New Zealand

We left Australia at 7:30 to catch a cab. I was basically packed, but I had to make a last minute run to the library to drop off The Other Boelyn Girl. I never finished it, but the half I read was quite good. We had spent our last night down under drinking as usual with some of our Australian guys. Also as usual there was drama, so I had vacated the potentially terrifying situation and went to bed with three Australian men still on my porch smoking my entire pack of cigarettes. It's all for the better I suppose, I can't smoke anymore. My mum would disown me on sight.

Our final farewells to Australia weren't sentimental in the least. We dragged our absurdly heavy luggage down our hallway which was completely covered in trash, vomit, and food. I won't miss the 17 year old Americans who lived down the hallway, the bastards who would wake us up in the middle of the night screaming and who got our common room taken away from us for the entire semester. The ones who told us that they had come to Australia to drink, and that was it. I contemplated banging on their doors to wake them up at the early hour, but I decided I'm better than that. I guess.

Our flight to NZ was pretty boring, thank god. I got really nervous that my luggage would be over the weight and I'd have to pay, because I literally have 20 bucks in my bank account. Luckily I made it through, which unfortunately some of my friends did not. Eleanor had to pay $75 for paper tickets because she had lost hers, and countless others had to pay for weight restrictions. I am PRAYING I don't have to pay in LA, but I'll be cutting it close.

Ilana and I separated from the group at Auckland airport. That also wasn't as sentimental as I figured it would be, but we were rushed and everyone was trying to get their plans finalized. Also, I'll see these girls within the next month, so it really wasn't a final goodbye.

Ashley gave me a really nice card. She talked about how I've influenced her with my knowledge of movies and politics and how I've taught her to look at things differently. She said I was going to be a great journalist because I know how to understand people, and she said I could always make her laugh. It feels really good that I made a positive impact on someone, especially someone who I absolutely had negative feelings for in the beginning of the semester. Being friends with Ashley, someone who is completely different than me, has taught me not to judge a book by their cover. I judge people quickly and way too harshly sometimes, and I need to check myself. I could be losing out on great friendships, like the one I now have with Ashley.

Ilana and I got to our hotel at around 7:30. Compared to some of the hostels we've stayed in (especially Fiji and Melbourne) this place is a palace. It's small, and the shower is on top of the toilet, but we have our own TV and stove and fridge, and we only share the bathroom with each other, and that is priceless.

We've been here in Auckland for 2 and a half days, and I've fallen in love with the city. Everyone is so nice, the city has a chill, laid-back feel and it's a beautiful country. The beach is within 10 km of wherever you end up, and we're surrounded by active volcanoes. I've also become fascinated with the Maori culture, and I bought a necklace today that has a symbol that supposedly protects you when traveling over water, which is just what I need.

The only thing that has put a damper on this trip is that we are broke ass broke. It's getting serious. We have been living off of Wendys and McDonalds happy meals because that's all we can afford. I got a yeast infection and was contemplating not getting medicine because I couldn't afford it. At this moment, I have 20 dollars put aside for the cab to the airport tomorrow and 15 dollars for food. That's it. Once I get to the airport, I have a McDonalds card and a $50 AMEX card from my uncle. I hate this feeling of uncertainty, and god forbid I get charged for my luggage in LA.

We've made the best of our unfortunate situation though. We went to the Sky Tower which is the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere and took pictures of the view. We went to the Auckland Museum and watched a Maori performance by traditional women and warriors and we saw a lot of their art. We also went out to eat in Parnell, which is a really rich sector of Auckland and had a lovely Italian lunch. It was great until we got charged 10 bucks for a bottle of water. Terrible.

That's about all we could afford to do. We've been walking around exploring the city, which is beautiful. We've been watching a lot of TV, unfortunately, and my stomach is crying from all the Wendys we've been eating, but what can you do?

We leave for LA tomorrow at 7 pm. I'm not too scared of the flight to LA, but I'm dreading the flight from LA to Boston. At least on Air New Zealand they give you your own personal TV and you can watch movies to pass the time, AND they give you food. On American Airlines they give you a seat and that's it. I'm going to be delirious from the Air New Zealand flight and then have to twiddle my thumbs for 6 hours to Boston. I'm going to go mad.

I'm so ready to go home. I can't wait to see my family. I had the time of my life in Australia, but now that chapter of my life is over, and it's time to go home.