Ding Dong Dang Again

On Friday night, we did karaoke again at Ding Dong Dang. Here are the embarrassing photos.

A Long Walk with Stops for Cheese and Beer

On Tuesday, Matthew and I went on a long walk, about 5 to 6 miles. We started at our apartment, walked up to Pyrmont and walked through the Sydney Fish Markets, which is fun, even if just having a browse. In addition to lots of fish (both raw and prepared), there is a florist and a nice deli there, too. We were tempted, but didn't buy anything, since we were walking and wouldn't be home for a while.

From there, we walked over to Harris Street to the gourmet shop Simon Johnson. We bought some Valrhona chocolate and some cheese -- Roy Des Vallees, a semi-hard sheep and goat's milk French cheese from the Pyrenees. Simon Johnson has a lot of delicious looking items, but it's quite expensive. Also, they really only had dry goods, a coffee bar and the cheese room. For some reason, I thought they would also have a deli/charcuterie, but they didn't.

Then, we walked over to the CBD, to the David Jones Foodhall, where we bought some bread, fruit and some ham, and continued on to the Royal Botanic Garden, where we ate our picnic lunch. Here's Diana, atop a cool water fountain in the Garden.

Afterwards, we strolled over to The Rocks, had a pint at The Lord Nelson Brewery, and then caught the train home. What a lovely, leisurely afternoon.

Finally, we passed by this new mural someone painted on the side of a house near our train station.

Japan Relief Efforts

Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the 8.9 earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan. This Google Blog post shares some devastating before and after images from Japan. 


If you're able to make a donation to relief efforts in Japan, here are a few suggestions (links directly to their donation pages):
Direct Relief International
Doctors Without Borders 
American Red Cross

And/or, here's more info from Charity Navigator on donating to Japan relief.

International Women's Day

I'm a bit belated, but here's a cool video in celebration of International Women's Day:
http://www.swiss-miss.com/2011/03/today-is-international-women%E2%80%99s-day.html

No Window Shopping with Epoisses

I just learned the hard way that, after you purchase Epoisses cheese for your beloved (stinky, runny cheese not being your own desire), it is necessary to walk home briskly. There is no window shopping with Epoisses on your person. After it's out of the the deli case and warms up even a little, it will start to smell in your bag, which is awkward in the tight space of the cute, small bookshop you thought you'd pop into on the way home.

Photo from TheCheeseandWineShop.co.uk

Help a Sister Out!

My lovely sister, Diana, has a fundraising campaign up with Indiegogo.com - please check it out! She's been unemployed for a while, and is fundraising to attend a program at the School of Visual Arts this summer. Check out her video, and even if you're not able to make a contribution, please consider passing the link along. Thank you! 

Cute Round-Up

Okay people, Australia may have lots of things that want to sting or kill you. However, but there are also some pretty cute animals, especially in baby format. Behold, a round-up of recent cute from ZooBorns:


http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2011/02/a-handful-of-baby-platypus.html


http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2011/02/eora-the-koala-joey-emerges-in-beauval.html


http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2010/12/joey-to-the-world.html


http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2011/02/look-whos-out-of-the-pouch.html

Wild Kingdom in Newtown

Might want to turn your volume down before watching this one.

Visitors!

This past week, two different groups of friends of friends were visiting Sydney, and we got to meet up with some cool people: Megan, and Dannalea & Jason. I'm still a bit unsure of myself has a tour guide since we haven't lived here quite that long, but I hope everyone still had fun! :)

Here are some not-so-great cell phone photos with Dannalea and Jason, while we were passing time at Lowenbrau. We were waiting for our table at Sake Restaurant, which turned out to be very good food, although we had to wait a while for a table, even on a Sunday night.