Hike + Zoo + Cockroach Encounter

Jan 5th, sometime in the nighttime

On Thursday, IES took us to Taronga Zoo and a hike in the Blue Mountains, just outside of Sydney. It was an early wake up, but Maggie and I rang in the day by trying out the Tim Tam Slam (chocolate cookies and coffee). First, we went to the zoo, which was honestly life changing. We walked in and immediately we saw wallabies just freely roaming around. I got to feed so many different animals, and now I actually know what a wombat looks like. We fed a baby kangaroo and he was so cute he was just like Scootienala. My favorite ones were the wallabies because they looked like cuter tiny kangaroos. It was so cool.

Next we went on this hike in the Blue Mountains. My first thought was that it looked just like Charlottesville. Our tour guide said they were called the Blue mountains because the Eucalyptus trees make the mountains have a blue hue from a distance, but Charlottesville doesn't have Eucalyptus trees and those mountains are still blue so I'm not sure I buy it. Anyway, we hiked down to the base of this waterfall, and we were basically climbing down vertical steps. The tour guide told us to watch out because every step we walked down we'd have to walk back up. Little did we know we'd also have to conquer that in the pouring rain. It felt so treacherous but I loved it and can't wait to go there with my family and friends who are coming later. 

This was our last mandatory orientation event, so now I have two free weeks before my class starts. Today I went back to Bondi, but I want to do one day at each beach from Bondi to Coogee. Also, we moved into our new apartment where we'll be living for the next two months, and it is so gorgeous and luxurious. I finally feel like I can get settled here and actually feel like I live here. I've been going through cycles of feeling so tired but then also feeling so happy. I think now that I'm in a permanent living situation it'll feel a lot better and more comfortable. 

4:25 p.m. Jan 6th

So it is now the next day. The reason I didn't post this last night is because as I was working on it, we found a cockroach next to the couch. The night was wonderful before this instant. We had just cooked pasta and made salad, had a glass of wine (or two), and were well into an episode of the third season of The Summer I Turned Pretty (Maggie forces me to watch it but I have reluctantly accepted that I love it too). Back to the roach. Chaos began to ensue. As soon as I saw it, it ran up the wall toward the bedroom. It lodged itself behind the mirror. Maggie starts screaming. I start screaming. I called my parents, and they start cracking up with laughter. Everyone is SCREAMING and the cockroach is not being killed. This lasts for about an hour. Then we hear a knock on the door. Hello to the Australian police! Four police officers in full tactical gear show up ready to save whoever is being murdered. Well if they were hoping to find the murder victim they failed because we couldn't even find the cockroach who was still very much alive. 

Moral of the story here - if you see a cockroach at night and scream about it, the neighbors WILL call the police. But much in Australian fashion, they merely cackled at our misfortune and made fun of us, and then said goodnight. 

Today we did a nice beach walk and discovered a bookstore/cafe which I am obsessed with. We also did yoga and it was SO HARD but on my Australian wellness journey so I will go back. Stay tuned for more! Hopefully no more police interactions.