An attempt at Penguin Island

Family and Friends-

With one class to go, and nothing but time until we leave for Sydney on Tuesday, a few of us girls were going to trek out to Penguin Island today. Our first sign to turn around, may have been when we tagged on to the Fremantle Train, and found out we were supposed to be on bus #825. After missing the bus, we headed to the coffee shop, while waiting a half hour for the next bus...in the pouring rain! After riding the bus for another half hour, we got off in Rockingham and waited for the second bus to Penguin Island...again, pouring rain :) After almost reaching our destination, we get a call from our friends on the bus before us saying Penguin Island is closed due to poor weather conditions! (If we were in MN, nothing would close unless it was a blizzard with visibility of a couple feet)...well, no worries, we stopped at Subway for some lunch and delicious cookies :) and then headed back to Freo for another hour on the bus. But, one good thing, is we were only charged $1 from our Smart Rider pass, because we were on each bus for less than 30 minutes, meaning free rides!

It's the countdown for Sydney and we're all so anxious! I would pack right now, if I didn't need to wear half my wardrobe between now and my flight! If anyone is interested, here is the link to where I will be staying in Sydney...luxury!

http://www.stayz.com.au/17448 -from here you can click on the pictures of the place!

Oh, and lastly, if anyone would like to see the kick off of my modeling career, you can go to www.csbsju.edu and if at first you don't see my debut, just click the 'refresh' button at the top of your web browser (might require multiple 'clicks') but you should eventually come across a familiar face :)

I look forward to updating you all on my adventures in Sydney. Our daily itinerary starts at 7am each day!

Until next time,
Peace and love

-Molly

Officially world's best procrastinator!

Hi all!

A little update on my life here in Freo, as things start to wind down. Yesterday something pretty extraordinary occurred. Down High Street in Fremantle, the kickoff for World Youth Day took place, and students from the University of Notre Dame got the opportunity to carry this huge wooden cross down the street, which will eventually travel to Sydney in July for the World Youth Day, where Pope Benedict will be. The significance of this cross is that it has been all over the world, including Ground Zero where the World Trade Centers were. We got to watch the ceremony right in Fremantle, and some people from our group got to hold the cross!

Last week we also got the opportunity to sing up on stage at the Orient for Karoke night. I can honestly say I will not be pursuing a career in music, but it was definitely a good time!

Sydney is less than two weeks away- I can't wait! (Especially because I'll be done writing all of my essays)

Cheers!
Molly

Running in the Rain

Greetings all!

As temperatures drop, due dates draw near, and this experience comes to an end, I like to take time to think about all the opportunities I have had here in Australia. I remember laying on the beach in Fiji or riding the gondola in New Zealand like it were yesterday, when in fact it was already almost 100 days ago!

St. John's and St. Ben's are done with school already for the year, and my roommates are now considered seniors! Scary! Today we finished our senior seminar class, and in the next two weeks, I have 5 essays to write- yikes.

I went for a run yesterday in the pouring rain and honestly loved every second of it. Most people would think I'm crazy, but those 8 miles with no ipod were glorious. Running with nature surrounding me and nothing but my thoughts is so liberating. Most of my friends here did think I was crazy too, I've almost scared off all of my running buddies. I still run short distances too- nothing wrong with a 4 mile run either :) It's funny, back in high school, my dad would always motivate me by saying 'it's way easier to run in the rain, because water is made of H2O, so there's more Oxygen in the air, therefore making it easier to breathe when you're running.' It was just something that always stuck with me, and now I prefer the rain to sunshine any day when running! < Thanks Dad :) >

3 weeks and I leave for Sydney- I can't wait! We've been looking at concerts and shows in the area, and are hoping to find a show at the Sydney Opera House with reasonable prices, ooh that and Michael Buble will be there! Ahh, my love, who costs $300 to see!

I can't believe it's already the middle of May! The weather is cooling off, but still mostly sunny!

I think this weekend we might head to Penguin Island for the day. Not much else is new here otherwise, just thought I would give a brief update. I hope all is well with everyone back in the States! I'll be back soon, can't wait!

Love,

Molly

5/2-5/4: Tingle Tree Tour

Hi all!

It's been a while since I've filled you in on my adventures. This past weekend, our director Chuck took us on a bus tour down to the Southwest tip of Australia, the Margaret River. It is such a beautiful area. It isn't as dry as the rest of Australia, in fact, it accumulates about 40 inches of rain annually! On Friday afternoon, we left Fremantle and headed to Augusta. It was a relaxing evening, most of us girls bought some Passion Pop ($4.99 bottle of sparkling wine) and went down to the river to hang out.

Saturday was an early morning, departing at 8am from our hostel. We had another 6 hours in the bus, but stopped for lunch in Dunbury. Not too much to see here! Once we reached Walpole, we walked through the trees tops at the Tingle Tree forest. We went on this long walkway, built without cranes, 40 metres up (that's roughly 120 feet in the air!) I am terrified of heights, so there was definitely an increase in the heart rate! These trees were fascinating. They are hollow on the inside, because the tree start to die from the inside, but new bark grows on the outside, increasing in diameter. Sara cried the whole way, which was pretty entertaining. She is afraid of heights more than me and could not handle it! After the Tingle Tree Tour, we headed further south and visited Cape Leeuwin, where the Indian Ocean and Southern Oceans meet. It is the furthest southern point in Australia. Since the current is different in the two oceans, at this point you can sometimes see a distinct line coming directly out from the lighthouse where the currents meet. Also, in the above picture, you can see the turtle shape rock above mine and Sara's head- this is the coordinate point where you are furthest away from George W. Bush. Just an interesting tidbit. Our director was very happy to point that out to us.

On Sunday we visited the Margaret River Winery and it was so beautiful there. Perfect spot for concerts, weddings, or formal event. Everything was so green! We tried about 6 different kinds of wine and learned all about them. After making our purchases, it was back to the bus and time to head back home. One more stop along the way, and that was at the Busselton Jetty (Pier). It is the second longest Jetty in Western Australia. It used to be the first, but it caught fire in a storm, so now they are trying to raise funds to build it back up, but it is over a mile long!

It was definitely a fun, relaxing weekend with Chuck! And I finally caught up on sleep!

Until next time,

Peace and love
-Molly