G'day mate!

Hello from down under everyone! This is my first post from Oz, and it is a week late because I don't yet have internet access at home. This should change today or tomorrow (hopefully, 'cause my modem is already 2 days late!) In any case, I just wanted to let everyone know I arrived safe and sound and am now (more or less) comfortably set up in my apartment. I am five minutes walk from campus, ten minutes walk from the nearest mall (the huge Macquarie Center), and ten minutes walk from the nearest bar and bottle shop (or bottlo in Australian English). My three flatmates are Nils Jacholke (ya-heul-ka) and Marco Rothaufe (rote-how-fa) from Germany, and a Thai named Montri Thangpijaikul (don't ask). They are all cool and easy to get along with, and you'll hear about them often in my posts, of that I am sure.

         Nils                   Marco                 Montri

As I am typing this from campus it would be difficult to post pictures at the moment, but rest assured I have over a hundred already, as well as some videos and stories to go along! My next update will come as soon as my internet is set up at home, and I will post a few pics on the blog itself and upload the rest to another site and provide the link here. That's it for now, but stay tuned for more!

Party Photos

Express Yourself LIVE

On Saturday I was thrown a surprise farewell party planned by my mother. I can tell you it was a complete surprise! I had no idea and was completely stunned to walk into my house and find it full of friends and family. I am also impressed that everyone managed to keep it a secret from me considering how many people attended. I want to express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who came. I was very touched and moved that so many people came to wish me well and see me before I left. I really felt supported and loved. This slideshow showcases some of the many people who were at the party.

On another note, my flight leaves tomorrow at noon. My total travel time is 24 hrs, so I am scheduled to arrive in Sydney at noon on Sunday, or 8am local time. I have stopovers in Chicago and L.A., and if I have time I'll make a post from California! (no promises) That's all for now. Thanks again to everyone who came to the party! I'll miss you all!

Check out my crib, homies!

Here's my appartment in the neighbourhood of North Ryde in Sydney.


<---Outside front


          Living room--->






Ain't it pimp?!?! If you want to take a 3D virtual tour, click here and then click on the icon under the pictures on the bottom right. Of course it will look a little different after I deck it out, but I'll post my own pictures of it once I'm there.