Well, first off, Chris and I had the COMPLI- MENTARY breakfast buffet at the hotel. Yes, it's Day 5 of our trip and we just realized that we could've been getting a free brekky all along! We had been shunning the area because of the $55/person price tag listed prominently on the sign at the entrance to the restaurant. Every morning we shook our heads a little sadly at the poor dupes who were paying the big bucks when a perfectly serviceable cafe was next door. Boy, do we sure feel silly. And, no, the complimentary breakfast was never mentioned when we checked in, nor was it posted anywhere... except way, way at the bottom of our confirmation email. Damn. We both missed it.

So, after a HUGE brekky that we felt somehow obligated to consume, Chris and I hopped on the City Sightseeing bus for the last time (the tickets would expire at noon) and chugged along to the Harbour Bridge Climb offices. Here, we signed a waiver, slithered into a not-terribly-fetching coverall, accessorized with caps, hankies, assorted lanyards, a radio with bone-vibrating audio phones, and safety cable attached to a really cool kind of cable castor that rolls along the waist-high cabling throughout the climb. Very fun. Amazing. It was (fortunately, after the heat of the day before) an overcast, cooler day. Otherwise, we would have melted and possibly been singed beyond repair. The climb was not at all strenuous, but did involved walking over metal mesh at great heights, so it's not for the squeamish. One poor woman almost fainted as they suited us up and took us through a training session on a simulation ladder and platform. She and her two travelling companions had to back out. Either she hadn't realized what she was getting in to, or she'd never suspected before that she was an acrophobe! For a better feel of the experience, check out the panoramic view cam on their website: www.bridgeclimb.com. Our leader, Olai, was fantastic and we got to hang out up top and soak in the views while learning bits of Sydney and bridge history, as well as important facts, like where Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman lives. Ha.

After the climb, Chris and I parted ways: she to undertake her own extended adventure in search of Sydney's only Harley Davidson dealership (see christer-oz-2008.blogspot.com for more on this), while I, starving, grabbed some noodles in a food court near Circular Quay before making my way back to the hotel via a route I'd not yet taken. As I walked, businesses started disgorging their ready-for-the-weekend employees. It was strange to be walking through the CBD, particularly Martin Place, among possibly the only Aussies who wear suits. This, apparently, was where the biggest concentration of banks and brokerages and law firms was mustered.

I hung out at the hotel for a while, writing in my journal and uploading photos and updating my blog. Chris joined me around 6pm. We continued with the blogging and postcard writing... until the hotel lobby was invaded by over 100 Japanese students. What a din. Shortly after their checking in, the internet died; coicidence? I don't think so. Suddenly, we were competing for bandwidth. I gave up after a while (which is why some of these posts were delayed).

Chris and I decided to shower, get dressed up and walk over the pedestrian and monorail bridge to Star City, a casino, for dinner and slots. It was drizzling a bit, so we took an umbrella. Well, we got only halfway across the bridge when the heavens opened up! DELUGE! With lightening. Utter torrential downpour. We barely made it in one piece to the casino, having to spend several minutes in the restroom attempting to towel off. Wow. We were soaked. The casino was a couple of blocks further than we'd thought. Dripping, we wandered around the slots and each spent the $20 we'd allotted before admitting that we weren't thrilled with the machines. So, we took a taxi back to our hotel... only to discover we'd forgotten to have dinner. We had a vodka and orange juice instead, and went to bed. Steps taken (by me, Chris' were MUCH more): 10,570 + 1,437 at the bridge.