Wild Wild West (Village)

I've been home for over a week now but incredibly today was only my second full day in the city. As my first full day was the day after 24 hour of traveling (23 of which were spent wide awake listening to crying babies, despite ample quantities of sleeping pills, complementary red wine,an eye mask and ear plugs. By the end i sort of wished i could join their wailing and have it be socially acceptable...) I was in no state to explore.

But today, sans jet leg (or at least i thought i was until i tried to pay for a coffee today with my driver's license...) I finally got the ball rolling on my mission to acquaint myself with new parts of the Big Manzana. After I assured him I wouldn't drag him into any museums, my not so little little brother Jared (who happens to be almost a full foot taller than i am) agreed to come along for moral support and to take photographs. In addition to being a fantastic electric guitarist, amateur architect, and ace tennis player, he's also a very gifted photographer. And he's single ladies!

I gave him the option of going to Brooklyn or the West Village and he voted on the latter, mainly out of desire to see the newly opened High Line Development - a park built on the long defunct West Side line elevated railroad tracks. So we hopped on the (thankfully) still running subterranean 6 Line and made our way downtown.

Tools upon arrival in the West Village

After trading rats and body heat for the oppressive humidity of NYC's streets in summer, we strolled to our first stop: 75 1/2 Bedford Street. At 9 1/2 feet wide, 75 1/2 Bedford Street is the narrowest building in all of Manhattan.

Weeee. I can almost reach across it

But what the lithe townhouse lacks in width, it makes up for in history. Among past occupants are poet Edna St. Vincent Millay, Cary Grant, Shrek cartoonist William Steig, and John Barrymore. After soaking in this celebrity-packed roll call, Jared and I discussed why the past occupants might have been attracted to living in such svelte quarters, and what they sacrificed in order to do so.

What we decided:

The proximity of the walls would make for fantastic canadian doubles tennis (you and one wall vs the other wall) but in return residents would have to give up hosting parties (and remember, they're celebrities), fattening foods and pet elephants. I think I'll stick to normal-width housing so i can continue to eat haagen daaz and cling to my dream of adopting a Saharan elephant named Maserati that i could ride around instead of taking the subway or cabs.

Before we shoved off, I ran at the door to try to make it to Diagon Alley II (with an address like 75 1/2 I'm pretty sure the door concealed a magic shopping street) but to no avail.

WWHD? (What would Harry do?)

Though had i been alone i probably would have kept trying for hours, I begrudgingly gave up after Jared threatened to call the police and report me for attempted breaking and entering. I was pretty confident I wouldn't have been arrested, but after the recent Henry Lewis Gates fiasco, I wasn't willing to take my chances.

From Bedford Street we strolled up Hudson Street and then over to 10th avenue where we stumbled upon some very quirky buildings. First, on West 11th between Washington and West , we found this interesting specimen.

You can park your car...

And then take a roman bath!

I just googled it (you can see the name "Palazzo Chupi" if you look closely at the 2nd picture) and it is not the illegitimate love child of an antique garage and italian palazzo as i had expected, but a residential building with 5 disgustingly expensive units (we're talking $27 Million here) designed by artist Julian Schnabel.

Then walking up West Street (which turns into 10th avenue further up) we wandered into this gloriously galactic apartment complex.

Attack of the Pod-Shaped Balconies

Beam me up Scotty!

I fully expected an alien space ship to hover over the opening at the top of the building at suck us up to serve them as slaves for the rest of eternity. We thankfully remained earthbound but not willing to take our chances we left the building like Elvis.

Then it was on to our final destination and the main reason for our journey to the West Village: The High Line.

At the beginning of the High Line

The High Line is an impressively successful attempt of redeveloping a derelict urban space into an attractive destination. Chelsea, the Meatpacking District and Harlem were similarly revamped but I have never seen or heard of a transformation from grimy to trendy where the product was intended for the general public. Only the likes of movie stars and Wall Street honchos can afford lofts in the converted warehouses on 9th avenue, but the High Line is for everyone.

It is also impeccably designed. Instead of trying to conceal the area's grimy past, the designers embraced it - incorporating the old railroad tracks and covering them in chaotic grasses and flowers. Although based on the number of gardeners I spotted pruning I'm sure it's more contrived than it looks, the landscaping is very unkempt giving High Line the feel of an abandoned oasis.

A different kind of wilderness meet the concrete jungle

Getting in touch with the tracks of High Line's Past

Another awesome detail was an area with theater style tiered seating that faces huge windows that look out on the spectacle of 10th avenue. Or as my friend Lizzie told me she often did this summer, a person could choose to sit in the front row facing away from the window to watch the people watching the window. Twisted.

To watch 10th avenue or people watch? That is the question.

Immediately upon descending the stairs at the end of the High Line, we were confronted by the distinctive sound of accordian music. Following our ears we stumbled on this unlikely sight and i remembered for the 10th or 11th time today why I love New York so much.

Yes that is an accordian player in a starwars sith helmet using a sushi rice container (complete with about 2 cups of rice left in it) to collect tips

And now ladies and gents its bed time for me. Siddhartha Obama and I both hope that the (inner) peace be with you until i check in next.

Ohmmmmmm(bama)

Common Grounds

By Haley Cohen Photos Included

Whether you’re hankering for a soy mocha with extra foam, a half-caf iced latte (hold the ice) or just a classic cappuccino, in the coffee-crazed cities of Sydney and Melbourne, you won’t have to walk half a block to find it.

However, it was not until recently that smaller Australian towns joined their cosmopolitan counterparts and jumped on the café caravan. With tourism to smaller towns in Australia on the rise, chic coffee shops are popping up in some unlikely locales.

One such establishment is the sophisticated Wharfside Café, appropriately located on the main wharf in Eden, an industrious fishing town of 3,000 500 kilometers south of Sydney.

Wharfside Cafe

Owned and managed by Eden local Diana Stojanovic, the Wharfside Café offers up rich flat whites and foamy cappuccinos in a relaxed but polished environment.

The Wharfside was not always so sleek – until 9 years ago when Stojanovic purchased the space with her husband, it served as a take-away joint serving fried fish, chips and lollies. However, Stojanovic and her husband, an interior designer, had different plans for the café. They completely redecorated the storefront – adding floor-to-ceiling windows, sponging rich navy paint on to the walls, and inserting small nautical-themed details such as decorative lights shaped like portholes – to give it what they hoped was a “retro-maritime” feel.

The Wharfside's Chic Interior

Stojanovic also stopped offering a take-away option and filled her menu with more up-market dishes such as fresh mussels steamed in tomato broth ($25) and tuna nicoise salad ($22). But perhaps most importantly, Stojanovic introduced high quality espresso to Wharfside’s repertoire.

“Prior to Wharfside, no one in Eden served espresso of the caliber you can get in the cities. Some little bakeries may have offered coffee but it wasn’t good coffee. We’re trying to offer Eden locals and tourists the same standard of espresso they would find in a cafe in any big city in the world.”

Stojanovic admits that the bulk of her clients are tourists but adds that the Eden locals are slowly becoming receptive to café culture. “It’s going to take time but café society is building among the local populace,” she explains as a young female police officer orders a flat white at the counter. “Its just a new idea to them. Most locals are used to drinking coffee at home, or at a friends house where it’s free.”

Graham Hinkley (correct), owner of Twinkle’s of Omeo, reports that his business is similarly tourist-based thanks to his café’s location on the scenic Great Alpine Road and his quality menu that includes fresh soups, omelets, sandwiches and of course, coffee. Like Stojanovic, Hinkley also founded Twinkle’s to fill what he perceived as a gap in the Omeo culinary and caffeine markets.

“We’ve got a bakery and a few take-away joints with fried foods but before I founded Twinkle’s 2 years ago, there was nowhere in Omeo that travelers could find the higher standard of food and coffee that they were used to.”

Situated in a quaint wood cabin with a rustic interior, Twinkle’s is also a great place to enjoy views of Omeo’s rolling golden cattle fields where the majority of Omeo’s 452-person population make their livings.

Twinkle's of Omeo

Though Hinkley is not optimistic about sit-down coffee shops becoming more popular with Omeo’s diminutive population, he does think that café culture will catch on in other small Australian towns.

“As people from small towns start to travel around Australia more, and become more educated about coffee, they’ll come to expect higher quality and café culture will expand.”

Hinkley’s prediction seems to have come true in Cobargo, a small farming and artisan community in the southeast of New South Wales where partners Kerryn Davey and Erin Tatnell operate the Valley Edge Café.

“While it’s gradual, coffee culture in Cobargo is definitely increasing. In our first year we were surprised to see the local farmers in here enjoying coffee and cake. Now, its not surprising at all. We get as many, if not more, locals in here as tourists,” Davey comments, motioning to the filled wooden chairs in her café.

In addition to its convenient location on Cobargo’s main street, Davey believes that Valley Edge owes its local following to the public becoming more knowledgeable about food quality.

“As they’ve started coming to us, locals have started to realize that its worth it to pay a couple dollars extra for high-caliber food and coffee instead of paying a little less for stale food and bitter coffee. Now that they know what quality tastes like, they’ve come to require it.”

The rise of coffee in Australia can be attributed to a few forward looking Italian immigrants who imported the first espresso machines in 1956 in preparation for the Italian team’s arrival in Melbourne for Olympics. Since then, café culture has taken Australia’s cities by storm. To qualify just how popular coffee shops have become: the Yellow Pages currently lists around 2000 cafes in both Sydney and Melbourne.

Just as coffee has become inextricably linked with the cultures of Australia’s larger cities, the development of café culture in small town Australia is not likely to be a passing trend. The way things are going, very soon you’ll be able to get your paws on an soy mocha with extra foam, a half-caf iced latte or plain cappuccino just as easily on Dalrymple Creek Road in Allora (population 923) as on George Street in Sydney (population 4,284,379) - news that is sure to perk up caffeine-addicts all across Australia.

Eden: Wharfside Cafe Shop 3 253 Imlay St Eden 2551 NSW Phone: (02) 6496 1855 Hours: Daily 8am -4pm, with extended hours during the summer Located directly on Eden’s stunning operational wharf, the Wharfside is a great place to enjoy a salad or grilled fish while watching the fishing boats tow in their catches. Specialty coffee: Muggachino, the Wharfside’s version of a Cappuccino Specialty meal: Catch of the day topped with coconut shrimp and garnished with rice

Omeo: Twinkle’s of Omeo 174 day Ave Omeo Victoria 3898 Phone: 03 5159 1484 Hours: from 7.30am 7 days a week, as well as dinner from 6pm on Friday and Saturday nights and long week ends. Groups catered for, some meals are available for takeaway. Specialty coffee: Cappucino topped with chocolate stars unique to Twinkle’s Specialty meal: Homemade pumpkin soup and any of the Foccacias

Cobargo: Valley Edge Café 59 Princes Hwy Cobargo 2550 Phone: 02 6493 6007 Hours: 9am to 4:30pm Specialty coffee: Cappucino Specialty meal: Homemade Paninis

Crocs and Meercats and Otters, Oh My!

Haley Cohen Photos and Factbox Included

The boy is covered in meerkats. The furry critters sniff in his t-shirt sleeves, claw at his cargo pockets, and burrow in between his legs. They clamber up his arms and onto his head, rifling through his hair hoping to find a mealworm they might have missed.

Many people would be horrified to get frisked by a mob of hungry meerkats but 16-year old John Goodman actually paid for the experience as part of Mogo Zoo’s “Keeper for a Day” program.

Located in the historic gold mining village of Mogo, about 10 km south of Bateman’s Bay and 200 km south of Sydney, Mogo Zoo is a small privately owned zoo focused on preserving endangered and exotic species. It is also the only zoo in Australia other than the National Zoo in Canberra to possess white lions. Mogo Zoo recently attracted attention when an escaped white lioness had to be shot, but has since bounced back and continues to be a fantastic place to see snow leopards, cotton-top tamarins, red pandas, and other rare species.

For $550, Mogo Zoo allows animal-lovers 16 and older to interact and care for these animals, doing exactly as the real keepers do.

“We don’t sugarcoat the experience,” says official Mogo Zookeeper Lisa Payne. “Day keepers are expected to pick up poop just like the rest of us. Of course we’ll never force poo on anyone, but the Keeper for a Day program is not just a glorified petting-fest.”

A day deeper feeding some of Mogo's resident giraffes

As operation feces suggests, the Keeper for a Day experience is anything but sanitized and the itinerary reflects an experience that is raw and authentic and just a tad dangerous.

While for safety reasons, “day keepers” are not allowed in the pens of Mogo’s more threatening animals, they are allowed much closer than a normal zoo patron. Often, the day keepers can even feed the white lions and crocodiles an afternoon snack of raw chicken necks through their chain link enclosures.

Tamer tasks include cleaning and feeding the meerkats and red pandas, accompanying the official keepers while they give public talks about the Bengal tigers, sea otters and meercats and preparing treats for the primates. Day keepers also get to pet and feed servals, a rare breed of small African cat, and raking out the straw in the animals’ pens to ready them for sleep.

“As an added bonus you get to play marbles as you rake,” jokes Payne.

Hopefully after washing their hands, the day keepers are also treated to morning tea and lunch with the official keepers – a rare opportunity to ask experienced professionals questions about the animals and life as a keeper.

Despite the authenticity of the program, Payne reports that no one has ever been physically injured while fulfilling their duties as day keeper.

“While we strive to make the experience as genuine as possible, we also ensure that everything the day keepers are involved in is perfectly safe. But we get some emotional pain, which we can’t really prevent. The other day we had a grown man crying because he didn’t want to leave when his shift as day keeper was over.”

Sally Padey, Mogo's owner gets up cuddly with a white lion

This anecdote is amusing but also stands as a testament to how extraordinary the Keeper for a Day experience really is. Other Zoos such as Taronga in Sydney and the National Zoo in Canberra offer similar programs, but Mogo’s small size and extensive collection of endangered species allows for an especially intimate experience.

“Whereas the bigger city Zoos might offer similar programs, they are much less personal. We rarely have more than one day keeper per day and we let the keepers do much more than they do at the bigger, more commercial zoos.”

However, for those who don’t feel up to “playing marbles” as Keeper for a Day, Mogo offers two alternative programs: the Serval Experience, where two guests can pet and feed the Servals for half an hour ($200) and the Meercat Experience that allows one patron to play with the feisty creatures for fifteen to twenty minutes ($80). In both cases cameras are allowed and encouraged.

“We want people to be able to show their friends and brag about their experience,” Payne explains.

John’s mother seems to have taken that recommendation to heart as she wildly snaps photos of him blanketed in meerkats.

Official Mogo Zoo keeper Cindy McGillivray suddenly interrupts the meerkat talk she’s delivering to the public and orders “Keep your fingers IN, John!” There is a slight twinge of panic in her voice.

“Meerkats are harmless but sometimes they’ll mistake a finger for a worm…” she explains to the audience, all the while keeping a close eye on Cameron and his hands. “They are animals after all. Sometimes even a keeper gets bit.”

Keeper for a Day Program Essentials: Cost: $550 Only available for those aged 16 or older Day lasts from 8:30am-5pm Lunch and Tea included

Address: Mogo Zoo 222 Tomakin Road, Mogo NSW 2536, Australia Telephone: 02-4474 4930 Fax: 02-4474 4855 Email: info@mogozoo.com.au Website: www.mogozoo.com.au

How to get there: From the North (Batemans Bay) Follow the Princes Highway 10km south from Batemans Bay (approximately 10 minutes) until you reach Mogo and follow the signs turning left into Tomakin Road. From the South (Moruya) Follow the Princes Highway 15km north from Moruya (approximately 15 minutes) until you reach Mogo and follow the signs turning right into Tomakin Road.

Types of Animals at the Zoo: Mogo Zoo has over 200 specimens of more than 39 rare species. Highlights not mentioned in the article include Burmese pythons, Sumatran Tigers, plains zebras, fallow deer, pygmy marmosets and Brazilian tapirs.

Other attractions in Mogo: Mogo boasts many quaint cafes, arts and crafts studios and old fashioned lolly shops. It is also a center for the Aboriginal population in the area.

Fashion-Forward

By Haley Cohen Photos Included

You might expect to find more fishing lines than fashion lines in Bermagui, a working maritime town 380 km south of Sydney. But situated smack in the middle of Bermagui’s main shopping stretch, the very flash Soulique boutique discredits that assumption.

$300 studded leather bags are stuffed into cubbies next to $200 designer jeans and leather belts hang from ornate wrought-iron hooks over a counter covered in gladiator sandals. Abstract paintings by local artists adorn the walls, graphic throws drape across streamlined coffee tables, and colorful jars of organic teas sit serenely on a wooden bureau. The space housing these fashionable wares is large, sunny and uncluttered.

“I wanted the store to have a clean, sophisticated look,” says Simone Ellis, a soft-spoken brunette who owns and runs Soulique, in addition to designing and manufacturing clothing for her own clothing label Ruby Vivant.

Soulique's Chic Interior

After finishing her design degree at TAFE in Sydney two years ago, 27 year-old Ellis returned to Bermagui where she was born and raised - unable to resist the lure of its pristine beaches, ocean-water swimming pools, and lush green forests.

While most Bermagui locals dress casually, often in work boots and jeans, Ellis’ outfit is eclectic. She dons black skinny pants, brown over-the-knee boots, a black turtleneck and a pink down vest reminiscent of a get-up Jane Jetson might wear. But Ellis insists fashion is less about looks and more about life.

“I believe I can use fashion as a way to educate people so it isn’t merely superficial. I can take it deeper,” she says, her soulful brown eyes sparkling.

She carefully removes a very rock-and-roll black velvet vest from its hanger and points to a message scrawled on its price tag that reads “Love is always in my pocket.”

“See here,” she prompts as she reaches into the vest’s breast pocket fishes out a chain with a heart charm attached to the end.

"Love is always in my pocket!"

“I like to put little pieces of life philosophy in my clothes,” Ellis explained as she stared pensively through her shop’s glass doors towards the ocean. “If I’m in a clear energy state when creating a garment, that energy is transferred into the garment and wraps around the body of whoever buys it. I hope the clothes that I make will heal their wearers.”

Ellis approaches the atmosphere and outfitting of Soulique with a similar mantra. She streams soothing massage music over the store’s speakers and carefully considers the energy of each garment, pillow, and piece of art before displaying it. She sheepishly admits that recently she even asked one of the artists she was exhibiting to take down their painting because it had “bad energy”.

“I felt really awful because that’s just about the worst thing you can do to an artist – agree to display their art and make them take it down. But the painting was infecting me, and everyone else who came into the store.”

Ellis’ doctrine may be a bit New-Agey for some, but even cynics can appreciate Soulique’s sleek design and interesting stock. Though it will probably be a while before fishermen start to march around in Ruby Vivant talking about “energy transfers”, Soulique’s mere existence in the utilitarian town proves that in Bermagui, expectations are often blown out of the water.

Fact Box

Contact Information:Soulique, formerly known as Ruby Vivant Boutique and Gallery, is located at 14 Lamont Street in Bermagui, NSW. The store’s phone number is 0405 451 184.

Labels Stocked:Lee Jeans, American Apparel, Children of the Sun, Religion, All about Eve, T-Lux, Mox, Wrangler, Lucky 13, and Ruby Vivant.

About Bermagui:380 Km South of Sydney on the South East Coast of New South Wales, Bermagui boasts a scenic wharf, unspoiled beaches and a stunning ocean water swimming pool. It is also in close proximity to several heritage villages including Central Tilba and Cobargo.

Where to Stay:The Bellbird Cottage offers privacy and comfort in a rustic environment. Book ahead as there are only two rooms. Tariffs per room including breakfast, afternoon tea, port and chocolates range from: Single - $145 - $165 per night Double - $155 - $175 per night. 88 Nutleys Creek Road, Bermagui NSW Australia Tel: #61 (0)2 6493 5274 Mobile: 0466 443 980

"Wifi with Wings"

I'm currently a few thousand feet above Kansas, or some other featureless, flat midwestern state nearing the 24th hour of my journey home. Having exhausted my reading material (Bill Bryson's "In a Sunburned Country") and my 7th crossword puzzle a little bit ago, I was beginning to go batty and had just started a tic-tac-toe tournament with myself when i noticed a little green card poking out of my seat pocket. "GOGO!" it urged. "Wifi with Wings." Wireless? On an airplane? And voila! Sanity restored.

I wonder what airlines will develop next to make flights homier. Showers? Leasable pets? Massage chairs? Edible food? A girl can dream.

Anyway, I figured I would use the remaining hours of my confinement to post a few of the articles I wrote this summer so if the editor of Lonely Planet Magazine (or any editor, really) should happen to stumble on my blog they can offer me life-long tenure. Once again, a girl can dream.

Here goes. I'll upload pictures later because though inflight-internet is an incredible novelty, its about as fast as a stoned snail.

Irony

How fitting that this was my Merriam-Webster word of the day:

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Merriam-Webster OnLine Unabridged Learner’s Dictionary Word Central Encyclopædia Britannica Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day July 19 bardolater \bar-DAH-luh-ter\ noun Meaning : a person who idolizes Shakespeare Example Sentence "[Abraham] Lincoln was a lifelong Bardolater and serial Shakespeare-quoter, as Mr. [Barack] Obama noted in remarks at the recent reopening of Ford's Theater." (Barry Edelstein, The New York Times, April 26, 2009) Taking the SAT? Britannica TestPrep can raise your score-guaranteed! Did you know? George Bernard Shaw once described a Shakespeare play as "stagy trash." Another time, Shaw said he'd like to dig Shakespeare from the grave and throw stones at him. Shaw could be equally scathing toward Shakespeare's adoring fans. He called them "foolish Bardolaters," wrote of "Bardolatrous" ignoramuses, and called blind Shakespeare worship "Bardolatry." Oddly enough, Shaw didn't despise Shakespeare or his work (on the contrary, he was, by his own admission, an admirer), but he disdained those who placed the man beyond reproach. The word "bardolater," which Shaw coined by blending Shakespeare's epithet — "the Bard" — with an affix that calls to mind "idolater," has stuck with us to this day, though it has lost some of its original critical sting. *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence. Sponsored Links Subscription: You are subscribed as: halestorm96@aol.com • Unsubscribe from Word of the Day • Subscribe to Word of the Day • View Archives of previous words Company Info: Merriam-Webster, Inc. 47 Federal Street P.O. Box 281 Springfield, MA 01102 Web site: Merriam-Webster.com Privacy Policy © 2009 by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated Follow Merriam-Webster on Twitter! Editor at Large Peter Sokolowski offers daily observations on new words and language.

The Last Hurrah

Its been a busy couple of days trying to finish my portfolio (which i finally turned in friday morning) and fit in all of the remaining things I wanted to do around the city. After a morning jog through Glebe and an asian feast in Darling Harbour with Dan, I trekked to the imposing, neo-classical Art Gallery of NSW. I was a little disappointed that the pieces didn't have explanatory plaques (unless I happen to have studied the piece before I like to be given a background on what I'm looking at) but I still managed to find some paintings that struck my fancy. I was thrilled to find a Sidney Nolan section that contained many of the paintings I was already familiar with from photos I had seen in class. However, my favorite painting by far was one that I hadn't ever encountered. Its called "Kelly" and although thanks to the lack of explanatory plaques i can't be sure, I'm pretty confident it alludes to Ned Kelly's aboriginal-like connection to the lands he roved. As you can see, Ned's neck appears to be a tree trunk and Nolan painted his face using the same color palette as the landscape. There are also blossoms that seem to be growing out of the rest of Ned's body. This explanation would make sense based on the Kelly Gang's bond with the lands that harbored them during their exile.

Art Gallery of New South Wales

Sidney Nolan: "Kelly"

Speaking of aboriginals, I was sort of surprised and disheartened to find that the Gallery of NSW's aboriginal art section was in the basement. I probably shouldn't read to far into it, but the fact that I had to ride down 4 escalators to see the aboriginal art when it's one of the Gallery's most popular attractions seemed a bit strange.

I could have spent a lot more time in the gallery than I did, but I also wanted to make it to Potts Point and Kings Cross so I had to cut my visit short. I spent a while roving aimlessly through residential streets trying to find the heart of Potts Point (and a decent coffee) but instead stumbled on the Coca Cola sign that I recognized as the beginning of King's Cross - Sydney's red light district and den of sin. Living up to its dubious reputation, King's Cross Road was dominated by adult bookstores, strip clubs, sex toy shops, and coffee shops, I guess for those who are unfortunate to wake up there and need a strong cuppa joe to piece together"what the heck happened last night?"

I kept wandering and was shocked to find how quickly King Cross' seediness gave way to Potts Point's polish. One second I was walking by a mannequin with pasties on and the next thing I knew i was in front of a beautiful laneway of watewashed apartment buildings. What gives?

I found the King of King's Cross

King's Cross. Fun Game: How many "adult shops" can you count in this picture?

Potts Point

After getting my fill of Potts Point and reaching my sleaze quota for the day at Kings Cross, I jumped on the train and head home to get ready for the night's excursion to Pericles at the Opera House.

I feel a bit ignorant admitting this but I have always hated Shakespeare. Maybe its because I was introduced to his plays when I was too young to understand them(we read Julius Caesar in 7th grade at my middle school), or that I find his use of obscure phrases and words affectioned* but in any case I've ne'r* been a huge fan.

*(affectioned = full of affectation; ne'r = never)

So usually when the question is to see a Shakespeare play, or not to see a Shakespeare play, my answer is a resounding no. Therefore I was pleasantly surprised to find that I absolutely loved last night's performance. The story-line is more like a soap opera gone wrong than a Shakespearean drama (incest, pirates, and prostitution all play prominent roles) and it was fantastically adapted by the director. Japanese drums and oriental costumes gave the production a liveliness and contemporary flair that I had never seen before in a Shakespeare show.

You can almost see the Opera House in the background...

Saturday, I rolled out of bed and walked the one block to Glebe to check out Glebe Markets. I've realized while living here that I am obsessed with markets. They are a feast for all 5 senses. Incense muddles with Turkish gozeleme (which i'd never heard of before but is an absolutely DELICIOUS feta, spinach and pancake creation), Obama T's chill next to florid vintage dresses, and techno from one of the trendy clothing stands melds with the boom box blasting the Ramones in the used-cd section. I love flipping through the musty used books, rubbing the silk scarves against my cheeks (sounds creepy, feels amazing), and munching on the candied nuts.

"Super Obama"

Leaving equally market-obsessed Sydney will be sad, but I've done some research and have found rumors of a few flea markets in NYC. They are by no means as numerous, or as convenient, but they exist and that's good enough for me.

After reveling in my last Sydney market, I walked to Surry Hills to meet my cousin's friend, Francesca, for lunch at adorable Cafe Mint. It was really nice catching up with her but unfortunately I didn't have too much time because I'd told Dan and Nina to meet me in Coggee at 2:30 so we could do the coastal walk.

It was the PERFECT day for it - crystal clear sky, sun blazing, a little crisp - and we had a ton of fun chatting while we meandered along the rocks. I was surprised by how busy the beaches were, even on a chilly day (it was probably 55) and it makes me really want to come back to Sydney during the Australian summer because from what I've heard the city complete transforms. Now is the dead of their winter and while some brave souls continue to surf and suntan at Sydney's beaches, most seem to be miserable. "Oh you came at the worst time!" I've heard over and over again from Sydneysiders, shivering in their down parkas as they clutch hot cocoas. For as much as I poke fun at them for being pansys about the cold, their discomfort has rubbed off on me and I find myself wearing gloves and hats around town when the thermometer drops anywhere below 65.

But i digress.

On the walk we stopped a few times, most notably to watch a rugby game on a beautiful seaside pitch and people "bowling" (though it was outdoors and looked suspiciously like bocce, though supposedly Australians find that comparison offensive), but made pretty good time and ended up in Bondi at around 5 - just in time to catch the tail end of a skating competition. We couldn't really see through the massive crowd and the announcer was bizarre (at one point he made a joke about a "japanese watermellon" before laughing maniacally) so we jumped on the bus and head home.

Crowded Coggee

Australians say "do" or "have" before strange verbs. To think is to "have a think" and apparently to poo is to "do a poo"

Bondi Icebergs

After re-fueling and recovering from our lengthy cliff jaunt, I accompanied Nina to a house party hosted by one of her friend's from work. The other guests were delectably quirky and I had some great conversations about everything from up and coming Australian musicians (I was steered towards the Hilltop Hoods and the Temper Trap), to Disney, to Ned Kelly. One woman, named Carla who is a travel editor for Qantas' inflight magazine and I also had a lengthy conversation about the travel writing industry and our love and simultaneous odium for it. In addition to being very intelligent and sweet, Carla also had the coolest tattoo I've ever seen. As you can sort of see in the picture, it's a mustache inked onto the outside of one of her fingers.

Handlebar? More like WUNDERBAR!

One guy also asked me what my favorite new Australian terms were which prompted me to reel off the following list i compiled over my time here.

Perve (v) ~ to look at in a lustful manner (remember Crazy loon from my post 6/15?)

cop-you-later (expression)~ a seemingly very forward way of saying goodbye

bludge (v) ~ to laze around

chuck a berko (v) ~ show extreme anger

fartarse around (v) ~ waste time

see a man about a dog (v) ~ do something secretly, usually refers to going to the bathroom (or as Aussies say "doing a poo")

old cheese (n) ~ mother (wonder what that makes dad? old wine? old cracker?)

flash as a rat with gold tooth ~ someone that considers themselves very fancy

poo tickets (n) ~ toilet paper

yonks ~ a long time

useful as a 3rd armpit ~ useless

Various words for toilet: boghouse, lav/lavvy, thunderbox (AHAH), crapper, loo, dunny, throne

Various words for being drunk: blotto, faceless, sozzled, shickered, pickled, rat-arsed, pissed as a fart/newt/parrot.

Various words for vomit ~ chunder, spew, do a technicolor yawn (there we go with the "doing" a verb again)

Various insults ~ great gallah, dumbcluck, nincompoop (which i used on a regular basis before discovering its australian origin), boofhead

Oh 'strain, parting is such sweet sorrow! (told you shakespeare was growing on me) Anyway, i must be off to study for my exam tomorrow because today i've been useful as a 3rd armpit and have been fartarsing around for yonks.

Cop-you-later!