The Great Barrier Reef

We made it! We're in Cairns, Australia! We've been told that everday the leaders will let the next days' activities be a mystery until... so there's still a lot of suspense which breeds rumors & rumors elevate expectations & assumptions. Last night we played games then went out. Because of the 16hr time difference, 6pm felt really tiring but we pushed on until the am, which was bad for me but most other people managed to wake up bright & early today for our trip. One person choked on kangaroo food but went to the ER & was fine after a couple of hours. I have yet to try kangaroo or anything like that.

Today we went to the Great Barrier reef & snorkled for a full day aboard the Falla sailboat. It took 1hr on the private charter to get there but it was sooo worth it. I had trouble initially with the snorkeling. I wasn't used to breathing through my mouth & then the water was salty & kept creeping into my snorkel but the 2nd time was great. Unlike most of my cohort, I missed out on the tropical pink spotted fish & big plate size oysters & a shark in a cave but I still saw beautiful coral & fish. I slept the whole back back on the ship.

I'm back on land but my mind feels like the ground is rocking, the after effects of being on a ship all day. I just want the world to stop rocking back & forth for a min.

Tonight, by my request, we're going out for Thai food. French fries & burgers were getting old me. We're off!

Still Travelling

We made it & are going to Cairns, Australia from Chicago to San Francisco to Sydney To cairns & we're supposed to be moving around a lot. Not sure I'll have much access to Internet. Gotta go. Flight's here. We're 16hrs ahead of Central time.
Check out the view from the plane!

Meeting my Fellow Mystery Trippers

Today we had a dinner gathering for the KAOs Mystery trippers (20 of us including 10 guys, 10 girls, 4 couples & 4 trip leaders) & I got to meet the people who will be spending 9 days with me on the Mystery Trip. We did some ice-breakers, a scavenger hunt (attached are pics of me with my scavenger hunt team) to begin to closely bond with each other.

Past Mystery trips have been to Belize, Iceland, Fiji & the Galapagos Islands.

We are not allowed to tell or ask anyone where they're from, what school they went to or what they did before coming to Kellogg business school.


WE were also told that last year, they didn't know where they were going until the last leg of their trip... Also, some guy called up all the airlines to figure out where he was going. Hence, ruining the mystery for himself. I hope there's Internet so I can tell you where I am or what I'm doing.

Otherwise, it may be a mystery to you for another whole week until I return on Sunday.

Here in Evanston

I'm here in Evanston, done packing. I've done some exploring, taking a day to breathe before the chaos (literally) begins. Yes, the KAOs trip begins on Saturday & we're off somewhere. Since I picked the Mystery Trip, so I will not know where I am going until the day we leave. Given the obscure clues, I'm guessing Tanzania or Zanzibar... but I'll let you know.

Evanston is a quaint, close-knit feel city, lots of amazing, international restuarants but also small boutiques like old niche bookstores, clothing stores, fresh food grocery stores, cafes & ofcourse, just across the bridge is Chicago, which I've heard is fabulous but I haven't gone over there yet..... yet is the operative word. There's a black MBA party in Chicago on Friday.

I love my studio. It shouldn't even be called a studio because of all the closet space & room it has & it's a 4min walk to school. YES, in the wind, that'll be sooooo worth it. There's a Burger King nearby, which means late night snacks??? maybe a continuous flow of "interesting" individuals coming & going??? There are a lot of beggars around, which I had not experienced in ATL. Good lighting when returning late from classes (burger King is open 24/7. I'm just loving it for now & living my life like it's Golden, trying to get onto the Oprah show, preparing my mind for 2hr classes & tests & group work & late night parties... back to school. I am so excited to be going to KELLOGG b-school. Tomorrow is a full day of orientation, computer confirguration etc. Then I'm off on my KAOs trip!

Moving Day is just around the corner

Moving.... makes you realize all that you have, which is overwhelming but also a relief because you realize that you don't need to buy any new red v-neck shirts because you just found 3 buried in the back closet or you'll be fine with the 2-3 shampoos you have. One was bought on sale & the other was bought to try the new acclaimed volumizing shampoo but really you only use the basic one. Also, those jeans you keep saying you'll wear, NEED TO- GO because you haven't worn them in 3 years.

My back is sore from moving stuff back & forth. The loaders arrive early tomorrow to pack before the HOTlanta heat strikes. I pick up the BUDGET truck at 8am & they arrive at 8:30am. So all my stuff has to be ready for them, which means gotta wake up & remove the bed linens so the bed can be the 1st thing they load up.

My roommate asked me if I think I'm going to miss ATL but with the packing I haven't stopped to fully comprehend that I'll no longer have a car, make frequent trips to Publix for Asian fried rice, go clubbing in Buckhead, drive around 285 or up & down 75, Lenox mall, the Big Chicken OR to realize I'm moving to windy city Chicago! I still haven't been to the Stone Mtn laser show, maybe tomorrow night as a relaxing activity. Well tomorrow I'll be packed & have one day to say goodbye & take it all in.

Another Mystery Trip Clue

I've finally conquered my jet lag! Yes! No more waking up at 2am & falling asleep at 5pm.

We got just another clue for the Mystery Trip, the trip I will be taking with 20 unkown future Kellogg classmates. We won't know where in the world we will be going until we arrive at the airport. 2.5 weeks & counting. Any ideas on what it could be? Here it is:

Since we may or may not have received a credible or incredible guessto where we are going in two and a half weeks, here's another clue.

GV FJN FA FVZOY XAOO NVZ HZDRJ

Can you feel the MT spirit?

I'm sticking with Tanzania or some African country as my guess.