Hey all,

So Wednesday through Friday is probably when I am going to be posting most of my blogs posts. The reason for the end of the week is because in the beginning of the week I have classes and schoolwork. I will be posting once a week to keep you all updated.

This past week I had my first full week of classes. Well a full week as in my normal Monday thru Wednesday class schedule. Like I said in my last post I am enjoying my classes so far and they are pretty interesting. I am already learning a lot in my design communications class. We learn about terms and art in lecture and get use to photoshop in the tutorial. I’ve already picked up some basic tools in photoshop and cannot wait to learn more in the next 11 weeks!

Last week on Saturday I went to Broadbeach with my Australian friend Georgia. The beach was pretty rough so we mainly just walked the beach while we were there and hung out. Georgia got in the water but she said the waves were very strong. I just dipped my feet in. We then took the bus back to campus which was only like a 15-20 minute bus ride away.

This past Sunday I visited the The Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. This trip was included in my program. So the bus picked us up at Bond and it took us like 15-20 minutes to get to there. The first thing most of the group did was get pictures with a koala. Wow, was that an experience! They were so cute!! They had one out that people were holding and taking pictures with but then they got a second one out. I do not understand how they pick which koala to bring out but they brought out the one that was sleeping. Maybe they think they are more calm. The koalas seem pretty laid back there though. All I know is that I got the one that they just woke up and it started pooping. The woman was showing me how to hold the koala ( you put your hands together as if you are going to lift someone in cheer) and it started pooping so before I held the koala I let go because it was pooping. The lady was said, “That’s what they do, they poop.” I knew that! It just wouldn’t stop pooping. Anyways she let me pet it on the back and then I held it. They are pretty soft but they are a tad smelly. They have this sour sort of smell to them that just lingers in the area which they live.     

After visiting the Koalas I went with a couple girls and looked at snakes and lizards. I’m not a huge fan of snakes so I didn’t take many pictures of them plus it was dark in that area. Side note, there are lizards everywhere which is kind of cool. After that we hopped on the train which can take people to many different stops. We got off at the third stop which was were the kangaroos were. MY FAVORITE! They were all just chilling in the grass when we got off the train. I saw some hopping but most of them were pretty mellow. So we got some pictures and selfies with them. They are soft and just the cutest creatures ever! We also ended up going in an area where they had more kangaroos it said they were red kangaroos. There was a cute little joey we got to see and one of the workers said it was about 8 months old. We also saw some other animals, even wombats! I’ll put some pictures below of them. Lastly we watched an aboriginal show which was cool. They performed a few  dances and played the didgeridoo (most likely the world’s oldest instrument).

KANGAROO SELFIE!

JOEY 🙂

Talk to you soon,

Emily

     This past week I moved into Bond University (they call it Uni here)! The campus is gorgeous and even has a lake that comes through a part of the campus. The lake is said to have bull sharks in it but many of us Americans still aren’t sure if the Aussies are lying to us. Aussies do have a sense of humor here so it can be hard to know when they are being sarcastic or not.

     The week consisted of relaxing, exploring, and settling in. This past week I made a few trips to the mall. This mall here is huge! It is so frustrating because the layout of the stores is all over the place and everyone really just wants to get in and out of there. I did not buy an insane amount of things it was just essentials like laundry detergent (nothing too fun to buy). I made another stop at the mall to buy a SIM card for my phone. Basically what a SIM card is, is it has your carrier in it (like Verizon). So I got a new SIM card at Vodofone which is an Australian carrier. They have a packaged discount for students at Bond University. That deal allowed me to get unlimited calling and texting to Australian numbers as well as international numbers. I also got more data (internet) for being a student. I will have plenty of data which will be nice when traveling.

     A group of us took the bus to Burleigh Heads to visit the national park and the beach. Another great thing about being a student is that I get a discount for the bus. So I got a card that I load money onto and it can take me to several beaches, a train station, and many other places. Anyways, we first went to the national park which is on the edge of the beach. Entering the park, the trail starts to go up on an incline that leads you up to beautiful lookouts. On the way up to the lookouts we spotted turkeys and lizards. The turkeys were a little different looking so we asked a worker in the park what they were called and he said they are called brush turkeys. When we reached the top lookout you could see the edge of the water and farther down where cities were along the coastline. My group were rebels and jumped the fence to be on the rocks to take some cool pictures and to soak in the sights of Australia.

     We then headed back to the beach. Going up the trail in the park we got pretty hot so we thought getting in the water would be refreshing. I thought it might be cold but it was like the lake. I just eased in the water and it felt great! We wanted to go and ride the waves, so we did! The only bad thing is when you get out to the waves the current takes you with it. They have flags where the swimming area is so I just made sure I stayed in that area. I was having trouble getting out to where the rest of my friends were but they told me that I just had to get a little farther out to not get taken by the current as much. After swimming I went to lay on the beach but the weather was starting to get cold and we were all hungry so we stopped at a local restaurant and took the bus home.

     This week there were events going on for O-Week (orientation week). I went to a themed party called Tight and Bright at Don’s Tavern on campus. I had an outfit in mind but then my roommate gave me these tie dye pants to wear and it was perfect! The party was nice because I was able to talk to a few Australians which is always nice.

     Something about Australia to note is that they are for the most part pretty chill. The service here though isn’t as rushed as it is in America. They aren’t rushing around trying to get everyone’s order out if there is a line. Like I said earlier a lot of them have a good sense of humor. For the most part our service at restaurants has been good. Two things to note about when going out to a restaurant: do not tip and food is not brought out all together. In Australia they are getting paid however much the restaurant is paying them. That can obviously have its pros and cons but that is just how it is here. Many places I have been to in Australia the food doesn’t all necessarily come out at the same time. For instance, in America they usually wait until all the entrees are ready to be served to the table. Those are just some things I have noticed since I have been in Australia. I’m sure I will have more to tell you in the future.

This week is my first week of classes. I am taking Public Relations, Australian history, Crime and Deviance in Australia, and Design Communications (Adobe software using Photoshop and Illustrator). I have classes Monday, Tuesday, Wedensday, and do not have classes on Thursday and Friday. So far the classes have been very interesting. All my professors are Australian and have great backgrounds of the field of which they are teaching. I can’t wait to see what this semester brings!

Talk to you later,

Emily

Hey all! A few days ago I made it to my temporary home, the Gold Coast! All though it is like paradise here I am going to tell you about my past weekend in Sydney!

So on Friday I arrived in Sydney and was very tired and exhausted from a 15 hour flight. Even though I slept the traveling was pretty tiring. On the plane I met a girl named Brooke who was also in my program. There were a few other students from my program on my flight. After getting through the busy and confusing part of customs I picked up my bags and met up with my group and on site director Jackie!

Jackie is awesome! She is like my group’s Aussie mom. Jackie lives in the Gold Coast as well as another team member, Keith of CISAbroad that was staying with us in Australia.

On Friday the group and I stayed at the Sydney Harbour YHA (Youth Hostelling Association). The hostel was in an area called “the rocks” which is the older part of Sydney by the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge. When a group of us got there we just chilled out at a bar and looked out at the gorgeous sites of Sydney. We were waiting on a couple of other groups from the airport to meet up with us before lunch. We headed out into the city to lunch at a place called Bar100 where I got a chicken burger. I think chicken burgers are a popular thing here because I have seen many restaurants with that on their menu. In the afternoon the group had a scavenger hunt where we were suppose to do or find certain things. For example, we had to take a picture with an employee at an art museum. So two of us took a picture with a hot Aussie. My friend was having trouble taking the picture because he was so good looking. We explored the area by the Opera house gardens and had a grand ole time doing that. Next we went to the Pylon Lookout, which is next to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. We took a lot of stairs up to the top but the view was definitely worth it with a site of the bridge and the Opera House. Later that night we went to dinner at The Australia Hotel where I tried Kangaroo pizza. I really do not know how to explain what it tasted like but they put a sauce in the pizza that made it taste like barbeque sauce. Kangaroo does not taste like chicken or beef. Ok more like beef I guess but I can definitely tell it is not beef.

On Saturday we hit up Bondi Beach and tried some Aussie style pies. When I mean pies I do not mean fruit or cream pie. I mean these pies have all sorts of ingredients in them. The one I got was the classic and was one they recommended us to try. It had peas on top, mash potatoes, gravy, and of course the crust around it. I wasn’t a big fan of it but did eat some of it because I was very hungry. The weather was pretty cold that day so we walked the trails, around the beach, which had some awesome lookouts. I think Aussie’s could tell we were tourists because we went too close to the waves and got bombarded by them. They also had these ocean swimming pools on the ends of the beach. They were very cool! Huge waves would come over the edges of pools and the people that were trying to do laps wouldn’t be swimming as straight anymore. After that we just explored the shops around Bondi beach and headed back for a night out with the group. My friends and I looked around and found a nice place to eat.

            On Sunday we took a ferry (Circular Quay: Wharf. 3) and headed to Manly. We kayaked on the Harbour taking a few stops to hike up to a lookout, we ate lunch, and explored a museum where they talked about how they dealt with diseases by putting people in quarantine. We were all so hungry that we ended up eating at our second stop and then by the third stop they hooked all the kayaks up to the back of the boat and let us cruise on back to the dock. We explored manly beach area but were ready to head back soon after because we were wet from kayaking and it was quite chilly out. Our last night out in Sydney was a great one! We had walked past the restaurant the night before and everyone was all dressed up and ready to party. That night was a little bit more laid back because it was Sunday night. The place was awesome, they had a live band and a great DJ. I got a burger and fries but the burger had something different on the bottom like sautéed onions or something which made it very different but good. My friends and I got a few drinks and stayed later than the rest of the group enjoying our last night in Sydney.

Talk to you all soon,

Emily

            I am excited to say that I am officially on my way to Australia! Today did not start as smooth as I had hoped but I cannot really complain since I am having this great opportunity of studying abroad. Basically what happened in a quick nutshell is that my visa did not match my passport. The airline and the embassy tried to help but could only help me to a certain extent. I found a way to fix my visa and well that was solved luckily. Unfortunately I missed my flight from South Bend to Chicago but fortunately my parents were both able to drive me to Chicago and say our goodbyes there. As I currently sit on this flight to San Francisco I am constantly reminded of how lucky I am to not only have this opportunity but the support from my parents and family. I cannot wait to share my experience with you and I look forward to spending the next few days in Sydney.

Emily