Getting as far away from homework as physically possible — literally

This week I’ve been stuck neck-deep in the quicksand pit of essays, assignments, and midterms all being dumped on me before reading week. No matter how much you struggle, scream, and freak out, you are going to be consumed unless you stay calm and figure a way out. With that being said, I have a feeling most people are in their own similar homework quicksand pit and want to be anywhere but Waterloo.


Allow me to assist you.


Where on Earth is the furthest possible place from Waterloo? Well, with the help of Furthestcity.com, I found out. From Kitchener (since Waterloo isn’t important enough to be on their list), Perth, Australia is the furthest possible place you could go on this Earth to get away from your econ test.


Perth exists in this strange parallel universe called “Australia,” where winter is summer and the toilets flush the opposite way. Let’s pay a visit to the birthplace of Chris Hemsworth and refrigerators in an attempt to flee from reality for a few minutes.


Home to the Great Barrier Reef, Australia has some of the strangest wildlife on earth. In Australia, kangaroos are considered almost as annoying as Canadian geese, and anything that isn’t a kangaroo is usually actively trying to kill you.


Putting your socks on in the morning? Sydney funnel-web spider. Want to go for a dip in the ocean? Box jellyfish and bull sharks. Feel like going for a walk? Eastern brown snake. How anyone gets past infancy there is astounding.


If the animals don’t scare you, then there are loads of outdoor adventures to go on. You could go to the famous Bondi beach to surf, swim in the Great Barrier Reef, and even go to Uluru (no, not Uhura you Trekkies) to climb Australia’s biggest… rock? Apparently it’s a thing, and this giant rock is considered the fourth largest attraction in Australia.


Then there is the entire Outback that alone warrants a trip. Actually, almost the entire continent is covered in the Outback, so, like Canada is known for our snow-covered wilderness, Australia is known for the opposite.


Some of the biggest attractions are, of course, the iconic Sydney Opera House, and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Never mind the shopping and countless other beaches that you could just waste hours away on without ever again having to think about readings or labs.


The people are also really welcoming, but they may or may not force some horrid Vegemite on you. There are also interesting food choices with crocodile, grilled kangaroo, Tim-Tam biscuits, and emu, to name a few.


Of course, all of this is theoretical because, at least until reading week or summer, we are all trapped here. However, you could go on an exchange there, as the University of Waterloo offers a whopping 13 school exchanges in Australia. And yes, there is even an exchange in Perth at the University of Western Australia, for those wishing to get as far away as physically possible.


So good luck to everyone with their work this reading week, and if you ever need a break, just envision some place far, far away.