The Local Thrill

Luna Park is the only amusement park in a 100km radius... something like that.  It's pretty well located right at the base of the harbour bridge.  I don't go to the north shore often, but always look across the water at the lights and wonder what it would be like..  Even from hundreds of meters away, I can make out the Ferris wheel, roller coasters and lights... it carries an uncanny similarity to Pinocchio's Pleasure Island.  Well, me and some housemates decided to check it out!!

To start off, I love theme parks... disneyland, universal studios, I even like six flags.  (i wasn't expecting Luna Park to compare, but I'm an enthusiast of sorts.)  Well, this is the enterence in to the park.  I didn't know what to expect, but the sense of nervousness was overwhelming. 

nom nom nom

Quite a frightening sight, if i say so myself.  What theme park designer decides you enter through a giant mouth?  if this is biologically accurate, I feared the exit.  but we sucked it up and trailed onward.  To give a little background, this was a monday afternoon so, i think, 2 or 3 carnival stalls were open with dart games or something of the ball variation.  Well we bought our wristbands and set out.  

The sight of a happy customer

It was like a permanent county fair, without the face paint and porta-potties.  All the rides (expect the ferris wheel and the one roller coaster) were designed to empty stomach contents.  im talkin bout centrifugal forces at the red line.  They had all types of spinning rides:  forwards, backwards, vertical, flying around in circles, every variation.  Now, there's a moment in everyone's life when they ask themselves: How do I know if I'm mature? Have I reached adulthood?.. the answer is hidden in the # of times you can tolerate spinning around in circles and still find it enjoyable.  so we went again and again.  Apparently, we've not grown past age 4.

pictured: housemates; not pictured: piercing screams

 All was good fun and games, until we tried out the one rollercoaster.  Now I've had my fair share of unsafe rides; it wasn't the worst, but I was pretty hesitant to try it out.  The track was purely magnetic (nothing wrong with that), but as the four wheeled cart approached turns, it would temporarily become a tricycle.  I .. WAS.. TERRIFIED.  but then I saw some teenage punks giggle themselves silly and I realized I was just being foolish.

Although we had heaps of fun around the traditional rides, we got the biggest kick out of the fun house.  It had the exterior of costco, but the inside was crammed with old skool rides... instead of designer jeans at wholesale prices.   There were huge slides (that you rode on a piece of woven hay), a mirror maze, obstacle course type stuff and a bunch of other entertaining things.  Might seem like those attractions aren't very exciting , but it was a collection of rare and unique exhibits which made the fun house a trip..  It also helped, that the present company were a fun and goofy bunch.
We didn't spend too much time at the park (cause it was closing), but we thoroughly enjoyed all it had to offer.  Just as all australian activities ended, we headed to the bar.

Well, dear readers, this will be my last post for a few weeks.  In a few days time, i'll be travelling around for a bit, then make my way back to the bay area for a couple weeks.  Hollaback and I'll spin you some stories about my other adventures around australia.  until then, keep it real

Aquarius

dayum water,  you got fishes and stuff

So, the Sydney Aquarium.. quite a famous aquarium known for it's location in Sydney (Darling Harbour) to be specific. I haven't been to an aquarium in ages and have been itching to go ever since.( it's like a zoo,... but with more water!! awesome). To be honest, I've been to this particular aquarium when I was about 11-12?... sometime before puberty. Well it wasn't very impressive back then, but I've realized I've attained an appreciation for aquatic life since then.  The aquarium (any aquarium) is.... phenomenal.  

a plethora of .... water stuff

HEY GUYS

The Sydney aquarium is more of a walk through than an exploration of wildlife. It didn't matter to me, I get to see all the exhibits and weird looking fish. The perfect tour, it you ask me. I'm quite fond of weird looking fish.. seeing how something can be so ugly and still living is beyond me (just kiddin'). Nah, but foreal, there are some funky lookin' fish that look like they were pulled out of a twisted fairy tale. There's a bunch of different areas: crab-land, shark-land, etc... can't really remember, but it was all pretty cool (tip: if you ever go to the Sydney aquarium, get the tickets online,  hella cheap). So we saw huge ass crabs, confused sharks, and many lost schools of fish.  I expected to be amazed, but I was astounded (not sure if that is more dramatic than amazed, but you get then point). Such a nice walk-through with a fantastic? view of the reefs and coral. I think, one of the most memorable parts were the under water tunnels or viewing of the big aquarium. I've realized, in recent years, I've not appreciated aquatic life enough and well,... this was a great eye opener to what I was missing out.  DAYMN, these fish be crazy!! Chainsaw fish, unicorn fish.... to be honest, they don't look that tasty, but it was all cool, they looked pretty sweet. (can you imagine, having a chainsaw for a nose?/ think about all the things you could dice up: tomatoes, potatoes, etc)... it seemed Australia has it's fair share of exotic animals, and the seas are no exception.  

Well, as far as the ocean life, I am quite impressed.  It's no secret that OZ has some of the most creative (read: abstract) wildlife (and i haven't been to the reef), but if the aquarium is any representation of the real world... dat ocean.    haha

The town with two names

Wagga Wagga, a small country town known for being a country town.  The 5 hour drive took me due west along the rolling hills and big skies.  Some of my housemates once called Wagga home, and it was a sort of house trip to see what the country would be like.  Well the sights and land marks of Wagga were a surprise to all the non-natives (myself included of course).  Well, the first day consisted of a visit to the zoo. There were birds and llamas and some other animals I can't remember.  The quality of the zoo can't comapre to the price.. FREE>YEAH BUDDY.. free zoo = awesome..  After the zoo, we headed out for some grub and checked out the downtown that Wagga has to offer.  Well, the 4 or 5 blocks that in consisted of was very stereotypical small town vibe.  Small stores lined the streets selling small town stuff: baked goods, plants and poetry.  Trees lined the sidewalks with outstretched branches (which will turn into a grand canopy in 10 or 15 years).  Though I think the most astonishing this was the width of the streets and sidewalks.  The sidewalks were MASSIVE, I think they were made for elephants.  The roads were abnormally sized as well.  you could probably drive 3 hummers side by side with the doors open. Well enough about the downtown, I think the best part of the trip was casa de o'connor.  Yep, we stayed at the childhood home of our housemates.  I was a quaint home powered by fireplaces and sweeping country sides.  Well we got cleaned up and hit the town!

The next morning started with a crisp air and hearty breakfast.  Bacon, eggs, toast on the patio in the garden.  yep pretty sweet.  As some of the crew had a slower start, a couple of us when on a hike up the hill collecting almonds along the way.  Just up the road and through the fields landed us on these rocks with a scenic view of rolling hills, collecting almonds along the way.  A pack of kangaroos hopped away in the distance.  We could see them disappear and reappear in the tall grass, hopping gracefully away.  Near the house, we checked out an old abandoned hall.  pretty neat, complete with broken piano and picture of the queen.   

Later we headed to the local licorice/ chocolate factory.  Deliciousness were had by all.  They also had iced chocolate... yep, the opposite of hot chocolate... this ain't chocolate milk or a shake, but it was pretty damn good.  The vibe was also pretty relaxed and chill, good way to spend the afternoon.  Rustic.. i think that's the word i'd use to describe this place.  Well the night was spent around home cooked meals, good friends and a roaring camp fire.  Good thing about a country town, it's like a pseudo-camping.  Following morning, we headed on back, though there was one theme that appeared all weekend.  Hashbrowns.  For a trip grand total, we must have put away 20+ mashed potato products.  delicious? yes  overdose? debatable.

Vivid Sydney

opera house seems like a pretty comfy place to sleep

Once a year, there's a fantastic light show in Sydney.  Vivid Sydney, as it's titled, takes luminescence to an urban level.  There were almost 50 exhibits centering around creativity and 'art'.  Now I'm no expert on art, but I can appreciate technology and innovation.  Seeing the city, at least the touristy parts, lit up was pretty enlightening (*badda bing*).  Some of the exhibits were interactive (pretty awesome).  There were big tic tac toes games, piranha bicycles, light up hopscotch,  and probably a few others I forgot to mention.  I also got pretty lucky, there was a break in the weather and I ventured out to check out the hubb bub.

i GUESS this is art

I bathed in the glow of the city for an hour or so.  Amazed by the feat of human engineering and creativity, there was one project that blew all of the others out of the water.  At the custom house, this happened:

before

after

SAY WHA??.. yeah, this.. this... i don't even know what to call it.  phenomenal. maybe mesmerizing is a more suitable word.

cue: OOOHH AHHHHH

So projectors light up this building and the amazing thing is the detail.  The building (structurally) has many columns, ledges, windows, etc.  When the projectors light up the building, it gets crazy.  As you can see in the picture, it's a bird eyes view of a city.  The whole image moves.  Yeah, the little cars drive around the blocks (defined around the building ledges), the sun rises and sets to change the lighting scheme, there's even a fly-by helicopter.  The columns, on the building, were projected as streets and tunnels, the clock turned into the city fountain.  It was too awesome, i doubt my words do it justice.  Then later, the projections change into a clock and then a cartoon and etc. Peep that crazy here .  don't gotta watch all of it but gotta admit, it's pretty awesome.

Everyday buildings were transformed into a canvas of whimsical nature.... I don't know if that made sense, but I'm pretty sleepy and it sounded pretty artys.

Anyways, I probably stayed in the same spot for 20 minutes.. just watching in awe, before continuing my tour.  Well, I wish could upload all the pictures I took but as you can see, uploading more than 3 pictures makes nullifies my formatting skills.  I'm looking forward to it next year; hopefully it'll be just as illuminating (not a great week for puns).