Miracles happening, visiting Taronga Zoo and saying goodbye!

BADOOM! I'm feeling better than ever! The medicine did make a miracle even though it took more than 5 hours, more specifically it took 15 hours... Right now I'm packing and cleaning my hotel room because I'll fly back home today, yay! (or actually nay because I'll miss this place sooo much). I visited Taronga Zoo today in Sydney, accompanied by Abigail. Taronga Zoo cares for 4000 animals from over 350 species, many of which are threatened. I wish I'd more time to be able to see all 4000 of them but the time didn't serve. Now I'll tell you what the day looked like:

Abi and I hired two bikes to bike all the way to the zoo: the distance from the hotel wasn't far away at all! We had already booked tickets beforehand so we could skip the long queue and get some extra time! Taronga Zoo is the biggest zoo I've been at and I was so fascinated all the time. There were animals everywhere (okay not literally everywhere, but in cages and inside fences) and I even got a bit scared. We saw everything from giraffes and sea-lions to penguins and Tasmanian devils. Taronga Zoo was enormous compared to the swedish zoos. I was about to cry during the entire trip due to my allergy to pollen. It was awful and my eyes were more than just tumescent.

                                 I love the contrast between the giraffes and the skyscrapers

After a couple hours of sightseeing and feeding animals, we went to the nearest restaurant to get some food. With a starving stomach I could eat grass if I have too. Both me and Abigail tried out a shrimpsoup which in my opinion wasn't very good... Seafood has never been a favourite to me.

   While laughing and talking with Abigail, I suddenly began to cry because I knew this would be the last 3 hours together with her. We both exhanged PO-box addresses so we could send things to eachother and then we started to ride the bicycles back to the hotel again. Now I'm sitting on my bed, double-checking the tickets (It wouldn't be sad if the tickets were wrong and I had to stay in Australia my entire life). In less than 10 minutes I'll head down to the entrance to get in the taxi I booked. 

    I never thought that a trip to Australia could give such a strong impression to me. I'll never forget this journey, never. And a huge hug for all of you readers who have shared this amazing experience with me! I should get going now since the taxi is here and my plane is set to head off at 9 pm. Thank you once again. <3 // Angelica Huynh

Tortured by sickness and disappointment

Hello fellow! The atmosphere right now is very erroneous. I'm at my hotel in Sydney again, all cuddled up in blankets. Unfortunately, I got sick yesterday when I arrived home. I guess it could be the weather disparity between Sydney and Canberra that caused my high fever because it was cold at night when we sat at Santana's porch. I haven't been able to do a single thing today, other than utilising Abigail as an assistant. She went to the market five times today (I love her for that!!) because I craved Ben&Jerrys in different periods of time. It made me disappointed that I couldn't do anything today, because I really wanted to see kangaroos and all special kinds of animals. The clock is now 4 pm and I've pretty much used up two boxes of tissues. I went to the doctor this morning to see if I could get any miracle medicins so I could pause my cold for a day or so. No one wants to miss out on a day in Australia! The doctor said that the medicin would operate in about 5 hours, and it has passed 4,5 hours now. Please let this medicine work! If I actually feel better later on the day, I'll update to you guys but if I don't, you'll here from me tomorrow instead! Bye. // A sick Angelica

Second day in Canberra

Hello sunshines! To continue from the last post, I've discovered some culture differences between Sweden and Australia. Okay, to be honest I haven't actually "discovered" them, I've just discussed them with one of Abigail's neighbours called Santana, who's a highly educated specialist doctor. It was a very great idea talking to her because she has travelled around several countries in less than half a year so I thought she would have some knowledge about culture disparities. One of the main differences between Sweden and Australia is the citizens attitudes. In Sweden, the inhabitants are shy and cold-like. We don't show our emotions as much as the people in Australia do. Here in Australia, people dare to look you in the eyes even though they don't know you, and sometimes they even come to have a sophisticated conversation with you. I know that for the reason that I've talked to a handful of strangers in just two days. I could never imagine that happening to me here in Sweden. Both Australians and Swedes are the "partying" and laid back time, or that's at least what I've experienced. I'm obviously taking a huge generalization because everyone have their own uniqueness but because I'm looking for culture differences, some type of generalization has to appear. I haven't done anything special today, other than sitting on Santana's porch eating all kinds of cakes. She's tremendously good at baking cakes and she also teached me some techniques. We baked a cake called "Red Velvet Cake" and I had no clue about what red velvet was. Maybe it's something that many swedish people already know or not know, either way it's BREATHTAKING! I can say it like this: my taste buds went to heaven and back to earth again.
   Another disparity between these two countries are the weather. I was so shocked when I arrived to Sydney because it was really hot. It was certainly summer in Sweden (it's still summer) but the difference in weather is still big. Our swedish summers lasts for about 2 months while an australian summer lasts all year around. Furthermore, the winters and summers in Sweden are the opposite to the winters and summers in Australia which makes it hard for me to inure. The food is strangely kind of the same in Australia and Sweden. It's all about fish and all types of seafood!
  The last difference that I will mention is the school. In Australia, the high schools are more like the visions we have of high schools, for example from american movies like "High School Musical". The thing that distinguishes australian high schools from the typical "american" high schools in movies are the uniforms. Every high school in Australia has its own specific logo and uniform to represent their school and that is something that I adore. Telopea Park School also has a "freedom-day" every month where the students can wear whatever they want, therefore the name contains the word "freedom".

It's sad that I couldn't find any place where I could discover more distinctive disparities but I still hope that it'll be enough for you guys. Sorry!
  Tomorrow, I'll take the bus back to Sydney together with Abigail because it's my last free day until I fly back home to the cold Sweden (Abigail needs to pack her belongings as well). We both have agreed on going on a trip the last day to discover the wildlife of Australia because come on, how can you not want to see kangaroos and koalas when you're visiting Australia? We don't know which one we'll go to yet, so I guess we'll decide that tomorrow morning. Have a great day my readers and I'll see you tomorrow! Hooroo! // Ang H