I went to the Student Expo today. I had an interesting conversation with the lady who did the Security session yesterday. I was interested to find out whether Curtin was perceived as a dangerous place, in comparison to the environment I have lived in in London. She said the lecture was pitched at this level to make students aware what can happen if they make themselves vulnerable. She said that very few people get mugged, but if they are, they will be, typically, small and slight, using an Ipod, with earpieces in both ears, and probably carrying an obvious laptop. Anyone can access campus, and muggers are typically from some sort of deprived background. So it is a fairly common pattern across the world. If you make yourself vulnerable, and have attractive possessions, you will get mugged.
Additionally she said the local newspapers would make a feature of this type of incident, and to her knowledge, some of the "facts" reported, were different to the situations that had been reported to her, as the Security Officer. In the last week or so, the newspaper reported that 5 people had been assaulted. She was aware of only 4, of whom only 1 had been assaulted by punching. Only one had been ordered to hand over something valuable (laptop) and two girls together had been ordered to hand over their MacDonalds, which they did. I think if I had had a MacDonalds, I would have paid them to take it away!? Perhaps I am being flippant, but the 1-1 conversation did put it into perspective. I think if you are just normally streetwise, you will be ok.
Thursday, 7 July 2011
Half way through International Induction week
I have spent the last couple of days attending various briefing sessions. Welcome to Australia was a hoot, with the lecturer, Jim, giving an excellent demonstration of Waltzing Matilda, and explaining what it meant - it is about a wandering unemployed man who steals a sheep, is caught, and ends up commiting suicide by drowning rather than being arrested! We had an eye opening security lecture - Curtin appears to be very safe to me, but after 7pm the buses in the area are followed by security staff, and you can ask the local bus to set you down at the nearest point to your home, rather than getting off at the normal stop. We were encouraged not to sit waiting for long periods at bus stops, but to wait in a building on campus and go to the stop just before the bus is due. Perhaps the buses are more reliable than I am used to! Also on campus, you are encouraged to request Security to escort you from your building to the accommodation block or bus stop after dark. This would never happen in London, and I think we have a much higher crime rate. We also were encouraged to think about things we found unusual in Australia - things like having trees and sculpture in the middle of the road (traffic calming) and alcohol being openly sold in shops (unusual to students from muslim countries).
This afternoon, after lectures finish, I am going back with Cali and Jodie, to investigate the swimming club opposite where they live. This would be 2 buses to get back to my place, but I think it is achievable. Apparently the masters club swim Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. I'd certainly like to get back to swimming twice a week.
This afternoon, after lectures finish, I am going back with Cali and Jodie, to investigate the swimming club opposite where they live. This would be 2 buses to get back to my place, but I think it is achievable. Apparently the masters club swim Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. I'd certainly like to get back to swimming twice a week.
Monday, 4 July 2011
International Induction day
This turned out to be an easy day. Exchange students were told to report to the International office for 11am. There are c 120 exchange students, which surprised me, as we were so few. I think there are many other types of student, but I suspect most foreign students are independently arranged, and so have to pay full fees, as opposed to the reduced fees we pay as we are matched to outgoing Australian students going to the UK. I met up with most of the people from Herts, as well as people from the USA, Hungary, Japan, Sweden, and Scotland.
Some students booked on the tour to the brewery and chocolate factory did not show. I gather there had been some problems with overbooking of on-campus accommodation and quite a few students (including those from Herts) had been booked into local hostels and hotels, and some had elected to stay with family members if they had relations in Perth (one of the Herts girls did). Some students appeared to have had a poor initial experience of accommodation in Perth, although I have been lucky and have no complaints. But things appeared to be being sorted out. Once of the Herts girls received an accommodation offer while we were at lunch, and it was of the type of accommodation that she had requested. And a couple of years ago when I started at Herts, our accommodation was so overbooked that people on my course were in hotel accommodation for 3 months, and one person I met today was in this accommodation for the whole year!
We were comparing prices UK/Aus. Apparently some of our boys have already been out clubbing (not my scene!) and beer prices were $9-10 per pint! (c£6-7). This seems extortionately expensive to me, but I know there is a UK campaign for minimum pricing per alcohol unit, so maybe our prices are very low compared to other countries. And I have been told Aussie beer is weaker than in the UK. Not a subject I know anything about, so this is just hearsay. Also I've been told 20 cigarettes are $12 for 20 and I think the UK price is about £7, so aussie prices are a bit more expensive. As I don't smoke or drink, I don't care how much they charge.
I forgot to take my water bottle today. Although cafe prices seem similar to London prices, there is a very good campaign here to reduce waste by recycling water bottles. There are free water fountains in the circulating areas on campus, so you can refill your bottle for free. I've not seen this in the UK, and I think it is a wonderful idea. Healthy and free. Especially given the summer temperatures seem to average 40 degrees - free water to keep you rehydrated.
Tomorrow's event starts at 0900 with "the big breakfast". So I'll go to that and then see about going to a library induction.
I've also been running around the internet to find a swimming club. It's difficult to work out the precise locations but I think the nearest is Perth City SC. It is a bit north of the railway station, and they swim on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Saturday morning. I would not fancy walking back to the bus station in the dark but I will investigate. I might take a trip there on Saturday to find out what it is like. Looks very competitive from the website, which I am not. But I will keep an open mind.
Some students booked on the tour to the brewery and chocolate factory did not show. I gather there had been some problems with overbooking of on-campus accommodation and quite a few students (including those from Herts) had been booked into local hostels and hotels, and some had elected to stay with family members if they had relations in Perth (one of the Herts girls did). Some students appeared to have had a poor initial experience of accommodation in Perth, although I have been lucky and have no complaints. But things appeared to be being sorted out. Once of the Herts girls received an accommodation offer while we were at lunch, and it was of the type of accommodation that she had requested. And a couple of years ago when I started at Herts, our accommodation was so overbooked that people on my course were in hotel accommodation for 3 months, and one person I met today was in this accommodation for the whole year!
We were comparing prices UK/Aus. Apparently some of our boys have already been out clubbing (not my scene!) and beer prices were $9-10 per pint! (c£6-7). This seems extortionately expensive to me, but I know there is a UK campaign for minimum pricing per alcohol unit, so maybe our prices are very low compared to other countries. And I have been told Aussie beer is weaker than in the UK. Not a subject I know anything about, so this is just hearsay. Also I've been told 20 cigarettes are $12 for 20 and I think the UK price is about £7, so aussie prices are a bit more expensive. As I don't smoke or drink, I don't care how much they charge.
I forgot to take my water bottle today. Although cafe prices seem similar to London prices, there is a very good campaign here to reduce waste by recycling water bottles. There are free water fountains in the circulating areas on campus, so you can refill your bottle for free. I've not seen this in the UK, and I think it is a wonderful idea. Healthy and free. Especially given the summer temperatures seem to average 40 degrees - free water to keep you rehydrated.
Tomorrow's event starts at 0900 with "the big breakfast". So I'll go to that and then see about going to a library induction.
I've also been running around the internet to find a swimming club. It's difficult to work out the precise locations but I think the nearest is Perth City SC. It is a bit north of the railway station, and they swim on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Saturday morning. I would not fancy walking back to the bus station in the dark but I will investigate. I might take a trip there on Saturday to find out what it is like. Looks very competitive from the website, which I am not. But I will keep an open mind.
Sunday, 3 July 2011
And today is Sunday
This is my first Sunday in Perth. Having done a little research before I came here, I was expecting most places to be closed on Sundays, a bit like the UK 20 years ago. So I planned to go to Perth Museum, then come back and do some drawing and knitting.
However, when I got the bus into Perth, everything was open. I went to the museum, which is directly north of the station. I did a large circle of walking before I got there, having been convinced it was directly south of the station. I wanted to see the gallery about WA Land and People, but this was closed for refurbishment. So instead I went around the Discovery Centre and looked at the exhibits (alive and dead) of Australian fauna and implications of their being used as tradeable items and which ones were deadly or not. Then I went to the section that dealt with minerals and crystals, and meteorites.
Once I was tired I went out and got some lunch. Then as all the shops were open, I went back to Woolworths and bought a couple of food items, so that I can build my store cupboard without feeling like a donkey carrying it all.
I'm starting to get to know my way around Perth city centre now. It seems very odd that Perth has c1.5m residents who are spread out across a vast area, whereas London has about 7m, crammed into a much smaller space. Perth strikes me as a leafy suburb. From the university literature, it made the east and north sides of Perth, seem old and run down. This is not true by London standards. And the city centre itself seems tiny, compared to the environment I have worked in.
Tomorrow I'm off to International Induction - a trip to the Feral Brewery and Chocolate Factory. Should be fun!
However, when I got the bus into Perth, everything was open. I went to the museum, which is directly north of the station. I did a large circle of walking before I got there, having been convinced it was directly south of the station. I wanted to see the gallery about WA Land and People, but this was closed for refurbishment. So instead I went around the Discovery Centre and looked at the exhibits (alive and dead) of Australian fauna and implications of their being used as tradeable items and which ones were deadly or not. Then I went to the section that dealt with minerals and crystals, and meteorites.
Once I was tired I went out and got some lunch. Then as all the shops were open, I went back to Woolworths and bought a couple of food items, so that I can build my store cupboard without feeling like a donkey carrying it all.
I'm starting to get to know my way around Perth city centre now. It seems very odd that Perth has c1.5m residents who are spread out across a vast area, whereas London has about 7m, crammed into a much smaller space. Perth strikes me as a leafy suburb. From the university literature, it made the east and north sides of Perth, seem old and run down. This is not true by London standards. And the city centre itself seems tiny, compared to the environment I have worked in.
Tomorrow I'm off to International Induction - a trip to the Feral Brewery and Chocolate Factory. Should be fun!
Saturday, 2 July 2011
My first Saturday in Perth and comparisons with the UK
Today's plan was to find the local shops and then go on to Perth for some shopping. The first part of the plan was not successful.
I looked carefully at the local map before I went out and thought I knew where I was going. I walked for about half an hour, and got to the place where I thought the shops were, but no joy, I could not find them. The 30 bus approached, I wondered whether to get on, but decided not to, and to continue looking for the shops. About 10 minutes later I decided I was not going to find them, looked at the timetable, carefully, and discovered the half hourly timetable I had been reading, was for weekdays, and the Saturday and Sunday 30 service was hourly. As I sat at the bus stop, I read the bus map/timetable carefully, and realised that if I went to my usual stop, I could have a half hourly weekend service into Perth. This is because there are two services that serve Salter Point to Perth - the 31 serves the eastern side of the housing estate and the 30 serves the west. If I go to my usual stop, I can get one service on each side of the road, to go eastbound or westbound, and they run exactly half an hour apart. It was only because I had 45 minutes to kill, that I realised this! If in doubt, read the instructions!
I travelled into Perth and had a very successful shopping trip. I bought some jeans (one size smaller than last time!) for $39 at a basic chain store. This is c£26 which is slightly more than a similar chain store in the UK would charge. The Borders bookshop appeared very expensive - typically $33 (£22) for an average paperback biography, whereas in the UK I would pay £7-11. However, this was the only bookshop remaining in business. Looks like Amazon has destroyed booksellers in Australia as well as the UK. I saw two bookshops, both closing down, and bought 3 Australian biographies of the last 50 years for a total of $46 (60% discount). I read this type of material in every country I visit, to get a handle on recent social history.
I have thought about why prices in Perth seem to be high. I have read that Perth is the most isolated city in the world - huge distances to any other built up area. So if everything has to be transported, it would account for some increased costs. And I have noticed that lots of the fruit and veg is Australian (unlike the UK where we imports lots of stuff we can grow ourselves). If so much produce is internally grown, I can see why Customs are so hot on preventing illegal/unintentional importation of fruit and veg, in order to protect their agriculture from pests and diseases.
I asked where to find an art shop, and someone gave me good directions to a proper art shop down a back alley, where I managed to get more watercolour paper postcards and a basic set of watercolour brushes. Now I will be able to use my Inktense pencils and capture the wonderful colours around me.
Then I went to Woolworths (a grocery store here, not a general store as used to be in the UK) and picked up some more food. This made me reflect on things I take for granted in the UK. Now I am an exchange student, and don't run a car, I am restricted on what I can buy, by how much I can carry. This may sound patently obvious but had not occurred to me previously. All I wanted was vegetables, milk, flour, and tea. But it was two bags full, and it was moderately heavy when combined with the books and jeans I had bought. Fortunately I had planned my shopping to do the heavy stuff last (if you omit the unplanned book purchases!), was close to the bus station and staggered there, and collapsed onto the 30 bus. Maybe this is why I am losing weight!! Yippee!
When I got back, the sun came out and made the outlook from my window look great. So I got out the pencils and water, and did a little postcard of the sky, wall, olives and roses, and washed into it with a brush. My joy was complete.
Now to cook dinner with all the heavy ingredients I have carried home!
I looked carefully at the local map before I went out and thought I knew where I was going. I walked for about half an hour, and got to the place where I thought the shops were, but no joy, I could not find them. The 30 bus approached, I wondered whether to get on, but decided not to, and to continue looking for the shops. About 10 minutes later I decided I was not going to find them, looked at the timetable, carefully, and discovered the half hourly timetable I had been reading, was for weekdays, and the Saturday and Sunday 30 service was hourly. As I sat at the bus stop, I read the bus map/timetable carefully, and realised that if I went to my usual stop, I could have a half hourly weekend service into Perth. This is because there are two services that serve Salter Point to Perth - the 31 serves the eastern side of the housing estate and the 30 serves the west. If I go to my usual stop, I can get one service on each side of the road, to go eastbound or westbound, and they run exactly half an hour apart. It was only because I had 45 minutes to kill, that I realised this! If in doubt, read the instructions!
I travelled into Perth and had a very successful shopping trip. I bought some jeans (one size smaller than last time!) for $39 at a basic chain store. This is c£26 which is slightly more than a similar chain store in the UK would charge. The Borders bookshop appeared very expensive - typically $33 (£22) for an average paperback biography, whereas in the UK I would pay £7-11. However, this was the only bookshop remaining in business. Looks like Amazon has destroyed booksellers in Australia as well as the UK. I saw two bookshops, both closing down, and bought 3 Australian biographies of the last 50 years for a total of $46 (60% discount). I read this type of material in every country I visit, to get a handle on recent social history.
I have thought about why prices in Perth seem to be high. I have read that Perth is the most isolated city in the world - huge distances to any other built up area. So if everything has to be transported, it would account for some increased costs. And I have noticed that lots of the fruit and veg is Australian (unlike the UK where we imports lots of stuff we can grow ourselves). If so much produce is internally grown, I can see why Customs are so hot on preventing illegal/unintentional importation of fruit and veg, in order to protect their agriculture from pests and diseases.
I asked where to find an art shop, and someone gave me good directions to a proper art shop down a back alley, where I managed to get more watercolour paper postcards and a basic set of watercolour brushes. Now I will be able to use my Inktense pencils and capture the wonderful colours around me.
Then I went to Woolworths (a grocery store here, not a general store as used to be in the UK) and picked up some more food. This made me reflect on things I take for granted in the UK. Now I am an exchange student, and don't run a car, I am restricted on what I can buy, by how much I can carry. This may sound patently obvious but had not occurred to me previously. All I wanted was vegetables, milk, flour, and tea. But it was two bags full, and it was moderately heavy when combined with the books and jeans I had bought. Fortunately I had planned my shopping to do the heavy stuff last (if you omit the unplanned book purchases!), was close to the bus station and staggered there, and collapsed onto the 30 bus. Maybe this is why I am losing weight!! Yippee!
When I got back, the sun came out and made the outlook from my window look great. So I got out the pencils and water, and did a little postcard of the sky, wall, olives and roses, and washed into it with a brush. My joy was complete.
Now to cook dinner with all the heavy ingredients I have carried home!
Friday, 1 July 2011
Another successful day
My plan for the day was to do a circular tour on the bus - bus 30 to Curtin to explore the campus in more detail, then another bus to Perth city centre, then bus 30 back to the flat.
I have discovered the walk to the bus stop is 12 minutes, half of which is uphill away from the riverfront. As I have rushed up this several times now, my hamstrings are starting to feel very tight - as I am so unfit. However on a positive note, my trousers are swinging on me like a marquee. They have either stretched ... or maybe I've lost weight! Don't have any scales, so I'm hoping it is the latter.
I thoroughly explored the campus - I can confidently find my way from the bus station to the Textile and Printmaking block, up to the library and Student Centre, to the bank and cafes.
In the library I found the textile section and took out a book, to test whether my student card was working. It took a bit of practice but I got there eventually. You need to scan the barcode on the book, and I was scanning the publishers barcode, when it needed the university barcode! And you need your student card password for everything. You also need to regularly check a subsection "OCC" on the university computer when you take a book out. The standard loan is for 6 weeks - but if anyone else requests the book, the library will recall the book, via OCC. You are not sent an email, but are instructed to check OCC every week. If you fail to return the book, you are fined. I have yet to find my way around the Curtin computer system but I expect I will get used to it.
The book I took out is Art Textiles of the World - Australia Volume 2. What an ace book. It shows the work of 12 Australian textile artists and the philosophy behind their works. A must for all textile enthusiasts.
Amy, at Westbank, was most helpful today. I was wondering how to find out how much cash was left on the cash passport, when she told me the balance could not be read by ATMs. I asked whether my Westbank cards had arrived, and they had not, so I said I could not draw cash. Amy said she could draw cash from my account on my behalf, so we checked the balance. No international transfer had been made, so she offered to check at 1pm and 3pm and ring me so I could come in to collect some cash once the transfer had been made. At 1pm Amy rang, stated the transfer had gone through, and I was the proud (temporary) owner of $1000. How's that for customer service!
I've been comparing prices with the UK. The bus fares seem cheap, but most other things seem to be a similar price to London! In an oriental restaurant, a one course sit down meal was $60 for 3 people. We only had 2 x plain rice, 3 meat dishes and large bottle of water. This equates to c£14 per head. In one of the student cafes the main hot meal (chicken curry and rice) was $9-80 (c£6.50) and a medium bowl of salad was $7.40 (c£5). This was the full price - you can buy a guild card, which I think is a discount card which entitles you to a discounted price of between 10-15%. I'm not sure how much they cost, but I think is is around $50. So if you are eating on site all the time for a whole year, and using it for your main meals, it would be a good deal, but for occasional use, not worth it. I think we find out about Guild during International induction next week.
By the time I got back to base, I was exhausted. I saw Tangea and her husband Richard, and paid the bond. I am very glad to have paid my bills without too much delay.
I have discovered the walk to the bus stop is 12 minutes, half of which is uphill away from the riverfront. As I have rushed up this several times now, my hamstrings are starting to feel very tight - as I am so unfit. However on a positive note, my trousers are swinging on me like a marquee. They have either stretched ... or maybe I've lost weight! Don't have any scales, so I'm hoping it is the latter.
I thoroughly explored the campus - I can confidently find my way from the bus station to the Textile and Printmaking block, up to the library and Student Centre, to the bank and cafes.
Lovely lines and textures
and shapes and colours, on campus!
In the library I found the textile section and took out a book, to test whether my student card was working. It took a bit of practice but I got there eventually. You need to scan the barcode on the book, and I was scanning the publishers barcode, when it needed the university barcode! And you need your student card password for everything. You also need to regularly check a subsection "OCC" on the university computer when you take a book out. The standard loan is for 6 weeks - but if anyone else requests the book, the library will recall the book, via OCC. You are not sent an email, but are instructed to check OCC every week. If you fail to return the book, you are fined. I have yet to find my way around the Curtin computer system but I expect I will get used to it.
The book I took out is Art Textiles of the World - Australia Volume 2. What an ace book. It shows the work of 12 Australian textile artists and the philosophy behind their works. A must for all textile enthusiasts.
Amy, at Westbank, was most helpful today. I was wondering how to find out how much cash was left on the cash passport, when she told me the balance could not be read by ATMs. I asked whether my Westbank cards had arrived, and they had not, so I said I could not draw cash. Amy said she could draw cash from my account on my behalf, so we checked the balance. No international transfer had been made, so she offered to check at 1pm and 3pm and ring me so I could come in to collect some cash once the transfer had been made. At 1pm Amy rang, stated the transfer had gone through, and I was the proud (temporary) owner of $1000. How's that for customer service!
I've been comparing prices with the UK. The bus fares seem cheap, but most other things seem to be a similar price to London! In an oriental restaurant, a one course sit down meal was $60 for 3 people. We only had 2 x plain rice, 3 meat dishes and large bottle of water. This equates to c£14 per head. In one of the student cafes the main hot meal (chicken curry and rice) was $9-80 (c£6.50) and a medium bowl of salad was $7.40 (c£5). This was the full price - you can buy a guild card, which I think is a discount card which entitles you to a discounted price of between 10-15%. I'm not sure how much they cost, but I think is is around $50. So if you are eating on site all the time for a whole year, and using it for your main meals, it would be a good deal, but for occasional use, not worth it. I think we find out about Guild during International induction next week.
By the time I got back to base, I was exhausted. I saw Tangea and her husband Richard, and paid the bond. I am very glad to have paid my bills without too much delay.
What makes you feel settled?
I am starting to feel much more settled. I have the keys to my own place, and I have paid my first rent. I have not yet paid the $1000 bond, but my landlady is ok to wait until I have drawn sufficient cash.
I have opened a bank account and have arranged a transfer of a shedload of money to maintain me for the year. However, the bank cards take a week to be issued, so I'm still waiting for them. And as I did not have a permanent address when I opened the account, the cards will be sent to the Westbank branch at the University. In the UK I had put money on a cash passport, but as a mature student going into off-campus accommodation, I did not put enough money on it. I brought £200 - c$300 - in cash (fine) and £800 c$1200 on the cash passport (not enough). People who live off-campus - typically mature students - will pay $500 per fortnight rent, and also need to provide $1000 bond money which is lodged with the Australian Government and is security for the letting. So the amount I brought with me was sufficient for students living on-campus as it is cheaper. But mature students usually like life a bit quieter than on-campus, so we have to look big and pay up!
So I need to be economical until I get my bank cards!
The flat is very clean, light and airy - it is actually a granny flat to the side of the main house. But I was quite surprised how much more settled I felt once I had unpacked, put my things on view, and bought some food and filled the cupboards. Life is good. I'm off out now, trialling more bus routes, and university facilities.
I have opened a bank account and have arranged a transfer of a shedload of money to maintain me for the year. However, the bank cards take a week to be issued, so I'm still waiting for them. And as I did not have a permanent address when I opened the account, the cards will be sent to the Westbank branch at the University. In the UK I had put money on a cash passport, but as a mature student going into off-campus accommodation, I did not put enough money on it. I brought £200 - c$300 - in cash (fine) and £800 c$1200 on the cash passport (not enough). People who live off-campus - typically mature students - will pay $500 per fortnight rent, and also need to provide $1000 bond money which is lodged with the Australian Government and is security for the letting. So the amount I brought with me was sufficient for students living on-campus as it is cheaper. But mature students usually like life a bit quieter than on-campus, so we have to look big and pay up!
So I need to be economical until I get my bank cards!
The flat is very clean, light and airy - it is actually a granny flat to the side of the main house. But I was quite surprised how much more settled I felt once I had unpacked, put my things on view, and bought some food and filled the cupboards. Life is good. I'm off out now, trialling more bus routes, and university facilities.
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