Students at Embassy

3) *A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.* (Lao Tzu)

I've been busy these past weeks studying for the TOEFL, and I have only one week left in the United States but I wanted to write a post about the wonderful city of Boston, where I've been plenty of times.

During the 3 months I spent here, I familiarized myself with this town and felt in love with its atmosphere.  At first I lost a lot of time seeking help to find my way in the subway network, but then I found my footing in this big town and I took pleasure in going for a walk in downtown Boston.

It’s a very nice town and I especially appreciate the harbor jetty, which is a real breath of fresh air. For a moment, you don’t feel like you are in the United States anymore.

Besides the town, I also learned to appreciate its inhabitants. Bostonians are friendly, smiley and outgoing. Each time I needed help, as I was unable to locate myself on the map, I could stop a passerby and he would give me information with a smile. A few times I engaged some people in conversation, while waiting for the subway, or sitting in the commuter rail. 

Here come some pictures of Boston, and some of my favorite places.

 
When arriving in Boston by car

 
Quincy Market, a very pleasant place to have lunch and enjoy watching many street shows

 
Go to Quincy Market and try some "French crêpes" !

 

 
Boston Common and its ice rink (unfortunately, I didn't have the opportunity to try it yet)

 
Beacon Hill, a really pretty part of Boston

 

 The Prudential Tower

 
 View of Boston, from the 50th floor of the Prudential tower ! (The Charles river)

 
 
 
Boston Public Library, a magnificent and very peaceful place

 
The harbor jetty

Cécilia studies at Embassy Boston Merrimack. Find out more on the Embassy website.

Mt Coot-tha

Hello!

Brisbane is a great and beautiful city, and to prove it, I'll take you for a ride on the side of Mt Coot-tha.

But,  first, what does Mt Coot-tha mean? I looked it up for you on the  internet and Coot-tha (Ku-ta) is an Arboriginal name which means honey. Aboriginal people used to come to the mountain to collect honey  produced by bees, so Mt Coot-tha is “the place of honey”.

Mount Coot-tha has an observation deck located in the eastern suburbs of Brisbane and it’s easy to access. You don’t need to bring your hiking boots and to climbs for hours!  You just take a bus in the city and the bus climbs to the top of the mountain for you.

Choose a day when the weather is sunny and clear, and once you reach the top you will be impressed by the landscape. You can admire a panoramic view of Brisbane.

The look-out is not just a place, it includes a restaurant, café, gift shop and on the deck, with powerful binoculars, you can see all city details.

And after, if you have the courage to walk a bit and have some time, I'll take you to discover the extremely awesome Brisbane Botanic Gardens and the Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium.

Follow me! It’s here !

Uh no, we killed anyone in our way…

The botanic gardens at Mt Coot-tha are 15 minutes' walk from the lookout.

It’s a subtropical botanic gardens and it’s arranged in thematic and geographical areas:  Bamboo Groove, Japanese Garden, Bonsai House, Exotic Rainforest, African Region Plants…
There is also a Lagoon and a Tropical Diplay Dome.

Japanese Garden: so neat!

A fern: It’s a green flowerless plant that grows in moist air.

The peaceful lagoon

This botanic gardens is an ideal place for lovers, it’s very quiet and romantic. And we met a lot this afternoon in the park. Shhh!

The Botanical Gardens is also the home of The Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium where you can learn about the cosmic, moon, stars and the sky and see picture from space observatory systems. In addition, the Planetarium's skydome projects an artificial night sky.

Before you sleep, watch the stars, like this astronaut, to have sweet dreams…

Bye bye ;o)

4) Graduation T_T)

I've studied in Embassy for 5 months and the time came for me to graduate .

I never thought I would leave this school!

I just enjoyed life but when I opened my eyes in the morning that was the last day at Embassy.

 

 

When I look back at my life in Embasy I've won the Best Student prize twice! :D

 

If I give you some advice to spend your time in Embassy properly I'll say "don't be late for school"

If you're late for class you'll miss the class and you'll interrupt everyone. It'll make it difficult to follow your class.

I've actually seen some students who can't follow the class as they was absent too much and always late for class.

The second, do your homework and review every week.

A lot of Korean students are everywhere in Sydney's language schools, and some students may say it's disappointing that so many Koreans are in class.

However I think Korean people are  everywhere not only in Sydney but also in Tokyo (if you want to study Japanese) , Beijing and US.

So, please don't be disappointed of too many Korean people are in your class :D

Just go your own way and don't hesitate to use English even though your English is not good and not proper.

 

 

Good luck everyone!!!!!

 

 

Lighting of the Christmas tree

Cécilia studies at Embassy Brisbane.

This year, Christmas is very special for me. It’s my first Christmas in the summer!

Usually I celebrate Christmas in France with snow, cold, a thick coat, and sub-zero temperatures.
But this Christmas will be celebrated with t-shirt and flip flops. Besides, it's strange to see Santa Claus everywhere when the weather is hot and to see people in the street with Santa hats on.

Brisbane City organizes a full programme of events for Christmas and the festivities begin with the Lighting of the Christmas Tree. This year it was on Friday 3 December.

For this event, special guests were hosted: Santa Claus of course, but also an Aborigine clan, a choir, a ballerina from the Nutcracker Ballet… It was not just the flicking of a switch.

And the place was really crowded:

We weren't alone for this event, I think everyone in Brisbane was here! And it was even broadcast on TV.

To feel the atmosphere of Christmas,my friends and I heard very beautiful Christmas carols sung by a charismatic singer.

 

And after waiting, a little girl switched on the Christmas tree lights. It was amazing!

The lighting of the huge Christmas tree dominated all the place.

Before and after!

 In addition, the Christmas tree is eco-friendly. The star on the top of the tree is special, it's a solar panel and the lights are LED. So, the Christmas tree doesn't need power.

Fancy a nice warm "winter" studying English? Find out more about Embassy Brisbane on our website.

 

Southbank

Cécilia studies English at Embassy Brisbane.

 

Hi, again!

Today, I would like you to discover my favorite Brisbane district: Southbank.

Southbank is situated in the middle of the city, on the southern side of the Brisbane River. And this place is magic, everytime you go at Southbank, you are sure to meet a friend. It’s the place to be. You can find all that you need: restaurants, shops, a library, museum, garden, cinema… But the most exciting is the beach, a true inner-city beach with white sand, palm trees and a crystal clear lagoon. We can swim in front of the Brisbane River and Central Business District.

A paradise !!

After school and with sunny weather, my friends and I enjoy relaxing at the beach, and sometimes we like to organize a BBQ. It’s really easy because there are several barbecues across the Parklands.

An other pleasant thing is the Lifestyle Market, every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, we can go for a walk through the different markets and find local souvenirs, gifts, arts, crafts, exotic items, fashion clothes, food… Everytime you can’t resist and we bought something, the last time it was for a beautiful headband.

I like also to walk across the garden and it’s very surprising to bump into a Nepalese pagoda or a rainforest just after the road.

In front of the Nepalese pagoda: I'm in the middle!

And the rainforest.

And a symbol of Southbank is the arbour, it was made with columns of steel, each covered with a violet bougainvillea plants. It’s a splendid arbour and my friends and I enjoy walking inside. We often encounter people biking or rollerblading.

For a little bit of culture, near the opera, there is an Art Gallery, a huge library, a science museum and the Goma (same as Moma in New-York). The last exhibition was the Valentino retrospective, the famous Italian fashion designer. I was there and the exhibition traced all Valentino’s career, with the wonderful dresses worn by celebrities.

To finish a perfect day, I advise you to go to a chocolate bar. The menu is crazy: crepes, waffles, fondue, chocolate pizza, ice-cream… All is prepared out of delightful chocolate. For a chocolate addict like me, it’s a permanent temptation. Hum, dark chocolate!

Yes, chocolate is good for you!

So, now, I think you can understand why Southbank is my favorite place.

See you soon...

Wow! Want to see Southbank for yourself? Sample some of that chocolate pizza perhaps? Find out more about studying English in Brisbane on the Embassy website.

Australian Zoo day trip

“6.00 am dring dring!”

It’s time to wake up. Today, it’s a special day: I'm leaving at dawn to spend an incredible day at the Australian Zoo. But before arriving at the zoo located at Beerwah, we have an hour's drive to go. I joined my friends at Roma bus station in Brisbane.

“9.00 am Opening doors” Where shall we begin? Australia Zoo is a huge park and this year, it’s the 40^th anniversary since its establishment. The park spreads over 70 acres, with 1,000 animals and it's Australia’s number one tourist attraction. Every day, there are a lot of showtimes and the choice is hard: we can feed tortoises/otters/elephants, see a wildlife warriors show, learn about koalas and crocodiles, see the tigers play. The park is divided into 7 territories, each with their animals. My friends and I first see crocodiles, each crocodile has a name and many of them have been caught by Steve Irwin. Steve is the famous Crocodile Hunter and the entire park pays tribute to his memory.

Next, we continue with koalas, cassowaries, dingoes, binturong… and we really appreciate that you can almost touch them.

“11.00 am Wildlife Warriors Show” It’s an essential moment in the park. We go to the crocoseum and the show begins. We are very impressed by the presenters, they play with a snake and a crocodile, I was afraid for them!

“12.00 Lunch Time” A good break, we walked a lot during the morning.

I enjoyed that the non-dangerous animals are almost free, we could touch kangaroos, koalas, birds and took pictures close up.

I don’t know why, but when I took a photo the animals posed, didn’t they?

“4.00 pm we finish with the shop”. Before leaving, tired but happy, we make a little detour to the stores. And we end up falling asleep on the bus!

Welcome!

Cécilia is our new blogger at Embassy Brisbane.

Hi everybody and welcome to my blog! I'm very enthusiastic to start this blog and share with you my new Australian experiences in the coming weeks.

First of all, who I am? My name is Cécilia and I’m 24 years old. I’m from Paris in France, I have always lived in Paris and I’m sure you know Paris for its Eiffel tower or the Champs Elysées.
My job is physiotherapist, I've been working in a hospital for one year and I take care of invalids after their chirurgical intervention. I’m really enjoying my work and I appreciate also shopping (like all girls I think!), cinema, cultural events, cooking and reading. My favorite sports are roller-skating, diving and skiing.

So, why have I come to Australia? Four months ago, I decided to take a break for3 months to improve my English and discover a country. And the Australian people are reputedly open-minded, cool and friendly. I had already been to Australia four years ago, and I was charmed by this country.  I thought that Brisbane was a good choice because I had never been to this city before and it’s near the Gold Coast with its beautiful beaches and its good weather.

For my accommodation, I choose a homestay because I’m really happy at the idea to share the daily life of an Australian family and celebrate with them Christmas and the New Year. And I could practice my English and exchange about cultural differences.

My courses at Embassy began 5 weeks ago and I have already met many friends of different countries. The teachers are very motivated and always there if you need any help or advice. I’m sure that they will communicate to us their knowledge.

My first party at Embassy was for the Melbourne Cup; it's a popular event in Australia where men bet on horses and women vote for the best hat! I post my first picture to show you the vote for the best costume.

I hope you’ll be interested to discover Brisbane with me. See you soon…