Second times a charm

Annnnnnnnd were back! Yes, I know...it took long enough but better late than never I supppose. You all have Melissa to thank as her constant nagging for more blog posts (with pictures!) has finally paid off.

Where to begin...it's been a month since my last post and a lot has happened. Not surprisingly, the month of April flew by but it was also the source of some of my greatest memories to date.

The university was kind enough to give us a beauty two week mid-semester break where I headed up to Melbourne and the Great Ocean road for a second stint. This time I went with three of my friends who are also on exchange, Ben (Austria), Cas (Holland) and Rohit (India). I am really glad that I got the chance to go back to Melbourne as it quickly became one of my favourite cities that I have visited. Travelling with 3 of the coolest guys I have met down under didn't hurt either

We spent 4 days checking out the city and drinking beer...lots and lots of beer. The highlight was definitely all the time we spent in Fitzroy (aka Fitzrockn'roy) which can only be described as Queen West x100.

Two of Rohit's friends (Aditi and Roxanne) met us in Melbourne and we headed out west for two days on the Great Ocean Road. I don't think I need to reiterate how awesome it is, but it was definitely worth doing again!



The beauty of doing it the second time around was that this time it wasn't foggy at the Twelve Apostles and we actually got to enjoy the sunset there, which was just incredible. We stayed the night in Apollo Bay which is home to the nicest hostel I have ever stayed at and some of the best Thai food I have ever had (forgive me Salad King). The hostel had an awesome lounge and rooftop where we once again drank the night away. Before leaving Apollo Bay we took a short drive up through the national park, followed by an hours hike through the forest to check out some waterfalls which added to another great day.

Since getting back from Melbourne school work has been fairly constant. I suppose that's what happens when you squander a two week opportunity to get a lot done! Either way, as it stands now I am 7000 words and a final exam away from being done school.

More to come soon on my plans from here on out! (I promise it won't take this long next time)

kc

Hockey Night in Sydney

Rest easy friends, I will now be able to watch NHL playoff hockey.

The games were a few days old and I already knew the results but that didn't matter. The beer was cold, the wings were hot and the poutine was a pretty damn good attempt for down under. Did I mention Canadian beer? Kokanee and Blue are both served regularly.

Thanks to a few fellow Canadian friends, I had the privelage of attending Hockey Night in Sydney, a weekly ritual for ex-pats and hockey lovers to get together and watch some Hockey. Doug, a hockey enthusiast from Atlanta, Georgia (yes I know, a bit of an oxymoron) started the tradition two and half seasons ago and has a fairly loyal following.

On tap Wednesday night was Montreal v. Toronto, Vancouver v. Edmonton and Ottawa v. Montreal. The organizer actutally gets someone to record the games back in Canada and has them e-mailed out to Australia for our viewing pleasure.

The TSN highlight of the night definitely had to be the national anthem during the Ottawa/Montreal game. Imagine about 30-40 Canadians singing along and cheering as if they were at the game live.

I know I won't be able to keep myself from checking the scores before I go but at least I will be able to enjoy the playoffs in some capacity. Playoff season without any playoff hockey would have been devasting, thank god for Doug.

OHHHHHHHH CANADA!