Northwest Trip Preview

I haven't updated in a while because most of my assignments are due this week. We have a study break next week, so all of the teachers assign things beforehand to get that out of the way, which is both good and bad. But the exciting thing is that I'm heading out on the 10 day Northwest trip this Friday! There are almost 50 study abroad students on this trip, and we'll be heading out at 8am. We'll drive up the west coast to Coral Bay in the north, making stops along the way, then drive back inland. Once I'm back I'll be completely bombarding you with hundreds of pictures and a bunch of posts. Here's a map of the over 2,000 km trip (both ways):

One Month?!

The last time I posted was about going to an outdoor cinema showing in King's Park. We went to go see the movie Somewhere, which was actually laughably terrible. We all pretty much were waiting for the plot or moral of the story to appear right up until the credits rolled...but other than that it was a fun night! It was on the complete opposite side of King's Park that we hadn't seen before, and the whole setting was cool. On the way there we got to take some night shots of Perth and watch the sunset in a small cafe; there were also a lot of prom pictures going on too. We also saw a lot of parrots flying around- all different kinds and colors. There are a lot of them on campus too- definitely strange to have cockatoos and parrots as common birds!

Rainbow Lorikeets in King's Park

On Sunday the student village sponsored a trip to Woodman’s Point. We all loaded into a bus at 2:30, cranked the music, and set off for a fun afternoon at the beach. One thing I love about all of the beaches here are how they always go hand in hand with parks. So far every beach I’ve been to has had a really nice park right behind it, with people picnicking and resting in the shade, and a playground or a café. It’s really nice, especially when you want to lay out without being covered in sand. Which usually happens, because Perth is incredibly windy every afternoon…which means sand is inevitable stuck in your ears and hair. But hey, I guess its great for the windsurfers and kite surfers. You always see heaps of them in the afternoon. Kite surfing is a very expensive sport, but maybe I’ll try windsurfing while I’m here.

Picture off the dock of Woodman's Point.

So anyway, we had a picnic and went to the beach, where there was a huge dock. The water was really clear and apparently a good fishing spot, as a lot of people were set up with poles along the dock. It seemed like a much more local place. The beach wasn’t that full and most of the people were fishing off the dock. We saw a huge Australian Pelican there…it seemed like it was half the size of me! I don’t know how it could get off the ground. Really enjoyed this beach and hopefully I’ll be back!

The Thursday before that I went to this place called Mojo’s where there was awesome live music. Definitely a different crowd, all ages mixed. A lot of dreadlocked, hippy people there- it was awesome. We saw the Rosie Burgess Trio, and afterwards I bought their CD and am now a big fan. We also saw this popular Aboriginal band called Oka- the best part was the electric didgeridoo! So cool sounding. Here’s a youtube clip, and I'll try to put up my own clips later:

On Monday after my Nature-Based Tourism lecture, our class had a field trip to Penguin Island, which is just off the coast of Rockingham. It was absolutely gorgeous there- I took WAY too many pictures! Penguin Island is just one of many small islands in the Shoalwater Atoll, and the only one that people are allowed to step foot on. It’s a conservation park within a marine park. There are several nesting bird species there, and colonies all over the other islands, including Little Penguins and seals. The Little Penguins have a colony of about 2,000, the biggest one in WA. Unfortunately you can’t see the wild ones because they only come on land after sunset unless they’re breeding or molting, so they have a few rehabilitated penguins that can’t be released in the “Penguin Experience Center” to educate visitors. We walked around the island, saw the penguins, and took a boat tour around some small neighboring islands. The views were gorgeous and the water was so clear- there were a lot of outdoor sports going on in the surrounding water. Before the semester ends I hope to go back and do a kayak tour there.

My favorite picture from Penguin Island.

Just one of many windsurfers.

Kitesurfer getting some air!

I can't believe I've been here for one month already! It feels like I've been here forever and yet not at all, at the same time. I almost forgot to mention: I got a job at a cafe on campus as a barista/server. I've only been to work once, but I'll be working about 10 hours this week.

Oh, and here's a picture of my room if anyone's interested in seeing it...it looks more spartan than it actually feels. :)

Aussie Slang:

Shrapnel = loose change

Tomato Sauce = ketchup

Sultanas = raisins

Till = cash register