A Day in the Life of a Monash Engineer

After many requests, I have finally decided to detail what it is like to be in school here. I actually went around with a camera today and documented what a typical day is like in pictures. I was trying to do it undercover so people wouldn't think I was completely nuts, and my plan was to go incognito with huge glasses and a big hat. Then i figured that "meena-style incognito" may not be the best idea - with my zebra print Billabong bag it just wouldnt work...

*NB: The day chosen is a hypothetical day combining schedules for Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday units(course = unit, faculty = course).


I wake up in the morning after snoozing precisely 4 times. It is at this moment that I realize that uni is really cutting into my vacation time, and I really need to get my act together and start reading my textbooks! I make some brekky (toast/jam, dood/cereal, bagel/cream cheese - ozzies dont know what bagels are and they are really hard to find here so i only reward myself with a bagel if i really feel as though i deserve it). Then I get ready and set off from Farrer Hall, my residence.

I start walking towards an extra long path that passes by a pond with ducks and has tons of trees - really looking forward to autumn to see all the colors changing. It's pretty chilly in the morning - so they were right when they said Melbs gets cold...I need to buy a scarf soon.

9 minutes later, I cross the local footy field and see Engineering in the distance--I am already 7 minutes late. No matter how early I get up or how much extra time I leave myself in the morning, I am consistently 7 minutes late every single morning.

I enter the 4th Year Room for my CHE 4113: Management for Engineers course. All of my third year courses are held in one room--conveniently named the Third Year Room.

The Marketing course fully puts me to sleep without fail, so after an hour of it I need to go grab a coffee. But there is no decent coffee in Australia! So I am currently living off of Chai Lattes at my new favorite cafe called Fibonacci's. For those of you that are geeky you will know what a Fibonacci Sequence is-and if you look carefully you can see it on the counter (1,1,2,3,5,8...). Yup, you guessed right - this is the cafe in the Engineering Library. Its like some next level geek - i didnt think anyone could do it better than Waterloo but i was sadly mistaken!

After I grab my coffee, I am late for the second half of class (usually by approx 7 minutes) and I take a nice scenic walk back to class, passing a calming water fountain on the way.

When marketing class is finished, I head to the 3rd year room for CHE 3102: Heat and Mass Transfer. Are we learning Heat and Mass transfer today? I'm afraid not! This is really just a repeat of a Transport Process course I took in 2nd year (helllooo Chatzis). Its basically just in case I one day come across a feed stream concentrated with ammonia that i need to strip out using a solvent and the plant depends on my calculations but, oh look, we have no more analytical software so i have to analyze the process by drawing a graph by hand of the amount of theoretical distillation trays needed! Seriously - not impressed. Are we EVER going to use this stuff? You know, i wasnt always so cynical...oh ya but i got a sweet as (kiwi slang) Roxy pencil case that fits my assortment of stationary, chapstick, my 30 cm ruler AND also my TI-83. I am in LOVE with this pencil case!

After class, I take a picture by a fish tank which is really a distillation column with fishies in it. Just when you thought the Chemical Engineering Department couldn't get nerdier. But the sad part is that when i first realized it was a distilation column, i was actually impressed...

Anywho, moving right along, yes that is a chai latte in my hand, full of cinnaminny goodness!

After a long morning its time for lunch - I am immediately craving handrolls. Handrolls are yummy yummy sushi rolls that are long and only $2.20 - I eat them almost everyday. Its kind of scary. So we walk down the path to the Monash Meeting Point in the Campus Center (SLC/MAC Hall). Note how people walk on the "other" side of the path.

Before I got to Australia, I really thought that I wouldnt have to do much work here. But I now realize that the University of Waterloo and Monash are pretty comparable in the course load and teaching styles, however a hell of a lot more people fail here. In fact, about 50% of my class are fourth years doing their courses over again. As you can imagine, that is not very encouraging. I'm not sure if its the lecturers or the students...

When lunch is over, we walk back towards the engineering building for CHE 3108 - Process Operation and Design. This course is a 4th year UW course and basically covers process design, materials engineering, flowsheeting and all the other good stuff.

Then I have CHE 3101: Reaction Engineering. I can't even describe this course because I have absolutely no idea what is going on. I do know that it is about reaction rates and reaction kinetics and that my lecturer has a voice that seroiusly just lulls you to dreamland. Its one of those courses where the lectures are so useless but you still end up going - it's a trade off, of course, as the best naps usually happen during those times. And just when you think you can start skipping lectures...he starts taking attendence. What a guy.

Next stop - time to leave the engineering building! Bye, bye distillation columns, its off to the nicer and better looking part of campus - Arts! This course AUS 1060: Contemporary Australia is basically made for American exchange students and it covers Australian culture, history, underlying racism, aborigines, and the Howard Govt...basically Bush's little poochri. It is pretty interesting but I do think I now know more about Australia then actual Australians do...most australians are more concerned with footy and they "couldnt be bothered" (aussie slang) to learn about history. In real life, this unit conflicts with my CHE 3108 so I have to pick and choose which I want to go to depending on the week.

Then, finally, it is time for my trek back to Farrer Lords. Home sweet home!


Get home, cook dinns, watch endless amounts of tv on a laptop (LOST is my current fixation), go to sleep and do it all over again the next day!

The Mailbox - A post for Mr. T. Horton

I miss...my mailbox and everything it represents. I can close my eyes right now and repeat the motions in my head and feel like i'm actually in my little chevy cavalier with the very adolescent looking red/yellow/orange steering wheel cover and fluffy heart seat pillows (so i can see over the wheel). Pass Superstore, pass my pink elementary school, turn at the poo/pee house, turn again, drive up to my culd-e-sac, slow down/stop at my mailbox, depending on who's in my company...have those last peices of conversation for the evening, or a long drawn out discussion on the nature of human existance...spot a bunny or two racing away as my garage opens...

I miss...11:00 Timmy's sit-ins drinking French Vanillas and eating a plain toasted bagel with plain cream cheese and tomatoes...I miss playing hockey with pink hockey tape on 2 sticks in the gym...I miss Saturday morning drives to Airways with mandatory coffee stops...I miss watching useless tv like Flava Flav's Flava of Love, Blind Date, and Elimidate...I miss always being late and running out of the house profusely apologizing while simultaneously making up lame excuses holding an assortment of cut fruits in my hands (c/o my wonderful mother) for the road...I miss wearing Oxford sweatshirts way too big for me (still too big - even after a failed shrinking attempt)...and i really miss the lyrical battles - pop pop - bring in all of the masses! And although Australia is wonderful... I mean Melbourne is a beautiful city full of life and culture...i dont even have a mailbox here, much less a mail "slot" i have to share with other people that have surnames starting with "N". I cant have conversations by my mail slot, nor do i see white fluffers at the end of my evening. So For all of these reasons + Tim Horton, home is where my heart is!

Surfing, Penguins, and a Sharkbite

Just got back from a trip to Phillip Island, which was tons of fun! We left in the morning and went straight to Smith's Beach, which is a place that a lot of new surfers learn how to surf. I was on a mission to get a small sharkbite as a souvenir. Anywho, we got these super cute wetsuits (i'm being sarcastic - i thought surfer girls were supposed to look hot). These suits were the most unflattering things in the whole entire world! I was under the impression after the movie Blue Crush that surfers were supposed to look sexy! Anyways we still tried to make them look good. :)

Well surfing was a lot harder than i thought it would be. We had awesome instructors but the biggest danger on Smith's beach is not sharks, nor is it stinging jellyfish. It's actually other surfers, because most are either beginners or just a bit better than beginners. And when the waves are coming, and someone is not in control of their board, then BAM - sharkbite. So they taught us how to get into the waves and ride the wave doing the yoga move Cobra. From the Cobra you basically learn to get your knees up on the board and balance with your legs and arms in position - just like in the movies. I was actually successful about 4 times. It was awesome! There were about 3 times when i completely wiped out, went under water, swallowed a whole bunch of salt water and got hit with my board on the way up. It was tiring but it was such a rush so I kept going.

So then I was perfectly ready to take my next wave. I paddled out waist deep, did a few extra paddles as the wave came like i was supposed to, straightened out, started riding the wave, looked ahead of me - all clear, went into cobra, got my knees up (perfect execution) and then BAM i got hit in the jaw with a yellow fibre glass board. I didn’t realize that a board hit would be so forceful - i was in shock. The first thing i thought was oh my god, there goes my jaw, i should have listened to everyone when they told me to be careful!! So it was some guy not in our surfing class, who had a fibre glass board (ours are soft boards, so a hit is hard but not THAT hard). Anyways i got quite disoriented coming up from the water but thankfully an instructor was by my side in a second because he saw it happen. He complimented me on my near perfect execution and told me that the guy basically lost control of his board and it went along the current and flipped into my face. It was unfortunate but hey - i now have my warrior wound. I'm fine, just a bit swollen, nothing too serious. Things like this'll happen when your on a crowded beach full of beginners.

After that we went to eat dinner - i tried some shark - they call it Flake and it tastes like fish but less fishy and more sharky. Then we went to see the Penguin Parade on the Summerland Peninsula.

There is absolutely no photography allowed, because it scares the penguins. But basically you sit and wait for penguins to come to shore, and without a fail at 8:15 pm you see them waddling out of the water with bellies full of food for baby penguins that they go to feed in the burrows. They were so cute! And there were also tons of seagulls just waiting for them, not flying or squawking but just looking east awaiting the penguins. What a sight to see - it was amazing. We were right at the front and we saw two penguins about a meter away from us, locked in what looked like a kissing session. It was so cute!! I tried to get quite a picture (flash off) but it was too dark :(


Another neat thing here is the constellations - its odd to think that the constellations we grew up knowing (big/little dipper, north star) do not exist here. But i finally know how to find the Southern Cross (its the constellation that is on the Australian flag). Since we were out so far from any city around the stars were amazing - and looking up at the Southern Cross makes me realize how far I really am from home - on the absolute other side of the world.

XVIII Commonwealth Games

The vibe in this city is so unbelievable right now - its just buzzing with excited energy. Melbourne is the host city to the 18th Commonwealth Games going on from the 15th to the 26th of March. On the 15th we went out to the city by the Yarra River for opening ceremonies. The Yarra is such an ideal place because it has fish situated along the river that represent each country around the world. There are 72 Commonwealth countries that take part in the games. During the opening ceremony I cheered for Tanzania, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Canada - it was crazy. I got to see the queen through the jumbotron - she looks exactly the same as when I was 10. Same colour clothes, same hat, same voice....


Then there were fireworks coming out of the fishys as she declared the start to the games - it was all pretty exciting! I even sang God Save the Queen for the first time since elementary school assemblies!

The next day we got patriotic to go cheer on Canada during the Rugby 7s games.


On the way there, we were forced to leave our train because it wasn’t going where it was supposed to. But man, am I glad we did...while waiting outside Flinders St Station we saw this random tram that was decorated in some sort of overdone fobbed out Indian type look.


We got in the flashing lighted tram to see the sign "MADE IN PAKISTAN - by IQBAL".

I was like...what is going on! Then i heard the Pakistani/Indian music and I was in heaven. All i could think about is how much Mummy would love it!! The tram is called W-11: Karachi 2 Melbourne and basically it was a copy of a fleet of particularly vibrant mini-buses that ply the Karachi route called W-11. The buses are "characterized by sculpted stainless steel, bright coloured plastic collages, flashing light patterns, infectious music beats and exuberant conducters." So basically a team of Karachi vehicle decorators have transformed a Melbourne tram to bring the experience of a journey on W-11 to the streets of Melbourne, during the games. After that, the tram gets auctioned off to the highest bidder!

This emblem was on the back of all of the seats. Anyways then we got to the Telstra Dome to start watching the games. The Rugby 7s games are really short - only 7 minutes per half. But it was super fun - we had a huge flag and got to meet all the players after they won their game. There was a point in time when Uganda (the underdogs) were playing Tonga and actually won, and the whole stadium was chanting "YOU - GAND - AHH, YOU - GAND - AHH". It was so loud it felt like the stadium was shaking but it was just incredible hearing all these people from so many different countries rooting for the underdawgs...

So basically the rest of the time left there are tons of events going on around the city and people here from all over the world. I found out that there is a jk near by so I am going on Navroz - kinda excited about that! This weekend surfing and penguin parade at Phillip Island :)

Fragments of Freedom...

So i think it's finally hitting me that i am actually here for school-ahem i mean "uni" (if you say "school" here people think you are in highschool, and since i look 16 i'm not taking any chances). I'm trying hard not to think about it but it's very difficult to avoid the assignments, lectures, and lecturers that seem to be in my face everywhere i turn.

I'm trying to hang on to those last fragments of freedom that i basked in not having to worry about school for seven months - class feels like such an inconvenience...I really dont want to buy any books and the fact that I'm already lost in some of my lectures is starting to worry me. I really should be getting paid for this instead of the other way around.

Anywho on a lighter note i got SKINNYS! They are so very 80's in a faded black wash. I'm wearing them here with pointy black flats, a red halter and a big thick belt. Belts are hot here when they are not worn around your waist, if you can pull it off. All the manniquens do! This picture was taken specifically for my blog after several email requests from various people to show them my skinnys...i dont usually take single pics of me if i'm not in front of a lighthouse or rock/water combo. here i am posed at the corner of my oh-so-glam res in front of the fire hydrant.

This was a Traffic Light party at Doolys...I was the only red in a sea of greens...if this doesnt scream "No" i dont know what does....but at least it got me brownie points :P Yaaaaaa
The next one is yet another night at the Nott...it seems like the only time ppl here ever leave residence is to go to the Nott!

The Great Ocean Road

Just got back from the Great Ocean Road trip with the Monash Uni Exchange Club and it was just unbelievebly bombastically fantastic! There were only about 15 of us that got a spot on the trip, so needless to say I was quite excited and wasnt really sure what to expect.

We started off by driving the "back road" from Melbourne to Port Campbell on a little cozy bus, stopping in Geelong on the way. A thick fog covered the little town, which was actually really pretty but I'm sure it would have been nicer had it been clear.

From Port Campbell we went to see "The Arch" - i know, i know - how original.


It was still pretty foggy and we figured we might not be able to see the 12 Apostles because of the deep mist - needless to say we were all really dissappointed...

So we kept driving along the Southern Sea until we got to our next destination, The Grotto, and by then things had cleared up a bit.

Since the Commonwealth Games are being held in Melbourne next week (I'm going to a Canada/Australia Rugby game next Thursday) we actually saw the Commonwealth Baton - its kind of like the Olympic Torch but it's umm green - and its a baton....really its quite unimpressive...but hey who am i to judge. (its in my picture set...) anyways some sites were blocked off because of this baton relay thing going on at various Australian sites (my pictures also show us running after the lady with the baton...they take it pretty seriously, like i was standing there and i saw 5 security gaurds running towards us yelling - "out of the way, out of the way"...so we all ran and followed them it was quite amusing) ...so anyways my point is we werent able to go to the tourist area to see the London Bridge because it was blocked off. As we passed it though, our bus stopped on the side of the road, very illegally may i add, and a couple of us ran through the snake infested (probably) tall grass and bush to get this picture below. I suffered a cut on my foot that needed a bandaid - but hey anything for the sake of a good picture! Oh ya, interesting fact - the london bridge actually collapsed when a group of ppl were stuck on the end of it, they had to be rescued by a helicopter.

After that random excursion into the bush we went to see another site where there was the famous Loch Ard Wreck that gave this "cursed" Bass Straight beach its name. The beach i'm standing on, according to legend, is where the only 2 survivors were found. Keep in mind while viewing my pictures that my hair only looks this way because i am currently using VO5 gel. :(

After that we drove to the 12 Apostles, and thankfully the sky cleared up so we could see them. Now i still dont know what the big deal is about these things, they look like everyother rock/water combination i saw that day and there aren't even 12 of them! I dont think there were even 12 to begin with! i really do think it's an Australian Govt conspiracy created to attract tourists to the area!

Something i find really interesting about Australia is the fact that there are signs like "Kangaroo Crossing" on the road and its not even a joke, you actually see kangaroos on the side of the road like you would deer in parts of Calgary, or driving to Banff, or on the "Deer Road" going to Appa's house in Kincora...

Its just so wierd to think that animals i consider "exotic" like koalas and kangaroos are actually in the wild there...so when they told us we were going to a random area by a beach where there are always koalas i was like....yaaa whatever, i'm sure we wont be able to see them...like since when do you go somewhere looking for an animal and actually find one? Anyways the sun was setting and we went to this small beach, and lo and behold in the trees were tons and tons of koalas. A lot of them were sleeping (they get intoxicated off of the ecalyptus leaves) but we saw one that gave us quite a show...if i figure out how to put video on this thing then i will...but it was just incredible. The koala in the picture wasnt really cute though, he was quite vicious looking.

Now until this time i thought my accomodations were going to be some seedy house with a ton of bunk beds and bugs, little did i know we were staying in an amazing beach side cottage. We spent the night in Lorne in a house that was actually built as a hospital in 1881 and was recently moved to another site, whole. It was just beautiful and old and quaint...i loved it. My room had windows everywhere, a big huge double bed with fluffy pillows and a great duvet...its the best i've slept since i left home...

I woke up to find the sun shining on my face and this beachside view from my window. Then we all sat like a huge family at a huge table and had an amazing brekky of toast, jams, milk, juice, cereal and AMAZING Nescafe blend 42 coffee with 2 creams 2 sugars! Coffee here is so hard to get used to that Maccer's coffee is the next best thing to a Timmys Frech Vanilla... i know... how sad!

After a lazy sunday brekky we made our way to the beach...but of course i got distracted by the shops...the surf shops in particular. See in small beach towns like this surfing wear rules...so ya anyways i got myself an Australian cowboy hat to represent C-town...and so that i can actually look like Crocodile Dundee - i do it all for my blog you see....naw really i got it to big up Cali-g and also because its RipCurl (hot surfer brand)...then i got a Billabong bikini...then went back for a Cult bikini... now i only have about seven hundred and fourty million bikinis. But hey when i'm back in Calgary surfing it will all be worth it! Fish Creek Park, here i come!

Anywho then i did the funnest thing in the world...i played backyard beach cricket!! Cricket is huge here, and I was told i was a natural ;) It must be cuz i'm brown - c'mon we all saw Lagaan! I felt like Amir Khan!

So here i am bowling...(my form may not be perfect but hey that IS the ball in the sky) ...

and batting!




And here is my RipCurl Cowboy hat - i will be wearing it at all future Stampedes...

We left Lorne and stopped at a random golf course where wild kangaroos were just chillin. There were probably a group of around 20 of them. Where as at the sanctuary they were all sleeping, here the wild roos were hopping around. It was really neat to see. Interesting fact #2: Kangaroos cant take backward steps, and they use their tail as a third leg!

Then we saw the Split Point lighthouse...and this is me below trying to look like the lighthouse. Uncanny resemblance, is it not??
Our final destination was Bells Beach - which is a beach thats off the hizzy for surfing. The waves are unexpectedly forceful but it was incredible.




All in all the experience was awesome - very windy and not a good hair day - but still awesome!

Also, thank you for your many emails with feedback on my blog! I'm glad you guys are enjoying it and it gives me more of a reason to keep updating it :)

Melbourne Fashion

As promised...Australian Fashion! Thankfully i've befriended heaps of aussie chicks who have led me in the right fashion direction!

Well i thought it would be all surfing gear in Australia- Roxy, Quicksilver, etc. Maybe in Brisbane or Sydney, but not in Melbourne. It takes only one trip into the city to be able to feel the Euroethnic undertones of this urban metropolis. However, as big as the urban area is there are so many suburbs around- and apparantly there is a certain distinct style North of the Yarra versus South of the Yarra. I've only been here a couple of weeks but from what i've learned so far, these are the 3 major trends that i see.

1. SKINNYS!! Skinny jeans are all the rage here, worn best with flat pointy or round toed shoes, cuffed up or left down, or worn with scrunchy flat boots. Scrunchy round toed boots with a heel are also hot with skinnys (thankfully i picked up a military green pair in HK). I really didnt need to buy those True Religions before I left Calgary, because they are flared and i almost feel "dowdy" in them! So my next mission is to find a pair of skinnys that I can add to my wardrobe.



2. Chunky Necklaces! Although lots and lots of necklaces used to be in here, it seems as though the focus is being taken toward just one peice, long or short, colorful or bland, but definately CHUNKY! I am embracing this as most of you know that i LOVE chunky necklaces. I just bought a bright orange one which i will be soon busting with my royal blue shirt - gotta love complimentary colours.


3. Long Strap Hobo bags! These are definitely SO in right now - worn long or short but mostly long. The best part is you can find them in so many different styles and colors, and they fit EVERYTHING a girl needs! Charms hanging off bags are also pretty hot - its all about the bag! Metallics are still slammin, and coordinating with a big belt also works well.

Okay now i really feel like i have too much time on my hands! Really i should be sleeping right now. But on the subject of beauty, I had to go check out MAC last time i went to Chadstone mall - it was in the MYERS. I saw it from far and it was calling my name, along with BENEFIT and other great brands. However it was only as i compared prices when i realized how glad i was that I made a MAC run before i left home.

Studiofx: CAN $26 AUS $48

okay yes, gasp with me. I was flabbergasted. So i wont do further price comparisons because it almost brings a tear to my eye. But i will list the prices that I found!

Eyeliner: AUS $32 (I really hope I dont run out of my Smolder Eye Kohl)
Lipstick: AUS $34
Lipliner: AUS $32
Eyeshadow: AUS $30

Well I guess when I open up my cosmetics company i'll know how to appease my target market! Oh lets do a Pantene Pro-V comparason. This is really sad, seriously, grab a kleenex:

Pantene Pro-V Shampoo: CAN $6.95 (maximum) AUS: $12.95 - $13.99

Yes i have actually seen it for 13.99!! I bought VO5 Gel for 8 dollars! YES V05 GEL!! Oh and on the subject of hair, i think the fuse in my CHI blew - very very upset about that :(

okay this entry has gone on long enough! off to bed for me! I included a link on the side of this page with more pics from my trip. Well, on to another dreadful day at uni - those stores will but up soon....