Big Trouble in Little China

Last night Maunsell (my company) took those of us working on the project who are employed by them out to a seafood/Chinese dinner in Chinatown - there was about 35 of us, which represents about a 1/3 of the project staff. I was a little leery at first about having seafood at a Chinese restaurant, but it turned out to be a good dinner. Being that this was an authentic Chinese restaurant, the only utensils provided were chop sticks and being someone who’s never used chop sticks before, it was an eventful experience. But by the end of the night, I sort of got the handle of it and was actually using the chop sticks to eat rice. So it only took me travelling 9000+ miles to learn how to use chop sticks.

You Spin Me Right Round, Baby. Right Round Like A Record, Baby

It's disappointing to report that the toilets in Australia don't flush in the opposite direction as the ones in the U.S. They actually flush straight down ... so maybe the title is a little incorrect. All toilets in Australia (at least the ones I've come across) have two buttons you push to flush it ... the smaller one will flush the toilet for the length of time that you push it down and the larger of the two will only flush the toilet once, regardless of how long you push it. I'll try to post a picture tonight to help show what I'm trying to explain.

Good Directions and Turnip Greens

Thought I would post some odds & ends that I've experienced or noticed during my stay in Australia ...

• Within my first hour walking around downtown Sydney, an Aussie asked me for directions and I was actually able to give her correct ones.
• Australian hamburger meat tastes somewhat different than American hamburger ... guess they just grow the cattle different down here.
• There are directions painted on the crosswalk in Sydney telling you which way to look for oncoming traffic ... saved my head a couple of times.
• The cost of living is higher in Brisbane than in Chicago ... an 18-pack of soft drinks (not soda, not pop) costs about $12 ... a 24-pack of bottled water costs about $10 ... however, the produce is fresh and cheaper than Chicago - so let's see if I actually start to eat healthier here.
• A "good" Australian bitter beer tastes like Keystone Light ... I haven't found anything up to standard drinking yet, but at least it doesn't cost that much (sorry Mom).
• As of now, I have limited use of the internet at work and I have to sit out in the courtyard in order to jump onto someone else's wireless signal, so please be patient if I don't immediately respond back. You will get a quicker response if you use my work email (I changed the email link on the blog).
• The people over here are really friendly and funny ... if you ever have to chance to visit (either now while you have a free couch to sleep on) or later, you must do it. Until next time, cheers!