Docklands Orientation Day 1.5..

G'Day! I safely arrived in Melbourne, on September 27th.  I can tell you that there is no better way to fly internationally than business class! And I can assure you that there is no way that I could ever afford to fly business class internationally, so thank you to my employer! :)

I was able to sleep a good 9 hours on the 16 hour flight from LAX airport.  It helped when my seat can be converted to a bed and is made for you when requested.... :P  

Upon my arrival my manager was kind enough to pick me up from the airport as I was able to bypass the long line in immigration due to a quick-pass for business class passengers.

During my temporary assignment I am being housed in the Docklands neighborhood of Melbourne.  Its a revitalized district that once was mainly industrial.  It now consists of new development and high-tech/banking offices.  Its suppose to be a controversial development as it was developed in hopes of recruiting many employers and residents....but as of now it is barely full.

I have a 2 bedroom apartment that seems to be well outfitted for normal life.  Below are some photos of my residence.  Its located on the 20th floor and has some great views.  I may move to a different apartment after this weekend if I choose based on how well I like a lower floor.

My messy bed.

The day that I arrived was beautiful and warm.  I am told that its a rare occasion as most days in spring are wet and cold.  Today the second day in Melbourne it turned to thunder storms, rain and cold.

To address the seasons, the U.S' fall is Australia's spring and winter is Australia's summer.  It's just going to get much better for sure.

Today, I awoke and took to the streets in order to get my car hire (car rental) and to get some groceries.  Things here in Australia aren't cheap and once finding a Woolworths (owned by Safeway) I ended up learning that yes things are very much more pricey.  Eggs for one thing cost about 4.50 a dozen, and for 16 cans of soda cost 15.00.  Things add up quickly.

The main goal of the day was to get my car.  I arrived at the Avis car hire location in South Melbourne via cab and was able to get my car.  I was amazed that I was given the largest car they had a Toyota Camry...Things here aren't large and the roads are more suited to smaller vehicles.  It will take some time to get use to driving this car....I may exchange it to a smaller vehicle next month when I return it for its monthly service.

Driving on the other side of the road is tricky...but I got use to it fairly quick.  As long I go with the flow its not too hard.  Two rules of the road here are, no free left hand turns as there is in the US for free right hand turns.  Also, pretty much every traffic light has a red light camera and there are speed cameras everywhere.

Driving won't be too challenging.  Round a bouts are every where too...

At my residence, my parking spot couldn't be any smaller for the car that I have.  Its in a tricky location and its a must for me to do a 5 point parking job.  Luckily my car has a backup camera which helps.

Other than settling in, I have learned that is weekend is one of Melbourne's greatest!  The Australian Football League and the Rugby season are ending and both are ending with the country's championships here in Melbourne. AFL, or footy as its called is the Aussie's own sport.  Look it up on youtube to get a good idea of what it entails.  I haven't learned yet, but hope to grasp the basics eventually.  Once rugby and footy are over, the cricket season begins not so much inclined to learn about that...

I hope to explore the city a bit prior to starting work on Monday. The city (downtown) has multiple trams and buses going through it so I plan to take the free tourist tram in to town from my residence.  Ill keep you updated as I venture there, I just hope the weather improves so as not to get soaked.  I will need to find myself an umbrella too.