The Hunger Games

A couple of us decided that we would attend the midnight premier of the Hunger Games. It came out a full day earlier which equates into me seeing it 38 hours earlier than I would be able to see it in Calgary.

The movie was out in Garden City - a two hour bus trip which only was 30 km away from the university. The bus system here drives me insane. It is very inefficient and runs only until midnight. We got there and were surrounded by 15 year old females and their parents. It is completely understandable as the book is written for that demographic.

The movie is pretty good - not going to be one of my top ten movies. The book was actually enthralling and entertaining. The movie attempted to cover too many of the little subplots and missed out on one of the major plots. The digital animation could have taken this movie to an epic but it didn't. I was not that impressed with it. I personally like the book better.

The movie finished at 2:15 am which we had pre-booked a taxi for this reason. The taxi didn't show up within 20 minutes of the designated time so we called the company again to send another taxi. It took six phone calls, over two hours of waiting, and one irate phone call to the police to get a cab to come pick us up. We finally got home at 4:30 am - a brutal hour of the morning. However, I didn't have class the next day.

AFN

Ladies Who Attend Luncheons

Today has been one of those days that I feel like a lady who does luncheons as a hobby. I attended not one but two of them.

I attended an event for exchange students staying at Currie Hall with the President, Chris Massey, and the head organizers for Currie Hall. Lunch was tasty - finger sandwiches, fresh fruit, real juice, and cheese with crackers. It was a meet and greet session to make sure that none of us were dying living in residential colleges. I call it an opportunity for good food, they can call it whatever their heart fancies. Most people are going to Bali through res for spring break so conversation was aligned with stay safe, don't do drugs, your a college representative, etc.

Then following that luncheon, I went to a luncheon for the UWA Business School with the Dean and Vice Dean. The invitees were shockingly the exchange students again. The food was tasty again - finger sandwiches, sushi, and real juice. The school is very involved in making sure that as an exchange student you have the entire university behind you supporting you. I think they just want more exchange students and have a different philosophy on life than home does. As a token of appreciation, the school gave each one of us who attended an engraved UWA Business luggage tag.

AFN 

Wind Surfing and the Western Australia Museum

Yesterday morning I went wind surfing on the Swan River with a uni recreate program for three hours. It started at 7 am which is a crazy time for a Saturday morning. I must say that it is the hardest thing I have done in Australia. Surfing is significantly easier than wind surfing. Wind surfing takes tons of core and upper body coordination/strength. The wind was okay which was making it harder to actually go wind surfing. Incredible experience though. I didn't take my camera to get any pictures as I knew I was going to be in the water a ton which I regret now. I got good enough that if I could do a few more lessons I would be able to just go on my own.

The arvo was spent in Perth City at the Perth International Student Festival. It turned out to be a flop - there was weird international live music and only food there. The world made it seem like a much larger festival. However, in the area was the Western Australia Museum. To escape the heat and do something, we went in and explored. It was actually really neat. They had an underwater section with live corals and fish surrounded by old underwater animals/crustaceans fossils. You then walked into the mammal area which had all Australian animals stuffed or on display in skeletal formation. Australia has some of the creepiest mice, rats, and kangaroo/rat combinations. The neatest skeleton was the dolphin - they actually look like they have arms but you know they don't in reality. Butterflies and birds was the next exhibit which we passed through mindlessly. It didn't have the wow factor of the last two exhibits. You follow a giant curved staircase into the dinosaur exhibit which had dinosaur bones and full dinosaurs on loan from the Royal Tyrell Museum on display. I laughed a little that I had seen all of these bones before back at home. You then go into an interactive mineral and earth themed area. I might have played with all of the minerals that are non-reactive. It was like being a six year old again to be able to play with something. The actual display that we were supposed to see was the World War Two exhibit, we didn't end up seeing. The museum was interactive and long so we skipped out on the war exhibit. The bus ride home was quiet and uneventful.

Because last night was St. Patrick's Day, the girls and I played a few rounds of beer pong in res instead of going out. It was an event that is indescribable to the rest of the world. I ended up going to bed at 10 which was a godsend.

PS. That is a skeleton of an Indian elephant which only sits about 5 feet tall. Then the group photo goes: Shannon (Eastern Canadian), Caitlin (Scottish), Me (Western Canadian), Jenna (New Hampshire), and Cristy (Chicago, Illinois).

AFN

Frozen Cokes

Just a small little rant here.

Today was another day of 37C heat with 6% humidity. The day was pretty active - Zumba, a 10 km run, walking to and from classes, and a night swim in the ocean. All I wanted today was a Slurpee - a normal coke Slurpee to finish off a great midnight swim. Australia does not do Slurpee as I would traditionally believe them to be. They do a "frozen coke" which is carbonated and more air than ice. It tasted funny and was not truly frozen cold. Plus, the nearest place that sells a frozen coke is near City Beach or 20 km. It was actually quite depressing. Slurpees are a staple of hot weather - I wish someone could ship me a proper Slurpee with sugar and not carbonated air in it.

AFN

Dunsborough, WA

 

For the weekend, Ben and Rory took Curtis and myself down to their cabin in Dunsborough, which is just south of Margaret River. Ben and Rory are twins who took a semester abroad to Calgary. It is a three hour drive south of Perth. Callum and Justin both did exchanges to Calgary as well. The only non-exchange kid was James who runs a surf company in Perth that the twins have known since they were little.

We left on Thursday and took the scenic drive to their place. We saw the true "outback" which separates Perth from the next couple of towns. It a lot of red, little trees, apparently random bushes, cows, sheep, and the odd camel. There is a camel farm between Busselton and Dunsborough which is the weirdest thing in my opinion. Speeding is a significant fine for anything over 5km the posted speed limit. No one speeds as such. It is a different style of driving. The drive back home is comparable to Calgary - Red Deer and it took longer than driving to Edmonton. The car was packed with surfboards on the roof and seven of us in the Jeep. Me being the only girl.

The boys place in Dunsborough is a 6 acre parcel of land that is the quintessential Australian outback house. I personally found it a piece of heaven. You could see the stars uninterrupted by the city lights and could hear the crickets and kangaroos jumping. Kangaroos are nocturnal animals and run wild everywhere. You are most likely to hit one in your car at night - all SUVs and trucks have "kanga bumpers" on the front.

The first night was an early bed time - 5 am wake up for brekky. Breakfast consisted of Wheatabix and milk. No surfer drinks coffee - this just about killed me. The first surfing area we hit was about an hour and a half drive further south to Boranup Beach. It is famous for its swells and 8 km white sand beach. You drive through the outback and then 4 by 4 down a hill over rocks and boulders to get to it. Stunning view of the ocean and swells at the top. A climb down another hill with all the boards and lunch stuff was an interesting feat. I got quite good at getting up and standing by the end of the morning. The waves got too big for my liking - 6 to 10 feet, so I took a position sun tanning while the boys enjoyed surfing.

The boys ate all of the prepacked lunch stuff and were still hungry, so we headed to Margaret River town for a quick lunch. It reminds me of Banff but with a surf feel to it. It was quaint and cute. I would recommend going to the Fudge Factory if you are ever down that way.

The arvo was spent at Smiths Beach with better waves for all. I surfed again for a bit but got too exhausted. I fell asleep on the beach and got so burnt I turned purple. Walked around the beach and found a beached whale carcass. It was horrific to see but slightly neat to see the bone structure and skin still intact.

The sunset was spent on Yallingup Reef. The view was amazing and the sunset was bright red and orange. Spectacular. The hunt for kangas happened after sunset around the area. I really wanted to see a wild kangaroo. They are just as awesome as I thought they would be. I have a few pictures to email everyone with kangaroos and such.

The night was spent staring at the stars and a bright full moon with great discussion of surfing, Australia, and everything in between.

Day two was another early ass wake up at 430 this time. We were on the beach and surfing before sunrise. I don't understand this lifestyle until the heat hits 40C by 10am. I got super burnt again and napped the entire ride home to the house. The house was quiet with everyone napping due to the extreme heat. The arvo was spent again on Smiths Beach but further down. I decided to walk part of the Coast to Coast trail cause I could not be surfing in the conditions. It was an interesting walk up and down the coast line.

Day three was another early wake up at 5 am again. The boys surfed while I read the Economist on the beach. I can't do that early of a morning - not a good enough surfer and not a morning person. Once the boys were tuckered out, we headed back to Perth. Perth was sweltering hot again - 38C outside and about 41C inside.

The boys really made the experience awesome and something that most people do not get to see or do.

AFN

Kangaroo and Eggs

A friend who I met here, who is doing a combined law and finance honors degree, invited me for a home cooked dinner. He happened to go on exchange to University of Calgary a year and a bit ago. I guess people were awesome to him in Calgary and decided to extend the friendliness here. Karma really but I am still going to exploit that fact. 

As a friendly welcome to Australia, the meal consisted of very Australian foods:
- Starter: salad that looked like weeds with a vinaigrette dressing (coriander is a popular "lettuce" here)
- Main: kangaroo steak, "pot tots" done in barbeque sauce (or at home - baby potatoes), grilled assorted veggies, and a taste of white wine goon
- Desert: mango cheese cake with vanilla frozen yoghurt

Kangaroo steak was interesting to eat. It turns out grey when you barbeque it. It is a gamey meat but is actually quite tasty for what it is. I had it done medium rare which translated into a medium well cow steak. I would eat kangaroo again as it is a tasty meat with spices and such on it but I will not be bringing it home to eat.

Goon is an Australian cheap wine. I don't understand how people drink it. They did serve other proper white wine after I had finished drinking my glass of goon. Yes, it is actually called goon. You can buy 5L of goon for $9.

One thing I have learned being on exchange is that all exchange kids live for being brought home for non-residence food. I have not been eating a balanced diet at all. Vegetables were such a treat.
Side note: I've learned that eggs aren't kept in fridges in Western Australia. Fridges don't even have egg racks or spots for them. This horrifies me as those are things that should most definitely be refrigerated at all points. Grocery stores don't even refrigerate eggs at all - they sit on shelves. Milk, juice, pop, and water is not commonly stored in fridges either - everything is served warm and nasty.


AFN

AFL "Footy" Game

I went to a pre-season AFL or Aussie rules footy game this arvo at the Paterson's Stadium in Subiaco. I seriously believe that all Australians speak in netspeak - everything is shorted or given acronyms. That is just me though. The game was Fremantle Dockers versus the Richmond Tigers.

Aussie rules is an interesting game, it is a combination of volleyball underhand serves, American football punts, ultimate Frisbee touching rules, and a rugby style ball. A friend explained all of the rules to me and I understood a basic amount. Pretty much, they have four posts at the end of each side going little, big, big, little. If you get the ball between the big and big it is 6 points and between the big and little is 1 point. The field is 180 m long by 96 m wide and circular. The game is split into four 25 minute quarters. No stopping for penalties, breaks in between quarters are five minutes with a ten minute half time, and no announcers at all. Penalties just result in a free kick (no one can tackle them while this happens). The game never stops.

The crowd was way more entertaining than the game - Australian know how to get rowdy. The attendance was only 7,600 of a potential 16,000 people. I can only imagine when it is sold out how rowdy the crowds can get. They don't serve booze to you if your team (if you are wearing a jersey) is losing. Funny rule but I guess Australians are known for their drinking habits at $12 a mini pint.

The players are incredibly fit and stunning - delicious and scrumptious is another description. The average age of players in the professional league is 22. The boys have legs like trunks of muscle. It made it look like a hockey player was an anorexic. The players run from one end to the other constantly. Statistics say that they run an average of 15 km a game.

It is really nice to be picked up on res and dropped off. Cars are really a godsend.

AFN

Swimming with Sharks

I did my first full dive today that wasn't interrupted by Great Whites, jelly fish, or idiot partners. I dove at Rottnest Island just off the Fremantle coast. An early 6 am wake up after the T Swift concert was a little rough. The UWAUC actually comes and picks you up which is amazing. I did three dives for $60 including tanks and boat.

Dive one: Horse Shoe Reef. It is a five km horse shoe shaped reef off of the south coast of Rottnest. I saw tons of lion fish, cray fish, rock lobster, and different looking corals. I lasted 68 minutes on 2800 PSI to 20.3m. They use meters instead of feet and some other measure of PSI which was different.

Proceeded to get super boat sick on the surface interval which is always a pleasant experience. 

Dive two: Cave exploration. There is a set of caves that run below Rottnest Island. My dive partner and I legitimately swam through pitch black caves and saw tons of cray fish, rock lobster, and the odd reef shark. I started to understand why you need a buddy at all times. The cave system could get you turned around and you wouldn't know up from down. I got very good at navigating my way via compass. I lasted 48 minutes on 3100 PSI at a depth of 32.1 m. I know I should have done the deeper dive first but we didn't expect the caves to go that low.

Proceeded to get super boat sick again on the second surface interval. I have to figure out some way to avoid this. Tossing cookies is not the best way to dive.

Dive three: Shark Cove. It is a massive cavern of sharks (reef, great white, grey nosed, and tiger sharks). You legitimately sit on the edge of this cave on your stomach and watch dozens of sharks swim above and around you. I counted eight tiger sharks, three reef sharks, and two grey nosed. The tiger sharks are between 18-20 feet and just look mean. The reef sharks are about 3-4 feet long and are cute baby looking sharks. The grey nosed were a mother and cub who the mother would chase anyone who appeared to move when they did their laps. I lasted 35 minutes on 2700 PSI just because of my nitrogen levels and maybe a little bit of panic.

I recommend diving off that coast for sure. As a uni club, you have to help get the boat out of the water, clean the boat, and park the boat which is a totally different eperience to the professional dive company. In addition, you don't have a dive master on board, you trust your partner to understand the instructions and just explore.

I am exhausted and slept the entire car ride home. I might sleep through dinner as well as it doesn't look appealing.

AFN

Taylor Swift Concert

I went to the Taylor Swift concert in Perth last night. It had a sold out crowd of 16,000 people. I bought last minute tickets on Thursday and got unbelievable seats. I got row D on the first floor. The ground floor at Burswood Superdome, Perth is all standing seating only.

She had a special stage right beside my seating section and she had to walk through it to get to the special stage from main stage. As such, I got a full hug from Taylor Swift as she was passing by. No big deal - but be enthused about it.

This was the first time she had played in Perth - the crowd was uber high pitched and sang to every song. It was a theatrical experience for sure. She was amazing live - Brody said she "sucked balls" in Calgary so I guess I lucked out.

AFN

Death by Chocolate

 Thursday is known as beach day in res life. I did a BodyAttack class then went for a 10 km run here. I have to get in shape a lot quicker than I would like to admit. The afternoon was spent on Cottlesoe beach with four of us. Great gossip conversation ensued and men rating systems were developed. I like my beach discussions better than my classroom based ones for sure.
 
Thank you Grandpa for the lovely post card. It has now joined the wall art in my res room. My mail box is quite lonely.

There is a restaurant in Perth City called Chocolatier San Churros. It is a menu of all chocolate based items with a special of churros drenched in white, milk, and dark chocolate.

I had a chocolate sundae that had a scoop of each white chocolate, milk chocolate, and dark chocolate covered in milk chocolate syrup with a side of whip cream and two brownies. Not the healthiest option but still utterly delicious. The white hot chocolate is to die for.

The girls and I all basked in chocolate heaven for a couple hours over dessert. Good to have a set of girls here. I have yet to meet an Australian girl but the group I have is quite diverse - two Glasgoians, an American, a Dutchie, and another Canadian.

AFN