Today I graduated from the University of New South Wales with a Bachelor of Science (Business Information Technology) (Honours Class 1).
After four years of ups and downs, good and bad times and a whole lot of hard work, I'm coming out of this degree with a better idea of who I am, what I'm capable of and where I want to go with my life.
I have had the pleasure of making some wonderful friends, who have defined my University experience and contributed to the person I am today. I am deeply grateful for their friendship, and want them to know that wherever they are and wherever I am, I will always be there for them.
Congratulations to all of the BITs graduating today - we all worked really, really hard for this day, and it's finally here! A big, big congratulations to Sheryl, who not only achieved Honours Class 1, but was also awarded the University Medal!
So what's next? 
I have had some amazing and inspiring conversations over the past few weeks. I am consistently surprised at the passion and motivation some people have to stand up and make a change. They have made something extremely clear to me:
Irrespective of the problems the world's societies face today and who caused them, it is the youth who will inherit the consequences. It is in our hands to make the change.
If we want to minimise the effects of climate change, eradicate extreme poverty, live sustainably or address any other of the myriad of issues, WE must be proactive. WE must stand up for our future and make the change.
What we lack in experience, we make up for in passion.
That much is clear to me. I am beginning to realise why AIESEC is such an important global youth organisation. I am inspired by the people behind the Australian Youth Climate Coalition and "It's Getting Hot in Here" and their efforts to raise awareness and promote action among today's youth.
We see the future that we want, we just need to stand up and shape it.
I finally picked up my bound thesis from the university today:
9 months' work, condensed into one heavy book. It's nice to have something to show for all that work. Most of all, I've come out of it knowing more about what I'm capable of, what I need to improve and how to plan and implement a long-term (as much as 9 months is long-term) project.
In a week's time, I'm going to upheave three years of my life and move to the other side of the city (Alexandria) with my friends Susu and Sveta. It's one of those things I've been meaning to do for a while. Ever since returning from Asia, I've needed a change of scenery, and it's going to be exciting to live in a new house, with new people and new dynamics.
It's also a damn good excuse to have a party.
On the negative side, I have to somehow separate my belongings from my flatemate's, pack them up and move. Bugger.
My friend Manny and I went to the Chinmaya Mission Garba & Bhangra Night in Lidcombe last night (at the invitation of a friend from Hindi class)… It was so much fun!
We started off with Dandiya, which involves hitting the sticks of your partner in a pattern and spinning along to the next person. Much dizziness ensued.
The DJ later moved on to Bhangra and hip-hop music, which got the crowd going…
For once, I also had an excuse to wear a kurta (and dupatta) and dance around like an idiot (without feeling like a fool!).
Ahhh… good times!
(More photos)
I was relaxing this afternoon outside the Lindt Cafe in Martin Place (can't beat the hot chocolates from there… mmm), when a group of people assembled, started playing drums and dancing outside of the Channel 7 studios. I can only imagine they were practising for a performance later in the studios, but it was great to watch!
I'm not sure where the dancers were from - Turkey? Armenia? I'd love to know.
I was surprised at the number of people that walked right past without glancing at what was going on. It's not every day you get to see another culture's dance - particularly for free!
I went at saw the Gotan Project tonight at the Opera House. What can I say? It was freakin' awesome! I loved their latest album, Lunatico, but seeing them live just blows it out of the water. Wow.
Clean Up Australia Day was today, and I helped out at the McMahons Point site. Despite the beautiful backdrop of the Harbour Bridge and Opera House, the amount of rubbish absolutely disgusted me. Cigarette butts, bottles, cups, bottle caps. It's not accidental, either. We found bottles metres into bushes, which makes it clear that people deliberately threw them in. I can't understand how people can behave in such a way.
This is an example of the effect of people's littering:
This was taken at a private beach near McMahons Point - rubbish chucked into the harbour wound up at this tiny beach. We spent a good half hour cleaning all of it up, with one of our team members even wading into the water to collect the floating rubbish.
The day was also somewhat marred by the arrival of a group of people and an MTV film crew. A few minutes of research revealed that they were filming the reality show "Real World 19″.
Regardless, we picked up a lot of rubbish, and the areas were looking a lot cleaner after we left - for that, I can be glad!
I dropped by the Maya sweet store in Surry Hills today and picked up some jalebi:
I haven't had any since my time in Bombay… and oh my god it's so disgustingly good! I also caved in and bought gulab jamun… it's going to be a fatty weekend.
