From 30th July to 21st August, I spent three amazing weeks in Melbourne, Australia as half overseas student and half tourist. The three-week stay and study experience in Australia was so memorable and incomparable for me.

To begin with, I learnt varieties of knowledge from the Global Professional Program with Monash Professional Pathways, which is a division of Monash College. During the courses, I encountered several enlightening trainers who thoroughly delivered us knowledge of Australia, its people, culture, working place communication skills, business etiquette and business writing. During our visit to the Immigration Museum, I felt like I witnessed the progress of immigration in Victoria. The other visit to City of Melbourne Council enabled me to experience the working atmosphere in different departments and discover its working culture which enriched my knowledge on how a local government or a public organization actually works. Moreover, I delivered numerous presentations during the three-week study on various topics which greatly helped me learn how to deliver a well-structured presentation with impact and a beautiful Power Point.

The wonderful travelling life in Melbourne is my second gain. I had my first intimate meeting with kangaroos. At the last weekend, I went to Philip Island to watch the smallest penguins homing at sunset and fed kangaroos myself for the very first time. I was also fortunate enough to admire the fascinating and stupendous starry sky. I could not stop praising “What a beautiful night”!

The biggest achievement I obtained from Melbourne is friendship and love. First of all, I met a group of warm-hearted and excellent alumnus from my home university. Every day, we had class together, ate lunch together and shared what we had with each other. It might be just a piece of sandwich or a little strawberry, but the happiness of sharing and the empathetic feeling among us were just so memorable. Then in the second week, our class mingled with Japanese students. Their coming made this experience even more fascinating. During the first few days, we just politely greeted each other. Yet then, we became increasingly intimate. We completed long project together, prepared for presentations jointly, encouraged each other through Facebook at night, discussed heatedly in classes and laughed out aloud. I could still remember the nick name my Japanese teammates gave me, “Ganbaru”( Japanese way of saying cheer up ) they taught me and the tears I wept—I was so reluctant to wave goodbye!

Last but not least, I met with my homestay parents who I respect and appreciate so much. My home stay mother is from HongKong. Her being so knowledgeable and well-organized was so impressive for me was well as her caring heart and kindness. Every night, she cooked delicious food for the whole family, especially taking my taste into consideration. My homestay father Adrian is a great lover of sports. He always patiently helped me plan my trip, listened to my stories during the day and encouraged me to have a try on everything new. I appreciate this lovely couple so much! Almost every night, we had long conversation during our dinner and that must be one of the most precious memories of mine.

In Melbourne, I stayed, I learned and I enjoyed.