As some of you might have surmised I’m back in Sydney by now – so what have I been up to in the meantime?
The day after we arrived in Cairns Andi went on a reef trip, while I went looking for a didgeridoo shop. I’d considered doing another trip to the reef, maybe even getting the advanced open water scuba certification, but in the end I decided against it. It would feel like trying to recreate my experience from half a year ago, and in a way I’d rather let the memories stand alone for now.
Anyways, I looked for a shop that sells didgeridoos, found one with a very friendly and competent salesman, bought a didg, and got free lessons each day until I left for Sydney. I even got the whole circular breathing thing going :) Getting the didgeridoo home on the plane seems like too much trouble and would probably just add to the overweight, so I opted to have it shipped to Denmark by air freight – hopefully it’ll be home around the same time I am.
Andi had to go home the day after, but his plane wasn’t until late in the evening, so we spent the day going around Cairns, shopping for birthday gifts for John and Susanne. The next day I spent in Cairns one my own – I’d had a plan of simply lying by the lagoon (the beach in Cairns is crap, so they have a very nice public pool) and soak up some sun, but the weather gods were not very forthcoming, and it was overcast and rainy. Anyways, I played a shitload of didg, and had quite a good day anyway. The next day I got up at 3.45 and flew to Sydney.
The guest matress at the sharehouse has until today been occupied by Vera (John’s friend from France who was also on exchange to USYD) who’s leaving for Thailand, so I’ve been sleeping on the couch, which has been surprisingly easy. Sleeping in public in a house of people you love and trust is easier than sleeping in the relative privacy of a hostel dorm with strangers around you – and I’ve been doing the latter for weeks now.
Well, with the couch situation handled, John, Vera, Amy and myself wasted no time going to a music gig that very evening. The next day we went to a pub in Newtown for Vera’s farewell drinks, but most of us were pretty tired so we headed home early. And then yesterday we went to Hunter Valley.
For those of you who don’t know it, Hunter Valley is a wine region north of Sydney, near Newcastle. It competes with the regions around Adelaide – such as Coonawarra – for the title of most famous wine region in Australia.
John had the fabulous idea of renting a car and going on a tasting tour along the wine trail – Vera, Amy and I thought that sounded excellent, and in less than a day we had gone from idea to reality. We picked up the car in the morning, and with mellow Morcheeba and Jack Johnson playing on the stereo we arrived at Hunter Valley at noon. Most wineries in the area have tasting shops called “cellar doors” where they let you sample their wines for free, and whether it’s because of the tough competition, a PR thing or just general good naturedness, they don’t have a problem with it when most visitors don’t buy anything – hooray for freebies! :)
I think we went to six or seven wineries all together – by the end all of us except John, the designated driver, had a slight buzz going. Surprisingly I generally liked the whites better than the reds, and I was confirmed in my belief that dessert wines, ports and muscats are my favorites (yes, I’m a sweet tooth :). And I learned the correct order of tasting – white, red, dessert, port – so the flavours conflict as little as possible.
Apart from the wines there were samples of olive oils, caramelised balsamic vinegar, dukkah, jams, chutneys, cheeses and the like. Yummy! So we were not really all that hungry, but still shared a delicious meat and cheese platter at a local restaurant before heading home.
And thus, sated from all the sensory experiences, we made our way back to Sydney in the gathering gloom. Even though it is winter, it had been a clear and bright day, reminding me more of late summer or early autumn in Denmark.
Hmm, what else? Today I’ve had lunch with Fel and tonight a bunch of us from the house are going to see The Dark Knight – the new Batman movie – which has gotten rave reviews across the board. Oh yeah, the pope is in town so the city is flooded with Catholics wearing flags and banners and matching backpacks. I keep telling myself that they are harmless, but such an influx of people – especially ones that I understand as little as christian fundies – still feels like an invasion. And on my home turf no less :)
That’s about it so far – I’ll tell you about my last few days in Sydney, when they have actually happened.
