The Australian Broadcasting Commission was set up by the Commonwealth Government about 75 years ago as Australia's independent public radio broadcaster. In the early years, the ABC broadcast both classical and mainstream Music, News, Rural Information, Sport, and specialist music and drama programs. Television was embraced in the 1950s with the ABC setting up facilities and transmitters countrywide. The Federal Government then re-classified the ABC as a Corporation. As technology advanced and broadcast techniques changed, the ABC further diversified into the country. The computer age arrived in the 1980s and now the Corporation operates what is possibly the largest online news and information network in Australia. Their output in Brisbane now is roughly 45% radio, 45% online and 10% television. Satellites are used to present the latest news and information from around the world.
On Tuesday May 27th, my classmates and I met in the Rainforest room of our YHA Hostel. The Rainforest room is used as our classroom, which grants us free high speed wifi... aka I really like this room. Our itinerary says we will be meeting here every day when we're in Brisbane. From lectures, editing stories to uploading blog posts, the Rainforest room is our go-to room, away from the hostel residents.
We began our day with a lecture about the Australian Aborigines, who are the native people of Australia who settled the northern region after migrating out of Africa. They are known to be the first wave of migration to Australia. Our lecture was lead by Mary Graham, a Kombu-merri, that has lectured and tutored on subjects in Aboriginal history, politics, and comparative philosophy at the University of Queensland and other educational institutions. Mary is currently working as a community development/ research consultant for the Kummara Association, an indigenous family support center in Brisbane.
Mary talked to us about how the Australian Aborigional culture, which includes a number of practices and ceremonies centered on a belief in the dreamtime. Mary said "Dreaming is not a faith-- I would never say I believe in dreaming." Reference for the land and oral traditions are emphasized, like "a kangaroo the size of a building or a wombat the size of a tank."
Genesis stories are somewhat like evolution stories. Every story is different, but one thing is always the same--"Land made us and sports helped us to find it." The Aboriginal people believe in the lateral system and all are independent. There is no God, no heaven, and no hell. After life, you go to the place where ever your ancestors went and made sacred.
Dreaming stories change with the changes in the land, such as earthquakes and volcanoes. Aborigines are great with astronomy and rock formation stories. It is said that when throwing a spear at a kangaroo, a volcano emerges where the kangaroo is hit.
The Aborigines understand climate change, and believe that looking after their place is the biggest lesson. Indigenous people can no longer predict things nor reply only on food and water to survive. They want to form their own associations between groups to find ways to prepare for changes in the environment because we cannot aim for certainty. It's important to accept that the environment will make its own changes.
Although the Aboriginal people believe climate change may be occurring, they still believe the idea of conflict is okay. Unification leads to hierarchy. It works against them too; when they want to be united, someone almost always disagrees.
Mary's lecture was a story... her story.
It was heartwarming to listen to a person who had so much passion for what was being discussed.
After her lecture, my classmates and I ventured to the Queensland Museum. The Queensland Museum is the state museum of Queensland, featuring natural history, cultural heritage, science and human achievement in throughout the state. Popular exhibitions showcase Queensland's prehistoric past, the cultures of Queensland's Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Straight Islanders and Queensland's unique biodiversity. The Museum is also a work-class research facility in the fields of biodiversity, geosciences and cultural history.
Once we were done touring the Museum, my classmates and I explored the South Bank and ate sushi. We also met a friend named Diamond.
That lyric of Fancy by Iggy Azalea has been stuck in my head all day, thanks to Charity..... Ironically, Iggy is an Australian pop artist, so that's cool.
But really, first things first, we went to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary! After eating a delicious muffin (I bought them in a pack of 2, so I am really looking forward to eating the other tomorrow morning hehe), cereal and grapes, we departed for the Koala Sanctuary at 9:30am. The kangaroos were the first thing we saw. In America, it's common to see foreign animals in cages, away from humans. When I stepped through a gate, I realized I was inside their cage! Kangroos were jumping left and right and... sitting.
Actually, a lot of kangaroos were sitting. It appeared that they knew the humans would come to them with food, so they sat still and waited for ya. Regardless, it was the most amazing thing! I was able to pet and feed the kangaroos. It made me second think if it was a good idea to eat that kangaroo steak last Friday... uh, it's the circle of life right?
That's what I have to keep telling myself. I didn't think it could get much better than playing with kangaroos until I realized we could hold a koala! Not a fake one, y'all. A real one! I was able to hold a koala. Is this real life?
I would pinch myself, but Vinny the koala was pinching me hard enough to realize that this was, in fact, real life. After I held Vinny, I went to a presentation that allowed me to learn more about Vinny and his koala family.
For example, I am able to distinguish the difference between a boy and girl koala. A boy koala can be distinguished by a brown mark on his chest. The brown mark is his scent gland which he rubs against trees to mark his territory and attract females. In addition, I found out that koalas can sleep up to 19 hours and live up to 12 to 15 years. Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary raised Sarah the koala until she was 23 years old. She made the Guinness Book of Records for being the world's longest lived koala!
In addition to seeing koalas and kangaroos, I saw dingos, kookaburras, platypuses, bearded dragons, pythons and more. The Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary was a wonderful experience, and it will definitely be hard to top off!
WOW, being alone in Brisbane before my classmates arrived went by in a snap. The five days were fun and productive, which makes me feel a lot more comfortable being here for an additional three weeks after my study abroad program, as I intern for American Universities International Programs (A.U.I.P). Although I was alone, I was alive-- living on my own in a foreign country was awesome.
Going back in time ~
On the morning of Sunday, May 18th, I went to the airport with my Mom and Dad to catch my 8:30am flight to Los Angeles. With a 14 hour layover in Los Angeles, I made the most of it. I spent it with my precious zeta friend and alumnae, Caleigh Wilson. I am so happy she was able (and willing) to spend the day with me! She truly made my layover to Australia worthwhile. We went out to lunch to a new "Texas Kitchen" restaurant called Home State on Hollywood Blvd. Caleigh has been wanting to try it, so she persuaded me by saying they have queso... If you know me, you'll know I'm also willing to get me some queso. It was great to encounter my Texas habits in Los Angeles haha. She also took me site seeing as we went around Hollywood and Venice Beach. It was beautiful! And, being there reassured me that I definitely want to move to Los Angeles post graduation.
Bye Mom and Dad!
Caleigh is my Angel in the city of Angels-- Los Angeles
The 18 hour plane ride to Brisbane would not have been the same if I wasn't sitting next to Volumes' lead singer, Gus. As I attempted to sleep the majority of the plane ride, Gus was taking shots of Whiskey. I understood he had to live up to his "tour life" expectations. He was great though! For being a scream-o, heavy metal singer, he was nice and personable!
Arriving "two days" later, it was Tuesday, May 20th. The first thing I purchased at the airport was a hairdryer, well, because I knew I needed it. The first culture shock I encountered was realizing that the steering wheel is on the right and people drive on the left side of the road..... weird! After I got settled in at the YHA Brisbane hostel (which is awesome), I had a coffee date with Eleanor Mitchell, my program advisor and soon-to-be boss for my communication and marketing internship at American Universities International Programs (A.U.I.P). She's a peach! We caught up, talked about internship expectations, and she ate a macaroon with me for my first time. So yummy! For the rest of the day, I went exploring around Brisbane with my YHA German roommate, Kerstin. After our feet were tired, we helped ourselves to happy hour at YHA's partner restaurant: Drifter's. At Drifter's, I met Melanie from Germany, Joel from Brisbane, Pierre from France and Anton from Sweden. It's a great change in pace talking to other people from all over the world! I truly enjoyed my first day. I went to bed by 10pm because 1) I was a bit jet-lagged and 2) I had to be up early for my first day of earning my scuba diving license!
Wednesday, May 21st- Thursday, May 22nd
When I said my five days were productive, I meant it. I earned my scuba diving license! My scuba diving instructor, John Gransbury, picked me up at my hostel at 8:40am to start the first day. Yes, he picked me up! I offered to take the bus, train or taxi but he insisted to pick me up on the way to the pool. It was very sweet of him. In two days, I completed 9 confined water dives, 5 in the pool and 4 in the Gold Coast. That's right. We drove an hour away from Brisbane to dive in the Gold Coast. It was awesome! Fortunately, John let me use my GoPro in the water. I'm officially scuba certified!!!
Friday, May 23rd- Saturday, May 24th
Now that I'm scuba certified, I took two days to sleep in, relax and drain the water out of my ears. I spent the day and night on Friday hanging out with my YHA hostel friends. Every Friday night, YHA hosts an Australian BBQ night featuring steak and kangaroo. Being from Texas, I know what steak tastes like, so.... I chose the kangaroo. It wasn't bad at all! It was quite flavorful, but I do prefer steak.
Saturday morning, I woke up to a surprise. Kathleen came to Brisbane early! We spent the entire day together. We went to the market, the bank, the store, everything. I enjoyed getting to know her better! We realized we have a lot in common, including our tastes in color and wine hehe.
I got a Chinese massage from that man at the market hehe
Kathleen at the market
Sunday, May 25th
ALL of my classmates are arriving today! While we waited for our classmates to arrive, Kathleen and I enjoyed the day by the pool, drinking wine and tanning. Our first meeting as a group was at 4:30pm that night. We discussed safety precautions and expectations. After the orientation, I activated my Australian phone. It's very old school, but I kinda like it.
Now that my classmates are in town, I am ready to show them the ins-and-outs to Brisbane. It has been beneficial coming a couple days before the program. It allowed to to get settled and not be nearly as jet lagged as my other classmates. I'm excited for a summer I'll never forget! Hook 'Em!
