Cairns absolutely flew by. Nine-ish days felt like two. We had our final exam there, but being able to do activities and hang out with people that you may never see again (or for a while) made that part of the trip fly by. I went bungy jumping this past Friday, and it was absolutely awesome. The place we went was designed by AJ Hackett, who basically invented modern bungy jumping and came up with its name. He has designed about 10 places worldwide. I did five jumps, and each time it was a little weird because human instinct tells you to not jump off of a perfectly good platform 50 meters above the ground. On the other days in Cairns, I was able to visit local markets, go to different beaches, and visit the lagoon.
As I sit here in the Brisbane airport, it is weird to think that we are actually on our way out. When I flew in from LA to Sydney, I thought to myself about how quickly the trip would go. I knew at the time that the trip would go way too fast and I’d feel like I was flying out of Australia the next day- and it definitely feels like that. We’re leaving more and more friends behind as we travel farther and farther as they make their own extra trips to Queenstown and Auckland in New Zealand, to Bali, Fiji, and random places in Australia.
A study abroad trip is not any typical trip or vacation and if you’re a student, the opportunity of a lifetime is right in front of you. I’ve made some really good friends from all over the US (and some Australians), and I’ve had the opportunity to see places that most Australians have never seen. One of the songs that we talked about that naturally defined this trip was Price Tag, because an experience like this is truly priceless and you only live once. I have thousands of pictures on my laptop from this trip, and they won’t even come close to describing how amazing our experience was. When I was in high school I knew I wanted to study abroad, and as I got to college and got settled in to my major and life, I felt like I was going to be unable to study abroad. Chemical engineering, like many other majors, has many classes that are only offered one term of the year, and if you miss that class you end up being a year behind and delaying graduation. I thought that because of that, and how much I love being at Michigan, that I’d never get the chance to go abroad. Regardless of how busy you think you are, you can probably fit it in.
Like a bungy jump, you just kind of have to go for it. For me, I saw the Energy Tomorrow program and knew that it was exactly what I was looking for. Looking back, it would have been nice to go to a country that spoke a different language, but at the same time there was so much that I learned that I’m not accustomed to in the US. I realize this is the top blog post, and if you’re thinking of studying abroad in Australia I encourage you to read my other posts, because the opportunities in front of you are mind blowing whether you know it or not. A major goal of mine for this blog is to help future travelers by giving them an idea of what they’re getting into by studying abroad, and that through that the process of studying abroad would go much more smoothly. So in accordance with those goals, here’s a few helpful hints, which are by no means the end-all-be-all tips but nonetheless meant to be informative.
What I did right and what I’d do differently if I did it again:
Get a cell phone- it helps to meet up with students and stay in contact with people back home
Do the optional day trips, especially the Great Barrier Reef, surfing, and something that pushes your limits like bungy jumping, skydiving, or white water rafting
Pack a few days ahead of time, so that if you forget something you’ll remember it in the few days you’re still in the US
Use cash rather than a credit card, surcharges end up being higher for credit cards
No one had any opportunity to use their ISIC card once on the entire trip, it was pretty useless
Take LOTS of pictures, and have a good camera- you’ll share pictures, but it’s good to have your own
Go to the local places and don’t always travel with a huge group
Learn about Aussie rules and go to an AFL game if you can- it’s really interesting and even better than rugby
Take time to reflect on the trip, and write a journal
Have fun!
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