Category: Australia

Submitted by John Lodise on the 2013 winter session study abroad program in New Zealand sponsored by the Department of Marine Science and Policy…

January 25th

We woke for brekkie and then headed onto the coach to go to the museum of Te Papa near the wharf in Wellington. The Te Papa museum is home to many different aspects of New Zealand culture. We got to learn even more about the history of the Maori and how they lived as well as a lot of the marine life we saw in the field. We also got to see a lot of exhibits that held many animals we didn’t see in the wild. The museum had a real giant squid that was caught by a fisherman and eventually put under glass in the deep sea exhibit. The museum itself was comparable to a museum of natural history in New Zealand. After we had seen everything there was to see in the museum, the day was ours to explore the city again. We walked straight down to the harbor and found a spot where there was a large gap in the dock that surrounded the water. Leading up to the water’s edge was a 2 flight staircase leading to a platform that people were jumping off into the water about 30 feet below. It immediately became part of my “to do” list for our stay in Wellington. By the time we wandered back to our accommodation it was dinner time and we gathered again in the dining hall for food that oddly resembled the same food served at the dining hall at Delaware.

January 26th

We started with a day trip to Kau Bay, which is part of the Wellington Harbor, to do some more fieldwork. A guest speaker from the University of Victoria also came out with us to give us some direction in taking quantitative samples of organisms. We used 50cm by 50cm grids to take approximations of the population density of species. We started at the high tide mark and took readings all the way down to the water’s edge at low tide in order to get an idea of which species inhabit which areas of the intertidal zone. In doing so, we explored species like snails, anemones, mussels, crabs, small fish, Neptune’s necklaces (green algae), and even a jellyfish or two that washed up. It was a very interesting day in the field and gave us a great look at what professionals in our field do as a part of their career. After our work was done, we still had some time to kill at the rocky beach, so I strapped on some snorkel gear and headed out into the water to explore more. Giant peaces of kelp grew up from the bottom all the way to the surface. The kelp, although really awesome to swim through, gave a spooky feel to being underwater. I was spooked several times when kelp leaves would skim my side or legs. While swimming around, I saw a few bigger fish, a couple of  sea urchins and even brought back a paua, or abalone, shell. As always, another interesting day in the intertidal zones of New Zealand.

January 27th

On our last day in Wellington, the itinerary called for a free day. A small group of us hit the road early, walking for almost an hour to the Wellington Zoo. After stopping to ask directions once, we arrived at the zoo and took a breather from the heat at a cafe in the zoo. We spent the day walking around the zoo seeing monkeys, tigers, bears, wild dogs, penguins, otters, and of course kiwis, which are the national bird of New Zealand. We spent a couple of  hours in the zoo learning about species in New Zealand and in other parts of  the world then we headed back into the main part of the city.

Once we got back to the city, we ate a quick lunch of lamb burgers at McDonald’s and headed down to the wharf with our bathing suits. Our first stop was the staircase the locals were jumping off of a few days before. When we got there, there were plenty of kiwis enjoying themselves on the jump. I got in line to go and the locals immediately pushed me to the front of the line to see me jump. I walked to the edge, hesitated for a second and then took the final step off the edge. While I was in the air I had time to think to myself, “I should of hit the water by now.” A few more jumps and then I was ready to relax on the beach for a while, so a few others and myself headed to the public sand beach on the harbor to go for a swim. We ended our day with a meal at the University.

January 28th

Our trip to the south island of New Zealand started with our bus driver, Stew, joking about the south island having its own currency on our way to the ferry in the Wellington wharf. The coach bus drove onto the ferry, which was more like a cruise ship, and then we  left the coach to get comfortable on the 8th deck. While waiting to leave port, we watched the sunrise and spotted a few schools of fish and a penguin or two. We pulled away from the dock and away we were. On the way out, we spotted a pod of dolphin in the distance, and even though they made a B-line for the ship, we were too fast for them to keep up with. After the dolphins, came the fog. A thick cloud fell down from the sky and not only ruined any view we would’ve had at sea, but also brought the temperature outside to a very unpleasant temperature. I headed downstairs for a snack and a nap and when I woke up the fog had lifted and we were meandering through the islands in the gigantic harbor of the south island. I got distracted talking to a man from the states about aquaculture, which immediately got my attention because we were heading to a mussel farm after we got off the ferry. Two other students and I got lost in the conversation and missed our call to go downstairs and re-board the coach. A few misdirections later, we finally were greeted on the coach with “humorous” comments from the rest of the group about us being late .

We left the ferry and drove to a harbor called Havelock, where our mussel cruise was awaiting us. We hopped on board after a  quick lunch and sailed out to the mussel grounds. We pulled up to huge lines of buoys and ropes and got a first hand lesson about the aquaculture of mussel farming and then got to taste some green lipped mussels. Everyone on the trip enjoyed this luxurious experience.

January 29th

Kaikoura was one of my favorite stops of the trip. We had the opportunity to experience a New Zealand wale watching trip, which did not disappoint. We boarded the boat and sat in the cabin while the crew explained what we would see and why these whales and dolphin were in the area. The first thing we saw was a giant sperm whale, which feed on giant squid in the Kaikoura Canyon which is the deepest section of ocean that close to a continental shelf. The crew knew exactly what the whale was doing and informed us to get our cameras ready right before the whale was about to dive and show us his tail. The next whale we saw did the same set of actions. After our encounter with a couple of sperm whales we headed out to see a large pod of dusky dolphins. We passed a couple as we drove, but as we pointed them out the crew just shook their heads. They were looking for something more. We finally pulled up to a pod of over 100 dolphin jumping and playing in the swell. The boat was surrounded by dolphins and everybody got amazing views of these animals enjoying themselves in the wild. No one wanted to leave, but the crew had a schedule to keep to and we headed back in to the dock.

January 30th

The night before my girlfriend and I decided that we would head out the next morning before the class was getting together to do more field work and go out with a company that specializes in swimming with seals. We boarded a tiny yellow boat and went out to the seal colonies. On our way, we had another encounter with the dusky dolphins. After watching them swim under the boat, even closer to them then the day before, we spotted some seals playing in the water not far from shore and the guide headed in to get a closer look. He decided this was a good spot to start our swim and we strapped on our wetsuits and snorkel gear and jumped in the water. Swimming with these animals was one of the best experiences of my life. They were super interactive and were even coming in off the rocks to come swim with us. We were encouraged to imitate seal behavior while we were in the water and as we did, the seals reacted with even more playful activity. This was a highlight of my trip because of the hilarious images of us trying to look like seals, which we ungracefully achieved. The seals, however, didn’t mind our goofiness and were more then happy to swim next to, around, and even straight into us. Not only were the seals amazing, but snorkeling through the kelp forest that was riddled with exotic fish was also a terrific experience on its own. Kaikoura was an ideal place to stop for marine lovers like myself and an awesome place for our trip to come to an end.

Submitted by John Lodise on the 2013 winter session study abroad program in New Zealand sponsored by the Department of Marine Science and Policy…

January 19th

Seven of us woke up and packed lunch and a bag of clothes and were ready to go by 7AM. We chartered a boat out of the Raglan Harbor and our Captain, Crag, was waiting for us outside with a tractor that was towing a 30 foot fishing vessel. This wasn’t what we were expecting, but we hopped on the back of the boat and he towed us down to the boat ramp and slowly lowered us into the harbor. Our friend Danielle, who had limited boat experience, was put in charge of backing the boat up as Crag went to park the tractor. The seven of us were amazed that he trusted us enough to bring the boat up to the dock for him to re-board his vessel. Incredibly it went smoothly, and we all felt more comfortable with Crag behind the steering wheel, until we reached the bar. As we moved out into the inlet, we could see the sandbar that spanned the entire length of the beach which  had 10 foot (or bigger) waves crashing onto it. It was when we started to go over these swells, that I began to worry. I grew up fishing with my Dad off the coast of Long Island, but never had I experienced anything like this before. The boat would drive up the face of the waves as Crag leaned on the throttle, then crash down throwing spaying higher then the boat as it went over the crest. Our first attempt to make it past the breakers didn’t go as planned and Crag turned around just before two of the biggest waves came through the section. We turned around for another try, but this time instead of going straight through the bar, Crag tried weaving up and down the beach between the bigger sets, which worked for a while. As three 10 foot waves came crashing over the bar, we had no other choice but to go for it. The first two waves sent more spray then any before them and the third impressed us even more. As the last wave crashed on the bow of the vessel, we all grabbed onto the railing and each other as the boat crashed down onto the wave and threw water over every inch on the boat as well as filling the fishing deck with 2 feet of water from the side panels of the boat. One girl on the trip fell to her knees as a result of the wave bucking the ship up and down and stood up to find herself swollen and bleeding from both legs. We all knew it was pretty serious at this point and started to second guess if we had made the right decision to go fishing, especially when she almost passed out while I was trying to hold her steady in the rough seas. After she calmed down, we realized her knees, although swollen, were not in terrible shape and still had full mobility so we pushed onwards to the fishing ground.

Once we reached the Captain’s spot, he threw the anchor overboard and gave us the okay to throw our lines in the water. As soon as our lines hit the bottom, we started to hook up. Fish were coming up on all sides of the boat. We caught a variety of fish including Gurnard, Snapper, Kahawai, and a small shark species. After catching an abundance of fish, the Captain mentioned he had a few crayfish or rock lobster pots not far from where we were and offered to let us bring a few of them up. We eagerly took him up on the offer and headed to find his traps. We took turns pulling the first pot up from the bottom to unfortunately find that no crayfish were captured within the trap. After the first however, he introduced us to a wench on the side of the boat that helped us bring up the next few pots much faster and with better success. We left the ground with 5 large crayfish that Crag explained would go for $100 each in a restaurant. Although we were enjoying ourselves, we did still run into some trouble out at sea though. The big swell left a few people from our crew feeling a little seasick and by the end of the trip only myself and one other guy, Pat, were left fishing at the rail. We finally gave in when the group started complaining about wanting to see dry land again.

We headed back to harbor and had a much easier time passing over the breaking waves then we did on our way out. After pulling the boat out of the water and up the ramp, Crag took us pack to his place to cook up the crayfish for us and give us a few knifes to fillet our catch. After comparing fillet techniques, we hopped in the back of Crag’s pickup truck with our fillets and crayfish and road back to the hostel. That night we took half our catch to the local fish and chip shop and they beer battered our fish and fried it up for us to eat. It was the best fish and chips I’ve ever had and the entire group agreed that the bumps and bruises it took to catch these fish were worth it after all.

January 20th

After our rough day of fishing we decided to take it easy. We started our day by not starting our day until noon. We woke up well rested and figured out a ride to the beach. The hostel we were staying at had two cars that could be used by anyone at the hostel, with a small fee for gas money of course. We strapped some boards to the roof of the car and piled in. Every time I drove in a car in New Zealand I would have heart attacks because I would look up and think we were on the wrong side of the road. I wouldn’t get behind the wheel of a car myself. When we got to the beach we sun screened up and laid out in the sun until it was hot enough to swim, which didn’t take long. We hopped around in the waves until we spotted a few Portuguese man O’war jellyfish. That was enough to get most of us out of the water. After a couple hours on the beach we decided to walk the beach back to the hostel. An hour and a half later we got to the hostel showered and started cooking another batch of fish from our catch the day before. We feasted once again and made plenty of friends at the hostel when we shared whatever food we couldn’t finish. This relaxing day was just what everyone needed to recover from our day at sea the night before.

January 21st

Unfortunately our stay in Raglan couldn’t last forever and we had to leave and head back to the University. After packing up and eating some breakfast at a cafe in town we caught the 11 o’clock bus back to Hamilton. I slept most of the way back to the University and then some more when I got back to the dorms as well. I finally got up the strength to venture out for food and a few of us traveled to our favorite pizza place, or the closest, for a couple slices. Our last night in Hamilton was another quiet evening.

January 22nd

We set out for Taupo to the Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland. When we first got to the park a showing of the Lady Knox Geyser was about to happen, so we rushed to the geyser and took a seat. After a short talk from the tour guide, we were treated to a man induced eruption. He poured a soapy substance down the opening of the geyser and stepped back as it shot 30 to 45 feet into the air. When the Lady Knox started to finish up, we moved on to the rest of the park. As we walked through, our tour guide pointed out and explained various volcanic craters, mud pools, and hot springs. Everything in the park was pretty cool to walk around, but after being to the volcano on White Island, the park was a bit slow. My favorite attraction was the Champagne Pool, which is a hot spring that is 60 meters deep, extremely hot, and crystal clear. Orange deposits around the edge and bubbles of gas rising through the pool gave the pool its name.

January 23rd

The Tongariro Crossing was an amazing experience with phenomenal views and also a test of endurance and will power. We started early in the morning by packing our bags with sweaters, jackets, pants, food and water. We were about to embark on a 17 km hike up to the summit of Mount Tongariro. The landscape was amazing from bottom to top. As we started out, we watched small streams meander through valleys of green grass and bush, and the higher we got, the more rocky and treacherous the mountain became. The hike up took us 6 hours to complete and we were worn out by the time we reached the summit, but stumbling up the steep inclines of loose sediment was worth it when we reached the top. To the left, our view was of the emerald lakes. These greenish blue lakes were spring water lakes that rested so still and beautifully in the rocky terrain. To the right, we were looking atthe Red Crater, which is a perfectly symmetrical volcano that is also the highest point of the crossing. Unfortunately, we did not have time to climb to the top of this volcanoe’s summit, but the sight of it was still amazing. After enjoying the sights and eating lunch, we turned around and headed back to the car park, which took us 2 more hours to accomplish. It was much easier going down then it was going up. Normally, the Tongariro Crossing allows people to go down the other side of the mountain. A recent eruption the month before however, stopped us from being able to take that trail down. We left the Tongariro exhausted with sore muscles, which is a great reminder of what we all accomplished that day.

 January 24th

We were treated to a hot breakfast in the morning then to a showing of the Lord of the Rings on our 5 hour drive to Wellington. Half -way, we stopped at the bus driver’s favorite ice cream shop and found out why New Zealand was known for having some of the best ice cream around. After a few hours of sleeping and catching bits and pieces of the movie, we arrived in Wellington. We moved into our rooms, unpacked because we would be staying there for a few days, and then walked into the main square of the city to look around and grab something to eat. I decided to grab a cup of coffee in a cafe on Cuba Street, which is a pedestrian only street lined with shops of all kinds. Wellington was by far my favorite big city we visited in New Zealand. The University of Victoria opened the doors of the Weir House for us to stay in and spend some more time in a classroom. When we returned to our dorms it was time for a group meeting where our professors announced a paper to be handed in by the end of our stay in Wellington..much to the students discontent.

Submitted by Rebecca Downard on the 2013 winter session study abroad program in New Zealand sponsored by The School of Marine Science and Policy…

The next stop on our journey around New Zealand was the capital city of Wellington. Much like Portland, Oregon, or San Francisco, California, Wellington is built on a series of hills and mountains. While there, we stayed at the Weir House, a dorm building of Victoria University in Wellington, which of course, was situated in the middle of a particularly steep incline. We visited the Te Papa museum in Wellington and saw exhibits on everything from New Zealand’s unique animal life to Maori art. Class continued as we surveyed the intertidal organisms clinging to the rocks in Kau Bay.

We waved goodbye to Wellington and the North Island as we boarded a ferry to cross Cook’s Straight for the South Island. After journeying through the fog and back out again, we left the ferry in Picton and took a tour of a green-lipped mussel farm. Along with the tour, we received a snack of fresh steamed mussels.  The highlight of the week was definitely the whale watching trip. We saw two sperm whales and a whole pod of dusky dolphins. The boat we were on used the same frequency of sonar that the whales used, in order to locate them. We watched as the whales refilled their bodies with oxygen and then dived back down to the deeps to hunt. The dolphins took longer to find, but once we did it was overwhelming, they were everywhere at once. Always moving, swimming, jumping, diving… Eventually they left us as they followed the schools of fish further along the coast.

We visited the Antarctic Centre, which rescues injured little blue penguins and keeps the ones unable to return to the wild. We watched a video on research and travel in Antarctica, watched the penguins being fed, and went through a simulated Antarctic storm. It was only slightly colder than the weather we experienced after getting off the plane back in Philadelphia a few days later.

Our last day in New Zealand, we visited the Christchurch Botanical Gardens. It was then time to bid our bus driver, Stu, farewell, as we walked into the Christchurch airport for our first plane of 3. We all had a wonderful time in New Zealand and many of us wish we were still there (partially because it’s so cold here). Surely, it was a trip that none of us will forget.

Submitted by Isabel Gomez on the 2017 winter session program in Australia and Thailand sponsored by the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics…

On the last day in Australia, my friends and I went on a coastal walk. It was over 3 miles long and brought us to different beaches along the way. I was intrigued by how clean the beaches are here. The water is crystal clear, the sand is extremely white and warm. You can see your feet in the water, no matter how deep you are! Along the walk, we talked to some locals and I was surprised by what they had to say. They asked us about America and during that conversation I found out that gay marriage is frowned upon in Australia and cannabis is highly illegal, even for medical purposes. It made me realize how far along America has come and sometimes people might take things for granted where we live when compared to other nations. Imagine having to hide who you are from people. I am happy to be home and even more thankful for where I live, but I hope to travel to many other and new locations in the near future!

Submitted by Gianna Santaniello on the 2017 winter session program in Australia sponsored by the Department of Behavioral Health and Nutrition…

As I sit here in the airport awaiting the arrival of my flight home, I cannot help, but look back on the past month of my life with such gratitude. I am so grateful to have been accepted onto the experience of a lifetime, for my parents who allowed me to go and for my professors who planned the most eye-opening and life-changing program.

Over the past four weeks, I have lived my life more than I ever had in 20 years. I have learned more about myself than I thought possible and I have broken restrictive boundaries I had previously set for myself. Through all of this, I have been the happiest version of myself and have matured greatly.

I have learned valuable lessons that I will carry with me forever. Through our many team excursions, I have learned the importance in communication and patience. I have challenged myself to overcome fear and burdens. And most importantly, I have learned that you can truly accomplish anything if you allow yourself to do so.

As I look here and reflect on the most incredible program that I ever could have ever imagined, I cannot help, but be sad to see that it has quickly come to an end. I would give anything to be able to relive this spectacular journey, but even though it is over, I will carry all that I have learned in Australia with me for the rest of my life. I can say with my whole heart that I have experienced so much personal growth and have learned valuable lessons I would have never learned otherwise. And for all of this, I will forever be indebted to the University of Delaware Study Abroad Program for positively changing my life.

Submitted by Carly Battistoni on the 2017 winter session program in Australia sponsored by the Department of Chemical Engineering…

Our last few days of the study abroad were spent in Sydney, and with only one planned excursion, we were pretty much left to do whatever we wanted. Our group excursion ended in a dinner cruise around the harbor – offering lovely views of the city, the opera house and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

For one of our free days, some of us ventured into the Blue Mountains which is a two-hour train ride outside of Sydney. The Blue Mountains are a small part of the Great Dividing Range, an enormous mountain range cluster between Sydney and Melbourne. Here, we saw magnificent mountains and waterfalls as we descended into the Valley of the Waters. I found this program incredibly rewarding in so many ways – the culture, the sites and the friends. I feel like this amount of time was sufficient to be abroad and see another part of the world, so I am happy to be heading home!

 Submitted by Caitlin Goodhue on the 2013 winter session program in Australia sponsored by the Department of English….

When I was two years old, I had a Beauty and the Beast-themed birthday party in honor of the recently released Disney movie, which just so happened to be my “most favorite movie” at that time. My Mom constantly relays the story of me going to the pediatrician the day after the party and talking about Beauty and the Beast non-stop, even at that age: “And then I had a Beauty-Beast cake, and everybody ever came, and then we watched Beauty-Beast, and in it is Belle, and Belle has brown hair like me and wears blue which is my most favorite color, and then there was a room with lots and lots of books, and I like books…”

Belle was such a relatable heroine for me, even at such a young age, not just for her hair color, but for her love of reading. One of my favorite scenes in the Disney movie is when Belle is first introduced to the Beast’s massive library, and she has a look of sheer wonder light up her entire animated face.

I felt exactly like Belle when I walked into the State Library of Victoria. With the pristine white walls with levels upon levels of books and bookshelves, and the rows of books lining the bottom, I believed that I could’ve been transported to the actual Disney movie itself. I also love the peaceful atmosphere of all libraries, and therefore considered myself  at home in the State Library of Victoria.

The State Library of Victoria is completely dissimilar from any library I’ve ever visited. Instead of just a quiet, safe haven for those who share in my love for literature, there were also multiple exhibits; these displays reminded me more of a museum than a library. Over this past summer, in Québec City, my family and I visited the Musée de la civilisation, a “museum” that was highly regarded in all of our worn guide books. I thought that the State Library of Victoria had more impressive exhibits than this celebrated history museum; I thought it was sort of depressing that a free public library in Melbourne had more attention-grabbing exhibits than a fairly expensive Canadian attraction in the heart of Québec.

One of the most unbelievable parts of the entire library, in my opinion, was the Ned Kelly armor and Jerilderie Letter on display in the middle of this collection of books. (Although, as a Lord of the Rings fan, The Hobbit book on display was pretty remarkable too! I just thought it was amazing to see the actual artifacts after studying the famous bushranger Ned Kelly.) I assumed that wherever these Ned Kelly artifacts were flaunted, it would be expensive to view them, and that it would be a huge head-lining attraction considering Ned Kelly’s status as such a notorious Australian outlaw. I feel as though this free exhibit perfectly represents the Australian character and values, however; according to Australians, why shouldn’t everyone who walks through the public library’s massive pillars have a chance to look at these historic artifacts?

Submitted by Matthew Geist on the 2017 winter session program in Australia and Thailand sponsored by the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics…

I can’t believe the program is over! I can’t say enough about how much I’ve learned outside of the classroom while abroad.  After having a blast in Cairns, our group finished the program with about a week in Sydney. Easily the most American-style destination of the program, it was incredible how pretty and clean Sydney was.  On our first day, we toured the Sydney Opera House, an absolutely beautiful structure.  While touring, we learned how the architect of the masterpiece, Jørn Utzon, never saw his completed project as he resigned due to a power struggle with the Australian government.  Utzon based his revolutionary design on ships’ sails and in doing so solved one of the greatest engineering challenges in the world.

On January 26th, we celebrated Australia Day with the locals, which is equivalent to the Fourth of July in the United States. It was eye opening to see how another culture celebrated their freedom and reflected on their nation’s history.  Later in the week, we did the Sydney Bridge Climb, where we scaled the Sydney Harbour Bridge.  This took over 3 hours, but gave our group stunning views of the harbour below.  This program introduced me to cultures I’m not sure I ever would have seen without the help of the Institute for Global Studies and gave me distinct memories that I will cherish for a long time.