The Wandering Chocoholic

Hello from Sydney, the city that Melbournians love to hate. I’ve just arrived into town after a 4-day Adventure Tour through national parks and snowy mountains. (No phones, no Internet for a lot of it, so apologies for delays in replying to e-mails). It’s been an interesting few days.

Before leaving Melbourne, I attended a Passover seder hosted by Chabad campus division. It was attended by some 30-odd exchange students and backpackers, mostly living in Melbourne but a few just passing through like me. A lot of North Americans including about six people from Montreal. The food was great, the wine was plentiful, and it was really nice being among a group of people who knew the words to “Dayenu” (and how to sing it really really fast). It’s also neat seeing how everyone sings more or less the same tunes, no matter where they come from.

Most people at the seder had at least a little Hebrew, and though nobody was religious besides the Rabbi and his family, it was a very traditional seder. I had a great time and it was really refreshing to do something Jewish for an evening, if that makes any sense. Oh, and the unlimited bottles of sparkling peach wine were a nice treat. Did you know that, according to the Rabbi, one is *required* to chug, not sip, the 4 cups of wine? You’re supposed to down at least half the glass in one shot each time. Yes, this comes from the guy that knows, folks.

Anyway, the past few days, I’ve been travelling around with about 25 people, including a group of six crazy Mexicans who like to do the chicken dance (don’t ask). On Thursday, we overnighted in Foster and visited Wilson’s Promontory National Park, where we did a hike up a mountain and down to Squeaky Beach. It’s called that because the sand literally squeaks when you walk on it. Very strange. We also visited an area of national park where we saw emus, wombats, and – yes – kangaroos in the wild. I couldn’t believe how close we could get to them. They’re really funny-looking in real life, and they really do hop like in the movies. When I get to a better computer, I’ll post a video clip to prove it. Oh, and the stereotype is true; I met a girl from Canberra who once hit a kangaroo with her car… in the city. (They don’t keep them as pets in their backyards, though).

Friday, we drove to the Tarra Valley, and did a short walk through some rainforest in the National Park there. It was pretty, though the rainforests in Costa Rica are much prettier. Then, onto a winery for lunch and free tasting. In the afternoon we headed into Snowy River National Park, where we overnighted at an organic farm retreat run by Buddhist monks called Ontos. They were hosting a yoga group as well. Needless to say, it was a big switch from the Chabad seder. Very pretty, though.

Yesterday we crossed the Victoria/NSW border in Kosciuszko National Park (I wonder if it’s the same Kosciuszko for whom the infamous bridge in Albany is named) and headed up to Jindabyne, in the Snowy Mountains. It’s still fall here, so there isn’t much snow yet, but the area contains a number of popular ski resorts in the wintertime, including Perisher Blue and Charlotte’s Pass. Australians don’t have many options for skiing; it’s pretty much this area or Tasmania. The mountains don’t quite compare to the Rockies or even the Laurentians, but I can see how there would be some semi-decent skiing there in June or July. Jindabyne is a little town set on an artificial lake, and yesterday there was a live music and film festival on the lakefront.

Today, we stopped in Canberra on the way to Sydney. For the capital of Australia, it’s not exactly the most happening city. But we did do a tour of Parliament House, which was pretty interesting. They built Parliament dug into a hill, so that the people would literally be above the government. Certainly an odd building design. This afternoon we cruised into Sydney in stop-and-go traffic, and I’ll be here for a few days to explore the big city.

Whew! That was a lot of info to write down. I’ve added a bunch of photos, and a short video clip to prove that kangaroos really do hop, and now I’m off for the evening. I miss you all! Keep the e-mails coming!