Australia, I love you! Though I must say you haven't been particularly kind to me these past couple of weeks. Interviewed by the police at the airport, a broken camera, and a terrible case of heat rash have been my brutal introductions back into the Lucky Country. I don't want to be all doom and gloom so let me share some of what I've been up to the past couple of weeks. The police interviewed me at the airport but I already shared that. A few days after arriving I got a short gig cleaning louvers (slat windows) at the home of a lovely lady named LeAnn. Brooke would pick me up that morning. She's a gorgeous redhead with a biomechanical arm for a tattoo and two pet snakes.
I tried my hand at busking in Darwin but I only make a little bit; it's by no means Queenstown. A fabulous trip to Kakadu and seeing a bit of Darwin would be some of the highlights. With the Wet looming, I was hired on a small gig planting grass. Mango picking is another big thing here but I only lasted a day doing that. The heat really started getting to me though. Heat rash started covering my body and I would just itch all over. Christine (who now considers herself my "Aussie mother") said it appears I haven't been drinking enough water. As I started chugging down water more often I would feel a burst of energy.
For now, my camera is broken and I have to send it back to the USA to be repaired. That means I'll have to base myself in one place for a month or longer unless I get another camera, because there's no way in hell I'm hitchhiking from Darwin to Perth with no camera!
As for a permanent place in Oz to settle, I'm seriously thinking either Melbourne or Tasmania. For now though I'm on a journey. Australia has been unkind to me for a couple of weeks but overall she rarely disappoints.
