Back in Oz!

Wow, what an awesome time I've been having! Bali was pretty much one of the most amazing places I have ever been. Surfing twice everyday and waking up at 5 am for two weeks is something that I never thought I'd be able to do, but surprisingly I managed to have enough energy- the surf spots that they took us to were amazing...so much different than back at home and we had to be extra careful with the reef breaks (I got a cut on my toe) and the strong rips and currents. It was ridiculously hot there too, so Sean and I were dripping sweat the whole time, always jumping in the pool at the hotel. We also decided to take a boat trip to Lembangon Island and it was my favorite part about the Bali trip. We took a 45 min boat ride from Bali to Lembangon and immediately went out surfing when we got there to a place called "shipwrecks." Haha we got out there (there was 5 of us...me, sean, a couple from austria, and a guy from italy)...the other girl and I got slammed by the huge sets and I was stuck under water for a long time and remember thinking "which way is up??" When I finally got up for a breath, I realized I was holding the other girls' surfboard! We were tangled up and were both very scared, so we decided to swim back to the boat and swim and snorkel for a bit haha. We then went to a surfspot called "playgrounds" which was a much much better choice. The waves still got pretty big, but they were much more calm and not as heavy and strong. The boat that we slept on was really sweet- we had a cook that made us the best banana pancakes I've ever had and I of course got extremely excited every morning and made a fool out of myself and the cook even called me "Mrs. Pancake" hah. I don't think he's ever seen anyone get as excited about food as me. We all slept outside on the boat, because the inside (where the beds were) was way too hot. It was so relaxing and easy to fall asleep by the rocking of the boat and the fresh air. On the second day we were there, we rented motor bikes and cruised around the Island...we even crossed a rickety old bridge (which I thought we were going to fall off) that took us to the other Island (Lombok). It was GORGEOUS!!! I can't wait to show everyone pictures from my trip! The last day we were there, we went snorkeling and saw so many sweet fish and even saw a sea snake! Sean took his underwater camera and took some amazing photos. The ocean was completely covered in live coral reef, which was a pretty cool thing to be surrounded by! Anyways, Bali was amazing and I would definitely recommend going there...everything is SO cheap (food is about $2-$3 per meal).
Now I am traveling up the east coast with my good friend, Shayli. We started off in Coolangatta to see the Quicksilver and Roxy pro-we had the best time watching the competition and the hostel we were staying at through a surf film benefit party and the 3 top surfers in the world were there! (Mick Fanning, Joel Parkinson, and Bede Durbage)....Shayli and I even managed to take a picture with Mick Fanning!!!! We stayed in Coolangatta for 5 days and now we are Noosa now and the weather has been rainy :( Tomorrow we leave for Hervey Bay and then to Fraser Island! Can't wait to see what's in store for us....we have been planning everything VERY last minute which has been fun & has made the trip very spontaneous and exciting...looking forward to upadating you all IN PERSON in just a few weeks! Love you all!

safe & sound

So I made it safely to Bali- no I did not get on the wrong plane this time haha! Anyways, I arrived last night and got picked up by the surf camp that I'm doing these next two weeks. Bali is amazing...it reminds me a lot of Costa Rica actually-with the gorgeous beaches, but also with the poverty and people constantly trying to sell you things. Anyways, the hotel room is nice, but interesting...it's very rustic and has an outdoor bathroom!! I kept feeling like people could see me when I was in the shower or on the toilet! But it is pretty cool..everything is wooden and made out of shells and stuff. Very tropical :)

This morning I went for my first surf session here. It was fun and I caught a few decent waves, although the waves got pretty big and I ended up swallowing lots of water and was getting frustrated. The board that I'm using is only about 7 feet, which is a lot shorter than what I am used to. It was still fun though and the surf guide was really helpful! The water here feels like a bath-it is so crazy!! The weather here has been very hot and sunny, and I am exhausted just from surfing this morning and walking around this afternoon. The guys here are pretty aggressive and I got offered lots of free scooter rides from them and lots of "hey gorgeous" comments....a guy also stopped right in front of me on the sidewalk and starting peeing!! Haha good thing Sean is flying out here tomorrow to protect me! It will be really nice finally seeing him and being able to hang out and surf a lot together.

Anyways, I am sitting in a little internet cafe so I should get going before it gets dark out! Tonight I think I'm going to lock myself in my room and read and get to bed early. Can't wait to go surfing again and to see Sean tomorrow! I will keep you all posted on how the trip goes :) hope everyone is doing well back home and is able to live vicariously through me and my traveling-love you all!

Bali Bound...

It's 1 am and my room is all cleaned & packed up! It still hasn't hit me yet that I leave for Bali tomorrow-so crazy!! I really can't believe it.... anyways, this past week with the kids has been great and they were so cute and made me good-bye cards and Harvey kept on telling me he loves me, which was sweet. On Friday evening the family threw me a going away party and we had lots of yummy bbq food and a chocolate cake (they know me pretty well now, don't ya think?) Then I got some presents and they even had a toast for me with champagne and sang "for she's a jolly good fellow!" haha it was pretty cool. Then on Friday evening my girlfriends and I went to a revolving restaurant/lounge on top of a tower in Sydney and had the best view of the city! We had appetizers and cocktails and it was a great night-although it was pouring rain!! Anyways, I have had an awesome time at the Davis household and will find it hard saying goodbye...although I will sleep here next month before I fly back home...can't believe I will be home next month! 

        So long for now....next time I make a post, I will be in BALI!! :) I should try to get some sleep but I feel like how I did when I was a kid at Christmas...I am too excited to sleep...but I need to at least try...I think I may start counting sheep or something. 

Bittersweetness

   I have been having a lot of fun with the kids lately and am realizing it will be hard leaving them and saying goodbye...Harvey has been telling me "My (I) really really love you Caitlyn!"and Oscar (the oldest) even ran up to me and gave me a big hug! This upcoming week is my last week with them, then I leave for Bali Feb 15th! I've been trying to have fun with the kids and enjoy every moment...Last week we went on a bike ride and a long nature/bird walk and had the best time! It was all along a little lagoon and I think the kids really enjoyed it. I've been busy with little Harvey and took him to Clown Town again since the weather has been so rainy. Oh and Harvey and Mia started dance class last week....hilarious!! All of the little girls were in leotards and tights and Harvey strolls in wearing bright red shorts, blue shirt, and his sneakers (or "trainers" as they call them) haha...so the class begins and he was the BEST one in the class. After it ended the dance instructor said that he was the most coordinated one in the class--I started cracking up and all of the moms looked annoyed that Harvey was the best one-it was pretty funny. 

This weekend has been good, although the weather is pretty depressing since it has been so rainy. Yesterday I went to an all day church young adult conference and had a great day! Although of course I fell in front of hundreds of people haha-whoops! It was a silent moment and everyone was praying and I attempt to walk up the stairs to my seat (which was in the front row of my section, in front of everyone) and boom! Faceplant into the stairs haha. I begin laughing hysterically and yell out "Seriously???" Then the security guard came to me and asked if I was okay and I reply, "Yes yes I'm fine!" Then I sit in my seat until my friend Jess tells me I'm in the wrong seat haha just my luck. Jess and I then begin laughing and laughing which turns into crying...I felt so bad because I totally killed the quiet moment that everyone was trying to have. It was very funny though and I have a big bruise on my knee today haha. 

Anyways, this upcoming week I plan on enjoying every moment with the kids and helping the fam out as much as possible. Then I have to pack up my room and head to Bali....what a hard life! :) 

big day out

Life has been just peachy here down unda. The weather has been questionable at times, but today was absolutely gorgeous! Today was "Australia Day," which pretty much means that all the aussies head down to the beach, drink, and hardly anyone is working since it's a national holiday. Last night a big group of us went to the Newport Arms Hotel for an Australia Day Eve party. It's about a 20 min drive from Manly. We got there and there was a massive line that we had to wait in for over an hour, but it was worth it! We had the best time and the place was packed, and it was huge! It apparently has the largest waterfront beer garden in all of Australia--and they even had fireworks at midnight! 

This past week of nannying was a little hectic, since the kids are still on Summer break (they start school on Thursday, thank goodness!) On Wednesday I took the kids down to the park to ride their bikes and when we got in the car to head back home, the car wouldn't start! It was a very hot day out, and you can imagine how hard it was to keep three little ones entertained in the car as we waited over 30 minutes for the mechanic to come. We made it back home and had fun playing games up in Mia's room, and of course when I thought things were going great, Harvey pulled his pants down and peed on Mia's carpet!! Hah, I still can't believe he did that! But of course just when things seem to get tough, someone says something hilarious that makes it all better....Mia was staring at my ear and I asked her, "Mia, what are you looking at??" She responds, "your ear." I then asked her why and she tells me "because your ear is so beautiful!" Then we both started to laugh hysterically--definitely what we both needed! 

Friday was a much much better day, as the older two kids went to vacation care and I just had Harvey....I took him on a bike riding path by the beach in the morning, then to the park, then to a place called "clown town," then to McDonalds for lunch...I forgot how entertaining it is to watch a child try to eat an ice-cream cone. He kept tipping it over and eventually the top half fell off...whoops!  He had me laughing so hard and whenever I start to laugh he begins laughing too! We had such a great time together....just the two of us...and I can already tell it is going to be very hard saying goodbye to that little guy!

Saturday was the best day yet! I went to an all day music festival called "big day out" with Shayli....it was at Sydney's olympic park and there were over 50,000 people there!! They had tons of food booths, bars, and even rides set up all throughout the park! The event started at 11 am and didn't end until midnight, so it was a long long day! It got up to 110 degrees but in the arvo (afternoon) it started to rain and cooled down a lot (which was actually a blessing!) Anyways, we had an awesome time dancing away to Muse, Jet, Lily Allen, Dizzee Rascal, and much more bands! One of the highlights was a guy pointing out to me that I'm, "fabulous. Just a side note." Haha, after he said that I realized that maybe Australians always seem so nice because they are always intoxicated. 

Anyways, I should get going as I'm hoping to get a full nights sleep tonight before the nanny week starts up again...just 3 more weeks and I'm off to Bali :) Hope everyone is staying dry and out of the rain-sending sunshine from down under! 

love, caitlyn

surf's up!

It seems like these weeks just keep going by quicker and quicker! In exactly one month from today, I will be done nannying and off traveling! Wow! Anyways, my past few days off have been great! I went out to dinner on friday night with some of my closest friends here and had an awesome time. We went to a place called "In situ" and it's known for their tapas and cocktails. I went with Shayli, Jess, and Ruthie (they are in the picture). After the meal, when we went up to pay, Ruthie grabbed the bill and paid for all of us! I really couldn't believe it, considering the bill wasn't cheap...we decided to buy her an ice-cream after dinner, (Ok, I did really want ice-cream anyways hah)..we went to a place called "copenhagens" and they seriously have the BEST ice cream. You get a free chocolate dipped cone, free toppings (self-serve) AND free whipped cream! Yum!! It was a really fun night, just us girls. The weather here has been a little iffy and we have been getting some rain and thunderstorms....although yesterday and today were gorgeous. Yesterday I went out surfing with Erik, who was one of the sons of the family that my friend Molly stayed with when she came out to visit. I'm feeling like I'm finally improving on my surfing and am now attempting to turn the board and learn how to really ride the wave and not just simply catch waves and go straight. I wish I could go out everyday....I'm really looking forward to Bali (just over a month away) when I will be able to surf a lot! Today we were gonna go out for another surf, but there were no waves, so we (Erik and his friend Simon) went to a little beach called Collins Beach...it was gorgeous! There's also a high rock that they call "jump rock" and there were heaps of people jumping off it...we were gonna do it but there were too many people, but I really want to go back another time and do it! Oh yeah and it was super funny because at that beach there's little boats that come to shore selling food and stuff! There was one boat selling ice-cream and another boat selling bottled water, juice, yogurt, and smoothies! Crazy huh? They literally drive right up to shore and ring a bell and people run over and buy stuff. I thought the whole concept was pretty funny. 

 

Tonight Shayli and I went on a movie date (Tuesday nights are cheap night at the theater) and we saw "It's Compicated" (it was filmed in Santa Barbara!) Probably one of the funniest movies I have seen in a long long time...we were cracking up the whole time and I would definitely recommend seeing it! Anyways, I should get going ...have to wake up in five and a half hours to start another nanny work week! Only a few more weeks to go and I'm done. Hope everyone is enjoying 2010 so far! xoxo

So long Holidays...

So my "holiday" is over and this week was my first week back at nannying. Today was pretty hectic with all 3 kids, since the older two are still on Summer break. I did manage to make some homemade pumpkin soup from scratch and it was AMAZING. I am definitely going to be cooking some of that when I get home! Anyways, let me tell you about my Christmas trip to Byron and my new years....

So I made it to Byron and the first hostel I stayed at "Backpackers Inn on the Beach" was pretty fun, but people there were very "clicky" and it was intimidating and hard to meet people. Lots of people already knew eachother and were traveling in groups, which made it hard to mingle. My first 3 roommates (I was in a room with 3 other girls) were best friends from Sweden. They were nice and I went to the beach with them a couple times, but it was odd when they were speaking Swedish as I silently sat on my bed. Anyways, my first full day in Byron I did a kayak tour that Julie (the mum) booked for me for my "Chrissy" (christmas) gift. It was so sweet!! I saw heaps of sea turtles, manta rays, and fish..it's crazy how clear the water was--oh and the water seemed super warm too! (although there were TONS of blue bottle jellyfish) My kayak partner was one of the kayak tour guides, which was really cool because he would find all the sea animals and caught lots of waves for us to ride. Haha he was pretty goofy and here was his famous joke he told me: "Did you hear about the hippie that drowned out at sea??"  ME: "What!? Oh my gosh a hippie died! That's horrible! I didn't hear about that! How'd it happen?" HIM: "He was too 'far out!" Haha I totally fell for it. Anyways, I'm in love with kayaking. Oh and guess what I got for free for my "morning tea" during the kayak trip?? YEP! TIM TAMS!!!!! 

On Christmas eve I woke up early and walked to the Lighthouse in Byron Bay....it's the most Easterly point of Continental Australia...it was SO beautiful and was a good walk...took me about 45 minutes each way and I had to walk through a little jungle forest to get there. Since Sweden celebrates Christmas on the 24th, my Swedish roomies celebrated Christmas then. So they put up a little palm tree in our room and put presents under it and had a Christmas meal...then that night they were super homesick and bummed out and were all starting to cry...I awkwardly sat on my bed and decided I wasn't going to let them get me down...so what did I do?? Well, I sucked it up and went out by myself!! I had a wristband for a free drink at this place called "Cocomangas" so I walked there from my hostel, got my free drink (it's called a "jam jar" and comes in a sweet jar)...then I sat at a table by myself feeling like a loser haha. Great Christmas eve right?? Don't worry, it gets better....so I'm sitting there, by myself...then I notice a big group of people (about 20 or so) dancing on the dance floor...then they all start to leave and a few of the guys yell something at me, which I ignore...then a couple of them come over to me and ask why I'm sitting by myself... I then explain to them my deal and they invite me to come to their "bar crawl" that they are doing...apparently they signed up for it and had to pay to go to every bar in byron and get a free drink and free entry. So I tagged along and had the best time!! It was too funny because the guys were feeding me compliments left and right, which was really cool for me to hear, since I was completely alone the past couple days....my favorite compliments were, "I hope my next girlfriend looks like you...and that's an understatement!" The next one was one of the guys saying, "wow, she's cute!" and his friend saying, "she's not cute, she's gorgeous!" Haha I don't think I've laughed that hard in awhile...they must have been pretty drunk for saying that! Anyways, I had a nice Christmas surprise and my good friend Shayli drove down to Byron to meet me for my last few days!! The crazy part was she was staying at the same hostel that I was staying my last couple days! I moved to a Hostel called "Nomads" and it was AMAZING!!! It was brand spankin new and was totally modern and looked like a really nice hotel. My roommates at the hostel were 5 other girls...two of them were aussies (Lauren and Emma) and Shayli and I immediately bonded with them and hung out with them the rest of our trip. We went out with them and had the best time! We were so bummed we didn't meet them sooner though. 

Anyways, Byron Bay was so much fun and I really miss it. I would definitely go back if I ever had the opportunity....Oh speaking of traveling...so I booked a ticket to Bali...I leave Feb 15th for about two weeks!! Craziness....

So New Years was unreal. Shayli and I met up with my friend Roxy and a bunch of her friends and we went to a sweet lookout spot where there were lots of families and young people set up to watch the Sydney fireworks. We got there just after 6, which meant we had plenty of time to see both the 9 pm and midnight fireworks. The fireworks were probably one of the most beautiful things I've seen in a long time....they were so surreal and I still can't believe I was actually THERE! I really had the best time and wish I could relive that night again :) I hope everyone had awesome holidays...for me it just never really felt like Christmas, but that's okay because I am lucky to be here in Aussie land and I will DEFINITELY be home next year for Christmas. I love and miss everyone and I will try to be better about updating this more often...I should get to bed...have to nanny in a few hours!