What do two pessimisstic British boys, two adventurous Dutch girls, one Canadian girl who makes American girls look great to foreigners, and two well-humored American girls have in common??? Why, they all shared a 4WD vehicle on the famed Fraser Island World Heritage sight, of course! We were all so different in some really hilarious and frustrating ways (depended upon the given moment of the trip...), but we actually ended up being a pretty well-balanced group of strangers forced together into one very small car for 36 hours. Tim & Jonnie, our friends from the motherland were definitely the comic relief of the trip, adding their dry banter to every experience. Marleis, and her sister Annaleis were able to joke (& emphatically curse at all the appropriate places) about the ridiculous situations we found ourselves in throughout the trip. Tasha just made Ash and I look good. And Ash and I rounded out the trip with our level-headedness, our sense of adventure and our audacity of finding the bright side of every situation. And to eat at every available moment.
Our Fraser Island trip had already been postponed for a day, due to the fact that the day before we were supposed to leave, another LandRover from our tour company had flipped their vehicle and the owner of the company had spent the entire day sorting out that mess. There were also gail-force winds blowing on the island, as well as on the mainland and the rain hadn't stopped since it started two days prior. We all met for a briefing session at the hostel, where we watched videos on how to 4WD in the sand, how to be "dingo safe" and how to generally keep yourselves and your belongings safe on the island. We then proceeded to grocery shop for the trip, upon which the Brits just amically said "YES!" to whatever food item was suggested, the Canadian reminded us that she was vegitarian and the Dutch and Americans actually filled the cart with a decent spread of food.
Redezvousing the next morning, with the blue skies on our side, we packed up our very clean LandRover with overhead storage compartment, and set out for a fun-filled 4WD adventure. After all the rain we had, and the disappointment of spending waaaaaaaaaay too much time in a town that had absolutely nothing to do (seriously, Ash and I thought that all the people in our hostel didn't know how to find fun things to do...no. They were really right. Hervey Bay is only a gateway to Fraser Island. And is NOT accessible by walking. In the pouring down rain. And the whole town had sold out of rain ponchos.), we seriously thought we were in for a very low-key 4WD adventure....
Our first day went smoothly - I drove manual on the island, on the right side of the car and the right side of the road, through some pretty crazy turns and down some very steep, sandy inclines (all of Fraser Island is made out of sand....Rain forests have taken root there, but there is absolutely no soil anywhere...), we walked through a beautiful rainforest creek, climbed and jumped around on sand dunes, spashed through tons of puddles left over from the days of rain, and bumped our way to our beachfront camping sight. The Brits had fun "setting up home" for us, and after looking at the most incredibly "pumping surf" <--Aussie phrase, we made dinner, and settled in for a good night on the beach.
I'm going to have to sign off this post, but I'll leave you with this: Day two of the trip did NOT go as according to plan (we go to know 4 roads on the Island really well, and true to fashion, Ash and I almost had to readjust our travel plans due to being late....). But I saw the Milky Way galaxy like I've seen it in satellite photos. And I've learned how to face up to some pretty daughting situations with good humor and long-term perspective....
Love you all - I'll post more after I'm back from snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef!!!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Fight Aggressively
Fraser Island: Location of Ash & I's knock-down, drag-out of the trip. Advised to "fight aggressively" when attacked, we took that advice to heart, ripped each other to shreds, after she revealed that she totally didn't like me, was unsure of why she was even friends with me, resented me for coming and stealing all her holiday time from work and then called me a dork....
Ha. Fraser Island is actually one of the few locations in Australia where dingos have not inbred with other dogs - they are pure-bred, wild dogs. Unsupervised children have been mauled by dingos, and the animal is one of several species of non-humans that make Australia one of the most dangerous places to live....other species include snakes, jellyfish, plants and bugs. Basically, anyplace you step and are not instantly killed, you're lucky to have lived another day in Australia. Just kidding...sort of.
Anyway, all the literature Ash and I read about Fraser Island, and the info video our 4WD tour group had to watch before we left included lots of advice for how to fend off dingos: At first, when noticing the offending dingo, do not move. However, if attacked, fight agressively. We kept seeing that phrase everywhere and applying it to other life situations: when unwantingly attacked by offending sex at the bar, fight aggressivly. When someone steals the only clean water cup right from under your fingertips, fight aggressivly. When faced with a felled forest in the middle of the only road to the only location on the island you want to see, fight aggressively, with an ax...
perhaps that's my new life motto.....
Ha. Fraser Island is actually one of the few locations in Australia where dingos have not inbred with other dogs - they are pure-bred, wild dogs. Unsupervised children have been mauled by dingos, and the animal is one of several species of non-humans that make Australia one of the most dangerous places to live....other species include snakes, jellyfish, plants and bugs. Basically, anyplace you step and are not instantly killed, you're lucky to have lived another day in Australia. Just kidding...sort of.
Anyway, all the literature Ash and I read about Fraser Island, and the info video our 4WD tour group had to watch before we left included lots of advice for how to fend off dingos: At first, when noticing the offending dingo, do not move. However, if attacked, fight agressively. We kept seeing that phrase everywhere and applying it to other life situations: when unwantingly attacked by offending sex at the bar, fight aggressivly. When someone steals the only clean water cup right from under your fingertips, fight aggressivly. When faced with a felled forest in the middle of the only road to the only location on the island you want to see, fight aggressively, with an ax...
perhaps that's my new life motto.....
Working backwards & inebriation
SO much has transpired since I posted last. Unbelievable amounts. It's been almost a week since a serious "what I've been doing in Australia" post. I fully realize I'm long overdue. It's currently Sunday night, and I was deliciously unaware of the date and what day it was for the last several days. Something about vacation and lots of absolutely crazy travel will do that to you.
I've commisserated with Ash, my ab fab (absolutely fabulous) travel bud about the best way to share what we've experienced and lived to the full in the last few days. We both decided that subject matter, versus a day-by-day account would be best.
So, there are two people in the world that I feel absolutely safe with when I am inebriated: Ashley M. Curl & Charlie R. Nesmith. Lucky for Charlie, at my present state, I am with the afore-mentioned Ashley M. Curl. We arrived in Airlie Beach (pronounced "early" beach) this morning, after another overnight bus ride. We soon realized, quite to our dismay, that our first Greyhouse Australia experience was not typical - we were able to choose our own seats, wherever we wanted. Since our busride from Brisbane to Hervey Bay, Greyhound had not only dictated where we stopped for eats and when we got to poo, but also dictated where we sat, and who we sat with. (Everyone knows that the sole cardinal rule of riding a bus is that one never, EVER poos on a bus toilet. Right? Everyone that I know at least knows now. DON'T DO IT!) Anyway, our bus ride from Hervey Bay to Airlie Beach was particularly stressful due to the fact that TONS of people were migrating north from HB to AB, and all of them had the presence of mind to travel at night. So, in true high school fashion, as if we had been seperated for being too talkative (Shelly, you know how this feels), Ash and I passed notes to each other about the passengers behind us (Very sketch guy talking to very, Very unaware Canadienne girls) and the rather dismal state our travel had turned to. No longer could we drool on each others shoulder, nor could she lay all over my lap while I shifted positions all night long....oh no. All we could do was stare mournfully into each others eyes as we woke up this morning with oddly stiff bodies.
Thusly, we decided that after the craziness of the last three days for us, that we deserved a freakin' break, man. Arriving in Airlie meant that we legit arrived in the tropics. Our overnight bus ride brought us over the Tropic of Capricorn, which I take to mean TROPICS BABY! And it's warm - Ash and I laid out in our bathings suits all stinkin' day. I finished a book and she starting writing a book...haha(o: In her journal. Anyway, we also had a few things that we absolutely HAD to take care of: check in for our amazing boat trip through the Whitsunday Islands ("74 Islands, out of the blue"), do some laundry (we smelled so bad...ugh. I didn't even want to sit next to myself in the bus last night), and sign onto the internet. And after our Fraser Island tour, we were in serious need of a bottle of wine. So, we checked into MAGNUM backpackers resort (seriously.....how sexual can than name be???) this morning, after waiting for 10 minutes to check our bags (they only access the storage area every half hour, on the half hour - LAME, and annoying) we ate a delicious breakfast, checked in, dropped our smelly bags, changed into bathing suits and promptly spent the rest of the day marinating in the warm sun. THIS, my friends, is what I came to Australia seeking: warm weather, tropical islands and lots and lots of down time. After marinating on a beautiful, even though man-made lagoon, Ash and I completed our list of errands quickly and decided that the best night we could think of was to drink a bottle of wine down at the beach, eating chocolate and talking about life. Inebriated, after an incredibly life-giving conversation in which we discussed a correspondence pal for Ash and how unbelievably fantastic of a man my husband is, full of life, we left the beach in search of french fries and internet. So here we are. Fried in more ways than one, safe enough for my mom and husband not to worry (don't - we are in a VERY safe internet cafe attached to our hostel) and so ready to chill the heck out on the beautiful water.
As many ads have said for the Whitsundays, the world is 70% water - race you for it!
I've commisserated with Ash, my ab fab (absolutely fabulous) travel bud about the best way to share what we've experienced and lived to the full in the last few days. We both decided that subject matter, versus a day-by-day account would be best.
So, there are two people in the world that I feel absolutely safe with when I am inebriated: Ashley M. Curl & Charlie R. Nesmith. Lucky for Charlie, at my present state, I am with the afore-mentioned Ashley M. Curl. We arrived in Airlie Beach (pronounced "early" beach) this morning, after another overnight bus ride. We soon realized, quite to our dismay, that our first Greyhouse Australia experience was not typical - we were able to choose our own seats, wherever we wanted. Since our busride from Brisbane to Hervey Bay, Greyhound had not only dictated where we stopped for eats and when we got to poo, but also dictated where we sat, and who we sat with. (Everyone knows that the sole cardinal rule of riding a bus is that one never, EVER poos on a bus toilet. Right? Everyone that I know at least knows now. DON'T DO IT!) Anyway, our bus ride from Hervey Bay to Airlie Beach was particularly stressful due to the fact that TONS of people were migrating north from HB to AB, and all of them had the presence of mind to travel at night. So, in true high school fashion, as if we had been seperated for being too talkative (Shelly, you know how this feels), Ash and I passed notes to each other about the passengers behind us (Very sketch guy talking to very, Very unaware Canadienne girls) and the rather dismal state our travel had turned to. No longer could we drool on each others shoulder, nor could she lay all over my lap while I shifted positions all night long....oh no. All we could do was stare mournfully into each others eyes as we woke up this morning with oddly stiff bodies.
Thusly, we decided that after the craziness of the last three days for us, that we deserved a freakin' break, man. Arriving in Airlie meant that we legit arrived in the tropics. Our overnight bus ride brought us over the Tropic of Capricorn, which I take to mean TROPICS BABY! And it's warm - Ash and I laid out in our bathings suits all stinkin' day. I finished a book and she starting writing a book...haha(o: In her journal. Anyway, we also had a few things that we absolutely HAD to take care of: check in for our amazing boat trip through the Whitsunday Islands ("74 Islands, out of the blue"), do some laundry (we smelled so bad...ugh. I didn't even want to sit next to myself in the bus last night), and sign onto the internet. And after our Fraser Island tour, we were in serious need of a bottle of wine. So, we checked into MAGNUM backpackers resort (seriously.....how sexual can than name be???) this morning, after waiting for 10 minutes to check our bags (they only access the storage area every half hour, on the half hour - LAME, and annoying) we ate a delicious breakfast, checked in, dropped our smelly bags, changed into bathing suits and promptly spent the rest of the day marinating in the warm sun. THIS, my friends, is what I came to Australia seeking: warm weather, tropical islands and lots and lots of down time. After marinating on a beautiful, even though man-made lagoon, Ash and I completed our list of errands quickly and decided that the best night we could think of was to drink a bottle of wine down at the beach, eating chocolate and talking about life. Inebriated, after an incredibly life-giving conversation in which we discussed a correspondence pal for Ash and how unbelievably fantastic of a man my husband is, full of life, we left the beach in search of french fries and internet. So here we are. Fried in more ways than one, safe enough for my mom and husband not to worry (don't - we are in a VERY safe internet cafe attached to our hostel) and so ready to chill the heck out on the beautiful water.
As many ads have said for the Whitsundays, the world is 70% water - race you for it!
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Rainy, rainy, rainy Hervey Bay
Well - Hervey Bay must be what small-town coastal Australia is like...in the rain. There's not much to do, and our lame hostel doesn't have a courtesy bus that will take us into town. Nor did they even give us a map to help us out. Ash and I are surprisingly calm, given the fact that our 4 wheel drive adventure tour into Fraiser Island has been shortened by a day, without receiving any kind of refund at all for that lost time. We're in the throws of deciding whether or not to completely ditch this area and head north, but we've already got a boat tour booked for three days that starts un Monday, that we've also already gotten the bus ride booked for. What to do!?!?!?!? Go to an internet cafe, of course!
We're probably going to take in a movie tonight, and were considering getting our haircut. The owner of the only salon we walked into to check prices happened to be on the front page of the "Hervey Bay Town Crier," giving the details of her treturous hysterectomy.....hmmm.
So: Today: We're trying to cheer up and be flexible with our ideas of what to do.....and stay dry. We miiiiight even by a poncho! We were going to go whale-watching, but it's even a little too chilly for that. Hmm. Good thing we have some books with us.
A note on the Australian dialect: I've noticed that Aussies ADORE abbreviations. Stacey Tester, Abbrev Queen, you were totally in your element here. Seriously, nearly every word or phrase that could possibly be shortened is. And often a chipper "ie" has been tacked on the end.
G'Byie!
We're probably going to take in a movie tonight, and were considering getting our haircut. The owner of the only salon we walked into to check prices happened to be on the front page of the "Hervey Bay Town Crier," giving the details of her treturous hysterectomy.....hmmm.
So: Today: We're trying to cheer up and be flexible with our ideas of what to do.....and stay dry. We miiiiight even by a poncho! We were going to go whale-watching, but it's even a little too chilly for that. Hmm. Good thing we have some books with us.
A note on the Australian dialect: I've noticed that Aussies ADORE abbreviations. Stacey Tester, Abbrev Queen, you were totally in your element here. Seriously, nearly every word or phrase that could possibly be shortened is. And often a chipper "ie" has been tacked on the end.
G'Byie!
this is costing an arm and a leg....literally
Ok, I only have time to make a list of crazy things we've seen b/c this out of the communal money pot and Ash gets 10 minutes of our $2 for 20 minutes of internet time...don't I just love traveling with a buddy...(o:
(a more serious update will come when internet is a more resonable price. and I can spell words correctly.)
-Over night bus from Sydney to Byron Bay = not great, but not bad
-Byron Bay = AMAZINGLY fun hippie city. Definitely could have spent way more time there, and bought oodles more of stuff...aren't you glad I had to leave after only a day, Charlie??(o:
-Hot Volcanic Stone Massage = absolutely incredible. Never thought that having a toasty, hot volcano stone wedged into my upper butt-crack would be relaxing and comforting, but it totally was...I HIGHLY recommend this massage to people with stiff backs. Absolutely declicious.
-Woman with feather in hair = definitely one of the most memorable experiences of dinner last night. A lady, who called all her friends "Goddess" (and didn't seem to acknowledge men) Had the best/worst laugh ever...no lie
I will have to describe it to you later - it's Ash's turn for the expensive internet!!!!
(a more serious update will come when internet is a more resonable price. and I can spell words correctly.)
-Over night bus from Sydney to Byron Bay = not great, but not bad
-Byron Bay = AMAZINGLY fun hippie city. Definitely could have spent way more time there, and bought oodles more of stuff...aren't you glad I had to leave after only a day, Charlie??(o:
-Hot Volcanic Stone Massage = absolutely incredible. Never thought that having a toasty, hot volcano stone wedged into my upper butt-crack would be relaxing and comforting, but it totally was...I HIGHLY recommend this massage to people with stiff backs. Absolutely declicious.
-Woman with feather in hair = definitely one of the most memorable experiences of dinner last night. A lady, who called all her friends "Goddess" (and didn't seem to acknowledge men) Had the best/worst laugh ever...no lie
I will have to describe it to you later - it's Ash's turn for the expensive internet!!!!
Monday, July 21, 2008
Overnight Bus ride into PARADISE
Ok seriously, I'm so digging the Australian eastcoast. I'm quickly turning into a beach girl. The scenary is so beautiful here.
Ash and I took an overnight Greyhound from Sydney to Byron Bay, where we'll stay for 2 nights, before we head up to Frasier Island Wildlife Preserve to camp for about 3 days. Then we head up to Airlie Beach to take a FREAKIN sweet 3 day 2 night boat ride into the Whitsundays Islands. From there, we're planning to head up to Cape Tribulation and spend some time in a rainforest. With koalas and kangas and lots and lots and lots of sunshine!
We just booked out hostel in Byron Bay - 100 metres from the beach, and within walking distance of all kinds of bohemian/hippie goodness. Byron Bay is like a hippie enclave on the Australian East Coast - one could liken it to Sedona, Arizona. Many places advert Tarot readings and alignment treatments. Ash and I plan to make the most of this place and maybe get some spa treatments or even a haircut. We figure a haircut includes a free shampoo and blowdry...so we actually may end up waiting for that after we get back from three days of camping the Frasier....I'm already feeling sorry for those hairdressers(o:
We'll, we need to catch the bus to our hostel, I'm signing out for the next few hours. Get excited to hear from a guest blogger quite soon!
Love to you all,
Kate
Ash and I took an overnight Greyhound from Sydney to Byron Bay, where we'll stay for 2 nights, before we head up to Frasier Island Wildlife Preserve to camp for about 3 days. Then we head up to Airlie Beach to take a FREAKIN sweet 3 day 2 night boat ride into the Whitsundays Islands. From there, we're planning to head up to Cape Tribulation and spend some time in a rainforest. With koalas and kangas and lots and lots and lots of sunshine!
We just booked out hostel in Byron Bay - 100 metres from the beach, and within walking distance of all kinds of bohemian/hippie goodness. Byron Bay is like a hippie enclave on the Australian East Coast - one could liken it to Sedona, Arizona. Many places advert Tarot readings and alignment treatments. Ash and I plan to make the most of this place and maybe get some spa treatments or even a haircut. We figure a haircut includes a free shampoo and blowdry...so we actually may end up waiting for that after we get back from three days of camping the Frasier....I'm already feeling sorry for those hairdressers(o:
We'll, we need to catch the bus to our hostel, I'm signing out for the next few hours. Get excited to hear from a guest blogger quite soon!
Love to you all,
Kate
Sunday, July 20, 2008
new pictures
I just uploaded pictures onto a Kodak PictureShare Gallery of the first few days that I've been in Australia. Just go to Kodak.com and search for my name: Kate Nesmith! Enjoy drooling!!!
love you all!
love you all!
Opera & Sunday
I have to admit, the Sydney OH doesn't look impressive size-wise from the Harbor, especially when you see it next to the Harbor Bridge, which is enormous. However, when you get up close to it, it's really quite beautiful. And big.
The scalloped lines of the roof are I think meant to resemble the sails of the boats that pass through the Harbor each day. I had read that the roof was tiled with self-cleaning tiles (I imagined little scrubber bubbles magically appearing to whisk off any dirt), but didn't realize how small they were - only about 2 inches square. What I enjoyed most about the OH were the details: How the lines of the roof came together like a Chinese fan, and how instead of having overhead lighting in the women's bathroom, each toilet stall had an illuminated TP dispensor. Pretty sweet. We saw My Fair Lady (yes, Mom, I got a program) and saw the most incredible costumes and sets I've ever seen on a stage production. This was definitely not a low-budget affair...
On Sunday, Ash and I relaxed at the house until she had to go to work. Because she's the greatest friend ever, she arranged for her friend Nadia to come pick me up and take me to the service, since Ash couldn't take me herself. Now, I had been looking forward to attending a service at "Small Boat, Big Sea" (cool name for a church, yea?) because it's held in an art gallery. HOW AMAZING. The church is part of the emergent church movement, and is very non-traditional. I might actually say it's a contemporary worship service, where as most "contemporary services" as we know them are actually of the mid-90's era. Which was 15 years ago. Which is not contemporary. However, I digress - if you really want to know more about my thoughts on that subject, just email me. Anyway SBBS is a dynamic, small church located just outside Manly and some of the artists that exhibit and run the art gallery (called the Art Sanctuary Gallery)
Anyway, SBBS follows the "BELLS" liturgy which stands for Blessing, Eating, Listening, Learning and Symba-something or other (they pray for a specific member of the community). So within the service, the members end up eating dinner together, catching up on life, spending time in prayer alone with God and learning about Him. I really enjoyed the rhythm of the service, and even more enjoyed talking with Nadia and David about the visual arts and faith. One of the frustrating and exciting aspects of being a visual artist within the context of a Christian life is that since the split with the Catholic Church, protestant believers and churches haven't fostered the visual arts at all. I believe that as society has moved into the Post-Modern Era, with a lot of focus given to contemporary design, there has been a huge resurgence of appreciation for the arts in general culture. Unfortunately, within the culture of the American church there's been a lack of encouragement for visual artists to use their gifts for the Lord. I was particularly interested to meet Nadia and David, with the hopes of continuing a conversation with them about being a Christian and being an artist and how those two facets of life can be intertwined in a worship setting. So I have email addresses(o:
Anyway - I need to either get to bed or get up and pack, as Ash and I are heading out to the Hunter Valley Wine Country tomorrow and tomorrow evening are taking our first overnight bus ride up to Byron Bay to start our 2 week long sight-seeing tour! WOOOOOO!
The scalloped lines of the roof are I think meant to resemble the sails of the boats that pass through the Harbor each day. I had read that the roof was tiled with self-cleaning tiles (I imagined little scrubber bubbles magically appearing to whisk off any dirt), but didn't realize how small they were - only about 2 inches square. What I enjoyed most about the OH were the details: How the lines of the roof came together like a Chinese fan, and how instead of having overhead lighting in the women's bathroom, each toilet stall had an illuminated TP dispensor. Pretty sweet. We saw My Fair Lady (yes, Mom, I got a program) and saw the most incredible costumes and sets I've ever seen on a stage production. This was definitely not a low-budget affair...
On Sunday, Ash and I relaxed at the house until she had to go to work. Because she's the greatest friend ever, she arranged for her friend Nadia to come pick me up and take me to the service, since Ash couldn't take me herself. Now, I had been looking forward to attending a service at "Small Boat, Big Sea" (cool name for a church, yea?) because it's held in an art gallery. HOW AMAZING. The church is part of the emergent church movement, and is very non-traditional. I might actually say it's a contemporary worship service, where as most "contemporary services" as we know them are actually of the mid-90's era. Which was 15 years ago. Which is not contemporary. However, I digress - if you really want to know more about my thoughts on that subject, just email me. Anyway SBBS is a dynamic, small church located just outside Manly and some of the artists that exhibit and run the art gallery (called the Art Sanctuary Gallery)
Anyway, SBBS follows the "BELLS" liturgy which stands for Blessing, Eating, Listening, Learning and Symba-something or other (they pray for a specific member of the community). So within the service, the members end up eating dinner together, catching up on life, spending time in prayer alone with God and learning about Him. I really enjoyed the rhythm of the service, and even more enjoyed talking with Nadia and David about the visual arts and faith. One of the frustrating and exciting aspects of being a visual artist within the context of a Christian life is that since the split with the Catholic Church, protestant believers and churches haven't fostered the visual arts at all. I believe that as society has moved into the Post-Modern Era, with a lot of focus given to contemporary design, there has been a huge resurgence of appreciation for the arts in general culture. Unfortunately, within the culture of the American church there's been a lack of encouragement for visual artists to use their gifts for the Lord. I was particularly interested to meet Nadia and David, with the hopes of continuing a conversation with them about being a Christian and being an artist and how those two facets of life can be intertwined in a worship setting. So I have email addresses(o:
Anyway - I need to either get to bed or get up and pack, as Ash and I are heading out to the Hunter Valley Wine Country tomorrow and tomorrow evening are taking our first overnight bus ride up to Byron Bay to start our 2 week long sight-seeing tour! WOOOOOO!
new format & a pic!
The best aspect of hosting a blog on Google's Blogger is how much you can adapt your blog to your own specifications. So when I get the urge to change up the layout of my blog, the colors and the various elements, it's really, really easy. And right now, I'm relishing the fact that I brought my computer with me, because I just made all these changes to "Under where?" under nice, toasty covers, as I listen to the rain dribble on the window. Yeaaaaaaaaaaah(o:
Now, as promised, I'll pick up from where I left off about my ridiculously long walk with Travis. After walking all through the downtown area of Sydney, Travis and I met up with one of his friends from "Uni" (Aussie for college) and she convinced Travis to take the train out to where the main campus of the University of Sydney is located. Now, the train in Sydney is equivalent to the Tube in London or the Metro in DC, save one thing: the trains are double-decker and absolutely pristine. Probably due to the fact that there are "Don't put your feet up on the seats" signs everywhere - a picture of a little stick-figure man with his feet comfortably up on the seats with a very stern slash mark over it. At this point in the day, seriously, all I wanted to do was put my feet up, but Travis and his friends assured me that I would be handed a $250 fine if caught. Bugger.
After debarking the very clean train at Redfern, Travis and I walked through part of the main campus of the USyd. Earlier that day, Travis and I had been talking about how I wanted to see a rugby match and he told me a few of the more specific detail about rugby in Australia. Apparently there are two different forms of the sport, and various levels of teams play nationally and internationally. We happened to walk by a rugby league match (what I mean by "happened to walk by" is that we heard the shouting, climbed a very steep, short dirt hill full of brushy stuff that was difficult to get up without sliding back down the hill...) up onto a swath of green lawn, where a rugby game was underway. Rugby is a rough sport, with some seemingly odd rules, but is quite exciting to watch. Instead of stopping the game each time someone is tackled (without any pads, for the record) like in American football, players can pull the ball up from the tackled players and punt the ball backwards to their teammates, and keep the game going. And when the ball is thrown out of bounds, it's thrown in, and one player from each team is lifted up to collect the ball from mid-air. Based on what I saw, if a son or daughter comes home and tells me that they want to join a rugby team, I'll have to take out stocks in a Band-aid company to ensure that we have enough on hand for the daily cuts, brushes and busted up appendages.
By this point, I'm seriously dead exhausted from walking, so Travis and I sit on a bench watching a black swan and various other avian creatures wander around. From there, we decided to get some coffee before meeting up with Ash, and had a cappuccino & cookie before hopping onto a blessed bus (more "we'll fine you for actually getting comfortable" signs) back to the Circular Quay.
Back at the Quay, we listen to some sweet traditional Aboriginal music superimposed on top of electronica beats...pretty trippy. After Travis had to leave, I was getting cold and had already added as many layers to my outfit as I could, so I decided to head over to the Opera House (OH). On the way, I had fun and got frustrated taking pictures of the Harbor at night - it's beautiful, but my camera sucks at night shots. So I end up erasing nearly all the pictures I take. Oh well. At least I forgot about how cold I was.
Ok, I'm going to end this post b/c it's getting really long. And regardless of the fact that I'm just going to start another one to finish the days details.
Now, as promised, I'll pick up from where I left off about my ridiculously long walk with Travis. After walking all through the downtown area of Sydney, Travis and I met up with one of his friends from "Uni" (Aussie for college) and she convinced Travis to take the train out to where the main campus of the University of Sydney is located. Now, the train in Sydney is equivalent to the Tube in London or the Metro in DC, save one thing: the trains are double-decker and absolutely pristine. Probably due to the fact that there are "Don't put your feet up on the seats" signs everywhere - a picture of a little stick-figure man with his feet comfortably up on the seats with a very stern slash mark over it. At this point in the day, seriously, all I wanted to do was put my feet up, but Travis and his friends assured me that I would be handed a $250 fine if caught. Bugger.
After debarking the very clean train at Redfern, Travis and I walked through part of the main campus of the USyd. Earlier that day, Travis and I had been talking about how I wanted to see a rugby match and he told me a few of the more specific detail about rugby in Australia. Apparently there are two different forms of the sport, and various levels of teams play nationally and internationally. We happened to walk by a rugby league match (what I mean by "happened to walk by" is that we heard the shouting, climbed a very steep, short dirt hill full of brushy stuff that was difficult to get up without sliding back down the hill...) up onto a swath of green lawn, where a rugby game was underway. Rugby is a rough sport, with some seemingly odd rules, but is quite exciting to watch. Instead of stopping the game each time someone is tackled (without any pads, for the record) like in American football, players can pull the ball up from the tackled players and punt the ball backwards to their teammates, and keep the game going. And when the ball is thrown out of bounds, it's thrown in, and one player from each team is lifted up to collect the ball from mid-air. Based on what I saw, if a son or daughter comes home and tells me that they want to join a rugby team, I'll have to take out stocks in a Band-aid company to ensure that we have enough on hand for the daily cuts, brushes and busted up appendages.
By this point, I'm seriously dead exhausted from walking, so Travis and I sit on a bench watching a black swan and various other avian creatures wander around. From there, we decided to get some coffee before meeting up with Ash, and had a cappuccino & cookie before hopping onto a blessed bus (more "we'll fine you for actually getting comfortable" signs) back to the Circular Quay.
Back at the Quay, we listen to some sweet traditional Aboriginal music superimposed on top of electronica beats...pretty trippy. After Travis had to leave, I was getting cold and had already added as many layers to my outfit as I could, so I decided to head over to the Opera House (OH). On the way, I had fun and got frustrated taking pictures of the Harbor at night - it's beautiful, but my camera sucks at night shots. So I end up erasing nearly all the pictures I take. Oh well. At least I forgot about how cold I was.
Ok, I'm going to end this post b/c it's getting really long. And regardless of the fact that I'm just going to start another one to finish the days details.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
and I would walk 500 miles, and I would walk 500 more...
So I can check off the "Walk from Sydney to Perth -- and back" spot from my "What to do in Australia" check list. My feet have never been so tired. Not even after hiking Old Rag, or walking all over creation in San Fransisco or even walking through Tokyo. Oh no, nothing beats the streets of Sydney for making you crumble to your knees in foot-filled agony.
Walking forever was not how my first Saturday in Australia started, though. Ash and I started the day by going to a market that's held once a month in the Manly public school yard. The is the market where Ash has gotten some of her more incredible jewelry, so I was excited about the prospects. She did warn me though, that this market is more often used as a sort of massive community yard sale and that sometimes it's just pretty terrible. Yesterday was a mixture of incredible and terrible. Parts of the market look like the flea markets I used to frequent with my Pop-Pop and parts of it looked like the really cool artsy markets that I've been through in NYC. I didn't find anything that I wanted to come home with, so Ashley pointed me in the direction of another weekly market held on the Corso in Manly.
Now, this market hit the jackpot. I seriously could have dropped $500 in a heartbeat. However, for any of you who have been shopping with me, I absolutely cannot impulse buy anything above $10. I just can't. I have to think about the purchase for at least a few hours, and then I'll come back and buy it. Now, this tendency has gotten me into trouble in Mexico (missed out on a gorgeous pair of earrings), NYC (missed out on gorgeous, cheap clothing) and now Manly (missed out on the coolest convertible shirt thing). I looked at the shirts for a while, but decided to go down to the beach to think about it for a while (actually ended up thinking about all the seagulls that were wandering around the sand, and the millions of cute toddlers running around, EVERYWHERE.), and then wandered home to think about it some more. By the time I decided I wanted to buy the thing, I had already made plans to meet up with my friend Travis in Sydney and I did not have time to go by the market and pick it up. So then I decided that if I really love it, still at the end of the trip, that I'd go down to the market on my last Saturday and buy it. However, on that last Saturday, I'll be in Daintree National Park, in Queensland. Oops.
Anyway, after the markets, I got home, cleaned up and caught the ferry to Sydney. Now, down in Sydney, the wharf is called the Circular Quay, pronounced the "circular key." And those who pronounce it phonetically are immediately identified as foreigners, nearly always American. Mrs. Curl thankfully saved me from that embarassment and at the ticket gate, I deftly asked for a "day-tripper to the Circular Key" (That's an all day pass for ferries, busses and trains from Manly to Sydney.) By the time I arrived at the Quay, I was starving, so Travis suggested we walk over to the fish market for lunch.
"Sure," I said, the unsuspecting visitor, who picked her shoes because they matched her outfit, not because she expected to be walking a marathon through the city. The walk to the fish market was beautiful and we walked through Darling Harbor area, past Travis' old office building, past the National Meritime Museum and a number of beautiful bridges. By the time we actually got to the fish market, I was famished and getting a little tired. But, I knew a good basket of fish and chips would definitely revive me. So, I ate my fishy, fried goodness in the company of about 5000 seagulls and one very interested, unidentified avian creature. Tasty and greasy. Mmm!
Then, Travis and I were off to Hyde Park area to meet up with a friend of his from Uni (college). Now, I have a pretty decent sense of direction, so I quickly realized that not only were we completely backtracking our walking path, but that we were walking quite a bit further beyond the Quay to get to Hyde Park. Now, we happened to be walking through the main part of the city, and currently the whole of Sydney has been overrun with World Youth Day Pilgrims. So we walk through the main shopping districts, and the heart of the city to Hyde Park, where St. Mary's Catholic Church is located. Past 1000s of Pilgrims. Travis and I were discussing that we weren't sure exactly what the deal was with World Youth Day (Catholic youth convention held in various cities around the world) but that we were fairly certain it was pretty intense experience for them. I mean, the Pope has been making appearances all week. I liked Hyde Park because of the giant chess board with the 2 foot tall pieces.
Anyway, my fingers are hurting right now from typing, so I'm going to sign off now to shower, and get ready to meet one of Ash's family friends. I'll pick up the rest of the expedition later today. To entice you to check back later, the next chapter of this massive walk does include: A rugby match, a digerredo, the Sydney Opera House and My Fair Lady.
Walking forever was not how my first Saturday in Australia started, though. Ash and I started the day by going to a market that's held once a month in the Manly public school yard. The is the market where Ash has gotten some of her more incredible jewelry, so I was excited about the prospects. She did warn me though, that this market is more often used as a sort of massive community yard sale and that sometimes it's just pretty terrible. Yesterday was a mixture of incredible and terrible. Parts of the market look like the flea markets I used to frequent with my Pop-Pop and parts of it looked like the really cool artsy markets that I've been through in NYC. I didn't find anything that I wanted to come home with, so Ashley pointed me in the direction of another weekly market held on the Corso in Manly.
Now, this market hit the jackpot. I seriously could have dropped $500 in a heartbeat. However, for any of you who have been shopping with me, I absolutely cannot impulse buy anything above $10. I just can't. I have to think about the purchase for at least a few hours, and then I'll come back and buy it. Now, this tendency has gotten me into trouble in Mexico (missed out on a gorgeous pair of earrings), NYC (missed out on gorgeous, cheap clothing) and now Manly (missed out on the coolest convertible shirt thing). I looked at the shirts for a while, but decided to go down to the beach to think about it for a while (actually ended up thinking about all the seagulls that were wandering around the sand, and the millions of cute toddlers running around, EVERYWHERE.), and then wandered home to think about it some more. By the time I decided I wanted to buy the thing, I had already made plans to meet up with my friend Travis in Sydney and I did not have time to go by the market and pick it up. So then I decided that if I really love it, still at the end of the trip, that I'd go down to the market on my last Saturday and buy it. However, on that last Saturday, I'll be in Daintree National Park, in Queensland. Oops.
Anyway, after the markets, I got home, cleaned up and caught the ferry to Sydney. Now, down in Sydney, the wharf is called the Circular Quay, pronounced the "circular key." And those who pronounce it phonetically are immediately identified as foreigners, nearly always American. Mrs. Curl thankfully saved me from that embarassment and at the ticket gate, I deftly asked for a "day-tripper to the Circular Key" (That's an all day pass for ferries, busses and trains from Manly to Sydney.) By the time I arrived at the Quay, I was starving, so Travis suggested we walk over to the fish market for lunch.
"Sure," I said, the unsuspecting visitor, who picked her shoes because they matched her outfit, not because she expected to be walking a marathon through the city. The walk to the fish market was beautiful and we walked through Darling Harbor area, past Travis' old office building, past the National Meritime Museum and a number of beautiful bridges. By the time we actually got to the fish market, I was famished and getting a little tired. But, I knew a good basket of fish and chips would definitely revive me. So, I ate my fishy, fried goodness in the company of about 5000 seagulls and one very interested, unidentified avian creature. Tasty and greasy. Mmm!
Then, Travis and I were off to Hyde Park area to meet up with a friend of his from Uni (college). Now, I have a pretty decent sense of direction, so I quickly realized that not only were we completely backtracking our walking path, but that we were walking quite a bit further beyond the Quay to get to Hyde Park. Now, we happened to be walking through the main part of the city, and currently the whole of Sydney has been overrun with World Youth Day Pilgrims. So we walk through the main shopping districts, and the heart of the city to Hyde Park, where St. Mary's Catholic Church is located. Past 1000s of Pilgrims. Travis and I were discussing that we weren't sure exactly what the deal was with World Youth Day (Catholic youth convention held in various cities around the world) but that we were fairly certain it was pretty intense experience for them. I mean, the Pope has been making appearances all week. I liked Hyde Park because of the giant chess board with the 2 foot tall pieces.
Anyway, my fingers are hurting right now from typing, so I'm going to sign off now to shower, and get ready to meet one of Ash's family friends. I'll pick up the rest of the expedition later today. To entice you to check back later, the next chapter of this massive walk does include: A rugby match, a digerredo, the Sydney Opera House and My Fair Lady.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
much, much better
To combat jet lag when traveling to the west, I was told it's best to just stay up the first day and not nap. That way, even if you wake up at 4 or 5 am, you're that much closer to being on a normal sleep cycle with your new locale. Whew. I never really realized just how much humans need sleep until yesterday at about 4:30pm when I thought I was going to lose my lunch (breakfast, really) from not having slept yet. I managed to stay up until 7:30 and then crashed until 6:30am this morning. Since I was well-rested, I decided to get up and watch the sunrise off the back of the Curl's back balcony. I bundled in two blankets and with a "cuppa," met the morning in a very relaxed fashion. The sunrise was very peaceful, aside from the birds that look like minature parrots, who sound like distressed babies as they call to each other (that was the sound that I woke up to this morning....rather alarming, actually). And the kukuberras....Gracie, Ash's little sister identified them to me.
Ash and I walked past Manly Beach north to Freshwater Beach area to Qi, her yoga studio and took a yoga class with Mark (sounds like Maaaak). First of all, walking past three different beaches in order to get to another little beautiful neighborhood was just...GREAT. I could totally do with a commute like that in the mornings! I didn't realize how much tension I was still carrying in my body after the trip until Maaaak had us in the royal pigeon pose and this meditating tree pose. I could really do with taking yoga regularly. The best part of the whole 1.5 hours was the 1/2 hour breathing meditation, otherwise known as a "nap." After annointing the area of our foreheads where our breathing contacted our skin with saliva, we were told to focus on our breathing and where the air hit our nostrils. My nostrils were quite relaxed, as was my jaw. (For any of you whom have had the great pleasure of me napping on your shoulder, be impressed that I didn't, I repeat DIDN'T, drool during this whole session.) After yoga, Ash and I walked back through Queenhead (I think that's the name) to a little neighborhood cafe and had pumpkin soup and an egg, bacon and tomato chutney sandwich. Ash told me that it was one of the only neighborhood cafes in Manly, as it's a fairly touristy area. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and learned some random coffee facts from a little trading card game.
Currently, I'm sitting in Budget Oz Travel, a backpackers travel agency that helps people book tours throughout Australia. Ash and I planned on planning our travels once I arrived (not at all normal for me), but now that we're here, I'm having a difficult time making decisions about what to do. I realized that travelling and exploring is a very active endeavor and in order to get the most out of my adventuring, I need to get my head in the game, so to speak. So, now that I'm feeling somewhere close to normal, I'm taking it upon myself to really dig into the rhythms of where I'm at.
At breaky, I noticed that Australian books smell different - vaguely vegan. Like....some sort of herbal supplement has been added to the binding glue, or the paper and peppers the book with a very earthy, hippy scent. Not unpleasant, just...unexpected. Also, Aussies on the whole are way ahead of Americans in terms of living "green." Australians have already gone green and have adopted sustainable practices into their daily lives. Such as: Since most fridges don't have water spickets on the doors for getting a cold glass of water, Aussies fill glass bottles with tap water and keep them in the fridge. Not only is that more economical than buying plastic bottles, but it's better for the enviro and is way more aesthetically pleasing. How smart.
In a few moments, I'm heading out to walk around Manly and get a better feel for this community. I'll head down to the Wharf, wander around some neighborhoods, check out some shops, etc.
p.s. Have also noticed that Aussies tend to abbreviate everything possible and drop identifying, personal pronouns. Rather like it. Love to you all!
Ash and I walked past Manly Beach north to Freshwater Beach area to Qi, her yoga studio and took a yoga class with Mark (sounds like Maaaak). First of all, walking past three different beaches in order to get to another little beautiful neighborhood was just...GREAT. I could totally do with a commute like that in the mornings! I didn't realize how much tension I was still carrying in my body after the trip until Maaaak had us in the royal pigeon pose and this meditating tree pose. I could really do with taking yoga regularly. The best part of the whole 1.5 hours was the 1/2 hour breathing meditation, otherwise known as a "nap." After annointing the area of our foreheads where our breathing contacted our skin with saliva, we were told to focus on our breathing and where the air hit our nostrils. My nostrils were quite relaxed, as was my jaw. (For any of you whom have had the great pleasure of me napping on your shoulder, be impressed that I didn't, I repeat DIDN'T, drool during this whole session.) After yoga, Ash and I walked back through Queenhead (I think that's the name) to a little neighborhood cafe and had pumpkin soup and an egg, bacon and tomato chutney sandwich. Ash told me that it was one of the only neighborhood cafes in Manly, as it's a fairly touristy area. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and learned some random coffee facts from a little trading card game.
Currently, I'm sitting in Budget Oz Travel, a backpackers travel agency that helps people book tours throughout Australia. Ash and I planned on planning our travels once I arrived (not at all normal for me), but now that we're here, I'm having a difficult time making decisions about what to do. I realized that travelling and exploring is a very active endeavor and in order to get the most out of my adventuring, I need to get my head in the game, so to speak. So, now that I'm feeling somewhere close to normal, I'm taking it upon myself to really dig into the rhythms of where I'm at.
At breaky, I noticed that Australian books smell different - vaguely vegan. Like....some sort of herbal supplement has been added to the binding glue, or the paper and peppers the book with a very earthy, hippy scent. Not unpleasant, just...unexpected. Also, Aussies on the whole are way ahead of Americans in terms of living "green." Australians have already gone green and have adopted sustainable practices into their daily lives. Such as: Since most fridges don't have water spickets on the doors for getting a cold glass of water, Aussies fill glass bottles with tap water and keep them in the fridge. Not only is that more economical than buying plastic bottles, but it's better for the enviro and is way more aesthetically pleasing. How smart.
In a few moments, I'm heading out to walk around Manly and get a better feel for this community. I'll head down to the Wharf, wander around some neighborhoods, check out some shops, etc.
p.s. Have also noticed that Aussies tend to abbreviate everything possible and drop identifying, personal pronouns. Rather like it. Love to you all!
p.s.
Forgot to mention that during the traveling between DC & Sydney, I completely missed Wednesday because of the time change. yeah.
19 hours, minus a Wednesday & lots of coffee
It's so surreal to be typing this sentence in Australia.....on an Australian computer that has an Australian electrical plug. I've been thinking about traveling in Oz since December 2003, when my friend Ashley moved her with her family, so having that trip actually be reality is just weird...and great(o: Since I don't have the mental energy to write a creative entry that encompasses the last 36 hours of my life just yet, I've devised the "Lady's List of Fabulous Happenings."
1. The 5 hour flight from DC to LA felt waaaaaaaaaaaaay longer than the 14 hour flight from LA to Sydney. Why??
a) Qantas Airways (Australian airline) treats even their coach passengers with respect and dignity. We were well-fed, given a goodie-bag of snacks, constantly supplied with fluids, provided a bathroom that you could actually turn around in, had a personal TV with movie channels, TV shows, music & video games, free headsets and seats that actually reclined more than 5 inches. And the wine is free!!! And you get real glass cups. However, on the American Airlines flight, I could purchase snacks for obsurd amounts of money, barely squatted in the bathroom, rent a headset for $2 to watch a poor choice in movie.
2) Aussies drive on the wrong side of the road, the roads are quite narrow and the cars are quite wide. Makes for stimulating car rides.
3) It's winter here and tomorrow is the last day of winter holidays for the students, so down at Manly beach (a short, 3 minute walk from my friend's house) all the kids are playing in the surf and many are out catching waves. In winter. (Winter temps are around 60...)
4) A large coffee here is smaller than the smallest coffee you can get at Starbucks in America.
5) Today is midway through an event called World Youth Day (note: WYD lasts 5 days....) and the Pope arrived today, so many roads were blocked off to allow for his "boatercade" to safely negotiate the harbor....yes, roads were blocked off for his boat ride....I guess if you're the Pope, you get those kinds of priveleges.
6) Aussies are a rather relaxed breed of human beings, especially those on the East Coast. This good-natured sensibility has led to the coining of several phrases that essentially mean "don't worry about it," such as "no dramas" and "no worries."
7) Ta = thank you
breaky = breakfast
arvo = afternoon
Oz = Australia
the bush = any uncultivated land
the outback = beyond the bush, definitely the wilderness
cuppa = cup of_______ (tea, coffee, cadbury chocolate)
Mukka = mocha
Coldy = cold drink, most likely a beer
"Suck down a coldy" = "drink a beer really fast after work"
8) People surf all the time here. It's not uncommon to see any age of person wandering around a shopping area in a wetsuit, carrying their surfboard.
9) Grocery stores really only carry dairy, pastas, produce and juices. Aussies still go to the bakery, the butcher, the pharmacy and beverage stores to complete their grocery shopping.
10) Homes are not heated on anywhere but the ground floor. Even though it gets quite cold here at night in winter. Like at least around 40 degrees.
11) Even the boys wear skinny jeans. And have good taste in shoes.
12) The surfing brand RipCurl was founded here.
13) Most people exercise.
14) Gas is also really expensive.
15) Manly (Sydney suburb) has it's own environmental resource office, where you can find all kinds of info about living environmentally friendly. Aussies have done it for years already.
16) Coffee tastes better...and is stronger(o:
Dinner is almost ready, and my eyeballs are permanently crossed, so I'm signing off now to eat, read about travel options for heading north (to warmer weather) and fall into bed by 8pm.
Kate
p.s. Not only have I crossed into the Eastern Hemisphere, but I have also crossed the Equator. BOOOYAAAAAAAAAAAH!
1. The 5 hour flight from DC to LA felt waaaaaaaaaaaaay longer than the 14 hour flight from LA to Sydney. Why??
a) Qantas Airways (Australian airline) treats even their coach passengers with respect and dignity. We were well-fed, given a goodie-bag of snacks, constantly supplied with fluids, provided a bathroom that you could actually turn around in, had a personal TV with movie channels, TV shows, music & video games, free headsets and seats that actually reclined more than 5 inches. And the wine is free!!! And you get real glass cups. However, on the American Airlines flight, I could purchase snacks for obsurd amounts of money, barely squatted in the bathroom, rent a headset for $2 to watch a poor choice in movie.
2) Aussies drive on the wrong side of the road, the roads are quite narrow and the cars are quite wide. Makes for stimulating car rides.
3) It's winter here and tomorrow is the last day of winter holidays for the students, so down at Manly beach (a short, 3 minute walk from my friend's house) all the kids are playing in the surf and many are out catching waves. In winter. (Winter temps are around 60...)
4) A large coffee here is smaller than the smallest coffee you can get at Starbucks in America.
5) Today is midway through an event called World Youth Day (note: WYD lasts 5 days....) and the Pope arrived today, so many roads were blocked off to allow for his "boatercade" to safely negotiate the harbor....yes, roads were blocked off for his boat ride....I guess if you're the Pope, you get those kinds of priveleges.
6) Aussies are a rather relaxed breed of human beings, especially those on the East Coast. This good-natured sensibility has led to the coining of several phrases that essentially mean "don't worry about it," such as "no dramas" and "no worries."
7) Ta = thank you
breaky = breakfast
arvo = afternoon
Oz = Australia
the bush = any uncultivated land
the outback = beyond the bush, definitely the wilderness
cuppa = cup of_______ (tea, coffee, cadbury chocolate)
Mukka = mocha
Coldy = cold drink, most likely a beer
"Suck down a coldy" = "drink a beer really fast after work"
8) People surf all the time here. It's not uncommon to see any age of person wandering around a shopping area in a wetsuit, carrying their surfboard.
9) Grocery stores really only carry dairy, pastas, produce and juices. Aussies still go to the bakery, the butcher, the pharmacy and beverage stores to complete their grocery shopping.
10) Homes are not heated on anywhere but the ground floor. Even though it gets quite cold here at night in winter. Like at least around 40 degrees.
11) Even the boys wear skinny jeans. And have good taste in shoes.
12) The surfing brand RipCurl was founded here.
13) Most people exercise.
14) Gas is also really expensive.
15) Manly (Sydney suburb) has it's own environmental resource office, where you can find all kinds of info about living environmentally friendly. Aussies have done it for years already.
16) Coffee tastes better...and is stronger(o:
Dinner is almost ready, and my eyeballs are permanently crossed, so I'm signing off now to eat, read about travel options for heading north (to warmer weather) and fall into bed by 8pm.
Kate
p.s. Not only have I crossed into the Eastern Hemisphere, but I have also crossed the Equator. BOOOYAAAAAAAAAAAH!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Final preps
My mother just told me she brought her knitting to a golf course. Did she swing a golf club? Did she haul a club bag around the course? Absolutely not! Instead of playing the game invented by our Scottish cousins, she knit a sweater inspired by Scottish fishermen's sweaters. (Not really, but she did knit while riding around on a golf cart.) Only my mother could make knitting on a golf course look chic and perfectly normal!
Anyway, I'm in the midst of final preparations for my trip to Australia to visit my good friend and fellow female nomad, Ashley! Ash and I lived together through most of college and are ridiculously excited about reconnecting over the next three weeks. We began planning this trip 3 years ago when her family moved to Sydney.
Final preps included:
1) Chasing down eyelash curler pads. Neither Target, nor Martin's, nor Wal-mart carry replacement eyelash curler pads. You have to buy a whole new eyelash curler unit if you want to replace the pad. Lame.
2) Mulling over what shoes to bring with me. The biggest question was whether or not the slouch stacked-heeled brown boots would make it into the suitcase. They did - regardless of whether or not I'll wear them, I just feel better with them in my bag.
3) Ensuring that I have every possible ID necessary to make sure that I can get into and out of Australia.
4) Perfecting my rendition of Men at Work's "Land Down Under." I've yet to figure out what "chunder" is....
I hope you enjoy reading about Ash & I's adventures. Check back soon for a link to my picture website!
Anyway, I'm in the midst of final preparations for my trip to Australia to visit my good friend and fellow female nomad, Ashley! Ash and I lived together through most of college and are ridiculously excited about reconnecting over the next three weeks. We began planning this trip 3 years ago when her family moved to Sydney.
Final preps included:
1) Chasing down eyelash curler pads. Neither Target, nor Martin's, nor Wal-mart carry replacement eyelash curler pads. You have to buy a whole new eyelash curler unit if you want to replace the pad. Lame.
2) Mulling over what shoes to bring with me. The biggest question was whether or not the slouch stacked-heeled brown boots would make it into the suitcase. They did - regardless of whether or not I'll wear them, I just feel better with them in my bag.
3) Ensuring that I have every possible ID necessary to make sure that I can get into and out of Australia.
4) Perfecting my rendition of Men at Work's "Land Down Under." I've yet to figure out what "chunder" is....
I hope you enjoy reading about Ash & I's adventures. Check back soon for a link to my picture website!
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