G’day mate. This Blog was written by my dear sister Jennie. We will be sharing the Blog during the trip down under. I will write at the top of each entry who wrote each Blog at the beginning of each new post. I hope you enjoy hearing about our adventures.
So, we land on Sunday morning at 6.00 am and it has a very surreal sense. I know I am in Sydney but somehow my brain is still thinking—Now what happened to Saturday again? So, we hop in a cab and quickly learn it is ANZAC day a HUGE holiday of enormous proportion, more on that later. So we get to the hotel and Petra’s fine hunting skills spots a Starbuck cup, with cheetah like speed she intercepts the human vessel carrying the equivalent, at this point, of the holy grail and ask the critical question. “Where did you get that?” This was an intuitive gentleman and sensing the impending danger to his hand holding the coffee, he quickly responded with “Just on the corner, you make a right out the door and it’s just there to the left.“ So, crisis averted, we completed check in and headed to the first room, anyone that knows my sister knows what comes next! It was actually a huge victory had that day with only one room change being required. Now, I’m not going to deny if I had been on my own I would have done the exact same thing but when your with my sister you just know it’s going to happen so no effort needed from me. To explain we are staying in the Marriot Circular Quay with views of either Sydney Opera House or the Harbour Bridge. What was our view? A conglomeration of unknown buildings at this point under a grey sky, now city views in New York are great because from every angle there is a landmark building, Sydney not so much. So, one phone call later, a very friendly bell hop moved us and our luggage to a room on the 27th floor with a wonderful view of the Opera House, oh yes one small detail and extra $50 AUD a night but that’s a no brainer. Given the pending threat of jet lag, we decide to get out of the room as quickly as possible. I grab every guide book published by Frommers this century and we head to Starbucks. Just as we walk through the door someone grabbed the Primo table which had just been vacated, I scan the room and all that is left is the worst seat in the house, a communal bench next to the fixings table, but we needed to rest our legs, so Petra heads for the coffees and I go and grab the seats, we are a well oiled machine in this department. Now, usual coffee house stuff happens, nothing of note for about the next 10 minutes. Me I am plotting the attack strategy we always use for each city—Pick the things you really want to do slot them into days and then your trip is a no brainer Petra doing her best to fain interest, this is her equivalent of the room change for me, I really like the results, would do it myself but have no need because I have a sister with this particular expertise. As I am diligently trying to figure out where the zoo which you can have a picture taken with a Koala is, my sisters choice, she is texting America. Now, in normal American unlimited texting world the next question doesn’t really seem a logical thing to be wondering about at 9.30 am half way around the world, however my sister has purchased a 50 text plan for this trip so every text counts. With this in mind she looks at me and asks,
“How many words can you put in a text?”
I answer “It’s 160 characters.”
Petra now looks at me and asks, “Why do you know that?” Momentary pause as she interprets the look on my face, “ Does everybody just know that?”
I say, “I think everyone just knows that,” I turn to the gentleman on my left and say, “you knew that right?”
“Yes” he answered, “but I thought it was 140.”
Then he starts explaining to my sister how it doesn’t matter IPhone to IPhone as it will stay as a single text. Oh yes how true in IPhone world but I would like to see that argument being used to AT&T! Anyway, in the mean time I am checking my inferior Blackberry and pull up my SMS and it does have 1/160 so I show him and he goes,
“Oh you’re one of those.”
Silent rant inside Jennie’s head, yes, I am one of those always curious people who if in doubt have to check so I will have the right answer next time. Hence, why I knew it was 160 characters!!!! And I know your thinking I just always have little Miss have to be right which is a little true so that stings. But, out of my mouth comes the Get out of Jail Free card, “Maybe there are different formats.” I mean we are in Australia after all and things could be different!
Now, at this juncture my sister rapidly leaves the table. For what reason we are not going to discuss here but me and the mystery man are left chatting.
Anyway, turns out he is in Sydney as backing vocals for Tears for Fears. “Would you like to go tonight?” he asked. I immediately say “Yes” then realize I better check with Petra as our original plans had been an early dinner at the Rocks and then bed by 9! She sits down and I say,
“This gentleman,” turn to the left “what is your name by the way? “Michael” he said. “Michael is here touring with Tears For Fears and has invited us to the concert tonight.”
Without hesitation my sister says, “Yes.” And that is how we ended up at Tears for Fears and also backstage after!
Huge thank you to Michael Wainwright the man with amazing vocal cords, you must all go check him out on You Tube and then head to itunes and buy his songs. What a kind gesture to offer two strangers you had only just met the chance of a life time because they are women of a certain age that would know who “Tears for Fears” are and look trendy enough still to have been fans of theirs back in 19xx.
traveling around the Southern Island of New Zealand. We have nothing planned except the dates for picking up and dropping off our “home”