New Digs

It is wonderful to have the delightful friends and family we enjoy. Not bragging, I just think y'all are the best! We feel greatly complimented that so many of you want to come all the way down under to visit us. Just one problem - where will we put you? Our two-bedroom crackerbox is cute, but not very practical for more than a couple of people at a time. Since our apartment lease expires in May, this is a great opportunity to find something more suitable for entertaining guests from near and far.

View from the southwest balcony of our new apartment

I've been searching for about a month and learned all kinds of things in the process. It is common to rent apartments for 6 months, and 12 months is considered a long lease. Lease contracts specify a termination date and you must move out on that day, unless you request in writing that you want to stay longer. Almost all renting is done through real estate agents, and the system works very differently here. In the States, you look in the real estate section of the paper, or go online, or ask a friend, or just drive around until you see a location or apartment building you like. Then you go to the management office, fill out an application, and if you are accepted you negotiate a move-in date, which can be up to 3 months in advance. Not so here. First, the majority of listings appear online. Apartment buildings do not have management offices. Most of the apartments are owned by individuals. Some occupy them, others buy them as investments and rent them out. The owners choose the real estate agent they like best to manage their properties. I found this rather bewildering when I started my search. For example, the building we live in now contains 64 apartments. Six of them are currently for rent, through 4 different companies. So if you want to see different apartments in the same building, you might have to visit several different real estate agents.

Vince checking out guest bedroom #1

This can be convenient, though. If you are looking for an apartment in a certain price range and/or location, you can pick a real estate agent, tell them what you want, and they will show  you properties which fit your criteria. The different agents don't often share listings, though, so you still might have to work with more than one agent in order to see everything on the market. That's what I did. I looked online, found 19 properties I liked and visited 13 of them, which required talking to 6 different agencies. (I only dragged Vince to see 5 of them ;->) The result? A perfect fit -- a 3-bedroom apartment on the sixth floor of an 11-story high-rise on the crest of Mill Point Avenue, just a few doors up the street from our current place. The building is less than 2 years old (our current one is closer to 50), the apartment has never been lived in, and it has two balconies -- one overlooking the north bank and the other looking southwest. We're across the street from Perth Zoo, which means we can open our windows and hear kookaburras and other animals in the morning if we want to. We're vlose to two sets of shops and cafes, and we're still near Mends Street, home of good restaurants, nightclubs and boutiques.

In Australia, "unfurnished" means no fridge or washing machine. However, the current renting market is slow, and we were able to negotiate a bit. The owner agreed to provide both items before we move in.

Vince tries out the baby grand in the elegant foyer.

A pretty place to come home to.

Happy to have found a place to call home for the next couple of years!

We signed the lease today and we'll move in after we return from our US vacation (5 days til we leave!). I've already started packing things up!  So... if you can make the trip to Perth, we'll leave the light on for you. No, we'll meet your flight and show you the town. You'll have a place to stay and we'll throw in breakfast on the balcony. We hope to see y'all soon!

A Spot of Weather

I try to post something once a week, but occasionally I run out of time, ideas or both. But there has been a dry spell lately, in the weather as well as my imagination! It was broken yesterday as the heavens opened and dumped almost an inch and half of rain on Perth in less than an hour. Wind gusted to 120km (75mph) and over 150,000 Perthians lost power, some for more than 24 hours. I had a flashback to hurricane Ike as the trees swayed wildly and water swirled at each side of the road.

We had spent the afternoon playing mahjong and were on our way home when the cloudy skies let loose their barrage of precipitation. It sounded like someone was hammering on the roof of the Hyundai i30 -- thump, thump, thump -- getting faster and then slowing down. I found myself praying silently "please God, prevent the hailstones from breaking the windshield, the water level from flooding the car, and please keep us from plowing into another car."

It was a loud 15 minutes, but nothing broke and no one was hurt, although traffic slowed to a crawl and we got drenched as we ran from the car into our apartment building. My Canadian friend Ethel, a rather nervous sort, was calm as we drove through the mess of tree branches, deep water and hail stones ranging in size from moth balls to golf balls pelted everything in sight. As we turned into the parking lot and waited for the gate to open she laughed and said "this is just like driving in Newfoundland!" The laughter helped -- we needed all of our sense of humor to get out of the car and submit ourselves to a drenching as we freed several broken tree branches which had become stuck in the mechanism of the gate to the parking lot. Drowned rats ... that was us!

Thanks to Ethel I made it home safely and checked the flat. Not expecting a freak hail storm, I had left several windows open, but fortunately the winds were blowing in a different direction and the apartment was unscathed. The power went out 15 minutes later and Vince and I had a nice candlelight dinner of peanut butter and crackers, accompanied by a loud thunderous soundtrack and spectacular lightning!

Today the sun is shining and I must commend the Perth city officials and public works employees. Many of them worked through the night and by 10:00am this morning most of the mess had been cleared up. Only the flashing traffic lights, continued power outages and some very large broken branches still attest to the forceful chaos of yesterday.

We've been told to prepare for another storm tonight, which we all hope will be less severe. Here's more info for those enquiring minds. http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2010/03/23/2853482.htm  . Not all the photos here were taken by me. Several were forwarded via email and I'm unsure of the artist. Thank you, anonymous photographer :->

We'll be in Houston just 10 days from now and the weird weather will be behind us. See you soon!

Vocabulary Lesson #2

Last night we turned on the TV for maybe the third time since we’ve been here. What was playing? Crocodile Dundee, of all things!  It reminded me that it’s time for another Aussie vocabulary lesson.

Much Australian slang is derived from the country’s history. The first settlers to Australia were convicts from England. To communicate with one another without the jailer understanding them, the prisoners shortened some words and rhymed others, hence Cockney Rhyming slang. If you saw Ocean’s 11, you’ll remember the scene where Basher shouts “we’re in real Barney… Barney Rubble – trouble!” Aussies still shorten many words today, for convenience I imagine, rather than avoiding the law. They are great teasers and give back as good as they get. Upon first hearing a bloke insult his "mate" at a bar, you expect a fight to break out. Instead you get laughter and a barrage of wisecracks as they try to outdo one another. Great fun. Here are some examples:

Britney Spears - From the Cockney Rhyming slang: Britney Spears/Beers, as in “a couple of Britneys please, Doreen”.
Fat as a match - Someone who’s actually thin. (Aussies frequently tease each other by describing their opposite)
Monkey bath - A bath so hot, that when lowering yourself in, you go “Oo! Ool Oo! Aa! Aa! Aa!” Try this one on your kids.
A few Kangaroos loose in the top paddock - someone who is mentally 'not quite there,' also a picnic short of a sandwich, lights are on but nobody is home, etc.
A bit more choke and you would have started, mate - A classic. Said to somebody who has just passed wind in public rather loudly. Highlights the Aussies gift for sarcasm.

Shortened words that end in “ie”
Bikkie – biscuit, or cookie in America. Also, “it cost big bikkies” – it was expensive.
Bikie – biker, Hell’s Angels style motorcycle rider. As opposed to biker – a bicycling enthusiast. This still trips me up occasionally.
Brekkie - breakfast.
Cossie – pronounced cozzie. Swimsuit. Short for “bathing costume.”  Also called a "bather", but only in certain parts of the country.
Greenie - environmentalist
Kindie - kindergarten
Mozzie – mosquito
Postie - postman
Rellie - family relative, as in “can’t go fishing this weekend, the rellies are in town.”
Sunnies - sunglasses
Surfies - people who surf (usually more often than they go to work!) A related term is Shark biscuit – somebody new to surfing.
Oldies - parents, as in “I’ll have to ask the oldies.”
Trackie - track suit
Truckie - truck driver
Uni – University. Not to be confused with “college,” which is equivalent to years 11 and 12 of American high school.

Shortened words that end in “o”
Arvo – afternoon
Journo - journalist
Rego – vehicle registration
Thingo – whatchamacallit, thingamabob, gizmo, thingie (my favorite!)
Salvo - The Salvos – Salvation Army, bless them
Yobbo – uncouth person

Expressions (You've probably heard these before)
Right – All right, OK, as in ”She’ll be right, mate.”
Too right! - Definitely!
Ripper - great, fantastic, as in ”It was a ripper party.” Pronounced "rippah potty!"
Ridgy-didge - Original, genuine.

Assorted Nouns
These are Australian, so they don’t always make sense to us Yanks ;-D
Bottle Shop - liquor store
Budgie smugglers - Speedos. So named because they fit so tight there isn’t even enough room for a bird (budgie) and the bulge in front makes it look like the wearer is trying to smuggle a budgie out in his underpants. Hey, I didn't make it up...
Click – kilometre. As in “He’s 10 clicks away.”
Docket - A bill or receipt, as in "May I put the docket in your bag?"
Digger - A soldier. Named for the soldiers in North Africa in WWII who dug trenches to hide in and shoot from. The protection helped them survive the extreme desert heat and wartime conditions.
Hoon - Hooligan. This sounds quaint to our ears, but hooligans are in the same class as petty thieves, gang members and drunk drivers who do donuts in your front yard at 1am. Not nice people.
Hotel – not a hotel at all, but a bar. The Windsor Hotel, which shares a parking lot with our building, is a very large bar. Not a sleeping room to be had there. 
Larrikin: A bloke who is always enjoying himself, harmless prankster. Kind of like Americans think of hooligans.
Squizz (noun): A look. ”Take a squizz at this” means have a look at this or “check this out.” 
Manchester - bedroom linen: sheets, pillowcases, comforters (known as doonas), etc. When you shop for bed linens in Kmart or Target, you go to the Manchester section.
Stubby - A 375-ml beer bottle.
Stubby Holder - Polystyrene insulated holder for a stubby. We’d call it a koozie. Not to be confused with a cossie (swimsuit)!

3 Weeks to Houston

This week marks the end of our fourth month here, and all of it summertime. Aussies love to talk about the weather, and the locals say that this year is the hottest, driest ever. They're probably right - I haven't seen a drop of rain since I got here. They think they have it tough, but I laugh in the face of their heat wave. While the temp soars to 40C (104F), there's not one stinking ounce of humidity. No heat index, no warnings to restrict outdoor activity because of poor air quality. The air here is always clean and the sky is always blue. Nobody's heard of the heat index, and you never hear anyone say "it's 85 degrees but it feels like 99" . Oops -- I'm supposed to tell everybody how awful it is here, so those of us here can keep the good life to ourselves. :-D 

We've been -- I've been -- making lists, lots of them. Lists of what to bring back with us (empty suitcases, to fill up with stuff to take back), what to bring back with us, who to see, and what to do while we're in town . Sharon's wedding arrangements are coming along nicely and it feels strange not being there to be part of the excitement. Can't wait to see the family again!

Things to take with us: souvenirs for friends and family. If there is something in particular you would like from Down Under, tell me now. So far I have requests for UGG boots, Vegemite (to prove it exists), Tim Tam biscuits, and a good looking, single Australian bloke. Not sure that last item will fit in a suitcase but seriously, if you ask for something, I'll do my best to find it and bring it along.

Things to bring back: Salted almonds, Crest toothpaste (Colgate has a lock on the market here), Rotel tomatoes, absorbent coasters, Zest soap (it doesn't leave residue on the shower door), Sweet & Low, graham crackers and makeup (because it's cheaper in USA), Velveeta cheese for queso. I don't like it but everyone else sure does, and it's a great antidote to homesickness. and memories, lots of memories.

Things to do while we're here: Sharon & Lynn's wedding!, eat Mexican food (but watch out for those chips), doctor and dentist appointments, visit friends and family, and shop for winter clothes. I used to wonder about visitors from other countries who went crazy over prices in our department stores. Now I understand their enthusiasm! I bought an end-of-season summer dress off the clearance rack for $65 in a department store because the discount shops sell only the most casual of clothing. That same dress would have made its way to Ross or Marshalls and I could have had it for $15 or less. That's why the empty suitcases. We're going to fill them up with sheets and blankets, some winter clothes, extra tennis shoes, some hard-to-find foods and a few more dishes and pots and pans to make our next place feel more like home.

Four weeks from yesterday is our departure date - April 1st. Our route will be Perth - Singapore - Moscow (refueling stop) - Houston. Can't fully describe how much we're looking forward to seeing y'all, in Houston, Tennessee and California.

House Hunting

In the beginning, a cozy flat overlooking the Swan River was all one could ask for: easy commute to work, shops and restaurants in walking distance, and of course the beautiful skyline view.

Now that we’re going to be here longer, it’s time to for something more suitable. Translation: A small apartment is okay for 6 months, but for the long-term I’d really like a gas stove, an extra bedroom for visitors, and a refrigerator larger than a suitcase. ;-> My foray into the real estate world has been interesting. Here’s some stuff you need to know if you want to rent a place in Perth.

1. Prices are listed per week, not month. So that penthouse with covered parking, huge balcony and a plasma TV going for $1,500? Nope, it’s over 4 times that -- not in the Vetter price range.
2. The “descriptive language phenomenon” (some would call it lying) is alive and well here too. The term "city glimpses” means that if you stand on tiptoe in the bathroom you can see a sliver of river and skyline. A “short walk to the shops and cafés” means about a mile. A "stroll" is about half a mile.. “Minutes away” means you can get there by car in around 5 minutes – which can get you halfway across the city most times. “Around the corner” means a 5-7 minute walk. Two bathrooms means that one has a shower/bath and sink and the other has all that plus a toilet. The term half bath doesn’t exist here. “Air conditioned” means there is a wall unit in at least one room, but not necessarily everywhere. That would be "fully ducted air conditioning." "Sweeping views" means that you can look out the window and see the river or skyline with no obstructions like trees or other buildings in the way. Naturally, those are in the most demand. 
3. There are interesting differences in construction. Besides the fact that everything is metric, in every home I’ve seen the door handles are a lot higher -- chest level compared with waist level. Counter tops (benches)in kitchen and bathroom are also much higher – around 32 inches. Most buildings are made of brick, which makes them durable but they do hold in the heat. And just try putting in a nail to hang a picture… perhaps that’s why I’ve seen so few decorations on walls. Towel racks have two small racks instead of one thick one, the better to hang those thin Australian towels on. Because we're in the city, yards (gardens) tend to be small.

Some real estate vocabulary:

• Robe – short for wardrobe, or closet. It can be anything from a freestanding unit like an armoire, to a walk-in closet. A built-in robe is the kind of closet with sliding doors, often mirrored. They're quite popular in apartments since they conserve space.
• Air con – air conditioning. Ducted air con is what we’re used to, reverse-cycle air con is the wall mounted unit. They're pretty efficient for what they are, but they only cool one room at a time.

The air con unit in our bedroom. You turn it on and off via the remote on the wall.
• Timber flooring – wood floors.
• Bench top - counter top.
• White goods -- large household appliances like washer, dryer, dishwasher and refrigerator. When you rent an unfurnished apartment, a modern unit will already have a dishwasher but you usually buy your own fridge and washing machine. For some reason dryers are often installed, which doesn't make sense because people are really big on hanging clothes on the line to dry here. You'd expect to have a washer and not a dryer, but hey -- this is a foreign country. I'm not supposed to understand it. :-);

White goods in our utility room. Washer below and dryer above.

In the past 2 weeks I've worked with 6 different real estate companies, researched 19 properties, visited 13, and made a shortlist of 5 to show to Vince. Real Estate agents can be a snippy lot but when you say the magic words "corporate lease" they become quite attentive. You can almost see dollar signs fill their eyes, like Wimpy (I'll gladly pay you Tuesday...) while thinking up his next get rich quick scheme. Pretty fun to watch! Why so many agents? Compare the Australian renting method to the American one. The last time I rented an apartment I visited a complex, talked with sales people in the management office, and was shown available units. That method doesn't work at all here. First, there is no management office for apartment buildings because people buy their apartments here. If they decide to rent them out, they do so through a real estate agent. So if you run across a building you like, the next step is to find it on the Internet, which is usually done via the REIWA (Real Estate Institute of Western Australia) site. All agencies post ads for the places they manage, and you can create a recurring search which will email listings to you daily. In this forest of agents, the trick seems to be narrowing it down to one or two who know the market and have lots of listings. In our current apartment building there are 64 units on 16 floors, and I've seen 6 of them on the Internet, managed by 3 different real estate companies! This is a good time of year to look, though. With an oil boom on, the summer will get very busy as expats come over after their children finish the school year.

So we will have a new place soon, and the vetteroo villa welcomes visitors. Just let us know when you're coming and we'll put the shrimp on the barbie!