OH MY GOD, WHAT A DAY!!
Story time: Five years ago, during the summer of 2004, I traveled to Australia with People to People. We stopped by an Opal shop (a quite nice one, with very nice jewelry and quite reasonable prices), and I planned to buy a gift for a few relatives back home. This was the one day during the trip that Visa decided to have a problem with my debit card being used internationally so I was unable to buy the gifts that I was now relatively attached to. When I started booking this trip, I had absolutely no recollection of the name of this shop, the location, absolutely nothing. I remember what the showroom looked like, vaguely, but didn't even know where in Sydney we were at the time.
Now, since being in Australia, small things have started to come back to me. I'll be standing on street corners and realizing that something looks vaguely familiar. Well, yesterday we were taken from Surry Hills (home) to North Sydney across the harbor, and then we were set free to find our way back home. Of course we're not all just going to go straight home, so a group of travel mates and I decided to go on the quest for cell phones. We tried a few stores and had given up and decided to just head towards the Opera House to see some sites. Upon coming out of one of the train stations, we saw a cell phone company shop that we had been looking for. Surprisingly enough, we finally found what we were looking for and five of us bought the same phone and the same plan. I was the first to be activated, so I went and sat outside with two other girls while the rest were finishing up. Now, while sitting there, facing the building, I started to look at the other shops that were facing the street. I was looking at this shop, and something finally ticked that it looked familiar. IT WAS THE OPAL SHOP I WENT TO FIVE YEARS AGO! I decided to go upstairs and started talking to the people at the store and, wow, that was just amazing. The owner of the store, James Costello came out and gave me an "ambassador of the year" koala pin because I had returned to his store five years later! They are still having People to People groups travel through, and they're still giving their presentations about Opal mining. All of these things came back to me as soon as I walked into the store!
The owner was also nice enough to give me his card and is going to set us up with his daughter (who is our age) to show us the city. Oh the things that people will do for you…all because I sat on a bench!! And yes, my visa worked this time…unfortunately for my credit card bill!
We walked so much yesterday. To fill you in, the people I am traveling around the city with on this day were Alexi (NY - Roommate), Yazi (NY - Roommate), April (IL - Roommate), Brian (NY), Alexandra (NY), and Laura (NY). We took the bus/train to North Sydney, walked around North Sydney after an orientation at school (Billy Blue), then took the train back over the harbor bridge, walked all around Circular Quay, saw the Opera House, saw the Harbor Bridge, and then found our way back to Surry Hills. This doesn't sound like much walking, but it is…my feet would like to tell you all about it.
Today was all about opals. I am so, so happy that I was able to find that shop. :) Good day in Sydney today!
Friday, May 29, 2009
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Flying, flying, flying some more!
As suspected, that was an incredibly long flight.
The trip started off quite uneventful. MSP to DEN, one of the smoothest/quickest flights I've been on. Not that the air time was all that short, but the pilot got us out of the gate and in the air quite quickly! It was rather refreshing. When we landed in DEN, I should have known that the incredibly long taxi was just the tip of an interesting iceberg that was going to soon unfold itself.
I met a friend in DEN. I know him from Minneapolis and he happens to work at DIA. I won't get into too many details, but in summary, we toured at least four different elevators, checked out a few stairwells (I understand what this sounds like, but here's what really happened), had a fiasco with a moving sidewalk, and iphone image searched the "possessed" horse at the entrance to DIA…you know, as opposed to actually going and looking at it ourselves. Needless to say, a better layover than I otherwise would have had!
Getting on the plane from DEN to LAX…oh god, I should have just turned around then. First off, I saw the ugliest baby I've ever seen. Straight out of Wicked and your favorite goblin movie, this kid would one day need serious help. He had the hiccups shortly after, and who can't just love a kid with the hiccups!? BUT THEN his dad let him start jumping on his tray table…the table that was connected to MY chair! Ugly baby, may hope be with you!! The plane continued with not getting out of the gate on time because the safety video wouldn't play (and all of us having to listen to the exact same line over and over), needed to be rerouted because of thunderstorms, which caused us to taxi all the way across DEN (which, as my friend had just told me, is an INCREDIBLY large airport), and then there was extremely violent turbulence. I was happy to land in LAX!
LAX to SYD was nothing special. It was a long, long, long flight. I had the seat next to me open, but a man along the window. He was Persian, and one of the first things he said to me was "If you want to put your feet on me to sleep, you're more than welcome to." Um. Thanks bud, but no thanks. My word of advice though is that if you're ever flying to Australia, fly QANTAS. United just is no where near the par that QANTAS is. I'm almost disappointed for my flight home, but whatever.
So far we've had a walking tour of the neighborhood that our apartment complex is in. Surry Hills (a joining district) has tons of restaurants and little boutiques. We headed over to Trinity Bar in Surry Hills last night. I had a delicious BLT on Turkish Bread (they really do love their Turkish Bread over here). After that we decided to head to the grocery store for some food for the apartment. Hilarity did not ensure.
First off, boy am I happy I drink soy milk! A gallon of milk is $5 and a 16oz box of fruit loops is $5.50! OUCH! Soy milk is the same price that it is at home, which is at least familiar to me and I'm used to paying that much. Bananas are about $4.00/kg, as opposed to $.80/lb back home, so bananas are going to be scarce for the next seven weeks. Food just seems to be quite expensive here, and our $45 a week stipend doesn't go far.
One of the coolest things so far about Sydney is the buses!! In Minneapolis, only one person can get on the bus at the time. If there's a long line, it takes quite a bit for the bus to get going. HOWEVER, in Sydney, bus riders can form two separate, side by side lines to board the bus and two people can pay at the same time! It makes the time the bus is stopped much shorter, and (Mike, you'll be so happy about this) PEOPLE ACTUALLY GET OFF AT THE REAR EXIT INSTEAD OF WALKING TO THE FRONT!! It's so much more fluid and flows much more nicely than Minneapolis buses.
The trip started off quite uneventful. MSP to DEN, one of the smoothest/quickest flights I've been on. Not that the air time was all that short, but the pilot got us out of the gate and in the air quite quickly! It was rather refreshing. When we landed in DEN, I should have known that the incredibly long taxi was just the tip of an interesting iceberg that was going to soon unfold itself.
I met a friend in DEN. I know him from Minneapolis and he happens to work at DIA. I won't get into too many details, but in summary, we toured at least four different elevators, checked out a few stairwells (I understand what this sounds like, but here's what really happened), had a fiasco with a moving sidewalk, and iphone image searched the "possessed" horse at the entrance to DIA…you know, as opposed to actually going and looking at it ourselves. Needless to say, a better layover than I otherwise would have had!
Getting on the plane from DEN to LAX…oh god, I should have just turned around then. First off, I saw the ugliest baby I've ever seen. Straight out of Wicked and your favorite goblin movie, this kid would one day need serious help. He had the hiccups shortly after, and who can't just love a kid with the hiccups!? BUT THEN his dad let him start jumping on his tray table…the table that was connected to MY chair! Ugly baby, may hope be with you!! The plane continued with not getting out of the gate on time because the safety video wouldn't play (and all of us having to listen to the exact same line over and over), needed to be rerouted because of thunderstorms, which caused us to taxi all the way across DEN (which, as my friend had just told me, is an INCREDIBLY large airport), and then there was extremely violent turbulence. I was happy to land in LAX!
LAX to SYD was nothing special. It was a long, long, long flight. I had the seat next to me open, but a man along the window. He was Persian, and one of the first things he said to me was "If you want to put your feet on me to sleep, you're more than welcome to." Um. Thanks bud, but no thanks. My word of advice though is that if you're ever flying to Australia, fly QANTAS. United just is no where near the par that QANTAS is. I'm almost disappointed for my flight home, but whatever.
So far we've had a walking tour of the neighborhood that our apartment complex is in. Surry Hills (a joining district) has tons of restaurants and little boutiques. We headed over to Trinity Bar in Surry Hills last night. I had a delicious BLT on Turkish Bread (they really do love their Turkish Bread over here). After that we decided to head to the grocery store for some food for the apartment. Hilarity did not ensure.
First off, boy am I happy I drink soy milk! A gallon of milk is $5 and a 16oz box of fruit loops is $5.50! OUCH! Soy milk is the same price that it is at home, which is at least familiar to me and I'm used to paying that much. Bananas are about $4.00/kg, as opposed to $.80/lb back home, so bananas are going to be scarce for the next seven weeks. Food just seems to be quite expensive here, and our $45 a week stipend doesn't go far.
One of the coolest things so far about Sydney is the buses!! In Minneapolis, only one person can get on the bus at the time. If there's a long line, it takes quite a bit for the bus to get going. HOWEVER, in Sydney, bus riders can form two separate, side by side lines to board the bus and two people can pay at the same time! It makes the time the bus is stopped much shorter, and (Mike, you'll be so happy about this) PEOPLE ACTUALLY GET OFF AT THE REAR EXIT INSTEAD OF WALKING TO THE FRONT!! It's so much more fluid and flows much more nicely than Minneapolis buses.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Preparation...complete?
I leave my apartment in 15 hours. This trip will single handed-ly triple the maximum length of time I have be away from home at once. Nine weeks without my plants, without my bed, without my car, without my parents, without Rae Rae, without slow Minnesota drivers, without a same-old same-old daily routine. While that may sound absolutely terrible, I. Cannot. Wait. I am going to learn so much and experience so many new things. Sounds wonderful.
With that, my car has been tucked in, my plants' water has been changed, I have eaten through all perishable food (the current contents of my fridge, excluding condiments: Salsa, butter, Crisco), emptied the garbage, and have written three months worth of checks for bills (OUCH!). In t-minus 17 hours I will take off, and in t-minus 41 hours I will land in Sydney, Australia, for round two of a life down under.
*sigh* That's a darn long plane ride...
With that, my car has been tucked in, my plants' water has been changed, I have eaten through all perishable food (the current contents of my fridge, excluding condiments: Salsa, butter, Crisco), emptied the garbage, and have written three months worth of checks for bills (OUCH!). In t-minus 17 hours I will take off, and in t-minus 41 hours I will land in Sydney, Australia, for round two of a life down under.
*sigh* That's a darn long plane ride...
Friday, May 15, 2009
And Oh What an Adventure it will Be!
This summer I have been given the amazing opportunity to travel to Sydney, Australia to experience an international fashion internship. The program is through the Learning Abroad Center with the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, and operates very similarly to a study abroad experience, except I will be interning instead of going to class.
To remain in line with my interests, CAPA (the company that puts on the program) found two separate internships. The first, and then one I will be at primarily, is with Adam Worling PR . I'm unsure yet what exactly I will be doing, but the client list is rather impressive (Geoffrey Beane, Rock n' Republic jeans, Biore skin products, Bebe Sydney, etc.) and I'm very excited for it. The second internship that I will be partaking in is with Anna Ho World of Fashion (1 day a week). With Anna Ho I will be able to gain experience tailoring made-t0-measure suits, as well as business operations. There is no website for Anna Ho, so I'm a little more hesitant about this internship. Nonetheless, it will be an amazing experience!
Our housing is going to be absolutely phenomenal! There are two types of housing in Sydney - really cheap backpacker housing, or really nice temporary business housing. Australia students tend to rent apartments instead of move into dorms, so there are no dorms for us to stay in. I highly recommend following the link to a brochure!
Lastly, to get things started, I've created a Google Map with significant points highlighted that are of importance to me (for instance, housing, school, work, etc.), put it all in relation to the Opera House, and have slapped a place on the map that I'd like to see while I'm out there (there will be more to come)!
Now, the trip to Australia is from May 25 to July 11. I am flying back through LAX and, after realizing that I don't have a job when I came back, learned that one of my friends is going to be going on a road trip from LA to MN, leaving right around the time that I'm flying through LAX. Being jobless, there is no real point in returning to Minneapolis with such haste, so instead of continuing on to Minneapolis, I will be leaving the LA airport and going on a road trip with a friend of mine! I will be back in Minneapolis by July 25, but fully intend to finally see the Northwest!
The places we have planned to see are (in visiting order), starting from LA: the Honda Civic Musical Road, Bryce Canyon, Yosemite National Park, the California Redwoods, Yaquina Head (one of Oregon's beautiful light houses), Multnomah Falls, Glacier National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and the South Dakota Badlands!
Oddly enough, and not planned to be as such, our path resembles the profile of a Scottish Terrier! Below is a rough outline of how we we will be going. Nearly 5,000 miles, baby! Ai caramba!
View Larger Map
Anyway, it will be an amazing summer full of adventures and exciting experiences. Please feel free to follow me on my adventures by checking back sporatically. I hope you all have a wonderful and safe summer and I will see you when I return!
To remain in line with my interests, CAPA (the company that puts on the program) found two separate internships. The first, and then one I will be at primarily, is with Adam Worling PR . I'm unsure yet what exactly I will be doing, but the client list is rather impressive (Geoffrey Beane, Rock n' Republic jeans, Biore skin products, Bebe Sydney, etc.) and I'm very excited for it. The second internship that I will be partaking in is with Anna Ho World of Fashion (1 day a week). With Anna Ho I will be able to gain experience tailoring made-t0-measure suits, as well as business operations. There is no website for Anna Ho, so I'm a little more hesitant about this internship. Nonetheless, it will be an amazing experience!
Our housing is going to be absolutely phenomenal! There are two types of housing in Sydney - really cheap backpacker housing, or really nice temporary business housing. Australia students tend to rent apartments instead of move into dorms, so there are no dorms for us to stay in. I highly recommend following the link to a brochure!
Lastly, to get things started, I've created a Google Map with significant points highlighted that are of importance to me (for instance, housing, school, work, etc.), put it all in relation to the Opera House, and have slapped a place on the map that I'd like to see while I'm out there (there will be more to come)!
Now, the trip to Australia is from May 25 to July 11. I am flying back through LAX and, after realizing that I don't have a job when I came back, learned that one of my friends is going to be going on a road trip from LA to MN, leaving right around the time that I'm flying through LAX. Being jobless, there is no real point in returning to Minneapolis with such haste, so instead of continuing on to Minneapolis, I will be leaving the LA airport and going on a road trip with a friend of mine! I will be back in Minneapolis by July 25, but fully intend to finally see the Northwest!
The places we have planned to see are (in visiting order), starting from LA: the Honda Civic Musical Road, Bryce Canyon, Yosemite National Park, the California Redwoods, Yaquina Head (one of Oregon's beautiful light houses), Multnomah Falls, Glacier National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and the South Dakota Badlands!
Oddly enough, and not planned to be as such, our path resembles the profile of a Scottish Terrier! Below is a rough outline of how we we will be going. Nearly 5,000 miles, baby! Ai caramba!
View Larger Map
Anyway, it will be an amazing summer full of adventures and exciting experiences. Please feel free to follow me on my adventures by checking back sporatically. I hope you all have a wonderful and safe summer and I will see you when I return!
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