The Backpackers Packing Guide

Hello readers!

So this will likely be my last post before I fly out to New Zealand for 8 days. This list is probably more for me than it is for anyone backpacking, but it may be helpful anyways. Also, I'll let you know what our travel itinerary for spring break looks like.

Because we are staying in hostels and making several flights/bus trips over the course of the week, I'm attempting to travel light. This means a large purse that I purchased at The Reject Shop for $7. It has a lot of compartments and zips shut- and my Roots backpack. That's IT!

It's very important to maximize the little space I have, and that means only bringing essentials, such as:

1 pair of sweatpants

1 pair of jeans (which I'll likely be wearing on the flight)

1 pair of other pants

1 pair of leggings

1 bar dress+shirt for going out

1 pair of flats (so I dont have to wear sneakers to the bar)

7 pairs of underwear

7 pairs of socks

sneakers (which I'll likely be wearing)

3 t shirts/tank tops

2 sweaters +1 to wear

those little body wash/shampoos that are airplane sized

travel toothbrush/toothpaste

my insulin for my diabetes 

hairbrush

bikini

maybe some makeup, but I'm not totally sold on this idea yet. probably just mascara and a chapstick for me

wallet, kiwi money (NZ dollars), passport, ipod

OK- so this list looks super long but it's really not that much stuff to cram into a bag or layer up and wear. Rolling your clothes up instead of folding saves a ton of space.

It's also really important to know the weather so that I can pack clothes accordingly. As New Zealand is farther south it's going to be a little bit colder (15 degrees Celsius on average). Which means I can leave shorts and dresses at home.

Now for the travel itinerary:

Thursday- Fly Melbourne to Auckland on the North Island

Saturday- Bus to Taupo (where there is a great lake)

Monday- Bus to Napier

Tuesday- Canada V. Japan World Cup Rugby game in Napier

Wednesday- Fly to South Island- Queenstown

Friday- fly to Christchurch

Saturday- 6am flight back to Melbourne

I will definitely be writing another post as soon as I get back to go over all the adventures that are sure to come. I can't wait for this trip.

Here is a picture of me at the festival this weekend that my friend from Florida took. She's a fantastic photographer and I love it- just so you guys don't forget what I look like <3 Consider this my Yellow Brick Road shot

If you haven't discovered this already, if you click on any of my photos you can see them in a larger size

Weatherful Weekend

This weekend was probably the best for weather I've seen yet in Aus! About 25 degrees and hot hot sunshine. Saturday my roommate and I headed back to St. Kilda with our bathingsuits for a day in the sun. It was lovely :) We also went to Lentils as Anything for dinner. This is a great place to get a vegan meal and it's all pay by donation. It's a really great organization and there are many outlets around the city.

Friday night I also went for drinks to watch the Ireland vs. Australia at the Rugby World Cup game in Northcote at The Peacock Hotel. It was a great time and Ireland beat Australia (I was cheering for Ireland). I dont have any pictures from that event yet, but hopefully I'll get some up soon.

Sunday afternoon it was back to Northcote for their Music Festival. This meant free live music all day long! The bands were unbelievably talented and the weather was wonderfully hot. Overall, a fantastic day and weekend. 

Now it's back to school Monday to Wednesday and on Thursday I fly out to NEW ZEALAND for spring break! September is flying by, and what a ride!

The Bon Scotts- sounded a lot like Canada's east coast bands and hilarious lyrics

lots of food stands from local venues- I had a cupcake and ice cream 

This band is the Jelly Tub Rollers and my favourite of the day

Packed crowds on High Street. They had 3 mini stages set up 

Little John- also a great band

couldnt resist this sign in a store window- you know i have them :)

All instrumental band The WooHoo Revue- very different and great

Half Way Point!

I will be in Australia for 143 days before I get to return home to family and friends for our summer vacation. Then at some point in February until June I will return for my second and last semester. Today is day 71! The half way point in my time here in Aus. Thus, now is the time to reflect on the little things here that remind me of home.


1) I still keep 2 blue Ottawa OC Transpo bus tickets in my purse. I don't even know if I'll be able to use them when I get to Ottawa in early December, but I refuse to throw them out.


2) A magnet on my fridge from the tourist attraction lighthouse in the small town where I grew up. I see it everytime I need a snack and it makes me smile


3) My backpack has an "I <3 Carleton U" pin on it that I received on my second tour of Carleton before I began my undergrad, but after I got accepted- also, my backpack is obviously a red Roots one.


4) I also keep a Canadian $10 bill in my wallet because often my friends ask me about what Canadian money looks like (lots of my American friends are jealous of our pretty colours). I have a penny too (they don't use pennies in Aus) and I keep it for luck.


5) Whenever I have a homesick day, I put on the Barenaked Ladies, The Arkells or The Hip while I take a shower


And yes, I still get homesick days. Especially now that I know it's so close. I've done so much since being here and I have loved every minute of it- but there really is "no place like home..."

Rock Star Lifestyle

The Wah Wah Lounge club that we attended after the fashion show had 2 photographers going around and taking pictures of people to put up on the clubs website... see any familar faces?? 

I feel pretty cool now.

Fashion Photos

Here are the pictures of the models- there wasn't enough room for them all in the last post. Enjoy!

Carly Hunter

Above.

lime drop

Walk, Walk, Fashion Baby

I am writing to you this morning from a state of happiness and headache. Last night my lovely roommates and I took on the city to attend Melbourne Fashion Week's- Avant-garde show. It was comprised of local designers and held at the town hall. They have been having free shows outside all week, several exhibits and professional shows like the one we attended last night.
We only got out tickets at the beginning of the week because I didn't even think to look before, thinking that it would be expensive. The shows were very close to sold out so we had to get balcony seats, but they were only $20! Being students, the 3 of us didn't care if we couldn't see well, we were going to be there!!


So last night Germany and I got dressed in our best and took off downtown to meet up with my other Canadian roomie. We went to happy hour at this really trendy bar called The Red Dragon, then onto Equinox for dinner. They make a really delicious green curry, which we all ordered. 

With the price of our ticket we were allowed to go into the pre-show venue and get a free drink! As students, you never pass up anything free. The bartender there made us 3 Coinitreau "blushes" and we settled in to watch the crowds of people all dressed up before the show. There was a massive VIP section nearby, but we didn't have the right tickets to attend. We saw many fabulous and weird outfits while people watching. 

None of us knew what to expect with our "balcony" seating, but it was actually a fabulous view of the stage! The picture doesn't do it justice, we were actually much closer than this.

I loved the local designers, specifically limedrop (who we got a free goody bag from) and above. fashions that featured a really nice red and grey colour scheme with lots of jacket and trouser combinations.

The show only lasted 45 minutes but we saw about 10 designers over all, not included the shoes (Aldo, Nike and Sirens provided). 


Our ticket also got us into a fancy after party at this bar called The Emerald Peacock. It's a super swanky bar where one cocktail costs $18.50 and were it not for the free admission, I'm sure I would never get the chance to go there. The entire bar had peacocks everywhere! Wallpaper, murals, flooring, photos.. EVERYWHERE!! It was really cool- and guess what?? ANOTHER free drink! We could not have been happier.

However, once you had to start paying it was time to split so we could head to The Wah Wah Lounge up the street to dance and consume cheaper beverages. We got in just before 11 for free admission and somehow ended up attending ladies night at the bar. It was really fun.
All in all a great roommate bonding evening- although I am paying for it this morning!

2 Month Anniversary!

Today marks 2 months of me living in Melbourne! In some ways it seems like so long ago that I arrived off the plane, nervous and exhausted. At other times I can't believe how much I've seen and packed into these two months, not to mention all the people that I've met. 
In celebration of this milestone, here is a list of the top 10 things I've seen/done/eaten/love about living in Australia:


1) Eggs on burgers- I know it sounds a little strange, but almost every burger here has an egg on it along with the standard tomato, cheese and lettuce- it's SO delicious and I'm going to continue eating them this way when I return home

2) THE WEATHER!- obviously. It get's warmer here by the day and is usually quite sunny. While Melbourne experiences a lot more rain than the rest of the country it keeps all the beautiful parks lush and green, so you can't really complain about that


3) The Aquarium/Zoo-  have been my favourite activities so far in Melbourne, but that's because I really love animals- in case you didnt read me writing that 10 times in my last posting.

4) Cider- a delicious, beer like drink made from crushed fruit like apples or pears. Cider is HUGE here in Australia with many different kinds, all of which I seem to love. I don't know how I'll ever go back to being a proper beer drinking Canadian again.

5) E55- my favourite bar in the city, that oddly enough has my favourite cider and makes pizzas from scratch. It's a very chill place that plays reggae music and is filled with comfy sectional couches, love seats and reclining chairs. As well each month a featured artist puts up their work which can be purchased from the bar, so there is always something new to look at. 

Photo courtesy of my friend Kathryn

6) My program (believe it or not)- I really like my professors and the material that we have been studying. I only have 2 classes but it gives me the opportunity to get ahead on readings and assignments, which is a nice change from my hectic undergrad

7) The Queen Victoria Market- it's a very busy place where you can buy everything from an entire pig to a kangaroo rug. I usually just buy fruit and postcards but I could spend hours wandering the outside stalls looking at the merchandise, tasting the local wine and listening to the vendors call out their sales. 

8) Riding the train- In Ottawa we have the O-train with only 5 stops. In Melbourne there is a large network of trains and I always take the train going into the city. It's very relaxing to take public transit, I've always found that, not just in Australia. But the trains here are never crowded, and pass the most beautiful scenery of the river and houses in the hillside.


9) Winterfest/St. Kilda Beach- one of my most favourite weekends was now 3 weeks ago when we travelled to the city to skate at Melbourne's Winterfestival and then went to the beach all in the same day! St. Kilda is an amazing area with a fair, the beach, dozens of little shops and some great restaurants. All of us agreed we would love to live there if it wasn't so pricey and so far away from school. The area is what I though all of Australia would be like. 

10) Platypus!- You knew this was coming. Platypus which are native to Australia are so adorable and cool animals. When I saw one at the zoo this past weekend I was instantly in love :) Now how to get one home in my suitcase?

Things to look forward to over the next 3 months here?
- Trip to New Zealand!! 
- Attending Melbourne's Fashion Week
- Finishing my first semester of the my Masters

Added Photo of "Lion-Around"

This picture was taken by my friend because my camera died. This is the group of us who went to the zoo! Oakville, Michigan, myself and Newmarket

Lion-Around!

Saturdays are very quickly becoming my favourite day of the week. This week I took to the city with my friends and went touristing at one of 3 Melbourne zoos. I love animals, and my good friend from Michigan is studying to be a vet so we decided this was the perfect activity. Two other Canadians tagged along as well and made for an awesome day.


Last night I was so excited I couldn't sleep, and I can't remember the last time I was THAT excited about something. I really love animals, and we got to see TONS of them from all over the world. 
It took us 4 full hours to walk the entire zoo, but it was worth every minute. 

Map of all Exhibits

The winner of coolest animal of the day is the Platypus! Native to Australia they are cute little creatures that I mentioned earlier in my posts about sending postcards because they were on the stamp. I have fallen in love with these animals. The one we saw was very active and posed nicely for the camera.

Well enough talk, the pictures are the most important part! I've found the Lion on my journey through Aus :)

Meerkat

Penguins

Seals

Monkey

Mom monkey and baby monkey 

Tiger

Me and fellow Canadian from New Market in front of the Elephant Caution sign

Elephants

Our extra lunch guest- peacock

Giraffes

Zebras

Echidna- native to Australia