Get Lost!

I am a firm believer in the idea that getting lost can be incredibly enjoyable when done correctly. And yes, I sometimes try to get lost. Maybe I'm adventurous. Maybe I'm crazy. Maybe I don't care which is more accurate.

So, today Elise and I decided to get lost. We made a decision to start in the morning, take the bus to Charlestown, and from there, the plan was up in the air.

Naturally, this plan included eating first. Day-to-day, I eat really simple, inexpensive, healthy meals. So, every time I eat out here, it is for dessert. If I'm going to splurge, it has to be justified. So, we started the day at Max Brenner Chocolate Bar. This place is divine.

Since it was still time for brekky (breakfast), I got banana bread. Before you verbally assault me for getting banana bread at a chocolate bar, this banana bread came with a small pot of melted, silky, glorious chocolate for dipping.

I enjoyed every single bite.

After a couple more stops in the mall, the real adventure began. We walked outside to the bus stop and hopped on the first bus that came by. We didn't even look at the bus route number. We just went.

Well, it turns out this bus route was residential, so once we got to a small shopping centre, we got off and took the next bus that came by. (This time we actually looked where it was going. It may be cheating, but we decided it was okay so we didn't go through neighborhoods again.)

This bus took us to Belmont, a quiet little suburb on Lake Macquarie. There were docks and sailboats scattered everywhere along this lake, and thanks to a bit of prior knowledge and a handy dandy iPhone compass, we knew that the sun would set over the lake later in the evening.

So, we continued on. We knew there were buses to Redhead nearby, so we decided to head there. Until yesterday, neither one of us knew what was in Redhead, but we'd seen it listed on bus routes and wanted to go to the town solely because of its cute name.

This place was gorgeous. It is home to a gorgeous beach and reddish-brown cliffs. We decided to check out the beach first, especially since we weren't sure how to get to the cliffs.

I then asked someone how to get to the cliffs, and she gave me what I later realized were very vague directions to get there. "Just take this road up the hill and then follow the roads there." WELL, it seems that there were many roads, and none of them seemed to go there.

When we'd made it to the top of the hill, it didn't feel like we'd gone far or high enough. So we walked to the end of the neighborhood. After wandering down several side streets to no avail, we came across a little path. While this did lead to one overlook of the cliffs, it didn't seem to be the right one--it was facing the wrong direction. Luckily, there was a guy at this overlook who told us about a different one that is normally for fishing.

We went in the direction of this trail only to find that it was long, winding, and through the bush. Since it also seemed like it would be the wrong overlook, we quickly gave up on that one and started walking back toward the bus stop.

We passed the same side streets on the way down, until finally we came to the very first one we'd seen on the way up. We hadn't actually gone to the end of this one because it seemed way to close to be right, but alas, this was the one.

We made it to the overlook of the beach, proud of our accomplishment, but also a touch disappointed because all of the work was for a pretty mediocre view compared to down below. It was definitely something to laugh at, though!

After just a few minutes of looking at the view, we headed back to the bus stop to head back to Belmont for sunset. This was the best decision. The sunset over the lake was gorgeous.

Once the sun was below the horizon, the sky lit up pink, and we headed to the dock. Frantically, we tried to take as many pictures of the sky as possible.

Then, we got a little silly and took "artsy" pictures.

By the time we got back from Belmont, it was roughly 8pm. It was an all-day affair, but this spontaneous adventure was one to remember!

Update: A flock of surprisingly friendly seagulls has been found. Whether they are a group of rebels or spies for the enemy seagulls remains to be seen, but I am cautiously optimistic and hope to gain them as allies.

Celebrate Good Times, Come On!

If you know my family well, you know that I was raised among people who LOVE to celebrate. Birthdays, graduations, holidays, holidays from other cultures, made up holidays, we do not discriminate in the Halford household. (I have distinct memories of celebrating National Donut Day, Canada Day, Bastille Day, and entire birthday months for each of my family members.)

It should come as no surprise, then, that I found many different things to celebrate this week. So, here it is--the breakdown of holidays that you may or may not have known about from the past week:

• September 1: The First Day of Spring (AU) aka my Australian birthday (see Spring has Sprung in Newcastle for my excuse for this one.)

• September 2: Two weeks until I leave for New Zealand! You'll obviously hear much more about this later on, but I finalized all of the plans and started a packing list for this great adventure. STAY TUNED!!!
• September 3: Australian Flag Day. Okay, this is totally a stretch, but IT IS STILL AN AUSSIE HOLIDAY.

• September 4: Fathers Day (AU)! Who knew that my dad would get TWO Fathers Days this year?! Also, in AR time, the official start of Razorback football season! (SEC Christmas, anyone?)

Apparently, in Australia, Fathers Day calls for hundreds of people to flock to a bike race?

• September 5: The anniversary of the day my parents met--24 years!!! They are pretty cool, aren't they?
• September 6: Mom's birthday eve...yes, really. 

• September 7-8: Mom's birthday. Time differences are weird. September 7th is her birthday, but since Newcastle is 15 hours ahead of Arkansas, we said her birthday began September 7th at midnight here in Australia and ends at 11:59 pm Arkansas time. But then it continues for the rest of her birthday month. Did I mention we really like birthdays?

I got to Skype in for her party!

 (I'm the one you can't see on the phone screen!)

Okay, maybe I exaggerated; most of those are not *real* holidays. Here's the thing, though (brace yourself: it's about to get real): Every day is cause for celebration. 

In my twenty years, I have learned that celebrating the little things is what makes life so special. Sure, it may seem weird to some people that I celebrate all of these silly little things. But who cares? Life's too short not to celebrate any chance you get.

So, go ahead. Buy the $15 freakshake milkshake (with a whole piece of cheesecake on top, I might add). Make that your dinner.

Take a ridiculous number of photographs. Share them with friends and family.

Get on a plane and fly across the world.

Write about what makes you happy.

Celebrate everything life has to offer, and don't take anything about it for granted. This is your life; you get one shot at it. Make it count.

Keep celebrating, friends. There is so much in the world to be happy about.

And really, stay tuned!
~oNe WeEk UnTiL nEw ZeAlAnD~

Spring has Sprung in Newcastle!

Well, it's official. It is springtime in Australia!

Today is actually the first day of spring, which to an American, seems off. Not only is it the wrong time of year for spring, but it seems like it's the wrong day. I should know, my birthday is on the first day of spring in the US (March 20th). 

When I went to Sydney a couple weeks ago, I sat next to three other young women on the train home, and they explained this to me. In Australia, they consider the first day of each season to be the first day of the month in which that season starts (March 1=autumn, June 1=winter, September 1=spring, December 1=summer). When I told them that the US goes by the equinoxes and solstices, they found that to be "rather archaic!" 

I'm more than happy to accept that it is spring, though, and today reflected that, as it was the most gorgeous, warm day. Of course, I had to go to the beach, Would you honestly expect anything different from me at this point?

It seems that I wasn't the only one who thought it would be the perfect day, as there were people paddle boarding, sun bathing, surfing, sailing, parasailing, swimming, body boarding, kayaking, and playing beach volleyball. It really was incredible. 

After a bit, I joined the sunbathers and read a book on my kindle while soaking up the warm sun rays. This only lasted about an hour because of my valiant goal of avoiding a sunburn (so far, so good!). I walked along the beach a bit more, noticing the beautiful broken shells among the sand.

Just before I left, I saw two really weird things on the sand, just beyond the surf. I still don't really know what they are, but they sure were cool to look at!

Weird, right?!

I then wandered around downtown for a bit, basically moving from park to park. It seems that the all of the spring flowers just bloomed within the past two days, and wow, are they beautiful. Maybe I'm seeing everything through the exciting lens of Australia, but it seems to me that the flowers are so much more colorful here! Take a look!

Now the real question: if my birthday is on the first day of spring, does that make today my Australian birthday? I think I'll eat some ice cream to celebrate either way. :-)