Happy New Year!

I know it's been forever and now I must pay for my laziness by trying to write about a whole month in one sitting. Here goes.

Melbourne - I spent a week with camp people for my friend Vanilla Ice's (Tim, but I don't think I've ever called him that) 30th birthday. He lives with his very cool roommate Vicki and a very cute but not very smart puppy named Bear. Other camp people came from New Zealand and other parts of Australia and we all had a great time talking about the kids and counselors. The week involved lots of tv watching, (I discovered the hilarious Australian tv show Summer Heights High and rediscovered the also hilarious first season of Beverly Hills, 90210,)playing with the dog, and singing karaoke. After saying goodbye to everyone I checked into a hostel in Melbourne for a few days to be a tourist. I was woken up my first morning in the hostel by the girl above me deciding to have an early morning cell phone conversation in her bed. I managed to block it out but when the same thing happened my second morning I was not feeling so nice anymore. Luckily the girl checked out that day. While in Melbourne I walked around some of the different neighborhoods, went to the Melbourne Gaol and saw where the hung Ned Kelly, and went to the very cool Melbourne Museum and saw lots of interesting things none of which I can remember at this point in time. I had a great dinner with one of my dad's dental friends at a cafe on the water with a great view of the city and the sunset. I could have spent plenty more time exploring the city but I had booked a tour to get me to Sydney.

Melbourne - Sydney - I was picked up entirely too early in the morning by Bones, my tour guide, for a 3 day bus trip that would take me to Sydney via the Snowy Mountains, Wilson's Promontory, and Canberra. Our first day we went hiking in Wilson's Promontory to a place called Squeaky Beach. We also went trough a walk to a field to look at kangaroos and wombat holes. I was already feeling a little kangaroo'd out but this walk included running from an angry magpie which is one of Australia's most dangerous animals. I am already not a big fan of birds so did not appreciate this one swooping towards my head with its sharp beak. This field was also covered in kangaroo poop, which meant so were everyone's shoes when our little wildlife walk was over. We then walked along another beach to see the sunset, which didn't actually occur until an hour after we finished our walk, and then went to bed to prepare for another early morning.
The next morning we all climbed into our bus and headed out to the Snowy Mountains to see Mt. Koscziusko, the highest peak in Australia, and do some hiking. A few hours into our drive along twisty mountain roads it began to rain and the dirty roads began to turn to mud pits. Our bus then became stuck in the mud pit and wouldn't move. Bones then informed us that the buses weren't supposed to be on the roads when it was raining and he was going to call the company and see what they reccomended, until then we should sit tight. For the next two hours we all sat in our freezing cold bus waiting. A few other cars then showed up with some vacationers who could not continue on their trip as long as we were blocking the road. It was decided that everyone should get out of the bus and walk a few kilometers down the road to where it was less windy and Bones were drive the lighter bus down to meet us. This did involve my whole tour group having to push the bus until it became unstuck and then walk through the mud pits while it continued to rain. Soon we were all back in the bus and onto paved roads again. Sadly do the rain and mist we could not hike up Mt. Kozzy, or even see it for that matter. We went on a shorter but still very wet hike and then got to our hostel a few hours eaarly to warm up.
Our last day involved a stop in Australia's capitol city, Canberra. Canberra has a reputation for being boring and for being the only place in the country where it is legal to buy porn and pot. We went on a tour of the capitol building from which the only thing I remember learning is that one of the houses passed a bill so that they (and only them) could have green exit signs rather than the required red ones so that it would match their color scheme. We then drove to Sydney and I decided that I had enough of bus tours and hiking for the moment. I cancelled my planned stay at the nearby Blue Mountains and decided to head up to Newcastle, where I would be for the Christmas holidays, a few days early.

Ok, I think I will have to save Christmas and New Year's for later today. I hope everyone had a great New Year's and is enjoying 2008!