Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Bundeena

Another day off, so I decided to take the ferry to Bundeena. It's a really small village that's surrounded by Royal National Park, and you can only get to it by boat or by taking a drive through the park. There's a lot of artsy people living there and no chain restaurants or anything, kind of like going out to Vashon. There are several beaches within walking distance of the dock, and I heard that they're a lot less crowded than the Cronulla beaches since you can't really drive there, so I decided to make the trip out.

The ferry dock is right next to the Cronulla train station, and it was so small I almost walked right by it! The boat is the longest continually operating ferry in New South Wales-it's been going since the 1930s. The ride to Bundeena took about 20 minutes since the water was really calm and blue today.




The beach out there was absolutely beautiful! There were only about 20 people total on a half mile stretch, and I couldn't tell if they were residents of Bundeena (there are houses all along the water) or if they had taken the boat in. The water is really calm compared to Cronulla since the beach is on a bay rather than right on the sea, and I was wishing I had brought along a swimsuit. Instead I just sat on the beach and read my book for a bit before heading back home. I'm going to try to go back pretty soon and take a look around the national park!
Horderns Beach
View of the ferry dock

Monday, December 26, 2011

Happy Boxing Day!

Yesterday was Boxing Day. Since there is no such thing as Black Friday in Australia, Boxing Day is the day where everyone gets up really early and goes shopping. It's also a public holiday (so is today) so I get a few days off in a row to sit around. Instead of shopping I went down to the beach near my house. When I got there the tide was fully in and the waves were pretty rough-there is usually about 40 feet of sand between the rocks and the water but this is how it looked yesterday. Instead of swimming I ended up just reading the paper and drinking a beer. Christmas Day was hot and sunny so one out of two days isn't too bad I guess...
This beach is a little rockier than the main beach, but I like it because it's usually a lot more quiet. Also the path leading to it is too steep to bring prams (strollers) and eskies (coolers) down so that scares off some people...
The sports section was ALL cricket today:(

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Christmas Celebrations

This weekend was  the Christmas party for Hayden's work, so we got to spend the night in the city. Everyone here has pretty massive Christmas celebrations, and my work already had a lunch a couple of weeks ago at a really nice seafood restaurant in Glebe. But since Hayden DOESN'T work in the arts, his boss has more money to spend on hotel rooms, dinner, top shelf booze, etc. So I got to dress up and go out for Italian food in Darling Harbour on Saturday night. Darling Harbour is a really nice section of downtown with tons of bars and cafes. It's right on the water, and there's no roads running through it so it's really nice for walking around and sightseeing. It reminds me a lot of the waterfront in downtown Seattle, just bigger and maybe a little more sanitary.
Having a nightcap after dinner. 
View of the Harbour on Sunday. We stayed at Four Points.
Another view of the Harbour. It was kind of cloudy but definitely warm enough to eat outside.
Champagne and oysters!
I had a really good weekend but I'm definitely paying for it today. I slept for almost 12 hours Sunday night and woke up with a cold today so I'm going to try and take it easy for the next few days.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Messiah

I've been getting a little antsy since I haven't really been doing anything music-ish lately and my trumpet isn't here with me in Oz. Luckily the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs needed people to sing in the chorus for Messiah this month. Specifically they needed sopranos. So this alto decided to pose as a soprano and give it a go.

I've been rehearsing about once per week for the last couple of months, and we had dress rehearsals pretty much every night this last week. I really like my free time, but it's been nice having structure and places that I HAVE to be at certain times with the threat of consequences if I don't show up. I'm definitely on the younger end of people who are doing this-for some reason, a three hour long baroque oratorio doesn't appeal too much to some crowds. But the music is really beautiful and it's so much better when you know it really well and can anticipate what is going to happen next. Handel wrote the entire Messiah in twenty or so days. This is incomprehensible to me, and the best I can hope for is stretches of moderate productivity fit in between TV/Facebook/blog posts etc.

Opening night was last night and I think it went really well! The oboist was struggling a bit, bringing back memories of 7th grade and my brief and tragic oboe career. The chorus is singing it from memory, which actually was not as hard as I expected. The only song I need to review is "Amen". That's a five minute song with one lyric: Amen. Not easy. I'll try and sneak a few pictures from inside the opera house on Saturday to post.

Friday, November 25, 2011

Thanksgiving!

I had my first Thanksgiving away from family yesterday. It's definitely an American holiday, and people here have been focused on Christmas for the last couple of weeks.  Luckily, a few Aussies were keen to help me celebrate it this year.

Of course I had to work so that spoiled some of the fun, but I got up early to watch the Detroit-Green Bay game. I accidentally-on-purpose missed Nickelback's halftime performance, whoops! The game was pretty boring overall but at least I got my football fix before work. Afterwards I went over to Hayden's house and helped fix some dinner for people who were a little confused by the combination of food that we eat for Thanksgiving. I never realized it, but it's pretty carb-heavy and probably something I would never just whip up without knowing it's what I'm "supposed" to eat that day. His family had decorated the dining room with an orange tablecloth and fall-themed napkins (his mom explained she looked all that up on the Internet, adorable). I made stuffing, which turned out pretty good but a little dry, and on top of that we had turkey, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, gravy, rolls, etc. His family all had pumpkin pie for the first time, which I LOVE but they thought was a little gross. They were also grossed out when I explained I was going to eat it for breakfast, but were intrigued by the turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sandwich that I was planning to have for lunch.

I'm really thankful for Mom, Dad, Patrice and all my friends back home. I'm thankful I have a place to live and new friends here. And I'm REALLY thankful that Black Friday does not exist here and that I no longer have to get up at 3AM to make people their stupid lattes at the Northgate Mall Starbucks. Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

Friday, November 11, 2011

Missing Home

So far I've had a lazy Saturday. Dan has been mainly living with his grandpa the past few weeks since his grandma passed away. He's trying to sublet his room for a couple of months, so I cleaned the place and am meeting him and a potential new roommate in about an hour for coffee. I'm kind of bummed about it because I get along with him really well, but hopefully he'll be able to move back in a few months.

I haven't been homesick too much, which surprises me because I really thought I would be. There are definitely a few people back home that I think about a lot, but I actually don't miss Seattle itself most of the time. I feel like the sun and heat kind of suit me; Sydney reminds me a lot of Southern California. But this week I had Skype chats with my parents and Carri. I got presents in the mail from Patrice and Rochelle. I talked to Pam a bit about making a trip down here. AND I made a Seattle playlist which was maybe a mistake because it turns out a lot of the music made in Seattle is kind of depressing. I wish I could come back for Christmas but I probably won't be able to save up enough money until I'm working full time, so hopefully I can make it back for a visit in May or June.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

MEAT

I was pretty excited to get off work yesterday because I had plans to meet up with my friend Matt at Central Station to go for a climb. I've been trying to go about once a week and it's been really nice to have someone who will hold me accountable if I don't go, and who also won't let me fall to my death from a great height. When I walked into the lobby at work, it was POURING rain. The Westfield Tower is a few blocks from my work and it was completely hidden beneath clouds and sheets of rain. I waited in the lobby for about 15 minutes hoping it would pass, but finally just made a run to the train station. Of course I didn't have an umbrella because 8 years of living in Seattle has convinced me that they are dumb. Anyways I got completely soaked and Matt was in the same condition so we ended up scrapping the whole thing to go drink schooners and play bingo.
Best decision ever! In Australia a lot of the time pub trivia nights, raffles, bingo etc don't have a cash prize. But they DO have a meat tray that you can win. And yesterday was my lucky night because I got a bingo and got to ride home on the train carrying this! I was so proud.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Melbourne Cup

Today was the Melbourne Cup, which is a horse race that happens every year on the first Tuesday in November. I didn't realize how excited people would get for it, but today as I was riding the train into work there were girls everywhere in really nice dresses and crazy hats headed into the city. They call it "the race that stops a nation" and it's pretty much the truth, because about ten minutes before 3:00 everyone quit working and went into the conference room. We had a bunch of snacks and cracked open some champagne to watch the race. People in Australia LOVE to gamble whether it's the pokies (slot machines), footy games or horse races, so everyone I work with spread out the little tickets they'd bought placing bets on various horses. The race started right at 3:00 and it didn't take long before the 3200 meters were finished. It was the closest finish in Melbourne Cup history, and after a few minutes of analyzing the photos, Dunaden was declared the winner. So his owner Sheikh Fahad of Qatar goes from being insanely rich to... richer. Anyways it was a pretty interesting day!


Sunday, October 23, 2011

Spring is here










That's 94 fahrenheit. And it's only spring.

I had a really good weekend! I went in the water for the first time since I got here, and if this weather keeps up it's going to have to become a daily thing. Sunday I met up with Hayden during the day and just laid out on the beach in between swims. Most places in Sydney are air conditioned, but the apartment is not, and it gets insanely warm, so it was good to spend as much time out of there as possible. That night was the rugby final, and New Zealand just barely pulled out a win over France, go the All Blacks!

Unfortunately the week is off to not as great a start. My roommate Dan's grandma passed away last week, and her funeral was today so I went with a few other friends to that. Work was really nice about letting me take the day off luckily, and Dan seemed pretty glad to see a few people who weren't 80 year old friends of the family trying to fix him up with their granddaughters. As for me, I'm out of the dressy clothes and back into the uniform of tank top and shorts that I'll be sporting for the next 4 months.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Updates and stuff

It's Friday finally! It's been a long week, and I left my iPod at a friend's house a few days ago so the train ride to the city and back has been pretty excruciating. Yesterday I got to listen to some guy with a disgusting head cold cough directly into the back of my head the whole way into town. Luckily work has been pretty good. I actually got to write a page of program notes for the Western Australia Symphony about the history of the trumpet! Maybe the most enjoyable/easy thing I've been paid to do so far in my career.

The weekend should be pretty good, I'll probably be watching more of the rugby world cup. New Zealand is playing Australia tomorrow and then Wales vs. France is Sunday. I'm going over to my friend Cat's house to watch the game Sunday with a few other people I've met over here. I've noticed that a lot of people from the UK live in Australia; it's crazy because out of the 6 or so of us who have been getting together for the games, there are 3 from England, 1 from Ireland, 1 American (me) and one actual Australian person. I still get teased a bit about Americanish things I say, things like:

No fair!
Oh helllllll no!
Want a can of pop?
For real?

I also get asked to talk with a Southern accent a lot, they think it's pretty hilarious. Although I did watch some NASCAR yesterday morning so I suppose it's not too much of a stretch:)

Friday, October 7, 2011

Australian Wildlife

So Australia is known for its unique and diverse wildlife. Cute ones like kangaroos and koalas. Less cute ones like crocodiles and stingrays. But you may not know that there are cockroaches EVERYWHERE. And tonight as I was trying to tuck myself into bed early I found a cockroach. ON. MY. TOOTHBRUSH!!!!!!! Dan is not home to kill it for me so I'm pretty much going to bed terrified with unbrushed teeth until tomorrow when I can buy a new one. I've added a picture to show you what I'm dealing with here...

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Yucky Day


So nobody in Sydney seems to have a dryer, because the weather is warm and dry most of the time and they just hang their clothes up outside. Unfortunately today was an exception and I woke up to a torrential downpour. My clothes are looking pretty sad and forlorn hanging on the line right now, but hopefully this will clear up and I can enjoy the three day weekend (labour day is Monday). I took a photo from the balcony; you can just barely see the ocean in the distance, and today it's looking pretty grey.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

More Aussie Vocab

Carpark=Parking lot
Pram=Stroller
Trolley=Shopping cart
Serviette=Napkin
Maccas=McDonalds
Singlet=Tank top
Eftpos=Debit card
Lift=Elevator
Jumper=Sweater
Entree=Appetizer
Main=Entree
BYO=Bring your own. As in bring a bottle of wine to a restaurant and nobody cares!
Mate=Buddy/dude/friend
Sunnies=Sunglasses
Biscuit=Cookie
Capsicum=Bell pepper

Weird stuff Australians eat...

I tried Vegemite for the first time today. I really WANTED to like it, and I think if I had grown up eating it I probably would. It's very salty, which I usually like, but something about it was... off. I put a really thin layer on toast with some cheese and avocado, but the smell is just really disgusting to be honest. Unless I'm experiencing a severe B vitamin deficiency I'll probably just avoid it.

To go along with the experience I decided to create a post in celebration of Australian cuisine. By that I mean I just took photos of weird shit in the fridge.


One of Australia's most notorious foods...


Every cheese I've tried to buy is some kind of "tasty" cheese which I guess is a synonym for cheddar...


Gherkin = pickle I think?


Sour cream... In a carton! And it's expired, whoops!

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Good News!

I got a job. In an actual music library! It's with Symphony Services International, which is a company that the six main orchestras in Australia hire to provide them with music that they may not have in their own libraries. SSI also writes program notes for the orchestras and does travel arrangements for visiting artists, making sure they have visas and itinteraries, etc.

I completely got it by accident, because I had initially just asked if they had any volunteer work for me to do, but they ended up just asking me to fill a job that had recently been vacated. It's not a librarian job, and technically I'm an Administration Officer, but I do a lot of work with the databases, some cataloguing, etc. so I think it will be really good to get some experience! My contract is for 8 weeks at which point they may extend it if everything is going well. Not sure what this means for the Sydney Symphony internship, but I haven't even started that yet so maybe I can work something out with them...

Monday, September 12, 2011

A few snaps from around my neighborhood


It's a beautiful "winter" day here in Cronulla so I walked around and took a few photos of the neighborhood:


South Cronulla Beach


North Cronulla Beach


Central Business District (downtown)

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Busy!

Wow it's been a super busy week. Still no Internet in the apartment, which makes taking online classes interesting. Right now I'm at the Cronulla library using their wifi but I'm pretty much ready to not have to walk down here every time I want to check my email.

The suburb I live in is really great! It's about an hour train ride from the city, but I don't really mind the commute too much. Also rent in the city is insanely expensive, and I don't really want to share a room with 4 strangers. I'm living in a two bedroom with another guy named Dan. He's super nice so luckily things worked out with the living arrangements. AND my place is a ten minute walk to a really nice beach. I'll be sure to post a few pictures soon!

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Aussie Vocab Lesson

Here's some words I've picked up so far. More to follow I'm sure.

Rubbish bin = Trash can
Heaps = A lot
Power point = Outlet
Arvo = Afternoon
Root = A dirty word. You can probably guess.
Servo = Gas station
Brekky = Breakfast
Footy = Australian rules football
Bottle shop = Liquor store
Sultanas = Raisins
Whole meal = Whole wheat
Boot = Trunk

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Birthday in Sydney

Today is my 27th birthday, and I'm celebrating it a full 17 hours ahead of everyone in the US. I unfortunately spent the first hour at the bank not getting much accomplished, but after that Tony and I went to the Koala park since Katrina had to work. The Koala park is basically a small zoo full of uniquely Australian wildlife, so I got to pet a Koala and hand feed some kangaroos. They really like Cheerios and pretty much hopped around following me until I gave them some. Kinda sad because they're wild animals that are conditioned to do that, but also really cute! There were also wombats, wallabees, kookaburras, etc. Fun day. Then we went to the bottle-o (AKA liquor store) and got a case of beer. A six pack of Toohey's new (the equivalent of Miller Lite) costs about $13 AUD! It's cheaper though if you get a 24 pack so we decided that was the best route to go. Happy Birthday to me!

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Touristy Day



Free Saturday and we decided to take the ferry into downtown Sydney, or as they call it the CBD (central business district). We went straight under the Sydney Harbor Bridge AKA the "Coathanger" and I could see the opera house going around the corner. It was crazy to finally see something in person after having seen so many photos of it; I was kind of surprised to see that it actually exists! We were pretty hungry when we got off, so we had some Gozleme, which is like a Turkish quesadilla with spinach and mushrooms. As we were finishing those, a free walking tour of Sydney happened to be going by so we just tagged along with that. It lead us through the Rocks, which is the oldest section of Sydney and was built pretty much entirely by convicts who had been deported there from England for offenses like stealing a loaf of bread. We also saw the church where Elton John married a lady prior to coming out. After that we ended up walking the span of the Harbor Bridge back to the train station. Overall a really fun day but I'm pretty much in the mood to sit around for the rest of the night doing not much of anything.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Getting stuff done!

First full day in Oz, and since Tony and Katrina are at work I'm just trying to get a bunch of stuff done. I decided to start with a healthy breakfast of toast which is all I usually want in the morning. No toaster, but no problem, I can just use the broiler in the oven. Waited FOREVER for the oven to get to 250 Celsius (whatever that means) but got impatient and basically ate warm sliced bread for breakfast. Not a good start so far.

Anyways I walked 10 minutes to the bank, trying really hard to walk on the left side of the sidewalk so as not to crash into every single person going the other way. I did successfully open an account, but my cashiers checks take a full four weeks to deposit so I have to figure out how to do an international money transfer instead. So I DO have an Australian bank account now, but just no money in it and no debit card for a few days. But some progress.

Still no cell phone. That's a long boring story as well, but hopefully will get one by this weekend. I DID buy a hair straightener and blow dryer that won't blow up when I try to use them here so at least I'll be walking around with great looking hair. I also got asked three times today what kind of "accent" I have which was kinda cool.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

On my way!

I have a three-hour layover at beautiful Nadi International Airport in Fiji, so I figured I would give an update on how everything is going so far. Stepping off the plane at Nadi is a completely different experience than disembarking at LAX. The crowds of people mingled with hotel shuttle buses, taxis, and bleach blond ladies speeding in their Mercedes convertibles is a stark contrast to the flock of birds that quickly dispersed into the humid air here at Nadi when I stepped off the plane. When I went through the one X ray scanner at the airport, I had unfortunately forgotten a few sips of water in my Nalgene. Shit. This would certainly warrant a strip search on behalf of the TSA agents back in the States, but the lady here just said, “Would you like to finish your drink and then go ahead to the terminal?” Amazing! While shuttles carry stressed out passengers from all over the world between a labrynth of terminals at LAX, there are only 8 gates here in Fiji. This has been a huge relief, and a nice way to unwind before I begin the final leg of my trip from here to Sydney, another 2000-mile flight with hopefully fewer crying babies. In the meantime, I’ll relax here and maybe get a cup of coffee from one of the two available food stands or check out the “Muzik Culture” store which is blaring pop music that sounds about 15 years out of date, which is about 30 years newer than the fixtures in the one bathroom here. Hopefully things keep going smoothly!