Julia's+Blog

=//**City Experience**//=

Day 1: Speed walking to the train station at 8:30 in the morning, because you promised friends you'd meet them there, is not the most ideal situation. Either is the panic that goes through you when you think you've missed the train you're supposed to be on. But once you finally get everything in order, you're with your friends and the train you missed wasn't your's, you tend to relax- but not me, I didn't know how much money I even had on my myki and if it was even going to be valid. When it allowed me to tap on, I breathed out a sigh of relief...at least I was going to get there.

When we finally made it to the City, there was 30 minutes to spare. What better way to relax in the morning then to get hot chocolates (FYI it was one of the best things I've ever tasted- definitely going back there!). Meeting up with D1 and D2 in Federation Square, we made our way to the Shrine of Remembrance. Now honestly I've never been there, I didn't actually know what to expect- and I was happily surprised to find out what we were doing. To me it sounded like some fun, and I was intrigued by the guides stories. I understood the brutality of war, but I'd never put myself in this soldiers shoes to truly understand what went through their heads. It was an incredible place and the architecture was beautiful. But I couldn't help but feel depressed. It was such a sad thing to remember- the deaths of all these innocent people, who honestly didn't know what they were getting themselves into. When we left the building I felt as though I knew more of Australia's history and I'm actually wanting to know more.

After scoffing down lunch in the pathetic 20 minute break we had, it was a short walk to the church which held the program 'Urban Seed'. Inside we discussed the issues of homelessness and came to a conclusion that we were all mislead by the stereotype of homeless people. In fact most "hobos" are average people who have gone through tough times. After that discussion, we walked through the alleyways of Melbourne, learning of the various acts of kindness that Urban Seed has done for the underprivileged inhabitants of the city. We soon found ourselves at a shelter that provided meals and entertainment for everybody, this building didn't separate the classes of people- they were treated equally in this place. At the end of the 2 hour tour I now knew the difficulties of everyday life for these homeless people. I think I'm going to be be more sympathetic towards these people, now that I know how they think, and I doubt I'll just be able to pass by them on the streets without feeling some sort of emotion.

Day 2:

Today was the day I'd been waiting for- the scavenger hunt! After arriving early at the station and catching the train, I made my way to Fed Square. Meeting up with everyone I was excited, it was almost time to start the 'race'. I got with my group (Carly, Katherine & Maria) and we discussed tactics, planning out how we'd dominate this competition. Getting off with a running start to the competition (literally!) we were determined to win this hunt. It was a crazy and fun experience running through the city, we were confused and lost several times. As time ran out, our determination grew- we weren't going to leave until this task was completed. After almost getting hit by cars, running to catch trams, sprinting through parks in the rain and laughing like crazies we arrived at the state library at 12 on the dot- our scavenger hunt complete!. We relaxed down on the couches and attempted to dry our hair as we looked around wondering where everybody was. Were we early? Are we at the right place?! WHERE IS EVERYBODY?! Finally we managed to contact one of the teachers and they dismissed us to lunch.We happily went and ate still wondering why everybody had gone to the wrong finish line- oh well.

We all were relaxing thinking that we'd easily make our way back to Fed Square within the 20 minutes we had left, but of course something else had to go wrong. The train was bloody cancelled! - and we only had 5 minutes left, panicking we made our way onto a tram hoping that it was taking us in the right direction. Running around the city yet again we made our finally made to our destination- still laughing about the little freak out Katherine had when she thought the tram was going to pass our stop. Meeting up with the group we learned that we were the only ones to complete the hunt, so we deemed ourselves the winners of this 'competition'.

Due to the lovely Melbourne weather we were having, our street art tour was cancelled so we found ourselves wandering the building of ACMI, it was basically a building of movie effects and optical illusions. It was quite entertaining and I was glad to be undercover for once. We walked around the place filming the stupid things we did- like our slow motion jumps. Overall it was quite entertaining- but not as amusing as the morning and been for me. In conclusion I'll just say that Melbourne is a very big city- easy to get lost in! And quite honestly, I hate trams- those things are unreliable!

<--- Wish the weather had been this good!

//**Day 3:**//

Sadly today was the last day of city experience- and it wasn't even in the city! >.< Arriving at Strathmore Uniting Church at 9:00 was much better- I'd finally had a sleep in! I was one of the first people there so I had to stand outside in the freezing weather, as the doors were locked. Shortly everybody had arrived- including our 'coach' Gabby. Today she was going to teach us some basics of self defence. We were taught that we needed to be more confident and look like 'stronger' people, so that if anyone was looking for an easy target to pick on- it wouldn't be us! Gabby also taught us some of her moves- like blocking hits and the good ol' groin kick. Some of the things that we were taught in that lesson were quite disturbing, and now I've had second thoughts on going for night walks through the park with friends...not one of my smarter ideas... I feel as though that lesson provided me with the information I needed, and personally I'll feel safer walking around the streets- night or day!

Now it was time for the boys to join us, as Police Officers were going to give us info on the danger of what you share on the internet. We were told of some horrible things that people do these days, the lack of respect we show is disgusting! I know for sure that I'll never let myself get pressured into taking private photos and I'm going to be very careful of what I put on the internet.

After our lunch break we now moved on to more personal things- like what made us individual from each other and how that affected how we socialized with others. This program was an awesome idea, as I saw that these differences weren't necessarily negative. I feel like these activities could have spoken out to students who didn't quite feel comfortable in their own shoes. It was a fun program that raised the differences between us, and how they didn't have to be looked at negatively. Finally we were dismissed and I could go home to a nice heated place- that church was freezing!



Overall I enjoyed city experience very much, it was educational, but not in a boring way. I had fun trying to find my way around the city, trying to catch the right train and practising my deadly kicks ;) I believe that we should do this yearly- just with differences that related to what we were studying. Because travelling independently is a very good skill as far as I'm concerned. All in all, I had heaps of fun!

Hey Julia, its Kat... im just writing a comment for you. I'ts apparently needed in the criteria... Your blog was great! Really! It was funny, and it wasn't too long (like mine heehee) Great conclusion by the way, once again, shorter than mine... Oh actually no yours is longer... Am i supposed to compare them? Coment? I'm kind of just babling here... :) <3