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At Least We Saved A Dollar

Base Backpackers our hostel that we stayed in on Magnetic Island.

Ocean scene right out our front door.

Walking along the beach collecting shells right before sunset.

Beautiful sunset on Nelly Bay.

Morgan couldn't resist!

Sunrise at like 6:30 am that Morgan made Scott get up for...it was worth it!

After walking up hill to find the waterfalls we passed the path and came to this outlook...not a bad accident at all. Over looking Arcadia Bay.

Photo-op.

The Falls. We climbed down from pool to pool... the cool water was so nice on such a hot day.

Girls showering in the falls!

We didn't drink pina coladas but we got caught in the rain. We walked about 20min from Nelly Bay (where our hostel was) to Picnic Bay in the dark so we wouldn't have to pay for the bus when we went out to dinner. We had really good pasta and later ice cream...finally. Then we left the restaurant and it started sprinkling so Josh suggested we take the bus but we were like no we can walk (mind you it's both ways uphill) and about half way back it started down pouring...like legit monsoon rain (which is apparently common this time of year). We got soaked but at least we saved a dollar by not taking the bus and we also saved the environment we decided. It rained all through the night and the dry river that was in front of our room was flooded so bad.

Morgan and Jen not so happy that it was still down pouring at 10am. We had to catch a bus and a ferry back to the mainland. Not fun!

(Yes that's a garbage bag.)

O Week

Our orientation week has been fun! We have seen a few kookabarras, but not in any gum trees. They make a lot of noise! We also saw wild wallabys on campus when we were walking to our BBQ. There were like 7 of them and we got relativly close. They are so cute. We also saw a long neck turtle trying to cross the road and there were cars that could potentially hit it so we decided to move it out of harms away! We went back to Rotary and Morgan's mates were surprized that we saw a turtle in the road, and one boy said he had never seen a turtle! We were happy to have saved a life! We got our classes all situated! We are taking coral reef gemorphology, rainforest ecosystems, nationalism in the modern world, and conservation of marine wildlife. We don't have any classes on monday so we can travel and come back. Our coral reef class takes a weekend long fieldtrip to the reef during easter and our rainforest class takes a few trips up to the rainforest on various weekends. Today we took a bus tour of downtown Townsville which was very knowledgable... we got to see shopping centers, restaurants, ferry terminal, bus station and various other things. After the bus tour we applied for a transportation discount for our buses then we walked around a Market Extravaganza that was on campus which was really fun. At one both we got to hold a crocodile, ridged back skink, and a black-headed python which was awesome. We also got to see a 9 month old wallaby which was adorable!!! The army people had a band playing and a singer keeping us entertained. This evening we went to the Riverview Tavern which was really yummy food at a reasonable price but the drinks were extremely pricy but that's ok. We had an opossum join us...we thought it was going to jump down from the rafters unto our table but luckily it did not! And the bats when we were walking back to campus were crazy. They were flying really low and one almost took off Scott's head! Tomorrow is a pancake breakfast and then we are going to go swim laps in the pool on campus later. Tomorrow night we leave for a weekend getaway on Magnetic Island!!! Love you all and we'll keep you updated!

Ann/Val Pics

One Year Anniversary/ Valentine's Day

For Valentine's Day Scott gave Morgan a set of heart jewelry that consisted of pink sapphire ring, necklace, and earrings. He also got her a set of dolphin jewelry with a necklace and earrings. And last but not least he got her the movie the Express! Morgan got Scott an amazing giant Cadbury chocolate bar...that is very delicious!!! Then we went to the Strand which is like a boardwalk in Townsville with the UNE crew. The bus ride to get to there was $3.70 a person which was a pain but I guess not too bad since we got a whole day worth out of it. When we got on the bus we really did not know where we were going so we all decided we should ask the bus driver where to get off but a man overheard us talking and told us where to get off which was really nice. So we finally get there and we walk to a public swimming pool which was salt water we think but it was really warm and was enclosed by a land mass. After that we walked along the beach for a bit and it was really pretty and the water felt so good. The swimming areas in beaches in Australia are roped off by jellyfish nets so that people do not get stung by the big poisonous jellies; however, little teeny tiny jellies can squeeze through the nets but they are less common so swimming is still possible. We found a mermaid made out of sand that soeone built which was really neat. Next we stopped at an ice cream shop where we all got milkshakes or smoothies which were really delicious. Then we walked around and went to the pier and watched these men fish for crabs. We were all thirsty because it was so hot out, so we stopped in at this amazing cafe!! Then we walked back to the mall and stopped at a store and bought tim tams which are the most amazing chocolate cookie wafer things EVER!!!! They are like a kit kat and an oreo cookie combined! We are all addicted to them! In this heat they are pretty much burning themselves out of our bodies anyway. Overall it was a good day.

Scott's Dorm

My dorm or college as they call it is named Goerge Roberts Hall and it's freakin sweet!!! It has AC or "air con" in all three bedrooms and in he common room. We are allowed to party as much as we want in the our suite but of course we won't be...well maybe. My roomies are two returner girls named Amanda and Renee. Renee is a sophmore like me and sh studying medicine; she is really nice and says she studies a lot. Amanda is from about an hour north of here and her freshman brother lives next door literally. I live on the third floor of F Block and my RA lives right next door...what a coincidence?! He is mad chill and his name is Stephan or "Snap" as people here call him. Our college colors are black and yellow and the dining hall is right downstairs. We have to pay to do laundry but you can air dry your clothes if you wish so you can save money and better for the environment. For the next week all the "freshers" aka freshman or new college members must wear headbands (yellow if 18+ or black if under 18) so that the returners can learn all of our names. If we are caught not wearing them they will write our names in Sharpie on our foreheads... so let's just say mine will be on at all times. There are a lot of activities planned for us over the next week so it should be fun. We are going to an aquarium and to a sanctuary for less than $60 American which is mad cheap!!! Talk to you all later. Love ya!!!

Morgan's Dorm

So I live in Rotary International House. It is legit in the rainforest!! Ihave a 20 min walk to Scott's dorm and I don't even want to know how far away classes are! I have "air con" and a counter that is supposed to be my desk with a closet attatched so it pretty much takes up my whole wall. I have my own sink which is nice because the bathroom and showers are all the way at the other end of the hall. I am closest to the kitchen, common area with a tv, and a balcony! There is a babbling brook that goes through my college (that is what they call the dorms here) and we have a ton of birds that sing all the time too. It's pretty nice other than the fact that it's the furthest from everything!!

great barrier reef videos

To and from the reef

denise austin on the waters of the great barrier reef :D

UNE group photo!

Finding Nemo: Real Life Edition!

Great Barrier Reef
We went to the coral reef and it was AWESOME!!! We started out the journey by walking to the marina and we were assigned a number to keep a tab on while we were on the boat. The boat ride to the reef was about 2 hours which did not seem long at all after flying all that time. Many people sunbathed/fried or talked and walked around on deck. Before arriving on the reef it was predetermined who was snorkeling or scuba diving was; since neither of us are certified divers we went snorkeling all day. The first location that we got to explore was covered in really cool blue sea stars and giant clams and let us tell you they were ginormous. They had green mouths that opened and closed and it was really interesting. It was so pretty and so awesome with all the different kinds of fishies and coral around us. We took about 40min in videos on the flip before we realized that we were going to another location. Scott forgot his underwater camera but it wasn’t too bad because you can get pictures from the videos and it would be difficult to get good pictures the first time because we ended up chasing fishies with the Flip. Getting into the water and snorkeling for the first time was crazy for Scott; he almost threw up like three times for getting too much salt water in his mouth. After we finished at the first location we all got back onto the boat we had lunch. It was a buffet style and pretty decent food and you got to back up as many times as you wanted to; there were sandwiches, pasta, salad, rolls, fruit, shrimp like things, and a few other things. We then went to the second location after we all finished lunch. Before we even got into the water we saw these huge fish that were swimming right next to the boat. Some were called bat fish and the other fish were called ember or something like that. They were not afraid of us getting into the water at all! We liked the second spot better because there were so many schools of fish that swam right around us. We saw the parrot fish that were eating off some coral like they have never eaten before in their life. We could hear them under water and the flip picked up their noises too. These fish reminded me of underwater pigs haha. Then Morgan swam closer to the sea floor because she was following another fish and she winded up finding a sting ray just chilling by some coral and rocks. It was small but really cute and she got very excited she called people over to come see it but it moved closer to the rocks. Then there was a sea turtle spotted!!! That was the most exciting news. It was not shy at all, and at one point it started swimming toward Scott. We got to pet it while filming it too. Then it swam away and we made our way around the reef some more. We made our way to the bird sanctuary island and got to go up on the beach. The water was so blue there it was amazing. We could only stay in the roped part of the beach because it is protected and the birds seemed to know that too! They stayed on their side of the rope as we stayed on ours. Then we made our way back to the boat and Scott found a white jelly fish, not the kind that can put you in the hospital for a few weeks though but we were wearing stinger suits anyway. On the way back to the boat we found NEMO!!!! There were a few instances where nemo was found too. There was a bunch of clown fish in an anemone!!!!! They were so adorable! Our way back we could see the burn beginning. There were some bright red people on our boat too. Morgan’s forehead got some color from being in the water. Scott burned the top of his head so he had to wear his bandanas after that. The sun is so strong here! After we docked we got off and said our thanks and the crew members liked Morgan’s Swedish Beauty hat too. We got to shower but then we had a really long session again with “pizza” and really good salad. Then we went walking and found some cute shops and Morgan got a brown sun hat and we got some gelato that was amazing! Scott’s mango one tasted like a legit mango and Morgan got Tim Tam gelato. Tim Tam is like a Kit Kat and an Oreo on crack because it is so much better! We have to bring some back to the US!!!!

Willaby Wallaby

Rainforest station: We had the coolest trip up to the rainforest! We drove up a pretty high mountain full of jungle and all so green. We took our first group photo right before we got in and it was fun. Then we split up into groups and headed for our separate sections. We started out at the kangaroo and wallaby feeding area. They were just chilling on the ground and you could go up to them and pet them and we eventually got to feed them. They ate right out of your hand, and Scott made a special friend because the small wallaby held his hand so he wouldn’t leave him when he was chewing. There was the cutest baby kangaroo ever! We took so many pictures of him, and a video or two. Then we saw the crocodiles. “Jack the ripper” was the biggest one I have ever seen!! When they have feedings they make sure people are standing back because it can get up really high to get the food. We saw some koalas and wombats too. There was a sleepy dingo and a crazy bird that have been known to actually kill cows and a few incidents of people. Then we went to see an aboriginal dance. They had a series of short dances that were awesome with the “digi” for didgeridoo. They had 3 girls come on stage and dance with them too, it was mad good. Next we went inside and got inline to hold a koala and get our pictures taken with them!! It was a really fast process because they wanted us to get a move on… but I wanted to play with it longer. It was not as soft as we thought it was and the claws were pointed but they didn’t hurt. Then we hoped on the army duck, which was like our duck tours in Boston. We drove through the rainforest then we went into the water and back through the forest. It began to rain which was kinda cool being in the rainforest and all lol. We saw some plantains and coffee trees. We also got to try and play a real digi… and Scott tried it in front of our group. He had fun and did a pretty good job. Then we all got to throw a real boomerang. That was a lot of fun. We learned that it was all in the wrist. Then we got to go back to the hostel and have a night to ourselves. We went to dinner at a place on of leaders knew of and we got ten dollar dinners and a free jug. After dinner we found the awesome outdoor pool and had a go. It felt really good too. Love ya! p.s. black currant is mad good

From the USA to Aussie Land

The longest plane ride ever from LAX to Brisbane, Australia, was 14 hours long. The flight included two meals, your own tv, and not enough leg room (well for some). There were periods of sleep…sort of. When we finally got to Brisbane we had to book it to our other flight because they were holding it for us for legit three hours!!! We had to get off our double decker plane go get our checked in bags, go through customs, take an elevator (that held 4 people) to a train, and security (again!) because ……… who knows!!!! It hurt so much carrying our 2 checked in bags, our carry on, and computer bag. It made us so sore we just said it was because we were out of season. We both have the biggest knots ever! Our flight from Brisbane to cairns was two hours and we watched an in flight movie. We finally got to our destination we were all exhausted. Apparently everyone loves the last name of Lawless because all of the leaders for Australearn asked Morgan to marry them. There was even a bet if she was girl and Jay said Morgan was but Michele said no and who ever was right got a beer. So Jay found her and said thank you for being female and that once he saw her name he wanted to marry her!! So funny. We had to go to a session about being in Australia and they tried to make it entertaining but we were all so tired. They did a random calling on someone to stand up and introduce them to who they were talking and of course the first person they call on was Morgan because of her name, so she stood up and introduced a girl from Kansas and then they gave both of them a small stuffed Koala! There is something weird about the name here! We went out to a buffet for dinner and then explored. We found this awesome pool that was out doors and huge with a few fountains. A couple of them were fish that sprayed out water from their fins. We also saw these giant bats!! Yes huge bats that were just flying around above us and we stopped to take pictures J we also saw one hanging upside down too. Then we crashed at like 10!
“take a captain cook” means take a look

And so it begins...

So are trip began on an extremely positive note when the lady in the Rochester airport got our bags checked internationally for free and changed are seats on the long flight to sit next to each other!!! Mad props! That plane ride was quick and painless until arriving in Chicago. We had to sprint with are carry on bags down two wings of the terminal from one extreme to the other. It was terrile but we made it and were the first ones on because they just started boarding but they allowed us to ignore the zone calling. Then the Captain of our plane from Chicago to LA was named Captain Kirk and we thought that was pretty awesome. Speaking of awesome we decided that since airlines suck at service on the plane that we were going to start our own air service and call it Air Awesome. Basically you would get snacks and beverages for free and we would get the WHOLE can. Then decided for less passanger flights if they so chose we would put in a hot tub instead of the luggage storage underneath. We then landed in LA and waited for Scott's cousin Kim to pick us up. We toured around in LA and saw several different areas and the beach. We then went to Don and Kim's apartment in the mountains of Topanga, California and OMG the view was incredible. They made us lunch which was delicious and we got to meet their awesome dog Tucker. After lunch we went to the beach and walked along the boardwalk and got to see all the condos there which were amazing. We then walked the pier at sunset and saw the largest sea gulls ever! For dinner we had Indian which was new to us and it was very good. Next we were dropped back off at LAX where we meet with the group only to find out that our plane was delayed for an extra hour and twenty minutes which really was not okay. We were up for about 24 hours before we actually got to sleep on the plane which was a horrble experience but we made it and got on the plane... more to come but no time now talk to everyone soon! Love ya!!!