Month 1 Completed!
Yes, i have been in Darwin for a full four weeks now! My how time flies...i still need to figure out what i will do on the mid-semester break. Seems like the perfect time to go see Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kakadu National park. I am starting to get out more just in the Darwin area but... lets move to the detailed update for that!
So Monday came again along with Evo and Biota Lab. This time we disected flowers and dicotomous keyed them out to the family level! I felt very sciencey. Aborigdinal History was very interesting. There was a presentation on the petitions of the 1970s and we watched a few film clips. There had been a quick discussion going in class and afterward i mangaged to keep people talking to me about the current state of aboriginal afairs. I was seriously appauled. Aboriginal childern ususly leave school by fifth grade and never return to the education system. Of course this means they can't get jobs anywhere but very few return to a traditional life-style so they remain uneducated and low class in the cities and towns and can do little else but apply for well-fare or work low paying menial labor jobs. the government wont force childern to remain in school because it would be complained about as a new attempt at assimilation of their childern, and it would be...but isnt having people in a vastly differnt sosiety with out the necestary tools to even get by just as cruel? I seriously belive that they can maintain their religion and lingusitic heritage as well as many other aspects of life while having their kids away for part of the day learning how western culture works. If they understand the other side, they will be better able to help themseleves... but then there is the aspect of it being something forced upon outside of their own culture, far better than forcibly removing childern permanatly from their homes to be trained as domestic servants but still not as they would be... In developed areas a fully traditional way of life isnt possible, if they are going to accept processed food and apartment complexes it seems that the best thing from the west (education) should be encouraged more. le sigh, i donno, i'm a n00b on these subjects obviously.
but that discussion turned into lunch with the bare-footed anthropology boy (named Muhammed) and his long time freidn Rodger. Muhammed promised to take me around Darwin and see Kangaroos and all that jazz. He's lived here all his life so he knows Darwin very well and loves the town. Hurray for having an insider! I love my Melbourne guys but they havent been too into the rural life-style.
Tuesday ur... hmmm....i had class, got an assingment out-lined and finished reading Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince (which wasnt as good as the last two in my opinion) and then... i went swimming in the evening. it was then that Patrick (A melbourne guy in the education program here) discovered that he could throw me a fair distance in the water and we were called imature by the other people. Hurray for legal adults have splash fights!
Wednesday was back to music class! Well after starting reseach for my paper ^_^ i am going to be comparing greviliad species from the SW NE and mountain habitats of Australia. Any who, i once again confused the instructor with my odd mix of musical knowledge. I knew a mess of instraments and their ranges but am having trouble remebering note leter names. I know all the note values and most other sybols on the staf but break into giggle fits when its my turn to clap out a rythem. i do have a great number of resons for wanting to be in the unit but my non-musicianship is obvious. =^P
Thurday was set to be quite dull.. only one class that finished at noon and a mix of assingments not due for weeks then Jil to the resque! we went into Darwin City and did the tourist thing. I bought some post-cards and a pin (i collect pins ^_^) and we played with silly trinkets and plush-toys on into the evening. So i only had a few hours to kill and i think i read through them. MMMM Stephen Jay Goulds Beatiful Life, and acount of cabreian paleontology. I think i have to be a paleontologist now. Amanda! How goes the geology course? i need at least a minor in it to got for my new life-long dream in grad school.
St. Pat's Day!! Again with the music class... I still have no idea what range i should be singing, i've got myself in with the altos but want to have that checked with someone...so i did things for a while.. problably read and ate and read again. Then...Around six i busted over to D-wing for an authentic Irish-girl cooked Indian dinner with the French Boys! Alright so some Australians made it in to but mostly i just weasled my way into the European bonding night. Great fun and great food! From there is was back off the the city, this time for the night scence. Our group was supose to meet up with Patrick's group at Shinigans (a large irish themed club/pub) but it was uber packed so we went else where. It was dull at first but around mid-night we hit the dance floor and I was out doing my bouncy thing for hours. The music wasnt great, but catchy, i have no skills but lots of energy, i had not date but a dozen other CDU kids were there so it wsa a fantasic amount of fun! I didnt get to be until four-ish all was good. I dont think i will drink here... it just has no apeal for me. A glass of wine with dinner is fine but beer is still groady and being drunk or even tipsey just doesnt seem a great way to be. haha, odd thing to decied on the most famous drinking holiday eh?
Saturday was as quite as the last night had been active. I did some reasearch and went for a run in the evening. I chatted with people for a while but was asleep before eleven... today I'm going to the grocery store, doing luandry and working on homework.
Will the excitment never end?
Your resourse Down-Under, singning off!
So Monday came again along with Evo and Biota Lab. This time we disected flowers and dicotomous keyed them out to the family level! I felt very sciencey. Aborigdinal History was very interesting. There was a presentation on the petitions of the 1970s and we watched a few film clips. There had been a quick discussion going in class and afterward i mangaged to keep people talking to me about the current state of aboriginal afairs. I was seriously appauled. Aboriginal childern ususly leave school by fifth grade and never return to the education system. Of course this means they can't get jobs anywhere but very few return to a traditional life-style so they remain uneducated and low class in the cities and towns and can do little else but apply for well-fare or work low paying menial labor jobs. the government wont force childern to remain in school because it would be complained about as a new attempt at assimilation of their childern, and it would be...but isnt having people in a vastly differnt sosiety with out the necestary tools to even get by just as cruel? I seriously belive that they can maintain their religion and lingusitic heritage as well as many other aspects of life while having their kids away for part of the day learning how western culture works. If they understand the other side, they will be better able to help themseleves... but then there is the aspect of it being something forced upon outside of their own culture, far better than forcibly removing childern permanatly from their homes to be trained as domestic servants but still not as they would be... In developed areas a fully traditional way of life isnt possible, if they are going to accept processed food and apartment complexes it seems that the best thing from the west (education) should be encouraged more. le sigh, i donno, i'm a n00b on these subjects obviously.
but that discussion turned into lunch with the bare-footed anthropology boy (named Muhammed) and his long time freidn Rodger. Muhammed promised to take me around Darwin and see Kangaroos and all that jazz. He's lived here all his life so he knows Darwin very well and loves the town. Hurray for having an insider! I love my Melbourne guys but they havent been too into the rural life-style.
Tuesday ur... hmmm....i had class, got an assingment out-lined and finished reading Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince (which wasnt as good as the last two in my opinion) and then... i went swimming in the evening. it was then that Patrick (A melbourne guy in the education program here) discovered that he could throw me a fair distance in the water and we were called imature by the other people. Hurray for legal adults have splash fights!
Wednesday was back to music class! Well after starting reseach for my paper ^_^ i am going to be comparing greviliad species from the SW NE and mountain habitats of Australia. Any who, i once again confused the instructor with my odd mix of musical knowledge. I knew a mess of instraments and their ranges but am having trouble remebering note leter names. I know all the note values and most other sybols on the staf but break into giggle fits when its my turn to clap out a rythem. i do have a great number of resons for wanting to be in the unit but my non-musicianship is obvious. =^P
Thurday was set to be quite dull.. only one class that finished at noon and a mix of assingments not due for weeks then Jil to the resque! we went into Darwin City and did the tourist thing. I bought some post-cards and a pin (i collect pins ^_^) and we played with silly trinkets and plush-toys on into the evening. So i only had a few hours to kill and i think i read through them. MMMM Stephen Jay Goulds Beatiful Life, and acount of cabreian paleontology. I think i have to be a paleontologist now. Amanda! How goes the geology course? i need at least a minor in it to got for my new life-long dream in grad school.
St. Pat's Day!! Again with the music class... I still have no idea what range i should be singing, i've got myself in with the altos but want to have that checked with someone...so i did things for a while.. problably read and ate and read again. Then...Around six i busted over to D-wing for an authentic Irish-girl cooked Indian dinner with the French Boys! Alright so some Australians made it in to but mostly i just weasled my way into the European bonding night. Great fun and great food! From there is was back off the the city, this time for the night scence. Our group was supose to meet up with Patrick's group at Shinigans (a large irish themed club/pub) but it was uber packed so we went else where. It was dull at first but around mid-night we hit the dance floor and I was out doing my bouncy thing for hours. The music wasnt great, but catchy, i have no skills but lots of energy, i had not date but a dozen other CDU kids were there so it wsa a fantasic amount of fun! I didnt get to be until four-ish all was good. I dont think i will drink here... it just has no apeal for me. A glass of wine with dinner is fine but beer is still groady and being drunk or even tipsey just doesnt seem a great way to be. haha, odd thing to decied on the most famous drinking holiday eh?
Saturday was as quite as the last night had been active. I did some reasearch and went for a run in the evening. I chatted with people for a while but was asleep before eleven... today I'm going to the grocery store, doing luandry and working on homework.
Will the excitment never end?
Your resourse Down-Under, singning off!