It's a good thing I bought that duck-down jacket

Because it's bloody freezing! Yes, that's right, it's freezing. When Luke and I picked up our bikes from the station last night, there was ice on the seats.

The weather here's been strange. Up until Tuesday, you could get around with a warmish jacket on. Then on Wednesday, it just hit; it started raining, and the wind that whipped around us was icy cold. The sort of cold that seeps in through the gaps between your new duck-down jacket and your skin, freezing your lungs and making your ears hurt and your nose feel like ice.

It was like the weather said, ok, it's the first of November, I think it's time to turn up the ice. And it's not even winter yet! For the last month or so, we've had the most glorious Autumn I've ever experienced. One thing I've noticed about Europe, is that you can really tell the difference between seasons; after the long winter, spring really did 'spring' with all sorts of flowers, blossoms and the greenest greens I'd ever seen. Then came the hot summer, and now the autumn. All of a sudden the leaves of the trees started changing colour, the full spectrum from yellow to orange, to red and even browns. Now the leaves are falling, and there are huge piles of them in the street. It's really beautiful... except for the cold!

Apart from that, life here's going along as it always has, except for a UTS assignment, which I'm studiously avoiding at the moment. The most exciting news is that we're (Luke, Katho and I) are going to a Melbourne Cup Day party at the Australian Embassy here next week! Get to rub shoulders with Aussie expats, including that yummy newsreader from Deutsche Welle =)

I'm sure I'll give you a rundown about it while I'm procrastinating next week.

Bis dann...