Last one!

This is my last post down under.

I would just like to thank the people at home who supported me here since day one. Those who didn't, oh well. I'm very grateful that I have such awesome people at home who encourage me to live my dreams. I can't describe how glad I am that I have supportive people at home. They never gave up on me, and they never doubted me. Thanks loves, you know who you are. I hope you know how much you mean to me!



Good Bye Australia! See ya later!

I'll post another one when I get back and tell you all about how reverse culture-shock is going. I'm sure it's going to be oh so pleasant.

Goals?

Remember when I posted these goals back in February? Well, let's see if I accomplished them all.

Goals:
1. See a kangaroo. Check
2. Meet as many people as possible. Check
3. Get used to the cars on the opposite side of the road. Check
4. See dolphins. Check
5. Walk everywhere since the weather is so gorgeous. Check
6. Travel as much as possible. Check
7. Pick up an accent (: Check, atleast I like to think so
8. Learn all the slang. Check
9. Learn to cook, since I'll be cooking my own food for the first time ever. Check
10. Have no regrets! Check

Yes, I accomplished all of my goals and then some!!

Regrets?

One common question people have asked me is if I have any regrets.


Honestly? I have NONE! I'd do everything the same way I did over and over.

Good bye

In the past 130 days,
I've been to 3 contients, 4 countries, on 11 planes (soon to be 15), 2 different oceans, heaps of beaches, hundreds of beautiful views/scenery, numerous adventures, lots of airports, 4 major cities in Australia, several hotels/hostels, and an endless supply of memories. Maybe it really is time to finally go home.

I've been dreading this day since I got here. I never wanted this day to come. I just had the past 4 months of my life. I'm so grateful for all of the people I've met here, and all the amazing adventures
I got to experience. Nothing will ever top this semester. Words can't describe how blessed I am to have this amazing opportunity. This isn't a goodbye to Australia, it's a "see ya later." I will be back. I hope America is ready for my arrival.

Fashion!

There are some things I'll just never understand in life. One of them is the Australian fashion. Think of a hippie with half the amount of clothes, and you got an Australian.
The motto here is pretty much "less is best."
Here, you won't see sweat pants, yoga pants, pjs or hoodies in class. You will also never see layers. In America, people were so many layers to style shirts. Here, no one does it at all. Australians get dressed up for uni.

A crochet shirt. From Chicabooti.

Girls: Casual: In the summer, sundresses are the most popular. Sundresses are commonly paired with boots. Yes, boots. Floral print is very big here. High-waisted shorts are also very common. Another very popular thing here are shirts with holes in them. Not real holes, but crocheted clothes. I personally love the crocheted style and bought a few shirts for myself. Under these shirts, you wouldn't wear a cami. You'd wear a bright colored bandeau or bikini, no matter how cold it is. It's acceptable to wear a bikini anytime of the day. Cropped shirts are huge here. In fact, most shirts are cropped. It's hard to find a shirt that isn't.  Different colored tights are also big.

Going Out: Dresses are very different here. They are very short and tight, but have high necks. It's very uncommon to see a short dress with a lot of cleavage. Bar tenders are normally topless or in lingerie.

A dress you'd see at the night club. This is from Chicabooti.

Guys: Casual: Guys wear such short shorts. They are about half the length of guy’s shorts at home. Guys wear singlets and shorts pretty much everyday. They don't wear jean shorts though. They have shorts that are cotton, I guess, and come in multiple colors. Guys wear skinny jeans and flip-flops too. It's perfectly acceptable to wear swim trunks to class.

At the Gym:  Guys will wear swim trunks or short shorts with a slinget. It's the same as casual wear.

Going out: Guys wear their skinny jeans and a button up shirt.

Yeah, fashion is heaps different than in the U.S.

Lady GAGA

LADY GAGA!!

So, if you didn’t know I am obsessed with Lady Gaga! When she came to Pittsburgh, I tried so hard to get tickets. Tickets went on sale at 10:00 and I called at 10:03, and they were SOLD-OUT!! I was so depressed.

Love herr!

Before I left for Australia, I knew Lady Gaga was going to start her “Born This Way” tour in Asia and knew she’d be in Australia around the time I was getting ready to leave. Her tour dates weren’t announced yet when I first got here. So, she announced her concert dates for Australia, and one was Brisbane. She would be in Brisbane while I was still here! When I found that out, I just HAD to get tickets!!

My friend, Trevor, and I decided we would go together! Yay! I bought my ticket in March, so all I could think about for 3 months was the Lady Gaga concert.

It was finally the day of the concert! I put on my most fierce outfit and was ready to go! The crowd was intense. She sold-out all three shows in Brisbane! The only disappointment was the costumes of the fans at the concert. I know at home, they’re way more creative and crazy.

The concert started off with a bang. Lady Gaga came in riding a horse! I knew from that moment, the concert was going to be amazing. I was right, the concert was incredible!! Her outfits were also fabulous, of course!  The audience was on their feet all night!

Of course she had a meat dress.

My favorite part was when she sang “Hair.” She really related to the fans during this song. I look very emotional at the part. First, fans threw stuff on the stage to her. One guy through a jacket he made her, and she even wore it on stage. She then talked about suicide and has a say a pray to “what god we believe or don’t believe in” to all the people out there who don’t feel like they matter. That part really got me. She’s such a strong activist for bullying and suicide prevention.  It’s so amazing how she really wants everyone to relate to her. Lady told us to make a promise to her, and that was to follow our dreams, just like she did.. I seriously cried during those 15 or so minutes.

At one point she even had the Australian flag and was dancing around with that. Then, she concluded her concert but not without an encore. I really thought was done, because she said “last song,” but then came out and did two more songs!! That’s why I love Lady Gaga, she never ceases to amaze me. Then, it was over. It was really cool to see a concert in a different country. I hope she comes to Pittsburgh during this tour, so I can compare the two. That was seriously the best concert I’ve ever been to.  Nothing will ever top that. Her concert was worth every penny and more. Now, it's time for a few finals then I have to get ready to leave. Atleast that concert topped off my entire stay here.

What I'll miss about Aussie

I can't believe that I leave here so soon!

Here are some things that I'm going to miss about Australia!

1-100. EVERYTHING!!

Other than everything here's some more in detail in no specific order.

1. The weather
2. The beach being super close.
3. The minimal amount of rain.
4. The people.
5. The laid-back attitude.
6. The drinking age. Oops!
7. Tim-tams
8. My own bathroom and bedroom.
9. Not caring what people think.
10. Using the excuse of "I'm American." to get out of doing stuff.
11. The fashion.
12. Being care-free
13. Going out without drama.
14. The no drama EVER thing! (my favorite)
15. Traveling
16. Pie Face
17. Not studying.
18. Kebabs!
19. Ladies Nights with free drinks all night
20. The amount of nightclubs here.
21. Rugby
22. Aussie accents
23. Celebrating for no reason at all.
24. My friends
25. The "heaps" of slang.
26. On-campus Bar
27. Pass/Fail Classes
28. Diversity
29. Hot Surfer Bodies.
30. Concession bus prices
31. Meat pies
32. FREE Laundry
33. Colorful money
34. $1 and $2 coins
35. Everything

Dream Come True

Dream Come True!

Ever since I watched Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen’s movie "Our Lips Are Sealed," I've always wanted to go to Sydney, Australia!! I've dreamed of seeing the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. My dream finally came true!

This past week we didn't have classes, because it's "study week," meaning more time for me to travel! What a perfect time to travel

My friend Elizabeth came with me and we met my friend, Sarah, there. Sarah flew from America to see me!

Light show!

Day 1: We left the Gold Coast at 9 and got to Sydney at 10:30. It was such a short plane ride! I got there and met Sarah. We took a bus to our hostel. This hostel wasn't bad. It was much better than my first hostel experience. There was 8 beds, but it was just us 3 in the room. That was perfect! Our hostel was right on the famous, Bondi Beach! After we got to our hostel, we explored the surrounding area. We didn't stay out too long, because it was pouring down rain. Later on, we went to Circular Quay, which is where the Opera House is, to see the light show. The light show was so pretty! We got to see The Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, and downtown Sydney light up.

In front of the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge!

Day 2: We got up early to start our day. We had free breakfast at the hostel. (It sucked.) Then, we went back to Circular Quay, to see the Botanic Gardens. The Botanic Gardens are beautiful. We didn't get to see all of it, because it's so big! Next, we walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. After that, we did some shopping and called it an early night after doing so much walking during the day. The weather the entire day was perfect!!

Soaked.

Day 3: We woke up and decided to do the famous coastal walk between Bondi Beach and Coogee Beach. We got about half way through, but had to turn back because Elizabeth had to catch her flight back to the Gold Coast. What we did see though was so pretty. Sarah and I headed back to Circular Quay and caught a ferry to Darling Harbour. At first we were a little lost, because we got off the wrong stop. Luckily, we found a mall and shopped for a little. Then, we found Chinatown. Chinatown is great. You can get really cheap souvenirs there. Then, the rain started. We didn't bring our umbrellas today, because we didn't think it'd rain. We were wrong, we got drenched. So, we headed back to the hostel and stayed in for the rest of the night because we were freezing by this point.

Day 4: We headed to Circular Quay again to take a ferry back to Darling Harbour. It was so windy. We experienced an Australian winter storm. The winds were so strong! Today we were on a mission to find Ugg boots. Ugg boots in Chinatown are so cheap! They're like the purses in New York City's Chinatown. As we were in Chinatown, little did we know there were other markets called Paddy’s Markets also going on. We got some really cheap souvenirs at the markets. After finding Ugg boots, we headed back to our hostel. Since it was still really windy, we stayed in. We had to get up at 4 the next day anyway to catch our flights.

Overall, this trip was amazing. I finally got to visit a place where I've been dreaming of going. I never even imagined it coming true.