Random Observations

I don't have a whole lot to report after our first week here, so this post is mainly going to be a bunch of things I've observed that are a bit different than in the US.  I've gotten settled in to work.  I have an office that I share with 3 other people, one of whom was one of Wojciech's students from the U of M and came here to do her PhD after finishing her MS.  I'll have a desktop computer soon, but for now I'm using my laptop.

My favorite thing about work is that they have fancy coffee/espresso machines like there were at PSI in Switzerland.  Except here the coffee is free!  I think when I have a real job I'm going to get one for myself (they're like $400).

Everything here (at least everywhere I go) is RFID card access, no keys.  I have a card to get in my office, one for the building I work in, and one for the apartment.  It's kind of nice to only have to carry my wallet.

Work life balance seems to be prioritized here, which is great.  Everyone works about 9 to 5 and that's it.  According to Wojciech it's even somewhat frowned upon for professors to work extra.  The people in the Solar Thermal Group seem pretty nice and laid back too.  Lots of joking happened at the group meeting on Wednesday!

It's totally possible to live without a car here, at least in the city.  It's about a 15 minute walk or bus ride to the city center where I can do grocery or other shopping, and a 15 minute walk to the building where I work.  The bus system seems to be good too, although we haven't tried it yet.  And the car culture seems to be different too.  Almost everyone drives small cars.  I've seen some compact SUVs around, but they are few and far between, and there definitely aren't huge SUVs or pickups.  The biggest pickup truck I've seen is what we would consider compact.

Nearly all of the museums and public places (Parliament, the Mint, etc.) around here are free, which pleases my frugal grad student heart.  You mean we can go do things without it costing an arm and a leg?  We could visit somewhere and also go out for lunch without feeling guilty about the amount of money we spent?  Sign me up!

Food here seems to be much less processed or sweetened, which has been a little bit of an adjustment.  I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I have to add a little sugar to my morning yogurt!

Tipping isn't mandatory here.  Everyone gets paid at least minimum wage, which is around $16 per hour.  So tips are just for really excellent service.

Another price related thing is that the tax is included in the price on the shelf.  So you know exactly how much things are going to cost when you get to the register.  Really helpful!

This weekend we are probably going to do some museum visits, although we haven't decided where yet.  So hopefully I will have more pictures and another post soon!

Our Apartment and Getting Settled In

I posted some pictures of our apartment on Facebook already, but I'll write a little post about it here too in case there are interested people who aren't friends with me there (plus FB is refusing to load for me at the moment).

We're staying in a 1 bedroom furnished apartment on the ANU campus about a 15 minute walk from the Engineering building where I'll be working.  It's also a 15-20 minute walk to the huge Canberra Centre, which has basically all of the shopping you could need (grocery stores, bakeries, produce and meat markets, clothes stores, bookstores, etc.).  Having the shopping in one location is going to be really useful since we don't have a car here.

And now, for the grand tour!

A view into the bedroom.  We have a queen bed and 2 nightstands.  The pillows are nice and firm, which is good because there wasn't room for my pillow in the luggage (I did manage to fit Wade's in though).

Other side of the bedroom showing the closet.  There's a bigger space for hanging long things on the other side, but it's full of our suitcases.  There's also a space heater for when we get into winter (it's fall here now).

The view from our bedroom window.  There's a nice fountain outside with places to sit around it.

The bathroom is a fair amount bigger than ours at home.  There are 2 buttons for flushing the toilet, one using less water and one using more.

The bathroom is also the laundry room.  You have no idea how excited I was to have my own washer and dryer and not have to share or pay for it.  You mean I can put clothes back in the dryer if they're not dry?  Madness!

The kitchen came equipped with the basics.  Pots, frying pan, casserole dish, a 4 person dining set, etc.  If anyone has tips for making French press coffee, let me know!

The kitchen table can flip out to be twice as big, but it's not really necessary for us.

The computer desk.  The wireless signal isn't very strong, so we've been sharing one computer so far since there's one ethernet port.

Wade hanging out in the living room.

I think this is the exact same patio set as the one we have at home!

A view from the patio.  There are some low shrubs so it's private when you're sitting at the table, but you can see out if you're standing up.

Another patio view.

There are a lot of different kinds of birds nearby, and it's been interesting getting used to the sounds they make.  There are parrots which make an obnoxious shriek, some other bird that kind of sounds like a small child, and some other more normal sounding birds.

A parrot in the tree outside.

Wojciech warned us to be on the lookout for some more dangerous wildlife as well.  The Eastern Brown Snake can kill you in 1-2 hours if you don't get medical attention immediately after getting bitten.  You're supposed to lie down to keep your heart rate down while help comes.  Fortunately, they tend to start with non-fatal bites to defend themselves.  There's also the redback spider, which isn't lethal to adults but its bite can cause respiratory problems and is quite painful.  However, you're unlikely to get bitten unless you put your hand near the spider's web.  Black widow spiders can be found here too.

This weekend was mainly spent settling in and getting used to our surroundings.  Wojciech took us to Canberra Centre on Saturday for lunch and to show us where the grocery stores are.  Food prices are somewhat more expensive here.  Dairy and meat are about twice as expensive as in the US.  Veggies and dry grocery are about the same price as at home.  A quarter pounder meal at McDonald's (burger, fries, and drink) is just over $8 (Australian dollars, but the exchange rate is $0.93=A$1).  In general, a fast food meal seems to be between $8 and $12.  Sushi seems to be very popular here and the prices are similar to the US, which makes me a happy camper.  I had a sampler box for lunch on Saturday for $11.

On Sunday Wade and I went back to Canberra Centre on our own to explore a bit more.  We found the local game store after a bit of confusion.  We had the address, but it was in an area that is a pedestrian mall so there weren't street signs.  We wandered around for a little while, had lunch, and then went to Aldi to get some more food.  We were both pretty tired after that so we just relaxed at home for the rest of the afternoon/evening.

Our sleep schedules aren't quite adjusted yet.  I stayed up until I was utterly miserable last night and still only made it to 7:30 pm.  I was up at 4:30 this morning.  Hopefully I can make it a little later each night until we're back to normal again.  It's very weird having Wade up and about in the morning!  He normally isn't an early riser.

This morning we had our official apartment check in, and this afternoon I'm headed over to Wojciech's office to start getting set up to work.  If you're wondering, it's Monday here.  We are 15 hours ahead of US Central time.

I hope you're enjoying hearing about our adventures, and I hope we'll have some more exciting stuff to post soon.

Getting here

The journey over here was actually rather pleasant.  Aside from one small hiccup at the end, everything went very smoothly.

Mom took us to the airport in Milwaukee on Wednesday afternoon.  We stopped and had some delicious gyros at Oakland for lunch before she dropped us off.  We got to the airport at about 2:30 because you're supposed to arrive 3 hours before an international flight, right?  I had already checked in online, so after dropping off our checked bags and going through security (where there was no line) we arrived at our gate at 2:40 pm.  For our flight that departed at 5:26.  Better safe than sorry, I guess.

We had a somewhat tight connection in MSP, about 40 minutes.  I had hoped that we would at least be going to a gate in the same concourse, but that wasn't to be.  At least it was at the concourse next door.  We booked it between gates and were able to board right away, about 20 minutes before our flight was supposed to leave.

On the flight to LAX we had dinner (turkey slider sandwiches with chips and chocolate) and I finally got to watch Catching Fire.  I missed some of the dialogue in the middle since I was eating, but I've read the books so I could still figure out what was going on.

I was a little worried about finding our way around LAX since we had to go to a different terminal, but I needn't have stressed.  We got off the plane to find someone holding a Virgin Australia sign (first 2 flights were Delta and the second 2 VA) who directed us where to go to wait for a shuttle to the international terminal.  It was really cool to be on the bus driving out on the tarmac.  We got to see a bunch of the huge long haul aircraft up close (A380s, 747s, and 777s).  By the time we got to our gate, we still had about an hour and a half to wait for our 11:50 pm flight.

Our 14 hour flight from LAX to Brisbane was on a 777.  We lucked out and I got us seats in row 25, which is right next to the bathroom and water bottle fill station.  Unlike the other rows, there are only 2 seats on the sides, so I was by the window and Wade was on the aisle.  It was really nice not to have to get up or ask someone else to get up when we wanted to stretch or use the bathroom.  Highly recommended if you're flying with just 2 people.

About an hour into the flight they served us dinner.  There was a choice of beef pie, Indian chicken, or Asian noodles with veggies.  I had the noodles and Wade had the pie.  Dinner came with a roll, pasta salad, crackers and cheese, a drink (I had wine), chocolate mousse, and coffee or tea.  It was all tasty.  After dinner I tried to stay awake to reset my sleep schedule, but I only made it to about 7 pm Australia time.  They gave each passenger a blanket, pillow, earplugs, and an eye mask, so things were relatively comfortable.  I slept off and on until about midnight and then I was awake again.  I read for a while, tried to sleep again, and then gave up and watched American Hustle.  At 5 am or so they brought the cabin lights back up and served breakfast, which was scrambled eggs, sausage, potato chunks, fruit, a muffin, orange juice, and coffee.

We were supposed to have a 1 hour and 45 minute layover in Brisbane.  Unfortunately, our flight landed a little bit late.  By the time we got down to immigration/customs it was down to 1 hour and 15 minutes, during which time we had to get through immigration, pick up our checked bags, go through customs, re-check our bags, catch a train to the domestic terminal, go through security, and get on our flight to Canberra.  When I saw the length of the line at immigration and how slowly it was moving, I was pretty sure we were going to miss our flight.  And I was right.  We got to the domestic transfer desk to re-check our bags about 10 minutes before our flight was scheduled to leave.  Fortunately, the Virgin Australia agents were super understanding.  They moved us to the next available flight, which didn't leave until 2 pm (at this point it was about 8:45 am) and gave us a voucher to get a meal and some snacks since we'd have to wait such a long time.  I didn't even need to ask!

Now we had 5 hours to sit around in the Brisbane airport, which was less frustrating than I would have expected.  Maybe it was because we were totally exhausted by that point.  Fortunately we had packed a change of clothes in our carry on, so we could feel a little bit refreshed (it was really hot in the immigration line so we both felt really gross).  I called Wojciech (my original advisor at the U of M and the reason we're in Australia in the first place) on a pay phone to let him know of the flight change since he was picking us up in Canberra.  I had to leave a voicemail so I was just hoping he would get it.

We got on and off of our flight to Canberra on the tarmac instead of using a jetway, so that was kind of neat (aside from the fact that it was sprinkling in Canberra).  I spotted Wojciech as we were heading down the escalator to the baggage claim, so that was a relief.  He got the message after all.

All in all, from when we arrived at MKE to when we left the Canberra airport, our travel time was roughly 36 hours.

By this time it was after 5 pm, so instead of checking in with the accommodation office we just had to get our apartment keys from the after hours box.  Our apartment is really nice, but I will get to that in another post.  The rest of Friday night involved a little bit of unpacking, getting connected to the internet, and ordering Domino's for dinner.  Yes, we get to Australia and the first thing I did was order Domino's.  Mostly because I couldn't figure out how to work the phone and I could order and pay online.

So ends the story of our long journey to get here.  More posts about our apartment and getting settled in to come soon.

An Australian Adventure!

Hi everyone!  Long time, no blog posts.  I'm resurrecting this blog because I'm headed on another international adventure, this time to Canberra, Australia.  Wade is coming with too!  We'll be leaving around March 30 and staying there for 3 months.

Why Canberra?  Well, as a lot of you probably know, my advisor left the University of Minnesota last fall to take a position at the Australian National University, which is located in Canberra.  I had the option of moving there permanently or staying in MN to finish my studies.  We worked out a compromise where I'm primarily working here but making two 3 month long trips over to Australia while I finish my research and dissertation.  This is the first trip.  The second one is planned for November to January.

During this first trip I'll be doing a lot of preparation for the second.  The second trip is going to be doing experiments and testing of the carbon dioxide capture reactor that I've been designing for the past few years, so during this trip I need to make sure I get all of the necessary equipment ordered that I'll need to do that testing.  This includes finalizing the design of the reactor itself and ordering all of the components for that.

I hope to have some time to do some traveling while we're there as well, at least to Sydney or other places nearby.  Sydney is about 3 hours by car northeast of Canberra.  Canberra itself has loads of museums, so it will be fun to check those out.

We'll be staying on the ANU campus in a 1 bedroom furnished apartment about a 15 minute walk away from the Engineering Building where I'll be working.  It includes all of the kitchen utensils, bedding, and things like that in addition to furniture.  According to the inventory list, the coffee maker is a French press, so I'll have to learn to use one!

The seasons are opposite in the southern hemisphere, so we'll be visiting during fall and winter.  However, the winters there are much milder than in MN (especially this year!).  The lows don't typically get below freezing and the highs are in the 50s (Fahrenheit).  So it will probably feel more like spring or fall to us.

Right now, we're still waiting on our visa application to get approved.  Once that happens I can order the plane tickets and we'll have a better idea of when exactly we're leaving.  For now, I'm occupying my time with making a packing list and getting our MN apartment nice and clean before we leave.

I hope you enjoy reading about our new adventure!

--Leanne

Zürich and the Last Week

I spent the last two weekends in Zürich.  Pictures can be found here:  http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2075055&id=40804674&l=1b4528f950

Last Saturday I went to Zürich by myself to do some shopping.  Mostly did window shopping, since everything was really expensive!  But it was still a fun day.  I bought a manga that was translated into German and a skirt.  I also went into a few different churches and took a boat ride up and down the river.

On Sunday Mom, Dad, Grandma Nancy, and Grandpa Bill got here.  I met them at the airport rather than at the hotel like we planned.  Which was a good thing because Dad thought the airport train station was the main station and didn't know what train to take.  Then we missed the stop closest to their hotel and had to get off and back on the train going the other direction.  Hooray for unlimited train passes!  We took a walk around the hotel neighborhood (they stayed at the Movenpick in Regensdorf) and had dinner at a cafe.  Went to bed early because everyone was really tired (me included since I never really fell asleep after Charles called and told me what happened to Gus on Saturday night).

Monday they came to visit me at PSI so I could show them the solar furnace.  We had lunch at the OASE and then I met them in Baden for dinner.  Tuesday and Wednesday we did experiments, one with cryolite and a tungsten cathode, and one trying to make Mg from MgO.  We are hopeful about making Mg but won't know for sure until this next week.

Friday Dr. Palumbo took us to the hot springs and my family came with.  It was so relaxing!  The water was warm, but not too warm.  They had lots of different jets to massage you.  There was also a steam room with menthol or something.  It felt weird at first but then really nice to breathe it in.  Friday night I went back to Regensdorf to spend the weekend with my family.

We were going to visit the Ballenberg open air museum on Saturday, but it was going to rain and we decided to go to Zürich instead.  I had been there the previous weekend, so I showed them some of the cool things I found.  Grandma bought an accordion at the antique flea market place.  Dad and Grandpa and I climbed up the tower of the Grossmünster, which was really neat.  You could see the whole city!  We did some shopping, and Dad bought me a Swiss Army Knife (the Climber).  I was going to get one anyways so I'm glad he got one for me.  The place we ate dinner was pretty cool.  Lots of weapons on the walls, including an anti-aircraft gun over the entrance!

This morning I said goodbye to my family at the airport.  I really wanted to get on the plane with them.  Don't get me wrong, I'm having a great time here, but I also really miss home.  Especially Wade.  After they went to security I went to the Swiss National Museum.  That was pretty cool.  I couldn't take any pictures though.  They had an exhibit about the history of knives and the Swiss Army Knife, stuff about the history of Switzerland, and old military uniforms and weapons, among other things.  After I found some lunch I tried to go to a bird sanctuary, but it wasn't open.  But while I was there I found out that the Ironman Switzerland was going on today, so there were tons of people around and a bunch of stands selling food and stuff.  And there was a cool percussion group by the race route that I stopped and listened to for a while.

RIP Symbol of Honor (aka Gus) July 28, 2001 to July 17, 2010

I know this isn't related to my travels at all but it is my main way of communicating with family at home so I want to say it here.

Gus, one of my horses, passed away yesterday.  Charles found him out in the field when he went to let him and
Shiloh in.  Tammy said he probably had a heart attack, since there weren't any marks on him and there was no sign that he had thrashed around on the ground.  So at least he went quickly.  Someone is going to come and take him away to be buried.  They saved a lock of his mane for me.

Shiloh seems to be okay.  He was a little spooked when Charles found him but he's calmed down now.  Tammy is going to keep an eye on him to make sure he isn't too agitated by losing Gus.

Pictures of Me (for Mom)

Mom requested more pictures of "my smiling face" and Nick happened to have a bunch.

Getting water from a fountain.

This oh so flattering picture is me cleaning the black stuff off the aperture.

I fell asleep when we were visiting Brugg.

Grocery shopping in Villigen on our first day here.  Carol was helping me pick out some cheese.

I just think it's so cool that you can get safe drinking water from pretty much any tap or fountain.

At the top of Mt. Rigi.

At work monitoring an experiment.

Getting crepes at Jugendfest.

Eating cherries we bought on a hike.  Only 6 francs for 1 kg!

Eating lunch on our hike down Mt. Rigi.

More hiking.

In St. Gallen.

About to go into the library.