Travel Bug

So i am really excited, i bought a last minute ticket to melbourne for 4 days to visit my old roommate elena, from england! she decided to pick up and move there for about a month, so im going to see her while i can :) and then when i fly back to sydney on saturday, i just fly right back out to FIJI! not even going to leave the airport inbetween. i love being able to just pick up and do this.

Someone asked me last night where else i have been since i arrived in australia. and all i could say was blue mountains (a nearby area). I feel like ive seen so much though, but really all i've been in was sydney area. I guess uprooting and being in a new place still makes me feel like its new even after two months. Everytime i work, someone says "oh dont go to those beaches, theyre touristy, you have to check out this one.." or "oh you have to see this place, or go to this neighborhood". so much of this city. its so big! And when you're on foot its seems even BIGGER

I have learned 2 things from working in sydney. 1. i really like this fruit called lychee (sp?) They are almost like pears i think. I dont really know what to compare it to. but those pink things around the bowl are the shells. ive never seen anything like it before

and also, i love how involved they are in supporting the research for breast cancer. I know that its breast cancer awareness month, but ive never seen anything like this. There is a HUGE pink ribbon on the side of a skyscraper in the harbor. Its required as part of our uniform at work to wear a breast cancer bracelet to support the cause. And also, we serve a dessert and cocktail called "pink passion" and every time they are ordered, $2 of it goes to the sydney breast cancer foundation. I think that is seriously so cool.

I am really excited that im getting the ball rolling on all of my travel plans. A few days ago i bought a new zealand tour bus pass (sounds lame but its not!). It is hop on hop off, and a whole bunch of activities are included and the one i got tours around the north and south island :) one of the activities is even llama rides?? we'll see how graceful that one goes.

And hopefully i get to travel with clarice! she is a friend from Tech who is planning on coming out here at the end up march. my ticket back is for april 8th...but im thinking i might just have to extend it. The way my visa works out here, is its 12 months, but you can only work at one employer for 6 months. So i started sept 11 at jordon's seafood, so March 11 is the latest i can work there. I'm thinking im going to do my new zealand trip around then, and then backpack throughout southeast asia for a month and 1/2 or 2! Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Vietnam and anywhere else i find along the way. So i may be pushing it back until June. Which is a little weird to think about for weather... i came here when it was going into spring (but fall for home) and when i come back it will be going into summer in texas! So i will not experience winter or cold really from this past winter until November 2010!

Anyways, missing everyone and im excited some of you guys are coming to visit!!! sending my love to tejas :)

Life.

Days off at the Beach :)

I feel like i am finally sorted here.

I know my way around now, i am loving my roommates and coworkers, i have a routine, and love every minute!

I did have a weak moment the other day, i think once i made the realization that i am settled here, it made me miss home a bit. Its hard with the time different. especially starting this next week...tomorrow is daylights savings, but since the seasons are flipped, it is spring FORWARD here, and fall BACK in the states, so instead of the already 15 hour time difference, now its at 17! so we'll see how that affects chatting with home.

I recently got moved up at work! this week is the overlap period though, so im doing shifts for both positions so i am working a lot. BUT one cool thing is labor day is monday and the way wages work out for holidays is double and 1/2, so it basically averages to almost 50 dollars an hour, and i get to work a double monday so i am pretty pleased with that :). its interesting, out here no one tips so you get hourly wages, and the occasional tips, so saturdays and sundays are higher hourly pay.

Oh, here are a couple pictures of my apartment, i just took them and its 1 am so sorry they are not bright! And some pictures of the girls i share my room with (middle one just moved south to melbourne :( and the last night she was here we made cupcakes!

my bed is the one on the right, while my two other roommates are obsessed with twilight, you can probably see their magazine cut outs of robert pattinton above their beds....

Me, Elena (from kent, england), and victoria (from chicago). some really amazing girls i have met here.

So living near china town has its ups. My roommate discovered this sushi place that has a computer screen at the table and you just click and order! its a bit impulsive and dangerous when you get the bill...but so cool! no waiter no huss and fuss, you see the pictures of what you want and it comes to the table right away. loooove it.

kind of a random photo but this is a french canadian that lives downstairs and landed this cool towel in bondi, this basically has all the common australian phrases!

So i have learned a few things out here that i love, and some things that i miss:

Love:

1. walking everywhere, so scenic and relaxing

2. being so in the city but 20 minutes from the beach

3. asian food wherever i turn

4. Cotton on (the most amazing shop ever)

5. I have met more people from all over the world than australians

Things I Miss:

1. when you order a machiatto here or anything else, it is NOT what you would expect, they come in shot glasses?!

2. Walking..in the rain...when you dont have a car

3. My family

4. Mexican food!!!

5. FOOTBALL

6. My best friend laura. (and everyone else too!)

soooo i send my love to texas! miss everyone!