Monday:
Today, I started the volunteering I have to do for my sustainable communities class. I’ll be working on the community garden on campus and researching the benefits that community gardens have for the environment and the health of the people around them. I worked with the student in charge of the garden for an hour and a half in the morning. He told about how the garden is set up and what he plans to do with it this spring (it’s spring here now). Then, I did a few things at the library before going back to the apartment to eat lunch and take a nap. I didn’t sleep well, so it was much needed. After my short nap, I felt way more awake, so I worked on a lot of school things. Tuesday: I went to campus early in the morning hoping to get some stuff done, but I ended up watching some Netflix too, so I wasn’t super focused. I had class at 2:30, and that was interesting. I went home after that to start packing for our trip to Cairns starting this weekend. We had Ultimate Frisbee training that evening where Kiley and I attempted once again to explain why we’re the Cyclones and how universities in the US have mascots. They don’t have anything like that here or a central sport like football that everyone goes to support. Frisbee was pretty fun, but we were pretty tired by the end of the day. Wednesday: It was raining again when I woke up. Apparently it’s a tradition that every Wednesday it has to rain. I had my nutrition lecture in the morning about public health, and I learned about soft systems methodology in my sustainable communities tutorial. That was pretty interesting because you can apply it to almost any issue. In between the two classes, I talked with my parents on the phone which was nice. It distracted me from how cold I was, and we got to catch up on life. Then, I walked home in the rain and put on some warm clothes. I did some laundry and read some articles and worked on my nutrition paper. Thursday: I had a dream where I arrived back home, and my dog came running out to see me with her tongue out and her ears down. Well, she can’t see because she’s blind now, but you get the idea. It was basically the cutest thing ever. Then, I woke up and remembered where I was. Australia. So far from home. It made me kind of sad. However, then, I remembered that I’m leaving for Cairns the next day. I’ll get to see the Great Barrier Reef, the rainforest, and do a ton of other fun activities. Anyway, I got up and went to the gym and then came back to the apartment to get ready for the day. I had to clean a lot because there’s a room inspection next week to make sure we’re not making a mess of the place. I packed some more for the trip and read some articles. After that, I ate lunch and then left for campus to study. I finished my nutrition report due Friday, and I turned it in early so I don’t have to think about it anymore. I also read some articles for food, health, and nutrition while watching some Netflix before I walked back. I watched some TV, made dinner, and tried to finish packing and cleaning. Friday: I woke up early because there was a lot to do before we left for spring break. I cleaned a little more and went to the gym after breakfast. At the gym I recharged my prepaid phone plan so that it doesn’t run out over spring break. I showered, ate lunch, finished packing, and did the last of my laundry before Kiley and I left to catch the bus into the city and then the bus to the Sydney airport. For the rest, you’ll have to wait until after spring break. Here we go…time to see the Great Barrier Reef and have the time of our lives here in Australia! :)
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Sydney
Monday: I slept sooooo much the night before. It was glorious. Then, I woke up and did a ton of muddy laundry from the weekend and cooked some food for the week. I also read some articles for school before I left for campus to study more. I spent some time studying and got back in the evening. I watched some TV and just relaxed since I was so sore from Frisbee that weekend. Then, I went to bed early because I was pretty sleepy. Tuesday: I woke up early and got ready for the day by making lunch and putting away some clean clothes. I headed to campus and studied while watching some Netflix before my sustainable communities lecture. It was about equity and inclusion, and it was pretty interesting. I walked back to the apartment after that because I was really cold. I cooked some food and worked on writing a report for my nutrition class. We had Ultimate Frisbee training which was good. I was pretty sore and running around with blisters still fresh from the weekend, so it wasn’t as fun as usual. This wasn’t the best day for me. I got really homesick and wasn’t very motivated to study or do anything, but that happens sometimes when you’re away from everything familiar. I’m just hoping that I bounce back so that I can enjoy every moment of this adventure in Australia. Wednesday: I woke up and got ready fast to try to beat the rain. It didn’t start raining for another 2-3 hours, so I was safe. There were 3 speakers that presented in my nutrition lecture about food wastage and how there are so many people that are food insecure. I really enjoyed learning about it because wasting food is something that really makes me mad. Saving food provides food to those who don’t have money to purchase nutritious food for themselves, and it helps the environment by reducing greenhouse gasses emitted from food waste. Then, I studied at the library a little before meeting someone to talk about volunteering at the garden on campus for my sustainable communitites class. I walked home in the rain and studied a lot after that. I have a report for nutrition due in a little over a week, and I had several weekly things to do as well. Thursday: I went to the gym in the morning and then studied and did laundry before eating lunch and heading to campus. I studied for my nutrition quiz and worked on a paper. Then, I had my nutrition tutorial where we signed up for groups for the final presentation on food security/sustainability. I think the project will be pretty interesting especially since I don’t know much about these programs in Australia. After that, I went back to the apartment to see the finale of The Bachelor Australia with Kiley. I was kind of mad about who won, but I got over it. Friday: This week it has been hard to find motivation with the cold and rainy weather every day. However, I finally woke up to a sunny morning on the way to the gym after getting groceries. I showered, cooked, did laundry, and ate lunch before walking to campus with Kiley for some studying. I took my nutrition quiz which went alright. It wasn't the best, but it’s not my major, so I can’t complain. I worked on my blog (for all you reading…you’re welcome ;), and then Kiley and I planned some stuff for our trip over spring break coming up. We headed back to eat, study, and relax by watching some TV. Saturday: When I woke up, I read my book a little, which was a nice way to start off the day. I continued to attempt getting the mud out of a white shirt I wore for the Frisbee tournament last weekend, but I finally gave up and accepted the shirt’s fate of staying mud spattered. Then, I read an article about the effects that food availability and environment have on what people eat, and consequently, their nutrition. I worked on school stuff for a while. Kiley and I went for a walk around the lake to enjoy the first sunny day in a while. It was a nice change and a must needed break. We talked about the future and how it’s interesting how the more we learn in college, the more we realize we don’t know. It’s kind of a funny thing. Megamind was on TV, so we had to bring out the inner child and enjoy that. Sunday: Kiley and I went to church in the morning and followed with Body Balance. It’s kind of like Yoga. It was a nice relaxing start to the day. Then, we ate lunch and got our stuff ready to walk through the rain to the mall. We didn’t want to walk all the way to campus, so we used the Wi-Fi at the mall. I opened some pages to use when I got back to the apartment where I don’t have Wi-Fi, and I worked on my nutrition report. It was raining harder on the walk back, so I got all comfy in warm clothes to study some more, watch TV, and do some chores. It was a pretty chill but productive day which was much needed. Orientation at the University of Canberra The first weekend after orientation week, I went to Sydney, Australia and the Blue Mountains with a bunch of other exchange students. Here are some ways to make the most of your first week in a new country and adjusting to a new lifestyle.
Make the most of your time abroad, and start it off on a good note. There are several other ways to take advantage of opportunities, but hopefully these are helpful! Monday:
We got up early to go for a walk on the beach with Kiley’s parents before they had to leave for Cairns. It was a lovely morning outside. We cleaned up the apartment and finished packing up our stuff before checking out. We said goodbye to Kiley’s parents where they waited for their bus to the airport. It was hard to say goodbye, but Kiley was going to see them the next weekend in Sydney. Kiley and I headed to Gloria Jean’s (a coffee shop) with all our stuff to use their Wi-Fi for planning our spring break trip. We talked with some friends on the computer. After sitting for a while, we decided to take advantage of being at the beach by changing into swim suits and getting in the ocean. It was pretty chilly with the sun behind the clouds and the wind blowing, so I sat on the beach for a little bit while Kiley inched her way into the ocean. When the sun came out, it was much warmer. I ran into the ocean because I knew from Saturday that getting in slowly is much worse. Once in the water, it didn’t feel very cold which was nice. We had a blast jumping over the waves and trying to swim with them. Then, we showered and changed in the lockers by the beach. We did some more stuff on the computer before heading to the stop where the shuttle to the airport picked us up. From the time we arrived at the airport till the time we got to our gate, it took twenty minutes. It’s so different from the US where that can take 1-2hours if it’s busy. Our flight was short and sweet. We got to Canberra at 9pm and took a taxi back to our apartment in Belconnen. We unpacked our stuff and got some things ready for the week before going to sleep. The trip to Mooloolaba was overall awesome, and I can see why it’s such a popular holiday destination. Tuesday: I got groceries in the morning and then did a little laundry before heading to campus. I worked on school stuff until my sustainable communities lecture about industrial agriculture. I learned about permaculture and how a compromise between natural ecology and technology works better than the current monoculture agriculture that’s going on around the world. It was pretty interesting for me since I’m from a state that basically lives off of agriculture. Then, I headed back to the apartment to read some articles another class. Ultimate Frisbee training was fun. It makes me want to play again when I get back, but I wish ISU had a team that was less competitive and more for fun. After ultimate, we were supposed to meet for trivia night, but it was already over. I was sad we missed it, but we usually see that group of friends at cooking class and on weekends too. I worked on my blog and read some more articles before bed. Wednesday: I had a horrible night of sleep the night before, so I just got up early since I couldn’t fall back asleep. I did some laundry that morning and got ready for the day. I had my nutrition lecture where the professor goes through everything super fast as usual. However, it’s still interesting. I wish I had more time to soak in what she was talking about rather than just taking notes the whole time. Then, I talked with my parents before my sustainability tutorial. I’m still trying to figure out what I’m going to do for my volunteering project in this class, but I’m making some progress. After class, I spent some time at the library and then headed back to the apartment. I wanted to go to Body Attack at 6:30, but I realized when I got there that it started at 5:45, so it was almost over. So sad. Anyway, I just did my own workout and then came home and watched TV and studied a little before bed. Thursday: I got up a little later than normal because I wanted to recover from the lack of sleep the night before. I felt much better that morning. I headed to the gym and lifted weights before going to a fitness class. Then, I came back to the apartment to shower, get ready for the day, and work on my blog. I did some laundry actually in the washer this time (I know…don’t freak out). I had to clean my sheets and things that don’t fit in my sink. I also cleaned a lot and took out the trash and recycling. I cleaned my room and cooked a little. Then, I studied before leaving for cooking class. This week was “Spring Italian,” so naturally, loving Italian food, I was quite excited. We made a basil based pesto to go with our homemade pasta. It was soooo good. We all enjoyed our dinners and thanked the chef who is in charge and taught us how to cook everything. We were so sad that we won’t have any more cooking classes because they’re pretty expensive for the university. After we left, we watched some TV and then went to bed. Friday: I woke up without much energy, so I started the day by doing some household things. Then, I headed to campus. I read some articles and worked on my blog a little. I spent quite a bit of time in the library before walking home in the rain. I got home pretty wet and cold, so I cuddled up in warm clothes and made some dinner. I read some more for school and did some laundry. Then, I went to bed early in preparation for the Ultimate Frisbee tournament that started the next day. Saturday: Our first game started at 9, and we did pretty well all day. We won three out of four of our games. It was a lot of fun except for the constant rain. It was a little cold, but it wouldn’t have been bad at all if my clothes hadn’t soaked through and made me colder. The mud was fun though; it made for good cushioning when people dove for the disc. Our team played pretty great most of the day considering we had never played together before. Some people on my team *cough* Josh and Ryan *cough* wanted me to write about them in my blog. So, they’re on my team and they call Kiley and I “Kilyssa” and they’re pretty obnoxious but fun. Anyway, after all our Frisbee games, we all went home to shower before meeting for dinner at an outdoor area with a bunch of food trucks. It was an entertaining and interesting night out in the city. We met Kiley at the bus stop where she came in from Sydney with her family, and then some of us took a bus back to our place. We went to bed ASAP, but we still didn’t get a lot of sleep since we were picked up the next morning around 7:45. Sunday: For the second night in a row, I didn’t sleep well at all, but I got up anyway. We got ready and were picked up by some fellow Frisbee players. They served some breakfast at the fields, so we had some fruit. Our first game started at 8:30. We scored the first point pretty easily with Kiley and me working together. Our team won two out of our three games on Sunday. It was heaps of fun despite all of us being a little stiffer and some of us having stomach aches. For our last game, we played a team we had played the day before, and it was lots of fun because that team is good and tries hard without being too serious or intense as far as fouling or calling unnecessary fouls. We finished up and got a ride home since we were exhausted and had lots of studying and other stuff to do. Lucky me, I found two blood blisters on my feet when I took off my borrowed cleats (thank goodness for Sam’s extra cleats). I would’ve been slipping around all weekend, but borrowed cleats tend to leave you with blisters. Kiley and I got groceries after showering and did laundry and studied the rest of the night before going to bed early. It was a great weekend of Frisbee and meeting new people! Monday: I was going to wake up early to workout, but I found out that my alarm was set for the evening instead of the morning, so I woke up at 7:45. We met Kiley’s parents at The Chatterbox which is an espresso bar across the street from Weeden Lodge. It was so cute, and I had the richest hot chocolate of my life with some delectable homemade marshmallows. I also had avocado toast with a poached egg, some basil, and tons of feta cheese. Yummmm. Kiley also had a delicious chai tea latte that made me want to go back so badly. After breakfast, we said goodbye to Kiley’s parents until the next weekend. We headed to campus from there to study at the library. I did some reading and a quiz for sustainable communities. We were on campus for quite a while trying to get ahead on things. Then, I went home and did laundry and ate dinner before watching some TV and studying a bit before bed. Tuesday: In the morning, I got up early to swim at the gym. Then, I went back to the apartment and got my stuff ready to head to campus. I worked on some stuff for my Food, Health, and Environment class. I researched and wrote some discussion posts. It was good to get some school stuff done before my sustainable communities lecture. We learned about politics and economics and how those things are most of the reason that we aren’t making very much progress with a more sustainable world. After class, I worked on some more school stuff and then headed home to eat dinner before ultimate Frisbee training. It was super fun again. I just love that game, and I have missed it a lot. I’m excited to play in an upcoming tournament with some new Aussie friends. After ultimate, Kiley and I met some friends at The Well (a restaurant on campus) for Harry Potter trivia. We were over an hour late, so our team wasn’t doing the best, but it was pretty fun to see what I could remember from the books and movies. We headed to bed after trivia because it had been a pretty full day. Wednesday: It was pouring when I left for campus, so I wore my raincoat. Little did I know, it didn’t actually work to reflect rain if it’s more than sprinkling. Lucky me, I got to wear wet clothes all day with my shoes and socks soaked through. I had my nutrition class and sustainable communities tutorial in the morning through afternoon. I talked with my parents on the phone a bit in between classes which was nice, and I got to see my dog on Facetime. On the way home, it was sunny which was nice. I put on fuzzy socks right away and cooked some food. I also did a bunch of laundry, worked on my blog for my new internship with the study abroad center at ISU, and studied for some classes. Thursday: I woke up super early for Body Attack and such. Then, I came back to the apartment to do some laundry and school work. I packed a little for the weekend and headed to campus to study and for my nutrition tutorial. I learned a lot and then walked back to the apartment to meet Nicola, Kiley, and some other exchange students for the cooking class that evening. There were a lot more people than the week before because we all invited more people. We made some healthy Mexican food. We had burritos with chicken, homemade salsa, homemade guacamole, rice, smoked yogurt, peppers, and a sauce with several yummy ingredients. It was delicious as usual. I love the new tradition we have of going there, cooking food, hanging out with friends, and enjoying a free meal together. After cooking class, we watched some TV and finished getting ready for the weekend before going to bed. Friday: We woke up at 5am to catch our 5:30 cab to the airport. Someone took the cab we had called for the night before, but we called and got one soon enough. Our flight left around 7, and we arrived in Brisbane around 9. We had to wait until 10:30 to catch the bus to Mooloolaba. When we got there, we put our stuff in the apartment Kiley’s parents were staying in by the beach. It was so nice outside. We hung out and walked around for a little while before meeting Kiley’s brother for lunch. Then, we walked around and explored all the triathlon things going on. For dinner, we went to the banquet for the half iron man athletes where they had a little cultural show about the area and talked about past iron man winners and venues. We were in a giant circus-like tent which was pretty cool. After dinner, the athletes had a meeting with information about the race on Sunday. Kiley and I left before the meeting and got some peanut butter ice cream before heading back to the apartment for bed. Saturday: We woke up somewhat early to jog and walk along the beach. Then, we ate breakfast and went to a coffee shop to use the Wi-Fi for some future traveling and such. We got some stuff done and then went to the beach for some ocean time! The water was quite chilly, but when the sun was out, it didn’t feel too bad. The worst part is always getting in the water; that took a while. After we were in, we were fine and enjoying all the waves. We tried to swim with the waves and ride them into the beach even though we didn’t have body or surf boards. It was a fun challenge, and it got me really excited for surf camp. As always, there’s the salt in the eyes and throat that burns, but you got to do what you got to do. It was super fun to float over the waves before they broke over and tumbled into shore. We left the ocean wet, cold, salty, and a little tanner than before. Who can complain? From there, we went back to shower and change. We met everyone at Kiley’s brother’s apartment where he stayed with his girlfriend and her parents. It was really nice with a beautiful view of the beach. They made chicken, quinoa, and salad for dinner which was all very tasty. We had a fun time telling stories and talking about the race the next morning. We headed back to the apartment after dinner and watched a movie while getting ready for bed. Sunday: We got up early for the Iron Man 70.3 World Championship. Although, all of the athletes got up much before we did. We caught Kiley’s brother on the beach before his wave started. As we watched them swim, I couldn’t imagine trying to swim 1.3 miles in the ocean with all the waves. We spent most of the race in a spot where we could see the competitors bike out, bike in, and run their two laps. It was crazy to see the best iron man athletes in the world race so fast. It was a great thing to see, and the weather was perfect. It was around 75 degrees Fahrenheit with a breeze and mostly sun the whole day. Kiley’s brother and his girlfriend both finished the race. They both had some complications, but they did it which is what matters most. I was impressed by everyone that participated. After the race, we got some food. We talked about the race and hung out a bit before going back to the apartment to change into warmer clothes for the evening. We had dinner at a well-known burger place in the area. It was pretty busy, so it took a long time to get our food, but it was delicious once we got it. There were some fried pickles and fried Oreos ordered by Kiley’s brother. They were celebrating after the race and rewarding themselves for all the hard work they did that day. Kiley and I shared some drinks in honor of her 21st birthday since her parents won’t be here for it. We said goodbye to Kiley’s brother, his girlfriend, and her parents. Then, Kiley, her parents, and I got some ice cream to enjoy since it was our last full day together. We packed most of our stuff and then headed to bed.
The south island of New Zealand is much different than the north. While you could list several things they have in common, I’d rather go both places and experience a wider range of natural wonders. The biggest difference that I noticed was the south island is covered in mountains with beautiful fjords leading to the ocean while the north has more green rolling hills and rainforests. Both islands are great. I would suggest if you go there someday, and you really should, that you take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way and make the most of every moment! |
AuthorA.J.Sporrer Archives
December 2016
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