Anzac Day and Sydney

Hello~
Sorry for the late delay for a post, but not too much goes on between trips other than class and a little drinking during the week. In case you are curious, Aussies tend to drink a lot in the beginning of semester, but tail off until mostly Thursday night (big Unibar night- the on-campus bar), and Saturday night. Some of the other nights the international students drink, though. There are as many international students living in the dorms as Australians. Americans from Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Boston mostly, but also students from Canada and parts of Asia.

Everyone drinks on some days, like this last friday- Anzac day. Anzac day is Australia's day for Veterans, specifically referencing a particular battle against Turkey in which many Australians died in battle. On that day, a game the soldiers played is made legal for that day only. A game called Two-up, where three coins are placed on a piece of wood resembling a paintstick. Everyone bets whether more heads or more tails come up after the toss. People bet anywhere from $5 to $100 with anyone willing to take the bet. To make a bet, you shout your bet ('5 bucks on heads!) and either patting the cash on your head for heads or waving the money behind your butt for tails. I made about $80.

The last trip I went on was down to Sydney, though. An Aussie friend I made decided to withdraw from school to manage his friends band- a good choice, I think. He came up and stayed in an extra room in my flat for a week, then drove two other Americans and I down to stay at his house for a few days. It was about a half hour from Sydney, so we took the train in when we went in. It was really cool, but I think 3-4 days seemed like enough. The Botanical gardens were cool (for a garden at least), and I heard the Chinese gardens were cool too but I didn't make it there. The opera house and pier are fun to walk through as well, and the bridge is awesome. I went over the bridge at night, and I think it might have been better that way. The coolest thing in my opinion was Center Point, a space-needle like tower that you go up and see an excellent view of the whole city. The nightlife was crazy. Seriously. Going to Kings Cross to drink was an experience in itself. I also saw a Rugby League Match live, the Sydney Roosters vs. the Newcastle Knights. Its big here- their football. But rubgy is like cricket- just something you have to learn when you get here. To leave, I took a train back to Lismore, which created some trouble. There was not one running when advertised so we were stuck an extra night, forcing me to miss some classes. Either way, a great trip overall.
Bringing me to my final point! I would have pictures, but in an unfortunate turn my camera broke on the trip to Sydney. So, no pics yet, I have to go and get them off of other peoples' cameras.
Shea

New Zealand pt. 2 and School

My trip to New Zealand is now done, and by far it was the best trip of my life. Very fun, with a lot of adventure, ups and downs to be sure, but looking back everything was worth it!
I tried to add pictures, but the blog isn't letting me... there are no icons to allow and other media to be added like there was before. I will try and figure it out.

When I returned, I was faced with the start of school again- a bummer for sure. But, to give you a gist of what school is like here, here are my classes and what is required:

Outdoor Ed: I meet for a lecture (~100ppl) for one hour, Monday from 1-2, and a tutorial (27 ppl), from 4-6 on Monday as well. There are two field trips, one to a ropes course for 3 days and one to a national park for 4. There are reflections for both, but less than a page. One test on all theory, about two thirds of the way through the semester. One larger paper as well, maybe 8-10 pages.

International Management: I meet on Tuesdays from 9-11am, but only for 10wks in the semester. Just lecture, and there is the option of writing two papers (4 and 8 pages I believe) and taking a test, or just the test. I picked just the test.

Consultation and Participation: I meet from 10-1, Mondays, and it is a discussion based lecture. There are two papers, one 6pgs, the other 8pgs, and a small participation grade because it is the focus of the class.

The papers usually require an average number of sources (somewhere between 3 and 8, depending on length).

So, I only have class til Tuesday, and there are only a few things due in the semester- but, just so you know, each class does assign readings that you really have to keep up with.