I thought I'd get off a quick post before I head to Bali in 11 hours!! HOORAY! I'm not really sure what the internet situation will be there - I'm spending a few days on the coast and a few in the jungle in a bungalow so we'll see!
This weekend was more fun with friends! I love being comfortable here and having people who call you up and inside jokes and all - it's a cool feeling!
Nathan and I went to Bondi Beaches sculptures by the sea on Friday - it was so neat! There were over 100 sculptures all along the ocean pathways. Nathan is one of those guys that says hello and starts conversations with EVERYONE so we ended up chatting with a couple who live in Cali for awhile and a couple girls from Chile - I love all the people you randomly meet when traveling!
We stopped by some of one his mate's flats on the way back, he is stockbroker and lets say the situation isn't any better here -it's amazing what a domino affect the US economy has on the whole world.
Saturday Nate and I started the day with a paddle on his doubles kayak! It was great, besdes the part where I got knocked over by a wave in two-foot of water while I was holding the kayak and Nate had to rescue me because I was trapped under it, yeah I looked like an amateaur! But it we went by a nude beach which was hilarious (way too many old, overweight men) and then went by the south headpoint where the ocean meets the harbour. Then I rode the Manly ferry over to met Adam - the harbour was filled with sailboats, it was beautiful! It was a gorgeous day and we went to the top of Oz tower (it's the same height as the eiffel tower!) Saturday night we did a little pub crawl in The Rocks followed by meeting Ed for some karaoke! (I guess karaoke is becoming a weekly tradition - I'm of course very okay with this :)
Today I worked at the cafe! It is a fun, family-run place that is super cozy - everyone knows everyone and srikes up chats openingly - Australians are giving Minnesota a run for its money on the whole Minnesota nice thing :)
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Aussie - Mosman Style
Well, the last few days have been really fun - I've felt like a true Aussie in some ways because I'm living with two flatmates, working a bit, just hanging out, using a lot of public transportation, etc.
I'm staying with a friend Nathan and his flatemate Juls. They are two super funny, quirky guys. Nathan is 34 and a financial consultant and works for himself so he has been spending a lot of time making sure I'm fairly entertained and helping me find work which has been really nice. We pretty much spend most of the day laughing at the ridiculous things the other says - he is now a big fan of the words creeper and punk and likes to call cars rides now. He is an eccentric guy - the butt of all his friends gay jokes - He owns a very small dog, wears shirts that are too tight and too short, loves sex and the city, eats a lot of chocolate, listens to love dedication radio, etc. If that list doesn't say enough clearly Nathan and I have a lot in common and it's been nice to have a friend around!
I went with him and some mates to a fun little mediterranean restaurant and Ed's birthday was the other day so he had a bunch of us over and made pizzas - it is really fun to just sit around the table and have every day conversation because that's where you notice the fun, little cultural differences.
I also have begun doing a little bit of working - I'm basically a busser and food runner at Mosman Hotel - a fun place that a lot of younger people visit and it stays busy so time goes fast there. At a lot of restaurants here you order at the bar, grab your number, seat yourself and then your food is brought to you and if you want a refill you get up and get it yourself. So there isn't really a wait staff persay. A couple things at the restaurant made me laugh - the cigarette cartons are filled with nasty pictures of decayed teeth and lungs but a lot of Aussies still smoke (although they just passed a no indoor smoking act as well). The kitchen of the restaurant was filled with Asian workers compared to the states where in my experience it has always been Mexican.
Anyways, I guess this entry is getting long pretty quickly so I'll leave it at that! The weather has been up and down here this week so that's been unfortunate and we are hoping to go sailing on the harbor this weekend so cross your fingers for nice weather! And then in only two more days I'm off to Bali!!! WOW!
I'm staying with a friend Nathan and his flatemate Juls. They are two super funny, quirky guys. Nathan is 34 and a financial consultant and works for himself so he has been spending a lot of time making sure I'm fairly entertained and helping me find work which has been really nice. We pretty much spend most of the day laughing at the ridiculous things the other says - he is now a big fan of the words creeper and punk and likes to call cars rides now. He is an eccentric guy - the butt of all his friends gay jokes - He owns a very small dog, wears shirts that are too tight and too short, loves sex and the city, eats a lot of chocolate, listens to love dedication radio, etc. If that list doesn't say enough clearly Nathan and I have a lot in common and it's been nice to have a friend around!
I went with him and some mates to a fun little mediterranean restaurant and Ed's birthday was the other day so he had a bunch of us over and made pizzas - it is really fun to just sit around the table and have every day conversation because that's where you notice the fun, little cultural differences.
I also have begun doing a little bit of working - I'm basically a busser and food runner at Mosman Hotel - a fun place that a lot of younger people visit and it stays busy so time goes fast there. At a lot of restaurants here you order at the bar, grab your number, seat yourself and then your food is brought to you and if you want a refill you get up and get it yourself. So there isn't really a wait staff persay. A couple things at the restaurant made me laugh - the cigarette cartons are filled with nasty pictures of decayed teeth and lungs but a lot of Aussies still smoke (although they just passed a no indoor smoking act as well). The kitchen of the restaurant was filled with Asian workers compared to the states where in my experience it has always been Mexican.
Anyways, I guess this entry is getting long pretty quickly so I'll leave it at that! The weather has been up and down here this week so that's been unfortunate and we are hoping to go sailing on the harbor this weekend so cross your fingers for nice weather! And then in only two more days I'm off to Bali!!! WOW!
Monday, October 20, 2008
The Adventures of a 23-year-old...
Hello! Well, the birthday weekend in Hunter Valley was great! It is a beautiful part of the country - rolling green hills, lots of huge stables, vineyards everywhere! The Valley has over 100 wineries!! The tour we were on took us to four, each was very different...Our first stop took us to Draytons, a family run winery that has been in the valley for 155 years (probably the oldest), our second stop to Rosemount one of the larger wineries that exports to over 100 countries, the third stop Lucy's Run (named after the owners dog) which only makes 600-800 cases a year so is very small - the also made delicious olive oil from their olive trees! The fourth stop was Macquariedales, a biodynamic winery that does everything based on the schedule of the moon - they are all organic. Each winery was really cool, and very tastey!
We then headed back to our hostel (which was a cozy family fun home). We made pizzas in the stone oven that night and then walked to the local pub, Potters, were we sang and danced the night away to karaoke! Although I just met everyone (except for Adam) that night they made sure I had a great birthday! I celebrated with a few aussies, a couple consultants from London, a couple from Ireland, a German and a bachelorette party that was also at the bar. It was a unique birthday but very fun.
Then on Sunday Adam and I rented a couple bikes and went around the national park and to the zoo in the Hunter Valley, okay, we didn't actually go to the zoo - we biked around the fence and were able to see all the wallabies, dingos, ostriches, emus, etc as if we were paying customers :) We then biked (well I biked - Adam walked his up the hill ;) to the Hunter Valley Gardens where they have lots of fun little shops and such. Yesterday, we went with Tina (a really cool 40-something year old who was staying at the hostel - she was pretty inspiring talking about the importance of never burning out in life) anyways, she was headed out to one of the small coastal towns and we tagged along - every town is so beautiful here!
Now, I'm by Balmoral Bay staying with an Aussie friend Nathan while he is between flatmates! If you hadn't heard, the nanny thing didn't work out for me - it was fun to be submerged with a family but a little tough being on someone else's schedule 24/7 and the family was nice but I didn't always appreciate how they treated me. So I'm looking for a waitress gig around here and in the meantime I'm all confirmed to head to Bali on the 27th for ten days!! I'm so excited to experience something completely different from here or the states! Should be cool!
Hmmm, I know I'm missing stuff but this seems long enough for now! Miss you all so very much!
We then headed back to our hostel (which was a cozy family fun home). We made pizzas in the stone oven that night and then walked to the local pub, Potters, were we sang and danced the night away to karaoke! Although I just met everyone (except for Adam) that night they made sure I had a great birthday! I celebrated with a few aussies, a couple consultants from London, a couple from Ireland, a German and a bachelorette party that was also at the bar. It was a unique birthday but very fun.
Then on Sunday Adam and I rented a couple bikes and went around the national park and to the zoo in the Hunter Valley, okay, we didn't actually go to the zoo - we biked around the fence and were able to see all the wallabies, dingos, ostriches, emus, etc as if we were paying customers :) We then biked (well I biked - Adam walked his up the hill ;) to the Hunter Valley Gardens where they have lots of fun little shops and such. Yesterday, we went with Tina (a really cool 40-something year old who was staying at the hostel - she was pretty inspiring talking about the importance of never burning out in life) anyways, she was headed out to one of the small coastal towns and we tagged along - every town is so beautiful here!
Now, I'm by Balmoral Bay staying with an Aussie friend Nathan while he is between flatmates! If you hadn't heard, the nanny thing didn't work out for me - it was fun to be submerged with a family but a little tough being on someone else's schedule 24/7 and the family was nice but I didn't always appreciate how they treated me. So I'm looking for a waitress gig around here and in the meantime I'm all confirmed to head to Bali on the 27th for ten days!! I'm so excited to experience something completely different from here or the states! Should be cool!
Hmmm, I know I'm missing stuff but this seems long enough for now! Miss you all so very much!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Fireworks!!
Just a quick update because I'm not sure I'll be able to for a bit after this because I'm headed to Hunter Valley for my birthday weekend!! That's where all the wineries are! I'm pretty excited to sip on wine and relax all weekend - kids are exhausting, haha.
I had my first driving lesson on the other side of the road yesterday! It was a bit weird to drive on the other side of the road plus have everything in the car on the wrong side of what I was used to. And Drew (nanny dad) was sitting co-pilot so I felt super embarrassed when I turned on the wrong side (only once), kept turning on the wiper instead of the blinker, and pretty much running over the curb just about every few seconds! haha, I'm sure it was a sight!
On Sunday night my Aussie friend Luke was working a fireworks gig with his tugboat. People (rich people) hire Pyro Oz to put on a firework show somewhere on the water close to wherever their event is being held. So, pyro oz loads up a big barge with fireworks and Luke pushes it to the spot with his tugboat! It was so fun to be out on the harbour at night and listen to the waterways on the radio. The show was great! $12,000 worth of fireworks for Louise's 50th bday! And it was so cool to be literally right next to and under the fireworks - they were so loud and bright and I was told I looked like a little school girl looking up and smiling the whole time!
Well, that's a quick update but the kids are finally sleeping and its been one of those days so I'm ready for some relaxing!
I had my first driving lesson on the other side of the road yesterday! It was a bit weird to drive on the other side of the road plus have everything in the car on the wrong side of what I was used to. And Drew (nanny dad) was sitting co-pilot so I felt super embarrassed when I turned on the wrong side (only once), kept turning on the wiper instead of the blinker, and pretty much running over the curb just about every few seconds! haha, I'm sure it was a sight!
On Sunday night my Aussie friend Luke was working a fireworks gig with his tugboat. People (rich people) hire Pyro Oz to put on a firework show somewhere on the water close to wherever their event is being held. So, pyro oz loads up a big barge with fireworks and Luke pushes it to the spot with his tugboat! It was so fun to be out on the harbour at night and listen to the waterways on the radio. The show was great! $12,000 worth of fireworks for Louise's 50th bday! And it was so cool to be literally right next to and under the fireworks - they were so loud and bright and I was told I looked like a little school girl looking up and smiling the whole time!
Well, that's a quick update but the kids are finally sleeping and its been one of those days so I'm ready for some relaxing!
Friday, October 10, 2008
The Land of Oz!
It has been a busy week and I've loved being back close to the city again! The kids have been alright but this nanny gig is getting a little tiring and the mom is a bit of a nut case...It is all kind of killing my adventure so I'm up in the air about it right now and trying to figure some things out (like a trip to Bali ;) Super excited!!! Just reevaluating what I want to get out of my trip a bit!
I've spent a lot of time enjoy the beautiful cliff walks at Watson's Bay (evidentally at the fish and chips place I've run by the last week Bill Clinton, Danny DeVito, and Jack Nicholson have been spotted many times!!) Now we are in Roseville (ironic huh?) which is in the North suburbs. We are staying with the another family member for a couple days before heading back to Kiama.
One of the Aussie guys we befriended the other night took me out which was so fun! It's been surprisingly challenging to met Aussies because most of the backpackers tend to be European! His name is Luke and he is 25, owns a tugboat and walks around in barefeet 90% of the time. He is so nice and loves showing off his country to me - it's pretty funny. He works pushing barges around the harbor with his tug and spends his sparetime surfing and bushwalking. He picked me up on his dad's harley the other night which was pretty fun to be zipping through Sydney on (we went over the Harbour Bridge too which was beautiful!) and had a fun night out in Darling Harbour.
A couple days ago he picked me up and we went to the way Northern Beaches - It was gorgeous! It is off the beaten path and not very touristy. The colors are so vibrant and there is tons of huge rolling hills. We did a big cliff walk at Palm Beach that lead way up to this lighthouse - while sitting at the top we saw a bunch of whales - so cool! They are all migrating to warmer waters in Hervey Bay, they mate in the south and then head north. And there were huge things in the water that looked like gigantic shadows but were actually big schools of fish! We then grabbed some fish and chips and good ole Aussie beer at The Arms in Newport. And then met up with Adam and Richie at some backpacker bars in Sydney Central! It was great - by the time the night was done we had an Irish, an Englander, a New Yorker, a 'Sotan, a Californian, an Aussie, and a Swede all sharing a table (sorry about the late-night call dad - oops! haha)!
What else...I spent an afternoon at the infamous Bondi Beach - lots of fun little shops and a few tables filled with older folks playing dominoes. Went on a cool walk through a national park with the kids today - we saw so many neat birds, crazy bugs, turkeys, and lots of lizards!
Well I think that's enough of an update! Thinking of you all!
I've spent a lot of time enjoy the beautiful cliff walks at Watson's Bay (evidentally at the fish and chips place I've run by the last week Bill Clinton, Danny DeVito, and Jack Nicholson have been spotted many times!!) Now we are in Roseville (ironic huh?) which is in the North suburbs. We are staying with the another family member for a couple days before heading back to Kiama.
One of the Aussie guys we befriended the other night took me out which was so fun! It's been surprisingly challenging to met Aussies because most of the backpackers tend to be European! His name is Luke and he is 25, owns a tugboat and walks around in barefeet 90% of the time. He is so nice and loves showing off his country to me - it's pretty funny. He works pushing barges around the harbor with his tug and spends his sparetime surfing and bushwalking. He picked me up on his dad's harley the other night which was pretty fun to be zipping through Sydney on (we went over the Harbour Bridge too which was beautiful!) and had a fun night out in Darling Harbour.
A couple days ago he picked me up and we went to the way Northern Beaches - It was gorgeous! It is off the beaten path and not very touristy. The colors are so vibrant and there is tons of huge rolling hills. We did a big cliff walk at Palm Beach that lead way up to this lighthouse - while sitting at the top we saw a bunch of whales - so cool! They are all migrating to warmer waters in Hervey Bay, they mate in the south and then head north. And there were huge things in the water that looked like gigantic shadows but were actually big schools of fish! We then grabbed some fish and chips and good ole Aussie beer at The Arms in Newport. And then met up with Adam and Richie at some backpacker bars in Sydney Central! It was great - by the time the night was done we had an Irish, an Englander, a New Yorker, a 'Sotan, a Californian, an Aussie, and a Swede all sharing a table (sorry about the late-night call dad - oops! haha)!
What else...I spent an afternoon at the infamous Bondi Beach - lots of fun little shops and a few tables filled with older folks playing dominoes. Went on a cool walk through a national park with the kids today - we saw so many neat birds, crazy bugs, turkeys, and lots of lizards!
Well I think that's enough of an update! Thinking of you all!
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Life at the zoo...
So Watson's Bay has been heaps of fun! It's so nice to have a beach down the street for the kiddos and fun city things to do! We went to the famous Sydney Aquarium and Wildlife World Zoo!!! It was a great day! The aquarium is SO COOL! It sits in Darling Harbour (probably my favorite spot in Sydney) and the tanks are huge! They have all these tunnels with all 4 walls being glass so these huge sharks and stingrays are swimming all around you and amongst the coral and such. The stingrays are like twice as big as my arm span!
We also saw huge crodociles and they had some neat touch exhibits and ones with so many different fish! Then we were off to Wildlife World which was right next door! There they have the world's most venomous snakes and spiders, kangaroos, koalas, wombats, emu, and all kinds of other little Aussie critters! It was great!
Saturday night I went out with the other nannies again in Bondi Beach! It was fun playing pool and we met some guys with big wallets so I had my first hard alcohol since I got here :) (It's way too expensive for me to buy it for myself!! haha) It's always neat to talk with locals and I love being able to be with people my age out and about!
Yesterday I had a couple hours off in the afternoon (a cherished few of the whole week) so went with Anja, and met up with Adam and a few new friends of his at Darling Harbour for the Latin Fiesta that was going on! One of the things I love about a big, vibrant city is that we walked around and went from the Latin Fiesta, to Chinatown, to Paddy's Market (a lot like midtown global market) to the museum of contemporary art that was featuring art using modern technology and another exhibit featuring an African artist! I also love using the ferries as a mode of transportation, so cool :)
Alright, I've gotta get back to work but wanted to give a quick update!
We also saw huge crodociles and they had some neat touch exhibits and ones with so many different fish! Then we were off to Wildlife World which was right next door! There they have the world's most venomous snakes and spiders, kangaroos, koalas, wombats, emu, and all kinds of other little Aussie critters! It was great!
Saturday night I went out with the other nannies again in Bondi Beach! It was fun playing pool and we met some guys with big wallets so I had my first hard alcohol since I got here :) (It's way too expensive for me to buy it for myself!! haha) It's always neat to talk with locals and I love being able to be with people my age out and about!
Yesterday I had a couple hours off in the afternoon (a cherished few of the whole week) so went with Anja, and met up with Adam and a few new friends of his at Darling Harbour for the Latin Fiesta that was going on! One of the things I love about a big, vibrant city is that we walked around and went from the Latin Fiesta, to Chinatown, to Paddy's Market (a lot like midtown global market) to the museum of contemporary art that was featuring art using modern technology and another exhibit featuring an African artist! I also love using the ferries as a mode of transportation, so cool :)
Alright, I've gotta get back to work but wanted to give a quick update!
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Life Down Under
I'm getting comfortable being here now which is pretty nice, I've got myself saying "I reckon" and "rubbish" without even realizing it :) Yikes! As I've said I'm living with a nice family and it has been great to eat well and have a bedroom all of my own!!!
I've learned some funny things from Justine in various conversations...the other day we are driving and she nonchalantly says, "Oh one of those yachts is Tom Cruises's! Or at least it was I know he was trying to sell it." In little Kiama in a small town harbor only a mile from my bedroom is Tom Cruise's yacht!! She said Drew has sailed with him before and she used to ride the bus to school with Nicole Kidman!! She said she was the snutty girl in school and they used to play little pranks on her! haha!
I've pretty much seen all of Kiama - it has two blowholes which are kind of fun and so many bluffs. Justine took me to meet her friends Rhonda and Randol too because Rhonda is from Pittsburgh, it was nice to talk to someone who is from America!! Her and Randol met backpacking through and she moved here and they have 4 kids now.
I'm trying to find somethings to do to fill my freetime - I popped into the local paper and I'm sending him writing samples so there might be an opportunity for some freelance writing and I popped into a Curves for Women gym and there might be an opportunity for me to help out there too - we'll see! But I really need to fill some of my time so I don't get bored and lonely in the little beach town!
We are now in Watson's Bay for the week which is great because there are actually people my age!! And it is beautiful - it is where Sydney Harbor meets the ocean! My run this morning was awesome all along these HUGE bluffs and by some cool lighthouses. Last night I went with two other nannies - a 20 yr old from Germany and a 25 yr old from Queensland and we played some pool at the corner pub. There was a big group of guys there who are in the navy and staying at the barracks just up the street so we went to their barrack bar! It was so nice to be social and fun to hear their stories from so many different places and they were gentleman - it's kind of cute, guys here call gals darling all the time, it makes me giggle.
Well, kids are running around so I should probably get to it! Miss you all!! Lots of Love!
I've learned some funny things from Justine in various conversations...the other day we are driving and she nonchalantly says, "Oh one of those yachts is Tom Cruises's! Or at least it was I know he was trying to sell it." In little Kiama in a small town harbor only a mile from my bedroom is Tom Cruise's yacht!! She said Drew has sailed with him before and she used to ride the bus to school with Nicole Kidman!! She said she was the snutty girl in school and they used to play little pranks on her! haha!
I've pretty much seen all of Kiama - it has two blowholes which are kind of fun and so many bluffs. Justine took me to meet her friends Rhonda and Randol too because Rhonda is from Pittsburgh, it was nice to talk to someone who is from America!! Her and Randol met backpacking through and she moved here and they have 4 kids now.
I'm trying to find somethings to do to fill my freetime - I popped into the local paper and I'm sending him writing samples so there might be an opportunity for some freelance writing and I popped into a Curves for Women gym and there might be an opportunity for me to help out there too - we'll see! But I really need to fill some of my time so I don't get bored and lonely in the little beach town!
We are now in Watson's Bay for the week which is great because there are actually people my age!! And it is beautiful - it is where Sydney Harbor meets the ocean! My run this morning was awesome all along these HUGE bluffs and by some cool lighthouses. Last night I went with two other nannies - a 20 yr old from Germany and a 25 yr old from Queensland and we played some pool at the corner pub. There was a big group of guys there who are in the navy and staying at the barracks just up the street so we went to their barrack bar! It was so nice to be social and fun to hear their stories from so many different places and they were gentleman - it's kind of cute, guys here call gals darling all the time, it makes me giggle.
Well, kids are running around so I should probably get to it! Miss you all!! Lots of Love!
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