Andi's Adventures

It's been a while since my last blog update, I've been quite busy! After the AABAT Forum, I traveled to Mullumbimby with the director of Human Nature and I lived in a caravan on his property for about a week and a half before the expedition. I had barely any phone service while there, so I spent lots of time reading and drinking tea, which was delightful(: Although once I opened a cabinet in the kitchen area of the caravan and saw a HUGE spider, I'm talking the size of my hand. I surprisingly haven't encountered many terrifying bugs/creatures in Australia even though that's one of the things it's known for, but this spider made me want to burn the whole place down. But, seeing as I didn't have another place to live, I merely closed the cabinet door and never opened it again, praying that it wouldn't come out and kill me in my sleep. Andy's family was so kind to me and welcoming, and I really enjoyed and appreciated spending time with all of them. O...

Hey friends, Leaving Dungog was very bittersweet. I’m happy to be continuing on to the next phase of my journey, but I’m so sad to leave the people and home I’ve grown to love deeply. I do plan on coming back to Dungog though before I leave Australia, so it’s not goodbye forever. I’m currently hanging out on my bunk at the Australian Association for Bush Adventure Therapy (AABAT) forum, and figured I’d write a little update. This forum has been incredible, it feels like summer camp for adults where everyone is really smart and has lots of interesting things to say and is very friendly. I’ve met, ate meals with, and played kanjam with some of the most well-regarded researchers in this field and they’ve been so welcoming to me. I’m the only American at this conference (I’m not including one guy because he moved to Australia like 7 years ago) and it’s so fun talking to everyone I meet about why I’m here. They keep asking “you came all the way to Australia just for this?” and I’m like, “...