A weekend trip to the near north

back beach at lancelin

The team took the opportunity to venture a few hours north of Perth to check out the area. Leanne was keen to see the "ootback". Don't know that we've been there yet. They don't actually have a big sign marking boundary.
First stop was Yanchep N.P. where the "tourists" got to check out the Koalas and Kangaroos, as per the standard operating procedure.
Then it was on to Lancelin, a sleepy surfing, sailboarding and fishing village that is surprisingly unchanged in the 20+ years since Winky took a sailboarding holiday here as a (very) young man. Mig and Anders took the opportunity for a dip in the Indian Ocean. The cold water definitely affected Anders' frontal lobes - the team was delayed on not one, but two occasions as Anders had to sprint back down to the beach, first to retrieve his sunglasses and then for his watch; all of which had been (unbelievably?) left behind in the sand.
A few beers at the pub, crayfish for lunch and it was off to the sandhills for some sandboarding. Various skill levels were demonstrated, but suffice to say, experience doesn't necessarily translate to competence. Checked out the TdF time trial on the telly at the Hostel before heading to bed.
The next day we moved on to Jurien and the Pinnacles - a pretty cool place.
Then back to Perth and into the planning for our next excape. Maybe into the real outback this time (it's pretty far, though)

Cheers from the team.

More photos here

More lectures......do they never end?

Perth by night
Originally uploaded by winkyintheuk.

The Woodside team were "lucky" enough to attend a one day course on operational management in the minerals and energy yesterday. Seriously, though, it was actually pretty interesting. We worked through a practical exercise where simple operational improvements reduced the time process time from 10 minutes on the first effort to around 0.4 seconds 30 minutes later. And the lunch was great.

Tonight we detoured via King's Park on the way home to check out the cityscape at night. The Woodside building is the second from the left in the photo...

Squash Showdown in the Southern Land

Leanne Serves up Another Bullet
Originally uploaded by winkyintheuk.

Lady Leanne and Macho Mig went head-to-head on the court earlier this week. It was an entirely credible performance from the Portugese Pundit, but LD was ultimately victorious. She was humble in victory, just as Mig was gracious in defeat.

Woodside Team - More photos

Cape Leuwin Lighthouse
Originally uploaded by winkyintheuk.

The trip took us Cape Leuwin which is at the confluence of the Indian and Southern Oceans. The whales and the dolphins run free in these parts, and whale watching is big business. The whales, however don't seem to get their share of the "economic rent", though it's better than it used to be. A couple of hours down the road is the old whaling port of Albany, where many a whale has seen the wrong end of a flensing knife in times now past.

See some more photos of the trip here

South to Margaret River

The Woodside SCP team took time out this weekend to head down South to Margaret River for a little wine tasting and sightseeing. The food and wine were great, the weather good and the scenery was spectacular. The surf breaks lived up to their reputation as world class spots - but certainly beyond the aquatic aspirations of these tourists. A highlight was watching some brave and very talented surfers being towed-in by jet-skis on 15'+ waves on the outer reefs south of the main break at Margarets.
Anders and Miguel threatened to go for a swim, but wimped out when the sun ducked behind a little cloud. Leanne and Winky suspect that the real reason that they didn't dive in was that they had spent the previous 48 hours discussing little else than shark-attack statistics.

More photos to follow tomorrow - stay tuned

( this photo is at Bussellton Pier)

Gidday Mate(s)

Random Observations From Perth

1) Leanne wants to shoot and then eat a Koala, but we're trying to explain to her that this isn't the done thing 'round here.

2) Many celebrations round town regarding the cricket. Oh, you didn't see it? The Australian team wupped'em.

3) TdF is getting exciting, but we live in a "Tour Free Zone". We can't get access to a telly that shows decent coverage (Leanne however, doesn't care).

4) Miguel is pumping iron in the gym at our apartments. Not sure what he is trying to achieve (see point 7).

5) Anders was crapped on by a bird and then spilt food on the same jacket. He was pissed off.

6) We're heading to Margaret River this weekend (look it up) for some wine tasting and sightseeing.

7) There is an SCP to do somewhere in there.

8) Perth is neat, clean and wet (at the moment). It'll come good.

9) Mig has challenged Leanne to a squash showdown. The trash-talk is getting out of hand but the reckoning is tomorrow night. Pray that the winner can be approximately humble.

Taking a bite out of the Big Apple!

Tired after relatively uneventful trans-Atlantic flights, the Hudson Ventures SCP team arrived in New York City last Wednesday ready for the summer ahead. After a year basking in the warm English sun, the team was enveloped by an unfamiliar heat and humidity.

On Thursday morning, Hitoshi, John, Siva and I donned our business casual best, braved the taxi-filled streets and ventured over to West 23rd and 6th Ave to start our SCP. The New York office of the technology start-up consists of a staff of three. We spent the first day learning about our SCP sponsor’s business and product and catching up on two days worth of emails. The SCP has very intimate working quarters…an L-shaped desk that comfortably fits four laptops and a desktop.

We’re settling into our respective homes for the summer. The boys commute over an hour each day to the office, while I have a paltry 15 minute train ride. For us, it’s great to be reunited with old friends and to re-immerse ourselves into the hustle of the city. We have a lot of plans for this summer; soaking up the sun in Central Park, clubbing in the Meatpacking district, dining at trendy restaurants, and simply enjoying the lively vibe of Big Apple. We’re going to do it all…just hope we don’t run out of time before we have to head back to Oxford!

Hi From Perth and the Woodside Team

The team of Miguel, Leanne Anders and Winky is now firmly ensconced in the fair city of Perth. We have a couple of serviced apartments about 10 minutes walk from the offices. At the office, we've been set up in a nice room on the 23rd floor with views to the North over the city. The ocean is (barely) visible to the West. The project is interesting, with lots of latitude to make it what we want it to be. We share the floor with the executive and corprate strategy offices, but we fit right in, of course.

Weather has bee terrific, with blue skies and little wind. Rain for tomorrow, though. Oh well.

We're planning an adventure into the Australian Outback (or maybe out to Rottnest Island) this weekend.

Henley Regatta - Friday after Trinity Exams

deckchairs

A few of us went over to Henley to sample the Pimms and look at the funny hats and colourful blazers. Apparently there was some rowing going on, but no-one seemed to mind too much.

(Thanks for organising, Tim - much appreciated)

Photos can be found here