Blogger: Abbey Little

Program: CIS Abroad — Newcastle, Australia

Hello, mates! I write to you from Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, where the sun shines all day, and the uni comes alive at night –(uni is the word Australians use for “college” whereas a college here refers to another residence on campus). My decision to study abroad was impulsive and brilliant.  Having dealt with social anxiety for years, I was concerned that I would not be able to fully embrace the journey.  Of course, my intentions were to meet new people, explore new places, and embrace a different education system, yet I must admit that I doubted myself at times.  But since the moment I landed on Australian soil, I have been overpowered with kindness from every individual I came across.  The thought of worry is out the window and the feeling of anxiety is no longer present.

Just three busy days after my arrival, my group headed out to the beautiful Great Barrier Reef.  I felt no concern in my commitment to scuba dive in the reef, but once I was fulfilling it, some fear snuck in.  We dove in groups of 4 accompanied by the instructor.  We ran some drills to rehearse the hand signals and ways to pressurize our ears and clear our masks before descending to the reef itself.  Our instructor let the air out of our vests and we began to swim below the surface of the Pacific.  I was having difficulties with water leaking in to my mask (SALT water to be more specific—so you can only imagine how lovely that felt) and I became overwhelmed, causing my breaths to shorten and become insufficient, rather than taking long, deep breaths as necessary.  Acknowledging my hyperventilation only made it worse.  Earlier in the week, a fellow mate, Grant, had asked the group, “when was the last time you took the deepest breath you’ve ever taken?”  This quirky remark snuck its way in to my mind just then, and I remembered to take a deep breath.  As I looked to my left, I was reminded that I was in the company of some of my new best mates. To my right, the liveliness of the spectacular reef.  I was okay.  I was swimming with the fish in the Great Barrier Reef.  I had no reason to be worried, so I simply stopped worrying.

I was welcomed in to tropical Cairns, Queensland, Australia with guidance I am honored to have from the most marvelous site directors, Jackie and Indigo.  I could ramble on all day about how delightful it has been to interact with them and how adequate their leadership has been.  The friendships I have formed in my first week in Australia have provided me with fresh new perspectives that I more than look forward to respecting during my time with those dear mates.  I have already accomplished an ample amount of my goal to meet new people.  My fellow foreign mates here in Newy–Natalie, Josh & Josh, Grant, Gabrielle, Will, Elena, Liz, Moira, Ali, and Josephine—have all positively affected my life in their own way as individuals.  As a group, we are unstoppable.  I have yet to step foot in to an Australian classroom (seasons are opposite here, so they are just finishing their three-month long “summer break” and classes will resume the week of 27 February, 2017) –yet I have already gained such compelling knowledge.  I have learned that I am capable of just about anything—apart from escaping a shark attack, I still have some doubts about that!  I am happy to be settled in at Uni in Newcastle now and I am eager to see what lessons I will learn within the classroom considering the revelations I have already been so fortunate to have.  Remember to appreciate where you’re at and all of those around you.  That’s all for now, mates!

Cheers!

–Abbey