Week 2!

I am slowly settling into my new home and I could not be happier with my choice to take this leap of faith and travel so far to study here.  Australia is even more amazing than I imagined! I wake up every day and have to pinch myself because it feels like a dream.  I go to class Mondays, Wednesdays and every other Friday, school has started but it doesn't feel like school back home.  There are barely any assignments, its more reading on your own and small (very small) papers due at various points in the semester.  So it looks like ill be spending a great deal of time taking advantage of the gorgeous coastline that sits next to my new home.

Classes Started last week so it was a much more mellow week.  Wednesday night the Australian bachelor started and I got together with a bunch of other international girls to watch it.  We were stocked with snacks and drinks and had an absolute blast chatting as we watched the drama unfold.

                                            Race Day!

As many of you know, Ive been infatuated with horse races ever since I went to the Belmont Stakes earlier this year.  When Josie and I heard that the student guild at Griffith was putting on their 16th annual Race day at the Gold Coast Turf Club we jumped on the opportunity to dress up with our new friends.  The same group of girls that got together for the bachelor all went to the races and we had an absolute blast!

Josie and I with our big hats and hair pieces, even though she didn't want to wear hers (She was definitely forced into it)  Though we found out when we got to the races that it was not necessary to wear a head piece.  American races are much more strict on their dress code than the Aussies.

We stared off the day with a little morning Kiwi and Melon Champagne sangria type drink, which was absolutely delicious.

Josie and Helene :)

Fortunately for us our Race Day student ticket included a buffet and free drinks all day long.  Saturday is what I like to call a marathon, you gotta go slow and steady all day or you'll never last.  The other students were clearly not thinking of the day in the same way, because by around 3 or 4 the "classy girls" at the event were wobbly in their heels falling all over the place.  (but a full day of drinking will do that to most people)

We placed some small bets on the horses with the best names and our favorite numbers, but none of us won big or lost anything significant.  I am so glad I got to go to the races with such a fun group of girls.  Next time I think we will try a polo match! :)

                               Aussie BBQ on Sunday 

On Sunday I went over to Mekila and Nicks house to have an authentic Aussie BBQ.  It was amazing! We had so many different things including different salads, kangaroo, sweet potatoes, and potato salad. ( I had attempted to make Kangaroo for a few of my friends in the apartment and lets just say it didn't go over well….. I was skeptical about trying it again but Mekila cooked it to perfection and I loved it!  I was very happy to finally meet her whole family!  

On our drive home we stopped by a neighborhood where there were a bunch of wild wallabies! I was overjoyed to see all the little guys hopping around all over the place! They are so adorable I want to take one home so bad!