Attending classes on the University of Technology Sydney’s campus has helped emerge myself in the typical atmosphere of a local student. The short walk to the CAPA building passes by the light rail track, many bikers (some are even delivery drivers,) populous trees, and squawking wild birds, like cockatoos. As a person who has always had a niche interest in birds and has a pet parrot back home, I don’t think the awe of the counter of even the most common of bird species, like “bin chickens” and lorikeets, will ever wane. All in all, it is an environmental studies major’s dream to have such reliable public transportation and exotic wildlife so accessible. Once in the building, other study abroad students can visit the office to snack on some Australian delicacies, such as Tim Tams and vegemite on toast. Personally, I don’t prefer vegemite because I think it tastes a little too earthy and salty. My Analyzing and Exploring the Global City class has already taught me a lot about Sydney’s history, some of which has involved venturing to local museums. I have already been able to see the insane collection of taxidermy at the Museum of Sydney and the integration between Aboriginal peoples and colonizers at the Australian Museum. On the other hand, my internship class works toward maximizing our global internship class by providing us with scholarly material about navigating a culturally different workplace. For this upcoming week, I have had to create a job description, cover letter, and resume that corresponds to a dream job that I will later use in an in-class mock interview.
In comparison to Pitt, the professors and staff are much more culturally diverse, as many of the employees have different accents and are from various places around the world. Some of these nationalities have included natives of Brazil, New Zealand, Ireland, Britain, the United States, and of course, Australia. Examples of the similarities include the basics, such as using Canvas and email as the main forms of communication.
Living in Scape Darling Square housing, I share a room and a bathroom with one other roommate and a kitchen with seven suitemates. These apartments are located in the Haymarket neighborhood near Darling Harbour, so I have very easy access to multiple forms of public transportation to travel anywhere in Sydney, including many shopping centers and lots of cafes. I absolutely love that I feel incredibly safe in this area as woman, even at night, as I have never seen any woman even be catcalled here. I feel as though I’m adapting to my living situation pretty well, partly due to the fact I’ve lived with roommates and suitemates before. The apartment is right next door to Chinatown, so I have been able to try lots of different Asian cuisines that would be hard to find in the U.S. I also really really miss ranch, but the other diverse food options make up for it. Living in a different country does have its struggles though, such as the different terminology used. I will admit I was a little confused by “texters” and “thongs,” which mean markers and flip flops. After being here for over a week and having some sprinting through the train station experiences, I have finally learned how to operate their public transportation. Some other things also took a while to get used to, like always bringing an outlet convertor and walking on the left side of the street. Overall, I feel as though now I am well adjusted to Australian culture and might struggle with those adjustments when I land back in America.
