The Great Barrier Reef (and More)

It's been a little while since I left Adelaide.  I've been in South Australia for about ten months now and decided it was time to do a little bit of holiday-ing on my working holiday visa. Where to? Cairns in northern Queensland, with my main priority to see the Great Barrier Reef.

Welcome to Cairns

I got into Cairns Monday afternoon. After quickly dropping off my stuff, I went on a little stroll around town. Although definitely a tourist hub, Cairns is beautiful.  There's a boardwalk that runs along the water, shops and restaurants everywhere, and at this time of year, the perfect temperature to be comfortably warm (but still quite humid).

This is a bit deceptive.  There wasn't really a beach and the small patch there was had signs warning of crocodile attacks.

The Lagoon.  Due to the lack of/deadly "beaches," the city built the lagoon slightly inland and immune from crocodiles.  Free to the public as well.

I had a very weird first impression at the hostel.  From every hostel I've ever stayed at, to claim a bed, you put something on it or make it look like someone has used the sheets.  I found a bed that had nothing on it and no sheets so I made the bed and headed off.  Later when I came back, a girl was in the room claiming the bed I had put my stuff on was hers. She was pretty calm about it but I got death glares from another guy in the room (who turned out to be just a *gem* of a temporary roommate), even after offering to find another bed.  Not quite sure what the hostility was about but alright.  All the Australian hostels I've stayed in have been a bit odd like that.  Besides the uptight people, the hostel was pretty basic but in a great location.

After waking up very early on Tuesday, I walked to the marina to catch my boat to the Great Barrier Reef. The company I went with was a last minute decision but I saw they capped their participants at 20 whereas most other companies could have upwards of 100+ people. They were also one of the cheapest, claimed their boat had the lowest carbon footprint among all the tour boats, and owner operated.  Apparently you can take the kid out of Portland but you can't entirely take Portland out of the kid.

There were only 8 of us on the catamaran along with 3 crew.  The ride out to the reef was a bit slow but no one was in a rush and it allowed the weather to clear up by the time we got there.  It was about a 2 hour ride to the reef.  Our first snorkel spot was at the Upolu Reef.  It was absolutely incredible! There were so many colorful fish, amazing designs in the reef, a few stingrays, and some massive giant clams.  After lunch we headed to another spot which I thought was even better than the first.  One of the crew went with us the first time to point out anything significant but we got to go on our own at the second location.  

The Great Barrier Reef

On the way back, we got the finest glass of goon, some fruit, and a delicious cheese platter. We briefly saw a whale in the distance shooting water from the surface. If you're ever in Cairns and want to see the reef, Reef Daytripper was awesome.

Wednesday morning, I made my way to the train station to catch a ride on the Kuranda Scenic Rail.  It's basically an old train that takes you through the rainforest up to the little town of Kuranda.  Along the way, you get an audio commentary about the construction of the track.  It was definitely overpriced but the views were stunning and the history of the track was interesting.  I got lucky in that I had the entire seating row to myself which allowed me to move side to side and spread out a bit.  If the train had been full, anyone not sitting by the windows would have been in for a bad time.

Choo Choo

Barron Falls

When we arrived in Kuranda, I walked around town a bit, dodging the masses of selfie sticks, and eventually decided to go on a little hike. The trail started through the rainforest, ran along a river, and finished back up in town.  It was beautiful and easy enough I could do the trail both ways in thongs (although my feet are absolutely destroyed with blisters now). The actual town was a little too much for me. Dozens of overpriced, tacky tourist shops/restaurants lined the streets.  There was a tightly packed market area filled with bohemian-esque stalls which was neat to explore but decided against getting my hair dreadlocked. Maybe next time.  

I eventually gave in to hunger and grabbed a sub par pie at the bakery. I overestimated how much I'd be able to do for free in Kuranda and after doing the same hike in reverse, ended up sitting around for a fair bit before I was able to head back to Cairns.

On the way down, I rode in a cable car suspended over the forest. Once again, the views were incredible. Queensland really is a beautiful state. There were a few stops along the way you could get out and look at viewpoints. The cable car was much faster than the train and only took about an hour, stops included. After waiting forever at the end of the sky rail for the shuttle, I headed back to the hostel.

With nothing planned for Thursday, I decided to head to the botanic gardens.  Botanic gardens seem to be in every city in Australia and they never disappoint.  The gardens were a fair trek from the city centre but it was worth it.  I probably ended up walking a little under 15km throughout the day.  

Start of the Red Arrow hike

Later that night I noticed an outdoor projector screen setup across the street from my hostel and saw there was a free showing at 7 so I grabbed a spot in the grass and enjoyed the film.

Checkout was at 10 Friday morning which left a fair amount of time to wander around the city.  There wasn't much else to do besides dodging the sun as much as possible since I have the fairest skin in all the land and didn't want to get sunscreen-ed up for a flight home.  One of the art galleries in town was doing free entry for the month of September so after an ice coffee, I took a peek inside.  A few hours later, it was time to head back to Adelaide.  

Now it would seem like a simple task for a shuttle to pick someone up and take them to the airport but apparently that's not the case for Sun Palm Transport.  I booked my pickup the day before and received a confirmation email minutes later.  At around 3:15 on return to Adelaide day, I decided to give them a ring seeing as they were 15 minutes late.  The wonderful girl on the other end of the line said I had booked the shuttle an hour prior and they called me when I wasn't there. Now that seems a bit odd seeing as my confirmation email says 3:00 and I had my phone on me the entire day with 0 missed calls.  Better yet she "didn't know" when the next shuttle was and wouldn't refund me [still working on getting it refunded].  I quickly found out Uber doesn't run in Cairns (boo) so had to call a cab.  Luckily the airport is close to the city and Australian airport security takes approximately 8 seconds to get through.  Not the best way to end the trip but it all worked out and I made my flight.

Bye bye Cairns

This was a fantastic little trip but I have come to the conclusion that I'm done doing solo trips, at least for a while.  It's great doing whatever you want whenever you want but once an activity finishes and there's nothing to do the rest of the day, it can get a little lonely. Although it's easier on the wallet, I'm also not one of those people who can grab a beer or sit down for food on their own, which, after a long day of activities, is a nice thing to do. From now on, someone's coming with me on trips.  That aside, Cairns was a great place to visit and I will for sure be back to see the reef again.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Hahndorf

So a bit of a quick update:

I finally made it to the nightclub I used to work at last weekend.  It was actually really fun!  I found it a bit hilarious I only saw one person I recognized from when I worked there because of their incredibly high turnover rate.  It was a great night.

A few days later after watching the newest Game of Thrones, Liam and I headed down to Hahndorf, a small, German influenced town in the Adelaide Hills.  Although not nearly as extreme as Leavenworth in Washington, it had a bit of the same feel.  We got some "German" food and walked around the main road a bit before going on a drive through the hills.  We stopped at one of the many wineries in the area but the tasting room had already closed.

In the Hills

Good news/bad news my work schedule changed a bit but it's allowed me to see two of Vlad's footy games which are always fun to watch.  I should be able to go to most of them now which is exciting.

In other news, it's been raining buckets lately.  I love rain (except when I have to leave the house).  Just thought you should know.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Eating and Drinking Adelaide

I've had the chance to go to a lot of different restaurants/bars over the last two weeks and I've got nothing else to write about so let's do a little recap:

Last week Liam invited me for a bit of a Sunday session at this place called The Alma.  It's about 45 seconds walk away from my old house but I never made it over when I was living in the area.  The people watching was great and as the afternoon started to become evening, it got even better.

Afterwards we headed into town and chowed down on some delicious Chinese food near the Central Markets/Chinatown followed by fancy dessert at St. Louis.  We ended the night with a classy glass of red wine at Mother Vine.  Happy birthday, Liam.

Fast forward to this week, I met up with my workmate Sam at the Schnithouse where we partook in a few pints. The Hofbrauhaus pint glasses were a nice throwback to Germany but almost nothing can match the beer in Munich.

A little while later we walked next door to Brklyn which was having it's opening night and where my friend Kieran works.  Kieran made us up some delicious drinks and good times were had.  The whole place is an awesome concept with a deli, radio station, and soon to be open barbershop all on the same floor as the bar. 

On Saturday, I got up nice and early and headed up to Bonython Park to work at the first ever Nutella Palooza. Scroll got invited to be a vendor at what the organizers called "Australia's first Nutella festival."  The day started off fairly relaxed as we were getting prepped but once the gates opened, a horde of people came pouring into the park.  We were making ice cream not stop for the entire 8 hours and by the end we were all ready to collapse.  People apparently waited in our line for over 45 minutes (which, of course, is worth it).  One thing I read said there were over 20,000 people who attended so it was a bit hectic. The festival was only a one day thing and since we were so busy I never got the chance to walk around (or take pictures) but it seemed like a good time.  

I was wearing a CSU shirt on the tram back to my house and these two girls asked if I went there.  I said I graduated a few years ago and they told me they were in Adelaide on exchange from CSU.  Small world.  Go Rams.

That's all for now.  Bye.

And completely random side note:  I just noticed that the little notifications icon on Facebook here shows Australia/Asia instead of North/South America.  Figured I should share.

Marion Bay

What an absolutely fantastic weekend!  I've been in Adelaide for about four and a half months and haven't really gotten the chance to leave the city until now.  Liam's family owns a beach house at Marion Bay, a town that feels very similar to Pacific City, about three hours drive from Adelaide, and invited me to come hang out for the long Easter weekend.

Very early Friday morning, Liam and buddy Kieran picked me up and we made our way over to the tip of the Yorke Peninsula.  After unloading the car, we drove around Innes National Park, taking in some amazing views of the coast and occasionally getting out to walk around the beaches.  During the drive, I saw my first wild kangaroos and emus. 

Seal

After some lunch and more sightseeing, we met up with 2 others and had a little beach time, Frisbee and all. 

When the sunburns were starting to develop, we all went back to the house and had a delicious barbecue followed by a few adult beverages whilst playing games.

So good

The next day we went back into the park to explore some more areas.  

Later that night, we headed to the local pub in Marion Bay and watched the Adelaide Crow's first AFL game of the season.  At the pub, a girl came up to Liam (who was wearing a CSU jumper) and told us she was from Boulder, Colorado and went to CU when she was in school.  Small world.  

Back at the house, I annihilated Kieran and Liam at Foosball followed by more activities.

Cape Spencer Lighthouse

Jetty

Easter morning, Liam cooked us a massive breakfast, we cleaned the house, and headed back to Adelaide. Before getting in the car, Liam found a huntsman spider which I didn't snap a picture of but you should probably look it up if you don't know what they are.

Such a fun and relaxing weekend with great friends and so nice to be able to see more of South Australia.

In other news, it was a bit of a close call but I have a new place to live!  I checked out 2 houses on Sunday last week and really liked the first one.  Lucky for me, I was asked to move in.  The place is in the southeast corner of the city.  It's a shorter walk to work which is nice and very close to the tree lined Hutt street. I'm officially moving in today. This will be the 4th place I've lived in 4 months so I'm really hoping this will be the last move for a while.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Speed Bump

It's pretty amazing how things have fallen into place since getting to Australia.  Granted I have worked quite hard to make these things fall into said place but there's also been some luck involved. I made it to Australia flying standby on my first try, got a job that paid just enough to afford staying at a hostel, got to move out of the hostel into a wonderfully located/priced house, found a great job with amazing people and got to quit the other job, and the list goes on.  That said, I've hit a bit of a bump in the road.

The lease of the house I'm currently in is over on the 28th of March.  It didn't seem like a huge problem since the plan was to simply renew it.  Unfortunately, we got a call about a week and a half ago that the actual owner of the house doesn't want to rent it out anymore. The house is a duplex and it sounds like our neighbor is being forced out as well (we're wondering if the owner sold the land and is going to demolish the house).  So that means I am once again on a house hunt.

This time it's a little trickier.  I work nights a lot and obviously need a way to get home after closing. Almost every bus here stops running around midnight and I don't get off until roughly 12:15.  I'm trying to find a place that's walking distance to work (or short biking distance), in my price range, and in a decent part of the city but there's not a whole lot of options right now.

I thought I had found something this past week.  Emailed the guy and he was quick to respond.  Went later that day to check the apartment out but he never showed up and stopped answering emails.  That was strange. There's a place I have my eye on but the website it's listed on doesn't let you message the person for the first 14 days unless you pay to be a premium member.  Not going to do that but will keep checking to see when the 14 days are up.

So yeah that sucks.  This house I'm in was pretty perfect but oh well.  Here's hoping I can find something soon. In other news, this was the last week of the Fringe with it's official end date on the 14th.  The Clipsal 500 was last weekend which is essentially a race for V8 cars on the east side of the city.  Glad that didn't last too long since I could hear the cars from my house.  Bogans galore as well.  What else?  Oh yeah I finally saw Deadpool and it was fantastic.

Royal Croquet Club

Food booths

That's all for now.  Bye.

24

It was inevitable.  I have now entered the mid twenties.  I got to celebrate a day early this year seeing as March 2nd in the US is March 3rd in Australia.

Part one of birthday celebration happened last week on Saturday.  After spending some time at my place and eating delicious food, Vlad and I headed into town and went on quite the bar crawl.

Only picture I had of the night.  Sorry, Vlad.

Wednesday, my actual birthday, was very relaxed and a great day.  I got to spend time with everyone I wanted to see (that don't live 9000 miles away) and have some nice chats.  Liam, Vlad, and I started by getting food at Nordburger which is very similar to Little Big Burger in Portland.  After a few card games back at my house we headed into town for some ice cream and beers.  Charlotte and her housemate Destiny met up with us a bit later.  Liam had to head home since he worked the next day but the rest of us walked back to my place, made chicken quesadillas, and quietly laughed until pretty late into the night.  It was such a fun day and one of the best birthdays to date.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Taking on the Fringe

The past 2 weeks I've been able to see a few Fringe shows.  There are half price tickets available for certain shows that day so I was able to score cheap entry to both on my days off from work.

The first I saw was a play called Shadow People.  A psychological horror, the play followed different groups of people whose stories intertwined throughout the show.  The basic premise was people would see a "shadow person" in their peripherals and the shadow would start to make the person go crazy before eventually taking them.  Those not afflicted were convinced the "crazy" people are suffering from PTSD as there is a war going on and some of those affected are soldiers.

The show was entertaining but portraying horror in live theater is not the easiest thing to do. When someone would see a shadow person, an actor covered in black would come onto the stage but some of the creepiness was taken away by being able to see the person walk out. They should have used the fog machine a bit more to hide the entrances but other than that, the play was good.

This week I went and saw The History of the World from Now.  The show followed 5 people who survived an unknown apocalypse where 99% of the world's population vanished.  The "play looks at humanity’s rapidly developing relationship with technology and asks how we would cope if all our accessories were suddenly lost." 

There was a fair amount of dark humor in the dialogue which I always find amusing and the acting was solid. Overall, another entertaining show.

Unrelated to the Fringe, I saw Zoolander 2 a few days ago.  I went in with low expectations since there was no way they were going to match the greatness of the first.  Unfortunately it was even worse than expected. Although I laughed maybe twice, the movie was over saturated with celebrity cameos in almost every scene, recycled jokes from the first movie, and a plot that changed every half hour.  Pretty disappointing.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Let the Festivities Begin!

There's some exciting things happening in the land down under lately:

First things first, I got to watch the Super Bowl over at Liam's place, due to the time difference, on Monday (a little weird not being a Sunday).  I think this was the first time I've actually sat and paid attention the entire game.  Although I don't really follow football at all, I was happy Denver won since I used to live in Colorado and Liam would have killed me if I had gone for the Panthers.  While it was great we were able to see the game, it was a bit sad not having the US commercials play.

Housing update:  Initially I was only supposed to be staying at my current place for 6 weeks which would have been up on Saturday. However, one of my housemates decided to move in with her boyfriend which meant there was a spare room available which I quickly claimed. It's a great relief not having to move and I shouldn't have to worry about housing anymore (or at least for quite a while).  Even better, one of my other housemates bought a new bed and said I could have her old one which makes things very convenient. 

Adelaide Fringe commenced on Friday.  I'm going to do what every teacher in history has told me not to do and quote Wikipedia:

The Adelaide Fringe is the world's second-largest annual arts festival, and the largest in the Southern Hemisphere. For 24 days and nights during February and March, it features more than 4,000 artists from around Australia and the world, featuring world premieres, hit shows and new artists. Over 900 events are staged in pop-up venues in parks, warehouses, lane-ways and disused buildings as well as established venues such as theatres, hotels, art galleries and cafes.

The festival includes contemporary work in art forms including cabaret, comedy, circus and physical theatre, dance, film, theatre, puppetry, music, visual art and design. Adelaide Fringe begins with free opening night celebrations, including a street parade through the city centre and parties at various venues. Street theatre artists from all over the world participate in four days and four nights of events as part of The Adelaide Fringe Street Theatre Festival.

The festival attracts interstate and overseas visitors: 6% percent of the Fringe’s 1,560,000 audience members are visitors to the city.

The amount of shows is pretty overwhelming but I've been doing some research to try and narrow down selections.  A lot of people have said you don't even need to go to any of the shows to appreciate the festival but I figure I might as well see at least 1 while I'm here.  I get to walk by a big festival location that took over a park on my way to/from work which will be fun to do!  It seems like there's going to be a lot to do in the next few months.

In terms of work, I'm still loving my job.  I got "promoted" to a shift manager and have my first managerial shift today.  It feels really nice to be recognized for doing good work and getting rewarded for it, something a certain previous job failed to ever do.  We got a spot at the Royal Croquet Club, one of the hubs of the Fringe in the middle of the city which has been great.  I did an 11 hour shift on the first day of Fringe and a 7 the next which was exhausting but fun.  Throughout the festival I'll be trading between working at the shop and at the croquet club.

High quality iPhone 3 camera picture.  Entrance to the RCC.

Although it's still a little ways away, plans for my birthday have started to formulate.  I am very excited.

Have a good week and happy Valentines Day!

That's all for now.  Bye.

I Got A Job!

I got a job!  Well, technically speaking I got another job but the new one is more than once a week.  I was sent a text on Tuesday this week asking if I could come in for a training session for a new ice cream store opening on Saturday.  The place is called Scroll.  The owners were in Thailand and saw how the street vendors sold ice cream and got inspired to start a business.  The original is a pop-up in Melbourne but this is their first real store.

What is Thai style ice cream?  Basically you pour the ice cream liquid (cream and some other "secret" ingredients) onto a really cold plate. You then move the liquid around and it starts to freeze and turn into ice cream.  Once it reaches a certain consistency, you spread it out in a thin layer and then scrape it off the plate. This causes the ice cream to form rolls.  It's kind of like making scrambled eggs but not with eggs and using cold instead of heat.  

Below is a video of how they make it in Thailand:

Depending on the hours/pay, I am almost for sure going to stop work at the club which will be a nice relief. It's really exhausting working there and I'm getting pretty sick of being covered in unknown substances all night. Last night I worked at Scroll and then immediately worked at the club.  It was an almost 13 hour work day between the two so I am pretty tired today.

In other news, I'm loving my new living location.  The neighborhood has a great vibe and the house is close to town and another main shopping/restaurant street called The Parade. Getting this job means I hopefully won't have to stress about money too much anymore and I will have something to do during the day.  What a great week!

Stroll through the park on the walk into town

That's all for now.  Bye.

The 100° Christmas

Happy holidays!

I went to see the new Star Wars on Monday last week (no spoilers).  Monday cinema tickets are over 1/2 off hence the wait.  I was very close to giving in and seeing it the day it came out but as Yoda would say, "patience you must have."  The movie was great.  I was tempted to see it again the same day but resisted.

On Wednesday I decided to go on a little urban adventure.  The River Torrens runs from the eastern hills, through Adelaide, and into the ocean.  There is a paved trail along the entire river and I decided I wanted to walk it.  My original plan was to go about half way to the ocean and then turn around but when I hit the half way point, I didn't want to go all the way back.  Instead I made the decision to head all the way to the beach and then bus it back.  The hike ended up being about 16.5 km from start to finish which is roughly 10 miles.

I realized when I got to the coast, I didn't really know where I was.  There's a lot of beaches in Adelaide but it didn't take long to figure it out.  I walked north to Henley Beach and then caught a bus back to town.  My legs were pretty tired and a nap was in order.

Here are some pictures along the hike:

Finally made it!

As fun as staying in a hostel for Christmas sounded, Liam's family was kind enough to invite me back over to celebrate with them.  I checked out of the hostel on Thursday morning and headed back to the 'burbs.  It's a very odd feeling with it being hot outside and still seeing Christmas decorations and hearing Christmas songs. Apparently the thing to do on Christmas Eve day is go out drinking so that's what we did.  On Christmas day, we opened up some presents and then had a massive, delicious meal.  It was a great time!  We ended the day in a food coma watching the classic holiday film Die Hard followed by E.T.

I checked back in to the hostel on Saturday.  The two day break was much needed.  Hostel life is getting a little old.  The great news is that next week, I'm moving into a house for 6 weeks!  It's just outside of the city, way cheaper than the hostel, and I get my own big room!  I'm very excited for next week.

To continue the family tradition on Christmas day in the states, I did a video chat with the family and watched them play Bunco via the Internet.

Hope everyone had a great Christmas!  Crazy to think it's almost 2016.  I have no clue what I'm doing for New Years but hopefully will get something figured out so I'm not laying in bed watching movies all night.

Have a good New Years!

That's all for now.  Bye.

Some Solo Travel Blues

As foreshadowed last week, I moved to a hostel in the city on Tuesday.  Although it's only about 15 minutes away from where I was staying, it feels like a whole new experience.  Heads up - I wrote this at two different parts of the week so the mood may change a bit here and there.

The first day I checked in and got some food at the store.  When I got back to the hostel, I didn't really know what to do.  I was sitting outside on the balcony and got a little too caught up in my head.  I've stayed in hostels a fair amount but this time is a bit different.  The hostel is essentially my home for now.  This doesn't happen often whilst traveling but I felt a wave of loneliness.  Going from a family home living with your friend to a hostel with a bunch of strangers is not the easiest transition.

Later in the day, I went on a walk around town and remembered this was sort of how I felt the day I got to Poland.  Krakow was my first solo trip and it took about a day to get over the feeling of being lonely. 

I'm not really clicking with any of the people staying here.  Everyone is nice and civil but I don't see any friendships emerging.  That and people don't stay here for long.  I've gone through 7 "roommates" and it hasn't even been a week.  I tried meeting up with some local friends to feel more social but nothing panned out.

All the other places I've stayed in hostels, I was constantly doing the tourist stuff so there was hardly any down time.  I've collectively lived in Adelaide for almost two months now and so it's kind of a "now what" sort of feeling since I've done the tourist thing.  I have nothing to do during the day besides looking for jobs which gets pretty tedious after a while. 

With not much else to do, I started looking for house shares.  I checked out three different houses.  The first was in a pretty good location and the room was big but found out there would be 7 people living there, including a newborn.  Absolutely not.  The second would have been perfect if I had a car but the bus ride is fairly long getting into town.  The third was in the city and the people living there were very friendly but I just can't commit to any longer term housing until I secure another job.  I'm looking at a fourth place today that would only be for a month which would be perfect.  It wouldn't be until January but it's much cheaper than the hostel, still close to the city, and the online pictures look nice. 

So yeah, a bit of a depressing week but rest assured, I'm doing alright overall.  It's getting better each day and I'm settling into the hostel (which is pretty nice by the way).  I got my first paycheck this week which was exciting!  I'm hoping at this point to almost completely stop using my US card and being reliant on the Australian one.  Another sign that things are getting better is while I am writing this, roommate #8 and #9 walked in from Holland and they seem very nice.

Oh yeah!  There was a pretty crazy thunder/lightning storm last week and this was the best picture I could get/I wasn't patient enough to get a better shot:

It was pitch black when this was taken.  Lightning is crazy.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Weeks 1 and 2

I am over two weeks in and need to do a little catch up on here.  Here are some highlights:

Two weeks ago on the day I got here, we went to Liam's friend's places and played Mölkky for a bit.  We headed back to Liam's place for dinner and then watched the newest Mission Impossible so I could stay up as long as possible and fight the jet lag.  My brain shut itself off a few times during the movie so I don't really remember it that well. The sweet relief of sleep came after the credits rolled.

The next day we went into town so I could get a metro card.  There was a parade going on which is Adelaide's welcome to the Christmas season.  It was a bit like the Macy's Day parade but a little smaller. Town was crowded due to the parade so we headed out to the beaches.  It was fairly windy so we mainly did a tour by car. There's a lot of beaches in Adelaide.

After a pit stop back at the house, we were going to go on what we thought was a simple walk in the hills.  After seeing other people in athletic clothing, we figured our jeans were not the best attire.  On the way back to town, we stopped at one of the local climbing spots to take a peak.

On Sunday we went to a party to celebrate the opening of Lucky's Beach Club.  The proceeds went to an organization that helps teens with cancer which was neat.  Fun day.

I got set up with an Australian bank account on Monday.  Later in the day we went and saw the new James Bond movie Spectre.  Although a bit too formulaic, it was entertaining.

On Friday, I got to go climbing outside.  It's been a while since I've climbed due to the accident and I'm definitely not in peak shape but it was great to get back on the rock.

For Thanksgiving, we had a good old fashioned Aussie barbie with kangaroo.  It was delicious.  Later on we went out to a fairly new club.  It was a really fun night.

I got a call on Friday from a nightclub asking if I was available the next day for a trial shift.  Being a little desperate for a job, I accepted.  The job is basically walking around the club, picking up empty glasses, washing said glasses, and making sure the bar is stocked.  It went well but it is a very odd feeling being in a club late at night completely sober.  The people watching is amazing.  I got asked back for next week so at least that's a little bit of money coming into the bank.  I'm definitely going to keep looking for other work.

Yesterday, Liam and I went to a cricket match at Adelaide Oval.  I still am not really sure how cricket actually works but I think I'm getting the basics down.  Fun fact, cricket games last five days.  This was day number three and if Australia won, they win the whole thing.  They won.

First wild kangaroo spotting at the cricket match...and a gorilla.

Some other notable things:

• Been to the local climbing gym twice now.  It's pretty small but has a great community vibe and decent routes.  I'm starting to learn the Australian grading system for routes
• Saw the new Hunger Games movie with Amy and Trent (Liam's sister and her boyfriend)
• Seen 5 or 6 wild koalas.  It's mildly odd seeing what looks like stuffed animals just hanging out in trees
• Got an Australian phone number set up
• Received my tax file number (kind of like social security) in the mail

Thanks for the picture, Amy

Now that this is caught up, I'm hoping to do these every week.

That's all for now.  Bye.