A post at last

Whoops!! It has been a very long time since my last post. Sorry about that. Since the last post I chatted with people at Caltech about the possibility of taking a job there, but ended up deciding that (even if I was offered a job) I like Australia too much at the moment to live elsewhere. Then Ms. M. Mao came back to Sydney and, after lunch at the Uighur restaurant, we had a day ambling around the aquarium before watching a show about the oceans at the 3D-IMAX. They now have dugongs at the aquarium. Wonderful creatures!! During that week Sarah was staying at my house, but I was being a terrible host and I don't think that I even managed to cook her a meal. I'm feeling bad about that. What else? Sarah left and Vikram turned up to stay for another week. I've been playing squash, having guitar lessons, snorkelling, bought a new underwater camera, helping Mike get his head stitched up after some exciting ice skating ...

Mike, Sarah, Anna and I (plus some students who I don't know well) went to see the "Opera in the Domain". This was a free performance and an amazing number of people turned up (I seem to remember 90,000, but I could be wrong). The performances were of Pagliacci and Cavalleria rusticana.

I also went to see a play that started at 1pm and finished just before 11pm. It was long. Basically, the Sydney theatre company put together abridged versions of the Shakespeare plays based on the War of the Roses. It was unbelievably well acted and incredibly gory! Lots of blood everywhere.

On another weekend day (I cannot remember which now) I went to the Sydney Wildlife Park (which I hadn't been to before). It was great. Lots of different Australian animals and I managed to see a "glider" and some quolls for the first time! They also had exhibits on the most deadly snakes in Australia (which also happen to be the most deadly snakes in the World). Looking eye-to-eye at a Western Taipan (the most deadly snake in the World) is rather exciting!


The summer students all finished their projects last week and we spent plenty of time down various pubs and restaurants to celebrate their work!

This is a very boring post, but at least it is a post. I'm going to find a pie to eat!