Trip across California

Golden Gate Bridge,
originally uploaded by bernd ploderer.

I'm travelling through California for a few weeks to conduct interviews for my PhD research in San Francisco and Los Angeles. I will then spend a week in OC (Orange County) as a guest at the University of California, Irvine before I go to San Diego for a conference. This will be my first presentation at a major conference - keep your fingers crossed for me.
Along the way I've got of course to do some sightseeing, like yesterday's walk through San Francisco to stay awake after the long flight. Now I'm off to the library to do some work.

We won again...

The Tiger,
originally uploaded by bernd ploderer.

... at least the bronze medal. This time it was the Australian University Games volleyball competition, which took place in Melbourne this year. I took a week off uni to play volleyball with (from left to right) O'Keefe, McKenzie, Jimmie, (myself), Luke, Gerard, Dan, Joe and Reece won the bronze medal game in a close and 5-set game - what an improvement compared to being 2nd last the year before ;-)

We won...

Melbourne University Renegades, Men's Honour's Team,
originally uploaded by bernd ploderer.

... the finals of the Victorian championships in the men's honours division!!!!!

Back in volleyball action

back in action,
originally uploaded by bernd ploderer.

My ankle injury prevented me from playing volleyball for almost 2 months, but now I'm slowly making my way back. Last Saturday I played in a game again, well, I tried to :) I didn't jump very high, I wasn't fast, but it was a good start with a few points by me (although most of them were serves :) We won the game in 3 sets and my team (Melbourne Renegades) is on top of the ladder. Please keep your fingers crossed that we win the title this year!

Back from holidays

sunshine :),
originally uploaded by bernd ploderer.

My danish friend Kasper and I spent a few wonderful days in the tropical area in North Queensland, Australia. We started off in Cairns and visited the Great Barrier Reef, headed up to the rainforest in Cape Tribulation and then spent a few days on a sailing cruise through the Whitsunday Islands. It was just gorgeous!

Houses & stuff in Melbourne

Storey Hall at RMIT on Swanston St.,
originally uploaded by bernd ploderer.

I put some pictures of interesting houses and other buildings in Melbourne on flickr, like RMIT's futuresque Storey Hall on Swanston St. (picture on the right, with the Melbourne-typical tram in front).
The pictures stem from Geraldine's visit in Melbourne a few weeks ago. Having had an architect as a guest I discovered some facets of the city that I previously hadn't paid attention to.

Austrian culinary delights in Melbourne

wiener schnitzel,
originally uploaded by bernd ploderer.

This weekend I was again pleased to have a guest visiting me in Melbourne. Geri, who I know from Salzburg and who has meanwhile settled in Brisbane, came down to the South for a long weekend. Besides the obvious highlights in and around the city, we enjoyed a few encounters with Austrian "culture" in Melbourne:
After enjoying a delicous "gugelhupf" and a "creme schnitte" in a pastry shop in St. Kilda, we went to the Hofbräuhaus for dinner. I know it's German, well Bavarian, but I would argue that it is close to what you'd expect from an Austrian place. Not only did we enjoy Wiener Schnitzel, Kasnocken, Radler & Weissbier. We were also surprised by a glimpse of Alpine culture in the form of jodelling, schuhplattln, vogerltanz and a special performance of the Edelweiss song from the Sound of Music. I'd be the first to leave the venue if just one of these things would happen to me back in Austria, but here on the other side of the world I quite enjoyed the performances. All of which were a bit over the top but very enjoyable for us as well as the Aussie audience.
Similarly I enjoy watching Inspektor Rex here in down under, which is on the TV on Thu nights. I wasn't the slightest bit interested in that dog since I was a kid, but here in Australia it is something I do not only enjoy but also take pride of. Strange, how distance and a bit of nostalgia let you embrace the stereotypical "crap" presented in these instances. I love down under, but a glimpse of home from time to time is just great!