After a few weeks of off and on rain I am happy to report that the sun is shining, and the weather is HOT HOT HOT again! The past two weeks have been pretty busy—keeping up with school, and all the Uni festivities has been exhausting. School has been going great down here, the teaching style is really practical, and the assignments are very hands on. I love it so far! I am now three weeks into school—only to find myself at the beginning of another vacation! WOOO HOO! Yesterday, (20/3/08) was the last day of classes before Easter break, and we celebrated Toga style at the Uni bar! It was a lot of fun--I big group of us went for the pink togas! I kept the evening low key, as I am still in recovery mode from our night out on St. Patrick’s day!

Last weekend a group of people took a little road trip up to a very small tucked away town called, “Nimbin.” The drive was breathtaking with such beautiful scenery. It was great to drive through the Australian countryside. Nimbin is probably the most interesting place I have ever visited. It is a very liberal, artsy, hippie, free spirited kind of place—where people are either off their rocker, or stoned out of their minds! It was quite the experience.

Tomorrow (22/3/08) Lacey (also from Idaho) and I head out to Brisbane to catch a bus trip up to Cairns. Our journey will be jam packed with different stops along the way. It is a nine day adventure starting with the Steve Irwin Zoo and ending with a dive at the Great Barrier Reef….What a way to spend my 22^nd Birthday! I am so stoked! I will update this blog when I get back from the trip!

Happy Easter to everyone!

Interesting...

It is Friday 14-3-08 (as written in Australia) or 3-14-08 (as written in America). I just got finished with my five hour tutorial in food production! It was an awesome learning experience--I learned cutting techniques and how to take a part a chicken all in one class.....and to think I still have 13 more weeks of it.....ANYWAY--I just wanted to write a few interesting things down for your enjoyment.




In Australia...
Popsicles are called "Icy Poles"
Rice Krispies are called "Rice Bubbles"
If you tell someone thank you--their reply will usually be, "that's okay"
Instead of "how are you?" Aussies say, "How ya' goin'"
Bell peppers are called "Capsicum" (Cap-skin)
The bathroom is not referred to in that term or as a restroom. ALL Australians call it "the toilet."
Garbage is "Rubbish"
Yield is "give way"
AND in the Australian culture you don't have to leave tips for cab drivers, hair dressers, or bartenders (Which for me is a good thing.)

Anyway---just thought I'd jot down a few of the interesting things I have encountered down under. Hope all is well at home!
Much love to you ALL!

Back to School!

So finally, after a few months of COMPLETE vacation...school is back in session! The first week of class is pretty mellow here. Most of the classes taken at the University include a lecture and a tutorial which are offered at different times. The lecture consists of the teacher giving the information, and the tutorial (which is more important for a student) is where the hands on component of the lecture comes into place. Only one of my four classes had the tutorial for the first week, which made for a great transition to ease my way back into the swing of things. Monday started out pretty early for me with an 8:00am lecture in Hospitality Marketing, followed by a nice break at the pool, and then another class in Food Production. My classes on Monday impressed me--I can tell that school in Australia will be a bit more challenging, the work seems much more time consuming and detailed. They have a very hands on approach which in my opinion is a great thing! Tuesday and Wednesday's are my off days--so I decided to venture out and try to find myself a source of income! I applied at a few restaurants, and am crossing my fingers for a call back this week. Thursday came quick, and my third class, Venue and Facilities Management started at 8:00am but only lasted about 20 minutes because our teacher had lost her voice, and wasn't feeling well. Thursday night is "Uni night" at the Tavern (the closest bar to campus, not including the one on campus). My roommate Steph informed me that she would be moving out on Sunday because she had been accepted into the Med program at a Uni near by, I was bummed--but really excited for her accomplishment, which in fact called for a night of celebrating! Needless to say Friday came way too fast, and unfortunately was another early day as I had an 8:30 tutorial for my food production class, which lasted three hours! Overall the school week was great--I actually haven't been this excited about school for awhile!

We spent the weekend being pretty mellow, well that is if you don't include the night time activities, which tend to get a little crazy down under! I will spare you all of the wild details! Today (Sunday) Valarie, Mike, Paul and myself decided to take a little adventure to a place called Miami beach. We had such an awesome time and were able to capture some great pictures of yet another beautiful place! Oh, and of course we had to take a picture of the drive through liquor store, buying booze is quite convenient for these Aussies! We find something new every single day! The past three weeks have been full of completely new things for me! I feel so blessed to be able to experience this all. I am one lucky girl, livin' it up in the world down under. I am enjoying every day to the fullest, and I wake up excited for another adventure, another discovery, and ready to make more lasting memories!