A Visit to the Melbourne Zoo!

Today I went to the Melbourne Zoo!  It was fantastic!  Deakin University, the uni I attend here in Oz, is phenomenal.  They have so many activities for exchange students, and everyone is so nice!  We took public transportation (which is extremely common here, and they are even considering a carbon tax, to reduce the pollution) but anyways, we took a tram and then a train to get to the zoo, and it was extremely convenient.  

It was a gorgeous day, I'd say about 16-17 degrees celsius, and for all of my fellow Americans, that means it is in the 60's.  Not bad, considering it is winter here! To veer off topic a bit, pretty much everything is different in the States than anywhere else.  We use fahrenheit, while most everywhere else uses celsius.  We use feet, yards, ect., and the majority of other countries use kilometers, meters, ect. I feel like I am gaining a lot of knowledge on these little things!  Anyway, back to the zoo. It was sunny, and a perfect day to kick back with nature and the beautiful animals!  The zoo had pretty much every type of animal imaginable.  It was extremely nice, and well kept.  There were lots of activities to see and do, such as feeding the animals, information sessions, and even going in and petting/holding some animals.  And, of course, it was great to go to a zoo here in Aussie Land, because there are different animals here, than in the States!

Alright, alright.  I know you all want to know...and the answer is YES, I did get to play with Kangaroos.  They are incredibly cute, and much softer than I expected.  I even got to see a baby Joey kangaroo pop out of his momma's pouch!  It was the best.  Playing with the kangaroos made my day...but really, who could have a bad day when you get to be in Australia, at the zoo, chillin' with kangies!?

There were so many different types of animals, as I said before!  One of my personal favorites was the brown bear, but in all honesty, it was more of a tan bear.  Never-the-less, I wanted to jump up to him, and cuddle with him!  He was just too cute.  My friends Sarah and Lucy were into the Meerkats, and got to go in and hold some of them.  They are really funny animals!  There was so much to see on this beautiful day, that I really can't describe it all.  The pictures can explain more than I can write...So please enjoy!  And, if you ever get the chance to get down here to Melbourne, I'd most definitely recommend you stop by the zoo, and get your Kangaroo on!!

Cheers!

The Epic Costume Party: Aussie Style!

Hello friends!  I am sorry that I haven't blogged in so long!!  I have been having MAJOR internet issues at my accommodation, and as I could go on and on about that fiasco, I'd like to keep this blog on a lighter note.

This weekend, my neighbors and good friends, decided to throw a themed party.  At first we were thinking of specific themes, but then we decided to throw a full on, anything goes, costume bash.  Who doesn't love a costume party?  I know I LOVE them, and anytime I dress up, I try to be as creative as I can.  Lets face it, I'm broke, so I need to be sensible when thinking of a costume.  So, while moseying through K-Mart a couple of hours before the party, (oh, by the way, K-Mart is WAY nicer here than in the States) I came across ducked-tape and poster paper.  That was that, I was going to make myself into an iPod.

With a little creativity an determination, I transformed myself into an iPod, as you can see by the photos above!  My costume was a hit.  It was a little difficult to move around in, as the entire thing was made out of ducked-tape, but I was a trooper and made it through the night, without any wardrobe malfunctions.  Everyone was pretty impressed with this idea, and the question I received the most was, "Do you have anything under there, or did you ducked-tape straight to your skin?"  Well folks, I'm not an idiot. Of course I wore clothing underneath, it would have been extremely painful to tear off tape from my own skin!  I wore shorts and a tube top.  It actually worked out pretty well, until I had to figure out a way to get it off.  Oh, and thankfully I did not have to use the restroom the entire time I was in costume.  I really don't know how I would have managed that one!  My friend Amy helped me take it off, using scissors as carefully as she could, and her shear strength (by her ripping off huge amounts of ducked-tape in one swift tug!).  It was extremely fun, and I loved dressing up.

There were other great costumes at the party as well.  My friend Hannah was an avatar, and, in my opinion, should have been cast in the movie, because she looked amazing!  My friends Amy and Sara were Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and painted themselves green, but Amy couldn't stand the itchy paint, so she was only green for part of the party.  Also my friend Lucy pulled off a smurf costume pretty well!! There was definitely a range of costumes, some very creative!  I wish I could post more photos, but that would be a bit obnoxious, so I thought these represented the party pretty well.

That is pretty much it for one weekend.  A ton of fun, and right next door to my house, which is the perfect location!  I think every single person at the party enjoyed them self, and there was no drama, fighting, or foolishness.  That is pretty much the greatest part of Australia; everyone is laid back, happy, and just wanting to have a good time.  Alrighty, I threw in one more photo above, because I just couldn't help myself.  But, now the week has begun, and school, my internship, and job hunting will fulfill my week completely!

Until next time...Cheers!!

And so...Classes Begin!

Hey All!  This week has been an extremely busy week for me, but it has been a pleasant experience overall!  I attend Deakin University, here in Australia, and classes started up this week.  Campus was full of people, and there have been a lot of start up activities to sign up for. 

The campus is amazing.  I love it because it is completely opposite than Purdue University, which is the university I attend in the States.  It has a very modern feel to it, and each building is unique. The first and last photo, is the most distinct building on campus.  It is a tall and uniquely shaped building.  It sayings 'Deakin' at the top, but you can't see it from the angles that I took these photos at...I apologize! Pretty much everyone can see this building from the road, and it is cool to see in person.  The others are just random photos, so you all can get a feel of what the campus looks like.  I absolutely love it!

   

Also, all the students here dress nicely and get ready for school.  I love it!  Again, this is different than Purdue, where a lot of the students roll out of bed, and wear sweats to school everyday.  Everyone on campus has been extremely nice and helpful so far.  The Aussie's in general are a very kind bread of people.  They take their time to help answer questions that anyone might have.  I am taking 3 classes on campus and also doing an internship for class credit.  I have found that there are a lot of clubs and activities to sign up for on campus as well.  There is even Zombi's and Humans, which is the top photo, which I tried to take as sneaky as I could.  I thought they only had this silly game at Purdue, but come to find out...it's global!  The next photo is just a picture of the main walk through campus.  Its really great, and the entire campus is kept up nicely, and extremely clean.  It is well organized, and each building has a letter and not a name.  That makes it easy to look up where classes are.  Not a lot of people litter here in Australia, and smoking cigarettes is very looked down upon, which I think is lovely!

One thing that is definitely not looked down upon here in OZ, is relaxing and grabbing a cocktail!  This is probably why there is, conveniently, a bar in the middle of campus, called Einsteins! It has different events, like Monday night was a 'White Party', which was an opening party to get students together.  Everyone had to wear white to the party.  I didn't attend, as I went into Melbourne that day to scope out some good shopping.  There will be many more events though, and I guess it is a good spot to hang out at on Tuesdays and Thursdays, because drinks are cheeper!

Classes seem like they are going to be easier here than back in the U.S.  Lectures are not mandatory because they are always posted online, and tutorials (the smaller classes explaining what happened in lecture) are great because you get to ask questions about material, and work on assessments.  For the most part, there are only 2 big assessments in each class. It's like you take one big midterm, and one big final, and that's it!  It's very different than Purdue, but I needed a change!  I am really enjoying school so far, and have met some nice people in my classes.  Australia is still proving to be an OUTSTANDING place, and it sure is keeping me busy!

Thanks for reading, and I'll be posing again soon! :)

The First Weekend on the Town

This weekend was fun, fabulous, and went way too fast!  As I said, I met a lot of people on my beach welcome trip, including my next door neighbors!  There are 9 students living next door, and they are part of the same housing as I am, which is Burwood Student Living.  They are pretty nice houses, and the convenient thing is that they all house students from Deakin, and most are students who are studying abroad.  The houses are pretty nice (some nicer than others), but it is pretty expensive!  As I will probably continue to say over and over and over again, Australia is EXPENSIVE!! But this housing was a last minute decision, so I had no other choice.  However, if anyone reading this is planning to study abroad in Melbourne, I might advise you to look for cheaper housing than BSL.

There are lots of positives about living here though, one of which, is you meet a lot of people.  I met the girls next door, Sarah, Lucy, and Hannah, who are all from the UK.  It was Sarah's birthday on Saturday, so obviously we had to celebrate big time!  It was our first night going out in Melbourne as a big group, as most of the people from the beach welcome trip came along to join the celebration.

We began a pre-party at my neighbors (the girls house) around 8pm.  To be honest, I don't think any of us expected so many people from the beach welcome trip to show up...but they did, which was great! The house was pretty packed, but everyone was having fun, and enjoying a few cocktails.  After a while, we all decided to head to Melbourne on the tram...and, might I say, the public transportation here is amazing!! So, around 20 of us headed to the city all together.  Thank goodness for the tram conductor, we told him what stop we needed to get off at, and he put up with our loud shananagans all the way there!  We went to a bar first, and then a club called the Transit Cocktail Lounge in Federation Square.  Here's a site that can give you more information on the club! http://www.fedsquare.com/index.cfm?pageID=435 We spent most of the night there, dancing and having a good time.  Federation Square is a really cool place.  It is kind of the heart of the city.  It's really awesome because there are new modern buildings and museums, surrounded by old, beautiful, historic buildings.  This also happens to be the major tram station, Flinders St. Station.  It is MASSIVE and gorgeous.  The photo above is Flinders St. Station.  There you can sign up for tours, eat at small restaurants, and learn how to explore the magnificent city of Melbourne!

As a last note, miraculously we all stayed together as a group! It was really fun, Sarah had a great birthday, and everyone was well behaved!  All in all, it was a great success, and a lovely weekend! Here are some pictures of us enjoying the celebration!

Cheers Mate :)

The First Week in Australia.

I've decided to blog about my study abroad experience, so friends and family can keep up with me, while I am half way around the world!  I'm from the midwest, I was born on the Southside of Chicago, and now attend Purdue University.  I've decided to spend the first semester of my final year in college in beautiful Melbourne Australia.  I arrive here, after traveling a long 28 hours (including lay overs), in Melbourne, and it's been busy busy busy ever since.

I am living in student housing that is not directly on campus, but only about a 5 minute walk to the university, which is Deakin University.  If anyone is ever traveling abroad, this housing is not bad, but it is a bit expensive.  Here is the link: http://www.burwoodstudent.com.au/ if anyone is interested.  The landlords are nice, and there are a ton of students living in the houses, which makes it nice to meet people.  Oh, and speaking of expensive...pretty much everything here in Australia is EXTREMELY expensive, so if you plan to travel here, suck it up, and expect to pay a lot.  It's all been worth it so far though!

I want on a beach welcome trip, that Deakin University set up for all the exchange students.  It was a blast! We all loaded 2 big buses, and headed southeast to the city of Lorne, along the Great Ocean Road.  If anyone comes to Melbourne, or southern Australia, I would highly recommend this spot.  Lorne is a small charming beach front town.  This is a picture I took from the pier.  The cute town is full of shops, and small restaurants where you can get anything from a delicious coffee, to fish and chips.  I stayed at the Erskine River Backpackers lodge while I was there.  It had rooms full of bunk beds, and held a lot of people.  If anyone is looking for a place to stay for a night of 2, I'd highly recommend it.  It isn't expensive, and it is super clean!

While in Lorne, my fellow students and I did a number of activities.  We embarked in surfing lessons, participated in yoga, and enjoyed activities like hiking, biking, and kayaking.  He are some pictures of what I experienced.  The first was right before I went surfing, by the way, body suits are magical and they really work!! I was warm the entire time. Hands down, surfing was the best activity of this trip!  I can't wait to do it again! the second is just a picture I took from the beach, I can't explain the beauty, and the picture doesn't really do it justice.  The third is a photo I took while hiking.  The landscape here in Australia is gorgeous, with all different types.  The landscape here had a lot of lush green plants, and waterfalls. Lorne was a beautiful place, almost like out of a story book!

We stayed in Lorne for a short 2 nights, and then headed on a tour of Great Ocean Road, stopping along the way to sight see.  We saw wild koalas and parrots, I only have a good picture of the parrots unfortunately.  We also hiked through the rain forest, the next picture is me and some of my new friends in an enormous tree.  These were everywhere, but this particular tree had a nice shape.  Finally we went to see the 12 Apostles.  They are HUGE rock forms in the ocean.  Loch and Gorge is right around the corner from the 12 Apostles.  And the final photo is just a pretty view.  There are so many gorgeous views from the Great Ocean Road, I can't explain how massive and gorgeous this place is.

Finally, we got back to campus.  I think I forgot to mention, my campus is actually in Burwood.  It is right outside Melbourne.  I really like the location, because the city and the beach are only a short tram ride away.  The public transportation has been very easy to figure out as well.  I have only been in Australia 10 days, but it's has been a joyful ride, every minute of those 10 days.  If anyone is thinking of visiting Australia...JUST DO IT!  Forget about the long plane ride, and the jet lag.  Save up some cash, travel down under, and kick back with the Aussie's Mate!

Cheers until next time!