Daily journal #10 top ten

10: Red wood forest/ Hangi diner. This was a great day because we could just jam out in the woods and have a great time without caring what people said. The Hangi diner was a ton of fun because everyone got to learn about Maori culture. Tat culture is amazing and makes me want to be closer to our culture.
9: Free time to roam. We always have a ton of fun with that because we could go where ever we wanted and have fun not caring about anyone else or any other drama. Some of my favorite memories are from the times we can go anywhere for diner.

8: Bonding with friends. I like this for the same reason as #9. Also because I love hearing peoples crazy life stories and the hilarious moments Lexa, Megan, and I had in our room.
7: Lugging. I loved Lugging because I had to go way out of my comfort zone in order to try it and it ended up being one of the best moments. And, I went twice!
6: The sunrise. This was so pretty over the mountain in Rotoroua with the steam from the sulfur deposits and it is something that we cannot see here in the USA
5: Bondi Beach. I loved this time because again i stretched my comfort zone by going in the water even though it was chilly out. I also like it because I could bond with my friends.
4: Sydney Bridge Climb. The sight was breath taking; there is no way to really explain the beauty of the climb. If I am ever back in Sydney I will need to make a point of doing it again. The wind was strong up there but it didn’t matter because it was so cool.
3: GBR. The reef was amazing and flowing with life. I loved all the amazing things there that you cannot find anywhere except the reef. The thing that is really sad is that the coral is dying and you can see the significant amount of dead coral.
2: Holding a Koala. THEY WERE SO CUTE. Chipy (the koala I held) was so chill and when I held her she gripped onto my arm. I bought a picture of me holding her and we all agreed that we all looked super happy because all of our smiles were genuine.
1: Rangitoto College. I love people! They were so cool and I learned a ton of things from each other. I love Lucy because she was so cute and thought she was the coolest kid which is pretty much like me. All the people represented their high school perfectly and their Haka was AWESOME!! I loved and I never wanted to leave.
Today we went to the rain forest and it was super fun, more bonding and i held a koala!

Daily journal #9 reflect about reef

Today was another amazing day! To start off we got to sleep in until 7:00! It was so great and I felt so refreshed. We ate breakfast and after that we got on the bus to the reef at 9:00am in amazing 75 degree weather. We drove a little way to a peer where we got on a fast boat. On the boat we watched a safety instruction while feeling the warming sun. Once the boat started moving we talked and felt the wind and salt water on our faces after a presentation about snorkeling. Once we finally got to the reef the water was amazingly clear and blue. The water ended up being super cold but the fish and coral were too pretty to miss. At first i was having trouble breathing out of my snorkel because it was so awkward to breathe through but i got used to it soon. Then one time I forgot to keep breathing and i tried to breathe through my nose but it didn’t work but then i breathed through my mouth when I remembered I could breathe out of my snorkel...awkward. As we were swimming about i saw a ton of fish; a bunch of little ones, a huge one, and even an eel. I wanted to see more coral but i soon found myself about a foot above some and started to worry and so I tried my best not to touch them and i didn’t, success. Then I swam right through a school of fish, it was amazing! I stayed there for a while because I liked them so much but apparently i thought they were prettier then Lexa and Bridgette thought and they accidentally ditched me. When i looked up and didn’t see them I found the closest group and swam with them. Kathryn and I went back to the school of fish and at one point they were jumping all over me and it was kind of scary but funny too. After that we got out to get lunch and i was hungrier then i thought because I got food a few times and I didn’t expect that. I stayed out of the water for the rest of the time because the tide had gone down and I didn’t want to touch any of it. So instead i hung out with people and had a ton of fun, it seems that i have a lot of fun in life especially with my friends :). Later, I touched a sea cucumber! it was really slimy and if you poke it feels like it is full of air and nothing else. Then the last thing i did at the reef was go on a glass bottom boat and look at the coral. A sea turtle ended up passing under our boat but i was the only one who didn’t see it. On the way back the sun was setting and we sang songs, took pictures and enjoyed the sun. Overall, the GBR was spectacular!

Daily journal #8

Today was a very chill day that we needed a little bit. We flew three and a half hours from Sydney to Cairns and then hung out at the pool that day. It was nice to just hangout for the day because of all of the stuff we did, especially in Sydney we needed to rest a little. Tonight we got three hours to walk around the boardwalk and look at the cute little shops they had in Cairns. We ate at this cute pizza place that had amazing pizza and they cooked it fresh there and rolled out the dough and everything. Then for desert we had gelato...best thing ever! I think it’s the best ice cream type thing there is, then smoothies, but that’s not really ice cream. Anyway I loved today because we could bond more with people and the last three days I spent in Australia I loved because of the people we hung out with, they were silly and super go with the flow no stress kind of people. I loved it, I definitely want to get together with them again :).

Daily journal #7 are you a good traveler?

Am I a good traveler? No. I would never be able to go somewhere by myself have a good time and not get lost. I have absolutely no sense of direction and i can’t really read a map very well. I think, maybe if I was forced into a new country or city I would be able to survive using maps and locals but i do not think it would be fun. I think that the good parts about traveling by myself would be that I could be 100% chill and do whatever i wanted to do with no restrictions that other people provide. Also with traveling by myself I wouldn’t spend as much money on other people because I would have payed for my own trip. Since my parents payed for my trip, I would buy them more cost efficient gifts if they didn’t pay for it. I think the thing I would be most afraid of would be getting lost by myself of losing my luggage. Getting lost is a totally different story when you are by yourself because instead of it being an adventure it is scarier because you never know what could happen. If you lose your luggage you have to buy all new clothes where if you had friends too you could borrow clothes as well as buy them to save money then to get your clothes back home you have to buy new luggage.
Overall, I wouldn’t be a good traveler because of my fears and inefficient of direction.
Today I climbed the Sydney Bridge and it was AMAZING because the higher you went up the bridge the prettier the city got. After we went on the bridge we went to a light show where they light up the opera house and it was really cool.

Daily journal #6 reflextion of top 3 things on this trip so far and how it changed me

My #3 thing on this whole adventure would have to be last night’s adventure. I had a ton of fun talking to people on our way back to the hotel and making sure none of us fell onto the wet pavement. The spur of the moment decisions is what makes the trip authentic, spontaneous, and a lot more memorable. Singing in the rain is pretty much what happens on this trip and it makes a gloomy situation so much fun. Some people chose to walk instead of talk the train back and complain about it which i think was counterproductive. With this said, there is always a slight chance that we were going to get lost. I think if they didn’t want to walk further then they had to they should have just took the train. Afterwards, my feet were a little sore from walking and being up 17 hours straight but Lexa, a few others and I were in high spirits despite our lack of energy we had a talk with the teachers and we decided to go walk and find some where to eat. Some of us went to eat Thai food. I had never had Thai before this and I decided to go out and try it. The thing that changed me was the conversation. Mr. Shagrin is a very insightful person and he gave us a lot to think about. we talked about how the trip mostly matters about the people and atmosphere you are in that makes the trip good and this diner is a perfect example of just that. My second top thing would be going to the beach today. I slept on the bus on the way there and was not in the mood to go on the beach especially since it was cold and raining. I ended up going and it was a ton of fun. At first i was just going to chill and take pictures but then lexa took her shoes off. I was debating on if I was going to take mine off too so I asked her to tell me how cold the water was. The water ended up being warmer then the air so I took my shoes off and rolled up my pants. We took a bunch of cute photos and we got soaked to midway up our thighs. We got super sandy and super wet and cold but it taught me to be spontaneous no matter if you are not in the mood. Even if you’re feeling tired you should do anything that looks remotely fun without a second thought. My number one thing that we have done so far would be going to Rangitoto College. They were the nicer most fun and outgoing people I know and they dint have the "popular kid air" to them. They didn’t try to be people who they are not and i really admire that. I will never forget them because they taught me to have an uplifting attitude and to be open to people no matter what because you never know when the next time you will see them again will be and the same thing goes for places.
Today we took a car tour around Sydney and stopped at places that we could take pictures of the water and other amazing sights. For lunch we saw the Opera house and walked around and then later went on a boat tour of the harbor. Both tours were amazing because the sights in Sydney are breath taking and there are so many different ways to look at them.

Daily journal #5 Compare and contrast Sydney to other cities

Today was another great day! Sydney is similar to Chicago in different ways, one of those ways is the Sydney tower. It is similar to the Willis tower. Both have a place where you can look from the top of the building and look down at the city. A difference with that though, there is much more city in Chicago but there are many more things to see in Sydney. The city, as i mentioned before, is smaller than Chicago. Tonight we walked home, from a fair type thing, in the rain and cold and ended up getting lost. All of us ended up getting drenched and were slipping all over the place. Instead of taking 10 minutes to walk to the hotel it took us about an hour! This is different because if we were tourists in Chicago and we didn’t know where we were; there would be a very slim chance to get back to your hotel unless it was on Michigan Ave because Chicago is so much bigger then Sydney. Other then that the fair type thing was like the taste of Chicago but with material items instead of food and in Sydney it runs every weekend instead of about a month in the summer.
Besides Chicago, Sydney is similar to New York City. The park that people go to is similar to central park. The people in both cities go to the park to have lunch, exercise and hang out with friends.
For diner we ventured out in the city and got Thai food. We go to talk to Mr. Shagrin and talk about our trip so far. Today and tonight was an awesome experience that I will never forget.

Daily blog #4 reflection of the day

Today was AMAZING!! i wish i never left but of course we have to keep going on our trip and eventually go back home. Although the morning was rainy and nobody was in the mood to walk around in the forest, singing Disney songs kept our spirits up and made the hike seem much shorter. It got our mind off the chilly rain and the boringness of the hike and made something that wouldn’t have been so fun really fun. I think this experience gave us time to bond more with some of the people on the trip. Personally I love the rain, I like to go outside when it is warm out and just chill in the rain but I haven’t been able to do that and it was refreshing although it was a little colder then I would have liked. The most amazing part of the day though was going to Rangitoto College! The students and the principle were SUPER nice and welcomed us to their school as family. My pen pal gave me a shirt and I gave her something’s that they don’t have in NZ. I hung out with a ton of people there and had a blast. I wish we could have stayed a lot longer! I loved the part where we could just walk around campus the most because it was cool to see how different their school was, not only by how the kids were and they classes were set up, but how the building its self was set up. I also really liked that we could just talk and see what is different in each country like what we say and how we act. For example, we say cool: they say mint; we say weird: they say buzzy. The people were so amazing and fun to be around. They represented themselves, their school, and NZ very well. I have changed because of this experience by becoming more comfortable being myself around new people. I cannot get over how amazing the people were there. Thank God for facebook!! If I didn’t have that in my life I think i would miss them all so much more because I would never be able to talk to them again. That, so far, was the highlight of my trip Down Under and I will absolutely never forget it, ever. The only thing I would wish for is more time with them. Maybe next year if you decide to go back to a school the students that go on the trip should spend a day at school with the kids like how the Spanish exchange students do at our school. Another idea would be to be hosted by their pen pals. That would be awesome. Well lastly I wanted to thank you, and my parents, for this wonderful opportunity, I loved it.

Daily journal #3 Cultural differences morning and afternoon

In the morning we went outside to the lake by our hotel and took pictures of the sunrise. This is culturally different because the lakes around us do not have sulfur deposits in them so the steam that is produced there does not happen in America. The next thing we did was go on a duck tour and, while we have this in Wisconsin, this tour was culturally different because the tour guide told us all of the myths of the Maori and the town of Rotoura. They had a sacred lake that no one is allowed to swim in because they bury people in the lake. This shows us the different cultures because we don’t have the Maori tribe in America. Just around lunch we went to a village called Tewhakarewarewatahgaoteopetauaawahiao. This is a thermal village that lives off the hot springs. They are almost self-sufficient in that they use almost all natural resources. But because of how much less energy they are using they are helping the earth a lot. This is totally different then America because we are completely reliant on energy because we use energy to cook, light our houses and get our water while they use the hot springs to supply their bathing water and cooking supplies. This method of cooking is a lot healthier then our cooking because it is all boiled while most of our food is fried. For dinner we had a traditional Hangi dinner with a performance of the Haka and Poa. Going to this showed us the importance of the Maori culture in Kiwis lives because of how popular it has been so far on the trip. The Poa showed us the talent of the women in their tribes and as well as the food showed us the different types of food that kiwis eat. Overall the day was fabulous because we got to experience so many things that we could not have seen in America.
Besides what I already mentioned we went to a sheep shearing show and that was fun because we got to see a ton of different animals, same with how he shaved the sheep. We won’t be able to see that in the US at a show unless we know someone who shears sheep for a living. And we go to see Mr. Barry and his "weird germ thing" hahaha. Later we went OGOing and it looked so much fun. Although I did not go, I was having a blast watching all the people who did go. Over all, the day was really fun.

Daily Journal #2: 1st impression, clutural differences, and what are you looking forward to?

My first impression of NZ was that the airport was amazing. You know that you're a tourist when you are amazed by the airport. But, beyond the airport everything I say was green. The first thing i saw outside was a rainbow which can reflect upon our trip. By this I mean that it may represent both the new light that this trip will shed on our lives. Rainbows bring light and happiness to the people that see them and our trip this week and next week will bring light and bring happiness to du as we do the fun activities we have planned. When I actually walked outside, Lexa mentioned that the pine needles faced up and not down like the trees in America. My second first impression was that the place was very alien but looked similar to Pennsylvania because of the hills and pastures and the herds of cows but the accents were a new thing as well as all of the sheep. Besides green it was wet and the trees were huge. It had just rained so the country had a foggy glow to it. The trees, misted with dew, were enormous! I have never seen trees that large in my life! This along with cultural differences makes New Zealand so different from the U.S.A. One of the cultural differences is the food. The food is very different here because they are exposed to different things then we are and a lot of the stuff in New Zealand we haven't heard of back in the states. Another thing would be the money difference because water there was 3.50 and I had to keep reminding myself about the exchange rate.
The thing I am most looking forward to in New Zealand I going to Rangitoto College because we can meet people our own age and ask them questions. I'm excited since I have been talking to my pen pal Lucy for a while and I'm stoked to see how all of them act in person and I hope we all become great friends. I also want to learn the Haka and learn all the slang and what is popular for people our age in New Zealand.
Today we arrived in Auckland and drove to Rotorua where we went Lugging which was amazingly fun and the best thing so far. I was super scared but I did it anyway and I do not regret it at all.

Journal #1 travel

Today we traveled on a plane 20 hours to NZ. I am so happy to be here, on out way over though, we lost a day. So instead of being tuesday it is actually wednesday. At first it was hard to remember but it didnt take a long time to adjust, same with the time change, it was really easy to go on NZ time. The plane ride from LA to Auckland was brutal, especially because I had a guys elbow in my side the whole time. Oh well, it was all worth it.

June homework

Just like in America, New Zealands main meal is diner but what is different is that the men dig a hole to cook some food like hangi. Another difference is that the main food that people eat is Fish and Chips while here it is probally McDonalds. Although this maybe true, Restaurants and fast food places are becoming increasingly popular.
When it comes to ingredients, NZ food is based on things that come from NZ. Both in NZ and AU the influence on food comes from British-based food with Mediterranean and Pasific Rim influences as the country becomes more contemporary.
Food habits are changing in AU and NZ but their pattern of eatingg remains as follows; dinner is the main meal of the day and barbecues are very common in the summer time, Cakes are not normally made from boxes of mix, families usually eat take-out once a week and at barbecues the men cook the meat and the women do all the rest much like in America. NZ has started to become more and more like America, when it comes to food, because it is more convenient and contemporary.

I am excited to try all of the new foods they have there and also to experience the culture that goes along with the food. For example how it is prepared and how people normally eat it like what is the respectful way and so on. I plan on trying many new foods and activiteis i have never done on this trip.

May homework #2

1. In chapter three the Aborigional population face a multitude of injustices such as, inequality, harsh treatment discrimination and much more. When the settlers came to Australia they were allowed to choose an area of land that they wanted where ever they pleased and the best land was given to the welthiest of the group. This created inequality from the start becuse they could be taking away land for the natives and the wealthier the person was the more land they got to take. This violates laws 1 and 17. Later on the natives wanted to rome freely though their country but the Eruopean settlers would not let them because they had taken over their property which violates another one of the human rights, number 12, which states that each person has freedom from interference with privacy, family, home and correspondence. Laws 7, 2 and 5 were soon violated when the Nyungar people were harshly sentenced to imprisonment and were bound in chains becuase they were caught spearing sheep and it was not accepeted to do so if you were not white. The most broken rule was numbers 1 and 7 which had to do with equality and in this case it was between the natives and the settlers.
2. This situation mirriors a situation in the US with native americans because we tryed to take their land just like the europeans in Australia. Another thing we did was give them less rights and put them in harsh situations of labor. Each country went through similar concequenes with these too. The natives were brutally punished with inequality before the law and boh the native americans and native australians lost land as a result of the new settlers.
3. The actions of the government were not morally justified because although people with mixed descent were teased, the childern underwent a shock that cannot be taken lightly. Just like foster children, the children of mixed descent lived a totally different life. Being taken away from your family would be counter rpoductive especially if the children were old enough to remember what happened to them when they were younger. The way the government went about treating the mixed children was not morally justified becuse of the hurt each child had to go through when they left their families for a new life. the position it put the child in was uncalled for and not good to the culture or the native people indivdually or as a whole.

May homework

CANE TOAD
The Cane Toad was brought to Australia in order to kill the Cane Beetle because the beetle kills or stunts the sugar cane plant. The Australian Bureau of Sugar Experimental Stations brought 100 toads from Hawaii to help the Sugar Cane plant population. Unfortunately they were unsuccessful in killing the Cane Beetle and have spread all over northern Australia. In order to rid Australia of the invasive species scientists sought to find an infectious agent to kill them off but they found that they were also infectious to some native species so the agents could not be used. But still, the toads were causing declines in some of the species in Australia because of the poison the toad produces in glands in their heads. So the Cane toad, although caused great harm to some Australian species, has helped others in providing food for some native animals in Australia.
ASIAN LONG-HORNED BEETLE
This species was accidentally introduced to America and poses a threat to the trees in urban and suburban areas because it eats the trees. Over 30,550 trees have been cut down and destroyed in order to stop the spread of these beetles. People have also tried to use insecticides and shipping restrictions to help the population of the beetle subside.
We should be concerned with invasive species because they hurt our environment. In doing this the invasive species push out all of the indigenous species disrupting the natural habitats of everything in the country and even the whole continent. This could then lead to the disruption of the economies of many countries because the produce would be different because of the invasive species involvement.

april homework #3 videos 2, 3, and 4

video #2
1. Fish: 1500 species
hard coral: 360 species
soft coral: 1/3 of the worlds population
sea birds: 22 species
shore birds: 32 species
2. Climate change is warming the oceans
3. increased flooding polutes the reef, fish migrate to cooler waters off shore which makes less food for sea birds
4. People can reduce climate change by; using less energy, take public transportation walk or ride your bike instead of driving your own car, and open windows instead of using air conditioning
video #3
1.Benefits:-they teach in simpler terms
-keeps your attention easier then a boring video would
Drawbacks:-they focus more on the story line and not getting the point across efficent enough
-more generalized to children when everyone needs to be addressed
2.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4R0FqkywxE&feature=related This gives tourrists a way to see why this is happening and then later can figure out on their own how to stop it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmTPtm34fjc
This gives australian adults a way to see what is happening and how it will affect future generationa and also how they can help.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbN161yBBGA
This can help people not from australia to realize just how advanced this problem is

April homework #2

1. The Great Barrier Reef is considered the "largest living structure on earth".
2. The coral extracts calcium carbonate from the ocean to make solid tentacles.
3. Red algae 'glues' together pieces of coral shells and other particles to make most of the coral in the Reef.
4. It was established as a national park in 1975.
5. 33% of the Reef is protected from fishing.
6. Scientists believe that the current Reef is about 20,000 years old but scientists also believe that the ancient Reef is 500,000 years old.

april homework #1

Dear Prime Minister,
When the British settled in Australia in 1788 the indigenous people got many diseases like smallpox and measles. The British cut down forests and brought foreign animals to the country. The British proceeded to do terrible things to the country such as destroy water holes and fight for land and other natural resources with the aborigines. But then in the 1900s things started to look brighter as laws were passed to protect the aborigines and then in 1967 they were voted citizens and given the same rights as everyone else. But then things took a turn for the worse and the "stolen generation" was created. this was when people took 1 of every 10 aborigine child with mixed blood and put them with a white family in order to "civilize them by assimilation into the white society". They did this in hopes of breeding the aboriginal blood out of them. Each child suffered loss of identity and abuse, physically and mentally. This affected their entire lives by causing depression and leading to suicide or alcoholism later in life. Now people are still feeling the impact of what occurred because the "stolen generation" now do not know how to teach and raise their own kids the aboriginal way or not. They are confused as how to go about do this which set up bad influences for several generations. The government needs to make a public apology to the people hurt by this tragic event. This needs to be done because it caused a lot of distress on generations; past, present, and future that the government needs to do what little they can to help the people cope and apologize on behalf of the whole country.
Sincerely, Reilly

March homework

There are a lot of things to consider while reading the article "Savor the Trip, Don't Tweet It" by Christopher Elliott. I think he does this on purpose because Elliott's concern is that technology is taking over peoples lives and most importantly the trips that they take and he wants people to realize that sometimes the phone, or computer, etc need to be put away. From his perspective he thinks that if people do not want to put the phone down to enjoy their trip they should not have spent the money because they won't experience the trip as well as they could. I agree with him because with experience I have missed those split second things that will not come again because my eyes have been glued to my phone texting or on facebook. During trips in which I am forced to leave my phone back in the hotel or house or car i have been completely satisfied with the trip and did not have any feelings of regret because i saw everything that i could where I wouldn't have if I brought my phone with me. Also since I was fully immersed in the activity my phone wasn't even on my mind during the experience. These are things that I have thought about every time i go somewhere. Does my phone have to come with? Knowing this I believe that for the trip to Australia  and New Zealand we should not be allowed to have our phones on our bodies. Who is even going to want to spend the money to text or call someone half way across the world? This way we can enjoy the trip fully. Also if a person is constantly posting their trip on facebook or twitter they trip isn't so much just yours as it is now everyones' too because now with all the pictures and comments you post they experience what you are because you're spending the time on the phone instead of really experiencing the countries. Another thing that is concerning is that sometimes when people are having an intense conversation with someone they can be totally surrounded by that that they have no clue what is going on around them so people can be accidentally be left behind along with them not experiencing the trip. Conversations like this can also change the mood of a person because if they are getting visually upset their whole trip could be ruined as well as the trips of the people they are with. So, "[t]he solution? Set boundaries on technology" to ensure a memorable trip. This, having a memorable trip in a place that i haven't been to, is one of my purposes to going to Australia and New Zealand. I want this trip to be a wonderful memory that I can tell people with pleasure and excitement and have a lot to say. another thing I want this trip to do for me is teach me things I would not normally know. I want to learn thing that I will probably not use in everyday life and i want to learn things that will help me in the future. Things about animals, culture, plants, architecture, and everything else we come across.  After reading the article i feel that in order to accomplish what i want I need to leave my phone on the bus or in the hotel otherwise I will regret the decision to take it with. Again, this is why we should set a boundary on technology to ensure that each individual has the experience they want to accomplish. Like Annette Priest said "gadgets have made travel a less memorable, less meaningful experience in the 21st century."

February homework #2

All three countries, the U.S.A, New Zealand, and Australia were colonies of European countries. Although this is true NZ and AU were colonized and founded by the British America was founded by the Spanish and colonized by many countries. In all three countries there was a gold rush. In Australia gold was found and "The road over the Blue Mountains from Sydney became choked with men from all walks of life, carrying tents, blankets, and rudimentary mining equipment hastily bought at inflated prices. By June there were over 2000 people digging at Bathurst, and thousands more were on their way." (http://www.patricktaylor.com/australian-gold-rush). But as we know it was not as successful in America. New Zealand although it came later then the first two was "the country's biggest gold strike, the discovery of gold in Otego led to a rapid influx of foreign miners - many of them veterans of other hunts for the precious metal in California, and Victoria, Australia."  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Otago_Gold_Rush)

In all three countries the settlers have problems with the natives. In all three countries new diseases were introduced to the people. Although NZ and America gained independence from Britain, Australia gained citizenship but not independence. All three countries get self governing privileges. NZ government “is based on the Westminster system of responsible government. Executive government in New Zealand is based on the principle that "The Queen reigns, but the government rules, so long as it has the support of the House of Representatives’.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Government) While America has a democracy and AU has “The Commonwealth of Australia [which] is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states. The terms of this agreement are embodied in the Australian Constitution, which was drawn up at a Constitutional Convention and ratified by the people of the colonies at referendums. The structure of the Australian Government may be examined in light of two distinct concepts, namely federalism and the separation of powers into legislative, executive and judiciary branches of government. Separation of powers is implied from the structure of the Constitution which breaks down the branches of government into separate chapters.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Australia)

February Homework #1

1. I think that all humans have the instinct to want/need to figure out the unknown, for example the creation of the earth. Because when people don't know why or how things are the way they are they feel confused and vulnerable. This shows us that humans are very unstable by needing to know the origins of everything instead of  being content with what they know. It also shows us that the human nature is to always want to know more in order to compete with other humans and to feel superior then everyone else. Creation myths still have an impact on life today, although not as big of an impact as it was in history, many people still argue on how the earth was made. Whether you believe in the aboriginals story or the catholic version or even the scientific version people still stand their ground on which is right. This usually happens between religions.

 2. In both cultures male dominance and love and compassion are very prevalent in their cultures. For example in the aborigine story the mother spirit was afraid of the father conveying the point of male dominance while in the  first Maori story that parental figures were extremely dismal when the children were trying to break away their love. This shows us that in the family the male is most likely the provider and it will not be surprising if their society is much like old history where the mothers job is to take care of the house and the fathers job is to support the family by working. The thing that would be different from history would be the way the husband treats his wife. Knowing, from the stories, that love and compassion is treasured in their cultures we can assume that the male would not beat his wife like in history.
3. Between all three stories male dominance is prevalent, the stories are about the creation of Earth and the things on it and in all three there are father and mother figures. There are many similarities between the two Maori stories like that the many offspring of the parental figures want to separate or kill their parents, they both start in a dark setting and the father and mother are earth and sky respectively. between the first Maori story and the aboriginal story there are many similarities unlike the second Maori story where the only similarity was that they mother is more sympathetic. between the first Maori story and the aboriginal story there is a lot of light and dark imagery, and the creations that the father and mother figures make turn on them. Over years and years of telling a a story things change like between the two Maori stories the second version had the creation of a human while the first one only made animals. Sometimes, just like the game telephone, the story gets unconsciously change.
4. The aspects that go beyond science are the feelings that the things in each story experience and the family roles and their place in society. The way they portray the male in the myths shows what kind of role the have in and out of the home. Also the treasury of love and compassion shows what kind of society they have according to the myths. Some of the things they probably struggle with is women's rights because it goes against their culture to have women be as important as the men in society.
5. I believe in the scientific version of the "creation story" because it is the one that makes the most sense and the only one that can be backed up by solid facts. The way I think is very logical and when someone cannot show me facts to back up what they believe then there is no reason for me to think the same way if I'm just supposed to believe that way without that explanation. This is explained by the big bang and evoltion. I think it helps me understand things easier then to be questioning the way things are i have a solid reason for that, but this can also make me very close minded to other ways of seeing the world. As my family is Catholic so am I but seeing as i am an atheist i don't believe that god made the world since i don't believe he is there.

January homework #2



my favorite place to go is the beach 



1)I travel to experience new things and to learn. Sometimes i go for family or just for the fun of the thrill but i mostly travel to experience new things. In some ways this aligns with lyer's essay but in other ways it does not. For example he says travel helps people be "able to to return at moments to a younger ... self" while i beleive that traveling makes me grow up a little and mature more with the experiences I face when I travel.
2)I think the quote means that you have to be more open then you normally would in their every day life. Because in order to experirence what you are seeing rather than just seeing it you have to be open to what life throws at you. This relates to me by my knowing that as long as I go with the flow of life the trip will take me to amazing places and I will remember it for the rest of my life but if I choose to not have a positive attitude and have fun I'll just be on the trip and not living it to the fullest. The same thing goes for my everyday life.
3)I think that sometimes the adrenaline that fear gives a person the want to do things they normally would not do. so if we apply this to our trip we can know sometimes we need to go out of the norm to have more fun then normal and to make it a memorable time.
4)I don't believe that it is a travelers resposibility but it would be a nice thing and a good thing to do to show the other people what it is like in their country but I don't think that each traveler has a "resposibility" to do so.

I want to travel to Africa extreemly bad

5)"And even as the world seems to grow more exhausted, our travels do not, and some of the finest travel books in recent years have been thoes to undertake a perellel journey, matching the physical steps of a pilgrimage with the metaphysical steps of a questioning, or chronicling a trip  to the farthest reaches of human strangeness." this is my favorite quote because I find it completely true. no matter how much the earth has encountered people who like to travel still are compelled to travel more and more.


january homework #1

20 hour plane ride...:/

I like to talk a lot and meet new people. I am very social and I smile and talk a lot obviously. I am a cheerleader at Grayslake North and all of my classes are honors or advanced placement. Next year i will be taking three AP classes and the rest will be honors except my electives of course. :)I like trying new things and exploring places. Although i am not excited about riding on a plane for about 20 hours i am excited for the whole experience. My best friend is Lexa Koepke and i have learned a lot of things from her since she went to china last year. I think this trip will be loads of fun and I'm super excited.

1) I signed up for this course to learn new things about places I have never been and for the experience of being able to travel across the world. I also did to see things that i probabally wouldnt be able to see in my life if I didnt have this oportunity. I want to hear the accents and learn their culture, like what they do everyday. I want to see how different it is there from here because knowing how different it can be in other states just thinking about how different it will be in another country.

Fish!

2) I hope to learn about the history of australia and i want to be able to learn what their culture is like and how different it will be. I also want to learn what type of food they eat and things like that kind of just random facts about australia and the people. I also want to learn about the Great Berrier Reef, like the fish and plants that live there.
3)A lot of things intrest me about australia and new zealand but like what i said before its mostly the atmosphere that i want to experience the most. Also all of the wonderfull animals and things that we do on a whim that arent planned are what interests me.
4) I think that if we learn a little about where we are going it will help us to understand what we are experiencing. Another thing makes sence with it is that if we are trying to blend in a little most people in australia and new zealand know their history and such so that might also help.