Study Camp or vacation with the family?

A handful of high school students chose camp, where they spend eight hours a day in a gymnasium…studying. Students in Australia must take a test at the end of their 12th year in high school, similar to the United Sate’s SAT or ACT. The test is called the High School Certificate, which is comprised of roughly 10 tests, one in each subject that the student has taken. Depending on the student’s score (out of 100), the student can test into pursuing a certain degree at university.This week I had the privilege of leading a group of 100 twelfth graders at what is known as a Study Camp, led by Crusader Union Camps of Australia. The camp lasts one week and the camp guarantees parents that their student will have a total of eight hours of study each of those days. What I find even stranger than 100 students choosing to come to a camp to study, is having 80% of them coming to a Christian affiliated camp as Atheists. Yes, the gospel is preached each day and the students knew they were required to attend when they signed up for this endeavor.

While helping lead this camp, which was part of a Wesley class by the way, I was stretched in my faith in ways I never thought I was capable of. I sat in discussion groups where seventeen year-olds were not afraid to tell me they thought Christianity was a hoax. I stayed up until late hours of the night explaining why I believe what I believe to girls who have all they ever wanted in life. As I had these eye-opening debates and talks, I realized this is so rare in the states. I cannot think of a single time where I lead a retreat or mission trip where I was patronized for my faith, and here I am being questioned by someone four years younger than me. It breaks my heart to see such apathetic hearts, but I rejoice in the Lord for giving me the opportunity to share my faith with such a group as this… a very intelligent and talented group at that.

On top of all of this, I gained friendships with leaders that I wish could last forever. These people are awesome. In between all of the studying and activities, I even got to drive a car! Videos to come when I have better internet.

these are some lovely campers that stayed in my cabin

this is Kat, she was a leader at camp- she has a great singing voice, a sweetheart of a guy, and she was a blast to hang out with :)

Australian Food

So here is my best interpretation of Australian food thus far and my experience in purchasing food in the expensive city of Sydney.

Because Australia is so diverse, their food follows suit. Also, because the food is so expensive, I attempt to eat out as little as possible. However, there are some days that Becca and I feel the need to "forget" to pack our lunch and grab food near campus. Most days I pack a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (sometimes we are lucky enough to find lunch meat in the fridge). If we don't eat Marina's dinner the night before, we take it with us to school the next day. Next, I will show you our most memorable packed lunch. This was the result of not eating leftovers for several days in a row:



Marina is a hoot, she doesn't care how old the stuffed pepper or instant mashed potatoes are, if they are left over, they are officially our dinner. We don't get the fresh cooked dinner if we still have leftovers with our name on them (literal sticky notes with our names on them). Dinners have the potential to be great some nights, but not always :)

When we don't eat at home, we go to either the Thai restaurant close to school or Lashings, a great burger joint. In Australia, $10 is quite typical for a lunch. I don't think I have paid any cheaper than that since I have been here....except for at McDonalds. Oh goodness, I thought I would never eat a meal there again, but there is just something glorious about paying $5 for a meal, no matter how unhealthy is is for me (definitely did not have this mindset a month ago). There is one item at McDonalds that is cheaper in Australia than it is in the states and that is their ice cream cones- only 50 cents here!

There aren't many sweets at home, thus my new addiction to Nutella. There is also a delicious pastry shop we like to go to in Burwood called Bread Top. They have a huge assortment of the freshest baked breads, all loaded with sugar and calories. My favorites are the ham and cheese danish and the pineapple coconut pastry.

So I was pretty excited when told Australia has great coffee. The things is, drip coffee is nonexistent- and coffee shop coffee is unflavored, strangely named, and costs $4 for a small. I drink instant coffee in the morning, and am purchasing a french press very soon- for I do miss my classic coffee. Oh! couldn't forget to inform you that coffee creamer doesn't exist here either...such a bummer.

Well I am a wee bit late to updating here. Sincere apologies for my failure to update all three of you on my life in Australia.

I have been keeping extremely busy with classes all while trying to recollect funny and memorable experiences. Hopefully is blog of photos can fill you in with a better understanding of all that I am getting to live through in Sydney.

With dancing 9 hours a week, I find little time to do extra activities. I am really enjoying dance classes though and already feel I have learned so much. I thought ballet would be the most difficult class for me, but contemporary has presented a few challenges as well... mostly massive bruises on my hips, knees, and shoulders (photos to come).

I recently added a photography class as well, should be quite a challenge with my point and shoot camera- should have taken yours, dad!

My two cultural classes have been more interesting than I expected. We mostly visit museums on Friday outings, but we also have had some interesting readings and discussions in class. Australia seems very westernized on the outside, but it is full of narratives and varying ways of life that no one on the exterior even thinks about. Yesterday we had a panel of teachers at Wesley tell us about their country. It was really interesting to hear about the irony of a country being so insecure, yet so tough- all while maintaining the sarcastic demeanor they are so well known for.

While dancing here at Wesley,I met a great new friend, Jessica. We stayed at her house this weekend near Cronulla beach. It was nice to be in more of a place that felt like home- Jess has a great family and they were so generous to let us stay at their house and even invited us back :)

Aubrey, me, Jessica, Becca

Jess also won us free tickets to the Australia's Got Talent auditions in Sydney! We somehow managed second row seats and sat right beside the judges.

so close! This was the first act, a choir full of people from all over. They practice on their own, then basically wing it when they got to Sydney. They still blew away the judges.

This was such an awesome experience, not only because we got to see some fantastic Aussie talent but also because we were able to see how these shows are run behind the scenes. I am pretty sure I saw the winner of Australia's Got Talent for the year, he was a 14 year-old vocalist who completely belted out and nailed a Whitney Houston song. We also saw a male pole dancer, and as a result of uncontrolled laughter in the second row, received a solid 60 seconds of camera time.

On Sunday, Becca and I hit Bondi Beach- where we saw a surfing competition and received lobster-like sunburns on our backs... still feeling the pain. Then, I went to Hillsong church in the city on Sunday night. It's kind of strange how Hillsong turns into more of an experience while here because its music is talked so highly of in the states. Hillsong is also a pretty charismatic church, which was a fun mix-up ; ) We have to attend 5 different denominational churches in the next 4 weeks- on to visit our Catholic friends this coming weekend!

Bondi Beach (*should be about a 45 minute trip from home)

I am hoping to update here again soon, for I have a lovely post in mind.... all about the wonderful (and not so wonderful) food in Australia!

I would also like to give a special thanks to everyone back home for all of your prayers and support during this time of transition and change. You all are great, and your love is known and felt, even if I am thousands of miles away. I am truly experiencing a peace that surpasses an understanding that is in my comprehension- and I am so thankful to God for this strange feeling of solitude and contentment. I continue to pray and ask for prayer for Grandma Lois- here is what has been on my heart lately (and always quite frequently when someone is in the realms of pain and suffering):

"Do not look forward to what might happen tomorrow; the same everlasting. Father who cares for you today, will take care of you tomorrow and every day. Either He will shield you from suffering or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it."
St. Francis de Sales

I love you all,
Hannah

Welcome to Australia

I have been in Australia for nearly a week now, and I am just now finding time to blog. Whoops!

So far I have fallen in love with this country and its people. My host dad is Greek and my host mom is Australian- the two are very different and I am quite certain we have the most unique homestay family out of our group of 27. Our host mom, Marina, loves to make sure we are okay all of the time. Beeca (my roommate) and I have already started recording funny quotes/mannerisms of Marina. My favorite so far is her method for washing dishes, basically dunking them in water and removing rubish with your fingers, rinsing, and drying.

I just got done with my first day of classes. I have ballet and jazz technique in the a.m. and then hip hop at noon. The classes are a lot of fun, but the ballet is quite challenging with my lack of experience. The dress code for ballet is requiring a leotard buying run later this afternoon.

I have neglected my camera since I have been here...photos to come later!

The Land of OZ

Tomorrow I depart for the land of Oz. I am very excited for the arrival, and a little less excited about the flying. These pictures help me understand that it is much better on the other side

Ooroo mates!

Superimposing

Mom pulled out her wedding dress and it fit me like a glove. It felt way to strange, and things got even more strange when we got out the camera.....

After I tried on her dress and Maddy tried on her dress, we wanted to see who looked the most like her. Here is the result of finding the original and superimposing the rest:

Randoms

Last mini-project: light graffiti - a slight fail after the awesomeness I found online

Current location: Panera in Huntington, WV


Current prayer/line love: "I pray that God will show me and all of us the limits of our understanding." (said at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. by President Obama- full Relevant article here)

I am spending the weekend with my splendid friend Lauren Wright. Today we ventured to West Virginia for a Beauty Control meeting she had. I get to chill at Panera and the mall until she is done. Tonight she is taking me to a new restaurant. I'm pretty stoked. Today I will have been in Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky- oh the excitement of living in the Tri-state area!

I've been catching up on news and other randoms while sitting here and I found the article on Obama's speech at the National Prayer Breakfast written by Cameron Strang. I really liked the line above and it struck me as something I need to be praying. For how often do I pray as if to understand the mystery that God is working in my life? Often. We are always trying to figure out God's will, understanding like this is an understatement in the realms of the heavenly. I think the beautiful mystery of Christ's work in our lives is not always meant for us to probe for perfect clarity, it is our job to live the parts we do know. We do know God revealed the mystery of the Gospel to us (Romans 11:25), and we are to live that part out in the fullest. But we don't always feel like we can trace his hand while living out that gospel... we can trust his heart.

I have a great blogpost to come so stay tuned for a pretty funny project I have been working on.

16 days till Australia!