'Ich bin ein Berliner! - I am a donut!
05.24.06 (1:51 pm) [edit]Day: well..er.. to be honest ive lost count, but i'll offer you a quote instead.
"Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana" Groucho Marx
I really should blog more im sure the world is missing out on my insights....
So Im off to Germany in a little over 2 weeks for the "FIFA World Cup 2006©" as it apparently now called, (or the Fussball-Weltmeisterschaf t as I shall be calling it...) So I thought this might be a good time to return to good old gello.tblog.com, so i can record my thoughts and observations of my first World Cup and the first length of time ive spent in Germany.
Right off to find out what "I would like a large beer please!" and "I am not English, officer! Im Irish!!" are in German.
Back soon
Matty
Matty
Bored in Bornholm
09.14.05 (10:59 am) [edit]Day..erm.. Day.. Wednesday
Lunch time and Im a bit bored so Ive decided I might start blogging again.
I think the World is ready once more, to hear about the trials and tribulations of a twenty-something scouser!
Right!
OK!
er...
forgot what I wanted to say now!
Bangkok Bananas
08.06.04 (5:06 am) [edit]Day "more than 200 less than 300"
My head hurts! Chang beer is deadly...... its about 6.4% but Im told thats just a guideline and it could be much higher!!!
So im in Bangkok which is just mad, in a organised chaos kind of way. Its hot, sticky, polluted and very very busy. Im told there are 7 million people in Bangkok and I believe most of them are living and working on my street.
I arrived on Wednesday night full of trepidation having been told a thousand stories about Thailand, ranging from "its the best place on Earth!" to "Its disgusting i never want to go there again". At this point and since Im covered in mozzie bites Id just like to thank all those people who told me about the chances of getting malaria over here... The arrivals hall was packed with taxi drivers and allsorts of meeters and greeters, it reminded me of a story a friend in Sydney told me about why the old British passport was so big... so you can smack people around the head and shout " Get out my way or we'll come and colonise you again!" Having manged to get a suicidial taxi driver who drove about 100mph, 2 inches from the car in front and from the car besides us ( I thought we were in some drag race) I arrived at my new YHA. Its about a 10 minute walk from the Ko San Rd it a very quiet peaceful place, its like the eye of a storm, all calm safe from the madness that infects the rest of the city.
My first day in the city consisted of a good long walk in the heat ( Only mad dogs and Englishman....) and a good browse around the markets avoiding Tuk Tuk drivers who wanted to take me places i didnt want to go.
Having survived the streets, I jumped into a Tuk Tuk and told him to take me to the Thai boxing show. Riding in a Tuk Tuk must be one of the most danderous things ive ever done. They are a law to themselves. They are twice as bad as the death wish taxi drivers! I think the reason why all the tuk tuk are young is because no one they dont live long enough to see old age. The Thai boxing was fantastic, it was almost a full house and the crowd were noisy and gambling like mad. The fights were exellent, i got to sit with the band, who play traditional Thai music while the fight is on.Even better was I had my own beer slave! a young lad who as soon as a finish one beer was over to see if a need another. Quality. I wanted to keep him ( this being Bangkok if I offered enough money they might have let me!) After the fight i went for a drink or two down the ko san rd, last thing i remember was stumbling out of McDonalds and trying to tell my Tuk Tuk driver who took me home that I didnt require his services in the morning " I take you to Grand Palace at 8am!" 8am who was he kidding...
So know I have to decide what I want to do. I could as planned head down to the islands for a bit of sunshine and RnR. or spend a few days here in Bangkok then head home. I thinking more of the later, 10 days on beach getting drunk with a bunch of Southern backpackers (all "backpackers" are southern, ) who will tell me stories about getting drunk in Laos or Vietnam... I might as well stayed in Bondi for that. The main reason is that I feel like Im just killing time here, having been offered sponsership to stay in Australia, makes me want to see home even more. Help me decide what to do. Im sure I'll be back in Thailand one day with a bit more money and the time to explore.
Anyway Im off to buy a job lot of Chang beer t shirts
Having Fun
Matty
Guess Who's Back...
07.10.04 (8:19 am) [edit][b]Day 217[/b]
Me!
I know what you're thinking... where, why, what and when?
Well Ive been busy (read lazy), just living my life as a Sydneysider.. working 9-5 Mon to Fri, going out weekends just like at home really but with a wider variety of people to go out with and a lot more places to visit.
Having said that, there has been some notable moments since my last post. The biggest being England's Euro 2004 campaign.
I watched all the games in a pub called the Great southern in George Street which was a morning mass of either very tired, very drunk or a mixture of the two England fans. Kick off times over here where either 2am or 4.45am. The majority being the later. Now there are two schools of thought about how to approach these games given the very early starts. Which are
A) Go out late (about 10pm) and stay out drinking until after the match.
or
B) Go to sleep early (about 6pm) and get up in time for the match.
Choice A is at first glance the most appealing option to most but considering nearly all the England games were on "school nights" the chances of drinking till 6.30am and still managing to find my work nevermind doing any were remote.
It will come as no surprise that I favoured option A for the first 2 games. The France game was just unbelieveable! The place was a sea of Red and White and the chanting was loud and the beer was flowing! By the end, the place was in shock as daylight appeared and a bunch of Irish lads sung "Viva la France" down George Street. It was very strange to feel that drunk, shocked, upset, angry and tired all at the sametime! It was feeling that I'd meet again after the Portugal game.
For the Swiss and Croatia game I tried option B as not getting paid for days off and being poor really pisses the hostel manager off. ( if I "forget" to pay for the coming week she leaves love notes on my door saying "Matty please report to the manager") Going to bed at 6 or 7 thinking you may get some sleep is just plain wrong. If you are lucky you may get a few hours and thats usually between 12 and 4!! But at least you're sober.. well until you get to the pub because everyone else in there is drinking and me being very sensitive to peer group pressure I would join them, leading to the strange feeling of going to work with lack of sleep and having had 3 or 4 schnoors! But I managed it douse this feeling with a gallon of coffee and the occasional ciggeratte.
All in All in was good experience in a very middle class English backpacking way. ( I say middle class as nearly every fan was wearing the England Rugby shirt, and these people were not still here from summer finals, and also I heard the linesman being called the "Touch Judge" more than once....) And it always funny to see an Aussie lesbian from a womans "soccer" team in a Wolves shirt telling the ref to "rack off!"
Right I have to go now but I'll post again soon tell you about my adventures in speed dating!
Have fun
Matty x
Allez Allez!
05.26.04 (3:23 am) [edit][b]Day 171, 20 hours, 58 minutes and 30 seconds [/b]
To be precise....
Anyway, Ged The Red has finally gone! He finally decided that the likes of Bruno Cheyrou was not going to turn into the next Zidane.
I listened to his press conference on the BBC World Service and he seemed genuinely upset... felt sorry for him really, maybe he can go to Leeds?!
(Thank God for the BBC, the quality of news over here is positively awful.. if it doesn't involve the a rugby league player then its not news!)
So who do I want next as Liverpool manager? Well, first choice would be Jose Mourinho. and if rumours are to be believed would rather come to Liverpool than Chelsea. If not him O'Neil (sorry Paul) but he might be waiting until he can go to the Manc Scum next summer.
It all makes for a very interesting summer of speculation, especially with all the Thai money we are getting... it good that Ged has gone he would sign players who have one good game in Euro 2004 .. Diouf and Diao from the World Cup!!
So what have I be up to lately? Er well Im back in the hostel after my glorious stay in Gill and Dave's house. Im now working for a new company called Rastertech (but I'm still doing the same job)
I'm still on course to visit every pub in the Sydney Metro area. I'm making some great friends, bemusing most, and picking up the occasional enemy (well life would be dull if you didn't piss people off now and again!)
Life's pretty good, although I do miss some of you lot now and again.
Right I'd better get back to work but if I do anything more interesting than get drunk in a new pub with a lot of European people i'll let you know
Matty
Whitley's Bed
04.29.04 (5:00 am) [edit][b]Day 142[/b]
So last night I stayed in a room lacking in other hairy, farting, snoring, peanut eating, getting up far too early, Stupid Yank, Fat Kiwi, Island of Dr Moreau creature, men for the first time in about one and a half months... it was bliss!
I'd forgotten what it was like to spend anytime on my own just reading or watching TV, without being surrounded by 20 other people.
So I might even have some home cooked food tonight, instead of living on $4 Green Thai Currys and Pizza and Indian food all of which were fantastic I must say, but a change might be nice.
Think I'm of to the Trots at Harold Park again tomorrow so we can all get fed and drunk on $10... classy.
Right better get back to work.
Matty
Bloke of the Week
04.27.04 (9:54 am) [edit][b]Day 140 ish [/b]
Apologies for not updating this in while.
So im leaving the hostel tomorrow for a brief stay in Gill and Davids house as David is off to the UK for 2 weeks holiday, and Gill doesn't want to stay on here own with their new Kiwi flat mate, so I get Dave's room.
At the hostel, when I got back from work I find some of the people have blown up my picture from British Balls Bloke of the Week and put it up all round the hostel with "All eyes on Matt!" The downside of fame.
The weekend just gone was ANZAC weekend, Aussie equivalent to Remberance day so we got monday off, which meant it was a big party weekend for the usual suspects ( Me, David, Gill, Donna, Steve, Mike, Ben, Dani, etc) ending in a BBQ at Paul's yesterday. Was great fun as usual will spend the week recovering to do it all again next week!!
Im going to party like its my birthday
04.14.04 (9:07 am) [edit][b]Month 4 and a bit[/b]
Ugh!
Im recovering from my party on the roof, which was pretty cool. When I finished work at five i arrived back to find the roof decorated with balloons and streamers and everyone wearing Spiderman party hats with party poppers! All thanks to young Sammatha and David my mates here at the hostel. So we got a case of beer and started on the vodka watermelon..... they even got me a cake with candles!! All very nice I remember stumbling around the hostel later on trying to force cake on to people " Cake or Death!" which i thought was really funny but no one else watchs Eddie Izzard as much as me.....
Easter
04.07.04 (8:23 am) [edit][b]Month 4 (well almost)[/b]
Summer is finally over and the weather here is very strange. It can be really sunny and warm one day and cold and wet the next.
Im looking forward to the long weekend, no plans for friday, but on Saturday we are heading off on a pub crawl around the Rocks or Paddington, (probably both) Sunday Im off around to Dave's and Gill's where everyone who survived the pub crawl is meeting for Easter dinner, Monday I'll be recovering in time for my birthday on Tuesday. Not sure what I'm going to do for that, a few people suggest a Party on the Hostel roof ( they have a sun roof garden thingy).
Im still having fun
Matty
just remembered Liverpool are on the telly friday !!
The Trots
03.27.04 (3:41 am) [edit][b]Day 100 and a bit more...[/b]
Ugh!
Another weekend, another hangover.....
Went out with a couple people from work last night to the Harold Park Paceway, to see the "Trots"!
Which is horse racing with a buggy (not a chariot as I was warned several times last night) attached.
It was really strange God knows how your suppose to pick a horse, the form is all over the place, whoever gets in front from the off usually wins.
As usual I couldn't pick my nose, never mind a winner!
But we were there for the drinking, you paid $10 and they gave you $30 worth of beer tokens, so a good time was had by all.
Off to a friends house party tonight, so more drinking and fun.
Will write more tomorrow, feeling guilty about not writing more often!
Having Fun
Matty
Ps like your blog Carl!
St Paddy's Day
03.17.04 (8:15 am) [edit][b]Day 103[/b]
So ive passed a 100 days away!
Everytime I think of home, I remember the dark, cold nights of November sitting on the bus coming back from Bootle, wishing the days away.... it seems such a long time ago...... but now Im living the dream and I must say it rocks!
Living and working in Sydney is the best thing I have ever done in life. The job's not great, because Im not great at the job
( I must be the worst salesperson in the world..Syd: How do you convince people to upgrade from one expensive piece of software to another expensive piece of software???)
but the people are cool and they haven't sacked me.... yet and it gives me a lot of spare cash to play around with. In a big city like Sydney there are 1001 ways to spend it...like er.. drinking and er..well Im sure there is another 1000 ways.
Tonight it a big St Paddy's day bash in Broadway so i'm wearing my Celtic shirt... which confused my boss as to why a Scottish team has anything to do with Ireland.. took some explaining.
(Paul you'd hate the Guinness out here, even I can tell its bad!) So i should be rolling in tonight and i'll be disappointed if I don't wake up with a plastic green hat still on my head...
Since its Paddy's day it must be fast approaching my birthday! Im 26 in 4 weeks.... 26!! Im getting old.. I have a mental picture of what a 26 year old looks like and acts like and its certainly not me!
I read there was another shooting on the High St, the Cock and Bottle this time, its getting closer and closer to The Lamb, Wavertree seems to be a bit mental these days.
Right got to go Im running out of time on the t'internet and my Guinness is getting warm!
Matty
ps Robbie congrats on the job! Welcome to the REAL world... you can sit around the dinner table and bitch about the people in work.. " oh that Maud..."
99
03.13.04 (1:06 am) [edit][b]Day 99[/b]
99 not out...
I will write something really interesting and funny tomorrow in celebration of 100 days....I may even use grammer
Matty
My Big Gay Mustache
03.06.04 (5:07 am) [edit][b]Day 92 me thinks[/b]
ive been away 3 months.... doesn't time fly!
Anyway its Mardi Gras today, and im off to watch the parade with couple of my mates. Im particularly looking forward to "Dykes on Bikes" who flash there boobs as they ride through town.
Afterwards, to celebrate this big gay day, we are having a big gay party... as you do. Everyone is dressing up, er, well, gaily. The girls as blokes or dykes and the lads as girls or like me extremely camp!
Hence the reason why im sporting a rather fetching "big gay mustache"...well i hoped it to be a big gay mustache but having still not gone through puberty properly i have trouble with the growing of facial hair, so i have in fact a small wispy mustache but it make me look very gay especially when teamed with my lovely pink shirt i have, all i need now is a nice carnation to pin to my shirt...
Right off to practise my mincing.
Matty
ps Dad, will you stop sending Ged the Red nasty letters!
My friend Fat Kiwi
03.02.04 (7:31 am) [edit][b]Day 88[/b]
Its been such a long time since I was last here, forgotten what ive been up to!
Right... erm...er...not much actually...
Ive settled into normal a pattern of working, eating and sleeping during the week and going out drinking on the weekend.
Ive pretty much got use to life in the hostel, they have a big TV room and library for those days when drinking doesn’t seem so much fun. Loads of new people to talk too.. Ive been there so long I know half the full time staff (Im sure one or two think I work there…) so the hostel is fine except... well except for Fat Kiwi.
Fat Kiwi is the bane of my life, never ever going to forgive myself for talking to Fat Kiwi….
This will sound really cruel and horrible but I don’t care.
I hate Fat Kiwi !
Fat Kiwi is a bloke who lives in my hostel and not only that he shares a room with me and I hate him but I hate him for no reason whatsoever.
He has never ever done anything wrong to me, in fact he is a polite quiet fella who keeps himself to himself, I don’t think he has ever done anyone any harm… but I hate him!
What is it about this bloke that made me hate him as soon as I met him? I really don’t know but everything about him annoys me, the way he walks, talks and really hate the way he breathes!
But, I thought, he’ll be moving on in a few days time like everyone else does, so not to worry….
No! Fat Kiwi is staying and staying for a while!
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
So I spend as little time in the hostel as possible, ignore him in the kitchen and TV room but sharing a room, we are bound to run into each other. So slowly over the last weeks I get to hear Fat Kiwi’s story. He has no job or house but is waiting for a offer from a firm in Canada, his dad lives in Melbourne but he doesn’t want to stay with him (me thinks his Dad doesn’t like Fat Kiwi) and he hasn’t got many friends in Sydney ( I wonder why…) oh and he likes cricket.
I know he likes cricket because Fat Kiwi over hears me on the phone and invites himself to a game we had in the park on Saturday, I finally cracked and felt sorry for him, so I said he could come.
Fat Kiwi takes the whole thing deadly serious, it was a mess about!!! God I hate him!
After the game my friends (and even worse Fat Kiwi) assume Im his friend and invite him out to the pub that night!
Noooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooo!
I frantically try to stop them...too late..
Things had to be done.
When we got back to the hostel to change, I made strategic manoeuvres to quickly shower and get changed in the laundry room thus avoiding Fat Kiwi and get to pub (which I’d conveniently forgotten to tell Fat Kiwi which one we were meeting at)
I slowly sneak towards the front door, hoping he's not there.... he's not!
Im home free, I run out...
stop...
Noooo! I'd forgotten the Keycode to get back in tonight...
I had to go back in..
I run in grab the nearest Keycode card, but i feel a hand on my shoulder...
Noooo! I slowly turn around....
Now if it had been Fat Kiwi this would be a great story!
but it wasn't it was the Geordie cleaner wishing me a good night out.
I escape... leaving Fat Kiwi on his own like the little boy and Charlie the cat from those Government safety commercials from the 80's.
Now I don't feel proud about what i did but what you got to realise is
I REALLY HATE FAT KIWI
Matty
[url=]http://www.yha.com.au/hostels...[/url] My Hostel
Tell me why I don't like Monday
02.23.04 (6:47 am) [edit][b]Day 80[/b]
The crescendo of the weekend once again crashes into Monday morning. I stumble the 20 min walk into work, still tired, as sleep was once again fitful due to the wind and rain of the small storm that washed over the city last night, the remnants of which still hang in the air.
I have that dislocated feeling that yet another weekend of hedonism leaves behind. I check my phone to be informed that Liverpool have been beaten in the Cup and all domestic joy has been lost again for this season.
It is going to be one of those days.
The weekend was a long farewell bash for newly acquired friends; the fundamental problem with hanging around with Backpackers is that someone is always leaving, to be replaced by someone new in town. Friendships can be brief, but everyone leaves with a promise of finding someway to return here.
I arrive in work early, a chance to check my email and the thoughts and wisdom of you, my loyal blog readers…
oh my god McFarlane is in town!
( Mike: I thought "Shit!" was a bit of an understatement )
It definitely is one of those days.
Now, how much to tell you about my darling ex…
..well I know most of you know the story and some of you were lucky enough to witness firsthand the mess I got myself in to afterwards.... so I won’t bore you all with the gory details. Suffice to say I don't think we'll be inviting each other out for cocktails on the beach.
In fact im still hoping that one of you is winding me up big time and that I can have a big laugh about it later?
Matty
Private Pile
02.17.04 (2:27 pm) [edit][b]Day 73[/b]
So the weekend was a laugh! We were all dressed up really mad!
( i wore the that mad shirt from my birthday train ride/pub crawl bash!)
About 25 of us and a blue hat (long story!) hit the Retro and later "the cross" .. another mad night with too many stories to tell but they included Fruit bats, mad irishmen and a long walk home...
So anyway im really enjoying my life here now ( regular cash really does help!) But still need a flat!
The only thing i wish for is that the barber's could understand my accent and what "number 2 round the back and sides, please!" means then maybe I wouldn't have my GI joe hair cut!
(OK its not that bad but close!)
Matty
36!!
02.13.04 (9:27 am) [edit][b]Day 69 [/b]
I survived the first week back in work. I was glad to be stuck in the office because it got up to 41C this week and at least the office is air conditioned... unlike the bleedin' hostel! It’s really muggy at night and you just can't sleep.
But the heat does create the most fantastic storms! Wednesday night I stayed on the roof with a few other inmates watching the storm over Sydney city centre... it was amazing... the lightning flashes were huge one massive one every 30 secs... like being at some massive rave!
We won the Quiz in the RSL! Which entitled us to a bonus question to win $2600...
How old was Napoleon when he died?
46 said one of the lads
46 said one of the girls
So we write 46, then at the last minute some said "No, 36!"
So the bleedin' idiot with the pen changes the answer to 36
Wrong answer!! 46 is right! We were gutted!
Spent last night in Darling Harbour singing Irish songs with a group of lads and girls from Cork.... as you do. (Having a few drinks is the only way you can sleep! I just pass out...)
Tomorrow is Retro! Which sounds like the Grafton by what ive been told. It Valentine Singles Night!! and we have all been told to dress 80's style! Which is my style anyway so no problem there....
Right got to go.. off to watch Stuck On You tonight.
Matty
ps 4th place for the Reds 39 points.. a draw and we are safe from relegation. What all this booing ive been reading about?? Booing the team? and did the boo they old Spice boys?
As for you Blues back to the good old days of relegation dog fight, keeps the season interesting!
Working Down Under!
02.10.04 (7:01 am) [edit][b]Day 66 me thinks[/b]
So im back in work.. well actually im not!
Ive started my own business!
Im a freelance tele marketer, because basically every friday i have to write them an invoice for x amount and they give me a cheque!
Happy Days!
Gello plc is on a roll...
Im think im earning about $25 an hour so that about $875 a week! im the richest backpacker in the world... sorry im not a backpacker im a free marketeer!
Basically my job consists of phoning companies up and try to get sales leads for the rep. Easy. People either want computer software or they don't, so theres no hard sell. You just have to ring a lot of people and try to find someone who does! They seem to think im doing ok so all's well.
Will defo be finding somewhere to live thats not a hostel very soon (my current one is just too expensive!)
Right got to go, meeting the lads at the RSL quiz night with Pommy Andy.
Having Fun
Matty plc
Im going to take you to a Gay Bar!
02.08.04 (11:02 am) [edit][b]Day 64[/b]
India are really crap at cricket! All summer ive been supporting them in the hope that they might beat the Aussies (If we can't beat them, support the country you thik can!) but ive just had to witness them get battered in the 1 day final made all the worse for having to watch it with a hangover.
Hangover was thanks to a trip in to Sydney last night with the usual crew. Which was supposed to be a few cheap drinks in the Rocks, but turned into a trawl around the City and Kingscross.
"The Cross" is Sydneys red light district and very eye opening it was too, 50 year old hookers on the street corners, young lads fighting on the Streets, strange pools of blood on the floor, and people trying literally to drag you into the "HOT! XXX action" clubs. I liked it...
The place was heaving! Queues to get in everywhere and this was at 2.30am. There being more than 10 of us, there was lots of arguements about where to go of the " im not queuing to get into that shithole!" type! So we wandered alot..
In the end when people started to realise that they hadn't drank for nearly 10 whole minutes! We picked the nearest place without a line which turned out to be a big Gay Club! The people inside where camper than a row of tents, it was so funny, especially when big hairy men in tight vests start handing out fashion tips to the girls.
A few more pubs and bars we finally gave up drinking at 4.30am
So today im getting myself ready for my job which starts tomorrow at 9.30am, trying to remember what hard work was like it been such a long time since ive actually done any. ( Some might say Ive never actually done any!)
Matty
The Toxteth
02.06.04 (1:34 am) [edit][b]Day 62 [/b]
So its been 2 months since ive been away, seems much longer.. ive done and seen so much.
But anyway ive left my Beach Bum days behind and moved into the Big City. A place called Glebe which is close to my new job.(Oh i got the job by the way!) but once again im living in a hostel but its a nice one (if not a touch expensive) run by the YHA, so its got everything I need until i find my feet in work and look for a room somewhere.
Glebe is the student area of Sydney right next to the Uni , reminds me of Wavertree in away ( but alot nicer and sunnier) loads of little cafes, restaurants, bookshops, kebab houses, pubs, parks etc (actually reading that besides the boozers and the greasy takeaways its nothing like Wavertree..but its got that city/student feel.. l like it anyway)
Talking of boozers the nearest pub to the hostel is called The Toxteth! How cool is that, going in later to check it out.(might be full of pimps and gangster a bit like The Lamb... talking of which Sydney's gangsters keep killing each other all the time, everytime you switch on the news another gangland attack has taken place... it making me homesick!)
Spent this morning arguing with Bank staff about opening an account, I didn't have enough ID points on me (so therefore i could be into international money laundry!) i had to lie in the end said i still worked for the Civil Service and showed them my old pass ( "We use to run this country you know! and i'll be having serious words with Whitehall about taking it back!!)
But it worked.
So im all ready for my new job on Monday, well almost ready got to find the place again. Its around here somewhere... so im going to get lost in my bid to find it again.
Matty
Glebe bound
02.02.04 (2:37 am) [edit][b]Day 58[/b]
First things first! The Derby. It was on live here, on normal telly, which was pretty cool, kick off 2am. I was out with the people I met last week on the pub crawl. It was someones birthday or something.
Anyway
Everton were as hammered as I was by the end of the game! We controlled everything, how we didn't score God only knows! Bloody Martyn. Worse thing is Bolton beat Charton. By the looks of the league that 4th place spot is going to be a tight race.
So I'm the only Gelling left in Oz as my eldest sister has just followed my other sister to South America, Julie's in Lima, Peru and Anna is in Santiago, Chile.
(We might get a two for the price of one deal if they are kidnapped by the Shining Path!)
But before she left, she set me up with a job interview with her husband's old boss, which went really well! He more or less offered me a job finding sales leads for mapping software. So im waiting to hear from him today to confirm everything. So if this all goes well I get to stay out here and more importantly move out of the hostel. ( Its really starting to get on my nerves living there! )
So i get to go room hunting... which should be fun trawling around Sydney trying to find some normal people to share with.
Im thinking now that i'll work for this company for as long as possible, save some money for Thailand and around (depending on whether everyone is dying of Bird Flu or not!) and be back in the UK in the summer. ( I mean it will be worth it to see the fear in McKane's eyes when he says "I do" ;o)
Right off to do some touristy things before someone asks me to work!
Matty
Bondi Wanderers
01.28.04 (12:17 am) [edit][b]Day 53[/b]
I decided to join a Sunday league team that a few of the lads I met on Saturday play for, the mighty Bondi Wanderers. A proud member of the Eastern Suburbs Soccer Football Association. ( Soccer Football!!!).
So yesterday, i invested in a pair of footy boots and socks and headed to Queens Park for my first training session. The lads there were the usually bunch of ex pats all wearing their football shirts of choice, Irish lad with his Man U top, loud Cockney with his 'ammers shirt and a Leeds fan hiding behind an Ajax top in denial about his team going down. Oh and a bloke from the Midlands who was an Everton fan, tattoo and all! I can only guess from his age that he was at an easily influenced stage of his life around 1984...
So football training, contained very little football and lots of running around, sprinting, jumping, running backwards, more jumping, stretching, running and lying on the floor desperately trying to catch your breathe while praying that the mad Geordie trainer doesn't want to do anymore running.
My body is in pain every muscle in my body hurts and I have to do it all again on tomorrow. I tell myself it will be worth it, to change myself Bruno Cheyrou-esque into a goal scoring midfield dynamo!
The goal scoring ive got wrapped up as i cooly side footed home in the 30mins game we did have. ( How I was even standing at that point is mystery)
So this torture is every tuesday and thursday for the next 4 weeks thats when the friendlies start. Its all a bit serious, I was hoping for a kickabout for an hour followed by the pub, instead i got a brutal wake up call as to my fitness and the chance to limp home...
My Dad will be so proud
Matty
PS Ahh! The Derby is upon us a chance for me to stay up all night on Saturday, Im predicting a 2 - 1 scoreline to the Reds. We have been up for these games more under GH ( He's not stupid his job is on the line, another convincing win against the Blue Shite will do wonders!) I trust Mike will be wheeled out for the occasion. Whats happened to the boy Rooney? Second season Blues... (see what i did)
Ugh!
01.25.04 (7:22 am) [edit][b]Day 50[/b]
Ugh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!
Hangovers out here are 10 times worse. It must be the heat.
So I was out on my pub crawl yesterday. I was very very drunk!
25 very drunken Pommies (and one token Aussie), 18 pubs (18!! 18!! madness...) and 12 hours solid drinking.
I feel like George Best's old liver.... ugh!
A good time was had by all even JP who had a very nasty gash in his head after falling over a drunken irishman when play fighting with another drunken irishman. ( and he was one of quiet ones! ) and for some reason unknown to me i end up covered with his blood.
There were several other casualties along the way but they were all beer related. I was fine, having trained long for alcohol fuelled days like this. All those long days spent in the Lamb paid off.
plus i got to meet loads of new people, so i now know more than 1 person in Sydney!
today has been spent in bed reading British football monthly waiting for headaches to go and wondering why my neck aches.......
think i need a doctor ( i forgot i've already got one!)
Matty
Goldie
01.23.04 (1:01 am) [edit][b]Day 48[/b]
My 3 Swedish backpacking girls turned out to be 3 young lads from Leeds who are here in their matching black t-shirts and chains (think Mike circa 1987) to watch Metallica at The Big Day Out ( which is a festival a bit like V2003) but they are ok lads and are sticking around for a day or two.
So after introducing myself I head out of the hostel
(which by the way is called the Lamrock but everyone calls its just the Lam(b)....)
and am walking down Bondi with my Liverpool shirt on
(was celebrating that mighty draw against giant killers Wolves)
and reading a couple of texts messages, when this lad walking towards me makes some comment about the shirt, something along the lines of "you've got some crap on your shirt!" then points at the LFC badge, so I look up to see this big black fella with a big smile of golden teeth and a baseball cap at a jaunty angle
...so at first I laugh "Yeah, whatever!" then continue walking... then stop as im sure i know him from somewhere... I turn around to see Goldie laughing as he realises that I only just recognised him, so he smiles and gives me a salute and then walks off. Leaving me thinking what a surreal moment that was....
(My next thought was I should turn around and lay him out for insulting LFC but the thought of Urban Dance DJ/James Bond baddie/ Eastender's actor/Celebrity Big Brother 2 Star attacked in Bondi would be gold to the tabloids back at home.)
So while avoiding celebrities im still job hunting, fine tuning my CV to the job.
(My CV is the greatest work of fiction since "Everton: Europe this season!" was published)
but my problem seems to be that there aren't that many jobs working holiday makers can apply for and when there is, there are 1000's of us chasing them, plus its a bank holiday weekend (Australia day) so all my begging emails and phone calls aren't being returned.
Well got to keep trying or I'll have to come back to you ugly bunch a lot earlier than i imagined, what more of an incentive do i need!
Matty
Dorm life
01.21.04 (11:32 pm) [edit][b]Day 47[/b]
so im all on my own (ish.. my other sister is still in Sydney) but im living by myself.. well i would be if it was for the 3 other blokes in my room!
( i'll give $20 for all those who didn't smirk and make some crack about that not be not being unusual!)
So my "Roomies" consisted of a guy the wrong side of 50 from Canada, who was very chatty (he wouldn't shut up!), an Israeli whose English was, well, worse than mine, and somebody called JB from Norwich who looked like Eddie Izzard, it was uncanny, but i refrained from telling him as i thought "Hey mate, you look just like that funny tranny off the telly!" might get us off on the wrong foot.
but not that it mattered because they have all left this morning, was it something i didn't say? or maybe that Thai curry i had last night didn't go down too well... i'll never know!
(im starting to see a pattern developing with people around me leaving all the time think i might have some abandonment issues ;o)
So ive been " On my bike!" as dear old Norman Tebbit once told us, to find a job. Wandered around the CBD (Central Business District) handing my CV to anyone who'd have it. Chairman of the Bank of Australia is what im hoping for.... but the kfc down the road is what i'll get, as you can only work here for 3 months at any one time so at kfc i'll be the longest serving member of staff if i get a job there.
So that it, off to do that all again today (might throw in a bit of sight seeing today as well)
and wait with trepidation to see who else moves in with me today, im crossing my fingers and praying for 3 Swedish backpacking girls (only because they'ed be nice and tidy obviously!)
Matty
