Whirlwind tour of OZ

I just got back from a whirlwind tour of several Australian cities. I was playing with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and got to tour around the country. We played 10 concerts in 11 so my head is sort of spinning right now. Aside concerts in Sydney, we played in Brisbane, Canberra, Wollongong, Melbourne, and Adelaide. What wonders did I see in these new places? Not much! We would fly in to a place about midday, go to the hotel, have a bit of time to warmup/practice, and then play the concert in the evening. Sightseeing was limited to afternoon strolls around the area of the hotel. I did see and experience several things of note: the Holden Blimp(the Australian equivalent to the Goodyear blimp), I ate goat for dinner in Melbourne (it tasted okay going down but not so good once it was in my stomach), the parliament House in Canberra, several interesting displays of public weirdness by people in Adelaide (I'm assured that Adelaide has more than it's fair share of weirdos), and the insides of many hotel rooms and busses.

In a few days a friend of Ruth Ann's will be coming to visit. We're heading up north to Cairns to see the Great Barrier Reef and the rainforest. I refuse to stay in a bus or hotel all afternoon so I might get to see a bit more. As for now, I have to go and see if I still know how to play contrabassoon.

~Mike