This chapter ends but....

Forgive me for taking so long to finish this up! You may be curious how I'm now suddenly in Bermuda but still haven't left Taupo according to this blog! Well let me tell you...

The morning after my skydive I finally got to sleep in! I think this was the first time the whole two weeks I slept past 7AM. I woke around 9am because check out was at 10. After packing up all of my stuff I made my way downstairs to have a bit of breakfast (toast and jelly--how British!) and then I checked out. The wonderful people at my hostel let me lock up my bags while I walked around because I wasn't catching the bus back to Auckland until 330 PM. This was great cause I really was planning on walking a lot and didn't want to be weighed down with bags.

I really didn't know where I was heading so I really just walked around the town. I ended up by the water and then my way toward the tourist shops. Amongst it all I found a grocery store where I treated myself to a delicious chocolate muffin and strawberry milk! Then I made my way out of town to a thermal park that the receptionist at the hostel recommended. I really had no clue where i was going and how long it would take, but it was a cool and adventurous feeling day so I didn't mind getting lost! I happened across the Taupo Bungy spot so I stopped there because the view was gorgeous and there were people bungying. Honestly I am glad I chose skydiving over bungying because it didnt look that great anyway, though it was funny to hear people yell. There were a few people that jumped as a couple--I don't know how they did that I feel like you would smack into the other person. Once they got to the end of the chord they bounced up and down a few times and then a boat went out and pulled them down. this was probably the most entertaining part--to see how they got down. I was kind of hoping someone would be too heavy and then get their head dunked in the water. Didn't happen though, maybe cause its winter and it was cold!
Anyway I kept walking a bit farther and I finally got to the thermal park I was looking for. There were loads of cars here--it turns out there was some kind of running competition going on here. I felt really stupid just walking haha but thats what i did. I found this beautiful spot to sit and watch thermal vents and I sat down and did a bit of writing. Reflecting basically on my whole experience in Australia because this was really the end of it. I got pretty said about leaving and was disappointed when the time came that I had to get up and walk back for the bus.
For some reason I overestimated how long it would take me to get back. But this worked out okay, because I wanted to be a bit of a tourist and go to the shops. So thats what I did! And I bought a cute little dress for 10 bucks! and thats NZ dollars so it was a great deal. I also bought a few gifts for those at home, saved my butt for not having finished that up in Australia! Then it was nearly time so I went back to get my bags and went to wait at the bus station.
The bus I got on was actually a double decker, kind of bizarre, but I guess the intercity bus I went on was a pretty popular means of transportation. The kid who sat next to me was quite odd though. I think he may have been British. He kept taking pictures out the window..but the camera was aimed so close to me that I think he may have been taking them of me. It was really creepy. I think he also wanted to talk but I just ignored him and pretended I had no idea. The journey back was about 3 hours I think--we stopped for a dinner break, though I had been eating the whole time on the bus anyway haha.
When we got back to Auckland I knew right where I was--I was just a few blocks from my hostel--the one I had stayed at so many times before. It kind of felt like my home or something! Anyway I checked in with the same woman as the times before and went to the same room. There was only one girl in there, a German who had been working several jobs--like working in kitchens and fruit picking and stuff like most people I met there. She was nice, and we got a 12 person room to ourselves. She was also on her way home after a long bit of traveling. After talking to her I made my way for the first time to the Nomad Fusion(the hostel) kitchen. I made my last bit of powdered soup and had my last smushed PBJ. I finally realized how gross the food was that I was eating. It was a good thing I wasn't stay for any more time! I actually had a lot of food left over, so I left it in the kitchen in a pile that seemed to be meant for leftover food for public use. So I kind of felt good about myself haha I'm not sure why.
I went to bed relatively early that night just so I could wake up early to take a shower and get to the airport. The next morning after showering and packing up I made my way down the streets of Auckland to find the bus stop. I was really unsure about where to be because it was just like a city bus. Anyway, I managed to figure it out, but the bus driver was a complete jerk. Luckily I didn't hesitate to get on the bus because someone else did and the guy left without him. What a jerk! I got to the airport with plenty of time to spair. Once I got to my gate I even spent 45 minutes doing some tourism NZ survey for this lady. She gave me this mini disk of pics (which I still haven't looked at) as a gift for helping her. Honestly i didnt mind much cause i had so much time to spare and it meant i got to share my experience with someone--and in great detail!!
So the flight back to Sydney was a time difference of 1.5 hours but really 3.5 hours on the plane. When I got there I called Noor who was going to pick me up! I was super excited to see familiar faces before I left again. I am really going to miss that girl! So Noor and her brother picked me up and we met up with my friend Sameer who was in town to say goodbye to me. This was super fun--I seriously feel like I have better friendships with people in Australia than I ever did here...maybe its something about leaving that makes people want to take advantage of the time that you have.
Anyway we went out to lunch at a thai restaurant and just reminisced about the semester and about our fun together. Then we walked around Sydney--went to the opera house--walked around the harbor, took silly pictures gave each other piggy back rides, did silly things and just had a good time. Then we realized it was getting late and almost dinner time so we went to meet up with some other people that live in Sydney. We went to Darling Harbor this for this--which is a beautiful place at night. After mucking around for a while we figured out we would have pizza and then go to the Lindt chocolate cafe for desert! Yum yum! It was sad to say goodbye to everyone --we all made a toast to the semester and gave tons of hugs. I was really bummed to have to leave...
The next morning was an early one because the airport in Sydney is so huge and the flight was so early. Sameer went with me to the airport cause he also had a flight out that morning. It was nice to have some company, especially as I was anxious about going home and its just nice to know that I could leave my footprint in Australia so to speak. Australia I will love you forever!!
Well I hope that won't be the extent of my time in Australia, but for now that is all. Thanks for following my blog. I hope that you someday get the chance to go to Australia too!!