A little while ago I had the privilege of helping to run an event with StudyAdelaide, where around 200 international students got to visit to the Adelaide Zoo for free! It was very popular amongst the students (we were only initially expecting about 50) largely because many of them had never been to the zoo before and because it was free. Usually it’s quite expensive to go to the zoo.
The day went really well, although I was a bit nervous about trying to coordinate 200 students and keep everyone in their respective groups for the day. All the students were very helpful though and they all seemed happy to follow instructions, which was a big help for those of us running the event. So if you were one of the students at the event and you’re reading this, thank you very much for your help!
We got really lucky with the weather that day too as it looked like it was going to pour rain all afternoon, but luckily it held off until about an hour after the event. Then it proceeded to rain for about three days straight! How’s that for luck? It was even kind enough to hold off until I had walked back to our offices on North Terrace!
As for the zoo, it was awesome! The highlight of the day was definitely getting to see the two pandas that are in the zoo and see how they live and interact with the people. I was surprised to find out that they’re the only two pandas in all of South Australia...and you think you’re having a hard time finding an eligible mate!
Other than the pandas, my favourite part was probably just listening to the tour guides and hearing how knowledgeable they were about all the different animals that they have there. It’s always easy to tell when someone loves what they do and you could certainly tell that our tour guides were engaged and excited to be showing us around.
All in all, the event was a great success and I know that StudyAdelaide was very happy with how things turned out. We’re always looking for new ways to engage with international students so if you have any ideas just let me know in the comment section below!