Yay for luggage!

My luggage finally made it to Brisbane on Sunday morning. It was set to arrive on a flight from LA at 6:30 am. It had to go through customs and then they delivered it to the house we are staying at. I'm so glad it finally made it!

So, here is how I've spent my first few days in Brisbane: Saturday was a very laid-back day. Amy and I just hung out at her place and walked around the neighborhood she lives in. Sunday morning, after my luggage arrived, we took the bus into Brisbane. We first went to the hospital, as Amy has a friend here who got hurt last week and was in the hospital all weekend. We then walked around the city for a bit (and got a little lost), and then met up with some of Amy's friends and watched part of a rugby game. Rugby is huge here, and I don't understand it. To me, it looked like a bunch of people running back and forth, with a tackle thrown in here or there. They've promised to explain it to me, and we are going to a pro game while here, so hopefully I'll learn then. After that, we went to the place Amy lived when first moving here, and I met a bunch more of her friends. They are all super nice! They play soccer on sunday nights, so Amy played and I watched...I'm so not good at soccer and didn't really want to play. Watching was a lot of fun though! This morning, Amy and I went into downtown Brisbane again, and walked around downtown, in Brisbane Square, and checked out the mall. It's a pretty typical mall, like any that you would find at home, just with different stores. Amy has to work, so we walked to her work and then I left, which brings me to my biggest accomplishment thus far: getting back to the house by myself. I made it without getting lost! Then I went grocery shopping with one of Amy's roommates. They have some interesting things at the grocery store, like chicken flavored chips.

The weather is super nice, sunny and warm ( a little too warm, but I'm sure I'll get acclimated, I'm just not used to the heat). Everything is super green and the city is really pretty.

Hello, Brisbane!!!

I made it! After a 14 hour flight, I finally landed in Brisbane! Unfortunately, my luggage did not. It decided to stay in Los Angeles for an extra day. The airline was really nice, and said they would deliver it to the place I'm staying. They also gave me money to buy clothes. However, today is a holiday in Australia, so all the malls are closed. So I'm borrowing clothes from Amy for today.

Today's the Day!!

I leave today for Australia! My plane leaves Seattle at 7pm, and I fly to Los Angeles. From LA, it's only a short 13 hour flight to Brisbane!

I'm all packed and ready to go! Thankfully, Amy sent me a list of things to pack, which helped a lot. Her advice was to pack what I wanted to bring, and then cut that in half. I tried as much as possible but I still am packing way too much, I think. I only have one bag and one carry-on, so that has been the main limiting factor.

I'm so excited! I'll check in when I make it to let everyone know I'm safe and sound in Australia!

Welcome to my blog!

Thanks for stopping by! I'm hoping you will visit again over the next couple months as I share information about my trip to Australia and New Zealand!

Here are some of the details of the trip: I will be traveling with my friend Amy. She is one of my best friends from college-we went to Washington State University together. She has been in Australia for several months now, and will be able to show me all the ropes! I leave on April 23, and will be flying to Brisbane, Australia, where Amy currently is residing. After spending a couple days there, sightseeing and recovering from jet-lag, we will be going to Cairnes, where we will start our month long backpacking trip down the eastern coast of Australia. The plan is to end in Melbourne where we will be staying for several months. Then it's on to New Zealand! The plan there is to backpack and then work on an organic farm. The trip will come to a close with our return flight from Auckland, New Zealand, on October 28.