It's interesting that I finished my last post talking about my mood as I've noticed that spending time alone heightens your awareness of your mood. I'm also aware of how easy it is to influence your mood by being proactive. I'd been desperately applying for jobs - in the end I'd applied for around 40! - and had got to the point where I knew that if I wasn't in the right frame of mind there was no point in trying to put in applications as they would be poorly written and I'd have no chance of gaining anything. So on Sunday 5th October I don't think I applied for any jobs but my day started unexpectedly once more. I don't think I mentioned in my last post that it was a long weekend with the Labour Day holiday on Monday 6th Oct but I did mention that there'd been steam engines on the adjacent platform and we were treated yet again on Sunday. This time it was children's specials with 40 minute return journeys. This time I couldn't resist admiring the train from the actual platform instead of through the glass so I ventured round. I found myself turning into a bit of a train geek, finding the prime spot to video the impressive locomotive leaving the station before photographing other engines in the station. It was also interesting to capture my accommodation from a different perspective while chuckling at the families exclaiming over staying in carriages.
I spent most of the afternoon back at the chocolate festival in The Rocks. The temperature reached over 30°C and I had the cheek to think it was a little too hot! I enjoyed some of the live music and browsed the stalls and then decided to digest some more of my book in the shade beside the stage. As an aside I highly recommend Clare Balding's latest book, Walking Home: My Family and other Rambles. It's an easy read but highly interesting. Curiously, I've managed to complete five books in the almost 4 months that I've been here which would be unheard of at home. I'm lucky if I get through that many in a year! Anyway, I digress!
As I was sitting on the grass reading, I couldn't help but people watch too and I noticed the seated crowd in front of the stage growing in size. Just after I'd arrived, I'd overheard the next band weren't on for another hour! There were certainly some avid fans here which I wasn't expecting but it went in my favour that I'd decided to become engulfed in my book so early. I'd ended up in the front row for the iconic Hot Chocolate. It was definitely another of those surreal moments as they swooned their way through 20 minutes of their classics including It Started With a Kiss, Everyone's a Winner and You Sexy Thing.
I stopped at the supermarket and had to capture the 'British' section including Jaffa cakes, chocolate tea cakes, liquorice allsorts, walkers crisps, fig rolls, dr pepper, pg tips, pot noodles and bisto gravy. What a strange nation we are if this sums up our eating habits!
Back at the hostel I had a FaceTime call home and a much anticipated (from both sides!) chat with Jamie. I had a lovely welcome before a tour round the lego police station which had been built in preparation for the call and then was treated to a rather cheeky grin!
Monday 6th October started back on the job hunt which took longer than planned, resulting in the rest of my day being a little hurried. The chocolate festival had only been on Saturday and Sunday however Manly Jazz Festival was on over the whole holiday weekend so I'd left this trip until Monday. Amid the vast crowds at Circular Quay, I shuffled onto the large ferry which was dwarfed by the cruise liner docked by the Museum for Contemporary Arts. We passed Fort Dennison (which is already fully booked for New Years Eve!) and continued on our 30 minute journey to Manly.
Once there I realised how little time I had if I wanted to make it back in time for plans later that evening but I managed to get a glimpse of a few bands on different stages, recognised the euphonium player from the Hot Potato Band in a bigger band, and discovered why Manly is popular amongst beach lovers.
Returning to the CBD as the sun was going down amongst the moody clouds, I took this atmospheric photo - not the most artistic composition but the best I could do through the window of the ferry.
I'd rushed back so that I could enjoy a film at the Fiesta Film Festival in its entirety. Gluping down my dinner and hurrying to Darling Harbour I somehow managed to make it just in time for the opening credits. Chairs and blankets were scattered across the green and after a short time the man in front of me relinquished the red chair in favour of his picnic blanket so I pounced and comfortably enjoyed the film. Anina is a Uraguayan film released in 2013 about 10-year-old girl who is teased for having a palindromic name. After a playground skirmish, both girls are given an unusual punishment. The trailer can be seen here:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sTZpl9ofC1Q
As the sky grew darker the stunningly lit entertainment complex next to the park became a more noticeable backdrop to the film. It would go through periods of darkness before being lit in a range of colours and patterns and for a long time I couldn't fathom the trigger for the illuminations until I noticed a control panel in the centre of the park! The huge building's lighting is controlled by the public!
Since arriving in Sydney I'd become engrossed in job hunting but the long holiday weekend had shown me that the city has lots to offer without spending a penny (or should I say cent!)! This continued into Tuesday 7th October. By late afternoon I was at the MCA (Museum of Contemporary Arts), partly out of interest but also because I'd applied for a couple of jobs there so wanted to remind myself what they had on display. I really enjoyed an exhibition called Martu Art which was a collection of collaborative Aboriginal art. My favourite piece was called Yarrakalpa - Hunting Ground.
I was exploring the gallery with the MCA app. You can cleverly type in the number of a piece of art and a replica of the piece appears along with information. The blurb alongside this piece reads:
This description explains the different styles and areas of the paintings perfectly!
Unfortunately there was a mistake in the app, I wonder if you can notice what it is?!
On Wednesday 8th October I carried out a few jobs in the Rocks area where I discovered quite a few interesting and historical sites.
Thursday 9th October seemed to disappear but I did manage to explore Prince Alfred Park which is just the other side of station. Facilities and space is plentiful there with well used basketball courts, tennis courts, outdoor gym equipment and a swimming pool.
It was choir night again and en route I saw the hardcore workout happening again in another of the parks.
By Friday 10th October I was really fed up of job hunting - it's demoralising continuously putting in applications for it to be completely fruitless! Little did I know things would soon change! Anyway, I felt like my brain was turning to mush and I was spending far too much time in bed so I felt I needed a project to get my teeth into. There's an MA programme at the Institute of Education in London that I've had my eye on for months, if not years about museum and galleries education and it occurred to me that I could be reading around the subject independently without the structure of an MA. It was this realisation that took me to the State Library of New South Wales for the afternoon. It seems that you can't go anywhere in this city without finding something unexpected and today was no exception. On the way to the library I saw these teepees in Hyde Park showing artistic videos. They're part of a bigger outdoor art event which also included a 'school photo' style shoot neat the Queen Victoria Building which went on for days!
Once at the Library I was filled with an awe that can only be supplied by being surrounded by information and books at your fingertips. I requested Museum and Galleries: an introductory reader, browsed the journals while I waited and then settled down to become absorbed once more in studious absorption. I found one particularly interesting chapter, copied it and then went on a hunt for highlighters and folders to get organised!
While I was in Starbucks merrily highlighting away, my phone buzzed with an incoming email offering me a job as a tutor. Although there weren't guaranteed hours, it was about collecting a base of regular tutees and I'd be paid $45 an hour! A satisfied and excited grin spread across my face as I looked about the coffee shop, hoping there was someone to share the good news with but of course there wasn't! I have to wait until I was back at the hostel to share the news with my friends.
On Saturday 11th October I'd arranged to meet Macy - a fellow traveller who'd been my room buddy in Cape Tribulation on the night of rat-gate! We'd got on well sea kayaking and relaxing by the pool so we'd planned an afternoon in Manly together. With a 2pm meeting time I had my transport route in my head but this was scuppered when I arrived in Central Station to find that the trains to Circular Quay were replaced by buses due to track maintainance work. I sat on the bus willing it to speed up so they I could make the 1:30pm ferry. As we pulled up I could see the ferry was still docked at wharf 3 however when I arrived bang on 1:30pm, it was barriered off so I couldn't make it on. The ferries run every half an hour and although I'd be half and hour late it meant that I'd be one of the first on and have a great vantage point for the journey.
Leaving Circular Quay there were a couple of sights of epic perspectives. The first was another cruise shop dwarfing the MCA. Look closely and you will notice the MCA next to the ship is 5 storeys high and there are small boats as well as people along the harbourside.
The second was the ant sized climbers on the harbour bridge. They're so insignificant you can't see them on the photograph of the whole bridge!
Although there had been sailing ships in my last trip over to Manly, the number today was incomparable. They were everywhere! So much so that the ferry had to let out a deafening honk of its horn a couple of times which was met by girly shrieks from those who had jumped unexpectedly.
In Manly we enjoyed ice cream on the beach but I got in a terrible, childish mess because it was melting so quickly! After a couple of hours, Macy kindly invited me back to her place for tacos and we enjoyed a beautiful walk around the local area as well as a relaxing chat in the park. Yet again we shared the park with a fantastically organised picnic confirming the rumours that those who live in Australia really do make the most of an outdoor lifestyle!
Catching the bus back to the city, I returned to Darling Harbour as this weekend the Fiesta Festival continued with music and dancing. I caught some of the music before the weekly fireworks began and I think my Facebook status sums up how I was feeling:
What an amazing end to a fantastic day. Afternoon on Manly beach with the lovely Macy, tacos back at hers on the balcony and now fireworks to samba drums and dancers. I'm an emotional wreck, the soppy thing that I am!
It's funny how, even being surrounded by complete strangers, the atmosphere can be overwhelming and I did actually find tears in my eyes as I soaked up the lights, movement, sounds and fireworks.
During the evening I'd been conversing with a mother up in Queensland about an Au Pair role. Although I was keen to stay in Sydney this particular family seemed great so she agreed that I could sleep on the offer.
The next day, Sunday 12th October, I was keen to spend the afternoon at the Fiesta Festival. It was a gorgeously warm day again and this particular stage was in the blazing sun with towering skyscrapers creating a stunning backdrop. There were a variety of South American dancers on stage and I finished by watching the drummers and dancers which I realised were the same performers from last night and the ones I'd seen in the Brazillian restaurant the previous week.
All day I was still feeling positive about the conversation about the Au Pair job the previous evening so I arranged a FaceTime call which in the end was postponed to Monday evening. It continued in a postive way and we agreed that it would be a great opportunity. So I'm heading up to an outlying suburb of Brisbane next weekend until the end of January. Luckily I can still come back to Sydney for Christmas and New Year.
Last time I visited the Library I'd requested a book from an off site store so I returned on Monday (13th October) and would you believe that while I'm sitting reading about museum engagement I find a photograph from Kenilworth Castle!
The iob offers also continued with a phone call from Kikki K but had to inform them that I already had another role.
Tuesday 14th October was a very chilled out day at the hostel doing laundry and reading - the are worse places to while away a day!
During the night there was a terrific storm with lightening, flash floods, hail and snow battering Sydney and the surrounding areas. This photo from the Sydney Morning Herald shows the Sydney Tower being struck!
Again, Wednesday 15th October didn't bring anything especially exciting but I didn't actually feel very well. All I managed was a supermarket trip but I remembered to photograph this cool graffiti.
At Railway Square YHA there are quite a number of 'long-termers', those of us staying several weeks and although I've spent quite a lot of time enjoying my own company, I've also made some good friends. On Thursday 16th October us self proclaimed gleeks (fans of musicals and books!) enjoyed lunch together. Isabelle, Steph and I went to a really nice Iltalian restaurant - not surprising as Issy admits herself that she's a foodie! After we admired the Sydney Harbour YHA - her new accommodation. My word, it's like a hotel! The view from the roof is spectacular and I'm not surprised access for New Year's Eve was sold out when I was looking in April!
After a delicious lunch with great company I decided that I needed to regain the sightseeing momentum instead of spending so much time in the hostel (this also came with the satisfaction that I knew I'd soon be working) so on Friday 17th October I went to Wild Life Sydney Zoo. There were some impressive creatures to admire and for a city centre attraction it was worth a visit. Having said that, I admit to say that I visited better parks up the coast where the animals weren't trapped behind glass.
Keen to continue the sightseeing, Zoe (another hostel long-termer!) and I visited the Australian Museum yesterday (Saturday 18th October) and the best part was definitely the dinosaurs! It's interesting that I began my research into museum education because parts of the museum were really engaging but other were the other extreme. It wasn't until we were in the final room that I exclaimed 'it's all about making a connection!' before planning a whole lesson in front of a skeleton exhibit! I'm planning on writing another blog post about my realisations so will save my thoughts for there.
In the evening a big group of us went to the fireworks in Darling Harbour. I still can't believe they're free!
Today's quote comes from the book I'm currently reading - Divergent by Veronica Roth. It's just been turned into a film but I didn't realise that when I downloaded it onto my Kindle. It's similar to The Hunger Games - teens have to choose which faction to be part of and this quote comes after the main character has chosen hers and the leader, named Four, explains their initiation process. I found it struck a chord with my previous thoughts on the types of confidence and Maria's musings on mind, body and soul.
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