Rottnest Tomorrow! ... and Australian Stormtroopers?

Excited for tomorrow! Finally going to Rottnest Island! Think about ten of us will be going out for the day. Going to wake up early, have some breakfast, and then take the bus and ferry over there. Don’t have my underwater photo gear with me yet, but I will bring my mask and fins to go snorkeling… figure I’ll scope it out. Hear they rent out surfboards there too so maybe I’ll try and get one or see if they offer lessons. Definitely will bring the camera with me tomorrow!

Today when I was in Perth I stumbled across this scene … notice anything strange?

If you said … hmm … maybe it’s the random stormtroopers walking around then you would be correct! So far my impression of Perth is that it is either super busy or eerily quiet. Today was one of the busy days, so the streets were filled with people bustling around and street performers … and apparently stormtroopers. There was also a bagpipe player who was really good. 

Come to think of it, I’ve never heard a bad bagpipe player. Kind of funny mental image thinking about one. 

Some More Thoughts

Was just talking to Marina about how being in a different time zone changes the way I view my days. I am sure it is exaggerated by the fact that my time difference is 12 hours ahead (yeah that’s right … I’m in the future.) It ends up making my day feel like two parts though: 9-12 in the morning and 9-12 at night – because those are the times when things are going on in both places. It’s a funny feeling waking up and wondering what has happened during the day before me. Throw in the fact that I’m listening to the soundtrack of Inception and it makes it much more mind-boggling. With that I shall sign off for the night – or the morning. When am I !? 

Finishing Up First Week of Classes

Almost done with my first week of classes - just have one more lecture tomorrow. So far my classes seem alright, obviously some are better than others. It is definitely a different feeling than classes at Hamilton. These classes are all lectures and as such, are in huge auditoriums. I think my biggest class back home was around 40 people? A litttttlee bit bigger here. Today’s class was in a lecture hall with at least a couple hundred students. That’s close to the size of my grade. 

            On my way to class.

The weather for the weekend is sunny and 68-70 so hopefully I can go on some adventures. Maybe I’ll go out to Rottnest for the day or something! One of my friend’s step-dad might have a boat here which would be pretty incredible if that works out. Fingers crossed!

Fremantle and UWA

Yesterday we celebrated Devon’s birthday by going into Fremantle for lunch. Fremantle is this little harbor town just about 20 minutes outside of Perth. 

After plenty of good food, we went back to campus and took it easy. (We did eat a lot after all. Wouldn’t want to overdo it). We spent most of the night just hanging out in my room and had fun imitating each other’s accents. Think Laura’s American accent was the best, though I do think my Australian one came in a close second.

Today was the first day of classes and I’d say I was 1 for 2. The first class I had was really interesting and seems like it will be a good one. The second one … not so much. In fact, halfway through, when we were given a 15-minute break, Devon and I decided it would be a good time to leave and not go back. (I decided after 10 minutes that I was going to drop it). After leaving the class we wandered into a courtyard where we found … peacocks! Pretty amazing looking birds and also much more entertaining than the class I had just left.  

Walking around the campus, one can’t help but feel like the school didn’t really know who their target audience was when they built it. Don’t get me wrong, the campus is beautiful. It’s just that one part you feel like you’re in a Mayan temple, the next you’re in some kind of cathedral, and then all of a sudden you’re in a Japanese Koi Pond. Definitely makes for an interesting walk to class though. 

        Building got a little curved in the panorama ... not actually like that.

While I was taking some of these pictures I kept hearing cracking noises and would see these nuts falling out of the trees next to me. After the third or fourth time this happened, I walked around and found ... 

some kind of Parrot! Never a dull moment.

Aussie Rules Football Game, Beach, and My Beard

Last night we had a semi-formal dinner at Trinity, the college that I am staying at. The food was actually really really good and they did a nice job of making the place feel very classy. 

I was getting a little furry and decided that my beard being longer than my hair was a sign for me to shave. So alas, my goal to grow the best beard must start all over again. That concludes the portion of my blog on my beard... for now. Moving on.

Today I woke up and once again the weather was beautiful – sunny and around 68 degrees. Packed up some snacks, some books, and went back to the waves beach, Scarborough, with some friends. 

The waves were not as big today, online it said 2.7 meters, but there was still the occasional huge one. By the time we got to the beach it was a little cloudy, but when the sun poked through it was a great temperature to go into the water. Again, it was neat seeing the sky and water change as the clouds passed.

Some color shots of the previous ones.

Eager for a swim ... 

I think it's a good thing I can amuse myself so easily.

 We stayed there till about 3:30 and then went back to Trinity to get ready for the game tonight! As part of the Butler Study Abroad program, Vicki took Lauren, Devon, and me to an Aussie Rules Football match. 

We had watched a game last week to try and decipher the rules and it was definitely a good decision because otherwise we would have been lost. (For instance, if the ball goes out of bounds the ref throws it back into play backwards. See below.)

 It’s a pretty cool sport and very entertaining to watch. The field is circular in shape and varies in size from stadium to stadium. 

            Football friends!

Also, Australian fans are pretty funny to listen to.

 Had a meat pie, a sausage roll, and a beer while watching an Aussie Rules Football game. Ladies and gentleman, welcome to Australia. Doesn’t get more Australian than that. (Just thought I would set you up dad so you can make your go to comment.) The moon was shining really brightly during the game, which added a nice effect.

As the night went on...

When it was fully dark ...

Just got back from the game and am pretty wiped out so I think the plan for the night is just to relax and watch a movie with some friends. Update: We ended up watching Modern Family which is an actually pretty funny TV show. For the record, I highly recommend seeing Inception! Saw it on Thursday, when it came out here and am still thinking about it! So so good! That's all for now, going to go to bed now and then head to Fremantle (or Freo) tomorrow for Devon's birthday lunch.