Study Abroad in Australia

Cairns, Day 16

2009-10-16T04:19:00.002+11:00

Great Barrier Reef VI, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

We spent today at the Great Barrier Reef, which was probably one of the coolest experiences of the trip. I personally went snorkelling, and several others in the group went diving as well. We went to two reefs, where I saw more fish and more colorful coral than I have seen at any other snorkeling site. Once we were back in Cairns for the evening, we walked to the downtown area and did a little shopping before turning in for the night.

More photos from today.

Cairns, Day 15

2009-10-16T04:16:00.001+11:00

Cape Tribulation II, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

Today we spent the day north of Cairns in the Daintree Rainforest, a World Heritage site. We started the trip by taking a short crocodile cruise on the Daintree River, where we saw a 12 foot crocodile. We then headed further into the rainforest for some hiking through the rainforest and a mangrove forest. We ate lunch at Cape Tribulation, which has a beautiful beach. On the way back to Cairns, we stopped at several lookout points, Port Douglas, and Mossman Gorge. Mossman Gorge is a sacred site for the local Aborigines; there are rounded boulders everywhere, and it is a popular swimming destination.

Cairns, Days 13 and 14

2009-10-16T04:09:00.003+11:00

Kuranda Scenic Railway VII, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

Yesterday, we traveled by airplane from Brisbane to Cairns. The flight was a little longer than the flight from Sydney to Brisbane, but it still beat the flight across the Pacific. By the time we got settled into our hotel, which had a great view of the mountains from the balcony, we didn't have much time to make it into downtown Cairns. We went to the grocery store for food, cooked dinner (tacos), and spent the evening on the balcony, enjoying the weather.

We spent today in Kuranda, a town in the Atherton Tableland and the rainforest. To get there, we took a scenic railway from Cairns, which had great views of the region and ocean, as well as the surrounding rainforest. We spent the day shopping in Kuranda and hiking through the rainforest around the town before heading back to Cairns via the Skyrail. The views from this were fantastic; we traveled over the rainforest before going over a hill and being able to see for miles and miles around. This was one of the best experiences of the trip so far.

More photos from today.

Brisbane, Day 12

2009-10-16T03:58:00.001+11:00

Walk Along Brisbane River II, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

Today was a busy day at the Queensland University of Technology. We first met with Professor Rosemary Kennedy, who runs the Centre for Subtropical Design at the university. We also met with Professor Vaughan Coffey, who gave a virtual tour of Brisbane and the area. During our break, we walked along the river and through the City Botanic Gardens; we then headed to a lecture on risk management.

Brisbane, Day 11

2009-10-16T03:47:00.002+11:00

Aboriginal Art Trail VI, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

We had another free day today, so some of us decided to spend the day westof the city at Mt. Coot-tha Reserve. We had great views of the city and surrounding area from the top of the mountain, and there were a lot of opportunities for bushwalking. We chose a trail with an Aboriginal art section. The art was created in the early 90s by local Aborigines. At the base of the mountain are a botanic garden and planetarium, which we wandered around for a short while before heading back to the city. We then met up with the rest of the group for a tour of the Castlemaine Brewery, which is one of the main breweries of Queensland. After the tour, I had an excellent barramundi sandwich for dinner; this was my first time trying beet root, which I surprisingly liked. We also decided to try Vegemite tonight; this was not as good as the barramundi and beet root. It wasn't the worst thing I've ever tried, but it reminded me of using too much soy sauce.

More photos from today.

Brisbane, Day 10

2009-10-15T17:09:00.001+11:00

Joey at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

This morning, our professor led us on a short tour of the city. We started by going up the clock tower of City Hall, and then took the bus down to the Parliament House of Queensland. We were given a tour of the building, which included a library with documentation from every session of Parliament, and the main chambers. Our guide was very informative about the roles of the different branches of Australian government. We had the afternoon free, so we headed out to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. The sanctuary is home to 130 koalas, as well as kangaroos, wallabies, emus, and other native Australian animals. We were able to hold a koala, and were also able to walk around with the kangaroos and wallabies.

Brisbane, Day 9

2009-10-15T17:00:00.001+11:00

Wheel of Brisbane, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

We left Sydney this morning for Brisbane. The flight was only about 1.5 hours, which was nothing compared to the flight from the United States. By the time we checked into our hotel and got settled, there wasn't much time for exploring. We crossed a bridge over to the South Bank of the city, where we walked around the Wheel of Brisbane and the manmade beach. After that, we headed to Chinatown for dinner and called it a night.

Sydney, Days 7 and 8

2009-10-15T16:51:00.002+11:00

Bondi Beach VII, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

Yesterday, we were treated to another day with Professor Howells of the University of Sydney. We started the morning by attending a lecture of his on current trends in Australian architecture. Many slides he presented were of private residences in New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland, which was interesting because it showed how each region's architecture responds to the unique climates. After lunch, Professor Howells led us on another tour, this time of the architecture of Sydney. We were led around the downtown area, where we were shown some buildings from the early days of Sydney, as well as some new buildings.

Today, I started the morning by heading to the Royal Botanic Gardens. I enjoyed some new views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge that I hadn't found yet. Later, we headed back to Bondi yet again to enjoy our last day in Sydney. It was extremely crowded today due to the nice weather, but it was also extremely pleasant to be able to people-watch in such a beautiful location. We also got to see some unique kites in the air; there is a famous kite festival tomorrow, and some people had decided to pull theirs out a little early. We had been disappointed that we would miss the festival due to our flight to Brisbane, so this was a nice surprise.

More photos from today.

Sydney, Day 6

2009-10-15T16:37:00.002+11:00

Three Sisters IV, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

We had a free day today, so we headed out to the Blue Mountains for a day of bushwalking. To get there, we took a train to the town of Katoomba, one of the main towns in the mountains. From the train, we were able to catch glimpses of the western suburbs of Sydney. We started the morning by heading west from Echo Point, a central information center in the area. On this leg of the journey, we got some views of the Three Sisters, a famous rock formation in the area. We also got to the base of Katoomba Cascades and saw Katoomba Falls from afar. We headed back to Echo Point for lunch and then headed east for the afternoon. On this leg, we got up close to the Three Sisters, and also saw Leura Falls. By this point, we were pretty tired and had climbed an awful lot of stairs for one day, so we headed back to the train station and back to Sydney. One of the most fascinating aspects of the day was the vegetation. The plant life in the area was unlike anything I've ever seen, and boring as it may sound, it really made me feel like I was on another planet, not just another continent.

More photos from today.

Sydney, Day 5

2009-10-15T16:21:00.002+11:00

Harbour Bridge from Pylon I, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

We started the morning by taking the bus up to a suburb north of Sydney called Ryde, where we given a tour of a construction site. The site will be a shopping center; shops will be opening before Christmas, but construction will continue on while parts of the building are being occupied. The tour gave us an insight into Australian construction methods. Later in the afternoon, we climbed the South Pylon of Harbour Bridge, where we learned about the bridge's construction and saw some great views of downtown Sydney and the Opera House. The day was warm, so we decided to head back out to Bondi Beach. Unfortunately, we still aren't used to the sun setting so early due to it being winter here, so by the time we made it out to Bondi, the sun was getting low and the temperature by the water was much lower, so it wasn't long before we headed back to downtown for the evening.

More photos from today.

Sydney, Days 3 and 4

2009-10-15T15:38:00.002+11:00

University of Sydney Law School, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

Yesterday was our first opportunity to see the inside of an Australian university. We spent time at the University of Technology, Sydney, where we met Professor Patrick Healy of the School of the Built Environment. We attended a class of his, where we listened to students' presentations on managing subcontractors. After that, we walked through Chinatown on our way to Darling Harbour. After eating dinner, we walked up Observatory Hill, where we had a fantastic view of Harbour Bridge and North Sydney, as well as a lot of bats.

Today, we were given a tour of the University of Sydney. The campus has a mixture of new and old architecture, which we learned about from Professor Trevor Howells from the Faculty of of Architecture, Design and Planning. Professor Howells is considered to be the top historian of architecture in Sydney, and possibly all of Australia. After spending the morning and much of the afternoon at the university, we took the ferry back to Manly. We walked over to Shelly Beach, and then did some bushwalking around North Head. Once it started to get dark, we headed back to downtown Manly, where I had an excellent dinner of prawns in curry sauce with jasmine rice. By this point, we were beat, so we took the ferry back to downtown Sydney and called it a night.

More photos from today.

Sydney, Day 2

2009-10-15T14:59:00.002+11:00

Dog Overlooking Bondi Beach I, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

Ben Folds makes me want to learn how to play the piano. I was reminded of this when I saw him in concert last night. In concert at the Opera House. Earlier that day, we went to Bondi Beach - one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen. We walked a little ways down the Coastal Walkway before turning around to meet up with some others who had done other things in the morning. We never found them (we found out later that they got off at the wrong bus stop and were an hour late to the meeting place), but we had a good meal at a cafe across from the beach. After that, a friend and I continued down the Coastal Walkway, all the way to Coogee Beach before catching the bus back to the CBD (Central Business District). A great walk on the beach and a great concert in the evening made yesterday a great day.

More photos from today.

Sydney, Day 1

2009-10-15T14:49:00.003+11:00

Harbour Bridge at Sunset II, originally uploaded by sheepyak.

Musselman's Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies are the best packaged cookies ever. I had the privilege of trying these delicacies on the flight from LA to Sydney. The flight was 14.5 hours, but didn't feel bad at all. I was able to sleep for about 6 hours, and after that it was about the same length as the flight to LA. We arrived at about 6:15 in the morning Sydney time, we got our 7-day travel passes, which allow us to travel on any bus and ferry, and on the subway in most of the areas we'll be visiting. We took the subway to our hotel, which was only 2 blocks from the station, checked in, showered (which felt glorious) and headed to Circular Quay, where many of the ferries depart. We wandered over the Opera House and the surrounding Botanical Gardens, and then hopped on the ferry to Manly. We walked around Manly Beach for a short while before heading back to the ferry, from which we were able to watch the sun set behind Harbour Bridge.

More photos from today.