I slept really well last night - around 11 hours - the result of being a full-time tourist since Thursday. It was really fun having my friends visit...wished they could have stayed longer.
During the day, I took it easy (usual routine: practice, run, read, etc), and then got ready to meet up with Sam and some friends later in the afternoon.
Sam had been chosen for a photo exhibition featuring models covered in oil (actually maple syrup, but looks like oil in the photos), kind of emulating animal-like poses. Tonight was the opening of the exhibit, and there was an open house that I was going to with her and friends.
I got ready to go, and headed out around 5:15. On the way there, I had to make a stop at the Sony store at Potsdamer Platz, namely to buy a (smaller) camera. Essentially my big camera does take great photos, but it's not feasible to take along when I go out with friends and stuff. I found a good quality "point-and-shoot" for a decent price (about 100 euros), and went ahead and bought it. I was surprised at how many controls the camera actually had (for those of you who are camera savvy, it gives you exposure, ISO, and white balance, along with an "easy" mode (which I shall never use...tried it and it overexposes everything a whole stop), as well as some cool preset scene modes that I can see myself using time to time). Nevertheless, with proper control, the camera takes great pictures. The only annoying thing with it being so small, is that I can't take pictures with an ISO over 400 or so (even though it meters up to 3200), as the rendering of the pixels start making it look like the set from a horror film. Seriously.
After setting up the camera (which also came with a free 8GB memory card = 2000 pics @ 12 megapixels, about 4 MB per shot) I headed to Alexanderplatz, where I met up with Sam, Pina, and Nathalie. Since we got to the exhibit about half an hour before opening, we went to a cafe to get something to drink. Soon after we headed back to the exhibit.
The exhibit itself was really cool. There were 16 (give or take, I didn't count exactly) photos, all with black backgrounds, black and white. Sam's pic was on the first wall you see as you come inside the exhibit.
Sam with her picture (on the right)
We stayed at the exhibit for over an hour, talking to some interesting people, including the photographer, and the lady who did most of the editing for the exhibit. It was overall quite fun.
After the exhibit, we went back to Potsdamer Platz to grab some dinner. We ended up going to Maredos (a steak house). We stayed for probably 2 hours or so, having a good time. After that it was a bit before midnight, and we all needed to leave so we could still catch the U-bahn to our respective homes (they don't run for long after midnight).
