Chris Tom, Buckeyes Abroad  marketing intern, reminisces on his farm stay in North Queensland:

One of the focal points of the North Queensland program  is the farm stay in the Atherton Tablelands  west of the city of Cairns. Atherton was first settled as a tin mining and logging town. Today the Tablelands are a key producer of agricultural products as well as a growing tourist destination with beautiful scenery such as Millaa Millaa Falls.

During our time here, students stay in groups of three or four with a host family for three days, living and learning their way of life. What excites students for this particular experience is that every group stays with a different host family. After the home stay, all students reunite and share their experiences with each other. The host families involved are buffalo ranchers, cattle ranchers and hobby farmers amongst others.

I was lucky enough to stay with the buffalo rancher. I learned that working on a buffalo ranch is not an easy job. The herd has to be milked twice a day, fed and moved to different pastures. Our host father also was a part-time firefighter and census taker. He would be out of the door by 5 a.m., and we wouldn’t see him sometimes until 8 p.m. when he was eating dinner. The little free time he did have, he spent with us watching TV and talking with us. Spending time with a hardworking Australian family was definitely a highlight of the trip.