Under the OZ Sun

First Glimpse of Dee Why

2008-10-22T16:05:00.000-07:00

Dee Why beach

I almost forgot to mention about the Dee Why beach. This morning before lunch at the RSL, Yobi invited me to coffee at his favorite cafe (he goes to several but the one in Dee Why, he swears by its being best among all). I had Mocha Chocolate as he had recommended, a cup of which in different cafes would range at $3.50-$4.50 each.

We didn't sit around; instead, we walked to the beach side pavilion fronting one short part of the shoreline, which is very long and gorgeous. At one end of this shore is a beautiful rock formation. Yobi didn't seem to want to hang out so I vowed to go back there on my own, and run from that end of the shore to the other, which is the Long Reef beach and a rocky mountain with an accessible cliff top. I love cliffs! They look rugged, but they're beautiful. Yobi said I could go all the way up. I will!

This is the impressive rock formation at the Dee Why beach. I suppose during high tide, this will be covered by water.

~~~
At the moment, I feel: freeloading here is getting more embarrassing. I will contribute!

Reunion with Manly

2008-10-22T16:00:00.000-07:00

I was not able to do my rounds of the neighborhood as I had planned for the morning as we drove to Dee Why, a suburb just a short drive away from Cromer (and around 30-min walk away). We had Asian lunch at the Dee Why RSL (Return Servicemen's League) Club*, of which Tito Caloy is a member. Being so, he gets a BIG discount on food. For an example: he only pays $3 for an $8 dish.

Afterwards, tito Caloy and tita Lily stayed with the pokies while Yobi,** who had his day-off today, showed me around. I somewhat hinted at using up his petrol (because I don't want to be a further burden) but he assured me I shouldn't worry and went on explaining about the petrol benefits he gets from the government (or was it from his office?). He had to explain twice; and twice I didn't get it. So he rested his case, while I didn't press on.

We went to Manly! I could not forget Manly since it was the first beach my cousin Buddy and his then-girlfriend Jana brought us to in our visit 5 years ago. I still remember the store where we bought the chips and kebabs from for lunch, and the ice cream after. But I would judge later on that the beach at Dee Why is better. Let me talk about my reunion with Manly first.

The Corso at Manly, photo courtesy of Google
(I can't believe I spent so many days at this area and not one time I took a photo of this famous part of the beach)

We went for a short stroll through the Corso, then sat for a bit in Yobi's favorite cafe (the name eludes me -- sheesh, i should get the names of the cafes i visit to make easy comparison). I had peppermint tea, the first of the many I will be getting from different cafes (in other words, it was that first cup in Manly that hooked me!). We went for another stroll and dropped by the Angus & Robertson bookstore. I flipped at the prices! As I would find out thru his book, esteemed travel writer Bill Bryson agrees with me that Australia's books are overpriced. There's a box for discounted books (at $5) but were filled to the brim with bad titles.

I took it lightly though. After all, I still have Stephanie Meyer's Twilight (which I brought from the Phils) to finish. I also promised myself that I won't buy, if I would ever dare at the going rates, until I finish it. Yobi also mentioned that he and Miguel collect, and that I am welcome to browse thru their collection and borrow. Plus, the best news -- every suburb most likely has its own library -- Manly included! Bells to my ears!

During our stroll, Yobi would say that Manly is his favorite place in the world. To get this from somebody who had visited and lived in several parts of Europe, Manly should not take that compliment lightly. However, Yobi submits that he could never live in the area as properties are at exorbitant rates.

At the cafe where we had drinks, there was a cute guy; the first I saw in coat and tie. He was charming, ala Jesse Metcalfe of the Desperate Housewives! Alas, I looked like a homie with my gray jacket. It's still so cold that I couldn't get rid of it. My fingers are gonna snap anytime soon. My toes too! On my way to Sydney, I thought I was flying in to summer but so far, it's not the case! My cousins would clarify that summer peaks only in December or January. Oh no, we're only in October! I brought mostly summer clothes, and only two pairs of closed shoes -- my soiled rubber shoes (which I cannot use on ordinary days) and my Crocs. Problem! Problem!

So far, I am enjoying this part of the stay that's focused on getting to know the place. I want to remember directions and roads but as proven again and again, and this time not exempted, I'm just so bad at it! My English is utilized 90% of the time. Through this, I discover that my English is better than I think it is, which is a very, very good thing. But not to say I no longer stumble over my words. I still do.

Despite the thrill, there's still a torn part in my heart. It's missing somebody.

~~~
Carlyn texted! I'm ecstatic! Any connection to the Philippines just makes me ecstatic!

~~~
I'm really torn. I wish I wouldn't be too tight on money. When I work, I'm really gonna treat these guys. Papa gave me a (what seems now a hefty) budget but i want to save it until emergency strikes. But yeah, some day I'll pay...

Dear Lord, please hear me now.

~~~
*From Bill Bryson's Down Under: "Australia is a country of clubs -- sporting clubs, workingmen's clubs, Return Servicemen's League clubs, clubs affiliated to various political parties -- each nominally, and sometimes no doubt actively, devoted to the well-being of a particular segment of society. What they are really there for, however, is to generate extremely large volumes of money from drinking and gambling.

I had read in the paper that Australians are the biggest gamblers on the planet -- one of the more arresting statistics I saw was that the country has less than 1 per cent of the world's population but more than 20 per cent of its slot machines -- and that between them, Australians spend $11 billion a year, or $2,000 per person, on various games of chance... The club movement in Australia is huge. In New South Wales alone, clubs employ 65,000 people, more than any other industry, and create an additional 250,000 jobs indirectly. They pay over $2 billion in wages and $500 million in gaming taxes. This is huge business and it is nearly all based on a type of a slot machine popularly called a pokie."

** Yobi works in the IT department of the Police Force based in Parramatta.

First morning

2008-10-22T08:00:00.000-07:00

I'm sure the family's arrived in China* now but still I have not received load** from Iana. Argh!!!

It's a sunny morning today. I'll take a full or half bath since it's been a while I had my last (a day ago exactly, haha). Then I'll discover the neighborhood.

~~~
* Two days after I left for Sydney, the whole family, together with Mita, a few aunts and loads of cousins, went on an 8-day trip to Beijing. They went to see the Terracota Warriors, the Tiananmen Square, and the Great Wall. I didn't feel bad, except for that I missed my family.

** I bought an Smart OFW sim which can only be loaded with credit from the Philippines. It's P20/text to the Philippines, and P1 from the Philippines to me. Unfair!

Airports, actually

2008-10-21T21:00:00.000-07:00

I almost forgot to mention that at the airport today, I melted a couple of times, or as many times as the number of guys waiting with a bouquet of flowers. I don't know who they were waiting for, but that's irregardless. One guy had a dozen red roses wrapped in white paper. Another was clutching a single rose on one hand and an umbrella on the other. My insides swelled with cheese and the urge to sigh. I almost choked on my emotions seeing 2 kids collide with their pop and a son handing a bunch of roses to his mother. It was a beautiful, beautiful scene. This is precisely why I love airports and the movie Love Actually (you'll get the connection if you watch).

All we need is heart.

~~~
By the way, first day and I can already say there are a lot of CUTE guys in Australia. But I keep on remembering Walter the Honduran's* warning: "They're all animals!"

I don't like the idea though of going all the way here and bringing home to the Philippines someone just like me. Hehe!

(That might not make sense, but only to you who doesn't know me.)

Dinner matters

2008-10-21T19:30:00.000-07:00

Finally I saw Miguel. He arrived home in his coat and tie, and a ring pierced through his right eyebrow (ouch). Tita Lily was yakking about it. I can't help but comment, "Tita, Miguel has to wear a coat and tie to work. How else can he express himself?" To which she replied with a brief, cold glance at my direction.

I went with Miguel on his convertible car to the grocery* at Dee Why to buy stuff for dinner. It's amazing how these huge groceries are just a short drive away. In the Philippines (particularly in the smaller provinces), we have to enter a mall to go to the grocery or we're left with the small convenient stores outside where everything is overpriced.

~~~
I think I've grown more mature that I can talk issues with these guys now (that night Miguel and I talked about the Reproductive Health Bill that's being examined in the Philippine Congress and the proliferation of gays and their lives in Sydney culture). I can't help thinking how more interesting my other sisters would be but I can only be myself.

~~~
* We did not go to Woolies that night, but to Coles, another huge chain of supermarkets. I don't like it as much as Woolies.

Acquaintance Party

2008-10-21T18:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know how cold it is here in Sydney at the moment but I won't be surprised if my fingers snap into several pieces soon. My cousin Yobi said that it's just today the weather's acting up. The past few days have seen sunshine and if there was cold, it was tolerable. Now, it's comparable to stepping in a refrigerated room everywhere. I fear my brain might freeze.

Physical torment aside, I had a wonderful first day in the land down under. I remember five years ago on my first visit here (with the whole family), I only had 3 words to my cousins who are a lot older than me. At that time, I was not too confident that males in their late 20s and early 30s would care about the preoccupation of a college sophomore. Aside from these preoccupation, I was practically clueless. And well, they can talk to my elder sister Iana or my father. Now, however, I lose count of words.

Even before the trip, it has been an issue of necessity to me to get along with these cousins as they would be my only family here in Sydney. I'm more than pleased that so far, it's going that way.

Carlo, his wife Phuong, and Yobi invited me to coffee in a posh coffee shop at the Warringah Mall in the nearby suburb of Brookvale. I had hot chocolate and a slice of cheesecake from Yobi's plate. It was not exceptional -- or maybe I hadn't concentrated on it because I was updating these Sydney-based relatives with the lives of our cousins back home in the Philippines.

I instantly connected with Carlo's kids, Gabe and Arielle. It was my first meeting with 2-year-old Gabe, and second with 4-year-old Ari. The first time was 2 or 3 years ago, and she was still a baby. The kids, together with Carlo and Phuong, surprised us (or maybe it was just Tita Lil) by showing up in the airport.

~~~
Warringah Mall is considered big in Australian standard but not to brag, it's not even 1/4 of the Philippines' Mall of Asia. It's the first mall I entered in years that don't welcome consumers with a burly "Goodmorning ma'am/sir" and a slapdash checking of bags. I was surprised by this smooth entrance, and my cousins were surprised that I was surprised. Well, it's been some time since they last visited the Philippines.

I saw a video vending machine wherein you simply need to wipe AU$2.99 off your credit card to borrow a video for a night. P90 for a video, for a night's rent?!? Not in the Philippines and definitely, not for this Filipina!

We went to the grocery store* to buy tita Lil's mineral water (no tap for this woman!). It's huge and everything looks fresh. They have coleslaw and other vegetables ready for salads in plastic and their cabbages are huge (all the pesticides in the world). During that visit in Australia's biggest grocery, I first imagined myself living here.

It's great. On the other hand, it miss my family (first day and I already miss them). It would have been a whole lot different had I been here with them.

~~~
Tito Caloy's house is lovely. The front terrace is swarmed with bougainvillea flowers. The dining and living room area is sun-roofed; so that's a lot of energy saved in the mornings. At the backyard is a huge trampoline. Tito Caloy gave up his room for tita Lily and me. So far, I don't see the picture of a bad husband tita Lily has drawn him as in her unsolicited descriptions. When not provoked by tita Lily, he is warm and reminds me of my father. That explains why, when I first saw him in Manila, I cried.

Generally, everybody's trying to make this home to me. I've received warm, warm welcome. Phuong is actually nice; she's many characters apart from tita Lily's Phuong. I'm informed Miguel is with the government as an accountant and Buddy travels around Australia for work. Cool. I have yet to see them.

Everything's cool; well, except for Carlo's hesitation to let me work illegally. The Pinay beside me during the airplane ride advised me against working without permit as well. But I HAVE TO OR I WILL GROW CRAZY DOING NOTHING BEFORE THE STAY ENDS. Plus Carlo and Phuong have brought up the idea of flying to Melbourne in December. I HAVE TO WORK.

Of course, that's easy to say. The hard to answer is, "Am I willing to take the risk?"

~~~
I'm happy with Qantas' food but the crew, or that one old blonde lady, should really soften down and be nicer to the people and be happier with her job.

~~~
The ride from the airport was long. We passed by the Harbour Bridge but I didn't see the Opera House. I'm sure I was looking at the wrong direction.

Oh well, 3 months baby!

~~~
* This grocery store I would eventually get used to calling, Woolies, which is a condensation of Woolworths, The Fresh Food People. It would fast become my favorite consumer's haven in Sydney and even if I wasn't thinking of buying anything, I would visit the nearest branch to browse through its shelves. On some days, I would spend hours inside.

While I was living at Tito Caloy's house in Cromer, the nearest Woolies was in Dee Why, a suburb that's 20-30 mins walk away. It was located along my favorite Oaks Avenue. This avenue ends where the Dee Why beach begins, which made my beach jaunts usual and convenient!

this is the first photo I took with my camera, of the bus stop in front of Tito Caloy's house along Alfred St in Cromer.