I know some people are reading my blog because they want to see what it is like studying abroad, as they are considering doing it themselves...

I've been here for nearly 2 months, and I'm having a fantastic time.

However, I don't want to mislead people that it's all visiting taking pictures at the Opera House, having brunch at the college, and eyeing kangaroos.

Studying abroad is an opportunity of a lifetime...but it has its challenges (what doesn't?).

So for this entry, I'm real. I'm not visiting a museum, eating at Little Italy, or talking of my studies.

Simplicity

Everyone kept telling me not to overpack and that I would regret it if I did. Sure overpacking messed me up at the airport (see the first entry), but there is not one day were I don't wake up and wish I had more of my clothes. My sense of style has been lowered by about five levels...and it's especially shocking considering I worked at a high end department store (this past summer) and had to look the part every day.

I feel that I am just wearing the same things over and over again, mixing and matching (blue shirt, long black shirt, short black skirt, striped tee, trench coat, pink dress, green cords, pink capries, two jean skirts). Luckily my mom sent me 10 summer shirts, so luckily that will help extend my wardrobe flexibility.

Also...shocking... there have even been a few days that I have gone on without makeup. Most days I wear minmal makeup (foundation, mascara, blush, lip gloss.) I brought the wrong eyeliner coming here, and so I have to go eyeliner-less for the past 2 months. I could buy an eyeliner here, but it costs (minimal) $12! (I pay $3-$4 for cheap, covergirl-kind eyeliner.) It's all a cycle too... if I wear more makeup, I run out faster...and resupplying it is very costly here (for some reason or another, makeup is particularly expensive here). And if I wear more, I need more makeup remover.

To shock you even more, I am about ready to temporarily retire my heels. There is almost no sense in wearing them here. I can't wear heels around the city or sightseeing. It's too much walking. As for school, I had no problem walking to class in heels at VCU, but here it's a further walk to class with more hills. I'm considerably slower when I walk to class in heels, which does not help my case when I am rushing to 1 p.m. classes Wednesdays and Thursdays (lunch starts at 12:35, have to eat fast). I also broke part of the lining on a pair of heels I have. I nearly fell down the stairs of the business building a few weeks (the stairs are steep.) It's fastest to walk to class through the oval sport fields behind Sancta... but my heels pludge into the dirt, often getting stuck.

Above all else, after walking up and down hills, further distances, along the grassy fields, my feet hurt. The days I wear heels to class in the morning, by the afternoon classes I have switched to flats. I will return to my heel-wearing ways when I return to Richmond... but for the time being they just aren't working.

Annoyances

I've tried to remain very flexible and tolerant during my trip. I must say, for the most part, I have done a very good job at this. I was warned that the small things we never used to think about will be challenging at first (going to the post office, language differences, currency.) For me, there have been a few things that have annoyed me:

#3 paying for Internet use, by the minute.
That's right..there is no free Internet here. You pay by the minute. This was completely foreign to me. Some days I may only pay 50 cents...but there have been a few days that I have paid $4.50 for Internet use. I have concluded that something has to be different with the network some days, because I could not conceive how I spent that much money on the Internet, when in fact I was not sitting in front of the computer screen all day. I once accidently left my Internet up while I was out. That must have cost me at least a couple of dollars. I have never felt so guilty reading the newspaper online...in fact writing this blog is costing me money (case in point... I better move on...).

#2 water fountains
There is a lack of water fountains at the University of Sydney, Australia. I have only seeN one so far, and it was at the gym. There is no water fountain in the library. This perplexes me... I was studying there on Tuesday, and asked the front desk where I could find a water fountain, only to learn there are none. In fact, nearly every time I am out and want to refill my water bottle, I cannot find a water fountain.

#1 meet my arch enemy...

(will insert picture here..)

The Sancta computer lab printer. I hardly appreciated my very own printer until I am here without one of my own, and dealing with an evil one. I learned (on my own, because no one tells you all the 'little things') that you must provide your own paper when you print things. But they are charging us per page... I assumed part of that cost was paper costs, but no. You can have the printer loaded with paper, but it stills thinks it is empty. You can fix the paper jam, but it's still beeping at you "paper jam, paper jam." I'm somewhat technologically challenged, and so I have found myself banging every button on the printer, even yelling at it. This printer has made me late for class. It has stopped working just in time when it is my turn to use it. This printer and I will never get along.

So if my problems in life are that my feet hurt and I am tired of wearing heels, I don't wear eyeliner, I have to pay for Internet, there is no water fountation at the library, and must deal with an inconsistent printer, my life is pretty good.

Posted by at 7:12 PM | Permalink

I went to the National Maritime Museum on Sunday....

Before I didn't have high hopes of going. I figured it was somewhere I would force myself to go if my dad comes to visit.

I came across a Pacific on a Plate Food Festival event on their Web site....and decided I had to go!

I was somewhat disappointed when I arrived...sure there was lots of food, but only Russia offered (tiny) free samples. Luckily I had a little cash on me for lunch. Guess I was being optomistic that there would be free food...not once on the Web site or pamphlet did it mention anything about paying. I just read the word FREE.

There were lots of food stands representing many different countries:
China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysa, Singapore, Mexico, Peru, Philippines, Russica, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, and Canada.

I didn't have a lot of money, but strategized that I would purchase small food choices so I could taste the many countries. I ate:
rice paper vegetable spring roll from Vietnam
refreshing rose (tea) drink from Singapore
steamed vegetable/pork dumplings from Taiwan
chocolates- fruit and nut, from Peru

There was live dance...

music...and my favorite, a Peru cooking demonstration!

He first made ceviche (marinated snapper) in lime juice with corn, onions, and fresh ingredients. Then he made rare tuna with a potato base, avocado, and garished with a passionfruit sauce.

They had samples, but they were full plates of samples. This wasn't very smart.. there were only 30-40 plates of food. They should have used small sample-sized portions so everyone could taste. A nice couple next to me got one of the last plates, and let me try a piece of the tuna dish. Yum!

Next I decided to walk around the museum, after all, it was free. I was pleasantly suprised - it was very interesting! There werent just boats...but exhibits on jelly fish, swimmers, the bikini, surfers, paintings, Australian exploration, the Great White Fleet. The museum isn't too large... I covered it all in under an hour (I move fast).

You can pay admission fees and explore onto the boats outside. I was rather costly, so I didn't.

I was heading back home...and passed through an exhibit at Darling Harbour. In fact, it was one of the best art exhibits I have EVER seen.

It's called Earth from Above. They had these large-scale aerial portraits from around the world. they were absoluetly beautiful and perfectly sized. I spent an hour looking through the photography. Each portrait had a description about the place, and then below was some kind of environmental fact (as in, how wasteful we are, what we can do).

Yann Arthus-Bertrand. Check out www.yannarthusbertrand.com/index_new.htm. (Go to Photographs, Earth From Above.)

If you are heading to Sydney between now and December 26th, you must check this out. There are other exhibitions being held across the world, although...none in America (not since Chicago 2001).

Posted by at 6:31 PM | Permalink

Arguably the tourist worst week to be in Sydney.... APEC is here!

To follow quotes from the Sydney Morning Herald along with some of my observations and thoughts ...

What is APEC?

“Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum is a 21-member group of ‘economies’ which discusses trade issues. It is the only intergovernmental group in the world committed to reducing trade barriers and increasing investment withought requiring its members to enter into legally binding obligations ... [blah, blah blah my comments here] ...
It was first put forward as an idea by Australia in 1989.”

“21 government leaders [Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, United States, Vietnam], 400 international business leaders, and more than 6000 delegates and support personnel will attend Leaders Week.”

“While APEC has declared goals for tariff reductions and economic reforms, this message has been diluted by its membership expansion, terrorism, and global warming”

Trouble

“The motorcade expected to wreak most havoc — that of the US President, George Bush — arrives tonight (Tuesday). The 20-vehicle convoy, complete with military helicopter overhead, will be given top priority in traffic. It is expected to travel through the city tomorrow morning and early on Thursday. (U.S. First lady Laura Bush announced she would not attend, citing a pinched nerve.)”

“Railway stations closed, buses diverted in the city and clearways enforced along some of Sydney's busiest arteries: welcome to the APEC summit.” (Expect serious traffic delays!)

“Fenced off from residents, parts of Sydney felt like a ghost town yesterday.”

Protests

“The Galaxy poll also found 74 percent believe the event, which will cost taxpayers more than $300 million, was not money well spent. Others also argue that holding the event is taking money away from Sydney restaurants, tourist attractions, and other businesses.

Protests are already under way across the city, and there is highened security.” (This can even be seen at the Fisher Library.)

I have nearly forgotten that 21 leaders will be attending this week ... because all of the focus has been on President Bush and the war in Iraq. Point of information: There is very strong anti-Bush and an anti-war attitude here. Some Australian troops are in Iraq; to quote a Sancta girl: “We try to suck up to America.” (Political cartoons have John Howard [prime minister of AU] doing lewd things with President Bush.)

There are more anti-war protests and Bush-hating posters than I have seen in Richmond, VA. Tteachers allow brief announcements in front of class before (large lecture) classes ... half of which have been: "Come to the anti-war talk or protest ... listen to an Iraqi solder speak.” Go past the library and I guarantee someone will try to hand you information on the anti-war movement. (I’m not taking a political view either way — just stating the facts.)

Public Holiday

Friday is a public holiday ... meaning no school, no work ... and fitness classes are canceled in the morning :-(

To paraphrase many-a Sydney article, “ … we welcome international business and world leaders ... but Sydnersiders are encouraged to ‘get out’!”

Posted by at 7:54 PM | Permalink

Went to the Blue Mountains on Sunday. Went through Colourful Trips -- they organize trips, really for international students.

The Blue Mountains are past western Sydney. To get there takes approximately 2 hours. We made some stops too and from on the way.

It was such a beautiful day and great weather. As great as the city is, it was nice to be breathe the fresh, mountain air.

Aboriginal (native person)

The Three Sisters

I spent part of the day with a Japanese girl, and a German girl I met. We took a picture of the three of us ... the Japanese girl is going to e-mail it to us.

We went on bush walks along the way. These ferns only grow in the southern hemisphere. Our guide also noted that we were in a temperate rain forest.

We make it down to the valley after walking from the top.

We get back up by taking the railway.

That's right, it's the steepest railway in the world. 52 degrees!

Next we headed to a wildlife park.

There were several kangaroos. They actually scared me quite a bit ...

Look in its pouch....

You can feed the kangas ice cream cones.

I learned that there are over 40 species of kangaroos ... these were huge!

Albino kangaroos

One of my favorite animals: the pelican.

My (new) FAVORITE Australian animal the dingo!

Wombat

This goat followed me around, guess he wanted to be my friend.

We stopped by Olympic Park on the way home -- site of the 2000 Olympics. It's about 30 minutes outside the main city.

I was really excited about going. But actually, it was kinda boring. Not much to see. Sorry to disappoint.

(view from inside the bus) ... Track runner appeared with the torch from inside the fountain to start the Olympic games.

Australia Stadium, since renamed.

The coolest part were the poles; they all the athletes names written on them. They also had television clips from the games.

Posted by at 2:20 AM | Permalink

... I’ve been going to class. Can’t believe week 6 is almost over; that means I’m near halfway in the semester!

I have my first test on Thursday. It's a midterm, the only one I have. I better start studying. I need to work on a paper due in week 10. It's a 2500 word paper analyzing the new product launching for a pharmaceutical company. (I think the international office should have given us library tours.)

My strategy this semester is to put in my fair share for group projects, the paper ... also go to class, do homework, participate. That way, I’m not in a bind at the end of the semester, cramming for finals. I only need to get 50 percent to pass my classes. This is a very strange concept because everyone has told me all I need to do this semester is pass my classes, because ultimately all that comes back home is pass or fail. So I don’t have to go the extra mile this semester? Call me a slacker, fine ... but I figure there is so much for me to learn outside the classroom right now.

People are notorious for skipping lectures. Someone told me a teacher of hers told the class it's not an Australian habit to skip class, but rather just a University of Sydney habit of skipping class, coming in late, leaving early. In two of my lectures, there are at least 75 or 100 people ... 20 people came to each lecture. I actually have the same lecturer for those two classes ... I can see why people skip. I have very well working eyes and reading skills, and that's all you need (you don’t miss anything if you just read the lectures on your own time.) However, I still refuse to miss class. What else am I going to do, sit home and read the Sydney Morning Herald while class is going on? I'd feel so guilty. Also I figure, it's good to hear the lecture, I guess I have some auditory learning.

Other than class during the week ...

I spend time at the college. Living at Sancta was the best decision I made when coming to Sydney. It has given me the opportunity to meet people and be involved in a community. I know of other international students, and for them, it can be very lonely. I'm here for meals, and sometimes other social events. A few nights a week I head down to the lounge and watch TV with some of the girls. It's funny because most of the television shows are American shows (except for this awful, cheesy Australian soap they watch.) What's also funny is that American shows that aren't very popular in America, are popular here, such as Big Brother, Becker, Las Vegas, and other reruns.

I have also gone to watch the debate team a few times. I had never been to a debate before, but it was so interesting. Now I’m hooked, I think debating is awesome!

Oh, and we had a lunar eclipse a few nights ago. My roommate and I gathered at a window sill across the building and watched it for 45 minutes. It kept changing colors, it was beautiful.

In other news ...
I hit the gym everyday (nothing new.) gym membership is not included in student fees. gym membership is very expensive, but for me it's worth it. I work out weekdays at 6:30 a.m. I used to hate working out in the morning, loved the afternoons. However, I’ve gotten into a routine in going in the morning, and I love it. Many mornings I meet up with a post grad that lives in this building and we go together. I work out on my own a little, but mostly i take fitness classes- they're very fun and challenging. I take a variety of classes: cycling, body sculpting, kickboxing, pilates, body attack (cardio, intervals, jumping around), and a little yoga. I go some afternoons in addition as well, but mornings are now my favorite.

I need to take a shower now ... went to cycling this morning and am drenched!

Posted by at 7:16 PM | Permalink

Did I tell you that my roommate is a pianist?

I went to see her play last Friday. The Conservatorium of Music is down at Botanical Gardens (near the Opera House.) It took me an hour's walk. ... I preferred that over a 40-minute bus ride.

The Conservatorium is highly competitive and very prestigious.

Katy's performance was amazing, I kid you not. I mean, I knew she was good, but I had no idea. Her mom came to watch her performance before traveling north. She told me it was an abstract piece, very different.

A half a dozen students performed in this recital hall; it was a graded performance. They were all wonderful, although I must say, I definitely enjoyed Katy's the best. Really one of the best musical performances I have ever witnessed. Amazing that she memorized the whole thing ... no sheet music.

The Conservatorium of Music is a beautiful building, somewhat castle-like. The Government House is nearby, the Conservatorium years ago was its stables. It is actually a very historic spot as well. As you walk down the stairs of the building, there are large rock structures and then glass display cases with pieces of teacups, dishes, art, and other historic findings.

Behind the Conservatorium is where James Cook discovered Australia!! Apparently he landed at another city, but didn’t find it suitable, so he got back on his boat, then officially landed at Sydney. Here's about where he landed:

We walked around the perimeter of Botanical Gardens. The Gardens are huge, I will have to go back and see more. Katy's mom was so sweet, and insisted on taking pictures of us.

Saturday morning, after hitting the gym (love the kickboxing class here) I headed over to Victoria Park for Live Green. It was on flags across the city ... the event was to promote how to live green (that is, be environmentally conscious.)

There was organic produce to buy ... recycled materials ... environmentally friendly cars, motorcycles ... natural materials... tea, chocolate, jams ...organization stops ... workshops ... live music.

It had rained the night before, so they grass was gross and muddy.

You see some of these environmentally friendly cars around Sydney

Later in the afternoon I head up north with two girls from the college. Father's day is coming up (they have it in September), and one of the girls wanted to take pictures for her dad of the quiet beach and house of his late mother's. It took about an hour and a half for us to get there. It's a very small town ... great place to retire. The beach was very peaceful and quiet. Afterward we walked a few blocks down to the local market, and they got homemade donuts and milkshakes. We didn’t stay long.

They have mallards at the beach! We used to raise these ducks at our pond.

Posted by at 6:38 PM | Permalink

So I've been playing Soccer for the college, it's been a lot of fun. it's been very chill... 3-4 practices total, 4 games against the other colleges. a lot of the girls have never played before, very beginner friendly.

I had emailed my parents and mentioned I was playing soccer ...my mom's response was "you haven't put shin guards on since the 6th grade!!" (I played soccer...for about 5 years as a kid)

Our first game was Thursday, but I was unable to go, I had class (they schedule the games at the worst times) apparently Thursday was a good game, the other college wasn't very good, although we failed to score, ending in 0-0.

I was pumped for my first game on Friday. I rested up between early morning cycling and our game at 9:45am. finally it was time, we took the field. I played midfield, my favorite position back when I was, like 10.

We played the Women's College, and within no time, they scored and scored and scored. It didnt take long for us to realize that these girls could play soccer. They moved with such easy, ability and teamwork. I would see one girl swerve past three of our girls crowding around her, making her way to the goal. our entire game was mostly defense, their defense and goalie hardly had to play at all. Each time they scored and we started back in the middle, our energy sunk to "we have to do this, again?!" the game ended at 0-7.

It didn't feel like I was doing anything throughout the game. middlefield is a great position, you get to do a little/lot of everything and run a lot. however, you feel like you have to be everywhere and do everything. oohh defense, need to help, ooohh push up maybe we can score. let me help out the right wing, now the left side. a lot of back and forth. in this game however, I felt like I was doing a lot of moving back and forth but hardly contributing. by the second half I couldn't wait for the game to end, this team was out of our league.

Monday was our next game. again, I went to cycling in the morning, but this time I was worn out when it was 9am and time to get ready. I knew if I laid down for even a minute I would fall asleep. I sat on the floor against my bed, with the space heater, staring at the wall, trying to get the energy to go. I had to get up and go... the warm up was painful. it was colder outside, I didnt want to take off my sweatshirt...all I wanted to do was sit. we kicked the ball back and forth, I was not in the mood. we had subs (extra players) and I thought to myself "I will definitely have to sub out at points in this game, I am exhausted." After a lot of stalling & waiting it was time to start. One of our players had to leave for class, no more subs, I had no choice but to play the entire game.

We make our way to the field, here we go again. The game gets going, and reluntantly in the first minute the ball makes it down to the other side of the field...and one of our girls scores! "we can do this!" everyone thinks.

Somehow my energy drastically changed during this game. This game was FUN. I felt that I was making contributions to the team, and we played a much better game. although we scored the first goal, the other team was good. by half time it was 1-1. "I know we can do this" our coach told us. (maybe give us some strategy?)

The team we played was aggressive. I thought there was a lot of pushing, kicking, aggressive moves to the ball. despite that, they didnt intimidate us. we chased every ball, blocked every girl during throw-ins, and gave it our best efforts.

Again, playing center midfield it was back and forth back and forth. I made some good passes ahead, and some good defense kicks...along with some lousy kicks and missteps. I'm alright at soccer, but just like when I was 10, soccer's hard because it's allowing on the quickest intuition and responses. I'm not terribly good at thinking on a moment's notice about the next play, for me a lot of it is luck. I have never and probably will never do a head-butt the ball, I don't know how they do that. I can certainly kick the ball, and can steal the ball from an opponent, but I have no fancy footwork. I've never been good at the front positions because I dont have the footwork to "dribble" past opponents nor do I have the skills to score goals.

moving on....the game toughened. the other team scored another goal on us, leaving us trailing 1-2.

We played hard the last 5 minutes but the results show otherwise ... in the last 5 the other team scored 2 more goals (although one was kicking the ball out of the goalie's hands -- so much for sportsmanship.)

It was getting down to the wire ... the score was 1-4. We may lose this one, but we were going to fight to the very end. at the latter end of the game, the ball got passed to me.... I pushed forward, I was in great position because most players were behind me, I only needed to get past 1 defense player. This is where I always mess up, but somehow I managed to swerve past her and charge ahead. here I was...approaching the goal. I felt other soccer players running and approaching me as I draw near the goal. "Shoot!!" I heard from behind ... players are catching up to me, and in a final attempt I kick the ball--hard this time. this is my chance--this is my chance, I think.

I ball putts into the air, over the goalie's head (usually i have poor luck and kick it right to the goalie--where they can easily grab it.) here we go, I think ... time is moving in slow motion. the goalie reaches her hands above, and catches the ball with the tops of her fingertips. no goal.
the goalie quickly goal-kicks the ball to the middle of the field. on of my teammates approaches me, "nice try on that one!" within seconds the ref blows the whistle, game over. at this point I think, man that was my chance. sure if I scored that goal we still would have lost... but for my last time on the soccer field, I would have finally not come up just-short, as I always seemed to. that goal would have been the icing on the cake for my last game. and I would have achieved serious bragging rights for about 30 seconds.

"yeah that's my last game, the next [last] game is in the middle of two tutorials," I told one of my teammates on the walk back.
I continued, "that was fun, I'm sad it's over. guess that's the end of my soccer career"
"What about at home, can you play soccer there?" she asked.
I explained that we have University soccer, which is competitive and where you have played for years and made the team. I* mentioned we have intramurals, though I've never thought about playing them.
"Well, maybe I'll play in another 10 years" I said. (doubtful though, considering I'll be 31!)

On the walk back we pass by other colleges and the guys we passed asked "so how did you do?"
"we lost" we quietly responded
one of the girls pointed out, "but we played such a good game, it doesnt sound right saying we lost."

So soccer was a lot of fun, sad it's over ... too bad I fell short on that goal.

Posted by at 7:45 PM | Permalink

Of course I had to see the Opera House and the Harbour! When I saw the Opera House for the very first time, I felt that I was finally in Sydney.

I have been down to the Harbour three times. From the far right corner of campus (Victoria Park), the Opera House is less than 3 miles. Here are pictures from my first trip down there:

when I FIRST saw the Opera House

Street contortionist. She did some incredible stunts, although she kept insulting the audience. And she wants tips?

More street performers. I thought this lady looked funny more than anything.

Walking from the Harbour Bridge to the Opera House. Hotels along the side.

Looking out from the Opera House, this is what you see:

I realized that none of my pictures have ME in them:

Underneath there is a bar/restaurant. Perfect view, I will have to go and eat there sometime.

Posted by at 6:48 AM | Permalink

Classes i'm taking:

WORK 2218 People and Organisations
MKTG 3114 New Products Marketing
MKTG 2010 Marketing Channels & Logistics
MKTG 3112 Marketing Communications

I was taking International Business in place of one of the courses. I was really excited about that course, but the professor was very hard to understand (she graduated from Hong Kong University 2 years prior.) The class outline and material wasn't as intruging as i thought it would be, and the class time was inconvienent.

Class schedule:
no class mondays or fridays.

Tuesday
12-2

Wednesday
9
10
11
1-3

Thursday
10-12
1
2-4

What are classes like?

Each class is worth 6 credits. The normal class load is 24 credits, or 4 classes.

For each class we have a 2 hour lecture and a 1 hour tutorial once a week. The tutorials break down to 15-20 people.

The lecture teaching style is similar to what I am use to. All of my professors post their lectures on blackboard and simply lecture about the material during class.

Between the lectures and tutorials, i have 8 professors, 7 of which are male. They all want to be referred to by their first name. One of my marketing teachers wears board shorts and flip flops (referred to as thongs here) to lecture. (He has long blonde hair, and looks like he should be on the beach instead!)

Nearly all of our textbooks are American textbooks. One of my professors is American (came here to teach 11 years ago.) We often talk about and evaluate American companies in my classes. Sometimes the students do not know who the company is, such as this morning with Mary Kay Cosmetics. It's funny because often I am often learning the Aussie slang and different words and phrases. However, sometimes in class, it is them who are learning the American lingo!

We are graded in tutorials by participation. Tutorials are typically complusory. In tutorials we break down the material from lecture, and are often asked to apply the information. Tutorials are highly beneficial to fully understanding the course material. It has also been a great opportunity to meet people and interact.

How are we assessed?
15-25% of our grades are from tutorial. This includes tutorial participation (you have to speak up) and homework/discussion questions.

Each of my classes then have 1 group project (or individual paper) and 1 final test. One of my classes has a midterm exam. This is very sparse compared to what I am use to.

Also, multiple choice is nearly unheard of. All tests are short answer and essay style. I was talking to one of my new friends, from western Sydney, and she explained that she has not had a multiple choice test since the 8th grade.

Grades, A B C D F?

Grading is very different. Here is the grading system:
85-100 High Distinction: very rare, nearly impossible, so i have heard
75-84 Distinction
65-74 Credit: attainable if you work hard, considered a high achievement
50-64 Pass
46-49 Pass (concessional): pass the course, but may not be eligible to move to the next level
0-49 Fail

Apparently, most students receive Passes. At international student orientation, they explained that passes are a fine grade and nothing to be assamed of. Americans often feel that a Pass is not a sufficient grade, but they assured us there is no shame in receiving a Pass.

Other class related facts
The business school has bbqs! A couple of weeks ago, the Economics and Business School had a bbq dinner for the international study abroad/exchange students. Today the WORK (management) department hosted a bbq lunch outside for students.

Some of the seats in lectures are highly uncomfortable! My MKTG 3112 class has the most uncomfortable seats, they curve in an awkward way for your back, and in such a way that my quads hurt when i leave. There are no comfy clothed lecture seats here, and individual desks are rare.

Posted by at 6:04 AM | Permalink

The prices here are ridiculous! Everything is at least 2 or 3 more times expensive than in the states. I will continue to update this entry, so check back.

Examples:

Veet shaving cream, 200ml: $14.68

hooded college sweatshirt: $110

lemon per kilo: $3.99

6 month student gym membership: $495 (gym membership not included in student fees)

85 percent chocolate bar ($1.86 at Walmart): $4.29

Shape magazine (3.99 US retail): $7.99

Payless shoes: $29.99-$49.99

average size bottle of Coke at 7-11: $2.95

large bottle of listerine: $8.99

Nike women's workout pants: $79.99

Maybelline mascara (i get it for $3): $14.95

stack of white paper: $8.99

Posted by at 7:13 PM | Permalink

I attend the University of Syndey, Australia :)

http://www.usyd.edu.au/

It was the first university established in Australasia, 1 October 1850.

The student population consists of 45,039 students, 8,687 of which are international students.

There are 1088 undergraduate and postgraduate degrees and diplomas across 17 faculties.

Today the university is ranked 35th in the world.

Here is the Quad. The most photographed part of campus. My tour guide instructed "come here to feel like Harry Potter."

More pictures along campus:
*this is only a sample! i'll try to post more later-the campus is huge

Manning Bar. The cafe sign reads "beer and wedges." That's right, there is a bar on campus.

graffiti tunnel--walkway through campus

there's a few construction sites

Victoria Park--far right side of campus. Beautiful!

Posted by at 6:26 PM | Permalink

When I first moved in...here is my room. Is that not the ugliest brown blanket you have ever seen? I wish I could decorate, but I'd rather spend the money on travel and adventures then a snazzy bedspread & posters (that I can't pack home anyway)

For the past 2 years I lived in Ackell Residence Center, a 2-bedroom on-campus apartment. If you ever saw my apartment, you'd know it was highly decorated and I was cooking virtually every day. If it weren’t for my friend Shula, who helped me the day before my flight, I would probably still be scraping 3M off the wall.

Living abroad is completely different living situation. From what local students have told me, most locals continue to live at home while undergoing university. There are no "residence halls" so to speak, or even dining plans. Some students, into their later years, move into a flat near campus. There are colleges, however. At the University of Sydney, colleges are located on campus, yet you do not have to be a USYD student to attend the college, we have a handful of students from the technology school, or a small private school. There are 6 colleges at USYD. Some are women or men only, some coed. There is a complete, separate application process to attend a college. In some cases, it is an honor or privilege to live in a college (and relatively expensive.) Colleges have separate activities and expectations, and their own dining hall.

I live at Sancta Sophia College. It houses 126 undergraduate girls and about 10 postgraduates, which includes 3 or 4 guys. There are mostly shared (dorm) rooms, but there are some single rooms. The dining hall is downstairs. I was hesitant about that, because I love to cook and I am very particular and conscious about what I eat. The food is outstanding though. We have our own chef who prepares meals. We have the best salad bar and lots of healthy options. My favorite foods so far include: grilled fish, pumpkin soup, thai chicken, tomato lentil soup, asparagus salad, curried vegetables, bean/vegetable casserole, baked sweet potatoes, lemon chicken, and my favorite, endless dried fruit (dates, pears, apricots.) Meal times are specified, 6:45-9am breakfast, 12:30-1:30pm lunch, 6-7 dinner. You can request packed lunches if you are away, or arrange a late dinner. (But it's not like Shafer, where you can eat any time you want.)

We are in the midst of social sports clubs starting. This season (spring season) we have tennis, soccer, basketball, softball, touch footy, track&field. I'm playing soccer...it's a lot of fun and very relaxed. Many players in the sports are beginners, so it's a great way to learn a sport. We compete against the other colleges (it's a short season.) There is also a debate team and performance arts.

Sancta Sophia is a Catholic college. There is a chapel a few doors down from where I live. Although mass is completely optional, and many people that live here are not Catholic.

There are many social events. Mondays we have (mandatory) formal dinners, we have to dress up and wear black robes. Towards the end of the year there is a formal dance, even a Christmas dinner. There are weekly events, last weekend we had a brunch BBQ out in the courtyard, complete with a huge twister game. Other events on the calendar (that I'm looking at) include champagne brunch, informal talent show, special dinners, spring cocktail.

The college has a principal and staff, including an office staff. There a few mandatory house meetings per semester for all students. There is on-site tutoring and a staff in place to help with academic problems. They even offer scholarships to students for academic achievements.

How did I end up living here? I was accepted to the University of Sydney and from there was looking into housing. Generally, international students book temporary housing and when they arrive, attend housing sessions and scramble to find a place to live (mostly off campus.) That's just the way it works, a little unnerving.

I saw the options of colleges on the USYD Web site. It takes a little time, as you can see, to distinguish what a college is (after all, we use university and college interchangably in America.) Honestly, I was in the right place at the right time. I wrote Sancta and expressed interest. They urged me to apply, which I did almost immediately. They waved the application fee and sent me an offer nearly a day later. Again, I was in the right place at the right time. I am the only study abroad student here at Sancta this semester. Last semester there were two Americans (came together as friends.) There are some international postgraduate students (Canada, Singapore) completing there entire degree here. So this semester I am "the American."

entrance:

St. John's to the left, Sancta to the right. There is always someone playing on the fields, sports are extremely popular here.

Sancta is to the right..one block down. On the left is the Alfred Hotel, known as "the grosh." It's a pub, actually our college's sponsor of all things. Very popular hangout.

Grocery store across the street.

Walking the opposite way from the college, hospital is a block up.

Posted by at 10:16 PM | Permalink

I started counting down the days until I left starting on day 40. I dont know what happened after day 10 because time flew past me.

The week before I left was stressful and insanely busy. Ii worked 7-8 hour days all the way up until I left...which wasn't the best idea because I spent my days pacing and thinking of everything I should be doing (packing). I hardly slept that week. I pulled an all nighter one night, and quite a few 2-4 hour nights. The excitement shadowed my sleep deprivation. In those last few days I needed to pack, move out of my apartment back home, and get all the final details of my trip together. Also, all my friends wanted to see me before I left. My advice is to have a goodbye party! If you have as many friends as I do, trying to see everyone before you leave, while busy getting ready, is overwhelming.

So I left Wednesday afternoon of July 11th. My mom and sister took me to the Dulles airport. We stopped by Tyson's Corner to kill some time beforehand. While we were walking out of Macy's, we ran into our favorite priest! He's this cute little Filipino man, absoltuely hilarious, campus minister from Mary Washington (where my sister went to school.) He said a blessing over me and my trip. Fate I tell you.

We head to the airport. Everything was going smoothly until....I overpacked. Quantas, the airline I flew, has a strict weight restriction of 70 pounds per suitcase. I was aware of this limit, but was told you pay per pound that you go over. The man behind the counter of the boarding desk weighed my suitcase "you are over by 9 pounds, I cannot accept a suitcase over 70 pounds." So there we were, on the side of the airport trying to transfer things from my large suitcase into my small suitcase and bookbag (YOU try to pack 5 months worth of stuff in 2 suitcases and a bookbag, it's nearly impossible.) Our hard efforts only took of 4 pounds. All of my clothes were in vacuum space bags---I handed the bag of summer shirts over to my mom. she agreed to send some of it to me (Australia has reversed seasons, currently it is winter.). Without summer shirts I was under the weight limit.

"Well, that was your one thing," my mom told me. "My what?"

"That had to be your one thing, now everything will go smoothly."

Ha...I could only hope so.

The flight from Dulles to LA was alright. 5 hours 10 minutes. A little bumpy for my preference, but I did get some reading done. I was given the suggestion read--In A Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson. Absolutely hilarious, only a little way into the book but can't wait to read more (and I rarely enjoy reading).

Quick lay over in LA, like less than 2 hours...then I'm on my way! At this point I'm super exicted. The flight was excellent, superior to the American Airlines flight to LA. The crew is especially nice, great food, a smooth trip, great tv to watch, relatively comfortable. 14 hours 20 minutes, but didn't feel like it. Slept a lot. At this point I love Quantas.

6:40 a.m., we've arrived in Sydney! The airport isnt very crowded, seems to being going smooth until....baggage claim. My suitcase had neon ribbon tied on each side. A sigh of relief, I spot the neon ribbon...there's my small suitcase. waiting. waiting. waiting. 20-25 mintues go by and no more suitcases get dropped off the chute. An airline lady comes around, and directs me to baggage sevices. I begin to panic. This is like my biggest fear. I'm going to the country where there are more poisonous animals to kill you than anywhere else.... I flew halfway across the world by myself...and this is my BIGGEST fear--losing my luggage. I'm trying to stay calm... I wait in line behind a group of teenage boys in maroon shirts and cowboy hats. Everyone at baggage services is calm, am I the only one distraght that my luggage is lost?? They have the tracking number of my lost luggage but they can't track it. To the left of me I hear "oh it ended up going to Singapore, but now it's with another airline upstairs, let me take you there" and to the right of me "it should be coming in tomorrow."

"What if they dont find it?" I ask. The lady behind the counter can sense my fear..."We'll find it, I promise," she assures me.

At this point my excitement has lowered to sadness. I'm on a continent all by myself and I don't have my clothes. I go through customs and I make it to the student help desk for my university. After finding a guy in a black shirt with a clipboard, I take a taxi to Sancta Sophia where I am staying.

So we pull in from a busy city road into a narrow driveway, here we are? It's a beautiful old building I walk in--which is easy because all of the outside doors are sprawling open (why? it's like 45 degrees outside!) It's quiet here, I get my key and a brief welcome from one of the office people. "They always do this to international students...no one is here, the girls are on holiday." I also learn there's a conference going on and all these old nuns are occupying the building. The lady calls for one of the only students in the building to walk me around and to my room...my room has two beds, what? I soon learn I am sharing a room. I am shocked and upset..."Are you sure this is right? I thought I got my own room." I get my room phone working and call home. I have to dial 27 numbers to call home. "They lost my luggage, I'm sharing a room, it's cold here, it's not what I thought, there's no one here, did I make a mistake?"

Posted by at 6:42 PM | Permalink

Sorry for the delay, but I am ready to start my blog!

For those of you that do not know me, my name is Jennifer. I am a senior at VCU, majoring in marketing and minoring in painting and fashion merchandising. However, this semester I am studying at the University of Sydney, Australia!

I've been here 2 1/2 weeks! How did I get here? Honestly, I don't remember much of the details between wanting to go and the 14 hour flight from LA.

Why Australia? At first I dreamed of going to Italy, France...Europe. But I realized it would be very hard, for me personally, to live in a country for 5-6 months where I did not speak any of the language. From there I was looking into places such England, Scotland, Ireland. Nothing was jumping out at me. My friend and gym buddy Sarah, a Ph.D student who studied in Germany for a semester, said "what about Australia, I had friends that went there and LOVED it." Right from that moment I knew that's where I wanted to go. Australia would be perfect...they speak English, the weather is amazing, they're obsessed with athletics, it's far away--perfect.

Sarah really pushed me to pursue this. She nearly forced me into go to the Study Abroad Fair. It was a Wednesday afternoon lunch break between my 6 hour painting class, I was tired, but Sarah kept reminding me, you're going right? I went there, picked up a bunch of information and sorted through it later. I decided I wanted to go to a large, urban campus, in the city preferably. Looking through the booklets, one school in particular jumped out at me. The academic buildings were historic and beautiful. It was the oldest university in Australia...based in Sydney, 45,000 students and a large international student population. I did further research, looking all sorts of schools. I went online and surfed their Web sites, looking at their business schools, sport clubs, housing, activities. For weeks I researched researched researched all kinds of schools in Australia, New Zealand. But there was still that one school in the back of my mind. It was the University of Sydney.

I worked closely with VCU's Education Abroad Office to make this study abroad trip happen. Elizabeth, who works at the office, really encouraged me to go independently. You see, there are many agents you can go with, where you go with a group of Americans, they work out your housing, the fine details, and organize trips. There are advantages to these sorts of groups, but in my case, I'm pretty independent and I'd rather pay less money and manage my own itererary, and best of all, hang out with Australians during my trip.

Well the rest is history, I am here!

Posted by at 5:56 PM | Permalink