I'm very sorry I haven't been writing. It seems as though I've disassociated myself from posting a lot on facebook and keeping in touch with anyone other than my mom and dad. I've just been so happy going out and about in Brisbane that I haven't wanted to sit down at my computer and write a whole bunch about what I've been doing!
So, last week was orientation week. It was supposed to be a bunch of days filled with things to do on campus, but the main event was marketing day. I signed up for way too many clubs and got way too excited. I felt like a freshman all over again, starting a new life in a new school and ready to discover all of these activities I'd never thought of doing before. For example, I joined the beach volleyball team, the ultimate frisbee team, the wakeboarding club, the wine and cheese club, and then in Miriam fashion the accounting club. I doubt I'll have time to do all of these things but I'm only 20 and in Australia once so I might as well get my butt out of bed and dive into the culture of uni face first!
In other exciting news I did some crazy stuff last week like...
So, last week was orientation week. It was supposed to be a bunch of days filled with things to do on campus, but the main event was marketing day. I signed up for way too many clubs and got way too excited. I felt like a freshman all over again, starting a new life in a new school and ready to discover all of these activities I'd never thought of doing before. For example, I joined the beach volleyball team, the ultimate frisbee team, the wakeboarding club, the wine and cheese club, and then in Miriam fashion the accounting club. I doubt I'll have time to do all of these things but I'm only 20 and in Australia once so I might as well get my butt out of bed and dive into the culture of uni face first!
In other exciting news I did some crazy stuff last week like...
EAT KANGAROO!!!
It was actually really good. I had it in a meat sauce on top of pasta, thanks to one of my new friends Alex. He is quite the chef.
Go to a TOGA PARTY! I usually hate theme parties, but this was an organized event by the University of Queensland. I wanted to show some school support and dress up. There were thousands of students there decked out in tons of toga attire with a great DJ and some crazy techno. This is on the bus on the way to campus after a bump in the road and laughing after almost falling.
I also tried some local foods (as you know I'm obsessed with tropical fruits). There is a smoothie/ice cream stand called "New Zealand Naturals" a ten minute walk from my building. I absolutely LOVE walking in south bank down by the river and I went one afternoon with Rachel to sit and people watch while drinking an AMAZING milkshake.
We also went adventuring out at night. If you haven't noticed I'm happy all the time here.
It's actually quite crazy how different I feel after 2 weeks of being here. I'm less stressed, I'm happy all the time, I'm relaxed and excited to go to uni and meet new people. There literally hasn't been one bad day since I've gotten here. It's hard to imagine going back to New York after having such an amazing experience here.
I don't know what it was about London, but most of the time I spent in bed watching Netflix. Okay, "most of the time" is a bit dramatic but compared to never being in my flat in Brisbane it seemed like I never left the house in London. I can't help but kick myself for not going out more and being more adventurous. In all honesty, I can make a new friend everywhere I go here and people in London were not that friendly. I went shopping the other day at the Queen Street market, basically a huge shopping center, and made friends with a guy checking bags at the door who I'd love to see again.
Yesterday was the first day of classes at UQ. Although I'm dropping my Monday class to have a four day weekend, I still enjoyed sitting in it yesterday morning. It was all about fashion and seeing it more as an art form then deciding whether a white skirt is nicer than a black frilly one. Today I had Television and Popular Culture which will prove to be my favorite class of the semester. During class we were discussing the wave of reality television and to my horror the professor showed a clip of Jersey Shore. I sank low in my seat making sure I didn't stand out and no one knew I was from New York. It will be interesting to see a student's perspective of the American culture from an Aussie standpoint. I'll also be getting their perspectives in my Australian Popular Culture class. Here's a Foster's add the professor showed today:
He also showed the same advert but for a Canadian beer. It was funny.
OH! BUT! He showed it because literally no one in Australia actually drinks Fosters and proved how it was catered to Americans.
Anyway, I've gotta run! I'm going to the market to buy some groceries!
Righteous!
Mimi