Obviously, a lot has changed since I’ve been in Canberra. I wanted to give an update about life here and how my semester has been. I guess the first thing to start with is assessments and grading. Nearly all of my assignments were writing, but that’s mainly because of the classes I’m taking. the assignments I received usually asked me broad questions to answer and to form my argument from there. In the US, I usually received a question with topics to answer. MY final exams were also pretty easy. I didn’t feel the need to study because I did all of the readings. I felt pretty good about my exams. In terms of grades, the Australian scale is a little different. They have high distinction (A+), Distinction (A), Credit (B), Pass (C), and Fail. If someone receives a 64 on a paper or a test, it is not a bad grade; it is actually comparable to a B. The grading here has a lot of the same difficulty at Wesleyan.
While in Australia, I also tried to engage in sports here. American sports are well known but not extremely popular. Football has a cult following here but the most popular American sport here is Basketball. Australians are also a fan of cricket but the most popular sports here are Australian Football (AFL or Footy) and rugby. Australian football, more commonly known as Footy, is the country’s most popular sport. It is especially popular in Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia. However, it is still very popular in New South Wales and Queensland as well. Despite seeing it on tv many times and even in person in Canberra, I can’t tell you anything about the rules. I kind of get the hang of it when watching it but I could not explain it. I can say, however, that it involves a mixture of tackling other players and kicking the football-shaped ball. There is also a whole lot of running involved, over 16 miles a game. The game has four 20-minute quarters, not including stops and extra time (usually, it ends up being 30 minute quarters) and the goal is for each team to get the ball through the other team’s goalposts. The game I went to was actually pretty exciting and the Aussies had some good bants. It is also a tradition to get a meat pie and beer at a footy match- which I did.
Rugby is an extremely popular sport, especially in New South Wales and Queensland. as far as I can tell, there are three different types of rugby: League, Union, and Sevens. League is the most popular type and is associated with the working man. I think there are fewer rules in this one. Union is less popular and is associated with the upper class. I think there are more rules and fewer big hits as well. I went to a professional rugby game which ended up being a union game. It was pretty fun, but everyone kept telling me that league was better. When I went, Canberra was playing a Sout African team. I believe union is more popular internationally and they, therefore, play international teams. Then, there is sevens, which involves more running and only seven players. These games are extremely short and last only fourteen minutes. this was the type that I played.
I’d be damned if I showed up to Australia and not play rugby. Luckily, ANU had an interhall rugby team that met to practice once a week and then had a tournament one weekend. So for a few weeks after the mid-semester break, I met with the B&G team once a week to learn how to play rugby. I never actually learned to be honest, there were just too many rules and not enough time. SO when it came time for the games, which was the weekend returning from Cairns (I got a ride straight from the airport to the field. Keep in mind that this was also the night I had to walk two hours to the airport at 3 am). I ran around the field, not sure of what to do. I made sure to hit plenty of people though and I got some major hits. As good as it was, it still wasn’t as good as football. I also understood why you didn’t wear pads in rugby- you didn’t really need them. In football, you hit people every single play, and with high velocity and force, in rugby, you hit people less often with less intensity. Don’t get me wrong, rugby is still a dangerous game and one can easily get hurt. Thank god all I got was a black eye and a stiff neck, but a lot of my teammates got injured. This also explains why our team sucked; everyone who had played before and knew what they were doing got hurt; we also really struggled with numbers from the beginning. One of our players even had a seizure and had to be rushed to the hospital (he ended up being fine) during the game. But I’m glad I tried it. Also, completely unrelated but hockey does exist here, but since there is no ice everyone plays field hockey instead. Swimming and surfing are also very popular here for very obvious reasons.
Since my Oceans to Outback trip, the weather in Canberra has also gotten cold. Little known fact, but Canberra is actually the coldest region in Australia. It is considered winter after April 35 and the temperature usually hangs around 50-60 degrees during the day, but reaches freezing, if not below, at night. Canberran nights are exceptionally cold. Little did I think that Australia could get cold, but at least now I know better.
Another thing I want to mention is the community here at B&G (my hall). Almost all of my friends here are Australian because of my housing situation. In turn, I have really been accepted into the B&G community. I’m friendly and get along with everybody and have been told numerous times how I can stay with whoever is offering if I visit their hometown. This community is by far, 100 times better than the one at Wes, and that is what I am going to miss greatly. The community here also just has so much more fun events than at Wes. There was an interhall battle of the bands tournament, everyone from B&G was there and partied together. I joined my hall rugby team and got along great and went to games together. We also had a formal event at a fancy venue, it was a great night. On top of that, the best time to hang out together was every day during lunch or dinner. If there was only one thing that I could change about Wes, it would be that the campus community would be like B&G.
While I’ve been here in Australia, almost every Australian that I’ve met wants to know about Donald Trump. Literally almost everyone. Australia likes to follow American politics like it is a TV show. I don’t blame them either, because, from Australia, you just feel so detached from what’s happening in the U.S- so all the politics and events that happen are just entertaining. Most news stories that have occurred since I’ve been here just feel like you’re watching a show. Mainly it’s because what is going on on the other side of the world doesn’t really affect your current situation. Nevertheless, 97% of Aussies I have met do not like Donald Trump. While there might be more that never mentioned it, I have only met 3 people here who have supported him; and one supported the policies more than him. I’m sure there are more supporters out there but none that I’ve encountered. There is a far-right party in Australia called “One Nation” but it is a fringe party and typically viewed negatively among the populous. The two main parties are the Liberal and the Labor parties. Both parties are centrist but liberal is center-right and labor is center-left. Then, more left is the Green Party. I think the labor party has gained popularity recently. In March, there was an election in WA (a primarily liberal dominant state) and the labor party won decisively throughout the state. But I don’t know much about Australian politics because I haven’t heard much. I can tell you that the most partisan issue is over gay marriage and the most bipartisan consensus is on aboriginal rights.
Let’s re-visit food real quick. At B&G, you have to cook your own food. I have developed an obsession with Tim Tams, eating half a pack to a pack a day. I have also acquired a taste for kangaroo meat. It’s red meat but extremely lean and very healthy for you. Besides the chicken, it is the most common meat that I eat. It has a gamey taste to it and is very delectable. I’m also going to miss Halal Snack Packs. You get them at Kebab places and they are insanely good. HSPs are just fries layered with lamb, chicken, or both and then covered with multiple sauces (I always get sour cream, sweet chili, and BBQ). I have also frequented a café place in Canberra. There, they sell unbelievably well crafted and large milkshakes called Freakshakes. They’re unbelievably good, except for the Cheshire Cat. The King, Michael Jackson, and Mint Condition are the best.
I also took a few trips in Canberra. One of them was getting a tattoo. In Canberra, there was only one tattoo parlor in the city area, but it is an extremely professional place. The tattoo I got was a small one but still cost me $150. It also only took 10 minutes to do, much to my surprise. I was fine with the cost though, because I would rather pay more for a tattoo that I know was sanitary and extremely well done than a cheap one from a sketchy place.
I also visited the Kingston Markets. These were huge markets on the other side of Lake Burley Griffin. They occur every Sunday, so one time I went with a couple of my Italian friends. There, the market was divided between food stalls and merchandise stalls. The weekend we went just so happened to be a wool weekend event at the markets, so almost every merchandise stall there was selling yarn or wool products. I got a nice pair of wool socks and also a pair of ugg-like slippers. Because Australia has so many sheep, their wool products are such high quality. we stayed at the market for only a few hours.
The other place I visited was the Australian War Memorial. This is one of Canberra’s biggest attractions. It is a large museum dedicated to all of Australia’s wars, but most notably the two world wars. I only went through the WW1 exhibit just because it was so massive. I don’t really know what the other exhibits were like but the WW1 one was really good. It was full of dioramas of battles and plenty of artifacts. As I’ve mentioned before the Gallipoli campaign and the Great War really made an impact on Australians. I spent about three hours in that one exhibit.
Many people have said how much they don’t like Canberra because it is too boring. Granted, the nightlife isn’t the best, and it wouldn’t be the first place I would choose to live in if I came back to Australia, but it is still an extremely livable city. The city center is filled with a plethora of restaurants and shops as well as a huge mall. But Canberra is a good city and served me perfectly during my time here.