Blogs from Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, Oceania - page 7

Geo: -27.4676, 153.028The organisation was spot on and we were ready and packed for the 7.30 am arrival of the maxi cab to the airport. Well two of us were. When the cab arrived Anth was in the bathroom wrapped in his towel cleaning his teeth! No worries. By the time we hauled the endless stream of luggage to the cab he was ready and we were on our way. Michael übered his way there and we were in line ready for the "processing" . Luggage checked and forms filled we managed to get our refunds sorted at the TRS and purchased the essentials from Duty Free.Everyone was seated and of course excited to DEPART. But nothing happened. The aircraft did not budge and the captain announced that there was a security issue ... and gave ... read more

Sunday 7 December continued We went for a walk at 6 pm to see what might be awake for food in this town on a Sunday evening. Neighbours had been out and back with a Subway meal so we had hopes of something. We headed over the railway bridge and were able to sight a McDonalds and a Kentucky fried chicken, Pat likes the occasional kfc so off we went. It was air conditioning at full strength so we took our meal back to the room. The brain was mush after we had settled down, so, I turned the television on and we happened to be at the start of the film Fury with Brad Pitt so we watched that. Monday 7 December A good nights sleep and woke at 7.30 am. We only had a ... read more

Hi everyone The caravan is rolling again and we’re off to Italy and the Med. We’ve decided to forgo the delights of the Brisbane summer for a few weeks. We leave tomorrow evening, flying into Dubai and then on to Venice. The short Itinerary is Venice, Genoa, cruises to the East and Western Mediterranean, Rome, Florence and then a few days in England to see the wonderful Willows. Cleo is going off on her holidays to the Castellan Resort at Chandler. Apparently the rooms are nice, the food is great and the company is excellent. I’m hoping they serve her a fabulous Christmas dinner; at least two cans of cat food! No cat food for us though. We’re spending Christmas on the MSC Fantasia http://www.msccruises.com/en-gl/Cruise-Ships/MSC-Fantasia.aspx It won’t be quite as much fun as Christmas at Mike ... read more

Our first day of work was a very long one. We started early in clinic at one of the big Brisbane hospitals. Their medical training path is a little different from ours. From medical school, they do 2+ years as a "resident", which is basically like an extended transitional internship- 3 months in this, 3 months in that, etc. Then they might work as a GP (general practitioner) in whatever field they are interested in for a couple years while they apply for further training. For example, in the dermatology dept, there was 1 girl who had just finished "residency" and was working in the clinic seeing patients, but still presenting them to the attending (or senior trainees). Their advanced training is called being a registrar, which in dermatology is 3-4 years. After that they can ... read more

We have landed! Though our first steps in Australia were a nightmare in Sydney (did I mention don't ever, ever, ever fly Jetsar?) getting the rental car was a breeze. We made our way, with paper map in hand, to our apartment in Brisbane. By the way, they drive on the other side of the road. That was an adventure in the dark after an entire day+ of traveling. By this time it was 8pm on Halloween and pitch black. There were a few people in costumes, but it's not a big thing here. We found our apt on airbnb, but there are a few big buildings that are full of temporary apts around here. Ours has a great view, air conditioning, 2 bed/2 bath, all the basic tools in the kitchen, free parking, and free ... read more