AUTHOR: Kevin Kelly
DATE: 9:35 AM
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BODY:
Update numero dos.  I have been busy, so this is a bit tardy.<br /><br />I'm a bit late waking up today (Sunday for me) because I was out late last night watching the World Rugby Cup final game.  Australia lost to England unfortunately, and boy those Brits at our pub sure were annoying.  I'm deaf in my right ear!  Can you sue a country?  I'll look into that.  I was at the pub with a girl from the office, and one of her girlfriends, so we went out for pizza afterwards (after wandering around in the rain for an hour looking for her car) and stayed up late talking about the differences between Americans and Australians.  Speaking of differences, I know they say America is the fattest nation on the planet, but you really see how TRUE it is when you go visit another country.  Everyone here is so health conscious, people are working out left and right, and they eat a lot healthier than we do.  No giant all-you-can-cram-down-your-throat buffets or anything.  <br /><br />Anyhow, last weekend I went to the beaches here, and they are gorgeous.  Saturday I went to Watson's Bay, and did a long hike around the point there.  There is a lovely beach called Camp Cove that I spent some time at.<br /><br /><img src=http://users.adelphia.net/~shazam/journal/oz/watsons.jpg><br /><br />This is the view from the top of Watson's Bay.  An old cannon still sits on top which used to protect the entrance to Sydney Harbor.  This is the only channel that feeds into the harbor, and the water is very deep.  <br /><br /><img src=http://users.adelphia.net/~shazam/journal/oz/harbor.jpg><br /><br />This is a view near Circular Quay, a central travel point where trains, buses, and ferries all leave for destinations around the city.  Last Thursday and Friday I took a ferry to work.  It's about a 30 minute ride, and sure beats driving.  <br /><br /><img src=http://users.adelphia.net/~shazam/journal/oz/opera.jpg><br /><br />Here is a view from the same spot, but looking across the water.  This is the world-famous Sydney Opera House.  They had the finale of Australian Idol (yech) here on Wednesday, and thank god it's over because it's all everyone could talk about for the last two weeks.  Well, some people.  <br /><br /><img src=http://users.adelphia.net/~shazam/journal/oz/pub.jpg><br /><br />Saturday night I met my boss and we went to Forrester's Pub, a local place near my hotel, to watch the Rugby semi-finals.  That was a good game, Australia beat New Zealand, which they weren't expected to do, and everyone was in a very celebratory mood.  This isn't a shot of the pub we were at, but it's typical of the area.  There are a lot of tiny hotels, with 6-7 rooms on top, and a huge pub underneath.  I live near the Clock Hotel, the Dolphin Hotel, and the Strand Hotel, all of which are known pretty much only as pubs.  The Australian beer is very good.  The joke here is - "Foster's...Australian for Tourist".  They don't drink Foster's down here.  The good local beers are Twohey's New, Carlton, and Victoria Bitter.  All good stuff.<br /><br />Sunday morning I got up early and drove to Sydney's most famous beach, Bondi (pronounced Bond-eye).  This is a mile-long stretch of beach, along some very expensive real estate.  Not many people were out, as it was pretty windy, and their summer hasn't really started, it's just coming into it.  They were having an exhibit "Sculpture by the Sea" which I walked along, there were some really cool pieces there.  The exhibit ran from Bondi to Tamarama beach, which is about a 15-20 minute walk along the coast.  After a late lunch of fish and chips on the beach I came back home and then the rain started pouring down.  It has rained off and on all week, as November is usually their rainy season, and they've needed it because they've been having a drought.  BIG booming thunder and lightning, which we never has in LA, so it was nice to experience.  <br /><br /><img src=http://users.adelphia.net/~shazam/journal/oz/bondi1.jpg><br /><br /><img src=http://users.adelphia.net/~shazam/journal/oz/bondi2.jpg><br /><br />These are two shots from Bondi.  The water is a deep blue color, and you can see right through it.  <br /><br /><img src=http://users.adelphia.net/~shazam/journal/oz/tamarama.jpg><br /><br />This is Tamarama beach, which the locals call "Glamarama" because it attracts snooty model types.  It's a nice little beach.  Most of the eastern beaches, like these two, are actually large coves.  <br /><br />Work has been going great.  We are working 12-14 hour days, but everything is coming together, and we'll begin shooting in about 3 more weeks.  They are moving me to a larger apartment this week, I took a tour of it on Saturday and it's amazing, I'll have to take some pictures.  I'm off to the City Centre to pick up some stuff for work.  More later. 
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