The Earth Moves Too

Well, we aren't the only ones moving around here. Last night, the ground did too. That's right-we experienced an earthquake! It measured 5.3, which is the strongest one in the Melbourne area in 100 years. The epicenter was Southeast of here, but we definitely felt it.

I was in the kitchen and Zack was on the couch when I heard what sounded like thunder. I didn't think much of it but Zack said, "What was that?" Then he told me to look at my flowers (which my nice husband had brought home for me) on the table, and they were shaking. It was strange, but it's a new house to us, so we didn't know what was going on for sure. We went on with our evening, and Zack at one point said, "Either that was an earthquake, thunder, or I'm not sure." It was only when we got on Facebook before bed and read everyone's comments that we realized it was indeed an earthquake! We were happy that we didn't live in our old place...the 11th floor in a window-filled apartment might have been a bit scarier!

Anyway, that's the exciting news around here. Oh yeah, and it's Zack's birthday today! Some day soon I'll do a post about that-hopefully when we have Internet, because typing on a phone takes forever!

Home Sweet (new) Home

We are in the midst of moving, and Internet isn't set up yet (I'm posting with my phone), but here is a sneak peek of our new home!

Alien Invasion and Other Stuff

I was down near Federation Square this afternoon running some errands, and apparently a spaceship has landed in Melbourne! Ha-I guess it's part of some display called "The Light in Winter" taking place there. This piece is called "Close Encounters."

Anyway, here are some other random tidbits of news from our lives lately...

1. We're moving! As of Monday, June 18, we are going to be residents of South Melbourne instead of St Kilda. More about that in a later post, with pictures of our new place!

2. Zack and I both woke up yesterday with a bad head cold. This was only a day after I was telling our friends about how I haven't really gotten sick in Australia. Then I knocked on wood. I guess it didn't work! At least we're in it together. 

3. Zack's birthday is next Wednesday, June 20th. He's been listing off hundreds of ideas for presents, just in case I hadn't thought of anything yet!

4. We've got some fun trips coming up in the next month. Next weekend, we're going to the Gold Coast for just two nights. Then for the last two weeks in July, we're going to Thailand and Bali. I can't wait! Lots more about that to come in future posts.

5. I need to go clean the apartment now, because there's an inspection happening here tomorrow afternoon, and I already have a teaching job lined up for the day.

Bye for now!

Red, Red Wine

Yesterday at an extended brunch with Adam and Emily, we made plans for a fun night of eating fajitas with a guacamole cook-off and a red wine tasting. So last night, Nigel and Kristy joined us in heading over to Adam and Emily's place in Elwood for the evening. Each person brought a different type of red wine, and each couple brought guacamole. Every wine bottle was wrapped in foil and numbered, so we didn't know which was which.

We enjoyed cheese and crackers and chips and three great guacamole recipes while trying each type of wine. We all had paper and wrote down our guesses as to which type of wine we were tasting. Our choices were Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chianti, Shiraz, and Sangiovese. Some were easy (Cabernet), but others were impossible (who knows what Sangiovese tastes like?!).

After trying all six and making our best guesses, we revealed each wine and saw if we were right. Out of the six types, Zack and I both guessed three correctly (not the same three), and that was the best score!

Then Adam and Emily introduced us to an entertaining game called "Celebrity." It's kind of a mix between Catch Phrase and Charades, with a twist. In one of the rounds, you act out the word you're trying to get your team to guess while under a sheet. It was hilarious! I think I'm acting out "leg" in the picture to the left.

Later, as we drank more wine and laughed about how many types we didn't know, we enjoyed a delicious dessert made using Emily's now famous chocolate chip cookie recipe. Yum!

It was an awesome night of good food and wine shared with friends, and a great way to kick off the Queen's Birthday holiday weekend.

Hockey in Australia?

On Sunday afternoon, we went to a hockey game. Yes, there are apparently hockey players in Australia. Who knew? We're guessing that most of them are probably originally from Canada, but one of Melbourne's teams (they have two) is called the Mustangs, and this past weekend, they played against the Sydney Ice Dogs. There are nine teams throughout Australia. We went with a big group of friends and met up for lunch beforehand in the Docklands and went out for hot cocoa after the game. We had all gotten the $10 game tickets using a coupon deal; I guess they are normally $22. 

It was a small arena, and the Americans among us felt like we were watching a high school game. The benefit was that you could actually follow the puck. Sometimes at NHL games, everything is so fast, and the puck is a blur. Sydney definitely had the better team; Melbourne lost 5-1. I was impressed with the fans. The Mustangs actually have a following; there were people with jerseys (they looked like Denver Broncos jerseys!) and drums and flags and such. Though it wasn't the best hockey we've ever seen in our lives, it was fun to introduce our Australian friends to the sport and a good way to spend a chilly Sunday afternoon in Melbourne.

Photography Night Walk

Last weekend, I went with a group on a Photography Night Walk around St Kilda using a voucher I had bought with my friend Orla. I wasn't extremely happy with how my shots turned out (I feel like I'm a lot better at portraits of people during the daylight!), but here are some of my better ones from that evening:

Street light shining through the autumn leaves.

Street art behind the Palais Theatre. 

Acland Street treats.

Shot of a "boat" in St Kilda's Community Garden (taken through the fence).

I was trying to be clever with this one. Do you get it?

I like the bright colors in this one-taken from outside Nando's Restaurant.

I ordered myself a tripod on Ebay the day after this walk, so I hope my shots will improve from here on out. Hope you enjoyed a little taste of St Kilda by night!

Strange Finds at the Store

Sometimes the things I find at the grocery store amuse me. Only in Australia would you find potato chips that are "pie & sauce" flavored! No, I didn't buy them, so I can't tell you if they actually taste like a meat pie with ketchup. These are a limited edition flavor, but there are always chicken flavored chips on the shelves. No, I've never tried those either. Somehow, meat-flavored chips do not appeal to me!

Dogs get some interestingly flavored food as well. Here's one choice I saw the other day. Mince is what Australians call ground up meat. Ground beef is called beef mince. There is also lamb mince, pork mince, etc. I'm not sure which kind is in this food. And marrowbone...mmmm!

Lamb is also a common ingredient. There are all sorts of lamb soups and cuts of meat and such. And pumpkin items, but none of them are sweet. You can even get cream of pumpkin soup! Anyway, it's interesting to come across these distinctly Australian items while doing the grocery shopping, so I thought you all might enjoy them too.