I returned from Australia
on July 12, 2000 and I can't begin to describe how great my experience
was
there...I went for five
months on an exchange program through the University of Pittsburgh,
where I went
to school for my undergraduate
degree. I attended the University of Newcastle, in Newcastle, New South
Wales.
After studying for four months, I took a crazy three week trip around the country and saw as much as I could...
I also visited Darwin.
One of my favorite places was Kakadu National Park.
My next stop was Cairns (where
I snorkeled at the Great Barrier Reef).
I returned to Sydney before
I stopped in Auckland, New Zealand...then I got on the plane home and ran
into a few problems along the way, but I found my way back to PA eventually!
I had an amazing time.
I bet you are thinking, "She
probably partied all the time." Well, for those of you who know me, you
understand that this was not the case...not to say that I didn't have any
fun, but I really went to study. I had some interesting classes, very different
from what I'm used to, but a great experience for sure!
During the semseter I did manage to squeeze in a trip to Tasmania...it
was beautiful.
Along the way ended up meeting
a great friend. His name is Dave and he is still going to Uni in
Newie (as we refer to it). He lives about four hours from Newie in the
Country Music Capital of Australia (haha). Meeting Dave was great, he made
me laugh so much and we had so much fun together. I also got to know a
lot of his friends.
Everything about Australia
was great, the culture was a refreshing change and the people were amazing.
I met so many interesting and cool people...I would highly recommend to
anyone who is considering studying abroad to go!!! Not only do you
learn a lot about the culture, but you learn so much about yourself.