Wednesday, 9/17 - Sydney

Day 8

Upon arriving and spending a little time figuring out the public transportation system, I headed over to my host Mark's apartment in Waverton just north of the harbor. It was still only about 7:30 am when I arrived, but he was up and still in the t-shirt and boxers he slept in. He had a really nice apartment..2 couches for sleeping, a separate but unfinished official Couch Surfer guest room, a gorgeous view of the city, and as he later showed me, a vast entertainment library hooked up to his computer where he was constantly downloading thousands of movies, TV shows, and albums. By far the best part of it all were the two brightly colored lorikeets that came to his balcony every morning for sunflower seeds. I wound up feeding them just about every day.
Another girl, Annette from Germany, was still asleep on the couch when I arrived. She was tiny and looked like a child at first glance, so I had no idea who she was or what she was doing there til she woke up and explained she was also a Couch Surfer. Even after I got a better look at her she still looked like she could've been anywhere between 13 and 21.
Until then it was slightly awkward not knowing whether to talk or to avoid waking her. But Mark and I chatted a little, and he made me some tea before eventually heading off to work. He too went the extra mile to be welcoming, giving me my own key and everything.
Despite my uncomfortable night I wasn't really tired anymore, so I just went online a bit, freshened up, and headed back to the city.

After finally breaking down and getting an Australian SIM card for my phone I started out site seeing at The Rocks, an area on the harbor full of little shops, cobblestone streets, and colonial-era architecture, as well as some excellent views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge. After walking around a bit I went to the free contemporary art museum that, like the one in Melbourne, wasn't particularly impressive, then onto the Sydney Opera House to look around in the accessible parts. Inside it still looked very 70s with wood paneling and stone floors. The bathrooms were even cooler and more modern-looking.
After that I wandered around through the Botanic Garden, saw some cool-looking birds, and eventually made my way back to get some groceries for the week. My new daily breakfast would consist of some cereal that claimed to be the "taste of Australia" - basically dried fruit and some mixed grains. Lunch would be sandwiches again with apple, brie cheese, and vinaigrette dressing in Mark's fridge; or Pastaroni-type pasta.

That night, Annette was out so Mark and I went to a Couch Surfing meetup at Govindas, a Hari Krishna vegan restaurant with a theater upstairs.
We met a couple nice girls at our table that came shortly after us - Kate from England and Mira from South Carolina (?). Mira wasn't CSing but was there on a working holiday visa. Kate had the most interesting story I'd heard yet. Her obsessive environmentalism led her to avoid traveling by plane or more conventional means, so she'd set out on a trip around the world by hopping on freight ships from England to South America to the South Pacific, spending varying lengths of time in each location, mostly living off her savings for the year or so that she'd been traveling. She only settled in Australia to find a job once she ran out of money.
After lots of delicious vegan Indian food from the buffet, a few people got dessert, and everyone decidedly needed coffee to avoid the inevitable food coma during the movie. Surprisingly they had cappuccino despite the Hari Krishnas being anti-caffeine.
The theater upstairs was intimate but spacious, and instead of seats there were cushions to lay on, just beckoning you to take a nice nap. Several people did, but shockingly I managed to stay awake for most of the Dark Knight up until the very end. It probably helped that it was one of the few movies we could've seen that would hold my attention for that long. It was a little weird watching scenes of Chicago and being on the opposite side of the world. But it was nice to be able to brag to a new audience about it being filmed in my old work building.
We gave our two new friends a ride home in Mark's unexpectedly girly yellow VW Beetle. He took us on a scenic route pointing out some noteworthy spots along the way, speeding around curves and driving in a sort-of aggressive but controlled way. Compensation for the girly car perhaps?