Goodbye, Australia! G'day US.

We're back and safe. Of course, we waited impatiently for our luggage at the baggage area after the flight only to find that it was lost yet again. On a more positive note, it showed up on the door step this morning. Maybe it's the Christmas spirit that fast-tracked it and helped it to arrive in less than 24 hours?

On that note, it's great to be back. Australians didn't have many Christmas lights, and snow doesn't exist over there in Melbourne. I think the cold weather was a bit refreshing, and with that feel of the light snow and harsh wind, we were able to sigh the word, "home."

While we're excited to be home, especially so close to Christmas, we learned quite a few things about the culture differences in Australia and the life of the Aussies. So, we'll take some time to share those things with our loyal readers in this last post!

1.) Coffee. I think we've mentioned this before, but everything is espresso based. Long black = espresso and water. Macchiato = espresso + water + stained with milk, etc. So, everything is a lot smaller and stronger. Without a daily coffee, we both suffered severe headaches. In addition to that, there aren't nearly as many Starbucks' in Australia. Most cafes are local, family-owned places. And I hate to admit it, but I quenched the seasonal Starbucks gingerbread latte more than I enjoyed the coffee at the local cafes. We made a quick trip to the coffee giant this morning, and I'm sipping on an "American" coffee as we speak.
2.) Babies. This isn't something we mentioned yet, and it might sound kind of odd, but probably about 50% of the women in Australia are pregnant, and maybe the other 50% have small children. OK, that's a small exaggeration, but it really felt like that. Every time we turned the corner, we saw evidence of it (woman with big stomach, woman with screaming children, etc.). And that doesn't count the women who are still in the beginning stages of pregnancy because you can't tell by looking at them! Apparently, the government is offering incentives for babies and trying to make the entire country more accommodating for newborns. The trade off is a stronger economy because more people will live there, then spend money there, etc. Interesting, don't you think? I was never much good at econ, and definitely never learned this theory in macro and micro economics!
3.) Cars. No, there weren't thousands of smart cars like there are in Europe, but there were thousands of Utes. For those friends of mine growing up in Wexford or those friends going to OU, you (probably like me) haven't seen many of these. They're cars with truck beds on them. It's almost like a truck that failed high school actually -- big enough to have a bed on the back and small enough to be called a "car." They're also very low to the ground.
4.) Celebrities. Everyone loves America because they think we're the inspiration for all great celebrities. 16-year-old girls ask, "Do you know Chris Brown?" or "What's LA like?" or "Do you see celebrities on the street?" No, I have never met Chris Brown, nor do I care about Chris Brown. If our population was similar to Australia's small population, then maybe I'd see Chris Brown walking down Club House Drive in Wexford. But being 15 times the population, and nearly the same size in land mass, we don't see sort of thing unless you can randomly say that Christina Aguileria went to your high school....but you never knew her. (If you're from NA, this means you.) And no, I've never been to LA unless the airport counts. Rather than there being two big cities in the US, there are many. (Australia has Melbourne and Sydney.) Similarly to liking celebrities, they also follow American sports teams. One guy, about our age, started talking about the Yankees and a football team and some other sport that I don't follow on the bus in Sydney while Jamie and I were with Emily and Kate. Honestly, he seemed like an unpopular school kid trying to fit in by spitting out statistics that he knew, but at the same time he probably could win a trivia game about American sports. We had to laugh when we got off the bus because he seemed a bit to eager to talk to Jamie about sports this and that...
5.) Every little suburb has it's own little market area/"main street." I think we both grew up in places where you drive to the mall, and then to the grocery store, then to the shopping area, then to get lunch, and each place is 5 or more minutes away. In Australia, you get off at whatever "Main Street" is in each little town, and there you walk along the street for all your necessities. Just make sure you bring enough cash for the occasional baked good because window displays at bakeries aren't easy to pass up.
6.) Every house has a gate! There is no such thing as a house on a hill with a big green grassy yard. Rather than having a short cut to the next door neighbor's house by opening your front door, turning right or left, then walking in a straight line to their front door, you have to: walk out your front door, walk to and undo the lock on the gate that in most cases covers the majority of your house, turn on the side walk, hope your neighbor's gate is open, then walk on the driveway to their front door. Some gates were brick, wooden, and who knows what else. Every one was different. When we talked to an Aussie (in his thirties with a wife and two kids), he said they do it for privacy and so that they know where property lines are. Since properties there are smaller, I can kind of see the logic. But, personally, I thoroughly enjoy looking at everyone's houses when driving down a new road. If it's their most prized and expensive possession, you'd think they'd want admirers, too, right?
7.) Public Transportation!! We've talked about this. It's so easy and pretty cheap. Getting around in Pittsburgh is all about who's going to drive, where are you going to park, etc.
8.) Australians actually like Americans. Unlike horror stories many of us have heard about French ignorance or even Aussie distaste toward us, all the people we met seemed to take a genuine interest in us, in the US, and in our politics. I hadn't realized how important the US is to Australia until actually going there. Their morning shows focused on: 25% Aussie news, 25% American news/American news related to Australians (i.e. maybe economic crisis), 25% celebrities, 25% weather and misc. On a side note, every one we met wanted to chat and seemed happy we were there... spending our good, hard earned American dollars. :)
9.) Australians abbreviate everything.
Breakfast = Brekkie
Tasmania = Tazzie
Australian = Aussie
Football = Foottie
Sunglasses = Sunnies
Barbeque = Barbie
...and that's only some of the abbrev's

They also DO use the words (very often): mate , bloke , no worries and cheers. Cheers is used usually meaning thank you and your welcome (I think).

Example of a restaurant conversation with me obviously being the one ordering and the usage of the word "cheers":
Me: Thanks for the sandwich.
Server: Cheers.

Me: Here's the money for the bill.
Server: Cheers.

Server: Here's your drinks, cheers.

On that note, we're so thankful that we had the chance to stay with the Shoemaker family. Without them, we wouldn't have been able to do our six-week holiday! What else... In the past six weeks, we both have traveled on 12 flights, and to each of our destinations, we were were like little explorers navigating our way through what was the great unknown. It was an exciting adventure.

Now we're broke and jobless, but at least it's the holidays, and friends and family are more important than any of that other stuff. Plus, by the look of our e-mail inboxes, things are looking up in the job market; people are hiring they're saying; we're scheduling interviews, etc.

So, all in all... we had fun, hope you had fun reading, and see you soon!
CHEERS!

What have we been doing this week?

It's hard to believe that six weeks of Australia will be over in two short days. We spent the last week doing odds and ends in the city and in the 'burbs. One night we met up with Emily and Kate because they came to Melbourne for a mini trip. Last night (Friday) we went to the trendy area of St. Kilda for a nice dinner. We hung out in the city and went to DFO (direct factory outlet) for some good shopping. Just kidding. It was more of looking at the window displays and wishing we could do some serious shopping. Another night, we finally caught the Bond movie and also had the chance to watch Baylee sing downtown for her school Christmas carols. We also went for a bike ride along the beach yesterday for a few hours in the afternoon....

We started packing this afternoon and will finish that tomorrow. The flight Monday leaves from Melbourne around 11 a.m., and we're scheduled to get to Pittsburgh (after 26-hours of traveling) at 9:45 p.m. that same day. Some time tomorrow we will post some more final  thoughts and maybe even some sentimental ones, too, about leaving this beautiful country but still looking forward being back in the states. See ya soon! 

Us at the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge! 

Scratch that. Sydney bound!

We spent Friday afternoon through Monday night in Sydney, and we thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. This is how the whole long weekend panned out:

Friday, Day 1:

We got to Sydney and took a taxi to Emily Mitchell's apartment at Coogee beach. She lives on the top of a small hill that overlooks the beach and is a 5 minute walk to her work at a coffee shop. Her roommie is great. They met while studying abroad together in London. After working for four months in Australia together, they're going to travel the whole country in addition to doing Thailand and some other great places. (Can you say jealous?)

Anyway, we went out that night to a restaurant at The Rocks. It's close to the Opera House. Naturally, we had to use the restroom, and what better first place to have a bathroom break in Sydney than the Opera house? It's beautiful in there! Every restaurant on The Rocks was crowded with the after work crowd drinking out of martini glasses for the late happy hours. Unfortunately, we can't afford anything that comes in a martini glass, so we picked up $10 of boxed wine, took it to the BYO restaurant where we ate, and had an awesome time! 

Later that night we met up with Emily's Aussie boyfriend in trendy suburb, Paddington, and hung out with him and his friends. We learned the rules of cricket and bonded over yet some more wine. 

Saturday, Day 2 

Before we left Em to head to our hotel, we hung out on Coogee beach and roamed the park for a bit because there was a fair that day. We got to our hotel around 4 p.m., then grabbed some dinner, then headed to the Sydney Harbour Bridge... for the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb!

This was a definite highlight of the trip. When you get to the bridge climb area, they give you a bridge climb protective jump suit and climbing gear. They harness you into the bridge with the group (10 of us) and there starts the 3.5 hour climb. 

Throughout the climb, our guide explains the history of the bridge. Similar to the Golden Gate bridge in size; 16 people died while making it; most people who worked on it were young boys; the bridge creates a "black rainbow shadow" that we saw in the sky; the opera house forms a sphere when all the pieces are put together; there were only 5 cars on the other side of the bridge in 1932 when it was built. While we were up there, 148 meters above the little ant-sized cars, it felt like we were on top of the world. Although we were up pretty high, it felt so safe, that there was just enough adrenaline pumping to make it fun and not scary. The guy from Las Vegas a few people in front of me might of felt different because he was doing to get over his fear of heights. More about him and his other Las Vegas friend: Jamie and I chatted a bit with them on the trek up about our trip and theirs. I also asked them if they happen to watch the weather in Las Vegas... They said they do and they also know my awesome, semi-famous cousin who is a meteorologist out there. Shout out to Gina, Vivek and beautiful Camilla for being awesome!

Sunday, Day 3 

After the bridge last night, we rewarded ourselves with Gelati. It was this day that we burned those calories plus some. We woke up and prepared for the day by arming ourselves with a camera in one hand and map in the other. From about 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. we spent the day exploring Sydney's Darling Harbour, The Botanical Gardens, The Rocks Markets (found great x-mas gifts here!), The Ferry Ride to Balmain suburb, some shopping outlets and more. The day was exhausting. My 4 blisters prove the excessive walking and exploring! Later that night we relaxed out on the rooftop terrace of our hotel with a few James Squire Golden Ales. 

Monday, Day 4

We had to catch our shuttle to the airport at 5ish, so this gave us enough time to walk to another area of Sydney - Glebe. Glebe is lined with bookstores and cafes in additions to some authentic type candy stores. 

Sydney in a nutshell

Sydney actually reminds me a lot of NYC but without the snow. It was hot hot hot, and there were people everywhere. Nightlife was hopping; Sundays were hopping; everything was, well.. busy! Like a city that never sleeps... loved it! 

Lets live in Melbourne

Melbourne is one of the friendliest, most accommodating cities that we've ever visited. In addition to its great atmosphere, it offers vibrant nightlife, several unique shopping  that satisfy any taste, and there's more than enough to do.

In between day trips or other getaways since we got here (i.e. Port Douglas, Tasmania, and Sydney this Friday), we'd spend the extra time exploring the city of Melbourne. The public transportation system here will take us from the very outer suburbs to the very inner city. And there's no switching trains like New York. Hop on and hop off 2o minutes later.

Plus, we have two stations to choose from. There's one a few blocks down the road, and a bit further (about 2k), there's another station. When we get on the train at the far station it's less expensive. So we've been able to save a few dollars and get a nice brisk morning walk in on the days we go to the city. 

Our train cards also work for the bus and tram. If you're a tourist and want to get to the 15 city hot spots? Take the free shuttle bus that makes a loop to the most recognized or historic or happening areas of the city. Hop on or off the bus whenever you want to stop. Or there's a free city circle tram every Saturday as well.

The other day when I was looking at a map next to the tram station, a nice young bloke asked me if I needed help. Aha - he could tell I was a somewhat clueless American and looked a little lost. Little did he know that Jamie is good with directions and navigating around an unfamiliar city. Anyway, the point to this story is that the bloke is hired to ask confused people if they need help. Hello, NYC... Where are your friendly guides?

There are other people that wander the city in red sweat suits that do this same thing. Except they go one step beyond the bloke I met. They're almost like information boxes you'd get in a museum. You can ask them about the history, coming events, or best places to eat and stay in the city. Pretty cool, huh? 

The people here are also very nice. Everyone we meet takes a genuine interest in our holiday. The first question we're asked is, "Are you American or Canadian?" (Who knows where they get the Canadian stuff.) But then they also ask where we've been here, where we're going, etc. It's safe to say that I have never met a mean Australian! 

The other reasons why Melbourne is great is because there's always something to do here. Within the past month or so, when we go on exploring trips, this is what we've found:

1.) The Royal Botanical Gardens. It's an area filled with greenery, flowers, and exotic plants. We took a stroll through it one afternoon.

2.) Lygon Street. Kind of like Melbourne's little Italy. Sat outside and split a piece of tiramisu and had a long black (coffee.)

3.) The homeless world cup. Homeless people playing soccer from 56 nations for over a week right in Melbourne's historic Federation Square. It's a huge fundraising thing for homeless people that attracts a major crowd and is pretty entertaining! The homeless people are awesome at soccer, and I sat amongst many ethnicities: Polish, Scotish, Kyrgystan (might have spelled that one wrong), etc. US lost on the first day 10-1. Darnit.

4.) Bakeries, Bakeries, Bakeries. One thing the US most definitely lacks is bakeries. Upon every corner I find myself looking into the window of these bakeries like a sad puppy dog wanting all the homemade treats inside. However, in planning this trip, I didn't allot money for sugary midday snacks. We usually pass up the bakeries and say, "next time!"

Maybe in Sydney there will be some really great, famous bakery that we'll both just have to splurge on an unforgettable danish... or two. ;) We'll be there Friday night and get back to Melbourne Monday night. Friday we're staying with a friend from college, Emily Mitchell, who is from Indiana, Pennsylvania, and she now works in Sydney. Also a former journalism/PR major at Scripps. Shout out to Emily! We're pumped to see her.

What else is new in the states? We get back Dec. 15 but have yet to hear comments from a lot of you. An update would be oh so appreciated because I know I'm feeling a bit behind on life there!

P.S. Notice the title of this post? Well, we aren't actually going to move to Melbourne because it's way too far away from the good old US and all that we know and love already. However, if there were a city like this in the states, I think we'd both relocate there ASAP!

Pseudo Thanksgiving

Heard it's cold out there in the 'burgh and in the O-H, too. Yesterday, we celebrated Thanksgiving here in Melbourne and took a cooking break in the middle of the day to sit by the pool. So, it wasn't the typical Thanksgiving, especially because we're on the other side of the world and the majority of Australians have never even heard of the word "Thanksgiving." But it was pretty darn close to a Thanksgiving in America!

Our Thanksgiving dinner menu:

Turkey, Ham, mashed potatoes, corn pudding, stuffing, scalloped potatoes, green beans, and bread. Dessert was dirty dessert and pretzel salad.

Total attendees: 10 

Leftovers: lots! 

Tasmania - check!

The city and its people were even more relaxed than the others in Australia... meaning that rather than shops and cafes open from 8 a.m. - 6 p.m., they are open from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Restaurants and bars managed to stay open for the "late night" crowds. I think we're really beginning to envy their work ethic.

Tasmania only has a population of only about 400,000, and nearly half of those live in Hobart where we stayed. The city is surrounded by gardens, and the island is made up of mostly national parks. Inside the city, there's a street called Salmanca Place, home to several pubs and gift shops. Every Saturday is the Salmanca market when the shops and restaurants come the the street to give the city a taste of their latest menu offerings and season's gifts. It's actually very similar to what the Strip District offers in Pittsburgh every Saturday.

Overall, the trip was very relaxing. We had two half day tours planned, and we spent the rest of the four days exploring the area's gardens, historic locations, and local shops. Something unique about Hobart is that the city was built almost two hundred years ago by convicts from the USA, the British Isles, and the rest of Europe. Nearly all the buildings are made of sandstone, too. The buildings complement the port area at Hobart, which is always busy with boats, more restaurants, and more than enough options for fish and chips (what we ate on Thanksgiving).

The major highlights would be:

1.) Our boat cruise through the island. We traveled along the island that's surrounded by huge rock formations and caves. Throughout the trip, we swam with a dozen dolphins that rode the waves from the 20-person boat. Seat otters and birds were other animals who proved to not be shy. Since it was a small, 20-person boat, the waves rode us rather than us plowing through the waves. For me, the bigger the waves got, the more fun I had. It was like a roller coaster ride that added to the beautiful scenery. However, for Jamie, it was like a battle between him and the ocean, but he lost. No, he didn't throw up. But he did manage to maintain a sickly, pale color and throw out a few choice four-letter words under his breath. He didn't feel horrible the whole time during the 3-hour ride, but it was probably a good 30 minutes that I think he would have rather been somewhere else.

2.) We fed kangaroos. They eat off of your hand like a horse would, leaving a nice layer of thick, slobbery film on your hand. It kind of looked like they blew their noses on our hands. It was especially bad because the was no where to wash our hands after that, so we had to ride the bus home and not touch anything. (Just kidding! We washed our hands, but I wanted to gross you out a bit.) Some others animals we saw and touched were: wombats, koalas, and the tasmanian devil. The devil seemed pretty nice, but we weren't allowed to touch it. Supposedly it could bite through your bones due to its amazing jaw strength.

3.) The area was very picturesque. Every where you look, there's a mountain.

4.) Fish and chips was great... and fresh, too! While we ate it on Thanksgiving day, it didn't matter much because Monja is cooking a Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow that we're very excited for...so we can at least celebrate it in somewhat of a traditional way even though there will be probably no football and definitely no snow (probably more like 70 degrees, actually). Miss all of you and happy belated Thanksgiving!

Tasmania tomorrow

We leave tomorrow at noon for the airport and are headed to Tasmania - the home of the Tasmanian devil. (And yes, we will be able to meet the crazy animals!)

Our hotel is located right in the center of Tasmania's biggest city, Hobart. Everything in Hobart is within walking distance, whether it's the markets, restaurants, botanical gardens, the port in Hobart, and more.

We've scheduled an eco tour and a boat ride. The rest of our time the next four days will be spent exploring the city. So, time to pack. Catch ya' later! We'll be back on Friday and ready to post again some time after that.

Adios!   

Yarra Valley Wineries

We visited three wineries but started off the day with "morning tea" (breakfast) near the train station with our tour group. We sat with two other couples - one from New Zealand and the other from Norway. After a quick biscuit, we walked outside, and our guide gave us bird seed. Not even a second later, a bird pounced on my hand. One sat on my head. Another hopped on my should. Some of them were beautiful with bright red and rich green colors. The other half of the probably 35-40 birds were cockatoos - huge and mean. When they go down for a bite of seed on your hand, they make sure they don't miss a morsel. I think one of the birds took a nice chunk out of my palm. There are some great pictures of all this. For me, the best part was one leaving his/her breakfast on Jamie's shoulder... ha!

After our morning tea we took a train ride on a historic steam train called the Puffing Billy. The walls of the train explained it's life from how it was built hundreds of years ago and how it is today.

Our bus then took us to the first winery called Ferguson's - a family-owned winery and restaurant. We sipped on a fresh glass of a Cabernet-Merlot mix and ate a roast beef lunch with vegetables and bread. Definitely a first-class meal. We had a tasting there as well before venturing off to the next stop.

We had another tasting at Dominique Portet, the second winery. Here, the man explained the difference between the steel and oak barrels among some other facts. We sampled a more acidy-type wine and compared it to the oaks. Jamie liked the acidic ones better, but I like the oak.

After this, we made our way to the last winery, which was probably the most unique. It's a champagne winery, so we learned about the process of making it true "bubbly" and the different types of sparkling wine. The vineyard was owned by the same company that makes Dom Perigon, Belvedere vodka, and a list of other designer brands. The tour guide rattled off the names of each brand almost overconfidently... I think to make sure we understood the caliber of the winery. Others might have thought she seemed a bit snobby. Either way, the sparkling wine lived up to her speech. We sampled it, and much to my surprise, we liked it. I usually think it's too sweet and sugary, but the type we tried was just right.

We stopped at a pub on the way back, James Squire, because an Australian family we chatted with recommended it for the pub's microbrews. (P.S. The 16-year-old girl who I talked with from the family asked if I see celebrities all the time and if America is really like all the "American movies" like Mean Girls, American Pie, etc. Odd, isn't it?!) Sitting in the microbrew, we saw some peanuts on the bar. Jamie grabbed a few and a woman glared at him as if the bar's peanuts were hers... and for good reason. She bought the bar snacks that we're used to having for free sitting on the bar. There's a small chance she sighed "dumb Americans" under her breath as we apologized.

That plus the bird poo landing on Jamie's should that morning made his day pretty interesting, and I had a few good laughs.

The great Great Ocean Road

And that's exactly what it was - a Great Ocean Road.

We hit the train by 7 a.m. after I took some DayQuil on an empty stomach. Come 7:45 a.m., I was outside the train station ready to vomit from some mild motion sickness + DayQuil. After a few minutes passed, we were back on the train and ready to go a banana later.

It was a bit cold and windy - making it a perfect day to be on a double decker tour bus. We had the whole back seat to ourselves because the bus was only about 3/4 full. The tour guide was most definitely a talker and a joker. His first joke was about the bathroom.

"There is a small room located on the first floor of the bus, most inappropriately called the rest room," he said. "It would be quite inconvenient to rest here, as it's where the toilets are located."

He made corny jokes like that throughout the trip that made us roll our eyes at the guy, but you still have to giggle.

We made about eight stops throughout the Great Ocean Road. It truly felt like a visit back in time because every landmark and quaint little town seemed so untouched, making it all truly picturesque.

Here are some of the highlights:

• We had "Billy tea" that morning and tried vegamite. It was disgusting. The ingredients are: sodium, yeast, malt, coloring. No wonder I didn't want to put it on my cracker.
  
• Took a few pictures at the famous Bell's beach. The beach is known for it's groundbreaking-sized waves and surfers who visit it. Unfortunately we didn't see much surf or surfers. It was an unusually calm day.
  
• The Twelve Apostles and London Bridge attractions were both amazing to see. The shapes of the rocks were jaw-dropping, especially because both are made only through nature.


• The tour guide talked about shipwrecks because they used to be very common on the coast due to the harsh winds and the combination of fog and heat. In one wreck, only two of 54 survived - Tom and Eva. They lived in caves near the water before they were able to go above sea level. I took a picture in front on Eva's cave, and we walked around the area.

The best part about the Great Ocean Road is that it winds around the coast through small farming areas, through magnificent beaches, through rolling hills, and through towns that are so small they're probably barely on a map. A unique experience I'd definitely recommend.

Pictures to come soon!

There's a lot ahead

Alright, now that you're all in the loop about Port Douglas, this is what we're doing today and for the next few days:

Planning the rest of our trip!

We're headed to the flight centre today to find out more about:

1.) Tasmanina

2.) Sydney

3.) The Great Ocean Road

4.) Winery tours

Wish us luck! Also, hope you like some of our pics!

---

This is what we learned after some planning yesterday:

Tasmania

• 4-day trip: about $800 - $1000
  

Sydney

• Flights: $250
  
• Food: $150
  
• Bridge climb: $180
  
• Misc: $100

Melbourne

• The Great Ocean Road: $140 (11/19)
  
• Yarra Wine Valley: $144 (11/21)
  
• Kangaroo Park?: $119

Total: Over $2,000

Once-in-a-lifetime vacation to Australia for 6 weeks... priceless! (Had to say it.) God, I am going to be so poor come Dec. 15.

The rest of the pocket change - maybe about $1,000 or so - will go to the city of Melbourne for the back leg of our trip and Christmas presents. We both keep forgetting it's the holiday season because it was only a day ago that we got sunburn. 

If you have any requests for your xmas present, comment now or forever hold your peace! 

Port Douglas Day 7: Winery

We went to a winery and had tropical fruit wine like mango, lychee, black sapote, and more. The man taught us about the wines and ports and how to pair them with certain foods. After a bit, we then went to a park with rapids and overlooked the water. Loved it all.

And those seven days are Port Douglas in a nutshell!

Port Douglas Day 6: The Great Barrier Reef - SCUBA DIVING

So, the first time we went to the reef, only Jon and Monja went scuba diving. After hearing them rave about it, we knew we had to try it for ourselves. 

This is why scuba diving is scary... No, let me change that, this is why scuba diving is an adventure. 

Once you say yes to scuba diving, you fill out several packets of information about your medical history. This detailed background check, while thorough, got me a bit uneasy because it made me think about the risks associated with diving. Looking over at Jamie, I think he felt the same. We also had to initial several lines such as "I understand scuba diving can be a serious health yadda yadda death yadda yadda problems permanent heart lung yadda yadda."

Yeah, well, we did it anyway.

After we filled out the forms, we then had to go through a course on scuba diving. We learned "skills." Skills means the things you have to do to make sure you are "equalized" in your ears, nose, and lungs. Because the pressure is so heavy 10 meters under water, you have to:

1.) Equalize your ears by slowly pinching your nose and blowing out.

2.) Equalize your sinuses by taking a deep breath in, lifting your mask, looking to the sky, removing your mask, and blowing bubbles through your nose in the water. (Trust me, if it sounds difficult, it was difficult.)

3.) Equalize your lungs by breathing in and out consistently. 

We also had to:

1.) Clear both of our oxygen tanks under water by removing them from our mouths and saying "two" twice. 

2.) Learn sign language for under water to say: ok, stop, ear problems, up, down. 

(Quite a bit of info to learn in 30 minutes especially when it can be a matter of life or death in a sense.)

Then, the instructor strapped our gear on us:

1.) Two massive oxygen tanks on our backs.

2.) Weights around our waste to keep us down.

The gear was so heavy that I needed help standing and it almost hurt when it rested on my back.

When we hopped in the water, I couldn't feel the weights any more. It was like the feeling of an astronaut. We held a rope in one hand and slowly made our way to the bottom while doing our skills. I could feel myself start to breathe unusually heavy at first only because it was so unnatural to use the mask for oxygen. After a few minutes, I calmed down. (I think that's why they want to know medical history about asthma and heart attacks.)

Slowly but surely, we got to the bottom, our group of 3. (Used to be four, but on the way down someone chickened out and went back up.) So Jamie, me, and some random guy were swimming with the fish at the bottom of the sea.

We swam in circles around the coral and followed the fish for half an hour before it was time to go back up. It was just like snorkeling except everything was closer, brighter, more defined, and there was more. 

Unfortunately, the pressure was a bit much on my ears, and when we got out, I felt like I had just been in the front row of an ACDC concert at the Post Gazette Pavillion. That continued for a few days, but I'm over it. 

And despite getting fairly high grades in school, I don't think I learned my skills quite right because I came out of the water with a cold. I may not have equalized my sinuses enough I guess. Keep in mind, the water was 28 celsius. 

All in all, we're glad we can say we went scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef. However, it was a bit uncomfortable, so I probably won't go scuba diving again. But if you ever get the chance to do it just once, I'd say it's most definitely worth it! 

Port Douglas Day 5: The four-mile beach

This is how I explain our hotel:

Me: "Jamie, I feel like we are in some crazy resort."

Jamie: "You are."

--It's the type of place people dream to go on vacation and that you seem in two-page spreads in a glossy magazine.

That day, Jamie and I walked from one end of the four-mile beach to the other. As we walked further and further from our hotel, the beach became more and more desolate. So desolate, that apparently several Aussies considered it a nude beach. Don't worry, we didn't join in on the naked party.

Later that day we grabbed a cup of coffee at a quaint, trendy little place. The cashier asked us if we were on a holiday (vacation) and where we were from. When I said Pittsburgh, the barista looked over with excitement because she's from Mt. Lebanon. She also used to go to the same camp as I did (Kon-o-kwee) back in the day. Guess when she was there as a counselor, she became friends with an Aussie. She stayed friends with her, applied for a temporary working visa for Australia, and 24 hours later she was accepted. As a barista, she makes more than $15 per hour. (Not too shabby.)

Looking at her, Jamie and I were both thinking.... maybe we can do something like that... London sounds nice...

That night, we went to a place called Iron Bar for cane toad racing. It was there that we were subject to American jokes by the DJ of toad racing. (I wanted to let him know that we may be American, but his career is to race toads. I held back though and had a few fake laughs instead.)

It was odd how the whole toad racing game panned out: First it was a raffle, and if you're number is called, you have to race the toad, and of course, kiss it first. Cole's number was called and he had to kiss the the toad, Gay Freddo.

The first to get the toad in the bucket wins. The Aussie gave out prizes like frog legs, frog beer (didn't taste like frogs), and bar hats.

During the second race, the crowd had to bid for frogs. Jon was with us, and he bid on two frogs, probably totaling about $30 total to race the frogs. Baylee and Jamie raced them.

Neither won, but everyone got some prizes, and could walk away saying they kissed a frog. Fortunately, I was only on the receiving end and could share some of the prizes (frog beer) rather than actually touching the slimy, peeing things. (Yes, one shot out pee as someone picked it up. Pretty gross.)

It was entertaining and a pocket change money maker for the bar. Definitely a good thing for kids to do at night!

Later that evening, Jamie and I went to a bonfire on the beach with some of the Aussies we met. We talked about politics, the US, where we're going to go in Australia, and more.

After that day, we were ti-red!

Port Douglas Day 4: Crocodiles, Rainforest

This day we traveled up a mountain in a train until we reached the top. Throughout the ride, we experienced and saw some of the natural phenomenons of the mountain such as:

1.) A massive waterfall running through the opposite side of the mountain.

2.) A strong, cold gust of wind created naturally only by the mountain's shape and size.

3.) 15 tunnels, built a hundred years ago by hand.

Once we got to the top, we had some time for lunch to ate at the top of the rainforest. By this time, it was early afternoon, so we got on the skyrail and took it through the rainforest to the bottom. The millions of types of trees covered the mountains, and we floated through them with the birds and the butterflies. A fluorescent blue butterfly, unlike any I've ever seen, danced below us for a few minutes.

After that, we went to the crocodile farm. This is how Jamie explains it:

"And the crocs, not the lame shoes, were crazy. It was so weird to be that close and watch them feed. When they chopped down on the chicken heads their mouths made this popping sound; it was odd."

He is referring to our boat ride in the crocodile filled lagoon. The Aussie driving the boat had some chicken brains he teased the crocs with. You know how cat toys hang at the bottom of a string that's attached to a short stick? Then the cat jumps wildly around for whatever feathery toy is at the end? That's exactly how the chicken brain was for the croc.

The Aussie brought the chicken brain about 3 feet above the water, and he made it jump up and down to entice the croc. The 5-meter croc slowly put his face above water, glared at us with his (or her? his sounds better) silver dollar sized bulgy, black eyebrows, and then he leaped for the chicken brain in one solid, stiff movement.... and missed.

Wow! I felt bad for the ugly thing. The Aussie eventually made it easier and gave him the brain. I think the croc grinned a bit after he got it and sunk back in the water. He's probably not as dumb as we think.

The sound Jamie's referring to that was odd is when the croc would aim for the brain. He shot up in a vertical movement, opened his jaws, and rapidly slammed them together. I kind of think it sounded like getting two 2-by-4's and slamming them together as hard as you possibly can.

We later saw a croc show, a python show, and the kualas. It was a long day!

Port Douglas Day 3: The Great Barrier Reef Trip 1

Have you ever wondered what one of the seven natural wonders of the world looks like - the Great Barrier Reef? Well, let me tell you....

We took a boat with about 400 people an hour and a half out to the Great Barrier Reef. About 1/2 of those on the plane were snorkelers. Our whole group went in the water. We each wore wet suits that reminded me of the old school PJ's called footies except our wetsuits were elastic and also had a hood. Huge pain to get on and off actually.

Once we got in the water with our flippers, masks, and snorkel gear, we dipped our faces in the water to get a glance of what might be 20, 100, and 500 feet from the boat. In the water was hundreds of fish doing figure 8's in between our legs. Some were huge; some were small; some were colorful; others had teeth. It was a sight to see as we were not even fully immersed in the ocean at that point.

As we hopped in, we swam overtop the reef with millions of types of coral and fish that didn't seem bothered by our interruption. The fish swam so gently through the reef, and the reef only swayed with the tide.

The reef was full of colors of dull pink, mustard, cream, and grays. Rainbow fish, tiger fish, and fish I could never even begin to describe were below us. I almost became jealous of the fish who live in such a beautiful setting!

We snorkeled a top this reef for hours and lost track of time as we were so distracted by its beauty. At some points during the swim, we were only inches above the reef and had to float atop it without moving so we didn't kick the coral.

After that, Jamie and I took the kids on a snorkel adventure tour. A marine biologist took us further out into the reef, and she dove down to fetch coral, point out fish, and explain the wonders of the reef.

She told us about:

1.) Fish that travel in pairs for 12-13 years as partners. I tried to make a joke about them being married because she was a bit dull.

2.) A white coral that we touched. It was hard almost like a seashell but it looked soft and delicate.

3.) A massive clam, probably about 10 feet long. She went to put her hand inside the opening to demonstrate the movement it's capable of. The oversized clam immediately tried to eat the woman's hand. No fear - she said the tissue of the clam is so soft that it could never trap her arm. (Famous last words?)

Finally, our 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. trip to the reef was nearly over even though it seemed as we just got there. We hopped back on the boat headed home.

The winds picked up, and the ride became choppy. I glanced around to my right and left only to see the feelings of uneasiness come over to those around me - including the kids. People started getting out the white paper bags, and I knew that wasn't a good sign. The boat workers ran up and down the aisles offering cold towels for anyone who felt nauseous. Rather than join those who ran outside to spew over the balcony, I stayed in my chair. Someone ended up throwing up about ten feet away from me. Guess you can't win 'em all!

Port Douglas Day 2: Chillaxin

Honestly, all I remember from this day is that we hung out at the beach and the pool! We read, relaxed, took a few walks. 

Port Douglas Day 1: Getting there

The flight was only about three hours. We left Melbourne in a bit of cold weather, but as we got off the plane near Port Douglas, a wave of intense heat flowed throughout the air. We hopped into our rental car with the navigator (with the Australian accent) who guided us to our destination that was about an hour away.

For three eager kids, I think the distance sounded light years away after a three-hour plane ride. However, there was so much scenery to be absorbed in that I think they soon forgot the distance yet to be traveled. I know I did!

When I say scenery, picture this:

A thin, windy road circling through a mountain covered by tropical trees and even palm trees. On one side of the road is the mountains and the other is the beach with only the brightest blues and aquamarines. Like the beach in Melbourne, this one, too, had rocks strategically placed near the shore that seemed perfect for sitting. Ahead of us was a bright blue sky with the sun winding down calmly as we approached dusk. The ride brought us further and further from the airport, assuring us that Port Douglas and it's distance from the airport would make it that much more quaint, remote, and special. When we got there, we were right.

The town area was probably only a bit bigger than Ohio University's "metropolis." It's full of ethnic restaurants or ones with romantic, candle lit tables, beach shops, gelati stands, and bakeries. 

Our first dinner destination was a Mexican restaurant where Jamie and I split a jug of sangria that was full of fruit.

When we got back to the hotel, we had a late night talk with Jon and Monja about all the things ahead of us over a glass of wine:

1.) Where are we going to live after this? (I wish I knew.) 

2.)  If one of us gets a job in one city, then what next? (Good question.)

3.) Sticky situations in the business world. (We all love those, don't we!)

4.) And a bit more, but we can call that information confidential. Don't think you're so special that you can know all the juicy details! 

A Summary of Port Douglas

Sorry it has been so long. Internet costs an arm and a leg in Port Douglas. ($4 for ten minutes in an Internet cafe.)

All seven of us - Jamie and I, Jon, Monja, Brooke (14), Cole (12), and Baylee (8) - made it back safe to Melbourne. (And that's Mel-bun not Mel-bouRne. When you pronounce the 'r' like an American you get a cock-eyed glare from the Aussies.)

So much has happened over the past week that it will be challenging for us to get it all on this one little post, but we'll do our best. In fact, so much has happened that I feel like I'm about to take an exam without having studied at all. It's that pit in your stomach knowing that you have so much to do (aka there's so much we need to write about). HOWEVER, you might remember that we are on vacation. No exams, no pits in your stomach about what to do in work or school... so here's what happened over the past week in a few words or less. Sorry that it's so abbreviated!

• We swam through one of the seven natural wonders of the world - The Great Barrier Reef - twice... (Scuba diving and snorkeling).
• We took a skyrail overtop the rainforest.
• We took a train to the top of the highest mountain and ate lunch there.
• We walked from one end of a beach to the other.
• We went to a late-night beach bonfire with the Aussies in Port Douglas.
• We participated in "toad racing" and bet money on which toad is the fastest. Cole kissed a toad named Gay Freddie.
• We were subject to jokes on Americans.
• We met an arrogant American.
• We ate authentic Thai food.
• We went to a tropical fruit winery and had a wine tasting. Also left with a bottle of mango wine. Wish we could take it home but it'd probably get broken or lost. (Sorry amigos, maybe we'll bring back some crocodile jerky if anyone's interested.)
• We saw a crocodile!
• We saw a crocodile eat a chicken brain.
• We saw 2 kualas.
• We got sunburned. (Sorry dad. I wore spf 50 though, I swear!)
• We swam until our hands were pruney.
• Best of all, we ate, we drank, we laughed, and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves especially in the company of Jon, Monja and the kids. This is all sounding a bit too cliche, so forgive me! :)

Alright, so there are a few really great things I'm going to expand on above in some other posts in case you want to know more...

The beach

"I'm sick. It's beautiful. People are friendly. We had a great bike ride yesterday. I'm just throwing out ideas. We got our bags. At 9 o'clock last night. I haven't shaved in like three days."

-I asked Jamie what we should write about and that's what he said.

Let me expand a bit for you on that synopsis. Yesterday, our bike ride was absolutely amazing. We rode Jon and Monja's bikes about 3-4 miles down the beach on a bike trail. The sun was so hot but it barely mattered because our bikes made it breezy.

To the right of the trail were these short, thick-trunked trees that slanted heavily to the left of right or twisted both ways. They looked like trees from the Chronicles of Narnia or some other movie that involves mystique wildlife. Next to the trees was a small slope that below it led to the beach. The sand here is a deep golden yellow. And the beach, of course, looks like it stretches for thousands of miles. The water is fairly cold because it comes from Antarctica.

On the other side of the trail were trendy beach homes with massive, magnificent windows to overlook to the beach view. Each had a deck, too. The kind of place you would dream of waking up in and eating breakfast on the deck.

Perpendicular to our trail were more narrow roads with similar beach-house type homes and also boutiques, ethnic food restaurants, convenience stores, and more.

When we arrived to our destination from our ride, "Black Rock," my jaw dropped and eyes lit up. People say Australia is untouched, and they certainly don't lie.

Along the sandy beach was a cliff of volcanic looking rocks in orange and red colors. The natural beauty in the thousands of shapes in the cliff is nothing short of amazing.

Medium-sized rocks also sat in the ocean, giving the vastness of it a lot of shape. Jamie and I sat on one and chatted for an hour or so while observing the fungus (ew!), clams (gross!), and critters (sick!). Yes, I said those words outloud several times.

Anyway, we rode back on our backs after a bit and then went browsing around the uptown-like area. A man told me I had an accent, but I corrected him and said, "so do you." (In a joking manner of course!) We talked to all the clerks in the shops because each wanted to start a conversation with us and asked about our "holiday." (Holiday means vacation here.) They told us all the great places to go and how to get there, and etc.

We're going to go out and get coffee and a map this morning. Jamie needs medicine, too. Also, important to note, we're going to lay out by the pool today in between repacking for Port Douglas.

(Yes, our bags came at 9 p.m. last night.)

We leave for Port Douglas Saturday morning and are gone for a week, so we probably won't be giving you this same play-by-play while we're there. But we'll try to hand write it in Jamie's blank dairy that I got him for his birthday so that we can recap it for all of you!

Anyway, we got to go. Jamie's contaminating the house with his little sneezes.

Bye!

We're safe! The Ride. Arriving opposite of excess baggage.

So, we're here in Melbourne safe and sound. All in one piece. Except, we both lost 50 pounds on the 26-hour (2-day) plane trip. And that 50 pounds I'm referring to is both of our suitcases. Together, we lost a combined 100 pounds for those of you not awesome at fast math. Talk about a quick diet!

As we exited the plane yesterday, we joked about how funny, ironic, and somewhat typical it would be if they lost our luggage. While waiting at baggage for nearly 15 minutes, we started to get nervous. The first 0-2 minutes was an eager feeling, 2-5 was anxious, 5-10 was confused, 10-15 was frustrated. At minute 15, a woman comes on the voice over and says, "Would the following people please come to baggage claim services if you just stepped off of the LA to Melbourne Qantas International Flight."

True to form, the first name called was Ava Simone. They could have at least pronounced my name right!

Anyway, customer service was horrible; today (one day later), they just told us, "it's still kind of a mystery on where your baggage is." Good thing we have $100 insurance coverage for both of us. Bad thing is a pair of underwear costs $18.50. (Oh, and a large coffee smaller than a tall at Starbucks costs $3.20 for those of you wondering.) Also, a bad thing is that we're leaving for Port Douglas Saturday. So we're more desperate than the typical luggage loser. Anyway, we'll see what happens.

Although we lost our luggage, we still flew on the new Qantas jet, which I guess has seen a lot of PR lately for it's technology. This is what the plane was like:

1.) I watched Sex and the City for the 8th time. (Wahoo!)

2.) I sat in a row of three seats with no one in the middle. A skinny guy sat on the outside, and I had the window. Talk about a good amount of space!

3.) Jamie sat directly in front of me. I sometimes would sneak my foot up the side of the chair in hopes for a quick foot rub. I learned my odds were good.

4.) The plane had a sky cam. I saw: traveling through the stars, traveling on clouds, traveling through the sunset.

5.) Also watched multiple episodes of: Grey's Anatomy, House, and Two and a Half Men.

6.) They fed us! It didn't taste great, but at least we didn't have to pay $2.41 for a granola bar like I did the other day at the airport.

Ok, that was the good stuff. Here's the "oh-I-wish-you-hadn't-I-hate-you-Qantas" stuff.

1.) Baggage. Waiting to take off and exit the plane. A cumulative hour of waiting probably.

2.) I sat next to an 80-year old with really bad breath on the second flight. He wanted to chat, so of course I did. Guess he was in Nashville for some music festival. He could barely use the touch screen. So, we bonded over how to navigate this new technology, and I opened his peanuts for him. Maybe it wasn't that bad.

3.) The flight from LA to Melbourne was pretty much lights out the whole way. AKA, I couldn't read my new book, which is why I watched a record-breaking amount of TV. Speaking of TV, that's what Jamie's doing right now, waiting for me so that we can go on a bike ride.

4.) They should have updated our tickets to first class for no reason. No luck with that. Jerks.

5.) We waited in line for nearly an hour in the LA airport because we had to go get a new boarding pass. They apologized and said they were, "understaffed." Good for you, so is the rest of the world.

6.) The man at the check-in had mistaken us for someone else. He asked if we were the couple with immigration problems. I gave him the you're an idiot look and told him, "not that I know of."

Ok, wow! I really sound like a jerk. Anyway, Jamie and I have been wearing Monja and Jon's (his sister in law and brother's) clothes...

As I was posting, Qantas called and said my bag would be here in the afternoon. Jamie is still SOL. But then again he didn't have multiple pairs of shoes. T-shirt and cargo shorts are most definitely irreplaceable.

After the bike ride today, that's what we're going to do - replace at least $100 worth of clothes that we're missing because we have the insurance for it. So, I might return home with five whole new pairs of underwear. Lucky me!

The only challenge (and there's always a challenge with insurance) is that we won't get reimbursed until after we get back. Oh, so typical...

So, I guess all in all, the past 26 hours (plus some) have been nothing short of fun, exciting, annoying, frustrating, entertaining, interesting, educational, and a lot more. We couldn't really morph any of that into one word. Post something if you know of a synonym for all that!

Anyway, if you're still reading, kudos! You nearly just finished our first book-like post. We'll try to keep 'em shorter moving forward. It's kinda' hard to to shorten the flight details and no baggage stuff.

Bon vayage! Time for a bike ride in Melbourne.

P.S. I haven't seen a kangaroo, but there are flies everywhere. There's been a consistent amount of 10-20 flying around our faces every time we step foot outside. The anchors on TV are hilarious because all they do is swat at their faces every .5 seconds to avoid the flies. Monja said this isn't nearly the worst of it. Hmm... maybe we'll get some more bug spray while we're out this afternoon.

P.S.S. Whoah! I could hardly forget about all the exciting stuff going on the US. New president, great deal of voters yesterday, and all that politics stuff. And that's all we're going to say about politics. Trust me, it's for the best.

P.S.S.S. We took a walk along the beach yesterday. A-mazing! We'll try to take pictures.

P.S.S.S.S. I realized on the plane that I forgot: 2 cute sundresses, AND my photo adapter (puts pics on the computer). I'll try to think of a plan B so that we can share our photos with you.

Good bye, mate!

It's the best time

There comes a point in everyone's life when you feel like you've maxed the space your resume, working 9-5 doesn't sound convincingly appealing, and well.. you're actually just exhausted! For many, this epiphany is called on the verge of retirement.

For Jamie and I, it's called on the verge of a 6-week trip to Australia.

Jamie and I arrived at our jobs a few days after graduation, and we realized there was something missing. He had already planned on going to Australia to visit his family, but by mid-to-late summer, after a few conversations with him and his family, I officially said "yes" for the trip. It was mainly because of the bubbly 9-nine year old who gave me puppy dog eyes, begging that I go with him. The rest of Jamie's family that lives there is absolutely amazing in a sincere way, especially because they're welcoming us to stay with them for the greater part of the trip. Those few conversations led us to today... the day of our flight (well, the days of our flight) to Melbourne!

So, with no commitment to a full time job, no responsibility to a family, no "real" bills to pay other than an occasional credit card bill from the prior week's shopping trip (shout out to our families for putting up with us and taking us out to dinner the past few months), it really presents the one and only opportunity for us to take six weeks off of work to travel and see the world.

After all, "it's the best time to do it."

So says:
-The Citizens Account Banker
-The clerk at Target
-Former PR colleagues (5)
-My hair stylist, Alicia
-Current OU Coms and Marketing employees (2)
-Former Xerox sales manager
-Doctor at Butler Memorial Hospital
-4 sets of families
...and the list really goes on.

So when we come back broke (and tan), I'm just going to keep telling myself that it was really just the best time to do it. There's a good chance I'll have the pictures to prove it.

In the mean time, keep checking back on our blog because we'll try to update it regularly. Or, we could call everyone and brag about how much fun we're having at 4 a.m. instead. (Note the time difference.) But, I think most of you would prefer to check back on here at your own convenience.

So... bon voyage! We're headed to down under, where kangaroos are rampant, the right side of the road is really the left, football is "footy," and the toilet flushes the wrong way... Oh god, wish us luck!