Down Low on Down Under

Here are some things that should be more emphasized on travel brochures – or even mandatory reading to get through customs – when traveling to Australia for the first time.

[We’re staying right on the run course, this is the view from our lanai, which is fenced in.]

• They take customs seriously, so don’t try to save a cookie or sandwich from the plane for later (it will be taken), and clean the mud off your bike wheels because they really dislike it when you drag dirt into their country.
• Look right, left, right when crossing the street. This is because the cars to your right are the ones most likely to run you over first.
• When sitting in the front on the left side of the car, it’s okay not to have a steering wheel. Just relax and let the magic bus take you to where your going. (When the woman picking me up from the airport, Gale, found out that I had never been in a country where they drive on the left she exclaimed, “Oh my god, and with a woman driver too! This is going to be quite a scary drive for you.” I did what I normally do sitting in the front left – I fell right to sleep.)
• In the pool, you have to swim clockwise. Even on the easy hundreds and when doing backstroke. I’m a bit hard headed when it comes to this whole left side thing, which was helpful today when I collided head-on with another person in my lane.
• Even if you think you’ve gotten the hang of the left side thing, try not to fall into old habits. When you hear honking and see a woman’s middle finger – it means the same thing as at home – and you probably did something wrong.

[I haven’t taken any pictures outside yet, but I’ll leave you with a picture of the power adapter I jerry rigged when I realized that I had forgotten to bring one. Total cost: $1.00 (AUS) (for the outlet splitter that I destroyed) + 10cm of electrical tape.]