Sunday, January 27, 2008

...and we are up and running

Hello all

Well we are here and we like it. We found a place, got ourselves some mobile phones (not cell phones, mobiles....I feel like that friends episode were that blond woman who is an ex friend of Monica and Phoebe comes back from the UK) "ring me on my mobile" :) hehehe.

Our place is super nice and it is in a really great area. If you were to make a comparison, it is the Yaletown of Vancouver. About 10 seconds away is the fake beach with the awesome river/pool swimming. I guess an hour was too far for the beach so Brisbane brought the beach to them :) Below are some pics of the place :).

I very much like the bathroom, 2 sinks people!

This is a view from our balcony. In the complex all one bedrooms face the street (we are not worthy of a view) and the 2 and 3 Bedrooms face the park. I will send a pic of the beach/park soon.

Our Kitchen, it leads into the living room so it is an open floor plan.

Now while I dont have a picture of this, the bedroom has......2 closets......wooohoo.

Now, as you may be surprised to learn, Starbucks does not rule the coffee world in Australia. That honour belongs to the below:

Gloria Jean's....not as fancy pants a Starbucks but still the leader :) I just put this fact because i had a picture. Just a FYI.

So, now on to the details. We are moving on Jan 30 (Wed) into our new place. Only 2 more days in the hotel! (remember Jenny, I am speaking to you from the future). Outside our hotel there is this giant tree with giant bats! Like batman bats. They are huge fruit bats and me and Rick just stand there, like mesmerized immigrants, staring at these bats and I swear the whole time I am looking at them, the batman theme song plays in my head! On the subject of creatures, I am learning more and more of the horrors of Australia animals. For example the deadly box jellyfish that even if you are rescued, and get put on Morphine for the pain AND are unconscious you will still scream! WTH!!! And along with that the giant spiders!!! That here, will kill you, or at least leave you lying unconscious on your kitchen floor for three days (as I am told). So I have learned that y0u do not leave big spiders alone, you kill them before they kill you, literally. AND you don't got after them with a kleenex, you get a brick!....anyway, moving on.

Rick starts work on Tuesday and then I will be a lean mean job finding machine (to answer you question, no job yet, haven't even had time to look). We wont have Internet connected right away in our new place but it should be soon and then I will stay in contact better.

If you want to call me and Rick the best (and cheapest) idea is to get a calling card and call our cell phones from your home lines. In Australia you do not pay for incoming calls on your mobile.

It is stinking hot here and Rick has already had one awesome sunburn (RF: it wasn't that bad) :) But is has gone now. And we are lean mean sunscreen machines. So no real tan for me, but I am sure over time I won't look like the great white hope :)

We have done a little sightseeing, not much. It has mostly included trips to Ikea and couch stores...fun times! But we did go to Byron Bay (google it) super great beach, surfing and some awesome waves! and the sight of Ricks burn (RF: That wasn't that bad). Went with some people from here. I have put their pics below and a little run down.


This is Ryan and Emma. (not together). Ryan is a self proclaimed 'Bogan' now, as I have learned a bogan is what we would call trailer trash (his words not mine). And here he models the traditional bogan clothing....notice the bare feet and very short shorts.

Emma works with Rick and she is coming to Vancouver for 2 months, so if you see her on the street, be nice !


This is Toni, super fun, outgoing and Irish but now has to spend a month on her couch because she had to have knee surgery (ACL) so we went over and cooked her dinner and did her bidding. :) She was super good to us when we had to do all of our running around. (RF: She is captain of what has been coined as "Team Immigrant" in the Klohn office.)

I think Rick wants to put in his two cents at least :) This will be the end, for now...I am out....Email lots and call if you can!

RF: Not much to add other that "Thank God the Shopping Is OVER!" It is a good thing I love Lisa because otherwise we wouldn't have made it.

Cheers,