Over Here!

Psst.... hey!

Hey you guys!

Did you know I've been home for over a year!?  And in that time I managed to get a sweet job doing marketing for McDonald's... and then they closed my office so now I'm back where I was a year ago!?

Oh... you did know that... Ok cool.

Anyways, I'll be chronicling some of my new adventures over here.  Hope to see you there!

Fashion and Food

So! This post marks the last of my roommate vacations with the lovely, and always adventurous, Miss Elisabet Osk Gudmundsdottir. Our last trek was to Melbourne, Victoria. The city itself is know for its food, coffee, obscure night life, and fashion. And, it did not disappoint!!

The trip started with a very early wake up call! Our flight left Gold Coast at 6:00am, and our coach to the airport was coming to pick us up at 3:50am. The day beforehand we had planned to go to bed early, but instead saw a Masters of Hollywood showing of The Great Escape. Some things you can't say no to. The airport was pretty uneventful, and we made it through security by about 4:45. By this time we were STARVING, but I guess the food stores don't open until 5. It was a very long 15 minutes. Once we were on the flight, we settled in for a long nap. Elisabet and I were assigned seats across the aisle from each other, but Elisabet ended up getting an entire row of seats to herself!! By the time I had figured this out, I was half asleep, so I decided to just stay where I was. 2 hours later, and plenty of open mouthed napping, we landed at the

Melbourne Airport.

We are clearly not destined for the amazing race, as we walked around the entire departures area of the airport before we realized that shuttles and cabs are located an entire floor below. Whoops! A short bus ride into the city and then we were there! We only had backpacks for luggage, because we're low maintenance like that, so we decided to just wander around the city, eyeing the sights, things to do our following days, and scope out some delicious eateries. Our first stop was Chinatown, then over to Federation Square. Close to there, we found an amazing cupcake store, and had our first taste of Melbourne. Melbourne is famous for its little alleyway restaurants. We wandered in and out of alley after alley trying to find a place that really spoke to us. We were looking to be inspired... by lunch. Finally, we went to a really great little Thai Place, where we could sit out in the sun, enjoy a nice vacation beer, and eat some really excellent food. Seriously, I will talk about how good the food was in Melbourne multiple times. Prepare for it.

After lunch, it was finally time for us to check into the hotel!! This was pretty exciting for us. People who follow my blog know that I have stayed with Elisabet in: a camper van, a hostel, a boat, a friend's home, the village, BUT we had not yet stayed in a nice hotel. We found this great deal online that included our flights and a stay in a 4.5 star hotel. We were so excited when we discovered we got free robes, a rain shower, Elisabet's name on the TV thanking us for our stay, the option of room service (which we didn't use, but still!). We settled into our robes and rested our weary feet for a bit.

We had a really great dinner at a pop up bar, Babushka. This is a marketing ploy to advertise a new vodka, and the restaurant will only exist for 6 months, as long as the vodka promotion goes on. Their menu is potato based (to match the vodka, which is also potato based). Our food was really great, we each had some of their famous chips, and burgers. I had mini burgers with the most buttery, delicious buns, and homemade aioli, and Elisabet got chicken parm burgers. We also tried their goat cheese, potato, and rosemary pizza. Delicious!

Friday was our big tour of the Carlton Brewery. Beforehand, we headed out to the Bridge Street shopping distract, which was just up from our hotel. This was mostly so I could purchase a pair of closed toed shoes, because I needed some for the tour! Whoops! Once we got the shoes, we headed into the CBD to get some lunch! Delicious again, panini's from a sidewalk cafe. The brewery tour was pretty informative, and watching the bottles on the line was a little hypnotic. At the end of the tour, we each got to pick 4 beers to try. I tried Carlton Dry, Carlton Black, Fosters (my first taste of this iconic Australian Beer!) and Cascade Light. After the

tasting, the tour guides wheeled out a bunch of costumes, and Elisabet and I went to town. They also said we could pull our own beers. So I asked "Can I pour my own beer wearing the beer costume?" And, as you can see, that is exactly what happened (and the beer was Victoria Bitter, in case anyone is wondering). Elisabet got to pour her own cider, and like many things we undertake, proved to be much more adept at it than I am. We headed back into the CBD for a little snack, and then back to the hotel to relax a little before the night.

We decided to go to Mamasita's for dinner, and this was the best decision we made all trip. Seriously, I cannot stop singing the praises of this restaurant! The staff was amazing. So friendly, and funny! We got this waiter named Eddie, who promptly told us we HAD to try the street corn, because it was the best corn in the world. I can tell you that he was not kidding! This corn was one of the most amazing things I have ever eaten in my life. I will dream about this corn. This is the corn they serve in heaven. The rest of the food did not disappoint as well. Quesadillas with the freshest ingredients I have ever tasted, handmade salsa and guacamole, and the most delicious take on an apple fritter! It was fantastic. Our excellent waiter also provided us some guidance to tackle the maze of Melbourne nightlife. His first stop on our list? Madame Brussels.

Madame Brussels is a lounge that is set up like an English garden party. The floor is artificial grass, the furniture is antique and cosy, and the drinks are tea based. We had an earl grey peach iced tea drink that was "splendid." After that we headed to the Carlton Club, an indie-ish bar that plays more 90's or alternative music (think Phoenix) than top 40. The place is full of quirky charm, included a huge giraffe, and ostrich wearing multiple pearl necklaces. We ended up sitting on the rooftop patio, and had a really great night.

We were up and out of the hotel by 10:45, not wanting to squander any of our last day in Melbourne. We took the tram (such better public transportation than Gold Coast) to the train station and got a locker for our backpacks.

Then we had a small breakfast, and met up with our next tour: a Chocolate Walking tour of Melbourne. I'm not lying when I say we only take tours about food and drinks... The guide was so adorable, and a true chocoholic (maybe a future career Steph?). We got to see a lot of older, art deco Melbourne buildings and eat some truly delicious treats. We had truffles, macaroons, liquid chocolate, hazelnut chocolate, pralines, ice cream, muffins, and at one of our last stops we got the ever popular Lindt chocolate balls. The funny thing about this Lindt staple? In Canada we only have around 4 flavours, but here they had 16. Flavours I hadn't seen before? Peanut Butter, Raspberry, Orange, Peppermint, and a whole handful of others! After the tour, we headed into the shopping area to look around a little more before we had to hit the airport.

So, now I'm home, and very tired from our whirlwind weekend away. I can't believe my last trip before the family comes has passed by now! There are still plenty of things Elisabet and I want to do in Gold Coast before she heads back to Iceland for Christmas, but I just can't believe how quickly time is going by!

Holidays?

I know it's been forever since I posted, and for that I am sorry! I have been really under it lately with assignments. For the most part, I have been just living regular day to day life, a few trips to the beach here and there, doing homework, practicing some experimental cooking, you know, the usual.

Time is starting to wind down, and as of right now I have 6 more weeks of school, and 9 more assignments and tests left to go. This semester has been a lot more assignment heavy than the last, which means less adventuring for me. Not to worry though, I'm heading to Melbourne in 10 days, and will hopefully have plenty to say about that. Very excited for that little excursion!

We were on break from Uni for the last week, and it was needed. I did relax a little, enjoyed a

friend's birthday, and went to Brisbane last Friday for Santos City of Lights. It was a pretty cool laser light show over the river, and afterwards we had dinner in South Bank, and then rode on the Brisbane wheel. I've spent a lot of this break working on homework, getting a bit ahead on my assignments to make sure I'm in a good position moving forward.

I'm sorry I haven't written much, for those of you who have been reading. Things have been pretty regular and mundane lately, which makes for subpar blog posts. I'll try to do better next time!

Back to work!

So, it's the end of week 3 of school, and I have been pretty busy so far! I am trying to really tackle this semester with everything I have, because I think after this, I may be done with school for good. We'll see though, I said that last time.

I am busy with lots of projects, including an extracurricular project, the Griffith Innovation Challenge. I work with a group of 3 other people to create a business plan. If we win, we'll get to split $15,000. My group is a lot of fun, and I think we actually have a shot.

My other projects are coming along nicely, although I am avoiding doing schoolwork right now to write this blog post. Even though it may be the most boring post in the history of the internet, I just want to let my 2 followers know that I am doing alright.

Canada is calling, and I'll be in its freezing grasp in less than 5 months. Time is flying by! 10 more weeks of classes left, then 3 weeks in the exam period, and 4 months till my family is here for a blistering hot Christmas! Life is good.

First Day of Classes

So, first day of classes was today. I woke up on time, got to class a few minutes early to find out that class is cancelled. What kind of university am I going to? Oh well, will try again tonight with my 6:00pm class. Instead, I went to bu y my textbooks. Everyone was super helpful, and the bookstore ladies did all the leg work for me, and all I had to do was pay.

Oh yeah, I forgot that is the painful part. $576 dollars later I had a brand new canvas bag full of knowledge. Let's hope it's worth it!

The land of the Kiwis

My roommate, Elisabet, and I ventured out of Gold Coast for an excursion to the land of Lord of the Rings, New Zealand. We decided to stay on the south island, as that is a little less populated, and housed 2 very exciting things: a Cadbury Factory,and Bungy Jumping.

We landed late in Christchurch, and took a shuttle to stay at our first exciting locale: Jailhouse Hostel. The entire hostel is built into an old prison, and is rumoured to be haunted. If there were any ghosts, I missed them, as I passed out quickly after our arrival, I was pretty tired.

Early the next morning we were off to pick up our camper van, our hotel and transportation for the trip. We affectionately named her "Dolly," taking into consideration the copious amounts of sheep we would see on our travels. We spent the first day stocking Dolly with groceries, and treated ourselves to a great brunch at an "American Style" breakfast place. My pancakes were amazing, and Elisabet's breakfast burrito was a sight to behold. Because Christchurch has been hit by so many earthquakes, driving through it was a tedious task, and a lot of the city itself has been closed down. We checked into our campground for the evening and had a quiet night, settling into the camper, and learning how everything inside of it works.

We decided next to drive to Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park. My mentor, who is from New Zealand, told me this is a must see, so we added it to our itinerary. The problem, however, was that through the pouring rain, there wasn't much we could see. What we did see was plenty of cows, sheep, and a pig farm, and an inkling of great scenery, beyond the fog we were surrounded by. There is a lake similar to lake Louise that we stopped at, Lake Tekapo, although the rain was falling so hard, it was difficult to appreciate its beauty. On the road there were 3 cars including us, and the 2 that were in front of us ended up getting into an accident when one car missed its turn and decided to slam on its brakes, on a highway, getting rear-ended by the camper van behind it. Due to some quick thinking, and excellent evasive driving skills, Elisabet quickly swerved the cars, narrowly avoiding a 3 car pile up. It was then we knew we had made the right decision purchasing the extra insurance. Insurance is NOT compulsory in New Zealand, and had we got in an accident, we would've had to pay it all. Not good.

When we reached Aoraki, it was clear that the New Zealanders can't handle a little rain; the entire town was deserted! We found a self serve gas pump that were were in dire need of, only to discover it did not take any of our cards. We had to climb the slushy hill up to the hotel that ran the gas pump to finally get a bit of gas in our car. We had originally planned to camp at Mount Cook, and look around a little, as it was only 1pm when we arrived, however, due to the sleet that was now falling, there was little to see. We decided to soldier on, and after eating lunch in a grocery store parking lot, like the classy ladies we are, we drove to Omarama for the night, and both marveled at how much the snow made us feel like we were at home.

After a freezing cold shower in the campground bathrooms, we packed up and headed to Oamaru. We were first delayed by mass of sheep crossing the road, and then a quick stop on the highway to do an homage to Lord of the Rings ("You Shall Not Pass!"). We spent the afternoon touring the Victorian Prescient of Oamaru, and then bought tickets to see the Blue Penguin Colony return from sea at dusk. The Penguins have light sensitive eyes, so they spend most of their day underwater, and come back to land in the evenings, when they can see clearly. These adorable little creatures only get to be about 1.5kg maximum, and their waddle was so cute. Because this was a wildlife sanctuary, and the animals are light sensitive, I was unable to take pictures, but seeing those little penguins fight the tide, climb up the rocks, and get into the burrows for a long nights rest was really adorable, and something I am so glad I got to do.

We woke up bright and early, and drove 1 and a half hours to Dunedin, arriving right on time for our 9:00am tour of the Cadbury Chocolate factory. We got plenty of free chocolate, Elisabet especially, since the guide had never met anyone from Iceland before. We saw how a variety of different chocolates were made, and 1 ton of chocolate being poured through a waterfall. I was terrified during the waterfall, because, like an idiot, I decided to wear a white sweater that day. I, thankfully, did not end up covered in liquid chocolate. Relief!

After the tour, Elisabet and I drove to see New Zealand's only castle, Larnach Castle. William Larnach made it for his wife, after they settled in New Zealand, and after some very tumultuous family drama, he ended up killing himself. The Castle is now owned by another family, who restored it to its previous glory. It was breathtaking, with unbelievable detail work, especially in the ceilings. The tour had a great, 360 degree view of the cliff face and surrounding Ocean. We then did some walking down to Pilot beach, to see some more wild penguins and seals, then headed into the center of town, known as the Octagon, which is the hub of Dunedin.

Our Sunday itinerary had us heading to Invercargill, near the bottom of the south island. We did have a little car trouble, hit a patch of ice and slipped into the ditch, but some pushing from myself, and 2 helpful guys who stopped, had us out in no time. I did end up a little muddy from the knee down. Upon arriving, we found the majority of shops closed, and the town a little sleepy. We did find a Starbucks, the only open cafe around, and after enjoying some warm drinks found out this was the southern-most Starbucks in the world. Kind of neat! I found out afterwards that it is assumed the northern-most Starbucks is in Alaska. After that we checked into a quiet little campground and had a lazy night, watching hilarious episodes of New Zealand Cops.

This was it, we had made it to "B Day." Being afraid of heights, I think Elisabet was dreading it a bit more than I was. We packed up,and drove from Invercargill straight to the Kawarau Bridge, outside of Queenstown, to prepare to jump 43 meters from the first professional bungy jump in the world. It was excellent, and the free fall felt like flying. The scenery was idyllic, and the snow just added to the excitement. Even better, the guy operating the boat that picks you up at the bottom was from Edmonton. As I hung there upside down, him and I had a nice chat about where we lived in the city, and how he used to work at the West Ed Bungy. Queenstown is very similar to Banff, and the little ski town was busy, as all the recent snow had brought the hills to prime condition.

The next day, following our Bungy adventure, Elisabet and I had planned a Canyon swing from a ledge that overlooks the entire city. We talked to the main office at the bottom of the hill and they told us we were good to go. Upon arriving at the top, however, we found out the Ledge was closed, due to too much snow (what's that?). We found out a lot of local attractions were closed because of the snow, including the ski hills, which blew my mind. The main office apologized for the blunder, and after a refund, the girl pointed us in the direction of Patagonia, an amazing hot chocolate place that has cups of real chocolate, and the spectacular lava cake you see in the picture. After eating all the desert, I realized I was hungry for lunch (whoops!), so we went to Les Alps where I had the bowl of French Onion Soup I had been craving since we entered the chillier temperatures of New Zealand.

After entering a food coma for a few hours, I emerged, and Elisabet and I decided to hit up the town for the evening. We were walking to a bar when we were offered spots on a pub crawl, and figured this would be the best way to see the town, as it pub crawl was run by locals. We ended up at 6 different bars, danced a lot, and overall had a lot of fun!

The next day we relaxed, recovered from the night before, and prepared to wake up early the next morning, as we had to begin making our journey home.

The trip home was massive. We were up at 6:00 am, to clean up the camper, pack up the last of our things, and hit the road. We drove 5 and a half hours, with a few stops, from Queenstown back to Christchurch, and arrived at the rental return station at 1:00 pm. Our flight was set to leave at 3:20 pm, and we got to the airport around 1:30, to discover it had been delayed until 3:50, and the check in wasn't open until 1:50. We sat around, and went back to the line at 1:50 to discover a load of people. The line was around 50 minutes long, and when we got to the front, we discovered the flight had been delayed AGAIN, and wouldn't be leaving until 4:20 pm. We were already exhausted at this point, from our morning of driving, and were not impressed with the news. When we finally got on the plane, we figured we could relax a little. Not likely! We sat in front of 2 of the most out of control children I have ever seen on a plane, and I've been on vacations with Jeff and James ;). I swear, I think my tubes tied themselves while sitting there. They argued for the entire 5 hour flight, and their dad did little to stop this, not even separating the two by sitting in the middle. I usually love kids, and have been on a plane with my sister and newborn niece, who flew like a champ. This was an unfortunate situation.

Once we finally got through customs, it was around 8:00 pm, Gold Coast Time (which is 10:00 pm, New Zealand time.) After 1 and a half hours on the train, and a 10 minute drive in our friend Alana's car, courtesy of Joe (thanks again!), we were finally home.

I've been back for a few days now, and am so glad I got to see everything I did. The drive was beautiful, with great scenery and views Elisabet and I got along great regardless of being in cramped quarters for 10 days. I'll miss Dolly, and the comfort of her heater blowing on my feet all night long, but I am exhausted from the busy days we had on the trip, and excited for some deserved sleep in my own bed. Below is a map outlining our driving routes.

Break Time Adventures

So, I am 2 weeks into my 5 week break, and have been pretty busy. Last Saturday, Elisabet and I went whale watching. It was an early morning for us, and we piled onto the boat, excited to see some of the humpback whales that migrate from Antarctica to have their babies. Apparently they cannot have babies in the cold Antarctica waters as the calves do not have the protective coating of blubber and would freeze instantly. Talk about a shock to the system! Elisabet and I picked someseats on the right side of the boat, and had a feeling we were in prime whale viewing spots. Boy were we wrong! As we pulled away from the docks, the captain announced that while we werefree to move around the boat, they would ensure the boat would be constantly turning, to allow everyone to see the whales from every seat. This turned out to be a lie! Every time we would see a whale on our side of the boat, they would turn it so the people on the left could see. Eventually, most of the people on the boat migrated to sit on the left side to see the whales as wecouldn't from our side. We, however, stupidly stayed in our seats, assuming the boat would be eventually turned. The captain came out to tell us finally that they "weren't going to turn the boat for just 2 people." We had to make our way through the throng of people on the front of the ship, but did finally get some prime spots. We got to see some whales breaching, and a few great tail shots.

Sunday we went to stay with a friend of ours, the beautiful Alana Maxwell. Her family is from a small town in the Sunshine Coast, called Maleny. It is picturesque, and was the perfect break from the day to day hassles of dorm life. The town was gorgeous, and the Maxwell family was so welcoming. We got some amazing meals (pumpkin soup, pork roast, lasagna) and comfy beds to sleep in, and a tour guide who was game for anything. We walked the main streets of Maleny, had a great cup of coffee in Monica's, and relaxed heartily for our first day there. The second day we decided to be a little more adventurous. First we went to the mountainview road lookout to see the Glass House Mountains, then it was off to the big kart track. Although it was her first time, Elisabet was a natural, and I showed just how little I've driven since I've been here, spinning out a total of 4 times... Next we had lunch in

Landsbourough and then drove to Mount Ngungun. The hike was very scenic and entertaining, and at some points a little treacherous. It was all worth it when we go to the top, and saw the mountains much closer, and the rolling valley of Maleny. For our last day, we drove to the Eumundi markets, did some shopping, and had lunch with a few Maleny locals. We had a leisurely drive home, stopping frequently, and finally visiting the local IKEA. I can't wait to go back, to visit the Australian Zoo, and see what else the great little town has to offer.

Finally, yesterday I convinced an Icelandic Viking, an Australian Kangaroo, a Slovenia Sheila, and an American Bro to become honourary Canadians and celebrate my great nation's 144th birthday. We listened to Canadian tunes, I sang the national anthem, we all sang Celine Dion, then we went down to a local bar that had imported a bunch of Canadian specials, including Clamato juice to make caesers. Have you ever tried to explain to someone what Clamato juice is?! Don't, it only results in horrified faces. But, I got them to try it anyways, and according to Ziva, "it tastes like pizza." We also ended up running into a few players of the Gold Coast Blue Tongues hockey team, making Joe and I more excited than we care to admit. The night was lots of fun, I got to meet a bunch of local Canadians, and everyone got home safely.

Now, the next few days will include a lot of relaxing, as I leave for New Zealand on the 5th. I've already booked my bunjy jump, canyon swing, chocolate factory tour, and other fun little adventures. Talk to you soon blog!