First round of pics

G'day everyone. I went walking around Lake Burley Griffin yesterday (actually, I only made it half way) and was able to take some pictures. I put an album up on Yahoo for your enjoyment.

You can view the pics here

A few notes...

The lake is the main focal point of town, but walking around it will take you from city centre to farmland in no time flat. Its kind of strange, but nice at the same time.

Since the main government buildings are alligned on the lake, there's also a lot of memorials, which I took some pictures of.

This was my first real trip into the city, but I really just looked at things, haven't done anything "touristy" yet. Unless you count walking up the hill at Commonwealth Place, camera in hand, just to get a view of Old Parliment House. THen I've done touristy things.

Enjoy the pics, more to come later.

News from the other end of the world...2

Time for the second round of the feature for all you news junkies in the world.

The top story...

Tony Blair is telling John Howard that Australia should come up with an exit strategy in Iraq, echoing what opposition leaders in Australia have been calling for. Howard is downplaying the remarks (wonder if this has something to do with the alliance with the US).

Here's the article.

The largest paper in the country, The Australian, is supporting Blair.

Also, Dick Cheny's coming down for a visit, and some people are not happy about it. Cheney's visit will create the largest protection force for a foreign dignitary since George Bush came in 2003. Cheney will be down here for 3 days.

More US-Australian relations. George Bush has told John Howard that he will help speed up David Hicks' trial. Hicks is an Australian being held at Guantanomo Bay, and fter five years was finally charged with what many Aussies think are bogus offenses. Howard is becoming less and less popular, so Bush will try to help him out with a speedy trial.

The country is trying to get control of all of its water. Currently the states have individual control of their water and how its used, but due to a drought, the federal government is pushing for national control. Victoria is opposed to this.

In sports...the Australian cricket team says it will become a force again. After losing to England (shocking) and then New Zealand (inspiring one guy on my floor to scream "What the hell is wrong with the Australian cricket team?!?) the Aussies head to the Carribean trying for their third straight World Cup championship. Their skipper says that after the tournament, then the criticts can have their say.

Archie Thompson scores five goals as the Melbourne Victory win the A-League Grand Final.

In other news...

Australia will be using enviromentally friendly light bulbs.


Sydney is having problems landing major sporting events.

Aussie rules football might get its own channel.

Happy reading!

Alan

Thongs

First off, if you're on Facebook, and don't join this group, I'm going to be sad.

Students Against Alan Hoffmann Being Eaten By Kangaroos.

It might be an SIUC only group, but the concern is appreciated.

So, here's your first bit of Australian slang: thongs. While down here I've been asked why I don't wear them, have heard people be advised not to wear them to a party, and have seen more of them then I ever thought possible.

Of course, I'm talking about sandals.

Considering its a balmy 30 degrees outside today, and is likely to be in the high 20s to low 30s for awhile (think Celsius, people!) I decided to buck with my normal anti-sandal ways and buy a pair. They were cheap (12 bucks) and are fairly comfortable. I put them on half way through my walk back to the Ressies and was amazed at how nice it felt.

Of course, this bit of terminology is still a bit weird to me, leading to this quasi-awkward (for me) conversation with the woman at the register.

Her: So, whats your mailing code?
Me: (thinking, thinking pulls out wallet to look) Sorry, I'm an international student, I forgot it.
Her: No worries.
Me: 2507.
Her: Where you from?
Me: The states.
Her: Is this your first pair of thongs?
Me: (trying not to giggle, because I'm obviously 12 years old) Yeah.

Then it was off to the grocery store for some supplies, including Peach Tea. I haven't seen this in the States, but I haven't looked for it either. Its basically what it sounds like, tea with peach flavoring. I had this on the airplane, and I think it changed my life.

I feel like you need to know these things.

Other notes...

~I have class three days a week. This is what is known as awesome.

~Have not heard back from the rugby club, but have from the Ultimate Frisbee team. Going to throw with them tomorrow.

~Rugby jersies are just as expensive as anyother sports jersey. An Eels one goes for about $120. I've decided to become an Eels supporter because, lets face it, that nickname is awesome. I bought an Eels polo, in which I look quite dashing.

Cheers!

Alan

Kangaroos

Just like the United States has squirrels, Australia has Kangaroos.



Took this picture last night while walking around campus. There's a video too, but YouTube is sucking the fun out of things and taking forever to load it up. (Just a few minutes though!)

Once I can, I'll imbed that vid onto the site, and you can enjoy some awesome kangaroo hopping.

UPDATE: Here's the YouTube video!



What, you want more Kangaroo? Fine, here you go.


While this second one isn't as exciting, you do get to see how the kangaroos "walk". They're still close to the ground, and they slowly push forward with both hind legs. Its still kind of a hopping motion, but acts as more of a crawl over the ground.

I love my digital camera.
Alan

News from the other end of the World...1

I’m going to start what I hope will be a regular feature here at Alan In Oz. Presenting the first addition of News From the Other End of the World.

Basically, I’ll scan the papers and relay what’s big news down here to those of you reading back in the States (or anywhere in the world, really. This is, after all, on the World Wide Web.) I want to give you guys an insight on how Austraalia works in the world, and just in general what’s going on down here.

The Top Story…

In a story that might not be getting a whole lot of press back home, Australian prime minister John Howard is attacking Democratic candidate Barack Obama’s Iraq policy.

"If I were running al Qaeda in Iraq, I would put a circle around March 2008 and be praying as many times as possible for a victory, not only for Obama but also for the Democrats,” said Howard, referring to the dateline Obama set for troop withdrawl from Iraq.

Australia does have a small presence in Iraq, supplying 1,400 troops. Something Obama made mention of.

"If Prime Minister Howard truly believes what he says, perhaps his country should find its way to contribute more than just 1,400 troops so some American troops can come home," he said. "It's easy to talk tough when it's not your country or your troops making the sacrifices."

Obama also suggested that the Aussies put more troops to Iraq help with the cause. Howard maintains that his country’s contributions are significant. Gwynne Dyer, a columnist that is published in The Canberra Times points out that this isn’t entirely correct. Australia’s population is about one-fifteenth of the population of the United States. So, if you work the numbers, one-fifteenth of the U.S. presence in Iraq is 10,600.

Why is Australia even in Iraq, you might ask. Well, its because the government here feels the need to be on good terms with the United States. Given its small population, the Australians fear invasion from Indonesia or other Asian countries. I picked up a book, “Australia in International Politics” and on page 5 (to give you an idea of how prevalent this way of thinking is) it reads…

“The turning point in World War II, which showed that the British were incapable of defending their far-flung empire in South-East Asia and the Pacific. Australia, too weak to protect its own territory from determined attack, had to find a ‘great and powerful friend’. That new friend was the USA, and Australia has been in close alliance with the USA ever since.”

Australia has fought alongside the US in many wars, most recently the one in Iraq. Yes, Australia does face the threat of terrorism (88 Australians were killed in the Bali Bombings in 2002, and ten were killed on September, 11) but as Mr. Dyer writes in Thursday’s column, “If the US were to invade Mars, Australia would send a battalion along to guard the supply depot.”

A link to the CNN story

A link to Dyer’s column.

A story relating to that last bit by Dyer. Perhaps that is why the leader of the Labour Party (think Democrats) is all in favor for a US Military Communications base in Western Australia….




Story 2 gives us an environmental concern. A Japanese whaling vessel is floating adrift near the world’s largest penguin breeding grounds. A fire aboard the ship makes it a risk to leak oil, and its in an area that’s hard to get to, and sees a lot of storms. So, an oil spill here (the ship carries over 300,000 gallons of oil) could be pretty bad.

Here’s the link.

Now for some sports. Already reeling from a stunning defeat to England (and I do mean stunning. The Aussies are kind of mad about this, actually) in cricket, the Green and Gold received more bad news when one of their top players badly twisted his ankle in practice. Brett Lee is now doubtful for next month’s Cricket World Cup.

The Aussies are playing New Zealand for three matches, but aren’t counting on a victory. Stephen Flemming, the Kiwi captain, told reporters that there is no such thing as a weak Australian team.

New Zealand and Australia play three one-day matches beginning Saturday.


In other news: Telstra doesn’t like the iPhone.


Sydney might use recycled water.


There is some political tension between Australia and the island nations.

Hope you like the new feature. More to come later.

O Week...or Australians and Alcohol.

G'day Mates!

(Note: yes, they actually do say that down here, its not just some Crocodile Dundee inspired sterotype. In fact, one of my friends wanted to hear my Australian accent and had me say "G'day Mate" He was rather impressed with it, actually.)

So, this is O week. O week is Orientation Week where we get acclimated to Uni life and things like that. So, guess what? I'm still not in class. They start on Monday.

So, what are a bunch of college students to do while waiting for classes to start? Well...the Ressies Rulebook gives us an idea.

UCRS believes the enjoyment of alcohol is an adult privilege and recognises it as an established part of Australian lifestyle. UCRS therefore permits the responsible consumption of alcohol on Ressies.

Basically, that means drink up. The drinking age in Australia is 18, so almost everyone at Uni is of legal age. In fact, there are two bars on campus. My friends I were wondering why they didn't just have a liquor store on campus. Its a cash cow waiting to happen.

The first night of O Week (Saturday) about 70 of us are in the green room at International House (I live in Old Ressies) Its your basic get to know you kind of thing. You know stand up, say your name, where your from, and what your studying. Maybe something interesting about yourself.But, don't forget your drink! Beer, liquor, wine, you name it it was in that room. And if you didn't have a drink one of the SRs (like an RA back in the states) will make you a Screwdriver on the spot. I find it to be kind of weird, but got used to it fast.

Not only did we drink at this, we played massive drinking games. Including the largest game of "I Never" you've ever seen. I never has to be the greatest get to know you game ever created.

Yesterday, at about 5:30, I had happy hour with some people out in front of the ressies. When I told the Aussies that this sort of thing would never happen in the States, they told me to move.


This might be why, at the International Students lecture, we were advised not to try to drink an Australian under the table. You will fail miserably, and feel terrible the next day. I have no intentions of trying.

Lets see here...they do sausages down here. I've had one a day thanks to O Week festivities. Not bad either, I like it.

I've also signed up for a few clubs. I found the Ultimate Frisbee guys, and got on their mailing list. Then, after circling around the courtyard a few times I decided to go to the rugby table. I've never played, I'd probably get killed, but what better way to learn the sport but to play it? So I signed up for it to.

Hey, you only live once, right?

On classes...

Here's something you'd never hear them say at Orientation in the states: Avoid Buying Textbooks. But, its actually in the International Students "Tips" section. I'll see what I can do.

Also, you go to a class lecture once a week and then a tutorial once a week. This is fairly relaxed. Also, you can skip the lectures if you want, they don't take attendence. I do have to go to 80% of the tutorials though in order to avoid deportation. I'm sure I can handle it.

Also, its really hard to get an A here (or as they say an HD, High Distinction) Its the top 2% of the class. I hope to get one, but I'm not going to be upset if I don't get it. The saying here is P's (Passes) get Degrees...which is something American students can relate to.

The Grade system is High Distinctions, Distinctions, Credit, Pass. Just so you know.

I think that should just about do it for now. I promise to report on more than just alcohol next time. Maybe a post on the slang I've picked up on is in order.

Till then...Cheers!

Alan

The trip down under

Warning, this post is extremely long. But its a good story. So, read on.


In what feels like a long time ago now (February 7th) I finished my packing, posted my last post on the Alan in Oz site (for now) and headed to the Airport. I was leaving the country…it was going to be awesome.

I check into the airport, and get my bags checked in. But, apprently, with an airline switch for me in San Fransisco, the ticket agent didn’t know that the final destination was Canberra, Australia. We got this all sorted out though. Later at the gate, I was told my bags had been checked all the way to Canberra.

Here is the first “fun” part of the trip. For domestic flights, the airlines tell you to arrive 90 minutes before your flight. For international, its three hours. So, I showed up at the airport 3 hours before my flight, because overall I was going overseas. But…my first fligh was domestic. So, I got to sit in Sea Tac for three hours, twidling my thumbs. I ended up eating a late lunch and using the Internet for awhile. Good times…

The flight down to S.F. is uneventful, though I’m really starting to hate landing. Seriously, I landed four times on this trip and felt terrible during each one. However, my stomach being in knots isn’t what makes this story great, so lets move on.

On the flight, I met a couple that was headed down to Melbourne. Awesomeness. This meant I basically had a safety net when getting to my next flight. If those guys were there, I was in the good. Fabulous. They seemed very nice, and I talked to them for a little bit throughout the trip.

I landed at about 9:30. An incredible thing must happen around 9:30 at the San Fransisco Airport. That thing is the closing of almost all of the Currency Exchange booths. The one that was open was out of Australian Dollars. So, I’m headed to Oz with my greenbacks, but none of their awesomely awesome looking money (yes, its that cool)

(Sidenote about the money: Its multicolored, each bill being a different colour and size. Also, on each one there’s a piece of clear plastic in the bill. I’m fairly certain its impossible to conterfiet this stuff, and no, I don’t intend to try. Also, the smallest bill is a five. They have dollar, dollar fifty, and two dollar coins (as well as tenty cent, and fifty cent, possibly more, I haven’t seen it yet.) I’ll take a picture of it later.)

So, I get to the International terminal, and get to my gate. However, the sign says “Sydney”. My ticket says “Melbourne” I’m thinking “What the…?” it turns out that my flight was going to Sydney first, then Melbourne. A nice little omission from my travel itinerary.

The flight is relatively uneventful. Qantas turns off all the lights to help people sleep , and they feed you meals (two, even!) Finally, after all these years, I understand those jokes about airline food.

We land in Sydney. Hooray! Beautiful city. I even get some money exchanged, and am ready to get going again. I have a bit of time, so I do a bit of shopping. I am now the proud owner of a Wallabies hat, which I purchased mostly to cover up my hair, that for some reason looked terrible after a 14 hour flight. (Fine, I’ll admit it…I’m a tad vain.) The hat is just a yellow hat with the Wallabies logo on it and green. I have a feeling it just screams “TOURIST” but I like it.

See the couple headed to Melbourne again. They seemed to be happy that I made it as well. All is good. We board the flight, and get settled in for the trip down to Melbourne.

Now, here’s a fun geography lesson. What Australian city lies directly in the flight path between Sydney and Melbourne? Hint: not Darwin.

If you answered “Canberra” then you win. Fantastic. I love watching the in flight progess channel for my entertainment. I know, its lame, but I like watching how fast we’re going and that stuff. So, I kind of cringe as I watch us fly right over Canberra. “Hey! That’s John Howard’s house!” (He’s the prime minister)

Land in Melbourne, and now get to go through customs. Luckily, at the last minute I decided not to pack a bag containing firearms, large knives, alcohol, cocaine, heroin, and over 100,000 dollars. I had to part way with an apple (they fed us well on the flight, so I didn’t dive into my snacks. I was looking forward to eating that apple too…) but other than that, I got through fine.

It was now lunch time. I opted for some pizza over Hungry Jacks (which is Burger King, just with a different name. Their logo is the 80s BK logo, just with the words Hungry Jacks inside the bun.) I then head down to the gate.

At this point, in no particular order, here are some of of the thoughts going through my head.

“Holy s***! I’m in Australia!”
“Why is Dr. Phil on TV down here?”
“They better not lose my luggage.”
“Dr. Phil followed by Days of Our Lives? Alright, American Day Time TV is alive down here!”
“Can’t wait to shower.”
“God, I hope the Sonics lose their next 30 games and get Kevin Durant.” (note: I don’t know if the Supes even have 30 games left. They probably don’t. I just know I want Durant.)
“I get to miss the fun part of the baseball season. You know, the one where the M’s are still alive. I’m saddened by this.”
“But, I’m in Australia, which is more awesome than baseball.”
“I can’t wait to try a meat pie.”

At this point, possibly the point where I’m imagining Kevin Durant wearing Green and Gold, they announce that the flight is being delayed due to a problem with the PA system. Personally, I’m wondering what the PA system can do what the fleet of five flight attendents can’t. But, whatever.

Then, the announce that they’ve found the part and we’ll board in 20 minutes. Fantastic! I go back to thinking about the upcoming Sonics dynasty (I blame this on jet lag).

But wait! They need to get the part from the hanger, so it’ll take a little while longer. Fine, I just want to shower and maybe get a beer sometime soon. This has been a long day. This is when I notice the cricket match is on. England versus Australia. When it comes to cricket (and probably most things) Australia hates England. The commercials during the match, while talking about certain products, openly bashed the English cricket team. Like imagine 710 Bookstore putting on an ad during an SIU basketball game that said something like “Want to be smarter than those Nebraskan morons in Creighton? Shop at 710. Then use the money you save to go to Omaha and tell Creighton fans how much their basketball team sucks.” I have taken a strong liking to these ads.

At this point, they say that itss going to be a 40 minute wait. Alright, itss cricket time. I get a front row seat to the TV and begin to be thoroughly confused by the whole thing. I think the same guy batted the entire time I was watching. Just as I was starting to pick up on the fact that maybe I could understand this game we’re told that we’re swtiching flights. Oh, and the gate is on the opposite end of the airport. This is apperently, the anti-Cricket side of the aiport, as the match isn’t on.

So, we fly to Canberra. We’ve been told that because of the late plane switch our bags won’t make it as soon as possible, but we can put in our claim in Canberra. No worries then.

I meet up with the U of Canberra rep there. She’s very nice, though I can’t hear anything she’s saying (the whole ear popping thing) I get up to the counter to put in my baggage claim and the woman looks at the screen like its a Sudoku puzzle on a 29×29 grid.

Apprently, my bags did not make the trip. When I was told “checked through to Canberra” I though this meant that they would go through customs in Canberra. Not so. They were supposed to go through in Melbourne. (At this point, just for the record, I’m no longer thinking about Kevin Durant playing for the Sonics.) The bags will be brought up the next day, but not gurantees.

So, I get in a cab and go to campus, and get checked in. I meet Martin, one of the International Student coordinators. We make a plan on how to get my bags and the such. I go to my room, and at this point I basically just pass out. I mean, I’m gone. Slept for 12 hours.

I wake up the next day, and walk around campus to get a feel for it. Its a nice place, I like it. Come back to my room, start wondering when I might be able to shower when my phone rings. Its Martin, they have my bags. They’re on campus even! Hooray.

As I lug my luggage (haha…lug, luggage) through the people moving in, the SRs (RAs basically) who know what has happened are glad that my bags are in. I unpacked everything and showered. It was basically the best shower ever, except for maybe the ones after SIU Homecoming. But, possibly better. The bottom line: the shower was WICKED/ (They say that down here)

Considering that this post is long enough, and you probably have something better to do like take out the garbage, make dinner and/or a drink, or play the Wii, I’ll hold up for now. More to come, including drinking games with everyone in Old Ressies including the SRs.

Don’t stop, never give up,

Alan

(My friend Damien down here sings that song, mostly now as a joke. The real song s quite annoying, but its stuck in my head.)

I leave tomorrow

I leave tomorrow. The bags are mostly packed, the lose ends are all tied up. I can't wait. A few notes...

~Packing for six months is not as hard as it might seem, and doesn't weigh as much as one might think. I'm taking two suitcases, one weighing about 48 pounds, the other 32. (Max is 50) A little food for thought the next time you see freshmen moving into their dorms. Granted I need to purchase somethings when I get there, but all in all not to bad.

~SPF 50 sunscreen does exsist...and I am the proud owner of some. Considering Australia borders the largest hole in the Ozone layer, I felt this to be a good idea.

~It was a chilly 80 degrees in Canberra today....I decided to skip packing the parka though.

I have no idea how to feel right now. On the one hand, I don't know anyone there (terrifying). On the other, I did the same thing when I ventured off to college in the first place (comforting). So, right now, I'm sort of calm as if tomorrow's flight is no big deal.

Perhaps the flight isn't...just the destination.

And its length...oy veh, the length! (see previous post)

I read about some ways to prevent jet lag. Apperently my idea of parusing the beer and wine list and ordering accordingly is not the way to go. One must be hydrated, to avoid the lag.

Also, motion is essential. I read that the airline seats actually constrict blood flow to your legs and sitting in them for prolonged periods of time (such as 19 hours, for instance) could cause a fatal blood clot. I found that to be quite interesting, and I wonder if something about it will be mentioned in the pre flight safety instructions.

Next post will be from Australia!

Alan

A week to go and a note on time

I'm a week out from the departure date, and its really starting to hit me: I'm going to Australia. This is kind of a big deal to me, as my previous International traveling experience was a few day trips to Canada.

No big developments on my preperation. Its time to pack and the such, but nothing big to tell you about. But some news and notes...

~I picked up some adapters today. Australia uses a type I plug, in case you were curious. AAA has these for fairly cheap.

~Also at AAA I picked up an International Driver's Liscence. Its about ten bucks, and you get it on the spot. I'm not sure if I'll be doing any driving while in Australia, but in case I do...I'm covered. Hooray.

In other news, the most common question I get these days is, "Whats the time difference?" Besides the obvious answer of, "Its tomorrow.." here's how we go.

Australia is 18 hours ahead of Pacific Time (15 hours on the East Coast) Personally, I think adding 18 is kind of messy (math was never my forte) so my answer is that Canberra is 6 hours behind, but tomorrow. For example, itss currenly 12:45 A.M. on February 2 in the Pacific Time Zone. In Canberra, its 6:45 P.M. on February 3.

Aren't time zones fun?

The other common question or comment is something along the lines of, "Thats one long flight." Yes, yes it is.

When I depart for Oz, I will be flying out of San Fransisco. The flight leaves at 10:30 P.M. on February 7. I arrive in Melbourne at 11:15 A.M. on February 9. Thanks to the International Dateline, my flight skips Thursday. To make the math simple, let's say I arrive at 5:15 P.M. Pacific Time, and we can see that I'm in the air for about 19 hours.

How I plan to spend those 19 hours...

~Sleep
~Puzzle books (I like Sudoku, Kakuro, things of that nature)
~More sleep
~Pray for a good inflight movie
~Write various notes about the experience to share with you, the reader.
~Paruse the fligh's beer/wine selection, order accordingly.

Any ideas on how else to pass the time? Leave 'em in the comments.

(BTW, those of you reading this on Facebook...the URL should be at the top of this "note".