Some things are hard to express

Some things are hard to express

Especially when you wish to impress

When you see the breath-taking beauty of nature

Whether it is a sunrise or sun set

Whether it is a lightning storm or storm surge

The power of nature can be awe inspiring

Some things are hard to express

Especially when you wish to impress

How can you convey the fragility of nature?

The delicate ferns to giant redwoods

The beautiful sea anemones to the blue whales

The beauty of nature can be awe inspiring

Some things are hard to express

Especially when you wish to impress

The people in your life raise emotions

Of love and passion

Of care and protection

The beauty of love can be awe inspiring

Some things are hard to express

Especially when you wish to impress

Do words or picture give an accurate depiction?

To express all that is bubbling in the head and heart

Where is HOME?

I think I am beginning to feel at home. It is strange to think I am not going back home… then I think where is home? Used to call India ‘back home’ for the past 25 years and now suddenly UK has been upgraded to that title. Have to think what I should call India now! Not many people are lucky enough to call 3 continents home. So far 23 years of my life were in India and 25 in UK. So will the last third of my life be in Australia? I certainly think so. Also home for me is where the heart is and where Paul and I are together.

Many of my friends and family have asked will I not miss UK, my life with friends and of course my family there. I have to remind them this is not the first time I am moving continents. The last time I moved it was just with a bag of clothes. I left behind all my friends and family then. As all of us were too lazy to write and it was expensive to send post it was a very big wrench for me. I missed the sights, sounds, smells and people for a very long time. This time the move was not going to be such a wrench. I have brought along my heart (Paul) and will have all my belongings following me. Technology being so good I can keep in touch with all my family and friends via facebook and skype. I made my niece and mother in law in particular install and try out skype so that we could see each other. I am still hounding some of my relatives to get their webcams, mics and skype going. However, most send me emails as well. The ones in India were already communicating via facebook and so you see this time the continent move is much easier. I am not leaving behind anyone. The blogs allow all to chart my progress of settling in Australia. With links into the various websites all the readers can also learn a bit about the places I mention. It is fun to describe the new experiences and hope that readers enjoy it too.

This week has been a little slow and gentle. I am adapting to the slower pace of life. On Monday I actually swept the whole house, well save a couple of corners which Paul attacked with a hoover. It has been a very long time since I did such kind of house work. I thoroughly enjoyed it as it a relative novelty! Am sure sweeping such a large house is not going to be fun in the long run. I have also been helping Paul with the cooking now. He still has to chop everything but then I can do the rest. On Tuesday we went to Collins Street as I had a meeting with an agency. The job looked good when discussing with the lady. I agreed for an interview the next day as well. While it was a high post I knew I could do it. However when I looked at the job description in detail it was much too heaaavvvy on management and am not sure it was what I want to do. I mean I came here to have a better lifestyle, less stress so that work life balance will allow me to have improved health. SO sadly I had to decline and bow out of the interview. For lunch we found a restaurant called ‘desi dhabha’. I had rajamah chawal and Paul had roti and saag (apparently they had no maaki roti). We also managed to get allu parathas and onion parathas as take away for dinner with raita.

Also had a call from Monash regarding a part time job that I had applied for. Interview was on Thursday. Will be good if I get it as it’s basically a research supervisor’s job. The day out to Monash University was good. We caught an early bus to The Pines shopping center, from there 901 bus to Blackburn Station. Walked across the underpass to catch the 703 bus which took us right to the Monash University. The campus is big and very green. The Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences building was shut as the torrential rains had put the electricity out. The offices had been temporarily moved to another building which turned out to be for IT and geology. Well you can guess that the waiting for me was not such a chore for Paul as he was busy looking at rocks and stuff on display.

On the way back we stopped for lunch at an Indian called Gopal which is opposite the Blackburn Station. Oppss looking up the web I think it might have been Ganesh ….. LOL but the food was quite nice. Paul had thali which I could not as the veg korma was made with cauliflower, capsicum and mushrooms. The other items were dal makhani, raita, onion bhaji, rice, papad, and naan. Apparently this was the first day they were trying out a thali. I ended up with shahi paneer and onion kulcha. Both had a taste of James Boag beer. All in all a pleasant afternoon meal. Then bus back to The Pines so that we could buy some milk, fruit and veg. The heat was getting worse and worse as the mugginess also increased. The weather man had said late evening thunderstorms and so we were waiting for the cooling to come. It was so warm that the moong dal with spinach and rice were eaten very late.. at about 8 30 pm! All those who know me will raise an eyebrow as most days am watching tv in bed by 8 pm. Hehehehe

At about 9 30 pm the lightening started flashing and thunder rolling. The rain came but not as heavily as I thought I would and so it did not cool down as rapidly as it had done the other week. However, it rained on and off throughout the night. So morning saw temperature of about 21C and not much different from maximum of 24C today. Paul has gone to Collins Street for some meetings and I decided to stay at home and relax. Most of these meetings are late morning or early afternoon. This means going out during the hot part of the day and to have a meal out. So far most days we have found Indian food and so not been too hard on my stomach and allergies. But a day in alone will be a good rest and give me time to do some writing.

If you are enjoying my blogs and my style of writing or have suggestions for me about my writing or the things about Australian life please feel free to add your comments to each blog.

Here comes Yasi

This week has been strange sort with extremes of weather. We mainly stayed at home and looked for jobs and got used to the heat. Couple of days were sweltering hot and we just sat and sweated it out. It did wonders to my bones and muscles. The pain levels were very low and I was happy. WE decided not to put on the fan even to get acclimatised….. I think we did too good a job when we were cold after the temperature dropped to 15C. LOL serves us right for getting too happy in the heat.

This week there were two main events – Cyclone Yasi and Getting the driving license. Right from the beginning of the week the weather people were tracking this massive cyclone named Yasi. It was going to hit the north east coast of Queensland. There were hourly updates about the intensity and path of the cyclone. There were announcements asking people to evacuate. I think they were to go to shelters as not sure how far one could outrun this monster cyclone grade 5. There already had been floods due to torrential rains earlier in the January. The clean was just beginning for that when the people had to prepare for Yasi. Eventually on Thursday afternoon the announcements were for people to stop where ever they were and to take shelter. The time for evacuation was long past. The premier of Queensland was on TV often reassuring the people. You could see from the trees behind the presenters were beginning to sway as the wind picked up. Yasi’s eye was predicted to make landfall at about midnight. The rain started long before and winds were tearing everything up. The morning TV shows were broadcast live from Queensland. There were two major storm surges as there was high tide on Friday morning. People were been told to keep indoors as the danger was still not over. The tv presenters were saying how unsafe it was to go out. One could see metal sheets maybe someone’s roofs flying about in the background. However people were out wandering in the shorts and thongs (flip flops to the rest of the world), crazy I think. But the people do the strangest think like this woman who was playing in the storm surge.

Then, started the pictures of the devastation caused by Yasi. Australian newspaper The Age had a live blog of the storm. There are video clips of the cyclone online as well. So there was a lot of coverage of the big cyclone. The storm was down to category 3 after it had travelled inland for over 400 kms. It ended up meeting the depression in the middle of the country and this meant a tail flick of Yasi to cover the state of Victoria. Thursday evening saw the beginning of rain around our place. There was on and off rain all day Friday. However we had to go out for the second major even of the week – getting our driving license. We had to get out early so that we could find our way with 2 bus changes. We caught the 9 am 905 bus for 2 stops to Williamson Road. There we had to catch the 902 bus. This one came at 9 20 am and was to take us right to Burwood Highway. We went through many new places like Nunawading, Ringwood, Blackburn Station.

Once we got off the bus, the Lakeside Drive was a block down the road. The time from start to finish took just about an hour. This meant we were veryyyy verryyy early for the 11 30 am appointment. Just at the start of Lakeside drive is a restaurant and we stopped for a drink. Paul had coffee and I had some coke. The weather was muggy and overcast, though it had not rained while we had to walk. I had worn my shoes without socks as I did not want my feet to get wet but was too hot for socks. Now I have worn these shoes without socks before but for some reason today they decided to tear up the backs of my heels. The left heel was actually bleeding. Had to stop on the road and ask paul to stick some plasters on both heels. The VicRoads building was further down the Lakeside drive. There was a mini traffic jam of cars going into the car park and cars (I think all were going for driving tests). Inside we had to fill a form and got to counter 25. Since there was no one about when we finished we went up and presented our forms and identity papers. It was very straightforward. Had to read a line from the poster as part of our eye test. Paid fees to get 10 years license. Went to counter 24 and got our photos taken. Now the license with photo id will arrive in 7 days.

We were actually out by 11 45. Went to the main road and waited for a tram to take us towards Knox City. The tram stopped at Vermont South Shopping Centre. The bus came in a few minutes and took us to the Knox City a major shopping centre. Paul decided he definitely needs reading glasses so stopped at Amcal and got him a pair. Then went for lunch at the Phantom India, run by Punjabis. I had chole and roti and Paul had channa dal and roti. Some mango and strawberry lassi.. ( spelt lussi). We had a short wander around the fresh food market and the K-mart. Finally found a place where things were a reasonable price. Kettle for $9, 16 piece crockery for $16….Also found a soya free organic sourdough at the delicatissen’s which was nice.

Back to the bus stop to catch 901 to The Pines Shopping Centre. This time we saw a lot of Nunawading, there are many shops of furniture and beds, as well as other household goods plus camping, Got home and decided to have just sandwich and salad for dinner. Sat watching TV and there was not much on so went to bed early. By this time the rain had started in earnest. It was drumming all night very much like the Mumbai monsoon. By morning there were big puddles in the garden and the road had twin rivers running down the sides of the road. The news said that there was over a meter of water in some places in Melbourne and so flooding. Apparently people had to be rescued too but not all was bad news as reservoirs are well filled. I had the news page saved to creat a link but Paul in his wisdom switched off all the links when he got hold of the laptop while I was eating my sandwich and now I cannot find it. Aaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh Even though this is not the right web link … you can see what I mean. All this meant a lazy weekend with just a quick trip to the shops to buy some milk and veggies and fruit.

Getting to Grips with Summer

The next couple of days we just lazed and waited for responses from the applications. On Tuesday early morning 7 am the neighbours on the left had a big van pull up and off loaded some planks of wood. Then there was some hammering and sawing for a while. Wednesday was Australia day and a bank holiday. The neighbours again started their home improvement at 8 am…do not think that was nice for most people who were having a lie-in on a mid week holiday. It was an overcast day but still fairly warm. Paul decided to wander into Templestowe, to see if anything was open. It is a mile or so down the road and up the hill. He went to IGA (superstore) and bought some milk, tea, cheese and onions. Also got some nice soda bread from the Bakers Delight shop which we eventually found put soya flour in all its breads!!!!!!!!!!!! As did the very tasty apple and walnut log. Now I finally know what’s been bothering my stomach so much and all this while I blamed the salted peanuts and cashew nuts. On the way back Paul felt the beginnings of a blister on his left foot (the same one with broken toes… maybe we can get a book going..the other My Left Foot!). Instead of going into the IGA and getting some band aid to put on he walked home with sandals in his hand! Now he got some looks from the locals…going native apparently is not the ‘done thing’.

Oh this nice hot weather…. I had been dreaming of it. It’s been a long time since we have faced 40C, but before I rave about the heat let me tell about the second week in Australia. Well job hunting is on the fore front now for Paul. I am taking the back seat for a bit. He has been applying to all jobs he can find on the various job seeking websites. One application got an immediate response and he was invited out to meet with the agency on Thursday. The office was on St. Kilda Road so we had to go on 905 up to Melbourne Central . This time we were smart enough to get down right in the middle of the city centre. Also we were not going to walk miles like last week! We were early in so decided to have a wander around Myers the local big store. The main purpose was to buy some sandals for me. Stupid me had put the Teva sandals in the following luggage and not in the bag. Now I only had heavy shoes and some light flats plus another flat sandal. Both, the flat footwear, were hard on the feet and generally difficult to wear for long. Sadly the shop was being renovated and so there was a sale with a few items around.

However we did remember the shopping centre when we had visited in 2009 so wandered about trying to find a sports shop or outdoor clothing one as what I wanted can be found in these shops. As I waited for Paul by one of the loos I got accosted by a young man.. selling some beauty products from a stall. Refused to take no for an answer. Told him I was allergic to all the products he said I need something for my puffy eyes…nothing like making a woman feel lovely! LOL Not only that he wanted me to trust him that he would try out some eye product on my wrist as if he knows more about allergies than me. I just had to walk away. Since I was waiting for Paul I went just a little way and stopped. The egoistical pup thought I had changed my mind! I said no I was waiting for my husband. This made me think was the bloke hitting on me? Surely not!

After a round of the 3 floors of the shopping centre and not finding any sandals we stopped to have a drink. One think we were very careful was ensuring we were kept hydrated. It is so easy to lose fluids and electrolytes. So a stop for a drink often is a must. But today we decided to forget about being healthy and so I had a coke while Paul had a chocolate milkshake. We went to Swanston Street to catch one of the many trams that went down the road. The tram passes Flinders Street Station, crosses River Yarra, the National Gallery of Victoria (where in 2009 we had seen the Picasso exhibition) and a couple of stops further. The office was supposed to be on Level 1 but going down the corridor on the first floor there no such office. In fact there was hardly anyone about. In the end we noticed a lady sitting in one of the offices to one side and asked her about the agency. They had apparently just moved to 3^rd floor last month. Seems everyone thinks that finding the office is part of aptitude test as this happened last week as well. The offices were nice and air conditioned so I sat comfortably in the chair and meditated.

Now back to Flinders Station to find something to eat. We thought that there was another Indian place on Flinders Street and so walked the length right up to Williams Street. But no such luck. Hopped on the tram to get right back to Elizabeth Street for another visit to Om Vegetarian. Today the dal was of channa and the sabji was allu palak. This place does serve real tasty food. After this we walked to next street Queen’s Street to catch the bus back home.

Now the heat was upped a notch and a long lazy weekend was in order. However a visit to Doncaster Shopping Town was planned to check out the shops and buy my sandals. The shopping mall is of similar size to Brent Cross or Cribbs Causeway shopping places in UK. Went to the Myres shop here and found some nice hush puppy sole shoes and sandals but even in sale the cheapest was $69. This is that kind of a store! There are a few sports shops and outdoor clothing shops here. Found what I wanted in Kathmandu and paid $89 which actually was half price. The salesman was a little taken aback when I told him to pack my shoes as I was going to walk out in the sandals…. My feet felt free and cool. Another shop that reminds one of Harrods is David Jones. While there was some good Georg Jenson ware, there was also Spode, Wedgewood, and other such well known names mostly known to me from Antiques Roadshow or Flog It! While the objects whether crockery cutlery, linen, electrical good or clothes it was fairly pricey. Am not sure I would pay such high prices for general household things. Lunch was going to be Mexican and my mouth was water for a good hot burrito. Well I should have known that if it’s not run my Mexicans it would not be great. They did do a veggie burrito but it had more rice than beans and I forgot to say no lettuce so spent time picking it out. Paul had the taco which also had lettuce as its main ingredient. The only thing good was their chips which had lime and chilli dusting on it. Then we had a walk around the fruit and veg market checking out the products and the prices. By now my feet were protesting that new sandals or not.. this was too much. Stopped and had a refreshing ice cream from Gelatavita Gelati. Then took a bus back to Templestowe shopping centre back to home.

The temperature rose to 40C and the air was pretty still most of the morning. We decided not to go for AC or even fan but just soak in the heat. Sat in bed and played on the laptop for a while caught up with family. The sweat eventually began to pour down the face and back. Did a lot of drinking of tea and water. Also discovered some coke in the fridge. Had some good food like dal and rice, potato and peas sabji, salad, fresh fruit like plums, banana and apples. The air seems to cool down come 7 pm on most days and so it was good. Paul enjoyed the washing as it was good to use the washing line in the garden. Simple pleasures………..

Hope

The heat is on this summer

Warming my muscles and bones

Making the pain dim and fade

All possible to the move made

The movement is easier

Something I had hoped for

This makes life so much better

Much more to live for

The highs of 40 degrees in the past

Would have made me run away fast

Now the heat brings relief and ease

Making me sigh with peace

The pain makes me feel low

Dark winter cold compounds it

The sunshine here gives the blues a blow

Already lightening the mood a bit

Thus the cycle of pain and depression

Feels like finally broken

Fills me with hope and elation

Hope not to be shaken