Wow it's really the end of this

My last day in Australia. It's a hard concept to wrap my head around. It's been a great day though. Will and Jo, my 2 best friends here, had their last finals at 8am this morning, so I got up at 7am to have brekkie with them (for the last time!) :( Then I packed a bit more, went to the gym, and showered. At that point they were both back from their exams and it was time to celebrate! I put my last load of washing in and we went to the bottle shop so I could get a bottle of champagne and Will could get coronas. It should be noted that it was supposed to be a themed Mexican day, but I ruined it because I wanted champagne instead of coronas or margaritas. Anyway, we began the drinking at 11:30am--always a sign of a great day!. It was kind of chilly today but the sun made it that perfect temperature. We sat outside and had a picnic which was awesome. Everyone was just out on the oval having a few beers and playing some rugby or soccer or frisbee. We played some frisbee and I climbed a tree. Perfect final afternoon in Australia. Now I'm back in my room, waiting while Will packs a few things before he takes off with his friend who is picking him up for a concert tonight. Jo left about an hour ago for the airport. So basically I will spend tonight alone, in my room, with my stuff all packed up. Very exciting stuff.
It's going to be a long journey back home because I leave for the airport at 8:45 tomorrow, depart at 11am, get into LAX at what will feels like midnight but will be 7am there, then have a near 9 hour layover before my 5 hour flight to DC. I get in just before midnight EST. Oh well, I'm over it. It think I'm just ready to leave. I've had to say goodbye to everyone and it's been really hard. SO I suppose this is my last entry. I might buy access to the WiFi In LA so that I have something to do and maybe I'll post then? We'll see how desperate I get!

DONE!

I'm done with my final exams! Chemistry this afternoon went pretty well--I've improved my cramming skills immensely since being here. I counted up t he points I'm sure of and I definitely got enough to pass and probably got enough for a grade higher actually. So my grades will probably be much better than I expected. That's good since I've been thinking about coming back to Australia next year for grad school. Anyway, now in the next 5 days I just need to send a package home, close my Aussie bank account, and pack! I was hoping the weather would be perfection (as usual) for the rest of my time here but it's looking like it will be cloudy several of the days :( If it was going to be unseasonably warm I was thinking of heading to Gold Coast for a day to surf because the surf school I went to lets you use their full wetsuits for free when you rent a board. But it's looking like it will be just a bit too chilly for me to travel that long and risk it. I was originally planning to try and do everything in Brissie that I hadn't done/see what I hadn't seen but I'm kind of tired now and just want to rest. Maybe after tomorrow I'll feel differently. I'm a bit nervous for packing because it just seems like there's a lot of stuff in my room...how am I going to fit it all into one suitcase and one (very large) backpack? And not have it be way over the weight limits? Oh well, it has to be done somehow! Tomorrow I go on a search for a box--I'm hoping the post office on campus will have one?--so I can package up some bulky things to send home. Anyway, I'll probably update again on how my packing goes.

No hero in her sky

So exams are going by relatively quickly and smoothly. I have only one more left, but it's my chemistry one and it's going to be really hard. Plus, I actually need a decent grade on it. My first exam, for marine science went really well and I actually enjoyed some of the studying for it since over half of it was on marine plants and marine animals. So mostly I was just zoning out and thinking about my time on the reef but I guess it worked! I realized just before walking into the exam that I had actually already passed the class without even taking the exam! It was nice to have the pressure off. It's also nice to just have to pass my classes since the grades don't transfer back to lehigh. I had my anthropology exam yesterday afternoon and psychology today in the afternoon and both were straightforward and I'm sure I did really well. Both of those I only needed minimal points on the exams to pass. But now I have chemistry the day after tomorrow and I'm really not looking forward to it...but I also don't even want to study...it's terrible!
Today after my psyc exam, which I finished in 50 minutes by the way, I came home and went to the college gym with Will because he hates exercising by himself. He's not the most athletic boy I've ever met, so what he considered a lot was not all that much for me...haha but I had a good time. Since I'm still sick it's not a good idea that I do a crazy workout anyway. It was enough to get some endorphins flowing and that's what really matters!
So now it's nearly time for dinner and I have to begin the chemistry madness. I have an incredible amount of information to cram into my brain in the next... 44 hours? And considering I'll be spending at least 20 of those sleeping and 10 of them (at least) wasting time or eating or running or something....The point is I will never learn it all and I just have to try to fully understand the concepts of which I already have a vague understanding. There's no time to learn the stuff that I don't understand at all. And it's incredibly hard to concentrate with 39252308 other things on my mind that seem much more important right now. I can't believe I leave here in a 8 days.

the best deceptions

The past 8 days were absolutely amazing. Cairns is an amazing city. The Daintree rainforest, Port Douglas, Cape Tribulation...all breathtaking just like I had expected. But nothing on this planet can compare to the reef. Or scuba diving. Learning to dive was so much fun even with all of the classroom time and 4-hour pool sessions. I, surprise surprise, met some really amazing people. My dive buddy and I, an Irish guy named Darragh, became fast friends. I guess that's what happens when you are so quickly put in a position where you are responsible for another person's life! Our instructors were AMAZING and made everything so much fun. The boat was really nice too and even though there were about 40 of us on the boat we all got to know a lot about each other just by sitting with different people all of the time at meals and discussing dives.
The Great Barrier Reef...I could go on for days. I saw hundreds of different species of fish and corals and was able to either identify them on the spot (I attended this "reef teach" class the night before we left on the boat) or later using one of the books or charts on the boat. I swam along side blue-spotted lagoon rays and this beautiful green turtle who was at least twice my age. I saw giant clams that were at least 1 meter long, a white-tip reef shark (on my night dive), a mackerel shark, and swam right next to many Maori Wrasse (fish that probably weigh more than I do and are incredibly friendly). All we did for the 3 days was dive, eat, dive, eat, dive, eat, dive each day. It was amazing and I'm still incredibly exhausted. I loved it so much that I ended up doing more instruction and furthering my certification to adventure diver which means I can dive to 30 meters, anywhere in the world, anytime for the rest of my life. Plus I did my technical training in underwater photography! After we got back to land on friday in the late afternoon I checked in at my hostel and talked with my new roommates. Then I went to the restaurant where all of the staff and everyone else on our trip met for dinner and drinks. Later we all, well at least the younger crowd+ the staff, went to a bar/club where we were all let in like VIPs because our instructors know the bouncers really well. It was a great time but I got home really late and therefore only got a few hours of sleep before I got up to check out of my hostel.
Anyway, I'm really sad that it's over because the whole trip was such a high. And now I'm trying to concentrate on my 4 finals that begin in just 2 days which I haven't really started studying for. It's not working at all and I feel no pressure at all which is terrible. All I can think about is how I have to leave this amazing country soon and spend (at least) a full year not traveling. I love it here and I don't like the idea of living anywhere that's not here...
On top of this distraction I think I'm getting sick, or I should say sicker really because I've already been kind of sick all day today. It's probably stems from the 6 days that I pushed myself to full exhaustion every day...Basically studying has been close to nonexistent today and that's bad, right?

Going

I'm leaving for the bus station (bus to train to airport) in 5 minutes! I'll arrive in Cairns in the early evening. I'm very excited even though tonight will probably be dull. I'll write all about it upon my return (June 7).

Caught by the river

I haven't been writing often enough lately so this is my effort to do so!
On monday I only had my 8am chem lecture so I spent the rest of the day going through all of my notes/readings/random papers from the whole semester and organizing them. I organized a lot of other stuff too. It actually took all day! In the evening I had my last extreme spin class :( but it was SO good. I could hardly walk home after it!
Today I got up, went to brekkie, wasted time, gymmed, went to lecture, and went to the mall with Will to get our hairs cut. I went to a place called "Price Cutters." Yea, I know, no description needed. Anyway, it was $19 and it's not crooked so whatever. I got back at 4:30 and just couldn't stop thinking "where did the day go?" I feel so tired. I think I've been fighting off some virus or multiple viruses for weeks now. I cannot get sick though because anything sinus related would not bode well with the whole scuba diving thing!
Anyway, tomorrow is quite the busy day as usual. I will also be getting back both my psychology paper and my anthropology ethnography paper. I have a practice final exam in my psyc tutorial and in my anth. lecture my professor said she was basically going to tell us exactly what we need to know for the final. My anth. tutorial, my last class of the day, is at pub that is on campus. I believe my prof. is buying us a round of beers. Not sure if I'm going though just because I usually go to the gym after that class. But yea Aussies are so amazing.
Okay off to dinner. I am being summoned outside my room!

Understood

I haven’t written since last Sunday! It’s just been busy here. Where to start?

Basically up until Thursday afternoon my field research report was my life. Monday was my last chem. practical. Before it I attended the study abroad going home seminar thing for information on transcripts and stuff. They had a raffle and I was one of 7 winner—I got a UQ hat which is pretty sweet. After prac. I had my second-to-last :( extreme spin class and it was the best one so far. Tuesday involved the gym, marine lecture, going to my tutors/professor for help/revision of my research report, and giving blood (yay second time in Australia!). Wednesday was the typical crazy day except for that it was even crazier because after my 7 hours of class it was the first round of State of Origin! State of Origin is the 3 rugby league matches between NSW and QLD. Long story short, we lost, but at least I finished the first draft of my report and was able to send it to my dad for some editing! Thursday I finished up my report, submitted it, gymmed, went to lecture, went to the mall to buy stuff for my costume for MiniBall. MiniBall is the biggest event of the semester at Union. It’s just a huge costume party where everyone goes all out. I was dressed as the ocean/the great barrier reef…there are pictures. The event was at a really amazing club in South Bank called Foxy’s. The top floor, where we were, is outdoors and there’s an amazing view. Overall, everyone looked so amazing and it was a really great night that, as any good night does, ended at the kebab shop! Friday involved lectures, gym, and I think about 2 or 3 naps. In the evening I finished my chem. prac. calculations (thrilling). I also finally booked my hostel in Cairns for the first 2 nights. The last night, which is 4 nights after those 2, is still up in the air because I don’t know if I want to stay in the same place or a different place.

Yesterday, Saturday, I worked on my third and final chem. computerized test thing, gymmed, lunched, worked, did a quick shopping, and submitted my test after dinner. I did not do well, and the worst part is I don’t understand why my calculations are wrong. Oh course, this is the one test that we only get one chance to do—just my luck. Anyway, I’m going to have to get help from my professor sometime this week because I know that there will be at least one question on the final like the ones I got wrong.

SO that brings me to today. I had seen that today was going to be beautiful weather and warmer than it has been (27!) so I knew I wanted to be outside, especially since I had officially finished all of my assignments for my classes (!). In the morning I went with my friend Will to the Sunday markets in the Valley. They were not really all that impressive and I later found out from a girl in my hall that Saturday is when the valley market is big. Oops. After seeing all that was there, we wandered to find food and, despite it being only 11am, ate at this place that serves “healthy burgers.” I got a child’s one--any place that lets me order the child's size is winner in my book--and Will got one with heaps of topping including pineapple and avocado. They were so good—all the veges were so fresh and the meat was so lean. Plus we sat outside in the sun which felt so good. After eating we walked from the Valley to the city by the river which took about a half-hour and then we took the city-cat home from the city. Even though the market wasn’t as good as I had hoped, we both agreed it was a very good morning. I got home a bit after 1:00 and changed to go to the pool where I sunbathed and started a new book. I probably would’ve stayed for several hours, but I got bitten by one of the ants that I am allergic to after an hour or so. It bit one of my toes and the pain was basically crippling. I tried to stay despite it but it was not possible. I was tearing up the whole time I was walking home! The pain has subsided since the afternoon and I still consider today a great day. I’m currently doing laundry (much needed, I have only one gymming outfit left!) and I’m going to try to organize some of my class notes and stuff.

On another note: Before dinner, one of the 3^rd-year guys was walking across the courtyard completely naked…just leisurely walking. Like that is completely normal behaviour. Funniest thing I’ve seen in a long time!

Last week of class? Bring it on. Finals? Not so much...