So it’s been a pretty crazy month between traveling to Thailand, Singapore, and New Zealand, finishing the semester, moving back to the states, and starting my new job with the Baltimore Examine. I will be writing updates on all of those shortly, but just to catch up I put together a little list to some of the past five months of my life, most likely the best five yet.

The Best 5….

seconds: Standing on the edge of a 150-foot high bridge I barely had time to glance down at the rocky river below me before I had to jump. In my weekend stop off in New Zealand on my way back to the states I decided to embrace the “extreme sports capitol of the world” by bungy jumping. The bridge was located about 15 minutes out of Hanmer Springs on the South Island, it had some kind of historical significance but I had a few other things running through my head so I didn’t quite stop to read the plaque. The free fall itself probably only lasted 2 or 3 seconds, but that along with the 3,2,1..Jump! countdown makes it the most intense and favorite 5 seconds of 2008.

minutes: This one would probably have to go to a certain night in Phuket, Thailand. After a few drinks, my friends and I found our way on to the stage an outdoor concert (This became a bit of a trend for that week). Most of the spectators, who were watching while enjoying their meals from long banquet style tables, were thrilled to see Americans on stage and got into the show. We worked the crowd, singing and clapping, even making a leap onto an especially long table of Japanese tourists and dancing on the tabletops much to their enjoyment. That was a handful of minutes I will probably never forget.

hours: A friend and I were scheduled to leave Australia on a Thursday night at 11:45. Unfortunately, when we got to the airport we learned that our “plane was broke” and we wouldn’t be going anywhere until the morning (Also became a bit of a trend in my travels). It was frustrating but also a little exciting to get to return to Freo and spend one last night with everyone. We made it to Rosie’s - the regular Thursday bar - just at closing time, but we received a hero’s welcome from everyone (who had had a few drinks) and were very surprised to see us. The whole group made our way down to the beach and built a fire to celebrate our last night. Technically I didn’t leave until 6 a.m. the next day, but there is was just about an hour of sleep mixed in there that I’m not counting toward the best 5.

days: As part of a class that I took on Australian history and culture, I camped in the outback for five days with an aboriginal family. The experiences and the stories they told us were amazing. Check out “The Outback” post to hear a little more about that trip.

weeks: This one was a little harder to decide because there were a couple of great stretches during my time down under. But I think I have to go with the final 5 weeks spent down under. A period that included 4 different countries, plenty of memorable nights at home, my first footy game (complete with a broken thumb to remember it by), and really getting to know the people I was travelling with. I said at the beginning of this post that these were arguably the best five months of my life, the last five weeks were a huge part of why I felt that way.

But now the dream semester is over and its back to reality. Time to work and before I know it my senior year will be starting up. I will definitely miss Australia, but at the same time, it’s good to be home.