Plastic Glasses Go *Chunk* (Not *Chink*)

A Night On The Town

FREEDOM is at last truly ours. My last assignment is finished and handed in. Med exams are finito. We don't have to think about law for another three whole weeks. We can have LIVES again! So, how do we celebrate? We, along with all of our newly eighteen-year-old buds, hit the town.

The night started off somewhat rockily. We waited in line for close to three hours at Marble Bar - and were still nowhere near the door. It became apparent that we should GO SOMEWHERE ELSE - but the harder part was convincing everyone else to do the same... which was where we ran into some problems. After literally running back and forth between our spot in the line and a group of us half way down the street for half an hour, George and i gave up. We headed off, with the Chief and the Irishman. We hadn't even gotten inside anywhere and already everyone had split up...

We hit the Union Bar first. No line. No wait. Perfect. Even better? The fact that they had BEDS inside! We curled up on one, drink in hand, and laughed at everyone who was still waiting in line at Marble. We were so nice and warm! We were there an hour or so, until the 12am closing. Then, we checked out the queue for Marble. The girls had just gone in (about two and a half hours after they started lining up) and there was still a reasonably sized line, so we decided to give it a miss - the only problem being that my taxi buddy was inside... but, we decided to 'live for the present' and worry about my ride home when we got to it.

Then came the next stage of our adventure. The four of us, plus a random, Arados, started off towards PJs. The hitch? It was allll the way over the other side of town - and George and i were in heels. But, being the stand up chickies that we are, there was minimal complaining from us (hey, we couldn't say nothing - it really hurt!) and we kept up an 'acceptable' pace, according to the boys - who were self-proclaiming their chivalry... while really just running and jumping (literally) a few metres in front of us. It's surprising how many people are in Rundle Mall at midnight.

Pit stop? Fumo Blu. Officially, the coolest place. It's downstairs on Rundle Street, with blue lighting, a fishtank and awesome cocktails. The Irishman shouted us and we all enjoyed a sugar hit. George and i felt very cosmopolitan, with our tall glasses, adorned with cherries, a slice of orange and TWO straws. Very suave (though the boys looked just a tad feminine, as they sat there with thier legs crossed, martini glasses in hand). We toasted to the evening in general, making the discovery that plastic glasses go *chunk*, rather than *chink*. Interesting. Then, after a few phone calls where we discovered that everyone else had gone home, we continued along our journey.

At last, feet severely worse for wear, we reached PJs, at the other end of Rundle Street. It was pretty packed - apparently that's where everyone goes when the other places close at midnight. Almost immediately we lost the Chief in the crowd... but he resurfaced once Arados bought us a round of drinks. We found a space and played a few round of the best game ever - 'Remier! When we discovered that we were in everyone's way and that the Chiefs voice couldn't compete with the music, we shut the game down and called it a night.

Much to Georgie's fear (and my mother's terror, should she ever find out) i had to catch a taxt home alone. But, we did all of the right things; took the number (Elite 70), looked at the driver (Indian guy, diamond earing in one ear, bad taste in music) and made promises to call when i got home - alive. $13 later, i was safe and sound, no limbs missing, reassuring George that the evening had been a success and that i'd had fun.

Now it was 2.30am, my feet were in a terrible condition and i could hardly walk (it was a truly attractive sight) and i had to get up for work in about five and a half hours... ouch. But we'd had a good night, for only $19, so it was worth it. Only thing missing? Roz, Sporting Buddy, Noodle, Ayles... our adventures just aren't the same without you!

Annie