Student Impressions(Australia)

One of the best ways to learn about student study abroad experiences is to listen to or read from others who have been there and done that. Wilkes students have just such an opportunity available to them right now. The account that follows is part 1 of a three part series on the impressions of two Wilkes students (Danielle Hritzak and Alyssa Benner) about their ongoing study abroad experiences in Australia (Fall 2009).

In part 1, the students describe their first week in Australia and set the stage for part 2, which deals with their classroom experiences and finally part three- social life and side trips to learn more about the environments and peoples of Australia. These students are very generous with their time and are available to share their experiences over email with other Wilkes students who are considering similar experiences. Other students are also on standby to share their study abroad experiences to other parts of the world. For more information contact Godlove Fonjweng at godlove.fonjweng@wilkes.edu.

Impressions from Down Under

Danielle Hritzak
Blog 1: Remembering my first week in Sydney, Australia.
Fall 2009

Landing in a country on the opposite side of the world from where I have lived for 21 years of my life, was a pretty remarkable feeling. I knew I was going to be residing here for the next four and a half months but I had no idea what to expect. As silly as it sounds now, I thought I would instantly see the outback and kangaroo crossing signs to replace the all too familiar forest and deer crossing signs I was used to back home. Instead, landing in Sydney, Australia, I was welcomed by cold dark rainclouds and cars driving on ‘the wrong side of the road’. This was an intimidating start.

We were told that Australia only gets 35 (or so) days of rain out of the 365 days in the year. Sydney was even said to be in the midst of a major drought. Arriving to cold and rain was totally unexpected. Once we arrived in the heart of the city, which to me, is on the corner of George and Liverpool where the World Hotel sits 80 some stories high, it felt like I was experiencing something straight off of the Travel channel. And this hotel was to be my accommodation for the next week until we were moved to our permanent addresses. What makes this location so incredible to be staying at while in Sydney is because George St. is one of the major roads that leads you right to the Circular Quey, which is where Sydney’s Opera House and the Harbor Bridge are located. If you decide to walk down Liverpool St. you will come to Harbor Street which takes you right in to Darling Harbor, where you can find the world’s largest IMAX Theatre among dozens of clubs, bars and restaurants to fit anybody’s ideal evening. This is going to be at my fingertips for the next four and a half months. Thanks mom! Thanks dad! I owe you a lot for this one.

Throughout that first week, our tour guide, Russ, director of the program Study Australia took us on a series of trips including The Blue Mountains, The Featherdale Wildlife Zoo and an elegant dinner cruise around the Harbor Bridge and Opera House. I was able to pet and feed Kangaroo’s and get a pretty fancy picture with a Koala, although it is no longer legal in most of Australia to hold them. Our walking tours throughout the city made me much more comfortable and familiar with the area.

Australia has an eclectic variety of all different kinds of Japanese, Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese restaurants. No more chains! Typical Australian cuisine consists of “pub foods”, which includes items such as bangars and mash (sausage with mashed potatoes), chicken schnitzel (breaded chicken), chips and chili sauce (fries with dipping sauce), as well as kangaroo, emu and crocodile. Kangaroo is actually one of the healthiest meats with virtually no fat, and they encourage eating more of it because of the enormous kangaroo population. Cute and tasty…yikes.

I’ve never considered myself a “city-person”, and quite honestly, I still don’t. However, living in one of the world’s most talked about cities, for it’s beauty, warmth and location (right next to the world famous Bondi Beach), I can re-consider myself a city-girl, get used to the walking, buses, and noise for four and half months and enjoy a once in a lifetime college experience in Australia. In the very near future, I will provide details about my classes and day-today living and interactions with Aussies, so stay tuned. 

Alyssa Benner
Blog 1: My first week in Australia
Fall 2009

I remember thinking…all the way around the world?  The thought was both daunting and exhilarating.  My first international trip was to Australia?  I was a big girl now, I told myself. I also convinced myself that once I landed, there wasn’t anything I couldn’t do. 

We landed at the airport in Sydney and I was a bit dazed and confused from my lack of sleep.  I felt like the only person on the plane that didn’t utilize the 24 hours to catch up on sleep.  We landed at Sydney International airport in beautiful Australia to nothing but…rain!  I think we brought the rain with us from the States because it rained during the whole first week.

Regardless of that, we were swept away by our program and put up in the World Towers, an amazing complex right on George and Liverpool Streets. The World towers was right in the heart of Sydney.  To be honest my mind wanted to go out and explore the city but my body just wanted to crash.  We had some orientations, met our roommates and were told not to fall asleep until at least nine so as to catch up with our new sleep cycle.  Yea right.  After a good night’s rest I was swept away with the other people in the program to do a walking tour of Sydney, explore the Blue Mountains, pet koalas at the zoo, see a crazy IMAX film about trees and just generally get to know the lay of the land.  In the beginning it was all very overwhelming, but slowly I began to get used to my new environments. It was interesting being surrounded by people with very different accents, very unlike being at Wilkes. In my next posting, I will provide details about classes and my interactions with Aussies.