Canada 2025 - Hobart to Sydney to Vancouver

 Sounds like the soccer association triennial world cup 'Canada 2025' - as if they take over the country and then let you have it back later. But no. This is simply PAK travelling to Canada, and travelling within Canada with Rosie to explore. I've been thinking of a style for this 'regularly updated website'. Maybe use Mr Wormold from Graham Greene's 'Our Man in Havana' - the vacuum cleaner salesman. Let's see how that fits. The benefit is that it can be written in the 3rd person omniscient point of view, enabling the traveller (me) to be written about, instead of apparently doing the writing. He (I) can also assume a different identity, and have 'characters' instead of real people, although that will be transparent, and might add something comical to what would otherwise either be too revealing - over-sharing, or be just a travelogue (that being something not interesting to read).

Wormald left the scene in Tasmania, with the locals having invited the rest of Australia in for the mid winter festival known as DARK MONA. The day times were cold and sunny, the nights were hidden treasures of games, music and theatre - inside and outside the waterfront buildings. Leaving meant nothing to Wormald. He had done it many times before. Ever since the Beatles penned 'She's Leaving Home' , reflecting themes of freedom, rebellion and generational divide, the quiet of Home Away had its appeal.

The Saturday morning flight out of Hobart was uneventful. My Bags are Packed, I'm Ready to Go was redolent of John Denver song, but echoed the underbelly of the USA; another terror attack and 10 dead.  

He knew it would not be the topic of conversation at the Sydney Opera House that night (7th June 2025) when Mendellsohn would be played on the grand piano by Sir Stephen Hough, under conductor Sir Donald Runnicles, with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra - so he put thoughts of retaliation, terror and murder out of his mind.

The music was entrancing. Late rush ticket cost $49 and was  5 rows back from the front stall. Except for the reality that Hough's fingers were like magicians and somewhat invisible, the seat permitted direct sight of the pianist at work. 

To hear more on Hough's talent and skill, listen to his Desert Island Discs interview here: BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Stephen Hough

80 concerts in the last year, no doubt some repeats there, but an extra ordinary feat.

The opening piece in the concert was The Hebrides, or Fingal's Cave - music Wormald recalled sounded like a long boat with visitors peering around into the cave, and the occupants rising and falling with the tide and swell of the ocean.

Image - Fingal Cave, the Hebrides. Remind you of anything? Hello sailor? Undoubtedly the stimulus to Felix Mendelssohn

The 3rd movement of Mendelssohn's piano concerto was stunning in live performance (nearly misspelt that as 'liver performance'). If you have time (of course you do) watch this boy's hands spirit over the keys: Mendelssohn Piano Concerto No.1 in g minor, Op.25, 3rd movement - Dang Thai Son

Accommodation on Day 1 was in the Royal Automobile Club Australia, Circular Quay - a single room for Wormald, who had no need of the extravagence of a suite or Queen size bed. Dinner in the RACA restaurant was convenient, and pleasant. None of the urgent commercialism such a part of the Sydney scene.

As it happened it was also 'Livid Sydney' (misspelt that again: I meant 'Vivid Sydney') where the barons of city council strobe light their iconic buldiings with video light shows, another attempt at 'give them circuses and cake'. View a bit here 

Away, before the military police could find and deport him, Wormald struck out for the Sydney international airport via the train system, at 0600hrs and stood like a shag on a rock awaiting stand by to become real seating on Air Canada AC 34.

Another flight for Wormald had become the definition of his world wide vacuum cleaner selling osbtrafuse  - who would suspect he was to shortly alight on the little Sea Island in Richmond, Vancouver after a 15 hr flight from Sydney? Well, everyone who knew him.

Met by his muse Rosa Elena, the two circumvented the early morning traffic to attend Rosa's hidden home in Dover Crescent, Richmond, there to prepare for the things to come: fighting fires in Manitoba, or a change in direction to the seascape in northern British Columbia - there to hide in Haida Gwaii, and inspect facilities at Prince Rupert. Rosa recalled her youth when Prince Albert was all the rage, but none of that now. There was no time for hospitalisation and the glorification of Wormald's generation. Haven't had your Prince Albert Piercing yet? 

Image: the ceiling of the Sydney Opera House concert hall. Looks like surfboards or upside down lounge chairs. Very nice. Not the seats for the economy class traveller.

Ring, Ring - news from home: flooding in Highfield House - having put 13,000 km distance from the day to day worries, the thought that the Colorado terrorists were trying to flood his investment vehicle meant Wormald had to reveal his situation to Brother Kimber MJ, and inveigle him to an electric start, roping in talented and courteous man of competence Alex Hogan - for investigation and hopefully a fix to the flooding problem. Warning: no child is expected to die in this episode, so if that is boring to you, switch to channel 9 and watch your beloved AFL If that is boring, remember it is in the process of trying to effect the change of a democatically elected government. We shall see which has the greater power: AFL v The State of Sleep Walking Tasmanian Government.

More to follow - as Wormald is now to attend a local pub, in disguise as a tourist, to watch the 3rd match of the 7 match final series of National Hockey (Ice) League - The Edmonton Oilers v the State of Florida (another mismatch of sport v democracy), live from Edmonton, Alberta - the oil province of Canada. 

Image- Stanley Cup final game 3, 2nd of 3 parts

Will the Prime Minister Carney be there? He has been invited, and did live in Edmonton at some distant point before taking over the British Central Bank, 'working' (or hiding?) in Goldman Sachs, and then playing with Harvard University when it was a real university, supported by the USA President (not so now). There is so much going on over in the Americas at the moment.

Image: a Howard Arkley artwork from the Museum of Contemporary Art, Circular Quay, Sydney - the question arises: can you build a suburban house anymore? Is government impotent in the face of sport? With $1b earmarked for a stadium less than half Tasmanians want, will there be anything left over to assist with reigning in the cost of housing in this uncontrolled universe.

More to come.

Images: give them circuses, and cake, when there is no bread left.