March 30th
Hi Everyone!
Sea World Pictures

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April 10th
Hi Everyone!

I haven’t done an email update in a while, so I thought I’d take this time to send a little “diary” to everyone! Kristie (my cousin) and her friend Mark got here on March 27. They flew into Sydney and I met them there and we spent the day. We went on a boat tour, went to the Aquarium and just generally checked out the city! I was trying to keep them busy so they wouldn’t want to go to sleep early. We got back to the Gold Coast around 5:30 and went to my apartment, went out for dinner and were done for the night.

So for the next week we were pretty busy. We went to Sea World, Dreamworld (an amusement park), Wet & Wild (a waterslide park), the drive in, another movie at the theatre, drove into the city (Brisbane), only to drive straight through it because I didn’t really know where I was going. Kristie and Mark spent a LOT of time at the beach and on the windy days, they would stay at the pool. One night we watched a movie on the beach! It was the Day After Tomorrow and it was really cool to be able to watch a movie on the beach, under the stars.

One of the last days they were here, I bought a waterproof camera and brought it into the ocean with us while we were in it. I have to get the photos developed this week, then I’ll send them out. But the ocean was a lot of fun to swim in. One big wave hit us HARD on the way out and I lost my cheap sunglasses… good thing they were the cheap ones and not my Oakley’s!

Mark went to visit some of his family on Tuesday the 5th, which left Kristie and I together for the remaining few days. We TRIED to go to the drive-in again, but the screen was broken, so we didn’t get to see Miss Congeniality 2.

Then on the 7th (Thursday) Kristie and I flew to Sydney, spent the night in a hotel by the airport and it was up BRIGHT and early the next day because Kristie had to be at the airport by 8:00 to catch her flight back to Calgary. We met Mark there, who had been there since 6:30 (or was it 6:00?) in the morning. I said goodbye to them and, of course, cried. I was a bubbling fool trying to catch the train to the domestic departures to catch my own plane back to the Gold Coast at 10:20am.

All of the movies and TV shows are WAY behind here… which as most of you know, is killing me! I had a couple of internet angels who gave me the scoop (play by play) of some of the shows last week… thanks again! It was almost like watching the shows.

I’ve been trying to catch some plays while I’m here, but so far nothing has peaked my interest. I’m trying to find a lot of fun things to do so I can say “Hey, I’ve done that!”. Next weekend I’m going to go to the zoo so I can see the Koala’s and Kangaroo’s (which I haven’t seen yet. I saw a few Kangaroo’s, but from a distance).

Tonight… the most exciting part of my WHOLE time here… LAUNDRY! I live in a building that has THIRTY ONE FLOORS, okay? THIRTY ONE FLOORS. They have 2 washers and 2 dryers. What a bunch of crap. So instead of fighting for a washer or dryer, tonight I am going to grab a good book and head over to a Laundromat! There’s one not too far from my place. Maybe I’ll meet someone, who knows. All I know is I HAVE to do laundry and I’d rather get out of the apartment to do it.

I’ve written 4 policies since I’ve been here. Yup, 4 WHOLE policies in 6 weeks. Two of them were written on the same day too! I had to go home early after that, it was too much of a crazy day (haha!!!). As of yet, it’s not getting any busier, so hopefully it gets busier soon!

When Kristie and Mark were here, we saw Hitch and The Ring 2 (not at the same time obviously). Hitch was HILARIOUS! I’m not a huge Will Smith fan, but it was a great movie. The Ring 2 was pretty cheesy, but it was definitely scary. I wouldn’t have watched it if Kristie and Mark weren’t staying with me.

One of things I love about being here is the music. Everyone knows I’m a big “pop” fan and they are huge into that out here. I hear a lot of British/Irish/Australian bands that I wouldn’t normally hear in Canada unless I bought the song or heard it on a foreign radio station. There have been a lot of additions to my iPod since I’ve been here. The one bad things about my “favorite” thing is that CD’s are BLOODY EXPENSIVE! On sale they are about $20. I think I’m going to have to break down and buy one or two (things that I have not been able to find in Canada), but that’s it. Anything else I want I’m buying in Canada.

Actually, everything is pretty expensive out here. I was looking for a book the other day and it was a paperback book and it was $20. In Canada I could get it for $9. Mascara is $17 and that’s cheap and on sale. Diet Coke – a regular 500ml bottle (or whatever the size is…) is at least $2 per bottle… it’s ridiculous. I’m glad I brought shampoo and all that stuff with me. I only had to stock up this weekend and it killed me to spend that kind of money. The music in general is pretty great out here… it’s not all pop. Mostly a mix of some rock, pop, punk kind of stuff. Simple Plan is HUGE out here (for those of you who don’t know who they are, they are a “punk-rock” band from Montreal… they opened up for Green Day when they were here last month). Every time I hear someone Canadian or see someone Canadian on TV, I always point it out. A lot of people are surprised at how many Canadians are famous.

If you can find a song called “Evey let your hair hang down” by The Wrights, get it… it’s a great song. Reminds me a little bit of Jett (who is also Australian).

I’ve been in contact with a lady who runs a club out here for Canadians who are in Australia. They had a meeting on Friday night, but they didn’t get the info to me in time, so I didn’t get to go, but they are going to send me a list of all their activities sometime this week. I can’t wait! It will be so much fun to go out for drinks with people from Canada. I haven’t had anything to drink while I’ve been here, so I’m dying for a beer already!

Here are some Australian words that I’m starting to use/get used to:

Jumper – a sweater (Everyone laughs when I say sweater)
Dear – it means “expensive”. So the first few times I was confused when someone would say “that seems pretty dear!”
Mobile – cell phone. I feel weird saying Mobile… almost prissy! Haha… but I try to say it as often as possible so that I’m not the odd one out.
Boot – the trunk of a car. “Did you put your bag in the boot?” Huh? Oh, the trunk.
Handbag/Purse – now we all know neither of those words are new to me, but the use of them is. A handbag is a purse to us. A purse here is a ladies wallet, a wallet is a man’s wallet.
Soft Drink – Don’t call it “pop” down here, it’s a Soft Drink. Pop is an old guy to them.
Chook - Chicken

I have not seen any gross spiders, snakes, etc… yet. I have seen a few spiders, but they have been very small and didn’t bother me. I have seen a few cockroaches too, they were pretty damn gross. YUCK YUCK YUCK. I wear my Canadian sweater all over the place and my desktop picture is a Canadian Flag. I also have my Canadian Flag hung up in my apartment (well, hung up by tape, but the walls are cement, so I couldn’t tack it up).

I’ve been trying to learn a little about rugby/football. I watch a little bit of the games with John and they try to teach me, but it’s beyond me sometimes. There are different rules for different games, so that’s where I draw the line. Give me hockey, I know the rules. By the way, is anything happening with hockey? I know the season is dead, but is it dead again for next year? Replacement players? All that stuff?
I’d like to go to a rugby/football game out here, but it’s EXPENSIVE and they sell out quick, so I don’t want to go that badly.
I’m going to try to plan a trip to the Great Barrier Reef. I can’t come all this way and not see the Great Barrier Reef, but it’s pretty far away. Not just a day trip.

Well I’m sure I’ve bored all of you enough with my blah blah blah’s… hope you enjoyed my update! Make sure you email me back to let me know what’s happening with all of you.

Shanny

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