Top Ten Places We Went To

1. Rangitoto

2. Whaka Village
3. Blue Mountains
4. Great Barrier Reef
5. Opera House
6. Sydney Harbor Bridge
7. Market
8. Hanging out with friends at hotel and in cities
9. Artificial Beach
10. Ogoing

Day 10 Great Barrier Reef

Today we took a bus over to the harbor then after that we took a ship to the great barrier reef.  Once we got there we docked at a pontoon station where you could hangout feed the fish and go snorkeling off of.  Once you got your mask, flippers, and snorkel you could just hangout on the pontoon or swim.  We swam a lot and saw a lot of fish, a sea turtle and lots of coral.  The water was a little cold since it was winter there but it was a good time.  Once we were done we took the boat back home and on the way back there was a lot of people getting seasick so there was a good amount of throwing up.  Once we were back in the city we had another night to ourselves to visit the city and do whatever we wanted.  Our group ended up going to a pizza place then hanging out at the hotel. 

Day 9 Sydney to Cairns

Today we just flew from sydney to cairns, swam and hungout at the artificial beach in cairns and walked around through the city on our own.  We left for Cairns in the morning and sat in the plane for about 3 and a half hours.  Once we got there we took a coach bus to the rydges hotel, which was not very far away from the airport. There was nothing really planned for the day so we just checked into our rooms, put our bathing suits on and we all walked over to the artificial beach.  The first thing that I noticed in Cairns was that at low tide there was about all mud for 75 yards out into the ocean until it finally turned to water.  That was disappointing because it meant that we were going to spend the entire trip without staying at an actual beach.  But relaxing in the grass at the artificial beach was nice and it allowed us to stop and really take in the country at a slow pace instead of rushing through everything as we were doing before.  After that we were on our own to go eat dinner and do whatever we wanted for the rest of the night.  My group went to outback jacks and I had some kalamari for dinner.  Then afterwards we walked to the various shops and stores there until we finally headed back to the hotel.  

Day 8-Blue Mountains

Today we went on the excursion that we chose, I chose blue mountains, it was great minus the fact that it was raining the whole time.  By the end of it we were all drenched, muddy, and cold.  But I don't regret going on it for one second.

How would you be at traveling on your own?: I think that if I was forced to travel on my own I would be able to survive and get from place to place.  But I think that I've still got some problems that I would need to work out.  On this specific trip I've been able to to get from place to place easily when left alone but in those situations its on a small scale on we're told how to get there.  At the airports, I would be able to get through security and find my gate without help from somebody because I've done it so many times that its become pretty natural and easy.  I understand that you need to pick up your boarding ticket, check your bags if you aren't carrying on, go through security, and customs then find my gate.  The only thing that I would be bad at in my opinion, would be finding a place to stay in, using public transportation, and finding the specific destinations at the place I am traveling in.  For the most part I have never had to deal with any of those situations because for the most part the teachers/parents who I am traveling are in charge of that and I never have a chance to figure out how to do it on my own.

Day 7-Sydney

Today we went to visit an opal factory, went on a tour director-led sightseeing of sydney, took a cruise of sydney harbour and visited the sydney wildlife world. 

Traveling: After traveling for about a week now our group is starting to get more efficient at getting from on e place to another, however at the same time there are still some various aspects of traveling as a group that we could also improve on.  The things that we can improve on include walking on the left side of the path, walking continuously without stopping for pictures and making sure to not block other people that are trying to pass us.  Some things that we are doing good with is walking together as a group and not getting lost, adapting to changes that occur during traveling and lastly getting from one place to another in small unguided packs.  For things we could improve on the first thing is walking on the left side of the path.  Since we are all used to walking on the right side in America we have not fully adapted to the switch in this country.  When we are walking we just need to be aware of what side to walk on.  Another problem is needless stops we need to make sure that we continue to walk without stopping for pics.  There will be plenty of time for pictures once we're there.  The last problem is making sure we don't block people behind us.  Sometimes others want to pass us and we cant stop them from doing this and should be aware of whos behind us.  The things that we have been doing good as a group are walking together, adapting to changes such as weather or getting lost, and getting to certain places and eating without teacher supervision. 

Day 6 Aukland to Sydney

Today we flew in to Sydney from Auckland.  Once we got there we dropped off our bags and began to tour the city.  Today we visited the main park in the city, the Sydney tower, and went to the rocks to see the Sydney bridge, opera house, and a local market.

 Sydney Compared to other Cities:  After being in Sydney for a Day I have seen several differences between this city and other cities that I have been to in the US.  Sydney seems much more hilly and the roads seem more curvy.  The buildings are about the same style as most major cities, however there is a pretty clear difference between the old buildings there and the more modern ones that have been built.  This contrast I havn't seen in many other cities I've been to.  Also Sydney seems to have a few major tourist sites whereas chicago has multiple, small sites throughout the city.  Sydney is also more incorporated into the harbor, and its downtown is much closer to the water then chicago.  Chicago is also a much larger city and Sydney is significantly smaller but because it is smaller it appears more clean.  I might have seen one hobo while in Sydney when a lot of the time in Chicago you will see at least ten on a single trip.  If I was to choose a city that I would rather live in I would pick Sydney because of its beautiful location, its cleanliness, and it seems less chaotic and calm then many other cities in the US.   

Day 5 Rotorua Auckland

Hike and Rangitoto:  In the morning we took public transportation in order to get to the redwood forest.  By taking the bus it showed us how to take public transportation while traveling with a big group.  Once we got to the forest it was raining and we were all wet but we still made it fun and had a good time.  Even when someone was hurt and we had to seperate, we were able to continue to go on the hike and have fun.  Although we were all soaking wet and at the time we wanted nothing but to be inside and warm it was till a good experience and showed us the natural enviornment of new zealand.  Later on at Rangitoto college we got to meet some students from New Zealand who were our age.  At the dinner we got to talk to them about ours and their culture.  We got to find out how they go to school and how its different then us.  Although we're from different parts of the world and we have a lot of things that are not in common, in the end for the most part we are very similar. 

July 9th: Cultrual Experience Journal

During the second day we went on the duck tour and went to the whaka Maori village.  Both brought separate, however still important cultural experiences.  During the duck tour we got a more nature oriented experience and at the village we learned more about the actual Maori culture.  At the duck tour we drove to the lake and all the while we learned about various aspects of the birds and objects in rotorua.  We learned about the pookeycoos, saw the govt. gardens, among various other things.  Once we actually got to the lake it was mostly foggy and could barley see anything but we learned about how the lake was named after a necklace that was dropped and lost in it.  The Maoris don't believe that the necklace should be taken out.  We then learned about the green lake which the Maori use to bathe their dead.  It is for forbidden to go into the lake and there has been times where people that go on it have strange things happen to them.  Later we went to the Maori village and got to see how the Maori have lived for years before.  We say how they utilized the natural hot springs for their daily lives.  They use it to cook their food, bathe, and even use the mud to use as healing lotion for rheumatoid arthritis.  We also saw how the architecture of their main buildings  correspond with their culture and some history of their people. 

June 8th: First day at Aukland

Journal, First Impression, Cultural Shock, Most Excited: As I first arrived in new Zealand nothing seemed much different inside the airport since it was pretty westernized with McDonalds and KFC.  Once we walked outside though I started to actually feel like we were in a foreign country.  The different climate environment and overall look and feel seemed just completely different.  Once spending more time here I actually began to notice the different aspects of their culture and get the cultural shock.  The first cultural difference I noticed was the presence of the Maori culture.  It as present every where we went.  At the airport, the jade factory, and many other places.  Then there was how all the cars drove on the left side of the road instead of the right.  Driving like that seemed completely unnatural and I'm still having trouble getting used to it.  Lastly the terrible stench from the geothermal vents was the biggest shock because as we drove to rotarua the terrible rotten egg smell seemed absolutely disgusting and I had no idea on how the people could stand the smell.  The thing I'm looking forward to the most is white water rafting, I've always wanted to do this and it'll e a good chance to experience New Zealand's wilderness in a unique way.  It seems like such a good way to do this. 

June 7th: Traveling

Today my mom dropped me off at North for the first day of traveling.  Even until this day it didn't seem real.  I waited in the school until it was time to go.  We started by loading onto a hot bus on this warm summer day to begin our drive to ohare airport.  We then waited in line for about an hour because it took so long for them to process us since their computers were down.  We went through security just like any other airplane trip and eventually we landed in LAX at night.  I don't remember the time since it was so long ago.  We did not have much time to hang around because right after that we boarded our plane to go to Aukland.  This was the longest plane ive ever been in in my life and the trip lasted forever, i slept for most of the trip on the plane and as i was sleeping we passed the international date line and I lost a day.