ClubSNAPpers in Melbourne..
- Thread starter engta
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Jemapela
New Member
Did anyone go to the Viva Victoria cultural diversity event yesterday? I woke up later than expected but went and took a few shots. I didn't see/hear/smell/taste the presence of any ClubSnap member. Nobody went?
Anyway, I was at Sydney's world-famous shameless and unpretentious Mardi Gras earlier this month. Mardi Gras is the world's biggest gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender (GLBT) festival parade which draws an international crowd. With about 300,000 spectators watching from Sydney's city streets this year, the parade also leans into "perverse" sexual practices/fetishes, and features floats, individuals and organisations which promote/support/acknowledges such sexual activities/beliefs, freedom to love all, and abandonment of conservative religions such as Catholicism.
Anyway, I was at Sydney's world-famous shameless and unpretentious Mardi Gras earlier this month. Mardi Gras is the world's biggest gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender (GLBT) festival parade which draws an international crowd. With about 300,000 spectators watching from Sydney's city streets this year, the parade also leans into "perverse" sexual practices/fetishes, and features floats, individuals and organisations which promote/support/acknowledges such sexual activities/beliefs, freedom to love all, and abandonment of conservative religions such as Catholicism.
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terryansimon
New Member
unless the Lord Mayor and/or Premier brings Kings Cross to Melbourne, unlikely.
Jemapela
New Member
Actually, it should be Oxford Street, the gay nexus of Sydney where many bars/clubs cater to homosexual men, and to a smaller extent, women.
How shameless and unpretentious is Sydney/Australia?
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Jemapela
New Member
Mardi Gras started in Sydney, and has always been in Sydney. Hang around until next year to see it. Go with a very open mind since some of the Mardi Gras participants you see may be raunchy and gender-undefinable, and some organisations may mock/insult conservative religions including the Pope.
terryansimon
New Member
I'm "at" the Grand Prix.
by "at" I mean my friend's apartment. overlooking the track.
very nice.
by "at" I mean my friend's apartment. overlooking the track.
very nice.
kaxdd
Senior Member
I went on Friday courtesy of my friend's 4-day pass. I'd say that this is going to be the first and last time I am going to a F1 event. I don't understand why people are willing to pay big bucks to go have their ear drums damaged. Even with ear plugs, it's BLOODY LOUD!!!
Not a particularly good experience for me.
Not a particularly good experience for me.
Jemapela
New Member
I went on Friday courtesy of my friend's 4-day pass. I'd say that this is going to be the first and last time I am going to a F1 event. I don't understand why people are willing to pay big bucks to go have their ear drums damaged. Even with ear plugs, it's BLOODY LOUD!!!
Not a particularly good experience for me.
I'm sure the circuit track was fenced up high too! Almost no chance of getting good shots!
terryansimon
New Member
I went on Friday courtesy of my friend's 4-day pass. I'd say that this is going to be the first and last time I am going to a F1 event. I don't understand why people are willing to pay big bucks to go have their ear drums damaged. Even with ear plugs, it's BLOODY LOUD!!!
Not a particularly good experience for me.
different strokes for different folks.
back in the days of the v10s, the engines weren't that shrilly. now it's more ear piercing... don't know if anybody who has been to the races during the v10 days would agree.
Jemapela
New Member
I'm still in Melbourne!
terryansimon
New Member
well, most Australians are friendly anyway. assuming they're not off their feet from alcohol and/or drugs.
my experience of living in Melbourne? beautiful. traffic is always in a gridlock, depending on the suburb you live in. if you happen to live in the fringes north and west of the city itself, good luck to you because going back on the damn West Gate Freeway/Bolte Bridge and various other freeways/tollways that are linked to those said roads can get pretty clogged up during peak hours.
public transport is horribly unreliable, especially when you're talking about Connex and its train provision. tends to NOT run on time, cancellations become something you live with, and if the mercury inches above 36 degrees, you actually have better odds of getting a cancellation than being eaten by a great white shark. that's how bad it got over summer.
apart from that, I love Melbourne. I love what their people stand for, the resilience of its people (especially after Black Saturday), and the way the city rallies together (the CBD shootings about two years back proves my point). that being said, I don't live in the city per se, but rather in a suburb about 20 minutes drive away from Melbourne City (post code 3000) itself. I absolutely hate the city sprawl and the noise, but that's just me.
in essence, it really depends on where your base of operations will be. if you're out in the corridors, make sure you have a car... or make sure you do not solely rely on public transport to get you around to places. even in suburbs like mine (ie, 20 minutes drive away from the city), it still helps to have a car to get around.
Jemapela
New Member
Hi,
There are a few ClubSnap members working in Melbourne as permanent residents, including me. There are a few members on student VISAs. This group is small, and unfortunately, despite several attempts, has failed to meet up frequently or regularly. It isn't easy to explain why, but I have my theories.
The Melbourne I first came to in 2002 was friendlier, not so much now due to an overwhelming population increase. In recent years, Melbourne and Sydney have recorded unprecedented numbers in migrant settlement. Psychology or sociology explains that as population density increases, people become less friendly. However, I would still say that Melbourne is possibly friendlier than in Singapore because you could still get the odd stranger on the street chatting up with you.
Although generally work and life in Australia is probably more relaxing than in Singapore, it is not a bed of roses to everyone. There are also other socio-economic problems. Some migrants aren't comfortable or adjusted to life in Australia, and can't assimilate. Understandably, some would have difficulties and distress, but this is reality.
According to a detailed 20-page Monash University research published in 2008, about 71% of Asian migrants with Australian university degrees are not (read as "cannot fill") in a managerial/professional position, or a job relevant to their degrees. The main reason for this high "failure" rate is due to poor English skills. Of course, there could possibly be racial stereotyping and prejudice, but the research did not include this in the scope of study.
Although Singaporeans may be the proudest Asians to say that English is their first language, in reality most Singaporeans speak in Phua Chu Kang lingo - Singlish - grammatically-broken and vernacular-adulterated English.
Melbourne, Sydney, or whichever Australian city you settle in, I believe the best thing a new migrant should do is to open his/her mind, radically change to adapt, and adjust to mainstream Australian culture. It is surely not easy, but it is a matter of survival.
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