Australasia
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Our (mis)adventures in Western Australia
By Valentina Calcagni, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia At least we can change a tyre now? During my Easter break, two friends and I decided to take a road trip to the glorious outback—proper ‘Straya. No shower, no hot water, no service. All we had was each other and a fragile 4×4 that took personal offence at being driven on actual 4×4 roads. We called her Bertha. Instead of rattling on about our misfortunes (aka Bertha’s tantrums: a burst tyre, two cracks in the windscreen—the list goes on), I’ll outline our route through the south-west wedge of Australia. We began where all good stories begin: Perth. Many are quick to…
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Canberra: The City of Roundabouts
By Ayero Moro, Australian National University, Australia When I told people I was going to Canberra, the reactions were mixed. ‘’Why not Sydney?’’ I wasn’t even sure what to expect. But after living there for just over a year, I can confidently say: Canberra is unexpectedly charming.
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Making My Room Feel Like Home (Even with Shared Showers)
By Ayero Moro, Australian National University, Australia One of the first things I learned on exchange: you can’t control everything – but you can control how your room feels. And for me, turning my dorm into a little slice of home made all the difference. I stayed at Fenner Hall, one of ANU’s student accommodations. It’s right in the centre of campus, super convenient, and very social. My room came with a bed, fan, desk, shelves, and pinboards I printed out photos from home, took a couple of books from the op shop I knew I wouldn’t read (but looked good), and added fairy lights, of course. Within a week,…
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Bangkok and Shibuya
By Ayero Moro, Australian National University, Australia I booked the trip on a whim: Japan and Thailand, all in one mid-semester break. No spreadsheets, no daily plan. Just a vague outline, an empty suitcase (for thrifting of course), and an old friend who was equally up for the chaos. My friend Hannah had visited Japan a lot recently and at this point, she didn’t know she was going to stay. We started in Tokyo, staying in Shibuya. It was every bit as overwhelming and exciting as I’d imagined. Bright lights, huge crowds, busy and did I mention it was bright? I’d seen the famous crossing in films, but standing in…
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Weekend Trips In Sydney #2: Kosciuszko National Park
By Joe Ashby, University of Sydney, Australia Similarly to a previous blog written on the Blue Mountains, I wanted to take the time to mention another fantastic weekend away from Sydney for outdoor enthusiasts. Mount Kosciuszko is the tallest peak in all of Australia sitting at 2,228 metres above sea level, and we summited it!
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A Soft Start in LA
By Ayero Moro, Australian National University, Australia Before heading to Australia for my year abroad, I decided to break up the journey with a few days in Los Angeles. I figured it would help with the jet lag (kind of), but mostly I just wanted to ease into the adventure slowly somewhere familiar but still exciting.
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A NYC Winter
By Ayero Moro, Australian National University, Australia After 3 months of deep heat, I found myself back in the northern hemisphere. I made friends for life with some girls on exchange and we still make it a habit to travel together and visit each others’ homes. New Years 2024, we went to New York for an East Coast tour.
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Law, Labs and a Little Bit of Chaos
By Ayero Moro, Australian National University, Australia When I arrived at ANU, I told myself I’d focus on law but the scientist in me had other ideas. Instead of choosing one academic path, I picked a mix of law, science (we’ll forget about physics…please), and language modules and ended up living in what can only be described as organised chaos.
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A Perth’ect Semester
By Emma Pitcher, University of Western Australia Perth, Australia A summary of all the activities I got to do either with friends, my residential college (Trinity), or UWA in Perth (semester 1). To kick off freshers week, Trinity provided a city tour so we could familiarise ourselves with the new city. This was a fun little introduction to how to navigate the city and what the key features were. Walking around city together meant we could chat and get to know new people especially during our stop for yummy churros! This was a must-visit! Trinity organised the entire trip including transport and provided packed lunches. We spent the whole day…
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Preparing for College Life at ANU
By Alex Moore, ANU, Canberra Australia Accommodation is a massive part of organising your year or semester abroad. At ANU, this looks very different to the accommodation you would have experienced in first year. Each accommodation functions as a college, complete with a committee and its own social events and balls. There are both catered and non-catered, but I’m writing this from the perspective that I have spent my year in a non-catered hall. The main culture shock is the fact that instead of having a flat of say 10 people that you know and share your kitchen and showers with, you are now in a college where you are…
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How the Uni Work at ANU Compares to UOM
By Alex Moore, ANU, Canberra Australia When I was preparing for my year abroad I have to admit that the academic side of the move did slip to the back of my mind. But I also think it is important to understand what you will be doing at your host university as there are some differences that I have noticed in my first semester here at ANU.
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Exploring unbelievable K’gari (Fraser Island)
By Logan Tilley, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to venture back up the East Coast of Australia to Rainbow Beach with my family who had flown over to visit and see some of the sights of the country. However, this trip was far and away the highlight of it all. The trip started with a pickup from a convoy of 4X4s led by a single tour guide. The rest of the vehicles were driven in rotation by other people on the tour, making it that much more interactive. This particular tour was a three-day, two-night immersive experience and I would…
