Wanderlust Traveler: May 2014

I know I have not written anything since my spring break. I've been trying to stay on top of the little amount of school I actually have while playing around and seeing as much of Australia as I can with the little amount of time I have left.

Basically, I've been living my days at school on Mondays and Tuesdays, having fun while I can Wednesday and Thursday, and off on trips Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays!

To start out with, two weekends ago I went on a rock climbing trip! We went to Brooyar, which is supposedly some of the nicer climbing in the area. To be honest, I have had much better climbs than this. Once again, it just made me realize how spoiled we are in Utah! The rock was sandstone, which I have climbed before down in Southern Utah, but everything was blown away and the rock was pointy and sharp! I cut my hands quite a few times attempting to get up and hold on. However, it was still a fun trip. It is always worth the experience and chance to say "I climbed in Australia!" It was also nice to just get outdoors, have a fire and relax with a big group of people. That night I felt like I was home. The past couple of weeks I have kept telling myself "I just cannot wait to go home, pitch a tent, have a campfire, and relax." Well I got the chance! Of course, there were no smores or roasted starbursts, but there were smiles, laughter, music, and good vibes. I slept under the stars and had a great getaway from school and the village.

Climb on

We had a good 20 people there!

Some of the people on the trip were a little too good....

Campfire surrounded by great people and good vibes

We had a lovely time telling stories, singing, playing guitar, and even made some hot spiced wine!

To top it all off, the sunset was gorgeous the first night we were there!

At the end of our climbing trip, we decided to do a little group yoga to stretch out and relax!

Oh and did I mention, I had actually originally signed up to do a Mother's Day run that weekend, but decided to skip it and spend more money on the climbing trip instead. Sorry Ma! However, I know she would want me to do what makes me happy, and let's be real. I would choose rock climbing and camping over running an 8K ANY day!!

P.S. Happy Late Mother's Day to all you lovely mothers out there! Us kids would be nowhere without you all. I sent my mom some pretty flowers, which unfortunately did not get there until the Monday after, BUT that is because I had originally planned to have them delivered on the Saturday before, but then discovered my parents were out of town until Sunday. I quickly made the arrangements and got the delivery date changed. Wish I could do more for my mom, but it looks like I owe her a Mother's Day and Birthday getaway (or dinner) of her own. Maybe some crepes for breakfast, as well.

The flowers I sent my Mama.

Anyways! That week was pretty boring. I managed to get a psychology lab report done and turned in, and then headed back up to the mountains that following weekend for my last weekend at my internship. I was kind of scared to go back up there, truthfully. I really did not want to deal with any more ticks... However, this trip was much more pleasant! There was a smaller amount of volunteers up there and we all got along pretty well! We also did less weeding and planting than the first time. We actually did a bit of busier work, like building a retaining wall out of old car tires, put a roof up on the Bali straw house, and did a bit of painting! I didn't even have to wake a single person up in the middle of the night due to ticks! However, I did come face to face with MANY spiders that I did not want to encounter, including a red back spider. I also encountered a red-bellied snake! We left that fella alone and gave him lots of space.

Other than that, the weekend went pretty fast. I made some yummy Anzac cookies, and of course felt welcomed and at home during the week.

The sunset as we drove to Wild Mountains

Day one! Gorgeous morning for a long day of work.

The Bali House is starting to look so good!

The front side

Our retaining wall. We had to pack the dirt into the tires!

So hopefully when it's done it'll look like this, and then other people can go in and plant some things in the tires and make the wall look more inviting.

The Shed of Contemplation.

AKA the Shit of Contemplation.

At Whiptail, where the Bali House is being built, there is a little shed that they built a toilet in. Technically is a shed and an illegal toilet, but no one has to know that. Either way, there is an opening in the shed where you can look out and get a nice view of outside! Hence the name.... enjoy your time. (:

Center of the picture is a little black thing that has a yellow looking stripe down the middle of it. This, my friends, is a leech that was just a foot away from me! Thank heavens it did not find me before I found it!!

It's not ALWAYS work...

Amy enjoying a little break from cleaning the roof

Painting and taking down the plastic from the Bali House!

We decided to play on the scaffolds....

That's all the good stuff. There's been some bad stuff in there, like medical things, stress, and homesickness. There was a week filled with lots of stress where I could not manage to get my blood sugars down to save my life. I was taking more insulin than I thought should be legal. It's stressful to have this disease, but what is worse when you are trying to control it but it does not seem to be controlled no matter what you do. It makes you feel like a failure. You're doing all you can to basically save your life and live normally and avoid risks later on in life, but you feel like no matter what you do it sometimes decides to take its own course and go its own direction.

If you ever get some free time, read this short article. I have never read something so true and personal to me. Sometimes people think I am just making excuses, and sometimes I am, but sometimes there really is that hidden reason that just no one seems to understand except me.

My dad even shared this post with me:

"It's hard to explain to someone who has no clue. It's a daily struggle being in pain or feeling sick on the inside while you look fine on the outside."

It's true. It wreaks havoc and stress on my life, probably more than studying for a final I am not ready for, and it's tough when you do not have someone around who understands your struggles. But it is these types of struggles that make us stronger than ever.

Sometimes, all you can do is fake it and smile.

Another thing is after Mother's Day I got really homesick. I had a day where I seemed to talk to everyone back home. I had full conversations with everyone in my family, and many of my close friends, so I just started to miss being around them and having them nearby. I also started to just miss the valley, and thought of everything that I could be doing at home. However, once I got through that spell, I found a quote that seemed to sum everything up about my travels:

"Maybe you had to leave in order to really miss a place. Maybe you had to travel to figure out how beloved your starting point was."

I love Utah but I have always wanted to go away for college because it's Utah, right? Born and raised, I wanted a change. I've finally received that change and I now understand that I have everything at the palm of my hands in Utah. There's so much to do and see and explore and enjoy! You just have to take advantage of it. I love Australia and have enjoyed every minute of it, but Utah will forever and always be home.

Home Sweet Home

That's about it. I've been on a couple of dates and just been out and about, trying to make the most of my experience here. Just a short 40 days away from when I come home, and I want to see and do whatever and all that I can! Plus, getting away from school and life in the apartment helps me not think about the feeling of wanting to come home or missing friends and family. Let's just say my weeks are a bit booked full! A couple days ago I went to the beach with some friends after class. The weather has definitely cooled off and the water is now cool and no one really wants to swim in it anymore, but it was still nice to get away. I have lately been trying to get a head start on my essays that are due at the beginning of June which are my "finals" so I will basically do anything to take a break from that and let my mind reset to think properly again. The other night I even decided to go to Surfer's Paradise and go up to the Skypoint tower and watch the sunset. It was nice to get away and clear the mind and relax. As much as I miss home, I know that I will miss being here on the coast when I get back. Sometimes we just have to enjoy the little things in life, and get away to see the wonders of the world that is right in front of us.