Barbie at Bondi

On Sunday I went to Bondi for a barbecue christening at my coworkers apartment.  She lives in a great apartment 100m from the beach with a beach view, large balcony and a cafe next door.  We all had a great time people watching from the walking and enjoying the warm spring weather.  Bondi is one of the most popular beaches in Sydney and is crawling with tourists, but it is a beautiful beach with decent waves, fun cafes and plenty of eye candy.

This photo is not mine, but I promise to take photos of the beach and the
interesting beach crowd next time I go.  I got a little turned around while
looking for my coworkers apartment so I did not get pictures.

Slangictionary (Fourth Installment)

Stubby holder: (n.) beer holder or beer koozie, beer cans are called stubbies, so a beer holder is a stubby holder

Plaster: (n.) band-aid

Gumguard: (n.) mouthguard [This is actually what the English call mouthguards. One of my coworkers is a Brit and used it the other day and I liked it]

Sultanas: (n.) raisins

Fringe: (n.) bangs.  I know this is commonly known, as it is used in the UK, but I made the mistake of describing someone in the office as "The girl with the bangs" and one of my senior managers thought I said something very different. Thankfully I was making a bang/fringe motion to show what they looked like, so the confusion was quickly translated. 

Dodgy: (adj.) sketchy, off

Braces: (n.) suspenders

Diary: (n.) day planner

Go Pony Go!

Jane and I doing "the skinny arm" pose (We thought it appropriate for the event)

This Saturday I went to the races, for the first time, with friends and coworkers.  Everyone dresses to the nines in suits and ties, fancy dresses, hats and fascinators. I have never seen so many different dresses and hats in one place in my life.  My godmother Jane let me borrow this fabulous red vintage 1920s hat covered in osprey feathers and a beautiful ruby necklace, earrings and a ruby and pearl ring to match the hat.  My hat was a total hit, even the people working at the event complimented me on it one of my male coworkers took a photo in it.  

The racecourse

I bet on only one race, race number four.  It was my first time betting on anything with real money.  It was very exciting despite the fact that my horse, number seven Swiftfoot Joe, did not win the race. 

The race I bet on.  I was in the general admission area so the horses actually ran right
by us, which was so cool, but here is a video image of it from a better angle. 

One of the racehorses that walked by us.

After the races I went to my friends apartment in Rushcutters Bay, which is really close to King's Cross, the neighborhood with many of the popular clubs and is also near Darlinghurst and Paddington, which are known for their beautifully renovated historic townhouses.  Later in the night we went out to a bar/restaurant called Bondi Social which is right on the beach at Bondi and has a nice big balcony and then to a place called The Golden Sheaf, which is a mostly outdoor bar, perfect for Sydney's warm weather.

On Saturday I watched my godbrother Tim's footy (rugby) final. It was the first footy match I’ve attended since being here, though I hope to go to many. Tim's dad, Shane, kindly explained some of the rules to me throughout the game.  I at least know that there are two kinds of rugby in Australia, league and union, an important distinction that Australians make when they are talking about footy.

Singing victory song

I felt right at home at the match, despite my ignorance of some of the rules, as the atmosphere of this club footy game was similar to that of a Bowdoin-Colby hockey game. The cheers were loud, sometimes lewd and dominated by indiscriminate yelling.  I half expected to hear someone (namely a certain brunette Canadian) to yell “Sir!” at the top of their lungs.  Tim's team was victorious and sang their hilarious team song.  I wish I had gotten it on video.  It was classically Australian and more like a drinking song than a sport song, quite different from the All Black's Haka. 

Me, Tim, Shane and Alex after the match

Slangictionary (Third Installment)

Icing sugar: (n.) powdered sugar

Not short a quid: (adj. phrase) rich

Hens: (n.) Bachelorette Party

Stag or Bucks Night: (n.) Bachelor Party

Bogan: (n.) unsavoury, low-class person (usually said in a kidding way)

Sepo: (n.) another name for Americans.  Yank is the most common. Sepo comes from the fact that Septic Tank and Yank rhyme rather nicely.

Ausland: (n.) sign language

Bugger off: (phrase) stop, go away

Barbie: (n.) BBQ

That’s alright: (phrase) most people say this when you say thank you instead of saying “You’re welcome”

Bum bag: (n.) fanny pack.  If wear a fanny pack in Australia I would advise you not to say this. You will get laughed at.

Knock up: (phrase) They used to say “I knocked up my friend” meaning that they had knocked on their door.  It is used less now since the phrase has taken on a new meaning. 

“He’s a cockatoo, he’s Aussie through and through”

Every morning I wake up to the sounds of cockatoos, magpies, kookaburras, rainbow lorikeets and other birds. After growing up hearing the “He’s a cockatoo” song and reading Australian Christmas books and children’s books, it is so cool to see all of these classically Australian birds everyday, though I wish they would sing a little quieter at 6 in the morning.  

Rainbow Lorikeet

Cockatoo

Kookaburra

Crumpets

I am officially a crumpet convert...

I have heard about these scrumptious quintessentially British (or Commonwealth) breakfast breads, but never had the pleasure of trying them until this past week.  My photo does not do them justice (That is raspberry jam on the top in case anyone is wondering). Crumpets are apparently made with batter, unlike English muffins, and are essentially a cousin to pancakes. They have a really nice dense texture and are full of little nooks and crannies which allow for extra butter and jam.  Mmmmm...mmm...mmmm...gooood.  

Indian Bazaar

This past Saturday I went to an Indian Bazaar at Saint Ignatius' College Riverview, a very old and very expensive private school for boys. The Bazaar was more or less a fundraiser for all of the Jesuit charities and was similar to fairs in the States. There was great food, tag sales, games and raffles run by current students and alums.  The school has an amazing view of Sydney and I thought it was such a unique sight to see the cityscape framed by carnival rides.  

Commute Home

It is the beginning of spring in Australia, so it gets  dark fairly early here, but the sun sets later ever day.  Here are a few pictures a took this week while walking home from my bus stop on Spit Road.  I have a nice short commute too a from work.  In the morning the buses are full people going to work and kids in uniforms with blazers, plaid skirts, straw hats and other school attire. Both private school and public school kids wear uniforms in Australia so you rarely see a young kid commuting in regular clothing. Road biking to work is very popular despite the impressive hills in Sydney.  The cyclists do not have a great respect for traffic laws and the other day I saw a cyclist stick his tongue out at a driver.  I thought it very amusing, but the driver of the car did not.  I love the commute home (well at least now I do as I have figured out the public transportation) because you see the most beautiful sunsets on the harbor and can smell the gardenias and other flowers beginning to bloom.

Slangictionary (Second Installment)

Tall poppy syndrome: when someone is very successful and other people say things to cut them down 

Good on you: (common phrase) good for you, congrats

Trackies: (n.) sweats, sweatpants

Tracksuit: (n.) sweatsuit

Op-shops: (n.) shops like the Salvation Army

Plunger coffee: (n.) French press coffee

Piece of piss: (adj. phrase) extremely easy

Dag/Daggy: (n./adj.)  Someone who is not cool, similar to nerdy [Dag is originally the slang term for dingleberries, “bits of feces that hang from a sheep’s bum” as my godmother defined them)

Freckles: (n.) sprinkles

Zebra Crossings: (n.) crosswalks

Spanner: (n.) tool [ex: That guy is such a spanner]

Buggered: (v.) really tired

Lollies: (n.) candy 

First week in Sydney

Enjoying the sun at Darling Harbour

Darling Harbour

I’ve just finished my first week in Sydney and have been adjusting to life down under. There are many small differences down here that I did not expect and have adapted to.  For example, as everyone knows, Australians drive on the left hand side of the road, but they also walk and run on the left hand side of the sidewalk. Escalator etiquette is the opposite as well.  People are meant to stand on the left and walk up on the right.

Last Sunday, Kate, a fourth year med school student who is staying at my godmothers’s house, and I ran/hiked from my godmother’s house in Mosman to Manly beach.  The two and a half hour hike has the most amazing views of the harbor. I promise to bring my camera next time I go and post some pictures of the views.

One of my favorite things about where I live in Sydney is that you can see water and sailboats from almost any point.  The harbor has all of these beautiful inlets and bays. Mosman is even hillier than Ridgefield, but the hills are what give you the views of the water. 

I ran to Balmoral Beach on Tuesday, which is only two miles from my godmother’s house. It was the last day of winter and was 70 degrees out. The beach is much less commercial than Manly with a few quaint cafes and a really nice stone boardwalk. The northern beaches like Balmoral and Manly are supposed to be some of the nicest beaches.

I started my job on Wednesday and have been mastering the public transport system slowly.  I am working in North Sydney, which is only a half hour commute from Mosman.  Everyone at work seems really nice and I had a good first few days, despite many technology issues.  

Today Kate and I spent the afternoon in Darling Harbour with a few of her friends that we went to dinner and drinks with last night.  Darling Harbour is surrounded by cafes, restaurants and shops and is pretty touristy.  It is always bustling with people, but was especially crowded today because today was Father’s Day in Australia.