I miss you.

It's been almost two months since I left Australia and I feel as if I am stuck in time. I am no longer in Australia but I am not back at school yet which is causing me to feel lost and alone. I don't have my support system of almost 100 Australian people that I knew in Warnie and I am not back in my old groove with my long time friends at Iowa State.

Sometimes when I'm bored, I find myself reading through my blog or looking through my pictures on my phone from Australia and I feel a sinking feeling in my stomach. You know when you're in a public place and someone says "I have something to tell you" and you feel like your stomach has disappeared and all of your organs are sloshing around and your skin is tingling? That's how I feel when I look through the pictures and realise that it has all happened already and all of my friends are 9576.2 miles/15411.4 km (yes, I googled it) away and there's a 14 hour time difference.

I wake up to their crazy, drunken, night out Snapchats and go to sleep when they are rolling out of bed hungover to go to class. Basically I just want to say that I miss you all so much. I wish I was back there, living with all my old housemates and everything was back to how it was. I know now that if, no, when I come back to visit, nothing will be the same as it was in those four months I was there and that's what scares me the most.

I miss you all more than words can do justice and there are too many of you to tell you individually, so this is to all you crazy Aussies on res, off res, my fellow exchange students, I miss you.

And just like that, it was over.

Made the mistake of listening to this while writing this post: Listen while reading

How did I get here?

I'm 21 years old. Every college kid's dream age.

Why was this the day that I had come to dread?

I was about to return to everything that I had ever know, while at the same time leaving everything that I had grown to love. 

The day began at 6:00 am on June 23rd. Sarah, Jacinta, and I woke up and gathered all of our crap together (mostly my crap). I ate a little more chocolate cake for breakfast than needed but, hey, it was my birthday. Finally, at 6:30 we headed off to the bus stop. I should mention that, by this point in my trip, my largest piece of luggage had only one wheel and weighed around 53 lbs. Manoeuvring it to the bus stop while the bottom of it was creating sparks on the sidewalk was a difficult feat.

We finally arrived at the bus stop. Three girls, two suitcases, and a large backpack. The bus ride to the airport was around four hours long. I was expecting to sleep for most of it, but we just ended up talking and recounting the last four months.

And then we arrived. I made my way to the check-in counter where I found out that my check-on bag was a little over-weight. It had to have been my lucky day because the guy working allowed me to check it on anyways because he saw on my passport that it was my birthday. Thank you guy who was at the United desk but didn't work for United. You made one girl very relieved.

Then it was time.

The time that I had pretended wasn't going to happen.

Goodbyes.

I found it quite funny how the hallway to the international area of the airport was paved with red carpet. It seemed almost exclusive, in a daunting way.

There, in front of that elegant red carpet, I hugged my two best friends for the last time. We exchanged notes and quite a few tears. As I walked down the carpet and turned back to see them for the last time, it felt as though something inside of me broke. A piece of my heart fell from the hole in my pocket and will remain with them forever.

Fourteen hours. One movie (The Awkward Moment), three meals, four Diet Cokes, six episodes of Sex and the City, and 45 minutes of sleeping later, I was in Los Angeles.

I must mention that I departed Australia at 11:20 am on June 23rd and arrived in LA at 10:20 am on June 23rd. Back to the future, right Sarah?

I had a five hour layover, so my fabulous cousin, Kelci, came and picked me up in her convertible and drove me around LA. I couldn't have asked for a better 21st birthday than the one that I had. I got to see the Hollywood sign (which you can see from her apartment balcony!). And that was the least of the exciting moments.

We picked up her friend Chelsea and headed to "brunch." Although our brunch consisted of peach bellinis. Which also doubled as the first legal alcoholic drink that I had ever drank in America. 

After drinks, we went to a little gem of a massage parlour and all three of us got massages. After a 14 hour flight, a full body massage felt like pure ecstasy. 

Thank you, Kelc, for giving me such an amazing 21st birthday. <3

We then went to pick up her dog, Tinkerbell, and we were off to the airport. Once there, we ran into a major bump in the road. Kelci wasn't going to be able to get on the flight with me because somehow we were "late." She was able to get on the following flight, so I had to make it through security quickly to make it to my own flight. To my annoyance, I got stopped before the security line because my carry-on was "too wide." So very quickly, I had to open it and remove my tennis shoes to wear through security. By this time, I was getting very flustered when I had to put all of my things through the security check. Only to find out that they would have to run my backpack through again because I forgot to remove my laptop. While waiting for it to scan, I heard the last call for my flight to Chicago. Finally, once everything was through, I took off towards my terminal at a fast walk. Over the intercom I heard, "Alixandra Badly-Pronounced-Last-Name" please make your way to the departure gate." 

And that's when I realised I was that girl. 

The one who would have to run down the terminal. 

And off I went.

Sweating, I took my seat on the plane and proceeded to pass out for the entire four hours to Chicago.

The plane landed.

I was in Chicago. 

When I left this plane I would see my parents.

I saw my dad first. He was wandering around.

And then, I saw my mom come in through the doors.

That I was happy to see them was an understatement.

We got my bags and waited for Kelci's flight to get in. We arrived at my Aunt and Uncle's house at around 2:30 am. At this time, everybody was asleep and I was in dire need of a shower. Before that though, my mom said that she had a surprise for me. She handed me a package that had Jacinta's name on it, but my address. I opened it and found a beautiful Australia necklace that I haven't taken off since (well except when I shower of course). Thank you Sarah and Cinta. <3

The next morning I woke up and my mom said she had one last surprise for me and she went upstairs. I heard a door open, then a tiny voice asking, "Is she here? She's back from Australia?" And I knew it was my three little peanuts. I thought they would have gone home by that time but there they were, ready for me to hug too hard and spoil with their gifts from Australia.

Then we; Mom, Dad, Eric, Kelci, Tink, and I left on our five hour drive home. I told myself to stay awake the whole day so that I could sleep that night, and I succeeded...until I got home and slept for a solid four hour nap.

The next morning I woke up, wide awake, at 4:00 am, so I watched the sunrise. The jetlag got periodically better. The next day I woke at 5:00 am, and the next at 6:00 am. 

I have to say that I didn't mind being up with the sunrise.

Last Beach Day

Exhibit A: The first slot machine that I've ever played, a.k.a. the first time I've ever "gambled." And, naturally, I won nothing. 

On Saturday, Sarah, her mum, and I drove to the Mornington Peninsula, where I got to see the ocean for the last time in Aus. It was beautiful, naturally. We saw some surfers who waved at us with no protests from me ;) 

I found a starfish in one of the tide pools ^^^^^

We shared our lunch with a friendly little magpie at our table. 

We stopped by the Quarantine area where refugees and immigrants were kept if they had any contagious diseases like small pox or dysentery. All of their clothes and possessions were burned to prevent the spreading of the diseases and the people were kept quarantined in the hospitals on the peninsula. I think that they may have been haunted...who wants to spend the night in one with me?

We stopped off for some hot cocoa during the sunset, which was, as always, beautiful.

Once home, we Master Cheffed some homemade pizzas and watched movies.