Australia Day!

So, I guess I better fill you in on Australia Day (a.k.a. "The Day of Mourning" to the Aborigines. Guess it depends on your perspective.) before more time gets away from me. I'll set the stage with the weather to start. It was the hottest and most humid day we've had since being here. But don't fear! I stayed hydrated and sunscreened for the duration of our day. (I've yet to be sun burned actually. Knock on wood.)

To begin our morning, we headed to the Queensland governor's estate, where we toured her home and got to meet her. Bagpipers marched past blaring patriotic tunes and the Army band set the mood with classics like "Come Fly with Me." The highlights included the ponds covered in lily pads and the dining room in which each place setting cost an astonishing $28,000! Though parts of her home are beautiful, it was a bit stuffy for my taste. There were countless portraits of British royalty including signed photos from Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. I was surprised be the strong reverence for the British monarchy. Observing the excesses of the royal family is sickening to be honest. Let's just say I wouldn't call myself a monarchist. Although it was interesting to know that even post-independence, Australia still has such a tie to England.

From there we went to South Bank where all the action was- the barbies, the beach, the market place displaying tourist nick-knacks and cheap jewelry (both of which I indulged in), dance and musical performances, and innumerable crowds. Australia, being concerned with sun health has an entire corporation devoted to just that called SunCorp. They were handing out free sunscreen all day! My two roommates and I tooled around for a few hours, bought a smoothie and headed home to get out of the heat. We made our way back with four of our guys friends to South Bank for the fireworks. To give you an idea- think of a finale for the show's entire duration set to snip-its of music with no real synchronicity with the explosions. The bar is set high growing up at Disneyland, I guess. Although, they did have a couple of my favorite fireworks and the colors reflected and glittered on the windows of the downtown skyline. Beautiful! We then headed to dinner at a swanky restaurant with poor service, due to the fact that there's no tipping here. Unfortunate for the waiter and the customer. But it was really fun to be in the city for a nice dinner!
Being pretty tuckered out from the heat, we headed home to relax. It was a wonderful ending to a wonderful day.

Aboriginal Cultural Center

We went on a group field trip to the Musgrave Cultural Center to learn about Aborigines, their cultural practices, history, and current plight. It was a great experience. Their culture is one that doesn't run on linear time, which means that sticking to a rigid schedule isn't given much thought, making our afternoon a relaxing one. They performed indigenous dance and even taught us a few moves. They fed us their traditional breakfast breads with "bush relish" and golden syrup, which is a key ingredient in a bunch of Aussie foods- like molasses and honey mixed, very sweet. We made our own boomerangs and learned how to throw them. To end the afternoon, they were hospitable enough to grill kangaroo meat for a barbecue. 'Roo meat is similar to beef but more lean and tender. Really good!

Not only was it fun but a great education as well. The Aborigines' current situation is almost identical to that of the Native Americans in the states. Land is being fought for, unemployment is high and alcohol and drug use runs rampant. But they hold onto their culture and emphasize that it is alive and well amidst their struggle. I have to agree.

Taste of Culture

So, here's your quick dose of Oz culture to assist in your immersion process. Hope it gives you another peak into my life here and answers various burning questions I know you all have.

Tid bit number one: It's not a wive's tale. The water, as a result of the Coriolis Effect, does swirl down a drain in the opposite direction- clockwise.

Now, onto traffic... Australians drive on the opposite side of the road. With the addition of round-abouts, adjusting is actually a lot more difficult than expected, especially when crossing streets on a run! The fast lane is furthest to the right and on/off ramps are on the left. I wondered before coming to Australia if driving on the opposite side of the road had an effect on people's walking logistics (nerd alert), and it does. If you're walking toward someone in the states you veer right to avoid them, and if you want to pass someone you pass on the left. But, here it is just the opposite- veer left and pass right. A car's passenger seat is on the left side, and you enter/exit a bus on the left side.

K, onto Aussie Speak... and that's AuZZie. (I was repremanded for saying it with an "s" sound.) Aussies are notorious for shortening words or adding endings to them. They also use British English as well. So, here's some fun vocab to use back in the states:

Brizzy=Brisbane
Oz=Australia
bird=girl
bloke=guy
garbo=trash man
wheely bins=trash cans with wheels
rubbish=trash
sunnies=sunglasses
sickie=sick day from work
brekkie=breakfast
arvo=afternoon
owyagoin'?=how are you?
mate=guy to guy greeting
stubby=can of beer
no worries=you're welcome
dunny/lou/toilet=bathroom
Poms/Pommies=Brits
Kiwis=New Zealanders
sanger=sandwich
truckie=truck driver
heaps=lots
g'day=hi

Cheers to acculturation!

The Whitsundays and Australia Day

Some of my pictures are finally online for your viewing pleasure from my first week here and my weekend excursions to Byron Bay and the Whitsundays with still more to come!

So, the Whitsunday Islands turned out to be a great getaway, although a tropical rainstorm happened to be part of our experience. Luckily, the weather held up enough to still allow for our snorkeling day-cruise though. The colors weren't as vibrant and the sediment decreased visibility, but the Great Barrier Reef is a world all it's own and was still incredible to see! The highlight for me were the HUGE blue clams. In spite of the rain, the water was 85 degrees! So, we pulled on our "stinger suits" (essentially full-body spandex leotards for protection from deadly box jellyfish) and hopped in. And yes, I invested in an underwater camera. Our cruise included a rainforest hike to the Daydream Island lookout and Whitehaven Beach, which has the clearest water and whitest sand I've ever seen. Back in town, we did do bit of sun bathing on the bank of the lagoon in Airlie Beach where we stayed. (Oddly enough, there is no significant beach- just the lagoon.) As the rain came down, I passed time with a few of the girls in the local bead shop. The fruits of my labor turned out three pairs of adorable earrings and two bracelets. On our last night there, I learned how to play Aussie rules pool at a local bar and got hit on by a seventy year old, Asian-hating drunk, who coincidentally was seated in the row in front of me on the plane flight home! What are the chances?! So, that is my weekend in brief. It was great to get away, but nice to be home. All this traveling is surprisingly exhausting. But don't worry Mom and Dad, school work of course comes first. ;)

Last night, I was lucky enough to see my very first "touch footie" game. A friend I met in the states lives here in Brisbane permanently. He plays in a rec league and invited me to their semi-final match. As far as I understand, it's touch rugby. Think touch football but much faster and harder to follow! Brisbane is a diverse city with lots of ethnic food, which we took advantage of by ordering Indian takeout. Mmm! It's great to get away from the group and experience normal Brizzy life, not feeling like a tourist for even just a short time.

This weekend is Australia Day, which is similar to our 4th of July. The entire country shuts down, "barbies" start up along with concerts, outdoor movie marathons, dancing, drumming, fireworks all accompanied by XXXX beer, which is actually brewed here in Brisbane. We plan on grilling up some kangaroo meat. Heard it's tastey. I'll let you know!

Whitsunday Islands

This weekend I'll be traveling to the Whitsunday Islands, which are located two-thirds of the way down on the Great Barrier Reef. Five of us girls are going and will be staying in an apartment on the mainland. We are planning a snorkling tour for one of the days, which should offer some pretty spectacular photo opps. Better invest in an underwater camera. Can't wait to tell you all about it. Cheers!

Setting the Stage

The fifteen hour flight went much faster than expected with no hitches in travel. Having returned from Urbana in St. Louis just the day before, I was packing furiously until leaving my parents' for my LAX departure, but so far I haven't found that I've forgotten anything. Phew!

So let me get you up to speed on where I'm living...

Our apartments are a quick walk to the bus stop in a suburb of Brisbane called Taringa. They include a salt water pool and once a week maid service. Torturous, really. My roommates are great, one of which is my SLO roommate, Kira.

The city of Brisbane is beautiful. It reminds me a bit of Boston with a modern twist. There's a great outdoor mall and an area called South Bank where a man-made beach is located along with an art museum, gallery, and botanical gardens. The public trasportation system includes trains and buses and also a ferry called the City Cat, which gives way to scenic rides home with the night skyline draped behind.

University of Queensland is an incredible school, one of the top four in the country! Having been opened in 1901, the architecture is beautiful. I feel like I'm on a "real" college campus, and it inspires me to go somewhere with true atmosphere for my masters.

So, there ya have it. That's the setting for my quarter down under. Here goes...