Gastro-what?   27 March 2006

Ugh. It never ends. My stomach is still giving me issues, and unfortunately diet isn't controlling it. I have been without chocolate, alcohol, and soda (but not without an attitude) for over a week now and it hasn't fixed anything. So my doctor has scheduled me in for a gastro somethin.  I can never say it, but perhaps I can spell it. Gastroscopy. There.  She was explaining the procedure to me and I basically said, "They're going to do what?"  They insert a tube down my throat to see what's going on in my stomach. Ewww.  Luckily my sickness ridden big sis has already been through this, so she offered lots of words of expertise on the phone today. But I can't say I'm looking forward to Friday.

Not much is going on until then, although I did get a great package in the mail today from Stagnaro's containing lemon cooler girl scout cookies and a big old flash disk for our camera! The cookies will be a much needed sugar binge after ignoring chocolate for so long. Yippee! 

It's OVAH  26 March 2006

The games officially ended today, which was sad. But what a fantastic show Melbourne put on. In fact, the Prime Minister of Australia even stated, on radio, that Melbourne was better at large events then Sydney.  Nyah Nyah Nyah.  Everyone kept saying how great the events were, the volunteers, even the weather! For 11 whole days it was 70s and 80s and sunny. It isn't supposed to rain until tomorrow, the day after the whole thing is over.  When even the weather cooperates, you know it's a good show.   I'm quite proud of my little city. She's all grown up, sniff sniff.

My all time favourite of the entire games has to be the weightlifting commentator. It became my favourite commonwealth sport as soon as I heard him talk. He has a very thick Australian accent and gets SO excited.  I have never seen anyone so excited about any event, much less weightlifting. Anytime anyone ever made a life he would scream and yell: "THIS IS SO GOOD!"  "THIS IS THE BEST I HAVE EVER SEEN!" "CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS AT HOME? YOU ALL MUST BE SO EXCITED!" "NOW THIS IS SPORT!"  By far the best though was when the heavyweight of Australia lifted the Commonwealth record of weight. The guy shouted, "YOU BIG BIG BEAUTIFUL MAN!" over and over.  It doesn't get any better than that.

Williamstown Sunny Saturday: 25 March 2006

We spent most of today in Williamstown with Ob and TJ today.  We ended up meeting up with Shivon and John and Neve for some dinner and mostly walked around and enjoyed the sunshine in Williamstown. Then we headed back to Ob and TJs for some drinks and some tunes. Ob introduced me to some groovy new bands like Zero7, tosca, and Groove Armada.  Now I have a whole new list of CDs to grab from her iPod.  Woohoo!

Commonwealth Day Eight: Track and Field  23 March 2006

Today as our last Commonwealth Games event - the track and field. And what a shocker.  We got to not only see many different field events (pole vault, high jump, AND discus) but we got to see some of the best races run - including Jana Pittman run the 400 hurdles for a win. I swear, when she was in the last 100, the crowd was going c-r-a-z-y. The noise was absolutely deafening. 

You might not remember Jana Pittman, but she dominates the headlines here. She was the favored gold for Australia in the Athens Olympics, that is before she blew out here knee mere weeks before the event.  Australia does not have a strong Athletics team, so she was about the only hope. We followed her drama through the Olympics, where she didn't even qualify, even after knee surgery.  These games were to be her comeback event, if she didn't choke (another thing she's known for). But she totally pulled it off and it was glorious.

Another great win was the EAD athlete (Elite athletes with disabilities) who won the 200m sprint.  This was his 15 minutes of fame and he was going to live it out. He was adorable as he ran around the entire stadium (it took him about 45 minutes to do his victory lap) and sign autographs, take photos, and touch everyone's hand. Good on him for celebrating his achievement.

Commonwealth Day Six: Hockey  21 March 2006

Today Daz got to live out a little slice of my past.  That's because this evening we went to see women's hockey qualifying matches.  It was fast and played dirty, as girl's hockey tends to be.  I couldn't help but cringe during the short corners and the hard hits - but it was good to see the sport played again.  They play on astro turf at this level so the game is very very fast, with 35 minute halves.  Darren definitely got into the sport as well, as he always does as a spectator.  He contributed his fair share of "Come On!" and other yells during the game. It was too bad we didn't get to Australia, since they are favoured for gold, but we did get to see India and Malaysia, two other powerhouse nations at hockey.

Commonwealth Day Four: Enjoying the City  19 March 2006

No games today, or yesterday. Yesterday was a big movie day since we were recovering from Big Night Out.  But today we met up with Ob and TJ again so we could switch DVDs. I gave them 2 seasons worth of Sopranos in exchange for 1 season of Deadwood and 1 season This Life. Ob and I always talk about our obsession with Sopranos and Deadwood so we thought we should share the love.

We ended up having lunch along the Yarra River and then walking along the Yarra for a few ks to see all the Festival events. You wouldn't believe how many people were out!  It was packed, the weather was perfect, and there was SO much to do. You would not believe how gorgeous the weather has been. We have had 1 morning of rain, and the rest of the time it has been brilliant sunny and mid 70s. No one is going to believe me when we talk about the random weather.

We spent the next few hours of exploring the events, seeing the yarra river fishes, eating ice cream and enjoying time with Ob and TJ.  It was a perfect afternoon.

Commonwealth Day Two: More Rugby and GNO  17 March 2006

Tonight the boys went out to Rugby 7s finals and we had Girls Night Out.  Ob and I met up around 8 and had some munchies, walked the city, and ended up at The Deanery.  The boys, and some stragglers they picked up along the way, met up with us at the Deanery around midnight and we tossed them back until around 4.  Ob and TJ are such bad influences, I swear. But we had a blast with them and the other stragglers. Plus, the Kiwi's ended up winning in the final, which I bet on with Darren. He was barracking for the Fijians, who didn't end up in the final 2.  Ha ha ha HA!

It was St Patty's Day today, which means the city was double crazy. It was definitely outshadowed though by the Commonwealth games.  It just meant we had 2 reasons to drink ourselves silly.

Commonwealth Day One: Rugby 7s      16 March 2006

Day One of the Commonwealth Games and we were front row and centre. Well, we were actually second tier and towards the side, but we were there today at Rubgy 7s for the first games of the match.  Rubgy 7s is like normal Rugby cut in half. Half the players and half the time.  7 people are on each side and they play two 7 minute halves.  It's fast paced and high scoring, so I thought it was quite a bit more fun than the other Rugby games we've attended.

Better than that, we got to see some great teams.  The Kenyans were incredibly fast and just ran past everyone. The Kiwi's dominated and it was great to see the future All Blacks team.  Tonga came back to upset the South Africans and got a standing ovation and the Canucks gave it a good go.  What was most fun was that the crowd was cheering for anyone who played well, anyone who gave it their all, or just about anyone. It wasn't just the Aussies or the Welsh getting the cheers. We loved everyone that day.

4 and half hours of Rugby and I can't say I was bored at all. Then I came home and turned on Channel 9 and watched all the sports that we had missed while we were at the game. 

Melbourne Brings It      15 March 2006

Tonight was the opening ceremonies of the 2006 Commonwealth Games and Melbourne brought it.  It was fantastic!  The city is buffed and polished, and lit up and looks spectacular.  For the first time in history, the opening ceremonies included activities outside of the main arena (the MCG).  They had a parade of fish along the yarra river and the AFL captains walked across the fish and the flags of the Commonwealth countries to bring the Queens Baton into the ceremony.  (You can see some photos here)

The ceremony was spectacular, and raved about by everyone. It was a smaller version of the Olympics with the same artsy showcase but less teams walking.  Plus, what a bonus for us when we noticed that Cat Empire (our FAV band) played at the opening. Woohoo!  Let the games begin!!!

It's Kosina Day      15 March 2006

Today was a Kosina day.  Kosina day is when I pack up my nifty 3G wireless card and spend a few afternoon hours working from my favourite little local cafe- Kosina.  I bought the 3G wireless card for a press tour a few weeks back, and my boss said to go ahead and get the best plan out there. So now I have this 3G card at my disposal. Now, if you don't know about 3G, it's only the best thing ever. It allows you to have broadband internet speed, over wireless, wherever.  And I mean wherever - cafes, a park, a taxi cab, the zoo. You name it and it'll work.

So, in order to make sure I am still able to converse with the world and so I don't turn into a total hermit, I "force" myself to go down to Kosina once or twice a week and mingle with the normal people of the world.  A little coffee, some email, and maybe a newspaper break makes me a happy little person.

Commonwealth is Coming!      14 March 2006

The Commonwealth games are finally here. We've been waiting for this since about the time we moved here, and it has finally arrived. Opening ceremonies begin tomorrow night and then we have Rugby tickets on Thursday and Friday, Hockey this weekend, and next week, and then Athletics the week after. In between we'll try to hang out and enjoy the excitement and chaos of downtown, the festivals, and anything else we can get our hands on.  I'll keep the website as updated as possible with photos but it'll be a busy few weeks. My new office is parked in front of the TV!

Sopranos is Here!      13 March 2006

Happy Happy Happy Happy. Sopranos season 6 has FINALLY started.  Well, it finally started on HBO in the states. Which means it might hit here in Australia, in about 2009. But- since it has actually started it manes there are various ways for me to finally get access to it. Allowing me to once again continue my drug habit. Thankfully. I had already gone through all the first 5 seasons way to quickly.  If you haven't seen it yet -  go now quickly to the nearest video store and pick up Season 1 and 2 (get both cause you'll get hooked).

Sloshy!      10 March 2006

As winter is drawing near, we decided it was time for Sloshball to make an encore appearance. We had another go at it this weekend, and it was great fun.  We still had a lack of people (only about 12) and it was another game that I'm still sore from 3 days later. But we had a whole new group of people to pass on the Sloshball wisdom too, and hopefully they will be able to pass down this trade secret to their friends and children. =)  Oh - and we actually got ourselves a keg this time, so it was a real game.  A lot of shots weren't PG - but here are a couple to give you an idea of the game:

The keg, with people behind,         The team, after the game (obviously)         Go Daz! Winner of Boat races

Take a look at this! Did you know there was actually a Sloshball Organization and teams?

Surprise Weekend      4 March 2006

What a fantastic hubby I have.  We didn’t get to spend my birthday together, as we were both off in other cities. He had made me promise to keep this weekend open, so we could do a late birthday celebration. However, it was a BIG surprise and he wouldn’t tell me ANYTHING about what we were doing. Not a thing. I asked for hints everyday this week but he would say very vague things like, “It could take place outside or inside.”  Well come on!  That tells me nothing!

So, finally on Friday he gave me a card at around noon. It said, “Pack 2 days worth of casual clothes, a bathing suit, and ME”. Wahoo!  I was so excited for our surprise adventure that I went to pack immediately. I still had no idea what we were doing or when we were leaving so I tried to get some work done and around 2 he said it was time to go. Yippee!

We drove an hour and half or so north east of Melbourne to the Macedon Ranges (where we had never been before) and he took me to this lovely old hotel (old in a good way of course) where we spent the weekend relaxing. The Macedon Ranges is known for their wineries, so of course we went wine tasting! It was a combo of all my favourite things: surprises, new places, wine, and D.  It was great to spend the weekend together since we hadn’t see each other much in the last month. We got to talk and catch up and most of all – relax. What a perfect birthday weekend.

Vietnam  February 2006

For those of you who need a quick (ok – semi quick) rundown of Vietnam, here are the highlights. They are broken up into the 3 places we visited and the wonderful people we met in Ho Chi Minh.  For the full unedited version, check it out here.

Ho Chi Minh highlights:

*Roundabouts: A challenge at each one to gain the courage to cross. We were always fascinated by everyone going a million directions without hitting each other or pedestrians. We spent lots of time just watching everything merge here.

*Ben Thanh Market: it’s enough to give you the heeby jeebies. It’s filled with small aisles, carts, and people yelling “Miss! Miss! You want silk/Shrimp/insert any item here!”. Sounds, noises and smells coming from everyone. It was an absolute sensory overload.

*Pham Ngu Lao: the backpacker area filled with cute cafes filled with bamboo furniture, travel agencies, and eateries like “Good Morning Vietnam” (which is actually an Italian place). We also took refuge at Allez Boo, a great bar with lots of Tiger Beer and Ba Ba Ba to cool our bodies after long walks.

*The incredible strength of the women carrying fruits/food/cooking pots/pho on poles on their shoulders.

*The hanging out areas – where Vietnamese locals would pull up a tiny chair or stool or assume the Saigon Squat and eat pho cooked in pans by weary wrinkled women in cone hats. It is the national starbucks society.

*The gorgeous Ao Dai worn by the women.

*Having a “Grinch” moment in the midst of constant honking and construction – “Oh all the noise, noise NOISE!”

*Walking by street vendors with cages containing squirrels (tied on ropes – am I in India?), rabbits, monkeys and even snakes!

*Families of 4 (or 5) crammed onto mopeds, cruising at night time or on their way to dinner. This must be Santa Cruz Ave in Los Gatos.

*The moped guy carrying not 1 but 2 large boxes (of flat screen TVs!) on his moped. Holding them on with one hand behind him (no straps) holding the boxes and the other one driving.  The first time we were shocked and then we realized this was their typical Uhaul.

*Watching the cyclo drivers taking an afternoon siesta on their cyclos.

*My big old birthday dinner – the works for $15, at a local Vietnamese restaurant. We looked around and it was filled with locals so we knew we hit a good place. Not a single person spoke English which made it challenging when we got the  wrong dish. When I tried to explain the mix-up, the poor guy brought us a bowl of soy sauce.  Ah well, when in Rome….

*Listening to Dad’s non stop chatter, questions, and exclamations. Shocked by most and amused by all, his mouth hasn’t shut up since he got here.

*Looking at all the types of masks people wear, even the ones made in little person sizes for kids. At first we laughed, but now we really want one!

The Wonderful Personalities of Saigon

*The young girl trying to sell me postcards. She had a ghetto, “Oh heeeeeyyyy girrrrrl” welcome and called out to us. It was hilarious coming from a Vietnamese 12 year old.  She grabbed by hand to help me across the street and kept saying, “Come on Miss!” as I was taking way too long.  This was our first lesson on the Art of Crossing

*The cyclo driver carrying a magazine with a photo of him inside (and an article about cyclo driver in HCM).  He opened it up proudly and beamed, “This me!”

*The other cyclo driver who had a book of messages about how great he is. It’s his own testimonial guide. He asked where we were from and then showed us all the reviews written from people from the states.  He then continued to hang out outside our lunch spot and give us lots of thumbs up (ingenious marketing here, I swear)

*The street vendors who say “See you later” and then smile and giggle. I’m not sure what they think they are saying, but it’s obviously very funny to them.

*The lovely man who sold me his chalk drawing for $6 (rather than $10) because “You young!”.  Once I handed him the cash, he smiled, waved it around, and said, “I got money!”

Mui Ne highlights.

*The round boats used for fishing – we thought it was for storage until we saw a guy out in it. Don’t you think he would paddle in a circle?

*The little restaurant we stopped at and tried to order beer and water through pointing and hand signals – even harder than usual. Finally I remembered the brand of water, La Vie. Once I said that, the waiter smiled and clapped and served us. While we were resting, they changed the Vietnamese music to Elton John, to our disappointment.

*The little kids posing for a photo (How adorable right?) and then asking me for $1. They spotted me as a sucker and I fell hook, line, and sinker.

 Here are some highlights from our time on the Delta:

*The boat trip along the Mekong Delta waterways where we got to see where locals lived, worked, showered, and played

*All the children who would stand on the river banks waving frantically until we responded and they would whoop and smile and laugh.

*The coconut candy factory (with the word factory being used VERY loosely here) where we saw it made, tasted it, and learned how the locals use every piece of the coconut, including the husks. The factory was tucked down a small waterway in the middle of nowhere.

*Weaving through the tiny canals on small boats (or being rowed by a local in the Saigon squat) while avoiding branches, feeling the steamy weather (Or as Robin Williams says, “IT’s HOT. It’s DAMN hot.”), and realizing its way better than the jungle cruise.

*Seeing the rice paper factory (again very loose usage here) and realizing everything is done by hand, over hot crazy pots in steamy weather.

*Enjoying super yummy honey tea while listening to local Cham music (a Mekong specialty) and once again in the middle of nowhere.

*The homestay bungalow with the Hung family. It was another boat ride in a lovely sunset to his house, where we dined on fresh rice paper rolls (taught to us by his wife), and elephant ear fish, enjoyed local Can Tho beer with the husband while we learned about South Vietnam and Mekong life.

*Me being Princess Shalala Mo Pho in my mosquito net, which was actually a real deal here. I had to curl up in the middle of the bed to avoid the bugs.  Remember that Expedia commercial back in the day?

*Riding a cycloped to the hotel!  I finally got dad onto one, and it was a moped at that.

*The CRAZY floating markets. Almost impossible to explain. Imagine the craziest Farmers Market you’ve been to, then put it all on boats. Each boat puts poles up on their boat with what they are selling, but manoeuvring is the tricky part! And most spend 5-10 days on the boats.

*The coconut pancakes from the rice factory. They were like crepes, cost about 10 cents and we kept eating them!

*Crossing the monkey bridge  [From Lonely Planet, “At first glance the bridges look more like makeshift scaffolding than a bridge. It’s amazing to watch the locals traverse these narrow catwalks with bicycles and heavy loads balanced between their shoulders on bamboo poles.  The Vietnamese just glide across with ease (and smiles on their faces).”

*Surmising with Dad over the conspiracy theory. He was convinced our guide was a Communist cop from the north sent down to spy on tourists. You laugh – but he might not be too far off.

*The Communist propaganda – the TV with such happy rice growers, the benevolent doctor and happy soldiers or the loudspeakers in the country and travelling speakers in the city – “You will Submit!”

 Summary

What a lovely little country. The people and happy children really made the trip – as well as added a bit of reflection to the whole experience. It’s a country that’s definitely hard work, making the whole trip a bit sweeter once it’s all said and done.  It was great fun to travel with Dad. He’s quite the trooper. There were no complaints from his random ailments (elephantitis of the feet and whatever else he did to his back), and he handled raw Asia in style.  Well done.  Way to jump right in to the whole thing.  To those of you who haven’t been – GO. It’s a wonderful, beautiful country. If you don’t believe me, just check out our photos.

Cat Empire and Happy V-Day   12 February 2006

Since Darren will be in Perth, and I’ll be in Sydney for Valentines Day, we decided to celebrate a little early today.  We had quite a wonderful day on our secret V-Day. We started out with a walk, and a few drinks at the Boat restaurant, right down on Mary’s Bong river.  It was a fantastic day, and we were able to sit outside in the sun and people watch for a couple of hours.

Then we headed off to see our most favouritest band ever – Cat Empire.  I actually discovered them with Bryan and Darla while wine tasting last year.  They now sit beside the Jacks, the Daves, and the Jimmys in our hearts.  They are a local Melbourne band, but tour so much that they rarely ever play locally. Right now they are doing a month of Sunday performances at a St Kilda hotel and I was actually able to get us tickets! The concert absolutely rocked. They are so great in concert, because they play anything and everything and jam it up. They remind me of Dave Matthews in concert, because they never stuck to one song, but instead did lots of acoustic within and after a song to mix it up. We had an absolute blast and it was a great way to send each other off since we won’t see each other for 2 weeks. Sniff Sniff.

That’s FASCINATING!      11 February 2006

Who says you can’t learn anything from a beer coaster?

-in 1759, a very entrepreneurial Arthur Guiness secured a 9000 year lease on St. James Gate Brewery in Dublin, Ireland, for just 100 pounds per year.

-A pint of Guinness has less calories than a pint of orange juice

-In 2004 in Australia, over 2500 Guiness were drunk every hour of Every Day.