Andy's Visit to Australia

After Spring Break, there were only two more weeks until Andy arrived. I had been waiting for his arrival for a few months, so a few more weeks seemed like nothing.

On May 11, Amanda and I hopped on a red eye train to Sydney to pick up the boys. Amanda’s boyfriend, Billy, was visiting during the same time and, ironically, his flight landed within an hour of Andy’s.

I have to admit, I was extremely anxious to see Andy. I was pacing throughout the airport and I had a minor panic attack when his flight wasn’t listed on the screen of arrivals. Like any worried citizen, I marched my way up to guest services and frantically explained that their arrivals needed updated. Turns out I just had the wrong flight number. Oops, my bad.

After an hour of anxiety, Mr. Andy Mohling strolled through the arrival gates and I think I started jumping up and down. Emotions got the best of me and as I went to welcome him to Australia, I started sobbing. Happy tears, of course. Looks like I’m still a giddy little girl.

We immediately caught a train back to Newcastle and spent the rest of the day catching up. That night, we met the whole crew for pizza down by the harbor. It’s a Monday night tradition and Andy was able to meet my newest friends. We only had four days in Newcastle so on Tuesday, we took a long walk around the entire town. I showed him a few of Newcastle’s famous beaches and historic sites, as well as the ‘downtown’ district. On Wednesday, we took a wine tour through the Hunter Valley. Yes, this was my third one. But, as my mother’s daughter, I can assure you that no one can have too much wine. We had a great time and the weather was wonderful for us. I’m proud to say that Andy is now a wine lover and he even dared to take the infamous chili schnapps shot – which leaves your tongue and throat on fire.

  

After the wine tour, we had a few hours to eat and get ourselves ready. Our apartment is known to throw great parties and we had a special one planned for Wednesday. Here in Australia, boxed wine (known as goon) is rather popular with the college students. For $12, you can get 4 liters of wine. For that kind of money, you can stomach the unpleasant taste. Wednesday night, we threw a ‘sack race’ party and goon was the only type of alcohol allowed. You had to compete in teams of four and the first team to finish their sack of wine won the bragging rights. It was a great night and I’m glad Andy had the chance to hang out with my Newcastle friends. After the sack race, we all went to the bars for a few drinks before calling it a night.

 

Thursdays are my long days at Uni. For some reason or another, Andy was really excited to tag along. He came with me to two of my classes and had to sit through a lecture dedicated to Oprah’s sociological impact on talk shows. I know, it sounds thrilling. We had a quiet evening on Thursday night as Andy prepared dinner for me and I quickly finished a school essay. By 9 p.m. we were in a taxi and headed to the Greyhound station.

I wanted to show Andy as much of Australia as I could in the 10 days that I had him. We decided to travel to Byron Bay, the surfing capital of Australia. After 12 hours of agonizing Greyhound traveling, we arrived into Byron Bay on Friday morning. We had signed up for a 2-day surf camp and our first surf lesson started at noon. After checking into our hostel, we spent the rest of the morning walking around the town. I fell in love!  This town was the perfect combination of quaint and touristy. We took a stroll along the beach and grew very anxious to begin our surf lessons.

At noon, the crew from Mojo Surf came and picked us up from our hostel. We were put with a group of about 15 people from all over the world. Since I had already had surf lessons, I was in the water before the rest of the group and I had my own personal coach for about 45 minutes. With his help, I was up on the first wave and doing great! After about four runs on the small waves, he moved me to the bigger ones – the ones in the back. These are the type of waves that you ride before they break. It was AWESOME. I couldn’t believe that I was doing so well.

 

After learning the basics, Andy and the rest of the group joined in. I got to witness the waves throw him around a bit before he got the hang of it. But, being athletic and good at every sport, he quickly became just as good as me and before long, we were both riding the big waves in the back.

After our first day of surfing, we grabbed a quick beer with a few of our surfing mates. We met up with them later at the bars, too. I’ve said it before but there are few things better than making friends with other travelers. I’m given the chance to meet new and interesting people every day. I think Andy really enjoyed meeting new people, especially like-minded travelers from around the world.

On our second day in Byron Bay, Amanda and Billy arrived. They joined us for our second day of surfing. The waves were a bit tougher that day, but we still stuck to the big waves. All in all, we both did great and we got amazing pictures to capture it all. That night, we had an amazing dinner at Asia Joes with some of our newfound surfing buddies. For being a tiny shack in an alley, the food was absolutely delicious. Later on, we hung out with a few England girls in our hostel and made our way to Cheeky Monkey, a popular nightclub. Amanda and I had fun dancing while the boys acted tough and were content with just watching. Boys will be boys.

On Sunday we were booked for a tour through Nimbin. Nimbin is an interesting town. It’s known for it’s alternative lifestyle and it was booming with hippies. Imagine the 1970s and condense it into two blocks and you’ve got Nimbin, Australia. We took a party bus into town and stopped along the way to check out some markets and jump off a waterfall. It was cold so I didn’t jump, but the boys did! They checked that off life’s to do list.

On Sunday night we dreadfully took another overnight Greyhound bus to Sydney. We had four days ahead of us and we wanted to fill it with as much of Sydney as we could. For being one of my favorite cities, I was an excellent tour guide and I had an itinerary for us to stick to. After checking into our fabulous hotel, we made our way to a nearby movie theatre and saw Angels and Demons. The theatre was huge and we had assigned seats – weird. The movie was great and afterward, we walked a few blocks into the heart of Chinatown and had a nice dinner at Golden Century. I had been there before with my parents and loved it. It was just as good the second time around. That night, we met up with Billy and Amanda for a drink along Darling Harbor before calling it an early night.

It was now time to be an official tourist. We woke up bright and early on Tuesday and began our journey through the city. We walked to Circular Quay and stopped at St. Mary’s Cathedral along the way. It made me want to visit Rome! The inside of this cathedral was absolutely immaculate. After taking way too many pictures inside the church, we continued our journey to Circular Quay – home of the Harbor Bridge and the Opera House. We took pictures and walked around the Opera House before boarding a ferry to Watson’s Bay, where Doyle’s is located. Doyle’s is famous for its fish & chips. It’s one of the oldest restaurants in Sydney and I’ve heard nothing but great things. We missed our stop and had to ride the ferry around again, but that’s OK. It gave us a chance for some great photo opportunities of the city. However, by the time we landed in Watson’s Bay, we were both famished. We literally devoured our meals and they were delicious as promised! Once we were back in Circular Quay, we walked around a bit more and stopped at a German bar for a few beers. Then, we hit up a steakhouse for dinner so Andy could try kangaroo. When we got back to the hotel, we met up with Billy and Amanda on the rooftop pool and hot tub. Talk about a great night view! We drank a few bottles of wine and hung around until the early morning.

 

We spent most of Wednesday in the Darling Harbor area. We checked out the Sydney Aquarium and then walked over and entered Sydney’s Wildlife World. We took our sweet time in each of them and saw some neat stuff. All of which is captured on film, as I’m addicted to my camera. The coolest part of the day was the butterfly garden inside the Wildlife World. You entered a bubble full of butterflies and trees and if you were lucky, they would land on you. It took me awhile to get one to land on me. I looked back at Andy once and he had four on him. I wasn’t bitter or anything.

We headed back to our hotel to change and get ourselves ready for our harbor dinner cruise. It was a good way to end a great trip and it gave us a chance to get all dressed up. To top off the night, we headed to Max Brenner Chocolate Bar for dessert – chocolate dipped strawberries. My favorite! I’m convinced that we need Max Brenner in America. So, if any of you are looking for a business opportunity, there is one!

Andy’s flight left bright and early the next morning so we were up and out of the hotel by 7 a.m. It was much harder to say goodbye this time. Back in January, I was excited for Australia and all of my upcoming adventures. But, this time I didn’t have any upcoming adventures to keep my mind off the fact that I’m away from home – and away from all of my friends and family.  I was so happy that he had the chance to come and visit. Long distance isn’t the easiest thing to handle and it was nice to be in the same time zone for a while.

Thanks for visiting me, Andy. You’re the best J

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

Elevator limits are NOT suggestions

People are always asking me to hear my stories. Well, here’s one!

After a few days of recovering from Spring Break, we hosted a dinner party at our apartment and gathered all of our closest friends together for a reunion. After two weeks apart, we had a lot to catch up on and we spent the night eating, chatting and watching videos and pictures from everyone’s various Spring Break trips.

We’d been enjoying a few drinks during the evening and around 10 p.m. we decided to head to the bars. All 17 of our guests hoarded out of the apartment at the same time and as we waited for the elevator, we all commented how absolutely hilarious it would be if the elevator broke while we were all inside of it. Thinking it would never happen, all 17 of us jammed into the elevator once it arrived. I should note that it was clearly stated that the maximum capacity for this certain elevator was 14 people. Apparently, we thought 14 was a suggestion. So, there we are – inside the elevator, shoulder to shoulder and without a steady flow of oxygen. Unexpectedly, yet predicted, the elevator breaks in mid-flight and we become stuck somewhere in between floors.

Now, I’m not one to panic when stuck in small spaces, but I think I had my first taste of claustrophobia. There were 17 people stuck in a 7 x 5 dimensional steel box. It was like taking the Subway during rush hour – a nightmare.

We tried ringing the elevator company but after no answer, we had to take matters into our own hands. Without my blessing, one of our friends pried open the elevator doors and started fumbling with the gears. By some act of God, we managed to manually maneuver ourselves a few feet down. About ten minutes later, we were stuck between the first floor and the ground floor. We could see that we were only a few feet from the ground floor so we pried open the doors all the way and jumped the few feet onto the ground floor.

Once we were all free, it took us about 20 minutes to stop laughing. Inside the elevator, it wasn’t very funny, but looking back … it was hilarious. I take full responsibility for my actions, of course. And, it came as no surprise when we received a phone call a week later informing us that the entire episode had been caught on security cameras and we owed $400 for late night elevator repairs. Luckily, we have great friends so we all split the bill. But, let it be known that passenger limits are not suggestions. Who knew!?

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

Our mad dash out of the elevator!

Spring Break 2009!

My sincerest apologies for the lack of entries lately. Trust me, getting this blog up to date has been on my list of things to do for months. But, after Spring Break, Andy came to visit and lately, I’ve been so busy with finals. But, now I can breathe. I’m done with school and I’ve only got one more month left in paradise. So, let’s start where I left off: Spring Break.

Alright, so technically, it's called 'Easter Break' since it's currently fall right now. But, as Americans, we couldn't help ourselves but yell out SPRING BREAK whenever necessary. Needless to say, we got a few confusing looks during our recent 18 day trek up the east coast of Australia as we repeatedly referred to our trip as SPRING BREAK! It was amazing - but you figured that already, right?! Let's start at the beginning ...

We left Sydney early in the morning of Friday, April 10 and hopped on a Greyhound bus. I might be joining the millions here but ... I loathe Greyhound. We had the worst luck with them. Apart from one of the buses breaking down for three hours, the drivers were so rude! Anyways ....

We arrived into our first destination, Spot X Surf Camp, in the evening. It was gorgeous there! I literally felt like I was at summer camp. On our first morning there, they woke us up at the peak of dawn for surf lesson number one. After two hours of learning and one-on-one lessons, we had the rest of the day to perfect our form. The nights were the most fun, though! Talk about the ultimate Australian experience. We spent the nights with all of the camp attendants either playing drinking games, chilling around the bonfire or strolling along the beach. We befriended most of the surf instructors and ended up getting a free surf lesson on our third and final day. Surprisingly, I was able to ride quite a few waves. But, don't congratulate me just yet. I also spent plenty of time fighting the waves and getting thrown around like clothing in a washing machine. That, and my surfboard was constantly trying to run away from me. One of my favorite memories of Surf Camp was meeting Brett McDonald. Originally from Canada, he had been working at Spot X for a few months and had made a name for himself with his music. He learned how to play the guitar when he arrived in Australia and, only a few short months later, he was playing nightly concerts at Spot X. This guy is amazing! I would urge everyone to check out his MySpace page. He’s definitely got a music career in front of him. We continue to stay in touch and will be expecting him to make his way to Iowa sometime in the near future.

 

 

Surf Camp proved to be amazing and our trip was off to a good start. Next stop: Surfer’s Paradise. I would relate this city to Las Vegas. It took us about a day to get there and when we did, it was spotted with neon signs and tall apartment buildings. This city is known for surfing and it’s three theme parks. We were scheduled to be in Surfer’s Paradise for two nights, but we had nothing planned. Unfortunately, the only time we ran into rain was during our stay here. It rained the entire time so we were unable to show off our newfound surfing skills. Instead, we spent a day at one of their theme parks, Dream World. Although not as entertaining or exciting as Disney World, we still had a fun day. It started raining about two hours into our day. That sent most of the crowd home, but we wanted our money’s worth. We spent the rest of the day soaking wet, riding all of the rides and bypassing all of the lines. On our last night, we went to one of the nearby casinos and tried our hardest to understand slot machines. It didn’t work. But, don’t worry, I only lost about $2. We’re in a recession after all.

The next leg of our journey brought us to Fraser Island. This was probably my favorite part of our entire trip. Fraser Island is the world’s largest sand island. Upon arrival into the nearest town, we were handed the keys to a 4WD vehicle, all the necessary camping equipment that we’d need and three day’s supply of food. We were put into a truck with about 4 other people and the 11 of us hopped on a ferry and made our way to Fraser Island. We had a map and an itinerary to stick to … but the map was a little hard to read and we ended up getting lost in the middle of the woods while 4-wheeling our way toward our campsite. It was a bumpy ride, but oh so much fun. Dave was our designated driver, so the rest of us cranked up the tunes in the back and started drinking. We were lost after all – what else was there to do? We finally made our way to our campsite and only a few hours behind schedule.  Unfortunately, we had to put up our tents in the dark. Well, correction: the boys had to put up our tents in the dark. We fumbled our way to the beach late at night and it was there that I witnessed the brightest night sky that I’ve ever seen. It was like looking up into space through a telescope. The stars were everywhere and they were so bright, we didn’t need flashlights. I was in awe. On the next morning, we were ready to go by 6 a.m. We hit the ‘highway’ – which is nothing more than the beach – and started to explore. We saw an old shipwreck that had been washed ashore, spent some time in a freshwater river and climbed some of the nearby hills for picturesque views. On our third and final day, we made our way to Lake Mackenzie, the world’s second purest lake. Nestled in the middle of the island surrounded by lush greens, this lake was crystal clear and absolutely gorgeous. We only had a few hours to swim and soak up the sun before we had to head back to the ferry. We made some great memories on Fraser Island. It was the perfect combination of fun and responsibility. I loved how we were on our own during the trip and we made the most of it. Fraser Island was amazing but it’s also a very dangerous place. Only a week after we left, we learned that a group of similar travelers had rolled their vehicle on the beach by turning too fast. All of the passengers inside had died. After hearing that, we all praised Dave for his responsible driving. After all, our lives were in his hands.

 

 

After three amazing days, we were scheduled for three more in the Whitsunday Islands. This group of 72 tropical islands is the ‘gateway’ to the Great Barrier Reef. We spent three days among the sailboat, Habibi. We cruised around the cluster of islands and stopped every so often at famous beaches and snorkeling sites. Interestingly enough, one of the islands was pointed out to us and we were told that is the location where The Beatles wrote ‘The Yellow Submarine.” Fascinating. It was jellyfish season and every time we went snorkeling, we had to wear a stinger suit, which was extremely sexy. Imagine yourself in spandex from head to toe and you’ll understand. The Whitsunday Islands were something straight out of a magazine. The water was crystal clear and there were tropical islands everywhere you looked. We made some great friends on board and spent the days and evenings soaking up the sun and soaking in the view. Instead of sleeping in the cabins underneath, we all slept under the stars on the boat deck. Talk about another breathtaking night sky.

 

Our final destination was in sight. The next and final stop on our journey was Cairns, home of the Great Barrier Reef. We had one night to rest before climbing on board another vessel, the M.V. Kangaroo Explorer. This was a dive and snorkel vessel and we spent three days cruising to different areas of the Great Barrier Reef. Our initial intention was to snorkel the entire time, but we were tempted and by the second day, we were all signed up for our very first dive. I had never been diving before, but I did surprisingly well. On my first dive, I found Nemo and even rode a sea turtle. Yes, you read that right. I just hopped on and went for a ride. (I’m not sure if that’s legal or not so let’s keep it on the down low.) On our last morning, Dave and I woke up at sunrise and went on a morning snorkel. It was the best snorkeling that I have ever seen. The rise of the sun created a stir with all of the marine life and we saw so many creatures. We saw stingrays, three different types of shark, squid, jellyfish, eel and sea turtles. Plus, the sun was hitting the coral just right and it illuminated into brilliant colors. We had rented an underwater camera and got great pictures. It was definitely a good ending to our Great Barrier Reef experience.

Once our reef experience was over, we spent the rest of our time familiarizing ourselves with Cairns. What an awesome city. The weather was great and the town was just the right size – not too big or too small. The esplanade was the strip that aligned with the coast and it was filled with tons of restaurants and shops. Plus, there were markets near the beach and we had no problem finding things to do to occupy our time. On Saturday night, we signed up for The Ultimate Party, a pub-crawl that takes you to five different bars in one night via a double-decker party bus. Outrageous! We had a great time. We were given VIP access at all the bars and we had the chance to compete in various competitions at each of the bars. For lack of a better term, the competitions were interesting and I ended up winning two of them. To top it all off, Saturday was ANZAC day, which is sort of like America’s Memorial Day. There were men in uniform EVERYWHERE. It was pretty cool to see.

 

The next morning, we were signed up for a rainforest tour. On our way to the rainforest, we stopped for a crocodile river cruise. When they told us to keep our hands and heads inside the boat at all times, I obeyed without a fight. Although a bit scary, it was definitely cool. We ended up spotting a large crocodile named Scarface. That, and we found a baby crocodile hiding in the trees! After the crocodile cruise, we took a few walks inside the rainforest. What a cool place. We found a tree that was 900 years old and we spotted a few little lizards. The Daintree Rainforest is special because it connects to the Great Barrier Reef and it’s the only place in the world where one environmentally protected area meets another. Needless to say, we got some pretty cool photos. After the tour, we all went out for dinner to celebrate our last night of Spring Break 2009. With our charming personalities and brilliant smiles, we ended up getting free wine at a fancy Italian restaurant. The next morning, we sat by the pool before we made our way to the airport.

 

Eighteen days of bliss. I’m not sure I’ll ever have another vacation that amounts to all the fun we had along the east coast. I was able to see things that most people will never get the chance to. Every day was filled with fun and I couldn’t have asked for better traveling buddies. Here’s to hoping that Spring Break 2009 is just one of many exciting trips that I’ll be lucky enough to have in my future.

The Straubs Visit Australia

Thanks for being patient with me. Unfortunately, this is the first available time that I’ve had to sit down and write about my recent adventures. A lot of has happened in these last few weeks. Let’s start with my parents’ visit to Australia …

My dad finally convinced my mom to make the great trek to Australia. It took some pleading at first, because as most people know … there are few things my mother loves more than a trip to an all-inclusive Mexican resort. Australia might not offer the ease of free drinks and lounge chairs, but I personally think there is no place better on Earth.

They spent their first couple of days in Cairns touring the area and doing some excursions. And, as stated previously, my father rented a motorcycle and, by some act of God, my mother joined him as he biked throughout the northeast coast of Australia.

They arrived into Newcastle on a Sunday in the late afternoon. I was extremely excited to see them. It’s not everyday that I get to see a familiar face from home – unless I’m using the all-too-wonderful Skype. But, as we all know, that’s just not the same. We hugged it out and headed to the harbor for a sunset dinner.

Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate during their stay in Newcastle, so we were unable to spend a day at one of Newcastle’s famous beaches. But, on Monday, we took a long walk around town and they got a close-up view of my current home city. That night, Mom and Dad treated the girls to a divine dinner at Scratchley’s, my favorite restaurant along the harbor. Delicious.

Tuesday was eventful, to say the least. We booked a wine tour through the Hunter Valley region. Hunter Valley is the oldest wine region in Australia and we joined about 8 other people for a tour, filled with numerous wine tastings. Luckily, we spent the day with a great group of people and we had some laughs in between the constant wine intake. We visited 4 different wineries, stopped for some cheese tastings, sampled numerous dips and chutneys and had lunch at the beautiful Hunter Valley gardens. It rained all day …but the rain didn’t dampen our spirits. Maybe it was the overdose of wine, but we had a great time. If you ever make it to Australia, put this on your list! Oh, and make sure you book through Tex Tours. He’s the man.

The rest of their visit in Newcastle was relaxed. We shared pictures and stories and I got caught up with what’s going on back in America. On Wednesday night, I brought my dad to the bars with me. My goodness that man can dance! Sorry to out you, Dad. We had a great time and my friends thoroughly enjoyed his company. I think he was a little disappointed when it was time to go home. Haha … if anyone wants pictures, I’ve got some great ones J

We left for Sydney early on Thursday and spent the first afternoon wandering around Darling Harbor, where I had my first encounter with fish and chips. That night, we had an unconventional dinner at Max Brenner, a delicious chocolate café. To me, there are few things better than having chocolate crisp pizza and chocolate fondue for dinner. Decadent.

We had a lot of things to accomplish while in Sydney. We visited the Sydney Aquarium (where I found Nemo!) and the Toronga Zoo. Amanda’s parents were in Sydney during the same time so we met up with them one night for a harbor dinner cruise. It was a showboat so we got to see a Vegas-style cabaret show after dinner. Once again, maybe it was the unlimited amount of wine, but we had a great time together.

Some of my favorite highlights of Sydney were the Blue Mountains, the Sydney Bridge Climb and the Opera House. We signed up for a tour of the Blue Mountains. I was pleasantly surprised. It’s gorgeous! I would compare it to the Grand Canyon, but covered with lush tropical greens.  On one of the sunnier days, Dad and I climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge. AMAZING! After an hour of ‘training’ and briefing, were hooked to the side rails and began our journey to the top of the bridge. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be. The view was enough to take away and nerves. While Dad and I climbed, my mom found her own sense of heaven shopping through all the markets in the historic ‘Rocks’ district.  And, my all time favorite part of Sydney was the Opera House. We saw Rita perform. We’d never heard of her before, but we were all amazed at her voice. She sang most of her songs in Hebrew, but they were amazing. If you have the chance, look her up. She’s got a great voice! It was almost surreal to be seated inside such an icon.

I had to part ways with them eventually and as I got into the back seat of a taxi, I felt a wave of homesickness as I waved through the rear window and drove off. I’m definitely not ready to go home – I’m not sure I ever will be ready. But, I sure do miss my family and friends. It’s bittersweet. But, I wouldn’t trade my experiences here for anything and I thank God that I had the strength and courage to walk away from the familiarities of home and jump into a new environment. I’m glad I took the risk. I hope everyone has the opportunity to ‘leave it all behind’ sometime in their life. You learn who you are and you learn a lot about where you fit in the world. In a sense, you find yourself.

Miss you, Mom and Dad. Thanks for visiting J Your little girl will be home someday.

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

(Stay tuned for a recap of my 18 day trek up the east coast of Australia!)

Coming Soon!

Let me start by saying I'm sorry that I haven't had the time or the chance to update this!

I thoroughly intend on updating you all with the newest events from Australia as soon as I'm able. My parents' visit was wonderful and we had the chance to do a lot of fun things around Sydney. However, only two days after they left, I had to quickly turn around and leave for my Spring Break trip! I'm currently in the midst of our 18 day trek up the east coast of Australia. Already, we've been to Surf Camp and stopped at the Vegas-style city of Surfer's Paradise.

The trip has been AMAZING so far and we're only five days into it. I won't have great access to the Internet for the next couple of weeks but please - stay tuned! I'll fill you in on the details of my parents' visit and my excellent Spring Break trip as soon as I've returned to Newcastle.

No worries :)
Jennifer Lynn XOXO

MTV Awards

We had tickets to the 2009 MTV Australia Awards and it was definitely time for a girls weekend :) Beth, Amanda, Samantha, Mary Kathryn and I left for Sydney on Friday morning and headed to the hostel to get ready. How long does it take five gorgeous ladies to get ready for the red carpet? The answer is two hours. After hours of preparation, we made our way to Darling Harbour and found a nice restaurant on the pier. Ahhhmazing. What a view! Our previous trips to Sydney had never taken us to Darling Harbour - unfortunately. But, after some delicious dinner and a couple of bottles of wine, we were ready to head over to the Sydney Convention Center for the Red Carpet Pre-Show. Audrina Patridge from The Hills was the host and we caught a few photos of some stars making their way into the building. When it was time to start the show, we headed inside and inched our way towards the front. Pete Wentz hosted this year's event and his wife, Ashlee Simpson, surprised him by making an appearance! The Fray, Kings of Leon, Vanilla Ice, Sia and a few others performed. It was AWESOME to see The Fray!! We were hoping that maybe a few more celebrities would brace the stage. Oh well. Either way, we still had a great time. The show was over by 11 so we followed the crowd and ended up at a bar along the harbour called Cargo. It was an inside/outside bar and it was PACKED. For some reason or another, the fact that we attended the MTV Awards was merit enough for two free drink coupons. Solid deal. We mingled and before we knew it, the night was over.

On Saturday, we took a bus to Bondi Beach. You may have heard of it - it's known as one of Sydney's best beaches. That is the absolute truth. It was simply stunning. I'm pretty sure I would have no problem living near the beach for the rest of my life. I could have laid in the sun for hours, but we were on a schedule! We met Amanda's parents at a quaint pizza place on the harbor and, after inhaling pizza and gelato, headed back to Newcastle. Had an easy Saturday night, which included boxed wine and a late night grocery run for chips and salsa. Classic combination. 

My parents are finally here! They arrived at my doorstep around 5 p.m. tonight. It's so good to see them! I don't miss a lot from home, but I sure miss them. We had a nice dinner along the harbor and spent the rest of the evening looking through photos and telling stories. They seemed to thoroughly enjoy their time in Cairns. I was shocked to find that my mother actually let my father talk her into renting a motorcycle. I'm tellin' you - Australia has a way with people :)

Tomorrow we're heading to the beach - after we wake up for an early breakfast. We've got a few things planned for the next couple of days while they're here in Newcastle. On Thursday, we're heading for the great city of Sydney. We've got quite the agenda while we're there: Sydney Bridge Climb, harbor cruise, zoo, Opera House show, aquarium, beaches and shopping! Did I mention I'm glad to see them!?

Here's an FYI. Australia is ahead of the times when it comes to fashion. They're always a step ahead of the states. So, as a forewarning to all my girls back home, the 80's are making a comeback! Watch for it. And, yes, that includes parachute pants ... unfortunately.

I've got a busy schedule ahead of me and I am looking forward to writing about it along the way. I hope that my writing is portraying Australia as an amazing experience. I would highly recommend that everyone visits at least once in their lifetime. Here, you're given the opportunity to slow down and live a little. No one's in a hurry and there are no worries. Life is easy and life is good. 

I'll leave you with that. 

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn 

Glamorous and live at the MTV Australia Awards. 

Still living the dream ...

Ok ... so I'm procrastinating right now. I truly don't want to start this paper I have to write, so I figured I'd update my blog as a sort of warm up. It makes sense if you think about it.

School is going well. The grades we receive here don't transfer back to the US. The only thing that transfers are the credits and the fact that you passed. So, really, I only need to pass these classes. That line of thought makes it extremely difficult to put a lot of effort into my assignments. A lot of people ask me if the classes are harder here. The answer is no, but yes. There is no busy work here and the professors could care less if you showed up or not. So, it's up to you to stay on top of it. Your entire grade for the class is made up of two to four major papers, projects or tests. So, if you bomb one of those, there's a good chance you'll be re-visiting that course the following semester. 

This past weekend was Surfest. We made our way down to Merewether Beach on Sunday for the finals and got to witness both the male and female champions on their last run. The waves weren't the biggest, but they worked with what they had and it was pretty sweet. We'll be attending Surf Camp as part of our spring break trip - so I'm hoping that I can be a fraction as good as the champions by the time I'm done :)

My parents are in Aussie!! They arrived on Monday and are currently in Cairns doing the whole tourist thing. They fly into Newcastle on Sunday and will stay with me for five days. Then, we're off to Sydney for five days of fun! I can't wait!! Then, it's only three days after they leave and I'm back in Sydney and ready to start my 18 day spring break adventure up the east coast. I'm about to become a very busy girl.

This weekend we're heading to Sydney to attend the MTV Australia Awards! They just announced that The Fray will also be joining the list of performers. It's a girls only weekend - we can get all dressed up, go out for a fancy dinner and pretend to walk the red carpet. Maybe we'll get stalked by the paparazzi?? Let's hope not.

Other than that, I don't have much else to report. Our St. Patrick's day keg was heaps of fun. I'm sure we'll be having another one soon. Looks like I have to start in on that paper now.

I'll post again soon. No worries, mate :)

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

Are you ready to rock?

It's Monday - the start of a new week. Most people would spend their Mondays at work or at school ... not me. I have the day off, so I haven't been doing much. But, we did book our Spring Break trip today. Hard hit on the ol' credit card ... but I'm SUPER excited. We're spending 16 days traveling up the east coast, starting in Sydney and ending in Cairns. Along the way, we'll be attending surf camp, sailing in the Whitsunday Islands, camping on Fraser Island and snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef. Hard to imagine that it's only 25 days away! Time flies here. Sadly. We leave Friday, April 10. Can't wait to write about all of it :)

This past weekend, we went to Sydney again. Can you tell how much I adore that city? We caught an afternoon train on Friday and spent the night in a hostel. On Saturday, we woke up early and headed to the Sydney Cricket Grounds for the Sound Relief Concert. We promptly took our spot in line and waited for the doors to open at 11 a.m. And, although it was general admission, we ran like hell once the gates opened and secured a spot about four rows back from center stage. Coldplay started the day off. What an amazing performance. They were incredible! A few Australian bands followed ... and our next big performer took the stage at 5:30 - TAYLOR SWIFT! I was about 10 feet away from here and screaming like a little girl. You can imagine it, I'm sure.

This was hands down the best music festival I've ever attended. It was ten hours of live music, and included Coldplay, The Presets, Josh Pyke, Taylor Swift, The Bee Gee's with Olivia Newton John, Jet and others. All of the proceeds went to the victims of the recent bush fires and floods in the area. All in all, we helped to raise 5 million dollars. Wow. That should give you a rough estimate as to how packed the place was! We were right in the center of the mosh pit. Which, I have to admit, has always been something I wanted to experience. It's officially been checked off the list. What's worse than a rowdy mosh pit? A wet one. Yes, it started to pour down rain right before Taylor Swift took stage. Did that stop anything?? No way. The music continued - and the crowd get even crazier. It was AWESOME.

We took a late night train back to Newcastle after the concert on Saturday night and spent all day Sunday on the beach. The waves were the biggest that I'd ever seen them. I attempted to 'ride the waves' like all of the guys were doing. And, you guessed it, I almost drowned. So, I think I'll stick to the beach for a few days before trying that again.

This weekend is Surfest, Newcastle's largest event. I'm looking forward to seeing all of the competitions ... and attending the Wine & Wave festival, of course. 

Tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day! We ordered a keg and we plan on having a sweet ShamROCK the House party. I think we might need a few lessons before we try and set up the keg, though. They are extremely different from the ones back home. If you wish to order a keg, you have to order a magic box with it. This is a giant black box, filled with ice and has a tube coiled around it. You put the keg on top of the magic box, and turn the gas on, which carbonates the beer and sucks it from inside the keg. The beer then travels through the ice tubes and comes out in your cup ice cold. Sounds cool and confusing. Let's hope we can figure it out. Our balcony has been yearning for a big house party :)

T-minus two weeks until my parents arrive! They are ecstatic about bringing me my own suitcase full of clothes and other necessary items :) Can't wait!

I'll check up with you all again. No worries :)

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

After the rain. Can you see the huge crowd behind us?!

So close to Taylor Swift!

A gay ol' time

This past weekend we went to Sydney and experienced our very first Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras celebration. Upon arriving, we somewhat knew that the weekend would be crazy and that we were sure to witness things that were new and ... semi-awkward. I've been contemplating exactly how I was going to describe this experience to everyone back home and I've come to the conclusion that there are no words.

For once, I'm speechless.

I mean, how can you really put it into words? It might go something like this ... 

We woke up super early on Saturday morning to ensure that we could get 'the perfect spot' for the parade. So, we made our way to Oxford Street at 10:30 a.m. - the parade started at 7:45 p.m. We found a bar with an upper-level that had windows overlooking the halfway point. So, we settled down and ordered our first beer for the day. Nine hours and many beers later, the parade began. There were people EVERYWHERE. Our window seats proved to be quite useful, because I couldn't imagine being in the madness on the street. The streets were filled with intoxicated heterosexuals and homosexuals, all of whom were content on showing their 'free spirits'. Love was definitely in the air.

The parade was filled with everything from Dykes on Bikes to Demanding Dominatrixes. A lot of the floats would stop in front of us and put on a show ... and 90 percent of these shows would have been Rated R by the American Motion Picture Association. Instead of going into all the details, let's just say I have officially seen it all. It was a great weekend, though. Whether or not you support that lifestyle, the atmosphere was truly amazing. It got a little out of control, but for the most part, everyone was interested in defying the norms and just letting their free spirits out - which is sort of what Australia is about!

Here are some pictures of the evening. I have PLENTY of stories, but I'm sure not everyone is interested in them. So, I'll save them for a rainy day :)

Today, we had to check out of our hostel by 10 a.m. - which was brutal. But, we got ready and met up with a family friend of Beth's. We went on a ferry across the harbor and had a fabulous lunch at a restaurant at Manly Beach. It was gorgeous. And, we got our first glimpse of some of Sydney's main attractions. See below.

We're heading back to Sydney this weekend for the Sound Relief concert with Coldplay and Taylor Swift, among others. I'm stoked! Stay tuned :)

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

Upcoming Adventures

Hey All.

My first day of school is tomorrow! Apparently there are no tutorials during the first week of school, leaving me with only one day of classes. Pretty sweet. Wish me luck tomorrow!

We've been planning a lot of things to do lately and so last night, we all sat down and filled in our new Uni planners. Turns out, we're booked solid until the middle of May! We've got some super sweet things lined up. Be sure to check this blog often so you can read all about it. Here are some of the things I've got to look forward to:

• This weekend we're heading to Sydney for the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras! It's said to be a huge, crazy party all weekend. We've already bought some sweet outfits and we can't wait! The estimated attendance? 700 to 800 THOUSAND! Bring it on.
• On March 14, we booked tickets to the Sound Relief Concert. This is a last-minute benefit concert that is being put on to raise funds for the bushfire victims. Who's coming?! Coldplay, TAYLOR SWIFT!, Jet, Josh Pyke and about 10 others. Can't wait to hear Taylor!
• March 15 - there is a St. Patrick's Day celebration on Beaumont Street in town. I'm hoping they serve green beer here.
• On March 21 and 22 Newcastle hosts its largest event, Surfest. Tons of surfers from around the world come into town to compete for the winning title. Along with watching the surfers, there are a lot of side parties and activities going on ... such as the Wine & Waves festival at Merewether Beach. 
• On Friday March 27, we have tickets to go to the MTV AUSTRALIA AWARDS, hosted by Pete Wentz and Audrina Patridge. How exciting is that!? We get to line the red carpet and go indoors for the main show. Beyonce, Kings of Leon and The Killers are performing. I'm definitely going to need to go shopping for this. 
• Then ... on March 29, my parents arrive in Newcastle!!!

So that's enough to take me until the end of this month. Sounds thrilling, right? I think so. Can't wait to write about them!

Today we went shopping. I know what you're thinking and the answer is YES I WENT AGAIN. They've got adorable clothes here. Summer is officially over :( And now we're just waiting for fall to come to town. All of the locals say it gets 'really cold' in the winter. I was concerned until I realized their idea of really cold is 50 degrees fahrenheit. Can you tell they've never been to Iowa?

It's still beautiful here, though. Mid 80's and sunny! I spend most of my days on the beach soaking up the sun and watching the surfers. Tonight is Wednesday, which is the Uni party night. Most pubs and clubs have really good drink specials and the pubs are packed with students. You could say it's like Thursdays in Iowa.

We just had dinner (Sloppy Joe's, finally!) and now I'm going to take a nap before the evening festivities begin! Catch up with you all later!

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

School starts on Monday

It seems as if it's been ages since I last sat in a lecture hall and I've got to tell you - I don't miss it at all! But, starting on Monday, school officially starts :( I shouldn't complain, though. I have one class on Tuesday and three classes on Thursday. And, according to most of the current students, attending lectures is optional - you only really need to go to your tutorials. Following that ideology, I have one class on Tuesday and one class on Thursday! I'm loving their education system better every day.

We've made two really good friends from South Carolina - Mary Kathryn and Samantha. We met them at the hostel while we were all looking for a place to live. They've stumbled upon some bad luck and still haven't found accommodation. So, they're living with us until they can find an apartment. The search is hard! We got extremely luck with the place we have and I can't imagine how frustrated they must be. We love them and we're hoping they can find a place close to ours!

We have the best neighbors in the world! There are three guys living in the room next to ours and we've quickly become friends. They came over and set each of our computers up with their Internet information - so we've got free Internet now! Now, it'll be much easier to update this and stay in touch with family and friends back home.

Australia is still amazing! We've had great weather lately and so we've taken advantage of the beach. Today we went on a dolphin cruise in Nelson's Bay. Unfortunately, I had a little too big of a night last night and so the dolphin cruise wasn't all that enjoyable for me. I know, lesson learned. I did get to see some dolphins, though!

After living down here for a few weeks, I've become much more comfortable with my surroundings. Yet, there are still some minor differences from home that catch me off guard sometimes. I love the new and unfamiliar factor of living abroad. Everything is different and so each day is filled with trying and seeing new things. I wake up each morning with no agenda! I might try to conjure up a part-time job while I'm down here. I get the feeling that it may do me some good. If I spend the next six months doing nothing but going to the beach and partying, it might make it harder to adjust to life back in America. Plus, it would be nice to have some extra spending cash since I seem to do such a great job at spending money. I've been shopping a few times already. It's an addiction. But, when going out at night, the local girls get extremely dressed up in dresses and heels. So, obviously, we have to fit in. I look at it like we're simply helping the economy :)

There are definitely products that I miss from back home, though. I sure can't wait for my parents to visit - I'm fully expecting them to supply me with the things I miss most.

Until then, here are some MORE pictures of Newcastle! As soon as I find international stamps, I will be writing some post cards.

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

I can't believe I can call this home

Here are some pictures of our new bachelorette pad! As you can see, we're definitely getting a bit spoiled :)





^^^ This picture shows our balcony from the outside. As you can see, it wraps around the entire apartment and never ends! (Our apartment is the bottom one) We're on the fourth floor, so we get a view of the harbor :)

Now, ready to visit? We've got room for guests :)

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

I'm no longer homeless!

Yay!!! We found an apartment!!

It's been awhile since I last updated - it's been hard finding time to get on the Internet. Plus, this week is the start of Orientation Week and so we're pretty booked. Classes start on Monday! I switched around my classes so I think I only have class on Thursdays. Pretty sweet.

I'm on campus right now, so I can't put up pictures of our apartment. But, my new address is:

Jennifer Straub
489 Hunter Street Apartment 402
Newcastle West, NSW Australia 2300

I will post pictures and a video as soon as I can. I can't wait to show it off! It's absolutely gorgeous. I never thought we would actually get this one! When we went to go view it, there were about 45 other people interested in it, too. We must have made a good impression, or just got REALLY lucky. There are three bedrooms, all with double beds. The floor plan is very open and we've got a corner apartment so it has a HUGE wrap-around balcony where we can look at the harbor and look behind us at the city, too!! It's got stainless steel appliances in the kitchen, our own laundry facility, comfy suede furniture and surround sound in the living room. Literally, I'm in love. We wake up every morning and have breakfast on our balcony. We have three guy neighbors right next door and last night they had us over for a BBQ. They invited some of their Australian friends and we chatted the entire night about the differences between America and Australia. Let me tell you - there are a lot.

Otherwise, we've been busy familiarizing ourself with the city. Since school hasn't started yet, we spend most nights familiarizing ourselves with the bars. With all the students coming back into town, the nightlife is great. And, so is the weather. I think I may have got a little too much sun at the beach yesterday. Oh well, I just chalk it up as experience. The fact that they don't sell any sort of sunscreen below SPF 30 might be a good thing after all.

We're on our own now, so we have to learn how to cook for ourselves. We had a craving for Sloppy Joes the other night so we went to the supermarket to get the ingredients. Well, none of us knew how to make them and every time we asked a local to help us out, they looked at us like we were crazy. Note to self: Sloppy Joes must be an American dish. If anyone out there knows how to make them, could you please leave the recipe as a comment? Or, e-mail it to me? Mom, you'd be so ashamed of me if you saw me walking around the store like a wandering idiot wanting nothing more than the recipe for Sloppy Joes. Haha, it was great.

I'm loving this city a little more every day. With all the college kids coming back into town, it's been booming! I wake up in the morning, go to the beach and go out at night. I've said it before, but ... this is the life! Our next big activity is booked for next weekend. We're taking a dolphin tour in Nelson Bay. Hopefully, if the dolphins are feeling up to it, we'll be able to swim with them.

My parents are officially booked and I can't wait for them to come visit! That, and I'm getting very anxious to take Andy around Newcastle. Until that day arrives, I'm quite content making new friends every night and having a blast. It's definitely going to be hard to leave. But, our lease isn't up until September so I won't be getting back to America until mid-August. Seems like a long ways away, but I have a feeling it'll go by fast.

There is one slight problem with Newcastle, though. When walking home at night, you've got to be careful where you step because cockroaches are abundant. It's disgusting and you should have seen my reaction when I saw my very first one. Oh my, they are nasty little things.

Other than that, it's been great! I'll post a video of our apartment as soon as I can :) That, and I hope to post some Australian photos on facebook soon!

No worries, mate :)
XOXO, Jennifer Lynn

Wine!

The apartment we were hoping to get is probably not going to work out. Our applications were accepted, but the landlord was only interested in leasing out for 12-months. Well, as Uni students, we're looking for a 5-month lease at max and the only advice we were given was to sign up for a 12-month lease and break the lease when we were ready to leave. However, that involved fees and a huge risk of finding a 'sublease' for 7 months when we are done. Headache.

We've got two appointments tomorrow to view two more apartments. So, once again, we're hoping for the best. Fortunately, we haven't let our housing misfortunate ruin our spirits. We've met a lot of people and we thoroughly enjoy the scenery and nightlife that Newcastle has to offer. We just wish it would stop raining once in a while! Temperatures are supposed to soar again in a few days - time for the beach!!!

Today was Amanda's 21st birthday so we decided to celebrate. We went on a tour of the Hunter Valley wine region. So gorgeous! We visited 5 different wineries and sampled NUMEROUS wines, cheeses, chocolates, relishes, chutneys, ports and liqueurs. It was a blast and the countryside was beautiful! Since we came on a Monday, the wineries weren't busy at all and we got 5-star service. Plus, at every winery, sampled glasses upon glasses of wine. Talk about an all-day buzz. I now know everything there is to know about wine - how to taste it, how to distinguish it from others and how it's made. Mom and Dad, you'd be so proud. Turns out - I prefer a sweet white wine. How about that!

AND - I saw my first kangaroo today! Actually, the very first one I saw was lying dead on the side of the road. Sad. But, after a bit of 'Roo Hunting', we spotted about 20 or so along the roads. We even stopped the tour bus so we could get out and get a better photo. We got about 15 feet away from two of them. They are so adorable!!

We went out for a nice harbor-side dinner tonight to celebrate Amanda's birthday. We met 2 girls and one guy from the University of South Carolina and we've become pretty close so they joined us. They are also studying at the Uni this semester so we've got some good pals to hang out with. Dinner was amazing. I didn't understand many of the terms on the menu, but I ordered salmon and it came glazed and paired with a bunch of stuff - all of which was amazing. You just don't get great seafood like that back in Iowa.

It's 11:30 p.m. and for the first time in a long time, I think I'm going to make it an early night and get some sleep. After a day of wine, I think I could use the rest. 

No worries, mate

XOXO, Jennifer Lynn