We finished 4th in the tournament, which is a good result in my opinion, although we lost badly to a good team in the showcase game. The footage from the showcase game and the tournament is supposed to be edited into a video; I'll post a link to the video when it's completed. As more evidence of how friendly Aussies are, after every game both teams come together for a spirit huddle. The captains say a little speech to the other team: congratulating them, wishing them luck, and making witty jokes. Then it's, "three big cheers for ____. Hip hip, HOORAY! Hip hip, HOORAY! Hip hip, HOORAY!"
Up until now I have been just an American visitor here. With time seeming to slow to half speed in these first 2 weeks, July 10th appears to be a very long way off. It occurred to me that by the end of that time I will not be just a visitor, but a student, a resident, a temporary Aussie. This week has been the beginning of the transition away from being a visitor and towards immersion into the culture. Orientation (or O-Week as they call it) was this week, and I got to hang out with the other 2 Clemson boys here and their friends. I now have my schedule finalized, setting in the reality that I AM in school after such a long break (the last time I had school work was exams at the beginning of December). I am taking a senior level electrical engineering course called Automatic Controls, a project management course, a professional communication course, Intro to Aboriginal Studies (Davies gave me crap saying every American takes that course...of course we do!), and an international business course. All in all that will transfer back as 15 credit hours of work, but we'll soon see if the workload is truly equivalent to 15 credit hours.
Also, I now have my own mode of transportation: I bought a used road bike! I had been told by the guys on the frisbee team that there was a place where I could get a bike for a fully refundable deposit. Just return the bike after however long and get all your money back. I questioned how this could be the case, and how the profit was to be made. When I got to the location, I realized that profit wasn't the primary goal. It was a residential house entirely surrounded by bicycles and parts. I honestly thought this was the home of a hoarder because just as the Earth is predominantly covered in water, this lot was predominately covered in bicycles! Stacks of old, partly rusting, donated bicycles as high as the fence enclosing his property. Dan the bike man, as he is called, was sitting in what was left of his front yard working on the spokes of a bike tire while wearing tattered and patched clothes. I really wanted to pull out my camera and take a few pictures, but not knowing the guy, I did not want to offend him by outwardly displaying any notion that his place was a gross and bizarre spectacle. After asking for a library bike, he didn't say much and went inside the house. I did not go inside with him because, again, I did not want to risk being rude by entering without invited inside. He returned with a mountain bike. I couldn't see into the house, but I could only imagine more bikes piled as high as the ceiling with nothing but small pathways to move about the house! He showed me a few more bikes, and I ended buying a silver road bike, a crappy blue helmet, and a short, thick chain with a padlock all for $130. I signed a contract printed on the back of half of another sheet of paper with scratch outs, arrows, and hand written comments which documented the price and description of all that I had purchased, so that I could return it all for a full refund at anytime. He kept a copy, and I got a copy. Oh, and I have to send him a copy of the email that I must send to the proper government authority petitioning for safer biking conditions in Newcastle. When riding my bike home I gained respect for Dan the bike man, because that old bike rode amazingly well! He is a true craftsman. And yes, I will be getting a picture of his compound before I leave the country :)
Things are moving closer and closer towards me moving into Tats's place. He is the frisbee guy who's room I hope to move into. I went and saw the place, and I am quite keen to live there! It is a two story house in a great location: 3 blocks from the beach, 5 blocks from a shopping center, and 6 blocks from a Catholic church. In the shopping center there is a surf shop, a Coles where I can do my grocery shopping, a local fresh produce stand, and a bunch of other little stores. More on the house to come when there is more definitive news. In the mean time, here are a few pictures of the waves at the beach by this house:
Well that's it for now. Tomorrow I am going with Danielle and her friend to the Hunter Valley for some wining and dining. Next week classes start. Also, I will likely being flying to Gold Coast for my 4 day weekend to hang out with Keegan and George (my 2 friends from Isle of Palms) and watch the world's best surfers compete in the Quiksilver Pro!
Love y'all!
~Christian
P.S. The Catholic churches here ARE using the new English translation of the liturgy, in case you were wondering.
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