Submitted by Marisa Bisram on the 2017 winter session program in Australia sponsored by the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering…
The city of Melbourne has been nothing like I imagined a city would be like. Compared to New York City or Philadelphia, what surprises me the most is not only how clean the streets are, but also how quiet it can be. The architecture of the city is dominated by a broad spectrum of colors and most buildings utilize overall geometric designs that differentiate them from the cookie cutter skyscrapers that dot the New York skyline. By far, the most interesting one I’ve found is shaped like a wedge of Swiss cheese since circles are cut out sporadically around the building. The architecture even transfers over to buildings they place on the beach! At Brighton Beach, locals have put up tiny shacks along the beach border to store their water supplies. Each building is painted with a different and unique design to differentiate them from the others.
I’ve found Melbourne to be characterized not only by its growth (construction of new and expansion of old buildings are on every street), but also by how friendly the local population can be. I’ve had little difficulty adjusting to the transportation system here, but I am finding it hard to navigate because I’m so used to having constant access to my phone to find instructions. Because of this, I’ve been lost multiple times while trying to navigate the city; however, sometimes I don’t even need to ask for help! Someone would stop and offer assistance before I even gathered the courage to ask (they could probably see the confused and frustrated look on my face). Week two of Australia is almost over and I can’t wait to see how amazing the next week will be!