Back To Melbourne

So the rest of my family is still packing, and in a few hours I will start my return to Melbourne on the plane. I have been sick and am still not better, so naturally the prospect of a 30 hour trip on planes, waiting in airports, and so on is very appealing. And lucky me, Melbourne is having some of the hottest weather ever.

I suppose now is the time I draw profound conclusions about the places I've visited.

The Louvre is massive, but does not have as great a proportion of Madonna and Child pictures as the Uffizi gallery.

It was snowing when we visited Versailles, which was great, but of course freezing. The decorative lake was frozen over and the swans there were rather aggressive. Versailles's rooms were all sort of colour co-ordinated, and themed with Roman gods, as the quiet and unassuming Kind Louis XIV (The 'Roi du Soleil' or 'Sun King') wanted to draw the similarities between himself and the gods - similarities which one assumes were all too apparent to him.

It was interesting seeing Marie Antoinette's house, as we had visited her childhood home at Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna, only her name then was 'Maria Antonia' - the French made her change it when she married to the more French equivalent.

Paris is the most dog friendly city I have ever been in.

I got a haircut just a few hours ago, to pass time, and practice French. Also because I needed a haircut.

Coiffeuse (hairdresser) : Alors, comme ça, mais plus courts? (So, like this but shorter?)

Me: Euhh, oui, pourquoi pas. Comme vous pensez. (Umm, sure, why not. Whatever you think.)

Coiffeuse, souriante (hairdresser, smiling) : Alors, comme je voulais? (So, as I like?)

Me: Oui, oui, ce que vous pensez m'ira. (Yes, yes, whatever you think will suit me.)

I now have a quite short haircut that is not unusual enough to be a point of conversation, nor particularly flattering. And you have learnt some French.

Everyone overseas thinks comparatively little of Australia - kangaroos is just about it. A porter in Germany knew we were culling them too.

Anyway, I have a headache, and the rest of the family is annoyed that I'm not helping them pack their own luggage. So I guess I should now go and help them.

Au revoir mes chers lectures