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I’ll be honest, up until two hours ago I had not done any studying for my two finals next week. Instead I have been doing fun things like bike riding, sailing, and playing with a puppy.

Yesterday was Melbourne Cup Day, which is recognized as a public holiday here, which meant everyone was out and about. It was perfect weather for it too, sunny and not too hot. Instead of going to see the majestic horses race in a fancy hat, Devin and I opted to go out on a ride. For the first time since I’ve been here I biked to his uncle’s, which allowed me to experience one of the steepest hills I have ever seen in my life. It was one of the hills where if I pedaled any slower, I would just fall backwards. Luckily that didn’t happen, but it made me realize how crazy the topography is here. Devin had told me about it with his rides in the country, but I didn’t quite get the severity of it until yesterday. I mean, we were just casually biking along the river in a neighborhood when Devin told me we were going to cross the bridge, so I needed to shift into a lower gear. I thought he was kidding because it was a little bunny hill up over the bridge, however what I realized probably a couple seconds too late was that he was talking about this massive hill that started after you crossed the bridge. After a hill like that, it’s then I am reminded of how beautiful I sound after exertion.

Continuing on to the next part of our bike ride, Devin took me to a beautiful nature reserve park that’s tucked down in a valley off the highway. We had ridden through most of it and were climbing yet another massive hill to start our journey back when Devin realized he had a puncture in one of his tubes. He then realized he hadn’t brought his bike pump, repair kit, or phone. Back home, this wouldn’t have been an issue though because I could have biked home to get my car that has a bike rack. But we are in Australia, so we realized we had to come up with alternative plan. We spent about 45 minutes arguing about what was the best solution – Devin sitting on my handlebars, Devin sitting on my bike seat while I stood up pedaling in an attempt to get home together – but I was not liking either of those situations, which landed me a “lame” label. Long story short, we both made it back and we both realized that the whole situation was just another reminder of how nice and convenient everything is back home.

To celebrate the second day in a row of beautiful weather, today Tegan took Devin and I out on her family friend’s boat! Oh my goodness, it was literally the perfect temperature, the perfect wind speed, and the perfect non-existent motion sickness level for a boat ride. Devin and I were pretty excited because we finally were able to wear our Sperry’s in the environment they were made for and the sailing trio running the boat also complimented us on them, which made me feel like a rock star. Side note: Sperry’s aren’t sold here so anyone non-American doesn’t always know what to make of them when I wear them, so it was fun to be around people that could appreciate them. In the hour and a half we were out on the water, we were able to enjoy the view of Melbourne’s skyline as well as the coastlines in both directions, and we were also entertained with plenty of boating stories and protocol. Tegan’s boyfriend, Nick, also came along with us and sometime during the evening he mentioned his sister had a new puppy and showed Devin and I a picture of her. Once we got done squealing – yes, we – we asked if we could go see her. The answer was yes and I instantly melted when I saw her. Mia was her name, and she was an adorable 12-week old ball of fur – that’s her in the picture with this post. I dare you to try not to squeal or smile.


Kelly Belly
11/5/2013 10:14:49 pm

Sounds like a couple amazing days back-to-back! Doggies make me melt too, especially when you don't see them for a long time. Good luck studying for those finals! Only a couple more months?!? What?!?

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