Long Time - A Lot Seen

Although this message is written from the boring computer room of my new university, it must be said that this computer is about as far away as possible from the one that last hosted my postings. I have arrived in the Netherlands, but in between here and Melbourne a lot has met my eye, penetrated my nose, deafened my ears and brushed my skin. After months of turbulence the heavier particles sink in, and the big picture is starting to show. It is only here that a summary seems to be possible.

My uni time at Monash accumulated in an excellent record and an award from the Dean for outstanding academic results and added to that I feel that my academic experience overseas has shaped my future ambitions in a certain direction. After finishing the shipload of papers, I had time to see the different faces of OZ. South Australia impressed me with its vast nothingness towards the North and excellent National Parks, where unexpected encounters with the strangest animals -and people- seemed part of the everyday life. Sydney showed its better side with the Bienalle in full swing and a nice break from the Melbourne weather.

My three week road trip with Will really impressed me in many ways, were it not the ever growing and all consuming pile of clothes, utensils, toys, gear, personal items etc. on the back seat - eventually named 'the shit'-, than maybe the accidental surfing with dolphins, our encounter with 'Ze Germans', our very international stay at the University of the Sunshine coast that sprang from it, the ever upping temperature while heading North, the beauty of driving a car with cruise control for over 3000 k. and the friendship that we managed to built over such an intense contact.

After a few days in wonderful Darwin, in season and full with tourists and US army personel, I parted with the continent that hosted me for such a while and arrived in Asia, virtually a stop over on the way back... but one that took almost six weeks. The main chunck of time was spent covering Vietnam from South to North, but Malaysia and Hong Kong were support acts that entertained a couple of days each. Vietnam was very different from places visited before and I blame it on the communist government system, but with its rough and tumble haggling, fantastic street food, and unpronouncable language it had alot of the ingredients I like in other countries.

And last wednesday my airplane touched down in Amsterdam and a feel of closure has reached me the last couple of days, while digging into the uni reader, and discussing photography's medium specificity. Not that I've put my backpack away yet, since my lack of a permanent place to stay has kept me in the travel mode. But in the Netherlands its easier to find my way around, and my scope of mobility has narrowed a lot. I will lay low for now, but stay tuned for next year!