimming out of the sea and onto the shore every night at the same time and they walk to their burroughs or whatever...I mean they were definitely cute and all, but it took all of like 5 minutes and then i was like kkkkkkk now what? My advice, dont do it...not worth the money, still a funny story in the end though.

Lets see, the best night of all...Saturday...we got to go to 2 footy games (AFL...its different then rugby league or union). The first one we didnt even plan on going to, but we were waiting to meet up with our buddies David, Alex, and Jason and while we were waiting this random dude was like HEY! you want some free tickets to the game!? so we were like uhhhh yeah! And we did that and I pretty much love AFL now...so intense! Then we went to the casino for a bit with the boys, but then we hit up the night AFL game at the other stadium...Mark works at the bar there sometimes so we got drink the entire time...for free! By the end of the night, there was a 500 dollar bar tab between the 4 of us...can you say ridiculous and yet awesome!? I can. After that, we met up with the boys again and Charlie and Pat as well to go out for the night...I pretty much dont remember anything from here on out...and there are RIDICULOUS videos to prove it...lets just say theres one where Stacy woke me up after I passed out and I talk about Don Henley, Tampons, Helen Keller, a little dude and our friends hooking up...hahahahhaahahahaha I'm embarrassed and disturbed as HELL by most of it, but at the same time I've never seen anything so funny in my entire life!

So yeah, theres a lot more I could probably talk about, but thats all I really feel like typing so just know that Melbourne was amazing (just as much as the one in countdown county, FL) and everyone should go there at some point...miss and love!

Blue Mountains Pictures...

Okay, so you see the little 'castle' on top of the hill there...well, thats where we hiked to from here...loved it!
Me on top of the ruined castle...looking like an idiot.
Pretty waterfall...Katoomba Falls I think
The Three Sisters!
The group: Me, Drew, Betsy, Charlie and Stacy.