Hunter Valley Vineyards

Here is a picture of me and a couple of the German guys on the study abroad cruise.

Today I went with a group of about 13 to a tour and wine tasting in Hunter Valley. We woke up at 6am and by 7 we were catching a JetCat to go across the harbour and into Sydney where we jumped on a bus for our guided tour.


First, we stopped at a wildlife exhibit where we were able to pet koalas and kangaroos. I've always loved koalas and was sooo excited to see them. Unfortunately, koalas reminded me of cats. Their fur is very very soft and they are adorable to look at, but kind of a boring animal to be honest. I'm sure if I would have been able to hold it and not just pet it the story may be different, but all the koalas do are sleep and if you wake it up then it immediately starts to eat.....to think of it, koalas remind me of some people I know, too!


Then we hung around in the picnic area where the kangaroos were just hopping around freely. I've always been interested in kangaroos, but today they became one of my favorite animals. Honestly, they are just amazing. They have the neatest feet and hands and the way they kind of slowly walk/ sachet towards you when they want food is breathtaking. I was able to coax a few out of their resting area and feed them. I loved it. When the kangaroo ate out of my hand it was very similar to feeding a lama or something at the zoo...except it was a kangaroo!! Later on we saw a lot of wild kangaroos and quite a few dead ones on the side of the road. It was sad to me because it was a cute little kangaroo, but then I realized they are just like deer in Tennessee. Hmm..I wonder if it's legal to pick up road kill here?!

Last but not least, an animal that I would love to have would be a wombat. This bad boy was really neat. He kept pacing back and forth, back and forth. My friend Jan (pronounced Yan- pictured up top on the left) said the wombat was doing his morning exercises. I don't know about that, but he sure did win my heart over!! (The wombat, not the German.)

[Sarah from Michigan and Sam from Illinois]
After seeing the animals- which was worth all of the money we paid for our excursion today!- we headed out on a 2 hour bus drive to Hunter Valley. First we went to Tulloch vineyards, then Draytons, and finally Ivanhoe. I've never been a big wine connoisseur so it was fun and interesting learning about all of the different types. I finally found a type of white wine that I enjoy, Verdelho. We sampled verdelhos at all three vineyards. Its full of fruit flavors such as passionfruit and melon or lemongrass and it is very crisp and not too fruity. I'm not sure if we have anything similar to it in the states. Maybe we do and I'm just unaware. Either way, the wine tasting made me feel so cultured. Australia is known for some good wines and I enjoyed learning why that is the case. I'm looking into shipping some home...merry Christmas family:)

[Insa and Bastian from Germany]

In addition to the wine tasting and visiting with animals I spent some time getting to know a few of the German students here. First of all, I am amazed at how well they speak English. I forget that this isn't their native language because at school everyone is required to speak English, but today they were all gibbergabbering in their German and I was thinking wow, I wish I could speak Spanish that fluently. Then I thought- why didn't I take German in high school? I always loved Mrs. Briggs and it would have been great to have had her for a foreign language! I talked to Insa about how long she's been taking English and she said since she was 10. She also speaks Spanish. And in German schools they are required to do internships and study abroads to learn how to speak the other languages more fluently. How behind are we?
[This is Sofie and Anna from Sweden]
Secondly, I've started thinking about taking a trip to Europe. These European students have been everywhere. They are so knowledgeable and its been great just getting a feel for what life it like in all parts of Germany as well as Sweden. It would be so much fun to maybe do an internship over there in England or Ireland, then just spend time visitng Insa, Jan and Bastian in Germany, going around to Spain and then making my way to Sweden. These places sound wonderful and why not go while I'm young and have nothing holding me back? I have no set plans yet, but its only been two weeks and I've already heard plenty of stories that make we want to take a trip over there!!

Now I've, Had the Climb of My Life

I still remember the year I went to church camp and we had to climb what I think was an old rickety wooden fire tower. About half way up I panicked and had someone escort me back to the bottom. Somewhere inside it embedded in me a slight fear of heights. I try to overcome it and not let it keep me from doing the things I would like to do, but at some point that fear was bound to come back.
As our group of 9 Americans abounded on our journey to the bridge climb I started questioning why I would pay good money to scare myself to death.
When we first got to the climb we had to derobe and dress in what looked to be 1980s grey moon suits. We weren't allowed to take anything up with us except for sunglasses which were securely attached to our suit. Also attached was my 1980s grey hair scrunchy that I was given, a sweat rag, a radio to hear the tour guide, and our 5 inch long cord connected to a metal ball which latched us onto the bridge-- I questioned if that would actually save my life in the event of a fall!
As we started up the bridge I was no longer excited- I was scared, nervous, worried, sweating, and next to the worst person possible, Kevin, because he only played off of my nervousness. We had to walk across wooden planks only held in by cables and then up metal stairs with which I could see through to the deep depths below.
Once we finally reached the top part of the bridge the bottom was solid and I began to truly enjoy the climb. The views were breathtaking. And it was the warmest day Sydney has seen in 4 months! I did start sweating in uncomfortable places and was secretly hoping that this wasn't shining through that stupid grey suit because everyone knows grey and sweat are NOT friends!
All in all once at the top I really was having "the climb of my life." I'm glad I did it and now I can say I've climbed the tallest steel bridge in all the world!

Oh, and my legs were feeling it today!! Talk about a workout!


This is the group of US studnets that I hang out with. Top row (l-r) Corey, Andria, Alli, Me, Mike. Bottom row Kevin, Sam, Jenny, Andrew. Fun group indeed!

Oh, I actually have to go to class??

This week was way too good to be true and all the fun was bound to come crashing down as I attended my first TWO HOUR lecture yesterday.
The class: Managing Workplace Conflict. The students: all upperclassmen in their last term here. The teacher: Dr Jill McRae.
Dr McRae has eight postgraduate degrees in education, law and dispute resolution. She is a mediator with the State Department of Juvenile Justice, an advisory panel member with the NSW Directorate of Higher Education, and has worked around the globe in international development with the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade, UNESCO, and the World Bank. This woman is nothing less than amazing, and I'm sure her class is going to be rather challenging.
The good thing is that I think I like her. I feel that I can learn sooo much not just from her lessons, but from how cultured she is and the stories she has already shared with the class.
Then I go to my second class- Organizational behavior, Human Resources and guess who the professor is (Drum roll please......) Dr McRae. Amazingly, I was able to stay attentive during yet another 2 hour class with her. Unfortunately, 4 hours a day twice a week may start to wear on me, but who knows. She does keep me in awe of how intelligent she is, so there is a possibility of staying with the program.

On the otherhand, todays class was rough. I had Business Ethics with a professor whos name I cannot recall. All I know is that she put me to sleep...zzzzz. The class goes from 8-10am and I don't think I can make it. I really started to worry when I went to my second class with her from 3:30 to 5:30. Once again I just couldn't stay focused. Oh, until she split us up into groups. I don't know anyone in my group and we're all from different places. It's not that I hate group work, but this is going to be rough and it's worth 30% of our grade:(
Why do I have to go to class??? Seriously, I just want to go to Outback, see the Barrier Reef and do what I really came here for-- meet some Aussies!! Haha, just kidding.

Tomorrow a group of US students and I are going on the Bridge Climb. I can't take my camera, but I'll be sure to fill you in on the adventures!!

Sydney!

Yesterday was our tour of Sydney. We got to see all the sights and you know my heart fluttered when I saw the Opera House. I cannot wait to see an opera. I know my friend Sam wants to go and we may be able to get a few others to join:) It makes my heart smile!!! We walked around the city, saw a few sights and took the ferry back over to Manly Wharf.
This morning Jenny and I went for a run down the hill to manly beach, over to shelly beach and back up the scenic route to school. It is absolutely wonderful running here. The water was so deep blue today, the ocean breeze was nice and the air quality was perfect for my "athletic induced asthma!" I could run here everyday!! I probably won't, but we'll try to make it a usual thing. Then Jenny, Andria (who I like to call ms. hot body!) and I went to the beach. I needed some good girl bonding time so it was nice just chillin by the ocean and checking out the occasional hot rugby boy that would pass by. Oh, and I've decided I do NOT like the aussie surfer dudes. Not my thing, but these rugby boys.... now those guys have some potential!! They are much better than american football players, trust me girls.

Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree

The top picture is the opossum! The next one is my wonderful kookaburra!
Me with an alligator and then one of myself in front of the boats at Manly Wharf- sunset time.

Have you ever really seen a Kookaburra? I don’t think I actually knew what one looked like. When I was younger and in girl scouts we sang the “Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree” song, but that’s all I knew of kookaburras until I started working at outback and we served “kookaburra wings.” Of course they weren’t really kookaburra wings and I never cared too much about what kind of bird it was, until today. We got to see a kookaburra at our Aussie party, and it was the coolest bird ever. Of course it had a trainer so it was not in the norm, but still that bird made me happy. It sat on my shoulder and everything. For a second or two I thought it might poke my eye out, but then it was cool.
I also held a opossum. Except for the fact that the wildlife man said it was a opossum, I would not have believed it! This little guy was so super cute and cuddly. The tail looked like an American opossum, but other than that I thought it was just a cute furry animal, I wanted to steal it. He was not at all ugly with the long nose and huge teeth hissing at me like the ones back in the states. I also held an alligator- no tied mouth shut and it had a full mouth of teeth, kinda cool.

Wetsuits and Bandicoots

I’m starting to love it here. I think I’m hitting this euphoria state in which I’m constantly saying- Oh my goodness, I’m in Australia!!! It doesn’t really feel like “the Outback” or ‘Land Down Under’ because of the fact that 1. I’m in a major city and 2. everyone I see, meet and interact with is from a different country.
Yesterday we did icebreaker activities to get to know some new faces from our orientation. During the games we had to meet a lot of new people and I starting feeling really behind in my geography. I can’t begin to list all the countries I’ve met people from. I know I’ve made friends with some people from Germany, Sweden, Austria and Canadian Andrew, but I’ve also met a lot of people form China, India and the like. When we did the ice breakers I was introducing myself by saying “Hello, I’m Amanda” which somehow turned into my name being Ima-man-dA….and most people think I’m from Sweden. Either I’ve been hanging out with those girls too much or its just the blonde hair and blue eyes.
Last night we went to a local bar, the Shark Bar, where a lot of people from our college like to go. The first night we went I hated it because there was no-one there and they only played techno music, but last night it was awesome. They had a “live” band, which wasn’t really live because it was one guy with a guitar and a lot of back up tracks, but hey, I’ll take it. They played Sweet Home Alabama, Goo Goo Dolls, Guns and Roses, Bob Marley…a huge mix of American music and I loved every minute of it. All of the foreign students were dancing right along and knew the words, so that was pretty cool. What a bonding moment.

Today for Orientation week we went down to the beach and had surf safety lessons. The first part of surf safety was in a classroom and just about rip tides, waves and dangerous sea creatures. Not to mention what to do if we are stung by a BottleNeck. It’s sort of like a jellyfish but much smaller with one long poisonous tentacle. If it stings you it latches on and you have to pinch it off with your fingers quickly before the poison gets too far into your system. Great, with my luck I better be watching out for those bad boys!
After the classroom lecture we put on wetsuits and got on some body boards to head out for a “surf.” It wasn’t real surfing, but it was fun!! The first few minutes my body was in shock. All I have to say is thank goodness I had a wet suit. I caught a couple waves and it made my day! I can’t wait till the water warms up some. I don’t know if I’ll become an avid surfer, but I do think I’m going to enjoy it.
I’m getting ready to go to our Aussie Barbeque Party. Apparently they are bringing live animals…. Although the only animal I’m wanting to see now is a Bandicoot! It’s an endangered species and it lives on the grounds around our castle. They are supposed to be a little larger than a rat with a longer nose. When I looked at the picture it reminded me of Martini (the Chihuahua I had) and now I can’t wait to see one!

Pictures

Here are a few pictures that I have so far. The one on the left is the view of my room to the right- it's manly beach. This is where we went surfing on body boards today. The water is deceitful-- beautiful but COLD! The picture on the right is my view to the left. This is Manly Wharf. It's where we'll be catching ferries to go across to Sydney Harbour.

Life In Manly

These past two days have been a little harder than I was anticipating. First, let me say that when I looked up the “springtime” Sydney weather I thought it was going to be in the 70s but it’s not quite that warm and with the ocean breeze it is down right chilly. I did not pack properly! I guess I need to buy a sweatshirt because it’s cold especially at night. I found a couple of cute Australia sweatshirts in Manly, but they cost about $60….for a SWEATSHIRT?! Wow.
I think I am living in like “L.A” of Australia. This has to be the nicest place ever. It is right outside the city and all of the people here must be retired millionaires. Honestly, all anyone does is surf or go out sailing or on their yacht. Then there are the “hot mommies” who I am forced to see on a daily basis as I hike my butt up and down a huge 5 mile hill. I mean these women—not the same women, just all of the women here-- are extremely skinny, wear work out clothes all over and are seen running with their babies (yes, most of them have twins!) in nice little running strollers. I hate them. I huff and puff to get up the hill to this castle and then consider it my exercise for the day.
They suck.
An update on my electrical supplies- I got a hairdryer and hair straightner. I also found the right kind of converter so I can now use my laptop in my room, but I don’t pick up wireless all the time so it’s still down to the computer lab for me. The computer lab where I am forced to wear my business suit because it is considered “front of house.” Did I mention that the business suit requires pantyhose? Well it does.

As far as the school it seems pretty nice so far. I’ve already met some really cool people from all over the world. There is a girl, Natali, across the hall from Germany as well as a lot of other Germans- and let me tell you those boys are cute;) Then there is a really awesome group of Swedish girls. They are drop dead gorgeous. Seriously, if I were a guy looking to do a study abroad I’d hit up Sweden.

In other news, I got to go to the beach today. It was, well, COLD! How do these Austrailians do it? Not even Australians really, because everyone is from all over the world. This has to be one of the most diverse cities in the world. (Okay, maybe Nashville isn’t all that diverse, but Sydney is really rockin!)But yea, the beach is nice and the water is freezin’. I put in my feet and that was good enough for me. I’m supposed to have a surf lesson on Friday. It should be around 60 degrees. Ouch! I wanted to buy a wet suit, but for 3 months, that was out of the question!

Finally, I’ve sat down with some of my fellow US friends and made a list of the things we want to do while we’re here. Now this is the reason why I worked all summer:
Bridge Climb
Blue Mountains/Kyaking package
Surf Camp
Trip to Whitsundry Islands/Barrier Reef
Zoo
OperaJ
Sydney Tower
Wild Life World
Aquarium
Trip to the Outback
And a Dolphin Day Trip including Victoria Falls, Dolphins and breakfast with Koalas.

Surprisingly, if we do this with our student discount cards and have large enough groups then the rates aren’t all that bad. Granted I can’t do all of it, but we’re already buying a Sydney attractions package as well the Bridge Climb. I think we’re going to do it Sun….hopefully I’ll get over that fear of heights in 3 days.

And we're off....

It's currently 8pm here and I haven't slept in what feels like days. I know I got a couple of hours of sleep on the plane,but not near enough. I missed sunday completely so my body is just in overdrive trying to catch up or something.
To summarize the trip I met up with about 20 of the other US study abroad students in LA and we took the 14 and 1/2 hour flight over to Sydney where we were greeted by a man holding and ICMS sign. He had a small bus that sat 24 with a mini u-haul type attachment. Unfortunately no-one accounted for all of the "american's luggage" and we had to call a cab to come pick up 4 of our guys and take them as well as their bags to the school. When we got here the cars dropped us off at the outside gate to the school, leaving us to drag our bags about half a mile down an old cobble road up to the "castle" building. (The school is actually like an old Catholic monestary and is filled with a lot of history....we'll get to that later.) Finally, a lady greeted us and welcomed us inside to where we had an 'orientation' which consisted of being handed a room key and told what time lunch was.
I hiked up to the top floor of the Cathedral, suitcases in tow, to my very small cell block room. My room is extremely small and the "wardrobe" could fit inside the trunk of my honda. I don't know how I'm supposed to unpack. But the view makes everything worthwhile. It is absolutely breathtaking. I can look out at the hills straight ahead, the marina to my left and the beach to my right. As soon as I can I'll post pictures for you to see everything. It is beautiful.

Some of my fellow US study abroad students and I went down to the city today to buy a few items, like hangers and the like and might I say that everything here is VERY EXPENSIVE!! It was over $5 for a 12 pack of hangers. $7-10 for shampoo and things. Not to mention that the converters I brought aren't right. The fit the plugs, but there is something wrong with the watt transfer. I tried heating up my straigtner and it just wouldn't warm up. Then I tried to plug the hairdryer in and BAM!!! The thing kinda blew up. Not kidding, I had black all over my hands. I'm fine, but I'm guessing I'll need to find some new converters as well as a new straigtner and hairdryer. And I hear those can be expensive as well...just fantastic.
I haven't met a lot of people other than the students on my group flight. So far most of the students I met at my business suit fitting were Germen, swedish and korean. Its so crazy here. I feel like everyone is just an exchange student, but instead they only refer to us as the study abroad group.
That is about it for today. Just starting to find my way around and settle in. Hopefully I'll start getting used to things soon.
Night "ya'll!"