study break #2

I For the record, it took close to an hour to upload those kangaroo videos, so y'all better love them. I went to Kings Park in the heart of Perth yesterday to see the wildflowers. Apparently they are there all year long, but September is when they re-plant and make everything look nice again. The park provides a fabulous view of the city and the rivers surrounding it. The natural beauty of the land was very calming for me in this stressful week before my second break. They really do love to heap on the work right before you have some time off. I also picked up a side project of writing some article for the women's edition of the school magazine which will be out next month. I thought getting published in another country would be cool, and I am really passionate about women's issues (as you may know). I got really upset on Tuesday night because one of my flatmates said (while intoxicated) that "women are objects, and as soon as western culture adopts that belief from the east, the better off they will be". I didn't even know how to confront that kind of discrimination. You honestly can't reverse a belief someone has been raised with their whole life, but it is comments like that that push me further into the fight for women's rights. As you can see, the fight is far from over. for this break, I am going on a camping trip that the international student's office puts together that explores the Northern part of Western Australia. I will be gone for ten days with no access to the Internet, so I will not be blogging. I can give you a few things to look at while I am gone. The first is Monkey Mia and Ningalroo, two of the sights I will be visiting on my trip. Second, check out the Aussie news to see the dust storms they are having on the east coast, The pictures are pretty cool. Finally, I encourage everyone to take some time and educate yourself about the Aborigine issues in this country. It has an amazing history, and I am shocked that we are not told about in our education system. I've been working on a project about the intervention in the northern territory, and I think it is worth a look at for you as well. Wish me luck on my first out door trip ever.

Kings Park wildflower festival (45 photos), by Amanda Fucinato

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Bunbury

I had a wonderful weekend down south in Bunbury and Margaret River. The trees are a beautiful full green because of how wet the spring has been. Margaret River is home to the famous wineries in WA and the only chocolate factory in the region. The wine and the chocolate were delicious, and I felt very privileged to have a local person to show me all the finer points of the region. The ocean pictures are from the Bunbury beach and a region called Yallingup. Both are big tourist spots for surfers. If you went south from the beach, you would run into Antarctica, and going west would take you to Africa. It is fun to look at a map and see how the world is laid out. My perspective is really different now that I am out of the US.

Bunbury and Margret River (46 photos), by Amanda Fucinato

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.

Perth Zoo

The faculty at Murdoch University went on strike today, so I had my classes (including a take home exam) cancelled today. I made good use of my time and went to the Perth Zoo. It was half off admission for adults and swarming with school groups. I always find it hard to go somewhere where there are a lot of families when I am away from mine, but I keep them in my mind and heart as I tour around. Overall, there is much less fencing and separation between zoo guests and animals compared to in the states. As with every other wild life park here, the kangaroos are free to hop right up to you and say g'day. It never gets old , I promise you. I was taken aback by the size of the crocodile they had on exhibit. Apparently, it can get twice as big in the wild if it has the food resources. This male was taken out of the wild because it was too aggressive. It was eating female crocodiles in its group, a rare behavior only seen in the most vicious of crocs. I was fearful of the creature, and we were separated by glass. The other great giant of the zoo was the pelican. I had no idea how big they were, I had lunch by their lake and watched them preen themselves. They were beautiful. Something rare at the Perth Zoo is that during the day they take their elephants out for walks around the zoo. It keeps them fit and allows people to pet the animal. I didn't see them out while I was there, but the elephants certainly weren't in their cage either. Two interesting animals I saw were the Tasmanian Devil and the Numbat. Both have sad stories and face extinction very soon. Devils suffer from facial tumors that are very deadly, and will only be in captivity 15 years from now. Numbats are the mammal of Western Australia, and because they are so shy hiding in one type of tree, their habitats are ruined. The final special animal was the black cockatoo, who can only be seen in this part of Australia. They were very chatty! I hope you enjoy the pictures. I am attaching some videos so you can see the devils eating and playing, as well as the numbat running about. This weekend I am going to Bunbury, WA. More beautiful ocean pictures to come!

Numbat video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpVN-kDneW

Tasmanian Devils

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SU44KwIfBXM

Perth Zoo (84 photos), by Amanda Fucinato

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.

Choir Camp

I spent the weekend at choir camp at a site nearby in Fremantle. It was really great to be back around music and singing all day. The people in the choir are all out of college but stay involved because they like each other's company. They are all very gifted musicians, and I truly enjoy spending time with them. There was no heat at the camp, so I was cold and had trouble sleeping. Apparently, the current weather trend is unusual for the area, but that doesn't change the fact that I am getting grouchy about it. I have my first exam on Tuesday. I'm very nervous to the point where I feel I have over studied, making my nerves worse. I hope it goes well. The class is human resource economics, and it is confirming my choice to not go into a business field (despite what my dad may prefer). I picked up a new cookbook today and plan on cooking tonight to ease my nerves. The faculty here will be on strike on wednesday, so I am going to the zoo. Stay tuned for the pictures!!!

Perth 2 (18 photos), by Amanda Fucinato

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.

Cairns (211 photos), by Amanda Fucinato

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.

back from the reef

When I came home, I opened my suitcase to unpack and was hit with a wave of smells. Yes, some of it was of sweat from laying in the warm sun and walking in the afternoon heat, but I could also smell the salty ocean. I closed my eyes and could see the coral, holding my breath underwater, I hear parrot fish chewing on coral. The reef looks just like it does in Finding Nemo. I saw every fish and plant from the movie, all living in beautiful harmony ( except for the occasional predator). An equally as beautiful sight was the rainforest in Cairns. The Kuranda rainforest town had a mammal sanctuary, so I got to pet kangaroos again. It never gets old. I still had some of the food from their pen in my pocket. To get to Kuranda, one can take an old scenic railcar that has been in use since the 1800s. On the way down from the forest mountains, there is a skyrail. The little cars float above the trees, and I could see cockatoos in their nests. When I wasn't sightseeing. I stayed at my first hostel. I really enjoyed the experience, and I feel that having it as an all girls hostel makes the experience less intimidating. All of the girls I met told me our hostel was unusually nice and clean. This makes me nervous to go to a hostel again. Many of the girls were from Ireland and traveling around the country for the next year, working as they went. I can't even wrap my mind around traveling that way. Everyone was very nice, and I got a lot of good advice. I was surprised at how open all the buildings were in Cairns, with geckos and bugs running in and out all the time. This is apparently just part of life in the tropics. As hard as it was to leave the warm weather, coming back to Perth really did feel like coming home. Even though my flat was a mess, I missed my little room and all my friends. I didn't miss school, but like it or not I have a test in a week. I'm having trouble getting my pictures on the blog, so bear with me until I get that fixed. In the meantime, go watch finding nemo!