ting:

the highlight of my day was the looks the counter people wore when i strolled in and calmly asked for 1.5kg worth of famous amos. =P

be back in the steamy island of singapore in approximately 24+9 hours (do the math yourself, i'm sick, tired and hence i don't have much of a brain in such instances).

for now, it's just the last minute rush and the constant need to get the annoying surges of emo-ness under control. (it's a good thing i'm sick, else i'd probably have more energy to be emo. ><) because who knows. it might be the last time i'm seeing some people. =(

ting:

i don't believe this. i'm sick all over again!??????

ting:

taking a break from the frustrations of life with this.

(before i start, neela would like to throw in a disclaimer: she has an excellent sense of direction, thank you very much, and she can't possibly get lost if she doesn't know where the place is.)

part two of having adel in australia with me =)

day 6:

i think the lesson adel wanted jon and i to learn here was how good a friend she is, sacrificing to go wander around sydney herself after neela coached back to the land of the obscene sheep that morning, so we could have some quality time together.

day 7:

our last day in sydney saw adel and i exploring the various sights on foot, where we found out that even more so than canberra (it has a sculpture of a sheep in a very obscene pose smack right in the middle of the city), sydney has very weird sculptures of animals. and they call it art???






me with my "sick" camera (the catch-release for the flash broke, hence it wouldn't stay down on it's own accord)




more weird animal sculptures... don't you think this pig is in a very suggestive pose?


self-shots with the tourist icons in the background - perfected!




setting of timer and running like crazy to get into position skills - perfected!


more self-love


bondi beach, where the need for extra warmth for the not so climatised becomes necessary =)







dinner at hurricanes taught us we still have yet to learn our lesson. after ordering and struggling to get through half our meal, we realised that even hurricanes can be more than enough, having said "we're in trouble" for about ten times that night.


adel was no help as usual, when i was grumbling about how stuffed i was i couldn't even stand straight.

outside my place back in melbourne, we learnt that taxis aren't exactly soundproof. moral of the story: when you want to rant about the cabdriver concerned, do it when he's already pulled out of the parking lot, unless you want your friend who's still in the cab paying the fare to be mightily uncomfortable (sorry adel!).

day 8:

a brand new day back in melbourne saw adel learning with much glee of the existence of melbourne's city circle tram which is free! i learnt too late that the tram service's stops at 6pm, thereby resulting in us having to walk all the way from docklands to crown (then again, we had to burn off all the calories we consumed in sydney).












we also learnt the sculptures in docklands are very......suggestive? and that people have a very weird concept of "art".


when it comes to weird animal sculptures, melbourne doesn't fare very much better either, what with its "cow in the tree" exhibit.


AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!









and we learnt that whilst consuming a greco cake (cakes actually), it is advisable to have loads of water with you lest you die of diabetes on the spot.













day 9:

dfo shopping taught adel that factory outlets are still capable of having exorbitant prices.

and we finally learnt our lesson during dinner and DID not overorder! =D



day 10:

we covered heaps this day - dandenong ranges, puffing billy, cattle farms and phillip island!


adel has a super adorable expression here heh



i love it when the animals lock eyes with my camera lens!




my hand + bird seeds + bird perched on my hand

and then we headed for the puffing billy!


















and then adel and i learnt how butt-numbing perching on the ledge of the puffing billy can be.. by the time the ride was over, both my legs were ready to fall off.




off we go!


i told adel i was positive that, with the amount of smoke the puffing billy was producing, all of us would just get blackened lungs at the end of it.



and then yay! we have never been this happy to end the ride and stretch our aching legs.



trooping along the platform, i spotted these:





aussie kids are amazingly cute =)


up-close and personal with the smoking engine




and this crazily thick accounting book reminded us of pei


bigggg scary koala!


i want a dog too!




so cute!!!






adel and i learnt what happens should you throw a firecracker into a chicken.


we learnt that day that kangaroos are really scary animals.. i got a shot of adel's pained expression as this kangaroo scratched her (talk about biting the hand that feeds you).


the wound left behind by the kangaroo

that was not all the kangaroo did.. we actually witness that same animal kick a woman twice! it was scary... though it did teach adel how fast she can run when she's scared hehe.



buses are very conducive for sleeping. =)







day 11:

my third trip to great ocean road made it apparent i'm eternally cursed to not enjoy good weather there.. the first time i went it was cloudy, the second time it was raining, the third time it was raining AND there was a full gale blowing! i so do not wanna return, lest i get hit by a hurricane of some sort. ><












adel with her "big" tummy as a result of eating too much heh (actually no, she was protecting my slr from the rain)


in adel's perfect world, nature would have technology such as lifts and escalators =)


and adel learnt this is how i deal with the cold heh


crazy strong winds





i sought revenge when adel got attacked by her poncho; instead of rushing to her aid immediately, i stood there, laughed and photographed her agony. (i'm one helpful friend too, no? =))






adel discovered my look of unspeakable dismay when our tour guide offered to take a photo for us, when all i wanted was to run back to the warm van

when asked what my favourite part of the day was, adel took insult when i said "staying in the van" (because it's the only warm place!). she didn't fare all that well in her answer either, it being "lunch". -_-

day 12:

adel's final day in melbourne and we realised the sad truth... there is absolutely no shopping to be done in australia.


another example of adel's helpfulness.. i couldn't get the bottle of sauce out of its holder and she goes take a photo instead of helping me.


what adel took away from this trip: the next time i play food guide, she should bring maternity clothes along. =)

day 13:

the morning adel left, i amused myself watching her lug her 19kg luggage down the stairs, then realised at the airport SIA has the most hideous uniforms ever!

and adel learnt that sometimes, final gifts should not be given so last minute, else they'd be homeward bound on the plane with her. =)

(pssst adel, aren't you glad you're no longer in melbourne? temperature's a low of 4 degrees tomorrow!)