There's No Place Like Home (Pt. III)

And so you’re probably thinking that with this questioning of exactly where home is, that this would be an opportune time to do a cheesy thing and quote Peter Allen by saying “I still call Australia Home”. Well, it would be correct to a good extent, although I’m still not sure where in Australia that would be. I now have yet another city in Australia where that just may be...

Sydney: Touching down around midday and after being collected at the airport by Mark, it was back to his and Jen’s place for an afternoon with them, Mum n Dad to meet Oscar. Oscar is the little fella on the right here. Mark and Jen’s brand new son (as of 4 days before my above mentioned landing). He is also my nephew. Being about a week old meant that he didn’t do much, but it was kinda cool to meet him even if he won’t remember.

With Mum n Dad departing in the late afternoon, the three of us (Mark, Jen and I) relaxed with some takeaway before Sheryl arrived to while away the evening over a few wines. We eventually left Mark n Jen to it and headed back to Sheryl’s where we had a nightcap or few as we caught up on what we’d been up to since we’d last seen each other - this was shortly after high school if you’re curious, so at around 5.30am we called it a night after talking up a storm.

The next day saw a very tired Sheryl head in to work a bit late, while I spent the day with Mark, Jen and Oscar. Okay, so not much with Jen and Oscar as they went through that first week cycle of sleeping, feeding, etc... but Mark and I managed to catch up for a bit and succeeded in puting some of the baby gear together - feeding chair and other items.

Later, Sheryl and I left them to it to go and have dinner in Glebe. We then had a couple of drinks in a nearby tapas bar and continued where we left off the night before. I honestly don’t think I’ve spent so much time talking with someone before. To be fair, it has been well over a decade since we’d seen each other, despite renewing contact about a year ago.

How come we were suddenly catching up like this, you ask. Simple really... As Sheryl lives about 10mins from Mark n Jens’ it made sense to take up her offer to stay there instead of being nearly an hour up the coast where Mum n Dad were staying...

Thursday saw Mark, Jen, Oscar and myself head that near hour up the coast to see Mum n Dad - how’s the view from the apartment they were staying in? Nice work Pete!! All up a very pleasant family day together til the late evening after dinner. Oscar was incredibly well behaved right up until he woke up part way through the drive home - he then showed us just what a non-behaving baby can be like... I know it sounds wrong, but I’m glad I wasn’t staying there the night!

Friday turned out to be a very relaxed day - Sheryl and I had a late breakfast in a nice cafe in Glebe before strolling down to the nearby shopping centre. Have I mentioned how good the warm sunny weather had been yet?? Anyway, we spent a couple of hours poking about while I picked up all the items I had been requested to collect for those friends back in London - Mint Slices, Cheetos, CDs, a drinks tray with a kangaroo on it, etc... Later, after going through a new second hand furniture shop, it was the discovery of banana bread over a coffee in a nearby cafe/bookstore. “in” a cafe is probably the wrong term as we were outside in a palm-treed courtyard at the back of the bookstore. But, I digress... the banana bread - about an inch thick, toasted and buttered was pretty impressive! That evening we had a casual dinner in a nearby pub followed by a nightcap (or few).

Saturday began in pretty much the same way as Friday but at a different cafe. This time with an art gallery - lunch/breakfast... pretty much the same thing. Hell, it was a Saturday and you don’t have to get up early on Saturday if you don’t want. Anyway, after a bit of a domestic afternoon, we headed off to Frase, Tine & Klaer’s for dinner. You may remember them from my trip to Copenhagen earlier in the year. We met Mum n Dad there for a late afternoon and evening with dinner. A good night together. On the way home, Sheryl was happy to drop me off in the city to be able to catch up with Tony, Tommy, Col, Clarkey and Horsey for a few hours before heading back. Again, we spent the evening chatting away while watching Rage, or whatever late night music video programme was on...

Sunday, was yet another sunny day, so we headed to the Opera Bar at Circular Quay for lunch and to just spend the day lazing in the sun with a few wines. This is where I took the photo at the beginning of this post. A perfect day with barely a cloud in the sky. With the sun going down, we made our way back to Mark n Jen’s for dinner and a funny night of all sorts of stories. A good evening for my last night (for a time) in Sydney, and Australia, for that matter.

Monday saw Sheryl leave for work while I headed off with Mum n Dad for an early lunch in a tree covered courtyard of yet another cafe. After this it was time to head to the airport and the flight “home” to London. Several movies later (The Boat That Rocked, He’s Just not that into You, Star Trek, Kung Fu Chefs and High Fidelity if you’re curious) and I was touching down in London on a cold and overcast 9C morning...

Home? For now it is, but while I’ve never thought of Sydney being such a place it’s now quite on the cards that it could be...

There's No Place Like Home (Pt.II)

Paul Young sang: “Wherever I lay my hat, that’s my home”... and for now this seems to be the case.

Melbourne: Ah, Melbourne weather, where would we be without it? Greeting me with an hour of drizzle at Tullamarine. Welcome home to Melbourne, Son...

Sime Brown collected me and we had a good chat on the way back to his and Chelsea’s new home. This is where I met their 9 month old son, Myles. The things you miss while you’re away for two years... Great to catch up with them as I hung my hat at theirs for the next week. This was to be a fairly busy week.

First up was lunch with Cuz out at Abbotsford. On returning to the city, I then went for a wander through the alleyways/arcades that link Flinders street through to the Bourke Street Mall. I continued to stroll about the city checking Melbourne out again. Much has changed while much hasn’t.

Later that evening I caught up with Maryanne at Transport for a few drinks before we crossed Fed Square to dine at Chocolate Buddha. We finished up back at Transport for a few for the road.

Thursday saw jetlag finally catch me as I slept til around midday, so it was a cruisey afternoon with the book and Charlie (Sime n Chels’ hyper-energetic pug dog). Lian Hearn’s "Heaven’s Net is Wide", if you’re curious. An excellent read and it is the prequel to the "Across the Nightingale Floor" series. But I digress... The evening was spent with Sime n Chels - dinner and some couch time with little Myles. Interesting what you can learn from a 9 month old... Don’t play with them too much after they’ve just had a bottle. I’m sure you can work out the result...

Friday was a busier day than expected. A pub lunch with Shar’s sister, Amanda (which is how Shar and I know each other) in Fitzroy Street in the sun. Chicken parmagiana was the go, simply because it’s been two years since I’ve had one. The English just look at you should you mention such a thing. Anyway, a good catch up in the warm sunny afternoon. I then trekked further down the street to meet cousin Hadrian at the Prince of Wales for a couple of beers in the sun (right). This catch up was a little unexpected (timing wise), but great to see each other again.

It was then a bit of a flurry to get back to the city despite the fact that we got caught in peak hour traffic. Unfortunately, leaving Hadrian in it while I darted up a few blocks to St Kilda road and onto a tram - I was still late, but thankfully I arrived at the same time as Steve, so all good. So at the Riverland bar on the banks of the Yarra, and after the shock of a pint of Asahi costing $15, we had good bit of time to catch up before Bubs and Cuz (left) arrived. We scored a table just as they did arrive so all that was left to do was while away the evening together. Myles had been a bit unsociable earlier, so Sime n Chels missed this one out, and as such I decided to accept Cuz’ offer to crash at hers for the night instead of risking waking Myles on my getting in. It was once there that we realised that I’d not seen her apartment as she’d bought it after I’d left. Needless to say, we chatted on til whatever time it was that we called it a night.

Saturday morning and it was a nice stroll through Fed square to check out some street theatre with a coffee. It was then time to head back to Sime n Chels place, but not before checking out a bit more of Melbourne as I took the scenic route to get to the bus stop for the ride back to theirs.

The afternoon took me into Yarraville with the Brown family, where we caught up with Hadrian at a street-side cafe. Once again enjoying the sunshine, its warmth and company. With Sime, Chels n Myles heading home in the late afternoon, Hadrian and I continued back to his place for another hours or so. All too soon, I was saying “see you later” to Hadrian and on a train back into the city to catch up and have dinner with B. Drinks at Riverland again, dinner in a DeGraves Street restaurant before a nightcap in a nearby bar, and it was very nice evening. Very much like we’d only seen each other yesterday than 2 years ago.

Sunday saw Chels n Myles, drop Sime and myself off at the Belgian Beer Cafe amidst the threat of a shower. We settled in here for the afternoon where we were joined by Nick n Riss Filsell with their young daughter Emily, Hannah, Cuz and Jackie. Alex & Owen joined us a bit later which, considering that he’d just done the Melbourne Marathon that morning, is fair enough. Despite a quick shower (what’s Melbourne without at least a sprinkle of rain), it was a nice sunny afternoon with everyone. Great to see everyone again.

Quite a few drinks later and several farewells, I was to find myself further along St Kilda road having dinner with Maryanne again, as she couldn’t make the afternoon.

Monday had an understandably slow start and was a cruisey relaxed day in much the same way as Thursday was. Again, dinner and some couch time with Sime, Chels, Myles and some funny Aussie television, but this time that threatening rain from the day before was a nasty storm. No matter to me, as I was flying out the next morning to sunny Sydney.

Is Melbourne home? It was for over 5 years and certainly could be again...

There's No Place Like Home (Pt. I)

And I know I’m not in Kansas anymore... right Toto? Well, while Toto won’t be thinking about it, the past couple of weeks have me wondering as to just where home is...

Over the past two years in London, ‘home’ has always meant Australia, and usually meant Adelaide (and sometimes Melbourne). Yet within hours of touching down in Australia again, and speaking with friends, the term ‘back home’ was suddenly referring to London.

Right now, after the past two and a bit weeks, I could possibly end up in Sydney of all places, but more on that later.

Adelaide: Hometown. A strange feeling being back. “A tourist in my own town” it definitely was, even if the only change appeared to be the extension of the Bay trams through Vic square and King William Street (above). That, and where I was staying - still with Mum n Dad, but in their new home in Belair - that’s their “back yard” in the photo at the top of this post. It’s not everyday that you get a koala in your backyard either, but we did on the Sunday afternoon.

It was great to see everyone again. Within a few hours of landing in Adelaide, it was off to Matt’s 40^th - a great gathering of people. A fantastic lamb on a spit too! And just good to hang out with Matt, Mandy, Curl, Suze, Charlie n All until the wee hours of the next morning. Nothing like a good ‘bbq’ with mates. That’s the man himself as we nicked the best parts off the spit, and damn, they were good! I’ve never had a bad bbq at Matt’s in all the years I’ve known him (and that’s now over a decade!)

The following two days saw me catching up with mostly family and a few other mates that weren’t at Matt’s bbq. It was great to ‘meet’ Sandy n Garth who’ve I’ve not seen since I was a lil’ taker - they’re cousin Zara’s parents, if you recall my mentioning her in previous posts. To also great to have a gathering with Uncles Allen n Ian and Aunties Judy n Bev and see them all again. Trish n Neil as well.

An afternoon at the Robin Hood Hotel with Mike, Matt, Mandy and Rina was a nice way to round out the day before dinner with Mum n Dad. Yes, I did get to spend some time with them during a hectic couple of days. They did head off to Sydney the day before I left Adelaide (impending grandchild was calling!), but it did give me a bit of time to wander Adelaide and be that Tourist in My Own Town.

A quick lunch with Monty was a highlight of strolling the sunny streets and the Mall. I did take a pic of the Mall Balls too, but only to show the folks back here - yeah right...

To finish off my trip with Peter n Judy was great too, even if it was shifting cars and a ride to the airport. You may remember them from my exploits in Dover last year. First time I’ve driven a car in the last two years too, and it was a tad nerve wracking considering the last time I drove in Adelaide I ended up in hospital after a head-on collision!

Sunshine and warmer weather does help me think of this as home, although I’m glad I missed the usual February month-of-35C+ weather.

Alas, time wasn’t on my side to do all I wanted, but it’s not like I won’t be back...