It’s hard to believe that the semester is officially over, and my exchange is a little more than halfway done! I remember when I first moved into DJ Village back in February, the academic year seemed so long and there just seemed to be so much ‘time’ to fill. Now, as I look back at everything that filled semester 1 it seemed to have flown by!
I was lucky enough to go to Tasmania (where surprisingly not a lot of Australians seem to visit) during SWOTVAC with a friend that I made in the Village. We drove from Northern Tasmania all the way down to Hobart in the Southern part of the state; going on hikes and visiting little towns along the way. I do have to admit that one of the most memorable events from this entire semester was getting to see the Cloaca or ‘poop’ machine at the MONA museum in Tasmania, none of the pictures that I took do it justice.
Another great memory this month was getting to celebrate my 21st birthday with all of my new friends in true Aussie-style, complete with fairy bread (bread, butter and sprinkles), embarrassing photos of me, and lots of alcohol. Its amazing how different this birthday was from my usual night out at the country bar with a couple of my girlfriends – I had a night I will never forget with people I will always remember.
It seems as though June was a month filled with goodbyes, since mostly all the international students are leaving to back to their home universities, or different exchange universities at different times during month. I am sad to see a lot of friends that I have made leave, but I am excited to follow through with the travel plans to go and visit them! I am also excited for the new group of semester 2 exchange students to come into the Village, and to be able to start the fun all over again!
See you next semester,
Jacqueline