I have finally arrived to Melbourne, Australia after 9 long hours of flight to Sydney next to an old lady which I did not talk to the whole flight. Once I got to Sydney, I had to quickly collect my two massive suitcases and rushed to Quantas's connecting flight counter. The Quantas lady told me that I could take an earlier flight, so I said okay. But then I realized that I had requested an airport pickup from the School at 1pm and if I take an earlier flight, I would land 2 hours earlier.

Once i got to Melbourne Airport, I really did not know what to do! only to wait for my luggages at the carousel. and WHY is Melbourne Airport like America's?? They charge you $4 for one trolley! Unfortunately, I only had $50Aus and none of the stores or services could give me change! I felt really helpless, cause I did not see anyone at the airport who are supposed to pick me up and I am left with two luggages that I could not possibly handle by myself. oh yeah, I had no phone either. the pay phones would not accept my $50Aus! :(

then i spotted an asian boy talking to an Australian lady. he seemed like a student, so I walked over and luckily, the lady is the pick up person! phew!! but i was STILL without trolley!!! eek. that asian boy was kind enough to give me $4 for a trolley, he turns out to be from HK too. haha. we waited for some more kids and then we were dropped off at RMIT village.

Right when I stepped out of the van, i heard "CINDYYYY!!!!" phew. it was joyce and kruti!!! it was a pure coincidence that they saw me, but i'm glad that they did! otherwise i would have to carry my luggages all by myself again!!!

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so far. [basics]

i've explored Melbourne pretty good. i know my way around - sorta. i live 5 mins walking distance from the school. 10 mins from a open-air market which sells vegetables, fruits, and others. about 20 mins from the city area. there are trams, bus, and trains.

the weather was terrible on the first day! rainy and cloudy! but since then, it has been chilly in the morning, sunny in the afternoon, and then chilly at night. i can really get used to this weather.

i share a room with another girl, she's australian, first year at RMIT University, studying architecture. she sleeps VERY early like 10pm. yeah, that means i have to be very quiet at night. :(

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so far [things i did]

walked around the "downtown" of Melbourne. (apparently, australians dont say down town...so now i dont even know how to describe "going to town") Melbourne is very diverse, but at the same time i hear way too much cantonese on the street...it reminds me of Hong Kong. wandered into Chinatown, and some parts look JUST LIKE HK!

went to the Melbourne Zoo. disappointed that i didnt see any female kangaroos! the males dont have pouches! :( but i finally got to see what wombats look like!! yeah.

orientation. there are actually A LOT of students from America. i met several rutgers kids that i have NEVER seen in my life. the system at Uni is VERY CONFUSING! i've never been so lost about registering for classes! first, i had to learn all the new terms that they use. Faculty = major, Subjects = classes. So i am in faculty of environment! the website online does not make things easier, in fact, their websites are not very user-friendly to me!! there are so many links! Melbourne Uni doesnt have the times all set up months ahead, but TWO weeks before school start! Each subjects are divided into Lectures, Classes, Tutorials, or Studios. Most subjects have Lectures and Tutorials. Lectures is just professors talking and tutorials are the equivalent to recitations (discussion based). anyways, just registering for classes was one big hassle! in fact, the first week of school...everyone ONLY attends the lectures. i didnt even know that!

the campus itself is small, i can navigate myself without a map! ;) my classes will mostly be in several buildings! so no worries. (instead of you're welcome, aussies say 'no worries') Since this is a Uni in the city, there is barely any grass patches! O, and each faculty has its own student center!

i've made several freshmen friends, because ultimately orientation is for freshmen. but i'm sad that i wont actually get to take classes with them! so i will see them less when classes start!

like i said before, melbourne is really diverse! almost everyone is either from another country or have been to MANY MANY countries. that is really eye-opening, because back at home....most people don't travel outside of the US.

church. last saturday, mike sent us a website of all the churches in Victoria, Australia and we found a church called Chinese Christian Church of Victoria. it's an asian church with an english congregation. we checked out their website, but it was last updated in May 2007! so we were iffy about this, but we called the contact person anyways. a guy picked up and gave us the information for church! he was nice and offered to pick us up from the train station. next morning, we were late!! eek. but eric (the contact person) waited for us at the train station. it turns out he was actually on the worship team and he was SORTA in a rush! eek.

but overall, the church is very much like CCCS. (even the name is JUST like it) the english congregation consists of about 50-60 people. half of them is youth which sit on the LEFT side of the service and older people (mostly young professionals) sit on the right side. the worship team is all young people like my age too! lol. this couldn't get any more similar. free lunch for new comers! it was good, but the young professionals usually go out to eat for lunch. they asked us if we wanted to go...and someone mentioned, 'let's go to asian gourmet!" me and joyce bursted out in laughter! dont we always go to noodle gourmet after church? lol.

we ended up going to a different restaurant, but the people who there were very nice and friendly. they are all slightly older and they all work but they were willing to show us around. we went to their small group meeting last night. this small group meeting was actually going to the Night Market at Victoria Market! Here is where Eric insisted that i should try kangaroo burgers! i only managed to take a bite of his burger! but night market was very crowded! lots of people. lots of little business that sell little things and little food stands that serve all kinds of food! you name a country...they probably have that cuisine!!

this has been a very messy update. its very not like me, cuz i like everything in order! but this will do for now!

pictures update -> go to my facebook. thanks.

Six Days

six days until i depart this continent for six months. a messy mix of emotions comes into my head, hence, my lukewarm reply to everyone who asks me, "ARE YOU EXCITED?" truthfully, i don't feel ready to leave this comfortable place - home. this past year or so, new jersey has grown on me - new jersey is not just a place where i happen to live nor a crappy state. new jersey is my home where countless warm and fuzzy memories are stored, lots of friendships established, where my identity is found. i suppose my studio project helped, too. =P yeah, so....leaving home - a large part of me screams out, "what was i thinking when? AHH!" another small part of me says, "yay, i can go finally go out and prove to myself that i can survive on my own."

i know from past experiences that i don't do well with changes and leaving what's dear to me. i might seem really carefree and happy 24/7, but deep down inside i worry way too much. i worry about meeting my new roommate, getting around, finding myself in australia, finding a fellowship, finding the right group of friends, etc... my biggest fear is that it will be just like last time - homesick. being homesick sucks. i really really really want to be able to adjust quickly and make new and happy memories in australia. well, who knows? maybe this is my second chance from God. perhaps God is REALLY telling me that I need to get out of my comfort zone and live boldly for Him. there is no going-back home every weekend this time. well, if that is the case, then i want to do it WELL for HIM.