One Week Down

Week one of classes has finished and the second week has started. That is so weird to think about and rather hard to believe. I mean, I still don't think that I should be in classes in July but you have to make it work. And it makes it a lot better that my classes are wonderful. A little hectic and they do take time away from vacationing but I think I will manage. As I touched on before, I am taking 4 classes this semester: Funk, Tap and All that Jazz, Colonialism and Independence in Asia-Pacific, Performing Styles 2 and Fashion and Style Journalism. Yes it will be work and not all vacation time. So far my favorite has been my performance class. It is so much fun and a great environment. And of course, it is right up my alley.

Other than classes starting, this past week has been very low key which I guess really is a good thing; no big incidents or shenanigans. I am completely settled into my apartment and I am falling in love with the city more everyday. I have been able to meet lots more people and finally I have roommates. Another AustraLearn (the program that sent us here) arrived and most of those students are going to UQ (University of Queensland) rather than QUT- but some still live in my apartment building. Everyone is so nice and I can tell it will be a great group of people to hang out with for the rest of the semester.

The biggest thing of the weekend was the TriNations rugby game on Saturday night.

It was an epic game full of blood, sweat, and sweet victory. As I quickly learned, rugby players are huge and therefore rough and therefore incredibly brutal. These guys get plowed into constantly and a whistle is never blown and the game doesn't stop. It truly is a blood bath for 80 minutes and proof of that is shown when the jumbo screen zooms in on the players. But somehow, you just can't tear your eyes away from the field. I just don't understand how these players do not have severe brain injury or how they are able to stand up and play after being tackled so harshly. I also hear that when a player is thrown into the air to catch a throw-in he suffers a massive wedgie. Just sayin. So in conclusion I have come to the realization that I don't think that I will ever play rugby. I'll just be a fan.

This game was Australia, The Wallabies, versus South Africa, The Springboks. And the Wallabies dominated of course 30 to 13. They are now ranked second in the tournament behind New Zealand, The All Blacks. I would love to see them play as well.

That's about all for now; I hope I am not repeating myself too much from former posts. Hope all is well with everyone and here's too my one month anniversary of being here!

Cheers!

It Doesn’t Get Much Better Than This

And I truly mean that. The past weekend was filled with beautiful landscapes, the spray of the sea and beaming sunshine. Stradbroke Island (or Straddie as the locals say) is a true gem of a place and I was lucky enough to experience all that it has to offer.

It took a bus and ferry ride toget to the second largest sand island of Australia. After we arrived we were split up into activity groups and given our room allocations. I stayed with three incredibly sweet girls; one from Norway, one from England and the other from Denmark. Our activity on Friday was just lounge time so we spent the afternoon walking around and lying out on the beautiful beach, which was literally an arms length from our resort. After dinner that night we all went down to the beach for a party. They had built fires on the beach and with music playing we all sat around the fires and got to know each other. The only problem was that it was dark so making out faces was a little difficult.

The next morning, Saturday, we had to get up early to make it to breakfast. It was a little harder for some than others depending on how many beverages you had enjoyed the previous night. Breakfast was delicious-- fried eggs with sausage and beans and roasted tomatoes. It was perfect for the long day ahead. First on our agenda was a guided hike around the island. The views were spectacular and I wish I could describe them better. The water was so clear and the way it reflected the sun it could have been glass. The colors were a deep blue that faded as it got closer into the shore and ended with the white sea foam. The rocky cliffs were a perfect contrast of harsh and soft and the few trees that were around added shade and more colors. We went out to a few different lookout points where we spotted a few dolphins and heard whales. The dolphins were playful and kept jumping in and out of the water. The whales were too far out to be able to see them but we did see their waterspouts when they came up for air and we could hear them also. As I learned from my mother the hump back whales migrate from Antarctica up to calving grounds near the Great Barrier Reef.

After lunch it was my groups turn to go sea kayaking. For those of you that have kayaked on a river or lake before, it is pretty much the same; just add waves and salt water. They were two man kayaks and we managed never to capsize like some other people. We were pros. It was a lovely afternoon and we were all feeling a little sore after an hour. Dinner that night was followed by an Australian trivia game (my team didn’t do so hot) and then a night out at the local pub. Being a small island with not a huge population there is only one major pub that was a short walk away but we didn’t mind.

Sunday brought another early morning and another delicious breakfast before heading to surfing lessons-- in my opinion, the best part of the trip. It was a calm morning with not too much wind, which made for excellent first time surfing waves. We geared up in our wetsuits and headed out to the beach for our dry surfing lesson. We learned how to paddle out and get up on our board and it was not too long before we were headed out into the surf. Trust me, it was much easier to stand on the board on land than in the water. With a little help from the guides and a lot of trial and error I started to get the hang of things. I started by just body surfing (lying down flat on the surfboard) and then managed to ride a few big waves on my knees. You do get thrown around a lot and knocked by the big waves but the swirling sand acts as a great natural exfoliate for your skin. By the end of the day I was able to stand up on the board even if it was only for a few seconds. But I was standing and that was my goal. My eyes stung and my throat was sore from all the salt water but it didn’t matter. I am a surfer girl now. Whenever I go to the beach now, I am renting a surfboard.

The bus ride back made for a bunch of sleepy people—very understandable after an eventful weekend. It was a wonderful trip full of fun and beauty.

Now I have to re-enter the school world. Lectures start tomorrow at a bright and early 8AM. The vacation ends here… but will resume on the weekends naturally.

O Week

Well, it's the middle of Orientation Week, and all I can think is: Didn't I just finish school? I mean really I only had about a month or so of summer so the fact that classes start again on Monday seems incredibly unfair. But then again, the Aussie students are going back to school and I am trying to fit in with them, so I guess I just have to bite my lip and go.

To be honest, I am looking forward to the start of school, even if it is in July. I am excited to meet lots of new people and have a set schedule of things to do and take some classes with the locals. However, scheduling those classes has been somewhat of a nightmare. The standings right now are a history class, a dance class, and a performance class. I just need to find one more to fit in as a requirement back at Creighton. The schooling here is a little different and instead of meeting three times a week you only meet once or twice. Usually you will have a lecture and a tutorial and that’sit. Also, a lot of the Aussie students work during the day, so a bulk of the classes are offered at night.

My schedule right now is as follows: Monday 8AM to 11AM dance class. Monday 11AM to 12PM history tutorial. Tuesday 6PM to 8PM dance lecture. Wednesday 5PM to 7PM history lecture. Thursday 8AM to 11AM performance tutorial. Thursday 6PM to 7PM performance lecture. I had a science class scheduled for Friday from 4PM to 7PM but let’s face it, no one wants to go to class on a Friday night. That just goes against all laws. Especially when you are a study abroad student and you could easily use a three day weekend for traveling.

Orientation Week has so far been great and it is only going to get better. This past Monday was true Orientation day. I was back to being a freshman; walking around campus with a campus map glued to my hand and a confused expression on my face. But after a few seminars I wasfeeling better. There was one seminar that was just for the international and exchange students. There must have been about two hundred or more of us crammed into one large lecture hall for about four hours. And besides all of the incredibly useful information they also gave out a lot of free goodies. I now am equipped with QUT pens, highlighters, pamphlets, t-shirts and water bottles. I also received a bunch of coupons, and my favorite--a penny bank. The penny banks were being handed out by a local bank that was trying to get people to open accounts there. I am not looking to open an account but I walked up to their table with a big smile on my face and when they offered me a goody bag I indeed took it.

Tuesday brought more orientation activities but this time at a different campus. The KelvinGrove campus is located out of the city a little bit and farther north. After a quick ride on the free shuttle bus I arrived at the campus that most of my classes will be offered at. This campus is much bigger than the Gardens Point city campus. Just as beautiful though. (I don’t have any pictures yet but I will work on that!). Tuesday night was the Brisbane River Cruise. A very fun evening on a river boat cruising up and down the river while having a glass of wine and admiring the city lights. After the three hour boat cruise we all went to a club in the city where more dancing and socializing took place.

Yesterday (Wednesday) was fairly quiet. The main event was going to the market in the morning and hanging out in South Bank. Today (Thursday) was a tad bit stressful with figuring out classes and such, but it has come to the end of the day and all is well. After going to see the new movie Knight and Day, which was hilarious and great, I am about to pack for the weekend. I am going on a three-day trip out to Stradbroke Island where I will be staying at the Anchorage Beachfront Resort. I know that I am a very lucky girl. So I am going to grab my cozzie (swimsuit) and my sunnies (sunglasses) and go join the surfies (people who surf). I am working on my lingo so that I can become a true Aussie.

Things here are pretty normal and easy to get used to. However there are a few things that I don’t think I’ll ever get used to…

1. Smoking. Everyone smokes here. Inside and outside of buildings, and always walking down the street.

2. The “wrong” side of the street. Right, left, right or wrong it doesn’t matter. What matters is that it is different and the opposite of what I am used too. I see someone in a car texting when to me it looks like they should be driving. Then the person, who in my world is sitting on the passenger side, is driving. It gets confusing. And also when you want to cross the street you have to look the opposite way from what you are used to because the cars are driving the opposite way.

3. Seventy two degrees and its winter. And people are cold. I walk down the street in shorts, and flip flops wearing sunglasses and basking in the sunlight. People pass me wearing down jackets and snow boots. If this is what they are used to for winter. I never want to see them in Omaha in January.

That’s all I can think of right now. And if that’s all there is , I guess I am doing alright.

Be looking for a post in the beginning of next week about this weekend. Until Then!

Sand In Between Your Toes

Remember when you were about 5 years old when you went to the beach or to a sandy place and you didn't have a care in the world and you just went crazy? You started digging frantically in the said, building masterpieces and burying your friends and family members in mountains and mountains of sand. Then when you got home and stepped in the shower or bath, sand would just spill out from every pocket and inside your swimsuit but you didn't care because you had just had an amazing day at the beach.

Well, today was just like that.

We took a little journey north to the Sunshine Coast. Now at about 9 AM we were starting to doubt our decisions and thought that they had named the coast poorly as it started to pound rain. The car was getting drenched and I was happy to be inside and driving. When we arrived in Noosa Heads we were all incredibly skeptical. We were the only five people standing on the beach and the sun was completely covered by clouds, and it was cold! So we did what every American tourist would do in that situation-- go collect our thoughts while enjoying the local fish and chips.

After speaking to the very kind lady at the fish and chips booth we found ourselves driving back towards Noosa and the main beach. Now, this was the beach that we had been looking for all along and with the sun shinning bright we knew that we had a good afternoon to look forward to. The main beach started to pack in with both non-locals and locals. I heard Scottish, British, French, Aussie and some other accents. The water was crisp and cool but felt so refreshing once you took a breath and jumped in. The waves were big and powerful and I had to be careful not to be pulled into a rip curl. There were lots of surfers and kayaks out too. The sun was beaming and it was perfect just to lay out and read my book after swimming (don't worry, I slathered on the sunscreen and didn't get burned).

So when I came home tonight there was indeed sand everywhere but I don't care. That's what the washing machine and shower are for.

The River

The city of Brisbane is split by a river. Today after perusing through the local market I payed a visit to the river.

It was long past dark seeing as it is winter and the sun sets around 5:30 PM. Everything was so calm and peaceful. The city looked beautiful with lights twinkling and casting long shadows onto the ripples in the water. The bridges that were lit up looked regal almost and the tranquility of everything was incredibly moving. Just listening to the waves hit the shore and the wind rustling through the trees--it finally hit me that I will be here for a while and I will get to come down to the river whenever I want to and think about the day.

The stars here are also so clear and beautiful that it reminds me of home. Looking up and seeing a different set of constellations, however, is hard to get used to. After all, there is no Big Dipper or Orion casting shadows like they do in my backyard back home. But these stars are just as pretty and though they may not be what I am used to, they are still stars and I get to look at them.

Pictures hardly do any of what I am talking about justice, especially when you have shaky hands and under-exposure, but I did try. The black and white one is my favorite.

Ketchup

"I come from a Land Down Under". Actually, I don't but that's where I am for the next 4 months! It still hasn't hit me at all and when I wake up in the morning I usually have to remind myself where I am and what I am doing. So I have now been in the great country of Australia for a little over a week and just now I am I posting the blog. So much has happened so we are going to play a little game called Ketchup. Here we go:

Denver to LA, LA to Sydney, Sydney to Cairns

The first leg of the trip was from Denver to LA where the wonderful Leslie Waller came to pick me up and I stayed the night with her in her apartment in LA. The next morning I got the

tour of downtown including Hollywood Boulevard, Forrest Lawn Cometary, Disney and Warner Brother Studios and all the cool places that the stars hang out. I was not fortunate to run into any stars however...

The flight from LA to Sydney lasted 14 hours and after taking two Benadryl I slept most of flight, woke up to eat, walk around a little bit, tried to watch a movie and then went back to sleep. The flight was delayed of course which made our connection to Cairns for orientation a little dodgy. We thought that we could just catch a later flight to Cairns but the next flight wasn't leaving Sydney for the next three days. So we got an express pass through Customs and Immigration and got to the flight that they were holding for us just in time for takeoff. So after jumping through many hoops we arrived in Cairns in one piece, but without luggage. Our bags did not make the journey. But as the Aussies' say it was just "Bad Luck" and everything was worked out in the end. After all, we did get money for our bags being late which made everything better.

Orientation

The first couple of days in Cairns were beyond magnificent. We traveled into the rainforest to a national park called RainForeStation where we got to see all sorts of Aussie animals, plants and got a look into the life of an Aborigine. I got to pet a kangaroo, get my picture taken holding a koala and see some massive crocodiles. We took an amphibious WWII duck tour through the jungle and learned about all the different kinds of vegetation which was very interesting. Then we got to learn how to spear hunt, throw a boomerang, and play a didgeredoo by an Aborigine, followed by an authentic Aboriginal dance show. Very very cool.

The next day I went on another jungle tour. We drove up into the rainforest near the Daintree river. We went to another zoo where saw more animals like the day before. We drove to the river and got to go swimming and went on a Croc Cruise down the river where we saw three wild crocodiles. We were totally safe in the boat but it was still a little unnerving. However they just were basking in the sun and didn't even flinch as we sailed by. We drove through lots of country side all day as we visited the beach and saw sugar cane fields and tea farms and wild animals. It was a long but very fun day.

The last day in Cairns we visited the great barrier reef. We sailed out to a spot on the reef about 2 hours away from shore where we got to snorkel around a sandbar and around the boat and then got to go scuba diving. The coral was spectacular with all the different kinds and colors. There were tons of fish and we even got to see two sea turtles, a sting ray and a huge (about 4 or 5 feet long) parrot fish. It was definitely an amazing experience. After lunch on the boat we went to another snorkel spot where we saw more coral and fish. After our sail back to the mainland it was time for a night out on town with the Ultimate Party Bus. Five different bars that we were driven to on a double decker party bus. Lots and lots of fun and a great end to a wonderful first week in Australia.

Welcome Home

On July 4th (Happy Birthday America) we arrived in Brisbane--my new home until November. Brizzie (hence the name of the blog) is beautiful and reminds me of a city like San Francisco. It is a bigger city with a river that splits down the middle. I will be attending Queensland University of Technology, taking classes and traveling whenever possible. It will take a couple of days to get used to everything but I am willing to take on a challenge. For now I have two weeks to get acquainted with everything before schools starts. My apartment is very nice and has an incredible view. I think that I will get used to living here shortly.

For now that's life. Hope everyone out there is doing as well as I am! Miss all of you terribly and thanks for reading :)