Sunday, December 23, 2007

Aust was great . I thought the weather would be unbearably hot but I was proven wrong . The weather in Queensland was really nice & bearable but 1 thing I realise's that if the weather's hot , it's hot . If it's cold & windy , it's cold & windy . You get the drift .

The weather was mostly like S'pore except it didn't rained every single day when I was there for the past week . It only rained heavily when I was at Mt Nathan Winery but that's about it .

I had a good tour guide in which everything went smoothly .

Aside from the fact that I fell sick on the 1st day of the trip due to a lack of sleep on the plane , other than that , it was all good . I visited lots of places & some of them I revisited them again after 13-15 long years .

I didn't buy any clothes as I was hoping for cos the prices in Aust are even more expensive as compared to here but at least they got a much much wider range of sizes as compared to the shops in S'pore but I did bought a lot of food stuffs back home , especially chocolate . The Australians love their chocolate among other kinds of food as well .

Some of the places I revisited again were Movie World & Sea World .

The other places that I did not went before were :

- Dreamworld , where I went to visit Tiger Island among its many attractions in the theme park .

- Mt Nathan Winery , where my parents drank the free samples of wine when there's no tomorrow . I didn't tried any of the wine that was offered including the 1 of a kind honey wine that only Mt Nathan Winery makes as I was worried I would have gotten drunk but the homemade fish & chips that were served for dinner was great . Somemore I wasn't even a fish & chips person to begin with .

Since alcohol consumption in Aust is 18 & above just like S'pore , the rest of the people in the tour group who were underage were 'demoted' to feed the sheeps that're found outside of the winery . I didn't know that there were sheeps in a winery . Hui Li was pissed that she didn't got to try the free samples of the wine .

- Tangalooma Resort , where I got to feed wild dolphins at night .

- Direct Factory Outlet which was the 1st place I visited straight after I landed at the airport as it was only a 5 mins drive away from the place . I'm not sure if it's just me but either the place sinks or no one had the mood to shop especially since after everyone was deprived severely of sleep as it's practically impossible to get any or some shut eye when I'm on board the plane all the time .

- Tropical Fruit World , where I got to try Black Sapote aka Chocolate Fruit . Delicious with ice cream & I also got to sample fresh macadamia nuts that were handpicked straight from the ground . I didn't know the shells were SO hard & they weren't easy to be cracked by hand .

- Superbee , it's a bee factory in case you're wondering .

- Pacific Fair , where it's 2-3 times the size of Vivo City .

- the only casino in Brisbane , Conrad Jupiters Hotel & yes I'm legal to enter the premises as they allow 18 & above people to be let inside the casino whee . I played the slot machines & Caribbean Stud Poker . It was fun & I managed to score a flush in Caribbean Stud at 1 point & oh I love the banana cake that's served inside the casino .

Some other anecdotes from the trip :

- Plane food rules .

- Aust guys are hot , hands down . Not sure if it's because I'm not ang mo or something but you have to admit there's always something about ang mo guys that're mysterious , hot & are up there in the looks department . Well to me that's .

- If I have a super high metabolism rate , I wouldn't mind to load up on the foods that're served in Aust . The portion serving size are so big so much so that it scared the crap outta me . It's scary when a slice of cake's 2-4 times the size of a normal cake in here :S & after tomorrow , I'm swearing off all the good stuff such as fried stuff , cakes , potatoes , bacon , eggs & etc & it's no brainer , I put on weight . In fact everyone put on weight when we came back yesterday , including my dad & Hui Lin in which both of them needs to as they're thin . I don't & trust me after seeing & eating the same Western foods over & over again for the past week when I was in Aust , I don't mind Chinese food now & surprisingly my pants still can fit me after eating a week worth of food that're mostly junk .

After seeing the same 'ol stuff being served in the hotel buffet breakfast corner , I will freak out if I see another scrambled egg , bacon , sausages , pancakes again . I can tolerate it a few times a week but NOT everyday !

- The food in Aust is either very salty , very oily , very sweet or very bland & comes in Jumbo portions . & I thought the portions at Carl Jr are big & they're very generous when comes to french fries . The fries are so thick , just like how MOS burgers does .

- I'm not taking my chances to take any rides at the theme parks anytime now . After taking the pirate ship ride at Sea World in which I almost died like literally , I'm gonna lay down for a bit .

- I wouldn't need to buy tea bags anytime now as at the moment , I have a supply of tea bags which can last me for about 3 months at most haha

- Surprisingly , cigarettes are even more expensive in Aust . It cost about AUS $11 + for a 20 sticks pack which's about S$16 . That's not to say I smoke though . That's something I would never do in my life , not a chance .

- If I migrate to Aust , I would be poorer I think . The standard of living's even higher as compared to S'pore . But I like the attitude of the locals . They're so carefree , laid back , friendly & they have that relax 1 corner vibe which's something that S'poreans are seriously lacking in in which everything's all moving at a fast paced direction .

- Their version of pasar malem which took place every Wed & Fri night at the beach paveways of Sufers Paradise are so much more hip . You virtually can find anything under the sun . I picked up some cool stuff when I was there on Fri night as Wed night I was kicking butt at the casino .

- The Conrad Jupiters casino was a cool place to go & for once I don't need to sneak in illegally even though I was stopped by security on Thurs night . I wasn't stopped on the 1st day I went in with my parents which was on Wed . Sure the casino's not as big as Genting's but it's a nice place to go to . They have a nice bar , a good cafe & the works .

- The taxi fare in Aust's even more expensive . From Mantra Legends Hotel (which I stayed for the rest of the trip excluding Tagalooma Resort) to Conrad Jupiters , the taxi fare set my parents for AUS$10 (S$11.30 + ) whether the taxi is heading to Conrad Jupiters or back to Mantra Legends & the starting of the taxi meter ? AUS$2.50 (S$3.25 +) & AUS$3.80 (S$4.94 +) on another occasion & you think that the rising taxi fares in S'pore are bad . Look no further .

- Sea World loves Elmo

- always always bring up medicines up the plane especially on the 1st day of the trip & not to mention the hankies as well . This wasn't the 1st time I fell sick on the 1st day of any trip . The same thing happened when I went to Japan 2 years back . Somemore on the 1st day of the trip to Aust , when the plane was about to land , I had a severe headache in which I thought my brain was about to explode . I think it's due to the air pressure in the plane or something else . Thank goodness I didn't experienced this when I took the flight back home to S'pore .

- the air in the plane's BAD with a capital B & I'm speaking for both going to Brisbane & coming back to S'pore . My skin almost died overnight & I thought the air that I breathe in the bars/clubs that I went to prior to the impose of the smoking ban was crap . Too bad I cannot bring up bottled water sprays on board the plane .

- I discovered that I can deshell prawns with my mouth now instead of using my hands previously . I found that out when I was having a chinese seafood dinner during the trip . Pretty cool . No need to wash my hands now whenever I have the chance to eat prawns in the future . Goodie .

- The seafood in Aust is awesome & the seafood that're served in restaurants are very fresh as well .

- CDs that're sold in Aust are even more expensive as compared to what you get in HMV . But CD singles in Aust are cheap , at AUS S5 a pop .

- Didn't managed to spot any Krispy Kreme donuts shops in Brisbane nooooo :( :( :( . I was so hoping to buy Krispy Kremes back home to satisfy my cravings for it but alas it wasn't meant to be .

Photobucket Album :


You should scroll all the way back as the pics that I took from the back were from day 1 all the way to the most recent one . The above pic was the last day I took before I left Aust & that's 1/2 of Brisbane city overlooking the place where I took the picture from .


++++++++

:: Me Me Me ::



Name :: Hui Min / Karen

B'Day :: 10.1.1987

Occupation :: Uni Student

Location :: Singapore

Been Blogging Since :: 7th Feb '05

No Music No Life - My Music Blog @ Blogspot

------------------+++------------------

:: Posts Worth Checking Out ::

* Happy 3rd Anniversary , KAT-TUN !
* On My Mind Eng Translated Lyrics
* RESCUE Eng Translated Lyrics
* Believe Eng Translated Lyrics
* ONE DROP Eng Translated Lyrics
* Last Post Before 2009
* truth/Kaze no Mukou e Eng Translated Lyrics
* The Click Five's Modern Minds And Great Times Tour
* Early Celebrations Of My 21st B'Day
* Inspirations From Hema's Blog Entry
* 2007 On A Glance
* Aust In A Nutshell
* 987 Stripped With The Click Five + Autograph Session
* 5 Things You Don't Need To Know About The Click Five
* Electrico @ Sony Ericsson's Traffic Jam Street Party @ Connaught Drive
* Caracal & SkiVe In Performance @ Esplanade
* Feeling Good With Nathan Hartono
* Rock For Wayne
* Witnessing SkiVe Doing The Recording Of 987 Home
* Lunarin Does Acoustic @ library@esplanade
* Another Sunday Afternoon @ Far East Plaza
* 987 Control Songlist Set
* The Observatory @ NUS's UCC Theatre
* Sending Electrico Off
* Lunarin's Read My Lips @ NUS's UCC
* Live In New Wave Pics Galore
* Electrico's Live In New Wave Concert Details
* Electrico Going On Indefinite Hiatus
* My Long OverDue B'day Pressie
* Electrico Performs At Ngee Ann Open House
* Happy 20th B'day To Me !
* Stasis9 With Lunarin
* 2006 Recaps
* Christmas With Corrinne May
* Say Hello To My New Friend
* Power Rangers - Forever Red
* LIME Sonic Bang Mayhem Round 2
* LIME Sonic Bang Mayhem Round 1
* Explore S'pore With Astreal & Electrico
* Genting Trip {24th - 27th Nov '06}
* Gigs Galore Here I Come !
* A Pet Kitty Named Homework
* Out & About With Lunarin
* Happy 'Unofficial Electrico' 2nd Anniversary !
* Hady Da New S'pore Idol & Then Some
* Love In New Wave's No1 !
* Forums Emerged
* Waterfest Mayhem
* Electrico's Amazing Race Asia Tour Gig Details
* Bar None Rock Affair Gig Details
* Bar None Rock Affair Soundcheck/Before Gig Details
* NDP Eve Countdown Gig @ Esplanade With Electrico
* New Friendship Forged
* Amusing Accident Account
* My CD Review Of Electrico's 2nd Album Hip City
* 2006 ITE Graduation
* 1st Blog Anniversary
* 2005 Recap
* Double Bill Gig @ Bar None Part 1
* Double Bill Gig @ Bar None Part 2
* Fabled Angst Machine Lyrics
* Double Bill Gig Tickets Pics
* Double Bill Gig News
* Electrico's Sound Therapy Gig @ Esplanade

------------------+++------------------

:: Archives ::

* May 2005
* June 2005
* July 2005
* August 2005
* September 2005
* October 2005
* November 2005
* December 2005
* January 2006
* February 2006
* March 2006
* April 2006
* May 2006
* June 2006
* July 2006
* August 2006
* September 2006
* October 2006
* November 2006
* December 2006
* January 2007
* February 2007
* March 2007
* April 2007
* May 2007
* June 2007
* July 2007
* August 2007
* September 2007
* October 2007
* November 2007
* December 2007
* January 2008
* February 2008
* March 2008
* April 2008
* May 2008
* June 2008
* July 2008
* August 2008
* September 2008
* October 2008
* November 2008
* December 2008
* January 2009
* February 2009
* March 2009
* April 2009
* May 2009
* June 2009
* July 2009
* August 2009
* September 2009
* October 2009
* November 2009
* December 2009

------------------+++------------------

:: Other Blogger Folks ::

* Hui Li
* Hui Lin
* Maggie
* Caleb
* Serene
* Dila
* Hema
* June
* BaoSui
* Saha
* Fieza
* Tim
* Khairil
* Skylar
* Jun Xiang
* Raid
* Jia Rong
* Zuwei
* Gen
* Guo Wei
* Travis
* Jasmine

------------------+++------------------

:: Other Links ::

* Ayumi Hamasaki Sekai
* videocodezone
* downloadyoutubevideos
* KeepVid
* A-Nation
* musizislife77
* Music-Omatic
* Ali's Blog
* PopAddicted
* JPopKPop Downloads
* Asian Nation
* Japan-Roll
* AiPop
* occhiamandorla
* BeyondTheSea
* Ayumi Hamasaki -|- SEASONS -|-
* Divine Ayu
* Ayumi Lyrics
* Wiki.theppn.org
* Carbsmart Success Stories
* ILoveAtkins
* Atkins Carb Counter
* Atkins Success Stories
* About.com : Low Carb Diets
* Low Carb Help & Info
* SugarFreeSheila
* Darkstalkers
* Zedge
* Gareth Gates Forums
* 987FM Webcam
* VG Museum
* Fighters Generation
* Manga Translations
* Games Ending Screenshots
* Soundbuzz News
* Mileena
* Perlini Silver
* Ben 10 Episode Guide
* Martin Mystery Episode Guide
* Totally Spies Episode Guide
* American Dragon Episode Guide
* The Batman Episode Guide
* DayDreamGraphics
* MyFreeWallPapers
* My Scene Games
* DC Comics
* Marvel
* Flaming Text
* Batman Beyond
* Batman : TAS
* Jack's Place
* StarHub Cable TV
* Power Rangers Central

------------------+++------------------

:: Poem ::

O Mortals !
What is Love
That binds beyond life on earth ?

To all corners
in a pair we fly
Braving summer
and winter by and by

Union is bliss ;
parting is woe !
Agony is boundless
for a lovelorn soul !

Sweetheart ,
give me word ...
Trail of clouds
drifting forward ...

Amid mountains
capped with snow
Whither shall
my lonesome
shadow go ??

------------------+++------------------

:: Credits ::



Jars Of Jupiter