It was so cold in Australia I had to wear my winter coat...
OK, not really. We went to visit an ice bar our last night there called Minus 5. Literally everything was either made of ice or enclosed in ice. The glasses, chairs and even the chandeliers. They supplied coats, gloves and boots for all the guests since it was actually -12 in the bar.
The ice bar was of course neat, but obviously not the most adventurous part of our trip. With only six short days there, we squeezed as much as we possibly could in those days.
We traveled through the sky by air balloon to under water for scuba diving and everywhere in between. Unfortunately, my boyfriend and I got so nervous when we were getting ready to scuba dive that we forgot our underwater camera. We are not certified to scuba, but in Australia (and many other countries other than the U.S.) you are allowed to scuba dive with a certified diver. So our instructor gave us a quick lesson on our way to the diving location and then went over the lesson again when we were suited up and in the ocean.
Under the sea the fish are more curious about you than you are them. Seriously, I looked so ridiculous in a wet suit and goggles that if I were a fish I wouldn't be able to stop looking at me either.
I have no idea the names of the different fish we saw, but I can tell you we saw all of Nemo's friends, but not Nemo himself.
We also saw eels, stingrays and these fish that hide in the sand and swim sideways.
Now the air balloon ride we definitely got pictures of.
This time of year is pretty much summer down under, which means the whale watching season is coming to an end. We still took a whale watching tour, but were a little disappointed since many of the whales had already started heading north with their new young.
The boat captain told us what signs to watch for in the ocean, such as spraying water from whale blow holes, but of course he was the only one to see this. And by the time he did and rushed our tiny boat there, the whale was usually done putting on his show. We did encounter a hump back whale from a distance so forgive my bad photo.
Look closely at the black tail in the background.
We did get to see some dolphins on the way.
This of course is just a few of the 500 photos from our trip. Stay tuned because I plan on sharing some of the differences between the daily life of Americans and Australians.
Mallory Medved is an assistant managing editor of weekly publications for
the Sun-Times News Group. She helps cover the Lincoln-Way area and towns
southwest of Joliet. Being naturally nosy has led her to a career in
journalism and fulfilled her dream of getting paid to read. Being a new
homeowner and a future bride, she's also perpetually broke, but enjoys
hearing about other people in the same situation. She lives in Plainfield
but is a native of New Lenox.
Christina Chapman is a Will County resident who desperately wants to live in Grundy County. But since she lost that battle with her boyfriend when they bought a house, she makes due covering Grundy County news for The Herald News in Joliet. When not covering municipal meetings, school events and finding the truth behind the latest coffee talk, she is trying to balance life as a young home owner who is fighting the stereotype that she is living in sin because she is not yet married. She hopes to share with you her perspective on life and the news in hopes that you’ll share yours.
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