As was mentioned in my last entry, the month of October was always bound to be when I had to hit the books. With four essays to write and then an exam on the 1st of November, there has been far less time for me to enjoy myself, though I managed to fit in another visit to Rottnest Island, in warmer weather this time which only made it nicer (though the Quokkas appeared unwilling to come out of the shade).
After my exam I also got to experience something which I had been looking forward to almost since I arrived in Perth, which was spending a day watching cricket at the WACA cricket ground. Having been an avid cricket fan since I was a child, getting to watch Australia and South Africa in person at one of the most iconic grounds in world cricket was a great experience. I won’t bore you with the full details (because I could take up an entire blog post with it) but it was well worth the $30 (even if a beer was $8.50)
The other event that livened up my post-exam period was the ResClub End of Semester Party. This was my final event in college, as it was for many people who have been here far longer than me, and also marked the end of my time as International Rep on ResClub so it was an excellent night tinged with some sadness, though it did end with an impromptu Chinese supper at two in the morning!
As hinted at above, my time at University Hall is nearly at an end, as I write the exam period proper is about to begin and we have to be moved out by the 27th. As a result, this will likely be my last blog post from Perth until I come back in February for my second semester (though there may be one documenting my end of semester travels), so I thought it might be a good time to reflect on some of the real world things that you deal with on exchange.
Firstly, planning finances is probably the most important part of your exchange. My financial planning essentially left me planning to have no money left by the end of this semester, prior to a large drop in the pound which has left me scrambling for cash. Do not just assume you’ll walk into a job if you need to make up cash because many employers are hesitant to employ international students.
Homesickness is very real. I’ve also found that it can hit at strange times, often for me when I am just sat in my room with nothing to do. I think I wrote a bit about this in my first blog, but I have found myself missing certain aspects of home far more than I expected, even as the semester went on. It was particularly bad for me in the few days after my boyfriend had gone home, but I’ve still found no better cure than finding something to take your mind off of it- this blog being a particularly good tool!
You will make friends. Don’t stress, you probably managed it during your first year at university, you can do it again on your exchange. Just make sure again not to hide yourself away in your room because then you’ll miss out on the point at which no one knows anyone else and needs to make friends, and that can contribute to feeling homesick.
Eventually, you’ll have to realise you’re not on holiday and actually your university requires you to do some work. This has hit some exchangers here harder than others, especially those whose semester/year counts toward their final degree grade- so make sure that you actually plan to do some work at some point else you’ll have a very hectic lead up to exams!
You will, almost certainly, enjoy your year abroad, but don’t be surprised if things do go wrong or you find yourself struggling at times. You will get to experience the most amazing things in a new environment and meet people who will become steadfast friends surprisingly quickly (I’ve only recently realised how good a friend some people are as they prepare to go home for good at the end of the semester). As I hope has been shown through these first few blogs, I have loved nearly every minute of my exchange in this first semester, but sometimes it’s better to be honest and admit that not everything is perfect all the time. However, I’ll take my experiences from this semester and hopefully have an even better time when I come back in February!