So a Marine, a german firefighter and a bear walk into a bar…  Actually we walked into a lot of bars that night but thats not where the story starts. That story starts when I returned to my hostel room on Saturday afternoon.  To my surprise there was quite the ruckus happening. In my absence another hostel patron had decided to explore the contents of another tenants backpack. You can imagine the surprise this second tenant felt when he returned to the room only to find his laptop missing. I had been warned about this sort of behaviour and subsequently have always kept my personal belongings under lock and key.  I’ll admit that the lock will only keep out an honest man but there is a little dark part of me that is thankful for the dishonest man.  

Chaos would best describe the rage fueled room I wandered into. The thief in tattered shorts was apologetic but confrontational.  The Marine was trying to restrain the firefighter and the thief was being berated by his victim. Shortly after my arrival a group consensus was reached, the thief had to leave. The vote was unanimous and not well received by the offending party. His disagreeable nature was happily welcomed by the burly blonde german.  

The wronged party was very thankful, he is an Australian dj who heaped praises and free tickets upon our motley crew.  However, after we listened to him practice in the common room we had another unanimous vote and elected to pass on his show.  So we wandered through downtown Sydney. Other than seeing a flock of goose sized bats the night was uneventful. Im dead serious about the bats, even the marine who has been stationed throughout S.E. Asia remarked on their massive size. What amazed me about these bats is how commonly the average Australian treats them. These bats swoop in and out of the trees without a second thought from anyone. It makes me wonder what sort of amazing things about my Canada I casually take for granted.

Sydney’s light show is all the rage in the evenings.  The entire harbour front fills with a mass of humanity and all eyes train skyward.  Massive projectors light up the opera house with fantastical displays, all choreographed to excellent scores of widely ranging music.  I also managed to find a massive chinese market where one can purchase everything from fresh caught salmon to what I can only assume is some sort of dried animal penis.  

The job hunt continues daily.  Sydney all but shuts down for the weekend and this caught me by surprise, it also set my plans back a few days.  However, I remain confident that I will be able to find something that suits me. There are far too many job offers available and from what I have found, my skill set will certainly set me apart from the regular crowd of backpackers and vagabonds.

I will admit, I want to get out of Sydney.  This trip has already taught me exactly how much I love the country.  Open spaces and clean air are what currently fill my dreams. This is a city for couples and to explore it with someone who held my heart would be another dream for a different day.  That said, it is also a lot of fun when a marine, a german firefighter and a bear walk into a bar.  Most notably a secretive green door downtown that led us into the most amazing and rowdy irish pub I have ever set foot inside.