And she's far far away..

Byeeeee Australia :(

Wow. I can't believe I'm back in the USA already.

It so doesn't feel like I spent the last 3.5 months in a foreign (and totally amazing) country. It's only been 2 days and I miss it (and certain important people) like crazy already.

This is also the final blog entry (I can tell y'all are heartbroken) seeing as it's called "Ish's Aussie adventures" so writing more while back home would kinda defeat the purpose.

Anyhow, here's what I got up to the last 4 days of my cross continental adventure...

-New song obsession.. heard it while shopping and think it's hilarious. Get it Willow Smith :)

-Played Billy Luu at pool on Monday. He won 2 of 3 and therefore deserves a shoutout :)

-Went to this cute little place called Grandma's bar with G, Lil, and B, which is like a hole in the wall place with toastie sandwiches and unique cocktails. (note- "unique" doesn't always mean delicious) It was a cute place tho and right up the street from PhD.

^G stole my drink^

^Thank you for photobombing this Billy... not.^

-Aced my final exam for cinema. Granted it was open note and took me all of 45 min to complete but what does one expect from a study abroad program.. an education? Get real.

-Spent the day with Kayla on Tuesday. We decided to eat in Avalon where there happened to be freak 150 mph winds (ok maybe that's a slight exaggeration, but it tore up our hair like it was) so we rush picked a restaurant to get out of the weather. Turned out to be the most random/ not tasty lunch ever. We were both VERY unimpressed. Constantly pleasantly surprised by how amazingly well I get along with Kayla tho, she= awesome :)

:)

-Made up for the horrible meal by gorging ourselves an hour later on Max Brenner. Standard behavior.

^why don't we have white chocolate chai here?!?^

-Ate with G. at this restaurant called Pump House. His food was literally neon yellow and both of our dishes were extremely questionable. Needless to say we won't be returning for another meal there.

^questionable meal @pumphouse^

-Wandered around Darling Harbour for the last time with G. and re-lived my head slamming incident when we passed the spot on the sidewalk. Ahh memories.

-Met Mama Carbert. She is an amazing woman and reminds me so much of my grandpa it's not even funny. She is also hysterically funny so I can see why she's G's favorite. I have now met the entire clan basically and can safely say I adore every one of them!

-Managed to get all my stuff into my 2 suitcases/ carryon without being overweight. Not entirely sure how this was possible but I have no issue with it.

-Ate with a lovely group at GPO's tapa's bar called Postales. Was so delicious! It was even better watching Sassycakes try so hard to understand the share plates. Apparently the Shire doesn't do tapas :)

-Said goodbye to lily and my most favorite person. Was so heartbreaking.

^Miss this already^

-Am now the owner of a stuffed Koala named Nellie. G thinks it has creepy eyes. I disagree.

-Ate breakfast my last morning with G at this cute place called Ripples right under the Harbour bridge. Was a perfect last day and even got to talk to Chrissy during the meal to say goodbye. Love him!

-Sat in front of a GLEE club.. yes, a GLEE club on the 14 hr flight back to the states. They literally didn't stop talking/ singing once. I wanted to die.

Reflecting back on my time in Oz here are some conclusions I've reached...

*I hate vegemite (Sorry G.. but you already knew this... nothing will ever top PB&J..nothing!)

*I will miss this place like none other

*I need to come back if for no other reason besides the fact that I have been here twice and still haven't experienced a true Aussie summer. Damn.

*You can buy 13 pairs of shoes without going over the baggage allowance for Qantas. Yeee!

*I missed the environment of NM even less than I originally expected.

*Sydney > Melbourne

*Koalas are not friendly creatures apparently. This is disappointing since I just want to hold them baby style at all times.

*Australia needs to experience Hot Cheetos. PRONTO

*Being on "holiday" = best excuse to get fat for a semester

*Sydney is scarily similar to SF, but with better accents and more sunshine.

*I am now officially a Bourbon and coke drinker.

*New girl is the best show ever. Totally Hysterical.

*AU needs a country music station. BADLY.

*I will be back. See y'all in the spring (give or take 6 months) so GET READYYY :)

She's a party rocker from night 'til noon

Dear baby jesus where did the time go?

My last weekend in Aussieland has come and gone and I'm currently 1 final test, 2 loads of laundry, 3 suitcases and 4 nights away from leaving the most amazing time of my life.

This last weekend was NUTS and so I figured if I absolutely must go (thanks to Visa/ finishing Uni lame-ness), at least it was a crazy fun and memorable time! Can't believe I'll be back in the USofA in less than 4 days and I'm totes not happy about the situation. If I got emotional over things like this I feel like now would be the time to shed a tear. But I don't, so I'll just blog about what I've been up to this last week instead. :]

-Finally ate at this Vegetarian place in Surrey Hills on Wed. night called Yulli's [that G and I have been trying to go to for AGES], with Joyce and her friend (ironic). It was so yummy. We got tofu and prawns and potato dishes each totally different and equally yummy!

-Ate [yes, i know, this blog should really be called "Schnitty's adventures eating around Sydney"] tapas with G. at this Spanish place called Captain Torres' Restaurant that i've been to once before with Lil. Still totes yummy and different from the usual feed.

-Went out with Lil, G and some sweet PhD peeps on Friday for drinks at this cute bar called Assembly on Kent St. that just opened. Then the night turned into a chinese food hunt/ strange drinks/ boys night +me but was still heaps fun. Billy and I kicked ASS at pool- four games in a row. Yeahhhhh buddy. Soz Damo.

^out & about^

-Decided that newbie PhD'r Andrew is my favorite person. He held Lil's umbrella for her all night. What a sweetie.

-Finished up my internship with Edelman Sydney. I loved my time there and can't wait to come back (fingers crossed) after graduation. They were SO sweet and all wrote me notes in a giant card and got me a hug mug and chocolates from Max Brenner. What a perfect gift.

-Went for farewell drinks with the work mob @Argyle. They are so nice and fun. I'm going to miss my time with them for sure!!

^Farewell drinks at Argyle^

-Celebrated Thanksgiving dinner with our whole program + Tracey from work at an event in the Grandstand at Sydney Uni and ate my body weight in sweet potatoes and turkey. It was heavenly.

-Went to STEREOSONIC which is basically the Australian equivalent of EDC, at Olympic Park with G, Lil, N, and a bunch of other random people we ended up meeting up with. This year was officially the biggest festival that AU has ever had. It was so completely sick. I'm totally glad we went. We were there from 3- 11pm and danced the whole time. Saw a tiny bit of Kaskade, Avicii, Benny Benassi, LMFAO and Armin Van Buren. #'s 2-4 were definitely the best but everyone that was there was phenomenal!!!

Obviously we took 98298457982 photos, so here's some of the quality ones from the day..

^So MANY people^

-Loving this song after the weekend!

-Went to El Phoenician on Sunday with Kayla, G and Marty for a lebanese banquet dinner right by the harbour. It was SO much delicious food and the restaurant was brand new and gorg. Photo spotlight below, since I've mentioned her tons but had no visual to use so far!

-Kayla and I jammed out to Ja Rule and Ashanti on the car ride there and back. Lets just say there was extremely loud singing involved and i may or may not be tone deaf. Props to the boys for putting up with it. #sorryimnotsorry

^@El Phoenician totally stuffed^

^love them^

-Spent quality time with my favorite people and have plans to do the same for my last few days in town. I couldn't have asked for a better 3.5 months here and I know that I'll definitely be back to get up to more shenanigans after graduation in May! Only one blog post left to go next week.. but who knows maybes I'll keep it up after just for kicks.

Love you all and can't wait to see your shining faces for the holidays!

More soon, as per usual!

*I*

xxx

So what we go out, that's how it's supposed to be, livin' young and wild and free.

For your lurking pleasure..

Since Sassycakes (aka Pattycakes, aka PhD Pat, aka Georgie) has been on my case to get this out this week, here's some of what I got up to my third to last weekend in Aussieland.

*tear*

-Ate at this yummy restaurant in Chinatown called Mamak. It was a food coma to the max. G and I clearly don't know how much is appropriate for a normal person to eat. Its an issue.

^curry curry curry^

-Went shopping with Lily for AGES on Thursday trying to find presents for people, since EVERYONE and their mother wants a prezzie from here not America obvi, and failed miserably. Neither of us bought anything. That's got to be some kind of record. Major #whitegirlproblems

-Randomly ran into PhD mob after shopping. They're literally everywhere.

-Went to after-work drinks with Lil, G and B @ PhD and then after dinner met up with everyone again at this little cuban place called like La Bodegita or something on York street for more drinks. Last time Lily and I were there we were downstairs with the people salsa dancing but this time we just chilled on this outdoor patio/ balcony which was nice.

-Sassycakes was sporting a ridiculous ginger mo. It literally makes him look like a child molester. But don't let me spoil it for you. Here it is in all its breathtaking glory.

just look at that orange fuzz.

-Had about 37 coffee chats with my management team at Edelman since this week is my last one. So sad. I love the company still and they have forwarded my CV to our San Fran office so fingers crossed they have something open for spring!

-Went for pizza and martinis with the girls at Cargo on Thursday. Have never seen the upstairs in the light of day and it's actually really pretty. Had the most amazeballz grapefruit and vanilla martini. So yummy!

-Found a life size koala. I NEED THIS.

^wahhh!^

-Got my nails done with Kayla on Sat. She got french tips and mine are little cherry red chicklets covered in sparkles. Standard.

Went to Ivy den/ lounge with the girls, and G. on Saturday night. He got a few high fives for being the only man in the group. :) oopsies. We also got some hilarious pictures! They are too fun and chic. We are all going out again on Friday.

^Kat, Naz, me, Ash & Ash's cousin @ Ivy^

-Have decided [officially] that I'm coming back to Australia after graduation in May. I love it here and can't wait to come back for longer. Now if only they gave you unlimited luggage allowance...

-Our secretary at work just got her pre-order Jeffrey Campbell spike heels. Obviously I told a picture. #myworkiscoolerthanyours

^i die.^

-Ate at this little italian place called Basello in Darling Harbour. Yummy. On a side note- I'm now in love with calamari. Who knew? Nom nom nom.

-Went shopping Sat & Sunday with G and Kayla and Marty but still didn't find any stellar presents. Will have to remedy this soon. Did find the cutest pug things tho.. check it.

^SO friggin cute^

^We found the giant christmas tree on Pitt st. and Market. Love christmas time!^

-Went to G's soccer game and ate Sunday dinner with the Carberts. They are top shelf. Chris is pretty much my fav family member, on the same level as Kayla, then G. :)

-Checked out the set list for Stereosonic on Saturday!!! So BEYOND excited for it. Too bad the weather is supposed to be shit. but, the show must go on. Wet tees and all.

-Went to tapas with G at this place called Captain Torres' Restaurant. More over-eating.. it's becoming a disturbing trend. Good thing I have all of Dec. to get back in the gym.

-Have only 1 weekend, 3 days of work and 1 final between me and being back in the good ole' US of A. too bad leaving is pretty much the LAST thing I want to do right now.

This song title is pretty fitting for my mood right now. Jammin' it on repeat.

This just means that I've gotta go super hard this weekend and with so many plans already made I'm sure next week's blog will be much more interesting/ potentially embarrassing. Can't wait.

More soon babes!

*I*

xxx

the Incident Weekend

& the shenanigans continue...

After this weekend I've narrowly avoided

-getting sunburned

-being concussed

-getting my nails done (devs about this one)

-being traumatized by the creepy clown at Luna Park

So.. with that in mind here's some of what I got up to in the last 7 days. :)

-Ended up at Cargo bar on 2 separate nights (no judgement), once with Bess, Russy, Glen & co. and once with G and the boys.

@Cargo

^pre-incident^

-Got quality girl time with some pretty ladies while celebrating Kat's b-day on saturday across the bridge at her place in Milson's point & at the Deck in Luna Park (this little amusement park thing that's ALOT less creepy than you would think, despite the run-down clown that looms over the whole thing)

-Rode all the rides at Luna Park with my girls in six inch stilettos and mini dress. The Carousel and ferris wheel were obvi my favorites.

#biggirlsdoingbigthings

^View from the ferris wheel @ Luna Park^

^my new bff Ash- SUCH a sweetheart and so fun!^

^The girls^

-Found out Serbian vodka mixed with liberal amounts of tequila is not my best friend. Thanks Kat :)

-Have found a new song obsession. Checkkk it.

-Got picked up and then accidentally body slammed onto the pavement in Darling Harbour by Tool Shred while out with G and the boys. Lets just say it was not the most comfortable thing I've ever experienced but he couldn't help it...booze and that much definition are a lethal combo. ha.

-TS was so apologetic for the slamming situation and bought me flowers. He was obviously instantly forgiven. :)

G. was also very sweet about it. Brownie points.

Wore my new shoes out. Purple. WEDGES. 6.5 inches. and totally comfortable.

be jealous.

-Ate with G at this cute restaurant on the harbour called Coast. Gorgeous views at night with all the twinkly lights :)

-Did the "Sculptures by the Sea" walk from Tamarama Beach to Bondi Beach with G. on Sunday afternoon. Its this art exhibition that super weird and cool.. almost too weird at times but I'm glad we got to see it since this was the last weekend. Got some good pics too! :) It was so pretty (although a bit crowded) and I seriously could stare at the coastline for hours. Here's the link to the actual website if you want to look it up!

^pretty beach walk :)^

^Turtle sculpture :)^

-Ate on the Bondi boardwalk for lunch and had yummy ice cream on the way home.

-Saw the best bulldog there EVER. He pretty much looked something like this. Could you just die over him. G named him Jack.

-Beached it again with Marty and G on Saturday. Marty and I got some nice color, G just got a slight burn..poor little white boy. :)

-Watched Moneyball with G. Brad Pitt has definitely peaked. It was a good movie but it was no 'Troy' let me tell you.

-Attempted a nail date after brunch with Mikayla. Major fail, so my tragic nails will have to wait another week until this coming saturday. SO devs- Cindy would be horrified.

As usual it was a fabulous weekend, minus the head injury and full body bruises, and I'm very excited to do it all over again this coming weekend! Only 2 more left to go in this amazing city. Better make them count! Loved my major skype/ catchup on girl talk time with my girls (looking at you J.wow, Heather, Hessie and Dixie) so keep it coming! :)

Love you all!

xxx