So I definitely thought I could do a little better with this blogging thing. Apparently not. I’ve just been so incredibly busy! Okay, so after I went to Canberra (couple weeks ago!), I went to the Great Barrier Reef. The Great Barrier Reef is northern Australia, up in Queensland, so I had to fly there. So super early in the morning, I headed to the airport with 7 other Americans from the ASC group. We stayed in a hostel in a town called Cairns (pronounced Cans because Australians don't say "r's"). Sunday wasn’t terribly exciting but we explored the town some and did some shopping. Then Monday was Reef Day! I left at about 7:30am and it took about an hour and a half to get out to the reef by boat. Now about this boat ride…I’m the kind of girl who’s totally up for riding roller coasters 14 times and has never gotten carsick or bus sick. But what did I spend an hour of that boat ride doing? That’s right. I actually lost track of how many times I threw up. I also was not alone. There were about 7 or 8 other people right there with me which, as you can probably imagine, doesn’t help when you’re already feeling sick. It’s at this point that I’m not only regretting coming to Australia but regretting my entire existence. Then, all of a sudden we stopped, and everything was right with the world. First, I went snorkeling and then scuba diving and it was absolutely amazing! I chased Nemo into his anemone about 4 times, played with sea cucumbers, and took my flippers off and did flips on the bottom of the ocean. I saw the most amazing and funky looking fish swimming around blue and gold metallic coral. Fish and coral of every color and huge squishy sea clams that closed up when you touched them! It was by far the most amazing thing I have ever experienced.
The next day, I went to the Daintree Rainforest! It was so incredibly gorgeous! (Lots of pics on FB) The guide took us all over the rainforest and to a pretty beach and a few look-out points. I got back late that night and met a bunch of friends at P.J. O'brien's for the $10 meal :)
It’s amazing how much culture I’m getting here. I knew I would get a lot of Australian culture but that’s not even the beginning of it! I live with a Greek family so I’m experiencing Greek food, traditions, and culture. My host brother, Anthony, knows more about American politics than I ever have and he’s got me pretty up to date on American, Australian, and Greek politics. I also live with Amir and Negin who are from Iran. I’ve learned so much about Iranian culture and I even went to a Persian festival! Hung out with a bunch of Persian people, had a BBQ, and saw some Persian dancing. I also met a lot of cool people on my trip to the Great Barrier Reef. There was a man from Zimbabwe who’d travelled all over the world, a couple from the Netherlands, and 3 Canadians who were on their way to go hunting in New Zealand. It’s so easy to meet people if you’re open to it and everyone always has really interesting stories!
So this was my reef experience :)