Firstly, Australian customs officers don't take kindly to passports that have been wet. Unfortunately, when I did the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, since the weather was so bad, the rain seeped into my bag and got everything wet. Including my passport. This caused important things like stamps, ink, and the photo to become slightly less clear. The woman in New Zealand said that it was fine because the electronic chip could still be read, but did warn me that "Australia won't like that..." She was right.
When I got to customs, I was subject to a lengthy interview where I was required to tell the interviewer exactly where I would be at all times for the rest of the duration of my stay. Since I don't have much of a fully formed plan, I obviously couldn't tell her and managed to fumble my way though by saying I will be in Wollongong between February and July studying. She then asked what subject codes I would be taking and which lecturers would take my classes - as if she would know who they were anyway!
After eventually clearing customs, I was made to then go and wait in line to be checked out by immigration since I was wearing my hiking boots. I decided, to avoid hassle and save time, to not tell them about my week shovelling shit at the Gubb's place, and said that my boots were only dirty because I'd been hiking. I realise that this is naughty, but I was not in the mood to be rejected entry into a country.
A full two and a half hours after landing, I escaped from the airport and was on the bus into Melbourne. After settling down into the hostel room, Charlie came to meet me, and we explored the city's shops to try and find Flic a Christmas present (she was having us over for Christmas day after all!). This proved to be more difficult than we expected - especially when we'd literally just bought her a DVD box set of Misfits (a British TV show) when Charlie received a text saying "I just downloaded all of Misfits! It's so good!" ... At least we knew we'd made a good choice, even if it did then have to be returned!
That evening, the wonderfully generous Sara and her son Dave had me over for tea. Sara lives in Melbourne, but met Charlie's dad while travelling through Peru a long time ago, and so Charlie was staying with her. As well as showering Charlie with gifts and affection, when Charlie mentioned that she had a friend (me) in town, Sara invited me over to enjoy a roast chicken with the three of them. It was delicious, and definitely a welcome break from the pasta and tuna diet I'd been surviving on in New Zealand!
The next day, Charlie got the train to Albury to go to Flic's house, but I stayed in Melbourne for a day longer so that I would have a chance to take in the sights and soak up the atmosphere. I really did enjoy it. I don't know if it's like this all year round, or if it was just because it was Christmas time but there was a really creative atmosphere in the city, with street performers or artists on every street corner. Everywhere I looked, I saw interesting architecture or a statue, and on top of this, everyone seemed friendly and willing to help. At one point, I was obviously looking lost, staring blankly at a map when a business man stopped, asked me where I was going, and even walked me most of the way to where I wanted to go while we had a full on chat about my travels (in the UK, businessmen are notoriously grumpy and in a rush, so I was a little taken aback by his kindness)! I usually say that I would never like to live in the middle of a city, but I think this is the exception to my rule.
After two days, that went by incredibly quickly, I was on my way to Albury to spend Christmas with Flic and the rest of the Treloar family. As I predicted, Flic and Charlie were late picking me up from the station (it turns out that they took a wrong turn and got lost in the bush) so I decided to sit and read my book. It was so hot, that even this was making me break out in a sweat! Eventually they arrived and we were soon back at her house which, thank God, has air conditioning. We lazed by the pool and were later provided with enough food to feed Africa for at least three days! This became a recurring theme for the days running up to Christmas day.
On Christmas, we exchanged gifts, drank beer, and ate enough food to keep us full for a good while, and then some more after that. It was pretty similar to my normal Christmas traditions, with added "shrimps on the barbie" - although whenever we called them shrimps, Nick shouted at us and told us to call them prawns (technically correct). The weather on Christmas day itself was not great - it rained all day - but it could have been a lot worse - I could have been in Stockport!
The next day, Nick drove us all back to Wollongong where, since then, I have been frantically trying to find a fruit picking job. Tomorrow morning I will arrive in Adelaide, regardless of whether or not I have found a job yet, and we shall see what happens from there! My instincts are telling me that this is not a good plan, but I'm sure it will work itself out - it usually does!
