Sydney

Holy heck, I've made it. My flight arrived safely at Kingsford Smith Airport. I got my bags soon enough, headed through customs, and found a taxi over to the University Village. There is so much to talk about and not a lot of time, thanks to the fact that the internet costs money here (stupid I know!). I'm kind of thankful for that though. It will help me remain focused on the important things, like studying.

Funny side note: in Australia it gets pretty cold. I stepped off the plane and it was around 10 degrees C. You do the math on that one. But I'll address that much later.

After my cab ride I found myself in a bit of a pickle. No one was at the reception desk! How was I supposed to get into my room then? Fortunately, I met my first friend, another American named Eamen from Boston. So we figured things out and we tracked down an RA to let us into our rooms.

Unpacking took me no more than 10 minutes. I threw my stuff in the closet. I was ready to go.

We first walked through the campus, which was beautiful. If you didn't know, USyd is Australia's first University, and the quad is full of architecture that looks either really nifty or real ugly. Not sure. Also, they have lawn tennis courts here! No one else is probably excited about that, but I sure am. We walked through campus and decided to go all the way into the city.

Moving towards the city was like living a dream. I couldn't believe that I was back! Paddy's Market, Darling Harbor, the Rocks, and the Quay were all familiar sites. It was a cool feeling to be back at a place you never thought you'd see again. After walking around all day, we headed back to the Village and took it easy. The night was no fun. Having failed to purchase sheets, and thanks to the jet lag, I was asleep until 2 AM. Then the elevator on the 5th floor kept opening and closing. All night. And it squeaked and squealed and drove me crazy. I didn't manage to fall asleep again until around 7 AM, and that was only because I met Holly, who kindly lent me her heater. But other than that little mishap, all is good! I'll post more about classes and such later. Make sure to email me at tcla5974@usyd.edu.au or gmail if you want to hear more. Later.