I know there are only about 3,000 students here, but there really needs to be more water fountains on campus. They're called "bubblers" here. I think that's funny. A lot of the lingo sounds like kindergarteners made it up, but I mean that in the best of ways. I like the words.
It was chilly and windy today and when I said I needed my hoodie, Kathryn laughed at me. It's a "jumper." But they have jackets, too, so I asked what the difference is. Jackets have zippers. She laughed at me about saying "candy," too. "They're lollies." Even non-suckers are lollies.
Classes started today and I think I'll survive so far. It kind of felt like I hadn't been to school in ages and on the other hand didn't feel like class at all. It just feels like Australia. My first class was Aboriginal and Multicultural Australia. The professor is thin with a thick, gray beard and glasses. I had to walk with him back to his office to sign up for tutorials and we started talking about Native Americans in America. I knew one girl in the class, too, because I met her at the BCS barbecue.
My second class was Media Ethics and Public Policy. The title makes me gag, but the class wasn't bad. It's a larger one, but I know two people in it. We're going to have a presentation in a couple of weeks, so I may team up with them because they live in my dorm.
It's funny how people around here walk around in the rain like it's not raining in the first place. It was raining pretty steady on the way to my second class and there were only a couple of umbrellas. I got lucky because I got rides to both of my classes and the second girl even came back to pick me up.
I had to sign up for workshops as well. CSU (Charles Sturt University) is extremely strict on referencing and plagiarism and they use APA to reference, which I've never done. I signed up for a workshop to learn that and a few others so I don't screw up on my assignments. Australian universities in general are big on analysis, so I hope I do well. In my first class, we talked about history and I had no idea what they were talking about. Plus, all students have a compulsory Aboriginal class in high school anyway.
By the way, parking on their campus is free and much easier than UNCC.
Back to classes...the whole schedule is done differently from home. There are lectures and tutorials. Lecture outlines are usually put online and it's not a requirement to come, but students are required to make 8 out of 12 tutorials, which are at different times, different buildings and maybe even different professors. That's where 90% of the work is done. Some classes are 50 minutes and some are an hour and 50 minutes. I don't think any of them get to be as large as some at UNCC. Expressing different views is also encouraged.
For tutorials, you can pick the time you want to go out of a list of times, but for my second class, the time I wanted was already filled. I asked the professor if I could still get in and it shouldn't be a problem.
I'm kind of confused about the classwork, though. Sometimes the reading is provided and most classes require textbooks. The assignments just don't seem as cut and dry as at home, but it's probably just because I'm not used to the system.
I was going to tackle the gym today, but by the time I was out of my late class (about 6:30), I was tired and hungry, so hopefully tomorrow.
I did make ravioli on the gas stove, though, so I'm proud of myself for that. If I hadn't been so tired, I would've joined the slew of people going to "the Ox" or the Oxford Hotel, which is a big hangout for uni students. The downstairs is an indoor and outdoor pub and I think they have pool tables. Tonight was Tight and Bright night. Any excuse to dress up.
While I was cooking, a bunch of the "dormies" were asking me questions about studying here and telling me to say certain words. For Aussie, they pronounce it "Ozzie." They even have a chant: "Ozzie, oi! Ozzie, oi! Ozzie Ozzie Ozzie, oi oi oi!" Ha ha ha. That was hard to type.
One girl may be taking me home with her this weekend...(That didn't come out right). She lives a few hours away on the beach and I was talking about wanting to travel. She's really excited to have me come along, so I hope it works out. Neither of us have class on Friday. Everyone keeps telling me I can come home with them some weekend and I tell them, "Take me!" I want to go everywhere. My roommate mentioned it, too. She has horses!
Oh, sad part. Kathryn, the girl next to me, will probably be dropping out tomorrow :( She's a first year, just 17, and she's decided to do history instead of nursing. For that, she'd have to go to the Wagga Wagga campus, about four hours away. She told me I can come stay with her in Katoomba one weekend. She's really sweet.
It's funny how students here go straight into their course (or major). There may be a couple of core requirements, but for the most part, students know what path they want to follow as soon as they get here.
OH YEAH! Shy called me earlier and said the rental car people had called. (I'm sure they had names). Since we had insurance, we don't have to pay the full amount for the scratch, but we do have to shell out $300 among us, $60 each. It's not like I have a job, so I'm not thrilled. I know it's our responsibility, but that's terribly high for a stupid scratch. We should've bought a silver sharpie to go over it. All the more reason not to be going out with everyone tonight.
Alright, well off to watch some TV with the fellow dormies. They were watching the Oscars earlier. It's so strange seeing all these shows from America here. I need to watch my Golden Girls DVDs soon!
It was chilly and windy today and when I said I needed my hoodie, Kathryn laughed at me. It's a "jumper." But they have jackets, too, so I asked what the difference is. Jackets have zippers. She laughed at me about saying "candy," too. "They're lollies." Even non-suckers are lollies.
Classes started today and I think I'll survive so far. It kind of felt like I hadn't been to school in ages and on the other hand didn't feel like class at all. It just feels like Australia. My first class was Aboriginal and Multicultural Australia. The professor is thin with a thick, gray beard and glasses. I had to walk with him back to his office to sign up for tutorials and we started talking about Native Americans in America. I knew one girl in the class, too, because I met her at the BCS barbecue.
My second class was Media Ethics and Public Policy. The title makes me gag, but the class wasn't bad. It's a larger one, but I know two people in it. We're going to have a presentation in a couple of weeks, so I may team up with them because they live in my dorm.
It's funny how people around here walk around in the rain like it's not raining in the first place. It was raining pretty steady on the way to my second class and there were only a couple of umbrellas. I got lucky because I got rides to both of my classes and the second girl even came back to pick me up.
I had to sign up for workshops as well. CSU (Charles Sturt University) is extremely strict on referencing and plagiarism and they use APA to reference, which I've never done. I signed up for a workshop to learn that and a few others so I don't screw up on my assignments. Australian universities in general are big on analysis, so I hope I do well. In my first class, we talked about history and I had no idea what they were talking about. Plus, all students have a compulsory Aboriginal class in high school anyway.
By the way, parking on their campus is free and much easier than UNCC.
Back to classes...the whole schedule is done differently from home. There are lectures and tutorials. Lecture outlines are usually put online and it's not a requirement to come, but students are required to make 8 out of 12 tutorials, which are at different times, different buildings and maybe even different professors. That's where 90% of the work is done. Some classes are 50 minutes and some are an hour and 50 minutes. I don't think any of them get to be as large as some at UNCC. Expressing different views is also encouraged.
For tutorials, you can pick the time you want to go out of a list of times, but for my second class, the time I wanted was already filled. I asked the professor if I could still get in and it shouldn't be a problem.
I'm kind of confused about the classwork, though. Sometimes the reading is provided and most classes require textbooks. The assignments just don't seem as cut and dry as at home, but it's probably just because I'm not used to the system.
I was going to tackle the gym today, but by the time I was out of my late class (about 6:30), I was tired and hungry, so hopefully tomorrow.
I did make ravioli on the gas stove, though, so I'm proud of myself for that. If I hadn't been so tired, I would've joined the slew of people going to "the Ox" or the Oxford Hotel, which is a big hangout for uni students. The downstairs is an indoor and outdoor pub and I think they have pool tables. Tonight was Tight and Bright night. Any excuse to dress up.
While I was cooking, a bunch of the "dormies" were asking me questions about studying here and telling me to say certain words. For Aussie, they pronounce it "Ozzie." They even have a chant: "Ozzie, oi! Ozzie, oi! Ozzie Ozzie Ozzie, oi oi oi!" Ha ha ha. That was hard to type.
One girl may be taking me home with her this weekend...(That didn't come out right). She lives a few hours away on the beach and I was talking about wanting to travel. She's really excited to have me come along, so I hope it works out. Neither of us have class on Friday. Everyone keeps telling me I can come home with them some weekend and I tell them, "Take me!" I want to go everywhere. My roommate mentioned it, too. She has horses!
Oh, sad part. Kathryn, the girl next to me, will probably be dropping out tomorrow :( She's a first year, just 17, and she's decided to do history instead of nursing. For that, she'd have to go to the Wagga Wagga campus, about four hours away. She told me I can come stay with her in Katoomba one weekend. She's really sweet.
It's funny how students here go straight into their course (or major). There may be a couple of core requirements, but for the most part, students know what path they want to follow as soon as they get here.
OH YEAH! Shy called me earlier and said the rental car people had called. (I'm sure they had names). Since we had insurance, we don't have to pay the full amount for the scratch, but we do have to shell out $300 among us, $60 each. It's not like I have a job, so I'm not thrilled. I know it's our responsibility, but that's terribly high for a stupid scratch. We should've bought a silver sharpie to go over it. All the more reason not to be going out with everyone tonight.
Alright, well off to watch some TV with the fellow dormies. They were watching the Oscars earlier. It's so strange seeing all these shows from America here. I need to watch my Golden Girls DVDs soon!
1 comment:
Tif, did you see those beautiful dresses?? I liked Jennifer Lopez's. I refuse to say "J-LO". That is so silly, sounds like jello. Oh, I can't think, maybe Penelope Cruz's dress - the one that was pink and looked liked rolls of wrapping tissue - did you see that?? Well, gotta go play horsey w/Emily. Bless her heart. Hope you get to travel a lot w/out a lot of expense. Be careful. Love, Mom
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