Living in a college

Hello my dear readers!
I don't know if I have already told you, but I am actually living in a college here in Perth. This is an incredible experience that I would suggest to anyone for at least once in their life.
Before coming here, I thought living in a college was like an american movie in which there are guys partying every night and having fun every single day (without studying...obviously!). Well, I would have never believed how much fiction was similar to reality (apart from studying..). Every day is a surprise, there is always something new to do and quiet sometimes seems a dream.

For example, my college organizes different social activities every week. One of my favourite are formal dinners: dinners in which everyone has to wear elegant or semi-formal and fancy food as well as good wine is served. Can't wait for another one, trust me!

A pub crawl was also organized. Basically, it consists of a bus with loud music which takes people to different pubs. The funny thing was that only after the first stop, the situation began to get out of hand: people were crazy and started singing and dancing on the bus. I had so much fun! The theme was "sports" and everyone had to dress up accordingly. Me and my friends were the italian Olympics team, obviously!

A pub close to the uni hosts sometimes special events for the students of different colleges. People, to support their college, wear the college uniform. This is nice, because it seems being part of a big family.

Finally, last week the annual college Ball took place. It consisted of a formal dinner set in a location which had been kept secret until the end and then it was followed by dances..obviously! :) The place was amazing: a restaurant in the middle of Kings Park with a terrace with a wonderful view on the city and its skyscrapers.

Anyway, these are just some of the official activities. The real college experience is what I have been living everyday: in room parties, gossips, funny neighbours that climb up to the second floor, noise at everytime of the day, but especially friends coming to your room asking for food or washing powder!

Cheers!

Hello readers!
If you come to Australia, one of the first words you will hear is "Cheers" (possibly followed by "man", and I am still wondering why). Well, I was quite surprised when I first heard that kind of weird greeting, because Cheers for me was just a word used when you toast. So, as you can imagine, I didn't really reply properly with my "Thank you!"and I obviously made a fool of myself.
Anyway, now I have luckily improved and I am able to answer back with a loud "cheers man!". Very aussie isn't it? :)

However Australia never ceases to surprise you. Another very common greeting that you can have here is "Hey, how is it going" or better "Hey howisgain" possibly said in a super-extra speedy way, so that you can realize what he/she said just after that person went away. And obviously the sentence doesn't mean that they actually want to know if you are fine or not. So, don't waste your time in answering with a polite "I am fine, how are you?", it's not the case.  Just answer back with a simple "hey how is going" and you will be seen as cool and good-mannered.

I know that probably talking about greetings is not really the most interesting topic, but I think it's really useful when you are approaching a new culture and a new land. Every place has its own customs and traditions and it could be nice at least to know the basic ones for a smooth integration into the society.

But remember that in every place you can go and the language barriers you can meet, nothing can make the difference as a sincere smile and a positive approach. So, if you don't know what to say, don't panic! Just smile! :)

Spring Break!

Hello readers!! :)
I know, I know, I know... it has been a long time since I wrote the last time. But you know why? I had my spring break in Bali and obviously it was hard to find a working internet connection. For people who are not used to it (actually in Italy is not that common), the spring break is a one week holiday when students usually take a "break" and go somewhere for a trip. Anyway, it's funny because obviously here it's spring, whereas in Italy autumn has just started and Uni as well has just begun. So dear friends coming from the other side of the emisphere, now it's my turn to make you jealous!
I know that Bali is not really "the land down under", but I can say it has been an integral part of my experience as an exchange student here, also because basically all the people there were Australians and Kuta especially was tailored for aussies!
Anyway, just feast your eyes with some pics :)

sunset in Kuta

surfing in Kuta

Balinese spectacle

vulcano

temple

rice terrace

rafting

the group of the "braves"

Padang Padang beach

view from the temple

Unfortunately now I am back to the reality, but I know that the land down under can still offer me something to talk about. And here I would add a quote that me and my friend Nico come up with during our stay in Bali : " Life is like a dish of Nasi Goreng... you never know what's inside" (and I can assure you it's like that....)

Cheers!!!