I’m not at St.FX anymore...

Griffith University (or Uni as they say here) has 43,000 studying at five campuses. 10,000 students are on my particular campus. This is more than double what I’m used to. Campus is huge. The buildings are big. The area is big. “On campus housing” is across the highway and then some. It’s massive.

Griffith Uni Gold Coast Campus (minus residences) 

Class started yesterday so I have officially started grad school. I am a grad student. Working on my Master of Business in Event Management. This is something I have been talking about for so long and I have been in Australia for three weeks today and finally I feel like there’s a reason to be here. A grad student. Wow wow wow! Even though I’m studying at such a large University, my classes are decent sizes. The system here is designed so that you have a two hour lecture and one hour tutorial (tute) for each of your course. So far my first tute has 20 students and the lecture has nearly 100. Not bad. Profs are laid back and very funny. I think I will like it. Workload will be intense at some points, but the way my schedule is laid out I have my lecture and tute for each course on the same day so I have a day per course with Wednesdays off. So I can focus the day/night before class on what I have to do for only one specific course. I quite like this system. Did I mention I only have 1 final exam??

Essentially an on campus strip mall. Hair dresser, post office, book store, convenience store.

Just walking between classes. So tropical!

Roundabouts everywhere! They make so much sense though. 

Constant campus upgrades. 

Enough about school though, that’s not the most important aspect of my time here right?? So, since I last posted here are a couple highlights and lowlights.

High: I spent my last few days before class getting to know the area better. Including a shopping trip with my favourite X grad living on the Gold Coast Emma Davis! Of course I didn’t get anything interesting, but it was nice to get out of the house during all the rain.

Low: It has literally rained since last Wednesday. I bought a lawn chair for tanning and it has rained ever since. Brutal, my white skin is not happy.

High: I bought my first guitar. I started playing in May when I was a recent, unemployed graduate. I don’t play anything fancy, but I enjoy picking it up every once and a while. I was feeling like something was missing in my life when I stumbled upon a guitar ad on the “kijiji” equivalent while I was looking for jobs. So I checked it out and bartered $30 off the price.

Low: Hives. The day before my first day of school, I broke out in hives. One $60 trip to the doctor later, I have discovered I had an allergic reaction to…something. I think it was the laundry detergent used on the sheets before I got here. I’ve washed them in my own detergent, taken some steroids and antihistamines and I’m almost good as new.

High: One of my roommates’ friends went wild over my X-ring. Apparently she really likes class rings and thought mine was sweet. : )

Aussie experiences to cross of the “to experience” list:

1) Vegemite. A traditional Australian vegetable spread. They go wild over it. On toast for breakfast, to heal mouth sores, when you’re sick, the list goes on. So the girls made me taste it last night. I had a TINY bit off a spoon at first. It was salty. Not terrible, but I wouldn’t buy it on my own. Then they put some on a buttered cracker. Better, but not peanut butter.

2) Cane Toads. We had two cane toads in the backyard last night. They are big fat toads that spit at you when agitated. The worst part is that if the spit makes contact with your skin it causes a wart to form. Gross! We didn’t get close enough to whack it to see if it would spit, but I’ll update you if I have that opportunity. Fun fact: If you dose them in salt, they puff up and explode. I will keep you updated on this experiment as well!

Seeing as it is sunny today, and the prospects of sun tomorrow are high, I will be spending my day off in the sun and AT THE BEACH!!! Can you believe I’ve been in Australia for 3 weeks and I haven’t seen the beach yet? I can’t.

TTFN

Alex xox

P.S. I’ve remembered a few more signs I am meant to be here; and signs that I’m feeling much more like myself:

Sign number 4: There’s a Dan Murphy’s (my new NSLC) on my walk to and from campus.

Sign number 5: There’s a wine bar ON campus.

Sign number 6: The Uni-Bar is open all day every day. How do you fill awkward breaks between classes? Beers with friends, that’s how.

Outside the Uni Bar (coffee, beer and meals served all day!)