Saturday at the Beach!

Woohoo what an adventure today!

I left my house super early this morning and walked to the train station (about 20 minutes):



It looked like it was going to be a good day with bright blue skies!

So I got on the train, and two stops later, my friend, Lan, got on as well, and we were on our way!

The train ride from Brisbane to the Gold Coast is maybe 45 - 60 minutes, but from the time I left my house, until the time I was on the beach was about 2 hours. (We took 2 buses to get from the train station to Burleigh Heads.)





So I figured I was going to be slick and climb on the rocks without taking my shoes off (unlike Lan, who was smart), and I was pretty careful until one foot slipped, and I dunked it in the ocean. In my sock and shoe. Boo =\





After I learned my lesson:


Lan:


Then we walked for a bit until we were hot, and Lan convinced me to go in the freezing ocean. (OK, maybe it wasn't freezing, but it sure felt like it when you first got in. But then I got used to it.)

And we jumped in the waves, and swam a little, and had a good time!
Then we came back to dry out on the sand:







And then we walked some more:


Somehow, we were magically transported back to Miami!:


Next we went to Pacific Fair, a pretty big mall, with indoor and outdoor shops, and being girls, we had to go shopping! (Especially since there were "Sale" signs!) So this is what I bought:


All the shopping was making me hungries! So Lan and I wandered inside to the food court, where I had a meat pie, and she had a sandwich:




And we shared other, healthier food, like apples. And cookies. =D

After that, it was starting to get late, so we ventured back home.

And so Applied Molecular Microbiology Ends...

I went into the city today, early as always, to do some roaming around, maybe a little shopping, and whatever else I could find. And this is what I found:







In the middle of the shopping area, they were singing opera on the stage. And it was absolutely fantastic. This might sound a little weird, but it wasn't. They were actually advertising for The Barber of Seville which they are now performing in the city. And the advertising worked quite well, because I am tempted to go see it, especially if I can convince someone else to go with me.

I roamed around some more, went to the library to check out some new books (Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, and some Terry Brooks book), and eventually ended up back where I started (I was looking for a sewing kit, so that I could hem my pants which were dragging on the ground.) Then I saw this guy:



Moderately funny, but still pretty talented.


Eventually, I went to the last class of Applied Molecular Microbiology. Our presentations were due, and I had been working on mine for about a week, so I wasn't too worried. So I got up in front of the class and talked about RNA viruses and the methods of detection (namely, RT-PCR). I feel like I did a good job, though I went over the time limit a little. (It was only supposed to be 10 minutes, and I was closer to 15). We won't find out our marks until Tuesday of next week.

And the most important thing that happened was that I talked to Theo Sloots, who was the one grading the projects, as well as the guy who runs the Virus Research Center. He agreed to take me on for my job placement next semester, which makes me really happy! I want to work at the virus research center because thats where I feel I will acquire the most career skills available. So hopefully, this position will be the most beneficial in helping me to get a better job when I come back home. I don't yet know the specific projects I will be working on, but there are a couple available, so it looks like I will have a choice. Woot!

After class, a couple of my friends and I decided we wanted to celebrate! So we went back into the city and saw this beautiful building:


And do you know what it is? A casino! Almost seems a waste =D

We wandered around for a bit, and then celebrated the completion of our presentations by indulging in some fattening, greasy food from Hungry Jacks. And it was yummy!

my friends, Marina and Lan:



They decided to accompany me to see Swing Central (which is the swing band that plays on Thursday nights), though they didn't stay long. I hung out for a while with Jackie and Mel from Swing:


And a picture of everyone dancing at Martini Night:


And then Mel gave me a ride home, and I went to sleep!

A Marriage Proposal and a Serenade

We're now in week 7! Which means the class I used to have on Tuesday nights (Foundations for Health Professionals) ended, and tonight a new class began (Biological Laboratory Analytical Techniques). I was very excited about this new class, seeing as how there are 3 weeks on HPLC and GC/MS, which is near and dear to my heart, but then I realized that it is all lecture. There is no practical component to the ENTIRE degree. (As a class we have all decided that this is kind of crappy, and we would like to get some hands-on experience from our course. End rant.)

Anyways, we are sitting in class tonight, waiting for it to start, and somehow, I get to talking with one of the guys from last Tuesday's class.

Background Info: He's an older guy and from Egypt, with a pretty strong accent. From the previous class, we all know that he is pretty outspoken, and does not hesitate to interrupt a lecturer 5 times in an hour with a question (all the time saying, "I do not mean to interrupt, but... ") or to even tell the lecturer how much he likes him/her and what a good person they are. The rest of us find it pretty funny, and it definitely keeps class entertaining.

So he asks my name, and all of a sudden, he tells me, "Gayle, I love you! Will you marry me?" I don't remember what we were talking about, something about the coursework, or an exam, but it was hilarious, and everyone was highly amused. We talked a little bit more about his daughter, and eventually he started talking to someone else, and I started talking to someone else, and that was the end of our conversation.... Until 5 minutes later, when he starts serenading me. In his Egyptian accent. Funniest thing ever. So the whole class (about 15 of us) is laughing, and I am laughing (and turning red at the same time) and he is laughing. Good times.

Dance, dance!

Thursday nights are now for dancing!

I was highly disappointed that Swing Dance Brisbane only hosts a Swing Shack once a fortnight (and for you American speakers, thats once every 2 weeks). But then I found out that a smaller number of dancers meet up at the Hotel LA every Thursday to dance.

So after class, I did some shopping, went to the library, hung around the city (and read The Da Vinci Code) and eventually caught the bus to Paddington.



Upstairs, I found a tiny little dance floor, but a fantastic live swing band, and some of the best dancers in Brisbane. So I was happy I showed up, because I danced a bit, and socialized a bit, and had a good time.

I did have the two most awful Balboa dances ever though. I think I have two left feet. Because my lead was awesome; I am just a terrible follow.

Cruising up and down the river

Before I made it to today's adventure, I was at Queen Street, where this girl was singing in the middle. It was awesome, even though all I heard were two country cover songs.




For today's adventure, I hopped on the CityCat. Starting at the North Quay, the ferry goes for a good distance until it reaches Apollo Road, where it turns around.

Map of the journey







Heading east, the weather was super fantastic. Warm and sunshiny and breezy. I had a very nice conversation with an electrician from Sydney, and I met some other people from Brisbane. And going under the many bridges is kinda cool.

Kangaroo cliffs (where there was actually some people climbing today)
















Unfortunately, once we got all the way to the end of the river, the weather became cloudy and cold! Suddenly! So coming back wasn't so nice, but I toughed it out, and got off again at North Quay (I would have liked to go to the complete end, but I didn't have enough time before class),

Another Thursday Adventure!

This one was a bit too short today though.

In the morning, my first mission was to talk to Barat Patel, who is the course convenor for the Clinical Microbiology degree (he put the whole thing together). I talked to him about possible career paths, because most of the time, I feel like I am floundering and have no idea where I want to go, or what I want to do.

I told him how I worked with (lol, and ON!) HPLC for about a year and a half, and how I really enjoyed it, though I do not see it as a career, since it would be pretty boring for any real length of time. There are several different fields that do similar things - environmental, forensic, and pathology (and I'm sure some more) so Barat was telling me that eventually I need to decide. Ha!

In the meantime though, I asked his advice about what to do for my job placement that is coming up next week. He recommended something in the Virus Research Center, because real time PCR is the basis for some of the newest science technologies and discoveries. He suggested that doing research might be what I am looking for, since it will be challenging and interesting, as well as difficult. (And if not, learning PCR technology will definitely help me later on in a similar field.) I want to get as much as possible out of this career placement, so Barat then told me that I will need to do research during the semester, and get my work published, which will help me out a lot in the future. He then talked to me about doing a phD program. =)

So lots to think about!

...

I didn't get into the city until 11:30am though, and with a 2pm bus to class at the Royal Children's Hospital I didn't have too much time to wander. I decided to find the Roma Street Parklands since it is very close to the city center. Unfortunately, there is a lot of construction going on and I wandered around for some time walking in circles before I actually found the gardens. (It had nothing to do with the fact that I didn't know how to get there!)

I would have liked to spend some more time there, especially since I even packed a picnic lunch this time, but it was not to be. Instead, I quickly walked through the various parts.







And the I came to the topiary! I <3 topiary!


Me and the 'roo:


Onward through the sculptured bushes:




And then to the fountain:


Some random flower pictures:




And then I walked very quickly back to Southbank, where I caught my bus to class.

Did I tell you about the creatures who invade my room?

I found this guy tonight, after I kept hearing some fluttering near my window:


He would have a nice dinner there, if it would stop struggling!



This guy joined me a couple of days ago. Scared the crap out of me, because I saw something huge run across my floor out of the corner of my eye.





He was pretty big, which I figure is a good thing, because then he can eat things like this that show up in my room: