Stupid Emu!!

OK, you all know me love animals...so was looking forward to today when I can go see penguins and Aussie animals..hee..

I've seen then several times when I go downunder, but what's visiting Aussie without meeting the local furry/ feathered friends? Besides, they're such a joy to meet..=)

I opted for the Go West tour for the penguin parade such that enroute to see the penguins, you'll get to do some other activities too. One reason why I picked them, is that I preferred smaller buses, as it's guaranteed the group will not be too big and impersonal. Of course, being in a smaller bus potentially meant more 'puke'...hahaha...but i had a go at it based on my experince in New Zealand lah...=)

The bus came to my hotel to do a pick up! Cools! It started from officially at 1.30pm.While waiting to pick up more of the group in the city, I caught two of Melbourne's icons in one pic...hehe...Trams and the Flinders Train Station. So it seems that Mel is the only place with trams as part of its transport network/ way of life in Aussie.

Truckload packed with sheep passed the bus on the highway! I wonder if they are being transported...or going to be lambchops...eeeps...haiz..and I like my lamb cutlets!!..the irony...

The driver/ tour guide, offered me the seat right in front beside her when I first boarded the bus...Whoopppeee!!! I took it in a heartbeat. Best seat with personal space, best views, least chance of dizziness, but of course, the moment I sat down, I realised, probably first to die should there be a need to jam break...Mahahaha...no seat belt lah...

But it was really the best seat, as i could get lotsa shots and panoramic views from my seat..hehehe...

Of course, it also meant I had to help out the guide lah, which I was happy to lah..=)

Our first stop was lunch, where we stopped at a stretch of road that lined up petrol stations, small grocers and take outs in the form of fish and chips/ burgers.

This group of seagulls were begging for food much to the disdain of the al fresco diners..haha...the man in black tried several times in vain to shoo them away.

My lunch was fish and chips. It's very pricey considering this is right next to a fishing spot, and the driver agreed with me ...but if it were back in the city, you'll probably be paying that or more.. $8. =)

I still remember my fish and chips in NZ...gawd, each one was the size of my face..two pieces and chips just cost me $4.90.
Next stop -- Wine tasting...mmmm...we all tried out a total of 6 bottles, I took a sip out of 5 of them and tossed the rest..haha..gotta take care of my foot lah...besides..it didn't taste good actually...the frenchies in my grp agreed...LOL...

Okies! Time to meet the animals! We went to a shelter called Maru, that took care of wild animals that lost their parents and saved (e.g. Kangaroo gets killed in a car accident, and the joey is still alive in the pouch.)

They were so cute -- here's a Wallaby (looks like a Kangaroo)..this one was a baby one, about 18months!

Koalas can't be touched in the state of Victoria (mandated coz of some disease that spread -- not coz of humans though)...these Koalas were brought here to 'spread the project' of repopulation. I remember playing with Koalas when i was younger. =)

This particular koala I took was so adorable..he was folding his legs in with his hands, making sure they were tucked in tight. Then he stuffed his hands between his legs to keep warm, then burrowed his chin into his arms...hahaha...shifting his butt and squirming on the tree branch till he was absolutely comfortable -- all this while closing his eyes...WAHAHAHA...

Kookabaras...

Ponies -- only managed to get one shot and it turned out well! There was sheep and dingoes too..but didn't take that lah..=)

They had lotsa geese...that honked and honked and honked -- asking for food lah..haha...I put some in my hand to feed them...they bite! haha...but it feels like a pinch lah..no harm..

I stooped down and honked back at this one...LOL..he stopped honking and glared at me...=P

Emus...This emu bullied me lor...there were 4 of them...but this one, took advantage of my kindness..Humph.

I stretched out my plastic bowl of fodder for the emu to eat lah, so others can take a photo close up..(madness to put food in the hand for this one as their beaks are the same size as your hands and could just get pecked off!!!)........Anyway, this emu pecked the bowl so hard, it was knocked to the ground and the food was scattered and they happily ate off the ground...raaarr...that was it! no more food for the kangaroos!

Stupid Emu...*waves fist*...

Still, I tried salvaging some and put back in my bowl...for the roos! Goodness so many of them, they even had an albino one! One fo them was really big. He was like...hmmm...up to my eye level...LOL...with his ears pointed up he would the same height lor!

This particular roo was really sweet and gentle...he was a small one...and would come up to you calmly, when you stretched out your hand with the food, he would clutch it with his tiny claws and pull it gently down to his level so that he can eat...

You see his paws wrapped around my hand?..hee...cute hor...

I petted the roos and twiddled thier ears...hahaha...

Peacock and Peahen upset that the attention had shifted to the roos sit and sulk...hahaha...

There were several of them roaming the grounds.

Tasmanian Devils! =)

Seems there's an epidemic in Tasmania that's giving the wild devils a face rash..so some ok ones are brought to Victoria for re-population toos...

They have very strong jaws capable of breaking bones so be careful!!.. they were created by God to eat through dead carcass bones *crunch crunch*...=)

So that was it in terms of animals..until of course, we reach the highlight of the penguins!...hee...

Melby Sunday

Saturday was spent recovering and sleeping -- alot...haha...I woke for breakfast and bounced between reading and sleeping (mostly) still about 4pm...imagine that! =) After clearing out some e-mails, I was ready to start enjoying my break in Aussie.

Sunday's highlight was really to meet ge's family, who decided to bring me to the city centre, which (can you believe it I had yet to go after a week in Melbourne..LOL!)

I went focussed shopping in the morning -- to find a jacket that can be used for the penguin trip too...thank God for the DFO near my hotel..haha...cannot take it liao lah, the weather here is so unpredictable..I needed a jacket to protect me from the elements of sudden heavy rain and strong winds..=D

They would come to my hotel to pick me at 11am. Ge's 2nd sis, Vicki, drove..woohoo...got to sit in a nice merc leh..LOL...Spent alot of time talking to her family as we walked the streets..

First stop was to have lunch at Desert House, which was chinese food lah..haha...I had sweet and sour pork with fried rice and an iced kopi that was so filling i was full 12 hours later lor (sho no need to have dinner liao). It was hard to finish...hahaha...I think my stomach not used to eating so much as it naturally cuts back during travel. But...me seldom waste nah...so i ate up the whole thing ...*burp*

Well, all I remember is talking to them quite alot and poor vicki having to watch the time and keep moving the car...hahaha...auntie told me quite abit about the area and how they came about getting an apartment first. =)

Here's the Shot Tower inside a shopping centre. It's an artilery tower where they made lead pipes and bullets in the past. It's a hsitorical treasure they opted to keep and decided to built around it... =) Our urban deve authority should learn stuff like this lah..=) While waiting for Vicki to move the car, I walked around what I learned later to be the Royal Arcade..haha..so I window shopped with auntie and uncle and we found a chocolate shop by the corner that alos served deserts similar to where we wanted to go to. Hmmm...i just thought their easter display was quite cute..hehe...Choc bunnies...many many bunnies!!!

Next we went to Koko Black (in the Royal Arcade) that has absolutely lovely Hot chocolate..hehehe...it's the kind of place where you have to be ready to pay at elast $2 for one pc of chocolate..haha..but it was a popular spot and had to wait for a seat. hee...

Ge's parents...so cute hor..haha...they purposely took this photo so that can show ge when i get back SG...hee...yeah, that's the menu that they are holding, which you can bring back. I like the chickens on it lor...they are chocolate chickens...big ones!

It's easter season lah...but they were so cute..haha..it was tempting to buy and ge's dad kept encouraging me to buy it..hahaha...of cos i won't lah, these things buy already and you'll never eat it!! Cant' bear to mah! (it's the size of a tissue box neh! I joked with auntie that I'll put it in my fridge and everyday open the fridge just to see it and make the $$ worthwhile...=P

Vicki and me! with all the yummy-licious chocs..hahaha...and yesh-- the ice choc in front of me was finito-ed by me...its like drinking thick choc milk with a scoop of vanilla and choc ice cream!!! Deadly man..hehehe...

I really had a good time and appreciate their care..=) The outing ended about 4pm and I buried me nose in brochures deciding whether to go for the penguin tour on Monday and which tour to go to...sooo many pamphlets and sooo many prices!

At 6.30pm, I grabbed my storybook and camera and headed out for a walk along the Yarra River to catch the sunset, making Federation Sq, which is on the opposite end of the riverside to where my hotel is, my roundabout point. =)

I probably took 30 to 40 mins to walk there..stopping for pictures, sit around, watch seagulls and sms..hee...

So here I am! Federation square is on the right (which I have no idea what is the big deal...btu i suspect its a tourist tag thgy..LOL..) and St Paul's church is on the left. All this is just opposite Flinder's Station which is like pretty much the old main station that looks the part! hee...lotsa people moving around this area.

I spent alot of time standing on this bridge watching the sunset. It was very cloudy, so you can't really see the colours. My hotel is like all the way on the other end on the right side and I was going to walk back on the left of the river. =)

It was very peaceful with passerbys and the hum of street traffic. =) There was a busker playing Amazing Grace on bagpipes! Which was nicely 'arranged by God' coz I just started talking to and thinking about Him there and then..=)

Walking back, I passed the Crown Casino...decided not to go in lah..I remembered the others that I've gone to before and don't think it will be that different..hmm..unless I'm in vegas..hahaha...

Lotsa eateries here...high end ones..but you have to check out the desert display man!!! slurp...the size of their cakes are like...=O

And then, when you take a step back and view the whole thing ---

-- you'll just want to try everything !!! hahaha..coz it wall looks so good!! heee...

This casino has a corner where they cluster 'world wide' makans in a food court format...It really covered all variety I guess to suit all their guests...but the price is like...er...$13 for a plate of char kway teow?..hehehe...but it all looked good and authentic! For a moment, it felt like food court back home..hee

Reached back at 9pm...and I was still burping sweet and sour pork!! LOL!

200th post DOWNUNDER!!!

Heywooo! Today got some time at night to transfer and mod some photos both from my mobile phone and camera. Hee...thanks to SD card slots on lappie and ge's micro SD converter..makes things so much easier!

I'm not going to go into detail like my Paris post lah, after all, Aussie Airshow is still work..Muahaha...so didn't take alot of shots, but here it is!

Melbourne is 3 hours ahead of SG time lah...I woke up in slight panic on monday at 11am. (I can forget about breakfast - ends at 1030am) and I had to be on show ground before 2pm as the contractor will leave by then. AND it takes at least 1 hour (IF what the guidebook says is accurate) to get to the show ground.

Anyway, I got there by about 130pm, albeit alot of drama being a public holiday. But thank God for grace and common sense...LOL! After checking to make sure that everything was OK at the show, I had a hard time getting out of the airshow ground, so i missed the train that i had planned to take and i reached the station jsut 2mins after the last train left...grrrr...

That means I have to wait an hour for the next train!!! So....welcome to Lara Station!It is a quiet station lah..like i said public holiday and there was only ONE bench there I could sit on..even the ticket office is closed!! So i waited for the next 4pm train an had me lunch! It was a ham wrap and ....

.....Ice Mocha!!! Yummmm!!!!

There was no one around...not even a bird...miserable man...

But..thank god for personal entertainment -- like posing for silly shots..hahahha

I'm staying at Holiday Inn on Flinders which is really near the Southern Cross Station (see below), which was revamped int he past 1/2 years and looks impressively modern like a big airport/ internchange...bit like the Frankfurt station just more techy looking..hahaha..regional trains head out from this station toos....

I picked this location coz I have to take a train daily from this station and back from the show ground. So the nearer the better....though it is quite a distance from the Central Melbourne shopping ways/activities.

Still, since it's near a major station, I've got some basic food, 7-11, supermarkets and the direct factory outlets are in the station..hahaha...also, it's a walking distance from the Crown casino...(near where boss stayed.) =)

Night shot from my hp (so-so hah the quality) of the city...on my way back from dinner with my bosses around the Yarra river/ crowne area. =) That's da moooonnnn!!! Not spaceship lahz!! =S

My RRRoooooooommmmmmmM!!!!....not bad hor..hee... since I alone i opted for a King size bed. I found out it fit me horizontal or vertical!! whahaha...--cheap thrills...

Even has a work table. I took these shots the first night I checked in...so excited that i managed to log on to the internet toos....although now I've found out, it's free up to 50MB PER DAY! *humph*

TV comes with a good number of channels -- I even caught EPL last night lor...Man U vs Liverpool...which we lost 4-1..Haiz...first time in a long time i get to watch Man U play and this harpoons...grrrr...

Boss drove for the two days her was there...here we are on the way to Avalon! Yep, it's at a suburb airport, and were waiting for a plane to taxi to the runway for take off...we had to cut -thru the taxiway.

I purposely took this picture and told boss i can frame him and accuse him of driving illegally on runways..WAAHHAHA...childish...=P

A shot in one of the Halls in Avalon. This hall was more skewed towards defence lah...

I took the above shot on the 2nd day i was leaving the show ground...Although it looks like a "God speaks" moment, I jsut wanted to show you how ULU the place was....hahahaha...ya lor...was stuck there with no transport on the recce day!

YEAH!!! My org booth!!! Ya man..the Singapore word far far away can see liao..hahahaha...See our brochures and standee there? We carried them! heee....

Went around to take pics of the other SG companies that came with us...of course I take good pics when they entertaining potential clients...hahaha

Pic above is the shared meeting area in the centre-- which is my org area lah...As usual boss fiddling with my lappie while talking to one of the SG companies. (see all my barang?..hahaha)

The company below had a full exhibition set up that they have created for use in shows...not bad ah...everything packs into a huge box that serves as a dispaly table too...=) This means they only need to ship the box! =)

The booth that had one of the better corp gifts..but ahd a horleeble woman manning the booth..grrr...so hard to get gifts..humph...oh well...probably think they big shot, no matter how true it is!!! grrr...hahaha...k lah..managed to get quite a bit of stuff...WITH LOTS of TENACITY..hahaha...

I went to Geelong with one of the SG companies for dinner after day two. We were at a chill/ bar kinda place, which was very comfy and open...few dinner choices, but the atmosphere was nice.

We chatted till 8pm plus! And goodness the sun was still up but i had to get to a train station coz Geelong is further than Lara and I still had to get back.

Took the 830pm train and ended up waiting in the station with people that just have to chat kind one lor...(hardly anyone ard lah)..one was a part time research student from China who's in Deakin Uni but stays in Mel with his gf who is in Mel U. And the other guy is a half drunk Aussie from Queensland who talks partially sensible stuff with alot of swearing in between.

He spent more time suaning the China student who is also a guy lah...tho he claims he's half Chinese coz his mum was a migrant too...LOL...ah well..mad people you meet at weird hours on trains..WHATEVER COUNTRY you are in one lah...=)

Just good that i got back to the hotel fast from the station coz i was so tired liao...

Last day I finally had the chance to go watch the flying display for ONE act...andwalked around just to take pics of the static display for da record. =)

Helicopters for sale...guess how much eh?

The week had been surprisingly tiring for me. I mean, the day passes by real fast and you don't feel that you're really doing much kinda thing. But when i come back from the show, other than a shower and chatting online with ge for a while, I concuss till the next day lor...sometimes, missing breakfast again..=S No time to check work mail, which I was hoping to do with the internet connection...haiz...oh well, it's over!

On the last night, I slept from 9pm all the way to 4pm he next day-- only waking for 2 hours to go eat breakfast...see what I mean..hahaha...

I guess other than airshow work, I also had to handle one of the SG exhibitors lah...she...hmm...abit unpredictable..so i had to watch out for myself...coz she had a tendency to sabo/ corner for her purposes IN FRONT of others so that you have no where to run...at the same time, she seems to confide in me here and there with regard to other matters...

So abit hard to tell if she is for or against me...so must play it safe lor...mah fan...

So guessed how much the helicpoter cost liao? They have several for sale ard the same price...=)

In AUD + GST......

....AUD $640,000 (which is now same rate as SGD)

Any takers?????