Suddenly American

I have never felt more American in my life then yesterday, standing in the line for my medical visa on the other side of the world.

The people around me spoke every language but mine, and most of them struggled to understand the complicated procedures and paperwork being required of them.

We all lined up together, some of us looking desperate, some exhausted and some just dazed.  The immigration officials did a valiant job moving everyone through despite the constant barrage of misunderstandings and missed paperwork.

Standing in this long line I realized how easy things were for me as an English speaking American.  Clutching my little US passport was something akin to holding a Golden Ticket to visit Wonka's candy paradise.

My passport with the shiny eagle emblazoned on the front meant I was standing in this line because I wanted to.  I wasn't running from oppression.  I wasn't being shunned because of my race or religion.  I was doing what Americans are known for doing, exercising my freedom of choice.

Looking around at the faces surrounding me I saw desperation and exhaustion, but I also saw hope and gratitude.  Many of these people were glad to be there, despite the struggles, just to have a chance at the freedoms I had been born with.  Freedoms I hardly think about and can't imagine being taken from me.

I was on the other side of the world from my native land, surrounded by tongues I couldn't understand, suddenly realizing what it meant to be American.

Oprah Wraps It Up

Oprah's epic trip Down Under is winding to a close, and things are starting to return to normal.  I'm sure everyone back in the states is getting all the crazy highlights of the two shows she taped on the steps of the Sydney Opera House, so I won't say much more then a thumbs up to Hugh Jackman for his dramatic entrance via a 100 meter glide into some electrical rigging. 

I genuinely appreciated it, and with no sarcasm intended at all I think it was one of the most dashing appearances of all time.  The rigging crash was a dramatic way to wake everyone up, unintentional but very effective.  It was a bit like watching James Bond crossed with Monty Python on a reality show.  Really debonair, really dangerous and really funny... when you realized Jackman was going to come through unmaimed.

I can't really have too much more criticism of the whole affair.  It was a wonderful boon for Australian tourism at a time when record numbers of locals are choosing to spend their travel dollars over seas.  Oprah's stamp of approval is estimated to have brought in a benefit of $71 million in Australia and $14 million in the United States already, according to Federal Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson.

Sometimes I have to look a bit askance at the whole Oprah phenom though.  Personally I have respect for a woman that can pull herself from obscurity to near goddesshood in one lifetime, but the drive to dominate has apparently taken its toll for a woman who is a best friend to fans, but seems to have few, if any, true close relationships. 

I have watched Oprah, and read her autobiography, but I fail to see the mother figure that many others fawn over.  I do see a remarkably shrewd and intelligent woman that knows when to smile for the camera and when to shed a heartfelt tear.  Things are always shown to the best advantage in the Oprah camp, which is true for any of us, from politicians and hollywood starlets to soccer moms.

The fans themselves were full of grumbles when they found out that they would not be touring the amazing down under wonders with their queen, but being shipped off to various locales around the country to contribute their smiling faces to various travel montages. 

In the end tho, fans didn't leave empty handed.  Attendees of the morning and evening shows all received pearl necklaces or diamond pendants.  News reports seem a bit confused over who got what, but what raised my eyebrows was not the supposed $650 retail price claimed for the pearl necklaces, but the fact that in reality, they were a gift from Alex Kailis from MG Kailis to "showcase Australian pearls... the best and the most lustrous."

So yes, beautiful necklaces were given, but why does the media generally give Oprah the credit instead of Alex Kailis who probably doesn't have half as much gold hoarded away as the daytime diva?  Truth is always more impressive then fiction, and I give 9.5 stars to Mr. Kailis for ingenuity, humility and true generosity.
  
Summing it up, I'd say the whole Oprah venture was a resounding success, and I'm glad she chose Australia as her landing point, even if the main reason according to early reports was that they would rename the Sydney Opera House the "Oprah House" for a day.  Her assessment that Australia is an amazing place where people focus on quality of life over possession acquisition was spot on, and I salute her and her fans for the whole endeavour.

Finally, let me reiterate that I do have the utmost respect for Oprah for what she is, a shrewd business woman.  But as a saint or deity, as some fans seem to deem her, I'll keep waiting for the Second Coming.

Quokkas, Koalas and Wombats...Oh My!

Last Sunday morning's long awaited zoo trip started off with more of a fizzle then a bang, as often happens with long awaited events. I remember crowing out the words "kangaroo day!" before my eyes were even opened.

My enthusiastic cry was met with a groan from the other half who had woken up with an aching stomach. Looking out the window was another dampener to my enthusiasm. Grey rolling clouds scuttled along the sky, promising a chilly morning.

Fortunately a shower and a large glass of water cured the sour stomach, and hot coffee chased away the chills. Very soon we were ready for our whirlwind tour of the Adelaide Zoo, and my personal quest to see what the inside of a kangaroos pouch feels like.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to accomplish my mission. All the 'roos in the petting area were more interested in taking naps off limits then coming over to be petted by me. However, there was a very cute quokka that was happy to have behind his ears scratched.

I'd never heard of a quokka before. To me they looked like a cross between possums and rats that hopped like kangaroos. I'm not the only one that thought they looked like large rats. In 1658 a Dutch explorer named an island full of quokkas "Rottnest" which translated literally means rats nest.

Quokkas have pouches, like 'roos, but it seemed offensive to flip it on it's back and grope around just to alleviate my curiosity. Empathy probably bars me from claiming a shining scientific career someday, but at least no animals will need counseling due to my curiosity... yet.

The zoo had the usual giraffes, tigers and lions, but the highlights were definitely the native animals. Australia has developed so isolated from the rest of the world, that the animals and plants here evolved on completely different paths from the rest of the globe.

Two thumbed koalas, fuzzy red Tree Kangaroos that are nearly extinct, solid wombats and the owlish looking Tawny Frogmouth (which I'm told is not an owl, despite looking like one and being nocturnal) look like no animals I'm used to. Seeing these animals is taking a peek into a world that has been left to itself to evolve creatures uniquely adapted to an often unforgiving climate.

I didn't get to satisfy my curiosity about the kangaroo pouch, and seeing so many different animals just opened up more questions for me, but in the end I would rather have questions then answers. The day I have all the answers would be a very boring day with no tomorrow to wonder about.

Kangaroo Day!

Off to the zoo this morning, and so far not a great start.  The other half woke up sick and it looks rainy and cold out... but the 'roos are waiting so we'll see what happens.  Keep you updated.... (cross your fingers)!

Oprah Down Under

The news here is abuzz with news of the media goddess Oprah's arrival Down Under, but already, less the 24 hours into the venture, there are dissatisfied whispers and side comments laced with sarcasm.

Fans were disappointed initially upon Oprah's arrival because when her plane touched down apparently she didn't pop out to greet them.  I personally didn't think that was a big deal.  Having recently endured the grueling several day trip myself, I didn't feel particularly in the mood for a meet-&-greet either upon arrival.

My personal disappointment is in Oprah's choice of itinerary.  She has touted this trip as her great Aussi adventure, discovering the flavors and nuances of a new country.  So where does she go first?  Hamilton Island, a resort that most Australians will never see.  As the news announcer commented, "Nice if you're able."

Upon arrival she was greeted by a large number of men in board shorts walking in from the sea bearing trays of delicacies and was treated to a meal created by celebrity chef Curtis Stone that included, according to one local news report "shrimp on the barbie".

I'm not Australian, and I've only lived here four months as of yesterday, but the whole experience the Oprahlites are having so far seems as unAussi as coming to America and staying in Hawaii.  I have nothing against Hamilton Island, or Hawaii, but they are hardly the mainstream experience most of us are privy to.  As of yet I know no Australians who have ever eaten actual "shrimp on the barbie" and they don't even call them "shrimp".  Down here they are all "prawns".

Now please don't shred me as an Oprah hater, I am not.  I have a lot of respect for the woman behind the empire she built from nothing but her charisma.  I just feel like her wealth and fame is cheating her of the real aussi experience.  From my personal experience as an American here, I see the aussi lifestyle as anti extravagant.  Life is enjoyed, but not to gluttonous extremes.

Australia is an incredible experience, but if Oprah wants to truly taste it, she needs to get out of the resorts and into the actual country.  Places like Clare, where they drink rainwater and the air is so clean it was like breathing in sunlight.  Come out to the real Australia and smell the over powering scent of flowers, dig your toes in the red dirt and look up at a different night sky.

C'mon Oprah, don't show the viewers back home a homogenized, tourists' view of this country.  As they say here, 'get stuck into it!'.

Just a Few Kangaroo Theories

Just a few more days and I will be off to the Adelaide Zoo to see all the animals, and most importantly, try to find out what a kangaroo's pouch feels like. 

My husband, born and raised Aussi, says his theory is that the kangaroo will take my advances as offensive and deliver me a kick.  After considering that possibility (as a native I'm thinking he knows better then I), I amended my earlier plan to put my hand in a 'roo pouch no matter what. 

My new plan is to only put my hand in if the kangaroo looks like it wants me to reach in it's pouch... I might have to buy it a drink first but I think we can work it out.

Here's a few theories & comments sent to me in the past few days I thought I'd share~

"I think inside there must be sweaty and smelly like the inside of your bellybutton." 
~ Vicki

"Like a purse you can never lose.  I wonder if they keep anything besides babies in there.  I'd keep my keys.  I think it's furry."
~ Becca

"Tonight my collie came up to me and his ear flipped up and I saw the pink underside. I rubbed it and found it to be kind of waxy smooth. I said, I bet that is what it feels like inside the pouch of a kangaroo!"
~Thx Stef! ^.^

And according to Yahoo Answers: "Inside a kangaroo's pouch, it is just pink skin, and feels a bit greasy, but not in a damp way. It's hard to describe, but it feels greasy in a sort of dry way."

Thanks for all the comments guys...we shall soon see!

To Sum It Up... Australia



 If I had to sum up Australia in a texture, it would be corrugated steel and roses.  If I could bottle it as a smell it would be spicy smoked flowers.  The color would be the brilliant, assaulting blue of the sky.  Everything is overlaid in a rich, intense wash of life.  Coming here is like waking from a dream to find that I'm still dreaming.

Today I've officially been here three months.  It's been long enough that I no longer feel bewildered every time I handle money, but new enough that I still find myself shocked often.  Walking to the shops I marvel at the unfamiliar bird songs, the immense variety of flowers and the feel of the sun, still waking up into spring but already flexing his molten muscles.

The thing I think I love best about here is the odor.  Strongly floral, the air is literally drenched with flowers on my walk, but underneath the enticing smell is a foundation of savory woods, baked and hard.  It's a smell that says relax, but stay awake.  Be soothed, but be aware.  Chill, but miss nothing.

I came here at the end of a wet winter, and my first impressions were of wild green growth, mad with life exploding out of every inch of ground.  Now it's calmed, settling in to wait for the bake of a long summer.  I'm calming too, waiting to see what the long, hot days to come are bringing. 

If I had to sum Australia up with a phrase, it would be wholly vivid.  Every aspect of the senses is awash with a zest for life but in a steadfast, unostentatious way.  Life is meant for living, drinking deep and savoring the smell of sun baked flowers.

Finally Getting Settled

I've been in Australia for just about two months now, and things are finally settling down enough for me to focus online again.  The first 30 days was a blur of new smells, tastes and accents.  The second month has been focussing on getting married, settling in and learning to cook aussi. 

Coming up on the third month I've run out of excuses to be lazy, so it's back to work for me.  It's been a nice rest, but the holiday is over and I'm actually eager to show you what I'm learning.  I have a bunch of posts planned out, but at the moment I am being regulated to a slow laptop and all my photos are on the other machine, so I'll just link to a piece I've already written on The 5 Best Things About Australia and plan to seeya again very soon.

Cheers!