The Ferrungu's Occupy Australia

Before the Ferrungu World Tour, Louisa and I took several vacations a year, usually extended, and like most people(*) we dreaded coming back from them.  We are now on a one year trip, but we decided to treat each country as an individual vacation. 

The Oxford Dictionary defines a vacation as an extended period of recreation or the action of leaving something once previously occupied.  So does that mean that the protestors of Occupy Wall Street were on a vacation? Or was their vacation actually the act of going back to work?  Relevant question but I digress. ..

Our time in Australia has come to an end and it is time for us to take down the tent, walk away from the drumming circle, put away the picket signs and occupy another country – Indonesia.  When the Americans dropped the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima {funny link}, books, movies and even statues were created to remember the events – here is our memory of Ferrungu’s Occupy Australia for the record books:

Our base – our 1.5 person tent and 1.5 cylinder car were where we held our daily contingency meetings, mapping out the day’s actions.  We spent 25 fabulous days in this tent meeting fellow occupiers that shared similar passions – a dislike for showering and a dislike for work.

Our locations – Australia is a massive land with little forgiveness. Even the Koalas would try to kill you if they weren’t always sleeping.   Louisa and I travelled from town to town down the east coast avoiding the outback and finding new places to conquer.  Short list:  Cairns, Mission Beach, Airlie Beach, Hervey Bay, Brisbane, Byron Bay, Sydney and Melbourne.  With a total of 3,500+ KM travelled by car, we are happy to say we didn’t get tear gassed by a Koala.

Our support – like most great conquests, there is always support. The British had the Americans, Michael Jackson had Neverland and the Ferrungu’s had Greek friends and The KPMGers. Our Greek friends gave us endless amounts of food and hospitality to gain strength for our occupation, while Shiermo, Craigo and DarC provided the support and warm showers we desperately needed.  We are forever debit`d (bad accounting joke) – thanks again!

Our fan club – it is always great to have people who respect you and approve of your causes.  Louisa and I are fortunate to have both – the Ottawa Boys and the City of Sydney.  The Ottawa boys traveled all across the world to watch the City of Sydney show their support for Ferrungu’s Occupy Australia – the Sydney Harbour fireworks.  This is unprecedented fanatical act that was reciprocated with ice, vodka and limes (sans knife).

We wanted to thank Australia, especially the City of Sydney for allowing us to Occupy and Conquer.  Our time is done here and we hope two “Dodgy Backpackers” we able to pump enough money into Australia’s economy to ensure house prices continue to rise and a cup of coffee exceeds the $8 benchmark.  You will be missed and forever remembered!

(*)Trevor, this does not include you – I apologize for including you in the category of “People”

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Merry Christmas from Down Under!

For the last 4 consecutive years Louisa and I have been away from Canada for Christmas.  With work, it was easy to get away and a perfect time to decompress before “what we in the biz call ‘busy season’”.  However, it wasn't just good timing that drove us to get away; it was what Christmas has become in North America that pushed us to jump on a plane – consume, buy, consume, repeat…


Our time in Australia has been amazing (less a few minor nuisances), Christmas especially.  Australian Christmas is very different from North American tradition.  There is less emphasis on presents and more emphasis on the three F’s – family, friends and fun:

• Families tend to spend Christmas Eve together in Australia.  This is very similar to Canada, however instead of turkey or ham, Australians BBQ prawns and kangaroo steaks in the many public parks.  It is a festive event that involves a lot of booze (as does everything in Australia) – here is us trying to fit in with our KPMG Calgary friends living abroad!

• Christmas day is very different from Canada.  Presents are opened early Christmas morning, and instead of making a nice breakfast, the family is rushed off to the nearest coast to claim a spot on the beach with their closest friends.  Instead of the parents nursing their hangover, they continue to drink and BBQ in the sun until their melanoma starts to appear again.  This is the view of Bondi Beach, Sydney – we were the only ones not drinking. The ONLY ones!

• Instead of Rudolf, Dancer, Prancer. Comet, Vixen  etc. (great stripper names) pulling Santa’s sleigh through the snow, Santa is pulled by six white Boomers – see video. 

What we have discovered while spending Christmas in Australia (Sydney) is that Australians treat Christmas as just another stat holiday.  They seem super relaxed and don’t stress about buying gifts, Boxing Day sales, etc.  They would much rather spend their free time with friends and family on the beach with a well-deserved beer or twelve.  The next Christmas Louisa and I spend in Canada (if we do), we will ensure that our families have some drinks on Christmas Eve, exchange laughs instead of gifts and bbq at the closest skating rink…

Merry Christmas from down under everyone!

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Why is Everything in Australia Trying to Kill us?

Back in 2004, I took my first “World Tour” (solo mission) and I spent some time in Australia.  My time here was completely different – I would tell you stories but I can’t remember much due to a plethora of consumed Goon.  What I do know however, is that AUSTRALIA REMEMBERS…

Upon arrival in Cairns a few weeks back, I instantly got a weird feeling that Australia will not be as nice to me the second time around.  Was it because I left a $50 overdraft for the Commonwealth Bank to cover?  What it because 4 guys slept in a van illegally all the way down the east coast?  Or did the 20 bartenders that cut-me-off get offended by my back-lash?  Whatever the reason, I believe in Karma (see previous blog post) and I am now getting my pay-back 7 years later (and taking Louisa down with me):

1)  Magpie attacks – apparently magpies are very vicious in Australia, especially during nesting season.  Louisa knows this firsthand – she was attacked twice by one crazy magpie in the head and managed to avoid a third consecutive attack by ducking.  Luckily she found out that it is very common or else she would have a “giant candy-apple” complex about her head … Shameless Seinfeld video reference link.

2)  Rain – apparently summer in Australia has now turned into Cyclone season due to climate change.  Since our arrival we have only had 1 day without rain.  If this continues, we will most likely drown in our sleep as our tent isn’t as rain-proof as we hoped and only made for 1 person.

3)  Gasoline – we tried to sail the magnificent Whitsundays in a catamaran, however, due to a fuel leak and the potential of the boat burning down, the skipper demanded we head back to shore.  We also rolled into a gas station after driving 99KM on fumes, while in a torrential downpour – for some reason the Australian government replaced the “Next Gas Station is 600KM” road signs with “Play Trivia to Stay Awake” signs… really? If I don’t have gas for my car how can I play trivia?

4)  Giant Flying Beetles – these large can’t fly nor seem to see – they dive bomb towards wherever is in their way.  My back got attacked by one of these monsters biting me and attaching itself to me like it was a lifeboat on the sinking Titanic. A second attack to my leg several days later didn’t end so well for the poor bastard.

5)  Falling mangoes – November is mango season in Australia.  Louisa and I love mangoes. However, we do not like sleeping in a tent under a mango tree.  These 3 pound fruits of destruction can really keep you awake at night while you hear them fall inches from your head.  The plus side was that all the ones that missed our heads were delicious – we had an unlimited amount of free ripe mangoes for several days!

Either way you look at it, Australia doesn’t want us (well probably me) here for the second time.  I am going to make peace with Australia by doing the opposite of what I did 7 years ago – I won’t drink, I will pay for camping and I will ensure I put $50 back into this booming economy.  This will hopefully satisfy the higher powers to guarantee that my offspring have a safe place to drink Goon and get into trouble when they are 23. 

Honourable Mentions:

Brown Snakes – known as one of the most venomous snakes in Australia, Louisa and I saw one hanging out by our campsite.  Needless to say, we kept close to the middle of our tent.

Jelly Fish – it is jelly fish “season” in Australia, which basically means don’t go swimming in the ocean without a stinger suit or you will die. 

Sharks – for some ridiculous reason we watched Shark Week on the Discovery Channel last week – the consensus is that sharks do like people and shallow water. Especially in Australia.

Road Construction – if you think Calgary is bad, come to Australia and really experience road construction.  Every 50Km there has road construction that turns a simple 200km drive into a 3 hour torturous crawl, with every road sign blatantly telling you that you “are going to die” if you don’t slow down. 

Wireless internet – it is 2011, but Australia is stuck in 2000.  They still have computer kiosks that you pay $5 for 20min of internet.  The word “Wireless” is more foreign to Australia then the word “Touque”… okay, okay so this one didn’t try to kill us, but it impeded our blog posting updates.

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