NO CLASS TOMORROW

I have received the following message from Ms Bogacz:

Drodzy Państwo,
W związku z pogrzebem mamy naszej pani wicedyrektor Elżbiety Stanisz, który odbędzie się jutro o 11.00 w kościele w Falkowej, bardzo proszę w imieniu pani dyrektor Moniki Madej-Cetnarowskiej i własnym o przybycie. Zajęcia, które Państwo mają w tym czasie można odrobić w II semestrze (jeśli przedmiot jest kontynuowany), albo zadać studentom pracę do wykonania. Do decyzji studentów pani Dyrektor pozostawia, czy także będą uczestniczyć w pogrzebie.

As you remember we were supposed to watch a documentary on Australian English. Those of you who can come to the class on Friday, please do.

Please leave your course credit books (indeks) for me in room 107 on Friday - I will sign them in.

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The Letter "K"

1. Kings Cross (or a loving look at Australian crime scene). This is one of the topics really close to my heart.

Kings Cross is a wild mixture of prostitution and crime, with stylish restaurants and hotels. It has visitors of all kinds and although has some slightly run down areas has a certain quality to it as well.

Kings Cross is also home to one of Sydneys oldest areas, Wooloomooloo. Here, opposite the Artspace Gallery, you will find Harry's Cafe de Wheels, open for 18 hours a day, started in 1945. It is a must visit on the way home after a night out.

CLICK HERE to read more about this district of Sydney and learn some useful tips ;-)

Click the picture below to enter the world of Harry's Cafe de Wheels.




The soul of a nation is frequently defined by its outlaws. We'll be talking at lenght in the future about the likes of Ned Kelly, but tomorrow we'll just have a look at present day criminals and their portrayal in various media (but mostly films).

Have a look at the clips below to get the feel of Kings Cross, but this bit will be done as my presentation, so you don't really need to prepare any answers.






But you will have to do a bit of work for topic #2 ;-)

2. Kangaroos

I expect each team to find 2 unique facts about kangaroos. Don't just copy what you can read on Wikipedia (it's blacked out today anyway, so you can't use it); instead browse the net and find some trivia that may be surprising for the memebers of other teams. Shake them a little, give them a good ride for the points! I'll be awarding originality.































3. Kids' TV programmes and books


The Wiggles is the most popular show for kids in Australia, and normally it looks like that:



(It's a TV programme, but here you have a clip of Wiggles in concert).

Sometimes the Wiggles are much more demonic than that, but you'll have to come to the class to see why ;-)


Finally go here to read about great Aussie literature for kiddies.



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The letters "I" and "J"

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1. As promised we're returning briefly to Indigenous Australians and their culture.

The pictures will take you to related readings.






Architecture











Art











Ceremony: song, music & dance










Tools and technology







We are going to see some complimentary materials, but I'll not be asking any detailed questions on that topic.


2. Another reading I'd like you to do on your own concerns Australian islands.

Click on the picture to learn more.





















3. The bulk of our class, though, will be devoted to the letter "J". It stands for Jeopardy ;-)
Australia is a dangerous place to live in as you may well remember from this video.

Watch the clip by our old friends The Scared Weird Little Guys and try to note down as many threats that await you in Australia as you can.




Being precautious tourists you may also want to find out how to protect yourselves and what to do if you get bitten.
Click on the signs below to learn some useful tips.

The letter "H"

TIMELINE


Just three topic this time, because one is bound to take us a lot of time ;-)

1. Hobart (watch the beginning of the clip)





2. High Culture (you can also watch the above clip - about 22 minute mark)

HARBOUR BRIDGE

and

3. Humour:
- gallows humour
- anti-authoritarian
- self-depreciating






















I LOVE this article! Have fun!

Get ready :)

MILLIONS of Australians are gathering in city centres as the nation gets ready to celebrate New Year's Eve 2011.

Thousands gather at Sydney Harbour

Thousands of revellers have been gathering since this morning at hot spots around Sydney Harbour as the final touches are put on the New Year's Eve fireworks.

Seven tonnes of pyrotechnic explosives will shoot heavenwards at 9pm (AEDT) and again at midnight, following 15 months of meticulous planning.

A staff member of the Botanic Gardens, which opened its gates at 10am (AEDT) on Saturday, said the crowds appeared to be bigger than usual.

"There seem to be more here this morning than normal because they are camping out," said the woman, who has worked at eight New Year's Eve celebrations.

Picnic blankets have already been rolled out and champagne corks popped at the best vantage points on both sides of the bridge.

By tonight, there will be 1.5 million partygoers ringing in the new year under the stars.

Sydney's New Year's fireworks Marc Newson said the much-anticipated final effect on the bridge would remain top secret until the stroke of midnight.

But he promised a show that was bigger and better than last year.

"There is a really exciting mood across the city at the moment," he said.

"People from around Sydney and the world (are) starting to gravitate towards the harbour foreshore to claim their spot."

Melbourne’s New Year – it’ll be gold

Not to be outdone, Melbourne will ring in 2012 with a $2.6 million celebration involving ten tonnes of fireworks exploding from 17 city locations, expecting to draw half a million people.

Starting at 9.45pm (AEDT), a gold flare will be fired across 11 city rooftops every half hour until the clock strikes midnight.

The city will then burst into gold with a $400,000 fireworks display lasting 10 minutes.

Gold-themed images will also be projected on to St Paul's Cathedral, the State Library of Victoria and the National Gallery of Victoria, as part of the celebrations which harks back to the gold rush era.

With Sydney's fireworks containing seven tonnes of explosives, Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle said, "If size matters, we're the biggest".

"The Harbour Bridge is beautiful, but when you see the gold that is the Melbourne moment this year, it will be absolutely spectacular," Mr Doyle said.

Crowds can travel home from the city on public transport for free from 6pm on New Year's Eve until 6am.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/national/heat-harbourside-booze-bans-and-tons-of-fireworks-nye-2011/story-e6frfkvr-1226233707081#ixzz1i6AEFih9

Meanwhile in NT...

GUSTS of up to 140km/h are expected to hit Australia's Top End, as Tropical Cyclone Grant lashes the coast.

The cyclone, which slowly intensified last night, is expected to move south across the Cobourg Peninsula and into the eastern Van Diemen Gulf early today.

The storm is travelling at about 8km/h and packing winds of around 140km/h at its centre.

If it maintains its southward course, it is predicted to cross the coast again east of Point Stuart, at least 80km east of Darwin, around lunchtime today.

Darwin residents may experience gale force winds today as the storm passes through, the weather bureau said.

Localised flooding over the northern Darwin-Daly, Arnhem and northern Roper-McArthur Districts is also expected.

People living west of Maningrida to the Tiwi islands, including Cape Don, Croker Island and Goulburn Island, were told to take shelter yesterday.

Forecasters had previously thought the storm would be downgraded to a category 1 as it crossed over land, but they are no longer expecting that.

Yesterday was the 37th anniversary of Cyclone Tracy, which destroyed much of Darwin in 1974, killing 49 people and a further 22 who perished at sea.

Read more at news.com.au

Not so Merry Christmas...

... or the weather strikes again.

Click the picture to read full article from news.com.au

STORMS pelted Victorians with hailstones as big as billiard balls during a wild Christmas Day barrage.