This week was full of road trips, hikes, waterfalls, sunshine and beautiful sites - all of my favorite things. Even better is that I didn't have to wait for the weekend for the adventures to begin! On Wednesday our local friend/tour guide extraordinaire Joey had the day off work and took us up to the Yarra Valley to see Steavenson Falls. It felt so good to wake up early and hit the trail mid-week and see an amazing waterfall. Getting back into the school flow has been a challenge after a week in Bali so it was nice to get away for a day to clear my head before grinding on some designs. Nothing like a little nature to inspire those big ideas. After the week was over, our other Aussie friend Maddy took us to Phillip Island to explore the Phillip Island Wildlife Park. The weather finally started to warm up so it felt amazing to be outside hangin' with the roos, dingos, koalas, wombats and emus - heck to the freaking ya! We spent the rest of the day exploring the island, eating lunch by the water and checking out the local beaches. Two great days during the week with two rad locals. On Saturday I got to go on another adventure with REAL Australia - the rad tour group that takes students on some real Aussie adventures. This time we explored the Great Ocean Road, one of the best coastal drives in Australia. It was a jam packed 14 hour day full of koala spotting, beautiful coast views, waterfalls, the 12 Apostles and Loc Ard Gorge. It was a perfect day spent with an awesome group of international students and 2 rad staff members from REAL. The trips they plan have been some of the highlights of my time here so far I can't wait for the next ones, getting that REAL Aussie experience (musings continued after).
Side blurb of the week: Each week I have been trying to do one thing a day that scares me. I think a big reason, other than wanting to get out of my comfort zone, is wanting to fight the fear of failure I know I and everyone face in our daily lives to some extent. It's crazy how often in life we hold ourselves back due to that fear of failure. Whether it be with a job, relationships, a new hobby or sport, it may be consciously or subconsciously but there always seems to be that voice in the back of our head giving us a million reasons to not go for it. Well screw that voice. Do what freaks you out, try new things, fail and fail again. How else are you going to grow as a person and discover new things about yourself and the world? While I'm here and hopefully for the rest of my life, I am trying not to be afraid to fail and change as that is what leads to those life altering, heart pumping moments and isn't that what we live for? It's so easy to find those places we feel comfortable in, that we can just exist in. Yet we aren't really living because we aren't pushing ourselves out of that bubble to try that new food, or a new art form, or a random adventure by yourself. Be afraid, feel your pulse quicken and heart race. Don't get stuck in a rut of safe and comfortable, try to always push the boundary to live fully and dare deeply.
2 waterfalls, 1 trip to Beechworth Bakery, 3 road trips, 5 koalas, 20 kangaroos, 6 tacos, 4 rainbows, 2 rain falls, 4 scenic look outs, 5 danish rap songs, 2 new blisters, 5 jam sessions, 1 speeding ticket, 3 beaches and so many laughs later I am beaming from ear to ear. I had a lot of moments this week where I reflected on my life and my time here. There are days where my heart aches to see my family and friends at home, where I wonder if the distance is worth it. However, in the car with the sun casting shadows through the trees as we zoomed down the Great Ocean Road I knew I made the right choice to come here. I feel light and so positive about how many adventures and new friendships life can be full of. There are so many new places to discover and I hope to experience as many as I can throughout my life.
Cheers - keleniak
p.s. Before this experience I promised myself I would do one new/possibly scary thing a week: This week that was spotting koalas in the wild. Nothing better than running around and searching eucalyptus trees for those lil' fluff balls.