Melbin Mates!

Over the Easter Holiday weekend, a few of my friends and I head off to Melbourne, Australia for some exploring. We left Friday afternoon, giving us enough time to finish up some last minute homework and came back Monday night. Melbourne (pronounced Melbin in Aussie) and Sydney apparently have this huge rivalry of which city is the best in Australia. Sydney-siders don't pay much attention to this rivalry, because, well they know Sydney is better. But Melbourne, on the other hand, made it very clear that Sydney isn't the better city.

On Friday when we arrived, there was an incredible sunset over the bay in the St. Kilda neighborhood. This was outside of the central business district so it was a cute little area with small alleyways and coffee shops. The sunset was gorgeous, I love a good sunset. We even saw wild penguins off the one pier which was cool because I've never seen one outside of a zoo! The next day the five of us booked a tour for a Great Ocean Road trip to see the 12 Apostles. It was such an awesome day - we got picked up at 7am and had various stops along the way for food, hikes, views, and tours of certain areas. The 12 Apostles are these rock formations off the coast and they are incredible. As a matter of fact - there are only 8 Apostles but the name 12 Apostles sounded more appealing to tourists. On this trip, we were able to go caving and explore inside caves, rainforests and walk on different beaches. Melbourne is a bit cooler than Sydney so it wasn't warm enough to swim but everything was stunning so I didn't mind.
That night the craziest thing happened, we say the travel agent from our hostel in Cairns in Melbourne working as a travel agent for that hostel! What a small world. We got back to the hostel and saw Darrell, the travel agent and he came up to us and we all hugged and he showed us more places to go in the area that many tourists may not be aware of. The next day my friends and I explored CBD and went on our Easter Brunch. We now do the "phone rule" where you put your phones in the middle of the table and the first one to touch their phone has to pay the tip. It's a good way to get us off our phones and talk to each other. But we had Brunch and it was phenom. We went to the Comedy Festival for a bit and explored different areas like the graffiti walls. Melbourne is a very hipster city, to say the least. They love art and appreciate things of that sort which I love. We went to Hosier Lane, famous for graffiti art and I found someone with spraypaint and I wrote my infamous nickname on the wall: "kaymag". Then the group we rented bikes just to see where we could get lost. Olivia was dying the entire ride (because she's soft) but overall we were just messing around having a great time. Our last main adventure was going to the Brighton Bathing Boxes, which are these painted sheds on a beach which are very popular in Melbourne. We went on that Monday before catching our flight.

All in all, I loved Melbourne. It's actually the 4th farthest city away from Allentown, PA (sorry mom, dad and grandma). I'd call it a must-see attraction if you're in Australia! I liked the city, it was a very "hipster and good vibes" city however I'd chose Sydney over Melbourne simply because of the iconic nature of Sydney with the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge and all of those areas.
Since I was away Easter weekend, I obviously missed my Easter dinner at home - but my mom called me when the family was all together celebrating so I still felt part of the tradition! My grandma even sent me an Easter card (and Valentine's Day but I didn't check my mail until yesterday). Thanks, grandma! I'll see you all soon. As for this weekend - I'm headed off to the Gold Coast which is apparently home to the most beautiful beaches in Australia so that'll be relaxing. ~Stay tuned for more adventures of Kelsey~

Glass 1/3 full

                This week marks one month left on my three-month journey to the land down under. The crazy part about it is that it feels like a week ago that I was moving into my 8 people flat with half Pitt and half UMass girls. This week I was hit with the “after midterms now project and paper season”. I’m assigned a paper for each one of my classes and a group project for one class as well as one for my internship credit class. I’m going to Melbourne this weekend so obviously I was stressing to get all the work done in time – and that I did. I stayed on campus after class and came early on the days that I don’t have work before/after and got all my work done. Now I can go to Melbourne with nothing holding me back from having yet another memorable weekend!

                At work, this week was rather hectic. The rebranding collateral that I briefed in was due this week to be printed on 1 April – it was not done. The creative and my team could not agree on what we wanted our brochures to look like. After about a 2-hour meeting of putting both teams’ ideas together, we now have the final look we want. The brochures will go to print next week! Also at work, I was invited to participate in sunrise fitness classes at the House for free. I went on Monday for yoga, while it was tough to wake up, seeing the sunrise and reflect off the SOH sails – that was a pretty unreal feeling. These were the trial classes and will launch to the public in two weeks. I’m helping the campaign manager with this campaign as of this week, and this means I’ll be a “model” for the classes and have to pose for photos to go to print and online. I’m just hoping they don’t take any “downwards dog” photos. But I’ll go down in Sydney Opera House history!

                I’ve been getting closer with my co-workers, going to lunch, happy hours, and allocating 30 minutes after coming into work to chat. Speaking of, this is a cultural norm I’ve noticed about Australia – their work culture is very lax compared to the U.S. Every morning I used to walk into work, ask about everyone’s night/weekend and get to work. Now, I’ve learned that they perceive that as you being “cold” and not wanting to chat, when in my defense, this is how my previous work experience went. Every morning I walk in at 9am, chat with my team and the team that sits next to mine for minimum 30 minutes and then get to work. There is an unsaid rule of no meetings before 9:30am which I find so interesting! Definitely not complaining. Also this week, I saw an opera with my co-workers! It was the opera Turandot which is apparently an internationally renowned opera. It was outdoors with a view of the SOH and fireworks (which made it all worth it). It was drizzling on and off but our spirits were still high and we stayed until the end! Another bonding experience I had was with an Easter egg hunt today. I’m an honorary member of the social committee (because I’m part time), therefore, I went around our office with the other members and hid chocolate eggs. I ate about half in my bag, two hot-crossed-buns, and a giant stomach ache – but it was well worth it. I love how my team is so accepting and wants to include me in their culture, it goes a long way for an intern.

This week I did find time for myself outside of school and work. I went to Palm Beach over the weekend, which is the most northern beach in Sydney. It was a beautiful beach – even though the autumn weather is slowly kicking in. We hiked up to the lighthouse and overlooked the beach and the bay on the sunset. Beautiful view, I always try and catch the sunsets. Also, there was a rugby game hosted by CAPA, my educational program. There were about 30 of us who went to the Bulldogs rugby game which is held in Olympic Park, where the 2000 Summer Olympics were held. CAPA also negotiated us to go on the field and get a picture which was awesome! I had no idea what was going on, but I love the sports atmosphere so I still had a great time. During the week - I went to a cat café with one of my roommates, it was just as amazing as it sounds. For $20 AUD, I got a coffee, cookie and an hour with the cats. I’m honestly considering getting a membership for my last month here because I loved it so much.

                Now I’m off to Melbourne for the Easter weekend with a few of my friends here. Not going to be as good as my Easter meal would be at Grandma’s but it’ll do until I’m home. Happy Easter everyone!

Anyways, school and work

School is getting super busy. We just had our midterms which went pretty well. Their exams are pretty different from what I’m used to at Pitt. I had one that was all handwritten for my Marketing Communications class. I’ve had essay exams before, but this exam was more qualitative so my grade is up to the subjectivity of my professor. I think I did well, though! My other midterm was an online exam that was taken in class. Now I’m swamped with papers and projects due within the final weeks of my time here. I’m actually taking a homework break now writing this blog! I’ve set up shop in the University next to my apartment complex, this library is a lot nicer and closer than making the 45-minute commute to ACU.

As for work, I’m also very busy! This week was my first week back after a week-long vacation. Of course, I came back to over 200 emails which I had to filter to see which ones actually mattered to me. Monday was mainly catching up with what I missed over the week. The rest of the week I was doing the content scheduling for our social media and eDMs, preparing for school holidays, one creative brief after another, and writing the copy for our advertising pages. I saw my first printed advertisement this week! I’ve been writing in the copy and photographs for a multitude of pages, I just never saw the results. I had to act as a tourist (not that hard, since I am one) and go to the City of Sydney information center to see what collateral there was for the Sydney Opera House. I picked up the magazine that I know we advertise in, and there it was. My two page spread in Where magazine, March edition. It’s exciting to see the work that I’m doing being implemented because I actually feel a part of something more than just another internship. 

Also, the perks are pretty nice too. I saw an opera this week, The Barber of Seville. If you work at the Opera House, you need to see an opera – right? I actually enjoyed it, I went in not really knowing what an opera would be like and I came out a new woman (not really, but you get the idea). I’m also doing sunrise yoga at the House this coming Monday. I’m not much of a morning person, but when offered free yoga and breakfast – I’m in. The other two interns and I signed up together, so we’ll all suffer through the 5:00am alarm together. Apparently, we’re also “models” for the future yoga classes held. So there will be a photographer taking pictures of us that will be posted to social media and for advertisements (hoping for no downwards dog photos, please).

I’m settling in quite nicely here, it’s hard to believe that I’m living in Australia sometimes. I’ll be going about my day as normal, and sometimes I’ll just get hit with a wave of “I can’t believe I’m living in Australia, what the hell.” 

Politics and stuff

Even Trump is the topic of discussion in Australia. Whenever I tell people I’m an American, 9/10 the first question asked is “How do you feel about Trump?” Australians do not have the cultural norm of never talking politics. They’re a very open culture and whatever is on their mind, they say it. I find this so interesting because in America there are so many conversations that are off limits. I actually enjoy being able to speak openly about pretty much anything. Australia has the tongue in cheek culture, where they’ll tease you to show they like you. Americans are apparently notoriously known for not being able to take a joke, but all of my co-workers enjoy the fact that I’ll tease them right back – maybe I should’ve been an Australian this whole time??

At the end of the day, I appreciate the differences between our two cultures. Not going to lie, the food here is 100000000% better and fresher but I do miss Wawa. I looked at a calendar the other day and I can’t believe how quickly my time here has gone. I still have a few weeks left and I’m already sad – I can only image how I’m going to feel those last few days I have in Australia. But for now, I’m not going to think about it, I’m just going to enjoy the time I have now. 

Spring Break

Prepare for a long post everybody.

As you can tell from the lack of posts, I’ve been very busy this month – this post will be dedicated to my Spring Break (the next will be about my “real” life in Sydney. Okay – so I know I say I’ve had “the best time of my life so far” a lot, but this time, I really mean it. Spring Break was easily the best week of my life, ever.

First stop: Cairns, Australia

Cairns is a little town about a 3-hour flight north of Sydney, this is the main town to visit the Great Barrier Reef. First, I’d like to mention the lack of airport security! My group and I got to the airport 2 hours early, expecting long lines to check in, for baggage, and security. I went through check-in, baggage, and security without even showing my ID! Even when boarding the plane, the attendants didn’t ask for an identification from any passengers. I was baffled, how could an airport be so relaxed about this. When going through security, for domestic flights – you don’t need to take your shoes off or remove liquids from your bag. I’m not complaining about the entire process because it was very quick and easy, it just really put the U.S. security into perspective. The moral of the story is, we made it safely Friday morning. In Cairns, our first stop was skydiving. Our flight landed 11.45am Cairns time, we were to skydive at 2.00pm. Unfortunately, our trip was canceled due to rain so we had to wait until Tuesday for the next available timeslot. That day we entered a volleyball tournament through our hostel. We had 12 in our group that were traveling together, made up two teams – we both lost. But as long as we had fun, right? Our hostel was nothing like I expected, it was almost like a resort. There was a bar and restaurant, travel agent, sand volleyball court, lagoon pool and our room had a balcony! Safe to say we had everything we could ever ask for.

The next day, our travel agent recommended a waterfall tour around the area. We all obliged and went on this daylong tour. We saw a total of 3 waterfalls and 1 freshwater lake. We went jumping off rocks, climbing terrifying trees, swimming in rivers, eating Australian barbecue, sliding on natural rock slides, swimming in the 2^nd deepest lake in Australia, and flipping our hair like the Garnier Fructis girl (see picture for details J). It was absolutely exhausting, but it was an action packed day with good friends – what more can you ask. 

That Sunday, we did the “classic Cairns” and went to the Great Barrier Reef. Yes, I saw one of the 7 Natural Wonders! Snorkeling was first, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so beautiful. Look up pictures of the Great Barrier Reef – that’s exactly what I saw. The colors, the fish, and the wildlife were incredible. I also bought the sting-proof suit for $7, somehow still got stung by a jellyfish on my neck and under my goggles. Keep in mind, those were the only two spots on my body that were not covered by the suit! I lived, so no complaints. Next was scuba diving. We had a long tutorial on how basically not to explode, none of us did luckily. Not going to lie, when I first jumped in the water with my 75lbs worth of equipment, I almost had a panic attack. It was such a weird feeling breathing under water, my brain kept telling me “you shouldn’t breathe under water, Kelsey”. But, I calmed down and saw the coolest fish ever! I found Nemo, a sting ray, some people even saw sharks and sea turtles. A few members of our group didn’t equalize their ears properly, so they ran into some issues. The one got a nasty ear infection, and the other two had ringing in their ears for days. My piece of advice, always equalize and always breathe.

Our last main adventure in Cairns was skydiving. I’ve never felt freer. I actually wasn’t scared to jump out of the plane at all. My instructor, Todd, and I hit it off and were just chatting up a storm. He was telling me about his children, I was telling him about my dog (basically my child). Before I knew it, we were 14,000 feet up in the air and the garage door in our plane was open and ready for bodies to free fall out of. Todd was the group leader, so we were last. Obviously I asked him to do crazy flips and he did not disappoint. We jumped out of the plane and I was on top of the world. There’s no better feeling than freefalling looking at such a scenic view. One the parachute was pulled, a sense of calm came over me. There was no wind, no talking, nothing but an uninterrupted view – my favorite. We landed safely, I immediately took my gear off and did a backflip because the adrenaline needed to go somewhere. I bought the video of my experience, I think I’ve watched it easily 50 times. I never want to forget that memory.

Second stop: Queenstown, New Zealand

New Zealand, oh how I love you. In Queenstown, we were surrounded my mountain chains. I’ve never seen anything like it. Each mountain was covered with lush, green life. Queenstown is this quaint little town in the middle of nowhere, basically. The natural life was so untouched and beautiful, I could’ve stared at it for hours.

Our first order of business was the Milford Sound. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s also referred to as “the 8^th Wonder of the World”. This was a 12 hour day via tour bus, so clearly we had a lot invested in this trip. We were about two hours into the trip, just about to stop at our first hike – and our bus driver says we must turn around. There was a tree down in the road and her General Manager notified her that all buses must turn around and head to Queenstown. She was not taking this for an answer; she pulled the bus over, called her manager, argued for a good 20-30 minutes, quit her job, got back on the bus, waited around for about 40 minutes, the tree eventually cleared and she was able to take us. Yes, you read that right – she quit her job! She was so passionate about taking our group to see this Wonder, that she quit her job because she knew the tree would clear shortly after it fell. Eventually, she got her job back but it was one hell of a story to tell. We finally made it to the Milford Sound, we had a boat cruise waiting for us. We toured the Sound and all of its natural beauty. There were over 1,000 waterfalls and rainbows accompanying some. No picture could fully capture the beauty, but I now understand why it is considered the 8^th Wonder of the World.

Next order of business, bungee jumping. Only 4 of us wanted to go bungee jumping (opposed to 8 skydiving). This is what separates the boys from the men, I guess. We did the freestyle bungee so we could do flips and basically anything we wanted. Of course, I did a backflip. I was actually scared before jumping, unlike skydiving. If I didn’t hold onto the cord in the right way it could get wrapped around me and I’d be seriously injured. I held it the right way apparently and made it out fine. It was such a rush and there was such a pretty view, too. From where we jumped I could see the blue lake, the green mountains and the cute little town of Queenstown. Then the group of us did the luge ride that every tourist to Queenstown has to do. Afterwards we did a zip-lining tour. This includes hiking and 6 zip-lines, including the steepest zip-line in the world! This was a nice adventure that I didn’t have to be terrified for my life.

The last day we took a wine tour with our entire group, we pretended to be fancy for a day. That night, the girls and I decided we wanted to do more hikes. Let me tell you, this was the hardest/steepest hike I’ve ever done in my life. It was 1.5 of straight vertical trekking (exaggerating, but still). It was all worth it when we saw the sun setting and the night sky over Queenstown. My favorite part of Queenstown may actually have been a cheeseburger. Fergburger is a famous burger joint with burgers that are to die for and I'm not even exaggerating. I don't even have the right words to describe it. I was sad to leave Queenstown, I definitely need to make my way back there in life so I can travel and see more of the country.

All in all, it’s hard to believe my time in Australia is halfway over. I never want to leave! I tried to be as descriptive of my Spring Break as possible, but there are always details that will be missed. Feel free to reach out to me via Facebook/email while I’m here – I love hearing from home!