I've been absent for two reasons: 1) I had to pay for the internet until now and 2) I'm lazy.
I lived in a hostel for elven days and I have to say they were some of the best days of my life so far. I have never had so much fun in my life and I know that without them I would not be the happy state I'm in. It's always easier to go through culture shock when you are going through it with everyone else.
After the hostel I moved into the dorms. The International House to be exact. Dorm life so different here. I have lived in co-ed dorms before, but here the guys are on the same floor and you share the same bathroom. Not that I mind, it's just different. At least the boys I live with are clean. I only get one meal a day, which is dinner. The rest I have to cook myself in our joint kitchen (and I can't cook, so its been interesting). I eat a lot of peanut butter sandwiches. Well, they call it peanut butter, but its not really.
Classes are also very different here. You have a lecture and then you go to a tutorial. Unless you have a seminar class (I have two) in which case you only have that two hour seminar. They put a great deal of emphasis on writing and research. You have to turn your papers in through a system called turnitin, which is suppose to keep people from plagiarising. It just makes life more complicated. I can't really explain how they are so different, they just are. The way people treat their classes, grades and even the professors are different.
The school has a reserve running through it, so walking to class everyday is kind of like walking through a zoo. The parrots are hanging out with the crested pigeons and the cockatoos are hanging out with the magpies. There are oyster-snatchers and some blue bird that is as big as I am.
About 20 minutes away there is another reserve. We went a week ago and got to pet Koalas (including a baby) and saw some Kangaroos and emus and some other crazy birds. Koalas are not as soft and cuddly as they look.
The beaches here are beautiful (except for the coal boats blocking the view the sunset). People love their sports here and they REALLY love their surfing and body-boarding. Rain or shin there are always people catching the waves. There are also these seagulls, some of which fly over from NZ for the winter, that just hang out on the beach. They rarely fly. They just stand there and soak there feet in the surf. The pelicans are incredible. I had no idea they were so big.
World Youth Day brought a ton of people from all over the world. Sydney got most of them, but there were thousands here as well. They had a small fair for the kids and in the fair they had camel rides. I was the only person over the age of 10 that rode one. It was great. A dream come true. Now if I could just get a couple camels for myself and ride them through the outback like Rachel Davidson did back in the 70s, I would be so happy!
Everything is so expensive here. Food, transportation, clothes, cds and books. Books are a minimum of 20 dollars for a mass market. A trade size can run you anywhere from 30 to 60 dollars depending on where you go. Borders is the cheapest place I've found so far but you still pay a good 5 to 10 dollars more than in the states. It's actually cheaper to buy the books online and have them shipped to you. About the only semi-cheap thing here is the beer. No wonder people drink so much here.
Speaking of drinking, tomorrow is Autonomy Day here at Uni. It is the day when students and faculty celebrate Uni's emancipation from the tyrannical University of NSW. Drinking starts at 3 a.m. and goes the rest of the day. I'm not sure what else happens, but it sounds crazy. It's not really my thing and I'm sure Reality at SJC would beat the pants off Autonomy day, but I'll participate if only for the free breakfast. A breakfast I don't have to cook.
I lived in a hostel for elven days and I have to say they were some of the best days of my life so far. I have never had so much fun in my life and I know that without them I would not be the happy state I'm in. It's always easier to go through culture shock when you are going through it with everyone else.
After the hostel I moved into the dorms. The International House to be exact. Dorm life so different here. I have lived in co-ed dorms before, but here the guys are on the same floor and you share the same bathroom. Not that I mind, it's just different. At least the boys I live with are clean. I only get one meal a day, which is dinner. The rest I have to cook myself in our joint kitchen (and I can't cook, so its been interesting). I eat a lot of peanut butter sandwiches. Well, they call it peanut butter, but its not really.
Classes are also very different here. You have a lecture and then you go to a tutorial. Unless you have a seminar class (I have two) in which case you only have that two hour seminar. They put a great deal of emphasis on writing and research. You have to turn your papers in through a system called turnitin, which is suppose to keep people from plagiarising. It just makes life more complicated. I can't really explain how they are so different, they just are. The way people treat their classes, grades and even the professors are different.
The school has a reserve running through it, so walking to class everyday is kind of like walking through a zoo. The parrots are hanging out with the crested pigeons and the cockatoos are hanging out with the magpies. There are oyster-snatchers and some blue bird that is as big as I am.
About 20 minutes away there is another reserve. We went a week ago and got to pet Koalas (including a baby) and saw some Kangaroos and emus and some other crazy birds. Koalas are not as soft and cuddly as they look.
The beaches here are beautiful (except for the coal boats blocking the view the sunset). People love their sports here and they REALLY love their surfing and body-boarding. Rain or shin there are always people catching the waves. There are also these seagulls, some of which fly over from NZ for the winter, that just hang out on the beach. They rarely fly. They just stand there and soak there feet in the surf. The pelicans are incredible. I had no idea they were so big.
World Youth Day brought a ton of people from all over the world. Sydney got most of them, but there were thousands here as well. They had a small fair for the kids and in the fair they had camel rides. I was the only person over the age of 10 that rode one. It was great. A dream come true. Now if I could just get a couple camels for myself and ride them through the outback like Rachel Davidson did back in the 70s, I would be so happy!
Everything is so expensive here. Food, transportation, clothes, cds and books. Books are a minimum of 20 dollars for a mass market. A trade size can run you anywhere from 30 to 60 dollars depending on where you go. Borders is the cheapest place I've found so far but you still pay a good 5 to 10 dollars more than in the states. It's actually cheaper to buy the books online and have them shipped to you. About the only semi-cheap thing here is the beer. No wonder people drink so much here.
Speaking of drinking, tomorrow is Autonomy Day here at Uni. It is the day when students and faculty celebrate Uni's emancipation from the tyrannical University of NSW. Drinking starts at 3 a.m. and goes the rest of the day. I'm not sure what else happens, but it sounds crazy. It's not really my thing and I'm sure Reality at SJC would beat the pants off Autonomy day, but I'll participate if only for the free breakfast. A breakfast I don't have to cook.
1 comment:
I'll be there soon and I CAN"T WAIT!! I have truly enjoyed following your blog. You really have a way with words, and I have to admit, your insights actually made me laugh out loud a couple times tonight. Nice pics as well. Now time for some vegemite...
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