Can a girl get some Cheez-Its?

My roomies Cierra, Claire, and Albert:]

It has come to my attention that both my wallet and I are losing weight. Not a day goes by that my American friends and I don't talk about how much we miss Cheez-Its, Doritos, popcorn and the like. You can joke about fat Americans all you want, I've come to grips with it, it's true--we love food and we eat way more of it than necessary. We are trying to embrace the culture and remember the fact that we are in AUSTRALIA all we can but sometimes you just want a spoon and a jar of peanut butter to the face. We've already started to plan exactly what we would like our parents to have waiting for us at the airport when we arrive back home--mine is a Dunkin Donuts iced coffee, Chex-Mix, and a bagel with cream cheese. The best part is that we have a roommate, Albert, who is a great cook and has cooked basically all our meals for us, and in return we do the dishes. In fact, yesterday we tried Kangaroo for the first time. Not bad but I probably wouldn't have it again.

As for my wallet: I came to this country with $6500 and am now down to $4000, and I've been here for less than a month....BUT the big spending should be over with now. $2000 of that money has gone to a Spring Break trip I will be taking, and the rest has gone to the start-up necessities of living in an apartment such as bedding, cleaning supplies, toiletries, etc. Food and alcohol is also much more expensive than we are accustomed to. It's no big deal to the Aussies, however, because most I know get paid at least $30 an hour and wouldn't get out of bed for more than $20.

In short, this is the adjustment period at its finest! Stay tuned.

Culture Shock

Surfers Paradise

The first stage of culture shock is sort of a honeymoon stage where you love everything about the country, complete euphoria. Then comes the shock part of it and homesickness. I definitely went through the honeymoon stage and definitely had a day of the shock part. There was one day where I just hated everything; the expensive prices, the not so good food/lack of food, the obnoxiously loud birds, the dirtiness of our apartment, the cold showers, and the fact that we hadn't even stepped off campus yet and explored. I was getting extremely antsy and irritated.

While these things are still annoying, it has also settled in how completely beautiful this country is and how nice the people are. We finally stepped out of our little bubble and went to the beach and it instantly made me feel so much better. The water was so clear and blue and the city was so much fun to walk around. I can't wait to get out and explore some more.

For now, here are some fun differences I've noticed:

My Kangaroo friends

• They use very proper phrases on their signs. In America a sign would just say "no smoking", in Australia it says "smoking doesn't belong here"
• Their cigarette packages have pictures of mouth cancer and people who have died from smoking on them. This would never happen in America. But surprisingly it does not deter the Aussies from buying cigarettes. 
• A bed comforter is a "doona"
• School is "uni"
• "Hey" is "what?"
• They don't understand our sarcasm at all...say something with a serious face that you are joking about and they will give you a weird look.
• They think it's gross that we snack so much...it's not my fault I can finish an entire normal sized bag of popcorn by myself..
• They don't eat cereal either
• The yolks of their eggs are orange instead of yellow because they don't feed their chickens chemicals like we do
• When they try to do our American accents, they sound like their from California: "fer sure man"

Aussie life

What a crazy first week. Australia is a place of no worries and everyone is nice. After being on a plane for about 22 hours in total, we arrived in Sydney and immediately went on a tour of the city. Our hostel had an amazing view of the harbor and the bridge. The next day, we went to the Sydney Zoo and of course saw all sorts of cuddly and not so cuddly creatures. Then we watched an aboriginal performance--the didgeridoo playing is amazing! Then we painted our own boomerangs. 

If you are going to visit Sydney, Darling Harbor is a must! It has all sorts of restaurants and an aquarium and a chinese garden.