Aussies don't chew a lot of gum. There are only about 4 flavor choices at any given convenience store. It does not get much better at grocery stores. A popular flavor here is blueberry, which I am eager to try.
Seriously, everyone is white. White with blue eyes and blondish hair. There are very few people with black hair, and even fewer black or brown people. In Sydney, there were many Asians, but up north not so much beyond the tourists.
They do not use paper towels here, unless you are in a really fancy establishment. Most bathrooms use air dryers. This is only useful if you don't want to waste paper or if your jeans and tennis shoes are soaked from the rain. Otherwise, it dries out your hands and takes a lot of time.
The canned tuna selection at the grocery store is incredible. They sell as much tuna here as we do chips in the US. Tuna comes already flavored in little pop top cans, so you can take a piece of bread and a can for lunch and be all set to go. Some flavors include: sun dried tomato and onion, lemon pepper, thai red curry, sweet corn and mayonnaise.
Showing posts with label Australia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Australia. Show all posts
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
last set of pics
Adina and Gavi in Melbourne, at St. Kilda pier
Bronte/Bondi beach walk.
SELF PORTRAIT JUMPING PICTURES!!! In the Blue Mountains. The peak of my photographing career.
In the Blue Mountains, looking very blue.
In the Blue Mountains.
august 5: last day
I'm pretty ready to leave. I can't wait to take a looooong shower, to hang out in my apartment naked, to leave dishes in the sink, to put food in the fridge without labeling it name/room/date of departure, and to freaking BRUSH MY TEETH AND LEAVE MY TOOTHBRUSH IN THE BATHROOM.
I've already done all the shopping I need to -- and "need" is pretty liberal here since what I purchased was $50 worth of junk food -- but I have a few extra hours to wander around and maybe buy some real souvenirs. But really the best stuff is at the grocery store, so this time I go to Woolworths and buy stuff. Exciting.
I'm already packed, all my food is hidden away, my airport shuttle is booked, and I'm ready to go! See you on the other side!
I've already done all the shopping I need to -- and "need" is pretty liberal here since what I purchased was $50 worth of junk food -- but I have a few extra hours to wander around and maybe buy some real souvenirs. But really the best stuff is at the grocery store, so this time I go to Woolworths and buy stuff. Exciting.
I'm already packed, all my food is hidden away, my airport shuttle is booked, and I'm ready to go! See you on the other side!
august 4: blue mountains
Today I wake up at an ungodly hour so that I can get an early train to Katoomba. I am going to spend the day in the Heritage listed Blue Mountains. At this point, I have been to more UNESCO sites in Australia than I have been to at home.
I'm not sure what to expect in Katoomba, since I didn't book a tour or a bus, but it turns out to be surprisingly easy. I tear a map out of one of those free regional magazines next to the train station, and walk into town. At the tourist information office at The Echo Point, the guide tells me I can do the cliff walk from Katoomba to Leura and it will take a few hours. I hadn't planned on hiking because my legs were so knackered yesterday on my walk, but I'm feeling good now, and plus, I have a nice size food bag that is filled with bread and peas and chocolate.
The Blue Mountains are spectacular. The cliff walk follows the edge of one mountain as it curls around and winds its way to the other side of a huge valley. Every lookout is stunning and it reminds me of the Grand Canyon. The mountains are heavily forested and looking down is like looking at a thick, green, carpet. Several faces of the surrounding cliffs are free of vegetation and the exposed red, striped rock shines in the sun. I take about seven hundred pictures. There are waterfalls, and eroded rocks, and dripping vines, and hollowed out cave-like curves. The mountains are steep and the lookouts are scarily perched on overhanging rocks. On my last hurrah, I climb 388 steps from Siloam's Pool to the cliff top in Leura. Yes, I counted.
I walk from 10am to 4pm and am utterly exhausted by the end. I sleep the whole train ride back.
On my last Australian evening, I shower, pack, make noodles, and read Seven Years in Tibet, which is FANTASTIC. It is the first real book I have read in a month (the rest have been total crap writing), and I can't put it down.
This is when I notice that my watch has broken. On my LAST NIGHT, the screen is mysteriously blank. Not so mysterious when I consider that I accidentally showered with it earlier, but it claims to be water resistant up to 30 meters, and a few minutes of shower sprinkle is less than 30 meters, right? WRONG. I can't bring myself to buy another one for twenty bucks for just one fucking morning. I walk around the neighborhood checking the 7-11s, but none of them sell cheapo alarm clocks. I ask two separate roommates to wake me up in the morning and go to sleep.
(I woke up at 5:45, in case you were wondering.)
Australian thing of the day: Nothing. There is nothing left in Australia that I haven't eaten. It is time to go home.
I'm not sure what to expect in Katoomba, since I didn't book a tour or a bus, but it turns out to be surprisingly easy. I tear a map out of one of those free regional magazines next to the train station, and walk into town. At the tourist information office at The Echo Point, the guide tells me I can do the cliff walk from Katoomba to Leura and it will take a few hours. I hadn't planned on hiking because my legs were so knackered yesterday on my walk, but I'm feeling good now, and plus, I have a nice size food bag that is filled with bread and peas and chocolate.
The Blue Mountains are spectacular. The cliff walk follows the edge of one mountain as it curls around and winds its way to the other side of a huge valley. Every lookout is stunning and it reminds me of the Grand Canyon. The mountains are heavily forested and looking down is like looking at a thick, green, carpet. Several faces of the surrounding cliffs are free of vegetation and the exposed red, striped rock shines in the sun. I take about seven hundred pictures. There are waterfalls, and eroded rocks, and dripping vines, and hollowed out cave-like curves. The mountains are steep and the lookouts are scarily perched on overhanging rocks. On my last hurrah, I climb 388 steps from Siloam's Pool to the cliff top in Leura. Yes, I counted.
I walk from 10am to 4pm and am utterly exhausted by the end. I sleep the whole train ride back.
On my last Australian evening, I shower, pack, make noodles, and read Seven Years in Tibet, which is FANTASTIC. It is the first real book I have read in a month (the rest have been total crap writing), and I can't put it down.
This is when I notice that my watch has broken. On my LAST NIGHT, the screen is mysteriously blank. Not so mysterious when I consider that I accidentally showered with it earlier, but it claims to be water resistant up to 30 meters, and a few minutes of shower sprinkle is less than 30 meters, right? WRONG. I can't bring myself to buy another one for twenty bucks for just one fucking morning. I walk around the neighborhood checking the 7-11s, but none of them sell cheapo alarm clocks. I ask two separate roommates to wake me up in the morning and go to sleep.
(I woke up at 5:45, in case you were wondering.)
Australian thing of the day: Nothing. There is nothing left in Australia that I haven't eaten. It is time to go home.
august 3: bron-tee, bon-dee, and coo-gee
So my mom does this Kabbalah stuff and met this Australian woman who also does Kabbalah stuff and then they emailed each other and my mom told her that I would be in Australia and she emailed me back and invited me over for lunch. Only it was really difficult to arrange the actual lunch, because I don't have a cell phone here, and my schedule has never been totally set, and she only checks her email once a day. So finally, in my second-to-last day, we meet at a cafe in Bronte under her flat.
The bus ride is uneventful until the bus rounds a curve and tops over a hill to give a glorious view of Bronte, a little beachside suburb of colored buildings and a rocky peninsula and white sand, and it is just PERFECT. I feel like I'm in Europe. I'm early for our lunch, so I actually walk back up the hill to where the bus turned so I can take some shots of the picturesque area. I can't believe I haven't been here sooner.
I meet Orna, and she tells me that we are having lunch with a visiting Kabbalah scholar, which I find weird. I'm pretty sure that she knows that I don't study Kabbalah and I would hope that she knows that I didn't come to Australia to meet any visiting scholars of anything, but I don't say anything. We take a gorgeous walk along the beach to get to Bondi, and meet Zohar. He is actually quite funny and I'm glad he's there because Orna turns out to be not that talkative. When we get to the cafe, his friend Shuli meets us, and she is even cooler. We talk about crazy southern Christian Fundamentalists, and Aboriginal cultures, and the ultra orthodox guy that was just caught selling body parts on the black market. Shuli and Zohar are quite interesting and I'm actually enjoying myself. The highlight of the month comes when Zohar asks me where I'm from because HE THOUGHT I WAS AUSTRALIAN. AN AMERICAN GUY THOUGHT I WAS AUSTRALIAN. I can't help but adopt the accent when I hear it all around me, and I'm THAT GOOD. He doesn't believe me when I say I'm from LA until I list some streets in Beverlywood that he is familiar with.
After lunch – a very delicious spinach/pumpkin/feta/tomato/pine nut salad, we part ways and I take the cliff walk all the way to Coogee. It starts out well, with the brilliant ocean on one side and the eroded sandstone ledges on the other – all of Australia is made of sandstone, basically – but I get tired quickly and Coogee turns out to be MUCH farther than the 5k that Lonely Planet promised. By the time I get there I have only the strength to buy a frozen coke and plunk my tired ass onto a bus.
Back in Sydney, I have a long time with the check in guy about the best junk foods here. He has some very strong opinions. He also has a routine in which he eats strictly healthy 6 days a week and then on his day off from work he pigs out on junk food. The other workers sitting at check-in nod and shake their heads to let me know that he actually DOES consume junk food all day long Sunday. He shows me some of his favorites online. We agree that Tim Tams are amazing and then I go off to Coles to buy about 15 packs of them. For you. All of you. (And some for me.)
I meet Georgina the Irish and Hannah the Finnish back in my room, eat dinner, and finish my ninth book of the trip. Luckily, this YHA is stocked and so I load up on 5 more books, just in case.
Australian thing of the day: ME. (almost)
The bus ride is uneventful until the bus rounds a curve and tops over a hill to give a glorious view of Bronte, a little beachside suburb of colored buildings and a rocky peninsula and white sand, and it is just PERFECT. I feel like I'm in Europe. I'm early for our lunch, so I actually walk back up the hill to where the bus turned so I can take some shots of the picturesque area. I can't believe I haven't been here sooner.
I meet Orna, and she tells me that we are having lunch with a visiting Kabbalah scholar, which I find weird. I'm pretty sure that she knows that I don't study Kabbalah and I would hope that she knows that I didn't come to Australia to meet any visiting scholars of anything, but I don't say anything. We take a gorgeous walk along the beach to get to Bondi, and meet Zohar. He is actually quite funny and I'm glad he's there because Orna turns out to be not that talkative. When we get to the cafe, his friend Shuli meets us, and she is even cooler. We talk about crazy southern Christian Fundamentalists, and Aboriginal cultures, and the ultra orthodox guy that was just caught selling body parts on the black market. Shuli and Zohar are quite interesting and I'm actually enjoying myself. The highlight of the month comes when Zohar asks me where I'm from because HE THOUGHT I WAS AUSTRALIAN. AN AMERICAN GUY THOUGHT I WAS AUSTRALIAN. I can't help but adopt the accent when I hear it all around me, and I'm THAT GOOD. He doesn't believe me when I say I'm from LA until I list some streets in Beverlywood that he is familiar with.
After lunch – a very delicious spinach/pumpkin/feta/tomato/pine nut salad, we part ways and I take the cliff walk all the way to Coogee. It starts out well, with the brilliant ocean on one side and the eroded sandstone ledges on the other – all of Australia is made of sandstone, basically – but I get tired quickly and Coogee turns out to be MUCH farther than the 5k that Lonely Planet promised. By the time I get there I have only the strength to buy a frozen coke and plunk my tired ass onto a bus.
Back in Sydney, I have a long time with the check in guy about the best junk foods here. He has some very strong opinions. He also has a routine in which he eats strictly healthy 6 days a week and then on his day off from work he pigs out on junk food. The other workers sitting at check-in nod and shake their heads to let me know that he actually DOES consume junk food all day long Sunday. He shows me some of his favorites online. We agree that Tim Tams are amazing and then I go off to Coles to buy about 15 packs of them. For you. All of you. (And some for me.)
I meet Georgina the Irish and Hannah the Finnish back in my room, eat dinner, and finish my ninth book of the trip. Luckily, this YHA is stocked and so I load up on 5 more books, just in case.
Australian thing of the day: ME. (almost)
august 2: back to sid-nee
My overnight bus landed in Sydney at 8 in the morning and I was ZONKED. The YHA didn't check in people until noon, so I took all my crap up to the lounge and had a nap. When I could finally check in, I had a much needed shower. THEN I WENT SHOPPING!!!!!!!
Well, I kind of walked around the historically important Rocks area, but mostly I was shopping. I bought a big, cozy, gray sweatshirt/sweater that I will not wear for several months in LA. I walked across the Harbor Bridge and it was cool to see the whole city of Sydney below me. I went shopping at Coles supermarket and bought what I thought was enough food to last for the next few days.
In the evening, I watched Milk at the hostel. It was incredibly moving and reminded me of all the protests that went on this year against Prop 8 and the gay marriage ban. I felt like I really had to discuss that with someone but absolutely no one in the room (or in my hostel room) was American. It was pretty frustrating.
Australian thing of the day: My new fleece sweatshirt! Or the eighth McDonalds soft serve of the month!
Well, I kind of walked around the historically important Rocks area, but mostly I was shopping. I bought a big, cozy, gray sweatshirt/sweater that I will not wear for several months in LA. I walked across the Harbor Bridge and it was cool to see the whole city of Sydney below me. I went shopping at Coles supermarket and bought what I thought was enough food to last for the next few days.
In the evening, I watched Milk at the hostel. It was incredibly moving and reminded me of all the protests that went on this year against Prop 8 and the gay marriage ban. I felt like I really had to discuss that with someone but absolutely no one in the room (or in my hostel room) was American. It was pretty frustrating.
Australian thing of the day: My new fleece sweatshirt! Or the eighth McDonalds soft serve of the month!
Saturday, August 1, 2009
august 1: mel-bin
Other than some random shit like going to Coles several times and wandering around the CBD again, today is movie and shopping day. First I go to acmi, the Australian Center for the Moving Image. They only had one exhibit open on a guy I've never heard of (Len Lyons), but it was entertaining enough.
Then I saw a movie in the Melbourne International Film Festival! Rough Aunties tells the story about this organization in South Africa that helps women and children who are victims of abuse. There is a lot of raping and beating and sadness going on, and I cried nearly the whole time. It was very moving. Information about the organization, Bobbi Bear, can be found at http://www.roughaunties.com
I think the most touching part of the film was when one lady's son drowned in the river, and everyone is attending the Zulu funeral, and the main Bobbi Bear woman stands up to do a eulogy. She calls out, gesticulating wildly, “Over here, we are all waving to him and saying 'Goodbye, we will miss you,' but on the other side, there are crowds of people clapping and shouting, 'Come! Come to us! Welcome!”
After that I wandered around some more and went shopping and finally made my way to the State Library just as its exhibitions were closing. Oh well. Back to the hostel to eat dinner, collect my things, and get to Southern Cross station for my overnight bus to Sydney.
Australian thing of the day: Fleece sweatpants from Supre. Australian sweatpants which I plan on wearing daily in several months when it gets this chilly in Los Angeles. Before that, I'll probably wear them straight through from now until I land in Los Angeles.
Then I saw a movie in the Melbourne International Film Festival! Rough Aunties tells the story about this organization in South Africa that helps women and children who are victims of abuse. There is a lot of raping and beating and sadness going on, and I cried nearly the whole time. It was very moving. Information about the organization, Bobbi Bear, can be found at http://www.roughaunties.com
I think the most touching part of the film was when one lady's son drowned in the river, and everyone is attending the Zulu funeral, and the main Bobbi Bear woman stands up to do a eulogy. She calls out, gesticulating wildly, “Over here, we are all waving to him and saying 'Goodbye, we will miss you,' but on the other side, there are crowds of people clapping and shouting, 'Come! Come to us! Welcome!”
After that I wandered around some more and went shopping and finally made my way to the State Library just as its exhibitions were closing. Oh well. Back to the hostel to eat dinner, collect my things, and get to Southern Cross station for my overnight bus to Sydney.
Australian thing of the day: Fleece sweatpants from Supre. Australian sweatpants which I plan on wearing daily in several months when it gets this chilly in Los Angeles. Before that, I'll probably wear them straight through from now until I land in Los Angeles.
july 31: mel-bin
It's real people day! I meet Gavi, long time family friend, and we walk to Queen Victoria Market together. Gavi was traveling in China for a month and stopped over in Australia to visit some friends from college who live here. It's a total coincidence that we're here at the same time, and we wouldn't even know it if our parents didn't blab about us so much! I haven't talked to Gavi for years, and we catch up on the walk and while swiping fruit samples at the market.
She is an experimentor just like me, so we buy a bunch of foreign fruits and have a tasting! The quince is large a yellow, and feels and tastes like a really dry apple. It is clearly not meant to be eaten plain. Next is a passion fruit, which is so pretty and round and purple/green on the outside, and then crazy orange and goopy on the inside. This particular passion fruit is really sour, so we pour sugar over it (quite liberally) and then it's really tasty. Too many seeds for me, and also, I'm not into fruits that require utensils to eat. Third is the golden kiwi, which looks like a normal kiwi from the outside, and then a little duller on the inside, but tastes very little like kiwi and very much like banana. I like it, and it doesn't make my mouth pucker. Last is the mangosteen, which I have gobbled down freeze-dried from Trader Joes, but never had fresh. From the outside, it looks like a plum, but the part you eat inside is white and soft and comes apart in chunks like a head of garlic. It is wonderfully delicious, like a mango/bananaish berry flavor. I will get more of these in Sydney.
After the market, we half walk, half tram to St. Kilda by the beach, walk along the pier as the sun is setting, and see a mini penguin nesting in the rocks! There are many picture attempts, but we are not allowed to use flash because the area is protected, so instead we and a bunch of people silently huddle around a clump of rocks and whisper to each other when the penguin moves. Everybody is very respectful of the animal and no one wants to disturb the peace. It feels very sacred and special and it's nice to share the experience with this small group of strangers.
In the evening, we go to dinner and party with Gavi's friends, Claire and Cameron. And thirty of their closest friends and relatives. It is Claire and sister Bridget's birthday. I eat dinner in a real pub! Which is called a Hotel! And I know I'm not entirely objective because I haven't had a restaurant meal in over a month, but my sun-dried tomato grilled onion cream and tomato sauce pasta is SO FUCKING GOOD. We talk to Claire's friends and it's nice to have a conversation other than how long were you in Cairnes or did you do self guided or tour group on Fraser Island. Gavi and I are the youngest by 10 years and I'm definitely the scruffiest in my jeans and t shirt, but it's still fun. After dinner, the party moves back to Claire and Cameron's flat and we drink long island ice teas and eat delicious rasberry birthday cake and I'm social some more before I have to leave and catch a tram home. I tell one fellow who we talked to all evening that I was happy to hang out with “real Australians,” and he responded that he was voted Most Australian in his class in high school. (He grew up here in Melbourne, in Australia.)
Australian thing of the day: Real Australians.
She is an experimentor just like me, so we buy a bunch of foreign fruits and have a tasting! The quince is large a yellow, and feels and tastes like a really dry apple. It is clearly not meant to be eaten plain. Next is a passion fruit, which is so pretty and round and purple/green on the outside, and then crazy orange and goopy on the inside. This particular passion fruit is really sour, so we pour sugar over it (quite liberally) and then it's really tasty. Too many seeds for me, and also, I'm not into fruits that require utensils to eat. Third is the golden kiwi, which looks like a normal kiwi from the outside, and then a little duller on the inside, but tastes very little like kiwi and very much like banana. I like it, and it doesn't make my mouth pucker. Last is the mangosteen, which I have gobbled down freeze-dried from Trader Joes, but never had fresh. From the outside, it looks like a plum, but the part you eat inside is white and soft and comes apart in chunks like a head of garlic. It is wonderfully delicious, like a mango/bananaish berry flavor. I will get more of these in Sydney.
After the market, we half walk, half tram to St. Kilda by the beach, walk along the pier as the sun is setting, and see a mini penguin nesting in the rocks! There are many picture attempts, but we are not allowed to use flash because the area is protected, so instead we and a bunch of people silently huddle around a clump of rocks and whisper to each other when the penguin moves. Everybody is very respectful of the animal and no one wants to disturb the peace. It feels very sacred and special and it's nice to share the experience with this small group of strangers.
In the evening, we go to dinner and party with Gavi's friends, Claire and Cameron. And thirty of their closest friends and relatives. It is Claire and sister Bridget's birthday. I eat dinner in a real pub! Which is called a Hotel! And I know I'm not entirely objective because I haven't had a restaurant meal in over a month, but my sun-dried tomato grilled onion cream and tomato sauce pasta is SO FUCKING GOOD. We talk to Claire's friends and it's nice to have a conversation other than how long were you in Cairnes or did you do self guided or tour group on Fraser Island. Gavi and I are the youngest by 10 years and I'm definitely the scruffiest in my jeans and t shirt, but it's still fun. After dinner, the party moves back to Claire and Cameron's flat and we drink long island ice teas and eat delicious rasberry birthday cake and I'm social some more before I have to leave and catch a tram home. I tell one fellow who we talked to all evening that I was happy to hang out with “real Australians,” and he responded that he was voted Most Australian in his class in high school. (He grew up here in Melbourne, in Australia.)
Australian thing of the day: Real Australians.
july 30: I love Mel-bin, day II
When I wake up, I notice that there are two people sleeping in the bed opposite from me! Freaky, since I am the only other person in the room! Gross, stop it!
Today is arts and museum day. First I go to the Victoria National Gallery and see several exhibitions-- Indiginous art, clothing from Jane Austin's period, Chinese Imperial robes, chairs from the 1960s, and a bunch of Rembrandts. I also see a lot of school groups and their INCREDIBLE UNIFORMS. Teenagers are wearing matching skirts, shirts, ties, sweaters, tights, shoes. Many of the school groups have girls wearing ties. Most also have all students wearing suit jackets. Like, EVERYTHING they wear is uniform. Without exception, every girl has unkempt hair.
At the Ian Potter Center, I see more indiginous art and more hippie chairs and some Australian painting which I think is incredibly uninteresting.
I take a walk through Melbourne's botanical gardens, which are a little like Sydney's in that they are arranged in a sprawling park, but there are no signs whatsoever, and it is chilly and overcast and I'm not feeling it. I stop in at the ANZAC memorial and learn FINALLY that ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. So ANZAC day is their remembrance day. An old lady gives a boring tour of the building, and I'm not terribly impressed, maybe I would have been at the beginning of my trip but I just can't be bothered to care that on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the sun shines in a line EXACTLY at this spot and lights up the symbolic gravestone just so. The view from the top of the memorial is stunning, though. You can see the Yarra river and north suburbs from one side, and central Melbourne and the bay on the other. Here's where it starts drizzling.
What else do I do in Melbourne..... oh yeah, I go to church. The big cathedral near my hostel has an afternoon prayer service every weekday with a choir, and I can't resist a choir! Thankfully, the praying part is minimal, and the singing part takes up most of it, and it is just lovely, with all the young boys and their contra-alto voices (I think that's what it's called) and the echoing in the stone hall.
Back at the ranch, I had some veggie nugget from Lord of the Fries and watched The Notebook on the hostel telly. One point for Adina since this movie stars Rachel McAdams. God, I love this movie. It is a total chick cry-fest, but it's awesome. Then I hang out at McDonalds and do internet.
Australian thing of the day: Fake birkenstock sandals that I bought at Big W for $12.99. I have been looking for ones just like it at home to no avail. Yay Australia!
Today is arts and museum day. First I go to the Victoria National Gallery and see several exhibitions-- Indiginous art, clothing from Jane Austin's period, Chinese Imperial robes, chairs from the 1960s, and a bunch of Rembrandts. I also see a lot of school groups and their INCREDIBLE UNIFORMS. Teenagers are wearing matching skirts, shirts, ties, sweaters, tights, shoes. Many of the school groups have girls wearing ties. Most also have all students wearing suit jackets. Like, EVERYTHING they wear is uniform. Without exception, every girl has unkempt hair.
At the Ian Potter Center, I see more indiginous art and more hippie chairs and some Australian painting which I think is incredibly uninteresting.
I take a walk through Melbourne's botanical gardens, which are a little like Sydney's in that they are arranged in a sprawling park, but there are no signs whatsoever, and it is chilly and overcast and I'm not feeling it. I stop in at the ANZAC memorial and learn FINALLY that ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. So ANZAC day is their remembrance day. An old lady gives a boring tour of the building, and I'm not terribly impressed, maybe I would have been at the beginning of my trip but I just can't be bothered to care that on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the sun shines in a line EXACTLY at this spot and lights up the symbolic gravestone just so. The view from the top of the memorial is stunning, though. You can see the Yarra river and north suburbs from one side, and central Melbourne and the bay on the other. Here's where it starts drizzling.
What else do I do in Melbourne..... oh yeah, I go to church. The big cathedral near my hostel has an afternoon prayer service every weekday with a choir, and I can't resist a choir! Thankfully, the praying part is minimal, and the singing part takes up most of it, and it is just lovely, with all the young boys and their contra-alto voices (I think that's what it's called) and the echoing in the stone hall.
Back at the ranch, I had some veggie nugget from Lord of the Fries and watched The Notebook on the hostel telly. One point for Adina since this movie stars Rachel McAdams. God, I love this movie. It is a total chick cry-fest, but it's awesome. Then I hang out at McDonalds and do internet.
Australian thing of the day: Fake birkenstock sandals that I bought at Big W for $12.99. I have been looking for ones just like it at home to no avail. Yay Australia!
july 29: alice to mel-bin
Crazy busy morning! Transport! Getting food for the flight! Saying goodbye to Marjolein :( !!! We all sort of race around to shower and do laundry and buy snacks and be packed in time for our airport shuttle, which drops us off with about ten minutes to spare in the airport. Aline and I write up our Uluru trip on the plane, all while stuffing our faces with TimTams and sandwiches. We talk a lot about our guide, fucking awesome Glenno. As we circle over Melbourne, we are mesmorized by the green and the water and the skyscrapers and the urban sprawl. It is gorgeous! I haven't been around green in a week, and I haven't been amongst buildings higher than two stories since Brisbane, almost a month ago.
It is sad to say goodbye to Aline, because I could see myself being real good friends with her. I want to keep traveling together, but she has booked a jillaroo (cowgirl) course in Sydney for the next two weeks. I do french braids on her in the airport.
The airport bus driver drops me off at a random hostel right next to Flinders Station, in the middle of the CBD, and it's heaven. The hostel has a huge kitchen, lots of couches, a TV room, thick duvees, and very tight security. There are huge lockers in my room, which means I can leave practically everything every day, which is awesome for my back.
I wander around Melbourne central for the whole afternoon, marveling at the crowds and at the architecture. Several buildings on every block are built in the Victorian style, with ornate window carvings and arched doorways. These churches and government buildings and shops sit right next to other buildings with modern cement and glass construction. There are tram wires suspended overhead, and traffic lights, and traffic. The combination of old and new is charming. It feels very European. And it is not even that cold! I would say that it's the same, if not warmer, than Alice. I was expecting below freezing, given the latitude and the season.
Since the city is so far south (look it up on a map, I am right above Antarctica), the sun starts to set at 5pm, and shops all close up. I find a discount bookstore which is open and almost buy a book about Mesopotamia for my class, but think better of it. There is no shopping for work on this vacation!
For dinner, I have hot chips from Lord of the Fries with Indian sauce of creamy mango chutney. Decent. I like ketchup better. Back at the hostel, I watch a little Secret Life of an American Teenager and then get to bed at 9ish. I am EXHAUSTED from the Uluru trip.
Australian thing of the day: Vanilla malt Brekka, marketed as breakfast on the go. Ingredients include and are limited to: milk, sugar, malt, vanilla. Not a terribly good breakfast, but a nice way to drink milk. Also: Tim Tams. These are like a gift from God. Emma, from the office, says they are, “impossible to resist.” I've never met Emma, or been in her office, but she is quoted on the front of the package. I will be filling my extra duffel with Tim Tams for everyone to eat at home, they are that good.
It is sad to say goodbye to Aline, because I could see myself being real good friends with her. I want to keep traveling together, but she has booked a jillaroo (cowgirl) course in Sydney for the next two weeks. I do french braids on her in the airport.
The airport bus driver drops me off at a random hostel right next to Flinders Station, in the middle of the CBD, and it's heaven. The hostel has a huge kitchen, lots of couches, a TV room, thick duvees, and very tight security. There are huge lockers in my room, which means I can leave practically everything every day, which is awesome for my back.
I wander around Melbourne central for the whole afternoon, marveling at the crowds and at the architecture. Several buildings on every block are built in the Victorian style, with ornate window carvings and arched doorways. These churches and government buildings and shops sit right next to other buildings with modern cement and glass construction. There are tram wires suspended overhead, and traffic lights, and traffic. The combination of old and new is charming. It feels very European. And it is not even that cold! I would say that it's the same, if not warmer, than Alice. I was expecting below freezing, given the latitude and the season.
Since the city is so far south (look it up on a map, I am right above Antarctica), the sun starts to set at 5pm, and shops all close up. I find a discount bookstore which is open and almost buy a book about Mesopotamia for my class, but think better of it. There is no shopping for work on this vacation!
For dinner, I have hot chips from Lord of the Fries with Indian sauce of creamy mango chutney. Decent. I like ketchup better. Back at the hostel, I watch a little Secret Life of an American Teenager and then get to bed at 9ish. I am EXHAUSTED from the Uluru trip.
Australian thing of the day: Vanilla malt Brekka, marketed as breakfast on the go. Ingredients include and are limited to: milk, sugar, malt, vanilla. Not a terribly good breakfast, but a nice way to drink milk. Also: Tim Tams. These are like a gift from God. Emma, from the office, says they are, “impossible to resist.” I've never met Emma, or been in her office, but she is quoted on the front of the package. I will be filling my extra duffel with Tim Tams for everyone to eat at home, they are that good.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
more pics because more free wi-fi at McDonalds
Kakadu, view from Ubir rocks.
The plunge pools at Kakadu, I can't figure out how to rotate this.
The Germans and me. L-R: McGuyver, Oliver, me, Hendrik, Daniel, Neil (really from Scotsland)
Aline, me, and Marjolein try (and fail) to do a jumping picture in front of Kata Tjuta.
A real jumping picture at Kings Canyon. This is when I was wearing every item of clothing I brought.
july 26, 27, 28: Red Center
First of all, the Uluru trip was fucking awesome. There was the fucking awesome guide Glenno, the fucking awesome food that we cooked and ate around the campfire, and of course, the fucking awesome girls I spent the whole trip with: Aline and Marjolein. Uluru was freezing cold but we had so much fun.
The first day we spent hours and hours in a very uncomfortable bus. I plugged in my ipod for everyone so we could enjoy some good 'ole hip hop on the way. We passed Vuluru which was NOT Uluru, the geographic center of the continent, a place with camels, several bars in which we were encouraged to buy snacks, and a whole lot of nothingness. The red center of Australia is indeed the middle of nowhere. We drove for FIVE HOURS in the outback until we finally reached Uluru. Thank god Aline and I packed cookies and lamingtons and chocolate to tide us over.
Our first official stop was at Kata Tjuta, otherwise known as the Olgas. These are 36 big lumps of round, red rock. They are bright red. Like you walk through the middle of some of the lumps, and your skin looks reddish because of the reflection. The wind was crazy here. Kata Tjuta is where the men have their initiation ceremonies. Several areas are off limits to regular white folk because of this.
Our next stop was at Uluru, where we watched the sunset. Uluru is in fact, big, red, square, and radiates a brilliant orange in the setting sun. Everyone took about a million pictures, because after all, we drove for 25 hours to see this rock. I did not feel an overwhelming spirit or magic or whathaveyou, but it was very peaceful. Plus, Aline and I ate our second sandwiches from lunchtime, so there was that. Aline and Marjolein and I tried to take a jumping picture and failed quite spectacularly.
Dinner! Was a tasty vegetarian Chinese noodle stir fry. Aline and I were the only vegetarians on the trip, so we got to cook our own food together. And eat it all ourselves. And after our delicious meal, we all sat around the campfire and roasted marshmallows! An American treat! Plus hot chocolate! We had a walk around and looked at the stars, and they were spectacular. Just as bright and shining as in Kakadu. The Milky Way was incredible again.
Unfortunately, the weather was AWFUL and stepping just two feet away from the fire was like entering the Arctic tundra. We slept in sleeping bags inside swags completely zipped up, and I wore my alpaca hat, and I was still so cold that I woke up several times in the middle of the night. Finally I realized that I should flip my sleeping bag upside down so that I could pull the headpiece over like a hood rather than sleep upon it, but it was so hard to do in the middle of the night that I just woke up tired and grumpy. And cold. Because do you know what time we woke up? 5:00 am.
As the sun rose, we walked around the base of Uluru, and this was a bit disapointing as I thought we would be right up against it but we were about 50 meters away for most of it. It looked the same from that distance as it did from the car park, plus there were only three signposts the entire way around with stories or information. Uluru was used as a sacred place for the women in the area. Near the end, we got to walk closer and touch it and see an area where the Aboriginals gathered to eat together. Up close, Uluru is still bright red, but the most striking aspect of the rock are the holes in it, from where smaller rocks popped out due to expanding and shrinking in the changing seasons. The holes have been smoothed over from wind and rain erosion. As we walked, we sang our own national anthems, songs about sunshine, Kol Haneshama round, and other songs we all knew, like Die Moldau. We are all music dorks, which was awesome. The cultural center at the end of the base walk was meh, although they did have tons of pictures of bush tucker, the bugs and plants and fruits that Aboriginals ate. So we sat in the sun outside and ate our own bush tucker: Belgium mint chocolate.
One interesting thing I learned about Aboriginals from Glen our Amazing Guide is that there are still many, many clans living in the outback, living life the traditional way. Those who do bad things, like become alcoholics, are kicked out of the community. Those are the Aboriginals that you see at the bus stations and gas stations in Alice and Katherine, the ones who hang out yelling at one in the morning, the ones who are clearly drunk or on drugs. Glen told us that sugar and flour were not a part of the traditional diet but were given as presents from German missionaries in the 1800s. So much crap food has made many Aboriginals diabetic.
On our second night, we had a tasty pasta dish, and some tasty custard and fruit concoction, and some tasty hot chocolate, and popcorn cooked in the fire. We went to see the stars again with Glen and they were again, amazing. Glenno gave us some good tips for our sleeping bags in swags, and I slept soundly for 5 hours. Because we woke up again in the dark. WE PAID GOOD MONEY TO DO THIS.
The third day activities were hiking in Kings Canyon and driving back to Alice Springs. Kings Canyon was a nice hike, not very strenuous compared to Kakadu. It was filled with red rock formations that looked like Dutch ovens, round lumpy things, and included the Lost City which looked like Angkor Wat when it was first discovered. Aline and I ate muesli bars, chocolate, and gluten-free cereal that Glen was giving away. The driving home part of the trip SUCKED as the bus had the most uncomfortable seats ever, and the road was amazingly boring, and we only passed three road trains, so I ate a whole bag of cereal and finished my 7th book of the trip, this one about a girl who goes to retrieve some shoes her ex-boyfriend sold on e-bay. Quality literature.
Red Center Highlights: One girl thought I was “19 years old, pushing 20,” three people thought my red hair was natural, the dingos I saw in the wild, and most definitely wearing the same outfit for three days and three nights in a row. While hiking. And sitting in the campfire. And sleeping. And I wore all of it at the same time on the third day – running shorts, sweat pants, sports bra, tank top, t shirt, sweatshirt, jacket, snow hat. This was the best outfit because the running shorts have built in unders and the tank was a built in bra kind, so in effect I was wearing 2 pairs of underwear, 2 bras, 2 bottoms, and 2 shirts. When you embrace the dirt, wearing the same outfit over and over is actually quite cozy. Also have I mentioned our guide, Glen? Quite a highlight. Although he smoked like a chimney, he was super nice and funny and used the F word a lot and seemed to enjoy being a guide. He even had a competition in the bus on the way back in which we had to tie a gummy worm into a knot using just our tongues. I did not win, sorry boys.
Red Center Lowlights: I lost my beloved mini Mag flashlight somewhere between the Milky Way and my warm swag.
Australian thing of the past few days: One big red rock and 500ml of chocolate.
The first day we spent hours and hours in a very uncomfortable bus. I plugged in my ipod for everyone so we could enjoy some good 'ole hip hop on the way. We passed Vuluru which was NOT Uluru, the geographic center of the continent, a place with camels, several bars in which we were encouraged to buy snacks, and a whole lot of nothingness. The red center of Australia is indeed the middle of nowhere. We drove for FIVE HOURS in the outback until we finally reached Uluru. Thank god Aline and I packed cookies and lamingtons and chocolate to tide us over.
Our first official stop was at Kata Tjuta, otherwise known as the Olgas. These are 36 big lumps of round, red rock. They are bright red. Like you walk through the middle of some of the lumps, and your skin looks reddish because of the reflection. The wind was crazy here. Kata Tjuta is where the men have their initiation ceremonies. Several areas are off limits to regular white folk because of this.
Our next stop was at Uluru, where we watched the sunset. Uluru is in fact, big, red, square, and radiates a brilliant orange in the setting sun. Everyone took about a million pictures, because after all, we drove for 25 hours to see this rock. I did not feel an overwhelming spirit or magic or whathaveyou, but it was very peaceful. Plus, Aline and I ate our second sandwiches from lunchtime, so there was that. Aline and Marjolein and I tried to take a jumping picture and failed quite spectacularly.
Dinner! Was a tasty vegetarian Chinese noodle stir fry. Aline and I were the only vegetarians on the trip, so we got to cook our own food together. And eat it all ourselves. And after our delicious meal, we all sat around the campfire and roasted marshmallows! An American treat! Plus hot chocolate! We had a walk around and looked at the stars, and they were spectacular. Just as bright and shining as in Kakadu. The Milky Way was incredible again.
Unfortunately, the weather was AWFUL and stepping just two feet away from the fire was like entering the Arctic tundra. We slept in sleeping bags inside swags completely zipped up, and I wore my alpaca hat, and I was still so cold that I woke up several times in the middle of the night. Finally I realized that I should flip my sleeping bag upside down so that I could pull the headpiece over like a hood rather than sleep upon it, but it was so hard to do in the middle of the night that I just woke up tired and grumpy. And cold. Because do you know what time we woke up? 5:00 am.
As the sun rose, we walked around the base of Uluru, and this was a bit disapointing as I thought we would be right up against it but we were about 50 meters away for most of it. It looked the same from that distance as it did from the car park, plus there were only three signposts the entire way around with stories or information. Uluru was used as a sacred place for the women in the area. Near the end, we got to walk closer and touch it and see an area where the Aboriginals gathered to eat together. Up close, Uluru is still bright red, but the most striking aspect of the rock are the holes in it, from where smaller rocks popped out due to expanding and shrinking in the changing seasons. The holes have been smoothed over from wind and rain erosion. As we walked, we sang our own national anthems, songs about sunshine, Kol Haneshama round, and other songs we all knew, like Die Moldau. We are all music dorks, which was awesome. The cultural center at the end of the base walk was meh, although they did have tons of pictures of bush tucker, the bugs and plants and fruits that Aboriginals ate. So we sat in the sun outside and ate our own bush tucker: Belgium mint chocolate.
One interesting thing I learned about Aboriginals from Glen our Amazing Guide is that there are still many, many clans living in the outback, living life the traditional way. Those who do bad things, like become alcoholics, are kicked out of the community. Those are the Aboriginals that you see at the bus stations and gas stations in Alice and Katherine, the ones who hang out yelling at one in the morning, the ones who are clearly drunk or on drugs. Glen told us that sugar and flour were not a part of the traditional diet but were given as presents from German missionaries in the 1800s. So much crap food has made many Aboriginals diabetic.
On our second night, we had a tasty pasta dish, and some tasty custard and fruit concoction, and some tasty hot chocolate, and popcorn cooked in the fire. We went to see the stars again with Glen and they were again, amazing. Glenno gave us some good tips for our sleeping bags in swags, and I slept soundly for 5 hours. Because we woke up again in the dark. WE PAID GOOD MONEY TO DO THIS.
The third day activities were hiking in Kings Canyon and driving back to Alice Springs. Kings Canyon was a nice hike, not very strenuous compared to Kakadu. It was filled with red rock formations that looked like Dutch ovens, round lumpy things, and included the Lost City which looked like Angkor Wat when it was first discovered. Aline and I ate muesli bars, chocolate, and gluten-free cereal that Glen was giving away. The driving home part of the trip SUCKED as the bus had the most uncomfortable seats ever, and the road was amazingly boring, and we only passed three road trains, so I ate a whole bag of cereal and finished my 7th book of the trip, this one about a girl who goes to retrieve some shoes her ex-boyfriend sold on e-bay. Quality literature.
Red Center Highlights: One girl thought I was “19 years old, pushing 20,” three people thought my red hair was natural, the dingos I saw in the wild, and most definitely wearing the same outfit for three days and three nights in a row. While hiking. And sitting in the campfire. And sleeping. And I wore all of it at the same time on the third day – running shorts, sweat pants, sports bra, tank top, t shirt, sweatshirt, jacket, snow hat. This was the best outfit because the running shorts have built in unders and the tank was a built in bra kind, so in effect I was wearing 2 pairs of underwear, 2 bras, 2 bottoms, and 2 shirts. When you embrace the dirt, wearing the same outfit over and over is actually quite cozy. Also have I mentioned our guide, Glen? Quite a highlight. Although he smoked like a chimney, he was super nice and funny and used the F word a lot and seemed to enjoy being a guide. He even had a competition in the bus on the way back in which we had to tie a gummy worm into a knot using just our tongues. I did not win, sorry boys.
Red Center Lowlights: I lost my beloved mini Mag flashlight somewhere between the Milky Way and my warm swag.
Australian thing of the past few days: One big red rock and 500ml of chocolate.
july 25: a town called Alice
The best part about Alice Springs is the mountain that sits right outside of the town and is mildly picturesque.
German girl Aline and I walk around town (boring), over the Todd River (dry), and through the Pink Olive Botanical Gardens (mostly dead). The upside is that there is so little to do that we can have a real conversation and eat lots of quality junkfood. Aline will be on my Uluru tour for the next three days so it's a good thing I like her. (Even if she is German and I swore to Hendrick that I would not make friends with any more Germans.) Aline bought a lot of cookies and treats for the trip. I bought chocolate and marshmallows to roast on the fire.
We also met Dutch girl Marjolein who will be on our tour and she passed the cool test. Three other girls, Caroline from Vancouver, Emilie and friend from Quebec City, did not pass the test. They are going to be loud and obnoxious and probably complain about stuff. (Ed note – Emilie turned out to be awesome but I can't say the same about the other two.)
Australian things of the day: Lamington cakes, which are supposedly a Brisbane thing, and are really just white cake dipped in chocolate frosting and covered with coconut flakes. Pretty tasty, and very filling. Also: Tomato and carmelized onion flavored tuna. DELICIOUS. Will definitely be purchasing this again. Also: Frozen coke at McDonalds. I'm pretty sure we have this in the US but I'll mention it here in the interest of full disclosure. Also: Crispy fish wrap at McDonalds. I am overwhelmed by how good this tasted and how it was only $2.95. I have eaten more fish and more McDonalds on this trip than I have in the past year at home. Also one more Australian thing or maybe Dutch thing that my roommate Marjolein fed me: rice milk with bananas. YUM I WANT TO EAT THIS FOR BREAKFAST EVERY DAY. Sweeter than horchata, thinner than rice pudding.
I wonder if I can bring cans of tuna past US customs? How about 'roo jerky? Does anyone know?
German girl Aline and I walk around town (boring), over the Todd River (dry), and through the Pink Olive Botanical Gardens (mostly dead). The upside is that there is so little to do that we can have a real conversation and eat lots of quality junkfood. Aline will be on my Uluru tour for the next three days so it's a good thing I like her. (Even if she is German and I swore to Hendrick that I would not make friends with any more Germans.) Aline bought a lot of cookies and treats for the trip. I bought chocolate and marshmallows to roast on the fire.
We also met Dutch girl Marjolein who will be on our tour and she passed the cool test. Three other girls, Caroline from Vancouver, Emilie and friend from Quebec City, did not pass the test. They are going to be loud and obnoxious and probably complain about stuff. (Ed note – Emilie turned out to be awesome but I can't say the same about the other two.)
Australian things of the day: Lamington cakes, which are supposedly a Brisbane thing, and are really just white cake dipped in chocolate frosting and covered with coconut flakes. Pretty tasty, and very filling. Also: Tomato and carmelized onion flavored tuna. DELICIOUS. Will definitely be purchasing this again. Also: Frozen coke at McDonalds. I'm pretty sure we have this in the US but I'll mention it here in the interest of full disclosure. Also: Crispy fish wrap at McDonalds. I am overwhelmed by how good this tasted and how it was only $2.95. I have eaten more fish and more McDonalds on this trip than I have in the past year at home. Also one more Australian thing or maybe Dutch thing that my roommate Marjolein fed me: rice milk with bananas. YUM I WANT TO EAT THIS FOR BREAKFAST EVERY DAY. Sweeter than horchata, thinner than rice pudding.
I wonder if I can bring cans of tuna past US customs? How about 'roo jerky? Does anyone know?
july 24: dah-win
Since Darwin ranks up there with Barstow for entertainment, I had nothing left to do on this fine Friday morning except pack up my stuff, do some internet, stock up on bus food, buy a new book, and enjoy my eighth McDonalds soft serve of the week.
The bus to Alice Springs will take 20 hours.
Two notable things:
On the bus, they play the movie Australia, which stars Nicole Kidman, so I win one point against Naomi. Yes, I am still keeping score.
Australian thing of the day: Tropical fruit lassee at the Roma Bar, which promised free internet but had RUN OUT OF SERVICE the previous day. The lassee tasted less delicious after I discovered that.
The bus to Alice Springs will take 20 hours.
Two notable things:
- We hit a kangaroo while driving in the dark. Several times, I believe. The fellow next to me tells me that if you want to drive in the outback at night, you need to have a bullbar on your front fender, else when you hit a roo – it's not a matter of if but when – it won't destroy your car.
- There are alcoholic and drug addicted Aboriginal groups living along the Stuart highway. They congregate at gas stations and bus stops. They yell and cuss and run around barefoot and dirty, generally acting like animals. This problem is state-wide and is a result of white man taking their land and leaving them homeless, unemployed, and with little connection to their former community and way of life. (I am happy to say that there are many Aboriginal communities still intact and still living off the land in the Torres Strait area and in the outback of the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
On the bus, they play the movie Australia, which stars Nicole Kidman, so I win one point against Naomi. Yes, I am still keeping score.
Australian thing of the day: Tropical fruit lassee at the Roma Bar, which promised free internet but had RUN OUT OF SERVICE the previous day. The lassee tasted less delicious after I discovered that.
july 23: post trip
I had yet another McDonalds soft serve.
Outside the restaurant was a tall tree COVERED with lorakeets, and their screeching could be heard from blocks away. It sounded like seven cars screeching to a halt at the same time, continuously. Under the tree, you couldn't hear yourself think.
I met the German boys at Mindil Beach Sunset Markets. Imagine The Farmers Market late at night, but cooler. There were booths of every type of food imaginable. There were booths of clothing and crap like sarongs or keychains made out of kangaroo balls. The theme of the night was FOOD. I got Thai sticky rice with mango (delish and only in season in the summer so I should really get on that when I get home), tapioca balls with peanuts (gross), and rice cakes with palm sugar (what we ate daily in Thailand). I also sampled McGuyver's shake, Oliver's churro, and got my own pina colada. Hendrick finished all of those for us when we were stuffed. He is a vacuum cleaner. (He said of the 'roo sausages the other night, “I was eating dinner. Everyone else was just eating a snack.”)
Feet and legs sore, we drudged home. I took an all too brief ride in a shopping cart. We ended up at the Meleluca bar, where the boys had been staying. After several pitchers of beer, we played I Never and the hand slapping the table in the correct order game. We tried to play 11 22, but Daniel couldn't get the clapping and snapping rhythm down, much less answer with his number. FYI the rhythm goes like this: lap, clap, right snap, left snap. Oliver used his mosquito bite heat machine on me. Then they walked me to my hostel and we all traded emails and blogs. The three big boys (Ollie, McGuyver, and Daniel) will be in Los Angeles in a few weeks and I promised them I would play tour guide. It was sad to say goodbye.
Outside the restaurant was a tall tree COVERED with lorakeets, and their screeching could be heard from blocks away. It sounded like seven cars screeching to a halt at the same time, continuously. Under the tree, you couldn't hear yourself think.
I met the German boys at Mindil Beach Sunset Markets. Imagine The Farmers Market late at night, but cooler. There were booths of every type of food imaginable. There were booths of clothing and crap like sarongs or keychains made out of kangaroo balls. The theme of the night was FOOD. I got Thai sticky rice with mango (delish and only in season in the summer so I should really get on that when I get home), tapioca balls with peanuts (gross), and rice cakes with palm sugar (what we ate daily in Thailand). I also sampled McGuyver's shake, Oliver's churro, and got my own pina colada. Hendrick finished all of those for us when we were stuffed. He is a vacuum cleaner. (He said of the 'roo sausages the other night, “I was eating dinner. Everyone else was just eating a snack.”)
Feet and legs sore, we drudged home. I took an all too brief ride in a shopping cart. We ended up at the Meleluca bar, where the boys had been staying. After several pitchers of beer, we played I Never and the hand slapping the table in the correct order game. We tried to play 11 22, but Daniel couldn't get the clapping and snapping rhythm down, much less answer with his number. FYI the rhythm goes like this: lap, clap, right snap, left snap. Oliver used his mosquito bite heat machine on me. Then they walked me to my hostel and we all traded emails and blogs. The three big boys (Ollie, McGuyver, and Daniel) will be in Los Angeles in a few weeks and I promised them I would play tour guide. It was sad to say goodbye.
july 23: kakadu pt III
I woke up with over thirty mosquito bites! Yes I counted!
After breakfast, we had a lesson with a “real” Aboriginal guy to teach us about their culture. We learned:
Our midday excursion was to the Maguk site at Kakadu, also known as the plunge pools. These were AWESOME. Huge water holes and water hallways carved out of red rock, with perfect temperature, perfectly clear water passing through. A few small waterfalls as well. No crocodiles. Everyone went swimming and the German boys took some jumping photos and I did some rudimentary synchronized swimming moves and the sun cooperated brilliantly. We had to leave too soon.
We had a picnic lunch that started with the German boys pushing a 4WD bus several feet so that its exhaust pipe would not shoot into our freshly cut tomatoes. Steve wrote, “I wish my partner were this dirty” on its filthy back windows. The food tasted so good after our swim and everyone spoke English.
We stopped at a 9-foot high termite mound to take pictures. Termite mounds are made of “spit and shit.” We drove alongside a billabong to see some wild Brumbie horses and flocks of birds feeding. As we were exiting the park, a fat water buffalo ran across the road in front of our car.
A successful trip! My clothes are beyond filthy, I am somewhat tan, and I get to eat McDonalds 50 cent softserve tonight!
Australian things of the past few days: Crocodiles, wallabies, a kangaroo, a Taipan, assorted birds whose names I don't really care about, a dead cane toad, Brumbies, a water buffalo, and sleeping in a swag! Swags are like little personal tents that you slip your sleeping bag into and they can zip over your head to form a waterproof and bug proof enclosure. They have a sleeping pad attached inside. Swags would be great to take on a backpacking trip if they weren't super heavy because of all the waterproof and army-grade canvas.
After breakfast, we had a lesson with a “real” Aboriginal guy to teach us about their culture. We learned:
- How to split pandana leaves in order to use them to weave baskets. No one was successful in actually splitting the leaf.
- How the Aboriginals use a fish trap to catch fish. This is a woven, cylindrical type basket with an inverted bowl with a hole set in one side. The Aboriginals damn a river, place the fish trap in the middle, and find that the next morning, their trap is full of fish.
- How to cook a leg of buffalo or a crocodile tail in a hole in the ground. The meat is placed on burning hot rocks in a hole, covered with hot rocks, covered with paper bark, covered with dirt, left alone for several hours. It is like a natural pressure cooker.
- How to play/blow a didjeridu. I failed miserably.
- How to throw a spear. This I was slightly better at.
Our midday excursion was to the Maguk site at Kakadu, also known as the plunge pools. These were AWESOME. Huge water holes and water hallways carved out of red rock, with perfect temperature, perfectly clear water passing through. A few small waterfalls as well. No crocodiles. Everyone went swimming and the German boys took some jumping photos and I did some rudimentary synchronized swimming moves and the sun cooperated brilliantly. We had to leave too soon.
We had a picnic lunch that started with the German boys pushing a 4WD bus several feet so that its exhaust pipe would not shoot into our freshly cut tomatoes. Steve wrote, “I wish my partner were this dirty” on its filthy back windows. The food tasted so good after our swim and everyone spoke English.
We stopped at a 9-foot high termite mound to take pictures. Termite mounds are made of “spit and shit.” We drove alongside a billabong to see some wild Brumbie horses and flocks of birds feeding. As we were exiting the park, a fat water buffalo ran across the road in front of our car.
A successful trip! My clothes are beyond filthy, I am somewhat tan, and I get to eat McDonalds 50 cent softserve tonight!
Australian things of the past few days: Crocodiles, wallabies, a kangaroo, a Taipan, assorted birds whose names I don't really care about, a dead cane toad, Brumbies, a water buffalo, and sleeping in a swag! Swags are like little personal tents that you slip your sleeping bag into and they can zip over your head to form a waterproof and bug proof enclosure. They have a sleeping pad attached inside. Swags would be great to take on a backpacking trip if they weren't super heavy because of all the waterproof and army-grade canvas.
july 22: kakadu, pt II
Day two started with an Adventure!!! First we saw a Taipan, the most poisonous snake in the world, crossing the road. Then, we got a flat tire! On our 4WD, 14 seater wilderness bus! Everyone piled out and Steve and a few of the German boys switched the tire. The rest of us stood around and took pictures.
Twin Falls! We walked up, up, up, up, up. Straight up the face of the rock escarpment. The view from the top was incredible. We walked on the dry, smoothed out rocks of Twin Falls and looked over the edge. During the Wet, this whole area rushes with water and is only accessable by helicopter. We got to play in the water a little farther upstream. It was warm! The rocks were slimy and slippery with algae! Oliver and I held hands and jumped in together. The water was only two feet deep and actually hurt when we landed.
We climbed back down, took a three minute boat ride to the other side of the mountain, walked over some rocks, and emerged at the bottom of Twin Falls. Everyone proceeded to climb the rocks and sit under the waterfall. The water was freezing but felt awesome coming down. We were not allowed to swim because of crocodiles.
After that, we did a brief hike to Jim Jim Falls, which at this time of year is really Jim Jim Wall. No water falling down. I and a few others walked halfway and hung out on some big rocks by the river while the rest of the group went all the way to the not falls and swam in that pool. I finished the book I was reading and ate a boatload of mint Belgium chocolate.
Back at the parking lot, we saw a cane toad that had been run over by a car. Cane toads were brought to Australia to eat the cane beatle which was ravaging crops. Whoever thought up that plan was a few crayons short of a box because cane toads can't jump higher than a foot, and cane beatles live on stalks several feet above the ground. Cane toads multiplied rapidly and are a huge nuisance to everyone. The German boys took pictures of them fake eating the dead toad.
We arrived back at the campsite at dusk. Guide Steve did a very poor job of time management and rushing us along. We had no wood for a fire, and a few of the boys went out into the bush with their flashlights to find branches and hopefully not find themselves in the sandy billabong with the crocodiles. I taught everyone else how to set up the tents. Steve just barely whispered instructions on how to cook dinner and then just went to sleep. I took a much needed shower and cooked my vegie meal easily enough, but the meat eaters had to wait over an hour more for their kangaroo sausages and buffalo meat to be ready.
Here I should mention that 10 of the 12 passengers on the tour were German, Though most spoke English very well, amongst themselves, and especially when the three German kids who didn't speak English were around, they spoke German. At first I didn't care, but it became more and more frustrating as they all developed inside jokes and told stories that I couldn't evesdrop on. The longest phrase I know in German is Arbeit Macht Frei, and it's pretty hard to work that into conversation. Around the campfire, the German was flying fast and I felt very isolated. I went to bed while the carnivores were still munching and fell deep asleep. I didn't even wake up when Hendrick very loudly set up his swag and sleeping bag inches from my face.
Twin Falls! We walked up, up, up, up, up. Straight up the face of the rock escarpment. The view from the top was incredible. We walked on the dry, smoothed out rocks of Twin Falls and looked over the edge. During the Wet, this whole area rushes with water and is only accessable by helicopter. We got to play in the water a little farther upstream. It was warm! The rocks were slimy and slippery with algae! Oliver and I held hands and jumped in together. The water was only two feet deep and actually hurt when we landed.
We climbed back down, took a three minute boat ride to the other side of the mountain, walked over some rocks, and emerged at the bottom of Twin Falls. Everyone proceeded to climb the rocks and sit under the waterfall. The water was freezing but felt awesome coming down. We were not allowed to swim because of crocodiles.
After that, we did a brief hike to Jim Jim Falls, which at this time of year is really Jim Jim Wall. No water falling down. I and a few others walked halfway and hung out on some big rocks by the river while the rest of the group went all the way to the not falls and swam in that pool. I finished the book I was reading and ate a boatload of mint Belgium chocolate.
Back at the parking lot, we saw a cane toad that had been run over by a car. Cane toads were brought to Australia to eat the cane beatle which was ravaging crops. Whoever thought up that plan was a few crayons short of a box because cane toads can't jump higher than a foot, and cane beatles live on stalks several feet above the ground. Cane toads multiplied rapidly and are a huge nuisance to everyone. The German boys took pictures of them fake eating the dead toad.
We arrived back at the campsite at dusk. Guide Steve did a very poor job of time management and rushing us along. We had no wood for a fire, and a few of the boys went out into the bush with their flashlights to find branches and hopefully not find themselves in the sandy billabong with the crocodiles. I taught everyone else how to set up the tents. Steve just barely whispered instructions on how to cook dinner and then just went to sleep. I took a much needed shower and cooked my vegie meal easily enough, but the meat eaters had to wait over an hour more for their kangaroo sausages and buffalo meat to be ready.
Here I should mention that 10 of the 12 passengers on the tour were German, Though most spoke English very well, amongst themselves, and especially when the three German kids who didn't speak English were around, they spoke German. At first I didn't care, but it became more and more frustrating as they all developed inside jokes and told stories that I couldn't evesdrop on. The longest phrase I know in German is Arbeit Macht Frei, and it's pretty hard to work that into conversation. Around the campfire, the German was flying fast and I felt very isolated. I went to bed while the carnivores were still munching and fell deep asleep. I didn't even wake up when Hendrick very loudly set up his swag and sleeping bag inches from my face.
july 21: kakadu pt I
Omigod, I overslept! The fan was so freaking loud that I didn't hear my alarm clock. I woke up to a knock at the door, checked my watch, and hysterically jumped down to answer, cussing the whole way. Thankfully, my tour hadn't left without me, and the guide was waiting downstairs at reception. I frantically shoved my sleeping stuff in my bag, thanking God that I had packed neatly the night before. I repeatedly apologized to the rest of the group loitering outside by the bus, but I'm not sure they realized I was late. Steve, our guide, made me sit in the front for being late, but that's my favorite seat. So take that, Steve.
Ten minutes out of the city center and we were in complete bush wilderness.
The first stop was a boat cruise down the Mary River in which we saw CROCODILES lazing about in the sun and generally looking dead. Ted the boat captain had a serious beef with Steve Irwin and pointed out several times how lazy crocodiles really are, how they don't go around waiting to attack people, rather lay on the banks of the river warming up, going to eat a bird once every few weeks. Yes, if you go in the water, they will kill you, but only to guard their territory and not because they are hungry. I believed Ted because out of the seven or so crocodiles we saw, not a single one blinked an eye, much less moved an inch, when we passed. We also flocks of birds taking off and landing near the water, much as they do in the nature videos, very picturesque. We played with some water lily lotus flowers and leaves, which are incredibly waterproof and hold liquid like they are covered in plastic. Ted picked a bunch of leaves and flowers and made the girls all take photos with leaf hats. All the while, little wallabies were jumping around in the background.
The first site in Kakadu National Park was Ubir rock art. Rock paintings!!! Done in red, yellow, and white. Some of these were 5,000 years old, some only 30 years old. The Aboriginals paint over their own paintings because the act of painting is more important than the painting itself. They use paintings to tell stories and make requests. There were line paintings of fish, snakes, wallabies, buffalo, hands, and white man standing with his hands in his pocket and a pipe in his mouth. Steve told us a bunch of Aboriginal creation stories.
SOME INFORMATION ABOUT THE ABORIGINALS AND THE BUDJIMI CLAN
1.They have been in Australia for over 40,000 years.
2.Each clan speaks a different language. Each person grows up speaking their clan's language plus the languages of the clans surrounding theirs.
3.Incest is a huge no-no and in order to mix the genes, people from the same clan cannot marry.
4.Clans in the Top End used fire management to maintain the land. In the middle of the dry season, patches of savanna and grassland are burned, leaving the land “clean” for seedlings and new grass during the Wet. Trees don't end up burnt because there is so little dead brush on the group (because of previous burns) that the fire spreads quick and stays small. Areas are burnt every three years. We saw several small bush fires while driving through the park. It is a very successful system and they end up with no raging wildfires. LISTEN UP, LOS ANGELES.
5.The only thing that all Aboriginals have in common is the Rainbow Serpent, their creator God. The Rainbow Serpent slithered over the land and formed mountains, rivers, lakes. I think the Rainbow Serpent was once upon a time based on the Milky Way.
We climbed a huge rock formation and had a brilliant 360* view of Kakadu. In one direction was the red rock escarpment that separates Kakadu from Arnhem land. In another direction was flat savannah land covered with eucalyptus and pandana palms. In other direction was the grasslands of billabongs, and in another direction still were huge black rock formations, covered in trees, looking like a lost ancient city. It was awesome, and I could easily tell why the Budjimi held this land sacred. The German boys on the bus took the first of many jumping pictures.
On our way to camp, we stopped and picked up firewood, like literally wandered around the side of the road looking for fallen branches. At camp we set up our SWAGS and ate dinner. Out in the middle of nowhere, the stars were crazy awesome and the Milky Way was so clear and white and stretched over the whole sky. I had a dream that Ed from The Bachelorette was my boyfriend.
Ten minutes out of the city center and we were in complete bush wilderness.
The first stop was a boat cruise down the Mary River in which we saw CROCODILES lazing about in the sun and generally looking dead. Ted the boat captain had a serious beef with Steve Irwin and pointed out several times how lazy crocodiles really are, how they don't go around waiting to attack people, rather lay on the banks of the river warming up, going to eat a bird once every few weeks. Yes, if you go in the water, they will kill you, but only to guard their territory and not because they are hungry. I believed Ted because out of the seven or so crocodiles we saw, not a single one blinked an eye, much less moved an inch, when we passed. We also flocks of birds taking off and landing near the water, much as they do in the nature videos, very picturesque. We played with some water lily lotus flowers and leaves, which are incredibly waterproof and hold liquid like they are covered in plastic. Ted picked a bunch of leaves and flowers and made the girls all take photos with leaf hats. All the while, little wallabies were jumping around in the background.
The first site in Kakadu National Park was Ubir rock art. Rock paintings!!! Done in red, yellow, and white. Some of these were 5,000 years old, some only 30 years old. The Aboriginals paint over their own paintings because the act of painting is more important than the painting itself. They use paintings to tell stories and make requests. There were line paintings of fish, snakes, wallabies, buffalo, hands, and white man standing with his hands in his pocket and a pipe in his mouth. Steve told us a bunch of Aboriginal creation stories.
SOME INFORMATION ABOUT THE ABORIGINALS AND THE BUDJIMI CLAN
1.They have been in Australia for over 40,000 years.
2.Each clan speaks a different language. Each person grows up speaking their clan's language plus the languages of the clans surrounding theirs.
3.Incest is a huge no-no and in order to mix the genes, people from the same clan cannot marry.
4.Clans in the Top End used fire management to maintain the land. In the middle of the dry season, patches of savanna and grassland are burned, leaving the land “clean” for seedlings and new grass during the Wet. Trees don't end up burnt because there is so little dead brush on the group (because of previous burns) that the fire spreads quick and stays small. Areas are burnt every three years. We saw several small bush fires while driving through the park. It is a very successful system and they end up with no raging wildfires. LISTEN UP, LOS ANGELES.
5.The only thing that all Aboriginals have in common is the Rainbow Serpent, their creator God. The Rainbow Serpent slithered over the land and formed mountains, rivers, lakes. I think the Rainbow Serpent was once upon a time based on the Milky Way.
We climbed a huge rock formation and had a brilliant 360* view of Kakadu. In one direction was the red rock escarpment that separates Kakadu from Arnhem land. In another direction was flat savannah land covered with eucalyptus and pandana palms. In other direction was the grasslands of billabongs, and in another direction still were huge black rock formations, covered in trees, looking like a lost ancient city. It was awesome, and I could easily tell why the Budjimi held this land sacred. The German boys on the bus took the first of many jumping pictures.
On our way to camp, we stopped and picked up firewood, like literally wandered around the side of the road looking for fallen branches. At camp we set up our SWAGS and ate dinner. Out in the middle of nowhere, the stars were crazy awesome and the Milky Way was so clear and white and stretched over the whole sky. I had a dream that Ed from The Bachelorette was my boyfriend.
july 20: Dah-win
After my morning stroll around Darwin, I can say with much confidence that this city is really boring. I see a cyclone-proof church, the wharf, WWII pictures of Darwin being bombed, and the Supreme Court and Milky Way mosaic inside. Also some painted big sticks and photos of be-wigged old white men justices. The Darwin library looks promising, but the exibit on parasites that I really want to see has not opened yet.
I have a fancy salad (made by me!) for lunch and another soft serve from the little Mc Donalds boy.
I take a bus to the Northern Territory museum, and boy was this museum worth the free admission! First of all, it is blessedly air-conditioned. Second of all, they checked my backpack into a locker (free of charge), so I got to wander around with nothing but a floorplan. And lastly, this museum HAS IT ALL.
The first gallery was about Aboriginals and Aboriginal art. Even though I read all about it in Bill Bryson's In a Sunburned Country, I was still flaberghasted to read that humans migrated to Australia via Indonesia over 100,000 years ago – at the time of homo erectus. This means that the people in Africa and Asia and Australia evolved into Homo Sapiens and modern humans AT THE SAME TIME, INDEPENDENTLY. Like two strains that developed the same brain, by themselves.
I also looked at some line art and dot art. The Aboriginal dot art doesn't excite me at all, but I do like the Northern Territory style of cross hatching line drawings. Lots of browns and reds and yellow and white. Wallabies and snakes and geometric patterns. The Larakie people don't bury their dead, they put the bones into a “bone coffin,” a cylindrical decorated totem that sticks up from the ground. These bone coffins are up to 7 feet tall, and when grouped together, look like a painted pygmy forest.
The Larakie have another belief about when children die. The child's bones are kept in a mini bone coffin in a woven pouch about the size of a hardback book. And the grieving mother wears this bone coffin around her neck until she gives birth to a new child. The new baby is believed to be the other child reincarnated, and given the same name. The mother can discard the old bones and the new child is given a painted replica of the bone coffin to play with until it gets owrn out. If the mother can't conceive again, the bone coffin is passed on to a sister or other female relative who will carry out the tradition.
I heart Aboriginals.
Other exhibits at the Northern Territory museum include:
In the evening I freaked out about money again, but then counted all my receipts and realized I'm exactly where I planned.
Australian thing of the day: Sweetheart the taxidermied crocodile.
I have a fancy salad (made by me!) for lunch and another soft serve from the little Mc Donalds boy.
I take a bus to the Northern Territory museum, and boy was this museum worth the free admission! First of all, it is blessedly air-conditioned. Second of all, they checked my backpack into a locker (free of charge), so I got to wander around with nothing but a floorplan. And lastly, this museum HAS IT ALL.
The first gallery was about Aboriginals and Aboriginal art. Even though I read all about it in Bill Bryson's In a Sunburned Country, I was still flaberghasted to read that humans migrated to Australia via Indonesia over 100,000 years ago – at the time of homo erectus. This means that the people in Africa and Asia and Australia evolved into Homo Sapiens and modern humans AT THE SAME TIME, INDEPENDENTLY. Like two strains that developed the same brain, by themselves.
I also looked at some line art and dot art. The Aboriginal dot art doesn't excite me at all, but I do like the Northern Territory style of cross hatching line drawings. Lots of browns and reds and yellow and white. Wallabies and snakes and geometric patterns. The Larakie people don't bury their dead, they put the bones into a “bone coffin,” a cylindrical decorated totem that sticks up from the ground. These bone coffins are up to 7 feet tall, and when grouped together, look like a painted pygmy forest.
The Larakie have another belief about when children die. The child's bones are kept in a mini bone coffin in a woven pouch about the size of a hardback book. And the grieving mother wears this bone coffin around her neck until she gives birth to a new child. The new baby is believed to be the other child reincarnated, and given the same name. The mother can discard the old bones and the new child is given a painted replica of the bone coffin to play with until it gets owrn out. If the mother can't conceive again, the bone coffin is passed on to a sister or other female relative who will carry out the tradition.
I heart Aboriginals.
Other exhibits at the Northern Territory museum include:
- Cyclone Tracy and the history of the NT
- dugout canoes and other Indo-Pacific wooden boats
- crocodiles then and now: a journey through evolution
- Birds, bugs, sea creatures, and reptiles of Australia. I especially liked seeing the box jellyfish floating in a jar of preservative
- Glass cases filled artfully with colorful specimen. Each display case was really done well. It was geometric, neatly labeled, well lit, as if done to be photographed into a poster.
- Australia's land mass and animals through time (Gondwana to the present)
In the evening I freaked out about money again, but then counted all my receipts and realized I'm exactly where I planned.
Australian thing of the day: Sweetheart the taxidermied crocodile.
july 19: flying over the top end
Australian airport security is not so hot as my backpack passed through the x-ray machine with a large spray bottle of sunscreen and a water bottle half full. Good thing you can't actually catch terrorists by restricting their liquid carryons.
Circling over the ocean, I see white and aqua sandbars, and what I think is the Great Barrier Reef. We also fly over the Wet Tropics and Atherton Tablelands. These mountains are absolutely COVERED in trees. When we fly over the Cape, you can see windy turquoise rivers emptying into the sea. The water is so blue.
There are many bush fires on the north coast of NT and I can see the smoke pooling towards the sky as we fly over. I hope they are not burning my beloved Kakadu park which I am PSYCHED about camping in. The coastline over the Top End is just as mesmorizing as the east – there are snaking rivers and scalloped beaches and a long red cut into the earth where the rock is exposed. I learn later that this is the boundry between Kakadu and Arnhem land. The escarpment. I will be climbing it on my camping trip.
Darwin is very flat. From the airport, I only encountered one roundabout, thank God. It is about 85 degrees and remains warm until 10pm, when the temperature drops to about 65. Heaven.
At the McDonalds where I buy my daily ice cream, I am served by a 7 year old. I swear, he came up to my chest and still had his milk teeth. Darwin is weird. My hostel roommate is Bernard and he is French. We eat dinner together, although separate food because he has cooked LAMB and is drinking WINE and I have poured boiling water over ramen. Our other roommate is Andrew the English barman. Our hostel room is so small you have to suck in to pass between the bunkbeds.
The rest of the day, I stress about my schedule and stress about money and stress about whether or not I am seeing the right things on my vacation until I remind myself that this is my summer break and I CAN DO ANYTHING I WANT. So then I bank on my intuition and book a 3 day tour of Kakadu, a hostel the night I get back, a bus ride down to Alice Springs, and a 3 day tour of Uluru and the Red Center. This costs so much that I have to withdraw money for two days at the maximum level. But then again, I will not be paying for anything for the next week.
Australian thing of the day: Pineapple fritter at Red Rooster. Delicious. Sweet and soft on the inside, crunchy on the outside. I had a totally weird experience though, where the cashier looked at me funny, like am I SURE I want a pineapple fritter? And the server asked me if I thought it was cooked properly, even though I have never eaten one before and since when do you ask the customer in a fast food restaurant if your food is cooked properly? I am not returning to Red Rooster.
Circling over the ocean, I see white and aqua sandbars, and what I think is the Great Barrier Reef. We also fly over the Wet Tropics and Atherton Tablelands. These mountains are absolutely COVERED in trees. When we fly over the Cape, you can see windy turquoise rivers emptying into the sea. The water is so blue.
There are many bush fires on the north coast of NT and I can see the smoke pooling towards the sky as we fly over. I hope they are not burning my beloved Kakadu park which I am PSYCHED about camping in. The coastline over the Top End is just as mesmorizing as the east – there are snaking rivers and scalloped beaches and a long red cut into the earth where the rock is exposed. I learn later that this is the boundry between Kakadu and Arnhem land. The escarpment. I will be climbing it on my camping trip.
Darwin is very flat. From the airport, I only encountered one roundabout, thank God. It is about 85 degrees and remains warm until 10pm, when the temperature drops to about 65. Heaven.
At the McDonalds where I buy my daily ice cream, I am served by a 7 year old. I swear, he came up to my chest and still had his milk teeth. Darwin is weird. My hostel roommate is Bernard and he is French. We eat dinner together, although separate food because he has cooked LAMB and is drinking WINE and I have poured boiling water over ramen. Our other roommate is Andrew the English barman. Our hostel room is so small you have to suck in to pass between the bunkbeds.
The rest of the day, I stress about my schedule and stress about money and stress about whether or not I am seeing the right things on my vacation until I remind myself that this is my summer break and I CAN DO ANYTHING I WANT. So then I bank on my intuition and book a 3 day tour of Kakadu, a hostel the night I get back, a bus ride down to Alice Springs, and a 3 day tour of Uluru and the Red Center. This costs so much that I have to withdraw money for two days at the maximum level. But then again, I will not be paying for anything for the next week.
Australian thing of the day: Pineapple fritter at Red Rooster. Delicious. Sweet and soft on the inside, crunchy on the outside. I had a totally weird experience though, where the cashier looked at me funny, like am I SURE I want a pineapple fritter? And the server asked me if I thought it was cooked properly, even though I have never eaten one before and since when do you ask the customer in a fast food restaurant if your food is cooked properly? I am not returning to Red Rooster.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)