Aussie lingo

I haven't done such a good job picking up the Aussie accent so far. It sounds very silly when Americans try to talk like they're Australian. I have learned some new words and phrases though:

how ya goin?......how are you?

no worries..........you're welcome

servo...................gas station

fair dinkum........real, true, genuine

bodgy..................low quality, sketchy

ice block.............popsicle

lollies..................candie

Maccas...............McDonald's

good onya..........good for you

jumper...............hoodie

muso........music major

mobile................cell phone

biscuit................cookie

uni..........college, university

and that's the start to my Aussie vocabulary!

random pictures

Manly Beach!

George Street at night (my favorite street in Sydney)

beware of the bluebottle!!!

(above) Bondi Beach

(below) Me and my dugong friend at the Sydney aquarium

a bit of what i've been learning

Headed home from school today I felt very smart. It was a bit awkward getting on and off the busses with my arms full of heavy theology books on Romans and righteousness. I got a lot of funny looks. I am learning a lot here already (like how to do homework effectively on public transportation for example) and I really love the classes I’m taking! The way most of them work is that they meet only once a week, there aren’t any tests, and the grade is based on a few essays on topics of your choice. The teachers are so laid back and they all have sweet Aussie accents. It’s great!

Today I only had one class: The View from Australia, which is specifically for the group of American students in my program. We had a panel of Australians come talk to us about Australian culture and what makes it unique. It’s really interesting. One huge difference between American and Australian culture is that Americans tend to be very confident and optimistic. We have an attitude of thinking that we can accomplish anything while Aussies are much more critical and insecure. Australia has been rather looked down upon over history and is often neglected so it makes sense that they think of themselves as unimportant. I mean seriously… how much do most people really know about Australia? I try to remember their prime minister’s name but I keep forgetting it. I feel bad because Australians know SO much about American politics they could teach me. Everywhere I go people get so excited to be able to talk to an American about our government and Obama and all that.

So yeah, this week I have mostly been a nerd except for a couple trips to the beach and a few movie nights. Oh! Last Saturday I had my first encounter with Australian wildlife. I was jumping around bodysurfing in the waves at Manly Beach and this blue stringy thing started wrapping around my stomach. I brushed it off but it started stinging and that’s when I realized that I was getting viciously attacked by jellyfish. I started hopping around and making pained faces and ran as fast as I could back to shore. The stings swelled up a bit and stung for a few hours but the lifeguards gave me a ready-made ice pack and that helped. Bluebottle jellyfish stings hurt! Unfortunately I don’t even have any scars to prove I was stung. It was painful but it’s not going to stop me from swimming! I made a friend this week that is going to teach me to surf! I can’t wait!!!

week 2

I've already been here two full weeks! It's hard to believe it's been that long. I've been busy doing homework, getting trained for my service placement, going to the beach, going to different church services, and figuring out how to read bus schedules. I've had some interesting conversations with people on the bus though. Australians are super friendly.
Every morning I have to wake up early to catch bus 492. The public transportation around is really good but it can get annoying having to wait around for busses and trains and ferries all the time. 

The picture to the left is the bus stop in Burwood near where I live. The picture below is the street I live on. It's a really pretty neighborhood. I love going on runs past all the plumeria trees, hibiscus, picket fences, exotic birds, palm trees, and cactus.

This is my host brother Anthony. He's cool.

And these are aborigines in the city performing and making lots of money. I love all the sounds in the City. There are always live performers, tons of people speaking languages from all over, lots of busses, trains, and boats, and random city noises. 

school's in session!

I made it through the first week of school! All my classes seem like they are going to be really good! Here's what my week looks like:

Monday

8:45am-noon "The View from Australia" 

(this past Monday, since I have all afternoon off, a couple friends and I went to the botanical gardens and sat and did homework in the south pacific sunshine. It's almost surreal sitting in the middle of beautiful gardens and being able to look up and have a perfect view of the Sydney Opera House with the Harbor Bridge behind it!)

Tusday

9am-noon "Faith and the Contemporary Artist"

2-5pm "Romans"

Wednesday

9am Piano lesson

10:45-12:35 "Contemporary Christian Music Ensemble"

1-2pm chapel

Thursday

no classes!!! 

(Thursday was a beach day this week! It was so beautiful sitting by the ocean doing homework)

Friday

9am-? "The view from Australia"

Saturday

9am-12:30 service project- Hillsong Street Teams

Today for class we learned about the Rocks. This is the oldest part of Sydney where the Europeans first settled. It is such a pretty place! All afternoon our assignment was to explore the Rocks district and read about all the history. The more I see of Sydney the more I like it. The only problem is that I'm beginning to think it would take a lifetime to see and do everything there is to see and do in Sydney.

the pictures are ones I took of Sydney from the ferry coming back from Manly Beach. Sorry there's not more pictures. The internet is being slow today.

weekend adventures!

Hi! I have been so busy doing fun things before classes start that I feel like I could update this blog a couple times a day and still miss heaps of things!!! Yesterday (Saturday) ended up raining so we didn't go to the beach. Instead Laura and I explored around our suburb a bit. It's a nice little suburb with lots of cute little houses, a busy downtown with cafes and shops, a large park, and a huge shopping mall. The picture on top was in the park. I think we've seen about four different weddings in the past couple days.

I'm getting over the overload of everything being new and different than I expected. My host family is turning out to be very sweet and I'm enjoying getting to know a bit of Greek culture too! They run a Greek Christian outreach TV program and they are very busy people.

Last night I watched the Matrix with Anthony. It was filmed in Sydney so Anthony kept pointing out where the different scenes were filmed and I was like, "hey! I've been there!!!" 

Today Anthony took me and Laura to Hillsong Church in the city. It was amazing!!! It met in Capital Theatre today for a trial. I guess they need more room to expand. After church Laura and I made some new friends our age: a girl named Paivi who's from Finland, Florance from France, Miranda from Mexico, and Ashton and Kieth from the states. The cool thing about Sydney is that it is extremely multi-cultural. It was a beautiful day so we all went and got Australian meat pies. Kieth, whose a chef here in Sydney, took us to the best place to get them. They were pretty good. After that we walked along the harbor, explored the botanical gardens, and ate ice blocks (popsicles). My feet hurt from walking so much and I've got a bit of a sunburn from being out in the sun all day but it's been good.

These are a couple guys that were pointing the way to Hillsong (this picture is for you Leslie ;). I've got more pictures but they are having trouble uploading. I'll put them up soon. 

more from Sydney

It's late again! I have been so incredibly busy seeing the sights and learning the ropes of the school that I haven't hardly had time to sleep. Today was a long day! I've been all over Sydney riding trains, catching busses, and walking tons of miles! It's gonna take a while to figure out how to do this whole public transportation stuff!

Tonight a bunch of us went out on the town and experienced Sydney at night! It's such a beautiful city day or night and the weather was perfect!

The picture below is of my house. The family is Greek and they act Greek, cook Greek, and decorate their house Greek. Just picture "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and you'll get an idea of what I mean. It will take some getting used to.

My host brother, Anthony, is great! He plays soccer and likes to tease me and Laura, my roommate. He's been giving us tips on getting along in Australian culture and has been helping us work on our Australian accents- I think we're getting pretty good! Anthony is really funny and having him around makes living at this house a whole lot more enjoyable.