A solo holiday
Trip Start
Feb 15, 2004
1
26
34
Trip End
Dec 18, 2004
UNSW Library,
Australia
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
When I woke up today, my calves and butt were screaming in pain. That's because I spent yesterday in the Blue Mountains, walking and walking and walking until I could walk no more. I hopped on a train at Central Station in Sydney for the 2 hour trip to Katoomba, the main town in the Blue Mountains (which should really be renamed the Blue Hills). I saw my trip as a little training run for my upcoming solo journey in New Zealand. I wanted to remind myself what it's like to travel all alone. I stayed for a night in the really nice YHA hostel in town, which was filled with families and older people as YHA's usually are. Soon after I arrived the nice grandmotherly reception desk woman had to change me to a different room because, as she politely informed me, my roommate was a crazy lady! Apparently she was "harmless" but had been "causing a few problems" with the guests. It's nice to know they were looking out for me, because there have definitely been times I've stayed in hostels when I'd wished someone had warned me about my crazy roommate! Katoomba is filled with adorable cafes, and I enjoyed afternoon tea in one of the most elegant. The Paragon Cafe was recommended by both Lonely Planet and Frommer's, so I figured I should check it out. It definitely lives up to the hype, though you also pay for it. The decor is 1930's art deco; Frank Sinatra was crooning in the background... I felt like I should have been wearing much less comfortable underwear. :) However, the nostalgic atmosphere was slightly ruined when the waitress recorded my order on her palm pilot. It was immediately restored when she brought out a delicate tray with a little teapot, miniature creamer, lovely teacup & saucer adorned with "The Paragon" written in script, and even a metal tea strainer. I was also presented with 2 warm, fluffy scones with clotted cream and jam, dusted with powdered sugar. It all looked so lovely that I took a photo of it when no one was looking (my stupid camera is so loud though!). I felt like I should hold my pinky up as I politely sipped my Earl Grey. But I didn't. Instead I devoured my scones, managing to get half the cream and jam on my fingers. But that's the nice thing about eating alone - you can lick your fingers without having to apologize to anyone.
I'm currently on a week long break from uni - spring break, I guess (how weird is that?!). It started off with the International Scholars reception on Friday afternoon, which was a little cocktail party for everyone from another country who had received a scholarship to study at UNSW. I hate mingling. I hate that awkward moment when you walk into a party alone and don't have anyone to talk to. Thankfully while I was standing there feeling stupid, 3 nice girls from Brunei invited me to join their little group. We talked for about 5 minutes, and I realized I didn't have much to say to them about petroleum engineering (which they're studying). Then they took a photo with me and went off to do their own thing. I ended up spending most of the 2 hours talking with a German girl doing her PhD in Art History. The Executive Officer of the International Student office also joined us, and we compared the different tertiary education systems around the world. He spent 3 years teaching English in Japan and his partner (oddly enough Aussies, both straight AND gay, use that to mean boyfriend or girlfriend) is American, so we had heaps to talk about. I had quite an enjoyable time, especially since waiters were constantly offering to "top up" my wine glass. But apparently I missed the little American convention that was going on in the corner (all the American students had gathered around the American consulate representative). Darn.
The other night I played hostess to some friends from uni whom I'd invited over for a Mexican dinner - Masa and Marie from Japan, Archer from Taiwan, and Marie's friend Jeffrey from Malaysia. We'd been talking about doing this for ages, because Marie has made me Japanese food twice so it was my turn to cook. Not quite sure how I became an expert Mexican chef, but it seemed like an easy meal to make and they'd never really had Mexican before. I was nervous my culinary abilities wouldn't live up to their expectations, but really how would they be able to tell if I screwed it up? :) Everything turned out fine, and we had a great evening.
I'm constantly aware of how little time I have left in Australia. During my walk from Bondi to Coogee the other day (one of my favorite things to do in Sydney), as I sat in the warm sun on a cliff overlooking the turquoise Pacific Ocean, I thought to myself that I'm crazy to leave such a beautiful place. But on the other hand, I miss everyone at home... so I'm torn. At our last lawn bowling class (during which we played a proper game that turned out to be really exciting, as hard to believe as that is), Christina and I were joking that I can't go home now because I might get recruited for the national team. I am looking forward to being back in a place where the way I talk is normal though. The teachers I work with are constantly making fun of my accent, repeating what I say and exaggerating the "r"'s. It's really funny when they try to say "Let's go to the mawll and get a cup of cawfee," just like I taught them. They don't quite sound like real Long Islanders yet. The other night in my Language for Specific Purposes class, I was called on to demonstrate how Americans say "Fourth Floor" during our discussion of Labov's famous department store study. My professor made me repeat it about 10 times, and then she made me say it with a strong New York accent. I guess I should enjoy those "token American" moments, since I only have 3 months left.
