We are very much looking forward to seeing john_j ( and wife) in Santa Fe next week. John was one of the generous ozzies who made our trip down under so wonderful and we are looking forward to reciprocating.

Hope to house Neil Cammack in the Bay Area and meet him up here inn Victoria BC in September.

Not that he's ever done anything for us, eh

AndrewDavid

Not a bloody thing, A/D, which just goes to show you're a bloody saint, mate. PS, does anyone have any experience of US Customs' attitude to Tim Tams? Will I be strip-searched at SFO by large aggressive ladies in comfortable shoes?

US Customs has never confiscated Tim Tams on my return from your delicious ... um .. I mean, wonderful country. They only worry about fruit, I believe. I always claim the Tim Tams, too, but I write "cookies" in case the customs officer knows what Tim Tams are and is as depressed as I am that we can't find them here.

Neil,

it strikes me that you seem to be a bit over-anxious about being strip searched by large aggressive ladies at SFO...almost as if you're looking FOWARD to it.

Please let us know if this is a not so secret fantasy of yours and we'll do our best to make it come true!

Melodie
Bay Area Welcoming committee

Cost Plus World Market has managed to sneak Tim Tams into the US, cleverly disguised as Arnott's Biscuits. I was delighted to score some a couple of weeks ago.

At least, they fit the description of Tim Tams - chocolate biscuit, chocolate filling, covered in chocolate...

Lee Ann

It's San Francisco. Those large aggressive ladies might not be what they appear to be.

poor Neil, in trouble regardless of which way he turns. Luckily he'll have Robin to protect him,eh

AndrewDavid

Well I too am hoping to see Neil and his lovely Robyn when they arrive in SF! I just have wondered if I should warn the City Fathers of their arrival.
Well in thinking it over EVEN if Neil gets his jollies by being stripsearched by large aggressive ladies in SFO..and I agree with Gardyloo..no telling what those "ladies" will actually be, I don't think that SFO or SF will be shocked. It is SF after all!

Don't forget, you're talking to a former resident of Sydney, another Pacific Rim city where not everybody is what they seem to be.

wish they'd bring some bundaberg rum for me! I'm going through withdrawls! Welcome to the USA john j!

You never know your luck, moneygirl - where do you live? (Mind you, there must be substances that will help you through those withdrawal symptoms.)

Melodie, the committee's kindness and generosity is truly appreciated, but I do hope the BAWC will treat our arrival as a low-key event. Being typical Australians we're very self-effacing people, we blush, stammer and fidget easily. So while I'm a fan of Sousa marches, I'd like you to keep the band small, eh*.

Seriously, thanks all! I wish some of the friends I actually know on a face-to-face basis were so generous. (Hm - maybe there's a message for me there?)

* I need to practice for my own arrival in Canada.

Golly, Neil sounds more Canadian than I do and I've only lived here 6 months. We'll have to fit him up with runners, a toque and a puffy jacket when he sails into Victoria,eh

A/D

What! Tim Tams at Cost Plus! This needs to be broadcast more widely if it is true.

Tim Tams have shown up at World Market here in Memphis too.

Which does make it a little easier than it used to be - there's an Australian-only products shop in Little Rock. A good 2 hrs each way to get my wife some things from home.

Before that, it was even further back to Oz!

Hope you all have fun...

Neil, I rarely take less than 30 packets of tim tams when I travel to the US and Canada. I've never had a problem with them, no-one takes any notice of them and they happily make their way to their respective recipients. Thank god I'm not fussed on tim tams, every single packet makes its way over.

Cheers
Mac123

Just wanted to say the hospitality received in the bay area and santa fe was excellent...far exceeding that extended here in sydney.An important part of a great trip.Should be more of these "exchanges" between fodorites.

Neil...you better brush up those provincial,canberran sensibilities because the accommodation is classy and stylish.

Ar, jeez, John - not one of them flash places with an indoor dunny? Maybe me and the missus need a couple of weeks in the big smoke to get used to them fancy city ways. If we turn up in Sydney don't worry about putting us up, though, mate, we'll stay at the local pub. Meant to say, I've got a couple of relatives in Sydney, you probably know them.

Do I detect that Johnj has been having a bad day or just been sucking on lemons of late?
Provincial Canberran sensibilities? What is that supposed to mean? Does it mean that people in large, smelly, noisy sprawling cities with little lifestyle that is not polluted with some type of deathly fallout are the only people who can make a statement on anything or have an opinion that perhaps may differ from the mass media's " feed the chooks" bull...t?

Liz, I'm sure John had his tongue firmly planted in his cheek (as is mine when I hotly deny that Sydneysiders can be parochial...)

Anyway, we're not a province, we're the national capital. New South Wales is a province.

But there's always hope - a recent poll indicated that a plurality of Australians would like to see the states abolished in favour of two levels of government, national and regional (i.e. expanded, more efficient local governments). Very sensible, and I'm pleased to say that Canberra has pioneered the way with by far the lowest ratio of politicians to electors in the country. We know a bit about these things, see.

Jeez! Is this the Oz-touring time - and I missed out!

I'll be on the road this time next year - so watch out!