Day's End: Melbourne Day 3 & 4

Finally got some time to write this. Amazing how much free time you have to blog on holidays but none of that when you return to 'real' life eh? :(

Final Day...*sob*:

Melbourne 2008 - Day 3

So what did I promise you?
Stupid cab drivers?
Coolest Cathedral?
Solid Lunch?
CHOC HEAVEN???
Haha.
Let's see...


*been REALLY slacking off but I've had other things on my mind...will update on those soon*

You know what.... just didn't find any time to write this at all.
Forgeddit!

Stupid cab driver = didn't wanna take me to the Cathedral cos it was too short a trip in relation to his wait at the hotel. FINE. Took a cab down the street and paid him 10 for a 6 on the meter. See...being nice works out for you.

The Cathedral was shiok siah. Really gothic and solemn. Go check out the photos.

Lunch was great with Gavin @ Lygon.
Italian.
Pasta + Pizza = FULL!
Then we went to Koko Black....Chocolate Decadence...absolutely insane.
Something that cannot be forgotten.

Had dinner with Victoria again in the evening at his place called Fire Ants? Or Red Ants? There is a photo in the collection above.
YUM.

So there ends the whole trip.
The next morning I woke up super early (lost 1 hour due to daylight savings), caught my flight back to Brissy and went straight to work.
Fun but totally exhausted by the end of it all.
Would I do it again...Hell YEAH!

More Palin Humour + Random Spelling

A very close representative of the actual debate.
Hahahaha.



But not everything is political...there is also:

Day's End: Melbourne Day 2 + Singapore Day 2008

Ok...photos first.

If you wanna see photos from Singapore Day only:

Singapore Day 2008 - Melbourne

Or just everything on Day 2:

Melbourne 2008 - Day 2

Was so tired last night that I didn't have the energy to write a summary of the day.
There are so many things to write about.
Singapore Day
Dinner alone
Walking the streets of Melbourne
WOW!!!

The photos don't really do justice to the whole day at all.
I got videos of the performers at Singapore Day but I'll get those uploaded somehow later.

So what happened?
Firstly...woke up from a terrible sleep but at least it was early enough to have an hour to 'reset' before having to leave for Singapore Day.
The streets were filled with the sound of Singlish...all the way from the city to the park where the event was held. It felt so surreal among all the Singaporeans.
Gavin was there 10 mins before me so I conveniently joined him in line, and just moments after that...the crowds came in.
The line doubled within 10 mins and tripled within 20. It was insane. Lucky us for joining the line just in the nick of time.

After another group of Gavin's friends joined us...we got past the registration booth, collected the goodie bags and headed straight for the food...WOOHOO!!!
But guess what...ALL the lines were already packed with people. We went straight for the Bak Kut Teh because for some odd reason...it was empty...and we were hungry...beggars can't be choosers.

The rest of the day was spent in the sun (which made me sunburnt...OUCH) watching the performances. The rest of Gavin's friends had more food but I didn't really get anything else to eat till around 3.30 when I couldn't take the hunger anymore and attempted to line up at the Nasi Lemak stall.
That was when I met Kenneth and Cherry...actually...they spotted me in the line.
We chatted for a bit and Kenneth suggested that I check out this Shanghai Dumplings place in Chinatown for dinner since I was flying solo for the night; Gavin had an OFFICIAL event to attend...hahahaha.
Not to bore with details of the whole event...some highlights of my favorite parts of the day were Phua Chu Kang's appearance, the PCK family , minus Chu Beng, in a skit about going back to SG (propaganda at work) and Dick Lee showing up at the end.
WOOHOO!!! Fried Rice Paradise!!! :P

Went back to the hotel for a short rest and finally dragged myself out at around 8.45 for dinner. Amazing that all the makan places were still open and at full steam so late into the night. Stupid Brisbane and its early closing hours. :(
I picked up a small bag of Roasted Chestnuts (why don't they have this in Brissy???) from a streetside vendor and went ahead towards Chinatown.

Found the Shanghai Dumplings place and TRUST ME...WOW...BEST...SOLID...SEDAP...I dunno what else to say.
I had the pork dumplings plus a bowl of noodles in spicy sauce...BEST!
Topped it off with a serve of Red Bean Pancakes...that one not nice. Had one piece and left the rest there...didn't even tabao.

Took a loooooooooong stroll around the city to walk off dinner.
Some of the 'adventures' were, stopping to take a good long look at Bourke Street Mall (you know I have never walked down the mall and still won't at the end of this trip), contemplated buying something from a place named "Lord of the Fries"...lucky I didn't, and finally getting an ice cold bottle of cider at the pub below the hotel.

Went to bed after setting the clocks an hour ahead (stupid daylight savings...make me lose 1 hr of my holiday) to get ready for another day of walking walking walking.
That's a story for later and it has already gotten interesting.
Spoilers:
Stupid cab drivers
Coolest Cathedral
Solid Lunch
and finally...CHOC HEAVEN!!!!

Day's End: Melbourne Day 1

Wow...Day 1 in Melbourne is finally over and I am getting ready to rest my sore legs and finally (and hopefully) get some well rested sleep.
Got my photos all uploaded and here they are.


Melbourne 2008 - Day 1

So what happened after I went left the hotel just now?
Met up with Gavin and I had lunch @ Max Brenner's Choc Bar.
YUUUUUUUMMMMMMMM!!!!!!
Too bad for you guys who didn't come!!!! Suckers!!!!

Anyways...after lunch we went walking around the city (mostly indoors cos of the rain. my fault again I am sure).
Found thee book I was looking for @ Borders Melbourne...the book which drove me nuts cos I couldn't find it in Borders Brisbane.
This book alone made this trip worth it.

We took the free city loop tram to Telstra Dome after that to attend Contact Singapore's Careers@Singapore Fair.
It was alright...got some bits of info and contacts for when I decide it's time to go home for an extended period of time.

We then left early to meet Gavin's friend Victoria (Comon...meeting someone named Victoria in Melbourne, Victoria is so cool la).
She brought us to this out-of-the-way Sichuan Restaurant for dinner.
OMG!!!!
The food was so spicy that I am worried about stomach upsets, rings of fire, and who knows what other ailments that can befall a person who ate too much spicy food.
It was definitely an experience I won't forget.

So it was late after and I was too buggered to do anything else.
Took a slow stroll down Swanston Street...took photos...listened to a couple of Buskers who were amazing...bought some snacks for the hotel and came 'home'.
I am so sleepy now I could faint siah.
Actually...that's what I intend to do until tomorrow morning.
So here's a wonderful end to an adventurous, mortifying, unforgettable and exhausting day.
I sure hope tomorrow is just as great.

Travel Pitfalls and Confusion

Well...I am in my hotel room in Melbourne finally.
Talk about having an 'interesting' time since waking up this morning.

Had to repack a little this morning cos of a small cologne canister in my carry-on.
Then suddenly...I had not enough money in my main bank account. Forgot to account for the Ebay purchases from the last few days. :(
Then I was the last to board the plane...with multiple calls and even a FINAL call.
HAHAHA.
The flight was ok...slept some of the way cos of the little sleep I had last night.
Took the SkyBus to the city and decided to walk to the hotel. Whether that was a wise decision is still out to the jury. It was so loooooong. I think I walked more than the length of Brisbane's CBD.
I think the depressing bit is this crummy little hotel room. I think my old Unilodge room was bigger. But hey...its only for sleeping in.

Gotta plan for lunch soon and attending Contact Singapore's Careers Fair later. Now what time was it?...Hmm...
What else can I do today? Photo taking...Makan...sigh.
I NEED A GUIDE.

Melbourne Anxiety

Phew...so tomorrow I go to Melbourne on my first non-Singapore Holiday in the LONGEST time.
Excited.
Anxiety Attack.
Panic.
Unexplanable.
Undeniable.
Just is.

What am I going to do once I get there?
Walk around town and take photos? - I could do that.
Visit the nice cafes and restuarants and have my fill? - Definitely.

Too bad I don't have any travelling companions this time round.
:(