One and half years ago, I decided to resign from my stable job in China and study a master in Australia. It took a lot of courage to make this decision because I had a senior position in world top 15 company and after working for so many years, it wasn’t going to be easy to study again especially in a foreign country. As my parents and friends didn’t understand my decision and support me at that time. However, after studying and living in Melbourne for a year now, I know I’ve made the right decision and have fallen in love with this charming city.
One of my favourite things about Melbourne is that compared with most of cities in China, Melbourne is very multicultural with numerous nationalities living here. I never thought I could have friends from different countries before, but now I have a lot of friends from Australia, Indonesia, India, Italy, Colombo, Iran, Nepal and Ukraine. All of them are really amazing and we share our different cultures, experience and stories with each other, which have made my world more colourful and interesting. We have a lot of fun together — camping in the national park, having a BBQ in backyard, driving along the Great Ocean Road and enjoying the sunset on the beach. On top of that, I have learned how to make a cup of traditional Indian tea and I’m about to learn how to make coffee!
I share all my photos with my parents and friends in China via Wechat. They are all now so happy to see that I’m really enjoying my life abroad instead of just working the whole day when I was in China.
Another reason why I love studying here is the slow pace life and living in a pleasant green environment. Most big cities in China are really crowded and full of people rushing around. When I was working, I just kept running like a cog in the machine every day and wasn’t able to stop for a second to enjoy and appreciate the world around me. Since I’ve been in Melbourne, my whole lifestyle has completely changed. During the week, I usually join the community and do a workout with many energetic people in the reserve near my house, which makes me fresh every day. When on breaks from study, I spend a lot of time traveling to several amazing cities and tourist destinations in Australia such as the Gold Coast, Hamilton Island, and Great Barrier Reef enjoying the fresh air blowing in from the sea and the sweet sound of people laughing and having fun around me.
I know myself much better now after this adventure and would love to my parents and my friends to travel here and share this adventure with me. Looking forward to what the next year brings!
Di Zhang, Master of Professional Accounting
