Snow days

Last weekend, my gal pals and I got lucky.

Some friends from back home were road tripping around the finest slopes in the States. In a late night facebook conversation they spontaneously (and as we were later informed – drunkenly) made us an offer we couldn’t refuse; to accompany them during their last few days at one of America’s most renowned holiday destinations.

Pick up arrangements were made, bags were packed haphazardly and homework was rushed.

Lake Tahoe was calling.

The following morning, we thanked our dedicated drivers with Jamba Juice and copious amounts of cookies as we piled into their big American Chevy.

Five hours, some gridlocked traffic, a wrong turn and a few sugar highs later… we arrived in a quaint town with cosy lodges and fairy lights on every rooftop. Vodka Red Bulls were inhaled and the games began.

In true Aussie-style, we rose bright an early the next day on only a couple of hours sleep to hit the slopes at Heavenly.

In between sliding into a fence and falling over causing a human traffic jam, my initial skiing performance screamed beginner.  But, after a few hours with a ski instructor (for only $135… the cheapest rate to get on the mountain) I managed to get the hang of it! 

 

Bottom line: Lake Tahoe is a must-do. Scroll down to see for yourself. 

Big shout outs to Kev – our spirited chauffer, Chris and Nick – his loyal shotgun riders, and Franko – the best chef ever.

CHEERS BOYS!

Smells like college spirit

Welcome to my new world. A wonderful place where;

• Houses are tagged with huge greek symbols
• Vodka comes in 2L bottles at $25 a pop 
• Beer Pong champion is a coveted title
• There is a seemingly constant smell of weed lingering in the hallways
• It's actually cool to wear a hoodie with your uni's initials on it
• Pre-drinking is called 'pre-gaming' and people start at 7pm, not 11pm
• $5 gets you a novelty sized slice of pizza AND a t-shirt
• Activities such as pilates and yoga are considered subjects
• Ben & Jerry's is served in waffle cones 
• Every weekend is a 3 day weekend
• The campus is so big that people ride bikes and skateboards to get to their next class
• House parties have taken the place of clubs, and
• The best way to drink beer is from a keg whilst being dangled upside down (and YES - this does mean i have accomplished number 8 on my bucket list.) 

But! Fear not, mother and father! College life is not all play and no work. The education system here is not dissimilar to that of high school in Australia. You're in a class with only 20 - 30 other students, professors always take the roll and homework is assigned (and checked!) on the reg'. 

I realised pretty quickly that my less-than-studious habit of flagging half the lectures and tutes in the semester wasn't going to fly in this joint. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, though. Those last minute cramming slash teaching-myself-an-entire-semester-of-work sessions will be far from missed.

To maximise the stereotypical college experience I opted to live on campus. I'm sharing an apartment with two girls; one is American and the other a fellow international student, from China. 

Aside from the occasional hairball in the sink and asian ballad blasted at 3am (i'm about to start dreaming in Chinese), this arrangement is working out quite well. 

Classes only started two weeks ago and i've already met some amazing people, many of whom are exchange students from other countries. A word to the wise here, kids... If slash when you come to the U.S you must milk being an Aussie, mate. Obviously i'm not telling you to go around claiming you love riding kangaroos or putting shrimp on the barbie' (who even does that?) But! these people love to hear you are from down under, and it comes in handy every once in a while. 

With all that said, i apologise for being such a lousy blogger of late. Making my way in this mayhem proved slightly more time consuming than initially thought. 

I've selected a few snaps to help paint the picture for you folks back home. Hope you are all well :)

Much love, the college rat. xxx