Punched by a Kangaroo

My first week in Sydney is nearing an end, although it does not feel like I have only been here for six days. I am already in love with Sydney, and am having so much fun. I truly feel like I'm already growing, and learning to be out of constant communication with people from home is not as hard as I thought it would be. As much as I miss everyone, I am having a ton of fun, and I know that once I get back, everything will still be the same. Lately I am having a very hard time keeping track of the days. I know that today is Friday, but as I think about what to write, I can't quite differentiate the days clearly.

Wednesday, a small group of us began to really explore the city. It was supposed to rain that day, but we had a very pleasant surprise when we woke up to sunshine and heat. We walked through the streets all the way up to King St. and turned to find Darling Harbour. After that we continued walking until we reached the place we had all been waiting to find--Circular Quay. Once we arrived, the sight of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House was fantastic. The sun was bright, it was warm, and everything was amazing. We took one of our many photos we believe are perfect for MyNEU Photo of the Week!

You can look for us on there soon! That night we decided to take it easy, as we were all pretty exhausted from the day, and still quite jet lagged. There was a concert and BBQ on the roof top

On Thursday I woke up, like usual, at about 6am. But it was finally the day I'd been waiting for--my 21st Birthday!! A group of us left around 8:30 to head off to Bondi Beach, which was absolutely breathtaking.

It was a perfect hot day, and we all left with various parts of our body burned. The waves were immense. Because of the rip tide, there were only certain areas that were swimmable at any given time, and they were indicated by flags. The water was much colder than expected, but felt very good on such a hot day. After we had all had our fill, we went back to Unilodge to rest and get ready. We made homemade pizzas on pita bread that were delicious (I could easily eat them every day) and then the girls surprised me with a DIVINE chocolate cake! After then getting ready in a very sparkly outfit, we went upstairs to the other girls rooms, and they got me even more delicious chocolate cake! It was really fun, and meant a lot everyone was thinking of my birthday! After donning my princess birthday tiara, we left to go to an international welcome bar night. We stayed for a drink, and then went to the 3 Monkey's Pub. After a lot of dancing, we went to our favorite go-to spot-Scruffy Murphys. We partied until 4:30 in the morning...it was a birthday I won't soon forget.

Today was Zoo day. I have been looking forward to Taronga Zoo for as long as I can remember. Most of the Northeastern group went, but then I decided to go off on my own. As one of my goals in a previous post states, I really love doing things on my own. That way I can go at my own pace, see what I want to see, and not worry about anyone else. The ferry ride to the Zoo was great, with picture perfect scenes of the harbour. Once we arrived, we took a Sky Safari ride up to the main entrance, and then my journey began. I spent many hours walking around the various exhibits, and they were all great, but some definite highlights. Like when I was in the "Australian Walkabout" exhibit. You are supposed to stay on the path, but on my second time through, I was the only one in the whole area at first. So when I saw a kangaroo come close to the path, I decided to friend it--her name was Joanne (it wasn't until later, when I realized she was actually a he, but the name stuck).I pat her and it was so cool to be with a kangaroo. After a little bit, another person came into the area and I asked her to take a picture of myself and Joanne. When trying to put my arm around her, she punched me with her two arms! It did not hurt, because she was little, but definitely caught me by surprise--and also fit the exact thoughts I had about kangaroos--they can be very mean! We quickly made up, and spent the next 15 or 20 minutes sitting together. Later on at the Chimp exhibit, there was a very feisty little Chimp, who kept running up in front of me and kissing the glass with his face--one of the cutest things I have ever seen. My last big encounter was with a giraffe. There was no-one around (after 3:30 or so, the zoo seemed to be filled only with the animals and me) and the giraffe, Jim (I seem to like to name my animal pals) came right up to the edge of the exhibit. He was very close to arms reach, so I stepped into the forbidden zone, and pat him. He then proceeded to stick out his tongue at me for about 10 minutes--very adorable. Eventually, I realized I would have to leave the zoo, which I have come to love. As I waited for the boat to come, I walked around the area in front of the zoo. The views of the city were spectacular, and I know I will cherish those moments for the rest of my life. I found today, as I've always found, that the moments I seem to remember the most, are ones I spend by myself, completely in my surroundings. It is so freeing not to have to talk to anyone, or think about anyone else--freeing to be able to just be. On the boat ride back to Circular Quay, I decided to continue on the boat to Luna Park and onto Darling Harbour again. Although it meant more walking (and by this point my knee was excruciating) I was not about to let it stop me. I walked around Darling Harbour for a bit, and then headed back to Unilodge.

Since it is now Friday, the weekend is about to start, and I am looking forward to every single moment I have left of this trip. At this point I would like to thank Jess, for her very great words of wisdom--do not put anything off while you are abroad, it will be over before you know it. I have not taken these words lightly, and it has completely been important to think about. I don't want to waste a minute that I'm here, because there is so much I want to see and do before I leave.

Until next time!