Melbourne International Comedy Festival and Camping at The Prom

Hey all-

So it's been two weeks since my Easter Break road trip through the Outback. I've been busy with an exam, two papers and catching up on three classes worth of lectures, but I've made time for the city and a 3 day camping trip to a nearby national park. I have less than 7 weeks left down under, and there's still so much to do that it's a race against time!!

So the Friday after I returned from my road trip, Maxine and I went into the city to see Australian comedian Adam Hills at the Princess Theatre as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. We left a little late so we missed part of the act but he was still very funny. Some of his best jokes -judging by the crowds reaction - went over our heads though, too many Australian specific references. After Adam Hills we wandered Melbourne City Centre and found a second hand book store. Books and cds are often very expensive here so even second hand books weren't nearly as cheap as at home, but I still found a few great buys I'm excited to bring home.

The next day I went back into the city with Caitlin and Tiffany. We too found a second hand book store and once again I made a couple great finds. We then took the free city circle tram which had a narrative about the sites and events as we passed on by. Stopping at the Victoria Legislature building we had a fun time taking pictures of each other. Walking up Lygon Street we found a Nepalese restaurant. Being hungry and intrigued we had a very early dinner, and being so early meant we got to sit on the low cushion table up front while we ate delicious curries and lentil soups. Afterwards we killed two hours at San Churro Chocolatier, drinking pots of chocolate and sharing churros dipped in chocolate. So. Ridiculously. Delicious. We then walked over to the Athenaeum Theatre to see Scottish comedian, Danny Bhoy who my mom has been talking about for months. Turns out he's hilarious, and one skit about tram tickets in particular had the three of us laughing as newcomers to Melbourne city's tram etiquette.

Last Monday I officially moved into Kingfisher House which I'm VERY happy about!! I've spent so much time at Kingfisher over the last two months that it just makes sense to physically live here. Although my bedroom it technically too small to fit my bed without shoving it away from the wall so I can close my door... but I really don't care, I'd rather have a small room full of my stuff at Kingfisher than anything! Soon after I moved in I spent an evening watching Clueless with all four of my roommates, including Katja and Charlotte from Denmark, after an absolutely amazing meal of sweet potato mash, feta/avocado/beetroot salad, kangaroo roast, green beans with homemade tsaziki, and apple crumble for dessert! Yum yum yum.

This past weekend Caitlin, Tiffany, Maxine and I rented a car and drove three hours to Wilsons Promontory National Park, also known as The Prom. It was so beautiful, even with large sections ravaged by the recent bush fires. We watched the sunset at Squeaky Beach on Friday night, then hunkered down for a freezing night in tents as wombats snorted around our tents. Wombats are HUGE. For some reason I pictured them to be about the size and shape of guinea pigs. They look like guinea pigs... on steroids. They're about the size of a human toddler. We also saw many possums, a wallaby and a very large kangaroo - about my height I'd say - sharing the Tidal River campground we stayed at.

On Saturday we set off on a hike to Sealers Cove. It rained on and off and the scenery kept changing as we stopped at beautiful lookout points and scrambled over fallen logs. We had seagulls fight over which ones got to stake us out for food, we sang campsongs and made up stories. Roundtrip it ended up being 20 kms and a fantastic way to spend a day. That night we watched the sunset from Picnic Bay. The next morning we went back to Squeaky Beach - which got its name from the sound the sand makes when you walk on it in dry conditions - and just reveled in the beauty of the park before heading home.

Now I'm back in Melbourne where it's 13 degrees and raining. We made Sunday evening our Twilight and Curry Night before watching Rove, as always it was a fun and relaxing evening. Last night Bill stopped by and told some stories about being a rafting guide in Ontario. Tiffany and I finally got our tram tickets the other day and last week I went to see the Korean Ambassador to Australia give a speech on Korean/Australian relation. All in all, life is busy!

In 5 weeks I leave Melbourne to travel the East Coast of Australia.
In 48 days I begin the 28 hour journey home.

I'm guaranteed to be busy in the upcoming weeks so I'll update soon!
Love
Ayla

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