Week Three in Australia: Kangaroos and Country Week

Posted on August 18, 2015 by admin

My third week of school in Australia went by fast. I spent it hanging out with all my new friends at school. It was my third and last week at Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School. On Friday, I said my goodbyes to most of my friends and had them sign my flag. I also signed up to go to Country Week, a type of mixed sports tournament, (instead of a work experience for the next week) and many of my friends were also going. After school that day, we took the bus home and invited a few people to hang out for Kasper’s upcoming 16th birthday. Many of my new friends showed up and we all had a good time. On Saturday morning, they all headed out and Kasper and I decided we would visit the local wildlife park. At this park, you can buy animal food and feed it to certain animals. I saved mine for the kangaroos. We went to see them last and it was really awesome for me because the closest I’d ever come to a kangaroo was around 30 feet away, the time I’d tried to chase one to get a picture of it. Being a wild kangaroo, it was timid and bounced away, but here, they were close. I got to feed a kangaraoo out of my hand and pat it.

The next day I left for Country Week. Country Week is a huge high school sports event and lots of schools come from all over Australia to compete. This year, 3,700 kids were in attendance to represent their schools. I was signed up for the touch rugby team because it was the only sport I was familiar with. I play rugby back home, but touch was new to me. I didn’t play all that much, because I wasn’t familiar with the different rules between touch and regular rugby, but sports were the least important part of the week. I went to Country Week initially because I wanted a bit more time with my friends – and that’s what I got. I roomed with a few of my friends and hung out with the others whenever I could. The week was very entertaining, and I got to learn more on Footie and Netball while supporting the BCGS teams. The week ended with closing ceremonies and BCGS tied for second.

– Garrett Doyle ‘17

Kangaroos, Dolphins, and Skydiving: My Adventurous Exchange

Posted on June 29, 2015 by admin

I touched down in Sydney, Australia, on June 8, exhausted from a 15-hour flight from Vancouver. This probably contributed to me missing my connecting flight to Perth; which was my final destination. I was put on the next flight without any problems two hours later. At 3:45 pm, I walked into the Perth airport. I reclaimed my bags and waited at a coffee shop for my family to arrive. Kasper, my exchange student, Florence, his sister, and Laura, their mother, greeted me and we all drove back to my new home. Upon arrival, I was introduced to Kasper’s father, Torben, as well as their two dogs, Gonzo and Daisy. I ate dinner and went to bed early. Despite serious jet lag, I planned on going to school the next day.

My first day at Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School was a blast. I made many new friends during lunch and recess and I took part in my first field hockey practice on the school team. It was my first experience with this sport, which introduced a few problems. The main one was that we had a game the next day and I didn’t know any of the rules, positions, or how to play. I did fine, aside from accidentally slashing a player on the other team in an attempt to get the ball. I learned the important lesson that field hockey is not played quite like ice hockey.

I signed up to play on the school AFL (Footie) team in a tournament that Friday. I had three days to learn the sport, but with field hockey, I was forced to pick it up in one day. I learned the rules and basic gameplay of Footie by watching videos on YouTube, as well playing for two hours in gym class. I was as ready as I was going to be. It was awesome! We lost every game, but it was still awesome.

We woke up quite early (by my schedule) at 9:30 am on Saturday and we headed out to motorbike on dirt trails in the woods. I learned how to operate the gears and went off on the trails for a spin. I came back a tad late and in the distance, close to where I’d started, was a group of about 10 kangaroos bounding across the road into the woods. We got home around 2:00 pm and I ended the day with a run and some training. The next day, we went out kayaking in a bay near the house and dolphins swam around our kayaks.

I got back from the weekend relaxed and ready for the start of another week. Nothing new happened on Monday, but I had my first aquatics class on Tuesday. Aquatics is a class for surfing in the sea, which lasts two hours without breaks. I figured it was going to be a nice day relaxing in the sun. I didn’t think of bringing a wetsuit for the cold water and the wind. Those two hours were quite uncomfortable, to say the least.

After that, I practiced with the field hockey team after school. When I got home, Laura told me I had two opportunities to consider: I was invited to play for the school Footie team for a weeklong tournament, or I could work at the Dolphin Discovery Centre (I’m still trying to decide what to do).

The next day, I had a field hockey game. We lost, but it was still fun. On the car ride home from the field, Laura told me I had the opportunity to skydive over the weekend in Busselton. I signed up to skydive as soon as I got home.

We ended the week early and started our weekend on Thursday at 3:30 pm. I went to Busselton, or “Busso,” for the skydiving trip. Friday was a pretty chill day. We visited a few tourist shops and ended off the day relaxing at the hotel. I didn’t sleep too well that night because I was too excited for the next day.

The wake-up call for skydiving was around 8:00 am. While pulling into Southern Skydivers parking lot I got my first glimpse of the plane. It was a small plane that fit around five people. I got suited up and acquainted with Jake, the person I would be jumping with. Around 15 minutes later, I boarded the plane with three other skydivers and Jake. We took off. At 10,000 feet, the plane doors opened and two people in the plane jumped. We flew another 4,000 feet and then it was our turn. I inched my way toward the open door, with Jake close behind me. We waited a few seconds and, when ready, we began the free fall. The wind blocked out all noise as we plummeted toward the ground at around 200 kilometres per hour. Another skydiver flew with Jake and I for around a minute of the free fall, then separated as we deployed our parachutes.

I’m lost for words to describe the experience, but it felt like I was in a dream, flying high above the clouds. On the descent I had the view of my life, as I overlooked the whole town of Busselton and the jetty from a height of around 5,000 feet. After landing, I thanked Jake and left with my family for whale watching. It was an awesome day. The next day was spent buying souvenirs for my family and friends. We ended the day with a tour of an underground cave called Jewel Cave. It was about 40 metres underground, and when lit up, it looked like a huge, intricate jewel. The next day was dedicated to rest – and I slept.

– Garrett Doyle ’17

Student Exchange: Week 2: Racing with Elephants!

Posted on March 17, 2015 by admin

Another two weeks have gone by since I last wrote a blog, and those two weeks were filled with fun, and of course, school… but school is fun also. Most of my classes are interesting and I enjoy them a lot. The weekdays go by as usual – school and schoolwork consumes most of my day and at night we play sports.

The weekends, however, are super interesting and there is always something to do or somewhere to go on Saturday. Last Saturday we went paint balling in Pattaya. The boarders that went were split up into four groups of nine or ten players, then we each got a gun with twenty rounds each. The game was Capture the Flag. After watching the red team and the yellow team battle it out, it was us, the green team, versus the blue team. After a long fifteen minutes, my team finally won. My team ended up advancing to the finals, where sadly, we lost. I still think the play was suspicious though.

This Saturday we went elephant riding at the Pattaya Elephant Village! The people there that save the elephants from animal mistreatment in their old home bring them here. There are about thirty adult elephants and a few children. We fed them bananas. The workers there get to ride elephants all day, so I’m sure that they might get bored after a while, but for me, this is a cool job. We were two per elephant and we rode it for about five kilometers, which took about an hour. Near the end, we started feeling more secure about being on a twenty-foot high animal, so we started racing! Imagine driving down a road and seeing elephants charging towards you. It must’ve been scary for those people. This is for sure one of the highlights of my trip.

This weekend, I get to be hosted by Osman and his family. I can’t wait to visit different parts of Thailand.

I am about halfway through my trip to Thailand, and I love it here. It is still high thirties here and the bugs are starting to come out, but it is still better than freezing in Canada. Eli Samuel ’17, Exchange Student at Regents International School Pattaya

Australia: An Unforgettable Experience

Posted on March 16, 2015 by admin

The idea of going somewhere you have never been before and being surrounded by people you have never met either is quite scary. I never thought that I would have been able to do that and let alone apply for it myself. I am so happy that I got over that fear of going on exchange and I had the experience of a lifetime.

After 20 hours of flying, I finally arrived at the Melbourne airport. I was greeted by a tall family holding signs with my name written on them. It was so welcoming and I felt comfortable with the family immediately. After an hour and a half car ride to a small town called Ballarat, I arrived at their home. After two hours of being home, I experienced culture shock. Not only were there kangaroos in the wild, only a ten minute walk from Lisie’s house, but two donkeys, two alpacas, three chickens, a dog and a cat on their property!

In Ballarat, we went to the Wildlife Park. All animals are in paddocks except for the kangaroos, alpacas and emus that walked around the park freely. It was so cool to be able to feed the kangaroos and pet them. I even saw a joey come out of the pocket of his mother. It was adorable! We also went horseback riding. That is something that I have never done before and it was awesome!

Throughout my time in Australia, I went on three big trips. I went to Apollo Bay, Phillip Island and Melbourne.

On the way to Apollo Bay, we drove on a road called the Great Ocean Road. Soldiers who returned from war between 1919 and 1932 built it. Along the road are the names of soldiers who passed away during World War 1 and it is the largest war memorial in the world. It goes along the ocean and it is absolutely beautiful!

The next morning, we headed off to a zip-line course through trees called Otway Fly. It was a thrilling experience that showed me that my time in Australia was going to be full of adventure. The next day was spent on the beach, boogie boarding in the ocean and playing soccer in the sand.

On Phillip Island, we went boogie boarding down a sand hill into the ocean. It was so enjoyable and it reminded me of tobogganing in the winter. Except for the fact that we were in bathing suits and that it was not -5 C weather. For dinner, we sat by the ocean eating fish and chips. I felt like a true Aussie!

In Melbourne, we visited a couple of chocolate shops and ate lunch on a tramcar that went around the city of Melbourne. We also went to a building call the Eureka Sky Deck. It is the tallest residential building in the Southern Hemisphere. We did something called the edge where you sat in a clear box, which pulled three metres out from the building 300 metres above the ground. That night, Lisie and I also went to go to see a concert. It was amazing! The next morning, we went swimming with dolphins and seals. It was so cool to see them in their natural habitat in the ocean.

Even though I was only there for seven weeks, I feel like I have made friends and memories at Ballarat Grammar which will last a lifetime. I will never forget the friends that I have made and it makes me so sad to realize that I will not see those people for a while. It is insane how close you can become with people in such a short time. I cannot wait to spend more time with my exchange, Lisie, in Montreal! – Annie Wiseman ’17, Exchange Student at Ballarat Grammar

Student Exchange Australia: G’bye Australia

Posted on February 24, 2015 by admin

The last two weeks in Melbourne have been absolutely wonderful. Time flies when you’re having a good time! I still can’t believe I’m heading back to Canada tomorrow. As much as I want to see my friends and family back in Montreal, I don’t want to leave what has become my second home yet. I have developed a lifelong connection with my exchange, Erica, and her family, the Gikovskis. Luckily, I have made many memories here that I will cherish forever.

Contrary to being “Down Under”, as Australia is known, last weekend I went to the Eureka Skydeck, the Southern Hemisphere’s highest viewing tower. It was absolutely stunning looking over the city 300m in the air. An elevator transported us from the ground, to the 88^th floor of the tower within 45 seconds! My ears got blocked so I ended up shouting with my already-very-loud voice at Erica and her dad. (It probably didn’t help that I was already half deaf from going to a One Direction concert the night before. It’s fascinating how loud teenage girls can scream…) I had to yawn about ten times before my ears finally popped! The view was gorgeous: the blue river running through the city, the open green land where kangaroos lived, the mountains in the horizon, and even the tennis courts where I watched the Australian Open a few weeks ago. It’s not something I could see when I’m standing on flat ground. After getting a 360° view of Melbourne and all its landmarks, I went on the Edge. Basically it’s a glass cube that projects three meters out of the building with me standing in it. It actually wasn’t all that scary! It was fun to see miniature people and tiny little cars running around through the glass floor while I was on top of the world!

My last weekend here was full of fun (at least for me!). I had told my family a few weeks ago I wanted to see something historic in Melbourne. Yes, it seems really weird and nerdy and the Gikovskis looked at me like I was from space and not Canada. But I don’t feel like I have really gotten to know a city if I haven’t seen it’s history. This weekend, Erica’s mom, Anna, took me to the Melbourne Museum. Despite Daniel’s (Erica’s little brother) protests, we dragged him along. We saw lots of dinosaur bones, and other animal skeletons. The history part was interesting as well. It’s amazing how much Montreal and Melbourne have in common. I really enjoyed my trip to the museum!

On Sunday, we took another trip to the zoo. This time, we went to Healesville Sanctuary, a zoo featuring Australian animals. My first stop was the koalas, which were absolutely adorable! They pawed at tree branches and took their time chewing the leaves before proceeding to take a nap. Australia has many species of exotic birds (unlike the seagulls and the pigeons that poop everywhere in Montreal…). I got to see these upfront and personal at the Spirits of the Sky Show. One bird swooped so close to my ear, I thought it would clip some of it off! I also saw emus, kangaroos, platypus, dingos and many different types of venomous snakes. I heard someone say to their child, “We are really lucky to live in Australia. We have the top ten most venomous snakes in the world!” I don’t know if she was being sarcastic… My favourite animal I saw at Healesville was the Tasmanian devil. It was like a huge, chubby black mouse that jiggled when it ran. It was really cute! It became less adorable when I saw it eat its dinner: a dead wombat. Is it a coincidence I also saw wombats that were alive at the zoo a few hours before?

I can’t believe I’m leaving Australia tomorrow morning. Six weeks have zipped right by me. I’m very sad to be packing my bags, I will not only miss Melbourne, but I will sincerely miss the Gikovskis who have been truly wonderful to me. I could not have asked for a better family to stay with. From the moment I arrived, they made me feel like part of the family. They have made every experience here fun and unforgettable. I will miss Emilyan’s jokes, Anna’s laugh, Erica’s stories, and Daniel’s craziness. Daniel was the little brother I never had (my brother from another mother) and Erica was the person I could turn to and have a good laugh with.

Today, I did not say “G’day mate!” but “G’bye.” I’ll even miss the times my friends laughed at my imitation of the Australian accent. I knew the day would come where I would have to say goodbye to my friends and my family, but I did not realize it would come so soon.

Words cannot describe how I feel about Australia and the time I have spent here. I can ramble on for hours and it still would not serve the experience justice. I think this exchange has had a big impact on me. I will return home with a different perspective, as a more independent person and most importantly a lifelong friend! – Lucia Huang ’17, Exchange Student at Ivanhoe Grammar School, Australia