Sally Lam

Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong
Exchange to University of Technology, Sydney, Australia

“Wonderful” would be the word I would choose to describe my half year in Australia, especially the city I stayed in the most, which was Sydney. She is not only an energetic city like Hong Kong, but also a harmonious metropolis.

I spent a semester at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), which is in the heart of the city. As the campus is just next to Chinatown, I never felt homesick and thus I realized how well Asians and Australians can live together. In Sydney, no one would consider me as a stranger. Everyone is very friendly and willing to give me a helping hand and that is why I love Australia so much.

Studies at UTS were funny and challenging. Lessons were very flexible, we were given lots of room to find out the answer ourselves, which is quite different to Hong Kong. We did not expect students to raise questions during lectures, but it is common to see students interrupting the lecturer to ask questions here. Doing projects with local students was another interesting task as we usually considered the matter from 2 totally different angles and were inspired by each other. I think this is a cultural difference and exploring the Australian culture was lots of fun.

I did not have many classes during the exchange period therefore I got time to explore this beautiful nation. Sydney is such a good place and most of my memories were created there. The Blue Mountains, the Rocks, Australian Museum, Circular Quay, Taronga Zoo and all the other places I visited. All these places showed me examples of the diversified culture in Australia.

After the semester, I traveled around half of Australia from Melbourne, the Gold Coast, Cairns, Darwin, and Ayers Rock, to Adelaide and Canberra. I am amazed by how awesome the aboriginal culture is, for example how they take care of their motherland, how they work out the walkabout challenges and how they survive in the middle of the continent, the desert. I did not know aboriginals would burn down bushes in order to give them new lives, therefore I was stunned when I first heard of this. A tour guide told me that it is their concept of “survival of the fittest” and also by this they would give birth to new species. I was so enthused by the intelligence of the ancient aboriginals. If I had to pick one spot as the most momentous place to be, Ayers Rock would definitely be my choice. I will never, ever forget Ayers Rock in my whole life. Even though I am not an aboriginal, I also believe it is such a sacred and holy place that it is the decree of God. I strongly recommend everyone to visit there once in your life, you would know how little a human is and you would absolutely change your value judgment.

I am very grateful to receive the scholarship since I have been given a chance to explore deeper into Australia and know more about myself. I hope I will go back to live in Sydney some time in the future. I love Australia!

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