‘A good start is half the battle!’ It happened to me actually! From beginning to end, my journey was a series of new experiences. I studied at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Melbourne during the 2020 spring semester. Unfortunately, I had to come back three months early. Despite coming back early, every moment at RMIT was fantastic and unforgettable for me. This is a throwback in terms of my short-term life as an exchange student in Melbourne, Australia.

The Happy Moments in RMIT

RMIT provides a lot of programs for exchange students. They engaged in three days of orientation, fieldtrips, traveling, gathering for parties, and so on. Above all, the three days of orientation were the most memorable. My team’s name was ‘Chiko Roll’. Almost 20 members including me were looking around the campus, Melbourne CBD, and the Club introduction event. While wandering around the city, I could talk to guys from all over the whole world. Surprisingly, they were interested in Korean culture such as BTS, Korean dramas and movies. That was the motivation to form my crew. My crew was composed of 10 guys from the USA, Canada, United Kingdom, and South Korea (only me). At first, I felt a little lonely as I could not understand their conversation clearly and because they are used to a different culture than I am. However, as time went by, my friends intentionally talked to me slowly and in a friendly way. I not only appreciated their consideration, but I also got used to listening and understanding English. Finally, we went on a trip to Sydney!

Unforgettable Experiences in Melbourne

‘Be careful of the sun in Australia!’ I went to Brighton Beach with my RMIT friends. The weather that day was so sunny. We were excited about the weather and looking forward to having a good time. As soon as we arrived at the beach, we changed clothes, and dived into the ocean. Unlike the atmosphere at the beach in Korea, nobody cared about what other people did. I liked that part and enjoyed it a lot with my friends. We had a chat about each country’s culture, youth and dreams while lying at the beach. We did amazing activities and had an amazing time. However, after coming back home, I noticed my back was something wrong. I did not feel painful, but it seemed bad. I could not help but rub my back. From that day, I could not go to the beach for a long time.

COVID-19 Struck Australia

Before leaving Gwangju, the circumstance of Coronavirus in Korea was getting worse. Unlike Korea, nobody cared about the virus in Melbourne until the middle of March. The air was so clear, no one wore a mask at the time. However, because of the global pandemic, Australia was no exception, and soon enough it was easy to find people on the street wearing masks. As the number of infections increased, many facilities including those in RMIT decided to be close. Some of my friends accepted that the situation was serious and there was going to be no breakthrough. Eventually, they left one by one, all I had to do was make a decision about my future. During those days, I felt so depressed and lonely as the situation was getting worse. Since I could not help going back to Gwangju, I tried to find an airline ticket, but it was not easy because many Koreans who lived in Australia went back home. One day, via a call with customer service from Asiana, I luckily got a direct ticket from Melbourne to Incheon.

The only one thing I was frustrated about is that I could not travel as much as I was supposed to. Even though I could not stay much longer, I think I am lucky because I had indelible experiences with good friends. I swear I will go back again later.

By Kim Gang-hee, Senior, School of Mechanical Engineering