Revenge of the womble!

I have just inadvertently trodden on a cockroach! I got up to let someone into the tv lounge (the card key system isn't the best) and I heard a pop. Thought it might be a bottle top or something. Returning to my seat, I saw what it was. Not what I would do by choice but hey, one-nil. And in other news......

Saturday was fairly quiet after all my exertions on Friday and I really haven't had many days off. Went down the shopping area and talked to a chap in the Apple shop about my photo storage problem. He suggested a few things. I went to a shop called Dick Smith and found a sign which said "Ask a clever Dick here" so I did. I bought a memory stick and the nice young man gave me the use of a mac and a cup of tea! Would you get that in London? I don't know. It took about 15+ minutes to transfer one photo card so I didn't stay to do the other two (yes digital cameras have a lot to answer for). I went off to walk around some park spaces and got back to the hostel. A peaceful day but I've probably forgotten something!

Sunday, I went over to the Art Gallery of NSW via the Botanic Gardens as I've obviously been lacking in both those experiences in recent weeks. The Art Gallery is extremely good. It has an  amazing  collection of both very old and contemporary pieces. Part of the contemporary was the 19th Biennale of Sydney, as if there isn't enough going on already with Vivid Sydney and the 61st Film Festival. I really enjoyed it and realised that I do actually like some of the real classics. They have pieces that date back to before the first white settlements in Australia, which seems a bit weird in a way. However, it's an amazing collection - Reubens, Whistler, Picasso, Freud, Bacon, Constable - I don't know, all sorts of people. Then I did also enjoy some of the new too.

It was lovely to re-acquaint myself with the Botanic Gardens too. When I visited last time I stayed at a backpackers place in the Kings Cross area, so I was forever walking through the gardens on my way to places. Although I didn't find the bats :-(

At 4pm, I was seated in the most amazing old cinema to see "20,000 days on Earth", a film about Nick Cave. I knew very little about him beforehand but I enjoyed it.

Call me CultureWomble :-)