A lot has happened since the last blog update on 9 June-
The Dow Jones has gone from 12,307 to 8,480
Avg gasonoline price has gone from $4.04 to $1.89 per gallon
Countrywide, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Bros, WAMU and Wachovia all collapsed
Countrywide, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Bros, WAMU and Wachovia all collapsed
The first black president has been named to lead the United States
Oh yeah, and we bought a "new" car
It has the feel of....."when I was a kid we used to pay 1 cent for a stamp and 5 cents to go to the cinema".....except this is less than 6 months!
So what have the crazy kids in Oz been up to? Well, we took a trip to Sydney in September and have posted a smattering of pictures below from that trip. We saw all the usual Sydney sights and even tried sneaking into a matinee of an opera, but security was pretty tight. We learned pretty quick to stay away from King's Cross unless we were looking for a fight, strippers, drugs or a dirt cheap backpackers hostel (ding-ding-ding!!!). The funny thing is that we were denied entrance into several clubs in the same area because we were not appropriately dressed. I'm all for the dress code, but it's amusing to strictly enforce this code while unspeakable acts are being peformed just meters away. On the other hand, perhaps that is the reason to enforce such strict obedience.
The picture below was from my first day of work at Grant Thornton in Brisbane in June. From memory, this had to be one of the very few days it rained between June - November, but as luck would have it, the puddles only added to my nervousness that day. Olga did everything in her power to make sure she sent me off in style including letting me hold the umbrella by myself all the way to the subway station while she did her did her best popporazzi impression. Shortly after, we went and bought a man-size umbrella so I don't have to withstand the local children pointing and laughing at me. Insert on the left, you will see a cool, confident dryer version of me heading off to the daily grind. I've got my I-pod in hand and what appears to be a beverage....I'm going to assume that was an energy drink of some kind, although you never know.
I have included pictures from Noosa Beach below on the Sunshine Coast. Noosa is a 1.5 hour drive from Brisbane and has some of the best most relaxing beaches in Queensland and has a nice feel to it. Lazy Sundays are what this place is all about. It's actually quite popular among the older crowd- the schoolies (teens/early 20's) actually prefer heading down to the Gold Coast (45 mintues away) for some beach action. This leaves a much more peaceful beach to enjoy for us heading towards our 30's (see below). We also decided to hit up a strawberry farm on our way back into Brisbane. We got to go select our own strawberries from an entire field full and it went a little something like this: one for the basket, one for me, one for the basket, two for me, one for me, four for me. By the time we paid for our kilo of strawberries, I didn't even want to look at one.....that is, until the next day when the entire kilo mysteriously disappered.
The video below is from our trip to the Koala sanctuary. While the name is a bit misleading, they actually have kangaroos running wild there as well as other animals in cages like dingoes and wombats. The sanctuary is strictly Australian animals and is so close to home that trips to the zoo are not even necessary. I highly recommend including this place on your itinerary for your next trip to Australia. The koalas are absolutely adorable, although they sleep 20 hours a day...not a bad life.
The picture below is from an Island just off the coast of Brisbane called Stradbroke Island. The place is pretty remote and there were only a handful of people walking around the coastline. The waves were magnificent and so loud as they came crashing to the shore. We were actually perched high up on some rocks overlooking the water, but they did have areas where you could walk down to a beach. Another peaceful place to visit and we'll definitely be back soon.
The picture below is from an Island just off the coast of Brisbane called Stradbroke Island. The place is pretty remote and there were only a handful of people walking around the coastline. The waves were magnificent and so loud as they came crashing to the shore. We were actually perched high up on some rocks overlooking the water, but they did have areas where you could walk down to a beach. Another peaceful place to visit and we'll definitely be back soon.
We are heading to New Zealand for my 30th birthday tomorrow. We are bringing our smiles and a blank camera. Expect to see pictures posted here shortly of one of the most beautiful places on the planet. Hopefully, if things go well, I will be in a bar in Queenstown, NZ screaming the words to Billy Joel's "Piano Man" and putting another Heffeweissen to bed as I say goodbye to my 20's.
Until then,
Cory & Olga
