Category Archives: Australia

Bitter sweet

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Well, I am back in the United States. It seems like forever since I left, but it was only one month! It is crazy that I made so many friends, visited places I had only ever dreamed about and learned so much in such a small amount of time. It is bitter sweet because I missed my friends and family while I was in Australia, but now that I am home, I miss my friends and family in Australia. I consider my group family because we were all so close and literally spent every day together for an entire month. We all became very close.

This is a picture of the entire group minus our intern/cameraman, Keith on Lady Elliot Island.

This is a picture of my closest friends. We decided to head to Sydney for our free time our last week.

When I arrived in Australia I was tired and a bit frazzled. I arrived on a different flight than most of the other people so I was alone and probably looked like a crazy American. The first steps I took in Australia were in Sydney but it was a very short lived arrival because I had to run to catch my flight to Brisbane (which I ended up missing anyways). At the time it seemed like the end of the world, but looking back I can only laugh because my experience arriving in Australia and then Oregon were so different. By the time I stepped off the plane in Portland I had been one 12 different airplanes in the last month, two of which were long enough to count as more than one and had been across the world. Arriving in Portland I was so relieved to be off the plane and to not have to think that I pretty much collapsed at my moms feet and said, “Take me home please.”

Coming home with a different persepective makes me miss the little things. I miss being around so many people and always having something to do.

This is the first Manta Ray that I saw while snorkeling. While abroad I spent most of my time in the water.

I also miss the beaches. White sand and crystal blue water everywhere is not a bad way to spend the day at the beach.

This is a picture of the Champaign Pools at Hervey Bay on Fraser Island. We spent a couple of hours the first day swimming and relaxing on the beach and in the pools.

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Although I miss Australia, I do not miss the prices. Their minimum wage over there is about $18.00 so that means they can afford to pay more for items. A cup of coffee that is smaller than our small would normally be around $10. A small bottle of pop would be anywhere from $3-5 and it was generally smaller than what we have here as well. When we went to Sydney, we were given $50 for meals that we would be reembursed. Sometimes It was very hard to stay in that budget because prices were so high. I also appreciate stability. While I was gone I was constantly on the move. We were up at 5-6am and went until 10pm. We crammed probably three months worth of stuff (possibly more) into four weeks. I will never complain about this because I had the time of my life, but I am glad to be able to slow down and breath and be in one place for more than a couple of days. That being said, I will probably be complaining I am bored in a week.

Like I said earlier, I miss my Australian friends. The hardest part was saying goodbye at the airport in LA. There are a couple friends that are in California so it is relitavely easy to visit eachother, but I have two other friends who live in Alabama and Kentucky. There was a big part of our group from the East Coast. It was very hard saying goodbye knowing that I may never see them again. That being said I wouldn’t trade my experience for anything. I got to do and see things that I never thought I would. It seemed like such a struggle in the beginning when I was deciding to go abroad, but now I am very glad I did it. I can officially say that I have been to Australia and cross that off my bucket list. Where to next? I am not sure, but I hope it’s somewhere exciting!

This last picture is of the Sydney Opera house and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. I chose this picture because this is what many people think of when they think of Australia. I chose to visit Sydney and spend my own money because it was a chance of a lifetime. I had always wanted to see it and finally did!

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I am still reajusting a little to my life here. I went back to work Monday and have seen some of my family and friends. It is a weird feeling because it is like I was picked up and dropped in another country for a month (seems like shorter) and then was picked up again and was dropped back home. I still feel a little out of place and like I have missed so much, but I know that will soon pass and I will be back to my old life in boring Monmouth/Independence. With the conclusion of my trip also brings the conclusion of my time at Western. I can offically say I am done and it is time to apply for grad school. Not a bad way to end my time here =)

Katherine

Not ready to be done!

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Today marks the first day of the last week here. Wow! It has gone by so fast and I cannot believe that I will have to leave this amazing place or the amazing people I have met. There are so many places that I hope I will be able to visit again someday. One of my favorite places that I have been so far is Lady Elliot Island. I swam with sea turtles, manta rays and a lot of colorful fish. I also really enjoyed when we went whale watching for Humpbacks.

Swimming with turtles

Lighthouse at LEI. This is the original lighthouse and no longer used, but the story is that it’s haunted.

The first day at LEI was amazing! It was literally a tropical paradise. Although we were doing our main projects there, there was still time for free time and we still had a lot of fun. I snorkeled most of the time that I was there. Most of our group were sleeping in permanant tent like structures and had to walk to the bathroom, so that was always fun.  But all in all it was pretty cool because it was five days of no internet or cell phones. We were completely secluded and it was very nice. When I get back to the states it is going to be a shock when I remember I can use my phone and internet whenever I want. One of my favorite aspects was that the island was very small and could be walked in under an hour. The water was amazing. It was so warm and clear and stretched forever.

After we left LEI we went on a whale watching tour. We got up really early and walked to the harbor. We had to go through a bunch of safety talks because we would most likely come in contact with wild whales. At first I was skeptical about the trip and was worried it wound’t be fun. Let me tell you, I was wrong! Almost immediately we had whales come up to us and start playing. We were on the water from about 7:30am-4pm and 90% of that time was with whales. They were close enough to touch and on three different occasions they breached, meaning they jumped into the air and their entire bodies were out. It was very cool =)

Swimming with humpback whales. See how close they are?

Tomorrow morning we leave Hervey Bay which is where we have been for the last couple of days. We will arrive at Fraser Island which is the world’s largest natural sand island and we are told that it is also very tropical. Everyone here says that the water is so clear that it is unreal. I am looking forward to seeing it for myself and hopefully jumping in!

Katherine

There are TWO Minke Whales!!!

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I finally got to see The Great Barrier Reef, and even better, I got to snorkel on it! I even swam with whales. I cannot tell you how amazing these last couple of days have been. The first thing we had to do was board a ship called SpoilSport, but once we were on it was well worth all of the traveling we had to do to get here. The first day was a bit rocky for some people because they spent the majority of the day sick and throwing up over the side. Yeah, it was not pretty for anyone, but the crew was absolutely amazing. Before we even got on the ship they knew our names and a little about us. We learned later that they had studied up on us before we came on. Each and every one of them took time out of their day to make sure the sick people were ok and the non sick people (5 out of 22) were entertained as well. We have been seriously pampered these last couple of days.

Once most of the throwing up was over, we got into the water for the first time and it was a life changing experience. Since I can remember I have always wanted to come to Australia and see The Great Barrier Reef. Well, I can now proudly say I have! The one complaint I have is that my camera does not do it justice. It is full of life that is so vibrant that it is hard to take it all in.

It was nasty and stormy on the top but once I stuck my head in I saw a different world. It was calm and quiet and there were so many different fish swimming around unaffected by us. Before this trip I had never snorkelled and I was a little unsure of myself but our group leader Nick took me out personally and swam me around and kept checking on me, I am truly grateful to him. Now, I am happy to say that if i get the chance I will be the first  to pull on a wet suite(no easy task!) and jump right in =)

Although my three days spent on The Great Barrier Reef was more than I could ever describe the best moment was easily getting to swim with Minke Whales. We got woken up at 6:30 AM the second day to our program director yelling, ” Goodmorning everyone, it is 6:30 and we have whales! We have two Minke Whales at the back of the boat!” Let me tell you, I have never gotten out of bed, into a swimsuit, a wetsuit and snorkel gear so fast. I was in the water by 6:36 and swimming with whales. I am actually pretty proud of myself for that. There were two whales and they kept circling us. At one point I was about 10 ft away from one that was swimming directly below me. If I could have I would have swam with them for hours. This was easily my favorite snorkel and I cannot remember ever being so happy to wake up so early.  Katherine

Cute and cuddly or dangerous and downright venomous?

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For our first excursion we went to Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. This place was amazing! We spent a lot of the day there and it was arranged so we got VIP access to the animals. I petted a dingo called Rafe, fed more than one kangaroo, had some one on one time with a very cute koala, and had about 10 different birds land on me at once. I am so lucky to have gotten this opportunity because most people do not.

Although the sanctuary was fun I have barely started my journey here. We have also set out on out first of many adventures that will take us all the way up until the end of the program and our return to the US. Right now, I am on North Stradbroke Island staying at Moreton Bay Research Station. We are still in Queensland, but it feels more tropical here. We spent the day looking for different species on the beach. It was a lot of fun, but it got even better as soon as the sun went down. We went torch (flashlight) hunting for koalas and bottle nosed dolphins. Although I have already seen koalas, I have never seen them in the wild and it was really amazing to look up and see them just sitting there looking at us like it was completely normal. Even though that was a blast I cannot describe how excited I was when I saw my first dolphin. They swam right up to us and stayed around for a little while. It was very cool.  Katherine

Here at long last!

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Well, I am finally in Australia! It is crazy to say that. It was a long 3 flights and a very taxing couple of days, but it is all worth it now. I had no trouble with my flights except when I got into Sydney. I stood in line for immigration and border patrol for over an hour which delayed me a lot and I had to be put on the next flight because my bags were not to the counter in time. At the time I was freaking out but I met a very nice pilot (the one flying my plane) who helped me call my instructor and let him know that I would be a few minutes late getting into Brisbane. The first thing I noticed was that they do not treat tourists as “tourists”. They are very pleased to help and happy to meet a new person. This was my first impression in the airports because while I was in LA I was told I could not be helped and to go find someone who worked in that area. When I arrived in Sydney the very nice lady walked me through everything and took me to the area I need to go. She did not act put out or like it was a burden like the guy in LA.

I was picked up by one of my instructors Sonyaa. Let me tell you now, she is going to make this trip awesome. She is probably about 65 and is full of life. She drives like a crazy person and if definitely a character. She is going to be teaching us about Australia’s environment. Once I finally got to campus (the car ride seemed to take forever) the first thing I did was call home and let my mom know I was safe and sound. Then I hooked up my laptop for internet and posted to facebook. It sounds a little dumb, but honestly, how many times do you get to say “I’m in Australia” for a status update? Not very often. After all of this was done I showered and changed and went to get some lunch. I am a little shocked by how small the portions are and how expensive they are. I had the “beefy nachos” which had quite a lot of food, but that was it. That was supposed to last me all day with no snacks in between. Dinner was a lot smaller than lunch and it was only one entrée.  Back home we have dinner plus fruits and veggies and maybe some dessert. While I was looking around people were eating just one plate and calling it good. I will have to get used to eating smaller portions and carrying snacks because stores are not open when I am hungry.

I have found people are very nice here. I have had to ask about a million questions, some not so intelligent sounding but every time the person just smiles and answers the question. The best thing that I have discovered about Australia is how relaxed and happy they are. I noticed right away the difference on my long flight from LA to Sydney (16 hours!) the difference between Americans and Australians. The Americans mostly kept to themselves and if a stranger talked to them it was short conversation. The Australians however, wanted to talk. As soon as they found out I was American they wanted to know where I was from, why I was traveling, etc. They also offered me an abundance of information of things to say and things to do. For example: saying I am mad has to be done just right. If it is said wrong it means you are beyond drunk and need to be put out of your misery.

Sometimes it is hard to make out the accents here. Yes, they speak English but the wording and the accents combined make it difficult sometimes. I have had to ask more than once for someone to repeat themselves and they always laugh and joke that they have a country bumpkin accent. Some of the words are different here. My favorite so far is the “zebra crossing” pronounced “zebraa” not “zeebra”. It is simply the crosswalk. There are also “lifts” which are elevators. Little things like that, that make it different than home. I also learned you do not say the number 0 like an “o” it is “zero”.

This is some of my group. We take cabs everywhere.

So far I do not have a lot of questions except why are stores closed to early??? I am used to stores closing around 9-11 depending on the day. I went to the mall with some friends last night and it closed 10 minutes after we got there. It was 5:30 in the evening! I have a feeling this summer is going to be an early one for the sole fact that there is nothing to do at night and we have early classes anyways. As of now, I really like it here. The university is beautiful and the people friendly. I hope this 4 weeks is as good as the first day!  Katherine

This is a beach called Surfer’s Paradise, which is part of the Gold Coast region.  This is one of the many beaches we will be visiting and I cannot wait!

 

Nerves, nerves and more nerves

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Hello everyone!

I will be going to Australia for a 4 week program. While there I will be visiting places like North Stradbroke Island, Binna Burra Eco Lodge in Lamington National Park, Hervey Bay, Fraser Island, and so much more. I am very relieved that I will be going to an English speaking country! At this point I am so nervous even English may not come out right. I have been checking the weather for probably the last two months and it seems to be in the mid 60s- 70s, so nothing I am not used to. I think interacting will be a little different than here because I will be in a different country with different customs and people I am not used to. I do not think I will have a lot of problems because I think I can adjust quickly and well, but it will be an adventure for sure. Since I can remember I have wanted to travel to Australia and their culture. I have always seen it as warm and sunny with a lot of poisonous snakes. I am not sure it will be “perfect” but I know that it will be amazing.

Right now, I am still in Monmouth waiting to head to my mom’s house and then PDX to start my long journey. I will be flying out of Portland on the 12th and arriving in Brisbane, Australia the 14th! It is all starting to sink in that I am actually leaving. Right now, I am wrapping up last minute details and waiting. It seems like I have been waiting for forever. I have never been outside of the country, or really traveled much at all, so I getting more nervous by the minute. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard from other people what a great experience I will have or how lucky I am. I have to agree with them, I am very grateful to be getting this amazing opportunity, but I am still scared. I am not sure if I have ever been this nervous for anything and it is hard to explain how I feel because there is a lot going on around me. Right now, I am trying to not think about my nerves and think about how much fun I will be having in just a few short days =)  Katherine