I managed to extend my trip, for the cost of 30k points, so that I could spend Bren’s day off with him. It was absolutely worth it and spoiler alert by the evening I wondered if I could just move the ticket again and stay another week. Our morning started a little on the early side, with the two of us sitting at the kitchen table. Bren was working, because apparently his day off just means that he doesn’t have to come into the office but he’s absolutely still working, and I was playing Mario kart on my Nintendo Switch. I brought it with me on this trip because I 1) wasn’t staying in a hostel so the risk of it getting stolen was nearly nonexistent and 2) to play on the super long plane ride. I ended up not playing it on the plane at all, instead opting to watch movies and attempt sleep. It came in handy this morning though because it gave me something to do once everyone stopped responding to emails at work back in New York. I told Bren we could play against each other too later and he seemed pretty excited and confused by that. He looked over his laptop screen at the Switch in my hands across from him and squinted his eyes at it - “did you bring an extra controller?” I pointed at the red and blue joycons on the side and said these are the controllers! That didn’t seem to clear anything up but then another call came in and distracted him from trying to figure out how a gameboy looking device turns into a console.
Eventually Bren took a break long enough from his emails and calls to pick a place for breakfast and get dressed. We headed out into the crisp morning air and I could definitely feel the cold today. Walked through the neighborhood once again and we ended up at the cutest cafe. It was incredibly warm inside, and they even had a fireplace in the middle of the space, so I took off my jacket as quickly as possible before I could start sweating. Around us were so many people on MacBooks and in business conversations that when Bren spent half of breakfast on the phone with work, explaining to one of the women how to print a file he had emailed her, he fit right in with everyone else. Well fed and caffeinated we had another stop before heading into the city. It was to a fabric/tailor wholesale shop where he had to pick up a ring of black elastic for work. Instead of heading home Bren ended up walking around with it all day in hand and then eventually crammed in his pocket. We kept walking and reached one of the main roads. I thought maybe we would be getting on the tram or perhaps walking to Federation Square but thankfully Bren said that it would be easier to pick up an uber from across the street. I had already done the walk from his flat to Federation Square the day before and was still feeling the effects of the trek today. I followed Bren closely and when he went to cross the train tracks I got a little anxious. I told him this goes against everything that I’ve been taught growing up and he laughed and pointed overhead saying it’s fine the power is overhead here!
Taking Uber’s or cabs with Bren has always been an adventure, from the first time he opened the door for me and I climbed into one with him back on New Years. Bren opened the door for me and I got into the backseat while he climbed into the front, a typical seat for an Australian uber rider, and told the driver where we were going before asking the driver how their day was going, if they were busy, was the weather holding up, the traffic crazy, then current events or sports. It’s the same conversation every time and one similar to the one I’ve heard him have when we play online with a stranger. The disarming way he welcomes a stranger in to a conversation and then listens intently to them, no matter what the topic. Our ride into Federation Square was no different.
We were dropped off at the now very familiar site and Bren started off toward the museum. It was free, which is always nice, and featured only local artists and aboriginal works. We went through the pioneer paintings and then on to more modern works before going upstairs to the actual modern paintings and sculptures. Modern art is something that I often find myself saying, “really this is art?” even though I know the answer is yes anything can be art. Some of them were amazing works of light or shapes and then Bren and I turned to the next exhibit.
I peered into it and said, “you’ve got to be kidding,” and Bren let out a hearty laugh. The room was large, white walls, high ceilings just like all the others. The paintings on the walls were also large and white. It all seemed to blend in with the environment and yet each one was considered unique and worthy of hanging in the gallery. Even upon closer inspection they were all nearly identical. White house paint scraped into circles or triangles on a white canvas on a white gallery wall.
After we were done laughing at the absurdity of the white paintings we kept making our way through it until we got to the aboriginal works. They were all tragic in one way or another and this part of the museum was much more solemn then any of the others. We continued through and I turned a corner to find Bren standing in front of a piece that was a series of separate papers with tiny type written text and on top of the text in a bolder larger font some statement. I stopped in front of it too and he stepped aside. I stood there for what felt like forever as I started to read each one. Each paper started with “If I were white” and then had some statement reflecting the differential treatment based on color. I know it was about being aboriginal but with the upheaval going on over race in America and my experience growing up it just felt so close to home that I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. I didn’t want Bren to see me crying slightly so when I was done reading all the pages I walked behind him and around the corner to gather myself. I’m sure he heard or saw me though because a few minutes later, when I had calmed down again, he made a comment about how heavy it was. He then continued to tell me about the mixed history with the aboriginal population and colonists. It is a fascinating dynamic and one that it feels like America more or less destroyed with its destruction of Native American culture over the centuries.
Much more educated now we headed down what I call the creepy alley. I had wandered down there alone back in January and was on edge the whole time even though it’s filled with other tourists. It’s one of those places that when it’s dark out, which in winter here it’s always overcast, you feel like someone could be hiding waiting to attack around each nook and cranny. I told Bren it creeped me out a little and he laughed and said it’ll be ok then lead me down the alley. The whole thing is like what 5-points in queens was - an alley of street art that is always evolving and changing. There was a piece for Anthony Bourdain and I noticed a bomb-omb that had carefully been painted around. Bren also pointed out a Boo at the end of the street and we both admired how well done it was. I kept following and eventually Bren lead me to another alley that was filled with a ton of small eateries and shops. He asked if I was hungry and we had done enough walking and emotional art viewing that I could feel my stomach rumble again so I said yes I could eat. He brought me to a small shop and said, “I know you have a ‘no bagel or pizza’ rule but this place is actually decent.” The menu was entirely bagels but Bren seemed like he was anxious for me to agree to go so I said sure, I already broke my pizza rule and was nicely surprised so why not try a bagel in Melbourne too.
The restaurant was like sitting inside a food truck. The seating was tight, with the wait staff just barely able to move through. Coffee was at the front, juicer and soup counter along one end of the shop, and then the minuscule kitchen in the back. We sat next to each other on a bench next to the kitchen. Bren got a bagel with salmon and capers and I got a bagel with cream cheese. We both got coffees and got to watching the people around us. The bagel? Surprisingly good. I sort of knew it would be when Bren said that this was a place he’s been coming to for years. Besides, Bren likes food and hasn’t let me down yet after over a dozen places. After we ate I turned to Bren and said ok where are we going now tourguide? He squinted his eyes and looked quizzically into the distance. A moment later he turned and said have you been to the botanical gardens and I said no I hadn’t so he declared that that would be our next stop.
We walked through the city and ended up back at the river that I frequented on my last trip here. Bren and I stopped midway on the bridge to admire the crest sculpted into the support column and the look of the river with the sun low and unobstructed shining down on it. We both remarked how pretty it was and I told him it looked just as good in winter as in summer. Over the bridge and a short walk through the park along the river and we finally got to the botanical gardens. Through the gardens were all kinds of flora and fauna from around the colonies. Bren pointed out the ones he found most interesting as we trekked through the gardens. We encountered birds that were so loud that when we finally located one we were both shocked at how small it was and how well it blended with the tree that it sat in. We continued through the park with Bren dragging me into the grass from time to time to get a closer look at the birds or trees. The Park was so pretty and throughout were people cuddled up on benches watching nature do its thing. We reached the opposite end and since the sun was setting thought it best to start heading home instead of continuing. We crossed the street, back to the park next to the river. Bren tried to call an uber but his phone died after he hit request. We waited for a while to see if the request went through and watched all the people going on their runs after work. Bren remarked that it’s sometimes strange having his day off in the middle of the week since everyone else is working while he’s off. Eventually we called an uber from my phone and hopped in to head home. Bren of course went through his usual chat with the driver and we ended up discussing the World Cup which lead to a superficial talk about trump.
Back at the house Bren returned to his emails and I caught up with Joben before he left for the gym. He asked if I had a hard drive with me and said he had a bunch of movies he could give me. I told him I’d be back in December and he seemed pretty happy that this wasn’t the last time we’d have to chat. Upstairs in the kitchen Alana was back from her weekend in Sydney so we caught up with her too. Bren went back to work and I went back to Mario kart. Then he looked up from his computer and said can we play together? When I set up the whole thing and handed Bren one of the controllers he couldn’t believe how easily it went from a single player console to a multiplayer console. We got to work playing Mario kart and I was naturally winning. If it wasn’t for my controller battery dying I’m sure we would have sat there all night and just ordered in dinner. When my joycon did die though Bren said let’s go out and grab dinner. He asked me if schnitzel was okay and, although I wasn’t sure where we would be eating, I said sure!
We ended up just up the street at a pub looking place. They had a Parma special, with no explanation on what Parma was. Bren had briefly described it as chicken schnitzel with ham and cheese and the dishes come out of the kitchen looked like a giant hunk of chicken parmigiana with French fries. Bren went to the bar to order and came back a few minutes later with a pitcher of beer. Eating on this trip in general has been an interesting experience. I’d say the vast majority of the time Bren orders for me. He’ll ask what I want and then when the waiter comes over order for the two of us. I didn’t even realize it was happening too until we ate at the bbq place last night. Normally I’d be a little annoyed but I have found that I actually really like it, especially since he can translate any follow up questions for me. So Bren ordered our food, and we started drinking beer and talking about Aussie football. He’s not into sports but it was on the tv so we talked about it and Bren told me that it was really a Victoria thing and not as popular across Australia. He said that he was happy that his team was winning for once too although he hasn’t followed them since he was 9. When the food arrived I was kind of surprised by it. This giant piece of chicken breast was breaded and lightly covered in sauce, cheese, and sure enough there was a slice of ham mixed in there. It was so good, but then again I was very hungry. I couldn’t even finish the fries that were there and Bren couldn’t finish either but had left the salad instead.
We headed back home after dinner and went right back to Mario Kart. Bren ended up even beating me a few times and surprisingly won one of the Grand Prixs! After a while though we were both getting sleepy and getting beat by the computer characters on the harder setting. At one point I slumped down in my chair and said I don’t want to go back. I turned to Bren and he smiled and said, “I don’t want to go to work tomorrow either.”
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