Happy Birthday Oodgeroo Noonuccal!

Hello, and apologies for the long absence... life got in the way.  I'm sure that many of you saw the Google aboriginal themed title a couple days ago, but probably didn't understand much more other than recognizing the Aboriginal 'sand painting' technique.  Oodgeroo is the native name for the well known and loved Australian author Kath Walker, who is originally from North Stradbroke Island (which I have visited in a previous post!) During my time here I have been fortunate enough to meet Aboriginal people, as well as to be taking a class on the Aboriginal Dreaming and spiritual traditions.

Since I personally found that I knew virtually nothing about one of the world's oldest surviving cultures, I thought that I would compile some of the highlights of what I have learned so far through my own experiences and classes here:

-Archaeological evidence puts humans on Australia as early as 60,000 years ago

-Despite modern impressions that the interior of Australia is barren and empty, Aboriginal nations once occupied the whole continent, and continue to live in areas considered "unlivable"

-Uluru (or Ayers Rock) is much more than a giant red rock in the middle of Australia. It is made from Arkose, (which is not a naturally occurring compound) and formed during massive glacial movements across the continent millions of years ago.  It continues to be a place of extreme significance to Dreamtime stories, with the same rituals being carried out at its sacred sites the same way they have been for thousands of years.

-Boomerangs, contrary to popular belief were not originally of the "returning" variety, but instead took on a wide variety of shapes and sizes, and were used for everything from hunting, fighting, ritual musical instrument, and as a cutting tool

-Aboriginal culture is organised into a complex and multi-layered kinship system ensuring social harmony

-Although it may not appear so to us, all Aboriginal art is functional rather than decorative.  It depicts the painter's "country" and serves as a map marking the landscape, food sources, dream tracks and songlines, as well as sacred sites

-An Aboriginal identity is the land.  Period.  Modern land ownership laws and mining claims have sadly caused major conflicts with native people, who under Australian law had no claim on their ancestors' lands until recent passing of legislation (which still requires them to "prove" land occupation)

-In general, the Aboriginal culture had no crime, disease, or cultural issues until the settlement of Australia, and the resultant influence of colonization and the "White Australia" campaign

-The Aboriginal population in Australia now accounts for only 2% of the total

-The culture is one of purely oral traditions, with culture transmission occurring through the sharing of songs and stories, with a distinct series of coming of age stages and rituals to ensure its survival

-Aboriginal culture believes that humans are simply stewards of the land, and do not own it but rather must take care of it for the next generation..... A concept we are only just now beginning to grasp

The Aboriginal flag, with red representing the Red Center, yellow for the sun, and black for the people

Charles Darwin was a Fraud!

The other day while I was waiting at the bus stop a lady came up to me and handed me a newspaper publication of her political party, the Citizens Electoral Council of Australia.  Since I had nothing better to do I started to read underneath the headline: "Charles Darwin was a Fraud!"  This had to be good.  The more I read, the more I was reminded of the American publication The National Enquirer (which pretends to report fact, but everyone knows this is not the case).  This paper was simply filled with lie after lie, from blaming Darwin for Hitler and Eugenics, to blaming Darwin for the current environmental legislation and "today's plague of Green Fascism".

At first I couldn't believe that a political party could actually be based on and perpetuating lies worthy of the lowest of tabloids, but then I quickly realized that similar things occur in the States.  Still, my interest in Australia's political system was piqued, and so I have outlined the basics below:

-Australia is a parliamentary democracy and is governed as a federation and constitutional monarchy

-Australia has a compulsory voting system

-National elections are held at least once every 3 years

-The current Prime Minister, Julia Gillard of the Australian Labor Party is currently facing great controversy over the carbon tax law she passed

-The major political parties are:  the Australian Labor Party (liberal, social, democratic), the Liberal Party (center-right), and the National Party of Australia (conservative)

-As described above, the "Liberal" parties in Australia are more conservative with the "Labor" parties being more liberal

-It is also a little known fact that Australia is still a member of the British Commonwealth

Although the "facts" described in this publication were hardly credible, I found the paper extremely entertaining, and plan to bring it back as a souvenir from my travels.  It prompted me to learn a bit more about the politics of my host country, and I hope that if this post was slightly less entertaining, it was at least informative.  Its easy to get so wrapped up in our own politics that we forget how many other countries there are with different systems, and that perhaps we could all learn something from each other.

*Feel free to click the pictures and attempt to read a bit of the articles*

To Byron and Back

I apologize for the delay since the last post, but it has been a fairly eventful week, with an even more eventful weekend with a group trip down to Byron Bay.  Byron is about an hour south of Gold Coast in the Australian state of New South Wales (We are in Queensland).  We stayed in a hostel there called the Arts Factory, and although my experience with hostels is a bit limited, this one was most definitely unconventional.  Today I'll list a few tips/experiences when staying in hostels (they are a great way to go places on a budget)

-Never have an preconceived notion of what you will find upon your arrival.  We were greeting by the sounds of a drum circle

-The only guarantee you have is a bed (the where and how can vary quite greatly)

One half of our group slept in this giant treepee with 12 beds arranged in a circle

My accommodation was in this "wagon"

-This style of open bunking is great for meeting new people, so be sure to get out and make friends (I now have places to stay in Sydney and Brisbane should I ever want to)

-Ask people what the haps is in town; Byron Bay is the easternmost point of Australia and home to a lighthouse with a spectacular view

It ended up being a great weekend, and although we were without our helpful Arcadia guides, we had a great time exploring and getting around by ourselves.  This weekend will be the first official weekend at Bond, and is a much needed break!

Straddie.

This past weekend I was fortunate enough to get a free trip with my abroad group to North Stradbroke Island.  In addition to saving me heaps of money and time planning my own trip there, I got to do and experience so much more than I would have on my own.

Of particular interest was a presentation about Aboriginal culture and the stolen generation by Shane, a very open and honest native of the island.  Shane's nephew, a local aboriginal artist, also showed us how to throw boomerangs, and we got to paint our own!

Its hard to believe that so much fun and so many new experiences could be fit into such a short time, but here is an abridged list of what I did this weekend:

-Watched my first sunset on the ocean (and saw sharks and dolphins swim right by us!)

-Snorkeling in the Straddie bay

-Sea kayaking to a mangrove (the ocean's nursery)

-My first official surf lessons

(Practicing on land first)

(Waiting for the waves...)

-Sand boarding down the dunes (Stradbroke is the second largest sand island in the world)

-Going on a spectacular cliff top nature walk, it seems Australia has a never ending amount of gorgeous seascapes (and we saw a whale!)

All in all, it was a fantastic weekend filled with sun, surf, and good times.  Coming back to class on Monday was tough, but I have this weekend to look forward to and another trip on the calendar.  Stay tuned for updates from this upcoming weekend trip to Byron Bay!

G'day First Day

School is back in session!  I have successfully completed my first class at Bond, and although classes here are naturally much different from what I am used to in the states, school is still school with all that comes along with it. However, I only have classes Mondays and Tuesdays which is something that I could definately get used to.

Today's list is a compilation of Australian things that I have so far experienced, as well as things that people who are planning on coming to visit should keep an eye out for:

Tim Tams:  delicious chocolate cookie creations, everyone should participate in a "Tim Tam Slam"


Flat White:  coffee here is different in the sense that it is not the typical drip coffee normally ordered in the US, almost all of the drinks are espresso based (much better!).  My favorite aussie thing to order is an unsweetened Flat White, which can be compared to an Americano, although you just really need to have one to experience the difference.

Gotye:  In my never ending quest for new music, I was lucky enough to stumble upon this song my first day here, only to later discover that it is the current top hit on the Australian pop chart (and its not what you would expect)


Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary: I'm told that everyone who visits Australia is supposed to pet a koala and a kangaroo and then decide which one is softer.  We are lucky enough to be only half an hour away from the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, and for $30AUS I now have unlimited park visits.  On Sunday, we woke up bright and early, and I got to see kangaroos for the second time, as well as a bunch of other amazing Aussie animals up close and personal.  Here I am with one of the national Australian emblems, the emu:

Fun fact: Australia chose the emu and kangaroo as its national emblems for the symbolic reason that both animals can only walk in a forward direction.

The Gold Coast: going to class in paradise

It has now been 4 days since my arrival at Bond University, and I must say that all the hype did not disappoint.  It is still the end of the Australian "winter" and they are now heading into springtime, which has meant beautiful sunny days on a campus that more closely resembles an exclusive resort than a college campus. 

A list of a few of the essential tips for a good semester at Bond:

-"Goon" = boxed wine, and also the only affordable option for any amount of drinking

-Gold Coast is the Australian equivalent of Las Vegas, and is host to a large number of casinos, nightclubs, and resorts

-There are sharks in the ocean, as well as in all the lakes/canals/ rivers running through the area

-Surfing is a normal daytime activity

-Australians, although a very laidback population, are sticklers for rules and are even less likely to make exceptions for Americans

-Dancing etiquette is far different than in the US, and let's just say that the Australian version of dancing is far closer to the real thing than what the kids are doing in the states now a days.

-Although I will only have classes on Mondays and Tuesdays, apparantly I am still expected to get work done

Classes commence Monday...... gear up for the weekend mates!

Greetings from the future... there are kangaroos!

From now on I am going to begin cataloging experiences in list format, to save you and me the boredom of writing/reading endless paragraphs about all the cool shit I'm doing down here in Australia.  Today's inaugural list's theme is...
THINGS I'VE LEARNED ABOUT AUSTRALIA IN THE FIRST 48 HOURS:
-the moon is horizontal (like a smile)
-there are completely different constellations, don't even try to find the big dipper
-kangaroos can pause their pregnancies and restart them when there is enough food
-it is possible to go bushwacking through a park in pursuit of kangaroos
-HEAPS is the new way to say a lot
-walking on the left and crossing streets is alot harder than you think it would be
-it is an illegal offense to ride a bike without a helmet
-vegemite is a great source of vitamin b6, originating from the scum left in the bottom of beer kegs (and not entirely unpalatable)

Winter in Manly Beach, Sydney

Kangaroo tracking in Sorrento, Victoria

-there is HEAPS yet to learn and experience in this amazingly badass country, and the next 4 months are going to be a once in a lifetime experience


I have already made it more than halfway through my Saturday, so I send greetings from the future; its pretty great here.