I have been in Australia since the 29th of January and it has taken me three weeks to post my first entry. That seems like a long time, I know. I assure you my tardiness is warranted and I will give you a brief rundown of what has transpired since I arrived in the land down under on a humid Tuesday morning 3 weeks ago.
9:13 am: I stepped off the plane
9:15 am: I walked into the airport
9:20: I waited at customs
That could take awhile. Let me make it less comprehensive and briefly explain what I have been doing. The first day I slept from 4 pm - 2 am. Then I read a book in the lounge from 2 am - 5 am, then I slept from 5 am - 8 am. Then the next three nights I slept from about 9 pm - 6 am every night. I then wandered about this new and strange city for about three hours until stores actually opened at 9. Then I grabbed a delicious breakfast each morning and read a book. Then after breakfast I would walk around and discover more of the city until about 1 pm. At 1 pm I would eat a delicious lunch while reading my book. After lunch, you can imagine what I did until dinner. Then at dinner, you can also imagine what happened.
This was a very strange period. On the one hand, I was discovering a whole new city and discovering a whole new culture. On the other hand, I was going through some weird emotional swings and I could not seem to get rid of this nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach. And I can only assume that you know me quite well if you are taking the time to read this, so you must understand that usually the only emotions I experience are happiness and delirium (I am usually hovering between the two).
After four days of discovering, I spent one day in my room, watching 8 episodes of the Sopranos in a row. I did this partly because I was sick of walking around in the sunshine, only taking breaks to read in the park, go swimming at the beach in the middle of the city, or stop in to play some poker at the casino (it was a rough few days, I tell ya). I also just didn't want to leave my room. And thirdly, the Sopranos is frigging amazing. I bought some bread, some bananas, and some peanut butter. Then I laid in my bed stuffing a piece of peanut butter, a piece of banana, and a piece of bread in my mouth while watching those crazy mobsters. I finished off 6 bananas, a loaf of bread and the whole tub of peanut butter on that Saturday. I also ate 6 nectarines. It was quite the day. That sounds depressing? Is that what you just said? Well you are WRONG! It was fun! I was HAPPY!
Anyway, since that day my emotions have become stabilized and I am having even more fun. After the airport found my luggage (they lost it on the flight over. By the way, Australians are so laid back that they seemed totally unfazed by the fact that they lost my luggage. From what I have heard since, it is a very common occurrence with Qantas Airlines. I can believe this based on the line of 20 people at Missing Baggage when I was there) and I found a place to live early this week, a load was taken off my shoulders and I have been enjoying my time immensely.
I have made friends with some great people in the hostel in which I have been living for the past three weeks. I've befriended some British women and blokes, a couple German dudes, A New Zealander, a couple Swedish girls, some Irish lads, some French folks, and even Americans! A hostel is just as cool as you would expect it to be. My hostel is called the Palace and it is 4 stories tall with a rooftop patio that is the absolute dickens for sitting outside and reading.
Basically, what I am saying is that I haven't wrestled a koala, I haven't boxed a kangaroo, and I haven't played knifey-spooney with any Australian outbackers. But I am still having one hell of a time - and I still have all that stuff on the agenda. I will try to keep this blog updated regularly once I move into my own house tomorrow. I will also try to keep it shorter.
I hope all is well back in Canada. This blog is not a true ‘blog’. Its main purpose is to update those who actually care what the hell I am doing here – those I would call my loved ones. Instead of sending you personal emails, you can check this site out and I can post some pictures and what-not as well. Thanks for reading and email me or leave a comment if you want. If you are reading this, I probably either love you or I am just very fond of you. For the sake of succinctness, I think I will just say I love you all and miss you.
Except for you, Sasso. I wish you would stop sending me naked photos.
Oh, apropos of nothing, the spiders here are just as huge as you would think. God, they are monstrous.
And also, today I saw a fat 10 year old kid wearing a t-shirt that said 'Wii Sports All Star'. Nintendo likes to boast that Wii can help get kids in shape. Someone should send them this kid's picture. Am I evil if I smiled at a fat kid in an ironic shirt?
Oh and also, you would not believe how many Asians reside in Brisbane. They are everywhere. And just like everywhere else in the world, they have crazier hair and clothes than anyone else. They also only talk to other Asians. I have had Asians in my room for a week who have not said more than one word. You know when you watch a show a about a serial killer who has been apprehended and they interview the neighbour? The neighbour will invariably say, "Ya, I saw him every day but he kind of kept to himself. He seemed like a nice enough guy, but I never really knew what he was doing." That statement pretty much sums up how I would describe the Asians I have met while in Brisbane. I am not saying they are serial killers. I am just saying I don't know that they aren't serial killers.
Keep on keeping on
Donald James Frank Demers
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