Cole Jones, Gage Anderson, and I embarked on our journey at 7 PM Nashville time and after 24 hours, we landed in the Land Down Under at 9:55 AM. My host, Lawrence Lloyd-Jones, was not able to pick me up at the airport, so his Dad picked me up and we drove to his house in the suburbs. The suburb was called Canterbury and it was one of the most wealthy suburbs of Melbourne. My jet lag was actually not that bad luckily and the three of us tried to stay up as late as possible to get adjusted to the time change. The next few days we explored the city and I enjoyed learning how to maneuver through train stations, which I had to ride on everyday.
School Life
Upon first seeing the school, I thought it was Hogwarts. The school was somewhat different from MBA. First of all, they have about 200 boys in every year, their word for grade, so their school is fairly bigger. Also, you have to pay for your lunch everyday or bring your own lunch. Since we were seniors, however, we were able to go off campus to places like Subway, McDonald's, and the famous Domain Brasserie where we went almost everyday for the amazing hot chocolate and free WiFi. Academically, the school was just as rigorous as MBA. Cole, Gage, and I took American History, Art, Literature, and Chemistry. We had a lot of free time though, so we spent a lot of time in their library, which is brand new and really cool. After school, we would either run or lift weights. There was a really nice place to run called the Tan where we went almost everyday. Despite getting made fun of for saying "y'all", "ma'am" and sir," we were welcomed by the students and the teachers. Overall, the school was pretty relaxed and the free time was a good time for us to start college applications and finish summer reading.
Weekend Life
The weekends were always really fun. Although we stayed at different houses, we all met up on the weekends in the city. Some of the things we did include: going to a bowling nightclub, walking around the city, going to two Footy games, traveling to the Dandeenong Ranges for a day, golfing, driving down the Great Ocean Road, surfing in the chilly waters, going to St. Kilda Pier on our last day, and last but not least going to the Lindt chocolate store three times a week.
Closing
Despite the expensive prices, the trip was an unforgettable experience and one I will tell my kids about in the future. I am so glad I had the opportunity of making this journey across the Pacific. I would like to say thank you to the Whitson Family, Mr. Gioia, Mrs. Warner, and MBA for this opportunity. Also, I would like to say a special thank you to the Lloyd-Jones family, the Furness family, and the Gilham family for hosting the three of us. I would highly recommend anyone thinking about Exchange to go to Melbourne, Australia, because it was a once in a lifetime experience.
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