07th December 2008 -- week 2

Enough tourist business. Week 2 was the week to get on with Aussie living, or at least try to.

Early in the week Bern met with a fantastic ex-South African recruitment officer, just to get a few tips on how to go about sending out the right looking CV cover letter. He has been very kind in helping with good tips and letting Bern use the internet to get connected.

 Talking about connection, I think it is about time I fess up that ‘My name is Kirsten and I have an internet addiction’… I have battled, like you cannot believe. Wondering how many notifications are sitting on Facebook, or wondering how many new posts have been made on the forum… man, just pathetic… and on looking back, I understand now that the World Wide Web carries on, just fine without my input!

While Bern looks for jobs, the girls usually (sometimes we just sleep in) try to get the flat into some bit of order. Bit of a clean and tidy here and there. The wonderful thing about the Aussie’s  is that they are very in to their recycling, So we bought a bin that is divided into two sections. One for normal waste, the other for recycled waste (yes, this was another one of those items we walked back home with). But the million dollar question was ‘What exactly is allowed in the recycle bin’… So the only way to confirm this, is to go down to the main bins located in the waste area… so we sneak, have a peek… and start our own recycling initiative. We still get confused, and aren’t 100% certain… but hey, at least we’re doing our bit… and I refuse to look in the rubbish again.

We’ve also had to visit a few government departments - Centrelink (it’s like social services), what a pleasure. A government department where you actually can understand everything a person is saying., and no one says “eish’. The bonus was, is that because of Rebecca we received a $1000 childcare benefit. Can you believe it… and we have just arrived. Ok, it took a little while to provide and confirm our details… but really not all that bad.

The best govt. department was by far, the tax office… yes you read right, and if tax conjures up thoughts of SARS, well then you’re clearly in the wrong country. Everything was simple. No forms to fill in, the receptionist just leads you to a computer and you load your own info in… No worries… and it’s all  done… we kept waiting for the catch… but none…

I must also mention that going into the city is always such a wonderful experience. Catching the bus has become more familiar as well as digging out the correct bus fare. Initially we used to fumble around looking for the correct fare… holding up the rest of the bus goers… but now, we’re ok…  we only look like tourists, but we don’t act like them!

The girls have also gone to the local Zoo, and I still don’t know how I got us there, especially with Rebecca  saying uh-uh mom… you’re lost, we need to get the map book from Dad… I also cannot begin to explain the relief when I saw the Zoo entrance… felt like doing the ‘I told you so’ thing, but then realized that I was the mom, and not the child.

The Zoo was a big highlight… for any Australian… yip! We got to see Lion, Giraffe, Meerkats,  Hippo, Leopard… you name it boy… we saw all the African animals… eventually we spotted a sleeping kangaroo, and a sleeping koala… By the way for those that think you see Kangaroo’s around the suburbs, it’s like the equivalent to South Africans having Lion in their back yard.

Mid week, we went up to visit with Aussie Bob, and his wife Ginnie. Well, we actually went to pick up Mitsi. (Mitsi is our new addition to the family. A rather sporty looking, 1989 Hatchback Mitsubishi Colt… at least we won’t have to carry anymore frying pans or washing baskets from the shops). So we arrive at Bob’s farm and we get invited for tea… I know Bob’s going to chuckle when he reads this, but I kept wondering if true-blue Aussies ate kangaroo for supper…. Thank goodness, we ate normal food, that was wonderfully cooked on a very hot BBQ… topped with a lovely glass of wine, great hospitality and awesome conversation! Bob also took us for walk around a part of his farm, showed us some tea tree’s, rain water tanks and pointed out his sheep.

Bern says ‘Hey Bob! You’ve got sheep!!!’ Bob says… ‘I know what you’re getting at mate’!!!

We managed to make it safely back from Bob’s with the help of our Garmin Sat Nav… it was quite late and very dark, and poor Bern had to make his way home without any Aussie driving experience. Let’s just say we were glad when we finally arrived home.

The Highlight of the week for Bern, I am sure was ordering our bicycles. We had to go far cheaper than we were initially going to go, but finances dictated, and emotions had to take the back seat. After concluding business, we set about taking dear ‘Mitsi’ for a drive. What a blast, up past Windy Point, slight detour and then on to Hahndorf. Hahndorf is a spectacular town… you get the impression of the Natal Midlands… mixed with Aussie souvenirs.

When we got home we promised Rebecca that she could take her new bike for a ride, and this is the part that made me really remember why we went through all the hassle of getting over here… we took Rebecca to the local park. With her new bike, and her luminescent pink helmet she was on her way… and I sat in awe… People playing cricket, families picnicking, all in complete safety, on a Saturday afternoon just before supper time. This was the same on the Sunday too… just packed!

Slowly but surely we are gaining some confidence back, and aren’t feeling like such ‘chops’ whenever we ask a stupid question. Things don’t seem to be as foreign, although I reckon we stick out like ‘Dutchmen’… (yes, us Natal folk have been called Dutchies).

We’ve done a trip to the beachfront area, caught buses and trams. Walked along the river, and walked some more, Laughed and got lost, felt out of place, but felt at home, shopped for silly things, and shopped some more… and every day felt completely inspired… Welcome to Australia… Let’s see what the new week brings….