The past few weeks have been a whirlwind and very exciting, to say the least. Picking up from where I left off in my last blog posting, I had a great time in Melbourne dispite the dreary weather and enjoyed catching up with my old roommate Gen. From there I hopped on a puddle jumper and flew to Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays and was greeted with beautiful weather, amazing scenery, as well as wine and cheese in the hotel thanks to my mom and dad who had arrived a few hours earlier. They filled me in on their adventures and I caught them up on mine as we relaxed on the balcony of our 10th floor hotel overlooking the Coral Sea. Talk about picturesque!
The next few days were filled with resting and relaxing on the beach and by the pool. One of the days we were there my dad and I booked a day trip on a sail boat to go snorkeling which was great. (My mom is not a big fan of boats so she stayed on land that day and hung out w/ a koala.) We saw lots of fish and coral and I got to put my underwater digital camera to use for the first time! Another day he and I went parasailing which was amazing. It was so relaxing and peaceful to float up in the air as a boat pulled us along while we overlooked the other small islands around us. And it didn't hurt that it was a gorgeous day!
That same night we boarded yet another boat for a sunset dinner cruise (which we almost missed and had to run the whole way to the marina from our hotel after they called to find out where we were) which had a beautiful view of the sunset as well as great food and wine.
The following day we went on a bus tour of the island and found a great spot to watch the sunset so we returned there that evening and sipped on cocktails while we watched the sky fill with shades of pink, red, purple, and orange. Simply beautiful!
We found it hard to leave the island since it was definitely the highlight of our travels. Nothing beats relaxing on a beach for five days! We returned to Sydney for my parents' last night in Australia and had dinner overlooking Bondi Beach where we saw another great sunset. There was certainly a pattern of that! I said goodbye and safe travels to them the next morning and started my check-off list for my final week in Australia.
I enjoyed being able to soak up the city, wander around and appreciate all that Sydney has to offer. I met friends for lunch, went to a museum, walked around the harbour, and visited a few of my favorite spots for one final time.
For my last weekend Jen gathered some friends to join us on a double decker bus to tour around the city and see all the highlights in one day. It was a great way to capture tons of pictures to make up for all the ones that were lost on the stolen computer, so thanks to everyone who joined in on the fun, and a special thanks to Jen (and Kevin) for organizing it! And not only did we hop on and off the bus for pictures, but in the true spirit of Australia we stopped for a few pints of beer along the way as well! It was a fantastic send-off celebration that will forever be a highlight.
In less than 24 hours I will be on a plane headed back to the states and I can hardly believe that nine months has passed so quickly. I predicted that time would fly while Jen and I were here but of course it's gone faster than I ever could have imagined.
A big thanks to everyone who supported us along the way from the states and in Aus. A super special big thanks to Kat who took us under her wing and introduced us to great people, great food, and great wine! You will be missed. To those of you who I've met in Australia, you will always have a friend to look up in Atlanta. To everyone who's never been to Australia, you need to check this place out! It's fantastic and has a lot to offer.
And finally to Jen- thank you so much for joining me on this crazy adventure and I can't wait for whatever adventure may come next!! Enjoy the rest of your time here and try not to rub it in too much that I'm not right there by your side like I have been for the past nine months. I will miss you lots!
Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read the blog; I've enjoyed writing it and hope you've enjoyed following it!
xoxo,
Kari
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