Merry Christmas Everyone!

I spent christmas eve here in sydney with travellers from all over. Mich and I and his roommates from korea, india, and slovakia, started out by celebrating Canadian-style at the "Minus 5" bar- much like the Ice Palace in Quebec, this lounge is made entirely out of ice. [inside a refridgerated building, of course]. Upon arrival, you are given a large over-sized parka [that i'd have loved to have had during Sackville winters!], boots, gloves, etc. and off you go into a re-created winter-wonderland. Even the glasses for your drinks are made of ice :) after about an hour we were ready to go though, and that was only -5 degrees! photos soon to come...

Then we went to Cargo, where bongo and sax players jammed along with club/house dj sets. and then lastly to the pancake house- served with real maple syrup. I don't think i've ever gone to bed at 3am on xmas eve before. ...or slept in until noon xmas day.

Wakeing up in the hostel [which i decided to check into yesterday because sleeping on the couch at mich's place ended up being less than perfect, what with all the cockroaches and such] was lovely with travellers wishing me merry xmas in the elevator as i headed downstairs to meet mich on our way to Bronte beach :) excellent / gianormous waves and a beautiful hot sunny day.

Tonight we came back and cooked xmas dinner for the apartment: egg nog, potatos, corn, stuffing from a box-mix, and chicken parmasan [the stove was too small for a turkey].
what a way to celebrate.

the big apple

i'm flying to sydney on friday.
last minute decision in order to spend xmas with some other travellers. the weather looks fantastic for the weekend, so i imagine we'll be joining others for a backpackers get-together at bondi beach.
i recieved a xmas package from my mom yesterday :) yay! and a card from my nanny & grampy.
hope everyone's enjoying their xmas holidays.
-cheers

ok, so i was a complete geek and went to see stephen malkmus in concert on friday.
and it was awesome.
just before he went on stage, i thought to myself that it's been almost 10 years since i first started listening to pavement, after i heard about them from erin legere. and i have to admit, it was neat to be in a room full of people who shared my musical admiration instead of looking at me disgustedly or replying with "who"?
aha- pictures for your viewing pleasure.
see more here.

today, i'm making chocolates for some friends, and saying goodbye to others. marc heads to tasmania then sydney today, and charlene is off to perth next week. :( guess it's time to get out and meet people again.

the wind in melbourne is not like the wind in sackville. sackville wind sweeps up along the marshes in one constant and unchanging motion. it is as much a part of the land as the sloping hills and tall grasses. the wind in melbourne tosses and turns the people and the trees, giving the impression that at any moment you are on the brink of a tropical storm. whether it bears terrential rains, or merely threatens, one can be sure that it will pass almost as quickly and suddenly as it arrived.

for love of the city

flipping through the entertainment part of the newspaper today i discovered the following upcoming shows in melbourne:

Dec 10- DJ Sasha [if you havn't heard of him, well.. get out more.]
Dec 16&17- Stephen Malkmus [I know, go ahead- make fun.]
Feb 2- The Mars Volta
March 26- HIM
As well as the sold-out shows of U2 & Coldplay, and Jamiriquai played a couple of weeks ago.

but at least the maritimes still got the Stones... even if it was in Moncton.

oh my god it's december.

i'm not quite sure how to celebrate christmas with no snow, no family, and a limited number of friends. i've convinced tan to help me decorate the house a bit at least. and we both have a week or so off work, so if the weather cooperates there should be a few good beach days. then in january we'll be going to see the tennis open- aussies are pretty nuts about their sports so, "when in rome..."

trying to decide where to head to next- maybe tasmania in february/march, then on to sydney in may to meet my baby :) lenny arrives on may 19th!