GRIP, Internships Abroad Independence Abroad

Business in Sydney, Australia

Independence. That’s the word that resonates with me and my summer experience in Sydney, Australia. I have always been a pretty independent person who likes to make her own decisions, but my experience abroad has truly shown me what it is like to live on my own, work for a business, budget for myself, travel, and overall take care of myself. 

Budgeting properly turned out to be harder than I expected. However, that is because Sydney turned out to be more expensive than I originally believed. Everything costs money whether it’s transportation, food, room/kitchen supplies, activities, or even laundry. It all adds up and budgeting properly turned out to be a challenge. So after a month of being in Sydney, I had to analyze my expenses and change my spending habits for the last month. 

Living on my own has been both a journey and a learning experience. One I’ve been happy to partake in. I can’t say I’ve really been alone as I live in a suite with four other Penn students and seven more in the entire building, but that’s the beauty of it. I have had the independence to plan my budget, travels, and work schedule but at the end of the day, I also have friends I live beside who I can travel and explore with. It took a while for us to get used to living together and sharing a kitchen, but after about a week passed we got comfortable with each other and even shared a few suite homemade dinners. 

While we live in the same place, everybody has a different schedule so that adds to our independence. Every weekday for me would begin the same. I would get ready for work, cook breakfast, and walk twenty minutes to my Marketing internship at Wildfire Lounge. Then after work, I would grab dinner, go to the gym or go out to an event in the city, and then get ready for the next day, call friends or family, and go to bed. Weekends were my free time to do as I pleased. I wanted to make the most of any free time I had so I would research where I wanted to explore. Unless it was raining, I believed there was no excuse for me to be in my room during the weekend. Even if it was raining I would still do various activities because I truly believed in making the most of my time in Sydney. So with that mindset I have been able to go to Taronga Zoo, Manly Beach, the Sydney Opera House, Royal National Park, Vivid Lights, Luna Park, State Theatre, the Blue Mountains, various markets, etc. The group and I also took a weekend trip to Melbourne, and it was so cool to explore another Australian city. I wish I could have done more but that’s also where budgeting comes in. 

Being a part of this GRIP Program has been more than I imagined and I am so grateful for the experience and opportunities. It’s truly been a wonderful time in Sydney, Australia and I can’t wait for where I end up on my next travel journey where I can use all the knowledge I’ve gained in my time down under.