Xtina in Oz

The walking tour never happened - seemed I had wrong information. But Wiebke and I walked around on our own. Here are some pics from Hyde Park:       I call this the mall - reminds me of Central Park   St. Mary's Cathedral And, just because I thought it was awesome:   who doesn't need a dragon removed every now and then? Today we're headed to the Museum of Contemporary Art - normally something that wouldn't be high on my list, but it's free!

Well, day 3 here in Sydney. So far it's been slow going, in terms of activities. Turns out it takes more than a day to sleep off the jet lag! I did go for a walk yesterday morning to Darling Harbour. It only took me about 10 minutes to get there from the hostel, which may have been why I chose it as my first destination. Darling Harbour has a really interesting history. When Sydney was settled way back when, settlers chose to use Sydney Cove as their shipping port, because the geography of the land made it difficult to get onland traffic to Darling Harbour. So instead it become a dirty industrial sinkhole, and remained so until about the 1980s, when some government types tore the whole thing down and re-designed it as a city center. There's loads of attractions there, including the aquarium, the convention center, Sydney's Wildlife World, the National Maritime Museum, etc. a row of shops and restaurants.   across the bay, a different row of shops, known as Harborsi

I've arrived in Australia. Good on ya! The flight was long and bumpy, and I somehow got stuck in a middle seat, much to my chagrin. But, the in-flight entertainment was enjoyable as was the captain or first officer or whoever kept making the announcements. Super Aussie - he probably does it on purpose. I arrived at my hostel, plunked my stuff down, and immediately went out shopping. One of the outside pockets on my suitcase came open and my toiletries bag fell out (time for a new suitcase, me thinks), so I had to go buy all those necessities like shampoo! Also bought a cell phone and some minutes or something - the system here is a lot different than in America, where you pay $x for x number of minutes. Here you pay $30 for $150 worth of talk time, $40 of texting, etc etc. So I really have no idea. I bought the bottom of the line, $39 phone, and it's so basic I can't even figure out how to use it! But I won't have much need for it, I think, at least not at first. An

I'm halfway through my 48+ hours in LA, my final stop before Australia! I spent the last two weeks in Texas, seeing my dad and getting my fill of all things American. I had cheeseburgers, barbeque, Tex-Mex food, and heard plenty of country music. Also, cowboy hats and boots! We went to the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo on my last night - my first! It was really fun! Those bulls are intense, and I have a newfound appreciation for rodeo clowns - their job is way harder than you think from the job title! my parents and bestie Anne at the midway Since arriving in LA yesterday afternoon, I've eaten vegetarian for all my meals - very quintessential, but unintentional. Last night I went out with my friend Matt who I'm staying with, and a bunch of friends from his PhD Philosophy program. We had dinner at a Southern Indian restaurant, Paru's, then ended up bringing everybody back to Matt's apartment for some drunken philosophical discussions. (I soberly observed)

For those of you wondering why I haven't posted in 2 weeks, it's cause I'm not in Australia yet! I am spending some time catching up with and visiting friends and family before leaving the country on Jan. 25. I've got my hostel in Sydney booked for my first 5 nights. I think I'm going to land, get to my hostel, and completely freak out because I have nothing planned. So unlike me! That's the update for now. More in a few weeks!