Laura Griselda Cortes Davalos
August 2008 Update
It has been a month since I arrived on July
22nd and time is going fast. I was so nervous and
anxious before I came, I couldn’t make it to Sydney for Orientation
and neither to my University Orientation Program, so I was scared
to death and hoping not to be to disorientated jajaja. After my 20
hour flight a huge man was waiting for me at the airport, he was
like the Harry Potter’s Hagrid, I thought he was going to take me
around the city or to my university for a tour as I was told when I
arrange my airport pickup and temporary accommodation, but no, big
mistake, I was just drop in a backpackers hostel without knowing
what to do, how many days to pay, in few words I was feeling
completely lost and I just wanted to cry, I felt like in a Mexican
soap opera jajaja, oh and I almost forgot...it was so cold (and it
still is), after that I knew that it couldn’t get worst jeje, so I
just took a deep breath, smiled, and went out walking around.
Since that day everything has been great, I
love it here, the city is beautiful, after 4 days in the hostel
meeting super cool people I found the nicest place to live, a bit
expensive but it worth it, everything is included and I have the
best housemates, the owner is called Sussie, she’s from Malaysia
and love dogs, she has two, Michelle is from Kenya and her mom
works for the UN, she’s also a student in UniSA but she’s doing
here her complete degree, my other housemate is from Germany, her
name is Sabrina and she says that Germans in Australia are like
germs, because they are everywhere jejeje, she’s staying here for
six months and she’s also a UniSA student, there is an independent
house connected to ours, it’s Sussie’s place too and there a four
boys living there, 3 Asians and one from South Africa, they are
grate too. I live just across my university campus which is great
because a don’t need to catch the bus everyday unless I need to go
to the city (I live in a suburb) and it’s just 15 min. away, some
people say this is the best planned city in the world.
Everything here is about the university life,
so it’s perfect for me, I joined to UniLife (the university club),
and also the Exchange Society, my house Michelle is in the
committee, it´s awesome because there are always different events
going on in which I have met lot of people and made new friends, I
have been hanging out with a group of girls from Italy, Finland,
Sweden, England and Germany, including my two housemates also from
Germany and Kenya, making friends have made my life more enjoyable
here.
I love my courses, I’m taking intercultural
communication, Islam and world politics, Australia and the Asian
century and contemporary international political economy, this week
I submitted my first assignments and I think I’ll do well, I could
talk about my courses for hours but, if I tell you everything now
what would I tell you on my next report jeje.
Finally, I’m volunteering for The Royal Society
for the Blind (RSB), I’m helping selling tickets for the Guide Dog
Service Lottery, the RSB raise, care for and train guide dogs to
provide mobility and security for blind or vision impaired people
and by that help them to be independent and active within their
community.