Moving In Day!

Moving In Day!

As we stepped off the bus onto Swanston Street we all check out our accommodation for the next 4 months.  We live on 746 Swanston Street in the suburb of Melbourne called Carlton to the north of Melbourne.  My room is #805 and it is at the end of the hall so I suspect that the noise will be reduced here.  University of Melbourne Parkville Campus is right across the street and is about a 30 second walk aways which makes it an easy commute to and from campus.  Also the tram runs right on Swanston so we can utilize it to get to the Central Business District(CBD) with ease.

After settling in to our new homes we set out to find out new things on our own.  Lygon Street is parallel to Swanston Street and has a ton of restaurants, stores and supermarkets so getting acquainted with that street is a priority.  However everything is new and getting lost is inevitable.  Australians are superfriendly and are eager to direct any foreigner to a destination.  Melbourne is home to many foreign-borns and has something like 140 different languages spoken in it suburbs. 

In the first week or so we’ve been to a lot of the bars in the area and have met people from a ton of countries and from many different places around the US.  I’m noticing there are not a lot of Americans here and more Canadians than I would have guessed.  So usually people think I am from Canada when I introduce myself.  We’ve been to the botanical gardens, seen the best aboriginal didgeridoo player perform at an outdoor amphitheater and seen Rod Laver Stadium where the Australian Open is played.  Also we’ve located the Victoria Market, which is the best outdoor market I’ve ever been to and has every thing including wine sellers (who sells refills at really cheap prices!) butcher shops, and tons of fresh fruits an vegetables.  Haggling required!

This week is orientation week where all the first years and new international student have the opportunity to get acquainted with campus and the daily routine of a typical UniMelb student.  I was by far the oldest in my group but I had a good time meeting new people and learning a few new things. School starts next week. 

Facts:

1.     Australians always say CBD and never downtown.

2.     Crossing the street is very dangerous because the cars are going the wrong way and there are trams running in the middle that don’t stop really fast. 

3.     Signage in Australia is very graphic.  Signs on the tram promote no smoking with a man coughing up blood on a white cloth with the caption reading, “Money isn’t the only thing you are coughing up.” A pack is about $20 but there are a ton of people importing cheaper from China haha.

4.     When the crosswalk sign turns green there is a rapid beeping to help the blind.  It is odd and takes a little time to get used to.

5.     Melbourne is prounounced “Melbin.”

6.     Internet is pretty poor in Australia compared with the US.  There is a significant amount of people who don’t have great internet access at home, which I’m used to but which frustrates a lot of the Americans especially the girls.

7.     UniLodge: great location, great people, weird indoor design and apparently infested with cockroaches on some floors (although I believe this might be a myth, but the deception scares all the girls to death for sure).  If I can handle Kansas mice I can handle these buggers!

Next time:  my birthday, fun food and surf trip!