Category Archives: Australia

It’s winter? Time to wear shorts and t-shirts.

My mom was very concerned when I declared that I wanted to go to Australia. She actually tried to talk me out of going this semester. Not because she didn’t support me studying abroad, but because of the time I chose to go.

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Indeed, it is winter here down under. I wasn’t too worried, though. After all, what could be worse than winter in Boston?

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And all my worries vanished when I Googled the average temperatures for Sydney in July.

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Indeed, the website was serious. When I exited the Sydney airport, carrying all my luggage, I was met by a surprise:

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Though Australian weather isn’t as perfect as rumored. The temperature does drop rapidly as soon as the sun sets. The weather can fluctuate throughout the day. So, basically, I feel right at home.

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To top it off, this winter has been unseasonably warm. For the past week, I’ve been enjoying temperatures in the mid-70’s. (That’s around 23 degrees Celsius, for all you non-US people.) Not all of Australia is like this, though. Last weekend, I traveled to Canberra, Australia’s capital. Canberra is inland about 3 hours southwest of Sydney, and known to be a bit chillier.

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And was it colder? You bet it was! Why, the daytime reached a horrifying temperature of 66 degrees!

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I often express my amazement to native Australians, who usually try to prove to me that Australia’s not as nice as I think.

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So pack me up, baby. I’m moving to Australia!

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Contrary to popular belief, Australia is not full of surfer bronze gods.

Whenever I told my fellow Americans that I was going to Australia, they always reacted in two ways. The first reaction was about the guys:

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The other was about Australia’s fine fauna:

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You know your friends are good ones when they post this shizzle on your Facebook.

You know your friends are good friends when they post this shizzle on your Facebook.

Now that I’m in Australia, I can see these stereotypes for myself. Or not. Because honestly…

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And what of the poisonous animals? Perhaps it’s because I’ve been in the city, but I haven’t seen anything scary so far. Though I have taken a shine to all the unusual birds around Sydney.

The Australian White Ibis, or as I like to call it, the Garbage Bird. As exotic as they look, they're actually a pest.

The Australian White Ibis, or as I like to call it, the Garbage Bird. As exotic as they look, they’re actually a pest.

I'm tempted to make a Finding Nemo reference.

I’m tempted to make a Finding Nemo reference.

An Australian Magpie!

An Australian Magpie!

Though as I pass judgement on Australia, people have passed judgement on me. I’m an American, you see, and I’m living in a residential college for international students. I find it highly entertaining to hear other countries’ stereotypes about the USA.

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Granted, it’s partly our fault that we have such a great rep.

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As I’ve tried to explain my country, I’ve run into some roadblocks. America is a big place. My understanding of the US is probably totally different from someone who lives, in, say, Texas, or California, or Kansas. I can only give biased opinions.

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Well, I do my best.

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I’m a born ambassador, that’s for sure.

I feel like a freshman again.

I successfully survived the first week of schooling here at the University of Sydney. Survive does not equal aced, though.

You see, the University of Sydney is a big place. The main campus is spread across two suburbs , Camperdown and Darlington. This is because the school caters to about 50,000 students, quite a bit more than Northeastern’s humble 13,000.

In fact, the typical Australian university (or, “uni,” as they like to abbreviate it here) is a bit different from American unis. We can observe one such difference from a sampling of my conversations with USyd students:

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In the US, college is almost equated to independence. Kids graduate high school and move out, often to schools hours away. In Australia, it’s much more typical for kids to live at home and commute to their local university. A daily commute of an hour or more is normal.

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But I digress. The University of Sydney is huge, and its campus is suitably large as well. And since I have a terrible sense of direction, this did not bode well for my first day of classes.

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The campus is so big that asking for directions from students might not result in success.

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Or faculty members, for that matter.

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Luckily for me, Australians are laid-back. They’re rather famous for it. So my professor didn’t care when I burst into his class…

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…20 minutes after it started.

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And that’s how I showed up to my first class 40 minutes late.

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Dayum, USyd. You big! 

Perhaps USyd’s large size also has to do with its age. The University of Sydney is the oldest uni in Australia and is resultantly home to the oldest buildings in Australia, which Asian tourists love to come and photograph. Like me.

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So, when was this grand university established?

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As fond as I am of Northeastern’s campus, it’s pretty neat to go to a school that looks like the set of Harry Potter. There’s even a Quidditch team!

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This will be an interesting semester.

I know it’s the fifth time we’ve said goodbye, but I swear this is the final one.

There’s only so many goodbyes a person can take. Though as it turns out, I can take a lot.

It started when the semester ended. A bunch of my college friends went back to their hometowns, meaning it would be a while until I saw them again.

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It was sad, but at least I wasn’t left totally alone. Some of my friends, like myself, stayed in Boston for the first half of the summer.

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In fact, there were enough of us left in Boston that the friends who had initially returned home came back to visit.

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Though, of course, I had to say bye to them again.

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The summer winded on, and it got closer and closer to the day I would leave Massachusetts. With every visit, and every goodbye, our farewells got more and more urgent.

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Especially since we all have such disparate schedules. My friends were scattered around the Greater Boston area, so we never knew if this was the last time we’d be seeing each other.

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Finally, the final weekend of my co-op rolled around. It would be my last full weekend in Boston. My high school friends, realizing that my departure was soon, came up to visit me.

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I also had to say goodbye to my college friends for the last time.

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It was a melancholy moment. I’ve grown attached to the beautiful and friendly Boston over the last two years. And I love my friends, so I was certainly sad to leave.

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Sorry guys.

But now I really am out of Boston, and back in the Philly suburbs! I’ve been busy with moving out/moving in/unpacking/packing. After all, I depart for Vietnam in a week!

Which reminds me.

By the way, I’m going to Vietnam as well.

Dear Sydney: Is there anyone in your city who is ACTUALLY looking for tenants?

Since I’ve been accepted to the University of Sydney, I’ve been looking for a place to stay. Using the university dorms are decidedly expensive (typically they’re 8,000+ a semester, not to mention that you have to pay a fee to apply AND interview to get in AND you might be rejected) so I’ve been browsing other sites for leads.

And am I getting leads? I sure am! For the past few weeks I’ve been rolling in e-mails like this one:

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Dear scammers: I am on to you.

Sincerely,

Me

So in 4 months I might be able to hug a koala bear. On the other hand, I could also be bitten by a deadly spider and die.

Back when I was in elementary school, I had big dreams.

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Today, I still have big dreams.

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Ok, well.

There’s more to it than that.

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Hmm.

I’m not helping my case.

Alright, fine. I’ve wanted to go on a long-term study abroad program for a while. When I went to Germany and Japan I felt as though it wasn’t long enough. It was like I had only started to get comfortable, know the culture, and make friends when I suddenly had to return to the USA.

On the classic exchange student graph

I had only really ever reached here:

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I never had culture shock, just culture surprises. I wasn’t around long enough to get homesick. And this might sound strange, but… I feel like I missed out on those. I want to learn how to adapt. I want to take the challenge of being in a new place and a new culture. I want to go through the shock, the depression, and the uncomfortable adjustment.

And, I want to beat it. And have a smashing good time.

But that’s just me.

I’m cheating a little. Australia’s an English-speaking country, which already makes the adjustment 10 times easier. I couldn’t help it, though– as I researched programs through Northeastern, Australia seemed to be one of the only nations actually offering biology courses to international students.

So, last October, I declared to my parents that I was going to apply to the University of Sydney. (I was actually hoping to go that fall, but I postponed it when my German host sister decided to visit America.) I went to my study abroad office. I called my academic advisor. I checked the USydney website. And I submitted my application.

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And I waited.

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Finally, a couple weeks ago, I opened up my e-mail at work…

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I was accepted! University of Sydney accepted me for their “winter” semester (our summer time) running from July to November! Whoa geez. I guess I’m going to Australia!

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I still have things to do before it can actually happen, though. I have to find my own housing in a city on the other side of the world. I need to apply for my absurdly priced $600 visa. I have to book that $1,000 one-way ticket to Sydney. Did I mention that Sydney’s one of the most expensive cities in the world?

But, yeah. I thought I’d just let you know.

Coming soon in Vy’s life: Platypi, potoroos, and poisonous things!