Thought I would break this account up a little with something other than the trip, though still in keeping with the present Australian motif of this blog. It's a little poem I wrote not too long ago.
(Either an Acrostic Septet Magnum Opus or
an accosted September magnificent Octopus
you decide which)
Images of Uluru
Images of Uluru, transgression of a dingo
Visions of a commune, ocker hippie lingo
Shrouded diamond cosmos, half a cheesy-moon
Incense and a guitar, lighter burns a spoon
Outback canine bogeyman, trotting in the dark
Nabbed a tiny bubba, without a yelp or bark
Stigma of a red-rock and Alice of the springs.
Monday, October 27, 2008
General Catchup 4 Lost and Found = Cellphone
After returning from the Great Ocean Road tour (Details to be posted soon) I realized that my cellphone was missing. I searched high and low for it and was upset to say the least that two things could have gone missing in such a short period of time. First the camera (see General Catchup 4 Lost and Found =camera saga)now this.
I contacted the tour operator (AAT Kings) but they had not seen any sign of it. Clutching at straws I rang the cellphone number from the landline in my room, just incase it had fallen behind something or was hidden in one of my bags but alas there was silence.
There was still a slight chance that it may ring the next morning, as I had set it's alarm to sound just after 6:30am, to wake me early for the tour but there was not a peep out of it the following morning.
Later that same morning I rang the tour company again. They informed me that one had handed it in but they would ask the driver when he got to work. Unfortunately he wasn't due back until later in the day, which wasn't much help as I had to check out of the Enterprise Hotel before 10am. To complicate things once I checked out, with no cellphone, it would make contacting me a bit tricky. I gave them my number at the Enterprise all the same, had a shower and went downstairs to have breakfast. :(
There was allot of things on the cellphone I was not too pleased about losing. Giving it one last try I asked at reception if anyone had handed in a cellphone (there was a very slim chance that I may have dropped it somewhere around the hotel)and bingo-bango they told me the tour company had just rang saying that they had found the cellphone!
I was ultra relieved to say the very least and picked it up from AAT Kings, in Swanston Street, later than morning making me a very happy camper indeed! :)
I contacted the tour operator (AAT Kings) but they had not seen any sign of it. Clutching at straws I rang the cellphone number from the landline in my room, just incase it had fallen behind something or was hidden in one of my bags but alas there was silence.
There was still a slight chance that it may ring the next morning, as I had set it's alarm to sound just after 6:30am, to wake me early for the tour but there was not a peep out of it the following morning.
Later that same morning I rang the tour company again. They informed me that one had handed it in but they would ask the driver when he got to work. Unfortunately he wasn't due back until later in the day, which wasn't much help as I had to check out of the Enterprise Hotel before 10am. To complicate things once I checked out, with no cellphone, it would make contacting me a bit tricky. I gave them my number at the Enterprise all the same, had a shower and went downstairs to have breakfast. :(
There was allot of things on the cellphone I was not too pleased about losing. Giving it one last try I asked at reception if anyone had handed in a cellphone (there was a very slim chance that I may have dropped it somewhere around the hotel)and bingo-bango they told me the tour company had just rang saying that they had found the cellphone!
I was ultra relieved to say the very least and picked it up from AAT Kings, in Swanston Street, later than morning making me a very happy camper indeed! :)
Saturday, October 25, 2008
General Catchup 4 Lost and Found =camera saga
There were a number of near misses and a couple of misplacements that put a bit of a dark cloud over the otherwise fine holiday.
The first of these happened a few days into my trip down to Melbourne. I flew down there on Tuesday 7th October and stayed there until Saturday 11th October. Part of the reason for going down there was to do a day tour of the Great Ocean Road, which winds its way down the bottom of Australia and ends up in Adelaide, if you are willing to drive that far.
Anyway the tour had somehow been booked for the wrong day, so to kill time I decided to go on a train journey, just to see a bit of the outer regions of Melbourne. I purchased a Zone one and Two ticket and ended up taking the Hurstbridge train to a place called Diamond Creek.
Had lunch in Diamond Creek and went for a walk around Nillumbik Park. Took a few photos of the birds along and a family ducks (bathing in the Park’s pond) along the way. After a brief look around the local shopping center I caught the train back to Flinders Street Station.
On my way back to the Enterprise Hotel, where I was staying I suddenly realized that I no longer had my camera. I rang the railway station from my room but the lost and found had closed for the night. I never saw it again. Somewhere someone has claimed a free digital camera. May your fowls turn into emu’s and kick your fowl-house down!
Anyway I ended up purchasing a new Fujifilm 9 mega-pixal digital camera which proved to be better than the original 6 mega-pixal model. But I ended up leaving that behind when I visited my relations in South Windsor (See Visiting the Blackwell Blacksmith).
The first of these happened a few days into my trip down to Melbourne. I flew down there on Tuesday 7th October and stayed there until Saturday 11th October. Part of the reason for going down there was to do a day tour of the Great Ocean Road, which winds its way down the bottom of Australia and ends up in Adelaide, if you are willing to drive that far.
Anyway the tour had somehow been booked for the wrong day, so to kill time I decided to go on a train journey, just to see a bit of the outer regions of Melbourne. I purchased a Zone one and Two ticket and ended up taking the Hurstbridge train to a place called Diamond Creek.
Had lunch in Diamond Creek and went for a walk around Nillumbik Park. Took a few photos of the birds along and a family ducks (bathing in the Park’s pond) along the way. After a brief look around the local shopping center I caught the train back to Flinders Street Station.
On my way back to the Enterprise Hotel, where I was staying I suddenly realized that I no longer had my camera. I rang the railway station from my room but the lost and found had closed for the night. I never saw it again. Somewhere someone has claimed a free digital camera. May your fowls turn into emu’s and kick your fowl-house down!
Anyway I ended up purchasing a new Fujifilm 9 mega-pixal digital camera which proved to be better than the original 6 mega-pixal model. But I ended up leaving that behind when I visited my relations in South Windsor (See Visiting the Blackwell Blacksmith).
General Catchup 3 - Meeting the Guinea Pigs
Meeting the Guinea Pigs
(Ammended from Wiggley not Wiggles, sorry about that my most beloved of Guinea pigs!)
The following day I was introduced to Juliana and her two beloved Guinea Pigs, Wiggley and Ginger. You can read all about them on their own special blog: www.Ponderingsofaguineapig.blogspot.
Ginger has a fluffy ginger coat and seems quite proper in his manner, while Wiggley (not Wiggles), who is white with a few dark patches here and there, seems more rough and ready. A fair-dincum Australian with an in your face attitude. He tends to shy away from attention but seems to get a bit out of sorts when he is not the center of it.
They were very cute and fury to touch. Both are of a healthy size and eat healthily. The mere sight of lettuce or anything eatable makes them squeak with joy as is clearly shown on the aforementioned blog.
Wiggley and Ginger are quite out going are often chauffeured to Potts point in TEG (See TEG post for more details). Meeting them was one of the highlights of the trip. I took some pictures of them but are unable to upload them as I left my camera behind (See Lost and Found post)
(Ammended from Wiggley not Wiggles, sorry about that my most beloved of Guinea pigs!)
The following day I was introduced to Juliana and her two beloved Guinea Pigs, Wiggley and Ginger. You can read all about them on their own special blog: www.Ponderingsofaguineapig.blogspot.
Ginger has a fluffy ginger coat and seems quite proper in his manner, while Wiggley (not Wiggles), who is white with a few dark patches here and there, seems more rough and ready. A fair-dincum Australian with an in your face attitude. He tends to shy away from attention but seems to get a bit out of sorts when he is not the center of it.
They were very cute and fury to touch. Both are of a healthy size and eat healthily. The mere sight of lettuce or anything eatable makes them squeak with joy as is clearly shown on the aforementioned blog.
Wiggley and Ginger are quite out going are often chauffeured to Potts point in TEG (See TEG post for more details). Meeting them was one of the highlights of the trip. I took some pictures of them but are unable to upload them as I left my camera behind (See Lost and Found post)
General Catchup Two
I had been planning to go over to Australia for sometime, partly to attend a cousins' reunion, but mostly because I needed a break from everything and I wanted to catch up with my brother and see his new place in Potts Point, Sydney. The reunion was called off due to the passing away of my Uncle Jim (he lived in Lithgow- Blue Mountains, NSW) but I still went over there all the same.
I caught the 4:50pm Qantas flight on 3rd October 2008 and landed in Mascot airport around 5:20pm (Australian time). Steve met me there and took me back to his unit in Potts Point
The place is compact but has enough room for one person to live comfortably. It is one of about 30 or so units in a five story brick in a building. Quite central to everything you can think off. Kings Cross Station is about five minutes walk from there (depending on your walking speed of course) and the bus stop's even closer. It is also handy to a supermarket, dry cleaners, two video rental shops and not far from the highway that takes Steve to his Editing job at CCH - in North Ryde.
Most of the buildings in Sydney are made of brick or at least stone, which probably wouldn't work too well in Wellington with its propensity for earthquakes (lots of places in Wellington sit right on top of one fault-line or the other).
I settled in and had a few drinks that night with Steve and one of his Friends named Vincent. Good person who never seems stuck for something to say. You could almost go as far as to say he is quite well spoken.
I caught the 4:50pm Qantas flight on 3rd October 2008 and landed in Mascot airport around 5:20pm (Australian time). Steve met me there and took me back to his unit in Potts Point
The place is compact but has enough room for one person to live comfortably. It is one of about 30 or so units in a five story brick in a building. Quite central to everything you can think off. Kings Cross Station is about five minutes walk from there (depending on your walking speed of course) and the bus stop's even closer. It is also handy to a supermarket, dry cleaners, two video rental shops and not far from the highway that takes Steve to his Editing job at CCH - in North Ryde.
Most of the buildings in Sydney are made of brick or at least stone, which probably wouldn't work too well in Wellington with its propensity for earthquakes (lots of places in Wellington sit right on top of one fault-line or the other).
I settled in and had a few drinks that night with Steve and one of his Friends named Vincent. Good person who never seems stuck for something to say. You could almost go as far as to say he is quite well spoken.
general catch up one
Well I've done it again: started, farted tripped and fell. I was trying to keep up with this blog but for one reason or another ended up putting it on the back burner.
So, I guess a bit of a catch up is in order.
Not much has been going on with my writing lately, just the usual wee stories etc, on editred.com. You can have a look and read them if you wish.
Outside turning another year older, now well past the big 4 0 though not quite half a ton yet, the most significant thing that has happened to me of late is my recent trip to Australia.
I was going to account each day but that would take awhile and probably prove to be a bit on the tedious side for reading, which is sort of not in keeping with the whole idea of blogging. Instead I'll just give you a series of accounts recording the highlights of the trip.
So, I guess a bit of a catch up is in order.
Not much has been going on with my writing lately, just the usual wee stories etc, on editred.com. You can have a look and read them if you wish.
Outside turning another year older, now well past the big 4 0 though not quite half a ton yet, the most significant thing that has happened to me of late is my recent trip to Australia.
I was going to account each day but that would take awhile and probably prove to be a bit on the tedious side for reading, which is sort of not in keeping with the whole idea of blogging. Instead I'll just give you a series of accounts recording the highlights of the trip.
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