Kangaroo meatballs

After less than a week at UQ, I am getting good at two things: reading a map, and walking. At home when I need to get somewhere, I plug it into the GPS and half the time I still manage to get lost. However, as I make my way around campus and the city here in Brisbane, all I have to rely on is a map and my horrible sense of direction. I am proud to say, though, that I have made it to multiple destinations in the past few days using only these tools, so I should be a pro by the time I come home. Then there’s the walking. Although the public transportation here is great (we have bus and ferry stops on campus, and there’s apparently a train station in the city), it costs money, which is a precious commodity here in the ridiculously expensive land down under. So, if the trip is under two or three miles, I’ve been walking. Plus the campus is huge, so that adds to the on-foot mileage. I can’t complain though, since it’s been bright and sunny every day except the early part of today, so walking is just another excuse to be outside.

This weekend was the first full one in Australia. On Saturday a group of us took the ferry to South Bank, an artsy area of the city with lots of eateries and museums. There was a French festival going on so it was totally packed, but we found some respite in the gorgeous man made lagoon in the middle of the city. The water and sand were both chilly, but I can tell I will be back to lounge and read a book under the palm trees. We also took a walk to the botanic gardens; for such a big city (the third largest in Australia), Brisbane has so much beautiful foliage. I’m excited to go back into the city and walk around – the streets are completely lined in what looks like great shopping and yummy restaurants.

Yesterday I woke up and walked to Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas. The church is about a mile from campus and the streets are pretty hilly, so it was a good energizer to start off the day. One thing I love about Catholic Mass is that it’s basically the same everywhere, so it was comforting to experience a little piece of home all the way here in Aussieland. The rest of the day was spent relaxing, and eating Thai food for dinner. Asian food is apparently the Australians’ jam, as there are Thai, Japanese, Malaysian, and Indian restaurants on just about every corner.

Today was the first day I really slept in since being here, but interestingly also very productive. I got a lot of business-y things done: got my student ID card, opened an Australian bank account, and got a go-card for the bus and ferry…I’m starting to feel like a real Aussie! Tonight IFSA-Butler (the program through which I’m studying abroad) took us to Mt. Coot-tha, where there is a lookout with incredible views of Brisbane. Since it was nighttime, countless lights blanketed the view beneath us and it was pretty breath-taking. We ate dinner there, which is where the title of this post comes in: tonight, I sampled kangaroo meatballs. They tasted pretty much the same as regular meatballs, but I think the appeal lies in being able to say I’ve eaten kangaroo. After dinner we took a ferry ride down the river and were treated to more views of the city by night.

While I’ve been learning countless things in the days I’ve spent here so far (you’ll get laughed at if you call jam jelly, if you’re offered lemonade you’re going to get something like Sprite, and nocturnal creatures are not afraid to come way too close to you as you walk by their trees), I’m a huge nerd and can’t wait for classes to start next week. It could be because my (hopefully finalized!) schedule is thebomb.com: Australian popular culture on Tuesdays; Australian Literature: Traditions & Revisions on Wednesdays; Media, Music, Film & Spirit: Popular Culture and Religion, as well as American Literature & Culture, on Thursdays; and Mondays and Fridays off. Yeah, four day weekends, every weekend. Better start booking those plane tickets now!

Heaps of Aussie love to you all!