SAN to BNE

Happy Anniversary!

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 22:54:19 -0700

July 2 marked one year in Australia. It might not have made it to the blog then, but it certainly didn't go unnoticed by friends. As you can see from the pictures, I was inaugurated with some "traditional" Aussie fare, i.e. no Aussie would be caught dead wearing any of it. The beer and the cake were good, though, as was the Mexican food made in my honor. Those parsley burritos are something I'll never forget. ;)

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Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, n' That

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 04:33:42 -0700

Lone Pine

OK, maybe once a month is better than once every three months? I mean, c'mon people. Join Facebook. That gets updated more regularly, although barely.

Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary is just on the other side of town, and it's really cool. The koalas were all awake, well at least most of them were, and there were heaps of 'em! There were also lots of birds, a reptile house, a few cassowaries, and a crocodile. But my favourite part was the wide, open paddock where all these kangaroos were just hanging out waiting to be petted. Actually, they were hanging out waiting to be fed, but while I was feeding them I could also pet them. Anyone who comes to visit me over here is definitely going to have that experience. There was also an emu, but I didn't really want to touch it. Be sure to check out the pics and videos, yes, videos!

Not a whole heck of a lot has changed since the last post. Work and uni. Work and uni. That's my life. But work is good and uni is good, so it's all good. BTW, final marks came out and I somehow managed to get four High Distinctions. For those of you who haven't been paying attention, four High Distinctions equals a 4.0 GPA in American speak, so good on me!

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Independence

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 05:21:48 -0700

Independence Pics

Perhaps if I just start blogging again and don't say anything, no one will notice it's been almost five months since my last post. Lots has happened. I made it through another semester, which puts me half-way through my degree. I did a really cool project with the Queensland Department of Emergency Services, and got a part-time job out of it. I also got a job at Woolworths doing night fill, but that's not nearly as glamorous as the gig at DES and, well, I'm not really doing it any more anyway. And I celebrated ONE YEAR IN AUSTRALIA, which fell really close to the Fourth of July. Here are the pics.

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Cairns

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 00:36:28 -0800

Cairns

Alright, maybe I was a little premature in saying that the holiday season was over, because Grant and I got a sort of bonus trip to Cairns last week. Cairns seems to be a sort of jumping off point to explore all that Far Northern Queensland has to offer. The city has a nice esplanade, but there's really not a whole lot to do. Just make sure you heed the crocodile warnings and stay out of the water! There are plenty of places to see in the surrounding country if you're willing to drive an hour or two to get there. (Or take a boat to get to the Great Barrier Reef.) I got to see Cairns, Port Douglas, Kuranda, and Mossman Gorge.

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Happy New Year!

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 15:34:27 -0800

Christmas Lights

The holiday season seems to be almost over. Almost, because Australia Day is coming up next week, and it's an official holiday here. After that, I think we're pretty much finished with the holidays for a while. I know I am, anyway. It's been fun, but it's also been expensive. Time to settle down, find a job, make some money, and get ready for my next semester at uni. It's also time to (finally) update the blog and post some more pictures.

It's been quite a rush since the end of last semester. First, there was the huge holiday to Hamilton Island. Just a few weeks later, I got to travel up to Noosa for a long weekend. Then, before I knew it, Christmas was already here. I think the warm summer weather kept me in denial about it actually being Christmas time. The day after Christmas, my friend Ryan from San Diego came to visit for a few weeks. Now here I am in the middle of January wondering where the last two months have gone, or at least how they managed to go by so quickly.

Noosa

Following is a list of websites for several of the places I visited over the last month or so. There are also descriptions under many of the photos I uploaded, so check them out. I only posted pictures of new things this time, so you don't have to endure fifity more pictures of the Sydney Opera House. Well, one more maybe, but not fifity.

The Christmas lights seem to be a pretty big deal around here on Christmas. You can find out in the newspaper and on websites like this one where the best lights are. De, Grant, and I went out one evening to have a look. Kinda weird walking around in shorts and tee looking at Christmas lights.
Q1
You can watch a cool Noosa video here. We spent our "water time" on the river, and it was cloudy and rainy after the first day, but you get the idea... This is the website for the townhouse we rented: http://www.coralbeach.com.au/
The Big Pineapple's website is under construction, so I had to wiki this: The Big Pineapple
One of the highlights of our visit to Melbourne was the Old Melbourne Gaol.
We had a day of wine tasting on the Mornington Peninsula.
There was also a day trip to Canberra.
And finally, Sydney Tower.. Well worth the price of the lift ticket once you're up there.

Ryan's Visit

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Inspirational Videos

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 20:19:11 -0800

These are my favorites. I put them up just for fun..... and inspiration!

Don't Let The Cave-In Get You Down

Ratchet&Clank 3 - Courtney Gears

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Like Christmas in July

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 03:56:42 -0800

Riverside Walk

I ended up taking a long walk along the river last Saturday evening. Walking up the stairs from the river to the top of Kangaroo Point, panting and sweating by the time I reached the top, it was hard to imagine, still, that it's the Christmas season. Her Excellency Ms. Quentin Bryce, AC Governor of Queensland, put it best when she wrote, "Christmas in Queensland is a far cry from those familiar images of Yule logs, snow and mistletoe. For us it's jacarandas in full bloom, watermelon, pineapple and stone fruit; sandcastles instead of snowmen, and lightning instead of log fires."

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Hamilton Island

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 00:17:52 -0800

Hamilton Island

It’s hard to believe I’ve already made it a third of the way through my degree. I really knuckled down for swotvac (study without teaching vacation) and did the best I could on my final exams. They were difficult, and I was really stressed, but it’s all over now. Results will be out Monday, 3 December.

To help unwind from the stress and celebrate putting one semester behind me, I took a nine day holiday to Hamilton Island with Zane. We spent the first five days at a five-star resort right on the beach. Basically, all I did for five days was lie around at the beach or by the pool drinking cocktails, listening to music, reading and swimming. We also managed to do a sunset kayak trip, as well as a day of sailing that included snorkelling and a stop at a pristine, white sand beach.

On Friday, we had two more friends show up (Jane and Grant), and moved to a different hotel so that we could all room together. While Zane and Jane got certified for scuba, Grant and I went for a nature hike. We shared some great dinners together, and took in as much of the scenery and relaxation that we could over the last several days. I also got out to the Great Barrier Reef for a day of snorkelling. It was awesome!

I’m taking a different approach with the pictures this time. Instead of describing them as part of this entry, I’ll write descriptions for each picture. Just click on the gallery and scroll through.

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Yeppoon

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 05:30:52 -0700

Yeppoon Pics

I had another chance to get away this weekend. I was gone for just a little over 24 hours, but I had a really good time...

Peter and Bruce are two friends of Brian that live in Yeppoon. Bruce works as a pharmacist, and over the last several years has become part owner in three local pharmacies. When Peter and Bruce moved to Yeppoon, there was no Chamber of Commerce, so Bruce decided to create one. Four years ago, he had the idea to run an “Employee of the Year” competition through the Chamber of Commerce in order to bring the business community together and honor the hard working employees. What started out with a handful of people in the back of a local tavern has now become large event, with over 250 people in attendance.

This year’s celebration took place at the Rydges Capricorn Resort. (For a little more juicy account of the resort, read here.) As I mentioned before, there were about 250 people present. There were speeches, games, awards, dinner, and even a drag show! It was very entertaining, and everyone (myself included) seemed to have a really good time. I felt especially proud of Bruce, since he was responsible for all of it. What an accomplishment!

Not so bright and early Saturday morning Brian, Peter, and I jumped in the car for a driving tour of the surrounding area. We started out with a very nice breakfast by the bay, spent several hours sightseeing, then ended up with a visit to Bruce at the pharmacy. Back to the house for lunch and a nap, and before long it was time to go back to the airport.

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The Farm

nobody@vox.com(Raxet SD) — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 22:53:04 -0700

Crayfish Farm

Here's a quick post about the farm. Brian took me up to meet Doug and Wayne last weekend on Sunday 14. Doug and Wayne have a crayfish farm that is located about 40 minutes north of Brisbane, very close to Australia Zoo. In fact, it might as well be a zoo, because they have so many animals living on their property. Apart from thousands of crayfish living in the ponds, they have a dog, a cat, a bunch of geese, a turkey, and some chickens. Wayne was kind enough to give me a tour of the farm and show me how they care for the crayfish, what their plans are for expansion, etc. The boys rounded out the afternoon by barbecuing some chicken and sausages. We also had salad, bread, beer and wine. Nice.

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