$50 Million - that's how much Connex (Melbourne's public transportation network) loses each year due to fare shirkers. A campaign is now underway to a) make people feel guilty about not paying their fares and b) step-up efforts to catch people not paying their fares.
No one appears to be seriously considering more practical measures like, say, building a fence or two. Outside the city center, one is free to walk in and out of stations at his or her leisure. Granted, I've had to produce a ticket by transit authorities about once a month since I got here, but it's clearly not a terribly secure system.
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
No License for You!
Uta made a discovery yesterday - only permanent residents of Australia are permitted to obtain drivers' licenses in the state of Victoria. On one hand, this means I have one less thing to do this weekend. On the other hand, as soon as our current U.S. licenses expire, we'll have some problems (but we're good for a couple of years). In addition, Uta had her US license cancelled as soon as she left town, so now she can't legally drive in the U.S. Thus far, I've managed to stay one step ahead of the VA DMV.
The End of an Era
Tomorrow marks the last day of CSIRO Atmospheric Research. As of July 1, CAR and CSIRO Marine Research will be one UeberDivision, CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research. Some consider this a good thing, or at least I hear such people exist, somewhere. The change likely has little direct meaning for the day-to-day lives of most (expecially plebes like me), but due to institutional solidarity and the fact that the fish people outnumber the sky people 4 to 1, the merger process has been looked upon with much skepticism by the rank and file.
Meanwhile, both divisions are undergoing external review this week, which seems a bit odd given that by the time the review is complete, the two divisions technically won't exist anymore. In any case, the review committee will be on site for the next couple of days.
Meanwhile, both divisions are undergoing external review this week, which seems a bit odd given that by the time the review is complete, the two divisions technically won't exist anymore. In any case, the review committee will be on site for the next couple of days.
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
New Toy
I've recently installed ArcGIS9 in anticipation of a contract I'm hoping to get with a client in state government who will for the moment remain nameless (but the state will be obvious given the image at left). ArcGIS9 has many, many more bells and whistles than v.3.0, which I used back in my post-doc days. And given that it's essentially a total redesign (well, 8.0 was a redesign), I can spend long hours scratching my head trying to figure out how to do stuff that I used to know how to do. I created this little image this afternoon, based upon elevation and bathymetry data I scrounged up. Cool, huh.
They're Here
I've recieved confirmaiton that our belongings are indeed in the Melbourne area and will soon be in the hands of customs officials who I'm sure will be delighted by the vast collection of crap we're attempting to import. The estimated delivery date for our goods is "next week".
The Circus Goes On
Schapelle Corby fired her high profile defense team after allegations surfaced suggesting her defense team was soliciting cash with which to bribe judges. Three days later, she hired Hotman et al. back. Not sure what's going on. Perhaps she heard (as I have) that bribery is actually an expedient route through the Indonesian justice system.
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Mr. Chen
Remember the good old days of the Cold War when the west triumphed in wooing a communist defector over to the side of capitalism? Well, those days are gone.
Chen Yonglin sought political asylum in Australia last month after abandoning his post at the Chinese consulate-general in Sydney on May 26. Chen has expressed his desire to defect (with wife and child) to Australia and provide Australia et al. with details regarding China's espionage network and counter Falun Gong activities in Australia.
When approached, Australian authorities immediately informed the Chinese embassy of Chen's accusations and intentions (so much for the cloak and dagger). China is now eager to return Chen to his homeland where he will experience "no harm or punishment". Chen initially applied for political asylum. This was rejected. He has subsequently applied for a protection visa, which is still being considered.
China and Australia have become quite chummy lately given their current attempt to negotiate a free trade agreement. As a result, Australia isn't too concerned with the skeletons that might be rattling in China's closets, but now one of those skeletons is running around on national TV. Chen has claimed that he has appealed to the U.S. for asylum as well.
Meanwhile, he's in hiding in the Sydney area - popping up only to do press conferences.
Chen Yonglin sought political asylum in Australia last month after abandoning his post at the Chinese consulate-general in Sydney on May 26. Chen has expressed his desire to defect (with wife and child) to Australia and provide Australia et al. with details regarding China's espionage network and counter Falun Gong activities in Australia.
When approached, Australian authorities immediately informed the Chinese embassy of Chen's accusations and intentions (so much for the cloak and dagger). China is now eager to return Chen to his homeland where he will experience "no harm or punishment". Chen initially applied for political asylum. This was rejected. He has subsequently applied for a protection visa, which is still being considered.
China and Australia have become quite chummy lately given their current attempt to negotiate a free trade agreement. As a result, Australia isn't too concerned with the skeletons that might be rattling in China's closets, but now one of those skeletons is running around on national TV. Chen has claimed that he has appealed to the U.S. for asylum as well.
Meanwhile, he's in hiding in the Sydney area - popping up only to do press conferences.
Terror Raids
Four houses in the Melbourne area were raided by police over the past few days, based upon concerns that the occupants where engaged in the planning of terrorist activities. The individuals in question allegedly have ties to the usual suspects of Islamic extremism. No arrests were made.
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Keeling
Charles Keeling has passed away. Keeling is legendary for his measurements of atmospheric carbon dioxide during the latter 20th century. His data series documented the accumulation of anthropogenic CO2 in the atmosphere, which contributed to the birth of global warming as an environmental issue.
Monday, June 20, 2005
Richmond
A little about our new neighborhood of Richmond. Richmond lies a few km east of downtown Melbourne, north and west of the Yarra river. The new apartment is on Church Street, which runs North/South through the suburb. Our apartment is almost right on top of Richmond hill, giving us a good view of the surrounding area - Swan Street is two blocks south; Bridge Road is two blocks north.
For more on Richmond, check out:
http://www2.visitvictoria.com/displayObject.cfm/ObjectID.0000B336-73F1-1A6F-BFCD80C476A90000/vvt.vhtml
and here, for a bit more about the history:
http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/ncas/multimedia/gazetteer/list/richmond.html
Movin' on Up (or CSIRO giveth and Ikea taketh away)
After months of temporary housing, we've finally taken possession of a new apartment - one where we'll be able to sit on our own furniture (someday), move around without bumping into each other, have internet access, stay warm in winter and cool in summer, stay dry when it rains, and take showers without kneeling down.
There is, however, a catch. The 20ft container containing all of our belongings is still at sea, although it's due to arrive in Melbourne this Friday. Hopefully, customs officials will be kind and give our stuff quick clearance.
So the task for the weekend was to make the new place liveable. Turns out this took a bit more work than we'd anticipated - we weren't thrilled to find that the apartment didn't come with a refrigerator. We were even more displeased to find out how much the damn things cost down here. For what we paid, we could have bought two comparable refrigerators in the U.S. at Sears and still had enough money left over for a couple of cases of beer.
We took care of the fridge issue first thing Saturday morning, arranged delivery, and then proceeded to Victoria Gardens, our local shopping mall, where we went to work in Ikea, Dick Smith's (TVs and such), and K-Mart. About six hours later, we'd been through K-Mart twice, made a young salesman at Dick Smith's extremely happy, and bought a new dining table, chairs, and some really cheap dishes at Ikea. All of this was loaded into the Subaru Outback that we'd rented for the day (sweet ride, by the way, but it didn't come with a Crocodile Dundee). We then headed home, took a breather, and then made one last trip to K-Mart just to make sure we had one of everything they sell. In addition to the most intensive shopping experience of my life, we also learned the following:
a) the parking deck at Victoria Gardens is hell
b) prices in Australia are often negotiable
c) when negotiating prices, it helps to mention that you just saw the product in question for sale elsewhere at a lower price (even if that's complete rubbish - hee, hee).
We eventually wrestled all of this stuff back into the new place, and then immediately ran away from it all, spending one final night at our temporary shelter in South Yarra.
Sunday, we checked out of our old place, returned the Outback, and had a nice breakfast at the Prahran Market (where we got to see some die hard souls emerging from clubs at 9:00am in the morning). The rest of the day was spent in cleaning (prior occupants cut a few corners on their way out), assembling the aforementioned loot from Ikea, and being amused by the fact that we now have enough space that we can hide from each other.
There is, however, a catch. The 20ft container containing all of our belongings is still at sea, although it's due to arrive in Melbourne this Friday. Hopefully, customs officials will be kind and give our stuff quick clearance.
So the task for the weekend was to make the new place liveable. Turns out this took a bit more work than we'd anticipated - we weren't thrilled to find that the apartment didn't come with a refrigerator. We were even more displeased to find out how much the damn things cost down here. For what we paid, we could have bought two comparable refrigerators in the U.S. at Sears and still had enough money left over for a couple of cases of beer.
We took care of the fridge issue first thing Saturday morning, arranged delivery, and then proceeded to Victoria Gardens, our local shopping mall, where we went to work in Ikea, Dick Smith's (TVs and such), and K-Mart. About six hours later, we'd been through K-Mart twice, made a young salesman at Dick Smith's extremely happy, and bought a new dining table, chairs, and some really cheap dishes at Ikea. All of this was loaded into the Subaru Outback that we'd rented for the day (sweet ride, by the way, but it didn't come with a Crocodile Dundee). We then headed home, took a breather, and then made one last trip to K-Mart just to make sure we had one of everything they sell. In addition to the most intensive shopping experience of my life, we also learned the following:
a) the parking deck at Victoria Gardens is hell
b) prices in Australia are often negotiable
c) when negotiating prices, it helps to mention that you just saw the product in question for sale elsewhere at a lower price (even if that's complete rubbish - hee, hee).
We eventually wrestled all of this stuff back into the new place, and then immediately ran away from it all, spending one final night at our temporary shelter in South Yarra.
Sunday, we checked out of our old place, returned the Outback, and had a nice breakfast at the Prahran Market (where we got to see some die hard souls emerging from clubs at 9:00am in the morning). The rest of the day was spent in cleaning (prior occupants cut a few corners on their way out), assembling the aforementioned loot from Ikea, and being amused by the fact that we now have enough space that we can hide from each other.
Monday, June 13, 2005
"Harmless Weirdo"
While Schapelle Corby fights for her freedom in Bali, 12 taxpayers in California have sent Michael Jackson on his merry way.
I mean, c'mon. Innocent on all counts? You know he did some of that stuff. Let's see: OJ, Jackson, Kobe - turns out being black in America ain't so bad after all. Provided you're rich.
I mean, c'mon. Innocent on all counts? You know he did some of that stuff. Let's see: OJ, Jackson, Kobe - turns out being black in America ain't so bad after all. Provided you're rich.
Hotman & Hapsari
Schapelle Corby has hired the Johnny Cochrane of Indonesia, Hotman Hutapea, to argue her appeal. Hotman has also brought Anisa Tri Hapsari, a famous Indonesian soap star, on board as the defense's spokesmodel (er, I mean spokesperson). I increasingly find the Indonesian legal system to be completely absurd.
Country Victoria IV: Mornington Peninsula
Monday morning we headed south from Melbourne for a tour down the Mornington Peninsula - a stretch of land which comprises the eastern shore of Port Philip Bay and the western short of Western Port Bay.
We stopped initially in Mornington, about an hour south of Melbourne, and had a look around, after which we drove along a series of coastal villages to Portsea, the last community along the peninsula. We had a quick walk along the ocean side of Portsea beach, where a dozen or two surfers were at work. We then backtracked to Sorrento, the elite community on the peninsula. Though quite pleasant and quite clearly not lacking in wealth, it appeared to us as solidly middle-class. We had lunch in an Italian restaurant, then walked down to the beach where one can catch a ferry across the Bay. We stuck our noses in a couple of stores, but our only purchase was a small bag of licorice (exclusively for Uta). By this point, the clouds started moving in, and we had to return our Ford before it turned into a pumpkin, so we began the journey home.
Going back, we opted to take another one of these Australian "highways". We started out moving at a nice pace, but within about 10 minutes we hit traffic. The cause of the traffic jam was the existence of a traffic circle, which seemed to me to be a completely absurd traffic feature to have along a roadway designed for high speed travel. This traffic circle was followed by several more, after which the highway just packed it up and deteriorated into a regular old road. So the highway ultimately took longer than the lonely beach road would have, and was far less picturesque. But we arrived back in South Yarra right on time.
We finished off our adventure with me trying to turn right at an intersection where such behavior is not allowed (and absolutely not tolerated by the folks behind me), which led to a roundabout tour of Prahran in an attempt to find safe passage back to Budget.
We stopped initially in Mornington, about an hour south of Melbourne, and had a look around, after which we drove along a series of coastal villages to Portsea, the last community along the peninsula. We had a quick walk along the ocean side of Portsea beach, where a dozen or two surfers were at work. We then backtracked to Sorrento, the elite community on the peninsula. Though quite pleasant and quite clearly not lacking in wealth, it appeared to us as solidly middle-class. We had lunch in an Italian restaurant, then walked down to the beach where one can catch a ferry across the Bay. We stuck our noses in a couple of stores, but our only purchase was a small bag of licorice (exclusively for Uta). By this point, the clouds started moving in, and we had to return our Ford before it turned into a pumpkin, so we began the journey home.
Going back, we opted to take another one of these Australian "highways". We started out moving at a nice pace, but within about 10 minutes we hit traffic. The cause of the traffic jam was the existence of a traffic circle, which seemed to me to be a completely absurd traffic feature to have along a roadway designed for high speed travel. This traffic circle was followed by several more, after which the highway just packed it up and deteriorated into a regular old road. So the highway ultimately took longer than the lonely beach road would have, and was far less picturesque. But we arrived back in South Yarra right on time.
We finished off our adventure with me trying to turn right at an intersection where such behavior is not allowed (and absolutely not tolerated by the folks behind me), which led to a roundabout tour of Prahran in an attempt to find safe passage back to Budget.
Country Victoria III: Echuca
Despite it's lack of anything to do, we spent quite a bit of time Sunday morning in Bendigo. We peaked into the Cathedral during the 11:00am mass, and then found Uta a new jacket at an outdoor store which was having a sale. We followed that with a second breakfast at McCafe - a common feature of McDonalds here in Australia. McCafe is just a little kiosk in a McDonalds where you can buy a cappuccino and pastries. It was about 1:00pm before we headed out of town. We opted to continue driving north to the town of Echuca on the Murray River.
The drive there was quite uneventful: dirt, rocks, sheep, cows, dirt, rocks, sheep, cows, etc. But we were quite surprised to find Echuca packed full of people all running to and fro doing tourist stuff. It took us a few minutes simply to find a place to park. We grabbed lunch - Uta had fish and chips, I had a hamburger (my first since the states) with "the works" (which included carrot salad, a fried egg, a slice of beet, lettuce, bacon, mushrooms, onions, cheese, etc.). We then attempted to walk that off with a stroll along the river (a bit muddy and about a meter below normal by the looks of things), and the various Ye Olde craft shops. We were quite impressed by Echuca, not expecting such a bustle of activity in what was essentially the middle of nowhere.
We then scratched our heads attempting to decide where to head next. We had a range of possibilities, but not much information to go on. So ultimately, we decided just to head back to Melbourne and spend our remaining day on the Mornington Peninsula.
The drive there was quite uneventful: dirt, rocks, sheep, cows, dirt, rocks, sheep, cows, etc. But we were quite surprised to find Echuca packed full of people all running to and fro doing tourist stuff. It took us a few minutes simply to find a place to park. We grabbed lunch - Uta had fish and chips, I had a hamburger (my first since the states) with "the works" (which included carrot salad, a fried egg, a slice of beet, lettuce, bacon, mushrooms, onions, cheese, etc.). We then attempted to walk that off with a stroll along the river (a bit muddy and about a meter below normal by the looks of things), and the various Ye Olde craft shops. We were quite impressed by Echuca, not expecting such a bustle of activity in what was essentially the middle of nowhere.
We then scratched our heads attempting to decide where to head next. We had a range of possibilities, but not much information to go on. So ultimately, we decided just to head back to Melbourne and spend our remaining day on the Mornington Peninsula.
Country Victoria II: The Fleece Inn
The Fleece Inn was described in The Lonely Planet as a refurbished, inexpensive hotel in Bendigo. This is a fair description, but it overlooks a few details which turned out to be of minor importance. First, the view (seen here) - not the most picturesque, but I've seen worse at Hiltons in San Franciso and Chicago. The room was clean, but devoid of things like alarm clocks, radios, televisions, etc. Again, not a major problem - we can entertain ourselves, although had we known, we might have packed differently. Next, the room also lacked a bathroom, with communal facilities across the hall. Both of us can handle this with no problem, provided we have access to things like towels, soap, etc. We didn't (not to mention hot water was in limited supply). So we generally found ourselves quite ill-equipped to spend a night at the Fleece Inn. We did sleep quite well, however, and we had an OK breakfast (free of charge). We subsequently packed up our bags, and used whatever hot water we could find and then headed out. I had a nice talk with the inn's proprietor on the way out - a very pleasant woman, indeed, which is actually one of my favourite things about staying in small country motels. The people are always warm and friendly.
But, for $70 a night, we found the Fleece Inn a bit overpriced, and the experience left us feeling somewhat fleeced. In truth, given that every hotel in town appeared to be booked, I’m not sure if we had much choice. And, with a bit more prior knowledge ahead of time to plan accordingly, I think we would have fared a bit better. We learned a valuable lesson - primarily to plan better to be self-sufficient when travelling outside the city, particularly if we're going to try and go the cheap route.
But, for $70 a night, we found the Fleece Inn a bit overpriced, and the experience left us feeling somewhat fleeced. In truth, given that every hotel in town appeared to be booked, I’m not sure if we had much choice. And, with a bit more prior knowledge ahead of time to plan accordingly, I think we would have fared a bit better. We learned a valuable lesson - primarily to plan better to be self-sufficient when travelling outside the city, particularly if we're going to try and go the cheap route.
Country Victoria
We left Melbourne Saturday morning and headed roughly in the direction of Bendigo in central Victoria. We took a detour through Mt. Macedon and stopped at Hanging Rock where we stretched our legs, had coffee and muffins, and met Snowy the huggy kangaroo.
We then proceeded to Daylesford, somewhat of a country village for yuppies, where we had a pleasant lunch at a hip little place full of the aforementioned yuppies, looked with skepticism at the hotel advertising "city views" (not much of a city, and not much of a view), and openly ridiculed the "Double Nut Villas", for obvious reasons. Although this makes us sound like really obnoxious tourists, we actually liked Daylesford - it was nice in its own little way. We just couldn't find a reason to stick around.
We moved on through Castlemaine, where we stopped at the visitor center, largely to take advantage of their restrooms. Although to Victoria's credit, they've got tourist information buildings all over the place. Any little village with more than 500 people, and you can find as many maps and suggestions for spending money as you like.
We made it to Bendigo around 5:00 pm, and found ourselves saying, "um. . . is this it?". Bendigo is advertised as a jewel of the Victorian countryside, chock full of classic Australian architecture, etc. We were not blown away. The city has an impressive cathedral, various other historic public buildings, a pleasant central park, but it didn't really present itself as a destination in itself. In fact, given that everything was closing about the time we arrived, we were at a loss simply to find something to do.
We ultimately spend an amusing/annoying 45 minutes searching for someone who could successfully guide us to a movie theatre. Everyone knew exactly where Bendigo's theatre was, but it took three tries to find someone who could provide us with sufficient directions to guide us the approximately. We found this rather surprising given that we were never more than 200 meters away from the theatre. We started to suspect that the theater was invisible to non-Bendigo natives. The theatre was eventually located, we bought tickets, but then had about two hours to kill, which we killed in one of the few cafes in Bendigo which was open beyond 5:00pm. After our movie, we retired to our hotel, The Fleece Inn, which is a story in itself.
We then proceeded to Daylesford, somewhat of a country village for yuppies, where we had a pleasant lunch at a hip little place full of the aforementioned yuppies, looked with skepticism at the hotel advertising "city views" (not much of a city, and not much of a view), and openly ridiculed the "Double Nut Villas", for obvious reasons. Although this makes us sound like really obnoxious tourists, we actually liked Daylesford - it was nice in its own little way. We just couldn't find a reason to stick around.
We moved on through Castlemaine, where we stopped at the visitor center, largely to take advantage of their restrooms. Although to Victoria's credit, they've got tourist information buildings all over the place. Any little village with more than 500 people, and you can find as many maps and suggestions for spending money as you like.
We made it to Bendigo around 5:00 pm, and found ourselves saying, "um. . . is this it?". Bendigo is advertised as a jewel of the Victorian countryside, chock full of classic Australian architecture, etc. We were not blown away. The city has an impressive cathedral, various other historic public buildings, a pleasant central park, but it didn't really present itself as a destination in itself. In fact, given that everything was closing about the time we arrived, we were at a loss simply to find something to do.
We ultimately spend an amusing/annoying 45 minutes searching for someone who could successfully guide us to a movie theatre. Everyone knew exactly where Bendigo's theatre was, but it took three tries to find someone who could provide us with sufficient directions to guide us the approximately. We found this rather surprising given that we were never more than 200 meters away from the theatre. We started to suspect that the theater was invisible to non-Bendigo natives. The theatre was eventually located, we bought tickets, but then had about two hours to kill, which we killed in one of the few cafes in Bendigo which was open beyond 5:00pm. After our movie, we retired to our hotel, The Fleece Inn, which is a story in itself.
Stay Left
We picked up a Ford Focus from Budget rental on Saturday morning as we began our weekend tour around Victoria. As we walked to Budget, we got about 1 block from our apartment before we happened upon an accident scene involving three cars - two of which had been parked. Some poor young man on his way to work (by the looks of things) had managed to crash into two cars on the street, effectively destroying all three vehicles. Given that I was on my way to pick up a car and spend the weekend driving on the wrong side of the road, I wasn't sure how to take this. On one hand, this scene provided encouragement that even Aussie's have trouble behind the wheel from time to time. On the other hand, this guy had made driving look far more difficult (and dangerous) than I'd ever contemplated.
As it turned out, I had little trouble navigating the roads of Australia - I only pissed off other drivers once and returned the vehicle without damage. But, driving through the Australian countryside at 100km/hr on a tiny two lane road (or "highway" if you believe the maps) in pitch dark with kangaroos, drink drivers, and a broad range of vehicles (some being driven at around 10 km/hr) throwing themselves in your path is not for the faint of heart.
As it turned out, I had little trouble navigating the roads of Australia - I only pissed off other drivers once and returned the vehicle without damage. But, driving through the Australian countryside at 100km/hr on a tiny two lane road (or "highway" if you believe the maps) in pitch dark with kangaroos, drink drivers, and a broad range of vehicles (some being driven at around 10 km/hr) throwing themselves in your path is not for the faint of heart.
Rain
The rains have returned (sort of) to Victoria. Periodic rainfall has blessed the landscape with 1-4 cm of rain since last Wednesday, just in time to help farmers who took advantage of the break in the drought to plant seeds.
However, the rainfall, which has been quite vigorous at times, has revealed additional structural defects in our current apartment. The ceiling in the bedroom tends to leak when it rains. Good thing we only have to spend another week there.
However, the rainfall, which has been quite vigorous at times, has revealed additional structural defects in our current apartment. The ceiling in the bedroom tends to leak when it rains. Good thing we only have to spend another week there.
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
Winter?
We're in our second official week of winter here in Australia. Today, Melbourne (the coldest city in mainland Australia) was sunny with a high of 20C [68F].
2005 has been an anamolously warm year thus far. Average temperatures for the January-April period broke 150 national, state, and city temperature records. In Victoria, it was the driest Autumn since records began in 1900, beating the previous record set in 1991. Daytime temperatures were 2 to 3°C above average beating the previous record set in 2002.
2005 has been an anamolously warm year thus far. Average temperatures for the January-April period broke 150 national, state, and city temperature records. In Victoria, it was the driest Autumn since records began in 1900, beating the previous record set in 1991. Daytime temperatures were 2 to 3°C above average beating the previous record set in 2002.
Crown
Last Friday we searched high and low to find a venue to watch the Federer/Nadal semi-Final - not an easy task in the middle of Footy season, and unfortunately the French Open is the one tennis Grand Slam event that isn't broadcast on free TV in Australia.
We ended upon at the Crown Casino which boasts a fancy sports bar which was indeed showing the French Open on a mammoth screen (right next to the Geelong/Collingwood game). We waited out a rain delay by touring the casino floor (which, to my disgust, featured only 1 craps table - poor showing for the largest casino in the southern hemisphere) and stuffing our face with dessert. Although the bars and lounges were populated with Aussies, the table games were dominated by Asians, tourists and locals, which must make the casino the most diverse area in Melbourne. Overall, the casino was marginally less dodgy than your average Vegas playground, and despite lots of slot machines (aka, pokies), there's no annoying bells going ding! ding! ding! 24-7.
Tennis eventually resumed and we scored a table. After a few hours of drinks and conversation, the Puerta/Davydenko match was heading into its fifth set, and given it was already after 1:00am, there was no way we were going to see Federer play. So we called it quits.
But overall, the Crown gets a thumbs up! But then every casino is fun as long as you don't lose your ass there. I'm convinced that the Crown and I will meet again someday. . . with a less profitable outcome.
We ended upon at the Crown Casino which boasts a fancy sports bar which was indeed showing the French Open on a mammoth screen (right next to the Geelong/Collingwood game). We waited out a rain delay by touring the casino floor (which, to my disgust, featured only 1 craps table - poor showing for the largest casino in the southern hemisphere) and stuffing our face with dessert. Although the bars and lounges were populated with Aussies, the table games were dominated by Asians, tourists and locals, which must make the casino the most diverse area in Melbourne. Overall, the casino was marginally less dodgy than your average Vegas playground, and despite lots of slot machines (aka, pokies), there's no annoying bells going ding! ding! ding! 24-7.
Tennis eventually resumed and we scored a table. After a few hours of drinks and conversation, the Puerta/Davydenko match was heading into its fifth set, and given it was already after 1:00am, there was no way we were going to see Federer play. So we called it quits.
But overall, the Crown gets a thumbs up! But then every casino is fun as long as you don't lose your ass there. I'm convinced that the Crown and I will meet again someday. . . with a less profitable outcome.
Thursday, June 02, 2005
The Smelliest Man on Earth
I've you've been looking for the smelliest man on Earth, I have found him. He's riding the Sandringham train line in Melbourne. Now I know what you're thinking - how do I know he's the smelliest? Trust me. I'll wager my smelly man against anyone's any day of the week.
Expats
I have yet to encounter any American tourists. I have, however, encountered a number of Americans who are now permanent residents, many of which are like minded when it comes to their decision to call Australia home. I met one such person on Tuesday, who expressed the opinion "We could leave, but we just can't seem to find a reason to."
Payback Time
A mystery "biological agent" was delivered to the Indonesian embassy in Canberra this week - presumably a little thank you to Indonesia for convicting Schapelle Corby of drug smuggling.
Corby is appealing her conviction, but Indonesia's legal system has a game show quality to it. She can appeal, but so can the prosecution, so while she's trying to argue for a lighter sentence or an acquittal, the prosecution will be arguing for a tougher sentence, including the death penalty. So she could end up worse off than she is now.
Corby is appealing her conviction, but Indonesia's legal system has a game show quality to it. She can appeal, but so can the prosecution, so while she's trying to argue for a lighter sentence or an acquittal, the prosecution will be arguing for a tougher sentence, including the death penalty. So she could end up worse off than she is now.
The Morrows
Kerry and Mike flew over from Adelaide last weekend - Mike just celebrated year number 32, which was cause for festivities in its own right, they just bought a new house, plus they've got other friends here in Melbourne. They arrived Saturday morning and we caught up with them for an afternoon outing to Chadstone - the single biggest mall I've ever encountered in my life. I'd heard about Chadstone and thought to myself, "well, I'm sure it's a 'big' mall in a cute little Australian way." But turns out it was big in more of a huge, over-the-top, American kind of way. In fact, it is the "Fashion Capital" of Melbourne, which effectively makes it the fashion capital of Australia. I lost all sense of direction upon entering this behemoth of a shopping center. Uta and I came away empty handed - Uta's trying to limit shopping until she has a job, and I let out a small scream every time I looked at a price tag (but then, I'm really cheap).
We got cleaned up and then met up again that night at The Beach on the bay. Uta and I arrived first and proceeded to cause trouble. While discussing drink options with the bartender, one of us (not me) accidentally knocked a glass containing straws off the bar. The glass proceeded to fall behind the bar onto a metal countertop, where it shattered, spilling jagged shards of glass into (of course) the bar's stash of ice. There were many apologies, to which the bartender asked, "where are you from". One of us (not me) answered "Germany". The bartender then asked, "Is that what Germans do?"
Fortunately, our comrades arrived about this time allowing us to retreat to another part of the establishment, where we consumed some food (including some particularly tasty fries/chips), and ogled half-naked women, particularly one whose outfit gave new meaning to the term "V-neck". I hope she's there every weekend. . .
Alas, we probably shouldn't have opted to run a 10k the same weekend we had friends in town, as Uta and I couldn't motivate to do anything after Sunday's run. Uta caught up with Kerry and Mike on Monday (holiday in South Australia), but I had to return to the rock pile.
We got cleaned up and then met up again that night at The Beach on the bay. Uta and I arrived first and proceeded to cause trouble. While discussing drink options with the bartender, one of us (not me) accidentally knocked a glass containing straws off the bar. The glass proceeded to fall behind the bar onto a metal countertop, where it shattered, spilling jagged shards of glass into (of course) the bar's stash of ice. There were many apologies, to which the bartender asked, "where are you from". One of us (not me) answered "Germany". The bartender then asked, "Is that what Germans do?"
Fortunately, our comrades arrived about this time allowing us to retreat to another part of the establishment, where we consumed some food (including some particularly tasty fries/chips), and ogled half-naked women, particularly one whose outfit gave new meaning to the term "V-neck". I hope she's there every weekend. . .
Alas, we probably shouldn't have opted to run a 10k the same weekend we had friends in town, as Uta and I couldn't motivate to do anything after Sunday's run. Uta caught up with Kerry and Mike on Monday (holiday in South Australia), but I had to return to the rock pile.
The Run
On Sunday, Uta and I ran the "Run to the G", completing the 10k event in exactly 1 hour. Although we finished 25 minutes behind the leader, we placed 2840 and 2841 out of over 6,000. So we had plenty of people we could look down on, but I was just thankful that my heart didn't explode.
We then proceeded to stuff our faces with a huge breakfast and do absolutely nothing for the rest of the day.
We then proceeded to stuff our faces with a huge breakfast and do absolutely nothing for the rest of the day.
Surfer's Paradise
Let's see, where was I?
Ahh, yes. Surfer's Paradise. I went off to the Gold Coast last week for two days and failed to pack anything useful for participating in a conference, such as presentable clothes or a razor. This was of little consequence, although I did end up giving a talk on the second day and would have preferred not to have looked as shaggy as I did. But given that an earlier presenter completely failed to maintain consciousness during his own talk (leading to an early break for tea and the arrival of the paramedics), my presentation was still more effective than others, despite my appearance.
Surfer's Paradise and/or the Gold Coast is a bit like Las Vegas on the water (but maybe a little more old Vegas than new Vegas). The beaches are beautiful, but backed by towering hotels and apartments, which I've been told house numerous Japanese tourists during the high season (someone even told me that people from Japan make weekend trips to the Gold Coast, despite the 10-hour flight, one-way). There's an array of casinos, pubs, mini-golf facilities etc., and further inland, one finds the residential area consisting of thousands of houses lying just above sea level in the most flood-prone area of Australia. Some 50-60% of Gold Coast residents live in a flood plain, and with the fastest growth rate in Australia (10%/year), 50,000 people move into the area each year.
It's definitely not the outback.
Ahh, yes. Surfer's Paradise. I went off to the Gold Coast last week for two days and failed to pack anything useful for participating in a conference, such as presentable clothes or a razor. This was of little consequence, although I did end up giving a talk on the second day and would have preferred not to have looked as shaggy as I did. But given that an earlier presenter completely failed to maintain consciousness during his own talk (leading to an early break for tea and the arrival of the paramedics), my presentation was still more effective than others, despite my appearance.
Surfer's Paradise and/or the Gold Coast is a bit like Las Vegas on the water (but maybe a little more old Vegas than new Vegas). The beaches are beautiful, but backed by towering hotels and apartments, which I've been told house numerous Japanese tourists during the high season (someone even told me that people from Japan make weekend trips to the Gold Coast, despite the 10-hour flight, one-way). There's an array of casinos, pubs, mini-golf facilities etc., and further inland, one finds the residential area consisting of thousands of houses lying just above sea level in the most flood-prone area of Australia. Some 50-60% of Gold Coast residents live in a flood plain, and with the fastest growth rate in Australia (10%/year), 50,000 people move into the area each year.
It's definitely not the outback.
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