1. All Staff Meeting
2. Know-IT-All Charity Dinner
3. Graduation (and Graduate Dinner).
Alot to get through, I know so maybe i'll throw in some photos... rather than ramble on.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Graduation and More
Last week was an intense week. Not only was there craploads of work to do, but three of the five weeknights were also filled with events! What did I have on?
1. All Staff Meeting
2. Know-IT-All Charity Dinner
3. Graduation (and Graduate Dinner).
Alot to get through, I know so maybe i'll throw in some photos... rather than ramble on.
1. All Staff Meeting
2. Know-IT-All Charity Dinner
3. Graduation (and Graduate Dinner).
Alot to get through, I know so maybe i'll throw in some photos... rather than ramble on.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
And they call the Liberals racist
Exciting times in the media this week. The Budget was presented as was Labor's reply. Interesting week indeed. Surprises aplenty, and more than just from the Treasurer.
First up, i'll say that I headed down to Canberra for the Budget. Why? Well... why not. I could say that I sensed something big - but that would be an outright lie. Haha! Got in early and got a glimpse of Question Time and saw the Member for Ballarat get snapped in half (Not literally, of course).
This was a preview to come for sure. Ms King(Member for Ballarat) made an aggressive song and dance about how several Maxitran workers were laid off while Chinese workers remained. No mention was made as to how competent or hard working these Chinese workers are - it seems that Labor believes that Chinese workers here on working visas should always be the frist to get the sack. Seriously... and somehow the Liberals get tagged as racist.
The fun thing about this little segment of Question Time wasn't Ms King's xenophobia but it was how she got comprehensively owned. In the Government's response Mr Hardgrave (Minister for Vocational and Technical Education) opened up with a neat little paragraph.
Hardgrave: I thank the member for Ballarat for her question. It has been 266 days since the
Australian Labor Party asked a question of me in this place about training, about skills or about apprenticeships. It was on 16 August last year, which was the 28th anniversary of the death of Elvis.
The question was then answered, but Ms King couldn't stop. After a question on the Solomon Islands, she was back for part 2. Unfortunately most of her question was overruled by the Speaker of the House, Mr Hawker.
Hawker: Order! The member for Ballarat will resume her seat. In calling the Minister for Vocational and Technical Education, I rule that the first part of that question was asking for an opinion, the second part was in order and the third part was not needed.
Boom! What was the third part of the question... well let us have a look:
King: Will the government now join Labor in making its No. 1 priority to train Australians first and to train them now?
The entertainment contiued from the Minister:
Hardgrave: I think the last part was a commercial!
Entertainment, indeed. I only really ever watch small snippets of Question Time, but it can be entertaining at times :). Oh the debate gets even more interesting but i'll let you go check that out at Hansard (Official Records of Parliamentary Proceedings).
So what happens next? Well the rest of the mob go for a tour of Parliament. Been there, done that - so I got sucked into helping set up shop for later on in the night. After the tour of Parliament House was done (and the others that didn't go finished setting up) everyone headed back to camp - well... serviced appartments.
Luckily for us we were invited to the Bradfield function inside Parliament House, where we watched a live Budget feed. An interesting budget indeed. Finally, some relief to those who are punished the most. MPs were to be found all over the place at the Bradfield function including: Malcolm Turnbull, Brendan Nelson, and Joe Hockey.
Afterwards it was time to eat, drink and be merry. And i'll leave it there :). Oh, yea... Canberra Casino leaves much to be desired :D.
First up, i'll say that I headed down to Canberra for the Budget. Why? Well... why not. I could say that I sensed something big - but that would be an outright lie. Haha! Got in early and got a glimpse of Question Time and saw the Member for Ballarat get snapped in half (Not literally, of course).
This was a preview to come for sure. Ms King(Member for Ballarat) made an aggressive song and dance about how several Maxitran workers were laid off while Chinese workers remained. No mention was made as to how competent or hard working these Chinese workers are - it seems that Labor believes that Chinese workers here on working visas should always be the frist to get the sack. Seriously... and somehow the Liberals get tagged as racist.
The fun thing about this little segment of Question Time wasn't Ms King's xenophobia but it was how she got comprehensively owned. In the Government's response Mr Hardgrave (Minister for Vocational and Technical Education) opened up with a neat little paragraph.
Hardgrave: I thank the member for Ballarat for her question. It has been 266 days since the
Australian Labor Party asked a question of me in this place about training, about skills or about apprenticeships. It was on 16 August last year, which was the 28th anniversary of the death of Elvis.
The question was then answered, but Ms King couldn't stop. After a question on the Solomon Islands, she was back for part 2. Unfortunately most of her question was overruled by the Speaker of the House, Mr Hawker.
Hawker: Order! The member for Ballarat will resume her seat. In calling the Minister for Vocational and Technical Education, I rule that the first part of that question was asking for an opinion, the second part was in order and the third part was not needed.
Boom! What was the third part of the question... well let us have a look:
King: Will the government now join Labor in making its No. 1 priority to train Australians first and to train them now?
The entertainment contiued from the Minister:
Hardgrave: I think the last part was a commercial!
Entertainment, indeed. I only really ever watch small snippets of Question Time, but it can be entertaining at times :). Oh the debate gets even more interesting but i'll let you go check that out at Hansard (Official Records of Parliamentary Proceedings).
So what happens next? Well the rest of the mob go for a tour of Parliament. Been there, done that - so I got sucked into helping set up shop for later on in the night. After the tour of Parliament House was done (and the others that didn't go finished setting up) everyone headed back to camp - well... serviced appartments.
Luckily for us we were invited to the Bradfield function inside Parliament House, where we watched a live Budget feed. An interesting budget indeed. Finally, some relief to those who are punished the most. MPs were to be found all over the place at the Bradfield function including: Malcolm Turnbull, Brendan Nelson, and Joe Hockey.
Afterwards it was time to eat, drink and be merry. And i'll leave it there :). Oh, yea... Canberra Casino leaves much to be desired :D.
Sunday, April 23, 2006
Maccas Madness
Well, well, well. I haven't really posted up anything wierd or funny recently. In fact, I haven't really posted much at all. So here is a little segment to tie off those who have been watching my website and have been bitterly disappointed with its rate of updates.
So there I was at the Maccas drive-through, just entered, and noticed that the car in front of me had left the ordering window and just shot straight through. Didn't even bother to stop at the collections window. Odd, but not entirely abnormal... I guess. So anyway, without dwelling on this further I continued on.
Next, I was hovering outside the ordering window in my car. A kid. He was playing around with the electronic cashier in front of him and looked quite lost. He looked as though he was pressing way too many buttons for normality. It was just a bit odd. "Just a minute, be with you in a sec" was the first words that came out. Alrighty then. Time to fiddle with the change and get the required amount ready.
Medium six-nuggets meal. That's what I was thinking. Some more kids entered the ordering booth, and a quick conversation followed - still while the first kid was pressing away on the electronic cashier.
Some kid - "What happened with that lady? She just drove through."
Button pressing kid - "She didn't have enough money"
Some kid - "Really?"
Button pressing kid - "Yep. Not enough"
That was the entirety of the conversation, fairly riveting stuff. Now it was time to order. Good. I ordered the medium nuggets meal and then paid the required amount. "Thanks, and have a nice day" was the closing statement from the Maccas kid.
Now the collections window was where it was at. Here the intrigue begins. I pull up to the window and look through. More kids. Wow. Looks like it's the day where all the young 'uns come out to work. Good on them, though. Much better than sitting at home playing computer games or watching TV all day.
Looking about the place I notice that there is a chain of drinks next to the drinks dispenser. All large, and presumably, all Cokes. (The drink, nothing more). Kids everywhere. More kids were having a bit of a discussion and then I heard "just give it to him". Soon enough a large Coke was given to me. Riiiiiiiight. Can't complain, I guess.
So I thought that i'd get a free upsize - something like that. Oh no! What did I end up getting? A bag full of burgers and fries. Errr.... what the? It got even more interesting. The kid at the collections window told me to wait in the waiting bay. I diligently did so, hoping that my nuggets will arrive in the next batch. Nope.
After a couple of minutes the collection window kid came out with another bag full of goodies. Absolutely packed. Chips, Quarter Pounders, Big Macs, you name it. Bloody strange. "Thank you and sorry about the wait" is what was said to me. OMG.
So off I went home with about 4 packets of chips and a dozen burgers. No nuggets. Damn kids. LOL. An interesting adventure indeed.
So there I was at the Maccas drive-through, just entered, and noticed that the car in front of me had left the ordering window and just shot straight through. Didn't even bother to stop at the collections window. Odd, but not entirely abnormal... I guess. So anyway, without dwelling on this further I continued on.
Next, I was hovering outside the ordering window in my car. A kid. He was playing around with the electronic cashier in front of him and looked quite lost. He looked as though he was pressing way too many buttons for normality. It was just a bit odd. "Just a minute, be with you in a sec" was the first words that came out. Alrighty then. Time to fiddle with the change and get the required amount ready.
Medium six-nuggets meal. That's what I was thinking. Some more kids entered the ordering booth, and a quick conversation followed - still while the first kid was pressing away on the electronic cashier.
Some kid - "What happened with that lady? She just drove through."
Button pressing kid - "She didn't have enough money"
Some kid - "Really?"
Button pressing kid - "Yep. Not enough"
That was the entirety of the conversation, fairly riveting stuff. Now it was time to order. Good. I ordered the medium nuggets meal and then paid the required amount. "Thanks, and have a nice day" was the closing statement from the Maccas kid.
Now the collections window was where it was at. Here the intrigue begins. I pull up to the window and look through. More kids. Wow. Looks like it's the day where all the young 'uns come out to work. Good on them, though. Much better than sitting at home playing computer games or watching TV all day.
Looking about the place I notice that there is a chain of drinks next to the drinks dispenser. All large, and presumably, all Cokes. (The drink, nothing more). Kids everywhere. More kids were having a bit of a discussion and then I heard "just give it to him". Soon enough a large Coke was given to me. Riiiiiiiight. Can't complain, I guess.
So I thought that i'd get a free upsize - something like that. Oh no! What did I end up getting? A bag full of burgers and fries. Errr.... what the? It got even more interesting. The kid at the collections window told me to wait in the waiting bay. I diligently did so, hoping that my nuggets will arrive in the next batch. Nope.
After a couple of minutes the collection window kid came out with another bag full of goodies. Absolutely packed. Chips, Quarter Pounders, Big Macs, you name it. Bloody strange. "Thank you and sorry about the wait" is what was said to me. OMG.
So off I went home with about 4 packets of chips and a dozen burgers. No nuggets. Damn kids. LOL. An interesting adventure indeed.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Easter and the Queen's Birthday
Easter. Wow. It's been an age since I posted last. Busy, busy, busy. Looks like I managed to post again after the four day weekend. Heh. Ah well, it was a nice relaxing four days off. The highlight of the long weekend would have to be the Qantas v Ansett Social Cricket Cup. Oh yes and Happy Birthday to our Queen. Jolly good show!
So the cricket. Saturday. The inaugural Qantas vs Ansett Shield Cricket Match. Bwhaha. Why? Well one of the guys works at Qantas and during a clean up at the office they found this unused shield. Yoink! (Well not quite - cost him something in the order of $50).
Ten players for Ansett, and eleven for Qantas (includes one female). And the rules? Retire on 20, everyone gets a bowl (max 3 overs), immunity on Zero and no LBWs. Neat! It turned out to be a down-to-the-wire match. Unlike the Jason Gillespie double ton slaughter unleashed upon the Bangladesh Tigers.
Qantas scored 8-203 after the 30 overs. Not a bad effort at all. I ended up with 1-22 off 3 overs, got owned - but that happens. Meh, a catch was dropped in one of my overs as well! (Then again, I dropped one, so I can't complain). Top score for Qantas - 39 runs.
Ansetts turn. Off to a flyer of a start with 30 runs being scored in the first three overs - however things slowed right down and at 15 overs we were struggling to keep pace with our required run rate (95-odd runs at the end of 15). What was humorous about our innings start was that Dinesh was out three times before heading back to the pavilion on one run. Just wasn't his day.
When it was my turn to bat in it was approximately 4-120 . As it was immunity on zero, I decided to maximise the situation. First ball, gave my self some room and let loose. The ball sailed over the long-on boundary for a solid six. Solid hit indeed. I put on a great partnership with Dillan (who retired on 20) and Derrick (who retired on 20 after I left) before I had to leave the crease... yes on 20 not out. A good solid rear guard action by the three of us!
5 overs to go and there was still 30 to get - and by this stage I was a spectator. Who would have thought! Some good planning by the Qantas team meant that the final overs were being bowled by the most experienced bowlers in their side. However, Tom and Ant destroyed their bowling. Clobbering 18 in one over to effectively seal the match.
Ansett defeated Qantas with 5 wickets in hand (and 2 overs to spare). Go Ansett! The good news is that there is another Ansett/Qantas clash planned for the Queen's Birthday weekend. So i'm looking forward to it!
Speaking of the Queen it is her 80th birthday today. The reigning monarch of the Commonwealth. Happy Birthday! She's done an excellent job as Queen, and she deserves a mention in todays entry.
So the cricket. Saturday. The inaugural Qantas vs Ansett Shield Cricket Match. Bwhaha. Why? Well one of the guys works at Qantas and during a clean up at the office they found this unused shield. Yoink! (Well not quite - cost him something in the order of $50).
Ten players for Ansett, and eleven for Qantas (includes one female). And the rules? Retire on 20, everyone gets a bowl (max 3 overs), immunity on Zero and no LBWs. Neat! It turned out to be a down-to-the-wire match. Unlike the Jason Gillespie double ton slaughter unleashed upon the Bangladesh Tigers.
Qantas scored 8-203 after the 30 overs. Not a bad effort at all. I ended up with 1-22 off 3 overs, got owned - but that happens. Meh, a catch was dropped in one of my overs as well! (Then again, I dropped one, so I can't complain). Top score for Qantas - 39 runs.
Ansetts turn. Off to a flyer of a start with 30 runs being scored in the first three overs - however things slowed right down and at 15 overs we were struggling to keep pace with our required run rate (95-odd runs at the end of 15). What was humorous about our innings start was that Dinesh was out three times before heading back to the pavilion on one run. Just wasn't his day.
When it was my turn to bat in it was approximately 4-120 . As it was immunity on zero, I decided to maximise the situation. First ball, gave my self some room and let loose. The ball sailed over the long-on boundary for a solid six. Solid hit indeed. I put on a great partnership with Dillan (who retired on 20) and Derrick (who retired on 20 after I left) before I had to leave the crease... yes on 20 not out. A good solid rear guard action by the three of us!
5 overs to go and there was still 30 to get - and by this stage I was a spectator. Who would have thought! Some good planning by the Qantas team meant that the final overs were being bowled by the most experienced bowlers in their side. However, Tom and Ant destroyed their bowling. Clobbering 18 in one over to effectively seal the match.
Ansett defeated Qantas with 5 wickets in hand (and 2 overs to spare). Go Ansett! The good news is that there is another Ansett/Qantas clash planned for the Queen's Birthday weekend. So i'm looking forward to it!
Speaking of the Queen it is her 80th birthday today. The reigning monarch of the Commonwealth. Happy Birthday! She's done an excellent job as Queen, and she deserves a mention in todays entry.
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Corporate Games and First Review
Sunday the 26th, race day. Training up until now had to pay off... or else it would be a short day ineed. The trek over to Penrith (the Olympic Regatta Centre) wasn't so bad - a nice cruise down the M4. Only took about 40 minutes in the end - a fair distance, but less than I expected.
Got there a couple of hours before the first race and found where the rest of the team were sitting. The company took over a whole area (well all of the various companies had their respective areas), so the team was easy to spot.
A nice day out in the end. People everywhere. Quite the event. Not only were there simply races, there were also a couple of announcers - chatting away all day: calling races, delivering results, and having general light hearted chat. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Fast forward to the results then. Came first in the pool stage and therefore qualified for the semi-final (1st, 2nd, then 1st in the three individual heats). We managed to get a fairly competetive time of 52.48 seconds, whereas the leaders of the tourament thus far pushed past the line at just under 51 seconds.
Unfortunately for us, it wasn't to be. We got snapped in the semis. We had a bunch of support from the announcers, yet that wasn't enough to help us over. We were royally screwed. The drummer that we borrowed was hopeless - just kept banging the drums at random intervals. Dumbass.
So anyways, i've had my first review - and i've only been at work for a month. Intense. Kind of scary, really. Didn't know what to expect first up. In the end it was quite fulfilling. Got to have a good chat at where I am and where i'd like to go - and where I was thinking was on par with both of my superiors. Mad. Maybe they were being nice to be, as it was my first review - lol. Time will tell, time will tell.
Anyways, busy week ahead of me. Arg.
Got there a couple of hours before the first race and found where the rest of the team were sitting. The company took over a whole area (well all of the various companies had their respective areas), so the team was easy to spot.
A nice day out in the end. People everywhere. Quite the event. Not only were there simply races, there were also a couple of announcers - chatting away all day: calling races, delivering results, and having general light hearted chat. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Fast forward to the results then. Came first in the pool stage and therefore qualified for the semi-final (1st, 2nd, then 1st in the three individual heats). We managed to get a fairly competetive time of 52.48 seconds, whereas the leaders of the tourament thus far pushed past the line at just under 51 seconds.
Unfortunately for us, it wasn't to be. We got snapped in the semis. We had a bunch of support from the announcers, yet that wasn't enough to help us over. We were royally screwed. The drummer that we borrowed was hopeless - just kept banging the drums at random intervals. Dumbass.
So anyways, i've had my first review - and i've only been at work for a month. Intense. Kind of scary, really. Didn't know what to expect first up. In the end it was quite fulfilling. Got to have a good chat at where I am and where i'd like to go - and where I was thinking was on par with both of my superiors. Mad. Maybe they were being nice to be, as it was my first review - lol. Time will tell, time will tell.
Anyways, busy week ahead of me. Arg.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Ups and Downs - Life, really
The weekend was a nice, relaxing one. Cricket season is over, and other commitments also. Haven't had one of those in yonks! So what did I do? Sleep in and watch some Commonwealth Games. Now alot of people would diss the Comm Games, but they're not too bad in the end. It can get a little one sided, but there are some good competetive races from time to time. (I'm sure those outside Australia, and some inside, are sick and tired of hearing Advance Australia Fair).
Swimming and Cycling, as always was a real treat. The golden girls ripping up their cometitors in the pool and going after eachother was fantastic to watch. Constantly chasing that World Record White Line is something that never ceases to amaze. Probably isn't the most balanced of fields, but it is quite the achievement to get gold, silver, and bronze in an event and not drop a single gold (for the women). Pure ownage. I'm a big fan of cycling at the Velidrome as well - the Keirin is quite intense and watching the guys and girls power home is nailbiting - as finishes go down to the portions of wheels. Congrats to both Ryan Bailey and Anna Meares.
Those aren't the only two things I saw - those were the highlights of Super Saturday. I managed to watch some of the Light Weightlifting. Weighlifting? You have to be kidding, right? Well.. it wasn't too bad. Alexander Turner did quite well to take it out... and there were some laughs with the Cameroon dude - Etoundi. Gym, both male and female is not bad to watch either.
Anyways, enough about the Comm Games. Onto Monday. Wow. Had a shocker at work. Tell you what - not much was going at all. It was one of those days. The shared hard drive was full and all of the work that I was doing wasn't actually saving (not that DBArtisan was telling me that it wasn't saving - stupid thing).
At least the evening was better. Had Dragonboat training and this training set felt much better. I'm all pumped up for the race - that's what. Haha. Nothing like stabbing the water after a dreadful day at work. At least the day wasn't all bad. Also had a good chat to a Dragonboat teammate on the way to the station (first leg of the journey home). Maybe I was just happy to get out of the office... lol.
Meh.
Swimming and Cycling, as always was a real treat. The golden girls ripping up their cometitors in the pool and going after eachother was fantastic to watch. Constantly chasing that World Record White Line is something that never ceases to amaze. Probably isn't the most balanced of fields, but it is quite the achievement to get gold, silver, and bronze in an event and not drop a single gold (for the women). Pure ownage. I'm a big fan of cycling at the Velidrome as well - the Keirin is quite intense and watching the guys and girls power home is nailbiting - as finishes go down to the portions of wheels. Congrats to both Ryan Bailey and Anna Meares.
Those aren't the only two things I saw - those were the highlights of Super Saturday. I managed to watch some of the Light Weightlifting. Weighlifting? You have to be kidding, right? Well.. it wasn't too bad. Alexander Turner did quite well to take it out... and there were some laughs with the Cameroon dude - Etoundi. Gym, both male and female is not bad to watch either.
Anyways, enough about the Comm Games. Onto Monday. Wow. Had a shocker at work. Tell you what - not much was going at all. It was one of those days. The shared hard drive was full and all of the work that I was doing wasn't actually saving (not that DBArtisan was telling me that it wasn't saving - stupid thing).
At least the evening was better. Had Dragonboat training and this training set felt much better. I'm all pumped up for the race - that's what. Haha. Nothing like stabbing the water after a dreadful day at work. At least the day wasn't all bad. Also had a good chat to a Dragonboat teammate on the way to the station (first leg of the journey home). Maybe I was just happy to get out of the office... lol.
Meh.
Friday, March 17, 2006
Work? Howzat
Interesting week again this week. There doesn't seem to be a week so far where nothing happens. A good sign, really - although I doubt that this run of good luck can be maintained forever. I've now got the trifecta of bigwigs, thanks to a new addition of "who did I bump into near or at work today?". Who was I in close proximity to this time? Steve Waugh. Yep, ex-Aussie cricket captain.
I didn't actually get to speak to Steve, but I we caught the same lift. Impressive. It was late afternoon and I was on my way down to grab my sports bag off my sister. Being late afternoon, I wasn't the most aware person in the world. So into the lift I go and I hear people talking about cricket - not the amazing defeat of Australia, but India v Pakistan. Fair enough. After listening to about 5 seconds of the conversation, I look up and see who is actually in the lift. Some dude, some other dude, another random, and Steve. What? Steve? Damn! What luck!
Anyhow, moving on from one random event to another. I got a Christmas present from work. Interesting. I got an email for the floor effectively saying "come and see me if you are a new starter or graduate since January 2006". I thought we were all in trouble or something. Not quite. Apparently there was a glut of Christmas presents and the company was generous enough to pass it off to the newcomers. Nice work indeed. The christmas comes early idiom doesn't quite work here - but i'll take it :D.
More random things this week:
- I got paid
- My mobile phone bill is $64
- This coming weekend is the first entirely free weekend i've had since coming back to Australia in mid-January!
I didn't actually get to speak to Steve, but I we caught the same lift. Impressive. It was late afternoon and I was on my way down to grab my sports bag off my sister. Being late afternoon, I wasn't the most aware person in the world. So into the lift I go and I hear people talking about cricket - not the amazing defeat of Australia, but India v Pakistan. Fair enough. After listening to about 5 seconds of the conversation, I look up and see who is actually in the lift. Some dude, some other dude, another random, and Steve. What? Steve? Damn! What luck!
Anyhow, moving on from one random event to another. I got a Christmas present from work. Interesting. I got an email for the floor effectively saying "come and see me if you are a new starter or graduate since January 2006". I thought we were all in trouble or something. Not quite. Apparently there was a glut of Christmas presents and the company was generous enough to pass it off to the newcomers. Nice work indeed. The christmas comes early idiom doesn't quite work here - but i'll take it :D.
More random things this week:
- I got paid
- My mobile phone bill is $64
- This coming weekend is the first entirely free weekend i've had since coming back to Australia in mid-January!
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Ending 2005-6 with a Victory
Yesterday was a great day. Victory and celebration all around. Also, throughout the day I got to meet up with some old friends, which is great. Today is going to be a tough day to beat. Happiness all day, really.
The morning was spent down at the Vibe Hotel. Meetings, reports - excitement plus. I delivered a report, and it was a good sign that people didn't fall asleep. I was even heckled from some people in the room - plenty of excitement. At least heckling is a sign that people are listening- lol. Got to chat and mingle for a little while after the meeting before heading off to cricket.
Picked up Dini from Strathfield station on the way from the city to our home ground (Harold Park West Reserve). I was running late, and didn't get much of an opportunity to stop anywhere to get some lunch. We got there just on time, and I ducked out to buy something to eat. Bolted off to Carlingford Court to get some KFC, and raced back.
Half-way through eating my Zinger, the Dini-Tom partnership was broken and it was my turn to bat. I packed up the Zinger and headed out towards the pitch... without a bat. Very professional, lol. Turned back to grab a bat, and then I was all set. The bowling was rank, and my batting was worse. Out for 2. Clean bowled. At least I was playing a defensive block... but missed.
The team amassed 155 and declared, to give the opposition a chance to win the game (declaration put us 10 or so in front). As it was the last round of the season, Captain Tony decided to bring in a superior bowling attack, JB and I. We haven't bowled all season, and we definitely can not be classed as bowlers. Little did the team know how successful we would be.
I bowled the second over of the innings and my impact was felt straight away. First ball - dot ball, second ball - wide. Arg. Ball three - pitched short, down the middle of the pitch. The batsman attempts a pull shot, caught mid-on. A wicket! OMG! Who would have thought.
JB and I ripped through the opposition. The opposition declared at 5/39 (as they wanted to go home) leaving us 25 to chase. Final figures: Mark 2/12 off 2.5 overs, JB 2/20 off 3 overs (with one run-out to me). What figures, it certainly was an enjoyable innings.
The match ended with North Parramatta Cricket Club (us) winning Outright by 10 wickets. Go us!
Saturday night was also great. Celebrating 23rd birthdays of two Sydney Uni Engos. The birthday was down at Soup Plus on Margaret Street - an eatery where live Jazz music is played. It was a thorougly enjoyable night as I got to chat with mates that I haven't seen in a long, long time. Chatted away for hours! Anyhoo, there ends a thoroughly enjoyable day.
The morning was spent down at the Vibe Hotel. Meetings, reports - excitement plus. I delivered a report, and it was a good sign that people didn't fall asleep. I was even heckled from some people in the room - plenty of excitement. At least heckling is a sign that people are listening- lol. Got to chat and mingle for a little while after the meeting before heading off to cricket.
Picked up Dini from Strathfield station on the way from the city to our home ground (Harold Park West Reserve). I was running late, and didn't get much of an opportunity to stop anywhere to get some lunch. We got there just on time, and I ducked out to buy something to eat. Bolted off to Carlingford Court to get some KFC, and raced back.
Half-way through eating my Zinger, the Dini-Tom partnership was broken and it was my turn to bat. I packed up the Zinger and headed out towards the pitch... without a bat. Very professional, lol. Turned back to grab a bat, and then I was all set. The bowling was rank, and my batting was worse. Out for 2. Clean bowled. At least I was playing a defensive block... but missed.
The team amassed 155 and declared, to give the opposition a chance to win the game (declaration put us 10 or so in front). As it was the last round of the season, Captain Tony decided to bring in a superior bowling attack, JB and I. We haven't bowled all season, and we definitely can not be classed as bowlers. Little did the team know how successful we would be.
I bowled the second over of the innings and my impact was felt straight away. First ball - dot ball, second ball - wide. Arg. Ball three - pitched short, down the middle of the pitch. The batsman attempts a pull shot, caught mid-on. A wicket! OMG! Who would have thought.
JB and I ripped through the opposition. The opposition declared at 5/39 (as they wanted to go home) leaving us 25 to chase. Final figures: Mark 2/12 off 2.5 overs, JB 2/20 off 3 overs (with one run-out to me). What figures, it certainly was an enjoyable innings.
The match ended with North Parramatta Cricket Club (us) winning Outright by 10 wickets. Go us!
Saturday night was also great. Celebrating 23rd birthdays of two Sydney Uni Engos. The birthday was down at Soup Plus on Margaret Street - an eatery where live Jazz music is played. It was a thorougly enjoyable night as I got to chat with mates that I haven't seen in a long, long time. Chatted away for hours! Anyhoo, there ends a thoroughly enjoyable day.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
My First Film Appearance
The week is only half over and events continue to startle me (as i'm sure they'll startle you). This morning I got invited by my boss to participate in a company movie. Wow. How cool is that? Lucky me... three weeks in and i've made it already. Haha!
Truthfully, the film isn't going to be shown externally but oh well. I'll take it. Strange, strange indeed. I'll start from the top, the beginning of the day.
I leave the house, as per usual and hop onto the ferry. I arrive at work just before a quarter past 8. As per usual the grads Nathan and Kylie are reading the newspapers by the kitchen and I say hi. I greet the early keen beans in my team and proceed to make some breakfast (I brought in ham, how good am I?). Unfortunately for me there is only some Raisin Bread around, urgh. So what do I do? I do what the truly entrepreneurial person does.... go to another floor and poach some whitebread!
Down I go to Jesse's floor (Usyd - Engineering) and steal some whitebread. I'm spotted by some other grads in the process but everyone has a laugh. Finally I get my ham sandwich and contently sit at my desk, ready to consume my crowning achievement of the day!
Doug pops by and asks me if i'm free between 11 and 12. Yep. Interesting question. Next up there's the leading description. One of the films doing the rounds is a bit on the old side and it's time for an update. Then the question: "Are you interested in being a part of the new one?". Yes again! Although I did try to look cool, calm, and collected about it. Haha!
Turns out that 3 people from my team may feature in this new film. Quite the hit rate, considering that there are thousands and thousands of people to choose from. But I digress, back to the story.
Fast forward to 11 and I head down to the shooting location. I meet a couple of people on the floor and also meet my co-star for the day. An Associate Director. Ouch. How insignificant I am, lol. Oh well, good opportunity to meet and greet power players at work. So what do we do? We confidently walk around the lobby area and have a chat. Pretty cool. It's not often that you get to chat to a senior person at length (and we got to chat a fair bit because there were many takes from different angles, etc). Even the CEO dropped by and said hello, haha! Interesting day indeed.
Also an interesting note: The most senior person on my floor was walking past my booth to the kitchen when I was having a chat with Pritpal (last year's grad on my team) and I mentioned that this (the area that we work in) is party central. A stray look was cast my way. Once he was gone Pritpal and I couldn't stop laughing. Funny day... funny day indeed.
Stay tuned to find out whether i'm in the final cut, or if the scene(s) that include me end up on the cutting room floor. Haha!
Truthfully, the film isn't going to be shown externally but oh well. I'll take it. Strange, strange indeed. I'll start from the top, the beginning of the day.
I leave the house, as per usual and hop onto the ferry. I arrive at work just before a quarter past 8. As per usual the grads Nathan and Kylie are reading the newspapers by the kitchen and I say hi. I greet the early keen beans in my team and proceed to make some breakfast (I brought in ham, how good am I?). Unfortunately for me there is only some Raisin Bread around, urgh. So what do I do? I do what the truly entrepreneurial person does.... go to another floor and poach some whitebread!
Down I go to Jesse's floor (Usyd - Engineering) and steal some whitebread. I'm spotted by some other grads in the process but everyone has a laugh. Finally I get my ham sandwich and contently sit at my desk, ready to consume my crowning achievement of the day!
Doug pops by and asks me if i'm free between 11 and 12. Yep. Interesting question. Next up there's the leading description. One of the films doing the rounds is a bit on the old side and it's time for an update. Then the question: "Are you interested in being a part of the new one?". Yes again! Although I did try to look cool, calm, and collected about it. Haha!
Turns out that 3 people from my team may feature in this new film. Quite the hit rate, considering that there are thousands and thousands of people to choose from. But I digress, back to the story.
Fast forward to 11 and I head down to the shooting location. I meet a couple of people on the floor and also meet my co-star for the day. An Associate Director. Ouch. How insignificant I am, lol. Oh well, good opportunity to meet and greet power players at work. So what do we do? We confidently walk around the lobby area and have a chat. Pretty cool. It's not often that you get to chat to a senior person at length (and we got to chat a fair bit because there were many takes from different angles, etc). Even the CEO dropped by and said hello, haha! Interesting day indeed.
Also an interesting note: The most senior person on my floor was walking past my booth to the kitchen when I was having a chat with Pritpal (last year's grad on my team) and I mentioned that this (the area that we work in) is party central. A stray look was cast my way. Once he was gone Pritpal and I couldn't stop laughing. Funny day... funny day indeed.
Stay tuned to find out whether i'm in the final cut, or if the scene(s) that include me end up on the cutting room floor. Haha!
Monday, March 06, 2006
Aussie Big Wigs and Other Random Stuff
Work is what I had last week. No surprise there. I'll give you a brief rundown on what went on. A summary first, then some more detail afterwards:
Monday 27th - work
Tuesday 28th - work
Wednesday 1st - leave
Thursday 2nd - work
Friday 3rd - work
Saturday 4th- cricket
Sunday 5th - not much
Monday 6th- more work
Monday - first day of Dragonboating for the Corporate Games. It's been a long time since I dragonboated last and boy did I feel it. Things weren't really helped as I was placed in Row 2 from the front. No dipping for me, I actually have to paddle properly. Gah! Hopefully things will improve as training settles in.
Tuesday.... nothing but work.
Wednesday, what the? Heh. I took a day of leave. I haven't even worked up a day of leave and I got it! Woohoo! The advantages of having a great boss. I spent the day off at Sydney Uni funnily enough. Hanging out with Jess and some of the Libs at the SULC stall. Had to go dor a bit of a drive as well, but I won't really speak about that - nothing to write home about, really.
You may notice that i've spoken nothing about Aussie Big Wigs and lots about random stuff. Reason: Other Random Stuff and Aussie Big Wigs doesn't have quite the same punch as a subject. So relax.
Thursday was a big, big day. I got to see two power players in Australia - one in the realm of business and one in the realm of politics. Who are the two? Alan Moss (Macquarie Bank) and John Howard (Prime Minister of Oz). Woo! All in the space of half an hour as well. Crazy times, crazy times indeed.
Alan and John weren't at the same event. Let me make that point clear. However, they were located in the same building - the Westin Hotel. Being the lucky person that I am, I didn't actally get to chat with either of them... BUT I was able to stand almost at an arms length to both of them (at different times, obviously). Go me, and all of that.
Friday. Drinks, followed by... more drinks. Wow. Two sets of drinks in one night. I didn't go crazy - so all is good. Drinks were held for the new starters on my floor, followed by the ritual graduate drinks at Ryans on a Friday night (which seems to be a ritual for just about every other graduate in the area!). Home afterwards - late.
Saturday. March to Victory. Bold words considering we aren't the best team in the comp. I think an accurate description of our team would result in the word best not being featured anywhere. Hah! But I digress. The last round of the season is off to a good start. The opposition have been bowled out for 140-odd and we are on track with 4-80. I managed 2 catches, at first slip! Go me. I'm in next drop and the bowling attack doesn't seem too threatning. Dedication and focus shall win the day! High hopes as we March to Victory.
Seems like i've done a week. Might as well add today as well. Work again. Woohoo. I've almost finished the task that i've been given. Apparently it is "Critical" so it's a good thing that i'm almost finished. Testing, testing, testing is pretty much what i've been doing. Gotta make sure that I don't stuff things up!
Talking about stuffing things up. I'm sure i've stuffed up my body after today's marathon of a training session for Dragonboating. Not only did we have an extra long session today - I had to sit at the front with my assigned partner. The very front. Oh man. No pressure. Tired muscles is a good description of most of my body below the neck. I'm going to feel this one in the morning. Tiring on the one hand, yet refreshing on the other. Wierd. Oh and I half fell into the water. Damn boat docking - not easy when there is a current!
Anyhoo, more of the working life coming soon
Monday 27th - work
Tuesday 28th - work
Wednesday 1st - leave
Thursday 2nd - work
Friday 3rd - work
Saturday 4th- cricket
Sunday 5th - not much
Monday 6th- more work
Monday - first day of Dragonboating for the Corporate Games. It's been a long time since I dragonboated last and boy did I feel it. Things weren't really helped as I was placed in Row 2 from the front. No dipping for me, I actually have to paddle properly. Gah! Hopefully things will improve as training settles in.
Tuesday.... nothing but work.
Wednesday, what the? Heh. I took a day of leave. I haven't even worked up a day of leave and I got it! Woohoo! The advantages of having a great boss. I spent the day off at Sydney Uni funnily enough. Hanging out with Jess and some of the Libs at the SULC stall. Had to go dor a bit of a drive as well, but I won't really speak about that - nothing to write home about, really.
You may notice that i've spoken nothing about Aussie Big Wigs and lots about random stuff. Reason: Other Random Stuff and Aussie Big Wigs doesn't have quite the same punch as a subject. So relax.
Thursday was a big, big day. I got to see two power players in Australia - one in the realm of business and one in the realm of politics. Who are the two? Alan Moss (Macquarie Bank) and John Howard (Prime Minister of Oz). Woo! All in the space of half an hour as well. Crazy times, crazy times indeed.
Alan and John weren't at the same event. Let me make that point clear. However, they were located in the same building - the Westin Hotel. Being the lucky person that I am, I didn't actally get to chat with either of them... BUT I was able to stand almost at an arms length to both of them (at different times, obviously). Go me, and all of that.
Friday. Drinks, followed by... more drinks. Wow. Two sets of drinks in one night. I didn't go crazy - so all is good. Drinks were held for the new starters on my floor, followed by the ritual graduate drinks at Ryans on a Friday night (which seems to be a ritual for just about every other graduate in the area!). Home afterwards - late.
Saturday. March to Victory. Bold words considering we aren't the best team in the comp. I think an accurate description of our team would result in the word best not being featured anywhere. Hah! But I digress. The last round of the season is off to a good start. The opposition have been bowled out for 140-odd and we are on track with 4-80. I managed 2 catches, at first slip! Go me. I'm in next drop and the bowling attack doesn't seem too threatning. Dedication and focus shall win the day! High hopes as we March to Victory.
Seems like i've done a week. Might as well add today as well. Work again. Woohoo. I've almost finished the task that i've been given. Apparently it is "Critical" so it's a good thing that i'm almost finished. Testing, testing, testing is pretty much what i've been doing. Gotta make sure that I don't stuff things up!
Talking about stuffing things up. I'm sure i've stuffed up my body after today's marathon of a training session for Dragonboating. Not only did we have an extra long session today - I had to sit at the front with my assigned partner. The very front. Oh man. No pressure. Tired muscles is a good description of most of my body below the neck. I'm going to feel this one in the morning. Tiring on the one hand, yet refreshing on the other. Wierd. Oh and I half fell into the water. Damn boat docking - not easy when there is a current!
Anyhoo, more of the working life coming soon
Monday, February 27, 2006
I'm a busy bee
Busy. So many things going on at the moment. Work, cricket, Libs, dragonboating, grad events. It's really intense. Haven't really been able to update, apologies for that.
Work is great. Well, work plus the functions. Back with all the people I know, plus a few more additions. The team is just as fun as it was before... in fact even more so! I've also gotten to know quite a few people outside of my team - which is great. Work isn't so drole when you have a bunch of mates all around you.
Cricket. Last round we got defeated again. At least it was a defeat, instead of a slaughter. Many thanks must go to Dinesh for scoring a crazy 84. Good job. I was bowled for 3. I was looking good, although I still pick the odd wrong ball to play a shot - it cost me my wicket... again. We only lost by 1st innings points (30 odd runs).
Dragonboating. Let's talk about that. I've signed up for the Dragonboating for the Corporate Games. Training will last for about a month, and it's not too bad. I've dragonboated before and it's all coming back to me. This time it's quite different. I used to be towards the back - now i'm towards the front (2nd row). What's the deal? It's not like I improved. It's good exercise though, although I miss being a sweep - being the sweep is fun. Interestingly enough some of the grads from my year are in as well - some of the accountants.
Anyways, enough from me now. Tired. Need sleep now :). (I should start posting from work... lol).
Work is great. Well, work plus the functions. Back with all the people I know, plus a few more additions. The team is just as fun as it was before... in fact even more so! I've also gotten to know quite a few people outside of my team - which is great. Work isn't so drole when you have a bunch of mates all around you.
Cricket. Last round we got defeated again. At least it was a defeat, instead of a slaughter. Many thanks must go to Dinesh for scoring a crazy 84. Good job. I was bowled for 3. I was looking good, although I still pick the odd wrong ball to play a shot - it cost me my wicket... again. We only lost by 1st innings points (30 odd runs).
Dragonboating. Let's talk about that. I've signed up for the Dragonboating for the Corporate Games. Training will last for about a month, and it's not too bad. I've dragonboated before and it's all coming back to me. This time it's quite different. I used to be towards the back - now i'm towards the front (2nd row). What's the deal? It's not like I improved. It's good exercise though, although I miss being a sweep - being the sweep is fun. Interestingly enough some of the grads from my year are in as well - some of the accountants.
Anyways, enough from me now. Tired. Need sleep now :). (I should start posting from work... lol).
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
Orientation Thus Far is Great
Second day of work was great, although I hardly can call it work. Today was all about Communication - learning about what it means and how effective it is. I actually learnt quite alot today, which was quite a treat. It amazing how much that is obviously out there yet is unrecognised by most.
The day wasn't all filled with lectures and the like, that's for tomorrow - LOL. Today was more about recognising and developing communication and team skills, which equates to fun exercises throughout the day... and get to know grads a little better (well half of them anyway, since we were split up into two groups). By the end of the day I would have spoken to just about everyone in the room, with one exception - the group of UTS Accounting students. Don't think it'll happen either, it's a massive bunch of something like 6 girls and 2 guys and they all seem to know eachother quite well. No matter, many more people to meet later on.
Work is taking its toll, but for all the wrong reasons. I still have yet to adjust to getting up at 6:30/6:45am in the morning, but that could be because i'm still sleeping after midnight. That will need to change. I'm buggered, so i'd better go pass out on my bed now. Perhaps i'll describe what happened today and what I learnt at some later stage... or perhaps not :).
Night.
The day wasn't all filled with lectures and the like, that's for tomorrow - LOL. Today was more about recognising and developing communication and team skills, which equates to fun exercises throughout the day... and get to know grads a little better (well half of them anyway, since we were split up into two groups). By the end of the day I would have spoken to just about everyone in the room, with one exception - the group of UTS Accounting students. Don't think it'll happen either, it's a massive bunch of something like 6 girls and 2 guys and they all seem to know eachother quite well. No matter, many more people to meet later on.
Work is taking its toll, but for all the wrong reasons. I still have yet to adjust to getting up at 6:30/6:45am in the morning, but that could be because i'm still sleeping after midnight. That will need to change. I'm buggered, so i'd better go pass out on my bed now. Perhaps i'll describe what happened today and what I learnt at some later stage... or perhaps not :).
Night.
Monday, February 13, 2006
Starting Full Time Work
Today I join the rank of the full-time employed. I've done the casual jobs, i've done the vacation/placement job, now it is time for Act III of my career... full-time employment. Woo! What a doozy of a day it was. Training and Orientation all day.
After today, i'm not really even sure if i'm supposed to be even naming the company for which I work. So I won't. Haha. I don't want to get into any trouble at all. For those of you who know me, you don't really need to ask. If you really have no idea we'll just say that I work for an Investment Bank in Sydney.
A good day overall. Learning about the company itself, it's goals, it's achievements and the relevant state and federal legislation that makes up a part of the working envirnoment. A fairly intense day that didn't really leave too much room to mingle with the other grads - although there's lots of time for that later.
People from all over the company came to have a talk. There were the Human Resources people, recent Graduates from all over the company, as well as various executives and senior members of the company all wishing us well and imparting some valuable advice.
Tuesday, Wednesday, and possibly Thursday will also be training or orientation-related. So based on that it is likely that I will be starting 'real' work on Friday. Woo... see how it goes. One cool fact to finish up on - my first pay cheque comes in on Wednesday. I only started today! Haha! Woohoo!
After today, i'm not really even sure if i'm supposed to be even naming the company for which I work. So I won't. Haha. I don't want to get into any trouble at all. For those of you who know me, you don't really need to ask. If you really have no idea we'll just say that I work for an Investment Bank in Sydney.
A good day overall. Learning about the company itself, it's goals, it's achievements and the relevant state and federal legislation that makes up a part of the working envirnoment. A fairly intense day that didn't really leave too much room to mingle with the other grads - although there's lots of time for that later.
People from all over the company came to have a talk. There were the Human Resources people, recent Graduates from all over the company, as well as various executives and senior members of the company all wishing us well and imparting some valuable advice.
Tuesday, Wednesday, and possibly Thursday will also be training or orientation-related. So based on that it is likely that I will be starting 'real' work on Friday. Woo... see how it goes. One cool fact to finish up on - my first pay cheque comes in on Wednesday. I only started today! Haha! Woohoo!
Friday, February 10, 2006
Senate Passes RU486 Bill - R U Joking?
Wow. Today I am not a happy chappy. Why is that? Today the Australian Senate has passed the Therapeutic Goods Amendment (Repeal of Ministerial Responsibility For Approval of RU486) Bill 2005. What a joke. An absolute joke. The final vote was held at 4:49pm (Canberra time) and the result was 45 - 28 in favour of the bill.
First off, a brief on the Bill itself. The abortificant (the device which terminates the unborn baby's life) RU486 is currently a 'restricted drug' meaning that for it to be utilised in Australia it needs to be cleared with the Minister for Health (Tony Abbott). This Bill will pass the drug onto an independant body - the Therapeutic Drugs Administration (or TGA) for review without the need for Ministerial oversight.
Now lets have a breif on me for a second, so you all know where I stand. I am pro-life and am wholeheartedly against abortions except under special circumstances (e.g. rape). It may sound like I am sitting on the fence here but quite the contrary. I am a proponent of personal reponsibility and rape-induced pregnancies do not fall under personal responsibility. So anyway... back to the topic.
Why is it a problem that the Minister for Health lose his charge of determining whether or not this RU486 drug be allowed? Lots. First of all this drug is no ordinary drug and should not lose its status as a 'restricted drug'. Let us have a look at how horrendus this drug is and the damage that it can potentially cause.
[Note: for much of this I have not provided sources, but i'm sure you can google this information to validate it]
RU486 is one of two drugs used to abort an unborn child. Mifepristone (RU486) and misoprostol are the two drugs in question. RU486's role is to restrict the operation of progesterone - which maintains the nutrient lining of the uterus... effectively the baby's food supply. There is problem number one. Death via starvation. It is not a quick death, it is a slow and horrendous one. It gets worse - RU486 taken alone (before the second drug is ingested) doesn't always kill the unborn child. OMG! Death occurs only 60-70% of the time.
It doesn't really get that much better when you add drug number two - misoprostol. Misoprostol effectively causes contractions to expel the possibly-dead-but-not-quite-sure unborn child out of the womb. Fair enough, you have to get rid of the body. However, it's not always that easy. Even though most of the time the expulsion occurs within 4 hours, it has been the case where expulsion has occured up to 5 days later! Sigh.
Three, the unborn child isn't the only one that can die. That's right. If taken improperly the pregnant lass can die as well! Have a look at Holly Patterson in the United States for one case. Now, as these drug induced abortions and the human body are both inherently complex things it is difficult to categorically say that RU486 causes deaths directly, but it is entirely possible. Here's how the links can be made. It's not only just the one death, there have been several since the American TGA approved RU486's use of the drug a couple of years ago.
So judging by this it doesn't necessarily look like the safest drug on earth. Perhaps further study is warranted on the drug and its effects, the drug may or may not cause the death of a mother. It is hard to say... but when deaths are possible it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that the matter be looked into carefully before it is allowed to be used througout the country. The 'restricted drug' label is warranted given the evidence around and that label should not be dropped whatsoever.
The TGA may be know-hows in the medical field, and that's cool. Maybe they should have a look into the drug and write some reports on it and what not. That's fine. Removing the oversight of the Minister on a dangerous drug altogether is a big no-no, let the reports come in and let the Minister have a read and decide - that's fair. It is a potentially dangerous drug and therefore it should not be treated like a Panadol.
Proponents of the Bill mention that the experts should have a look. Now i'm not against experts having a say, they are the ones best positioned to make reports on these sorts of things. However, there is an important distinction that I have made here... as I have used the word report. When dealing with the safety of the Australian people, the elected government has the obligation to ensure our safety. Experts can say things like "the chance of getting seriously ill is so-and-so percent, and the chance of dying from this is blah percent" better than parliamentarians can, but the parliamentarain's role is decide on whether or not this is an acceptible risk for the public. We elect members of parliament and therefore the buck should stop with the parliamentarians, not some topical experts who have are accountable to nobody.
So there you have it. It is a dispicable drug that doesn't necessarily do it's job well (as in killing the baby outright) and it is questionable as to whether or not it is safe for the pregnant mother. As it is potentially lethal it should remain a 'restricted drug' and should remain under watch by the Minister for Health. I'm not saying that experts shouldn't have input, quite the contrary - they should input as much advice as possible. I'm saying that the decision for the drug to be accessible to mainstream Australia should lie with the Minister after the experts have their say.
It has been said that it is not a pro-life or pro-choice question at all. That's rubbish. Lets have a look at some Parliamentary Research. The paper says the following:
Restricted goods are defined under the Act as medicines ‘intended for use in women as abortifacients’. In other words, restricted goods provisions apply exclusively to medicines intended to induce an abortion. Medicines used for any purpose other than abortion are evaluated and regulated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) without any requirement for approval from the Minister.
This Bill will pave the way for all medicinal abortifacients to bypass Ministerial Responsibility, thus swinging the pendulum towards the pro-choice camp in a very big way. What is to stop the next baby-killer drug from bypassing the Minister when there is the trump card: RU486 is through, why not this one? Parliamentarians need to think, and think hard on where they stand on the issue of pro-life and pro-choice as well as look at the procedure involved for this drug in particular. It is NOT simply a Bill solely on process.
It saddens me to see the Senate vote the way that they have. Hopefully the House of Representatives defeats the Bill. Furthermore, lets look at another point. Only one application for RU486 has been lodged with the Minister for Health. One. This Bill can also, therefore, be considered a royal waste of time.
Moving on to some related topics. It baffles me as to why abortion is so prevalent and why abortion has so much support. If you don't want a baby, then don't get pregnant. That makes perfect sense to me. We shoudn't even be asking the pro-life or pro-choice question at all! I can understand that this is not such a simple thing in developing and third-world countries, but we live in Australia. Contraceptions are widely available AND it is a hell of a lot cheaper than abortions. Alas, this is another topic which will have to be dealt with another day.
Massive post today - I guess it shows my disappointment.
First off, a brief on the Bill itself. The abortificant (the device which terminates the unborn baby's life) RU486 is currently a 'restricted drug' meaning that for it to be utilised in Australia it needs to be cleared with the Minister for Health (Tony Abbott). This Bill will pass the drug onto an independant body - the Therapeutic Drugs Administration (or TGA) for review without the need for Ministerial oversight.
Now lets have a breif on me for a second, so you all know where I stand. I am pro-life and am wholeheartedly against abortions except under special circumstances (e.g. rape). It may sound like I am sitting on the fence here but quite the contrary. I am a proponent of personal reponsibility and rape-induced pregnancies do not fall under personal responsibility. So anyway... back to the topic.
Why is it a problem that the Minister for Health lose his charge of determining whether or not this RU486 drug be allowed? Lots. First of all this drug is no ordinary drug and should not lose its status as a 'restricted drug'. Let us have a look at how horrendus this drug is and the damage that it can potentially cause.
[Note: for much of this I have not provided sources, but i'm sure you can google this information to validate it]
RU486 is one of two drugs used to abort an unborn child. Mifepristone (RU486) and misoprostol are the two drugs in question. RU486's role is to restrict the operation of progesterone - which maintains the nutrient lining of the uterus... effectively the baby's food supply. There is problem number one. Death via starvation. It is not a quick death, it is a slow and horrendous one. It gets worse - RU486 taken alone (before the second drug is ingested) doesn't always kill the unborn child. OMG! Death occurs only 60-70% of the time.
It doesn't really get that much better when you add drug number two - misoprostol. Misoprostol effectively causes contractions to expel the possibly-dead-but-not-quite-sure unborn child out of the womb. Fair enough, you have to get rid of the body. However, it's not always that easy. Even though most of the time the expulsion occurs within 4 hours, it has been the case where expulsion has occured up to 5 days later! Sigh.
Three, the unborn child isn't the only one that can die. That's right. If taken improperly the pregnant lass can die as well! Have a look at Holly Patterson in the United States for one case. Now, as these drug induced abortions and the human body are both inherently complex things it is difficult to categorically say that RU486 causes deaths directly, but it is entirely possible. Here's how the links can be made. It's not only just the one death, there have been several since the American TGA approved RU486's use of the drug a couple of years ago.
So judging by this it doesn't necessarily look like the safest drug on earth. Perhaps further study is warranted on the drug and its effects, the drug may or may not cause the death of a mother. It is hard to say... but when deaths are possible it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that the matter be looked into carefully before it is allowed to be used througout the country. The 'restricted drug' label is warranted given the evidence around and that label should not be dropped whatsoever.
The TGA may be know-hows in the medical field, and that's cool. Maybe they should have a look into the drug and write some reports on it and what not. That's fine. Removing the oversight of the Minister on a dangerous drug altogether is a big no-no, let the reports come in and let the Minister have a read and decide - that's fair. It is a potentially dangerous drug and therefore it should not be treated like a Panadol.
Proponents of the Bill mention that the experts should have a look. Now i'm not against experts having a say, they are the ones best positioned to make reports on these sorts of things. However, there is an important distinction that I have made here... as I have used the word report. When dealing with the safety of the Australian people, the elected government has the obligation to ensure our safety. Experts can say things like "the chance of getting seriously ill is so-and-so percent, and the chance of dying from this is blah percent" better than parliamentarians can, but the parliamentarain's role is decide on whether or not this is an acceptible risk for the public. We elect members of parliament and therefore the buck should stop with the parliamentarians, not some topical experts who have are accountable to nobody.
So there you have it. It is a dispicable drug that doesn't necessarily do it's job well (as in killing the baby outright) and it is questionable as to whether or not it is safe for the pregnant mother. As it is potentially lethal it should remain a 'restricted drug' and should remain under watch by the Minister for Health. I'm not saying that experts shouldn't have input, quite the contrary - they should input as much advice as possible. I'm saying that the decision for the drug to be accessible to mainstream Australia should lie with the Minister after the experts have their say.
It has been said that it is not a pro-life or pro-choice question at all. That's rubbish. Lets have a look at some Parliamentary Research. The paper says the following:
Restricted goods are defined under the Act as medicines ‘intended for use in women as abortifacients’. In other words, restricted goods provisions apply exclusively to medicines intended to induce an abortion. Medicines used for any purpose other than abortion are evaluated and regulated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) without any requirement for approval from the Minister.
This Bill will pave the way for all medicinal abortifacients to bypass Ministerial Responsibility, thus swinging the pendulum towards the pro-choice camp in a very big way. What is to stop the next baby-killer drug from bypassing the Minister when there is the trump card: RU486 is through, why not this one? Parliamentarians need to think, and think hard on where they stand on the issue of pro-life and pro-choice as well as look at the procedure involved for this drug in particular. It is NOT simply a Bill solely on process.
It saddens me to see the Senate vote the way that they have. Hopefully the House of Representatives defeats the Bill. Furthermore, lets look at another point. Only one application for RU486 has been lodged with the Minister for Health. One. This Bill can also, therefore, be considered a royal waste of time.
Moving on to some related topics. It baffles me as to why abortion is so prevalent and why abortion has so much support. If you don't want a baby, then don't get pregnant. That makes perfect sense to me. We shoudn't even be asking the pro-life or pro-choice question at all! I can understand that this is not such a simple thing in developing and third-world countries, but we live in Australia. Contraceptions are widely available AND it is a hell of a lot cheaper than abortions. Alas, this is another topic which will have to be dealt with another day.
Massive post today - I guess it shows my disappointment.
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
Cambridge
All travel diary entries are chronologically ordered. If you have missed an entry go to the Special Features section on the right hand side and click on World Travel Diaries 2005-6.
Tuesday 5/12 (local)
Today's journeys took me far and wide, taking me through the English countryside and into Cambridge. As it is Winter there isn't really that much time for sightseeing (hours of daylight are substantially reduced), and Cambridge is pretty much all I got in today. Did pass through Oxford on the way back to London, but didn't get much of an opportunity to see it. However, Oxford is a story for another day!
The British rail system seems to be quite decent from first impressions, however it is somewhat different than back home in Australia. First of all, there is no one big station like Central - there are lots of big stations. Paddington, Kings Cross St.Pancras, Euston Road, they're all fairly large stations... which can make it a little more confusing to get around. In Australia... need to go to Newcastle, or Brisbane, or Melbourne? go to Central Station. Simple. In Britain, not so easy. To get to Salisbury you need to start at Waterloo, to get to Cambridge you need to start at Kings Cross, and to get to Oxford you need to start at Paddington. Well... it's not really that hard in the end. The train up to Cambridge was actually quite luxurious, even for Standard class. Ample space for each seat in both a legroom sense and also with respect to width. It is very, very easy to fall asleep on these trains. Which is a plus for me, hehe.
Now, one tip for those who are travelling to the United Kingdom. Be careful which BritRail pass you buy. This is a serious point. I didn't realise this whilst making travel plans back at home, but there are several categories of BritRail pass. Passes allow you to travel around the London area, or England, or the United Kingdom itself. I should have bought the London pass as opposed to the Flexipass (England + Scotland). Bah! Oh well. I'll know for next time.
I woke up at about 9:00am this morning and headed up to Cambridge not too long after getting up. After a one hour train ride I arrived at Cambridge by 11:00am. What initially surprised me was the size of Cambridge. Cambridge is small, in fact you can get around easily by foot or bike. The purchace of a city map at the train station proved my point (as well as the rows upon rows upon rows of bikes just outside the train station). I didn't hire a bike though, I did the tour of Cambridge by foot.
My primary intention of visiting Cambridge was to have a look around at the University. As I have not visited any University outside Sydney I expected the format to be quite similar - where the only exception to the Sydney Universities would be that the buildings be much older. My assumption couldn't be any further from the truth. The University is not one big blob, the University and the Colleges are all over the place. Have a look at the map, and have a look at where the University Colleges and Admin buildings lie!
I didn't get the opportunity to visit all of the colleges but I did visit a fair few. To rattle off a few: I visited the following Colleges: Downing, Pembroke, Kings, Trinity, Magdalene. The Colleges vary in both age and appearance, however most of them seem to have a common feature - the Quadrangle. Now i'm not quite sure what the fascination behind the quadrangle is and i'm sure i'll never know. An intersting theme, and i'm not really complaining about it.
Short entry today. Don't get me wrong - it was an enjoyable day. Just that there is only so much I can write on the topic.
Tuesday 5/12 (local)
Today's journeys took me far and wide, taking me through the English countryside and into Cambridge. As it is Winter there isn't really that much time for sightseeing (hours of daylight are substantially reduced), and Cambridge is pretty much all I got in today. Did pass through Oxford on the way back to London, but didn't get much of an opportunity to see it. However, Oxford is a story for another day!
The British rail system seems to be quite decent from first impressions, however it is somewhat different than back home in Australia. First of all, there is no one big station like Central - there are lots of big stations. Paddington, Kings Cross St.Pancras, Euston Road, they're all fairly large stations... which can make it a little more confusing to get around. In Australia... need to go to Newcastle, or Brisbane, or Melbourne? go to Central Station. Simple. In Britain, not so easy. To get to Salisbury you need to start at Waterloo, to get to Cambridge you need to start at Kings Cross, and to get to Oxford you need to start at Paddington. Well... it's not really that hard in the end. The train up to Cambridge was actually quite luxurious, even for Standard class. Ample space for each seat in both a legroom sense and also with respect to width. It is very, very easy to fall asleep on these trains. Which is a plus for me, hehe.
Now, one tip for those who are travelling to the United Kingdom. Be careful which BritRail pass you buy. This is a serious point. I didn't realise this whilst making travel plans back at home, but there are several categories of BritRail pass. Passes allow you to travel around the London area, or England, or the United Kingdom itself. I should have bought the London pass as opposed to the Flexipass (England + Scotland). Bah! Oh well. I'll know for next time.
I woke up at about 9:00am this morning and headed up to Cambridge not too long after getting up. After a one hour train ride I arrived at Cambridge by 11:00am. What initially surprised me was the size of Cambridge. Cambridge is small, in fact you can get around easily by foot or bike. The purchace of a city map at the train station proved my point (as well as the rows upon rows upon rows of bikes just outside the train station). I didn't hire a bike though, I did the tour of Cambridge by foot.
My primary intention of visiting Cambridge was to have a look around at the University. As I have not visited any University outside Sydney I expected the format to be quite similar - where the only exception to the Sydney Universities would be that the buildings be much older. My assumption couldn't be any further from the truth. The University is not one big blob, the University and the Colleges are all over the place. Have a look at the map, and have a look at where the University Colleges and Admin buildings lie!
I didn't get the opportunity to visit all of the colleges but I did visit a fair few. To rattle off a few: I visited the following Colleges: Downing, Pembroke, Kings, Trinity, Magdalene. The Colleges vary in both age and appearance, however most of them seem to have a common feature - the Quadrangle. Now i'm not quite sure what the fascination behind the quadrangle is and i'm sure i'll never know. An intersting theme, and i'm not really complaining about it.
Short entry today. Don't get me wrong - it was an enjoyable day. Just that there is only so much I can write on the topic.
King's College, Cambridge
King's College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
The Motherland
Monday 4/12 (local)
Britain, morning, immigration. That's where I stood after getting off the plane. Immigration was fairly quick and I got a preview of the infamous British accent. Love the British accent, haha. It's fantastic. I was actually sad enough to try and pull it off while talking to the immigration officer. Lots of laughs. The officer didn't give me a dirty look or anything like that, so i'll claim that as a victory - I pulled it off. Mwahah.
A car ride from Heathrow Airport was already pre-arranged. I would stay with Carmen's relatives in London - specifically a place near Northwick Park. After quickly dumping off the luggage at the house it was off to see the city of London, with a guide - Carmen's cousin. To get an initial bearing of where I started have a look at the Tube map. (Section B3, the Metropolitan Line - Purple).
So where was the first sightseeing destination for London? It was Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament - Westminster Station. Quite impressive actually. It doesn't have the awe inspiring view of block after block of skyscraper but it definitely had its charms. After milling about for a little while, and getting ripped off by some annoying 'charity' workers, it was off to Buckingham Palace. This time by foot.
Buckingham Palace is known well and I won't go into much detail here. One aspect of Buckingham Palace that does interest most tourists is the changing of the guard. The changing of the guard occurs everyday from Spring to Autumn and every other day during the period Autumn to Spring. 50/50 chance of seeing the guard. Lady Luck, as always, ensured that I didn't see the changing of the guard. Wrong day. Bah! Oh well, took some happy snaps and moved on.
More of London was seen as the day went on. St. James Park, Trafalgar Square, and Picadilly Circus all were visited. The highlight of the afternoon had to be viewing the Tower Bridge. The Tower Bridge is absolutely beautiful, proof of which can be seen in the photo below. It is important to note that there is both a London Bridge and a Tower Bridge. Tourists beware! Do not go to the wrong one. I did. The London Bridge is a flat, boring, plain bridge whereas the Tower Bridge is the majestic, cool, tall bridge that everyone wants to see.
That ends the sightseeing of London today. The rest of the United Kingdom awaits.
Britain, morning, immigration. That's where I stood after getting off the plane. Immigration was fairly quick and I got a preview of the infamous British accent. Love the British accent, haha. It's fantastic. I was actually sad enough to try and pull it off while talking to the immigration officer. Lots of laughs. The officer didn't give me a dirty look or anything like that, so i'll claim that as a victory - I pulled it off. Mwahah.
A car ride from Heathrow Airport was already pre-arranged. I would stay with Carmen's relatives in London - specifically a place near Northwick Park. After quickly dumping off the luggage at the house it was off to see the city of London, with a guide - Carmen's cousin. To get an initial bearing of where I started have a look at the Tube map. (Section B3, the Metropolitan Line - Purple).
So where was the first sightseeing destination for London? It was Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament - Westminster Station. Quite impressive actually. It doesn't have the awe inspiring view of block after block of skyscraper but it definitely had its charms. After milling about for a little while, and getting ripped off by some annoying 'charity' workers, it was off to Buckingham Palace. This time by foot.
Buckingham Palace is known well and I won't go into much detail here. One aspect of Buckingham Palace that does interest most tourists is the changing of the guard. The changing of the guard occurs everyday from Spring to Autumn and every other day during the period Autumn to Spring. 50/50 chance of seeing the guard. Lady Luck, as always, ensured that I didn't see the changing of the guard. Wrong day. Bah! Oh well, took some happy snaps and moved on.
More of London was seen as the day went on. St. James Park, Trafalgar Square, and Picadilly Circus all were visited. The highlight of the afternoon had to be viewing the Tower Bridge. The Tower Bridge is absolutely beautiful, proof of which can be seen in the photo below. It is important to note that there is both a London Bridge and a Tower Bridge. Tourists beware! Do not go to the wrong one. I did. The London Bridge is a flat, boring, plain bridge whereas the Tower Bridge is the majestic, cool, tall bridge that everyone wants to see.
That ends the sightseeing of London today. The rest of the United Kingdom awaits.
Big Ben
Big Ben Up Close
Buckingham Palace
Tower Bridge
Friday, January 20, 2006
Leaving the Land of the Free
Saturday 3/12 (local)
Started off at a decent time today - 9:00 am - and went for a walk down to the Columbus Circle Shopping Centre. I don't remember the name of the shopping centre but it's the one under the CNN/Time-Warner towers on the circumference of Columbus Circle. If you go there you'll know. I had a quick browse around the centre but didn't go into any particular store. So I can't tell you if the shope are expensive or reasonable.
I ate breakfast on the ground floor - no wait... the basement floor. The entire floor was dedicated to food. Seriously, there was food everywhere. The biggest food market i've seen. I had good ol' bacon and eggs and orange juice. So i'm eating well :D.
Today's adventure took me to the Brooklyn Bridge. Obviously I hopped onto the tram to get there. There wasn't too much hassle in getting there - the subway system is all figured out. It's easy to get to the Brooklyn Bridge but it could have been a little bit easier. The signs from the subway could have been more prominent, as a slight detour is required to get onto the pedestrian entrance. To the credit of the NYC subway there was a map which I initially ignored which eventually guided me towards the bridge.
The Brooklyn Bridge and the view from the bridge was fantastic. Seriously something worth seeing... well maybe not as super-fantastic as some of the other sights in America but it's great to visit such an iconic bridge. As I was saying, the view was fantastic - the odd scyscraper poking above the horizon could be something that looks ugly but seeing a whole mass of skyscrapers was impressive. Plus the water looks great, I love water.
It was obviously cold on the bridge and heaps windy as well. So I didn't really stay there for long. Took a whole bunch of happy snaps and headed back to Manhattan. Oh, as a reference one of the temperature indicator boards was showing 1 degree Celcius. Cold!
Back to town and it was time to do some shopping. Well - not the greatest of ideas considering that it was Thanksgiving period. I disembarked at 32nd Penn Station and walked towards Macy's (the largest department store in the world). Wham! People everywhere. It was crazy. It's just about crazy as Myer in Sydney for the Boxing Day sales but worse. It's difficult to describe but whoa... nuts.
As there were so many people in the store and surrounding areas I didn't stay there long. It was next to impossible to browse as there were either people in the way or people pushing you around. I guess people go crazy when there is a sale on. The only thing that I really bought in ther was a hot chocolate from their in-store Starbucks.
After Macy's, rather the craziness of Macy's, it was time to head back to the hotel for checkout. As it was a bit too early to head off to the airport I watched some tv - Mythbusters. Ahh.. gotta love that show. Two busted myths later (trapped in a falling lift equals dead and toy cars don't beat real cars when the only force is gravity) and it was 4:00pm. Time to head to the airport.
The only practical way to the airport was via the NYC subway, so that is what I took. This time I took a different route to the airport. Instead of taking the subway to Jamaica Station I took the subway down past Brooklyn to Howard Beach station.
Advice for everyone - don't do it. Take the train to Jamaica. The train to Howard Beach was a little unsettling. I wasn't too concerned for my safety whilst catching subway trains but it was here that I felt the least safe. Kind of eerie that trip. People looking at you, starting at you, and the carriages were dead quiet. I got to the airport on time but it could have been a little less unsettling.
Boarding and flight - nothing to special. Got to the airport well on time. The British Airways staff wanted me to use the eletronic check-in but it didn't quite work. LO. Technology didn't quite cut it. Oh well, ti's good to know that i've still got a job as a software engineer. The flight itself wasn't terribly exciting. I sat towards the front and in the central area of the plane. No windows, on the aisle. All I can remember is that there was a crazy baby on board that cried alot. The trip lasted 6 odd hours but as time zones were being corssed I arrived in England in the morning (leaving flight was at 6:30pm).
Started off at a decent time today - 9:00 am - and went for a walk down to the Columbus Circle Shopping Centre. I don't remember the name of the shopping centre but it's the one under the CNN/Time-Warner towers on the circumference of Columbus Circle. If you go there you'll know. I had a quick browse around the centre but didn't go into any particular store. So I can't tell you if the shope are expensive or reasonable.
I ate breakfast on the ground floor - no wait... the basement floor. The entire floor was dedicated to food. Seriously, there was food everywhere. The biggest food market i've seen. I had good ol' bacon and eggs and orange juice. So i'm eating well :D.
Today's adventure took me to the Brooklyn Bridge. Obviously I hopped onto the tram to get there. There wasn't too much hassle in getting there - the subway system is all figured out. It's easy to get to the Brooklyn Bridge but it could have been a little bit easier. The signs from the subway could have been more prominent, as a slight detour is required to get onto the pedestrian entrance. To the credit of the NYC subway there was a map which I initially ignored which eventually guided me towards the bridge.
The Brooklyn Bridge and the view from the bridge was fantastic. Seriously something worth seeing... well maybe not as super-fantastic as some of the other sights in America but it's great to visit such an iconic bridge. As I was saying, the view was fantastic - the odd scyscraper poking above the horizon could be something that looks ugly but seeing a whole mass of skyscrapers was impressive. Plus the water looks great, I love water.
It was obviously cold on the bridge and heaps windy as well. So I didn't really stay there for long. Took a whole bunch of happy snaps and headed back to Manhattan. Oh, as a reference one of the temperature indicator boards was showing 1 degree Celcius. Cold!
Back to town and it was time to do some shopping. Well - not the greatest of ideas considering that it was Thanksgiving period. I disembarked at 32nd Penn Station and walked towards Macy's (the largest department store in the world). Wham! People everywhere. It was crazy. It's just about crazy as Myer in Sydney for the Boxing Day sales but worse. It's difficult to describe but whoa... nuts.
As there were so many people in the store and surrounding areas I didn't stay there long. It was next to impossible to browse as there were either people in the way or people pushing you around. I guess people go crazy when there is a sale on. The only thing that I really bought in ther was a hot chocolate from their in-store Starbucks.
After Macy's, rather the craziness of Macy's, it was time to head back to the hotel for checkout. As it was a bit too early to head off to the airport I watched some tv - Mythbusters. Ahh.. gotta love that show. Two busted myths later (trapped in a falling lift equals dead and toy cars don't beat real cars when the only force is gravity) and it was 4:00pm. Time to head to the airport.
The only practical way to the airport was via the NYC subway, so that is what I took. This time I took a different route to the airport. Instead of taking the subway to Jamaica Station I took the subway down past Brooklyn to Howard Beach station.
Advice for everyone - don't do it. Take the train to Jamaica. The train to Howard Beach was a little unsettling. I wasn't too concerned for my safety whilst catching subway trains but it was here that I felt the least safe. Kind of eerie that trip. People looking at you, starting at you, and the carriages were dead quiet. I got to the airport on time but it could have been a little less unsettling.
Boarding and flight - nothing to special. Got to the airport well on time. The British Airways staff wanted me to use the eletronic check-in but it didn't quite work. LO. Technology didn't quite cut it. Oh well, ti's good to know that i've still got a job as a software engineer. The flight itself wasn't terribly exciting. I sat towards the front and in the central area of the plane. No windows, on the aisle. All I can remember is that there was a crazy baby on board that cried alot. The trip lasted 6 odd hours but as time zones were being corssed I arrived in England in the morning (leaving flight was at 6:30pm).
Brooklyn Bridge
Looking towards the Financial District
Thursday, January 19, 2006
More to See in NYC (Part 2)
Friday 2/12 (local)
I mentioned that the tour was very informative and it was, no joke. On the tour our attention was drawn to Bono's residence, Yoko Ono's residence, Madonna's old residence, the Dakota hotel (where John Lennon was shot), Regis' work residence, the shooting location of Will and Grace, and much much more. There were so many facts that i've forgotten most of them :).
The Uptown Loop tour passed through several New York City points of interest, besides points of modern pop/celebrity culture. We as a sightseeing tour group passed through the largest gothic cathedral in the world - St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Apollo Theatre, the resting place of General Ulysses Grant, Harlem, and Museum Row.
I got off at one of the stops on Museum Row, that stop was the closest one to the Guggenheim Museum. The Guggenheim Museum has to be one of the most known museums in the world, right up there with the Louvre and the Smithsonian Institute. Unfortunately for me the museum was undergoing a rennovation - but there was still an exhibition on. The exhibition showing was Russia!, a collection of Russian artwork through time. Probably not the greatest collection of works around the world but I learnt much - so it wasn't all that bad.
To top off an intense two days of sightseeing one more tour was taken. This tour was a special tour only during the December/January period, when all of New York City (or large tranches of it) are illuminated by Christmas lights. Unfortunately for me it was a 2+ hour trip. I thought it would be a quick drive around Midtown as that's where Macy's and the Rockerfeller Centre were. It was unfortunate because I needed to go to the bathroom about half way. OMG.
Lesson for everyone - before doing tours and things like that make sure you go to the bathroom! Even if you don't really need to go at the time. To finish off the story and the day i'll say that I didn't make it to the end of the trip. I got close but I didn't finish it off. I made it to the last leg of the tour (Rockerfeller to Times Square)... but I had to get off at the Rockerfeller and bolt to the dunny. LOL. Almost ran straight into the female toilets as well (as the two bathrooms were in completely different locations and signage wasn't so obvious). The trip was great though.
The night lights tour drove around a fair slice of the island of Manhattan. We went through Broadway, over to the Chrysler buliding and Grand Central Station, past the Empire State Buliding, up to Columbus Circle, and back to Macy's and the Rockerfeller Centre. I'm sure that there were more locations but bear in mind that for half of the trip I was desperate to use the loo.
Anyhow, that's pretty much it for the day. Quite alot to take in for a day - information overload. One more day in America left (and it's not even a full day).
I mentioned that the tour was very informative and it was, no joke. On the tour our attention was drawn to Bono's residence, Yoko Ono's residence, Madonna's old residence, the Dakota hotel (where John Lennon was shot), Regis' work residence, the shooting location of Will and Grace, and much much more. There were so many facts that i've forgotten most of them :).
The Uptown Loop tour passed through several New York City points of interest, besides points of modern pop/celebrity culture. We as a sightseeing tour group passed through the largest gothic cathedral in the world - St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Apollo Theatre, the resting place of General Ulysses Grant, Harlem, and Museum Row.
I got off at one of the stops on Museum Row, that stop was the closest one to the Guggenheim Museum. The Guggenheim Museum has to be one of the most known museums in the world, right up there with the Louvre and the Smithsonian Institute. Unfortunately for me the museum was undergoing a rennovation - but there was still an exhibition on. The exhibition showing was Russia!, a collection of Russian artwork through time. Probably not the greatest collection of works around the world but I learnt much - so it wasn't all that bad.
To top off an intense two days of sightseeing one more tour was taken. This tour was a special tour only during the December/January period, when all of New York City (or large tranches of it) are illuminated by Christmas lights. Unfortunately for me it was a 2+ hour trip. I thought it would be a quick drive around Midtown as that's where Macy's and the Rockerfeller Centre were. It was unfortunate because I needed to go to the bathroom about half way. OMG.
Lesson for everyone - before doing tours and things like that make sure you go to the bathroom! Even if you don't really need to go at the time. To finish off the story and the day i'll say that I didn't make it to the end of the trip. I got close but I didn't finish it off. I made it to the last leg of the tour (Rockerfeller to Times Square)... but I had to get off at the Rockerfeller and bolt to the dunny. LOL. Almost ran straight into the female toilets as well (as the two bathrooms were in completely different locations and signage wasn't so obvious). The trip was great though.
The night lights tour drove around a fair slice of the island of Manhattan. We went through Broadway, over to the Chrysler buliding and Grand Central Station, past the Empire State Buliding, up to Columbus Circle, and back to Macy's and the Rockerfeller Centre. I'm sure that there were more locations but bear in mind that for half of the trip I was desperate to use the loo.
Anyhow, that's pretty much it for the day. Quite alot to take in for a day - information overload. One more day in America left (and it's not even a full day).
Flight Deck USS Intrepid
Seinfeld Soup Nazi Place
Dakota Hotel (Lennon Shot here)
St.Patrick's Cathedral
Times Square at Night
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
More to See in NYC
Friday 2/12 (local)
Today was another intense day of sightseeing. Hmm. I'm saying that way too often. I'm not really getting alot of sleep, but oh well - not oveseas much and I won't get th oppoortunity to do so once I start full-time work.
Went for a morning stroll down to the Rockerfeller Centre as I needed to check out of the Vanderbilt YMCA that day. Needed to have a quick stroll around the area before departing for another New York locale. It was quite a nice stroll in the end. The overall atmosphere of New York City is fantastic, and the morning stroll showed me why. It's great to have a short holiday here.
So first off it was time to move hostels - from the Vanderbilt YMCA to Swiss 1292. Again another hostel that is not quite so near a NY subway station. Although i'm not too sure why i'm complaining... there's more coverage in NYC than in Sydney. The hostel lies on West 54th street however the nearest stations are 59th St Columbus Circle and 50th Street (on the blue line). I got off at 59th St Columbus station and walked down to the hostel. (Map for the entire New York City subway).
Everything didn't quite go to plan. It was 11:00am and the friendly lady at the desk told me that check-in was at 2:00pm. Damn. Luckily luggage could be dumped there and that's exactly what I did before heading out for some more sightseeing. Note: the luggage storage was a shed out the back.
I was interested in both the helicoptor tour and the Intrepid Air-Space Museum. As I really didn't have time for both before 2:00pm I chose to go to the Intrepid Museum, primarily because it was closer.
The Intrepid Air-Space Museum was fantastic. Being a sci-fi fan and highly interested in military history it was quite a treat. Not only did I get to be on an aircraft carrier deck, I also got to see a variety of planes, and I also got to check out the captains deck. Truly amazing. Not for everyone, but definitely for me!
After the Intrepid I needed to head back to the Swiss 1291 hostel to pick up the room key. The collection of the room key was easily done and then the room was shown. A 6-bed room (more like 3 double bunks), fairly spacious and not too cold. Reasonable.
Following getting the room keys it was off to explore the Upper East and Upper West of Manhattan as they have been left largely untouched. So I hopped onto the Uptown Loop of the Sightseeing tour.
This was quite a good tour as the guide was very knowledgable and quite charismatic. We went up the Western border of Central park - where some of the New York City elite reside. The buildings along the park were not only expensive but were also quite majestic.
Today was another intense day of sightseeing. Hmm. I'm saying that way too often. I'm not really getting alot of sleep, but oh well - not oveseas much and I won't get th oppoortunity to do so once I start full-time work.
Went for a morning stroll down to the Rockerfeller Centre as I needed to check out of the Vanderbilt YMCA that day. Needed to have a quick stroll around the area before departing for another New York locale. It was quite a nice stroll in the end. The overall atmosphere of New York City is fantastic, and the morning stroll showed me why. It's great to have a short holiday here.
So first off it was time to move hostels - from the Vanderbilt YMCA to Swiss 1292. Again another hostel that is not quite so near a NY subway station. Although i'm not too sure why i'm complaining... there's more coverage in NYC than in Sydney. The hostel lies on West 54th street however the nearest stations are 59th St Columbus Circle and 50th Street (on the blue line). I got off at 59th St Columbus station and walked down to the hostel. (Map for the entire New York City subway).
Everything didn't quite go to plan. It was 11:00am and the friendly lady at the desk told me that check-in was at 2:00pm. Damn. Luckily luggage could be dumped there and that's exactly what I did before heading out for some more sightseeing. Note: the luggage storage was a shed out the back.
I was interested in both the helicoptor tour and the Intrepid Air-Space Museum. As I really didn't have time for both before 2:00pm I chose to go to the Intrepid Museum, primarily because it was closer.
The Intrepid Air-Space Museum was fantastic. Being a sci-fi fan and highly interested in military history it was quite a treat. Not only did I get to be on an aircraft carrier deck, I also got to see a variety of planes, and I also got to check out the captains deck. Truly amazing. Not for everyone, but definitely for me!
After the Intrepid I needed to head back to the Swiss 1291 hostel to pick up the room key. The collection of the room key was easily done and then the room was shown. A 6-bed room (more like 3 double bunks), fairly spacious and not too cold. Reasonable.
Following getting the room keys it was off to explore the Upper East and Upper West of Manhattan as they have been left largely untouched. So I hopped onto the Uptown Loop of the Sightseeing tour.
This was quite a good tour as the guide was very knowledgable and quite charismatic. We went up the Western border of Central park - where some of the New York City elite reside. The buildings along the park were not only expensive but were also quite majestic.
Radio City - Rockerfeller
Christmas Decorations - Rockerfeller
CNN/Time Warner Building
Outside Trump Towers
Aboard the USS Intrepid
Monday, January 16, 2006
Midtown and Down (Part 2)
Thursday 1/12 (local)
The next step was the financial powerhouse of New York City and the world - the venerable Wall Street. Totally overrated - can't see anything, that's why. I was looking forward to hopping into the New York Stock Exchange for a look, but alas. Closed to the public due to September 11. Had to visit I guess. I'm sure things get exciting inside the buildings but tourists don't get to see anything. I did get to see some fully armed police though - very cool. The rifles they were carrying were sleel, deadly and probably three quarters of a metre long. I wanted to get a photo with them, but was scared that i'd get shot or imprisoned. Haha.
Anyway, after the disappointment of Wall Street I hopped onto the City Sightseeing bus and headed down to the UN Centre - for the guided tour. A little strange fact (although it makes sense) is that the entire compound is international territory and not United States territory. If you go to New York City the UN tour is something worth seeing. Got a tour of the Conference building which included the Secuirty Council, Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly. It's good to visit these places - the big players of the world all visit here from time to time. A neat place to visit indeed.
It was now starting to get a little darker but the sightseeing continued. As mentioned before this day was packed. So the next sighteseeing location was Madame Toussaud's Wax Museum. This was a neat little place to go to, just run around and take photos with famous people. Interesting, but I wouldn't go back a second time. Snap, snap, and go.
After Madame Toussauds it was time to head into a Chinese restaurant. Found some Chinese restaurant on the way to the Wax Museum and made a mental note to come back to it afterwards. Truthfully, this is the first Chinese meal that i've had since leaving Australia. It was a Shanghai-nese restaurant (Northern anyway, not Canto) and I had some Schezuan chicken - very nice indeed. I was also thinking of Shanghai stir fry noodles as well, but oh well... only could choose one.
Next stop it was the New York Skytour. First off let me tell you - on it's own it is a ripoff. Fortunately the New York Card covers the ride, so all good. It's quite neat how you can see New York from the air but it definitely isn't worth US$20 unless it's real. While the views on the skytour were good there was far too much movement. If you go and do the Skytour you will know what I mean. Probably not as good as a helicopter tour of the city - but cheaper.
Oh, oops. Got to backtrack a little. The Skytour is actually inside the Empire State Building. Something that I forgot to mention. Anyways, the highlight of the night was to follow the Skytour - the view from the top of the Empire State Building (technically not the top, but you know what I mean).
Let me tell you up front - this is a must do! Admittedly I did it at night but i'm sure that the view is just as good if not better during the daytime. It was bloody cold and bloody windy but boy was it worth it! I took many pictures although a vast majority of them didn't actually develop well, which is a bit of a shame. Oh well, some of them did turn out well and look mighty impressive. I didn't really stay out that long - it was way too cold. My hands were about ready to fall off after taking the photos. Damn cold.
An intense day of sightseeing - Very tiring yet very rewarding. Wish I had more time in New York but no matter. Got to make do with what you've got.
The next step was the financial powerhouse of New York City and the world - the venerable Wall Street. Totally overrated - can't see anything, that's why. I was looking forward to hopping into the New York Stock Exchange for a look, but alas. Closed to the public due to September 11. Had to visit I guess. I'm sure things get exciting inside the buildings but tourists don't get to see anything. I did get to see some fully armed police though - very cool. The rifles they were carrying were sleel, deadly and probably three quarters of a metre long. I wanted to get a photo with them, but was scared that i'd get shot or imprisoned. Haha.
Anyway, after the disappointment of Wall Street I hopped onto the City Sightseeing bus and headed down to the UN Centre - for the guided tour. A little strange fact (although it makes sense) is that the entire compound is international territory and not United States territory. If you go to New York City the UN tour is something worth seeing. Got a tour of the Conference building which included the Secuirty Council, Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly. It's good to visit these places - the big players of the world all visit here from time to time. A neat place to visit indeed.
It was now starting to get a little darker but the sightseeing continued. As mentioned before this day was packed. So the next sighteseeing location was Madame Toussaud's Wax Museum. This was a neat little place to go to, just run around and take photos with famous people. Interesting, but I wouldn't go back a second time. Snap, snap, and go.
After Madame Toussauds it was time to head into a Chinese restaurant. Found some Chinese restaurant on the way to the Wax Museum and made a mental note to come back to it afterwards. Truthfully, this is the first Chinese meal that i've had since leaving Australia. It was a Shanghai-nese restaurant (Northern anyway, not Canto) and I had some Schezuan chicken - very nice indeed. I was also thinking of Shanghai stir fry noodles as well, but oh well... only could choose one.
Next stop it was the New York Skytour. First off let me tell you - on it's own it is a ripoff. Fortunately the New York Card covers the ride, so all good. It's quite neat how you can see New York from the air but it definitely isn't worth US$20 unless it's real. While the views on the skytour were good there was far too much movement. If you go and do the Skytour you will know what I mean. Probably not as good as a helicopter tour of the city - but cheaper.
Oh, oops. Got to backtrack a little. The Skytour is actually inside the Empire State Building. Something that I forgot to mention. Anyways, the highlight of the night was to follow the Skytour - the view from the top of the Empire State Building (technically not the top, but you know what I mean).
Let me tell you up front - this is a must do! Admittedly I did it at night but i'm sure that the view is just as good if not better during the daytime. It was bloody cold and bloody windy but boy was it worth it! I took many pictures although a vast majority of them didn't actually develop well, which is a bit of a shame. Oh well, some of them did turn out well and look mighty impressive. I didn't really stay out that long - it was way too cold. My hands were about ready to fall off after taking the photos. Damn cold.
An intense day of sightseeing - Very tiring yet very rewarding. Wish I had more time in New York but no matter. Got to make do with what you've got.
New York Stock Exchange
United Nations Secuirty Council
New York at Night
New York at Night
Sunday, January 15, 2006
Midtown and Down
Thursday 1/12 (local)
Today consisted of power sightseeing. I ventured all over the lower half of Manhattan. In particular I went past Battery Park, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the UN complex, Madam Toussauds, and the Empire State Building.
Today was an intense day because New York City is huge and I only had two and a half days left, practically. So what was required before I started? Passes. Yep. Tourist busses called New York Sightseeing (or something) are able to take you all over town - so I bought a two day pass so that I could both visit attractions and travel as well. The pass cost US$109. Quite good value for money as you will soon find out.
So first off it was down to Battery Park - as that is where the ferries to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis island are. Now, Battery Park is called that because it is the site of an old fort. Batteries of cannons were obviously housed within the fort - and hence resulted in the super creative name of Battery Park. An interesting little fort: flat and circular with decomissioned cannons sitting at the firing ports (windows).
After wandering around for a while and listening to the coloured bands playing at the Park it was time to see the famous Statue of Liberty. First off, it was cold. Bloody cold. Then I hopped onto the ferry... and stayed outside. Cold is an understatement... a very big one. I was freezing my ass off outside - but I had a feeling that staying inside will mean bad photos or no photos of the statue. No pain no gain. Camping out on the best spot proved to be a wise choice indeed.
The Statue of Liberty is a magnificent structure majestically standing above the water. It's quite calming looking at the jade-like green structure that makes up Lady Liberty. Obviously some happy snaps were taken but it really is a sight to see. Some people may think - what is the point? but that's definitely not what I was thinking.
It does sound like a bit of a cliche but the Statue of Liberty really is the leading image of freedom and democracy. Immigrants leaving the Old World or the ravages of 20th century war really would have been elated to see the Statue as they entered New York City. A magnificent sight and a very cultural/spiritual experience as well.
Speaking of immigrants - that leads me to Ellis Island - the next stop for the ferry that I took. This time, however, I sat inside the heated interior of the ferry. A wise move, a wise move indeed. After the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island wasn't really that special (although in isolation the Ellis Island Immigration Centre is an interesting visitng point). Here all the immigrants to the United States (via New York City) from abroad would have to be held here and be processed before being allowed entry. Interesting. Inside is an immigration museum - but I didn't go in and have a look... there was much, much more to do.
Today consisted of power sightseeing. I ventured all over the lower half of Manhattan. In particular I went past Battery Park, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the UN complex, Madam Toussauds, and the Empire State Building.
Today was an intense day because New York City is huge and I only had two and a half days left, practically. So what was required before I started? Passes. Yep. Tourist busses called New York Sightseeing (or something) are able to take you all over town - so I bought a two day pass so that I could both visit attractions and travel as well. The pass cost US$109. Quite good value for money as you will soon find out.
So first off it was down to Battery Park - as that is where the ferries to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis island are. Now, Battery Park is called that because it is the site of an old fort. Batteries of cannons were obviously housed within the fort - and hence resulted in the super creative name of Battery Park. An interesting little fort: flat and circular with decomissioned cannons sitting at the firing ports (windows).
After wandering around for a while and listening to the coloured bands playing at the Park it was time to see the famous Statue of Liberty. First off, it was cold. Bloody cold. Then I hopped onto the ferry... and stayed outside. Cold is an understatement... a very big one. I was freezing my ass off outside - but I had a feeling that staying inside will mean bad photos or no photos of the statue. No pain no gain. Camping out on the best spot proved to be a wise choice indeed.
The Statue of Liberty is a magnificent structure majestically standing above the water. It's quite calming looking at the jade-like green structure that makes up Lady Liberty. Obviously some happy snaps were taken but it really is a sight to see. Some people may think - what is the point? but that's definitely not what I was thinking.
It does sound like a bit of a cliche but the Statue of Liberty really is the leading image of freedom and democracy. Immigrants leaving the Old World or the ravages of 20th century war really would have been elated to see the Statue as they entered New York City. A magnificent sight and a very cultural/spiritual experience as well.
Speaking of immigrants - that leads me to Ellis Island - the next stop for the ferry that I took. This time, however, I sat inside the heated interior of the ferry. A wise move, a wise move indeed. After the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island wasn't really that special (although in isolation the Ellis Island Immigration Centre is an interesting visitng point). Here all the immigrants to the United States (via New York City) from abroad would have to be held here and be processed before being allowed entry. Interesting. Inside is an immigration museum - but I didn't go in and have a look... there was much, much more to do.
The Statue of Liberty
Manhattan Island (South)
Wall Street
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Return to the Big Apple
Wednesday 30/11 (local)
It was an early morning today as it was off to New York City - the return. A teary farewell from my relos followed by some preliminary sightseeing in New York City. Oh - also saw a Broadway show! Truthfully not terribly much was done in a holiday sense - which is a bit of a shame. But that's what happens sometimes. It all wasn't a waste so don't worry about that. I did come to terms with the general layout of the area though.
Train, Pennsylvania, New York City - Penn Station. Time to check into the hostel. Unfortunately there were no real stations nearby (subway stations). So anyway - off to 59th street on the Yellow (N/R/W) line. A couple of blocks to walk and there I was at the Vanderbilt YMCA. Tiny, tiny rooms! But a clean bed is all that's really needed - so all good. (Map for the entire New York City subway)
As I checked in at 12:00 pm (midday) there really wasn't that much time to sightsee - as days are short and I was yet to eat lunch. So step one was to find lunch. Wandering around the Vanderbilt resulted in finding a nice little food shop. A hot dog shop near the United Nations complex. I ordered a Pacific Hot Dog, and it was very nice indeed. Probably not the healthiest thing to have, but oh well.
So in the afternoon I wandered around the Midtown East area of Manhattan. Just browsing as it were. It's quite a feeling just walking through the streets of NYC. I ended up getting a look at the United Nations Secretariat building, the Chrysler Building and Grand Central Station.
Both Carmen and I decided that it was a good idea to go and see a show - so that is what we ended up doing. We headed up to Times Square and bought discounted tickets to the Phantom of the Opera (50% discount, as it's off-season).
The show was to commence at 8:00pm just off Broadway. Ate some Japanese food and then headed off to the show. I ate some special sushi named Spider Sushi, it wasn't made up of spiders but was made up of shrimp and cost US$20. The show was quite impressive - I quite liked it.
I'm not too sure where i've heard portions of the Phantom of the Opera music before but i've definitely heard some aspects of the show before. Fantastic. When the orchestra started belting out the "main theme" I was impressed, hooked from the start. Both the performers and orchestra were fantastic.
The performance wasn't without its flaws. Flaws due to obnoxious audience members. One bloke a couple of seats down kept shuffling in his chair - he was obviously brought along by his wife (= dragged), he eventually fell asleep. That wasn't the worst of it. A group of young American chicks kept giggling and making quiet comments throughout the show. Seriously... just because some of them are attractive doesn't give them the right to disrupt a show.
After the show - went back to the hostel and watched an interesting new American show (or maybe it isn't quite new). The Comedy Channel there is something that I would very much like to see much more of. The show titled The Colbert Report was hillarious. Americans are known for covering primarily American stories and not too much else. In this show they provide 17 seconds of world news, and it was one of the funniest little skits i've seen in a while.
It was an early morning today as it was off to New York City - the return. A teary farewell from my relos followed by some preliminary sightseeing in New York City. Oh - also saw a Broadway show! Truthfully not terribly much was done in a holiday sense - which is a bit of a shame. But that's what happens sometimes. It all wasn't a waste so don't worry about that. I did come to terms with the general layout of the area though.
Train, Pennsylvania, New York City - Penn Station. Time to check into the hostel. Unfortunately there were no real stations nearby (subway stations). So anyway - off to 59th street on the Yellow (N/R/W) line. A couple of blocks to walk and there I was at the Vanderbilt YMCA. Tiny, tiny rooms! But a clean bed is all that's really needed - so all good. (Map for the entire New York City subway)
As I checked in at 12:00 pm (midday) there really wasn't that much time to sightsee - as days are short and I was yet to eat lunch. So step one was to find lunch. Wandering around the Vanderbilt resulted in finding a nice little food shop. A hot dog shop near the United Nations complex. I ordered a Pacific Hot Dog, and it was very nice indeed. Probably not the healthiest thing to have, but oh well.
So in the afternoon I wandered around the Midtown East area of Manhattan. Just browsing as it were. It's quite a feeling just walking through the streets of NYC. I ended up getting a look at the United Nations Secretariat building, the Chrysler Building and Grand Central Station.
Both Carmen and I decided that it was a good idea to go and see a show - so that is what we ended up doing. We headed up to Times Square and bought discounted tickets to the Phantom of the Opera (50% discount, as it's off-season).
The show was to commence at 8:00pm just off Broadway. Ate some Japanese food and then headed off to the show. I ate some special sushi named Spider Sushi, it wasn't made up of spiders but was made up of shrimp and cost US$20. The show was quite impressive - I quite liked it.
I'm not too sure where i've heard portions of the Phantom of the Opera music before but i've definitely heard some aspects of the show before. Fantastic. When the orchestra started belting out the "main theme" I was impressed, hooked from the start. Both the performers and orchestra were fantastic.
The performance wasn't without its flaws. Flaws due to obnoxious audience members. One bloke a couple of seats down kept shuffling in his chair - he was obviously brought along by his wife (= dragged), he eventually fell asleep. That wasn't the worst of it. A group of young American chicks kept giggling and making quiet comments throughout the show. Seriously... just because some of them are attractive doesn't give them the right to disrupt a show.
After the show - went back to the hostel and watched an interesting new American show (or maybe it isn't quite new). The Comedy Channel there is something that I would very much like to see much more of. The show titled The Colbert Report was hillarious. Americans are known for covering primarily American stories and not too much else. In this show they provide 17 seconds of world news, and it was one of the funniest little skits i've seen in a while.
UN Secretariat Building, New York
Chrysler Building
Friday, January 13, 2006
The Birthplace of America
Tuesday 29/11 (local)
One day to visit Philadelphia, the city. A town with much history, and a town with only a couple of buildings worth visiting. Today I visited the Liberty Bell, Independance Hall and wondered around the so called Historic District. This night I was not babysitting just the one kid, but three.
First off it was off to the city centre of Philadelphia. As I was in the suburbs I had to catch the train. I can see why the Americans have a love for the car - it's more convenient than public transport (in Philly anyways). Out in the suburbs - there is next to no public transport.
Anyhow, what did I go and see? The sights around the Historic District of Philadelphia. The first stop - the Visitors Centre. There we found out what we needed to do and followed the suggested plan outlined by the guide.
The Liberty Bell was the first of the sights visited. Quite an interesting story that the bell has - it cracked, was repaired, and then cracked again. Anyhow, turns out to be quite a nice bell (bronze). It does indeed have a massive crack up one side - as you can see with the photo taken below.
The next sight was Independance Hall. Guided tours take place every hour so i hopped onto the next available one. Unfortunately a school group came along as well (a high school group). Independance Hall was good to look at - a well preserved environment which preseves the way in which it looked when America broke away from England. In Independance Hall the Declaration of Independance was agreed to, signed, and publicly announced. Finally, the smart-ass kids that happened to come along to the tour should never be allowed off school property - a totally unruly bunch. Ah wel... I was young once too.
After viewing Liberty Bell and Independance Hall it was time to head down to Penn's Landing. Didn't quite make it all the way to the Landing but I at least at lunch nearby. I tried Philly Cheese Steak - the local tucker. I wish I hadn't. It was a reasonably simple meal: dinner roll + steak + melted cheese. Not for me. I'll take the standard Aussie Steak Sandwich anyday (steak + beetroot + lettuce + BBQ sauce + toast). It wasn't a bad meal, just that it wasn't exactly my cup of tea.
After eating lunch I spent much of the remaining time wandering around the Historic District. Visited the Quakers Church, saw the US Mint building, the Consitution Convention Building, and others... forgotten their names. Didn't go into any of these buildings, just looked.
Returned back home to my cousin's place and from there we headed off to dinner - one of my cousin's friends. The trip was a little longer than expected but that's because I thought we were just doing down the road. Haha.
Anyways, what happened was the we all had a lovely Vietnamese pho dinner. After that it was an intense night of babysitting. It all started out with playing catch with Matty. Then one of the host's daughters came over to play - Geraldine. The host's daughters love to play with Matty so it was inevitable that they'd come too. So what we ended up playing was pass the bouncy ball. An interesting game that lasted a while. Then it got tougher - alot tougher. (By the way, the other daughter's name is Martine).
All three kids decided to want to do something different. First off Matty wanted to keep playing pass-on-the-ball. Next, Geraldine (younger of the two girls) wanted some stories read to her and finally Martine wanted to show her gymnastic routines. Wow - I have so much respect for childcare workers now. It's crazy juggling everything. I can't imagine what it is like with a room of 10 or 20 kids! Even though it was tough - it was great fun. Kids are great. This lasted until about 10pm, by then it was time to head home (and the kids to sleep).
One day to visit Philadelphia, the city. A town with much history, and a town with only a couple of buildings worth visiting. Today I visited the Liberty Bell, Independance Hall and wondered around the so called Historic District. This night I was not babysitting just the one kid, but three.
First off it was off to the city centre of Philadelphia. As I was in the suburbs I had to catch the train. I can see why the Americans have a love for the car - it's more convenient than public transport (in Philly anyways). Out in the suburbs - there is next to no public transport.
Anyhow, what did I go and see? The sights around the Historic District of Philadelphia. The first stop - the Visitors Centre. There we found out what we needed to do and followed the suggested plan outlined by the guide.
The Liberty Bell was the first of the sights visited. Quite an interesting story that the bell has - it cracked, was repaired, and then cracked again. Anyhow, turns out to be quite a nice bell (bronze). It does indeed have a massive crack up one side - as you can see with the photo taken below.
The next sight was Independance Hall. Guided tours take place every hour so i hopped onto the next available one. Unfortunately a school group came along as well (a high school group). Independance Hall was good to look at - a well preserved environment which preseves the way in which it looked when America broke away from England. In Independance Hall the Declaration of Independance was agreed to, signed, and publicly announced. Finally, the smart-ass kids that happened to come along to the tour should never be allowed off school property - a totally unruly bunch. Ah wel... I was young once too.
After viewing Liberty Bell and Independance Hall it was time to head down to Penn's Landing. Didn't quite make it all the way to the Landing but I at least at lunch nearby. I tried Philly Cheese Steak - the local tucker. I wish I hadn't. It was a reasonably simple meal: dinner roll + steak + melted cheese. Not for me. I'll take the standard Aussie Steak Sandwich anyday (steak + beetroot + lettuce + BBQ sauce + toast). It wasn't a bad meal, just that it wasn't exactly my cup of tea.
After eating lunch I spent much of the remaining time wandering around the Historic District. Visited the Quakers Church, saw the US Mint building, the Consitution Convention Building, and others... forgotten their names. Didn't go into any of these buildings, just looked.
Returned back home to my cousin's place and from there we headed off to dinner - one of my cousin's friends. The trip was a little longer than expected but that's because I thought we were just doing down the road. Haha.
Anyways, what happened was the we all had a lovely Vietnamese pho dinner. After that it was an intense night of babysitting. It all started out with playing catch with Matty. Then one of the host's daughters came over to play - Geraldine. The host's daughters love to play with Matty so it was inevitable that they'd come too. So what we ended up playing was pass the bouncy ball. An interesting game that lasted a while. Then it got tougher - alot tougher. (By the way, the other daughter's name is Martine).
All three kids decided to want to do something different. First off Matty wanted to keep playing pass-on-the-ball. Next, Geraldine (younger of the two girls) wanted some stories read to her and finally Martine wanted to show her gymnastic routines. Wow - I have so much respect for childcare workers now. It's crazy juggling everything. I can't imagine what it is like with a room of 10 or 20 kids! Even though it was tough - it was great fun. Kids are great. This lasted until about 10pm, by then it was time to head home (and the kids to sleep).
Liberty Bell
Independance Hall
Conference Room - Independance Hall
Thursday, January 12, 2006
Travel Diary 2005 - 2006
It may be somewhat difficult to track the travel diary as the links on the right hand side only track the last half-dozen or so entries. So from this page you will be able to access all of the travel blog entries from the one cenral location. (The link to this portal page will also be available from the right hand nav bar).
(Note the two Tuesday 22/11 - This is due to the time difference between Sydney and Los Angeles).
Tuesday 22/11 : The Journey Begins
Tuesday 22/11 : Los Angeles - Day 1
Wednesday 23/11 : Los Angeles - Day 2
Thursday 24/11 : Los Angeles - Day 3
Friday 25/11 : Touchdown in New York City
Saturday 26/11 : The Trek to Philadelphia
Sunday 27/11 : DC - The First Day (Part 1) (Part 2)
Monday 28/11 : DC - Day 2 (Part 1) (Part 2)
Tuesday 29/11 : The Birthplace of America
Wednesday 30/11 : Return to the Big Apple
Thursday 1/12: Midtown and Down (Part 1)(Part 2)
Friday 2/12: More to See in NYC (Part 1)(Part 2)
Saturday 3/12: Leaving the Land of the Free
Monday 4/12: The Motherland
Tuesday 5/12: Cambridge
(Note the two Tuesday 22/11 - This is due to the time difference between Sydney and Los Angeles).
Tuesday 22/11 : The Journey Begins
Tuesday 22/11 : Los Angeles - Day 1
Wednesday 23/11 : Los Angeles - Day 2
Thursday 24/11 : Los Angeles - Day 3
Friday 25/11 : Touchdown in New York City
Saturday 26/11 : The Trek to Philadelphia
Sunday 27/11 : DC - The First Day (Part 1) (Part 2)
Monday 28/11 : DC - Day 2 (Part 1) (Part 2)
Tuesday 29/11 : The Birthplace of America
Wednesday 30/11 : Return to the Big Apple
Thursday 1/12: Midtown and Down (Part 1)(Part 2)
Friday 2/12: More to See in NYC (Part 1)(Part 2)
Saturday 3/12: Leaving the Land of the Free
Monday 4/12: The Motherland
Tuesday 5/12: Cambridge
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
DC - Day 2 (Part 2)
Monday 28/11 (local)
By this stage my camera had run out of battery power. Since nearly everything that needed to be captured was indeed captured it wasn't too much of a proble. It's a bit of a shame though - as the camera doesn't seem to take all that many photos. One hundred odd may sound like alot but this includes daylight shots (those not requiring flash). At night, i'm guessing that only 35 to 40 shots are doable due to the flash. Hmm...
Between 12:00pm or 12:30pm we were headed back to Philadelphia. On the way ou we passed the FBI building and the IRS building. Took some photos with Jason's camera, and then fell asleep. Go me!
I awoke back in Philadelphia - meaning that I slept for something like two hours. Haha. Oh well. I always seem to sleep in cars and trains - habit I guess. We pulled into the driveway, hopped out of the car and was back home. Matty was extremely excited and was yelling out "Daddy, Daddy!". However, when Matty saw me instead of Jason he changed to what he was saying to "Daddy, come here". LOL. Still scared of me.
The afternoon was spent attempting to interact with Matty, but progress was slow. It was more of an opportunity to catch up with my cousins. Then there was a breakthrough - it was time for tennis (in the house). First off he was playing tennis with Kara, then I started playing as well. All seemed good until Kara left the room.
Matty quickly lost interest and went searching for his mother. That's alright - progress was being made. After some more tennis, supervised, things turned out great. Not only did we play tenis, we played some golf as well. A golf variant. There is no hole, the ball is just hit with a golf club. Oh well - just as fun. By the end of it all I could interact with Matty easily, as long as Jason and Kara were nearby (like in the adjacent room). A lovely kid.
Matty's brother Danny is a baby. So interaction is quite limited. However Danny does respond to smiling with smiling. Which is something that I find neat. He also likes to hold things, from what I can tell. When I hold my index finger out he grabs it and squeezes it from time to time. Very cool indeed. Kids are great... wait, i'll change that - well behaved kids are great.
Dommer was fascinating as another surprise party was planned for my cousin - well, a dinner with some unexpected guests. Friends from the UK were along for the dinner. I guess this was plan B - the contingency. We were at a restaurant that brewed its own beer. Not being a fan of beer I didn't really try anything - oh well. I ate a steak burger. (I'm not going to mention anything about how I got to the steakhouse. If you are super intelligent then you can figure it out :D).
The trip back home. First off I walked Matty to the car - yep, he walks. You can hold his hand and start walking, that easy. Anyhow - the trip back. In the car was Jason, Matty, Danny, and I. All the guys - with the exception of Jason's UK pal Huy. I learnt an interesting trick that you can try on babies if they're crying and you are driving home. I kid you not - this trick worked. Emperically tested... once.
So there we are in the car and Danny starts crying. I'm in the back seat next to him and I have no idea what to do. I was thinking Should i say 'hush' in a soothing tone? Should I sing a lullabye? Should I tickle the baby? Is he hungry? I was at a loss. Pro at parenting? Not me, that's for sure. So anyway, Jason says only 5 minutes to go, 5 minutes and then Danny stops crying. Amazing! Unfortunately Danny began to cry again after a couple of minutes, and we weren't exactly close to home. So this time I had a shot - only 5 minutes to go. Nothing. He didn't fall for it. So I tried somehing else: okay, okay - 4 minutes to go, nearly there. Then Danny stopped crying. Wow! Onto something here. In actual fact 5, 4, 3, and 2 minute tests all worked, one after another. I think i'm onto something. I better patent the idea. It's great.
The evening was spent playing with Matty and talking to my cousins. It was a thoroughly enjoyable night. Playing with kids followed by intelligent conversation. Excellent things to counter computer-game dependance. Haha. It was really great to be with my cousins. Sightseeing was and will most likely be features of my holiday but being in Philadelphia with my cousins really is a highlight. It just goes to show how important family is and how much it means to me.
By this stage my camera had run out of battery power. Since nearly everything that needed to be captured was indeed captured it wasn't too much of a proble. It's a bit of a shame though - as the camera doesn't seem to take all that many photos. One hundred odd may sound like alot but this includes daylight shots (those not requiring flash). At night, i'm guessing that only 35 to 40 shots are doable due to the flash. Hmm...
Between 12:00pm or 12:30pm we were headed back to Philadelphia. On the way ou we passed the FBI building and the IRS building. Took some photos with Jason's camera, and then fell asleep. Go me!
I awoke back in Philadelphia - meaning that I slept for something like two hours. Haha. Oh well. I always seem to sleep in cars and trains - habit I guess. We pulled into the driveway, hopped out of the car and was back home. Matty was extremely excited and was yelling out "Daddy, Daddy!". However, when Matty saw me instead of Jason he changed to what he was saying to "Daddy, come here". LOL. Still scared of me.
The afternoon was spent attempting to interact with Matty, but progress was slow. It was more of an opportunity to catch up with my cousins. Then there was a breakthrough - it was time for tennis (in the house). First off he was playing tennis with Kara, then I started playing as well. All seemed good until Kara left the room.
Matty quickly lost interest and went searching for his mother. That's alright - progress was being made. After some more tennis, supervised, things turned out great. Not only did we play tenis, we played some golf as well. A golf variant. There is no hole, the ball is just hit with a golf club. Oh well - just as fun. By the end of it all I could interact with Matty easily, as long as Jason and Kara were nearby (like in the adjacent room). A lovely kid.
Matty's brother Danny is a baby. So interaction is quite limited. However Danny does respond to smiling with smiling. Which is something that I find neat. He also likes to hold things, from what I can tell. When I hold my index finger out he grabs it and squeezes it from time to time. Very cool indeed. Kids are great... wait, i'll change that - well behaved kids are great.
Dommer was fascinating as another surprise party was planned for my cousin - well, a dinner with some unexpected guests. Friends from the UK were along for the dinner. I guess this was plan B - the contingency. We were at a restaurant that brewed its own beer. Not being a fan of beer I didn't really try anything - oh well. I ate a steak burger. (I'm not going to mention anything about how I got to the steakhouse. If you are super intelligent then you can figure it out :D).
The trip back home. First off I walked Matty to the car - yep, he walks. You can hold his hand and start walking, that easy. Anyhow - the trip back. In the car was Jason, Matty, Danny, and I. All the guys - with the exception of Jason's UK pal Huy. I learnt an interesting trick that you can try on babies if they're crying and you are driving home. I kid you not - this trick worked. Emperically tested... once.
So there we are in the car and Danny starts crying. I'm in the back seat next to him and I have no idea what to do. I was thinking Should i say 'hush' in a soothing tone? Should I sing a lullabye? Should I tickle the baby? Is he hungry? I was at a loss. Pro at parenting? Not me, that's for sure. So anyway, Jason says only 5 minutes to go, 5 minutes and then Danny stops crying. Amazing! Unfortunately Danny began to cry again after a couple of minutes, and we weren't exactly close to home. So this time I had a shot - only 5 minutes to go. Nothing. He didn't fall for it. So I tried somehing else: okay, okay - 4 minutes to go, nearly there. Then Danny stopped crying. Wow! Onto something here. In actual fact 5, 4, 3, and 2 minute tests all worked, one after another. I think i'm onto something. I better patent the idea. It's great.
The evening was spent playing with Matty and talking to my cousins. It was a thoroughly enjoyable night. Playing with kids followed by intelligent conversation. Excellent things to counter computer-game dependance. Haha. It was really great to be with my cousins. Sightseeing was and will most likely be features of my holiday but being in Philadelphia with my cousins really is a highlight. It just goes to show how important family is and how much it means to me.
Memorial Eyes Mystery Solved!
Triceratops - Natural History Museum
Sunday, January 08, 2006
DC - Day 2 (Part 1)
Monday 28/11 (local)
Today was another day of D.C. sightseeing and there was quite a bit left. Today saw us visit the Pentagon, the Washington Monument, and the National Museum of Natural History before heading back to Philadelphia. As is the norm thus far on the trip - it was a blitz. We were out of Washington D.C. by approximately 12:30 pm.
First stop, the Pentagon. Down from the hotel we drove, past the Lincoln Memorial and along one of the boundaries of the Arlington Military Cemetary. A slow gentle curving road then lead to one of the entrances to the Pentagon.
There were no signs saying Visitors Welcome or even Visitors Centre. Foiled. All we saw were gates and steel blocades. Ack. Well that didn't quite stop us. The adventure continued as we tried another entrance. Driving along the stretch of road we were on previously we saw a sign labelled "Pentagon City". Woohoo! We took the turn.
As we drove up the road we quickly realised that there was no turning back. We were fast approaching a boom gate - a manned boom gate. Several emotions were all surfacing at once: surprise, curiosity and angst. My emotional state was a bit of a cocktail. My thoughts were also a jumble - What security measures are in place? Do the guards carry weapons? Are we going to be in trouble? I want to speak to my lawyer... all of these thoughts popped up. Most of all I was excited. I'm not too sure how the other two were feeling but... WOW. Adventure plus.
The first thing we were asked was What are you doing here?. Quickly thinking Jason mentioned that we were trying to get to Washington D.C., phew - saved from a free one-way ticket to Guantanamo Bay (or something similar). The guard then quickly gave us a complicated set of instructions to get back to Washington D.C. She then stopped talking, looked at me, and then sternly said No cameras! OMG, scary. My Canon IXUS was indeed in my right hand - I quickly fumbled around with my bag and promptly put away the camera. A tense moment that one... let me tell you.
We were soon moving back to Washington D.C. but I couldn't help but feel as though hundreds of eyes, whether mechanical or human, were trained on us as we departed the heart of the United States Military. Phew. Don't try this at home kids.
Next stop - the Washington Monument. The riddle of the evil eyes needed to be solved. If you haven't been to D.C. you may or may not have noticed that a pair of red lights flash periodically at the top of the Washington Monument. We ventured up to solve the riddle, and to see the view from the 550 foot observatory floor.
Some information on the Monument. The entire structure (external) is made of stone. There are no steel suports, nothing. It's just a big slab of rock that is heavy enough not to move. The monument was initially funded by private citizens before construction halted in the 1800s, resulting in an ugly stump in the US Capital. Congress wised up and passed on the required funds to finish the project.
The story must ring true, as you can tell from the outside that there is a difference in the colour of stone used in the bottom compared to those at the top. Furthermore, the mystery of the evil eyes was solved. It is just a simple pair of red lights mounted on each face of the wall. Such an anti-climax.
Following the monument it was time for some more museum viewing. Anoter Smithsonian Institute Museum was visited by us - this time it was the National Museum of Natural History. We only spent aobut an hour there, so obviously none of us finished looking at all of the exhibits taht the museum had to offer. However, there were quite a few impressive displays at the museum.
On the ground floor were Early Life, Dinosaur Era and Mammals exhibitions. All of these provided some fascinating reading. However, the most important/impressive of the features were the life sized displays of the dinosaurs. There were full reconstructions (of the bones, anyway) pf a Tyrannasaurus Rex, a Triceratops, and also a Brontesaurus. Very neat indeed. Being devoured by a T-Rex or implaed by a Triceratops are definitely not fun ways to die. Finally, On the second floor there were more exhibits - but I was unable to reach them. Apparently there was a natural rock exhibition which contained diamonds and gems. I missed out :(. Oh well.
Today was another day of D.C. sightseeing and there was quite a bit left. Today saw us visit the Pentagon, the Washington Monument, and the National Museum of Natural History before heading back to Philadelphia. As is the norm thus far on the trip - it was a blitz. We were out of Washington D.C. by approximately 12:30 pm.
First stop, the Pentagon. Down from the hotel we drove, past the Lincoln Memorial and along one of the boundaries of the Arlington Military Cemetary. A slow gentle curving road then lead to one of the entrances to the Pentagon.
There were no signs saying Visitors Welcome or even Visitors Centre. Foiled. All we saw were gates and steel blocades. Ack. Well that didn't quite stop us. The adventure continued as we tried another entrance. Driving along the stretch of road we were on previously we saw a sign labelled "Pentagon City". Woohoo! We took the turn.
As we drove up the road we quickly realised that there was no turning back. We were fast approaching a boom gate - a manned boom gate. Several emotions were all surfacing at once: surprise, curiosity and angst. My emotional state was a bit of a cocktail. My thoughts were also a jumble - What security measures are in place? Do the guards carry weapons? Are we going to be in trouble? I want to speak to my lawyer... all of these thoughts popped up. Most of all I was excited. I'm not too sure how the other two were feeling but... WOW. Adventure plus.
The first thing we were asked was What are you doing here?. Quickly thinking Jason mentioned that we were trying to get to Washington D.C., phew - saved from a free one-way ticket to Guantanamo Bay (or something similar). The guard then quickly gave us a complicated set of instructions to get back to Washington D.C. She then stopped talking, looked at me, and then sternly said No cameras! OMG, scary. My Canon IXUS was indeed in my right hand - I quickly fumbled around with my bag and promptly put away the camera. A tense moment that one... let me tell you.
We were soon moving back to Washington D.C. but I couldn't help but feel as though hundreds of eyes, whether mechanical or human, were trained on us as we departed the heart of the United States Military. Phew. Don't try this at home kids.
Next stop - the Washington Monument. The riddle of the evil eyes needed to be solved. If you haven't been to D.C. you may or may not have noticed that a pair of red lights flash periodically at the top of the Washington Monument. We ventured up to solve the riddle, and to see the view from the 550 foot observatory floor.
Some information on the Monument. The entire structure (external) is made of stone. There are no steel suports, nothing. It's just a big slab of rock that is heavy enough not to move. The monument was initially funded by private citizens before construction halted in the 1800s, resulting in an ugly stump in the US Capital. Congress wised up and passed on the required funds to finish the project.
The story must ring true, as you can tell from the outside that there is a difference in the colour of stone used in the bottom compared to those at the top. Furthermore, the mystery of the evil eyes was solved. It is just a simple pair of red lights mounted on each face of the wall. Such an anti-climax.
Following the monument it was time for some more museum viewing. Anoter Smithsonian Institute Museum was visited by us - this time it was the National Museum of Natural History. We only spent aobut an hour there, so obviously none of us finished looking at all of the exhibits taht the museum had to offer. However, there were quite a few impressive displays at the museum.
On the ground floor were Early Life, Dinosaur Era and Mammals exhibitions. All of these provided some fascinating reading. However, the most important/impressive of the features were the life sized displays of the dinosaurs. There were full reconstructions (of the bones, anyway) pf a Tyrannasaurus Rex, a Triceratops, and also a Brontesaurus. Very neat indeed. Being devoured by a T-Rex or implaed by a Triceratops are definitely not fun ways to die. Finally, On the second floor there were more exhibits - but I was unable to reach them. Apparently there was a natural rock exhibition which contained diamonds and gems. I missed out :(. Oh well.
The Lincoln Memorial
The Jefferson Monument
Thursday, January 05, 2006
DC - The First Day (Part 2)
Sunday 27/11 (local)
After visiting the Lincoln Memorial it was off to the US Capitol. What a lovely building it is. If you want to see something that resembles the strength of America you only need to look at the US Capitol. First of all it is huge, has a large sweeping dome and looks quite Classical (in the Greek sense, although I could be way off with my description). The Australian Parliament House is pissweak in comparison to the US Capitol. I would have loved to sit inside the Congress and Senate chambers - oh well, not to be. The only thing I can say is that the Australian Parliament's flagpole is bigger. Take that America! LOL. There were no pollies (politicians) about today as it is Thanksgiving Sunday today.
Next stop involves American History. Where exactly? The National Archives. The home of the United States Declaration of Independance. The history of the United States is interesting in all aspects and the Declaration of Independance is no exception. I'll give a brief history lesson in a sec.
On display in the National Archive is one of the versions of the Magna Carta (yes, the document signed by the old kings in England saying that the king is not above the law and a whole bunch of other stuff), the Declaration of Independance, the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
History lesson time - so how did the United States of America eventuate? Well first of all there were a dozen British colonies. The British smashed the French ending the Seven Years War and started taxing the Americans to pay for the cost of the war (I think Tea Tax was one of the taxes). This effectively gave the Americans the shits, resulting in the 'Tea Party' incident resulting in the close and fortification of the port city of Boston. The colonies got together and wrote to the King. They got barred. So independence it was. How is that for a story! What about in Australia? Some blokes posed the question "How about Australia? Forget about this separate colony business" and England agreed. No declaration, no wars, nothing. Awww...
Last stop of the day (as it was nearing closing time for all of the museums and galleries) was teh National Air and Space Museum. Note: there are actually two parts - I went to the National Mall part. Anyhow, what a cool museum. I could spend a whole day here, unfortunately I had approximately 45 minutes. When the lights went out and the guards were ushering us out the door I was sad, very sad indeed. I am going to have to come back to Washington D.C. to finish off the museum. Ah well.
So what did I end up seeing? Well I saw the Welcome Centre, the Milestones of Flight exhibit, How Things Fly exhibit, Looking at Earth exhibit and finally the exhibit detailing the timeline of the Space Race. Some notable pointers - I got to touch a piece of the moon. Woohoo! Got a camera movie of me doing so - quality stuff. Another pointer is aerial photography. In World War 2 the Allies made use of stereo photographs (for 3D effects). OMG it's cool! I saw a bridge and a coastline of one of the river banks in 3D, truly amazing. The photos were that aged yellow paper colour, but it was all in 3D. Something that is recommended for viewing by me. The story of the Space Race is a real thriller and it was great to see replicas about the place.
Darkness befell Washington D.C. and it was time to head to our prearranged accomodation. I did no organisation whatever and it was a great relief. Many, many thanks must go to my cousins Kara and Jason for arranging the DC trip and accomodation. We stayed the night at a place called the River Inn. Luxury. I got the couch, but it was still luxury. Beats the cheapy hostels that I was staying at in LA and NYC, that's for sure! Obviously the River Inn would be much more expensive than hostels but its worth it. Yep, definitely. The bedroom was quite lavish, too - but I didn't get to sleep there. No complaints from me.
After visiting the Lincoln Memorial it was off to the US Capitol. What a lovely building it is. If you want to see something that resembles the strength of America you only need to look at the US Capitol. First of all it is huge, has a large sweeping dome and looks quite Classical (in the Greek sense, although I could be way off with my description). The Australian Parliament House is pissweak in comparison to the US Capitol. I would have loved to sit inside the Congress and Senate chambers - oh well, not to be. The only thing I can say is that the Australian Parliament's flagpole is bigger. Take that America! LOL. There were no pollies (politicians) about today as it is Thanksgiving Sunday today.
Next stop involves American History. Where exactly? The National Archives. The home of the United States Declaration of Independance. The history of the United States is interesting in all aspects and the Declaration of Independance is no exception. I'll give a brief history lesson in a sec.
On display in the National Archive is one of the versions of the Magna Carta (yes, the document signed by the old kings in England saying that the king is not above the law and a whole bunch of other stuff), the Declaration of Independance, the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
History lesson time - so how did the United States of America eventuate? Well first of all there were a dozen British colonies. The British smashed the French ending the Seven Years War and started taxing the Americans to pay for the cost of the war (I think Tea Tax was one of the taxes). This effectively gave the Americans the shits, resulting in the 'Tea Party' incident resulting in the close and fortification of the port city of Boston. The colonies got together and wrote to the King. They got barred. So independence it was. How is that for a story! What about in Australia? Some blokes posed the question "How about Australia? Forget about this separate colony business" and England agreed. No declaration, no wars, nothing. Awww...
Last stop of the day (as it was nearing closing time for all of the museums and galleries) was teh National Air and Space Museum. Note: there are actually two parts - I went to the National Mall part. Anyhow, what a cool museum. I could spend a whole day here, unfortunately I had approximately 45 minutes. When the lights went out and the guards were ushering us out the door I was sad, very sad indeed. I am going to have to come back to Washington D.C. to finish off the museum. Ah well.
So what did I end up seeing? Well I saw the Welcome Centre, the Milestones of Flight exhibit, How Things Fly exhibit, Looking at Earth exhibit and finally the exhibit detailing the timeline of the Space Race. Some notable pointers - I got to touch a piece of the moon. Woohoo! Got a camera movie of me doing so - quality stuff. Another pointer is aerial photography. In World War 2 the Allies made use of stereo photographs (for 3D effects). OMG it's cool! I saw a bridge and a coastline of one of the river banks in 3D, truly amazing. The photos were that aged yellow paper colour, but it was all in 3D. Something that is recommended for viewing by me. The story of the Space Race is a real thriller and it was great to see replicas about the place.
Darkness befell Washington D.C. and it was time to head to our prearranged accomodation. I did no organisation whatever and it was a great relief. Many, many thanks must go to my cousins Kara and Jason for arranging the DC trip and accomodation. We stayed the night at a place called the River Inn. Luxury. I got the couch, but it was still luxury. Beats the cheapy hostels that I was staying at in LA and NYC, that's for sure! Obviously the River Inn would be much more expensive than hostels but its worth it. Yep, definitely. The bedroom was quite lavish, too - but I didn't get to sleep there. No complaints from me.
The US Capitol
The Washington Monument
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
