Ivanhoe Grammar School |

As of now, I’m half way through my exchange to Australia, and I’m also half way through my Australian spring break! I’ve learned that an Australian spring is just like a Canadian fall! The weather is fairly cold most of the time, it rains daily, but the sun still shines bright! I’ve been able to make the best of this spring, and the break has given me a perfect opportunity to explore Australia.

Last weekend, I went to a wildlife sanctuary where I saw everything from birds to kangaroos, which was great! I tried holding a snake but we were just a minute too late for the reptile show.

The first thing I did during the break was go to the Royal Melbourne Show. There, I was able to see Melbourne for the first time, and also go to the biggest show of the year! The rides were fun, and I got to eat some very different Australian food, plus there were sheep walking around for people to pet.

Yesterday, I came back from an overnight trip to Apollo Bay where I went zip-lining through a rain forest. On our way back, we drove on a beautiful road filled with wild koalas. The koalas were all hidden in trees, but the family of my exchange student were great at spotting them! I even got close enough to almost touch a koala, but he started getting angry making loud noises when I got too close. I still took great photos of mother koalas with babies, close-ups, and koalas alone in trees trying to protect themselves from the wind and rain. We also drove along a scenic coastal road which gave me a view of the mountains and the ocean.

Finally, in my last week of my spring break, I’m going camping up north of where I’ve been living. I’m also going to hopefully get a beach day when spring turns into summer.

Half way through my exchange, I’m extremely excited to see the other half of what Australia has to show for me. I’ve gotten used to the life here, and I feel like I live here, after only 3 weeks! Australia is exotic yet similar to Canada, and I love it! —Jeff Morris ’13

My first 6 days in Australia have been a completely different experience than anything I could have expected. Upon arriving here in Melbourne, Australia, after a full 24 hours of traveling, I’ve been flooded with a new lifestyle that cannot be replicated anywhere in North America, let alone Montreal!

My first night here was when I saw my first kangaroo. We were driving in the car around the countryside area of Melbourne when within 5 minutes we saw a whole group of kangaroos. There were at least 20 of them, and I was able to take some great photos, but seeing them jump around on the field was amazing.

Since the day after I arrived here, I’ve been attending Ivanhoe Grammar School‘s Plenty Campus, one of two campuses that are run by the school. Here, I’ve taken classes similar to those at LCC but the atmosphere is completely different. The school has multiple small buildings around a central courtyard where all the lockers are. It’s very different than LCC’s campus which can all be accessed indoors. The people at Ivanhoe, and also everywhere else I go, are very nice which adds to the amazing feel of Australia.

The weather has been great, but because it’s spring here, the nights are cold. Today, however, is the hottest day since last summer, reaching almost 30 degrees!

In my first six days, I already feel like I’ve experienced enough to last the next five weeks, but I know that there is much more to come. In a week, Ivanhoe takes a two week spring break and I plan on going camping with the wonderful family that I’m staying with. I’ll also explore the city of Melbourne and maybe go to the beach once or twice in those two weeks.

I’m very excited for what Australia has to offer and hope to see and experience as much as I can over the rest of my exchange period. I’d like to thank Ms. Shadley and everyone at Round Square and Ivanhoe for making this exchange happen!—Jeffrey Morris ’13

Tag Archives: Ivanhoe Grammar School

Australian Exchange – Exploring Australia During Spring Break

Kangaroos and Much More to Come