Day Eight in Oz

Oi!

Yesterday I had my first official Australian experience and it could not have been more beautiful. As part of our orientation week, my college hosted a "mystery dinner." When I first read this, I assumed, "murder mystery dinner." I was not particularly excited about it but I decided to ask a fellow Barahineban resident what kind of murder mystery theme we would be doing. Every time I said, "murder mystery," I could not help but hear in my head the voice of Michael Scott from The Office saying in a Southern drawl, "Sir, there has been a muuuurder!" Watch to see what I mean:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC7v01Om9yQ

I am not sure if I confused the poor guy by my inward laughing at this thought or by the question itself but he responded quizzically, "Uh, theme?" Naturally, I responded, "Yeah. You know. Are we getting characters? Is there going to be a murder theme?" And, now even more confused, he responded, "Murder?" I almost mimicked Michael Scott in return but he finally caught on to my train of thought. He laughed and said, "No. This is a mystery location dinner. Just dress relatively formal and you'll be fine."

For the rest of the week, I anticipated the dinner. As much as I would have liked to have been apart of a murder mystery dinner, I don't think it could have been quite as hilarious as the one on The Office. The mystery location dinner was more exciting to wait for and I caught myself many times wondering where they could possibly take us. I heard rumours and hints throughout the week. I found out that last year they took all the students on a cruise for dinner. I also found out that this year they had a great deal of funding invested in our location.

While we were waiting for the bus to pick us up to send us off to our mystery destination, my friend, Emily, guessed that it was going to be a vineyard. I think my heart leaped into my throat at that moment because I knew we were close to Hunter Valley vineyards (about an hour's drive). Some of my favourite wines from back home have come from Hunter Valley so you could imagine my excitement.

Sure enough, the bus followed all the signs leading to Hunter Valley (I was paying close attention) and under an hour's time I was in wine paradise. Indeed, once you actually get into the valley, it becomes a dream. I saw my first kangaroo (well, actually several) and by the time we arrived, the sun was just descending behind the hills. The rows of vines were full and lush and the surrounding trees made the area seem like a happy secret.

We ended up going to Hope Wine Estate for a wine tour, tasting and dinner. While the wine itself was not particularly amazing, it was interesting to try wines in all stages of fermentation. We tried wines that looked like beer and almost tasted like beer because of the yeast stage they were at and we tried completed wines as well. The food was incredible too! Also, there was a stage out on the field by the vines where apparently big acts go to perform. Our bus driver told us that the last time she drove up, she watched Sting sing on stage here. The best part, however, was the room in which we had dinner. Surrounding us were giant oak barrels signed by famous people. The one closest to me was autographed by the King of Sweden. There was also a barrel signed by John Cleese. Imagine that! For a school function, I would say that our excursion was particularly special.

The only minor incident that happened during our outing was that the bus broke down. By the time we got home it was close to 2 am. All spirits were still high though because a few guys had brought along guitars. We had a sing-a-long outside in the vineyard. When we sang "Hey Ya!" I was the only one who knew all of the lyrics, so I felt pretty smug about that too. Haha.

Soon, I hope to go to another themed dinner with two of my friends here. Apparently in Newcastle, there is a restaurant called Kavon (I think that is the name) that hosts a scary theme every week. The best show/dinner is called, "Best of the Naughties" which is a sort of Dracula/Ghoul/Monster Cabaret and Opera. When I first found out about this, I was stunned. I think the words that came out of my mouth were, "So, you can eat dinner while Dracula serenades you? Sah-weet!" We looked up the restaurant online and it looks pretty amazing but you've got to book in advance. So! More to come on that one when I go!

Hope all is well with you guys back home. Miss you all.

Here are pictures (from google) of the winery I was at yesterday. My only regret yesterday was that I forgot my damn camera back in my room. Sadly, my memories will have to suffice for the awesomeness that was yesterday.