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Published: January 18th 2007
English/Australian Royal Shield
The official coat of arms of the Royal Shield. An English lion, a Scottish unicorn and the Royal British Crown.Hello,
I hope that you all are well.
I have some random thoughts and random pictures to share.
1) As previously mentioned, my apartment location is awesome, however, my apartment itself is awful. It is livable for four more weeks, but man, it sucks! Sleeping less than a foot away from another man (a big-time snorer) is a challenging task, especially when we have NO air conditioning.
2) If anyone has been watching the Australian Open, you have seen how hot Melbourne has been. 100+ degrees for the past three days with minimal clouds and no rain. In fact, in some parts of Australia (mostly in the Outback), there has been NO rainfall for the last 10 years! Due to the lack of moisture, there is relatively no humidity; at times, it feels a lot like Phoenix to me.
3) Due to the lack of rain, raging bush fires have ignited all over the country. On Tuesday, the fires disrupted the national power grid and major parts of Melbourne had no power. Public transportation has been hit or miss since the power grid went out. The smoke from the fires has blown into the city and
left a Los Angeles-esque smog-haze throughout Melbourne. The smell is pretty terrible.
4) Aussie TV is absolutely hilarious—the morning news (equivalent to the “Today Show”) contains virtually no news. The largest segment of the 2 hour program is a 30 minute segment dedicated solely to discussing the oh-so-important recent development of the Hollywood dating scene. Also, there are nighttime “soaps” that have, without a doubt, the worst actors/actresses on the face of the planet. I can only take about 2 minutes at a time until I have to change the channel so as to prevent my vomit reflex. There are quite a few U.S. programs on Aussie TV, however, the programs are at least 2 seasons behind U.S. TV. In about a month, both “Lost” and “Nip/Tuck” will have their first seasons aired in Australia. Thus, I have been watching the Australian Open, almost religiously, and a ton of Cricket (logged about 10 hours watching Cricket and have almost figured out the point of the game……ridiculously complicated).
5) At home I was a water snob—only drinking water from a Brita filter or bottled water. Here, however, I will drink anything that resembles water (i.e. from bathroom sink faucets,
outdoor water pipes, etc.).
6) The Victorian Library is my favorite building in Melbourne. It is located directly across the street from my apartment complex and is absolutely beautiful, both inside and outside. I do most of my emailing from the Library because it offers free WiFi, plus it is air conditioned!!!
7) I went to the Queen Victorian Market on Wednesday evening and had an absolute blast! Live music, good booze and good food—my heaven! I will make it to every Wednesday Market night for the rest of my time here—it felt so good to just relax and listen to some music—it reminded me of the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield.
Lots of love,
Randy
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Evan Hammett III
non-member comment
Ummm, hmmm???
Andy Are you sure you are not in Wollongong? I am pretty sure that is the exact apartment Verse and I had. At any time during the night, amidst my rain like sweating I could reach over and tap him directly on the center of his forehead with great accuracy, that is how close you are. Not sure what the Aussie are thinking when it comes to the bedroom, Awkward! Sounds like things are moving right along. Take care, love the pictures! Evan Hammett