It is official. I have safely landed home in the great United States of America. My flight left on November 20th at 11:30 am. I went from Melbourne to Auckland and Auckland to LAX. Finally, the plane left LAX and arrived at JFK at 9:30 pm  a whole hour early!), still on November 20th! 30 hours of traveling and it is still the same day…only happens when traveling around the world! 

This has truly been the adventure of a lifetime. Everyone comes back from the Australia abroad program saying that they have changed. I didn’t think that would happen to me. However, I have changed. And personally, I believe this change has been for the good. I feel more independent, able to travel and experience new things. I have conquered many fears. I have grown into a person who is strong and not willing to conform to the masses in order to be accepted. There will always be people that you do not agree with but there will always be people that support you through the disagreements.

New friends were made who will be friends for life. New lessons were learned, lessons that will continue to inspire and guide me through the years to come. Yes, I know this all sounds corny but I truly believe that Australia has positively shaped me into a person full of life, eager to see what the next day holds and excited to be surrounded by love and laughter. 

As my Australian experience comes to an end, so does this blog. I hope you all have enjoyed experiencing the Outback, Sydney and Melbourne through my words. Hopefully one day, you will be able to experience the beauty of Australia firsthand. I definitely plan on going back again. 

But for now, onto my next adventure! :) 

It is my last day in Australia. And what am I doing? Making a full circle back to the beginning of this epic journey: weighing my bags to make sure they are under the weight limit. And, miraculously, once again, I have achieved the impossible. Both bags are between 20-21 kgs, with the limit being 23 kgs. Go Janine! :) 

 After waking up whenever I felt like it, I showered and finished putting all the random stuff still on my shelves and in my drawers into my two large suitcases. I then went to the MRS office and got a scale, proving to myself that I have become quite an efficient packer, a trait I totally have developed from my father. However, I did inherit some of my mother’s hoarding abilities, reluctantly throwing out shampoo and conditioner bottles with about an inch or two of liquid left in them. I hate being wasteful! 

With everything packed and ready to go, it is finally hitting me that I am actually leaving. My walls are bare and my drawers are empty. My clothes are packed and my carryon is ready to go. It’s been truly an experience of a lifetime, one I will never forget and will always cherish. I have met friends who have become family. I’ve learned about cultures I never knew about. I have grown as a person, facing fears and learning independence. With all that said, goodbye Australia. It’s been real. But now, it’s time to go and be reunited with my family, people I have missed dearly for the past four and a half months! Thanks for all the memories and I hope to visit again…soon! <3 

I am toooo excited…2 more days and you will be home!!!!!YAH!!!!!

I stopped at the bagel place today to order as a  surprise to you one of those big bagels-but they do not make them anymore! I was so disappointed. I can try another bagel place but it wouldn’t be the same. Always thinking of you! 

I love you and can’t wait to see you-Mom

As my second to last day in Australia comes to an end, the realization that I am actually leaving is starting to set in. Today, I vacuumed for the first and last time (gross, I know). I packed both my suitcases as well as my carry on. There is random stuff still on my shelves that will be packed last minute. I do not feel, however, that I am packing to come home. Instead, I feel like I am just packing to go on yet another trip around this massive country. Except, that this time, I will be greeted on the other side by my family! 

Yesterday, I was able to spend some time outside in the sunshine with friends before everyone goes their own way. Chairs and sofas were brought outside as music was blasted and laughter filled the air. It was a great way to end the semester and celebrate the end of exams. 

Today, unlike yesterday, was rainy and cold. A perfect day to finish my packing and clean my room. As everyone went to see Harry Potter 7, I stayed behind and finished up my room. I was told by my lovely brother that I was not allowed to see the movie without him and received a thoroughly effective guilt trip. So no HP7 for me. That means, whoever has seen, DO NOT TELL ME ANYTHING ABOUT IT! I want to be surprised. 

As for tomorrow, it will be a day full of goodbyes and last minute packing. Oh, and getting a scale and making sure my suitcases aren’t over the weight limit! Keep your fingers crossed for me! 

To all those at home, I can’t wait to see your beautiful faces! It will definitely be nice to be back home, in the comfort of my own home, surrounded by my family! Miss you all so much! See you soon <3 

I am now down to my last four days in Australia. And I must admit, I am ready to come home. However, just because I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends again, doesn’t mean that I haven’t enjoyed my last trip in Australia!

Spencer, Lauren, Fiona and I made our way to the Gold Coast on Friday. We arrived pretty early at the Gold Coast, correctly got onto the right bus but then completely missed our stop. We had to change buses at the end of the bus line and retrace our steps until we got to the stop for Tedder Avenue. Here, we were greeted by a friend made on One Fish 2 Fish, Tara, who goes to school at Griffith Uni in the Gold Coast. She shares a suite with Erin, also on One Fish 2 Fish and a girl form Germany. And let me tell you, the suite was beautiful! It had a balcony that overlooked the ocean. You could hear the waves crashing. It was amazing! After overtaking their room with our stuff, we immediately put on our swimsuits and parked it on the beach. It was a great day and great weather. I even went into the ocean to cool off and take some pictures! After being drained of energy from our late night, early flight and day in the sun, we went to bed early in order to be well rested for Saturday, our planned day to go skydiving in Byron Bay. 

The shuttle picked us up at 7 am and took us to the drop zone for skydiving. The sun was shining and we were all so excited that we were actually going to be able to jump today! After waiting for several hours, we were eventually called inside and told that, due to the wind levels, we were not going to skydive that day. Try three to skydive turned into a FAIL! So, we rescheduled for the next day and made sure we were on priority to jump. We then made our way into town for lunch and then were driven back to the Gold Coast. That night we all fell asleep pretty early due to our early wake up call and our early start the next day. 

The shuttle picked us up at 6 am, an hour early! We made it to the drop zone and we were suited up after about an hour or two of waiting! It was all so surreal! When waiting to skydive in Cairns, I was trembling with fear. However, in Byron, I talked myself into being cool, calm and collected. After hearing that the people we were jumping with have jumped between 500 to 9000 times, I felt safer. Also, the woman suiting us up told us that the most dangerous part of skydiving was the actual act of driving to the drop zone. More people die in car accidents than while skydiving. 

As we boarded the plane, I was surprised by how small it was. There were no seats, just cushioned (not very comfortable) benches. The plane was very loud and the ascent was a tad bumpy since there was no runway. However, once in the air, the sights were beautiful. We flew over the coast and could even see the silhouette of the plane surrounded by a rainbow when above the clouds. It was magnificent. Then, the door was opened and the first person was set to jump. Seeing someone be taken out of a plane by the wind is truly something that cannot be explained. It was so bizarre watching as all of a sudden, they weren’t there anymore. Lauren went next, and I was third. I was expecting to sit at the side for a while but as soon as I put my legs out of the plane and titled my head back, we were free falling!!! FREE FALLING!!! Going something like 150 miles per hour. Falling from 14,000 feet in the air, Australia’s highest skydiving height. IT WAS AWESOME!!!!!!! I barely even remember free falling except that there was no stomach dropping feeling, just pure bliss as I was floating in the air. It barely even felt like I was falling. After what seemed like 5 seconds, but was really one whole minute, my tandem partner opened our parachute! I then glided and swirled thousands of feet above Byron Bay, able to see the beach down below. It was truly breathtaking (however that might have been from the parachute harness! haha JK!) After about four to five minutes of gliding, we descended to the drop zone where I, not so gracefully, landed on my bum. The wind must have filled our chute while we landed because all of a sudden, I was on my side and struggling to get back up. But, in the end, I successfully got on my feet and can now proudly say I SURVIVED SKYDIVING! 

And who would have thought that, Janine Ann Obiedzinski, would want to do it again? Definitely not ME! 

However, after the thrill of a lifetime, we went back to the town of Byron Bay, had lunch and watched the waves on the beach till pickup. We then went back to the Gold Coast and chilled with the girls. 

The next morning, in order to get our tan on, we woke up around 9 and immediately went to the beach. It was glorious to sit in the sun and bake for hours! But no worries, I used SPF 50 so I have a nice tan with a tinge of burn. There was a constant breeze and continuous sunshine, making our last day at the Gold Coast perfect. 

Now, I am back in Melbourne, starting to pack up my life in order to COME BACK TO AMERICA!!! Saturday cannot come fast enough. Now all I need to do is get all my stuff together and say goodbyes to my new friends. But be warned America, I am coming back an new and improved person! I love Australia <3 

Hey all! 

Tomorrow I am taking my LAST trip in Australia, and what a trip it will be! I am going to a place where the sun shines and the waves roll. It is a surfer’s paradise! Beautiful beaches and laid back beach towns. Oh, and SKYDIVING!!!! Gold Coast, here I come! :) I’m ready to get my tan on. Hopefully, I will survive jumping out of a perfectly good plane and be able to tell you all how amazing it was! LOVE YOU! <3 

P.S. Home in 9 dayysssss

The other day, I took my last day trip in Australia! It was wonderful! We booked the trip online and found a great deal to go to Philip Island, the home of blue Little Penguins!

We started the day off by taking the bus and train to the city. Once there, we made our way to the Rendezvous Hotel, our pickup location for our tour. We met our tour guide, Jon, a stereotypical laid back Australian man in his late forties or early fifties. He immediately pegged us Americans and kept calling us Team America. The five of us sat in the back of the bus as we started our trek to Philip Island. On the way, we made a few stops. 

First, we stopped for lunch in a small town called Koo Wee Rup. It was very quaint and smelled like horse manure. 

Second, we went to a wine tasting! It was at the Bass River Winery and we were able to taste 6 different wines, plus the winery’s signature cherry wine. My favorite was the Sweet Riesling, which was pretty much bursts of happiness in my mouth. It was so sweet that it tasted like dessert. To compliment the wines, we had samples of cheese and brie. I was adventurous and tried the blue cheese with a slice of apple and regretted it as soon as I bit down. It was disgusting. I then tried the brie and didn’t hate it. However, I will not go out of my way to eat any more of it. 

Third, we made our way to my most anticipated stop of the tour, second only to the Little Penguins. We went to the Philip Island Chocolate Factory and saw Panny’s Amazing World of Chocolate. The Chocolate Factory has the world’s largest chocolate waterfall as well as a chocolate village. There was also a chocolate statue of Michelangelo’s David, although the one in Italy was wayyy better (obvi!).  We were also able to make our own chocolate with the Squirl machine! 

After stuffing my face with free samples, we went to the Koala Conservation Centre and saw some koalas and wallabies. We also stopped to see some kangaroos and witnessed some true boxing kangaroos. It was awesome! I found out that Koala means “No Drink” and Kangaroo means “I don’t know.”

Finally, we went to Summerland Beach to watch as the Little Penguins returned home from hours, days or weeks away at sea. They arrived in barges and scrambled out of the water, making their way through the sand and to the grasslands where they have made their burrows. Every night hundreds to thousands of Little Penguins are seen on the beach. It was truly magnificent to see their shiny bodies emerge from the waves and search for their mates and homes. One of the best things I have seen here so far! 

Nin,

The pictures are terrific, even the one with your tilted head!!!!!! Two weeks YAH…I can’t wait. Miss you and love you MOM