Australia Wrap Up

So, I'm on the mend, had some great homecooked Indian food last night at a friend of Laurent's in Sydney and am now waiting for my flight this evening to New Zealand. My friends Ben and Kerryn (whom I met in Laos) were instrumental in my recovery. The other key element of my recovery were 20 little yellow and brown pills labeled "Amoxycillin Trihydrate". I don't care what anyone else says, Antibiotics are a beautiful thing. Officially I had come down with a "upper respiratory tract infection" and after a week of sickness, recovery has been slow and so I'm still not at 100%.

My Lovely Hosts - Kerryn and Ben

As a result, I'm afraid I still don't have too much to report on Melbourne except to say that it's a wonderful city. I caught a drink with Gabi, whom I climbed Mt "Something or Rather" (loose translation) with back in China, in one of the trendy back alley bars that litter downtown Melbourne. I walked around the botanical gardens which were beautiful and took in the view from the shrine of remembrance dedicated to Australians and Kiwis lost in WWI. I visited the Melbourne Museum and learned about evolution, dinosaurs, the trams and the culture of the aboriginals. I also explored the artsy neighborhoods of Fitzroy and Collingwood where Ben and Kerryn live. These neighborhoods are filled with unique shops, street side cafes, restaurants and bars. Cafes in Melbourne are great as they always have sidewalk seating and have a great mix of various locals having afternoon tea, coffee or an early cold one.

Melbourne Skyline from the Shrine of Rememberance

Melbourne also has an interesting mix of modern architecture and colonial/gothic architecture. the streets are all crisscrossed with a network of trams, one of which is free for tourists and hits all the main attractions downtown and one which is also a restaurant so if your date doesn't have much to say at least you have changing scenery to keep you company.

Buildings of Melbourne

I did have a neat experience at Avalon Airport on my way to Sydney. I was waiting for my flight in the tiny terminal (Avalon is an alternative airport, not the main Melbourne airport) and got to watch an American Navy F18 practise its stunt routine for the airshow next week. It was shooting around the sky doing barrel rolls, flips and various other maneuvers while half my flight was plastered to the glass of the terminal. When it took off, not too far from the building, the engines roared and the glass shook from the shock. It was awesome. While looking on I started chatting with an Aussie guy. Turns out he lives in LA, used to be an MTV host, is Naomi Watts' cousin and is the producer for the Ellen Degeneres show. He started telling me about the Maclerren party for the Australian Grand Prix, the Oscars, his new Bentley and how his friend bought Paris Hilton's old Merecedes, but I found myself distinctly lacking anything to add to the conversation. Oh well.

So my adventures in Australia are coming to a close. I definitely have a new appreciation for the beach, have learned that I'm clearly no surfer and have loved seeing the natural scenery here and the wildly different creatures that inhabit this island continent. The Australian people continue to be friendly, laid back and just generally pleasant. I've enjoyed my time here, but wish I had gotten off the beaten track a bit more and visited western Australia or the outback. the east coast is fun, beautiful and relaxing but after a while you feel like you keep visiting alternate versions of the same place over and over again. All the towns are beautiful beach/surfing towns near a national park and some great walks/hikes. They vary in size, activities and amenities but not really in their general theme. I guess I'll just have to come back to see the rest!

I still haven't gotten back into the swing of picture taking so don't have many new pics to share, but I'll get back in the game for New Zealand.

Sunday Night at the Movies