Now that I finally have a steady source of internet, I can let you all know my adventures for the last several days.
I left after telling you about the first eventful day, but it got much more exciting afterward. Day 2 was the beginning of Melbourne Welcome, a program held at Newman residential college to get foreign students acclimated with Melbourne and the surrounding area. I lugged all my stuff over to Newman (which is on the other side of campus) and signed in, got my room and headed to lunch for an Australian BBQ. It was supposed to be outside but it was quite rainy and the temperature was cool (for here) so we stayed in. After that we took a tour of the uni (that's what universities are called here) and downtown Melbourne. When down town, we went to the sky deck of the Eureka tower, branded as the highest point in the southern hemisphere. Unfortunately, its so high that the overcast clouds were below the deck and we couldn't see anything. After going back for dinner, we had a wine and cheese tasting assembly. It was my first experience of drinking in Australia, which is new to me because the drinking age here is 18 as opposed 21 back home. That went well as it was in essence a big social to meet all the other exchange students. Later we headed to Pugg's, a small pub a couple blocks away from campus. The drinks were so expensive, though, that we didn't stay long.
Day 3 started early, with a tour to the Melbourne Cricket Grounds where Australian professional teams play cricket and aussie rules football. We then ate lunch downtown and broke apart afterward. I ended up going down to St. Kilda's which is an area in south Melbourne which is much like Venice Beach in LA. The boardwalk and pier were nice, but I needed to take care of my mobile phone issues to I headed back to the city early. After dinner, we had a trivia night about Australian and American cultures in which we learned about Australian slang and celebrities. That night we went out again to tour the pubs and see what the city night life had to offer!
Day 4 started late with a trip to the Queen Victoria Markets (which we visited earlier). That afternoon we headed north to the Melbourne Zoo, and absolutely wonderful collection of animals including Emus and Kangaroos. It was huge and we spent a good three to four hours there, gawking at the birds and cats and various other mammals and lizards. That night, instead of going to the planned event, a group of us headed over to Lygon Street which is a uni hot spot for food and shopping (a lot like Green Street at Illinois or State Street at Wisconsin). That night was again a tour of the night life, but we turned in pretty quickly.
Day 5 was an early start, where we headed to Ocean Grove Beach which is southwest of Melbourne. About 2 hours of a bus ride and we arrived at the beautiful beach, located in a large cove. It finally warmed up and the sun came out, so sunscreen was a must. We played beach cricket and someone brought an American football to toss around. Later we went surfing, and I was even successful enough to stand up several times and ride the wave into shore! It's something to cross of my bucket list. That night we had a formal dinner with the dean of the college. Everyone dressed up in their finest and enjoyed a three course meal to mark our last night in the Welcome program. That night we went to a dance club with the other college hosting students. After some dancing, we retired back to Newman. All in all, it was a good Valentines Day! Could have been better if I got to spend it with my girlfriend, but it was still very nice.
Well, that concludes my Melbourne Welcome program. I am in my residential college that I will be staying in for the semester (St. Mary's). We have a college dog! Her name is Honey and she's absolutely adorable. I am relaxing and taking it easy until Friday when I need to sign up for classes. If you've made it this far, thanks for reading... it was quite a long update. I'll keep you posted as i continue to have adventures in Australia!
-Paul
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