Australia

Australia

Between Dec 11 and April 12 I spent about 9 weeks in Australia across three visits. I was mostly in Sydney but also managed to touch Melbourne.

My first real long trip abroad and I had suitably carried enough mane thindi. I had been warned that Australian Quarantine regulations were enforced strictly. While I was in line for Immigration I recalled scenes from the Tamil movie Nala Damayanthi (in Hindi as Ramji Londonwale)where Madhavan’s bottle of pickles is discarded by the Quarantine officials.

Here, too (like in the movie) there was a sardar at the Quarantine desk. He waved me out sparing my bags the sniffer dogs (yes, Australia uses sniffer dogs to check if baggage contains prohibited food items).

It was December but since this was the Southern hemisphere it was summer there. It was an out of the ordinary summer, as Sydney-siders (as residents of Sydney call themselves) admitted. I found it cooler than Bangalore winter.

One of the first things that occurred to me was the preponderance of Indians. One could spot Indians in most public places, not just as tourists, but amongst the police, transport workers, government. After a while, I realized it was a young nation, discovered in the 18th century, occupied in the 19th century. But significant population was on account of immigration in the last few decades. It is estimated that 2 of every 7 Australians was born outside Australia.

History

Initially, used to house convicts from Britian ( a la Andaman to India), the Britian developed Immigration schemes to populate Australia. Initially restricted as ‘white Australia’, it has opened its arms to everyone by the fourth quarter of the 20th century. I visited an ‘Immigration Museum’ in Melbourne which depicts the history of Immigration from the first journey to current day policies with pictures, recreations and models.

On a guided tour, It was interesting to hear that the guide when introducing historical figures from Sydney would also mention the crime that the individual committed on account of which he or she was banished to Australia- often it would appear petty and trivial.

The indigenous tribe that existed before discovery is known as Aboriginals. When I took a walk on Circular Quay (near the Sydney Opera house), there were a group of aboriginals playing their traditional instruments and dressed in traditional dress (which was a generous langoti). Since it was raining I lingered around a shelter. It was time for the aboriginals to packup. They wiped their (for want of a word let me call them) Vibhuti smears, changed into smart dress clothes and were soon undistinguishable from the rest of them !


Fauna

On my third visit to Australia I had made up my mind to visit the zoo. Not a very animal person I had avoided it, but was also keen to avoid the “been to Australia 3 times and not seen a kangaroo” tag. The zoo was pretty sight with there being no barrier between people and animals considered not dangerous. However, none of the kangaroos that I saw had a young one; I was disappointed to not see a ‘pouch’ in operation.


I took to the aquarium in Melbourne with more enthusiasm. It probably had to do with events from childhood. I remember that the Mysore zoo acquiring penguins; but they penguins died before I could get a chance to see them. While not native to Australia, Melbourne is probably the closest large city to Antartica and Australia leads several research expeditions to that continent.

Friends & Family

One evening, I met up with Pappu mama and Pari aunty (who normally live in Perth and were visiting their son) Anil, his wife and very cute daughter Stella. On my way back Anil dropped me at ferry station, so I could travel back on a ferry. Since, the Sydney city is shaped uniquely, significant intra-city travel can be accomplished on ferries. Most cities have very good urban connectivity. metro (over and underground),monorail, trams, busses and ferries. Melbourne also has an extensive tram network I had not travelled in a tram before) and it was a sight to see.

Using facebook, I managed to meet four friends from school and hang around on weekends. Without using facebook, Amma remembered that her friend’s family was in Sydney ( I wonder how one tracks friends if they are not on facebook ?).



Outdoors & Cricket

The Australians are sports-lovers and play and discuss sports passionately. There are several outdoor activites and since it was summer there was enough time in the day for most people to do some activity before the sun set (the sun set around 8 PM). I managed to do some paddle-boating with a friend on one of the weekends.

The Indian team was touring for a test series which made great tea-time conversation. Unfortunately, India was at the receiving end and I got teased about it.

Before the series began Rahul Dravid delivered an eloquent speech at the Don Bradman Oration in Canberra proving that his skills were not limited to the cricket field. The speech was well received in Australia.

When Sachin Tendulkar completed his 100th 100 in Bangladesh, the Australian press reported the achievement with a mixture of admiration and amusement. The media were amused with India’s obsession with the event.

When in Melbourne, I got an opportunity to watch a Sri Lanka versus Australia cricket match. The triangular tournament was so poised that India would enter the final if Sri Lanka lost the last league match. So, my colleague and me went down to the MCG, ( a spectacular stadium indeed) and supported the Australians. Sri Lankans amongst the crowd were surprised to find two brown-skinned people cheering for Australia. The MCG had installed a statue of Shane Warne the previous day to commemorate his achievement.

British heritage

Australia is proud of its British heritage and constitutionally considers the Queen of England as the Head of state. There are several cultural connections with the ‘Poms’ as the British are referred to in Australia.

Quiz

The picture below attracted my attention. After 2 mins I gave up converting from roman numerals to Indo-Arabic numerals.

A zoomed version

A 'brand' new experience!

Today was the last day of our two-week classroom sessions in a town near NYC.  We were scheduled to make the presentation that we had prepared all week for, to attend a health session and wind-up. By custom, people here want to chill towards the end of a long workweek. So, the mood was upbeat.

Trust me, I really dint want to go. But was kinda forced, I can say, in my defence. You know, what they say, how 'good' things in life are painful and boring and 'bad' things in life are so fun and tempting. So, after the presentation at the conference room, I headed there with my colleagues.


This lady was assigned to me. Or I was assigned to this lady. Same difference. However, there were 3 other ladies in the room. They were not overtly busy. Time of day, I guess.

So, after the small talk, we get down to business. She asks me to strip. She is sensitive and asks me whether I would prefer to do it privately. There was no hint of any charges for the privacy. Obviousy, it was not a situation I wished my colleagues to see me in. I could not spot them nearby. Either they had finished their 'sessions' earlier or were in an adjacent room. I looked around. They were all women and all professionals. Like anybody cares, I thought.


Honestly, I dint even expect to tell this to you all. But then, you people encourage me to experience new things; and write about them, don't you. I cannot possibly not record a remarkable experience.

For a minute I wondered what the convention here was. Which garment should I undo  ? Guess it is also a function of how old you are and which part of the world you are in.

While I was undoing my shirt, she was feeling my arms. She saw the shanka and chakra brands on my arms and freaked out. She wanted to know what it was, whether it hurt, if I had it voluntarily or not. She exhibited curiousity as she went about her business. Thorough professional that she was,she was keen to do her job right (no pun intended) and, I suppose, prioritised customer satisfaction. I could not believe I was chatting with this American blonde on my religious symbols while we were doing what we were doing.

Really. But I was. I told her how it was a cultural thing, a token of affiliation to a religious group. She was inquisitive about Hinduism; wanted to know if all Hindus were vegetarian; I told her a majority were not vegetarian but most Hindus would not eat beef. It went on... until we were done. As I was buttoning up, I explained how the cow was a holy symbol to Hindus. We revere the cows because we use her milk and other milk derivative products.


The chat removed the uneasiness between us. It can get uncomfortable, I mean, what do you talk when she is performing the act. However, it was a breeze. Her loquaciousness mixed with curiosity made it a pleasant experience.


Not in my defence, but one must see it to believe how thoroughly professional these Americans are. First thing into the room, I had to register. Health precaution is No.1 priority. Before we got started, she had a questionnaire in front of her, asking even of any Hepatitis infection in the past. Honestly, I dint know Hepatitis A was an STD until I googled later.


Guess you people were right after all; travelling expands one's perspective of life; of truth; makes us break boundaries. To question our concept of morals. To meet interesting people. Who would have guessed that there could be such an inquisitive vaccine-administering nurse.