The Muses of Veevek

Ladies & Gentlemen, Welcome to Singapore Airlines...

2007-10-13T17:53:00.000+10:00

In a few hours, I will be off to Brunei by way of Singapore. I can't believe that I'm finally going! Going to Brunei for a rotation has been one of the attracting features of coming to UQ for medicine. From the students that have been this year and in years prior, they have all had a fantastic time both in and out of the hospital.

And in other news - I just bought a new digital camera! I will definitely be posting photos from my travels on here (and Facebook).

Alright, I've some last minute packing and to submit my orthopaedics assignment before I head out for dinner with some friends.

Over and out from Brisbane - next update: Singapore.

A few months gone in a blink of an eye...

2007-08-11T16:23:00.000+10:00

Wow...I didn't realise that a few months have gone by since my last posting. Granted the advent of Facebook has taken up so much of my Internet time (damn Crackbook! DAMN YOU TO HELL!). Also, I'm not sure who reads this anymore...I'll give it a go.

The past few months have been a whirlwind. The last time I wrote, I was almost finished with the GP rotation, which ended on a good note. For the week's holiday, I went up to Rocky to visit Dave & Suz, and a few of us went camping at Carnarvon Gorge - absolutely stunning landscape in Central QLD (who would have thought?!).

I have recently finished the Medicine Rotation, which at UQ is probably considered the hardest rotation in years 3 & 4. It was probably the first time this year that I have felt "I'm in medical school". It was definitely a test of my clinical competence and confidence. It was also the first time that I felt that the amount of work that you put into it is proportional to the results at the end of the rotation. That said, I'm extremely pleased with my results. :)

Now, I'm doing my rural medicine rotation out in a small country town of Kingaroy, in the South Burnett Region of QLD. It's the largest town in the shire, consisting of 12,500 people. The orientation week was in Toowoomba and Leanne, Claire and I decided that Rural Orientation Week is going to a Party Week. We definitely held ourselves to that standard. :) Late nights and early mornings, infused vodkas and coke, "never-ever" and "cultural awarness", not to mention the "shank-a-thon", are all fond memories of the week. Even though my time out in Kingaroy has been extremely enjoyable, the things that dampen the mood are the assignments that we have been plagued with during this rotation. Journal of Achievements, Rural Health Project, written and oral presentations, Case Presentions and so on. It will all get done...eventually.

Apart from that, life is going well - the hospital has been keeping me busy (I will write more about some of the things that I've seen in the last few days), and also trying to plan for next year's elective and medical specialties. The University of Queensland SOM offers 4th year students to do a 2nd elective anywhere in the world and 8-week long medical specialties in one of their partner institutions around the world. A few friends and I are thinking of making the most of this 19-week sojourn. We are planning on going to Malta for the elective and doing some travelling in and around the Mediterranean and then going to Calgary for the med specialties to be in time for my dad's 60th birthday and to enjoy what Calgary has to offer during that time of year. It's been a nice distraction to organise things for next year, as opposed to sitting in front of the computer and putting together the Journal.

Another month...another update :)

2007-04-28T14:44:00.000+10:00

So, it's almost the end of April (shit, how fast does time fly!)...and as per what my family/friends requested (shorter updates), here goes:

1. Medicine: Dramas, dramas and more dramas. That's what it's about at the moment. Mental Health ended on a very interesting note - and there are some remnants are still being discussed between the medical school and I. Nothing too problematic. Apart from that, I'm nearly coming to the end of the General Practice rotation. This rotation has been absolutely stellar! I never thought of becoming a GP but this rotation has put the idea into my head. I must admit that the type of practice that I am has influenced my interests in the field. I'm at a GP clinic (that has 5 GPs) that looks at all the 'typical' (if there is such a thing) presentations that people have, along with sexual health (one of the few places in Brisbane that does gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender health), travel medicine and the like. The idea of taking a sexual history in 1st and 2nd year was a bit uncomforting but now I've no issues in talking about erectile dysfunction, abnormal periods and discharge. This rotation has been the first rotation whereby I've been doing quite a number of procedures like taking bloods, giving immunisations, doing pap smears, genital swabs, doing ECG (EKG for those of you in North America), and other system investigations.

2. Facebook: has taken my world by storm! I cannot believe how addictive that Web site is. I find that it feeds the voyeur within all of us (you can't deny it). There have been a number of people that I've reconnected with and some new people that I've met through friends (ie, we had mutual friends but never really talked one-on-one). I told myself that I need to have a few facebook-free days but that hasn't happened since I signed up for it in mid-March.

3. Car: I bought a car! It's a 1999 Toyota Corolla 5-door manual hatchback. Yes, a manual (I've always driven an automatic). It's awesome. I will post photos of the me and the car in the next week or so. :)

4. Other things: things have been quite dull (minus the few house boilings and debauchery that I usually get myself into); there is the May Ball (THE formal highlight of the med social calendar - and this year's theme is "A Night in Havana". I left my Cuban outfit in the other suitcase - damn!

An update for what?

2007-03-04T20:06:00.000+10:00

I know that I've not been good about posting. It just seems that at the moment, things are a bit slow....but here goes.

1. Medicine - life in Mental Health rotation has been pretty good. The hours are quite light compared to my friends that are doing Medicine and Surgery. However, the content is quite intense. In the past 6 weeks, I am very glad that I'm not crazy. Also, the line between sanity and insanity is so fine and blurry; one can easily cross that line and not know it. My exams are coming up in about 1.5 weeks and there seems to be enough hours in a day to procrastinate. I just need to get my study schedule organised and go through the work. Also, I got my GP rotation placement organised. I will be going to a GP clinic that, amongst the other basic GP things, focuses on sexual health. Lately, I've been thinking about my time in Kenya and how I really enjoyed my time with ICROSS. It seems that it is shaping my decisions about what speciality/specialities I would like to do.

On the social side of med - there was Sports Day last week and I will be posting some photos from that day. Early start of drinking, running and being in the Queensland sun makes for a very interesting day. :)

2. NMUN - in a couple of weeks several thousand post-secondary students from all over the world will congregate in New York for this year's conference. This will be the first time since 2003 that I have not been associated with the conference. Some of my closest friends have been made through this and I'm quite sad that I won't be able to see them. Then again, all good things must come to an end (at some point). The politics of the conference are a pain in the ass and often does take away from the conference itself. However, the people that you meet keeps you going. Rabia: you know that you need to represent! And you'll have to send me photos of you in the sari. I'm sure that you will have looks that'll kill. :)

3. House/Car Hunting - this has been an ongoing process since me coming back to Brisbane. The rental market here is SHIT. Absolutely shit. Hopefully something will come through - well it has to as I really don't have a choice. As for looking for a car, I've become extremely hesistant and I don't know why. I guess it will be the biggest purchase that I've ever had to make and I want to make sure that it's going to be a good purchase.

4. Future trips - well, I've booked a ticket up to Rockhamptom to see some friends (namely Dave, Suz and Sarah K) in about 2.5 months. I'm also looking to go to Mongolia in June for a medical student conference (yeah, I sure do know how to pick the locations). Apart from that, there are a few other things that I might be planning but that's all is it - planning.

Some very overdue photos!

2007-02-18T18:49:00.001+10:00

Here are some very overdue photos - these are photos from my brother and cousin's joint wedding receptions. I wasn't sure if I was going to put them up...but then I thought, "why the hell not!"

Here they are:
My brother, Mum, Dad & Me. In the past little while, there haven't been many opportunities that the 4 of us get together. When we do, it's picture-taking galore!

H & J! Cho chweet, vat a good looking couple.

This is Vinay and Bhavisha, my two cousins that are in Calgary. Vinay is in grade 9 and is constantly being faced with questions about what he is going to be doing with his life (apart from basketball that is). Bhavisha is finishing up Grade 12 and is hoping to become more sane than she usually is. She is hoping to become a doctor as well (what's with these smart people in the family?!). Can't wait to see you two at the end of the year!

These are Vinay and Bhavisha's parents. Vijaykaka (kaka meaning paternal uncle in Gujarati) stumbled across my blog and was wondering why there are no photos of him on it. Being someone that tries to cater most of the world, I thought that I'd put his photo up. :) Ashakaki (kaki meaning paternal uncle's wife) is like a 2nd mother to me. Always filled with encouraging and kind words, never letting you think that something is impossible, not to mention, her cooking is KICK ASS!

This is Kunjan and her husband Stewart. They both live in the UK as most of my cousins on my dad's side.

This is Minesh and Jigna. They are the kids of my dad's only sister. Minesh is working his way up (very quickly might I add) in real estate. Jigna is a resident surgeon and yes, she is single - but guys beware she wears the trousers in any relationship. She needs more of a 'wife' than a 'husband', someone to come home to, who will have dinner ready and clean and get the kids ready for things.

Here are Dipal and Kajal. Dipal is finishing up uni in Leicester and Kajal is a pharmacist at a major suburban hospital in Birmingham. Dipal, Kajal, Minesh, Jigna, and I spent the last few days in Sweden together. It was such a blast to hang out with my cousins. There is nothing like being a part of a big family. I am so greatful for having these wondeful people in my life. SHOUT TO Y'ALL!

This my dad's younger brother (Bharatkaka) and his wife. He used to live in Calgary but then moved to the UK after he got married. Chirag (the bloke on the left) is about to finish Sixth Form and Viraj is still in school.

This is Brij, his wife (Preetibhabhi) and Ron. These are my cousins that are also in the UK. Brij and Preetibhabhi got married in 2004 in India (I went to go to their wedding when I was living in Kenya). My heart is with these three for the time being. It was their dad (my dad's younger brother) that passed away at the end of the last year. I'm thinking of you all (hugs).

Now, for those cousins that haven't been included here, please don't think that I care for you less. I just didn't have good photos of you (and I'm all about making you all look good). :)

Photos, photos and more photos!

2007-02-10T11:55:00.000+10:00

Okay, as promised here are some photos from the past few months. There were many more that I wanted to put up but I didn't want to drown you in them.

When I went to Calgary, my brother and one of my cousins (who is now living in Toronto) was visiting. It's always nice to see siblings again, always. The other two my left are Bhavisha and Vinay. I still can't believe that Bhavisha will be staring uni in September! Also, before leaving Calgary, I was able to see Vinay at his basketball game. I was amazed! He definitely has talent - then again, he is a Thankey afterall. :)

Here are some photos from South East Asia - starting with Laos:

This was our first day in Vientiane and we were sitting beside the Mighty Mekong drinking, what is probably the best beer I've had, Beerlao. For one bottle (the large one) was about $0.80 USD, not bad for when you need some beer.

This is the most treasured national monument in Laos - it contains a relic of Buddha (a portion of his clavicle)

This is me in Luang Prabang - the old capital of Laos. I'm on the highest point of the city, which also has a beautiful park devoted to Buddha's life and teachings. The river on the left is the Mighty Mekong and the smaller river on the right is the Nam Kang.

This was definitely one of the coolest Buddha statues that I saw. It was tucked away behind one of the temple and monestary complexes near the guesthouse that we were staying at.

This was the temple that belonged to the Royal Family whilst Luang Prabang was the capital of Laos. The entire city of LP is considered a World Heritage City, which means that there are massive efforts to preserve the existing structures and to prevent any development that would be out of sync with the rest of the city's ambiance.

Vietnam:

Yes, this is a statue of Lenin in Hanoi. How the Vietnamese loved him. :)

This is the 2nd man that is most likely loved even more than Lenin - Ho Chi Minh. This was his 'final' place of rest. Even though, HCM wanted to be cremated. Alas, we were unable to see him because he was in Russia at the time. Every September - November, HCM goes to Moscow to get fixed up, as the embalming experts are there. HAHAHA.

Still in Hanoi, here's a photo of Claire with Bia Ha Noi. :) Not as good as Beerlao but still on the up and up.

This was a photo taken at the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology (yes, that's the word). It's one of the houses of the ethic tribes within Vietnam.

This photo was taken on a restaurant boat in Hue en route to Hoi An. Once again, Claire testing the local beer. This time it's Bia BIVINA.

This is a photo of Claire, Diem, Annabelle, and Nabila in Hoi An. Diem is a very good friend of Lou's (and now ours!). She owns a cloth shop (amongst many others). Her family treated us like family - we enjoyed many meals, coffees, beers and conversations. Diem also made some clothes for us, which turned out to be absolutely fantastic!

Here's a photo of all of us. This was on our last night before we were heading south to Sai Gon by way of Nha Trang. She really did leave us with an indelible impression of Vietnam. If any of you are going, then get in touch with me. I can give you her contact details - she would love to meet you! (she's married...so don't get any ideas)

Here's me in the famous "SAME SAME...BUT DIFFERENT" shirt. This was taken along waterfront in Hoi An. Typhoon LingLing (an offshoot of Typhoon Durian) was hitting the coast of Vietnam. At night, the blocks off the waterfront were completely flooded!

Cambodia:

This is one of the main monuments at one of the Killing Fields just outside of Phnom Penh. It was such a somber experience. This temple houses over 8,000 skulls that were found in the immediate area. The majority of the surrounding area has yet to be excavated - you can only imagine how many more skeletal remains are present.

In Phnom Penh, we managed to meet up with Dave and Suz. We headed down to the Foreign Correspondence Club and enjoy very well made (and cheap) cocktails and drinks. We also were able to afford some nice Cubans!

This was taken outside the National Museum in PP. For those of you that can tell, it's Ganesh. Cambodia was ruled under a Hindu King from the 10th to 15th Century. Many of the folklore and mythology are borrowed from the Hindu pantheon. Even today, marriages, funerals, and births are done according to hindu customs.

Here's Annabelle and I sharing a moment at Elsewhere. This place had to have been the best bar/lounge I've been to in a very long time (including those in Australia). Such a chilled and relax environment, not to mention great drinks and fantastic company!

One cannot visit Cambodia and not see Angkor Wat. This photo was taken at sunset - but it just doesn't do it any justice. I've taken hundreds of photos of the different temples and ruins but I won't bore you with them all.

For those of you that are interested in real sets, then you will recognise this one. This is the tree that was filmed in Lara Craft: Tomb Raider. It was the scene where Angelina picks a jasmine flower, puts in her hair and then jumps into the hole.

T'was such a magical place...

This is considered to be the jewel of the crown for the Angkor complex. It was quite far away from the rest of the temple structures. Researchers and archeologists believe that this temple was carved by women, because of the intense level of detail and intricate work. This is also the only temple in the complex that is devoted to Shiva.

Here's a photo of me, Suz, Claire, Nabila, Annabelle, and Dave. It really was an awesome trip and I was so glad to have shared it with these people - some of my favourite people in the world. (Yeah, even you...)

Nabila, Claire and I thought that we would have a night on the town (Siem Reap) and we sure did! Here we are drinking out of a Mekong Bucket. What's in this thing? Half a bottle of Mekong Whisky, Vodka, Coke and Red Bull. Yeah...

Thailand:

This is a photo of the beach bungalow we stayed at whilst on the Thai island of Koh Chang.

Here am I, relaxing in the sun with a Cuba Libre whilst overlooking the ocean...it was a fantastic day, not to mention, a fantastic trip. :)

Welcome to Brunei

2007-02-07T21:27:00.000+10:00

I found out yesterday that I got accepted to my Surgery rotation in Brunei! The University of Queensland has a clinical school out in Brunei, whereby a small number of selected students can do complete core rotations there. The rotations that can be carried out are: General Practice, Surgery, Medicine, Paediatrics, and Obstetrics & Gynaecology (the latter two can be done in 4th year).

This year my Surgery rotation will be from October 1st - November 23rd. Because of Ramadan, I will be going to Brunei two weeks after the onset of the rotation. The selected students that are going were told that during Ramadan there would be very limited exposure and things for us to do. So, the School of Medicine and the RIPAS (one of the two major hospitals in Brunei) have agreed for us to do the first two weeks in Brisbane and the last 6 in Brunei.

In years prior, students didn't always know the others that went. However, this year, some of my closest friends are going to Brunei with me! Pat, Lou, and Anna (three superstar girls from my study group last year) and two blokes - Matt and Cohen will be going as well! There are a few others that are going that I don't know but this will be an awesome time to get to know them.

There are plans in place to do some travelling after the rotation is finished. Knowing full well that I doubt that I would be in the region again, I would love to see the rest of Borneo, and maybe perhaps take a trip to Myanmar. I know that some people (you know who you are) are also interested. I reckon that for the time being it is too early to tell what the plans will be; here's to hoping for some interesting ones.

Apart from Brunei, things in Brisbane have been going well. The Mental Health rotation has been pretty cruisy in terms of the number of hours we are present on the wards (as compared to the hectic hours of those on Surgery and Medicine rotations). However, the stories and voices that I've heard from the patients have been bizarre and incredible. In fact, I've even had a little cry after a couple of patients - to hear such sorrow and abuse was mind blowing.

I can't believe that almost the 3rd week (out of 8) has almost passed. Only 5 more weeks till our exams. I can recall from last year that 5 weeks prior to the exam, I was already into the books like a fat kid on kit kat.

2 months...shit

2007-01-29T11:54:00.000+10:00

I can't believe that I've left this blog fallow for 2 months! I do apologies for this. The update of this blog has been in the works for quite some time. However, a number of things have come up such that I have not had the time (nor the energy) to put into this.

Well, where am I at now?

1. I passed 2nd year! WOOHOO! I am so glad that I don't have to do 2nd year medicine again. It's the groin of hell and I wouldn't wish 2nd year upon any of my worst enemies.

2. The rest of my trip (last time I wrote, I was in Laos) was absolutely amazing! I travelled in Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. I will be posting photos soon (just give me some time). I rediscovered things about myself and made new connections with the friends that I was travelling with.

3. My time spent in Calgary was abbreviated. I spent Christmas there and then I flew to the UK for a week and then came back to Calgary for a week. I was able to see Vinay, Bhavisha, Bhairavi and H, which was absolutely amazing. I wasn't able to meet up with many friends (I know who you were and you know that you in my books for the next time that I come to Calgary). Then again, most of my time was spent between family and getting errands done before leaving back for Brisbane.

4. The aforementioned trip to the UK was not for shits & giggles. I went to the UK for a family funeral. My dad's younger brother passed away from a serious heart attack. It was unexpected and quite difficult for the family to deal with. My time in the UK was surrounded by the people that I loved (not everyone was able to make it but you know that were there in spirit). The experience was cathartic, humbling, and an eye-opener. Many tears and laughs were shared. To my family, wherever you are, you know that I'm with you.

5. I'm back in Brisbane, having finished my first week of my mental health rotation. I was quite apprehensive about starting this rotation because of the uncertainty that shrouds this line of work. This week will be interesting as I am based in the aged care unit, which means that I will be looking and interacting with patients that are older than 65 and have a history of schizophrenia, bipolar adjustment distoder, chronic depression, dementia, Alzheimer's, and a range of other mental health issues that affect the elderly.

Bor Penh Nyang...

2006-11-24T12:41:00.000+10:00

which means 'no worries' in Lao.

Annabelle, Claire, Nabila, and I have arrived into Vientiane (by way of Bangkok yesterday) and are having a fantastic time! However, my backpack didn't arrive with the others and is still 'missing'. Whatever - I've got me some insurance. The atmosphere here has been absolutely laid back, people are really friend, and the beer (Beer-Lao) is phenomenal! It's been a big adjustment going really hard these past few weeks to taking things slowly and as they come. A paradigm shift, if you will so call it. :)

Alright, I should be off...time to see whether the airport has found my backpack!

2nd Year - DONE

2006-11-17T10:43:00.000+10:00

So, the second exam came and went. And I don't know which exam was worse, the first or second one. It seemed that most (if not all) people coming out of the exam was quite dissatisfied with the exam and/or their performance (a little from a and a little from b). Perhaps the medical school was using a completely cirricula than it gave us at the beginning of the year.
After the exam, some of us went do to the Pizza Caffe, had some good food and wine. We drove back to Claire's place, and drank more wine and watched some episodes from Season 3 of NIP/TUCK.

Thursday and Friday were spent pouring over our clinical examinations, history-taking skills, communications and clinical reasoning.

Saturday morning came and went - and I was so grateful that I finished on a high note! I know that I passed each station and I know that there were a few stations that I got full marks! After we all left the testing area, everyone was giving each other high fives, hugs and making the motions to get some booze into their system. I headed home to change (had some scotch & dry) and went ot West End to meet up with the others. I was out till 1am - yeah, that's not a big night but the endurance and stamina to be drinking all day can tire a person out.

This morning, everyone was tired and we headed out for breakfast. It feels surreal that we are done 2nd year (and hopefully will never have to repeat it). Dave, Suz and I have been packing and cleaning the house as we are leaving for South East Asia (I leave on Wednesday and D&S leave on Friday). We aren't renewing the lease so everything needs to be packed up and the house cleaned for inspections. Looking at all the stuff that I've accumulated over the past 2 years, I don't know how I will take this all back to Canada (that is if I decide to go back).

Okay, I should get off the computer and do some more cleaning/packing. Some people are heading out tonight (those that wrote their MSAT today) and I'll be meeting up with them for a few drinks.

Soon to come, the newest section of the chapter - South East Asia

One down...

2006-11-14T22:38:00.000+10:00

It's almost 10:40pm and I've recovered from the first exam that we had today. The lead up to this exam has been like none other. I started studying for finals in the first week of October and increasing the intensity all the way through SWOT VAC. In fact, SWOT VAC was the most productive study I've done all year! (For those that are not familiar with Aussie lingo, 'SWOT VAC' is period of usually two-three weeks before exams where there are no lectures or tutorials so that students can prepare for their exams) Last year, I spent SWOT VAC with Lou at her house, plugging away on the one seat on her dining room table (It's the seat that I always take if no one else is on the table). This year, I spent it with Claire and Annabelle up in Springbrook. The study was productive, consistent and (almost) effortless. The last couple of days have been especially hard because there is only so much that you can learn and absorb (and only so much that the SOM can actually test you on). The propensity to do nothing is much higher in the days leading up to the exams. And living with other medical students that aren't so frazzled only helps to calm the nerves towards the lead up.

On the way to the exam, I was feeling a bit off. I know what I know (and what I didn't know could potentially bite me in the ass). When I got closer to the where the test was being held, I was feeling a bit sick in my stomach. In fact, a number of people that I spoke with were feeling the same way. I got into the exam and during the 10 minute perusal, I looked through the questions and didn't feel too shocked about what was ahead. However, when I started writing, the knowledge in my head went to the furtherest corners of my brain. I felt as if I was blind with the added task of grabbing straws. At one point, I seriously thought what would happen if I got up, ripped up the exam and ran screaming from the room! Yes, a bit melodramatic but true. I quickly got myself together and plugged through until I could no longer do anymore. I had an answer for everything (I left only one thing blank because I really didn't know what it was - it was only worth 1 mark). I got outside and felt like retching and in fact, I had to go down to the toilet and get some of the retches out of me. brutal. I felt as if I would be a very lucky man if I passed that exam. Most of the people that walked out of the exam were looking as if they have been gutted and then had to eat their entrails or something - sick. After having a great dinner with Lou, Claire and Annabelle at Quan Thanh (the new best place in Brisbane for Vietnamese), I felt centred and know that tomorrow is a new day. After talking it through with Dave and Suz, I reckon that we all had our issues with the exam. There is something to be said for going through an experience with a group of people and having persevered until the bitter end.

Now, I've several ethics essays to read and to go over respiratory, gastrointestinal, arrhythmias/valvular disorders and immune/infection/defence before tomorrow's exam.
I doubt that I will learn anything new, except for the fact that what I know I know. The important thing about tomorrow's exam is that it will be the last comprehensive year-long exam that I will have to write in my medical school career! The next time that I will have to write a comprehensive exam will be when I sit my speciality exams, which won't be for quite some time. The plan for tomorrow night is to have some dinner with some friends, have a few glasses of wine and watch as many episodes of Season 3 NIP/TUCK. Thursday will be a long day of clinical skills preparation for the clinical exam on Saturday morning.

One down...two more to go.

Can't believe...

2006-11-04T16:36:00.001+10:00

Hello! It's been a while since I've last posted and I do apologise; things have just been quite hectic around here for the past couple of weeks.

FIrst off, I've changed the template of the site (as you can clearly see). I was getting sick and tired of the underlined text and I thought that I might as well just give it a fresh look. What do you think?

Soon after I posted the last post, I was getting geared up for Diwali (Diwali Mubarak & Sal Mubarak everybody!). I always knew that a lot of work goes into preparing for these jamvanus but I was really underestimated the amount of work that goes into it. When I was living at home, there would be mass mobilisation of people to help clean, organise and cook for the party. There were multiple trips to the grocery store to get those last minute fresh items, e.g. coriander and green chilies. The house would be cleaned to a shine that only Mum and Dad approved of, games would have to be organised to keep people happy, areas set up for dining, socialising, etc. This year was no different! I had invited about 45 people for Diwali jamvanu (fortunately only 35 or so people came). I got up early (6:30am) to get ready for a 7am cook-up. I cooked at Lou's place because her kitchen is massive and she had numerous pots and pans. The house was decorated a few nights before the actually day. Multiple runs were made to Coles to get some last minute items. I had a fear that I would not have enough food for everyone. But in the end, there was enough
food and then some!

Dave, Suz and I dressed up in our Indian clothes (because we could) and I must admit that I was brtimming with joy! There is something to be said for cooking for that many people, being a good host and ensuring that everyone is having a great time. Pam (an Indo- Newfoundlander in my year) said that she felt as if she was back in Newfoundland at a Diwali function. Mum told me that I was crazy to have organised such a thing - but I wanted to see whether I could pull off something like that. By the looks of it, everything was a great success! That being said, I know that I won't be pulling a massive Diwali (or any other dinner function) without having other people to help with the cooking and stuff.

Here are some photos from the night: (sorry about the spacing between the photos, I tried to fixed it several times but the same thing happened over and over again)

The menu was: cauliflower mughlai, muttar paneer, roasted eggplant & potato curry, naan, rice, raita, salad, and bhajiya (onion & potato fritters that have been battered in besan flour).

As for dessert, there was fruit, ice cream, soan papdi, kaju katri, and caramel slice.

Here are Dave and Suz in their Indian finery! I bought Dave's outfit when I was in Delhi last year. Mum got Suz her sari. I reckon that a woman's wardrobe is not complete without a sari. Whereas for a man, no wardrobe is complete without a custom-tailered suit. :)

Here are Claire and Annabelle showing off their bangles. Annabelle's fushcia kurti is from the legendary "Fab India' in Delhi. These two ladies (along with Nabila) are travelling with me in South East Asia. I can't wait for this upcoming trip, as it is going to be a ripper of a time!

Suz and I - I am really going to miss her and Dave next year. They are moving up to Rockhampton for their 3rd year. Rocky is one of the sites that the UQ School of Medicine has a Rural Clinical School. There is one good thing out of this. A trip to Rocky to see them! :)

In other news, things have been getting frantic about the 2nd year final exams that are fast approaching. There is quite a lot of speculation on what will be on the exams and whether we will pass (or for some people, how well they will do). There is still are still 9 full days before the onset of exams. It's plenty of time to get through everything. I'm heading down to Springbrook, the hinterland of Gold Coast, for the week today with Claire and Annabelle. It's secluded, no mobile coverage, and we have to bring our own food. Claire's parents have a house down there that we can use. It will be nice to have no distractions and be focussed on the upcoming exams.

I can't believe that I've been living in Australia for almost two years. To further complicate things, I think that I can see myself living in this country. I've been looking into the process of getting my permanent residency papers. Apparently, I've to start compiling components of my application. Now those of you that know me can testify that I'm always on the move, never feeling fulfilled by staying in one location. Even though, I've taken a number of trips whilst being in Brisbane, it's a great base to have. Now, if only I can convince some of you to come here... :)

I've also got my details sorted for coming to Calgary this Christmas season! I will be in Calgary from December 23rd til January 3rd and then back again from the 11th till the 15th. For those of you in the Calgary and environs, it would be awesom to see you again. Just drop me a line.

In PBL with Kim and Claire

2006-10-19T11:29:00.000+10:00

Yes...I'm stuck in a room with two beautiful women. No, it's not the new porn film that i'm starring in. Kim was one of the hotties in my old PBL last year, and Claire is also one of the hotties of the year (I know...it's crude but oh well).

4 weeks till exams and my moods have been quite erratic. There are moments where I'm extremely calm and thinking that I can put off studying for one more night. Then there are moments, where I'm extremely frazzled and have no clue as to where I need to start studying. I don't have a particular system at the moment and perhaps that is where the problem lies. I've started numerous different things this year but they've all been shit.

On the up side, I'm having a Diwali jamvanu (dinner in Gujju-che speak) on Saturday night and I can't wait! Heaps of people and the food to boot. I just wished that some (blood) family members could be here. It's times like this where I am lucky to have cultivated the family that I have here in Brisbane. I am eternally grateful to those wonderful people.

After the dinner, the only big thing that I've to look forward to is my trip with Annabelle, Claire and Nabila to South East Asia! I spend my idle time (which is quite a lot of time) pouring of Lonely Planet books to the region, reading about things to do and trying to imagine where the journey will take us. It does bring a smile to my face (that and passing my 2nd year exams).

Okay, on that note, I reckon that I should get back to the study.

Another weekend, another headache

2006-10-08T21:49:00.000+10:00

So, I last left right before selecting Year 3 clinical school/rotation preference. Well, I logged on fearing that there would be systems crash or something. However, I was surprised that the server remained strong. I put in my preferences (Southern Clinical Division starting on Mental Health rotation). Everyone in the room was able to put in their choices. We kept on refreshing the page to see how the spots were filling up. It was like watching a horse race and seeing which horse would cross the finish line. Rockhamptom Clinical School was filled up in almost 90 seconds! Leanne told us that that is faster than the tickets that sold out for the upcoming Kylie Minogue concert! I got home and Dave and Suz were up as well, talking to people on msn and mobile about the how things are going with regards to the preferences. Everyone is giving their commentary on what's happening and what to speculate for those people that decided that they were going to put in their preferences in the morning. Sadly enough, there were a few people that were in the boat. I bleieve that the SOM has fielded several questions regarding this and has increased the amount of spots for those division in Brisbane - Central and Southern, by 3 and 6 respsectively.

The Friday night was the last keg of 2007. It's a keg mainly for 4th years who had finished their last exam on Thursday. The 3rd years are still mid-rotation, the 1st years have their exams in 2 weeks and the 3rd years still have about 5 weeks until their exams. It was nice to see a big group of people out having a great time, not thinking about exam worries. Originally, I was only going to go for an hour. Leanne and I went to Hayley's pre-keg party and by the time that I left her place, I was already a bit tipsy. The keg went till about 10:30 and then they had buses that took us to this bar that was in a location that I've never been to in Brisbane. I found out that it was called Chalk. Interesting place, a place that I don't think that I would have picked out to go on a Friday night. The night got messier as it progressed. Leanne ended up staying over at my place, as her car was parked there. We got home around 1am and stayed up taking till about 4am. A night filled with many laughs, tears and the revelation that it is a privilege to be surrounded by good friends.

The next day was an absolute right off, as I developed a nasty cold. I know that it didn't help that my systems were working hard because of the alcohol shock the night before. I had planned on doing a full day of study but that quickly turned into a day of blowing my nose, taking some naps, and cleaning the house. That evening, I put on my fancy kurta/dhoti combination and heading out to Suncorp Piazza, as that's where the raas-garba for Sharad Poonam was being held. To take a little sidestep, a couple of weekends go, Navratri had started and I was adamant that I would have a better time this year. This year, I also knew more people which makes all the difference. I had a fantastic time! My feet are still covered in blisters, some of which are taking quite some time to heal. I met a 'Thanki' family, who were living in Kent, UK and have moved over here in 2003. No surprise whatsoever, they know who my parents are (not very well but we were able to trace how we know each other). It was a different connection that I've not had since being in Australia. Back to Sharad Poonam...I invited Param (who, as usual, always looks amazing beautiful) and she did a few rounds of garba with me. We didn't stay for the raas portion, as my feet were throbbing and a couple of the larger blisters had popped. So, we went across the road to the cinema and saw Step Up. Class film...class. If you like "Save the Last Dance", then I reckon that you'll like Step Up. Both Param and I were dancing in our seats or moving our heads to the music. After that finish, Param took her bus home and my bus never came. Instead, I headed towards the Valley (as that is just a short walk from my palce) and met up with Pam (another transplanted Indo-Canadian from Newfoundland who is in my year). We talked for a few hours and I headed off home. The weekend was filled with many great conversations that took friendships to a more intense level of commitment and sense of belonging. It never ceases to amaze me how I am able to be surrounded by such people that truly make me have a life worth living. For all of you that aren't in my physical presence, you are always in my thoughts. On that note, I'm going to drink a hot drink with paracetamol and lemon. Goodnight.

Twas the night before Year 3 Rotation Selection...

2006-10-05T23:02:00.000+10:00

It's almost 11pm and I'm sitting with Annabelle, Claire, Kim, Leanne, and Lou.

We have to login in at midnight and select our Division. People are getting a bit tense and stressed about it all. We are essentially choosing where in Queensland we want to go (there are 4 Rural Sites - Rockhamptom, Bundaberg, Hervey Bay - Maryborough, and Toowoomba). If not choosing rural site, then we have to decide between Central or Southern placements. I've decided to go back to Southern - as I was a part of Southern in first year. Also, there are options of going to Brunei to do either GP, Medicine or Surgery (Rural Medicine, Surgery, Mental Health, General Practice, Medicine is the order of the rotations). Also, the Rural Medicine can be done in several different areas. I would love to be able to do it in Northern Territory, perhaps Alice Springs. I'm so excited about the idea of being in 3rd year.

Okay, I better get off this site so that I can get back to obsessively trying to refresh the Rotation Tracking System. I'll let you know how it goes...

Back in Australia!

2006-09-21T09:20:00.000+10:00

After several flights and airports, missing a number of inflight meals and potential video viewing (thanks temazepam!), I'm finally back in Brisbane.

Okay…[Veevek sighs and focuses on breathing out], here is the massive post that people are waiting for. Sorry for the delay – I just needed to get caught up on sleep, food and seeing people. :)

Alright. Here’s goes. I must warn you that this post really is long. Get yourself a glass of beer, wine, spirit, or a cup of coffee. You may want to put a pillow next your computer so that you can rest your head and take in these words or you can just turn off the computer and go straight to bed from reading such boring drivel. :)

So, the night before me leaving on my journey, Veevek goes to the annual Med Revue, which was entitled “Medicine at a Glance: A Guide to Clinical Hilarity”. It was the last night of their string of performances, which meant that there would be some sort of after party. Not only that, that night was also the night when the Indian Student Association hosted Club Masti. My friends Anita, Milan and Rohit (from Calgary) were in town and were going to this Bollywood extravaganza, so it would be the last time that I would see them until I head back to Calgary for Christmas. After Med Revue finished, I headed straight to Club Masti – had some fun dancing moments with Anita, Milan and Rohit. Around 11pm, I get this text message “get your ass heqd now” - I hoped into a taxi and headed to Chic Boutique and was welcomed by many, each brandishing a glass of alcohol for me to drink. Keeping an eye on the time (because I was flying out at 8:30am the next day), I was trying to pace myself and make sure that I can get home, get some decent amount of sleep and be at the airport in due time. Well, still having kept an eye of the time, I got home way too late, didn’t get much sleep and wasn’t at the airport in time to make my flight. Yes, I missed my flight from Brisbane to Sydney and, subsequently, I missed my connecting flight to Hong Kong. Fortunately, the nice people at QANTAS ticketing put me on the next flight to Sydney/Hong Kong (my flights to London and Paris were still okay) without any charge to me.

(Fast forward to a point in time after take off from Kingsford Smith International – Sydney) Veevek was seated next to a young Chinese woman who spoken very little English (and I mean very little). She was surrounded by her girlfriends. After getting our first meal (more accurately described as a snack) I ate ravenously because I really didn’t eat much before I left Brisbane. I took a quite kip and when I woke up, I found heaps of cheese and crackers, bowls of salad, the tiny chocolate bars all littered on my tray! We exchanged looks and she said to me with her eyes wide-open “eat, eat”. HAHAHAHA. She probably thought that I was some refugee or poor starving person. I did look tired but not to the point of being emaciated. The flight attendant took notice of all this extra bits of airline food on my plate and asked me where I got it from. I told her that it was the lady beside me who gathered all the bits of food from her friends and put them on my plate. She gave me this look of “sure, sure. Next you are going to tell me that the drink trolley just fell into your mouth.” When the next meal came, the same thing happened! But this time I was wide awake. She gathered all the bits of bread, dessert (basically anything that wasn’t Asian-based food) and put them all on my plate. And this time, the same flight attendant witnessed what just happened. She gave me this look of “what the hell just happened?!” and then gave me two bottles of the Cabernet Sauvignon that she held in her hand and she said, “you are going to need this”.

Hong Kong – what a beautiful city to fly into (at least I think so). The airport is right beside the water, you can see the electric glow from Kowloon, the Junks that are littered on top of the water and the haziness of general Asian urban living. I can’t wait to spend some time in Hong Kong (outside the airport) when I’m there at the end of the year on my way back to Calgary.

Now, I’m on my long haul flight from Hong Kong to London (13 hours). And it was a very full flight – no empty spaces anywhere. Fortunately, I was sitting beside a university student from Cincinnati, Ohio who was doing a joint degree in medicine and law. K and I got along really well from the moment we sat next to each other. In fact, we got along so well that we decided to celebrate the time together with drinking (what else will university students do on an international flight?!). When the drinks came around, we asked the flight attendant to get us two vodka cranberries – each. It wasn’t a problem, in fact, all of our drink requests were fulfilled. At dinner, we were able to take each of the wines that they were giving for dinner! We also watched a movie called The Wild and it was too similar to Madagascar (and it wasn’t as good because there were no penguins in this movie) and then we fell asleep (passed out) for the majority of the flight. When we awoke, we were almost approaching Heathrow and got stuck in the holding pattern. We were offered morning tea, and what did we drink? Vodka orange juice. Good god, my liver had taken such a beating from the time that I left Australia.

Heathrow was a mad house! All the new security measures meant longer queues, longer waiting times for everything, frustrated airport staff and passengers and the like. I had a 4-hour layover and it took me 3 hours to clear security. Craziness. Finally, I was en route to Paris, the first stop in this destination around Europe.

-- Paris --

Paris was absolutely fantastic! I met up with an ex-girlfriend, Elodie. We both found it odd to see each other in the beginning – as neither one of us believed that I’d be in Paris with her. The last time that we did see each other was in May of 2003. We got back to her flat (tiny, 24 metres square) and headed out to see bits and pieces of the city. We walked around in the Latin Quarter and saw Notre Dame, Pantheon, outside of the Louvre, and Le Concorde. We had dinner at this quaint restaurant and had real French food without having to pay such exorbitant prices that you would pay elsewhere in the world for it. Oh, and the wine! The wine was cheap and fantastic. I definitely found a place that I could be for a while. After dinner, we met up with one of her best friends, Ben, for drinks. We were out in an area of Paris called Le Marais, which is the Jewish quarter and quite funky and trendy.

Elodie blending in with her surroundings.

Notre Dame Cathedral

The next morning, Elodie made breakfast (more so, she arranged breakfast). I was absolutely blown away! Fresh fruits (bananas, I had so many bananas because bananas in Australia are so expensive due to the fact that Cyclone Larry wiped out 90% of the banana crop), all kinds of cheeses, jams for the cheese, fresh baguette and croissants. I couldn’t stop eating – I was in heaven.

We took a lovely walk around her flat (the area is called Ourcq) and came across this fantastic museum (insert museum photo). We then made our way down to an area called Barbes, which is a very African area of Paris. There were all these street markets, most of which were illegal. I saw a whole street become a prayer area for Muslim men. In fact, it did remind me of some episodic moments whilst I was living in Kenya. Well, Elodie used to live in this area. She told me that this area is one of the most dangerous in all of Paris.

Not only did she used to live here, but the Sacre Couer (Mont Marte) located here as well. Most people would recognise this church as the same church that was in Amelie.

She also took me to the grocery store that was in the movie as well. It was awesome to do this miniature tour from Amelie. We then headed down from the hill and Elodie took me to see where the Moulin Rouge is (not very impressive) and we did some shopping. That evening, I met two more of Elodie’s friends, Jean Gabriel and Charlene. I remember her telling me all about them when she came to Calgary in 2002. It was incredible to meet her friends because I was able to see her in her element, as she was able to see me in mine whilst she was in Calgary.

We made savoury crepes for dinner and had sweet crepes for dessert. The savoury crepes were spinach, brie, and some other cheese. It was so decadent, I couldn’t even finish it. Mmmm…

The next day we decided to go see a ‘real’ museum and headed down to the Musee D’Orsey. This is a fantastic museum of European art. This museum often gets overlooked because everyone wants to go to Louvre. Here are some wonderful paintings that I was able to get photos of:

After the Musee, Elodie, myself and a friend of hers, Adrien, went towards the Eiffel Tower because I was meeting up with Vinay and Bhavisha there. We waited for quite some time but then I finally met up with them! It was so nice to see them. I couldn’t believe how much weight Bhavisha lost and how much taller Vinay got. He even got his braces removed. Here are some photos from that night:

After the Eiffel Tower, I thought that it would be nice to spend some more time with my family, so I went to stay with them. Apparently, I have relatives that live in Paris! WOO-HOO! They live outside of Paris in a town called Sannois, which is about a 20 min train ride to the centre of Paris. It was nice to be speaking Gujarati again. It was quite strange to see Gujarati people who would speak better French than English. The next day, I took Vinay and Bhavisha into Paris because we all wanted to see the Louvre and Vijaykaks and Ashakaki weren’t that interested. I told Elodie that I would be in touch with her so that she could meet up with us but none of us had a mobile phone. And I made the mistake of thinking that there would be pay phones in Paris that would accept coins. Nevertheless, we walked around seeing Notre Dame, the Louvre. We did get caught in this massive (and I mean massive) rain storm. I can’t remember the last time that I’ve seen rain drops that big before. We thought about having lunch somewhere but then opted for the more French options of having crepes. In some of the touristy parts of Paris (sometimes it’s quite difficult to tell those areas apart), crepes are sold everywhere and it’s hard to pick out those little fellas that are struggle to keep their business open. Fortunately, we were able to find this little crack in the wall that was selling only crepes. Vinay got nutella avec coco, I got nutella avec banane et grand marnier, and Bhavisha got nutella avec banane. The last time that I’ve had more than a spoonful of nutella was at least 10 years ago. The crepe maker put at least 2 cups of nutella on each crepe. Eating them warm just made the experience so much better…mmm…I’m craving a crepe right now!

We had to be home by a certain time for dinner and so that we could out again with the family. We took the train back to the station that we got on (Francoville). The ride from the house to the station took less than 5 minutes, so we thought that we would walk in the general direction of the house. We walked about 2 kilometres and thought that we should head back. We head back and nowhere was there a payphone in sight. I even asked this storekeeper if he had a phone that I could use and he told me that his phone was broken. He even told me that his mobile wasn’t working either. Bullshit. To make matters worse, it was Sunday, which meant that nothing apart from a few things are open. We walked around, talked to people to see if they could give us directions but that was of no avail. A nice guy gave us a phone card that we could use at a payphone. So, we have the means to make a phone call…but there were no phones around! Argh. At this time, I could tell that Vinay and Bhavisha were getting just a tiny bit worried. Bhavisha had a brainwave and saw a pizzeria and thought, “hey! They deliver! Maybe we can give him the address of the place that we are staying at and they could drop the pizza and us off!” Better yet, this would be a place that would have to have a working phone. We called the house and our relative came and picked us up. We got home and had a quick bite to eat before heading off to Mont Marte to see the Sacre Couer at night. It was quite nice to see the place and walk around. I left my cousins and relatives there and took the metro back to Elodie’s place. My relatives warned me to be extra cautious on the train at that time of night, but hakuna wasi wasi.

The next day was my last day was my last day in Paris. Alas, Elodie had to go into work but that wasn’t until late morning. We went to a café for coffee and croissants. We said our “a la prochaine”. It was sad to leave Paris. I can’t wait when my travels will take me to France again. From Gare du Nord, I took the Eurostar to London’s Waterloo station. However, the train took almost 5 hours to get there because there was some delay in the Channel Tunnel.

-- London --

I was greeted by my good friend Sara at her local tube station (the nearest major one is Earl’s Court). It was so great to see her again. The last time we saw each other was in New York. She took me back to her place, where we drank a bottle of wine before going out to a nice place for dinner. We decided to have a big night because the next day was my 27th birthday! The conversation kept flowing from one topic to the next. Having such a quality in friends really is the best because it would just suck if most of the time people were silent and had their fingers up their noses. After dinner, we headed to this dodgy Mexicanesque bar that had salsa dancing on. A few drinks later, it was time to head back to Sara’s place. The next morning, we met in town and had lunch in a park. It was nice to be in London again, to feel the vibes and knowing full well that this is place that I have called home because of my family that live there. Nothing beats that particular feeling. I left for Luton Airport to get on a plane for Stockholm. It was the first time that I’ve ever celebrated the actual date of my birthday in two different countries!

-- Sweden --

I arrived in Sweden on the night of my birthday. I was picked up by a very familiar face, Tobias, J’s younger brother. It was great to see him again, especially since the last time I saw him was in 2004 when he was on exchange to Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. On the car ride back to his parents’ house, we caught up in our respective lives and shared some thoughts about the wedding that is only a few days away. We finally arrived to Uppsala and was had a very warm greeting by H and J. They were working on some last minute things for the family bbq that was on the Friday before the wedding. It was so nice to see them again! We all had a few glasses of wine and called it a night.

The next morning, I saw J’s parents and gave them these massive hugs! Her dad can give a proper bear hug. We had a quick breakfast before some of us headed up to Bodahagen, which is their summer house. We had to pick up some things from there for the bbq that was on Friday. It was now the early afternoon and H and I headed down to Stockholm to get some last minute things done like pick up his wedding ring, the suit and little things here and there. It was so nice to spend the day with Hasit – yeah, I would have liked to have done it under other circumstances as he was so focussed on the wedding.

The next day was a day that was spent at the J’s parent’s house trying to get things organised for the bbq and the wedding. I met J’s sister, Malin, for the first time that day and we hit it off so well! We worked on seating arrangements for the reception and talked about different ideas of weddings and what some of the expectations would be, etc. It was nice to have a relax day – not having to worry about travelling to the next destination. I could have as many cups of tea, chocolate cake and other nibbles without having a huge hole in my wallet. :) This was also the night where I met James, H’s best man. H, James and I went out for drinks before James and I booked into our hotel room, which was not the same hotel that the others were staying at. However, it worked out for the best because H & J were at this hotel and we had a few things to organise for their room and all. James is a great guy! Even though this was the first time that I met him, by the end of our time in Sweden, it seemed as if I’ve known James for years. I love it when people can connect like that.

The next day, the cousins from the UK had flown over and H and I met up with Mum and Dad, Vijaykaka, Ashakaki, Bhavisha, Vinay, and James (H’s best man). We took the train down to Stockholm. It was great to see them everyone again. It was the first time that I met James but we hit it off so well, by the time we parted, it felt as if we’ve known each other for years. We strolled around Stockholm and saw all the pretty things like Gamla Stan and the main town. Our time in Stockholm was quite limited because we had to back in Uppsala for the bbq. We headed back to the bbq and all these cousins started to pour in – the hugs and kisses were given and introductions were made. J’s parents really did make sure that everything was looked after. Many preparations went into the bbq because my entire family is vegetarian, which can make a bbq quite tricky. Fortunately, all the food prepared were items that H & J have had/made. In fact, they had made a memento of a cookbook for all the things that were served. The food was all vegetarian (for the exception of a smoked salmon dish), different kinds of Swedish breads and cheese, desserts that would make any full person have an empty stomach again, enough alcoholic/non-alcoholic drinks to make someone happy but not too inebriated, and to top it all off the evening weather was perfect. Alas, I don’t have any photos from the bbq but I will post them when I get them.

So, the first major meeting of the families was extremely successful. In fact, people are still talking about it today. :)

The next day, J’s mum had arranged for a guided historical tour of Uppsala. Whilst H & J had their own things to do on the day of the wedding, I was in charge of rounding up the Thankeys/Modhas and heading out. We had this extremely tall man (6’10) named Tim (he’s not so tiny) who gave us this fascinating tour of Uppsala, starting from the cathedral (the tallest cathedral in all of Scandinavia and the builder was inspired by the Notre Dame in Paris) and ending up at Uppsala University. The wedding started later on that afternoon at 4pm.

The wedding – my god. I may be a bit biased, but it was the best wedding/reception I’ve even been to. The amount of attention to detail that H & J paid was insurmountable and it definitely paid off. Every person that was there would say the same thing. Some of the example of the detail:
- Having traditional Swedish music (and singers) start off the wedding (and sing two songs in between moments at the ceremony)
- J’s aunt (who is a judge) officiate the ceremony and giving a reading from one of Tagore’s work, “Unending Love”
- Having a champagne break between the wedding and reception
- Every guest having their own personalised menu
- Seating arrangements done so that every man and woman is pair up, pre-existing couples were not seated together, and made sure that people that would get along well/have similar interests were in the same area
- A different type of wine with every course

Here are some photos from the wedding:

This is J's brother (Tobias) and sister (Malin). They were the toastmasters for the evening.

Our version of "Snow White and the Seven [single] Dwarves"

Throughout the sit down portion of the night, there were speeches. All of them were crowd pleasers (including my dad’s!). I gave a speech about when our family first met J. I was pretty tipsy at that point (there was an empty bottle of wine in front of me at my spot on the table) but I came across eloquent, classy and memorable. After the sit down portion, the tables were cleared and moved so that the dancing area could be established. Now that the sun had set and people were under the stars, the garden was littered with candles, making the ambiance even more intimate for all the guests that were present. There was an open bar, which meant that there were a few of us (if not all) that were a buzzing to a new high. That night, two families joined and it was celebrated with style and great pomp. H & J’s first dance was to Frank Sinatra’s “Under my skin”. There was a healthy mix of English and Indian songs, which was an excellent fusion upon the dance floor. The party lasted till about 1am, whereby we had to clear the gardens. Those of us that were still up for going out, we went to this little club called Orange. I didn’t get back to my hotel room until 6:30am.

The next day was a day to chill – H & J had their own plans and meeting up with the two sets of parents for dinner. Some of the cousins had flights to catch back to the UK. However, a few of us decided to go down to Stockholm and spend a couple of nights there. Jigna, Minesh, Kajal, Dipal, and I went in the mid afternoon, after saying our goodbyes to people. Most of the key people at the wedding will be coming to the UK for an Indian joint reception for H & J and Yogesh & Priya. We checked ourselves into a hostel on one of the 14 islands that make up Stockholm. Unlike the nights leading up to this one, we had a quiet night gorging ourselves at a nearby restaurant, so that the night’s sleep could be blissful. We got up the next morning early enough to catch the complimentary breakfast. We also took the opportunity to make little sandwiches so that we don’t have to worry about spending money for lunch (as Sweden is quite expensive, even the Brits thought that!). We met up N, one of H’s friend’s who was staying in Stockholm for an extra week before going back to work for NATO in Brussels. We walked around Gamla Stan and making sure that we can soak up as much of it we can whilst being there.

After that, we took a 2 hour boat tour of Stockholm, which was quite interesting…for the most part. Much of the tour was listening to different types of Swedish hits, including ABBA. We all had such a fantastic time together that it times like these that really make me wish that I was closer to family. That being said, I’ve cultivated another family in Australia, and I don’t think that I could bear to stand the thought of being too far from them either. Argh.

That evening, we went to a pizzeria (yeah, it’s not very Swedish but when you’re travelling with a group of vegetarians, pizza is the easiest meal option) and decided to make our way to this bar that we’ve heard about called the ICEBAR. It is a bar that was created by Absolut and as the name suggests, it is completely made out of ice and kept at a temperature of -5 degrees Centigrade. We went to the hotel that hosted this bar and found out that there needs to be a reservation and that not all of us would be able to go at the reserved time, which was 11:15pm. The entrance was 150 Kr (which is approximately $20) and that included the first drink. Every subsequent drink was 85 Kr. We hung around the area, did some shopping, more laughing, and a couple of drinks at a place called the Light Bar. And for kicks (because we could) Kajal and I did a small Bollywood dance number along one of the main pedestrian streets in Stockholm. We went back to ICEBAR and got ushered into the bar with the heavy duty silver parkas and gloves. We went inside and it was pretty cool for the first 5 minutes and then the novelty wore off. We got photos taken with the hot barmaid and then left without having a drink. When we left we also realised that we didn’t pay the entrance fee! We went across the street to back to the Light Bar and had a few drinks before going home. Our bus to the airport left at 7:20 and we made our way to the airport. On the way to the airport, I was thinking aloud and I said, “I wonder if I need my confirmation because I never received one from RyanAir for my flight from Stockholm to London”. I didn’t think anything of it. We all checked in, except for me because my name wasn’t on the list of passengers. I was like, ‘wtf? You sure?’ I reiterated that no confirmation was sent to me. I went to the information desk and found out that my flight was YESTERDAY! Fuck. The lady at the counter told me that the flight is overbooked and I will have to wait 10 minutes prior to closing the gate to see whether I can buy a ticket and get on this flight. I told them all the necessary details and bullshit like “I’ve to get on this flight because I won’t have anywhere to stay in Sweden, I’m broke, I’m going to my brother’s reception, etc”. I felt like shit…it was the first time ever that I’ve done this – completely get the wrong date of when I’m supposed to fly out. I guess there is a first time for everything. I started thinking of a contingent plan but nothing was coming out of my head. My cousins reassured me that I will be on this flight and everything will be fine. 10 minutes go by (which almost felt like an eternity), and I was told that there is room on the flight! Now, keep in mind that I had booked this ticket in early May and paid only 7 Euros for it. Guess how much I had to pay? 150 GBP! That blew my budget for the UK and some of Finland. Well, at least I was making it back to the UK with my cousins.

-- UK --

We arrived into Leicester (the home of the majority of my relatives in the UK) and greeted with some great food and the chance to take a hot shower. The first night was a chill night to get some sleep. We also met up with some other cousins and went bowling. The last time I was in the UK was in early September of 2003 when my grandmother’s health was not so good. This time the family reunion is of a much happier note. I couldn’t believe that H &amp; J were married. Then again, they were pretty much living common-law in Ottawa; the marriage was an official formality. The next few days leading up to the Indian reception, was spent catching up on sleep, eating good meals (how I love Indian food), and being in the company of family. I really am lucky to have such a close connection with my cousins. Jigna and I had several conversations about medicine (she’s an RMO and thinking of doing surgery, specially head & neck). We have similar goals in life and it was so nice to have an honest reflection of thought and ideas. Minesh – a man who will give everything for his family and still be the coolest cat on the planet. I’ve never met anyone who gives so much and expects so little in return. He was definitely a host with the most, in terms of driving, paying for drinks, and providing more laughs than I could conjure up in a single day. Then there’s Kajal, a pre-reg pharmacist, who really has become herself in the last few years. When I was working in London, I was staying with Kajal and her family. We spent a lot of time together talking about family relations, where she sees herself in all of it and what she wants for herself. My last night in the UK, I slept over at Kajal’s place in Birmingham. I made her, her flatmate and flatmate’s boyfriend, dinner. We didn’t have much cousin-time but we had enough to know that the other was really living their life.

The Indian reception was awesome! It wasn’t like the Swedish one but then again, I don’t think that anything Indian can come close to something Swedish. HAHA. Well, first off there were 525 people in attendance. I was told that at least 1000 invitations went out. I met up with family members that I hadn’t seen in a few years, like my Madhumasi (masi = mum’s sister) and family from my mother’s side. Oh, and the reception wasn’t only for my brother and J, it was also for my cousin Yogesh and Priyabhabhi. The food was great, a self-service buffet of Chinese, Indian and Italian. Indian sweets and fruit were absolutely tasty, including a very tall chocolate fountain. Considering the amount of people that were there and the very short attention span that a very large group of Indian people have, speeches were kept to a minimum (I was quite impressed). I gave a short speech on the two brothers and wishing them very happy and successful marriages. The dance floor ripped up and we were there for the rest of the night!

The next few days after the reception were down time for everyone. Sure there were still family dinners but nothing too grandiose. The cousins went out on the town to do some shopping and to chill. Some of the family members had to go back to their respective cities/countries. I still stayed with Jigna and Minesh for a few days before I had to leave for Finland. I spent an entire afternoon with Mum and Dad on my second last day there. It was nice to spend some quality time with just those two. The conversations that we hard were quite intense, all focussed on the issue of married, cultural unity and my life plans. Now that Yogesh and Priyabhabhi and H & J are married, I’m the next one (on both my mother’s and father’s side) to be getting married (if you are thinking chronologically, not taking into account whether I’ve a girlfriend). Let’s just say that there is a lot of a food for thought, some of which I’ve taken to heart and some of which, I will let destiny take over. I left for Birmingham after I saw Mum and Dad, and spent time with Kajal. I flew out the next morning…

-- Finland –

I left the UK with a heavy heart because I don’t know when the next time that I will be seeing my cousins and family again. At least I will see Mum/Dad and Bhavisha/Vinay at Christmas. However, my relationship with my cousins, which I think is quite strong, thrives on distance to keep us close. When we get together after a long time of not seeing each other, it seems as if we’ve never been part. Regardless, I flew to Helsinki via Copenhagen from Birmingham. I arrived into Helsinki (well, Vantaa to be exact) and took the Finn Air bus from the airport to a stop close to the Olympic Stadium Youth Hostel. So, why was Helsinki a destination of this trip? Well, for those of you that have seen “Little Britain” you will get the joke. But seriously, Helsinki was the location of the 17th International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) World Congress. I walked to the hostel and met up with many other students. I finally met a few students who I’ve been in touch with over email for the past 1.5 years. It was so great to put a face to the name or to put the face with the photos from previous IPPNW international activities. I saw one familiar face that I’ve met before, which was Mahyar’s. I met him last year when I was in Adelaide visiting Ruth.

This is Thomas from Stockholm; he is one of those persons that I've been in touch with over the past 1.5 years over email about the NWIP

This is Wenjing and she is also from Stockholm. I told her that she looks kinda like the old movie stars like Za Za Gabor and she thought I said that she looks like a whore. HAHA.

This is Inga, she is a medical student from Germany. She was one of the NWIP coordinators from 2004 to 2006.

I did want to put up pictures of Martina and Camilla (Hej Hej!) but unfortunately Martina didn't like her pictures and I don't have one of Camilla! (hint hint ladies)

The next day was the opening ceremonies for the students’ meeting and was filled with many different workshops and chances to meet new and exciting people. I naturally gravitated towards the Swedes and Germans but also included some students from Israel, United States, Denmark, and Australia.

here'

The 2nd day of the student meetings was intense because that’s when the majority of the workshops were being held. I, along with 5 other students, ran a Nuclear Weapons Inheritance Project (NWIP) workshop on the crash course of nuclear weapons. An interactive session on bringing students up to speed on what the nuclear situation is around the world, some of the treaties behind the arms, medical effects and the economic costs of nuclear weapons. It was a good practice run for a similar workshop that we had to do for the ‘doctors’ at the World Congress. That evening, the students went to a City Reception, which was held at Helsinki City Hall. The spread of food and the wine was fantastic! After eating and drinking plenty, there was International Night for the students, which was at this ‘club’ in some apartment building near the industrial area. International Night is a night where the different student delegations bring food and drinks from their country and most give a presentation/dance/skit, etc that reflects something about their country. As a part of the Australian delegation, we didn’t have anything prepared. But when we go to the next IPPNW World Congress in Delhi, we will definitely have something prepared. The drinking and eating continued well into the night, not to mention dancing and just being able enjoying the company of new friends.

Jakob (Germany), Lena (Germany), Wenjing (Sweden), Misha (Australia), Rosemary (New Zealand), Catherine (New Zealand), ME, Ruth (Australia): this is the group that did the workshop on crash course of nuclear weapons.

The next day was the official start of the 17th IPPNW World Congress. The first plenary session was fantastic, with speakers being the Mayor of Hiroshima, a very emphatic and energetic speaker and some other noteworthy speakers. There was always something happening that suited the fancy of everyone that was there. Indeed, there were a couple of plenary sessions that just seemed to drag on but we entertained ourselves, like me putting on Wenjing’s earrings. HA. That evening was the Government Reception, which was even more fantastic than the previous night’s reception. Food and drinks were provided and this was yet another round to see how well one’s liver can cope. Not only that but many discussions on future student activities were discussed not to mention what sort of things we would expect from the 18th IPPNW World Congress, which will be held in Delhi, India. Those of us that were involved or would like to be involved in the NWIP went back to the hostel early to sort through some administrative stuff such as coordination and activities planning meetings. After that, a large group of us heading to a local bar near the hostel to have a few drinks and once again to further solidify the bonds that we have laid down within one another.

This is a photo for the Helsinki Cathedral that lies close to the main harbour. Looks more like a government building than anything else.

At the Student Farewell party, there were a few things that went on. First and foremost, it was the best spread of food all week. There wasn’t an open bar but that didn’t stop us from having a few drinks. My throat was so shitty that I had hot tea with lemon, honey and some whiskey. :)

That was also the evening where all these Finnish riot police were out on the main street heading towards an area that was adjacent to where we were at. It was absolutely an amazing sight to see about 100 police officers in full riot gear and barking dogs.

It was also the night where we found out who the new coordinators for the NWIP were. There were seven people that expressed interests and three were selected. Jakob from Germany, Wenjing from Sweden and ME! This is the first time since the creation of NWIP that a non-European is one of the coordinators. The previous coordinators (Camilla, Inga and Martina) left huge shoes to fill and I really do hope that the three of us can continue the momentum that those women left for us to carry. It will be an exciting year as there is a delegation planned to Iran in October. There are plans for having delegations to France, Israel, China/Japan, India/Pakistan and North/South Koreas.

Me, Jakob and Wenjing - the new NWIP Coordinators for 2006 - 2008.

After the party finished, most of us headed out to explore Helsinki’s nightlife. Considering that there was such a large group of us and most of were students, the likelihood of us getting into a club and paying a cover charge was slim. We ended up at this bar with a minimum age entrance of 24! It was obvious that the bouncers were selective in who they were letting in. It seems like that age restriction didn’t apply to women. Those that didn’t get in went to the bar that was near the hostel. Meanwhile the rest of us stayed on the main floor of the bar (there was a nightclub downstairs but you had to pay 7 Euros to get in) and after more drinks, we created our own little dance floor. Me being the ‘responsible’ one kept my eye on the time because we had to be back at the hostel before 3am or else we would be locked out (there is a lock out from 3am to 7am). We made it back in the nick of time!

The last day of the conference was a bit sad because it signalled the fact the conference was over but also the fact that my 4-week sojourn was coming to an end. However, there was much work to be done. There were still a few things that Jakob, Wenjing, Camilla, Inga, Martina, and I had to go over in terms of the handover between the two sets of coordinators.

The night before some of us were leaving for Estonia, the remaining students we had dinner at an Indian restaurant and then we heading out to a bar down the street and had some drinks before calling it a night.

-- Estonia --

What a beautiful little country! On the very last day of my stay in Finland, Mahyar, Dana, Lauren, Misha, Misha’s dad, and I decided to take a day trip to Tallinn, Estonia. It was absolutely fantastic! We left on the first ferry (8am) and came back on the 14h00 ferry so that Lauren, Mahyar and I could make our flights. The ferry took 1.5 hours and it was awesome because we were all able to catch up on some much needed sleep. We only had about 4 hours to see stuff, and like most tourists come to Estonia, we went straight to the Old Town. The Old Town is still a working place, many embassies, residences and local shops are there. However, there is a very large tourist base, and the types of businesses (souvenirs, restaurants, bars, and cafes) reflects this.

This is Dana (one of the few non-medical students at the conference, she's did International Relations) is from Germany. She's wearing a typical woolen Estonian hat and holiding a little wooden viking.

This is me in Old Town, overlooking the beautiful backdrop in Tallinn.

This is one of the main Russian Orthodox church in Tallinn - there was no photography allowed in side but it was absolutely beautiful.

All in all, this was a trip that was indeed extremely memorable. The people that I connected with, the times spent laughing with family, seeing my brother getting married are all things that I would do all over again, knowing full well how much I’m paying for it right now. I’m quite behind with med school but I reckon that that is how the cookie crumbles. The next 7 weeks will be filled with uber studying and making sure that my mind doesn’t wander about the next trip that I’ve planned.

So, thank you for reading all of this (or even a portion of it). I hope that you were able to relive the memories from this journey, I know that I certainly have.

PS - Ahura maza Ahura maza, Ahu maza, Ahu maza, Anyti anahita ata vahu, Anyti anahita ata vahu

Almost done?!

2006-08-30T01:42:00.000+10:00

It's September 5th and the past few weeks have been absolutely amazing! There have been moments of joy, frustration, guilt, and self revelations to name a few. I've many pictures and stories that I want to post but will do so when I return to Australia.

Well, this is the first time that I've been able to sit down with my thoughts (granted I'm at the airport) and to sit back and enjoy a surprisingly nice cappuccino from Starbucks. I'm making mental notes and trying to process some of the intense situations that have happened in the last little while.

I'm off to Copenhagen in about 1.5 hours and then will be travelling onwards to Helsinki.

For my 'family' in Australia, I really do miss you all. I wish that you could be here with me to celebrate and take part in the festivities that just passed. There will be lots of catch up and plenty of merry to be had when I return on September 13th. Alright, I'd best be off before my coffee gets cold.

Signing off from the UK...

A weekend to look forward towards...(post-edit)

2006-08-10T10:45:00.000+10:00

Yes, the weekend has arrived here in Brisbane! The question is, why is this weekend any different? Well, there are so many things going on this weekend that I'm not really sure what end is up.

Okay for starters, I only had 3 hours of sleep last night. I can't remember the last time that I've had such little sleep because of doing uni work. My very good friend Anita and her sister and their cousin have arrived into Brisbane today (I'll be meeting them later this arvo) and will be spending the weekend with me. It will be a riot! I can't wait to show them around the romping grounds and to have them meet some of my friends here in Brisbane. I know that I've said this before - it's always nice to bring people from different spheres of your life and introduce (or collide) them with others. The consequences can be quite interesting (and I mean consequences both in the positive and negative outcomes).

----

It's now Sunday evening and what a weekend I've just had! Saturday was jam packed with friends, food, alcohol and great fun! Saturday morning I went to a birthing kit workshop where volunteers put together a small kit consisting of a large plastic sheet, scalpel blade, gauze, gloves, pieces of string, and soap. These kits are then sent to places like Ethiopia and Vietnam (where this batch of kits where going to) to provide a sterile environment for women to deliver. After that, my birthday celebrations were about to begin.

It was a bit odd considering that my birthday in not until the 22nd, I wanted to spend time and celebrate with my friends before leaving for Europe. The arvo was a picnic in New Farm Park along the river. It was awesome - a huge spread of food, including Anna's pig cake:

And this is Anna.

Most Australian children will have a cake like this at one point in their childhood (and adulthood for some of us). It was an afternoon of lying in the sun, playing hackysack (which I haven't done since Malta), playing with a very hyperactive puppy (courtesy of Kat and Ant), and having heaps of laughs with friends. We have also decided that you don't necessarily have to have an occasion to have a picnic in the park. Anita, Milan and Rohit quickly made friends at the picnic and it was a disappointment that they couldn't come out to the night festivities.

Here's a photo of Anita, myself and Milan.

We went home for a couple of hours to get some sleep (which didn't happen) and change into something more appropriate for going out in the Valley. Also, Anita and crew were going to their relatives' house for the remainder of their stay in Brisbane. We chatted it up, had some more laughs (cooking, fukrudin, ape-man, and the hammock...how funny) before they had to leave. After they left, Dave and Suz presented me with presents. I always get a bit sheepish when that happens - I never expect gifts, as their friendship is more than enough. It seems a bit odd, but it always amazes me how you can meet people and that they can become so close and, in some cases, even more closer than family. They gave me a few things - a empty book with a quote on the front which read, "friends are the family we choose", a L'Occitane travel kit, and the original design of the caffettiera espresso, which looks like a teapot screwed on top of a base and you put that on the stove. It makes fantastic coffee!

Dave, Suz, Liam and I met up with some people at Bar Soma for drinks and tapas. After a few hours there, we all made our way to the Bowery (one of my favourite places in Brisbane), which is an older, classier place in the Valley. There were moments were I was quiet, not because I didn't have anything to say, but I was revelling in the fact that here are people that I truly do care for and all of them were having a great time. That feeling made my night. After the Bowery, I was ready to shake my groove thang...and some of us headed off to an Irish pub called Doolie's. Yes, I'm sure that most of you are thinking, "wha...an Irish pub to shake the said groove thang?!" Well, the pub has several levels and on the bottom level, there was a DJ that was spinning R&B/hiphop. Even though the music was alright, the place seemed to attract the dregs of people left in the Valley. Then we made our way to a the Royal George, by way of the Mustang (we were unable to get in because of our friends wasn't carrying their ID, even though he clearly looks over the age of 18 - think Jack Black). Brisbane has a 3am lockout, which means that if you aren't in an establishment by 3am, you'd better make your way home. So, everyone left to go home and I walked with a friend to her place and we talked for almost 2 hours. This friend was someone that I wasn't particular close to but we had a great time whenever we interacted. After last night, I know that they will a regular character in the Book of Veevek's Life. I got a taxi home (even though I could have walked home...but I just didn't feel walking 20 minutes and risk seeing the sun come up) and the taxi driver didn't charge me any cab fare. A great way to finish up the night. I came home and then instead of doing the normal thing and going straight to bed, I did some reading. Why? Well, why not. :) I finally hit the pillow at around 5:45am and then got up with a jolt when I heard Dave and Suz leave the house to buy some baking powder for pancakes, which was at 9am. It's almost 7:15pm and I'm absolutely buggered but the weekend was absolutely blissful.

Viral infection?

2006-08-04T12:30:00.000+10:00

Yeah, viral infection. I reckon that that is what my computer has. My computer has been acting so strange for the past little while. In the beginning, all these adds for installing WinAntiVirus2006 were coming up. They eventually went away with the advent of a cocktail of anti-virus programmes. Now the Internet is acting all funny. In what way? Well, I'm not able to log on to MSN and affiliated Web sites, no personal Web sites (blogspot, etc) and I can't even log on to blogger.com! Things are really slow and it just makes this whole Internet business a pain in the ass more than anything.

So, that explains why I've not updated in a while. But here are some of the things that are going down....

1. I'm leaving for Europe in 12 days! My brother is getting married in Sweden. I can't to see him and J again (haven't him since end of 2004 and her since August of 2004)! It will also be nice to have all the members of my dad's side of the family present for such an occasion. The Thankey Clan will be meeting up once again - I can only imagine what sort of things will come to the surface. :) I'm also meeting up with some good friends in Paris and London (Elodie and Sara, respectively). There is something so revitalising about seeing friends in odd places. I'm also going to be going to Helsinki for the World Congress of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War. As I wrote before, I can't wait! Needless to say, I've been working like a madman trying to get as much work done now before my departure. I know that I'm kidding myself when I say that I will be getting work done whilst overseas.

2. Anita is coming to Brisbane! My very good friend Anita from Calgary will be in Brisbane next week. There is something to be said about hosting friends, especially in a city that they've never been to. There will be heaps of photos and stories about the crazy stuff that we will undoubtedly get into. :)

3. I've booked another ticket overseas! Annabelle, Claire, Nabila and myself will be travelling to South East Asia after our final exams at the end of this year. All of us are so excited and it's nice to have something fun and adventurous to look forward to at the end of a uni year. We will be flying into Vientiane (capital of Laos) via Bangkok. Our tentative plan is to travel within Laos, then over to Vietnam, down the country and into Cambodia. We will be flying out of Bangkok - some of us are thinking of maybe even going to southern Thailand to soak up some beach and the like. We will be gone for 4 weeks (whilst other students in our year are going for much longer period of time, up to 8 weeks in fact) because both Nabila and I have our flights back to Canada on the 22nd. It will be cool.

Alright, I'm now heading out to Byron for the weekend. Yeah, I know...I should be doing work instead. However, I will be taking a textbook on clinical neurology...wish me luck.

Post exam photos!

2006-07-20T15:19:00.000+10:00

Finally, I was able to get the post midyear exam photos from Leanne. Now, considering that there are many people in these photos that don't necessarily look their best (including yours truly), I won't inundate you with them.

Enjoy...

This is the first photo of the night! Leanne, Lou, Kim and I went back to Lou's place straight after the exam to get ready. Lou's mum made them roasted chicken sandwiches and she made me a vegemite sandwich! There's always a source of beautiful red wine at Lou's house...here's to being half done 2nd year!

And yes, that is a goatee on my face. :) I didn't shave for about 2 weeks, and kept a shell of a goatee. I must admit that it turned out quite well. However, I got rid of it whilst in Darwin because it reminded me too much of my older brother. :)

M. was gracious enough to have the MBBS II midyear party at his bar, LUDO. I guess it really does pay to know the right people. :) This is a photo of Marlo, me and Param. Param had a flight the next morning to Vancouver, as she was going to a couple of her girlfriends' weddings. If I were her, then I would have been absolutely brutalised for that long transpacific flight.

So, here's where the night just gets really out of whack. The photos tell a story (and I'm leaving many parts out).

Yes, this is me and Kim. She was smiles all night and I had that dorky look for most of the evening as well.

Here's the KSG! And if it weren't for these people, I don't think that that I would have passed my midyear exam. They are a solid bunch, a wealth of information, and a supportive circle for ideas and talking through your ideas of how things really are. THANKS GUYS!

There are more photos but they just get really silly after this part of the night.

Back to the grindstone

2006-07-03T18:54:00.000+10:00

The starting of the second week of the second semester of second year. Apparently, our midyear exam results come out on Wednesday. Am I nervous? worried? sure a little. However, I know full well that it doesn't mean anything in the grand scheme of things. I have had several discussions with other students, ad nauseum, about what it may mean. At the moment, we are in the middle of the pyschiatry block and it's definitely much harder than I thought that it would be. Sure, people may think that it's all artsy-fartsy but there are some intricate systems and the interplay between systems that can make it complicated.

Oh - before I forget, I know that I am supposed to put up photos from my midyear post-exam festivities but I still haven't gotten my hands on any photos. Leanne had heaps of photos on her camera; in fact, they told a story of the night. However, her photos got wiped cleaned. Shit. Hopefully, some photos will surface.

Back to the grindstone is it. I'm off to Perth on Thursday morning for the Australian Medical Students' Association - Developing World Conference. I'll be back late on Monday night. I know that some people that are reading this are thinking, 'why are doing all this travelling knowing full well that you will be missing more uni in about 1.5 months?' Yes, it's true. I know that I am taking a small risk by missing a few classes - but at the end of they day, I know that I will make up for it all. Besides, at the moment, I'm trying to get into the habit of studying as if I will not have the chance to study whilst being overseas (even though I will be bringing my notes and some small key texts with me). I know that a good friend of mine thought that way before she went back to Canada for her brother's wedding. When she got back, she only had less than two weeks before the midyear; meanwhile, I will have almost two months before my finals.

-EDIT-

It's Monday morning and I fly out late this afternoon back to Brisbane. The weekend has been absolutely fantastic! First off, Perth is an absolutely beautiful city. People are extremely friendly, plenty of things to do and see, and (to my pleasant surprise) a very multicultural city. The Developing World Conference's theme this year was "Telling Truths" and it was the common thread that brought all the speeches, presentations, workshops, and plenary sessions together. I ran into old friends from last year's DWC, which was held in Syndey and met new ones. It was so comforting to be in an environment where there are like-minded individuals, and the common thing thread that runs through every person is the fact that they care about the state of healthcare in the developing world (and within Australia).

I got my results from my midyear examination - and I passed! WOOHOO! However, I didn't do as well as I wanted to do and apart from knowing my stuff better, I don't know how I can change my study tactics. Suggestions?

Alright, I'm running out of time and I need to get on to explore more of this city!

Until next time...

Top End different from the Bottom End?

2006-06-24T10:56:00.000+10:00

Okay, first off, I will be posting photos from the post-exam activities when I get the photos from the different people that were dangerous enough to have cameras that night.

It is Saturday of the weekend before uni starts up again, and I am not ready to get back to it. It feels as if the holidays has just started. Oh well, I knew that this is what I was getting myself into.

Like many other people that in my course, I had to leave Brisbane to get refocussed to remind myself that there is a world outside of medical school. So, I headed up to Darwin. Why Darwin? Well, why not? :) One of my goals (and I think that I've already mentioned it before in another posting) whilst in medical school is to have visited every state capital and Canberra. After this year, I will have been to all of them except Canberra and Hobart. Liam and I are thinking of doing a trip down to Canberra and Hobart, which would be too cool!

So, what to say about Darwin? Well, it's quite a small place, in fact, it's the smallest capital of all the states. It's a lively, modern place with a youthful, easy-going lifestyle. And at times, it can feel quite cosmopolitan. However, the city has its unique ways of making people realise that it was, and still is to some extent, a frontier town. To put Darwin in perspective, it is closer to Singapore and Jakarta, than it is to Sydney and Canberra, respectively.

Okay, enough of the geography lesson. I came up to Darwin to see some friends who are completing their medical rotations at the Royal Darwin Hospital; Ruth is there doing a portion of her paediatrics rotation. Also, I (along with Lou, Pat and Anna) am thinking of doing my internship at the Royal Darwin Hospital. It's probably the best place in the country to be doing tropical medicine/infectious disease due to the tropical climate, large indigenous and tourist population, high amount of trauma, catchement areas which covers the whole Top End of Australia and into South East Asia. After the Bali bombings in October 2002 and 2005, injured Australians were evacuated to the RDH. In fact, it was the sole initial receiving hospital for the Bali victims. The RDH acted as the advanced receiving hospital in Australia's largest-ever offshore disaster requiring urgent evacuation.

I still have a couple of years left before deciding on where I would like to do my internship and the visit to Darwin just made the Top End seem a little more real. :)

My time was really focussed on relaxing and enjoying the time with Ruth and friends (Mandivavarira, Sarah, Mel, Leah, Brett - thank you for such a great time!). The first day there was spent walking and seeing every (and I mean every) street in Darwin city. I bought a book called "Why Warriors Lie Down and Die" by Richard Trudgen. Trudgen goes into great detail describing the difficulties the Yolngu people (an indigenous group within the Arnhem Land) have in understanding the medical and health workers who support them.
This applies in reverse, as the doctors and nurses have difficulty in understanding the aboriginal attitude to health issues. It is in this area that the real work of this book becomes important. Reading it whilst being up there, really drove home a number of points regarding the interactions of health professionals with indigenous people and how language and social construct are crucial in trying to promote and empower the health status of these people. Okay, I digress. Here are some photos that I took within the city:

This is a photo of the Australian, Northern Territoriy, Aboriginal and the Torres Striat Islanders flags.

This is the State House, which looks like one of two things: 1. A house from New Orleans that has been given a huge amount of steroids and 2: a very large wedding cake (a la Ruth).

This is the remnant of the old Town Hall, which was destroyed by Cyclone Tracy. She built up over December 24, 1974 and by midnight her winds began to reach their full fury. At her peak wind speeds were as high as 280 km/hour! Of Darwin's 11,200 buildings, 50%-60% were destroyed. Only 400 survived relatively intact.

Here is an example of some of the artwork that one can find along the wharf, along a pathway called Traveller's Walk.

That night I cooked dinner for Ruth, Sarah, Mel and Mandivavarira and we drank lots of wine and scotch & dry. :) Yummy. The weekend was filled with walking through the Parap Village and Nightcliffemarkets during the day, all of them have great foods from all the different ethnic communities that have settled in Darwin; Ruth and I ate till our heart's desire. Ruth and I went to see one of her friend's play in a music concert that was held in Darwin city. It was the first day of the Sounds of New Music festival. The concert was held in three different places and each place had a different aspect of how indigenous and Western themes are incorporated. After that, we went to a fantastic little place called the Moorish Cafe. It was a littel pricey, as our meals consisted mainly of tapas and some beautiful wine. The next day, we met up with Brett for a cup of great coffee at the Museum & Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. It was fantastic (both the coffee and the museum). After that we headed down to Mindil Beach market to eat some fantastic crepes and drink good fruit juice. Being full from the food and drinks, we waddled our way down towards to the city to the Deckchair Cinema to watch Veer-Zaara, a Bollywood film that was being shown as the opening for a weeklong Indian Culture festival. Ruth and I nearly died from the opening act, which was a god awful magic show that went on and on. There was a point that I could no longer watch and went to the back to get me some beer, Taj Mahal beer to be exact. The movie was good (I had seen it before) and it was nice to do a very familiar activity with Ruth, as we used to watch Bollywood films in Calgary. Ruth pointed out to me that I haven't put any photos of her on my blog, which is quite true! So, here are some photos of Ruth:

Here's an old photo of the two of us. It was taken at a Christmas Party at my parents' house in Calgary.

The weekend came to an end and I still had yet to see any of the things outside of Darwin. Many people use Darwin as a pit stop before heading out to some of the national parks like Kakadu and Litchfield. I booked myself for a day tour to Litchfield National Park and, boy, was I not disappointed! I was picked up early in the morning and met the other 9 people that were in the my group. We did introductions and had to say our name, where we are from, and what we do (working/studying/travelling/etc). So, I was the first one to go and gave them all my particulars. When it came to info about studying, I just told the group that I was studying at the University of Queensland. Then I was asked what I was studying and I told them 'health'. And they prodding some more and finally I told them that I was studying medicine. I really hate telling people that I do study medicine because it instantly changings their preceptions of me and proceed to ask me heaps of questions about things that their GP should be answering. Regardless, we headed down to the Adelaide River to see some river wildlife, namely the saltwater crocodiles.

Here, I'm holding a snake named Monty (he's a python, yes a clever name). I was also telling some people about a story that my Ba (grandmother) told me when I was young about how she had a worker how had tied a goat to his wrist. He fell asleep under a tree and when he awoke, the goat was gone but he was tied to a python!

As you can see, we were quite close to the crocs. However, we were still a safe distance that it wouldn't be able to launch itself into the vessel.

Hmm..no, crocs don't just out of the water to frolick with the sun. There was a person on the boat that had meat tied to a stick to entice the animals to jump out of the water. Apparently, crocs will jump out of the water to catch prey like brids who swoop down to the water's surface to catch fish.

After seeing the crocodiles and avaian life along the Adelaide River, we headed down to Litchfield National Park. Our first stop was to see these massive termite mounds. The one that is in the picture is an example of a cathedral termite mount. I should have stood beside this to give you all a perpsective of how tall this really is. If you can make out the three holes in the bottom middle of the structure, then that is how tall I am (170 cm). It takes 10 years for these to grow one metre. Brutal.

These termite mounds are very unique in that they are called magnetic terminte mounds because the terminte is buit in a north-south fashion, which aligns with the earth's magnetic field! So, in the morning, the sun hits the east face of the mount, warming it up. At midday, the sun is overhead and only shines light to the thin ridge exposed, keeping the structure cool. In the late afternoon and evening, the sun is shining on the west wall, warming up the structure for the night. If the mound is built misaligned, then the termites within perish. Brutal. Also, this was the place that I tasted green ants. I didn't eat them, but rubbed their green back body portion on my tongue. It tastes like lemon-lime. There were also honey ants that you could suck their honey as well! They were very tasty. The aboriginal community that lives in the national park (the Commonwealth has leased the park from them) uses them for antiseptic and to satiate their sweet tooth, respectively.

After the termite mounds, we headed off to Florence Falls, which is one of 4 waterfalls in the park. This is where my day went from exciting to OHMIGOD what the fuck am I doing to great again. :)

I was about to head into the water for a quick swim, when I hear, "help!" I see this guy pull this girl out from the water and she looks like shit. Apparently, she got caught in the strong undercurrents, which pulled her under and she was drowning. Immediately, my brain went into DRABC (Danger, Response, Airway, Breathing, Circulation). A person from my group beckoned me, I told the guy that I am a medical student. I told him to put his friend on a towel in an area that didn't have any sharp rocks or anything. Then I checked to see if she was responding, by tapping her on her clavicle and doing a sternal rub. There was no response...I felt as if I wsas going to shit my pants! I thrusted her head back to make sure that her airways are clear and then checked her breathing and her pulse. She wasn't breathing and her pulse was really weak - FUCK! I called out to our tour leader and told him to call on his satellite phone if there are any doctors in the near area. I started rescue breathing (mouth-to-mouth resuscitation). Finally, I heard this voice, "I'm a doctor, what's the situation". I told him what was going on, "teenage girl, non responding to external stimulus and not breathing and weak pulse; I've started rescue breathing". Instead of him taking over, he told me to keep continuing what I was doing. I was like, "are you fucking kidding me?!?!" Anyways, what seemed like an eternity, the girl finally started coughing and I put her up into a forward sitting position. Wow - the power that knowledge has on people. I stayed around a little bit to make sure that the girl was okay and I chatted with the doctor. He was on holidays with his family from Western Australia. He aksed me about where I was studying and in what year. He told me that if it weren't for me (and if there was no one else that knew how to do CPR), the girl would have died. Then and there, I felt revitalised about studying medicine and knowing that in the end, you are indeed saving lives.

After that, we headed on a little hike to another part of the partk and made our way back to our van. On the way back to Darwin, we stopped in this small little hamlet on the outskirts of the park. My group bought me some celebratory drinks and I knew that that was the first time that many of them saw a brown person blushing. We headed home after that and I spent my last evening with Ruth, Mandi, Sarah and Leah. It's absolutely incredible to know that everywhere you can go, you can always be sure to have good friends that treat you like family.

Darwin, anyone?

There was an exam last night?!

2006-06-14T12:57:00.000+10:00

I'M DONE!
The exam finished at 8:56pm and I am so glad that that is over. I reckon that I passed; however, you can never be certain with the School of Medicine. There were questions that seemed to insult my intelligence and then there were some questions that came from left field, for example, a question on chocolate ice cream sundaes.

After that, some people headed back to Lou's place for some wine and sandwiches (I didn't have any dinner prior to the exam), got changed and headed down to M's LUDO. It was great night! Able to have awesome conversations that didn't cirrhosis or supraventricular arrhythmias as the subject. After LUDO, I went to a house party (god, it's been ages since I had been to a house party) and had some interesting coversations with people (granted alcohol was the source of this 'interesting'). After a little while, Leanne and I decided to go to the Casino. I hate casinos...I really don't see the point in it. However, I've never been to the Conrad Treasury before and thought to myself, "why the hell not". It wasn't any spectacular...looked like a 2nd tier casino that you would find in Vegas. I got home at 7am. The sun was out. I hate going to bed when it's light. Fortunately, I still have the night mask that QANTAS gives out on their TransPacific flights. :)

It's 1:30pm now and I've the whole day to chill and to catch up on all the things that I've wanted to do that I couldn't in the last little while. There are plans of people going out tonight. Perhaps there will be a continuation of the post-exam parties...

Exam? There's an exam?!

2006-06-12T11:09:00.000+10:00

It's Monday morning and my midyear exam is tomorrow in approximately 31.5 hours. Yeah, I'm not counting down. This time last year, I was so stressed out. I remember having to go get some medication refilled and the GP wanted to take my bloodpressure (this is after him finding out that I am a med student and that my exam was coming up). My blood pressure was 150/90. For most people that is a set of numbers that mean really nothing. Usually, my BP is around 120/80 (usually lower). And this year, I've decided to screw the BP checks and make sure that I dont' drink as much coffee (only 1-2 cups per day and some days I'll even go without a cuppa), and not stress too much about things that I can't necessarily control.

So, where is the post going? Well, tomorrow is my midyear exam and even though I've looked at all the notes that I've made, gone through majority of the past exam papers, gone through the work that my study group has produced, I'm still not feeling satisfied about my knowledge base for the exam. If I fail (last year, 60% of the 2nd year cohort failed the exam), then I know that it's not the end of the world, because the midyear is an internal assessment. The end of year finals and MSAT are what the med school uses to determine whether you can go on to 3rd year. It's odd considering that the same thing happened in undergrad. There were some courses that I just do absolutely awful (read: organic chemistry) on the midterms but then pull something no less than a miracle on the finals.

So, about this exam...yeah. I'm over it. Here's to after the exam! There is an afterparty at M's lounge (LUDO). It will be nice to hang out with people and not feel guilty for doing so. I tell you, there is only so much guilt a person can handle. Also, I can finally do things that I've put off for such a long time - go out with mates, do some much needed shopping (i.e. to iPOD or not to iPOD) and have time to myself without having to worry about the mechanism of pathophysiology of pud's disease or something. :)

Off again!

2006-06-06T11:08:00.000+10:00

WOO HOO!

I’ve just paid off my ticket to Europe! I’m going over for my brother’s wedding, at least that’s the main purpose of the trip. The main event will be held in my future sister-in-law’s home town of Uppsala, which is Sweden; a week later, there will be an Indianised reception in Leicester, UK. The UK reception will be unique because it will be the reception of two couples. One of my cousins in the UK (who is the same age as my brother) just got married last week and so instead of having a reception where only parts of the family can come, they thought that they could ‘tag-team’ it was my brother’s so that more of the family (if not all) will be able to make it.

I still have to get approval from the SOM. Regardless of what they say, I’m still coming – don’t you worry. They are being extremely particular about this whole process. Another friend of mine is going to Canada for two weddings and the SOM didn' t require any documentation from her. Meanwhile, I have to provide the kankotari (Indian wedding invitations) for proof that the wedding and receptions are indeed occurring on the dates that I’ve already indicated. The SOM has a policy, which states: “blah blah blah”. Yeah, it's really that important.

I’ll be arriving in Paris on August 17th (so for those of you in and around Paris, make sure to dust off the good shoes and wine glasses because Veevek is ready to paint the town red!). I’ll be in London for my 27th birthday and fly off to Stockholm that same day. I guess I will be able to say that I’ve been able to celebrate my birthday is two different countries! Now that's something that I can cross of the list of things to have done in my life.

I’ll be in Sweden near the end of August and then I’ll be off to the UK to partake in a massive immersion with the Thankey family. I can’t wait! The last time that everyone (and I mean everyone from my father's side) was together was when my grandfather passed away in 1991. At least this time, it will be for a much happier and joyous occasion. There have been two new additions to the family since 1991. On a completely different note, I hope that my two cousins from Germany are able to come. Since the Thankey Clan is quite spread out (37 people living in 4 countries, three continents), so it takes a pretty big occasion to bring everyone together. And as I wrote before, due to the fact that my brother and cousin are actually having a joint reception, there should be no reason for any family member to be absent.

After the celebrations and pomp in the UK, I’ll be heading off to Helsinki, Finland for the World Congress of the International Physician for the Prevention of Nuclear War (http://www.ippnw2006.org). One of my best friends, Ruth, will also be there. So, if there are any of you out there that have been to Finland before, then please do let me know what the hot spots in Helsinki are in terms of eating, drinking, shopping and nightlife.

hmmm...It's 6 June 2006. Whatever. My thoughts have been wound up tight over my upcoming midyear exam. It's only 3 hours (from 17h45 to 20h45) and covers the last 18 weeks, including whatever topics that might have been touched upon in first year. I'm not particularly worried about the exam - I just want to do well enough. Speaking of the devil, I need to get back to it. Today is all about respiratory pathology and then a subtle handover to gastrointestinal and metabolism will happen at some point today. Hmmm...there is also skin pathology that I do need to go over as well, not to mention ethics, population/public health and some past exam papers. Ahhh...what you can do in a week's time. :)

Medical Specialty Aptitude Test

2006-05-30T19:09:00.000+10:00

A friend emailed me a Web site for the University of Virginia's Health System. More specifically, the link took me to where I can take a online test to see which medical specialty I am suited for. I've always been interested in paediatrics and infectious disease.

My top 5 were:
1. paediatrics
2. infectious disease
3. rheumatology
4. obstetrics & gynaecology
5. nephrology

Interesting...

Now, that I'm on this blog, I might as well give an update. :) Well, I've decided where I will be spending my week holiday. I'll be going to the tropical destination of Darwin! Darwin is the capital of the Northern Territory. Some people might be asking, "why are you going there?!" Well, there are a few reasons. One of my goals whilst being in medical school is to have travelled to all the state capitals and Canberra. So, going to Darwin makes some progress in that area. Since I am interested in infectious disease, Darwin is one of the best places in Australia to go and learn about it, as it is quite close to Asia and the tropical climate that it is 'blessed' with. It would be an interesting place to do my internship there (and I've been told by a number of people that they would see me doing tropical medicine and being in Darwin). The most important reason is that one of my best friends, Ruth, will be there as well. She is completing her paediatrics rotation up at the Royal Darwin Hospital; also, a number of her friends, that I became friends with when I went to Adelaide last year, are also doing their clerkship up there. It will be a great reward for completing my exam, which will be finished in 1 week and 1 hour from now. So much stuff left to revise...slowly but surely (or at least that is what I keep telling myself).

Alright, back to the books. This time, I'm starting cardiovascular...anyone up for learning about arrhythmias? :)

Veevek. A member of the rural community?

2006-05-24T18:46:00.000+10:00

This past weekend, a group of 30 or so allied health students (most of them which were medical students) went on a day trip to Toowoomba to visit Toowoomba Hospital and a local winery. The trip was hosted by an organisation called Towards Rural & Outback Health Professional in Queensland (TROHPIQ).

This is a photo of Rob and Leanne highlighting the entrance of Toowoomba Hospital's A&E.

When we got there, we had a couple of workshops. The first one was all about plastering, which was too cool! I know of friends that are in med school in Calgary were able to do this in their first year. I was quite envious of them but then I realised that I didn't sign up for this sort of workshops in first year (silly billy gilly I am).

After the plastering we were taken out to see the student accommodations. These accommodations are for the MBBS III and IV that come out to do their entire year's worth of rotations at Toowoomba. Students are eligible to do an entire year at a rural place, such as Toowoomba, Hervey Bay-Maryborough, Bundaberg, and Rockhamptom. The accommodations were quite basic, which isn't a bad thing. However, the bad thing about them what that the kitchen sucked! It was very simple, it had: a sink, small fridge and a microwave oven. The only thing that came close to a stove was a mobile hot plate. Shudder.

After that, we came back to the hospital to partake in the last workshop, which was on suturing. It was quite difficult to get the technique in the beginning but once you have a handle on it, it's pretty fun! Here's a picture of a pig hock with sutures a la Veevek. :)

After the suturing workshop, we headed to another very rural place called Oakey, which made Toowoomba look very large. We had a bbq at the house of one of the rural doctors who works with the Rural Clinical Schools. After that we headed to a quaint little winery. This was the first time that I've been to a winery in Australia. It was a good experience to taste all the different types of wine and know what you like and don't like. I ended up buying three bottles of their Classic Red. They were quite cheap and there is something to be said about supporting local wine industries as opposed to the very big names. This place also had herbal wines and were called IQ, White Satin, Buddy, Gee Spot, and Bedtime Bliss. Leanne bought a bottle of the IQ, and will be making its debut appearance at Claire's birthday, which is on Friday. They didn't taste bad at all; however, those wines would have been great as a conversation piece at a dinner party. I wasn't in the mood to do that, well at least not for the next 3 weeks.

Rob took this photo...I like it. See those cool sunnies that I 've on, yeah, they broke yesterday. Stupid big head.

So, here's the thing, I would love to go rural next year. Why? Because most international medical graduates end up getting slotted into rural internships and many of the already trained doctors that are coming into Australia are going to rural places. In 3rd and 4th year, UQ medical students are eligible to do one entire year in a rural location (Toowoomba, Hervey Bay, Bundaberg and Rockhampton). This programme is actually a federally funded programme, which means that international students get the shaft. The perks of going 'rural' is that accommodation is free and you are given a small amount of money for relocation. As international students you aren't given any of that. We can go but only if there are spots left. If it turns out that there are spots available, then we aren't able to stay in the student accommodations (which I sure wouldn't because I want a proper kitchen!), meaning that we would have to pay rent and we wouldn't get any funding towards relocation. This would also mean that the house that I've in Brisbane would have to be subletted or I would just not renew my lease, which would mean that I would have to look for a new place when I came to Brisbane. Ahhh...the decisions. But before embarking on those thoughts, I need to get back to revising for this blasted midyear exam.

Here's a photo that will hopefully tie you over until the next one...

Va, Vis et Deviens

2006-05-18T18:15:00.000+10:00

Go, Live and Become...

That is the movie that I saw last night with Liam at the UQ Schneoll Theatre. The movie starts in the early 1980s in Sudan.

The movie begins in 1985 when Mossad, with considerable assistance from the United States, ran the clandestine Operation Moses to airlift thousands of starved and persecuted Ethiopian Jews to Israel from refugee camps across the border in Sudan. These dark-skinned 'indelible immigrants', to use a term coined by historian Daniel Boorstin, known as the Falasha, are still not fully assimilated into Israeli society. The nine-year-old hero and his widowed Christian mother, last survivors of a family destroyed by famine and war, are at the same camp. When the small son of a Falasha widow dies shortly after being accepted for transportation, she agrees to take the Gentile boy in his place and she gives him the name Solomon, or Schlomo.

His mother bids him farewell with the words that gives the film its title: 'Go. Live. Become.' 'Go' is the urgent instruction to find security in Israel. 'Live' is her counsel to seize a sudden chance to survive and prosper. 'Become' is more problematic, and the movie is constantly alert to what it means in a world of emigration and immigration, asylum seeking and economic migration, where identities are assumed, imposed, blurred and recreated.

The opening section is full of suspense and danger. Can Schlomo convince the Israeli authorities that he's a Jew? Immediately before his interrogation on Israeli soil, a boy a few years older has his cover blown and is roughly escorted from the reception hall, shoved into a car and driven away to be repatriated. Schlomo gets by, but his ailing surrogate mother dies. He's adopted by a kindly Sephardic Franco-Israeli couple, extremely well played by French actor Roschdy Zem and celebrated Israeli actress Yael Abecassis.

These foster-parents, left-wing, semi-secular Jews who initially think the newcomer has been raised in the orthodox faith, draw the boy out and encourage their son and daughter to make him welcome. They represent much of what is best in the state of Israel and protect him from the prejudice, some of it truly ferocious, to which the Falasha are exposed.

The years pass, Schlomo takes on a new identity, has a Romeo and Juliet-style love affair with a Jewish girl, works on a kibbutz, experiences the tensions engendered by the Gulf War and the intifadas and, as part of his journey of discovery, attempts to contact his mother. The years Schlomo spends studying medicine in Paris, when he becomes aware of how he might transcend his problems and give practical assistance to his native Ethiopia.

The last scene of the movie is that he is at the same refugee camp and whilst he was handing out pens to kids, he sees this face half-covered by a shawl. He drops whatever he was holding and walks towards the seated figure, gazing into her eyes. He recognises his mother's eyes, squats down and calls to her. They hug and his mother then lets out this haunting moan.

It was an awesome film...go and watch it.

Finally!

2006-05-17T18:59:00.000+10:00

Finally, someone from outside my "med" world has visited me in Brisbane! My very good friend, Stephanie, came for a week and we had a blast! I've know Stephanie ever since I got back from doing an exchange at the University of Malta. We bonded over quite quickly and it seems as if we have been friends for ages.

S0, Stephanie came to Brisbane to start off her one month sojourn of Australia. Even though my midyear exam is only a few weeks away, I thought that I 'needed' another mini holiday in order to give the appropriate attention to Steph and also to recharge myself.

We did a number of things in the shortwhile that she was here. The first day she arrived, both her and I went to Mount Coot-tha (which in one of the Aboriginal languages means "place of honey"), which the highest point in Brisbane and you can see over the city and, if you are lucky, the islands off the coast.

The next day, we went to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, which is one of the few places left in Australia that you can actually hold a koala. However you have to pay to get your photo taken with it and the time that it takes for one of the handlers to place the koala in your hand and then position it so that its face is facing the camera. CLICK. Koala goes back to the handler. Apparently, they don't like to be handled. Go figure.

And they are very cute. We saw so many of them - bachelors, breeding females, year olds, and those that were suited for retirement.

We also saw other Australian animals such as kangaroos, wallabies and, our favourite, the southern hairy-nosed wombat.

Steph and I also took a trip down to Byron Bay, which is considered of on the quintessential beaches in Australia. Not only that but it is the most easterly point on the Australian mainland. We stayed in one of the many backpacker's hostels and had a great time! We both concluded that Byron Bay was the Australian equivalent of Banff, Canada. It seemed like a hippy-esque/new age sort of place with a huge kick of surfing subculture. There were tourists everywhere; I reckon that if I were living there, I would get sick of things real fast.

My friend Lou gave us some great suggestions for eating and hiking down there. We went hiking in Broken Head Nature Reserve, which was absolutely breathtaking! Here's what I mean:

This is White's Beach. Steph and I climbed down some pretty steep terrain in the hopes of making it there. Alas, there was a large chasm between the rocks separating this beach and Craig's Beach, which was were we ended up.

This was taken at Craig's Beach. Here's a photo of our shadows. And in the sand I wrote, "Steph & Veevek, Broken Head '06"

This is Mile Beach, and if you can imagine that White Beach is really really far down. Follow the beach towards to the back of the photo. Where the land stops, White Beach is right behind that point.

This is the most easterly point on mainland Australia.

The next morning, Steph and I got up at 5:30am (and it was cold as!) to go down to the beach and watch the sun rise. It was absolutely fantastic! Not only that, but we were able to see dolphins as well. It ws the perfect wasy to finish off the trip. We stayed in Byron till about noonish and headed back up to Brisbane via the Gold Coast. Spending good quality time with friends on the beach is a great thing!

I just hope that from seeing this, some other friends, hint hint, will want to come down. :)

Some more photos from New York

2006-05-05T22:37:00.000+10:00

So, I've been collating photos from friends who have captured photos that I wished that I had taken. Here you go:

This is a photo in the main foyer of the UN, once you've cleared security and gone inside the building. These stairs lead up to the General Assembly Main Hall. Apparently, this art work is something that will be put around the around. Meaning that this is the very beginning of the design and this design will travel (on rocks, bridges, and other things) around the world and it will be as if there is a ring of this art work all around the world. I don't remember who the artist is, if anyone out there does, then please let me know!

This is the symbol that has come to represent the UN. Its backdrop is a massive golden slanted wall. This massive symbol 'hangs' above the main podium, where the Secretary-General and the President of the General Assembly sit. I remember when I saw this hall for the very first time in 1999, it literally blew my breath away. To make that trip even more memorable, Kofi Annan was the keynote speaker! I still remember meeting his wife, Nane Anna. Absolutely wonderful woman.

Okay, I know what you are thinking...yes, it looks dirty, but we were just trying to cool each other. Still, it's pretty hot! :)

This photo was taken at a restaurant called Swing 46 and you ask what I am wearing. Well, this was Monday night and it was the 3rd day where I didn't have any new clothes because American Airlines was too busy trying to worry about illegal immigrants than making sure that my luggage would get to its intended destination. Hence, I wore a sweater that belonged to Erin. It had a fuzzy orange neck piece. It was definitely a conversation piece.

And here I am pretending to be Irish. That neck piece was just so versatile! Yes, at this point jet lag had definitely set in and I was just being dazed and confused.

Yes, my toe nails are painted...you've got a problem with that? Every time I go New York, Christine, myself and Peter (and whomever we've convinced to come with us) have gone to Bloomie's to get pedicures, sans colour for Peter and I. This time, Jill and I went to treat ourselves as the conference can get quite hectic and all. So, we found a place near the hotel and decided to get pedicures. Normally, I've never worn nail polish when I get pedicures done but I thought that this is my last time that I would be getting one in NYC for a very long time. So, I chose this colour and guess what the name of the colour was? UN BLUE!

I will try and add more photos from that trip as I get more. It seems that I've been updating this blog more and more. Perhaps it's because of my innate ability to procrastinate from doing some serious revising for my midyear exam. :) Speaking of which, pathophysiology of pulmonary disease is calling me.

Bronchoalveolar carcinoma and sunset drinks

2006-05-04T18:11:00.000+10:00

This past weekend was a very unique combination of relaxation and studying. Lou, Leanne, Anna, and I went to up Noosa (Sunshine Beach, actually), which is on the Sunshine Coast, for the long weekend. The purpose of the trip was to partake in a study boot camp. There are 40 days left until our mid year examination (which is going to be held on Tuesday at 5:45pm; not very happy about the time). So, we thought that by getting away and focusing only on the study, we would jump start the brain and get the juices flowing for the weeks to come. The girls went up on the Friday night and I came up on Saturday afternoon, as I went to a friend's engagement party on Saturday arvo.

I drove up in Lou's car and arrived later in the evening to the beach house that we were staying at. It was awesome! It sense the ocean right next to you, to hear the waves crashing down and to be kissed by the salty mist coming from the water. I came just in time when the girls had finished dinner, which meant that there was an open bottle of red wine nearby. I had a couple of glasses and started the night of study, which was only for a couple of hours before watching some Sex and the City dvds (what do you expect?! you go away with some gals for the weekend and they want to do that sort of thing...as long as I get my work done and have a great time, I'm up for anything!).

The next morning, I saw the view from the balcony for the first time and it looked like this -

We had brekky and dived into the books. It was a great getaway. My mobile phone had very limited service and I forgot to bring my battery charger for my laptop, which meant that I did my studying the old fashion way - by way of pen and paper.

Sometimes it just feels as if you are accomplishing much more by that method as opposed to typing your notes out. After a full day's worth of studying (and grazing on snacks and other food stuff), we had sunset drinks in the spa on the roof, which overlooks the ocean. It was fantastic! Also, the rest of red wine that was brought up was finished. I tell you red wine and I are good friends. :)

The following morning, Lou, Leanne and I went up to Noosaheads for a swim (I didn't go for a swim instead I walked around the beach and soaked up some much needed sun) and then went for an awesome brekky. It was a bit surreal because we had to walked through a bit of the national park in order to get to the beach we went to. We headed back to the house and studied until lunch time. We ate lunch on the roof and saw dolphins frolicking in the ocean It was blissful. After lunch, we studied until 5:30pm and then headed home.

The weekend was restful and yet probably one of the most productive ones that I've had all year. I reckon that this was the jumpstart that my brain needed to get in 'exam' mode. To make things a bit tricky, one of my very good friends from Canada is coming next week. I'm hoping to get as much work done so that I can spend some quality time with her. We shall see how things go over the next few days.

Does violence breed violence?

2006-04-28T14:54:00.000+10:00

Today was a really strange day.

Today was the first time I went back to PBL since coming back from holidays. It seemed that even though I missed more lectures and the actual PBL than my fellow colleagues, I was pretty much on the ball (if only I had more days like that!), apart from getting all the pathophysiological mechanisms down, which I'm hoping that by the end of the weekend I will have.

After PBL was finished, I walked down towards the bus stop in front of the Princess Alexandra Hospital. At the bus stop, this woman, who was quite dishevelled, smoking and seemed to have been drinking, asked me whether I could give her two dollars for the bus. I asked he what bus she was getting on and it turned out that her and I were catching the same bus. I told her that I wouldn't mind paying for her fare into the city. She refused and she wanted the cash. I told her again that I will pay for her fare once we got on the bus. I had my left hand outstretched, which is also the hand that I wear this multi-ringed thumb ring. She snatched and pulled off the ring and put it on. I was quite shocked and asked her to give it back. She said that it was hers and started shouting at me. I asked her again in a firm voice to give it back and she started swearing at me and saying that it was her ring. Mind you were there were a number of other people at the bus station that just stood there. I grabbed her hand and tried to pry my ring off of her finger. I realised at that point that she had a cigarette in the other hand. The thought of her burning me with her cigarette crossed my mind. At this point, the bus that I needed to catch already came and left. She started to walk off in the opposite direction of traffic. I grabbed her hand harder this time, and forced my ring off of her finger whilst she was cussed me out. I put my ring on my finger and started walking in the other direction. SMACK! This lady had all of a sudden smack me across my face, so hard in fact that I almost lost my balance and my sunnies flew off my face! I was shocked! I couldn't believe that someone would have resorted to violence over something like that; then again, to be under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs could have easily put someone in that mindset. After that moment, I walked away thinking that should I have retaliated in some way. No. Violence should not breed violence. It should stop at the very first instance; in fact, there should be none at all. I walked and sat at the bus stop. Meanwhile, the people that were around me were avoiding me. Finally a couple of people came up and asked whether I knew her. It seemed as if they were looking at me as if I were a trouble maker as well. The couple had asked me again whether I knew her and I told them no. They also asked whether I was coming from the hospital. I told them yes and that I was a medical student, in the hopes of clearing up any misconceptions they had about me. And apparently they did, because they were quite surprised, "OH! You are a medical student. I'm very sorry that that had to happen to you. You can never trust those sort of people." I felt dejected, I felt as if all the work done in the fight against stereotyping and prejudice went down the drain. I felt powerless because no matter what I could have said, it would have been all in vain. Do I want sympathy from people when they hear about things like this? No. Do I hope that these sort of things make people question their interactions with other? Yes. You know what...fuck it. I'm too tired to be thinking about this at the moment. Not only that but I'm sick and tired of knowing that the difference one person tries to make ends up being a drop in the ocean. I know that I won't stop doing what I do...but at times it's hard to keep it up.

A whirlwind of thoughts

2006-04-24T11:51:00.000+10:00

Wow…it has been too long. I don’t have the words to express how sorry I am for all of you that read this blog to keep up with my so-called life.

Since the last entry, a few things have materialised that I thought that I should metion. Firstly, 2nd year medical school is a bitch. Yes. Done and done. As I said last year, learning medicine is like learning how to drink water from a fire hydrant. The volume of information that MBBS II students need to know is insurmountable. I’ve been doing the bare minimum – knowing what the basic pathophysiological mechanisms for the cases that we have had thus far. However, unlike some of close friends, I’m having some issues with knowing the bare minimum. I reckon that that amount of knowledge will be enough to pass the year; but more importantly, do I want to know enough to pass? Currently, a dichotomy has surfaced, and that is either to play the School of Medicine’s game of knowing the answers for the exams versus knowing and synthesising information for the sake of your future patient’s health. In reality, it should be the latter; however, in practice (at least at this stage of the year), it is the former. How does one make that transition from learning the basic stuff to learning things that will actually saves someone’s life. I’ve been told my a number of the upper years that the fine details will be learnt during the clerkship years (MBBS III and IV) and that at the moment, knowing Kumar & Clark’s Clinical Medicine (one of the best clinical medicine books around) and the basic pathology from Robbins (one of the best pathology books that medical students have access to) is key for making sure that you can go onto 3rd year. It feels as if I’m in first year all over again in that I’m getting a bit worried about whether I will know enough to pass the midyear and (more importantly) the finals.

Also, I recently came back from an NMUN conference in New York. I’ve been going back to this conference for a number of years now, and this time was the last one. I had a hellish time getting there (plane was on the tarmac for 3 hours, luggage was lost for 4 days, had some visa issues with respect to getting back to Australia, to name a few) and back. However, spending time with those that I love was priceless. It was a bit of a swan’s song really. I know that the majority of people that I have become friends with from the conference, I will ‘never’ see again. However, there are a select few (and you know who you are) that our paths are destined to cross again. Here are some photos from the trip (for those of you that are in the photo and you don’t want to be…then let me know I can take the photo down):

This is a photo of me wearing an ECOSOCool shirt that Christine bought for the department. A friend of mine has it and hopefully it is making its way back to my closet. :) And I'm a bit scared to see the resemblance I've to my older brother in this photo. That reminds me, I've to call QANTAS to get my glasses back.

Peter is one of my closest friends, and I met him at the 2003 conference. We got along like houses on fire. In the summer of 2003, I went to Germany and celebrated my birthday in Cologne (where he was living at the time) and Christine flew out to be with us as well. That trip was chock full of memories. Ahh... Now, Peter lives in Berlin and has recenlty finished his PhD in law. Yeah, he's one of those. :) However, I still don't know what happened to him on the Monday morning...

Amierah and I met in 1999 and we have been great friends ever since. Even though we live an ocean apart (and sometimes the ocean changes as she will often tell me "Hi, I'm in Egypt!"). She is extremely honest (which is a rare quality for people to have) and truly genuine. Amierah, I wish you all the best of luck for SG for NMUN 2007!

This is Jill. She is originally from Georgia, USA and now is living in Luxembourg. Jill is a lawyer and is very interested in the non-profit sector. She is consultant for Human Rights Watch and is working for the European Court of Justice and will soon be moving back to New York to work for quite a prestigous law firm. She was my cuddle buddy for the week. :) Lordy...I'm sooooo drunk!

This is a photo of me, Colleen, Rabia, and Sara. Each of us born in a different country (and having different passports) but bonded by 1-2-3 STRIKE-A-POSE! My pose is one that I used in an Indian folk dance that I was in a few years ago. [For those that are curious: Veevek - Canada, Colleen - USA, Rabia - UK, and Sara - Iran] Seriously though, all of us are intelligent (apart from when we get together). Colleen is doing her PhD in international relations, Rabia is a doing a MA in international economics and Sara just got accepted to do her MA in international security and disarmament and political economy.

No trip to New York could ever be complete without seeing my best friend, Christine, again. Seeing her makes my reality a better place. She has started her PhD programme in economics at the Univeristy of California, Los Angeles (she's the smart one). This was our last conference together; even though we won't be seeing each other next year around this time, I know that she is one of the few people that will be in my life irrespective of where we are. Heck, she's going to be the future godmother of my kids (hmm...perhaps I should talk to my spouse about this one. Better yet, perhaps I should get myself a girlfriend before that even happens...argh...too many things to do!).

This is a photo of Andres, myself and Peter (the location...I don't remember). I had to put this photo in because many of the NMUN girls have told me that this photo is "hot". I don't know why...but I'm just doing them a service. :) Andres recently moved to Quito, Ecuador (he used to live in Germany for the past 12 years). He goes by the name of Dr. G, as he recently got his PhD with his thesis being on corruption in Latin America. So, in about two years time...this photo will have Dr. G, Dr. T and Dr. G. :)

Rabia and I met in 2004 and ever since we've been laughing it up over things such as music, pop culture, fashion, politics, food and of course, South Asian folk dance. She had sent me a little sound byte (Itsy Bitsy Spider) by the Wolvesbrothers. When her and I got to NYC, we choreographed a little dance to the song and promised ourselves that we would perform this dance in the middle of Time Square. One day, we did a little practice run outside the lobby of the hotel and one of the hotel staff told us that if we put a hat on the ground beside us, the we would probably get some money! HAHAHAHA. On our last day in NYC, around 1pm, Rabia and I danced to the song in the middle of Time Square, not bearning any attention to the heaps of tourists walking around, the Naked Cowboy, and vehicles filled with people looking and taking photos.

Okay...enough of the walking down memory lane...back to reality, back to life...

Now that I’m back in Brisbane, I know that I need to crank up the volume in terms of sitting my ass down and revising for the midyear exam. Also, I need to get enough work done so that when my friend Stephanie (from Toronto) comes down to visit in May, I can devote some of my time to her and be a good host.

So, what's next on the V-man's agenda? Well, for the next 6 weeks I've gotta bustamove and get enough stuff into my head to pass my midyear exam. Apart from that, I'm going to be buying my ticket to Europe this week! My brother is getting married in August in Sweden (as his fiancee, who is the bestest future sister-in-law in the world, is from there). There is also going to be an Indian reception, which will be held a week later in Leicester, UK, as the majority of my dad's side of the family lives Europe-side. So, booking this ticket, who would have thought that flying into London Heathrow would be more expensive than, let's say, flying to Paris. So, what does Veevek do? He is going to be flying into Paris! This will be awesome, as I've never been and I have a few friends that are living there. Also, my friend Paramjot from Brisbane will be coming with me. After the wedding stuff is over, Paramjot and I are heading over to Helsinki (if you haven't seen the show "Little Britain" you are missing out) for the World Congress of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War. YAYAYAYAYAYA...another trip! I can't wait. :)

But before I can get all happy about that, I need to get through the next 6 weeks. Alright, enough bitching about what is to come. I reckon that I should just get to it. On that note, I should revise last year's stuff on cystic fibrosis, as Leanne and I are tutoring that subject to our group of first year medical students that we tutor every Monday arvo. I've some news about the tutoring programme but I want to make sure that some key elements are in place before telling the world about it. Yes, I'm being cruel and making you all wait. Suck it up, buttercup.

Crazy Currylingus...

2006-02-11T23:45:00.000+10:00

Alright, Currylingus is my cousin (our respective mothers are sisters) and she has got to be one of the coolest people I know (and believe-you-me, I know a lot of people). She's ultra hip, modern, classy, has a fantastic wit, and a charm that puts most people to shame! (You can thank me later, Currylingus). I've always thought of her as my younger sister; in fact, she is born 1 year minus 2 days later than I. We are both bonafide leos........grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. :)

She dropped a tag on me, which essentially means that I have to do this. :)

4 Jobs: (most recent)
1. Researcher for one of my most favourite economic professors at University of Calgary. In fact, he is one of my mentors. I helped him to do some research on a paper that he was writing.

2. As a consultant for Health Canada, I had to create a complete document on all Canadian activity that was going on at the 2004 International AIDS Conference in Bankok, Thailand. I was also in charge of putting together cross-cultural awareness information along with information that Canadian delegates would need regarding the city, Thai culture and norms, and the logistics of the conference.

3. HIV/AIDS Lecturer (Kibera's Women's Help Group) - while working on my internship, I was also given some work in Kibera (Africa's largest slum) and discuss issues regarding HIV/AIDS and its effect on one's livelihood and outlook.

4. HIV/AIDS Programme Officer in Kenya - this was through a Canadian government internship. It was absolutely amazing; mainly did work in the field of home-based care and stigma & discrimination.

4 Movies (off the top of my head)

-Indiana Jones & Raiders of the Lost Ark (saw it last night with Liam)
-Usual Suspects (a classic & favourite film of mine)
-Syriana (saw it last night! pretty good)
-Black Stallion Returns (hey...don't knock it!)

4 Places I’ve Lived:

-Brisbane, Australia
-Nairobi, Kenya,
-Lija, Malta
-Calgary, Canada

4 TV Shows:

-House
-PrisonBreak
-Amazing Race
-Grey's Anatomy (hmm...if it were to return at some point)

4 Vacations (the most recent ones):

Calgary, Canada
Porbandar & Ahmedabad India
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Colombo, Sri Lanka

4 Foods:

-Pad Thai (can always tell judge a Thai restaurant by their Pad Thai)
-dhokla (had some last night...but mum's are better!)
-spinach and ricotta lasagne
-dolmades (I am sucker for antipasto)

4 Places I’d Rather Be:

-Macchu Pichu
-Great Barrier Reef
-Crestanello (the best Italian cafe I have been to anywhere - it's right across the street from the New York Public Library...I can't wait to taste you again in a few weeks!)
-At the gym (but alas anaemias and multiple myelomas are shouting at me!)

4 Sites:

www.bbc.co.uk
www.desiwear.com
http://www.world66.com/myworld66
www.kumarandclark.com (yes...I'm being a nerd)

4 Bloggers with some meme-ingful work ahead:

Anita - you know that you are dying to do something like this...c'mon futafut!
Sheebykins - I want to hear about your HSMUN weekend!
Christine - yes, I know you are busy but consider this exercise a part of your commitment to your blog :)
Robo - yes...you have been chosen...

Okay...enough of the 'tagged' stuff. I do want to update this thing with regards to what happened this weekend and how life is going in general. The upcoming week is a hectic one and I do hope to provide myself with some therapy by typing away on this thing.

First week almost over already?!

2006-01-29T20:44:00.000+10:00

The first week of MBBS II has finished and it seems that my brain can't get into it! Fortunately (maybe unfortunately as well), many of my friends and classmates are facing this as well.

Academically, this past week has been a bit of a blunder because the gap between Year I and Year II seems to be quite large and this year the School of Medicine has decided to change a number of things (surprise, surprise). The week runs from Tuesday to Monday (no uni on Saturday or Sunday) as opposed to last year, in which the week ran from Monday to Friday. I have PBL on Tuesday morning from 8 to 11, and then I have my clinical coaching sessions at Redland Hospital, which is at least 30 km outside of Brisbane. I'm not too happy about my placement (I'm not the only one, the 8 other members of my PBL are also stationed there). It takes almost 2 hours to get there from my house and more than 2.5 hours to get back to my house. I'll keep you posted on how that turns out, as I've emailed the Head of Year II and hoping that there will be some resolution to this issue. Wednesday and Thursday, we have lectures from 8 till whenever (normally never lasting more than 4.5 hours, at least that is according to the Master Timetable that we were given). Friday, there is usually a Clinical Large Group lecture from 8 to 9:30 and then I've a 2-hour PBL session from 9:30 to 11:30. Then I have two 1.5 hours pathology and anatomy practicals each week. PBL and clinical coaching are the only two things that we HAVE to go to; all other schedule lectures/clinical large groups/clinical reasoning lectures are optional. Also, this year will be about pathology. Year I is a year to learn about what's normal (with some level of pathology) and how that relates to the different body systems. In Year II, we learn about why things fuck up and how to fix it. The SOM has designed the year so that we have maximum time for self-directed learning and opportunities for clinical practice, as this year is considered to be the "systematic preparation for practice".

Okay, that was boring...on to the fun stuff. We had orientation on January 20th and apart from the administrative stuff (congratulations on passing first year, this year will be harder, blah blah blah, ra ra ra), it was so good to see people again! I knew that I missed my friends but once I saw them, I didn't realise how much I've missed them. Many hugs and kisses were flying about. I was able to meet new people (well, people that I didn't know last year), which is great because one of things that we were told to do by the Head of School of Medicine was to network and develop professional relationships with our peers. Good God! If that's the case, then I might as well just stop now because I don't think that my brain can handle the multiple number of Robs, Daves, Matts, Claires, Kims and the like. Friday night was great as I hung out with Leanne, Claire, Annabelle and Brownlie. We all talked about our electives, drank some good Australian alcohol and headed down to Ludo, a bar along Caxton Street. This bar is owned by a second year medical student in my year. Drinks were free until 7pm; needless to say, the four of us (and the other med students that were there) made sure that we got our free monies worth of drinks. :) After that, I met up with Param, her friend from Vancouver, Marlo and Melissa at Caxton Hotel for some more drinks and a little hip shakin' on the dance floor, until Annabelle's brother dropped me home (so nice that your friend's younger siblings can be the responsible ones and take your older siblings and their friends home). Saturday night was another long night as many of the Canadian students went out to a very posh vodka bar in West End called the Lychee Lounge. After having our tummies filled with many good things, we headed down to into the City and went dancing at a nightclub. We left when the bar closed (around 3:00am) and then I headed home, where I stayed up for a few more hours before going to bed.

The Sunday was a day of preparations for our (Dave, Suz and Veevek) housewarming. We spent a bit of money on getting the food prepared. Originally, we were only going to invite a small number of people but then that got out of hand; I reckon that at least a 100 invites went out. Fortunately, we didn't have that many people attend. The most number of people we had was 43, which was great! Lots of great food, drinks and conversations were had by all. The best part was is that Dave, Suz and I have set the standard for the higher quality of parties that can be done by 2nd year medical students. Most house parties are just sorry excuses to drink excessively and be surrounded by abrasive people. Here are a couple photos:

The socialising aspect of the first week back was probably the biggest factor that made getting back into the academic side of things very difficult. But who is to blame us? Wednesday evening was the eve before Australia Day (akin to Canada Day or 4th of July for the Americans), so Annabelle and I went over to Claire's house to make sangria and get things ready for the party. The next morning, we were up and ready to go! Australia Day!! It was fun! I remember las t year, Cam and I didn't know anyone yet so we stayed at home watched tennis and cricket and enjoyed a couple of beers. This year, I had Australian flag tattooed on my cheek, partook in singing the Australian national anthem ("Advance Australia Fair"), even though it was grotesquely out of tune. Here are some photos:

(The brown stuff on Claire's toast is vegemite! mmm..mmm...good)

The next day was the first med keg of the year! Last year, it was a horrible display of how much I drank. This year was a whole other story! It was fun and not as packed as last year. I checked out the new talent that the MBBS I cohort brough...and I was quite impressed. I met a number of first year students and re-connected with some people in my year (oddly enough, that the re-connection happens in the presence of alcohol). I left at a decent time, only to come home to drink some ginger beer and then some vodka with Liam (Dave's friend from Canberra). Fun times were had all round!

The Saturday after the keg was a great day! Dave, Liam and I went to Burleigh Beach (which is along the Gold Coast) and I ended up getting a sunburn on the left side of my face...it's quite gross considering that it's starting to peel. That evening, I stayed on the couch watching Jurassic Park III, while the others went to see Brokeback Mountain (I had already seen it with a friend in Calgary). I was supposed to go out with my friend Leanne but that fell through. That being said, every cloud has a silver lining, in the sense that I needed an alcohol-free night. :) We have been taught that you should have at least two alcohol-free days a week. So far, so good!

It is now Thursday night, and I've just finished the week's work (this week's case is on eczema). I'll go over it in greater detail this weekend. I'm glad that my brain has been jumpstarted into it. I'm excited about this new year!

A dedication to some special people...

2006-01-29T11:09:00.000+10:00

Well, the first week of uni has gone by without much incident (academically speaking I mean). But before I go into what has happened in Brisbane since my arrival, I wanted to touch upon some people that made my time in Calgary just a bit sweeter.

Coming back to Calgary always fills me with a mixed bag of emotions. Apart from the friends and family that are there, the city is only a shell that has been filled with the majority of my life's experiences. However, in the moment, the city does not hold that for me. As for some of the friends that I have, are still stuck inside a time-warp that exerts itself on some of the inhabitants of Calgary.

For the most part, majority of my friends do not fit that category. They are forward thinkers and willing to accept the uncertainty that the future holds, especially with regards to the dynamics of relationships (especially those people that have had to put up with uprooting and relocation every few years). This blog is a dedication to those people...

This is Trish. We met in a genetics lab that we had together. We sat beside each other and bitched about the 12 hour reporting we had to do with our fruit flies (I tell you, every time I see a fruit fly, I have chills running down my spine), amongst other things. We had many of the same classes together - organic chemistry, botany, genetics and biology. She recently finished her undergraduate degree in biological sciences and now wants to pursue what has been her dream of music (before it was medicine but her vocal talents would be wasted!). Trish has the voice of an angel (akin to Charlotte Church). She is one of those people that has grace, in the sense that she always has the disposition to be generous and helpful, and that she doesn't discriminate against anyone when it comes to that. Everytime I come back to Calgary (and if she is there as well), we have afternoons filled with chai and random snacks, and conversations that would include and involve everything from small talk to politics to medical science, and the like. She knows that she means the world to me - and now I can let you all know that as well. :)

The next group of people, I met through the University of Calgary International Student Centre (ISC). Vivian, Trinda, Ced and Brenda. Vivian, Trinda, Brenda and I used to all be volunteers and/or student staff together. It was great to be involved with an organisation that really did promote internationalisation of one's university education. Ced has come over from France and is a very good friend of Trinda's. Oddly enough, I dated Ced's cousin when she came to Calgary from France to do a semester abroad. Even though they are all at different places in their lives, they know what it feels like when your experiences are incongruent to others. They understand that the people that you care about will have lives that will progress at different rates. Vivian did an exchange to Ireland, and then a work term in France; Trinda taught English in France, and Brenda (who is of Gautemalan decent) works with Shell Oil, with most of her clients being from America.

Here is Anita. Anita and I got to know each other from the University of Calgary Amnesty International Association. We were co-executive directors at one point. She is Fijian of Indian ancestry. Unlike the many other Indian-esque people that I know, she is not doing business, engineering, law or medicine. No, she doesn't own a 7-11 or other convenient store, nor does she work at a liquor/Indian spice/Indian clothing and jewellery store. She is a graduate student in political science and will, hopefully, be going into a doctoral programme in political science as well. She is extremely cultured, can carry on a great conversation (in all the different fields...but you get her started on human rights and security issues...you're done!), and is a great soundboard for ideas and thoughts that you might be having. This photo was taken a few days before I left Calgary at a place called Cafe Mediterranean. It's one of the few places in Calgary that you can smoke a sheesha (no, that has nothing to do with marijuana or opium or anything other narcotic). She is thinking of coming down to Australia to visit Ruth and myself; so much fun is to be had!

Christine and Steve...what to say about these two? Well, I met Steve on this trip back to Calgary, as Christine and Steve started dating when I was in Australia. Christine and I met in 1999 as we were both going on exchange. She went to Mexico and I went to Malta. Upon our return, we both volunteered for the ISC. In fact, I had a little crush on Christine at that time. I told her about it and she turned me down as she already had a boyfriend. Even though she went on to complete a degree in international relations (and subsequently a Master's degree in global development in Latin America from University Collge of London in the UK), we are still able to about development, politics, health, economics and also the more small talk stuff of fashion, travel (which is very important to us both) and those sort of things. Even though she is working in Calgary in the area of international education at one of the polytechnic institutions, she desires go beyond her box and do something that she is passionate about, which is development. She's definitely a keeper!

Bijal - someone that I have known for many years but in a variety of ways. Bijal and I are members of the Gujarati community in Calgary. Our parents having set roots in Calgary and made family friends amongst those that shared the Gujarati culture, language and values. In the beginning, we knew each other as "so and so child". Then as we grew older we were involved in dances and saw each other at jamvanus (the Gujarati word for dinners), cultural and religious events. And for those people that know me, I've not been a mainstream member of the Gujarati community in Calgary because I never felt as if I belonged to the social/age group that I was supposedly a part of. The other kids that were in it had a very different idea of what was fun and cool. Also, I despise to the two-faced nature of many of them. Bijal is one of the few that isn't like that. What you see is what you get. Like Anita, she too is not doing medicine, engineering, business nor does she own the aforementioned service stores. She is doing a degree in French, with a minor in English. CRAZY! I love it! She does want to go on and complete a law degree. Unlike most people that I know within the community, Bijal is extremely well-spoken and can carry out a conversation on any topic. She is very rational (which I've realised that many people aren't) and when she speaks of an idea or thought process, it is clear and extremely articulate. At the same time, she can be ridiculously silly (but in a good way) and has an endearing childlike quality about her when it comes to having a good time. She is the real deal. As with the others, she too sees relationships as being dynamic and fluid.

Now, there are a number of people that I didn't take photos with but there are a couple that I need to mention. One is my dear friend Monica. Monica and I met in an organic chemistry lab (what's with me and meeting friends in a laboratory). She was doing the science then medicine route. However, after some soul searching, she finished up with a joint degree in economics and English. We had a couple economics classes together. She was in Fiji and New Zealand working for Commonwealth Learning, which provides internships to youth. These internships are partnered with the Canadian International Development Agency, Foreign Affairs Canada, and International Trade Canada. She is now at Queen's University in Canada doing a Master's in Public Administration and a law degree. Her and I met for coffee at what is probably the best cafe I've been to in Calgary. It's called Cafe Beano - for those of you in Calgary that are reading this. It's off of 17th Ave on the left hand side before getting to the lights at Mount Royal Village.
We talked about the issues that we both face when coming back home and how we don't really know where we are going to end up after we finish our respective degrees. Issues such as the transient status of relationships, the concept and ideals of home and what we can and cannot tolerate from our families. Like myself, she too will be heading back to Calgary every Christmas, so it will be nice to see someone, so to speak, that is cut from the same fabric.

And then there is Tim. A friend of mine from university - we took a course of infectious disease together. He works at a hospital in Calgary as an orderly and is hoping to get into the fast-track post-graduate nursing programme at the University of Calgary. There aren't many people that I would call "safe" and "solid". Tim is the epitome of how safe and solid a friend can be. He too has a horrible travel bug and his experiences in Africa (he travelled to Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya and Malawi) only fuelled his desires to see and do more than what is offered at home. Even though he has bought himself a condo in the city, it doesn't stop him from dreaming about what lies ahead.

All in all, being in touch with people that have shared common experiences and have common future visions of where they see themselves in all spheres of their lives is a very reaffirming feeling to have. And even though I've only been living in Australia for one year and have become close friends with some absolutely amazing people...I only hope that I can only manage my spheres a bit better.

Hello from Hong Kong!

2006-01-17T00:49:00.000+10:00

I'm in Hong Kong International Airport waiting to board on my flight to Brisbane (which is in an hour). I must say that flying over the Pacific Ocean sucks as! The flying time from Vancouver to Hong Kong was 14h45mins. There were several screaming rats...I mean...children. However, there was one baby sitting in front of me that was quiet the entire time, near the end of the flight I helped the parents play with their son as they were getting very tired (I know, I like to help wherever I can).

And for future references, Cathay Pacific is a so-so airline. As far as the Asian airlines are considered, nothing tops Singapore Airlines. Nothing.

Okay, in the 5 minutes that I've been on this thing, a massive queue has developed. 10 more hours and I'll be in Brisbane!

Until then, keep fit and have fun!

Happy New Year's!

2006-01-07T17:29:00.000+10:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve last written. I do warn you that this is a long post, complete with photos.

Alright, so many people want me to post more about my experiences in India – that’s fair, as I don’t want to disappoint some of my readers. So here goes.

After leaving Delhi, I realised that I left a bit of my heart there. It was a place that nurtured the human spirit from within; it was a place that enabled me to see horrible things become beautiful and beautiful things becoming ugly; it made me realised that I do not only want to become a doctor, but to become a ‘healer’ in every sense of the word. It was a place that I know that I will go back to time and time again both in the physical and spiritual sense. I know that I am soliloquising about all the good things, but there were moments of sheer frustration and random chaos that gave Delhi its indelible charm.

I went to my cousin’s wedding and my dad’s cousin wedding (in the case that some of you are confused, these were two completely separate weddings) in Porbandar, Gujarat.

This is a photo of Kirti Mandir, which is a place of honour in Porbandar, as it is where Mahatma Gandhi was born.

This is the fruit and vegetable market near my family's home. I would go and buy the vegetables needs for that day's meals. They would always give you free coriander, chilli and bay leaves. (Only if they could do that at the markets in Brisbane).

And if all else fails with medical school (which is highly unlikely), I can always fall back on becoming a rickshawala! Driving a rickshaw is absolutely fantastic! It's an experience that I think most people should try at least once in their life.

Okay, back to it...I met up with mum and my Ashakaki (kaki = aunt [your dad’s brother’s wife, that word is different to the word used to call your mum’s brother’s wife]) in the plane in Mumbai heading to Porbandar. Porbandar is a coastal city that starts to reek of dried fish in the late afternoon, while the city experiences its daily siesta. It’s a place of very fond memories with family. The celebrations around the two weddings were absolutely fantastic! I met up with my friend Rakhee (she is originally from Calgary but had been teaching English in Japan for the past year, and is now somewhere in London, UK at the moment) who was undertaking English tuitions every afternoon for boys and girls. At the sanji (in Gujarati, means ‘evening’), we got dressed up in our finery and danced the night away! Many people came up to both of us and asked whether we were professional dancers hired by the family. HAHAHAHA. Rakhee and I couldn’t stop blushing and laughing. We thought that it would be prudent to start such a company where we can rent out people to dance at functions like this. The name of such company would be “Garba GoGo Dancers”. There was a sanji also for the other wedding and, once again, we got the same compliments and people asked the same questions. Also, some people were asking about whether Rakhee and I are getting married or thinking of getting married. Hmmm…I guess when you have reached mid-20s anything, one’s family start to get a bit agitated that they are not yet married. Unfortunately, I was sick of the day of the weddings (they were both held on the same day), I was unable to get out of bed and had quite a high fever. Fortunately that only lasted a day.

After the wedding celebrations were over, I was able to relax with my mum and members of her family. We all went out to Majivana (my mum’s grandfather’s village) for the day and we did some pujas and had lunch out there. It’s always nice to see whether your family can trace its roots to. Also, it is refreshing to know that in some cultures that these sorts of activities are highly valued.

I left Porbandar and headed up to Gujarat’s main city (not the capital, but it really is in every sense of the word), Ahmedabad. I have cousins that live there and I always like going there as it is usually very different from the lifestyle in Porbandar. It is more cosmopolitan, there are many more things to do and the hustle & bustle of the city just energises you. Even though my time here was limited, I was able to spend time with my two nieces and nephew.

As for the remainder of my elective at St Stephen’s hospital, I became more and more attached to the Community Outreach Centre. I did take a few days off to experience the General Surgery department, which was absolutely wicked! I didn’t think that I would like surgery but I did. I was able to watch a lobectomy, a couple of laparoscopic cholecystectomy and removal of benign lumps from breast tissue. I was able to also see a woman, who had a full mastectomy, with necrotising tissue and a deep hole in her chest cavity, a young girl whose face was burnt off with acid, several abscesses and cysts to last me quite some time and an inguinal hernia repair. The remainder of the time at Community, as in my previous post, was incredible. I made friends in a place where people don’t necessarily trust those that come and go; I made connections with children that were more cynical than people I know (ahem…you know who you are!) I was able to move about more in the community and be welcomed into the homes of people that frequented the clinics and utilised the services that the community centre provided them with. I was given a glimpse of hope in the midst of utter destitution and poverty. That sliver of hope was more powerful than anything that I could feel…I still get chills down my spine thinking of about it.
The little girl in the pink jumper is Anjali. She is the one that called me 'papa' after I knew her for one week. I still won't forget how every time I would come into the children's area, she would stop whatever she was doing, run to me with her arms outstretched and a huge smile on her face. I only wished that there was more that I could do for her.

Okay, to pick up from the last post, which was written on the last night I was in Brisbane. The flight home was uneventful but long as! I’ve realised that the cheapest flight to and fro Australia is not necessarily the best one. My flight went from Brisbane to Singapore, 4 hours in Singapore, Singapore to Tokyo (correction: I wrote Taipei in that post and it should have been Tokyo), 2 hours in Tokyo, Tokyo to Los Angeles, 6 hours in LA (my best friend Christine picked me up from the airport and we went to walk around UCLA campus, ate at some great eateries in Westwood and then we went to Santa Monica beach for a quick walk), LA to Calgary. Fortunately, my trip back to Brisbane is via Hong Kong (which is shorter and I don’t have to travel through America). (insert photo of Christine and I at Santa Monica)

Coming home has been great! Seeing family and good friends at this time of year always rekindles the soul and makes the spirit grow stronger. It seems that everyone has changed, which is a great thing. I reckon that it is indicative of the fact that people I know have been working towards their own goals and desires. The really odd thing about being in Calgary at the moment is that the weather is fantastic (for those of you in warmer climates, you will definitely disagree with this), hovering around 10 degrees Centigrade and no snow has fallen in Calgary for weeks! It was a very brown and dry Christmas.

I’ve been able to spend time with some really solid friends. As much as I love my close friends in Brisbane, some of whom are like family, it’s reaffirming to know that you can jump back into a friendship of 4, 5, 6 and 10 years without having a glitch in it. The development of history within a friendship can be quite painstakingly difficult. I’ve been quite blessed with the friends that I have, such that developing such history has been an enjoyable journey.

My family doesn't celebrate Christmas. However, we celebrate the fact that we are together as a family and can look back at the year, along with eating some great food and enjoying great laughs. For the past few Christmases (except for the time that I was living in Kenya), I have have celebrated Christmas with the Richmonds. It's always a riot! We all wear the paper hats that come out of the crackers; every year, I have to make little rips in mine because it can't fit on my head. (Oh, those are my new glasses that I bought from Delhi). Christine and I normally ending up drinking a bit too much wine and have great conversations. This year was special because it will most likley be the last one that we will be spending together for quite some time. Also, her parents are becoming snowbirds and moving down to Mexico and her sister is moving to Vancouver to fulfill her goals of fashion desing (she is fantastic!).

Every year for New Year’s, my friends and I are always trying to think of what we can do. This year, however, Vijaykaka (kaka = dad’s brother, and this word is different from sister’s brother) bought me a ticket to “BollyVegas” and pitched the idea to me as an multicultural extravaganza. He also said that I could bring a friend. So, this year I celebrated the New Year’s with my parents, Bhavisha, Vinay, Vijaykaka, Ashakaki, and one of my best friends, Christine. Christine (who bought a dress especially for that night, not because she was prepared but because all she bought to Calgary were casual clothes) and I (glad that I left a suit in Calgary) got dressed up and before heading over my uncle’s house for a little pre-party party gathering, our mothers took photos at Christine’s house. It almost felt like Grade 12 graduation or something! Upon arrival at Vijaykaka’s house, we took back some rum-orange juice before making our way to the venue, which was a new hotel/casino that opened up in the South-East of Calgary. The food sucked at this place. No, sorry, the best dish at the place was the salad. A night of drinking vodka, rum and champagne made me and Christine quite happy (the double vodka and orange juice and taking back two glasses of champagne really put us into the ‘happy’ zone). I know that some of you might think that I have some guts to drink in front of my parents. I would rather them know than doing it behind their back. My cousin Vinay kept asking me as the night progressed, “Veevekbhai (bhai = brother), are you smashed yet?” This was the first time that my cousins have seen me drink more than one drink and I was quite composed, as opposed to falling all over myself at the first med keg (good God!). Christine, Bhavisha, Vinay and I ripped up the dance floor and it was great to create such a positive energy field amongst us, which carried us into the new year.

New Year's Resolutions (the major ones)

1. Learn to take time for myself
2. Become more active in the 'community' in Brisbane (community meaning the medical, university and Gujarati community)
3. Get back into the gym (so far so good!)
4. Tell those around me that are important how important they really are.

B.L.A.C.K - Black

2005-12-19T11:21:00.000+10:00

It is 2:15am on Monday morning and I have just finished watching “Black”, a film by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. WOW. It is not the typical melodrama, coordinated singing and dancing, with a love triangle mix Bollywood film that most people would suspect. My parents had seen this film earlier in the year and my mum told me that it was a movie that I must see. Unfortunately, the movie didn’t show here in Brisbane. While I was in Delhi, I found a copy (not a pirated one!) and bought it.

The film is about a girl named Michelle McNally (played by Rani Mukherjee); she cannot see nor hear nor speak. She inhabits a world of infinite black…of a seamless, endless void where nothing reaches her and she reaches nothing. Her world is frightening in its complete remoteness. On the sheer will of her ferocious rage against destiny, Michelle struggles to stay afloat in the impenetrable whirlpool her life has become.

Into this devastating isolation enters a battle weary teacher, Debraj Sahai (played by Amitabh Bachchan), life’s wounded but arrogantly insolent warrior. With a single minded obsession, Debraj takes the challenge that is next to impossible – to lead this wild, uncontrollable child into the light of knowledge.

Thus begins a journey of two headstrong individuals. They overcome failures, obstacles, even ridicule as they tread the path less taken. What they seek is that moment of miracle when the ray of knowledge will penetrate through the dense black of Michelle’s life. Black is the cathartic tale of a deaf, mute and blind girl who saw what people with sight fail to see, a vision of her God. Michelle McNally saw what other lesser mortals could not. She saw her God, heard Him and walked with Him into the light.

From the beginning to the end, my cheeks were moist from tears. I would not consider myself a person that would show such emotions, especially when it comes to a Bollywood film. However, this one is an exception. There were so many moments in the movie that expressed how I have felt at times with my hearing loss. To see the frustrations that Michelle’s parents and sister had with her, resonated with me and what I felt that my parents and brother went through. It is a film about celebrating the colour black. It is a film that illustrates the spirit of a human being going from darkness to light.

This movie is probably the best movie (along with Hotel Rwanda) that I've seen this year. Note: The Lion, Witch & the Wardrobe is awesome! :)

It’s time for me to rest; after movies such as Black, my head hurts and my heart pangs for a certain something; I just can’t explain it. Also perhaps it’s my body’s way of saying, “Hey you…yeah, you. You think that you can do without sleep? No you di-int! You gots lot of jobs to do today!” I guess the most important job is that I get on my flight to Calgary (by way of Singapore, Taipei and then Los Angeles).

MBBS II HERE I COME!

2005-12-07T20:23:00.000+10:00

It's been about a week since the UQ SOM have released the MBBS I provisional year-end results, and I can say (provisionally - if you can say that) that I'VE PASSED!!! I'm on cloud 9! I just can't believe it! Not only did I pass, but I kicked ass! I went into the final exams with a very miserable mark (< 50%) and my marks has improved by 30%!

Now...I can relax, enjoy the rest of my time in India and look forward to the challenges that lie ahead...

Namaste from Delhi!

2005-12-03T20:00:00.000+10:00

I do apologise for letting this blog go…it seems that every time I go and sit down at the hospital cyber café, I am unable to log onto this site and write about my thoughts. I do warn you that this is a long post…so, go to the toilet now, get that cup of coffee (or cold drink, depending on what part of the world you are in).

Well, the past 4 weeks have been absolutely incredible! I don’t know how I will be able to put into words the things that I’ve seen and been able to experience. That being said, I will try my hardest to do so.

My time with St. Stephen’s Hospital has been primarily spent with the Community Medicine/Health department. I’ve not worked in the hospital at all; instead, I travel with a few registrars, consultants and nurses to an urban slum about 30 minutes east of the hospital, a place called Sunder Nagari. Louise and myself talked with one of the consultants and have drafted a protocol for future elective students coming to St. Stephen’s Hospital wishing to do their elective in community health. To be able to be a part of the process is exhilirating!

The time requirement for the elective was 20 hours a week, which is easily met by working at the hospital in the mornings from Monday to Friday, leaving you with the afternoon, evenings and weekends off to explore Delhi and environs. However, at the Community Outreach Centre (affectionately known as Community) the bus leaves SSH at 7:45am and arrives back at 5:45pm. It’s full on! I’ve done more hours in two weeks at Community than some of the others have done all month. The atmosphere out at Community is so life affirming, so much so that I have asked for and have been granted a week extension of my elective to work at Community.

So, what is in the day of Veevek while in Delhi? Well, it starts of by my alarm going off at 6:45am and having a hot bucket bath and getting dressed for ‘work’. I go to the Hospital Dietary for a quick breakfast (usually chai and toasted toast) and get my packed lunch to take out ot Community. I get on the bus and greet all the other persons on it. We normally talk amongst ourselves, which normally revolves around what people have been up to the night before or what the day is looking like out at the centre. After the 30-40 minute ride (depending on the traffic), we get to Community and I look at what the day is (each day of the week has certain activities associated with it, i.e. Wednesday is Well-Immunisation Day, meaning as many children as you can think of (and then think of some more on top of that) come and get their immunisations done. This also means that Veevek normally leaves Community with a massive headache because of all the noise from the crying bastards…I mean…children. Community runs a medical clinic (with all major interventions being referred to the major government hospitals nearby) also runs a daycare and a child-to-child education programme along with empowering women in the local community with vocational skills. I have become so attached to some of the children that are in the daycare (ages ranging from 1 to 4). In fact there is one little girl that comes (she is about 1 year old) and her name is Anjali. I learnt that she was ‘fatherless’ and had some social developmental delays. After spending one week with Anjali on my breaks and feeding and playing with her, she called me “papa”. The daycare workers were in shock! They had noticed an incredible difference in Anjali. She smiles more; she has become more active during playtime and exhibits normal child development behaviours. All the other children in the daycare call me “bhaiyya”, which is Hindi for ‘brother’. Making these children forget their worries for any amount of time is time well spent. I had also taught the kids a Gujarati children’s song (Chukee ben, Chukee ben), which they will sing at a local competition hosted by the YMCA on December 7th – 9th. I also helped choreograph a Rajasthani folk dance that the older girls are doing (they are around 12-14 years old). I only wish that I could do more for those kids. Also the impact of the other community health workers has been great as well. With my semi-fluent Hindi skills, my interactions with the staff and patrons of the centre have become co-ordinated and I have felt as if I’ve become a part of that community. On my breaks, if I am not playing with the children, I talk to the other youth workers there (they practice their English and I practice Hindi) about their plans and how the Community has changed their outlook on live and the local community that they are living in. The nurses (one in particular that I think is just the cat’s pajamas is Sister Lovey [head nurses on a ward are usually referred to as sisters in India], who has a PhD in Nursing and is in her mid 30s) have been instrumental in my understanding of how Community operates. Because of them, I’ve been able to help with the immunisation drives by weighing children when they come in, by administering oral polio vaccinations and giving injections of MMR (measles, mumps & rubella) and DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus). The most senior female consultant, Dr. John, is a 67 year old with severe rhuematoid arthritis. Her and I get along like houses on fire! She takes the time to explain to me the inner workings of differential diagnoses and how socio-economic factors influence the ability of patients to make health decisions (she was quite surprised that I was able to understand it, then I told her that I have a background in economics focusing on health economics and she just smiled). I was able to assist her with the tuberculosis clinic, which was AWESOME! In fact, tuberculosis was the topic of my community case report, which I had to present to the consultants and registrars. I was able to visit patients’ in their homes and look at public health factors that influence their health status – absolutely mindblowing.

Alright...this has to be enough for the day...it's 8pm and the dietary is only open for another 30 minutes. My eyes are tired, my heart a little depressed as all my friends have left Delhi this morning. I will write very soon...

Ladies & Gentlemen, Indian Airlines would like to announce the depart of Flight IC408...

2005-11-03T11:14:00.000+10:00

First off, I want to wish everyone a very Happy Diwali (Nutan Varshabinandhan) & Sal Mubarak! For those of you that are celebrating the end of Ramadan, Eid Mubarak!

The past week has been all about partying, relaxing, re-energising, getting my thoughts collected and packing up my belongs (in that order). I've reconnected with some friends and am enjoying every moment that I have.

On a more exciting front, I'm leaving for India today! I'll be flying via Malaysia and staying a couple of days in Sri Lanka before meeting up with the rest of my friends on Saturday that are going to be at the same hospital. For a nice treat to myself, I'm staying at the Taj Samudra Hotel, which is a part of the international reknowned Taj Hotel Groups.

I'm looking forward to the exposure and experiences that come along with the challenges of being in a hospital that serves 5 million people. I am a little apprehensive of speaking Hindi as I've not done so in quite some time. I've been practicing by watching bollywood films but the 'hindi' used is a mixture of English, Hindi and Urdu.

I'll be in India until December 14th and may do some travelling with a couple of friends, however that has yet to be decided. I'll be back in Australia for a few days before heading to Calgary and spending Christmas and New Year's with my family and close friends. I can't wait!

Have a good one...

IT'S OVER!!!

2005-10-27T10:43:00.000+10:00

I've finished my last MBBS I exam yesterday!

The days leading up to those exams were horrible. Stress overload, thinking that my level of knowledge was inadequate and that I would make a horrible doctor. Then I smacked myself up side my head and realised that everyone else in the course must be feeling the same way with regards to level of knowledge that they have (or don't have) heading into the exams.

The first exam was the MSAT (Multi-Station Assessment Task), and it consisted of 9 stations, that were 9 minutes long. Each station also had a 9-minute instructional stations right before it so that you can prepare for that station. There were 2 stations on communication skills, 2 stations on history taking, 2 stations on clinical examinations, and 1 ethics station. I got full marks for most of the stations, not sure how I did on the ethics station (it was talking to someone in your PBL group who shows up late, takes very long breaks, makes derogatory comments about the patients in our cases, puts down female members of the group, and thinks that sociology and things similar are not necessary in the study of medicine). I just didn't know what the "right" path was. Apparently, everyone that did the Saturday (it was held over Saturday and Sunday to accommodate the 296 students that were schedule to take it) MSAT passed.

After finishing the MSAT, all motivation to study for the written exams went down the drain. It seemed quite anti-climactic. I went over all the past exam papers and my basic/clinical sciences revisions. The first exam was a bitch! There were 5 parts and one ethics essay. The essay was fine and a few of the papers in the exam were from past papers, so that made things a bit easier. However, they School of Medicine used way too many multiple choice questions, which doesn't really assess what you know about a particular subject area (the MCQs dealt with haematology). I know that heaps of people were quite annoyed with that form of testing. I rather have short answer than MCQ. The next written exam was 7 parts and covered pretty much whatever wasn't covered on the first exam. More of those papers were from past exams, which probably saved my ass!

After the last exam finished, a number of us headed to Claire's place to start the post-exam celebrations and have pre-party drinks and food. Too much fun was to be had...I forgot how much fun it was to be in a group of people and talk about things other than medicine. After getting some of our alcohol metabolism going, we all headed to the bowls club (lawn bowling...no longer a geriatric sport!) by way of taking the City Cat (or what Claire likes to call it, "Shitty Shat"). It reached up to 31 degrees Centigrade and with that kinda heat mixed with copious amounts of alcohol consumption results in some weird shit. After several hours at the bowls club, most students headed down to the local waterhole, the Regatta (affectionately known as the Regretta). They were serving free drinks for an hour for med students and then after that hour, you could buy 4 drinks for $10. That mixed with top 40s music, a Leanne (voted "best dancer" by her PBL tutor), and some med school drama (oh the drama...even if I wasn't interested in medicine, I would stay in this course because of its drama!), resulted in a fantastic night!

It's now 10:43am on the day after my last exam. I'm sitting on the balcony having morning tea. The day seems to be like any other, and I've to keep reminding myself that I deserve a break. I have a week till I leave for my medical elective in India. So much shit to sort through before leaving - packing for India (can only take up to 20 kilos! and as anyone that has travelled to India...that's normally the weight for the carry on lugagge!), packing my room so that Dave and Suz can move my stuff while I'm away, need to get some last minute supplies for the trip, and to sort out some other stuff (address book, upcoming birthdays, etc) before I head out.

I can't believe first year is done (well, it will officially be done on December 2nd when the elective finishes)! What an exciting year it has been...and I would have done it all over again, exactly how it has, in a heartbeat. :)

Reaffirmation?

2005-10-16T01:42:00.000+10:00

The past couple of days have been very painful...my right eye has been extremely photo sensitive, to the point where the room has to be dark. Any sort of light was quite painful to the point where tears would be streaming down my face. That being said, I spent most of my time in bed, with a sleep mask (courtesy of Qantas) and blankets over my head. Today, was the first day in which I was able to tolerate some sort of light.

Also, the past few days, I've been feeling quite annoyed (not sure at whom or what) and dissatisfied (once again, not sure if it is with myself or with my circumstances). This evening I got out of the house (which took Dave and Suz by surprise), I originally intended on going for a walk, maybe seeing a movie, and then chilling at a coffee shop. However, I decided to head down to South Bank (where World Expo' 88 was held). This evening, the Gujarati Association of Queensland was celebrating Sharad Poonam, which is a celebration of the harvest time in Gujarat. At the Suncorp Piazza (a large plaza, that has a roof over it, but not completely covered on all sides), there was garba and dandiya raas. I thought that I would go and make another attempt to meet people. I wasnt' dressed for the part, as I wore jeans and a t-shirt. On the way there, I ran into one of the guys that I met at Navratri. I introduced myself and he told me that he, and a number of other people, were really impressed with my dancing. He asked me if I was Indian, then Hindu. I told him that I was Hindu Gujarati (not that that matters). I got there and people were dancing and I dove right in. I recognised heaps of faces and people gave the obligatory smile when they see someone that they have seen before. Also, there was a really nice Gujarati girl that I met last time and she was here again tonight. I get so bashful...argh! It's quite irritating. Doing garba and dandiya raas with the opposite sex, is the Gujarati version of dating/flirting. You show off your hottest moves and styles. The best complement is if someone mimics your movements/steps. I doubt that I will see this girl again until next year. Then again, who knows?

Also, I've started to miss my family a lot. I guess because the feeling of staying in Australia has finally gotten into my head. I can't wait to see Mum next month and then the rest of my family (sans Hasit and Johanna) including Vinay and Bhavisha near Christmas. What good times to be had. :)

Alright, I should get back to studying about antibiotics. I'm at Lou's place - we are having a study party and at this rate, we are going to be up for most of the night. fun, fun.

The final week...

2005-10-12T09:46:00.000+10:00

This is the final week of lectures for the MBBS I at UQ. The atmosphere amongst the cohort is quite charged - people have become withdrawn, moody, unusually cheerful, while some have become apathetic, lethargic and just wanting this ordeal to be over with.

Being the type of person that I am, I need to have my social interactions but with these final exams looming, I feel a bit guilty for wanting a bit of time to just have fun. I can hear my parents in the back of my head say, "beta, you know dhat ishtudy comes furst, den you can play, okay" (or in Gujju-che speak, "Beta, thenay kaberche ke banavanu bowaj important che. Exam pacche, taney je karvu hoi, ee chut che.")

But I found myself to start thinking about what happens if I fail my exams? It's a serious possibility (this is not to say that I have done nothing all year...it just means that no one can guarantee that they will pass all the components of the exams). I have a friend that went through a very similar situation back in Canada. She failed first year and repeated it. In the beginning, she wouldn't tell people outside her med circle of friends that she had failed. However, she got over the stigma of failure and held her head up high. She became a resource for her cohort. And I can see myself doing the same thing. If I do fail, then I would make sure that I would develop friendship more and that I would be a resource for others. However, I doubt that my parents and family would agree with that. I have no clue as to where I would get the tuition if I were to repeat first year.

Alright, now I have just successfully scared myself (once again...it seems to be a daily ritual at the moment that I scare myself into thinking that I will fail and shiite like that). Breathe...in through the nose and out through the mouth...[Veevek takes a deep breath]. That's better.

Also, it doesn't help that at the moment that I'm studying about suicide, domestic violence, and drug abuse. These are all very important topics because these are many of things that prevades all societies and doesn't get reported often. And why don't doctors ask about domestic violence? Well, first off, lack of skills and training; belief that it is not common; fear of offending the patient(s); privacy beliefs; perpetrator may be a patient; belief that nothing will change from intervention; belief that women will provoke the violence; and (one of the most common) lack of time with the patient.

Okay, I need to get off the computer and go over some past papers with Annabelle and Kim. It's going to be a very long day...

So disappointed...

2005-10-09T01:05:00.000+10:00

Well, yep. I am. I was looking so forward to Saturday night. Why? Every year around this time of year, millions of Hindus celebrate Navratri. Navratri is an annual festival is a Hindu festival of worship and dance. The word "Navratri" literally means nine nights; Nav-nine and Ratri-nights. The festival is celebrated for nine nights every year at the beginning of October although the dates of the festival are according to the Hindu calendar.

The state of Gujarat is most famous for its Navratri celebrations. Traditionally, Navratri was celebrated only by Hindu women only, in the honor of goddess Amba/Durga. Amba/Durga is a believed to be a Shakti (literal translation "energy"). Women would put "Garbha deep"(an earthen pot with holes, which has a lamp inside of it - representing life within a womb) in the center, as a symbol of shakti/godess. And at the rhythm of prayers and folk songs, they dance with clapping in concentric circles around "Garbha Deep" or "Garbo".

Even more popular is the dandiya raas. Dandiya raas was traditionally performed by men only. Dandiya is actually a pair of bamboo or any wooden sticks of the length 1.5 to 2 feet. Men would held this sticks in hand, and start with a circuluar formation. Nowadays, both sexes do garba and dandiya raas.

Alright, there is the information bit of Navratri. So, why am I disappointed. Well, I got all dressed up and got down to the place where it was being held. The hall was massive! And I would have to say that there were similar number of people as would come out on a Saturday night during Navratri in Calgary. People were beautifully dressed (there were some absolutely beautiful girls tonight) and hearing people talk in Gujarati made me feel a part of a larger community. However, I also realised some very harsh things about the community. You need to know people in order for them to introduce you , to what is a very closeknit, to their social circles. Everytime I would go and make conversation with someone, they would say "hello" and then leave. I did recognise a few people from uni and perhaps if I see them around, I will go up and introduce myself. I guess I took that for granted in Calgary because my parents are very active and social within the community. I did some garba (have several blisters on the sole of my feet), which was great! Even if I just had one extra person with me, it would have made all the difference. Some of my friends were going to come but, at the last minute, they weren't able to come. This is going to sound so fucking stupid...but my feet, ears, hands and eyes were feasting on the dance, people and sounds. However, my heart wasn't it in because it was the first time in a long time that I felt as if I didn't belong.

Alright, enough with this post. I told myself that there is no point in being disappointed anymore. I just have to keep trying and next year's Navratri might be a whole different experience.

Now, I need to go and nurse these blisters...

Quite far yet so near...

2005-09-19T17:14:00.000+10:00

It has been too long since I’ve last posted on this thing, and for that I apologise. So many thoughts, ideas and reflections have been through my mind in the last month and I’ve been trying to sort through them as opposed to putting them on this site for public perusal.

I can’t believe that I’m almost done my first year of medical school. It’s quite a scary thought – I know only a few people that have not had a freak out in the last little while. Right now, we are in Week 31 – which looks at central nervous system and higher brain function. The academic year is 38 weeks (the last 4 weeks is the medical elective period; the rest of the university only has 32 weeks). After this week, we have another week of the central nervous system and then the last two weeks look at psychiatric issues and suicide/depression. Rumour has it that this is the School of Medicine’s implicit way of providing therapy to the MBBS I cohort, as final exams are fast approaching.

Apart from trying to keep on top of my studying (which is getting to be more difficult that I imagined as there are heaps of past exams, my notes, and weekly quizzes to go through), I’ve been counting the days down to a number of key events that will be my rewards for finishing the exam. First off, there is a tradition that MBBS I students go to Stradbrooke Island after they finish the last exam. Straddie, as it is called by locals, is one of the largest sand islands in the world and from what I’ve heard from Brisbanites, it has some of the most beautiful beaches in all of Australia. During the same weekend, Ruth will be coming up to Brisbane (tenative - but a friend can dream)! I can’t wait to show her the sights and sounds of Brisbane, as she did with me when I vistied her in Adelaide. It will be a bit difficult to get her around as I don’t have a car. However, that will hopefully change at the beginning of next year when I buy myself a shitbox with wheels. Ruth’s arrival also means that those student members of MAPW QLD that are interested in NWIP will be having a retreat and having workshops on how to conduct non-confrontational dialogue and things like that. There are some future plans with NWIP coming out of Australia, however, I reckon that I will just keep those ideas to myself for the time being because I don’t want to get my hopes up about it and then have them come crashing down because I was just a bit too eager.

After the Straddie trip, I have a few days to get my shit together and leave for Delhi! I’ll be leaving on November 3rd. I’ll be stopping in Kuala Lumpur for the day and then make my way to Colombo, Sri Lanka for a couple days. I’ve never been to either Malaysia or Sri Lanka. It will be nice to add those two places on my travelling belt. Regardless of the fact that they will be whirlwind trips, I can’t wait! I’ll arrive in Delhi on November 5th. I’ll be picked up by some people from St. Stephen’s hospital and then taken to my hospital accommodations.

I’m so excited about having a medical elective experience in India. I will be going to Delhi with a number of other students from the class; fortunately, I like them all. My only worry is that we will all hang out together (which is fine) and that most of them will use me as a conduit for their experiences in Delhi. I reckon that I already know who will hate it and who will love it. I know that seeing India from a tourist perspective and as a person who claims the place as a source of ancestry often yields in different paradigms.

Regardless, something that is even more awesome, I will be meeting up with Mum in Mumbai on November 13th. We are then going to fly to Porbandar, Gujarat (her birthplace). One of my cousins (on my mum’s side) will be getting married and one of my dad’s cousins will be getting married as well. After the weddings, her and I are heading up to Ahmedabad to do some shopping for my brother’s wedding which will be next year, and to do some personal shopping because when in India, one goes shopping. :)

My elective period goes until December 2nd and I will be in India until December 13th. I fly back to Brisbane via Colombo and a night stopover in Kuala Lumpur. I arrive in the evening of December 16th, only to pack and move, and then get on a plane to Calgary on December 20th.

Now, if only I can get through the next 5 weeks without having a major upset or freak out session. Wish me the best of luck…I’m going to need it.

Pillars of friendship

2005-08-23T01:21:00.000+10:00

Dave and Suz are two of my closest friends here in Brisbane. They are just beautiful - just take a look at their picture perfect smiles! They have been the pillars of friendship, support and strength. That and they are some of the most fun people to be with! We always share huge, belly aching laughs, cook great food together, talk medical shop and have meaningful conversations (most of the time) and have had some pretty productive study parties. Not only that, but they are the best flatmates that anyone could ask for. :)

More beautiful people and Veevek

2005-08-23T01:09:00.000+10:00

This is Annabelle, Kim (the lovely ladies of PBL 1) and Leanne (my partner-in-crime when it comes to be overdramatic and laughing in the aisles). Annabelle and I (along with Lou) are going to Delhi in November for our 4-week medical elective! Kim is just a superstar! Her smile is something that just takes my breath away. Leanne...is just special. :)

This is Phil, myself and Paul. Phil is from London, Ontario and Paul (an MBBS IV) is from Sydney. Phil is the king when it comes to karoake and does a FANTASTIC Kramer impression that landed him a great role in the this year's Med Revue. He is a person that brings a smile to anyone that he talks to. He has this ability to make people laugh and forget their worries, even if it is for a split second. Paul - is gold. He is my tutor (along with 9 other students) that has been helping me to see how things are done when it comes to clinical exams and things like that. He has become a mentor and a great friend.

This is my very dear friend Lou. She looks much better without me trying to stick my fingers up her nostrils (which I do often). Lou is also going to Delhi with Annabelle and I. She is my partner-in-crime when it comes to development issues and human rights. Also, she made me a kick ass khaki man-skirt. I wore it today and got several catcalls and compliments on it. I was just beaming!

Don't worry...I didn't eat whatever that thing was

2005-08-23T00:41:00.000+10:00

This is a photo of Leanne, myself & Cam. Leanne and I are THE hams when it comes to the camera. Her and I had several of these types of photos taken during the May Ball. Her and I are always making total asses of ourselves in lectures and whenever we are in public together. Cam, a fellow Calgarian, is known as "Smiley". Oddly enough, he isn't smiling in this photo. He has a heart of gold and his catch phrase is "Sweeeeeeeeet".

2005-08-23T00:29:00.000+10:00

This is a photo of Nabila, myself, Param, and Marlo. These girls are a part of the fashionistas in the class. They are the best! They are the type of good friends that you can chill over a cuppa tea or on the dance floor with a gin-lemon-lime in your hand. Also, they give great hugs!

26?

2005-08-16T16:30:00.000+10:00

It seems as if life has been moving at mach 3 for the past few weeks. I've started Week 26 of the 34 weeks of MBBS I. I've been having some motivational issues in terms of becoming hardcore in my studying and revising. This is not to say that I've not been doing anything...I've just not been doing enough. However, this past weekend was quite productive in terms of learning all the different drugs that we've learnt in the course thus far. Also, I'm trying to do some revising of past weeks but, as I wrote earlier, but the motivation is somewhat lacking.

In a week's time, I'll be turning 26. I've no qualms about it. Then again, perhaps I've been to busy to think about what this year's birthday represents. I know that this is the first time in a very long time that I've been able to celebrate my birthday in August. Being born near the tail of this month (at least in Canada) meant that my friends were on holidays and people were getting busy with going back to school and things like that. However, being on the under side of the world, uni is already in full swing and people aren't necessarily going to be going away for an extended period of time around now. I was talking to a friend and telling her how I really wanted a small dinner with maybe 15 or 20 people. She laughed and said, "Veevek, you want to repeat that sentence again?" I know that that sounds odd but its true! I've always had a problem in deciding who should come to these sort of things. I've made some fantastic friends (yes some are more fantastic than others...but fantastic nonetheless) and I want to share my birthday with all of them. I made a list of people that I would invite, that is if I had no constraints or anything, and the list came to about 80. What is a socialite to do? :)

Apart from that, I got a massive haircut. Yes, a haircut. Most people that know me have known me with fairly long and curly hair. After much thinking, I decided to get the locks cut off. The hair that was cut when towards a charity here in Brisbane that gets people to donate their hair to make wigs for children that are undergoing chemotherapy. It's kinda weird knowing that there will be kids in QLD that will have Veevek hair on their heads. They should only be so lucky! :) My hair is now about 4cm long, which is by far the shortest it has ever been since I was an infant. It looks damn good - or at least that is what people tell me.

Other than that, life here in Brisbane is moving forward, while I've been chilling, maxin' and relaxin'. After the holiday tomorrow, I need to get back into gear. Only 8 more weeks till the end of the year and I've so much shit to work left to do, let alone learning the new stuff that the next 8 weeks will bring. On that note...I should get going.

Melbourne!

2005-08-05T10:52:00.000+10:00

I'm in Melbourne! I'm at a computer terminal in the Baillieau Library at Uni of Melbourne. I'm down here with Dave as we are attending the Medical Association for the Prevention of War National Conference. Fortunately, it wasn't a hard week of learning - benign prostatic hyperplasia. I just need to make sure that I bump it up a notch next week.

I should get outta here...I don't want to be in a new city sitting in front of a computer all day. I wonder how hot a credit card can get. :)

Another voyage...

2005-08-02T11:08:00.000+10:00

Aside from all the things going on here in Brisbane, I've already planned my next major trip abroad. After my last final exam (October 26th), I'll be off to Delhi, India! I got accepted to do a 4-week medical student elective at St. Stephen's Hospital. I'll be starting on November 7th and going until December 2nd. I can't wait! The last time I was in Delhi was in 1994 and my experience was a bit jaded due to the run-around my family and I got from staying with some family friends.

Ever since my brother came back from living in Delhi, he had changed - for the better. He always had these stories, such that during dinner or drinks, he would tell me and other company about a particular storewalla or the traffic officer on the corner of the road that he lived on. As trivial as these stories may sound, they are a part of a bigger picture. What is that picture? That picture is knowing what makes my brother think, knowing what makes his heart beat - essentially, it's getting to know him. I know that that city has a very special place in his heart. A part of me thinks that by seeing what he has seen and to be in the same space that he was, will help me to see things how he has. We often don't see eye-to-eye on social issues but I guess that that is due to the fact of our experiences and how we understand the world (granted, his understanding puts mine to SHAME, albeit I would consider myself to be quite a learnt person in that regard).

Not only will this trip be good in terms of progressing my medical education but it will be the first time that I'm going to India without my parents being there. A cousin of mine will be getting married (one cannot go to India without going to a wedding) and the month of November is especially important because Diwali (Festival of Lights) will be going on. The last time I was in India for Diwali was in 1994 and I've so many fond memories of that time.

A number of other students from UQ will be going to the same hospital. It will be interesting to see how my fellow colleagues will react to the litmus test that India is so famous for. Most of them have been outside of Australia, but only to places like New Zealand and Western Europe. I'm going to have some sort of cross-cultural training workshop for them...as many of them are going to need to do a lot of mental preparation for what they are about to embark on.

Speaking of embarking on a journey, I need to traverse the dangerous passage of learning about cancer - and my midmorning coffee is ready.

Sydney...WOW

2005-07-27T21:07:00.000+10:00

Good god! I've been away from this blog for too long. I'm sorry...seriously. I am. Okay, so where did I leave off...ahh...yes, I had a fantastic time in Adelaide visiting Ruth and seeing what comprises her world.

I arrived in Sydney to be greeted by what seemed to be a very strange yet familiar face. Dave came and picked me up from the airport but he had gotten what was the shortest I've ever seen his hair. I couldn't believe that I had arrived in Sydney. This city has been a city that I've always wanted to visit since going to India in 1987. I remember my cousins were taking about Qantas and how much of a great airline it was and how that was based in Sydney ra ra ra.

Regardless, I was in Sydney. Dave took me around the city - I mean I pretty much saw everything except for a few things. He was indeed the host with the most. Sydney is WOW. I see why it is considered a world class city, on par with New York, London, and Paris. I was trying to peg it other places that I've been but my mind was playing tricks on me. It reminded me of Stockholm, New York, Johannesburg, and London all in one. Now, Sydney stands its own ground. It's absolutely spectacular!

Dave took me to see the city and his stomping grounds. We went up to his alma mater (however he refuses to call it that) University of New South Wales, the suburb of Coogee, and saw some fantastic beaches - Coogee, Maroubra and Botany Bay. Also, we saw La Perouse, which was the island that Tom Cruise rode his motorcycle in Mission Impossible. Lunch was had in North Sydney, at one of his watering holes. The day wrapped up by seeing Sydney Olympic Park. We picked up his younger sister (who happened to have finished her last exam of the semester) before heading 100+ km south to his parents' home.

The next few days were blissful...yet cold, very cold. The time spent at the Chessor's home was in front of the roaring fireplace, drinking tea, reading Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie, and watching M*A*S*H. There is this sense of enjoyment that I get from meeting my friend's family. It completes their picture, not to say that that is the case for everyone.

Sydney was also the location where my social circles collided. Ruth met Dave and other friends from UQ. Often times, this collision is quite disastrous (I am remembering my 20th birthday party at, what was then called, the CAPITAL). However, Ruth and Dave got on like houses on fire. Ruth told me that she was more than floored to know that I've friends like him and Lou (another very special friend). Dave, again, being the host with the most, took Ruth and I to Bondi Beach (which was much smaller than I thought); it was calm, peaceful and relaxing. We also went to this place in Sydney that is known for people committing suicide by jumping off these high cliffs that have a fantastic vista of the Pacific Ocean.

I had a few reasons to go down to Sydney: to experience a real city (sorry Brisbane, you know I love you but...); spend time with Dave and his family; and to try and be a registered delegate at the Australian Medical Student Association's Developing World Conference. Yes...the DWC. It was the inaugural conference put on by AMSA. The theme of the conference was "Taking the First Step". For those people who know me, they are probably thinking, "Veevek, why would you attend a conference that has it's theme as 'taking the first step'?" To get others up to speed, I've been invovled in a number of projects that have been centred around issues of internationalisation, human rights advocacy, health and other social issues. I was being sneaky. Yes, me. I was straight forward about asking the organisers whether there were any spots available at the conference, and that I was able to pay the registration fee. I was turned down; the other delegates from UQ told me to come anyways. I did. But throughout the weekend, I felt as if I wasn't able to participate in the conference (read - Veevek didn't speak) and spent the most of my time shielding my presence. Tis was a very odd behaviour from me. This was the first time that I attended a conference where I wasn't the target audience. It was the first time that I attended a conference where I didn't use any of the information. It was the first time, however, that I realised that I had enough expertise (when compared to the majority of delegates at the conference) in development issues. That is when I realised that I should be helping other students to pursue areas that affect health and other social areas in the developing world. By the time the conference finished, I made a few new friends and developed the foundations of a very strong friendship with someone - Lou. An incredible person; a person that shares the same passion towards international health as I do. A person that gives her voice for those that aren't able to speak. She is my partner in human rights crime. :)

My time in Sydney came to an end; I headed back to Brisbane feeling refreshed and knowing that I will be seeing familiar faces again. Also, coming back to Brisbane was a sign of renewal, as had a few days to pack up everything and move into a flat with a very good friend of mine, Suzanne.

Hmm...that was three weeks ago. I've learnt about (and should also do some major revising and completing my learning objectives) teenage pregnancy, Down Syndrome, and now breast cancer. A number of things have happened since coming back from holidays. Some good and some bad. Needless to say, I'm surviving.

Brisbane - Adelaide

2005-07-09T14:16:00.000+10:00

Yes...WOW. That's what I use to describe my recent holiday. I have returned to Brisbane a few hours ago. To recap - after my exam, I went to Adelaide to visit one of my best friends, Ruth. After spending a week in Adelaide, I flew to Sydney to see another very good friend, Dave. So, here are the stories.

Brisbane - Adelaide:

Adelaide was COLD. Really. It was. Not funny at all. Upon arrival, the cabin crew announced that it was 9 degrees and raining furiously. Tis was very cold. After getting my luggage, I waited for Ruth to come and pick me up at the airport. She had to get a friend to drive her there as her right foot had suffered some partial thickness burns due to a ruptured hot water bottle (note to self and everyone else that's reading this: DO NOT USE HOT WATER BOTTLES - electric blankets have made advances and are considered much more safer). After getting to Ruth's house (absolutely gorgeous and full of eclectic charm), we got out some wine and chatted for several hours before going to bed.

The next day I drove Ruth's car to uni - driving her old car (which was a stick) was quite a thrill! My experience in driving standards is quite minimal. After some shaking starts and stalls, I was able to navigate (with the obvious help from Ruth) through some of the streets of Adelaide.

I think that the biggest thing about going to Adelaide, apart from seeing Ruth again, was to see her friends and the sort of life that she is living there. She has talked about her friends and Adelaide to such great lengths that, at times, I felt as if I were there by her side. I met some of her closest friends there, and I'm so glad that Ruth has been able to cultivate this community around her. Hmmm...what am I say?! This is Ruth! She cultivates these sort of communities wherever she goes. :)

I didn't get to see much of Adelaide, apart from the beach in Brighton/Seacliffe, some of the Adelaide Hills, Flinders University, a major shopping centre (I helped Ruth do some shopping for a few key items for an interview she had for her 3rd year placement), and numerous cafes and the like. However, from what I have seen, Adelaide resembles a large retirement village nestled somewhere within Scotland. The houses are all made from stone and most of them only have one floor. The concept of condominiums and flats is new (unlike Brisbane, which seems to springing up new condos/flats left, right and centre). The CBD has the highest concentration of tall buildings, but even then, it's not that impressive.

My lasting legacy in Adelaide will have to be my cooking (my my, aren't I being modest). For three of the nights, I cooked dinner for Ruth, Cathy (her fantastic podiatrist-cum-artist housemate) and some of their friends: Italian, Indian, and Thai, but not all at the same time. :) Ruth told me that the friends that were over for the dinners were still raving about the food.

Even though I was on holidays, I attended a couple of lectures with Ruth and some of her friends. I even took notes! Not only that but some of her friends asked their clinical tutor if I could do a clinical coaching session with them. Fortunately I had my University of Queensland medical student badge. I was given an introduction into the wonderful and exciting world of rheumatology. I even noticed things about a couple of patients that the 2nd years didn't pick up. There goes for being a quiet person to tag along. :)

The rest of the time in Adelaide was filled with marathon conversations and catching up with Ruth. Even though we live in the same country and are able to talk over the phone, there is something to be said about being in a person's physical presence.

Would you like fries with that?

2005-06-20T12:03:00.000+10:00

Well, it's Saturday morning and I'm in front on my computer attempting to write an update. This is pathetic. I finished my exam on Thursday morning and I'm updating my blog as opposed to sleeping in. Hmm...note to self: turn off alarm on mobile phone.

Yes, so the exam preparation went very well (at least I thought it did). However, when it came to the exam itself, I buckled. I think I failed. It's a serious possibility. There was nothing on the exam that was new or "what the fuck is that? I've never seen or heard of that before!". However, the depth, or I should say lack of, was astonishing. So many of the concepts I knew in great detail but when it asked for 2 mechanisms of something that could easily be a PhD thesis topic, my mind got liquefied (and no, there was no liquefactive necrosis happening). :) What I've taken away from the experience - a) detail is shit; b) take a silent stopwatch; c) it's only worth 25%; d) more study parties.

The exam finished at 11:10am, I was outta there and heading up to the PBL room to meet the other people in my PBL and some other friends. I opened the bottle of Grappa that was given to me by a very good friend of mine from Berlin (Danke Peter!). For those of you that don't know, grappa is a traditional Italian spirit made from the pressed seeds and skins of grapes after the must (grape juice) is used in winemaking. Grappa is very strong, between 80 and 90 proof, and is served as a digestive after heavy meals. But there were no heavy meals to be had in the morning. A big crew of us went down to Pizza Caffe and had a few rounds of pizza and jugs of beer before heading down to the Red Room to partake in more debauchery and to celebrate the fact that we have officially finished half of first year (regardless of what the results of the exam will be).

After spending 6 hours at the red room, Claire, Kim, Leanne, Rob, Rob, Hal, Brownlie, Soozie, Dave, Lou and I headed back to Claire's place to drink some more and have pizza before going to Finnigan's party. Lou and I slept on the sofa and believe-you-me, it was one of the best naps of my life! That was until I was to get up. My head was pounding! Good god! Never have I felt like that...ever. But by inhaling two panadols, I was good as new and we all made our way to Finnigan's. Finnigan's was a blast! Lots of good conversations with people and had the chance to reconnect with those that I've sort of lost touch with. A conversation that I distinctly remember is that a lot of people were astonished at how white my teeth are. HAHAHAHA. They didn't believe that I've never had orthodontic work or use whitening toothpaste. I guess some people will believe what they want. :)

After Finnigan's, Nabila, Katrina, Anthony and I headed down to the Regatta to meet up with some friends. There was much dancing and drinking to be had. It was probably the longest day I've experienced in a quite some time.

Friday morning was weird - I got up around 8am, and then realised that I didn't have to go to uni. I almost got so excited that I nearly couldn't go back to bed. :) I slept a few more hours and then headed over to Claire's to watch some movies. It felt so good to use an afternoon to chill on a comfy sofa and watch movies, with not a care in the world. That evening, I headed over to a friend's house party. Alright, most people know that I hate cold weather. Brrrrr...I'm getting cold just thinking about it. But Brisbane has been getting quite cold lately - perhaps maybe because it's almost winter here. When I mean by cold, I mean 6 or 7 degrees at night. Most people would scoff and think that I am crazy for thinking that. But here's the kicker - there is no central heating here! So, when you people are thinking that I'm crazy just know that you are sitting in a place that is always 22-25 degrees Centigrade! Most of the people were huddling in the kitchen, striving off of other people's body heat. Rob and Dan had left all the windows and doors open in the house. Tis was funny to see people, full on, wearing toques, gloves, scarves and furry jackets.

The next morning, I headed into the Valley to meet up with Lou for brunch. Finally, I am able to do things that I've been putting off because of that exam! Food was good - I'm thinking that any amount of grease after a few days of drinking is a good thing. :) Afterwards we did some window shopping and she showed me the places that are worthy of going shopping. As I've said before, Brisbane is Australia's fashion capital. I, then, went into the city to look around for some warm winter clothes (because I didn't bring as much as I thought I should have). I ended up buy a jacket from ESPIRIT and a jumper from Roger David. And I ended up getting a free beanie/toque from Roger David! I went in there and the salesperson came over and asked about my hair. He asked how I was able to manage it and asking all these questions about where I was from and what I was doing in Brisbane. I realised that this bloke was trying to chat me up. I took the jumper that I liked and tried it on in the dressing room, and this girl was definitely talking me up about the jumper. She told me why it worked for me and left her hands of my shoulders and sides a little longer than what most people would. I bought the jumper and left the store as I was on a mission to find some more winter clothing. After leaving the store, I realised that I forgot my receipt at RD. I went back and the bloke and girl were at the front till. The bloke told me that I had forgotten my receipt and he kept in on the side waiting for me in the event that I'd come back to get it. He gave me a free beanie (it was $25) and it's uber nice! I thought, "if this guy expects me to put out...he's going to be really disappointed!" Hahahahahaha. After the shopping upheaval, I headed home to get ready and meet up with Nabila and Phil.

We haded down to West End to partake in some great food, hookah, and fantastic vodka infused drinks courtesy of the Lychee Lounge. Around 2:30am, Nabila had a craving for Macker's fries and we headed to the Valley, ate fries, and then went to a club called Birdie Num Num. In Brisbane, there is a newly instated 3am lockout. This means that if you are outside of a club and it's 3am, you will not be able to get in. Apparently this measure was taken to reduce the number of people loitering around after 3am in the Valley and City. From what I could see, it wasn't working so well. Yeah....back to Birdie Num Num. Absolutely packed! It felt good to go dancing again - sometimes its the simple things that we miss doing the most. However, the part of the club that we were dancing in was concentrated with people that were on all sorts of shit - speed, ecstacy, and whatever else. Needless to say, I didn't get home till 6:30am.

-------------Monday Morning------------

Yes, so this update it taking much longer than anticipated.

Alright, Sunday...Sunday was a rainy and very cold. A perfect day for the movies! Claire and I wanted to go and see Batman Begins, but alas, it was sold out. So, we went to go and see Mr & Mrs Smith. Tis was okay - Brad and Jolie definitely have an interesting chemistry together. The plot was a bit...er...fucked but the dialogue made up for its shortcomings. It being a rainy day and all, we thought that touch footy would be cancelled. Half way through the movie, I get this text from Dave saying "touch is wild, wet and still on!" Our team was really hoping that the other team would forfeit and then we can go home and be dry and warm. The other team showed up...and clobbered us - 8 to 2. Oh well, you can't win every time. After that, I headed back to Claire's and made mushroom and red capsicum risotto and we watched tv. Ahhh...what life is like when you don't have to do any uni work...fantastic!

Alright, it's Monday afternoon (12:01pm) and I've so much shit to get done today - washing/packing for my trip/packing for my upcoming move (yeah, that'll be another update)/cleaning my room and getting things sorted with student loans and shit. It's still cold and grey out. I might just fuck it and go take a nap. Yes. I've decided, I will do the latter first and then the rest later. :)

What is a person to do?

2005-06-02T19:35:00.000+10:00

Hmm...I'm sorry for not having posted anything for the past couple of weeks. Things here in Brisbane have been a bit crazy.

The MBBS I mid year exam is looming and quite a number of people are starting to get stressed and pissy due to being in exam mode. I, on the other hand, have been quite calm (well, that's quite egocentric but most people have told me that I seem as solid as a rock). I think that that is scaring me a bit. I know that this is not the end-all/be-all of exams that I will be writing in the next 4 years. I am thinking that this exam will be similar to an immunisation shot. It will prepare me to know what to expect for subsequent exams. Also, I can test whether my study habits have been working. The exam is 3 hours long (8-11am) and will be covering materials from the past 19 weeks. What has the past 19 weeks been about? It's been about: cardiology, respiratory, gastro-intestinal, renal, reproduction, immunology, aboriginal healthcare, intellectual disability, ethics/law, and to public/preventive health with a healthy mix of microbiology, histology, and anatomy. So, 3 hours to cover all that?! What is a first year medical student to do??! I know that not all of those topics will be covered but it's not like you cannot studying something because you have a hunch that it may not be tested on. Hmm...sure. At this point in the game, I'm trying to solidify all the major concepts and know small amounts of detail in different areas. There is no need to give yourself an aneurysm in trying to get all the details about all the different systems and how different things are negatively/positively effect through the myraid of feedback loops - simply not going to happen.

I cannot believe that after this exam is over, I will have completed half of first year medical school. Tis crazy! After I come back from holidays, I have 14 weeks of uni (no holidays except for a Wednesday in mid-August) until finals, which are in October.

I had a bit of an episode a few days ago. I'm having some issues finding the best stethoscope, so that I can do the necessary auscultations. I was told by a professor that there was a 2nd year med student who had similar issues and that I should get in touch with them. I sent an e-mail to someone in the SOM (who will remain nameless) several weeks ago asking them whether they can send my contact information to this 2nd year med student. On Tuesday morning before leaving for uni, I checked my e-mail and I got a response to that e-mail. It stated that there was no 2nd year medical student that fit the description that I gave and that I should look for finding resources myself. I was absolutely shell-shocked! I called up the medical bookstore, which looked into a number of options for me (albeit none of which I am able to use because they aren't loud enough). The very first prac I had Tuesday morning was how to take blood pressure, which would be pointless because I wouldn't be able to use the conventional stethoscopes. I was in no mood to be left out while watching my class mates taking part. What is a deaf Veevek to do?! And note: a deaf Veevek is not a happy Veevek.

So, that's on the exam preparation side of things. Also, Mr. Thankey is having some issues on trying to decide where to do his medical electives for the month of November 2005. In years 1 and 4 we are allowed to an elective anywhere in the world. I know that I won't be able to do as much travelling as I would like to in the next several years, so I thought that these sort of opportunities might be perfect for going to a new place, whilst learning about clinical medicine. So far, I've shortlisted the following: India (Delhi/Ahmedabad), Sri Lanka (Colombo), Kenya (Nairobi/Mombasa), Vanuatu (Port Vila), Guyana (Georgetown), Malta (Msida), and Canada (Calgary - last resort). However, there is a part of me that is looking into doing an elective within Australia, most likely in an indigenous community in South Australia or the Northern Territory. We shall see, time is running out has placements need to be confirmed and approved by the SOM in August. What is a crazy nomad to do?! Any suggestions about where I should go (even if they are new places) are welcome!

Other than that, I'm looking forward to my upcoming trip to Adelaide and Sydney! I'll be seeing Ruth in Adelaide. I'M SO EXCITED! I love Ruth - she is someone that I know that no matter how I'm feeling will always be able to relate to me. When both of us were living in Calgary, we'd used to get fries and milkshakes from Peter's Drive-In and go up to Nose Hill Park and finish them off, while taking long walks. Or we'd go down to Banana Jak's (a place that serves bubble tea - every time we are there, we're the only non East Asian people in the establishment and we get these looks from the other patrons. I love it! The best would be having marathon conversations in my car when I would drop her home. I'm truly lucky to have a friend like her (and I'm even more blessed to have more very close friends like her - you know who you fabulous people are! MWAH!). Needless to say, I'm uber excited to see her again. After Adelaide, I'm heading off to Sydney. I'll be staying with Dave for a few days and then heading into Sydney proper and hanging out with some friends, doing some much needed shopping (because Brisbane is known as Australia's fashion capital) and being a tourist. Indeed something to look forward to after this exam is over. Also, I have a particular goal while I'm here in Australia. What is that goal? I would like to have visited every State/Territory capital. After my midyear break, I'll have 3 under my belt and 5 cities left.

Hmm...also, there is the whole thing about me moving out of my current place of residence. I really like where I'm living, as it is very close to grocery stores (Woolies/Coles), the RE and Regatta, and a major train and bus stop. I'm thinking of moving in with a good friend, who is in first year med as well. It's a bit further west than where I am now, but close to all the amenities (a major shopping centre, train/bus stops). The rent is marginally lower. Why do I want to move? I guess I'm tired of always being alone when I'm at home. I've got Philipe but a cat's company can only do you so much good (especially 1. when I'm allergic to them; and 2. I hate cats). I like living in an environment where people are around, it's jovial, warm and filled with effervescent personalities. I can say that this has definitely been the case in the past few places that I've lived (Ottawa and Nairobi come to mind). What is a person to do?

I have achieved a world record!

2005-05-22T21:50:00.000+10:00

Well, let me clarify, I, along with 1500+ people have achieved a world record! This past weekend was the Panyiri Greek Festival in Brisbane. The world record was the longest Zorba dance, which up till this year, was kept by Melbourne (read: largest Greek population outside Athens). It was so much fun! Great food (spanakopitas, haloumi, honey puffs, greek salads, poura, baklava, Greek coffee, and some ouzo), music and dance. My friend Phil, who is Greek-Canadian, was very impressed with my Greek pronounciations of food. :) I guess that trip to Greece in 2000 paid off. There was a midway and games, very much like the Calgary Exhibition & Stampede. And for my zipper riding buddies (you know who you are), I rode in the Zipper called "Bad Ass"...ahh...like old times. :) I left early, as I was uber tired and felt a little guilty because I wasn't studying. I guess all work and no play makes Veevek's quite irritable.

Speaking of irritable, I felt that way after playing touch today. The other team came to the field with some sort of attitude. It just didn't groove well with the team spirit and comraderie that the Flaming Sambucas (we want to change it to the Motely Crew but too late) pride themselves on. The other team was playing rough, which is fine; however, their attitude seemed out of place. We fought back - player harder, touched harder, and carried a look of aggression. Alas, I didn't score a try...next time.

After coming home, I was able to finalise my plans for my 3-week midyear break. I'm going to Adelaide to visit one of my best friends, Ruth. I'll be there for a week, and then I'm off to Sydney for another week before heading back to Brisbane. I'll be meeting up with Dave, Graeme, Ruth and some other Sydneysiders. How I love to travel! And this time, I'm not missing any uni to do so! Cool bananas. :)

Alright, I gotta get back to indigenous health care and the structure/functions of the abdomen.

Brrrrrrisbane III

2005-05-21T01:41:00.000+10:00

Brrrrrrisbane III
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

I love this photo! The juxtaposition of the palm-like trees in the back, with the white hail. It was quite deep, in some places, the snow was above my ankle!

Brrrrrrisbane II

2005-05-21T01:39:00.000+10:00

Brrrrrrisbane II
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

This photo was taken a block outside my house! If it were daylight, you'd be able to see it (it's behind the orange light in the background of the photo). Once again...my jaw dropped when I saw the amount of hail that was on the road! Tis was crazy!

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrisbane

2005-05-21T01:37:00.000+10:00

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrisbane
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

No, it's not Calgary. It's Brisbane! Apparently, St Lucia and environs were the worst hit areas of the storm. I just couldn't believe that this much hail had fallen!

Where have I been?!

2005-05-21T01:31:00.000+10:00

Alright, there have been a couple of things that have happened in the last little while that I have failed to mentioned:
1) Mr. Thankey has reluctantly decided to open the flood gates in terms of extra-curricular activities.
2) Brisbane had a taste of Old Man Winter on Thursday, May 19th, 2005.
3) Veevek is slowly spiralling into madness...MADNESS I SAY!

Alright, let me explain the aforementioned numbered items.On May 10th, there was an international student night that was hosted by the University of Queensland Medical Society. It was a night whereby international students, from all 4 years, would be introduced to topics such as United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE), foreign doctors practising in Australia, and opening remarks from Ken Donald, Head, School of Medicine. Because of the complexity of those issues, we didn't have any guest lecturers (which we were going to have) to shed light on the bureaucratic issues that affect international students. The reason for having this information session, which was a first at UQ, was because of the marked increase in the number of international students in the course. There are more than 50 international students in my year, half of us are Canadians, the other half are comprised of Bruneians, a few Singaporeans, Americans, and Europeans (British and Norweigan).

An Australian medical degree is fully recognised in Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore. This makes life a whole lot easy for students that want to practise medicine in those countries. As for Canadians, we have to write the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Exams (MCCQE), which all Canadian students attending a Canadian medical school have to write as well. This is not the hard part of getting into the Canadian system. The hard part is qualifying for a residency match through the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS). Applicants who are students or graduates of international medical schools are eligible for the second iteration provided they have passed the Medical Council of Canada Evaluating Exam within 5 years of the beginning of training. According to the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada eligibility criteria for the first iteration match, graduates of international medical schools are not eligible to be ranked in the first iteration of the match by medical programs recruiting to first year residency other than those at accepted to apply in Quebec. What does this mean? It means that Canadians that have gained medical degrees from outside Canada/US are matched in the second round, if there are any spots left. In the 2005 match, there were 629 IMGs (International Medical Graduates) and of that only 80 were matched. Tis pitiful! At the moment, there are a few vehicles of change that are looking to get Canadians IMGs to be considered for 1st round consideration. As it stands, international students that are able to get into a Canadian medical school (and successful graduate) are considered for 1st round, even though they may not necessarily be Canadian citizens or permanent residents. To make a long story short, there are a number of things that need to be considered if Canadian graduates from Australian medical schools want to go back to Canada to practice medicine.Now, there are just as many complications for international students to stay and practice medicine in Australia. I would write about it but then I would be up for a few more hours, which would mean that I would be procrastinating even more from revising the gastro-intestinal tract.

To move on with it...it was a night where I was elected by the UQMS to represent MBBS Year 1 international students on the International Student Sub Committee. This sub-committee consists of 5 international students, and (for the time being) convenes monthly to discuss academic and administrative issues relevant to international students. One of the main focuses of the ISSC will be to improve communication between the School of Medicine and its students. So, what will I, along with the other members of the ISSC, be doing? Our first priority is looking at the creation of a database of information about how students can return to their home country/work in another country/stay in Australia. The second is to provide some assistance to UQ by coming up with a list of universities with which to pursue relationships for international rotations/electives.So, in the end, what does all of this mean? It means that Veevek has to make more efficient use of less time that is directed towards studying and revising.

The second item - Brisbane had a freak hail/thunderstorm yesterday! More than 150 lightning strikes were recorded in the Brisbane area. At uni, it was raining like mad. However, a few hundred metres away, there was a huge hailstorm! Right outside my house, there was enough hail to come up above my ankles! The roof of my pool collapsed due to the weight of the hail. Here's what the Sydney Morning Herald said about the event:

Brisbane is bracing itself for a second bout of thunderstorms after a freakish deluge of hail brought the city to an abrupt standstill late yesterday.

The storm, which damaged homes and business and cut power to more than 7000 houses, hit without warning about 5.30pm, surprising weather forecasters and peak hour commuters. The temperature fell suddenly as up to 50 millimetres of rain and hail fell on parts of the city, producing a sludge that prompted some to make the most of the extraordinary conditions with makeshift sleds.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Geoff Doueal said it was a once-in-a-lifetime storm."It had a great volume of pea-sized hail with it, and what caused all the havoc was not so much the size of the hail, but the great volume that was coming with the storm," he said. "It was a fairly slow-moving storm and the hail tended to block up drains, gutters, and then some heavy rain with the thunderstorm inundated people's properties. "For this time of year we haven't seen hail like that in the Brisbane city at all." Mr Doueal said the storm cell grew from a small thunderstorm to an intense barrage of hail within 15 minutes, leaving no time to issue a severe weather warning.ABC TV was forced to take its 7pm news bulletin from Sydney after the ceiling of the Toowong studio partially collapsed and received extensive water damage. Part of the Toowong Library caved in.

The State Emergency Service took calls from 200 people whose homes were overrun by water and hail. "Most of the damage centred on broken skylights and water inundation caused by the hail, blocking drains and gutters and water having nowhere to go," a rescue service spokeswoman said. About 200 power poles were hit by lightning and a felled tree brought down five powerlines in the northern suburb of Kedron.

Mr Doueal said the storms lasted several hours. They were expected to return late this afternoon. "We're likely to see some sort of thundery showers again today but it's very unlikely that we get a freak storm like that over the city again," he said."It just really was a build-up of hail. If you get big hail, it pounds into your car and makes big dents. We don't think that sort of thing happened - it was all very small hail, but it was the volume of hail which was quite amazing."

A friend drove me home from uni and traffic was so slow! I was thinking, "Move over people! Let a Canadian show you how you would drive in snow." Seriously, it took us more than 30 minutes to travel a distance of 1 km or so (for those of you in/know Calgary, that would be almost the same distance from 17th Avenue SW and Sacree Trail SW).

And as for the last item on the agenda - madness! Yes. All this studying (or the attempt to study) has been making Veevek quite sleepy and lethargic. I have quite an elaborate study schedule and tracker, that it seems all pretty on paper/computer that I just like to look at it and not do anything. Hmm...that's counterproductive to why those aids are used, hunh? :) Yes. Indeed, I've three and a half weeks till this exam and I feel as if I'm already cramming the information in my head. I know that I will pass (well, at this rate of studying, I'm not sure about that) but do I really want to just pass? I mean this is information that I should be able to compartmentalise and have to access to when I am dealing with patients, na? Now, I am just obsessing about it.Whew...I tell you, there is nothing like a good rant session, innit? :)

HE SCORES!!

2005-05-16T01:35:00.000+10:00

Yes, I scored! I scored my first try at touch! WOO-HOO! It felt so great! Of all the sports that I have ever played (which I could probably count them all on one hand), this is the first sport that I have played where I was a team member; all the other sports have been solitary, for example, skiing and squash. Lately, I’ve been feeling like a loser when it comes to touch footy. I’m definitely not an agile player – I’m good at defence but my offence sucks as. I’m asthmatic, which means I can’t sprint down to the touch line like Graeme/Dave/Rob. But after today, all of those things were wiped out! I really felt as if I am a member of the Flaming Sambucas (we want to change it to the Motely Crew) as opposed to some vestigial appendage. Rob told me afterwards that he is expecting that sort of play from now on. And he’s right – I normally give whatever I’m involved in a 110% - at least that is what I have put into all the things that I have done thus far or I wouldn’t be where I am today. So, the question remains, “why should touch footy be any different?” Simply put, it isn’t. :)

Apart from touch, this is the first weekend where I have realised that there is so much stuff I left to learn/study/revise/know before the June 16th exam. I have two weeks of cardiology and then a week of renal (or two, there is speculation that the SOM might spring a new organ system on us before the exam – if they do, it will most likely be blood). I have finished all my weekly summaries from the faculty learning objectives and trying to fill in the gaps of my knowledge of things like the respiratory drive, embryology of the heart (which still remains forever confusing) and the different congenital defects that can occur at each stage in the development of the heart. I guess this is going to be a feeling that I won’t be able to shake throughout medical school. I mean, there is no way that I will be able to know EVERYTHING. If I believe in that sort of process, then I have already given up. You might be thinking, “hmm…Veevek, wouldn’t you want to know as much as you can, so that you can help the patients that you may be seeing in the future.” And yes, you are very right in thinking that. However, to everything that we need to know, in the detail that is presented to us, would take absolute ages to synergise with previous knowledge. Hence why people specialise and why GPs refer their patients to those specialists.

Alright, tis way past my bed time. It seems that with each passing weekend, I have less and less time to do things that need to be done. I was fortunate to get my room organise, my notes updated and filed, and the washing. I have yet to go grocery shopping (yummy yummy for Mi Goreng noodles and vegemite sandwiches!). I made a kilo of pasta on Saturday night, so I'm hoping that that will keep me at bay for a while until the next major grocery shopping haul.

I just took a test at www.politicalcompass.org, and surprise, surprise, I'm considered a Libertarian Left. Oddly enough (I didn't check the facts on this online test) my score/coordinants were the same as the Dalai Lama. Hmm...food for thought - just as long as it isn't tofu with fruit coulis, I'll be fine.

Annabelle & Graeme

2005-05-14T00:49:00.000+10:00

Annabelle & Graeme
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

Annabelle is the hottie of PBL 1 (my PBL). She has degrees in economics and political science - hot. Graeme is a IronMan Triathelete and is more ripped than any other guy I know. The two of them (even though they aren't together) would make some pretty goodlooking children.

Tofu or bust?! Bust...bust...bust...

2005-05-14T00:12:00.000+10:00

Tofu or bust?! Bust...bust...bust...
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

This was the awful raw tofu with mango coulis that I wrote about in the entry about the May Ball. Trust me, it was as bad as it looked.

Aawu kavanu na kavai! BILKUT NAY!

Claire & Suzanne

2005-05-14T00:10:00.000+10:00

Claire & Suzanne
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

These two ladies are awesome! Both are in my course - Claire has a background in speech pathology and Soozie is a pharmacist. They are indeed in the top 10 of the hottest girls in our year. :)

Rob & Marlene

2005-05-14T00:09:00.000+10:00

Rob & Marlene
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

Rob & Lene - a recent match made in 'med-heaven'. Rob is the star squash player on the UQ Squash Team and Lene is a genius (not to mention that she's a very attractive genius).

Lene & Veevek

2005-05-14T00:08:00.000+10:00

Lene & Veevek
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

I was quite surprised that I was able to get Lene's leg that high up! I think that she most likely gave a show to everyone that was behind us.

Veevek & Leanne

2005-05-14T00:07:00.000+10:00

Veevek & Leanne
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

Leanne and I are always hooting and hollering in lectures! And honestly, we always look like this when we are together, even at 8am on a Monday. :)

She's probably the only girl in the course that can keep up (and most likely surpass) my zaniness!

Holly & Veevek

2005-05-13T23:49:00.000+10:00

Holly & Veevek
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

Holly was "Masquerade Barbie" that night. I know, I know...her mask doesn't compare to mine. :)

Dave & Veevek

2005-05-13T23:46:00.000+10:00

Dave & Veevek
Originally uploaded by Veevek.

This the Dave that started the V-MAN craze. He is my partner-in-crime! Seriously, I think that I'd be more sane without this guy...but who would want that? :)

Cinderfella

2005-05-08T19:30:00.000+10:00

Well, it is the day after the ball, and I am looking for signs of a pumpkin, scattering mice, and some ragged clothing strewn about. Instead, I see my suit hung in closet, the tie rolled up nice, shoes put into place, my contacts in their cases. Did I really go to the Ball last night? [Veevek looks up hoping that this large booming voice from the skies will give a loud resounding "YES"]

The May Ball was fantastic! There is something about seeing people dressed up and how people flirt about like peacocks during the rainy season that puts a smile on my face. (note: my mask was made out of peacock feathers, which probably used an entire peacock in its creation, and oddly enough it matched the suit/tie combination that I wore). At one point in the evening, I was approached by this woman (immaculately dressed) and she slipped me a business card. The card was regarding MedCouture. Apparently, I met the standards of the fashionistas that were out and about looking for people that would be able to carry on the tradition of scarificing pain for the goal of looking beautiful. I know of another girl that got one (Pam R.) for she was wearing a green/silver sari with all the jewellery to match. Tu jeez badi hain mast mast! :)

I didn't take my camera to the ball because it is quite a large camera. However, Lou was gracious enough to let me borrow the camera that she brought. I was camera happy! Once I get the photos uploaded from her, I'll be sure to send them out to those of you that are interested.

The food was awful, well at least the vegetarian meal was awful. It was raw tofu with mango coulis (a thick sauce made out of puréed fruit). Ick. But apparently, the chicken and steak weren't that good either (this is from what a few people had said). I was so hungry at one point, Lou jokingly offered me a piece of chicken and I ate it. It was NASTY! Seriously, I had to wash it down with two glasses of wine (which didn't make it any better). Pffft...no one goes to the ball for its food. They go for the drinks! Beer, wine and champagne wearing being consumed in vast quantities (not because it was high quality because it was all that they were serving) that at one point they ran out of glasses. So, they only served people that had glasses (fair enough). Some people were scavenging for glasses (new/used) just so that they can get all liquored up before the after party.

The after party was held at the Port Office - a favourite for the med students. They play good music, drinks are pretty good but the bouncers are extreme hard asses when it comes to letting people in. Dave didn't get in because he left his wallet, and ID, at home. However, at the ball, we were all given entrance tickets to the PO. I didn't have any problems, as I just showed them the silver ticket. He was pretty slick - he quickly jumped the from the line into the outside foyer of the club. He walked in and, since he is a social butterfly, he started talking to someone near the front. The bouncer caught him and he was kindly escorted out. Meanwhile, those of us that were allowed in, it was a blast! There was great fun to be had - great music, good conversations (well, whatever I could remember), good drinks and the general feeling of being merry. At some point in the night, I wasn't feeling very good. In the words of an acquaintance, "I didn't drink too much, I just drank too fast". :)

I got home this morning around 3:30am and I don't really remember anything from the time I got out of the taxi to when I went to bed (which must have been a 30 minute window). When I got up this morning, I realised (to my surprise) that my suit/shirt/tie/shoes/mask were put away properly, my contact lens were taken out and placed in its correct container, I drank a litre of water and ate a couple of vanilla wafers.

The only thing that I had to do today was go to the footy game. I thought that I probably should have skipped it but it's the best way of spending 40 minutes on a late Sunday afternoon. The footy game was great - we won! Well, we won because the other team had to forfeit because not enough of their players should up. Regardless, we had a friendly match of footy (which was great). However, after finishing last week's case on asthma, I've realised that my managment plan is really shitty. I reckon that I need to go and do some research on what needs to be done about it. It's a good thing that asthma is taken very seriously here, as Australia has the highest rate of incidence of asthma in the world (approximately 10% of the adult population).

I talked to my mum today (as it is Mother's Day). My parents had come home from a late night of playing cards at one of their friend's house. I saw my mum online and then called her. My dad answered the phone and he was so tired that he wasn't making any sense on the phone. It was one of the sort of conversations where you want it to be over so fast so that you can go back to bed. My mum had waited up because she knew that I'd be home around that time. Wow...mums really do know their kids even if they are 10000 km away. Normally, my parents aren't really interested in my friends (they are interested only if my friends are doing something to 'oooh' and 'ahhh' about). But lately, my mum has been asking me about my friends and what they do and if I have photos of them for her to see. I guess this is her way of being in touch with my life here in Brisbane.

Alright, speaking of life here in Brisbane, I need to bustamove. I should get going and do some work on cystic fibrosis and asthma. Or, I could just go to bed now (it's 7:30pm) and get up early in the morning. Hmm...knowing me, I reckon that I should do most of the work now and try to be in bed before midnight.

Broken blood vessels

2005-05-04T00:59:00.000+10:00

It's Wednesday (12:09am) and I just finished my learning objective on the examination of the respiratory system. This was the first time that I was given a clinical LO. SO MUCH FUN! Yes, the basic/clinical science theory is very important but actually knowing the clinical signs and symptoms about particular diseases/illnesses just gives me goosebumps!

This upcoming weekend is the UQMS May Ball. This is, supposedly, the premiere event in our social calendar and the explanation is all in its name. A gala ball, held in May and attended by over five hundred people, beaten only by the Graduation Dinner for shear numbers. There is an informal welcome from the Head of School, before patrons sit down to dinner, wine, and later on, a little dancing. The twist to this gala (as in previous years) is that it's a masquerade ball! My parents sent my mask from Canada (I had bought a mask when I went to New Orleans in 2001 to visit a friend and take a two-week intensive Spanish short-course). There was quite a bit of noise about this year's May Ball because of the price of the tickets. In previous years, the tickets were around $40. This year, they are $85. Apparently in previous years, there was no food or drinks served. Also, the Roma Street Parklands is the world's largest urban subtropical garden. The entire event will be held under a marquise (read: glorified tarpaulin). Everyone is getting all excited about it. People are getting last minute things finalised: tuxedo rental and dresses (I'm decided against the tux and am wearing a tailored three peice navy blue pin striped suit), hair (hmm...I'm not going to even go there because this head of hair needs a weedwacker to cut it down and I'm not going through the hassle of testing a new haircut on the 'premeire social event of the year'), and things like that. Needless to say, all of this excitment has taken its toll on studying. The weekend was quite productive in terms of studying because I knew that I wouldn't be doing much this upcoming weekend.

Ahhh...back to the title of this blog. On Sunday night (Monday was Labour Day in QLD), I decided to take a small break from studying. I went to the Royal Exchange to meet up with Matt B and his girlfriend. After a couple of drinks, I met up with a whole bunch of other students and headed down to Caxton Street. During the day, there was the infamous Caxton St Seafood Festival. I didn't attend because I was studying and I don't see myself eating and enjoying mussels and octopus (yuck). Regardless, the street was blocked off for pedestrian traffic and beer cans were everywhere! It almost looked like the aftermath of Canada Day outside the Maple Leaf Pub in London. I didn't have much dinner before heading out and after a few drinks, I was starting to feel the effects of the alcohol. I realised that this wasn't what I wanted to do this evening, as I knew that I would have to get up early the next day to get some more studying done. I left the group around 1am and waited in a taxi queue. In Brisbane, there are taxi queues around certain hotspots and at certain times (around bars/pubs in the late night). I stood in the queue and started talking to this friendly couple. And I had enough to drink that my senses weren't totally sharp but I definitely knew what I was doing. After some time of the conversation, what did I do? Mr. Thankey thought it would be a good idea to pash this girl whilst standing the cue with her boyfriend right there! At first, I didn't think that he was her boyfriend but then again, nowadays, you really don't know how people are associated with one another. I ended up getting a small hickey above my left clavicle and proximal to the sternomastoid muscle (read: on my lower neck above the collarbone). After this short pashing session, the couple asked if I wanted to 'share' a taxi with them. They lived in Bardon, and I in Toowong. Bardon is close to Toowong but definitely out of the way. The couple soon kissed each other after making this proposal. So many thoughts going through my head. I ended up taking a taxi home (by myself) and thinking that one miss opportunity isn't such a bad thing. :) I tell you, sometimes I just get the shits and giggles thinking of what things I have and can get into. Oh well, I guess it makes for a good anecdote on a late Tuesday night (hmm...I wonder what sort of anecdotes will come from this weekend...stay tuned...)

WTF???

2005-04-24T04:02:00.000+10:00

How can this bloke have NFI (no f*cking idea) of what the Nazi Swastika means?! Apparently, he flew the Nazi flag, not realising what it meant! Darren Mackay's Nazi flag has caused mass offence but he does not understand why, because he didn't learn about Adolf Hitler in school history lessons. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,15048244-1242,00.html

Good god. That is tragic...just tragic.

The revision starts now

2005-04-22T18:30:00.000+10:00

There are 7 weeks left till my mid-year exam. What does this mean? I have 6 weeks to revise for the past 12 weeks and keep up with the next 7. Definitely doable. In fact, at the moment, Dave, Rob and I are going through the faculty learning objectives (random selection between the four different domains - basic/clinical sciences, ethics/law, interpersonal communication, and public/preventive helth). It's a pretty snazzy and flashy system that requires the use of Microsoft Excel (courtesy of Dave), which is uber sexy. :)

Apart from uni, things are going okay. I have been feeling a bit homesick lately, in the sense, that I really miss speaking Gujarati. I have started to talk to the cat (oh yeah...that should be its own paragraph) in Gujju-che (that's what my friend Anita likes to call it). Maybe I am just a bit crazy (I can see how the old grannies with lots of cats are deemed crazy) but I think that it understands my muttering.

Okay, so, my flatmates decided to buy a cat while I was in New York. I hate cats. I despise them. I really do. Yes. Affirmative. Uh hunh. Regardless, they bought this albino Siamese kitten and named it Filipe. They didn't know that I was allergic to cats. In fact, I thought it was really stupid of them to buy something like a cat without consulting me on the issue. Whatever it has been done. The good thing is that my allergies haven't been very bad (actually quite mild) and I spend more time outside my place, which means that I have been studying more. :)

This upcoming weekend in ANZAC long weekend. Australia and New Zealand commemorate the ANZAC Day public holiday on the 25th of April every year to honour the bravery and sacrifice of the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), and of all those who served their country in time of war. More specifically, it marks the anniversary of the first major military action taken by the ANZAC in the World War I. In 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of the Allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula (Turkey) to open the way to the Black Sea for the Allied navies. The plan was to capture Constantinople (now Istanbul), capital of the Ottoman Empire and an ally of Germany. They landed at Gallipoli on 25 April, meeting fierce resistance from the Turkish defenders. What had been planned as a bold stroke to knock Turkey out of the war quickly became a stalemate, and the campaign dragged on for eight months. At the end of 1915 the Allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships. Over 8,000 Australian soldiers were killed. News of the landing at Gallipoli made a profound impact on Australians at home and 25 April quickly became the day on which Australians remembered the sacrifice of those who had died in war.

Whew...that was a mouthful! But yes, this weekend is ANZAC long weekend. It is going to be filled with insane amounts of studying (I say this now. Hopefully this will be the case by the time Monday evening rolls around). I have two birthday dinners/parties to go to. Saturday is Nabila's party; her birthday is on ANZAC Day but no point in celebrating it on that day. Nabila is originally from Vancouver and she did her undergrad at McGill. She asked me to plan it, so I did. :) I chose a restaurant that overlooks the Brisbane River called the Jade Buddha. Afterwards, we are going to make our way down to the Port Office Hotel, which is a bi-level bar in the City that is just KICK ASS!

Sunday, like every other, will be me trying to get all my grocery shopping done for the week, washing, organising my notes, and touch footy. However, there will be some upscale debauchery after touch. :) It's my good friend Suzanne's (a Brisvegan) birthday and we are (tentatively) heading out to a Turkish restaurant and then to a funky place called the Lychee Lounge, which apparently have the best infused vodka in all of Brisbane. :) I have yet to go to the West End in Brisbane. It is a suburb on the south side of the Brisbane River. Look left - it's the fashionistas sipping lychee martinis; look right - an earthboy hippie is jamming on bongos with a jazz sax player; and straight ahead is a Middle Eastern tobacco cafe, where all sorts discuss whether apple flavour is better than vanilla. And this is at 2am. Apparently, there is never a dull moment in the eclectic melting pot that is West End. I am uber excited. :)

You are the proud Godfather...

2005-04-17T13:04:00.000+10:00

...Natalia Kaptembwa! A very good Kenyan friend of mine is going to be giving birth any day now. A few days ago, I talked to her and she was still thinking of a name for her soon-to-be new born baby girl.

Lillian andI had so much fun working together in Kenya. We kept the office atmosphere light and reasonably cheerful. I worked for an HIV/AIDS organization called the International Community for the Relief of Starvation and Suffering. During the spare times of the day, her and I would work on my Kiswahili and I learnt more about the idiosyncracies and nuance of East African culture. She was an incredible teacher. I would go home with a slight pain in my abs from laughing way too much. Even when I think about it now, I still give a small chuckle. :)

So, Lillian and I were talking and she was having the hardest time coming up with a girl's name. I really like the name Malaika (mah-LAH-ee-kah). In Kiswahili, it means 'angel'. The Indian version of the name would be Malika, which can mean a number of things - princess, garland/flower. However, she wanted an English (read: Biblical) name. So, I told her some of my suggestions (Christine, Ruth, Sarah, Suzanne). She shot all of them down. Then I though of the name Natalie. Why Natalie? Well, I was coming home from spending the afternoon with my friend Colleen from Calgary (she was here about 48 hours on business, which was promoting the University of Calgary at the University of Queensland Study Abroad Fair). And I rang up Natalie (she is a fellow med student from the British Crown dependency of the Island of Guersney) and she was doing some grocery shopping at Coles in Toowong Village. I met up with her as I was passing Toowong Village when I had called. We went back to her place and I marvelled at her (uber) modern kitchen and fancy appliances. I helped her make flapjacks. These aren't pancakes or flatcakes. These are rolled oats that have been mixed lots of butter and sugar and then cooked. Mmmmmmmmmm. She's heaps of fun - and she turns bright red whenever I yell out her name (most often in the lecture theatre). :)

Back to the story...I told Lilian this name and she loved it! Natalie (and its many variants) is of Latin origin and it refers to a baby that has been born at Christmas. Natal (and it many variants) mean Christmas in a number of languages. For example, natal means Christimas in Gujarati, natale in Portugeuse, and navidad in Spanish. So, the baby will be named Natalie Kaptembwa. After that process, Lillian asked me if I could be the baby's godfather. I don't think that I have ever thought about it, as the idea of godparenthood. A godparent is someone that has been selected by the parent(s) to ensure that their child(ren) are being raised as good Christians. However, I reckon that in this day in age (also my friend Gemma said this as well) that a godparent is someone that the child's parent(s) feels close to and would like to have a role in the upbringing (literal/figurative) in their child. Even though I know that I would have no clue as to how to raise Natalie as a good Christian, the honour that has been bestowed upon me is, indeed, quite great.

"He doesn't listen to a thing I say"

2005-04-11T21:50:00.000+10:00

This week's PBL case is about a 6 year old (James), whose parents have brought him into your practice. He has been complaining of earaches (and has a whole lists of triggers associated with it) and how he has been quite disruptive in class. It is as if this week's case is taken from the earlier chapters of my life. What happened to John? He has gone deaf.

Oddly enough, until now, I haven't really looked into why my hearing, or lack of, is the way it is. For some reason, I have become complacent about it. The PBL group asked me a number of questions about what it was like, how it happened, and such things. I really didn't have much to tell them. Honestly, it never occured to me that I should know more about it.

My hearing impairment was caused by, what doctors think, scarlet fever. I know that I had horrible fevers when I was a kid. They were so bad that my parents often had to resort to placing me in a tub of ice and ice water. Hence why I hate showering/bathing in cold water. I remember how my Grade 1 teacher, Mrs. Stradecki, (read: a total bitch) was absolutely awful in how she treated me. I was ostracised from the class and became a social outcaste (which lasted for most of my grade schooling years), a child who wanted nothing more to fit in and not have to worry about (at the time it was) a stupid machine in his ear. Only if she had attended the lecture on developmental problems in school aged children that I had today. I am glad to know that doctors are being trained in properly examining and not placing judgement on cases like these.

Now, I have never used my hearing impairment as a disability. My parents made sure that I was constantly reminded of the normalcy of my upbringing. Sure there were things that I had trouble getting used to, such as talking/listening on the phone. However, these were things that I was able to overcome. It has been a long time since I've had to overcome anything new. Meaning, that being accepted to medical school was the first time that I really had to honestly examine any shortcomings I had with my impairment. The only thing that I can think of it how I will be able to use a conventional stethescope. The answer is that I won't be able to use one. I am still looking into what sort of stethescopes are available for people with hearing aids. From what I have seen thus far, there are not many out there and the prices for these things are almost 5 times more than the conventional (Litman Cardiology 3) stethescope. To make matters more interesting, University of Queensland's School of Medicine has never had an hearing impaired student. Don't I feel even more special? :)

This week will be a good one - it will be a week where I will (hopefully) be able to look at myself from the position of what has happened (in the physiological/pathological sense) and and from the position of being a hearing impaired person. Whoa...that's deep.

Can he drink beer?

2005-04-10T11:55:00.000+10:00

"Can I drink beer?" is this week's PBL (problem-based learning) case. A quick run down: A young man (19) Stephen K. has been brought to Accident & Emergency by his mum. She says that Stephen has been losing weight recently despite eating as much or more than usual. As well, she has noticed that he always seems to be thirsty. “He drinks so much that he gets up several times each night to go to the toilet.” While still in A&E, Stephen’s blood glucose was measured on a glucometer as 28 mmol/L (RR: 3.5 - 5.5 mmol/L). A urine dipstick test indicates glucose ++++ and ketone bodies ++++.

Alright, so what's wrong with him? Don't all speak out at once because the cacophony will make me go deaf. (hahahaha). Those of you that are have been following very closely...he has Type I diabetes mellitus. Yes.

So, what does all this mean? Well, it means that Stephen will have to jab himself with insulin every day; he needs to make sure that he doesn't get hypoglycaemic or hyperglycaemic (too little or too much insulin, respectively, in his blood), and I still need to answer the question if he can drink beer.

All this seems quite simple...but NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Damn metabolism! It is late Saturday afternoon and I have declined a few offers to a couple of different parties (Now I should be able to see pigs fly! I thought that the day would never come where Mr. Thankey has willingly declined a social function! There is something wrong...perhaps, it warrants a trip to the hospital?) I have a number of learning objectives left to finish (out of 8, I have finished the first two - the anatomy of the pancreas and the role of insulin/glucagon in the regulation of metabolism), which I am determined to get before I got to bed. If that means staying up all night, then so be it.

Aside from uni, I still haven't gotten over the novelty of being here in Brisbane. A few days ago, I was walking to uni and I saw a huge flock of cockatoos (sulphur-crested cockatoos to be exact)! Now, I can never say that I have seen cockatoos outside of a cage or the zoo - it was awesome! (Yes, birds are making me excited...sad but true). A few weeks ago before leaving for New York, I saw a flock of rose breasted cockatoos or, more commonly called, galahs. Also, the fact that Autumn is in full swing and it is still nice out. Sure the early mornings and late nights are a bit cooler and it seems to rain a bit more often, but I can deal with that. :) Also, I am starting to really consider where I want to be after I graduate from here. A huge part of me wants to stay here in Australia (that will depend on the benevolence of the Australian government); however, I have been looking more and more into the UK and Canada. I guess I should be keeping all my options open.

Now, there are a couple of things that I have been missing - my mum's cooking (I only wished that she was able to send care packages of food but they would a) go off in getting here and b) Australian customs would incinerate it on the spot or they'd eat it); I miss some of the cultural aspects of my life, for instance, I miss speaking Gujarati. I know that this sounds odd but for those of that can speaking another language part from English, know what I mean. I have yet to meet any Gujaratis here in Brisbane (not that I am actively searching for them) but it would be nice to speak a language that is very close to my heart.

Sorry about going back to the medical thing but I forgot about something quite important that happened this week. This was the first week (of 10) that I went to my clinical coaching course. This is a 10-week course that will help prepare me and my other classmates on the MSAT (Multiple Station Assessment Test). This is a 3-hour clinical exam that will assess out clinical skills in terms of taking the history of a patient and looking at taking exams in gastroenterology, central nervous system, cardiovascular, and respiratory. There will also be a component on the ethics and law in medicine in that exam. Okay, so my group (6 people from my PBL) went to the Greenslopes Private Hospital, it used to be primarily a veterens' hospital but now it admits all adults. My preceptor is a psychiatrist, Dr. A. Majumdar. Okay, does anyone see what's wrong with that? PSYCHIATRIST? Give me a bloody break! The very first thing that Dr. Majumdar said when we entered his office was, "I want to let you know that I am a psychiatrist and I don't know how helpful I will be with the stuff that we are to be looking over." Even if that is the truth, you don't have to let us know that! Many of us asked ourselves, "well, why the fuck are you doing this? and why are we here?" Don't get me wrong, I believe that the area of psychiatry is very interesting (it is the flavour of the month for me) but wouldn't it be more conducive for us to have a preceptor that did general medicine/gastrointestinal/cardiology/surgery etc? Also, this means that the probability of our group seeing any patients is nil. All the other groups, or at least all the ones that I have talked to, have been able to see patients and practice their skills with taking the clinical exam. Seeing patients that are commited to a psychiatric ward of any hospital requires special training, which is something that we won't have until much later. I just wished that that the hospital administrator was a bit more cognizant of those sort of things, as opposed to finding any physician that is willing to host a group of 6 students.

Mmmm, I just took an hour break to make me some dinner. What did I have? I made mutter paneer with rice (Tilda basmati of course). :) Indian food makes Veevek a very happy person (then again, all kinds of food make Veevek a very happy person).

Alright, I need to start on the remaining learning objectives while my mates are out having a good time. There is one exception that I know of - Dave. He is my partner-in-crime that being said, he is also studying. Just makes me smile knowing that there are a few of us socialites out there that are willing to take one for the team. :)

New York and back again...

2005-04-04T02:10:00.000+10:00

It has been quite some time since I've posted (sorry about that). Things have been quite hectic with med school and getting ready for the conference in New York.

Well, first off - medical school is going well. I am catching up on the fed, resting, starvation, exericse states of metabolism (indeed very fun) and the PBL case that I missed while in NYC, which was all about anorexia nervosa.

Now, New York. I love that city. It is the one city in the USofA that I will fly over the oceans to visit. Speaking of flying over the oceans - it sucks! The flight from BNE to LAX (for those that don't speak airport code - a) get used to them because that's what I like to use; and b) you need to travel more) was almost 14.5 hours. I kept myself busy with reading Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. Absolutely fantastic book! OH MOTHER OF GOD! I just realised that it is his autobiography. GOOD GOD! That changes everything. Yes, this is definitely a book that everyone needs to read. It is about a man who escape prison in New Zealand and finds himself in India working as many things, a doctor, smuggler, gunrunner, drug dealer, casting agent, and a fighter in the Russo-Afghan war, etc.

New York was phenomenal (yes, I alway said that). I was able to see some really good friends again (Christine, Peter, Deana, Erin, Rabia, Jen T, Radford, Kevin, Jake, Tracy, Amierah, JJ, Rachel, Renee) and I was able to make many new ones! I love those times where you can renew and strengthen your friendships with a number of people from all over the world; at the same time, you invest a bit of yourself into making new friends, in the hopes of it becoming as strong as the ones that you have created and cultivated.

Prior to leaving for NYC, I told myself that I would get most of my shopping (both clothes and other items that are unavailabe in Australia) in my free time. Shyeah right! There was no free time. Sorry, let me clarify. The free time that I had was after midnight and before 8am, which meant that Veevek got very little shopping done. I did manage to buy some underwear, socks, and a polo t-shirt from H&M (I can't begin to tell you how much I love that store). However, in the little free time that I did have, I made sure to give my liver a good workout and being in the company of those that make my spirit feel so much more free and livlier.

Also, one thing that I realised in NYC is that I don't deal well with cold. I really don't. It was below 10 degrees Centigrade most of the time with the occasional wet snow, freezing rain, and sleet. Yeah, no. I'd much rather prefer the sun shining with the occasional cool breeze that comes by and evaporates the sweat. Yep, that's what I like.

Now, I am back in Brisbane. The Easter holidays end today and I head back to uni tomorrow. I cannot wait to see my friends again. Indeed this break was all about rejuvination and trying to reclaim what I have lost while studying 6 days a week - my sanity.

The onset of classes also reminds me and my fellow class mates that the June exam is looming. This is a three-hour exam that I have to write in the middle of June right before my winter break. I'm starting week 10 tomorrow and have 9 more weeks left until exam day. This means that I have to get my ass into gear and revise the previous 9 weeks, while learning the new 9 weeks. Ahhh, this is the point where Mr. Thankey will have no social life...gotcha. :)

Oh, this is completely off topic but I love IKEA. I really do. I went there yesterday with my friend Claire and bought all sorts of neat things. A bookshelf, a clamp lamp, some things for the kitchen, bedsheets, a duvet cover, and pillow cases for the newly acquired pillows (courtesy of the Hitlon). Finally, I can have some order in my room.

Alright, it is 10am and I need to bustamove on the day. Graeme is having another bbq this afternoon. Normally, Sunday is a day of rest but not for me. After this bbq, I have to get cracking on finishing up the rest of Week 9 and start revising Week 8 and 7 (a bit ambitious but the day still has 14 hours in it).

Lugubrious...

2005-03-09T15:58:00.000+10:00

yes, today was indeed a very lugubrious day. For those of you that aren't up to speed on your vocabulary, lugubrious means mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially to an exaggerated or ludicrous degree (I would like to thank www.dictionary.com for that wonderful definition). I got up this morning, already late for my (only) morning lecture. My eyes were quite sore (damn corneal ulcers!) and I had no energy to face the day when my eyes were hurting really badly. I made it to uni and Dave texted me and told me that the lecture wasn't worth it. I went in and then out again, realising that I should have heeded his words in the very beginning. Today was my hello day - 9 hours of straight lectures, expert tutorials, and practicals. I wore my sunglasses the entire day (even inside) because my eyes just weren't liking the bright and sunny weather. The pain got to an unbearable point and I decided to skip my evidence-based medicine tutorial (I got into an argument with the professor the first time - he is my 'black list' as Dave likes to call it).

I went grocery shopping (yes, it was very important because I was living off of museli, a few tomatos, Pacific Fruit cordial, and my whey protein powder) and got me enough food to cook for the next two weeks! FUN FUN. But soon after the novelty wore off and I was back to being lugubrious. I went home and tried to go over the missed lecture and looking over my anatomy of the abdomen but my eyes just didn't want to. I took a much needed nap and headed off to Pete's place for a study group session - which turned out to be a waste of time (at least for me). I have gotten behind on Week 6 (stomach/small intestines/colon) and this is week 7 (which is a continuation of the gastrointestinal tract and looking at whatever part of the abdomen we haven't covered). Tomorrow, I only have a clinical communications skill session at Princess Alexandria Hospital. Hopefully, I will be able to play a kick ass game of catch up!

So, some of my readers want to know more about my friends here. I don't mind putting up mindless drivel about them on here (perhaps I should ask their permission before I do that...nah, that wouldn't make it as fun). But who to start with?? :) A character sketch of all my mates...that will be quite interesting. That will be an ongoing project, that's for sure.

Okay, it's bedtime. I just wish that this throbbing pain in my left eye will just go away. Where is a melon baller when you need one! I have an appointment with an optometrist tomorrow afternoon but I have a very strong feeling that I am just going to be referred to another specialist that will be in the middle of buttfucknowhere. :)

Touch Footy!

2005-03-07T16:20:00.000+10:00

Yes, that's what Mr. Thankey has signed up for. I suck but that's more than half the fun! A few weeks ago, I signed up for (so did about 30 other people) a MBBS I touch footy team. Today was the first week of three weeks trials. Teams are made up on 7 people, and you can have extras to swtich on and off. There needs to be a minimum of 3 women per team. Dave sent me a text this morning, trying to round up people. Those that showed up: Dave, Dan, Greg, Graeme, Vanessa, Mel, Lene, Matt, Nathan, John, and me. Those that should have showed up: Marlo. She was going to come but apparently a movie got to the best of her. :)

We played two games, which were 20 minutes each. In the first trial, we drew (2-2). The second game, were were obliterated! The second team was hardcore. I only played for maybe 10 minutes out the 40 minutes. I had never played before and felt a bit handicapped (well, moreso than usual) with the game. As a result, I am decided to start training for touch. Yes, social exercise with the rest of the team will build some team spirit and get to know the strengths and weaknesses of our team mates. I can totally see every Sunday arvo being about touch footy and then going to the PBL room to do some studying before heading back home to sleep, only to get up 5 hours later for the 8am Monday PBL session.

Oh, what's the name of our team...FLAMING SAMBUCAS! Only Pete would come up with a name like that. God loves him. :)

Also, today was a day in which I realised that some of the friends that I have are so invaluable and they truly do make me be a better person. My heart and love goes out to those people (you know who you are!).

"You're worse than a nigger - you're African."

2005-03-06T18:37:00.000+10:00

This was a quote from Nick Nolte, who plays Colonel Oliver in the movie "Hotel Rwanda". I went to see Hotel Rwanda with Param, Nabila, Marlo, Kim, Sonia, Pete, Dave, and Dan. I wanted to see this movie before I left Calgary but knew that I would be missing the release date. I reckon that everyone in that movie cried - everyone.

The movie was incredible - I can see why it was nominated for an Oscar and Don Cheadle did an absolutely fantastic job of playing the role of Paul Rusesabagina. The quote used in the title was during the part of the movie when international reinforcements had arrived but only to evacuate foreign passport holders, not Rwandans. Colonel Oliver was telling Paul of what the world thinks of this draconian situation that was unfolding in front of them. It's true - people in priviledged parts of the world see these things on the television, computer, newspapers. When they are finished with it, they continue to eat their hot dinner, go to work/school in an environment which is safe, and they are in a home which provides them with all the comforts that they are afforded with. Rex Murphy (a Canadian television personality) said it perfectly, living in the West, is like winning the only lottery that matters in the world.

Hotel Rwanda is, for the most part, a deeply personal story, and it’s uniquely focused on one building (the hotel), the people within it, and the relationships between them. The filmmakers deliberately avoided focusing on the overwhelming horror of the genocide itself. The film does an absolutely fantastic job of creating a bizarre, surreal atmosphere, to let the audience feel the psychological terror of the genocide without going close on the slaughter.I have no doubt that this is one of the few movies that I have watched in the past year that got me completely and utterly emotionally involved. For other movies, I might be interacting with the story by way of associating my personal experiences with the characters, discerning opinions upon them, examining the development of the story, ways of expression, the cinematography, acting, etc. BUT, Hotel Rwanda simply took me over as I was watching it. My emotion was going along with Paul ( Don Cheadle) all the time. The director (Terry George) did a great great job in capturing the feelings of people facing uncertainty, horror, ridicules, anger, death, waning faith. Family, life and dignity/integrity become the largest things in the situation. What's more is that it squarely shows the realist thinking in international politics. It honestly shows the weakness/helplessness of the UN and the non-governmental organisations. It truthfully tells how indifferent most of the international community (and individuals) are towards the deprivation of social justice taking place in other parts of the world. It makes you question to what extent that it is true to say what we see is what we tolerate. It shows you how monstrous human being can be. It scares you how sanity would fail. At the same time, the uglier the people become, the more beautiful you find those who have managed to keep brave and maintain humanity. The movie fully succeeds in showing me the spirit, faith, and compassion that the world is dreaming for. It was a movie that exemplifies why I want to be a doctor.

For those of you that haven't done so, there are two things that you need to do. First, GO AND SEE HOTEL RWANDA. Second, go and read "Hope in Hell" by Dan Bortolotti. This is a book about the personal stories of doctors, nurses and nonmedical volunteers working under the aegis of Médecins Sans Frontières. It looks at how how these volunteers often work in poor and dangerous places, and the experience changes all of them. Some are traumatised, kinapped, even murdered. Many watch their idealism become disillusionment, their friends become strangers. Other feed on the adventure, fall in love, or find the family they never had. This book reveals the human face of an organisation that truly does provide hope in hell.

Ready...steady...go!

2005-03-06T17:55:00.000+10:00

It's been a while since I have been able to post as I have been studying and revising for an exam, albeit a practice one, and trying to be on top of my game in terms of the course work. On that note, I am not on top of my game in terms of course work - I still have a fair bit of work left to do on the stomach, small intestines and colon.

From the last entry, I promised that I would write about Sports Day. Okay, I am sure that I have written about Sport's Day in previous entries (in fact, I know I have. If you don't remember, I ask you to scroll down and read them again before proceeding further). The night prior to Sport's Day, I went to the Royal Exchange Hotel's infamous annual Toga Party. Initially, I wasn't going to go because I wanted to be well rested for Sports Day and make sure that I can get enough work done so that I didn't feel guilty losing an entire day's worth of work towards my social development learning. :) I went toga shopping with Celia (she's in my course) in the CBD. We were looking for a gold fabric as she thought that that would suit me best. At the fabric store, she jokingly picked up a bright fuschia bolt of fabric and said that this would be better. And what did Mr. Thankey do next? He bought two metres of that fabric! It was awesome. HAHAHAHAHAHA. However, at the actual toga party, I was dressed conservatively - some people were just hardcore toga enthusiasts! I guess there were somethings that I just wasn't meant to go all out for. :) Since the theme at the RE was Toga - the patrons were definitely all praying and prostrating to Dionysus - the Greek god of wine (in this case, alcohol in general). Matt, myself, Celia, Nabila, Katrina, Dana, Marlo (her sister and some mates of hers), Sherin, Vignesh, Bali, Claire, and Colleen had a great time! Those of that were in med (everyone for the exception of Claire, Colleen and Marlo's sister and mates) were gonna be hurting for tomorrow's Sports Day.

So, the morning comes and Veevek rubs the sleep out of his eyes - dresses in his recently 'acquired' scrubs and heads out to meet Claire (different Claire from above) to walk over to a barbeque for 9:30am. We buy some food (curried veggie sausages...mmmmm) and make our way to start the day with some good tucker in our belly. So, what was the first thing that I have for breakfast? Beer...yes, the carbohydrates were making their way through my system (still have to finish that learning objective for this week). I made sure that I ate more than my fill before heading over the the Regatta. At the Regatta, there was a large congregation of MBBS I in their scrubs and with jugs of beer and other drinks in their hands. I had a few beers and a couple spirits - nothing like jolting your alcohol metabolism to a quick and shocking start! Law John (he is from Western Australia and has an undergrad degree in Law) brought along a very dangerous weapon...a black marker! See, when you have clean scrubs (or any potential writing surface, it will be bound to come upon a black marker and someone will write something that will haunt you for quite some time). Pete, for example, was Dr. Assman (the name came from me - the Sienfeld episode where Kramer got the license plate "ASSMAN" was the inspiration), Law John was Dr. M.J.Jackson - Pediatrics, on the back on his top was written, "I love children, is that a crime?" So, what was mine? "Dr. V-MAN, OBY/GYN, "Vulva? Vagina? You decide" The upper years came running along Coronation Drive, following a (presumably) 4th year wielding the torch (similar to the Olympic torch). They came in for quick rehydration (or dehydration if you want to be specific) and we all headed off to St. Lucia campus, where the festivities will be held. Now, people have the choice of getting to St. Lucia by any means. You can take the ferry, bus, walk, run, in a trolley, drive, on the back of a donkey (or another class mate)...you get the picture.

Anyways, I was running with the alpha pack until I had to stop off at my place to drop off my mobile (I didn't need to talk to anyone or send texts today), get my sunglasses and take some medication before enjoying what the day had to offer. I ran most of the way to uni (which is about 3.5 km). I am telling you that running with some beer in your gut and the sun being at its highest point in the day can lead to TROUBLE!

After arriving at the Sports Day (held at one of the fields on UQ St. Lucia campus), there were heaps of people from all years enjoying themselves to beer, wine, snow cones, fairy floss (cotton candy) and a barbeque. There was a jumping castle, a live band, a dunking tank, and of course, a large open field to play games. I bought 5 drink tickets so that I can keep count of what I am drinking. I was a good boy because I didn't buy any more after that. :)

I did manage to get myself a haematoma (bruise for those that aren't familiar with medical jargon) above my right eyebrow. My mate Pete (imagine a 185cm teddy bear) went in the jumping castle with me. Pete justs towers above people - combine this with a jumping castle and he is an ANIMAL! So, Pete tackled me and took me down whilst giving me the people's elbow above my right eyebrow.

As for the sports, I didn't partake in them. People asked me but my response was to them, "if you want to see a short Indian man having an asthma attack on the field, then by all means I am game!" I had a great time meeting new people and having great conversations with them.

Sports Day was held from 1pm to 5pm. At 1pm, the School of Medicine purposely held a clinical symposium for the MBBS I students, knowing full well that Sports Day would be held. The UQMS (UQ Medical Society) had informed the SOM (School of Medicine) that this day would be Sports Day (on Fridays, we have the afternoon free from lectures, tutorials and practicals). So, it was a sign of protest that I didn't go to the Symposium. Apparently lots of students went to the symposium (good for them) and then came to the festivities afterwards.

At 5pm, I, along with some other mates, went to get a bite to eat before heading back to the Regatta for the evening festivities. After getting some food in the gut, I headed back to the Regatta with Law John and Ryan (a bloke from my PBL). There were a number of people, from our class, that were there. Most of them changed out of their scrubs into something a little more classier. I kept on my grass and beer/wine/spirit/sweat-stained scrubs...didn't want to ruin the charm (shyeah right). The night was spent dancing to some great tunes, sharing and making merry with my mates. Yes, there were some other things that went on - but I reckon that that is for those people that were involved and actually there. :)

I didn't get home until 2:45am on Saturday monring...good god - that was almost than 18 hours worth of 'making and having merry'. :) Ahh...the woes of being a student.

A voice for others

2005-02-27T16:26:00.000+10:00

Today was an interesting day. Besides it being the day after Sports Day (that will have to be another posting for tomorrow), I witnessed something that drives me to a point of rage and it leaves me wondering about how the world is in an urgent need to rid itself of ignorance, intolerant and cruelty.

This evening, I went to see Bride and Prejudice with my mates Kate and Maie. The movie was great - a bollywood film in English. Afterwards, we made our way to our friend's Renee and Phil's condominium complex. After having an ice cream cone, I decided that I should be heading home. I walked down to the train station (Taringa) and waited for the train to come. While I was walking to the station (which is less than 250m outside of Renee and Phil's complex), I noticed that there was a man who had a physical disability (I would guess that it would be cerebral palsy but I am not certain). He was also heading in the same direction as me. There were a few guys (I would say they were from the ages of 18 - 21 years old) and they were taking the piss out of this guy. They were calling him extremely vulgar and rude names and making gestures at him. Other people on the platform were looking at what was happening and no one intervened. Well, not no one...I did. I told those guys to lay off and that what they were doing was completely childish and utterly assinine. I could feel my blood boiling. Why on God's green earth are there people like that in this world? Why is it such that people with physical and intellectual disabilities (including socio-economic differences) face such hardships from members of their own society? I could feel myself shaking with anger. I know that if I were the only one on the platform, then I would have placed myself in danger by confronting those guys but I didn't care. I noticed that some people were smiling and making comments after I told those guys off. In fact, the gentleman that those assholes were making fun of, came up to me on the stop that we got off on (Toowong) and thanked me. It was hard to understand him at first but I have had experiences with having long and complicated conversations with people with cerebral palsy (an acquaintance of mine in Calgary - Mike - him and I went to the same high school and university. He has severe cerebral palsy and he is doing a PhD in political science). From what I could make from the short conversation, he told me that no one has stuck up for him in a public place such as a train platform. Most of the time he ignores it and continues what he is doing. We shook hands and I scurried up the stairs and out of the station. It was the first time that I have cried since leaving Calgary.

Back to you...

2005-02-21T11:10:00.000+10:00

Yes, back to you my friend. I am listening to John Mayer's CD, which I have recently acquired from my friend Kate. It's great - good for studying, good for getting lost in your thoughts, and great for putting a huge ass smile on my face.

Today has been a first. Mr. Thankey put together a bbq (with the help of Peder - a Norweigan MBBS I)! Won't my parents be proud! HAHAHAHAHA. Actually, I can hear my parents say (in the fake, albeit fantastic, Indian accent that I do), "oh my goodness, what have you done? Are you starting to eat meat? I don't like this one bit. You come home now." HAHAHAHAHA. Just kidding. It was one of those moments where I wished that I had an IKEA-style instructions booklet. De acuerde, ese es la vida.

The barbie this arvo was hosted by Graeme (for those of you that are new to the blog, Graeme is the IronMan triathlete, which means he is absolutely cut and ripped - I mean you could get the grill marks on steaks if you laid them on his abs). It was nice to sit around have a few veggie sausages and talk about pretty much nothing for an afternoon. It's nice to know that the friends I have can be hardcore during the week - keeping their noses in the books, pracs, slides, and notes. On the weekend, however, they can be effervescent (like moi), uplifting and just down right kickass! On that note, it's Sunday evening (18h00) and I am in my PBL room with Dave learning about the structures and functions of the skin, hair and nails. Yes, it's hardcore. But as I have said before and I will say it again, GO HARD OR GO HOME. And I am here to go hard. Well, right now we are learning about sweat glands (eccrine and apocrine - who would have known that there were different types? From my dad, I would have thought that there would have just been one and that would have been the apocrine aka Thankey's Trademark).

Okay, I gotta bust a move. The skin is calling to me...(well it's actually St. Patrick's Day on the JM cd).