antti.vilpponen.net

This is very cool and very weird at the same moment! There’s Roxy and Celia talking outside at 7.43 am! And I almost was not sure that I would see them, man - just goes to tell how much I like and care about these people…. very weird, very very weird. Are you suppose to make bonds so strong in 6 months? Apparently they do happen…

Very cool stuff - these people kick ass!!

ps. Maybe I’ll do a public blogging by all these people tomorrow :)

pps. This was a good example of blogging under the influence…. :)

Damnit, 2 days left in Sydney. This feels somehow very unreal as the day of my departure always seemed so far away. Some of my good friends have already left Australia, like Vern so I will be one of the last ones to leave from the Autumn 2005 semester arrivals. Did some souvenir shopping today, when I should have gone and bought a pair of cheap jeans (50 AUD) from Market City. Oh well, maybe I’ll get the jeans tomorrow. Definitely worth the money!

I’ve also managed to plan my return to Finland somehow and break it up a bit. I will be spending my first night back home in my sister’s place in Helsinki. It will have taken me close to 30 hours to get there so I will gladly sleep there and then take the 5 hour train ride to Savonlinna. Damn that’s a long way home…

I’m writing this at 2.25am from a friend’s couch in Sydney. For certain reasons, I am not disclosing the location. I’ve been walking a LOT today with the 3 Finnish guys I met earlier this month. I travelled down from Hervey with them and decided to take them to Star City for the evening. It was nice and they probably enjoyed it as well, not something you get everyday in Finland.

As I handed in my keys today I found myself with mixed feelings about leaving Sydney. I sort of like going back to meet all my friends, but then again - I’ve got my excellent friends here in Sydney as well. I really can’t rank them who’s better, they all are - except I’ve known my Finnish friends for a bit longer. Awesome times I’ve had here, I feel almost too priviliged to have been here!

Oh well, I better get some sleep. Tomorrow’s a new day and not worth wasting! There’s enough time to sleep on the 27 hours or so on the plane back home.

I got back to Sydney an hour ago. It’s only 9.45 here in the morning, the night bus from Byron Bay took 12 hours, instead of the scheduled 13. Looking back at the almost 2 weeks - it was awesome. Maybe I could have spent more time in some places and less in others, but that’s the whole secret of travelling; you never know what to expect.

Snorkelling at the Great Barrier Reef, driving a 4WD knee deep in soft sand on the Fraser island, shopping in Brisbane and hanging out in Byron Bay during the Splendour in the Grass music festival. I now have exactly 7 days left before heading back home. Needless to say I’m a bit sad about it, but also very enthusiastic as I do miss my friends and family after not seeing them for 6 months. All the photos I’ve seen of the Finnish summer makes me think I’ve missed an awesome and hot summer back home, but the winter and the experiences here haven’t been too bad either.

All righty, time to start packing - I have to take my keys back to the housing office tomorrow, meaning I have to live on friends’ couches for the week. Not a bad idea, since I ended up spending quite a bit on my trip through the east coast. Photos of the trip coming later on this week as I will send the best ones online from the uniWLAN.

Greetings from Airlie Beach! It’s in the eastern coast - some 20+ hours by bus from Sydney (at least, cause I have to go through those hours :p). I’ve been snorkelling in the Great Barrier Reef, catching rays in the Airlie Beach lagoon and heading south to Fraser Island where I will be renting a 4×4 car to explore the world’s largest sand island. Should be fun :)

But man, do I need to find some money when I come back - I’ve been spending a bit more than I expected and I’m only half way through my 2 week trip. I’ll be back in Sydney on Sunday th 24th to pack up my stuff and move out the next day. All righty - photos will be up when I get back from here.

ps. I’m wasting time here as I’m about to catch a bus to Hervey Bay, which will take 13 hours (luckily it’s a night bus!)

Leaving in 20 minutes for the train to the airport. Like I’ve said - I will be flying some 3000km north to Townsville and working my way down in the next 12 days or so. Last night was a blast with Vern, Javi, Andy, Carlos and Mills; we went to Star City to gamble a bit and enjoy ourselves. Had very cheap and good food at 1.30 am and got back by 2.30 am.

Thanks guys and make sure I see you on the 24th!

ps. I realised once I come back I have only a week left in this place before heading back. Bugger.

I’ll be sleeping one of my last nights in my flat tonight as I leave for Townsville tomorrow morning. I’ll be gone some 12/13 days and will be coming back to Sydney around the 24th. Nothing has been planned too far yet as I want to keep options open for spontaneous things. The downside of travelling this long on the road is that you want to keep your carryings as minimal as possible, meaning I can’t take my better camera with me. Hopefully my older one will still work ok and get those nice holiday shots!

It’s also a bit sad in terms of not seeing many people once I leave. Many good friends will leave during the time I’m away and new people will begin arriving as I come back. It’s the same kind of stuff I wrote earlier about living in these awkward 6 month cycles. Life goes on - it’s a nice way of breaking up usual connections and methods of living/work and forcing you to adjust to new environments quite quickly.

But to those who have already left and are reading this blog - keep in touch! (meaning write e-mails!) And to those who are still in Geegal or are reading this from other parts of the world - don’t expect me to reply to e-mails during my trip as I want to kick back a little bit and enjoy the last weeks I’m in Oz.

I uploaded my Uni Games photos to Flickr. You can also access them in the future through my gallery.

To those who know what I’m talking about; I’ve finished the DVD and I will be able to burn it to you before I leave Geegal (31st of July). After that - you can get the DVD through mail or internet and burn it yourself. If you want a copy, drop me a line!

Who ever said that it’s always cold in Finland? Yet another reason why the summers in this northern fairyland kick ass :)