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Well, I'm here and trying to adjust. My flights went smoothly, and I got all my luggage safe and sound. I managed to fit my huge camera bag in the overhead bins on two of my flights, which I was very happy about. The jet from Birmingham to Chicago was tiny, so my bag was way too big to fit overhead. Fortunately, it wasn't a full flight, and they let me change seats and strap my bag into an empty seat next to me. On my flight to San Francisco, a man asked me to swap seats with him so he could be next to his family. I agreed and ended up with a seat with way more leg room so it made the 4-hour flight a bit more bareable. In this short amount of time, I have seen the small ways that God is taking care of me, so I have no worries for the year to come. I arrived in Sydney at 6:10 AM on Saturday, 07/07/07. Once I arrived, it took about an hour to make it through customs. Three international flights arrived at the same time, so there was a huge crowd to pass through. In the line to get my visa stamped, I ended up being behind a Korean man who couldn't speak English and, therefore, could not fill out his arrival form. They finally took him to the side to get him straightened out. In the quarantine line, where they examined my bags, they had to confiscate my trail mix because it contained bananas. You just can't trust those bananas. After I made it through customs, I was greeted by Geraldine Moody, the president of the New South Wales (NSW) Fulbright alumni society and by her husband, James. They couldn't have been kinder. When they saw me in my short-sleeve shirt, they asked if I was aware that it was winter. I told them I was aware and that I had a sweatshirt with me. They replied, "Ah, a 'jumper.'" It's a bit chilly here, but not too bad. Unfortunately, I left my jacket at home in the rush to the airport, but I do have my hoodie, which will hold me over until I can go shopping for a new jacket. They drove me around town for a little while and then took me to my hotel, the Best Western Azure Executive Apartments in Potts Point, which is a suburb of Sydney not far from the harbour and city center. Back in the day, it used to be a Sheraton hotel, where the Beatles stayed during their visits to Sydney. I got a major discount through an online deal, and it's located in a nice part of town, right across the street from a large grocery store. We arrived at the hotel around 8:00 am, but check-in was not scheduled until 2:00 pm. They let me go ahead and register, and they locked my bags up in their back room. Fortunately, they told me to return at 11:00 since there was a large likelihood they could have a room ready for me by then. (The hotel is completely booked). Geraldine and James then took me along with them to her office building to pick up some of her things. While there, she showed me a beautiful view of the harbour from the 27th floor. She then let me call home in one of their conference rooms. After Geraldine gathered her things, we went to a little cafe for breakfast. I ate some little pastry that was really good, but I can't recall what it was called. It looked like a tiny bundt cake covered with white icing and powdered sugar. It had cranberries and pecans inside. It was listed as low-fat, but it was surprisingly good. While at the cafe, I met one of their friends from New Zealand. His accent was slightly different from theirs, but I think the difference is more noticeable to them. After breakfast, I walked to my hotel, which was just a block away from the cafe. My room was ready when I got there, so I took the "lift" up to the seventh floor. When the door opened, I was confronted by a dimly-lit hallway, which instantly worried me. But once I stepped off the elevator, the lights came on. I then noticed the motion-sensors placed along the hall. My room is a small studio with a kitchenette, stocked with dishes, utensils, and pots, along with cleaning supplies. I have a small fridge, small stove, microwave, toaster, and coffee pot. I have already made a run to Woolworths across the street and gotten food for the next few days. When I went to check the caloric values of foods, I instead found the "energy" value, measured in kJ. There are a few foods that list both calories and energy, but most just show the kJ. There are a few familiar brands here, and I did find some Splenda sweetener. It's still hard to believe that I'm here, but I'm excited about the year to come.
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