Megan Weintraub

Going to ACMI was a great experience because it connected what we learned in our pre departure course to what we were seeing in the museum directly. We got to see most of the films watched in class explained in some way in an exhibit, as all of them contributed to the development of Australian film. One of my favorite exhibit was The Piano exhibit, where the real piano from the movie was placed. It was great to see the beauty of the piano come to life right before my eyes. I learned about the rivalry between Australia and New Zealand for claiming this film, as both nations take pride in its production. The film was shot in New Zealand but has Australian influences in the production, making it unclear which country to say it belongs to. I loved being able to compare the movie to what I learned at ACMI that day.

Another exhibit I saw was about the Aboriginal people. One quote I found from an aboriginal man was about how if the dominant culture describes an indigenous culture in specific ways that are negative, that culture will start viewing themselves as that. The culture itself will start believing these accusations, making them look down on themselves in society after seeing how they are depicted in films. The dominant culture will spread these accusations further to get the majority of the people in Australia to view them in a worse way. This causes for segregation within the country. I saw this in Rabbit Proof Fence and Australia, as the Aboriginal people were viewed as outsiders even though they lived there for thousands of years prior. This injustice was very interesting to see highlighted at the ACMI. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts

Megan Weintraub

By going on a walking tour in Melbourne, I have gained a lot of knowledge about the city itself. Melbourne is a city filled with beauty, sports lovers and coffee shop enthusiasts. Being able to be guided by someone who knew a lot about the city was really great because we were able to ask many questions along the way. One spot that stood out to me was passing by the Young and Jackson Hotel. Our guide told us that there was a painting inside of a young eighteen year old prostitute who died right before the painting was put into the bar. This painting was beautifully done and was hung right above where the customers came to drink. This painting was made during the war and men would come to admire it when searching for love. They would write letters to the female named Chloe, asking for love and help along their search. The bar eventually had to get a new area for compiling mail just for Chloe’s letters. From the popularity during the war, this painting became quite famous and is now worth millions of dollars. They keep it upstairs behind stainless glass to make sure nothing happens to this masterpiece. I related this to the film Australia because of the effect the war had on the country. Hearing stories about this time period in Australia helps my understanding of how life was during the war. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts

Megan Weintraub

After exploring three cities in Australia, I have gathered many similarities and differences between what was represented in the films watched in class and what was seen. Sydney, Melbourne and Cairns were three amazing places that taught us a lot about Australian culture.

Sydney was a city filled with tourism, beauty and culture. By going to all of the popular sights in Sydney, I was able to see that the people there are very interested in the arts. I saw many people going to Operas, concerts and art galleries with my exploration. Going to the opera at the Sydney Opera House was a very unique experience because I got to see how devoted Australians are to the arts. This was noted in some of the films studied, such as The Piano. Although some would argue that The Piano is a New Zealand masterpiece, there are many parts of the movie that are tied to Australia also. The importance of music and expression in The Piano was similar to the attitude about the arts from the people I met throughout Sydney. Something else I noticed was that the people of Australia are very nice. All of our tour guides, sight guides and drivers were very upbeat and excited to share parts of their culture. This was different than what I envisioned, as I pictured the people to be like those in Muriel’s Wedding. Instead of judgmental and rude, the people I met were all very kind and helpful towards my traveling. Sydney had tons to do and see, making exploring it so much fun. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts

Megan Weintraub

For my connections project, I deciding to make a fortune teller. Making a fortune teller was one of my favorite past times growing up. I would go to sleep away camp each summer and make them during arts and crafts periods. I made many new friendships along the way while making them, giving me great memories with the item.

I decided to give this fortune teller to someone I met in New Zealand. The man I gave the fortune teller to was named Luke and he was born and raised in Wellington. We got the chance to get to know him and four other New Zealand locals through this experience. During this afternoon, the New Zealanders showed us the local spots, making us feel like a Kiwi ourselves. Luke was the one who picked out dinner place, which was a fun, hip, Asian tapas place that everyone loved. By going around with locals, we instantly felt a bond and learned a great deal from them. They answered all of the questions we had and added their hilarious lingo. We got to know the slang of people in New Zealand, something we wouldn’t have gotten the chance to do if we didn’t meet them. I loved this day because it allowed us to really step into the New Zealand culture. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts

Best City for Last!

mweintraub

More Posts

Diving Deep at the Great Barrier Reef

Megan Weintraub

mweintraub

More Posts

Megan Weintraub

After going to both of the culture centers for these two groups of people, I have gathered many similarities and differences. It was amazing to be able to step into the shoes of people in this culture and learn first-hand about their customs and beliefs. The Maori experience left me with an urge to study the Maori people when I get home. We got the chance to learn so many things about their culture while participating in their chants, dances and feasts. We got to learn how to say certain things in Maori, adding to some vocabulary we used during our time in New Zealand. My favorite part of the experience was seeing the challenge in the beginning where the Maori do their war dance. They use bulging eyes and tongues in the dance to intimidate those approaching, something I had never seen before prior to this class. This dance was shown in some movies we watched this semester like Whale Rider, showing how universally important it is to the Maori culture. After meeting many Maori individuals, I have seen their devotion and excitement to their culture.

When in Australia, we were able to experience the life of the Tjapukai people. By spear and boomerang throwing, dancing and chanting, we were able to dive into the culture to better understand it. One of my favorite parts of the experience was learning their process for finding food and depoisoning it. The food they would find would be in ma y different areas of their land, some of which could be eaten right away, and some that needed great effort to prepare. One of the guides showed us a poisonous food and explained that to get the poison out, they would have to soak it for days. This item was then used to make their bread. They would test out the poisonous food on animals to make sure it was safe to eat. We learned about many parts on their culture, making this experience so important. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts

Megan Weintraub

Going to the Great Barrier reef will be a memory I will never forget. Being able to dive in to the depths of the water with numerous sea animals was so surreal. I got to see so many different types of coral and species living among them in the water. Every place I looked had unique colors and textures, making it very visually appealing.

Going to the Great Barrier Reef was something that I was very excited and a bit timid for. I’ve never been one to dive down in the ocean, so this experience really put me out of my comfort zone. Going on the sea safari was something I was so proud of myself for doing because it pushed me to do something I normally fear. Being in open water normally makes me nervous, as I didn’t know what was around me besides what I could see. Jumping off the boat in the middle of the ocean in Australia was basically a push out of my comfort zone literally. I looked down and saw water a bright blue with nothing around me: pure openness. In that moment I decided that I was going to make this experience amazing no matter how timid I was. I am so happy I did. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts

Megan Weintraub

Exploring Sydney was some of my favorite memories on this trip thus far. From Bondi and Manly beach, to Flickerfest and the Opera House, there were so many amazing sites and memories made. There were many things learned while in Sydney that had correlated with my travels and course work thus far. On the walking tour with our two tour guides, I learned that the Aboriginals are one of the oldest races, tracing back thousands of years ago. These people are still a very prominent culture in Australia, and continue many customs and cultural practices for hundreds of years. By watching Australia, Rabbit Proof Fence and some short films at Flickerfest, I was able to compare the facts shown on this culture to what I saw. In Sydney, I paid attention to where I saw Aboriginals and tried to internally connect this to the movies watched.

Another thing I learned in Sydney was that the Opera House was estimated to cost seven million dollars when it ended up being one hundred and two million dollars. Such an increase in price came as a hit of a shock to the city, but proves to staple piece to identifying Sydney today. Also, instead of taking the estimated four years to build this masterpiece, it took fourteen years. The time and effort that was put into the Opera House was tremendous. The Opera House itself has many different theaters that have different acts such as opera, Cabaret, orchestral performances and many more. Big names like Adele have sung in this world icon, making it one of the biggest hubs for music in the world. After seeing an opera myself within the building, I can honestly say that the design and set up for the theater was genius. People from all over the world come to watch or perform, making the theater a magical place. It is visited by thousands each day, either wanting to admire it or take one of their tours. Also, they can offer up to five shows per night. This connects greatly to my traveling because it allows me to compare to theaters I’ve visited in New York City, London and Florence. Seeing a culture so inspired by music is truly a beautiful thing and it makes the world excited to visit Sydney for this Opera House. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts

Megan Weintraub

Flickerfest was an amazing short film festival that highlighted directors and producers in all types of cinema. There were many different genres shown on each showing, making it hard to decide which films stood out to me the most. I loved being able to see a wide variety of films, each with its one original plot. Some of the films wowed me with effects and story lines I’ve never seen before. One film that I thought was the most visually appealing was Della Mortika: Carousel of Shame, directed by Marisa Martin. This 17 minute film took us into the world of the carousel, filled with interesting animations and puppets. The story was of three sisters and their relationships to each other in this fantasy world. Beatrix was very envious of her older sister Abigail and chopped her hair off after she went on a date with the boy she liked. In the end, Beatrix apologized because she saw how badly it affected her sister. Each scene was so thoughtfully done that it made me glued to the screen in awe. It makes sense that they worked on this film for seven years because it has so many important details in each scene. This film was unlike any of the others I saw, making it really stick with me. (more…)

mweintraub

More Posts