September 30th2010 This is my last week of co-op!!!It has passed so quickly, but at the same time it feels like my placement at the Algae Research & Development Center was ages ago! This week, Perth is hosting the Australian University Games which is where over 6,000 uni students come to compete in various sports (beach volleyball, surfing, basketball, bowling, footy, rugby, track and field, and the list goes on!) at a national level.My three housemates...

September 27th 2010 The countdown is on.I officially am only in Perth for one more week!Time passes so quickly; it feels like I was preparing for my year abroad just yesterday... and here I am beginning to pack up what has been known as "home" for the last 8 months!It's a very bittersweet feeling.As much as I love Australia with its gorgeous weather, beaches and footy, I am missing some much-loved faces and familiarities of home. In a weeks time I...

Thursday September 2, 2010 Co-op is going great!My placement with the marine and freshwater research lab continues to have its fair share of surprises.From pulling up a light logger and dragging an octopus into the boat… to stumbling across an 18kg Mulloway (aka Jew Fish) that had just had its head severed cleanly off by the Rottnest Ferry!The poor guy was still twitching when we pulled him (and his last meal, a smaller fish) aboard!I'm constantly learning a...

Monday August 16th 2010 So, it has been a couple weeks since Malaysia and life is beginning to return to normal at "home". I have started my second co-op with the Marine and Freshwater Research lab on campus and I couldn't ask for a better job placement!MAFRL is a National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) accredited lab and is contracted by the government, as well as private environmental consultants to run water quality tests.I spend most ...

July 11th 2010--- WARNING.. THIS IS A LONG ONE... So I know it has been awhile since I last wrote a blog and I apologize for the delay!My day-to-day routine has changed significantly from the past 5 months where I was enjoying the typical student life of unpredictable bed times, a few hours of lectures and schoolwork each day and a lot of socializing.My new "working-girl" routine includes waking up at 7:30am, (which is actually a luxury compared to m...