Howr ya goin Birzzy

Well, I finally made it out of Sydney and am now staying in Brisbane. My last week in Sydney was relatively quiet, doing more odd jobs for Paula's friends and going to the beaches around Sydndey. About 250,000 pilgrims came for World Youth Day, which was surprisingly very interesting. Although I didn't partake in any of the teachings or many group activities, the energy that the entire city possessed during the week was unbelievable. People from all over the world were in the city in a seemingly non-stop celebration of not so much the church but the vast number of cultures represented. It was truely something that I will never forget, especially seeing the 500,000 people that gathered around the harbour line to watch the Pope arrive by boat. I waited and witnessed that happen but by the time it was over, about three, I was ready to have a drink and went to the pub where I met three Irish couples that have been traveling and living in Sydney for some time. We actually took second place in a trivia contest thanks to me for knowing the basics of American history. Other than that things have been pretty usual (except I did eat at an African restaurant which was really different) and I think that I may be lossing my mind reading some Thoreau.

But now I'm in Brisbane with J.P. Patterson, whom I graduated with from Wabash. I'm staying with his aunt and uncle at their place in the country near the city, which I must say definitely rivals Paula's place but without the view. J.P.'s aunt and uncle are mathmatical geniuses both with Ph.D.s and a massive room full or books they've written together over the years, pretty intimidating but they are surprisngly down to Earth and very easy to talk with. Yesterday was my first day at the winery and we just did some pruning work, cutting vines and ripping downs canes. It was not that hard of work but after about eight hours I was ready to be done. The country out here is amazing with mountains and valleys on our way to the winery, which by the way is awesome as well complete with wallybees running around. And once again I witnessed one of the best sunsents that I've even seen on top of a large hill at the winery but unfortunately didn't have my camera but it was made up of the same purples and oranges as the one at Bondi. Today I even saw a koala sitting right near the house when I woke up who even moved around a bit for me between his twenty hour a day slumber. And to get some culture we all went to a Picasso exhibit today which was pretty cool to see Picasso's own art collection alongside some of his works.

All in all, I've got to once again say how lucky I truly have been on this trip. Paula's place and now J.P.'s is simply high class, stunning living and I'm getting a definite experience of a lifetime out here. Tomorrow we're off again at 730 am to go for a long day at the winery but I rest/work easy knowing that these two weeks will be financing my sailing trip around some islands and also my land cruiser adventure on the largest sand island in the world. I'll update some more photos when I get a chance.