From Switzerland to Down Under
From the sleeping nest of St. Gallen to the cosmopolitan city of Sydney. New people, new university and new adventure - first steps in a new world.
Welcome to my first blog post! My name is Dario Isenring and I am studying in the 5th semester at the University of St. Gallen - the leading business university in Europe. This semester I spent on exchange at the University of Technology (UTS) in Sydney. That's why I would like to share my first impressions with you!
After 2 years at my home university I decided to spend half a year abroad - the adventure Australia could begin!
For me, the only possible destination for the exchange was UTS in Sydney - every year, more than 30 students from my university go to UTS for the exchange semester. My colleagues have been busy advertising UTS and were excited about their time in Australia.
First steps
On July 22nd, after a 17-hour flight, I arrived in Australia. Then it went off in a flash: Only about 4 days later, it all started and I was quickly caught in the everyday life of university. I attend the subjects "Socio-political context", "intermediate microeconomics", "intermediate macroeconomics" and "programming fundamentals". It should be noted that during the semester in particular there is more work due to assignments or papers than at European universities. However, there is enough time for leisure activities.
Finding my feet
As already described, there are a number of leisure activities in and around Sydney. I am a member of the UTS gym and play football at university every Friday. This is also a great opportunity to meet new people. On weekends I did several coastal hikes - I recommend this to all who come to Sydney. Very fascinating nature (which also exists in the Blue Mountains). Every thursday there is a small party on the rooftop of the UTS housing (Yura Mudang), where many go to ivy (a club in Sydney) afterwards.
Highlight The highlight for the time being, however, was surfing. I went to the surf camp at Seven Mile Beach (about 2 hours from Sydney). Unfortunately I underestimated it a bit - so I broke my nose on the first wave. Nevertheless it was a great experience - in the evening there was a barbeque, then we went for a drink together. I can only recommend this to all those who go to UTS.
These are my first impressions and I hope that many more will follow!
