Pink Triangles Down Under Day Four

Pink Triangles Down Under
Monday, February 26, 1996
On the road to Batesman Bay, New South Wales, Australia

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A fond farewell to our Melbourne hosts

Journey Up The Coast

After hugs and farewells to our Melbourne homestay hosts, we boarded our bus at 7:00am to continue the journey northward to Batesman Bay. Passing through flat "bushlands" - golden grassy fields - then into the temperate rain forests where you find eucalyptus (gum) trees and ferns in terrain much like the hills in Sonoma, California.

Our "Happy Buddha" mascot

Donna christened the dashboard of the coach with a "Happy Buddha" drinking cappacino with a cellular phone in one ear. We would never have guessed that our new bus driver, Grahame, would entertain us with his frequent mobile phone calls piped into the bus PA system; signaling his Sydney friends that the "bootscooters" will soon be in Sydney. About three quarters of our way to Batesman bay we stopped for petrol and to stretch our legs; immediately a car pulls in with the license plate "BUTCH" and we found ice cream bars "Mister Long" and "Sunshine Gaytimes" (a mindset or subtle theme?).

Only we would find the sole "Butch" license plate in New South Wales

Not a mindset - it was a sign.... for after a brief shower, we topped the next hill and there was a fantastic double-rainbow in the sky - surely a welcome to Mardi Gras! And in an instant, our bus was transformed into "Priscilla-Mae"....

Priscilla-Mae, Queen(s) of the Bootscooters...en route to Sydney

-- CC & JP 2/26/96

All About Our Homestay Hosts and Visit in Melbourne

The length of the two-day trip from Melbourne to Sydney offered the opportunity to report on our various homestay adventures.

We started homestays during "Pink Triangles in Red Square," our 1993 dance trip to Latvia and Russia. While at people's homes, travelers have the opportunity to share meals, visit the nearby community, and learn about the similarities and differences directly instead of through a planned tourist excursion or guidebook. Here are the recaps and stories from some of our homestays in Melbourne over the last two days:

Andy and Randy with Ian and Michael

Ian and Michael live in Preston, a suburb about 30 min from downtown Melbourne. Ian is a gardener, Michael works in computer software. Over the two days they talked about the similarities and differences between our government, politics, culture, and language. The moisture from recent rains often coaches Huntsman spider's to come indoors (much like ants at home) and sit on the ceiling. "It was as huge as Andy's Arm, but it was OK since it wasn't above us as we slept". The second day we went to Zoo, a treat for all since they rarely visit there except when out-of-town guests visit. There we met up with other homestays, took in the native flora, watched the native fauna, and "cruised" on the banks of the Yarra river over coffee at the Boathouse. Later that day we visited the house Ian and Michael hope to obtain in an auction on Sunday. (Here you can purchase a house similar to US methods, or by an auction; a huge sign, about 3 feet by 6 feet, is posted in front of the house describing it's attributes and when the auction takes place. Qualified buyers arrive on the day and bidding starts. The house is sold that day - no offer/counter offers that carry on for days or weeks.) note: we also discovered there is universal "standard gay time" -- Randy and Andy were the last to make it to the bus!

Mick with Chris, Carol and the cat

Fortunately for me, Donna's allergies to cats landed me in the lovely rambling home of cloggers Chris and Carol and their talkative Ginger cat. Carol's collection of "old things" was fun to explore, especially the player piano - it's great for the calf muscles. Thanks for a wonderful visit to South Gate and Bunnings (I love looking at hardware) and the radio station and for being incredibly gracious hostesses, even getting up at that awful hour on Monday morning (we were there first). Hope all is well (with the stolen pocketbook and keys, a slight blemish on an otherwise stellar weekend). Thanks for everything.

Michael with Nikos, Bill, Mr. Jake and Miss Sally
John with Peter and naked "R.J." (a pooch)

The five of us (pets not included) lunched over Greek food at Nickos' and Bill's house; Melbourne is the third largest Greek community outside of Greece. Bill and Nikos invited us to the beach but we opted to shop at the mall instead! The mall is much like what we might see at home with the normal department stores and boutiques, but there was also a green grocer, butcher store and fish market. Truly one-stop shopping. The next day we took a delightful drive to the Yarra valley. Along the way we picked out an Akubra "Aussie" hat - perfect for protecting us from the sun while watching kangaroos, wallabies, wombats and emu's and other unique flora and fauna of Australia in their natural surroundings at the Healsville sanctuary. We would like to thank them for their warm hospitality, answering all our questions; an enjoyable day-and-a-half.

John and Chip with Chris and Jonathan in Clifton Hills

Chris and Jonathan took us into their double-fronted Victorian house built in the late 1800's. Inside it looks much like a San Francisco Victorian, but the front terraces would fit readily into a New Orleans streetscape. They recently finished an interior renovation featuring a contemporary kitchen and den that opened to a garden with a "lawn" of thyme, a tranquil pond (where Chris tortures the fish.), and the requisite gum tree. We walked among the large gum trees along the Yarra river not far from their home, and watched one of several cricket games and learned the essentials rules.

Resting in the shade we watched children playing cricket and discussed the government's successful anti-suntan campaign (attitudes changed enough such that many are embarrassed if they get a sunburn), and voting the Liberal party (which is actually quite conservative) during the upcoming national elections. Chris has not taken to driving a car. He usually wakes early for a swim, then takes tea on popular gay Brunswick Street, continuing his walk to work at the University of Melbourne. Jonathan was out of town during the weekend, but joined us on Sunday at the 150th Anniversary celebration of the Royal Botanical Gardens, where we stood under a huge pack of fruit-bats, called "flying-foxes", that have made their home in the trees of a picturesque hillside. Looking across a lake to the other hillside, framed with a blue sky and lush trees, we listened to a singing chorale dressed in colorful feathered robes representing "songs of birds". A picture perfect summer scene (in February!).

. . . to be continued -- see Day Five

-- CC & JP 2/26/96

AUSTRALIANS SAY: "Petrol"
AMERICANS SAY: "Gas"

AUSTRALIANS SAY: "Chemist"
AMERICANS SAY: "Pharmacy"

AUSTRALIANS SAY: "Take Away (Food)"
AMERICANS SAY: "(Food) To Go"

Send us a BIG HOWDY !

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