Amused by Australia

Tullamarine Airport. - 7.30. Look at the sun.

Hi all! For the past 2 weeks, I've been moving up and about in two places, Melbourne and Gippsland. So I'll do Melb first and then Gipps. Cool? Just read even if it's not cool.

First up, Australian Weather Report. When Karina and I arrived in Tullamarine Airport on the 15th, there was no rain, no fire, alot of wind, and alot of sun. Pretty different from back home. With all the news about the fires, I expected Melbourne to be really hot but no. It was 8.00am, 12 degrees. Wtf. And I brought singlets and shorts. Brilliant right? *sarcasm*

For Melbourne, it's normally steaming at noon. SIGH. So if you walk out in a thick wooly top, by eleven-ish, if it's not windy anymore, you'll regret... like moi. *emo one corner*

We were sent to Clayton after that. :P The campus is awesome pawsome! Quick trivia.

1. First timers surely get lost.
2. Don't miss the bus when services ends at 12. (Missed the last bus from Huntingdale train station and me, K and Jun ended up walking in the cold cold cold winds lol..)
3. There's a really nice park near the Clayton Residentials which offers a pretty decent amount of animal species.

Clayton Residentials - Taken Outside my Window. LOL. At about 5/6.00-ish.

Clayton Residentials - Taken outside Kari's window after dinner at eight. She's got a better view. *envy*

Unlike Malaysia, I discovered Australia got longer daytime. It's normally bright at about 7 and only becomes pitch black at 9 at night. So i normally find myself semi-conscious at 8am. Can't really sleep anymore after that. I pretty much adjusted to the time here. It sucks when nobody is on my MSN list unless I stay up. :(

During orientation, I totally fell in love with that place. :) I'll probably try to apply to head there next semester. I travelled a bit around Melbourne city by train. It was a blast.

Tram!

Melbourne Central... Artsy ;)

The State Library (It is HUGE. Free Wifi. Amen)

Us in front of the State Lib - Karina, Joyce and me.

I have goldfish memory. Forgot where I took this from.

The City - Flinders St.

I also got to see Fed Square at Flinder's street.

Fed Square - One of the many Art Centers of Melbourne. (Busker on Right)

Random Busker - The Boxing Chef. :)

Church.

Fed Square embraces all the city's inner tensions:between old and new, between artistic freedom and the constraints of funding and politics. Sitting opposite a cathedral,a pub and a railway station,it is a gathering place for our diverse cultures. Its grounds,according to one historian, are both sacred and secular. - Virtual Tourist

Agreed.

The Park at Fed overlooking the Yarra River

There's alot of Asian shops around Melbourne too. Places to get my daily dose of Maggi, Nong Shim and Lee Kum Kee may be small, shoved at one corner while some are like Hypermarkets.

(korean shop at the left, but i don't think you can see it - noobphotog)

Because of the significant Asian population in Melbourne, they have Asian grocery stores that imports stuff from Korea, Jap, Malaysia, Thai, Viet, everything under one roof! (A really big one in QV opposite Melb Central called Laguna.) When I decide to take a break from Fish And Chips and Sandwiches, I still get to taste home away from home.

The shopping in Melbourne, is great. It's not difficult to find good deals around the city. There's the summer clearance going on. Australia also has a wide variety of thrift shops where you get an item half the price. (Check out, DFO in Southcross and Docklands, at the Victoria Harbour).

Uptill today, I already bought 2 flipflops, 3 pairs of shoes, one bag, one clutch, two penguins (heheh) and a winter jacket. All total up under AUD 200. :D Ok. Conversion it might be a little OMG but you know that if there was no sale, it probably would cost more.

My Penguins which I bought from the Melbourne Zoo out of impulse. I am an Impulsive soft toy shopper.

Sry mum. Couldn't resist the Penguins.

Red Scooter.

The Monash Study Abroad organized an Orientation bash at Red Scooter which was a blast. Good place, decent food. Many people. :O

That's us in a Cheongsam!

The inside.

We ate,we mabuk, we danced... had fun. No pics of the after party (Most of my pics of this event came out really bad) but the event ended pretty late, and there was a 10am bus to catch to Gippsland. My one week in Melbourne was pretty fun and the journey to Gippsland was just as good. I'll be back for sure. (Which i did, twicelol, after unpacking in Gipps, but this chapter will come soon... lol.)

I'm lazy to edit my Zoo pictures. *hint hint* :P

Next up,

Gippsland!
Docklands! (Shopping trip with Gippsland's International Students Association)
Melbourne Zoo!
The craziest yet, Surfing in Phillip Island in 20°C waves!

For a more extensive photo report, see Kari's blog.