Imran Daud Panhwar
15 July 2012
Sorry all mates!
I am here after a long time, just got relaxed after getting my exam results yesterday, I feel very good now :)
This time I don’t have a great story, starting back at uni next week, after three weeks vacation.
Everyone starts dreaming about his/her career from childhood. And when you are going to finish your course within the next three months, you think your dreams have come true; but this is only the start of your new objective, new life and a new beginning.
You have to think about your relationship status, your parents and your family and what are they expecting from you. You are in such a position today because of their help and inspiration.
You can become a good student, a good employee, a good businessperson, a good boyfriend or girlfriend, a good husband or wife. But the most important thing is that you have to be a good child for your parents. Time starts now to help and love your parents as they helped and loved you since you were born.
My request to all of you is to love your parents and help them, because they are the ones who make your dreams come true.
Thanks all. See you next time!
27 March 2012
Hi all!
Yesterday I was discussing with my housemates where we should go for Easter break. As we have already visited most of the places in Victoria.
‘My friends Victoria is not as small as we think,’ one of my housemate replied. ‘We have too many choices still remaining and you can’t imagine how beautiful each part of Victoria is.’
Definitely yes! Victoria is a very beautiful state of Australia. It was established in October 1803 under Lieutenant-Governor David Collins at Sullivan Bay, Port Phillip. The most popular places of Victoria to visit include:
- Phillip Island
- the Great Ocean Road
- Mornington Peninsula
- Yarra Valley
- Dandenong Ranges
- Daylesford
- Macedon Ranges
- the Grampians
- the Goldfields
- Mt Buller
Plus many, many more but I can’t list each of them.
After getting some information about Victoria from my friends, I was thinking that after spending a year in Victoria we haven’t even visited 25 per cent of the most popular destinations.
So for all of us who are here, now is the time to explore Victoria in the Easter break and enjoy!
And for those who are outside Australia my suggestion is that you should come here to La Trobe for your studies, you will love both La Trobe and Victoria.
13 March 2012
Last month I spent most of my time with my family back home in Pakistan. It was a very happy moment for me to meet my family, after spending one year at La Trobe (Melbourne), I can’t forget it.
But during my stay I was missing one thing – Melbourne, and the new culture I have adopted. Suddenly I got reminded of my first week at La Trobe when my University counsellor told me about cultural shock for international students in a new environment, as I was going through it. This time I was suffering reverse cultural shock as I went back. I had everything there – my family, brothers, sisters, childhood friends and everyone but I was really missing Melbourne and friends here at La Trobe.
When I came here, I only loved one place – my village in Pakistan, but now can say that I love La Trobe as well as my village.
I hope new students will get good experiences from cultural shock and enjoy life at La Trobe too.
17 January 2012
Happy New Year!
Hi everyone! Back again with my blog, but due to busy days, haven’t completed my first blog and I really apologise for that.
Today I am sharing my experience from my first Boxing Day (26 December) in Melbourne. I had been really excited for two months for this day. It is a real Boxing Day where shopkeepers cut their prices. I caught a train at 10am in the morning to go to the Melbourne CBD from my house, and when I reached the CBD, it was full with thousands of people walking on the street toward the shops. It was really exciting, as everyone wanted to get things for a cheaper price before it ran out of stock.
There was a huge discount already on every item due to Christmas but due to Boxing Day, shopkeepers were giving even more discounts. This was a golden opportunity for international students to do shopping for their family with cheaper prices, especially for those who wanted to go back home on holidays after this day. The day was a great experience for me because it let me spend more than $1000 in one day. If any of you get a chance this year, kindly do go shopping on this day.
Thank you everyone for reading my blog and I wish you all get success for your plans this year.
07 December 2011
Do what you like!
Just finished with exams last week but still fighting with fever and flu!
Don’t panic everyone, it’s not a big issue when friends care for you like family. Allah (God) helped me at every step of my life, and I am really very thankful to Him because He has given me such nice friends, especially at La Trobe and one of my housemates Kashif, and brought me here to Australia!
I will be telling you my special story about how I came here and how Australian people helped me (thanks Australia) in my next blog because I still haven’t completed it yet, apart from this, I want to share one story with you all.
A few days before going to my university – La Trobe – for my scheduled exam, I was catching the 86 tram from the corner of Plenty Road and Bell Street. Revising my lecture notes and looking outside the window. An old man (I will not declare his ethnicity but he was not Australian and was here to visit his son) stood from his seat and came near me and suddenly said ‘Hi Son.’
I talked with him very politely and gave all his questions, what I believe to be, a reasonable answer. I was suddenly shocked at his last question;
‘Son do these universities make money by failing international students intentionally?’
I was thinking how this could be true and gave him my view, saying;
‘Uncle, if universities start doing that, their ranking will go down worldwide and I know almost 50 to 70 students at La Trobe and no one has complained about the University intentionally failing anyone.’
Then my question to Uncle was; ‘Who told you all this?’ He said that his son has studied here in Melbourne for the last two and half years, but has still not completed his two years Master course, and when I further queried him, I realised why.
His son completed a four year Engineering Degree in his home country and selected a Masters in Accounting and Finance here, only to get permanent residency in Australia, and he didn’t even know a single thing about accounting before coming here.
The thing I learned here in Australia is ‘Do What You Like’ – never do what you don’t like.
Everyone please don’t ever do something that you don’t like, even if it will give you more money or options, and keep faith in your beliefs.
And please don’t do anything that harms others, even if you like, because my theme here is work and study related only. :)
See you next time, take care all.
