G’Day Mates,
Let me start by saying that this is has probably been one of
the best weeks of my life. Last time I posted we had just left Carnarvon Gorge
and were waiting on our flight to Lady Elliot Island for some Great Barrier Reef action. For me, the opportunity
to scuba dive in the GBR was the number one reason why I chose
this location for my study abroad; it has been at the top of my bucket less for
quite sometime…. I can now officially say that it has been crossed off the
list, so on to the next one—skydiving and bungee jumping in 8 days.
First order of business; for those of you reading, you have
probably caught on to the fact that I use a lot of references to movie quotes,
TV, shows, books, etc. If any of you have spent five minutes around any of us
in Athens you know how often quotes from Step Brothers, Wedding Crashers, Happy
Gilmore and Billy Madison, etc. are used to relate to any situation we come
across. Honestly, our girls hate it but we love it; I’m pretty sure Austin Long
has quoted a line from the movie “Seven” before – Quite possibly the most
un-quotable movie of all time. So bear with me if you don’t understand my
sarcasm (or lack there of) during the
blog.
Back to Lady Elliot Island, or quite possibly the “coolest
place on Earth,” it’s and eco resort located about 45 minutes off the coast of Australia
that can only be reached by plane. We ended up taking a single engine from
Hervey Bay Airport. As soon as we boarded, the pilot asked if anyone wanted to
ride wingman… this was a no-brainer for me. Never having a had flying lesson
before this, I felt that I was perfect for the role—really my only training was
when I dressed up as Maverick from “Top Gun” for Halloween this year. The
island itself is made of dead coral and has vegetation on it from thousands of
years of bird poo and seeds. Yes, that’s right. I guess s*** really does
happen…. “A real geographical oddity.” (Name that movie quote, Austin.) When we arrived we were given a tour
of the island and let me say that anyone who has ever watched “Lost” and seen
the “Other’s Camp” it was eerily scary how much the camps resembled each other.
So after 4 days of scuba diving and snorkeling I cannot begin to describe what
it was like to see Dory, Nemo, Crush and Squirt and the rest of the gang. Oh
yea, a few seven foot manta rays and a 13 foot tiger shark also decided to show
up and say hey to us while we were down there. Don’t worry, I have a ton of
GoPro footage that I’ll upload as soon as I get Internet connection that’s
better than dial-up. I must say that being 3 feet from a black tip shark and a
barracuda is quite a rush… time to step up to the plate and try the Hammerheads
and Great Whites in South Africa in the near future. One of the biggest
attractions of the island is the Green Turtles that will actually let you
scratch its shell and swim with you; needless to say I gave Squirt and Crush
some serious “fin” over the past week, “dude.” No whales unfortunately. The
humpbacks were spotted about five miles off the coast of Lady Elliot but never
graced us with their presence. I could have died a happy man right there.
So right now I’m on the bus to Brisbane where we will fly
out to New Zealand in the morning; but first we are going to have a reunion at
Irish Murphy’s and see what the city has to offer tonight. On a side note, I’m looking out my bus window
and aside from the fact that we are driving on the other side of the road, I
cant help but notice that God spent a little extra time on this part of the
world.
Everyone I’ve talked to who has went on this trip told me
that New Zealand is by far the better part of the trip. Honestly, I’m having a
hard time wrapping my head around this. My mind is still blown from everything
that we have done in the past 12 days. I’ve done things that most Australians
don’t have the chance to do. The fact that I still have New Zealand, Fiji and
Europe to conquer in the next two months makes me believe that I may be the
luckiest person in the world.... in the words of Watts Dantzler: #blessed.
By the way, if any of you want to text me or call me,
download the Viber App and add me. My number is 7064980945. Earlier in the week
I got to talk to some of the boys on the phone and I realized the withdrawals
I’m having from the lack of “Bro Time.” I’m sure y’all have become soft since I’m
not there to constantly give you a hard time about everything. Don’t worry; I’ll
make up for it when I’m home for a few weeks. But by far the happiest I’ve been
was getting to talk to my sister for the first time the whole trip. Miss you
Brooke! Love you too mom and dad! Don’t freak out when my debit card statement
comes through from the scuba diving…. I’m not sure when the next time I’ll be able
to post will be; I’m guessing the internet connection in Middle Earth is subpar
but I’ve heard great things about the women and extreme sports. Apparently the
next week and a half involves riding the trails filmed from Lord of the Rings, fly-fishing
in NZ, skydiving, and bungee jumping with an 8 second free-fall. So I’ll be
hanging out the in shire with Frodo and the gang over the next two weeks if you
need me.
I set out on the trip with a few goals in mind. The first:
to meet new people, gain a cultural experience and take a leap of faith. I’ve
never really been overly comfortable in water (I generally sink to the bottom),
however I’ve done multiple dives over the past week and snorkeled open water
with some pretty dangerous critters that could have easily eaten me as a nice
entrée, so I guess that required me taking a leap of faith. The next step is to
jump out a perfectly good airplane and off a perfectly stable bridge. I’ve met
some damn good people that I’ll be friends with the rest of my life and I’ve
seen a part of the world that I never thought I’d be lucky enough to see if I
hadn’t made this trip happen. So I’d say right now I’m on track to meet these
goals. I guess all of those who wander aren’t lost. Stay Classy San Diego.
Dawgs On Top,
-Dustin
P.S. Owen Wilson was right; the toilets do flush backwards
in the Southern Hemisphere. It really does freak you out.
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