Australia 2005
Passing out of B-school, entering the IT industry, most people have only one dream, that of an ‘onsite’ posting. Which basically means a foreign posting. Most Indians growing up in the 80s and 90s grew up on a diet of ‘foreign’ fixation. Anything that was ‘foreign’ was a symbol of superiority. At the same time, we were all wise enough to differentiate between a Bangladesh/Nepal and a UK/USA. At that stage of one’s career and in that era, this was the greatest achievement or milestone. Whoever denies it, must be lying.
I got my chance three years after passing out and would be going on a short 6-week assignment to Melbourne, Australia. The short duration did not matter. Even if it was for a week, it would have felt like gold. The glamor associated with international flight travel, the ‘foreign’ feeling in a supposedly superior country, any duration will be worth it.
I was supposed to fly on March 19thby the Singapore Airlines flight from Mumbai, transiting in Singapore. Being an aviation freak, it was exciting to receive the printed-out tickets from the travel desk and even more happy to see that I will be transiting through the legendary Changi airport.
My base location was Pune, so a cab dropped me off to Mumbai to my father’s residence. My father was living in Mumbai then, so he dropped me to the airport in his car.
Very soon I was on board the Boeing-777 aircraft taking off from Mumbai airport. Singapore Airlines lived up to its billing and the service was great. I had flown Thai Airways a few years back while going a vacation with my parents and though I quite liked it, this was certainly a notch higher. If I remember right, this was the first time I would have my personal entertainment screen on flight.
Transit time in Singapore was short and I did not have much time to walk around the airport much. I had been to Changi once before, so I had some idea of the great place.
I boarded a second Boeing-777 that would take me on a long-haul seven-hour flight. We would be flying eastwards hence flying into the darkness even though we boarded early in the morning.
It started off as a daylight flight but very soon the evening set in and as we approached our destination, I had a few butterflies in my stomach. Of course, I had travelled international and had travelled alone but all that was to visit family. This was the first time I would be taking a taxi from the airport to an unknown address in pre-google map days. What do I do if I do not find the address that late in the evening? All these apprehensions started creeping in.
We arrived at Melbourne Tullamarine airport in the late evening and soon I was on the cab to the mentioned address which would be of the service apartment of the company. I was travelling on a business visa hence the accommodation was provided by the company. I was told I would be sharing my flat with a colleague Binto Thomas and I had to locate him at the address mentioned after which he would use his access card to let me in.
I was welcomed with the gorgeous views of the skyscrapers of downtown Melbourne and enjoyed the drive to the service apartment located in Southbank.
After a few anxious moments at the access-controlled doors, I managed to locate one of my colleagues who used his access card and got me in. I met Binto in the room along with Sumant, whom I had known at my India location. They were kind enough to get some pizza dinner for me. And most importantly, gave me a sim card which was being used by various members of my company whoever visited Melbourne. As I settled in and checked out the view, I was greeted to the ever-familiar sight of six gorgeous floodlight towers which was visible and recognisable even in the darkness of the evening. I just realised I was close to the iconic MCG. All these days my only relationship with Melbourne was through the MCG. Today I had it right in front of me at my window.
I settled into my Melbourne life in no time thanks to Binto and Sumant. Both mighty good cooks as well which enabled me to pick up my introductory culinary skills. Our office was at Camberwell which was a few train stops from Flinders Street station, which was just next door. There was a very efficient and well-connected tram network as well which I would see in many European cities years later.
Melbourne was a frequented destination for IT professionals in general and I soon realised that. Our workplace had several Indians of various Indian IT companies and there were other colleagues as well working with different clients.
Once while the three of us were walking around on Elizabeth Street we bumped into a senior colleague Vasant who was also on a business visit with another client. Along with him was another American colleague Terry. What better thing to discuss than weekend plans! Soon we planned a trip to the Twelve Apostles via the gorgeous Great Oceans Road. This is a must if you are living in Melbourne. I was eligible to drive with my Indian driving licence but somehow not confident (first trip blues). Vasant had no such problems. He had been in the US and had an international licence. So, the first weekend nicely set up.
Great Oceans Road – Twelve Apostles
Four of us met up on the Saturday morning at the Hertz Car Rental on Franklin Street (Binto was absent as he had already been to the Twelve Apostles). Soon Vasant was in possession of the keys and along with it a device which looked like a small video game screen. I tried to guess what it was. It was a Tom Tom GPS. Something which I saw for the first time. It is now been made obsolete by google maps on your smart phone. But in its hey days this was a saviour. We set off after setting the destination to Port Campbell National Park from where one could view the magnificent Twelve Apostles, which consisted of twelve stacks of limestone rocks protruding out of the sea. We had to be specific here that we would be going through the scenic Great Oceans Road, which would take us around four and a half hours.
We took a coffee-break close to Geelong, a prominent town around one hour from Melbourne. Soon after we hit the famous Great Oceans Road. As you drive on a hilly road, you get to have the sea on your left for the complete stretch for the next two and a half hours. Every single corner, there was a temptation to take a break and we did take a couple. We went down the cliff and on to the beach side for a walk.
We drove through Torquay, on to Lorne and then to Apollo Bay where we decided to take a break for lunch. Apollo Bay seem to be a very frequented destination as there were several cars parked. It acted as a pit-stop for visitors going up to Twelve Apostles as well as being a tourist attraction by itself. This turned out to be a special and landmark meal for me as I could have my favourite English Beer-battered fish-n-chips. The first of the many times on this tour. This would be an eternal favourite while travelling until a few years after I moved to UK in 2015 when I finally got tired of it. Terry would also turn out to be a fish-n-chips fan and many a times we would order the same dish.
We were now onto the final stretch of our journey. In forty-five minutes, we reached Port Campbell National Park at the doorstep of the Twelve Apostles, almost six hours after we started.
This was a pre-social media era and even digital camera was at its nascent stage. I got mine only a couple of months back and my memory card could accommodate twenty-four photos at a time. Yes, you read that right. Not that there were no higher capacity cards available then. They were but I was too ignorant to realise all this. I had whatever was provided with the camera. Unless you carried your laptop where you could transfer the photos, you could keep only twenty-four photos of the whole trip. Had it happened today, probably any of us would have thrown a fit. But back then even twenty-four seemed gold. After all you had rolls of twenty-four and thirty-six. The view of the Twelve Apostles rocks was gorgeous to say the least and had I visited in the present day I would have probably taken hundreds of photos, however repetitive it might look. The sky was cloudy so the water was not at its blue-est but the limestone rocks almost took a shade of gold. There were chopper trips available as well, but we opted against it as it was a bit cloudy, and we were anyways enjoying the view.
The fact that it was close to autumn in the Southern hemisphere meant that days were short. In fact, the clocks would go back the next day. It soon became dusky, and it was time for us to set the GPS to Franklin street and head back. A couple of breaks and soon we were back at Melbourne after a memorable trip, thanks to Vasant behind the wheel.
Phillip Island
The hugely successful trip spurred us to plan for our next weekend outing. The same group would be available and Binto would also be able to join in. The destination would be Phillip Island, just off the southern coast. Unlike the previous trip this would be just a short one and half hour drive which would be short work for Vasant. The island was most famous for its penguin parade at sunset, when little penguins come ashore in groups.
Hertz car rental was once again the meeting point and soon five of us were away on the drive. We reached in no time and soon were in the sunshine on the island. We had ample time on our hands as we had to kill time till the evening in our wait for the penguins to come back home.
We had ample stuff to do. The usual fish-n-chips meal for me followed by a visit to the zoo where I spotted a Kangaroo and Koala bear for the first time. The Koala bear having a nap on the branch would make it to my Instagram feed years later. I thought that would be the cutest sight of the day until the penguins trumped it in the evening.
As we approached the evening, we rushed towards the point where the penguin parade could be viewed from. There was a large crowd assembled there waiting, not for the convoy of some world leader or some military parade, but for some little penguins to come out of the water and head home. And after waiting for a while, there they came. It was the cutest sight one could ever imagine. A horde of little penguins hopped and danced their way out of the water and came ashore to their homes. It was the rarest of experiences to see such a beauty of nature unfolding in front of you. Such a natural phenomenon that you would exactly know when they would come out. Flights and trains can be delayed but not these penguins. They were bound by nature’s own clock.
Melbourne City and Around
Melbourne city life was vibrant without any doubt. One of our regular weekend hangouts was playing badminton in the complex at Albert Park. Albert Park is famous for hosting of the Formula 1 race which in those times used to be the first race of the new season. It had a beautiful lake around which the circuit used to run. Hanging out on Southbank next to the Yarra river was also a common activity along with visiting the Crown casino.
One of the weekends Terry, Sumant and I planned to go to Williamstown, a port side suburb of Melbourne. It was just a forty-five-minute ferry ride and the entire trip would be wrapped up in half a day. As I shrugged off the weekend blues and reached Southbank to meet up with the others, we could spot a large crowd and some commotion. On moving closer we realised it’s a film unit in operation. An even closer look and we spotted a recognizable face, that of Saif Ali Khan. The team of Salaam Namaste was shooting there. A thoroughly enjoyable romantic comedy which released later that year, and which was favourite with me and my friends. It was one of those films which is identifiable with the city the story is based in. Like Kahaani with Kolkata and Kal Ho Na Ho with New York. I heard a bit of the song that they were shooting which went like My dil goes hmmm. I was still at a stage where I had star fascination, so I managed to ask Sumant to click a photo of mine with the actor.
The ferry ride to Williamstown was thoroughly enjoyable. As we moved, the river became wider and windier, soon almost entering the sea. It was a quiet, port side town, like many I would experience in UK years later. We had one more fish-n-chips lunch after which we walked around the town and the portside and even visited a local stadium where a game of Australian Rules football was being played between two local teams.
Fiji Islands
One reading this might wonder how Fiji came into a chapter on Australia. The reason was this. As mentioned earlier I was on a business visa, which was valid for two months. Just that it was valid for two months after each entry into the country. The entry must be within two months of the issuance of the visa. In case within these two months, I go out of Australia and enter back, I would be eligible to stay on for another two months. My company decided that my stay needed to be extended as there was still enough work on the plate. So, they came up with a plan to send me to Fiji for a day and then return to Australia, which would ensure that I would be eligible to stay for two more months. Amazing bonanza I thought. A company sponsored break to Fiji Islands with hotel stay for a day, my first onsite experience could not get better. Just to add, the destination selected was Fiji because it did not require a separate visa, the passport would be stamped on arrival.
Very soon I was booked on an Air Pacific flight to Nadi, Fiji. I would be staying at the Nomads Skylodge hotel for a night after which I would be taking the flight back to Melbourne. Going to Australia was a dream itself and now going further into the middle of the Pacific on a company sponsored trip was beyond words. It was a nine-hour overnight flight, which reached Nadi early in the morning. It was fascinating to see the crowd in the flight which was jam-packed. All trying to escape the Aussie winter into the Fiji sunshine.
As I landed in Nadi, my first encounter was with the immigration officer. She looked at me in suspicion as to why I was visiting Fiji for just one day. I wonder if she encountered a more unique visitor. Then she checked my Australia visa page and told her colleague “He has come here so that he can go back and stay for another two months”. Visa rules can be tricky, and it was a relief that they were aware of that.
I exchanged some currency and took a taxi to my hotel. The hotel was a lovely resort ideal for a holiday, and I checked into the cottage that was booked for me. I caught up with some rest after which I had to decide what to do. Unfortunately, I was not the crazy, adventurous traveller back then due to probable lack of exposure, so I decided to enjoy the hotel. Back then that itself was as much fun as a beachside shack. I had a swim, some beer, lunch, a walk here and there and that was it. Crazy as it may sound. Had it been a few years later, I would have explored all Nadi. Boredom had set in in the evening and I wondered what to do. The hotel people suggested that they take their guests on a night pub-crawl and I might want to join that. I had little option, so I went for it. It basically meant visiting one pub after another through the night. We had around four or five people with us from various nationalities like Sweden and UK. I enjoyed the Fiji Bitter beer for a while after which I felt a bit tired and retired into the hotel.
An interesting thing I learnt and discovered in Fiji is the Indian connection. Most people originated from India and hence had Indian names. I then remembered the golfer Vijay Singh who is from Fiji. So much so, the two hotel representatives who took us out also understood Hindi despite being locals.
The next day was also similarly spent in the hotel lazing around having a poolside lunch and in the bar. The flight was early in the evening and it was Boeing-747 in operation. The flight was a lot less full than what it was on the onward journey. I reached Melbourne just on time for dinner after the most unique experience.
Sydney
Staying on a four-month tour of Australia, how could I not visit Sydney. Another childhood cricket connection. One of the weekends in June was decided. Few members of the group had changed. Vasant and Terry had moved back to their base locations in India and the USA respectively. Binto was on a holiday to India. A notable person who replaced Terry was Hari Babu, who was quite a dynamic and adventurous individual. Five of us made the trip, which was a fourteen-hour bus ride. Sumant had one of his friends working there and was living in a mansion (a bigger version of a hostel, ideal budget accommodation for business travellers). He was quick to book a room for us with five beds. By the time we settled in, it was almost late afternoon and with the short winter days, we needed to start the city tour. Luckily one of us, Alok had a friend who met right at St Leonard station and took us around. That saved us some time to figure out the public transport network. We visited the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge at twilight and walked around the area. As the late evening set in the friend who had joined us said let us have some fun. We got off at a station named Kings Cross. As soon as we were moving up the escalator, some random guys called with some random Indian names “Rahul, Raj, Ankush…. 50 dollars”. I will not name what he offered but we realised we are in the red-light district of Sydney. It was indeed a fun experience walking around the place with shady people around and soon we made our way out to normalcy for a good dinner.
The next day was going to be a hectic one. A full day of Sydney followed by boarding the bus at night. Weather was sunny with bright blue skies and our first stop was the iconic Darling Harbour. From Darling Harbour, we took the cruise that took us through the Harbour Bridge and the Opera house. We got some great views with the shimmering blue waters. After the cruise we visited the Sea-Life aquarium. The walk through the glass tunnel under water with sharks moving all around you in the water is an enriching experience. Every species of fish found in Australia seemed to be on display in aquariums of various sizes. Once done with the Sea-life, we walked around in the town centre and made it to the top of Sydney Tower. The top floor provides a wonderful arial view of the whole city and on that clear sunny day I could click a couple of great photos. Rest of the time we had was spent in walking around the centre viewing the shops, malls, fountains. Those very city centre things. We boarded the bus early evening for the long fourteen-hour journey. On way, we stopped at Canberra for a short eating break after which I only woke up once we reached Melbourne early in the morning. We had the Monday off so there was no hurry and enough time to recover from a wonderful trip.
I stayed for one more month in Melbourne after this trip. However, due to the increased pressure at work, I could not make any further outstation trips. So, the time was spent in seeing as much Melbourne as possible. A visit to the St Kilda beach and Fitzroy Street being some of the highlights.
