Day 6

I've been two nights without karaoke, the first because of the absence of Sunday karaoke away from the main cities, and Monday night because the only karaoke in the city is being held in toilet.

A couple of days later I am to receive a call from Rob Deal of Everything Entertainment in Sydney, the guy who's responsible for Sydney's only Monday night venue (the General Gordon, since moved to Thursdays), and Rob tells me that he's been to Chaltons and that it can get busier later (how can it not??). Apparently the sound is really pretty good, the guy who runs it is a great singer, some really good singers do get there, and if you're into 'dark and dingy' (as I often am) it's a great place to go.

My thought is that Rob and his fiancee must have been there on some other night than Monday. My own thought is why would you bother on other nights when there are so many other better places to be singing.

Did I tell you that I was staying in another Formule 1 Hotel? Ah, yes, I did. It's clean, it's modern, and a great place in which to spend some hours on emails and updating site listings. I'm also trying to write a review for the Camden RSL, and the day goes quickly. But this is Tuesday, and the choice for karaoke is not just Charlton's, so I think of Wild Bills at Cheltenham but decide on Bar Code in the Crown Casino complex. I phone to check, and a friendy voice called Ryan tells me it will go till Midnight, or maybe 1am if busy.

The Crown Casino complex is easy to find - indeed it's better described as being hard to miss, and the road I take seems to automatically end up in the casino carpark. The bar itself is harder to find...

The carpark attendant takes my money upon entry, and suggests I go up to the main hall by way of the lift just over there to the left. I park, and do so. Another friendly person says that BarCode is above the food, so I find some food places and go upstairs. Another friendly person tells me that Barcode is above the other food place, so I find the other food place which actually turns out to be the main foodhall, and go upstairs.

There are almost as many bars here as bouncers standing around looking neanderthal and doing little, and none of the bars seem to have names. I poke my head into three of these places, find them packed with people but devoid of karaoke, and ask a bouncer. He points me into the distance, assures me that there is a bar at the end, and off I head.

Bar Code is a bit weird - from the neon exterior and upon entering, it appears more like an amusement arcade populated by the ex-work crowd. This is Melbourne Cup day, and the crowd may be a bit extraordinary, but I wonder what type of person comes here normally. But it's a pleasant night, I get to sing a couple of times, get to chat with a number of people, and the night passes easily. (The review is already on the W2S site).

Finding the carpark at the end of the night is a little more difficult, and I accomplish this by getting lost in reverse - a trick used by many like me who are habitually lost.

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