Wednesday, Jan. 26, was Australia Day, celebrating the arrival of the first fleet of convict ships from Great Britain to the Australian territories in 1788. It is a national holiday comparable to the Fourth of July in the United States, with community events and programs set up around the country.
Victoria Kenyon, a senior from Queensland, has started 68 games for the Oregon women’s basketball team in her career, including all 18 this season. Kenyon had eight points and a team-high eight rebounds in the Ducks’ 81-72 victory over Oregon State last week. The Emerald caught up with Kenyon before practice this week for a quick question-and-answer session.
Oregon Daily Emerald: You got married this summer (to Murry Aldred, on July 31). Tell us about your wedding.
Victoria Kenyon: It was fantastic. It was wonderful. We celebrated the ceremony at a Baptist church, and after that we had some photos done with our photographer and celebrated again with everyone. The ceremony and the reception were a good couple of hours, and we had dinner afterward. It was the most wonderful day of my life. I’m very happy with how it went.
ODE: Did you go on a honeymoon afterward, or did you wait to finish up the school year?
VK: I think you have honeymoons the rest of your life; you make every day the best you can. But yes, we had a honeymoon. It was two weeks, straight after our wedding. We enjoyed different aspects of our city, Brisbane.
ODE: When you moved to the United States to become a Duck (in January of 2007), what were your reactions to the people and the country?
VK: I wasn’t too surprised by the people. The people in Eugene and the people in Brisbane, where I’m from, they’re both pretty friendly. Very inviting, inclusive, giving of themselves. In regards to the people, very similar. Same language, obviously. Different slang, which I had to get used to. For the most part I’ve gotten used to that. In regards to transitions in culture, there wasn’t much there to transition to.
ODE: What is Brisbane like?
VK: Brisbane is a pretty large city. It’s got nearly two million people. For the most part it’s sunny and warm with blue skies. We have a main river that runs through the city; it’s called the Brisbane River. Just recently, about two weeks ago, we had humongous floods, which flooded the majority of the CBD, the Central Business District. It’s still devastating. It’s been pretty terrible. (More than 200,000 Australians have been affected by the floodwaters, which have covered roughly half the state of Queensland, according to the New York Times. At least 30 people have lost their lives, and many more remain missing.)
ODE: How could Americans who wish to get involved in relief efforts find more information?
VK: Go to our main paper, the (Brisbane) Courier Mail. I’m sure they’ll have donation centers there.
(Australians and others are encouraged to wear blue ribbons in support of the flood victims in a campaign begun by the Courier Mail and its parent company, News Limited.)
[email protected]
Daily Emerald’s Athlete of the Week
Daily Emerald
January 25, 2011
0
More to Discover