Pittsburgh Zoo and Pirates Game.. oh yes and the Andy Warhole Museum

NOT HAPPY JAN!!! I LOST MY PHOTOS!! MY COMPUTER ATE THEM!! UGH..

Anyways we spent the day out in town being tourists again, went to the zoo and then to PNC Park - the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

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Still under construction!!!

2 November 2006 -- Found a couple of photos!! yay! but not the best.

Chicago - Where is Oprah?

"Chicago smells like chocolate" - Joanna Banana

Jo pretty much sumed up our whole trip in that statement. It was very sweet!!

Jo, Claire and I trekked out to Chicago to visit the Irish - Emma, Shene and Tash for 4 fun filled days of fun. They like Jo and Claire are from the University of Limerick on the study abroad program.

We began our journey with a 9 and a half hour Greyhound bus ride which ended at 5am downtown. Chicago is a beautiful city; home of the Cubs, Bulls, Oprah's studios ... oh and don't forget awesome architecture and shows!!

Things we did and saw:
- Hancock Tower (96th Floor observation deck), Chicago Tribune, Wrigley Building (Yes, as in Mr. Wrigley the chewing gum)
- Millennium Park (The Bean)
- Navy Pier (Ferris Wheel, mini golf, touristy shops)
- Shopping down Michigan Avenue (also known as the Magnificent Mile)
- 'The 25th Putnam County Spelling Bee' (boardway show at the Drury Lane Theatre)
- and don't forget the Kerryman --> I think I'm turning Irish!

Spamalot, PGA and the Clarks

Thursday - went to see Spamalot at the Benedum Theater downtown. It was a laugh and a half!

"I fart in your general direction!" -- "Ni Ni Ni"

Friday - Volunteered at the 84 Lumber Classic at Nemacolin. This is a beautiful resort! Michelle Wei at age 16, playing in on the men's tours. Unfortunetly I didn't get to see her play a round, but I got to see a little bit of John Dayly play. This guy use to drink and play on the courses! Definitly one of golf's characters.

Sunday - Went to see the Clarks (more than just a local band my friends) at a charity event. They were awesome!! Thanks Chris!!!

I think Black Eyed Peas has a new fan!!!

I can officially say that I've seen the Black Eyed Peas live in concert!! Thanks to Maggie and Mike for taking us! They were pretty awesome and get this.. it was free!! They performed at the 84 Lumber Classic - PGA Tour at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort (about 1-2 hours from civilisation). Let just say the PGA should stick to organising golf tournaments and not concerts!! Anyways.. I really shouldn't complain.

Black Eyed Peas . Live in Concert . Outdoor .

Highlights - Pump it, Fergie's London Bridge, Where is the love?

Today has been pretty great! The international Office took us out for lunch to show us what 'fine dining' meant in America. Someone spread the rumor that it was going to be at McDonald but it turned out to be a great Italian restaurant. After that, we ventured into the city to go on the 'Duquesne Incline' - The view was amazing! A college football game (PITT v ... ) was on at Heinz field - this is where all the magic happens. Just imagin a VFL game at the Telstra Dome... exactly, you can't!! College sports is huge over here, it doesn't just attract the quaterback's grandma and the family dog. The town really gets behind the teams and supports them, some even say that it's just as exciting as watching the professionals - because its 'pure'.

Pittsburgh - RMU at last!

Sorry guys its taken me this long to update my blog, but I'm not having much luck with blogger today! Lost the my last post.. so not happy JAN!! Will make a proper update very soon! Here are just some photos..

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I moved the weekend before class started. I really didn't know what to expect of it all and what dorm conditions would be like. After living at camp for 2 months, I guess any living environment without kids would be awesome! I live in C tower; which is made up of tranfer and international students. There are 5 rooms in each suite, everyone shares a common room (on the right) and a bathroom as well.

I'm sharing with Brittany, she's plays Lacrosse, loves the beach, in the premed program (but manages to never do her homework) and introduced me to the wonderful world of GUSHERS!! Thanks mate!!!

Next door is Jo and Claire (The other werid internationals... only kidding girls), they're from the University of Limerick, Ireland. They: are loads of fun, taught me how to Irish dance and doesn't understand why the drinking age is 21 and reeducating the world about leprechiuns (SHOCK HORROR, THEY DONT EXIST!!!). Then there's Bridgette and Ashley. Bridge (aka Bridie) is a laugh! She's on the Cheerteam and taugh us how to do the human 'R', 'M', U'. Ash is in the band and plays the drums! Kate and Maggie just bought a Guiney Pig called Molly and obsessed with Grey's Anatomy. (photos to come!)

To the left is the Nicholson Center; isn't it pretty! ahh... RMU is small private univeristy with most student being commuters. They also have a campus downtown and an Island Sports Centre -- Golf dome, two roller rinks, two ice rinks, fitness centre -- the works!!

Steelers night - (l-r: Joanna, Marc, Erica, Claire) opening game to the season! Pittsburgh = The Steelers. Its their trademark! It's their life! They won the super bowl last year and everyone (native to Pittsburgh) here live and breathes football and worship their football team. Kate invited us out to Justin's place for football Thursday. We were in a house full of Ohio browns fans (Steelers rival team). Things I learnt tonight.... Pittsburgh is the home of Heinz (yes the tomato sauce). To get the sauce out of the glass bottle, a handy tip is to "HIT THE 57" as you tilt it upsidedown.

My first RMU football game... the band, cheerleaders, the media and all. We lost to rivals - Duquense University.

Irish Festival - Went to Irish festival with the 'Real Irish' was a great 'craic'. Steph - in the middle representing with the green. She's actually American and went to Australia last semester to study abroad!! She's one the few people who understand that asking how she is when I say "How's it goin'?".

Theme parks, beaches, sunshine = Florida

Orlando
Orlando is a tourist town. Its all about the theme parks and shopping... oh and don't forget the Kennedy Space Station (unfortunetly we didn't make it!).

Day 1: Island of Adventure - Big trill rides!!

Day 2: Universal Studio Theme Park - Highlight of the day included seeing the I love Lucy Show, Shrek 4D show and The Mummy psychological thrill ride. (L-R: Louise, Lowenna, Gemma, Rachel and Me)

Miami Beach
After four nights in Orlando, we caught a Greyhound bus to Downtown Miami. That was an experience in itself. We finally arrved at Miami beach (20 minutes from downtown), checked in at the Clay International Hotel (two blocks away from South Beach) and spent the night on the beach. Our Miami Beach planner looked something like this:

Day 1: Beach - dinner on beach - attempt to stay up for sunrise at beach but went to the 24 hour diner (German mudcake yum!) and gave up at 4am.

Day 2: Sleep in - beach - dinner at Cuban restaurant.


Day 3: Woke up early to watch the sunrise, then had to rush off to catch my flight to Pittsburgh. Goodbye Florida *sniff sniff*.

Red Sox, Harvard and Cheers

Boston Duck Bus Tour - Common Gardens (Swan boat ride), Newbury Street (Shopping and cafes), MIT, Museum of Science, Quincy Market and loads more. l-r: Lowenna (Eng), Louise (Sco) and Sylvie.

Cheers - Everybody didn't know my name but I still had a good meal and a laugh! This location (to left) is known as the 'Original' Cheers, they also have a replica of the Cheers restaurant closer to the city. l-r: me, English girls Karis and Sylvie.

Cambridge - Harvard University and Harvard Square (to left). We attended a free student tour of the university grounds and learnt a lot about the history of the school. Did you know that in the 1920's Harvard University implemented a mandatory swim test, which required students to pass this test before graduating?! (fact or fiction).

Prudential Tower Skywalk - View of Fenway Park - Home to the Boston Red Sox. They love their baseball; it is not a sport, it is a religion. I dare you to walk through the city with a Yankee hat, it will not be pretty!!

End of Camp

Banquet - The second highest division hosts a banquet; create menu and decorate the dining. The theme they chose this year was Chinese New Year. At this formal dinner they also give out 'Spirit Awards', 'Best Camper Awards' and recognise the loyalty that some individuals have shown to the camp (returning year after year as camper or staff). Congrats to Hannah who won the Spirit Award!! You deserve it!!

Secret Show - The top division (Romrec) put together a play which refects on their entire camp experience. They wrote songs, script, backdrop, props and performed as well!! It was amazing!

Wish Night - This was the final night at camp where every camper had a chance to say goodbye to their all the staff. For the top division, it was an extremely emotional night as they were not returning to camp. We all lit a candle, made a wish and sailed it away in the lake.

Departure night (after the kids leave) - I think all staff would agree that 2 months was just enough to be at camp. We celebrated in style at the local 'Depot'.

New York New York

Only 36 hours!! I think you need 36 weeks, months to get to know this place. It is a world of its own.

Where did we go -
- Soho: Designer clothes, trendy cafes. Street markets are great on a Saturday.
- Chinatown: how ignorant of me to be expecting a small strip of shops. Here I had genuine Chinese food for the first time in 2 month!! hmm yum!!
- Subway: Yes this is indeed a Scary (and smelly) place. Very easy to get around, a little like our tram system at home.
- Time Square and broadway: Saw this from afar at night. Streets lit up with billboards, advertisment and yes can be be quite overwhelming for a first night in town.
- Trump Towers: No Donald in sight though
- Central Park: this takes up one third of Manhatten. It is huge and lots of traffic runs through it. Call me Bias but its not as beautiful as the parks and gardens in Melbourne.
- Statten Island: We caught a Ferry over to Statten Island from the mainland of Manhatten. Yes this is the island that Carrie from Sex in the City got stuck on.

Romaca Olympics 2006

They say the last two weeks of camp flies by and they weren't joking.

Apache relay is a massive relay that lasts for about 3 hours. Every single camper takes part in this two team relay. I was named in the 3 man running team for 'Kiowa' so I had the pleasure of running and leading the kids around this 3 hour race.

Olympics broke out two days ago. This is a significant event to the kids where the campers break up into 4 different teams; Ghana, France, Jamaica and Japan. Each team is led by 3 members of the top 3 divisions; captain, lieutenant and second lieutenant. They compete in a series of competitions including athletics, waterfront, performing arts and landsports. This is a chance for the kids to show off the skills they have learnt during the year, it also gives the counselous 3 days off from teaching and being around the kids all the time. Woohoo.

Only 1 more hour til the beginning of my 36 hour break. NYC here we come!!

My days off

Monday 24th and Tuesday 25th of July

Cat (Wales), Hannah (England), Paulina (Chili) and I rented a car and explored the local area; the Berkshires. Taking responsibility of being the driver, I only managed to turn on the wrong side of the road twice and beeped at once.

First destination -- Downtown Pittsfield (population: ... not a lot). We dined out at an Indian restaurant before crashing at a local children-free zone hotel. We began our day driving down to the waterfalls and then making our way to Tanglewood for a spectacular performance. I now have a greater appreciation of classical music. Thanks Hannah!

Friday 28th and Saturday 29th of July

The past 24 hours have been pretty awesome; destination Saratoga Springs, NY. This was only one and half hours away from camp and its a city known for Horseracing and Lake George. Linsay, Kim , Mike (US) and Maggie (Canada) invited me out to celebrate Kim's birthday. We departed camp at 6:30pm on the dot and spent the night downtown, where the streets were blocked off for the country music festival. On the Saturday we spent a day at the Saratoga Spring Racing; this was the opening race for the season but I must say it doesn't compare to the lavish Melbourne Spring Carnival.

Less two dollars + traditional lemonade + huge pretzel = :)

Linsay took us around town and to the local streets to see all the houses. One after another, the streets were lined with beautiful old houses, like the ones you see in the movies.

PS. Yes, I wore a skirt!

Action packed week

Sub Senior Division Social - at Brother camp Greylock. All my girls 'hooked up' (as in danced with a boy). To left: All Sub snrs division staff. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Six Flags - Theme park (Just imagin Wet'n'Wild and Movie World on the Gold Coast but bigger and better). -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'Winter Wonderland' Deb Carnival - Fairfloss, snow cones, street performances, pie fights, fortune tellers and all.

Camp highlights

Tomorrow is Visiting Day where all the parents and siblings come and bash down the gate of the camp, bearing candy, goodies and lots of love for the kids. They warned us that this day will come quick and indeed it has, it marks the half way of camp.

So far at camp...

- 4th of July: This day was amazing. It is tradition at camp that all the campers get to paint all the counsellers and in turn get up on stage and sing our national anthem. Camp Romaca also is invited to Berkshire Bob's (said to be the richest guy in the county) house for an awesome display of fireworks.

- Sundays: Every Sunday the whole camp runs activities that involve everyone. It given the counsellers a break from teaching and an opportunity to bond with each other. We usually play volleyball or softball and camp fire.

- Sub Seniors Show: They put on the Pochahotus play which was fantastic (given they only had around 4 days to put all together)

- My day off: an adventure down to the local mall for some shopping and movies.

- Volleyball Invite: Romaca came 1st and 3rd in the invitational competition here on yesterday. The girls were so exciting to have won the competition (first time in ... 13 years).

Camp is great! A lot of the kids are starting to ask the question "are you coming back next year?", which is a little encouraging. For all those who know me really well, I am surviving and suprisingly enjoying living in a bunk with 8 kids.

They say that we are allowed two good cries at this camp and prehaps I'll return to that question in a couple of weeks time.

2 weeks later...

... an additional 3 computers were installed in the lounge for staff use! woohoo

I landed on the 14th of June after a grueling 14 hour flight from Melbourne to LA. I literallly had a 40 hour day with the time difference. Absolutely exhausted. Flew to NYC for a nights rest and saw a glimps of the bronx, before catching a bus to Pittsfield--- and then catching a 30 minute ride to Camp Romaca.

Different things I noticed in the first 48 hours -
- Everything is bigger. YES this is a true myth.
- Wal-mart is huge here and cheap
- As apart of the airport security check in LA, you have to take your shoes off
- Food is either deep fried or frosted (sugar coated)

Camp is pretty awesome. I'm meeting a load of really hyperactive people and kids with ADD and ADHD. The majority of kids who attend this camp are from middle-upper class Jewish families from New York City, Massachussetts, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania.

Camp Romaca is rich in history and is extremely selective of the children who can attend. Unlike the majority of camp, campers join the Romacan family when they are Juniors (6-7 years old), attend every summer until graduating at age 16.

I'm bunking with a girls from Chicago and 8 Sub Seniors (9-10 year olds). They are all characters; just imagin The Sandlot Kids.
Sarah L - Princess movie star
Sarah F - Comic book girl. She's in love with Sponge bob and has an amazing imagination.
Steph - Hyperactive, naught and loud!! Wears anything that has to do with basketball.
Hannah - wants to a singer and actress. Love this camp so much so that she wrote a song (with notes and all)
Andrea - Typical bookworm. Reads all the time, talks really fast and like to discuss politics and the economics.
Carly - very sweet girl. Playful, happy go lucky.
Eve - Tomboy. Loves to play soccer and everything that has to do with the New York Yankies.
Lizzie - Very independent and knows what she wants.

I'm apart of the landsports department so I have been teaching and assisting in a wide range of sports, these include soccer, softball, aerobics, archery, basketball but mainly volleyball. Unfortunetly not on waterfront, but we have recreational swim period every day

Food - OMG! I eat dessert 3 times a day. I never thought I'd say this but I am sick of ice-cream and sweets. This is our meal plan:

- Breakfast: hash browns, eggs, bacon crisps, cereal, toast (peanut butter and jelly... not jam, real jelly)
- Lunch: this can include an array of meals - chips (or french fries as they call them over here), sandwich bar etc topped off with desert (ice-cream or cake)
- Refreshments: Ice-cream (ice-cream sandwiches are the best)
- Dinner: pasta, salad, 'chinese' food etc, again topped off with dessert (ice cream or cake)

We get fed so much at this camp which is awesome; so don't expect me to look the same when I return home.

Anyways, thats all for now. I will post up photos next time!!