Dana's Australian Adventure

This summer i traveled to Australia with people to people. I met many people and had very unique experiences. Traveling as a student ambassador I was able to become aware of the world in a way I would of never been able to from your basic geography class room. I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to take the trip of a lifetime. I hope with this blog people can understand how amazed the people the people program has left me.

[australianadventuresp2p]

July 9th 2014  DAY 8

After breakfast today we took a walk along the shore with a marine biologist. She talked to us about the shore and its marine life. During our walk she encouraged us to throw any stranded starfish back into the water for a second chance at life. I was so amazed that a dried up starfish or simply washed up star fish could have a second chance at life if its frisbeed back into the water. I was so happy to be able to frisbee some starfish back into the water. Before we left the shore we planted trees along the sand dunes to promote the environment. It was a great day to start off a day leaving a positive impact on the island. After our beach walk we went back to our rooms to prepare to go sand tabogogging . Once we came down from our rooms a bus picked us up and took us on a rocky ride into the sand desert where we would go sand tabogogging. We were all amazed how huge the sand hill was. After being given our sand tabogogging boards we started up the mountain by foot. When it was my turn i got a little nervous because it was so high up and i knew it was going to be a sandy full speed ride but i already walked all the way up so i figured i might as well go down the easy way. The ride down was a blast despite a sandy mouth , a body covered in sand, and a loss of sight due to sand. It was all worth it though. After our time at the sand desert we headed down to the other side to the island to suit up to go snorkeling near one of the islands famous Recks.  I was pretty scared to be in the water because i was scared i would see a shark. Although snorkeling was  so much fun that i forgot about the sharks. I enjoyed taking pictures on my underwater camera . Snorkeling here left me excited to snorkel at the Great Barrier Reef. After a much needed shower we attended another lecture on bottle nose dolphins. The marine biologist  taught us about all the characteristics of the islands dolphin pod. She also told us about the story behind the family of dolphins that return every night for a dolphin feeding. After the lecture we got out notebooks and pens to do our own research on the dolphins. 

[australianadventuresp2p]

July 8th 2014  DAY SEVEN

Today we left Surfers Paradise:( Although we boarded the Tangalooma Island Ferry. I slept the entire ferry ride to the island. When i stepped off the ferry dock my eyes lit up the island was absolutely gorgeous and had so much to do. After lugging my 50 pound suitcase up the stairs to my room we went to a biology lecture. During the lecture we learned about the marine biology of Moreton Island. The marine biologist told us about all the different marine life that surrounds the island. After the short lecture we got to hand feed dolphins. Me and David fed two of their dolphins, Storm , and Silhouette.

[australianadventuresp2p]

July 6th 2014  DAY SIX

Sadly today was the end of our home stay. I was so sad to say goodbye to my host family. They had such a beautiful home and they were so friendly and welcoming. They even sent FeFe and I home with some great treats like twisties, vegetable spirals, gluten free/dairy free/ fat free chocolates, and the famous Vegimite. Jim and Stuart dropped FeFe and i off at the surf club so we can board the bus with our fellow delegates. We traveled today all the way to Surfer's Paradise. On the way to Surfers Paradise we stopped at Coffs Harbor Big Banana Restaurant. Since they served wraps which i avoid eating at all costs I had a chocolate covered banana for lunch. After lunch we got back on the bus to finish our bus ride to Surfers Paradise. I slept the entire ride sleeping when i woke up i was very excited to be in Surfers Paradise. As soon as i stepped off the bus  I fell in love with the city.  I like to refer to it as a hippies dream world. The streets were full of surfer  clothing lines such as Billabong, Roxy, and Quicksilver. Even the residents and tourists of Surfers Paradise all seemed to look like well dressed hippies  and just gave off such good vibes which i admired. I was so in love with the alternative atmosphere  I was in. After wondering Surfers Paradise we had pizza for dinner  I was in my glory. I got to eat my favorite food and be in just about one of the coolest cities ever. After dinner we got back on the bus to drive to our hotel which was also beautiful. As soon as we checked into our room all of the delegates got  into their cozies to go in the pool and hot tub. Tonight was probably my favorite night in Australia so far.

[australianadventuresp2p]

July 6th 2014   DAY FIVE

Today i was introduced to  sunflower seed peanut butter  by my host mother Bronwyn , it was scrumptious .After breakfast FeFe , Bronwyn, and I drove down to surf club to board the whale watching cruise with our fellow delegates and host families. We didn't see many whales however the ocean scenery was beautiful and enough to satisfy me. After the whale watching cruise we had a barbecue and hung out by the shore. Before starting our way home we took a detour to go kangaroo spotting in a rural area which we saw a few kangaroos in. On the way home we stopped at a Woolworths and our host mother bought ingredients to prepare a favorite italian dish of mine. When we got home our host mother cooked the spaghetti in the oven with cheese and sauce on it. When she took it out of the oven my mouth watered i have never seen spaghetti prepared that way but i was so excited to try it. It was absolutely amazing as i expected. Our host father Jim also cooked a special bread that he makes over a fire, it tasted amazing. Over dinner we talked about all the things we like to do, our families and the music and movies that we like, even though we live on separate continents we were able to relate a lot. After dinner I went to my room to pack up my belongings for my departure in the morning. I was so sad to be leaving my host family because i've grown to love them.

[australianadventuresp2p]

July 5th 2014   DAY 4

Today we left Sydney to start our long bus ride to our home stay. Before saying goodbye to Sydney we made one last stop to see Mrs.McQuarthy's chair that overlooked the harbor so she was able to see when fleets of ships were coming back home. After seeing her chair we boarded the bus and all slept for most of the long ride to our home stay. Once we got to the surf club where we were being assigned to families it felt quite awkward. Although when we got to our home stays house things went smoothly. I was accompanied by a fellow student ambassador named FeFe. After we settled in we went out to eat with out home stay mother and brother. We talked about back home and our families with our host family. Our host family made us feel so comfortable.

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July 4th 2014 DAY THREE

Today we boarded the bus and to our surprise our wonderful bus driver Norm decorated the bus patrioctically to make us feel at home since we were missing out on the fourth of July back in America. After thanking Norm for decorating the bus we began our journey to the Blue Mountains. Once we reached the Blue Mountains Full On instructors brought us into a classroom. In the classroom we learned about ” making it happen” and having positive energy. We were taught how to apply some positive energy by breaking a board in half with "I can thoughts". To our surprise when we thought positively and told ourselves we were going to break the board in half a force came over all of us that enabled us to break the boards in half. After breaking the boards we took a quick safety course to prepare to conquer the mountain by REPELLING DOWN IT!!! We hiked up the mountain with our guide Ellie as a team. Once we got up we were  all were a little nervous but with some positive energy we were all able to make it down. Repelling down that mountain  was defintitely a high light of the trip. It was a life changing experience. It showed me that if i have a positive mind set there is no limit to what I am capable of doing. Today was not a day of conquering the mountain but a day of conquering my inner self. 

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July 3rd 2014  DAY TWO

Today we walked to the Sydney Opal Education Center. We learned about how opals were made. After learning about opals we went into place where we were able to see a 3D map of Australia on the floor beneath the glass tiles. We then walked to the harbor and toured the Sydney Opera House, Inside the Sydney Opera House's theatre we sung the national anthem. We finished our day as dare devils and walked around the Sydney skywalk. 

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July 2nd 2014  DAY ONE

Today we arrived at the Kingsford Smith Airport in Sydney. We also met our delegation manager John. He explained us to that the airport was named after  the famous aviator who flew from San Diego to Australia. As soon as we boarded the coach we headed off to our first destination the Sydney Cricket Ground where we toured the stadium and learned from the pros.