There will be no Poetry Slam Friday tomorrow as I will be in Sydney with the family*.In lieu of this, I present a passage from Paradise Updated by Mic Looby.
All of it is a pretty good read but this passage just struck me as a wonderful piece of writing for some reason.
The anti-hero, Richard Rind, is in some hellish, third-world airport reflecting sourly on the “independent travellers” streaming past him.
And all the while, barging past, mocking him with their exuberance, fresh-faced travellers revelled in the tedium and red tape. The fools. This was the nonsense of travel. This was the great lie. Travelling for pleasure was a contradiction in terms. Not that he expected those braying backpackers to understand. They finished school yesterday, and now, brimming with credit-card-fuelled bravado and decked out in the latest, skimpiest wash-and-wear wonder-garments, they were off to somewhere foreign to get drunk and have orgies, because that was what all their friends did. Well they could rut all they liked. They’d learn.
I do like some invective.
*Hey Kettle, it looks like the Sydney public transport ticketing system kind of sucks. Can you confirm?
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*Hey Kettle, it looks like the Sydney public transport ticketing system kind of sucks. Can you confirm?
Oh heavens yes, Ramon! But we like to think of it as an adventure; when you get on board any type of vehicle in Sydney you don't know where you're going or when you'll arrive. Indeed, whether you'll arrive at all! It's marvellous.
If you're here on Sunday, I do highly recommend the Family Fun day travel pass. It's $2.50 per adult (kidsters free) and you can go anywhere using the buses, ferries and trains, from Wollongong to Gosford.
Yes, I am actually a transport nerd.
Also Ramon, do you already have a full calendar or are you looking for things to do in Sydders? I have a kazillion suggestions, if you need.
Anything to keep a six-and-a-half year old amused wil be gratefully received.
Please note: the following is a long ramble about stuff to do in Sydney; please tune out now if this sounds boring as bat shit to you.
Powerhouse Museum: Always good, and they've got a coupla cool exhibitions at the moment with school hols starting, including spies, and space.
Aquarium: Dugongs, jelly fish, wobbygongs, ooh and there's a shark exhibition at the moment too.
Actually Darling Harbour (where the aquarium is) is generally good: Maritime Museum, Imax theatre, over-priced ice cream. There's a playground and other shiz too.
Usually the Museum of Contemporary Art (Circular Quay) is good for kidsters because: a. it's pretty small, and b. it most often has room-sized installations (moss walls, giant kaleidoscopes) but I think there's an exhibition of Annie Liebovitz's photography at the moment so perhaps not a drawcard for kids.
Good markets on Glebe Point Rd on Saturdays, with well decent food and usually a band.
Always fun to catch a ferry. The trip to Manly takes half an hour and you see a lot of the harbour, but the weather may suck and there are a lot of surfing bogans in Manly (also there's usually a huge line for the ferry there so you may get stuck waiting). If you just want the boat experience, I recommend the trip to the zoo and back, takes 25 mins all up, quite noice.
If your son likes coffee (ahem), take him to Campos Coffee on Missenden Rd Camperdown. Best coffee in Sydney.
Missenden Rd is just off King Street which runs through Newtown. King St is our favourite street in Sydders; cafes, bookshops, crazies, it's got everything.
Otherwise, are you thinking of anything in particular I can offer my long rambly advice on?
PS, and I promise I'll stop now. We're having a game of poker at ours on Saturday night with some pals. You are all most welcome to join us.
Ooh, thanks Kettle much appreciated.
Thanks very much for the invite, but I better stay a home.
I'm a shit poker player.
I'm a shit poker player.
All the more reason to join us, Ramon.
Muhaha.
Oh! It's Schadenfreude Thursday! I love it
You present a marvellous passage, Ramon.
is in some hellish, third-world airport
No he isn't, I would have seen him, surely.
He sounds jealous to me.
Thanks Kettle. Im moving to Sydney in 6 weeks.
Im moving to Sydney in 6 weeks.
Excellent, Dr G. A marvellous city it is. Let me know if I can pass on any long, rambly Sydney advice.
If you are in fact already a local from a previous time then a. you are spared my long, rambly Sydney advice, and b. welcome back.
Moved out of Sydney 15 years ago.
I really miss the traffic, parking fines, how profoundly expensive homes are (that are less than a one hour commute from the CBD), winter and cultural enclaves like Lakemba and Cabramatta.
I will however admit that it is the most spectacular city to fly into.
I really miss the traffic, parking fines, how profoundly expensive homes are (that are less than a one hour commute from the CBD), winter and cultural enclaves like Lakemba and Cabramatta.
Oh dear Wari it's not like that at all now!
These days it's peaceful (after 10pm when the planes stop), parking is easy (provided you give up driving and sell your car), and houses are cheap, cheap, cheap (no wait, that's the State government).
And it's the most spectacular city to fly into.
So Dr G, don't pay any attention to Wari and his Sydney smear campaign (you're gonna need all your energy to find a parking spot).
Maybe it's just me, but I've always found Sydney a spectacularly good city to fly out of.
Ouch! A fine diss, Mr Dis.
Indeed Mr E.
I probably had the best of Sydney life really. I grew up in Mosman and in summer we'd go straight to Balmoral beach from school and Mum would pick us up after work.
After I got married I lived in Glebe and Leichhardt. The inner west is the best place in Sydney to live. Norton Street is Sydney's Lygon Street.
Now I've gone and gotten all home sick.
But I have to admit that sending the (now ex) missus and kids to Brisbane after they left Port Moresby was a great idea. Brisvegas is a great city to live in.
But I now live on a boat in the marina at Port Moresby and life is wonderful.
It doesn't matter where you live, your outlook is all that matters. Some people will be miserable in paradise. Me, I'll find the fun bits in hell.
But I have to admit that sending the (now ex) missus and kids to Brisbane after they left Port Moresby was a great idea.
You could make the case that when it comes to places to send an ex-wife, Karachi is also a good idea.
As an ex-wife myself I would say that nobody can *send* me anywhere.
You know even as a current wife, same applies.
Depending on when the "sending" was done, Melba, I think you'd have been grateful to get out of PNG. Particularly if it was Moresby. We were "sent" from the Eastern Highlands, and I can tell you, we were extremely happy to be gone. That was in 89/90.
That wasn't my point Puss, but don't worry.
No, I know Melba. I was making a different point.
Or, it wasn't even a point, really. Just a comment.
Sorry Melba. "Send" implies something that simply wouldn't happen with my ex. It was a mutual decision. The main point being that despite some initial reservations, it proved to be a good move. She has said recently that even if she won lotto she wouldn't move back to Sydney. Sydney's beautiful, but Brisbane is a better city to live in. IMHO of course.
And Puss, she was bailing out of Lae, which to be fair had treated us quite well for the 5 years (95 - 2000) that we lived there. I moved to Pom after they "went finish".
Anything to keep a six-and-a-half year old amused wil be gratefully received.
Taronga Zoo - can be reached by ferry from the city.
I grew up on the North side (Mosman, Northern Beaches) and prefer it to the inner west but then I like being near the water. Having lived out of Sydney for 13 years I'm over it - I wouldn't go back there now, too many people, too many cars, too expensive.
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