Melbourne Grammar School (Australia): Andrew Scott

     From July 7 to August 11, Hayden Deakins, David Maynard and I embarked on a journey down under that we will never forget.  Even though the flights were long, and the sleep was far and few between, I realized we had come to whole new world, and the possibilities were endless.  During my exchange, I stayed with Ivo and Luca Sdraulig along with their mother, Erin Redmond.  Even as they were taking me home from the airport I suddenly realized we were driving on the left side of the road.  Needless to say it was quite scary.  But I was still excited to begin my journey.

     For most of the first week, my host brother Ivo took me around Melbourne to see all the different sights.  I experienced a game of Aussie rules football, rode the trams, ate some kangaroo, and went to the Melbourne Central to shop.  On the first weekend, my family was generous enough to take me on a trip to Sydney, one of the most amazing cities I had ever seen.  Staying in Darling Harbor, I got to see some of the most beautiful sights Australia had to offer.  From the Maritime Museum, which had real submarines and battleships in the harbor, to the Opera House, it was one of the most breathtaking cities I had ever been in.  Trying to take it all in, we first went to the Sydney Tower where I could view the entire city in all its beauty.  Next we walked to the Opera House, all the while passing the first government buildings of Sydney.  Once we got to the harbor, I could see the majestic Opera House and the huge Sydney Harbor Bridge that spanned the entire harbor.  The next day we took a ferry to Manly Harbor where some of the best beaches in Australia were located.  

     When we got back from Sydney, school started the next week.  Normally, I would drive myself to school in the morning.  But in Melbourne, it was typical for the students to take the tram to school.  These trips to school were always very interesting as we sometimes missed our tram and ended up late to our house period.  At school I was in the Morris House with Ivo and Luca and took Legal Studies, Studio Art, Literature, Economics, and History of Revolutions.  My favorite class of the five had to have been History of Revolutions where I learned all about the Russian Revolution in even more detail than my own AP European History class at MBA.  My schedule was also unique because it had seven different days which changed the times of classes every day.  This was very odd to me since I had never had a rotating schedule at MBA.  Another difference was the privilege to leave the campus to walk down the street to eat at Subway or McDonald's.  Needless to say this was an awesome perk to being a senior at MGS.  But there were many similarities between both schools.  Like MBA, Melbourne Grammar School strove to create gentleman well taught in athletics and academics as it is one of the top schools in Australia.  They also had assemblies almost every week where they talked about announcements and made speeches about various sporting events, service trips, and awards.  

     I'd like to thank all the people who made my exchange possible, it was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  Thank you to the Whitson family for being so generous enough to provide the funds for the exchange, none of this would be feasible without your generosity.  I am also very grateful to the Sdrauligs and Ms. Redmond who took me into their home for a whole five weeks and helped me with all the necessary things to get ready for school.  Thank you  Mr. Gioia, Mrs. Warner, and all the faculty members from MGS who helped to make my transition to school as easy as possible.  To all those wondering if they should apply to go on exchange, I urge you to apply and go because you will never forget the experiences and relationships you will have on your exchange.  If I forgot to thank anyone, thank you so much for all you did for me during the trip to Melbourne and I will never forget my five weeks there.

Winchester College (England) - Andrew Karpos

First Impressions:
I arrived at Winchester on July 6th and was extremely jet lagged after being awake for more than 24 hours. I was picked up at the airport by a representative from Winchester and was driven to the house/dorm where I would be staying. At Winchester, the students are divided into 12 houses of about 60 students each, ranging from 8th through 12th grade. I was staying in Chernocke House, which is the oldest house at the school.

Right when I arrived, I was shown around by the matron Mrs. Brooke-smith. She was basically like a house mother. I was then introduced to the house master Mr. Lawson. Each house at the school has a housemaster who is a teacher at the school and lives in the house with his family. Basically, half of the building is his personal house, and the other half is a set of dorms. The first area of the house I saw was the cafeteria where I would be eating all my meals. I then was shown to the room that I would be sharing with two other roommates during my stay. The room was fairly spacious and I had my own desk and closet. Later that day I met my two roommates, Freddie and Ludo. I was thrown head first into life at Winchester and started classes the next morning.

Academic Life:
When I began classes on my second morning, I first learned about the unique dress code at Winchester. I was required to wear a coat and tie everyday with black or gray pants and black shoes. While at Winchester, the classes I took were Physics, Division, English, Modern European history, and British history. I felt as if the classes at Winchester were very different than those at MBA. Rather than having homework every night, the teachers at Winchester would assign mostly long term assignments and were mainly concerned with the end of the year government-mandated tests that they would have to take. I thought the teachers I had were similar to those at MBA in that they were truly passionate about the subjects that they were teaching. My favorite class was definitely division. In this unique class, a teacher who teaches any subject at Winchester is given their own class to design a curriculum which suits their interests. For example, my division teacher was an English teacher, so in her div class we read  The Great Gatsby and also learned about American culture during this time period. I felt as if the boys at Winchester had the same thirst for learning and discipline that most people at MBA have.

Athletic Life:
I quickly learned that athletics at Winchester are much different than those at MBA. At Winchester, their sports teams are much less serious than those at MBA and most kids play more than one sport. It seems like sports to them were more of a hobby to them rather than a huge part of their lives. I came to Winchester right after the tennis season began and was immediately given the opportunity to practice with the team. The coach then asked me if I wanted to actually play for the team and I gladly accepted. I was lucky enough to play #1 doubles for the team. Winchester had 5 beautiful grass courts which were very fun to play on. I had the opportunity to play in matches against many other schools such as Eton and Radley. I also got to play in the end of the year tournament known as the Yule Cup. This tournament gathers 64 of the best high school teams from all across the country for a huge tournament. Competing in this tournament was a very exciting experience.

 Besides tennis, I was also able to play a number of sports recreationally at Winchester. I played a lot of soccer, which was the most popular sport at Winchester. I had a great time playing in the house pick-up games which went on most nights. Another sport which I really enjoyed at Winchester was squash. I had seen this sport before, but never got a chance to play. I quickly fell in love with this sport when I first tried it and played often with other people in the house. My tennis skills helped me to adjust to this game very easily.




Social Life:
While at Winchester, I got the chance to bond with almost every person in my house. Because of the fact that you eat meals together, do homework together, and hang out at night, you truly get a chance to know the people around you. I really enjoyed how the house includes boys from 8th through 12th grade, so you get a chance to meet boys of all ages. Our house also included kids from all around the world. Besides the boys from England, there were boys from Asia, Africa, and Australia. It was cool to see how the boys in the house had been living together for a few years and were really good friends with each other. It seemed as if everyone in the house was one unified group of friends rather than a bunch of separate cliques. I especially enjoyed watching the Euro Tournament soccer games with the other boys in the house. Every time there was a game, the majority of the house would pack into a tiny room and project the game on the wall. Everyone in the house was very intense about the watching soccer. There was definitely a lot of yelling going on after England lost. I would say the best part of my experience was the relationships I made with the other boys in the house. I felt the same sense of camaraderie there as I too at MBA. It was always fun to spend time in the house with the other boys around me.

Highlights:

Besides the parts of my experience that I have already mentioned, there was a multitude of highlights while I was at Winchester. First, I very much enjoyed experiencing the city of Winchester. As students, we were basically in the heart of the city. We were given the freedom to walk into the city basically any afternoon. I loved going into town with my friends and getting something to eat or just exploring the different shops. This town seemed to resemble the old English villages you see in the movies. A major part of the town was the Winchester Cathedral. This Cathedral is over 500 years old and is a very impressive structure. I was given the opportunity to go inside the Cathedral and found the sheer size and detail of the Cathedral to be awesome. Another highlight of my experience was when I got to spend the weekend with my friend Vince. I stayed with he and his family at their house in the English Country side. Vincent's dad was Austrian and his mom was Belgian, so they spoke a mixture of French and German at home. Vincent's two older brothers were there as well. Throughout the weekend I felt as if I was part of the family. 

 One last highlight was the special "ad portas" ceremony that I got to attend at the end of my stay. This event was a special ceremony where a distinguished alumni of the school is given the "keys to the school." It is a very rare event and I was told it sometimes takes fifty years for another one to happen. In the ceremony, there is a long Latin dialogue between the man receiving the award and a student. Every day I experienced highlights of my experience so that there were almost too many to count.

In closing, I would like to thank the Warner Family, Mr. Gioia, and MBA for making this incredible opportunity possible. I would also like to thank all the people at Winchester who helped make my stay unforgettable. Going to Winchester was a once in a life time experience that I will always remember. I hope to return to England someday and also stay in touch with all the people I met at Winchester.

The King's School (Australia): Furman Haynes

Furman Haynes: The King's School Exchange: May 27th - July 19th

The First Week

I arrived in Sydney, Australia around 6 A.M on May 27th. I was a little out of it, not being able to wrap my head around the fact that it was already Monday morning when it seemed like a few hours ago that it was Saturday morning and I was leaving that morning to head to the Nashville airport. It had technically been about 20 hours of traveling.

Chris Fraser, very excited and seemingly happy to see me, hugged me as I walked out of Customs. She kindly did not make me go to school and let me relax a little bit on my first day in Australia. She first took me to a get a quick breakfast at a little resteraunt with the Harbour Bridge off in the distance and a beautiful view of downtown Sydney. I bravely tried my first peice of toast with "vegemite" spread across it - a black spread with the texture of Nutella that was about as far from that taste as possible. It was salty and nasty, and Chris served it to me all the time. I politely took it anyways. For the rest of the day she took me to two separate parks and showed me around their neighborhood. One thing I noticed about Sydney was the focus on water - I've never been to a city with so many harbours and inlets. Maybe it was just Chris' love of water, but I was always seeing awesome ocean views, which I loved.

My first view of King's was when we went to pick up Scott, my host brother, on the first day. We pulled in and saw them doing "Corps", basically military marching they are required to do twice a week and wear funny hats. I never got to do it, but I always watched and thought it was funny.

The first week consisted of me getting used to things at King's, getting to know Scott (a little quirky but a really nice kid) and James King, the Year 10 (sophmore) who I "shadowed" and took classes with. James' classes were Maths, Physics, PAS (PE), Commerce, Geography, and a few others. One clear difference I noticed in the school was that there wasn't as much homework and more work in class as opposed to teachers sitting there lecturing them.

The first week of school was great because I got to know a lot of the really funny kids at the school - all who thought it was hilarious that I was American. They made me say certain things in a exaggerated American accent, asked me if I've ever been hillbilly hand-fishin' because I live in Tennessee, and got a kick out of everything I said.

Friday night Scott and I went to "Vivid" a lights festival in downtown Sydney which was really cool.

On Saturday, we got to go the "Firsts" (Varsity) Rugby game at Kings, which was pretty exciting. I had signed up for Rugby the day before and after seeing that game, I was pumped to play.

The Second Week

The Second Week was great just because I was relaxed enough to have fun at King's and make a lot of friends, without having to worry about leaving.

On Tuesday, there was something called "Cross-Country", a school wide race where every grade has to run a certain distance. This was the first time I really noticed the House system, where the House that did the best got certain awards, like food, etc. I mainly hung out at Waddy after lunch, just because that was James' house. Kevin also arrived Tuesday, which was fun to see him.

My first couple rugby practices got rained out the second week, and I didn't get to practice and play till the week after that. Other happenings of the second week include getting to see huge swells at Bondi Beach one night, getting to see the Transit of Venus before anyone else in the world because Australia is "ahead," and there was a huge bake sale that one House put on, similar to bake sales at MBA.

The second weekend was a long weekend, and we took Friday off and the Frasers took me to Kiama with them, a small beachtown two hours south of Sydney where their grandparents live. Alice, Scott's older sister, joined us. Alice was in medical school and I didn't see her as much, but she was always really nice. The weekend in Kiama consisted of great food from the grandparents and a lot of relaxing. Scott and I even swam in the ocean for a brief 2 minutes even though it was freezing.

My snazzy uniform

The Third Week (and a half)

The Third Week was awesome and definitely my favorite.

On Thursday of that week, Kevin's host mom took Kevin, Bradley and me to a reptile zoo north of the city. We saw basically every indigenous creature to Australia, including a huge croc, snakes, spiders and of course KANGAROOOS. I loved the Kangaroos. They might have been "trained" but they were really friendly and you could walk up and pet them:

I also got to play my one and only Rugby match that Saturday. It was perfect: raining really hard and muddy. They placed Bradley, Kevin and me on a lower level team because we'd never played before, so it was really fun because we could keep up. Although we got demolished, I had two of our team's three tries. It was a blast.

Post-Rugby

The day before we left, Kevin, Bradley and went into Sydney and toured the Opera House, ate lunch, then climbed the Harbour Bridge. It was a great way to end the trip.

Finally, I'd just like to thank Mrs. Warner, Mr. Gioia, the Fraser Family and everyone in Australia for making this trip possible. The Australians are an incredibly friendly people, and their country is one I wouldn't mind visiting again in the near future.

The King's School (Australia): Kevin Wang

Kevin Wang: The King's School Exchange: July 5-19

Settling in

July 5

Today I arrived in Australia! From the plane I could see the break of dawn over the clouds on the horizon, floating over Pacific waters. Katrina Emmett, my host mother, picked me up from the airport and drove me directly to the school to spend my first day here. She’s extremely nice, and I’m really glad I’m staying with them. She and her husband Ian have 3 children, Zach, Ben, and Francesca, who are in years 8, 5, and preschool. Katrina told me that Francesca is quite a character, so I’m really looking forward to seeing her this evening. I’m currently writing this in the library, which is a lot like MBA’s, with the small bookshelves and the cozy private setting. It’s also a wonderful day here. The sun is streaming through the clouds for a little longer before it’s going to rain for the next five days...hopefully the forecast is wrong. I’ve also found out that my buddy here in Year 11 is Robbie Quinn (not to be confused with our librarian RQ). I’m a member of Dalmas House, one of the 12 residential houses here. Their school motto here is Fortiter et Fideliter, "Strongly and faithfully."

Me with my two host brothers

July 6-8

In the remainder of the week, I saw the Transit of Venus, which is a huge event in Australia because of its history. Captain Cook, who discovered Australia, actually came to the continent to see this exact phenomenon. The transit occurs every 200 years, so I was very lucky to have come at such a time! I also had the opportunity to meet the headmaster, Mr. Hawkes. How I met him, however, was not the best of introductions. As I walked into the lunchroom one day, he was standing at the entrance and pulled me aside. He turned to a visiting trustee and said, "Now, here is a young man who is not dressed properly. His undershirt is not to be visible." My heart began to race. I apologized, but then, in a desperate attempt to gain his empathy, told him I was an exchange student from MBA, and he quickly apologized and introduced himself. (When I came back to Nashville, I didn't wear undershirts for a while.)

Eaglereach Resort- July 9-11

Eaglereach Resort is a beautiful nature resort located in Hunter Valley, about 2 hours north of Sydney. My host family took me there for a 3-day holiday for the Queen's birthday. I saw Kangaroos and Wallabies for the first time and also fished for yabbies, creatures similar to crawfish. There were also a couple of fish-and-chips nights, during which we watched the movie Australia, a fitting choice. There was also a very low level of ambient light (not as low as that of Long Mountain, of course), and I was able to see the Southern Cross, a constellation with the familiarity of The Big Dipper in the Northern Hemisphere.

Family at the Eaglereach resort

The Last Week

In the last week of my Australian excursion, I went to a Reptile Park with Furman and Bradley, ate several "meat pies" (essentially a shepherd's pie), watched the State of Origin rugby game between New South Wales and Queensland (New South Wales won!), actually attended a rugby game between the Parammatta Eels and South Sydney Rabbitohs , and played in a rugby game. The rugby game was very eye-opening for me. It was the first time I had played a contact sport, as well as a team sport. I also had to have an extreme level of confidence, since I was playing a game that I had never even practiced before. When I got on the field, it was actually very intimidating. Even though I had to endure much anxiety and confusion in the process, it was definitely worth it. Now I am very eager to play soccer (or football), football, or any other game, not because I've suddenly become athletic, but because I enjoy doing it.

Feeding the Kangaroos

Sydney Olympic stadium

The beautiful Bondi Beach

I also swam in 40-degree ocean water at Bondi Beach, ate lemon-and-sugar pancakes (apparently that's a very common recipe!), and toured the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbor Bridge with Furman and Bradley.

Bradley, Furman, and Me at the Sydney Opera House

Wrapping Up

This Australian experience was really a unique one for me, with the rugby game, the exchange life, and the home-stay. I had an awakening encounter with rugby and can now say that  I have played a contact sport! I had the opportunity to delve behind the scenes of The King's School to experience the life of a Kingsman. And lastly, I could not have asked for a better family to be a part of than the Emmetts. Apart from satisfying my long-imprisoned thirst for Nutella among other unhealthy foods, they have provided me with the resources, aid, and love that have made my Australian experience unforgettable. I would also like to thank the Warner family, Mr. Gioia, and MBA for making this trip possible. 

And thank you, Australia, for the "aussome" experience! Till next time, mate!

Kingsmen!

And for those with a free afternoon...

List of 99 Things Different in Australia (some are specifically TKS)

1. Undershirt can't show
2. Red columns are more customary than white columns (matching red dirt)
3. People drive on the left side of road
4. Driver seat is on the right side of the car
5. They use the metric system (Liters, meters, grams, etc.)
6. Celsius instead of Fahrenheit
7. Their speed limits are electronically displayed in red circled displays by the road
8. Exotic wildlife is everywhere. On campus I saw two green rosellas flying through.
9. HSC is the final exam that determines your university
10. Their education is centered around Australia (history, scientific discoveries, etc.)
11. Huge pencil pouches
12. Uniform for most schools
13. Reading out scores on tests
14. Grade A pencils, not #2 pencils
15. “Marks” = grades/points
16. Everyone very direct and to the point, not room for sentimentalism (Get down to business)
17. Midterm exams are just 1 hour long
18. Granny-hook = wedgie-like prank
19. Prep = homework
20. Say “miss” or “sir” when roll call
21. One presiding teacher grades all of the tests; thus the scores are all fair
22. Stand up until teacher tells you to sit down
23. Bludge: to skip out on, be lazy
24. Much larger paper
25. People really not afraid to express themselves, also advanced in creative writing (writing skill here is really advanced, free, and flowing)
26. Students much more disciplined and behaved in year meetings and assemblies (completely quiet)
27. Macs more popular than PCs
28. Fish and chips more common
29. They have meat pies
30. "Bush" = wilderness
31. Boarding summer camps not a big thing here
32. The Voice is the main reality tv show
33. Learner’s Permit (L), then red P, then green P
34. Caramelo Koala
35. Freddo is chocolate frog candy
36. Jersey = any sports logo-labelled clothing, not necessarily American concept of jersey
37. Dogging the boys: When one person ruins the show for everyone else / skips out on an event that everyone else is
38. "Scab": to scrounge food off of others
39. Biscuits: more like shortbread biscuits, not biscuits as in biscuits with gravy
40. STI, not STD (infection, not disease)
41. Organization spelled organisation
42. Very literal use of words, connection with Latin
43. As if = no way
44. A Try = a score/touchdown
45. "Diary" = planner, even for boys
46. Tim-Tams = Aussie chocolate biscuits
47. Cherry Ripe = coconut chocolate cherry bar
48. Vegemite is yeast extract
49. Eucalyptus is common tree
50. “Straps” = seat belts
51. “Bike” = motorcycle, not bicycle
52. “Hungry Jack’s” = Burger King
53. A lot of fusion food, especially Asian fusion
54. "Duke of Edinburgh" is required outdoor course
55. Each state has different university application process
56. College is vocational; University is scholastic/professional
57. Every Saturday is game day for everyone at one school (All teams at same place same time (everything very uniform))
58. “Bin” = trash can
59. Motorway = highway
60. 2 digits for area code, then 8 digits for actual phone number
61. Environment-conscious: Half and full flush on all toilets
62. Environment-conscious: On and off for all sockets
63. Chicken and cheese sandwich at McDonald’s
64. Red lines in road to indicate stop ahead
65. “Chilli” = hot sauce
66. Magnum is most popular ice cream
67. Military time is widespread
68. No tip
69. Prime minister instead of president
70. Gets darker earlier (that’s why I’m tired earlier)
71. Reply to “thank you” is “that’s alright,” not “no problem” or “you’re welcome”
72. Tax is incorporated into the price of an item
73. Many more Catholics (about half and half of Protestants and Catholics)
74. Traffic lights not hung over road by wires; instead, supported on L-shaped pole
75. Turning circles to slow down cars
76. Lots of signs on side of road (more safety-conscious)
77. People very nice and laid-back
78. Not many Acuras; instead there are just Acura brands of Honda
79. Small triangles on sides of lane to indicate upcoming traffic light
80. 16 years and 9 months old to have a license
81. Need 120 hours and a filled-in log to get license, plus a test (as opposed to just a test)
82. Very dry (usually); doesn’t rain much at all
83. Traffic lights have black encasing, not yellow
84. Public bus transportation much more prevalent (even in rural areas)
85. Everyone brings a snack for recess/break
86. Quarantine and more extreme measures to ensure preservation of natural environment
87. Main connections (tourism, economy) with Asian Pacific
88. ANZ and Redi are main banks
89. Bigger Asian population and smaller African population
90. “Double demerits” on holidays, to restrict drunk driving
91. Rugby, soccer, and cricket are the main sports
92. No Chick-fil-A or Taco Bell; they have “Aporto,” which is like Chick-fil-A
93. No Netflix or Hulu here
94. Lamingtons are common
95. “Boots” = cleats
96. Angus is common name
97. Music is measured in grades
98. Sticky Date Pudding is common dessert
99. Opal is main gem of Australia