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Dispatches from the Field Archive:
Michelle Di Fiore

Goodbye from the Field

Melbourne, Australia, Sept. 10 -- Melbourne has grown on me, and now that I have found my place here, it is time to pull out the roots that have grown under my feet. Over the past nine weeks I have seen amazing sights, met unique people and created memories that I hope will last me a lifetime. Now, the PRIME program at Monash University has come to an end and it is time to pack up all my belongings and say goodbye -- however you are supposed to do that.

Knowing that I am going to be in the United States in a few days brings about mixed emotions. I am ready to see my family, eat home-cooked meals, go to the beach to feel the sand between my toes and feel the hot summer sun on my skin.

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Koala Bears and the Great Ocean Road

Melbourne, Australia, Aug. 20 -- It is hard to realize that we only have a few weeks left in Melbourne and that soon we will have to say goodbye to the friends that we have made down here. To make sure that we live each moment to the max, our sightseeing and adventures continue. A few weeks ago we took a tour of the Great Ocean Road, which hugs Melbourne’s beautiful coastline for more than 400 kilometers. We left our hotel early in the morning for a day full of windy roads and postcard-perfect scenery.

Our tour guide, Eddie, explained that the Great Ocean Road is known for its three main parts: the Surf Coast, the Green Coast and Shipwreck Coast.

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Meeting Penguins and Kangaroos

Melbourne, Australia, Aug. 6 -- Cars racing on the left side of the road are no longer a shock but just the norm. I no longer think in Pacific Standard Time except when I make calls home, where everyone laughs when they think that my day is ending while theirs is about to begin. After a month of coping with 12-degree weather, riding around Melbourne in trains and eating meat pies for dinner, I can finally say that I am adjusted to life here in Australia.

I even finally had a close encounter with this country’s best-known native animal, the kangaroo.

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Hospitality and Research

Melbourne, Australia, July 16 -- This summer, instead of filling my suitcases with swimsuits, towels and sunglasses, I stuffed it full of scarves, jackets and socks.  Then I took an 18-hour flight across the Pacific Ocean to Melbourne, Australia, with four other UCSD students.

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