Hello again!

I've been dormant for awhile because Dad was here and then uni started up again. I suddenly realized that I had two research papers and a presentation due within two weeks... so needless to say I've been stressed. I recently (yesterday) started a chocolate detox, and the shakes and nightsweats have begun, which are adding to the stress. haha

Ok, so back to Dad's visit. He arrived early on a rainy/cold Monday morning and we did a lovely walking tour of the city that I made up. Although he was a little sleepy he was in good spirits. Unfortunately, my friends were either in New Zealand or with their friends/family so he didn't get to meet them until the end... I'll talk about that in a bit- get excited. I took him to Pancakes on the Rocks where we had WAY too much to eat. So we walked it off and went down to Circular Quay and took the ferry to Manly Beach. Dad fell asleep. haha. That night we packed our bags to leave for the Whitsunday Islands the next day. Tuesday we went to Darling Harbour and had a bite to eat on the beautiful boardwalk and watched naughty kids debate long and hard about jumping into the fountain. Then we walked the city a bit more and went to the airport to leave for the islands. Upon arrival we discovered that the Whitsunday airport is about the size of my bedroom. That may be a little bit of an exaggeration, but you could literally see all two, yes two, gates when you stood in the middle of the airport. We roamed the hall trying to find baggage claim, which ended up being outside where the luggage cart pulls up. It's a free for all to find your bag off the cart. hahaha! Did I mention that the waiting area is outside? They pulled the benches out to this enclosed grassy area. The huge jet looks a little funny pulling up on the tarmac ouside of the shanty- er "airport". We decided it took awhile because the flight attendants probably had to switch into their baggage claim uniforms.

Anyway, we were going to stay in a hostel because I thought we could save money, but Dad said he was too old for that. So we stayed in this lovely resort overlooking Airlie Beach. It's pretty nice vacationing with the parents. : )

Wednesday morning it was go time. At the skydiving place we decided to go ahead and get the video and pictures with our package and were able to choose the songs for it. Soon the guys called us out and we suited up, received a brief lesson on jumping, and then Dad, this other girl, and I were into the plane. We soared up to the 10,000 ft mark and the view of the islands below is indescribable. Thank goodness for my neon jumpsuit because it was pretty chilly up there. This whole time my instructor had been videotaping and sticking the thing in my face. Pretty funny shots, though. Pretty soon the door was flung open and the other girl, who looked terrified, flew out of the plane. Then it was my turn. There is nothing like the first drop. For a moment I literally thought I had jumped to my death. Your body does not register the feeling for a few seconds. You do a few flips and then fall stomach first at a rate of 125mph. My pictures are funny because the wind pressure kept my mouth open. After about 35 seconds he pulls the chute and suddenly the world slows down. At this point you can feel the air beginning to warm. He let me hold the chute for a bit and do some turns. Before you know it, there's the ground. All the sudden the air got hot and he told me to keep my feet up for the landing. Shortly after hitting the ground Dad came in. We just stood there speechless and smiling. It's really a feeling you can't forget. After we took our gear off we headed inside and were able to watch our videos.

The rest of the afternoon felt like bliss. We were on a high from skydiving then went and stuffed ourselves with fish and chips and layed out by the pool for a few hours. That night we decided to book a sailing trip for the next day so we could explore the 74 islands in the Whitsundays. Neither of us had ever been on a sailboat before and it really was amazing. Dad volunteered to help put up the sail and really enjoyed the boat. After about two hours of sailing we anchored at the world famous Whitehaven beach. It is named for its snowy white sand and didn't disappoint! We were fed a tropical lunch and were able to lay by the crystal clear turquoise water for a few hours. Then back on the boat to sail home. That evening we repacked our bags to return to Sydney.

Friday we had planned on doing the bridge climb, but decided it might not be worth it after experiencing a skydive just a day before. So I took him on the tour of Macquarie Uni. It rained yet again in Sydney, but fortunately we had had great weather in the Whitsundays. That night I made him come out for drinks with my friends and I for ANZAC day, a holiday for Australia that is like our Veteran's day. We (Raychel, Sam, her bf Tef, Dad, and I) went to a little German pub and had some drinks. Pretty soon Jonty and his friend Samuele showed up, but were too late so they couldn't get in. We were all having a good time by then so we went to a different place down the road called Jackson's. Jonty's girlfriends had put mascara on him before he came to meet me so we definitely didn't let him live that down. The bar we went to had slot machines, which is actually pretty common here, and I pushed the button for Samuele and won $5! After Dad bought a round, Jonty bought a round, and Tef bought a round, we decided it had been a fun night and was time to go home. Somehow my old man out did all the guys... hehe The boys had a rough morning the next day and when I went to pick up Dad he looked as if nothing had happened. He'd already been up since 7! haha Anyway, I took him to the airport and we said our goodbyes.

This weekend I'm pulling out my hair to get my psych research paper done... more to come.