Entry 12

This week marks the halfway point for my semester— I feel amazingly accomplished and ready to enjoy the next two and a half months of my trip. The Gold Coast was the prettiest beach I’ve ever been to. The gold sands that the area gets its name from really were stunning, but the water was what really impressed me. You could count your toes even when chest deep in the water, which I might add was very warm. I stayed in Surfers Paradise and spent most days reading on the beach or by the pool and then walking down the boulevard through the outdoor shops and bazars. I kept from getting burned and only used half a bottle of SPF 50, so I think I’ve finally achieved an Aussie “base coat.” At night all the palm trees were lit up by neon blue and white lights— the screams and sounds of theme park rides reminded me of summers at the boardwalk in Ocean City, NJ. It was the most rejuvenating week I’ve had in a while. Unfortunately on Sunday, after waking up at five a.m. to check out and catch a bus to the airport to make an eight a.m. flight, the plane got delayed for four hours and I spent the morning in the Gold Coast Airport. I’m glad I had a book, and I’m sure it could have been worse. So far all my classes are going well, and even though I’m reluctant to get back to the grind after such a relaxing week, I’m also ready to wrap up my courses in the second half of this semester. International Marketing, and Consumer Behavior are still the two subjects I prefer, but International Business and Accounting have both proved more interesting and fairly easy. My sights are set on finals and my last weeks in Australia— ready to keep taking advantage of every opportunity down under.