Discover Top Posts Tagged with #usaustralia

USAustralia Day 28: Rosemont-tinted glasses

Today is the 16th September.

Hi! Today I was burdened with luggage.

So I got up early (ish) and then spent a lot of my packing time checking in with home again. I packed everything, and got locked out of my room when I went to brush my teeth (thank you cleaning lady for letting me back in!) And checked out on time at 11am. I then ordered an uber and went to an IHOP in Rosemont for breakfast. The guy forgot to add a lemonade to my bill, and I hung around there for like an extra 45 minutes (just to kill time, after all I had my big luggage with me) and he never added it to my bill or spoke to me. So I payed what he billed me for and walked over to lake Opeka, through a funfair that was completely abandoned, and rested by the lake, reading, for about 45 minutes.

I then walked around to the north side of the lake on order to order an uber (there was some fallfest going on (which also seemed dead), which meant the street was all no stopping and the curbs were barricaded off. Once there I ordered my uber and went to the airport. I got a chai and some water and the just chilled.

It's currently 17:40, my flight boards at 18:00. I have a sneaky suspicion that my day is kinda over. I found Rosemont to be lovely, although very anti-pedestrian.

Expect this blog to quiet for a little bit now. My journey this time is done, although I'm sure it'll burst back to life next time I go travelling.

Today's snap of the day is:

This shot of lake Opeka, from beneath the willow tree where I stopped to read

Today's activity of the day is:

IHOP

#usaustralia

USAustralia Day 27: Getting myself kicked out of a museum and other things you'll struggle to believe

Today is the 15th September.

Hi! Today I cleaned up my act.

The day started slow, despite my 9am alarm I bumbled around for hours. Eating leftover pizza for breakfast, getting showered, putting on a shirt, and chatting with those back home. I left the hotel and passed by a Chinese place with a 2:30-5pm happy hour. I planned to go back to it for lunch/dinner. That was at 2pm.

I made it into the field museum at 2:30, paying a reduced fare as a student. Oddly enough I got in, using my expired undergraduate id, which I have to replace with my postgraduate id. Once in I spent ages exploring. They had a Pacific nation zone with a very nice ukulele duet playing near the exit. They also had a horticultural zone, a jade room, a working lab for museum staff, and native zones. I eventually ended up entering the Egypt zone and was kind of unimpressed with their collection. I suppose after seeing the Chau Chak Wing Museum in Sydney this one felt kind of bad, although they did have a more impressive display of taxidermy animals (including ecological challenges and migration routes the animals face) which was more impressive than the next largest one I've seen on the trip (which was Hobart), although strangely one of the only animals I stopped at and which really stood out to me was the Tasmanian devil, which I have seen both in taxidermy form (in Hobart) and in person (in Sydney Taronga zoo).

Now onto the part where I get kicked out. I entered the native American and Latin American section. Outside was a large statue of a corn deity. Once inside I skimmed passed most early sections until I reached the forming of cities and settlements. It was fascinating seeing it all, and then the loudspeakers chimed. "The museum is closing in 15 minutes, please leave!" So I hurried my way out of the exhibit and left into the muggy 5pm heat.

I had one other major attraction I wanted to visit in Chicago. I headed north along the lakefront until I reached a park. I followed alongside of it aiming on reaching 'The Bean' or as the artist prefers it be called: the cloud gate. Everyone calls it the bean, because it is a large mirrory bean. I assumed that it stood in a normal park that I could just walk up to and snap a few pics. Nope. On every entrance was a tent checking bags, pockets and scanning down everyone. The park was free to enter, and no event was occurring. Felt like overkill to me, but then I guess I don't have to worry about gun crime in the UK. I saw the bean, got my photos and left.

I walked back several blocks until I came to the Chinese place with the happy hour and decided to just go for it, despite happy hour finishing several hours ago. It was passable, but not amazing.

I then returned to the hotel to watch junk TV and sleep. I fly home tomorrow.

Today's snap of the day is:

This shot of the bean (with my reflection caught up in it.

Today's activity of the day is:

Getting completely lost in the museum by the number of fascinating exhibits.

#usaustralia

USAustralia Day 26: Sleeping in, Chicago

Today is the 14th September.

Hi! Today I was lazy.

So I woke up at like 2pm. I went to sleep at 2am, so I guess it's a 'play silly games, win silly prizes' situation. By the time I'd dragged my carcass out of bed and gotten dressed, and brushed my teeth (and eaten more almonds and crisps as a breakfast), it was coming up on half three.

The local museum campus, where I'd planned to spend most of my time, had several cool buildings which all closed at 5pm. I picked to go there anyway as the Shedd Aquarium remained open until 9pm. I entered the aquarium at around 5pm. I loved some of the huge tanks in there. There was one tank, full of tropical fish and an eel, which not only was covering a wall, but also extended up and overhead appearing in two large overhead circular viewing ports. There was another large tank full of sharks.

Once an hour had passed I was about done and headed out. The sun was bathing the sky in a glorious orange. I strolled along the lake front, heading east towards the planetarium before changing my bearing to be south. I eventually headed back in towards land and ended up near a marina, bathed in the sunset glow, listening to the gentle chirping of crickets and cicadas. It felt awesome. I then headed back to my hotel, via a trader Joe's store, to plan on where to find a Chicago deep dish. I ended up heading to one on my block, and against the recommendation of my server ordered a medium sized BBQ chicken deepdish. I ate 5/8s of it and felt pretty bad. It was delicious but I was just ramming it in. I think I was one of the last to leave because I was just forcing pizza down myself.

I left with my pizza, stashed it in the hotel room, set an alarm so I didn't miss an entire day again, and passed out in bed.

Today's snap of the day is:

This shot of Chicago from the lakefront by the planetarium

Today's activity of the day is:

Seeing the huge tanks in the aquarium

#usaustralia

USAustralia Day 25: How many different ways can I move across this earth

Today is the 13th September.

Hi! Today I arrived in Chicago.

The day began early, with me squirming around in bed hunting for the energy to get up, get dressed and get to the airport. My uncle drove me to the airport and after a slightly teary farewell I walked into the airport and checked in my luggage.

The airport moved so slowly and the security check-in point came to a complete standstill due to it being overcrowded. Whilst shuffling forwards I got into a conversation with a Texan mother on the same flight. After finally making it past security I bought a meal deal combo and ate my sandwich and lemonade at the gate. I then got on the plane and squeezed down the aisle to get to my seat. I had a bulkhead seat that was one in from the aisle, in the centre of the plane, front row of that section, on the left. No one sat either side of me, and a large woman had the seat on the far right. We sat there as an airplane flew us to San Francisco. I was fairly comfortable in my seat, the extra legroom was nice, although having to use fold out screens meant that I was always looking down, so my neck was unhappy.

Once down I had about 2 hours to make it through customs, collect my bag, recheck through security and get on my next plane. Customs took 1hr30mins at least. The queue was a standstill and they couldn't rush through connection people as that comprised over half of us. Once through I found and dumped my bag quite easily, but when I found the security line it was way longer than the 15 mins I had left. So I jogged around to the next checkpoint and spent the 10 mins getting through, then sprinted back around the airport. I had to spring past 2 wings of gates before making it to my gate, just minutes before they closed it all down.

My seat had been taken by a guy who couldn't read plane signs so I took his in between two elderly women who kinda smelled (although I can't imagine I'd fared much better after a half-day of flying and a sprint in my coat, jumper and jeans) and tried to enjoy the flight across to Chicago. Once there I rushed to the carousel hoping that I could just crash at the hotel. Turns out, whilst I had just made my plane, my bag hadn't. It was coming in at 5pm. I was given 30 dollars worth of restaurant coupons (not that it helps when you're stuck in the arrivals lounge) and used them to buy water, bananas, m&ms and some crisps. Once my bag had arrived some 3 hours later I checked uber to get out of there but found that it would a) take an hour and b) would cost about a hundred dollars. Once I'd seen that I climbed down the stairs and headed off to the train station. I then caught two trains to get to my destination and walked 3 blocks. Once I'd finally made it to the hotel (and checked in) I got into bed and rested. It was late and I wasn't exactly feeling great. I snacked on some almonds and then called home. I eventually fell asleep at 2 am.

I moved across the earth in 11 different ways today, according to my count.

Today's snap of the day is:

This shot of the underground once I'd arrived, just really hammering home where I was.

Today's activity of the day is: collapsing in my hotel room.

#usaustralia

USAustralia Day 24: Last Calls for Australia

Today is the 12th September.

Hi! Today I went hiking.

Today starts with a rush to get ready without breaching each others space. The cabin where we were staying had a front door and a bathroom door and that's all.

Once dressed we joined our hosts inside and enjoyed coffee, tea and apple slices. After a long chat (and me over estimating the development of a child and accidentally (albeit gently) bopping their child on the head with a ball) we left.

We packed up and headed to Bouddi National Park. After a false start we reparked and began the 1.5km hike to Maitland Bay. We went over many a hill and eventually made it to the beach. It was quiet, yet comfortable and we enjoyed another little float in the ocean. Then got out, struggled with our sandy bodies and started the uphill hike back.

Once we made it back to the car we started the drive home.

The moment we made it home we had a shower rush then, whilst my aunt attended to some work, my uncle and I went out to Manly Corso to procure any last minute gifts for my relatives.

We stopped at a pub for a couple of drinks (the first alcoholic drink I've had in Australia) and discussed dinner plans. Dinner was decided to be steaks, so we headed back home (stopping at a supermarket to grab sweets and meats for dinner) and I seasoned the steaks and my aunt prepared potatoes, cauliflower, and beetroot salad. Once we finished cooking we sat down and watched Mad Max: Fury Road together.

Once that was done I went upstairs to pack.

Today's snap of the day is:

This shot overlooking Maitland Bay

Today's activity of the day is:

Enjoying drinks with my uncle

#usaustralia

USAustralia Day 23: Pearl Jam and Toasty Weather

Today is the 11th September.

Hi! Today I had a Terrigal time.

The day started early, as we were driving out to the central coast to stay with some friends. We travelled up to Pearl Beach and had a float in the ocean and then a coffee. The ocean was nice and the beach was pleasantly sandy (unlike the sharp shells of Shelly beach).

We then drove into Terrigal for some lunch. We walked around the place trying to decide what to eat before settling on a noodle bar and following it up with a cold rock style ice cream, where they add extras and smash it all up together. We then chilled on the beach and listened to a band who was preforming on the green.

After our relax we drove up to Crackneck Point. We watched a paraglider take flight and enjoyed the coastal clifftop view.

We then headed over to see on of my uncle's old co-workers, which was a mite hectic. We then headed to the hosts' place and spent a while chatting with them and enjoying their company.

Once they started preparing their family for dinner. Our unit disappeared off to a local bar for dinner (and at the behest of my uncle I have to add that a lovely young lady asked me for a picture as I was wearing my university t-shirt.) The food was nice and we had a good time.

Once done we headed back to the cabin where we played a little ukulele and guitar (for another uncles birthday).

Today's snap of the day is:

This shot of the road out of Sydney and towards the central coast

Today's activity of the day is:

Spending time with our hosts

#usaustralia

USAustralia Day 22: The man who refused the call of the Pacific.

Today is the 10th September.

Hi! Today was movie day.

The day starts as usual, except I'm lazier. Aunt at work, uncle at home. When I got downstairs no one was around. Was it the rapture? No. My uncle and his friend showed up with the lovely lamb-like dog Zuma. They had been out for a walk. The friend left and my uncle and I got ready for the day.

We started by returning Zuma to his rightful owners, then heading to the Shelly beach area. We hiked up from the Shelly beach hill car park into the north Head area (from a couple of days ago, but at the opposite side). We clambered up stones and arrived at a military base which was being used for shows.

We went past it stopped at an artist's unit where they were teaching someone to sculpt. After chatting there for a bit we headed on to the next unit, which was a conservation hut full of wildlife info and seasonal charts. Once again, a little chat ensued.

My uncle and I headed slightly further up hill, before turning back as the rain was lightly falling. We headed back down to the car and got changed into swimwear. We headed down to the beach and I went into the ocean for the first time this trip.

He swam out and I waded out up to my shoulders. We enjoyed the salt and sun for a few before heading ashore to rinse off and change. Whilst up there we saw the scuba info that volunteers collect, including info on temperatures, visibility and spotted creatures.

Once rinsed we started a walk back to the car but stopped at the beach side cafe to talk with one of my uncle's clients that he spotted. She was pleasant conversation, but we had to leave to get my aunt.

Once she was in the car we drove out to the red hill zone and went walking. We made it a decent way in before miserable weather pushed out and back to the car. The red hill rocky plateaus had aboriginal carved kangaroos in them.

Once we had her in the car we headed home to organise the dinner leftovers and watch some movies: Scooby-Doo (2002) followed by Moana.

Once done we all headed to bed.

Today's snap of the day is:

This shot of Red hill

Today's activity of the day is:

Actually being in the ocean

#usaustralia

USAustralia Day 21: Sunshine, Rain and Sea Mist

Today is the 9th September.

Hi! Today I ran errands.

Today began with a call from my little brother in the UK. He's been busy helping dad with some driving work. I took the call outside so as to not wake my aunt and uncle, only for him to come downstairs and tell me that my aunt left for work an hour ago.

We just chilled a little bit as it was rainy then headed out slightly before 10am to do some shopping for dinner. We hit a few shops then stopped at one of my uncle's friends houses to 'borrow' their dog, Zuma. With Zuma in tow we continued to run errands that seemed to become more complicated at each juncture.

Once back at the house we had some kangaroo sausages, eggs and curry rice for lunch. Then watched some TV until the sun came out.

That's when we spurred into action and walked long the clifftop path along the Dee Why-Curl Curl head. The sights and green space were amazing. The smell of the ocean with its breaking waves making the whole day feel better.

Once back down at Dee Why, my uncle and I stopped for some ice creams and watched the surfers, which was a little bizarre as the air was almost misty from the ocean, yet the sun was shining down brightly. We finished the ice cream then headed back to the house for my uncle to get dinner all finished.

We had guests over. The next door neighbour and another friend from out of town. One cottage pie, apple and rhubarb cake, and two bottles of wine later and some of us were flagging.

My uncle, and the neighbour stayed up longer, but I went to bed, probably first of everyone.

Today's snap of the day is: