Thank Goodness I'm Not Lactose-Intolerant

One of the best things about Australia is its dairy foods!

Colby cheese is the mild cheddar here. Then there’s Tasty Cheese, and Extra Tasty Cheese! You won’t find any orange cheddar here. It’s ALL white and ALL…tasty.

Assistant Directing Project

Looking up from the top of the stairs in the Drama School.

THE BACKGROUND: The VCA School of Drama has a 3 year actor training program. For the first two years, actors learn and practice a process that enables them to be creative and autonomous. In the last year of training, actors are enganed in ensemble work with guest directors in four different seasons. Each season focuses on a different genre.

THE SETUP:
Nadia, Samara and I are working with director Daniel Schlusser on his production of Pedro Calderon de la Barca’s classical text LIFE IS A DREAM. We have a 5 week rehearsal period.

THE AESTHETIC:
Neo- Realism. “Non-performative” performance. Authenticity above all else! Contextualize the action in a contemporary setting. Deconstruct the text.

WHAT IT WILL LOOK LIKE:
We don’t know. However, it will be a confronting, uber-cool and intriguing piece of theatre.

Winter in Lorne

I missioned down to Lorne this weekend, and enjoyed some cold water surfing! (Surf Booties on!) All kinds of weather blew through Lorne this weekend: rain, wind, some sun…and all of it chilly. It was warm inside with friends though!

Jasmina and I walked the dogs in the early morning on the beach at Lorne. Here’s Sunday morning before the rain.

Em-PHAsis on the Other Syl-LABLE

It's fun being back to school! This week, my Aussie mates have reminded me that I speak differently than they do. Now, it is already a standing joke that I "mispronounce" the following words:

OREGANO.
Aussie pronunciation: Ore-GAH-No

Paola: O-REG-ano

NOUGAT.
Aussie pronunciation: NOO-gah

Paola: NOO-git

This week, we discovered that the word MACRAME is pronounced differently here than in Canada...
Aussies: Mah-CRAH-may

Paola: Mac-RAH-may

Celebrate the differences!

Papal Visit

So, the Pope is visiting Australia and will be in Sydney for World Youth Day next week. The country is crawling with eager Catholic Youth touring about before the pilgrimage to Sydney.
On my last day in Brisbane, Jenn and I went on a walking tour of the CBD and noticed a lot of Catholic youth on walkabout. In addition to seeing other beautiful old buildings, we peeked into St. Stephen's Cathedral and Chapel (the oldest church in Brisbane). It was a little oasis of calm in the city centre.

Whales, Dolphins and Fish, Oh my!

We strolled along the coastal walk on the North end of the Island. We saw pods of Humpback Whales blowing and breaching, Bottlenose Dolphins surfing and schools of massive fish!
Whales breaching.
Sigh…my photos do not by any means reflect the majesty of nature we witnessed. Those little pointy things in the water? Dolphin dorsal fins…trust me.

The Bat Colony on Stradbroke

Those black balls hanging from the branches are not some kind of tropical fruit...

Bats are cool and creepy!

Adventure on North Stradbroke Island

Nikki and Morgan took Jenn and me to North Stradbroke Island, about a 40 minute ferry ride off the Queensland coast. It is a beautiful place and draws holiday makers, surfers and nature enthusiasts alike.

Watching the Surf and waiting for whales.

You're probably looking at this picture and thinking, “Boy, that sure looks tropical and warm!” Well, it’s not surprising that you would THINK that! It was the coldest day of the year in Brisbane: it bottomed out at 7 degrees overnight and only hit 17 in the middle of the day. It was fairly breezy on Straddie too, so we busted out the warm weather gear for just a short time!

Sunset in the Burbs

A great sunset to end a fun day in Brisbane!

Today we had a dose of urban culture. The three of us took Morgan downtown to the Queensland Art Gallery and saw the Sidney Nolan Retrospective. (Nolan is famous for his images of Ned Kelly, the famous bushranger.)

Dandelions at the Art Gallery!(Not by Sidney Nolan...)
We then did some shopping around Fortitude Valley, spending most of our time in Katmandu, the outdoors shop. Here's Jenn and her new hat!

Catching Up with Gruno

I am lucky to have more friends from home visiting this Australia this winter!My good friend, Jenn Gruno is in Brisbane visiting family. Her sister Nikki, her partner Shelby and their son Morgan live there, and I have joined them all for a few days!

Nikki, Jenn, Morgan and I went on a bit of a walking tour along the Brisbane River. We rode the RiverCat ferries and walked through part of the Botanical Gardens.

Jenn watches a Kookaburra. (It's there...on the branch of the little tree in front of her. He's got a white chest, so it is tricky to see at first.)

Morgan and Nikki crossing one of the Pedestrian bridges

Jenn and Morgan.

My Suggestions for Observing Canada Day Overseas

1. Find a Canadian flag!
Too easy! These are flying in Federation Square with St. Paul’s Cathedral in the background.


2. Spend the day with Canadians!
I met up with my friends Sheila (the Canadian) and Sue (the Aussie) and their baby, Finn (dual citizenship!) for a catch up at the Queen Victoria Market.
Later in the evening, I joined my friend, Susan (from Saskatchewan) and her Polish friends from work (an Irish company) to celebrate her birthday and Canada’s at a local pub.

Sheila, Sue and Finn.
Finn and I.

3. Eat a Donut.
Done! We lined up for these hot donuts at the Queen Vic market. Kind of (but not at all…) like Tim Horton’s.

Happy Canada Day!

I hope everyone back home enjoys a warm and fun Canada Day!