Settling

It's a funny thing, but I sometimes feel as though the Australians I see around Sydney have been shipped in by some kind of film extras company. All the stereotypes are there - the old ladies in their 50's polyester dresses, the surfers on Manly beach, even the lifeguards with the little yellow and red hats. It's reassuring but a little surreal.

Yesterday we took the ferry into the city and hung out in Observatory Park, a small patch of green that overlooks the city. It was beautiful. In the other half of the park a wedding was taking place. It was an incredible setting - although all the guests looked uncomfortably hot in their hats and suits. Today was Manly beach - home of the surfers. It was packed with bronzed beauties, volleyball players and tourists, all of them jostling for a place in the sand. When I looked out to sea it was still incredibly beautiful: turquoise and clear. I had to look past the heaving mass of people to see it though, and it made me think about how human beings will always struggle to make anything more beautiful than the sea, the sky and the sand.