Strawberry Fields forever

I arrived at work this morning to find an inexplicable pile of avocados on my desk. Also on my desk, a present from our department's middle manager. I brought all of these things home. This brings the Christmas 2010 grand present total to a staggering....THREE. Oh well, at least I have a lot of avocados. Yum.

What HAS HAPPENED? It has been a long time since I last blogged. Oh, Mark's parents came to visit! We had a week up in Port Stephens around 3 hours drive from Sydney on the north coast of New South Wales, a week of perfect weather sandwiched in between days of heavy rain. Lady Luck smiled upon us.

We rented a little flat for the week in Nelson Bay and spent the first couple of days lazing around on the beach at the bottom of the road and buying mangos from the market. Around the third day, we caught the ferry over the bay to Tea Gardens and Hawk's Nest, watched dolphins play in the river and found the beautiful Jimmy's Beach.



We drove for a day to the Hunter Valley and visited some beautiful vineyards - wine tasted at Vinden Estates out in the most perfect courtyard with the most perfect view.



Also visited the well-known Tyrrell's wines and went on a very enjoyable and informative tour of their wine-making facilities.



There were so many big barrels!

A long drive home (and a dead kangaroo :( ) later, we refreshed ourselves with a good nights sleep ready for a hike up to Tomaree Head, which gave amazing views out over the ocean on one side, Shoal Bay on another and over the little ocean beaches of Zenith, Wreck and Box on the third.





One of my favourite things was our visit to see the sand dunes at Stockton Beach. At around 32km long and 1km wide they are one of the largest mobile sand masses in the world and are fascinating, desolate and desertlike, especially considering we visited on a savagely hot day.





It was kind of an odd pilgrimage as I have this fascination with sand dunes and their mythology. In my mind they are just places where everything is very hot and very absurd. I guess I have read too much Kobo Abe. But my goodness I loved that novel.

Weather

The weather has gone crazy. That hail storm actually happened. *shakes head in disbelief* Global warming? I think it's just global bizarre combustion of all sense and reason.

Melbs

My holidays are now complete. I think I went on 3 holidays in 5 weeks, which is rather decadent.

Holiday #2 involved a long weekend in Melbourne. Mark had been there all week, bumbling around at Melbourne Uni being philosophical and drinking coffee and wine and the rest of the time lounging around in a suite in a 4 star hotel. Oh the life of a philosopher.

I arrived on Friday via the aeroplane at around 10pm. Mark came to fetch me from the bus station and we caught the lovely tram up to Fitzroy to drink some wine and eat some late night desserts with some philosophy persons, before returning to the city and undertaking a lengthy slumber in the world's most comfortable bed.

Saturday it rained. And rained. And rained. And rained a bit more. We caught the trambulator to North Melbourne to a lovely cafe called the Auction Rooms and ate a wonderful brunch, accompanied by fresh juices and several coffees, giving us an excuse to sit there for almost 3 hours watching the rain fall outside. Not sure what to do, we ended up just heading back to the hotel and lying around for a bit, before heading back out on the tram back to Fitzroy to be our old friends Sam and Georgina's first ever houseguests in their new Melbourne flat!!! After a long stay working in NZ followed by several months travelling in South East Asia, they decided to move to Australia after visiting us in Sydney back in 2009. They had only been in the flat a few days and only had a mattress, 2 bar stools and an old TV to their names, but they also had a kitchen with wine so we had a bottle and talked about moving to Australia, moving to the UK, travelling.... It made me sad in a way that they are just arrived here and have a whole new life of fun to look forward to, while we are on our way out....I'm also sad that they are now in Australia just as we are leaving, so we won't get to hang out....the next time we see them will be at when they come back for their own wedding in the UK next July!

We walked out in the pouring rain over to the Veggie Bar and had a grand old meal and more and more wine before it was time to head to bed.

Sunday saw a slightly nicer day.



On the tram. Like the last time we went to Melbs, this time again I got so excited by the tram and took about 7386249372847 photos of the tram and us trambulating on it from inside and out. I have also used the word 'trambulating' so much now I think it might become a real word.

We went to Seven Seeds on Sunday for lunch - delicious toasted sandwiches and even more delicious coffee. We headed on down to the National Gallery of Victoria and had a little wander round, then back up to Brunswick Street for shopping and cafes. Sunday night was spent with Malaysian food and cocktails - we went back to Double Happiness, the bar we had been at on our last visit to Melbourne. It was brilliant.



I had a lychee based cocktail. Then we went over to our other favourite, the rooftop bar at Cookie and drank Kir Royale whilst gazing over the bright lights of Melbourne's CBD.

Monday we checked out of the hotel and went to the National Library of Victoria to print out boarding passes for the flight home. It's a pretty impressive place inside, all domed roofs and old books.

We were thinking about going up the Eureka Tower to the Skydeck on the 88th floor, the highest viewing platform in the Southern Hemisphere, but weren't sure as it was pretty expensive and the weather was still a bit grey. In the end though, we thought we'd go down there and have a look.



We decided to go up and it was so worth it! Seeing the city from so high up is really great. I didn't realise the sea was so close either, I thought Melbourne was inland, but you could see St Kilda and the coast really close by. It's also a lot higher than the Sydney tower so you get more of a sense of looking down rather than just out. Mark was clinging to the walls at first but he soon got used to it!



That's the view over the CBD.

From there we headed back to the hotel to collect our bags and make our way to the airport, where I proceeded to go mad for 2 hours as I had finished my Agatha Christie the day before (it was too exciting) and had literally nothing to do, until Mark went and bought me a newspaper to make me quieten down. Haha.

"The sun is but a tale; a children's story..."

So yeah the Lady of the Green Kirtle may as well have been talking about Sydney when she said that, because the sun does seem like a bit of a long forgotten myth here at the moment. I am completely and utterly convinced by the very real existence of RAIN though.

All week, huddled under my umbrella as I scurry through Hyde Park on my way to work, scarf bundled up, hoodie zipped up tight i have to remind myself that it is November and I must not lose hope that soon it will be a little bit warmer and (PLEASE) a little bit dryer. It is so hard to dislike the rain in Australia as we should be grateful for any that comes, but being positive about it is becoming harder and harder. I think it's just training us up for our return to the UK.....

Fortunately, while last weekend rained on Sydney, we were down in (moderately) dry Canberra for a little trip. Mark had been working all week at Australian National University and so I spent 3 and a half hours on a bus last Friday night to join him. The bus was a very comfortable Murrays bus though, and this coupled with the bargain $25 fare made it rather more agreeable than you might imagine 3.5 hours on a bus to be.
I arrived off the bus into Canberra Civic at around 9.30pm and Mark was waiting at the bus stop to whisk me off for dinner at an Indian restaurant called Delhi 6 with some ANU Philosophy types. The food was delicious - something Sydney really lacks is really good Indian food (something we are also looking forward to getting back in the UK again). And it was good to meet some new Philosophy faces as well as some old favourites! After the meal, we went to a cool pub called The Phoenix, it was like a proper English rock/indie pub. Had some beers then realised it was really late so walked back to Mark's room on campus to sleep.

Saturday morning brought a long lie in, before heading out for brunch at the cafe in the National Film Archive. We then took a wander so I could see some Canberra...what an odd place. It's so rural, feels a bit like being on a big spread out business park, dual carriageways connecting everything, not very pedestrian friendly at all! There are two centres on each side of Lake Burley Griffin - Civic on one side and the Parliamentary centre on the other. ANU is next to Civic, so we walked over the lake on the big road bridge into the Parliamentary zone.



It was a horrible, grey, hot sticky day, really uncomfortable for walking. The view of Black Mountain was nice, but odd when you look at that photo and remember that that is technically the view from the middle of a city! It's so rural!

You can find most of the sights along one edge of one of the circuit roads on the Parliamentary side. We walked past the big imposing National Library and along past Questacon science museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the High Court and finally the National Gallery of Australia. The weather was pretty unbearable now so we decided to have a look in.



Sculpture outside the National Gallery

After a refreshing ginger beer in the cafe, the gallery turned out to be quite excellent, with a very comprehensive collection of Australian art including some very famous works such as Sidney Nolan's Ned Kelly series which I love. We had a good look round - I love some of the early european style Australian paintings - the pastoral scenes of areas that are now built up towns and suburbs - it's interesting to see such a change over the course of a century. It's also very revealing to compare early depictions of Sydney and Melbourne - Melbourne was quite the grand European style city, while early Sydney seems to be mostly represented as a grubby collection of ramshackle houses!

We ventured next door to have a look at the Australian High Court, an imposing building of concrete and glass.



Some pretty exciting cases have gone on here, one of the most famous being the landmark case of Mabo v Queensland (No 2) in 1992, which finally directly rejected the legal concept of terra nullius in Australia and recognised Aboriginal land rights.

Then it started to rain. A lot. So we hurried back to campus over the bridge. Had a 2 hour nap, then went to meet some philosophers at a nice pub called the Wig and Pen for beer and fish and chips, followed by a trip to a Halloween house party! We failed in Halloween costumes due to lack of preparation, but I procured a lovely tail at some point and wore it all night. It felt so natural to have a tail! I really want to grow one - this prompted some discussion over tail-reassignment surgery.

Sunday was a far more pleasant day - a bit more breeze and sun. We headed back to the Parliamentary centre and visited Old Parliament House and its lovely rose gardens.





Seat of Parliament from 1927 to 1988, it is now the Museum of Democracy (with an agreeable $2 entry fee), which has some interesting displays about parliamentary history in Australia. Most interesting though is the fact that many of the original offices and rooms have been preserved as they would have been at various times, so you can see, for example, meeting rooms circa 1930 and office space circa 1970. You can also enter the original Senate and House of Representatives chambers.



In front of the Old Parliament House, the Aboriginal Tent Embassy has stood since 1972, despite continual controversy and several arson attacks against it. The Aboriginal activists that occupy the site promote the political movement of Aboriginal Sovereignty, which demands among other things land rights and compensation. Apparently there have been numerous attempts to remove it but I am glad it is still there as a reminder of some of Australia's more difficult political issues.

We climbed up Capital Hill to (new) Parliament House, as our last port of call before we had to head for the bus back to Sydney.



We were both pretty indifferent to the building, but there was a nice expansive view from outside over the Old Parliament and the War Memorial in the distance.



Let me remind you again, you are technically looking at a city centre in that picture! Ruuuural. We wanted to go inside, and you can, but you have to be scanned and metal detected and it was a bit involved and we only had 10 minutes before we had to leave for the long bus home, so that was the end. We arrived back to a sodden Sydney, 4 hours later.

And this weekend is sodden once more. Friday was our 7 year anniversary, and we spent it having a wonderful dinner at Yulli's on Crown Street followed by a cocktail at the Lounge. Today we managed to get a wonderful breakfast in at Four Ate Five before the drizzle began, Mark had the vegan mexican breakfast and I had poached eggs and avocado on rye toast. MMMM. I spent the afternoon reading Amsterdam by Ian McEwan. And so it goes.

Surry Hills

It's odd how close to the city we are here. That's the view from the top of our road, the shiny modern towers of the Central Business District rising above the old warehouse buildings that make up much of Surry Hills*. A lot of industry was centred in the area, in particular the garment trade, and indeed some of this has survived the gentrification process to still exist today.

Surry Hills is an interesting area, really. From its beginnings as a village in the 1830s, to being swallowed up as a suburb by the growing city over the next few decades. Rapid population growth fuelled the minds of unruly developers, out to make money with little regard for the provision of basic amenities such as plumbing and drainage, and the area quickly declined into an overcrowded slum. By the early 20th century, Surry Hills was rife with the symptoms of poverty and destitution - alcoholism, prostitution and crime. Over the next few decades, various attempts were made by the city council to clean up the area, by demolishing and rebuilding parts where narrow lanes and derelict housing encouraged shady goings on. By the 1970s though, many original residents had moved away and been replaced by waves of immigrants from Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
But as is the way of things in so many places, during the 1980s and 90s, young professionals started to move back into the Hills, attracted by the affordable housing so close to the city. It's now a real mix of stuff, smart terraces and boutique shops, warehouses and older tenement buildings. Many charitable organisations also set up in the area in its darker days and are still based here, providing services for the homeless, those with drug problems, sex workers etc. At the top of our road is a Mission Australia home that provides accommodation for elderly people who are homeless or have mental health problems - I walk past it on my way to work and it looks like a happy enough place - all the residents sit out on the terrace in the morning having breakfast!

Today was a drizzly Sunday. But we pootled down to Bourke Street Bakery and I stuffed a DELICIOUS pain au chocolat down my digestive system so fast I had chocolate all over my face and pastry all in my hair and Mark laughed at me. We also bought a fennel and raisin sourdough loaf that is delicious in a sweet, herby way. It's good there in the Bourke Street Bakery, although VERY popular, even in the rain there was a huge queue. We went to the Gnome cafe on Crown Street for a coffee, then to the supermarket (boring) then home. Mark is off to Canberra tomorrow morning at 7am, I will join him there on Friday evening!


*And yes, the weather is as dismal as it looks. This weekend has been a write-off. And the forecast is continued rain ALL WEEK. And it's about 7 degrees in Canberra. And I sent my coats home in the crate. Ouch, Australia, you hurt me. :(

In which so many things have gone on

Readers, dear readers, please do not think I have abandoned you!!! I have been moving and organising and all manner of other things.

So, back the the UK we go, arriving for February. Which, provided this Sydney February is as unpleasantly HOT as the last one, will be a nice time to leave. But, if this UK February is as unpleasantly COLD as the last one, it will likewise not be a particularly pleasant time to arrive. One cannot win, really.

We have moved out of Erskineville. Over to Surry Hills. All our worldly goods are in a container somewhere, waiting for their journey back across the sea. We got Crown to do our removals again this time - the guys that came were awesome, best removal ever - everything got so well wrapped and packed. Oddly a much better job was done than by the same company on the way over! They must have upped their stakes.

We are reduced again to a life out of a suitcase for the next few months. Until the novelty wears off I must admit it is a pleasant state of affairs, to have your life that simple that it all fits into one bag.



The living room in the new house... It's small but cosy. Surry Hills is ok, it doesn't have the community feel of Erskineville/Newtown. Lots of cafes, bars, restaurants, but doesn't feel like there's a lot to do unless you have a lot of money to burn. There's no bookshops, really. Although there is a great library.

We said a sad goodbye to two of our dear friends - Chesney and Totoro! Off they went in the crate!



The weather is very up and down at the moment. Which I guess is usual for this time of year as the skies adjust to being warmer. The rain is abundant but we we have had a few nice days. They have tended to be during the week though, unfortunately for me stuck in my office. Today we are rained off and stuck inside, although we did get a good brunch in at Four Ate Five on Crown Street (vegan mexican bean breakfast - YUM).

I should be off to Canberra next weekend, and definitely Melbourne the weekend after that, so there should be some more fun stuff to write about soon. Mark has been to a rockabilly-only barbershop and is sporting an excellent new hair-do. Last Saturday night we went to an astonomy open evening at Macquarie Uni and got to look through a telescope to see Jupiter and its moons, and Uranus. Also we learnt about how to find south using the Southern Cross constellation. We have eaten at Atom Thai, Cafe Sopra, Kai on King, Sofia, Bloodwood and Mamak.

I am spending the afternoon in Narnia, or more precisely in Ettinsmoor on the way to Harfang.....yes I raided the children's section of the library! Also watching the rain fall outside the window.....hope for a nicer day tomorrow.

roller derby & melancholia

Tonight I went to Roller Derby at Hordern Pavillion with Dean, Zane, Erin, etc (I was the heterosexual minority which was novel!) - Sydney versus Wollongong Illawara (Sydney thrashed them woo woo woo!). It was my first Roller Derby experience and I had a great time! The rules seem complicated but it's actually quite simple. And there is a lot of shoving - I was quite surprised how violent it was! The best thing about it is the showmanship aspect - all the girls have fun 'skating names' like "Peaches Obscene" and "Babycakes" and "Miss Sin Doll" and "Vindi Vicious" and the style is really burlesque - lots of make-up, minimal clothing, lots of lace and ruffles and tattoos and glitter and showing off.

Now I am home eating beans on toast and watching some awful film called Before Sunrise despite the fact the Ethan Hawke character is grating on my brain (keeps coming out with such cringe-worthy/scientifically disastrous/irrational gems as 'so 10 thousand years ago there were only a million souls, today there are x million, so where did all those extra souls come from, they must be reincarnated'). But it's set in Vienna and the premise is the characters meet on a train and spend the night in Vienna together, walking around. It makes me want to go to Vienna.

I kind of feel like Vienna might be one of those places like Sydney, that are just so close to reaching near perfection as a place to be. Vienna has, for me, almost everything. A beautiful city, beautiful surrounding countryside, great weather (reliably hot, sunny summers and reliably real, cold, snowy winters), low living costs (comparative to most western european capitals), amazing culture and history, great bars and fun nightlife (surprisingly, and something Sydney definitely lacks), plus plenty to fill your days with. It is safe, and quiet, the transport is amazing and everything is just so well run. The only thing it lacks is coastline and good food (austrian food has tendencies to make my insides revolt, rather quickly - it is just meat and stodge! No fish! No vegetables!). Two things that Sydney of course can offer, in abundance.

It is places like these, like Vienna, like Sydney, like Paris, like Melbourne, like Berlin....that make me feel sometimes there is no hope for me in the United Kingdom. But then I think, I have to find something. I have to look really hard and find something there, because I have to live there. This makes me feel a strange mixture of determination, hope, and confused melancholy.