Nuances, Quirks and Strange Things...

Today was another great day - I keep telling myself I have to leave tomorrow - which isn't true becasue today is Monday and we leave Wednesday - but tomorrow it will make me feel like I have an extra day! Silly, but I'm hoping it works. Surfer's Paradise is very tourist-y, but with all the shopping, it also feels like home.

We mainly walked around today - shopping and eating. I could tell you how big the ocean is, but then you'd feel like you were reading the same blog I put up yesterday. So - in an effort to be original, I thought I'd share some of the "odder" things about life down under.

1. Yes, the water does go down the drain the other direction. I'm not sure why - other than the fact that we're on the other side of the planet. You can't really tell with the toilets, just the sink.

2. Speaking of water, it takes about 2.4 seconds from it to go from "room temperature" to SCALDING!!! I guess the water sitting in the pipes in Colorado is much cooler than those here. I've never had such hot water, so fast in my life. Makes drinking from the tap a bit lukewarm though.

3. The sports thing here is pathetic. No wonder these people think swimming is fabulous. I flip through the channels with the choice of tennis, rugby, soccer, or a 6 hour game of cricket. My small solice is Monday mornings where I get to watch the NFL playoffs (running live on Sunday nights in the States).

4. Speaking of Television, I think shows just kind of run randomly here... like there isn't a schedule that starts at 7:00 on the nose or anything. We've seen stuff start at 20 after the hour - it's wierd.

5. Speaking of Wierd, it's odd to hear music that you've listened to you whole life, playing over here with no pretext for what's said in the lyrics. I'm talking songs like "Life Goes On" by John Mellencamp... hearing people singing "A little ditty, 'bout Jack and Diane... two American kids growing up in the heartland" suddently seems out of place when you realize you're in a foreign country. Same goes for "Bye, Bye Miss American Pie" and "Sweet Home Alabama". And just this weekend, Jimmy heard Waylon Jennings singing a song about driving along I-35 on the way to Fort Worth. I guess I never realized the total influence we have in the world. I also had "Mississippi Mud Pie" for dessert and we saw an episode of "The West Wing" tonight. Just strange.

So while this blog isn't about my walk on the beach or tomorrow's time in the sun, I just thought you'd appreciate some of the sillier items that have been so obviously, important to us during our stay.

Cheers - (they really say that here)

Carrie