On Saturday I set off with my roommate, Sam, for a day of beaches and coastal walks. We ended up walking around the peninsula that is the southern side of the mouth of the harbour. We took a bus to Neilson Park, home of Shark Beach, and spent a few hours enjoying the views, the sun, and the perfect water.

The beach area is surrounded by a shark net (big plus) and the beach seemed like a place for families. I was glad to get away from the more touristy beaches. The water was crystal clear and calm. Since the beach is off the harbour, the waves are much gentler than those at Bondi and Coogee, which are on the ocean. After a swim and a picnic lunch, we headed north through the residential areas and to the Vaucluse House. We passed a few more beaches, and ended up at Watson Bay. It was a cute area, and Sam and I kept remarking how nice it was to be out of the city.

We made our way up to South Head at the mouth of the harbour, and then back down along the ocean coast. We ended our walk at the Macquarie Lighthouse, and then caught a bus back into the city. I wish I could write more about the day around Watson Bay - it was amazing - but I guess I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Everyone loves Bucknell!

A colorful (colourful) bird at Neilson Park

Shark Beach

Shark Beach

Australian magpies ... they are everywhere!

Me and the view from Neilson Park. You can see the opera house and the bridge

Pretty view

Lots of people in the residential area we walked through had these flowers growing up and over their fences.

We saw several trees with these flowers on our walk. I took a fallen one and wore it in my hair the rest of the day.

A beach on Parsley Bay. I'm taking the picture from suspension bridge (that swings!) that goes across the water.

The view looking to the other side of the bridge. The area also had a shark net and a nice big swimming area...definitely hoping to get back there.

Watsons Bay

Camp Cove Beach

At South Head looking across to North Head

Relaxing on the cliff

The view from South Head

Looking across the peninsula from the ocean side towards the city

Looking up the coast towards North Head

In the city, we met up with Becca and Brittany at a little restaurant where we had kangaroo burgers and kangaroo kebabs - very tasty. Kangaroo is basically like super lean beef. Apparently it has a slightly gamey taste, but I couldn't taste it in my burger. We're planning to go somewhere for kangaroo steaks, though, so I'll let you know. Afterwards we went to another girl's apartment and made chocolate chip cookies and hung out for a while. The cookie-making session didn't last past the first batch because we were all exhausted.

So this evening at dinner I discovered something awful: they do not have peanut butter cups in Australia. Of course now that I know I am craving the chocolate and peanut butter goodness. Apparently the chocolate and peanut butter combination isn't popular here, one kid at the dinner table this evening didn't think he'd every tried it!

I've learned a lot about Australian food at mealtimes. The Australians were appalled when they learned that none of the Americans had had a pie (meat pie) before coming to the country. We've had pies at meals quite a few times already, which are quite good. Apparently the chicken pies are more "dodgy" than the beef pies. I might have mentioned this before, but at "hot breakfasts" they serve roasted tomatoes, baked beans, and something that looks like spaghetti in a sauce. There are a lot of little food differences and it has been really fun to discover them.

Oh! Tonight I tried a fun Aussie food tradition. We have hot chocolate, tea, and coffee available all the time, and I have been drinking hot chocolate like it's my job. Australia has chocolate cookies, called Tim Tams, which are chocolate wafers dipped in chocolate. You bite both ends off a Tim Tam and then use it like a straw in the hot chocolate. You suck on the cookie until you taste the hot chocolate, and then you have to shove the whole cookie in your mouth as fast as you can, and the whole thing melts in your mouth. It's a little messy, but totally worth it!

Another little difference that I recently discovered is the size of paper in Australia (like printer paper and notebook paper). Their paper is 29.5 cm by 21 cm (or to all of you in the US of A, 11.7 inches by 8.3 inches. I would have never noticed the difference except that papers from here are too long to fit in my "important documents" file, and my engineering paper from home is too wide to fit into the folders I got here. Oh fun.

Well, I think I've rambled long enough. The upcoming week should be fun. The other Americans and I have been invited to sit at the high table at formal dinner this Wednesday.

Welcome back from spring break, Bucknellians!

I've included some pictures of St. John's today. Some of them aren't so great because the lighting was a bit weird, but you get the general idea. St. John's is a Catholic college, and has very Irish traditions. A few days ago a shamrock was mowed into the grass in front of the building!

The front lawn

Brennan Hall

Library

Looking at the staircase and into the library

The chapel

Pretty stained glass in the chapel. The building is full of gorgeous stained glass windows

Looking at the back of the chapel. The door into the dining hall is just beyond the chapel entrance.