Week 1

Day 1

I was immersed in an English environment at the moment stepping on the plane. I watched 2 English movies in the plane. Those movies even have no English subtitle. It was really a big challenge to me. It depended heavily on my listening and was a very good warm up activity to prepare me for the trip in Australia.

Day 2

It was my first day in Sydney. We wanted to go to Paddy’s Market to buy some souvenir. Aussie use "infoline" to mean "hotline". Due to the unfamiliar environment, we asked locals for direction and this provided me an opprounity to talk to native speakers in real life situation. We also enjoyed the great night view at Darling Harbour.

Day 3

We visited the Australian Museum in the morning. In the museum, I read up on different Australian species like birds, insects and marine life etc. The biodiversity of Australia is totally reflected in the process.

In the afternoon, I enjoyed the great view of Sydney in Sydney Tower. It was refreshing to have the whole view of the city on the highest tourist attraction in Sydney. I could feel a slower pace of life of Sydney in this highest position.

In the evening, we went to the Sydney Observatory to watch the stars. The guide explained the pattern of stars and history of the stars to us. We also watched the stars with naked eyes. The guide explained to us that the stars were in “rhombus” shape. However, I didn’t understand the word and I had to ask for the meaning and spelling. But I was happy that I learned a new vocabulary.

Day 4

It was the New Year Eve. We had lunch at George Street and we decided to go to Circular Quay to countdown. I asked locals for direction and finally found the right way.

We wanted to have beer to celebrate the New Year and we wanted to buy 6 cans of beer. We pointed to the one we want and said that we needed six. The shopkeeper asked if we need 6 packs. For us, 6 packs mean 36 cans and we answered: NO, we want 6 cans. However, the shopkeeper still didn’t understand how many we want and asked if we need 6 packs. The shopkeeper finally understood when we emphasized 6 and pointed to the display product again. From this, I realized that Aussie use “one pack” to mean “one can” but we use “one pack” to mean “6 cans” in Hong Kong, so we misunderstood each other. This is one of the Aussie expressions and linguistic differences that I identified in the trip.

I talked to the locals when we were waiting for the firework display. It was interesting to know that the mini firework display at 9pm was for the kids because they have to sleep earlier. It was a great experience to enjoy such a fantastic firework display in Sydney.

Let’s enjoy the amazing firework display together!

Day 5

It was a free day and we planned the schedule by ourselves. We wanted to have lunch but did not know which direction we should go. We asked the staff at Sydney Visitor Centre for direction and suggestion. They were very nice to give us detail recommendation. Then we finally found a Japanese crepe restaurant at a food court. The crepe was delicious! After that, we visited the Royal Botanic Garden to learn the plants and horticulture in Australia. It was really a good place for us to relax.

I interacted with native speakers in real life situations when I ask for direction, taking orders in restaurant. .

I observed a phenomenon in Australia. There were many accommodation bars. The lower floor was a bar while the upper floor was hotel.

Day 6

We went to the Bondi Beach to enjoy the sunshine in Australia. We did shopping at Bondi Market. There were many things to buy including jewellery, hand-made accessory, clothes and books. The multiculturalism of Sydney was reflected in the diversity of the product. The products came from different parts of the world such as China, India and Japan. There were also local goods.

I asked the price and what the jewellery made of. The locals were very friendly to talk to us.

Day 7

We had wine tasting at different wine yards. The host introduced different wine to us. I learned that Aussie like to use abbreviation. A staff of the wine yard said that: I am going to get you some cheese and “bisy”. I realized that they used “bisy” for biscuits until I saw the biscuits.