Brazilians, Geckos, and Puzzles

          This morning, I woke up pretty early. I asked Emily about going to the Gold Coast and she said she didn’t really feel up for it. I could have just gone by myself, but then what is the fun in that. I might have to next time though. If it’s free next time, I am definitely going. It wont be free until later on next

 week. She said maybe next weekend. I really need Internet to see the Facebook pages of Quest and stuff, so I can see what kind of trips are coming up and which ones that I want to do. I ate a banana for breakfast. It is one of the ones that I got from the market. Their bananas are a lot different than ours. They are shaped different and hard to open. I can remember Sophia, Emily’s friend she stayed with the first few days, saying that there was a banana shortage a couple of years ago because of the floods and the price of bananas went up astronomically. So, I think its safe to say that I got a good price at $2 for a big bundle. I listened to some music on my computer, seeing as there isn’t much to do just sitting around here. I need to find stuff to do. To just explore. I did watch some old videos that I have on my computer. They were from high school and stuff. It kind of made me a little sad to remember back on those times. I miss hanging out all the time with my friends. I miss them. I loved those days and the people. It was truly one of the best times of my life. Watching that made me want to connect more with those people from high school. I will try to make more of an effort when I get back. Marcel was up and Pricilla, his wife was all moved in and everything too. They are from Brazil and around their late 20’s. I am officially the

youngest here. But, they are so cool and I fit right in. Priscilla is here taking English classes to better her English so that she can get her masters degree. She already has her degree in Psychology. She works as a house cleaner and a waitress too. She wants to find another job though, because she says the house cleaning job is so hard and trying. They have both traveled around and everything. Their English is really good, I think. I asked them a little bit about how they feel about the US. They have been there before and say that some places in the US are good and some aren’t. They said that when they were in Miami, there were a lot of people that walked around with attitude that they didn’t like and weren’t very nice. Priscilla said that she would ask someone a question in English and they would try to answer her back in Spanish. She was like “I don’t speak Spanish!” Haha. Marcel said that more open-minded places were better. Places where gay marriage and marijuana is legal, seem to be better places. He said “That’s not because I smoke marijuana or anything, its just because there is more freedom.” Priscilla interrupted him by adding “And you’re not gay either so…” Haha. He laughed. It is really great to see how other countries view the US. I told my parents that I was going to try and do see the different opinions and document them, unbiased. I just want to know so that I can maybe go back to the US and make it a better place. It is kind of my mission while I am here. I want the unfiltered, true opinions of those from other countries, on how they feel the US is portrayed in their society. After talking with them for a bit, I got ready. I had to get out of the house, because it wasn’t that bad looking of a day. I wanted to take some pictures too. I rode the bus into the city and walked through the city and the Botanical Gardens. They are so beautiful and I haven’t taken any pictures of them yet. I also took some pictures of the QUT campus. I want everyone to see how great the campus is too here. When I was walking around the campus, I saw this scary lizard snake thing

 crawling out of the bushes. It was really weird. I have no idea what it was. That has been happening a lot lately, not knowing what something is. Haha. Its like I’m in a different country or something! I made it past it though and wanted to use the free Wi-Fi that the say the offer in the gardens. I tried and tried, but couldn’t get it to work. Ugh. My luck again. Maybe it is because it was the weekend or something. I don’t know. I did see these people making a video. There was like this lady pushing a stroller and she sat on a bench. Then all of a sudden this man with a mask came up and stole her purse. I don’t know what that was all about, but I definitely know

they were just making a video. Haha. At least I think so. I walked to the ferry from the campus, still taking pictures and everything. I then rode the ferry back to Toowong and walked back to my house. When I closed my door, there was a surprise in my room. There was a little gecko on my wall behind my door. Oh, Australia. I didn’t know how I was going to get it out. I had a piece of paper ready, when Marcel knocked on the door. He wanted to see if I had any extra hangers, which I don’t, but then he ended up helping me by picking up the gecko and putting it back outside. I didn’t know if I could touch it or if it was poisonous or what, so I’m glad he got it. It was running everywhere though and he had a time getting it, but finally he got it in his hands. I uploaded some pictures on my computer.

 I was kind of tired and there wasn’t much else to do, so I just fell asleep. Haha. I was going to go to Emily’s house later to use some Internet. I woke up and Marcel was cooking in the kitchen. He offered me and everyone else some. So nice! It was this pasta and fish thing and it was really good. Angie was putting together a puzzle at the dining room table. I knew I was in the right place then! I LOVE PUZZLES! So exciting! Perfect! We finished the puzzle and took a house picture. It was cool, kind of like house bonding. Haha. It was raining outside too and since we had the doors open letting in cool air, some bugs had gotten in. Marcel had the idea to vacuum them up. It actually worked. We all watched Prison Break together, which is apparently one of Angie’s favorite

shows. They have an external hard drive that they plugged into the TV and we watched it from there. I wish I had my shows on there. I can remember watching Prison Break when it first came on, but then it showed like an hour later or something and I couldn’t stay up that late to watch it. I can’t wait to get Internet so that I can watch my shows that I am missing. I never went to Emily’s. I guess I got too caught up with the housemates! Which is totally fine. They are so cool, mature, and fun. I really like them. We all were tired and went to bed after the Prison Break episode. Tomorrow is my first day of “Uni”. I have my first class tomorrow! It isn’t until late, so I can sleep. I’m excited!

                                                                                                      Until next time,

                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                                                  QueensLandon

Markets, South Bank Beach, and Stir Fry

          I woke up early that morning because the light was really bright through the window. I looked

outside and it was a beautiful day! There were blue skies and the sun was beaming down. Now this was the Australia I had envisioned. I was meeting Emily at the ferry and we were going to go to the markets in West End. They have like fruits and vegetables and a bunch of other stuff that people sell. The others might be going to Gold Coast. I’m not sure if anyone went or even got up. No one ever texted me or anything. I got ready and walked to the ferry to meet Emily. I was wearing my tank top because it was such a beautiful day. I didn’t wear sunscreen or anything. I hope I don’t get burned! They call a tank top a “singlet” here. A little bit different than back home.  We rode the ferry to West End. We then had to take a bus from the ferry stop to get to the markets. That was a little bit of a challenge. There was another lady that was trying to find her way there to them as well. We all got on a bus. At one point the lady that was with us got up and asked the driver if we were near them. He said we had already passed the stop for them so we had to get off and walk back the other way. Oddly, the lady went the other

way. I don’t even know. Haha. We finally found the way there! We followed and asked some people. The markets were great! There was a bunch of fruits and vegetables. And they were pretty cheap too. I spent a little over $10 and got a bunch of fruits and vegetables. I got lettuce, mushrooms, bananas, broccoli, and some other stuff too! It kind of reminded me of home because of the flea market feel. There were “stalls” with foot scrub, sausages, and a whole bunch of different stuff. There also was this man selling beef and kangaroo jerky. We tried some, but it was the beef. Oh yeah, have I told you that I have started eating all kind of meat now. It is just too hard not too and it is less expensive if I eat some kinds of meat. Maybe one day… I also saw a yard sale too! That reminded me of home definitely because in the summer on every Fridays and Saturdays, there are yard sales

everywhere. It was pretty great to see one. I love deals! Its kind of weird how hot it is on good days. This is because back home they are getting snow and it’s the winter. Haha. I’ll enjoy the summer here and then go back home and enjoy some more summer! It’s crazy, but wonderful. I went to my house after we rode the ferry home and put my stuff away. I watched a little TV. It felt good because I’ve felt so cut off from the world and entertainment. I watched this show called Same Name. Mike Tyson from a small town in Michigan was trading lives with Mike Tyson the boxer. How funny. Angie and Javier were home. We saw our lizard on the deck. It is a big one. Javier said that he wants to be able to feed it. Haha. I guess it’s kind of like our pet because it’s been out there like everyday. Emily and I had decided earlier that we were going to go to the South Bank pool later on. I got ready and met Emily. It was still a beautiful day outside. Not a rain drop yet. I still don’t know if the others went to Gold Coast yet. Me and Emily might go the next day because we are still on free and the whole trip would be free for us. The sand sculptures will still be there so we can finally see those! When we got to the South

 Bank pool, it was sooooo crowded! There were so many people there because the day was so good and because school was out for the weekend. The South Bank pool is a man made beach in the middle of the city. It is rally cool because there is sand and everything. After getting in, we looked around because there had to just be someone there that we knew. Emily saw Tazzy and some others over on the beach. We all swam in the water, which felt so good on such a hot day. The sun kept going in and out, but I had put sunblock on when we got there

and I was glad I did. We left after a while there and rode the ferry back to Toowong. We both went to Coles (not Kohl’s) to get some stuff. I needed some soy sauce and stuff for my stir-fry I was making later and Emily needed some stuff as well. As we were leaving the mall, we were talking about the prices of stuff and everything. All of a sudden we heard this lady ask “Do you guys want some free doughnuts?” We were like “HECK YEAH!” Everything was closing. Everything closes early here, at like 5 o’clock. So we got a bunch of free doughnuts. The lady gave us like 2 bags full! Emily and I parted ways and I walked back to my place. No one was home. I was ready to cook my first real dinner here. I made a stir-fry. I put chicken, mushrooms, broccoli and rice together to make a delicious

 honey-soy stir-fry! And it was sooo good! I watched some TV while I ate my dinner. I watched this show called “The Cube”, which is kind of like “Minute to Win It”. The commercials are all different here. It is so funny to see the different accents. They will like have an American show, and then have the Australian commercials. Haha. I really kind of miss TV. I don’t need to let that distract me though! I really do need the Internet though. That would make a lot of things easier. We have a couch and a dining set and stuff now. They have been bringing it in truck I think. Angie said that we are getting a new couch too. Her brother has a Ute. Which is a type of vehicle that is really popular here. I have seen so

many of them. They are like cars on the front and then have a truck bed like attached on the back. So weird, but whatever. Haha. Anyways, he is going to help move the new couch and stuff. There wasn’t much on TV, so I started watching “Zoom”, which is the movie with Tim Allen in it where there are a bunch of kid superheroes. While I was watching that, Marcel, one half of the couple that is moving into the other room, started moving in. His wife wasn’t there, but he finally got most of his stuff moved in. I was really tired, so I went on to bed. I might sleep in a little bit, but I still want to go to the Gold Coast in the morning. Hopefully Emily and I will. If not tomorrow, I will definitely go back some time!

                                                                                                      Until next time,

                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                                                  QueensLandon

A Quick Trip to QUT and TOGA!

          I woke up kind of early. A lot earlier than I thought I was going to. There isn’t much to do when I get up without Internet, so I just wrote up some of my blog posts. I was tired again after that, so I just went back to sleep. I was really tired I knew that I had a long day ahead of me. The toga party was later

 on. I wanted though to get some stuff at QUT done before the week ended. Most of the places stay open until 5pm, so I was just going to get everything done right before then, go back to my place and then got o Urbanest to get ready to toga.  I had to go by the library to get this free copy of Cite Write, which is about citing sources correctly. I also wanted to get my free shirt that I forgot to get and my “diary”, which I think is what they call a planner. And I still had to sign in with the Study Abroad office so that they officially knew that I was there. I left kind of late from my house to get to QUT. Emily had texted me and said she was going to be on her way to Urbanest in a little bit. That is where everyone is meeting before the Toga party. I left my toga stuff in my room. Stupid idea. I got on the bus to the city near QUT. When the bus made its last stop at Queen Street Mall, I asked the bus driver if there were any other closer stop to QUT. He said that bus didn't go any closer, but he had 15 minutes to blow and he would take me there! So nice! I was the only person on the bus. It wouldn’t have cost me anything anyway, since I am not on free with my Go Card. After you touch on and off 9 times, in a week, the rest of the week is free. The driver took me to the QUT

stop and I got off. QUT is still kind of confusing and I was kind of just walking around looking for the buildings that I needed to go to. I knew kind of where I was going, but not really. I saw a bunch of people setting up stuff for the toga party later. I got my Cite Write book from the library and asked where the bookstore was. The librarian that helped me was the same one that helped Mandy and me when we printed that one-day. She was really nice. She thought I was a masters student, because she saw my last name! Haha. The bookstore was closing right when I got there, even though it wasn’t even 5 pm! Ugh. So I would have to try and get my free shirt on Monday. I went to what I thought was the Study Abroad office, but turned out to be the International Student Services office, and they directed me in the right direction. Of course, the Study Abroad office was close too! Once again, it wasn’t even 5 pm! I would have to come back Monday to get the rest of the stuff done. Ugh. I left quickly to go back to the house to get my stuff. I was running behind. I knew I should have brought it all with me. I didn’t know which bus stop to go to, so I just ran to get onto the ferry. I am kind of getting used to the transportation, but the busses are still a little bit confusing. If I had a smart phone, it would be so much easier! I could just look it up. On the Translink website, the transportation provider, there is a journey planner thing that tells you which stops to get on and off at. I got off the ferry and

 went to my house. I got the toga stuff really quickly and left to get back on the ferry to go to Urbanest. Angie had asked where I was going and I told her to the toga party. She said that should be fun! She goes to UQ and the toga party is a combination of UQ and QUT. I got to Urbanest and everyone else was already in toga mode. I went to the bathroom and put on mine. After a little while of hanging out and taking pictures and stuff, we left. We walked to QUT. We took some pictures on the bridge and stuff. When we got there, there wasn’t that many people there. It was kind of early. There was a bunch of free stuff from this group called Red Frogs, like water, Icee pops, and red frog gummies. I love me

some free stuff. The night sky was cool because the bats were flying around everywhere. It was creepy and scary, yet beautiful at the same time. After a while, people started to come in and there was A LOT OF PEOPLE! Everyone was dancing and there was a band that played and some DJ’s. There was like a dance group on stage and even fire twirlers on stage! Haha. Last year they broke the world record and this year we broke the world record again for the LARGEST TOGA PARTY IN THE WORLD! So fun! It was so cool to be a part of that! It was scary at some points though because some people were really drunk and emergency crews were pushing people through the crowds. That was scary. They were selling alcohol at the party. I was just weird that at a University event they were selling alcohol. It would be soooo weird if USC did that. Haha. Speaking of USC, they played Sandstorm like twice while we were there and we were all yelling “U-S-C! U-S-C!” It was amazing. We left near the end. It was hard to keep up with everyone and we all had to practically hold onto each

 other to keep together. A couple of us got lost from the group at some points, but we all finally caught up with each other. Actually the whole night was filled with people leaving and us not seeing them for the longest time, but by the end we were all in one group! Haha. We saw David from the desk on the way out. He had been there after he got off work, he said. Haha. They all walked back to Urbanest and Emily and me walked back to Toowong and Auchenflower. The toga party had ended kind of early, because there was an after party somewhere, but I wasn’t going to that. I got in the shower when I got back at my house and left to go to Emily’s. I got to finally use some Internet!! It felt so good! It was short lived though. I left and walked home. I was so tired. It had been a long day. On the way home I saw some kind of animal. At first I thought it was a cat, but the closer I got I saw it wasn’t. It was grey and furry and had a furry long black tail. I don’t know what it was, so I was like “I don’t know what you are, so I am just not going to walk near you.” It scurried up a tree nearby. It’s kind of scary not knowing what something is. When I got in my bed, I was out like a light.

                                                                                                      Until next time,

                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                                                  QueensLandon

Laughing Koalas, Coles, and A-ayron's Birthday

          I slept in a little bit this morning. I was really tired and everything. I knew that I would have a long day. It felt so good to sleep in my own place. To know that I could come back there and I was sleeping in "my" room felt great! I really needed to get some food and stuff, so I texted Emily about

going to the Queen Street Mall. I got ready and met her at the ferry. We went to the mall. It wasn’t that bad looking of a day. It was actually kind of nice, with very few clouds. We went to the Reject Shop and I got a few things. I got some hangers and a trash can along with some other stuff. Emily got some stuff too. One of the things she got was detergent. When we were walking to another store, her bag broke and she had to find another one. Luckily the people in the Australian Geographic store gave her one for a small donation. That store was cool though. They had a bunch of Australian animal stuff and this koala and alligator that laughed and moved around on the floor. It was so funny. We left that store and went to the fabric store to get some stuff for the toga party. Emily and Mandy and them had gotten some stuff earlier in the week. I got some stuff. There were people everywhere getting toga stuff. Haha. I don’t know if I will look as legit as I did when we went to the ESA toga party, but it should still be fun. We left the mall for the ferry and it was raining so badly outside! The wind was whipping the rain

 sideways! Ugh. We saw this place called Irish Murphy’s and decided to go inside to see what they had there. It is like this pub place. Mandy had wanted to go there some time earlier on, but we never did. It was actually dry inside so we decided to stay a while. We looked at the menu and decided to split wedges. This has become a recurring theme. I feel like wedges, sour cream, and sweet chili is a big thing around here too. It’s really good though. Emily wanted to see if she could get a job maybe there. The waitress girl said to just bring a resume. I really want to get a job now. Now that I am paying rent and stuff it would be great to have a little extra money each week. Maybe not at that pub, but somewhere bagging groceries or something. Haha. It was not raining that much outside so we left. By the time we had gotten to the stoplight and were waiting on it to change, it had started to pour again! We finally ran to

the ferry and we were soaked! That is just my luck! Haha. We rode the ferry back to Toowong and went to Emily’s house. I left some of my stuff there because I was going to go do some grocery shopping. I left for Coles. Coles is different than our Kohl’s. Haha. Coles is a grocery store and is really big around here. They are everywhere. There is one in Toowong Village, which isn’t too far away from Emily and my house. I got a cart and walked each isle. I didn’t really know where everything was and there were so many different brands and stuff. It felt weird. I finally found most everything on my list I had made and went to the register. I wanted to spend right at a certain amount and I hit it right on the nose! So proud. These groceries should last me for a while. I had a lot of stuff to carry back. I pushed the buggy through the parking garage you have to cut through to get to Toowong Village. When I got to the end, I had to put some of the stuff in the backpack I carried with me, and the rest I carried on my arms. I got back to Emily’s and got the rest of my stuff. She has this rollie thing that you can put all your stuff in and just roll it back. She let me use it so that I could get my stuff back to my place easier. It really was easier. I felt like a Chinese lady at the flea market, but it was a lot easier than just carrying it all back by hand.

 When I got back home, I put all of my stuff away and then looked through all of my stuff I had gotten from QUT. I have a bunch of papers and magazines and pamphlets that I just stuffed in my bag and never looked at, so this was the time to look through some of it. Angie and Javier got home and I talked to them for a little bit. They had gotten the TV and some other stuff for the apartment. It is starting to feel homier. I texted Emily, because we were supposed to be going to Urbanest later. It is Aaron from Gold Coast’s birthday!!! Everyone was going out and stuff. I got ready and made a sandwich. After I ate, I left for Emily’s. We hung out at her place for a bit and then left for the ferry. We got off at the South Bank stop and walked to Urbanest. Everyone was already hanging out downstairs, so we joined in. everyone was having fun and everything. We went outside for a bit too. I met some more people. I met this girl

 from London, this girl from Holland, and some others. Before I knew it, we were leaving. We left to go to the Exchange. We all rode the bus this time, which is a lot quicker than walking. Haha. We had a lot of fun at the Exchange dancing and making Aaron have a great birthday! We left the Exchange and went across the street to the Victory. It is another club place. We were all having fun and everything, but it got really hot inside. Me and Emily went outside for some air. We were both ready to go, because we had a long walk home from the city to Toowong and Auchenflower, so we left a little early. It took a while but we finally got back to our neck of the woods. My house is before Emily’s so I told her to text me when she got home. I walked up to my place. I wish I already had the key to the door that just goes to my room. It is kind of like my own private entrance. Angie said she would get me the key soon. But I walked in the front door and laid in bed. Emily texted me when she got home. It felt great to finally have my won place to go after a night out. It felt a lot better than sleeping on a couch. Definitely.

                                                                                                      Until next time,

                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                                                  QueensLandon