Still haven't caught a Kangaroo

I still haven't seen, or more importantly, caught a Kangaroo. There is a controversy in Australia right now as a rowdy rugby team "used Quokkas as missles". I asked around and a Quokka is a tiny kangaroo. I vow to not use any Kangaroo, Wallaby or Quokka as a missle (when I catch one!).

One thing that is hard for me to get used to down here is the sound of birds down here. When you walk through the parks, it sounds like you are in a pet store. I chased a flock (8-10) of Cockatoo's with my iPhone (they really need a zoom feature) but all I got was this picture.

I was venturing back to my hotel around dusk and saw the largest bats I have ever seen. I pondered what I would compare them to as I don't want to exaggerate their actual size, but I would say they are as big as a large crow, or small hawk. I'm happy that we have our little mouse sized bats in Michigan.

Australian for hotdog

While wandering the streets tonight I happened upon a cool little hotdog stand called Hotdog de Wheels. From the pictures on the side of the place it must be pretty famous as tons of stars eat their (even Colonel Sanders!).

It was definitely not an american hotdog (that might not be a good thing). The bun was absolutely huge, more like a loaf of bread. Yummy.

I ate on the edge of Wooloomooloo Bay , being watched by freakishly bright (and clean looking) seagulls.

I think I'll stick with the Banana Smoothie...

More language differences

I stopped at Starbucks this morning. The cashier asked me if I would like to "take away" my muffin. I stared at her clueless. She asked again and my brain still wasn't tracking. Clearly annoyed (last ditch effort to make me understand) she said "do you want to eat it here". Ah! Now I get it.

On the flipside, I mentioned somebody "losing their ass". This was met with complete silence. I asked if "losing their budgie smugglers" made more sense. It didn't.

Back in the saddle...

I must look like a perv. While walking the streets of Sydney last night I got propositioned (go figure). Rhymes with "glow knob". I had no idea what the lady said the first time so I asked her to repeat herself. In her oh so lovely, husky, way-too-old-to-be-propositioning-me voice she made it abundantly clear. Umm, no thanks.

All American's eat...

When flying into another country, you always have to fill out a card asking how long you're staying in the country, if you're carrying any illicit drugs, had any relations with chickens in rural China, etc.

One of the questions that they seem to be particularly tough on is whether you have brought food from another country. Fully expecting to get my bags searched, I waited in line so I could go through the search. Right before the line split into multiple "search" aisles, a woman approached me. The conversation went something (or exactly) like this:

Agent: Where are you from?

Joe: The United States.

Agent: Did you bring any food with you?

Joe: Nope!

Agent: You didn't bring any food items, like, um, Beef Jerky?

Joe: Nope!

Agent: Have a nice day, please move to the exit.

Beef Jerky?! I mean, I was happy that I didn't have to get my bags searched, but did this lady really expect I'd pull out a big bag of Beef Jerky? May I had it concealed in my 10 gallon hat.

Note to Americans: Australians don't hate Americans, they hate George Bush.

Note to Americans: Australians will take every opportunity to tell you they like Americans, but hate George Bush. ;)

On another note, I am learning Australian. Although all this talk may make me seem like a gas bag.

Travel to Sydney

My worldwide travels have begun. After leaving Grand Rapids (and a sobbing daughter) at 1:50pm, I headed for Sydney. "Door-to-door" the trip took 28 hours. Lucky for me, the Saturday after Thanksgiving must be a slow time for international travel. I didn't have anyone sitting next to me. That is one less person to spread lotion on their feet, and one less person for me to druel on when sleeping.

I "tried" watching two movies, Rescue Dawn with Christian Bale. This movie must have gone straight to Encore. It was so terrible, I would have had a good laugh had it not been 13 hours into the flight. After getting sick of Rescue Dawn, I switched the movie to Hot Rod. Thought I would enjoy it, turned it off in five minutes.

I slept 9 hours on the way from San Francisco to Sydney. I love my super ability to sleep on airplanes!

I also started reading Devil in the White City. Very cool book, but I am an architecture geek and history nerd so that might not be saying much.