Steak'N'Kidney

Breakfasted on muesli, fruit salad and plain yoghurt, then caught the train to Sydney. Across the aisle, three elderly ladies communicated silently, rapidly, in Sign Language. Had they been friends since their youth? Finished my book on the way and left it on a bench at the station, with a "Free! Please take" note sticking out of the top.

Walked to Central Park, the Japan Foundation office and the free "Anime Architecture" exhibition. Photography wasn't permitted, so you'll have to settle for the above snap of a watermelon man. "A/A" focused on older animated films, but that didn't make it any less impressive when I learnt the crazy level of effort that's put into anime backgrounds - scouting locations, preliminary paintings, etc. Watching out-of-context clips from the flicks really made me appreciate their architectural detail.

Walked to Darling Harbour, passing 8bit. This wasn't the time to sample a Golden Axe Burger or 1942 Hotdog, however, as I'd brought ham'n'salad sangers from home. My next stop was the National Maritime Museum, to see "James Cameron - Challenging The Deep". It covered the director's long fascination with underwater exploration, from "The Abyss" and "Titanic" to his expedition to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. While not the first to reach the ocean's deepest point, JC was the first to do it solo. Trivia: there was a commemorative Rolex strapped to the outside of his craft.

Walked to The Domain via Kings, where I picked up "Conco And The Fudge #1", which DL had raved about and the "Serious Issues" pod had reviewed positively in two separate eps. It's a wrestling comic, but it's also a sweet time-travel romance/mystery. It has no right to be as good as it is.

My third exhibition viewing for the day was the Archibald, Wynne & Sulman Prize pictures at the Art Gallery Of NSW. The above shot, swiped from the gallery's Instagram feed, shows artist Yvette Coppersmith with her deservedly Archie-winning self-portrait. The Archibald entries on display this year were of an amazingly high standard, in my opinion. Shame about some of the trash littering the Wynnes and Sulmans.

Forgot to mention that in Hyde Park there was a protest against the "racist" South African Government. And that ahead of me at the gallery's bag-check counter was a woman dressed as a taco checking in a helium balloon!

More walking. The upstairs area of the State Library was closed. While contemplating buying a juice from the cafe downstairs, I spied an unusual vending machine filled with small, yellow envelopes. The instructions said that if I inserted any coin and selected an envelope, I would be directed to a random section of the library. I dropped a 50c piece in the slot, pressed "A", "7", and received my directions...to be followed at a later date (i.e. never).

Walked to Circular Quay, to peruse the free Xun Sun exhibition at the MCA. That owl comes from a room-wrapping alternate Zodiac entitled "Maniac Universe" and in actuality is quite luminous. Like Ms Coppersmith, XS was born in 1980. Dunno what that signifies, it was just a fact I noted. Got short-changed in the gift shop by a Bohemian beauty. Not free, then :-)

Walked to the Opera House. Sad to say that backpacks must now go through an airport-style scanner before you are granted entrance. I was there to hear Chris Cheney (The Living End), Phil Jamieson (Grinspoon), Josh Pyke, Tim Rogers (You Am I) and a mighty backing band perform The Beatles' "White Album" in its entirety. It was FANTASTIC - a unique musical experience I would recommend to anyone - with the highlight for me being "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". TR's banter was amusingly wacky, e.g. explaining his theatrical dress and stage moves: "I was beaten as a kid. Beaten in a chess game in Kalgoorlie in 1985."

Walked back to the centre of the CBD and checked into the QT Hotel, where I scored an upgrade. The executive suite was cool, with decor that evoked both trendy nightclub and expensive brothel. The bathroom was overkill - two "rain showers" and a huge tub.

Skipped dinner and dashed to the Genesian Theatre for the Agatha Christie play "The Unexpected Guest" (image from their website). Overall, it was OK. The preposterous plot was par for the course. What bothered me was the inconsistent accents, which ranged from heavy to light to nonexistent. It was jarring, and made suspending disbelief even harder. I'd have much rathered all of the actors spoke in a neutral accent. Returned to my sexy suite for a packet of Bombay Mix and "Paddington 2".

Rose early Sunday and watched "The Limehouse Golem" while eating the deluxe room-service breakfast.

Walked to Newtown to search the secondhand bookstores for treasure. Left Elizabeth's empty-handed and Gould's showed no signs of opening. Bugger. Thought I'd better purchase supplies for the train to Newie. Unfortunately, the boutique supermarket I chose to visit was mostly empty racks. The best I could manage was a bottle of water and a paleo bar (and I detest the paleo concept!). "Sorry if there was something else you were after," apologised the cashier. I made a joke about Communist Russia...which feels tasteless now that I write that line.

Walked to Railway Square, where Basement Books supplied a decent spy novel for $4. The return trip lasted 5.5 hours instead of the usual three due to a track blockage and unscheduled train change. It didn't worry me. I had a book, I had water, I had a stupid paleo bar and I'd crammed a crapload into my minibreak.