Sydney Life

If you are one of the millions of clever people who worship Madonna as a God (mainly for her music, but also for raping African nations of their first-born sons)* you will know that in the Bible known as the Immaculate Collection, Psalm 1.01 reads:

Holidaaayyyy.....
Celebraaaaate....
If we took a holiday,
Took some time to celebrate
It would be,
It would be so nice!

No matter how difficult uni is, students have the luxury of looking forward to their three-month long summer holidays. Most of my friends have been on at least one overseas holiday while they've been at uni, because they were able to use the huge break from late November to early March. Of course, you can also use this time to save up some dosh for next semester, or to do some work experience (which is what I've done previously) but wouldn't it be so much more fun to do as Madonna says, and take a holiday?

Which brings me to my point. As a loyal and pious follower of the Gospel According to Miss M, I am ready to take the plunge and go on my first overseas holiday in six years!

As a lucky high-schooler, I travelled to Temple City, California as part of a Sister City exchange way back in 2000. I had a fantastic time - saw the set of Days of Our Lives, introduced my tastebuds to Krispy Kremes and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, met some beautiful friends, and even got to go to the Winter Prom (!!!!!!!).

So, now that uni is over, and my thesis is handed in, I've decided that I can't go on living without having experienced a White Christmas. That's right, folks, I'm off to the city that's so good they had to name it twice: New York, New York!

But before that, I have a few pit stops. I'll land in L.A. just in time for Thanksgiving (which is not complete without candied yams, apparently....I'll keep you updated on what exactly they might be). I'll spend the holiday with my dear friend Miss H (who put my Mum's mind at ease last week when she finally responded to my email, asking for a place to stay) and her lovely family.

From there, I'll take the Greyhound (which should be just as romantic as it appears in Breakfast at Tiffany's, and certainly not filled with cast members of The Jerry Springer Show) to San Francisco. And yes, Davina, I'll be sure to wear some flowers in my hair. I can't help but think of cool it will be to see Haight-Ashbury, where some of the greatest Beat poetry was written, after learning all about it in my Postmodern English course. And of course, the street in the opening credits of Full House.

On to Boston, where I'll be kicking around Harvard Square and having a tea party with anyone and everyone. I promised my Mum I'd go to the Kennedy Museum for her (I think she empathises with Jackie...again, I'll keep you updated) which should be interesting. Apart from that, I don't know too much about Boston, so it will be great to learn more about it when I'm actually there!

And then.... drum roll please...New York, New York (what a wonderful town!) I have had a love affair with this town since I was eight, and completely fudged my way through one of those 'What I did on my summer holidays...' essays everyone had to do in January, when primary school teachers were too hot and tired to conjure up anything more creative. My teacher, Mr Turner, greeted my Mum after school one day to ask her how our family trip to NYC had been. She peered at him quizzically and replied, 'Do you mean Coffs Harbour?' It turned out that we had been to the Big Banana, rather than the Big Apple, but my imagination had run away with the spoon. I'd read a few too many Baby-Sitters Club books and so I'd thrown in references to Battery Park, Yankee Stadium, Saks Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Centre. My big fat lie has become a big fat running joke in my family.

But I digress. Yep, I'm headed to New York - the home of Bloomingdale's, Bergdorfs, Tiffany's, and lots of other non-shopping related destinations that I’m sure are important. Again, I'll keep you updated.

From NYC, I'm off to Washington, D.C. and then to the Land of the Part-ay (aka Austin, Texas). Austin is a university town with a total population of 100 000 and a student population of 50 000. You do the math. It is also the home of Matthew McConaughey, Lance Armstrong, and my future husband, Jake Gyllenhaal. What better way to get the romance ball rolling than with a trip to Jake's place?

And after all that, I'll wind up in Las Vegas, to gamble away any money I have left, and drink away the sorrows of not being able to meet Mr Gyllenhaal.

* Totally kidding, Madge. Love your work, love your biceps, love your husband.