BREAK: Be prepared, this is LONG!

Mid-semester break began on Friday after class... we had to leave for Cairns on Saturday morning at 4:15am for the airport. We all decided that we are college kids and are young and stupid, thus making a justification for staying out all night and going directly to the airport. NOT a good idea. The night before was fun, but the taxi ride at 4:15 physically hurt. I slept the entire three hour plane ride. Then we got to our hostel and... there are just no words. We (Kevin, Alec, Raychel, Cydney, and I) walk into our room and there are dirty sheets on the bed and a random Asian roommate chilling on a bed. The bathrooms were, um, scary to say the least. We booked it out of there and layed out at the lagoon (a public resort-style pool with sand) to figure out what to do. Raychel and Alec were walking and stumbled upon a nicer hostel that was actually $5/night cheaper. We got our money back and immediately moved into our new home. There is no beach in Cairns, just a mud/swamp area as it is blocked by the reef, so we just layed out all day. That night, Kevin and Alec had an unfortunate experience, that is only funny in hindsight. They were in a separate room than us girls and their female roommates had, uh, activities with random men all night. Luckily the next night we all moved into a 5 person room together, with two beds in one partition and three in another. I guess you get what you pay for when it's only $17/night...

On Sunday we took a cruise to the Great Barrier Reef and went snorkelling. It was really indescribable. The reef was so shallow you could stand on it, although no one is allowed to, as humans are slowly killing off the reef. We saw so many species of fish, I wish I had studied up before we went. Raychel and I took an underwater camera and had some great shots- BUT we both thought the other had brought it home, so I guess another family will be enjoying our photos. We went to two reef locations to snorkel and at the second reef our group took a short trip on a glass-bottom boat. The guide showed us these giant clams, fish we hadn't noticed, and was pretty funny. They like to make fun of our accents and when we were leaving he said 'latER!' We were pretty exhausted, so we didn't stay out late that night, but we did go to the night market and paid $15 for a 40 minute Chinese massage. It looked pretty shady, but I slept sooo well.

Monday we booked a rainforest tour. The guide was a tiny bit tamer than Steve Erwin, but not much. He took us to all these little places along the route, like a small cheese factory where we ate lunch, and a couple water falls, one of which we swam in. At the place we were swimming, no crocs by the way, Raychel and I really wanted to jump from this rock, but were scared to swim over. So of course we made Kevin go first. I followed shortly after and thought I saw an eel, at which point I began doggie-paddling in frantic circles until Kev told me it was only a log. We made it to the rock and took flight a couple times. Raychel and I were proud of ourselves... :) My favorite part of the rainforest trip was Paranella Park. A Spaniard back in the early 1900s came to Australia and built a romantic Spanish-style home around a waterfall complete with a ballroom, paths all around the home, a tunnel of love, and a tennis court. At all points in the area the waterfall is visible. He was not the best architect, so natural disasters and corrosion have done a number on the place, but it is still the most romantic setting I've ever seen! Anyway, that night was Kevin's 21st birthday, so we went to a nice seafood dinner and had a few drinks. We planned on going out a little later, but once again we were all pooped. The good thing about booking these two trips through our hostel was that we got two nights accommodation free...

Tuesday we just layed by the lagoon all day again. It was 32-34 degrees celsius all week (which is low 90s fahrenheit.) That night Sam Running and her parents met up with us for a drink at dinner, and they were exactly what I expected! Now I see where she gets her bubbly/funny/kind personality. Later, we walked through an Aboriginal art gallery that took my breath away. I never took a close enough look at this type of art, but it is so intricate. They are mostly dots/leaf shapes/and patterns that tell stories and dreams. We also went through a Peter Lik photography gallery. He takes photos all around the world and enhances them with the most vibrant color. If I could decorate my home with only one piece, I would probably choose one of his. Unfortunately, all I could afford was a couple postcards.

We decided not to pull the same stunt we did before departure, so we went to bed by 11 that night. Wednesday morning we were in a taxi by 9am and home by 3:30. When I walked into our little apartment it felt like a 5 star. I'm not kidding. But I can't complain, it was a memorable trip. All my roommates are gone on trips, so tonight Alec, Raych, and I are just blogging, loading photos, and watching TV. Oh, and doing millions of loads of laundry.

If you have made it this far, congratulations! I am now finished until after Dad comes and we have our little excursion to the Whitsundays. Unless we make some memories this weekend... until then- CHEERS!

So Red Bull has about the most genius marketing idea I've ever seen. First, their slogan is "Red Bull gives you wings." They host this event called Flugtag where teams compete to build these rediculous contraptions they think will "fly" and run/bike/push their flying machine over the edge of a ramp that's about 10 meters above the water. The most crazy man (believe me, women wouldn't be dumb enough to do this) is the pilot of the craft and goes down with it. These competitions have been done all over the world, but this was the first one in Australia. 15,000 spectators showed up, which was amazing in itself. We saw giant clocks, an airplane that was shaped like a bee, and my favorite, a giant penguin. The penguin didn't even try to go fast off the ramp, they just waddled it to the edge and it fell off, which was about the funniest thing I've ever seen. These things literally plummet into the water below! Leading up to "take off" the team plays music and does a little dance or some sort of a performance, in which most wore costumes... (male nurses, tu tus, speedos, you name it.) They are scored on performance, creativity, and distance. The furthest one only went lik 20 meters, and apparently the world record is 60m. I hope they were on the booze, because that's the only way I could see someone actually attempting this! Oh, and this was all last Sunday.

Anyway, I had a really stressful week because I had a long paper to write for Aboriginal History. I always think 'there is no way I'm going to finish' and then I pull a miracle. I was printing in the library and when I got back to my computer this Asian guy was messing with it. He said he was really into my paper and wanted a copy to read. I said no that I had class soon... I'm thinking he might have downloaded a copy to sell or plagerise or something... it was sketchy. So I told my professor about it today just in case...

THEN- today I had my last class before a TWO WEEK break! Went to the rec, then got a haircut, then relaxed at the beach for a bit. Tomorrow morning we are leaving at 4:15am for the airport for break in Cairns (the popular place to see the Great Barrier Reef and the rainforest.) It's a lot warmer up there so I can't wait! I might just stay up all night since I have to be up at 3:45, I'm in college right?? :) We are planning on snorkeling and stuff... maybe pet a few sharks. You know. More details after the break!

Put some shrimp on the barbie!

G'Day!

I just haven't felt like writing in my blog lately so I have a lot of catching up to do.

Last Thursday I went to my first ever toga party. Yes, I'm a terrible American college student. I somehow managed to make a decent looking toga from my pink checkered bed sheet and we made our way to the campus bar. I couldn't get over that this bar is right next to the library here, while at home we have a DRY campus! Anyway, we get there and EVERYONE is dressed in togas... good fun. Except this one guy who was pranked and told by his friends that it was a YOGA party... he wore a yoga instructor outfit! haha

Saturday night the girls and I went over to a friends of a friends house, where we met some Aussies for a barbeque. They fed us salad, lamb, steak, sausage, wine... amazing. We showed them flip cup (for those of you who knows what that is) and it got pretty intense. Raychel and Jonty had like 5 championships, because they're crazy like that! They like their competitions here. Then we actually called it an early night.

Raychel and I went to another waterpolo match Sunday at a different pool. Let me tell you, we are getting pretty savvy with the sport. Afterward there was live music by Jonty, a friend I met through work, and his brother so we stayed around for that. We finally befriended some Aussie girls, too, who are just beautiful!

The last two days of my internship have been pretty good. We have a new account manager with us now, Tracey, so I'm not the new girl anymore! It's really kind of hard to explain what my tasks are because they are different everyday. I enter a lot of jobs into the data base, type reports up, check/write emails about art changes... that kind of thing.

Cheers!

Bondi Beach!!!

Last week was pretty uneventful... but we stayed two nights in Bondi over the weekend. There was no class on Friday so we went to the hotel. No beach though because of rain. It didn't rain on Saturday, but unfortunately the weather was still pretty windy and cold, which makes for some pretty choppy surf. Some friends came down to surf as well and let me borrow a wetsuit so I decided to brave it. They're a lot more experienced than me... I couldn't even get out past the breaking waves! I was completely defeated. At least I got a good upper body workout.

Sam Running and I were told there was a church service on the beach so we asked all over on Saturday night and no one seemed to know anything. I was pretty upset about it. But Easter Sunday was beautiful and I thanked Him for how blessed I am. I rented a wetsuit and took my board out for a surf and soon I hear these sirens go off. I wasn't really sure what it meant and didn't see other surfers reacting to it so I just kept surfing. Usually they sound an alarm or make an announcement when the current it strong so I thought it was probably that. Those sirens went off about three or four times. Eventually I got tired and made it back to the beach where my friends told me they were shark sirens!!! Yeah, I said SHARK. I'm not sure why no one was getting out of the water. Anyway, I survived with all of my limbs.

Tomorrow I'm getting together with my History partner to start working on our History presentation. He is French, I am from America and we are supposed to give an in depth presentation about Aboriginal Genocide. We can hardly understand each other and no next to nothing about Australian history so this should be interesting. So today I'm going to the library to get a little head start.

NOTE: I haven't mentioned what a Tim Tam Slam is... Tim Tams are these rectangle chocolate coated sandwich cookies that are usually eaten with tea or a hot drink. To do a Tim Tam Slam you bite off a small part of two opposite corners of the cookie and put one corner in your mouth and one corner in the hot drink. You then suck on it like a straw until you feel the liquid come through the cookie. The Tim Tam starts to melt really fast so you have to 'slam' it in your mouth. This is the best part- the cookie melts like butter in your mouth and is like mushy chocolate heaven. I'm obsessed and will be bringing this tradition home with me.

Let's see- Saturday we went to Bondi for the day. I surfed, but the waves were small and the crowds were big. We are staying there for two nights next weekend for Easter so I'll be able to go early and beat the crowds. We also found a church at the beach for Easter service, so it should be an Easter like none other. Anyway, Sunday I went to the city to buy a few shirts and things for work since the dress code is more casual than expected. We actually caught the tail end of the St. Patrick's Day parade, which I wish I had known about.

Today at my internship Graham asked me to write up a contact report and creative brief from our meeting last Wednesday. This was new to me and I spent a lot of time studying examples of each, but I know it will stick with me now. After work, I decided to catch the 7:15 cycling class at the rec. The instructor and I got talking afterwards about triathlons and she's almost convinced me to do one here. It would be pretty difficult considering I didn't bring my bike or shoes, have never done an ocean swim, and don't have a car. Apparently, there are a couple triathletes that are regular in her classes so I might try to make friends with them...

Just internship tomorrow.

Designstreet and Rugby Night

The first two days of my internship may have been a little slow, but Wednesday was busy enough for both of them. I have to start at the beginning when I was picking out my clothes for the day. Usually I wear jeans and a top like everyone else in the office, but for some reason that day I decided to look a little nicer and wear a plain navy dress with a brown belt. I got to work and started reading emails. One was from Graham saying that he would be taking me to the city to visit with a client about a new project they had for us. Oh yes, I had one hour to brief myself with background information about their corporate card. I didn't really have time to get nervous. Thank the heavens I didn't wear jeans. Graham and I drove to the city and rode up to the 28th floor and met with Amanda. She told us all about their corporate card and the product they wanted to promote. I took notes like mad and tried not to say anything dumb.

Designstreet is only a creative boutique. We design the final artwork, not the campaign. So clients bring us in to execute their ideas. Ideally, I want to work one step ahead with the campaign planners, but this gives me insight into the creative side. Planners and creatives are two totally different personalities, so I'm learning how to interact with both.

Anyway, after our morning meeting, Graham wanted to swim over lunch break. He took me to this swim/gym/cafe place for corporate folks who want to escape during lunch. He swam while I frantically tried to read up on some background info. Then we went back to the office for another round of meetings to find out exactly what they wanted us to design. We'll be using their campaign strategy to make brochures, powerpoints, and pamphlets.

Thursday was class, class, class.

Tonight I went to my first ever rugby match!! Kevin, Raychel, Sam R. Tom, and I decided to cheer for the South Sydney Rabbitohs because they were the home team...and Russell Crowe was at the game cheering for them. I guess this game was a big deal because it was the 100th anniversary + the season opener. We were told it was a huge event and were expecting large crowds comparable to an NFL game. We got there two hours early, but I bet only 25,000 showed up to watch. I guess this is a nice sized crowd for them, but it was nothing like the attendance and rowdiness of our sporting events. It was cool to watch, and we started picking up on it by the end. For instance- unlike football, the team that scores starts the next play with the ball and they get 6 tackles before they give up the ball. Also, their field goals are kicked 20 meters back from wherever they crossed into the endzone. So sometimes they would kick diagonally from the sideline! That takes skill. The players are huge brutes that I would never want to meet in an alley. There is rugby league (which we went to) and rugby union. They have slightly different rules, and I think in union the players are even bigger and the rules (or lack of) are more barbaric.

Tomorrow, beach.

Workin' It

I finally started at DesignStreet! Yesterday (Monday) I started walking to my internship a little after 8am. My boss had been on vacation and didn't come in until 4, so they really didn't know what to do with me. All morning I read the manuals and learned the computer programs. It didn't take me long to realize that all those classes at Mizzou actually DID teach me something! Today was a little better. My boss, Graham, was still busy catching up from the week before so he couldn't do much with me, but Alex let me work on some jobs with her. Nothing exciting yet, just entering data into the computer. They did start me on answering phones- "Good morning, DesignStreet, Kristine speaking..." It wasn't so bad. They had me making phone calls to suppliers by the end of the day. Graham said this was their slowest week in a long time, so there should be more to do next week.

Everyone in the office except Graham and Dan are under 26 years old. I have a little office/large cubicle next to Brooke and Martin, the account managers, and they are constantly giving me songs to download and ideas of places to go. It's a pretty fun environment.