First Day of School!

Today was GREAT!  It was my first day of classes… finallyJ.  I had a nice leisurely morning, as my first class wasn’t until 11am.  I sat next to a couple of my exchange student friends and enjoyed my first tutorial.  The class set-up here is a bit different than in the States.  I am taking four classes.  Each class has a one-hour lecture once a week and a one-hour tutorial once a week.  So, for all of you keeping track at home… that’s eight hours of class time.  I’m really excited!... much less than I’m used to, which also means much more time to travelJ.  I started with my Sex and Gender in History tutorial.  There were about 15 of us in the class (4 from North AmericaJ).  There was a nice mix of people so it should make for some great discussions.  The professor seems great as well – I’m excited to get to know her.  I had a two-hour break mid day so I took the opportunity to hit the gym, sign up for a couple clubs and eat lunch.  I walked past one club’s booth and they had music on… it was Kesha… and they were the Malaysian Students’ Society.  I laughedJ.  After that I headed off to my Middle East Politics lecture.  I’m SO excited for this class.  The “syllabus” day was interesting so I can’t even imagine what the rest of the course will holdJ.  The lecturer was very personable and even though we were in a large lecture theater, she kept my attention the entire time.  She talked about an opportunity we have during the first couple weeks of May to participate in a Middle East simulation.  We become a real-life character (one option was Obama) and respond to simulated incidents and events in the Middle East.  It sounds incredibly stressful and consuming, but also invaluable and SO fun!  I’m excited.  After that lecture, I went to my Sex and Gender in History lecture.  This one was slightly drier, but I still think the class will be okay.  The lecturer wore her sunglasses on her head while she spoke… AustraliaJ.  Also, in general, it’s so fun listening to the speakers because of their accents.  For all the Friends fans out there… I feel like I’m on the episode where Ross begins to teach his University class and employs a fake British accent.  Monica and Rachel prank call him from “Fake Accent University”.  I’m at “Real Accent University”… it’s pretty greatJ.  Overall, it was a very good start to the semester.  I’m going to look through some of my required reading tonight and get a start on the work.  The only disadvantage of a much shorter term is that the time given to complete assignments is much less.  No worries, though, I’ve got this!  I’m still enjoying the incredible heat and sunshine that Melbourne has blessed us with again today.  Life is good.