A Great Visit from Two Great Friends, and Two Great Days on the Great Ocean Road

Wow...that's a lot of GREATs. But they are all so deserved. In early October, I was lucky to have my first visitors to Australia since I moved here in March - my great friends Tammy Gordon and Mary Carlson! T and M made the looooong journey here at the end of the 3rd quarter, and since I am all work all the time during that time of the year, they started in Byron Bay (in Queensland) for some hiking, surfing and touring.

Tammy and me at Opera Bar

After meeting me in Sydney, we (aka The Trifecta) embarked on a two-day extravaganza to see some of my favorite Sydney sites. We started with a snack at my neighborhood haunt, LL's, and were able to catch the end of my friends Jake and Grady's gig. We were then off to Circular Quay to take in the gorgeous views of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge. After sharing a lovely bottle of Semillon Sauvignon Blanc (SSB to the locals), we went to a delicious dinner at Jimmy Lik's in my 'hood.

Sunset at the Harbour Bridge

Mary and Tammy at Bronte Beach

The next day, we were up early and had a wonderful brunch at Swell in Bronte Beach. I had the most delicious truffle-infused poached eggs, and of course a skim flat white (+1 sugar!). T, M and I then hiked the ocean walk from Bronte to the famous Bondi beach, and stopped off at Iceberg's for a beer (or two)! We then headed to the historic area of Sydney called The Rocks, and had a few beers at the Lord Nelson Pub, which is the oldest pub brewery in Sydney. Dinner that night at Fratelli Paradiso topped off a chilly but awesome day.

Mary and me at Iceberg's Bondi 

I then had to go back to work (sigh) so while T and M explored Sydney, I met them for more over-the-top, yummy dinners at favorite local haunts -- Billy Kwong's in Surry Hills (the crispy duck was to die for) and China Doll in Woolloomooloo. Let me say this....there was a dare. It wasn't a double dog dare, but it was a dare nonetheless. I may or may not have eaten (well, no chewing was involved...just swallowing) a fish eye. What the hell!? A free dessert was on the line and we really enjoyed those sweets.

Towards the end of last week, we all headed to Melbourne, which is south of Sydney and a completely different city. There is an ongoing debate in Australia as to whether Sydney or Melbourne is the better city. Both are swanky, metropolitan and home to major corporations. But they are very different. Melbourne is more European-inspired and is known for its art, fashion and restaurants. Continuing on in our food fascination, we took the advice of almost everyone I asked and headed straight to a late Thursday night dinner at Gingerboy. OH. MY. GOD. I am still dreaming about the duck leg curry. I also ate what can only be described as strange. I put a whole egg, without the shell, but lightly fried just enough for the breading to provide a tad bit of structure, into my mouth, bit down and after a bit of gagging, enjoyed. Strange, but good. And life is all about the experience.


For the next two days, we embarked on what was one of the best journeys of my life. Have you ever driven the PCH? Well, times it by 10 (at least) and there you have the Great Ocean Road. The GOR is a 151-mile stretch of road that traverses southeastern Australia, with views of the Bass Strait and Southern Ocean. The road was built by soldiers returning from WWI as a war memorial, hence at almost every stop there is a "lest we forget" plaque honoring those who have fallen. While driving the Road, you hug cliff edges, travel through a rainforest and speed through hilly farms. It is most notable for its sandstone and limestone formations, which were naturally formed (and continue to evolve) from the rough salt seawater crashing against the coastline for millions of years.


We rented a car(!) and I must applaud Mary and Tammy for their insane driving skills. There were really only a few times when one of us would calmly mention to the driver that she was on the incorrect side of the road or should brake a bit earlier in the turns. (Actually, I was encouraging no braking!) It's hard to put a two-day adventure with two of your best friends along the most beautiful stretch of road in the world into words. What moved me was how majestic the views were, and how loud the crashing waves were. Together, the view and sound made the experience so damn amazing. Pictures capture 1% of the beauty - tops. Everyone should witness this once in their lifetime. 


Highlights for me include:
- lunch at Kafe Kaos in Lorne on day one
- what seemed like 16 stops at the chemists
- seeing wild koalas hanging in trees as we drove through the rainforest
- witnessing the magic of the 12 Apostles - virtually alone on the clifftop with whipping winds, crashing waves, and the most heavenly view - and the beach below the Gibson Steps at sunset
- the freezing cold lighthouse visit & the observations of surfers at Bells Beach
- Loch Ard Gorge and the Razorback, the Grotto and the Gibson Steps
- the self-portaits of the Trifecta taken at every stop with my iPhone (RIP Steve Jobs)

Tammy, Mary and our wheels

Me @ the 12 Apostles

Me on the beach in a foggy sunset - Gibson Steps

Gog and Magog

A majestic sunset at the 12 Apostles 

Razorback at Loch Ard Gorge 

One of the wild koalas we happened upon in the rainforest

The Trifecta

After two days driving on the left, we returned to Melbourne for a casual and yummy dinner at Cumulus, Inc. A 5 am wake-up call took us to the airport for a flight to Sydney, where we said farewell (for now). I went to work and the dashing duo skedaddled to start their long flights back to the States.


I can't thank Tammy and Mary enough for coming to visit me. While it was wonderful to show my dear friends around my new hometown, I also loved sharing new experiences with them. I think I can speak for The Trifecta when I say that we had the trip of a lifetime.


Until next time...
xoxo


p.s. This morning I saw an itinerary for a January visit from my sister Hilary and my Dad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There are no words to describe my excitement.

Aussie-ism's Part Deux

Shortly after I moved to Australia, I wrote a blog post about some of the funny sayings I have heard. Since then, whenever I hear new ones, I have tried to remember them so I could write another blog post. Here are the latest:

• Crook - sick or ill. "Sorry boss, I am crook today. See you tomorrow."
• Under the Pump - a lot of work to do against a fast-approaching deadline. "Look mate, I would love to talk but am really under the pump."
• Cheeky - funny or silly. "Yeah he was cute and kind of cheeky."
• Flat Out  - busy. "I'd love to go to the pub but am just flat out at the moment."
• I Reckon - I figure.... "I reckon I need another coffee. I haven't had one in the last 20 minutes."
• No Dramas - used interchangeably with "no worries", a personal favorite. "I know you just made a huge mistake, but no dramas."
• How you going? - How are you doing? I still don't know where we are going, but I say this ALL the time now. They also will say "How are you traveling?".
• Bloke - guy or man. "yeah, look, he's a good bloke."
• Good on ye - good for you. "You won that game of Words with Friends? Good on ye!"

I love these. I hear them all the time and they are becoming part of my vernacular.


On the food front, I have had to learn some basics as well. One funny thing I've learned is that they are almost offended when they see you stir sugar in your coffee once they've made it for you. They'd MUCH prefer to prepare the coffee with the sugar stirred in by them. Don't ask me why...but if you don't order "plus 1 sugar" and have them stir it in while they make it, they will say something to you like "you know I could have added that in. Remember that for next time." So weird. But they take their coffee so seriously that I don't mess with that and now order my "plus 1" in advance.  Last thing you ever want to do is offend your Aussie barista. 


Also, important to know the following when viewing an Aussie menu:


Tasty Cheese - you'll actually see this on menus. It's a type of cheese, which I find hilarious. It's Australia's version of American cheese, but is actually a mild cheddar.


Capcisum - red or green pepper. It's in everything.


Prawn - shrimp.  If you say "pad thai with shrimp", they look at you like you have 6 heads. you have to say prawn.


Lettuce - there are all kinds of lettuce. "Cos" is your general leafy green lettuce. "Rocket" is arugula. "Iceberg" is iceberg.


Bacon - you've heard me talk about this before. I LOVE bacon. But bacon here is a slab of ham grilled briefly in a pan.  You'll see "CRISPY Bacon" on menus, and that is their attempt to placate all the Americans who miss American bacon. But it's still that same slab of ham just cooked longer in the pan. Do not fall for it...even crispy bacon isn't the bacon you know and love, and will miss desperately.


Tomato Sauce - ketchup. It's of course pronounced "toe-maah-toe". Again, you might as well have 6 heads if you ask for ketchup.


Lastly, I am starting to get used to the side dishes offered for breakfast/brunch. Your choices are: baked beans (not like American baked beans, more tomato-sauce based), avocado, mushrooms, toast or premier toast (premier is fancier, I suppose. To me, toast is toast.), pumpkin (cubes of butternut squash) or hash browns (which look and taste like McDs hash browns).


Until next time, xoxo


p.s. I am going to start a beach chair business. Let me know if you'd like to invest. At Bondi Beach last weekend, there were thousands of people and NOT ONE beach chair. Everyone sits on towels and blankets. I still don't know why but I will ask around and report back. This seems so silly to me....Chairs rule.

Aussie-ism's - Volume I

What's the point of moving somewhere halfway around the world if you don't learn some new things along the way?  And really, it would be irresponsible to learn these things and not share them. So here is volume I, as I am sure there will be more.


1) Common Terms:

• Bloke = guy
• Mate = friend
• Barbecue = Grill
• Bogan = Australian redneck
• Biscuit = Cookie (and TimTam's are by far the best)
• Crikey = Darn it
• Shattered = Very tired
• Trading Hours = Store Hours (I love this one...reminds me of what would be outside of Jacob Marley & Ebenezer Scrooge's counting house in A Christmas Carol)

2) Everyone here is obsessed with "sport", which I love. And inevitably, the sport is "footie". What is important to understand is that there are 3 (that I know of) types of footie they could be referring to, and the easiest way to identify which one (short of just asking, but where is the fun in that?) is to understand where someone is from or has lived:

• Footie = Soccer if you are from Britain (Aussies call it soccer)
• Footie = Rugby if you are from Australia except...
• Footie = Australian Rules Football if you are from Melbourne

Don't ask me the difference between the second and third types of footie. I haven't figured that out yet.


3) Coffee is really important here culturally. As I have mentioned, there is a coffee shop or kiosk every 15 meters or so. No joke. What I have learned is that each person has their favorite coffee spot and does not stray from it. Coffee purveyors here pride themselves on building personal rapport with their customers, as it is what differentiates them. And coffee here is strong. Very.


Side note. The little coffee place/cafe underneath my flat called Room 10 is one of my favorites. The coffee is really yummy. What I love is that they ask your name and instead of just calling it when your coffee is ready, they instead say "Thank you, Caroline". They knew my name after 2 visits, and still say "thank you" to everyone they hand a coffee too. So cute and charming. AND it differentiates them!


4) A staple here is banana bread. (You can get it anywhere you get coffee.) But no, they don't stop there. They slice it thickly, toast it, and serve it with lemon butter. I know! Ridiculous! Here's a little snap of my coffee and banana bread last Sunday morning from the aforementioned Room 10.

Toasted banana bread with sliced almonds and lemon butter, and my lovely skim latte 

5) Bacon here is not the same as American bacon. (Side note: Those who know me know that I love love love bacon. And sausage. Patties more than links, but really I love both. I love all breakfast meat, actually.) Bacon here is more like grilled pieces of ham, not long strips like USA bacon. It's good, but different. Just know this if you come here and want bacon. I don't want anyone to be shocked.


Like I said, I am learning important things here and thought I'd share them with all of you. You're welcome. Volume II coming soon, I am sure.


Until next time...xoxo