osutoraria

Hi. Thank you for reading and enjoying Osutoraria. I do plan to continue this series but, with a change in tourism ministers and the plan to create a soap opera for the Japanese market shelved, I'm going to wait until further interest develops before continuing.

In the meantime, if you're interested in Japanese culture I recommend you check out my Japan travelogue and the Japanese Language Exchange site.

Many thanks for your interest.

Several more people joined the group and Yuki got to find out a lot about what Australians knew about Japanese culture. They knew a lot more than she expected and one of them had even eaten at a whale restaurant in Shibuya, but there was a lot more that they didn't know, didn't understand or just didn't care about.

She was particularly surprised by their disinterest in some particular manners. Apparently Australians treated everyone as equals so the idea of showing humility to someone who was in a higher level job or class or just older seemed to be against Australian culture. People even called the Prime Minister John or Johnny if they run in to him on one of his morning walks around Kiribilly.

"When I first came here a couple of years ago, I really had a lot of trouble fitting in," said Hee Jung. "I used to ask all the standard questions that I asked at home like 'How old are you?', 'Are you married?', 'Do you have a family?' etc. I soon realised these were NOT questions to ask for several reasons."
"Why?" asked Yuki.
"People don't want you to know their age unless they offer it. They don't want you to know that they're married as they may be planning to change that situation anyway, or they're separated and haven't finished the divorce proceedings yet. Australians have one of the highest divorce rates in the world! Oh and guys rarely want to get married anyway."
"What about children?"
"Lots of Australians with kids from previous relationships."
"No way!" Yuki was very surprised. She had no idea that relationships were so unstable.
"Yes, way! So you don't talk about kids if you plan to start a new relationship. It can get in the way!"
"So, why is everything so unstable?"
"I think it is because everyone is too happy. As soon as there's the slightest problem in a relationship people just give up and move on rather than try to make it work." Hee Jung replied.
"But, why would so many men move on? Why do men want to divorce so much" Yuki asked, incredulously.
Hee Jung laughed. "Men don't divorce that often. Remember, this is Australia. Women in control. Women are the ones that organise the relationships, ask men to marry them, then decide on the divorce once they've got the kids they want. The government also supports women really well so for a lot of Australian women, men are superfluous. Just sperm donors! Why do you think so many Australian men have married Japanese and Korean wives?"
Yuki was shocked. She saw Kumiko nodding in agreement. "Girl Power!" Kumiko said. "Get used to it Yuki. It's one of the reasons I'm here. Women are really in control of the relationships in Australia. Enjoy it. Take advantage of it. The boys are at our mercy!" Kumiko laughed.

Yuki nursed her drink and pondered the situation. She looked at the crowd. There was another Japanese girl that she hadn't met yet holding an empty glass. The girl looked at the Australian guys around the table and moved to sit next to another one of them, holding the empty glass. Yuki could see he had almost finished the beer he was drinking. The girl started talking to him as he finished and, he suddenly realised she had finished her drink and offered to buy her another one. The girl smiled then sat back in her seat and began talking to another guy there while the other guy went to buy her a drink.

Suddenly Yuki understood completely how easy this would be and why Kumiko had been outrageously flirting with Mick earlier. The men were powerless! Perhaps this would be fun afterall!

Kumiko seemed to be able to read her mind again. Sometimes it surprises her when she can do that. "Don't let it go to your head!" she said.

It was 10pm and Yuki had met about 20 fairly interesting people when suddenly a portly man swooped in through the door to a chorus of "Adam" and began giving air kisses to everyone.

Yuki saw him accept a glass of wine before making a beeline direct to Kumiko.
"Daaarling!" he said. Kumiko winked at Yuki then gave him a kiss on each cheek.
"How are you doing, Adam?" she asked.
"Oh, you know how it is. Things to see, people to do!" he said with a wry grin.
Kumiko smiled at his old joke and introduced Yuki to him.
Adam spoke to her in fluent Japanese. She was very surprised. He asked her what she was doing in Australia and how long she planned to be here. Then he asked her about the upcoming Apec meeting and whether Sydney Tower would be closed for it.
"Your Japanese is very good" she commented.
"It helps if your partner's from Japan!" he said, winking. Then he reached out and lightly touched her hair.
"Hmm, I think I can help you with your split ends and bring a bit of life to your hair. Why don't you come along to my salon on Oxford Street and I'll give you some special treatment."
Yuki was very flattered and took his card before he moved off to talk to other people. Kumiko had already wandered off to talk with others and Yuki suddenly realised that she was alone at the table, with an empty glass. She knew what she had to do.

Coming through the door was a really tall, blond, muscular guy of about 28. He was wearing a dark blue suit and light blue shirt with a blue tie. Yuki knew a bit about the effect that colours have on people and could see Matt was projecting "Trust Me!". But he also had a stud earing in one of his ears which suggested that he might be a bit dangerous. But he was definitely very masculine and Yuki was momentarily mesmerised.
"He's so tall!" she said.
Matt heard her Japanese and replied in English. "Yep! Six foot five. Tallest guy in Sydney unless the basketball teams are playing!" He came over to her and extended his hand. "You must be Yuki! Very pleased to meet you".
Yuki took his hand and shook it. She knew she had to get used to this hand shaking thing. And his hand practically swallowed hers. His grip was friendly, warm and slightly coarse, as though he did some physical labour.
"You bought your drinks already!" he said in mock disappointment.
"Of course! We couldn't wait around for you to turn up! Kumiko replied.
Matt smiled, showing very bright teeth. "Oh well! Your loss." He turned to the Asian girl who was standing just behind him. Yuki hadn't noticed her. She was tall too. Short hair, baseball cap, T-shirt, a friendly smile with perfect teeth meant it was easy to guess where she was from.
"Anyong hasayo" said Yuki in Korean.
"Konbanwa" replied the Korean girl with a laugh. "I'm Hee Jung" she said, taking Yuki's hand and shaking vigorously.
She seemed to have worked out what Yuki was thinking and quickly leaned over and whispered in her ear "Matt's my language exchange partner...only!" then she smiled, gave Kumiko a quick hug then went over to the bar with Matt.
Kumiko saw Yuki's look and gave her a grin. "Once you've spent some time here you'll notice how open and unassuming a lot of people are. Even Koreans and Japanese get on well in Sydney!
"I'm more surprised by how forward everyone is!"
"Wait til you meet Adam!"
"Adam?"
Kumiko lifted her hand then dropped it at the wrist and feigned a slight lisp. "hello, darrrrrlings!" she said.
Yuki laughed. "Right. Interior designer or ballet dancer?"
"Hairdresser!"
"Of course! I'll look forward to meeting Adam!"

Yuki and Kumiko were walking up Pitt Street. They'd just left Yuki's apartment on Liverpool Street and were exploring some of the shops in what is known as the Korean quarter of the CBD of Sydney.

Many of the shops displayed signs in both Korean and English. One sign in particular caught Yuki's attention. It was on the corner of an alley and lead to a really nice Korean restaurant with wooden walls and many tables. Yuki decided she would have to have a meal there sometime.

They continued up Pitt Street until they reached Park Street and turned right. Then another block up, past McDonald's, and they were in front of the New Windsor Hotel.

Yuki pulled the straps back over her shoulder for the fourth time in as many minutes. "I think this is too big," she complained.
"It was the smallest size they had," replied Kumiko. She pulled out her purse and rummaged through the many tiny pockets. Pinned to the brown lining were a few tiny silver saftey pins. She removed one and grabbed a bunch of material from the back of Yuki's waist. "Here you go," she said, folding a pleat in the dress and pinning it tightly. The fold concealed the pin.
"Wow, that's great!" Yuki said, as the dress suddenly felt more comfortable.

A lone man stood in front of the bar doors and looked at them both expectantly. Kumiko pulled out her ID and Yuki showed her passport. The bouncer smiled and ushered them inside.

The New Windsor Hotel had been recently refurbished. Sparkling metal accentuated the lines of the bar while tall wooden tables with similar tall wooden stools sat a short distance from it. Several wooden drinking bench tops were flush with the wall to wall windows, broken only by plaster columns featuring a small dim light. From the street level the view was very clear. They could see everyone and everything.

Yuki started. "It's very open, isn't it? Is there somewhere, where we can be more private?"
"This is the style, Yuki. People who drink, like to watch the world go by. The bigger the windows, the better the pub!
Yuki saw a metal staircase with wooden steps leading up. "Let's check the place out!"

Kumiko looked around. "There's not many people here at the moment and I don't recognise anyone, yet," she said. "Let's explore."

Upstairs was a small restaurant and several pool tables. There was also a bar with a tall blonde girl drying glasses. There were a couple of guys and a very big woman playing pool in the far corner. Otherwise, there was no one else.

"Why is it so quiet?" asked Yuki.
"Some pubs don't get busy until 8.30pm on some nights. We're probably a bit early"

They took the stairs back down and followed a series of steps to the lower ground floor. Underneath the ground level was another bar and a poker machine area. There were a few people here pressing buttons and the room was filled with the pleasing and fun sound of the machines.

They went back up to ground level and looked about. There was a lounge area around the corner from the bar that Yuki hadn't noticed before. There were a few people watching horse racing on the screens.

There were lots of screens! Just about every available space above head height had an LCD TV screen hanging from it, playing a different type of sport.

"It's a bit like the 200 yen beer bar in Shibuya, isn't it?" said Yuki.
Kumiko nodded. She chose one of the four round tables in the middle of the room and put her jacket on one of the stools. Yuki went to put her handbag down on a stool but Kumiko stopped her.

"Yuki, only in Japan can you leave your handbag somewhere and it'll be safe. No other place in the world, not even Sydney.
"Oh," Yuki replied, "Okay." She put her jacket on the stool too and joined Kumiko at the bar.

A young looking man was pushing a drainer of glasses into a dish washer. He was just under 6 foot - tall, lanky, with unkempt hair and a serious face. He seemed to be trying to look cool and not being comfortable doing it. He noticed them and smiled and Yuki smiled back.
"Hello, ladies. What would you like?"
"VB!" both Yuki and Kumiko said simultaneously, then laughed.
"I'd love to help you but we're out of VB!"
"Sorry?" asked Yuki.
"Um. We don't have any VB at the moment. We'll have more in about half an hour. I'm waiting for someone to change the keg. How about a Toohey's New? Same price!"
"Sure, that's fine!" said Kumiko.
"Schooner or middie?" asked the barman.
"Schooners." Kumiko replied.
Yuki was completely lost by this interchange and had no idea what a schooner or middie was. Kumiko quickly explained that a schooner was the standard size beer and a middie was a small beer. If you wanted to order a Guinness you got it in a pint.
The barman filled their glasses quickly and put them on the barmat in front of them, then gave Yuki a wink. Kumiko paid and they headed back to their table.

Yuki was wondering what the wink meant.
"He's just being friendly. A lot of barman are like that. But everyone knows that they can't take out the customers. Bad for business. But they're really good at giving advice so have a chat with him sometime!"

"Do you know him?"
"His name's James and he gave me some good advice awhile back. Oh, look. Here's Matt."

Yuki saw him and all she could say was "Oh..."

An old sign saying Gowings was flaking off the side of the building. Just below the sign was a clothes store called Suzanne.

"There was a shop here called Gowings a few years ago. It had been here for over 130 years. Then some young people thought they could expand the business and failed. The shop was just for men but it sold everything a man might want from fishing gear to underwear. So, ironically, it has been replaced with a shop that is just for women!"
Yuki listened to Kumiko's trivia with interest. Kumiko had been absorbing all this information over the past few years since she'd become an Aussiephile. She had hundreds of books on Australia and could probably talk more than most Aussie tour guides. "Are there buildings like 109 in Shibuya?" she asked as they walked into the store.

"No. Not enough people here for that. All the big malls rely on selling everything, not just clothes. Come on, they've got some great cocktail dresses on level 2." Kumiko answered.

After exploring the racks, Kumiko found Yuki a very stylish black dress that fit perfectly.

They went to the girl behind the counter to pay. The girl looked at them, smiled, then said "It really is important in life to take every day as it comes, don't you think?"
Yuki was very surprised but Kumiko just took it in her stride. "Oh yes!" she replied.
"There's no use worrying about something that might happen tomorrow. Best to enjoy something that is happening today," the girl continued as she swiped the barcode of the dress and removed the plastic security tag.
"Oh, absolutely," Kumiko agreed.
"What are your plans this weekend?"
"Oh, we're probably going to go to the mountains, maybe a trip down to Wollongong. Not sure yet."
"That sounds great. That'll be $69.95"
Kumiko handed her her card and winked at Yuki. The girl seemed to be on autopilot. Yuki supposed it was an incredibly boring job, not like working in a cafe.
The girl finished the transaction and handed Kumiko the dress in a thick plastic bag. "Thank you very much. Please call again and I hope you have a great time on the weekend," she said with a slight nod.

They left the shop and headed to Liverpool Street. "Strange!" Yuki said.
"Nah. A lot of the sales people are a bit out of it. It's a mind numbing job so they're sometimes a bit vague. Better than some of the really rude ones, though!"

It was 6:00pm and the streets were crowded. Lots of people were coming home from work or out shopping. In some places there were so many people trying to cross the street that cars couldn't move.

Kumiko pointed out the Queen Victoria Building. "There's a really cool cafe on level 2 called Yama," she said.
"Seriously!" Yuki replied. "Mountain cafe?"
"Yeah, it's Japanese and Korean. If your job with the Sydney Tower Cafe doesn't work out, you can always try there."

Before Yuki had left for Australia she'd spent several days online searching for jobs in Sydney. The Sydney Tower Cafe was looking for a Japanese speaking waitress 2 days a week. She got the job through a phone interview and had gone there early that morning to meet the boss.

He'd given her a pass that enabled her to visit Sydney Tower anytime she wanted.

She'd worked in Starbucks in Shibuya, overlooking the busiest pedestrian crossing in the world. She'd sold cakes, made coffee, wiped tables and commented on the latest books and magazines to thousands of people from Japan and around the world, while thousands more congregated near Hachiko statue a few stories below.

The only real difference with her new job was that it would be a bit less busy and much higher!

She was a bit nervous as she started tomorrow and tomorrow was the day she had to make the call.

Kumko had been talking. "...and over there is the QVB statue of Queen Victoria, Sydney's Hachiko. Hundreds of people use it as a meeting place on Friday and Saturday nights. Others use Woolworths Metro or the Town Hall steps. In any case this is the busiest area of Sydney."

Yuki nodded. They continued past Woolworths. She'd walked up this way earlier that day but with dusk approaching and the lights flickering on it looked a little different. She realised it was still Thursday. She'd only been in Sydney for 2 days. It felt like a week already!

"When we get back to your apartment you're going to have to get changed because we're going out tonight." Kumiko said.
Yuki protested. "I've got to work tomorrow. I need to sleep so that I can do my job. I can't go out tonight"
"You don't start until 11:00am. We're only going to a pub in the city for a few hours. You don't need to drink. It'll be fine." Kumiko grinned.
"I don't feel well." Yuki mumbled.
"Matt is dying to meet you. You'll like him."
"Look, I don't think I'm going to feel up to meeting anyone tonight"
"Yuki. If you don't like him or any of his friends there are plenty of other people there. We're going to Mokupub!"
"What?"
"It's a group that's been meeting at the Windsor Hotel for over 15 years. A great place to meet Japanese and people interested in Japanese culture. Every Thursday night from 9.00pm"
"You're not serious! Are there enough Japanese in Sydney for this to work"
"Yuki. There are thousands of Japanese working in Sydney."
"Oh."
"So we're going there tonight. If you don't like it we'll go home again. Matt is only available Thursday nights so this is the only chance to see him this week. He's another friend of mine so I'd really like you to meet him."
"Okay."
"Great! Now let's get to your place and start fixing up your makeup"
Yuki groaned.

Mick finished wiping the tables and headed back to the noodle store he worked at. John, his workmate, shook his head at him.
"How much have you spent on her so far?"
"Who?" asked Mick innocently.
"You know who. That Japanese girl you've been pining over for the past 6 months." John frowned.
"Oh" said Mick, furrowing his brow in concentration, "a few thousand. You know...we spend 10% of our pay on girls. Part of the budget!"
John laughed. "You know it's money wasted. What about your wife?"
"We're separated, remember?"
"Oh, yeah. Sorry. What about the other girl?"
"Not really my type." Mick put the cleaning things away and started washing his hands. "I don't think she can speak English."
"Hmm. Maybe you can teach her!" John smiled.
"Haha. That's what got me into trouble last time!" Mick dried his hands and looked over at the escalator where that other girl had been only half an hour ago. "Maybe," he whispered to himself.

-------------
Kumiko and Yuki we're enjoying themselves at a nearby cafe which looked over the wharf. They'd shared a soft and juicy blueberry muffin, Kumiko totally forgetting her diet.

Afterwards they queued at the entrance to the zoo. The ticket collector started checking tickets a few minutes before 9pm, so they were one of the first inside.

They'd made it for feeding time. Yuki was able to pat a baby koala at the sanctuary and pat a kangaroo in a mini farm area. Yuki thought the baby koala was the cutest thing she'd ever seen and had squealed in delight when it had looked straight at her.

The thing that impressed Yuki the most was the individual environment of the animals. Each animal had plenty of space and was surrounded by plants, rocks, streams and other things that meant it looked like a piece of their original home had been exactly transplanted to the zoo. For the monkeys it looked like she was looking onto an area of the jungle and for the tigers, an area of the Serengeti.

She loved the bird show. There were mice running along the fence as eagles swooped and grabbed notes from audience members in the open air mini stadium.

The tricks were fantastic. Yuki clapped her hands with every performance while Kumiko, who had seen everything before, was more blase about it.

After lunch they saw the seals and other sea animals, then some gorillas. They then took the sky car to the bottom of the zoo and left.

It was a great day and Yuki was very happy. They headed back to the ferry and back to Circular Quay.

"Did you take lots of pictures?" Kumiko asked.
"Hundreds! I'm going to have to download them to my laptop or get them printed otherwise I won't be taking any more!"
"I took a few too. I got a great one of the lion yawning. All those teeth!"
Yuki nodded. "It's a pity I couldn't hug a koala."
"Yeah. But you can only do that in Queensland. It's against the law in NSW." Kumiko said.
"Awww!" Yuki said disappointedly.

There was a tinny jingling sound and a song by Smup started coming from Kumiko's Gucci handbag. She pulled out her mobile and gasped at the name that had come up on the screen, then smiled sweetly at Yuki and took the call.

Yuki was immediately suspicious. She recognised that look. It was blind date time again.

Kumiko began speaking very quickly in English to the person on the phone so that Yuki couldn't understand. She was surprised Kumiko could speak that fast after only being in Australia for 6 months but she supposed it was because she'd studied here a few years previously.

Kumiko hung up then stared for a few seconds at the phone before speaking.

"That was Matt." she said, grabbing Yuki's arm. "Come on. We're going to get you some nice clothes."

Yuki raised her eyes and sighed. Here we go again, she thought.

Kumiko sighed. "Don't worry. There'll be another one." They headed past a grungy looking cafe with dirty white tables and a neon sign and over to a queue on the left side of the wharf. There was an electronic timetable board with orange writing, almost impossible to see in the morning glare, advertising that the next ferry to Taronga Zoo was leaving at 7:45. They'd just missed the 7.15am ferry.

"We've got to wait almost half an hour!" Kumiko said.
Yuki looked at the queue, then at the old man behind the window collecting money. "That's okay." she smiled "We'll probably be here for half an hour anyway."

Kumiko nodded. They both sighed, then laughed.
"It's only 12 minutes by ferry to Taronga Zoo. We can save even more time by buying a combined ticket here. It's only $39 dollars each"
Yuki realised that the total would be about 80,000 yen. She raised her had to her mouth in surprise.

Kumiko just smiled. "Don't worry about it. I'm paying. It's my treat, remember."

80,000 yen for a trip on the ferry and a visit to Taronga Zoo. She could have 3 days in a hostel for that much money, or have 10 meals or fly to Melbourne. She shook her head. "I don't think we should go. It's just a zoo, right?" Yuki said.

"Yeah, but it is a very different zoo. There the animals have convincing and personal habitats, there's a great bird show and the elephants are pretty cool. It's probably one of the best zoos I've been too. And you'll get to see some Koalas and Kangaroos!" Kumiko wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Okay. You've talked me into it." Yuki said. She smiled and decided that this was the time to take out her camera. She took a shot of Kumiko the Opera house peaking through one of the windows in the background.

Kumiko also took out her camera and they tried a few shots in the limited space they had in the queue.

Soon they were being served by the old blue eyed gentleman. He had white hair and a kindly face. Kumiko began to speak in English but the old man spoke to them in fluent Japanese.

"heeey" said Yuki in surprise. The old man laughed.

"Lots of people in Sydney can speak Nihongo. If you're unsure of what to say in English, ask if they speak Japanese!" he said with a smile.

He handed over their tickets and wished them the best on their journey. They put their tickets through the turnstiles and went down the black cement path to the waiting area.

After about 20 minutes a yellow and green ferry pulled in and they got on board. There were blue seats everywhere and several levels that they could sit. Kumiko took Yuki's hand and dragged her up the narrow steps inside the ferry to the second level. The view was great and Yuki could even smell hot food coming from somewhere. She suddenly realised that she hadn't had breakfast yet.

"It's not like the Happy Dog in Tokyo is it?" Kumiko said. Yuki laughed and agreed. She'd seen the sign as she came across the plank. No alcohol. So, no overpriced cups of Asahi beer. There was no DJ either.

In almost no time at all the ferry was full and it pulled away from the wharf, heading towards Taronga Zoo. Yuki took a few more photos of the Harbour Bridge, the Opera House and the city skyline before they disappeared behind scaffolding and old cargo cranes.

She then left Kumiko upstairs while she followed the smell of hot food. She found it on the lower level, concealed by another queue of people ordering coffee. She joined the queue and suddenly realised she didn't know how to ask for what she wanted in English.

She remembered what the ticket seller had said and hoped that if she got stuck, the guy making the coffee could speak Japanese.

The tall, muscular barista smiled and asked her "G'day miss. What are ya after?" She hoped he was asking what she wanted.

"Um. Coffee. Chips. Please." she said in broken English. The guy smiled and asked. "Is that black or white coffee? How many sugars would you like? I'm afraid we don't sell chips. Hot oil, moving boat, not a good mix"

He spoke slowly and clearly but Yuki really had trouble understanding. "What black, white coffee?"
"Black coffee - no milk. White coffee - with milk"
"Black coffee please. Two sugar."
"Okay. What about food?"
She looked through the greasy glass and saw a chocolate slice with pink things in it, a single sausage roll and a single pie. She pointed at the slice and the pie.
"Okay. Coming right up."
Yuki breathed a sigh of relief. She wished she'd had more English lessons when she was younger. She started to think about getting an English tutor when she found her order in front of her. The slice and the pie were in separate white paper bags.
"$4.65 please"
Yuki looked at the money in her wallet and for a few seconds couldn't figure out how to make four dollars. Then she took the easiest way out and handed a $20 note. The man put the change directly in her hand, which was another surprise. He thanked her and moved to the next person.

She looked at the change in her hand and decided that it was probably right, knowing that it was far more stressful to try and argue if it was wrong, then headed back up the narrow staircase with her coffee and food. She realised that she'll have to practice using Australian money if she was going to be able to keep her job.

The sea was a bit choppy today and she could smell the spray on the wind. She sat on the seat to the left of Kumiko, to keep the morning sun out of her eyes, and carefully pulled off the coffee cup lid.

"So you had no problems ordering food, then." said Kumiko.
"Yeah. Easy!"
"If you do get stuck, the easiest thing to do is just point. They'll get the message"
"Okay. Thanks. Want some of the pie?"
"Haha. No thanks. Too fattening. I'd lose my beauty!"
Now it was Yuki's turn to smile. "I think you're a bit too thin to be in Australia. Look at all these people. Compared to Japanese they're all fat. But in Japan, I look fat. I'm pretty sure you have nothing to worry about!"
Kumiko grinned. "Thanks."

The ferry hit some rough waves and they even had a warning about it which meant Yuki thought she should try to hold onto the seat. The ferry rocked a bit but it settled down quickly and they were soon at the wharf for Taronga Zoo. Yuki finished her pie and coffee and followed Kumiko down the ramp then up some steps to Taronga Zoo. The slice she put in her bag for later.

It was almost 8.00am and they'd made it to the front door of the zoo. But to Kumiko's dismay the door was closed.

"I don't believe it. My guide must be wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"My guide said they opened at 8.00am. This sign says they don't open until 9am. This sucks!"

"You mean we've got to wait here a whole hour?" said Yuki.

Kumiko nodded, looking visibly upset.

"So, I could've stayed longer in Sydney Tower?"

"Um"

"And we didn't need to rush or line up at the time we did"

"Yeah. Yuki, I'm so sorry."

Yuki was silent for a moment then just smiled and said, "that's okay. It's still an adventure. I bet there's a cafe open somewhere nearby. Let's explore!"

Kumiko beamed. "Thanks. Let's go and find a good cafe."

They headed back down the path and back to the wharf. A nice cafe awaited them.

Mick was wiping tables when Kumiko and Yuki came up the stairs. Yuki could see that he was focused on the job, his brow furrowed as he tried to remove a difficult mark from the glass surface.

Mick wore silver rimmed glasses which complemented the silver pendant that hung on a black leather strap from his neck. A white T-shirt, faded and torn jeans and a black belt completed the ensemble. He was in his late 20s but the harsh Australian sun had made sure he looked in his mid 30s. Yuki loved the fact that she still looked like a teenager even though she was much older. Australian men were the opposite and looked far older than their years.

Mick's blue eyes twinkled as he saw them, probably preparing a flirting comment or two.

Yuki was still embarrassed about her English so, as always, she allowed Kumiko to do the speaking for her.

"Put your back into it. I'm not eating here again if this place isn't spotless!" Kumiko said, good-naturedly.

Mick grinned. "Haha. Good to see you too. What are you up to?"

Yuki had no idea what this meant but Kumiko answered without hesitation. "Nothing much. Heading to Taronga Zoo. Want to come with?"

"I wish. Got to work. Why don't you take her to Australian Wildlife World instead? It's closer."

Kumiko leaned over the table and shook her head carefully. Yuki could see Kumiko's body language was being used to maximum impact at this point and watched as Kumiko's silky long black hair slid across her breasts. She was also surprised to see Mick visibly swallow. Kumiko knew how to play men.

"Taronga is bigger and has more animals. It's also more of an adventure. We get to take the ferry and everything!" Kumiko said, in a softer voice.

Mick lowered his head so that he was looking up to her eyes, then delivered his challenge. "Don't flirt like that unless you intend spending half an hour with me in the disabled toilets, later."

Yuki was shocked but Kumiko just smiled and touched his cheek. "In your dreams!" She stood up straight and casually swept her hair back over her shoulders. "You leave your wife and spend Christmas with me and I'll think about it"

Mick laughed. "You know I can't do that."

Kumiko shrugged. "Oh well. Your loss." She flounced away from Mick and headed for the down escalators. Yuki nodded at Mick as she went to follow her. Mick smiled a very genuine smile that for some reason made Yuki weak at the knees. She couldn't believe that she was attracted to a married man.

She followed Kumiko down the escalators and out of the Plaza, passing a sign for Azuma Restaurant and the Japan Foundation. It looks like the building was built for Japanese businesses.

Outside the traffic had begun to increase. They only had a short distance to walk before reaching the ferries. Kumiko was smiling but Yuki was lost in thought. People were so direct here. She didn't think she could adapt. She remembered back to Tuesday morning.

------------

Yuki's mother had prepared an extra special bento box for her to take on the plane. It wasn't just her first trip to Australia, it was also her first trip out of the country. Naturally her mother was very worried about her.

"Now you've got plenty of shoes. You know those Gaijin never have any spares. You're going to have to take your own"

"Yes, mum."

"I've also packed some tea for you. I don't know what they drink over there but it probably isn't green tea. And I'd like you to take this." Her mother handed her an envelope. Inside was 10,000 yen. Yuki was overwhelmed.

"Mother, I can't take this. This is too much"

"No, I want you to have it because you are getting too old to be single. You might meet a nice man in Australia and you might need to buy some new make up and clothes to look good for him." Her mother smiled at her.

Yuki smiled but knew her mother was old fashioned. Her mother expected her to find a nice pure Japanese man who could take care of her. She didn't want a traditional Japanese man who wanted her to do all the washing and cooking, she wanted a tall, blonde, blue-eyed western guy who treated her as an equal.

She just nodded and thanked her mother for the money. She'd obviously been saving for a long time.

The night before she had said goodbye to her father, knowing she wouldn't see him when she awoke in the morning. He worked long hours, 14 to 16 hours a day. The only advice he gave was to find a nice Japanese man. She didn't intend to do that at all.

Her boyfriend of 5 years accompanied her on the long train trip to Narita airport. They knew that this was the end of the relationship but neither had the heart to say it to the other. They held hands the entire way but didn't say anything. Yuki could feel her eyes fill with tears and tried to blink them away but then her boyfriend hugged her on the train, in public, just as they reached the final stop. This was something only young people did but she let him hold her until the doors opened.

They both exited, she heading for the airport, he heading to the return train. She didn't look back.

----------------

"Hey, Yuki. Snap out of it. You can't have jet lag, there's only an hour difference!" Kumiko was smiling.

"Sorry, I was miles away. I was just thinking of Aki." Yuki tried to smile but felt sick. She knew what Kumiko was going to ask next.

"You should have left him ages ago. This is a new life now. What did he say when you told him it was over?"

"Er."

"Oh my God! You haven't told him? You haven't ended it? What do you think you're doing?" Kumiko remonstrated.

"Hey. I'll do it tomorrow. Okay. I want to enjoy myself today and I'll call him tomorrow. I'll tell him then!"

"Okay. Make sure you do. You can't relax here if you're still worrying about broken relationships in Japan. You have to call him tomorrow. If you don't, I will" Kumiko was a bit upset.

"Sorry. Right. I'll do it. So, where are these ferries, then?" Yuki wanted to change the subject as soon as possible.

"We're here!"

They were at the right place but there was no ferry. "Oh no" cried Yuki in dismay. "We've missed it!"

Yuki smiled at the sun as it playfully flickered its warmth over the faintly rippling harbour. Barely a breeze stirred in the early morning.

A golden glow lit up the buildings she could see through the Sydney Tower glass, dappling across the Opera House, lighting up the trees of the Botanical Gardens and giving life to the sleepy streets below.

The street lights disappeared as the sunlight touched them, fading away as though it was their turn to sleep.

Yuki sighed. Away from the stress of Tokyo life, Sydney seemed to calm her like no other city. There was something about Sydney that filled her spirit like no Japanese city could.

There were only a few other tourists in the Tower at this time. It was so quiet that she could hear them whispering in the new dawn, not wanting to break the spell. The only other sound was the hum of the refrigerator in the cafe nearby.

She looked at her slowly fading reflection in the window. She'd tried out a new blue coloured mascara to match her light blue eye shadow but it really didn't look good in the morning. Her long black hair and slightly darker skin, a bit darker than most Japanese she knew, went well with her brown and tan top, dark tan coat and dark brown skirt. She idly played with her little clip-on koala attached to her brown guchi bag that she'd bought the day before. "Maybe I'm getting a bit old for all these cute things" she muttered.

A ping and the lift behind her opened. "There you are!"

Yuki almost dropped her bag. It was Kumiko. How did she find her?

Kumiko answered before she asked the question. "Toshio said I'd find you here. Come on. We have to get to the Zoo before feeding time!"

Yuki looked downcast. "Just a bit longer"

"But, it'll take us awhile to get to Circular Quay, buy our tickets, then get the Ferry, then line up at the zoo. We need to be there by 8.30am if we want to see everything." Kumiko pleaded.

Yuki, turned and looked out the windows. The sun had risen fully and the glare made it hard to see anything. Time to go.

They both headed for the lift. Kumiko looked her up and down. "I really don't think blue mascara goes with a brown jacket or pink shoes" she said as they got in. The lift doors closed.

Yuki groaned. She hoped she wouldn't get another lecture on fashion. Kumiko was gorgeous. Tall, thin, knew how to dress. Always had the right style that matched her body type. She even had an elfin smile and perfect teeth. "Well, I'm happy with it, and I think that's what matters" she replied.

Whenever Yuki and Kumiko had gone to a bar in Tokyo, especially the ones in Roppongi, Kumiko was always the one spoken to first.

She sometimes wondered why Kumiko stayed her friend. She could have easily made many more attractive friends than her. Yuki was aware that she was on the plump side from many nights drinking. She'd even been described as cuddly by one of her friends.

Plump, darker skin and short. Not an appealing combination in Japan. It was one of the reasons she escaped.

She didn't know why Kumiko would want to leave though. Kumiko had had a great job there as a translator and had plenty of boys sending her gifts all the time. Maybe she'd been bored.

The lift doors opened again. Level 1 in Centrepoint. They got out and looked around. The whole place was completely deserted apart from a blond guy sweeping the floor.

"Okay" said Yuki. "Which way?"

Kumiko pointed to some escalators that took them down to a tiled area and past some shops with shutters covering their doors. It led out onto Castlereagh street. They turned left and headed towards Circular Quay.

"You know, it's just a short walk to St James station. We could take the train to the Quay." Yuki suggested.

"Nah. You haven't been here as long as me. We could get there before the train arrived on the platform! And this way we can walk past Chifley Plaza and have a quick look in." said Kumiko.

"You're the boss." Yuki smiled. Even though Kumiko was pretty direct, she liked being around her. Kumiko's confidence was infectious and some friends even described her as crazy. But she was fun and Yuki could put up with a bit of directness from her. She also knew the reason for a visit to Chifley Plaza. Mick could be there.

They set off down Castlereagh street, heading towards Martin Place. There was a warm breeze blowing that was fresh and clean. The streets were tidy and there were very few people and cars. It looked like it was going to be a great morning.

Yuki really was looking forward to going to Taronga Zoo. But she knew that this was going to be her last chance. Tomorrow, it was back to work and tomorrow.., tomorrow the awful thing will happen. She didn't want to think about it now. She knew her life would change forever in 24 hours.