Last Evening.

Watchin the sunset last night! 

Our nightly workout at the wooden gym at sunset!

No Singlets.

I originally came to Perth wanting to get an apartment and finally unpack my suitcase.  But then I realized that I actually love the backpacker lifestyle, mostly because I am never alone if I don't want to be.  There is always someone in the tv room, the cafe next door, the movie room, going for a jog on the beach, going into town, cooking, eating, etc...  I love that! I can always walk 10 steps away and be on the beach in solitude if I want (see above), but I don't need too much time alone, just enough to sort my thoughts out.

Yesterday evening, a group of us wanted to work out, so we all went to the beach gym & did a little workout sesh at sunset.  Tonight, I am teaching everyone pilates on the beach. Sure, it can get annoying that I sleep on a top bunk in a room with 7 other people, or that my clothes are still in my suitcase, or that I have to lock up my plate and silverware so no one steals it... but that's worth it to me to have all these amazing people from all over the world around me.  

What I am currently LOVING about life right now:

Workout Sessions @ sunset

Planning my birthday

Seeing Marty Party (my puppy) lookalikes on the beach

Raisin Toast (such a luxury)

P.S. I Love You

An Aussie TV show called "Balls of Steel"

Free BBQ in the courtyard tonight

Best worship song ever: Kari Jobe-Revelation

Meeting new people every day

Teaching my Taiwanese roommate english

Bonfire beach parties

Watermelon, Apple, & Strawberry juice

Realizing that this sign made sense to me without even trying:

Translation: 

No flip flops

No tank tops

No bathing suits

You need your passport if you want to get in here, American!

P.S. I Love Ireland

I decided to finally watch P.S. I Love You.  My friends have been begging me to watch it for years now, and I always refused because I knew that it was sad.  Well, it was, but also it has a happy ending which makes it okay!  It made me think of my trip in 2008 to Ireland and miss it just a bit.  A lot of my friends in Perth are Irish and Scottish, and I absolutely cannot get enough of their awesome accents!

P.S. I Love You was one of those movies that makes you rethink your priorities in life and appreciate those that you love.  It also makes me want to follow my dreams and live my life to the fullest! I am so happy that here I am, in Australia, exactly where I want to be, traveling the world and discovering myself in this fantastic little town called Cottesloe.  I just hope that I can inspire everyone I love to do the same because this trip has truly changed my life and my perspective on life.  I truly believe that life is meant to be lived and not just rehearsed as it was back home, and that is one thing I can carry with me wherever I end up in this world.

This park was in the movie...

Beachy Winter.

There really is no place in the world I would rather be right now.  I wish I could find a way to live here forever.  I am determined to find a way.  Spent the day going to job interviews, watching the surfers, and laying out at the beach.  The first picture is the view from my awesomely huge window, and the beach is literally across the street.  I couldn't wish for anything more!

Italy in OZ.

Pizza has been my favorite food since I can remember, so I pride myself on knowing a good pizza when I taste it.  

So, here's my little (but BIG) secret.  When I lived in Italy I searched for the best pizza in Rome, and I found it.  It's a local secret in the smallest pizza shop ever, but it is truly the best pizza in the world.  I can't imagine anything yummier. You have to shout and push people to get your order in, stand up while you eat it, and it is always super-packed in there...but trust me it is always worth it. So, if you ever go to Italy, make sure you stop by this un-named pizza shop to experience the best pizza in all of Rome.

BEST PIZZA EVER:

Via Giacinto Carini, 42

00152 Roma, Italy


...but now that I am in Australia, I am on a hunt for the best pizza here:

Apparently its a big problem... people asking for pineapple on the pizzas.  We had to laugh at this ridiculously serious sign, and it took everything in me not to ask for pineapple on our pizza.  I'm pretty sure they would've thrown me out though.

Caffe Dell'Isola on Magnetic Island

Kangaroo Pizza @ The Australian Hotel in Sydney

(so amazingly yummy but i wanted to cry while i was eating it b/c of the cute little kangaroos)

These are my 2 favorite pizzas in Australia... so far :)

Repeat After Me I AM FREE.

Loving right now: 

The lyrics to Benny Benassi- Cinema

Strawberries & Passionfruit yoghurt

Listening to kookaburras laugh

My new Lumix DMC-FT10 Underwater camera

(Electric blue to remind me of my car)

Pear cider

Nighttime yoga on the beach

Watching the sunset on the ocean from my window

Perth & Sunset.

 Do you know what my favorite part about moving to Western Australia is?  The sunsets on the ocean.  I can't think of a more beautiful thing in life.

Sydney Must-Do's

Kangaroo Pizza @ The Australian Hotel

Potato Wedges w/ sour cream & chili sauce @ The Opera Bar (the bar under the Opera House)

A sunset glass of house red @ The Glenmore Hotel Rooftop, which overlooks the city & the Opera house

A day of shopping @ The Queen Victoria Building (QVB) & Paddy's Market in China Town

Wandering the Botanic Gardens

OzParty Bus & OzParty Cruise

Eat a Bondi Burger @ Bondi Beach

Walk across the Harbour Bridge to Luna Park

Back Home to Sydney.

I returned to my first love, Sydney, and I fell in love all over again.  This time I am with my twinzies, and it's a whole new experience.  I remember the difficulty to post blogs in Sydney, as well.  Life is amazing, but its bitter sweet because an end is coming to this part of my trip.  My friends will be heading home soon, and I will be moving all the way across to the other side of Australia to start a job, get an apartment, and start over making friends again.  Sydney is as beautiful as ever, even during the winter and I have concluded that Australians are a bunch of wooses when it comes to cold weather.  It's not cold. It's perfectly warm, yet to an Aussie this is "freezing."  I am still in my shorts and tank tops and that's all that matters to me. 

Last night, we went dancing at this very expensive local nightclub called Home.  All I did was email a bunch of clubs that my friends and I couldnt afford to get in ($30 cover). Home replied right away, let us in for free and treated us like VIP all night long.  The venue was absolutely beautiful, and it was great to experience the night life in Sydney like a true local.

Today, we are leaving Cairns, Australia.  It is such an amazing place and it has been a great 2 weeks.  This north, you can't go to the beach, so we spent our time having fun in other ways.  We had barbies, played on the amazing playgrounds, and laid at the lagoon all day long. America has nothing on Australian playgrounds.  The Aussies have it down. I turn into a little kid again trying out the different things.  I am looking forward to going back to Sydney, my first love, but I will miss the warm weather during this Australian winter.  My money from working back home is dwindling, and it is time to find a real job soon.  So, I am flying to the west coast after 2 weeks in Sydney to try to get sponsored so that I can stay here forever.