Holland Wedding

The Hollands not only invited us to a wedding but put us up in their house for the majority of our visit to Melbourne, I unashamedly used this opportunity to take a rest bite from the choirs of backpacking, a halfway travel base; time to wash clothes, eat cheese and lay in without worried about checkout times. I am grateful to have this time. Towards the end of our stay we took the Toyota beast down to Wilson’s prom, I sampled the waters (again lacked waves), made friends with parrots and wombats (you smell these guys before you see them) and during that night our tent was bent over double and almost torn apart by treturous weather. Next stop Philip Island, a place to see the smallest species of penguin return from the turbulent seas to rest, a lookout to spot fur seals and even perhaps sharks. Unfortunately we saw none. The penguin march to land had become a tourist trap so we tried to watch from a neighboring cliff but where moved on. The fur seals must have been out surfing waves and no fins surfaced. It was still worth it just to feel the spray of waves on your face and the wind trying to take your balance. Back in the suburbs of Melbourne Ann and Les took us all out for teppanyaki, where the chief in the epicenter of the tables cooks right before you, cutting through veg in a blur and masterfully slicing through prawn and decapitation fish. With this meal audience participation was a must so he launches fried egg through the air as you attempt to catch between your chops, he made some of us sit a distance away from the table and attempt to catch a flying bowl of rice in a empty bowl. Needless to say many got egg on their face and rice on their crotch, great meal.

The days before Andrew (Holland’s eldest son) and Mel's marriage we helped prepare by folding and mounting origami like paper, erecting columns and cutting placeholders and menus with expert precision (4 years of architecture has turned me into a samurai with a ruler). We had the last supper of freedom with Andrew and the best men.The wedding was planned to be held outside on the tip of Melbourne's peninsula on a golf course however the weather on the days leading up had not been kind with lashing of rain and strong winds, during preparations the reception gazebo heaved and protested with rattles and groans. On the big day the final decision came shortly before the wedding began; outside, it was the right decision. The skies behaved and allowed for pockets of blue. Everyone had scrubbed up well for the day with perhaps the exception of Andy and myself. Being ‘travelling folk’ we had not come equipt with required attire for such a event, so we borrowed. Andy had a black suit that swapped him so he now resembled a well to do penguin. I on the other hand looked like a mafia hitman from the 70's donning a brown pinstripe suit and equally vintage shirt, the only thing that may have giving me away was my converses. The actual ceremony was short and sweet, drinks continued to flow into the evening with champagne, wine and cheese consumed in great amounts resulting in much merriment. Outrageous dance moves, splits and handstands where thrown down late into the night.