O-Week

I have officially been in Australia for one full week! In ways it feels like I have been here forever, but on the other hand I can't believe 7 days have already passed. Orientation week was absolutely crazy, so much going on all the time and I was constantly meeting people. Yesterday we hiked Mt. Keira which is the local mountain here and the views of Wollongong and the sea were incredible. The picture attached was taken at the top of the mountain. The hike was more difficult than expected, but it created a great environment to bond with other students. Everyday I meet more awesome people from all around the world. This morning I went on a beautiful run by the ocean and sat for nearly two hours just listening to the waves. Living by the ocean is my favorite part of UOW thus far. Now we just need some warm weather so we can surf and swim! Tomorrow marks the beginning of the semester, it is strange to think that we are actually here to go to school. I am taking an exercise psychology class, a world politics class and a literacy in the primary years class. All seem very interesting, and we found each building where our classes are held on Friday which helps supress any anxiety about getting lost on a big campus! The University is beautiful, much like it is set in a tropical rainforest. Because campus east is so much like a community, most of our days are spent hanging out in dorm rooms, playing random sports outside (such as lawn bowling, "footie"), and just being with other kids. My roommates are on the local australian rules football team and their game was televised the other night so we had fun watching that. The entire campus is completely exhausted from many late nights and theme parties. After the first week of class, we are headed up to Sydney next weekend to do some sight-seeing. So far, Australia is INCREDIBLE! There is limited internet access here, but my university e-mail has unlimited use so I am going to check my Denver account less and use the UOW account. My address is dh981@uow.edu.au, feel free to write me, I would love to here from you :)

Finally moved in!

G'day mate! (I have already been introduced to many Australian slang terms) Phew, has this been a whirlwind! I finally arrived in Wollongong yesterday morning around 10 am after a long night of flying and a rather stressful customs experience in the Sydney airport. I am living in what's called Campus East: it is a residential village comprised of four buildings that house around 600 students. It seems to be a great place to develop friendships and gain a sense of community at a very large "Uni". Yesterday was fun, yet very overwhelming and scary. My room had to be changed due to a door jam, so much of it was spent being shuffled around to various locations. I live in my own room, and share a bathroom and living area with four other people (3 Aussie boys and 1 girl I have yet to meet). We went out last night for a theme party sponsored by the school which was great fun, the Aussies are extremely friendly and there are also tons of other American exchange students eager to have a good time. We have taken the bus into town several times to get stuff for the dorm, setting up bank accounts etc. It is MUCH colder than expected at night so down comforters are essential. The culture is very different, yet in subtle ways. The bus has been a good way to get out and see Aussie life in action, as well as get a sense of the city. The town is beautiful, and the views of the ocean are breathtaking. Tomorrow is the beginning of orientation, followed by a pub crawl, complete with UOW tee shirts. Orientation will be my first visit to main campus! So much to see, good thing I have four months! It has been wonderful to begin meeting people and see all of the future adventures I have ahead of me. On the contrary, the thought of being over here for an entire semester is still rather daunting. Taking it one step at a time seems to be the way to manage the overwhelming feelings. I miss everyone at home a lot! I'm off to finish unpacking, more details on my adventures soon. xx (as they do in the Australian texting world)

The Beginning

Tomorrow marks my departure from the state of Colorado until the beginning of December; by far the longest I have ever been away from home! I will be visiting Michaela in San Luis Obispo, California until next Friday evening. I depart from the San Francisco Airport on a red-eye flight and arrive in Sydney Sunday morning (accounting for the 16 hour time difference). I am told the flight will be the worst part of my entire experience. Eek! My excitement is uncontainable, yet the anxiety of moving halfway around the world to live and study is undoubtedly present. I look forward to keeping in touch with you all, and letting you experience the wonderful things I eat, see, learn and do vicariously through me. I will do my best to stay on top of the blog, although the Australian lifestyle may frequently draw me away from my computer. Thank you for all of the support and love I have received both in this process and throughout my life! I look forward to hearing from everyone, my email is devanie.helman@du.edu- that is the email i foresee myself using most often, however should that change I will update the address in a blog entry!

Cheers :)