Our trip started in New Zealand and more specifically Queenstown on the south island. This is where we learned the majority of the sports prominent in this part of the world including cricket, rugby, netball, and lawn bowling. We got to watch some videos, and talk to some experts on the sports and actually try our hand at playing them. Boy, I haven't seen a group of Americans look more uncoordinated than we did trying to play some of these sports. Now granted, not all of us were athletic but we had our fair share of football players and other athletes on the trip. We couldn't have looked more foolish trying to his the cricket ball with the bat. After a week long stay in Queenstown, which included some sightseeing on Routeburn Track and Milford Sound, we flew to Cairns, Australia for another week. We were able to take in the wonders of the Great Barrier Reef and experience a true tropical climate. After a short stay in Cairns, we headed to Melbourne to take in the Australian Open. As an avid tennis fan, this was nothing short of the biggest highlight in the class in the first place. I had never seen live tennis, much less in a spirited, reasonable, and fun atmosphere like the Australian Open. We had tickets to the first five days of the Open and I took in about as much tennis as I possibly could for those five days. Some of the highlights I got to see included the main man himself, Roger Federer, Rafa, Roddick, Sam Querrey, Andy Murray, Juan Martin Del Potro, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, the Bryan brothers, Gael Monfils, Fernando Gonzalez, and last but not least a Gustie alum in the doubles draw with partner Rajeev Ram was Eric Butorac. We were able to attend two of Butorac's matches, nicknamed "Booty", and boy was that an atmosphere in and of itself. Our class went all out including body paint, chants, cheers, and nothing but tennis craziness. Our efforts helped Booty and Ram win their first two matches and eventually into the quarterfinals only to lose to the Bryan brothers in a 3rd set tiebreaker. However, they did upset the 7th-seeded team in the world from Poland, a match that our group can somewhat take credit for as it was a tough 3-setter and our support may have gave them that little extra advantage in the third. Thankfully our efforts didn't go unnoticed as we were interviewed courtside by an ESPN anchor and the Australian Open camera crew took a video of our spirited USA chants. Those five days made the trip totally worth it.
After an intense week in Melbourne, we moved onto our final week of the trip in Sydney, Australia. We had a lot more down time, and we were able to explore more of the city. We visited two of the famous beaches, Manly and Bondi, and stayed long enough for some of our group to assume a pinkish hue from the sun. We were even lucky enough to take in Australia Day right outside our hotel in Darling Harbour complete with live music and fireworks. Of course a visit to Sydney isn't complete without visiting the Opera House, which we did in one of our last days there and saw La Traviata, a famous opera performed in Italian.
I couldn't have asked for anything more out of this trip, and it definitely was the experience of a lifetime. I only hope that I will someday be able to return and hopefully take in the Australian Open again. The atmosphere there is unlike anything I have ever seen in America at a football, basketball, or baseball game. It may even trump European soccer but I have not experienced that for myself so I cannot say for sure. However, I do know that it is a must attend event for all sports fans and especially tennis lovers.
What a month.
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!
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