Well, I didn’t go to the Blue Mountains today.

I got up too late to go and decided to do nothing, officially.

This only means that once I stepped out the door I had no actual destination. Just walked wherever my feet took me.

This plan usually results in a lovely morning that includes coffees and bookstores. Today was no different.

Cities can sometimes all feel the same, but this can also be ok. You can rely on a city to amuse you… if you like what cities have to offer.

And I do.

I went to the library for my sit-down because it’s warm, there’s electricity to charge my phone, and the wifi is free.

I love old money and coins, so I tried to go to the old Mint, but it’s a coffeehouse now. Boo!

Better luck was to be had at the official bank museum. They had a pretty good exhibit on the country’s paper money. I ran into some old farts in the building and they told me all about the changeover from pounds to dollars when they were kids. Interesting to hear about the changes from the horse’s mouth, as it were.

After that I just read a book at the Customs House. Again, it’s free wifi and electricity lol. Also it’s a library too.

I found a great Indian restaurant for dinner. So good.

Tomorrow I’ll kill most of a day then fly home.

See you all very soon!

Awoke as usual right on time for the free breakfast lol. I know its crap but it saves me buying a 15 dollar meal.

Walked the long way to Darling Harbor. Along the way I stumbled upon the Sydney observatory. So neat. It functioned mostly to keep time in the busy harbor. Instead of a one o’clock gun, a ball drops. They also have old telescopes and a museum. Neat.

Finally arrived at the Chinese Friendship Garden. It’s not very old, but so nice to see and remember the gardens Allisa and I saw in China. Nobody else showed for the noon tour, so Sue taught me a lot about traditional gardens. So many lizards here!

I was starving so Chinatown it was for lunch. I found a for-realz food court with bomb Thai food.

Another afternoon, another beach.

Bondi beach this time, to sit and read. It was good.

Tonight I spent foolishly and bought an opera ticket. Rigoletto. Hope my hiking boots won’t be a problem lol.

Good night!

Edit: the opera was good, but I almost fell asleep. What does that mean lol!

Another nice day here. I’m smarter today and wore more clothes.

The tour guide at the botanic garden was nice, I guess. He sure didn’t know too much about plants. Nice setting though. Finally saw a kookaburra bird.

At the art gallery I treated myself to a nice lunch. Since the day hadn’t cost me anything so far, I even had dessert.

The art here is heavily weighted by Australians. Lots of good stuff. Even a couple of picassos. I found it easy to spend 3 hours here.

Froggy wanted to go to the beach, so we took the ferry to Manly. Its across the harbor and just delightful. There’s access to miles of hiking trails and a national park. I went as far as Shelly beach for the sunset and a snack. Protip: don’t open a crinkly wrapper in front of the local birds. They are relentless. Adorable, but relentless. Worse than gulls.

Tomorrow I’ll make a plan to see the Blue Mountains

What a great day!

The breakfast here is pretty good. The rooms are just okay, the bathrooms good, the location great.

Sunday mornings are pretty quiet here. About 1030, when the walking tour started, things started to pick up. This is also when the coffee shops open lol. The tour was good. A dude in the group travels with an owl figurine. We bonded.

After a snack I went to the modern art museum. Nice, small, and free. Sweet. The temporary exhibit is a by a Chinese artist. Sun Xun. Great stuff and varied. He has a lot of videos, not my thing bc the cultural meaning isn’t apparent to me, but cool anyway.

Then I met up with a gal I met in Adelaide who is working here. We visited a bit.

It’s cold here. I keep forgetting the winter thing lol.

Also, RIP my budget. I’d thought I was prepared for the prices, but damn! I wasn’t.

Nice, nice day.