Tram stop 61 a block from our house

I had a meeting with the CEO of the Australian Counseling Association - Philip Armstrong - a couple of days ago.  Philip and I met once before at the American Counseling Association meeting a couple of years ago in New Orleans.  He is a very engaging person (having climbed mt. Kilimanjaro this past year) and has done alot to promote counseling here.  He admittedly takes a business approach to the association and focuses on how his organization can benefit counselors in Australia in employment and making a living as a professional counselor.  This appears to contrast with ACA in the US which it seems has a much greater focus on philosophy and definitions of counseling. Acadamics in the US has such a dominant influence on ACA while ACA here is dominated by practitioners. A big difference is that in the US professional practices are regulated and licensed by the states while here the focus is on registration with the professional association.  The professional association then negotiates directly with third party payers and the governmental bodies.

Our meeting was in the CBD over a marvelous meal and a very nice Cab from the Yara Valley (about 40K from Melbourne).  We ran late as the both of us barely took a breath in our conversation - someone who can talk more than me, imagine that...  After a short tram ride across the CBD to the tram stop that will take me out to Bundoora (where the Uni is) I'm riding the tram in the dark later in the evening.  I found myself being hyper vigilant, and very cautious about those around me.  I wouldn't say scared but I became aware that I was seeing my surroundings - the tram and the city - as a dangerous place needing caution.  I was reacting to Melbourne as if I were in New Orleans late at night (where one has good cause to be scared).  Yet Melbourne is a safe place.  It is gritty in places and certainly colorful with very colorful people (this includes every shade of hair you could imagine) but people travel freely around the city without many of the wories you see in many American cities.  Quite a difference.

  My tram stop in the CBD on Bourke ST.

An interesting building in the CBD.  Look at the top of the building - the grafiti I talked about in an earlier post.

A great view of the CBD from the Docklands.