2015 CNY in Australia
Melbourne
(Part 2)
I
had no intention of going on to Melbourne from Perth until the very last week
before the trip. Firstly, the mother was more than capable in assisting the
daughter and handling whatever procedures or technicalities there were or to solving
any unforeseen hick ups. Secondly, accommodation in Melbourne would be a little
bit awkward, especially when they were supposed to crash at her brother mike's
house. 2 additional squatters might be tolerable but 3 would definitely be a
crowd in a small house. However, when the daughter pleaded with me to go along
there was no way I could back out.
Arrived
in Melbourne early in the morning of 19th Feb, the 1st day of CNY. Going from
the airport to Melbourne U, we had to
drive into the city through the morning rush hour traffic. Unfortunately, we
missed the 9:00am session of the Business courses introduction and registration
and had to stay on for the afternoon session. It was a long tiring day and by
the time we made our way through the city to Flinders Station to catch the
train back to the suburb where Mike lived, it was almost 7:00PM.
That
was basically the tiring routine for the next 7 days. Taking a ride to the station
to catch the train into Melbourne city in the morning and returning the reverse
way in the evening. The number 1 priority was apartment hunting as ML and her 2
housemates has yet to find a place to stay. The lease for the new Fulton Lane
apartment in Franklin Street that was supposedly confirmed before we arrived but
we found out on site that construction was still going on. Handing over of the
units might still be weeks away even if everything went smoothly as planned. A
very uncomforting and unsettling thought. Too many loose ends. Hence begun the
frantic search for other alternatives.
Tiresome and stressful might be an
understatement when it came to looking for and renting an a pad in Melbourne.
Everything has to go through an real estate agent and the SOPs were a pain in
the butt. First, you had to contact the agent who would then fix a viewing time
that could be 1-7 days in advance. When the appointed time came the viewing
could be cancelled at the last minute because the owner had already let the unit out. Some of the apartments viewed were
in such squalid conditions that it was a sheer waste of time. 
When finally you decided to rent a particular apartment there would be bundles of form that all tenants
have to fill. Besides personal particulars, you have to submit references and financial
statements to prove that you were capable of paying the rent. The final
decision will be made by the owner whom
you do not even meet. If he decided to
rent the place to you, you have to cough up a bond payment and a month's
advance rental. The minimum period of lease was a year. Any breach of the tenancy
agreement meant the monies will be
forfeited. 
We must had viewed at least 12-15 apartments in that exhaustive week
walking from one end to another around the Melbourne U. There was no time for
sight-seeing, to relax, to smell the roses or even the luxury of having a
leisure cup of latte at the sun drenched
roadside cafe. In fact, the only respite the wife and I had was the short hour
we spent inside the National Library where we could rest our tired legs and
soul and to use the free Wi-Fi in the spacious and comfortable lounge.
The
hunt for an apartment turned out to be a
comical Catch-22 situation when the futile exercise came to a full circle.
Finding nothing suitable despite the combined and concerted effort of 3
families, the decision of waiting out the Fulton Lane apartment was then taken.
The management promised it would be delivered by the 3rd week March. We are
keeping our fingers crossed (despite being Atheists).
With
that decision made, I had 2 days to relax before flying back. The Wednesday
morning was spent learning how to hand make wholesome bread from Mike's wife
Phing. Learning hands on was something very different from merely getting the
right recipe. The subtlety in the correct handling and kneading of the dough was
an art form in itself. The end result
was simply awesome. 2 perfectly baked,
marvelous looking and healthy loaf of bread, which we brought back with us to
Malaysia. The baking lesson did not end with making bread. Mike taught us the secrets
of making perfectly soft scones. I could
not wait to try it out myself. Hopefully the lessons and results would not be lost.
The
moment my plane ticket to Melbourne was confirmed, my very resourceful daughter
was already on the internet purchasing the tickets to the All Time Low Concert.
She had been a fanatic fan of this boy band since age 16. Of course this foul
mouthed pop punk group known to rant profanities on stage would never be
allowed to play in Malaysia. Hence, her obsession that this opportunity was
never to be missed at any cost - the No. 1 on her bucket list. Coerced or
sucked into it, I became her designated concert buddy. There were futile and
desperate attempts to pass my ticket to her cousins in Melbourne but none of
them were in the least interested.
The
very loud rock concert was held in Hi Fi, an underground nightclub right under the belly
of the city center. Being rated R18, the crowd were mainly in the late teens to
maybe early 30s. I was the standout grey
hair senior citizen in the mass of sweaty, swaying and gyrating bodies. When the deafening
noise exploded and blasted onto the crowd in the opening act I was seriously worried whether
I would be able to survive the ordeal.
Both ears were aching, my heart was pounding furiously and the sound
waves were literally reverberating within the
rib cage of my body. When I finally staggered out on to the street after the concert, everything and every person sounded funny. Fortunately, the hearing impairment and pain were not permanent and managed to clear up after 48 hours.
I better check again those Parenting Guidebooks. Surely, taking your kids to rock concerts cannot be part of the prescribed parental responsibilities. Subjecting parents to such harrowing experience could actually cause them long term psychological damage! Even if it is legal, it cannot be ethically or morally correct.
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