CCGS Exchange 2016 - Aubrey Greene

CCGS Exchange 2016 - Aubrey Greene

       I visited Christ Church Grammar School in Perth, Australia. The school is all boys with a Christian foundation, and it teaches young boys to grow into good men. Being very similar to MBA, I felt right at home. Academic studies included: Applications Math, Politics and Law, Philosophy, Modern History, and Literature. The politics class found US politics to be more interesting than their own countries elections. Many debates and discussion about Trump and Hillary took place. In Literature, we ironically read the most American book possible, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Modern History was studying the transition from WWI to WWII. Philosophy discussed the controversial topics of morality and humans' innate nature. Other activities at school included rugby, helping at an elderly home, and woodworking.

       Spending time outside of the classroom was just as exciting. I did many activities which included: Australian Football League game, Rottnest Island, Petting zoo, sight seeing, surfing, and meeting new friends in the city. The Australian Football League (AFL) is a mix of soccer and rugby and is played on an oval shaped field. I visited Rottnest Island For a weekend using a ferry. The island is home to a unique endangered species called quokkas. They are harmless and crowd the entire island. While at the island I caught an octopus, watched a pelican eat a fish, and rode bicycles around the shore. The petting zoo was the most interesting sight to see. Tamed deer lay in the dirt and wait for people to pet them while kangaroos and wallabies sit right next to them. Ponies roam the grounds next to obnoxious geese and pelicans. Never before have I been a foot away from an ostrich with only a fence in between us.

                                             


       The experience was life-changing as I made new life long friends and family. Both the Edwards and Konarik families made me feel right at home, and I could not have had a more welcoming family. The families allowed for me to visit the sites of Perth and see the best that Australia has to offer. By the end of my trip I almost felt as if I was part of each family. I hope to visit the families again in the future. I hope to see my hosts, Adam and Nic, visit MBA for exchange in the fall of 2016. The trip made me realize how similar people are on the other side of the world, and now I have three sets of parents as well as three families.

Jacob Lothers: Christ Church Grammar School 2014

This past summer, I, along with my fellow classmate Si Deane, had the incredible honor of travelling half way around the world to study at Christ Church Grammar School in Perth, Australia. Being the first MBA students to participate in this respective exchange, we had little to no idea what to expect beforehand, but returned with a wealth of knowledge, appreciation, friendships, and memories that I expect we will never forget.

It took over 20 hours of total flight time for us to get from Nashville to Perth. Upon arrival, we were immediately confronted with the beauty of the coastal city, it’s vast and unique differences in everything, and even a taste of the Australian lifestyle. Running on merely three to four hours of sleep, we were brought straight to the beach by our host mother, Mrs. Jacqui, and brothers, Abe Forward and Ben Sloane, to go surfing.

 Si and I were both energetically starved by the time we retired to our new respective homes: I to stay with the Forward family, and Si to live in the boarding house with Ben.

After taking a day to recuperate with the loss of sleep and time change, from which my body never fully recovered, I immersed myself into life as an Australian student at Christ Church. The overall student body welcomed me with great hospitality, and I immediately befriended many of my host brothers’ classmates. I attended all classes that Abe did, ranging from basic Mathematics, English, and Science classes to specified lessons in boating and physical fitness. Si and I saw few classes together, but we reconvened every day during lunch.

I was honored with the position of foreign water boy at a footy game.

We were frequently bombarded with a slew of questions from students and teachers alike. We had even been asked at one point if we knew what fruit was; one of us amusingly replied by asking, “Is it a kind of meat or butter?”. We took the American jokes and stereotypes lightly, but after about a week or so we fully assimilated into the daily routine, and became familiar with our surroundings.

On weekends and after school we went took part in various social activities and excursions. On one day in particular, we were fortunate to miss a day of school to travel to Rottnest Island along with several other exchange students from schools such as Michaelhouse in South Africa. We biked around the island for several hours and played footy on the beach, despite the cold, as it was Winter in the Southern Hemisphere at the time.

Si Deane spreading his wings

One of my more frequent pastimes, however, was running around the neighborhoods of Cottesloe, where my host family lived, and to the beach, often times with Si accompanying me. One of these runs together was particularly meaningful, as it was after we received news of the untimely passing of one of our classmates, and Si’s extremely close friend, Wesley Tseng, back home. The sunset was especially spectacular that afternoon as we walked along the beach, coping with news, and remembering his presence.

sunset off the Indian Ocean

The last week of our time in Australia was spent in the city of Broome, far up north on the Western Australian coast, and at our host brother Ben’s family-owned resort, Eco Beach.

Local market

Eco Beach Dunes

Mac, master of crabbing

Cable Beach

 Here, our activities included hiking, fishing, crabbing, and shooting, all the while surrounded by the unique beauty of the landscape, defined by low brush and distinctive red sand. 

me, holding a crab that somebody else caught

Of course, we entered.

our continual obsession with sunsets

Cable Beach at Sunset

The most beautiful thing we saw there was unfortunately something we couldn’t take a picture of: the night sky. Given Broome’s extremely remote location, there was practically no ambient light whatsoever; you could literally see the Milky Way in its entirety, stretching all the way across the sky. We enjoyed the great hospitality of the Sloane family: Ben’s mother and father, as well as his aunt and uncle and their kids, who additionally housed and fed us for a number of days. Both families generously took us crabbing and introduced us to delicacies such as Kangaroo and Crocodile meat. Our last morning in Broome was spent riding camels along the city’s famous Cable Beach; it was an appropriately memorable last experience, consummating our adventure.

From there we flew back to Perth, spent one last night with my host family, and then embarked early the next morning for the long flight back to Tennessee. We were sad to leave, but eager to return to our lives, families, and friends at home.

Ever since my return, I must say that my life has been somewhat different than from what it was before, and for the better. The encroaching reality of college on the horizon doesn’t terrify me as much as it used to, and I’ve found myself to be more ambitious in taking advantage of life’s opportunities. I owe my utmost appreciation to the Warner family, Mr. Gioia, and MBA, for making such experiences possible for me and so many others. I must also express my immense gratitude to the Forward family (Mrs. Jacqui, Mr. Graham, Abe, Gideon, Harrison, Kalkidan, Emily, Hannah, Matilda, and Marcus), the Sloane family, and Christ Church Grammar School for their tremendous generosity in accommodating me and Si for several weeks.

I would encourage any interested underclassmen to apply for an exchange opportunity, regardless of the destination. However, I would biasedly recommend Christ Church, as it proved to be the perfect opportunity for me. The fact that I have been to Australia still amazes me to this day, and I will be forever haunted by the beauty of its geography, culture, and the people I’ve been privileged to meet throughout.

Si Deane: Christ Church Grammar School 2014

Jacob Lothers and I had the incredible opportunity to become the first students to make the 29 hour flight to the remote city of Perth in Western Australia. This was a brand new exchange.

 I remember standing in Mr. Gioia's office as he read off the list of names of who had the opportunity to go on exchange this year. I heard my name, followed by the school "Christ Church Grammar School, Perth, Western Australia." I became extremely excited. It was always a dream of mine to travel to Australia, but then I became nervous when I remembered that no one had ever been to this school or have even heard of Perth.

This turned out to be one of the greatest trips of my life.

First arriving in Perth

First day we arrived Jacob and I were exhausted from the flight which took us about a day and a half over all. Our host families were waiting for us and we immediately got in the car and went surfing.





















After we went surfing, we had to get to school. I was a boarder, and Jacob was staying with a family. This was my view every morning from the boarding house.

Christ Church Grammar School: a beautiful school located on the Swan River in Western Australia.

I got to play the sport "Footy" while I was in Australia. (It is basically Rugby with no rules). It is the equivalent to American football in Australia. This was my favorite time of the week. We practiced three times a week with games on Saturday.

My Footy Outfit                                   My host family's cousin was Pro Footy player Roy Sloane

                          

The Fremantle Dockers Footy Stadium                            The Fremantle Bazaar

       

I had the opportunity to miss a day of school with the other exchange students and travel to Rottnest Island, home of the Quokka, voted the happiest animal in the world. We got to ride around on bikes, play in the ocean, and explore this incredible island. 

Christ Church was an incredible place. I met many great friends here who I still talk to today.

I became really good friends with the two French and the two South African exchange students as well as countless students at the school.

On my last day at Christ Church, the school wanted me to play a song for the 1,700 students. I met 3 other students at the school, one being a French exchange student who could barley speak any English. We practiced two times the performed "Canon Rock." We received the first standing ovation in CCGS history. Watch the video here.

Jacob and I were lucky enough to spend the last week of our visit in Broom, in the North Western area of Australia. My host family, the Sloane's, owned and lived at one of the nicest resorts in Western Australia, Eco Beach, an hour and a half away from the nearest ambient light, it was the most amazing place I had ever visited. At night, it was so dark that one could see the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy wrap around the Earth. You could not look up for more than 5 minutes without seeing a shooting star

This trip turned out to be one of the greatest experiences of my life. I enjoyed every moment and am very gracious to the Warner family, Mr. Gioia, Montgomery Bell Academy, the Sloane family, and everyone else who helped with this incredible opportunity. I would highly recommend to any rising senior to take advantage of this amazing time. 

Parker Logan - Christchurch

Here is my blog that I did throughout my trip. Hope you enjoy!
http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog/parkerlogan/1/tpod.html