It has definitely been an interesting couple of weeks...

Although I am working 45 hours a week and I am not getting out as much as I would like to, I am still having a good time. Last thursday I had some friends Chris and Kerry who I met in Melbourne a few months back come through Brisbane. We had $2 spirits at Fridays so we did it up there for a bit and then wandered around town. Eventually we ended up at the Vic, killing the dancefloor with some Aussie's and American girls...

Last weekend, a group of us who work at Fridays decided to rent a car and take a trip into Nimbin, a little hippie town in the mountains of NSW. In the car were Yiyo, David and Paula from Colombia, and Phil from New Zealand. Since we decided to go on a Sunday, we didn't get any sleep since all of us worked until 5 am. Although we were seriously tired, we made the best of the day and went on a spectacular drive 2.5 hours from Brisbane. I'll be sure to post some pictures from Nimbin up here when I get them, but to say the least, illegal substances were smoked freely in the cafes and the markets were unique and had unbelievable items for sale. Along the roads you were consistently persuaded to buy some "special cookies" or "special chocolates." The day quickly became a blur as the substances and fatigue set in...

Well, I'm off to Sydney on Monday to go visit my mate Kyle in Potts Point and work National Manufacturing Week, a huge engineering tradeshow. I'm going to be working for Furnace Engineering, collecting business cards and chatting with the crazy engineers for a nice decent sum of money. Going to be buying the new surf board with the proceeds.

BELOW: Picture of me surfing at Byron Bay over the Easter Weekend.




Lots more pics and adventures to come!!!

Yesterday my aunt, cousin and I woke up early and headed off to the Australia Zoo, home of the famous Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter! Although he wasn't there, the day was absolutely amazing and I had the chance to check out a wide range of animal shows and exhibits including gorgeous Sumatran Tigers, Snakes, Crocodiles, Birds, Elephants, Dingoes, Koalas, Kangaroos, and other Australian Fauna. Also, I had the chance to watch the famous Hariett the tortoise eat a meal; she is 175 years old and was brought back to England from the Galapagos Islands by none other than Charles Darwin! I have posted some photos here, and you can check out the full photos HERE.

It has been an absolutely insane couple of weeks! Work at Fridays is in full tilt and I am starting to save some cash. Although a crazy virus on my uncle's computer set me back a couple of weeks with the blog, I hope to catch everyone up with a couple of stories and some pictures of where currently live, work and play.

My Aunt Jill and and Uncle Mark's house in Mitchelton

For the last few weeks and next couple of months I am living with my aunt and uncle in the Brisbane suburb of Mitchelton. A 30 min train ride to the city centre, it is a perfect place to be. They have been super gracious to open their doors to me and let me hang low and save some cash for the next adventures. It's an amazing set up at the house as you will see in the following pictures, and I am absolutely loving their company. I live and sleep on the ground floor, and have access to a home gym, XBOX, Drumset and ping pong table. I must say, they have hooked me up big time, and am truly comfortable here in Brisbane.

Fridays:

I work full-time at Friday's on the Brisbane river as a bartender. The job is great and I have met tons of Australian's and internationally travellers. It is the largest and most beautiful club in Brisbane by far. You can check out the website at: www.fridays.com.au.

Live the Life you Love, Love the Life you Live.

It is now my new motto. I hope you all are doing the same.

I've just finished up my internship at the company and have now moved back up to Brisbane to collect myself and earn some money so that I can get my scuba diving license and sailing crew certification up North. I seriously looked into the work sponsored migration to stay here in Australia, but the government wants two years of work experience before you can be sponsored. Since I'm fresh out of Uni, I would rather come back to Canada next year to see family and friends, and get a couple of solid years of work under my belt. Right now I'm working as a bartender at a restaurant/bar called Friday's. The place is really nice and it overlooks the Brisbane river and the bridge connecting North and South Bank. It's a really great view at sunset!

I just got back from Byron Bay a couple of hours ago where I spent Easter weekend camping with some Australian mates that I met here in Brisbane. We had a crazy weekend of drinking and the beach. I'd have to say, Byron Bay is by far my favourite place in Australia. The tropical beaches are stunning, the people laid back, and the surf just perfect. I spent 30 hours in the ocean over 4 days and even had a school of dolphins swim right underneath me! Such a cool experience.

This week I am going to start researching and writing my first novel "Once in a lifetime" and am starting the first draft of the pilot episode for a hourly drama called "Last Call". I'm giving myself plenty time this year to write, so if anyone has some free time to edit and give suggestions, I will send you draft work.

Until next time! See you at the beach...

Amazing! Just totally amazing!

I've just arrived back in Brisbane after a month hangin' in Sydney. I must say, Sydney rocks. I mean, you have the city, lots of bars and clubs, the regular tourist traps yadda yadda. But, you also have some of the nicest beaches in the country within a half hour distance from the city centre, and one of the most breathtaking mountains just two hours away!



During my time in Sydney, I worked the whole Monday to Friday grind at my internship, but during the evenings and weekends, I lit it up with my mate Kyle Hampson and we hit all the local beaches and had some pretty awesome times. We even burned through the entire 3 seasons of Nip Tuck!! I have posted a range of pics here but you can get the full scoop on all my travels by visiting my picture blog at BUGBITTEN.COM.

A few days ago my mate Matt met up with me again after pretty much taking down the whole country. We checked out the flick "V for Vendetta", which was absolutely amazing, and had an Indian food/Beer fest in Kings Cross. Yesterday however, had to have been the highlight of my Sydney trip (as you will see from the pics!) Matt and I took off early on a train to the Blue Mountains and spent the day hiking in the valley. If any of you find yourself in Sydney for whatever reason, this place is a must see and is absolutely breathtaking. Seriously! The pictures just don't do it justice...

I have a job interview tomorrow...Need to make some cash after working for $20 a day for the last two months! More adventures to come!!!

So I'm on my last week of internship at PPR and then it's off to Brisbane again to regroup. I'll probably be back for some contract work at PPR in the next few months but for now I'm off to go start writing my first novel, screenplay and teleplay. The ideas are bursting at the seams, and now that my uni thesis is complete I can start concentrating on the stuff that I truly feel passionate about.

I must say, it's weird to contemplate being finished my undergrad! Man, time just absolutely flies by...I am glad though. It has been a tough ride for the most of it, and I am ready to start living a little. Take some time to myself, work, surf and socialise. Indeed, the world is completely open, and I am excited to see where tomorrow may lead.

I've gotta give a huge shout out to Kyle for letting me crash at his place. We've had some pretty wicked times over the last three weeks and the next week should be the best now that I am finishing up everything. Next weekend is going to be a celebration.

In the words of my favourite person on earth, "Fear not the unknown".

Wise words indeed.

ST. PADDY'S DAY!!!

At the office last Friday, PPR threw a St. Paddy's party complete with salad, pies, Guiness and Irish whisky. Definitely a good break from the day!

I finished off my two weeks internship with the Tech team by helping plan and host an event for DELL computers at an awesome CBD venue called ESTABLISHMENT. The event was planned because DELL has provided the Commonwealth games with extensive hardware support including computers, laptops, servers, flat screens and PDA's. For the event, we broadcast the games on a big screen TV, had lots of food and drinks, and invited about 30-40 tech jorno's.

To top off the night, Kyle and I headed to the local Irish pub in Kings Cross called O'MALLEY'S. There was a wicked band playing and we drank the night into oblivion!

Needless to say, Saturday was a Blockbuster night. We rented WOLF CREEK, a sweet movie about three backpackers traveling Australia who get kidnapped and tortured by a freaky bushman. Goosebumps major.

Thesis is coming along and I will be done this week. It has been a real pain in the ass and I look forward to having my weekends back.

Next weekend I am taking my Registered Service of Alcohol (RSA) certification so that I can get a second job bartending. I'm running empty in terms of cash, and I want to start saving to by that brand new surf board for the Autumn/Winter Swells!

Pictures will be posted soon!

Just started my second week in IT PR.. Gotta say, it's definitely a mindf*$k trying to wrap my head around this whole VoIP infrastructure, Grid computing software stuff. Learn a million things everyday...

Had a great weekend. On Friday night Kyle and I met about eight of our neighbours in building. We chilled in the sweet penthouse sipping wine and playing drinking games. Some real decent people! Made plans with one guy to go to the North beaches for a surf next weekend...

Spent Saturday in the library working on my thesis while Kyle plowed through a criminal case review. I'm 60 pages done so far, and hope to reach 100 pages with Appendixes etc. It's a real thorn in my side right now, but it will be over soon! Saturday night I stayed in and watched Nip Tuck (Season 2 - Such a good show!!!!) and the new Spielberg movie, Munich, on the laptop. Highly recommend Munich...Eric Bana is great.

Yesterday I headed out to Manly beach for the day to catch some rays, read and meet some friends that I met in Melbourne. I finally got to see the famed Sydney opera house! It's a pretty cool looking building, that's for sure. Kyle and I chilled on the beach all afternoon and swam in the ocean; there were lots of blue-bottles today - little bastards!

We met some mates at a pub around 5 o'clock for happy hour (Cheap Corona's!) and then headed down to the wharf bar for some more fun. We ate dinner and watched the sunset. Seriously the nicest patio bar I have ever seen! Just insanely nice. Finished off the night with crazy midnight swim in Manly harbour and took the ferry home soaking wet. The Sydney skyline from the water at night is absolutely dreamlike. I don't think it's real. Just a figment of my imagination...

So I'm in Sydney! So far, it's been an absolute blast. I'm staying with my mate Kyle Hampson who I worked with at Big Buck's in Burlington. He's attending law school at the university of Sydney. He has a sweet litte apartment overlooking a park in Potts Point (right next to Kings Cross - the "Red Light" district. Needless to say, it's interesting...

I Got here on March 1st and have been hanging out as much as possible to save some cash. I'm broke!! I started work at PPR Sydney on March 6th and have been pluggin' away in the IT dept. ever since. We work with clients like Dell, Oracle, Avaya, Smartyhost, EMC, and VMWare. Big time corporate stuff, but it's fun. The only downfall is I'm still only making a measly $20/day. It works out to a couple dollars an hour. I could probably beg on the street for an hour and make more, but it's the experience that counts.

So far, I've hit a couple pubs to check out some live music, went to the insane Mardi Gras parade last Saturday, and chilled at Coogee beach. I'll be sure to post some pics here soon; however, I've already uploaded them to my bugbitten site found HERE.

Despite all of the fun and games, I have been having a tough time as of late. I miss my friends and family, and most importantly Diana. She is my rock and my soulmate, and it's so difficult to be without her. I know our paths are meant to cross again...It's tough, but I know this is my destiny right now.

Learn to follow your instincts - They will never let you down.

It's been an amazing few days! Last Friday was my last day at work in Melbourne. Luckily, it was also the manager's last day too! On the company bill, we lit up the night. Headed to a local rooftop and had Japanese ale, chattin' with the new staff at Melbourne while they said goodbye to Carolyn, who is now my boss out in Sydney. After the local pub all 12 of us headed out to Maria Trattoria's, an authentic Italian restaurant. I had the Tortellini a la Romana! So good. To top the night off, we rented out a posh Kareoke room in downtown Melbourne. Sang some Oasis, White Snake, Kravitz and some others which I kind of regret. hehe.

On Saturday morning, my mates Erin and Darren picked me up out side of Base and we started the morning off with a mean cappacino. It was a hilarious sight outside of the hostel, let me tell ya! Some random dude was in the fetal position in the corner, sleeping in his own piss. Shit like that happens all the time here.

Around 9am we left for Torquay and Bells Beach. We hit all the wicked surf shops in the area, and headed down to the beach. We walked down the beach for a while looking for some breaks, but alas, nothing. We left for Port Cambell, checked in and spent the night at a seedy little town pub playing pool and Big Buck Hunter.

The next day we hit all the sights down the Great Ocean Rd., including the blow hole and caves, the 12 Apostles, Lorne, Apollo Bay and some random beach alon the way. We went swimming in the freezing water of the south ocean.

I got back to the hostel, met up with Chicken, and we hit the town. Glad to see a mate from home. Where are all the rest of ya?! So bloody perfect here, not sure why anyone would hesitate to pack up and leave. More stories to come!

Well, it's my last week in Melbourne and I have to say it's been a pretty good ride so far.

This weekend I ended up at a club called "Honky Tonks" in the city centre with my mate Paul and his friend who just came in from Adelaide. It took us a while to find the place since it was down a really sketchy alley. Once we got inside though, wow, was I surprised. Really cool art-neuvo club with nice lounges, solid house beats and erotica playing on screen. Stomach started feeling sick around 2:30am, so I ditched the guys for my bed.

Saturday night I went out with a bunch of girls from the hostel to a place called "The Prince of Wales" and got right to it. A Kiwi girl that has been in the hostel since I got there bought me a sweet cuban to suck back on, and a round of 42 Below (Premium Kiwi Vodka)! The night got messy and we ended up stumbling to "Archies", a wicked pizza joint in St.Kilda that boasts a $4 slice with tater wedges! Best food/deal in town! I've eaten there every Saturday religiously for three weeks.

Sunday I got some work done on my thesis. Went to the State library and sat around typing and watching 24.

Oh, and yesterday (the 19th) I have been with Diana for 8 years! Can you believe that! God I love that girl. Missing her tons right about now. Actually, I'm missing all of my friends. Get your tickets now, the surf ain't getting any worse!

Tomorrow I'm jamming with some friends at their house (Some good 'ol stompin' music) and this weekend I'm heading out to the Great Ocean Rd. to get my surfin' fix before I leave for Sydney next Tuesday or Wednesday.

I await the mighty Chicken...

So it's the end of my third week of my internship at PPR. Friday's here are great; we can wear jeans and whatever scandalous shirts we want, and it is far more relaxed than the earlier days in the week. One more week to go and then my Canadian mate Matt McNiven (CHICKEN) will be flying in to join the debauchery. At the beginning of March I will be heading to Sydney to finish my last month at PPR and will hooking up with another Canadian mate Kyle Hampson who is shacked up for three years doing his Law degree. Worked with Kyle back home at Big Buck's Mountain Lodge; we had been driving people nuts about our adventures for months.

Last night I had a cool experience. I signed up for a LONELY PLANET focus group after work. The description of the evening at reception was kinda vague, but they promised free drinks. I'M THERE! Ten of us gathered around a table at 6:30 and started chatting to the Melbourne design team about our travel experiences, how LONELY PLANET guide books have helped us in our travels, and what could be done (both conceptually and practically) to the guide books and website to make it more fun and effective.

Then came the jugs of beer...Lonely planet bought 20 jugs of beer and three jugs of vodka lime and soda for about thirteen people. It was insane! Good on LONELY PLANET! Sat around for a few hours drinking and meeting some locals, talked about hot surf breaks around Australia, and music. Such a good night.

Tonight I'm off to Area 61, a club in St. Kilda with one of my Aussie mates Paul, and a group of others. Should be interesting...

Getting some work done today at the Melbourne State library. Bloody huge! Super nice weather out, but gotta get working on my damn thesis. Oh well, have to enjoy the sun next week. Last night was off the hook...Met lots of new friends and caught a few reggae bands at the Espy...Turning into my weekly chill.

So far so good. I arrived in Melbourne on Saturday the 28th of January. I got to Base Backpackers around 3pm and have been loving it ever since. Check out the digs at: www.basebackpackers.com.au

The area I am staying in is called St. Kilda, and it is right on the beach and close to an amusement park, countless clubs and bars, and lots of good market shopping.

The hostel itself boasts nightly activities and drink special, many of which I have taken advantage of! Last week I got a team together and we won the trivia night, earning us a $100 bar tab. Needless to say, that didn't last.

As for friends, I met a really awesome British couple who were looking for work/accomodation in St. Kilda. Their names are Chris and Carrie. They found a place and last weekend we hooked up a massive BBQ at their flat with another two people (Clause and Madeline) they had met from Sweden. Once again, super awesome people.

Another cool dude that I will probably hook up with is a guy name Kristian, who lives in Brisbane. He's a pretty funny guy who was on tours in the Melbourne area as part of a birthday present. He has wheels and promised a road trip upon my arrival back to my aunt and uncles.

I started work at PPR (www.ppr.com.au) on Monday the 30th and will continue to the end of the month at this office. In March I am going to head to Sydney to intern there for a bit before heading back up to Brisbane.

The office is super relaxed, but busy nonetheless. There are a lot of things going on including new client pitches to KRAFT, a retirement survey with the financial giant AXA, and events with the Australian equivalent of Home Depot, Bunnings. So far I'm getting a good taste of everything, absorbing it all like a sponge.

I have plans to hit the Great Ocean Rd. sometime soon with my classmate Erin and her boyfriend Darren, hopefully during the Rip Curl Pro at Belles Beach. Keep posted and I'll have some stories for sure!

JAN 24, 2006

Today I stayed home intending on working on my thesis, but the internet was down. Instead, I sat around watching the first season of 24, went through some Adobe Premiere Pro and Photoshop CS tutorials, read, and played drums. I needed a low key day, 'cause tomorrow it's off to Byron Bay for surfing and Australia day on Thursday!

JAN 23, 2006

Stuck around the house to day and finished my book “Ecstasy,” sat by the pool, and played drums.

I managed to get the energy to bike to the gym. The hills around Michelton are great one way, torturous on the return.
In the evening, I connected with Michelle and the group from Saturday night at a couple of guys’ flat. When I arrived, they were just about to chow into heaps of food. I grabbed a plate and dug in. I met even more people and made some more Aussie friends.

JAN 23, 2006

Stuck around the house to day and finished my book “Ecstasy,” sat by the pool, and played drums.

I managed to get the energy to bike to the gym. The hills around Michelton are great one way, torturous on the return.
In the evening, I connected with Michelle and the group from Saturday night at a couple of guys’ flat. When I arrived, they were just about to chow into heaps of food. I grabbed a plate and dug in. I met even more people and made some more Aussie friends.

JAN 22, 2006

My cousin and I woke up early to catch the 9:30 bus to BIG DAY OUT! The line up for the buses was already massive by the time we arrived. I would guess that at least 25 coaches were commissioned for the day.

When we got to the venue we wandered around for a while and checked out what bands were playing and when. There were three main stages, other tents for DJ’s, and lots of food, beer, and entertainment tents. Indeed, the venue was massive.

We grabbed some cold drinks, applied a ton of sun block (a must) and caught a few main stage acts from Australia. During Mudvayne, we were right up against the barrier when shit hit the fan. The entire crowd went nuts and started moving forward, almost crushing us against the metal barriers. We got the hell outta there pretty quick.

All together it was a great day. My favourite acts were definitely the Mars Volta, who absolutely killed. Franz Ferdinand, Henry Rollins, and the White Stripes were also great. Iggy Pop, well, was Iggy Pop. He’s a crazy dude!

JAN 21, 2006

Today was absolutely incredible! My family and I left at noon for the Lone Pines Koala Sanctuary just outside of Michelton. Lone Pines is home to hundreds of animals including koalas, kangaroos, snakes, dingoes, and many other native Australian species. The unique thing about Lone Pines however is that you are able to touch and interact with many of the creatures!

When we got to the park we headed for the kangaroo park. There were 3 species of kangaroo running around. On my way in, I found a half bag of food spilled on the ground, so I picked it all up to feed the kangaroos. I walked over to where approximately 25 animals were lazing in the shade and held out food to them.

We continued along through the park checking out all the exhibits, and the hundreds of koalas eating and sleeping in their open-concept compounds. In the snake compound we got to examine some of the deadliest snakes in Australia, including some huge pythons, and a toad that secretes antibiotics that cure STD’s such as Herpes from 2 glands on the back of its neck. Crazy shit!

At 1:30 the Koala exhibit started and one of the Lone Pine staff began a presentation on the koala. Indeed, I learned some interesting facts:

1. The koala is a marsupial that is in the same family as the kangaroo (the young are born in a pouch), and newborns are the size of jellybeans when they are born.
2. The babies are not born with the enzyme that allows them to digest the otherwise poisonous eucalyptus leaf. They acquire the enzyme through eating the mothers’ pap, otherwise known as shit!
3. In the 1920’s, the koala was almost extinct due to hunting.

After the presentation, Daniel and I had our pictures taken with a koala. They were so cool and smelled strongly of eucalyptus.

Later on, I met up with a girl named Michelle, who was the daughter of one of my aunt’s acquaintances. There was a group of them meeting in the valley to do some partying and they invited me to come along. Even though they were complete strangers, I went to go meet them downtown.

I was glad I did. I met them along Brunswick St. after taking the train into the city. We had some drink at a swanky new club and I got to know a whole group of Aussie’s. They were all extremely welcoming, and invited me out to a cookout on Monday, and hooked me up with a contact for work.

JAN 18, 2006

Today was extremely low-key, but productive. I woke up and went to the Brookside mall to buy a new mobile with Vodophone. After I hooked up my new phone my aunt dropped me off at the bank close to my gym and I opened a bank account with ANZ.

After I opened the account I decided to work out for an hour. The guy working the front desk had been to Canada for a year, and had worked up North at the Deerhurst resort in Muskoka, and spent some time in Whistler.
On my way home from the gym I picked up some fresh avocado, pineapple and lychee from the fruit market. The Lychee was expensive, but it is one of my weaknesses!

I got back to the house to find that my aunt and uncle’s next door neighbour had arranged to have his drum set brought over so that I could use it!!! It’s a five-piece set with ride and crash, in pretty decent condition. I was so stoked. I really didn’t expect to be able to play drums for a while.
Some things are just meant to be.