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Published: December 21st 2010
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There’s a dichotomy to this blog. It’s simultaneously the simplest, least spectacular entry of the lot and perhaps the most remarkable. The usual highlights of this space are nowhere to be seen. There are no brushes with death, encounters with exotic fauna, or harrowing tales of buses gone bad. This is just a tale of two people, living rather ordinary lives. What makes it noteworthy is that the normal day-to-day activities are taking place about as far as possible from anything we’ve ever known as home. What set this last stretch of time apart from all of the others is how comfortable we feel here now. When the remarkable becomes routine, you know you’ve really done something special. The stories from the last couple of months could easily come from Santa Barbara, Temecula, San Francisco or any of the other homes we’ve known, but they don’t. They come from Sydney.
It’s coming toward the end of the year, which brings all the familiar December staples: scorching heat, beach trips, sunburns, flip-flops, sunglasses, outdoor sporting events, summer-break from school, everything we’re used to. I’d love to taunt you with how glorious the weather has been here since we’ve decided skip winter
Our first view of Jervis Bay
Not too shabby for an introduction. altogether for a chance at the endless summer, but sadly Mrs. Nature must be having her mensies because we’ve ended up in Australia for the rainiest spring in recorded history (now based on Australia’s technological status, recorded history may only date back to the late 80’s, but still). There are two types of weather here in Sydney: 1. The most beautiful day you’ve ever seen 2. God needs to call a plumber. Thankfully, even the worst season ever is better than the best most other locals in the world could ever wish for.
(For those keeping track, the Mrs. and I have experienced just one full winter since 2007. Come August 2011, we’ll be on a 6-1 stretch of summer to winter. Not impressed? Consider my school schedule: Three-month break before coming to Aus, semester, three-month break in Aus, semester, three –month break after returning home. I’ll have nine months off for 6 months of schooling. Go ahead, hate me.)
I reality, if we had to suffer an unfortunate patch of weather, we picked the perfect time to do it. Jenny has been working non-stop as a casual childcare worker, basically getting paid to babysit. The work
Kangaroo at Jervis Bay
So domesticated, one joined us for a beer later in the evening. is great but the hours are rough and she wakes up everyday not knowing if she’ll have a shift or not. This is not exactly ideal. Meanwhile, I was deep in the weeds of another semester end. I had gotten into my old travelling routine here in Sydney, which sadly didn’t involve getting ahead on homework. I didn’t conduct a lot of interviews in Botswana as it turns out. I had neglected my studies and spent the last few weeks of the semester deep in the weeds of assignments that I should have started months ago (on such light-hearted vacation topics as discrimination of indigenous peoples, sexual harassment in the workplace and female genital mutilation. Remember when I was going to be a travel writer?) After weeks of hard work, my nose whittled to a stub by the grindstone, everything came out swimmingly. At least I think it did, haven’t gotten my grades back. (It’s important to note that I did this without any ADD medication. The nature of the medication as recreational drug made it impossible to get by the end of the semester. Safe to say, equal portions of my in-depth research time was spent on North African
I cringed when this kid hopped of the ledge
funny, considering all of the stupid things I've jumped off of. tribal traditions and LOLcats.)
Free from the shackles of study, I was able to pick up a pair of jobs . The first is at a travel supply store, of course. I walked in with my resume. They asked, “are you familiar with any of these products?” I said, “Ummmmm, all of them.” Easy cheesy. I’ve also taken casual work for a hospitality company that sends me off to different places in need of the services of an apathetic waiter (it’s hard to get excited about waiting tables when nobody tips. Surprisingly, the service in Sydney is terrible. Who’d have guessed?) I’ve also had an internship few the past few months, but they’re sadly going out of business (not my fault!). It was at a sports research company where I spent all day building profiles of obscure international athletes, like for instance, Sri Lankan lawn bowlers (I did not make that up).
Our lives have petty much been dominated by work and school, just like they would be back in the States. There have been a few differences, marked by doing typically American things in an unfamiliar environment.
First up was the American tradition of the camping
trip. We joined the American Ex-pat group (and a few Germans) for a couple nights in Jervis Bay in the Australian Capital Territory. It was just like beach camping at Gaviota or Pismo, except for the kangaroos hopping around everywhere and the notable lack of campers the size of a Wal-Mart. Our days were spent lounging on the stunning beach and our nights pissing off anyone trying to sleep near our rowdy campsites (one significant note: this group had perhaps the highest concentration of people capable of moon walking ever assembled. Sadly, the folks from the Guinness book of world records don’t accept half-remembered drunken anecdotes as submissions, regardless of how many exclamation points you use.)
Next up was the one holiday we’ve missed out on the most in our travels: Halloween. Circumstances have favored other holidays, but we always seem to be in a bad spot on Halloween (take note: Kuala Lumpur and the Lima airport are bad places to celebrate Halloween). Sydney, on the other hand, has enough ex-pats and people who will use any excuse to drink to make Halloween worthwhile. Jenny and I broke the budget (spending a total of $6) to make sure we
Lounging at Jervis Bay
The line between "Relaxing" and "Sleeping it off" has never been so blurry. did it right. Jenny’s classic puppy costume and my lion (which funnily enough ended up looking like an LOLcat) were big hits. Our night ended up at the Argyle, a bar in the Rocks which held the largest Halloween party south of the Equator (we totally dominated the Madaga-Scare Fest).
Next up was Thanksgiving, a holiday that has a special tie with Australia for us. Our first big holiday abroad was Thanksgiving in Argentina, which we spent with a wonderful Australian couple over a big meal cooked at our hostel. The next year, we made a point of being at their place in Melbourne for the fall feast. This year marked three out of four years with an Aussie tinged Thanksgiving. How did we step things up? Why not have two Thanksgivings? On consecutive days we met with different American hosts for massive meals and epic times that left us gorged, exhausted and blissful. It took days to recover from our turkey spoils, but I would eat every bite again.
Also, it was Movember. It's probably best if we don't talk about my moustache.
So now our lives continue to roll on naturally. It’s no longer amazing
Tristan
Jervis Bay that Sydney is our home, which I guess is amazing itself. Expect a more traditional blog with the next entry, which will feature visits from both our families, Christmas and Sydney New Year’s on the agenda. Maybe I’ll risk my life a few times to give me something to write about.
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Marilyn Childers
non-member comment
Christmas
Loved your cute Christmas card and I always enjoy reading about your travels. We had a wonderful time in CA with your folks, Jonathan, and Ella Mae and Joe. Missed you though. How is the job? I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. Before we know it you'll be headed home. We really want you to come to Canyon. Love you, Marilyn