Yesterday was quite an interesting day. We went with Danielle's roommates to go to a local beach however, after taking Chris's wrong advice as to which bus to take, we ended up at the mall or "plaza" as they call it. It was "no worries" though, we simply walked a few miles to the beach. It was a beautiful sunny day and it made for some interesting pictures. It was so much fun running into the ocean for the first time. It was not as cold as the Aussies had made it out to be and we had a quick swim. The trip was short lived however since Chris decided to make yet another great decision and do a flip off a sand hill. He ended up hitting a rock and split open both his shins. The next few hours were spent finding someone to bandage him up, taking him to the doctor, and then back to school. Danielle and her other roommates finally took him to the hospital to get him all stitched up. He was a real trooper though and in true Aussie fashion insisted it was "no worries" and kept right on with the day.

That night Alice and I decided to hang out so I showed her the movie role models. I guess the jet lag started setting in since I fell asleep about half way through but she "reckoned she liked it". This morning was an early morning, while I was supposed to wake up at 8am to go to orientation, the birds outside in the courtyard had another idea in mind. I rolled out of bed and thinking we would be getting breakfast at orientation (weird since our schedule said we would!) skipped eating and got ready. We were greeted by some entertaining speakers and given the low down on what to expect in the coming semester. I attached a video of a native man playing an instrument for us and explaining some of his culture. By the time lunch rolled around we were all starving. We waited in line for a "BBQ" which ended up being some sort of hot dog looking thing on a piece of bread. We all agreed it tasted really good but I still wonder what exactly it was we ate. Hopefully nothing too exotic.

Danielle and I decided to take a walk and were "attacked" by huge black birds that will spontaneously swoop down and scare the life out of you. Apparently it is very common and hilarious to watch until it happens to you. We gave a construction worker a good laugh though. This was the first time I had my camera on me to take pictures of kangaroos so I attached them here. They are all over the place and I expect there will be more when spring comes. It is so funny to watch them walk or run. Their legs are so powerful and they just look like they are going to topple over at any moment! We were warned during orientation however that they are wild animals and to not go near them.

Tonight I made Matt and I some pasta and we watched Step Brothers. He got a few good laughs out of it. Later I walked over to Danielle's and along with her roommates, walked over to the "pav" or pavilion. It is a small building in the center of our complex with pool tables, ping-pong, air hockey, etc. It is also where everyone goes to hang out and socialize. It is crazy how different their campus is than ours when it comes to drinking and going out. If you are over the age of 18 you are allowed to drink freely in our complex so people bring their own beverages and just talk with each other. It is very low key and relaxed. I can't begin to describe how many different countries from all around the world I've met people from! To name a few, Austria, Holland, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Canada, Germany, France, and England. Walking around orientation is fascinating to hear all the different languages and accents. It really makes me think of what it is to be an American.