A Most Amazing Day

Dear all,
Today I went on an adventure to the Hunter Valley with a few friends and had one of my best days here so far!

I went with Kamil and Urka (two Czech boys who I will be going on my spring break trip with), Katie (who you've met before from the Bondi tales), and Rachel (a Swiss girl from Bern who I didn't know before the trip but became fast friends with during it).

(Katie and me 9am, still sleepy, in the van)

(Rachel, post wine tasting)

(Kamil end of the day)

(Urka in the back of the van)
The trip was all very spontaneous, mentioned in passing on Friday and agreed upon, however, it seemed to take on a life of its own and blossomed into something greater than we could have planned if we tried.

First, let me tell you a little bit about Hunter Valley. It's located about 2-3 hours to the northwest of Sydney and is famous for its wealth of vineyards (over 100 different private wine cellars in about a 30 mile radius). Apart from the wine, there are also olive groves there and cheese, chocolate, and olive oil factories and stores. Probably the best part of Hunter Valley, is that all sampling (including wine tasting) is absolutely free and encouraged (even for uni students trying to feign knowledge of good wine).

My trip began this morning with an 8am wake up and a short walk over to the boys' place down the road where we all met up and were introduced to Rachel and her car, a 1991 beauty with inspirational quotes in French and English, that I fell in love with.

You might laugh to know that when Rachel bought it, it came loaded with just about everything you might want (a surfboard, fishing pole, kitchen utensils, a full bed, snorkeling gear, the list goes on). So, we clambered in: Rachel driving (seated on the right), Urka as the navigator on the left, and Kamil, Katie, and me sprawled out on the bed in the back. And so started our adventure as we merrily bounced along while listening to old rock tunes on the radio.

Soon we found ourselves driving through an idyllic countryside of mountains in the distance, golden sunlight, and vineyards as far as the eye could see.
Welcome to Hunter Valley, where an extremely nice lady at the welcome center provided us with: a) a map of the whole region, b) a scorecard for how to sample wines and remain under the legal driving limit, and c) directions for how to get off the beaten path. And off we went:)

(After receiving a free wine tour around Tyrrell's Vineyard and drinking some delicious Port)
About five hours, 30 wines, multiple cheese, olive, chocolate samples, and a free wine tour of a vineyard, later we were sitting on the grass watching the sunset over a 360 degree view of the valley. We bought a bottle of wine to share from the nearby vineyard, pulled out a large blanket, and picnicked on our remaining cheese, chocolate, fudge and wine while happily watching the sky get darker around us.

(Picnicking at the day's end)
When it finally got too cold, we packed up, climbed into the van, Rach' driving with Katie as the copilot and me with the boys in the back. We picked a slightly different road going back and spent the next three hours bumping along through the woods on a windy road. Somewhere between gazing out the window, listening to music and voices, I drifted off to sleep with the feel of the road beneath me. The best way to fall asleep in my opinion.

But, the adventure wasn't over yet! Next thing you know, we're passing a pub in the middle of basically nowhere that's bright, loud, and filled with people. Upon seeing that it was called Dr. Jurd's Jungle Juice, we decided to pull over and see just what it was all about. The locals at the bar were great, and I struck up a conversation with them (of which I'm still not sure what was actually true) but they did show me where the Southern Cross was. Finally! I've been trying to find the constellation ever since I came here, and it's even on the Australian flag, but it's quite hard to find in the sky, especially if you don't know where to look. I was also introduced to Jack, a tame dingo who lived at the pub (a dingo is a wild dog native to Australia).
The locals also told me a story about a woman who's baby was stolen by a dingo, and said that Jack was a direct descendant of that dog (at which point I started smiling and nodding and stopped believing:p ) In exchange for all their wisdom, I took a photo of the locals to remember them by (true blue Ozzies), and off we went back to Sydney.
Basically, the day felt like it came straight out of a dream. It was nice to get out of Sydney and see a little more of Australia. I'm really looking forward to Spring Break which is coming up in two weeks and getting to celebrate my birthday during the break! The plan is to travel all the way up the coast, finishing in Cairns (at the northern part of the Great Barrier Reef). I'm going with Zdiska, Urka, Kamil, Ivy, and Elyse (who we're meeting in Brisbane!) We're getting a bus pass so that we can get on and off whenever we want, and in two weeks end up in Cairns (city known for its diving, opals, and diamonds). The journey will be about 2,730 km or 1,695 miles. For the first time in my life, I will truly be a backpacker. I'm excited! :)

Other than that, in the last two weeks I've: seen an Australian Football League game (awesome!), explored a little more of the nightlife around Sydney (Cargo Bar), went back out on the whale watching boat but saw only turbulent seas (need better sea legs!) and a few beautiful dolphins, danced to 90s music at the Ubar, explored more of Sydney (Hyde Park and the New South Wales Art Gallery), saw the downside of field research (doing invertebrate surveys on the beach in the pouring rain), finished all the novels I brought with me and moved onto a book about Marine Mammal identification that I borrowed, turned in a bunch of assignments and received good marks (I am doing uni too!), went on a night photoshoot of Sydney with Jonas, learned about cricket and was introduced to Bollywood over dinner with Hassan and Benjamin, and picked up a few basketball skills (we play every Saturday). That's pretty much all I can think of. I've also spent the last two weeks trying to get rid of this cold once and for all, but I have the feeling that they never go away here. At least I'm not feeling bad anymore, I just have the remnant cough, and a glass of hot milk with honey before bed fixes that up pretty well.

Okay, well, I must be off to do some more work for my internship. I've also got a seminar on "Aboriginal Australians" tonight. I don't think I mentioned this previously (because even Cody didn't know), but I joined the Global Leadership Program here. It's basically a program that you complete outside of your classes, like 30 hours of really interesting seminars. I've already gone to three: one on Terrorism and Counter Terrorism, one on Public Speaking, and one on the International Political Economy (which I knew zero about before going). The seminars are quite interesting and make me feel a little more rounded since most of what I'm learning in classes is all biology based. And, I get to think of myself as a "Global Leader" when I get the certificate at the end. Yay! :p

Yep, well that's all for me. Hope you enjoy the photos. Here's an album from the last two weeks: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024788&id=1125810475&l=074da2aa62

I'll put up a full album from Hunter Valley when I have some more time. But hopefully the photos in the post will give you a good idea of what it was like. The family can also look forward to some delicious wine when I return! :)
Thanks for reading! Till next time!
<3 Tashi