Day 205 - Moonlight Cinema

How quintessentially Sydney...



If you wanna see the real Sydney, you need a guide. And that's exactly what I've got - in the form of Suzi (you know suzi - the annoying aussie I met in Peru and has been clinging onto me in all but three countries that I've visited). I love her. And she has some bright ideas. One of them being to go and see Pedro Almodovar's latest flick 'Volver' at the 'Moonlight cinema' - Sydney's famous open air picnic-then-film night.



I meet Suzi in town at 5ish and we hop on a bus with Minnie and Rachel (I met Minnie in south america too - how small is this world?). First stop - picnic supplies from one of my favourite places in Sydney - Harris Farm Fruit Market in Bondi. Besides taking stupid photos of me with my head in the fruit, eating cherries without paying for them and grossing myself out at the weird dips they have here, we stocked up on fruit and headed to the park.



Its proper magical here. There's cute trees everywhere, and the screen overlooks the huge Centennial Park. And its dusky. And everyone is eating picnics and laughing and drinking screw-cap wine. There's hampers everywhere. And huge beanbags to rent for a more comfortable experience (if you go, get one. trust me). And as the sun goes down, the adverts start and the film swings into action.



Volver is great. No - its amazing. Of course I'm gonna say that - its spanish, it has penelope cruz in it (I love her), and its classic Almodovar. It has colour, depth, humour, murder and a lashing of sex. I love his stuff - right from the first 2 minutes you're winded by brutally disturbing subjects which Almodovar brushes over as if they were never taboo. He even throws in a gratuitous overhead tit-shot of Penelope's cleavage as she's doing the washing up - just for good measure. Favourite quote - 'we should wash our dirty linen at home'. Too true. If you see it in Blockbuster - get it. You'll only regret it if you're an idiot. trust me.



Anyway, the film was beautiful. The setting was beautiful. And if it wasn't for the bat that shat on me during the second half and the horrendously uncomfortable rock-like soil I was lying on, it would have been the most perfect date I'd ever been on. with 3 girls. killer.



That done, I walked Minnie home through Kings Cross - seedy as hell, and renowned for being the rough part of sydney, but Minnie assures me that she has walked through Kings Cross unchallenged for her whole life, and doesn't know one person who's ever had any problems. Can we say that about our capital city? No way.

And the next few days are pretty much par-for-the-course as far as fun goes. Usual routine - Indie night at the world bar on a thursday...





saturday night at the green park with Malcolm Macbeth (brother to one of my favourite londeners - laura macbeth)...



saturdays we always go to the beach - even though the weather here is SO RUBBISH at the moment. ok - so its never really bad. but I thought it would be sunny every day. Its kinda overcast at least half of the week - which is half more than it should be for this time of year. Everyone here says its rubbish - and we've just heard that its expected to rain over christmas. RUBBISH! I hate this damn country. I got a better tan in the Bolivian winter...

And the saturday nights everyone except me goes to The Gaff. I've avoided it avidly for the last few weeks because it looks horrible, but this week I went. and its SO GRIM. Its SO SO GRIM. seruiously. It has strippers dancing on the bar. It has free beer for one hour and people 10-deep spilling their pints over my shoes. It has people pissing against the walls in the toilets and routy boys barging me out the way to watch the football. Its SO GRIM. And there's Sam in the corner, LOVING IT. Did I tell you Sam has turned into a total townie rotter? No? Well, she is. I'm surprised she's not wearing Kappa to the cheapo supermarket down the road. We still love her though. despite her rotten townie edge.









Sydney is great. It is. But I'm spending too much money, earning nothing, and not doing the stuff that makes me really happy. I need more Moonlight cinema, more Unfair gigs, more stuff that I care about. So I'm making a decision. From today onwards I'm gonna be more proactive. Duncan - stop being so rubbish, and get out there and do stuff.