Anzac Day

It was Anzac Day for Australia and New Zealand yesterday, a public holiday that recognises and remembers the troops who have fought and who continue to fight.  Mystical Roo, Monster Noggin and I ventured into the city to watch the parade.  Sydney was transformed into a completely different city than the one I've come to know in the past few weeks.  The streets, normally packed with people and vehicles, were deserted and all of the shops were shut.  I saw a woman laying in the middle of the road, camera in hand, taking photos of her children.  It was probably the only time of year when a person could get away with laying in the middle of the road in Sydney without the risk of getting run over by car, bus or bicycle.  In total contrast, if you hit the right part of the city you could see massive crowds lining the pavements as different battalions marched the streets, flying their respective flags.  It was an impressive sight and I must confess that I became choked up on more than one occasion.  After the parade the pubs literally began overflowing with men in uniform.  Monster Noggin was pleased.  And then the beer started flowing.  Mystical Roo was pleased.  And we stopped off at Darling Harbour for lunch.  Little Stalky was pleased.  There is a tradition on Anzac day for copious amounts of drinking and a gambling game - legal only on this day - called two-up.  I've never witnessed anything quite like it and to be honest, I still don't think I understand it.  It's like a game of heads or tails but with two coins and an exchange of money.  There are drunken people clutching notes from a modest $5 to a monstrous $50, shouting "$10 for heads, $5 for tails!"  Someone takes them up on their offer, someone holds the cash (there's a lot of trust involved), some dude throws the coins and everyone cheers.  Money is then passed around depending on the turn of the coin and there is much rejoicing.  I hear this game dates back to the trenches, which is why it's played on Anzac day.  It's a crazy atmosphere and there's literally no room to move but there's such a sense of comradeship that you feel completely safe.  Everyone is in a good mood and everyone just wants to be friends.  If you happen to find yourself in Sydney around Anzac Day then watch the parade and then get yourself down the pub!  It's a unique Aussie experience.     

Battle of the Brollies

After many days of glorious sunshine and what some of us had come to think of as a belated summer, this morning the heavens opened and it poured with rain.  I'm sure I've made mention of this before but when it rains in Australia it really rains.  There's no drizzle, no light spray in the air, this is full on, torrential rain.  And of course this morning it hit at rush hour, when many a person heading to work is hopping on and off public transport and generally dashing around the city.  This in turns leads to masses of people with umbrellas!  It's already a tight squeeze at the traffic lights but throw umbrellas into the mix and it's chaos.  There are big umbrellas, little umbrellas, wonky umbrellas, inside out umbrellas.  Umbrellas of all shapes and sizes.  Now there seems to be a certain umbrella etiquette that most people have got the hang of.  You anticipate the approach of another umbrella holder and you both kind of swing your brollies to one side so that you don't clash.  Or, as I've been finding, if you're a little person like me and you come across a tall person you can kind of bend your knees a little bit, they can stand on their tip toes a little bit and presto!  Another clear passing.  Unfortunately not everyone is as polite.  Some people just go barging through, spraying water all over people who are shorter than them.  And then you get the person who is so intent on hiding behind their umbrella that they're not actually looking where they're going and just end up barging straight into people - umbrella first.  Now, I know I'm not one to talk what with having walked into a telegraph pole and all but when there are other people around I always watch where I'm going.  No one wants an umbrella in the eye!

Little Stalky and the Bus Driver

The latest addition to my adventures has been venturing out by bus.  It's not like I've never been on a bus before but I'll confess that it's been a while.  The last place I lived had one bus a day and no one knew where it went so catching the bus anywhere wasn't really an option.  Living in the city is like bus heaven.  There are buses everywhere.  Not only that they're ridiculously regular and keep running after 6pm.  Amazing!  So I've been on the bus quite a few times now and have only once got it wrong.  But once was enough and now I obsessively quiz the driver to ensure I'm on the correct bus.  I was caught off guard the other day when the bus driver quizzed me.  He was a cheery fellow and as I hopped aboard he asked why I hadn't caught the earlier bus, the bus that had turned up just a few minutes before the bus I was on.  I must confess that I was somewhat baffled.  A)  How could the bus driver know where I was going and B)  How could the bus driver possibly know that I'd opted to ignore the earlier bus.  As it turns out the bus driver had assumed I was going into the city centre (it must have been the suit) and had been driving in the opposite direction and seen me sat at the bus stop.  Permanently punctual, I fear being late and so will arrive at the bus stop a good fifteen minutes before I need to be there.  Any hoo, I regaled the bus driver with the tale of my getting on the wrong bus and he was sympathetic.  He happily talked me through the various different stops, the different ticket types and how to know which side of the road you should be stood on.  When we arrived at my stop, with me already an hour early for my appointment, the bus driver offered to take me on a ten minute tour so that I could get a better idea of where everything was.  Now this - I think - was very kind of him but I was very aware that I was the only one left on the bus and didn't think it prudent to be taking ten minute tours with bus drivers.  I'm fairly sure it was innocent but you can never be too careful.  I thanked him for his time but declined the offer.  I hope I didn't hurt his feelings!

The Quiet Life

The next few blog posts will no doubt consist of me talking about things I'm discovering in the city.  Well, discovery number 1.  Surprisingly, I am finding living in the city to be a much quieter experience than living in the country.  I thought that we'd have more noise from the traffic crossing the bridge and maybe the dozens of neighbours who live above us, below us and either side of us.  But no.  It's been utterly peaceful.  So peaceful in fact that the only sounds I hear is the tweeting of the birds.  And - very importantly - not a pigeon in sight.  Last night I heard a boat horn but that was it.  In our previous flat there were constant disturbances.  Thursday night karaoke night, Friday night band night, Saturday night drunk night.  There were the massive coal trains that seemed to cause the whole town to vibrate.  There were the hoons who would constantly rev their engines and play loud music.  There were the non existant neighbours who, when they did turn up, made their presence known by blocking me in the house with their car and a cleverly positioned clothes horse, spraying me and my washing by watering their plants and thundering up and down the stairs like a herd of elephants.  So far I've yet to even see a neighbour.  So that's point number one.  City life appears to be fairly quiet!

Moving on a Budget

The weekend just gone by was the weekend of the big move.  And as big a move as it was, we still had to do it on a budget.  A budget that pretty much extended to the hiring of a small truck for less than 24 hours.  So here's the numbers:  one small truck, three people, a two hour drive to Sydney, two households to move.  Waking up on Friday morning with those numbers in my head made for a daunting start.  But then, I got up at 7am, where as Mystical Roo and Monster Noggin had been up since 4am.  They ran a load up in the ute and the trailer and then returned around midday with a truck.  We loaded up Monster Noggin's belongings and then the three of us returned to Sydney.  That truck was an experience.  The three of us were squished in side by side and there was no air conditioning, no radio and no chance of getting above 80km/h.  There were a couple of hills where things got decisively iffy.  Still, at least we weren't stuck in the massive traffic queue heading South.  We bounced along, taking much longer than normal to get to Sydney, and I got a really warm bum because I was sat above the engine.  When we finally arrived it was after 5pm and we realised - with ever growing horror - that we still had to go back again, load up our house, drive all the way back and then unload. What a mission.  But we cracked on and the three of us started to haul furniture up two flights of stairs.  All I can say is thank God for Monster Noggin because she can carry some seriously heavy stuff.  If it was left to me to help Mystical Roo then we'd still be sat on sofas outside of the front door.  We scurried back and forth, we battled with angles, we had fun on the tail lift and then finally we were back on the road, downing energy drinks and talking nonsense.  When we got stuck in that southbound traffic (oh yes, a turned truck continued to block the road well into the night) we broke into song and started waving at fellow truck drivers.  Games were played, super powers were discussed and Thai food was ordered.  When we arrived back at our flat it was 9.30pm and Ammy and Treacle were ready to help us load up our furniture.  There was more scurrying, more moving up and down the stairs and poor Monster Noggin had to tackle Mystical Roo's underwear drawer.  11pm and we were back on the road to Sydney discussing the fact that a) we had to get the truck back first thing in the morning and b) there was no way we could start unloading at 1am without angering all of our new neighbours.  The truck continued to bounce, Monster Noggin got cold and I continued to have a warm bum.  A petrol station stop saw Monster Noggin harassed by a staggering drunk and a staggering drunk seen off by a rattly old truck.  More energy drinks were consumed and by the time we reached Sydney at 1.30am we decided we would just have to get up early and quietly unload first thing in the morning.  A mattress, linen and pillows were snuck up the stairs and the truck was parked up for the night.  Sweaty, stinky but totally exhausted we set our alarms for 5.30am and crawled into bed for a rejuvenating four hour sleep.  6am and we were back on it, sneaking down the stairs and skulking back and forth with the "quiet" furniture.  No talking, no giggling, no heavy breathing.  We were like ninjas in the early morning light.  7am and we figured that was it - the truck was brought round, the fridge was unloaded and we started to move the "noisy" furniture.  There was much success and we offloaded the truck before celebrating with a big breakfast.  Then it was back to the flat in the relative comfort of the ute to load up the last of our furniture.......We've been back and forth to Sydney more times than I can count in the last three days.  We've worked so hard but finally, finally are moved in.  And whilst we really need another weekend just to recover, check out the view from our new apartment!