2 - 6 Jan 2013

Hi All,

Sorry I haven't been posting as much as I would like - its difficult to find time. Therefore, I have decided to update on a weekly basis outlining all the days of that week and a quick summary of what I did each day.

Wednesday 2 Jan 2013
Today I volunteered at a food pantry where I stocked shelves with the food donations and served clients who were in need of food. This experience was so fantastic and it helped me see Charleston in a different light. There are no homeless people on the streets of Charleston because they have fantastic programs, just like the food pantry, that give people easy access to daily items like food and shelter that they need so desperately. Of course you have to fit a certain criteria to be eligible for this program but I think that it should be somewhat adopted in Australia where the need is identified.

Thursday 3 Jan 2013
Another day off, another volunteering day. Caroline's school library mostly runs on volunteer parents and friends to file books and do other jobs, so Amy took me here to help out for the morning. As soon as we walked into the building, Caroline ran up to us, eager to show me all around the school. We planned for a tour at a later time, so I helped up in the library filing books for a while until she came in and took me on a tour. Once the tour had concluded, with the final stop being her classroom, I decided to do my first talk on Australia to Caroline's 5th grade classmates. I began by stating my name, age and where in Australia I was from. Then the questions descended upon me. They ranged from my favourite Australian food to the deadly animals in Australia to the kinds of TV shows and music played in Australia. All in all, I spoke and answered questions for 90 minutes. I felt so accomplished afterwards knowing that I had educated a younger generation on the life that Australians live. I hope that I inspired them to one day be an exchange student in other country. Whether it be Australia or not relies solely on them.

Friday 4 Jan 2013
After a small sleep in, Amy took me out to lunch at a fantastic restaurant called First Watch (weird name I know but the food was amazing!) There we ran into Marc who was on a business lunch so we just said a quick hello and goodbye. I was so thankful for this time with Amy because she shed some light on her exchange program and what it was like for her. I really look up to Amy because she is so confident in every decision that she makes. She is so wise and makes me feel so comfortable to be around her. I felt like I know her on another level now after hearing her stories on what her exchange program taught her. After lunch we picked Caroline up from school and went to the Clay Centre (like the Science Centre in Brisbane) where we had so much fun playing games and learning. When we were leaving, I spotted a photo booth so Caroline and I got in and took some photos which then printed out and now are on my mirror. It was a great end to a great day.

Saturday 5 Jan 2013 and Sunday 6 Jan 2013
These two days can be summarised into one word. Shopping. The mall here in Charleston is 3 levels full of American shops, some of which I have not yet discovered. I love the mall here, while it might not be big, the shops that fill it are amazing!

Love you and miss you all <3

Until next time!

Ellie xxxx