What I've Learned

I survived my first week of internship and classes! In honor of that, I have the following list:

Things I've learned in Australia:

1.       Living in a bad part of town in Australia is very different than living in a bad part of town in America. According to Aussie natives, we live in “the ghetto” of Sydney, but we all feel safe here and everything is incredibly nice. Walking around at night here feels safer than walking at night around the U of M campus.

2.       The phrase “A dingo ate my baby” actually came from an Australian murder case. A woman was camping with her husband and child, and they left the baby alone for a couple minutes and when they came back, he was gone. The mother was initially charged with murder, and the above line was made famous because everyone thought it was impossible.

3.       Two things learned in my internship class: 1) The success of an interview is based only 7% on what you say – the rest is body language, mannerisms, and attitude 2) Apparently Aussie resumes are very different…I learned about what goes on page 2 and 3 of a resume yesterday [I probably won’t be following that advice].

4.       Gas prices here work out to about $5 a gallon, and from what I’ve heard, Australians believe that American gas prices are super cheap and that they need to be raised so we become less dependent on oil.

5.       It’s very, very hard to find Mexican food in Sydney, but it can be done, and finding it is delicious and rewarding. [California Burrito – yum, yum, yum]

6.       When people said it was possible to get sunburnt in 20 minutes, they weren’t kidding. I sat outside for literally twenty minutes all day today and I definitely burned. (Yes mom, for the most part I wear sunscreen!)

7.       Getting lost is not the end of the world. It has happened to me more than enough times here, and every single time I have eventually ended up where I needed to be. There will always be someone to point you in the right direction and things will be okay.

8.       It does not take very long to become comfortable in a new place. A week and a half in and I can find my way around my part of Sydney, and I feel like I’ve been here for forever.

9.       …However, I’m so far from being an expert. I’m always so excited when people ask me for directions, only to realize that 75% of the time I have no idea where they need to be. I have so much left to learn about this place!

10.   If you have roommates who build mattress and blanket forts, eat tons of food, and watch chick flicks with you – you are set for life.

The most life-changing list? No.

But I still have a long way to go, and I can’t wait for every second.