There and Back 2005

Then there was Patrice. When I met him and told him where I was from he said in his thick French accent "OHHH we are neighbors!". I had a quizicle look on my face untill he said "I am from Quebec!" Well we really hit it off and we're relieved to see this morning that he sold his Ford Lancer. He was asking $850 but I don't know what he got for it. Mitch was yet another Canadain. Trust me, there were more than just Canadians, Americans and Danes. There were heaps of Isralies. Mitch is from Sascachuan, just outside Regina. He sold his Toyota wagon in one day to a Japanese girl and was all to excited about that. He is currently staying with his ultimate frisbee teamates who with his help won an all New Zealand Ultimate tournament, pretty cool.

We had Mitch and Ray over for beers and wine two nights ago. We lucked out and have an apartment all to ourselves, perfect for hanging out in.

As for the others in there trying to sell, they we're French, Dutch, English, Canadian, German, Swedish, Israli (who even after they sold their cars or vans would stay, and come back the next day, and the next day, and...you get the point), some old, some young, some with kids, some who hadn't showered in days, some fresh and clean, some who stayed at the car market after closing to camp there, others, like us, who had places to go back to. The vehicle selection ranged from vans, cars, minicars, station wagons, a sports car, diesel, petrol, 1 liter, 4 liter, old, not so old, and from $350 to $4000.

Music echoed off the concrete brick walls, sometimes it blasted. Eminem, Nelly, traditional Hebrew songs, reggae, rock, rap. People danced, usually after they sold their cars, sometimes days after they sold their cars. A watch wasn't necessary since the gas cookers fired up around 11:30 to prepar lunch and beer cans snapped open signaling the approach of 5. What a wierd place.

After 3+ days in that hole we were all too happy to leave, especially considering that we sold the car for the exact price that we paid. The gamble paid off. All in all it was a very interesting time.

On Friday we leave for Australia. We'll be flying into Brisbane and from there heading north to Fraser Island. After that, its up in the air. I'm excited to see Ward and Liz. In the meantime, we have laundry to catch up on, St Patrick's Day, see a kiwi (couldn't leave NZ without seeing a kiwi), and a little matter with an antiques dealer to square away.

Oh and one more thing, I hope to post some stuff on a couple of the places we've been in the last three weeks. If I actually follow through we'll see but keep your eyes pealed.