There’s More to Life in Australia than the Beach
These past few weeks in Sydney have gone by so fast. So fast that I occasionally have to stop, catch my breath and pinch myself because it still hasn鈥檛 dawned on me that I鈥檝e actually made it to the other side of the world. My second week of classes are officially over and I鈥檝e had two class trips with my Sports and Australian Culture class, including one to a National Rugby League match, that have showed me a whole new side of Sydney.
I鈥檝e also started a research internship with my professor Dr. Steve Georgakis. We鈥檙e going to be studying the impact that studying abroad has on students, which honestly is the thing that I鈥檓 most looking forward to working on while in Sydney.
Luckily my class schedule (which is just from Monday to Wednesday with occasional weekend trips) and Steve being extremely thoughtful allow for me to find time to travel the Australian coast in addition to studying here. He鈥檚 made researching with him manageable so that I can balance my social and school life in Sydney.
I鈥檝e also started a research internship with my professor Dr. Steve Georgakis. We鈥檙e going to be studying the impact that studying abroad has on students, which honestly is the thing that I鈥檓 most looking forward to working on while in Sydney.
This past week as I started working on my different projects, I realized that I actually get to get work done and experience the fun side of Sydney. However, I鈥檓 counting down the days until break when hopefully my friends and I road trip to Cairns, The Great Barrier Reef, The Whitsundays and Fraser Island. Australia is an awesome place to explore and has way more to offer than just beaches because, fun fact, they do more than just hang out at the beach in Australia. So far one of my favorite aspects of Australian culture is how active they are, whether it be watching a match of聽the Rugby League or hiking the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk.
Back at Lafayette I was able to balance both my social and school life, and here I鈥檝e definitely been able to achieve this balance as well. Living in Sydney is like living in paradise! There鈥檚 so much to see and do here that I can also check off of my bucket list. For example,聽this weekend I am visiting the Spectrum Now festival, the Taste of Sydney festival and visiting Pirrama Park, where the trees are currently painted blue in honor of the environment.
With over four months to go, I know that the fun isn鈥檛 ending anytime soon, and if I鈥檓 lucky, I鈥檒l learn to swim just in time to eventually go to surf camp. The best advice I鈥檝e heard this week that I can share with you is that it took a lot of hard work to get to Australia and that you should enjoy it while you can once you鈥檙e here!