The Unexplored Path: My New Home Down Under

I arrived at The University of Newcastle on the Thursday before Orientation Week (O Week). My sister stayed for a couple of days to help me settle in, buy and carry everything I would need for my 4 months here. Times like these were when I missed my car most... RIP arms.

I live on campus in the New Residence, "New Res," East Tower in a 6 share apartment. It is a very new and modern building. We all have our own bedrooms, share 2 bathrooms, a kitchen, living room, and a balcony. I have 3 guy roommates and 2 other girl roommates, all Aussies. I was really surprised to hear they had co-ed on campus accommodation, but it's been great and they all are very nice and fun to be around. Also, my tower constantly has social events going on, which keeps things exciting!

I use the kitchen in our apartment to make all of my meals, but there are other on-campus accommodation options that are catered and offer meal plans. Although, I have heard from people living in those apartments that the meal plans are quite expensive, and not very good. Unlike Iowa State's endless buffet options, they only offer a couple of main meals and at specific times of the day. Getting to the grocery store from campus is really easy, and it is only about a mile and a half away. There is a free shuttle that goes weekly on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday for a few hours, the city bus that runs all day for about $5, or you can tag along with an Aussie who has a car.

The campus is beautiful here. It is covered in trees with pathways, and buildings that have an indoor and outdoor feel to them. There are quite a few coffee, snack, and food places on campus also. My favorites are Cafe Diem for a coffee and some banana bread, Boost for an afternoon smoothie, The Bake House for a meat pie (an Australian classic... I will explain more in a later post), and The Bar on the Hill for a burger, chips, and a beer. Yes, you can drink on campus. We actually have two bars right on central campus!