The Petrea's are HERE!

Soooo Mom and Doris are HERE! I can’t describe to you the emotions running through my head driving to Sydney international airport to pick them up. My stomach filled with butterflies at 11:25am because I knew they had landed and were now in “my country”.  I knew they were now looking at the same sun (not the moon from the day before) and the same watch (not 16 hours behind) as I had been for the last 5 months. Unfortunately, after getting lost in the city searching for a train station to drop Jackie off (who had an exam in an hour) we were running late to get the Petrea crew from the gate. I was disappointed I wasn’t able to stand at the gate as planned holding my homemade sign which read “Welcome to the WONDERFUL land of Aus”.  However, I was so excited to finally see my “moms” (as I have begun to call my “female parents” over here) I didn’t let the regret of being late stand in my way. As I ran to the gate with them in my site, tears started to pour and my heart was beating so fast. It was seriously a feeling I had never had before. It was so good to finally see my mom off the computer screen and in to my everyday life again. We hugged..and hugged…and hugged and after that we all hugged some more. After the ten minute hugging and crying sesh it was time for introductions. Mom and Doris met Ben and Doris got the chance to meet Jackie for the first time before she caught the train to take her exam. It was a very emotional but exciting greeting and feelings I will remember for the rest of my life. We were then off to the car to begin our journeys.

                Of course the weather was, excuse my French or habit of Australian culture… shit. It was rainy and windy and you could see a meter in front of you because of the dense fog. But we definitely made the best out of the day and it didn’t seem to bother Doris or mom one bit. They kept talking about how beautiful it was and were taking pictures of everything (I’m not sure what they were looking at). Ben and I took them for their first “chicken snitty” at blackbird café in Darling Harbor. We then walked through the famous Patty’s Market followed by a drive over the harbor bridge (they loved that). We pulled down to a lookout by the harbor where they were able to get their first view of the famous Sydney landmarks all in one frame (the harbor bridge and opera house). They snapped pictures and ooh and ahh and we were off to sit in Sydney 5oclock traffic for 2 hours on our way to Wollongong. Welcome to Sydney folks.

                After a good night’s rest and the start of a BEAUTIFUL summer day in Wollongong, I brought breakfast to the hotel and took mom to North beach for her first Pacific swim. It was a bit chilly but she soon realized the strength of the Aussie sun and warmed up in no time. I then took the crew to my “uni” which I have been studying at during my stay here. They loved the campus and couldn’t get enough of all the different birds and plants (thank gosh uni is out for the summer so I was able to let them be the tourists they so desired). We then took a 30 minute road trip north to show them the famous Sea Cliff Bridge and Stanwell Park. It was so good to hear their reactions and to know they have the same appreciation of Australia’s natural beauty as I do. We finished off the evening with a Thai dinner (very common here in Aus).



View from Stanwell Park

Saturday was a big day and if you have not seen some of these places we visited I highly suggest looking them up. We first drove and hour and a half south to a town called Huskisson(known as the heart of Jervis Bay. Here Ben and I introduced them to their first Australian meat pies and sausage rolls at the famous Huskisson Bakery (known for their meat pies since the 30s). We taught them how to spread the “tommy sauce” (tomato sauce/ketchup) on the top of the pies with your finger (I caught mom and Doris cheating and using knifes). We explained that eating a meat pie is not an easy task and it needed to be done carefully and skillfully so the steaming hot slabs of steak and gravy don’t fall on to fingers or go to waste on your plate. After lunch we headed to our main destination: Hyams Beach. I’m sure you have already seen pictures from my previous visits to this beach but to jog your memory it is the one with crystal blue water and known for having the whitest sand in the world. Mom and Doris were shocked to say the least. After enough fun in the sun and water we headed back to Wollongong, with pit stops at the well known Kiama blowhole and the Mt. Kiera lookout at sunset. Even though I had been to all of these places before the beauty doesn’t wear away and the expressions on Mom and Doris’s made it very worthwhile. They are very lucky ladies to see all of the sights they saw in two days. I have MANY friends who studied at the same uni as I and still haven’t made it to half of those beautiful places.    

The crew at Hyams Beach

                Sunday morning was a stressful start. I was in the mist of packing up my room (and attempting to fit it in to two bags…that was a joke) and saying goodbye to some very close friends I didn’t know I would ever see again. It was hard to balance the excitement of mom and Doris being here and the sadness of leaving the town that I love and the people I love even more. The last three days I had been juggling spending time with my friends before leaving and showing Doris and mom around the town and nearby areas I knew they would enjoy. Thankfully I will be seeing most of my good friends again to celebrate my 21^st birthday in Sydney when I fly back from Heron Island.  After checking out of the hotel and saying goodbye to Wollongong we headed to Sydney to spend the day and night before our Monday morning flight to Ayers Rock (Northern Territory). 

                Upon arrival mom and Doris toured the opera house and I caught up on some MUCH needed sleep at the hotel. I met them in Circular Queue around 5pm to catch the ferry in to Manly Beach. They were excited to be out in the harbor for the first time and enjoyed the different views you were able to see being on the ferry. We ate an amazing dinner at a really nice German restaurant on Manly Harbor before catching the ferry back later that night. It was good for them to see the bridge and opera house all lit up and the lights of the big city as we pulled in to the wharf. We caught the train back to the hotel for a little variety and prepared our self for our flight the next morning.

 

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                I will blog soon about our travels when I get the chance but I am sure you already know we made it to Ayres Rock safely with no troubles. Minus the unexpected rainy and cold weather (why is this a common trend with this group?). I will keep you guys posted as best as I can and can’t wait to tell everyone about all of our trips. We have a lot planned and everyone is excited for it to be put in action.

Love from down unda!

xoxo