Sydney Life

Le français, they say that you can seduce any girl with a cleverly crafted smattering of this language of love. I have to admit, that's one reason why I'm studying it. But what's the use of studying Old English if there aren't any medieval women to whom I can profess 'thou hath ankles most shapely and pale'?! No, Old English isn't the best language to pick up with on campus. But as a fresher, I might as well be speaking it when I try to navigate the sandstone mazes of Sydney Uni.

Being amongst the first group of students to try out the new Bachelor of Arts (Advanced) (Honours) sometimes leaves me feeling like I'm on the wrong end of the academic experiment. We don't have that comforting buffer of first year confusion; instead we're in the deep end with the senior students. Sometimes I wonder what I'm missing, all those first year bonds formed on the basis of 'I really don't want anyone to know but I'm pretty lost around this place too'. Being thrown in with these second years can honestly make me feel as if I'm speaking some dead language.

The good side is probably the fact that it forces you to make friends, to take the initiative and talk to new people. The bad side is remembering all the new names and faces. The two tend to become fluid and you get Will becoming Emily becoming Marc becoming god knows what. I've forgotten most of the names to be honest, which makes me a pretty bad type. But I've learnt the language of ambiguity where 'mate' is always a good substitute: the person you're talking to calls you 'mate' back, and the cycle of ignorance continues until someone has the guts to say they've forgotten your name or you manage to read theirs on a notepad cover.

Another awesome way to meet people I've found is through the stack of Clubs and Societies and sports clubs that I overzealously signed up to. Of course I won't commit and won't show to half of their events, but with the occasional opportunity of a free barbecue who'd refuse? When your food budget dips to $5.10 and you've been forced to buy your mate's half-eaten muffin for $0.70, then you'll know what a god send these C&Ss can truly be. Just thinking about it now, what kind of mate makes you pay for a half-eaten muffin!?

Slowly but surely, you do begin to speak the common language of the uni folk: 'Manning' becomes an indispensable word in your vocabulary, as does 'Theatre Sports'/'SUBSKI', 'I haven't had my strong latte yet' is the new 'G'day'. Who needs French now?

So three weeks in and the lingo's down pat, unsafe levels of caffeine have infiltrated all vital organs but I'm sure what makes me a proper uni student is that I'm now 300 pages behind on my readings.