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Yay! I've spent three of the last five days on campus, running around in the cold rain, but now I have classes to attend! I've successfully signed up for my semester classes, applied for my overseas health insurance card, moved into my apartment, met my flatmates, and received my campus ID. And in between all this running around, Annette and Les took me touring.
The best place to begin, I suppose, is at the beginning.
Last Friday: First day of orientation! Sat in a lecture hall for over three hours, listening to a hoard of different people talk about why their campus group or organization is worth joining. GLP, volunteering, exchange programs, how to enrol in my classes, who my advisor is, why MQ is great, being an international student, the food on campus, etc. Lots of paperwork, lots of compulsory clapping. Afterwards, free barbecue!
Saturday: Trinity's 4th birthday party. Almost 50 people in attendance. 15 kids ranging in ages from 9 months to 9 years. Lots of prearranged games (go fish, treasure hunt, face painting, etc.), lots of food, lots of noise. I was elected cook for the day and got to avoid most of the people I don't know by staying in the kitchen and preparing all the food for the first hour or so of the party. Was a mermaid party. Lots of blue, lots of cardboard fish.
Sunday: Relaxing after the party of the century. Eating lots of leftover food from the party. :) Annette and Les tok me to Bondi Beach, right on the coast, looking out over the Pacific. We ate breakfast, meandered across the beach, saw some shops. Then we went to the South Head cliffs, saw Rose Cove, and Castle Hills. Lots of touring and pictures. And we went to a koala park!! We got to see all the creatures native to Australia, including, but not limited to, wombats, dingoes, dingo puppies(!), koalas, wallabies, kangaroos, wallaroos, wedge-tailed eagles, all sorts of parrots and echidnas. And penguins! I got to cuddle a koala and a whole mess of grey kangaroos. The koala was smaller than I expected, and smelled really good, actually. Apparently they smell good because of all the eucalyptus they eat. And the kangaroos were really very soft. I always thought their fur was coarse, but it's quite fine. And the tail is really one huge muscle. I know they use them for balance and stuff, but it was kind of amazing. Pictures will follow in a few days! Check facebook!
Sunday night was my first night of orientation for my apartment complex. Sat in a big room with 100 more people I don't know and listened to more people talk about more cool groups. But at least they were advertising fun activities to participate in. Apparently, throughout the semester, there will be trips and stuff, such as a cruise on Sydney harbour, a weekend in the outback, a toga party (?), an organized drinking game night (?), and something called Foreplay and Conception Day (???). Get ready for some fun activities!
Monday (today, 28th): Stayed in my apartment for the first night ever last night. Was very cold, cause the apartments don't have heating. Four blankets and a very small Alyssa ball later, I was asleep. Only to be rudely awakened in the small hours of the night by my flatmates, who apparently spent their first night in Sydney out drinking and partying. Two girls from Michigan, a guy from Texas, and some other guy. Woke up this morning, went to the fridge to see how my small food stash was, and, lo-and-behold, my small food stash had become even smaller. *Clears throat* Haven't tackled this one yet. That's ok.
Anyway, got up this morning, ate some stuff, went to academic advising at 9. Had to listen to another guy for about an hour, while he explained to us how we are supposed to enrol in classes. Then we were let loose to interpret and create our class schedules for ourselves. I was there until about 1:30. All the classes I wanted to take overlapped, and no one would sign me off on overlapping classes. So I wandered around campus until someone helped me figure out my schedule. Apparently, a couple of the classes I want are offered externally (which is like an online course in the States). So I've signed up for some online courses, and the rest are in my
schedule. But I have a schedule! Thus far, I have Immunobiology, Animal Function and Physiology, Microbiology, Bioethics and Biotechnology. I'm planning on incorporating Evolutionary Ecology and Arabic in there as well.
So, ya. Lots of listening to people, lots of planning, lots of animals.
And no you guys. Miss the lot of you.
Love.
"Come on, a single person in a queen size bed, and no sex? You don't need to wash the sheets." Annette OM, in response to a laundry query.
Greetings from down under!
I am safely ensconced in Sydney, currently residing in Annette and Les Mulder's home. I have a duna, and my own BIW. The morning birds look like jewels hanging from the trees, and there are other birds that look and sound like velociraptors. Slept for about 10 hours last night, and am already yawning. It is about 2:30 on Saturday afternoon for me, which means it's about 10:30 on Friday night for you guys.
We went to a breakfast place this morning, a chocolate cafe called Fink. The most amazing hot chocolate you've ever had, and you can get chocolate in any form for any of the entrees.
We've taken walks amongst the eucalyptus, driven across the Sydney harbour bridge, seen the opera house, and then I was terrorized by the guys with tales of the deadly funnel web spiders that will move into my bed during the wet season. They have a standard poodle named Sassy who seems quite taken with me. I have arrived in Sydney a week before an event called World Youth Day, for which the Pope and 140,000 Roman Catholic church people from all over the world will come invade Sydney. It is winter here, which means it gets to maybe 25 F during the night, but still warms up to about 65 during the day. I've met the neighboring family, Fiona and Anthony, and their kids, 4 year old Trinity and 9 month old Deisel. They are very cute, and Fiona took me to a shopping center to try and keep me awake. I had to stop by an electronics shop and get a new adapter. I brought one with me I thought would fit, but it didn't. Sad. Les was very helpful and took me to a place that he knew had adapters. Only AUD$8! The money here is slightly smaller bills, but they're made of plastic, and have clear bits! And there are $2 coins, which is awesome. Les made Indian food for dinner, and it was a meal to rival Robert's cooking skills. There were 13 people...
We are now listening to some of Les' music, and the song that just played was called "You Remind Me Of My Favourite Underwear".
I miss you guys already, but I know none of you were expecting anything different. Especially from me, of all people. Been talking to some people, and some have found tickets to AU from US for about $1300. I will send you the link later. And I've been looking at tickets to NZ, and I can get to and from NZ for about $300! W00T!
Lots of love from halfway around the world (Holy crap!!!)
