Cape Byron

We watched the sun rise over the South Pacific Ocean at the most Easterly point in mainland Australia....

Pretty groovy, huh?

Ricotta Cakes and Sticky Dates

Yesterday was a big day. A big food day.

Justine told us last week about Virginia's famous Sticky Date Pudding as well as her to-die-for Ricotta Hotcakes. We asked her to make them for us, expecting that they might come a couple days after one another. Instead we put all the eggs in one basket and had them both yesterday. It was Alex's 20th birthday and we had a breakfast with the fam. We had eggs, bacon, tomatoes and mushrooms for the first course, and then out came the ricotta cakes.

OK, let me just explain to you that this dish is perhaps the best thing I have ever had for breakfast (outside anything eaten at Soundbites). The cakes are fluffy and light, yet terribly filling and moist! We topped them with this special chocolate honey butter Virginia makes:

One chunk of butter
2-3 Violet Crumbles chocolate bars, crumbled
3-4 TBSPs honey

mix all ingredients. freeze. serve.

So that butter was the first layer. Then some fresh berries. Then a scoop of ice cream. Then some Canadian maple syrup. Then more berries. Then more syrup. This was the second best meal of the trip, hands down (the first was the burgers). I had seconds.

Then later that night we had the sticky date pudding, which was topped with the most insane toffee, buttery, sugary sauce in the world! Serves with vanilla ice cream I couldn't pass up a second helping.

What does all this mean? Well, first of all it means I have some killer recipes to bring back to the Northern Hemisphere. It also means our diet's gone to shit and we'll have to get back on track with Natalia as soon as we hit Melbourne.

It also means I still love fatty foods!

SINGLETS!!!!!

After so long we've finally purchased some bona fide Aussie singlets! We've been searching high and low for some funny ones, but whenever we find them they are like $60, which is ridiculous to pay for a piece of clothing that is made of literally the minimal amount of fabric you can have for a top! We even saw one that was $100!! Believe it.

But today we walked in to General Pants for about the seventh time to find they were having a 2 for $30 sale on all selected men's tops!!!

Once I told him about the crazy singlet style here my friend Greg, the King of Tanks, asked that I acquire some for him. This was perfect because they were SO CHEAP (relatively) and all in crazy flouro (neon) colors! I got him three and me one because, let's be real, only one looked even remotely flattering on me. Patrick bought two.

Mine is purple gingham with a drawstring along the bottom hem, Patrick bought a drawstring one that's red and also one with these crazy neon paint bursts on black. Its totally ferocious!

Here's to bringing back some true Aussie style!

We Are Famous!

OMG OMG OMG!!! This is perhaps the best thing that's ever happened!!

Apparently there was some sort of video crew filming the crowds at V-Festival and they FILMED ME AND PATRICK DOING A ROBOT DANCE OFF!!!! I came across it in the middle of the night on some website and I feel soo famous right now.

Here's the link. Enjoy!!

Strikes and Gutters

Tennis Tuesday didn't work out for us because of the rain. We had cocktails and watched La Vie En Rose instead. OMG it was beautiful. I loved it!

Pat's making a plate of roasted vegetables to snack on. The weather outside is what he describes as strikes and gutters - sunny and warm one moment, cloudy and rainy the next. Boys can't get a break out here in Wahroonga.

I wrote, addressed and stamped my first round of postcards today. If you want one from me (or pat, but i don't think pat is sending any out, but by request I'm sure he would) send me your address and you can expect something in the next couple months.

I don't know if I mentioned it but we booked our flights south and north. We're going to Melbourne on the 17th and then to Byron Bay on the 22nd. None other than Tommy "Showdog" Wong will be joining us up north. It'll be a blast. Can't wait to see his stinkin' mug!

I think I am going to start a Mansing Manifesto (a Mansifesto if you will). If anyone has any fond memories of the Manse or ideas send them my way.

Here's to another lazy day in the suburbs!

Tennis Tuesday

Today is Tennis Tuesday. I don't play tennis, and whenever I have it's usually a joke because i have no control. But I love the idea of it, as I love the idea of all things WASPy. Sophie has a tennis court at her house down the road, so we're going to play and then have cocktails.

Except its raining. On and off. And I am not impressed. It may just turn out that we'll have to go over there and break right into the cocktails without playing. I guess that's pretty waspy too!

The Beautiful People Eat Honeycomb

We have arrived at the wonderful Cobb family's wonderful home in Wahroonga. It's surprising to me how generous this family has been with us and I am very very grateful for that. Nick's sis Justine will be taking us to the nearest mall as we are in the market for some singlets (aka tanks) of various bright colours and patterns. We haven't had a lot of luck, but hopefully we'll come across some choice pieces.

I went on a bit of a candy binge yesterday. I bought gobstoppers and I couldn't really stop. Then we met up with Soph and Nick and Soph had bought all this candy this weekend too and she gave me a pile of taffy and some COCONUT FUDGE!!! And I s0rta couldn't stop. It was rough. I still have 3 gobstoppers left and I don't know what to do. Like do I get rid of them all right now or do I have like one a day or just save them for next week? I DON'T KNOW! I think I am going to have one now.

But seriously, Pat's new nickname is Pooh-Bear and this is mainly because he has become obsessed with honey. We bough actual honeycomb this weekend and it is SO GOOD. I mean who eats honeycomb really? The answer, simply, is The Beautiful People. It's so good. It's like wax candy covered in honey, but better. It's reeeeal! I love it. Try it!

A new culture...

came across some interesting folks today in the mountains.

Link to the tale.

Made one of our best meals tonight!! Carrot-Ginger soup and sandwiches. Had Gruyere, Emmental, Ham and Salami to choose from, with grilled onions and marinated eggplant, rocket, grainy mustard and balsamic and oil to dress. It was divine. Purely divine!

And we're back!

Ladies and Gents, we're back online. After a period of time spent living without a free flowing stream of pure internet, we have dipped our cups back in the cyber well! A house/dog sitting gig in the Blue Mountains finds us in the home of Judy Kell, the mother of Pat's aforementioned friend Tom. Abby's the dog; a beautiful black lab. The mountains are cold, but the sun still shines and we're going to get some good fitness (via hiking) in while we take a break from yoga (due mainly to the fact that we won't be in Neutral Bay for maybe a whole month).

So Patrick and I have come up with what I find to be a brilliant little scheme. Early on we both expressed an interest in delving deeper into the realm of Alfred Hitchcock. I've had my share of Hitchcocks, but aside from a recent viewing of The Birds Patrick was pretty green. So naturally we decided to just start making our way through the list. Not in any particular order, but going at it as we saw fit.

Now, although they are great, and usually make me totally freak out we didn't want to tire of ol' Hitch. And we'd also been coming across favorite movies of our own in conversation only to realize the other hadn't seen the flick. So we started our own lists: movies we love and think other people should see!

So now we go Hitchcock, Pat's choice, my choice, etc, etc. Let me tell you this list of movies is getting better and better, learning more, seeing so much, and of course getting a deep look at someone else's movie taste. Wanna know what we've gotten up to?

Hitchcocks (in viewing order)
Strangers on a Train
Rope
Psycho
Dial M For Murder
Rear Window
Vertigo
Marnie
Notorious!

I looooooved Marnie, it's completely off the wall, and Tippi has a wonderful vacancy that really lends itself well to her insanely flawed character. Patrick has Psycho at the top of his list. You should have seen his face when the mother's corpse turns around in the cellar and then Norman comes flying in in a dress and wig wielding a knife. He had no idea. It was priceless.

As for Pat's movies he's shown me The Goonies, Top Gun, Gangs of New York and The Last Samurai. Loved them all immensely. I have shown him Sunset Blvd, Young Frankenstein and MirrorMask. I really need to track down a copy of Interstella 5555 though. I hope that they have that shit in Australia.

You may be wondering why we've traveled half the world to watch movies we not only could see at home but in fact HAVE seen at home. It's all just part of living the dream. There's nothing wrong with taking in some entertainment. And besides, at $11 for 5 weekly rentals (which our all-time fave's will naturally be) it's cheap as chips!

Keep you posted as our movie list grows (coming up are Team America, Dogville and Torn Curtain) and we'll keep on blogging now that we're in the flow.

kudos!

Pictures are being organized for facebook albums, so keep a look out for those.

First Night Out

We hit the town in style last night to celebrate Sophie's completion of her exam (aussie equivalent of the MCATs). Sophie's Nick's girlfriend and she's pretty much the best. Beautiful couple! Her older (not by much) sis was there. Her name's Sarah and we're kindred - our conversation quickly turned from idle chat to things like 90210 and HSM!

We had a lovely spread at Soph's before hitting the town. Her parents came over and we all chatted and ate on her awesome little porch. I had a few secret shots (that were actually secrets!) before sipping some bubbly rosé (pink, not cheap) and gin and tonics. So once Papa had his proverbial wastey-pants on, the party got started.

First stop, Iguana Bar. Um, since when did three double g&ts cost $48!??!! Insane! Anyway, we sat under a picture of Celine Dion and took some lifestyle shots before hitting the dancefloor, which quickly filled up after we got on it. Yadda yadda yadda, pat danced with a middle aged lady the size of a dwarf and we moved on.

Hamish, Soph and Sarah's lil bro, and Pat's old homestay Tom joined us for Empire. This is where things get a little blurry. I remember having a drink with Sarah then I remember A LOT of solo dancing. Next thing I know I'm walking out of the club, alone, and on to the crowded streets of Kings Cross. My stamp had sweated off, so when I realized that i shouldn't be just sitting on a strange curb alone, I couldn't get back in. The big bouncers would not have any of my supposed shenanigans. It was bizarre. I had $10 and a rough idea of how to get back to Neutral Bay, but I didn't want to have to do that. Luckily Sarah and Hamish emerged from the crowd and escorted me back to Soph's where I took one look at her bed (which she and Nick were sleeping in) and I collapsed. Apparently it was 4:30. Soph recalls that on our way to dreamland Nick was repeating "Patrick's dead" and I would respond "He's not dead, he's just lost." We were worried for the poor soul, but knew he would turn up eventually.

I woke up to a wonderful breakfast of fresh squeezed juice and popsicles! I am still hung over.

Turns out Patrick and I shared similar fates last night. He too, was escorted from the bar and was refused re-entry. Contemplating the walk (or run) back to Neutral Bay didn't last too long as Tom's crew came and swept him up and took him to their home. Where he partook in a topless swimming party. Can you just imagine if we'd both gone back to Neutral Bay, with no keys or money, and slept on the lawn. At least we'd have each other.

The night was topped off with a trip to Nick's godmother Julie's home for a family BBQ. GREAT food, wonderful drinks and just good times had by all.

Another BBQ next weekend at the Cobbs'. Should be wonderful!

t.

Day 6

Hey folks!

Nothing huge has progressed since our last post, as we spend our days buying and eating fresh veggies, doing yoga, walking around and hitting the beach. Tans are really coming along!

Trips North and South, as well as jobs, are on the horizon. Also an appearance by none other than Hin Ka Wong himself! But other than that our schedules are wiiiiiide open!

Any ideas for hobbies??

Stay fresh!
t.

Day Three

Telly here. We've finally found a place where we can get some wireless on my laptop, so our few posts are up.

The plane ride yesterday was amazing! A couple dips and sharp turns over Sydney Harbour was a perfect way to welcome us into Australia.


Today the weather is significantly worse and it may rain any moment. But Nick's got the day off so we're going to make the absolute most of it. We're off to Newtown, where I can hopefully find some hilarious vintage postcards. If not, some regular funny ones will have to do.

No plans for tonight, but I am sure good times will be had. Pat and I are thinking more about when and where we're going to peel out of Syndey. The rest of this country is calling our names, and as all Yes Men know, we must heed that call.

Picture It, 9:00pm

Me and Patrick, sipping red wine, still listening to the crickets and Elton. Wishing we had more sashimi. Now who’s jealous?

Picture It, 8:30pm

Me and Patrick, sipping lemon water, listening to Elton John’s greatest hits and the crickets outside the window, all while playing backgammon with bellies full of sashimi.
Jealous?

Arrival

Kousman says:
We have arrived!!! About 12 hours ago we landed in hot and sunny Sydney Australia and we are the better for it! The flight was great really: we chatted and played games for about the first two hours, slept for the next 10 and watched our respective entertainment programs (Pat – No Country For Old Men, Me – The Simpsons & Jamie At Home) for the last two. The always wonderful and charming Nicholas Cobb picked us up and we made our way to our brand new home – Neutral Bay, New South Wales! This is a beautiful neighbourhood, great residential architecture, plenty of shops close by and only a short drive (or a great fitness walk) from Sydney’s downtown core. We walked EVERYWHERE today!! Well maybe not everywhere (we didn’t get to Newtown, the alleged “vintage clothes” district, if you know what I mean) but we definitely got our feel for the lay of the land. Nick has graciously opened up his (FANTASTIC) flat to us for the majority of our trip, so I am yet again reminded of the relentless and seemingly boundless generosity of the growing catalogue of wonderful friends I have around the world. His roommate, Clémont is not here because he’s working. What does he do, you ask? Oh, well he works for the richest man in Australia. He is the chief steward on his yacht. No. I am not lying. Tomorrow Nick’s sister Justine’s ex-boyfriend, the pilot, is going to take us all up in an airplane to see Sydney Harbour as the birds do. It’s a tough life.

And for those of you who are interested in our strange LOST-related occurrences, our flight number was 108. Think about it…


Connzo here:
Hello and Kudos to you all!
This is my first official blog-related post. It both doth excite and intrigue me. Telly has so succinctly reviewed our first day in what appears to be a true paradise. We were blessed with high temperatures and sunny skies as we embarked on an Australian-style walk-about throughout Sydney’s bustling districts. We stopped only to buy ridiculously colored retro-style shorts, which I believed would come in handy throughout the trip. We finished the afternoon in one of Neutral Bay’s many parks “fitnessing,” which in this case involved the tossing the ol’ circular disc around. We proceeded to the local grocer to purchase locally grown fowl, which we paired with an $8 Shiraz. Stories were passed across the table, which told of great times past and exciting times to come. We now look forward to a bright shorts-filled trip that contains hints of both ridiculousness and extreme frivolity.