Submitted by Rebecca Runkle on the 2014 winter session program in Australia sponsored by the College of Engineering…
It’s great to enjoy an Australian summer instead of a winter in Connecticut. The weather started off mild in the 60s and is quickly climbing to the 100s. Melbourne is a great city to study abroad in. The public transportation is the main perk. It definitely made sense to study transportation class here. I’ve never ridden trams, trains, and buses daily, so it was a new experience reading the routes and finding my way around, but I soon felt comfortable with it. One of our first assignments was to go to a specified destination with two other students and record how we got there, our wait time, etc. I ended up taking an unnecessary 45 minute tram ride, but I’ve learned quickly since then. During this excursion, I also enjoyed a tour of Parliament. It was interesting to see their government with an upper and lower house, and a premier as the executive head of Parliament. It is very much like our state governments, but more ceremonial. There is for instance, a gold or black staff (one for each house) that must be brought in and placed on the table before any work can be started, and they seem to take it very seriously. I also learned about the Melbourne gold rush, which catapulted Melbourne to the top ten richest cities at the time and paid for the luxurious Parliament.They had some amusing traditions such naming the giant gold nuggets that were found. Outside Parliament, I spoke with a protestor and ended up talking to him for an hour about his hunger strike. It seems every country has similar problems such as too much bureaucracy or mistreatment of certain citizens. I have also been enjoying the dining throughout Melbourne. Surprisingly enough, they have excellent Asian and Italian food, with gelati easily found. The city has endless places to eat, and there is an excellent market that really gets crowded on Wednesdays. It has fare from many countries, but also rooburgers and crocburgers along with plenty of shops.