Let me start off by telling you all that I finished my three finals, they went very well, and I'm on easy street until we head back stateside. :)
Anyway, back to my adventures. When talking to anyone in Australia about where I should go and what I should see I don't think a single person didn't say Byron Bay. So with one weekend left to travel, I decided that I was going to Byron Bay. I rented my first car as a 21yo, and told all of my friends that they were welcome to come and the car was on me. Sadly, because of finals and cashflow, almost no one could come. Thankfully, Lauren was able to come... so per usual, I had my travel buddy! After I went downtown and rented the car, Lauren and I had a leisurely morning in Toowoomba, got in the car, and headed south towards Byron Bay. Having a car to go places in Australia is such a simple luxury and it made me realize how much I miss my car.
The drive down to Byron was beautiful! Bright blue skies and an abundance of sun... until we got to Byron. Clearly. As we were heading south we saw this WALL of black clouds... which basically started about 1km north of Byron. However, even though it poured rain for most of the weekend, it was sunny in the times that we needed it, so all was well. Byron is basically a huge hippie/surf town. Everyone there has dreadlocks and is so laid back. It was perfect.
Our friend from UVM, Melissa - who studied in Perth this semester, had just been in Cairns for the last few days before this and was flying down to meet us in Byron, hang out there, and then come back to spend her last few days in Australia with us in Toowoomba... poor soul. It was so nice to see Melissa, as we hadn't seen her since we went to Sydney in March. I had forgotten how long ago it was when we went to Sydney, and that's when it first hit me that this semester was nearly over and I couldn't believe it.
In Byron we walked around through all of the shops, ate almost every meal out, went out, visited the lighthouse and the easterly most point in the Australian mainland, and also remembered our skills learned in Surfer's Paradise, rented a board, and did some surfing. It was just a few days in Byron, but it really was fun. Because it rains there almost all the time, it was so incredibly green. The lighthouse was very neat, and being on a hill, it provided for some beautiful views of the coast and the whales migrating. It was so nice. We also tried our hand at surfing again, which was pretty good actually. I was pleased that I remembered how and was still slightly able. Even with the rain, Byron was a great town and we had a good few days there.
Melissa came back home with us and spent her last weekend in Toowoomba, before flying to Sydney for a day to go home. She was lucky enough to ride on the TT Coaches on her way to Brisbane. Clearly we couldn't send her home without a ride in one of their death traps. Sorry if this bit about Byron was flighty... I just really want to blog about this next bit and can't think of much else right now.
Last night at 8pm we had a severe realization that things can go wrong, and do, and one minute you're having fun in Toowoomba, and the next you are on a flight back to Germany. Our roommate Alex got a call from home last night telling him that his dad's cancer was back and it had spread. The doctor said he might have two weeks, maybe two months, they didn't know. Watching Alex get this news really hit home. It brought us so close to pain and the realization that this could have been any of our family members. What seems like such an amazing semester, could have been ripped out from under any of us at any point. Alex was meant to meet his friend from Germany in a week and spend two weeks driving around Australia. However, he decided that he needed to be home. We all seemed to know what needed to be done. Casey and Michelle packed Alex's entire room, Lauren packed snacks, Steffen did so many logistical things that we never would have thought about, Stephanie started baking, Trina took care of Alex, and I booked him a new flight for Germany at 2am. This was our first test as a group of friends with something as serious and sad as this. I was so proud of us and how everyone did what needed to be done.
The worst part of all of this, is that Alex (and us), weren't intending for this to happen. His exit was unanticipated and we never had time to process it. He got the call at 8 and we were in the car to Brisbane by 10. It was a whirlwind of emotion and I was just not prepared for it. As he was walking through security, those of us that took him to the airport realized that we wouldn't be seeing him in quite a while, and never again in unit 73 of The Village. This is when it hit me that this semester is ending almost immediately. Sure, I knew that it was only a few days until I went home, but I guess I didn't realize that I am not going to see all of these new friends I've made... in quite a while. I'm probably going to be a wreck when it's time for the others to start going. Everyone here has become my family and some of my closest friends. Not seeing them everyday is going to be harder to get used to than coming to Australia in the first point.
This whole Alex thing instilled in me that even though you may have all of these plans, you can't control what actually happens in life. This wasn't how he was supposed to leave Toowoomba, and our weekend will be weird without him. However, we'll make it work, because we have to. My thoughts are with Alex and his family, and I am so incredibly thankful for my family's health.
Hope all is well at home!
Miss you all!
(4 days)
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