It has been an uncomfortably-long time since I have updated this blog. Thank you everyone that continually checks this space and I apologize that you have had to read about Sleaze Ball the last few months. :)

I have a lot to update you on, to each which I would like to give much-needed attention and detail.

We need to discuss:
1. My month-long tourist adventure with my younger brother, which included the Great Barrier Reef, 3 zoos, a 4.5 star resort, a magic show, drinking, gambling and brother-bonding.
2. Finishing two-terms at an Australian hospitality school and beginning my summer holidays on the beach.
3. How I am affecting the Australian Starbucks market (in a positive way!).
4. The internet-culture in Australia and why it has been difficult for me to gain access to this blog.
5. The US Inaguration, as witnessed from Down Under.

This will all be explained shortly. Stay tuned, seriously.

Much love from Down Under,
Dan

Long Weekend

Last Weekend was a long weekend! We had Monday off and I didn't have class on Tuesday so of course it was time to go into the city!

I went to Sleazeball with Ben, Brett, David and others. Sleaze is a fundraiser for New Mardi Gras in Sydney (think Baltimore Gay Pride but much larger, more extravagant and more fun!). The event blew my mind! The performances, lasers and acres of people dancing was amazing (over 6,000+ people)!

I've stolen the following pictures from people on facebook to highlight the awesomeness.

This photo was in SX magazine the following Thursday (Daniel, Me, David, Brett, Fiona; Photo Courtesy - Petez Images):

The Show! (Tora Hymen, Photo Courtesy - Rod Sydney):

The venue (Photo Courtesy - Rod Sydney):

This was afterwards (Brett, Ben, Daniel, Me):

Yup, that's it. :)

Rosh Hashanah on the beach and the magic stick

There aren't many Jews in Manly... or at least, I can't find them. Supposedly there are some out in the city or closer to Bondi Junction, but that will have to wait for another adventure and another blog.

A few weeks ago, my mother politely reminded me that Rosh Hashanah was approaching and asked me what I was going going to do to honor the holiday. I honestly hadn't given it much thought, but decided that this would be a great time to look back and think deep. Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the High Holidays and is the time we ask forgiveness for our sins. I am unsure if it is a overal religious tradition or something we picked up in Ohio, but on this holiday we throw pieces of bread for each of our sins.

I wanted to do it in Manly!

Sophie decided to join me. After buying a nice large round bread (the closest thing I could find to challah or other similar jewish-type bread), Jess dropped Sophie and I off at Little Manly. Little Manly is a small section of beach on the opposite side of the main surfing beach. I've never been to Little Manly and I thought that it would be nice to go to a quiet spot and practice this tradition. Lucky for us -- today was kids day! Little Manly was swamped with kids building castles and teasing old people, but we decided to go forth and do it.

We walked over the giant rocks to a smaller section of the beach. There, we threw bread into the water while two kids trying to fish with a large stick stared on.... they eventually thought we were crazy and wandered off.

**The best part of the whole experience was afterwards. As Sophie and I sat on the rocks, she pointed out that everytime the tide moved back, the moss and water plants looked like mini-trees and a tiny planet. It was definitely an interesting thing to look at. I'll try to post pictures soon -- I'm not sure how well they'd turn out.**

Oh, and for the magic stick..

As Sophie and I walked back to college, we found a long stick on the ground. I picked it up and decided I was Harry Potter. The rest of the trip back we tried casting spells.

The end! :)

New Term

So I started my second term this week at ICMS, the college of management in Manly, Australia. The school this time around is more strict: uniforms must be worn to lunch (even if you don't have class that day) and the grading structure has changed. Many students are upset and wondering if they should stay. I believe the college would do well to seek student opinions before making major changes. This is something that Goucher does well with and I believe any college should follow this trend to help make transitions easier.

I ended last term fairly well, considering all of the courses were final year term courses with a lot of group work and reports. I believe this term will be roughly similar but perhaps more engaging/exciting (mainly because of the courses I am taking.

My schedule is as follows:

Mon 10:00am-12:00pm - International Events
Wed 08:00am-10:00am - Business Ethics (Lecture)
Wed 03:00pm-05:00pm - Business Ethics (Tutorial)
Thu 04:00pm-06:00pm - Business Finance
Thu 06:30pm-08:30pm - Strategic Marketing
Fri 10:00am-12:00pm - International Events
Fri 12:00pm-02:00pm - Business Finance
Fri 02:00pm-04:00pm - Strategic Marketing

Basically, Tuesdays are FREE and Fridays are a pain with class from 10am-4pm straight.

I ended term holidays with a huge working week doing a lot of overtime. My paycheck couldn't have come at a better time as I bought school supplies and new shoes!! (both work and life). Don't worry mom, I also bought the essentials: new toothbrush, shampoo, etc.

Other update: I'm seeing Lady Gaga tomorrow night at the Sydney Oxford Art Factory! She sings "Just Dance" and I bought her CD today to prepare for the show. I'm taking Ben for his belated birthday and I'm pretty excited to see it. Tickets were surprisingly cheap and I think it's a small venue which should be good.

Miss everyone at home and still loving what I'm doing here. As I get into my new routine with classes, I'll make sure to post more pictures of my new dorm room and some other fun things I've been doing!

Love ya,
Dan

Proud of Starbucks!

After I closed the store today, I spent an hour with James setting up the next promotion for Starbucks Australia - Espresso Excellence. After working through the set up and realizing the changes, I have to admit that I am very proud of Starbucks making the proper moves to adapt to a very established coffee culture here.

First off - size. Australians prefer smaller sizes of quality coffee.. unlike the American tradition of ordering everything in large cups. Starting tomorrow, the stores are highlighting the short cup.. which is much smaller than the tall (our small) and its even now available on the menu. We've always had short cups, just never advertised nor encouraged people to purchase them.

Another big step, which I am surpised and delighted is the changing of a key recipe. A "flat white" is a popular drink in Australia with shots of espresso and flat (no foam) milk to the top. Starbucks' adaption to this recipe was similar to an americano-misto.. not fitting the taste profile that customers here are looking for. With the changing of the recipe, Starbucks is making a very strong step into establishing itself into the already very strong coffee-consumer culture.

I'm excited to start this promo tomorrow! I'm wearing my black apron to work to highlight the importance of espresso and to engage with customers over samples of our improved flat white. I'll keep you updated.

Cheers,
Dan

Some other pictures.

I tried Vegemite for the first time in Melbourne:

It wasn't that good.

Ahh! It's been awhile!

Update! Update! Update!

I have not been keeping up with this -- I apologize! (or in Australian.. that's apologise).

As living here is becoming second nature and work is routine, its funny to see which words I've started picking up and using everyday. I use "heaps" a lot, "arvo" for afternoon and shorten a lot of my words.. as in "Melben" for Melbourne and "Canbra" for Canberra.

So.. let's see what has happened over the past month..

Starbucks is great! The circular quay store is a major transport hub so we're insanely busy and get a lot of tourists. A lot of Americans come through, asking for drinks I'm used to in the states, but we don't have here.. it's interesting to compare and offer suggestions.

I was a tourist for a week! Last week, Sophie and I went to Melbourne for a week. Every day was packed -- We started off going to TGI Fridays (go figure!) I got excited when I found out they have ranch dressing (most restaurants don't) and the waitress said she's used to people getting excited. I convinced her to try it! After that, we went to the Chill On Ice Bar.. a -5C bar with ice sculptures!

Gabby, Sophie and Me at the Chill On Ice Bar!

We saw Wicked at the Regent Theatre! That was great! We purchased VIP tickets and did the whole experience, green carpet, green drinks and great seats! The show was great, but I told them they need to see it on Broadway as well..

Me and Sophie after seeing Wicked!

After Wicked, we went to the Crown Casino! I played War.. highest car wins. Sophie, Jess and I sat at the table for awhile as I kept betting higher and higher. I ended up winning $500! It was so crazy! At the end, I just started betting $100 chips -- Sophie kept freaking out! A lot of fun.

I won $500 at the casino. It's all gone now!

We went to the Melbourne Gaol (Jail), which was a bit depressing. Walked through the cells and saw where Ned Kelley was hanged.


At the end of our trip, Sophie and I went to the Edge at Eureka tower.. the tallest building in Melbourne. You go up 68 floors and get into a box that projects out the building (think Willy Wonka). Once the box is outside ,the windows become clear and you can see everywhere, including under your feet! Once I scan the picture you'll see what I mean.

The view from Eureka Skydeck.

Besides all of that, life has been good and busy. Passed all of my classes in my first term! Was more difficult than I thought it would be, but I'm glad that term is over. One more to go at ICMS and then I have a two month break -- my brother is coming to visit! In February I'm going Macquarie on the other side of Sydney.


I'm planning on introducing my Australian friends to American traditions.. mainly Thanksgiving. I'll let you know how that goes.


I think that's it! I'll update again soon.. well, we'll see.. :)


Miss you all,
Dan