Update that you can skim through with pictures! :)

Hello friends (hopefully)

6 weeks down under!

It has been awhile and to be honest i've been quite lazy. Not in the since that I just sit around all day but in the since that when I do have free time I usually workout, sleep, or eat. Just wanted to pop in and give everyone an update skimming is encourage so you don't feel like I'm rambeling .. so enjoy!

PLANNING
First of all my parents will be here in 18 days! That time is fastly approaching and when they are here that means that I am half way through my time here! CRAZY I've had a hard time thinking concentrating on my life here because I have recently needed to plan for my upcoming summer classes and junior year at Grand Valley. Its crazy to think I will be in school year round from when I started here in Febuary till next year 2014. SO now that I have all my classes sorted out and scheduled I can kind of concentrate on schooling here?

SCHOOL HERE
I have no exams or no weekly assignments here (only readings) also to give you an idea the teachers say the readings are optional.. At Grand Valley we had quizes, tests, and assignments due weekly that I needed to keep on top of and here... Its alot more relaxed in that since but I find it very easy to put off school work because there is nothing to keep you on track every week. Most my classes have 3 papers for the semester, the first one is worth 20%, second 30%, third 40% and participation 10%. My first round of papers are coming up and I haven't started a single one.. but ill be alright hopefully! (starting them today) At least the first one is only worth half of what the last one is worth so I can get a feel for how they grade over here. FYI I haven't gotten any grades yet and its week 5 of classes.

THINGS I HAVE DONE
I have had the chance to venture into the city by myself which has been the awesome. Most the time I go downtown with my australian friends that know there way around and I usually just follow. When I go by myself I need to rely on my own since of direction which is quite scary it a big city. Other things I have done recently.. going to an amusement park on the Sydney harbor, talked down the price for the first time on clothing, hiking through the blue mountains, got lost in a cave, saw 10+ wild kangaroos and one had a baby in its pouch, saw wallabies and lots of other weird animals i don't know the names of, had my first ever chocolate shot, learned how to surf, attempted a handstand while surfing (fail), got 8 free drinks at a bar (big accomplishment).

STORY TIME
"Ment to meet each other"
I went to this church call "hillsong" about 3 weeks ago. Ended up meeting this guy that lived 15 minutes away from my home town of Lowell, MI and his name was Jeff. His sister was studying here awhile ago so Jeff decided to visit her and planned on staying here for 3 weeks and he has now been here for 3 years because he ended up loving it so much. Jeff asked me last friday if I was coming to church the following sunday I said no because I was going to surf camp. He asked what one because one of his good friends was an instructor at one. It ended up being the same camp. So he told me to ask for him when I arrived. His name was Brendon and he was from south africa. While going to surf camp we made a stop in the city to pick up some people from a hostel. There was a guy outside clapping his hands obnoxiously so me and the girl I was sitting with were laughing at him and waving and taking pictures thinking we were never going to see him again. Long story short he ended up getting on the bus, being the guy I knew through Jeff, and my surf instructor for the whole weekend. Also he knew it was me that was taking a picture of him through the window. -- we had a good laugh.

SURF CAMP
was awesome. The weather was impeccable, everyone was super nice. I stayed in a cabin with 2 guys and 4 other girls. We had two surf session a day. My hips are busied badly from getting on and off the board so many times and I am very sore. I met some new people which is always fun but I also had people that I knew there. They had a camp pet which was a wild possum and you could fed it apples which was pretty cool.... I hope you enjoyed the pictures on Facebook of me surfing as well!

BULLET LIST
-all toilets here have two flush buttons
- some have brown reused water to be more "green"
-all outlets have an on and off switch
-all australian university you get your degree in 3 years, and masters in 1 year
-the semesters go from Febuary- June (1st semester) and June- November (2nd semester)
- you don't get "grades" here its called marks instead
-more efficient way of transportation is the train
- all australians wear uniforms to school growing up
- you say "its my shout" if its your turn to buy something
-australians say reckon a lot, which I'm use to just hicks saying
-there are no quite parts of the libraries here
- printing is very expensive (well pretty much everything is here)

INTERESTING?
Something i thought was interesting that I have never heard of before that happens a lot here are students taking a "gap year" in between high school and Uni. Some Universities will except you a year later than when you applied because they want you to take a year off (Gap year) and travel, work, or what not because they do not think you are ready or grown up enough for University yet. My german and austrian roommate said they have the same. So they graduate later than most americans do. My german roommate is 25 and just about the graduate.

NO NEED TO READ
I'm in 80 degree weather every day and every grocery store does not sell fans because its "fall" here so they are not in season. It rains every now and then but everything is very green and pretty. I have really awesome roommates and we eat together a lot. I'm learning how to cook, I walk about 3-5 miles on average, I go to the gym almost everyday. My mom sent me a one piece bathing suit so now I can go swim laps! YAY

... I know it sounds cliché but I have really missed my boyfriend. As some of you know we went to high school together and go to the same school. We have never been away from each other this long and it really feels like a part of me is missing without him.. It has really been the hardest thing to deal with here, but its all part of the experience!

Loving life in australia

hang loose, i guess like surfers say
Ally
P.S. skipping class tomorrow to go to the beach because its going to be too hot 85 degrees and no air in the building I'm in.

SOME PICTURES AS PROMISED

after we first met! - my roommate Camilla she's from australia!

A nice beginning of the semester photo!

Boat cruise for international students

Opera house!

Windy day in the city

A view from a bar in Sydney

My favorite place, Darling Harbor

Roomie love <3

taste of america burgers in australia!

Adult playground!

This is what it looks like without flash

Pretty!

Gender bender party! I had a guy come up to me and say "I swear to God, I thought to were a man" He didn't understand when I then walked away.. I prolly should of put some makeup on...

German roomie love- He let me do his makeup and nails!

amazing street art!

Darling harbor again

Starbucks!

Chinese garden

Chinese garden 

Luna with the roomies!

Baby duckies!

creepy right?

we went on this!

getting a FAKE tattoo 

the blue mountains

living on the edge! hiking

Your going to make this place your home :)

HELLO! :)

At this point I have been here for almost 3 weeks. I am seeing more and more differences everyday. I loved starting from nothing here. When I landed I knew nobody. I did not know where I was going to live, who my flatmates were, or who I was going to be hanging out with for these next 4.5 months. It was joyful sense of feeling lost.. and making a whole new life for yourself .. if that makes since. 

When I got here I went to the store and bought things like tooth paste, shampoo, and other necessities. I bought little quantities thinking "I won't be here long, so I won't need that much". When in reality, I did. I need to think to myself now: yes I will be here long enough to go though a small tube of tooth paste and probably a big tube at that. I am here for 4 and a half months and I feel that it is just starting to hit me that thats actually a long time. I need to buy substantial food and grocery shop every week. I need to stop living out of my suit case and pack away things into my drawers. Time to get settled in and do some laundry. Thats what I feel that people that vacation here are not getting to experience. The day to day "living in Australia" experience. We will see what this really means in the end.

I am making a home for myself here. Trying new things, food, exercise, and classes. I LOVE the gym on campus. I have been doing workout classes everyday. On monday I did boxing for the first time LOVED IT. Then some type of odd yoga on tuesday against a wall... lol. Then today I did a workout class callled body pump. You workout with a barbell and do heaps of squats. I also got my Australian flatmate (Camilla) to join with me! My German flatmate (Mags) taught me out to make homemade pasta. Which I had no idea existed. He had dough out on the counter and I asked him if he was making rolls and he said "no, pasta" I was so confused. With the pasta we made Schnitzel and a mushroom, basil, onion cream sauce! It was incredible! 

Since the climate is so hot here there are many outdoor shops and cafes to go to, which is nice. But, because it is so hot students here mostly do not have backpacks. If you wore a backpack by the time you get to class your whole back will be drenched in sweat. So I only take my backpack when necessary, which is not often. 

Something I've noticed. This has happened to me about 5 times now: I am sitting waiting for a class and someone (random) will come up to me and ask me where a class room is. As always I say I have no idea. But I thought about it more, does this mean I fit in with everybody else and it looks like I know where I'm going? Its crazy because I have no idea. I always have a campus map on me and always have to ask people myself and I always ask the ones that look like they are from Australia. 

Classes are going alright... my POL 108 class is going to be my toughest I think. Its and international relations class that transfers back to GV as a gened. When they are talking in class I feel as if they are talking in a different language... so I will have to keep up with my readings and hopefully it will get better. They also explained in lecture how the class would be taught in the US and how this class is different. He said that in the US they focus on the states and here they focus on more of the big picture rather than the states. I think its really awesome that I can take a class here that is going to transfer back as a class but the two classes be totally different from each other. 

In my tut today for this class I was telling someone I was from Michigan and someone yells out from behind saying "No way! I am too!" This kid ended but being from GV also which was super weird because I thought it was only me and this girl Mallory. Pretty crazy to meet someone half way around the world from the same UNI that you didn't even know was here.. 

Which brings me to my next point of how many americans are here! I did not expect this many. I really don't like to be around people that are from my michigan or what not but I do hang out with a lot of other americans but all from different states.. I really like it in 2 of my 4 classes I am the ONLY exchange/ american there the rest are Australian. 

There is heaps of americans. FYI everyone here says "heaps"it just means a lot. Like "Thats heaps cute" "I drank a heaps on Mardi Gras" Even my professors say all the "slang". Also along with some other words:
Flatmates= roommates
"This is my flatmate.... Mags"
Goon= cheep wine
"Boxes of Goon are on sale! 2 for 30!"
Mate= friend
Avro= afternoon
"Me and my mate are going to the beach tomorrow avro, want to come?"

I have decided to stay where I am for my living situation. A little fore story: Before I came I had signed a contract to live in an apartment complex on the east side, but when I arrived I was placed on the west side. To give you an idea to walk to campus from the east side would be about 5 min, and from the west (I timed myself yesterday) about 14 min. It is ALOT longer walk when carrying groceries because the cheapest grocery store is 30 min walk away from west side. Yet, an expensive grocery store is a 5 min walk away. It is always tempting to just go there but I make the trek to the cheeper one anyway. ANYWHO I have deiced to stay where I'm at because I really like my roommates. I don't want to move all my stuff again and have roommates that don't talk or whatnot. That goes to say I love my roommates! This weekend were all hoping in a car and headed to the blue mountains (2 hours away) to do some hiking!

I don't quite miss home yet, but I do miss the connivence of home. Oh! and I love the weather here.. that might help when at home its snowing and its 80 degrees here.
Miss Yall
Love,
Ally