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We've been home three days and Australia already feels like a dream. The last days flew by and I can hardly believe it's already over.

Before heading home, we made sure to visit the National Maritime Museum, the Australian Museum, and take a drive along Australia's coast. The Maritime Museum was interesting, but definitely more entertaining for Robert than myself. He was having a blast looking through the pieces of maritime history and touring the naval and colonial ships. We got on board the H.M.A.S Vampire, the H.M.A.S Onslow (a submarine), and a colonial replica named the Endeavor. The Endeavor belonged to James Cook, who was the first European to make contact with Australia's eastern coast. It was beautiful inside, but some areas were a lot more cramped then I had imagined. There were times we had to hunch right over to get through the ship. The submarine actually allowed for more upright movement, which surprised me!

The next day we visit the Australian museum, which was one of my favorite trips. When I was younger, I dreamed of being a paleontologist. I grew out of that phase, but I still love fossils and the prehistoric eras. Exploring the dinosaur and extinct species exhibits was a blast for me. I also loved the sections on Alexander the Great and the aborigines. I really like aboriginal art and thought the pieces on display were beautiful. Not only could we see the rustic wildlife paintings, but also intricate carvings. One of my favourite carvings had three kangaroos in the speak no evil, hear no evil, and see no evil pose.

We started our last day with a quick trip to the Rocks to pick up our paintings and more souvenirs. Afterward, we drove along Australia's shore and enjoyed more views of the gorgeous blue waters. The coast was beautiful, but the ever present shark watch reminded us how dangerous it can be. Australia takes shark watching very seriously and the patrol sounds an alarm whenever the helicopter spots one. They actually spotted one on New Year's Day, but the beaches remained crowded on our visit. For dinner, Robert and I took another trip to Darling Harbour. There was a healthy burger bar I had been longing to try because they offered gluten free buns. I didn't think I'd get to go, but Robert offered to take me. It was really sweet because he had a pizza at the apartment and didn't need to go out to eat. He only went because he knew I wanted to try it and I really appreciated him being so thoughtful. I got a beef burger with avocado, grilled pineapple, Australian bacon, and a gluten free bun. It was delicious. We finished the day by taking pictures with the huge rubber duck that had sailed into the docks.

The flight back home was long and we had several setbacks during our trip, like being stuck on the tarmac at LAX for 45 minutes, missing our connecting flight to Charlotte, and getting delayed on our drive home. We made it back around midnight and took Monday off to readjust to the time difference. Now we're just easing back into the swing of our everyday routines. The best part has been all of the "I missed you" hugs we get from Alice.

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