A few reflections on how things are different...

I just got back from my International Student Orientation. I was on campus from about 9:30 until 5:00. Busy day, you say? Quite the contrary...I've never been so bored in my life. After sitting through nearly 8 hours of repetitive powerpoints, I am enjoying a much needed Toohey's Black Ale.

There generally is a more relaxed atmosphere. The way that this translates into public speaking is that the speakers move at a more relaxed paced, and repeat themselves...often. Long winded is an understatement. Many of it is helpful information, but so much is just common sense...I was told at least three times to lock my doors when I leave my apartment, and what "Goodday Mate" means. Really?

Another thing very different from back home is attitude towards alcohol. As you may or may not be aware, the drinking age down here is 18. This translates into a few interesting but shocking scenarios. For example, there is a bar in the middle of campus. The person running our orientation mentioned how Wednesdays were big there, how they have shuttles from the train station to the bar and back, and how we should try to limit ourselves to one or two before our 10:00 classes. It's a "wet" campus in a drinking society. Alcohol is served at school functions. You know that big party right when the semester starts? Platteville had one every year...bouncy inflatable toys, free food, tricycle races, all the same as down here. What was very different was being told to "enjoy a day of cheap inebriation". (not that I won't).

People travel to bars on different nights of the week. You can find a Friday night crowd on a Monday night, if you go to the right bar. This sort of thing just doesn't happen back home. I saw live music last night. ON A SUNDAY. Walking down Hunter street, the main street in Newcastle, you can easily see which bars sell beer by just looking for the keg piles. Bars pile (presumably empty) quarter barrels in front, or in back of their store, usually 3-10 at a time. In the US, those would be gone in a matter of minutes.

Speaking of live music, I am becoming absolutely spoiled. There are live bands at several bars within walking distance, every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Also, I have been absolutely impressed with the quality of sound at these events, and the quality of the bands at these events. Hundreds of times better than the stuff back home.

The education here is focused much more on self-study than on teaching. Many international students that travel to the US feel that college in the US is more like highschool, that the teachers "hold your hand" too much. Here, there are little more than a handful of grading opportunities per semester. The wallpaper on this computer reads "He who ceases to be a student has never been one in a first place." If you're not interested in studying, nobody will make you, and your time at Uni will be short.