The student life

So, I know everyone is probably waiting for interesting updates from down under. Truth is that my life has gotten to be quite standard and usual here. I spent all last week basically working every day. I signed up for the most expensive gym in Melbourne (partially because it has beautiful views of the ocean and beach and partially because I need to stay motivated and also partially because the St.Kilda footy team is said to work out there).

 Sunday was the longest day of my life so far. I started work at 8 in the morning after a late shift the night before and worked until 1am. 17 hours with only one break, my feet are just about broken. The resto was closing for a two week reno so we all had to stay late and tear down shop.

We also started our first week at school. Day one of classes proved to be interesting even though the teachers spoke in a language I’ve never learned in before J Surprisingly I was able to keep up with the profs and all their abbreviated terms and funny lingo. Although today in hopes to attend our second day of school we left the house with about 1 hr 15 minutes to spare (normally it takes us 40 minutes to tram to school) and none of the trams heading to school came. Pretty bizarre and annoying but apparently this is why people complain about the unreliable transit in Melbourne. Feeling like a rebel we headed to the beach since the universe apparently didn’t want us to go to our class today.

Last night we went out to a bar/club that the aussie’s took us to called cheers. I was excited because any place called cheers cannot be bad. Upon arrival I realized I was severly underdressed as girls there were wearing formal dresses, I should’ve known. Dancing on the d-floor was a hazard as drinks were being spilt and people were bumping around everywhere. Being sober I had to take a time out. This was also the first time I felt like an absolute grandma in Melbourne. Everyone at the club was 20 or younger with an average female age of 18. Must find somewhere more age appropriate.

That is literally all for now. My life has become mundane and repetitive but loving every day here. Especially the last few days were gorgeous and sunny. Not quite jacketless weather yet but getting there!

PS- latest about our gas leak, our gas heater is still in repair and we have not heard from the plumber for over a week. He has stolen our fireplace and is MIA, if you see a short plumber with black long hair and facial hair with an unusual Aus accent please notify us ASAP.

PPS- very jealous of the August long weekend to come, so much so that I am making my own national holiday down here and take a relaxing vacay!

Stay classy Vancouver! Till next time.

Orientation Week

This week we finally found our way to our University campus. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere in a suburb that has a mall and not much else, but the campus itself is beautiful, even if we have to take a tram, a train and a bus to get there. At least Kristina and I can keep each other company. There was an organized trip for all the exchange students to china town Melbourne. It really did make me feel at home going to an all you can eat dumpling house. We almost ran into a serious altercation when Kristina’s clumsiness made her kick over a homeless man’s change cup and we had to make a run for it because he started cursing us and thought we were trying to steal his coin. After we were all full to the nines the big group of approx. 80 people headed to a local bar called euro trash. I didn’t know Tuesdays could even be remotely a fun bar night. We were amused by a drunken fellow from Colorado that dressed like euro trash (ironically) and sat by us rapping all the lyrics to slim shady. Needless to say drinks were 5$ each before midnight which was easy on the bank account (for once) but we had an early morning orientation the next day so we didn’t stay late or get too out of hand.

The early mornings in orientation helped us learn some Aussie slang and the best and cheapest ways to get around the city as well as allowed us to meet many different people. Each day was filled with a few questions of Australian trivia and Kristina and I happened to answer questions correctly, meaning we won some cool Aussie souvenirs. Kristina won a traditional boomerang while I won an Aussie football (so exciting since we’re becoming real footy fans as it’s as religious as hockey is back home).

Thursday night consisted of going out to a restaurant lounge called Lucky Coq with the big group for 4$ pizzas. It was so busy when we got there and my stomach couldn’t handle the wait so Kristina, myself and our new found British friend Ellen went in search for something to eat. The bar was located on Chapel Street which is a really funky part of town. After wandering into a set of doors and up and around 4 flights of stairs we found a cool resto called Kernel Tams. It was Asian infused and totally hipster; it also had a live DJ. We ate our crazy spicy stir fries and met up with the group back at Lucky Coq. All these places have really random décor which allows you to look around for hours on end and be amused. The following day we ended the orientation week with a big Amazing Race around campus. Our team was very diverse and although we all ran to each pit stop our polite Canadian nature left us in 5^th out of 12 teams (but number one in our hearts). That night we had our ‘official welcome party’ and it was a formal event at a banquet hall called red scooter. Other than losing my favourite ring (and voice) during a dance off vs. the Swedes it was a fun night that ended late….er….early.

Today I woke up to beautiful sunshine but headed straight to work for my second shift. I didn’t get to see much outside because it was busy all day and I worked from 11am to 11pm with only a short break. I was just about ready to collapse but I suppose it’ll be worth it once my pay check rolls in and I’ll be able to pay my heating and electricity bills J

Bad thing is we’ve gotten sucked into Australian soap operas and reality TV. I guess it was bound to happen since we only have 6 channels and no wifi at the flat as of yet. It also doesn’t help that we have a small kitchen meaning our kitchen table is the couch. Anyways, good news is my new job at Rococo will keep me busy. . The best part is that it’s literally a 5 minute walk from home so convenient and minimum wage is double what it is back home J

We love our neighbourhood, our neighbours, and our apartment is really starting to feel like home. There really isn’t anything negative I could say about our apartment complex…..oh right except that there is a cat that sits outside our bathroom window and meows as if he was dying a long painful death. I guess all Aussie animals are weird and different from back home. Also the minor fact that we found a gas leak coming from our fireplace. Lucky we caught it because apparently it was a very bad leak (said the emergency plumbing services on Sunday night at 11pm). We handled it like adults though by freaking out first and then finding the main gas valve and turning it off, airing out the place and calling someone. :) Safe and sound and not to worry...oh the adventures of living on your own.

More updates to come, stay tuned.

Home Sweet Home

So the big move was today and it was hectic from the get go. To the bank to get our brand new PINK bank cards which was such a novelty to us. This was great news to us because this meant we finally had direct access to our Aussie bank accounts… finally.

We then called for a Maxi-taxi and had to wait 40 minutes without one showing up before we hailed a cab on our own. A couple of good looking Aussie’s offered to give us a ride, but somehow a cab wouldn’t stop. Eventually we got a taxi. We had so much luggage we barely fit, but luckily a 35 minute cab ride only cost us 25$. Much cheaper than back home. One thing I’ve noticed about driving on the wrong side of the road gets me very motion sick. Every tram , train and car ride leaves me minutes away from puking. Go figure…

Anyways we finally arrived at 16 Marine Parade, aka home sweet home. We had to carry our VERY heavy suitcases up about 20 stairs. Needless to say we were tired. We quickly made a grocery list and headed to explore. St. Kilda is filled with lots of tiny little shops and bars and cafes. My kinda place for sure. After ogling all the many pastery shops we headed to the super market. 215$ later we had to walk a 5 block home with very heavy grocery bags. That combined with our laugh attack barely got us home, we might have to invest in a personal shopping cart. Food here is basically double the price home but at last we get to cook our own healthy food.

As soon as we got home we took out the cleaning supplies and did a full top to bottom two hour clean sesh to Al Greene. We love our little home and even bought a few deco’s to make it feel more home-y but there is no such thing as central heating in Aus so our rooms and bathroom is perma cold. The fireplace in the living room has now become our huddle spot. We spent our Friday night huddled on the couch in our sweaters and blankets watching bad free cable.

Although I thought I was cold…it got worse. Our bedrooms were freezing and even thought I was sleeping in a hoodie, my slippers and wrapped myself in a blanket and a duvet I still had trouble sleeping and was a frozen ice cycle when I woke up.

We made hot tea and oatmeal for breakfast (our first home cooked meal) and headed to Maccers (McDonalds) where we were promised free wifi but the internet was McCrappy so we left and decided to hand out resumes. I got a trial Monday (like working interview) at a place called Rococo which is a resto-lounge. Believe it or not I’m nervous!

We then caught the first tram into the city to buy mini heaters so we’d be able to survive the winter in our non-heated home. Following our purchase (money well spent) we finally decided to hit the liquor store. 6 Aussie bottles of wine and 60$ later, we were well stocked for a week (hopefully). On the way out of the supermarket we saw Asian massages for 10$ so we treated ourselves. After all the heavy lifting and sleeping on weird beds it was well worth it.

Anyways, bottles of wine to open and dinner to cook. More stories and adventures of living on our own to come! I might have to child proof our place as Kristina is a tad clumsy but for now back to our show!

Ps- be sure to check out the pics below of our neighbourhood.

Last night at the hostel of horrors

Breaking hostel news! The Korean roommate in bottom bunk #2 found gold in his nose after plenty of digging and decided to eat it! I came to Australia scared of finding snakes, but instead I found a boogie man…literally. At least we are normal…kind of. I am currently losing at solitaire again while Kristina is rapping out loud to Busta Rhymes…maybe we are the weird roommates.

 We decided to visit our friend Malin at the bar she works at downtown. We walked for about an hour looking for the place and then finally found it on the second floor of a building. It was called workshop and was decorated very cool but the DJ was spinning trance so it wasn’t too danceable. Kristina almost got hit by a tram on the way home, but I quickly and dutifully came to her rescue.

Today after many days of pleading I finally caved and Kristina and I went to the Queen Victoria Market with our roommates. The market had tons of fresh fish, meat, veggies and dried fruit. We couldn’t stay away from the cinnamon covered cashews and the Canadian maple almonds.

We are also spending our last night in a hostel because we move in tomorrow! I’m very excited about our new home. Not only will we get separate rooms, I won’t have to worry about sleep talkers, snorers or getting locked out of my room in the middle of the night. So excited that we tracked down the nearest Ikea and did a little shopping. I have never been so happy seeing an Ikea before in my life. A good portion of Swedish meat balls later I was packing the shopping cart with everything and anything until Kristina talked some sense into me and we had to eliminate half of the stuff. I guess I have weaknesses to Australian Ikea too. Can’t wait to decorate, pictures to come soon!!

St.Kilda adventures commence tomorrow with the one and only paul-tina, stay tuned! 

No longer homeless!

My Aussie experiences just keep getting better and better. Today teens and I signed our lease to our new apartment. A two bedroom beach front cute apartment couldn’t have been more perfect. I cannot tell you how relieved and excited I am to move in. We get the keys Friday and soon after I will be posting pics for sure!

We also had our first big night on the town. We had our first taste of Aus beer and saw a movie (lame I know) J Bridesmaids was hilarious beyond belief but what was better was the seating. For just 11$ I got better seating than my Air China flight! Spacious and you get to select your seats ahead of time. It really was the perfect movie experience. Kristina lost one of her contacts in the movie so I had to escort her home safely, and of course I executed this task to a tee.

Other than literally being blown away me and Kristina have managed to break the law and get away with it! We were paying student fairs for transit and got stopped by Aus police, [really not the worst thing in the world ;) ]. Apparently unless we are Australian citizens we have to pay full price L Kristina also opened a bag of candy in target while we were shopping for bedding and decided they tasted gross so she put them back and we had to make a run for it. Candy here is weird so it was a very legit move on her behalf. Basically all in all we are some bad ass Canadians always in a run from the law. Except not really that exciting….

Both of us are super excited to get our new place , so much so that we hit up the closest reject store (its actually called that, kind of like liquidation world) to check our the finest home decorations ;) We really are on a tight budget, even the reject store is more expensive than Ikea back home.

Anyways we enjoyed breaky in South Yarra in a cool part of town after signing the lease with our agent this morning and made sure to call the parents to have them wire us more money since our first months rent and deposit basically drained our accounts.

Next update will be from St.Kilda, 8/16 Marine Parade right on the beach. 

This is all for now. xo xo Aussie girl

Aussie Aussie Aussie , Oy Oy Oy

So glad to finally be in Australia after close to 30 hours of traveling alone. Vancouver to Shan Hai 12 hour flight was good and filled with four entertaining movies. Once I reached Shang Hai I realized the confusion of a poorly planned and poorly marked airport. I got held up at China customs somehow but finally was able to collect my luggage and check it onto my second flight. This flight was filled with turbulence galore and very uncomfortable sitting with no entertainment. 10 hours went by in between dozing and my puking neighbour. The food was enough to throw up but these were the last free meals I would eat so I tried to do my best. The pleasant Australian Customs really had me relieved after my Chinese experience. A dog sniffed my luggage and I was on my way. We managed to find a bus and tram to take us to our hostel which wasn’t far thankfully. 2 pieces of luggage each really makes it hard to manoeuvre. Anyway it’s been 3 days since arrival and I’m already feeling at home...other than the fact of course that we are very homeless L

I’m sure everyone thinks I’m probably living the life doing crazy fun Aussie things…well just to fill you in I am currently in my hostel watching one of my 5 roommates work out in a room full of 4 bunks and a 2x2 area in the middle to intense matrix music while wearing some body brace. Oh and playing solitaire of course. Sound lame? This is because I am so exhausted after looking for places for the last two days. We are adjusting to Melbourne time quite well making use of our days. We’ve looked at 4 different places to live but none of them quite what we are looking for. We’re finding it next to impossible to have something affordable and close to our Uni. Most of our roommates have been living at the hostel for over two months and working because renting in Melbourne is so pricy, kind of un-settling. One of my roommates talks in her sleep and has sex dreams out loud, one grinds her teeth so loud I get shivers and comes in at dawn after partying and the others come and go. Kristina makes the best roommate of course as we are always on the same brain wavelength.

Ok so now that my venting is done, Melbourne is amazing. Very windy which makes it cold but none the less amazing. Interesting architecture and funky looking buildings all round. People are very nice and it daily reminds me of Van (minus the mountains of course).

 Things so far that we’ve noticed is that there is a 7-11 every block and that they don’t cut their sushi so you get the pleasure of eating the roll like a hot dog. Hot dogs on the other hand are replaced with corn dogs L but their pie faces (meat pies) sure do make up for it. We’ve learned not to eat the subway here, surprisingly disappointing. We keep looking the wrong way when we cross the road and me and Kristina had a good laugh trying to find the sun because rises in the north and sets in the south. It’s pretty backward down here and funny trying to get used to. The dollar bills here are cool and the20 cent coins are probably double size of the toonie, pretty bizarre. We’ve also learned not to ask for a washroom as no one knows what that is. Slowly learning our way around.

 Our first night here we met up with some of Kristina’s contiki friends and lucked out because we were invited to an AFL (aussie footy league) game for free! A stadium full of 45,000 people and the weirdest sport ever made for an awesome night. By the time the four quarters of 30minutes passed we were just about asleep. Since then its been all business and no pleasure. We’ve been apartment hunting to get a place before school starts.

Anyway this is just a quick update. More to come once we’re more settled.

Bye yeah!