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Published: April 24th 2011
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Cheers!
So I've been in Australia for almost three weeks now and it already feels like it's been three months. I am having so much fun that I can't imagine life was ever any different (or that there is such a thing as snow in January....)
Melbourne Orientation
The 15 hour flight was quite the feat and I think I broke some kind of record by not moving from my seat at all for the whole flight. Of course when you watch 4 movies in a row who has time to get up? We flew into Melbourne airport and I met my Australia Family, consisting of 17 other students from around the states. I board a bus with the family I haven't met yet and we drive an hour down Mornington Peninsula to the coastal beach town of Sorrento. On our way we stop for lunch downtown and I get my first $8 pot (1/2 pint) of draught, (not helping my jet lag of course...)
Before we get to our beachside hotel, our study abroad director Mazz takes us on a bushwalk out in the Australian wild. We walk by a clump of trees just in time to see
a mob of wild kangaroos jump out onto the trail like a herd of deer! They all give us a wide eyed "deer in headlights" look and and I fell in love right then and there with kangaroos. Later in the day, a few of us hike over to the beach. During high tide, the tide pools are so deep that we can swim in them. There was even a 10-foot cliff we jumped off of into the tidepools! The day ended with a shark dinner (which I was a bit nervous to eat for the sake of bad karma) and my first Australian sunset on the beach, pretty enough to be a painting.
Day 2 was full of seminars, but I did learn a few interesting things:
-Australians are the only country to eat their national emblem (kangaroo burger, anyone?)
-Australians take a lot of pride in Crocodile Dundee as their icon
-Aussie slang is the laziest language ever made (EVERYTHING is abbreviated)
-Vegemite tastes as good as the inside of a garbage can
-The "Day of Rest" is taken very seriously (A Sunday in Oz is a beach day in Oz)
-Drinking is as essential as
Wild Kangaroos!
I was lucky enough to see wild kangaroos my FIRST day in Australia! breathing for an Australian
-Thongs are worn on your feet
-You can sell your kidney on the black market for a Reeses Peanut Butter-Cup
-The beach is an Aussie's second home
-Tim-Tams are more addicting than crack (chocolate-covered-chocolate cookies...yum)
On Day 3, we spent the day and night in downtown Melbourne. Every allyway was an art museum of brightly colored graffiti and I had the chance to run into an artist spraying in broad daylight. There is only one area where graffiti is legal in Melbourne. However, most of it is illegal and must not be enforced very much because it is literally everywhere. But on the contrary, I'd find myself on the sidewalk of a normal, everyday city-street and I turn a corner and the next thing I know I'm in a beautifully decorated alleyway lined with gourmet cafes and dessert tables, fine jewellery stores, and little boutiques. Now I understand why Melburnians are regarded as the well-heeled, classy version of Australia. Even the ice-cream shops and fish-and-chips eateries are upscale. Later that night, I got the chance to eat my first (...of many) kebabs! A kebab for Aussies is the equivalent of late night pizza for Americans.
Sorrento Beach!
5 minutes walk from our hotel and we get this... They are like wraps with either chicken, lamb, or beef and you add veggies and sauce. My all-time favorite: lamb kebab with pineapple and sweet-chili sauce (more popular than ketchup here).
Life in the Gold Coast
If the Gold Coast was travel size, I would bring it back home with me. Its a gorgeous span of cities, beaches, and tropical rainforest with a few sporadic mountain peaks here and there all running up along the lower southeast coast of Queensland. People come from all over Australia (and all over the world!) for it's beautiful white sand beaches, never-ending nightlife, and killer surfing lifestyle. It's not only the beaches that are beautiful here, but the people that hang in Gold Coast are fit, bronzed renditions of the Baywatch characters and everyone looks like they belong in a Quiksilver ad. The fashion is a bit similar to the states, but there are a few MAJOR differences. What I thought was retired in the 90's, the stylish women in Australia still wear. Crop tops and high waisted cut-off shorts are the main staples. And the oversized T-shirt look from the 80's has definitely made a comeback. As for the guys, one
Islands
These disappear and reappear with high and low tide. word: SHORT-SHORTS. All Australian men wear their shorts and boardies above the knee, and usually mid-thigh high. They wear singlets (tank-tops) and thongs (flip-flops) everywhere and will rarely (if ever) wear a baseball cap unless they're on the beach. You can spot an American guy a mile away for his baggy shorts, ankle-high socks, and his baseball hat (that he also wears to class...quite the mistake in Oz). American men, you should take a note from the Aussie's way of dress because they are looking gooooood 😊
Bond University
Bond University is hands down the most beautiful campus I've ever stepped foot on. From the sandstone buildings, to the picturesque lake views to the cascading fountains leading down to the gigantic and infamous Bond Arch. The food is actually surprisingly good and everyone here is incredibly friendly. I live right in the middle of campus in the Accomodation Center or the "AC." But the AC might as well stand for the "American Colony" because it's literally 98%!A(MISSING)mericans that live there. I was fortunate enough to have a handful of Australian neighbors around me though to befriend 😊 and of course, I had my study abroad mates from
The Group!!
My new Australian Family! orientation all on my floor too which quickly made the AC feel like my second home.
Class at Bond University is different from the States in that they only meet once a week for lecture and once for a small group tutorial. Projects/Exams/Papers are few and sporadic during any one course, but will stand anywhere from 20-40% of your grade. It's definitely more pressure when you have a deadline coming up, however, I enjoyed this style of work because I didn't have to worry about those little assignments or "busy work" and could just focus on the big project when it came up. And of course, only having class for 3 days a week isn't bad either...
If I could describe Bond University in three words, it would be 'awesome' 'social' 'life'. There is always something to do! There are plenty of day to day things like sports, Wednesday by the Water (free BBQ every Wednesday arvo!), and intramurals. I play Beach Volleyball and it's a total blast! It's one of the most fun ways to meet people on campus and let my competitive side loose. We also have ResWars every Wednesday night where every week the different
Residence Halls would compete in different events like dodgeball, touch footy, trivia, volleyball, etc. My hall (AC) won the whole competition by the end of the semester and got $1,000 to spend on a party. So of course we decide to pig out at a Chinese restaurant with unlimited food and beer.
But the day to day stuff only describes half of the social life at Bond Uni. Nightlife is an essential part of the 'Uni' experience at Bond. There is always a sponsored party or two every week put on by one of the campus student clubs. I attended quite a few, my absolute favorite being the Where's Waldo Pub Crawl in the second week of semester. We pub hopped 8 different bars and clubs in one night (all while wearing these lovely "bee-inspired" yellow and black striped t-shirts) and I met some amazing people that I stayed good friends with all semester. In addition to these events, every Thursday night is celebrated at Don's, the on-campus bar. Usually there is a theme, with some of my favorites being Tight and Bright Party, Vegas Night, St. Patricks Day, and Glow Paint Party. Once Don's closes at midnight, Bond
provides free buses to Shooters Nightclub (or any other place in Surfer's Paradise) and provides two free drinks. And of course, we all get safely back home through the Bond bus at 3:30 am. As we say, Thank God it's Thursday...
Why can't real life be like this all the time?
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