This Half

Firstly, Snow Patrol are playing here in February, and I'm going to get a ticket (or perhaps several) to see them - anyone fancy joining me?!

Secondly, and more relevantly, I've had a really enjoyable evening at my department head's this evening.

Their flat is amazing. It has a huge balcony with olive (and other) trees on it, with a clear view over the city centre and out to the hills east of Melbourne, it's really bright (virtually the whole of the "wall" between the balcony and the living area is actually window), an enormous open-plan kitchen and an inbuilt fountain in the entrance hall! They're renting, but one of the other flats in the block is on the market for $3.5m (or about £1.5m).

(Aside - funny thing, which I've only just realised, but I haven't actually looked at the exchange rate once since I've been here. Odd. Kind of doesn't matter for me except as a rough guide anyway, since I'm being paid in dollars.)

While it is a really excellent flat, and in the most desirable (subtle note - desirable, not desired - it's what someone else thinks of it that matters, not you!) suburb in Melbourne, that does seem a bit toppy to me. Still, I wouldn't turn my nose up at living there.

They do have a slightly overzealous security system on the garage, though - Clare had to go and wake up the owner of one of the other flats to help open find out how to open the garage door!

Clare had put on "traditional" Aussie tucker - meatloaf and tomato ketchup dip! - having forgotten I'd been here before. This was unfortunate, as the much more healthy and desirable (by all of us) but less "authentic" second option was a prawn and avocado salad. Oh well, next time!

We had a very long chat about all sorts of things, watched several Peter Gabriel DVDs (not sure why, other than David wanted to) and then the first part of The Castle, recommended viewing for anyone who wants to understand the Australian psyche (and also for David, Clare and me who were pointing at the screen and saying "Look, there's Melbourne, we live near there").

I think the best thing about this evening is simply that I've been out - not surrounded by the same 4 soulless hotel walls. I think David was right, that it will be very different once I'm in "my own" place - I'd already planned to get myself a new printer, so I can very quickly have some decent photos up on the walls to personalise it, and I can unpack things properly rather than have everything sort of unpacked but also ready to pack back into the suitcases at a moment's notice.