In Adelaide this week, an event which will please a number of you. Rain.
And just when I had begun think there were only two kinds of weather. Hot and bloody hot. Still it didn't last long.
South Australia is renowned as the driest state in the country and the raindrops are few and far between. But just to demonstrate that things are very much the same over here in so many ways, it was a bank holiday weekend when the clouds chose to burst.
This bank holiday was for a horse race and, despite 60% of Aussies supporting a republic, we will also have one for the Queen's birthday. As every state has a couple of unique public holidays, it can give an insight into regional priorities. So, in South Australia we take a day for the Adelaide Cup horse race while in the Northern Territory they celebrate both a Picnic Day and Booroola Show Day.
Although what celebrating Easter Tuesday says about Tasmania eludes me. Mind you, they say a lot about Tasmania, much of which I'd rather not repeat.
At home, as I've been practicing for a few weeks, we felt it was time to try our first public barbie this week and invited round the family who volunteered to help us get settled when we arrived.
Apart from a pleasant evening, we got a demonstration of Aussie values in action. Erin who is 14, had run up a $900 (£400) bill on her mobile. In a month! So, she wasn't flavour of the month but as a family they were joking about it. Then she mentioned that champion swimmer and national hero Ian Thorpe was gay. I will save you the details, but I can assure you she will not be mentioning that particular rumour in her father's presence again. But he's OK about the phone bill.
As for the barbie, despite looking very hungry early on, they didn't eat much.
In case it passed you by, the Commonwealth Games started this week in Melbourne. The Queen showed up to the opening ceremony but didn't look very happy about it, probably because she was sat next to John Howard. However, Philip seemed very chirpy, largely due to an African runner coming in native costume. A skirt and a hat. Those pictures made the papers and put a smile on the Duke's face.
People from Melbourne are far too cool to be excited about something like this so all we hear is 'grumble, grumble, republic, moan, moan, too easy' etc. Then the Scots beat their best girl in the pool, the English spank them in the velodrome and all of a sudden the whole nation swings 100% behind their lawn bowls team.
Meanwhile in Adelaide, all the arty type festivals are drawing to a close now, which means it's the season for closing the streets and racing huge cars around the city. So as the theatre and comedy crowd drift away for a mochachino, a new bloke is in town, clad in overtight jeans, a big belly, elaborate facial hair and a hot dog in each ham sized fist. The uniform of the Aussie petrol head.
All that aside, Mandy has just started work on the intensive care unit, something new for her and a new challenge in terms of the skills she will need.
As for me I found a book about the diary of J. McDouall Stuart, intrepid Australian adventurer of the 1850's, maybe seeking a parallel. Anyway, contrast this with my previous entries in this online diary.....
’Still no rain, horses suffering, I fear we may lose 2 tonight, mosquitos unbearable, natives scouted our camp again in the night. Shall have to leave provisions behind if the horses do not make it, our fate is with providence’.
That puts a different slant on waiting for a bus.
Keep well.
Will & Mandy
1 comment:
glad to hear it's raining at last!!! ha ha ha .
not that i'm jealous. It has continued to snow off on and on here and as in someone else's previous comments, the native teenagers continue to be a pain in the arse, but at least the horses are ok and we're not plagued by mosquitoes.
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