byron Bay and Nimbin

This morning, we arrived in Byron ba after a brutal 10 hour bus ride. The bus was nearly full and we all had to double up in our seats. It was really hard to sleep and I was exhausted when we arrived! We took a long walk after we dropped our stuff at our hostle and explored the bay, a lighthouse, and the easternmost point of Australia. It was a really beautiful day out, its awesome to be up north where it is still really hot!! Its getting cooler in Wollongong now that they are moving into their fall and winter months. Then, there was a group of people taking surf lessons, but I was exhausted! So, I went back to the room and took a two hour, much needed nap! In the afternoon, I layed on the beach and went for a long run to explore. I just took a shower and got ready for our night out at Cheeky Monkeys for dinner and drinks. I'm rooming with my friends Adam, Alex, and James and they are all sound asleep. For once in my life, I'm ready early and just waiting for them to all get up! Tomorrow, we are leaving at 1030am to go to Nimbin all day for the Marty Grass festival, I heard it is supposed to be a crazy festival! It should be a really good time! Sunday, we are going sea kayaking and then headed back toSydney Sunday night. We will arrive back in Sydney sometime monday morning and then I have to get a train back to Wollongong. It was awesome last week, when we got home we had Monday off, so I could sleep all day. Unfortunately, this week, I do have class and I know I'm going to be exhausted! I am looking forward to having the weekend off next weekend to relax and study! It is much needed! I have been on the run for a month straight! Monday, I am meeting with one of the directors of my program to figure out my exam schedule and figure out my flight home. Still missin' everyone in VT...can't wait to see everyone in June!

The Blue Mountains!

Sorry I haven't written in a while, it has been a crazy week!! I had classes all week and then I spent Wednesday night and Thursday attempting to finish all my work before the weekend! Friday afternoon, some friends from Coogee came to skydive. I ran down by the beach and watched them dive and then brought Ian back to check out International House. It was my friend Lily's 21st birthday, so I left Ian with Kayla and a big group of 12 girls from our dorm all went out for Mexican!! We got jugs of homemade sangria and lots of yummy food! Then, we grabbed the bus back to I-House. I picked up Ian and Kayla and headed to North Gong Pub to hang out. After a few setbacks, we were back in I-House early and headed to bed :) In the morning, I went to Body Pump, did some homework, and layed outside to do some reading! Then, after dinner we met up with our friend Alex from orientation and we took the train to Coogee. We stayed in Coogee with some friends from orientation and went out to the Coogee Bay Hotel. It was really fun to see everyone!! Then, we woke up early in the morning to catch the bus with all the other IFSA-Butler kids, to The Blue Mountains!! It was a two hour bus ride and we all passed out on the way there!! When we arrived, they had morning tea, coffee, juice, and snacks waiting for us! We took pictures of the beautiful mountains and then headed out on a hike down into the valley, where we saw lots of wildlife and waterfalls! Once we finished the 1400 step decent, we took "The Steepest Railway" back to the top of the mountain. It was kinda scary and we were all holding on for dear life, as if we were going to fall out of the rail car!! Back at the top, we got on our bus and headed to the Megalong Valley Farm, where we had a bbq lunch and rode horses all afternoon! It was a beautiful day and so much fun!! I loved The Blue Mountains and it was great to spend time with friends I haven't seen for a while!! We got back to Wollongong, late last night and now I have to finish a paper before 5:30 tonight, so I'm going to be hard at work all day! I have class Mon, Tues, and Wednesday this week and I'm going to work hard to get my schoolwork done because I have a four day weekend trip this weekend to Melbourne and Victoria and then another one next weekend to Nimbin and Byron Bay! Should be a really fun end of the month! I only have 60 days left in Australia. I will be flying back to Vermont June 16th! I can't believe it has gone so fast!!

Back in Wollongong!

Yesterday, I checked out of my hostel at 10am and spent almost the whole day in the airport. My flight from Auckland back to Sydney was at 4pm. After I finally got on my flight, it was a 3 hour journey home. Once I got to the Sydney airport, I had to take a train and a bus to get back to Wollongong. By the time I got back to my room, I was exhausted!! I skyped with my mom (FINALLY!!) and went straight to bed! It was so nice to sleep in my own bed and wake up whenever I wanted!! I woke up around 9 and went for a long run on the beach, then went to brunch. I spent the rest of the afternoon doing homework and laundry and getting my life back together!! I watched Grey's and read before dinner. I spent the rest of the night online job-hunting, uploading pictures, and blogging. I have to go back to school tomorrow and I have a paper do about the transtheoretical model and the psychology physical activity. Then, this weekend I am going to Sydney to visit friends and explore the Blue Mountains!

Bethell Beach

Today, I enjoyed my last day in Auckland with Brooke and Lily. We took a bus tour from our hostel with a bunch of other people to Bethell Beach and then a small, private lake/sand dunes in Auckland. It was a blast and we got to see beautiful scenery! In the morning we hiked down to a sacred mauri waterfall and lots of people on the tour jumped in the freezing water! Then, we went to Bethell Beach where I got to experience black sand for the first time! It was really amazing and we couldn't have asked for a better day! Then, we finished the afternoon at a freshwater lake. We climbed huge sand dunes for about 20 minutes until we reached a beautiful clearing with mountains in the distance and a small, freshwater lake. It was really remote and relaxing and I had a great afternoon! Our tour guides were tons of fun and played music on the bus and were really interactive with us. It made the day much more fun, and they told us all about the culture and life in New Zealand! It was a blast! Then, we showered and grabbed some dinner. I think we're going up to the top deck of our hostel that overlooks Auckland tonight, to hang out with a bunch of the people we met on our tour today! Tomorrow, I fly back to Australia in the afternoon. I have to finish up some homework, do laundry, and unpack. Then, its back to school on Monday! Only two months left in Oz....

Back to Auckland!

We woke up early this morning to drive from Mt. Maunganui back to Auckland. We stopped at a really beautiful gorge and a memorial to take scenic pictures of the Auckland harbor. When we arrived, we checked into our Nomads hostel and tried to figure out what we were going to do with our last couple of days. We planned a trip tomorrow the the west coast beaches and Brooke decided to bungy jump today! So, we changed and headsed to the bus stop where we were bussed to the harbor bridge. Lily and I got to walk all the way along the bridge and up to the bungy jumping deck. It was a beautiful place to take pictures and console Brooke before she jumped! It was really awesome to watch the people jump, get dunked in the water, and then get pulled back up! After a crazy afternoon, we headed to the Victoria Market Place and looked around all the little stands and local shops. Then, we got some dinner and came back to the hostel. The top deck of our hostel has a beautiful view of the city, a hot tub, and a sauna! I think we are going to check out the top deck later tonight! Then, tomorrow we are leaving early for the west coast. It should be a blast! Then, Saturday I fly back to Australia. Today was the first day that I was really homesick. I'm not sure what brought it on, but I was like fighting back tears all day. I was emailing my dad and for some reason his email just made me really emotional and made me miss him and my family a lot. I think it is also because New Zealand reminds me so much of VT. It was all beautiful grassy mountains, cows, and farmland as we drove north from Wellington. It reminded me a lot of home and made me miss lots of little things! Although I'm having a lot of fun seeing and doing new things, traveling is overwhelming and hectic and sometimes really scary and lonely. I'm tired and stressed out and I think I'm missing the comforts of home. New Zealand has been fun, but I think I'm ready to head back to Australia and the comfort of my own dorm room. I'm excited to go out tomorrow and do something fun and keep myself busy! Ill write again to tomorrow to tell you all about my trip! Missin' home, -Britt

Mt. Maunganui

Today, we had an unexpected change of plans! We were supposed to stay in Rotorura for two nights, but there were problems with the bus that was supposed to pick us up on Thursday, so we had to leave this afternoon. I was really bummed because I ended up having to concel my white water rafting trip that I had booked for 2pm because the bus was coming to pick us up at 145. Lily and Brooke had gone on a tour of the glow worm caves this morning and I had no way to contact them. I was really scared that they were going to miss the bus and I was going to have to finish the rest of the tour on my own, but luckily they made it back just in time! In the morning, while I was waiting for the bus, I went to the Polynesian Spa instead of white water rafting. I sat in the natural hot pools overlooking the Rotorura mountains and then had a half hour mid and fruit exfoliating massage! It was great! I was on a massage table with water showering over me! My masseuse was wearing a bathing suit and flip flops; it was so cool! Then, I met up with Lily and Brooke and we got all our stuff together and got on the bus. We stoPped at a red wood forest and then in Mt. Maunganui. We hung out and had dinner and then went to relax in the hot salt pools. It was awesome! Tonight, I just hung out in my room with all the awesome people from my magic bus from holland, germany, ireland, sweden, and the u.s.!! Tomorrow, we have to wake up early to travel to Auckland. I will stay there for two nights and then catch my flight back to Australia on Saturday!!

Rotorura

Today, we left Napier early and headed for Lake Taupo. It was a gross, rainy day so we all just relaxed and slept on the bus. After dropping off people in Taupo, we continued on the bus to go see the champagne hot mud pools. It was really interesting, but realllllllly smelly!! The whole park reaked of rotten eggs because the hot pools are smoking with sulfur from the ground. There was a stinky fog that hung over the whole park. There were lots of acids in the water and rocks and it turned the water different colors like orange, green, and yellow. It looked like the slime from nickelodeon; it was so cool! Then, we continued on to Rotorura. I was exhausted and still a little sick when we got here, so I took a nice long nap. Then I woke up, went for a run and checked out the town and all the little shops. It is adorable here! I found a grocery store and bought food for the rest of the week, so that I won't have to spend so much money eating out. I got cereal, bread, milk, llunch meat, fruit, and some gluten free pasta. I was able to cook at my hostel and made pasta for dinner, it was great! It is so easy to be gluten free here! Everywhere I go there are gluten free options and tons of choices! It feels so good to not have to worry about eating all the time! I can relax and have fun and know there will be things for me to eat! I hope it becomes more popular in America in the near future!! Tonight, I'm just hanging out in the lounge with other travelers. They have American TV here!! Friends, Greys, and The Nanny were on tonight!! I can't get enough!! Tomorrow, I am going to a polynesian spa to try to get a massage and sit in their naturAl, hot water spa. Then, I'm going white water rafting at 2 o'clock for the rest of the day. I can't wait!! The raftabout instructor is going to pick me up right at my hostel; it is so convenient!! Then, Friday I am leaving for Mt. Maunganui and then, back to Auckland on Friday. I'm going to stay in Auckland Friday night and then catch my flight back to Australia on Saturday. I'm hopin for better weather tomorrow!!

Rotorura

Today, we left Napier early and headed for Lake Taupo. It was a gross, rainy day so we all just relaxed and slept on the bus. After dropping off people in Taupo, we continued on the bus to go see the champagne hot mud pools. It was really interesting, but realllllllly smelly!! The whole park reaked of rotten eggs because the hot pools are smoking with sulfur from the ground. There was a stinky fog that hung over the whole park. There were lots of acids in the water and rocks and it turned the water different colors like orange, green, and yellow. It looked like the slime from nickelodeon; it was so cool! Then, we continued on to Rotorura. I was exhausted and still a little sick when we got here, so I took a nice long nap. Then I woke up, went for a run and checked out the town and all the little shops. It is adorable here! I found a grocery store and bought food for the rest of the week, so that I won't have to spend so much money eating out. I got cereal, bread, milk, llunch meat, fruit, and some gluten free pasta. I was able to cook at my hostel and made pasta for dinner, it was great! It is so easy to be gluten free here! Everywhere I go there are gluten free options and tons of choices! It feels so good to not have to worry about eating all the time! I can relax and have fun and know there will be things for me to eat! I hope it becomes more popular in America in the near future!! Tonight, I'm just hanging out in the lounge with other travelers. They have American TV here!! Friends, Greys, and The Nanny were on tonight!! I can't get enough!! Tomorrow, I am going to a polynesian spa to try to get a massage and sit in their naturAl, hot water spa. Then, I'm going white water rafting at 2 o'clock for the rest of the day. I can't wait!! The raftabout instructor is going to pick me up right at my hostel; it is so convenient!! Then, Friday I am leaving for Mt. Maunganui and then, back to Auckland on Friday. I'm going to stay in Auckland Friday night and then catch my flight back to Australia on Saturday. I'm hopin for better weather tomorrow!!

Napier!

We made it to Weklington last night after a 12 hour bus trip from Auckland. When we arrived, we were hungry and exhausted, so we grabbed some food and headed back to the hostel to go to bed. We had to wake up at 630 this morning to start our first day on the Magic Bus! We got some coffee, got on the bus at 730 and met our tour guide. Then, we began our six hour journey to Napier, New Zealand. Along the way we stopped at Tui's Brewery for lunch and beer sampling. I didn't have any beer, but I had a really great salad and walked around the gift shop laughing at all the souvenirs. Then, when we got to Napier, better known as wine country, we went to the wine center and did a wine tasting. It was really fun and interesting! Then, we toured the city and all the little shops and walked along the beach. After a long day, we went to this Mediterranean restaurant for dinner..equipped with a full gluten free menu yay!! I got some cheese and tomato pizza...it was delicious..and saved the rest for our travels tomorrow! I'm trying really hard to budget my money, and I thin I've done a pretty good job. But food and hostels and excursions really add up after I already spent lots of money on a plane ticket and the magic bus tour!! After dinner, I just came back to the hostel to relax and go to bed early. I have a really bad cold and I'm hoping it goes away soon! I think it was just lots of germs between the plane, dirty busses, and hostels :( I've been feeling really shitty for two days but I'm hoping lots of rest will help me feel better! We leave at 745 in the morning and we are staying two days at our next stop in Rotorura. I'm really excited because I booked a white water rafting trip for Wednesday! Then, Thursday, we head to Mt. Manguntai and then Friday I'm venturing back to Auckland to catch my flight back to Australia on Saturday. I'm headed to try and sleep off this cold, but I hope everyone had a great Easter and is enjoying the warm VT weather! Miss everyone lots! Goodnight!

Auckland, New Zealand!

I flew into Auckland airport late Friday night and I totally lucked out, the lady sitting next to me was from Auckland and had been away in Australia on business. She said her husband was picking her up and they could give me a lift to my hostel! This saved me so much money!! I didn't have to stress about finding my way, they drove me right to the front door! The lady even gave me her contact info and told me if I got stuck or needed anything, to let her know! I was so lucky to meet them! At this point, it was like 2am and I was exhausted! I checked in and went right to bed! There is a two hour time difference from Australia to New Zealand, so when I woke up the next day it was actually noon!! I got ready and headed out to see the city! I went to the skytower and the Auckland city market, where I bought some awesome souvenirs for my family and friends. Then walked down to the harbor and signed up for a harbor cruise! It was amazing and I got to see all the little islands, the harbor bridge, the city etc. in one trip!! I got subway for lunch and then went for a long run to check out more city sights! I found a little market near my hostel with lots of fresh fruit and gluten free stuff I could eat, so I stocked up for the rest of the trip, instead of eating out! After my run I showered and got ready and headed downstairs to the hostel bar for a couple drinks. It was the most amazing place and I met tons of new friends!! I met a really great group from canada that I hope to meet up with again when I head back to Auckland on Friday!! Then, I headed back to my room to get some sleep before we had to catch the 730 bus this morning! My roommates and I fumbled around with our phones and watches, attempting to chang our clocks back an hour so we would get up on time! Finally, we figured it out and got ready for bed! Just as I was about to fall asleep, my friend Lily came knocking at the door! Her flight had landed and she made it to the hostel!! We made a plan to meet at seven in the morning to catch the bus. Right now, I am on a 12 hour adventure from Auckland to Wellington. We are going to stay in Wellington tonight and then meet our Magic Bus Tour at 8am. We will travel from Wellington to Napier, Rotorua, Mt. Maunganui, Tauranga, and then back to Auckland. My only plan so far is to go white water rafting in Rotoura! I can't wait!! I will write more and post pictures as we go! Happy Easter!!

Magic Bus Tour: North Island, New Zealand

Today, I am taking a bus to the airport (damn trains aren't running!) and then I am flying out of Sydney at 7pm and I will arrive in Auckland, New Zealand around midnight. I am staying at Base Auckland tonight and I'm going to explore the city tomorrow until I meet up with my friends that are flying in. Then, we are taking a bus Sunday morning to go to Wellington, New Zealand. We are going to stay the night on Sunday in Wellington and then catch our "magic tour bus" early Monday morning! We will get to travel all over thre north island on this chartered bus! When we arrive in each place we can decide how long we want to stay and what we want to do. Then, the bus picks you up every morning to head to the next destination! I'm a little nervous to travel alone, but also really excited!! There will be lots of pictures and blogs to come this week! Happy Easter!