The wild, I tell you, was beautiful

Best Pizza in Freo

lcm07 — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 20:11:00 GMT

This past semester I was lucky to get a job working directly under my dorm in Fremantle at a pizza and pasta cafe. The Restaurant was called Pizza on High (high st.) and was popular for it's all you can eat deal which made it popular with all my friends at Uni. It didn’t look like much but I can honestly say it was some of the best pizza I’ve ever had. The restaurant is run by a mother and daughter team, one makes the pasta, the other the pizza.

This little hole in the wall restaurant became some what of my second home in Freo because I was there so often. All of the food was home made and was all the better for it. Eating there was almost like being invited into their home for a meal (that’s just how small the place is and how good the food is). I hold them personally responsible for my freshman 15 in fro.

If you happen to be in Freo stop in on

High St., tell them Laura sent you.

The Bibb

lcm07 — Fri, 9 Nov 2007 20:43:00 GMT

I have just returned from 4 days in the Western Australian bush. we took the Bibbulmun Trail (which goes from Albany to Perth) from Dwellingup to North Banister.

As trails go this is a very luxurious one. Hiking an average of 15km with huts at each stop, many more experienced hikers would simply double hut and cover twice the distance in one day. Most huts slept up to twelve people and were almost never populated by just one group. The fact that we didn't need to carry tents with us made all the difference. The trail is also nice because, for those hiking long distances, there is a restock town about every 4-7 days.

The most awsome part about being in the bush was the change of scenery. I felt as though I was in Jarassic Park. For someone who is not accustomed to the Aussie wilderness it was quite a different environment. We saw lots of little gray kangaroos and one big red one and a few lizards. The trail was busy and we stayed with at least on other group each night. I'd like to come back and do the whole thing end to end some day.

Uluru and an Aboriginal Experience

lcm07 — Fri, 9 Nov 2007 18:27:00 GMT

Australia is a land of horizons. Whether you are on the western coast with nothing but Indian Ocean, or whether you are in the dead center of the continent and you see nothing but red and flat, until the world turns. The natural wonders here are humbling.

I spent 5 days in the area surrounding Alice Springs and saw all of the natural wonders that I could fit in. Kings Canyon and the Olga’s were spectacular, as was Uluru (which I did not climb). We slept in swags every night in different camp sights and sections of national park.

By far, the best part of the trip was an area called Oak Valley. Oak Valley is 100 square Kilometers of land which is lived on and ranched by about 5 aboriginal families. It took the families 8 years to win the land back from the government. We camped there for one night and were given a small tour of the area by the people who live there.

It is incredible to see the connection that they have to the land. Its something that cant be explained.

On the political end Aboriginal issues are very hotly contested in Australia today. It was interesting for me, as a non Australian, to see the reaction of those who had grown up in the country. One man told me that his trip to Oak Valley was the first positive experience he had ever had with an aboriginal person. Unfortunately this is not an unfamiliar statement as many Australians who live in the major cities rarely have positive experiences with aboriginal people.

For me, the contrast between the European Australian and Aboriginals is the most troubling and interesting part of the country.

Fabretto

lcm07 — Thu, 1 Nov 2007 22:01:00 GMT

Most of us had never been out of the country before, Nicaragua was quite the christening

From Managua we drove in an old yellow school bus to Estelí and stayed the night. From there we drove on all dirt roads up and down mountains to San Jose de Cusmapa. We had one casualty on this trek; a friend of mine found herself hanging her head out the window to vomit. All the windows on the bus were open due to the heat; the boy sitting behind my friend asked 'is it raining?' and soon realized that it wasn’t.

We were in Cusmapa to work with an organization called Fabretto. They are a fantastic organization of school around Nicaragua. We were there to aid in construction on a few new classrooms.

By the end of the trip my Spanish skills had greatly improved and I could actually communicate, somewhat, with the locals.

Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the western hemisphere, next to Haiti. What shocked me was that despaired the obvious poverty, the crime rate was considerably low and the people were generally welcoming and happy. I suppose, when everyone is poor, there is no one to steal from. And tourists in the area aren’t really tourists, but aid workers, and then harming them would essentially harm the locals as well.

I meet children who walk 5 hours a day through the mountains to get to school. We did manual labor during our stay, but I feel like they helped me more then we helped them.

The ins and outs of a semester in Perth

lcm07 — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 01:20:00 GMT

I am not a city person; as a matter of fact they make me sick. I’m not joking here; I have been known to loose my lunch after a long weekend in Chicago or New York. Perth, on the other hand, I find quite appealing. It’s as though someone has taken a vast a dry wilderness, snapped their fingers, and POOF! 1 1/2 million people and a thriving urban area upper. This city is friendly, happy, and manageable.

Fremantle is where I have been living. It thriving on the weekends and during the day I constantly find myself bumping into friends and acquaintances on the street. Freo is an entity struggling to stay independent of the ever expanding City of Perth. This quirky harbor town is filled with local and family owned shops and restaurants. This place is bohemian, it is chic.

The most recognizable part of Fremantle is the architecture. Most of the buildings in this town are around 100 years old. The round house and the old prison are always in view giving the town a living history atmosphere.

Western Australia itself is fantastic. Some consider it old fashioned and backwards, I think it’s refreshing. It is a booming western civilization in a place where humans probably shouldn’t be able to survive. All environmental concern aside, the existence of this state is astounding.

I love the country, I love the people, I have loved my time here, there is just one thing I wish I could go back and do over:

Unfortunately, I had no choice but to spend my time here living with 30+ fellow American students. They were great people to live with; I have made great friendships with all of them. However, that’s not why I came to Australia. If I could do it over again I would not live in an international (American dominated) dorm. Because of my living situation I found it impossible to get out and meet the locals. I did make many friends through my rugby club, but still...

It is understandably hard, when a large group of Americans walk into a bar together they sit together, and talk, and drink together. They are intimidated to talk to locals; locals are intimidated to talk to them. I did not come to this country to hang out with people from my own.