Seeing as I have been here a month, I thought it was about time that I started my blog, or else let’s face it, it was not going to happen. I am a very good procrastinator, as many of you may already know, and this seems to be something I have been putting off for quite some time now. I arrived in Sydney just over a month ago and can’t quite believe how quickly the time has flown by. I thought I would start with a photo of a cute, cuddly koala, as they are one of the symbols of Australia... Although when I got to pet this guy he was much more interested in scratching his bum. I couldn't come up with a witty title for this posting, so I have titled it The First Month...Arriving at the airport in Toronto, I almost didn’t think I was going to make it on the plane. At Pearson they told me my visa wasn’t appearing in their system. After waiting around for a solid two hours, I was told I could purchase a visitor’s visa (I don’t think Canadian’s even need one to get into the country). I was the last person through the gate and managed to make my flight just in time. I had faced a very similar situation last May, when I didn’t have the valid entry visa for Vietnam. As a result of that mistake I had ended up in Bangkok, therefore this time around I made sure to cover all my bases, or so I thought.
I have not missed the snow or the cold for one minute. My first few days here the weather was perfect. All of a sudden it seemed as though I had brought the bad weather with me and it rained non-stop for 10 straight days. During this time I was staying in a hostel dorm room with a friend from home, and was it ever noisy. After moving into my new apartment, I was in for a rude awakening when I realized that it was even noisier in my new room. We are living in an area known as Darlinghurst, which is on the outskirts of Kings Cross. The Cross, as it is often referred to, is a party destination for both travellers and locals and no one here ever seems to sleep. It is full of a colourful array of people - prostitutes, trannies, junkies and drunken tourists, but lots of fun non the less. Since our tv is currently broken (and has been since we moved in) we have spent many hours watching them from our kitchen window. Both the apartment and the neighbourhood certainly have "character".
I am living with three others, two Canadians and an American, all of whom I have become good friends with. The hostel seemed spotlessly clean compared to our apartment when we first moved in. Our first day was spent scrubbing every surface in the place, the floors, walls, cupboards, etc. Our first night we realized we had some “friends” living with us...cockroaches...lots of them. We have taken pleasure in killing as many of them as possible and it seems as though the problem is finally under control. Apparently they are very common here, although hearing that didn’t make me feel much better.
I have had a chance to see a number of the major Sydney attractions such as the Opera House, the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Bondi Beach, the aquarium, etc. I even got to pet a koala, who was so sleepy he didn’t even realize we were there. I tried a kangaroo streak, which was something I don't have any desire to try again. I felt slight guilty after eating it though, especially since it wasn't very good... This past weekend was the Mardi Gras Parade, similar to the Toronto Pride Parade but on a much larger scale. There were hundreds of thousands of people watching and it was definately quite the experience.
On to the reason I am here...school! The program that I am doing is at the University of Western Sydney and although I was forewarned about the commute it doesn’t make it any better. Luckily I only have class two days a week, as it takes a good two hours door to door each way. When I tell Aussies that I go to school out in Penrith I often get laughed at. I got on the wrong train last week and it was definitely not one of my better days. About 45 minutes into the trip I looked out the window and thought to myself I’ve never seen a lake before on the way to school... It was quite embarrassing having to call the program co-ordinator to tell him I would be late for my meeting because I had gotten on the wrong train. The campus my classes are at is located in the middle of farm land – literally. I am still hoping to see a kangaroo near the campus one day soon, but haven’t had much luck just yet...
