The room where they held the press conference was packed with writers and photographers. It was one of the longest press conferences I have been to and the exchanges between Bisping and Wanderlei were insanely funny. I take it those two don't like each other?? I listened in amazement as Wanderlei told Bisping to shut up and then when asked why he didn't like Michael, his response was, "No one likes him!"

I had run into Arianny Celeste and Chandella Powell (whom I had been impatiently waiting for to arrive) at breakfast that morning and we made plans to go to Manly Beach. A lot of the fighters shyed away from going there because of it's name, but all the locals had suggested we check it out. Aaron Riley joined us on our little journey. It was a short 30 minute ferry ride over and we had a fantastic view of the bridge and the Opera House as we basked in the sun. Sunscreen? Check! I made sure to lather it on after spending the first couple days in Sydney as a lobster.

When we stepped off the ferry, I grabbed a guide book from the tourist center there (yup, I went tourist on ya!) and we walked the short way to the beach. It took us through an area of shops that reminded me of being down in Hermosa Beach in California. Ice cream shops, souvenier stores, restaurants all lined both sides of the walkway. At the end, a gorgeous view of the ocean on Manly Beach.

Stomachs rumbling, we first went in search of a place to eat. Closest restaurant was a Tapas place just steps from the ocean. No sooner had we sat down did we hear someone yell, "Chandella!" as they were driving by. Jimmy, a friend of hers from Vegas was coincidentally in Sydney celebrating his birthday. A little rearranging of tables and moments later Jimmy and his friend Liam (a Sydney local) were joining us for lunch.

Conversation was light hearted and somehow the subject of the Sydney Opera House and Shakespeare's, Midsummer Nights Dream came up. We had talked about wanting to see it, and Jimmy's friend was on the phone setting up tickets with no delay. He hung up the phone to the tune of, "Tickets are waiting in will call, show starts at 7:30, be there at 7!" A look at my watch said 5pm, and we hadn't even stepped on the beach since we got there! Snappy snap went my camera as I froze some memories to take home with us and then we made our way past the many shops we had wanted to stop in on our way back to the ferry. We did take a moment to grab some ice cream, and I knew right then that I had thrown all thoughts of keeping on my diet out the window!

Once back at the hotel, we raced to get ready but it was already almost 7. We were ready right about 7:30 but for some reason I had a feeling that they would close the doors on time and not allow us in. Concierge called the Opera House and said I was correct, but we would be able to enter at intermission. By the time We grabbed a cab down and picked our tickets up from will call, we only had to wait about 10 minutes for the crowd to exit the theater. We enjoyed the view of dusk setting in over the Harbour. The air, although humid, had been so comfortable whether it be day or night. The bars were rather limited but the girls managed to order a couple drinks before we headed in to take our seats.

Right off the bat I noticed that the performance utilized the acoustics of the room large room instead of microphones and speakers. Our seats were at the top of the first level so it was quite hard to make out what the singers were saying. It was a weird intrepretation of Indian gods, British colonials, and rustic clowns. Because of this it made it hard to follow a story line I had grown up knowing. We were far enough back that it was also difficult to really see what was going on. Add this to the fact that we were exhausted from running around all day and I found myself dozing off. We escaped out the exit as the show ended and the cool evening air that kissed our faces helped to revive us.

On a side note, I never had a chance to take a tour of the Opera House while I was there so once I arrived back in the states I did a little bit of research. Did you know that the original estimate was set at 4 years, and 7 million dollars? The design for the venue was chosen from contest that was held. Because of power struggles and insufficient budgets, the project was completed in 14 years for 106 million dollars! It's one of the busiest performing arts centers in the world so I'm sure with over 7,000,000 visitors a year, they've made their money back.

We grabbed a cab to meet Jimmy and Liam for dinner at a Thai restaurant over on Oxford St. We were in a Gay area of Sydney and it reminded me of the Gay and Lesbian Mardi (the largest Gay Pride parade of it's type in the world) taking place the following weekend; one that would have been incredible to take photos at, I'm sure, but I would be long gone before it took place. We sat down to eat in an intimate location, dimly lit by candlelight. Dinner wasn't rushed and after 2 hours of sitting, when I went to stand up, I felt a twinge in my back. Little did I know that it would affect me for the rest of my trip.

Every time I stepped outside, I basked in the weather that Sydney had to offer that week. More humid than normal, but still completely bearable. We took off to a club called The Ivy; a place I had been hearing about all week. We continued to enjoy the temperatures as the pool area was where the party was going on. We ran into many of the others there for the UFC; all taking some time off to enjoy the sites and sounds of Sydney.

Arianny, Chandella and I had a big day planned on Friday. We met up in the lobby where we socialized for a little bit (everyone else seemed to be hanging out there too!) before we were on our way out for an adventure.

Our friend Brad Sugars from Vegas was originally from Australia and when he heard that we were all going to be in Sydney, he grabbed a few other friends and made the trip out for both business (doing seminars all over the country) and pleasure. At 11am, we headed out to Rose Bay where we boarded a sea plane. We got an incredible view of the city, the ocean and surrounding areas. Our destination? The Pitt Water on Hawkesbury river for a lunch at Berowra at Waters Inn. Everything was extremely delicious but as we noticed at dinner the night before, every menu we had seen was so gourmet that you needed a translation dictionary to read them!

After enjoying a few hour long lunch, we boarded the plane again (there were no roads here, boat or plane were the only options) and experienced the wonderous view for the second time. I was trying to keep up with my phone blogs as much as possible and I'm definitely not looking forward to my cell phone bill when I receive it..

Once back at the hotel, Arianny turned in to relax so Chandella and I took off to the Royal Botanical Gardens to see the thousands of bats we had been hearing about that roost there. It was a mere five minute walk from the hotel so we made the short trip over to what turned out to be a VERY large garden. As we entered the gates, the sign there instructed us to walk on the grass, smells the roses, hug the trees, talk to the birds, and picnic on the lawns. It was testament to the way the Australian people were to us all week; so friendly and inviting that I was astonished by it. There were birds wandering around everywhere; giant cockatiel's congrating on the lawn while others that I can't even name strolled casually by. It wasn't long before we saw the multitude of bats hanging in all the trees above. It reminded me of movies where you see the vampire hanging upside down. But the cute, little, red, furry faces made it difficult to be freaked out by. I had forgotten to bring my long lens so was limited on the photos I was able to take of the creatures.

We got back to the hotel in plenty of time to get ready for our 8pm dinner plans. I got ready and then met the girls down in the lobby. The bar was situated in the open and was a very inviting place to hang out so it wasn't surprising how many people we always ran into there.

Dinner was out with the same crew again at a restaurant called Iceberg's on the South end of Bondi Beach. I had to break my menu translator out again, but as with every other meal, it was quite delicious in spite of not quite knowning what I was ordering. I recognized scallops and was rather surprised when they arrived with all of their packaging included. Everyone was tired from the days adventures except me, so they all turned in and I went and met up with Jimmy and Liam to party at Hugo's in King's Cross. I think I called it a night around 3am and dozed off to sleep with a smile on my face at all the amazing sites I had gotten to see that day.

After a lobby party Saturday morning, we were all en route to the arena by 11am. It was an hour drive and weigh ins weren't till 2, so I decided to go work on my sunburn a bit and wander around Olympic park where the 2000 Olypics had been held. On my way out the door I ran into a couple UFC fans I had corresponded with; Steve and his Wife and their newborn baby Milly! She's gotta be one of the youngest UFC Fans ever!

I stopped by the front where Randy Couture, Gray Maynard and Akiyama were all signing autographs for an insanely long line of people who I am sure had gotten there quite early for the opportunity. Sexyama was killing it with his Swarovski crystal bedazzled t shirt, bling bling rings, wallet chain and white shoes.

Olympic Park was a huge area with a collection of buildings that had been built for the Olympics. On top of Acer Arena, there was a stadium next door where people were already lining up for the AC/DC concert later that night. An indoor skatepark, fountain sculptures, and playgrounds all decorated the immediate area around the arena. In my journies I ran into a guy rockin' a Steel Panther shirt! Only one of the most amazing 80s metal cover bands ever! They live in LA and play in Vegas every week; I was blown away to see an Aussie representing!

I slowly made my way back to the arena; shooting photos the whole way. They were just starting to let the endless line of non-fightclub members in for the weigh ins. I enjoyed the sun for a little bit longer before heading inside.

Once the weigh ins were under way, it all moved so quickly. Anticipating what was about to happen, Dana stepped in between Wanderlei and Bisping to avoid any type of shoving match that may have occured. The crowd had been waiting breathlessly and exhaled in disappointment. I found myself exhaling as quietly as I could too, lol.

I organized the weighin photos as much as I could until my battery died and then took a nap on the hour long ride back to the hotel. I was torn between running out to dinner with some of the guys and getting my photos up online. I had beem having huge issues with the internet in the hotel and wasn't looking forward to babysitting my upload. I had gone as far as to take off with Krzysztof in Soa's car to dinner, but jumped out a few blocks later when I learned they were heading all the way to Bondi Beach. I impatiently waited to get my photos online and then went to meet up with Chandella and Arianny.

They were at the Lowenbrau I had went to a few nights prior with a group of about 15 other people that included Royce Gracie, Rashad Evans and a bunch of UFC staff. Most were done eating; I had some kind of Veal with pasta- I was starving and really didn't care at that point.

It was a short walk to the Harbour docks and we all headed that direction without even talking about it. It was here where the group parted ways.

We grabbed Royce and were about to head to the Royal Botanical Gardens to see the bats again when we got a call from Brad. He needed help picking out some gifts and we were only a block away when he called. He was in a hurry so it was a whirlwind trip that had champagne all over the floor and the sales people gasping for air. We continued on to the gardens as dusk was falling and we picked up a Tiki along the way. The bats were no longer roosting in the trees; a few were but most had taken to the skies by this time. It was after 8pm and dark out by the time we tried to find our way out of the gardens. All the gates had been locked, save one, and the extremely friendly park employee gave us directions to it.

Royce, Chandella and I went to grab dinner a couple blocks from the hotel. It was there she was convinced against her better judgement to go out for the night. We ended up at the Ivy which was conveniently located around the corner from the Marriott. She stayed only an hour, and I left not much later than her.