[Remeber to read part I below first!]

On Sunday 28 September , we woke up at around 6:00 am to pack up our stuff and were down stairs by 6:45 for breakfast in the beer-smelling Gilligan’s bar. At 7:30 we packed into two small vans and took a 20 minute ride to the Cairns marina. The boat we would be taking out was of moderate size, about 40′ long by 20′ wide roughly. Getting on to the boat, to the right was a lounge area with a normal height ceiling at about the size of a large rectangular living room. It was lined with seating and had tables and seats bolted in several rows down its center as well. On the center wall was a small bar which served soft drinks, small snacks, and beer. This room was far to air conditioned, even though it was nearly 80F outside. To the left was the back of the boat, including racks full of wet suits and giant bins full of flippers, masks, and snorkels. Directly in front of the door were stairs to the upper deck, which included a large space with seating for enjoying the view. The entire ship was buzzing with activity of tourists and crew members, moving luggage around and cleaning scuba equipment. We departed from the marina around 8:00 bound for the Great Barrier Reef. The scenery as we left Cairns was very nice. The city is surrounded on all sides by forested mountains and as we got out farther, the water turned from blue-green to dark ocean blue. The ride out from Cairns was choppy and many people, including Alex, go sea sick. Standing up straight and still during this ride was next to impossible; everyone was either sitting down or standing very low and constantly shifting their weight to avoid falling over.

Leaving Cairns

Cairns fading in the distance

After about two hours of travel the boat arrived at its anchor point for the day on the Great Barrier Reef. The reef from above is only discernible from how light the color of the water gets and where small breakers form where the coral gets close to the surface. The temperature was around 80 and there was a constant breeze which was very refreshing. The boat was carrying both day tourists and those who would be staying on the reef longer. Everyone who was going scuba diving was divided into six or seven groups and given times they were to meet in the back of the boat. It was around 10:00 when we got to the reef and my group wasn’t due to dive until 11:30 or so, so I had some time to relax and enjoy the scenery. At 11:15 my group and I moved to the back of the boat to await instructions from one of the many dive masters. My group included Alex, Wade, Mike, a random Asian tourist, and I. We were all required to wear wet suits, and luckily I found one in their bin that was close to my size. The masks and flippers they gave us were quite poor compared to the quality I’m used to from Aruba, but I stopped caring as soon as we got in the water.

The most exhilarating part of a dive is the when the air is let out of your suit (not your tank) and you sink slowly down beneath the water. For us, since this was an “intro dive,” they kept us right next to the boat and we had to hold onto a bar about six feet under water. At this the instructor would go to each person and make sure they knew the basics of diving, including clearing the mask, recapturing the regulator if if falls out of your mouth, and equalizing your ears as you descend. The water in the reef was spectacularly clear; I could easily see the bottom twenty feet below. After everyone in the group was ready, our instructor led us all down to the bottom. About 90% of the coral was living and was arranged in stacks between five and ten feet high, forming caverns, canyons, and cliffs all along the sea floor. There were not as many fish as I had hoped, although those I saw were much more varied than those in Aruba. There was also many more anemones, cucumbers, and other bizarre creatures everywhere. There were several groups in the water at the same time all in different places on the reef. A photographer was going around from group to group taking pictures of everyone. After about twenty minutes or so, our group meandered back to the boat.

The only thing worse than getting into a wet suit is getting out of a wet wet suit. After about a minute of struggling I was sweating pretty hard when finally someone took pity on me and jerked the thing from around my shoulders. Just as we were getting back on the boat was when the crew was serving lunch, which was in fact excellent. They had an assortment of deli meats, rolls for sandwiches, pasta, salad, and fruit. After eating seconds and eventually thirds of their delicious food, I went with most of the other people done diving to the forward deck of the ship to catch some rays. This is one of my best memories from the trip in fact; laying on my back in the sun, belly full of good food, exhausted from diving and content with life just the way it was. Unfortunately I enjoyed life a little too long and got sunburned all over my chest and shoulders. After going inside and hydrating, the boat began to move again farther out into the reef.

Sunbathing on the front deck

After about an hour of travel the boat arrived at what would be our home for the next two nights. This boat was larger than the one we traveled on and looked like it was built for stability and safety rather than speed. It was about 100 feet long and 30 feet wide and built four stories tall. The first floor, which we entered on on the port side, had a dining room immediately on the right, and halls leading to rooms on the left. Up a set of narrow stairs in front of the entrance led to another floor of living quarters. There was also a hall on this floor which led outside to the sun deck on the back of the boat. Above this floor was another array of rooms and a large lounge/bar area with a television, which they played movies on at night.

We were all shuffled into the dining room and told about the boat’s operation, its policies, and meal times. After this we were all allowed to move into our rooms, mine and Alex’s was on the first floor luckily, so we didn’t have to heave any luggage up the stairs. The room we stayed in was accommodating and spartan. There were two beds (which were actually very comfortable), a small closet with hangers, and a small bathroom with a shower. On the wall opposite the door was a nice large window looking out over the ocean.

Sunbathing on the sun deck

Each day there were four scheduled dive times: 6:00 am, 9:00 am, 11:00 am, and 4:00 pm. By the time we were all moved in it was about 3:30, so I decided to go for another dive. The back end of the boat where the diving took place was set up very similar to the first boat we were on. On either side of the sun-deck (on the second floor) there were racks with wet suits and tubs filled with flippers and masks. Below the sun-deck, down a narrow flight of stairs, was the dive deck. The dive deck had about four rows of scuba gear and stations for refilling air and other scuba maintenance. On the right side of the dive deck were another set of stairs leading down to the dive platform, which sat about three inches above the water line. I managed to find a wet suit that fit me better this time and proceeded with about five other IESers and a couple of other intro divers (divers who are not yet certified) down to the dive deck at 3:45. For these intro dives, all the intro divers would be split up into groups of three or four and be taken down with a guide. There were also certified diver on the boat who could go down in pair without a guide. After everyone was in the water, we swam out a little bit to a buoy which connected to a rope tethered to the sea floor. One by one our guide let the air out of our suits (not our tanks) and allowed us the descend slowly down the rope. This dive site was much deeper than the first we dived at. When I finally reached the bottom, the boat looked about thirty feet above. After being under water for about 30 minutes, the guide brought us back to boat and we all ascended slowly to the surface.

That night at dinner I was completely exhausted. The dining room was arranged in about ten tables which sat about six people each. The meal was served buffet style and included lasagna, other pastas, salad, and other tasty items. It was a very satisfying meal indeed. That night I went sleep at about 10:00 pm; I had a long day a head of me the next day…

Under water with a clown fish

OK!

Sorry for such a delay in posting this. I have been quite busy lately.

Three Fridays ago I got back from my mid-semester break in which IES Sydney and I spent a week “touristing” and exploring Cairns (pronounced”Cans”), Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef, and parts of the Daintree Rainforest. This trip was a whole lot of fun and really opened my eyes to the diversity and beauty that can be found in Australia. It was also great to spend time with the IES Sydney group, who I have become good friends with.

My roommate Alex and I woke up on Saturday 27 September at around 8:00 am. Our two suitemates had left for mid-semester break a few days earlier, so we were charged with doing some last minute cleaning and locking up our apartment. We walked down to the bus stop (a two minute walk) at around 9:00 where we were going to share a cab with two IES’ers who live nearby. We shared the cab with Ben, who is the tallest of the IES group standing at around 6’5”, and Wade, who I see frequently on campus and who studies at Johns Hopkins. The cab came at around 9:10 and was driven by an extremely lively and fun Filipino woman. She asked us about where we were from, where we were going, and in general made very good conversation. The ride to the airport took about 20 minutes. By the time we got there everyone had arrived except for our IES Sydney supervisor, Merlin (full name Merlin Luck, seriously). Everyone got through security OK, which was much more relaxed that that in the US. One traveler not in our group who was standing behind Alex and I in the security line was actually complaining about having to take off his belt. We were glad we didn’t have to take off our shoes! Our flight left at 10:30 and was three hours to Cairns. I spent half the flight reading the most recent Time magazine and the other half watching the first presidential debate on the plane’s television. Overall the flight was uneventful.

We arrived in Cairns at 1:30 pm; the temperature was around 85F and the air was dry. From the airport we took a half-hour bus ride in a coach bus to our accommodation. The city of Cairns is small and supported entirely by tourism. There is a central hotel area surrounding the harbor which has many restaurants and shops nearby. Similar to Aruba, as one gets farther away from this area, the houses get more rundown and the businesses become sparser and non-tourist oriented. The place we all stayed at was Gilligan’s Backpacker Hotel, the largest hostel in Cairns and the most popular with students. Gilligan’s is split into a residential half and a club half. The club half smells permanently of stale beer and pumps out loud music until around 2:00 am, which is audible in the rooms we slept in. Alex and I shared a room with Wade and Mike, who also goes to the University of Rochester and studies biology. The room was actually quite nice; everyone got their own bed and we had a large porch which looked over Cairns and the mountains surrounding. By the time we got moved in and unpacked it was about 2:00 and about half of our group headed out to get lunch. We found a place called Fasta Pasta about five minutes away from Gilligan’s. This restaurant specialized in microwaved ravioli and iceberg salads. At least it was cheap. Afterwards a few kids headed to the nearby mall to pick up some supplies and I headed down to Gilligan’s outdoor pool. The pool was nice but unfortunately too full of people and too small to do laps in.

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Me in our room

Looking out the window of our room

They view from our room

At around 6:00 pm our group embarked via coach bus on a two hour drive to an Aboriginal culture dinner. This was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. Deep into the mountains north of Cairns, the bus turned off on a dirt road and drove into the forest for about ten minutes. It was dark out by then, we arrived at a small parking lot with a trail leading off from it lit only by candles and torches. This path led to a large clearing in the woods, about 50′ long by 20′ wide, where we were greeted with glasses of champaign and small horderves. This clearing was also lit only by candles and torches. In the forest around us could be seen candles hung from trees and placed all over the forest floor. It was a very nice setting and the atmosphere was perfect.

The lights in the trees at dinner

There were points of light everywhere

Spooky?

After about a half-hour of admiring the scenery, we were led down another small path by a man in Aboriginal garb to another clearing, this one surrounded by massive fig trees. Adjacent to this clearing was a large roofed section with many tables, complete with table cloths, place settings, and many waiters. From the roof hung multiple chandeliers covered in crystal and white Christmas lights. As we were seated, candles were lit all along the tables creating a very relaxing, mysterious atmosphere. The dinner they served us was delicious, consisting of family style plates of alligator, kangaroo, beef, salad, and pastas. After eating, two Aboriginal men came out in traditional garb and told us stories punctuate with didgeridoo and singing. Afterwards they told us the history of where we were (their traditional home) and allowed people to take pictures with them. We headed back to Cairns at around 10:30 pm.

One of our Aboriginal hosts

Our dinner table

Several of these hung where we ate

Crocodile meat...tasted nothing like chicken

Dinner table, on the left is Lydia and the center is Sonya, both go to the U of R

The end of a didgeridoo

Unfortunately I am not one of them =( . Well, I am not that upset about the whole thing; this was my first attempt at making a serious video and I made it all the way to the finalists stage! I am still very proud of my video and will definitely enter other competitions in the future.

The film that won the prize I was trying for (Student Filmmaker) was an excellent video, however I would say that it was not an very good attempt at a tourist video. Instead it had a lot of art-type shots, which I definitely appreciated, and had a nice progression, but essentially had zero commercial viability. That video is Crab Meadow. See all the winning videos here.

I am still very glad I entered the competition. Congratulations to the winners out there, you did some excellent work.

This weekend was busier than usual. Saturday morning I had a test in accounting from 10:30am to 12:00 and afterward a test in physics from 12:30 to 2:00. Yeah, I know: tests on a Saturday? And two tests at that? Its seems this is not that uncommon at UNSW, especially since they shortened the school year by two weeks (from 14 to 12). The test weren’t that bad overall; the material was fair and I was prepared. I had spent the majority of Friday afternoon getting in some last minute studying, which was depressing since everyone was going out. The rest of Saturday after the tests was gorgeous. For the first time since I go here in July the temperature climbed into the high 70′s, so naturally we went to the beach. Unfortunately the water was still ice cold, but it was fun seeing everyone down on Coogee beach just relaxing in the sun. Honestly this is exactly what I expected out of every weekend (or actually out of every day) during study abroad. It was definitely a rude awakening to find that the water doesn’t get any warmer than 65 before October and that it doesn’t really get nice outside until mid-September.

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From our balcony

Another view from our balcony

Our balcony from our living room/kitchen

Sunday was only a little cooler than Saturday, but the weather was much crummier. It was overcast starting around 9:00am and started to rain at noon. Most of the day I spent inside catching up on homework and other school stuff. After the rain stopped, around 5:00pm, there were some exceptionally beautiful atmospheric effects.

Downpour!

More rain

The rain subsides

Clouds passing

Looking up Coogee Bay road at sunset

In front of our apartment looking down Coogee Bay road

Medina, the name of our complex. Too bad that is not our balcony

Orange glow and shoes

Orange glow and powerlines

Pink and slowly dispersing

Hello from Sydney!

When I first started thinking about the I Love NY film competition, my original impression was that the competition was looking for an excellent, professional looking video that would attract tourists to NY. Unfortunately, after thinking about it more, it appears this is not the case. After all, if they wanted a professional looking video they would have hired a professional to do it. While I remain optimistic, here are some reasons why I don’t think my video will do well:

1. It is not creative enough. My video follows a pretty standard formula for tourist commercials: showing attractive features of the state with voice-overs of why those features are so attractive. There is very little content that is creative beyond the narration and the sites chosen to be featured.

2. The video was not focused on winning a specific prize category. There are two major prizes in the contest: grand prize and student film maker award. Each category, even though in the same competition, will favor different types of videos. The grand prize category will most likely chose a video that is main stream and creative, but not too creative. The video must be clever and artistic, but not too clever or artistic to be beyond understanding by the general public. The student film maker award on the other hand will probably pick a video that has loads of creativity and artistic expression but zero commercial value. The video will most likely use a lot of symbolism and will not do much to attract tourists to NY.

The one area where my video does still stand a chance is the regional film award. My video focuses solely on my small nitch of the Hudson valley; other videos too have focused areas of interest but not nearly as focused as mine. With any luck this award is mine for the taking. Keep your fingers crossed!

Since getting to Sydney I have taken it upon myself to eat as healthy as possible. I have cut out any regular consumption of sweets including chocolate and ice cream and I stay away as much as possible to fried foods. Here is a rundown of my diet for an average day.

Breakfast: a glass of 2% milk (Alex refuses to buy skim), orange juice, or just water; a homemade “dark berry” muesli muffin (muesli being a combination of rolled oats, nuts, and fruit). If we are out of muffins I have a banana instead.

Lunch: ham/turkey/salami (or any combination of the three) sandwich with hot mustard; banana; can of coke zero (a different formulation of diet coke). I bring this lunch to campus four days out of the week and eat on campus once a week (for the diet and monetary sake). A moderate meal on campus runs between $8 and $12. This adds up quick over five days.

Dinner: at least one bowl of pasta with tomato sauce with a little Parmesan cheese; if we have chicken breasts I have at least two We usually don’t have beef because its so expensive down here (and I get my beef every week at free steak night). Dinner is usually accompanied with at least two more glasses milk and some coke zero.

Dessert: I usually have two apples with some crunchy peanut butter and, if we have any, a pear or another banana.

Obviously the one major thing missing from this list is greens, which I am actively trying to work in.

Rough calorie breakdown:
Breakfast: 290
Lunch: 620
Dinner: 2300
Total: 3010

This diet leaves me feeling full at night and does not lead to overeating. I believe this is mostly because while I have cut out some foods I have not cut out any food groups. The major food group that usually gets indulged in, sugars and fats, are taken care of with peanut butter and fruit (and to some extent coke zero which tastes sugary). I works for me.

After about six week in Sydney I have established a good weekly routine. I go the gym three times a week in the morning with my roommate Alex and I run twice a week as well. The gym at UNSW is not quite as nice as the U of R gym, although it is very passable. Since none of the buildings at UNSW have any kind heating systems installed, the gym can be quite chilly in the morning.

The homework load has been heavy at times but never unbearable and never as much as at the U of R. I find myself doing between one to two hours a night, and since tests are very widely spaced out, constant studying is not necessary. In my physics class we have covered very little material that I have not learned before. Its nice because this is my third time learning E&M, which gives me a leg up on other students who may only be learning it for the first time. I am having a similar experience in my electrical engineering class. Since I learned about circuits in high school I have an advantage over students who are learning it for the first time. EE class is my second favorite class but can also be the most boring at times. One thing I like is how easy it is to study for; because the only thing we can be tested on is analyzing circuits, what I mainly do to study is endless circuit problems. My least favorite class is accounting, not to say that I don’t enjoy it however. I find the material interesting but the lectures very boring at times. The professor also sounds like he is reading off a piece of paper when he is talking, ie he is very monotone. The class is also two hours long so a cup of coffee is definitely needed to get through it. My favorite class is Aboriginal studies, which has a decent workload and probes some very interesting topics. I also like how the class is filled with intelligent and enthusiastic students.

There are many bright students at UNSW but I am surprised that the vast majority care very little about school and grades. Many don’t seem to place any value on learning beyond what they need to know for a career. I guess I can’t really hold it against them too much as lots of kids at the U of R are exactly the same.

Living in my apartment is going well. School is only a five minute bus ride away and I usually walk back home after my classes finish. For food, we generally cook three to four nights a week and have left-overs the other days. There is actually a small supermarket right across the street which makes shopping very easy. My and Alex’s room gets lots of sunlight during the day so we rarely have the lights on. Unfortunately we can’t see the water from our balcony, but hey, we have a balcony which can easily fit a table and some chairs. I am finding out now that I didn’t bring enough clothes with me to Sydney. I have been wearing the same pair of jeans essentially every day for the past month (yes I have washed them). I though originally it would warm up down here very quickly, but the locals say we won’t get to shorts weather until mid September.

For leisure there are plenty of bars and pubs to go to within a ten minute walk. The area I’m in is a hot-spot for study abroad students and backpackers so the area is always packed with people. One little gem I have discovered in Coogee Bay is that on Wednesdays The Palace bar has free steaks (yes free) with any $4 beer or soda. I usually get two.

[Also, check out the new Exercise tab in the bottom left of the image at the top of the page!]

Starting two weeks ago, I have been trying to swim at least once a week (usually on the weekend). The water in Coogee Bay is absolutely freezing, hovering somewhere between 56°F and 60°F. This wouldn’t be too bad if the air was warmer than 65°F. Even walking down to the beach (about 5 minutes) I get a little chilled wearing shorts and a T-shirt.

Coogee Bay from the water

Right when I get in the water I am always amazed at how cold it is, even though I know what to expect. Immediately my body has a shock reaction: my heart starts pounding and my breath rate increases, usually triggering asthma. After about five minutes of swimming my toes become numb and my skin is noticeably cooler to the touch. After about thirty minutes of swimming (the longest I’ve stayed in so far) I am completely chilled to the bone. Even with vigorous swimming, which is difficult with the asthma, I still get utterly cold. After getting out of the water and drying off (which is quite a relief) it takes about a full hour to warm up, thirty minutes if I take a warm shower.

Me Swimming and trying to use a camera at the same time

My roommate Alex

I really can’t wait until the water gets warmer (probably mid-September).

So the top fifteen grand finalists for the I Love NY film competition were recently announced and sadly I was not one of them. However I am in the top ten finalists for the Student Filmmaker award! I must say there are some very creative and wonderfully executed videos out there so I really have no idea who is going to win! Check out the ten Student Filmmaker finalists.

In July I entered a film competition, put on by the State of NY in partnership with Metacafe.com and Civic Entertainment, for a “revamped” I Love NY campaign. Young film makers were asked to create a one minute video expressing why they love NY. Of all the entries, 100(!) finalists were chosen and I am one of them.! Check out my submission here. Sadly metacafe butchers the quality of every video they post to reduce bandwidth; the original looks and sounds much better. There will be three winners for the competition to be announced in the Fall; a grand prize, a regional prize, and a young filmmaker award. Wish me luck!