Spending the last week together...more family memories to come

Wow, I can’t believe today is the last day of classes at Usyd. It seems like we just started yesterday, and we’ve already been in Australia for a month. That whole saying about time flying by when you’re having fun is uncanny at the moment. The last week hasn’t even seemed like it’s been a regular week at school. I mean, there’s plenty of stress what with the last few essays we have to turn in for Dr. Miller’s class and stressing about our Australian history final on Friday and trying to finish the last major paper for that class before leaving for spring break. It’s been hectic, but honestly, the stress is just a small part of what has happened this week that makes this week seem so different then the last three weeks I’ve been going to Usdy.

            The fact that yesterday was Valentine’s day (and Cal’s birthday) and I was getting to celebrate Galentine’s day in Australia was surreal. A group of us went to the Concrete Jungle Café (again, shout out to Sophie, thanks so much for inviting us out!! It was truly amazing) where I had the best brunch I’ve ever had! The blueberry lemon hotcake was just mouthwatering, and I’ve never been so in love with a hotcake before. The aesthetic of the whole meal was such a pleasure. And to end the day, another small group of us went to Thai Terrace where we had another amazing meal of Pad Thai, Fried Rice and Drunken Noodles. (I swear this isn’t just going to be a food blog, so just bear with me.) During class, we had our last full class in the cinema room of Urbanest and sang Happy Birthday to Cal which I thought was just a great way to have a second to last class.

            The day before that, we got to have a tour of campus and learn more about the University of Sydney’s history and leave our mark in the graffiti tunnel, though it probably won’t last long before being covered up. Then, the entire group went to the Soda Factory for hotdogs and it was so nice being able to relax with the fam and enjoy good food. It’s weird to think that after spring break we won’t be hanging out with each other 24/7 but actually going our own ways. I think that’s probably why this week has been so uplifting is that we’ve all gotten so close together as a family and we’re really supporting each other this stressful week.

            We got to have family dinner at this fancy Italian restaurant called Casa Ristorante, curtesy of Dr. Miller, Dr. Swan and the College of Communication and Information. It was such a great evening full of laughs. This whole past week has been full of laughs.

            On Saturday we conquered our hike through the Blue Mountains and got to be transported back home for a bit at the beautiful sights of the mountain ranges. It was one adventure after another for us and even though it’s been a stressful week at school, we’ve all gotten closer through our adventures and our food tour through the city and I can’t wait to go visit my internship and to actually start, because I know we’re going to have plenty of more great adventures together in the following weeks, even if we aren’t together all the time. I think that’s why this week has been so incredible, we’re doing a lot of stuff together, knowing that we’re soon all going to start our independent internships, but we’re still going to be able to create memories together—like going to the Sydney Opera House tonight to see Carmen—as a family.

Thanks everyone for being so supportive, for all the laughs and for making this adventure so much more awesome then I could ask for!

Cheers,

Gabi

P.S. Also stepping further outside of my comfort zone, and actually attempting to get over my height phobia...pictured below I'm sitting on the edge of Lincoln's Rock.