Departure for Australia

For those of you who do not know me, my name is Austin Weiss I am a sophomore accounting major within the Smith school. Growing up I had always dreamed of going to Australia. It was a strange obsession that I had developed at a young age. I would hang an Australian flag in my room, adopt Australian slang in my own dialogue and even wake up at absurd times in the middle of the night to watch Australian sports events such as the Australian Open tennis tournament and the Australian rules football Grand Final match. This fascination carried into my years at the University of Maryland. When I heard of the opportunity to travel to Australia through the Smith school I knew it was something I could not pass up as I had no idea where my future career would take me and whether or not it would permit me to travel to such an exotic country. Such a long journey made me hesitant at first, knowing full well I did not have extensive flying experience (never having flown alone before and only flying once with a friend). I was also wary of the fact that I would be alone in an unknown city with people that spoke a slang I was unaccustomed to being surrounded by. Nonetheless I became determined to overcome such obstacles because of the timely opportunity through Smith and the many wonders that Australia provided. There were many things that influenced my decision; the chance at interacting with a foreign culture, the beautiful beaches, and the life experience it would equip me with for later in life. I am hoping that an experience like this will throw me into countless uncomfortable situations forcing me to deal with uncertainty. I have always been told that if you are comfortable with where you are at you are not growing. The goal on this journey is to grow in several ways. Grow in my perception of the world, grow in my ability to interact with new people, and grow in my maturity to assist me in the business world.

This was a picture from last year of me dreaming of going to Australia.