the weekend

Just finished up a long week that ended in a group presentation, quiz, and a paper. We're heading to see Up! in 3D soon, it should be a good time. Tomorrow we head to Melbourne!! Buses for the airport leave around 9 and then we'll be flying down and heading back on Wednesday. I'm going to see the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the Australian Center for the Moving Image, and then the fairy penguins!

I'll be in touch when I get back!

dust bowl

The view an hour after sunrise this morning. A record dust storm hit southern Queensland and the Sydney area last night and this morning. 100km/hr winds whipped through the city. Things settled down gradually throughout the day- still pretty hazy and windy when we went lawn bowling this morning but not as bad as the early morning. Right now it's pretty sunny and clear outside but I think they're expecting another dust storm later on today or tonight. Crazy stuff.

more pictures

the blue mountains!

heading down (on the left)

getting ready to go canyoning

again

the canyon

all of us

all of us close up

jumping back first into a pool in the canyon

the waterfall at the end of the canyon (from the bottom)

that's me!

me again :)

here are some pictures courtesy of Michelle.

pictures!

there will be more eventually...

abseiling!

So much fun!! Honestly I almost wished I could have jumped off the cliff...maybe it is a hint at bungee jumping in my future...maybe...?

We first honed our skills off of some cliff faces overlooking the vast divide between the mountains. First a 5m cliff, then an 15m, then finally a 30m cliff that we basically only rappelled down a couple meters and then just dangled there (the rock cut in and there was no longer anything to rappel off of) pulling ourselves down and admiring the view along the way. Then we went canyoning through this absolutely magical canyon. We were decked out in wetsuits and our rappelling gear- harness, helmet, and backpack included- it was intense. Through the canyon we climbed over rocks, jumped into little pools and did the backwards turtle to swim across- if you swam on your stomach the backpack would have rode up and tried drowning you- so on your back was the best bet. At the end of the canyon was a waterfall, that we had to rappel down. Most people kind of fell down the waterfall. I think we were all kind of thrown into the waterfall without much description about what to expect- not that it was a bad thing. About 3 meters off of the water I got to let go, push off the wall, and jump in.

That trip was probably one of the most amazing things I have ever done.

Other good news...I have an internship! Daryl informed me today that I definitely have an internship at SBS, a public broadcasting station here in Australia. I start October 20th and get to drop in on a news shoot. It sounds like I will actually be around the control room for a bit of it so that is good news. It all sounds very exciting. I will have to take the train to get there but the way Daryl described it it's only about a ten minute walk from the train stop (plus the 10 minute walk to the train station on my end) so it's not so bad.

Our favorite show Good News Week is about to start so I must be off!
Talk soon.

4 things...

First- last night for dinner we had kangaroo! We bought some steaks and cooked it ourselves. We also made some asparagus and mashed potatoes to go along with it. It was actually really good- very similar to steak tips. I don't know if I'll be eating it again anytime soon (it's a kangaroo!) but it was definitely not a bad experience.
Second- handed in my first paper of the semester today, just marking the beginning of the end of my undergrad career...an amazing feeling!
Third- heading to the Blue Mtns early tomorrow morning to go canyoning. We're going to be hiking up the mountains and abseiling (rappelling) down a bunch of cliff faces and then hike through a waterfall that we eventually will be abseiling down! It sounds like such an amazing trip and I've been wanting to head to the Blue Mtns since I got here. I'm sure I'll be heading out there again at some point since it is relatively close (2 hours by train) and is supposed to have amazing views- apparently on a clear day you can actually see all the way back to Sydney. I don't think I will be able to take any pictures since only waterproof cameras are allowed on the trek- but maybe I'll be able to snag some pictures from friends.

Fourth- In class on Thursday we screened this film called Razzle Dazzle and then the director came in, sat with us and talked about the movie, his previous work, and (secret) future projects. The movie was so funny- if you're a fan of Christopher Guest movies (This is Spinal Tap and Best in Show) then you'd definitely enjoy it and if you've never seen those movies go find Razzle Dazzle and watch! And the director, Darren Ashton, was wonderful. Incredibly unpretentious and very passionate about his work. All of the guests we've had so far have been incredible and definitely higher level, connected individuals- amazing.

On another note the end of this week marks the halfway point of the first academic period. Next weekend off to Melbourne for 4 days (heading to the coast to see the fairy penguins emerge from the ocean by the thousands at sunset- how ridiculous does that sound??) and then the weekend after we have a four day weekend and then the week following we have finals.

And then internships and an Australian Wine Industry class- with a field trip to the Hunter Valley Wine region! Yes!

Going to finish up watching It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, cuddle up with some James Lipton, and go to sleep- have to grab a 7am train tomorrow- goodnight!

Chinatown

For part of my Cultural Transmissions module we went on a field trip through Chinatown. We were given a tour by a man named King Fong who came here in 1946 and has lived here since. He's 71 years old and actually got to carry the Olympic torch in 2000 from the old Chinatown to the new Chinatown. After the tour we were given a free meal at one of the nicer restaurants in the area. We sat around the table talking for awhile with one of our professors, Mark. That man has been all over the world and has a story for everything. We talked about American sports and his history playing sports at Sydney Uni. He talked about the time when he overstayed his visa by a day in the States and how he still sometimes is given a hard time about it by customs. I think I could've stayed around that table all day talking.

Today I need to write a paper since I have class all day tomorrow and it is due Friday!
Here's to the first paper of many...

Surf Camp

was awesome! It was such an amazing weekend, the best so far. The town we were in, Gerroa, was absolutely gorgeous. There were green pastured hills with the sea facing them. It was such a small town but I wish we could have spent a couple more days there. The instructors were pretty nice and apparently really young, I heard one of them had just turned 16, ha. I got up so many times (and wiped out probably 3x as much!) and definitely felt the rush. I caught this one wave and was able to pick up so much speed that I immediately thought I must do this again! The instructors were so enthusiastic about having us continue to surf after we left the camp. They gave us advice on what type of boards to buy, how to handle a boardshop worker, how to assess the water conditions, and about the different types of waves and rips. Before the last lesson (out of four) I think everyone was sore, tired, and ready to leave but the last lesson was a blast and everyone seemed to leave on a high note, even my friend Alan who is now hobbling around on crutches after hurting his knee.

This week I have a paper due on Friday and hope to get a bunch of work done along with the paper.

On Saturday I am heading to the Blue Mtns to go canyoning down some rock faces and then a waterfall!! It's going to be amazing. I am so excited to head out to the Blue Mtns and see that area. Any day out of Sydney is a good day, don't get me wrong Sydney isn't bad- especially if you can find the right neighborhoods, but it's such a city. My Mass Media professor compared it to LA, and it didn't sound like a good thing. He likes Melbourne much more than here, he says it is more cultured and has more of a personality (though I wouldn't say that around a Sydneysider, they are huge rivals of Melbourne).

We just finished watching our favorite Australian show Good News Week, always hilarious. So now it is off to bed!

some pictures

I still need to grab some pictures from my friends' cameras, since they took some ones of me with some animals, so those will just need to come later.

I hope you enjoy!!

phone found!

I have found my phone! It was in the lost and found at Luna Park. It's a little bit of a hike to get there but I made it there and back in less than two hours. I am so happy that it was there!

I also signed up for a canyoning trip in the Blue Mtns two weeks from now. You rappel down a bunch of different rock faces and the final one you rappel down is actually a water fall! I am so excited!!

The pictures are up on my computer and I'll be hopefully uploading them on here tomorrow. I need to have my laptop configured for the wireless network in the library and the man who does that is not here today so I will just have to wait until tomorrow.

I can't believe I'm already into my second week of school and have a quiz on Thursday and paper due next week, haha. I actually kind of like this better than the average semester, maybe because I find this stuff much more interesting.

I hope to talk to you guys soon!
Love,
Ellen

luna and featherdale

So I've been kind of busy these past couple days. Friday I didn't have class but that night a couple friends and I went to this carnival type amusement park called Luna Park right by the bridge (we actually walked over the bridge, it was an awesome view). We went on the ferris wheel, carousel, wild mouse, and into this fun house called Coney Island. I actually lost my phone while I was there and hope when their offices open on Monday I can see if it ended up in lost and found.

Today we went to this petting zoo called Featherdale out in Doonside. It's the first time I've been outside the city and it was refreshing. It took a train and a bus to get there ha, but it was amazing. Kangaroos, wallabies, emus, and many birds wander free throughout the park. I pet so many of them! I saw some wallaby joeys in their pouches, sometimes glimpsing their feet poking out first. I was able to pet and take a couple pictures with a koala, who was so mellow- just like the wallabies. They also had a bunch of other animals fenced off from the general public. A bunch of wombat enclosures were scattered throughout the park, they are so fat and cute! They kept walking into the corners and standing there, which was strange- but my friend Andrew says they run headfirst when attacking to stun the other animal, so maybe it was a weird re-enactment. We were able to see this beautiful peacock with its feathers outstretched- it was huge! It did it's little dance, spinning around a couple times and shaking its feathers. We also saw a baby koala on its mom's back, the sweetest face, it almost looked like it was smiling.

I have a bunch of pictures from both nights and will definitely post them soon once they are on my computer!! I can't wait to share them.

Today left me extremely exhausted so I've just been bumming it around my room since getting back around 5 but I hope to head to the markets tomorrow and get some fresh, cheaper produce and whatnot.

Talk soon.

rain

Amazingly today is the first rainy day since I've been here, maybe not amazing since it's only been a week or so but this summer has made a couple days without rain seem like an eternity. Had class earlier today for 3.5 hours and have class later for 3. We screened this short film called Harvie Krumpet that was oddly entertaining and uplifting. It's done in claymation by an Australian screenwriter and filmmaker Adam Elliot. His feature Mary and Max opened Sundance this year and he won an Oscar for Harvie Krumpet. If you have a chance to check out any of his films I think it'd be worth it. He has this incredible style that juxtaposes dark subject matter and quirky bits that leave you wondering whether you should laugh or feel empathy. After winning his Oscar a bunch of big film companies in the States asked him to pitch to them. He pitched his idea for a movie (now released, Sundance film- Mary and Max) about his true life pen pal from New York and they turned him down. I guess too bad for them huh.


Off to do some reading for class!