Two very good weekends!

The weekend of March 15 was a weekend filled with adventures in Sydney. On Saturday, Joanie, Kurt, Maria, Chad, Leela, Perri and I went to a Jack Johnson concert! It has been one of my dreams to go see him perform live and I was not let down in the least. We arrived at the venue, Centennial Park, around 3.00, and the gates opened at 4.00. There was no one there! Probably about 50 people were there when we got there, so needless to say we got really good seats. We were about 30 feet from the stage, and we all sat on Joanie’s bed sheet, which she graciously sacrificed for our comfort. The first act was Will Conner, just a two man band, with a guitarist and a percussionist. They were really good! Followed by Matt Costa, also mainly acoustic, slightly folksy. The special guest was next on the stage, and it was G-Love, who is sort of rapper. He collaborated with JJ on the song Rodeo Clowns. During his set, Maria, Joanie and I went and got some food, picking our way through the 30,000 people that had filled the park. I would have been so mad if I’d paid $100 and had to sit as far away as some of the people there were sitting!

Jack played a set for about two wonderful hours. It was seriously amazing. We were so so so close, and Perri got some good photos and videos. He played Taylor, my favorite song, and actually messed up singing one song which was hilarious, because he couldn’t have covered it if he tried. He was cool about it though. After he was finished, it was quite interesting to be herded like sheep out of the park. We walked back to the train station and hopped a train, then another, then took the ferry back across. What a fun concert!

On Sunday, Perri, Dana and I decided to play tourists in Sydney, which was the first time any of us had decided to do so. On the ferry ride across, I started taking pictures and didn’t stop the rest of the trip! Once in the city, we walked to the botanical gardens. They were so beautiful and peaceful, very similar to Central Park (not that I’ve ever been there…) We wondered around, no map, just enjoying. At one point, we saw these people looking up and taking pictures and were quite confused as to what they saw. Then we realized, very rapidly, that there were approximately a MILLION fruit bats/flying foxes above our heads. Perri screamed and ran into the gift shop. :) They were so gross and cool.

After wandering around the gardens, we walked over to Darling Harbour, where the Real World: Sydney was filmed. Not that I'd ever seen the show...but it was cool to see. Shopping was in order after all of this, so we made our way over to Paddy’s Market. First level: flea market. Second level: nice shopping mall. Third level: Outlets! It was strange to be in a “real mall” again. We got some pretty good deals, and got some gifts to bring home to our families.

By this point, we were starving, and tired, as we’d walked a ton of the city, so we got a taxi over to the area of Sydney called the Rocks, and went to Pancakes on the Rocks. It was realllly good: banana pancakes with chocolate chips and walnuts, topped with chocolate syrup, vanilla and chocolate ice cream and more bananas. All for $10.50! They were delicious, but I only ate about a third of them, they were much too sweet.

Link to the Sydney photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2190736&l=1ec6e&id=22414798

This past week was midterm week at school. I only had two actual tests, one in Facilities Management, the other in Rooms Division Management. I would have failed the FM one if I wouldn’t have known people in the section that took it before me-it was so hard! It’s a 100-level class and I refuse to get a bad grade in it, but it’s rough. Rooms went fine I’m sure. I really like that class, even though the teacher’s kinda airy. I think my calling is in rooms division :)

Easter weekend! We had Friday-Monday off from school for it, so it called for a road trip somewhere. My friend Jeff invited me out to his family farm in Woodstock, near Cowra. It’s about a 3.5 hour car trip straight west of Sydney. Thursday afternoon, after we’d all finished with our classes, Jeff, Myles, Ally, Perri and myself all loaded into Jeff’s car and made our way out to the Outback! We stopped by Jeff’s house and then went shopping and loaded up on (what else) junk food that required no actual cooking. About two hours into the trip, we girls in the back all fell asleep. On the way, we met Jeff’s friend Mitch who followed us out in his “truck” (explanation later). By the time we made it to the farm, it was almost 1.00 in the morning. His family was already there, staying in the big house, and all of us bunked up in the smaller house.

The next morning, Ally, Perri and I were woken up to Myles coming in and telling us that we were almost out of hot water and that we only had 10 minutes of it left so we had to get up NOW. (This was his feeble attempt to get us moving, as it was already really late in the morning). Unfortunately for him, we were all set on being hicks and not bathing, but we got up anyway. We made brekkie on the barbie-bacon and eggs and toast all barbequed. Yum! There was a HUGE spider in the kitchen, probably four inches wide. Jeff caught it in a glass and threw it outside…Perri was paranoid after that, haha! Then it was time to get down and dirty: time to go dirtbiking. They had five dirtbikes and a quad. Perri and Ally commandeered the quad, and I got to learn how to ride a dirtbike. It was SO much fun. I haven’t had that much good clean (dirty) fun in ages. Don’t get me wrong-I was a little nervous at first and would have preferred to have been on the quad, but once I found my balance, it was a riot. We rode ALL over Jeff’s property (his family’s got over 870 acres!), and it was beautiful. You could see all the divisions of property, the different paddocks fenced off, and tons of sheep and cows. At the highest point on their land, “the top of the world,” you could see so far! I got a little frustrated a few times, my bike didn’t really have the horsepower to make it up the really big mountains (okay hills, but they felt like mountains!) and I would stall out. The bike was a kick start, and apparently I don’t quite have the touch to start them—I claim I don’t weigh enough. So one of the boys would have to come and rescue me, restart my bike and send me on my way. I really don’t like being a girl that can’t do things, so I was getting mad. I eventually got it started by myself, and the boys all reassured me that I wasn’t a dumb girl, because I was riding a dirtbike in the Outback. :) We were riding through all these thorns and I got a nice battle wound on my hand from my bike.

Here’s the story of the trip if you’re ready for it: Ally was a little nervous to be driving the quad and had been riding on the back the whole time, but then decided to try her hand at it, so she began driving and Perri riding. Well, there was this dam surrounding a pond that we had to go over. The boys and myself were ahead of them, as Ally inched along, and so we realize they’re nowhere in sight. I look back to see everyone speeding towards this dam and I immediately thought they stalled or something. However, it was MUCH better than that. We pull up to the dam and see Perri and Ally, completely soaked, quad nowhere in site. On closer inspection, you can see about two inches of the tires sticking out of the dead middle of the pond!! When they tried to cross the dam, they began turning the wrong way and flipped the quad into the water. It floated along to the middle of the pond, held up by the back tires. Since they were both alright, it was hilarious. Jeff and Mitch went to get the truck and a chain to tow it out, and they dove in and we got it out relatively easily. The boys started to drain out the water, while the girls shivered and I laughed. The water had gotten into the engine, so we just towed it back up to the house. It ended up being okay, but Ally and Perri were pretty worried they’d wrecked it!

We ate a lot of brie, avocado and salsa on crackers after that. Sounds weird, but it was delicious. After all that excitement, we decided to take a group nap for an hour. So when we woke up two and a half hours later…ha...Jeff’s entire family, plus some, came over to our house and we had some pre-dinner nachos. I made the mistake of announcing to everyone what Perri and I call trucks like Mitch’s (we call the crucks, because they look like a combo car/truck) and EVERYONE was making so much fun of him. I think they’ll call it that forever. It was so strange looking though, really low rider, with this huge radial antennas on top. Check the photos, there's some of it. We then migrated over to the big house to have a HUGE dinner of steaks, ribs, these things that were like sausage patties, salad, mushrooms, garlic bread, watermelon and cheesecake with ice cream. Whew! We all ate heaps and loved it, not leaving the dinner table until after 10.00. Jeff’s parents and family are so nice and gracious, just welcoming us into their home with no questions asked.

After dinner, Ally, Lydia (Myles’ girlfriend who joined in the fun that afternoon), and Perri went back up to the house and hung out while Mitch, Myles, Jeff, Steve (Jeff’s younger brother) and myself went out shining and shooting. (Which is apparently legal, if you have the proper license). We saw heaps of rabbits and a few roos. It was freezing cold...I had on boots and a big carhart and was still cold. I shot a bunny (don’t yell at me Shannon, and just stop reading right now!) but no roos. Jeff got a roo- a small one. It was really cool, it looks so similar to a deer! One of the guys snapped the neck off a bunny and took the head home to show the girls. Jeff put it in the end of his shirt sleeve, and it totally looked alive and, well, whole. The girls were excited, petting it, and then he just dropped the head on the floor. You should have heard the screams! Hilarious. Perri and I taught the Aussies the joy of s’mores later, except their marshmallows are too sweet, and they don’t have graham crackers. Myles made me promise to send him the real makings of s’mores when we get back to the states.

The next morning, Perri, Mitch, Jeff and I were up before everyone else, so we decided to go horseback riding. There were only three horses, so Mitch didn’t go, but he helped us get all saddled up and ready to go. Jeff worked on a ranch during his gap year between high school and college up in Canada, and Mitch did the same but in Texas. I rode Misty, which is Jeff’s sister’s horse. I loved her. After carrots, saddles and helmets, we were off. It was a much better way to see the land than when on the dirt bikes- you could really appreciate the beauty. It reminded me of Northwestern Italy (random, I know) but just how you could see all the land divisions and everything. I never realized that the outback would be so pretty. Perri’s horse, Cheeky, was so lethargic I though she was going to fall asleep! We went all over the property again, chased the sheep and loved life.

After hosing off the horses and giving them some hay to thank them, we went out into a big empty field for Jeff to teach Ally, Perri and myself how to drive a stick. Except if you call it a stick, you get made fun of-it’s simply a manual. Okay, so not only had I never driven a manual, but the steering wheel was on the right hand side and it didn’t have power steering! The Zuk was a piece (you’ll see in the photos) but perfect to learn on. I actually didn’t stall once! It was pretty enjoyable and I want to do it again and actually get good at it.

Time was ticking before our train was due to leave, so we hightailed it back up to the top of the world, where we’d gone the day before on the bikes. We went up in the Zuk and the other Ute (utility truck). Some of Jeff’s cousins (I think they were his cousins!) who were 12 were there, and they were driving the trucks. The manuals. And they were better than me. Actually, they were better than Jeff-ha! We were driving down a mountain, five people sitting in the back of the truck, and it clicked-I’m riding with a 12 year old down a mountain. Little scary! Actually, he was ridiculously good. Regardless-We took photos for a while up there; I got some hilarious ones of the boys jumping off the Zuk. Take a look at them!

The girls who didn’t go out shining and shooting the night before wanted to see a kangaroo, so we drove over to where they were before. We saw a couple in the distance, but then found the one that we’d shot the night before. So they got to see one close up! As soon as we got back to the house, we packed up as fast as we could, said goodbye to all of the family and friends (Jeff's mom invited us over to dinner at their Sydney house whenever we want a real meal...we're totally taking that offer up!), and Mitch and Jeff took Ally, Perri and myself to the train station. We ended up almost missing the train, because we were buying food and water in the petrol station next door. Leave it to us :) All I had to eat that entire day was crackers and a stick of beef jerky! Lets just say brunch was very welcome on Sunday morning. After the four hour train ride, the second train from Central to Circular Quay, then the ferry back to Manly, and the taxi back up the hill (because there was no way I was walking!) I was exhausted and sore, but in love with the Outback.

Outback photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2190747&l=9fa19&id=22414798

This was, without a doubt, my favorite weekend thus far. I haven’t had good country fun in ages and I’d forgotten how much I loved it. I’ve been a city girl for far too long. I hope you all have a wonderful, blessed Easter. Someone eat some ham and mashed potatoes for me!

Cheers!
MJ

Fun facts:
I learned a proper Aussie accent finally. I hadn’t spent long periods of time with only Aussies, so now I think I’ve got it. Drop any “–er” and add an “a” Follow that by raising the pitch at the end of your sentence if you’re a chick, and you’re golden!

Sholda-Shoulder
Computa-Computer
Finga-Finger
Papa-Paper
etc etc etc
Also, when saying the letter “H” as in HP computers, it’s more like Hache-P. Any word that ends in an “a” (like Idea), an “r” is put on the end, like idear. Strange!