The place we went to last night was called Cheers. Since it was supposed to be fun, a lot of people decided to go. Apparently this is one of the best places to go on Tuesday nights. They run a special where when you order a drink, the bartender flips a coin. If you call it right, your drinks are free. If you’re wrong, you just have to pay. The drink prices are a little bit raised, but it is still not bad. It’s especially good when you get a lucky streak going. Today’s orientation consisted solely of us enrolling in our courses (“units” as they’re called here). We had a brief introduction, then split up into our different groups based on subjects. My registration was supposed to be at 11:30 and I had some time to kill, so some of us wandered around the Campus Center for a little. I got a sandwich in the food court for lunch. Aside from the turkey and bread, everything else cost extra. Lettuce was $0.60. If I wanted it on a roll, instead of regular white bread, it was an additional $0.60. Generally speaking regarding Australia, it seems like few things are included when you buy something, and you get nickel and dimed to death. Even in the dining hall, ketchup is $0.40 per packet. I’ve noticed this at quite a few places. It’s as if everything wasn’t already more expensive here, they have to add little extra costs here and there. After eating, we saw a girl we knew, who told us that they weren’t checking appointment times, so we just went in the building and enrolled. The course registration process here is a lot more complicated than at back home. At UM, I just pick my courses, get them approved, and sign up at my scheduled registration time. Here, you also have to get them approved, but then you need to enroll in them. After that, you go online and rank your time preferences. Then, every student’s position in line is randomized and the computer gives you your schedule. I won’t find out when my classes are until next week. It seems a little excessive to me, after being used to a simpler system. After enrollment, I came back to my dorm to relax for a little. At 4:30, there was an orientation program that would take us downtown to the Queen Victoria Market, which is supposedly open every Wednesday and is a big attraction in the city. We had to take public transportation, and it took us some time to get down there. When arrived, it was really crowded. They had food stands lining the right hand side. Everything from paella to crocodile burgers to lo mein. There were a lot of shops selling the usual market items, including hats, decorations, and t-shirts. After we left the market, we hung around downtown and tried to find a karaoke place. The one we finally found was expensive even just to get in, so we decided not to go, and took the train back to school. The city looked really beautiful at night. They light up the buildings with different colors, and there is an Eiffel Tower-looking structure that is lit up as well. As I’m writing this, it is around 1:00 am and there is some kid on my floor from Hong Kong who is vacuuming in his room and talking really loudly to someone. I’m sure some people are trying to sleep right now, and the rooms are not very soundproof. There is a space at the bottom of all the doors, so sound travels easily, and usually during the daytime, I can even hear whenever someone closes a door nearby. In this particular situation, I live down the hall from the kid and I can hear it pretty clearly. Does he not realize what time it is? I always thought he was a little odd. Anyway, tomorrow’s orientation starts a little later, so it will be nice to get the extra sleep.
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