Copenhagen

SO. MANY. BIKES.

The Norwegian Embassy after the attack

Lars surveying his kingdom from the top of Kronborg Castle

Nyhavn

The Little Mermaid

Outside Kronborg Castle

Nyhavn

Tivoli

Malmö, Sweden

Mixed use, high density neighborhood- Western Harbor

Turning Torso- Western Harbor

Central Station

Frankfurt

Frankfurt

Frankfurt

Opera House - Downtown Frankfurt

Classic dinosaur photo in front of the Museum of Natural Science

Frankfurt skyline from the Palmgarten

Isssllaaannnndd

Rift valley near the European and North American tectonic plate boundary

Icelandic horses

Golden Circle Tour

Geyser Park geothermal pool (No filters, no enhancements, no nothing... This is the real color!)

Reykjavik, Iceland

Reykjavik, Iceland

Vancouver

Downtown Vancouver

On the Sea Wall trail to Stanley Park

Vancouver Aquarium

On the Sea Wall trail to Stanley Park

1/4 of the way to conquering the Grouse Grind, Grouse Mountain- North Vancouver

Gastown

Keep Portland Weird

NE Portland

NE Portland

Wagon cult, NE Portland

Downtown Portland (I think "KANGAROOS" is referring to Oz)

With Savannah at Multnomah Falls

Never Made it to Those Damn Blue Mountains

I’ve been pining for Australia since my plane lifted off the ground. While I couldn't have asked for a more captivating and vibrant yet perfectly livable city, I have to admit that my time here was made by the people I met. It's a beautiful thing that strangers can become family over the course of just a few months. The people I lived, traveled, and grew with are sure to be friends for more than just our time abroad. And the things we did together, well, we could think of them as once in a lifetime experiences... or, we could think of them a little differently... Cheers to that, mates, and until next time, Oz!

My last Sydney post:

Well, this is perfect... Taronga Zoo

Roos at the Taronga Zoo

Sydney, Australia

It became the running joke in my house -- every weekend I would make tentative plans for a trip to the Blue Mountains, a beautiful mountain region a mere 75 kilometers from Sydney. I had big plans for a trip the Monday before I left Sydney... but as usual, I became distracted doing other things and they never materialized.

However, I was able to check a few last minute things of my Sydney to do list:

• Pancakes on the Rocks, THE breakfast place in the Rocks - While my stomach was still reeling from my jaunt to Cambodia, the few bites I could manage from this Sydney-must were delicious.
• The Taronga Zoo is on an island in the Sydney harbour, meaning we had to take the "Zoo Express" ferry to get there. As with any Sydney ferry, the views of the city were lovely... and in this case, an added bonus to the zoo admission ticket. The highlight of the zoo was the silverback gorilla. We saw him at feeding time and he was very impressive.
• The Harbor Bridge- I didn't "climb" it but I did walk across part of it... a magnificent display of architecture and some of the best views in Sydney.

People always say that everything comes full circle. This week, I would have to agree... my stay in Sydney ended exactly where it started: at the Coogee Bay Hotel.

Cambodia

Rachel and I with San and his tuk tuk

Sunrise at Angkor Wat

Tuol Sleng genocide museum

Royal Palace grounds

Monks!

National Museum

With the combination of (relatively) cheap flights, friends in Phnom Penh, no final exams, and my desire to see southeast Asia, Cambodia was practically begging me to visit. Two days after returning from Cairns I repacked my backpack and took off to Phnom Penh. After connecting in Guangzhou, I arrived in Cambodia on Tuesday. I waited for Chelsea and Rachel at our guesthouse and after our long-awaited reunion (I hadn’t seen Rachel since December and Chelsea since January), we had a delicious dinner at the charming but inexpensive Khmer Surin restaurant.

Day 2 Wednesday- Since Chelsea and Rachel had to work all day, I explored Phnom Penh on my own. My first stop was the National Museum, which contained the most Buddha statues I’ve ever seen in one place. I wandered around Phnom Penh and eventually found myself in Wat Ounalom where I made friends with one of the monks. Since I was close to the neighborhood of the Central Market, I poked around there for a while before heading back toward the waterfront to see the Royal Palace. Even though some of it was under construction the compound was still quite beautiful.

Day 3 Thursday- I started my day at Tuol Sleng, the infamous torture prison used during the reign of the Khmer Rouge. It was horrible. They've left the rooms just as they were at the height of the regime in the late 1970s. Each room has a bed and some sort of torture device. On the wall is a photograph of someone post-torture in the very same room. Some of the rooms have wall-to-wall before and after photographs of some of the 21,000 torture victims. Most of those victims were trucked off to the Choeung Ek “killing fields.” Lying about 20 km outside the city, Choeung Ek was my next stop. There, visitors tour the dozens of mass graves. Bones still surface in the rainy season.

Day 4 Friday- Since today was a national holiday and Chelsea and Rachel didn’t have to work, we took the 10:00 am bus to Siem Reap. As soon as we got there we met San, who would be our driver for all of the temples the next day. We went into town for a delicious meal (and 2 for 1 drinks!) at a beautiful Khmer barbecue restaurant. If I remember correctly, 3 dinners, 8 drinks, and 1 dessert was $38.

Day 5 Saturday- San picked us up at 5:30 so we could see the sunrise over Angkor Wat. While the sunrise was more like dark turning gradually into grey, it was still pretty cool. I’m really glad we got such an early start because we got to see most of the temples while most of the tourists were still sleeping and while it was still cool (ish). By our 6^th or 7^th stop I was a bit templed-out and very grateful for a nice lunch. Afterward, San took us to the floating village. It was interesting to get a close look at the village’s way of life, but, meh, I couldn’t help but feel like we were paying to see poverty up close. 

Day 6 Sunday- Slow morning, then bussed all day back to Phnom Penh.

Day 7 Monday- Since I was feeling the crunch to prepare for my upcoming research trip, I worked in the apartment until lunch. I met Chelsea and Rachel at the Russian market for some shopping then went to a nice restaurant around the corner from their work. After dinner we went to the ex-pat organized “Nerd Night” which featured various speakers from the ex-pat community in Phnom Penh. 

Day 8 Tuesday- I did some more work this morning, signed up for my Wednesday cooking class, then met Chelsea and Rachel for dinner and, afterward, traditional Khmer massages. I’m not sure I would get another one. It was less like a massage and more like forced (and because I’m not flexible, painful) stretching. Anyways, it was $8 (with tip) for an hour, so it was still worth it.

Day 9 Wednesday- Today I had my Khmer cooking class. Before cooking, our group of 6 toured the local market. I saw some very bizarre things (think eggs with chicken embryos inside and snake blood). I learned how to make fried spring rolls and coconut amok. Before going back home I went to the Elsewhere Bar and pool. To celebrate my last evening, Chelsea, Rachel, and I went to the famous "Friends" Restaurant and ordered drinks and tapas.

Day 10 Thursday- Sydney mode. Really unpleasant flight (stomach not happy with my Cambodia trip) but finally made it in one piece.

Better Late than Never…?

Sydney, from the Manly ferry

Since my academic semester in Australia is now over, I think it’s about time to make a post about what I did on a daily basis.

Monday- After making breakfast, which usually consisted of toast with nutella (nutella with toast, really), and packing my lunch for the day (sandwich, fruit, granola bar), I would catch the bus around the corner at 9:30. My Australian Film and Television class began at 10 and consisted of 90 minutes of lecture followed by a film. If you're interested in reading some of my formal analyses, you can check out my portfolio online at: http://arts2062mollyhrudka.blogspot.com/

After class I usually walked to Randwick to rent a movie for a film assignment before walking back home to Coogee. I would usually go running along the Coogee to Bondi path before settling in to do some homework and make dinner. Speaking of dinner... Mom, I tried my best not to disgrace you in the 2 Kurrawa Ave kitchen. I’m not sure I’m ready for a run at Top Chef, but I definitely did more than eat Easy Mac.

Tuesday- Same morning routine except the class was Sport, Law, and International Diplomacy. At the beginning of the semester the professor assigned us a research paper, so I chose to do mine on the role of sport in development in sub-Saharan Africa. I also made a presentation on the role of sport diplomacy and international law in international efforts to end Apartheid in South Africa. Notice the trend? The class ended at 12 so I had two hours to be productive until tutorial started at 2. After that, Tuesdays ended similarly to Mondays.

Wednesday- my least favorite morning because my Terror and Religion class started at 9 and went straight until 12. To stay awake, I supplemented my breakfast with a chai tea latte from the uni café. It was for this class that I wrote my study abroad crowning achievement: July 2010 Kampala World Cup Bombings- an Example of Religious Nationalism Confronting the Secular State. After a 30-minute lunch I headed to the science building on campus that houses the National Centre in HIV Social Research. Every Wednesday afternoon I worked with two research advisors on a viral kinship project. I read, analyzed, and coded interviews, then co-authored a paper that was presented in Durban South Africa in June. I really enjoyed my time working at the NCHSR because I was able to further my knowledge of the endlessly fascinating topic of HIV that I was first exposed to last summer in Uganda.

Thursday- already in weekend mode. A History of Medicine started at 11 and went to 1, and tutorial began at 2 and finished at 3. I didn’t really produce any noteworthy work in this class because I was normally doing it in class, right before it was due. After the walk home I usually kicked the weekend off with a long run along the Coogee to Bondi walk.

Friday, Saturday, Sunday- When it was nice and warm out, I tried to go to the beach as often as possible but when it wasn’t, Sydney still offered many possibilities. One day a few of us took the ferry to Manly and did the beautiful Manly to Spit Bridge walk. No sign of the Manly penguins, though! On the weekend that Dad visited, we went up to the top of the Sydney tower, walked through the Botanical Gardens, and saw Much Ado About Nothing at the Opera House. One rainy afternoon the girls in my house took a trip to Paddington and Paddy’s markets. Of course, most of the weekend’s action took place at night. While Sydney’s nightlife was frustrating at times (dress codes, entry refusals, early hours, etc) I really liked how the bars in each part of the city had a different character.

Cairns and Magnetic Island

Classic dino photo- Townsville

Arthur's Bay, Magnetic Island

Millaa Millaa Falls in the Atherton Tablelands

Pre-skydiving!

Nudie Beach, Fitzroy Island, Australia

Day 1 Friday: We arrived in Cairns after dark and navigated our way to the local favorite Green Ant Cantina, the closest thing to real Mexican food I’ve had since leaving North Carolina.

Day 2 Saturday: Got an early start to the day on the Passions of Paradise Great Barrier Reef tour. The Catamaran took us to two snorkeling spots. The best site was Michelmas Cay, but it wasn’t nearly as good as the snorkeling I did on Lady Elliot Island. The reef off of Cairns has seen a lot of use over the years and it showed in the less vibrant colors and spots of damaged reef. I did get to see more turtles, though, which is exciting no matter how many of them I have already seen.

Day 3 Sunday: I can’t think of how I’d rather spend a Sunday than relaxing on nearly empty Nudie beach on Fitzroy Island. The snorkeling wasn’t any good, but the beach and weather were beautiful all day.

Day 4 Monday: Skydiving! Such a rush, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I was last to jump out of the plane so I got to see everyone else go before I did... terrifying. We dove from about 14,000 feet so I had about a minute of freefall. It felt like 15 seconds. A truly awesome experience… better than bungee jumping. We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing at the Cairns lagoon.

Day 5 Tuesday: I knew I wanted to do a tour of the rainforest that surrounds Cairns, but it was hesitantly that I signed up for Uncle Brian’s tour. The brochure made me a bit skeptical that it would be some sort of hippie adventure. As it turned out, this was my favorite day from the whole trip. Our guide, Cousin Brad, was fantastic. We had a couple of long stretches on the bus, but he made them go by in no time… he was quite the entertainer. Our tour took us through the Atherton Tablelands, a fertile plateau that is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland. We slid down natural rock slides, swam under the famous Millaa Milllaa Falls, and in a volcano. At the last stop of the day I finally saw a platypus.

Day 6 Wednesday: Today was mostly a travel day. We took the Greyhound from Cairns to Townsville then the ferry to Magnetic Island.

Day 7 Thursday: We walked from our hostel first to Florence Bay then to Arthur’s Bay. The snorkeling wasn’t special at either bay, but the beaches at both were nice. We ended the day trying to snorkel at Horseshoe bay but gave up due to extremely poor visibility and cold water.

Day 8 Friday: First rainy day all trip. We hiked up to the old World War II forts on Magnetic Island. The highlight was seeing wild koalas.

Day 9 Saturday: Another travel day. We had a bit of a layover in Townsville but we found a neat little café and played Star Wars chess until it was time to go to the airport. Made good time back to Coogee to make Lars’ last night in Sydney celebration.

Sweet as! An Adventure in New Zealand

Milford Sound

In front of the MV Sinbad, our boat for the Milford Sound Cruise

Looking down into the valley from the top of Franz Josef glacier

Hell's Gate- Rotorua

Blackwater rafting and caving- Waitomo

After many months of planning, calling, consulting, booking, canceling, and rebooking, New Zealand finally happened. While my trip to Kiwiland was probably the least relaxing spring break I have ever had, the adventure was extremely fulfilling and worth every second of the painstaking planning.

Molly and I decided that we wanted to do New Zealand our way, which meant designing our own itinerary rather than signing up for an organized tour. We also wanted to go to both the north island and the south island, an ambitious plan which evoked questionable responses from our friends and travel advisors. While the north island doesn't have the same high-thrill, unashamedly touristy appeal as its southern sister does, I would make the same choice to go north a hundred times over.

Day 1: We discovered Sydney's darkest transportation secret and took the 400 bus to the airport instead of succumbing to outrageous cab fares. We thought we budgeted our time perfectly, arriving at the airport 2 hours before our scheduled flight time. As always, the airport had other plans. Upon arrival we were greeted by a menacing, 100-meter queue. We only just made it. Not good for our already anxious nerves. After a flight full of screaming babies, we landed safely in Auckland. We checked into our hostel then went up to the top of the Sky Tower for stunning views of Auckland at night.

Day 2: We took a bus from Auckland to Waitomo, a tiny town famous for its glow worm caves. Of course, we decided that walking through the caves would be too boring. Instead, we donned wetsuits and innertubed/crawled through them. This was hands down the coolest thing I did in New Zealand. We jumped off water falls and coasted through pitch black caves, with only the glow worms lighting the way. Nerdy side note: the glow things are not actually worms; they're fly larvae. They glow because their waste product is oxidized. So basically I got excited about shiny maggot shit. Cool. After our 3 hour "Black Labyrinth" tour, we dried off and hopped on the bus to Rotorua. Upon arrival, we were immediately greeted with the horrifying rotten-egg stench of the area's sulfur springs. Unfortunately, the stench didn't stay in Rotorua, it clung to us for the rest of the trip. In fact, some of my tshirts still have a hint of noxious gas... extra pleasant!

Day 3: After poking around Rotorua in the morning and finding nothing exciting besides a Costco-like grocery store, Molly and I went to Hell's Gate- an active geothermal site (and spa.) After walking around the various geysers, bubbling mud pits, and sulfur pools, we soaked in a sulfur mud bath.

Day 4: Hello south island! We flew to Christ Church then shuttled to our hostel, one of only a few left standing after the earthquake. We walked around where we could... the city was absolutely devastated. The entire CBD was fenced off. All the buildings inside were completely destroyed and most outside showed at least some damage. It was also Easter Sunday so literally nothing but the McDonald's and the Denny's (yes, Denny's!!!) was open. Molly and I treated ourselves to a lovely Easter dinner at Denny's.

Day 5: We spent all day bussing to Queenstown. The drive there was absolutely stunning. We arrived just in time to sign up for the hostel's pub crawl at 9. (Phew.)

Day 6: Today we headed up the west coast to the glacier town called Franz Josef... another very scenic drive. We had intentions of going to see the kiwi bird habitat down the road from our hostel, but instead we walked around town and went to bed early.

Day 7: All day glacier hike. SO COOL. We donned our crampons and trekked all over and through the Franz Josef glacier. The rushing water we found halfway up was so pure we could drink it straight from the ground. We crawled through tunnels, shimmied through crevices, and climbed up ice walls. Needless to say, our hostel's hot tub was much needed after 7 hours on the ice. After a full recovery we went "out" with friends to the hostel's bar for a fun evening of questionable Kiwi bar games, English hooliganism, and Swedish card tricks.

Day 8: This morning we took the bus back to Queenstown- again stunning. We arrived early enough to see some of Queenstown during the day... it really reminded me of Breckenridge (and I suppose most other North American ski villages.) We spent a low key night watching Zoolander in the hostel with some friends we met in Franz Josef.

Day 9: Day trip to Milford Sound. Easily the most beautiful scenery in all of New Zealand. We cruised along the sound (which is actually a fjord) all the way to the Tasman Sea. When we got back to Queenstown, we ate at the famous Fergburger and arrived at the hostel just in time to watch the Royal Wedding (Kate!!!) with about a hundred excited Brits. "Oh Queeeniieeeeeee!

Day 10: Bus back to Christ Church, officially entered home mode.

Day 11: We went to the airport a few hours early to satiate our nerdy tendencies and sit at a cafe to get some work done. After two flights and what seemed like the longest day in the world we finally arrived home in Coogee.

Yes, Coogee is officially home.