Last Full Week in Oz

Well, the last week was basically filled with a lot of time spent with friends. There are now only a few things left that I want to do while I'm here and I've already been scheming on how I'll be able to do them.

So, what did I do all this past week? Let's start with Sunday.

Well, hashbrowns for breakfast at I-House! Always a big deal - they go perfectly with sweet chili sauce. While at breakfast, me and some friends (Steph, Naomi, and Fiore) decided to head to Kiama again. If you don't remember, that's the town that I consider to be absolutely gorgeous. Anyway, it was a bit stormier so not only did we get to see the blowhole blowing (we all learned how to tell if it was going to be a big 'geyser' - basically it's by the sound and how 'full' the hole looks) but we saw some pretty awesome waves crashing against rocks. I took a lot of pictures. We wandered around the town for a bit (we looked at a market that was closing up and we attempted to climb this huge tree) and then our Australian friend Fiore told us that in order to really experience Australia, we would have to order hot chips (fries) and eat them while looking out over the ocean. And that is exactly what we did. It was so quaint and encapsulated so much of what I'm going to miss about Australia. As it was getting dark, we drove up a mountain that overlooked Kiama and some of the surrounding towns. Because the storm was coming in, there was a lot of lightning out on the ocean so Fiore took pictures of it for us. Then Naomi and I slow danced to our version of Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing." It was a fantastic night.

Monday was the day of everyone's last exam (except mine was a week earlier) so we went to the UniBar to have a celebratory drink, then came back to I-House and decided to have a water fight. Caitlin and I filled up about 75 water balloons and decided to ambush our friends Steve and Scott as they were walking back from their exams. Well, it didn't go exactly as planned and ended up more like this: Steph, Andrew, Caitlin and Lisa are crouching by some bushes behind I-House while Gavin tricks Steve and Scott into coming out back. From there, things got wet. I realized from all this, I have terrible aim. Just awful. After everyone was a bit drier, we had a mini party in our room to celebrate being done completely with school in Australia. It was a great night filled with friends, good conversation, and perhaps a little bit of beer.

Tuesday was a gorgeous day, no clouds in the sky and it was warm as well so of course we made a beach trip. I played some rugby on the beach, played in the water, and sat on a couch made of sand. When we got back, Caitlin and I decided we should get some thai food - it is apparently better in Australia because they have more thai people. I got a Fresh Chili stir fry with beef and it was super delicious! Later that night we watched a movie called "The Castle." It is considered a classic Australian movie and we all found it quite hilarious. I have a copy on my computer so I'll try to share it around.

Wednesday we went to do some last minute souvenir shopping as well as attempt to find a place to get our ears pierced. The ear piercing didn't happen because it would have cost $80 and none of us have that kind of money! We did eat kebabs though, which is another dish we had to try while being in Australia. Also delicious, but I liked the thai better. Later that night was our last Wednesday night out in the Gong and we made the most of it.

Thursday was kind of a lazier day - we had to recover from the night before! Regardless, we went and took some pictures of uni and then later that night Steve took Gavin, Steph, Scott, Caitlin and me out to dinner (in reality it was his parents' treat). We went to a delicious Italian restaurant and enjoyed some of our last moments together.

Friday Caitlin and I finally made baked mac and cheese for everyone! Our craving for it started a long long time ago but it took us a while to get around to buying the ingredients. After searching for pots and pans and what not else, we started. We were especially worried about tempering the egg but we managed okay and didn't mess anything up. The mac and cheese turned out absolutely delicious (not as good as Dad makes it, but still) and everyone loved it. Later that night, we went out again because we had free drink vouchers and wanted to put them to good use. It was a fantastic night out - our last night out all together. After we left the bar, we wandered past the lighthouse, harbour, a cliff wall (we sat on it and looked out at the ocean for a bit), and then onto the beach. I think we made it back home at 4 am, but it was totally worth every second.

Today was a bit more depressing than the entire week was. We all knew this day was going to come, but as much as you try to prepare yourself for your friends leaving, it always hurts. Especially because we have all grown so close in our time here; we shared one of the best experiences ever and there's no getting around how much you come to depend on the people here. Friends from home weren't really accessible so you no longer have them as a back up for anything. It's difficult to explain. Caitlin left this morning a little after 10:30 and Gavin left a few hours after that. With Caitlin, I know I'll see her again - she goes to UConn and her family is making a Rehobeth Beach trip at some point this summer. Gavin though, he's Australian and that makes things tricky. In order to keep my mind occupied, I spent the day packing - here's to hoping that all my bags are underweight!