Love at first sight

One word: speechless. If the next four and a half months didn't get any better than today, it would still be the most delightful time of my life. When I imagined the ideal place to go to college I pictured a beach, an apartment with friends, a city, and of course classes ---- but after today, Coogee has completely blown my dreams out of the water. Not only am I living in a quaint, vintage-like apartment with three nice girls, I am also one block away from an overload of restaurants, bars, fish shacks, the beach, a running path along the cliffs on the beach, and tons of overly friendly and bubbly Australians.

Just a few days ago I arrived in Sydney. Lucky me I slept the entire 14 hour plane ride and woke up on the other side of the world. Downtown Sydney is actually much more European looking than I imagined- cobblestone alleys with cafes and cute shops. The city is incredibly diverse, there are people from all over the world walking down the streets. And every single person I have talked to has been friendly and seems genuinely pleased to talk to me. I can already tell that this is my kind of lifestyle.

The last few days have been spent exploring the city's historical landmarks, hiking in the Blue mountains, taking the steepest railway in the entire world partway down the Blue mountains, feeding kangaroos and koalas, learning how to avoid snakes and cockroaches, trying vegemite on buttered toast (bleugh!), drinking local wine on the revolving 47th floor of a building, shopping in the underground mall, randomly running into a friend from Canada who is vacationing with her family in Australia, and being mesmerized by the Australian accent.

But today, Sunday July 8th, was the first day I felt truly settled in. After moving into my apartment and unpacking my suitcases, I decided to go on a run while my roommates napped. I saw a path running along the beach as we pulled into Coogee this morning and decided to wander around there. Little did I know that this path follows possibly the most beautiful scenic areas in the world. Waves crashed into the high cliffs beside me as I ran for a few miles into complete brisk sunshine (it is the winter season here after all). No words to describe this place would do it justice. All I can think of is that looking around made me want to cry. And as I looked around even more, I finally understood what people meant when they said they've found what they've been searching for all along. So Mom and Dad - sorry, but I don't think I'm ever coming home.