Cairns

After Sydney, which is in the southeast corner of Australia, we flew up to the tropical northeast corner of the country to Cairns. Despite the fact that our flight got in around 11pm, it was still in the 80's, and extremely humid. It was definitely a huge change from the New Zealand climate, and even from that of Sydney. It was kinda cool being in a more tropical and wild area (our shuttle driver told us that there were crocodiles in a creek next to the airport) and get a feel of the true Aussie experience. The second day in Cairns was the day of our trip out to the Great Barrier Reef - the biggest and most expensive activity of the Australia trip, but well worth the money because it was a day I'll never forget!

Our first day in Cairns, we headed a bit north of town to Palm Cove to hang out at the beach.

We're not in New Zealand anymore...

Don't let the clouds deceive you into thinking that the temperature was anywhere below the upper 80's in Cairns, which is actually only about 1000 miles from the equator - a big difference from New Zealand, which is the third closest country to Antarctica. 

We became regulars at this froyo store that was next door to our hostel.

On our second day, we had our big trip out to the Great Barrier Reef! 

The biggest fish I saw. It was probably at least two feet long!

Our first experience scuba diving! It was a bit scary at first because you have to breathe very slowly and equalize the pressure in your ears about every meter you swim down, but I'd like to try it again for sure.

After our scuba dive, we had the rest of the day to snorkel around the reef.

Obligatory snorkeling selfie!

On our third day in Cairns, we took a trip out of town again to one of the many rainforest areas nearby.

The town we were in had many local vendors. This tasty treat is blended strawberries, coconut, mango, and pineapple.

Not sure how or why the branch looks like this, but it's a natural formation!

I laughed way too hard at this bench set up with a view of the rubbish bin.

Looking out at the rainforest.

The view from the road back to Cairns.

Watching the sun rise from the Cairns airport as we waited for our 6am flight to Brisbane.

Sydney

After finishing my last final on November 14th and having to move out of my flat on November 15th, we said goodbye to Wellington, the city we called home for the past four months, to leave for Australia very early on November 16th. The first stop was Sydney. While the hot, Australian climate and busy, touristy vibe of the big city was a huge change from what we were used to in New Zealand, Sydney was definitely fun and exciting, and I hope to go back one day because there was definitely a lot of stuff that we didn't have time to do! While in Sydney we also took day trips to the nearby beach town Bondi, and national park Blue Mountains, both of which were highlights of the Australia trip for me.

Wellington waking up as we headed to the airport at 4am.

After landing in Sydney, we strolled along the harbour and through the botanical gardens towards the Sydney Opera House, which can be seen in the distance in the center of the photo.

The famous Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge.

I was surprised to find that up close, the peaks of the Opera House are actually several separate buildings. 

On our second day, we took a short trip outside of the city to Bondi Beach. Unfortunately I didn't get to swim in this awesome pool, which was at exactly sea level so that waves would come over the sides and allow sea water into the pool. 

A panorama of the pool and Bondi Beach.

Enjoying the beach day with a new book from a cute book store we went to on our way to Bondi.

Some shots of the cute beach town as the sun began to set.

The next day, we took the train to Blue Mountains, a national park outside of Sydney.

The Three Sisters, one of the famous rock formations in the national park.

Standing behind the Three Sisters, looking out over them.

The Three Sisters from a distance.

After a beautiful hike along the cliffs and through some forest, we got to this waterfall and hopped over the barriers to get up close and personal.

One of the many steep staircases we had to walk down and back up on our way to and from the waterfall.

On our fourth and final day in Sydney, we met up with some friends from our UCEAP program and explored the city a bit more.

A very unusual but fun modern art museum in The Rocks, an adorable cultural/historical area of Sydney.

A last look at the Opera House before packing up and heading to the airport.

Walking Into Mordor

Apparently, one DOES simply walk into Mordor. Or at least we did! The Tongariro Alpine Crossing is one of the most popular treks in New Zealand, and a large part of that is because it goes between Mt. Tongariro and Mt. Ngauruhoe, or as it's better known thanks to Peter Jackson, Mt. Doom. Most people who do this crossing opt for the one day version, and stay in hostels or hotels the night before and after. But as the adventurers that we are, we decided to backpack the whole thing and do the Tongariro Great Walk, which incorporates the famous Alpine Crossing as one of the days. This means that we had to carry our tent, stove, food, clothes, etc. on our backs as we made the climb up and over the mountain. And yet, we still completed the crossing portion of the track the same 8 hour time frame that they estimate for everyone who does it without 30 lbs on their backs, so GO US. Ultimately, the entire 26.5 mile track took us just a little over 48 hours, as we started walking at around 4pm on Thursday and finished at around 6pm on Saturday! This weekend was definitely one for the books, see for yourself below:

Starting off on our first evening. We planned to walk for only 3 hours to the first campsite after our long bus ride to the national park, but this took us over 4 hours since the track was essentially a creek due to rainfall.   

Mt. Doom itself. 

Observe the sexy orange raincovers.

Probably one of the greatest moments of my life. As we were walking, complaining about how annoying the rain was, we suddenly see the biggest and brightest rainbow, both ends completely visible, and perfectly framing the mountains. So thank you, rain, for this MAGICAL moment. 

The morning view from our first campsite, before our long day of doing the crossing. This view was also spectacular at night, as the nearly full moon shone bright on the snowy mountain (couldn't get a picture of it though).

Making quick elevation progress. That sort of lumpy, snow covered mountain not too far in the distance is the same mountain that is next to Ngauruhoe four photos above this one. 

Mt. Doom, up close and personal. This was about as high as the track took us. People can take a 3 hour side trip to the summit of Nguaruhoe, but that is generally only advised when there isn't any snow due to avalanche danger.

Snow all around. Just a week or two prior to when we went there was almost no snow on the mountain or surrounding area. While I'm sure having the snow there made our hike more difficult, I think it was well worth how beautiful it was.

I forgot to mention that Mt. Ngauruhoe and Mt. Tongariro, the two mountains that the track goes right in between, are currently active volcanos :O 

Looking back at the trail after a bit of descent. This photo doesn't even begin to capture how steep it felt in real life. Not pictured is the even steeper, snowier side of the mountain that we had to climb up. Because of how windy it was in that portion of the track, they estimated that it was as low as 12 degrees Fahrenheit with the windchill. So yeah, didn't really feel like taking any photos on the way up.

Emerald Lakes after just coming over the top of the hill. Can't beat this view.

One of the lakes up close. Yes, the water is actually this green (it's caused by minerals dissolved into the water since the whole national park is a volcanic thermal area). 

Another, not quite as green lake.

Still about 4 hours to the next campsite after the 4 hours it took to go up and over the hill.

After 8 hours of hiking, it was nice to have this beautiful and modern hut at our second night's campsite. 

Utilizing the hut's wood stove to make S'MORES :)

EXCUSE HOW RED AND UGLY I AM but I post this to emphasize how crazy it was waking up the next morning to a mild case of snow blindness! My eyes and the skin around them were puffy (this is about as wide as I could open them at first), red, and irritated for about three days. They were also sensitive to light, though luckily I didn't have vision problems! Another member of our group faced this problem of a similar severity to mine, while a third member of our group had it much, much worse because her case was coupled with an allergic reaction too! She actually had to be helicoptered out of the park because her vision was too bad for her to complete the last five hours of the track and the paramedics were concerned with how badly swollen she was from her allergy! It was an eventful morning to say the least. Basically, wear sunglasses and sunscreen (I got a bit burnt too despite applying sunscreen twice that day) if you ever go hiking in the snow! Especially if you're a recessive child like me!

Sunset on the bus ride back to Wellington :)