Australia (Part 1)
My first tangible memories of a world beyond my childhood countryside are firmly rooted in my Grade 4 bas-relief map of the magical and mysterious upside-down world of Australia. Half a world away, and also almost half a lifetime later, it was about 28 years before I finally visited the Land Down Under. Australia conjured images of hairy poisonous spiders under every leaf, koalas hugging the tree branches, vicious scorpions sleeping in my shoes, wild dingos stealing babies, toilet flushes swirling the opposite way, and kangaroos and cane toads littering every inch of straight highway along the white sand of the sun-drenched beaches.
Melbourne
After New Zealand’s serene and subdued lifestyle, Melbourne washed over me in a fresh splash of refreshing life. Melbourne combines daring architecture, beautiful graffiti alleyways, and a bustling multi-cultural café scene that integrates all walks of life including the liberal thinkers and upscale boutiquers.
ConFest
After only a few days in in Melbourne, I bought a tent and a sleeping bag and hitched a ride to a mysterious event called ConFest (Conference Festival), a hippy-ish festival 5 hours outside of the city. I found out why people had a difficult time describing what to expect, because ConFest is whatever you want it to be… and you can choose to participate or observe from the periphery. Conferences were held by whoever wanted to host, and included discussions or workshops on sustainable villages, raw food diets, tantric yoga, night photography, religion, male orgasm, female ejaculation, drumming, the Mayan Calendar, geometries & quantum physics, cuddle puddles, meditation, fire spinning, or even biking and dancing around the makeshift village in the nude! In the evening people congregated in the chai tea tent for spontaneous live music, conversation, or a game of backgammon. Most of society’s judgements were left at the gate and people lived with open heads and open hearts... people felt free to be whoever they want, whether it meant to dress up in costume, or dress down to the short and curlies (which, incidentally, is why cameras were banned at ConFest).
Near Johanna Beach, Great Ocean Road, Australia. Kangaroos! I finally saw kangaroos!!!
Melbourne's daring architecture!
1 comment:
yo!! Its gemma who you met in Guatemala at lake atitlan how long are you in Melbourne for mr canada??? or where do you plan to visit next?? woooooo kangaroooos
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