Western Australia

Well, I'm pretty much ready for the trip. I'm going to study abroad in Australia for spring semester, and I leave February 6th! My friend Jon Meiners is travelling with me. We are going to New Zealand for about 10 days to do some sight seeing. I'm pretty excited about that. I just talked to a New Zealand native, thanks to LoAnn for setting up me up for a meeting with him. It looks like there's a lot to see and do there and our schedule is open. We only need to get to Christchurch (south island) in time to fly.
This is going to be a bit crazy. During our trip we are flying with four different airlines: America West, Qantas, Virgin Blue/Pacific Blue, and Frontier. We go through nine airports in nine different cities: Minneapolis, Phoenix, Los Angelos, Aukland NZ, Christchurch NZ, Melbourne AU, Perth AU, Sydney AU, and Denver. We purchased a MSP-DEN-LAX one way from America West, a LAX-AUK, PER-LAX roundtrip from Qantas, a CHC-MEL-PER one way from Virgin Blue/Pacific Blue, and a LAX-MSP one way from Frontier. We plan on taking buses and a ferry, or possibly renting a vehicle to get from Aukland to Christchurch in NZ. Hopefully everything goes as planned. I plan on travelling light to make it easier to keep track of and transport my stuff.

I am at the air port in Christchurch now and am checked in and ready to depart for Australia. Click here for a summary of my New Zealand trip. Jon and I had split in Wellington on the 10th and we have just met up again at here at the air port. He had to go back to Rotorua to get his glasses and a bag that was left behind, and spent a few days in Wellington. I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed tonight, and to meeting my flat-mates. Cheers!

Australia has been a blast already. I moved in on Friday and met one of my flatmates, Zaid from Iraq. I also met Jon's flatmates Lewis from England and Brad from Australia. We did some grocery shopping at Coles, the supermarket right next door. Store hours are shorter here, and almost everything is closed by 6 PM. Zaid invited me to go to a night club in downtown Perth (technically we live in Karawara, and the campus which is right accross the road is in Bentley). We went to the club with about five Canadian girls, Tim from New York, Dana from Iraq, and a German girl. It was a fun time.

Saturday Jon and I went grocery shopping again and met a bunch of people there, including Erin from Boston, who goes to HWS in upstate NY, and her flatmate Sean from Australia, and Ashley from Michigan and her flatmate Kym from Australia. Jon and I went to Port Beach in Fremantle with Tanya and Kiersty from Australia and swam in the Indian Ocean. Erin, Ashley, Kym, Sean, Sam, Tanya, Jon, and Kiersty had a "bbq" (couldn't get the heatbeads to light so we had to fry steaks inside). Then we walked back to campus as a group, and got a little lost, but we made it back around 2 AM. We made plans to hit up the beach again the next day.

Sunday we met at Jon/Louis/Brad's flat (23 from now on...I'm in 32) along with Kym, Ashley, Erin, Sean, Sam, and Jake (from Australia; he studied abroad at UMD last semester). Sean, Brad, and Jake have cars and drove us all to South Beach in Fremantle, where we played a little cricket on the sand, which didn't work too well. Then we decided to go to Cottesloe Beach, which was a bigger, busier beach, after stopping at Red Rooster for food. We came back to housing to eat and shower, then met at 23 and listened to Dane Cook on Jon's laptop and played cards.

Yesterday we went and met with Lyn and registered for our classes. I'm taking History of India in the 17th Century, History of Crime, Indiginous Australian Spirituality, and Australian Studies. Then our group of friends went to Scarborough Beach, which was really cool because the waves are quite taller. It's so fun to swim along with a big wave as it breaks, even though I got lots of water up my nose and down my throat several times...which stings. We layed around for a while and then went back to campus and cleaned up. I played ping-pong with Dana (a guy from Iraq, Zaid's friend, about 25 years old I think) and we were pretty even in skill. I wandered over towards 23 and there was a ton of people partying at 21 (Tanya and Sam's flat), including Erin so I stopped there for a while, then went to 23 and watched some Super Troopers. Then Sean and I went down and joined a group of about 30 people, mostly Americans, who were playing duck-duck-grey duck on the housing lawn. Nearly everyone but us was drinking, which is weird to see after being at UMD which is strictly a dry campus. Erin, Brad, and I played catch with a flat footy for a while after everyone cleared out. I think we're going to a beach again today.

Tuesday we watched Mindhunters at 23 and then started drinking at around 5 PM. We later watched Varsity Blues, but everyone was too drunk to pay attention. Ashley and I moshed to Metallica in Lewis' room. Lewis was going hardcore and yelling and it was hilarious to watch. Then he was freaking out when Jon got water all over the chairs and the floor was full of rubbish, as they call it down under. Yesterday our crew watched some more movies at 23 and I went out alone, over to a well lit campus field, and ran some laps. It was amazing to just stop and look up at the different stars in the sky over the tops of palm trees and realize "I'm in Australia!" I made it safely back to Erica Underwood and watched/listened to Dane Cook, again, in Jon's room. Today some of us went to the housing orientation, which was a long boring lecture. We left to go to Cottesloe at around 5:30 PM in two vehicles and after stopping at a mall we got split up, so it was just Sean, Julia, and I that made it to Cottesloe beach. In the trees were hundreds of Rosella Parrots making a racket, but they look like really cool birds. We were going to play volleyball but the person that was bringing a net had her car break down. I met a bunch of people from a Christian organization there. It was chilly and gusty windy and we looked out at the ocean after the sun had just set. I stood there alone for a while and enjoyed the invigorating wind off the water. When I walked back I saw a man in a cowboy hat standing off by himself and I said "hi" to him as I walked by and he smiled back at me, and I kept walking, but I instantly recognized that face and I swear it was Dennis Quaid. I just wish I would have looked again to make sure or even talked with him if it was...damn. Anyway, we then went and bbq'd a bunch of brats and had coke and cake with the big church group, who were all really cool people. The leader showed me the different kicks in footy and we talked history and about our respective countries. Then most of us moved to a cafe in Fremantle and I got a Chai Latte. Just now we stopped at 23 and watched the tail end of Star Wars Episode III. It's so lax here, I've been going everywhere barefoot, even to the mall and grocery store. No worries. Time for bed. Cheers!

Today Jon, Ashley, and I met Montey and some other Aussies and went sailing on catamarans on the Swan River, which widens into a lakelike area where you can see the Perth city skyline well. We went in pairs and sailed around for an hour and threw jellyfish at eachother. Meanwhile Brad and Erin went to the beach, and Lewis and Sean had orientation stuff for engineering. I'm getting a nice tan, but Erin got a bad sunburn today. Julia and I went to 23 later and drank with Jon, Brad, Ashley, Erin, Ouly (sp?), Sean, and Kym. Sam, the "village wierdo", wandered over piss drunk and stumbled around for a while before Jon escorted him back to his flat. Then we went to the Uni Tav, the on-campus pub, and had a few. I chatted with Ashley and Kym's flatmate Ross about Western Australia and scuba diving and stuff for a while. Cheers!

Today I slept in and read some Harry Potter, then went to 23 and watched The Machinist with Brad and Jon, then to Erin and Sean's flat (14) and watched Shaun of the Dead. There was a big party for on campus students at the Uni Tav, which most of our group went to right away. I opted to go with Sean into Perth where he went to visit a friend he went to school with who just got a house there. We played cards and I met a bunch of Aussies and a bloke from South Africa. We returned to campus at 11 and I ran up to the Tav and met up with Erin, Julia, Jon, Kym, Jake, Ashley, and Danielle. Then we came back to 23 and I talked with Sean and Kym for a couple hours, about books, places to check out in WA, and about current events and the news, which was a real good talk. I'm going to church in the morning with Sean, and I think Kym and Ashley are going as well. It's some Baptist Church, and is the one where all the people I met at the bbq on the beach the other night. Cheers!

(10:10 PM)
I went to church at 10 this morning with Ashley, Kym, and Sean, and it was a special day because three people got baptised so they gave testimonials and we listened to worship songs. It was super hot and muggy in there though. The chaplain, Noal, seems like a really cool guy. He's the one that showed me the footy kicks at the bbq. I'll probably go back from time to time throughout the semester. We ate at Red Rooster again and then went shopping in Fremantle. The stores around campus are all closed on Sundays but they have a big market day on Sundays that's kind of unlike at home. I finally bought a pair of flip flop sandals. We came back to campus and watched Flight of the Pheonix at my flat. I played some ping pong and foosball with Brad for a while and sat around in 14 for a while. Classes begin tomorrow. My schedule is:

MON: Hist. of India (2-3pm lecture, 4-5pm tutorial)
TUE: no class
WED: Aboriginal Spirituality (9am-12 noon lec & tutorial)
THU: History of Crime (10am-1pm seminar)
FRI: Australian Studies (1-4pm workshop)
Time to read some Harry Potter now. Cheers!

I had my first class today, History of India. I stood in line for an hour at the bookshop to get a notebook and the reading/exercises manual for that unit. The professor seems like a nice guy that knows what he's talking about and it looks like this class is fairly easy to get a good mark in. Tutorials don't start until next week, so I only had an hour of class today. I took some pics around campus and of a magpie and some type of pidgeon. It was hot again today so I came back and took a nap, and then got up and finished the homework that's due next monday, which was a few pages of reading and answering questions that are straight from reading. Sean called at around 9 pm to go get ice cream so Julia and I met him and we walked to the petrol station and got some. Then we sat in the grass for 2 hours and talked, and just now I cooked some mince meat pies (mashed them up and cooked them in a pot on the stovetop because we don't have a baking tray of microwave here). Julia laughed at me for eating it and we even took a picture of it, but it tasted alright. Cheers!

Point Break is a good movie. We just got done watching it. Since I didn't have class today I slept in and then Brad took Lewis and I to Carousel to buy a volleyball and needles for the pump, which weren't the right size unfortunately. Jon, Ashley, Julia, Brad, Kym, Ross, and my roommate Rebecca (Australian) played volleyball at Rotary House with a bunch of other kids from India and China or somewhere. We played at dusk, which is nice because it isn't so hot and the sky was cyan and orange from the sunset. Julia had never had KFC and she was excited to try it so we went there to eat, then up to 14 to watch Point Break. Also, I had heard Coldplay, perhaps my favorite band, was coming to Australia in June and Erin and I were hoping we could go...but I looked it up online and they come to Perth just THREE days after I leave...that sucks. Class tomorrow at 9 am: Indiginous Australian Spirituality. Then the beach? Cheers.

Indiginous Spirituality went alright. It looks like an interesting class and Darren, the professor is a real upbeat guy and seems really cool. Jon and I practiced kicks and handpasses with a footy for a while and then Jon, Ashley, Ross, Sean, and I played volleyball with a bunch of other guys and gals again at the beach volleyball court at Rotary House. We played a series of three close games and it was quite fun. I read some of my homework and then met up with Julia, Sean, Ashley, Ross, and Kym at the Waterford Tavern. The karaoke sucked so we didn't hang around long. Ross was on his second pitcher of beer and the bar was closing soon, so Ashley and I basically stole the pitcher by going outside and having Ross pass it through the fence in the back courtyard-like part of the bar. We brought it back to 23 and Ross came back and is now finishing it off. I have class in the morning so I'm going to bed now. Cheers!

I had History: Cultural Contexts of Crime today. It is three hours straight, but it seems interesting enough. It's a seminar style course, so we break into small groups and talk about a theme and then discuss as a large group. We talked about the definition of crime today and watched a movie about highway robbery and government corruption, etc. in Papua New Guinea. I read while I uploaded a bunch more pictures and cooked some deluxe mac'n'cheese for tea (as in supper or evening meal...I'm still trying to get use to that). We went to Lord of War at the cinema, and I thought that was a very good film, although somewhat disturbing. The theatre was fairly empty and my group sat in the very back row, but I moved way up front and watched while reclining on my side because the the seats are flat across the row and the armrests go up. It was so comfortable... History of India lecture at 10 am and then Australian Studies with Jon, Ashley, and Erin from 1-4 pm. Cheers!

Classes were alright today. I like my history of India class, and Australian studies might even be fun. We watch movies and go on field trips and the proffesor seems like a cool guy. I read a bunch of Harry Potter over the middle of the day, did some grocery shopping, and then partied at 23. I drank some Emu Bitter, which isn't the greatest but you get what you pay for.......ok, I'm kind of freaking out right now because there is a loud, spooky moaning noise coming from RIGHT outside my window and the curtains are closed so I can't see out. I think it might be a cat meowling and hissing? Or maybe it's a drop bear...

Today we were planning on going to the beer festival in Freo, but the guy who was driving couldn't bring us. I caught up with some friends back home on AIM and then Sean took Erin, Jon, and I to Carousel to do some shopping. I bought a pair of shorts and a few shirts. I took a nap and then Ashley, Julia, Sean, Brad, Jon, and I borrowed some board games from the office and we played Risk and Yahtzee and watched footy. We're going to the beach tomorrow at 10 am. Cheers!

(11:50 PM)
We did indeed go to Scarborough Beach today. It was another really hot day here. It hasn't rained since I've got here. There wasn't much wind today but the waves were coming in tall. Brad and Jon brought boogie boards, and Brad let me use his. We caught a few really nice waves. It's a lot of work but it's so fun. You have to wade out about 30 metres, against the breaking waves to where they start to form and swell up. The good waves usually come two or three in a row, but then you may have to wait five or ten minutes for another good one. When a big one forms you face shore and jump on the board right under the wave and if you catch it you'll get a ride all the way in. If you're late you usually just bob right over it. Now I want to try actual surfing.
I came back and took a brief nap, read, and finished my History of Crime homework, which took about three hours, and then watched Bruce Almighty at 23. Cheers.

I had history of india today and between lecture and tutorial I sat in the grass on campus and did some reading and sun bathing. I signed up for the first presentation slot in tutorial to get it over with. We played monopoly and I had the worst start to it ever... Then Jon and I played trivial pursuit (geography/global issues questions only). We started around 11:30 pm, and kept going until everyone else went to bed, then decided to have a beer, which turned into slightly more than four beers, and now it's almost 5 am and I'm going to crash now. Tomorrow's tuesday, my day off, and I think we're going to the beach... Wednesday we're probably doing a wine/chocolate/zoo tour in the afternoon, and then Saturday we're probably going to Rottnest Island. Cheers and g'night!

Today (well, technically yesterday) was a really fun day. It started a little past midnight with knock on my door, by a drunken Ashley, Bec, and Julia, with Jon tagging along. But anyway, after class today we caught a taxi downtown to catch our tour. We (Erin, Ashley, Jon, and I) did a half-day wine and chocolate tasting, and a visit to the wildlife reserve. It was cool to finally get out and do something here, and to see kangaroos, which we could stroke and feed. We also got to hold a wombat and ride camels, and we got to see tasmanian devils, koalas, wallabies, dingos, emus, owls, parrots, cockatoos, and other birds and animals. We took a lot of pictures today too, and I bought some gifts. I came back here and chilled for a while and ate some veal tortalina with pasta sauce. Then we went to the Waterford briefly and then hung out at Jon's until now.

Cheers to the awesome friends I've met here in Australia! It's amazing to think about how our group of friends here is so close and that it feels like we've known each other far longer than just three weeks. We basically all met each other in the grocery store one day, and then by going to that bbq that night. This entire semester would be a totally different experience for me if I'd gotten groceries just an hour earlier or later. Weird. Now we're already talking about meeting each other at our home states when we get back, and about travelling to places like Las Vegas, Alaska, or Cancun...

Anyway, time to crawl into bed.

Last night I went with Sean to Carousel and bought snorkeling gear for Rottnest Island this Saturday (11 March). Jon, Erin, Ashley, and I were going to have a wine party with the stuff we bought on the tour the other day, but Erin and Jon didn't want to. Ashley and I took it upon ourselves to drink some wine, and we definately did. We did canoe races (filling an ice cube tray with an alcoholic beverage and each competitor drinks one side, using a straw, in a race). I ended up pretty drunk, and it was a really good time trying to play football out on the EUH lawn, except I've got a jammed finger now and my heels are sore. I did manage to get up at 9 and attend my history of India lecture. Australian studies was shortened today because of technical problems. I'm going to do some homework now and then maybe go to a youth group with Sean. I'm excited to go to Rottnest tomorrow and see quokkas, ride bike, and snorkel. I was reading a guide about snorkeling Rottnest that has trail maps and other information. There are venomous box jellyfish, sting rays, electric rays, poisonous fish, and wobbegongs there. Perhaps the occasional great white shark? Should be fun.

Rottnest Island was sweet! It was a 30 minute ferry ride out there. When we got there we split up from Julia, Sean, Bec, and Christine. Jon, Zaid, two Canadian girls Merideth and Jennifer (who also live in EUH and Merideth is in our history of crime class), rented snorkeling gear (I had brought my own gear). We got a day pass for the bus and circled the island and then stopped at Little Armstrong Bay on the northern shore to snorkel. It was cloudy and I the water was somewhat choppy there, but it was still kind of fun, and somewhat scenic. But then we walked up the road to Parakeet Bay, and that was amazingly beautiful and the snorkeling was perfect. There was cool reef and rock structure there, the water was crystal clear, and the sun came out. We got great photos there. Underwater we saw tons of fish, but no jellyfish, sharks, or rays. That's probably a good thing. Then we all really hungry and we went to Red Rooster and I had a Flayva combo and then we got extremely good ice cream. We met up with Julia, Sean, Bec, and Christine on the Ferry back, and they had biked, and saw quokkas and poisonous snakes. Most of us got sunburned to some degree, despite sunscreen. This night we watched Ned, an Australian film, it's a comedy spoof about Australia's famous bushranger Ned Kelly. We played monopoly, and then passed and kicked footballs around with some Aussie guys Lewis brought home...

Today was a History of India day. I got up and prepared my presentation, went to lecture, sat in the shade of a tree on campus during my hour break, gave my presentation at tutorial (which went smoothly and painlessly), and now I just read a bunch from the reader manual thingy as I uploaded photos to Facebook (Rottnest and others, the ones from Jon's camera). We went to the cinema at Carousel again. Jon, Brad, and I went to the Pink Panther, which was good and funny, and Ross and the girls went to Brokeback Mountain, which they said they enjoyed. We took advantage of the near empty theatre and even-cushioned seats to watch the movie laying down. Cheers!

After Aboriginal Spirituality I did some Facebook "housecleaning" and some History of India homework. We went to the Uni Tav tonight and there weren't a lot of people there by the time we arrived. We drank some and on the walk back Julia and Kym had some "girl talk" to do. Then me and Sean had our turn. It was funny because the four of us were standing right next to each other and Julia and Kym were talking, and Sean and I talked about them quite audibly and they didn't even notice. Then Sean and I took heat from Julia and we had a bit of a verbal gender scuffle. Basically she had had some alcohol and was trying to explain to us, rather bluntly, that all men are exactly the same and we're only good for escorting the girls to the Tav and nothing else, so me and Sean decided it was definitely time for bed. : ) Cheers.

Today for Australian Studies we were to meet at the art gallery at 3 pm. Despite leaving for the Transperth bus an hour early, we ended up quite late. At first we went to the museum, and by the time we got to the art gallery the lady there said there wasn't a third tour group yet, which was ours, so we had ice cream or tea at the cafe their and waited. We finally caught up with our instructor, Graham, and finished the tour. Jon, Erin, and Rachel stayed downtown while Ashley and I caught a train back to Uni. I got Kym to sign me up on the Fremantle Prison tour with Rotary House and so Ash, Kym, Ross, Julia, and I left for that at 6 pm. The tour was fun. It was dark so we had flashlights (torches), and they did things to scare us that enhanced the tour. Inside the prison building were four levels of cells, each one had a wire fence above where you walk. While the tour guide was talking someone screamed and threw a manikan down onto the fence above, and that scared everyone. Two other times guys jumped out of cells and performed little skits. We saw the solitary confinement area, this tripod thing where prisoners were given lashings, and the gallows-a room with a noose and a drop. What was very spooky was that when I took a picture at the gallows the picture turned out black, even though the room was relatively lit, AND the flash went off. I was the last person in the room, except for Ashley standing near the doorway, at this point and I tried to take another picture and I kept pressing the button but it wouldn't click and take a photo, so we got the hell out of there in a hurry. The prison was closed in 1991 and is now only used for tourists, but is roumoured to be haunted. I've never believed in ghosts at all, but what happened in that gallows room really was weird. Everyone elses cameras seemed to work fine, but the tour guide did mention, before we even got to the gallows room, that people have had cameras disfunction in there and then work fine outside. At any rate I'm glad I went and it was fun and interesting and a more than a little creepy. The bus stopped at McDonalds and it was good to eat there again. Just like home. Then we came back and Ross and I celebrated St. Patricks Day with a jug of Toohey's New each at the Waterford (the Uni Tav was closed...). I'm reading a little Ender's Game that I borrowed from Sean and uploading photos now, but I think it's time to sleep. Cheers and don't go to the gallows alone in the dark!

After sleeping in, I finished reading Ender's Game, which I really enjoyed, and did a little homework. Then Bec (and two of her friends), Julia, Kym, Ross, and I went to a house party and I had some Steinlager (a New Zealand import) and Little Creatures (brewed in Freo), both of which have distinct flavors. Then we went to the Metropolis club in Freo, which was an awesome night club, though pretty crowded (and we had to wait in line for an hour before we got in). Meanwhile Jon, Brad, Ashley, and others went to a toga party at Louis's place, and Aussie Dad was getting worked up and sending Kym unfriendly text messages. Now I'm hungry, and I think I'm going to cook some tortallini. Cheers!

(9:30 PM)
I had an awesome meal of fish and chips for $6 today. So good... EUH is showing movies tonight on the lawn, under the stars. We just watched 40 Year Old Virgin. Now I'm just waiting for photos to upload.

Bec, Julia, Ashley, Kym, Erin, Jon, Brad, Rachel, and I just went to Hoyts cinema at Carousel and saw Triston and Isolde (a new release here that came out in January back home). It was actually a pretty good movie. Before that we hit a cricket ball around, and Kym and I engaged in war on facebook because I posted one of her quotes there, which was funny enough to repeat here: "I have this friend that is exactly like me. She acts just like a man." So that led to three hours of messages on facebook between Kym, Bec, Ross, Julia, and I.

Yesterday we went bowling (Sean, Ross and I vs. Julia, Kym, Ashley, and Bec. They won...) I bowled my highest game yet, a 141, but Ashley edged me out with 143. Sean got his first ever strike, and then a second one later in the game. It was expensive though; 12 dollars for a game and shoes and about $7 per game after that.

(2:22 PM)
It's raining!!!!! First time since I've been in Aus, it took about 33 days.

Last night I watched the first half of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the second half of The Notebook, and Finding Nemo, which Kym pointed out was filmed in Australia. Today we had a stupid group research exercise for History of Crime, but now it's over and I'm not looking back. Yay. Oi, I think it's time to eat, hey? See yous lata mates.

We watched Saw and Saw 2 tonight over at Ashley, Ross, and Kym's flat. I'm also very excited at the moment because I actually made serious progress today on my story!!! So many ideas and everything is falling together like never before. CHEERS!

I got up an hour earlier than I had to today. For some reason I thought my History of India lecture starts at 9 so I got there then, only to watch an unfamiliar teacher write equations on the white board. So I went to the library and read until 10, and then went to my class. We're talking about Buddhism and Jainism now. In Australian Studies we watched Crocodile Dundee and next week we have an excursion to the Perth Mint. My fingers smell like eucalyptus...hmm. I just found out that the gum trees all over campus are a type of eucalyptus, and so I crushed a leaf in my fingers and it definately has that distinctive smell to it (just like a cough drop). Erin and I are going to walk over to the Seafood Emporium place to get the $6 dinner special. It's so good and you get so much food with it, such a good deal. Then we'll pick up something to drink for tonight. Wine or beer? Or both?
Cheers.

Last night was a long unforgetable night, and today was a long forgetable day of hangover recovery. Jon's parents came in today and I chatted with them for a while and then I came back to my flat and Ross, Bec, and I watched RAGE (basically 70's music videos) until now, while Padraic prepared all kinds of food for his barbeque thing tomorrow. He's a great cook and he let us try some of his wonderful potato salad. Yesterday (24th, whatever)Erin, Danielle, Benny and I watched Wolf Creek. It's an Aussie film about a couple backpackers that were killed by some psycho guy and it's supposedly based on a true story. The real killer has not been found. Then we went to Northbridge, first to the Brass Monkey where we got free drinks, then to a Kabob shop where I got fish and chips, and then we went to Open Bar. That was a pretty cool place. The bartenders there did fancy tricks with the glasses and were really good. I met DJ Adam, who Erin and Danielle had met previously. He also DJs at the Uni Tav. I had lots of drinks there and stayed until 3:30 or so. DJ Ads was cool and gave us a ride home. Cheers!

We went to Inside Man today. It was a really good movie. The weather has been kind of cool here the last three days, like low 70 F or so.

Today between my History of India lecture and tutorial I went to the campus pond, Jack Finney Lake, and took some photos and sat in a tree and read some pages of The Funeral Boat. Ross and Ashley came over to our flat and played Scategories and Pictionary with Julia, Bec, and I. Ross's wicked drawing skills helped us beat the girls both games of Pictionary. Then Ashley and I listed off all the US states and tried capitals too, though we did a dodgy job on those. Tomorrow I may be going to the beach with Brad, and Jon and his parents. Cheers!

I went to Scarborough beach today with Brad and Jon and his parents. It was a bit breezy and the waves were choppy but we did some boogie boarding anyway and I got photos of that. Unfortunately I had forgotten to take my wallet out before I went in and so everything is on my table here drying off... Jon's parents bought us Red Rooster, which was awesome of them. Tonight we played Pictionary again, and again Ross and I won, against Julia, Bec, and Kym this time. Then we played Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus and that was a good time. The girls won three of four of those games though. Cheers!

Last night I went to the Uni Tav and the Waterford. Today in History of Crime we watched a video about the JFK assassination, and in two weeks we do a role play skit about it (each group has a different argument to support and ours is the grassy knoll theory). Brad, Jon, Julia, Sean, and I went to V for Vendetta tonight. It was a really good, albeit somewhat strange, film about a masked man that is in many ways brutal and severe, yet rallies England's people against a very corrupt government and so is simultaneously the hero of the movie. Tomorrow for Australian Studies we go on an excursion to the Perth Mint. Then homework, and then we're probably headed to Northbridge. I havn't decided yet whether I'm going to go to Northhampton with Brad and Jon, Louis, and Mark this weekend. It's a five hour drive and we'd only be going for Saturday night. Hmm, we'll see? Cheers mates.

Friday we had our excursion to the Perth Mint where we learned about and got to see lots of gold. Then we walked around the mall area downtown following Jon to a jeweller to see if the "diamond" he found was real but they were closed. We took some pictures in front of the Swan Bell Tower and then caught a bus back to campus and shared a drink at Uni Tav under a beautiful sunset sky. Bec, Kym, Ashley, Ross, Julia, Zaid, and I went to Northbridge that night, to the mustang which I liked because they played good music. I decided not to go with Brad and the guys to Northhampton this weekend. I watched and played in the interhouse volleyball tournament yesterday and then Bec, Kym, and I went to Northbridge again. Today I'm getting some homework done. I just got back from campus where I did some peaceful reading up in the trees.

Well, now I'm waiting for my clothes to dry because I forgot about my laundry. Bec, Julia, Ross, Kym, Ashley and I watched a couple movies, I forgot the title of the first one but we watched Monster in Law as well. Then Jon, Ashley and I went for a jog, maybe 2 miles or so up Kent St. and past the golf course. It's chilly tonight. Thanks to Erin for lending me a comforter so I don't freeze. Tomorrow I have to give a presentation in Aboriginal Spirituality and later meet with my group about our JFK assassination skit.

Thursday I had to write my 800 word essay for Australian Studies, a reaction to the Perth Mint excursion and the Australian gold rush. Yesterday in Australian Studies we watched Gallipoli, a good but sad Australian made film about the WW1 Battle of Gallipoli in 1915. We also talked about ANZAC Day, the day of remembrance for the men who died at Gallipoli (April 25th). Last night I played soccer with Jon and a bunch of cool people from all around the globe: Canada, Mauritias, China, New York, Kansas, Kurdistan, Iraq, India, and Australia. Then, for the first time ever, I ate kangaroo. I really liked it. Later Bec, Ross, Kym, Julia, and I went to Subiaco to the Llama Bar and then to the Saphire.

(Midnight)
Today I ate kangaroo again, this time in the form of sausages called kanga bangas. Today was Danielle's 20th birthday, so I went with her, Erin, and Sean to the Burswood casino, which is pretty classy compared to Treasure Island. Sean and I were only there for a short time and on the way back we ate at McDonald's and I had my first ever Big Mac. Cheers!

This evening we put on a good ole Aussie barby! Yum. I just finished looking at intrigueing JFK assassination info (grassy knoll theory; James Files, etc.) for our History of Crime presentation. Cheers!

Tonight Julia and I went over to Kurrajong Village commons and played table tennis with Ross and Ashley. Then we watched How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days and Ross and I drank some goon (Australian Lambrusco). Today in History of India gave our JFK presentations and now our Easter/autumn break has begun. Bec and Kym have gone home for the Easter weekend (thanks to both of you for the chocolate). Jon, Jake, Ashley, and Rachel are planning to travel south for break. Meanwhile I will do homework the first week of break then fly solo to Bangkok, Thailand for 11 days and hopefully have a great experience there...maybe do some fishing too. Bec is going to Leverton for nursing prac for four days next week. Bec and I are pretty much a couple now - which makes me a really lucky guy because she is SO AWESOME! So generous and fun and cute...it's going to be hard to leave.....

Today I worked on my Crime Fiction Essay, started reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix (thanks Kym for lending it to me), and then Ross, Julia, Ashley, and I played table tennis again. Today is Good Friday, and we watched Passion of the Christ. Cheers!

Saturday Merideth held a birthday party at her flat and Ross, Julia, and I went over there. I managed to break my digital camera, but otherwise it was a pretty good time. Julia, Zaid, and I went and ate at the EUH Easter breakfast, but had a bit of a sore throat, which kept me miserable and bed ridden for two days and only yesterday did I feel better, though I'm still not 100%. I managed to write my Indigenous Australian spirituality essay and read several hundred pages of Harry Potter. Last night Ross and I kept our Waterford tradition, along with Bec. I leave for Thailand tomorrow morning. Here is the Thailand journal. Cheers!

(6 PM)
Since I wrote that last entry I decided to stretch out and get some exercise so I went for my favorite kind of walk, the kind where I don't have a clue where I'll end up. I went up Kent Street, past Manning road, and into Waterford, a pretty neighborhood. Then I walked past a park and duck pond and then found a walking path that skirts a wildlife rehabilitation area, which was thick native woods and the trees were really cool looking. A little fork off the path led to a little wooden pier on the Canning River. I sat there for over a half hour thinking and enjoying the light breeze coming off the water and the sunset colors. There's something different about the light in an Aussie evening, it seems somehow hazy yellowish/pinkish and when the sun is low. The gum tree trunks turn goldish/pinkish, and the leaves are olive green. It was really peaceful to just sit there and think along the river, with the pink and orange clouds reflecting off the water. I think I felt my first sense of homesickness then - not so much for Minnesota, because I know I'm going to be back there and I'm excited to see my friends and family and my fishing spots again, and not because I'm not enjoying Australia. Australia is beginning to feel like home a bit, and I'm going to miss it and the people I've met here because I don't know when or if I'll ever be here again... If anything I realised I need to get out of the flat more and just do stuff like random little walks, especially when the weather is so nice.

I got back from Thailand early this morning, just past midnight. It was long flight, especially the descent because my ears didn't "pop" so the pressure was really painful, they still don't feel quite right. I was so excited to be back in Australia I couldn't help but smile the whole cab ride back to campus, especially when that hit song by Love Generation came on. It was so nice to sleep in my own bed again, even if I had to get up early. I went to Aboriginal Spirituality today and showed my fishing pictures off, and then ran some errands and got groceries and saw Bec and Julia. Nap time now, then Waterford tonite!

Had another boring session of history of crime class this morning, then hit up some KFC. Jon and I went to Mission Impossible III, which was very good and better than I expected. We walked home from Carousel, which was an hour and ten minute walk and three different police cars pulled over to see what we were doing. After the walk we were wide awake and made mac'n'cheese and watched Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and now it's 4 am and I have to get up for class. There was a surprise on my room door when I got back, a West Coast Eagles scarf from Kym and Bec. Thanks girls! Cheers.

Last night Jon, Montey and his sister, Chris, Ashley, Rachel, and I went out to Freo (unfortunately the Dockers beat the Eagles today). We went to Little Creatures first, which has a nice atmosphere and is the actual microbrewery where Little Creatures beer is brewed so the beer is straight out of the vat and really good. Then we went to the Harbourside for a while. Today I did some homework and Jon and I walked over to Waterford and to the little pier on the Canning River, fed some ducks, and saw some fish flashing and jumping.

Last night Julia, Zaid, and I watched League of Extraordinary Gentleman. I went to bed around eleven but I wasn't sleeping, so I got up and went for a jog to the Canning River pier again and just sat there for about 45 minutes thinking and watching the night sky over the river. It was really calm and peaceful. It started to get chilly as the moon sank below the trees and I ran back along the trail, one section of which is between a solid wooden fence and the woods so it was dark and spooky, and a dog jumped against the fence and barked and scared the crap out of me.

I've made good progress on homework the past couple days. Earlier Ross let me use his scanner for my Thai photos and I'm uploading them to facebook now. Ross and I just saw The Ringer at Hoyts, while Jon and Brad went to Scary Movie 4 and Ashley and Rachel went to Failure to Launch. Wow time is going by so fast...too fast : (

I've been sick with a sore throat again the last three days or so, but I'm starting to feel a little better. I've basically been a connoissuer of sore throats over the past month, but I actually have managed to get a fair bit of hw out of the way. I still have a lot left though too. Last night we went to the footy and West Coast won!!! Our Eagles beat the Collingwood Magpies (who were also 5-1 at the start of the game) by a score of 112-98 in a really tight game. It was Bec, Kym, Jon, Ross, Julia, Ashley, Rachel, and I that went. Jon and I bought West Coast shirts and we sported our scarves, flag, and "Andy" the great poking giant WCE inflatable "we're number 1" finger. Friday for class we had an excursion to Freo and Jon and I grabbed some fish and chips down by the water. Tonight we watched X-Men 2 after playing some foosball. Today's mothers day but I couldn't get ahold of mom. I talked to grandma though.

I just left History of Crime class, as my group members, Jon, and I decided it wasn't worth going back to after the break. Last night was Waterford Wednesday. A fight broke out and they closed shop early (Ross was the inadvertant spark that ignited the fire). There was a huge boxing match on (Mundine vs. Green) earlier that might have upped the emotion, as there were other brawls throughout Perth. Earlier yesterday Jon and I were walking to Carousel (the shopping centre) and Jake happened to drive by us and he gave us a lift. Jon bought a couple baseball gloves and a ball and we played catch with Ryan (also from UMD). At the Cannington bus station this unattractive middle aged lady asked us about the bus schedule and then went on for 20 minutes about all the places she's travelled (pretty much everywhere). There was another guy our age waiting for the bus there too. On the bus the lady got off first and waved to me (kinda freaky) and after a few seconds the other guy that was at the bus stop turned to me and said "you so could have rooted her!" (even more freaky). It was pretty hilarious though. The day before that Julia, Ross, and I played foosball, got ice cream, and sat around our table and had a yarn. Kym, Ashley, Bec, and Rachel and who knows who else were prank calling us, and they freaked Julia out pretty bad the first time.

(4 PM)
I went over to sign up for the River Cruise next Friday and Ashley, Rachel, and Jon were there, and then we went to Scarborough beach. Jon finished The Da Vinci Code and returned it to me so I started reading that on the beach. It is cool today and it was windy and almost chilly at the beach, but the waves were bigger than I've ever seen before and Jon and I couldn't resist going in for ten minutes before we left. The water was cool but not too bad, and the waves were fun and turbid. Apparantly 3 metre waves are common in midwinter, a couple months from now, almost twice as high as today's waves. I can't imagine jumping into one of those as it breaks. Homework time now...and thanks Jon for sharing those amazing cookies your mum sent!

(8:30 PM)
I was just starting homework in our living room when Brett (from St. Louis) and Ryan knocked on the window with baseball gloves and a ball. So no hw got done, but I threw the ball around for a while. After that I went to Jon's and we buzzed each others heads. Jon and I grabbed a pizza and went up to Erin's and ate, then Ash and Rachel stopped by and I went running with them, to the pier on the Canning River. The lot of us are headed for the computer lab to work on some need to do homework.

At the lab the other night I did manage to add the finishing touches to my Australian Studies final essay and print it, but Ashley and I spent most the time commenting on facebook photos, impatiant to eat Jon's food. We went back to Jon's at about 2:30 AM and watched Chicken Little. After sleeping in yesterday I had Australian Studies and we watched The Castle, a pretty good movie (about an Australian family that lives near an airport and they fight a mandatory eviction order they recieved because the airport wants to expand. It was pretty funny, and had a happy ending.) After class I had pizza at the Guild Tav with Ashley and Rachel. Bec, Julia, Ross, and I played lazer tag in Northbridge last night, and that was a lot of fun. It's basically like playing Halo but in real life, or otherwise kind of like paintball. The course was pretty cool, with lots of corridors, ramps, and tight corners, somewhat dark and with a fog machine. This morning Bec drove us to Carousel and Ross bought Tool's 10000 Days. I'm going to a barbie at Jake's soon, and Julia, Ross, and I are having a goon party tonight.

I didn't stay at Jake's bbq long because Sean came to bring Danielle and I got a ride home from him. I had some good kangaroo fillets, with Southern Comfort sprinkled over it. I got home and sat around with Bec, Julia, and Ross and watched Sex and the City. I slept in until the Eagles game Sunday morning, and they beat the Essendon Bombers in another pretty close game. I grabbed some KFC with Ross and played table tennis, then I went to the lab and started my History of Crime final essay. We went to the lab again today and chipped away at it a bit more. Jon and Ashley are going to Uluru (Ayer's Rock) this weekend. I'll be wrapping up all my homework so I can enjoy my final month in WA.

I just finished talking to my mom (for the first time since I've been away!), my dad, and Steve and Mitch. It feels weird talking on the phone with them from my flat here in WA, like I'm in two worlds at once. Dad told a picture of me with my 50 pound mekong catfish made it into the Red Wing newspaper. I was working at the Abacus computer lab again and finally finished my History of Crime paper. Ash, Rachel, and Jon were there too, and I found cheap tix to Sydney and bought them. I'm going to Sydney from 9-14 June, and prolly staying at Ashley's cousins place. We plan on going to the Sydney Opera House and watching Romeo and Juliet. Last night Julia, Ross, and I were up until about 5 AM drinking goon, beer, and listening to music, in German, Spanish, and English. I skipped History of India class this morning and threw the baseball around with Brett and Ryan for a while. Basically I had breakie at 4 PM. Julia found out she is going to Laverton this weekend! I'm happy for her, it's a good opportunity and I kind of wish I'd signed up for it. I gather it's basically a weekend volunteering program at Laverton (inland a ways, north of Kalgoorlie) devoted to working with Aboriginal children. Tuesday morning Bec, Kym, Julia, Ross, and I went into Perth city shopping (only Ross and I didn't find anything so we grabbed some food at Mackers (McDonalds), looked through a card/role playing game shop, and went in and up the Swan Bell tower. Bec got a new job at Jesters, a pie shop (which here usually means meat pies, but they also sell pastries). Tomorrow I have my final History of India lecture, an excursion to Northbridge for Australian Studies, and the Interhouse River Cruise on the Swan River from 8-11 PM. I have the most amazing friends here! And I love you Bec!!!

Yesterday I had my final History of India lecture. Then I went to Northbridge for an Australian Studies excursion, and had a guide tell us stories about Northbridge executions, murders, and miscellaneous stories. Rachel and I were the only ones of our group of friends that didn't skip and we grabbed some super good ice cream and did some shopping before heading back to campus. Last night was the interhouse river cruise on the Swan River. It was kind of chilly, but the view of Perth at night from the river is amazing, and Zaid, Ross, and I had a yarn and drank beer. Poor Ross didn't like the cold so much though. There were a LOT of drunk and sick people on that boat. Today I finished my journal for History of India and uploaded another set of New Zealand photos. Prolly going to see x-men 3 tonight.

X-men was pretty good in my opinion. I went with Bec, Ross, and Kym. Then we stopped at Mackers before heading back. Yesterday I slept in and then watched the Eagles win against the Melbourne Demons 97-75, staying inside my cozy flat drinking warm cups of tea. It's getting chilly outside. I have my final History of India class today.

It's 6:07 AM. I had no intention of staying up this long...it just happened, perhaps I had too many cups of caffeinated tea? At around 11 PM I was uploading facebook photos and reading The Da Vinci Code, trying to get within a hundred pages of finishing so I could finish it tomorrow and go to the movie. I ended up taking a shower, then finishing the book - at round 3 AM. I then went on my computer to look up a couple things on wikipedia, ended up reading some Thai history and updating my Thailand facebook photos. Then I signed into AIM and chatted with Cole and Bmills til almost 6, before eating a couple peanut butter sandwhiches and considering taking my new one-time-use camera to the Canning River pier and watching the sunrise. It's chilly out there, it's so late it's early, and I'm finally feeling a tad bit tired. Maybe I'll just stay here and sleep....or start reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince???

PS It's now 7:30 AM, and I'm going to go to bed now. I played around with anagrams, trying to come up with cool names for my story.

After sleeping til about 3:30 PM yesterday I spent the day on MSN messenger with Bec, Kym, and Ross. After KFC we went to Kym & Ross's and I played Soul Caliber. Today was the final class of Indigenous Australian Studies, and we had a mini-feast. After that I went for a long enjoyable walk along the Canning River, and through Manning. I took a bunch of photos along the river, looked around at all the different plants here, stopped at a bakery in Manning on the way back, and met an old man named George on the street whom I chatted with for a good 15 minutes about the changing times (he talked about his family, early schooling, about the Perth area during the Great Depression, three strokes he has had, and about travelling around Australia, among other things. He reminisced about his school days and how he was kind of a teacher's pet because he was always making things, especially concerning gun powder. Once he brought a bomb in and the teacher was enthusiastic and wanted to bring it outside and blow it up, but George had to make sure to place it well away from the school and told them to open the windows. They set the bomb off and it was "a doozey", ended up blowing the windows out of houses 200 metres away). That's why I love doing random trips, walks, or drives....you run into the most random stories and events.

I'm all finished with classes now, and only have to write my History of India final essay to be completely finished with uni stuff. Thursday night I went out with Bec to Louise's birthday dinner at Subiacco Hotel, which was really fancy and the food was interesting, and then we went to the Llama Bar briefly before going home. Friday after Australian Studies we went to the Uni Tav and had a drink, came home, then went back later. Saturday night was the Uni "farewell" party at the Ruby Room at the Burswood Casino and Entertainment Centre. Thanks to Bec and Kym for organising it! I read Harry Potter and beat Ross in table tennis yesterday, and today Ashley and I found 4 front row seats for Romeo & Juliet at the Sydney Opera House on 10 June...after we had thought they were all sold out to! I still haven't been to King's Park, so that's what I'm gonna do right now. Cheers!

(11:15 PM)
I went to King's Park with Ross and Julia, and met Ross's mom because she gave us a ride there. Today was a beautiful day, around 70 F and sunny, and the view of the city and the Swan River from up there is just amazing. We walked into town from the park and got a treat at Mackers, then caught a bus home, had fish & chips, and played foosball and table tennis. Time to read some Harry Potter.

On 6 June I went on my walk along the Canning River with Bec's camera and got a bunch of photos. On the 7th I jogged to Carousal, after stopping at a Salvation Army shop and getting a book on creative writing. On the 9th I turned in my final Uni assignment and Bec brought me to the airport. Then I was on my way to Sydney:

DAY 1 9/6/2006
I checked into Base Backpackers at 11 PM. It was right downtown so I walked around through a very light rain, admired the sky scrapers surrounding me, and ate at Hungry Jacks. Sydney is so clean and felt really safe, so I was comfortable wandering around on my own and I decided to go see the Opera House that night. I walked down to it and the view was the coollest I have every seen. From where I stood I could see the lit up skyline on my left, the moon glowing through the clouds over the Harbour Brigde (reflected in the water as well), the Sydney Opera House to my right, and the Botanical Gardens behind me. I got a glass of wine from the Opera Bar and sipped it slowly and enjoyed the scenes before heading back to Base, where I was surprised to find Ashley in the room (I had expected to meet her in the mourning, but she had come to Sydney early from Newcastle).

DAY 2 10/6/2006
We got up at 10 and grabbed brekky at Mackers, then we walked down to Circular Quay and took some photos of the Harbour Bridge and Sydney, and got on a ferry which took us around the harbour, under the bridge, and to Darling Harbour. We grabbed some frapaccinos at Starbucks and then saw a 3D show at the Imax theatre, about the deep sea, and that was really cool. We caught a bus to Coogee, where Ashley's cousin Michele and her fiance Lance live, and found their place after walking the around a block. On the bus a Revenue Protection Agent got on and checked our tickets (we had showed the bus driver our Curtin ID's and he gave us the concession price) and asked to see our student cards, so we showed him but he made it clear that only NSW students get the concession. So then he wrote down our names, addresses, birthday, and inquired what we were doing in Sydney and in Perth, and for how long. It was quite a scene and for a moment I thought he was going to fine us (or gaol us) but he only gave us a warning. But he wasn't mean about it, and after paying the difference of the bus fare he cheerfully told us where our stop was. I think he was just taking his job hell seriously. Lance and Michele have a room at this hostel/study abroad housing place, which is nice except for the window has been leaking and it smelled like mold. We picked up some groceries and hung around there until around 6, then went back into Sydney and to the Opera House, where we watched Romeo & Juliet. It was really good, but the actual Drama theatre wasn't any thing special, my high school auditorium looks fancier. We went back to Coogee. We watched a little world cup soccer and then went to bed (or to the floor).

DAY 3 11/6/2006
After sleeping in til noon the four of us went into town and to the Aquarium, which was really busy, but really nice as well. Then Lance and Michele went back and Ashley and I went up the Sky Tower and got a great view of the city from there, and went on the Oztrek theatre tour thingy, which was sort of lame. We ate at a food court and did some souvenir shopping. We took many more photographs around town, including at St Mary's Cathedral and Hyde Park. We went back and watched part of the Netherlands vs. Serbia & Montenegro game and played Texas Hold'em Poker.

DAY 4 12/6/2006
We walked from Lance and Michele's in Coogee to Bondi Beach and back, which was about a 2 1/2 hour walk. The area there is a mix of little beaches and rocky cliff faces and the sea was pretty rough. It was a nice walk and our first sunny day on the East Coast. After that Ashley and I went downtown planning to go to the 5:30 service at St. Mary's cathedral. It turns out there wasn't a 5:30 service that day because it was a public holiday (Queen's birthday), but we would have missed it anyway. The botanical gardens close at 5, but the gates were still open and there were other people walking around so we went in and took some photos as the sun was setting. At dark a full moon was just rising and that looked real cool. You also get another good view of the Sydney skyline from the garden. Unfortunately the gates were closed when we tried to get out, and along with a guy from Guatamala and an Asian couple we were locked inside and had to scale the fence to escape. We walked back through Hyde Park to the bus stop and went back to Coogee. We went to The Palace, a pub with a big lounge like room and TV's, to watch the Socceroos world cup game: Australia vs. Japan. Japan scored an early controversial goal, and held the lead most of the game. The Socceroos had so many close shots and everyone was on the edge of their seats. When Australia scored in the 70 something minute to tie everyone went crazy, and then just minutes later we took the lead and it was like being in the stands! The atmosphere was great! And then Australia scored again after the ninety minute mark, and then the game was done and everyone was cheering. It was a great time. Unfortunately the USA lost 0-3 to Czeck-Rebublic later. I stayed up until CR scored their 2nd goal, then went to bed because we were getting up at 6 AM for our tour to the Blue Mountains.

DAY 5 13/6/2006
I woke up at 7:50 and realised we had just missed our tour. I was disappointed but at least we hadn't payed for it already. But then Lance went online and found us times for buses and a train to Katoomba in the Blue Mountains, and Ashley and I raced to get ready, catch the bus, race to catch the train (it only cost $14 round trip!) and made it to Katoomba at around 3:00 PM. We bought the ride combo for Scenic World, which included a rail ride down the steep hillside, a walk through rain forest to a cable cab back up, and then a ride accross the canyon on the Skyway. The views of the three sisters rock formatation and the surrounding valleys/canyons and plateau like mountains was amazing. It is basically "Australia's Grand Canyon". Ashley and I hiked the trail between photos, and just barely caught the bus back to the train station, and made the train by only a few minutes. It was like the amazing race. Back in Sydney we ate at Mackers and then went back to Lance and Michele's, and uploaded all out photos of the trip online. The next morning we caught a cab to the airport and after a long flight we were back in Perth, where it was like summer compared to Sydney. We had a fun cab driver from the Airport to Uni. It's kind of weird to realise I've already flown into Perth 3 times! It was really good to see Bec again.

Wow time flies when you're having fun. This is already my third day back from Sydney! We went to the Waterford Wednesday night, and last night Zaid, Bec, Julia, Ross, Ashley, Rachel, and I went to a Kebab, Pizza, and Pide place for "tea" and that was delicious. Hmmm...we have leftovers too...maybe I'll go eat those now. Cheers!

Since Zaid has a car now he gave me the keys to his bike and his helmet, so a couple days ago I went for a ride, not noing where I would end up, as usual. I went from Curtin along the north shore of the Swan River (saw a pair of black swans) all the way to Cottesloe, where I ate at the Red Rooster that Sean and Brad brought us on our first week in Australia. Then I went towards Freo and took some scenic photos, looped around through Mosman Park and back along the way I had come. It was about 30 km of riding, and there were some hills, and I was thoroughly exhausted by the time I was done. It was the first time I had ridden bike for several years.

I've been spending lots of time with Bec the past couple days. Australia lost to Brazil 2-0 in the world cup soccer game last night. Jon is back from his trip up north to Broome and I saw a bunch of his photos, which were really cool. Now he is headed to Cairns to get his PADI scuba diving certificate and see the Great Barrier Reef, and then he is on to Sydney before coming back on the 30th. Ashley and Rachel are going north this week and Brad went home for the break.

Yesterday I read the greater part of The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks, and plan to finish it off today. Ross got his homework done finally and we are going to celebrate in style today! It's a Waterford Wednesday, but we're planning on starting at 4 pm, at the Uni Tav prolly, and having a long night : ). Bec is working in Capel now and I really miss her already. I can't wait to see her again Friday!

I'm on my way home now, about ten hours into the Qantas flight to Los Angeles. I really didn't feel like leaving, and I miss Australia already, and Bec especially. At least I can look forward to coming back in a couple years!

Yesterday Bec, Ross, Jon, and I went to Carousel and did some last minute shopping and went to Superman Returns at Hoyt's cinema. Two days ago Jon and I went to Fremantle and I played a didgeridoo for the first time. We had a shoreside meal at Mackers. Bec went to the Eagles game but they lost against the Western Bulldogs : (

About a week ago Julia and I went to Geraldton and stayed with Ross' family. After grudgingly leaving bed in the early afternoon I met Ross and Julia and Ross' dad Paul, who drove us up there. We stopped at the Pinnacles Desert on the way up to Gero, just as the sun had set. It was pretty cool to be there at that time. The set sun's fiery red glow on the ocean horizon made for a good background for silhoetting the Pinnacles against, and I got some cool photos. It was sort of eerie to drive through in the dark, with the Pinnacles lit up by the headlights. On the way to Gero I finally saw a wild kangaroo! We got in around 9 PM and had tea (we were spoiled with very very good food!) The Connolly's have 2 adjacent properties - Ross' brother Tom and their parents live in one, and Ross and his brother John live in the other and Julia and I stayed in the latter. We went to the Camel Bar for a little while that first night. The second day we got up at 7 AM and went out on a boat (with a friend of the family) and that was good fun. We saw a wild dolphin and lots of sea birds, and caught some fish as well. I caught a big Northwest Blowfish (silver toadfish) to start things off. Julia also caught a blowie, then I got a small Dhufish, and then Ross caught the keeper - a 66 cm Samson fish which I filleted ("t" pronounced) and we had it for tea along with cheesy scalloped potatoes and salad. During tea Ross' room was being burglarized. All our bags and dresser drawers had been gone through, and Julia's mp3 player and camera were stolen. Besides that incident our time in Gero was great. Earlier that day we all walked up to the lookout, the HMS Sydney memorial, and watched the sun set over the ocean. The next day we watched Fun with Dick and Jane and The Proposition, and I went fishing from shore at the fisherman's harbour. I caught a bunch of wheeping toados, a silver trevally, and one other specie that thus far evades identification. The Socceroos played a great game against Italy, but got screwed at the 92:50 minute or so by a penalty kick awarded to Italy and so they lost it in a really shitty way. The next day we went on an all day tour up the coast to Kalbarri (courtesy Ross' dad and guided by a different Paul, thanks to both!) There were some really cool lookouts along the cliff faces of the coast, including Pot Alley, where we sat on this huge rock that's wedged suspended in a crevice so that the water passes underneath, yet crashes in huge sprays on the rocks to the sides right in front of us. It was really cool, beautiful and somewhat unnerving seeing how if anyone slipped off they'd be goners. We stopped for fish and chips in Kalbarri and ate it at another lookout. Then we went on a long heavily corrugated gravel road to The Loop, Nature's Window, and Z Bend and saw the gorges of the Murchison River. It was very awesome and so scenic. We went back to Gero and watched Team America. Thursday mourning I got up at 6 AM, had a coffee and sweet roll, and then fished in the shelter of the boat harbour and caught a bunch of little "goggle-eye" fish that I haven't identified, and lots of wheeping toados. I later moved out to the unsheltered rocks and caught whiting, small silver trevally, and a yellowtail scad. Ross' mom drove us home to Perth and we had a car party : )

..........................

: \ ...So, farewell Australia, for now. To all the friends I've made in Australia: THANK YOU for making these past 5 months so much fun! I'll miss you all and hopefully we'll meet again!!!