Hostile Traveler

First full day in Sydney, most of which was spent doing work stuff. It sucks, but after all, that’s the reason I’m here. As much as I’d like for the company to fly me places for vacations, I’m pretty sure it’s not going to happen. This week is a bit easier than teaching, however, because I’m doing sales calls with our local sales weasel Conor. Now, you may ask yourself how such a misanthropic prick as myself can do sales, and the answer is that I’m a really good actor. Really, that’s what sales is all about because noone can be on and happy and bouncy all of the time unless they have an addiction to some sort of illegal substance. I’m pretty good at it and I haven’t had to resort to sniffing glue yet, though some sales guys have almost driven me to that point. Luckily, Conor is a good guy so it should be a fun week getting things ramped up over here.

Before I forget, you may be wondering about the title. It’s a slang term I heard that I thought was kind of funny. Kangaroo is something we view as being a cute fuzzy critter, but apparently it’s pretty common to eat them here. One of the ways they do so is in the form of sausages, which the Irish call ‘bangers’. Add an Australian accent, and you have ‘Kanga Bangas’.

After the meetings today, I had a bit of time before sundown to check out the area I’m staying in, which is very close to Circular Quay. That’s the area that contains lots of ferries, the Harbour Bridge, and the Sydney Opera House. In between rain showers I was able to take a few pictures while walking around. First, a view of the area I’m in:

The Harbour Bridge celebrated its 75th anniversary today, so happy birthday or something. I guess last night they had a crazy light show off the bridge, but I got in too late to catch it. Locally they refer to it as the Coat Hanger because of its shape.

Probably the most photographed thing in Sydney, the Opera House from a few different angles:

I really like going on sails because it’s a very peaceful way of going through the water. Something about not having the roar of a motor to distract you adds to the experience. Anyways, I’m looking into a schooner or something that goes out on the harbour for this weekend, and this is one possibility:

And finally, and area called The Rocks, which is (I think) the oldest area in Sydney. It’s full of shops, pubs, and restaurants, so will likely require further investigation.

I didn’t have a lot of time before it started raining, so I’ll have to go back some clear night to catch some images of the skyline. This is just the immediate area too, so I’m going to try to get a bit further away from the city center as the week goes on.

So far so good…now if it weren’t for that pesky work thing…