On the agenda yesterday was a trip to the city (Sydney). Matt and I boarded a train around noon and arrived at the Sydney Harbour before 1pm. Right off of the train is the Harbour bridge and the Opera House. Very cool. Shot a bunch of pictures of that stuff. From there we found a great little Irish pub and enjoyed the Celtic culture that Sydney has to offer. It actually felt a lot like Saskatoon there. Wierd how the Irish are so international. After enjoying a couple of traditional Irish beverages we hopped on a ferry to Manly Beach, one of the biggest tourist and surf beaches in the Sydney area. We walked around, shopped a bit, and soon headed back to Sydney harbour. Some of the swells in the ocean were so big that the ferry was at a 90 degree swing, 45 left and 45 right. It was pretty crazy. A few people were screaming--I was too concerned to make any noise. After arriving safely, it was time for dinner.

Matt and I had a kind sponsor tell us to go to a restaurant called "Wild Fire", on them. This was definitely a 4-star restaurant--perhaps 5-star. It was awesome! Matt and I entered the restaurant at 6pm when they opened. They did not have a reservation available until 10pm, but found a table to seat us until 8pm. A good looking couple were seated before us. They were dressed to the nines, the woman in a black evening gown and the guy in a suit. Matt and I felt a little awkward in our jeans and casual shirts, with our backpacks carrying our jackets and souveniers. Nevertheless we were sat! We started with Salt and Pepper Jumbo Prawns, then they brought out 6 tapas, and finally our main course with 7 different kinds of meat, along with potatoes and vegetables. We were gluttons. I had an 18-year-old Single Malt Lagavulin to cap it off. Perfect. Matt and I tried to be on our best behavior throughout the evening, but we could not pull it off. It reminded me of one week ago when I invaded the "first class" world. I don't know how you learn this world--It is a different one. But I'll tell you one thing--I like it. I like it a lot. The highlight of the night was when the French server, who obviously struggled with the English language a little bit, replied to my 'Thank you', with a "Sank you foe you". I suppose the average '5 star/first class' patron, at that point, would try to understand that the frenchman is really working hard to grasp this second language, a very difficult thing, offering much grace to the server. But Matt and I are not these types of patrons. Instead, it felt like I had a case of the 10th grade giggles. I held it together for about 10 seconds as the server left. Then, just as I was calming down in an effort to swallow the water which sat in my mouth from a sip I had just previously taken, Matt decided it would be a good time to break the silence and crack a joke, to which I responded by uncontrollably spewing the mouthful of water onto the glass wall/railing in front of our table. Then we left...quickly.

Matt and I walked around downtown Sydney to end the evening and hit a starbucks before heading home on the train. What a great day!