Australia Blog – Part 2
I have less than a week left in Australia, and it has been a blast! Because I have been taking year 10 classes but Patrick is in year 11, I have been able to make friends with people from both grades. Overall, everyone has been really friendly to talk to. I've finally gotten a lot of names down, and have enjoyed talking to friends about all of the differences between Australian and American slang, culture, and politics. Through these conversations, I have also continued to notice a number of differences between here and America.
The Australians' treatment of Aboriginals is very different from how we treat the Native Americans. Last week, we had an assembly at school for Reconciliation Week, which is an annual week dedicated to recognizing the wrongs that the Europeans committed when violently colonizing Australia, and reconciling with them. There were three Aboriginal visitors from the local tribe at the assembly, who began it with a traditional "smoke ceremony." This involves burning native plants to ward off bad spirits. Then, we watched a few of students give speeches about their experience with their own Aboriginal heritage, and the Aboriginal guests also spoke about their experiences and shared facts about the achievement gap between Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals. Lastly, an aboriginal musician performed his music. But even outside of the assembly, I could tell that the Australians are a lot more conscious of the Aboriginals than we are about Native Americans. For instance, every place where there is an Australian flag, there is an Aboriginal flag as well – it is a constant reminder of their original history in this country. In contrast, in the US, we relatively discuss Native Americans, even in a day and age when racism is a central political topic.
I have been pleasantly surprised by the public transport system (when it works, that is). Even though locals seem to be constantly complaining about it, just the ability to get pretty much anywhere without a car amazes me. Patrick's house is a one-minute walk from the train-station, which means we can get to school or the city effortlessly. Even at places where the train doesn't go, such as Glenelg Beach, we were able to take a tram or bus there. While it is convenient when it does work, twice in the last three weeks we have had an issue where the train either didn't arrive at all (it broke down two stops before and blocked the tracks) or just didn't stop at our station for whatever reason!
In terms of academics, Westminster seems much more relaxed – apparently, "unis" (universities) don't see students' grades except in their senior year, and there is barely any homework each night (30 mins to 1 hour). However, in terms of rules and discipline, the school is much more rigid. If teachers even see any phones, even at a lunch or break time, they will immediately confiscate it for the rest of the day. The uniform rules are also very strict: you can get in trouble for not wearing the top button of your shirt! However, the school is a lot less religious than I expected, given that it is a Christian school. Most students don't know which denomination the school is a part of, which is the Uniting Church (an Australian union between a few churches). The only sign of it being a Christian school at all is the 20-minute chapel service on Friday mornings.
About two weeks into my stay, we visited Cleland Wildlife Park. At the beginning, we were given a bag of food to feed any of the animals. The kangaroos and wallabies were very friendly, and the more I fed them, the more they wanted food. I was even able to pet them! We were also able to pet a koala, and saw emus, dingoes, and many other animals.
Just last weekend, we visited Kangaroo Island, which is probably the most popular tourist destination in the sparsely developed South Australia. To get there, we drove an hour, and then took a one-hour ferry. We stayed in the former home of an early European settler who had lived on Kangaroo Island for 71 years!
We had stayed in Penneshaw, which is on the east end of the island, because that was where the ferry arrived. However, all of the main sights were about a 2 hour drive across the island, so we did that on our only full day, Saturday. During the drive to the other side, we saw a number of animals; however, most of them were kangaroos that had sadly become roadkill while trying to cross the road.
The first place we visited was called Seal Bay, but we only saw about 5 sea-lions because it is winter. We then visited Admirals Arch, where we saw "heaps" of seals (as an Australian would say). There were a number of rocky areas where the seals were relaxing, including under a large arch and in a "swimming pool," which was essentially a pit full of shallow water that the seals swam in. The last place we visited on this side of the island was "remarkable rocks." This was a set of amazing rock formations very close together, that were in the middle of an otherwise remarkably green area by the ocean. We even spotted a wild kangaroo while walking in the parking lot! That evening, we decided to go back to civilization and went to the only real town on the island, where we ate at an Australian pub. It was a real Aussie experience, as I had never anywhere like it: it was essentially a cross between a typical diner and a lively bar with live music.
The next day, we decided to visit a town called Victor Harbor, which is back on the mainland. I learned that this is the most popular destination for an Aussie high school tradition known as "schoolies," where the seniors have a week long holiday right after their last final exams to party (The drinking age in Australia is 18...). The town itself was a cute oceanside retreat that seemed fairly empty – apparently the population triples in summer because many people have vacation homes there. We walked a short bridge to "Granite Island," and from the top of the island we were able to see far along the coast. Although we didn't stay there overnight, if we had we may have been able to see penguins (yes, Australia has them too).
I have had a great time in Australia, and I am sad to be leaving so soon! The experience has definitely superseded any of many expectations, as I was very nervous at first. I am hoping to come back with my family at some point and visit Patrick, his mom, and all of my friends at Westminster.
The Australians' treatment of Aboriginals is very different from how we treat the Native Americans. Last week, we had an assembly at school for Reconciliation Week, which is an annual week dedicated to recognizing the wrongs that the Europeans committed when violently colonizing Australia, and reconciling with them. There were three Aboriginal visitors from the local tribe at the assembly, who began it with a traditional "smoke ceremony." This involves burning native plants to ward off bad spirits. Then, we watched a few of students give speeches about their experience with their own Aboriginal heritage, and the Aboriginal guests also spoke about their experiences and shared facts about the achievement gap between Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals. Lastly, an aboriginal musician performed his music. But even outside of the assembly, I could tell that the Australians are a lot more conscious of the Aboriginals than we are about Native Americans. For instance, every place where there is an Australian flag, there is an Aboriginal flag as well – it is a constant reminder of their original history in this country. In contrast, in the US, we relatively discuss Native Americans, even in a day and age when racism is a central political topic.
I have been pleasantly surprised by the public transport system (when it works, that is). Even though locals seem to be constantly complaining about it, just the ability to get pretty much anywhere without a car amazes me. Patrick's house is a one-minute walk from the train-station, which means we can get to school or the city effortlessly. Even at places where the train doesn't go, such as Glenelg Beach, we were able to take a tram or bus there. While it is convenient when it does work, twice in the last three weeks we have had an issue where the train either didn't arrive at all (it broke down two stops before and blocked the tracks) or just didn't stop at our station for whatever reason!
In terms of academics, Westminster seems much more relaxed – apparently, "unis" (universities) don't see students' grades except in their senior year, and there is barely any homework each night (30 mins to 1 hour). However, in terms of rules and discipline, the school is much more rigid. If teachers even see any phones, even at a lunch or break time, they will immediately confiscate it for the rest of the day. The uniform rules are also very strict: you can get in trouble for not wearing the top button of your shirt! However, the school is a lot less religious than I expected, given that it is a Christian school. Most students don't know which denomination the school is a part of, which is the Uniting Church (an Australian union between a few churches). The only sign of it being a Christian school at all is the 20-minute chapel service on Friday mornings.
About two weeks into my stay, we visited Cleland Wildlife Park. At the beginning, we were given a bag of food to feed any of the animals. The kangaroos and wallabies were very friendly, and the more I fed them, the more they wanted food. I was even able to pet them! We were also able to pet a koala, and saw emus, dingoes, and many other animals.Just last weekend, we visited Kangaroo Island, which is probably the most popular tourist destination in the sparsely developed South Australia. To get there, we drove an hour, and then took a one-hour ferry. We stayed in the former home of an early European settler who had lived on Kangaroo Island for 71 years!
We had stayed in Penneshaw, which is on the east end of the island, because that was where the ferry arrived. However, all of the main sights were about a 2 hour drive across the island, so we did that on our only full day, Saturday. During the drive to the other side, we saw a number of animals; however, most of them were kangaroos that had sadly become roadkill while trying to cross the road.
The first place we visited was called Seal Bay, but we only saw about 5 sea-lions because it is winter. We then visited Admirals Arch, where we saw "heaps" of seals (as an Australian would say). There were a number of rocky areas where the seals were relaxing, including under a large arch and in a "swimming pool," which was essentially a pit full of shallow water that the seals swam in. The last place we visited on this side of the island was "remarkable rocks." This was a set of amazing rock formations very close together, that were in the middle of an otherwise remarkably green area by the ocean. We even spotted a wild kangaroo while walking in the parking lot! That evening, we decided to go back to civilization and went to the only real town on the island, where we ate at an Australian pub. It was a real Aussie experience, as I had never anywhere like it: it was essentially a cross between a typical diner and a lively bar with live music.
The next day, we decided to visit a town called Victor Harbor, which is back on the mainland. I learned that this is the most popular destination for an Aussie high school tradition known as "schoolies," where the seniors have a week long holiday right after their last final exams to party (The drinking age in Australia is 18...). The town itself was a cute oceanside retreat that seemed fairly empty – apparently the population triples in summer because many people have vacation homes there. We walked a short bridge to "Granite Island," and from the top of the island we were able to see far along the coast. Although we didn't stay there overnight, if we had we may have been able to see penguins (yes, Australia has them too).
I have had a great time in Australia, and I am sad to be leaving so soon! The experience has definitely superseded any of many expectations, as I was very nervous at first. I am hoping to come back with my family at some point and visit Patrick, his mom, and all of my friends at Westminster.
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