To the land of Oz

I’m here. I arrived yesterday after a 4 hour long plane ride and let me tell you it was worth it. It is incredible. We landed at about noon and then it took 45 minutes to get through security, get our bags and go through customs. I didn’t want to “declare” anything when entering the country because then I’d have to go through quarantine but when I walked up to get my passport stamped the worker saw the bracelet I made in the village and made me go through quarantine anyways because it was plant. Outrageous. When I got to quarantine and told them why I was there they just laughed. Not the way I wanted to start a relationship with Australia but it made up for that extra time it took when I walked outside and realized I was in Australia.

I love it here. I was getting a little homesick but since Australia is so similar to the states it definitely helped. They have Target, Ben & Jerry’s and Borders bookstore. The people are so friendly, and have a great sense of humor. The “Macquarie Village Center” is across campus (about a 15-20 minute walk) and the best way I can describe it is a mall mixed with Grocery Stores on acid. There are 4 levels, but each level has a ½ level. There is a Target on the bottom floor, a “BigW” (Australia’s version of walmart) on the 2nd floor, a Woolworth’s (like Albertsons) on the 3rd floor and a movie theater on the 4th floor. Or something like that. Then there are tons of department stores. TONS of food places. Regular mall stores. Kid stores. Dollar stores. Book stores. Electronic stores. Literally anything you would need is in this center. I wish they had that in America. I’ve only been here for about 30 hours and it’s already Australia-1 United States-0. This center would put Mall of America to shame. The only negative thing is the fact that pretty much everything closes at 5:30 except on Thursdays and everything closes at 9.

We walked to the mall yesterday but I didn’t buy sheets because we ran out of town and I thought it’d be easier to just buy them from the Villages I’m staying in. When I went in to buy the sheets I found out they are poor quality and WAY over priced. I tried to go back to the center but it was pasted 5:30 so everything was closed! I ended up sleeping on top of the skirt I had to wear in Fiji, with a small throw I bought just incase, and I filled one of my purses with dirty clothes and used it as a pillow. Nothing something I ever want to do again. Pictures will be up soon.

I was able to sign up for internet last night but it’s based off how much you use, not monthly so I can’t upload tons of pictures because it will drain my usage. I’m pretty bummed about that but there is free wifi on campus I’ll be able to upload pictures whenever I go on campus (5 minute walk). I can’t really look at facebook because that drains the usage too. I literally only get online if I need to see something and not just to waste time. I guess that will be good for school and my social life. Even when I write blogs I have to do it in word and then transfer it over to my blog website so it doesn’t use up my time. That’s a little frustrating, but I’m just going to need to set up a schedule to skype with people so I’m not just sitting on skype.

Besides all that, the village I live in is great! It’s huge and I get my own bathroom! Lots of fun. I wish I could decorate it but the only option I have is hanging up sheets or posters that I’ll be able to bring back to the states! Today during orientation I was already thinking about how I could pitch it to all my family and friends that we all need to move here. It is truly a love place. Not only that but it has a great vibe going around. All of the other villages have parties all the time that people just walk right in to. Everyone leaves their door open and people will just walk in and start talking to you. Love it. I had to have a serious brainstorming session and I decided I at least need to go back to the states to finish school. Haha, I’m sure if I could I would just stay here forever. It’s crazy to admit that because I love Texas so much, but Australia is just so incredible.

We finally got cell phones today! The only numbers in my phone are the numbers of the people in the AIFS program, it’s sort of comical. We’re almost like a cult! They ran out of the $29 phones so I had to buy the $79 one! So expensive! But worth it. It has a walking GPS on it so if I get lost (which will happen daily) I’ll be able to find my way back. Also, I’ll have this phone for 5 months so I’d like to be able to check my email and get the most out of it. Most of the people that got the $29 phones are regretting it because it literally only calls and texts. I’d consider it a win-win. There will be a meeting on Thursday about finding a job and I’m definitely going to that since EVERYTHING is so much more expensive here. Although, I did find a bike for $98 and I know I could sell it to someone on Craigslist when I leave so I’d love it if I could do that!

So that’s pretty much my life in Australia so far. Pictures are posted here Album 1, Album 2, Album 3 & Album 4

Tomorrow, tomorrow I’ll be there tomorrow

Went to an Eco-Park aka Fijian Zoo today! It was fun, but long and tiring. Especially after all the dancing last night. I fell asleep the entire way to the Park (about 2 hours) so I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little grumpy while walking around in the heat. The first thing we saw were turtle and I love turtles. I was pumped to get to see them, but then I heard our tour guide say that they live 100 years but they only live in the zoo for 3 or 4 and then they release them into the wild. I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know much about turtles but I do know a 1 thing for sure. You can’t take in a turtle and then release it into the wild because it wont be able to survive on its own after it’s had it’s food handed to it. I know this because when I found out my turtle will live until he is 45 I looked into another living situation…like “freeing” it. Not a possibility. With a mixture of my grumpiness and little knowledge of turtles I asked the tour guide if that was safe to release it. He said it was and they give it one month “training” to fend for itself. I’m not buying it. The other animals were cool but we all felt like it was a waste of time since we were starving, tired and just wanted to go to the hotel in Nadi.

Once we finished up the eco-park we went to a hotel and ate a little lunch. Very good. They gave us some ice cream for dessert and I was very pleased.

We hit the road again and stopped at this Hindu temple to have another tour. It was pretty interesting. Hinduism is one religion I really know nothing about so it was a good learning experience. They have a lot of gods. It made me really glad to only have one God.

After the temple we finally made it back to the hotel. Everyone pulled out their computers right when we got off the bus so the internet was so slow! We had, had enough of the hotel food so we ordered pizza. In reality it was probably horrible but we missed American food so much that while we were eating it we thought it was the best pizza in the world. After pizza we watched these fire dancers, and it wasn’t the lame kind you see in the States. Fire dancing is life for certain tribes. It was out of this world. When the dancing was over Shelby (one of my roommates from the homestay) and I watched Across the Universe. The little reminders of America always warm my soul.

I can’t believe that I will be in Sydney tomorrow. I won’t have to live out of a suitcase anymore. I’ll finally have a home. I’ll have reliable internet. A cell phone. Don’t get me wrong it’s been great to take a break from technology, but I’m excited for structure in my life again. 5:50 am tomorrow I will be on my flight to Sydney! I can’t believe it’s here.

Club Fiji

So tonight was our last night in Suva. 3 words. Crazy crazy crazy.

The day started with a trip to a random waterfall. Ta took us in his hardcore truck and we stayed there for 2 hours! We played on this rope swing and explored the area until Ta picked us up at 2 pm. On the way home Ta dropped us off in “town” and we met up with our sister to shop and walk around until we were satisfied. When we got back to the house we found out that our water got shut off and none of us could take showers which was a little sad at first since we’d been playing in the lake all day but we got over it pretty quickly when we remembered how lucky we were to be in Fiji. Our of nowhere our host family came in and gave us gifts to remind us “not only of them but of Fiji and our home there”. We waiting until the last minute before our big dinner with all the host families to see if we could shower but the water didn’t come back on in time. Instead we made our families jello shots and they loved them! We ended up being an hour late for the dinner but it wasn’t a huge deal because we were on “Fiji Time” (which is late. Always.)

We finally made it to dinner and one of the families asked us to sing a song for our families so naturally we chose "hot and cold" by Katy perry. Great impression of Americans.

After dinner we went to a club called Liquids and danced until the songs got old. When we got tired of Liquids we made our way to a club called O'Rileys and danced more. We finally left around 2 am and grabbed a taxi to get home. While driving home we saw some police (the first police we'd seen the entire trip!) and ended up getting pulled over! We had no idea why until the driver told us we had too many people in the cab and he was getting fined $100. He was so mad at us but I clearly informed him that he could have refused us when we got in the car in the first place! We finally made it home and ended up paying extra for the cab since he managed to keep the meter running while he was being pulled over. My head finally hit the pillow at 3 am, just in time to get 6 hours of sleep before the bus left for Nadi at 8! Successful night.

The Village People

Today we went to a Village. Like a legit, village. Self-sustaining. Village school. Village village. We were so lucky that they opened their way of life to us but it happened to land on a day after a night of dancing (surprise, surprise) so everyone was dead tired. And I mean dead tired. I wish the village would have lasted a few hours but it started around 10 and ended at 5 so we did a lot of sitting around and waiting. They were on Fiji Time which meant they were late for pretty much everything. Our lunch was 2 hours late and I think this is when culture shock really started hitting me. They didn’t have any vegetarian food, I was tired and hungry. They kept giving me Kava which literally tasted like dirt. I missed my family and friends. I missed how easy my life was back home.

Obviously I realize how lucky I was to experience Village life. I knew culture shock would hit me I just didn’t know when. I worked through it, especially when I realized I was experiencing culture shock and things were going to be okay. The Village people ended the night with a farewell dance and this man asked me for my number. No that wasn’t a mistype, it was a MAN. He was probably in his 60’s but he told me he wanted to move to America for me. He kept asking for my address for when he was moving to “be with me”. Crazy ending to a weird day. When I got home I took a 3 hour nap just in time for dinner and a relaxing night!

Scary Suva

Made it to the homestay! The family is awesome. Truly couldn't ask for a better situation. My Na and Ta (Mom and Dad) are caterers so clearly they can cook. My roommate from Nadi, Fiji is also my roommate here (probably because she is gluten-free) so it's great that I have a familiar face! When we first got to Suva (where we are now) we participated in a traditional Fijian welcome ceremony where we drank Kava. Pretty crazy since Kava is pretty much like a drug (it makes your tounge numb and gives you a small buzz but if you drink too much you act wasted!) after our instructors gave us the kava we meet our Na and she took us back to our house for the week.

I can't say this enough, the house is incredible. The four of us are staying in their guest house where we have a kitchen, bathroom, living room and two bedrooms with two beds each.

Dinner was out of this world. Ta made me an omlet that words cannot describe, then there was cooked potatos and carrots, green beans, bread, salad and chocolate cake! We had some family time after dinner but then they let us go to bed since we have an early morning and we had done the sanddoons that day.

Now's the scary part. You see the guest house doesn't have locks on the doors so the trouble started when Sasha and I were telling stories and we heard someone walk in. Or we think we did. We decided there is no way both of us could have imagined it. So we sat as still as we could for ten minutes. During this time we heard footsteps breathing and creaks in the floor! Finally we got up the nerve to go and see if anything was there. Wgen sasha turned on the light it flikered for a good 2 minutes before turning on. We were living out a horror movie. It turned out to be just us and our snoring roommates. Regardless. So scary. We decided to play a movie on my computer until it died. Movie of choice? Cats and dogs. Only seconds after it started ALL the neighborhood dogs started going crazy. Barking and carrying on. Oops. But hilarious and a perfect end to a scary night.

Bula!

Fiji is awesome. We arrived Saturday morning, went to breakfast where they had so much fruit to eat (on top of also having cereal, toast, etc). I took a shower after breakfast and made my way to the lounge where there is internet. Way too many people were using it though and it wouldn't work for me. Sad. Around 10:30 we had a "orientation briefing" where we found out that every island we are going to this weekend is giving us free everything. Free food, free transportation, free alcohol, free free free. Soon after the meeting let out a huge group of us went to "town". We took a city bus which cost 1 Fiji Dollar (about 55 american cents) and that ended up being an experience in itself. Number one, usually the bus doesn't spot for you unless there are more then one getting on. They literally just slow down and expect you to JUMP in. The door remains open the entire time and he floors it once your on, leaving you unbalanced. Back to explaining "town"... I wish there was an american equivalence. But words can not describe this place (don't worry I took tons of pictures). They had a HUGE fresh food market and while we were walking through everyone was so nice to us! Pretty much everyone says "Bula" when they see you which means "greetings" or "best wishes". It a fun thing to see all the citizens just embrace people of another culture.

Anyways, after we made it through the market we went to these little stands where people had jewelry (some handmade, some not). Kind of like 1 Monday, or a "trade-days" type thing. We decided to meet back in 15 minutes but I was talking to a women who owned a store and the next time I turned around everyone was gone. I started freaking out a little bit since I was in another country all by myself and completely clueless as to where the busses were but after a few minutes I saw my roommate and I ran to her side. We were kind of about being left by the group but we found tons of stuff to do and forgot about it soon after. We asked this guy to show us where the busses were and he took us to his hut/store (which was close to the busses) and he said he wanted to do a Fijian Ceremony for us. So we took off our shoes, entered his hut and he said some words in his native tongue. Then we had to clap a few times, and he said some words of encouragement and wished us a good journey. He started mixing together water and this herb that all natural called Kava (you should look it up here, Kava). We politely declined since we can't drink the water here and even though he was a little upset he understood. After that adventure we found our way back on a bus, came back to the hotel and hung out until dinner. We also found out a bunch of other people were stopped and asked to try Kava, regardless it was still a cool experience.

After dinner we decided to go out to celebrate my roommates 21st birthday! We went to this club called "Lou Lous" and I had a cosmo! My first legal alcoholic beverage! We met these New Zealand people who were around our age and they were awesome! Told us what to look out for and where to visit. The bar we were at was on an island where all the resorts were so it was very americanized and when they closed the bartenders/workers told us they wanted to take us to a "real club". It was a hot mess. They made it seem that they were going to be driving us there but we had to get a cab. Then they made it seem like they were going to pay for the cab but when we got to the club we had to pay the $25 ourselves! While waiting to get in they asked if one of us would pay for them to get in which was $5 so (since they made it seem like they were going to buy us drinks) we spotted them the money. We get inside and Rocco (one of the other students who was pretty drunk from the first bar) opened a tab and before we knew it they were putting things on his tab and then giving us the drinks making it seem like they were buying us the drinks. We got a little tired of it...plus it smelled horrible (like armpits) so we decided to get a cab back to the hotel around 2 am. Rocco tried to close his tab and pay for it when he found out that it was going to be around $400! He asked the bartender how much that was in American dollars and they said $400! He then asked how much that was in Fiji dollars and we found out it was around $900! He card was declined (since it was so much in a foreign country) so they let him pay $100 cash. Regardless it was a mess. We couldn't believe how used we got by the locals!

Sasha (my roommate) and I finally went to bed around 3 am to get to sleep for the next day.

We woke up and had breakfast in the hotel, which was disgusting, but then we got on a bus to head to our own ISLAND. It was out-of-control-incredible. The island was very small and we could do whatever we wanted! We went on a glass bottom boat and saw some underwater life that cameras couldn't capture. The alcohol on the island was free so I had a small glass of wine with my lunch. We played a little volleyball but then Rocco and I decided to go Kayaking! I had a lot of wine left in my glass but we had to go right then so naturally I chugged it. (oops!) We get out life jackets on and headed out into the ocean! After a few minutes I wanted to make sure Rocco knew what we were doing so I asked him what we were suppose to do next. To my surprise he had never kayaked before. So now I'm a little buzzed, never been on a kayak with another pretty buzzed person who'd never been on a kayak. We say this guy who looked like Gin from LOST on a kayak pretty far away who was very good at kayaking so we thought we'd try to catch up with him. We changed our minds and tried to make it to this boat where some of our friends were diving off but when we looked back at the island we realized we were really far away. Too far. Both of us started freaking out so much. We tried to turn around but since neither one of us had ever been in a kayak it was a mess of a situation. We finally get a stride going back to the island and to my horror I hear Rocco shout "WE'RE SINKING". I look behind me and half of the kayak is under water. We try cupping the water with our hands and splashing it our with our hands but nothing seemed to be working. We finally saw shore and rowed as fast as we could. We ended up rowing right into rocks and got really stuck.We were walking distance from the island but there was coral all over the rocks and we couldn't just walk on the coral. We started screaming for help but everyone was just laughing at us. It was very traumatic. Oh and we saw a baby shark. Finally someone came out and saved us. Apparently throughout the day the kayak-insides had filled with water which caused to to sink. It started raining (like it does everyday) and we played with my waterproof camera.

We went back to the mainland and got ready then took a taxi to Hard Rock cafe to get REAL food and had another birthday celebration for my roommate. All in all, good day.

I hopped off the plane at LAX...and then the drama started

The plane from Dallas to LA was awesome. I got a motion sickness patch and it did wonders. I've never felt so good while traveling. On top of that they played 30 rock. The only issue I had was the fact that I didn't pee before we left and the whole flight I couldn't stop think about how much I had to pee. It was killing me. The flight was about 3 hours and I didn't go until we had 30 minutes left. Too long. We had some more turbulence then usual but because of the miracle patch I was fine!

Once we got to LAX things started to fall apart. It's no wonder why Hollywood is here. (so much drama!) First we had to physically leave the airport in order to find our airlines. Once we found air pacific we had to wait in a 45 minute line just to find out that we had to wait in another 45 minute line to pay. Pay what you ask? Well they decided to add a random baggage charge of $115. No one told us about this in advance. We were told our baggage was free. Some people had to pay as much as $300 for their luggage. When we finally got through, we had to go through international security. When we finally got to the part where we were going to push our stuff through the machines the alarm went off and everyone had to stop and wait 15 minutes. Once we got through security we ran to our flight which was now 45 minutes behind schedule. I guess they didn't want to start 'er up because when we got inside the plane it smelled of B.O. and was so hot.

The plane finally took off! The flight attendants brought us dinner and I was so thankful because we didn't know they'd bring us something to eat and we didn't have time to stop during all the chaos. We all got our own tvs and were able to pick what we wanted to watch so that was fun. I watched 13 going on 30 and time really flew by. I waited until 9 pm Fiji time and tried to go to sleep. I never thought I was going to get comfortable though. After about an hour of wiggling around I found a spot and crashed...for a few hours. Around 2:30 am the lights in the airport went on and they served us "breakfast" it looked disgusting and was pretty much 90% meat. I'm usure of what the other 10% was. So I pushed it away and went back to sleep for a few hours. Our flight finally arrived at 5:30am and once we got off the plane we had to find security...it wasn't too hard since there were 400 of us. Once that was over with I had to find my luggage, luckily I found mine! Then we had to go through customs and I accidentally got in the line where you "claim goods" so I ended up claiming my pretzels. Win. Win. Once everyone went through security we all got on a bus with our luggage which took about 30 minutes, drove LITERALLY across the street to the Airport Hotel and unloaded. I like my roommate, but I found out that we are going to have new roommates during our homestay which starts Monday. I'll post more about Fiji later.

So far, so hot.