A long time gone
Feb 8, 2006
Internet Cafe
Chatswood, Australia
~9:35AM
This isn't exactly roughing it.
Late Sunday, before heading to SFO to fly down here, Mike emails me to say that he's in Sydney on Cisco business for the week, he's staying in a 4-star hotel north of town, and he's got an extra bed I can crash on for the first three nights. Maybe it's not in the backpacka spirit, but this sure beats a hostel.
The flight was dead easy. Departed around 10pm, I slept overall about 7 hours or so and I was out of customs by 8:00am feeling pretty well rested. So far jetlag hasn't been a problem.
On the flight, the first of several odd thoughts began to sink in. Normally, on a 13 hour flight, I find myself thinking about the second ordeal that the flight back will present. This time, my thoughts on that line stopped when I realized that I don't have a flight back anywhere. It is entirely possible that I won't be back in the US for at least 6 months. That much time changes my perspective in interesting ways.
Since Mike was working all day and wasn't checking in to the hotel until the evening, I had the whole day to kill. On the way out of the terminal, I asked a fellow passenger, Lisa if she knew of a good neighborhood I could visit just to chill and get settled. When I asked about King's Cross, she laughed and said "Nah, that's where all the tourists go!" Instead, she recommended the suburb of Balmain, a relaxed upscale community two harbors west of Circular Quay (downtown, by the Opera House). Further, she recommended that we share a cab together and that I get a shower at her place to freshen up after the flight. Done deal, thanks!
Lisa and I headed back to her place and we cleaned up, chatted with her roommate and played with her spunky dog, Cougar. After the shower, we went into downtown Balmain for a coffee and long chat about travels and lifey stuff and then parted ways. The trip was off on a good omen.
Spent the next hour or so in Balmain attending to the logistics of getting an international phone card, calling home and eating lunch. Ready to move on, I walked down to the Balmain East ferry terminal where I met a nice British couple and their son and grandson who live in Balmain. Together we took the ferry to the Rocks, providing a beautiful view of the Harbor Bridge and the Opera House as we came in; a right proper way to enter Sydney.
Phoned up Mike and by his suggestion, I decided to get a cell phone. Took the excellent city train from Circular Quay to the Town Hall stop on George St, a central business and shopping district in the heart of Sydney. I was looking for a travelers' centre that supposedly would let me ditch my heavy bag for a few hours as I walked around. When I eventually found the travelers' Checkpoint, I stayed only a minute before deciding to give up and suffer with my bag for a few more hours. The place was packed with young travelers from around the world clamoring for package travel deals on backpacker busses and free email checks. Ever since I started traveling in NZ 6 years ago, I've always sort of disdained the organized backpacker culture, not sure exactly why. Too contrived I think. Not in the spirit of a proper wander. I did get some good info from the travel medical clinic next door, I may stop in there before I leave Oz to make sure I have the right vaccinations for Indonesia, etc.
Back on the street, it was time to start learning about cellphones. Things are very different on this side of the pond. Instead of minutes, you get dollar credits and you have to calculate the amount of minutes you get based on the cost-per-call. After researching through several stores, the nice guy at the Telstra store told me that I would actually get a better deal at the Vodaphone shop down the street. Indeed, Radhika took good care of me. She explained their service plans, answered all my questions and after a short trip to the internet cafe to research my phone choices, I wound up with a Sony Ericsson K300i, SIM card and $30 credit for AUS$189. Calls cost $0.40 a minute, very pricey compared to the US, but a pretty good deal for my needs. Unlike the US, though, I don't pay for incoming calls. I don't in tend on talking that much anyway, but for making reservations and getting in touch with climbing/traveling partners, it will be invaluable. If you would like the number, just send me an email, as I don't want to publish it out here in the open.
Phone in hand, it was time for a break, so I walked back south along George St. to one of the only pubs in the neighborhood, The Three Monkeys. Julie, my bartender was very nice and helped me choose a good NSW brew, the Tooheys New, which is my favourite so far. Some garlic bread and spicy wings and an hour of relaxing later, and it was 5pm and I was ready to go out again until Mike called. Julie helped the cause immensely by agreeing to hold onto my pack in the bar's office for me until I was done with my shopping. Load thus lightened, I set out.
Shopping in Sydney is good. The best part is that the clothes fit me here. In the US, shirts and pants are cut so big, that unless I shop at a fancy store, I'm either swimming in or stretching out most clothes. Australian fashion follows the European style with a much slimmer cut that suits my body a lot better.
So I need a good polo shirt, something that is easy to care for and that I can dress up or down. There's been several candidates so far, but I'm just not convinced yet. Either way, it was fun going from shop to shop, chatting with the clerks and trying on nice clothes. Gerard, the owner of "Urban Myth", was particularly friendly. We chatted a bit about his planned trip to the USA and style trends in Australia. He recommended his friend's shop for a haircut, which I took him up on and wound up with a great cut for AUS$10.
Finally Mike called and I took the train up to Chatswood, a posh suburb 25 minutes ride north of Sydney. We met up at his suite in the hotel, took a quick swim in the hotel pool and met up with Sal, one of Mike's buddies who I've met a few times before back in Cali. The three of us hit the streets of Chatswood looking for a good dinner, but the town was asleep so we took the train back down to Sydney and wound up eating at an Italian place along the Darling Harbor strip. It was a lovely evening, sitting outside, eating and drinking and looking out over the water and hotels. With one more beer in us, we walked over to George St, had a drink at the quiet but boring Cheers pub and caught the last train back to the hotel.
Slept fairly well, got up and I've got heaps to do today. I'm on a mission to get my daypack fixed-- the zipper of the main accessory pocket came undone on Sunday. I've been bounced around this morning, but I've got a good lead for a shop in Sydney proper, so I'll head there after I'm done with here. I also have to call some dive shops up in Cairns. Mike is planning on flying up to Cairns on Friday for a week and I'd like to join him. My only concern is that the weather and box jellyfish (or boxies as I'm calling them) are supposed to be bad this time of year. If I can't dive or swim in the ocean, and it's pouring the whole time, I'm not too psyched about going up there just yet. Still, I could start in Cairns and start working my way down the coast back to Brisy (Brisbane).
Oh, I'm also considering the best way to acquire a car. I think bussing/training it about is going to get old.
If I get some time the afternoon, I'm going to try the 2 hour coast walk from Bondi Beach down to Coongee. Time to jump in the water.
Internet Cafe
Chatswood, Australia
~9:35AM
This isn't exactly roughing it.
Late Sunday, before heading to SFO to fly down here, Mike emails me to say that he's in Sydney on Cisco business for the week, he's staying in a 4-star hotel north of town, and he's got an extra bed I can crash on for the first three nights. Maybe it's not in the backpacka spirit, but this sure beats a hostel.
The flight was dead easy. Departed around 10pm, I slept overall about 7 hours or so and I was out of customs by 8:00am feeling pretty well rested. So far jetlag hasn't been a problem.
On the flight, the first of several odd thoughts began to sink in. Normally, on a 13 hour flight, I find myself thinking about the second ordeal that the flight back will present. This time, my thoughts on that line stopped when I realized that I don't have a flight back anywhere. It is entirely possible that I won't be back in the US for at least 6 months. That much time changes my perspective in interesting ways.
Since Mike was working all day and wasn't checking in to the hotel until the evening, I had the whole day to kill. On the way out of the terminal, I asked a fellow passenger, Lisa if she knew of a good neighborhood I could visit just to chill and get settled. When I asked about King's Cross, she laughed and said "Nah, that's where all the tourists go!" Instead, she recommended the suburb of Balmain, a relaxed upscale community two harbors west of Circular Quay (downtown, by the Opera House). Further, she recommended that we share a cab together and that I get a shower at her place to freshen up after the flight. Done deal, thanks!
Lisa and I headed back to her place and we cleaned up, chatted with her roommate and played with her spunky dog, Cougar. After the shower, we went into downtown Balmain for a coffee and long chat about travels and lifey stuff and then parted ways. The trip was off on a good omen.
Spent the next hour or so in Balmain attending to the logistics of getting an international phone card, calling home and eating lunch. Ready to move on, I walked down to the Balmain East ferry terminal where I met a nice British couple and their son and grandson who live in Balmain. Together we took the ferry to the Rocks, providing a beautiful view of the Harbor Bridge and the Opera House as we came in; a right proper way to enter Sydney.
Phoned up Mike and by his suggestion, I decided to get a cell phone. Took the excellent city train from Circular Quay to the Town Hall stop on George St, a central business and shopping district in the heart of Sydney. I was looking for a travelers' centre that supposedly would let me ditch my heavy bag for a few hours as I walked around. When I eventually found the travelers' Checkpoint, I stayed only a minute before deciding to give up and suffer with my bag for a few more hours. The place was packed with young travelers from around the world clamoring for package travel deals on backpacker busses and free email checks. Ever since I started traveling in NZ 6 years ago, I've always sort of disdained the organized backpacker culture, not sure exactly why. Too contrived I think. Not in the spirit of a proper wander. I did get some good info from the travel medical clinic next door, I may stop in there before I leave Oz to make sure I have the right vaccinations for Indonesia, etc.
Back on the street, it was time to start learning about cellphones. Things are very different on this side of the pond. Instead of minutes, you get dollar credits and you have to calculate the amount of minutes you get based on the cost-per-call. After researching through several stores, the nice guy at the Telstra store told me that I would actually get a better deal at the Vodaphone shop down the street. Indeed, Radhika took good care of me. She explained their service plans, answered all my questions and after a short trip to the internet cafe to research my phone choices, I wound up with a Sony Ericsson K300i, SIM card and $30 credit for AUS$189. Calls cost $0.40 a minute, very pricey compared to the US, but a pretty good deal for my needs. Unlike the US, though, I don't pay for incoming calls. I don't in tend on talking that much anyway, but for making reservations and getting in touch with climbing/traveling partners, it will be invaluable. If you would like the number, just send me an email, as I don't want to publish it out here in the open.
Phone in hand, it was time for a break, so I walked back south along George St. to one of the only pubs in the neighborhood, The Three Monkeys. Julie, my bartender was very nice and helped me choose a good NSW brew, the Tooheys New, which is my favourite so far. Some garlic bread and spicy wings and an hour of relaxing later, and it was 5pm and I was ready to go out again until Mike called. Julie helped the cause immensely by agreeing to hold onto my pack in the bar's office for me until I was done with my shopping. Load thus lightened, I set out.
Shopping in Sydney is good. The best part is that the clothes fit me here. In the US, shirts and pants are cut so big, that unless I shop at a fancy store, I'm either swimming in or stretching out most clothes. Australian fashion follows the European style with a much slimmer cut that suits my body a lot better.
So I need a good polo shirt, something that is easy to care for and that I can dress up or down. There's been several candidates so far, but I'm just not convinced yet. Either way, it was fun going from shop to shop, chatting with the clerks and trying on nice clothes. Gerard, the owner of "Urban Myth", was particularly friendly. We chatted a bit about his planned trip to the USA and style trends in Australia. He recommended his friend's shop for a haircut, which I took him up on and wound up with a great cut for AUS$10.
Finally Mike called and I took the train up to Chatswood, a posh suburb 25 minutes ride north of Sydney. We met up at his suite in the hotel, took a quick swim in the hotel pool and met up with Sal, one of Mike's buddies who I've met a few times before back in Cali. The three of us hit the streets of Chatswood looking for a good dinner, but the town was asleep so we took the train back down to Sydney and wound up eating at an Italian place along the Darling Harbor strip. It was a lovely evening, sitting outside, eating and drinking and looking out over the water and hotels. With one more beer in us, we walked over to George St, had a drink at the quiet but boring Cheers pub and caught the last train back to the hotel.
Slept fairly well, got up and I've got heaps to do today. I'm on a mission to get my daypack fixed-- the zipper of the main accessory pocket came undone on Sunday. I've been bounced around this morning, but I've got a good lead for a shop in Sydney proper, so I'll head there after I'm done with here. I also have to call some dive shops up in Cairns. Mike is planning on flying up to Cairns on Friday for a week and I'd like to join him. My only concern is that the weather and box jellyfish (or boxies as I'm calling them) are supposed to be bad this time of year. If I can't dive or swim in the ocean, and it's pouring the whole time, I'm not too psyched about going up there just yet. Still, I could start in Cairns and start working my way down the coast back to Brisy (Brisbane).
Oh, I'm also considering the best way to acquire a car. I think bussing/training it about is going to get old.
If I get some time the afternoon, I'm going to try the 2 hour coast walk from Bondi Beach down to Coongee. Time to jump in the water.
posted by Scottley at 2:35 PM
2 Comments:
Glad to see you got there okay. I had a fantastic weekend in NYC with Patty. She got the quintessential first timer tourist weekend. The Met, the library, Rockefeller Center, Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, central park, etc.
My brother's insanely connected. He got us a 32nd floor corner room at the westin in times square for $69/night. He got us prime center orchestra seats for Phantom and a backstage tour after the show, as a friend of a friend is a dancer in it. And, he got us all reservations for a meal at WD-50, a new, upscale (and very well hidden) restaurant on the lower east side.
new's ok, but go old.
Glad to hear you're enjoying it so far :)
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