Leaving

So this my last post. I am sitting in JFK airport in New York with mixed feelings. My fear is that I didn't love every moment as much as I should. I know that I will experience times in the next few months (and I am sure years) where I just wished I was back at Purdue and I don't want to feel like I wasted a second. Levi will tell you for sure that I did spend a lot of time homesick, but overall I don't think I wasted a second. I feel that to not experience homesickness is an injustice to the place and people you come from.

I was asked by many on my last weekend in Purdue will I miss it? If I had left the weekend before, when it was still a bustling campus filled with my friends, then the answer would have been yes. For this reason I think it was very good that I left after everyone else did. I was also asked if I enjoyed my time in Indiana and could I live there – surprisingly the answer to both of those questions is yes. I would have never thought that I would actually like living in a small town. I have realised that the single most important factor for me is not the amount of department stores, restaurants or entertainment options an area has, but the people that make up that community. I couldn't have asked for nicer friends and acquaintances than those I found in Indiana.

Going on exchange has been a truly amazing experience – one for which I am definitely a better person!

Goodbye Shreve.

With most people finishing or finished their last exams for the semester the time had come to have one last night of fun in Shreve Hall. Sounds simple enough – 4 friends, monopoly, youtube (for all your music needs) but it is one of those nights that I will keep dear forever. It will be forever the last night I spent doing the "American college experience".

Snow!

Well it is official – I have been very lucky with the weather this year. On average, Indianapolis (I couldn't find data for Lafayette) gets just over 6 inches of snow in December, but I can personally testify to seeing about a foot on the sports fields across from Hillenbrand Hall! I do love sitting inside looking out my 7^th floor window watching the snow covered outside world (pictured above)!

Outback Steakhouse – America’s Australian Restaurant

If I had a dime for every time I was asked if we had Outback Steakhouse in Australia or if I had ever been to one here in the States, I would be a wealthy man. To sum up the experience – they basically took American food, minus hamburgers and hotdogs, plus steak and shrimp (read: prawns), did some re-naming (e.g. French Australian Fries) and Outback was born. I did really enjoy the restaurant - I had a barbequed steak and some really delicious soup! Oh and I may have told the waitress that it was Kimberly's Birthday so we got a free dessert which was huge! Kimberly's younger sister, Lauren, also joined us for this meal!

Frosty the Snowman

Building a snowman is something that I have always wanted to do! The first time I saw a snowfall of more than an inch was whilst I was in Fort Wayne at Kimberly's house.  Without hesitation Kaila (the token Californian, pictured above) and myself (the token Australian) ran outside and began work on Frosty! We may have taken over an hour and taken snow from half of Kimberly's yard but we did it! Frosty the Snowman stood at less than 2 feet tall but we were so happy!

Shopping in Fort Wayne!

Combining my favourite three activities; travel, spending time with friends and shopping, I just knew I would have a blast! Kaila, Cassie, Kimberly, Tara and I (all pictured above) started off at a craft store (where Cassie was like a kid in a candy store, or in this case a Primary School teacher in a craft store), headed around to a luxury chocolate store (where a single truffle was $2.75!) and to Vera Bradley, oh and of course hanging out with four girls meant a stop at Victoria Secret! As pictured above, the trend of outdoor malls is as big in the US as it is Australia – except we don't have Christmas trees that big!!

Fort Wayne

As it was my third consecutive weekend of travel it was great to go to a family home to just chill! Kimberly's mum, Debbie, was exceptionally welcoming and nice, but won my heart by the delicious breakfast she cooked! All in all, the weekend was a testament to wonderful Indiana hospitality! I just realised that I don't have a photo of Debbie and I :( , but this is a photo of Kimberly's home!

Black Friday

After a long day and too much food we all sat down with the dozens of Black Friday Special catalogues from all the big retailers! The massive sales started as early as 10pm on Thanksgiving Thursday! Without any sleep since 9am Thanksgiving morning we headed out in the snow and got in line (pictured above) and shopped all night! 10pm was Toys'R'Us, midnight – Old Navy, 4am – Macy's and 5am – Meijer! My best buy of the day (or night as it happened to be) was a 5 piece Tag suitcase set for $49.99 (RRP: $200). Mrs Doreen was so nice and went to JC Penny's and got Levi and I each a limited edition Mickey Mouse 2010 Christmas snow globe! I had such a blast doing it all, but a rest was in order and we were all asleep at 7am. But we did make it back out later that day to get some more bargains!

Thanksgiving

Shaina, Levi and I were picked up my Mr Craig (Shaina's dad) on Tuesday after class to make the long journey back to Detroit for Thanksgiving break. All day Wednesday was spent preparing for the feast on Thursday – Levi and my task was peeling the vegetables. It was well worth the effort, Thanksgiving dinner was amazing. There was so much food – we even had an 18lb turkey! In the traditional spirit of the day there was a TV dedicated to the numerous football matches being played across America and, for the rest of us, we had a full band and a few Guitar Hero games on another TV! It was great being in a family home – Mr Craig, Mrs Doreen, Shaina and Erica were all so welcoming!

Eastern Market

It was our last morning in DC before heading back to Indiana and Lily and I had different priorities as what to do. Lily headed to the White House Visitors' Centre and I to Eastern Market. It was really nice to get away from Government building tourist traps and see what the locals do on their weekends. The markets had everything from original works by local artists to preloved clothing. Oh, and I got an Almond Croissant there!

American Art Museum

After visiting the National Art Gallery earlier in the day, the American Art Museum had big shoes to fill! I am glad to say I enjoyed it just as much – if not more. It contained a lot more modern art pieces than the National Art Gallery, which is more my thing. It was a great way to fill in a few hours before heading back over to Foggy Bottom to meet Barbara and Jared for dinner.

Library of Congress

Normally I am not one for visiting famous libraries, but this one does hold claim to being the largest library in the World! Like all things in Washington, the main building itself is an architectural masterpiece, oh and yeah, the three buildings together do hold over 100 million items!

The Capitol Building

Home of the legislative branch (the place where Congress hangs out) of the United States Government, the Capitol Building is another must see place in Washington DC. To my surprise, not only can you stop and take photos out the front (as done above) but there is also a 1 hour guided tour of the building. This would have probably been the highlight of my entire trip. My tour guide was extremely informative and he showed us around (even inside the area below the dome!).

National Gallery of Art

Lily and I spent around two hours strolling around the National Gallery of Art admiring the beautiful works on display. Simply too many list, but if I had to pick a highlight it would be seeing my first Leonardo da Vinci painting (pictured above). 'Ginevra de' Benc' is the only da Vinci work in the United States!

Wright Brothers First Successful Airplane

In visiting the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum the highlight would have been seeing the original 1903 Wright Flyer. It is scary to think that man only discovered flight just over a hundred years ago?!

Washington Monument

First thing Saturday morning Lily and I walked down to the Washington Monument. We arrived there by 9am to secure the free (but limited!) ticket to ride the elevator to the top of the building. It is the tallest building in the city (by Federal Law no building can be taller) and stands at 555ft (170m) tall. Taking 40 years from start to completion (thanks to the Civil War) it contains stones donated by every state and some international too (including part of the ruins from the Alexandria Library in Egypt!)

Lincoln Memorial

First on our self tour of the National Mall was the Lincoln memorial at the west end. Seeing this famous statute (in an almost equally famous building featured on the $5 note) was a real "I really am in DC" moment. When inside the memorial if you turn around you can look down Reflecting Pool at the breath taking Washington Monument. It is place where Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech took place and where Elle sort advice from Abraham Lincoln's statue in Legally Blond 2 (both events equally important, obviously).

Coffee with Barbara and Jared

As it turned out, our hotel was literally 1 block from Barbara's apartment. This made finding a place convenient to meet for coffee very easy! Barbara suggested Juan Valdez Cafe on 19^th and so Lily and I (still carting around all of luggage, as check in wasn't until 3pm) made our way there. After catching up and having an iced caramel coffee, Barbara showed us the top of her residency hall, which had spectacular views of the National Mall (pictured above). I was so excited – it was the beginning of our weekend in the capital!

Pentagon Memorial

The first stop Lily and I made after arriving was the Pentagon. The centre of one of the many US Government security agencies (don't really know which one – I don't ask questions to people armed with machine guns) was highly secure. You can't really do anything at the Pentagon except walk through the memorial for those who lost their lives in the September 11 attack on the Pentagon. It was a very unique memorial. They had a bench water feature for each victim, arranged by their year of birth. The saddest moment was seeing the bench for a little boy who was born 1998 (making him a mere 3 years old at the time).

Another early morning...

As the weather starts to cool down for winter, it gets harder and harder to get on the 4.15am shuttle to the airport for my weekends away! Whilst walking to Follets West Bookstore (the pickup point) I walked through a parking lot and being -5C the cars had ice on them (pictured above).

Michigan v Purdue

My second (and last): football game didn't end with a win like my first. I am just going to say it - Purdue sucks this year. Seriously. I think we have won 2 games the whole season – and the last game of the season is in a week! But at least this game I wasn't hung over ;) Kimberly, Cameron, Levi and I decided to leave at half time – it started to rain and it was about 5C (40F)! We found shelter and warm food in Ford dinning court. Oh yeah, I told Kimberly I would give a shout out to her, so Kimberly this is it!

Epcot

Epcot is part of Disneyworld and showcases futuristic attractions (such as the mission to Mars ride – seriously the worst motion sickness I have ever experienced. I am not leaving Earth again anytime soon!) and also the international community. The park is divided into the rides and then the pavilions which showcase different parts of the world! Levi and I ventured onto Test Track - Disneyworlds fastest ride which places the riders into a 'test car' and puts them through tests that are usually reserved for test dummies (yes, yes I know I am a dummie). I checked out Australia's food stand and on the menu were Lamingtons, Lamb Chops and Barramundi. Of course and a range of our famous wines! There is also a Coke store that allows testing of various soft drinks from around the world – you can imagine that I had a ball in there! Overall I had a great day at Epcot – it is unlike any theme park I have ever visited!

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party

This Christmas party held at Magic Kingdom is simply magical. It is snowing when you walk through Main Street there are many Christmas themed shows and of course there is the Christmas parade. Nothing like it to get you in the Christmas spirit! I have to say the fireworks display (which lasted 15 minutes) would have to be the biggest I have ever seen in person! I can't wait for Christmas! Oh and there were complimentary hot chocolates and cookies :)

Universal Studios

Universal Studios was a ghost theme park - thanks to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter next door in Islands of Adventures there were virtually no lines! The park itself reminded me very much of Movie World. We saw some great shows – Beetlejuice's Graveyard Revue and Blues Brothers, but the highlight would have to have been the 'Rip, Ride and Rock it' rollercoaster. You start by choosing which song you want to listen to (there is a touch screen attached to each seat restraint) and then you begin a 180 degree climb up to the top of the rollercoaster! Throughout the ride (which seemed especially long for a rollercoaster) you are listening to the song you choose!

Universal’s Island of Adventures – including The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

It is easy to overlook all the other attractions in this park and just focus on Harry Potter. So before I do, I will mention how much I loved the Hulk Rollercoaster, Dr Seuss's World and Toon Lagoon. Now Harry Potter... I would hate to think how much this cost to build. I thought it would be a small Hogwarts Castle, a ride or 2 and a couple of stores. WRONG! It was absolutely incredible. They honestly could call it a theme park all by itself, charge $80 admission and I would be there. You could try and buy wands out, watch shows, drink some butterbeer or pumpkin juice (even dine in the Three Broomsticks), go on one of the many themed rides, buy anything Harry Potter you could think of (from Bertie Bott's Every Flavoured Beans to Hogwart's school uniforms). But, the highlight would have to be the Hogwarts Castle tour and ride. Whilst waiting in line you walk through the castle and see things like the Magic Mirror (that shows Harry his deepest desire), Dumbledore's Office, the moving staircases rooms (with all the moving paintings) and the outside garden greenhouse were they re-pot those screaming Mandrakes. And the ride itself inside the castle would have to be the best ride I have ever been on – period. Shout out for Levi who took the above photo of me and Hogwarts!

Disney World’s Magic Kingdom

When we walked through the gates there was a surreal moment looking down Main St, USA to Cinderella's Castle (read: Car-sill not Ca-sill!). But it is so hard to sum up this day – we did and experienced so much for the first time. Getting our photo taken with the characters is definitely an 'only in Disney experience' as are the street parades – both the day and night one's. I have been to a few theme parks and none are like Magic Kingdom. I can't summarise what it was – it wasn't the rides or the attractions – it was the whole package. At the risk of sounding clichéd, it really is magical and 'the happiest place on earth'.

The first morning...

After going to sleep at 2am – we were all pretty excited – we awoke at 6am to get ready for our 7.20am shuttle to Disney. Okay, so our hotel is listed as 3.3 miles from Disney and has free shuttles to there, so I thought fantastic, a 10 minute ride maybe 15 minutes max, right? Wrong. An hour after leaving we had been to Universal Studios and Sea World (both on the other side of Orlando) and we finally arrived at Magic Kingdom. So our $25.95/night total hotel wasn't the bargain it seemed. Don't get me wrong – it had huge rooms and a clean bathroom (even with 2 sinks). In hindsight, that $110/night Disney 'value' (read: 3 stars) hotel would have honestly been better – we ended up spending the best part of $200 for our return trip to the airport – a major cost that would have been avoided with Disney Resort's free shuttle. Also we could have slept in each morning till 8am and still been at the park at opening and a similar scenario at night. Oh and there is extended hours for Disney hotel guests. Yeah, so don't stay offsite for Disney. Seriously.

And so the adventure begins!

After finishing class on Friday it was a mad rush to get back to the dorm. Levi and I actually managed to leave on time for the shuttle bus – first time last week I wasn't running late. As we pulled into the PMU (Purdue Memorial Union) stop (were Lily was waiting to join us) the first snow of the season – and my first ever – began to fall from the sky. Lily and I were so excited, so naturally we pulled out our phones and updated our Facebook statuses! A short shuttle, a 2 hour flight, $75 taxi ride and we were at our hotel ready to start our Florida theme park weekend! First impressions of the hotel are very high – clean, spacious and the staff seem very friendly!

Halloween

As it turns out Halloween in America is a 4 night ordeal with parties Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights on Halloween weekend. I went to 2 frat parties and had a great time at both. Unfortunately I didn't take my camera (as my costume didn't have any pockets) but the insides were full decked out – glow paint, cobweb, skeletons and everything you can think of! Friday night I headed with Levi and Shaina to Alpha Sigma Pi where Jade had got us on the list and Saturday to Kappa Delta Rho with Shaina, Kaitlyn and Levi!

Falling for fall

Yep, as clichéd as it sounds, I am loving the fall colours! I am such a foreigner – as I walk to class I always kick the big piles of yellow, orange and red leaves. The cold weather is a bit rough, but I say bring on winter! Living in a place with four distinct seasons is so different from the Gold Coast!

Snoop Dogg Concert!

When I heard Snoop Dogg was coming to Purdue to perform on his birthday, I just had to get tickets! Lily and I went and had a fantastic time singing along to Snoops' hits (loved hearing Drop it like it's Hot live!) and of course the audience as a whole sang Happy Birthday to him. It was not as good as Lady Gaga's concert by a long shot, but I had a great time!

Cocktails & Dinner at Cloud 9

As a perfect ending to my Vancouver visit Bing took me to Cloud 9 revolving restaurant in downtown Vancouver. We started with cocktails – Bing had a Peach martini and I had a Sex in the Clouds. Followed by delicious entree, mains and layered chocolate mousse/cake with fresh strawberries! The views were fantastic, the food delicious and company perfect. All in all, a perfect end to my trip to Vancouver.

Wild Raccoons in Stanley Park

As Bing, Ben and I were walking around the lookout overlooking the Lion Gate Bridge we saw a family of wild raccoons! They were so cool – I just wanted to take them home!! Ben fed them chocolate – I still haven't googled it to see if it would have killed them (chocolate kills dogs).

Stanley Park

Bigger than New York's Central Park, Vancouver's inner city park is not surrounded by luxury condos or city skyscrapers but by water. The view looking across the water to downtown Vancouver is truly spectacular (pictured above). Bing and I are standing on the 'seawall' – a path that completely surrounds the park, originally built in 1920s and 1930s. Seeing the Totem Poles and the view of the Lion Gate Bridge leading over to West Vancouver were other highlights. I plan on budgeting a full day on my next visit - just to wonder around Stanley Park.

Karaoke

After having afternoon naps and dinner at a really nice Italian restaurant Bing and I were ready for the night to begin! After picking up Ben, out first stop was 2 hours of Karaoke! On the playlist was everything from Britney Spears' "Oops... I did it again!" to "Apologise" by Timberland (and after hearing us sing, we really did need to apologise) - we had so much fun!

Grouse Mountain

Labelled the Peak of Vancouver, Grouse Mountain is marked as a must do for all first time visitors to Vancouver. With that in mind, Aunty Janice, Bing and I headed up there with high hopes! At Bing's house the weather was a little overcast – patches of blue sky. By the time we got there (a 30 minute drive) and climbed the mountain in the skyride (pictured above) it had started to rain. We walked around in about 2°C (36°F) and rain for about 20 minutes until we made the decision to head back down. Of course by then so had everyone else and we waited for over 30 minutes in line for the skyride back down. I am sure that on a fine day or during the snow season it would be a well worth trip, but for yesterday, not so much.

Korean Barbeque

After a long day of sightseeing I was hungry and Bing suggested that we join some of her friends at a Korean Barbeque Restaurant. I have never been to one before and I was excited to try it! How it works is you order all the vegetables (which come prepared ready to eat) and then you order which meat you want. We had several different types of beef (all seasoned in different flavours), spicy pork and a range of seafood! Then in the middle of the table is a barbeque and you cook what you want (it is only small, about 30cm (12 inches) in diameter) and when the stainless steel plate gets dirty you ask the wait staff to change the place (which is a simple process of just lifting it up). The food was delicious and all in all was a great experience that I would definitely do again!

Canada Place

Originally built for the World Expo '86, Canada Place has become a national icon. Not only can you walk all the way around it, looking out at the water, Stanley Park, downtown and the Canadian Rockies in the distance, but it is also an exhibition centre and a cruise ship terminal! The photo above was taken from the nearby Harbour centre tower. In all honesty, I didn't actually walk all the way around it – but I did do most of it!

Gastown

So far my explorations in Vancouver have led me to say that Gastown is my favourite neighbourhood! This downtown 'community' features historic buildings and tree-lined streets that are scatted with hip cafes. In between the cafes and restaurants there are independent fashion boutiques – just people watching feels like you are watching a Milan fashion show runway! It very much reminds me of Haight Ashbury in San Francisco or Greenwich Village in New York. Absolutely loved the place and can't wait to go back.

Chinatown – Vancouver style!

It must be completely obvious that I love Chinatowns – I always try and make time to visit when I am in big cities.  With Vancouver's Chinatown being the largest in Canada, eh, and the second largest in North America (only after San Francisco) I just had to go there! So what is my take on Vancouver's?  I am glad you asked. I really enjoyed it. I would say it is not as safe as others I have recently visited (SF, NY, Chicago) but it has a nice charm to it. I feel like that it is less touristy and features more actual Chinese stores. According to Bing's friend Ben, the real Vancouver Chinatown isn't in Vancouver, but in a neighbouring city – Richmond. Not sure if we will get a chance to stop there on this visit but there is always next time!

Chicago Style Pizza – fresh from Giordano’s!

As famous Brooklyn is for its big slice of thin cheese pizza, Chicago
is for its thick cheese filling pizza. My first tasting of this legend
went something like this... First bite – in heaven. Second bite – this
is so good. Third bite – this has a lot of cheese?! End of second
slice – I feel sick. But it was so worth it!

Navy Pier

The highlight of my trip to Chicago would have to be riding on the
Navy Pier Ferris Wheel! It was very touristy, but it provided great
views of the city. Navy Pier is a very small amusement park with a
shopping district below. Whilst Levi and I rode the Ferris Wheel, Lily
searched for a Chicago T-shirt. The stores were kind of expensive, and
very crowded – I would very much compare it to the shopping district
at Universal City, CA. Pictured above is the view from the Ferris
Wheel with Navy Pier at the bottom and the Chicago skyline.

Millennium Park

Millennium Park is a testament to America's love of great, unique
outdoor spaces. It is to Chicago as Central Park is to New York. South
Bank to Brisbane. More than just a park it is almost an art museum.
From Cloud Gate (a.k.a 'the bean', pictured above) to Crown Fountain
and not forgetting the breath taking Wrigley Square there is so much
to do and see in Millennium Park!

The Art Institute of Chicago

Picking just a few highlights from the Art Institute of Chicago is
extremely difficult! The Thorne Miniature Rooms are a set of 68 tiny
rooms (crafted at a scale of one inch to one foot) depicting European
interiors from the 1200's to 1930 and American from 1600's to 1930.
Seeing the progression of beautiful homes and churches move through
time was incredible. Another highlight of mine would have been the
Ancient Egyptian items. I find it absolutely mind blowing looking at
articles that are thousands of years old. But the most memorable
moment would have to be seeing American Gothic, by Grant Wood
(pictured above).

Chinese Bakery!

Living about 10 minutes from Bread Top at Australia Fair means that I
have developed a resistance to delicious Chinese baked goods. Well it
isn't as easy when the bakery has egg tarts 3 for $1 and all these
buns and cakes for 40c – 80c! Levi, Lily and I stocked up on yummy
items and carried the precious cargo all over Chicago and all the way
back to West Lafayette, IN!

Chicago Chinatown

After seeing San Francisco's Chinatown I knew that it would be very
difficult for Chicago's to even compare. But even with preparing
myself for this I have to say I was still disappointed! There weren't
cheap Chicago T-shirts or postcards – it wasn't very touristy at all.
Lily and I were craving Yum Cha (or Dim Sum as it is called in the
States) and Levi had never tried it! For those of you who are not
familiar it is a traditional Chinese breakfast where you order about 3
small dishes per person and share them all around. We had my
favourite, barbecued pork buns, as well as chicken feet and so many
more that I can't quite remember/ didn't want to ask and just ate!
Yes, Yum Cha was definitely the highlight of Chinatown.

Grant Park

We begin our day in Chicago outside the Field Museum. It would have
been great to spend some time in there – they currently have the
largest, most complete, and best preserved Tyrannosaurus rex ever
discovered, Sue. But unfortunately due to time constraints we stopped
for a quick photo on the magnificent steps of the entrance and made
our way through beautiful Grant Park to the closest Metra station (the
Chicago rail system).

Booked and Booked :)

Levi, Lily and I are booked and heading to Chicago this weekend! Many things are on the schedule including going to the top of the tallest building in the United States - Willis Tower (previously, the Sears Tower). After doing some shopping and eating Yum Cha in Chinatown I think we might check out Millennium Park.

Then on the October break I am heading over to the west coast of Canada to see my favourite person in the whole of Canada, Bing!! My flight departs Indianapolis bound for Vancouver on October 9^th. Unfortunately, I have 2 stops on the way there and 1 on the way back but I am sure it will be worth it!

First American Football Game!

I had purchased my ticket and was ready to go! Of course knowing I had to get up at 9am, I made the not so wise decision to go out the night before and stumbled in at 4am. I wasn't feeling so great when we got to the stadium and couldn't stand for the first quarter, but I promise it was worth it! The atmosphere was incredible in the second row of the absolutely packed student section. Hearing everyone scream Purdue chants, like "1,2,3,4 first down, bitch!" and "Ball State HIGH SCHOOL!", it is no surprise that Ball State lost 13 to 24.

Mack’s Apples

I bought some really sweet apples here, but I didn't actually get a chance to go apple picking - I don't think Southwest Airlines would hold the plane for me - how dare they! They were honestly the best apples I have ever eaten in my entire life. I still have one on my desk as I type this :) As well as dozens of different varieties of Apples they also grow and sell pumpkins. Tahlor and Patty taught me how to pick a pumpkin! Can't wait for Halloween!

Tahlor’s House

On Sunday morning we went to Tahlor's family home – a cosy log house! It was great to meet her mum, Patty, and brother, Danny. Patty cooked us the BEST waffles ever! Some had blueberries in them!! Kept me full for my long journey home to the corn, I mean Indiana!

The Atlantic Ocean

Loved Ogunquit Beach, Maine! It was great to touch the Atlantic Ocean for the first time – really cold. And no, I didn't see the Titanic :(

White Mountains

Part of the great Appalachians (which runs all the way from Alabama to Canada) the White Mountains are one of the most spectacular sights in New England. I have never seen such a dense number of mountains. They just go on forever! My knowledgeable tour guide told me that it takes 5 months to hike from one end of the Appalachians to the other! Tahlor also told me she has climbed Mt Washington, the highest peak in Northeastern United States!