Henry Miller once said that “one’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” I, too, agree with this, in the sense that traveling and being exposed to other cultures opens your eyes to a whole new dimension. There is so much that the world has to offer and it's really up to us to make the most of it. I was lucky enough to participate in the international research internship program called PRIME this summer in New Zealand. Upon receiving notification of my acceptance, I knew that I wanted to travel as much as I could after the program. Giving my budget at the time, I was only able to choose four or five countries and I chose Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Vietnam. In this entry, I want to share with you some interesting facts and observations from my journey.

Let me just start out by saying that Sydney is the "darling " city of Australia. When you arrive there, you immediately start comparing the city’s architecture to cities in the United States. The layout looks similar to a typical American city, but at the same time you can't help but notice a change here and there. The way I see it, it's a mixture of European and American influences. Aside from the obvious, such as seeing a koala or kangaroo and the Blue Mountain range on the horizon, you really need to try the famous market at the heart of Sydney called "Paddy 's Market." It's the place for food and entertainment. After a delicious meal, I 'd recommend going to Hyde Park a few blocks away where you can just sit next to a fountain and enjoy the breeze. If the breeze isn't strong enough for you, then catch a bus to Bondi Beach in Sydney’s suburbs to have some fun in the water with the locals. Finally, I want to say that as an engineer, it was definitely a privilege to go face to face with the Sydney Opera House! I 've always seen it in photos, but only by getting a close-up look can you see it’s majestic!

You know Sydney is a tourist city because it is bombarded with advertisements, and if that's not obvious enough, you see a group of people with cameras on every block! I especially loved how most of the attractions are walking distance from each other and all siutated around the downtown district. I went to a kiosk in a mall near my hostel and got a good deal of $50 AUS for 4 attractions (the tower, aquarium, wildlife, and I don 't remember the last one). The tower was amazing! I took so many night pictures up there. This was completely different from the all the other towers that I've been to because you don 't climb on it, you take the elevator! I know, right? The wildlife sure was wild, check out the picture above! Also, there was a day that I went to the IMAX4 in Darling Harbour, the biggest IMAX theater in the world! I saw Toy Story 3 and I had to constantly move my head because the screen was too big! On my last day I went to the Blue Mountains which was amazing because I hiked most of it, it was an adventurous day for me. I was sick all day and missed the last bus back to town so I ended up LITERALLY climbing the mountains and walking back (2 hours) to the town to catch my train back to Sydney. I remember that it got dark around 6 PM (summer in the states is winter in Australia) and by the time I got to town it was 9 PM! I had wanted to put my thumb up so much but I was scared crapless that someone might kill me or eat me or even worse, rape me! See, this is what happens when you watch too many movies. The train ride was 2 hours but it only costed $10 AUS!

Coming here allowed me to learn a lot about myself. I learned that I could be different and acceptable (from the diversity that I witnessed). This was also when I finalized my true passion for photography. All the times waiting for transportation, in line, for this, for that, etc, I learned to better use my camera. For example, I did long exposure for the first time and started to use Adobe Lightroom. Photography is not as easy as most people think; it's not about aiming and shooting at something and expect the camera to do everything. I learned to command the buttons and features of my Canon and the concept of light.

Sydney is so lovely. I love it very much, especially the diversity. The hostel I stayed at was called "Base" and it was recommended by my friend, Negin, in New Zealand. I paid roughly $30 a night (which was the cheapest in the city!), but I had to share my dorm with 9 other people. They were very nice but it was so hard to sleep because they'd go in and out, and there were days when they had parties too. Sydney is so expensive! I ate Subway just about everyday because there was just nothing that I could afford. Even a burger at McDonald's was worth $6 USD! Overall, Sydney is a must-see city. It truly is a tourist destination and I felt safe all the time. There is so much to do and see. The people are nice and friendly and the ladies are very classy. I give this city and country two thumbs up!