Apple announcements!

Well, I enjoyed watching Steve Jobs (CEO) of Apple presenting the new 5th generation iPod video, 2nd generation iPod Nano, and 2nd generation iPod Shuffle (indeed I am streaming it, as I write this).

Ultimately, all the upgrades (brighter screens, games, smaller models, longer battery life, etc.) are not really that revolutionary and it does not preempt me to upgrade from my current (4th generation) iPod video and iPod shuffle. Noneteless, quite impressive the changes that Apple has made.

I am much more impressed with iTunes v7.0! (and its free) - the software which is a pseudo - Internet browser / music organiser / Apple shop interface is significantly improved. The demarcation of podcasts, video, music, etc. is common-sense, the iPod configuration options are sweet (e.g. downloading only the most recent TV shows), and the profile based identity is another very useful mod (at last synchronisation between work and home!).

And as for iTV - I already have that functionality in my Macbook Pro - but nice features for those that still use PCs ;)

Again, I am a complete Apple convert now (having my Macbook Pro - best computer ever with iPhoto, iTunes, Quiksilver, etc.), apart from Google they are the most customer-savy, moderately innovative company in the world.

Cool.

And a postscript - I actually read about the features of the new Apple generation iPods on Bloglines before the live video presentation! - bring on the power of blogs.

Yes another ride ...

Anyway, I digress; with holidays in mind, I thought I better take the opportunity and head out for my favourite 35km ride in the hinterland of the Zurichsee; surpisingly it was a v.easy ride today.

Riding / cycling is becoming such a part of my life now - I really start get an itch to go for a ride if I haven't been for 2 weeks or so. What exercise is part of your life?

It will be interesting if I am in Zurich in the Winter - as I have heard it is possible to ride on perfectly cleaned up roads amongst fields of snow - that would be an amazing experience!

'Holiday spirit'

Well I am now four days away from a 2 week holiday; yes a time to stop exercising (apart from the walking around cities, museums, etc.) and just live the traveller's life - seeing great sights, eating lots of food, idyling the day away! I know I am not alone in saying this, but holidays are truly precious - from 2002-2005, I did not embark on one holiday - a combination of work committments, a recurring knee injury, a philosophy of not travelling by oneself, and a lack of adventure. In 2006, I will now have spent 10 weeks holidaying after this one coming up.

I know which one I prefer!

I have met some truly interesting people, seen some fantastic sights, had some significant 'insight' time, and had a lot of fun. I wonder even when one has children - will it be possible always to holiday away from familiar shores? I sure hope so.

I am truly looking forward to this 2 weeks coming up - as I am trying to go 'Race Around the World' style; that is, apart from the weekend upcoming in Prague, Czech Republic (where I am booked into a hotel) nothing else is!! So come Monday next week, where do I go - Germany, Bratislava, Hungary, Vienna? this will either be an amazing adventure of spontaneity or a calamitous mis-calculation, or maybe like any adventure it will have a bit of both. I will be catching up with Georgia / Spence for the weekend and then travelling with Kate for the remainder - whoa! a crazy, unlikely story ... maybe - what happens next - who knows.

Anyway, I once again, will switch over to my Google Travel blog, so if you are interested in following what I get up to - you will have to subscribe here! Also, for any others contemplating travel - I have found Gridskipper to be an excellent resource (thanks Sarah).

I am also interested in the talk of one of my friends - Pete. He is postulating a TDF 2007 trip; the chance to ride some of the terrain of TDF is an exciting prospect! At least I would have had some hill training :) So there goes 2 weeks of holidays next year, and I still have to go to NY, USA to catch up with some mates; see the industrial revolution unfolding in Shanghai, China; walk to base camp, of Mt.Everest, Nepal ... and so it goes ;)

Switzerland is its own country II - the good

There is a lot of conjecture on the English forum (in Switzerland) of which I am a participating member as to what are the virtues, or not of Switzerland - so I thought I would create my own top 5 / and (later) the bottom 5 reasons for living in Swizterland.

Switzerland and Zurich flags, originally uploaded by markyjones.

TOP 5

1. 'Little Big Cities'; a term used to describe Zurich (and I presume it can be applied to Geneva, Basel) is very apt. Nowhere in the world (I believe) can you live in an international city of less that 500K people. What are the advantages of this? well one has access to all the major shop retailers of the world (e.g. Sony, Apple, Gucci, Channel, Benetton, etc.); international rock performances (in October - Jet, Snow Patrol) that play at much smaller venues; sporting showcases such as international athletic events / soccer matches (European Championship 2008) and cultural options such as opera, Kunsthaus, etc.. And despite all this, in most Swiss cities, it is a mere 5 minutes cycling to the outskirts of the city, it is not over-populated, and it is very well maitained (e.g. good infrastructure, cleanliness, etc.).
2. Nature; Switzerland is beautiful - a combination of mountains, lakes, and a predominantly rural - based heritage / demographic. It may have amazing areas which are internationally well known such as Zermatt, Davos, etc. - but truly Switzerland is staggering wherever you are. Favourite scenerey - cows (bells on) scattered across green slanted fields of one of the many mountains (and they are everywhere).
3. Euro-Cultural Diversity; Switzerland is not mutlicultural (e.g. like Australia), however, to me it appears strongly eurocultural - that is, it is full of people from all different European cultures. The Swiss genome is difficult to define - Swiss people are not overly tall or small, blonde or brunette. I don't what the reasons are for this - but then again - you have just have to count the number of European countries Switzerland borders! I find Swiss people vary from canton-to-canton and strongly across language borders (e.g. Swiss French are significantly different to the Swiss German). In a country which has four official languages (German, French, Italian, and Romanisch) it is a truly Euro ethnic country which ironically is not in the European Union!
4. Politics; while I am not fully conversant with Switzerland's political system - it has to be admired (in a stubborn sort of way) that in a world moving towards globalism that Switzerland is still neutral! Combine that with a referendum-based political system where Swiss people go to polls every month and you have a very cohesive, slightly insular, and very democratical country.
5. Tax / Quality of Living; most of the cities in Switzerland are rated as very expensive cities, however, the caveat to this is that the purchasing power of Swiss individuals is high - why? well incomes are high and tax is low! This combined with Swiss cities rating consistently very highly on 'quality of living' scales permeates to a very high standard of living in Switzerland.

And now on to the bad ...

Switzerland is its own country I

Well, I am off on holiday for 2 weeks from next week on. But before, I go on holidays - I am have a half day off next week for the public holiday of Knabenschiessen. V.medieval!

And this is the beauty of Switzerland - despite being: in the heart of Europe, internationally based with cities like Zurich, Geneva, and even Basel, a financial hub with companies like UBS, Credit Suisse - it nonetheless is a v.rural and traditional country proud of its history and origins.

And as you would surmise, I think I may go for a ride :)

Because the world is getting smaller ...

Ok, I have now been overseas for three months, and I feel that I am still in close contact with all my friends, family in Australia (as well as being v.busy making new friends in Zurich, Switzerland). Why is this? well, it is amazing how easy it is to communicate with anyone (who wants to be communicated with!). I find out what my friends, family are doing pretty much at the same time as I did back in Melbourne, Australia (Mum has just bought another BMW!!??). And I think we will all become a lot more accessible as time goes on (e.g. 24/7 email, video conferencing, blogs from mobiles, personal GPRS Google Maps synchronisation). But in the present, these are all the forms of communication tools, I have used, and am currently using, no relying on:

1. Chat; unfortunately, my friends, family have been divided by those who have Google chat (e.g. Kate, Simon, Sarah etc.) and those who do not (Georgia, Pete, Tim, Karl, etc.); I intermittently catch friends online - with the always on Google chat - especially on Sunday afternoon (when it is Sunday night) Australian time. It is quick, efficient, and robust - I wish all my friends could use gmail (after all it is the best web email tool!) - and thank goodness most of my friends have listened to my advice and swapped over.
2. Email; effective, especially with the difference in timezones and the mandatory group OS email - slowly being surpassed by other forms of communication.
   
3. Telephony; ridiculously cheap (but still not free, unlike the other communication methods above); and in Zurich, Switzerland phone booths are in abundance still. Indeed, a v.futuristic glass telephone dome is 20m outside my apartment - ideal for the weekly Saturday morning phonecall home to Mum!
4. Blogs / Forums; through my own blog and others who have started to write to the Internet about what they are doing (well done Bec, Simon!) - this is an invaluable insight into what people are thinking. Alongside this are forums where like-minded people communicate online on various (same-interest) topics; the English Forum (just click the Forums link) in Switzerland has been an invaluable resource since coming over here - and a good outlet for a night or two out ;)
5. Mail; still required and v.ingratiating when one receives mail overseas! (so thanks Soz for sending over the bond form) and I have even sent the odd postcard - old school!
6. Photos; establish contacts with FlickR (with your friends) and suddenly - wherever in the world your friends may be as soon as they take a photo and put it to the Internet you see it! The slide night is officially dead!
   
7. Internet Telephony; yes I have skyped - twice; both times somewhat disappointing as there is lag, the audio quality is somewhat poor, and it is dependent on each of the persons broadband connection (e.g. too many variables); something to try again in 6 months.
8. Video Conferencing; ok - haven't tried this as I need someone else to own an Apple and have MAC OS X iChat! when I fire it up on my side the Internet camera embedded in my laptop seems to produce high quality video images - now when is anyone buying an Apple?

Looking forward to communicating soon ;)

Anyone for a ride - here is where we are going ...

I received a link to another Google Maps site recently from one of my mates who I cycle with (thanks Greg). So anyway on this site you can track the course, locale, and distance of where you are exercising - how cool!

So, this is ideal for organising cycling trips; basically a map is plotted out - posted to the Internet, discussed, agreed upon, printed out and then basically executed (ah the hard bit - getting out and cycling in 14 degrees and rain - like I did last Sunday).

I have cycled this course three times and believe it is an ideal 2-3hour ride out of Zurich and v.scenic and (in parts) exhausting ;)

Zurich - Egg - Zurich: 35km cycle

One site to keep for training for 'Around the Bay' - 2007; yes Jacinta - I am committing to this!

Podcasts

Like I said last post, I have been rather slow in using podcasts - I am probably on the tail end of the early majority (ie. mid 34% of the popultation using podcasts, but behind the innovators - top 2.5%, and the early adopters - top 13.5%) on Everett Rogers - theory of diffusion. Nonetheless, I have found that podcasts are ideal for the 15 minute train ride to/from work each day. I can listen to what I want and take in the scenery!

To give a sample, today I listened to:

• Triple J's Megan Spencer (who is pretty cool) movie reviews - Miami Vice

• Australia War Memorial address - 'Siege of Tobruk'; a recount of the role 14000 AUS troops aka 'rats of Tobruk' played in denying the 'Desert Fox' Rommel in taking over this strategic port in the second World War

• The Economist - 'Wide World of Wikis'

A great way to start / end the working day ;) Does anyone know any other good podcasts I am missing?

Are you interested enough in the world?

Ok, so I just thought I would reiterate how in recent years technology has revolutionised the way people find out about the world (i.e. mass media).

And a related question how are you tapping into this to fuel your interests, expand your thoughts, and find out more about the world you live in.

So this is how I consume information at the moment (ranked in importance):

1. news print Internet-sites; with access to the world's newspapers (e.g. NY Times, the Guardian, the Age, etc.), I start my day by finding out what is happening in it - it is a cursory glance, 10-15 minutes at most, but provides me with an update of all news, special articles (to be read later via a del.icio.us tag), sports and weather.

2. blogs; unbelieveable, but blogs really provide a specific, finite focus to most individual's interests (e.g. whether it is software engineering, the environment, travel, friends, etc.). I don't believe it will be too long before RSS aggregators like Bloglines (yes it is excellent!) and blog profiles will be mainstream (maybe with the advent of Internet Explorer 7 - shudder ...)

3. email; yes still useful, but in terms of providing informational content; often too static, and more importantly I receive email involuntarily at the time the sender chooses to include me. Unlike a blog (which is read on demand, or subscription and organised implicitly), email requires some significant self-discipline / self-organisation to retain, read-at-a-later-date and process.

4. podcasts; phenomenally interesting . I am only a recent subscriber, but podcasts follow a similar paradigm to blogs: that is, an individual subscribes to informational content that he/she is interested in and then this is updated at regular intervals. Unlike blogs which are read, podcasts are listened to. So it is like choosing the favourite audio snippets of a day's tv / radio show (currently listening to 'the Economist' editor comments - v.good on the train in the morning).

5. news video Internet-sites; sometimes, it is necessary to see what is happening. And yes, most important information can now be streamed via the internet (e.g. watching last year's Melbourne Cup win ner Maykbe Diva, AFL, etc.).

So yes, I too will join the chorus to in saying that the trend for use of traditional media in the form of TV, magazines, and even newspapers (in hard-copy form) will be downwards. A recent 'The Economist' podcast likened the new media to the advent of the Gutenberg's printing press in the late 15th century. At that time, this led to significant social improvement (e.g. everyone being able to read literature) and upheaval (e.g. reformation). Unlike then, I believe the paradigm shift to new media (e.g. internet, blogs, wikis, etc.) will be rapid - by definition the Internet allows for distributed, rapid, mass-contributed, and concentric uptake of information (e.g. Google, Wikipedia).

And this raises a number of questions to me about new accessing media:

• what can I learn from others? and other's interests? (looking at other's Bloglines, FlickR profiles are a fascinating view on a person's interests) what am I missing that other people are using? (yes I know, I should have a myspace ...)
  
• what are companies doing to target individuals accessing this media (e.g. could there by product archetypes that are ordinary people rather than athletes, movie stars)? currently, most of the media I access is free, when will they start charging me to for all this information?
• and finally, when are my friends / family going to join (as 'The Economist' says) this participatory media?!
  

So stop watching TV, and get out there and comment on the world ... there is enough to talk about thats for sure ;)

92 kilometres later ...

Well, with a detour to Buchs, Sargens after abandoning the mighty climb - me, Ian, Greg clocked in and finished our ride at 92kms; the weather held up (it was forecast to rain), the scenery awe-inspring, the route interesting and varied, the body - fatigued! Have not stopped eating since I got home, and will sleep heartily tonight.

And here is the profile ...



The cycle (dive?, plunge?) downhill from Wildhaus was phenomenal ;)

Another weekend; another long ride!

Ok, I just thought I would share in my excitement that I am going on a 65km ride over the weekend. The route is Ziegelbrücke - Kaltbrunn - Wattwil - Nesslau - Stein - Amden - Ziegelbrücke and reportedly includes a 10km climb of 600m (this is significant for an amateur cyclist!). So why do I blog about this? well with inspiration from Martin Dugard's excellent blog I look forward to the physical challenge before me.

I have only been cycling for the last 2 months - but whoa it really is enjoyable especially over long distances. You get to see wonderful scenery, there is no impact to old, sore muscles (like running, which I do enjoy also) and there is a some exhiliration when you are flying down a hill (current top speed recorded is 75km; man that feels quick). I also like the challenge of cycling. With cycling, it really is easy to cruise (especially with a good carbon fibre bike which weighs next to nothing - here is mine) ... and that is the crux - you can either stay within your range / cadence or push beyond. So whenever I can, I try to be a little uncomfortable when riding, especially on the flat.

All this is void once you start climbing! On my climbs of Birgenstock, Engelberg, you notice that in the lowest gear on a triple crank that there is no anaerobic impediment (i.e. leg muscles) to climbing, however, there is significant aerobic strain. So what does this mean? well I haven't been wearing a heart monitor (on the way - will blog about it when I get it), but it feels like your heart rate is resting at its top 10% range - and this goes on, and on for the entirety of the climb. And typically when I am in the lowest gear I am only averaging 10-15km/h so those climbs can take some time - but what a feeling when you get to the end of the climb - wow! To exert yourself to the limit and to achieve (this does not occur too often in daily life). I will hopefully have a profile of the cycle next week. Until then ...

Wiki(s)

So, I am sure I am not the only one, but I intentionally decided when I began my new job that I would not use Microsoft Word. Why? well in my occupation the need for written documentation is typically: taking notes, formulating design(s), FAQs, reverse engineering, technical specifications, white papers etc. and this means I need: dynamic references (blogs, homepages, design patterns, industry standards, etc.), inlining of images (all types of formats), varied formatting of text (eg. various code formats - xml, java, sql), some pretty-print widgets (eg. graphical buttons, etc.), and version control would be ideal. And so where I am heading with this ...

So yes, I use a personal wiki server for all my documentation. Currently, the personal wiki server I use is Confluence (a personal license is free) - it is v.good; I must admit if you use it daily, it does have its quirks (the WYSWIG is not quite advanced), but its feature-set for a software engineer is fantastic. And this area is hotting up, with Apple announcing a personal wiki server as part of Leopard! So why are you still using Microsoft Word - stop! it is inefficient, unwieldy, and doesn't scale (and Google office may actually retire it - here's hoping).

Google Maps

V.exciting, but tomorrow I finalise the agreement on an apartment in alt-stadt Zurich; anyway for all those who are coming to visit me, or are thinking of visiting me, or just want to see a cool use of Goolge applications, then:

Google Maps reference
Google Earth reference

Senior Java Developer, UBS

Europstrasse 2, originally uploaded by markyjones.

Well, it is not often I post about work, but yes for the last month, I have been working at UBS, Opfikon, Zurich, Switzerland. I have been significantly impressed with the IT department I have been assigned to, for a number of reasons:

(1) openness to new approaches / ideas! with a new project in scope, there has been open discussion about the technologies to implement, design patterns to use, etc.
(2) egoless developers who are involved in design, and architects who develop! a strong core set of senior developers who are professional, adept and continuous learners; most technical issues have been dealt with a fair amount of common sense
(3) good collaboration; use of online chat is pervasive; so instead of meetings, online chat, with multiple people is encouraged - this works suprisingly well especially when dealing with teams offshore (e.g. India)
(4) a license for IntelliJ v.51 and v6 - hello world!
(5) ability to stream the TDF to one of my 2 monitors; too good

Will try and post a better photo in some time ;)

Moments in sport ...

I don't know why, but I am fixated by world sporting events at the moment - maybe because I am in the heart of summer, or maybe because I am more active currently than I have been for quite a while.

Anyway, I just thought I would say that the next few days in the Tour de France (TDF) will be fascinating. To provide some background for the uninitiated, the TDF is in its final week - it is particulary interesting this year as it is sans Lance Armstrong (who won the last 7 TDFs!), and a cohort of other well-known / favourite cyclists who have been suspended from the TDF for suspicion of involvement with drugs (e.g. Ivan Basso, Jan Ulrich, etc.).

So what makes the next few days so interesting, well the 5 or so cyclists (including the Australian Cadel Evans) in contention are going to take on some of the highest mountains of the Alps (see this blog dated Sunday 16 July, for a great description). It starts with the L'Alpes d'Huez one of the most famous / infamous climbs of the TDF - if you are near the commentary don't miss it. I must admit I will be barracking for Floyd Landis, anyone who can compete for the TDF with no hip (i.e. he needs a hip replacement, he can't climb stairs, or run) must be admired in terms of pain-tolerance, drive, and ambition.

PS: On a side note, I went for a ride from Zurich-Bubikon on the weekend, a measly 75km which was v.enjoyable; but I was more impressed with the output from the Polar watch that my fellow rider was wearing (see below) - definately v.tempted to buying one duty - free.



And yes that last climb was tiring!

Zurich, Switzerland in summer ...

Well, I have spent 4 weeks now in Switzerland, my first European summer since my teenager years; whoa I'm impressed. It has averaged here 30+ degrees for the last 4 weeks, this has allowed me to get a lot of cycling in, you can see some of the photos I have taken here:

Switzerland Cycling - Beckenried
Switzerland Cycling - Bouchs
Switzerland Cycling - Engelberg
Switzerland Cycling - Stans, Stanstad

I also have been able to spend my first weekend in Zurich, and it is a very European city - no buildings over 6 floors tall, beautiful architecture, and lots of churches ;) Anyway, I will no doubt have a more insightful report on Zurich once I lived here longer, but I couldn't resist, publishing these 2 photos of the river Limmat, and the alt-stadt of Zurich.

Fraumunster and St.Peter's Church, originally uploaded by markyjones.

Grossmunster, originally uploaded by markyjones.

Will contrast this blog with another one, once Winter comes ... he he


TAGS: Zurich Switzerland

Inspiration ...

I just thought I would discuss the blogs; for those uninitiated blogs, according to the wikipedia are commentary or news on a particular subject, such as food, politics, or local news; some function as more personal diaries. So why read them? well because they are relevant and a dyanamic plug-in to one's interests. If you have no interests, then blogs are not for you ;)

I actually believe that blogs amuse me (thanks to a few friends with good, if infrequent writings), influence me, and even inspire me. How? Well what if you could read about the people's thoughts semi-daily of those that have made great achievements, or are trying to do so. To illustrate, firstly, most people would know (or maybe not) that Lonely Planet is a Melbournian company founded by Tony Wheeler 30 or so years ago - he has a blog and what a way to read about the spirit of travel (he is currently in Afghanistan!); secondly everyone knows Lance Armstrong, but what about Floyd Landis, currently second in the Tour de France, he writes daily about what he is going through and how he is riding with no hip (he has required hip replacement surgery for 2 years)! So one does not have to wait until the autobiography - one can just read about it online, everyday.

So who inspires you?

World Cup - the end spiel

I just thought I would put in my 2 cents re: World Cup final.

I think this will be an absolute fascinating game.

Italy (who have played the best game in the World Cup so far to down Germany) with a very non-Italian offensive style have been technically brillant. The passes they set up are tight and quick; they have a midfield with offensive style in Totti, and sturdy defense in the 'angry man' Gattuso. And even with the smallest central defender ever (in the wily Cannavaro), they are looking strong.

France, have been moody, enigmatic, and brillant. The best game they have played was against Brazil (where they should have played against 10 men, but for one of the worst umpiring decisions I have seen this World Cup), nonetheless, some of the moves of Zizou were a throwback to younger days. France also has possibly the player of the tournament in their team in the scarred face Ribery. The defense has been strong led by Thuram, and with Zidane, Henry, Ribery up front, they have the class for something special (just remember the goal Zizou scored in the European Championship league final).

So who do I go for? Well the story is for France, and just like I always went for Brisbane Lions (as they played the best form of AFL), I will go for France - if this team wins, it will 2 World Cups, 1 European Championship in a 8 year stanza and possibly one of the greatest soccer teams in the last 30 years with the likes of Zizou, Thuram, Henry, etc..

Can't wait.

Moved to Zurich, Switzerland!

Ok, a retrospective post; but nonetheless it deserved its own entry. So on Wednesday, June 26, 2006, I moved into my temporary flat in Zurich, Swizterland. Located on the third floor of 139 Seefeldstrasse, Seefeld 8008. Me and all my bags were taken to here by my cou-cousin Nicole - thank you very much!

So, what did it feel like? well - v.strange. I went shopping at the local Coop - you wouldn't believe it, but whammo - my first cultural faux pas - I had no shopping bags! In Switzerland, it is definatley a BYO only option, so completely overestimating the goods I had, I purchased 4 shopping bags! Also realised that you pack your own, and rather quickly because people are waiting for their goods to be put down the lane - phew, made it, only just! I then went to the local kiosk and bought an English newspaper.

V.impressed with flat, a nice 65 square meters, 1 beddie, and balconie on both sides - whoa hold on ... I can see into apartments - very Vertigo like; briefly transfixed at cute blonde neighbour having a smoke, and other neighbours having a chat - weird!

Bunkered down with 'International Herald Tribune', a steal? at only 3.60 CHF, and watched, the rather boring only-English-TV-channel CNN TV (think business news 24/7).

Started to get v.anxious about going to work the following day, but equally was excited to find the locations, meet everyone, see my desk, etc.. Nonetheless, distinctly recalling going out to the balcony and staring out into the red-blue sky ... thought to myself - what the hell have I done?

World Cup - and what it means to me ...

Ok, well I am about to head off to see every Australian game (yes, me and my mate got tx!) for the soccer/football World Cup 2006 in Germany and I thought I would recollect the experiences in my life that relate to this, this is a long blog! (well it is covering 20+ years of memories!):

1. first memory 1982, Buochs, Nidwalden, Switzerland; staying at my Aunt's house, I remember playing soccer with the local Swiss children - everyone wanted to be on the Argentinian team - me included! In conjunction with this, I collected a sticker book with all the teams, and stadiums in which the games were played. I didn't actually watch any of the games (as there was no TV in Warsaw, Poland where I was living at the time, but to those who are interested, here are the details of World Cup in Spain 1982) Not surprising, the next year in 1983 when I returned to Australia, I started playing soccer at school (with some handy skills on the left wing).
   
   
2. second memory 1993, Canberra, Austrlia; the attempt by Australia to qualify for World Cup 1994 in USA. Not a very vivid memory except I do recall that defensive midfielder Paul Wade (Australia's captain of the time) had to tag Diego Maradona! of Argentina (at the time, Australia's opponent to qualify for the World Cup). On aggregate, Australia lost 2-1 - I'm surprised in hindsight that the scores were that close.
   
   
3. third memory - 1997, the one that everyone remembers the second leg of Australia v Iran, Melbourne - the score being 1-1 from the first leg in Iran. Now, I had just finished Honours at the Australian National Univeristy (ANU) and was celebrating with my girlfriend at the time (Naomi) in the region of the NSW coastal town, Batemans Bay. And guess what, there was no SBS (the Australian broadcaster who had the rights) TV coverage in the area!!!! So, I ended up listening to the most important game of Australia's soccer history on the radio. Anyway, all my friends were revelling it up for being the end of the academic year, and at 2-0 (Australia winning), I stopped listening and went and joined them, happy in the knowledge that Australia had made it through to World Cup 1998 in France ... oops! (for the record, Iran made a remarkable comeback to 2-2 and won on the away goals rule).
   
   
4. fourth memory - 1998, Melbourne, Australia; having just moved to Melbourne, to study at the University of Melbourne, a good friend of mine (Adam) invited a couple of classmates to his house in Elsternwick to watch a previously video-taped game from France (I recall it was Brazil v Scotland); those who attended - Adam, Georgia, Simon, Jacinta are still my best mates today - gold!
   
   
5. 2002, Melbourne, MCG, Australia; again at the final qualifier for World Cup 2002 in Japan/South Korea, being at the ground and watching Australia win 1-0 against Uruguay with a penalty - you can imagine the crowd went off! These celebrations were premature - later Australia got thrashed in Montevideo, Uruguay 3-0 in the second leg.
   
   
6. And lastly, 2005, Elwood (random pub), Australia; watching with my touch football team Australia grimly hang to a 1-0 scoreline for the majority of the match, and subsequently winning it on penalties - the pub heaved that night with the celebrations - well briefly at least, as I had to go home and go to work the next morning ;)

source and copyright holder is AFP, URL is http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/photos/index.html?aid=245411&d=1

So now to the World Cup; if I get a chance to get some internet time, I will post here to my World Cup travel journal!