It's been awhile since I last blogged because I've been sooooo busy!! Since last time, the ASC took a trip to Canberra. We went to the Indonesian and New Zealand embassy. We also went to the Aboriginal Tent Embassy which is basically a bunch of people camped out in front of the Parliament building. The Aboriginal people have quite the sordid past and even now, Australia barely recognizes them as a people group. An Aboriginal woman talked to us while we were there and explained what they were trying to accomplish which was very interesting. She was especially hoping that Obama would come visit them when he comes to Australia in a couple months. The next day we went to an Art Gallery, National Museum, and the War museum. We didn't have a lot of time in any of them but they were so interesting! I especially liked the National Museum.
I'm really starting to get into a routine here and things are starting to feel normal which is good, I think. Today was my last day of classes for 2 weeks!!! Next week is "travel week" which is basically spring break. On Sunday morning, I'm going to the Great Barrier Reef! About 7 other people and I are flying out Sunday morning at 6am and it's about a 3 hour flight. We're staying in a hostel close to gorgeous beaches! I'm also planning on going on a boat tour for the entire day, probably on Monday. They take you out to the reef and you can go snorkeling, soooo excited! There's also a rainforest nearby which I'm hoping to go to on Tuesday then flying back into Sydney on Wednesday.
Well, I gotta go! TTYL!
Emily
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
WICKED!!
So last night I went to see WICKED!! About 15 of us went into Sydney last night to see the show and it was amazing!! I've never seen it before or any other Broadway kinda show so this was a new experience. Pretty sure I'm hooked! I even bought a ridiculously priced t-shirt. I'm not really sure why I've never seen a show before because they have them right there in Philly and I'm not too far from NYC either. That might have to change when I get home!
I had an interesting experience on the bus yesterday. So I'm sitting on the bus, minding my own business just trying to get to school. And the bus turns a corner where a man was standing and I noticed we got extremely close to this guy. I didn't think much of it until he ran up to the driver and started screaming at him and spitting on the window! So I was thinking oh wow, that was kind of exciting....All of a sudden there's a huge thump. Another guy hit one of the windows with a rock and it cracked! I'm not sure how it didn't shatter but apparently Australian bus glass is a force to be reckoned with :P But yeah, that was traumatizing but definitely made for an exciting morning. Something else I thought was interesting - In the states, the bus would've stopped and cops would've come and people would've been questioned and it would've been this whole big ordeal. The bus driver literally just glances back and keeps on driving. It was like nothing even happened. I was told by an Australian that they're just too lazy to deal with that kinda thing.
So tomorrow I'm leaving for Canberra for the weekend. Canberra is the capitol of Australia, contrary to popular belief that it's Sydney :P We have to be at school at 6am!! It's gonna be a long day but I'm pretty excited to get away from school!
Tootles!
I had an interesting experience on the bus yesterday. So I'm sitting on the bus, minding my own business just trying to get to school. And the bus turns a corner where a man was standing and I noticed we got extremely close to this guy. I didn't think much of it until he ran up to the driver and started screaming at him and spitting on the window! So I was thinking oh wow, that was kind of exciting....All of a sudden there's a huge thump. Another guy hit one of the windows with a rock and it cracked! I'm not sure how it didn't shatter but apparently Australian bus glass is a force to be reckoned with :P But yeah, that was traumatizing but definitely made for an exciting morning. Something else I thought was interesting - In the states, the bus would've stopped and cops would've come and people would've been questioned and it would've been this whole big ordeal. The bus driver literally just glances back and keeps on driving. It was like nothing even happened. I was told by an Australian that they're just too lazy to deal with that kinda thing.
So tomorrow I'm leaving for Canberra for the weekend. Canberra is the capitol of Australia, contrary to popular belief that it's Sydney :P We have to be at school at 6am!! It's gonna be a long day but I'm pretty excited to get away from school!
Tootles!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
P.S. Address!!!
I have my address on Facebook but for the less observant ones I'm gonna put it on here too. Please, please send me letters! (Packages are a bit expensive) If you've ever been away from home then you know how exciting it is to get letters from people! Here it is:
Emily Henry
Wesley Institute - ASC
P.O. Box 534
Drummoyne NSW 1470
Australia
Hope to hear from you!!
Emily Henry
Wesley Institute - ASC
P.O. Box 534
Drummoyne NSW 1470
Australia
Hope to hear from you!!
9,869 miles from home but who's counting...
It's Monday afternoon and I just finished my only class of the day - Hip-Hop. I almost learned the entire routine today. PROGRESS! Denise, Trevor, and I went to Sydney Dance Company on Saturday and took a hip-hop class. It was soooo much fun so I'm gonna buy a pass and keep going every week. Watch out Sam Dyson!! hehe :) So after the dance class, we went to the beach. I got slammed and knocked around by the waves for about 10 minutes til it started to rain :/ But it's all good because we went back to Trevor, David, and Eddie's house and had spaghetti with KANGAROO meat! It was soooo good! Don't knock it 'til you try it :)
On Sunday we went to Macca's (McDonald's) and sat around there on our computers because they have free internet. Internet is different in Australia, it's not one flat rate for internet. They pay by the megabyte (I think) so we can't use the internet at our houses. Then off to our Greek church where we got to hang out with Mickey. He works with a fashion magazine and he's gonna take me and Denise shopping! I also sustained an injury playing ping-pong with an 8 year old but we won't go into that one :P
Culture shock is starting to set in a bit I think. Times when you're standing at the bus stop in the rain and your bus is mysteriously MIA. Or when all you need is a hug from Mom or your best friend and you realize it's not a matter of jumping in your car and driving to Philly, Hanover, Rahway, Pottstown, Westminster, or wherever! It would involve a few plane rides, boat, or even a giant raft if you're feeling adventurous and it's just not gonna happen. At that point it's time to make a choice. There's always curl up into a little ball and cry or, in the words of Dory, "Just keep swimming". So that is my thought of the day - "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming"
On Sunday we went to Macca's (McDonald's) and sat around there on our computers because they have free internet. Internet is different in Australia, it's not one flat rate for internet. They pay by the megabyte (I think) so we can't use the internet at our houses. Then off to our Greek church where we got to hang out with Mickey. He works with a fashion magazine and he's gonna take me and Denise shopping! I also sustained an injury playing ping-pong with an 8 year old but we won't go into that one :P
Culture shock is starting to set in a bit I think. Times when you're standing at the bus stop in the rain and your bus is mysteriously MIA. Or when all you need is a hug from Mom or your best friend and you realize it's not a matter of jumping in your car and driving to Philly, Hanover, Rahway, Pottstown, Westminster, or wherever! It would involve a few plane rides, boat, or even a giant raft if you're feeling adventurous and it's just not gonna happen. At that point it's time to make a choice. There's always curl up into a little ball and cry or, in the words of Dory, "Just keep swimming". So that is my thought of the day - "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming"
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
A quiet Wednesday in the library
So I'm getting a late start on this blog thing so I'll try to recap these last couple weeks a little. I was the typical tourist when I first got to Australia - mouth hanging open and camera attached to my hand. I was also so excited to be away from the snow in PA that I paid little attention to the Australian sun which, I must say, is somewhat of a freak of nature. It does NOT play, especially with someone with pale skin that has barely seen the light of day for months. Anyways, lesson learned (hopefully).
Michael, my adorable Greek host-dad, picked me and Denise up that first day and took us to our adorable Greek house. His wife, Marina, is a very good cook and LOVES to feed people. You might think you know someone who likes people to eat but you have no idea until you've been around a bunch of Greek women. We had orientation the rest of the week and classes started the following Monday.
Classes have definitely been interesting. If you know me at all, then you know I'm not an artsy kind of person. I'm too white to dance (as witnessed by a certain hip-hop dance performed at the coffee house last year...). I also can't draw, Sam K. has attempted some but it has ended in my utter failure. And my idea of graphic design is coloring Disney princesses with my roommates and putting them on the fridge. Yet, I'm in hip-hop, drawing, and graphic design. You may be wondering, doesn't that involve artistic talent? I asked the very same question and was told that no artistic talent was needed. Perfect for me, right? Instead, I've found out that while no talent is needed to pass the class, talent is needed to not look like a fool. I'm learning to laugh at myself. A lot.
Sydney is definitely the coolest place I've ever been. I bought season passes to Sydney Aquarium, Wildlife World, and Manly Beach Reserve. No shortage of enthusiasm for Australian critters here! I especially liked the wildlife world (pics on FB!) There are so many other things to see and do here though. I probably won't even get it all in 4 months! Denise and I have also done a lot of shopping. I was looking all over these Australian stores for some shoes and ended up buying two pairs at K-Mart. Oh the irony.
Went to the beach this past weekend with Denise, David, and Trevor. Denise and I were being girls and weren't gonna get in the ocean because it was kinda chilly. David ended up throwing us both in. I learned not to dash his dreams. He'll throw you in whatever's handy. Denise learned not to turn her back on him.
Later that night, went to a Greek church with my host family. They had a dinner afterwards and the food looked amazing! Then I uncovered this pot. Big mistake. I found little, pink baby octopus! Now I know I'm supposed to be trying different foods but that was just a little too much. Speaking of weird animals, Denise and I found a dead bat on our way home from school. Now when I think of bats, I think little nasty things that need to be avoided at all costs. This was all true of this bat except for the little part. This thing was like a mutant groundhog with wings! Moving on. They also have lots of little lizards running around. They're fun to chase if you're in the mood to look like the idiotic American chasing lizards.
Well, this has been a wonderful procrastination method but I must go :) Talk to ya later!
Michael, my adorable Greek host-dad, picked me and Denise up that first day and took us to our adorable Greek house. His wife, Marina, is a very good cook and LOVES to feed people. You might think you know someone who likes people to eat but you have no idea until you've been around a bunch of Greek women. We had orientation the rest of the week and classes started the following Monday.
Classes have definitely been interesting. If you know me at all, then you know I'm not an artsy kind of person. I'm too white to dance (as witnessed by a certain hip-hop dance performed at the coffee house last year...). I also can't draw, Sam K. has attempted some but it has ended in my utter failure. And my idea of graphic design is coloring Disney princesses with my roommates and putting them on the fridge. Yet, I'm in hip-hop, drawing, and graphic design. You may be wondering, doesn't that involve artistic talent? I asked the very same question and was told that no artistic talent was needed. Perfect for me, right? Instead, I've found out that while no talent is needed to pass the class, talent is needed to not look like a fool. I'm learning to laugh at myself. A lot.
Sydney is definitely the coolest place I've ever been. I bought season passes to Sydney Aquarium, Wildlife World, and Manly Beach Reserve. No shortage of enthusiasm for Australian critters here! I especially liked the wildlife world (pics on FB!) There are so many other things to see and do here though. I probably won't even get it all in 4 months! Denise and I have also done a lot of shopping. I was looking all over these Australian stores for some shoes and ended up buying two pairs at K-Mart. Oh the irony.
Went to the beach this past weekend with Denise, David, and Trevor. Denise and I were being girls and weren't gonna get in the ocean because it was kinda chilly. David ended up throwing us both in. I learned not to dash his dreams. He'll throw you in whatever's handy. Denise learned not to turn her back on him.
Later that night, went to a Greek church with my host family. They had a dinner afterwards and the food looked amazing! Then I uncovered this pot. Big mistake. I found little, pink baby octopus! Now I know I'm supposed to be trying different foods but that was just a little too much. Speaking of weird animals, Denise and I found a dead bat on our way home from school. Now when I think of bats, I think little nasty things that need to be avoided at all costs. This was all true of this bat except for the little part. This thing was like a mutant groundhog with wings! Moving on. They also have lots of little lizards running around. They're fun to chase if you're in the mood to look like the idiotic American chasing lizards.
Well, this has been a wonderful procrastination method but I must go :) Talk to ya later!
Monday, March 8, 2010
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