so australians and kiwis have this thing called ANZAC day. ANZAC day is the day that they celebrate the day that the 2 countries entered WWI with the attack on Turkey. this is a day similar to our memorial day and veterans day. this day was april 25, and we went to celebrate it with about 2000 other people on the beach.
there is a dawn service on april 25th that starts at 5am. we got up at 3 to walk to the beach where it was taking place, little did we know that there were going to be about 2000 other people there. the service was beautiful, there were people that read poems and they shot off cannons to honor the veterans and the people who died not only in WWI but in other wars as well.
the rest of the day consisted of people getting drunk and playing a game that is only legal on ANZAC day. the game that is illegal the rest of the year is basically heads or tails and people throw their money away on it, so that's why it is illegal the rest of the year.
it was a fun day, but we were tired cause we had been up since 3am. so we watched movies with friends and roommates and hung out.
i will put up pictures, but my computer is being weird, it won't let me send random emails and sometimes it doesn't let me put up pictures up..it's a very temperamental computer :)
hope everything is going well and i can't wait for my parents visit in a week!!
love, allison
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
Cool Random Sighting
So it wasn't really a "sighting" but when we were on the ocean road tour, there was one other american on the bus. neille and i got to talking with him and we were talking about all the things that australia doesn't have. one thing we mentioned was that they had no costco. however, when we were in melbourne we saw one, turns out that the guy we were talking to is the guy who travels around and oversees the building of costcos all around. he oversaw the one we go to at home and he was there in australia to oversee the building of the very first costco in australia-the one that we saw.
we were so excited that we saw the first costco in australia being built and we met the guy who builds them.
it was very very exciting.
we were so excited that we saw the first costco in australia being built and we met the guy who builds them.
it was very very exciting.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
pictures from the afl game
action shot!
me! :)
the field and the banner the team ran through when they came out
sign outside the ground
Spring Break part 2: afl game/the end
saturday was the day we were really put in the culture of australia. we went to an aussie football game. this is pretty special cause this is a game that is played only in australia-hence the name, it's very very similar to rugby, so we were able to follow it pretty closely.
this game was at the melbourne cricket ground. this is also another olympic stadium. this is also the stadium that has the olympic museum in it. so we got to the game super early and went into the museum for a good hour or so. we weren't allowed to take pictures in the museum, but we got pictures of the ground and around the museum. it was so fun to see all the different sports and they had a really cool display of the whole history of the olympics. they also had amazing sections on all the different sports in australia. including aussie rules, rugby, net ball (women's basketball) and horse racing. it was so cool to see all the different sports that are played in australia and what the rules are and how they affected australian culture and people.
after that we went to the game and we had fun seeing a different stadium and seeing how spirited the different fans are.
we also sat next to some kiwis (new zealand people) and it was so cool to talk to them about new zealand and a little bit of australia.
thus ends our trip to melbourne and now we are back at school for the short but long drive to the end of the year.
i hope you are all doing well and i miss you all! thanks for reading
allison
this game was at the melbourne cricket ground. this is also another olympic stadium. this is also the stadium that has the olympic museum in it. so we got to the game super early and went into the museum for a good hour or so. we weren't allowed to take pictures in the museum, but we got pictures of the ground and around the museum. it was so fun to see all the different sports and they had a really cool display of the whole history of the olympics. they also had amazing sections on all the different sports in australia. including aussie rules, rugby, net ball (women's basketball) and horse racing. it was so cool to see all the different sports that are played in australia and what the rules are and how they affected australian culture and people.
after that we went to the game and we had fun seeing a different stadium and seeing how spirited the different fans are.
we also sat next to some kiwis (new zealand people) and it was so cool to talk to them about new zealand and a little bit of australia.
thus ends our trip to melbourne and now we are back at school for the short but long drive to the end of the year.
i hope you are all doing well and i miss you all! thanks for reading
allison
pictures from the great ocean road tour
london bridge
loch and gorge
this is just one of about a billion pictures
second tallest tree in the world
fish and chips-aussie style
koala in the background :)
koala
a view of the ocean
the arch on the great ocean road
Spring Break part 2: the great ocean road tour
i forgot to mention it in part 1:
we went to this place called the docklands. it's another little tourist place with shops. it has a huge ferris wheel in the center of it and that's the way to know you are in the docklands.
now on to part 2...
friday was by far the highlight of the break. we went on the great ocean road tour. this is a tour of a road that was built and it goes from melbourne to adelaide. it is a road that is surprisingly based on the pacifc coast highway in california. i thought that was pretty cool cause i actually knew what that was. it is an all day tour. the tour leaves at like 7 and we come home around 7 or so. so you better be ready to be gone all day and be ready for a lot of driving and history.
so we got up at 5:45, this was not the fun part. we got breakfast and we went to a hotel to be picked up. when we got there we thought we had missed it, and apparently we had. the time online was different than the time on the ticket, so we called the people and we said that we got confused and luckily the guide was still in the area and he swung by again and picked us up. after that little bump in the road we were on our way.
while we were on this tour, our guide (who's name was neil) gave us a good balance between music and him telling us about the history of the road and the places we were going to. our first stop was the arch that is dedicated to the men of WWI and the men who died in the war. it was pretty awesome. we stopped and took pictures and went out on the beach and stayed there for about an hour.
after that we stopped somewhere on the beach to have our morning tea. oh and that's another thing that has happened on this trip-i'm starting to become more of a tea drinker. with sugar and milk that is...just like my mom with coffee.
anyway, after that we drove by a house that survived the 1983 bush fires, and it is now a B&B going at around 6,000 a night. after driving by the house, we drove by a long sight of koala homes, which are trees. you can tell they are the koala homes because all the leaves are gone. and sometimes if you look hard enough you can see a few. we drove into the homes and i was the first one on the bus to see a real koala. it was cuddled on a tree branch sleeping-i didn't get a picture cause it was so fast, but it was so cute. we then stopped and got out of the car and we saw a few more wild koalas.
after that we stopped for lunch and i had fish n chips, aussie style. they were pretty good, but i still prefer the british version :) after lunch we went to a real rain forest and we saw the second tallest tree (second to the redwood) in the world. we did a walk through the rain forest and we learned a few more things about the different trees and plants and how they've been there. some had been there since the dino times, so they were pretty old.
after the rain forest, we went to the second most photographed place in australia: the 12 apostles. this was beautiful. they are basically rocks in the water, but this water is so blue and these rocks are so big that they match so beautifully. we spent about a hour there and neille and i took pictures the whole time. they are some of the most beautiful things i have seen in australia.
after we went to the place called the loch and gorche. this was a place where a famous ship wreck happened and 2 people survived. think titanic without the love story-at least that was how the guide described it. this was also a cool place cause the water again was so blue, however it was very cold. wind was blowing and it was hard to take pictures of us without our hair getting in our faces. but it was all worth it.
the last place on our tour was the london bridge. the london bridge is a group of rocks where the middle of them collapsed in 1990. funny story: so the middle of the rocks crashed while there was a tour group on the island and 2 people got caught on the inner part. so the rest of the tour group called for help, while they called for help the news got wind of this story and flew a helicopter to the island and tried to get an interview with the man and woman that were stuck on the island. they refused to give an interview and they were flown away by a rescue team. the news station couldn't figure out why they didn't want to give an interview, and they decided to do research. after doing research they found out that the man had called in sick to work that day and the woman was his mistress not his wife. they didn't want to give the interview cause they ran the risk of getting caught. :) the end. also near the london bridge there was a penguin colony, but they only came out at night, and so they weren't there.
that was the end of out day on the great ocean road. we drove and got some dinner and then drove 4 hours back to melbourne. we arrived home around 9 pm. it was a long day, but it was worth it.
we went to this place called the docklands. it's another little tourist place with shops. it has a huge ferris wheel in the center of it and that's the way to know you are in the docklands.
now on to part 2...
friday was by far the highlight of the break. we went on the great ocean road tour. this is a tour of a road that was built and it goes from melbourne to adelaide. it is a road that is surprisingly based on the pacifc coast highway in california. i thought that was pretty cool cause i actually knew what that was. it is an all day tour. the tour leaves at like 7 and we come home around 7 or so. so you better be ready to be gone all day and be ready for a lot of driving and history.
so we got up at 5:45, this was not the fun part. we got breakfast and we went to a hotel to be picked up. when we got there we thought we had missed it, and apparently we had. the time online was different than the time on the ticket, so we called the people and we said that we got confused and luckily the guide was still in the area and he swung by again and picked us up. after that little bump in the road we were on our way.
while we were on this tour, our guide (who's name was neil) gave us a good balance between music and him telling us about the history of the road and the places we were going to. our first stop was the arch that is dedicated to the men of WWI and the men who died in the war. it was pretty awesome. we stopped and took pictures and went out on the beach and stayed there for about an hour.
after that we stopped somewhere on the beach to have our morning tea. oh and that's another thing that has happened on this trip-i'm starting to become more of a tea drinker. with sugar and milk that is...just like my mom with coffee.
anyway, after that we drove by a house that survived the 1983 bush fires, and it is now a B&B going at around 6,000 a night. after driving by the house, we drove by a long sight of koala homes, which are trees. you can tell they are the koala homes because all the leaves are gone. and sometimes if you look hard enough you can see a few. we drove into the homes and i was the first one on the bus to see a real koala. it was cuddled on a tree branch sleeping-i didn't get a picture cause it was so fast, but it was so cute. we then stopped and got out of the car and we saw a few more wild koalas.
after that we stopped for lunch and i had fish n chips, aussie style. they were pretty good, but i still prefer the british version :) after lunch we went to a real rain forest and we saw the second tallest tree (second to the redwood) in the world. we did a walk through the rain forest and we learned a few more things about the different trees and plants and how they've been there. some had been there since the dino times, so they were pretty old.
after the rain forest, we went to the second most photographed place in australia: the 12 apostles. this was beautiful. they are basically rocks in the water, but this water is so blue and these rocks are so big that they match so beautifully. we spent about a hour there and neille and i took pictures the whole time. they are some of the most beautiful things i have seen in australia.
after we went to the place called the loch and gorche. this was a place where a famous ship wreck happened and 2 people survived. think titanic without the love story-at least that was how the guide described it. this was also a cool place cause the water again was so blue, however it was very cold. wind was blowing and it was hard to take pictures of us without our hair getting in our faces. but it was all worth it.
the last place on our tour was the london bridge. the london bridge is a group of rocks where the middle of them collapsed in 1990. funny story: so the middle of the rocks crashed while there was a tour group on the island and 2 people got caught on the inner part. so the rest of the tour group called for help, while they called for help the news got wind of this story and flew a helicopter to the island and tried to get an interview with the man and woman that were stuck on the island. they refused to give an interview and they were flown away by a rescue team. the news station couldn't figure out why they didn't want to give an interview, and they decided to do research. after doing research they found out that the man had called in sick to work that day and the woman was his mistress not his wife. they didn't want to give the interview cause they ran the risk of getting caught. :) the end. also near the london bridge there was a penguin colony, but they only came out at night, and so they weren't there.
that was the end of out day on the great ocean road. we drove and got some dinner and then drove 4 hours back to melbourne. we arrived home around 9 pm. it was a long day, but it was worth it.
pictures from spring break part 1
the ferris wheel at the docklands (see part 2)
the tallest building in melboune
church-i believe st. michael's
dino exhibit
the famous great depression horse
museum
getting lunch
Spring Break part 1: the beginning
so again, let me apologize! i'm the worst at putting up blogs. but i would also like to say in my defense that school is getting harder because it is getting closer to the end, we have about 5 weeks left and that means that the teachers are giving us the research and 2000 word essays. it's going to be a hard end of the semester here.
anyway, spring break was amazing. they actually call it easter break or recess, because technically they are going into autumn/winter, so it's not really spring.
for those of you who didn't know or haven't heard, neille and i went to melbourne, which is south to us and is at the tip of the southern part of the country. it is known for being pretty artsy, think like san fran or kinda like l.a.
so neille and i left saturday night and arrived late that night. we stayed in our new friend's apartment. she was in northern australia for the break with her roommate, so we got a free bed for the week. we got there and basically went to sleep and we slept in sunday and planned out our week in melbourne.
monday was the day that we actually got out and explored the city. we went to breakfast at this really cheap diner type place and it was nice to have cheap food. we tried a "milk shake" which to them is milk with flavor. if you want like a u.s. milk shake, you have to actually say ice cream shake, it's pretty funny. after we had our lunch we went around this market that reminded us of farmer's market. they have all these tourist things for super cheap (and yes this is where i got all the gifts). we decided to go there to get gifts and such another day, cause they closed when we got there. we explored the city a little more and had fun just walking around and seeing a different city than newcastle. it's more city like then newcastle is. it was a awesome different experience. that night we went back and booked tickets for the great ocean road tour and the afl (aussie football league) later that week-more details will follow soon.
tuesday us going to different streets and such looking at churches and different museums. it was fun to see art and different churches. we went to the melbourne museum and saw different fashion art and section on a famous horse during the great depression. the churches were beautifully built and we had another fun day of looking around different parts of the city. we explored other parts of the city that we didn't get to in the first day. we walked everywhere, cause the tram cost money and we wanted to save as money as we could.
wednesday was more of the same. we walked to "china town" and were disappointed cause we were so used to seeing san fran's china town-which is SO much better. that night we decided to have a real girl's night and went to see 17 again, a teenish movie with zac efron in it. we had a lot of fun just being silly and the movie was actually a pretty good movie.
thursday we went to back to the farmer's market and got gifts for our friends and family. this was the end of my spending money on extra things. i got enough gifts for others and a couple more things for me and i am now happy and waiting for new zealand.
(part 2 is on it's way)
anyway, spring break was amazing. they actually call it easter break or recess, because technically they are going into autumn/winter, so it's not really spring.
for those of you who didn't know or haven't heard, neille and i went to melbourne, which is south to us and is at the tip of the southern part of the country. it is known for being pretty artsy, think like san fran or kinda like l.a.
so neille and i left saturday night and arrived late that night. we stayed in our new friend's apartment. she was in northern australia for the break with her roommate, so we got a free bed for the week. we got there and basically went to sleep and we slept in sunday and planned out our week in melbourne.
monday was the day that we actually got out and explored the city. we went to breakfast at this really cheap diner type place and it was nice to have cheap food. we tried a "milk shake" which to them is milk with flavor. if you want like a u.s. milk shake, you have to actually say ice cream shake, it's pretty funny. after we had our lunch we went around this market that reminded us of farmer's market. they have all these tourist things for super cheap (and yes this is where i got all the gifts). we decided to go there to get gifts and such another day, cause they closed when we got there. we explored the city a little more and had fun just walking around and seeing a different city than newcastle. it's more city like then newcastle is. it was a awesome different experience. that night we went back and booked tickets for the great ocean road tour and the afl (aussie football league) later that week-more details will follow soon.
tuesday us going to different streets and such looking at churches and different museums. it was fun to see art and different churches. we went to the melbourne museum and saw different fashion art and section on a famous horse during the great depression. the churches were beautifully built and we had another fun day of looking around different parts of the city. we explored other parts of the city that we didn't get to in the first day. we walked everywhere, cause the tram cost money and we wanted to save as money as we could.
wednesday was more of the same. we walked to "china town" and were disappointed cause we were so used to seeing san fran's china town-which is SO much better. that night we decided to have a real girl's night and went to see 17 again, a teenish movie with zac efron in it. we had a lot of fun just being silly and the movie was actually a pretty good movie.
thursday we went to back to the farmer's market and got gifts for our friends and family. this was the end of my spending money on extra things. i got enough gifts for others and a couple more things for me and i am now happy and waiting for new zealand.
(part 2 is on it's way)
Monday, April 13, 2009
Rugby Game
This is why i shouldn't blog..i'm not good at keeping up with it.
anyway, i am now blogging about my awesome rugby game that happened a week ago.
first things first, we went to a LEAUGE game, apparently there is a really big difference between league game and a union rugby game. so we went to the newcastle knights game vs manly.
there were 12 of us, and spencer, charlie, neille, and i got back early that morning from a weekend in nelson bay. we got home and took showers and then got on the train and headed to the newcastle stadium. when we got there, we picked up our tickets and while we were picking up the tickets we got some newcastle knights gear. they aren't jerseys, but more like supporter jerseys. they are pretty cool and they were only 20 bucks :) newcastle was playing a team that hadn't won a single game yet, so we were all hoping that it was going to be an easy game. we ended up beating them by 20 points.
after the game we all went to a bar close by to the stadium and we hung out with more people from our group. and we even got to see the game again on tv. we tried looking for ourselves on the tv, but the cameras weren't in the right spots.
i don't know if i ever mentioned it, but this was the game when we had front row seats. it was pretty awesome to see a league game that close. we all had a fun time at the game, it was a beautiful day and the sun was out and our team won. it was a great day. it was a good end to a excellent weekend.
i'm sorry this isn't longer, but the next entry will probably be pretty long-so just wait until then. i hope everything is well where ever you are. love you all!
allison
anyway, i am now blogging about my awesome rugby game that happened a week ago.
first things first, we went to a LEAUGE game, apparently there is a really big difference between league game and a union rugby game. so we went to the newcastle knights game vs manly.
there were 12 of us, and spencer, charlie, neille, and i got back early that morning from a weekend in nelson bay. we got home and took showers and then got on the train and headed to the newcastle stadium. when we got there, we picked up our tickets and while we were picking up the tickets we got some newcastle knights gear. they aren't jerseys, but more like supporter jerseys. they are pretty cool and they were only 20 bucks :) newcastle was playing a team that hadn't won a single game yet, so we were all hoping that it was going to be an easy game. we ended up beating them by 20 points.
after the game we all went to a bar close by to the stadium and we hung out with more people from our group. and we even got to see the game again on tv. we tried looking for ourselves on the tv, but the cameras weren't in the right spots.
i don't know if i ever mentioned it, but this was the game when we had front row seats. it was pretty awesome to see a league game that close. we all had a fun time at the game, it was a beautiful day and the sun was out and our team won. it was a great day. it was a good end to a excellent weekend.
i'm sorry this isn't longer, but the next entry will probably be pretty long-so just wait until then. i hope everything is well where ever you are. love you all!
allison
Saturday, April 4, 2009
surprise trip
this weekend a lot of people were going out of town, some people were going camping and some people were going to surf camp (something that you signed up for a while ago). so friday night, neille, spencer, charlie and i thought it would be fun to go somewhere and spend the night in a hostile and see a little more of australia. so the 4 of us got up early saturday morning and hoped on a bus to nelson bay, which is north of newcastle, and spent the night in a hostile and spent some time together. we went into the bay when we got there. how ever when we got there it started to get cloudy and the locals said that the rain would pass us and keep going. we hoped so too cause we were hoping to go on a dolphin cruise. which we did! however as soon as we got to the boat it started to rain...and then stopped....and then started pouring!
now on this cruise we rode out to the middle of the bay to see the dolphins, and on the side of the boat you could climb into a net and be in the water with the dolphins. the 4 of us did not want to pass it up, especially when we got to the bay and saw over 20 dolphins. when we got into the net it started really raining on us, but we stayed in for a little while and then got back onto the boat and got some tea and warmed up.
when we got back to land we stopped at a few shops to get some ideas for presents for people back home and i got some board shorts that are the australian flag, they are pretty sweet.
that night we ordered pizza, played pool, and hung out with the people from our hostile. it was a lot of fun meeting people from europe and playing games with them.
this morning (sunday) we got up and came home on the bus to get ready for the RUGBY game today. oh and it also is daylight savings here, we went back a hour. so there's that piece of information for you.
i'll be putting up pictures later, along with some rugby pictures :)
hope you are all doing well and enjoying the blog!
love, allison
now on this cruise we rode out to the middle of the bay to see the dolphins, and on the side of the boat you could climb into a net and be in the water with the dolphins. the 4 of us did not want to pass it up, especially when we got to the bay and saw over 20 dolphins. when we got into the net it started really raining on us, but we stayed in for a little while and then got back onto the boat and got some tea and warmed up.
when we got back to land we stopped at a few shops to get some ideas for presents for people back home and i got some board shorts that are the australian flag, they are pretty sweet.
that night we ordered pizza, played pool, and hung out with the people from our hostile. it was a lot of fun meeting people from europe and playing games with them.
this morning (sunday) we got up and came home on the bus to get ready for the RUGBY game today. oh and it also is daylight savings here, we went back a hour. so there's that piece of information for you.
i'll be putting up pictures later, along with some rugby pictures :)
hope you are all doing well and enjoying the blog!
love, allison
Thursday, April 2, 2009
pictures from the soccer game!!
the 2 teams :) australia won 2-0
me with my new jersey
inside the stadium
the stadium
the australian national anthem
Aussie! Aussie! Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!
yesterday was amazing!!
yesterday one of my dreams came true...i went to foreign soccer game. but it wasn't just any foreign soccer game, it was an AUSSIE soccer game. the australian soccerroos! these guys do NOT mess around.
MY DAY:
neille and i left around 2 and arrived at sydney around 4. we wandered around a little bit and then got on a train to go to the stadium. and like i thought this was THE olympic stadium-the place i saw on tv and said i want to go there and i was there! it was so exciting! (by the way, pictures will be up soon-our connections to the wi fi are not the best for uploading pics) so we got there and we bought a jersey and a scarf-colors are green and gold for the record. jersey because we wanted one and we realized that the sweatshirts we had were the other teams colors. the scarfs because in australia, when they sing the national anthem, they hold the scarfs up and sing. it's actually a pretty awesome thing to see. so we got our stuff and we sat in our seats which were pretty far up, but we could still see everything pretty well on the field. oh and it was POURING rain on our way over and it stopped for a little while and then through out the game, it sprinkled, but we were covered by the roof :)
anyway, the game started and australia was getting so many close calls on scoring a goal! it was crazy! every time they would go for a goal the stadium stood up and when they missed they all yelled AWWWW and it was awesome! plus the other team, a team from Asia, were a bunch of babies! EVERY time they fell on the ground, they would hold their leg or arm and roll around on the ground and yell and act like they are in pain and then 2 minutes later get up and run around the field-and every time they did that the aussie would BOOOOOO-it was AWESOME.
long story short aussies won 2 to 0. and each time they scored te stadium would obviously go completely nuts! it was so cool to see so much spirit for a country's soccer team.
oh-also this game was a have to win. if they had won this game and a few others, they will qualify to be in the qualification round for the world cup in south africa in 2010. the final home game is june 10 and neille and i are planning on going to that one-we aren't sure-but that would be the FINAL game and THE game that would make them go into the qualifications.
basically this day was awesome and i'm so glad i had the opportunity to go to this game! again, pictures will come soon!
oh and yes-they did the aussie! aussie! aussie! oi! oi! oi! chant and it was AWESOME!
:)
yesterday one of my dreams came true...i went to foreign soccer game. but it wasn't just any foreign soccer game, it was an AUSSIE soccer game. the australian soccerroos! these guys do NOT mess around.
MY DAY:
neille and i left around 2 and arrived at sydney around 4. we wandered around a little bit and then got on a train to go to the stadium. and like i thought this was THE olympic stadium-the place i saw on tv and said i want to go there and i was there! it was so exciting! (by the way, pictures will be up soon-our connections to the wi fi are not the best for uploading pics) so we got there and we bought a jersey and a scarf-colors are green and gold for the record. jersey because we wanted one and we realized that the sweatshirts we had were the other teams colors. the scarfs because in australia, when they sing the national anthem, they hold the scarfs up and sing. it's actually a pretty awesome thing to see. so we got our stuff and we sat in our seats which were pretty far up, but we could still see everything pretty well on the field. oh and it was POURING rain on our way over and it stopped for a little while and then through out the game, it sprinkled, but we were covered by the roof :)
anyway, the game started and australia was getting so many close calls on scoring a goal! it was crazy! every time they would go for a goal the stadium stood up and when they missed they all yelled AWWWW and it was awesome! plus the other team, a team from Asia, were a bunch of babies! EVERY time they fell on the ground, they would hold their leg or arm and roll around on the ground and yell and act like they are in pain and then 2 minutes later get up and run around the field-and every time they did that the aussie would BOOOOOO-it was AWESOME.
long story short aussies won 2 to 0. and each time they scored te stadium would obviously go completely nuts! it was so cool to see so much spirit for a country's soccer team.
oh-also this game was a have to win. if they had won this game and a few others, they will qualify to be in the qualification round for the world cup in south africa in 2010. the final home game is june 10 and neille and i are planning on going to that one-we aren't sure-but that would be the FINAL game and THE game that would make them go into the qualifications.
basically this day was awesome and i'm so glad i had the opportunity to go to this game! again, pictures will come soon!
oh and yes-they did the aussie! aussie! aussie! oi! oi! oi! chant and it was AWESOME!
:)
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