On the up side, I have a place to live come Friday.  Actually, I was supposed to move out Thursday but my host and I were both confused on the date.  He agreed to let me stay an extra night for free since I brought back beer on Saturday after I won a six-pack at one of the last Sydney Craft Beer Week events.  Win-win.  Anyway, on Friday I’m moving to Balmain, a really cute area of town that may even have a little more to offer than Mosman (not just the fact that it has three Indian restaurants to Mosman’s 0) even though the demographic makeup is largely the same (older people and yuppie families, all white–something I hadn’t really bothered to think much about until one of my hosts in Balmain mentioned it).  I had never been before until I went to check out this spare room at a house last night, and since I got to town a little early, I decided to walk around for a bit.  I really liked what I saw, so I’m pleased that I will be living there.  I’ll be renting a room in the house of an older couple who also rent out a room to a 30-year-old French woman, so maybe not ideal, but with Balmain being so close to the city, I should be able to just jet back and forth with no problem (have I mentioned how much I love taking the ferry?  No traffic jams on the water, and the scenery is unreal).  And hey, I’ll still have a room to myself!

But all this makes me a little sad about leaving Mosman.  I had mostly gotten the hang of the bus routes around here.  I get recognized at one of the little cafes in town.  I’ll no longer have easy access to the best tiramisu I’ve ever eaten and an inexpensive sip of good bourbon (also home to the spiciest thing I’ve ever eaten).  I won’t walk by the tailoring shop on the way into town and be able to gaze at the gorgeous dresses in the window.  I can’t just catch the bus to Balmoral Beach and be there in 10 minutes (not that I’ve been there since I went the other week, but hey, it’s nice to have that option).  I’ll miss the nice IGA 15 minutes’ walk away.  Getting mail from my PO Box will require a couple hours’ field trip, although hey, mail is nice (hint hint 😉 ) and it’ll be good to have an excuse to come back to the area.

And then there’s the matter of how much I’ll miss this apartment.  Waking up to be able to see the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge from the living room window has been pretty amazing.  Plus, the view from the roof is hard to beat, especially during fireworks shows.  Also, I got to live mostly alone, although even when my host was here, it’s been fine.

So Mosman, I’ll miss you.  But I’ll be sure to visit.

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