Ants and Pirates in Sydney...

So Fiji was amazing besides the bugs and dirty house. We finally got to Australia on tuesday and it is currentally saturday. It has been a crazy past few days filled with things to do! The first day we had our AIFS orientation and were showed to our houses. I literally wanted to die when I walked into my house. You could tell that no one has cleaned up in years! It was so dirty! I live with Ashley and Raven who are here through AIFS too so i was excited to live with them. We also live with an Australian named Calem and Shabab who is from Bangladesh(spelling?) They are all really nice and we get along. Ashley and I do basically everything together and I am so greatful that I have her here with me to get through this ant infested house. I have also come to realize that it gets FREEZINGGGG at night here. Thankfully I brought blankets and found another one for $11 at the mall. We finally got settled in and everything was going great. I have also found out that the birds here are insane! They make noises like dying children and i am not kidding! They also think it is a great time to wake people up at 6am. NOT COOL! On wednesday we had our Macquarie orientation which wasn't that bad. It felt like I was a freshman again though. I obviously had problems with my schedule and had to get it fixed. Which took me until yesterday to sorta fix. Typical! After orientation we went to the mall. Pretty sure I have been there like everyday since i have been here haha It is like a 15 min walk from the Village (where i live) so it isnt that bad to get to. We started our family dinner tradition by making  huge vat of past and a cake which was delicious! Wednesday night we went to the local bar the Ranch which was pretty cool. It wasn't that far from campus either. Thursday we had a free day so we spent most of it at the mall and just hanging around. That night we had a cruise on Sydney Harbor which was pirate themed!

Friday we had a tour of Sydney. The bus driver was insane and tried to make everything into a joke. I felt like i was home on the weekend with my dad who likes to make jokes. (Dad  kinda miss you joking wit me in the morning. It was way easier to handle than the bus driver!) Anyways we got to take some pictures and got the shortened tour of Sydney. Bondi Beach may be my new favorite place. It was so nice to just sit by the beach and have lunch with friends. I can't wait until it is nicer out and we can go down there for the day. It ended with a drink at the Scary Canery which was actually a cool little bar.

So far today (saturday) I have got food shopping and started doing some laundry. Classes don't start until tuesday for me so I am just going with the flow and having a good weekend before the first day of classes.

I miss my mom's OCD with cleaning...

So for the past 6 days I have been in a homestay in Suva. The internet never worked and I rarely got to talk to my parents. When We first arrived at the home literally I thought I was never going to make it through this… The house was a complete disaster!! It was so dirty and infested with bugs.. I HATE BUGS so this was a challenge! Thankfully I had another girl from my trip named Jenna so we made the best out of it. The family consisted of a mom and a dad in probably their 50s who were super sweet. There was an older brother named Hans who was about 28 and a daughter named Mika who was about 26. Mika had a 6 year old daughter named  Lauryn who was always full of energy and trying to tell us what to do! Mack was the youngest brother at the age of 8 and he had Down Syndrome. I was excited at first because my mom works with special needs kids and was hoping Mark would open up to me but I was very very wrong. Regardless that he had special needs, kids should be able to have some sort of manners and know how to be respectful of others and their personal space and things. Mark and Lauryn were always all over the place and constantly in our room. When we were trying to get ready to go out somewhere they would start crying because they couldn’t get their way and come with us.. I know this is a completely different side of the world and families are different, but it seemed like the parents just didn’t want to deal with the younger children and just let them do whatever they want. I felt that if they at least gave them attention they would be a little better. Anyways we were staying in the homestays to be able to experience a new lifestyle and boy did I get the experience of a lifetime. I will never take my mom’s OCD for cleaning for granted EVER AGAIN! I missed having a hot shower and clean water that I felt safe brushing my teeth in. The only thing I loved about my home was the food. It was always amazing and I felt like I was constantly eating! After we first night we realized that we would never be sleeping past 6am. Dogs are always fighting outside throughout the night and roosters and birds wake you up at the crack of dawn. The first full day in Suva was spent at the University of the South Pacific (USP) We took classes all day and it felt like I was back in school but just 8,000 miles from SAC. (my mom obviously looked up exactally how many miles I am away from home…) After a day of classes a group of us went to go see Harry Potter ! If you know me then you know that I am a HUGEEEE Harry Potter fan! It wasn’t the same as seeing it at midnight but I am so happy that I at least got to see the movie with friends. I was kinda sad that the movies are over but all good things must come to an end. Also the movie was only $5 in Fiji. That is about $2.50 in the US. I wanted to see it a million times for that price! Haha The next day we had a free day and my family spent it on a field trip with Lauryn’s first grade class. It was actually really fun and we went to a police K9 unit and a firewalking presentation! At the firewalking presentation I was in complete shock at how the performers could walk across 100 degree coals. After the firewalking they did a reenactment of how tribal life was back in the day. They were playing games and needed a prize for who could take the husk off the coconut the fastest. Guess who they decided was going to be the prize that they were going to keep… ME… Yepp they made me stand up and tell everyone what my name was and they proceeded to tell me what they would do if they won me as a prize. I will keep their comments to myself for fear that they will come kidnap me! After the firewalking we went into town and met up with a few people from our group then went shopping. The next day (Thursday) we had exams on the one day of lectures we had. It was a joke and they wanted us to write 8 pages of essays. I wrote about 5 and called it a day. Its not like SAC will accept one day of classes for a credit anyway. I finally got to call my parents and got to say happy birthday to my dad! It was so great to just hear their voices instead of trying to email them at an internet café. After the exam we went to an art museum that was at the prison. All if the paintings were done by inmates which I thought was pretty cool. They were all amazing and I bought a postcard of one of the paintings for $1. After the art museum we went to the Fiji Museum. There I bought a handmade clay turtle for my mom and a shot glass for my dad. I was starting to panic that I wasn’t going to find anything for them! That night we went to O’Reiley’s which is a local bar in town that everyone from AIFS recommends us to go to. It was a lot of fun but weird at the same time. At home I am not allowed to order drink because I am not 21. So being legal to drink here was nice. I didn’t overdo it. Jenna and I left early because we felt bad making our family stay up but when we got home they were doing laundry… Reminded me of my mom!  The next day we went to a village and it was such a great experience. We saw how 300 people live in their own self sufficient community miles away from civilization. They offered us the traditional drink of the Pacific Kava which I was not a fan of. It is basically roots of a plant mushed together and served with water. It literally tastes like dirt but I am glad I at least tried it. We learned how to make bracelets out of dried leaves which was pretty cool. We learned how to do their traditional dance which was basically walking around with two other people but it was still really fun and we were all laughing the whole time! They served a great lunch that they cooked in an outdoor pit called a lovo. (spelling?) After a day at the village we went back to our homestays and then back out to O’Reiley’s with everyone.  We had another free day on Saturday which my host sister took us all shopping. We went to this place called Pure Fiji which is a factory that sells amazing creams and soaps and other products. They have a huge sale on Saturdays so I bought a few things. Next we went into little shops with Mika and found lots of really cool things. I bought a wooden bead bracelet and wooden earring for only $5! I bought a few things for my family too! After a day of shopping we went and saw Friends with benefits which was so funny! That night we had a farewell performance and dinner which was a nice ending to our stay in Suva. There were dance performances by the Oceania Dance Theater and even performances from some of the host families with other people from my trip. That night we went back to our house and just hung around with our family for the last night. Today (Sunday) we left our homestays and departed for the hotel we started our trip at. On the way back the weather was gross and rainy. We stopped for lunch and then went right back on the bus for a ride to the sand dunes. We took an hour long hike which was a lot harded than I expected it to be. And on top of it, it started raining.. lovely! But it was still fun and we walked on a beach with huge yet beautiful waves! After what seemed like forever and in a bus that  I thought would never make it back to the hotel, we arrived safely! I actually got to skype with my brother and parents and was the first to wish my brother a happy birthday! It is crazy to think that I have only been here 8 days and I missed my dad and brother’s birthdays. I know they understand but I wish I could just give them a hug and say happy birthday in person! After a much needed hot shower I finally felt like I was back to normal! The internet sucks here so uploading pictures to facebook is going to take forever! Eventually I will upload them !  Tomorrow is our last day in Fiji and we are going to a temple and shopping! I will finally get to buy my dad stuff from the Hard Rock and possibly be able to buy a Pandora charm for myself! Tuesday morning we are taking an early flight to Sydney. I have loved every minute of Fiji, even the horrible living conditions. I have realized that I can’t take anything for granted and just be happy that I had a place to stay. I can’t wait to finally be In Sydney though and start the semester! I miss my friends and family but I will get to talk to them more once I am finally not living out of a suitcase! So for now I am just living in the moment and enjoying everything that this trip has to offer!

"All I want is to drink a pina coolata in a tiki hut!" -Ashley

Bula! (That is the Fiji word for hello and welcome)
Fiji is absolutely beautiful! Words can't even describe the past two days! It is now Sunday which is crazy because it is still saturday back at home! Anyways the longest day of travel wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. 14 people flew out of Boston so it is now a common thing for other people in our group to just assume everyone in from Boston. After a wierd and confusing layover in LA that included us walking outside, we finally boarded the plane for Fiji. I slept most of the flight and was just ready to get off that plane. After about 24hours worth of travel (friday basically disappeared because we crossed the international date line) which is really wierd, we finally got to our hotel. We knew that we couldn't fall asleep so we just hung out by the pool all day meeting everyone. After lunch we went into Nadi and it was not anything I was expected. When you think of Fiji you think beautiful beaches. But Nadi was dirty and full of people running around in the streets. There was a festival going on which was pretty cool and I got icecream for 50 cents. That was in Fiji money so I probably only spent like a quarter on it! After the town we went back and had dinner which was not that great and we all ate mostly rice..
Today was probably the best beach day I have had in my life. We took a bus to a ferry that took us to Beachcomber island. It was such a cute little island that literally took only 10 mins to walk all the way around (we walked all the way around it so I know it only took that much time) We just sat out on the beach all day and it was lovely! My group of friends went fish feeding which was amazing! Hundreds of fish were literally swimming up to our boat and eating out of our hands! After a great lunch we went kayacking, which was an adventure in itself. Once we finally got the hang of it and stopped laughing we kayacked around the whole island! It was so pretty! Overall it was a great day full of laughs and great new friends!

Tomorrow we are going hiking and meeting our host families for the nest few days. Miss my friends and family but having an amazing time! Off to repacking my suitcase and a much needed night of sleep!

today!

I can't believe that I am finally leaving today! I am feeling a little better which is a very good thing. In just a few short hours I will be heading to the airport! (fingers crossed that my luggage is not over 50 lbs) It is crazy to think that I am leaving until december! It hasn't really hit me yet that I am not going to be able to see my family and friends everyday. Last night I said goodbye to my best friend Jenna. I have know her since kindergarten and I would be lost without her. It is going to be so wierd to not text her everyday just to see what she is doing or to just walk into her house and be greated by her family. I know I will stay in touch but it definately won't be the same without talking to her everyday! I also went out to dinner with my family last night to Royal Garden(our usual chinese food place) We go there for every special occasion and it just felt right going there the night before I leave.
Although all of my bags are packed, my room still looks like I will be living in it. You would never know that I packed enough stuff for 5 months if you walked into my room today. But somehow I managed to take everything I wanted with me!
I am a little nervous for flying but I am sure once I get on that plane I will be excited to just finally get there! Lets just hope everything goes as planned and I fall asleep on the flights!
Goodbye Saugus, Hello Fiji and Australia =)
"It was the night things changed, can you see it now?
These walls that they put up to hold us back fell down"
-Taylor Swift

2 days!!

In just 2 days I will be on the longest flight of my life heading for Fiji and Australia! (I hate flying so this should be interesting)Words can't even describe how excited I am! I have been planning to go to Australia for well over a year now and it is crazy that I am finally leaving soon! As my friends and family all know, I am ALWAYS sick. So it wasn't a surprise when I woke up this morning feeling like crap =[ Off to the doctors for them to tell me that I have all the symptoms of strep but the strep test came back negative.(typical) They gave me antibiotics so hopfully I start feeling better soon or I am going to be miserable on that plane! So instead of enjoying my last few days at home lying by the pool and saying goodbye to friends and family, I am stuck in my room trying to get better! So at the moment I am watching one of my favorite movies Center Stage =] Good thing I packed last week so I didn't have to attempt to pack last minute! Packing my life into 2 bags was torture! I have an unhealthy obsession with sweatshirts so deciding to take only 4 with me was heartbreaking! My SAC family knows how my closet usually looks so they know that I have A TON of clothes! (and my drawer of hair stuff) But somehow I managed to fit everything into 2 bags and they each weigh somewhere in the 40 lb range.

I am going to miss my family and friends so much when I am gone! And if you know my family you know that my parents are not handling me leaving that well! It will be hard on them but I know that they will be fine once they see how much fun I am having. Of course I will stay in touch with them through skype and email but I know they are having a tough time letting me go.

My attempt at this blog so far is off to a good start but who knows what is going to happen when I am finally in Fiji and Australia. They say that I will have wifi so lets hope I can update this at least twice a week! But for now lets just hope I get better before I have to fly halfway across the world!