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----- Original Message -----
From: Christopher W. Cheng <ccwombat@ihug.com.au>
To: <mailto:Undisclosed-Recipient:@new-smtp1.ihug.com.au>
Sent: Monday, October 02, 2000 11:21 PM
Subject: last olympic note if you are lucky.
Greetings ALL,
Here is the last of the notes re my visions of the closing ceremony (and
the accumulated recipients yell Aussie Aussie Aussie, oi, oi, oi, - the
aussie war cry that resonated throughout the Olympic land whenever an
aussie Olympian appeared - or any other occasion)
I am scribing this to you all the day after the night of the biggest
fireworks in the world and a real river of fire ... beats a snuffle of
flame that the Brits tried very early this year!!
So it is done the flag is lowered and the flame has been snuffed out by the
afterburners of an F111 jet and sung away by a 13 year old superstar.
Athens ... have fun!!
Now for those of you who viewed the closing ceremony it was filled with
aussie icons so I am sure you are a little dismayed but hey this was party
time and you lot were the hangers on. I can tell you for cert having been
in the midst of the final night, and the morning after gathering, that this
was some mega do and don't we just turn on a fanfloppintastic party!!
Now explanation of a few of the quizzicals to you lot (much of which I
uncovered from looking at the replay of the opening ceremony on today's
television as for much I was thronging it with the best of them in the
city):
The stilt-walking, soon flaming Hills Hoist clothes line ... a few of us
commented about the non appearance of the backyard clothesline in the
opening ceremony but it did us proud last night. The numbers might be
dwindling ever so slowly with smaller backyards, clothes dryers and more
units (read apartments in the US) than there were 20 years ago but they
still are swinging (although now many come coated with plastic and some are
made off shore ) and many slightly off white yfronts (read undies) and pjs
(read pyjamas, read night attire) are still being hung out to dry by the
natural elements on the suburban block.
And that opening now some of that humour - yes uniquely aussie humour might
have got a little lost on some of you foreign types but it sucked us all in
... I must admit that for a fleeting moment the thought did cross my mind
that this was for real (when the mower wouldn't start) and someone did
stuff up (well I thought that until they started featuring it on the
television ... that gave it away that this was humour aussie style -
otherwise there would have been much television cover-up)!! but then the
character driving the ride on mower would give it away. he is one of our
very grand comics ... half of a very successful comedy duo. this whole
segment was keystone Cops aussie style!! And for those that missed it one
of the segments inside the tunnel where the mower was dodging and avoiding
all manner of obstacles including police cars and people you might have
notice that he nearly smashed into a inflatable kangaroo mounted on the
back of a man on a bicycle - that was the man who was director of the whole
shebang, and the kangaroo atop bicycle was a big barb at a previous games
extravaganza. Of course there were the water buffalos (ala Crocodile
Dundee) on Razors (the today's version of the scooters we used to ride) and
no they weren't shrimps, this is Aussie land after all. They were prawns
being ridden kangaroo style. that mower was the ride on version of the
victa push mower you saw in the opening!! Ah how far we have come.
And then there was the Thong ... adorned with Kylie singer type. Yes the
thong (and I ain't talking about of no piece of underwear either) is a
wonderful Australian fashion accessory initially for the beach but then
being worn to supermarkets, grocery stores, the trip to collect the Sunday
rag (read newspaper) and any other occasion that doesn't call for more
refined items of footwear.
And then there were the Bondi lifesavers resplendent in their bid and
trunks swimming togs (read swimmers) and the surfer boys and girls. Oh how
aussie is that!! Along with that icon of Australian Country music who has
squids of albums to his name - Mr Slim Dusty ... Imagine having the
gathered crowds all 110000 of them PLUS 1.5 million bods (read lots of
voices) scattered around the harbour signing (more or less in time and more
in tune than not) Waltzing Matilda. Cor blimey (read dead set, or far out)
it makes a real aussie lad like myself go all lumpy.
And of course why were Paul Hogan, Elle McBody, Greg the shark Norman,
Kylie Minogue and those stars of stage and screen and children's
television - Bananas in Pyjamas ... they are living aussie icons ... and
just to show you lot that even though 4 of the 6 live off shore in your
land for some hunk of the year they are Aussies and Still Call Australia
Home (this is NOT a Qantas advertisement)!! The Bananas are the ones that
are here ... B1 & B2, live in the ABC television studios and the minds of
some grand aussie kids writers.
And one cannot pass this lot without a mention of the Olympians themselves
with mobile phones - yes we are a well connected land down-under as the
Olympians calling home to tell bods they were on television and in the
parade goes to show!!
Now the Fireworks
See I told you that we can absolutely explode with fun ... we are reliably
told that it was the biggest fireworks ever seen. what I can tell you from
personal body crushing experience is that there has never been more bodies
clambered onto the Sydney harbour foreshore EVER .... it is a wonder that
the whole of Australia's east coast didn't sink a few meters (read many
feet) with the weight that 1.5 million Sydneysiders placed on the water's
edge!!
It really was huge. all points around Sydney led to the harbour and the
fireworks sites along the river. I tripped into the city at 7pm and already
all the best spots were taken (most of those went in the middle of the
afternoon). My train I rode travelling to the Quay was packed!! and yes the
amber fluid was being consumed with liberal abundance (at the stations and
on the trains, which is illegal anyway, and everywhere in between). There
were 12 huge outdoor screens for people to watch the telecast of the
concert and the fireworks and they were ALL outdoor venues were filled to
overflowing - and still the throngs arrived and scowered for their possie
(read position). there were kids and sprogs (read real little kids) in
strollers and little grommets (read just as school kids) and big kids like
me too. It was like all of Sydney (no matter what age) was out to watch the
show. I mentioned in my previous notations that the crowds around the
Olympic venues were big but that was like a pimple on an ant's posterior
compared to the gathered masses last night .... bodies were everywhere. The
actual centre of our city was closed to all traffic and the roads became
instant footpaths with many a reveller from all parts of the globe but of
course swamped by exuberant aussies. Closer to the exploding hours the
roads became sitting quarters to watch the screens. of course when the
fireworks did start many people made a crush to get next to the railing at
circular quay to watch the explosion. Most of you, like us probably saw
piccies of Times Square NY when this year was rung in ... the gathering at
the Quay was more crowded than that. Sardines in cans, corn niblets in cans
... dead set they are in palace luxury compared to our gathering. And that
F111 flying machine set off our majestical coat hanger once again into
glorious showers and radiating streams of fireworks.
After the fireworks of course then there is the chaos of getting zillions
of Sydneyites home so there were free music concerts scattered around to
help the crowd dispersal - it obviously worked because as I was driving
along one of our main roads that is now a non Olympic road early this
morning (2.30am) there were bodies still powering out of the city.
I could scribe stacks more (like the rumoured 70,000 condoms that were
issued free to Olympians in the village. I have just seen a report from the
mayor of the Olympic village that commented on the female Olympians
searching through the condom bowls for the right colored condoms - doesn't
that present a rainbow image!!. some one has already tagged it the sexy
games too ) but this is getting long and all you lot have work to do so get
to it.
I shall just finally say that Sydney has proudly woken to one stuff it all
hangover this morning ... Aussie, aussie, aussie, oi, oi, oi.
Christopher W. Cheng
PO Box 279
Newtown NSW 2042 Australia
chris@chrischeng.com
ccwombat@ihug.com.au
www.chrischeng.com
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