Seeing London's Great Sights, Whilst Avoiding The Fights...

What a time for Patrick to come to London, eh- when a bunch of idiotic 14 and 15 year olds take out their teenage angst on random London businesses. I've never known anything like this before; it doesn't seem to have a point anymore. Apart from nearly being locked in a pub due to nearby rioters, luckily we haven't been affected by the commotion. My heart goes out to those innocent Londoners who have lost their homes and possessions from firebombs and looting; what a waste. Let's hope those mindless thugs get their come-uppance.
   The antics of a few stupid teenagers wasn't going to stop me proudly showing Patrick my home city. We've just spent an awesome couple of days exploring London's landmarks with Matt and Rach, our Noosa housemates from Rotherham who haven't seen Pat for 2 years! It's always fun being a tourist in your own town, and realising how diverse and exciting it really is- a fact that's easy to forget when you're surrounded by grumpy commuters on the tube in rush hour.
   On Tuesday, the four of us walked along Southbank, fully intending to see some sights...then ending up doing a pub tour instead! There was a lot of catching up to do, after all. For anyone looking for a nice pub on Southbank, try Doggett's, just past the Oxo tower...very cool. Today we were a little more productive- a very busy Natural History Museum, Buckingham Palace, Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square. Not bad with a hangover. Shockingly, we even had a little sun- something I was convinced Pat wouldn't see in London!!
   Anyway, hope you enjoy the pictures below! Think Patrick has just about gotten over his jetlag...just in time for my cousin Sophie's wedding on Saturday! In case you're wondering, yes, Patrick has had a haircut...a little better than the one I gave him!

First of many landmark photos: London Eye, Houses of Parliament and Big Ben in the background.

Patrick, Rach and Matt.

Patrick with a tiny St. Paul's Cathedral in the distance...can you spot it?

A tent on Southbank that was giving out free samples of Bulmer's Cider...great way to start the day!

Pretty self explanatory, really...

Inside the Natural History Museum, in front of a blooming great diplosaurus fossil.

The Natural History Museum- a beautiful 150-year-old building.

Patrick with a weird prehistoric dolphin...

Buckingham Palace!

Canada Gate, leading into St. James' Park

Buckingham Palace again...

Nelson's Column, Trafalgar Square

Some cool street art by Trafalgar Square.

This reads: 'The life can be wonderful if you are not afraid of it. All it takes is courage, imagination, and a little dough'- as muttered by Charlie Chaplin.

Photo with an old school London red bus...gotta be done!

REVIEW: SOUTH OF THE BORDER, WEST OF THE SUN- Haruki Murakami

As you probably gathered from my last book review, I'm a little bit obsessed with the Japanese author Haruki Murakami. It does not surprise me that Murakami has translated many of F. Scott Fitzgerald's works into Japanese; the latter's influence is evident throughout Murakami's work. For me, he is the Fitzgerald of our times...creating characters with incredibly complex issues, all with a beautifully poetic writing style. I'm delighted that two of my favourite authors are linked in this way!

Hajime, an only child who loves reading and listening to records, finds a soul mate at his high school in Shimamoto, an enigmatic girl- also an only child- with a bad leg. The two are inseparable, up until Hajime has to move to a different area. As the years pass by, Hajime becomes a husband, father and jazz bar owner, a man who could want for nothing- until Shimamoto, who has only got more beautiful over time, comes back into his life, shoruded with mystery, and awakens memories of their special connection.

Though Hajime is clearly a very flawed character, his self-awareness is endearing. Hajime seems truly sorry to hurt those around him, and leaves it until he is at breaking point himself in order to be selfish. I ended the novel as frustrated as Hajime by Shimamoto, and still not knowing who she really was- or IF she really existed. I'm a romantic optimist at the best of times, but they way Hajime describes his feelings for Shimamoto makes you believe that they are truly destined to be together- life will just not let them. Forever thwarting cliches of 'perfect' love, Murakami certainly proves that love stories do not have to be cheesy, or need a 'happy ending' to have been a fulfilling experience- for the lovers, or for the reader.

Knowing that Murakami also owned a jazz bar makes me wonder what other similarities there may be between suthor and protagonist. From the small snippets I've read, Murakami seems to be a mixture of Hajime and Shimamoto- combining the needs to tell a story whilst remaining mysterious. Even if you are not as obsessed with language as I am, everybody can find a part of this novel clever, poignant, stunning- and unlike anything they will have read before. How to define what is good writing is always controversial, but in my opinion, it is when a writer can make you look at the world a little differently...something that Murakami certainly absolutely achieves with his amazing descriptions and incredible emotional insight. Am reading Norwegian Wood right now...can't seem to get enough of Murakami at the moment!...

Mastering Snow-Shoes On Mount Bogong...

I know it's cliched to say so, but time really does seem to be passing at lightning speed these days. Where did July go? Out of nowhere, August was just around the corner, and it was my last weekend in Melbourne. And what better way to spend it then camping on a snowy mountain?...
   Again, we have Nick and Wendy to thank for bringing a little exercise- and excitement- into our lives! They invited us on their weekend hiking/snowboarding trip to Mount Bogong, the highest mountain in Victoria at 1980m. It all started with a 2 hour hike on Friday night, with only our head torches to guide us up the steep, bushy dirt track. Poor Patrick had a massive snowboard to contend with as well! Miraculously, I managed to reach Michel Hut without tripping- unfortunately can't say the same about the way down on Sunday! Once we reached the hut, the hard work wasn't over; we still had to put our tents up, still only with the torches to guide us. With a little help...OK, a lot...OK, OK, Nick practically putting our tent up for us, we settled down for the night.
   Despite spending most of the night trying to figure out why I was so damn cold (and then finding the massive hole at 5.30am- fantastic), I was feeling pretty perky on Saturday morning. It was a beautifully clear morning, with panoramic mountain views and stark grey trees all around...the perfect Winter scene. We had 9 in our group- Derek, Sven, Emily and Sam all cross-country skiing, Patrick and Wendy snowboarding, and Nick and I hiking 5km with the skiers to Cleve Cole Hut. As the title suggests, I discovered the joy of snow-shoes- metal clamp-ons that look much more difficult to walk in than they are. Saying that, I had to fight my pigeon-toed walking instincts in order to not roll back down the mountain. The photos below show some of the stunning views along the way...a very different side to the Australia I've come to know.
   Though the snow-shoes seemed easy on the way up, they revealed their develish side on the way down; hiking downill is not my forte at the best of times with my poor balance! It's fair to say I was pretty knackered when I returned to Michel Hut that evening, which is why I lost- badly- the card game that Emily taught us (nothing to do with the rum of course...or the fact that I'm pretty bad at card games...). Having forgotten his tent, Sven built himself an epic igloo to sleep in for the night, complete with hallway and step up to the 'bedroom'. Unforunately, this then became neglected when he realised he had the warm hut to himself...and the sleet outside. See below for a picture of the igloo in all its unsung glory!
   Soon after sunset on Saturday, we had a little friend who wanted to join us in our tent, kind enough to poop in our doorway by way of greeting...a mountain rat! Not as gross as city rats, it has to be said, but that didn't stop me screaming like a banshee when it ran towards me from under our tent's outer cover. Though I was much warmer that night, I occasionally woke up uber-paranoid by the wind-induced rustles, turning my head-torch on, convinced our little ratty friend had somehow nibbled his way in.
   Despite optimistic weather forecasts, we woke up to fog on Sunday- which actually made for some cool, atmospheric snowboarding pictures (see below). So, after a little walk up the hill to watch Patrick and Wendy in snowboarding action, we decided to head back down to the car. It's funny how different a route can look in daylight; my imagined enclosed walking path was in fact quite exposed! I only have 3 bum bruises from slipping on ice on the way down, which I take as quite an achievement.
   Enjoy the pics below! Be warned, they're in a higgeldy piggeldy order..the ones in the dark are from Friday night, the ones with clear weather on Saturday, and the snowboarding foggy ones on Sunday!
 

Sven and his igloo!

Our tent in front of Michel Hut.

Getting used to snow-shoes!

Wendy and Nick.

So, an awesome, unexpected weekend...my first experience of hiking up a snowy mountain. Huge thanks to Nick and Wendy for inviting us...and generally for their amazing hospitality over the last month. You've made us feel so welcome in your home...and introduced us to some great new activities!
   A hectic few weeks lie ahead- home on Thursday, Patrick arrives on Sunday, France next weekend for my cousin Sophie's wedding...then Fiji bound! I can't wait to show Patrick my homeland; I hope the pubs live up to his expectations! Also very, very exciting about Sophie's wedding...I haven't seen my cousins in the longest time, and it will be the best way to catch up! So, I'm signing off from Melbourne- though if last time is anything to go by, I'll probably be back here sooner than I think. See you back in Landan mate...