Another beautiful blue sky day here in Perth, after 2 recent cloudy days. Orientation is now 1/2 way done, I have finished everything I need to do here in the big city, except for a few loose ends. Yesterday I had final interviews at the Western Australia AMA in the morning. At noon we bought another suitcase- I have received so many textbooks and paper materials, as well as a laptop computer on loan from the Rural Clinical School, that we will be overweight on luggage if we cram it all into just 3 suitcases. We went over to the university to discuss "Superannuation"- similar to our Social Security in that the government requires employers to put 9% of each workers salary into an account. Different in that the money is going into an account that I control, similar to TIAA/CREF accounts in the States, rather than into a general pot. I should be able to take it with me when I leave Australia and roll it over. We've also met some of the Faculty from the Rural Clinical School- Dr. Geoff Riley took Vicki and me to lunch in "Freo" or Fremantle for a great seafood meal on Wednesday, and I spent an hour discussing curriculum with Denese Playford. Vicki and I also spent an hour with an Aboriginal woman, Glynnis at WACCRM who gave us an introduction to Aboriginal health care.

Vicki is well recovered from jet lag, but I am still suffering I am afraid. Last night was the best sleep so far, but I still wake up at 0300 with my mind full of thoughts. I conjecture that Vicki has just been on Australia time already for the last few years, explaining her insomnia in Iowa. After only a few days here however, I have to admit that I feel very comfortable. Part of is it having been in New Zealand before, so that backwards light switches and hot water taps are not so novel. It may be that Australia is also more like the U.S. than New Zealand also. Perth is certainly a lovely place. For awhile I've been bugged that I recognize this place, and then it dawned on me- it is SimCity, or at least, very like a version of it that Liz created long ago in Middle School. While it is not without some problems- notably water shortages-, it is a great example of what can be done with some smart urban planning- beautiful parks overlooking stunning river views, excellent mass transportation including buses, trains and ferries, clean streets, green spaces and self-contained neighborhoods, each with their own small shopping area or "high street". It is not so much an "alternate reality" as it is a city built on dreams.

Tomorrow we fly out to Broome and Sunday drive up to Derby. We are looking forward to finally getting into a house after living out of suitcases for the past 6 weeks.