Student Exchange Australia: Different Accents and New Experiences!

Posted on November 19, 2013 by admin

Well, where do I begin? The Armidale School has the 2^nd oldest cadets program in Australia, much like our school used to have. Last week the school went on a two-day cadets trip called… well I’m actually not sure what it is called because I can’t really understand what anyone says it because of their accents, but I presume it is something like “bivouac.”

Bivouac is a two-day long program where we trekked 18 kilometres, went abseiling (repelling) and did a river crossing. This was probably the hardest and most physically challenging activity that I have ever done in my life! I am told that what I have experienced is nothing compared to “annual camp” which is six days long, includes a 50-kilometre trek, canyoning (which is abseiling off a canyon), and it’s done three times. I am told the smallest abseil is 50 meters tall!!! Other than that we canoe for about 20 kilometres and do three to four river crossings (in total). I am in for quite the experience!

In other news I went to my exchange partners farm last weekend and I met some of his friends from outside of school. His farm was so much fun. All of the older kids went for three-hour horseback ride, which included me. I was terrified! –Jared Blatt ’16 (LCC exchange student at the Armidale School in Armidale, Australia)

Student Exchange: The Aussie Way

Posted on November 14, 2013 by admin

I reckon that I don’t ever want to leave Australia, it’s heaps of fun (I’ve even picked some Aussie expressions!)!

Last weekend, I went surfing with Mikayla and her friends. It was awesome; I even managed to stand up (before promptly tipping over in surprise).The ocean and beaches in Australia are really beautiful, even though the water is a bit cold. I got to wear a full-body wetsuit for surfing, which was so cool and feels a bit like a very tight snowsuit.

We also celebrated Halloween here, which was really bizarre because it was about 30 degrees and sunny. I enjoyed eating all the different Aussie candies (which they call “lollies”.)

My birthday was really nice and I had some cake, milkshakes, chocolate and presents. My English class sang “Happy Birthday” to me and I was extremely pleased to no longer be the “youngest triplet”. To celebrate, Mikayla and I went to Build-A-Bear where I made a koala and then we went out to dinner.

This weekend, we went Aussie strawberry picking and went to the mall. There’s tons of different stores and food, like Timtams, Milo and Sportsgirl.

This had been amazing so far, and I can’t believe it’s already half gone!

–Kat Gardilcic ’16

Student Exchange: Having the Time of My Life in Armidale, Australia!

Posted on October 21, 2013 by admin

HOW YOU GOING MATES!!!!!!!!! It’s been about two weeks that I’ve been here in wonderful Armidale Australia and it is really awesome. I’m going to give you guys the whole rundown of my trip.

When I learned that I was going Armidale the first thing I wanted to do was find a little bit about where I was going and what it was like. I discovered that it was a VERY small town. I emphasize very because the population is approximately 23,000. I was intrigued when I learned this because it gave me an opportunity to live in a small town and to learn a little bit more about how different they are from larger cities.

The first time I spoke to Jack, my exchange partner, I learned that he lived on an operational farm even though his mother is an anesthesiologist and his father is a pilot for Qantas.

Now for the travel. That flight, that terrible, dreadful flight to Sydney was actually not so terrible, and that was a plus! When I arrived at The Armidale School I was welcomed by everyone with open arms and huge smiles. Making friends was a breeze. Once I was settled in the questions started. Some a little strange such as: “Oy mate, do you think we ride kangaroos to school”, “do you have a pet polar bear” and “ha ha ha your cops are called Mounties”.

So far this experience has been the time of my life. – Jared Blatt ’16

Student Exchange: Fantastic Experiences in Adelaide, Australia

Posted on October 21, 2013 by admin

After a grueling 15 hour flight (a total of 30 hours in transit) to Adelaide, Australia, I had had it. I was tired, hungry, and generally looked certifiably crazy. Was it worth it? Definitely.

During the weekend before school started, I went with my exchange student Mikayla and her mom to a wildlife park where we saw tons of amazing Australian animals, such as kangaroos, wallabies, emus, and Tasmanian devils. I even got to hold a koala, which was awesome!

On my first day, I was pretty freaked out. I’ve been a student at LCC for practically my whole life, and now I had to start all over. What was I thinking? When we arrived at the Westminster School, I saw that all the lockers and hallways were outside, just like in the movies! Once I had met some of the people in my grade, I started to feel more at ease and enjoyed the lessons. The great thing about Westminster is that you get to be outside all the time between classes, at snack, at lunch, and recess.

All my classmates have been really friendly and curious about my foreign Canadian lifestyle, and all the teachers and students are really great. Australia has been an fantastic experience so far and I can’t wait for the new things to come. – Katina Gardilcic ’16

Thailand Exchange: Swimming With Baby Sharks

Posted on September 26, 2013 by admin

Every week is passing by so quickly. As the days pass, I am coming to the realization that my stay here in Thailand will end soon. I am having such a great time and will miss Regent’s school and all of my friends when I leave.

School here is great but it is quite different than LCC. Considering the fact that Thailand is a tropical country, almost everything is outdoors, from the hallways to the lounges. Here at Regents, instead of an arena they have a large pool. Consequently, Regents has much more of an outdoor feel in which I have come to greatly appreciate. I enjoy simply going outside to my next class. They also have a huge campus consisting of many buildings. There is a language building, the main building, the primary school, a pre-school building, two boarding houses, and a very spacious building for the staff whom live on campus. Altogether, everything is quite different but it is quite an enjoyable change.

On Saturday, I went scuba diving with my friend Ellis and her sister Chloe. For the first time in my life I saw two baby sharks up close. This was an event that I will never forget! As we were swimming, we spotted two baby sharks. I was stunned at first; I had felt my heart rate begin to increase as the fear began to wash over me slowly but in the end, I had nothing to fear as the sharks had actually swam away from us as one of the instructors had, without fear, grabbed its fin. Not only had I seen two amazing creatures but I had also saw many remarkable types of coral and fish; in all sizes, colours and forms. I swam into many schools of fish where we saw a stingray and other amazing sea creatures! The corals were also quite mesmerizing, some actually turned into different forms as we gently touched them. Scuba diving is something that I would love to do again.

Though Regents and Thailand in general has many aspects that make it very different from what I am use to, I am loving everything. All in all, my journey to Thailand has been a great experience filled with challenging opportunities, adventures and encounters. – Kamy Roberge-Carrington ’16