The wanderer returns

I've just returned from spending 10 weeks over 10000 miles away on the other side of the world, travelling around Australia and New Zealand. The experiences have been wide and varied, from vino-assisted 'dancing' in the Establishment, Wellington to tranquil vistas and miles upon miles (or should that be kilometres upon kiometres) of unspoilt wilderness; from Church services to the national religion of New Zealand, rugby union; from Maori culture to West Coast cross-dressing culture- you name it, Max has been there... Travelling down the West Coast of New Zealand with my Kiwi Experience travel bag full to bursting point with the recommended four days of provisions, I spent St Patrick's day in a pub in Westport, being entertained by a band playing Irish music, before travelling down to wild, crazy, legendary Lake Mahinapua to the Mahinapua hotel run by a very old chap called Les and a woman who is almost as masculine as me, where the infamous party night occurred, cue random pictures on facebook and picasaweb (plug for my home page: www.picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish). From the lake we headed down to the Franz Josef Glacier, where Max of course didn't walk 8 hours like most people to get 400 metres up the glacier, but oh no he jolly well took a chopper and flew to a height of 700 metres in 20 minutes before waddling around for 2 hours and flying back, la di da. The next major stop was the adventure capital of New Zealand, if not the world, Queenstown, which we reached via the arid Central Otago region, home of Merino sheep for all those cardies and of giant fruit in Cromwell. In Queenstown I eschewed the old favourites of sky diving and bungy jumping for none-the-less adventurous activities in the shape of jet-boating and luging, and the legendary Fergburger... Leaving Queenstown we journeyed for a very long time North-East wards over the Lindis Pass and down to the coast at Geraldine, where I took a fish and chip and money changing stop before continuing on, via the first set of traffic lights for days, to the hole that is called Christchurch, where I ended my trip with a personalized t-shirt and a game of super 14 rugby. In a rather scrappy game, not helped by the southern hemisphere ELVs which have reduced most offences to free-kicks, Crusaders narrowly beat the Stormers from South Africa. In conclusion, this was a very good trip, full of adventures and for the New Zealand leg, interesting (for the most part) people,  who I am very glad to have met. Below I'll include a few segments that never quite made it earlier: ie the director's cut.....

Highlight: Bay of Islands/Cape Reinga (speedboating, scenery and sandboarding)

Craziest moments: Establishment (Wellington), Lake Mahinapua and the Bushman Centre, singing national anthem after a Maori feast and trying to cover Bon Jovi Living on a Prayer in karaoke- I'm a bass right....

Most pretensious moment: Kaikoura Plus Lounge on the Interinslander ferry

A tale of two Churches

          So far, I've had the pleasure of visiting two very different Churches during my time here in Australia. Both were very sincere, welcoming (especially in Melbourne, but that was a little overwhelming) and commanded my utmost respect. In Sydney, I visited St Andrew's Cathedral, which I'd describe as formal Anglican with an evangelical bent, although the evening service was a little less formal. I heard the Dean, Philip Jensen, speak on the nature of a Church service, saying it should involve participation (of which there was little) and be 'decent and not chaotic'. The second point made an , in my opinion misjudged, thinly veiled attack on the charismatic movement, saying that that the Bible says little on how faith should feel and saying enducing a trance-like state is a characteristic of ancient animist religion. A huge overstatement not for the first time I believe. 

           In, or relatively near, Melbourne, I had the pleasure of visiting Hope Melbourne's 'city centre' branch- ironic given that it was an hour's walk North-West of the city in Kensington. Every time I've been to Churches in that network, I've felt very welcome, if a little overwhelmed by all the attention I've received. I'd have to say it's not my normal style, and long periods of beckoning spiritual experiences and people sharing 'visions' do make me  feel a bit awkward. The complete lack of order for the first half of the meeting was a bit challenging for someone as naturally structured as me, and it's hard to follow when more than one person is speaking at a time, but I really respect the freedom of expression in an age when a lot of services are sterile and formulaic. The talk on Gideon, change and overcoming fear through faith was excellent. I've never seen a sermon before that involved the speaker lying down on the stage performing mime acts. I 'Hope' to have the pleasure of attending further services of that network in the future, though I'm not sure I could handle it every week. Sure people are getting used to my puns and literary/cultural references now, but there's one in  the title- Do you know what it is yet???

Max's Sports Report

Australia vs New Zealand (6/2/09) 2nd ODI- Melbourne

http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/175/175404.html

            New Zealand (226/4) overhauled Australia's total of 225/5 with seven balls to spare on a sluggish pitch at the MCG, which while offering little for the bowlers, made it hard to score quickly. After a shaky start, Australia's innings was held together by measured innings from acting captain Michael Clarke (98 off 133 with 7 fours) in the unfamiliar opening role and Mike Hussey (75 off 94  with 4 fours).  Oddly, the sluggish MCG pitch, which seemed much faster when used for a state match a few days earlier, suited the generally accurate but not especially fast Kiwi bowlers more than the home side. Iain O'Brien took 2 for 48 in his 10 overs, whilst Kyle Mills (1 for 37) and captain left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori (0 for 35) were economical. Had it not been for some wayward bowling from young seamer Tim Southee (1 for 57), Australia's total would have been much lower.

              New Zealand slowly accelerated through their innings, Grant Elliott scoring a personal best 61 off 75 with 6 fours after playing himself in carefully.  The supporting cast was provided by uncharacteristically watchful innings from keeper-opener Brendon McCullum (43 off 75 balls with 3 fours) and Ross Taylor (47 off 74 balls with 3 fours). A fine mid-innings spell from seam allrounder James Hopes (2 for 30), whose first 7 overs yielded only 12 runs, had put Australia in the box seat. However, this iniative was conceded through some hapless support spin bowling from Cameron White (3 overs for 18) and Dave Hussey (2 overs for 14), the nadir coming when one delivery went down the leg side for 5 wides. This brought the asking rate below 6 an over, and from there on in a New Zealand victory looked assured, especially when finishing the innings against the wayward Hilfenhaus ( 0 for 58 off 9.5). Having lost the series against South Africa to concede top spot in the one-day international rankings, Australia found themselves 2 down after two matches of this series. However, they did recover to draw the series and retain the Hadlee-Chappell trophy. This is clearly an Australian side in transition, following several recent retirements. However, several useful younger players have been unearthed, this combined with the return of several experienced players from injury will lead to a very strong Australian side coming over for the World Twenty20 and Ashes this summer. 

End of an Adventure

I'm shortly departing New Zealand for London again, and will soon post all my remaining blog posts from this trip, and information about my next plans.
Max

NZ:- Taupo to Wellington

This week,I've covered the Southern half of the North Island from Taupo to Wellington. Photos will soon be up in the usual locations (facebook and www.picasaweb.com/maxbarnish). Taupo is home to the giant Lake Taupo in the centre of the North Island and is home to many adventure activities, which i eschewed. Upon leaving Taupo, we called in for a walk in the Tongariro National Park, where I was one of the few of our group reasonably suitably kitted out for the conditions, rugged paths with a serious wind-chill factor: not conducive to flip-flops and no jacket really, but my trainers weren't ideal either. Then we headed into the middle of nowhere to the River Valley adventure lodge, where, while others rafted the rapids, I went on a horse trek through the hills. It was the first time I'd ridden in a few years following a crash, and was a bit hary when the horse cantered (or galloped?) at least one paddock further than everyone else. Then, unlike usually on Kiwi, we headed straight for the Capital of New Zealand, windy Wellington, the highlight of this being the Te Papa museum, where we found a machine that played music track by track, which resulted in some interesting arrangements of pieces. For once I joined the crew on a large night out to the Establishment, where my dancing antics, whilst extreme by my standards, were rather tame compared to some of my fellow travellers. Finally, before heading South over the Cook Strait, I took a trip to Palmerston North, the highlight of which being the rugby museum. I hope to finish my unfinished posts soon....

Max

New Zealous Escapades in New Zealand (and photos)

New Zealand- land of the long white cloud, land of roast lamb, land of adventure sports. I've spent this past week travelling around the northern half of the North Island, endulging in activities both familiar and new. After a quiet start in the metropolis of Auckland, I joined the Kiwi Experience bus, which will take me around NZ, to venture North toward the top of the country. In Paihia I took the Excitor speedboat out round the Bay of Islands, before going to Cape Reinga, the very top of New Zealand, a location of prime spiritual significance to the Maori people as the departing place of the souls, where I sandboarded 4 times- a new experience for me. Whitianga was a bit of a washout but we did see Mercury Bay on the way to Rotorua. Rotorua is a Maori cultural centre as well as a site of geothermal activity, resulting apparently in a very sulfurous smell, which my awful nose was barely able to detect. In the evening, we took part in the Tamaki Maori cultural experience. We listened to Maori stories and music and dance before partaking in a dinner, where I ate so much even the guys thought it was ridiculous. On the way back, there was a ritual of a representative from each country leading a song from their country- and I took the mic for England- a drummer as lead singer is a scary thought, right? Incidentally, it was the second time I've led a national anthem, having done the Northern Irish one at Church camp a few years back. From Rotorua, we travelled on the see the caves of Waitomo before heading for Taupo, from where I write to thee. Photos so far can be found on facebook and Picasaweb at http://picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish . The album is called NZ North Island: Cape Reinga to Taupo. So far, I've enjoyed my time on the big green Kiwi bus, even though it can be debaucherous and the focus is often on cheap thrills, which isn't my scene.

Max

Update and latest photos

I've now arrived in New Zealand, and am about to start hitting the road with the Kiwi Experience, which will take me around both islands over the next month or so, stopping off at both unheralded locations and major centres such as Wellington and Christchurch. I aim to write a post every weekend, but it is possible delays may occur as I will have less internet access. My sports and church reports are due soon as well, got a bit behind. My latest batch of photos is now up at Picasaweb http://picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish/CapeTribAndFraser?authkey=CbbKy61gRFw# (I have changed settings on past albums, sorry if anyone has been having access problmes, should be fixed now) and on facebook. For Picasa, you can also go to my homepage at http://picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish , where all my albums are to be found.
When I wrote my last post, I'd just been on a scenic journey along the Barron Gorge. Since then, I've travelled further North into Far North Tribulation to see Cape Tribulation. En route we stopped at Mossman Gorge, which in this land of marine beasts, provided a rare swimming opportunity. After leaving Cairns, I flew to Brisbane, the capital of Queensland. My purpose in being there was to visit spectacular Fraser Island, where similar lake swimming opportunities presented themselves. The desert trek however was a little taxing for a man of so little body mass. From Brisbane, I transited via stormy Sydney to Auckland to start the Kiwi leg of my journey. I now have around 5 weeks of my adventure remaining, and am due to return to the UK on 31/3. Looking forward to seeing London and Cambridge-based people upon my return to home shores.
Max

Photos from Great Barrier Reef, Barron River, Melbourne; and some trivia

These are great: I hired an underwater camera to do these:
http://picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish/Reef?authkey=ZZGCwweHrXY&feat=directlink
This time not on facebook as too slow to load, as used special camera- but have made a placeholder album with a link to picasaweb where they are. need to copy and paste that link as can't find a way of creating a hyperlink.
Also have a DVD can show ppl when home, or try to magic something technical

Any problems with this album, please tell me as this will be the best one of the trip

Also now uploaded an album 'Melbourne and Barron River' to facebook and picasa http://picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish/MelbourneAndBarronRiver?authkey=hNBW7C1G92w&feat=directlink, yes I know it's not quite identical, but it's still funny. Need to find more funny names- there is a Barnish Road I know in Northern Ireland. Dao Peninsula anyone? West Street is an obvious one, but that's mundane in comparison. Shirley Road I can think of off the top of my head.Sure there's some i won't ever find...

Also after a bit of a tough week, thought I'd post a few trivia questions in case anyone wants just to read them, or get involved by comment-would like a bit more involvement (need to click on number of comments at bottom of post, then write comment, select comment profile as name and enter name, then publish it and check it worked- email me if problem). Can anyone get the answer to all three, if so may find something fun for the winner. They are tough questions though.
1) Which one of my friends shares the same initials as me (order irrelevant)?
2)Which 2 friends have I performed duets with live in performance in front of an audience -to make it harder, i don't think anyone attended both shows
3)I am now on a hot island, which other hot island have I visited?

P.S. Thanks for people telling me they've enjoyed the photos and blog

Max

I'm safely out of Victoria, now in Cairns

Before I start, apologies for the more serious tone, but I'll probably write another post midweek back to my normal style. I've just arrived in Cairns, having left Melbourne. As many people will know, the state of Victoria has suffered serious bushfires, which encroached on the edges of the city. So, this last week I've rather been stuck in the city of Melbourne. Was a bit scary been a matter of miles from such a disaster zone, and at times feared for the worst. But somehow, for me at least, things worked out OK- and I'm now safely away.
I have managed to see some of the sights of a quite magnificent city though. Last night I went with some people I met at Hope Church on Sunday to see a classical concert at the Sydney Myer Music Bowl, followed by some Malasian food out in Chinatown, which made a change from the microwave cooking, as I don't really have the facilities out here to endulge my culinary skills. I also took city tours on the City Circle Tram and the Tourist Shuttle bus. I also visited the King's Domain park near the architecturally sublime Flinder's Street Station; and the Sports Precinct to the East of the city centre, seeing an array of famous stadia, besides the Melbourne Cricket Ground, including the Rod Laver Arena and the 1954 Olympic Park.
Now, I'm in Cairns in Far North Queensland in the extreme North-East of Australia. I'll be visiting the Great Barrier Reef and Cape Tribulation, then going South to Brisbane to visit Fraser Island. It will be from Brisbane that I'll probably blog next
Max

The Ministry of Funny Turns- and other oddities (photo links included)

Since Tuesday, I've been in Melbourne, the capital of the state of Victoria, which is located to the West of the state of New South Wales, in which I had previously been staying. Generally, I'd have to say the hostel and tour have been much more sociable than in Sydney, with fewer breaches of group social etiquette and some good conversation at last, though some people appear never to have consulted the OED or Webster's definition of 'group', for I'm quite sure it doesn't read 'collection of atomistic units of various size which pay token or no heed to each other'- and some people are so presumptious you just have to laugh. This notwithstanding, I have had the opportunity to converse with some interesting people here unlike in Sydney, where the scene appeared overwhelmingly low-brow, and in a way rather juvenile, despite some of the activities being superficially very adult (euphemism).
Let's say, my first day in Melbourne was 'interesting'- it is almost a law of nature that nothing in the life of Max follows the standard pattern. The people at my bus transfer company seem to have a screw loose, since they got all confused and got me to the airport at 7.20 am for an 11 am domestic flight- even my parents wouldn't be quite that early. Thankfully, I was offered an earlier flight, so got some extra time to acquaint myself with Melbourne. The hostel in which I'm staying is a 'flashpacker hostel'- no it's not a nudist resort- it just means the facilities are that bit less spartan and better maintained- great news for Mr High-Maintenance. As for room allocation, it was conducted by an Irishman with a cheeky demeanour. Hostel guest lists typically hace a high turn-over, so now it's more balanced- but what was it that drove him to decide to put me with a group of girls none of whom could speak fluent English- my TEFL language-grading skills came in handy- and no-one checked my CRB despite not all being real adults- tut-tut. Was it my tendency to sashay around- but that's very hard to do with a mammoth backpack. Or did he mistakenly think I'd be good 'entertainment'- sure he could have found a muscular sportsman from somewhere.
Slightly concerningly, before my helicopter flight as part of my Great Ocean Road trip (photos on facebook- Great Ocean Road in Max Barnish's photo area; or open Picasa link http://picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish/GreatOceanRoad02?authkey=yUkAvxT8uVE#) I weighed in at a meagre 68 kg (think that's 10 stone 7), giving away nearly 30 kgs to the other guy in the chopper- maybe I need to eat some more roast dinners! The Great Ocean Road is a spectacular coastal drive west of Melbourne, comprising of the sublime Surf Coast and the rugged Shipwreck Coast- of which I have some aerial photos in my album.
Back in Melbourne itself, I witnessed one of the strangest driving phenomena ever. Just as Monty Python brought you the Ministry of Funny Walks, Melbourne brings you the Ministry of Funny Turns. Picture this- you're driving up to an intersection, and want to turn right. Normally you'd want to get into the right-hand lane, right? But oh no, not in Melbourne. Now imagine, how would you perform this right-turn manoeuvre if the aim was to make as many people laugh as possible. This is not far off how a Melburnian would do it. So, you move over to the extreme left, yes you heard that correctly, as such getting in the way of everyone actually turning left, maybe hitting the kerb to scare a few pedestrians for good measure, then when all the traffic is going straight across the interesection from the road on your left into the one you want, you turn horizontally across the intersection as if you had come from the road on the left, hoping you'll not collide with a vehicle coming from the left. Crazy!
I also watched two matches at the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). With a capacity of 100,000, this modern stadium is too big for it's own good, and has a lot less character than the Sydney Cricket Ground in my opinion. Here follow my match reports click on links for scorecards(please report any link problems by comment or maxbarnish@gmail.com):-

4/2/09 Victoria vs South Australia (50 ovs- MCG)
www.cricketarchive.com/archive/scorecards/180/180616.html

Victoria (204/4 off 37.3 overs) comfortably overcame South Australia's score of 200/9 (innings complete) at the MCG to go top of the Ford Ranger Cup table. The highlight of the well-below-par South Australian innings was a dsiciplined 89 off 116 balls with 7 fours by Callum Ferguson, marking his first call-up to the national one-day squad, ably assisted by no7 Aaron O'Brien with 23 off 57 balls with 2 fours and bowler Mark Cleary with a run-a-ball 32 with 4 fours. However, SA couldn't recover from 32/4 plus the retirement of Tom Cooper, felled by Shane Harwood (4 for 33 off 10 overs) who inflicted much of the early damage. The highlight was a stunning return catch diving across the wicket to dismiss SA wicket-keeper-captain Graham Manou for 5. In reply, the result never looked in doubt following a rapid start for Victoria with 62 runs coming off the first 10 overs (Rob Quiney firing 31 off 33 balls with 4 fours and a six). Major contributions from all-rounders captain Cameron White, released from national duty, with 33 off 43 balls with 4 fours and a six, and Andrew McDonald (55 off 74 balls with 7 fours) saw Victoria home with more than 12 overs to spare. Jake Haberfield, in only his 3rd match for South Australia, took 3 for 48, albeit a bit expensive off 6.3 overs.

(International match report to follow next week)

Max

Alternative photo link

http://picasaweb.google.com/maxbarnish/Desktop?feat=directlink
This isn't as good as the facebook link as doesn't have my comments on it. There was a public facebook line sent, which should work. The picasa one may require a google account- which is free and many people have anyway- but i tried it while signed out and it still worked- so perhaps not needed. Hope one of them works for everyone

Sydney Photos

I've posted photos from my time in Sydney on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2289620&id=36911724&saved
For those who don't have accounts, I have emailed a link to the page which is supposed to work for anyone. Anyone who needs an email link or is experiencing technical problems with the link, please email me on maxbarnish@gmail.com

Max

Melbourne beckons

Dear Friends-
As I write this, I'm entering my final few days in the city of Sydney. This week I've concentrated on savouring the cultural delights of Sydney and its environs. This Monday was Australia Day, which I celebrated by taking a walk through Chinatown to Darling Harbour where a myriad of activities were in full swing. Then I saw the National Maritime Museum, and took the ferry out from Circular Quay to Manly, proferring excellent views of the Harbour Bridge, Circular Quay and the Opera House. The next two days were spent exploring the sights of the city. St Andrew's Cathedral, where I will return on Sunday, offered welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of the city. However, in terms of grandeur and architecture, it was dwarfed by the Catholic St Mary's Cathedral across Hyde Park, where photos of the sub-tropical trees were duly taken. I also walked via Woolloomooloo, alledgedly the only word to contain eight letter o's, to explore the Botanical Gardens, following the path round to Circular Quay again. Then, I tested my head for heights by walking across the Harbour Bridge to Kirribilli in North Sydney. The final two days of the week were spent partaking in trips. The first of these was to the picturesque Blue Mountains, so called because of a blue haze. I got to see native flora and fauna such as cockatoos and kangeroos in their native habitat, and took the world's steepest train at Scenic World. The second trip was a wine tour to the Hunter Valley, from which I have just returned, which may account for slightly lower journalistic standards than usual! I got to savour whites, reds, roses, white port and a range of liqeurs from four boutique wineries in one of Australia's leading wine regions. The 37 degree heat meant that the alcohol load posed a relatively stiff challenge! I got a bottle of Verdalho, so some of those living in London, may, all things going well, get to partake in it in April upon my return. On Tuesday, I cross from New South Wales to Victoria, where I expect to see loads of Victorians in bowler hats....
Yours ramblingly
Max

Spotted: Very white Englishman with a straw hat in Sydney

So, I've been in Australia a few days now. Feels like a crazy social psychology experiment along the lines of "What would happen if one took a middle class Englishman and deposited him 10,000 miles away from home?". It's been surreal, from the sloping sleekness of Singapore airport which reminded me of martial arts flicks to the soaring humidity upon entering Sydney, which was in stark contrast to the freezing hats and gloves weather i'd left all of a day earlier. So far, I don't have much to report, but will write a post every weekend (Australian time, which is GMT +11). Due to technical limitations, I'll post my photos periodically to a host site rather than integrating them- will post links here. Have done some walking so far as the heat and humidity has allowed, seen Circular Quay and Darling Harbour. Have also indulged one of the Australian national passtimes by watching cricket at two world-famous grounds, the Sydney Cricket Ground and the ANZ Olympic Stadium, built for the Sydney Olympics.
For those that are interested, here are my brief match reports:

Australia vs South Africa- 3rd ODI- 23/1-Sydney (SCG) http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/175/175400.html
South Africa (270/7) beat Australia (269) by 3 wickets with 3 and a half overs to spare in front of a raucous near capacity crowd at the SCG. Both innings followed a similar pattern with a fast start , with special mention to young New South Wales opener David Warner (69 off 60 balls) for Australia and Herschelle Gibbs (64 off 54 balls), who was dropped twice on 0, and Jacques Kallis (60 off 72 balls) for South Africa, followed by a period of rebuilding in the middle of the innings after wickets fell. Both sides had bowlers who were able to keep a lid on the scoring in the middle overs, notably the acting South African captain off-spinner Johan Botha (3 for 32 off 10 overs) and NSW swing bowler Nathan Bracken, whose first 6 overs went for only 10 runs. However, Australian pacemen Johnson and Tait were too inaccurate in the final overs and a blistering assault by Man of the Match all-rounder Albie Morkel (40 off 22 balls), before holing out off NSW off-spinner Nathan Hauritz on his home ground, in the end saw South Africa home with 3 overs to spare.

New South Wales vs Victoria- Twenty20 Big Bash Final- 24/1- Sydney (ANZ Olympic Stadium)
http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/180/180652.html

New South Wales (167/5) beat Victoria (166/4) by 5 wickets in a thrilling last-ball victory at the ANZ Olympic Stadium, Sydney. Both sides were considerably short fof full-strength due to international commitments and injuries; the hamstring injury sustained in the preliminary final win over Queensland by leading Victorian run-scorer Brad Hodge perhaps being very significant in the end. However, this provided the opportunity for some lesser-heralded players to shine, notably Victorian opener Rob Quiney (91 off 56 balls), who hit 3 fours and a mammoth 8 sixes, Man of the Match NSW batsman Ben Rohrer, who struck 45 off 20 balls including 4 sixes at the death to seal victory, and the pick of the bowlers, Aaron Bird of NSW (3 for 21 off his 4 overs). Other valuable batting contributions for NSW came from captain and Australian test opener Simon Katich, who scored 37 off 24 balls with 5 fours and a six, and Phil Hughes, tipped to open with Katich in the Test team following the retirement of Matthew Hayden, with 43 off 32 balls with 6 fours and a six.

Max