Monday is no good!

All right guys, don't bother with monday. If at all possible avoid it. Stay in bed and sleep until tuesday. (You guys are lucky you have us to tell you how the day is going to go!).

~mi......

At this point Mike collapses with exhaustion and tells me to step in. Well, let's see. We got on a bus coming back from practicing that should have taken us back to our hotel, but it took us to the casinos down on the water and called "Last stop!" We then had to hike it all the way from Darling Harbor back to the hotel, almost an hour, lugging our instruments and in 90 degree heat.

When we arrived back at the hotel, we found that we had been rejected for the apartment we applied for on Saturday. Only because we're American, we think. The housing process here is very odd...there's no way that we would have been rejected from this apartment in the US. Here's how it works: There is no equal housing act whatsoever. Also, within one apartment building, every unit is owned by a separate landlord, and thus they all use a separate leasing agent. You can rarely get a private viewing; instead you have the show up at the prearranged 15 minutes on a Saturday where you can view both the apartment and all of your competition. If you like the place you take and application and have to get it in by Monday morning, at which point they review the applications.

We had found this fabulous place north of the harbor, and grabbed an application. We got it in ON SATURDAY, spouting that Michael was a Fulbright scholar over and over and over again. I had proof from our last apartment that we paid all the bills on time. We have Australian references, those being the head of the wind department at the conservatory and the dean of the conservatory herself. We know that our references were called, and the agent sent us a very positive email on Saturday. This afternoon we just got the voicemail that "Someone else got their application in last minute" and our "application looked great except that we didn't have Australian references."

AGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, the search goes on....and on....and on................We are so tired of living out of suitcases, and I personally don't love living RIGHT in downtown. I'd like to get a bit of peace.



On the plus side, we did get to go to the Tarango zoo yesterday! We had our pictures taken with koalas and even were two of the lucky few to get to pet a wallaby! But the best were the two baby snow leopard cubs with big paws climbing all over each other and their mommy. Pictures to follow :o)
~Ruth Ann

Does this spell the end of our Australian adventure and, by vicarious extension, yours too? Will our heroic, intrepid duo fight this one out or will they be crushed in the gaping maw of Sydney housing? Stay tuned! Find out on the next posting!

~Krazy(at the moment) Mike