Back to the Biennale
Greetings all! It has been a busy (and productive) week since I last posted on Sunday morning. All is well in Sydney, as I get more settled into work and research. I figured the easiest thing to do is just give you a few short updates on where things stand... Feel free to nag me if I have left anything out.
The bush fire
Great news: the bush fire is almost out! Amazingly, even after burning more than 9,400 acres, reports indicate that not a single house was lost. Photos and video from the last five days show that the fire burned all the way into people's backyards, but the Rural Fire Service (RFS) and tenacious homeowners were able to keep the flames at bay.
Things got really dicey once I left Sunday afternoon. The daughter and son-in-law of the family I'm staying with (Jas and Blake, for simplicity's sake) were forced to flee their house with their son as the fire rushed eastward toward them. Refer to the map below for context.
They ended up staying the night on Sunday, and things were still pretty bad on Monday. Thankfully, by Monday night, flames in their area had been knocked back a bit, and we were able to make dinner over there (despite the lingering smoke). Since, things have slowly returned to normal.
I went on a run this morning (Thursday), and there is still quite a bit of smoke in the air to the north of us. Conditions should continue to improve over the next few days as the fires burn themselves out.
Admittedly, a bush fire was something quintessentially Australian that I had no desire to be a part of. Thankfully, the adventure ended as well as one could hope. And there aren't bush fires in the city.
The Sydney Biennale
During all the hecticness unfolding on Sunday, I escaped to the city for the afternoon (as I mentioned in my last post). I met a friend for lunch at Barangaroo, and after lunch we caught a ferry from the nearby wharf to Cockatoo Island. If that sounds familiar to those who have been following the blog, that's because I ventured over there in 2012.
We spent a few hours enjoying the absolutely amazing weather and the art located around the island. It had cooled off substantially from earlier in the week, thankfully, so it made for a really nice afternoon. The trip back to the city at sunset provided fantastic views of the Harbour on approach into Circular Quay.
Couldn't have asked for a better afternoon away from the smoke of the Shire!
Getting into the PhD
This week, I kicked off reading for the start to my research. The first few months of the process will be dominated by reading, and I spent most of Monday in my office at the University getting through a book. I also made my way to the UTS library and picked up a few books for the next week or two; the process has begun!
Getting into work
Meanwhile, at the office, things finally started to ramp up. I have been assigned a few project, and was kept busy this week with a few deadlines. I am very excited about what I will be working on, and have already begun to delve into things that will help my research in the long run.
I'm also starting to get to know people at the office over lunch, in meetings, and during tea. It also helped that today, I returned to the office following some time spent reading in the afternoon with a packet of Anzac Biscuits (which I explained in 2012). They didn't last long among hungry coworkers.
Of course, there's a lot of work to do, but my days aren't without a bit of fun. On Wednesday night, I met up with my friend Candice and some of her workmates for dinner at Barangaroo. It was nice to catch up and unwind from a busy day at the office. Once I live in the city, things like that will be even easier, as I won't have to worry about timing the bus at Sutherland Station!
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Finally, Janene returned from the Commonwealth Games on Tuesday, and we enjoyed a big family dinner that night. Other than that, all is well here as I head into Friday. Tonight was Jade's (the other daughter in the family) husband's birthday, so we did a nice big meal tonight. Don't know what Friday will hold in the evening, but I am excited to move on Saturday!
The bush fire
Great news: the bush fire is almost out! Amazingly, even after burning more than 9,400 acres, reports indicate that not a single house was lost. Photos and video from the last five days show that the fire burned all the way into people's backyards, but the Rural Fire Service (RFS) and tenacious homeowners were able to keep the flames at bay.
Things got really dicey once I left Sunday afternoon. The daughter and son-in-law of the family I'm staying with (Jas and Blake, for simplicity's sake) were forced to flee their house with their son as the fire rushed eastward toward them. Refer to the map below for context.
They ended up staying the night on Sunday, and things were still pretty bad on Monday. Thankfully, by Monday night, flames in their area had been knocked back a bit, and we were able to make dinner over there (despite the lingering smoke). Since, things have slowly returned to normal.
 |
| The extents of the fire as of tonight, with Jas's house as the red 'x' and our place as the blue 'x'. There was a small spot fire just south of us, and coincidentally just next to another home that Jas and Blake own, but rent out. You can see why it was a tense few days. |
I went on a run this morning (Thursday), and there is still quite a bit of smoke in the air to the north of us. Conditions should continue to improve over the next few days as the fires burn themselves out.
Admittedly, a bush fire was something quintessentially Australian that I had no desire to be a part of. Thankfully, the adventure ended as well as one could hope. And there aren't bush fires in the city.
The Sydney Biennale
During all the hecticness unfolding on Sunday, I escaped to the city for the afternoon (as I mentioned in my last post). I met a friend for lunch at Barangaroo, and after lunch we caught a ferry from the nearby wharf to Cockatoo Island. If that sounds familiar to those who have been following the blog, that's because I ventured over there in 2012.
 |
| The view of the City from Cockatoo Island. |
We spent a few hours enjoying the absolutely amazing weather and the art located around the island. It had cooled off substantially from earlier in the week, thankfully, so it made for a really nice afternoon. The trip back to the city at sunset provided fantastic views of the Harbour on approach into Circular Quay.
 |
| Views heading into Circular Quay on the ferry. |
Couldn't have asked for a better afternoon away from the smoke of the Shire!
Getting into the PhD
This week, I kicked off reading for the start to my research. The first few months of the process will be dominated by reading, and I spent most of Monday in my office at the University getting through a book. I also made my way to the UTS library and picked up a few books for the next week or two; the process has begun!
Getting into work
Meanwhile, at the office, things finally started to ramp up. I have been assigned a few project, and was kept busy this week with a few deadlines. I am very excited about what I will be working on, and have already begun to delve into things that will help my research in the long run.
I'm also starting to get to know people at the office over lunch, in meetings, and during tea. It also helped that today, I returned to the office following some time spent reading in the afternoon with a packet of Anzac Biscuits (which I explained in 2012). They didn't last long among hungry coworkers.
Of course, there's a lot of work to do, but my days aren't without a bit of fun. On Wednesday night, I met up with my friend Candice and some of her workmates for dinner at Barangaroo. It was nice to catch up and unwind from a busy day at the office. Once I live in the city, things like that will be even easier, as I won't have to worry about timing the bus at Sutherland Station!
---
Finally, Janene returned from the Commonwealth Games on Tuesday, and we enjoyed a big family dinner that night. Other than that, all is well here as I head into Friday. Tonight was Jade's (the other daughter in the family) husband's birthday, so we did a nice big meal tonight. Don't know what Friday will hold in the evening, but I am excited to move on Saturday!
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