i just ate my favorite animal . . .

Well not technically. My new favorite animal is a kangaroo, and I feel a deep love for the animal. But here's the deal. The food here is American. I've had burgers, fries, pizza, KFC, McDonalds, etc. I mean seriously? I'm in Australia and I want to eat something I've never had. So tonight Hanne and I decided to go to Tukka which is authentic Australian cuisine. All their meat is from Australia and all the vegetables are grown here. As a complimentary appetizer we were served two small pieces of emu with vegetable slices. Not sure what it was, but as Hanne described it, it tasted "wild." Then came our appetizer. In Australia, an appetizer is called an Entree and the entree is called a "Main." Ordering is quite an issue for me. So our Entree was Pork and Possum served with bread that you spread it on to. I told the waiter that in America this would be road kill and he told me he'd let the chef know. . . hope they didn't spit in my food. As our mains, Hanne ordered the Wallaby dish and I ordered the Emu. Our original plan was Emu and Crocodile, but you can't get the Croc unless you go with the $85 meal so we opted out. Emu is fabulously delicious. It does not taste like chicken and is a delicious tender meat. Wallaby, which I choked down through tears, takes like beef that would be in beef stew. Nothing special and I will never eat it again. Granted it was a Wallaby, not a Kangaroo, but I still felt horrible. We complimented this extravagant meal with a bottle of Australian wine (we also prefaced this meal with a bottle of wine, but that's besides the point). It was definitely a new experience to say the least, but worth it for a try. I think I'll go back to American food now and be content. But I wouldn't mind a lil Emu in the future. (see below) :)

another reason my life should be on tv . . .

I know I just posted . . . but I had to blog about my day today. I decided to finally go out and explore Kangaroo Point. I walked all the way to the end where the famous Story Bridge is and took lots of pictures. I then walked around the waterfront and checked out the parks and activities there. I found out they have kayaking boats you can rent to paddle around the river which is pretty neat. There are lots of roller bladers and bikers as well. I had my camera out because there were so many pretty things to take pictures of.

So you know in some romantic comedies when the guy sees the girl for a first time he trips or walks into a pole or something hilarious? Well that happened to me today. Let me also note I was wearing work out shorts and a red tanktop, nothing fancy. I was at a corner standing off the path deciding if I wanted to walk home the same way I came or go a different way home. I saw a guy biking and looked towards him. He literally made eye contact with me, slid the bike on its side and face-planted into a yellow pole. . . BAHAHAHA. I held my composure for a few seconds to make sure he wasn't actually hurt. When I realized the only thing hurt was his ego, I proceeded walking and burst into laughter to the point of tears. It was like being in America's Funniest Home Videos in real life. So funny. And it reminded me of a story about my dad. One of the times we went to Wellspring to have dinner with my grandmother we were all sitting at our table when a little old lady walked by. She lost her footing and fell into my dad and he caught her. He steadied her and sent her on her way and as he sat down he said, and I quote "Man, I still make the ladies swoon." Oh daddy, you're so funny.

But in all seriousness, having a guy face-plant into a pole when he sees you is a pretty big ego boost.

mmm fruit pizza . . .

I just want to start with a little shout out to Tiger and Soco. (Emily, I'm sure you just threw up, but you'll just have to deal haha) At home my bed was just a double, where as here I have a queen. All this space is great, but I miss my warm bodies to cuddle up with. I think I'm gonna have to buy a cute stuffed animal or something, cause my pillow just isn't cutting it. My bed at home was usually cramped, and much more so on weekends with the addition of the boyfriend and Soco, but it was so cute to wake up and feel Soco curled down at my feet and have Tiger on the otherside stretched out to take up as much room as possible. It took some time for them to both be comfortable sleeping in the same vicinity, but they established their sides and ultimately they both just wanted to be close to me so they learned to deal with each other. Honestly, Soco lived with me for a few weeks before I came and at night when I came home from work, Tiger would sit there while Soco licked her hello.

I wasn't worried about leaving Soco cause she has a fabulous life of dog friends, a huge yard and of course Eric who hung the sun in her world. But Tiger was a different story. She's been living with me for a long time now. Back when I was a sophomore in college I took Tiger and Chase to college with me. They had a sweet setup and although they didn't love each other at first, they eventually respected each other. My junior year (best year of college EVER) I couldn't have my cats because my roomie Heather was allergic. Who, btw, has now gotten allergy shots and has formed a lasting bond with Tiger and Bear. It was hard, but ultimately worth it because that year was absolutely the best and I met the girls I will probably know for the rest of my life. Quick shout out to my Ashley Forest loves!! So senior year rolled around and Tiger was back in the picture. I couldn't bring Chase but my parents were taking good care of her. The first time Tiger kneeded Katie and Angie they both squealed in excitement, because that my friends is the ultimate sign that Tiger loves you. Chase made it back into the picture for my extra semester of college and then we lost her to cancer a few months after graduating, but those were an awesome 12 years. And Tiger's been with me ever since. She and Soco got along fabulously, but I was a little worried about how she would get along with Bear and Lucky when she had to move in with my parents while I'm gone. My mom swore she wouldn't let Tiger in her bed, but within 2 weeks she had cuddled her way right to where she slept with me every night. And she's even standing up to the dogs some. I'm sure she's content, but I can't wait to get back home and cuddle up with her at night.

Enough reminiscing . . . I've started working on my first project for school. I have a group oral presentation in two weeks on Fear Appeals in Advertising. We've decided to us the truth campaign from the US and its gonna be great. I forgot how much of a dork I am and how much I actually like school. The roomies and I are also getting into a routine. The guys cook all the time, while I usually make mac & cheese or a simple sandwich. So I cooked a lovely dinner for everyone Sunday night (see below)And by cooked of course I mean I ordered Dominos. Pepperoni is weird tasting here, but the three cheese was AWESOME. We're a block from the movie rental place which has the $1 Tuesday special so we rented some movies yesterday and watched them together. Of course the downside of watching American movies with Germans is that they need the subtitles on to practice their English. Last night we watched Bedtime Stories (lame but cute) and I introduced them to Step Brothers. They were skeptical, but when they all bursted into laughter throughout the entire movie, I knew I had won. I also cooked my fabulous fruit pizza for dessert. Although our kitchen is lacking in pots and pans, I made due with what we had and the result was "mmmmm this is really good" (said with a huge accent).
It ended up a square pizza, but as delicious as ever. This was my first time using banana with it but it was actually pretty good. The grocery store here had plenty of kiwis (which Eric claims is the best fruit to use) but they didn't have any pineapple which is one of my favorites. Presentation, however, was impressive. :) Now I'm off to shower and head up to see the cliffs at Kangaroo Point and look into joining the rock climbing club. And maybe I'll get some homework done in there as well. I hope you all have a glorious rest of the week!!

happily ever after

Today I realized that growing up on fairytales is not healthy. No matter how far you chase that rainbow, you will not find that pot of gold. No matter how hard you search for him, finding that perfect white knight that will come riding up on his horse is impossible. And lastly, those adorable, cuddly Koala bears . . . smell like shit. Strangely, I didn't even care. Unfortunately we didn't actually get to cuddle them, but I got my picture right beside one and got to pet him. They are extremely soft, but they really smell awful.

But there is hope for those fairytales. Because no matter how many times those stories let you down, there is eventually a happily ever after. You may not find the pot of gold, but you might find a few dollars on the street one day or a $20 in your pocket. That white knight you thought you found may let you down, but that just leaves the gate open for the one that won't. And those koalas may smell like shit, but when you round the corner and see a field of kangaroos that you can feed, cuddle, pet and roam with at your leisure . . . that my friends is happily ever after. I have never been so overcome with joy in my entire life. Its like a petting zoo, but instead of goats it is real live kangaroos. America sucks. Hanne and I stayed in the park for a while cuddling with our new friends and taking more pictures than facebook will probably allow me to upload. She finally dragged me away to check out the rest of Currumbin Sanctuary. We saw a crocodile that looked almost 20 feet long. He was gigantor. And then we saw tree kangaroos. So cool. Right in that area was a non exciting bird called a Cassowary. I came to find out later that it is one of the most vicious birds in the world and if it escaped they would have to evacuate the entire park. Cool. Then we headed towards the Dingoes and Devils. Evidently they have some new dingo pups who are only a few weeks old but are the size of 3 month old puppies. They grow so quickly because otherwise they won't survive in the wild. I didn't get to see the lil pups, but the zoo woman who talked my ear off for 15 minutes told me all about them. Dingoes really just look like big dogs, and they made me miss my Soco. I got a sweet picture of a tazmanian devil showin his vicious teeth and visited with the Ciscos for a lil while. That was all good times, but I desperately missed my kangaroos. So we went back and spent the last 30 minutes with the kangaroos. And I took even more pictures. Absolutely amazing. I was sad to leave, but believe me, I will be back.

We then headed to Coolangatta for lunch and a lil beach time. It was gorgeous and being only an hour away from Brisbane, I will definitely head back there when it gets warmer. We attempted a jumping picture, but we were slightly unsuccessful. We then boarded the bus for Surfers Paradise. I have never seen so many hotels in my life. Its a small completely overdeveloped toursit attraction. I did a little shopping and then we headed down to check out the beach. It was quite windy and freezing, but still pretty. We then met up with the Swedish guys and my German roomies and grabbed a quick brewsky before getting back on the bus. I also bought Carter a sweet present from some scantily clad women, for a good cause of course. :)

It was an amazing day to say the least. . . and I'm loving Australia more and more each day

Man I love college

This is our family. From the left, Billy from Somoa (previously called mystery guy because he rarely comes upstairs. I didn't meet him until I'd lived here a week), Eugen, Viktor, me obviously, Wolfgang (the three Germans) and Ivar who's from Sweden.

So this week was my first week of classes. I've decided that on Tuesdays and Wednesdays I'm going to travel around and work on my photography. I'm also going to look into maybe some 1 or 2 day seminars in photography that I might be able to take. Thursdays are definitely going to be my longest days. I have class from 2pm - 9pm with a one hour break in between to travel to the other campus. Luckily my new American friend and I can hang out in class together. I have my Advertising Creative Introduction class and Advertising Management class. This school really focuses on preparing you for getting a job and does a good job of combining the artsy side of advertising and the business side. I'll have lots of presentations, mid semester exams and then final projects in each class. Its gonna be tough, but I could use a good challenge.

After about 3 hours of sleep Thursday night (hello insomnia) I finally got out of bed around 9am and headed to campus early for my 1pm class. I got some new headphones since mine were broken and went and sat in the botanical gardens until it was time for class. As the teacher walked into my Advertising Creative: Art Direction and Copywriting class, I decided she was quite manly for a woman . . . maybe a little too manly. I texted some friends and said that I was 99 percent sure my teacher Paula used to be a Paul. First words out of her mouth, " Hi I'm Paula, some of you may have known me as Paul. I'm kind of both genders so I just like to get that out in the open from the start." Well ok then Paula. Needless to say it should be an interesting class. Afterwards I bought my books, took a much needed nap and now I'm getting everything ready for the trip to the Gold Coast tomorrow. Koalas, Kangaroos and snakes OH MY!

Meet the Germans . . .

So I'm watching the Simpsons with the German roomies. I tried to tell them that as family tradition we watched the Simpsons every Sunday night while eating dinner. Welcome to my family. They explained that they love South Park because its such easy english and they learn a lot of their slang from there. So funny. We just talked about how Viktor has a gf and how Wolfgang has a fiance. Viktor is 22 and doesn't want to be married until at least 30 yrs old and his gf is 20 yrs old. I explained to him the mind of the woman and how we want to be married by at least 30 so we can have kids by 30ish cause our eggs start dying and he didn't appreciate the talk. Wolfgang's fiance is 25 and he's 27. They might have a chance cause they're already planning the wedding. Eugen just walked up and he's 26 and doesn't have a gf. He had a gf for 5 years but evidently it didn't work out and his advice is that love is still possible.

So they just asked what is "thuglife" and is it cool . . . how do you describe thug life to people who don't speak english. I said it means cool when black people say it. And evidently Apoo speaks exactly as one of their professors. Hilarious, and I'm helping them translate. Wolfgang plays Polka (also known as Poker in America) and is currently losing but just won a hand, so he wants me to post that. JK, he just lost. They are such a good distraction. Thats all I have on the German roommates but they are entertaining.

i would walk 500 miles . . .

I'm gonna be buff by summer time here. Yesterday I walked for a total of about 3 hours. And not a granny walk, a power walk with pauses to wait to cross the street. Currently I have no classes Tuesday and Wednesday so I headed to campus to find out if I could sign up for another fun class like photography. After trying three different places I finally found the right person to talk to. Her reaction when I told her I wanted to sign up for an extra class was "Usually we get students in here that want to take less hours, so let me find out if that's possible." Let me just raise that dork flag a little higher. Of course the only photography class is on Thursdays which would put me in class from 10am - 9pm. Looks like that's not gonna happen. As I walked back through campus, I stopped by the rock climbing tent and might join the club. They go twice a week to the cliffs at Kangaroo Point. Might be a fun sport to get into, I have always like rock climbing. I then walked back home and joined the movie store on the corner. $1 rentals on Tuesday aka my new Redbox. Booyea! Around 7:30pm I went out to catch a bus towards campus so I could meet Hanne and the other Norwegian girls for dinner but there were of course no buses until after 8pm so I just walked. We had dinner at a cute Chinese restaurant right on the waterfront. The city looks so neat at night, the ferris wheel changes colors and the casino is lit up as purple. I want to go in the ferris wheel during the day and at night so I can see the whole city at different times. I then headed back home and was very proud of myself for all the walking I'd done for the day. I'll blog again after I attend a few more classes this week.

Bikini season here I come.

Cowabunga

This is Noosa. Its a city on the coast a few hours north of Brisbane. It was definitely a spur of the moment trip. Hanne and I found out that some of our friends were heading here for the weekend so we tagged along. Travel time was supposed to be about 3 hours but 4.5 hours later we arrived. We had to take a train and two buses. On the last bus, a guy got on wearing a Carolina sweatshirt. I almost didn't even notice because it seemed so normal to me. I asked if he was a Carolina fan. He responded with some kind of Australia accent with a lisp, and as he drank box wine out of his backpack I decided we probably weren't meant to be friends even if he did love Carolina.

Once we arrived in Noosa we headed off to find a place to stay. We ended up at Koala which is a hostel there. After dinner and a lil chill time, we headed out to The Reef, one of two bars in Noosa. I was promptly denied entrance because I had on thongs. For those of you who just read that and gasped, thongs are flip flops. A quick change of the shoes and I was back in action. It happened to be Karaoke night, so Hanne and I decided to sing "Hit Me Baby One More Time" by good ol Britney. All in all a good night. We woke up around 10am Saturday and Hanne and I headed out to the beach. Our plan was to go surfing later that afternoon with the whole group. I called to book a time but they were already all booked for Saturday afternoon because they had a group of 7. I found out later that I was actually part of the group of 7, score.
And that ladies and gentlemen, is me surfing. We used soft long boards so it was easier than a fiberglass one, but it was pretty awesome. I actually stood up and rode a wave in about 5 times. I am now a huge fan of surfing and may try to continue my new passion once I arrive back in the states. I definitely recommend a lesson to everyone. Saturday night we hung out at the hostel bar followed by some drinking games in our room. Circle of Death with cheap box wine . . . probably not a good idea. Good times.

Sunday we spent the day out on the beach again working on our tans. This time home we caught a different train so it only took us 4 hours. I helped the Germans with their homework for a while when I got back and then settled in for a good night of rest before my first day of class.

So, school. This may come off nerdy, but I'm really excited about class. I had my Contemporary Issues in Advertising class today and it looks pretty tough but really interesting. After going around the room and trying to learn everyone's names (which most of the students are international meaning names aren't exactly easy) we then looked into what we'll be doing this semester. It will mostly be case studies of ad campaigns which sounds fun. Evidently in the UK right now there is an ad campaign by the National Health Service whose message is mainly "Sex is fun" and its targeted towards teens. One of the tag lines in this ad is "An orgasm a day keeps the doctor away." No joke, you can google this and read more about it. The UK also has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy . . . needless to say we're going to study the implications of this campaign and figure out what they hell they are thinking. I also met a nice American girl from NY in my class and we're going to do our first group project together. We also realized we have 3 classes together this semester so I found my new study buddy. For now I'm off to eat dinner and see how the German's first day went. Then its out for bowling with the Norwegian girls.

Just call me one of the boys . . .

Well it looks like I may potentially be living with all guys for the next 6 months. Yesterday three German guys moved in named Winkin, Blinkin and Nod. Kidding, but I don't remember their names at all. Wait, one was named Wolfgang. When I told them I was from America they responded "Great, you can help us with our English!" Lordy, lordy. My other roommate is Ivar from Sweden. He has two piercings around his lower lip, but so far is a pretty nice guy. There is a mystery guy that lives downstairs who I've never seen, heard or met so maybe he doesn't really exist. I was hoping for at least one girl so we could share jewelry/hair dryers/etc. but its not lookin like thats gonna work out. This is a 10 bedroom house but the real estate guy told me they are only going to rent it out to about 6 people. So I guess I'll just be waving that tomboy flag proudly :)

Luckily, I am meeting some nice girls to hang out with though. When touring the houses to find a place to live I met Hanne (like H-ON-A) from Norway. Since then we have met up on campus a few times and went out together last night. Ivar also has some other friends from Sweden so I met a few girls he knows last night. So I may be living with all guys, but on the bright side there is much less chance of drama (we don't want no drama, drama) and I can maybe make some extra cash as an English tutor at night. haha

I do love my house though. Its a very typical Queenslander and the small details are really awesome. There is also a huge back porch which is perfect for a party :) If only we had this porch in the days of Ashley Forest . . . I also started training for Little House on the Prairie yesterday, plus a washer machine. They don't use dryers here in Australia so as we speak my clothes are out on the line flappin in the wind. I felt a lil awkward pinning up my underthings so I just brought those back to my room to dry. I don't need the neighbors knowing EVERYTHING about me. I also walked to campus from my house to time it and it only takes about 30-35 minutes. Its a nice walk too. I took a bus to campus last night to see how much faster that was, and it took 30 minutes. So since bikini season is a few short months away here, I'm opting for walking at least most of the time.

So, Smashing Bumpkins. Much to my surprise, they are not a Smashing Pumpkins cover band. Believe it or not, there are evidently country bumpkins here. As I walked up towards the concert I spotted what I thought was a mechanical bull. In actuality, it looked more like a mechanical cow, but same concept. As I passed the haystacks I was greeted by an extremely large line dance which I immediately joined. A lil dose e' doe here and swinging your partner round. After about 10 minutes of that Hanne and I headed up to the campus bar. And yes, there is a bar in the food court. Drinking age in Australia is 18 so why not have a bar on campus? We then met up with Ivar and friends and all went out for a good ride on the cow. Since I'm a mechanical bull champion, I tried to go easy on the others and used my left hand. They still didn't knock me off in 8 seconds. Go me. My friends asked me if I'd ever ridden one before and I brought up Key West . . . oh memories.

Moving on, we then headed to an Irish pub for the State of the Origin. This is a Rugby League game between Queensland and New South Wales. Queensland has won the last 4 years in a row and its always a big game. I was torn on who to cheer for because I was making friends on both sides. But NSW does wear carolina blue, and I do always love an underdog. So Rugby pretty much makes our football players look like little girls. There are no pads, there are no helmets, and there are very short shorts. Just imagine extremely fit muscular guys ramming into each other with pure testosterone. Its an extremely exciting game to watch. There aren't any pauses like American football, there is constantly action. So I chatted up some really nice Australian girls and we all cheered together as the game continued. In the end, NSW cames out on top and it was a big upset. My new friends took down my name to friend me on facebook and then I headed off with my friends to Uber. As I mentioned before, the drinking age is 18. So at the club, everyone looks SOOOO young. And I've come to realize, I'm not really into the techno clubbing scene so much. This DJ was particularly boring and when I told him as much, he said that was all he was allowed to play. Hanne and I caught a cab home early but it was a glorious night.

My frugality continues to amaze me . . .

As most of you know, I'm quite the frugal person. And even though I traded in the whole job idea to get back on the daddy tab, I'm still trying to be as frugal as ever. Meaning I want to spend very little on "stuff" and the majority of my funds on traveling this glorious area, feeding kangaroos, holding koalas, finding platypus, surfing, scuba diving and all of that fun stuff. . . regardless, I'll explain the hilarious comforter a lil later in the blog. The other picture is the view of my campus from across the Brisbane River. Saweet . . .

Monday was my first day of orientation on campus. I got to meet some other people who are in the Creative Industries and got a campus tour of the other campus I'll be taking classes on. Also met another American so that's a grand total of two. I enjoyed a crappy yet free lunch on campus and then went and set up an Australian bank account. Which, by the way, has AWESOME interest rates compared to the US, so I got that going for me which is nice.

And then there's today . . . I finally moved into my own place. :) For the first time since being in Australia, I have unpacked my suitcases and have a QUEEN sized bed to sleep in. There are some quirks to work out though. Like the fact that my room wasn't actually clean when I arrived so I had to call the real estate company to do that but they came right away. And my shower doesn't have a shower head so the water comes out in one straight stream. Oh, and the temperatures are freezing and boiling hot again, but I'm seasoned with that after my stint in the hostel. And then there is buying necessities like bedding when you don't have a car. Good news, they have a Target here. Bad news, they charge for bags after you buy your items. When I laughed thinking the lady was joking, I got a blank look. Evidently its for the sole purpose of "saving the environment." I of course chose not to save the environment and coughed up the 20 cents for my bag. And now the explanation of the picture. As I mentioned before, I happen to be quite frugal. After walking through Target for a good half hour and realizing how much I really needed to buy, I opted for the least expensive comforter set I could find. And when I lay down tonight, I will feel sexy . . . DAMN sexy. Luckily the comforter has a back for when I have friends over and have to show them my room. HAHA, my life is pretty funny.

Interesting fact I learned today: There are 4 different kinds of football played in Australia. Soccer, Rugby League , Rugby Union, and Gridiron Football (American Football). I also happen to be within walking distance of the football arena so hopefully I'll get to go to a few games and see what this Rugby thing is all about. And according to my cabby, I'll love it cause "the guys wear short tight shorts." hahaha

You can find me in the club . . .

So Friday was my first clubbing experience in Brisbane. Honestly, I really didn’t wanna go out, but this girl Stef didn’t want to be the only girl out and convinced me to go along. We went to a club called The Family . . . it is definitely not a “family” oriented club. The inside was pretty fabulous. It reminded me of some of the clubs we went to in Beijing. It was 3 levels, with smoke machines all over and a DJ playing techno. Stef and I danced for a while and explored around the club. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a guy with a genuine mullet. It felt just like home. We’re talking long curly brown hair mullet. I immediately went over and asked if I could take a picture with him saying “I just love your hair.” I then asked what he called his hairstyle and he responded “a mullet.” So evidently the mullet is not only common here, but it’s also in style. When I bring up Nascar though, I just get blank looks.

Saturday I walked all over town setting up my housing and getting a cell phone. But I did find some fabulous places to take pictures so it was worth it. I found a great place to live too. It’s a house in East Brisbane, which is about 10-15 minutes from campus/downtown. I’ll be living with 5 other people (who I haven’t met) but I have a large room and my own bathroom and shower in my room. The house has a fabulous back porch too which will be perfect for beer pong. :) We had a big cookout Saturday night for my roomie Carl’s 30th bday. We cooked burgers and sausages on the barbie. It was delicious. They also made a punch for the party. There are only a few drinks here that everyone has regularly. Coopers & Fosters beer and then there’s Goon. Goon is Golden Oak box wine. It is special to say the least. The punch for the party included four boxes of Goon, pineapple juice, apples, and other stuff I can’t remember. I’m not sure how potent Goon is, but I don’t think their “punch” made with wine holds a candle to our PJ made with everclear. But who am I to judge.

Sunday headed to a place called Queen St Mall which is pretty much like the outdoor part of Southpointe. Evidently there was a big soccer game going on too because EVERYONE was wearing Carlsburg gear. I had breakfast at Jimmys in the Mall and then headed back to my hostel. I got my nice camera and headed back to town to go to Southbank. I love this town. Southbank is right on the water and there are trees everywhere. And Eric, they do have palm trees, so we are sittin on a beach with palm trees and fancy drinks for Christmas . . . There is a marketplace on the weekends but its definitely not too overdeveloped here. They have a lagoon for swimming with beaches around it and decks for laying out. They also have a huge area of those fountains that are on the ground to play in. There is a large walkway that is right beside the water so you can just walk and enjoy the view. Don’t worry, I took a ton of pictures. It just amazes me how such a large city can still be so pretty. I then went on a mission to find oysters. I went to a lil restaurant called The Point (holla) and chatted up my waiter. His girlfriend is at QUT studying advertising as well. He then told me they were out of oysters. :( I ordered a salad and a nice glass of Australian merlot. He came back with a plate and a small lil fork and told me that they sell oysters 6 at a time and they had 3 left over that he was bringing to me. When they say the people in Australia are nice, its not an exaggeration. Right across from my lunch spot was a huge cinema with a poster of Bruno on it. After much contemplation I decided to save the museum for another day and went to the movies. Dad, I know we loved Borat, but I don’t think you’ll appreciate the humor in Bruno. I, on the other hand, found it ridiculously hilarious. If you have the stomach for it, go see it.

Ratio of people I’ve met so far:
English: 4
Irish: 4
Norwegian: 3
German: 3
Canada: 2
Australian: 1
American: 1

Needless to say, I’d like to meet a few more Australians. Evidently, 1 in 4 people that live in Australia are not actually from here. Go figure. And being American I’m a rarity. Most of the guys I’ve talked to said that in the 8-14 months they’ve been here they can count the American’s they’ve met on one hand.

Don't forget to do up your seatbelt

Well I am here in sunny Brisbane and the weather feels awesome. But let me back up and give a little insite into my 30 hours of traveling to get here. The first two flights weren't so bad. It was a 4.5 hr flight to LA and I got an aisle seat in an exit row so that was nice. The small children that screamed the whole flight were a doozy, but what can you do. I then watched recaps of Michael Jackson's memorial while having lunch/dinner at LAX. My flight to Auckland left about an hour late, but the plane was huge and I had my own TV screen. I think I watched 3 movies and then took sleeping pills. BTW, I suck at sleeping while sitting. Next time I want to upgrade to those seats that turn into beds. The flight, however, was only about 12 hours which is shorter than I thought. But because it was late I missed my connection and had to spend an extra few hours in the New Zealand airport. Which had free internet and was pretty nice so I wasn't complaining. A 3.5 hr flight later beside a man who smelled like burning dog poop, I arrived in Brisbane, grabbed a cabby and arrived at my hostel.

Initial thoughts: punk rock/emo is totally in here. I've seen more guys with fohawks, neon shirts and Ed Harvy hats than I ever wanted to in my life. Even the young boys got it going on. Don't know if I'll be able to get used to that style, but then again I can't judge the country by its airports. . . The hostel is cool. Its a lil cramped and the bathroom in the room is subpar, but it will do. There are three sets of bunks in my room which is about the size of my living room at my apt. There is absolutely no room for my luggage, but I'll make it work. The shower had two temperatures, scalding and freezing, but I LOVED my shower. The trickle of scalding water was so worth it. The toilet is currently clogged so I guess I'll have to make friends with someone in another room. I've only met one of my roomies so far, he's from England and has been playin techno in the room since I got here. He did invite me to go out with everyone on Saturday for his birthday so I guess that counts as my first friend in Brisbane. I also met a girl from Canada who's been hanging out in our room. Friend numero dos. Go me.

My current plan is to figure out how to get to campus so I can go tomorrow, meet with my accomodation guy and attend a Welcome to Brisbane session. Well that and food. I'm not sure what meal I'm supposed to be on, but its lunch time here so I guess I'll go for that. More to come as I learn the city a lil better

G'day mates!