Aquarius Cafe
8/28/00
Monday
Surf’s up! Time’s up, too. going surfing today at 1:00, but I need to check out by 10:00. Then my train doesn’t leave until 8:00. Should be a real back-and-forth day. Up with the sun this morning. It peeked through the curtains and onto my pillow. Oh! Breakfast is served.
Aaaahhhh! The Dixie Chicks! Here!!
Ugh. Instant coffee. And for $2 AUS! After eating my pancakes outside, the wind has forced me inside with my…..um coffee. and the Dixie Chicks are still playing.
Now this I love. there’s this big attractive cigarette vender right across the room. It has a picture of the Brisbane (?) Skyline at night, 20 different selections, digital price display … sleek & stylish. And on the bottom panel is an ugly, laminated sign stating “Smoking Kills. Call the Quit time.” They all have that, all of the many, many machines I’ve seen. I guess they don’t have a surgeon general here.
Oh, and I don’t recommend the Tropical Queen pancakes. Not for $8, at least. I didn’t get my whipped cream, and the “tropical” fruit selection consists of your typical melons, strawberries, orange, the usual.
But about last night. Fairly quiet. Showered, did laundry, took a nap, then had dinner — my only meal of the day. It was a huge plate of roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, peas, green beans, fried pumpkin (good), and all covered in brown gravy. Not too bad.
Afterwards I made my way up to the Railroad Friendly Bar. Had a beer & listened to the blues band playing. They were alright. The crowd was older and of blues color. Nothing wrong with it, but I wanted to see what the “other” game in town had going. The “other” game on a Sunday night is the Beach Hotel. Went down & had a beer there. Could have been in Mount Adams. Not quiet, but not loud. A bit snobbish. Staff was cleaning wiping, polishing, and scrubbing from the minute I sat down until the minute I got up. And I did get up, finishing my VB in a hurry. Went back up the street to the R/R Bar only to find the band packing up … at 8:30. Apparently Byron is dead on Sundays in Winter. A sad finale. Sad lads. So I had another beer, sat around, had enough, and went to the beach. The tide was going out, but still up. At high tide it looked as if there was only 10 feet of beach or so from the dunes. The beach was pretty at night. The lighthouse was shining out over the bay, the waves were crashing in, and the stars were shining. It reminded me of Andros. All but the crazy drunk who told me he was taking his revenge on the gov’t & burning Sydney when he got there….. if he ever gets his van out of impoundment. So not the best night. But today I shop and surf. I hope these clouds roll out before I have to get back into that water!
KC
The toilet signs at the Aquarius Cafe:
Toilet Signs