Whoosh Whoosh .. Bang

I just experienced my 1st earthquake. (It was kind of cool.) Initially, I thought it was wind, then after the bang part, I was worried the waterbed was finally about to crash into the basement (we have added water quite a few times). So I sent a text, chatted to a friend on the phone, then I got online and checked Facebook, then Twitter, then online news. It never once occured to me to turn on the TV or radio....

Expat-iversary

On the 3rd April, I celebrated two years of residency in Australia. As mentioned in a previous post, I set the 2 year mark when I first got here as a sort of milestone, committing myself to having patience with the frustrations of living in a new place, with a new husband, being a new homeowner, on the search for the right job. I can say with confidence that at this point in the game, any frustrations I feel are the normal frustrations of a homeowner/wife/professional. The intial annoyances of being an expat have mostly worn off (although I still get irritated when someone at the shops asks me how long I'm in Oz on holidays) and I do feel at home here. I'm still wanting a few major things completed on the house, and a newer car would be nice, but I have the job I want, I've made some friends, and Adelaide is where I want to be.

Enjoying the Silence

I'm glad to be back in Adelaide after a long weekend in Melbourne. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the break and a wander around a new place, but one thing I couldn't wait to get away from...was the people. There were just so many of them. Coming from Chicago, I wouldn't have expected this to bother me, but after 2 years in Adelaide, I think I've simply gotten used to a slower pace and fewer crowds. I feel like I can breath again, being back here. This brings me to a topic that's been heavily debated in the news here in Oz lately - population growth. Australia's population is anticipated to grow to 36 million by 2050, heavily due to immigration. Our prime minister is keen to see this happen, stating that we need a "big" Australia. The question is, do we/will we have the infrastructure to support 14 million more people and why do we need that many more people? I'm all in favour of immigration, as long as we aren't taking in people we can't support, and as long as they're going about it the right way. There are boat loads of illegal immigrants showing up in Australian waters, many of whom are being granted some sort of residency. I say, turn them back. I had to pay over $2,000 and provide two folders full of supporting evidence for my spousal visa, to show I had a genuine reason to migrate to Oz. If we intend to purposely grow our population, we need to do it the right way, plan properly, and make sure we can not only support those already here, but any persons coming in the future. Those who immigrate need to have something to bring to Australia, and earn their residency.

We Bin to Mel-Bin

Because it's NOT pronounced Mel-born! All in all, it was lovely to have a weekend away and time together exploring a new place. That being said, I can't recommend Melbourne as an international tourist destination. We here in Adelaide have heaps better sights to see.

For example, we have beaches. They have to do their diving in the CBD.

There's only one TV in Melbourne, and you have to go to Federation Square to watch.
Despite all this, we enjoyed our weekend, taking in the sights.

Made new friends.

Ate heaps of sweets.

Steve enjoyed the artwork.

And I was overjoyed to procure a bottle of watermelon Jarritos on our last day.