Sunday, October 12, 2008
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Back to uni
Back to uni this week. This is my final semester. The first task is to introduce ourselves to our new lecturers. I have prepared a page that captures some of my work from uni, but it's awfully hard to put something together that does justice to any of the projects I worked on.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Monday, June 09, 2008
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Friday, April 04, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Short Update
Just a short update with two major events. The first is that I had my first day of working at IKEA today! It was great fun, and I really like the team I'm working with. (More on this later)
My second item of news is not so great. My Grandpa passed away this morning. He was living in a nursing home, and had compromised quality of life, so I feel kind of relieved that he's in a better place. Keep praying for Dad and Mum and Grandma over the next couple of days as they make arrangements for the funeral. I'm planning to make a tribute video / presentation, so I'll put that up here when I can.
Peace, Hope, Love, Joy.
My second item of news is not so great. My Grandpa passed away this morning. He was living in a nursing home, and had compromised quality of life, so I feel kind of relieved that he's in a better place. Keep praying for Dad and Mum and Grandma over the next couple of days as they make arrangements for the funeral. I'm planning to make a tribute video / presentation, so I'll put that up here when I can.
Peace, Hope, Love, Joy.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Back to Uni
Yesterday was a big day. I returned to uni classes at Hawthorn campus. I'm in the final year, so graduation is close, and the pressure is on. Yesterday's class was "engineering management 2". The class seems manageable, although it's very broad. We received our first group task for the year, and were asked to select groups within 5 minutes of the tutorial starting.
In other news, most of you would be aware that Chris and I have been asked to leave our house at Nymph St. The owner wants to renovate I think. We have spent the last couple of weeks searching for a new place, mainly looking at apartments closer to the city. Yesterday, Shae (one of the agent's we applied for a new place with) called Chris with some good news. She had found a great apartment for us in Collingwood!
It's part of "The Islington" apartment development, where the apartment block was converted from an old warehouse / factory. The new fit-out is only about 2 years old (it was completed in 2006). Our apartment has a balcony, and access to a shared outdoor space. It's a lovely one bedroom place, which should suit Chris and I down to a tee. :) I'm pretty excited about it.
In other news, most of you would be aware that Chris and I have been asked to leave our house at Nymph St. The owner wants to renovate I think. We have spent the last couple of weeks searching for a new place, mainly looking at apartments closer to the city. Yesterday, Shae (one of the agent's we applied for a new place with) called Chris with some good news. She had found a great apartment for us in Collingwood!
It's part of "The Islington" apartment development, where the apartment block was converted from an old warehouse / factory. The new fit-out is only about 2 years old (it was completed in 2006). Our apartment has a balcony, and access to a shared outdoor space. It's a lovely one bedroom place, which should suit Chris and I down to a tee. :) I'm pretty excited about it.
Monday, January 28, 2008
24 January 2008: Bye-Bye Hong Kong
Well, today is our last day. We spent the morning packing and weighing, then packing and weighing again. I managed to get my suitcase right on the limit of 32kg. Chris's was just under, weighing in at 29kg. We checked in our luggage at the train station (which I was very impressed with) because our flight didn't leave until later at night, but we didn't want to haul around our luggage all day.
We spent the day shopping, because the weather was rainy outside. There was an ice skating rink in the shopping centre, but I was the only one who wanted to play, so we didn't end up going on it.
We made our way to the airport via train, and tried to fit all our shopping into our hand luggage! It only just all fit!
The plane journey home was long, and uneventful. Once we landed at Sydney, we had to take our bags through customs, and get onto a connecting flight to Melbourne. Our baggage took ages to come out, so we missed the plane. The next available flight was 2 hours later, so we flew home on that one.
Ryan's parents were at the airport waiting for Ryan and Brent. They had just flown in from the Gold Coast for the Australia Day long weekend and had hired a car for them to share on the ride back to Glen Waverley.
Peter picked Chris and I up from the airport, and dropped us off at home. :) By that stage, I was pretty tired, and didn't really feel like doing anything except sleep. I think Chris felt the same.
We spent the day shopping, because the weather was rainy outside. There was an ice skating rink in the shopping centre, but I was the only one who wanted to play, so we didn't end up going on it.
We made our way to the airport via train, and tried to fit all our shopping into our hand luggage! It only just all fit!
The plane journey home was long, and uneventful. Once we landed at Sydney, we had to take our bags through customs, and get onto a connecting flight to Melbourne. Our baggage took ages to come out, so we missed the plane. The next available flight was 2 hours later, so we flew home on that one.
Ryan's parents were at the airport waiting for Ryan and Brent. They had just flown in from the Gold Coast for the Australia Day long weekend and had hired a car for them to share on the ride back to Glen Waverley.
Peter picked Chris and I up from the airport, and dropped us off at home. :) By that stage, I was pretty tired, and didn't really feel like doing anything except sleep. I think Chris felt the same.
23 January 2008: Think BIG
This morning, Brent and Ryan decided that they wanted to take it easy in the morning, so they went back to their hotel room after breakfast. Chris and I were off to see the Big Buddah, which is a giant sculpture / temple situated on the opposite side of Hong Kong island to where the city is. Getting there was most of the fun.
We took the subway to the furthest station from the city, then we had to catch a chairlift the rest of the way. The chairlift traveled up past the airport, over huge expanses of water, and over very mountainous areas. The trip in the chairlift took about 25 minutes each way.
Perhaps chairlift is not quite the right term, because the lift was not open to the air. You had to climb inside a glass capsule which you shared with 9 other people, and the capsule was moved in the same way a chairlift would operate.
Once we arrived at the Big Buddah, we took our time walking up to the Buddah. We stopped to watch some educational films about the origins of the Buddist faith, and stopped to do a little tourist shopping. When we did reach the Buddah, which is set atop a hill, we had a quick look around, and discovered that perhaps the statue is best experienced from afar. From the base of the statue, all that you could see was some giant brass leaves which he was "sitting" on.
On the way back I took some more photos from the chairlift, which was the highlight of today's trip for me. When we got home, I went to sleep for a couple hours.
Chris awoke me around 7.15pm. There was a laser light show on every night along the river at 8pm which we had planned to go to, so I had to get up and get ready.
We caught a double-decker bus down to the river, and caught all of the laser show. It was pretty cool. They had set up lots of the buildings along the river and through the city with lasers on top of the building, and they had many of the building's lights connected so that they could be turned on and off in time to the music. It was pretty cool. I think I have a short video somewhere... It was a little eerie, because you could see the path cast by the lasers through the heavy smog.
Following the light show, Brent, Ryan, Chris and I went to find some food. We found a nice little place that was on one of the smaller side streets near the park. They had one English menu, but other than that, didn't seem to be too westernised. The girl working there didn't have very good English, so we figured the food was going to be pretty good. When the food did arrive, it was really good! I would even say it was one of the best meals we had during the trip. (and, it was surprisingly cheap!)
To cap off the day, we revisited some night markets on the way home, and bought some more gifts for people at home.
We took the subway to the furthest station from the city, then we had to catch a chairlift the rest of the way. The chairlift traveled up past the airport, over huge expanses of water, and over very mountainous areas. The trip in the chairlift took about 25 minutes each way.
Perhaps chairlift is not quite the right term, because the lift was not open to the air. You had to climb inside a glass capsule which you shared with 9 other people, and the capsule was moved in the same way a chairlift would operate.
Once we arrived at the Big Buddah, we took our time walking up to the Buddah. We stopped to watch some educational films about the origins of the Buddist faith, and stopped to do a little tourist shopping. When we did reach the Buddah, which is set atop a hill, we had a quick look around, and discovered that perhaps the statue is best experienced from afar. From the base of the statue, all that you could see was some giant brass leaves which he was "sitting" on.
On the way back I took some more photos from the chairlift, which was the highlight of today's trip for me. When we got home, I went to sleep for a couple hours.
Chris awoke me around 7.15pm. There was a laser light show on every night along the river at 8pm which we had planned to go to, so I had to get up and get ready.
We caught a double-decker bus down to the river, and caught all of the laser show. It was pretty cool. They had set up lots of the buildings along the river and through the city with lasers on top of the building, and they had many of the building's lights connected so that they could be turned on and off in time to the music. It was pretty cool. I think I have a short video somewhere... It was a little eerie, because you could see the path cast by the lasers through the heavy smog.
Following the light show, Brent, Ryan, Chris and I went to find some food. We found a nice little place that was on one of the smaller side streets near the park. They had one English menu, but other than that, didn't seem to be too westernised. The girl working there didn't have very good English, so we figured the food was going to be pretty good. When the food did arrive, it was really good! I would even say it was one of the best meals we had during the trip. (and, it was surprisingly cheap!)
To cap off the day, we revisited some night markets on the way home, and bought some more gifts for people at home.
22 January 2008: Happy Birthday Brent!
Today we went to sample some of Hong Kong's famous shopping. First stop was Mon Kok to peruse the electronics market. Ryan found a new shaver, and Brent found a case, spare battery, and a memory card for his camera. I was looking for a new USB hard disk to put all my digital photos onto, but had no luck.
Many of the stores were selling electronics at slightly cheaper prices than we could achieve in Australia, but it was not as cheap as I had thought it would be.
After looking through the electronics market, we moved through the fish market. These fish were not for eating, but for use as pets. There were heaps of pet shops with bags of fish hanging out the front. I felt a little sorry for the fish! They were not able to swim around in the tank, just staying in their own bag. I'm sure some of the ones sitting in the sun would have struggled with the temperature change in the water.
Brent and Ryan showed us around the main island of Hong Kong. This is the district where most of the major international banks have their headquarters. The buildings are taller than in Kowloon, which is the district where our hotel is situated.
The island of Hong Kong was quite steep, which surprised me. There were stairs through all of the streets, and one street even had an escalator going from the water's edge to the top-side of the CBD area. After looking around the CBD area for a while, we decided to head up the mountain on the cable car which runs every 12 minutes. The cable car goes up the mountain at an unbelievable angle, and is drawn from the top, where there is also a shopping centre and observatory. This is supposed to be the highest point in Hong Kong.
The sun was still up when we first arrived to the summit. as we were there, the sun slowly began to sink below the mountains, casting a shadow over the city of Hong Kong. We had a look around the shopping centres, and stopped for a drink in one of the cafe's overlooking the other side of the island.
Once the sun had gone down, we took some more photos of the city skyline at night, before heading back down to the bottom in the cable car again.
Brent had made dinner reservations to celebrate his birthday at the only revolving restaurant in Hong Kong. "Happy Birthday Brent" The meal was a buffet, and we were able to walk around the entire restaurant, taking in the beautiful views of Hong Kong at night.
Many of the stores were selling electronics at slightly cheaper prices than we could achieve in Australia, but it was not as cheap as I had thought it would be.
After looking through the electronics market, we moved through the fish market. These fish were not for eating, but for use as pets. There were heaps of pet shops with bags of fish hanging out the front. I felt a little sorry for the fish! They were not able to swim around in the tank, just staying in their own bag. I'm sure some of the ones sitting in the sun would have struggled with the temperature change in the water.
Brent and Ryan showed us around the main island of Hong Kong. This is the district where most of the major international banks have their headquarters. The buildings are taller than in Kowloon, which is the district where our hotel is situated.
The island of Hong Kong was quite steep, which surprised me. There were stairs through all of the streets, and one street even had an escalator going from the water's edge to the top-side of the CBD area. After looking around the CBD area for a while, we decided to head up the mountain on the cable car which runs every 12 minutes. The cable car goes up the mountain at an unbelievable angle, and is drawn from the top, where there is also a shopping centre and observatory. This is supposed to be the highest point in Hong Kong.
The sun was still up when we first arrived to the summit. as we were there, the sun slowly began to sink below the mountains, casting a shadow over the city of Hong Kong. We had a look around the shopping centres, and stopped for a drink in one of the cafe's overlooking the other side of the island.
Once the sun had gone down, we took some more photos of the city skyline at night, before heading back down to the bottom in the cable car again.
Brent had made dinner reservations to celebrate his birthday at the only revolving restaurant in Hong Kong. "Happy Birthday Brent" The meal was a buffet, and we were able to walk around the entire restaurant, taking in the beautiful views of Hong Kong at night.
21 January 2008: Bye-Bye Shanghai!
Today we awoke early, and finished packing our things for Hong Kong. The plane was due to leave around 12.30 int the afternoon, but we had to be there just as early as an international flight. Even though Hong Kong is technically part of China, it's still regarded as an international journey. Hong Kong is managed by a special governing council, who try to keep Hong Kong the same as it was when the British left in 1997.
Chris and I caught a taxi to the Maglev station. The Maglev is a magnetic levitation train. It was designed for super-fast travel between Shanghai and the Pudong international airport. The train reaches speeds of about 470kmph.
I don't think the train has been terribly successful, because the city terminus is too far from the centre of the city. It would have been cheaper for Chris and I to catch the taxi the entire way to the airport instead of going on the train!
When we reached the airport, we checked through immigration, and waited by the gate. I was pretty excited to be going to a new place. Shanghai was fun, but I think I had seen enough.
When we arrived in Hong Kong, we took another train from the airport to the city center. Then we took a bus to the hotel. The bus also dropped passengers at other locations around Kowloon, so we got to see a little of the city before we even arrived at our hotel.
When we got to the hotel, we were unable to check-in because Ryan had booked the rooms using his credit card. We left our bags at the hotel, and roamed around the city for a few hours, until Brent and Ryan arrived from Japan.
My first impressions of the city was that it was big and glamorous. It was all the good parts of China (cheap clothes, cheap food) but without all the dirty parts of China. People also didn't hassle you on the streets as much as in China, and most people could speak English very well.
From our hotel, Chris and I walked down Nathan Rd, which is the main shopping strip in Kowloon. we wandered through shopping malls into the botanic gardens, which were quite spacious, given how compact everything else in Hong Kong is!
We strolled through some night markets, which sold everything. I was surprised to see some of the stalls selling adult toys! We stopped to buy some CK watches, and also some little trinkets as gifts.
When Brent and Ryan arrived, we checked into the hotel. Our rooms were very nice, although small. The entire hotel room that Chris and I had could have fit into our living room at home!
Brent and Ryan showed us part of the harbor which we had not seen during our wanderings earlier in the day. It was beautiful. (But there was smog haze everywhere!)
We stopped on the way home for some cocktails at the Hard Rock Cafe. I tried a long island ice tea, and discovered that the cafe also had root beer, so I tried some of that too.
Chris and I caught a taxi to the Maglev station. The Maglev is a magnetic levitation train. It was designed for super-fast travel between Shanghai and the Pudong international airport. The train reaches speeds of about 470kmph.
I don't think the train has been terribly successful, because the city terminus is too far from the centre of the city. It would have been cheaper for Chris and I to catch the taxi the entire way to the airport instead of going on the train!
When we reached the airport, we checked through immigration, and waited by the gate. I was pretty excited to be going to a new place. Shanghai was fun, but I think I had seen enough.
When we arrived in Hong Kong, we took another train from the airport to the city center. Then we took a bus to the hotel. The bus also dropped passengers at other locations around Kowloon, so we got to see a little of the city before we even arrived at our hotel.
When we got to the hotel, we were unable to check-in because Ryan had booked the rooms using his credit card. We left our bags at the hotel, and roamed around the city for a few hours, until Brent and Ryan arrived from Japan.
My first impressions of the city was that it was big and glamorous. It was all the good parts of China (cheap clothes, cheap food) but without all the dirty parts of China. People also didn't hassle you on the streets as much as in China, and most people could speak English very well.
From our hotel, Chris and I walked down Nathan Rd, which is the main shopping strip in Kowloon. we wandered through shopping malls into the botanic gardens, which were quite spacious, given how compact everything else in Hong Kong is!
We strolled through some night markets, which sold everything. I was surprised to see some of the stalls selling adult toys! We stopped to buy some CK watches, and also some little trinkets as gifts.
When Brent and Ryan arrived, we checked into the hotel. Our rooms were very nice, although small. The entire hotel room that Chris and I had could have fit into our living room at home!
Brent and Ryan showed us part of the harbor which we had not seen during our wanderings earlier in the day. It was beautiful. (But there was smog haze everywhere!)
We stopped on the way home for some cocktails at the Hard Rock Cafe. I tried a long island ice tea, and discovered that the cafe also had root beer, so I tried some of that too.
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