Leeds United Football Club match.

One of the things that I wanted to tick of my Exchange bucket list was to go to a game of the biggest sport in the world, soccer!!! When my friend told me the Leeds United, our local team, was playing a home game, I jumped at the opportunity. I actually did play soccer for a few years back at school, not that I was any good at it, but at least I understand what is happening...kind of. We managed to score front row seats, so that we could be amongst all the action.

Catch-up over lunch.

I've just sat down to have lunch in a cute little coffee shop across the road from uni, when it dawned on me how long it's been since I have written and posted anything on my blog. The last few weeks have been absolutely mental and jam-packed. So I thought this would be a great time to just sit down for a little catch-up with you all, and tell you about where I have been up.

Bonfire Night.

Every year on November 5th, all of the United Kingdom come together to celebrate Bonfire Night, also known as Guy Fawkes Night. It was so lovely cuddling up in all our cosy coats, watching the fireworks explode above us. There was also a massive carnival across from where we watched the display. For everyone back home, the history behind this famous evening includes the arresting of member of the Gunpowder Plot, Guy Fawkes, while he was guarding explosives that were plotted to be placed beneath the House of Lords. Celebrating the fact that King James survived this assassination attempt, people lit bonfires around London, and years later it was made a National celebration day.

Halloween.

Halloween back home in Australia isn't much of an ordeal. When you're younger, you dress up scarily and trick-or-treat around your local area. But as you get older, there isn't much happening during this spooky holiday. However, this is a completely different story in Leeds. Every club has a Halloween themed event, so all you have to do is take your pick and dance the night away is your best costume.

A formal affair.

On Sunday, Devonshire Hall students were undertook their first formal event for the college year. We were to all attend a formal Sunday roast lunch, where we would be in the company of our Warden, student president, and other noteworthy members of staff. Before this, a photo would be taken of the entirely of our residence in their formal attire, as a way to capture the wonderful year (or six months) that we would all spend here.

Leeds Varsity match.

Leeds Varsity is a day full of sporting competition for rivalling university's University of Leeds and Leeds Beckett University. However all the hype and excitement builds towards the main spectacle of the day, the firsts Rugby Union game. Even though I went to this event, not having any idea what the rules of Union are, this didn't deny me of an absolutely amazing time.

Getting involved.

The University of Leeds offers a club or society for pretty much anything your mind could ever possibly imagine. From food to photography, quidditch to skydiving, there is a group out there for literally every single one of you. Being a fresher, the university's Union really pushes and encourages us newbies to sign-up for and join as many different societies as we possibly can, which I for one think is a great attitude to have. After the initial overwhelmingness of all the different clubs, I finally decided upon four, which I think I will have the most fun in and get the most out of.

An important crossroad.

I've had this picture as the background for my phone since my travels began. The past seven days have been be a period in my life that I will forever remember, however not for the reasons that you would initially think. Last Monday I was left alone in foreign city, surrounded by people with obscenely peculiar accents. In such a short space of time, I have experienced one of the biggest learning curves in my life. I was thrown into the deep end, and I feel as though this newly formed independence I have uncovered has kept me afloat.

Home sweet home.

After much anticipation and waiting, yesterday I finally moved into my accommodation in Leeds. I have been more than ready to settle into my room, as I feel that I have been living out of a suitcase for what feels like an eternity. After going around and meeting most of my Devonshire buddies, I can honestly say that their are an overwhelming number of Australian's here. What are the odds. Travel to the other side of the world, and literally everybody surrounding me is Australia. My next door neighbour even goes to the same university as me back home. So without further ado, let me give you the grand tour.

The calm before the storm.

Today I decided to have a look around where I will be living for the next five months. As it's only international students trickling in, the entire campus is extremely quiet and eerie, like some sort of ghost town. However there will only be a few more days of this peace, as before the week end is out, almost all students will have moved in and the campus will be buzzing with life.

Exploring Leeds.

This morning I packed up my bags, for what feels like the millionth time, as today was the day that I was travelling up to my new home for the next five months. After travelling for 2.5 hours from Kings Cross Station, through the picturesque British countryside, I finally arrived to the Leeds station. I decided that in this afternoon I would have a wonder around the city, and I even managed to make it to the University of Leeds, where I will be living and studying at.

The final preparations.

It's now getting to the pointy end of the countdown, only three sleeps to go. All of my paperwork is (finally) in place, I have had my last shift at work, and I am beginning to say my final goodbyes to family and friends. It doesn't feel real, that in a few days time I will be packing up my life in Brisbane and moving across to the other side of the globe...alone! All that is left to do now is pack. Something that I have been dreading and putting off for a long time. I think the main reason for this is because once I have packed, that means that this is all real and about to happen.