G'Day and welcome to Weekend Update & such here at kirstydownunder.blogspot.com. Pleased to report-- all's going well down under. I had a fun weekend. Allow me to elaborate.
As I mentioned before, Saturday was Rachel's and my trip into Geelong. We explored the better part of downtown during the day... such events included riding the Geelong Waterfront Carousel, walking the better part of the Geelong coastline, eating cake, mildly abusing the local weirdo wooden statues (pictures aplenty, mind you), talking about bridges, talking to randoms, befriending bus drivers who go out of their way to drop off confused internationals, and gathering a taste of home after a quest to find the local irish pub in Geelong. It was quite a day. Lots of walking, lots of fun, and the Magners at the end of the trek was just what we needed to cap off yet another adventure. Needless to say, we're going to have to visit Irish Murphy's more often. Maybe next time we'll bring our new friend Simon the bus driver.
Saturday night wasn't too intense... we amassed the conference call group again, this time plus Kingsley, and watched Finding Nemo. Hey, we're in Australia, give us a break. Quality, relaxing evening to cap off our day's events. Sunday was a whole 'nother story. I'd intended to spend the day doing homework, but was pleasantly surprised to find that I only had about an hour and a half's worth of work to do. So, I went to the gym, watched part of Gremlins 2, did my work, took a nap, and decided to make the best of the evening and join the crew going out to Lamby's. Now, in the States, Sunday night isn't necessarily renowned for its night scene. Quite the contrary down under. These kids were still going strong at two a.m. Live music, lots of dancing, and that whole Dane Cook "I'm in the woofer!" bit becoming quite a reality. It was an excellent evening for all (all including Janis, Justin, Diane and myself). They gave me the award for having the best night, though. Probably had something to do with the new Australian friend I made... I'll take it. More to come with that whole deal, hopefully. And Liz, Priya and Alicia? Number four is most definitely taken. We capped off the evening with a most delicious meal of AussieRamen at about three a.m. back in Evatt. A successful evening if there ever was one.
Today brought the beginning of my third week of classes. Everything is pretty well underway at this point. I'm really liking my classes here, too. Especially PR Writing. Today my professor mentioned two of my favorite things in lecture-- adult-themed language, and adult-themed cinema. It's like I was made for this continent. We had our Evatt 2&4 Christmas dinner this evening, too. Lasagna, tacos, cake... it was a feast. After dinner, I rejoined with Janis and Rach in an attempt to book our break trip, but my ADD kicked into overdrive, and I left at 10:20 to have a cup of tea and watch Boston Legal. Even though I'd already seen the episode, it was the season finale, and well, Alan makes me melt. I do enjoy my Monday nights here-- 10:30 Boston Legal, followed by Scrubs. Cox still wounds me. Oh, television. Even halfway across the globe, you are too good to me.
So, here I am now, basking in the glory that is the fact that I have no class tomorrow, wondering what the future awaits. I'm thinking some season two X-Files. Feeling quite content right now, hopefully this will continue. I see no reason why not.
You're pretty as a penny, rollerskate skinny.
Until next time...
+K+
Tuesday, July 31
Saturday, July 28
!!!
Nothing but good things to report to you, my friends. Very rarely does this happen to me (although I must say, it's been happening at an increasing rate since I've entered the southern hemisphere...), so please forgive me if I seem a bit over exuberant.
Week two of classes went off without a hitch. I managed to get every minuscule bit of reading done for all of my classes (a feat in and of itself), attended all on time, and remained conscious amidst the entire thing. Granted, I did fall asleep a few times while reading, but that totally doesn't count. Also, I attended my first and second successful spin bike classes. Quite a workout, but I liked it, and I'm going to do everything in my power to continue to do that. Also, I managed to allow myself to be talked in to beginning a program of sorts at the gym. I tested for it last night, and was pleasantly surprised to find out that I'm very much in shape, according to Australia's standards. Apparently no one on this continent can do more than a few push-ups... the instructor was a bit floored when I was still going strong at fifty. Guns, I tell you. Don't mess... they've been known to go off with very little provocation.
Things have also been on the up and up in the realm of acquiring things. I gave in and bought a hair dryer today for $12... sweet! Money's no longer a super huge issue, seeing as both of my checks cleared and I now have pretty mad Aussie dollars in the bank. Gold star for that one. Also, I got not one, but two packages in the mail! From the BFF and the madre... a badass lamp and converter, and maaad peanut butter themed candy, respectively. Keep 'em coming! Also, in un-acquiring things, I've kicked the death illness that's still somehow circulating around res. I suppose there's something to be said about drinking lots of juice and tea, and sleeping a whole lot.
But, what takes the cake for making me the most excited this week has to be what I've been up to in the past two and a half-odd hours. I just got back from an evening of pasta, Grumpier Old Men, and (most importantly) travel planning next door in Evatt 1. Janis, Rachel and I decided to start discussing our semester break plans. Our break runs from 21-30 of September, and we set our sights on Cairns. We had a conference call (Rachel was still in her unit), complete with Lion King soundtrack, and discussed the many ways of how we could spend our break and, inevitably, end up in Cairns. We decided on a trip that basically looks like it'll be the trek of a lifetime for me. Here's our basic itinerary:
Train from Melbourne on Thursday night (20th), over to Sydney for our first stop. Spend a few days in Sydney, check out the opera house and all of the city's various offerings, then hop a train to Brisbaine. Hang out in Brisbaine, where I will visit the one and only AUSTRALIA ZOO and fulfill one of my life's dreams. Hopefully, meet Bindi Irwin, but I'm not getting my hopes up. At the very least, pay my respects to the one and only Stephen Robert Irwin and his wonderful establishment. I'm pretty much banking on this being one of the greatest days of my life... like, ranking up there with meeting Conan, and the twenty four hours that encompassed 1 July 2007... among others. So yes, from Brisbaine, we're going to fly to Cairns (trains take waaay too long, and it's only about $20 more to fly), and spend the last leg of our trip there, snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef and hanging out with koalas. Then, we'll fly back to Melbourne from Cairns, thus completing our tour of the eastern coast of Australia. Sounds pretty sweet, eh? And, according to current price estimations, it's going to cost me a little over $700 American for travel, round trip. Not too shabby, considering I'll be stopping and seeing the best of the eastern seaboard.
So yes, that makes me incredibly happy. Tomorrow we're heading into Geelong for the day, and we're going to consult a travel agent on the whole ordeal. We had intended, originally, to go to Warrnambool tomorrow, but decided to postpone the trip for another handful of weeks to see if the whales are going to arrive. Good fun. I haven't explored Geelong yet in the daytime, so it should still be a fun day. As long as I'm doing something and not sitting around being sick like I was last weekend, I'll be fine. Plus, Rach and I are on the lookout for a good irish pub to remind us of our respective homes. Hopefully I'll have some fun Geelong pictures for you in the near future, but for now, I think it's dvd time. So, until we meet again... cheers!
+K+
Week two of classes went off without a hitch. I managed to get every minuscule bit of reading done for all of my classes (a feat in and of itself), attended all on time, and remained conscious amidst the entire thing. Granted, I did fall asleep a few times while reading, but that totally doesn't count. Also, I attended my first and second successful spin bike classes. Quite a workout, but I liked it, and I'm going to do everything in my power to continue to do that. Also, I managed to allow myself to be talked in to beginning a program of sorts at the gym. I tested for it last night, and was pleasantly surprised to find out that I'm very much in shape, according to Australia's standards. Apparently no one on this continent can do more than a few push-ups... the instructor was a bit floored when I was still going strong at fifty. Guns, I tell you. Don't mess... they've been known to go off with very little provocation.
Things have also been on the up and up in the realm of acquiring things. I gave in and bought a hair dryer today for $12... sweet! Money's no longer a super huge issue, seeing as both of my checks cleared and I now have pretty mad Aussie dollars in the bank. Gold star for that one. Also, I got not one, but two packages in the mail! From the BFF and the madre... a badass lamp and converter, and maaad peanut butter themed candy, respectively. Keep 'em coming! Also, in un-acquiring things, I've kicked the death illness that's still somehow circulating around res. I suppose there's something to be said about drinking lots of juice and tea, and sleeping a whole lot.
But, what takes the cake for making me the most excited this week has to be what I've been up to in the past two and a half-odd hours. I just got back from an evening of pasta, Grumpier Old Men, and (most importantly) travel planning next door in Evatt 1. Janis, Rachel and I decided to start discussing our semester break plans. Our break runs from 21-30 of September, and we set our sights on Cairns. We had a conference call (Rachel was still in her unit), complete with Lion King soundtrack, and discussed the many ways of how we could spend our break and, inevitably, end up in Cairns. We decided on a trip that basically looks like it'll be the trek of a lifetime for me. Here's our basic itinerary:
Train from Melbourne on Thursday night (20th), over to Sydney for our first stop. Spend a few days in Sydney, check out the opera house and all of the city's various offerings, then hop a train to Brisbaine. Hang out in Brisbaine, where I will visit the one and only AUSTRALIA ZOO and fulfill one of my life's dreams. Hopefully, meet Bindi Irwin, but I'm not getting my hopes up. At the very least, pay my respects to the one and only Stephen Robert Irwin and his wonderful establishment. I'm pretty much banking on this being one of the greatest days of my life... like, ranking up there with meeting Conan, and the twenty four hours that encompassed 1 July 2007... among others. So yes, from Brisbaine, we're going to fly to Cairns (trains take waaay too long, and it's only about $20 more to fly), and spend the last leg of our trip there, snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef and hanging out with koalas. Then, we'll fly back to Melbourne from Cairns, thus completing our tour of the eastern coast of Australia. Sounds pretty sweet, eh? And, according to current price estimations, it's going to cost me a little over $700 American for travel, round trip. Not too shabby, considering I'll be stopping and seeing the best of the eastern seaboard.
So yes, that makes me incredibly happy. Tomorrow we're heading into Geelong for the day, and we're going to consult a travel agent on the whole ordeal. We had intended, originally, to go to Warrnambool tomorrow, but decided to postpone the trip for another handful of weeks to see if the whales are going to arrive. Good fun. I haven't explored Geelong yet in the daytime, so it should still be a fun day. As long as I'm doing something and not sitting around being sick like I was last weekend, I'll be fine. Plus, Rach and I are on the lookout for a good irish pub to remind us of our respective homes. Hopefully I'll have some fun Geelong pictures for you in the near future, but for now, I think it's dvd time. So, until we meet again... cheers!
+K+
Tuesday, July 24
Mid-week post... hooray!
Well, I survived the weekend. I'm slowly-but-surely getting over this illness. Actually, my recovery is going much quicker than I thought it would. One of life's small victories... I take 'em when I see 'em.
But enough about me being sick, let's talk about something more fun. Nothing entirely exciting has gone down, and I'm coming to terms with the fact that this will probably become more of a regularity than an abnormality. After all, I'm in school now, and no matter what continent you're on, that usually means doing work and not being on constant vacation. Studying abroad only shifts the balance on that constant vacation scale from "never" in the States, to "well, pretty much whenever you aren't in class or doing schoolwork" over here. (Un)fortunately for me, I have a conscience when it comes to school, and am probably spending more time than I should on completing work for my first-year level classes. This may subside; we shall see.
Schoolwork aside, I've managed to keep myself somewhat busy with sleeping, watching dvds and the occasional Australian television program, trying not to exhaust my entire internet quota in the first three weeks of being here, *gasp* reading for pleasure, and *double gasp* exercising.
Yes, I've stooped to a new low in that sense. I always said I'd never join a gym, because it's against my morals as an athlete, or something dumb like that, but seeing as there's a serious lack of organized sports here for us to participate in, I joined the gym. I've been twice already, once for a regular workout, and earlier tonite for a spin bike class. Despite my cycling prowess from a full year of biking around the greater Philadelphia area, I'm still relatively out of shape on a bike, all things considered. Oh well. But yes, Rachel and I agreed it would be in our cumulative best interest to start exercising, and out of sheer boredom, I'm two for two on days belonging to the gym and actually utilizing it. Fabulous.
Working on some weekend travel plans, considering this past weekend was a bust, due to the res-wide epidemic. Rachel, Janis, Diane and I were discussing perhaps taking the train to Warrnambool. It's only about a two hour train ride, and with our concession cards, it probably costs about $8 or so. Austin went last week and had good things to say about it, so we might try to make a weekend of it and stay at a hostel. Hopefully it'll work out. Maybe I'll bring my laptop, and we can watch 'Pirates,' thus solidifying my spot as 'that girl with the pirate fetish.' Hey, it worked for me at Kildare's.
In non-Australia, non-adult-themed film news, super pumped about Boosh returning to the Flyers/Phantoms! My only regret is not being there to welcome him back into the city. However, all the more reason to return to the Phantoms come November. I'd planned on going back to work a few games if Mike and Brian needed me, but this is just added incentive. I mean, Neil and Boosh? Yes, please.
Until then, I suppose I'll be spending my time (or this week's time, at least) on schoolwork, exercise, dvd's, and fully supporting my antibodies in their quest to defeat the final strands of this godforsaken influenza. I was contemplating adding a video podcast feature... yes, no, cheese? Let me know. Also, drop a line if you'd like to receive some snail male (I know it's m-a-i-l, but I spelled it that way first without thinking, and I think it's funny, so I'm leaving it) from Down Under. So until next time, goodnight and good luck (my film choice for the evening!).
+K+
Well, I survived the weekend. I'm slowly-but-surely getting over this illness. Actually, my recovery is going much quicker than I thought it would. One of life's small victories... I take 'em when I see 'em.
But enough about me being sick, let's talk about something more fun. Nothing entirely exciting has gone down, and I'm coming to terms with the fact that this will probably become more of a regularity than an abnormality. After all, I'm in school now, and no matter what continent you're on, that usually means doing work and not being on constant vacation. Studying abroad only shifts the balance on that constant vacation scale from "never" in the States, to "well, pretty much whenever you aren't in class or doing schoolwork" over here. (Un)fortunately for me, I have a conscience when it comes to school, and am probably spending more time than I should on completing work for my first-year level classes. This may subside; we shall see.
Schoolwork aside, I've managed to keep myself somewhat busy with sleeping, watching dvds and the occasional Australian television program, trying not to exhaust my entire internet quota in the first three weeks of being here, *gasp* reading for pleasure, and *double gasp* exercising.
Yes, I've stooped to a new low in that sense. I always said I'd never join a gym, because it's against my morals as an athlete, or something dumb like that, but seeing as there's a serious lack of organized sports here for us to participate in, I joined the gym. I've been twice already, once for a regular workout, and earlier tonite for a spin bike class. Despite my cycling prowess from a full year of biking around the greater Philadelphia area, I'm still relatively out of shape on a bike, all things considered. Oh well. But yes, Rachel and I agreed it would be in our cumulative best interest to start exercising, and out of sheer boredom, I'm two for two on days belonging to the gym and actually utilizing it. Fabulous.
Working on some weekend travel plans, considering this past weekend was a bust, due to the res-wide epidemic. Rachel, Janis, Diane and I were discussing perhaps taking the train to Warrnambool. It's only about a two hour train ride, and with our concession cards, it probably costs about $8 or so. Austin went last week and had good things to say about it, so we might try to make a weekend of it and stay at a hostel. Hopefully it'll work out. Maybe I'll bring my laptop, and we can watch 'Pirates,' thus solidifying my spot as 'that girl with the pirate fetish.' Hey, it worked for me at Kildare's.
In non-Australia, non-adult-themed film news, super pumped about Boosh returning to the Flyers/Phantoms! My only regret is not being there to welcome him back into the city. However, all the more reason to return to the Phantoms come November. I'd planned on going back to work a few games if Mike and Brian needed me, but this is just added incentive. I mean, Neil and Boosh? Yes, please.
Until then, I suppose I'll be spending my time (or this week's time, at least) on schoolwork, exercise, dvd's, and fully supporting my antibodies in their quest to defeat the final strands of this godforsaken influenza. I was contemplating adding a video podcast feature... yes, no, cheese? Let me know. Also, drop a line if you'd like to receive some snail male (I know it's m-a-i-l, but I spelled it that way first without thinking, and I think it's funny, so I'm leaving it) from Down Under. So until next time, goodnight and good luck (my film choice for the evening!).
+K+
Saturday, July 21
aaah... ahhh...
CHOO!
It was inevitable. I knew at some point in my first month here I'd get sick, and I woke up today with a head cold for the books. I've advanced to coughing, chills, and that icepick-to-the-cerebellum sort of headache. Great. Well, good news is it seems as if pretty much everybody's sick at this point, and I've managed to come across some meds, so I should survive. Let's hope. And while we're hoping, let's rewind.
I believe my last update was Wednesday, pre-Drag & Devo. Well, that was hands down the funniest night I've had here so far. The boys got SO into it. And the girls were a sight to be seen themselves. I opted for the sexy lawyer look... pulled back hair, black-rimmed glasses, pinstripe 3/4 button up shirt, black skirt and heels. Payed dearly for the heels the next day. Pictures can be found on facebook, same link as below. So yes, it was a sight... all of the resi's at Deakin dressed to the nines in their own special way, dancing up a storm in the union-type area. Icing on the cake was the fact that they let us use our Deakin cards to pay for drinks. I have a new favorite... UDL. The U.S. needs to get on the pre-mixed drinks in a can. It's wonderful, and tasty too. The D&D was until eleven, then everyone headed down to the Ponds Hotel for live music and more beverages. Met and danced with some dudes there, definitely a quality end to a ridiculously fun evening. But, as I said, my feet were completely destroyed form a night of dancing in heels. Aside from blisters on both my feet, the evening was an immense success. And to Liz and Alicia (Priya, I've already consulted you on this), I'm up to three. Right-o.
Thursday was a pretty full day of classes. Still, nothing compared to class in the States. My history professor was pretty pumped to find that he had an American amongst his students. Hopefully this will work to my advantage. And, Australia Today sounds like it'll be a pretty good time. Took a pretty sizeable nap after class, then Thursday night we went out for Janis's birthday. Went to this super-cute bar at first, that looked more like a coffee shop than a bar to me. It had couches, a fireplace, and live acoustic guitar. The guy played Damien Rice, and I about melted, as per usual when I hear DR. I'd most certainly like to return. We ventured to Club 99 after that, but in my infinite wisdom, I forgot to bring my ID, so Heather, Jess and I went back to campus. We watched Hotel Rwanda and hung out for a bit, opting for the more relaxing sort of evening. Pretty intense/depressing movie, but still quite good.
Friday marked my second trip into Melbourne, and my first ever footy game! Rachel and I decided to make a trek into the city, and while wandering around looking for something to do, we realized Geelong was playing at the Telstra Dome that evening. And, what better time for a footy game? NONE! So, we meandered around Melbourne for a few hours, grabbed some pizza (nothing like it is in the States), and explored Federation Square. Pixar had a pretty cool display going on for its twentieth anniversary, complete with a giant replica of the Pixar lamp hanging out outside the building. We wandered a bit more, checking out the Performing Arts Centre, the Australian Racing Museum, and some random shops along the way. It started to get chilly, so I invested in a Geelong Cats winter snowcap/toque/hat, in an attempt to not get pneumonia and support the home footy squad. Unfortunately, only the latter succeeded, but I don't hold the hat accountable. In fact, I'm wearing it right now.
So, we made our way to the Telstra Dome and found our seats. First row, third level... we could see the whole field, it was great! The pitch/field itself is pretty enormous, and I had no idea what to expect, considering I'd never seen a footy game before. To sum it up for those who aren't familiar with the wonderful game of Australian Rules Football, I'll give you a run-down. The game itself is like a weird mix of rugby and soccer, played in four 25ish minute quarters. You use your hands and feet, there's a whole lot of punting the ball (which looks like a more round rugby ball, and is incredibly bouncy), you can't throw the ball, but you can hit it like a volleyball to your teammates. Also, if you catch the ball off of a kick, you have the option of getting a free kick, or continuing with normal gameplay. In order to score, you have to kick the ball through two of four posts, gaining between one and six points per goal. And, you can run with the ball, but every ten or so steps you have to bounce it. There's a decent amount of tackling, but it's not nearly as violent as rugby. And it's very, very fast paced. My kind of game.
So last night's match was the Geelong Cats vs. the Western Bulldogs. The Cats are at the top of the race for the Premiership coming up at the end of September... and it showed. The final score was 138-63, Geelong. Very high-scoring, due to the fast paced nature of the game. It was, overall, an excellent experience. I'd love to go to another game... now that I actually know what's going on. It's relatively easy to catch on, I suggest YouTube-ing it, if you're interested. The only downside to the evening was we were pretty freezing the entire time. Although the Dome itself was enclosed, it was still a chilly 15 degrees or so during the game. None to kind whilst wearing only a zip up hoodie, pants with holes in them, and a knit hat. Lesson learned: next time, wear another layer or two.
We ended up getting back to campus around two, and I fell asleep pretty quickly. Had some minor signs of the oncoming illness, but nothing too drastic. Things changed when I woke up. At one in the afternoon. I know I'm sick when I can sleep that much, undisturbed. I awoke with that all-over body ache, where any sort of movement makes you feel like an arthritic geriatric. No good. After an assessment of the overall situation, I decided it would be in my best interest to retreat to bed and sleep some more. Didn't get out of bed until around four. Good thing I didn't have anything entirely demanding to do. I managed to choke down a pair of Advils, which lightened my symptoms a bit, and walked to the store to replenish my food sources. Got some more Tim Tam's, among other things, so that was a success. The walk there actually made me feel a bit better, too, which was nice. Came back and hung out with Erin, Cam and a few other people in the common area for a while. We watched Empire Records, then chatted a bit, and here I am now, listening to The Starting Line and contemplating the glory of NyQuil. Tomorrow will consist of reading and laundry, but for the rest of tonite, I'm crashing. Here's to hoping tomorrow's bout of the Australian Common Cold won't be nearly as painful. Until next time...
+K+
It was inevitable. I knew at some point in my first month here I'd get sick, and I woke up today with a head cold for the books. I've advanced to coughing, chills, and that icepick-to-the-cerebellum sort of headache. Great. Well, good news is it seems as if pretty much everybody's sick at this point, and I've managed to come across some meds, so I should survive. Let's hope. And while we're hoping, let's rewind.
I believe my last update was Wednesday, pre-Drag & Devo. Well, that was hands down the funniest night I've had here so far. The boys got SO into it. And the girls were a sight to be seen themselves. I opted for the sexy lawyer look... pulled back hair, black-rimmed glasses, pinstripe 3/4 button up shirt, black skirt and heels. Payed dearly for the heels the next day. Pictures can be found on facebook, same link as below. So yes, it was a sight... all of the resi's at Deakin dressed to the nines in their own special way, dancing up a storm in the union-type area. Icing on the cake was the fact that they let us use our Deakin cards to pay for drinks. I have a new favorite... UDL. The U.S. needs to get on the pre-mixed drinks in a can. It's wonderful, and tasty too. The D&D was until eleven, then everyone headed down to the Ponds Hotel for live music and more beverages. Met and danced with some dudes there, definitely a quality end to a ridiculously fun evening. But, as I said, my feet were completely destroyed form a night of dancing in heels. Aside from blisters on both my feet, the evening was an immense success. And to Liz and Alicia (Priya, I've already consulted you on this), I'm up to three. Right-o.
Thursday was a pretty full day of classes. Still, nothing compared to class in the States. My history professor was pretty pumped to find that he had an American amongst his students. Hopefully this will work to my advantage. And, Australia Today sounds like it'll be a pretty good time. Took a pretty sizeable nap after class, then Thursday night we went out for Janis's birthday. Went to this super-cute bar at first, that looked more like a coffee shop than a bar to me. It had couches, a fireplace, and live acoustic guitar. The guy played Damien Rice, and I about melted, as per usual when I hear DR. I'd most certainly like to return. We ventured to Club 99 after that, but in my infinite wisdom, I forgot to bring my ID, so Heather, Jess and I went back to campus. We watched Hotel Rwanda and hung out for a bit, opting for the more relaxing sort of evening. Pretty intense/depressing movie, but still quite good.
Friday marked my second trip into Melbourne, and my first ever footy game! Rachel and I decided to make a trek into the city, and while wandering around looking for something to do, we realized Geelong was playing at the Telstra Dome that evening. And, what better time for a footy game? NONE! So, we meandered around Melbourne for a few hours, grabbed some pizza (nothing like it is in the States), and explored Federation Square. Pixar had a pretty cool display going on for its twentieth anniversary, complete with a giant replica of the Pixar lamp hanging out outside the building. We wandered a bit more, checking out the Performing Arts Centre, the Australian Racing Museum, and some random shops along the way. It started to get chilly, so I invested in a Geelong Cats winter snowcap/toque/hat, in an attempt to not get pneumonia and support the home footy squad. Unfortunately, only the latter succeeded, but I don't hold the hat accountable. In fact, I'm wearing it right now.
So, we made our way to the Telstra Dome and found our seats. First row, third level... we could see the whole field, it was great! The pitch/field itself is pretty enormous, and I had no idea what to expect, considering I'd never seen a footy game before. To sum it up for those who aren't familiar with the wonderful game of Australian Rules Football, I'll give you a run-down. The game itself is like a weird mix of rugby and soccer, played in four 25ish minute quarters. You use your hands and feet, there's a whole lot of punting the ball (which looks like a more round rugby ball, and is incredibly bouncy), you can't throw the ball, but you can hit it like a volleyball to your teammates. Also, if you catch the ball off of a kick, you have the option of getting a free kick, or continuing with normal gameplay. In order to score, you have to kick the ball through two of four posts, gaining between one and six points per goal. And, you can run with the ball, but every ten or so steps you have to bounce it. There's a decent amount of tackling, but it's not nearly as violent as rugby. And it's very, very fast paced. My kind of game.
So last night's match was the Geelong Cats vs. the Western Bulldogs. The Cats are at the top of the race for the Premiership coming up at the end of September... and it showed. The final score was 138-63, Geelong. Very high-scoring, due to the fast paced nature of the game. It was, overall, an excellent experience. I'd love to go to another game... now that I actually know what's going on. It's relatively easy to catch on, I suggest YouTube-ing it, if you're interested. The only downside to the evening was we were pretty freezing the entire time. Although the Dome itself was enclosed, it was still a chilly 15 degrees or so during the game. None to kind whilst wearing only a zip up hoodie, pants with holes in them, and a knit hat. Lesson learned: next time, wear another layer or two.
We ended up getting back to campus around two, and I fell asleep pretty quickly. Had some minor signs of the oncoming illness, but nothing too drastic. Things changed when I woke up. At one in the afternoon. I know I'm sick when I can sleep that much, undisturbed. I awoke with that all-over body ache, where any sort of movement makes you feel like an arthritic geriatric. No good. After an assessment of the overall situation, I decided it would be in my best interest to retreat to bed and sleep some more. Didn't get out of bed until around four. Good thing I didn't have anything entirely demanding to do. I managed to choke down a pair of Advils, which lightened my symptoms a bit, and walked to the store to replenish my food sources. Got some more Tim Tam's, among other things, so that was a success. The walk there actually made me feel a bit better, too, which was nice. Came back and hung out with Erin, Cam and a few other people in the common area for a while. We watched Empire Records, then chatted a bit, and here I am now, listening to The Starting Line and contemplating the glory of NyQuil. Tomorrow will consist of reading and laundry, but for the rest of tonite, I'm crashing. Here's to hoping tomorrow's bout of the Australian Common Cold won't be nearly as painful. Until next time...
+K+
Wednesday, July 18
G'day!
Just got back from caf (dinner), and now everyone in my res is getting ready for the "infamous" Drag & Devo Night. The guys dress in drag, and the girls dress, well, to put it tastefully, skimpy. Should be a good time. But yes, thought I'd take a few minutes to update on the last day or so.
Things have certainly calmed down since classes started. There's been "Dis-O" Week in the evening, but that still leaves quite a bit of time during the day to be filled. I finally got the internet set up in my room (which could be a very good or very bad thing, depending), so that's helped pass the time a bit. Aside from that, it's been finding new classes, buying books, watching dvds, reading, and hanging out. Oh, and eating. Been doing a pretty decent amount of that lately, which is why I'm going to sign up for the gym and take a boxing class (need to stay fit so I'm back in fighting shape when I get back to Kildare's...), as well as a spin bike class with Rachel.
Some notables in the last few days include the Traffic Light event Monday night... they bussed us into Geelong, and we were instructed to dress in traffic light colors, depending upon our relationship status. Naturally, I was green. It was a pretty fun night overall, but some of the other Americans and I agreed that the Aussie kids party waaay harder than we do. We're used to going out at ten or so, then being done by one at the latest. These kids head out at eight, and are still going hard around midnight. Bit much for us, but I'm sure we'll get acquainted. Yesterday was a day off... it was kindof rainy out, so I stayed in and read for a while. We had an international/new kid gathering in the PM, that was a good time. My team won trivia, good deals. As a prize, I got a package of crackers and vegemite. Haven't tried it yet. I'll be sure to update when I do. After our trivia night/dessert time in the Lakehouse, me and a few of the other kids watched Pulp Fiction. What a great movie. "Marvin, whaddya make of all dis?" "Man, I don't even have an opinion!" Classic.
Today I had my children's lit class. It sounds pretty amazing. We watched part of E.T. and analyzed it. We're doing non-fiction next week, then the movie Robots. Pretty excellent, in my opinion. Bought my books after class, hung around for a bit and played around on the school's P2P network, then went to caf and here I am now. We're due to meet at eight, so I suppose I should start to get ready. Until next time...
+K+
Just got back from caf (dinner), and now everyone in my res is getting ready for the "infamous" Drag & Devo Night. The guys dress in drag, and the girls dress, well, to put it tastefully, skimpy. Should be a good time. But yes, thought I'd take a few minutes to update on the last day or so.
Things have certainly calmed down since classes started. There's been "Dis-O" Week in the evening, but that still leaves quite a bit of time during the day to be filled. I finally got the internet set up in my room (which could be a very good or very bad thing, depending), so that's helped pass the time a bit. Aside from that, it's been finding new classes, buying books, watching dvds, reading, and hanging out. Oh, and eating. Been doing a pretty decent amount of that lately, which is why I'm going to sign up for the gym and take a boxing class (need to stay fit so I'm back in fighting shape when I get back to Kildare's...), as well as a spin bike class with Rachel.
Some notables in the last few days include the Traffic Light event Monday night... they bussed us into Geelong, and we were instructed to dress in traffic light colors, depending upon our relationship status. Naturally, I was green. It was a pretty fun night overall, but some of the other Americans and I agreed that the Aussie kids party waaay harder than we do. We're used to going out at ten or so, then being done by one at the latest. These kids head out at eight, and are still going hard around midnight. Bit much for us, but I'm sure we'll get acquainted. Yesterday was a day off... it was kindof rainy out, so I stayed in and read for a while. We had an international/new kid gathering in the PM, that was a good time. My team won trivia, good deals. As a prize, I got a package of crackers and vegemite. Haven't tried it yet. I'll be sure to update when I do. After our trivia night/dessert time in the Lakehouse, me and a few of the other kids watched Pulp Fiction. What a great movie. "Marvin, whaddya make of all dis?" "Man, I don't even have an opinion!" Classic.
Today I had my children's lit class. It sounds pretty amazing. We watched part of E.T. and analyzed it. We're doing non-fiction next week, then the movie Robots. Pretty excellent, in my opinion. Bought my books after class, hung around for a bit and played around on the school's P2P network, then went to caf and here I am now. We're due to meet at eight, so I suppose I should start to get ready. Until next time...
+K+
Monday, July 16
A-B-C, 1-2-3, mate!
G'day from the first day of school!
Yes, I'm officially an Australian student now. Well, sortof. Not quite yet Australian, but today was our first day of Uni. I had two classes... just got out of my second lecture. I had this long, elaborate entry in the works, but then the power went out in the computer lab I was in, so here I am, typing it all down again. Oh well, such is life.
Before I get in to my classes, let's rewind to the weekend. Friday night was a fun time, me and a bunch of the other internationals had a family-style dinner. Kingsley made pasta, and then, through a combined effort, we managed to get my Wii to work. WiiSports and Rayman were the games of choice... it was most certainly a good time. Highlight of the evening had to be when two Aussie girls were WiiBoxing, and actually started hitting each other. Hilarity ensued, no doubts.
Saturday marked my first journey to Melbourne. Things were off to a slower start when we arrived at the train station only to find that the railway union was on strike for the time being, and we were forced to hang around and wait for a bus. No worries, though, we made it to Melbourne about an hour later than we'd planned, and headed to the Eureka Tower. A short walk and eighty eight floors higher, we had the most breathtaking view of Melbourne you could imagine. Eureka Tower is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere, and they'd just opened the observation deck on the highest floor. It was quite a spectacle. From there, we ventured across the street to the Crown casino for lunch. I had Cantonese for the first time... "and monkey's brains, though popular in Cantonese cuisine, is not commonly found in Washington D.C.!" Alas, I didn't have monkey's brains, but it was pretty tasty, even if it did stray from my normal diet. After we ate, Rachel and I wandered around the casino for a bit, then went on a quest to find the most delicious and elaborate-looking dessert we could manage. She ended up with a pretty amazing looking lemon meringue, while I opted for the chocolatey Mars Bar cake. Delicious, I promise you that. From the Crown, we walked downtown and went shopping for a bit. There's a surprisingly popular skateboard and punk culture in Melbourne. I know cities normally cater to (at least) the latter, but it seemed as if everywhere I turned, there were kids on skateboards, black hair, dark eyeliner, and unknown band t-shirts. Another interesting note for Melbourne was how amazingly clean it was. I mean, I know I'm used to dirty Philly, but this place was impeccable. Definitely going to have to make another trip up to Melbourne soon to explore on my own time.
So, that was Saturday. Yesterday was the trip to Bellaraine and the Surf Coast. Wasn't as exciting as Melbourne, but still a good time. We stopped in Queenscliff, Tourquay, Bell's Beach and Angleside. Queenscliff was pretty dead, but Bell's Beach was great. We were only there for about fifteen minutes, but there were a whole bunch of surfers in the water, and it was fun watching them catch waves and wipe out. Tourquay was a neat little town; we had lunch there, then wandered through the surf shop outlets. I got a pretty sweet new jacket and hoodie, and although I was in the market for a board, didn't invest in one quite yet. Overall, it was a fun trip. Last night was the beginning of Dis-O week, but I was exhausted from the previous week's events, so I stayed in and watched Boston Legal (which I am super pumped to learn is on here!!).
Which brings me to today, the first day of school. I had two lectures-- PR Writing, and History of the World since 1945: 1970's-90's. PR Writing was pretty standard; it seems as if a lot of what I learned at La Salle last semester will be applied. Plus, the lecturer is pretty much an Australian version of George Clooney. EHH. Haha, of course. I met a few new Aussie girls in PR who were super nice, and pretty interested as to why I was there. Good times. And, I just got out of history lecture. It was pretty dry, more focused on American politics than I thought it would be. But, I suppose the main world events of the 1970's were Vietnam and the Cold War, so that makes sense. I was hoping it would be a bit more exciting, but then again, I haven't taken a straightup history class since high school. They've all been politics, which, to make a generalization, are more heated than history. We'll see how it goes.
I've got a few meetings later on tonite, then dinner and the "traffic light" themed dance/club/whatever. Considering I don't have any classes tomorrow, and I'm pretty rested up from just lounging around last night, I think it's safe to say I'm going out tonite. We'll see what comes of it. I suppose that's all I've got for now, I'll update as things advance. Until then... Cheers from Down Under!
+K+
Yes, I'm officially an Australian student now. Well, sortof. Not quite yet Australian, but today was our first day of Uni. I had two classes... just got out of my second lecture. I had this long, elaborate entry in the works, but then the power went out in the computer lab I was in, so here I am, typing it all down again. Oh well, such is life.
Before I get in to my classes, let's rewind to the weekend. Friday night was a fun time, me and a bunch of the other internationals had a family-style dinner. Kingsley made pasta, and then, through a combined effort, we managed to get my Wii to work. WiiSports and Rayman were the games of choice... it was most certainly a good time. Highlight of the evening had to be when two Aussie girls were WiiBoxing, and actually started hitting each other. Hilarity ensued, no doubts.
Saturday marked my first journey to Melbourne. Things were off to a slower start when we arrived at the train station only to find that the railway union was on strike for the time being, and we were forced to hang around and wait for a bus. No worries, though, we made it to Melbourne about an hour later than we'd planned, and headed to the Eureka Tower. A short walk and eighty eight floors higher, we had the most breathtaking view of Melbourne you could imagine. Eureka Tower is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere, and they'd just opened the observation deck on the highest floor. It was quite a spectacle. From there, we ventured across the street to the Crown casino for lunch. I had Cantonese for the first time... "and monkey's brains, though popular in Cantonese cuisine, is not commonly found in Washington D.C.!" Alas, I didn't have monkey's brains, but it was pretty tasty, even if it did stray from my normal diet. After we ate, Rachel and I wandered around the casino for a bit, then went on a quest to find the most delicious and elaborate-looking dessert we could manage. She ended up with a pretty amazing looking lemon meringue, while I opted for the chocolatey Mars Bar cake. Delicious, I promise you that. From the Crown, we walked downtown and went shopping for a bit. There's a surprisingly popular skateboard and punk culture in Melbourne. I know cities normally cater to (at least) the latter, but it seemed as if everywhere I turned, there were kids on skateboards, black hair, dark eyeliner, and unknown band t-shirts. Another interesting note for Melbourne was how amazingly clean it was. I mean, I know I'm used to dirty Philly, but this place was impeccable. Definitely going to have to make another trip up to Melbourne soon to explore on my own time.
So, that was Saturday. Yesterday was the trip to Bellaraine and the Surf Coast. Wasn't as exciting as Melbourne, but still a good time. We stopped in Queenscliff, Tourquay, Bell's Beach and Angleside. Queenscliff was pretty dead, but Bell's Beach was great. We were only there for about fifteen minutes, but there were a whole bunch of surfers in the water, and it was fun watching them catch waves and wipe out. Tourquay was a neat little town; we had lunch there, then wandered through the surf shop outlets. I got a pretty sweet new jacket and hoodie, and although I was in the market for a board, didn't invest in one quite yet. Overall, it was a fun trip. Last night was the beginning of Dis-O week, but I was exhausted from the previous week's events, so I stayed in and watched Boston Legal (which I am super pumped to learn is on here!!).
Which brings me to today, the first day of school. I had two lectures-- PR Writing, and History of the World since 1945: 1970's-90's. PR Writing was pretty standard; it seems as if a lot of what I learned at La Salle last semester will be applied. Plus, the lecturer is pretty much an Australian version of George Clooney. EHH. Haha, of course. I met a few new Aussie girls in PR who were super nice, and pretty interested as to why I was there. Good times. And, I just got out of history lecture. It was pretty dry, more focused on American politics than I thought it would be. But, I suppose the main world events of the 1970's were Vietnam and the Cold War, so that makes sense. I was hoping it would be a bit more exciting, but then again, I haven't taken a straightup history class since high school. They've all been politics, which, to make a generalization, are more heated than history. We'll see how it goes.
I've got a few meetings later on tonite, then dinner and the "traffic light" themed dance/club/whatever. Considering I don't have any classes tomorrow, and I'm pretty rested up from just lounging around last night, I think it's safe to say I'm going out tonite. We'll see what comes of it. I suppose that's all I've got for now, I'll update as things advance. Until then... Cheers from Down Under!
+K+
Friday, July 13
So, as I mentioned in my last post, we got our timetables today. This is probably definitely the greatest school schedule I've ever had. I've got two classes Monday, off on Tuesday, one on Wednesday, four on Thursday, and Friday's off! Most of my classes are an hour long, aside from two that are two hours. I'm taking Australia Today (basically structured for international students... the syllabus type thing says we're going to an Aussie Rules Footy game... sweet!), Contextualizing Children's Literature (it's apparently a politically charged interpretation of kids books and movies... again, pumped... I mean, we're watching Lion King!!), History of the World Since 1945: early 70's-90's (je t'adore l'histoire. Plus, modern stuff? Excellent!), and PR Writing (had to get a major-specific one in there somewhere). I'm pretty pumped for it all... ought to make for a fun semester and a good travel schedule. Speaking of travel, our trek to Melbourne is tomorrow, and I signed up for the journey to Bellaraine on Sunday. Not too much on for today, though. But I did manage to upload some pictures on facebook. Here's a link to the album:
http://lasalle.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024457&l=c9b33&id=17500696
Ahem. Sorry Mom, changed the album name. Aside from that, not too much up for today. Finally, a day of complete relaxation. But hey, who knows what's on for the evening. I'll be sure to update when we get back from Melbourne and Bellaraine... hopefully I'll have some more sweet pictures. Until then... Cheers!
+K+
http://lasalle.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024457&l=c9b33&id=17500696
Ahem. Sorry Mom, changed the album name. Aside from that, not too much up for today. Finally, a day of complete relaxation. But hey, who knows what's on for the evening. I'll be sure to update when we get back from Melbourne and Bellaraine... hopefully I'll have some more sweet pictures. Until then... Cheers!
+K+
Thursday, July 12
I've got faith in the sky, faith in the sun, faith in the people walking underneath the sun
Oh Spear Head. That cd Slacks made me is keeping it real down under, that's for sure.
In other news... I made it back from Lorne in one piece! Wanna see Lorne? You sure? It might just make you jealous. Okay, if you insist:
Told you so. Yeah, as if I wasn't in love enough with Australia to begin with, they had to go take us to Lorne. And teach us how to surf. Yeah, that's right, I learned to surf off the coast of Australia! I'm not saying I was any good at it, but I did manage to get up on a few of the waves. Good times, for sure. And it goes without saying that I am now addicted to surfing, as well as the rest of the international kids. Here's our surf crew, and one of me with the board:
Oh, and allow me to mention that it was about 10 degrees (50-ish, for you in the States) whilst surfing. Thank God for wetsuits. Either way, goooooood times in Lorne. Beach yoga after that, but it wasn't really anything special. I did meet a really cool girl named Elizabeth from California, and we made the remainder of the evening a fun time. Met a few Aussie surfers at the club/bar later on, that was funny. Tuesday was definitely a good day.
Wednesday was a lot of time spent on our bus, but it was well worth it. Aussie Lesson: when any amount of time is mentioned (i.e.: "oh, we'll be back in Geelong in about an hour."), take it with a grain of salt. The aforementioned scenario ended up taking us about four hours, BUT, we did see some pretty amazing things along the way. Our first stop was the Twelve Apostles (of which there are only nine left). It was absolutely breathtaking. One of those things that you see, and all you can do is stand there and marvel in its beauty. Here's a picture of our view, but it really doesn't do it justice:
Yeah. Really, really pretty. From there, we went to another really picturesque spot, where I climbed on a bunch of rocks and gazed in amazedness at the overall piratey nature of "Shipwreck's Cove." Good stuff. Back on the bus again, and it was quite a drive from there. We went through this National Park in the middle of nowhere, and I really felt as if something from either Cabin Fever, or the X-Files was going to happen to us. You know, mythological creatures, flat tires, uncomfortably frightening circumstances amongst a group of people I'd only known for four days or so. But, we made it through, and the bus driver took us to a golf course renowned for its massive kangaroo population. Because, let's face it, we're still tourists. When he said we'd see a few roos, I wasn't sure what he meant by "a few," but turns out a few means over a hundred. I was completely pumped when he let us off the bus to take pictures. He said to be careful, because they could get a bit feisty at times. But, come on now, we all know who I am and how well I deal with feisty things... not to mention my penchant for emulating the Croc Hunter whenever possible. So, while the rest of my international friends stayed a good 50 feet away, I tip-toed up to a lone roo, and got within about ten feet of the little bloke. Here's a shot to prove my Croc Hunter prowess:
My bus-mates were impressed. From there, we made our way back to Deakin, and the lot of us rendezvoused for dinner about half an hour after our arrival. We took a bus into Geelong and had a pretty nice dinner for a reasonable price. It took us a while to get back, though, but no worries, mate! Also, I was super excited to learn that a voltage adapter was probably not necessary to use my laptop, so I checked the converter and plugged it in, and it worked! Score one for the confused American. I watched Young Frankenstein (after setting up my Wall of Shame/Fame, i.e.: a bunch of pictures of you randoms from the States) and crashed after a very busy few days.
Today was more relaxed, but not without its own adventure. We signed up for our classes (Timetables are tomorrow, I'm hoping for Friday's off, at the least. From what I'm told, it's not out of the question.) and sat through a few power points and the like. Then, Rachel, my new friend from Liverpool, and I decided to embark on a trip to the grocery store. Hilarious. First of all, it was a Safeway, which is literally no more than two and a half miles from my house on Sharon Drive. But inside, everything was completely different. COMPLETELY. Aside from there being a produce section, a meat section, and aisles... it was like being in a parallel universe grocery store. The carts are called "trolleys," the cheese is labeled "tasty" and "extra tasty," there's NO HERSHEY CHOCOLATE (but lots of Tim Tams!), the eggs are on the damn shelves, and the ice cream comes in buckets. It's completely insane. Even the nutrition facts are different! That being said, I have no idea if what I bought is even remotely healthy... I just went for whatever seemed even marginally familiar. I got Nutella and some peanut butter and English Muffins, so I think that ought to suit me for a bit, amongst the other random things I came across. They have really neat juice flavors... I picked up some Orange Mango. Should be delicious, I hope. So yes, that was today's journey into the new, strange world of Australian culture.
Tomorrow's time tables, as I mentioned before, then who knows what. Perhaps an escapade into town. I saw Geelong's waterfront at dusk, but if we have off for most of tomorrow, I'd like to see it in the day. And, of course, Saturday is Melbourne. Let's hope I don't get hit by a car from looking the wrong way when I cross the street. I've come close, but city dangers are nothing new to me... you, me, and my formerly fractured ulna know that. I suppose that's all I've got for now, and it's past my dinner time. Until next time... Cheers!
+K+
In other news... I made it back from Lorne in one piece! Wanna see Lorne? You sure? It might just make you jealous. Okay, if you insist:
Told you so. Yeah, as if I wasn't in love enough with Australia to begin with, they had to go take us to Lorne. And teach us how to surf. Yeah, that's right, I learned to surf off the coast of Australia! I'm not saying I was any good at it, but I did manage to get up on a few of the waves. Good times, for sure. And it goes without saying that I am now addicted to surfing, as well as the rest of the international kids. Here's our surf crew, and one of me with the board:
Oh, and allow me to mention that it was about 10 degrees (50-ish, for you in the States) whilst surfing. Thank God for wetsuits. Either way, goooooood times in Lorne. Beach yoga after that, but it wasn't really anything special. I did meet a really cool girl named Elizabeth from California, and we made the remainder of the evening a fun time. Met a few Aussie surfers at the club/bar later on, that was funny. Tuesday was definitely a good day.
Wednesday was a lot of time spent on our bus, but it was well worth it. Aussie Lesson: when any amount of time is mentioned (i.e.: "oh, we'll be back in Geelong in about an hour."), take it with a grain of salt. The aforementioned scenario ended up taking us about four hours, BUT, we did see some pretty amazing things along the way. Our first stop was the Twelve Apostles (of which there are only nine left). It was absolutely breathtaking. One of those things that you see, and all you can do is stand there and marvel in its beauty. Here's a picture of our view, but it really doesn't do it justice:
Yeah. Really, really pretty. From there, we went to another really picturesque spot, where I climbed on a bunch of rocks and gazed in amazedness at the overall piratey nature of "Shipwreck's Cove." Good stuff. Back on the bus again, and it was quite a drive from there. We went through this National Park in the middle of nowhere, and I really felt as if something from either Cabin Fever, or the X-Files was going to happen to us. You know, mythological creatures, flat tires, uncomfortably frightening circumstances amongst a group of people I'd only known for four days or so. But, we made it through, and the bus driver took us to a golf course renowned for its massive kangaroo population. Because, let's face it, we're still tourists. When he said we'd see a few roos, I wasn't sure what he meant by "a few," but turns out a few means over a hundred. I was completely pumped when he let us off the bus to take pictures. He said to be careful, because they could get a bit feisty at times. But, come on now, we all know who I am and how well I deal with feisty things... not to mention my penchant for emulating the Croc Hunter whenever possible. So, while the rest of my international friends stayed a good 50 feet away, I tip-toed up to a lone roo, and got within about ten feet of the little bloke. Here's a shot to prove my Croc Hunter prowess:
My bus-mates were impressed. From there, we made our way back to Deakin, and the lot of us rendezvoused for dinner about half an hour after our arrival. We took a bus into Geelong and had a pretty nice dinner for a reasonable price. It took us a while to get back, though, but no worries, mate! Also, I was super excited to learn that a voltage adapter was probably not necessary to use my laptop, so I checked the converter and plugged it in, and it worked! Score one for the confused American. I watched Young Frankenstein (after setting up my Wall of Shame/Fame, i.e.: a bunch of pictures of you randoms from the States) and crashed after a very busy few days.
Today was more relaxed, but not without its own adventure. We signed up for our classes (Timetables are tomorrow, I'm hoping for Friday's off, at the least. From what I'm told, it's not out of the question.) and sat through a few power points and the like. Then, Rachel, my new friend from Liverpool, and I decided to embark on a trip to the grocery store. Hilarious. First of all, it was a Safeway, which is literally no more than two and a half miles from my house on Sharon Drive. But inside, everything was completely different. COMPLETELY. Aside from there being a produce section, a meat section, and aisles... it was like being in a parallel universe grocery store. The carts are called "trolleys," the cheese is labeled "tasty" and "extra tasty," there's NO HERSHEY CHOCOLATE (but lots of Tim Tams!), the eggs are on the damn shelves, and the ice cream comes in buckets. It's completely insane. Even the nutrition facts are different! That being said, I have no idea if what I bought is even remotely healthy... I just went for whatever seemed even marginally familiar. I got Nutella and some peanut butter and English Muffins, so I think that ought to suit me for a bit, amongst the other random things I came across. They have really neat juice flavors... I picked up some Orange Mango. Should be delicious, I hope. So yes, that was today's journey into the new, strange world of Australian culture.
Tomorrow's time tables, as I mentioned before, then who knows what. Perhaps an escapade into town. I saw Geelong's waterfront at dusk, but if we have off for most of tomorrow, I'd like to see it in the day. And, of course, Saturday is Melbourne. Let's hope I don't get hit by a car from looking the wrong way when I cross the street. I've come close, but city dangers are nothing new to me... you, me, and my formerly fractured ulna know that. I suppose that's all I've got for now, and it's past my dinner time. Until next time... Cheers!
+K+
Monday, July 9
I made it!
I know you had your doubts, but I actually made it to Australia. It's amazing thus far. I'm currently located in the Community House in Lorne, which is about an hour outside of Geelong. It's a surf town, which makes it all the more appropriate that I'm going surfing tomorrow! Yes, it is a bit nippy for a dip in the drink, but what can you do. I'm not complaining. The weather here reminds me of fall in Troy... everyone keeps apologizing for the fact that it's so cold, and I keep telling them that I lived in the Capital District for two years, and this is beyond mild. But yes, allow me to highlight some of the various things that have gone down since I hopped a plane from Philly to LA to Sydney to Melbourne.
On my flight from Philly International to LAX, Seth Green was on my plane. Hahaha, so good. I told him I was a fan of Robot Chicken, and he seemed pretty surprised that anyone actually recognized him. On my first flight, I was seated between two people who were also going to Australia, something I found to be relatively entertaining. The LAX to Sydney International flight was... well, there's no other way to put it... it was a bitch. I slept a decent amount, though, and I had the window seat, so that was nice. The plane itself was huge, and very well maintained. There was an upstairs to it? Sure. Anyway, I was seated next to a gentleman who reminded me of Mr. Trabocco in a sense, but I couldn't quite put my finger on how. We arrived in Sydney just as the sun was rising, which was really pretty. I wandered around the airport for a while... they were selling boomerangs in the gift shop. That made me laugh. Then, within a short enough amount of time, I hopped back on the 747 and we were off to Melbourne. Cleared Customs and all that jazz with no difficulty, thankfully. I found the rep from Deakin easily enough, and we waited for a long time for a guy who never showed up. It was about an hour's drive from the Melbourne airport to Geelong, which wasn't even entirely painful, considering the trip I had just endured. Nothing too intense. Anyway, I got my res accommodation and moved in, met the one guy who was in the res at the time (I'm the only international, sweet!), and had a bit of a fit when I realized I had bought the wrong converter. Bad news, none of my electronics work. So yeah, that was that, and I'm still trying to find a US to Australia converter AND voltage adapter.
But, aside from that, everything has gone off wonderfully. I've already met kids from all around the world; I rode the bus to Lorne next to a girl from England, am rooming for the trip with a German girl, and met Austrian, Slovinian, and, naturally, Australian guys. It's been pretty amazing thus far. A few Aussie stereotypes I'd like to confirm and/or deny are as follows:
+ "No Worries," and "G'Day Mate" are commonly heard phrases
+ No, there aren't kangaroos, wallabies, crocs and koalas everywhere. Although it's rumored that we're going to see all of the above in the next three days during our Lorne trip.
+ Aussies don't speak English. They speak Australian. It's kindof hard to follow at times.
+ Australian food isn't completely awful. Tim Tam's are amazing, but I have yet to try Vegemite.
+ Everyone from Australia is really, really, really nice. It's a welcome change from the barrage of expletives I'm used to hearing in and around the City of Brotherly Love.
+ I'm sure there are more, but either I haven't yet encountered them, or... I'm still too jet lagged to be comprehending anything rational.
OH! And, I got my mailing address. This is the part where you get your pen and paper, and write it down, then send me a whole lot of awesome things. Like Reeses. Because they don't have Hershey's products here. BUMMER. Anyway, here it is:
Kirstin Schoeninger
Evatt 2
Barton College
Deakin University
Geelong VIC 3217
Australia
I'll try to update again as soon as possible, but with the whole converter issue, I'm not sure how soon that will be. Although I will be able to say that by the next update, I will have engaged in the Aussie tradition of SURFING! That's on the docket for tomorrow, as well as some beach Yoga and a dinner and clubbing of sorts in the evening. Can't wait. To Liz, Priya and Alicia... I'm going for number one of five in the next three weeks tomorrow. I've seen the material, and I'm ready to work my magic. To everyone else... disregard the previous two sentences; either you know who I am, or you don't need to know. Right-o, mates. Until next update... Cheers!
+K+
I know you had your doubts, but I actually made it to Australia. It's amazing thus far. I'm currently located in the Community House in Lorne, which is about an hour outside of Geelong. It's a surf town, which makes it all the more appropriate that I'm going surfing tomorrow! Yes, it is a bit nippy for a dip in the drink, but what can you do. I'm not complaining. The weather here reminds me of fall in Troy... everyone keeps apologizing for the fact that it's so cold, and I keep telling them that I lived in the Capital District for two years, and this is beyond mild. But yes, allow me to highlight some of the various things that have gone down since I hopped a plane from Philly to LA to Sydney to Melbourne.
On my flight from Philly International to LAX, Seth Green was on my plane. Hahaha, so good. I told him I was a fan of Robot Chicken, and he seemed pretty surprised that anyone actually recognized him. On my first flight, I was seated between two people who were also going to Australia, something I found to be relatively entertaining. The LAX to Sydney International flight was... well, there's no other way to put it... it was a bitch. I slept a decent amount, though, and I had the window seat, so that was nice. The plane itself was huge, and very well maintained. There was an upstairs to it? Sure. Anyway, I was seated next to a gentleman who reminded me of Mr. Trabocco in a sense, but I couldn't quite put my finger on how. We arrived in Sydney just as the sun was rising, which was really pretty. I wandered around the airport for a while... they were selling boomerangs in the gift shop. That made me laugh. Then, within a short enough amount of time, I hopped back on the 747 and we were off to Melbourne. Cleared Customs and all that jazz with no difficulty, thankfully. I found the rep from Deakin easily enough, and we waited for a long time for a guy who never showed up. It was about an hour's drive from the Melbourne airport to Geelong, which wasn't even entirely painful, considering the trip I had just endured. Nothing too intense. Anyway, I got my res accommodation and moved in, met the one guy who was in the res at the time (I'm the only international, sweet!), and had a bit of a fit when I realized I had bought the wrong converter. Bad news, none of my electronics work. So yeah, that was that, and I'm still trying to find a US to Australia converter AND voltage adapter.
But, aside from that, everything has gone off wonderfully. I've already met kids from all around the world; I rode the bus to Lorne next to a girl from England, am rooming for the trip with a German girl, and met Austrian, Slovinian, and, naturally, Australian guys. It's been pretty amazing thus far. A few Aussie stereotypes I'd like to confirm and/or deny are as follows:
+ "No Worries," and "G'Day Mate" are commonly heard phrases
+ No, there aren't kangaroos, wallabies, crocs and koalas everywhere. Although it's rumored that we're going to see all of the above in the next three days during our Lorne trip.
+ Aussies don't speak English. They speak Australian. It's kindof hard to follow at times.
+ Australian food isn't completely awful. Tim Tam's are amazing, but I have yet to try Vegemite.
+ Everyone from Australia is really, really, really nice. It's a welcome change from the barrage of expletives I'm used to hearing in and around the City of Brotherly Love.
+ I'm sure there are more, but either I haven't yet encountered them, or... I'm still too jet lagged to be comprehending anything rational.
OH! And, I got my mailing address. This is the part where you get your pen and paper, and write it down, then send me a whole lot of awesome things. Like Reeses. Because they don't have Hershey's products here. BUMMER. Anyway, here it is:
Kirstin Schoeninger
Evatt 2
Barton College
Deakin University
Geelong VIC 3217
Australia
I'll try to update again as soon as possible, but with the whole converter issue, I'm not sure how soon that will be. Although I will be able to say that by the next update, I will have engaged in the Aussie tradition of SURFING! That's on the docket for tomorrow, as well as some beach Yoga and a dinner and clubbing of sorts in the evening. Can't wait. To Liz, Priya and Alicia... I'm going for number one of five in the next three weeks tomorrow. I've seen the material, and I'm ready to work my magic. To everyone else... disregard the previous two sentences; either you know who I am, or you don't need to know. Right-o, mates. Until next update... Cheers!
+K+
Thursday, July 5
40 hours & counting...
The party was a blast and a half. Thanks and kudos to everyone who came, you all make me feel loved, and I'm going to miss the hell out of each and every one of you.
That being said, tomorrow I will be departing for Australia. This is likely to be my last entry in the States, considering I'll be spending most of tomorrow packing and doing some last-minute hanging outage. Perhaps another trip to the city will be in order, but we shall see.
Here's to hoping I'm able to make it to Melbourne in one sane piece, and that I'll be able to keep you updated on the ruckus that I have no doubt will ensue.
Until I change hemispheres... later days!
+K+
That being said, tomorrow I will be departing for Australia. This is likely to be my last entry in the States, considering I'll be spending most of tomorrow packing and doing some last-minute hanging outage. Perhaps another trip to the city will be in order, but we shall see.
Here's to hoping I'm able to make it to Melbourne in one sane piece, and that I'll be able to keep you updated on the ruckus that I have no doubt will ensue.
Until I change hemispheres... later days!
+K+
Monday, July 2
The Final Countdown
Yup, just like the Europe song, it is in fact the Final Countdown. Not in the eighties super-group, Magician's Alliance sort of way, but in the sense that in one week, I will be in Australia. Wow.
It started to hit me today, because for the first time in a long time, I'm unemployed, and will be for the next six-odd months. I finished up my internship on Thursday, and my last night working at Kildare's was last night. Bittersweet, to say the least. I'm definitely going to miss the people I work with... they've made my lack of social life due to countless Friday and Saturday night closing shifts completely worthwhile. Well, I'm sure the money had something to do with it as well, but you know how it goes. Good kids... hopefully I'll be seeing most of them come Wednesday.
Ahh, yes. Wednesday. I don't believe I've mentioned it on here yet, but I'm having a bit of a banger, as the saying goes, before I take flight on Friday. July fourth, two o'clock, Fritzopia. Be there. Should be a fantastic time, you have my word.
I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with myself for the next few days... it's been a really long time since I've had a stretch of days off. I don't have much left to prepare for the trip, really just packing and currency exchange, as well as a few minor things to purchase. I confirmed my flight earlier, I have a window seat on the LAX to Melbourne flight(!!), and I sent in my "Notification of Arrival" form, which basically says I'm not going to be abandoned once I get to Australia. Thumbs up on that one. So yeah, the next handful of days should be pretty interesting. Kimmay, Foof and myself are heading to the shore for the day tomorrow, then I'm moving out of 1821 on Tuesday, the party's Wednesday, Thursday is the recovery (hah), and I depart on Friday night at 6:49 pm.
Ohh, this is going to be interesting.
I continue to assure myself that I'm entirely out of my mind for going halfway across the world, to a place I've never been, where I know not a single soul on the continent... but at the same time, it's the best damn idea I've ever had. People keep asking me if I'm nervous... well, of course I'm nervous... but I'm more excited and anxious than anything. Let's hope I'm right.
Until next time...
+K+
It started to hit me today, because for the first time in a long time, I'm unemployed, and will be for the next six-odd months. I finished up my internship on Thursday, and my last night working at Kildare's was last night. Bittersweet, to say the least. I'm definitely going to miss the people I work with... they've made my lack of social life due to countless Friday and Saturday night closing shifts completely worthwhile. Well, I'm sure the money had something to do with it as well, but you know how it goes. Good kids... hopefully I'll be seeing most of them come Wednesday.
Ahh, yes. Wednesday. I don't believe I've mentioned it on here yet, but I'm having a bit of a banger, as the saying goes, before I take flight on Friday. July fourth, two o'clock, Fritzopia. Be there. Should be a fantastic time, you have my word.
I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with myself for the next few days... it's been a really long time since I've had a stretch of days off. I don't have much left to prepare for the trip, really just packing and currency exchange, as well as a few minor things to purchase. I confirmed my flight earlier, I have a window seat on the LAX to Melbourne flight(!!), and I sent in my "Notification of Arrival" form, which basically says I'm not going to be abandoned once I get to Australia. Thumbs up on that one. So yeah, the next handful of days should be pretty interesting. Kimmay, Foof and myself are heading to the shore for the day tomorrow, then I'm moving out of 1821 on Tuesday, the party's Wednesday, Thursday is the recovery (hah), and I depart on Friday night at 6:49 pm.
Ohh, this is going to be interesting.
I continue to assure myself that I'm entirely out of my mind for going halfway across the world, to a place I've never been, where I know not a single soul on the continent... but at the same time, it's the best damn idea I've ever had. People keep asking me if I'm nervous... well, of course I'm nervous... but I'm more excited and anxious than anything. Let's hope I'm right.
Until next time...
+K+
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