Sail Away (Whit)Sundays

This was one of the most fun and spontaneous weekends of my life. I deiced about 4 days before that I would be going to the Whitsunday Islands. I had to plan out all I wanted to do very quickly, but it turned out to be quite a success. The Whitsundays are a group of 74 islands and a favorite sailing destination. Whitehaven Beach is noted one of the most beautiful in the world. The sand is 100% pure white silica. I went on the trip with my friend, Adele, and 2 new girls I hadn’t previously met. We all ended up getting along very well and came to call ourselves ‘The Top Four’.

We arrived, picked up the car, and headed off to Airlie Beach. We searched for Conway National Park for some hiking and found Conway Beach. The sane stretched farther than any beach I had seen. I wasn’t even sure if it was a beach because the water was so far, you could barely see it. We frolicked around the beach and headed off to Mt. Looper walking track. We were having bad luck finding it and lost a lot of light, but we eventually found it. It was a night hike through the forests amongst the shimmering stars. There were many frogs that hopped about. At the end of the walk, we did some yoga below the beautiful stars.

The next morning was my cruise to Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island and Daydream Island. It was raining and windy at the start of the day. The waters were gorgeous and we all stood by the side of the boat and the wind whip our hair. We arrived on Whitsunday Island for a bit of exploring. I walked Whitsunday National Park as blue butterflies swam through the trees. I even saw a snake slither in front of me and slightly panicked, but all was well. I walked to a lookout over the beach. After swimming and walking the lovely beach we hopped back on the boat to go to Daydream Island. The theme of the island was mermaids; I couldn’t have been more excited about it. There was a Mermaid Beach with 3 mermaids on the shore.  Kangaroos hopped about and there was a rainforest walk and a life reef to see. It rained sporadically throughout the day. Adele and I walked through the rainforest to Lover’s Cove and climbed up some rocks to sit and look at the horizon for quite some time. Then we hurried back to the boat and watched the sunset over the ocean.

Jenny, Nishi and Adele left the next morning. We walked the Airlie Beach, saw the sunrise, and said our farewells. Once they left I continued down the beach on the bicentennial walk which went to Airlie Shute Harbor. I sat under a tree and took in the beach for about an hour before my sailing trip. I met up with the group and could tell that it would be a good time. Everyone was so nice. I automatically connected with a girl from Finland, Bambi. ‘Habibi’ set sail on the open ocean and we sailed the day away to arrive at Tongue Bay for the night. Sleeping on a ship was a new experience. I roomed with Bambi and 2 girls from England. We were in the room at the very front of the boat and we were rocked to sleep by the waves.

We woke up to explore Whitsunday Island. We crossed from one side to the other in a rain forest.

We arrived at Hill Inlet Lookout, one of the most photographed places in the world. I was in shock and it was easy to see why. The sand swirled below us with the tides, making swirls of sand bars and water. It was quite the sight to see. We walked down to the beach and walked out to a sandbar through the clear water. There were many stingrays swimming by us, the ones here were harmless but we still avoided them. Bambi and I swam around on the beach with mountains in the background. It was absolutely gorgeous. The rest of the day was about snorkeling and the Great Barrier Reef. We snorkeled Luncheon Bay and Manta Ray Bay. I got to swim with my favorite animal, a sea turtle, for about an hour. To conclude the long day at sea swimming in the waters we danced in Caves Bay as the sunset.

The next morning was my last day in the boat. I woke up bright and early for our last snorkel of the trip. There is nothing better to wake you up in the morning than a swim in the ocean; it was amazing to wake up to.  We sailed back to Abel Point Marina and I even got to participate in the sailing, I pulled some sails for the captain, which was awesome. When we got back we all said goodbye, we had bonded really well as a group and I knew I would miss them all and this weekend. I spent a couple of hours tanning at Airlie Beach Lagoon with Bambi before I caught the bus to the airport. I flew out of Proserpine Airport, the smallest I had ever seen with only 4 gates.

I loved getting to know new friends this weekend, sailing around the gorgeous islands, and making memories. It was my favorite trip in Australia so far and I feel blessed to have been where I was and experienced what I did. Another point for Australia. It’s winning. 

Sydney Strolls

As time is quickly winding down, I have come to value each moment more. I am trying to get out and check more and more things off my list, yet stuff keeps getting added on. It is truly crazy how quickly time goes, I remember when I had 140 days here and now there is only 30 more! The common conversation among friends is how we feel about going home and what we are going to do (mostly eat) when we get there. What sounds good to me is some legit Mexican food, hiking the Hollywood sign with my best friend and then curling up on the couch with my family and watching movies. The common feeling is that we are ready and excited to go back, but we know we will miss this beautiful place where we have come to find ourselves and discover Australia. I have been strolling along the bustling streets of Sydney just taking it all in while it lasts. Every time I explore, I stumble upon something new. Sydney is an amazing city with things going on all the time and all around. I’m glad I chose to go here because it is so different from home and I have gained a new perspective of life.

I walked to Hyde Park and covered most of the area. It is a patch of green with some gardens, fountains, and walking paths in the large city surrounded by huge churches. I decided to go to a mass at St. Mary’s to experience religion here. It was interesting, I had no idea what to do or say, but it was fun. In Hyde Park there is an ANZAC memorial. It contains a statue of a man lying on a cross with a golden sun below him. There is also a ‘Dome of Memory’ consisting of a dome filled with golden stars to represent the lives of those who fought in the war. Then there is the Sydney Hospital with a bore statue you rub the nose of for good fortune. I visited St. Andrew’s, the country’s oldest cathedral. It was filled with beautiful stained glass. Next door is Town Hall. It is painted with light pink walls and intricate ceilings and a large chandelier in the center. There is the largest organ in the southern hemisphere in the building and I got to hear it played.  I wandered in Martin Place, which is a major pedestrian precinct. There is a building adorned with many Australian flags and a clock tower. I was handed a sunflower, which made my day. Later I walked around QVB, Queen Victoria Building. QVB is a 5 story shopping center filled with nice shops and fancy clothes. There is a one ton clock hanging the center of the building that performs a show about the Queen’s history.

The weather here has changed significantly. I thought that Australia would be a forever warm metropolis, but the seasons are recognized. As I am in the southern hemisphere, the seasons are opposite. It is summer at home, but here it is winter. It rains more than expected, but there are still warm days as well. It reminds me of a California winter. On a rainy day, my friend Carolyn and I went for a stroll to the bridge. I hadn’t walked across it so that is what we set out to do. We crossed the bridge in the rain and took in great views of the harbor and the opera house. Then we took the train back home. Later that night Carolyn, Sarah, Max, Andrew, Haley and I went to Max Brenner and then watched the new episode of Big Bang Theory. It was a fun night.

Then came the day I had been waiting for, the Bridge Climb! Climbing the bridge was amazing! I got to see the entire city in a whole new light. The weather was great that day, which was very lucky. It was overall a great day with my friend Brian, we even danced on top of the bridge. We went to Pancakes on the Rocks after for a celebratory meal of awesomeness. I went to Powerhouse Museum with another Brian. It is a science and engineering museum with interactive exhibits. One night, my roommate Max and I went to Orbit Lounge. It is a restaurant on the 47^th floor of a building in Australia Square. It is a revolving restaurant so we got to see the whole city in one rotation. The city sparkled with all its lights and Vivid was going on in the harbor, which was cool to see from above. We took in the view of the city and sipped coffee. It took about an hour and was totally worthwhile.

Vivid is a light show throughout the city. The most iconic place f Vivid is the Opera House. There is a 15 minute light show and I watched the whole thing. What makes Vivid so awesome is that I have seen the city for 4 months normally and now everything is sparkling. Max, Brain and I walked around the harbor for the night and walked the circumference of the Opera House. The walk back was interesting. I saw police on horses trotting along and enjoyed the city. There is a difference in being somewhere and actually being somewhere. There are different depths to which you can experience something and I seek the deepest; to not just be, but to belong and  use every sense to be able to make the simplest things memorable.

This week I completed all of my class work. All that is left is two finals on the 19^th and 24^th of June, then I am finally done with this semester and a senior!