Poor Kangaroo,but you taste so good!

It's been a couple of days and a lot has happened! I'm not sure I can even begin to express how crazy the last couple of days have been. I have met a lot of people and done a lot of things. Sydney is amazing and I still can't believe I'm here. I love it and I never want to leave.

One: I have an apartment.
I was in the IEP office (the program that I'm with) and a girl, who I had been facebook friends with, came up to me and asked if I wanted to go apartment viewing with her and another girl. We ended up getting a beachside apartment in Coogee, Sydney, Australia. It's right ON THE BEACH! And, it's fully furnished and really cheap. I'm really excited. It's four of us in a gorgeous apartment that has a HUGE balcony that looks right over the beach. It's about a 1.5 minute walk to the sand. I definitely don't have that back home.

Two: I have friends.
:D I was so worried coming here that I wouldn't meet anyone. I am a pretty shy person normally and tend to have difficulty meeting, and keeping, friends. But, I took a deep breath before coming here and told myself it was a "now or never" type situation. I opened up immediately to lots of people and have made sure to say yes to every situation that presents itself. Already I have done so much more than I ever have back home, and I've already been here a week. At the moment I have friends from America, Sweden, France, Norway, England, Germany, and Australia.

Three: I went on a date. WHAT?
I met this Swedish guy and we hung out a couple of nights with friends before he asked me out on a date. This was where I tried Kangaroo. That's right: KANGAROO STEAK! It was really good! I swear it tastes just like filet mignon, but he swears it tastes much better and richer than that. But, he's a Swede... so what does he know?? :P I also went bowling with him and his Swedish friends a couple of nights before the date, taught them how to play pool, and went to a strip club. I know, you're thinking "uh...??" but, they wanted to go, and it was free, so we went. I'm not a strip club regular, so I can't say I can compare it really to anything back in the states, but it was quite an experience. We had a stripper try to sell us a lap dance AND exctasy in one sentance. I'm proud to say we denied her, but I think it's the first person I've met (knowlingly) on drugs. I'm glad that it's a rare occurance in my life. Not really my thing! But, all the crazy stuff aside, he is a really cool guy and it has opened my eyes to a totally different culture (Swedish) than mine... like, he had never seen a bum before (apparently they don't have them in his town), so we had to stop and chat with the first bum that we saw. This is not something I would normally do, but it actually opened my eyes to not necessarily be scared of homeless people (I still won't give them money)... but, I had an interesting story to tell from talking two minutes to a corner bum.

I've realized a lot about myself already in the week I've been here. Australians are very laid back and very friendly. I'm still getting used to the whole "look right THEN left" situation, but I haven't been hit by a car yet, so this is a plus! Other than that, it's really pretty similar to back home. They are a nice combination between Europe and America.

I'm still job hunting, but I could possibly have a job or two... I will find out tomorrow. Fingers crossed! Also, I went to the aquarium today and will share pictures soon! It was cool to see animals way different than back home! Of course, I have pictures of the opera house too. :)

Now that you've gotten a glimpse into the last (crazy) week, I'm off to go to bed. I move out to Coogee tomorrow, which is about 30 minutes southeast of Sydney. I'm ready for the beach, because it will be a nice break from the hot, sweaty city!

Cheers!
Michaela