Cinders On Ice - part 6 (Sydney pt 1 Aug - Sep 2008)

I'm sold, convert my cash to aussie dollars and move me to Sydney, but let me live in the gym first - the boys are well fit! and I like the city too!

So some facts and figure first, we are here for four weeks, hand have three different hotel rooms across two chains - me thinks there was a booking error somewhere. My usual roomie and I started off in an apartment, then after four days we moved to Star City Casino, well to the hotel and an individual hotel room is no where near as good as a two bed apartment. Anyway after another four days we moved again, into the apartments at Star City and they were probably my favourite for the whole tour.

So we opened the show in Sydney and that was all fine and then we came to the end of our first week, did the Sunday shows and were in the bars by the harbour for 7. Which is early enough for you still to eat, but late enough for you to think you have eaten. I left at about 10ish and went back to the apartment picked up some food, ate it and went for a power nap, I was desperate to get a night out, even if no one else was up for it.

I woke up at 1am, gutted! Had I missed any chance of a night out, well only one way to find out. A quick shower, ran my GHDs through my hair and I was ready. I think roomie was amazed I was not only going out to find the queer end of town in Sydney on my own, but the fact I wasn't letting oversleeping stop me.

And off I went. Oxford street had the feel of the gay bit of town, but felt a bit dead. Okay it was 2am on a school night, but its gaydom, when had that ever stopped us before. I went into Stonewall for a Sweet Sherry and got chatting to some guys and found out where to go. And off we trotted. I was getting worried, although there were people milling around the door and although I could hear some tunes it didn't have that buzz about it and the air smelt fresh, not like a club. I had only taken my aussie mobile, so that ruled out texting half the world if it was crap and I was bored. Still I paid my money and took my chance. We wandered up the stairs and in front of me was a wall of glass with one of those automatic revolving doors in the middle. I duly entered and then the doors allined and I was inside. I felt like Lucy must have felt when she went through the wardrobe.

The smell, the noise, the boys, THE BOYS!!! the tunes. This place has all the makings of a good night out. And so I danced and drank and I drank and danced and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't get a smirnoff ice. I asked and still got smirnoff black. Not that I cared one jot. The only gay on the ice show (bet you thought you'd never hear that one) had somewhere to dance!

And so the night went on and bits get hazy and the tunes got better and then all of a sudden I was awake in the apartment and supposed to be on a coach in half an hour to take us to Star City. Not only were we moving hotels, we were doing it on our day off. I slumped into a corner of the coach and zipped my north face up as far as it would go and hope this combined with my sunglasses would obscure me from the rest of the company. It didn't.

By the time we got to Star City (twenty minutes if that) I was tired and dehydrated and knew only one thing was likely to follow. Then the word comes back down the checkin line, none of the rooms are ready, what fresh gay hell! So I gave up and sat in a corner till the rest of the company had checked in. I was in no rush to move. I sauntered up, filled in the form, asked where we were leaving bags and when my room would be ready.
"Oh no Mr Parcanboy, your room is ready. Would you like your bags taken up?"

Jackpot!

Naturally I declined the offer of my bags being taken up. The five minute wait for them would upset me as it would be another five minutes when I wouldn't have been in bed. A short sleep and the world was a better place. I woke up about late afternoon and looked to see what delights the minibar had. I wanted a bacon roll and they had none, so I had a cup of tea and a nice long shower - I know how to live! By the time I was out the shower I had a message waiting on my aussie mobile.
"Do you want to meet up for dinner?"