Caversham Wildlife Park

I am going to post a few things out of order so that I can get pictures to go along with the posts.

Saturday morning we got up early and took a bus about 45 minutes away to a wildlife park. Caversham specializes in animals that are native to Australia. We got to feed and pet kangaroos while in thier pen. We also saw emus, wombats, crocodiles, many more- of course koalas. Finally, we got to ride on camels- you may say they are not in Australia, but they are actually used extensively in the arid Outback.

There are many more pictures including Tasmanian Devils, dingos, emus, etc. but you get the idea.

After that, we stopped at a chocolate factory on the way home. It is located in a well known wine producing region of West Australia- Margaret River- and we will have to go back to explore that part of the region in more depth.

It was 99 degrees outside, so we headed to the beach for a few hours. One of the girls in our group had an American football shipped here, so we made our presense known as Americans even more by tossing around the pigskin with "that funny shaped ball". FYI - in this country soccer is called "soccer", American football is called "gridiron", and Aussie Rules football is called "football" or "footy" for short.

We finished the night by heading in to the city of Perth on the train. Public transportation to and around the city is great. We headed to some cool bars and clubs in Northridge, one of the rowdier sections of town.

All in all, not too shabby of a Saturday.

*Special* Click on this provided link below to watch a video clip showing the walk from the dorm to the beach, the marina, and the harbor. Please let me know if this works.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jorl3vkO_CU

(the link wasn't working for a while but it should be fixed now - let me know)

There's pride in every American heart and it's time we stand and say that I'm proud to be an American

Ok so those are lyrics from the Lee Greenwood song - but in real life they are true for most Americans. They may disagree with things going on in the country and/or with the government, but they are still proud to call themselves Americans.

I'm finding more and more that this is not true of all countries around the globe. Australians have run into us many times and honestly asked why we are so gung-ho American and "Yay we're from America". We always tell them that we are proud to be an American and have no trouble telling others. We asked them aren't they "yay australia" when they are abroad - to which they responded no. There is really only the kind of nationalism that America finds common place here during major events like a national sporting event.

A common joke/ light insult to Americans here is to ask them what part of Canada they are from (knowing full well they are Americans). After being informed about this, we respond in an equally joking manner by eaching picking a different province of Canada and trying to do a terrible accent and playing it dead-pan. It really throws them off, before we jokingly tell them the truth.

We had meetings right when we got here about attitudes towards our home country. One thing they did say is that Australians strongly dislike the French, which was not good news to the group of French students that were sitting near us. Those students have tried hard to convince people who ask them that they are from Montreal - to varying success.

I noticed this in Europe in each of the countries, and the same applies here as well. People/ businesses do not fly the flag. The only time that you see an Australian flag is in a large public square or a government building. Even then, sometimes it is the state flag rather than the national flag. People have told us that they don't understand why we fly the flag at our homes and businesses, and why when they are in our country they see endless flags. I think one of the big problems that people have while trying to comprehend America and its citizens is their inability to understand that we can divorce the country from the government. America is our country, not our government, and not our government's country- in countries that I visit around the world this does not seem to be the case- and people who dislike America tend to make the mistake of lumping America and the United States Government as the same. Regardless of your political affliation, you would have to admit- as Americans they are not the same to us.

I guess I should end this section the same way Greenwood did- God Bless the USA

Anyways...

Tuesday-

Classes did start, and I did go to them. My first class, Living Human Rights, is actually taught by a professor who attended Notre Dame in South Bend. He is an American who moved down here and hasn't gone back. The class is going to be a lot about personal reflection and your own beliefs of which there is no wrong answer as long as you put some reasons behind everything. It seems interesting. It was my only class of the day, and the tutorial for it does not start until next week. There are quite a few Americans in the class with me as well, so we will be able to help eachother out.

We had another catered dinner- this time lasagna and home made potato wedges with corn on the cob. One thing that they do not have down here is Katchup. What they do have that is similar is "tomato sauce" (or sauce for short) that is not the same as what we call tomato sauce. It is not bad but not the same. What they do put on potatoes, however, is better than what we use. Unlike the vinegar that British influenced countries often use, they use a sweet chili sauce on french fries that is awesome! Much better than any fries I have ever had. They also use sour cream on french fries- also pretty good. We had salad with the meal, and here again is another difference between US food and Australian. Sure they have salad dressings that have the same names as ours. But none of them taste the same at all. Ranch here is white, but not that creamy and very very sweet. Italian, Thousand Island, balsamic, etc etc all taste nothing like their American counterparts. I'm not saying they taste bad, just different (although some are worse).

Now for the greatest Australian food product ever:

Solo Soda is awesome! I could drink this stuff non stop everyday. It is sorta like lemonade soda- but way better. It has some real lemon in it. They also make an equally good lime soda that is tremendous. They are great because they are not too sweet and actually taste like the fruit they are supposed to be flavored like. If anyone ever sees this stuff in the states let me know - I will have to stock up. (Coke makes a similar competitor product [though not as good] called Lift, but it is not produced in the states).

Runner up- TimTams. They are a delicious chocolate fudge cookie that is amazing. Anyone who has ever been to Australia knows TimTams and Solo. These need to be exported to the States ASAP.

Not a big Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday celebration here in Fremantle. Nothing really went on at all.

Wednesday I have lots of classes and will write to you about them to let you know how they seem.

Also, a quick housekeeping note- I changed the settings on this so that people who want to leave comments can do so without creating any accounts or logging in or signing up. Sorry that I did not do that before. I hope that this will encourage more people to leave comments and to ask me questions about anything in that manner.

Picture Post (but dont miss the new post right below it)

In the Hesburgh Room in our dorm (Port Lodge) - the dining and common room

In the Freo Markets with an Aussie Bush Hat

In front of Fremantle Markets (mentioned in last post)

Bather's Beach (aka McBeach) 30 steps from our dorm (light house in distance)

South Beach looking toward the marina

South Beach with Keaton and Tina

I'm going to do these slowly and spread them out- partly because I am lazy and partly to build anticipation. This will make you stay tuned to the blog to see more rather than seeing everything at once. Let me know if there is something you would like to see pictures of.

Don't forget the post right below this one. I posted these on the same day.

The end of summer

Sunday was a day for celebration of sorts as the end of summer. That sounds weird to say coming from the snow and ice of mid Michigan, but it was the last day of summer before "uni"
started up for another year of school.

It was a last chance to hang out and have fun, and for many to sleep in. We started our day at the Fremantle Markets, which is much like Pike Place Markets in Seatle. It is a place for food vendors, craft makers, and many fresh fruit and flowers to sell goods and produce at reasonable prices. It is an exciting and lively place, and is only open on the weekends. Sunday is a great day to go because vendors need to get rid of the produce by the end of Sunday, and prices are much better then.

The group split up a little bit then. There is a great resort beach a short train ride away and a hotel where a very relaxed bar hosts "sunday sesh" each week. I have not been to that beach yet, Cottlesloe, and want to get down there, but instead three of us stayed back and went to mass. It was a great opportunity to meet people, because there was a pot luck dinner hosted by locals afterwards. We met the chaplain, locals, and got a free meal out of it.

Afterwards we walked along the beach for the sunset, and made our way to the harbor. There is an incredible harbor for recreation use, and the structure is impressive. We made our way along the water to one of our favorite joints, Little Creatures, in an old warehouse over the water that I mentioned in a previous entry. One of the best parts, other than the great hard cider and on-site brewed beer, is a bocce ball pit right on the edge of the water - for free! Kevin, Matt, and I headed down and played two games each. It was fitting that we each went 1-1.

Apparently I have been playing bocce by incorrect rules my entire life. I have always played by the "Hayward Rules". But according to the set of official rules posted by the lit pit, at least in this country, the rules are different.

We had a great time. Eventually we met up at our other hang out the Orient for a few drinks with the rest of the group on the last night before school started (though not for me as I have mondays off).

Monday was a great day. I got to sleep in while others went to class, and even went for a jog along the water. Finally when I got back, a group of us decided to explore in a new direction. We ended up discovering the West Australia War Memorial. Fremantle is the main port on the west coast of Australia. From their ports, war ships left for all of the major wars since Australia's independence.

We came back and went to the beach for a few hours before dinner. Gary, our chef, was here tonight for a delicious dinner of lasagna and corn on the cob, with home-made cheesecake for dessert.

I decided to relax tonight and get ready for school tomorrow. A group of us had a good evening talking and sharing and getting to know eachother better.

Class starts tomorrow - first class I will sit in since December 12th. I think I'll remember what to do.

Random Thoughts

It's been a few days since I have posted a new entry, and it is not because nothing has happened- rather that it hasn't been anything really different than what I have already told you about. But here a few thoughts from Wed - Sat.

The meetings that were mandatory for so long have pretty much ended and we are on our own a lot more. That being said the rules here are much more strict than back in South Bend. For one thing, we have to report to the hall supervisors if we are going to be out at night past a certain point and if we are going to be gone for a night. In South Bend we could theoretically be gone the entire semester without the hall ever knowing. There is also no alcohol allowed in or around the dorm. I believe this to be a misguided rule. Now I know that what you are thinking - of course a college kid is going to think this. But at least let me point out a few things: 1) 90-95% of us are already 21 years old 2) That is actually irrelevant because the drinking age is 18 down here so we are all legal. 3) They actually encourage us to drink, but just not in the dorm 4) What happens is it pushes all of the parties and drinking away from the dorm into bars and clubs in an area that we are not native to and not totally familiar with which is dangerous 5) They could control it if we did it in the building, whereas bar tenders do not cut you off here, the liability laws are totally different and they just want your money 6) alcohol is expensive at bars and it would save us all a lot of money summary) safer, cheaper, and more control if they would let us drink in the dorm rather than telling us we should drink, just out and around

A side note to that- we had a guy get punched out a bar a few days ago. I wasn't there, but all accounts (Americans and bar owners) say it was not his fault and the blame lays on a drunk Aussie.

Ok, on to different news. We had our first jellyfish sting in our group. A poor girl had one latch on her arm. I happened to be in the kitchen when her group of friends brought her back in. This being the case, I ran to my computer and googled it to find the correct procedure and to make sure we took all of the correct steps. She is fine, but I am now thought of the jellyfish expert because I quickly absorbed the steps and helped her out. It doesn't look like a lot of fun, but its just some pain and it will subside, and now we know what to do if it happens again.

Billiards tables are very different here than in the states. We have one in our dorm and also at all of the bars that we go to. They are much smaller, and the balls are smaller as well. The most frusterating part about it is the pocket shape and size prevents almost all bank-ins. There is almost no angle for opening and you must hit the ball cleanly in or it will bounce out. Much more frusterating game.

With community dinners twice a week, and me hording and cleaning up the leftovers the two nights following those, it only leaves me three nights a week of real cooking for dinners. Yesterday I took the big step and did up a full meal for the first time. Nicole and I decided to team up and cook together. I grilled up hamburgers while she put together some corn, potatoes and a tomato dish. I have to say the burgers actually tasted really good and I was pretty proud of myself because the grill was a little unpredictable and the pattys really thick.

I have heard rumors of snow in the Michigan / Indiana areas. You will be happy to know that it has gone over 100 degrees F here the last three days. A lot of time spent down at the beach and in the water to keep cool. The nice thing about it is that there is a breeze, and it actually cools down at night to make it a little more comfortable.

Sunburn update: a few of you commented that I seemed burned after the first day here. While that may have been slightly true I would like to point out that it was not my face or front of body that was burned and there has been absolutely no peeling there. My back, however, is not the same story. I pretty much missed it with the lotion on the first day, and it is now peeling a little. Since that very first day, though, I have been very dilligent with sunscreen and have absolutely no new burns. A nice tan going though.

Our group went to our favorite local spot Bar Orient for karaoke night this week. I did not make it up to the mic this time as it closed before my turn, but you can probably get a picture of what this whole scene looks like.

We also went to a new place that I really think is my favorite. It is in an old warehouse over the water that used to be a pier for shipping. They built a mini brewery in it and restaurant. They make all of their own beers, and also have great hard cider. The restaurant part is very cool to, and the deck over the water has great views. I am sure I will be going back.

So far we are having a blast. Without school, its kinda been like spring break in Florida with your buddies. Classes start up for the University on Monday, and for me on Tuesday. The last time that I was in a classroom for a lecture was Dec 12. That seems ages ago. People have emailed me asking about my schedule down here, so here it is.

Monday: off

Tuesday: Living Human Rights-- Lecture 4:30-6:30pm Tutorial 6:30-7:30pm

Wednesday: International Business-- Lecture 8:30-9:30 am

Moral Philosophy and Ethics -- Seminar 9:30 - 12:30

International Business -- Tutorial 3:30- 5:30pm

Thursday: Austrian Economics (not australian)-- Lecture 10:30-12:30 Tutorial 12:30-1:30

Friday: Australian History and Culture-- Lecture 8:30-10:30 am Tutorial 10:30 -11:30am

A few notes- many of you know that my earliest class in college I have taken yet was at 9:30, and I did not like getting up for that at all. Two 8:30s will be a different schooling experience for me. However, this also means that my weekends go from 11:30 am on friday to 4:30 pm on tuesday. Not a bad deal - and will allow for me to take many side trips over the weekends which I am looking forward to. I know of at least two others who have the same weekend setup and we are going to enjoy that time off.

I have yet to get books, and I am not looking forward to that monetary drain on my resources, but am actually kinda looking forward to school. Its been a while and its probably time to start doing something productive again.

I have found a new routine that I plan on sticking to while Im here. I love going to the beach after dinner around 8pm and watching the sun set in the west over the Indian Ocean. They are beautiful sunsets here, and very peaceful. I also love going to the beach after the bar around 2 in the morning. I love just listening to the ocean and watching the red and green lights of the ships out on the horizon. I really enjoy that, and could easily see myself living near an ocean later in life. One night Nicole, Matt and I even decided to go for an impromtu swim at that time. A little chilly, but very enjoyable.

Overall, I am having a tremendous time. I like a lot of the people, and everyone is getting along really well. The beaches are amazing, the weather even better, and the town very cool. Things will change a little when school starts, but I am sure we will still have a great time. Groups of friends are starting to form away from the entire group and that is a good thing, but we all still do a lot together. I did not know a single person when I came on this trip, but I think that was the best thing. I get along with everyone, and have already made a lot of new friends that I will keep. I cannot believe it has already been a week! Time flies. But who wouldn't have a good time when you spend your days and nights like this --

Poisonous Snakes and Bird Watching

We started the day by getting on busses for a volunteer trip. I joined others who gave their time to a local area government ecology group working to save the wetlands around a few local lakes. Wetlands here are not what they are in the states- they are merely areas of "bush" around lakes. They are delicate ecosystems that have been invaded by incoming weeds. Our job was to find the plants not native to the area and pull them out. Right before they sent us out into the bush, they gave us this speech: "As you know 9 of the 10 deadliest snakes in the world live in Australia. Luckily the area you will be working on today is the home to only two of those nine. So you should be fine. Oh, by the way - watch out for the spiders that have red and yellow on them- you won't like them."

Besides those, they forgot to mention the wasp nests that we found as well.

After this they took us to another lake which is a bird sanctuary. These birds fly all the way to this location from Alaska. There were areas for us to watch the birds in "hides".

When we got back from this trip, we had some housekeeping items to do. They included getting our student IDs, going into Perth to get Australia Proof of Age Cards (so we do not have to carry our passports around), and switch some classes. We also had a lecture about the academic differences here than in the US.

Finally, we get a professional chef to cook meals for us two days a week (the only two meals provided to us a week). Tuesday is one of those days. We enjoyed a sausage dish with cous-cous, and a really good chicken dish. I am going to enjoy this perk when he is here.

We stayed in tonight and watched a movie and played pool. We had a good time catching up. A different kind of day here. Tomorrow is supposed to be around 95 degrees-- Ill be sure to put some sunscreen on.

President's Day

I'm sure that when school starts, there will not be posts everyday. However, in the interim much seems to be going on.

Our big activity yesterday for all 77 of the American students was a trip to Perth to play a game much like the television show The Amazing Race. We started off in Fremantle, and had to take a train into the city, find all of the stops and info that we had to find and return. Fastest time wins, however, each wrong answer would cost you 30 minutes.

Perth is a city of a little over 2 million people. It has been recorded as the most isolated state capital city anywhere in the world. There really are no metropoli remotely close to it in any direction. It has a large central business district much like Chicago, and built around that are a shopping area, eating area, and cafe strip.

The game was cool and we had a pretty good team, and were able to find everything and return in the fastest time. However, a penalty for a missed question dropped us back to third place- just fast enough to get a prize.

As good Americans, we of course took the rest of the day to celebrate the great holiday of President's Day. Of course we celebrated it more like St. Patrick's Day, but we did make sure to be very historic. The Australians at the bar we favored found us quite hilarious as we packed around a lounge area in the back. We were able to name all 44 presidents in order, and give a historical fact about each. Following each name, we clinked glasses in their honor and had a drink to their name.

The Australians found this funny for a few reasons. 1) We were loudly celebrating in the afternoon. 2) We were celebrating a holiday they had never heard of. 3) They were actually very impressed that we could name all 44 presidents in the history of the United States. -- they admitted that they could not name very many prime ministers in Aussie history.

It was a good time, and by the evening we were ready to just lay low and hang out. I am glad that I chose this path, as a few people did go out and went to some new bar. One guy ended up getting punched out in a bar fight. Glad that I missed that.

On a side note, I usually write these blog entries in the mornings when I wake up and reflect on the previous day. Today is no different, but I will add something that occured this morning. The worst thing about sunburn on your face is something I wouldn't have guessed. It's not the pain from the burn itself, but rather shaving that is very painful. It was not a pleasant experience.

Again, pictures are coming soon I promise. Also, don't forget that you can comment on each of these writings and I check for any feedback. If you have any questions, ask them in that way and I will try to answer them in the next writing.

We get to live here?

Sunday was a free day, with nothing scheduled until dinner. The nice part about it was that we could catch up on some quality sleep, as well as explore the area. Fremantle has about 27,000 people- but is not very large geographically. It has a very cool area of shops and cafes that give it a real mellow feel to it.

I slept through the first wave of people heading out, but a group of four of us decided to walk around the area and go to the store. The first thing I realised (im going to try to use the Australian spelling for some of these words since I'm here) was that you cannot take two steps outside on a sunny day without your sunglasses. I thought I was going blind, and had to run back and get them. The city is very clean. It is not very new, but they have used a lot of old buildings and turned them into new useful shops.

We went into a cafe for lunch, and I learned a few helpful things. I ordered a salmon sandwich was tremendous, but they asked if I wanted salad on it, which was extra. This is the way you must order it if you want any lettuce, tomato, pickle, etc. They also do not serve water at the table unless you specifically ask, and even then it has no ice and comes in the smallest of glasses.

The best part of the day was heading to the beach. The larger group headed about a 20 minute train ride away to one of the most famous beaches here, but we decided to take a 15 minute walk to the nearby South Beach. It was amazing. The view is tremendous, the sand soft and white, the water crystal clear, and it seems to have less salt than I am used to in the Atlantic. The temperature was about 90, and it was just a laid back day in the warm waves of the Indian Ocean. There is a great park there as well, and I have to ask -- how could anyone not be happy at a place like this?

We went to the beach 30 seconds from our dorm on the way home and waded through the water. There is a McDonalds right on the beach, which may not seem like a good thing, but they have free WIFI there, and 50 cent icecream. We call it "Mc Beach" and more than a few 50 cent pieces will be dropped there over the coming months.

We had dinner with all of the American students from all of the schools. There are 77 of them, and we had dinner in a courtyard with all of them. They come from many schools, almost all Catholic. Catholic University (Washington DC), St. Johns, St Bens, Gonzaga, Boston College, St Marys, Notre Dame, Iona, Portland University (Catholic), Sacred Heart, and others. We are spread out over three dorms, but only ND, Sacred Heart, and BC are in our dorm.

There are many Blue Laws here: bars close very early on Sundays, and you cannot purchase any from a store on a Sunday, so we did not go out last night. We stayed in and hung out, and had a great time bonding- pretty hilarious stuff.

After that much sun (I did get a litte burned and will have to be more diligent with my sunscreen), I was so tired by 11 that I crashed.

A great day at the beach.
PS- pictures coming soon

The Journey Begins

Australia is a long way away. There really is no way to dispute that. It was approx 36 hours door to door. To be honest, this was the only part of the experience that I was not looking forward to, however, it truly was not that bad.

After driving to Detroit and having a minor moment where it looked possible that I had left my wallet at home (it had fallen out of my pocket and under the seat) things went well. I saw a former high school teacher at the airport (apparently he was playing hookey from the last day before President's Day break), and I really didn't have too much down time after eating before boarding the plane to LAX. The plane for this long a trip was surprisingly small, only 24 rows, and was pretty tightly packed. It was not like any other plane I have traveled on while heading to the west coast, and had no ammenities. What worked out well was that I was seated next to an officer of the United States Army, and a die-hard MSU alumn, who had just gotten home from a trip to Iraq. He also works a civilian job for the state regarding prisions, and between Iraq and that we had a fascinating conversation that made the five hour flight go by very quickly. I absolutely loved hearing about the war from somewhat who has actually been fighting and will be going back sometime, rather than from slanted news organization (one way or the other).

The landing into LA was cool for me. I have technically been there before (under the age of one), but obviously do not remember any of it. I did not realize how close the mountains and hills are surrounding the city. I sat on the window and was on the correct side as we flew directly over the city which was very cool. I got excited because I could see the Hollywood sign up on the hill, as well as the Staples Center standing out below me. On a less positive note I could see the that house of horrors for ND football, the Coliseum where USC plays football. ND Stadium is obviously better.

Upon arriving at LAX, I had no troubles getting my bags, but had to take a long winding sidewalk outside around the airport to get to the international terminal two buildings away. At LAX there are throngs of people inside and out that are asking you for money, which was a different sight for me at an airport, but there were also many people working there who could tell you exactly where to go. As soon as I got to the Qantas desk, I ran into two girls I recognized, and a dad of a third girl saw me whering ND clothing and pointed me out to a third. We had a quick bite to eat together before we headed down towards the international wing. This wing in LAX is horrible. There are no shops or eateries past security, it is under heavy construction, and is dark and damp. It really is not an air terminal at all, rather a bus station. To board the plane they get you by row, but then put you on a bus to a remote launching facility out on the other side of the airport where they built a ramp with a cover to walk up and on the plane. Before we boarded though, all 14 of us got together for about three hours and really got to know eachother pretty well.

The flight itself was not what I first imagined. I flew Lufthansa when traveling to Europe, and really enjoyed it. Qantas Economy class is exactly like Northwest domestic economy class. I did not have very much room. I made a rookie mistake and when asked took the aisle rather than the window. It made it very hard to sleep later on because there was not much to lean your head on and position your body against. The flight was very smooth, food actually very good, drinks all completely free, movies decent, etc. I slept for about 7 hours of the 15 hour flight, and watched three movies. A quick aside, noise canceling headphones are absolutely necessary for flights like this and were a great help. I did not sit with the main group of students, but did get to talk to them for a while during the flight.

When we arrived in Sydney, I was quite surprised by the airport. In the states, it is very common for the large airports to have many, many runways at their disposal. I was informed by the captain that Sydney has two, and only one large enough to handle our 747. By a quick comparison, South Bend Regional has two runways and is lucky to get 10 flights a day.
The customs was pretty easy for me, and was not delayed too long. This is where our group hit a problem. Our only student without a US passport did not make it through customs. He holds a Mexican one, and declared an asthma inhaler, which was enough for the authorities to hold him for a complete search and put him on a flight later in the day.

We did not have much time in between flights, and after getting our bags, clearing customs, and getting over to the domestic transfer area to recheck our bags, barely made it to the new terminal by bus in time to board the flight to Perth. Sydney was very cloudy when we landed and took off, so unfortunately I could not see any of the landmarks while I was there. The one thing that I could see was the Olympic area that hosted the 2000 games. I could clearly see the stadium and the torch- but this is outside the city limits.

The flight to Perth was great! It was five hours, and we were all already a little tired, but we were all sitting in the right section of the plane behind eachother and stood in a huge mob and talked and had a great time the entire flight. I'm sure that the rest of the people on the flight probably were not that pleased, but the attendants did not care because it was an all male crew, and our entire group included them the whole time. People asked where we should go, what beer we should drink, what clubs to visit, etc. It was really a great five hours, even though we were stuck on a plane.

Even despite the good time, we were all ready to get off planes for awhile by the time that we landed. Perth is a small airport on the domestic side of it, and we easily got our bags. They were waiting for us with a shuttle, and we were on our way. We got a quick tour of Perth on the way from the bus driver, and the drive was about 20-30 minutes.

Our dorm is not great. We have singles, but they are about the size of my closet at home, and without air conditioning. The boys are all together downstairs, and the girls all together upstairs. There are also a few Sacred Heart College girls from Connecticut upstairs as well. We got a tour of the campus and the surrounding area (the campus is very small - maybe about the size of north quad and part of mod quad back in South Bend). The beach is very close and there is a great park right across the street from us. The only problem I encountered was that I could not get my internet to work in my room, but that has since been fixed. A few guys went down to the grocery store to get some stuff so we can eat, and the whole dorm had a group meal. Afterwards we had a few meetings, and then cleaned up to head out.

In Australia, guys wear pants and closed shoes to go out at night, even though it is summer here and there usually is no A/C in the bars. We were all pretty tired heading out, but rallied and had a great time. Of our group of 15, only one person did not come out- and it was due to illness. We even had the Sacred Heart girls come out and we met up with other American students from other dorms in the bar. Before leaving, I had heard that Australians do not drink ice cold beer. I dont know where that came from, but I can put that idea to rest. The beer was ice cold, and it was flowing, and we had a great time, staying out much later than we thought we would be able to handle when we left. The first bar had a band that started playing late 90s and early 2000s American music, and we were absolutely in our element. It was great. We later left and went to a dancing club, and that too was a good time. We got back around 1 AM, and by that time with the jet-lag, lack of quality sleep, and alcohol we were ready for bed.

Overall, I feel that I am completely adjusted to the time and have had no effects. It never was a problem at all. I am ready to go, and excited about what lays ahead. I really like the group that I am with, and I think that we are going to have a really good time.

If you have any questions right them in a comment to this or any other post and I will try to answer them. Hope all is well.