down under

Bet you'll never believe it...

2005-06-19T19:57:00.000-07:00

Ok, so i know i have bailed on writing about 3,000 times this entire semester. But recently my life has been just too insanely and almost hysterically catastrophic that writing would put the reader is such an uncomfortable and awkward place. You know, like when someone just politely asks how you are doing, and you end up telling them that your 'friend' won't leave you alone and stop coming to your home until you talk to her after you had asked her repeatedly to stay away, or that your computer and very favorite camera had been stolen by a burglar that came into your home in the middle of the night, or that you chronically have incredibly painful stomach aches for no real reason that handicap you for days at a time...because really, who wants to hear about stuff like that? All they want is for you too say, "i'm fine, and you?" and be on their way.
So, gentle reader. I am fine, and you? Actually, i am better than fine, because i survived and realize that no matter what, i always have the people i love, and no mental patient or burglar or gruesome flesh-eating stomach disease can ever take them away. Also, i kind of kicked my ass this weekend snowboarding six hours south of sydney in jinderbyne, at Thredbo. And...it was amazing. I have black and blue all over me, and i find it very difficult to lift my arms or walk or move at all, really. BUT, i did get the hang of snowboarding and can't wait to do it again...in december.
sorry, i dont have any pictures to show...because my computer was stolen and therefore i can't really upload them on to a computer even if i wanted to. Ah well. but, i am sure you know how good i look when i am dressed up like a marshmallow, so there is really no need to spoil you with fun pictures.
I have a lot of studying to do as it is finals time, but i bid thee well and that your week will be much more lighthearted and maybe less eventful than mine. Thanks to all who got me through it, though. I'll never forget it. Love you!

nate

2005-06-07T01:25:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

This is my houseguest, Nate.

The Purtzers

2005-06-07T01:24:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Ashley, Mama Purtzer, Laura, Kelton (Laura's boyfriend), and Eric.

around the world

2005-06-07T01:23:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Kasey and Ashley Friday night. How many countries do you think Ashley has been to so far?

finals week

2005-06-07T01:03:00.000-07:00

To my faithful readers. Last week was pretty eventful. Tuesday night i met up with a bunch of high school friends- Go Bethlehem!- at a jazz club in newtown (the cool area where i live). Two of the BC people were visiting from a university in Queensland, called Townsville. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Queensland is the state in the northeast part of Australia, where the great barrier reef is, along with all of the scary scary animals that rank in the top 10 of most poisonous/dangerous/life threatening/outrageous animals in the world.
After catching up we headed to a club/bar with a band downtown, called Scruffy Murphy's. As you can tell by the name, it is a pretty classy joint. After a fun night of drinking a LOT of...diet cokes, we were all feeling pretty good and dancing pretty hard. Surprisingly, everyone of us made it home safe and sound.
The next day, however, proved not to be so safe or so sound. Our good friend, Kasey, exhausted from the night before and probably incredibly dehydrated, had a freak fainting spell and slammed her right eye on the concrete while leaving class early due to light-headedness. She ended up fracturing her skull right around her eye (if you run your finger along your eyebrow you will feel the bones that she rustled up), and a fairly intimidating gash with a great deal of blood. Though Kasey didn't think it necessary (she wasn't able to see the extent of her wounds until hours later), she was rushed to the hospital. Her brother was in town, visiting, and met up with her at the hospital. Now, ER's aren't that much fun anyway, but if you are a stranger to the area, they are even a bit more unsettling. So we ended up keeping each other company in the waiting room/hallways of the hospital/ random places where they would tell us to wait from 12pm to 9:30 that evening. Luckily, only a few stitches were required and no rewiring of the skull prescribed.
Thursday i got a call from my new friend, Nate (one of the BC friends i met up with, but the one i hadn't really met until the other night) requesting a place to crash for the next couple of days since the hostel price shot up for the weekend. Having two fairly comfortable couches at my disposal, i found it difficult to refuse him, and thus found myself with a houseguest for the next couple of days.
Friday i spent the day (as i had spent all of my days for the two weeks leading up to this day) in the dark room putting the finishing touches on my photos for photography class (a class i am absolutely in love with). After completing my project, i met up with Ashley and the Purtzer family at a bar in the Rocks, called the Orient. Her family was participating in the "around the world" promotional beer drinking event where if you drink 10 beers from all over the world, you get a free t-shirt. As you all know, imported beers are quite expensive, and thus you run up a $75 tab with this game. Because i am unable to consume anywhere near that much alcohol and not die, i stuck to my...diet coke. A fun night with Nana Purtzer, mama purtzer, and the rest of the gang, though.
This weekend i laid low. We went to a rugby match on saturday night(which is quite different than a footy match- but we like the footy ones better), but nevertheless it was a wonderful end to my day filled with laundry and photo touch-ups. Sunday was a rough one and i decided to take the day off.
Monday i spent most of the day studying for a psych tutorial quiz, and right now i am putting off writing a really boring paper. Thanks for listening to me ramble. I will post some more pics for an added distraction!

aussie men

2005-05-30T08:02:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Mom, dad, please meet my new boyfriend..

HAHA!!!

2005-05-28T16:00:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

This is probably a glimpse of what your face will look like when you discover that someone has been a little busy on this blogster. my new favorite insomnia activity! (aside from making funny faces at cameras) WAHOO!!!

Ashley!

2005-05-28T15:58:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Ashley, everyone, everyone, Ashley.

Ashley likes sparkles, french fries, and her favorite part of the day is the afternoon right before it starts to get dark. I have never met anyone with more energy than this girl.

"Everyone" likes strolls in the park, hot chocolate, and warm fuzzies. He also doesn't think this blog exists anymore.

danielle

2005-05-28T15:53:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Danielle, everyone. Everyone, danielle. Diesel (her new nickname as of last night) is one of the coolest people you will ever meet. she is perfect for my neurotic side because she knows how to neutralize situations (and me). Oh yeah, and she also agrees to pose like one of the hanson brothers. You can't get away with that unless you are cool.

Peter aka Fingers

2005-05-28T15:41:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

From Left to Right- Colin, Fingers, random sketchy dude.

hahahaha...:-(

2005-05-28T15:37:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

My "I just walked all over campus with this S**t on my face" face.

Me, the King, and p.s. I am alive.

2005-05-28T15:26:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

I am sure most of you have given up on my blog. I, in fact, had pretty much given up on my blog, until my inspiration- a very friendly computer geek- scolded me for missing this golden opportunity to tell the world what i have been up to. I decided to plunge back into it. But my dear gentle reader, i do warn thee that my life in Australia, though fun packed and exciting for me, might not be full of adventures such as crazy hikes, creative organic excitement, or insane allergic reactions. I will do my best to keep it entertaining (and PG...maybe PG-13?)

Here you see me posing with the great Elvis Presley. Obviously he is bald...he is pretty old at this point. He came back for this one night to go to Kelly's, our favorite little irish pub.(note: our is meant to include "me and my friend danielle," not "me and the 40-some-odd stranger that agreed to let me borrow his wig and glasses for a half hour. This note is included for all my loving uncles that just love to give me the benefit of the doubt- D.O. in particular). Kelly's generally has some pretty embarrassing karaoke going on, and has two pool tables on the upper level. Did i mention i have become something of a shark? It also tends to bring in a pretty interesting crowd of people from all walks of life. I will include a picture of another regular at some point whose name is Peter, but who generally introduces himself as "fingers." Hold up your right hand, and fold your middle and ring finger down into the palm of your hand, that look at the back of your hand. That is basically what this man has to work with. Factory accident. Anyway, we (me and danielle) agree that it would be more accurate if he dubbed himself stubbs (sorry brendan) or stumps or something, as he is actually LACKING fingers. If he had some extra fingers then perhaps the nickname would make more sense. Sorry, side tracked...interesting people though.

Recently Ashley's family is in town- a delightful bunch- but they are kind of stealing one of my very favorite people. So times have been tough. Also, i have kind of had a falling out with one of my very close friends, and this event has kind of been consuming a good chunk of my thoughts, time, energy, etc... and is thus one of the reasons i had difficult writing interesting things on my blog. You know when you talk about something so much that even you start to get bored with the topic, but you just can't stop?

Related to this falling out, here is a quick aside. I recently found out (2 to 3 weeks ago) in a very painful manner that i in fact need to get my wisdom teeth pulled out...really really soon. Apparently, if you don't know, a lot of the time the eruption of your wisdom teeth through your gums is brought on by stress. I realized that though i hadn't been very emotive throughout this whole desintigrating friendship thing, my body was finding other ways to tell me that things weren't ok. When i found this out, i had a bit of breakdown ( i swear this gets funny and isn't solely depressing). I called Ash (one of the most amazing people that can heal you with a smile and save the world with a laugh) and explained the situation. By the time i was walking out the door the tears were welling up in my eyes and i knew i wouldn't be able to compose myself for the 15 minute walk home. When i got outside, i was pretty much hysterical. I crawled into the threshold to an emergency exit, turned into the door, and started crying to my dear friend on the phone...in public. I figure most of you can empathize with my when i say, that's a LITTLE UNcomfortable. Awkward. Embarrassing. horrifying...you get the point. Ok, wait for it...wait for it... With the crying and the tears and the pain, could it get worse? Well, only if you are the amazing Jenny Gerstenzang, the Amelia Bedelia of upstate New York, and you are recently prone to getting bloody noses due to the weather change. Did i say a bloody nose? Oh yes, yes i did. Now, picture it, i am in the fire escape alcove, crying hysterically, and bleeding ALLLLLLLLLLLLL over myself. Now, may ask yourself, What would Jesus do? I don't know, but if you are me, you start laughing hysterically, and talking pretty loudly about how embarassed you are that you have a bloody nose- mainly so when you have to turn around and walk home, people know that YOU KNOW you have blood all over your face- oh, and tears too. Luckily, the friend who is no longer my friend, in all her dramatic glory, had left all the clothes she had borrowed from me in Ashley's room, and i had my black anti-bush shirt to hold up to my face and clean the blood up with. too bad i somehow kept cleaning the wrong side of my face- I guess i should have known good old GW wouldn't get it right. Ok, so maybe this wasn't the quickest of asides, but this explains a bit why i have abandoned the blog. These things need a bit of time in order to be funny... at least to me.

After this incident, i figured i kind of needed to get away. It seemed the perfect time to go to Melbourne, and by god it was. me, Ashley, Danielle (these people are in all of the pictures throughout my blog) and some other ladies went to the city for a long weekend. We went to museums for some really interesting exhibits, walks on the beach, a really awesome footy match, some pubs, some clubs, and ate some subs. We also went to this umbria jazz festival. It was set up kind of like the tulip festival in the sense that it was free. And awesome. (but no flowers) It was kind of the most amazing weekend of my life, and heaps of fun, and an emotional escape that just needed to happen. (Thanks mom and dad- heaps).

School wise it is a little weird. Weird as in different- i am not the biggest fan of the Sydney University way of doing things. The only class that i am thoroughly, thoroughly enjoying (which is totally ok because I am in FREAKING AUSTRALIA!!!) is photography. I kind of feel like a little Karen O'Hern- dabbling in this and that. It's kind of the most fun and relaxing class i have taken- ever. I have to go into the dark room tomorrow and print my self- portraits. Two pictures of me that are supposed to explain or give a glimpse at who i think i am. The interesting thing is that is your know me, you know i haven't the foggiest idea who that is, at least i can't really make up my mind or i am inconsistent or something, or both. I guess this is a good thing. I have apparently been dodging the question for 20 some odd years and it is a good excuse to actually sit down and figure it out. Really sift through the lint in my navel (right, dad?)

Ok, at this point i have probably eaten up a good portion of your morning, that is if you still check to see if i even write on this thing anymore (i wouldn't blame you if you didn't, i stopeed checking if i did, too), or you may have gotten bored after the whole fingers/stubbs fiasco, or at leasted sketched out, and decided to abandon ship. I love you all tons, and i figure i better keep up the blog just so that i can remind you of that everyday.

Oh yeah, the most amazing thing happened the other day- i got to hear my sister's voice for the first time in 10 weeks. it was a beautiful thing. I love you Erin! Nothing but Trupple!

BOO!

2005-05-27T08:48:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

more soon to come...

FOOTY!!!!!

2005-04-24T23:44:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

On Saturday night Ashley, Lauren, Kasey and I went to a footy match. Sydney Swans vs. Melbourne Demons. Now, for those of you who don't know, Footy is very similar to rugby, but has a lot of different rules which, between you and me, i don't know. Um...it is basically a hard core sport without protective gear and a lot of man-handling. Intense to watch, though. Sorry about the lax with the blog. Living it up in OZ town. patrick- awesome pics with the dolphins! happy Anzac Day!

some pictures from mom and dad's visit....

2005-04-24T22:01:00.000-07:00

Maybe this will work- but here are some pictures from the wonderful trip i had with my amazing parents. I am sure they are CHEERING for their Jet lag but i hope they thought it was worth it!

Yes, we CAIRNS!

2005-04-16T23:17:00.000-07:00

Two days ago Karen Gerstenzang, Papa Gerstenzang, and little Jenny GErstenzang flew out from Sydney airport (the same airport the parent troopers had just flown into days earlier) and headed to a place called Cairns (pronounced CANS). If you would like to pull out a map of australia, which i know you have all looked at numerous times because you miss me so much and want to know exactly how far away i am from you, Cairns is north of Sydney, up in the right corner of Australia. Now, depending on how detailed your map is, about a half a mm up from Cairns (on the map, of course, not in real size) is a place called Port Douglas- a much cuter place than Cairns. That is where we are staying.

The first whole day in Port Douglas we set out early to go to the Great Barrier REef, about an hour and 45 minute boat ride to the three different places we were going to see. On the way i took a crash course in scuba diving so i would be able to reach greater depths once we got there. Tight body suits, embarrassing spit-filled goggles, and a really heavy tank on my back, and i was ready to go down under- the water. Unfortunately, my body wasn't on board with my mind. Shortly after getting in the water, and trying to equalize my ears according to the pressure, my instructor made me go back up and informed me that i had a nose- bleed. Cool, and predictable. Me of all people, would start bleeding perfusely in shark infested waters. Way to go.

In an effort not to misinform my readers, the great barrier reef is located in warm waters, thus the sharks that are there are not the dangerous ones, and there aren't that many sharks to speak of anyway. HOwever, he did think it was something to be checked out. I waited that round out of the water, and instead watched as one by one, snorklers abandoned the reef, chased out by blue bottle jellyfish(baby man of wars.) One man got stung on his lip, another lady her face (the rest of the body except for a few spots on the face and ankles were covered in protective gear.) Of course, Karen recieved a quite nasty sting on her foot which she described (the same way she described child birth) as "Slightly uncomfortable. If i'm not distracted, i know something is going on down there. But if i'm in a conversation, i kind of forget all about it." Needless to say, Jenny and Karen's pain-o-meters are not scaled the same way. Also needless to say, my father spent the rest of the time on board, in the air-conditioned cabin with his book. Much credit is given to him for getting in the water at all, and for being such a trooper about the whole thing.
The second place we went in the water I, (very proudly might i add) braved the jellyfish and jumped in. NO nose bleeds for me (i took my nose ring out). I saw some baracudas, an eel, a bunch of fun fish and some sting rays. The thirds stop they wanted to charge me 42 more dollars to do another dive- WHAT? I instead jumped off the top of the boat (not in protest, they were letting you do this) and snorkeled around with mom. What a blast.

After a nice long rest last night, we awoke this morning and had another grand day. Mom and I went to the Wildlife Habitat about 10 minutes away. They had places that exhibited the Grasslands, the Rainforest, and the Wetlands (i think those are the three of them but i will check up on that.) We saw crocodiles (fresh and salt water- the salt water are the ones that eat you). We saw tons of birds, lots of parrots that thoroughly enjoyed kamikazee diving for my head. What can i say, i smell good!

The highlights, i would have to say, is when i got to pet kangaroos and feed them out of my hand. One grabbed my fingers so tight that it almost broke the skin (he didn't want me to move the food away from his mouth until he was finished- i can understand that.) Some were as small as Madison, and others as big as my mom( which isn't that much bigger than madison, but a little taller). Some had little Joey's in their pouches and some looked really strong. I will put up some pictures when i get back home.

The second highlight- equally as exciting as the kangaroo, is the petting of the koala. Now, make sure you don't say koala bear. IT's ok in the states, because we are all equally ignorant over there. But to be sure, the koala is not a bear. It is a koala. And it eats eucalyptus leaves which are not at all nutritious. IT is like us eating very oily celery all day- the kind of celery mcdonalds would market. You would feel hungry and ill and grumpy all day. This is why they sleep for 18 hours and eat for 4, and basically think about eating or sleeping for the other 2.

Perhaps this little post will get some of those people off my back that are upset i am not updating you with the small activities of my life. But i love it when you nag, especially if you have a sexy gall bladder. More will be posted, and i can't wait to hear your comments and any news from afar. Enjoy your weekend! Love, Jenny (PS, safe travels to all who are coming over to my side of the world! Yay for culture shock!)

school?

2005-04-07T17:07:00.000-07:00

I realize i kind of slacked on my thailand posts, but i would rather have been exploring the streets of bangkok than finishing up the story. I developed some black and white proofs last night of some of the pictures i took in thailand, and so far they are really cool.
I anxiously await the arrival of mom and dad on tuesday, though i am not quite clear on the times they will be arriving. I am hurrying to finish up all of my assignments for the next two weeks so that i may be able to sit back and enjoy their visit.
As far as school goes, i think having a week long break after only 3 weeks of school, though fun, is somewhat silly. I now have 10 straight weeks of labor ahead of me, and it's hard to do school work when you feel as if you are on a constant vacation. At least most of it is interesting (unlike this post thus far).
I hope everyone had a wonderful easter break and i can't wait to hear from all of you!

The Jungle rafts:

2005-03-31T00:37:00.000-08:00

hopefully, you are all eagerly awaiting the second chapter in "Jenny does Thailand." I just hope i wetted your appetites enough with the first e-mail of our crazy day in Bangkok.

Early on Sunday morning the bus picked Gianna and i up at 6:10 am. We boarded the shuttle already inhabited by a family of four- parents with their two adolescent boys- alex and zach. After sitting down, the older of the boys- alex, 18, asked his father a question in spanish. I promptly inquired "de donde eres?" "Um...Minnesota" was the boys reply. Cool. Apparently he was doing the whole "I'm sitting with two strangers in the back and i don't want them to know what i am saying." Could i be anymore like my mom?
A wonderful start to our trip, we continued on the shuttle until we made another stop in bangkok where we unloaded and jumped on a coach bus. Finally, we were on our way to the jungle rafts...or were we?
A couple of hours later- having befriend both of the boys so much so that the younger one felt more than comfortable to gaze longingly at Gianna's chest. Indeed, Gianna's chest is something to marvel at. Unfortunately, the attention of a 16 year old bully leaves much to be desired for an admirer. We arrived at our first stop. A WWII memorial set up to honor the fallen POW's that died creating a railroad for the Japanese connecting Thailand and Burma. Under normal circumstances, this railroad would take about 15 years to complete, the Japanese wanted it in 1 year. Thus many people from many nations suffered from disentary, starvation, malnutrition and cholera, as well as many other diseases during the forced construction of this railroad. It was very interesting to learn about this especially because whenever we study WWII history, the focus is more on Pearl Harbor and the Holocaust, and we are left thinking that no-one else but the US suffered tragedy during this war.
AFter this eye-opening experience, we took a boat ride to the bridge over the river kwai. There has been a book and movie made about this bridge, but unfortunately it is greatly inaccurate- no one escaped from the brutality of the Japanese. On the boat ride, we passed many disco-rafts (it was 11 am) with may thai teenagers dancing along to techno music. How insane!?! We reached the Bridge soon after, and had some time to wander through the tourist traps. Next stop- another boat ride to the jungle rafts.
Ok, now back to bankok for a little while, but i will resume this soon...(we ride elephants and swim in the river adn endless scrabble! stay tuned!

Kwai River Jungle Rafts

2005-03-29T22:51:00.000-08:00

So the past couple of days have been the most exciting, eye widening, and completely frightening of my entire life. I have never experienced anything quite like it. CULTURE SHOCK!!!! To visit a country where the only word you have in common is "OK" is quite an experience.
We arrived in Bangkok at 10:30PM Bangkok time, 1:30 AM Aussie time, and 10:30AM US time. WE were taken to our hotel for the night. Unfortunately, that hotel had overbooked itself, and thus had made arrangements for us to be taken to another hotel. The language barrier however made this interaction much more confusing and thus the entire evening one that could only be described as "sketchy." Upon arrival at the new hotel, one that seemed much less impressive than the first, we encountered a woman with even worse english (not complaining, it is not as if i can speak a word of thai) than the first hotel. We finally got into our room that smelled of stale cigarettes, and crashed for the evening.
WE awoke the next morning on Karen time- 5:20 am. We rushed over to our other hotel, convinced this was the day we were getting picked up for our 4 day excursion on the river kwai. We arrived to find out that the trip in fact began the following day, and day 1 was a day for adventure around bangkok. oh- whoops. Flexible and perky, we went up to our new hotel room (much nicer than the one we had left) and embellished in a fun game of scrabble while we waited for the sun to rise.
Once it was a more mature hour, we ventured back down to the lobby in hopes to find something interesting to do. A taxi was waiting for us (there are always taxis or tuk-tuk's waiting for you) and suggested that we go on a tour of the canal. 500 Baht each (about $15 a piece) we boarded a personal boat and went down the canal for 30 minutes and then back. What a wonderful way to start the day and see the city. before heading back to the dock, we were able to get off the boat and look at a temple as well as in some markets.
Safely back on dry land, we wandered around the city. Suddenly, we were approached by a very friendly and enthusiastic man who convinced us to get in a tuk-tuk and go to a tailor. Of course, at the time, we didn't realize that this was where he was sending us, we thought we were going to a market area. As we quickly discovered, Tuk-tuks- the cheapest form of transportation- an hour long ride costs about 3 dollars- work on commission. they will get you where you want to go, but generally make 4 or 5 stops to places you don't want to go first. So, we went to a tailor and then to a jewel store- and then bid farewell to our tuk-tuk driver- we had had enough. We walked around a food market adn then it started to rain. It was only about 11:30 am and we were already exhausted from our travels. WE grabbed another tuk-tuk and convinced him to take us directly to our hotel. Once there, we took a short nap, played a quick game of scrabble, and went to get something to eat.
There are so many street vendors here with interesting food! HOwever, none of it really appeals to our Americanized stomachs. I got a tuna salad sandwich and Gianna got a ham and cheese melt. How sad for our first meal in bangkok, but the french fries were excellent! We vowed to be more adventurous with our dinner.
After lunch we explored the markets. WOW! WE bought thai pants- i now live exclusively in thai pants- though i am sure they are just called "pants" here. I also got a cute shirt and some wonderful entertainment.
still exhausted and overheated, we went back to the hotel and went for a dip and then showered and dinner. Dinner was...disappointing, but that i waht you get when you are too lazy to venture out into all of bangkok. So, we ended the night with Mango-sticky rice for dessert and headed up to our rooms- passing out at 8pm
The next day -awaking once again at 5:20, we were on time to meet our group. I've probably bored you enough with our first day, adn i will write more about the river kwai jungle rafts and the rest tomorrow. BUT IT WAS AMAZING!!!!!

THAILAND BABY!

2005-03-24T18:36:00.000-08:00

In about an hour and a half i will be leaving to go to the airport to start my adventure in Thailand! WOoooHOOO! Unfortunately, this means that there will probably be a 10 day intermission in my blog. I am sure you will all mourn this turn of events, but i am sure that my stories upon returning to Australia will raise your spirits back to their original levels. If not, just look through a fork and pretend that everyone and everything you look at is in jail. At least, that is another suggestion from my no-stress book.

Have a wonderful easter holiday and if i find an internet cafe in thailand i will definitely throw in another post. LOVE YOU ALL!

when i get homesick...

2005-03-22T20:00:00.000-08:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

If ever i need a warm fuzzy, this is one of my favorite pictures to turn to. Good people, good times, beautiful faces. I love you guys!

P.S. Congrats to Patrick! I heard he floored the family with his incredible talent. Wish i could have seen it!

rainy days

2005-03-22T19:40:00.000-08:00

I thought it wasn't supposed to rain in australia... Today is kind of rainy, and it is supposed to last up until saturday. Fortunately, i leave for thailand on friday, so i will be able to miss at least a bit of the depressing weather. However, it allows for a good day of studying- which is why i am procrastinating and posting to my blog instead.

I received a book from a friend of mine entitled HOW TO HANDLE STRESS with little tips on what to do if you are stressed out. I figure i can post a new one each time i make a comment so that even if i don't have anything THAT interesting to say (like right now) there will be something to look forward to. today, to relieve stress, the book and i suggest that you "put on a pair of steel tipped boots. Look straight at teh vending machine and say: 'Go ahead, MAKE MY DAY'." You are all invited to do so.

Tomorrow i have class from 10am to 9 pm with an hour or two break. Pretty much the longest day ever. However, after that it is HELLO THAILAND. Plus, i get to end the day developing photos that we took this weekend. Mine might be a bit funny as i only recently (this morning) figured out where my light meter is- so i probably over/under exposed like craziness so far. It's ok though, cuz perhaps they will come out even cooler this way.

Last night i sang vanilla ice's "Ice Ice Baby" on karaoke with Gianna. I'll never be asked to do a cover show but fun nonetheless. I'll post a funny random picture just to liven up my blog- but i wish someone would post to me so that i don't think everyone has forgotten. I obviously don't discriminate between interesting and non-interesting posts- you know this because you are reading mine right now and are probably reaching for the no-doze (or diet pepsi from you car).

Well, i love you all and i am currently working on posting most of my pictures to webshots.com so that they can all be viewed, not just a few from flickr. It's free so if you (erin and zach) want to do it too it would probably be in your best interest. I look forward to your messages! Thanks mom for being the one who consistently remembers me- and for being so special. Everyone think good thoughts and embrace the day! rainy or not there are more things to be thankful for than to be complaining about- so thank someone special to you now. SO THANK YOU!!!!

Fun house

2005-03-21T13:10:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Gianna, Ashley and I went to Luna Park- a gaudy playland that can only be described as a much creepier version of Hoffman's playland- to take pictures for our photo class. Unfortunately i forgot to bring my manual, and was guessing what aperture and shutter speed to use for each shot as i am having a difficult time finding/figuring out the light meter. Nevertheless, i am excited to find how the pictures came out.

Friday is fast approaching and there are still some loose ends to be tied in preparation for our trip to thailand. Gianna and i need to purchase a whole bunch of bug spray, a bug net for our heads (one of those cool looking hats), and 10 days supply of granola bars just in case we can't stomach the food. Erin and Zach- got any hints or rules of thumb regarding food? Anything of importance that we should remember to bring that we probably haven't thought of?

Homesick hit a little bit recently- it is raining and that limits the things that one can do to distract one-self. Missing you all like crazy! Hope everyone had a great spring break and hope to hear from you soon!

GET EXCITED!

2005-03-19T17:49:00.000-08:00

Some people never ever stop surprising you. The great thing about being young (ok, well one of the many) is getting to know people before they become huge and everyone knows them. You know, the Gianna Sobols, the Zach Pousman's, and the Jonathan Caplans... people that just amaze you every step of the way and make you gitty just to think about getting to talk to them and honored when they talk back.

Check out Caplan's page at www.creativehotlist.com/j-caplan2 and you will understand what i am talking about. These are the types of things that make me say - OOOOH, i wish i could do that!

Anyway, just a little shout out for my highschool senior buddy that made a dorky freshman feel cool. And a shoutout for everyone else that accepts me because i am unconditionally not.

Oh yeah, when you decide to make him famous, you can reach him at JonCaplan1@hotmail.com to tell him.

lucky charm, anyone?

2005-03-19T06:46:00.000-08:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

P.S. Happy belated st Paddy's day to all!

me, gianna, ashley, and lacey

2005-03-19T06:45:00.000-08:00

IMG_1064
Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Last night i went on a double date for gianna and ashley. When i say this, i mean that gianna and ashley met these two cute boys that invited them over for a bbq, and they were nice enough to bring me along. It was very interesting. One of their roomates owned a snake named Blade and we got to see it eat a frozen mice (of course the owner first thawed the mouse in boiling water).
Today i got to make fun of all of the girls to my right for being ridiculous-but i LOVE THEM SOOOO MUCH! We went to the beach but it was too cold to swim. Had a rematch in scrabble but it was too cold to finish. Resisted the temptation to purchase grossly overpriced sweatshirt.
Boo Ya to all who think my blog is boring and mundane! Amy and Leslie- I'm sorry i have such a strong censoring system on this blog!

ICEBERG'S at bondi

2005-03-14T14:24:00.000-08:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

For Gianna's 21 birthday, her parents took her and the most amazing people she knows (ash and i) out to dinner at the nicest resaurant in town. It overlooks bondi beach and at night the view is just breathtaking. We drank champagn, good wine, at marvelous marlin steark and amazing amazing food. We gave gianna yahztee for her birthday, as she has never played it the real way. We are going to have to choose between scrabbly and yahztee as teh game to bring to thailand. Scrabble will probably win the competition, mainly on seniority. I am having a blast down under!
I recently have worked out all of my classes, and now i have to take 3 psych classes and one women's studies and one photography class. I am bummed about so much psych because it is a lot of info but doesn't count as many credits because it doesn't have the same amount of writing- that's fair!...
anyway, i might have a date tonight and, and i really want to see the acquarium so maybe we can go there. We will see how it goes! Enjoy the rest of your day everyone at home, and keep in touch. ENJOY YOUR SPRING BREAKS! Love, Jenny

Learning to surf

2005-03-14T14:17:00.000-08:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

the other day i tried to learn to surf at Bondi Beach. I am pretty sure i swallowed a quarter of the ocean and we are still looking for it up my nose, but it was so much fun none the less. I didn't really get up on the board but i had a fabulous time with my instructer- a fellow student giving us a much better rate than what we would normally get. it was great fun and i recommend that everyone gives it a try! It truly was a humbling yet incredible experience!

The tremendous THAI-riffic two

2005-03-14T03:57:00.000-08:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Everyone, Gianna, Gianna, Everyone. I am pleased to introduce my very good friend and partner in crime. The two of us are taking on Thailand in a mere 9 days on a rafting trip that will change out lives. We cannot wait to show you the pictures and to tell you so many stories... More pictures are coming...

SPIDERS

2005-03-11T15:57:00.000-08:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

Just a little remind of the types of things that may be living in my backyard or under my bed.

uncomfortable...

2005-03-08T13:40:00.000-08:00

Apparently, my last couple of blogs have created some global confusion. For that, i apologize. First of all, and let me make this clear, THAT IS NOT ME IN THE PICTURE!!!!!!!!! If you will direct your attention a few inches above her breasts, you will see that her face is not the face of your niece (as it is from my uncles that this confusion seems to be coming from).

So, for those in the peanut gallery- none of the pictures on this blog are, or will ever be, a naked Jenny Gerstenzang. Thank you for all who assumed that it was me, that paints a clear picture as to who you assume i am as an individual, and what you would probably guess i would score on an IQ test. so...I love you too.

ALSO, the fact that my spring break does not coincide with the arrival of my parents does NOT mean that i will be in classes while they are here. I am more than willing to miss a few classes- apparently the professors here assume that international students will do that and thus it is not a huge deal. Also, i have Friday off, so we have long weekends to go to New Zealand, and i have tuesdays free as well. as for the rest of the week, thursday is basically the only day that my evening will be consumed (which by the time you have spent 10 days with me, i am sure you could use a break). The rest of the days i have a class at 12-1 and then 4-5. I promise none of this will interrupt the fun time we have planned. Also it gives me a chance to visit thailand or do some other exciting adventure. Actually, i think this all works out perfectly.

I hope your facial expression (dad) is a little less disgusted as you read this e-mail rather than the previous one.

Yesterday i didn't have classes and we ended up going to Bondi beach- the rip tide almost took me out to sea but my friend Andrew saved me. We then had dinner on the beach and i ended up watching a movie to wind down- the beach wears you out! today i have classes again, and in between them i think gianna nad i are going to go to espresso head, a wonderful cafe with amazing veggie burgers, and have lunch. We are also going to try to get me the cute waiters phone number... We were thinking about making a note saying "Will you go out with me? Please Check one" and then have two boxes beneath with the words "YES" and "NO" written next to them. Haha, we shall see. And so, another adventure begins.

ERIN AND ZACH! I am so excited for you! Hawaii is what it is!

dad, i could be a lot less conservative...

2005-03-06T05:53:00.000-08:00

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Originally uploaded by jgerste.

This bird was standing at the table next to us, posing for pictures with all interested in getting one. She agreed to pose with hippo. Hippo's ecstastic!

mardi gras

2005-03-06T05:35:00.000-08:00

Well, tomorrow marks the first day of classes after a 3 month vacation- the longest i have gone without school since it all began- since it was only carpooling with mom and eye-widening jcc locker room experiences with mom's geriatric swim group members. I think this vacation has been much more...enjoyable.

yesterday was the last day of sydney's month long celebration of the freedom of the gay and lesbian community, mardi gras. An hour and a half long parade with intent to express yourself, and make sure the world can't ignore you. It was a blast and yet another eye-opener- though jcc still takes the cake for shock factor.

I am taking 2 psyc classes- social psych and cognitive learning. I am also taking a photo class with Mom's kick-ass old school 33mm Nikon that she has generously allowed me to borrow, a women studies class, and a cyberworld class. I am dropping one and i think that we all have an idea as to which on it will probably be (sorry zach), but you never know.

I've been doing a lot lately, keeping busy, working out, getting ready for school, figuring out spring break. You ever give your parents the wrong date for your spring break and have them come at a completely different month? Ever alert them to this in a blog? I guess we will see how that turns out together- but all around it should work out in everyone's favor.

I have gotten in touch with Peter Cooley and Eric Herd, and Lauren Sullivan, who is on my program, has run into Aaron Griffin recently. Small world. It will be fun to see them and hang out with the old BC crew. I can't wait to meet the other 45,500 pupils at sydney university, however, and it should be very interesting. Wish me luck on my first day! I miss you guys! 4 days till some very special people start causing some trupple in hawaii. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO- WOOOO HOOOOOO!

Much LOVE!

for now...

2005-03-03T14:39:00.000-08:00

new posts on the way, for now here is a link to some fun pics: (it's not really working as a link on the blog, but it is worth it to type it in!

http://community.webshots.com/user/dosdingos

Ash took these, enjoy!

aaah, the beach

2005-03-01T02:20:00.000-08:00

If you are as lucky as i am, you got to speak to me today. To all four of you that i spoke on the phone with, you truly brightened my day. It was so good to hear your voices. Immediately following our conversations, however, i hopped on a ferry and headed to Manley beach- a beautiful view and wonderful time.
The beach was riddled with blue top jellyfish- though not deadly quite unpleasant, so i jumped in the ocean for a solid 5.4 seconds, and quickly skirted out and back to the beach. The rest of the day i cooled off in the beach shower and played a couple of games of scrabble with Gianna. The first game i had a whopping 395 and used the word zilch on a tripple word score, as well as some other impressive words. I AM A CHAMPION! Not really, because she won her first game against me immediately following that game. Good times all around, however.
I have just finished my shower and it is 9:30, time to hit up some sort of nightlife. Hope all of you are doing well and an especially big hurray for joey, heading off to hawaii in just a few short days. How lucky we are! Thank god for wonderous opportunities and fulfilling dreams! Sweet dreams my friends!

hello everybody!

2005-02-27T15:04:00.000-08:00

Hi, my name is jenny, and i am an infrequent poster to my blog. No worries though, because i am thoroughly enjoying myself. Yesterday i went for a run to explore the city. I went down to circular quay (pronounced "key") and darling harbor, where i saw the very famous opera house. I then went to the botanical gardens in the afternoon, and walked around. We then attended the worlds largest short film festival called tropfest, where we saw the 16 films that made it to the finals. It was a blast. We sat outside, under the stars with bats flying over our heads and the city buildings watching behind us. It was amazing. After that gianna, ashley and i came back to their building and watched "girl's just want to have fun." we had decided to take the night off.

I've been keeping busy, exploring the city, seeing what there is to be seen and figuring out what i can't wait to see. I hope to run to the beach today and make an afternoon of it. We shall see. I hope my family is doing well and i love you all so much. please write me! It is so lovely to hear from you! Especially joey and matt- you guys have been slackers in teh business of keeping in touch. I MISS YOU!

Exciting stuff

2005-02-23T18:41:00.000-08:00

to everyone i love: I have been recieving some complaints about my inconsistent and perhaps questionable commitment to this blog. To address this, i am going to be very committed to this specific posting, and then you will regret complaining at all...zach. Yesterday i went to an enrollment session where i stood in line for an hour only to hand in a sheet and have some piece of paper laminated with a very hideous passport photo placed on top of it. I then went to k-mart to return sheets that were too small for my bed, and picked up a clothes drying device because the drying machines are expensive here so my clothes have to air dry. I then ran around the mall cashing travellers checks, i called home, i picked up some coffee, and then walked to the gym to sign up for a membership. I then went to the study abroad office to ask some questions and then had to walk back the way i had come to add a photography class to my schedule. (by the way, i need a 33mm camera for the class, so if you have one mom and want to send it to me, that would be cool, or i can buy a cheap one at a second hand store- whichever you are more comfortable with (ie whichever you think is the less expensive option.)) I then walked back to the study abroad office because i had left my sunglasses there, and i picked up a free frying pan and an egg crate from my advisor that other people had left behind. In the process i broke a glass that fell out of the egg crate. So at this point i was walking back to my apartment with a clothes dryer, a egg crate, a back pack, and a sweaty face. I then went home and tried to figure out my internet and try to post pictures on this site- still fairly unsuccessfully. I then went for a run around town and inhaled some really fresh car exhaust, and then checked out the gym for a half-hour. I then ran home, showered, and went to an indian restaurant with some friends. Then i met up with my other friend and went to a couple of bars- and had a hell of a good time. then i came home, slept till 11:15, the latest i have been able to sleep in a very long time, and did some laundry- or actually the laundry is being done as i type this. As you can see zach, if i posted everyday about the mundane things i have been doing in order to prepare myself for some sort of home life before school starts so that i can enjoy sydney, my current posts would make you fall asleep. I am sure most of you haven't even stuck it out to this point of the post. That's ok, i would do the same, i am not paying attention even as i write this. HOWEVER, i am going to bondi beach today with some friends to check it out, and then who knows where the day will take me. I LOVE YOU ALL! keep me up to date with everything! I finally was able to read the e-mails you sent me and i love them! Miss you all- when i was uploading my pictures onto my computer, i did some organizing and did a couple of slideshows of my family and friends, and it made me miss you tons! Love you bunches!!!!

hope this works...

2005-02-22T21:09:00.000-08:00

NEWS!

2005-02-21T03:41:00.000-08:00

HELLO!!! Family, friends, and strangers that for some reason like my blog, i apologize for not keeping you very up to date. I still don't have internet and this has been the first time i have been able to go on since i stepped onto the plane on february 13. However, i very much enjoyed your comments and hope to read them continually and consistently in the future. first of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERIN!!! I miss you all and love you! But i don't miss you that much because i am having an amazing time.
Ok, so my journey began when i got off the plane on february 15 Australia time. (if you are on the east coast subtract 8 hours and then add a day, that i what time it is here. So if it is 8pm in NY on february 21, then it is 12pm on february 22 in australia.) Actually, it began right before the plane ride from LA to Sydney, as that is where i met Ashley, who is an awesome girl from Arizona who is making this trip kick-ass. When we arrived in sydney, we went on a 2 hour bus ride (traveling is fun!) to the blue mountains for our orientation to Butler. We went for a hike in a grand canyon- AMAZING sights, hippo loved it. We also went rock climbing which is much different from indoor rock climbing, because you actually feel as if death will take you at any moment. It is perhaps just as if not more scary sitting on the side of the huge cliff while others are climbing than being safely harnessed as you attempt to master infrequently grooved rock.
This orientation was also riddled with not so great food, constipation, and orientation meetings not fit for anyone with some sort of attention difficulties, which i am sure my mother has diagnosed me with long ago, but politely declined to share her thoughts as this might be interpreted as being critical. Whether or not i am afflicted ants in my pants, sitting still for long periods of time produces a very cranky and very silly Jenny. luckily, Gianna was there to share this gittiness with and relieve me of some embarrassment.
AFter the orientation, we went to a farm stay in bathurst, an amazing farm town one hour west of the blue mountains. We stayed with marg and john, both about 70/80 with incredible lives. John's family had been on the farm since 1846 when an aboriginal had slaughtered the previous owners and gave the farm to his family. THey had 4-5 thousand sheep and 300 cattle. their grandchildren had 2 horses and a pet lamb and some other fun animals. WE picnic-ed and swam and went to a cattle drome. WE are invited back any time so if you want to go mom and dad when you visit, we are welcome! WE bought the grandchildren Yahtzee before we left so that they can take part in some new and fun games instead of just going on hour long horse-back rides, learning how to drive at the age of ten, riding their mountain bikes, playing iwth the sheep and dogs, going to school, playing rugby, etc. You know, it can get boring in those fun places- thank god for yahtzee!
After a huge rainstorm- thunder and lightening- good because there is a drought, we went on a 5.5 hour bus ride back- about double to expected time for travel, we arrived in sydney. It's ok that it took that long though, because the really cool kids on the trip that decided to get drunk during the orientation, the only time requested by butler that we abstain from being in highschool and placing stupid rebellions, were sitting right behind me and blasting bad music and singing along, and yelling up to the bus driver about how bad they had to pee (because they decided to get WASTED for the bus ride) right into my ear. So...it was a lot of fun. Plus , my stomach and i really like travelling long distances. Kind of like a rendition from john candy's plane, trains, and automobiles. Also, my two friends- the ones i really enjoy, were on the other bus because they live in different housing.
Sorry, i sound really bitter, but this is not the case. I am having an AMAZING time. Today was our first day of Sydney uni orientation and tomorrow we enroll in classes. So, i must trot off to bed. There aren't too many dodgy people (that's australian for sketchy) and i am having a blast. I love you all sooo much and i promise the rest of my e-mails will be more interesting, i just had a lot of catching up to do. My room is awesome, my roomate totally weird, but life is soo good! It is BEAUTIFUL HERE! ok, keep me posted everyone, i love you much!

address abroad

2005-02-09T13:12:00.000-08:00

Ok- so my sister and zach were freaked out that i put my address in sydney up here for all to see. However, in case you are stalking me, this is just a p.o. box, and you won't be able to find me, so you can stop trying and save your effort. So this is my previous blog, unedited.
Hey guys- i don't know if any of you are checking this, it is obviously not that intersting as of yet. Good news! I have begun packing. So at least we have some activities to focus on. I wanted to give you all my address while i am in australia so when you hitchhike to sydney you can look me up and crash with me. Or...if you want to send me lots of packages full of goodies, you can do that too. I would also love letters! Or, if you want to be practical you can ignore my physical address and just use my virtual one, which is jgerste@learnlink.emory.edu. ok, my sydney address is:

Jennifer Gerstenzang
Sydney University Village
Locked Bag M161
Camperdown
NSW 2050
AUSTRALIA

Woohoo! ok, so this concludes my second very impressive blog. I hope you all were captivated by it! I am going to try to put up some embarassing photos next just to see how it is done, but i have been warned to make sure that the ones i take in australia have a limited amount of alcohol in them so that no one can forever make fun of me for being a lush. Ok, talk to you soon! And please write comments so i know i am not the only one reading this! Or don't, whatever, i don't care.

1st Post

2005-02-05T16:38:00.000-08:00

This is the first post of my new blog, that chronicles my travels in Australia. I leave on February 13, and, as fits my spur-of-the-moment personality, I haven't begun packing at all. Yay!