The Best of Queensland!

Its 2 am - exam tomorrow in Reaction Mechanisms...the unit i always fall asleep in. But ironically, i have too much caffeine in my system and I can't sleep! I was relying on the book to put me to sleep but its some sort of twisted poetic justice. Anywho i figured i may as well update - if i wait any longer i'll feel like it was all a dream. Queensland sure does seem like it was lifetimes ago...what can i say, i have this love-hate relationship with engineering. *sigh* back 2 life - back to reality - stay in school kids.

BRISBANE

We flew into brissy on April 13th, the start of a new adventure! Went down to Southbank - talked about it in previous posts...it was so warm - the temp difference between Victoria and cities in Queensland is just incredible! For those of you who dun-noi, in N. America we fly down south for the winter, here they fly up north :) Below is a picture of the ghettoist elevator EVER at Palace Backpackers Hostel- its a manual operating elevator, and it really can't be safe...it just doesn’t seem stable! It looks like it came right out of a cheesy horror flick.


HERVEY BAY

From Brissy we caught the greyhound early morning to go to Hervey Bay...we were supposed to stop in Noosa to do some surfing but it didn’t work out...needless to say after a 7 hour greyhound trip without a Noosa stop we arrived in Hervey Bay quite cranky! Our camping trip to Fraser island was scheduled to leave the next day.

FRASER ISLAND


It is said that the sand from the east coast of Oz eventually ends up in Fraser Island. Its a gigantinourmous sandbar measuring 120 km by 15 km. It seems too lush and green to be the world’s biggest sand island, but that is due to the island's diverse ecology. it is dotted with about 200 fresh water lakes and contains rainforests and towering sand dunes. These "sandblows" tower up to 224 m tall, and "allegedly" the island contains more sand than the Sahara. The sea is lethal, containing undertows and man eating sharks...but looking up in the sky at night will take away all your worries...you can actually see the Milky Way blazing.

We got a 4wd Toyota we rightly named the "Sexy Beast". A little rough around the edges, leaky, unstable, but it got us around! We were given a map, tents, sleeping bags, and tide times...and set off to navigate the island on our own. Lots of beautiful lakes, lots of off-roading. We set up camp at a random spot along the beach, and spent most of the evening having some insane conversations that only happen when there is nothing around to distract you but the full moon and the tide rolling in. Politics, religion, life, death, extra terrestrial life...all the good stuff haha. We were even lucky enough to see 2 Dingos pass by our camp. Just glad i didnt see one while we were digging pee holes! (yes i was really roughing it .... with only 2 sets of clothes and no shower for 3 days). The last night was crazy because there was a huge storm...our crappy tents were leaking and there was a point in time when i looked up at the top of the very teeny 3 person tent and thought it would collapse because of the wind - it was quite scary for a bit. Thank God the rain caught up to us on the last day rather than the first! Anyways ya nature is good and all - camping was fun BUT its hard work! putting up tents, cooking, sleeping on a vine in your back, seeing little transparent crabs ranging from 1 cm to a fist size....I can do it but I cant say I particularly LOVED it! In any case it was nice to go back to civilization...and shower...


AIRLIE BEACH

12 hours of a greyhound later, we arrived in Airlie beach... a cute little town with a perfectly manicured man made beach much like Southbank. We couldn’t go into the ocean water because of the stingers this time, not the sharks! Had a great night with the people we were sharing our dorm with - played Kings and made everyone say "Go Canada" a lot - its great hearing it in different accents, especially Irish! Actually it became "Go bloody Canada" after a while. Anywho, a night on the town is just what was needed after camping for 3 days. The next morning we got ready to leave for sailing.

WHITSUNDAY SAILING


Our boat was called the Kora, and we were departing Airlie with 2 other ships. Pulling into South Molle (pronounced Mole) Island I felt as though i was entering Jurassic park. It looked like lush green untouched land....it was just bliss. Beautiful palm trees with coconuts that you could just crack open and eat, and tons of lorikeets everywhere! The next 2 days we went sailing and snorkeling. One of the best parts was sailing to Whitehaven beach, which is just gorgeous...white silica sands and turquoise waters...paradise on earth!









Sailing was definitely the highlight of my trip...met so many different people from so many different places - and it really makes the world feel smaller. Its amazing how many people travel alone and how interesting it is to sit and talk to them and hear their stories. Living life as a backpacker is so unique...you have a chance to be yourself completely, or to reinvent yourself - whatever floats your boat. In these small clusters of time you meet people that you become so close to, and you completely become a part of each others lives. You form globalized "crews"...you eat together, relax together, talk, party. Then all of a sudden everyone goes their separate ways and you know inside when you say goodbye that you probably wont ever see them again. You cant have a soft heart, because every thing that passes through your life is in flux. Its like life is flowing and you try to root your feet in the ground to grasp on to a moment and live it before it slips away...but ultimately every breath you take is one less breath...so carpe diem!






DAINTREE RAINFOREST

It was quite sad leaving Airlie, but leave we had to and we took another 9 hour greyhound to Cairns. We arrived there early morning and got picked up by a small tour van, called Cape Tribulation Connections. Our friendly driver took us bushwalking, and then to Cape Kimberly- a beautiful quiet place a nestled in the heart of the Daintree Rainforest. The Daintree is a World Heritage listed rainforest, and it has amazing amounts of biodiversity. Its the Earth's oldest standing rainforest! Oh yes, and vines twist the other way on this side of the world, anti clockwise. (for geeks: Coriolis Effect)

There was a huge cyclone that passed through northern Queensland just a day or two before we got there, so everything was flooded and people were stuck in Cape Kimberly. When they got the fairy working, everyone left the area. So basically, when we got to Cape Kimberly, we were the only 4 people on the resort! It was complete isolation, and we had no idea what to do! So we ran around on the beach that we had all to ourselves, and wrote things in the sand. At one point in time we were messing around, and we wrote a big HELP sign on the sand, then we actually saw a helicopter coming above us so we scrambled to try to "erase" it...and the helicopter kept going...i wonder if it would have worked? Anywho after nothing else to do we retired to the empty lounge and played board games...Australian Monopoly, Trouble, and Texas hold em...the experience of staying in a remote area of the jungle was really neat...more than once we busted out in a chorus of "in the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight..."




The next day we got picked up and taken to PK's Jungle Village in Cape Tribulation...again it was exciting to see CIVILIZATION, as little as it was! There was even a mini grocery store and a chemist (pharmacy)! But that’s about it. That day we went Jungle Surfing, which was incredible. Basically we ziplined through the Daintree...I felt like i was on Amazing Race! It was beautiful being so high up in an area that looked the same way millions of years ago, when dinosaurs roamed. The team that was guiding us was so well learned on the area and everything around us had a story. The upside down zipline was the most fun. The next day we tried to find one of the "watering holes" to swim in (I really felt like i was in the Lion King) but it was soooo muddy! Then we left for Cairns again.

GREAT BARRIER REEF

I'm sure most of you have heard of the Great Barrier Reef...its larger than the Great Wall of China and the only living thing visible from space. It is one of the seven wonders of the natural world! As the planet's biggest reef system, it has more biodiversity than the rainforest! We took a boat out of Cairns and sailed to the reef to snorkel at two different sites...it was just amazing. Psychedelic colored glowing fish, electric blue with huge lips, bright yellow, zebra stripes...and tons of different colored coral reef...it was just another world all together. Which Disney soundtrack did I have stuck in my head this time...? You guessed it, Under the Sea! I really felt like Ariel except my hair is now a sun bleached brown rather than red!





From Cairns we flew back to cold cold Melbourne...but it was nice to sleep in my own bed after so long. Queensland was heaps of fun...it is such a beautiful tropical splice of paradise...everyone should see it!! Okay really time to go to bed now! Right-o!

Back in M-town

Just got back from backpacking queensland - not enough time to write about my whole trip but i'll leave a couple of pics for those of you who have been asking! will update soon :)

(more Fraser Island pics avail in "more trip pix")

Fraser Island trip - the largest sand island in the world! this is the safari 4WD we navigated the island with.

Fraser Island sand highway

Campsite on the beach

freedom - in the moment

Jungle surfing - my name was Gonzo

My favorite zipline - upside down

90 feet above ground, overlooking the World Heritage Listed Daintree Rainforest - the oldest rainforest on earth with unchanged climate...dinosaurs roamed here...right where i jungle surfed!

stories and more pics to follow...

.nostalgia.

Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you where to go
So make the best of this test, and don't ask why
It's not a question, but a lesson learned in time
It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right
I hope you had the time of your life...
So take the photographs, and still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial
For what it's worth it was worth all the while
It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right

I hope you had the time of your life.

This song has been echoing in my head for the last little while...i almost feel like I'm the one graduating...it feels weird being all the way here, while everyone else back home has come to that fork in the road. Spain, Euro-trips, grad school, job offers--different provinces, different countries...everybody seems to be moving on...moving along. In a way a small part of me is glad that I am not back home...it would be heart wrenching to have to document that last walk from ginos, that last study sesh at dc, that last night at rev...

I've been having these crazy feelings of nostalgia lately, thinking about what it will be like when i leave Waterloo and take that next step into life...when all of a sudden you become that responsible adult...no more sleeping in, no more late, late random nights, no more making cookies at 3 in the morning, no more chasing mice around the house. Easy Mac? I cant give that up...what about the crazy landlord brawls, and trying to find change for the laundry machine? Nights at Phils, then louies, galaxy theatre, free pizza coupons, trips to the dollerama to pimp out our rooms, filthys, long line ups at rev always trying to get vip...exams you didnt think you'd get through, classes you just slept through, starting up the Survivor to drive to the Bomber in the winter, walking home in 6 feet of snow, setting off the fire alarm in Beck Hall, those pure chilled nights involving fabreeze, watching hours of Sex & the City, middle of the night breakdowns, saturday morning conversations...for what its worth it was really worth all the while.

Funny how years of uni wont change you but will grow you; how the people you meet are part of this mosaic that is life. How somehow you call this patchwork quilt your own as you walk through in your forever changing identity on this stage that is your existence. I think about who i was when i got to UW, and who I am now...and how the hell i got here, on the other side of the globe. It was something unpredictable, but in the end was right...

And I really had the time of my life.

A Day in the Life of a Monash Engineer

After many requests, I have finally decided to detail what it is like to be in school here. I actually went around with a camera today and documented what a typical day is like in pictures. I was trying to do it undercover so people wouldn't think I was completely nuts, and my plan was to go incognito with huge glasses and a big hat. Then i figured that "meena-style incognito" may not be the best idea - with my zebra print Billabong bag it just wouldnt work...

*NB: The day chosen is a hypothetical day combining schedules for Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday units(course = unit, faculty = course).


I wake up in the morning after snoozing precisely 4 times. It is at this moment that I realize that uni is really cutting into my vacation time, and I really need to get my act together and start reading my textbooks! I make some brekky (toast/jam, dood/cereal, bagel/cream cheese - ozzies dont know what bagels are and they are really hard to find here so i only reward myself with a bagel if i really feel as though i deserve it). Then I get ready and set off from Farrer Hall, my residence.

I start walking towards an extra long path that passes by a pond with ducks and has tons of trees - really looking forward to autumn to see all the colors changing. It's pretty chilly in the morning - so they were right when they said Melbs gets cold...I need to buy a scarf soon.

9 minutes later, I cross the local footy field and see Engineering in the distance--I am already 7 minutes late. No matter how early I get up or how much extra time I leave myself in the morning, I am consistently 7 minutes late every single morning.

I enter the 4th Year Room for my CHE 4113: Management for Engineers course. All of my third year courses are held in one room--conveniently named the Third Year Room.

The Marketing course fully puts me to sleep without fail, so after an hour of it I need to go grab a coffee. But there is no decent coffee in Australia! So I am currently living off of Chai Lattes at my new favorite cafe called Fibonacci's. For those of you that are geeky you will know what a Fibonacci Sequence is-and if you look carefully you can see it on the counter (1,1,2,3,5,8...). Yup, you guessed right - this is the cafe in the Engineering Library. Its like some next level geek - i didnt think anyone could do it better than Waterloo but i was sadly mistaken!

After I grab my coffee, I am late for the second half of class (usually by approx 7 minutes) and I take a nice scenic walk back to class, passing a calming water fountain on the way.

When marketing class is finished, I head to the 3rd year room for CHE 3102: Heat and Mass Transfer. Are we learning Heat and Mass transfer today? I'm afraid not! This is really just a repeat of a Transport Process course I took in 2nd year (helllooo Chatzis). Its basically just in case I one day come across a feed stream concentrated with ammonia that i need to strip out using a solvent and the plant depends on my calculations but, oh look, we have no more analytical software so i have to analyze the process by drawing a graph by hand of the amount of theoretical distillation trays needed! Seriously - not impressed. Are we EVER going to use this stuff? You know, i wasnt always so cynical...oh ya but i got a sweet as (kiwi slang) Roxy pencil case that fits my assortment of stationary, chapstick, my 30 cm ruler AND also my TI-83. I am in LOVE with this pencil case!

After class, I take a picture by a fish tank which is really a distillation column with fishies in it. Just when you thought the Chemical Engineering Department couldn't get nerdier. But the sad part is that when i first realized it was a distilation column, i was actually impressed...

Anywho, moving right along, yes that is a chai latte in my hand, full of cinnaminny goodness!

After a long morning its time for lunch - I am immediately craving handrolls. Handrolls are yummy yummy sushi rolls that are long and only $2.20 - I eat them almost everyday. Its kind of scary. So we walk down the path to the Monash Meeting Point in the Campus Center (SLC/MAC Hall). Note how people walk on the "other" side of the path.

Before I got to Australia, I really thought that I wouldnt have to do much work here. But I now realize that the University of Waterloo and Monash are pretty comparable in the course load and teaching styles, however a hell of a lot more people fail here. In fact, about 50% of my class are fourth years doing their courses over again. As you can imagine, that is not very encouraging. I'm not sure if its the lecturers or the students...

When lunch is over, we walk back towards the engineering building for CHE 3108 - Process Operation and Design. This course is a 4th year UW course and basically covers process design, materials engineering, flowsheeting and all the other good stuff.

Then I have CHE 3101: Reaction Engineering. I can't even describe this course because I have absolutely no idea what is going on. I do know that it is about reaction rates and reaction kinetics and that my lecturer has a voice that seroiusly just lulls you to dreamland. Its one of those courses where the lectures are so useless but you still end up going - it's a trade off, of course, as the best naps usually happen during those times. And just when you think you can start skipping lectures...he starts taking attendence. What a guy.

Next stop - time to leave the engineering building! Bye, bye distillation columns, its off to the nicer and better looking part of campus - Arts! This course AUS 1060: Contemporary Australia is basically made for American exchange students and it covers Australian culture, history, underlying racism, aborigines, and the Howard Govt...basically Bush's little poochri. It is pretty interesting but I do think I now know more about Australia then actual Australians do...most australians are more concerned with footy and they "couldnt be bothered" (aussie slang) to learn about history. In real life, this unit conflicts with my CHE 3108 so I have to pick and choose which I want to go to depending on the week.

Then, finally, it is time for my trek back to Farrer Lords. Home sweet home!


Get home, cook dinns, watch endless amounts of tv on a laptop (LOST is my current fixation), go to sleep and do it all over again the next day!

The Mailbox - A post for Mr. T. Horton

I miss...my mailbox and everything it represents. I can close my eyes right now and repeat the motions in my head and feel like i'm actually in my little chevy cavalier with the very adolescent looking red/yellow/orange steering wheel cover and fluffy heart seat pillows (so i can see over the wheel). Pass Superstore, pass my pink elementary school, turn at the poo/pee house, turn again, drive up to my culd-e-sac, slow down/stop at my mailbox, depending on who's in my company...have those last peices of conversation for the evening, or a long drawn out discussion on the nature of human existance...spot a bunny or two racing away as my garage opens...

I miss...11:00 Timmy's sit-ins drinking French Vanillas and eating a plain toasted bagel with plain cream cheese and tomatoes...I miss playing hockey with pink hockey tape on 2 sticks in the gym...I miss Saturday morning drives to Airways with mandatory coffee stops...I miss watching useless tv like Flava Flav's Flava of Love, Blind Date, and Elimidate...I miss always being late and running out of the house profusely apologizing while simultaneously making up lame excuses holding an assortment of cut fruits in my hands (c/o my wonderful mother) for the road...I miss wearing Oxford sweatshirts way too big for me (still too big - even after a failed shrinking attempt)...and i really miss the lyrical battles - pop pop - bring in all of the masses! And although Australia is wonderful... I mean Melbourne is a beautiful city full of life and culture...i dont even have a mailbox here, much less a mail "slot" i have to share with other people that have surnames starting with "N". I cant have conversations by my mail slot, nor do i see white fluffers at the end of my evening. So For all of these reasons + Tim Horton, home is where my heart is!

Surfing, Penguins, and a Sharkbite

Just got back from a trip to Phillip Island, which was tons of fun! We left in the morning and went straight to Smith's Beach, which is a place that a lot of new surfers learn how to surf. I was on a mission to get a small sharkbite as a souvenir. Anywho, we got these super cute wetsuits (i'm being sarcastic - i thought surfer girls were supposed to look hot). These suits were the most unflattering things in the whole entire world! I was under the impression after the movie Blue Crush that surfers were supposed to look sexy! Anyways we still tried to make them look good. :)

Well surfing was a lot harder than i thought it would be. We had awesome instructors but the biggest danger on Smith's beach is not sharks, nor is it stinging jellyfish. It's actually other surfers, because most are either beginners or just a bit better than beginners. And when the waves are coming, and someone is not in control of their board, then BAM - sharkbite. So they taught us how to get into the waves and ride the wave doing the yoga move Cobra. From the Cobra you basically learn to get your knees up on the board and balance with your legs and arms in position - just like in the movies. I was actually successful about 4 times. It was awesome! There were about 3 times when i completely wiped out, went under water, swallowed a whole bunch of salt water and got hit with my board on the way up. It was tiring but it was such a rush so I kept going.

So then I was perfectly ready to take my next wave. I paddled out waist deep, did a few extra paddles as the wave came like i was supposed to, straightened out, started riding the wave, looked ahead of me - all clear, went into cobra, got my knees up (perfect execution) and then BAM i got hit in the jaw with a yellow fibre glass board. I didn’t realize that a board hit would be so forceful - i was in shock. The first thing i thought was oh my god, there goes my jaw, i should have listened to everyone when they told me to be careful!! So it was some guy not in our surfing class, who had a fibre glass board (ours are soft boards, so a hit is hard but not THAT hard). Anyways i got quite disoriented coming up from the water but thankfully an instructor was by my side in a second because he saw it happen. He complimented me on my near perfect execution and told me that the guy basically lost control of his board and it went along the current and flipped into my face. It was unfortunate but hey - i now have my warrior wound. I'm fine, just a bit swollen, nothing too serious. Things like this'll happen when your on a crowded beach full of beginners.

After that we went to eat dinner - i tried some shark - they call it Flake and it tastes like fish but less fishy and more sharky. Then we went to see the Penguin Parade on the Summerland Peninsula.

There is absolutely no photography allowed, because it scares the penguins. But basically you sit and wait for penguins to come to shore, and without a fail at 8:15 pm you see them waddling out of the water with bellies full of food for baby penguins that they go to feed in the burrows. They were so cute! And there were also tons of seagulls just waiting for them, not flying or squawking but just looking east awaiting the penguins. What a sight to see - it was amazing. We were right at the front and we saw two penguins about a meter away from us, locked in what looked like a kissing session. It was so cute!! I tried to get quite a picture (flash off) but it was too dark :(


Another neat thing here is the constellations - its odd to think that the constellations we grew up knowing (big/little dipper, north star) do not exist here. But i finally know how to find the Southern Cross (its the constellation that is on the Australian flag). Since we were out so far from any city around the stars were amazing - and looking up at the Southern Cross makes me realize how far I really am from home - on the absolute other side of the world.

XVIII Commonwealth Games

The vibe in this city is so unbelievable right now - its just buzzing with excited energy. Melbourne is the host city to the 18th Commonwealth Games going on from the 15th to the 26th of March. On the 15th we went out to the city by the Yarra River for opening ceremonies. The Yarra is such an ideal place because it has fish situated along the river that represent each country around the world. There are 72 Commonwealth countries that take part in the games. During the opening ceremony I cheered for Tanzania, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Canada - it was crazy. I got to see the queen through the jumbotron - she looks exactly the same as when I was 10. Same colour clothes, same hat, same voice....


Then there were fireworks coming out of the fishys as she declared the start to the games - it was all pretty exciting! I even sang God Save the Queen for the first time since elementary school assemblies!

The next day we got patriotic to go cheer on Canada during the Rugby 7s games.


On the way there, we were forced to leave our train because it wasn’t going where it was supposed to. But man, am I glad we did...while waiting outside Flinders St Station we saw this random tram that was decorated in some sort of overdone fobbed out Indian type look.


We got in the flashing lighted tram to see the sign "MADE IN PAKISTAN - by IQBAL".

I was like...what is going on! Then i heard the Pakistani/Indian music and I was in heaven. All i could think about is how much Mummy would love it!! The tram is called W-11: Karachi 2 Melbourne and basically it was a copy of a fleet of particularly vibrant mini-buses that ply the Karachi route called W-11. The buses are "characterized by sculpted stainless steel, bright coloured plastic collages, flashing light patterns, infectious music beats and exuberant conducters." So basically a team of Karachi vehicle decorators have transformed a Melbourne tram to bring the experience of a journey on W-11 to the streets of Melbourne, during the games. After that, the tram gets auctioned off to the highest bidder!

This emblem was on the back of all of the seats. Anyways then we got to the Telstra Dome to start watching the games. The Rugby 7s games are really short - only 7 minutes per half. But it was super fun - we had a huge flag and got to meet all the players after they won their game. There was a point in time when Uganda (the underdogs) were playing Tonga and actually won, and the whole stadium was chanting "YOU - GAND - AHH, YOU - GAND - AHH". It was so loud it felt like the stadium was shaking but it was just incredible hearing all these people from so many different countries rooting for the underdawgs...

So basically the rest of the time left there are tons of events going on around the city and people here from all over the world. I found out that there is a jk near by so I am going on Navroz - kinda excited about that! This weekend surfing and penguin parade at Phillip Island :)

Fragments of Freedom...

So i think it's finally hitting me that i am actually here for school-ahem i mean "uni" (if you say "school" here people think you are in highschool, and since i look 16 i'm not taking any chances). I'm trying hard not to think about it but it's very difficult to avoid the assignments, lectures, and lecturers that seem to be in my face everywhere i turn.

I'm trying to hang on to those last fragments of freedom that i basked in not having to worry about school for seven months - class feels like such an inconvenience...I really dont want to buy any books and the fact that I'm already lost in some of my lectures is starting to worry me. I really should be getting paid for this instead of the other way around.

Anywho on a lighter note i got SKINNYS! They are so very 80's in a faded black wash. I'm wearing them here with pointy black flats, a red halter and a big thick belt. Belts are hot here when they are not worn around your waist, if you can pull it off. All the manniquens do! This picture was taken specifically for my blog after several email requests from various people to show them my skinnys...i dont usually take single pics of me if i'm not in front of a lighthouse or rock/water combo. here i am posed at the corner of my oh-so-glam res in front of the fire hydrant.

This was a Traffic Light party at Doolys...I was the only red in a sea of greens...if this doesnt scream "No" i dont know what does....but at least it got me brownie points :P Yaaaaaa
The next one is yet another night at the Nott...it seems like the only time ppl here ever leave residence is to go to the Nott!