This morning I got up early and went with the family to drop off Zac and Bethany to school. The three of them (Georgia was with us but she was sick so she didn't have to go to school) were in the back seat of the van, Evan was driving, and I was in the front seat. On the way, the kids insisted that Evan play "the Michael CD," which I found out was Michael Jackson's album, Bad.
I couldn't help but laugh when they all started singing Smooth Criminal. Every last word. BY HEART. All three of them. It was hysterically funny to hear three little kid voices with Australian accents singing along with Michael Jackson. Bethany finally stopped and looked at me, saying, "Whaaaaat? We like to sing!"
And I said, "I know, and I like listening."
"Then why are you laughing at us?"
"Because it's funny!"
"No it's not. We just like singing."
Apparently it's like that every morning on the way to school. I just thought it was precious. Evan's sick of the CD.
We dropped the two of them off, and Evan, Georgia, and I drove to the city center of Adelaide. Evan gave me a quick driving tour of the city, and then he dropped me off near the main shopping center called Rundle Mall. Basically, even though the city of Adelaide contains around 1.5 million people, the actual city center is only about 1 square km. It's laid out in a nice tidy grid that is surrounded by a ring of green park area, called the Terrace. When the first settlers came to Adelaide, they put a huge emphasis on building an orderly European-style city. Funny enough, several times I felt like I was in a European city. The architecture is a beautiful blend of old French Renaissance, English Parliamentary style, and a contemporary steel-and-glass design. Brand new skyscrapers might be sandwiched by squat stone buildings that bear plates on them proudly proclaiming, "Est. 1885" or the like.
I barely scratched the surface of things to do. I basically wandered around Rundle Mall for a few hours and then started looking at the bus routes to get home. There's a really nifty thing called the O-Bahn (apparently supposed to resemble the expressway on Europe's Autobahn?), which is a direct bus route from the center of town to a major transportation center near Redwood Park named Teatree Plaza. The O-Bahn is a separate track for buses only, and it allows them to go 80kph without having to deal with pesky things like traffic or stoplights.
A really cool thing: Teatree Plaza is not far from where the Johnsons' home is. I picked up another bus that dropped me off literally three blocks from home and I walked the rest of the way. Talk about another boost to the Empowerment Meter! Now I know how to get to the center of the city, where there is awesome shopping and some really cool walking trails that I want to do.
Today I also got back into the 21st Century. I got my Aussie cell phone. :)
Mark and Karen have had a prepaid cell phone on hand to lend to the American students who come to the area in the past. They passed it on to me and now I am within reach of anybody in the area. (Also of my mother if she needed to get in touch with me. I know she'll be glad to know that.)
Tomorrow is a big day, I'm getting picked up by one of the girls and I think we're going hiking or driving or something. Either way, I'm going to get to see more of Australia and I am excited about that!
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