Aussie Life

What I see on a daily basis and what I have learned - 

James Cook University in Townsville

I’ve been at JCU for about 4 weeks now, 3 of which i’ve been regularly going to class. I try to explore the campus as much as possible, taking new routes, getting “lost,” and finding different places to study between classes. It’s a very spread out campus with the buildings in groups, like medicine, engineering, and natural sciences. And the building numbers make no sense, which is great fun haha! 

On main campus the animal I see most often is birds! They all have such unique calls and (most of the time) are beautiful to listen to… just not when i’m trying to sleep and they start screaming outside my window at 6am! But no seriously, go look up the call of a curlew, they’re crazy birds! As are magpies and kookaburras, which are the other “fun” ones as well! Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing all these birds because they’re new species i’ve never seen before! In the morning and evening I have wallabies munching away on the grass in my front yard, which is my favorite part! And for the record, I am not trying a kangaroo burger until before I leave, because they are still very cute to me! I have seen a handful of kangaroos on campus, but the wallabies dominate. 

These are the views from the mountain range literally right behind my house! Coming from two of the flattest states in the US, I am in awe of being able to see mountains every single day! And I knew too before I came here that the topography would be what would peak my interest the most (aside from the reef of course). It truly hasn’t disappointed! Even though it is winter here and everything is dead and brown, it’s still beautiful everywhere! Weather-wise it’s similar to Florida in the sense that it is hot and humid, but also like California where it has those cool mornings and nights, no rain, and with that Pacific rocky coastline. 

The food and lingo have taken some adjusting to as well, but it’s all apart of the experience and I love it! I have tried vegemite straight and made the proper way (toast, spread of butter and a smidge of vegemite) and it just tasted like burnt toast to me. Their candies here are superior lol, but yet they do not have their desserts overly sweetened nor put seasoning (like salt and pepper) on normal foods. And the dining hall food has been an adventure in itself… needless to say, I may be a vegetarian by the end of my stay lol. Some of my favorite new phrases I have learned are “keen,” “reckon,” “rock up,” and “jumper.” If you can guess their american english equivalents, do, but if not… 

Keen = down, game for, interested in 

Reckon= think

Rock up= show up

Jumper= sweatshirt 

(and they call flip flops thongs which is just cringy to hear a guy say so casually lol) 

This is a picture of my dining hall with my colleges' mascot overlayed.

Each living accommodation on campus is referred to as a college and the one I live in is called University Hall. It’s pretty nice and works well for the time I am spending here! Within my college, there are 3 different types of housing styles. Some people are in Townhouses with 10 people to a building with two full bathrooms, a living and dining room. Another is called The Village and is a whole row of popped up trailer park looking buildings where everyone has their own rooms with a desk and bathroom. There are common rooms throughout that area too. The other one is called Clark Wing and is a single building of 4 stories where people live with their hallmates and share a common room and kitchen, but it is nicer and you need a special key card to enter the building. As for me… I somehow got the luck of the draw and was placed in an actual house that I have to walk up a hill to get to. I share it with 4 other girls, we each have our own rooms, 2 full bathrooms, full kitchen, living room, and a washing machine! I feel incredibly blessed to have been placed up here and it’s good for all of us too, because due to the amount of space we have we can invite a lot of people to come up and hang out! Since it is out of the way, it is quiet most of the time! It’s really lovely here and I have been enjoying every minute of it!! More adventures and pictures to come… because i’m DIVING IN THE GREAT BARRIER REEF tomorrow!!!