Although this is my first day in Australia, I feel as though I've been travelling forever, we'll at least for 36 hours, (how does Kylie do it?) I'm trying hard to be top dork, having lost a pin badge in the X Ray machine at Heathrow. 3 Customs officials and a random traveller went looking for it in the detector.At the other end of the journey, I struggled to get my case off the carousel, and a true gent helped, but when he picked it up, he smashed the suitcase into a woman's chin as she bent down to collect hers.
Qantas have a base at Dubai, and so when you think that you are halfway, you're nowhere near. It's only 8 hours into a 22 hour flight. The stop off involved walking through customs, and upstairs to the debarture lounge, via an X Ray check, body scanner and full bag search to get back on the plane I just got off. In the next 14 hours I watched 3 films. I slept though Marley, not the Labrador, the singer, ate a meal watching Django Unchained - just glad it wasn't liver, and finished off with Lincoln, expecting the history of a county town in the East of England, I got a bloke with a big chin, dodgy beard, who abolished slavery 100 years after the British did.
My hotel is funky and modern, and I was delighted to be greeted by Andy Nicholl, the token Scot in the 6 Nations BBC coverage. later Simon Shaw, the man mountain, was enjoying a coffee in the lobby, and when I read the noticeboard, Richard Hill, the greatest player ever, someone who has never been on the losing side while he was on the pitch playing for the Lions, plays for the mighty Sarries and features on my debit card, is at the welcome event on Friday - ans staying in the hotel ! Result!!
Surfer's Paradise isn't for me I'm afraid. Culture passed it by. The are loads of recently arrived Lions fans fighting off jet lag by walking around looking for something to do. I had a pleasant enough walk along the strand, but the beach is closed with diggers relaying it. There are lots of 50 something Lions fans, married couples, also trying to find something to do. It's too early to shop for fudge for grannies.one couple even managed a smile to look as though they might be enjoying themself. Each couple has at least 4 boobs, 2 of them contained by a bra, a bald shaved head, and the female of the species uncomfortable in sports gear and silver wedges. The problem is, Surfers Paradise is for 20 something's, there's Nandos, (chicken and chips in old money), a sex shop with a 6 foot condom outside (if only girls), 3 Irish bars, one called Waxys, and variety of surf ships such as Billabong, Ugg shops are everywhere, and of course several tat shops that grace the old British seaside places. So after a stroll around the couples end up in Waxys, and I return to the room to write the blog, whilst fighting sleep. if I can last until 7 or 8 before my body gives up, I should crack the jet lag.
Today's choice of song came on the radio on the plane, and the title seems quite apt, as indeed the subsequent song, which is tomorrow's choice. The lions really do have to perform on Saturday. No surprises for me in the test team, but all these injuries.....I have a theory that all the hamstring injuries are caused by the cryogenic recovery techniques list includes North, Cuthbert, Roberts, Sexton and Farrell.
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