Day 3 in Bondi Beach

already 2 days have gone by in a blurry haze…and though one would think that I would have hit the ground running as I touched Australian soil, I am just chillin’ around Bondi Beach (pronounced bond-“i”). It is a very nice and relaxed beach community that lies quite dormant during these winter months—swarming with activity and young people in the warmer seasons (I am told). Taking in a few days to readjust to my surroundings, I am recovering from a few rather stressful days before my departure from the US, followed by a long trans-pacific flight and a chaotic arrival to the Sydney airport where I had my bags torn to shreds at 6am by my favorite guys: the customs officers (some things never change wherever I go in the world. Do I really look that suspicious?).

On the physical side of things: I have unfortunately, hurt my lower back (again). Right prior to my departure I engaged in some idiotic and hazardous activities: cycling on a single-gear beach-bike up and down the Newport Beach boardwalk on the 4th of July (happy b-day America!!). Actively trying to avoid running over as few of the crazy-happy, half-clad drunkards that stumbled with their inebriated party-hopping-swagger, I could only avoid collision with a last-minute “back-peddling” mechanisms…and needless-to-say, I have harmed my sensitive skeletal structure once again. So, I am back to an intensive “healing” regimen until I feel that I can safely resume my exploratory-backpacking adventures. *sigh*

So far though, I am happy to report that the wonderful world of circular red-tape is surely alive and thriving on this side of the world!! Trying to get my mobile on the Australian network has been a 24-hour nightmare (even with my pre-emptive planning and ordering of a SIM card in the US). The Aussie customer service dept at the airport told me of course, that my phone was “all set” and ready to go “in 20 minutes”. Meanwhile, hours went by without any signal. So when I called them again, their only suggestion was that I needed to go to the “main” store. Once at the main store, we were back to calling customer service again (to re-iterate the exact, same information—WHAT??), and by that time, I admit, I was going a little ape-shit just because of the ridiculousness of the situation (You said this SIM card business was going to be ‘easy’!! Can you do something about this?? What do you mean, I need to send this back to the US?!?! What do you mean, I need to get a refund from the US?!?? Isn’t this your product??!?” Grrr…). In any case, the situation has now been resolved. My digits are 04-23-656-840 (dialed direct from the US: 011-61-number) and I have found a fantastic calling-card for A$0.029/minute (US$0.023) so, in actuality, I will be paying less for my calls to you than I was on my previous cellphone…with just a mear 8-10K miles of distance and 15-18 hours of time-difference between us! What a deal! It’s a steal! It’s almost worth just coming over here to make cheap phone calls!—ha ha

One of the highlights (*sarcasm*) so far, has been my grandiose entrance onto the Aussie podium by way of stepping in a huge mound of OZ-dog-shit within my first 6 hours. Smearing the pile in my wonderful host’s (Brad) car, continuing to drag the pile into his parents’ beautiful home, it was after a few hours of overbearing stench, that I started to wonder what smelt so bad around these parts (even though Brad kept asking me if I could smell “spew” in his car)—what a tragic moment it was, when I realized that the smell was actually coming from me!! The awkwardness of such an embarrassing (and smelly) experience pretty much bypasses all normal steps in the initial stages when building a “new” human-relationship! But with this forceful ice-breaker and a good heart-felt laugh, I think Brad and I then became friends ^_^

Otherwise, Sydney strikes me so far as a very international and cosmopolitan capital (as I had imagined)—a cross between Tokyo, Paris and NYC cultures. Dept stores and commercialism are at its finest, without a single name-brand store missing—and a few more to add to the mix that I have never heard of before. Starbucks stands proud and right in the dead-center of the city—showering even these unsuspecting down-and-under folks with its jet-fuel magic. Globalism—oh, the joys of the globalism sprawl!!!
As of yet, I have been nothing more than a quiet observer to the city—not having found my interactive energy or space. But that is soon changing. Tomorrow, I move to a hostel in Bondi Beach for a few nights. And Friday, I will begin my stay “in the city” at a hostel in King Cross (with a wireless network!! psych!!!). Surely by then, my exploratory tentacles will spring to life…and the stories will soon pile up in numbers with too many to share but many to worth telling!!