EB and I have had long discussions about the vast differences in Americans and Australians. To some extent, it extends to people in lots of other foreign countries. US people seem to have such a sense of entitlement. You can almost always pick out the Americans while travelling. First of all, they’re fatter than most anyone else around. Secondly, they’re wearing white tennis shoes while walking down the street. There is a tendency toward ridiculous looking fanny packs.
What makes them show up even more, though, is the visible attitude. There’s a tendency to think if one speaks louder, someone else will learn English instantly, as if divinely inspired to comprehension. If the locals would only realize they’re talking to an American, they’ll be so thrilled to be in our presence that doors will magically open.
There are exceptions, of course, and we try to fall into those categories when we can. If you try to speak the local dialect, people tend to brighten immediately and almost always smile and get more friendly. If you laugh and confess your confusion with something local (money, bus tickets, or whatever), clerks, taxi drivers or whomever are almost always helpful.
If we remember that we’re guests who are allowed to experience someplace else, and act accordingly, it’s almost always a good experience.
On the other hand, let’s compare that to some of the conditions in the US right now. Clerks in stores seem to think that customers are an imposition rather than the reason for existing. With few exceptions, (the Lowes and Harris Teeter grocery stores near us leap to mind, which are in direct competition with each other) if you ask for help finding something you’ll be told or they’ll point – if you can find a clerk. In most stores in Australia, someone was right there to offer assistance and they’d either lead you to something or get it and bring it to you. There was a friendly congeniality that was not invasive or offensive, but made you feel welcome in a place of business.
The place that I think it’s most noticeable is in the airports. TSA (or their equivalent) in other countries are unfailingly polite. This is even in countries that have stricter rules than the US – Germany and Italy, for instance – but the people enforcing the rules are much more pleasant about it, and offer direction and explanation. Twice in US airports I was left standing waiting for directions on what to do, whether to wait, or to go on. The responses were consistently just rude. Such a change to elsewhere in the world.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Homeward Bound
February 20, 2009 - This morning was that kind of anxious time that happens the last day of vacation; there’s not enough time to really do much of anything, but you kind of hate to waste the last few minutes.
We had an 11:00 checkout, and the car was supposed to be there to pick us up at the same time. For the first time, they were a little late – not enough to make a difference, but enough that we noticed it. Turns out that the drivers were all running ragged because the Queen Victoria cruise ship had come into port the night before, so they were picking people up and dropping them off around the City.
Once again, we were amazed how the airports in other countries are everything that our own are not. There are staff who are actually courteous and helpful. Signs clearly mark what you’re supposed to do, usually in multiple languages (incidentally, bilingual here appears to mean English and Chinese, Korean or Vietnamese rather than Spanish). People are incredibly friendly when you go through the security and they still accomplish what they need to accomplish. We only had to hit American soil at LAX to discover that nothing had changed in the US.
US Customs and immigration officials were indifferent or unfriendly when they weren’t downright surly. For some reason, the guy wanted to know my occupation, specifically what type of attorney I was, and that got typed into a computer while he had my passport. What that has to do with anything I don’t know, but it doesn’t make the conspiracy theorist in me any more comfortable.
We had an 11:00 checkout, and the car was supposed to be there to pick us up at the same time. For the first time, they were a little late – not enough to make a difference, but enough that we noticed it. Turns out that the drivers were all running ragged because the Queen Victoria cruise ship had come into port the night before, so they were picking people up and dropping them off around the City.
Once again, we were amazed how the airports in other countries are everything that our own are not. There are staff who are actually courteous and helpful. Signs clearly mark what you’re supposed to do, usually in multiple languages (incidentally, bilingual here appears to mean English and Chinese, Korean or Vietnamese rather than Spanish). People are incredibly friendly when you go through the security and they still accomplish what they need to accomplish. We only had to hit American soil at LAX to discover that nothing had changed in the US.
US Customs and immigration officials were indifferent or unfriendly when they weren’t downright surly. For some reason, the guy wanted to know my occupation, specifically what type of attorney I was, and that got typed into a computer while he had my passport. What that has to do with anything I don’t know, but it doesn’t make the conspiracy theorist in me any more comfortable.
Qantas Ride Home
It’s not possible to say enough nice things about Qantas airlines. It’s how air travel used to be, and shows how it still could be if someone put some initiative into it. I can’t imagine that they’re not losing money as badly as any other airline. Nonetheless, the fact that they’re going all out to help the passenger have a pleasant experience shows.
On one of the flights, we saw a film about their special training school that flight crews attend. In addition to the things you’d expect – emergency evacuations, how to deal with unruly passengers, etc., they also teach courses about wines, impressions and body language, food preparation and presentation, and things that go a significant step beyond what we normally get on a US Airline.
Jen, the flight attendant who took care of us this trip, was so incredibly pleasant when you know she had to be just dog-tired after working a flight like that. The food was pretty good (at least as far as airline food goes), and they came by through the night with glasses of water, made sure we knew there were sandwiches and snacks available if we wanted them, and then as they were waking us up in the morning brought hot towels by so you could freshen up a bit.
It’s a big fall to go from there to US Airways, where they make it clear if you want a soda or a snack, you’ll be paying for it. You also have to pay for blankies and pillows on here now. The US Air flight is packed full and there are 3 (maybe 4) flight attendants for the entire plane. Jen told us there were 22 on the flight over. The plane used by US Airways is dirty and, as seems more often than not lately, my seat won’t recline AT ALL. It is incredibly loud and makes rattling noises that aren’t especially reassuring. I never had to use my earplugs on Qantas; the noise just wasn’t there on either their domestic or international flights. It’s so loud on this one that you couldn’t talk to the people next to you without shouting. This, for a cross-country flight in the US!
On one of the flights, we saw a film about their special training school that flight crews attend. In addition to the things you’d expect – emergency evacuations, how to deal with unruly passengers, etc., they also teach courses about wines, impressions and body language, food preparation and presentation, and things that go a significant step beyond what we normally get on a US Airline.
Jen, the flight attendant who took care of us this trip, was so incredibly pleasant when you know she had to be just dog-tired after working a flight like that. The food was pretty good (at least as far as airline food goes), and they came by through the night with glasses of water, made sure we knew there were sandwiches and snacks available if we wanted them, and then as they were waking us up in the morning brought hot towels by so you could freshen up a bit.
It’s a big fall to go from there to US Airways, where they make it clear if you want a soda or a snack, you’ll be paying for it. You also have to pay for blankies and pillows on here now. The US Air flight is packed full and there are 3 (maybe 4) flight attendants for the entire plane. Jen told us there were 22 on the flight over. The plane used by US Airways is dirty and, as seems more often than not lately, my seat won’t recline AT ALL. It is incredibly loud and makes rattling noises that aren’t especially reassuring. I never had to use my earplugs on Qantas; the noise just wasn’t there on either their domestic or international flights. It’s so loud on this one that you couldn’t talk to the people next to you without shouting. This, for a cross-country flight in the US!
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Saturday Feb 21 2009
Arrived home safely in NC last night. Walked through our door around 11 pm. More later....once we come outta this fog. Oh wait...if that's a criteria..may never hear from us again. We'll do our final entry soon.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Friday morning here (Thursday there)
Today is our travel day. Luggage is mostly packed....we've had breakfast.....and now we're waiting to go to the airport. Our ride is to be here at 11 am. It's about an hour to the airport. Our flight departs at 3 PM today (Friday) and arrives at 10 AM today (Friday) in Los Angeles. Odd. But we've gotten somewhat used to being in a different hemisphere.
Final thing before we are out the door will be to put on our Dr. Scholl's cankle preventers....aka TED hose. We bought some (Dr. Scholl's brand in UK sizes so we are hoping they do the trick). Some of you will remember that by the time we arrived here our ankles were three times their normal sizes. For the return trip home we are hoping to at least keep them compressed to no more than twice their size.
Our trek home will take a mere 21 hours. When we arrive in Charlotte at 8:45 pm Friday night it will be 1 PM on Saturday in Sydney. Theoretically we should be wide awake! We'll see.
We are on Qantas Flight 11.
Packing
Packing is always exciting when you come back. The collapsible mesh laundry hamper ($5.00 at Walgreens) that lives in the suitcase permanently is still appreciated as a wonderful concept and money well spent. The motion-detector battery operated nightlight appears to have given up the ghost. At $10.00 from the Sportsman's Guide, it's done at least half a dozen cruises and other trips, so it's been a good deal, too. The older you get, the more important it is to be able to find your way around the bathroom in the middle of the night. Preferably without waking up the other people in the room.
I turn all the clothes that are dirty wrong-side out, so it’s easy to sort the laundry when we get home. In this case, it’s also pointless since by now most everything is dirty even with the two laundry jobs that have occurred since we left. We’ve each abandoned a pair of shoes here, and as is our norm an assortment of raggy underwear has reached the end of its useful life and will be left behind. What we're wearing home could safely be worn to the emergency room without embarrassing either of our mothers should the need arise. Luggage didn’t get lighter for us, though (we’re still pushing 50 pounds in each of those large suitcases, the maximum allowed by US Airways without a penalty), but our carry-ons are much lighter than they were. All the reading material that came initially, either for work or to be read, “when we get around to it,” is relegated to the big luggage now in recognition that we’re unlikely to read it on the way back home. This wasn't really a "reading" trip for some reason, probably because there wasn't a lot of pool time built in like on a cruise.
It’s been a great trip – the longest we’ve ever taken together, and we haven’t killed each other and even still enjoy traveling together. That’s more than a lot of people can say after sharing a hotel room for 3 weeks, so we’re in good shape. Although we’re both ready to go home, it’s not homesickness. If there were another week or two, we’d be fine with that as well.
This isn't the last entry yet. We've got some more pics to put up, and with two VERY long plane rides ahead of us I'm sure that something will come up that ought to be included. Besides, we've still got commentary on things we noticed to include.
I turn all the clothes that are dirty wrong-side out, so it’s easy to sort the laundry when we get home. In this case, it’s also pointless since by now most everything is dirty even with the two laundry jobs that have occurred since we left. We’ve each abandoned a pair of shoes here, and as is our norm an assortment of raggy underwear has reached the end of its useful life and will be left behind. What we're wearing home could safely be worn to the emergency room without embarrassing either of our mothers should the need arise. Luggage didn’t get lighter for us, though (we’re still pushing 50 pounds in each of those large suitcases, the maximum allowed by US Airways without a penalty), but our carry-ons are much lighter than they were. All the reading material that came initially, either for work or to be read, “when we get around to it,” is relegated to the big luggage now in recognition that we’re unlikely to read it on the way back home. This wasn't really a "reading" trip for some reason, probably because there wasn't a lot of pool time built in like on a cruise.
It’s been a great trip – the longest we’ve ever taken together, and we haven’t killed each other and even still enjoy traveling together. That’s more than a lot of people can say after sharing a hotel room for 3 weeks, so we’re in good shape. Although we’re both ready to go home, it’s not homesickness. If there were another week or two, we’d be fine with that as well.
This isn't the last entry yet. We've got some more pics to put up, and with two VERY long plane rides ahead of us I'm sure that something will come up that ought to be included. Besides, we've still got commentary on things we noticed to include.
Bondi Beach
Thursday is our last full day, and it’s gloriously sunny out, but not terribly hot – about 85 F, which is great beach weather. Given that, we decided to do the one thing we hadn’t gotten to do yet, which is actually go to the beach and sit on the sand.
Bondi Beach (pronounced bon-DI, like “Lady Di” at the end) is rated by the Travel Channel as one of the top ten beaches in the world. Now we know why. It’s got a beautiful sandy layout between the sea wall and the water. The sand itself is incredibly fine – something between cake flour and sugar – and amazingly sticky.
There have been shark sitings in the area. There’s a “shark net” at Manly Beach, another famous beach here, but yesterday’s paper showed a guy standing and holding it up with holes in the net, saying they catch about a dozen sharks a week at the beach!!
This left us debating a quandary – would the sharks go for those little skinny guys, who might be faster but are probably easier to wrestle down, or would they think we big, slow moving things would be an easier target? We hoped they’d opt for the fact that big slow things tend to be kinda chewy and tough, while those little wiry ones got more flavor in ‘em.
Once we stuck our feet in the water it all proved irrelevant unless there’s a breed of flat shark that can live in 6 inches of water. First, it was COLD. About like the water is outside of Provincetown, MA. That was enough to keep those of us with neither a surfboard nor a burning desire to get sand in our jiggly bits on the shore. The other thing was the signs about the dangerous rip currents, and the direction to swim in certain areas – locations we didn’t happen to be.
Instead, we slathered ourselves with SPF 50 and stayed on the beach, soaking up the nanojoules of sunlight in anticipation of return to February in North Carolina tomorrow. Well, actually day after tomorrow, but still tomorrow by the calendar, since we lose the day we gained on the way over.
Before we got so toasty that anything was going to peel again, we gathered our hotel towels and hit the sidewalk showers, where we learned that another element of the sand is apparently glue, because it wouldn’t turn lose. We decided just to go home gritty.
A walk up the street adjacent to the beach proved interesting. You couldn’t buy a T-shirt there with the name Bondi Beach on it anywhere unless you were, oh, the size of a very small munchkin. While V-tapers from shoulders to waist may be all the rage for young Australian surfers, those of us who are more pyramoidal in shape needed T-shirts with a bit more room. Ultimately, we decided that it was time to catch the bus back and we had enough T-shirts anyhow. If the Australian economy fails by $24.99, we’ll take full responsibility. Otherwise, it’s their problem.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Tapas Lunch
For lunch, we stopped at a Spanish Tapas place that we’d noticed earlier. We weren’t really sure about it, and the menu seemed a bit confusing. Eventually, the waiter came by and said something along the lines of, “I’ll pick for you; you don’t like it, you don’t pay. What kinda beer you want?”
Probably one of the best meals we’ve had in ages. Started with a sizzling shrimp scampi, accompanied by mushrooms in some kind of sauce and huge hot rolls. He kept coming by and saying something, which we eventually realized was, “your fish will be right out.”
Out came an enormous plate with some type of white fish, with two lumps of steamed potatoes on it and mussels on the top, all in a sauce we finally decided was probably like a paramesean cheese. It was amazing. Really, really amazing. And we paid the bill – it was well worth the money.
www.capitantorres.com.au – 73 Liverpool Street, Sydney, NSW 2000.
Probably one of the best meals we’ve had in ages. Started with a sizzling shrimp scampi, accompanied by mushrooms in some kind of sauce and huge hot rolls. He kept coming by and saying something, which we eventually realized was, “your fish will be right out.”
Out came an enormous plate with some type of white fish, with two lumps of steamed potatoes on it and mussels on the top, all in a sauce we finally decided was probably like a paramesean cheese. It was amazing. Really, really amazing. And we paid the bill – it was well worth the money.
www.capitantorres.com.au – 73 Liverpool Street, Sydney, NSW 2000.
Chinese Gardens
OK, let me start by saying that if I gave any impression whatsoever that I was unhappy with the cloudy / rainy weather, I’d like to retract that. This afternoon, about lunchtime, the sun came out. With a vengeance. It’s now VERY hot and humid out there, much like late July in North Carolina. Suddenly I realize (as EB’s been saying all along) that the clouds were actually a blessing and we were lucky to have had them for most of this time.
Today was low-key to begin with. With a longer vacation time, we don’t feel as rushed to “get out and see everything”, so there’s little need to be up at 5 and out the door by 7ish most mornings. Besides, nothing really opens until after 10 anyhow so there’s not much point.
Today we walked up George Street (actually, a block over from George, just to see some different scenery) to Liverpool Street and then to the Chinese Gardens. As public gardens usually do, it whets my appetite to go home and work in the yard. And, as usual, I have to recognize that these places have an army of full-time gardeners on staff who live for the sole purpose of making the grounds look spectacular.
It’s very formal, very Chinese, but also very calm and relaxing. There are enormous koi in the pond – some are probably 18 inches long – and they’re obviously used to being treated well and fed. If you stood at the water’s edge for long, they came up and expected a snack.
We got the last brief shower of the morning there, which we enjoyed from under a little shelter whilst watching the fish and the water around us. It was amazingly relaxing.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Work Ethic
Our hotel is in the midst of lots of high rise office buildings. We can see into a lot of the offices at night. Although you see some people in there until 8:00 who are obviously working at desks (and not cleaning), the vast majority are cleared out sometime between 5 and 6. Rush hour seems to happen about that same time as well, and in the mornings people ride the train and ferry into this area as well.
A 2 hour lunch doesn’t seem to be unusual, either. Lots of places offer what seems to be a very leisurely lunch, or people tend to exercise. There are lots of downtown joggers / walkers during the lunch period. They’re the ones eating a salad rather than wolfing down a super-sized something or other.
Australian Food
Food here is interesting. It’s really not that different than you’d find in a large American city, and, of course, there are the typical chain restaurants – McDonalds, Subway, Hungry Jack’s (i.e. Burger King), and they’re apparently patronized sufficiently to warrant their frequency.
There are lots of little restaurants, though, that appear to be family owned, non-chain and somewhat unique. We’ve gotten in the habit of going to one immediately next to the hotel every morning for coffee and breakfast. Generally, 2 Flat White Mugs, 2 Long Black Mugs (the former being coffee with lots of steamed milk, to which I’ve become addicted, the latter being simply black coffee, and a “mug” being the word for “large”) and 2 ham and cheese croissants run $18.50 Australian – about $12.50 US. Not far off of typical big city prices that we’re used to.
In Australian restaurants, an “entrée” is what we typically call an “appetizer”, and a “main” is our “entrée”. Another interesting thing is that it tends to all come out at once, especially if you order a salad – it’s brought with the meal, not ahead of time. In Perth we noticed a couple of the restaurants served the salads French style – after the meal.
Portions here, unless the restaurant is geared toward the tourist industry, are slightly smaller than in the US; they’re more in line with what a person actually SHOULD eat, rather than what we can stuff into ourselves. The food tends to be somewhat healthier as well, with more stir fried veggies and fish available. Part of that seems to be the Asian influence here, too.
Australian Dress and Appearances
Australians overall are much trimmer than Americans (and some Europeans). While they naturally “settle” and get a bit bigger as they age, they do so much more slowly than Americans. They appear to stay “fitter” some 10 to 15 years longer than we do, probably in part due to the walking they do. Mass trans is everywhere here, and seems to be used by most everyone. They don’t go to the mall, so shopping for dinner can involve going to several different stores to get everything. The end result is there is a lot of walking, by most everyone. I suspect that traffic and the cost of parking contributes to that as well. If Americans are a “3” on a healthy scale from 1 to 10, Australians are probably a “7” or better, at least until they top the 60ish age range.
The other cultural difference we note is that men here don’t wear pleated pants. While we thought that was just the style in the US, it’s now apparent that it’s to cover a rear end that’s 2 ax handles wide in many cases. The other thing that’s different is that their clothes are tailored very tight. VERY TIGHT. To the point that you could not only read some of their credit card numbers, you quite possibly could read the expiration date on the back of the card.
In Sydney, at least, they also tend to dress up a bit more. Although you see shorts and T’s, you also see lots more tailored shorts (as opposed to cargo shorts) and collared shirts. The dress for work in the central business district appears to be slacks, a long sleeved shirt, with a tie either on or available. Cuff links are much more in use here than in the US, and although ties often come off at lunch, they seem to go back on when they go back to work in the afternoons.
Things on the bridge
One of the funniest stories that Damion told was about things that the workers have found on the bridge, primarily pre-9/11 when enhanced security was installed. In addition to lots and lots of cameras, cell phones, and sunglasses, there have also been clothing (especially underwear for both genders), shoes, and things of that nature. It was apparently something of a rite of passage for graduates to sneak onto the bridge and climb it (without paths, safety rails, etc.).
At the very peak, where we crossed over, there is a tower with a red light on top of it. You climb a ladder about 12 ft. or so from where we were to the crow's nest with the light bulb. It's approximately centered between the two flagpoles you see on top here.
It seems that the workers, shortly after graduation season one year, found a "shopping trolly" (i.e. grocery cart) up there.
Full of empty beer cans.
I wonder if it said "Harris Teeter" on it?
Damian Took Us to the Top (of the bridge)
Damian was our guide. He said early on that the only danger that might come from falling would be if he fell on someone, thus crushing them. He is a VERY big boy, as you can see from the photo.
Pre-Climb EB
Weren't we all "smiley" right after we got into our sexy flight suits. Mine (eb's) was already wet.....you know.....just a little bit a pee.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Bridge Climb (Tuesday)
Well, today was the big day. It’s cloudy (as normal) but not raining. Overall, not a bad day to be outdoors, though. It’s about a 4 block walk to where you start the bridge climb.
Our tickets to the bridge climb had two times on them – 10:00 and 12:15. We assumed we were booked in for 10:00, but that wasn’t the case. Fortunately, we were early and she asked if we’d like to go on the 9:30 climb. Australians are SO polite and accommodating!
These people have this worked out. You check in, sit and watch a little video and then they take your group (about 12) back into another room. There you fill out an information form and take a breathalyzer test. Yeah, you got it – nobody has liquid courage before going up there.
After that, you’re moved into yet another room where you have to empty your pockets and are issued a jumpsuit. Our biggest concern was whether they’d make them in “American” sizes that would work for us. Yes, they do – the potential humiliation of being turned back was averted.
You go behind a curtain to change – why, I don’t know, because you put this on over your clothes – and put all your pocket stuff in a locker. You’re allowed eyeglasses or sunglasses, rings, a necklace and small earrings, but nothing else, and they enforce this with a metal detector. You can’t have bits of paper, Kleenex, or anything else in your pockets, either.
You then put on this jumpsuit (incidentally, why is it called a “jumpsuit” for a bridge climb??) that has the zipper in the back and no pockets. Again, there’s little way for you to have fished anything out even if you took it with you. Because of the weather, they also gave us rain pants and a little backpack hooked onto our fannies with a rain hoodie in it if we needed it.
The one thing we noticed was that it was all HOT. Everything was nylon and although it had little breather panels in it, it still was pretty warm, like one of those exercise suits that’s guaranteed to melt away the pounds if you just wear it a few short hours each day.
We were also issued things that you might want but couldn’t take – hats had a leash to clip to the back of your jumper, and hankies had an elastic strap on them so they went around your wrist and tucked up into your sleeve. Caps or beanies, your choice. If you wore glasses or sunglasses, they had retainers to make sure they stayed with you, too.
You then got a safety belt (again, sufficiently large) and it had this little round thing about the size of a tennis ball on it. It was fastened to a D-ring in the middle of the belt in front. Inside the “tennis ball” was two spiked wheels that acted like little turnstiles. Once this was fed onto the safety cable, it couldn’t go off until it was at the end again, and the wheels let it pass by the retainer hooks that held the cable in place.
We also were given radios so we could hear the guide. The headphones didn’t go in your ears, though, but instead rested on your face just in front of your ears and vibrated through that way. It was pretty neat, because you didn’t get cauliflower ear from the headphones.
Oh, we also put on “rain pants” over our jumpers. These were a thicker plastic than the nylon jump suits. Since there were no bathrooms from the time you filled out the paperwork until you left the bridge, though, my theory is that they had a potential dual purpose. I leave it to you to imagine what that might be.
Climbing the bridge was exciting, but not traumatic in any way. The first thing you noticed was there were no “ladders” in the conventional sense, but just a lot of very steep staircases. From the time we entered the first one until we left that same staircase, we were latched to the safety cable. After we went up about 4 of these, probably 3 stories worth, we were then on a catwalk that went up over the top of the bridge. You went up to the midpoint, then crossed over and came back down the other side parallel to what you just went up. The picture of the two of us together was taken at the top, as you crossed over from one side to the other. You could see through the catwalk down to the roadway level below. I have no idea how far it was, but in reality it didn't matter. It was a whole bunch.
Incidentally, at the peak, according to Damion (our guide, who stands about 6’6) you’d have 5.2 seconds of freefall before you hit the water. I figure that’s one, maybe 1.5 very fast “Hail Mary’s” before the splat if one were to make the jump.
At one point when we were on the return leg, we were at the “ladders” again. You have to go down these one at a time, and the person ahead of you has to have cleared to the next one before you start.
Eddie was ahead of me, and I was about ½ way down the one that’s just at roadway level when WHOOSH!!! A train came screeching by on my right hand side. It was barely gone and my heart had just switched out of passing gear when WHOOSH!!! One came from behind me going the other direction on the other side.
My theory about the dual purpose of the rain pants was almost proven.
We returned to the ground as our legs were just starting to tremble a bit. Since I couldn’t take notes, I don’t have any of the historical data that Damian gave us – you’ll just have to look it up online. The one thing I do remember is that there are over 6 million rivets, none of which have had to be replaced since construction.
Incidentally – they were installed hot, so they had these little furnaces that were up on the ironwork to heat them up. To get them to the workers timely (and hot), they threw them.
Yup, someone was employed as a “rivet catcher”. He had one piece of safety equipment – a bucket with a bit of sand in it, in which he caught the red-hot rivets. The sand was to keep them from burning through the bottom of the bucket. They estimate that about 15,000 ended up in the bottom of the river.
That’s a job that I wouldn’t want, especially when there were no safety harnesses or much else in the way of equipment to keep you from falling.
Once we were down, and through the gift shop, of course, our next order of business was lunch and a beer. That having been accomplished, we decided it’s a good afternoon to come back for a nap, having risked our lives up high and all today.
It was a great activity, and I highly recommend it to anyone who happens to come to Sydney. I don’t like high places AT ALL, but never felt any apprehension about the event. It was a spectacular view, though, that you wouldn’t get anywhere else in the world.
The order of Monday's postings
are not in the order we had intended. It's too much work to go back and repost. Enjoy them in their mixed up order.
Mrs. Macquaries Chair 12
Governor Maquarie was the 4th territorial governor of New South Wales. He’s attributed responsibility for straightening out and building the major roads and thoroughfares through the City. His wife, after whom at least one road is named, convinced the convicts to carve her a “chair” out of the rock at the end of the road so she could sit and watch the harbor.
Bear in mind, this was 1810, and she was probably a bit bored, since there wasn’t much in the way of civilized society besides the convicts that were stationed here.
It’s said to be THE place from which to see the New Year’s fireworks, since it’s got a great view of both the Opera House and the Bridge, with the fireworks set off in the harbour just between the two.
Health Care 11
Everyone pays 2% of their salary into “medicare”, and it provides baseline health to everyone. The problem is, if that’s all you have you can wait for years for routine, non-emergency healthcare. (Think hip replacement). Thus, everyone is encouraged to get private insurance coverage as well. Generally, if you buy this young, you’ll get a guaranteed lower rate than if you try to jump into the system when you’re older. At 65, everyone gets a pension much like our Social Security, although it’s a sliding rate based on resources.
Health insurance premiums are tax deductible. Their insurance seems to work much like ours with co-pays and prescription cards.
Health insurance premiums are tax deductible. Their insurance seems to work much like ours with co-pays and prescription cards.
Schools 10
School is back in session after “summer break” here. Remember the seasons are reversed, so it’s hot at Christmas for them. Interestingly enough, you can get a certificate at the 10th grade, or if you’re going to go on to college you go to the 12th grade and get a diploma much like we’re used to. Most everyone sees a diploma as the minimum for any type of job any more.
All school kids, whether public or private, wear uniforms. Not just that they have one of a set list of colors of polo shirts and a choice of pants – they wear skirt, long or short pants and a shirt or blouse, some with a necktie and some with a hat. Not much variation there. High School students do get to help in the design of their uniforms, though, so some are pretty sporty, being put out by companies that make surf-wear and board shorts. Who says cross-marketing won’t work?
Uniforms aren’t mandated on “sport day”. Every high school student takes a “sport” of some type. This can be pretty broad in that it generally means an “activity”. In some locations, that can be grape growing and wine making. Here, surfing is offered as a class.
When you graduate high school, you get a ranking between 1 and 100. This determines which schools will let you in, the higher the number generally the better the school. Australian citizens who want to go to college can get HECS student loans. They seem to work much like loans in the US.
All school kids, whether public or private, wear uniforms. Not just that they have one of a set list of colors of polo shirts and a choice of pants – they wear skirt, long or short pants and a shirt or blouse, some with a necktie and some with a hat. Not much variation there. High School students do get to help in the design of their uniforms, though, so some are pretty sporty, being put out by companies that make surf-wear and board shorts. Who says cross-marketing won’t work?
Uniforms aren’t mandated on “sport day”. Every high school student takes a “sport” of some type. This can be pretty broad in that it generally means an “activity”. In some locations, that can be grape growing and wine making. Here, surfing is offered as a class.
When you graduate high school, you get a ranking between 1 and 100. This determines which schools will let you in, the higher the number generally the better the school. Australian citizens who want to go to college can get HECS student loans. They seem to work much like loans in the US.
More Horticulture 8
I’d leave this alone, but it just amazes me. Norfolk Island Pines, those things that we get as plants from the florist, grow wild here on, duh, Norfolk Island. This is an Australian Territory. Here, the trees grow 30 or 40 feet tall.
Another plant that I mistook for a pine tree of some type is actually called the She Oak. It has jointed needle-like growths for leaves. The neat trick they have is that if you sever at a joint, it’ll stick back together and re-attach itself (although it won’t grow after that and eventually dies).
In an interesting twist, we also saw signs for Noxious Weed Control Test Plots – the weed in question? Asparagus Fern – again, like we buy at the garden center or get from the florist.
Another plant that I mistook for a pine tree of some type is actually called the She Oak. It has jointed needle-like growths for leaves. The neat trick they have is that if you sever at a joint, it’ll stick back together and re-attach itself (although it won’t grow after that and eventually dies).
In an interesting twist, we also saw signs for Noxious Weed Control Test Plots – the weed in question? Asparagus Fern – again, like we buy at the garden center or get from the florist.
Suburban Landscape 7
The area around Sydney feels very “Lake Lure” or “Blowing Rock”. (“Mountain Park” for those of you in Oklahoma). Fairly small houses, many of which you’d think are vacation homes although he says they’re occupied full time. They sit RIGHT ON the road, usually with the other end hanging off a cliff and sometimes have rather unique parking alongside the road and also hanging off a cliff.
As noted before, the closer you are to the water, the more expensive the real estate. Here, there weren’t any slips for the numerous boats, but instead everything anchored to buoys in the various harbors. No point eating up all that real estate with boat storage!
At one point along the beach we saw a couple out in about ankle deep water with what looked to be pieces of pipe about 2 inches across. Barry told us they were digging “Pippies”, which are small mussel-like creatures about the size of a 50 cent piece. The things they had were plungers; they’d feel for the pippies with their toes, then stick this down and pull up, sucking them out of the sand. They can then either be eaten or used as fish bait.
As noted before, the closer you are to the water, the more expensive the real estate. Here, there weren’t any slips for the numerous boats, but instead everything anchored to buoys in the various harbors. No point eating up all that real estate with boat storage!
At one point along the beach we saw a couple out in about ankle deep water with what looked to be pieces of pipe about 2 inches across. Barry told us they were digging “Pippies”, which are small mussel-like creatures about the size of a 50 cent piece. The things they had were plungers; they’d feel for the pippies with their toes, then stick this down and pull up, sucking them out of the sand. They can then either be eaten or used as fish bait.
It's a Small World 6
Those of you out West know what Eskimo Joe’s is. Most everyone else has seen me wearing a sweatshirt with that infamous logo on it – it shows an Eskimo head wearing a parka and next to it is his faithful husky, mouth open and drooling. It’s an Oklahoma icon that anyone who went to Oklahoma State University would know.
You can imagine my surprise when Barry tossed down the car keys to put something in the back end and I saw an Eskimo Joe’s keychain on it. He had no idea what it was, but believed me when I said that on the back it had the motto, “Stillwater’s Jumpin’ Little Juke Joint” without looking at it.
What are the chances?
You can imagine my surprise when Barry tossed down the car keys to put something in the back end and I saw an Eskimo Joe’s keychain on it. He had no idea what it was, but believed me when I said that on the back it had the motto, “Stillwater’s Jumpin’ Little Juke Joint” without looking at it.
What are the chances?
West Head or "Commodore Heights" 3
Our first stop, for “morning tea” was at West Head, which is also known as Commodore Heights. It was very windy but just awe-inspiring in the beauty. The pics we’ve got don’t do it justice. The point with a lighthouse is called Barrenjoey, which means “baby wallaby”. Apparently the offspring of all marsupials (in Australia, at least) are called “joeys”.
Although a very wealthy suburb of Sydney now, this was originally a very isolated location that was popular with smugglers since it was fairly removed from civilization and had good locations to go ashore. Barry pointed out that if you sailed due east from this point of land, the next landfall you’d hit is South America.
Wildlife 2
We saw some Wallobees alongside the road (hopping, still alive). They look like small kangaroos to the untrained eye, except they’re kind of blackish in color and fairly small – about like a beagle or so. We looked for Koalas, but he said that they’re very reclusive and difficult to spot, and it was unlikely that we’d see any in the wild. This proved accurate as well.
We also saw a sign warning us about Bandicoots, which we’d never heard of. They’re another marsupial. In Australia, in addition to endangered species, there are “reportable species”, which means that they’re so rare that if you see them you’re supposed to call the Forest Service so they can be aware of it. Bandicoots apparently fall into this category. Like the Koalas, we had nothing to report.
While at “morning tea”, I heard an unsual bird call. I tried to get it on the video, and later we saw the kukoborro bird sitting on a fence. It was the only thing to hold still long enough for a photograph, other than this enormous St. Andrew’s Spider.
No, they’re not poisonous. We didn’t take any chances, though. Good thing the camera’s got a telephoto lens available!
The Bush 1 (Monday)
OK boys and girls, we’ve got a lot to cover today so you may want to take some notes. Some of this information may be on a little quiz later. Or not – I realize not everyone is as infatuated with the factual stuff that I am. But I can’t help it – it feeds me to the core.
Today we did a tourist thing again – we did a tour of the beaches around Sydney through an organization called Australian Eco Adventures, and Barry was our guide. He was probably a little older than us, I’d guess pushing 60, and we were the only ones on the tour. Unlike the Czech Republic, we were in a nice Toyota 4-runner with fuzzy seat covers.
I’ve noticed that a couple of times – there seems to be the same penchant for fuzzy seat covers that the US had circa 1985. I don’t know why – they aren’t any more attractive now than they were then. I suspect it’s because they’re cheap and easily replaced.
In any event, we drove out of the City and Barry gave us a running commentary. He says that Sydney is very decentralized, so there are as many people going to outlying “country towns” to work as there are coming into the center city. He said that a lot of government offices have been dispersed to outlying towns for that specific purpose.
Suburbs tend to be somewhat universal. There are high end ones and lower end ones, and they eb and flow. One difference, though, is that they have either train or bus service throughout all of these suburbs, so you aren’t isolated once you get out there.
Most of the terrain is steep rolling hills, which they call Bush Land. Most of what we were going through was a national park / forest preserve. After seeing it up close, though, it’s easy to see why the fires in Victoria couldn’t be contained. You’d have had to hack your way through it, and even then it would have been tough going. Most of the growth is low scrub that tends to grow in layers, making for thick going. If a fire started, you couldn’t have kept up with it.
A lot of the forest is Eucalyptus, of which there are over 700 varieties. They apparently are somewhat like cedar trees in a fire, in that the air can actually get hot enough as it goes up the hill to cause the oil in them to explode the trees, thereby throwing the fire further out. Like the forest fires in the western US, though, they’re necessary for rejuvenation. The Banksia Tree, of which there are hundreds of varieties, grow a seed pod that looks something like a walnut from the flower. The seeds can be dormant for 20 or 30 years until a fire comes along, causes the pod to explode and throw the seeds out.
Eucalyptus trees also come out with a special leaf just after a fire (sometimes within hours). Koala’s don’t like the taste of these, so they leave them alone to let the trees rejuvenate. Once the tree is re-established, these leaves turn “mature”, the lower ones fall off and the tree goes back to normal.
Today we did a tourist thing again – we did a tour of the beaches around Sydney through an organization called Australian Eco Adventures, and Barry was our guide. He was probably a little older than us, I’d guess pushing 60, and we were the only ones on the tour. Unlike the Czech Republic, we were in a nice Toyota 4-runner with fuzzy seat covers.
I’ve noticed that a couple of times – there seems to be the same penchant for fuzzy seat covers that the US had circa 1985. I don’t know why – they aren’t any more attractive now than they were then. I suspect it’s because they’re cheap and easily replaced.
In any event, we drove out of the City and Barry gave us a running commentary. He says that Sydney is very decentralized, so there are as many people going to outlying “country towns” to work as there are coming into the center city. He said that a lot of government offices have been dispersed to outlying towns for that specific purpose.
Suburbs tend to be somewhat universal. There are high end ones and lower end ones, and they eb and flow. One difference, though, is that they have either train or bus service throughout all of these suburbs, so you aren’t isolated once you get out there.
Most of the terrain is steep rolling hills, which they call Bush Land. Most of what we were going through was a national park / forest preserve. After seeing it up close, though, it’s easy to see why the fires in Victoria couldn’t be contained. You’d have had to hack your way through it, and even then it would have been tough going. Most of the growth is low scrub that tends to grow in layers, making for thick going. If a fire started, you couldn’t have kept up with it.
A lot of the forest is Eucalyptus, of which there are over 700 varieties. They apparently are somewhat like cedar trees in a fire, in that the air can actually get hot enough as it goes up the hill to cause the oil in them to explode the trees, thereby throwing the fire further out. Like the forest fires in the western US, though, they’re necessary for rejuvenation. The Banksia Tree, of which there are hundreds of varieties, grow a seed pod that looks something like a walnut from the flower. The seeds can be dormant for 20 or 30 years until a fire comes along, causes the pod to explode and throw the seeds out.
Eucalyptus trees also come out with a special leaf just after a fire (sometimes within hours). Koala’s don’t like the taste of these, so they leave them alone to let the trees rejuvenate. Once the tree is re-established, these leaves turn “mature”, the lower ones fall off and the tree goes back to normal.
Spectacular Lunch 9
Lunch was nothing short of spectacular. We made the typical American mistake of thinking we’d pop in, grab a bite and be ready to leave in less than an hour.
This wasn’t that kind of place. We started with a glass of wine on the patio, which is about 500 feet above the water, just relaxing and watching the surf crash. We then moved in and had these remarkable fish dishes (I have no idea; EB’s was a couple of types of fish kind of folded together and grilled, mine was a white fish that was lightly browned and then “stuffed” with some type of crab filling).
This was topped off with desert which was a “sweet tray”, a number of different sweet nibblies, all of which were obviously hand done and amazing, and a Peach and tea ice cream sundae with some type of raspberry stuff thrown in for good measure. By the time we finished all that with coffees, we were ready to settle in for a nap.
Oh, and the Lunch Gods were good to us – the sun came out just as we arrived, and we had glorious views and sunshine throughout the meal. Of course, as soon as we got back in the car it started to rain again.
Monday -- Aboriginal Markings in the Bush 4
The first stop was at some aboriginal carvings. I just assumed these would be on the side of a cliff or cave. Instead, we found that the sandstone (which is mostly what the ground is made of) is called “tessellated pavement”, meaning that it has deep lines that make “pavers” on the ground. It looks very much like a sidewalk or patio that someone had laid, except the lines between the pavers are deeper.
Anyhow, these carvings are in the flat stones, like a little kid would write on the sidewalk with chalk. The pics are a little tough – they obviously don’t want you walking on them, so there’s some distance, and it was raining again, so everything was wet. They don’t have any idea when they were done or how old they are, either, since the culture didn’t date things in that way. There tend to be anatomically correct men and women, fish, and animals. The thought is that in their belief system, drawing pictures of the critters would make for a good hunt.
It was fascinating to see these things and recognize that they’re thousands of years old and still there. Although they’re not sure exactly how the were made, they theorize that individual holes were chipped in the stone and then the dividers were broken out to make the lines.
A number of aboriginal words have made their way into location names here. Being used to Pushmataha, Osage and Pottawatamie Counties, this didn’t surprise me. Words that are repeated are used to emphasize the “moreness” of something. Thus, Woggawogga means “deep water”. Curracurra (I think) is now a town and was an original location of a “borra ring”, where young boys were initiated into manhood in the aboriginal culture. This involved burning, tattooing and scarring, among other things, and was apparently quite involved. If I got my notes right, Curracurra means something along the lines of, “place where young men begin a long journey of life”.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Sunday in Sydney
Today was a day of foot exploration again. We got up fairly late, at least by our standards – it was 8:30 or so before we’d rolled out and I’d gone in search of coffee.
There’s only instant in the room. Otherwise it’s a 5 star hotel. We can overlook this glaring oversight, though.
At least, I thought we could – until I went to the two coffee places immediately next to the hotel, one a regular café and the other just a roll cart – only to find that they’re both closed on Sunday.
Don’t these people know that coffee doesn’t follow a calendar????
It’s not a complete crisis, though, since there’s a Starbucks in sight of our hotel. Coffee is the one exception to “no national chains while traveling” rule, if there’s no alternative. The next rung down the ladder was the McDonald’s just up the street the other way from the Starbucks, and that would have been a fall indeed.
Anyhow, the weather sucked again today, so rushing about to go out wasn’t a big issue. We got a couple of suggestions from people, all of whom assured us that this weather wasn’t the norm – usually it’s hot and sunny here this time of year – although given that we’re unlikely to return here in this lifetime, it’s largely irrelevant.
Anyhow, we got a couple of suggestions for “indoor” activities this afternoon, decided the weather be damned and headed out.
One thing that was going on this afternoon was the Mardi Gras Fair, which officially kicks off the mardi gras season.
The weather was particularly uncooperative in the early afternoon. By the time we caught the bus to the park where the fair was happening and walked the last 4 or 5 blocks, a full-blown monsoon was in effect. We had our umbrellas, as did most everyone else, but the vendors had little choice other than to cover everything up with plastic to try and protect it. You had to feel sorry for them – it was a big event, and obviously a lot of effort and planning had gone into it, only to be rained out.
We are a hardy people, though, and most were not to be daunted by a little precipitation. Cheap ponchos abounded and umbrellas were everywhere.
We were “faired” out after a relatively short period of time and headed off to find lunch. It’s a short walk from the park where this was held to Darling Harbour, so we decided to go that direction. The rain let up enough for us to have fish and chips at a restaurant next to the harbour and we then decided that the casino was just a short walk away.
The Casino Gods were not especially kind to the Americanos. After an hour, we’d blown our allotted fun money and headed back to wander into the town.
It’s interesting to note that businesses here close at 7:30 p.m. You can't buy anything (outside of a convenience store) after that. Sundays are even worse; lots of things are closed, and restaurants (and apparently businesses) add a 10% surcharge on if you’re going to shop with them. Instead of running sales to get you in, they’re encouraging you to stay home.
We came back to the hotel long enough to dry out and change into long pants and decide where to go for dinner. Went to a great restaurant by cab, outside of the tourist district. The bar downstairs was really going despite the fact that it was 6:30 on a Sunday evening. The restaurant upstairs, though, was blissfully quiet and the food was great (French – we both had steaks, though).
The rain finally decided to let up sometime while we were in the restaurant, so we had a dry cab ride home. We were too tired to figure out the bus / train system at that point, so despite the fact that our passes are good until 4:00 tomorrow morning, we opted for the easy solution and took a cab.
Tomorrow is a “Harbour Tour”, and we’re being picked up at the hotel at 8:30 in the morning. That’s a considerably earlier start than we’ve had in the last few days, so we opted for an earlier bedtime tonight. Now if the weather will cooperate, we’ll be in good shape.
Interestingly enough, they’ve had several shark attacks in the last week or so here in Sydney. The word in the paper is not to swim at dusk – like I’d go in any deeper than my ankles at this point! One guy that got chewed up was in less than 3 feet of water. They say it’s a sign that the pollution that once existed in the harbour is being effectively remediated, since the fish are coming back and consequently the sharks that eat the fish are also coming back. I guess swimmers are just a bonus for the sharks!
Happy Valentine's Day
Today, the heavens have opened up and the rains fallen. Normally the weather doesn’t impact whatever we’re going to do – dress for it, figure you won’t melt and go on.
But c’mon – we’ve had over a week of rain every single day, which follows a week of record-breaking heat that we experienced in Melbourne.
Weatherwise, the vacation has been somewhat lacking.
We went out and did a bit of shopping this morning at a street festival in the neighborhood called The Rock. It was mostly under tents, so wasn’t too bad whether it was raining or not; just kind of dampish.
Street festivals are all pretty similar. There’s some local stuff that can be kind of cool, and a lot of schlock imported from elsewhere that’s just what you’d think it would be. I think these places all hire someone to fry onions to whet your appetite as you go through.
It didn’t take us long to go through and figure out that we didn’t need or couldn’t carry much of what they were peddling.
This evening we met a friend who’d offered to show us around Chinatown. Ching is a production manager at the Sydney Opera who’s originally from Singapore, although he’s lived in Australia mostly as an adult. We failed to take into account that it’s Valentine’s Day, so the restaurants are packed. Finally, after we went to the 3rd place we were able to get in.
Ching says it’s not authentic Chinese if you don’t have a grumpy waiter. Our place must have been authentic, and I think the waiter was at least 110 years old! Ching picked, though, and we had a great dinner after which he showed us some of the places we ought to think about seeing – when the weather cleared up. It was pouring down rain, so we tended to be darting to an awning and then learning about whatever it was that we’d just passed.
But c’mon – we’ve had over a week of rain every single day, which follows a week of record-breaking heat that we experienced in Melbourne.
Weatherwise, the vacation has been somewhat lacking.
We went out and did a bit of shopping this morning at a street festival in the neighborhood called The Rock. It was mostly under tents, so wasn’t too bad whether it was raining or not; just kind of dampish.
Street festivals are all pretty similar. There’s some local stuff that can be kind of cool, and a lot of schlock imported from elsewhere that’s just what you’d think it would be. I think these places all hire someone to fry onions to whet your appetite as you go through.
It didn’t take us long to go through and figure out that we didn’t need or couldn’t carry much of what they were peddling.
This evening we met a friend who’d offered to show us around Chinatown. Ching is a production manager at the Sydney Opera who’s originally from Singapore, although he’s lived in Australia mostly as an adult. We failed to take into account that it’s Valentine’s Day, so the restaurants are packed. Finally, after we went to the 3rd place we were able to get in.
Ching says it’s not authentic Chinese if you don’t have a grumpy waiter. Our place must have been authentic, and I think the waiter was at least 110 years old! Ching picked, though, and we had a great dinner after which he showed us some of the places we ought to think about seeing – when the weather cleared up. It was pouring down rain, so we tended to be darting to an awning and then learning about whatever it was that we’d just passed.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Friday, February 13, 2009
Madame Butterfly
Friday evening we went to see Madame Butterfly at the Sydney Opera House. When we were in Vienna, we didn’t have a chance to go to the opera; the season had ended. Here, there’s apparently no end to the season, although it’s continually sold out. It was a very fulfilling experience.
What we learned is that everybody’s got problems. Some people drink. In Opera, they sing about them. The story is about a sleezy American sailor who buys a wife in Japan, allows her to believe he’s going to take her back to the US and then sails off on his ship. Instead, he comes back 3 years later not knowing that he’s fathered a son, and bringing his American wife. They take the child, the Japanese wife kills herself.
The set was very minimalist – a flat wooden parquet floor surrounded by a water-filled mote. There are 3 bridges from the sides at 9, 12 and 3 o’clock. White screens are used around the sides to expose or hide persons as they enter and exit. Interestingly enough, there were about 5 people dressed in white, kind of like mummies, who you weren’t supposed to notice. They moved things around on the stage. There really weren’t many props – at 5:00 on the stage there was a small platform that matched the flooring – think low coffee table and you’ve got it. Other than that, there were a few pillows, a couple of flags, some little hand props – oh, and a hari kari dagger.
Programs for Opera aren’t like the playbills in New York. It’s a single page, of which the back is a corporate advertisement. You do get a pretty good description of the action, though, and they list the characters in order of appearance. This is immensely helpful for those of us who's Italian is a bit rusty.
There’s a great deal of formality in the bows at the end of the performance, too. First, the Diva takes a bow alone, then she leaves and the minor characters come back, least important to the most. Finally the male lead comes (i.e. the “big fat opera singer”), then the orchestra conductor, then the female lead comes back out. There was a little kid in this who had a nonspeaking part, and he was joined in there, but I think that was just because he’s a cute little kid.
After all that, people then leave the stage and you keep clapping as they go out in reverse order. All in all, you’re clapping for a solid 10 minutes.
There’s no dress code for the opera. During the tour we took earlier in the day, the guide was quick to point that out. As a result, there was a mix of everything from elegant eveningwear (i.e. tux and long gowns) to shorts and flip-flops. The one thing that the ushers were adamant about was not taking photographs. Some people (not us) just had to take a quick pic, and they were promptly given a verbal warning to stop.
Overall, it was a great experience. I mean – it was Madame Butterfly at the Sydney Opera House – that’s something you’d tell your grandchildren about. On another level, though, the Opera is a lot like a colonoscopy. It’s appreciated, if not exactly enjoyed, by those who are well over 40. And, like that procedure, sometimes you’re relieved when it’s finally over. Everyone should do it occasionally, just for the cultural inoculation if nothing else.
Don’t get me wrong, it was beautiful, and the performances were excellent. But two hours and 45 minutes of Italian yodeling is a bit of a stretch in the enjoyment arena for some of us. If it weren’t for the fact that you could read the surtitles above the stage, I’d have been completely lost on what was happening after the first 15 minutes.
When we got out, about 10:30, it was raining harder than it has since we got here, which is saying a lot – it’s been an off and on downpour since we got here, and the weather forecast isn’t improving through the weekend – they’ve issued flood watches in some locations around Sydney.
Bottom line.....very glad we saw Mdm Butterfly. It's raining...big deal.....$5 umbrellas suffice. We're having a great time.
Bridge Climb Next Tuesday
See those tiny spots at the top of the bridge (right between the 2 flags). Them there is peeple (yes...I know it is mis-spelled).
Our bridge climb is scheduled for next Tuesday at 10 am. We keep walking by the thing....taking pictures of it....pondering it.....thinking about whether or not we're actually gonna do the 3 hour climb or not. Of course...with the new ruby red slippers (aka tennis shoes) I'll have a lotta grip to my soles (or in this case...maybe soul) to get me to the top, click my heels....and voila........not in Kansas anymore.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
The Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House
This morning it is raining again. The forecast is such that we’ve decided to make the $5 investment in umbrellas, since the weather is to go progressively downhill through the weekend with a strong likelihood of showers continuing through the week thereafter.
Fortunately, the Opera House is just a short walk from our hotel.
This building stands next to the grand cathedrals of Europe as a structure that takes your breath away. We signed up for a one hour tour, which involved some 200 stairs (not all at once) and was sufficient to answer most of our questions. I’ll try not to relate all the details (I took enough notes that it made the tour guide somewhat nervous), but some of it is absolutely fascinating (to me, anyhow). As always, those that aren’t interested are welcome to blip on by.
Incidentally, tickets are $15.00 for the one hour tour, which is well worth it, especially if you can’t get into an event either because of the cost or because everything is sold out.
The Opera House is on a location originally called Danelong Point, which had first a fort and then a Tram Stop located there. In the 1940’s, Sydney’s art community started looking for a venue for a performance venue and came up with this location. Then, in 1955 they did a worldwide competition for potential designs.
The judges were from around the world, and the Finnish guy was late – they didn’t say why – but he insisted on reviewing all 250+ submissions that they’d already ruled out when he got there. He pulled the concept plans for the structure out and convinced the others that this was the winner, despite the fact that he violated a number of rules of the contest and that the submission was little more than pencil sketches on the back of an envelope.
He convinced the other judges to go along with him, and the design was approved. Interestingly enough, in those days before computers, they had no idea if they could actually build the design. It was supposed to be poured-in-place concrete shells, but after 4 years of work (who needs plans? We don’t need no stinkin’ plans – go pour a foundation!) they figured out that wouldn’t work. The architect, a Danish guy named Jorn Utzon, was a 38 year old with no prior major projects to his credit, took a lot of heat and finally figured out that he could make pre-stressed concrete “ribs” to do the domes, which could then be set in place with cranes. This is now called the “Spherical Solution” and is apparently a common architectural method.
The Opera house is actually made of three different buildings. It has 5 big theatres, and lots of other performance spaces, including halls, conference rooms, etc. The three smallest venues have between 365 and 544 seats and are very adaptable. We were taken into the smallest, where nothing is permanently attached. It’s a “theater in the round” and has 9 configurations available. The maximum price for an event here is $45.00 per ticket, to encourage attendance by everyone, and it’s thus suited for unknown artists.
Utzon was a sailor, and this impacted his design a great deal. As such, you can go “behind” the large theaters to look out the windows onto the harbour.
The main concert hall has 2679 seats, all natural materials – wooden floors, molded birchwood seats, etc – all beautifully done. It has 38,000 cubic Meters of space in it, and has these cool Pexiglass rings that float over the performance space to help with the acoustics. Interestingly enough, most things can be performed there without electronic amplification necessary for the audience, although sometimes it’s needed for the performers to hear themselves.
The smaller hall is the actual “Opera” space, it’s got 1550 seats and is a very intimate setting – no binoculars are really needed here! This is the busiest venue and keeps a 90% occupancy, which is pretty remarkable for a public space.
Because there is no amplification, it’d wear out the opera singers if they had to perform consecutively, so there are frequently multiple performance things happening on alternating nights. Thus, you can see 5 different operas in a week, plus 2 on Saturday! Because the stage is narrow, they store the sets overhead and below; thus, they go up and down to allow different sets to be kept in place for the different shows at the same time.
Oh, and because Opera is performed in the original language, there’s a white screen above with English translations. It’s an amazing space.
One final note about the facility – It has one of the largest mechanical pipe organs in the world in the main theatre. It’s got 10138 pipes, 36 bells, 5 keyboards, 209 ranks and 8 ft. of pedals which have to be operated by the player. They say it’s physically exhausting to play it. Incidentally, it was designed by an Australian organmaker and took 10 years to build and over 2 years to tune.
As with all public works projects, this one was not without it’s issues. There were significant cost and time overruns, and eventually a change in government forced the architect to withdraw. He returned to Denmark and never saw his completed project. In an interesting turn of events, though, he was later recognized for the genius that he was, he was re-engaged for renovations to the facility and has drawn plans that will allow the space to be adapted and upgraded for years to come. He unfortunately died in 2007, but his son acted as his emissary to bring things back and forth. Thus, the upgrade going on with the facility now is actually his concept and plans, and there are enough to keep them busy for the next many years.
OK, sorry for the epistle on the Opera – but it is an amazing building. Words and pictures don’t do it justice – when you’re in it – even empty – you’re just filled with awe and reverence at the space.
Toilets
You wouldn’t think that two middle aged men would need directions on the toilets, but then again, you haven’t seen anything like this. They’re not like the Italian “squat and hope” system we encountered near the Vatican, but instead they’re stainless steel, just big troughs like ball fields used to have. The puzzling part is that there’s this metal grid in the bottom of it – is that to stand on? To catch your cell phone when you drop it? Or for some other reason we haven’t figured out yet?
All “regular” toilets, like in the hotels, etc., look very similar to US toilets. They have a smaller “water spot” than we’re used to (yes, that’s what it’s really called), and they’re under pressure, resulting in a WHOOSH when you push the button – and there’s usually 2 buttons, 1 for #1 which results in a lower water flow and 1 for #2, which goes full throttle.
All “regular” toilets, like in the hotels, etc., look very similar to US toilets. They have a smaller “water spot” than we’re used to (yes, that’s what it’s really called), and they’re under pressure, resulting in a WHOOSH when you push the button – and there’s usually 2 buttons, 1 for #1 which results in a lower water flow and 1 for #2, which goes full throttle.
Language
The language barrier isn’t as hard in Australia as it is in Italy or some of the other places, but having a drink or two on board certainly helps you think like an Aussie. I got a kick out of the sign on a big truck for “Piano Removalists”. Other favorites were “Casual Parking” – as opposed to “Formal Parking”, maybe? They also tend to shorten words and make them into the diminutive. Thus “Breakfast” becomes “Brekky”, etc. Lots of bars are also called “hotels”. We noticed in the older neighborhoods some of them maybe used to be hotels, but some obviously never had been. They retain the name “hotel” though.
Another thing we’ve noticed throughout the country are the significant numbers of smokers. It seems to be higher than the US, which is a bit surprising. Their cigarette boxes have photographs of things like rotted out teeth, diseased lungs, etc., with warnings that are similar to those on cigarettes in the US.
Another thing we’ve noticed throughout the country are the significant numbers of smokers. It seems to be higher than the US, which is a bit surprising. Their cigarette boxes have photographs of things like rotted out teeth, diseased lungs, etc., with warnings that are similar to those on cigarettes in the US.
Shopping
Today was a day of shopping and people watching. As we strole back into the hotel just at 10:00 p.m., having bought exactly two (2) things, I can tell you it was much more successful in the latter than in the former. Eddie needed new shoes, and we found a Foot Locker. Halfway around the world to shop in a store that exists in our very own mall. Nonetheless, he’s now fitted with new Ruby Slippers and his tootsies are much happier than they were.
In Footlocker, they also had some shorts on sale, so we opted to beat the summer rush at home. We also learned that “2 for $40” here doesn’t mean “1 for $20” – it means your paying for 2 of them, whether you take one or two home with you.
Krispy Kreme seems to be going strong here. There are stores in several of the larger cities, they sell them in some convenience / grocery stores, and people who are traveling pick up a box of them and bring them on the planes with them, apparently those who are donut-deprived in the outlands.
We walked most of today – 6.57 miles – but we did take advantage of the train system some. A one day pass is $17.00 AU, and that’ll get you on any of the transportation. Since we were going to some outlying neighborhoods to explore we decided that was a better way to get around than Eddie’s new shoes. That turned out to be a good idea since it was pouring rain when we started back about 9:15 and didn’t let up for the entire ride.
Happy Birthday Steven & Richard
Two things to start off the day (well, one thing, but split two ways). Happy Birthday to little brother Steven, who’s reached the ripe old age of 44 by my count. Whoda thunk such a sweet little kid would ever be such an old man?
The other birthday shout out goes to our friend Richard, whos age will remain a state secret. I’m also not sure if Richard’s birthday was Wednesday the 11th or same as Steven’s, but either way, Happy Birthday from around the world.
The other birthday shout out goes to our friend Richard, whos age will remain a state secret. I’m also not sure if Richard’s birthday was Wednesday the 11th or same as Steven’s, but either way, Happy Birthday from around the world.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
A monorail story
The monorail is made up of cars that have two bench seats, each with eight places, facing each other. At one point along the trip, we were the only ones in the car and we were joined by a young woman with two small children (a boy and a girl). It soon became apparent that she was their Nanny, and that they had worked her last nerve today.
We never caught the girl’s name, but the little boy was Charlie. He was quite put out because he wasn’t able to go to a movie because it was too late (pushing 9 at that point) and they’d obviously been shopping. I also think that Charlie was upset because whatever it was that had been purchased for him had been lost somewhere – when she finally allowed him to talk (she was very SHHH! Not one word from you! At first) he went through a long, detailed explanation about how there were two packages and now there was only one and he didn’t see her pick up the second one. Like many parent’s, she’d obviously tuned him out long ago.
What was delightful, though, was his accent – this little boy speaking very precisely with an Australian (?) accent. He’d chop off the word “shop” and then draw out “Charlie” (hence, we came to know his name).
“We could have gone to the movie, but no. You kept saying, Just into this one more SHOP Charrrrrllieee. We’ll just pop into this SHOP, Charrrrllliiee. Now there’s no time for a movie.”
Some things are universal.
We never caught the girl’s name, but the little boy was Charlie. He was quite put out because he wasn’t able to go to a movie because it was too late (pushing 9 at that point) and they’d obviously been shopping. I also think that Charlie was upset because whatever it was that had been purchased for him had been lost somewhere – when she finally allowed him to talk (she was very SHHH! Not one word from you! At first) he went through a long, detailed explanation about how there were two packages and now there was only one and he didn’t see her pick up the second one. Like many parent’s, she’d obviously tuned him out long ago.
What was delightful, though, was his accent – this little boy speaking very precisely with an Australian (?) accent. He’d chop off the word “shop” and then draw out “Charlie” (hence, we came to know his name).
“We could have gone to the movie, but no. You kept saying, Just into this one more SHOP Charrrrrllieee. We’ll just pop into this SHOP, Charrrrllliiee. Now there’s no time for a movie.”
Some things are universal.
Dinner in Chinatown
We’ve now confirmed that the solution to America’s weight problem is simply to do away with knives and forks – make them eat with chopsticks instead. We went to a great Chinese restaurant, had scallops with spring peas, Mongolian lamb and fried rice – and it was about twice what we needed. The beer probably helped as an appetite suppressant, too, but that’s another story.
After dinner decided to take the monorail. Rode it across the harbour – which looks much bigger on the map than it is in reality – and ended up riding the loop and then getting off to walk back to the hotel – 4.18 miles total for today.
After dinner decided to take the monorail. Rode it across the harbour – which looks much bigger on the map than it is in reality – and ended up riding the loop and then getting off to walk back to the hotel – 4.18 miles total for today.
Sydney the First Night
We didn’t do a lot the first night. Between unpacking and getting settled in, we took a little nap in the afternoon (always a good vacation activity) and then went for a walk – I’ve lost count on distances with my pedometer, but I think it was about 3 miles. We went down to the Opera House at night and took some pics. It is truly an amazing structure that the pics don’t do justice. It took 14 years to build, has over 1,000 rooms (some of which are odd shaped because of the unique architecture). We looked into the possibility of going to the Opera there last night but it was sold out. After all, it’s kind of a shame to come all this way and NOT go to a show there. They also offer “behind the scenes” tours during the day and we want to catch one of those.
Hotel #2
Our second hotel is the Marriott Sydney Harbour. This is much more on scale with the Lyall that we were at in Melbourne (although there’s no television in the bathroom). We’re on the 26th floor and have views of both the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge from here. You go down to the lobby, walk a block and you’re at the train / ferry terminals.
The room is spectacular as well. Got a living room (no kitchenette, but a fridge and coffee pot). Incidentally, about coffee pots here – they’re just hot water kettles. You hook those puppies up to 240 outlets, though, and you’ve got hot water in no time flat!
Sydney - Hotel #1
OK, there was a glitch. The post happened earlier, so it’s ahead of these, but the first hotel was unacceptable for a lot of reasons. First, it had kind of a dank, mildewy smell when you went in. We noticed it in the lobby, and when we got up to our room it wasn’t any improved. The room was also not nearly what it’d been advertised as – think Red Roof Inn, Nashville, and you’ve got a pretty good perception of what it was.
We’re not especially picky about hotel rooms – we’ve been in some really dumpy ones before. The difference, though, is that we KNEW they were going to be that before we went there.
When we got into the room and dropped our bags, my first thought was, “The window is open.” Well, it was. They said it was closed – but I could put my fingers through the cracks between the two (they swung out side to side on sashs, not up and down like we’re used to.)
This was somewhat problematic given that (a) we were only on the 2nd floor, which is really about what we think of as the 3rd floor and (b) there were about 11 air conditioners on the adjacent rooftop that would seem to randomly take off with something of a squeal.
The kicker, though, was that there was no internet.
Not just that there was no wireless. There was NO internet. The best they could offer was that “sometimes” we could grab a signal from the adjacent hotel from the lobby (and, with a credit card, you could connect). Eddie’s Apple would grab a weak signal. My HP couldn’t even find it.
He bought 2 hours of internet from the vagabond connection – which we used to find another hotel, so now we’re at the Marriott Sydney Harbour – in a wonderful room on the 26th floor. From here we see both the Opera House and the Bridge, we’ve got another living room, a huge wonderful bathroom (no television in this one, though), and NO musty smell.
We’re much happier.
We’re not especially picky about hotel rooms – we’ve been in some really dumpy ones before. The difference, though, is that we KNEW they were going to be that before we went there.
When we got into the room and dropped our bags, my first thought was, “The window is open.” Well, it was. They said it was closed – but I could put my fingers through the cracks between the two (they swung out side to side on sashs, not up and down like we’re used to.)
This was somewhat problematic given that (a) we were only on the 2nd floor, which is really about what we think of as the 3rd floor and (b) there were about 11 air conditioners on the adjacent rooftop that would seem to randomly take off with something of a squeal.
The kicker, though, was that there was no internet.
Not just that there was no wireless. There was NO internet. The best they could offer was that “sometimes” we could grab a signal from the adjacent hotel from the lobby (and, with a credit card, you could connect). Eddie’s Apple would grab a weak signal. My HP couldn’t even find it.
He bought 2 hours of internet from the vagabond connection – which we used to find another hotel, so now we’re at the Marriott Sydney Harbour – in a wonderful room on the 26th floor. From here we see both the Opera House and the Bridge, we’ve got another living room, a huge wonderful bathroom (no television in this one, though), and NO musty smell.
We’re much happier.
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