Dominic's two pals who lived in Bairnsdale which is a town about three hours away from Melbourne. They work as a deaf role model volunteers for a small deaf unit in a mainstream school. They invited us all over to celebrate the local deaf club's fourth anniversary and for a catch up so the lads decided to attend while the girls distracted by streets and streets of shops decided to stay behind.

So, on the day, the boys boarded the train. Though thankfully it is not cramped as the overnight train in China, the conditions were rather cramped but we passed the time reading magazines and making acquaintances with a redneck. Soon enough, we arrived in the sleepy town of Bairnsdale where we were introduced to David and Megan by Dominic, we all went to a supermarket to stock up goods ( OK it was alcohol!) before walking to their house.

We then got a taxi to the Deaf Club which turned out be a temporary accommodation in a restaurant. According to the locals that we were subsently introduced to, the Deaf Club doesn't have a permanent venue. The patrons have to arrange a meeting place every time. The today venue was in a restaurant which serves delicious free pizzas.

We chatted with the patrons and learnt that Bairnsdale deaf community is very unique in that the hearing people actually outnumber the deaf people because most of the hearing people were parents of a deaf child. However, despite the hearing difference they were widely accepted and also play an integral part in the deaf community. It is truly an inspiring experience to watch how they mix and interact with each other. The children were curious and full of questions.

After a most enjoyable evening, some of us decided to have a night out. The crew that went to the first pub is an odd crew which composed of us, David and Megan, a 66 years old man who bear a strong resemblance to Santa, David and Megan's hearing boss who played an part in bringing them over to the school and helping them to settle in, a deaf family man and a hearing teenager girl who is already married!

However we had a smashing night and we learnt that David and Megan are from England but came to work in Bairnsdale for a year. The hearing people there is also friendly due to the small community so deaf people were well known and warmly regarded. I had several free drinks despite my regular taunts and boasts of England's victories in Rugby World Cup and the Ashes! We didn't go to bed until 7am in the morning!