Tess's Adventures Abroad

One picture sums up what most people think Sydney is like. And I finally got to see it in person. Yes, once you see this picture the immediate thought must pop up in your mind- Australia. But Sydney is so much more than that, it is full of botanical gardens, beautiful monuments, awesome clubs and bars, and beyond gorgeous beaches surrounding it. 

Now as you can tell from this picture we did not get the best weather- but shit happens. Sydney was still unreal even in the pouring, cold rain. I knew we had a long bus ride there about 12 hours, but I had such a busy week of school before I left I did not really think about the bus ride. But it was a pretty brutal 12 hours…I basically took sleeping pills and tried to cradle myself in a little ball and drift into sleep at the thought of excitement that Sydney awaited me. 

When we got there like I said- rain. But not just rain, mother nature decided to greet us with massive, pouring, cold, windy, rain. It is okay though because I did not let some rain stop me from seeing what this city has to offer. 

Yay that is me touching the opera house- really proud moment as you can see im full of excitement. It exceeded my expectations- the beauty of the opera house is unreal-my new dream destination wedding! After touring Sydney in the rain we went back to our hostel and got glammed up for our party booze cruise around Sydney Harbor. 

Picture this- 200 kids in a free 3 and a half hour open bar cruise around Sydney Harbor. Lets just say we all know deep down how this night goes. The rain finally let up and we had an absolute blast. Drinking wine on the top deck of a cruise overlooking the Opera House and Harbor Bridge- speechless. Great night.

The next morning was pretty brutal- the rain started again and our crazy tour guides for the weekend dragged us out of bed at 7:30 am to go see the Blue Mountains. Let’s just say that the hangover plus the fog and rain= no blue mountains for me..or anyone else for that matter. Time to chug some coffee, buy our Mardi Gras outfits and start the pregame. Adrienne, Cara, Jess and I had our own pregame party in our room and we had a blast. Supposedly things like dropping off our bunk beds and Cara hand feeding me goon, somehow amazed us. 

How to sum up Mardi Gras- probably one of the coolest experiences I will have here yet. The largest Gay event in the world. Picture rainbow flags, necklaces, masks along with 5,000 gay and lesbians mixed with crazy makeup, luxurious and insanely creative floats, loud music, drinks, and love. Love was in the air and I love what Mardi Gras stood for. Everyone needs love, and everyone was equal. It was so cool to be apart of a community where homosexuals could actually celebrate their sexuality and be accepted by all the citzens who came out to support them. Pretty cool. The parade was 2 and a half hours long with 200 floats. We met a really cool gay couple who became our best friends by the end of the parade. Meet Ben and Marc. 

We then reunited with a bunch of guys from Sydney that we met in Byron Bay. Such nice guys, they basically gave us a tour of all the fun bars to go to the night.

Our last day- on Sunday, is by far one of the best days I have had here yet. Finally we got some gorgeous weather which was needed to see all the local Sydney beaches.We were welcomed to Manly Beach, and we did the beach walk from Bronte beach all the way down to the infamous Bondi Beach. Shoutout to my sister Sam, I was in her neck of the woods where she studied abroad about 5 years ago- was pretty cool to see where she hung out and what she saw everyday- pretty jealous that this was basically her backyard.

After visiting the infamous Bondi Beach, Jess and I headed to a local Italian restaurant and enjoyed homemade, fresh italian margarita pizza. Amore!

That pretty much sums up my weekend in Sydney- can’t wait to live there in about 5 years, I am dreamin’ big.

Alright folks, I hate to even say it but I am officially halfway done. I hate to even bring this subject up but halfway through and I must reflect. I cannot believe how time literally flies by here. It is actually quite scary. It was a gorgeous day here in aus today and in between classes I sat on the steps in the middle of campus gazing out onto the beautiful bay watching the sunlight hit the palm trees. Is this real life? I am so lucky to be here and experience such an amazing place with such awesome people. The friends I have made here are so great, and I know australia will always be our bond that nobody else can understand. I am heading to the amazing city of Sydney this weekend and words cannot even express how excited I am. I have wanted to go to Sydney my whole life and I cannot wait for the moment that I am looking up and seeing the Opera House. Life is good.

A blog post is a must for today (Feb 22) for my best friend, Keri Marnane’s 21st birthday her in aus. So Ker, this is your birthday present, on loan until i get back to the states, and yes it is a a gift to have your own blog post! I have known this bitty since I was around 4 or 5 years old and she is truly my other half..do not know where I would be without her. How about we do a double celebration for my 21st and we just go wild together? Miss you more than words, so… I am dedicating this amazing sunset to you.. LOVE YOU! 

Meet Avery..another cool surfer, yoga chick from University of Vermont..a nutrition and psychology major. Avery is the most healthy person ever- she literally eats seeds and vitamins, blends up crazy healthy concoctions all of which I am so beyond fascinated by. This girl is going to live a long ass life. She is the most mellow, laid back person I have ever met and that is why she is so awesome. She is a nerd in school just like me..and I cannot wait to go visit her at UVM when I get back to the states. 

12:00 pm-Let’s fast-forward a bit by saying the white parachute in the sky is me. This picture would be even more epic if you could see the chunks of vomit falling from the sky and the terrified expression on my face while throwing up 8,000 ft in the air.

Now let’s back track to around 10:30 am that day. Since I booked the trip that Wednesday..I was loosing sleep every night at the thought of jumping 14,000 ft (Fun Fact: second highest jump in the world, besides New Zealand at 15,000 ft.) from a “perfectly-functioning” plane as Jess worded it. Constant thoughts ran through my mind..”What am I thinking?” “Am I going to die?” “What if I pee my pants?” Well let’s just say I should have been worried. 

After we arrived in Byron Bay..we only waited for around 30 min until they called out my name and Jess, my friend Cara and Marni. We all got strapped into our harnesses and started to mentally prepare ourselves for what was about to go down. I met my instructor, Leo, who had a thick accent and seemed to be rather reserved and quiet, which I did not expect from a skydiving instructor who jumps out of planes around 6,000 times in his lifetime. Anyways, little did this guy know, he was in for one hell of an afternoon. Meet Tess buddy..your new soon to be worst fear…..

11:00 am- Takeoff time. The plane was very small and could only fit the pilot and about 10 other people max. 2 girls before us in the plane were jumping out at 9,000 ft. After about 3,000 ft in the air..I was expecting them to jump out because we already seemed so high up..oh, nope only at 3,000 ft. The views were spectacular with a unreal bay horizon setting with an endless aqua body of water. Watching the 2 girls jump off the plane made my instantly petrified and I could feel my body start to become over-heated and shaky. After the instructors rattled off some air pressure numbers which did not make any sense..they informed us we must go back down to the land because a cloud was too big to skydive through and we had to wait until it moved. Let’s just say the landing in the small plane was a little nauseating. 

11:30 am- Takeoff Take 2- Here we go. No turning back now. I accepted it and I actually was starting to feel real excited and pumped up. After the 20 min plane ride back up to 14,000 ft there was no going back. I held on to Jess’s hand until the time came. As soon as the side of the plane lifted..I watched each one of my friends one by one jump off the plane and get sucked up from the instant gravity of mother nature’s wind. “Oh my god.” ZOOM.. off I go..the free fall was unlike anything I have ever experienced. I felt like a bird literally flying above the most beautiful water I could see. After yelling some profanities and having so many thoughts running through my head..the only thing clear to me was how fricken amazing this feeling was. Probably will be the best 60 seconds I will ever have in my life.

Now comes the “sick” part of my adventure. The parachute jolts and I am back to reality. I was about 8,000 ft high still and I could not believe I just free fell. It was a breathtaking view that I will never forget. From hearing the constant wind shatter my ears as I free fall to hearing absolutely nothing and being alone with one other guy in the middle of the sky was the coolest silence in the world..until I started gagging. As my instructor starts steering the parachute to land about two minutes in..i cannot even explain the level of nausea that overcame me. Think about how riding an upside down roller coaster can make you kind of queazy..and then times that by 50. “Dude I am going to be sick.“BLLLAUUUUGHHHHHHHH” I will spare the gruesome details for my skittish followers but let me just clear up a thought I know you are all thinking. Yes, vomit does come back in the reverse direction of the wind and hits your face, chest, and arms..it does not just float and fall to land. 

12:30- Back on land and sicker than ever. My instructor did an emergency landing and even though once I was on land and really shaken up with some tears and a face full of barf..looking back this story has to be the most hysterical and epic of all time. So congrats to me. After asking all the instructors how often this happens, in the hang-out room as I am recovering..they explain to me they get a “puker” about once a week. So I am not that out of the ordinary. Poor, poor Leo. Sorry,man..shit happens. 

Stay tuned for a DVD of my experience.

First off I was very saddened when I woke up to news about a week ago that my girl Whitney Housten died. So Whitney, here is your shout-out and moment of silence on my blog. In honor of you, my roommate Jess and I played all of your famous tracks while getting ready for a night out in celebration of your amazing talent. RIP 

(Source: thethingsthatcount)

Let’s start off with this…this is me jumping off around a 40 ft. cliff into the waterfall and down through a cave. SCARIEST yet most thrilling experience of my life. It took me..15 minutes to work up enough courage to throw myself off this cliff. My whole body was shaking and I am so proud of myself that I did it. 

Springbrook National Park is the most beautiful place. The drive up there was gorgeous-the most breathtaking mountain views. For example, 

It was such a hot day..perfect day to walk through a rainforest. We swam in a small pool of water right above the waterfall. I was at the ridge of the waterfall and it was one of the coolest experiences ever! We then meandered our way through the tropical forest and got to our destination. 

The water was so refreshing and after I jumped I was so proud of myself. The views of this natural habitat are spectacular. Fun fact time- Natural Bridge is home to an amazing colony of glow-worms, whose light can only be seen only after sunset. 

On the way home we stopped at an adorable, tranquil cafe in the middle of the mountains and enjoyed some homemade grilled cheese. Such a great ending to a perfect day. Here’s some fun pictures from the day..

STAY TUNED..I just cliff jumped into that waterfall. 

My overall love for Australia is dedicated to my beautiful mommy. She doesn’t just get a pretty sunset or spectacular view, my love for her is so big she gets my entire love for Australia! I am living her words of wisdom while being here, to live each day as if you were dying. I am so incredibly happy here and I am truly living life to the fullest. I know she is looking down on me and so happy for me..so mom, my love for australia goes to you. I miss you more than words-my beautiful guardian angel. 

– George Eliot