"small world, dr. jones"

The other day I was hanging out by the pool at my hostel and I heard someone say to me, "Dude, are those Bridgton Academy shorts?" Turns out the guy (Dave) was from Danvers, MA, and has a summer home up in Bridgton (by Bear Pond, for BA readers). I couldn't believe that halfway around the world, on the farthest possible continent, I met someone familiar with my little world of the past three years. He's only the fourth person I've met so far from New England, and the other three were a family from Milton, MA. It was great to finally talk Sox and Pats again. Then we got to talking about BHOP, The Village Tie-Up, Long Lake, and of course, Bray's. It was a welcome trip to a place that had seemed so far away.

We went on commiserating about the lack of Americans down here, how the place is overrun by Germans (sometimes I feel like I'm in an Indiana Jones movie), and everything else we miss about home. In the spirit of my brother's new blog featuring movie lists, I've decided to give a top-5 list of what I miss most (as I said before, family, home, and individual people are exempt).

5. Having my own room to sleep in. I'm sure you can use your imagination and picture the many frustrating scenarios that might arise from sharing a room with seven other people. But in case you can't, here are a few: relentless snoring, loud/obnoxious people at ungodly hours of the morning, thievery, people trying to quietly have sex in the bunk below you, people having loud sex in the bunk below you, sleeping with the lights on, bedbugs, and non-believers in modern hygiene. Since Cairns I've spent 2 nights in a proper bed with the room to myself. Those were two incredible nights.

4. Good, cheap beer. I'd give anything for a PBR. There is some good beer here (James Squire, Fat Yak, Beez Neez, Little Creatures) but it's all pretty expensive. Even the "cheap" stuff is pricey ($50 for a 30-rack) and it tastes like crap. Not that I've ever had a beer I didn't agree with, but in the US at least bad beer is cheap. There's really nothing like savoring a Tallboy you paid $2 for. At a bar here, you pay seven dollars for a pint of soda-water and boot polish. You heard it here first: Australian beer is garbage.

3. Working out. I'm slowing and quietly wasting away. I haven't gone to the gym since October. I'm experiencing the frustration of gradual atrophe, and it's not pleasant. Daily pushups only go so far. On the plus side I'm not eating too much, so at least I'm not getting fat. That brings me to my next item...

2. Food. Where do I start? I've been in Perth nearly 6 weeks. I'm pretty sure I've cooked pasta for dinner for all but 6 of those nights. Breakfast is always cereal, maybe some toast. When I'm on the road sometimes I only eat Granola bars all day. I haven't had a hot breakfast since November. I really shouldn't complain though. I could eat better, but a small dinner starts at around $20. Dave and I agreed that the foods we miss most are pizza (Oz doesn't do pizza right), a good burger, steak, and chicken wings. I can't wait to get home and order out from Joe's, have a family BBQ, and of course get back to Mom's cookin'.

1. Sports. I've managed to somewhat keep up with baseball and football by downloading the PTI and Mike and Mike podcasts in the public library, but it doesn't compare to falling asleep and waking up to Sportscenter. I missed most of the NFL season, last year's MLB postseason (for the best, it turns out), the Olympics, and I will miss March Madness and the first two months of baseball this year. I think I now know what it must feel like to go into rehab. My withdrawal is reaching the edges of sanity...

So there you have it. A few that almost made it were: snow during Christmas, access to a DVD collection, laying down on a couch and watching TV, taking a nap, a private bathroom, and wearing un-wrinkled clothes.

I finally managed to secure my way out of Perth. I've actually got all my traveling plans worked out for the rest of my time in Australia. On Friday I fly out to Alice Springs, where I'll take a 3-day camping tour of Uluru and its surroundings, then I'll take a bus up to Darwin where I'll take another 3-day camping tour of Kakadu National Park. I'll fly out from Darwin on the 30th for Brisbane, where I can catch a quick bus to Byron Bay for the Blues Fest. It's not the dirt-cheap means of travel I had hoped for, but I think the group tours with other backpackers should be fun.

I'm excited for this Blues Festival. When I bought my ticket, I figured it was just a 5-day concert with local bands and people I've never heard of. Turns out Jack Johnson, Buddy Guy, Jeff Beck, The Fray, The John Butler Trio, Bela Fleck, The Gipsy Kings, 10cc, and Matisyahu will be there. Plus a bunch of people I've never heard of. I can't say I'm a big fan of all of them, but at least I'll recognize a few of the playlists.

I'm not sure how much internet access I'll have from Friday until April, but I'm hoping to write again after my trips to Uluru and Kakadu.

Enjoy a Guinness, everyone.