Got to sleep in a little bit today, but we had to be out of the room by 10 to check out. Woke up to my wisdom tooth aching on one side, which wasn't the best wake up call, but the pain went away after a little bit and stopped bothering me. Hopefully they can hold out at least another month, because I have absolutely no time, or desire, to deal with them over here. After getting dressed and making sure everything was packed up, we checked out, but then had another two hours to wait before the airport shuttle would arrive to take us to the airport. We found a spot in the sun to sit in, and worked on some of our school projects and articles. It was very productive, which was good, and we got to enjoy some of the nice weather again while we waited. We got some lunch as soon as the place at the hotel opened, so that it could hold us over during our flight until dinner. The lady at the place, who we've seen every day now, was really friendly this time, and actually talked to us a bit, wishing us the best on the rest of our trips around Australia. I confirmed my plans with Melanie (my friend from Melbourne who goes to school at Sydney Uni) to have dinner tonight, so I'm very excited about that!
At 12:25 the shuttle arrived, and it was a short 15 minute bus ride over to the airport. We said goodbye to Uluru and Kata Tjuna, both looking very impressive on the horizon. We got the airport, and went through security (which took maybe thirty seconds, and only because there was a line) and then had another hour and a half to wait before our flight would board. Funnily enough, we ran into the Australian/Canadian couple from the Sounds of Silence dinner, so we said hello to them and talked to them for a bit. It sounded like they had had a great time exploring Uluru yesterday, and we exchanged some information in case we have time to meet up with them again when we're back in Sydney. He lives in the CBD as well, and she lives out near Bondi, which is pretty cool.
At 2:00 our plane finally was allowed to board, so we walked out onto the tarmac and up the steps to the plane. Very boring flight, and we got in a little late, right at 6, which only gave me an hour to get back home, change, and then meet up with Melanie. Luckily, we got a taxi right away and there was no traffic, so we were home in only about 15 minutes, which was awesome. I quickly caught up with everyone, cause they were all hanging out in my room, and then went to Central Station to meet up with Melanie.
At 12:25 the shuttle arrived, and it was a short 15 minute bus ride over to the airport. We said goodbye to Uluru and Kata Tjuna, both looking very impressive on the horizon. We got the airport, and went through security (which took maybe thirty seconds, and only because there was a line) and then had another hour and a half to wait before our flight would board. Funnily enough, we ran into the Australian/Canadian couple from the Sounds of Silence dinner, so we said hello to them and talked to them for a bit. It sounded like they had had a great time exploring Uluru yesterday, and we exchanged some information in case we have time to meet up with them again when we're back in Sydney. He lives in the CBD as well, and she lives out near Bondi, which is pretty cool.
At 2:00 our plane finally was allowed to board, so we walked out onto the tarmac and up the steps to the plane. Very boring flight, and we got in a little late, right at 6, which only gave me an hour to get back home, change, and then meet up with Melanie. Luckily, we got a taxi right away and there was no traffic, so we were home in only about 15 minutes, which was awesome. I quickly caught up with everyone, cause they were all hanging out in my room, and then went to Central Station to meet up with Melanie.
It wasn't long before I spotted her coming out of the tunnel (she was wearing a Weasley sweater which made it even easier to pick her out from the crowd). It was awesome to finally meet her in person, since I've been friends with her online since at least the seventh grade now, so about six years now. She was the sweetest thing, and really really funny. She seemed to have that stereotypical Aussie humor, and really laid back personality. We walked down about 15 minutes to World Square, where there's a really good dumpling place. There was a bit of a wait, but we didn't mind cause it gave us more of a chance to catch up and talk, especially since it'd been a few months since the last time we'd actually talked properly. We had an absolutely amazing time, she'd been to the US earlier this year (unfortunately I was in Boston at the time and couldn't come meet her there) so we talked for a bit about the differences between the two countries which was pretty funny. Apparently she made it down to Texas and was a huge deal there, because they loved her accent, especially the way she says "tomato". She gave me some Aussie bands to check out which was awesome, including one very strange band called The Beards, who make these weird parody song things about beards. Yup. That's right, the majority of their songs are about beards (here's an example of one of their songs, click here!). We shared some delicious dumplings, fried rice, and green tea ice cream and just sat and talked. It felt really natural, and she gave me a whole bunch of places around Sydney that are cool to go to if I have time. She and I are hoping to maybe meet up again if we both have the time, but she works most days that I'm free, and has a 40 minute train ride into the city from her suburb, so it might not happen. It would be awesome to get to hang out again though!
After that I came back and did some laundry even though it was pretty late, because all the clothes I'd brought to Uluru either smelled like bonfire or had a layer or red dirt on it. Ick. Right when I was about to finally climb into bed for the night, (it was almost 1:00 by this point) there was a knock on the door, and it was some of the girls from next door bringing one of my roommates back (they'd gone out for the night) and she was really really drunk. The other girls just kind of pushed her through the door and went back to their room, so I had to help her get ready for bed and make sure she was okay, which was not what I wanted to be doing after such a long day, but whatever. After I'd finally made sure she was all good and in bed, I went straight to bed, and fell asleep within minutes. Really started to feel the effects of all the traveling and running around now, but it's worth it.
After that I came back and did some laundry even though it was pretty late, because all the clothes I'd brought to Uluru either smelled like bonfire or had a layer or red dirt on it. Ick. Right when I was about to finally climb into bed for the night, (it was almost 1:00 by this point) there was a knock on the door, and it was some of the girls from next door bringing one of my roommates back (they'd gone out for the night) and she was really really drunk. The other girls just kind of pushed her through the door and went back to their room, so I had to help her get ready for bed and make sure she was okay, which was not what I wanted to be doing after such a long day, but whatever. After I'd finally made sure she was all good and in bed, I went straight to bed, and fell asleep within minutes. Really started to feel the effects of all the traveling and running around now, but it's worth it.