not in Kansas anymore

Good'ay Mates!

 

I have arrived safe and sound!
I'm sitting in my new living room: 1:34pm Friday January 18th my time, 9:34pm Thursday January 17th your time.

It's been a looooong journey for my friend Steph and I. Let me explain my itinerary in my time with your time in brackets:

Departure from Toronto: 6:40pm on Wednesday January 16th
Arrival in LA: 9:00pm Wednesday January 16th (12:00am Thurs. Jan 17) 
Departure from LA: 11:30pm Wednesday January 16th (2:30pm Thurs. Jan 17)
Arrival in Melbourne: 10:30am Friday January 18th (6:30pm Thurs. Jan 17)

Toronto to L.A

We decided it was probably best if we stayed awake through our flight to Los Angeles so we would be able to sleep on the plane to Melbourne.  As tired as we were we used the time to brush up on some Australian culture by watching some episodes of the ever so educational "Summer Heights High".  We arrived in LA just ahead of schedule and waited in the airport for our next flight.  In this time we purchased some duty free alcohol which was probably illegal since we were in the states and are not 21 years old, bbuuuutttt we got away with it!

We boarded the most ridiculous, incredible, unbelievable vehicle you could imagine: Qantas Airbus A380 and flew 15 hours to Melbourne at 40,000 feet up from the ground!

 So we were supposed to completely not exist on January 17th but due to some shenanigans involving a man getting kicked off the plane and them having to find his baggage while we were already on board our LA to Melbourne flight, we departed late and were did not disappear into the depths of time travel completely. After that they served us dinner which would have been at 5:00 am your time, then we threw back some gravol and konked out around 6:30 am (so we had pulled an all-nighter). It was smooth sailing for the next 15 hours and we ended up still arriving on time!

 

Our landing via onboard SkyCam

A driver from Victoria University picked us up upon our arrival and drove us to our new humble abode.

We've just been hanging around, munching on the extra airplane snacks we chinced and trying to stay awake so we can adjust to the new time here. Our landlord is coming meet us and take us for a drive around the area and to the grocery store later this afternoon so that should be exciting!

Salisbury Street

56 Salisbury Street

How's the weather, you ask?  A little disappointing thus far. Relatively warm but overcast with a bit of rain, kind of dreary while we were getting driven home. Not exactly the sunny summer welcome we were hoping for but it looks like the sun might be poking through now!

We're just waiting for the three other girls to arrive now before we start our adventures. Its going to be a really great time here and I can't wait to get started!

So being in transit for 24 hours we've been basically been flipped upside down and backwards and our walking ability, hygiene, and sanity have been temporarily compromised. We just need some real food, some sleep and some solid ground before we can get the real fun rolling.

There's no place like home,

Sincerely,
AUS