Monday 17 July

The Age

Monday July 17, 2000

DAVID WROE

23 days until International Day of the World's Indigenous People. Birthdays of Jimmy Cagney and David Hasselhoff. Two years since tidal waves hit north-west Papua New Guinea, killing 2000 people.

"It is better to waste one's youth than to do nothing with it at all." -- Georges Courteline

Five things to do today

* HEALTH: Part of Diabetes Week, Diabetes Australia-Victoria runs tick tests at CAE, Flinders Street, city, from 10am-3pm daily until July 20.

* MUSIC: Part of the Slave Pianos Internationale Biennial 2000, Graeme Leak and DJ Shake`n'Bake perform at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Dallas Brooks Drive, South Yarra, 6.30pm. Book on 9654 6422.

* KIDS: Fairy Dinkum workshops (for ages 3-4) offer entertaining environmental education at the Kingston Arts Centre at 10.30am or 11.45am (also July 20). Book 9556 4440.

* MUSIC: A lunchtime concert (entry by donation) is performed by the percussion department in room 113, School of Music, Victorian College of the Arts, 1pm. Call 9685 9423.

* OPERA: Trace the history of Italian opera in Australia with Bel Canto, a Performing Art Museum exhibition in the George Adams Gallery, Victorian Arts Centre, until August 27.

My Life

Fifteen minutes of fame

Dino Ho, 21, Adelaide

This is my first time in Melbourne. After my exams, my friends asked me if I wanted to join them on a trip to Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra. I'm a second-year civil engineering student. I came from Hong Kong to study here. One of the things I was thinking of when going overseas to study was that I wanted to learn more English and touch different cultures besides my own. I'd never heard of Adelaide, I just chose it. My first impression was that Adelaide was very boring. It's very quiet compared to Hong Kong, which is very crowded. But one of the things that really impressed me was that the people are very friendly and really warm. Now I love Adelaide. I want to study maths, philosophy; I just want to know more about the world and about people.