Adjustment to new place requires time and familiarization

Good day, mate. P Sherman 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney. Kangaroos. These were virtually all the concrete things I knew about the country I decided to make my home for the next semester. I quickly learned, however, that there was more to the place I now affectionately call “Straya.”

In mid-July, I left Los Angeles to embark on my “Aussieventure,” excited for the opportunity to snuggle with koalas, dive in the Great Barrier Reef, pick up an accent … and study, of course.

In the days leading up to my flight, I became so caught up in making sure I took care of all the details before my departure that it did not really hit me that I was leaving. My concerns were whether or not I had packed enough shoes, as opposed to who I’d eat lunch with when I arrived.

I realized I was bound for Melbourne while sitting in the airport on Wednesday night, suddenly alone. Unaware of the prospects of meeting people upon arrival and unable to calculate the 17-hour time difference just yet, I felt trapped in my thoughts during the        16-hour flight — one that not only left me feeling anxious over the idea of potential solitude, but also disoriented because it was suddenly Friday when I arrived.

And then I got off the plane. It wasn’t being alone that worried me; the change in weather consumed the majority of my attention. Los Angeles had the perfect amount of sun and heat for the most part. I exchanged that for gray skies and a pretty significant wind chill. I wavered between the idea of bringing a down jacket or relying on layers. The former route would have been the wiser choice. I probably should have depended more on weather reports rather than my perceptions of “sunny Australia.” Though, learning to adapt to the cold weather was easy in comparison to other acclimations — I would prefer to be shivering rather than to be hit by a car coming down the opposite side of the road. Unfortunately, it’s easy to forget to look the wrong “right” way.

I arrived at my apartment that morning, ready to find a room bustling with seven additional roommates. As I found each room uninhabited, however, the shivering stopped and the feeling of loneliness returned. At that point I decided I should get active instead of wallowing in sadness. I forced myself to leave the fortress of sweaters I had managed to pile on to fight the Melbourne chill and ventured out. I went down and asked the receptionist for places to get good food; I knew I would fall in love with the city when her response was, “Wow, everywhere!” Leaving the nest — in both the literal and the metaphorical sense as the apartment is called Urbanest — marked the point where I kicked any feeling of anxiety or gloom. Even though I was alone for what ended up being a total of about three hours, it was the last time I would ever walk through Melbourne without a friend nearby.

Living in an apartment with several others was the best decision. That day I met one friend who introduced me to another and behold, I was unintentionally absorbed into a group. I spoke with my parents probably five times the morning of the first day, and then I forgot to call them till two days later. I realized that my good fortune is quite an anomaly with studying abroad experiences. Suddenly, my generic week of, “What do I do?” confusion was less about making friends and more about how I would live in this continent. Tossing $2 coins to the side thinking they were two-penny coins, I was oblivious to the abnormalities. Then again, I would never be able to understand why a $2 coin is smaller than the $1 coin.

After being here for over six weeks now, I can say I have adjusted — though I still check both sides of the road while crossing the street to be safe.

It’s only the first week back at USC, but, since the school year here begins with semester one in February and semester two in July, I have been doing the school routine for about five weeks now. In these five weeks, I have laughed, made friends from all over the world, explored the cultural epicenter of Australia, my city Melbourne and studied at Australia’s No. 1 university. I think it’s safe to say that my Aussieventure has only just begun.