"She Works Hard for the Money..."

So, I'm surviving in Sydney! Physically and economically. Quite a pleasant surprise for me. :) Haha. But really -- I'm having the time of my life and hardly dipping into my savings which is very, very reassuring that maybe I won't be broke as a joke the rest of my life. Here are some quick updates about my jobs:

AMADEUS IT PACIFIC

• Corporate offices waste a lot of money on mailings, but I guess you gotta do what you gotta do. One of the best parts of the day is at 3:45 when Peter from TNT stops by to pick up the satchels. He's been coming to Amadeus for 10 years -- and he just dyed his hair blonde to look younger. He's quite a character. :)
  
• Daniel is the sweetest co-worker ever. EVER. I'm going to miss him so much when I leave. He's the best gossiper (because everyone talks to him), but so very tender-hearted. He saves me food and brings me little treats (everyone knows sweets are the way to my heart, right?) Yesterday he had homemade bread pudding and scones. Made me a little plate with jam and everything -- delicious!! I also love when his partner, Stuart comes down because he always says "how's it goin' chickadees??" Hehe. (Bets -- remember "Chick-a-billy" ?? SO WEIRD. ps what were our nicknames for those t-shirts?)
  
• When I make coffee carts, I tend to give people my favorite kinds of cookies aka biscuits-- makes my clean up better when I get to snack on the leftovers. Hehe. My favs: the Caramels and the Venetian biscuits. Yurm.
  
• Catching the window-washers on the twelfth floor and waving is very exciting. They make silly faces at you. Haha.
• One of my "important projects" was to handle the authoriz(s)ation forms for the big important people's corporate AmEx cards. They trust me with important info, yaknow. No big.
  
• We get a lot of wrong number phone calls.
  

SUMMIT RESTAURANT + ORBIT LOUNGE

• After work my mouth hurts from smiling so much -- but people are surprisingly friendly, complimentary and always inquisitive about my accent. The funniest thing is how often I have the exact same small-talk conversations. Usually it's "are we moving now!??" or
  "don't you get seasick??" or "don't you want to come with us?" (when I lead them to the elevator).
• You'd be surprised how many people don't really understand the concept of a revolving restaurant. So many times I seat people at there window seat, but it's currently by a steel beam (yaknow, to hold the building up) and they get all huffy and puffy about not getting a "window seat." Once I explain, ummm just wait like 20 seconds, they usually feel pretty silly. Love seeing posh/pretentious people feel silly. Haha.
  
• I got a paper-cut on my pointer finger (worker's comp...?) so I can't sign into our fingerprint time card system. Eye scan, perhaps?
• Michael Moore, our celebrity chef, just published his first cookbook and we had the big launch last week. I guess there were a ton of really famous Australian celebrities, but unfortunately I didn't know who any of them were. But I did seat one of the "richest men in Australia" who was having dinner with not one, but two beautiful older women. Very typical. Haha.
  
• People say "ta" for thank you in Australia. Never thought it would be irritating, except when I'm "lapping" people and every single person at the table says it. Haha.
  
• Folding napkins is surprisingly therapeutic.
  

MARs ATTACKS @ Red Bull Headquarters.

One of the perks of Abrye being my official Australian girlfriend is I get to reap the benefits of her employment with the Red Bull Wings Team. Last week, she invited us to the MARs ATTACKS group exhibition at the Red Bull Headquarters in Alexandria. Unfortunately, I didn't snap any pictures of (a) the artwork, (b) the amazing decor in the offices or (c) the torrential downpour we were forced to brave at the end of the night. But below are some highlights from the photos I did take:

My new friend Rahil -- he's from Sydney originally, but went to uni at Georgetown. I was connected with him through Spencer Almy (who I know through Sarah Malachowsky, college roommate) and could not be more grateful. He's a really busy investment banker who usually works crazy hours, but after our Friday happy hour at Tank Stream in the CBD, he totally gave in to my persuasive invitation and accompanied me to the exhibit. What a champ.

Selfie @ the exhibit. Please note the large flowers in my hair. Those were secretly extracted by Daniel and me at work from our front-desk arrangement. I'll plan to do this most Fridays from now on. Haha. :)

TRIVIA CHAMPS (what, whaaaat?)

The Fringe Bar is an awesome place on Oxford Street that hosts events nearly every day of the week. For example: Comedy Night (Wednesday), All You Can Eat Pizza (Thursday) and Artisan Markets (Saturday). But my new favorite? TUESDAY TRIVIA NIGHT. Trivia is a pretty common social event in Australia (right up my alley) and we have assembled the International Trivia Dream Team -- Michael Twemlow (representing Sydney), Louise Davis (representing the UK), Abrye Redeker, Sara Smith and Matt Harkenrider (hailing from CA, CO + FL and representing the US of A). (Note: Matt was deathly ill last week and couldn't stay for the main events. Sad.).

Questions are mostly about pop culture -- I dominate the celebrity identity questions and obscure 80s TV shows. (Who knew watching hours of I Love the 80s on VH1 for all of high school would pay off?). Twez the lawyer has most of the sports/political stuff covered. Aubs the music expert came in for the clutch Puff the Magic Dragon question and other lyrical references. And Louise is always a champ with the obscure ones -- chemistry, pentagrams, 60s rockstars, etc., etc.

So last week our team placed first (out of like, twelve teams). We didn't get a single question wrong in the first two rounds! And in the end, we were rewarded with a $50 bar tab. Unfortunately, we couldn't make it back this week (I had work/Aubs had surf camp), but we'll be back to defend our title next week. Wahooo!

Our massive celebration was just as obnoxious as it looks. I don't even care -- proudest moment of my Australian life.


Louise brought us little Kinder Egg surprises to keep us energized during the later rounds. The toys were really important for entertainment as well.

And let's be real -- the real reason we wanted to win was to impress the cute-patootie trivia guy. He was obviously surprised that we were the grand champs in a room of suits and trivia regulars. Remember these faces....we'll be back.

Ladies Night @ the Firefly

A couple weeks ago Abrye found an "amazing deal" for a $38 banquet at a place called Firefly in Watson's Bay. Brilliant -- $10 each for four people! So of course, we organized a mini-girls night and invited Christina + Hannah. The restaurant had a gorgeous view right along the harbour and it was looking to be a beautiful night. Unfortunately, after ordering a nice bottle of wine and starting on the course-by-course banquet, we realized that it was, in actuality, $38 per person, rather than total. Whups. Guess we should have figured that one out earlier. So -- carpe diem. We enjoyed a delicious meal with no regrets. And as a little reward, our long-winded/storytelling waiter delivered a complimentary dessert platter (ka-ching!). As we said, "Oh no -- this isn't ours?" He winked and said..."isn't it?"

Nom nom nom.


Dessert is super, super important.


A lovely stroll back to Circular Quay to catch the bus. Gorgeous photo opp at the Opera House. :)


Pretty ladies under the Harbour Bridge.

Updates. Weeeeee.

Hellooo everybody! As usual, here are some quick bullet updates:

• Since I don't start work until 12:3o each day, I've become a serial breakfast dater. Or should I say cereal breakfast dater? Muahaha cracked myself up. But yeah, breakfast play-dating is brilliant. I'm testing out all the most delicious cafes in Sydney and feeding my caffeine addition on the regular. :) I've met up with Sarah + Christina for little lady breakfasts and Matt Fuentes is my new breakfast boyfriend. We are planning to get b-fast once a week from now on and try to visit as many places on Crown Street as possible. So far we've been to bills and Fifi Foueaux. Yum. Dadda -- Fifi Foueaux even put a non-parrell on the spoon of my cappuccino. Heavenly! Made me think of you...
  
• I realize I should probably stop checking LA Times every day, so I've switched to the Sydney Morning Herald. Wahoooo. Trying to stay up and informed on Sydney news. I was so very proud when a guy at a bar quizzed me if I knew the Prime Minister and I totally did (I mean, duh. It's a pretty big deal.) Trying to break the stereotype of the "uninformed American." One day at a time...
  
• Kate, Christina + Nick had a Bake Sale at Bondi Beach to raise funds for Hulk's neutering surgery. I'll have to steal a picture from Christina -- it was adorable. They had big signs that read "SAVE HULK." I decorated some cookies and donated a little mulah to the cause. They ended up making nearly $80! Ka-ching. Poor little guy...he's too rambunctious with all that pro-creating energy within him. Snippity-snip.
  
• We had a lovely Wigram Reunion at the pub this past weekend -- Twez, Louise + Bodsy all made it out and I introduced them to Matt F + Aubs as well. We met at The Clock and Twez won nearly $2000 on the computer poker machine. Crazy, right!?
  
• Matt F., Abrye and I had a Mexican Fiesta at "Balcony Bar" (read: Matt's apartment with the gorgeous view.) He made some super-delicious guacamole and Aubs made delicious quesadillas. Yum yum yum. Tasted like home -- I've missed Mexican food sooooooo much!
  
• Working in hospitality is introducing me to a whole new kind of nightlife. Last Friday I got off work at midnight and then some of the staff (Sarah, one of the cocktail waitresses, Nikki and four of the bartenders) wanted to go out for a drink. So, I definitely wanted to join in to make new friends and feel more comfortable at work :). And yeahhh...these kids party like rockstars. I was not prepared. We stayed out until 6 am. Literally, 6 am. I think I need to reel it in a little earlier or set myself a curfew because these kids are outta control. But a good outta control. Haha. Stay tuned for more stories.
• On Saturday we met up with Cass at this awesome place called The Winery by Gazebo. As Christina pointed out, the decor is kind of like Alice in Wonderland. The cocktails were magnificent (I had a Sav Cooler that basically changed my life) and the scene was great. Tons of girls nights and first dates. We're planning to go again on a weekend when they have pre-made picnics with champagne. Looking forward to it!
  
• Christina, Abrye and I met up in Newtown for an evening of Turkish Coffee, Baklava and Hookah at a place called Matee. (Mom + Dad + Alli: I know that hookah is bad for me...I promise I haven't smoked it in years! Haha) It was so nice to just sit in the window and people-watch and girl talk. So lucky to have those ladies in mi vida.
  

ROAD TRIP to Byron Bay.

Abrye, Matt and I felt very ambitious for the long weekend and headed north along the Pacific Highway to BYRON BAY. It had been recommended by sooo many people as a nice little beach town to relax/eat/enjoy wild backpacker nightlife. Though the weather was pretty terrible, we made the most of it and BB definitely didn't disappoint. We ate like kings and partied like rock stars. We'll be back in summertime fo' sho.

Bullet Highlights:

• I ate some of the best. food. of. my. life. Not even kidding. There's a complete photo tour in my facebook album, but honestly...I probably put on two pounds from desserts alone. We tried to eat a bare minimum of two desserts a day. And on the road trip home I downed an entire subway footlong in like, 10 seconds. Gross, I know. Totally worth it. All in the name of experiencing the full culture, right? (Hot spots: Balcony, Twisted Sister and Bay Leaf.)
  
• Our hostel was bomb-dig. We shared a room with Kathy aka "Special K," who was a 65-ish woman "eat, pray, lovin'" it across the world. There were tons of random backpackers, and I even met a girl from USC. Small, small world.
  
• The beaches were beautiful -- I can only imagine what Byron's like when it's hot enough to lay out and soak up the sun. The sand was so soft -- like powdered sugar -- and the surfers were catching some really good waves. We even greeted a Canadian guy coming out of the water with the other half of his board. It snapped in two! Loco. And we also did some impromptu whale watching and saw a big guy flipping his tail for a few minutes. Didn't even have to pay for a tour! Ka-ching!
• Nightlife was pretty outta control since the big AFL game was on. We met soooo many Aussie men who came down in big groups to watch. One of the groups we met (rollin' deeeep with 38 guys) claimed that they were "the best non-professional AFL players in all of Australia." Schyeahh right. I'm American, but I'm not fallin' for that line. Haha.
• RAIN RAIN RAIN. There was soooooo much rain. On Friday night after the bars closed it was basically monsooning and there were huuuuuuge huge puddles all over the streets sidewalks. We just frolicked and ran about and jumped on the backs of anyone who would give us piggy back rides. Hehe. It wasn't even that cold -- I felt so alive. :)
• Minyon Falls was glorious because the rain made the river even more intense. We drove up to the top (couldn't handle the long hike up there in the rain) and enjoyed a beautiful view. On the way back we stopped by this woman's food stand with homemade ice-cream and banana bread. Nom nom nom. She was so sweet and told us all about the little town where she'd lived for 30 years. The neighborhood school has 18 kids total from Kindergarten to grade 12.
  
• THE DRIVE. Nothing too much to report. It was pretty damn long. We had Hanson/Spice Girl singalongs and played road trip games. The rain was INTENSE and both Matt and Abrye were superstar drivers. Thank goodness we got home safely and all in one piece.
  

Photo Highlights:

Frolicking on the beach. Weee!


Nothing would stop us from going to the beach. Not even rain. Ponchos + umbrellas + bikinis. We made it work. Haha.


Cheeky Monkeys -- the trashiest backpacker bar of all time. But the best dance party I've had in a good long while. Mmta**Mmmta!


Cape Byron Lighthouse -- the main tourist attraction. The view from this place was GORGEOUS. It's the most eastern point of the Australian mainland.


Wheeere's Waldo at Minyon Falls??


Drivin' home in the rain. Do you see that river we're forging?? CRAZY. No wonder we lost a hubcap along the way...

Job Numero Two.

Wahoooo I got a second job!!! Sarah Speers hooked me up as a hostess/cocktail waitress at Summit Restaurant + Orbit Lounge. It's a super swanky rotating restaurant that looks over all of Sydney. It's the most un-mistakenly SYDNEY employment I could get! Haha. Really -- the view is gorgeous, the staff is very friendly and I'm just excited to do something else that's brand new! :)

The menu is suuuuper fancy. It's a mandatory $85 per person for two courses from our celebrity chef Michael Moore. The cocktails look incredible and our tapas bar has some amazing-looking little snacks. I'm already wondering if I can sneak food in the kitchen...haha.

Check out more here: http://www.summitrestaurant.com.au/.

So, I found some pictures online, but I don't think they really do it justice. At least it'll give you all a feel for it!

I guess this is a vintage shot...? Hmmm.


Orbit Lounge.


The restaurant.

Book Club/Cocktail Club.

Abrye only snagged this group shot of Book Club after half the group had left, but it was a truly lovely evening at Pocket Bar. To be honest, only two people actually read the book, He's Just Not That Into You (chick-lit choice, of course!). But reading the book's not really the point, right? Hahaaa. Instead we just went around told our own "he's just not that into you" stories. Much more entertaining. Soooo, I think I think Book Club is in the process of being renamed, simply, Cocktail Club.

Cass is introducing us to an such incredible group! :)

Dinner Fiesta on Bourke Street.

Cass was so sweet and invited us over to her gorgeous apartment on Bourke Street for a Sunday BBQ. But she forgot mention that she's like the freaking Australian Martha Stewart. YUM. It was a delicious feast with red wine + olives + haloumi + multiple salads + burgers + homemade (from scratch!) cheese cake + candy snack bowl. The food was almost as heavenly as the company.

Abrye and Matt kickin' off the buffet.

Oh yeah, just the view from their apartment. Gorgeous. Oh -- and there were fireworks over Darling Harbour that we could enjoy. Just a normal Sunday, really...

Our lovely host Cass cuts the orgasmic cheesecake. Yummmmers.