So long, Sydney

Sydney has been great. Pauly and I got to experience two great barbeques and met a lot of really cool people. My favorite thing about this great country is the people that I've met. Everyone is very friendly and very interested in what you're saying. They also really like beer and meat and partying, three of my favorite pastimes. The city itself is really gorgeous and unlike anywhere else in the world. The harbor is great and there are some remarkable buildings down here that make for a beautiful skyline. I don't think the metro system is very good but the city, despite being quite hilly, is easily navigated on foot. One of the best things about both Melbourne and Sydney, the two biggest cities in Australia, is that they have a clean, compact downtown area and it's really easy to wander around without plans. Everyone knows how much I hate plans.

Tomorrow I say goodbye to Pauly who has been my travel partner over the last 8 days. We also spent a lot of time together at the casino in Melbourne. I like traveling solo but I like having a great travel partner even more. Pauly and I work well together because we're both relaxed guys who are up for anything. I like flying by the seat of my pants and Pauly doesn't mind doing the same. We've had a good time together down here and I'll be sad to part ways. *sniff* I'm fly to Alice Springs in the morning to see Uluru, formerly Ayers Rock. I'll be there until Thursday when I fly to Melbourne in preparation for the Great Ocean Road, a drive that I'll be doing over the weekend with the lovely and talented Cory-Ann. The next week will be spectacular and I hope to have a lot of pictures.

It was also a lot of fun being here during the Australian Open. I was in France in 2000 during the Tour de France and the Euro Cup and it's really fun to see a whole country consumed by sports. Federer just won the men's side, barely squeaking out a 7-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Fernando Gonzalez. Gonzalez played out of his mind and Federer still won in straight sets. We went to the bar the night of the Roddick match, hoping to see some tough tennis and Roger just ruined it for us. He is so unbelievable to watch and I can't get enough. I wish that I could watch Jordan again and Federer has the same sort of aura. The man just refuses to lose.

Here are some pictures from the past few days. 100 cool points to the person who can name the type of flower in the first picture.