First post from Australia!

Well so much has happened since I got here I'm not sure where to begin. We haven't had much free time since we arrived, and as soon as our scheduled activities ended for the night most of us hit the pillows pretty hard as we have yet to recover from the dreaded jet lag. I'm talking about going to bed at 8 or 9 and waking up at 4 in the morning! Even as I type this I know my mother won't believe it. That's right mom I woke up at 4 and for once it isn't followed by the letters P and M.

So anyways (expect a lot of these "so anyways" readers, it's the only transition I like). Also, when I say "we" I'm referring to myself and the 29 other Notre Dame students in this study abroad program. So anyways we arrived here at St Thomas More College (that's the dorm I'm living in) at about noon on Sunday. That's after what I calculated to be about 25 hours of flight time and countless (actually countable) hours in airport terminals. A man with a UWA sign picked us up at the airport and drove us to the college (again Australian for dorm) by bus. My first impression of Australians was that they are very much like Disney World staff. The driver delivered both jokes and useful information in a cheery Australian accent that had me thinking I was either in Epcot or watching the Discovery Channel (it's too bad there's no Australia in Epcot, it should definitely replace Canada). Arriving at the college, we were warmly greeted and treated to a meal in the dining hall. The Rector, Brother Rob, is very friendly and easy to talk with and the Assistant Rector, Pauline, is a very friendly, little old lady with a delightful accent. After the meal we received our room key cards (the doors/keys are much like hotels), and we went off to see where we'd be living for the next five months. I myself was very impressed with the rooms: lots of storage space, a big desk, and a balcony! Here this will give you a visual.

The room


View from the balc


For the rest of the first day, we were shown campus and the surrounding area by the Australian version of RAs, "duty tutors" (imagine how an Aussie would say it for full effect). A few others and I pressed these Aussies with many questions about their culture. At first they were happy to oblige. I discovered, not surprisingly, that they do not have Outback Steakhouse in Australia. But more of a surprise was that they don't drink Fosters here. I guess it is only sold to other countries and advertised as "Australian for beer." Also, the only place to see a kangaroo near here is at the zoo, and they don't call Australian women sheilas even though it's on the door to the women's bathroom in Outback Steakhouse. Our inquisition finally ended when one of the duty tutors proclaimed he was quite annoyed at the endless stream of "Do you have...? Do you have...?". Mass was attended. Dinner was served. And it was good. And there was evening and there was morning - the first day.

I've decided to leave it at that for now. More to come: UWA orientation day 1, meeting fellow abroad students from all over the world, a bus tour of Perth and Fremantle (with pictures), and are the bathrooms really co-ed?

Aussie word of the day: KNACKERED
Means: Tired. (At first we thought the duty tutor was saying we were all naked.)