Rewind

Gulaga

SO...as you can tell from the first photo, i have developed a nice little cold and am oozing a shade of green/brown i have not previously had the pleasure of leaking. But its just my nose going and other than that feeling rpetty goood--besides super sore after hiking Mt. Garuga this weekend at Mystery Bay--One two and a half hour long uphill hike with no water and no talking (out of respect for the mountain) and back. At the top, an aboriginal guide took us around one of their holy places up on the mountains, pointing out sacred rocks and things (lots of pointing and saying "thats a woman's rock--perhaps you can see why" and i couldnt, no matter how hard i tried to see a stone vagina, which is all i could seem to think of that might indicate that this was a particularly female rock). Anyway, the guide was super cool--turns out her dad was super famous back in the day for all of australia.
After the hike we came back to our cottages at Mystery Bay (heaters! electric blankets! fireplaces!) Anyway, this place was super pretty, as i hope you can tell from the photos, and i hear the 4 hour drive was nice too, but i cant say for sure, since i was passed out in the back the whole trips up and back. But it was super pretty and nice, though im a little sad to have missed the "Anything but Clothes" party back here at Campus east.

Glasshouse

Dolphins!

Cool update: i wish i had brought my camera, but was walking along the beach at sunset and saw a pod (school? group?) of dolphins surfing in the waves. so cool.

Ivory

So...its pretty much freezing today. and too overcast to be outside, so its the perfect time for an update. ive been meeting tons of people--mainly americans, since most of the aussies havnt come back yet from theyre break. but i have met soooo many people over the past couple days. Last night there was a big "Gender Bender" party where everyone dressed in drag. Needless to say..everyone but me is glad that its overcast and cold and forcing people to stay inside and in bed (which...so far..is how ive spent my day as well, chilling, watching the Dark Knight under my heaps of blankets, in my thickest sweatshirt and still fully clothed.) But anyway, here are some pics of me with my Program group!

Lifes a Beach

Trenchtown

So...pictures are gonna have to wait cause my camera died and i cant charge it until i can find and buy a voltage converter...so i dont fry my camera (and other equipment). Also, my room has no power, and its FUCKING FREEZING COLD. During the day it gets almost warm enough to take off your sweatshirt, but not quite. And its always sunset (the only thing i could think of as a title for the blog). The sun is always too far to the north and never gets right above you and its always a kind of dusky-light. Its weird.
Anyway, i am living in a single in an area the locals call "Trenchtown" (the other areas of campus east are called "Slums," "Hospital," and "Alcatraz"...chipper, huh?). I havnt met any people really yet--talked to my suitemate a little, and met a few people at dinner, but besides that, i have talked to no one outside of people selling me things. Hopefully tomorrow, when orientation starts, ill finally get to talk to human beings again and get osme more structure to figure out my time.

Arrival

3 Days, 17 hours, 7 true blood episodes, 10 leg spasms, 2 continents, and one lost (and then found) skateboard later...

I have arrived. And they might have exaggerrated about opening onto the beach thing. Its a little of a walk. Also; its cold. But i have arrived, i have set up my room, toured a little of the campus, and am now laying down possibly to sleep. Maybe for days.

Layover

Four days in Cali