Monash University

Not much difficulty in communicating except for the difference in accents with the locals, as I speak Engligh most of the time anyways.

ninguno

Forget heavy winter clothing. Melbourne doesn't get too cold in the winter. A mid warm sweater is enough.

Best places to hang out would be at South Yarra. A trendy stretch of road with nice restaurants, some dance clubs, a cinema and nice boutiques. For shopping, there's the Kookai warehouse at Pharan. Get Kookai clothes at a steal. I got a pair of Kookai pants and dress for AU10 each!

It is generally easy to find accommodations around the university. The on campus accommodation was a brand new apartment block and they provided a washer and dryer in every apartment which is good. The rooms a a little cramped since I'm used to bigger rooms but it is sufficient. It also has a kitchen. However, the rent is pretty high at about AU500 a month. I rented a unit near the university with a bunch of friends and that only costed me about half that price. I had a bigger room but no washer and dryer. However, the place I rented was really close to a laundromat. Pretty convenient.