Sydney

I got up at a decent time this morning and found the gym that accepted the free pass.  I walked back and forth in front of it a couple of times before realizing I was in the right place.  The cardio equipment was on the 8th floor and I was able to do my workout while looking out onto the harbour, the bridge and the opera house.

After the gym I came back to shower and get breakfast.  I made my way to Kings Cross Station to get on the tram to Circular Quay.  It was nice to step off onto the wharf, kind of like San Francisco.  I again wandered back and forth before deciding on what I wanted to do.  I made up my mind and headed to The Rocks, an older part of the city that is modelled after a small European town.  It has nicely constructed buildings and cobblestone streets and today was nice because there was an open-air market where people were selling handmade crafts and some really good smelling food.  I walked through the stalls and then made my way to the heart of the city to try and find an ATM.  I had to stop at the Sydney Visitors' Center before finding it, but I was eventually successful.  I took out the cash I needed...for what, you might ask.  Well, happy birthday to me...I bought a new camera (Nikon D5000).  I've been wanting one for a long time and finally decided that after getting some money back from Unilodge it was time to drop the cash.  I found a great deal online on Gumtree (kind of like Craigslist) and I met the guy I was getting it from by the quay and he took some time to show me how to use it.  I was so excited to get going and for the amazing deal I got on it.

I took my new toy to the Opera House and spent a couple of hours there taking pictures.  I don't know where along the way, but I somehow managed to pick up a friend.  He made a comment about my camera and then just started talking.  He is from Africa but is a part time student of commerce at a university here.  He works for the state full time as well and we connected over our experiences as international students.  Since he knows the area, he took me around and I saw the largest Apple Store in Australia (three stories!) and Darling Harbour, home to the National Maritime Museum.  

He invited me to have dinner at his place and I accepted (free meal!).  He shares an apartment with a couple from Argentina and actually lives close to my hostel.  We had dinner and watched the movie "Conviction" which was actually really good.  I decided I needed to get back and when I arrived the hostel was SO LOUD and full of drunk people.  It was actually kind of ridiculous.

I ended up going out with this guy later in the evening and the first place he took me was also loud and obnoxious (strobe lights, no room anywhere) and it was just so crowded that we couldn't talk so it made things a little awkward.  We ended up leaving and going to a smaller place that was better, but I still didn't really have a great time.  The guy was nice enough, but it was just a bit of a weird situation.  We walked home after that and did the "stranger goodbye" and then I went to sleep.  

Overall a great day, and the end just adds an interesting twist to the story, so no regrets  :)