For background on this series of blogs, see this intro post.
Commentary
Even if I don’t have a significant other, Valentine’s Day is a special day, as that is the day I arrived in Melbourne, which would be my home for the 4 months of my study abroad program.
Little did I know when I met Nadia on this day that she would play a big part in making the experience as good as it was. She was the person I became closest to while staying in the dorms, and she did a good job of pushing my shy, introverted self to get involved in activities I probably otherwise wouldn’t have.
And then there was the laundry. Between machines being broken down, not drying well, or already being in use, laundry was often times a little bit of a fiasco. It definitely made me appreciate having my own laundry back home.
The Journal Entry
I got up this morning at 7 and got a shower and all and then packed. I barely got everything to fit back in my suitcases. I got some breakfast at the hostel, and then Elizabeth and I checked out. We took the train back to the airport. Our flight from Sydney to Melbourne was really quick. That was nice. When we were loading the bus to come to Monash, the driver looked at Elizabeth and I and said, “You’re not an Asian.” There had been about 10 Asian students to hand their bags to him before us. It was really funny. It was about a 30-40 minute ride from the airport to Monash. It took a while to check in. The office was way busy. I felt sorry for the lady in there. After we got checked in, I came to my room and started getting moved in. The building seems pretty old, but oh well. After a little while I went to Elizabeth’s room. She is in Deakin Hall 333, and I am in 121. We went and ate dinner at the cafeteria a little after 6. I came back and got laundry going and then finished getting my room decorated. When I switched my clothes over to the dryer, I had a heck of a time figuring out how to get them to work. I have visited with the female RA on our floor quite a bit tonight. She’s really nice. She invited me to go play Wii with a couple guys. I did that for a little while and then came back to my room. One load of my laundry was finished, but the other one isn’t. It is taking forever for them to dry. Also, if you don’t open the window to the laundry room while the dryers are going, it becomes a sauna in there. I found that out on my own. Haha. Also, they don’t do the floors here as 1, 2, 3, 4, etc., but as G, 1, 2, 3, etc. So, I’m room 121, but on the second floor. Um, I’m sure I’m forgetting a ton of other stuff that I should be writing down. Just now Nadia (our floor RA) and Jess (another girl on our floor) took me and another guy in my hall on a quick tour of Deakin Hall. That was cool. My laundry finally finished. Um, I think that’s it for now. I’m gonna head to bed.
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