Melbourne

Mike drove me to the airport, the flight (Jetstar, $59 one-way) was on time, and Siow Boon was there to pick me up in Melbourne -- everything is going smoothly and comfortable again! :)

I was really happy to see my friend again. For your background: We know each other from the time when we both worked in the same IT company in Malaysia, and she had visited me half a year later while she was on a tour in Germany. Then, in 2001, she got married to Ben, and now they live as a Chinese family with two children (Yisen, aged 5, and Hongsen, aged 3) in Melbourne. Siow Boon was very happy to see me too, and has kindly offered to accommodate me in their house in one of the eastern suburbs. Ben is also very friendly, and the boys were a bit shy at first, but I think they will overcome that quickly.

My first day in Melbourne was not bad. I explored the heart of the city, and found the fabulous State Library -- which is currently my favourite place here, I think. It is a library like it should be. Students sitting in the grass outside, and inside in front of their computers and books, reading, writing, and yes: sleeping too. The library is open to the public and has a big general section of books, a separate big room for Australiana, a room for chess (literature and playing), and staff-assisted collections of rare books, manuscripts and pictures. There are splendid reading desks. To me, this is a holy place of wisdom and thought, much more than any church.

They also have a current exhibition on the history of books -- from hand-written bibles to the Gutenberg press, from books that changed history (Martin Luther etc.) to books that had a deep impact on society (Marx, Freud, etc.).