Days 2-6: Dis-Oriented

Before you compliment me on my clever title for this post, let me tell you that I didn't come up with the name. I stole it from DLC's name for Orientation- Dis-O week. The catch phrase of DLC's Orientation: "It's not how deep you fish, it's how you wiggle your worm. Catch a Big O this week." Hehehe.


A lot has happened since the last time I updated this blog, so be prepared for a massive post. If you don't feel like reading all of it, that's fine. Here is the abridged version: It's been amazing and fun, Sydney is amazing, the people are awesome, and I am exhausted.


Now for the rest of you reading the whole thing, let's start off where I left off last time, Day 2. So on the second day we had a scavenger hunt throughout Sydney. But it wasn't just about finding things. Oh no, we had to complete a bunch of insane tasks. This included but was not limited to: Proposing to a stranger, ordering food without a shirt on, eating a 1 pound hamburger, kissing someone in a uniform, having a rap battle with a stranger, reenacting a scene from a famous musical on the steps of the Sydney Opera house, becoming street performers begging for money, offering strangers a piggy-back ride across the street, dancing in public, and some other tasks I'm not gonna publish on this blog. It was gray and rainy the entire time, but that didn't dampen our spirits. It was a great time, and we ended the night with a Gender-Bender Party. Ladies and Gentlemen, I wore a dress for this occasion and I'm hoping there aren't any pictures floating out there to show it. But overall, my first time in drag wasn't so bad. 


Day 3 was the International Student's Orientation. I spent most of the morning and afternoon learning about academic life at Macquarie University, hearing about different opportunities on campus, and started organizing my schedule. I am currently enrolled in 3 100 level classes, which is the minimum needed for an Exchange Student. And I currently have Monday, Thursday, and Friday off from class. Epic. But I need to take at least 4 classes to keep up with ASU's requirements. I'm hoping to get in a 300 level(the highest level undergraduate classes at Macquarie) class, but it isn't guaranteed. They are usually reserved for students in their last years, and I'm starting my third back in the States. But since I took 2 Third-Year history classes last year and got A's in both, an exception will be made for me. If not, it's gonna be tough finding another class that will fit in the narrowish box I have to bring back classes that fit my major. That night I had to go through a DLC Orientation tradition that I won't go into details about since hey, maybe someone reading this will decide to go to Macquarie and stay at DLC and then BAM I've ruined the surprised. After that, we went out to the bar/club up the road. This was my first time being able to go to a club and legally drink at the same time. It was a lot of fun, and before you ask no no trouble came about for me. I'm a responsible young man thank you very much.


Day 4 was a trip to the Taronga Zoo, which lies on the opposite side of the harbor where the Sydney Opera House is. While I nearly crapped my pants when I realized the Ferry and Ticket would cost $50, it was well worth it. Not only is it an amazing zoo, but it offers some epic views of Downtown Sydney. Also, it was an insane amount of walking around. That night was the International Students Party Cruise, put on by Macquarie. The theme was Olympics/Sports, so I went dressed in some running cloths and American flag tights. Women's tights. Yes, I realized that I've worn articles of women's clothing twice this week and frankly I'm alright with that. Basically this trip was ANOTHER party with more dancing. By the end of the night, those of us who had gone to the zoo AND the party cruise were absolutely exhausted and 


Day 5's events was an afternoon picnic right outside DLC, and it was wonderful weather. Sunny and warm, just how I like it. That night we went to a Sydney Rooster's Rugby game. That is seriously the team name. Sydney Roosters. The Rooster's lost, but that wasn't a major disappointment to be seeing how I'm kinda use that kind of thing already. But I really liked the rugby game. It went fast and easy to understand, which are both major positives in my book. Afterward we went to a pub in the city. I didn't stay that long, and decided to head back with some friends, Rob and Daan. Getting back the Macquarie was an adventure that involved trains, taxis, and a decent amount of walking. By this time my entire body was just sore, after an entire week of walking and dancing and being active.


Day 6 was the day of the Opening Ceremonies of the 2012 Olympics. I tried to wake up at 5:30 to catch the entire thing, but it took forever to get back home the night before so I ended up watching from 6:15 our time on. After that I promptly fell back asleep. So I've been relaxing all day. I got some cleaning done, got some laundry done, plan to do some reading. I know a lot of people went out tonight, but I'm pretty exhausted. I'm not the type who can handle a lot of going out all week long. And supposedly this starts all over again next week. And the fact that I am seriously running out of money. But I do like some "me" time, as anyone who knows me knows. I just have to be careful to not take too much of it.


So that's the recap of this week. Now onto the next part, where I'm gonna talk about some general feelings about this whole experience so far. If you read through the first part and have decided you don't want anymore, I understand. The abridged version: Things here are really similar and really different at the same time, I'm kinda obsessed with learning about the way of life here and from the others from different countries and I hope that's not annoying others, and I pretty much have loved every second of it. 


OK. So Sydney as a city is massive. When I mentioned we did a scavenger hunt through Sydney, it was just through a small part of the city. The Downtown area is enormous, and it has got to be like 10 times the size of Downtown Phoenix. Maybe less I'm not sure but it sure feels that way. And not to mention there are so many train lines and taxis all over. That is basically nothing like Arizona at all. I think it would be a lot easier to adjust if I lived in some of the bigger cities on the East Coast. It's just so radically different, but I'm sure I will get use to it in no time. Although getting use to the money here has been pretty easy. Except the smaller the coins are worth more money than the bigger coins, which is kinda cool and kinda confusing. Speaking of money... everything is so expensive here. It's hard to to spend money when that's kind of necessary to really get into O Week. I need to find a temporary job here, and the pay rate is pretty awesome. Sure cost of living is higher, but I've already paid for my housing so more money=more travel and other activities. It's hard to explain how being here mixes familiarity and difference all in one. Sometimes the parallels are super clear, other times it's hard to fathom how different things are. When I found out not even gets a chance to go to University, I was shocked. I mean, back home the opportunities are there in some way or form. Here in high school you already start a track that will lead you on a career path. I'm so glad that's not the case back home, because who knows where I'd be probably not here. But I love learning about the differences. I love to ask questions about even the most minute things. And that doesn't just go for the Australians and the culture here, but from some of the other international students as well. Daan is from the Netherlands, and we've talked a lot about the similarities and differences between there, the US, and here in Australia. And I'm such a nerd when it comes to history and geography and culture. I'm just hoping others are willing to listen and answer my questions, and it doesn't come off as pestering. 


Being here has taken some adjusting, and will continue to take some more. But honestly thats just part of the whole experience, and I feel like I'm doing a good job so far. Classes start next week, and I have a lot of errands to run still and a lot to figure out with my classes. As fun as it's been, I am definitely looking forward when things calm down a bit. But for now, I gotta recharge my batteries and get ready for the next week. 


Oh, yeah. I don't really have a picture to go with this post, sorry. But if you're friends with me on Facebook you can see them all uploaded into albums. Hopefully next time I will have a video or a picture to go with the post.