It’s Ally, again! If you’ve been following along with my blogs, it’s been a while since I’ve been here in Perth! Finals are over and they were brutal. All of my exams were written essays so by the end of the week my hand was throbbing. My lab exam did not go well at all, and while I could have stressed out so easily, my friends were here to support me. I did my best and that’s all I could do. I came across the world for (almost) six months, and I am proud of everything I’ve done so far!
Now, it’s time for summer! I packed my bathing suit, sunscreen and a snorkel and took a trip to Rottnest Island, home of the famously cute quokkas! My friends and I woke up bright and early for the half-hour ferry ride out to sea. By the time we got there, quokkas were already running about the main quad. They’re really the size of cats. And super friendly. About two hours in I got my famous quokka selfie! Touching and feeding was illegal, but I could not stop taking pictures with these cuties. Our hotel room was situated right by lake. We took a nap before dinner and were woken up by little scratching feet by our patio door! There were 4 little quokkas sniffing about our patio! My friends and I sat with them outside and enjoyed the view.
For dinner we went to the hotel restaurant was right on the beach. I loved the scenery and watching the sun set of the water. While I was eating some amazing pumpkin risotto, another little friend sniffed around our feet. Turns out, the quokkas run around the deck and say hello to all the guests. While I did refrain from touching and feeding, I baby talked to her 100%!
Not satisfied with our quokka adventures, my friend and I spent our second day snorkeling. I’ve never been and although I dream about a career as a marine biologist, the ocean low key scares me. Thankfully, the temperate reefs at Little Salmon Bay on Rottnest were shallow and extremely easy for a beginner snorkeler! Just a few of the amazing sight I saw were a crab, some large snails, a big silver fish, a small brown fish, and a very cool rainbow fish x2. The ocean was so blue, the water so cool in this hot Aussie summer. If this is the typical Summer day, I can understand why the beach is a pillar of the Aussie identity!
Now that I’ve finished uni and taken a short holiday, I can’t wait to start exploring Perth properly! Please enjoy my quokka selfie and other pictures I took of them. This was definitely on my bucket list and I’m so glad I visited Rottnest!
This post was contributed by Ally Gunderson, a 2019 Global Ambassador. Ally is a biology major studying at the University of Western Australia in Perth, Australia.
Don’t get left behind. Read more about Ally’s experience in Australia>>
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