Sydney related fun

So I've now been in Sydney for five days and arriving in the dust storm was probably not the best thing and it probably marred my opinion on the place in the first instance.  Anyway, I've walked all over the city more than once and it's pretty cool.  It feels much bigger than London, though, which is odd.

I can't believe how different the Opera House looks in real life - it's entirely, entirely different and also you don't get a great view of it from The Rocks so I need to get a ferry over and see it from the north side.  I was wanting to go up to Manly and thought therefore I'd be able to see it but it's just too windy to be going to exposed beaches so that'll have to wait for a while.  The Harbour Bridge, though, is pretty awesome.

One of the coolest little things I've found is the area around the Rocks Museum, which is a series of old sandstone buildings and there's a pub there with this awesome little courtyard.  Nearby there are some of those old houses with the latticed terraces.  It's really cool and quaint so I spent a happy Thursday afternoon down there.

I finally wandered down to Darling Harbour on Friday and oh my gosh, one of the first things I saw as I walked down onto King Street Wharf was an old boat that looked a LOT like the Matthew and being by the Harbour there reminded me of Bristol except that it's bigger, better and sunnier but it's got a similar vibe, especially as I'd been at Bristol Festival the day before I left.

I met Paul from The Village Hotel for a drink - we went to Balmain where it was the 30th birthday party of some of his rugby team mates and that was pretty cool - met, randomly, this Australian guy who, it turned out, is actually Russian only his parents (both Russian) were born in China and moved to Aus in the 60s but he still speaks Russian, albeit with an Australian accent.  Then we went to a club that is apparently not a gay club except on a Friday only it's on Oxford Street so it's right in the thick of the gay scene and that was really funny, especially when this very, very melodramatic came and sat down practically on me and was storming about how he his ex boyfriend was there and he was going to message him and then he flounced off after saying, 'I need to tell him to his FACE!'.  It was tres amusant.

The people in my hostel are really, really cool and I've met some awesome folks.  Last night five of us went out to Darling Harbour and danced the night away and it was spectacular.  Bungalow8 has got to be one of the best bars I've ever been to - excellent music, excellent wine, excellent everything.  Sandra, a German girl I met on my first day here, and I didn't get back until 5am because we ended up in a pool bar for a couple of hours.  Also we saw a big screen that was showing the Arsenal-Fulham match and that freaked me out because it was 4am.  This time difference thing is still quite bizarre to me.

I'm updating this from the Apple Store on George Street.  I think that makes me cool.  No, no I don't.  It's so cold that I'm wearing not one but two hoodies.  I so much love the yellow one I have from Anna.  Sandra and I are shortly going down to The Rocks for a coffee.  I've got Mini Phil with me because I feel bad that he hasn't seen the Opera House yet and I've already been here five days.