Some More Sydney

Since I've last blogged, I can't say that an incredible amount has happened, but enough that I've fallen behind! As a result, the last few days of my life are as follows:

Thursday, Feb. 21
My communications class took a field trip to Chinatown! It was a part of the city I had really wanted to see, especially because Chinese New Year is happening right now. It was a surprisingly small area, but our tour guide gave us a ton of information [which I now have to use to write a paper] and I will hopefully be back to try some food!

Our incredibly precious tour guide!

The entrance to Chinatown - you need to remove all negative thoughts from your head before passing through the arch, otherwise they will be carried with you and brought into the town.

The Golden Tree, it's good luck (as everything seemed to be!)

In other news, I'm being given more things to do at my internship: tracking email marketing communications, developing content, using Google Analytics, and a few other things. It was nice to be busy at work for a morning!


Friday, Feb. 22
Made it through the week, fairly uneventfully. We spent Friday night in Darling Harbour at a bar called The Stack. We spent the next few hours there talking, and a relaxing night out was a good change of pace. 

Saturday, Feb. 23
Again, not much to say here. We've been having rather rainy weather in Sydney as of late, and Saturday was no exception. This led to basically an entire day indoors...but we did get to watch Bring it On. Helloooooo, my childhood. It definitely had me reminiscing about how that movie was watched at basically every sleepover for years. That night, we did some more movie watching, with a break in the middle for a gelato run. Messina - world's best gelato. We've been there twice in the past couple of weeks, and I know that I will definitely be going there at least a couple more times before the trip is done!

Sunday, Feb. 24, aka today
While the morning consisted of lounging around and doing homework, Julie and I decided on a trip to the aquarium for the afternoon. It was definitely worth the money and the trip over, as Julie alone took 115 pictures during our time there! 

Darling Harbour, where the aquarium is located

Found Nemo!

Can't wait to encounter this in the ocean next week

Penguins!

Tell me that is not the most terrifying giant crab ever.

The shark tunnel

Everyone taking pictures of sharks

Our new friend, and Julie's spirit animal!

Aaaaand on another note, there is still plenty of learning happening over here, so I need to keep track of it as I go along:

1. I think I have actually for real learned my way around Sydney. I can confidently say that I could hop on a bus or a train and get anywhere I need to go...even if it occasionally involves asking for directions :)
2. It does not take long to adapt to another country's cultures. I write "Harbour" instead of "Harbor", "recognised" instead of "recognized", and many others. I walk on the left side of the sidewalk, say "cheers", "mate", and "macca's", and get irritated with anyone who is loud on public transit. I honestly feel a little bit Aussie...until I hear my Minnesota accent.
3. I like a lot more food than I thought I did. This seems very minor, unless you understand the extend to which I am in a picky eater. I don't believe I've said no to any food so far on this trip, and I have always been pleasantly surprised.
4. It is possible to build a close group of friends/family wherever you go. I was so worried about making friends before I came, and yet I managed to find a group of people who I hope I never lose touch with.
5. At the same time, I have a new-found appreciation for my own friends and family at home. I realize the importance of all these people I have probably taken for granted, especially when I feel the urge to contact everyone back home several times a day to tell someone a story only they could truly appreciate. I miss you all more than you could ever know.
6. It is more than okay to stay in some nights. Sometimes you just need to.
7. Other than my love of trains which do not exist back home, I really miss Minneapolis public transit. It's bad news if the Sydney busses can make Minneapolis's seem reliable. And I hate that the M20, the bus I need here, never comes when I need it, when I can catch the 16 bus every five minutes!
8. Turns out study abroad only enhances procrastination. Oops.
9. My time in Sydney is too short to worry about money. That's not to say I'll be going out to eat every night or going shopping every weekend, but I'm done saying no to a potential adventure because I can't afford it. I have been saving for this for the longest time, and I plan on making the most of it. Probably my favorite realization so far.

Sending you all love from Sydney, until next time!