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Trip Start Feb 15, 2004

Trip End Dec 18, 2004

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Flag of Australia Kensington, Australia
Monday, March 1, 2004

It's been rough trying to find a free computer to use today, since now that classes have started the uni is even crazier than during O-Week! I'm not used to going to school with this many people! After Wesleyan, a university of over 35,000 students is scary! But since I'm a postgrad student, all my classes are either 4-6 or 6-8 pm, so hopefully the campus won't be quite as crowded then.

I had an awesome weekend because the rain finally stopped and we got to enjoy some perfectly sunny and warm weather. So Kristin and I hit the beach twice in 2 days! After another wild night out at Scruffy's partying with Mark and his mates, we went to Coogee on Saturday afternoon, which is a nice 30 minute walk downhill from our apartment. I didn't go anywhere near the water though, because the waves were scary! A few days before, there were 10 meter waves - on the news they said they haven't seen waves like this in years

Kristin and Me at Manly Beach

! Unfortunately, Coogee beach is overrun with Americans because it's a big backpacker and student area and that day it was super-crowded. But it was still beautiful. Then on Sunday, we took the ferry to Manly beach again and met up with Mark. We got to see Mark's friend Steve fight in a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament being held in the grand ballroom of a hotel near the beach. That was an interesting experience. If you've never seen Jiu-Jitsu before, it basically looks like the 2 half-naked guys are cuddling, and then they occasionally throw each other on the ground. Half the time it looks violent, the other half it looks like they should get a room. We alternated sitting in the smelly room watching the sweaty boys go at it with hanging out on the beach. It was a good last day of summer before I start classes today.

As a result of my beach-filled weekend, I now have various oddly-shaped red sunburn patches all over my left leg. My right leg was somehow unaffected. I guess my spf 45 sunscreen actually worked on that side. So now in addition to being the whitest person on the beach, I also look like I have some kind of freaky rash. Hot!

Randwick is really starting to feel like home, even though our apartment is still quite barren. I'm getting to know all the shops in town, and I've found the old-fashioned movie theatre that only costs $7. We also have our own little mall with a post office, dollar store, supermarket, sushi shop, fruit shop, bakery, and surprisingly a Mexican take-away restaurant. I've got everything I need here! We've also got bats living around our apartment complex, which I discovered after being completely freaked out by the screeching noises coming through the windows. Good thing I'm living with all those big strong boys who can protect little old me (that is if they ever came out of their rooms)!