HFDU - 3rd Edition

Originally sent: July 22, 2003

Hello again all! Well, it seems about that time again -- time for another email update. I hope that this email finds all of you well! I keep thinking that I am going to run out of news to share with all of you, but it just hasn't happened yet. They even seem to be getting longer......sorry.

Angie and I finally moved into our apartment this past weekend. What a neat place it is! The building is an old warehouse converted into apartments so there is a lot of character. At least one wall in each room is the original brick from the warehouse. I've put some pictures on the link below so make sure to check them out! I'm still waiting for my shipment from America to arrive so that I can contribute to the household decorations. Apparently they got stuck in quarantine because I sent over wooden pictures frames! The apartment has a great balcony with views of both the city and the bay. I went running along the beach the other morning and thoroughly enjoyed it. As soon as my roller blades get here, I'll be right along with the other Melburnians skating on the beachfront! Everyone here seems to have a dog so when you walk along the beach, dogs are running around everywhere, playing in the water and chasing each other. It's very relaxing to watch them.

I've gone shopping and eating along my new local street and have already picked out a few favorite shops and cafes. And, to watch the sun set over the bay is truly magnificent! The only downside of where I live is that it's a 10-12 minute walk to the tram stop from my apartment, and then another 25 minutes on the tram before I get to work. Although, that's not much different from my Houston commute, and at least I don't have the stress of driving in stop-and-go traffic!

Work is going pretty well. My group continues to amaze me with their kindness. They took me and another secondee from Scotland to a footy game (the second for A & I), but it was a night game so it was much more exciting. It was actually a massacre, with one team winning 128-62. There are pictures posted on the link below of the footy, so be sure to check them out. The Melbourne office also sent me to a small country town a few hours north of the city to work for a week. My company has a satellite office there and they needed some help for a week so I volunteered to make the trip. It was neat to see the country part of Australia but I was not thrilled about getting there on a propeller plane! Other than that, I'm about to get started on my large jobs at the beginning of August and those should keep me pretty busy up until November or so. Then it's time for Christmas and summer! I plan to get SCUBA certified in September, as a co-worker has a friend who owns a dive shop. My goal is to dive as much as I can while I'm down here, and dive the Great Barrier Reef (the Aussies simply call it "The Reef") before I head back home in a couple of years.

A and I made our way to the Crown Casino on Southbank one night, just to see what it was like and have a little innocent fun. I ended up winning about AUD 100, which is pretty good for only spending AUD 10. Also, there is no smoking in the casinos, which makes for a much more enjoyable evening. I still am getting used to attracting attention when I speak, but I don't think that the Aussies will ever get used to an American accent. I'm a little sad however, that I no longer am surprised by the Aussie accent, but I still enjoy listening to them. For all of you in the Houston office, an assistant manager from Melbourne is coming to Houston on a two-year rotation in October to work in the energy group, and he has a fantastic Aussie accent!

A few other places that we have been since I've last spoken to you: Belgian Beer Cafe (literally every Belgian beer imaginable is available there), Amigos Mexican Cafe (which was a disaster), St Kilda (again), and many other fun cafes and shops. I've also decided to start searching for the perfect ball gown for the much anticipated Winter Ball that I spoke about in the first email that's coming up in mid-August. I've heard that what you wear is a big deal, as the guys in the group tend to critique the women's dresses. Isn't that opposite of what happens back home?

I've tried to compile a nice variety of pictures from Melbourne, however, most of them have people in them. I hope that you all enjoy them and that they convince at least some of you to come down for a visit.

And here is some more Aussie lingo that I have picked up over the last couple of weeks:

Aussie phrase/American translation
rug up/get warm, bundle up (like for a late night footy game)
Righty-o/very good, sounds good (heard that one in the small country town)
rubbish bin/trash can
chook/chicken

They also use "mate", "cheers", and "no worries" all the time. A lot more than I thought they would.

My sister left to go back to Houston yesterday, so I think that it is going to start hitting me that I am down here on my own. As frightening as that sometimes is, I am still really looking forward to the adventures and the challenges of being down here alone. There is a reason that Melbourne has recently been voted "the Most Liveable City in the World for Expatriates". The tram/train/bus system is great and easy to learn, the people are friendly and helpful, and the food and wine are divine! Churches, on the other hand, are hard to come by. I have searched for one over the past few weeks via the phonebook and internet, and the ones that I have been interested in never answer the phone or look quite seedy from the outside. I discovered quickly that a Baptist church down here is not the same as a Baptist church in America, so I may have to just settle for something other than Catholic, which is the predominant religion down here. The Aussies overall are not a religious people, so my co-workers are having a hard time coming up with suggestions of churches for me to attend.

I've nearly mastered the art of walking and passing on the left side, and have gotten used to going to the left to ride the escalator. I'm still a bit uncomfortable riding in a car, and was really thrown off went I went through my first drive-thru (McDonald's). Everything was opposite! Oh, and an update on my mobile phone situation. One of the bars from the pub crawl called and said that they found the SIM card from my phone, but not the phone. So, after I retrieved my SIM card I managed to keep the same phone number, but had to buy another mobile phone, which I was not too thrilled about. Either way, I'm up and running again.

Well, that's it for Edition III. I hope these continue to be entertaining and informative and aren't boring yet. I also hope each of you is well and please keep in touch! Hearing from my friends and family back home helps keep me smiling down here!