Xpatriate Games

Rediscovering home

2011-10-27T00:35:00.005-04:00

Our party of three, Little Roo, Big Roo and I are back living in Australia, slowly rediscovering all the splendour "home" has to offer. One of the glories that Little Roo and I recently experienced was a trip to the beach.

Clovelly Beach was my childhood local beach, so when Little Roo and I were on a recent trip to Sydney visiting my family, we decided to take the leisurely 20 minute stroll from my childhood home down to the beach. It proved to be a glorious day, the Spring weather was perfect for frolicking in the sand, collecting shells and rocks, dipping our feet into the gentle waters and noshing on ice cream.

Clovelly beach is well off the tourist trail, it is a locals beach and a total Sydney gem. With plenty of good eating at and near the beach, it was a blissful day out rediscovering Sydney, Australia with Little Roo!

For the climb of your life

2010-12-08T09:26:00.006-05:00

Attending Christmas parties and gift buying has taken on a new dimension for me living on the other side of the world. I am not used to dealing with the freezing cold temperatures in the lead up to the Holiday season. I look like the Michelin Man as I arrive to Holiday parties. Before being able to exchange pleasantries and accept my first glass of wine, I spend ten minutes peeling off all my winter layers.

Gift giving has also taken on a whole new meaning, as I am obsessed with how cold it is (and complaining about it). All my gifts tend to have a "how to stay warm in winter" theme. In turn I enjoy receiving gifts that will make my winter more tolerable. One of the best Christmas gifts I have ever received was during my first Christmas in D.C.. I had only been in the country for a couple of weeks and was ill prepared for the weather. A glorious friend gifted me thermal lined leather gloves, it was true bliss for my frost bitten hands! As good as that gift was, it was not the best Christmas gift I have ever received. That honor lies with a gift I received while living in Sydney.

The lead up to Christmas in Australia is a very different experience to the lead up in Washington D.C.. It is all about the beach, eating fresh seafood and getting glammed up in summer dresses. The weather is beautiful, it is the start of summer and most offices are preparing to shut down for a few weeks for the holidays so the mood in the city is joyful!

On a glorious summer's day as a Christmas gift to all his employees, my former boss took us all on the climb of our lives! No it was not Mount Kilimanjaro or Kosciusko, we climbed up to the top of the Sydney Harbor Bridge. I thought I knew my city fairly well before the climb but being 134 meters above Sydney's sparkling Harbor put it all into a beautiful and breathtaking new perspective.

So much so that when I think about gifts for my friends and family back home, I am thinking of presenting them with BridgeClimb gift certificates. I figure not only will they get to scale an international icon but experience the rush of the traffic whooshing below them and the absolute thrill of reaching the top of the bridge and having all of Sydney laid out in front of them. Priceless....

Chrismukkah

2010-12-02T14:51:00.001-05:00

Chrismukkah is upon us, the season where as an interfaith (Jewish and Catholic) family we try to embrace (or ignore) or simply deal with the mixed messages of Hanukkah and Christmas. The stores are selling dreidels, menorahs, Christmas decorations and trees. One side of the family is lighting the menorah and handing out Hanukkah gelt and the other half is asking for photos with Santa. What is an interfaith Little Roo suppose to think?

I have always encouraged Little Roo to milk (learn about) both sides, accept the Hanukkah gelt, take the photo with Santa and grab the Christmas presents while she can. She is young and the holiday season, no matter which side you're on, should be fun at her age.

To even things out, I do think Hanukkah needs to beef up its marketing effort, because no matter where in the western world you live, Christmas always seems to trump Hanukkah. Even all Jewish households would benefit in a boost of Hanukkah marketing. This morning one of my (Jewish) friends facebook posts read "Went to the Chanukah candle lighting - sang songs, ate latkes, played games. And then my son says (loudly) 'can we get photos with Santa now?'"

So how can Hanukkah market itself more effectively? Firstly, I think it should decide on a definitive spelling, is it Hanukkah, Hanukah Chanukah, Chanuka? All these accepted versions of spelling the word stresses me out every time I have to write it. Secondly, Hanukkah needs to take on Santa Claus, with a jolly icon that children can take photos with and that will come bearing gelt. I have a few suggestions to take on the great St. Nick. How about Mr. Latke Head or Daddy Dreidel? Then the folks at Hanukkah headquarters should make copious amounts of Hanukkah telemovies – "How the Grinch Stole the Menorah", "National Lampoons Hanukah Vacation" and "The Night before Hanukah".

As I contemplate further Hanukkah marketing efforts, Little Roo and I are off to wrap some Hanukkah gifts in Christmas paper.

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Posted By XPAT to Xpatriate Games at 12/02/2010 02:45:00 PM

The last of the Halloween candy!!

2010-12-01T09:32:00.003-05:00

We have reached a major milestone in our household this week. Little Roo is finally through the last of the Halloween candy. Her Halloween candy collection was a labor of love on her part, three hours of pounding the pavement on the cool autumn evening that was October 31, knocking on neighborhood doors, singing, "Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat, if you don't, I don't care, I'll pull down your underwear!"

For the record, I did NOT teach her that song. When I heard her sing it for the first time on Halloween, I was slightly mortified. My perfect little Australian child was giving repeat live performances of this very obnoxious song to complete strangers, insisting they give her candy. She on the other hand was delighted with the results of her singing; bags and bags of candy. Little Roo made me promise not to throw out the candy and I made her promise to eat it in moderation. So here we are, five weeks later at the end of the Halloween candy road, now time to go see the dentist!

Sufferin' succotash

2010-11-30T12:53:00.001-05:00

This past holiday weekend I was thankful for my family being adopted for Thanksgiving dinner and being included in this most delicious American tradition of eating turkey with all the fixins'. I got to try some luscious stuffing, gravy and succotash. Until last Thursday, my Australian ears had only heard the word "succotash" used in cartoon sketches but it turned out to be the name of a very tasty side dish comprised of corn and lima beans. Thanks to Thanksgiving, I will no longer live in ignorance when Sylvester the cat (the Looney Tunes cartoon character) says his trademark expression "Sufferin' succotash!" I will nod knowingly and think back to this past Thanksgiving dinner.

Coolifying Canberra

2010-10-12T09:50:00.005-04:00

Something has happened to Washington D.C. in my time living here. With the passing of the guard from the Bush administration to the Obama machine, Washington D.C. became cool. The First Lady is emerging into an American fashion icon, with her wardrobe choices getting as much attention as her husband's policy changes. The city has been flooded with reality television shows such as Top Chef, Real World, Real Housewives of D.C. and D.C. Cupcakes showcasing the best and worst (real housewives) the city has to offer.

It got me to thinking what would it take to make Australia's capital city of Canberra cool? Is it even possible to coolify Canberra? Nicknamed the Bush Capital because it feels like living in a big country town, where you can still find top class restaurants and museums but drive 5 minutes out in any direction and you will be in danger of hitting kangaroos with your car.

Most Americans I have encountered have actually not even ever heard of Canberra, let alone realized that it is our capital city. Wedged in between Australia's better known cities of Sydney and Melbourne, Canberra is in fact so uncool that one of our Prime Ministers John Howard did not even take up his official residency in the capital city but instead choose to reside in Sydney.

Currently Australia, has it's first female Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. Perhaps she is the turn around for Canberra, just as the Obama's seem to have been the turn around for D.C. Gillard is unmarried and I am thinking all she needs is a new boyfriend to really kick start Canberra's coolification. I have come up with a few ideas for potential suitors:

Jamie Foxx - What more could we ask for in Australia's First Man, he sings, dances, acts and he is super cool!

George Clooney - Voted as Sexiest Man Alive on two occasions by People Magazine, he could help Gillard make Canberra not only cool but sexy.

Foxx, Gillard and Clooney. Who can coolify Canberra?

Tim Tam Slam

2010-10-08T09:48:00.008-04:00

I walked into my local World Market store to discover a mini homage to Australia set up. World Market had a small selection of Australian products for sale, including the Australian breakfast and lunch spread staple for millions of Aussie families, Vegemite. Most Australians I know, myself included takes particular pleasure in torturing, I mean exposing foreign guests to Vegemite's unique salty taste. I personally can not stand Vegemite but my family members love it and insist on keeping it stockpiled despite it's astronomical U.S. price of $9 for a tiny jar.

Also included in the World Market Aussie selection of products was Shapes (flavoured crackers), Bundaberg Ginger Ale, Arnotts Assorted Biscuits and my all time favorite which I highly recommend, Arnotts Tim Tams. Tim Tams are a delicious indulgent chocolate on chocolate on more chocolate biscuit (or cookie if you rather), which can be enjoyed in many ways. My preferred method of Tim Tam consumption and the messiest method is something we call the Tim Tam Slam. A Tim Tam Slam is a uniquely Australian tradition of drinking a hot beverage (coffee, etc) by using a Tim Tam as a straw.

Recipe for a perfect Tim Tam Slam

Ingredients

Hot coffee made to your specifications (any hot beverage will do the trick)

Packet of Tim Tams (refrigerated Tim Tams are best)

Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur (to spike coffee -it makes it more fun in the long run)

Step One

Spike coffee with appropriate amount of liqueur

Step Two

Bite opposite ends of Tim Tam and use it a a straw to suck in coffee

Step Three

Prepare to get messy!

Attempt to consume the remains of the Tim Tam before it melts

Step Four

Repeat

Wonkfest with no Willy in sight

2010-10-07T10:22:00.006-04:00

I obviously spend a lot more time socializing with Little Roo and friends than I do with people my own age. When I was recently invited to a Wonkfest, I assumed I had won a golden ticket! Myself, Veruca Salt, Charlie Bucket and of course Mr Wonka would be in for a night of inspired chocolate wining and dining but no this is D.C. and it was a night of wonk work war story swapping.

I had the wrong kind of wonk in mind. A Wonkfest according to wiktionary is a self congratulatory meeting of wonks. A wonk as it turns out is an overly studious or particularly keen intellectual individual! These wonks I was socializing with were not chocolate obsessed but rather Hill obsessed (and no not in the Heidi and Spencer way), Capitol Hill. It was a social gathering of Capitol Hill employees, contractors and groupies. Even though it was an after hours affair with all ditching suit and tie for jeans and a polo shirt, I spied plenty of business card swapping and heard an abundance of policy power wonkery talk. In Australia, this kind of event would be labelled a Wankfest not a Wonkfest.

Being not of their Hill wonk world, I looked for someone less wonky to pass the time with and searched out a man with a healthy looking mullet and a long earring dangling from his left earlobe. Turns out he worked on the Hill as well, as a lobbyist.

A-MAZE-ING

2010-10-06T14:08:00.008-04:00

Big Roo looking Pumpkinlicious

No Pumpkin was harmed in the making of this photo

In Australia, Pumpkin Patch is a children's clothing company, so when a friend offered to drive us to a local Pumpkin Patch this past weekend, I thought we were headed to the mall to supplement Little Roo's Fall wardrobe.

Instead of the mall our gracious driver steered us towards "Summers Farm" in Frederick, Maryland. The farm had just opened up their farm doors (do farms have doors?), or should I say farm gates for the Annual Fall-for-All Festival. We were about to partake in some good old fashioned American Fall fun.

On the Fall fun agenda was a hayride, a frolic in a pumpkin patch (a real pumpkin patch where they grow the pumpkins not the store selling kids coordinates) and a meander through the Corn Maze. All this Fall family fun is $9.50 per person on weekends from now until November 2, 2010.

Having paid our admission price and donning the blue Summers Farm wristband notifying all on the farm that we are honest and trustworthy farm admission paying members of society we boarded our hayride. In our case the hayride was a John Deere tractor pulling a flat bed hayride trailer filled with hay bales for ones sitting pleasure. I did not time it the ride but think it would have been a few minutes long and dropped all aboard into a pumpkin patch.

Being the ignorant Australian that I am, I frolicked in the pumpkin patch wearing heels, which would have been totally appropriate to the shopping pumpkin patch I thought we were going to, but not so much for the farm, but you live in America and you learn. Being early October we opted not to pick huge giant pumpkins to schlep home with us. Carving out a Pumpkin Jack-O-Lantern three weeks out from Halloween might be a little too eager plus I do not want the smell of rotting pumpkin in the apartment to waft all that time.

Next on the Fall fun agenda, the Corn Maze. This year Summers Farm pledged their Corny support towards the local NFL team, Washington Redskins and we navigated through the feathered mascot . Little Roo insisted on doing both the short course, which took less than 15 minutes and the long course, which she bounced her way through in 30 minutes. From the ground, you get no sense of the design of the maze but there are plenty of postcards to purchase at the farm if you want to admire the design. It did spark a discussion amongst us, on how exactly you would cut out a maze design in your corn field. The only logical explanation must be a giant template of your design and planting per the template.

The Maize Maze

Another corny photo

All the leaves are brown and the sky is grey

2010-10-05T14:35:00.004-04:00

All the leaves are brown and the sky is grey. I went for a walk on a winters day. I'd be safe and warm if I was in SYD-NAY. Australia Dreamin'. On such as winter's day.

Who knew I would be able to relate to the 60's band, "The Mamas and the Papas". I agree and relate wholeheartedly with the lyrics in their chart topping song, "California Dreamin". There is no time when I am more homesick than when the temperature drops!

"The Mamas and the Papas" may have been singing about missing California, but when I feel the first cool, crisp D.C. autumn breeze blowing, I start yearning for my sun shined filled home in Sydney. Right now, all at home are packing up from winter and bouncing into Spring. I on the other hand reluctantly turn on the heat in the apartment for the first time in a long time and pull on my boots and coat to step outside, bracing for the chill on my face. Even though the calender reads autumn, the past couple of days in D.C. have felt decidedly like winter with temperatures dipping down to 9 degrees Celsius/48 degrees Fahrenheit.

As I sit here mourning the loss of balmy D.C. days, something magical occurs. My Skype flashes announcing a new IM from my sister. She is coming to visit in two weeks! Even though I can't go home right now, I get a little slice of home coming my way.....AAAHHHH!

Tasting Bethesda

2010-10-04T10:48:00.006-04:00

Paella anyone?

Apart from being a funny name, Pulled Pork is good

This past Saturday was the 21st Annual Taste of Bethesda Festival. The event is touted as Bethesda's famous food and music festival attracting over 40,000 attendees, partaking in offerings from over 55 restaurants.

What is a Bethesda you ask? Bethesda has been my home for the past three years. It is a little slice of my American experience. It is not quite downtown D.C. and not quite the suburbs. It is what I like to call Urabania, a balance of urban living with a hint of suburbia. It is a place where I can walk to 55 restaurants or hop on the metro to arrive 15 minutes later in the heart of D.C. and it is a place where Little Roo can go to a great public school to learn, thrive and flourish.

In the three years living in the area, I have been Tasting Bethesda on a regular basis, with my waistline and wallet taking a battering. I am not sure if it is the nature of the expat lifestyle that we live or the nature of American culture but we certainly eat out a lot more here than we ever did back home in Australia. For me as a local resident, the Taste of Bethesda festival is a nice little opportunity to sample some of the restaurants and cuisines I have not yet been able to try out on my own.

So, what food does an Australian expat family gravitate to with a choice of over 55 restaurants representing a wide variety of cuisines from all over the world? American! We shunned the divine smelling and enormous Paella prepared by the chefs from Jaleo restaurant in favor of some dive bar food courtesy of Tommy Joe's. Pulled Pork Sliders for the grown ups and Mini Cheeseburgers for Little Roo. Fearing we had not clogged our arteries sufficiently, we did make an additional purchase of Fries from BlackFinn Bar.

Victory tastes like a Chorizo Sausage

2010-07-28T14:41:00.002-04:00

What does an expat family do when their country's team is doing woefully in the FIFA World Cup? Barrack (in Australia we "barrack" for a team, I guess in the U.S, I should be "rooting" for a team but that has a whole other connotation in Oz) for opposing teams while placing a little wager on the result.

I ended up victorious (thank you Spain) and Big Roo ended up having to grocery shop, prepare, cook and clean up after a three course Spanish meal. With the World Cup weeks behind us, it was time for Big Roo to pay up this weekend. On the hottest day known to mankind, otherwise known as this past Saturday, Big Roo went grocery shopping in search of Spanish ingredients (I tagged along just to complain about the heat at regular five minute intervals).

First stop, A & H Seafood Market (4960 Bethesda Ave, Bethesda, MD 20814), a great locally owned spot to pick up fresh seafood and specialty Spanish and Portuguese items. The owners are Spanish and always have good advice on the produce they sell. I frequent this place quite a bit, coming from Australia I have an aversion to buying seafood from the supermarket. Plenty of fresh seafood markets in Oz to buy seafood from, so why would I purchase previously frozen offerings from the supermarket? I digress, back to my victory dinner. At A & H, Big Roo stocked up on some Spanish goodies and got to work cooking me up a storm while I complained some more about the heat.

Victory tasted good that night! I was treated to a selection of tapas which included Spanish Olives, Goat's Cheese with crusty bread, Jamon Iberico, Grilled Chorizo Sausage, Spanish Potato Tortilla all washed down with a refreshing homemade Sangria. For the main attraction, Big Roo channeled his inner Spaniard and whipped up a fabulous Chicken and Chorizo Paella, finishing it all off with a Flan. The meal was amazing! I even stopped complaining about the heat for a while.

Viva Espana!!!!

Hot in the city, hot in the city tonight, tonight!!!

2010-07-26T15:15:00.002-04:00

I know 1980's bleached blonde hair sensation Billy Idol was not referring to the sweltering hot, humid summer that is Washington D.C, when singing his hit song, "Hot in the city, hot in the city tonight, tonight " but it has become this summer's anthem in my household.

Moving to D.C, I had reconciled in my mind that it would get very cold in the winter but I was not aware of the pain and torture that is the summer months. Upon waking up each day, I give into my iPhone addiction and before I even roll out of bed, greet my family "good morning" or have a cup of coffee, I refer to my iPhone to check in on all the day's important things. I check all incoming email correspondence, facebook status updates, yelp reviews and the weather. Of late the weather has been out of control, with this past weekend reaching an obnoxious level. The temperature on Saturday topped at 39 degrees Celsius/102 degrees Fahrenheit. Being Australian, I still think in Celsius but it sure does sound very dramatic to say the temperature has reached over 100 degrees!

I am not sure what is more challenging, trying to entertain Little Roo during the no school days of Snowmagedon or during the two and a half months of the sweltering summer school vacation. As terrible as it may sound, I am indebted to the Disney channel and air conditioning on both counts. Thank you modern day conveniences!

Achtung! Socceroos down but not out

2010-06-14T14:19:00.002-04:00

Yesterday's World Cup football (soccer, if you will) match between the Australian Socceroos team and Germany was not pretty to watch! I am sure the German fans enjoyed it but as an Australian it hurt watching the Socceroos get pantsed 4-0.

We hosted a little shindig (Aussie party) at our place yesterday to watch the game. Little Roo was in charge of decoration, a job she took very seriously, she quickly and deftly applied Australian flag temporary tattoos on our unsuspecting guests before they could protest. Big Roo was in charge of catering, on the menu was German Beer (just to be fair), Australian wine and the Pièce de résistance, the Aussie sporting snack of snacks – sausage rolls. Sausage rolls are the Australian equivalent of having a hotdog at the ball game. It is usually made up of some mystery meat encased in pastry and dunked in tomato sauce. When you have not had one for a while, as we have not, you do begin to miss it. Where the Socceroos failed to score yesterday, Big Roo kicked a goal in the snack department. All the tasty little morsels of his homemade sausage rolls were gobbled up before half time.

Hopefully the Socceroos will improve in the next game but either way, the below recipe for sausage rolls will keep you snack happy while you watch.

Sausage Rolls

2 packets of pre-rolled frozen puff pastry

6 large Italian sausages, can be 'sweet' or 'spicy' according to taste

1/4 of a large red onion, finely chopped

2 tablespoons of tomato sauce

1 teaspoon of dried mixed herbs

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 beaten eggs

Defrost pastry

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and then line two baking sheets with parchment paper

Once pastry has softened slightly, cut each square into equal thirds

Remove casings from sausages and then thoroughly combine meat with all the other ingredients, except the eggs. Season well

Form meat mixture in to long sausage shapes and lay on the top of pastry rectangles

Brush beaten egg along one of the inner edges of the pastry and then roll up

Cut into whatever size sausage rolls you desire

Brush the tops of the rolls with some more of the beaten egg

Increase the oven temp to 400 degrees F when you place the rolls into the oven

Bake for about 15 - 20 minutes

Serve hot or warm with tomato sauce

Bubbles

2010-06-07T08:45:00.003-04:00

I have long thought that I need a signature drink, a cocktail that I will great my guests with when I welcome them at the front door. Since, I have come to terms with my duty as an expat to eat, drink, be merry and be a lush, it is only fitting that I have my very own signature drink.

As of this weekend, I have finally discovered a drink I am happy to lay claim to. Admittedly I will be stealing the cocktail concept from a fellow Aussie expat, I have convinced myself she will not mind as it will be staying in the "Aussie" family.

I call the drink Xpatriate Games - try it and enjoy!!

- One scoop Lemon Sorbet

- One shot of Gin

- Fill glass to the top with chilled bubbles (Champagne, Prosecco or a generic sparkling wine)

French Open Finalist Sam Stosur, Lyme disease and I

2010-06-05T10:07:00.003-04:00

Sam Stosur

Sam Stosur is the first Australian women in the Tennis French Open Finals since 1979. A feat in itself, and one much needed for Australian tennis. Considering that a few years ago she was housebound through fatigue and IV antibiotic treatment for Lyme disease, the feat becomes that much more impressive.

Lyme disease is an infectious disease spread through a tick bite. Controversy surrounds the presence of this disease in Australia but it is wide spread throughout parts of Europe and North America. Symptoms range from headache, fever, lethargy, joint inflammation and pain to facial paralysis.

It seems that my fellow Aussie Sam Stosur and I contracted this disease while living in America. I don't know about her, but this was not exactly the type of souvenir or memento I really wanted to take back with me from my time in this country. Having never even heard of the disease I was certainly ill prepared to deal with it.

As they say, at the end of every tunnel there is a light (some tunnels are very long though). I am glad to see that Sam made it to the end of her tunnel and kicked some tunnel butt by making a full recovery, regaining her health, strength and tennis prowess to make it to the French Open Final. I am still in my tunnel but I now think there might be a tennis grand slam on my horizon.

The Summer is Magic

2010-06-02T14:05:00.006-04:00

I am not usually a fan of euro dance tracks but I am quite fond of the 1994 Playahitty hit "The Summer is Magic". Well maybe I just like the title and sentiment of the song. No matter where in the world you are, the summer is magic!

Even in stiflingly hot, humid, sweaty tourist infested Washington D.C, there is magic to be found. One uniquely indigenous summer food that must be indulged in whilst in the local area is Crabs. Hot, steamy, sold by the dozen and served on brown paper while you sit on an outdoor picnic table and eat with your hands Maryland Crabs.

Unlike in Australia, where crab is a luxury item that commands top dollar and you usually purchase only one at a time to share among many. The crabs here are sold by the dozen and given quite a rough treatment, a shake of Old Bay seasoning and into the steamer.

My top pick for buying crabs in the city is at Maine Avenue Fish Market located at 1100 Maine Ave SW, Washington D.C. It is truly off the beaten path and not only provides value for your seafood money but a good cross section of the D.C population. The only downside to the market is that there is no seating to enjoy your purchases at. You can either enjoy your food on a bench off the pier and then give your leftovers to the nearby sleeping homeless man (as we once did) or take your goodies home.

If your after a more sit down affair in the city, head on over to the Bethesda Crab House located at 4958 Bethesda Ave, Bethesda, Maryland. Here you will be treated to picnic style diningwith no cutlery in sight. Just you, a few dozen crabs, all the corn you can eat and cold buckets of beer.

Fractions

2010-06-01T11:09:00.001-04:00

Little Roo outside the White House

Little Roo is now six and a half, not just six as she keeps reminding me but six and a half. She has spent nearly three years living in the U.S, three very formative years. She started school here, she learned to read, write, add, subtract and recite the pledge of allegiance everyday at school. She feels very entrenched in the culture. So entrenched in fact that when asked recently "who she is" she said, I am half American. When asked about the other half, she replied, I am also half Australian, half Russian, half Catholic and half Jewish.

Little Roo has started to learn fractions at school and I am sure it will not be long before she comes to the realization that the above equation does not quite add up. For right now though, Little Roo is comfortable with her global identity and and is enjoying her expat adventures.

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Posted By XPAT to Xpatriate Games at 5/28/2010 10:57:00 AM

Rumspringa: To Be or Not to Be Amish

2010-05-31T15:46:00.011-04:00

It is Memorial Day holiday long weekend, the unofficial start 0f summer here in the U.S. The local swimming pools start opening their doors, shaved ice trucks turn their machines on for the season and welcome the holiday crowds with brightly flavored ice cones and just like anywhere else in the world, people make the most of the day off and travel in droves. Even the Obamas skipped town and missed the traditional laying of the wreath at Arlington Cemetery on Memorial Day to visit friends and family in Chicago.

So how does a nice Australian expat family spend the long weekend? Getting acquainted with a quirky side of American culture by visiting the Amish in Pennsylvania Dutch Country.

The Amish in Lancaster County, PA are quite the tourist attraction; in fact it was a little disappointing how "commercial" the areas in which they live have become. I can only guess that the Amish have set up these commercial zones, slightly removed from their residences to suit and preserve their traditional lifestyle while appeasing the mass of tourists. By building a commercial market district they can control the interaction they have with curious tourists by keeping them at an arms distance while satisfying their curiosity by offering trinkets (made in China), buggy rides and offering up Amish food.

Before visiting all I knew about the Amish were some vague facts that I remember hearing on an episode of Oprah many years back. The Amish people are of Swiss-German descent and emigrated to Pennsylvania in the 18th Century. The Amish continue to lead a simple, religious life shunning all modern technology. For some reason this simple life translates into women wearing bonnets and men growing awkward looking beards. The Oprah episode that I watched focused on a documentary called "Devil's Playground". The filmmakers followed a group of Amish teens partaking in an Amish tradition called Rumspringa. Rumspringa occurs approximately at the age of sixteen, when good Amish boys and girls should be considering marriage and some contemplate leaving the fold. During this period, church rules are relaxed and some Amish teens even move out of their community and experience non-Amish life. The teens in the documentary move out of home and partake in some cliched teenage sex, drugs and rock and roll but the majority return to their home and continue to led a respectable Amish life. At the time, I made a mental note to try watch the documentary and visit the Amish one day. As of this weekend, I just have "watch documentary" left on my to do list.

What I liked about visiting the Amish

- The names of the towns ("Bird in Hand" and "Intercourse")

- Bird in Hand markets, where you can score some real bargains and it still has some level of authenticity

- Driving through the back streets of the Amish towns and getting a glimpse of day to day life

- Road side stalls that local Amish children had set up to sell their home made goods

- Fresh strawberries: small, sweet freshly picked strawberries with the stalk still in tact

- Watching several generations of an Amish family travel around in their little horse and carriages

- Seeing the balck and grey Amish washing on the line flap around in the hot, dry sun

- Fried Chicken

- Apple Cider

What I did not like about visiting the Amish

- The very commercial and uninspiring Kettle Kitchen village

- All the other tourists

In Washington D.C, bigger is better

2010-05-21T16:13:00.002-04:00

Washington D.C government officials have been accused of handing out inferior condoms! High school and college students have complained that the free condoms the city gives out are bad quality and too small.

In a bid to lower teenage pregnancy and stop the spread of sexually transmitted diseases the city has coughed up the extra money and has agreed to provide the students what they want - Trojan brand condoms including the company's MAGNUM size.

Before I moved to D.C, I did all the prerequisite research into my new city and was absolutely floored with one particular figure, 1 in 20 adults residing in Washington D.C is HIV positive. It is the country's highest rate of infection.

If handing out Trojan Magnums will help in the fight against HIV, then more power to them! City officials will send up to 10 free condoms to residents who request them online, along with making them available at barber shops, liquor stores and youth centers.

The other other white meat

2010-05-20T11:48:00.004-04:00

I must admit that before I moved to the U.S, I thought I was moving into a food wasteland, where my dining choices would be limited to fatty, greasy fast food outlets and processed fluorescent colored cheese. I even tried to "friend" Anthony Bourdain (he was the only American I could think of that had sensible taste in food) on facebook, posing what I thought was a reasonable question, "where can I find decent food in the D.C area?" Bourdain ignored both my friend request and question, so I was left to explore the culinary world in D.C without any guidance. Upon arrival, I discovered that yes, there is a plethora of fluorescent cheese in this country but there is also an equal amount of good food, restaurants and ingredients.

One ingredient that I enjoy in the U.S is Turkey. Since pork has successful marketed themselves as "the other white meat", turkey in my book is the "other other white meat" that we do not get nearly enough of in Australia. Eating turkey in Australia is limited to a Christmas dinner or the occasional smoked turkey sandwich from the deli but here there is an overabundance of turkey. I am going to have a Forrest Gump moment and list all the ways I have eaten turkey in this country - turkey legs, turkey wings, turkey mince, turkey bacon, turkey pepperoni, turkey sausages, turkey breast, turkey thighs, turkey jerky and of course whole turkey.

In particular I enjoy a good turkey burger, it is quite often my burger of choice and I have enjoyed a few good ones around town, I even wrote about one in a previous blog post - It is good stuff. As a spin on the iconic American burger I have started making Mini turkey burgers at home. Little Roo loves them because well she is a kid and likes to eat burgers and I like them because they are SIMPLE to make and quite healthy. In the words of Dr. Suess, "You do not like them. So you say. Try them! Try them! And you may. Try them and you may, I say"

- Mix ground turkey (otherwise known as minced turkey in Australia) with onion, garlic, cumin, a few drops of whatever hot sauce you have lying around, salt, pepper, some thyme or cilantro (coriander).

- Form into mini burger patties, grill it up and serve on a mini bun. My preference is to serve it on a ciabatta roll topped with a home made guacamole and salad on the side.

- Both Little and Big Roo like bacon and cheese on their turkey burger, which kind of kills off the whole healthy notion of it all but each to their own.

Welcome to America

2010-04-28T14:21:00.008-04:00

Living in America, just like living anywhere else in the world, you come across good, bad and ugly behavior. Generally speaking, as an expat experiencing life here, I have always been made to feel welcome by Americans and have witnessed and personally been the beneficiary of a lot of good. However, lately I have been coming across some ugly and unwelcoming images, behavior and rhetoric all over the country.

If I happened to be living my expat lifestyle in Arizona, under the new Arizona Immigration Bill local authorities could stop and question me after ascertaining I was foreign (I do after all have an accent). Authorities could demand to see evidence of my legal resident status and under the new law, I would be committing a crime by not having my "proper identification" with me at all times, punishable by a jail sentence of up to six months and a fine of $2,500. In my case "proper identification" would be my Australian passport with my U.S issued visa, but unless I am about to catch a flight at the airport, I am not in the habit of carrying around my passport.

The welcoming behavior does not stop in Arizona; Idaho seems to have a home grown case of ugliness in the shape of a bald man named Harley Brown. Harley Brown is an Idaho Congress hopeful whose defense policy mantra is "Nuke their ass, take their gas". On his website, the immigration policy currently reads "Content Comming Soon, But for now its Adios Amigos" (and no I did not misspell, "Coming", that is how it appears on the site). Brown's other nuggets of wisdom include a long rant on Obama's birth certificate "Why has Obama Not produced a valid birth certificate providing he was born on American soil? Because he can't. If he faked it, he would be guilty of Federal felony Fraud. The first thing that I'd like to do when elected and on behalf of the ½ million American citizens of my district, I promise to scream like a F-4 Jet fighter at full war emergency after burner take off power and demand he produce his birth certificate. If that doesn't work, I'll make louder noises and get a lot more aggressive. In fact this is "DO OR DIE" They will have to kill me to get me to shut up. If it is proven Obama is not the legitimate president, then everything he has done while in office and all the people he has appointed and everything they have done will be nullified. This would really dump hot coals into the shorts of those communist liberal progressive politicians. It would be like Luke Skywalker dropping his bomb into the ventilation shaft of the Death Star in "Star Wars."

Close to home Washington D.C, in neighboring Virginia a photo of a truck parked in a disabled space has been doing the email rounds. The image on the truck is a large Confederate flag, featuring the World Trade Center burning. The text on the truck reads, "Everything I ever need to know about Islam I learned on 9/11". It gets better the license plate is loaded with meaning as well - the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) noticed that the license plate contained a coded Neo-Nazi white supremacist message. The number 88 stands for the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, doubled to signify "Heil Hitler," said CAIR's Ibrahim Hooper. "CV" stands for "Confederate veteran" and 14 is code for imprisoned white supremacist David Lane's 14-word motto: "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children."

On a recent trip to Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love I was surprised to see a rather unloving image. While I along with the other thousands of tourists made a pilgrimage to the great and might Philly cheese steak Mecca that is Pat's and Geno's, I saw a sign on the window at Geno's that read, "This is America, when ordering, speak English". The sign at Geno's left a bad taste in my mouth, so I took my order across the street to Pat's.

Darth Vader at the Washington National Cathedral

2010-04-27T12:03:00.005-04:00

What do Darth Vader, a moon rock and ANZAC Day (for an explanation please read, ANZAC Day and ANZAC Biscuits) have in common? They all have a special place at the intersection of Massachusetts and Wisconsin Aves, NW in the Washington National Cathedral.

Yesterday was my first visit to the Washington National Cathedral. I along with my fellow Australian and New Zealand expats attended the annual commemorative service held at the Cathedral to mark ANZAC Day. The service gave me an opportunity to hobnob with others of my accent whilst paying tribute to our fallen military men and women. The visit to the Washington National Cathedral also allowed me to not only appreciate the beautiful building and spectacularly manicured lawns but absorb some of it's quirkiness.

In the 1980's the Washington National Cathedral placed a gargoyle of Darth Vader on the top of one of it's towers. As part of a decorative sculpture competition for children, Darth along with other eccentric gargoyles including a raccoon, a girl with pigtails and braces and a man with large teeth and an umbrella now grace the outside of the building. The quirks do not end on the outside, once inside, looking up amongst the beautiful and grand stained glass windows, there is none other than a piece of lunar rock embedded in the glass.

I love a little religion, mixed in with a little U.S pop culture, all while commemorating an Australian holiday.

ANZAC Biscuits

2010-04-24T11:26:00.002-04:00

Tomorrow April 25, 2010 is ANZAC Day, a day when Australians and New Zealanders unite to commemorate our war veterans. It is also a day to start drinking heavily from very early on in the morning, gamble on a coin game that is illegal to play in Australia on every other day except for ANZAC Day called Two Up. For me, Anzac day is also the perfect day to eat ANZAC biscuits (an Australian version of an oatmeal cookie).

Since there are no ANZAC biscuits for sale at my local supermarket, I am going to attempt to make them myself today using the golden syrup I made my mother send me from Australia. In the interest of blending my Australian background with my host country's culture, I am going to try a Martha Stewart recipe for ANZAC biscuits (even though she calls them cookies).

If you are keen to try the recipe below but are relying on ingredients easily found in the U.S, substitute golden syrup for either honey or corn syrup.

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups rolled oats

2 cups sugar

1 cup dessicated coconut

1 cup unsalted butter

2 tablespoons golden syrup

3/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 cup boiling water

Preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit or 160 Celsius degrees

Line baking sheet with parchment paper

In a bowl combine flour, oats, sugar and coconut

In a small saucepan, carefully melt butter with golden syrup

Dissolve baking soda in boiling water and add to the butter mixture

Add butter mixture to dry ingredients (stir to combine)

Roll a teaspoonful of mixture into small balls (Martha uses a ice cream scoop for this step - i just eye ball it because I do not own an ice cream scoop) and drop onto prepared baking sheet

Flatten mixture slightly with your hand

Allow plenty of room between biscuits (as they will spread)

Bake until golden brown and firm but not hard (this should take approximately 15 minutes)

Transfer to a wire rack, allow to cool

To enjoy the ANZAC biscuit in true ANZAC spirit, try it with a nice cup of coffee spiked with rum!!

Got Heart, Give Hope

2010-04-23T15:12:00.008-04:00

This little expatriate does not get out very much to "grown up" events. Without close family and friends nearby and after a disastrous experience with an after school nanny, finding a good and trustworthy babysitter for Little Roo has proved too hard on most occasions. Last night all the moons were in alignment and I got to dress up and attend a the Got Heart, Give Hope Gala to benefit the Hope for the Warriors programs and services

In their own words "The mission of Hope for the Warriors is to enhance quality of life for US Service Members and their families nationwide who have been adversely affected by injuries or death in the line of duty. Hope for the Warriors actively seeks to ensure that the sacrifices of wounded and fallen warriors and their families are never forgotten nor their needs unmet."

Even this little expatriate, who is relatively new to town, knows that there is a Gala event on most nights of the week in DC. There are more non-profits than you can poke a stick at in the district and breaking through the fundraising clutter is as difficult as passing a bill through congress. What impressed me about the event was not the host of the awards Mr. Gary Sinise (who by the way became a tireless advocate for veterans after his role in Forrest Gump) but the founders Robin Kelleher and Shannon Maxwell. Two military wives that through tragedy found a need that needed to be filled and filled it.

In late 2004, Shannon's husband, LtCol Tim Maxwell, was severely wounded in Iraq after shrapnel from a mortar attack left him with a traumatic brain injury. Physical and emotional wounds created unanticipated short and long-term needs for their family and for many other families of wounded and fallen warriors that meet through their experience. In 2006, Hope for the Warriors was founded and in the few short years since, the organization has reached national success with a working budget of $2,500,000. It gives me new meaning to the Eurythmics classic "Sister are Doin' it for themselves". Not only are these sisters doin' it for themselves but they are doin' it for the wider military community.

The highlight of the evening for me last night was meeting Shannon and her husband Tim. I listened to them recap their own personal story and somehow retell it with no trace of bitterness in their voice. Tim talks candidly about his brain injury and one particularly humorous side effect he experiences from it - the uncontrollable need to constantly cuss (his words not mine, we in Australia refer to 'cussing' as swearing or having a potty mouth) and use profanities. If you can't feel free to swear after a traumatic brain injury, when can you bloody swear!

Great Australian Inventions

2010-04-21T10:15:00.002-04:00

If you are a beer drinker, apparently one of the best inventions (since beer of course) is the humble stubby (stubby is "Australian" for short bottle of beer) cooler.

What is a stubby cooler? Well it turns out that it is actually an Australian invention designed to keep our men happy by keeping their beer cold but their hands warm and dry. No one is surprised to learn that Australian men like beer, but they also like their beer icy cold right down to the last drop! Many a man found that without proper insulation their precious beer becomes too warm – so the stubby cooler was born. Made of latex, styrofoam or if you get real fancy neoprene (wetsuit material), a stubby cooler is a simple round hollow cylinder used to keep beer cold. Now days the old stubby cooler has become the souvenir of choice for many and Big Roo was recently gifted quite a classy one.

Tax

2010-04-16T15:10:00.001-04:00

April 15 marked the deadline for 142 million Americans and expats to file tax returns. I find it difficult enough to grasp the Australian taxation system but now I have to keep up and keep track of the American system as well........this is definitely not a perk of being an expat.

Since Big Roo is not a diplomat or part of a huge multinational corporation, we are on our own when it comes to sorting through our taxation obligations in both countries. Our first tax filing experience in the U.S was not pleasant. We grossly underestimated the amount of tax we had to pay and were meet with a hefty IRS bill plus a late fee for good measure. This year we learned from our past tax mistake and fared a lot better. It was all thanks to the help and advice of our H&R Block expat expert, who in retrospect we really should have spoken to as soon as we arrived in the country. You live in a foreign country and learn!

Yesterday was also the day the First Couple posted their tax information online. The Obama's declared a total income of more than $US5.5 million. His official Presidential salary is $US400,000 a year, excluding expenses. But the big bucks are coming from royalties of his two books, "The Audacity of Hope" and "Dreams from my Father". So when it comes to book sales, it's good to be the president!

I wonder if Australian Prime Minister (and children's book author) Kevin Rudd is going to be filing an Obama sized $5.5 million dollar tax return his year bad on his book sales. He has recently co-authored a children's book titled "Jasper and Abby and the Great Australia Day Kerfuffle". The book follows dog Abby and cat Jasper in an adventure in the grounds of Kirribilli House (official Sydney residence of the Australian Prime Minister). I will have to wait until June 30^th, which is the end of the Australian tax year to find out. Who says public office isn't lucrative?

This little Piggy went to KFC

2010-04-14T13:19:00.011-04:00

From the company who dropped the word fried from their name to appear more healthy, "KFC" presents the Double Down. The Double Down is a brilliant example of all the things that are wrong with fast food and overindulging in the U.S.

KFC describes their new offering on their website as featuring "two thick and juicy boneless white meat chicken fillets (original recipe or grilled), two pieces of bacon, two melted slices of Monterey Jack and Pepper Jack cheese and Colonel's Sauce! This product is so meaty, there is no room for a bun!"

There may not be any room for a bun, but this bread less burger fits in 540 Calories, 32g of fat and 1380mg of sodium - it is a perfect balanced diet to ensure clogged arteries and high cholesterol! Some media outlets have conducted independent research on the sandwich and suspect that it contains more than twice the calories KFC claims.

Personally I feel rather queasy and nauseous at the thought of consuming KFC's latest combo. Big Roo on the other hand is simply salivating at the thought of all that greasy goodness and is plotting a visit to KFC ASAP. Most Australians though, will not have the artery clogging option of downing a Double Down as KFC has no plans to release it in Australia. For those Aussies desperate to try one, your best bet is hopping on a flight to the land of the free, the brave and the greasy.

Coffee

2010-04-13T11:51:00.007-04:00

Anybody who has ever spent time with me, knows that I am a coffee addict and a coffee snob. I average approximately three cups a day and never drink instant and until moving to the states I never used to drink filter coffee… I blame my father. Ever since we were of legal coffee drinking age my father would spoil us with fresh espresso coffee every morning, made lovingly on his pride and joy the LA PAVONI espresso machine. Before he sent me down the aisle and married me off to Big Roo he made sure I had my very own La Povoni. In fact, one of the saddest goodbyes I said in Sydney before the move to Washington was to the Barista who services the coffee machines and roasts the espresso beans that we used at home; we received hugs and kisses from his entire family (if you are ever in the Annandale neighborhood of Sydney, visit the fabulously delicious coffee at Euroespresso)

Now that I am without my lovely local Sydney cafes and my precious La Pavoni machine and Euroespresso coffee beans, I have not manged to satisfy my craving for good coffee here in the U.S. This is not through lack of trying either. I have tried to locate a decent cafe but to no avail. I fanatically scour cafe reviews and upon reading a glowing report I immediately show up to the counter with hope but leave with a bad (coffee) taste in my mouth. How do I say this politely to my host country? The coffee here sucks!

This country has changed me and beaten me down! I am no longer the coffee snob I once was, I now drink whatever I can get. Whether it is a $4 double strength short skim no foam latte from Starbucks (even this long winded and rather obnoxious sounding order results in mediocre tasting coffee) and recently I have even had to bite the bullet and drink filter coffee. What will my father say?

"I'm a stupid Aussie"

2010-04-12T11:54:00.004-04:00

Australian celebrity chef Curtis Stone muttered the words "I'm a stupid Aussie", on a television episode of Celebrity Apprentice that aired last night. Curtis admitted his "stupidity" to one of his team mates because he did not know which basketball team NBA legend Clyde Drexler played for.

To most in Asutralia, Drexlers biography would not be common knowledge but here in the U.S as Curtis discovered, you are expected to have total awareness of all things American pop culture including a working knowledge of former and current U.S sports stars. Not at any stage did any of Curtis's team mates think to explain to the foreigner who and what a Clyde Drexler was. As Curtis and I learned last night, Drexler is a very nice 40 something year old man who used to play for the Houston Rockets and is now a member of the basketball hall of fame.

It is comforting to know that even high flying Aussie expat Curtis and I have somethings in common. Neither of us knew which team Clyde Drexler played for and I am not the only expat in this country who frequently feels "stupid" and on the verge of committing cultural faux pas!

What does freedom mean?

2010-04-07T13:43:00.009-04:00

The Roos and I recently visited Philadelphia, PA. Growing up as a little girl in Australia, I was sure that Philadelphia was a nice little town where they made my favourite breakfast spread. Like so many other things as I grew up and matured, this assumption was shattered.

I now have no idea where Philadelphia Cream Cheese is made, but I do have a higher appreciation for the historic contributions the city of Philadelphia lays claim to. One of which is being the host of the signing of the U.S Constitution on September 17, 1787. During our recent trip to the city, we along with all the other tourists paid homage to this historic event and visited the National Constitution Center, which as the name suggests celebrates the signing of the Constitution along with the struggle and rise of the American people to freedom. It is a very patriotic and proud museum.

One of the exhibit halls has large questions on democracy and freedom posted along the walls. The museum encourages visitors to write their answers t0 the questions on post it notes and stick answers onto the wall. Above is a photo of an answer that Australian born, U.S educated, lucky enough to know and experience freedom in both countries Little Roo provided on the topic, "Tell us what makes you feel free?" Her answer - "On Saturday and Sunday I don't have to go to school".

Big Roo also felt free enough in the museum to make George Washington wear his Australian Football League (no it is not the same as soccer or rugby) North Melbourne hat.

Census 2010 - They can't move forward until I mail it back

2010-04-07T11:54:00.004-04:00

During the past couple of months I have been inundated with the U.S Census 2010 propaganda machine. It has been coming at me from all angles - watching television, reading newspapers, taking public transport, even through Little Roo's school listserv and newsletters. Everybody from Dora the Explorer to Eva Longoria has told me to fill out my Census and be counted!!

Propaganda works I tell you because I took note and promptly filled out my Census when it arrived in the mail. I was surprised that after all the apparent effort to encourage me to fill out the Census questionnaire, the U.S government (who may I add do not make it easy or straight forward to apply for visas and work permits) does not seem to be interested in my expatriate or work status. They only seem to be interested in my age and race. They are spending billions of dollars to do a quick "head count". Is this not a lost opportunity to gather other critical information? Is the government being too politically sensitive by not obtaining information on the labor market, income and citizenship status of the population?

Why not even get creative and tender out the Census for Sponsorship. Surely Coca Cola would pay up to find out the beverage preferences of the population, or the meat industry might be interested to see how many of us are turning into soy milk drinking vegans - I mean, why doesn't the U.S government want to know more about me and my household?

Of course, my only other points of reference are the Australian Census questionnaires I have filled out , which from memory and doing a quick check on the Australian Bureau of Statistics site were far more detailed and lengthy. It got me thinking, when it comes to the government (of which ever country we are residing in), do we want (or need) them to know more or less about us while they are planning for the future?

It appears that being "Australian" is not a race

I am Australian not Austrian

2010-03-31T16:22:00.004-04:00

I never thought that upon moving to the US, that I would be mistaken for an Austrian. Due to the accent I was anticipating that people would assume I was from England (which happens frequently), or from New Zealand (this has not yet happened) but not Austrian!!

It is surprising how many seemingly well educated people upon meeting me and learning that I am from Australia go on and on about how lovely Vienna is. I just smile politely and nod at those people. Yes I am sure Vienna, Austria is lovely.

Well it seems the good folks in Vienna, Austria also have to "clear up" their fair share of confusion.

T-shirt Big Roo puchased while on a trip to Vienna, Austria (not the same as Australia)

Things I wish I knew........

2010-03-12T09:24:00.007-05:00

Being an expat and living in a foreign country, I feel like a tourist on a long vacation because I am constantly discovering my new surroundings. The list of things I wish I knew before I moved from Sydney to Washington D.C is rather long. If I ever sat down to write a proper list it would of course include all sorts of practical and sagely advice on the art of moving across the globe as well as including plenty of frivolous (yet highly useful) information as well.

The below piece of information would fall into the frivolous touristy cliche category of my list (I love this category). I now know that to obtain entry to the top of the very iconic Washington Monument, one can book advance tickets online at: http://www.recreation.gov/tourParkDetail.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=77811 . This option is a whole lot easier than getting up at an indecent hour very early in the morning to queue for a same day ticket (not that I have ever done that, I sent Big Roo!).

Kite Festival at the Washington Monument

Drip, drip, drip

2010-02-23T14:47:00.008-05:00

As I walk around my little part of the world, my little expat ears have been hearing very foreign noises. It is the drip, drip, dripping not of rain but the snow melting slowly from the roof tops and landing on the ground. Walking the sloppy, muddy sidewalks the melting snow has created balancing the ever present cup of coffee in one hand and grocery shopping in the other has become difficult, but I do not mind so much as the excitement of SPRING (I know it's coming) and the glorious promise of sunshine compensates for it.

I am ready (more than ready) to farewell winter. Goodbye snow, goodbye snowmageddon, goodbye snowman, goodbye snow angels……..

Little Roo enjoying the snow while it lasted

Super Bowl Sunday

2010-02-07T15:55:00.004-05:00

At least Snowmaggedon has made it nice and easy to put the beer on ice in time for Super Bowl Sunday!

Snowmageddon

2010-02-05T10:03:00.002-05:00

"Crippling snowstorm imminent" reads the forecast headline of the Washington Post today. Over the next few days the Washington D.C area can anticipate a historic snowstorm with a possible snowfall of 16 inches (just over 40cm). Now I realize this amount would be considered a light dusting to a lot of the country but to a little Aussie expat who hasn't quite mastered the art of walking on icy pathways, this sounds colossal!!!

Question is, how does an expat prepare for such a historic event? Buy into the mass hysteria and panic of course. I dutifully went to the supermarket yesterday to "load up" on supplies as instructed by my local news channel but given I had to carry all my groceries home I was limited to what I could carry. Those around me on the other hand were not under such restrictions. stockpiling and clogging up the cash registers. By looking into some trolleys, I could tell they were pros, loading up on all the sensible items such as milk, bread, juice, meat and plenty of sensible non perishable cans of vegetables. I on the other hand forgot to buy milk and ended up with 2 pounds of fresh catfish (which may I say was lovely for last nights dinner cooked up as southern fried catfish), a pound of smoked salmon, a punnet of strawberries, cherry size fresh mozzarella and yogurt.

Feeling a little worried that my shopping items may not see us through the weekend, I took a quick inventory of the pantry and have identified possible shortages and am sending out Big Roo to face the crowds. On the list is wine (we only have four bottles, I would really hate to run out of wine!!), salty snacks (I anticipate there will be a lot of sitting around and watching T.V this weekend), chocolate (need I say more) and he may as well get milk while he is out.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

2009-09-30T20:28:00.004-04:00

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way."

- Charles Dickens

Mr Dickens so eloquently sums up how I have been feeling over the past few months. I reached the highest highs of travel, fun and frivolity over summer vacation and then the lowest lows of being ill in a foreign country, with a foreign illness. I am feeling more evenly tempered these days, ready to share it all, the best of times and the worst of times.

911

2009-07-21T12:54:00.002-04:00

Most parents when visiting their Australian expat children bring with them stories from home, vegemite (translation: a dark brown food paste made from yeast extract smeared liberally on toast with butter), hugs and kisses. My parents on their recent visit to DC not to be outdone, bought all these and more. They also ensured they left us with a lasting impression. A police record!!

Have you ever wondered what happens if you dial 911 and then hang up immediately? To tell you the truth, I never gave this topic much thought but now I can speak from experience and tell you exactly what happens.

Firstly, the 911 operator calls back. Even though you assure her that no emergency has occurred, just a case of clumsy fingers using the telephone, she politely informs you that the authorities have been alerted and the police have been sent to the address.

Then there is a knock at the door and two Police Officers, with a look of anticipation and uncertainty ask some questions, bid you a good night and leave. …….Seriously.

Who exactly was the clumsy finger dialing culprit….my visiting father.

Busy

2009-07-20T15:24:00.002-04:00

I have been a little busy of late. My workload has increased thanks to some new clients, Little Roo is on summer vacation from school (because of my previously light workload I did not think it necessary to book her into Summer Camp), my parents had come to visit us from Australia for 3 weeks, I hosted a party for 18 and had an additional 6 family members and friends stay with me. Oh and the police came to visit!

All of the above had left me feeling thoroughly exhausted with no energy left at the end of the day for blogging. I am now starting to feel recharged and will get back to writing regular (well semi regular) posts.

Try My Lemonade!!!

2009-06-29T12:19:00.004-04:00

The lovely folks at A Prodigal Tourist have bestowed an award onto me. I am the proud recipient of the coveted Lemonade Stand Award!!!!

Thank You Prodigal Tourist!

Summer Vacation

2009-06-22T17:35:00.004-04:00

Living the expatriate lifestyle with school aged children (or a child in my case) in tow presents both opportunities and challenges. My Little Roo is enjoying a school experience I can not relate to. I did not catch the yellow school bus, nor did I lunch on Chips Ole in the cafeteria or celebrate Halloween by participating in a school wide parade. One thing I can share with Little Roo is the excitement about Summer Vacation (even though I called it Summer Holidays).

Little Roo is now one week into her Summer Vacation torturing/entertaining her grandparents who came from Australia to spend some time with her and I can't help reflecting on the day she started school.

I found an email I had sent to family and friends back in Australia on her first day of school.

The time had arrived, at 8:15am on August 26, 2008 Little Roo boarded the yellow school bus headed for her first day at Elementary School.

Even though Big Roo and I had agreed to let her ride the bus to and from school, we were not willing to completely let her "go". Once Little Roo was safely boarded on the bus we hot footed it to the school to make sure we captured the moment when she arrived at school for the first time as a student. I then proceeded to take an indecent amount of photographs of Little Roo participating in the school routine of lining up and walking to her class room with her peers.

Now we wait for the school bus to arrive home and to hear all about her first day.

Little Roo's first year of school was not only a learning experience for her, introducing her to a lifetime of reading (albeit be it American spellings) but it has been a learning experience for me. A window into American culture, education and raising children.

Guilt

2009-05-29T14:53:00.005-04:00

Parental guilt, I think it follows you around no matter where you live. For a while there my parental guilt went into overdrive when we chose to pull Little Roo out of her comfortable Sydney existence and subject her to a new expat lifestyle. Now she is at the point of such happiness and contentment living in the US that I will feel guilty when we eventually yank her out of her blissful state and drag her back home.

From the many conversations I have had with the parents of Little Roo’s friends, be it in Australia or the US, be they local or expats, the parental guilt they feel is universal. So it is always nice to find examples of how parents help each other and relieve one another’s guilt instead of compounding it. Alas I have not been able to find such an example but instead the exact opposite.

The below post is from Little Roo's school list serve. The list serve normally plays host to the rants and ravings of the high achieving in your face successful parents. There is the occasional useful school related message posted on the list serve but mainly it serves as a platform for the parents to vent or congratulate each other on the fabulous volunteer projects they undertook for the school.

"There are some of us parents that witness behavior that is appalling to us and just have to say something. On the way home from school today, a van pulled up beside me at the corner. There was a boy in the front seat with no seat belt on playing with a yo-yo out the window. I can't believe that the adult lady driving the van didn't love that child enough to tell him to get into the backseat and put his seat belt on. Please, let’s all be more consciences in bettering ourselves as parents."

I do not condone children sitting in the front seat and certainly wearing a seat belt is a very serious matter. My little issue with the post is the sentence that I highlighted in bold. OUCH!

I just imagine at the height of all my anxieties about moving from Sydney to Washington DC, if some mother at Little Roo’s daycare said to me, “Don’t you love Little Roo enough to stay in Australia and keep her close to friends and family”. That would have stung a lot.

Lions and Tigers and bears! OH MY!

2009-05-29T14:18:00.010-04:00

Who knew Memorial Day long weekend spent in Shenandoah Valley, VA could be fraught with so much danger? Granted there were no lions or tigers but there were bears (seriously), deer, poison ivy, poison oak and all sorts of other woes.

Here I was attempting a nice leisurely hike on a Sunday Morning (I know what is happening to me, I should have just stayed in munching on a leisurely brunch whilst sipping bottomless mimosas), when my hiking companions warned of the dangers that lay within. Firstly I had to be on the lookout for poison ivy and poison oak. As far as I was ever concerned poison ivy was something that the main characters on American sitcom shows would be struck down with for comic relief purposes. Lo and behold this stuff is real.

Next I was warned against deer ticks; these nasty little creatures not only burrow under your skin but can carry Lyme disease. We have ticks in Australia too, but it seems the deers ticks in Shenandoah have developed some additional skills their Aussie counterparts are yet to learn. These deer ticks live high up in the trees and allegedly have sophisticated motion sensing skills, which they use to drop down and attack unsuspecting hikers as they pass by. I was not so sure about this warning. I certainly never heard of this from any of my usual information sources, being American sitcoms and reality TV shows.

Could my trusty American companions be telling me a dropbear story? An Australian dropbear is a vicious, carnivorous koala that lives high in the treetops and attacks their prey (most reported attacks have been on newly arrived overseas visitors) by dropping onto their heads. Well that’s what we tell the tourists anyway!

Start spreading the news, I'm leaving today

2009-05-22T09:13:00.004-04:00

That's right, I am heading out the door on this glorious Friday morning to an extra long weekend.

No matter which country you are in, this beautiful tradition of a long weekend is one in which you must indulge. So in celebration of Memorial Day on Monday (always observed on the last Monday of May) I have granted Little Roo an extra day off from school today and we are heading to Shenandoah Valley, VA.

Memorial Day Long weekend not only honors the fallen U.S soldiers but marks the unofficial start of summer. Public swimming pools open, BBQ wafts through the air and it is once again socially acceptable to wear white pants (I personally do not think there are many occasions to wear white pants but each to their own).

Happy Memorial Day!

Lush

2009-05-06T22:32:00.005-04:00

Following on from Cinco De Mayo after I enjoyed a Mexican beverage or two, I got to thinking about my drinking habits since living the expat lifestyle.

When I think of living the expatriate lifestyle I conjure up images of a tropical environment sitting on a wraparound deck with my fellow expats being cooled by overhead fans , sipping on some G&T's (to protect against mosquitoes of course) talking about the homeland. Somehow, my expatriate life did not quite pan out that way. Except for the whole drinking bit, but it is not limited to G&T's.

Why am I drinking more? Well isn't that what expats do? I am upholding long standing tradition of expats and Australians. My lifestyle, even though it is not spent socializing at the Long Bar in Raffles, Singapore or attending soirees with the jet set crowd, is a lot more social.

On particularly social days, it is not unusual to have a cocktail or two with lunch, a glass of wine or two with dinner and then a night cap before bed. When a friend of mine recently replied on my behalf to the waiters question of would you like another cocktail, she said "Yes of course, my friend here is a lush". I had to question , firstly what exactly is a lush? Secondly, do I drink too much?

My conclusion is I am perfectly fine, I am not even a big drinker, quantity wise. I am pretty much a Cadbury drinker (Aussie slang: Someone who gets drunk off a small amount of alcohol. Cadbury's is a yummy brand of chocolate blocks, that I miss eating. Cadbury advertise as having a "glass and a half of full cream dairy milk" in every block).

If it is my duty as an expatriate to be a lush, I am duty bound to take up the mantle. Cheers!

Cinco De Mayo

2009-05-04T21:31:00.003-04:00

Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for "5th of May") is a Mexican holiday that honors Mexico's unlikely victory over the French army at the Battle of Puebla on MAY 5, 1862 - take that Frenchies!

I must confess I had never heard of no Cinco de Mayo prior to moving to the states. Tucked away in my little slice of Australia, I knew close to nothing about Mexican culture, food and people. One of the side perks of the move to DC is the proximity to this new and untapped culture and what I have seen, tasted and experienced so far (piggy flu aside) I like, I like a lot.

So I am more than willing to celebrate this Mexican holiday tomorrow. I do not promise there will be piñatas or Mariachis but thanks to the blissful two weeks spent in Mexico recently, there will be Cerveza (beer, Mexican of course, brand of choice Pacifico) and Reposado Tequila. Big Roo took particular joy in his self appointed task whilst in Mexico to try as many brands and varieties of Tequila before deciding which ones to buy and bring home with us. To give you a sense of his obsession, upon our return Little Roo would shake salt on a wedge of lime and then proceed to squeeze the lime into her mouth before her water shooter......responsible parenting.

Feliz Cinco De Mayo!

ANZAC DAY

2009-04-24T22:34:00.001-04:00

Tomorrow April 25th, (which is already today in Australia, if that makes sense) is ANZAC Day. Anzac Day is a national public holiday in Australia and New Zealand to commemorate and honor fallen Australian and New Zealand military men and women. Anzac Day marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during World War One in Gallipoli, Turkey where heavy human losses were suffered.

Since I married an Australian Army officer seven years ago who has been on active overseas deployment, the day seems to have taken on more significance for me.

On this day, I join my fellow Aussies and Kiwis for Dawn Service. A memorial service held can you guess at what time? Yes at DAWN. The service is held outdoors all over Australia, New Zealand and anywhere else in the world you would find an Aussie or two and includes a lone bugler playing a rendition of "The Last Post" followed by two minutes of silence which is cut by lone bugle playing the "Reveille".

Washington DC expat Aussies, Kiwis and the Americans that have entered our lives will be joining for Dawn Service tomorrow at 5:45am at the National Korean War Memorial. Which will be followed by a gunfire breakfast held at the Australian Embassy. Gunfire breakfast is a tradition that mirrors a pre-battle ritual in which officers and sergeants wake the troops and ply them with a simple breakfast (usually oatmeal biscuit rations - to provide sustenance) and rum-spiked coffee (to steel the nerves for the combat to follow). Today of course the whole thing is a lot more civilized - the venue is an Embassy at 1601 Massachusetts Ave NW rather than a rat-infested sodden trench. Oh, and half of the participants won't shortly meet their demise in no-man's land - maybe some displays of public drunkenness, but little actual death...

Lest we forget

Yes, I did!

2009-04-16T22:29:00.016-04:00

After I had decided that the most important family tradition associated with Passover for me was the food and with 7 people to feed I set about planning the menu.

What makes Passover really feel like Passover in my family who back in Sydney celebrate it every year is, noise, chaos, seeing 25 loud and crazy family members but most of all it is my mother and grandmother spending two days lovingly (I think they love it, they keep doing it) cooking. The cook in excess of 10 dishes but the favorite crowd pleasers include:

Matzo Ball Soup
Matzo Balls are a spongy dumpling made from matzo meal (ground matzo)served in a chicken broth, which of course has to be home made to taste just right.

Gefilte Fish
I must say I do not actually enjoy this dish, but it is a Passover classic which is a highly cherished and coveted item on the menu. There are usually no leftovers.

Big Roo calls its Frankenstein's fish because of the long (and strange) preparation and cooking process. Most people do a neat little gefilte fish ball made from minced fish but my grandmother has a traditional recipe from Eastern Europe that includes purchasing a whole fish. The fish is deboned, and ground together with eggs, onions and matzah meal and then stuffed into the skin of the deboned fish (how in the world she stuffs it back in to the skin is beyond me). The whole stuffed fish is then poached with carrots , onions and beetroots. This process takes an entire day and my grandmother frets and fusses until somebody has the first bite and declares it the best gefilte fish yet!

Matzo Babka
Matzo babka is a savory over the top spongy layered pancake dish eaten in lieu of bread. I love this stuff .

With my grandmother's instructions received over Skype , I attempted to cook the classic's. I knew there would be anyway I could attempt stuffing a ground fish back into it's skin so I made a modern (read: easy to prepare) interpretation that I now call Gefilte Fish Fillets. With a few more Skype calls to my granny (that is after I had woken her up at 6am in the morning her time..sorry) during the cooking process and my first attempt at a Passover meal was finished

Aesthetically it all looked more or less how it was suppose to look. Granted the matzah balls looked more like matzo blobs but nobody seemed to mind. My matzo babka rocked and the house smelled like gefilte fish. Now it felt and smelt like Passover. Mission completion!

So how did I do it?
Note my granny is not big on measuring ingredients she eyeballs everything, so I had to guesstimate a lot of the quantities required.

Gefilte Fish Fillets
White fish fillets
Cut up Onion rings
Salt and pepper
Cut up raw beetroot
Cut up carrots
Onion peel
Salt and pepper
Place half the vegetables (including onion peel) into a pan
Place fish fillets on top
Top the fillets with the remaining vegetables
Add salt, pepper and water just to cover
Cook on high for 45 – 50 minutes.
Switch off and leave lid on

Matzo balls
Matzo meal
2-3 eggs beaten
Salt
Cold water
Mix above together
Make into balls with cold hands
Cook in boiling salted water – not the soup.
Cook for 10 mins
Remove with colander and put into hot premade chicken soup

Matzo Babka
½ packet of matzo
Break matzo
Put matzah in colander
Pour hot water over matzo
Let water pour out
Transfer wet matzo into bowl
Put in 2-3 beaten eggs
Salt
Try your mixture (My grandmother told me about this step repeatedly, you want to make sure it is seasoned well)
Heat pan with lots of butter
Put in the whole mixture
Cover on low heat
Cook one side and flip (15 min per side)

When you can't get home for the holidays

2009-04-16T11:29:00.001-04:00

Living away from home, be it in another country or a different state poses many challenges. From establishing new social and support networks to finally finding a good hairdresser (trust me guys, this is a big one, I have been through 4 hairdressers and have still not found "the one").

One challenge I have managed to avoid, is having to deal with family traditions surrounding holidays. Up until now we have been ever so kindly adopted or absorbed into another family's holiday tradition or we have managed to be away on vacation (translation for the Australians: a vacation has a different meaning to the word holiday in the US. A holiday is a day to commemorate or celebrate a particular event or holy day, e.g. Christmas, even Valentine's Day, whereas a vacation is a period of time devoted to pleasure, rest or relaxation).

This time Passover and Easter were rolling around and being the nice culturally and religiously diverse blended family that we are, we celebrate both. It seemed the onus was on me to make the plans. Question was, what do I do? Do I try to emulate the organized chaos that is 25 people at my mother's house after two days of cooking and cleaning for Passover?

It seems this very same question was vexing my neighbor, Pennsylvania. She has recently moved from Pennsylvania to Washington D.C. For as long as she could remember every Easter accompanied by her husband and two daughters would be spent around the corner from their house at her parents place. The family tradition involved a hearty lunch with the extended family and watching over the kids as they hunt for Easter Eggs in the backyard. This year, they had decided to stay in their new Washington D.C home, but the question for her was the same as mine, does she follow family tradition or do something different?

In our own way both Pennsylvania and I had come to the same conclusion. We both went about organizing our respective holiday meals (because it is always about food) and days to be quite different from the usual family traditions we grew up with but we kept some of the "stuff" that makes it feel like a holiday. For Pennsylvania it was all about the Easter Egg hunt, for me it was all about cooking the right food.

Celebration of Spring

2009-04-08T23:27:00.007-04:00

The Annual Cherry Blossom Festival held around the tidal basin area of Washington D.C is in essence a celebration of Spring.

Locals and tourists alike flock in droves to see the beautiful blooms of the cherry trees and to participate in the associated activities of which there are plenty, the Kite Festival, the Cherry Blossom Parade, Fireworks display and the Sakura Matsuri - Japanese Street Festival.

The Cherry Trees were a gift from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo to the city of Washington, honoring the lasting friendship between the United States and Japan in 1912. I wonder how friendly they were feeling during WWII. I am guessing the Japanese and Americans alike, felt like digging up the roots of those beautiful Cherry Trees and throwing them into the Potomac River during WWII.

I am by no stretch a horticulturist, so why is the celebration of Spring and blooming flowers so important?

Well it was not something I could quite appreciate whilst growing up in Sydney, Australia as the concept of four seasons is not quite felt. The weather in Sydney goes from hot to warm to less warm and then to slightly chilly. You miss Mother Nature in all of it's dramatic glory.

Moving to D.C, everything was turned upside down literally. I left a glorious Sydney Summer to arrive in the middle of a miserable D.C December, filled with rain, strong winds and temperatures well below what I was used to. From the moment I arrived in D.C, Spring was a concept I was very much looking forward to. Watching for signs of leaves on trees, flowers buds about to burst through the ground became an obsession and a constant topic of conversation in my household throughout Winter.

We had set out temperature markers as the winter months wore on. After months of wearing numerous layers and looking like the Michelin man every time we stepped outside, 10 degrees Celsius (translation: 50 degrees Fahrenheit) was our first temperature marker. As soon as the daily temperature reached 10 degrees we were able to shed one of our layers, the dreaded itchy thermals. This especially was cause for celebration for Little Roo who wistfully dreamed of the day that she could once again leave the house wearing only a summer dress and thongs (no I do not let my 5 year old wear g-string underwear. Thongs are what we Aussies call flip flops).

So our first Cherry Blossom Festival last year was met by much excitement, blooming blossoms was Mother Nature's sign that Spring was around the corner. Even though it was still cold by Sydney standards and crowds were in the tens of thousands, we braved it to join in the celebration of the warm weather to come.

We went back again to the Cherry Blossom Festival this year, we are just as eager to feel the warmth of the sun's ray's this year as we were last year.

Hostess Gift

2009-04-03T11:43:00.006-04:00

With my outfit decided, there was one more detail to organize before attending the Diplomatic Dinner, the hostess gift.

Unless I am going to my mum's (translation: mom's) where I arrive empty handed yet leave with food packages to last me a week…thanks mum. I usually go to a dinner party, armed with a bottle of wine or two, perhaps champagne if I am feeling festive. The notion of calling it a hostess gift does not enter my mind. It is just a little something to show my appreciation for the anticipated dinner. Sometimes after a disappointing meal or boring conversation I have felt like taking my wine back in protest but to date, I have managed to restrain myself.

My so called protocol handbooks were quite insistent that one should bring a hostess gift in addition to a bottle of wine to a dinner party. As a dutiful dinner guest, I obsessed over the hostess gift possibilities and presented Big Roo with my top picks:

An ornate wine bottle opener and stopper (a perfect compliment to the nice bottle of wine that we would no doubt be taking with us)
A tub of gourmet ice cream and a fancy ice cream scoop
Scented candles

I did not however suggest a set of Tiffany playing cards, as I had assumed Big Roo would mock my recommendation. I am still quietly considering making Tiffany playing cards my signature hostess gift (why not have a signature hostess gift? People have signature sunglasses, perfumes, handbags, why not a hostess gift?). Imagine being in receipt of one of those beautiful Tiffany blue boxes topped with a scrumptiously tied white ribbon. I could turn out to be very popular for my gift giving alone, we may even be invited to more of these events (I am not sure that would be a good thing though). I wonder if Tiffany's has a bulk price on the playing cards or coupons…it is America after all, there is a coupon for everything.

As expected Big Roo was not nearly as interested in the hostess gift concept as I was until I pointed out that he should see it as a business transaction. It was his opportunity to show our hosts how much he and his company appreciated his support.

It seems President Obama is still learning the art of diplomatic gift giving, just days ago there was a storm on the gift Obama had chosen to give the Queen on his first visit to Buckingham Palace. He gave the Queen an iPOD loaded with Broadway show tunes, some of his speeches (a little narcissistic) and video footage of her last visit to the US. What was her gift in return to him? Her signature gift (see the Queen has a signature gift), a photo of herself in a silver frame (another narcissist).

At least the iPOD will operate in Britain, unlike the gift Obama recently gave to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. He received 25 DVDs of American classics, which there is a question mark over if they will even work on a British DVD player. It seems Obama' s signature gift is the gift of American Pop culture. I wonder what is next on his gift giving list, CD's from all the winners of American idol, gift certificates to McDonald's, the mind boggles.

In the end, Big Roo was left to purchase the hostess gift , armed with my list of suggestions.
What did he come home with? Two bottles of Australian wine and a gourmet box of chocolates….UNWRAPPED. Even though the gift was very ho hum and we had to stop at CVS (translation: a chain of super sized pharmacies in the US, which sells everything from toilet paper and office supplies to car oil and cigarettes -I know in pharmacy, it is pretty funny) to pick up a gift bag, it was well received. The only other hostess gift I managed to sneak a peak at was a pot plant, at least our gift won't die in 2-3 days.

Diplomatic Dress Code

2009-03-26T20:30:00.003-04:00

The Diplomatic Dinner Big Roo and I were attending was approaching.

I had to gather my facts and come up with a plan. As Big Roo likes to point out, I am such a girl and I like to plan my outfits in advance…What he does not understand is that wardrobe choices are an important decision when dealing in diplomacy, case in point Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the First Lady of France. There was huge interest and speculation about her wardrobe choices whilst she accompanied her husband French President Nicolas Sarkozy on a recent trip to Great Britain. As it turns out, she is not only a style icon but a natural diplomat, choosing to wear Christian Dior, which is a French design house designed by John Galliano, a British designer….how very diplomatic. I am sure even Kissinger would be proud!

So far my intelligence told me that it was a Sunday night dinner at the private residence of an Australian diplomat to welcome a visiting Australian Colonel. Invitations and RSVP's were being handled by the hosts Personal Assistant. Must be nice to have your own personal party planner, the last time somebody made party arrangements for me and handled all the RSVP's and catering was probably my 6th birthday party. It was a lavish affair, thrown by my parents and included a trip to Wellington Zoo and lunch at McDonalds. For the record the dress code was girly birthday party chic. No boys allowed!

Attendees included the big wig Australian diplomat host plus wife, the big wig diplomat's staff member plus wife, a US Military Colonel plus wife, the visiting Australian Colonel - no wife, the wife of another big wig Australian diplomat and of course Big Roo and I.

The dress code was specified as casual (no tie or coat). Most Sunday night dinners eaten out are usually casual affairs for me. When I hear the word "casual", it tends to imply jeans but given the demographic and formality of invitation, I was not sure my Rock and Republics would cut it.

So what exactly does casual mean?
According to the "Protocol for the Modern Diplomat" prepared by the Transition Center, Foreign Service Institute, U.S. Department of State, Washington, DC, casual means :

Male Attire
• Business suit (light or dark) or
• Sports jacket and pants
• Tie or bow tie
• Dress shoes or loafers

Female Attire
• Business suit or daytime dress
• Pumps or flats
• Head coverings may be considered a requirement at some events. Wide-brim hats
may also provide welcome and necessary protection from the sun; check with the host country

On the Emily Post (North America's etiquette guru) website, the word casual is simply not descriptive enough….I couldn't agree more. There are several categories of casual: Dressy Casual, Business Casual, Sport Casual, Beach Casual and Holiday Casual.

Neither of my manuals were particularly helpful, so I chose a "safe" some might say boring ensemble rather akin to what I would wear to a casual work place. Black pants, black top with a grey long knit cardigan and a pair of black heels. Big Roo who is normally in a suit and tie for work, dressed down to a casual pant (translation: slacks) and an open collar shirt. Satisfied we embodied casual (no tie or coat), we made our way out. Not that anybody asked me during the evening but my outfit was a perfect blend of Australian and US acquired clothes and accessories (thank you Carla)!

When we arrived we were greeted by our casual (no tie or coat) hosts, so far so good, we looked the part. Once the other guests trickled in, everyone very much looked like a day in the life of a casual workplace environment.

The most formally dressed person that evening was the server (not sure if that is the correct terminology). She was decked out in what looked like a 3 piece suit and when the chef came out to accept our compliments she was appropriately dressed in her chefs whites.

All in all I would say all major dress code diplomatic incidents were avoided. Diplomatic success was achieved!

Diplomatic Dinner

2009-03-24T11:24:00.007-04:00

On Wednesday Big Roo calls me from work to share news that we (or he and me by default) were invited to a diplomatic dinner on Sunday night. Well it was dinner hosted by Australian diplomats. He wanted to know if I thought it would be possible to arrange for babysitting that evening for Little Roo.

I asked the Pennsylvania's (our neighbors who are from Pennsylvania), to babysit. She said yes and we had the green light to attend.

Arranging babysitting was the easy part. I had so many more questions, from how do I address the hosts and their guests to what do I wear and what do we bring?

When I think of diplomats on international postings, I think glamorous parties, jewels, furs (I am not going to judge), private chefs, domestic staff, secrets and intrigues. As it turned out I was not entirely wrong…....

Big Roo is a Defense (Defence, if you are Australian) consultant and the dinner was being attended by industry folk. Being in Defense they all have titles, which poses the question, how do I address everybody? By their rank, their first name or shall I just channel Zsa Zsa Garbor and call everybody Darh-ling!

Big Roo was not very forthcoming with helpful details, but lucky for me there is a plethora of online protocol manuals for just this very occasion! My personal favorite"Protocol for the Modern Diplomat" Prepared by the Transition Center, Foreign Service Institute, U.S. Department of State, Washington, DC and of course the ultimate in etiquette bibles (or so I am told) "Emily Posts Favorite Party and Dining Tips" by Peggy Post.

I had four days to study up and ponder the BIG diplomatic issues of our time: How do I dress for the occasion? What do we bring? How do I address the hosts and guests? I will leave the other BIG diplomatic issues of terrorism and free trade agreements to another week (hopefully I will be able to find a suitable manual on those topics as well).

Roller Derby

2009-03-18T21:10:00.008-04:00

What is Roller Derby? As far as I am concerned it is girls on skates (old school, no rollerblades need apply)knocking each other out. The purpose and general rules of the game was and I must admit is still lost on me but I knew I had to go to a bout as soon as I was handed one of the flyer's. I am not sure if it was the vintage feel of the logo on the flyer (I am in marketing and I appreciate a good logo) or the lure of getting an "only in America" experience that had me convinced.

I have since learnt that we (we, Australians that is) do have Roller Derby teams but like with so many things I am more open to new experiences since moving to the US than I was back home. I guess back home in Australia I was stuck in my comfort zone content doing the things I do, Roller Derby was just not on the radar.

The location of DC Roller Derby is the US Army National Guard Armory which struck me as an interesting location choice. I was surprised at how kid-friendly the event was. Little Roo was immediately offered free face painting and tattoos of the temporary variety. Little Roo being the princess that she is declined to have any of the team logos painted onto her face but chose a princess crown design, simple yet classic.

It was nowhere near capacity so there was a lot of seat real estate to choose from. We did decide not to sit on the floor giving up the opportunity to get right up close and personal to the action. From the little I knew about Roller Derby I was sure I did not want my 5 year old to become a human mattress breaking the fall of the players (FYI - spectators who do end up providing some cushioning for fallen players score a prize).

Beer and snacks are available for purchase, but since we had already eaten we just settled in . The action was exciting even if I did not understand any of the rules. The promotional team was constantly doing the rounds throwing quirky promo items into the crowd. Since Little Roo (and she is the cutest little kangaroo in town) was with us we scored quite a load by the end of the evening.

The first game ended with a win to the local team the Cherry Blossom Bombshells and the half time entertainment came on - Hula Hooper's. I was slightly skeptical when they came out and was getting ready to take my bathroom break but as soon as they started I was mesmerized, as was Little Roo and Big Roo (unless it is beer or an Aussie meat pie he is usually not easily impressed). They had some serious moves and tricks without being sleazy.

The main event saw DC DemonCats vs Scare Force One. Complete with mascots, fanfare and fabulous "stage" names. Some of my personal favorite names from the night were Obitchuary, 28 Days - Ovary Action, Condoleezza Slice, Lois Slain……nice. Half way through the game Little Roo's patience was wearing thin so after picking up some further loot in the shape of DC RollerGirls merchandise we called it a night.

All up it was good clean fun. No loud or drunk yobbos (translation: uncouth or thuggish person, white trash). It was slightly long and late for little Roo but I would have no hesitation in recommending it to families and singles alike. Relatively cheap entry costing $12 per adult, Little Roos are free. Beers on the other hand cost $7 for a 16oz bottle.

DC Rollergirls have another game coming up on April 18th, http://www.dcrollergirls.com/
Word of advice sit through half time, the Hooper's were a highlight!

It is good stuff

2009-03-15T17:48:00.006-04:00

What does an xpat family do on a Saturday night? Grab a burger whilst on the way to Roller Derby of course.

This past Saturday, we walked into Good Stuff Eatery (a burger joint on Capitol Hill, Washington DC) on a wet Saturday afternoon, looking for a quick and satisfying early dinner before heading out to the Roller Derby. Who do we see as we walk in the door…. owner Chef Spike - the hat-wearing contestant of Top Chef Season 4. He wasn't working the line or barking out orders to staff but rather emptying the trash, checking the napkins stocks, he was surprisingly all very low key.

The atmosphere was noisy not so much from the chatter of the patrons but the loud music blaring. It was a sound track to my University (translation: College) days. LIVE the band and Brit Pop band Pulp singing "Common People". The loud music was not the only form of entertainment. There were several large flat screen TVs on both levels of the restaurant on mute showing local sports teams…GO TERPS (translation: my adopted college sports team). I was too busy singing along to Pulp and stuffing my face with burger goodness to keep track of the sports score. In fact I am listening to Pulp as I write.

Obviously not local to the joint, my party of three did not realize we were in the line whilst gazing up at the menu deciding what to eat and caused a major delay. We eventually ordered after letting more organized and decisive people go first and we were given a pager. I guess I was expecting it to be more of a fast food joint (the sort where once you order they stack up your tray with food and off you go) but I was pleasantly surprised that it is all made to order and made right in front of you, for those who enjoy watching their food being made, all the cooking action is front and center.

We sat upstairs, which carried through the theme of flat screen TV's and loud music and simple yet modern furniture. Red seems to be the color du jour and they put the little cow (part of the visual brand) where possible including on the front of the loos (translation: toilets).

Our pager paged and Big Roo dutifully went downstairs to retrieve the food. I had ordered the Free Range Turkey Burger which has such goodies as avo, sprouts, cheese (not the fluorescent American kind) and tomato on a whole wheat bun, it almost sounds healthy. Big Roo had the Colletti's Smokehouse with supersized filling of Applewood Bacon, Cheddar, Onion Rings and Chipotle BBQ Sauce. Little Roo was not terribly hungry (too many home made quesadillas for lunch) and munched Sunny's Handcut Fries the we decided to share and slurped on a vanilla mini moo - the kids size hand spun shake.

Big Roo and I shared a Toasted Marshmallow Hand spun shake. Legend has it the Good Stuff crew put custard (which they make fresh everyday) into the shake, along with milk, ice and gelato.

My burger was very good, the turkey was nicely cooked, it was not dry which turkey can get and had great juicy flavors. Big Roo's burger, had a definite personality and the BBQ Chipotle sauce added a nice heat and the bacon and onion ring combination was genius. Again the meat was cooked nicely and you could taste the "real" ingredients that they pride themselves in. The marshmallow shake was sweet without being sickly and the consistency was just all gooey gooey thick goodness. If I ordered it again I would ask for no whip (it is fine as it is).

The rock stars of the meal were the Colletti's Smokehouse Burger and the Toasted Marshmallow shake. There was nothing of note about the fries, they were just so so. Next time I go (because given the location right near the Capitol I am sure I will be back) I might try Spike's Village Fries with Rosemary, Thyme and Pepper.

Car Free

2009-03-13T22:40:00.000-04:00

Our life in the US is a car free environment. Not so much because we are greenies (but the impact on the environment is a further bonus) more because we are not permanent residents, just merely passing through. We did not feel a car was a wise or needed investment in the area that we live (plus the money we save is the money we now spend on travel – pretty good trade off).

In fact I think we have seen so much more of our neighborhood and surrounds because we do not have a car and must rely on our trusty old feet and public transport to get around our experience is most certainly different and I feel enhanced. Some of the people and sites that we have seen or meet along the way is by far a better substitute for the air conditioned comfort of a car.

Yes there have certainly been below freezing mornings making my way to drop Little Roo to the school bus or trying to get to work when I have dreamed of a nice warm environment of a car (especially the car seat warmers…mmm they are nice) but at the same time I am thankful I do not have to drive on crazy icy roads. Given I was raised in Australia and new to the concept of ice and snow, I am more thankful than envious that I am not driving on the wrong side of the road in those conditions.

Are we there yet?

2009-02-27T09:18:00.002-05:00

After spending a glorious day in Hawaii, we faced the prospect of another full day of travel before arriving in DC. It was at this point I regretted buying the cheap cheap tickets. Note to self, next time spend the extra grand per person and fly direct to LA and then LA to DC…..we would have been there by now!

Instead we spent the day travelling in between Hawaii and DC transiting through Oakland. Arriving at Oakland airport we were all a little tired and it seems slightly delirious. Litte Roo went up to a total stranger and proceeded to pinch him on the bum (Australian for ass, not to be mistaken for a homeless person). I am not sure who was more shocked - the stranger to have just been groped by a 4 year old or Little Roo to discover the bum she had pinched did not belong to Big Roo. Coincidentally Little Roo seems to have lost the inclination to pinch bums since then.

After a quick change of clothes (as it was getting progressively colder the closer we got to our final destination) we boarded our final flight to DC. In this time of heightened security and paranoia Little Roo was invited inside the cockpit, the pilot even got out of his seat and offered it to Sheila....nice but slightly strange. My misconceptions about this country were already being shattered; maybe they are not as paranoid as first thought??

After 2 days of travel crossing 4 time zones and 3 time changes we finally arrived in Washington DC, it was a miserable looking December morning with rain and strong winds. To think we left a Sydney summer for this.

Big Roo's new boss had arrived to pick us up and we headed out into the cold with our layers on (I knew the effort I had spent trying to find thermals to buy in the midst of a raging Sydney summer would pay off) and loaded our entire possessions into the largest SUV the boss man could hire for the day. Next stop….home, well a temporary home in the shape of a serviced apartment.

Immigration troubles

2009-02-26T09:39:00.008-05:00

It has been 14 months since we said goodbye to Sydney and started on our journey. We left on a Friday, having said all our goodbyes we boarded the plane at 6pm. After a charming TWO hour delay sitting on the tarmac our flight to Hawaii finally took off. Little Roo was a star traveler sleeping at all the right moments, we had the middle 4 seats to ourselves so she was able to sprawl across Big Roo and I in comfort.

Two airline meals and nine hours later we arrived in Hawaii, took our turn in the immigration queue and dutifully waited. Everybody seemed to be passing through fairly quickly so we had high hopes of hitting the beach in Waikiki within an hour but an hour later we were still standing at our designated cubicle with our immigration officer threatening us with the possibility of being sent to”The Room”. I am not sure what waited for us inside”The Room” but her tone suggested that it was best to be avoided. It seems the our new fancy E3 visas were posing a problem, firstly she had never heard of or seen this visa class before and it was not showing up on the database…brilliant! Secondly the dates on our visa did not match the dates in Big Roo's letter of offer and apparently this posed a serious dilemma…excellent!

After many a consultation with her immigration supervisors we narrowly avoided “The Room” and then it was a quick scan of our fingerprints, photos and we were allowed into the country. I guess we officially became EXPATRIATES.

We had taken so long to pass through immigration that our bags had been removed from the luggage carousel and stacked together (so much for intense security at airports). We spent a glorious 24 hours in Hawaii of which we slept 14 hours and spent a further 4 hours at the airport. We did manage to get lei-ed, squeeze in a swim at the beach, a sushi lunch and an all American dinner. We were happily munching through our first burger and fries experience at Dukes when Little Roo started nodding off to sleep and face planted into her plate. At that point we called it a day and retreated back to our hotel, the Royal Hawaiian, which I highly recommend for those that are not adverse to the color pink - pink building, pink towels, pink sheets, pink soap, you get the picture and great banana bread (not pink) which they just keep dropping off free to your room.

Pink enough for you?Suffice to say Sheila was in pink 4 year old ecstasy

It all started with an email

2009-02-25T20:02:00.004-05:00

So how exactly did I get here? Life in Sydney was good…I liked it. It was summer, what was not to like. I find myself asking this question more and more.

It was all because I typed yes on a random email Big Roo sent. In future I should really refrain from making life altering decisions while at work and before my first morning coffee. Out of the blue Big Roo received an email from a consulting firm asking if he would be interested in pursuing a job opportunity in Washington DC. Being in the world of Defense, it was a fairly good location for him to be. He said yes, I said yes (Little Roo, our daughter said no but she quickly changed her mind when we told her it was the land of the Disney theme parks), two days letter he had an offer. One week later we were standing in line at the US consulate and there it was we had been approved for an E3 visa.

It was almost too easy…almost! There were the mountains of paperwork, forms and photographs (in odd sizes) and being shuffled from one queue to the next but all in all this E3 visa was good. See there are perks in being part of the Coalition of the Willing, we Aussies got our very own visa class. Not only could Big Roo work, but I was entitled to work and Little Roo was entitled to go to school.

I had never much paid attention to visas beforehand but it turns out that the “E-3 is a new visa for Australian nationals to work in specialty occupations in the U.S. It has many advantages over the other types of working visas, including the ability for spouses of E-3 recipients to apply for work authorization.” (Source: http://canberra.usembassy.gov/consular/visas/niv/e3.html )

Watching the flames from afar

2009-02-08T11:39:00.002-05:00

Upon waking this morning, I was saddened to read the facebook status updates of some of my Australian friends referencing the bushfires in Victoria, Australia.

Knowing the recent record high temperatures most of Australia has been experiencing (40 degrees Celsius plus/104 degrees Fahrenheit plus). I was expecting the news to be bad but was shocked and troubled by what I read in the various online newspapers I scoured. At last count, 93 people were dead with many more in hospital, 750 home lost in the blaze and the state of Victoria has been declared a state of emergency.

Reading the news from here in the DC area I felt far removed from it, geographically. Since thanks to the recent DC weather I have been experiencing my coldest winter ever, at the same time I felt very close to what was happening in Australia.

The areas affected by the fires are some that Big Roo, being from Melbourne is extremely familiar with, visiting various family and friends there over the years. Close to him particularly as he served as a volunteer in the State Emergency Service unit which would no doubt be providing support services at this time.

He also grew up watching the daily news delivered by a man who along with his wife was found dead in their home that was engulfed by flames.

Even though I am watching this news from afar, it feels very close to home!