First Day of Work?

My first full day of Perth was supposed to be spent resting, unpacking, and setting up my life.  Instead, what started as a welcome breakfast at 8:30 turned into a full day's worth of meet-and-greet, strategic planning discussions, HR paperwork, and more.  It was exhausting!  I'm excited to start work, but I quickly realized that I need to get myself set up *outside* of work before I get busy with the 9-5 grind.  

I got to meet a lot of great people yesterday, from the Headmaster of Scotch to my supervisors and colleagues, the HR lady, several administrative assistants, and more.  There's no way I'm going to remember all of their names.  ;)

I toured where I'll be working at both schools, too.  It's not exactly what I expected, but both environments have a lot of unique things about them that I'm looking forward to.  I'll write more about them later as I start actually working there.  

One pleasant surprise was my meeting with the HR lady yesterday.  She is refreshingly competent and helpful, and showed particular concern about the challenges I'll be facing due to the international move.  (Apparently, they're hoping to have more international employees in the future, and I'm a "pioneer" on campus.  Me, a pioneer?  Haha... Who'd have guessed?!)  She gave me all the paperwork, but she also gave me the scoop on the really important things, like how to get the best bananas and apples at morning tea.  

My bags arrived in the morning, but I didn't have a chance to start unpacking till the evening.  I'm almost done now, with just a few more socks and toiletries to sort out today.  It's a relief to start getting organized.

 I had an amazing and much-needed dinner at a place called "The Albion", where you can order your meat from a butcher window and grill it yourself or have them cook it for you... not to mention the amazing "salads" bar (which included actual salad, plus "pumpkin" aka squash, rice, couscous, fresh fruits and vegetables, and more.  Hallelujah!)  Any of you who come to Perth should expect to eat there!  

Today I'm setting out on my own with a map and enough change to catch a taxi or bus back.  I expect to be lost a few times till I learn my way around.  I'm also planning to get my mobile phone, bank account, and a few groceries so I can start cooking for myself.  If I'm back this afternoon, I may even have time to go for a run on the beach and a swim in the ocean!