Day 4 - Rainy Mornings and Quiet Evenings

Again, I wake up at 6:30 and roll around until I got up at 8. An older, Australian gentleman (Dean), who’s rumoured to have lived here for 4 years, struck up conversation while I typed out the end of yesterday’s story. He’s a farmer, it would appear, and may also work in landscaping. He asked what I did for a quid and I told him that I didn’t do anything right now, but I worked with the homeless back home. Apparently Perth has a pretty bad homelessness problem, so this struck a chord with him and he gave me the insight that he'd gained from a life of farming various crops and sheep. For him, it seems to boil down to this: the healthcare system is failing the west because it seems to be putting profits before results. He proposes that we prioritize nutrition and hydration as a means of preventing/relieving mental illness. “Food for thought” he kept saying, before wandering off in search of coffee.

I failed to capture any of the impressive moves

After several failed hours of trying to fall back asleep, I resigned to the fact that I would just be tired all day and got up. I worked on my laptop while American Tim filed his U.S. taxes which were due that day. Swiss Sarah came around and said they were going to the art festival again, though today it was all food trucks and a centre stage where B-boys were breakdancing to a live DJ in front of a massive crowd. We wound up in the museum again, as the food trucks had insane lines and were overpriced ($5 for a small ice cream).

A woman shielding her child
from a (nuclear?) explosion

My first living statue!
(Yes, I tipped him)

Exhausted and tired of art, I grabbed an extra strong flat white (similar to a latte) leaving Sarah, Japanese Yuzu, and Korean Julie to peruse the art. Sarah broke off on her own to look around the stands. The museum closed and we went back to wandering. I watched some more of the B-boys while the girls stood staring at the shoulders blades of the people in front of us. We sought out an ATM for Julie, and headed back toward the hostel/grocery. When we got back, I met German Nichole (Sarah, Yuzu, and Julie’s roommate). They told me today was my turn to make dinner. It was a joke, but I realized that peanut butter isn’t that common internationally. Pb and J - it’s what’s for dinner. They were a little apprehensive at first, but seemed to enjoy it. Nichole said the only time she'd had PB was on a sandwich with "applemousse,"* which sounds disgusting. We talked a bit about our respective countries, then I went to my room. After hanging out with Yuzu and Julie so long, I was speaking much slower for the rest of the night, as they couldn’t understand me when I spoke normally.

Yuzu posing for me

Julie scratching her head

It was a pretty low-key night, and no one seemed to be drinking much, though a little seems to be obligatory for the hostel. I drank coffee and had a long conversation with English Andy. German Daniel, the Kiwi (Haydon), and Indonesian Daniel were swapping stories in the back about the Mafia, supernatural events, and how crazy westerners act when they go to Indonesia. Indonesian Daniel said he was an english teacher recruiter for the schools in his country, and that he was basically the teacher’s father who had to bail them out when they got in trouble with the police. One American guy was missing class and they Daniel to find out where he was. After some searching, the guy turned out to be very drunk, and strip dancing in a club somewhere in town. He was suspended for a month, but not fired. Another guy was driving 140mph, drunk, with a local girl and arrested by the police. His salary was reduced a bit. Apparently all this is taken in stride, unless you either kill/injure someone or get someone pregnant.

I went back to my room and spoke with Andy a bit more before watching the first episode of Daredevil (watch it on Netflix. Do it.) and passing out.

*: Applemousse is applesauce, as it turns out