I was very excited to find out that St. Patrick’s Day fell on a Wednesday this year – because Wednesday’s are the Pub Night for Uni kids! Surprisingly though, St. Patrick’s Day celebrations aren’t a big deal Down Under – but the international kids encouraged the Aussie’s to get into it – and it turned out to be a pretty alright evening! Most people dressed in green clothes and accessories – others died their hair and skin green. I wanted to mix my Goon (boxed wine) with green cordial (juice) but the cafeteria did not have the green flavor out on St. Pats.
Catie and I began our night by pre-drinking and straightening my hair – and then we made our way over to the Yard and got together with Jess, Stacey, Kevin and Samara. (Gigi decided to stay in). From there, the girls decided to walk to North Gong Pub – which is about a 30-45 minute walk. At the pace we were travelling, it took us closer to 45 minutes. It was on this walk that I first saw the Southern Cross – thanks to Stacey for pointing it out to me! It is a lot smaller than I had imagined – and harder to spot too. We made it to North Gong to find out that not many people were there (at least very little Uni kids) so we walked down the street and caught the iHouse bus (International House, another ‘college’ or residence) to the Glass House. Glassy is our regular pub that we go to on Wednesdays! Things at this point in the story become a tad hazy. I bought myself one drink of ‘Vodka Orange’ with the girls and we “sculled” (chugged) it. Stacey also bought me a drink and I “sculled” that one as well. Needless to say, the rest of the night was a drunken mess. The absolute highlight of my evening though, was when Catie fell on top of me and knocked me to the floor and lifted up my dress for all of Glassy to see. As humiliating as it was when it happened, it seems (quasi) funny now. Catie had lovely bruises on her knees the next day from the fall. Regrettably, Thursday morning I have a tutorial at 8:30am that runs until 10:30am. The morning was atrocious. Sometimes I make poor decisions: going out and drinking on St. Pat’s was one of them.
Climbing St. Kiera
Climbing the mountain in Wollongong is on everybody’s To-Do list. Mount St. Kiera overlooks the entire city of Wollongong all the way North to the lighthouse. It was something I had wanted to do since I arrived here! We got some of the girls together and decided that Saturday was the day. Alex, Dale, Sean, Catie, Jordan and I ended up going as one big family. Jordan was our “Sherpa” and she helped lead us to the top. I certainly did not expect it to be as grueling as it was – the hill leading up to the never-ending stairs leading up to steep pathways and rock facings was simply exhausting. We kept ourselves hydrated and we took breaks frequently. We also climbed up a waterfall, which was cool. It was not very wet, but there was a small stream trickling down through the rocks. When we reached the top there was an amazing lookout spot with benches and a restaurant. It was such a clear day and we were able to see very far in all directions – it was beautiful! On the fence around the lookout were padlocks engraved with people’s names and their wedding dates. On the lock it said, “Locked in Love.” The newly married couples come to the lookout, lock their lock to the fence, and then throw the key in the forest. How romantic! We stopped into the restaurant for some lunch – and the main dining room was being set up for a wedding reception – it is a very popular spot for receptions, so I am told.
Shortly after leaving the restaurant, I was violently attacked by a leech. (By violently I mean I did not realize that I had been bitten until there was a huge blood spot on my sock and on my shoe.) Sean immediately busted out his first aid kit and laid his jacket down for me to sit on while I took my shoe and sock off. We did not see the leech so he began to swab my ankle with an alcohol pad when I noticed the leech wriggling in between my toes. Sean quickly grabbed my foot and flicked the leech off – but not before I was able to scream and cry. He put some antiseptic cream on the bite and bandaged me up. The bite did not hurt at first but it did sting a bit later on our climb down. Climbing down was not as easy as I had hoped. After the long and difficult climb up, I was excited for the descent. Going down at a steep angle really gave me a migraine and after only eating a few fries for lunch, I started to feel very nauseous. I was happy to make it to the bottom of the mountain. It was such a fun experience despite how ill I felt afterward. I had a lot of fun with the girls and Sean – and I saw some amazing Australian foliage and a view that I will never forget.
Next Post: Sydney & Harbor Bridge Climb
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