tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35281996066745792982024-03-13T12:18:40.128+08:00The Travelling TeddiesFasten your seat belts, secure your tray tables and ensure that your window shades are up. Because The Jet Setting Teddies are Out on a Global Adventure!The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.comBlogger90125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-68262846363393693082012-04-27T16:38:00.001+08:002012-04-27T16:44:56.839+08:00The Last Time I Did This Was In 2011...?!!<b>Grrrowl!!!</b><br />
<br />
Oh dear... Its been yet another year hasn't it since i wrote anything on this blog, and i am not even apologetic about it?!!! Totally unacceptable yes?<br />
<br />
Yes... <br />
<br />
Ok fine, the reason is i've been really busy catching up with life. Life likes going at 250 km/h, but me? I'm always straddling between a gear one and gear two - and that's between 20 - 40 km/h folks. Slow. Just slow.<br />
<br />
The story of my life. This year has been an interesting one for me.<br />
<br />
I've done more travelling than you can imagine... I just didn't have time to blog about it.<br />
<br />
Why you ask?<br />
<br />
Well
for a fact, i get paid to write every single day - and when you write
every day, you just tire out by the time the day ended. When you get
home, all you want to do when you get back is shower and crawl into bed.
So that's that.<br />
<br />
Blah blah blah right?... All we do is complain, come up with excuses and blame life. Perfect way out :) <br />
<br />
But yes, 2012 has been an interesting year so far. I do plan to write more this year, all the interesting events that happened between my 2011 intro post and now, 2012 intro post.<br />
<br />
Tune in the next few weeks. There will be posts on Bali (again...), New Zealand (boooyahhh!!!) and ahem... other very juicy stuffs. Good stuff, worth hanging on to your panties for.<br />
<br />
Meantime...<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">OVER & OUT peeps!</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" /></a><b> </b>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-47961069103529603902011-06-16T17:46:00.005+08:002011-06-16T18:06:51.910+08:00Its Been A Year... A Full Year!Since i wrote anything on this blog!<br />
<br />
And so much has changed in between. Yep, i changed my coat to a different shade, got a haircut, lost a job and failed to try out for Cirque Du Soleil (well someone told me they are in the circus business??? Surely they need bears!?....), grew a little fatter (just a little) and a year older, made new friends, lost a few and still getting wiser...<br />
<br />
This blog is definitely not forgotten. I read it often, mostly as a visitor (to my own blog) - shuttling between airports and cities but Cubbies' been so wrapped up with school, work and travel (even on the personal front) that I just haven't had the opportunity or energy to pick up from where i left off. Apologies for that.<br />
<br />
But second half of 2011 seemed to give me a better hope at completing this journey. <br />
<br />
At the end of the day, the only thing i really enjoy doing (apart from travelling) is writing. So I am determined to continue. <br />
<br />
Now... where do begin?<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view¤t=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-5437962571942680152010-04-16T14:21:00.003+08:002010-04-16T15:11:59.109+08:00I Love Meat Pies, So I Have To Write About This One...<div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Grrrowl!!!</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">First of all, let me wish everyone a Happy Happy Friday!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Well.. I started out my Friday just like everyone else say we should - sleepy, groggy but happy its the end of the week Got myself a cup of hot roasted black coffee and bounced all my way off to work (like a little happy cubby). I sent out a twitter via my uber-sexy bold and sat at my desk, turn on the computer, open my favourite news page online and wind down, slowly sipping my cup of coffee... </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I was so ecstatic that Meebops and I bought a couple of pies each last night from this outlet called PIE KIA (in hokkien, loosely translated as "Gangster"). Name is cute and fits the purpose eh. They have a long story behind how the name was carved and how the pies came to be... Cute cute... All very cute.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Except the pies themselves lah! First, they're tiny and they cost S$1 each, cheaper by S$0.50 of the rates they published online. Second is quality of the flakes; the pastry top is the only part that's probably made of a little small sheet of cheap filo pastry while the bottom is those prebaked cup you can purchase off the shelves at Cold Storage. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">What the... <b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Where can like this Mr. Kia!!? </span></b>You cheating lar!<br />
<br />
This is the Mexican Pie Kia (not gangster hailed from Mexico ok... Heh). Tomato based gravy with bits and pieces of mixed veggie and chicken meat (i think..).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RQXRxKO-h1J7vJQtw0xRtAejVy9HOTuM4dANBKBN_3YS6fKmq8xTyX8LerJuFR_geBcRR4gK3xRoBrLK0O9uBXiDMaPoKslyqifOOAN-T7BplMd1p6eIl0MCDOqgDpR1O9lffUvWmPg/s1600/IMG00011-20100416-0902.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RQXRxKO-h1J7vJQtw0xRtAejVy9HOTuM4dANBKBN_3YS6fKmq8xTyX8LerJuFR_geBcRR4gK3xRoBrLK0O9uBXiDMaPoKslyqifOOAN-T7BplMd1p6eIl0MCDOqgDpR1O9lffUvWmPg/s400/IMG00011-20100416-0902.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Just like the above marked "M" on top, this one is marked "B" to symbolise Beef Pie Kia. Filling has bits and pieces of carrots, potatoes, meat cooked in beef stock.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimGVSuywZYwWVp_MWuaY0vJuXDF-Q8CHXaNJoerWAsO06P0DLevchC5Hgs4CBQV1dysjsmCRZG8jIu-VQoLKLthBuWHc8qBJVTraAGzUzS8YKZ95FD512tlPdCzCXlhPQKi8o94RP_SzM/s1600/IMG00013-20100416-0905.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimGVSuywZYwWVp_MWuaY0vJuXDF-Q8CHXaNJoerWAsO06P0DLevchC5Hgs4CBQV1dysjsmCRZG8jIu-VQoLKLthBuWHc8qBJVTraAGzUzS8YKZ95FD512tlPdCzCXlhPQKi8o94RP_SzM/s400/IMG00013-20100416-0905.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">How a pie kia really looks like inside (pun intended). Mush... </div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY9ZV7F9LGn1zJU9vCRemCPp7CPKLxntebKwSjaL4szMlh96jaZfT_uLfJm7GV7EE7bnf85pivk6w8eNy4WHHhu4px_vNIycIdWaAqsGHgBNDmYSGX5EwcWEYMTr5Vela5U-hJ3ZDWEVA/s1600/IMG00015-20100416-0906.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY9ZV7F9LGn1zJU9vCRemCPp7CPKLxntebKwSjaL4szMlh96jaZfT_uLfJm7GV7EE7bnf85pivk6w8eNy4WHHhu4px_vNIycIdWaAqsGHgBNDmYSGX5EwcWEYMTr5Vela5U-hJ3ZDWEVA/s400/IMG00015-20100416-0906.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"> And this is him doing a topless pose.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkSWJjAOdmtBUlUIfSTPgLA7Jh4GFU_Q0QJihwX65TBitUwMkU6skxyEYyE_ypETMQLwTw5NQUTOqpMZYlydTulW7nl7eEUZjcFRYXQyhJnbh24F4vjBIZ-8aW2JLj0j5hEyZQ1EMyLos/s1600/IMG00017-20100416-0908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkSWJjAOdmtBUlUIfSTPgLA7Jh4GFU_Q0QJihwX65TBitUwMkU6skxyEYyE_ypETMQLwTw5NQUTOqpMZYlydTulW7nl7eEUZjcFRYXQyhJnbh24F4vjBIZ-8aW2JLj0j5hEyZQ1EMyLos/s400/IMG00017-20100416-0908.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">As you can see, the innards are dry and bland cooked in a concoction that seemed to come from canned sauces - the Mexican pie kia (tomato based and chicken) tasted like those taken from Del Monte pasta sauce and the Beef pie, which has probably 2 strands of beef, some leftover potatoes were cooked in chicken stock until dry.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Oi Mr. Pie Kia! </span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Very disappointing lar!... And for a good reason too. Because i love pies and i was really craving for a good, wet pie innards that really oozes out goodness on the first bite. You know, those white creamy chickeny veggie sauce thing that you imagine all pies should have in them? Or meat pies that are full of bits and pieces of meat covered in a pool of rich dark brown gravy blessed with just a dash of black pepper..? Those kinds. Wet and scrumptious. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In Singapore, you don't have to worry about getting some really good hawker fare or malay nasi padang, we have those and is pretty good at it. But pies and savouries - <b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;">FAIL!</span> <span style="font-size: large;">Big Time!</span></span></b> Alas, i've succumb to the fact that Singapore food producers and retailers cannot make good oozy meat pies. All we get is day-old pastry with pathetic, bland, dry and meatless meat type. Sigh...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">After that disappointing evening with the pie-kias, we wandered off the the bistro next door, called Qi Jii. I don't want to be rambling much about what i ate here, but i took a picture of what i think is the most, THE MOST, ridiculous signage EVER.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4dpzdoKI7hpdX7ooijBsRcfDOMJ3yNFk68MJ3DyMojOLkrOdChXs5gnIyqVU906vdvf0bGz44oORmP7xrKPNS8j_-NzaB1dSPlZtD3w5vD8DUMpgmGk_zDskqQeAAUDyOdSCk6Z-Ep_E/s1600/IMG00010-20100415-1931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4dpzdoKI7hpdX7ooijBsRcfDOMJ3yNFk68MJ3DyMojOLkrOdChXs5gnIyqVU906vdvf0bGz44oORmP7xrKPNS8j_-NzaB1dSPlZtD3w5vD8DUMpgmGk_zDskqQeAAUDyOdSCk6Z-Ep_E/s400/IMG00010-20100415-1931.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b> You want to separate gravy, PAY EXTRA dey!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">And coming from a country of many <i>extras</i>, we have to put in all the <i>extra</i> effort in everything we do; wake up <i>extra</i> early in the morning to get to work, stay <i>extra</i> late, work <i>extra</i> hard so we can buy a new condo, or a new car, buy <i>extra </i>food, pay <i>extra</i> money because you don't want ice with with your sugarcane juice... and just like the above photo - where we were asked to pay extra because we want to separate the laksa gravy with the noodles. Errmm... I don't even know where to start.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I know 20 cents is not a lot but What The...! Don't want my noodles soggy by the time i go home also must pay extra hor aunty!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" /></a> </div>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-67837536526578518942010-04-15T16:06:00.002+08:002010-04-15T16:44:26.250+08:00Bearlicious Breakfast Food...<div style="text-align: justify;">So i've got to say something about the stuff i ate for breakfast a couple of days back. So good... Its Uberlicious.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We first found it when we headed West to Causeway Point. It was Cubbies first time ever at the Mall and it was a pretty delicious one too. We were roaming around aimlessly that fateful evening, hungry, scanning and were fortunate to sample free aromatic smells of meat and spices from stalls around the mall, as well as the scent of a wonderful whole roasted duck sold at the Cold Storage on basement 1. As our eyes were trailing the smells, we caught sight of a small little shop tucked in between many other small little shops.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">They call themselves, <i><b>My Genie Gourmet</b></i>. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">It didn't take us very long to realise that they sell snacks and delicacies like Chee Cheong Fun, Soon Kuey, Curry Puffs and Paus. Never tried the latter two but we sure dig in to the Cheong Fun and Soon Kuey alright. Hooked, totally... They've got the mushroom variety, original soon kuey, gu cai version(the green stuff used to add colour as well as enhance the taste of mee siam) but the most delicious was the rice kuey - I LIKE! </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I don't have the photos for the other kueys except for my favourite. Basically, they tiny, moreish snacks that are quite healthy since they're steamed instead of fried or something. Usually vegetarian but i guess you can also add bits and pieces of meat inside. The mushroom and original ones tasted almost too similar to distinguish which is better but they're both good, and fresh, and i can definitely taste the hint of udang kering (dried prawns) used in the veggie mix. You get the idea. Now for the ones i had for breakfast:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYXeEL2-Vkbz3HH-OqGwO_tm32xpovG1sr_mR_JYq1WTGxt2eSTT1tG_P-T6bX-8SKiHrULFMiAkpUSCF8lFEjZtJFNoers9bGzz6yZSrZEwOFVq3wlwnSlD6PTFVANgwc77dPgv1U_zQ/s1600/IMG00008-20100413-0917.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYXeEL2-Vkbz3HH-OqGwO_tm32xpovG1sr_mR_JYq1WTGxt2eSTT1tG_P-T6bX-8SKiHrULFMiAkpUSCF8lFEjZtJFNoers9bGzz6yZSrZEwOFVq3wlwnSlD6PTFVANgwc77dPgv1U_zQ/s400/IMG00008-20100413-0917.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">There ya go... the box that kept all the beautiful stuff inside it. Yup, definitely like rubbing a genie's bottom... i mean... bottle. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgROWJEwWoUIDU4Jnx8gaBrSa2dX6i3q8CUuRlkNLpCqwEBf7ayxxTBZyfIuHYuLryRocKgFJY3MDdrW51ATnzS4zledzns6vZO12Pt155VXqPOlWiW9HbQ5OBIvRhWhUQG9ykBwTMG4G8/s1600/IMG00007-20100413-0917.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgROWJEwWoUIDU4Jnx8gaBrSa2dX6i3q8CUuRlkNLpCqwEBf7ayxxTBZyfIuHYuLryRocKgFJY3MDdrW51ATnzS4zledzns6vZO12Pt155VXqPOlWiW9HbQ5OBIvRhWhUQG9ykBwTMG4G8/s400/IMG00007-20100413-0917.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">And here is how i like my rice kuey. Black smeared with sweet soy sauce and chilli for that extra <span style="font-size: large;"><b>oomph!</b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The rice kuey skin is slightly sticky but the glutinous rice was gorgeous... Absolutely gorgeous.</div><br />
<a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-40155133197085918392010-03-04T16:08:00.002+08:002010-03-31T11:46:39.816+08:00Sooo Much To Say but So Little Time!<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Grrrowl!!!</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Where have all the time in the world gone to! Class has ended and time is now supposedly on my side - but wait! There isn't much of it by my side since i've been really busy with work and a little bit of teaching of little baby bears (now that i'm a Senior and no longer a Sophomore) Heh... So there, been quite busy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">But even then, i don't neglect my insatiable desire to see the world! I made sure that for whatever little money that i have, it will now be spent on my travels and on my food during my travels. Meebops will do the shopping - just watching her shop makes me feel like an empty wallet. So that is her turf so we won't blog about it here.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">My suitcase however, is often filled with food. Food from everywhere! - from the streets, restaurants, recommendations by friends, guides, internet as well as those where you just decide to walk-in and give it a shot. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Speaking of which, i remembered when i was in Mexico (about 6 years back) and tried that big-a** drippin' wet bean burrito loaded with cheese and hot sauce from a street cafe, packed to the brim with people - it was totally by chance but like first love, you never really forget about it. I've been trying to get a similar tasting bean burrito since but of course, its only made in Mexicana. And besides the now defunct Taco Bell restaurants in SG, there aren't many restaurants serving Mexican food here, for obvious reasons. The ones who does... well... </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">So i'm thinking that since i'm headed nowhere this weekend - no dates, no fun in the playground (cos its been too hot lately) and only a week before our trip to Bali (YES!!!!!! We are going to Bali AGAIN!!!!!! WooHoo!), i figured why not spend some moolas and cook me up some good comfort food at home eh... </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Here's a list of what i wanna cook this weekend:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bean Burrito - I call it, <i>Kick-My-Butt Beanie Boo</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvPVVVsOnnzVF8tnZRHCi4CpZ5jhc7ArBeFsVU5Ype5JOicLRkDJqFeVpWdS70eW09eVeSrSrrzgfn0UIZfuhN5dmCYrOBe8kofGXZICTa5Qcrt_ZqvAFZySpr0TGSUwrn9-tg1HgjvTc/s1600-h/Wet+Burrito.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvPVVVsOnnzVF8tnZRHCi4CpZ5jhc7ArBeFsVU5Ype5JOicLRkDJqFeVpWdS70eW09eVeSrSrrzgfn0UIZfuhN5dmCYrOBe8kofGXZICTa5Qcrt_ZqvAFZySpr0TGSUwrn9-tg1HgjvTc/s400/Wet+Burrito.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Why look at that... Isn't that just one heck of a sloppy kick-a** burrito right there. Yup, that's what i'm gonna make me some this weekend. And yes, before you come firing my behind for not citing where the photos came from, <b>the pictures are not mine</b> but you get the idea what it looked like. Once i've done it though, i'll put mine up.<br />
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Here's another one dressed on a casserole dish...<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_YhuvExMVnoDZUjNBGFQQMNARFsr_Va8pxFRBsy6GkoNkTt-QG3398Qq88p_fQ1lbvwcoHWc5Mf311PQO_WAnRyAgYcexwmw6kenhaq4WzEFxFGWjhrw3JWGK1qRAEqcofcGjSRqB6uc/s1600-h/picu4lvmq.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_YhuvExMVnoDZUjNBGFQQMNARFsr_Va8pxFRBsy6GkoNkTt-QG3398Qq88p_fQ1lbvwcoHWc5Mf311PQO_WAnRyAgYcexwmw6kenhaq4WzEFxFGWjhrw3JWGK1qRAEqcofcGjSRqB6uc/s400/picu4lvmq.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Beer Battered Onion Rings (substitute Beer with Soda Water or something) - I named it, <i>Steer-Me-Thick</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hush Puppies - Err... Haven't named this one yet since the originals sounds really pretty. </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Fried Okra - Maybe, <i>"Me-Lady's-Fried-Fingers"</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I might just add one more to the list - but its a surprise treat. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">So Bali's coming up in exactly one week -<b> I CAN HARDLY WAIT! </b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I know i know... Haven't been putting up pictures from 3 most recent trips we had - Last installment to Melbourne, Bali and Kuala Lumpur. Stay tuned. I can see a bloody packed weekend, which i am sooooooooooooooo looking forward to.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Later now. </div><br />
<a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-45158980079606010382010-02-12T18:44:00.000+08:002010-02-12T18:44:56.682+08:00Finally... Its Over... For Now!<div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Grrrowl!!!</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">My school term has finally ended and my exams are over and yes, i'm still in one piece and still broke as ever.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">But here's the good thing, i expect to write a little more in the next few days / months before neglecting it again for a short while when my school term starts. By that time, i'll be a Senior Cubby (and no longer a sophomore)... hehehe!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Long weekends up ahead and i'm just reeling in the freedom, one bite at a time. It's Friday, its the end of another long work week and its the Chinese New Year weekend too... So i'm off to KL tomorrow evening for a little mini holiday, which i can't wait. Been an awfully long start to 2010.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">For now... Let's just chill and take one thing at a time ;) </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjj0NbtJJ9tz9_CJBMc_puNaSfB1mPg2dTKGsIJiDjqc0PUeACr7sU1hzF6rTqfStloqt5a5cL7cY44WT3t5RQPoX7oeZe_50kDNJj3s-_mccol7-9bEPpWLYCRV_hrdLIGal9COR2wq4/s1600-h/39260791.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjj0NbtJJ9tz9_CJBMc_puNaSfB1mPg2dTKGsIJiDjqc0PUeACr7sU1hzF6rTqfStloqt5a5cL7cY44WT3t5RQPoX7oeZe_50kDNJj3s-_mccol7-9bEPpWLYCRV_hrdLIGal9COR2wq4/s320/39260791.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-89486193842865864052009-12-18T14:24:00.004+08:002009-12-18T15:07:08.905+08:00Here's One For the Road...<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><br />Hello there...<br /><br />Well... My last post was weeks ago. And i haven't been blogging - really busy with assignments and everything <span style="font-size:180%;">BUT</span> - it will all be over soon <span style="font-size:85%;">(for now at least) </span>and when that time comes - I will be back writing my last post on Australia and a NEW, lip-smackin' dirty sexy and delicious post on my eventful trip to Bali last week... so sexy it sizzles <span style="font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >*tssssssss!!!!*</span> Heh...<br /><br />And before i unpack my bags, I'm taking them out on the road again to Kuala Lumpur for the New Year! Woohoo! I'm loving my almost hobo-ness lifestyle... wouldn't trade them for the world :)<br /><br />In the meantime, We promise... <span style="font-style: italic;font-size:180%;" >We'll bear right back!!!</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0-4fJG3fH_qla12hETmrp0T8XPvGI96DzQ6qqU1gxgyDeMKDS28w6OO5gCR1NHrPeZsBMugnjVRdbxR1CwPFVk7ETnYetd0cW8pp4Z62ELAfAUu6CIMiINsjRg0hI5L9qVF8RGwerasg/s1600-h/overpacksuitcase-main_Full.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0-4fJG3fH_qla12hETmrp0T8XPvGI96DzQ6qqU1gxgyDeMKDS28w6OO5gCR1NHrPeZsBMugnjVRdbxR1CwPFVk7ETnYetd0cW8pp4Z62ELAfAUu6CIMiINsjRg0hI5L9qVF8RGwerasg/s400/overpacksuitcase-main_Full.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416465835927582626" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-79935779582224809702009-12-07T12:02:00.010+08:002009-12-09T09:34:49.822+08:00Off To Bali Again...<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><br />And so we are off to Bali, Indonesia once again, for the super long weekend we planned for since August. It was on a moment's impulse that we booked for the trip - scanned, booked and now, go.<br /><br />Will be off for 5 days. A little mellow on the preparation this time maybe because we've been to Bali once before and while we spent a limited time in Bali itself, its a familiar ground and much less preparation is therefore needed. Another issue is of course, budget - but we shall not go there or this post will be one long, draggy, whiny post - when it should be something fun, exciting and full of enthusiasm!<br /><br />A few things we can look forward to during this trip, which i am VERY VERY excited to share:<br /><ol><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Self Drive</span></span> - There's really nothing stopping me from revving up the engine and driving, wherever i may be in any nook and cranny in this universe. If i can sit and make the thing move, you know i'll be driving it That is, since i am a fully licensed, fully qualified driver now :) Meebops gave in to me most times, agreeing to my incessant desire to drive. She prefers to be driven instead of driving anyway ;) So yes, we are going to self-drive in Bali. We will give our account on driving in Bali when we're back! <span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Note:</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Researched many differing opinions on this option - but i guess its just the general sense of care that you need to take wherever you may be. Look at everything before moving off and take proper care when on the road with the smaller guys, the motorcyclists.<br /></span></span></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" >Villa</span> - We are staying for a full 3 night in a private villa complete with a private swimming pool. I simply, WE simply, CAN'T WAIT for this most definitely.</li><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bali itself</span></span>... What's there to complain? Its relaxed, down to earth... yes a little touristy, but all in good fun :)</li></ol></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieihhxg_innj4hD6SUTHa3mJcZyX_L5YsaR0YkgKxPjv1UzBuKBx17u3h3WcFcQcV_2WEuKo4kYwwNdxbs7hwCfQ-OQh-70H0cfxP-JPxlfjoQiqJdymYo3OI52XssqQyb5S11uKNbl8g/s1600-h/Tugu+Bali.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 395px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieihhxg_innj4hD6SUTHa3mJcZyX_L5YsaR0YkgKxPjv1UzBuKBx17u3h3WcFcQcV_2WEuKo4kYwwNdxbs7hwCfQ-OQh-70H0cfxP-JPxlfjoQiqJdymYo3OI52XssqQyb5S11uKNbl8g/s400/Tugu+Bali.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412343867250546050" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">Picture borrowed from <a href="http://worldwidevacationspots.com/content_images/Tugu%20Bali.jpg">here</a></span><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br />Till then... <span style="font-style: italic;">Selamat tinggal!</span> :)<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-34043296156628062222009-11-09T10:45:00.003+08:002009-11-09T11:02:38.235+08:00What A Bad Bad Blogger I've Been...<div style="text-align: justify;">Yes, i've been a bad bad blogger. Don't write, don't update... I've just been really busy - with work, with school and time... Time is such a rare commodity these days. Haizzz...<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Don't know how long i can keep up with this... BLEARGH!!!<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Friend:</span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" > You look like shit dude...</span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br />Cubby: </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >Gee, thanks man.. for the compliment *rolls eyes*</span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br />Friend: </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >You're welcome</span><span style="font-size:85%;">.</span><br /><br />I know... I don't just look like crap, i feel like crap. BAH!!! BAH!!! BAH!!! :(<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRoJ-tdOJBKaRDl-Jk9KlQqcWiT7e2Z726qemOv7B6ov4p-Lpry2J21iZi5Xbsw28qfRUxgRtPiByN6UfS9FAxdAGzpJLrMD-7AQlMd4Mzvtka_4uPjZNQvg8UUpaUMpfarvP4Quh9Rw/s1600-h/Tired.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 296px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRoJ-tdOJBKaRDl-Jk9KlQqcWiT7e2Z726qemOv7B6ov4p-Lpry2J21iZi5Xbsw28qfRUxgRtPiByN6UfS9FAxdAGzpJLrMD-7AQlMd4Mzvtka_4uPjZNQvg8UUpaUMpfarvP4Quh9Rw/s400/Tired.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401933305444514786" border="0" /></a>This is how tired i am these days - i sleep anywhere and everywhere.<br /><br /></div><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-54033148115992816402009-10-27T17:07:00.001+08:002009-10-27T17:07:57.618+08:00The Daily SHOOT! - Sunday Market, Chiang Mai, Thailand<div style="text-align: left; padding: 3px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2515836294/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3054/2515836294_1bb767c027.jpg" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" alt="" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2515836294/">Nothing like a good afternoon nap...</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/thetravellingteddies/">tgtwb</a>.</span></div><p>Nothing like a good afternoon nap... :)</p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-4366726246466198222009-10-26T15:05:00.002+08:002009-10-28T13:41:10.618+08:00Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne! - PART 4<span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />So we're gonna continue from where we left off in Melbourne.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Day 4 & 5: Touring the City and Off to the Beach Town of St. Kilda We Go! </span><br /><br />So here's the deal... When you purchase 2 tours from the travel agent, you'll get a free City tour - that is a half-day sightseeing (mostly done while you're on the bus, but sometime you get off) to key landmarks and areas within the Melbourne CBD. This came free after we purchased GOC and the Penguin Parade tour and thank heavens it is... I'll tell you why i said that!<br /><br />But first up, pictures i took that was interesting enough to snap from the bus:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">How can this be interesting?</span> Come on... Its Louis Vuitton... 'nuff said.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT_EbW9n5fhQXT8AGtx-Qoa6nyeRIYxzBlLwDmeWuaMmm7KkyZr6b-zyJk-0AxVGvFwIMvi_hyphenhyphenQBlIYvnJzQpfYMZAxQ4vUefaapiAQibwCLXau16ApSbkxMv0SelJX5Jv7ycaWOoBxKM/s1600-h/P5230213.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT_EbW9n5fhQXT8AGtx-Qoa6nyeRIYxzBlLwDmeWuaMmm7KkyZr6b-zyJk-0AxVGvFwIMvi_hyphenhyphenQBlIYvnJzQpfYMZAxQ4vUefaapiAQibwCLXau16ApSbkxMv0SelJX5Jv7ycaWOoBxKM/s400/P5230213.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390129681280172370" border="0" /></a>And a neo-gothic Church<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlSiZf5a-nd1A_6z67Wwqd12mI9mEin2oo9KBgHyF1IGNaUqXqdRn7KT3-jHwIQTLJH6BMW5v-6Af3wBv_m3is3Gid9Dj8bTj2YE7PMeEoRcG0H0kXyqi84FJOmeedtLvSOYUV_KXk2TE/s1600-h/P5230217.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlSiZf5a-nd1A_6z67Wwqd12mI9mEin2oo9KBgHyF1IGNaUqXqdRn7KT3-jHwIQTLJH6BMW5v-6Af3wBv_m3is3Gid9Dj8bTj2YE7PMeEoRcG0H0kXyqi84FJOmeedtLvSOYUV_KXk2TE/s400/P5230217.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390129913277632898" border="0" /></a>I'm guessing that at least a good 90% of those who was on the City Tour got them for free. But for those who paid a whopping US$60 for the 3hrs 45 mins tour - God Bless You :) You have done Melbourne tour companies proud because it was probably not worth the time nor the money spent :) But, yes, you get to see places you don't think you'll go on your own anyway! So................<br /><br />Some of the places they'll take you on the tour include <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Federation Square</span> (Hint: You board the bus from Fed-Square), <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Queen Victoria Market</span> (lovely little paradise), <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Chinatown</span> (every city has one... whaddaya see, Chinese!), <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Flinders Station</span> (famed train station next to Fed Square), <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Arts & Cultural Centre</span> (across the bridge from Flinders Stn), <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Ro</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">yal Botanic Gardens</span> etc.<br /><br />Demonstrators at Fitzroy Gardens promoting their cause. We have this back home too.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO9vzBL9McjDbDk-yfwO0yYmSjmCNlYNyyibazPDRP7hqsWOVwYGidx39I5BtH1RJjKktTSofmA8YIs9Fjvxt-67LlG4UCh9jHPDbzxBP3JsMXO04d3Snngwjw_7kDLbNEgmDtOE_1hPE/s1600-h/Meebops+431.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO9vzBL9McjDbDk-yfwO0yYmSjmCNlYNyyibazPDRP7hqsWOVwYGidx39I5BtH1RJjKktTSofmA8YIs9Fjvxt-67LlG4UCh9jHPDbzxBP3JsMXO04d3Snngwjw_7kDLbNEgmDtOE_1hPE/s400/Meebops+431.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390136401574189826" border="0" /></a>The Epoch Times. Hate the word, Epoch, by the way... Don't know why.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPmBhpjQlpzhG-L7EcAbFOzEvjnEKyEF0JqjMSVBpfrHBRoWpv9YphfMn1I_OPoGJEykD9rfwOa4rLt9U6pZNGYoYLjxvETvkE7r5g7cbXz48lxNcKBtURXCF68zuLwM-WLKPbLcGTidE/s1600-h/Meebops+433.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPmBhpjQlpzhG-L7EcAbFOzEvjnEKyEF0JqjMSVBpfrHBRoWpv9YphfMn1I_OPoGJEykD9rfwOa4rLt9U6pZNGYoYLjxvETvkE7r5g7cbXz48lxNcKBtURXCF68zuLwM-WLKPbLcGTidE/s400/Meebops+433.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390136408172828786" border="0" /></a>I guess the only place that i truly enjoyed during the tour was the visit to the Botanic Gardens. Cubbies love gardens and parks - walking, pouncing, pawwing, relaxing, stretching and playing with dried autumn leaves... that's the only treat of the tour :)<br /><br />And that... That's Meebops' feet :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqfnqhCbK97hnpBYwkaxVVQWR1OE9hmS_VDd-0j3-wuLhOBLO_eh3nY1x8xWKnNB5OjsWER-r0I47gSASuNyxtCKLLYPXcE8sWAxtwZ5_QAEIF3oUhf6gPD2_MS6BLwtDHFrolF1lsDd0/s1600-h/Meebops+463.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqfnqhCbK97hnpBYwkaxVVQWR1OE9hmS_VDd-0j3-wuLhOBLO_eh3nY1x8xWKnNB5OjsWER-r0I47gSASuNyxtCKLLYPXcE8sWAxtwZ5_QAEIF3oUhf6gPD2_MS6BLwtDHFrolF1lsDd0/s400/Meebops+463.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390472111612651186" border="0" /></a>I personally think the quality of life of children in Australia is so much better than its Asian neighbours... that's just my point of view, being a kid meself... haha! Asian parents are, sad to say, too uptight, very demanding and hard on their kids sometimes, especially when it comes to grades.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFl6gNQes67rmjxJEZ-Iwo8ebXrkPJXjM6TYecOKcuGrsWsJSRkcS4R0F6O8xi6fgepm9k-8E-CcR8uBQc3NPCyq_nKDvxLzConlMq5yVPfR1xYPDJuzMGQ9EZgoFAtNN-ojhCtgx6CtQ/s1600-h/Meebops+465.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFl6gNQes67rmjxJEZ-Iwo8ebXrkPJXjM6TYecOKcuGrsWsJSRkcS4R0F6O8xi6fgepm9k-8E-CcR8uBQc3NPCyq_nKDvxLzConlMq5yVPfR1xYPDJuzMGQ9EZgoFAtNN-ojhCtgx6CtQ/s400/Meebops+465.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390472138554068450" border="0" /></a>More beautiful tree-lined parks such as this one at Fitzroy Gardens. Makes for a nice walk on Sunday morning or early evenings.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCg0WRWNjpLyo7AwRs5Q3hjfbPjx79HYFH32UigxKg_S-7He2W_Fs3_FJvWi85krJ9Xdp2MkFfr8x8RasoN9U0ge8O7lKrwqirtC3ybhS3WA93erEz1ulUKdf3pj7V0Lgrl_rHtaflhyphenhyphens/s1600-h/Meebops+430.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCg0WRWNjpLyo7AwRs5Q3hjfbPjx79HYFH32UigxKg_S-7He2W_Fs3_FJvWi85krJ9Xdp2MkFfr8x8RasoN9U0ge8O7lKrwqirtC3ybhS3WA93erEz1ulUKdf3pj7V0Lgrl_rHtaflhyphenhyphens/s400/Meebops+430.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396766048331859986" border="0" /></a>OK so you've heard... Cubbies didn't thoroughly enjoyed her free tour (even though she likes free stuff) and slept for the entire 3 hours journey on the bus, waking up only to pee. Besides, the commentating by the domineering "cat-woman" tour guide sucked anyway. Her monotonous yakkating and all that fake smiling and hostility - uurgh! Either that or she's simply edgy, like she's trying to quit smoking or something. So... Cubbies didn't tip her! Hmph!<br /><br />They also promised a souvenir at the end of the tour, but we didn't get any (maybe because its free?).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">TIP!</span> For those discerning travellers who probably thought that the money could be better spent buying souvenirs for loved ones at home - YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT! If it comes free, what the heck, hop on the bus, pay attention for the next 3 hours and then go do whatever you need to do. But do not fork out US$60 for it. Cry tears of regret if you do. Unless, of course, you have loads of moolas to spend :)<br /><br />After the tour ended, we went back to the hostel and checked out. Not before we had lunch first! We cooked some dinner the night before - made use of the free rice and pasta every day and finished some wrap / fish we bought couple of days back. The thing about moving place to place is that you don't quite get to "mark your territory" as often as you'd like. So TTT had to clear out the food before we left the hostel. Things we can reuse, we take them to St. Kilda; things we can't like leftover bread, hummus, we left it on the shelf so others can use them before it expires (you'll be surprised at the speed of which these perishables... perish!).<br /><br />Urban Central's kitchen.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfNR-CdovxAe4TqC2TU7A4y1-M-g8ddoZSR9ww18SQhkXODmiZBwQlJfbeODDKv8qq2MZDFfb6SWM931mDOQRu_AnXJ-ecgbMVVAwatgoIEjRV5Y8La5Qs0IIUzJUPicW7LvKvWn1bK6M/s1600-h/Meebops+480.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfNR-CdovxAe4TqC2TU7A4y1-M-g8ddoZSR9ww18SQhkXODmiZBwQlJfbeODDKv8qq2MZDFfb6SWM931mDOQRu_AnXJ-ecgbMVVAwatgoIEjRV5Y8La5Qs0IIUzJUPicW7LvKvWn1bK6M/s400/Meebops+480.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396786245388125746" border="0" /></a>The fried fish wrapplicious i made *curtsies curtsies*<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOBvNyImX2IDUlkHyu8LZo7IkrWf-Yg42A22PKyqmE6z9Rr1lAmt7b7aoMflGoTz-O6UbZDkNnXf9-bF0i8qOA-4uFEA7GM769gEEBndNYdwFcTWsjK37PNhkB6Kk12bYJawfyhePfNDc/s1600-h/Meebops+482.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOBvNyImX2IDUlkHyu8LZo7IkrWf-Yg42A22PKyqmE6z9Rr1lAmt7b7aoMflGoTz-O6UbZDkNnXf9-bF0i8qOA-4uFEA7GM769gEEBndNYdwFcTWsjK37PNhkB6Kk12bYJawfyhePfNDc/s400/Meebops+482.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396786270471201314" border="0" /></a>And a tad too dry pasta Arrabiata.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhccpMdrPDO8iVhXb8sxRJO5ZpkMsZjlgl8UoH7xEDXkUv7K65mKhpEgFpYsLLgQ6k0GzqYy-Fvf7Pg1tW-L9nE7289MdaLdXvBYEcCLIsr7vE149RhGa8zZCepWnRoCR3fW_n1apX8UqI/s1600-h/Meebops+481.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhccpMdrPDO8iVhXb8sxRJO5ZpkMsZjlgl8UoH7xEDXkUv7K65mKhpEgFpYsLLgQ6k0GzqYy-Fvf7Pg1tW-L9nE7289MdaLdXvBYEcCLIsr7vE149RhGa8zZCepWnRoCR3fW_n1apX8UqI/s400/Meebops+481.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396786258152885714" border="0" /></a>Meebops didn't take these very well (appeared very blurry) but you get the picture :) Meebops also didn't like my pasta nor my wraps - but hey, beggars can't be choosers. She is a bloody picky eater too :)<br /><br />Then it was BUH-BYE Urban Central!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaxjHTYh4lKZ0WMTAbfbiZia_xRhQ8WsbwvzTSv68rnm4w1exNrU1kNf86B65zwZ29ySWEXSP_Gm1zW9CpD-qsI8ByKnPfwXYl0ha1F10VFuPgp8w-WfjpdMiiKsqES_4prItZrveWsso/s1600-h/Meebops+484.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaxjHTYh4lKZ0WMTAbfbiZia_xRhQ8WsbwvzTSv68rnm4w1exNrU1kNf86B65zwZ29ySWEXSP_Gm1zW9CpD-qsI8ByKnPfwXYl0ha1F10VFuPgp8w-WfjpdMiiKsqES_4prItZrveWsso/s400/Meebops+484.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396787151261946226" border="0" /></a>St. Kilda is 6km away from the City Centre and takes 2 tram change before you arrive at the heart of it all. All in all, from where we boarded the tram, it took us approx. 10 mins and VOILA!<br /><br />We stayed at the St. Kilda's X-Base hostel - which is a nifty little establishment - clean, very very small (toilet door hits the side of the bed when open it!) but funky little crowd. Not as warm and diverse as you'd get from UC but good enough for a night or two. Here are some pictures of the interior:<br /><br />A club that runs from god knows when till god knows when. Especially crowded on weekend nights.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Y-Zx1lQSrMxWa6uXw5G2aHs424abT5IFPtGmGejepeCw73-9Nz_v_AJfUNBAdp1tWcFk6Ba3qRjfTpElETKg09R2BZp08P-r5f5QoT11Q82Klj5zMsxu3CEaEsFkoywNOvabzveVyHs/s1600-h/Meebops+487.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Y-Zx1lQSrMxWa6uXw5G2aHs424abT5IFPtGmGejepeCw73-9Nz_v_AJfUNBAdp1tWcFk6Ba3qRjfTpElETKg09R2BZp08P-r5f5QoT11Q82Klj5zMsxu3CEaEsFkoywNOvabzveVyHs/s400/Meebops+487.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396788891498325890" border="0" /></a>Communal area - good for merry making and reading.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirH55eEflqGQ-JPIB9hFW5SnO82yABOL-4wJ6sJjhu6A1-vw_gpiH6cwjM1o-GUagxmOzb-b2YI5jpNCk3kNdFcJfpIVx8hkYDswuJss1oRHTT7490Vv6NcPSB9cMOdM7AKOYFhLjY_Qo/s1600-h/Meebops+488.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirH55eEflqGQ-JPIB9hFW5SnO82yABOL-4wJ6sJjhu6A1-vw_gpiH6cwjM1o-GUagxmOzb-b2YI5jpNCk3kNdFcJfpIVx8hkYDswuJss1oRHTT7490Vv6NcPSB9cMOdM7AKOYFhLjY_Qo/s400/Meebops+488.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396788898096199314" border="0" /></a>After a few hours of resting our tired little paws, we were out exploring the town area.<br /><br />Our first impression of St. Kilda??? A quaint haven, cosmetic town that is akin to all beach town the world over. Cosy little streets punctuated with palm trees, background music courtesy of street buskers, children, lollipops, cakes, fairground and to top it all off, tourists amidst the small eccentric <span style="visibility: visible;" id="main"><span style="visibility: visible;" id="search"><em></em></span></span>crowd.<br /><br />That's the beach town of St. Kilda. Main attraction - The Beach!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41kM6aoJ0EvW-op5JuYWvdD8DUk6w4c8ppOub0fIqM_G1yT-SBffDCQG2iNtnyQaZO9ooRAVivmoJSvylqOYP9c-oLyGIYMucpwq4E5jaV2eNR-K_Lujpt25eRpFSWsBrecQb-byG6oA/s1600-h/Meebops+563.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41kM6aoJ0EvW-op5JuYWvdD8DUk6w4c8ppOub0fIqM_G1yT-SBffDCQG2iNtnyQaZO9ooRAVivmoJSvylqOYP9c-oLyGIYMucpwq4E5jaV2eNR-K_Lujpt25eRpFSWsBrecQb-byG6oA/s400/Meebops+563.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396805927931529570" border="0" /></a>Quaint shop houses lined the streets of St. Kilda's Acland Street.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpV9rUh061Ng9y2uEt0w8g27GabVdHYRNEvo-OOQu1hDeL-7rRvY-o8dnjrU8Pmdd__7YPtj3hZiTNK-l7AUo0Ftjf3gCBuQCOWbGO8gR7DqM8Ah7ne7kD7d4Pa-ughswGjZuvjPbKfYg/s1600-h/Meebops+493.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpV9rUh061Ng9y2uEt0w8g27GabVdHYRNEvo-OOQu1hDeL-7rRvY-o8dnjrU8Pmdd__7YPtj3hZiTNK-l7AUo0Ftjf3gCBuQCOWbGO8gR7DqM8Ah7ne7kD7d4Pa-ughswGjZuvjPbKfYg/s400/Meebops+493.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396793846068147874" border="0" /></a>Eccentric much? Harley enthusiast showcased their pride on the littered pavements - making it quite difficult for passer-bys to pass through.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhay380mQ13h9cMG-AU3YXpB3d4JSZWSPY3FzEQ0gLLWLLVn9g1paI2tQWi-zaP_bcs4DxfDLwYmFdvYR_1DIa5ZNidzmbR9boHlg8wBJvpeLk78Gl1WnIWm6tsZypHYVcyWnQ-JXAXUBA/s1600-h/Meebops+491.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhay380mQ13h9cMG-AU3YXpB3d4JSZWSPY3FzEQ0gLLWLLVn9g1paI2tQWi-zaP_bcs4DxfDLwYmFdvYR_1DIa5ZNidzmbR9boHlg8wBJvpeLk78Gl1WnIWm6tsZypHYVcyWnQ-JXAXUBA/s400/Meebops+491.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396793838002694962" border="0" /></a>The reason why all people should be in St. Kilda - honest to goodness cakes.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_E4n4CNq5DNbFRbAnvTYYbAicoNxeromgj3vwRYGGLFyyTiU8haxBXJPba2MFhNeFlCB9PUqLCBlXUS0Ar6rKg-592SmAqNfgAyUCsRHYJlYDO1Agy2SsaBe7OwMSWsJSZ3Pb9OOcPoA/s1600-h/Meebops+494.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_E4n4CNq5DNbFRbAnvTYYbAicoNxeromgj3vwRYGGLFyyTiU8haxBXJPba2MFhNeFlCB9PUqLCBlXUS0Ar6rKg-592SmAqNfgAyUCsRHYJlYDO1Agy2SsaBe7OwMSWsJSZ3Pb9OOcPoA/s400/Meebops+494.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396791212462049810" border="0" /></a>Lots and lots of them!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjna2b7CXIwsuureY-CYyNEnSoEWvsnIuRgSqANKkjUxdZul9Vh-dws_089KSGSkDlq5hYgRK6_evwtsIoYdSqMqtGARp9KO17htu4EgGSpT-YQ43ODpl35muB2zuayL8Oj_JL2OjMqBkc/s1600-h/Meebops+497.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjna2b7CXIwsuureY-CYyNEnSoEWvsnIuRgSqANKkjUxdZul9Vh-dws_089KSGSkDlq5hYgRK6_evwtsIoYdSqMqtGARp9KO17htu4EgGSpT-YQ43ODpl35muB2zuayL8Oj_JL2OjMqBkc/s400/Meebops+497.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396791229107152546" border="0" /></a><span>What we had that evening, together with a nice hot cup of latte... </span><span>Cubbies had a knack for double-layered cream Blackforest cake - a classic birthday cake number. Meebops said maybe i didn't have enough birthdays as a baby. <span style="font-style: italic;">Whatever... *rolls eyes*</span></span><span> </span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQZpKx8wCpSQHmHGw5FHmh0_kaYVijr1wTG9QZfa1FkNNpC22k9hPzYBYeaBsktDZLJyKSYZIooZjTOEH1tyxK67qRo5C7ehUcnzkCiNoiDbJF-Yy1kiBBkasDFt00tb-ixttTITGFDoE/s1600-h/Meebops+505.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQZpKx8wCpSQHmHGw5FHmh0_kaYVijr1wTG9QZfa1FkNNpC22k9hPzYBYeaBsktDZLJyKSYZIooZjTOEH1tyxK67qRo5C7ehUcnzkCiNoiDbJF-Yy1kiBBkasDFt00tb-ixttTITGFDoE/s400/Meebops+505.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396795378731529170" border="0" /></a>Meebops had the super-sweet Turkish pistachio halwa.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiasiAgiCHzgBXGrsUczr0F6uYlur97-DTg41-nUq_16UBNbJeGXUZDHZ3qWVU4HKIsde4AezXUpTJsnHWCX8HxUbNGKattIW8q6QnpcmunakCMVPf4p4icsJzeZhSo7ezfmJ4RvUsZaCc/s1600-h/Meebops+506.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiasiAgiCHzgBXGrsUczr0F6uYlur97-DTg41-nUq_16UBNbJeGXUZDHZ3qWVU4HKIsde4AezXUpTJsnHWCX8HxUbNGKattIW8q6QnpcmunakCMVPf4p4icsJzeZhSo7ezfmJ4RvUsZaCc/s400/Meebops+506.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396795380571880434" border="0" /></a>And a blueberry pie - which was simply kick-a** gorgeous.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvj3cE-daSRVfnUgTT_l_A6ecbiEVqefJc3eSAJhfPnhxSbRMXhXLy2F5zzpZ4QiDR7Q0YyKlZU31BuB3N5Puj8vSMMUzZwAvCse4XlSRgc6v8YRSxNfCGKccgHj8y_YJytTmbyKXKr0/s1600-h/Meebops+507.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvj3cE-daSRVfnUgTT_l_A6ecbiEVqefJc3eSAJhfPnhxSbRMXhXLy2F5zzpZ4QiDR7Q0YyKlZU31BuB3N5Puj8vSMMUzZwAvCse4XlSRgc6v8YRSxNfCGKccgHj8y_YJytTmbyKXKr0/s400/Meebops+507.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396795390274248514" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Incident No. 2:</span> Both Meebops and i were quietly enjoying our deserved cup of hot lattes and a big lip smackin' slice everything above, while we people-watch along Acland Street on that lazy Saturday evening. Seated right next to our table was an odd, old and unkempt couple who were almost too pitiful to look at (Cubbies has a soft spot for very old people :( by the way). Husband was reeking of alcohol; probably a drunkard since that's all he smelled like. Wife was just pitiful looking :(<br /><br />Anyway, after a glass of wine each, they both wanted to move off. Hubby who was a little stronger stood and moved off first. Wife, who was definitely very very tipsy and who has a major case of arthritis going on, with painful bony parts of her arms and and legs sticking out, stood up wobbily and PLOP to her back, down to the floor, with her head hitting the concrete curb! It was a pretty hard fall for an old lady and she MUST'VE HURT REALLY BAD but thankfully she wasn't bleeding or anything. Cubbies went rushing to her feet (like how Mighty Mouse would've donw it) and helped her up. Haizz.. It broke Cubbies' little heart to see such things happening to what was once probably a strong beautiful woman in her heydays :( So Cubbies asked if she was OK - she nodded. Then came 2 other Italian-Australian ladies who spoke to her, called the ambulance and everything and stayed till the Ambulance is in sight. TTT stayed too till everything was under control.<br /><br />Oooh... whatever happened to the husband you asked? He went away, disappeared. At some point he realised wife was missing, saw the commotion, walked past the old lady and pretended like he didn't know her. Yes, he's an a**. But what good can you expect from someone who care more about where he can get the next booze?<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">You think that was some sort of bizarre behaviour?</span> That is equally the attraction on Acland Street! So when you're there, pick a spot, order a steamy cup of your favourite brew, a nice big slice of heaven (i mean, cake...) and people-watch - you won't be disappointed! :)<br /><br />The rest of the evening was spent buying snacks and light breakfast from Woolsworth supermarket. We were just outside the iconic Luna Park when it was closing for the day at 6pm. Then we strolled along the beach, sitting, chatting and gazing at lovers smooching under the starless night sky... it was love. Love for life :)<br /><br />That night we cooked up a storm, God knows why. There were fried noodles (which Meebops cooked), eggs, excellent frozen spinach, and some nasty canned peas, plus, calamaris. It was a buffet! One guy commented: <span style="font-style: italic;">"I'm impressed by your cooking..."</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnUG8b7-3vlW7EgjNyLmhEVjmlwGJFe2WLTWfvZUPorSzEw8zYAEsukBehm03LbIX9JypAYEM0VHE2lBcLkg-mypirZNTMY8i6OVS1SYbOxWX3t4wz6IBwmcoKWJDcyPSim52XzF7svxM/s1600-h/Meebops+542.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnUG8b7-3vlW7EgjNyLmhEVjmlwGJFe2WLTWfvZUPorSzEw8zYAEsukBehm03LbIX9JypAYEM0VHE2lBcLkg-mypirZNTMY8i6OVS1SYbOxWX3t4wz6IBwmcoKWJDcyPSim52XzF7svxM/s400/Meebops+542.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396801704990059362" border="0" /></a>OK i just have to show off my plate and the way i like me eggs...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbrcA1p26ANNaWHhZiaavzIcvH07YqgMFOMVY-nlU4wB0h54l-Nb7wh6AXti_IEskzDepf4UzxngxS7lKAsogcCGmBi8FoF8dLosCdgn63wbvd5mCJUBraIceYNGEGn-yM-opgd7e-u5w/s1600-h/Meebops+547.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbrcA1p26ANNaWHhZiaavzIcvH07YqgMFOMVY-nlU4wB0h54l-Nb7wh6AXti_IEskzDepf4UzxngxS7lKAsogcCGmBi8FoF8dLosCdgn63wbvd5mCJUBraIceYNGEGn-yM-opgd7e-u5w/s400/Meebops+547.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396803079798099090" border="0" /></a>We woke up late the next morning, had some cup-a-soup and bread breakfast and walked around the Upper and Lower Esplanade areas - all the way to the beach jetty. Entrance to Luna Park is free but rides are pay per entry. They had some Corporate event going on that Sunday so the rides are totally out. Besides, we're not crazy about thrill rides either.. heh heh heh..<br /><br />So here are more pictures of St. Kilda...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpqHwje2t4-_6ereaSD8reOWTmx07Up2vTa6F24wsb8d50Osu6UVxu83zHWWO4Z1REtM2TUpVosfwvZIaYnFDDSeCnDTv8NJWldCzxJ1yTlu0DAzD5ZxR0M7wvDOBvGf-MGvMuuucz-Jo/s1600-h/P5240269.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpqHwje2t4-_6ereaSD8reOWTmx07Up2vTa6F24wsb8d50Osu6UVxu83zHWWO4Z1REtM2TUpVosfwvZIaYnFDDSeCnDTv8NJWldCzxJ1yTlu0DAzD5ZxR0M7wvDOBvGf-MGvMuuucz-Jo/s400/P5240269.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396805954655778306" border="0" /></a>Boats and yachts littered the sea front... With a view like this, what more can you ask for? Tsk...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFPcbEXYp_MxHX6cBoRkPIZpaKRfCuri-hppgjGt5WBw_RvUJm_SGrCaEuhjyNBYpUabZziNCzX387tcg3TsjuALlcwX-RDGB9fo-w_tu9N4h1I6yskxkTDUXJbJrOoPgawRlF5e3DpKU/s1600-h/Meebops+590.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFPcbEXYp_MxHX6cBoRkPIZpaKRfCuri-hppgjGt5WBw_RvUJm_SGrCaEuhjyNBYpUabZziNCzX387tcg3TsjuALlcwX-RDGB9fo-w_tu9N4h1I6yskxkTDUXJbJrOoPgawRlF5e3DpKU/s400/Meebops+590.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396805936173009058" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmDmFrmWxHjJDQqZfVFLuQeg8KOnrHtH8oKraQxabGr35W4r92mNOa9p83dQFOjfg_S0Z-yI7rlHdH1ko3ilxI52YhhtXEB-KZ84xwS-PlW4Fhud2NzAkNzUuhSO8Az69aKZLO1CBaWhU/s1600-h/Meebops+601.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmDmFrmWxHjJDQqZfVFLuQeg8KOnrHtH8oKraQxabGr35W4r92mNOa9p83dQFOjfg_S0Z-yI7rlHdH1ko3ilxI52YhhtXEB-KZ84xwS-PlW4Fhud2NzAkNzUuhSO8Az69aKZLO1CBaWhU/s400/Meebops+601.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396805944699116114" border="0" /></a>Isn't this just stunning?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ4YaCzo7BFfZ-dnJTzxvEH_QLA3Ulyu97msk-ylBMpCp_4UN4tE6N2hwM1SEtjzmM6asH-GszMAdkEzS8U-XW3YpHByq9QV2yzgx92bD0bH7PmTzRdg7WaYZ5pX_L4C_JHirfc2RLjV4/s1600-h/P5240272.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ4YaCzo7BFfZ-dnJTzxvEH_QLA3Ulyu97msk-ylBMpCp_4UN4tE6N2hwM1SEtjzmM6asH-GszMAdkEzS8U-XW3YpHByq9QV2yzgx92bD0bH7PmTzRdg7WaYZ5pX_L4C_JHirfc2RLjV4/s400/P5240272.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396808072436599090" border="0" /></a>What i want to do when i grow up... Fish and bask in the chilly winds under the sun. Doze off and find yourself in Hawaii... <span style="font-size:180%;">why not.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjyN6AUe-ZFn4H5crI0gtDNvj7V5KbtGse2DlpfQkAVbR0UMLEEw5locSrANJZkhQqZ13RekayNCERWK4RMOMTECZxUWDHmT3ItKWVhDnqC2xzDC36hCyndn3_nRPMbrM64ag9BbUrxSg/s1600-h/Meebops+600.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjyN6AUe-ZFn4H5crI0gtDNvj7V5KbtGse2DlpfQkAVbR0UMLEEw5locSrANJZkhQqZ13RekayNCERWK4RMOMTECZxUWDHmT3ItKWVhDnqC2xzDC36hCyndn3_nRPMbrM64ag9BbUrxSg/s400/Meebops+600.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396805950139377426" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbnVDlgTg0K83ip1Tkw1DUUCIvynWprVNv2T36xZbYjyCm6WzlgSfGcUyq_VE_yAIPX2ulFAOlcSRLyN7Pm8dwu4yQw6AyQ-vp4xeNb8aELLdFXEw27ZjO9cMLkj5d7xjNQUzphRCX1D0/s1600-h/Meebops+625.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbnVDlgTg0K83ip1Tkw1DUUCIvynWprVNv2T36xZbYjyCm6WzlgSfGcUyq_VE_yAIPX2ulFAOlcSRLyN7Pm8dwu4yQw6AyQ-vp4xeNb8aELLdFXEw27ZjO9cMLkj5d7xjNQUzphRCX1D0/s400/Meebops+625.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396808094809805874" border="0" /></a>That's right, the iconic big-mouthed clown of Luna Park. Always laughing, always welcoming.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4orP-pxeczNRbcgi33HHGA4e_JhXXoEPQh49qXJb-gbbabDMyf4vRKmHFG77wpLzC4qyBuKQsXdyc9AQxsDhCeuKdpachYJOLTbV3HXdESN06XAySuPsxs0n5d-j63Gr4g3Ww98sbjY8/s1600-h/P5240278.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4orP-pxeczNRbcgi33HHGA4e_JhXXoEPQh49qXJb-gbbabDMyf4vRKmHFG77wpLzC4qyBuKQsXdyc9AQxsDhCeuKdpachYJOLTbV3HXdESN06XAySuPsxs0n5d-j63Gr4g3Ww98sbjY8/s400/P5240278.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396808083890369554" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM0OJS2lth6pAF4Gc4_aQnuJDI5zCymBQhGJNpHdLVF1AasFcX9_aGlXWT4RVI5eTLFTlGPpWbKhpSWN3t3b04xthwGZ9GOkWeJhUQZG2l8wCJKGVeMm-mn2wjqW_lZbH0LgjrbJ6VCaY/s1600-h/P5240280.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM0OJS2lth6pAF4Gc4_aQnuJDI5zCymBQhGJNpHdLVF1AasFcX9_aGlXWT4RVI5eTLFTlGPpWbKhpSWN3t3b04xthwGZ9GOkWeJhUQZG2l8wCJKGVeMm-mn2wjqW_lZbH0LgjrbJ6VCaY/s400/P5240280.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396808086007651602" border="0" /></a>After the long stroll, we headed for our last stop before moving back to Melbourne - Monarch Cake Shop who probably had its interior preserved in a bottle and presented in a time machine.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7trSceVGAz243ODH-k2UQdmuQdvYAzrC3YK1tuVDpC5E5b5ib61uOAKYeDl-SfvB-Xpm1NrEVimgNXSLhKIifGT9RCIB_Y1hVlRDv5zq3qIu4fpCjxLb_ExPmvI5XGjGY7CboOXPMFHo/s1600-h/Meebops+722.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7trSceVGAz243ODH-k2UQdmuQdvYAzrC3YK1tuVDpC5E5b5ib61uOAKYeDl-SfvB-Xpm1NrEVimgNXSLhKIifGT9RCIB_Y1hVlRDv5zq3qIu4fpCjxLb_ExPmvI5XGjGY7CboOXPMFHo/s400/Meebops+722.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396812387602037554" border="0" /></a>And i'm talking antiques people. They even kept the original cash register alive and running <span style="font-style: italic;">ka-ching ka-ching</span>!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATqB_rdM_5xG0EfM4tq7_1W4uYEoJQIza3mcbDHE7WERhzog2c0svrqdyka4F-HI99b4F2BUBYb_8Xde8uBGa3mHM1snYEa9GvjnGjI3MEOG1WwTBvUN6dtePujWipfvQWgwGu33D8_Y/s1600-h/Meebops+723.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATqB_rdM_5xG0EfM4tq7_1W4uYEoJQIza3mcbDHE7WERhzog2c0svrqdyka4F-HI99b4F2BUBYb_8Xde8uBGa3mHM1snYEa9GvjnGjI3MEOG1WwTBvUN6dtePujWipfvQWgwGu33D8_Y/s400/Meebops+723.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396812390875875522" border="0" /></a><br />Their house speciality - the MUST TRY KUGELHOPF. Can't miss this one folks, its a must-have. I'm drooling just thinking about it. Its of Polish origins, it has chocolate fillings covered in savoury pastry... what more can you ask for? Real honest to goodness - no bull about it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGGyZSmFVGoaBq2ER943R_-xASfUkBMh7XDEl4AzqyQDRvTCdNjdBc6S4DzgsblyvgR0EueZw_po_REQDIzNQcDMvtzvbXnY22JzU96tLNIahS6P5pbXbcOPUdB1XV910hqIBDvn4KFhY/s1600-h/Meebops+725.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGGyZSmFVGoaBq2ER943R_-xASfUkBMh7XDEl4AzqyQDRvTCdNjdBc6S4DzgsblyvgR0EueZw_po_REQDIzNQcDMvtzvbXnY22JzU96tLNIahS6P5pbXbcOPUdB1XV910hqIBDvn4KFhY/s400/Meebops+725.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396812397716363570" border="0" /></a>So that was it! St. Kilda was a purrrfect weekend getaway for TTT - and a much needed one (after all the touring!).<br /><br />We packed our bags and checked out. Hopped on the tram and off to our next accommodation - Pensione Hotel on Spencer Street!<br /><br />Oh before we go off, i just have to put up this picture of 2 little girls riding on their skate-scooters along the beach - one enthusiastically paddled on and the other, confidently rode with her pink tutu on. Guess what happened next? The one in tutu hit a lamppost and fell. Cried ever so loudly. You know why? Cos she wasn't paying attention to what's coming up ahead! So be mindful of the future, cos if you're not prepared, that's when they getcha!!! Ha! Ha! :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOvgtAFoybu4OBeiYP1vz96II4aP1n939zZkI_SSaXfX2FujDCkxSC-dC5cPPMn8h9mGJopdaOD6DKu4_S2Yd31_YhogurBMSpiBq4E8b8qBfR7bd2nwEi0PfmvxAMDeYBnSOBSAAvDJ4/s1600-h/Meebops+698.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOvgtAFoybu4OBeiYP1vz96II4aP1n939zZkI_SSaXfX2FujDCkxSC-dC5cPPMn8h9mGJopdaOD6DKu4_S2Yd31_YhogurBMSpiBq4E8b8qBfR7bd2nwEi0PfmvxAMDeYBnSOBSAAvDJ4/s400/Meebops+698.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396808105722530546" border="0" /></a>Till the next post: <span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" >Day 6 & 7 - Puffing Billy, Petting Zoos and Wake Up! Its The Fire Alarm!</span><br /><br /></div><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-77194220204302004172009-10-06T13:11:00.001+08:002009-10-06T13:11:39.997+08:00The Daily SHOOT! - Prague, Czech Republic<div style="text-align: left; padding: 3px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2141231516/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2274/2141231516_654735fb88.jpg" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" alt="" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2141231516/">A Street in Prague, Czech Republic</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/thetravellingteddies/">tgtwb</a>.</span></div><p>Yup... Just a street in downtown Prague, Czech Republic. <br /><br />I love how the streets in Europe are all perfectly lined and linear. Although most of the cities in Europe looked like they are cut out from cookie cutters, they're really beautiful and a perfect vacation spot for LOVERS and married couples alike. <br /><br />Lovers and married but still head-over-heels in love couple :)</p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-50297953632610330272009-10-05T12:36:00.002+08:002009-10-06T12:33:41.077+08:00Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne! - PART 3<strong>Grrrowl!!!</strong><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Oh yes, i'm baaack with our new post on Melbourne the Great Victorian City! :) This time with accompanying animals.</div><div align="justify"> </div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">DAY 3 - Sleep-In Day and My God, Aren't Those Tiny Penguins Bloody Exhibitionists?!!</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;"></span> </div><br /><div align="justify">Well well... So the Penguin Parade gig starts only from midday, so after the GOC (and all the walking and climbing and my little pink paws hurting), we were thankful that we get a little more rest before our next tour. Though we usually do not follow schedules and tour timings very well (we're really, travellers who prefer our own self-made itinerary...) we were thankful that we get a little more rest before our next tour. We slept like there was no tomorrow and woke up only at 11am. Talk about getting knocked out! :)</div><br /><div align="justify"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">The REAL Penguin Parade tour starts only at 7pm, so the day time was spent visiting Phillip Island itself. But before that, we created a ruckus in the kitchen at Urban Central. No actually, we just made lunch! :) Some unidentifiable wrap that has some salad and whole fried breaded fish thing. Meebops refused to eat it. <em>"The problem isn't in the wrap or the fish... It was the lack of ingredients!!!"</em> Cubbies said.<br /></div><div align="justify"> </div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Anyway, driving out of the city centre at midday is less than desirable for me especially when the sun is at its peak and even if you "blasted" the air full - the sun will still give you its shining glory. Meebops is better at such things because she's more "heat" tolerant. Too much heat will cause me to develop red little patches (Meebops said its "nappy rash") and my furs won't glow. You know, we're really starting to think that we're probably from different species of bears? Like i'm very much white fluffy Polar ones or light fluffy Panda ones... and Meebops is more the grizzly or black brown-zoon type? Mwahahaha!! :P</div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Anyway, Melbourne has the strangest weather changes in the history of us travelling from country to country - see, it will get very very cold early in the morning, fog and all; then by about 11ish or so, it starts to get really shiny, still cold but the sun shines... It can change from hot to cold anytime during the day, but by evening, it gets even less cooler (yes! its the warmest at night!) but of course it can also change from warm to cold to warm again at any time. So as they say, Melbournians always dress prepared! :)<br /></div><p style="text-align: justify;">Moving along, the tour on Day 3 was very interesting i must say, cos we visited the nature park, the conservation centre, saw rocky sections of the ocean with a cute name - all to build up the anticipation of the main attraction, which was the little penguins.</p>So enough talking - more sightseeing. Here goes:<br /><p style="text-align: justify;">What did i tell you about the sun? Me don't likey.</p><p align="justify"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheaaDgJtddQsEWginUtsrb2COuOLj5Su7LK6hgdbfdJ0aK86CEKKk0RQlQAhG5bwULyyKmb_OGDvZnAJxgOc3UKtXidipRctVlBmQk2PdiqDFfT8XWbWGiT-7bu9_CEjxkUge4RmiwTVY/s1600-h/Meebops+316.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheaaDgJtddQsEWginUtsrb2COuOLj5Su7LK6hgdbfdJ0aK86CEKKk0RQlQAhG5bwULyyKmb_OGDvZnAJxgOc3UKtXidipRctVlBmQk2PdiqDFfT8XWbWGiT-7bu9_CEjxkUge4RmiwTVY/s400/Meebops+316.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388937684553043810" border="0" /></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">First stop was the Phillip Island Nature Park</span>, which is really down at Churchill Island.<br />Well this is what Churchill / Penguin Island looks like - stunning scenery isn't it? Oh... I can live here and watch this forever :)<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-xCAO4OIyVJRkPXTrYbAXi50Y3j40MFGpqRb2f8Nu-xL72YjezAmxivny9Wybx43wzlvyrRnAwNKBhUnHdeT3amzjJxy0OqARguEvozkw3XZ5GDy_djYL6mb_Hhm1ZAl3s_YgG_iuhCk/s1600-h/P5220192.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-xCAO4OIyVJRkPXTrYbAXi50Y3j40MFGpqRb2f8Nu-xL72YjezAmxivny9Wybx43wzlvyrRnAwNKBhUnHdeT3amzjJxy0OqARguEvozkw3XZ5GDy_djYL6mb_Hhm1ZAl3s_YgG_iuhCk/s400/P5220192.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388940902338257154" border="0" /></a>These are some of the baby animals down at the Nature Park - they're actually really friendly and tame, so you can touch them - which Cubbies did at a moment's notice!<br /><br />Ummm... that's Mr. Kangoo right there... I'm just saying, maybe its a "Mr", cos he looks kind of... masculine... you know... like... <strong>Gggrrr!!</strong><br /></div><p align="justify"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-VM-I2Vwa7-WO6piaDuxsGBW9qkw-lg9XKzTn4bliK_YSkVfC-VP45CqA7sVP6Mw5L5ohimBro1mTeLCdq4QTSJX0rIR_O32hIR8l1jqDIoL37nLq42QZKTCy8ezb90dyvozbK6LbUTw/s1600-h/P5220184.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-VM-I2Vwa7-WO6piaDuxsGBW9qkw-lg9XKzTn4bliK_YSkVfC-VP45CqA7sVP6Mw5L5ohimBro1mTeLCdq4QTSJX0rIR_O32hIR8l1jqDIoL37nLq42QZKTCy8ezb90dyvozbK6LbUTw/s400/P5220184.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388938118718547762" border="0" /></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;">Believe it or not, this was my first time touching a baby sheep!!! (ummm... so?) Ooooooooo it was fluffy, definitely very fluffy woolly... erm.. fluff. I wanted to take one home but Meebops, as usual, wouldn't allow me to. This was the sheep i stroked and played with (i literally did!). Oh very fluffy!<br /></div><p align="justify"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq-VQm3A-4DY2nZF1R8EFnMi_qQ3caf_MpJxyDw3bMcDinfNucw81U-q65hr14Q7mmIELDGVblERB0yFOMM0KZZbg_rt5_M2M0tJqJTfjVZ62jRG3UgOGzef0DafzyUEcYs7cvDs2reCo/s1600-h/P5220187.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq-VQm3A-4DY2nZF1R8EFnMi_qQ3caf_MpJxyDw3bMcDinfNucw81U-q65hr14Q7mmIELDGVblERB0yFOMM0KZZbg_rt5_M2M0tJqJTfjVZ62jRG3UgOGzef0DafzyUEcYs7cvDs2reCo/s400/P5220187.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388938367750945602" border="0" /></a></p>And here's another with the wool sweater, probably taken from his cousin.<br /><p align="justify"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0SmKK5zSc36ldWdcgnQzdbUIodaxMYM9gf3Mpx7XWwmubROoHJjs3tuCkkUC4JguII0heqTJkojZv3NPFkyoqdDh1oqlct1ePpBRjw26LMZLyUEIc_nME3TNgw9vOxrcLm2z3dQApNMw/s1600-h/P5220189.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0SmKK5zSc36ldWdcgnQzdbUIodaxMYM9gf3Mpx7XWwmubROoHJjs3tuCkkUC4JguII0heqTJkojZv3NPFkyoqdDh1oqlct1ePpBRjw26LMZLyUEIc_nME3TNgw9vOxrcLm2z3dQApNMw/s400/P5220189.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388938566138728114" border="0" /></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;">And here are even more photos of the Koala (you'll see a lot of these in the blog...) - the iconic world famous Australian Ambassador. These were taken at the Koala's Conservation Centre and what you do is take a stroll on the boardwalk and see them closer in their natural habitat - which is atop the Eucalyptus Tree, either eating, sleeping or painfully bored. Haha! Here's one dozing off:<br /></div><p align="justify"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmjiBYMtO-Vjo9KN4mAyPM8YvPf7skO3AQ0Zk-JFOS2hlc43_OliW6axWe0GF0K5XC8vTPJRXXBfyyVqwNIxgJ5Pf7KxRTA-l5l2I9AEKbB41N5WPKXyt8Kv8WbYkde9shRMuFh1Ulsx4/s1600-h/P5220200.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmjiBYMtO-Vjo9KN4mAyPM8YvPf7skO3AQ0Zk-JFOS2hlc43_OliW6axWe0GF0K5XC8vTPJRXXBfyyVqwNIxgJ5Pf7KxRTA-l5l2I9AEKbB41N5WPKXyt8Kv8WbYkde9shRMuFh1Ulsx4/s400/P5220200.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388938746698742674" border="0" /></a></p>There's one busy eating...<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Nyum Nyum Nyum... These leaves are Da Bom' i'm telling ya... "</span> So said the Koala... Taken from atop a tree at the Koala Conservation Centre - Phillip Island, Victoria <span style="font-size:85%;">(can't seem to upload it to Vimeo, so i'd have to use the Flickr! one..)</span><br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="400" height="300" data="http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=71377" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000"> <param name="flashvars" value="intl_lang=en-us&photo_secret=b63e9db6da&photo_id=3986363150"></param> <param name="movie" value="http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=71377"></param> <param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"></param> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=71377" bgcolor="#000000" allowfullscreen="true" flashvars="intl_lang=en-us&photo_secret=b63e9db6da&photo_id=3986363150" height="300" width="400"></embed></object><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">And the one looking painfully bored, <span style="font-style: italic;">"Sigh... Pathetic fools. They must think i'm Ooooo so cute! Bleargh... What am i to do with these bozos..."</span> :)<br /><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5bJJu4pF3-JtPP_zKdSVKuG8YYwiyqJwc-yDt0qTXeuFkmBZjS86x6cxT3Tnx7HIUAtUPX7evkTqGvsQkKZPZ69JTMjiJh2K4b8BPVQv6wTb5Ksk1QSoBM0p1zey5JFvxN-6PCWKTRdU/s1600-h/P5220208.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5bJJu4pF3-JtPP_zKdSVKuG8YYwiyqJwc-yDt0qTXeuFkmBZjS86x6cxT3Tnx7HIUAtUPX7evkTqGvsQkKZPZ69JTMjiJh2K4b8BPVQv6wTb5Ksk1QSoBM0p1zey5JFvxN-6PCWKTRdU/s400/P5220208.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388939007971928610" border="0" /></a>After the Koalas and the Kangoos and baby Sheep - we went off to lunch at the local winery (which Cubbies drank and<br /><br />Believe it or not we have no pictures of the tiny penguin parade!!! Why?! because were were not allowed to! No cameras no nothing... just eyes to witness. That is so that the penguins won't get so freaked out by the flash from those cameras and they will not want to swim back to shore. See the penguins do that on a daily basis - early morning, swim out to sea. At dusk, swim on back home to shores where homes are nestled in between the rockies and shrubs.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">TIP!</span> </strong>I gotta tell you though - do put on some seriously warm outfit and long pants if you're there at any season other than maybe, summer. While it is a really fascinating experience - what with watching untamed waves crashing in front of you and the sound of hungry seagulls searching for that last catch before heading home, and you, waiting patiently for the tiny wild creatures to return back to shore - it is still an open, unrestricted ocean - and it is COLD. Victoria has one of the coldest water temperature in all of Australia, possibly because it is within close proximity to chilly chilly Tasmania down South / South-West.<br /></div><br /><div align="justify"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">All i can say is that those penguins are a real charmer. They are not exotic or glamourous, rich and charismatic like the Emperors, and they're not exactly as small or tiny as you'd think (even though they are the World's Smallest "Little Penguins") - but they are one helluva exhibitionists! They waddle home out from the open ocean, to the rockies and mate (ooh yeah, mate) all night long (at least that's what cheeky Cubbies saw!!!). Who cares who's watching??!! They will mate their way back to their nests as you stroll along the boardwalk back to bus :) And in case you have no idea how these blubber pack mate, i've got a sample below ;)<br /></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Somebuddy's gettin' some lovin' tonight... heh!</span><br /><div align="justify"> </div><br /><div align="justify"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaXreTAJKbVbSbcDZ_I4HeH2Er51ESozppmFMgpMi2eyziZRUpJ4nqVYFoIWEDDAcJVYav3Hw5CQdKzdtCkKpHSK9463ikuNhALAR9I7bcaQC9atH6hXCbxn7v4EzRCIQ4n-W0DnxZzvI/s1600-h/3820608479_09d375491d_o.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaXreTAJKbVbSbcDZ_I4HeH2Er51ESozppmFMgpMi2eyziZRUpJ4nqVYFoIWEDDAcJVYav3Hw5CQdKzdtCkKpHSK9463ikuNhALAR9I7bcaQC9atH6hXCbxn7v4EzRCIQ4n-W0DnxZzvI/s400/3820608479_09d375491d_o.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388939774702843714" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:78%;">Picture of mating blubber was taken from <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mgsbird/3820608479/">mgsbird</a><br /></span></div></div><br />This is how the Phillip Island Little Penguins looked like... these shameless buggers :)<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTU31aMpCCbkZr4tG-GjcQV59hRvxvlIwgx3B90YgpASSAkpxnrvHq6uYOUoKpUMoUyUcgg-E7jxQjog1WL6mX7hyphenhyphenUbBL2qDwLY8eiJTZdoSjutvdor_5zp0T7NidzxZgSvt0b-2qmHb4/s1600-h/0,,6278011,00.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 350px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTU31aMpCCbkZr4tG-GjcQV59hRvxvlIwgx3B90YgpASSAkpxnrvHq6uYOUoKpUMoUyUcgg-E7jxQjog1WL6mX7hyphenhyphenUbBL2qDwLY8eiJTZdoSjutvdor_5zp0T7NidzxZgSvt0b-2qmHb4/s400/0,,6278011,00.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388950081947234610" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">Picture borrowed from <a href="http://www.duatravel.com/location/destination/phillip_island">here</a><br /></span></div><br /><div align="justify"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">And just before you drive off - duck under your car, <span style="font-weight: bold;">JUST IN CASE</span> you find one for the record!<br /></div><div align="justify"> </div><br /><div align="justify"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjJqTFLdmfAzor38OR2-mplWid3WVPdoa4unUO2pFxMNcGXLXD7kuxX7mif0rmZFOEZi2aEGuBkPLWGRZ7jOxgNE_bBbo7FIAFEkDsTH5XcIEPJbAqDL_tDlvboesAjde5Nzt4Wz6Oo0/s1600-h/Meebops+377.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjJqTFLdmfAzor38OR2-mplWid3WVPdoa4unUO2pFxMNcGXLXD7kuxX7mif0rmZFOEZi2aEGuBkPLWGRZ7jOxgNE_bBbo7FIAFEkDsTH5XcIEPJbAqDL_tDlvboesAjde5Nzt4Wz6Oo0/s400/Meebops+377.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388940108619412002" border="0" /></a></div><div align="justify"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Guess i'll have to cover<span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Day 4 & 5: Touring The City And Off To The Beach Town St. Kilda!</span> next.<br /><br />Sorry folks... it'll probably be at least, another 2 posts on Melbourne before i can move off to some other destinations. Don't get bored yet - because we aren't! And we still couldn't get enough of the charming city and Cubbies can't see why you should get bored with it! ;)<br /></div><div align="justify"> </div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;"><em>Cheers, mate!</em></span></div><div align="justify"><br /><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-8277752637657035332009-09-30T19:52:00.007+08:002009-10-02T09:32:56.762+08:00Cubbies Said: My Bestest And Worstest Vacation Ever Was...<div align="justify"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrr... oowl!!!</span><br /><br />I have yet to draft out even juicier details about our vunderful trip to Melbourne <span style="font-style: italic;">(including the false fire alarm at 3am) </span>but in the meantime, i need to keep the blog going in good momentum! Haha!<br /><br />So i thought i'd put up answers i gave to a humanoid who once asked Cubbies 3 of probably very common but FUN! questions. Everyone has an answer to this. Anyone and everyone who travels often has something to say! :) </div><div style="text-align: justify;" align="right"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">Best Vacation Ever!</span></span><br /><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">San Francisco, California</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Been to so many places and loved them all but i suppose the best vacation i had was to San Francisco, California - because that was where i met my bestest friend in the world who shares not only my passion for life, love and travel but who is bearishly smackin' good-lookin', like me! - now what can be better than that? *dreamy sigh* </span><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;" align="right"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></div><div align="right"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;" align="right"><span style="font-style: italic;">Putting that aside, its pretty easy for one to fall in love with San Francisco... Why? Because SF is a gorgeous "sea-town" where you get a perfect concoction of that bustling metropolitan kick, yet laced with an added touch of that snobbish Victorian feel and nostalgia... And if you take a drive out of the city centre, you get the hills and the greens! If you've been to SF and loved it, Cubbies can guarantee that you will love Melbourne - which according to my bearish taste, is the twin sister city :) Loved them both.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204); font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" >Worst Vacation Ever!</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:180%;" >Malacca City, Malaysia</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Strangely, i've never had a really really terrible vacation. OH! Except the most recent one where my family and i were on a weekend getaway to historic city of Malacca in Malaysia (which is just a 3 hour drive from where i live). We rented an MPV from a guy and his stupid vehicle broke down, the first night we were there, which left us stranded - missing school, work etc.<br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;" align="right"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;" align="right"><span style="font-style: italic;">I don't know why we decided to help out and send the car for repair on his behalf (stupid stupid stupid!). But, the car could not be repaired immediately so we were forced to stay another night until the owner drive over with a new car for us to get home. No refunds, nothing from the guy. I am still fuming mad that we had to fork out a lot of money for a supposedly budget vacation. It's just plain stupid.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Where Would I Rather Be Right Now? </span></span></span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:180%;" >Anywhere, really...</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Anywhere but home. I can find anything and everything i need, both to satisfy my wanderlust and my eternal quest for intrinsic satisfaction anywhere else on earth, but home. Home is stifling, too many demands, commitments, expectations... Life is more than that. Life is about living it, not slowly screwing it up!</span><br /><br />So thats what i said to the humanoids... But i suppose the best answer to sum all this up is to say, you know what, <span style="font-size:180%;">JUST PUT YOUR FEET UP</span> and <span style="font-size:100%;">ENJOY THE JOURNEY - the good, the bad, the ugly - IT IS AN EXPERIENCE THAT IS </span><span style="font-size:100%;">TO DIE FOR :)</span></div><div align="right"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><p><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px; display: block; height: 300px;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387227232851385954" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUzYBNNvzKEKerg0isbpoGyJ3Fiiy0gIsFGdv0yFS7mwuJ64pE9zKmLqWnSTFnmX4JEvmnawdYHpUKmvPWZKwQKwFfNJTuzQy-3kKdn3JP3NxG383cqFZGfzNIRWrJFHTyKrLt8FJqlCs/s400/3073406881_f87d56e3d2_b.jpg" border="0" /><span style="font-size:85%;">Better than being home anyways... BAH!!!</span><br /><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" border="0" /></a> </p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-75699747154247936782009-09-29T17:13:00.004+08:002009-09-29T17:47:19.852+08:00WELCOME! Our 1000th Visitor!<span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><br />Today marks <span style="font-weight: bold;">THE DAY </span>this blog welcomed its 1000th visitor!!! Yyyeah!<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">I know.. I know..</span> Its still a tiny little pathetic number, but when Meebops and I started this blog, we never thought it'd go beyond 50 readers, including friends and families.<br /><br />But we made it! We made it to a thousand friends on cyberspace *waves*<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-size:130%;">WATCH OUT... WE ARE GOING TO TAKE OVER THE UNIVERSE NEXT!!!<br /><br /></span>Mwahahaha!</span> :)<br /><br />Anyways, this is for the each and every 1000 visitor to our humble blogabode:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBZ5JDTdkni3q1TdhUe3lfV12pt7oPgZ6VqKBsrfC53Y4goPLo_ppTA2t7RigPBpMDIamHx60ppdDG-oIZPBebxwqRvVwY94UDUrsyP5-fv0TXLq5fmr4PAstk8UgT7ZBy2nt89X8O33c/s1600-h/Thank+You.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 452px; height: 219px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBZ5JDTdkni3q1TdhUe3lfV12pt7oPgZ6VqKBsrfC53Y4goPLo_ppTA2t7RigPBpMDIamHx60ppdDG-oIZPBebxwqRvVwY94UDUrsyP5-fv0TXLq5fmr4PAstk8UgT7ZBy2nt89X8O33c/s400/Thank+You.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386822365966700706" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-38129326626873008702009-09-25T14:27:00.012+08:002009-09-29T17:56:04.897+08:00So I'm BAAACK!!!<span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Festive period is OVER for me! And so Cubbies is back on the writing spree :) Soon, it will be the BACK TO SCHOOL season for us both.<br /><br />Do not intend to be talking much right now (besides, I'm secretly writing my next Melbourne post at work) but i thought this will be a nice post, POST-F1 fever.<br /><br />I know that the publicity for the F1 Race in SG was huge and I've had many business friends congratulating me (and my country) for the success of the second season of Formula-One Race. All is good and I'm glad everything went well - the concerts were great, the publicity was sensational (quoted: "Fabulous"), big names like Beyonce, No Doubt, will.i.am, Backstreet Boys (shivers shivers) puts SG on the world map, even though its just a small little red dot :)<br /><br />Just days prior to the race however, things were not so wonderful in the city, especially traffic. <span style="visibility: visible;" id="main"><span style="visibility: visible;" id="search"><em></em></span></span>Chock-full of people everywhere (this is on a daily basis in SG of course but worse prior to the race)... Not so wonderful for me as I was late to work every day (3 days before the race and 2 days after the race). Yes yes, i may appear whiny and complaining about something so temporary ... in any case, here are the photos to what I'm rambling about (quality not too great cos i snapped it from my mobile):<br /><br />We're talking REALLY CONGESTED roads. We were on the highway for at least an hour before we can get to the exit leading to the city.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqsxsEKcA3j-BnHktbPFlkgdFEhwpyCp8PRcg38vEsQdLqnqAzCGGS0A0O_gCzRO2TOqYBfmazanEXDAWcQQykPMEinVib01ddNdWHpmhbDrpVgaDbyWp8rnui7Mm12kDurjzgKfzpS6k/s1600-h/DSC00146.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqsxsEKcA3j-BnHktbPFlkgdFEhwpyCp8PRcg38vEsQdLqnqAzCGGS0A0O_gCzRO2TOqYBfmazanEXDAWcQQykPMEinVib01ddNdWHpmhbDrpVgaDbyWp8rnui7Mm12kDurjzgKfzpS6k/s400/DSC00146.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385297488659582706" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ahh yes... even in such congested roads, you need to pay the ERP - Electronic Road Pricing - Singapore's tactic to "punish", "spank" and "fine" you for owning a car and refusing to join the public transport committee :) Yup. Oh by the way, its supposed to "curb" congestion. Ok? Get that right...<br /></div><br />So thats $2.50 per entry. Into the city is another $3.00 or so.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIPgAuBLJkdb4sD5CAmPTfhRRztcOpDYXbMMQPW9EW0EEbARBfrEmXbYeQXO6mRv1dUYcFbHCb3X5t3XXEMLSOrTcpRolY61oLE0wJATJzyZ7GSogmF9S2GnojoODkx0iBre-U3t1ZWHo/s1600-h/DSC00148.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIPgAuBLJkdb4sD5CAmPTfhRRztcOpDYXbMMQPW9EW0EEbARBfrEmXbYeQXO6mRv1dUYcFbHCb3X5t3XXEMLSOrTcpRolY61oLE0wJATJzyZ7GSogmF9S2GnojoODkx0iBre-U3t1ZWHo/s400/DSC00148.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385297501793461298" border="0" /></a>Some pictures of the track in preparation - 1 day before Trial Friday.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOLPqnwzOe29hPUCoLiWx9QanrPXdOUdFCfIlo2FFrmFhXPDuLbbovN7YVudH_kagPsYucHUqhjcpc8FTAM6idIqQRDzhKluyXg3TlMAWB66KxpTJ14sDWexqeY_2drG2_edzxvFjZPdE/s1600-h/DSC00149.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOLPqnwzOe29hPUCoLiWx9QanrPXdOUdFCfIlo2FFrmFhXPDuLbbovN7YVudH_kagPsYucHUqhjcpc8FTAM6idIqQRDzhKluyXg3TlMAWB66KxpTJ14sDWexqeY_2drG2_edzxvFjZPdE/s400/DSC00149.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385297510068204562" border="0" /></a>See those green barricades covering "hot-spots" on the expressway? Its basically to deter errant cars / drivers from slowing down or stopping to watch the race (let me add, "for free" - which is what Singaporeans enjoy doing doing!). On race days, the traffic police are stationed along the highways.<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5QLqVHWvlcsVdPFmtwN66KkGtaj9IBzTwZj2pCdNZilLpbtjvsNmyLm2Xa4TedEMau0XujZBzJE2ohs9GzRdIDNm7gepNic03YZUdVlw76cqKZZUOHFOt0G8GsBi1tnZES9ZwLdLvZgE/s1600-h/DSC00150.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5QLqVHWvlcsVdPFmtwN66KkGtaj9IBzTwZj2pCdNZilLpbtjvsNmyLm2Xa4TedEMau0XujZBzJE2ohs9GzRdIDNm7gepNic03YZUdVlw76cqKZZUOHFOt0G8GsBi1tnZES9ZwLdLvZgE/s400/DSC00150.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385297514384188898" border="0" /></a>I just thought that its a selfish way to deter others from catching a glimpse of it "live" and without paying. The F1 Village, they call it, is totally inaccessible to non-paying public. The entire Marina area was cordoned off. Good in a way...<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Vb5XehthBDkTUu-MzfPYV7VpOvgIT0kSUOsOdfzRpifxua17parVj1wqU3ZalbJOMtOMEGourPAg3UnqA4rMhuFRInzj09iDkFxvEZJMa33jMyMNQzeJAhiKqf419Vnc7FsLqa0ls-E/s1600-h/DSC00151.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Vb5XehthBDkTUu-MzfPYV7VpOvgIT0kSUOsOdfzRpifxua17parVj1wqU3ZalbJOMtOMEGourPAg3UnqA4rMhuFRInzj09iDkFxvEZJMa33jMyMNQzeJAhiKqf419Vnc7FsLqa0ls-E/s400/DSC00151.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385299603562487330" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-TYAUiv8RB1iKewT-8E4PtvUz7QI8uuBX_g-S0X5g-W8qLxzs83nBgTKHhxpvkWgrh7bncbXMJXg2sVCoLKI8K_OWcKucy4lwXNXa-Ii8P_a9QHArYte33J8hFzXY585z38mKTdTS27w/s1600-h/DSC00154.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-TYAUiv8RB1iKewT-8E4PtvUz7QI8uuBX_g-S0X5g-W8qLxzs83nBgTKHhxpvkWgrh7bncbXMJXg2sVCoLKI8K_OWcKucy4lwXNXa-Ii8P_a9QHArYte33J8hFzXY585z38mKTdTS27w/s400/DSC00154.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385299624214279058" border="0" /></a>So that's the day before the race. I only got to the office close to 40 minutes after my official report time, thanks to the traffic :)<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Now, here are the human traffic too at the Raffles Place MRT Station, on the actual Trial Friday. This is not even IN the station yet - its at the underground area leading to the station.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Cbf482XGy5Nje-PvRLaPzJTTa4Cf4W3Pe4BBlpTWlr6Qi20jmdmGD3N5JiMUbhmThsKG89W0enB1h93g7MwBLhHId5zAq_wYYKilrIXB1kAmp4savZ5vsuzPbNqhAAu416bfyOP4eZk/s1600-h/DSC00156.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Cbf482XGy5Nje-PvRLaPzJTTa4Cf4W3Pe4BBlpTWlr6Qi20jmdmGD3N5JiMUbhmThsKG89W0enB1h93g7MwBLhHId5zAq_wYYKilrIXB1kAmp4savZ5vsuzPbNqhAAu416bfyOP4eZk/s400/DSC00156.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386450208246002770" border="0" /></a>I know that the Formula 1 brought a lot of publicity and tourists moolas into the country but really.. its getting way too crowded for me. Too crowded, even for a poor little cubby bear :(<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >PsssT!</span> Be back with more posts! I will have a full weekend at home this week, so I'm going to spend my time "fixing" this messy blog. Bleargh!<br /></div><br /><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-40116170340751039402009-09-12T17:50:00.003+08:002009-09-12T18:11:37.514+08:00Taking A Break...Cos its <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramadan">RAMADAN</a> and soon it will be, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shawwal">SYAWAL</a> and Eid is looming closer and closer!!!<br /><br />Be back in a week or so...!!! Woohoo!!! :)<br /><br /><div align="center"></div><p align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380520552668495426" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 228px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgASWdkqJwDiyOCG9_sQLV7ofogg9RZywePXPvC_sepeIzw4HEUe9eNeP6FiF9Pp9sQzNzByz0Bnf5aT7w43aSeQsOfDvn0bDAOMbf73wVk3EciFf_KENT8fGzViK3wv21AWq8ONg94524/s400/hari_raya.jpg" border="0" /><span style="font-size:78%;">Picture taken from </span><a href="http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Asia/Malaysia/West/Kedah/Padang_Serai/photo264231.htm"><span style="font-size:78%;">here</span></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-size:78%;">...</span></span> </p><p align="left"><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p align="center"></p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-74046093825587365762009-08-14T09:18:00.041+08:002009-10-02T15:28:12.245+08:00Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne! - PART 2<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />So we continue with the anecdotal account of our journey in Melbourne, Australia.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span>DAY 2 - Billy's Bush Tea (??!) And Why You Haven't Seen Victoria If You Haven't Been On The Great Ocean Road (GOC)!</span></span><br /><br />Our journey outside of Melbourne City Centre began on Day 2. The day was spent entirely on the road. Tour starts from 7:30am right up till 10:00pm. We obviously couldn't wait to see the best first, so we journeyed to one of Australia's great spectacle - The Twelve Apostles.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMwcxUis5EfsNkLrwq1Bm4r9Ix3tLsalu9Ch-WNVfxECMi56t35zXiP1hXGrr4FmPj5-dthl8_D5qBku3B9yu6LwEDNj_U0fnmCOMl5rxvIli4g_kaNxK3yKXkDVUnKZqWXJ2fCPoBb14/s1600-h/Meebops+182.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMwcxUis5EfsNkLrwq1Bm4r9Ix3tLsalu9Ch-WNVfxECMi56t35zXiP1hXGrr4FmPj5-dthl8_D5qBku3B9yu6LwEDNj_U0fnmCOMl5rxvIli4g_kaNxK3yKXkDVUnKZqWXJ2fCPoBb14/s400/Meebops+182.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372300935311877074" border="0" /></a>To get to the great 12, you will take the coastal highway, also known as The Great Ocean Road. And if you are the squeamish, motion sick kind of person (like Cubbies), better hang on to those pills to adjust your sense of balance and equilibrium - the roads are extremely winding and quite bumpy too!<br /><br />TTT initially planned to take a self-drive tour along the GOC but thankfully we thought otherwise because it is a loooooooooong journey that will not only take a toll on your body but forces you to concentrate more on the road and less on the sights itself.<br /><br />Albeit the "long winding Cubby-unfriendly roads" and obvious "touristy" spot, you really haven't seen Melbourne if you haven't been on the Great Ocean Road.<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGECm96UB_ppwEN1BhuzqLemI8XC3gFr4ZsbU5Ls7ytvJnLOLUayKCwINW5oXfNBObjvXaTWu7xHBgz5fa4xc-ceiyL3lkAhJ4wABkwCOKWlAWAVdUkNHan4tp5ShGlRHyCp6aD62l6qM/s1600-h/Meebops+164.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGECm96UB_ppwEN1BhuzqLemI8XC3gFr4ZsbU5Ls7ytvJnLOLUayKCwINW5oXfNBObjvXaTWu7xHBgz5fa4xc-ceiyL3lkAhJ4wABkwCOKWlAWAVdUkNHan4tp5ShGlRHyCp6aD62l6qM/s400/Meebops+164.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372311462688739474" border="0" /></a>I'm not even going to say much about the GOC because the pictures are pretty self explanatory.<br /><br /></div><span style="font-weight: bold;">First stop on our trip was the Bells Beach (BB)</span>, famous for its surfing activities. There were several tour buses that took their morning tea-break stop at the BB. WE were one of them, obviously. For me, it was a the long awaited pee-break! The weather, though absolutely gorgeous, was super duper chilly!<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV2m__x5e-1P0iD6j6lamQzDD1md3M6E2Sg8MmtOP7FiebYI_CeXP41ViZBrcT6WDtqJ4CZuV7JNVXI9eQxz9dZhxMkUy-5_6byJuksTeYnLdxxtN3JRB6V0gqCJT8VRzkIPnSArxZbhA/s1600-h/P5210090.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV2m__x5e-1P0iD6j6lamQzDD1md3M6E2Sg8MmtOP7FiebYI_CeXP41ViZBrcT6WDtqJ4CZuV7JNVXI9eQxz9dZhxMkUy-5_6byJuksTeYnLdxxtN3JRB6V0gqCJT8VRzkIPnSArxZbhA/s400/P5210090.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372305902368241186" border="0" /></a>Surfer dudes and dudettes... I once knew a cool surfer chick business associate who travels from Sydney and surfs every single day at Bondi Beach. I must say, they are really <span style="font-style: italic;">something</span>... She was due for a meeting one morning, donned a "power suit" and umm... flip-flops (you know, beach slippers) and this really huge black Billabong carry-all duffel that looked like she was going to have some surfboards up on display! I personally found it very amusing, but apparently, not the rest ;)<br /><br />Cubbies is not a very good swimmer (well, she's only 2 you know..) and surfing in big open seas is like asking her to jump down from a high cliff! She is terrified about the pounding waves and all that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blue_Planet">Blue Planet</a> DVDs she's been watching every night (with all the whales and the sharks swimming underneath) doesn't help either. Meebops however (the one with the gusto..), will want to give surfing a shot some day!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKViUhwoRIbKIEkK3cD2SIblJb_LzVtMdTdybEVm-kVRSOiohGiIlmY2jv7BeYZ5GNf4ABza9RMZ41aRBxjFuwIT9h8JJEJBdzC0XDZ-Z-dwnwF-cx6llT9ehTNnbOlj1iL0mqctL1r28/s1600-h/P5210092.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKViUhwoRIbKIEkK3cD2SIblJb_LzVtMdTdybEVm-kVRSOiohGiIlmY2jv7BeYZ5GNf4ABza9RMZ41aRBxjFuwIT9h8JJEJBdzC0XDZ-Z-dwnwF-cx6llT9ehTNnbOlj1iL0mqctL1r28/s400/P5210092.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372305917344202002" border="0" /></a><object width="400" height="300"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=6205477&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1"></object>This is the overview of BB (on video!!!) on a semi cloudy day. It was freakin' cold and there were quite a few surfers who were crazy enough to surf that morning. The winds were blowing strongly but strangely though, the water was tamer than i expected.<br /><br /><object width="400" height="300"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=6205477&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=59a5d1&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=6205477&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=59a5d1&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="300"></embed></object><br /><br />That's our guide, Darryl, doing his spins on Billy the Tea and telling us amusing stories about Vegemite, Lamingtons, Matilda (which by the way, is not the name of a girl..), Victoria Bitter and his hilarious and outrageous stories of his wife and kids. Great guy by the way, so if you do get him as a guide on Grayline, you're really quite lucky because the rest of the guides that we've had were all BLEAH-boooring. The only thing with Darryl is you'd probably find it really tough to fall asleep.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsGP1bXbYc2zzBkuwh7gbE1Dw41WNxdvhTeBRjMOWDdgmXVHUAtIvPIbDr0amLIR6nZxk8feALSeXT8KsFVB73ZPhjO02vn4x8eTRtFY2W2KmFkRZVBmL4QNzxMHjYf1Q2G-VyJOATuMA/s1600-h/Meebops+152.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsGP1bXbYc2zzBkuwh7gbE1Dw41WNxdvhTeBRjMOWDdgmXVHUAtIvPIbDr0amLIR6nZxk8feALSeXT8KsFVB73ZPhjO02vn4x8eTRtFY2W2KmFkRZVBmL4QNzxMHjYf1Q2G-VyJOATuMA/s400/Meebops+152.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372303397501338530" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Moving along...</span> this was also where we had a taste of Melbourne's very own "tar-like" Kraft Vegemite (our VIRGIN experience) and Lamingtons and believe it or not, Billy's Bush Tea. Ok i made that last one up, it's actually Bush Billy Tea - the iconic black tea in Australia often brewed with an added touch of Eucalyptus leaves. Billy is actually the can that the outbackers / campers used to brew the tea in. Its really quite pleasant, with hints of soft menthol notes as you sip it. Goes better without sugar or milk!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqf4e8aZaSCvgVT6UbBvCGlv3xZk8DYSg_CjaOhyphenhyphenZ7fHR_uC4b3xlnMlT_LiBo55VBlm45mU2HQvy-2JZKvgOz4tIav0IfAOY5CrhPsdIhOLkuys2_vNBARNnP3FbozT4Lk6lxEMShTgU/s1600-h/Meebops+155.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqf4e8aZaSCvgVT6UbBvCGlv3xZk8DYSg_CjaOhyphenhyphenZ7fHR_uC4b3xlnMlT_LiBo55VBlm45mU2HQvy-2JZKvgOz4tIav0IfAOY5CrhPsdIhOLkuys2_vNBARNnP3FbozT4Lk6lxEMShTgU/s400/Meebops+155.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372304033024987858" border="0" /></a>Darryl doing his Sir Mix-A-Lot... <span style="font-style: italic;">Geddit?</span> Bah!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ux9KOi0avFL3d72bo_jhGYIO1txY5MJNg1MwGlXbyMrLoufOs66g77j6xMKW4O2nxWr33Jlu5Tpmqg-Cd5D4TUi1-BrHrjPS79ywKeHa51Oxe7DSOxOnhs5gn4Cm-BSkqK8bqfsJuo8/s1600-h/Meebops+154.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ux9KOi0avFL3d72bo_jhGYIO1txY5MJNg1MwGlXbyMrLoufOs66g77j6xMKW4O2nxWr33Jlu5Tpmqg-Cd5D4TUi1-BrHrjPS79ywKeHa51Oxe7DSOxOnhs5gn4Cm-BSkqK8bqfsJuo8/s400/Meebops+154.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372304022781919218" border="0" /></a>Yada yada yada... <span style="font-style: italic;">sings "The wheels on the bus goes round and round..." </span><br /><br /></div><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Oh wait...</span> </span>Here are MORE photos of the GOC, including <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cape Patton</span>. Cape Patton was a "photo stop" just before we head to lunch at Apollo Bay. Its really stunning for photos, with waves crashing into gigantic rocks and limestone.<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs-OoCM-S4wBqZal1uA4OeXCDM0yKmnI73SLsw4qlyjQIeD0142zvj4fi-5us5R-D63Y1YZ1a5k5Hvwy_DBoWdbs-gzXNt4eAyx0seCeOmM4AwjQhXVRLsPGaOWqhl5s-w36K0qOj_814/s1600-h/Meebops+193.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs-OoCM-S4wBqZal1uA4OeXCDM0yKmnI73SLsw4qlyjQIeD0142zvj4fi-5us5R-D63Y1YZ1a5k5Hvwy_DBoWdbs-gzXNt4eAyx0seCeOmM4AwjQhXVRLsPGaOWqhl5s-w36K0qOj_814/s400/Meebops+193.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372319498809818146" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7546tLWS5jVO975BP7Oc05xZ5dpFE-YzW9zvZgvTuAaPwey-EbMWPZ-YYDI_SNMwsilNUWfj_4-ApSwJ_7HjVOocfKFSAvNCyMnF6sf6rF24f-dVjpcY3vP1yA-O_KyrUsCNMRC4VJrw/s1600-h/Meebops+186.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7546tLWS5jVO975BP7Oc05xZ5dpFE-YzW9zvZgvTuAaPwey-EbMWPZ-YYDI_SNMwsilNUWfj_4-ApSwJ_7HjVOocfKFSAvNCyMnF6sf6rF24f-dVjpcY3vP1yA-O_KyrUsCNMRC4VJrw/s400/Meebops+186.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372320138243568994" border="0" /></a>Next up,<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> lunch!</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Lunch was at picturesque town of Apollo Bay</span>. It is a stunning coastal town lined with cute little houses, tinted with backdrops of lush green fields and relaxing blue hues from the ocean ahead (Imagine!).<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjZZ9SYIFkiRpNaQvG27WA95m7HNUsTh7UiAg1oeI19XjoxvtJ-SuJz42X3PfgtUV7aVmq_WZ-VPPZe3rdajp_rqrpqlutACz4eOIfxXcxkcYaAzPg0YZshaKRyvH1eVhAi-HID-po1gg/s1600-h/Meebops+200.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjZZ9SYIFkiRpNaQvG27WA95m7HNUsTh7UiAg1oeI19XjoxvtJ-SuJz42X3PfgtUV7aVmq_WZ-VPPZe3rdajp_rqrpqlutACz4eOIfxXcxkcYaAzPg0YZshaKRyvH1eVhAi-HID-po1gg/s400/Meebops+200.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372331007187895538" border="0" /></a>The breakfast Cubbies made (which was burnt bagels with eggs and cheese) finished by the time we got to Lorne, so we had to get lunch because Cubbies had an appetite after the vomiting episode. There are no halal food outlets here so we settled for seafood in cafes.<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />We got the Classic Fish & Chips... probably costs us about AU$12.99 or so.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZLItBn6CGk54pXaTrLUxrs7KiYT5IL5n2lh5VgLrX7X8CYw_aoMXac3K_2vbR5FfWLV1mHG2vGH_chbhuDIkwZgp4x7_WwcX7_dZwxy6IyvLUMNvVApKl2lkDHvL8x4VQEi4Unvt03u8/s1600-h/Meebops+194.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZLItBn6CGk54pXaTrLUxrs7KiYT5IL5n2lh5VgLrX7X8CYw_aoMXac3K_2vbR5FfWLV1mHG2vGH_chbhuDIkwZgp4x7_WwcX7_dZwxy6IyvLUMNvVApKl2lkDHvL8x4VQEi4Unvt03u8/s400/Meebops+194.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372332315907723666" border="0" /></a>And we also got the Fresh Handmade Vegetarian Pasta and Rice. Costs us about AU$6 for a small serving..<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8rIK_BnGrdzzCcB83_1Cnr8iacTibY9kE77TCZj2TQ22FyeqcQIoSZca1lVNPxL_UWfafGKupJXGIUKR4m5pcN3ClAeB5SVu4Ts550IRQXX-ck_9iYqxlZzWEzHkbfp44QgwU5Ug876E/s1600-h/Meebops+195.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8rIK_BnGrdzzCcB83_1Cnr8iacTibY9kE77TCZj2TQ22FyeqcQIoSZca1lVNPxL_UWfafGKupJXGIUKR4m5pcN3ClAeB5SVu4Ts550IRQXX-ck_9iYqxlZzWEzHkbfp44QgwU5Ug876E/s400/Meebops+195.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372332325981594370" border="0" /></a>After lunch, the bus went pass the Otway National Park and we were sheltered by the scorching mid afternoon sun. The Australian rain-forest seemed like they were made up of nothing but fern gullies and Eucalyptus - actually <span style="font-style: italic;">those are the only two kinds</span> of plantations there.<br /><br />Along the way, we also spotted a wild Koala (not Koala Bears!) which is the famed and uniquely Australian marsupial. Poaching or killing of Koalas in the wild is a serious offense in Australia so watch out for those slow-coach crossing the road if you're driving. <span style="font-weight: bold;">WARNING!</span> Even though the Koalas are cute, cuddly and looked like they are begging for a big hug from you (like how sometimes Cubbies bat her lashes for a hug), they do not like to be stroked or touched!!! You will suffer and bleed when they paw you (not the good way) with their long and sharp claws - so do not try to touch them! They really like it that way :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIXWn_uh7Fh7lJhNVEtv0vgWasNhxdZEYYPS8wE6lQZzqiLsdWhBYJ3I5uf13olH32dKTFy7UljGAfMch-1s6bK4z5HB4g2VaEI8p7_oMqpeFXqpLNP6eLLGjjqHAty7NQoSY8ZMfobU/s1600-h/Meebops+190.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIXWn_uh7Fh7lJhNVEtv0vgWasNhxdZEYYPS8wE6lQZzqiLsdWhBYJ3I5uf13olH32dKTFy7UljGAfMch-1s6bK4z5HB4g2VaEI8p7_oMqpeFXqpLNP6eLLGjjqHAty7NQoSY8ZMfobU/s400/Meebops+190.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372334052892407042" border="0" /></a>We didn't get close enough to focus on the wild koala but i'm sure its cute as the rest of them! Here's another photo of a SUPER cute baby Koala. It must be tough being a Koala though, having to live with white aging hair all their lives... *sigh* Hehehe! :P Fret not, we will post many more pictures of these charismatic marsupials in our postings!<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNPKkVM_7SiSwTf5snwiFeo1xJtihMQKf3XFK_ersh-TjiY2xGDMa_Uk9wzzFXXPf8ub2fFDOKoxcvj4o3CXrEFeZbKiXh15pAYj7QlKf-Khm0Nq6RJ3rbZP6yR20MYdbJCISp9PRhi0g/s1600-h/Cutest_Koala.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 367px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNPKkVM_7SiSwTf5snwiFeo1xJtihMQKf3XFK_ersh-TjiY2xGDMa_Uk9wzzFXXPf8ub2fFDOKoxcvj4o3CXrEFeZbKiXh15pAYj7QlKf-Khm0Nq6RJ3rbZP6yR20MYdbJCISp9PRhi0g/s400/Cutest_Koala.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373727092568987682" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">Picture of Cutest Joey Koala borrowed from <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/erikveland/423038931/">Erik K Veland</a></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Just before the actual 12, we were stopped for picture taking at the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Gibson Steps</span>. These steps are small steps but goes all the way down to the sea front and my God, that was really a test of our strength, stamina and physical resilience (or the lack thereof...). It was here that i realise how pathetic my stamina is now. Bleargh!!! The scenery though, was absolutely jaw-dropping gorgeous-ness :)<br /><br />Views from the Gibson Steps...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrLuXAa9boUXcy_z9HBBErrcIQUCwOOuDhlMokPtw8SETOgxC-IYLUJIK-TW1v-kLq-oD5ObV6gNhSBZEnQ6aZpe-bwiYWEyWzHWMu8qAs3JstGRvCOUrsWZvI4GOWqTG58F9R8DqOFAw/s1600-h/P5210108.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrLuXAa9boUXcy_z9HBBErrcIQUCwOOuDhlMokPtw8SETOgxC-IYLUJIK-TW1v-kLq-oD5ObV6gNhSBZEnQ6aZpe-bwiYWEyWzHWMu8qAs3JstGRvCOUrsWZvI4GOWqTG58F9R8DqOFAw/s400/P5210108.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373362704973854578" border="0" /></a><object width="400" height="300"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=6241472&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=59a5d1&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=6241472&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=59a5d1&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="300"></embed></object><br /><br />If you are as enthusiastic and persuasive as Meebops, yoan take the stairs all the way down... and you'll see that this is the closest you can get to the limestone Apostles. It was really tough walking along the shores tough, because the sand is really thick and makes it really difficult to walk on.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbRGexgQ9U7GZoyrYdJSiYj-jaIF7ToRft0HSg8M-EY8AtR1GcrSaG7HaGU79aLebqtg-ZwmI8eJ11Jkuh4dvEKC7zHpAp_ehrY8PkdPIv91qXzHkx14FCqCJz2UA6XFIjtuCBfcJdWBw/s1600-h/Meebops+209.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbRGexgQ9U7GZoyrYdJSiYj-jaIF7ToRft0HSg8M-EY8AtR1GcrSaG7HaGU79aLebqtg-ZwmI8eJ11Jkuh4dvEKC7zHpAp_ehrY8PkdPIv91qXzHkx14FCqCJz2UA6XFIjtuCBfcJdWBw/s400/Meebops+209.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373362695886843458" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Next on the road is The Twelve Apostles</span> - main highlight of the day. Honestly, after the entire episode of vomiting and waiting and waiting in anticipation for the great 12, the feeling was quite subdued by the time we get there. It was magical nonetheless, and to see the Great 12 in real time is nothing you have ver experienced before... but... you know the feeling.<br /><br />Anyway, there are 2 options to take when you're here - either you walk through the tunnel to the viewing platforms at the Port Campbell National Park to view for yourself, the stunning and impressive nature-carved limestone cliffs standing so majestically and patiently, unfluttered by the violent waves crashing against it.<br /><br /></div>OR for an extra AU$75, you can also get yourself a comfy ride on nifty little copters for a chance of a lifetime!<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjb5bA4PE2dedOtqMCxT4H6eqpy3LTsV_d9T_6fi6hmskzkrF95l9X6CPGpp1rjla-esDrZh-rvdjEH1re0aRVtxrEscxkyRXiGRAprNDhVTT49nFsKANXom8puYDS7Mgg7Ap9d68uqw/s1600-h/Meebops+245.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjb5bA4PE2dedOtqMCxT4H6eqpy3LTsV_d9T_6fi6hmskzkrF95l9X6CPGpp1rjla-esDrZh-rvdjEH1re0aRVtxrEscxkyRXiGRAprNDhVTT49nFsKANXom8puYDS7Mgg7Ap9d68uqw/s400/Meebops+245.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373456847261952258" border="0" /></a>that's right - an aerial view of the 12 Apostles! Breathtaking indeed but the price was a little too steep for Cubbies. I was quite reluctant (as i always will when it comes to forking out more money!) but Meebops (the more touristy of the 2) was so excited of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And so we did! It was our virgin copter ride, ummm... really nice... but kinda scary at the start :)<br /><br />Here are the photos...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA9DyvNjeNv0JicdyPqGH3NSZkwIg5Hf8n0MW6nHdQOLxnlONd0dYHLn24TCwEq-zHuc-Hzg9cRtVYkHmPFJiUIM3e9ZzGgiu7UzyUhrMHDihN4HTEWVZfvZZpxoFrB3VKRAMsRPo99mQ/s1600-h/Meebops+216.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA9DyvNjeNv0JicdyPqGH3NSZkwIg5Hf8n0MW6nHdQOLxnlONd0dYHLn24TCwEq-zHuc-Hzg9cRtVYkHmPFJiUIM3e9ZzGgiu7UzyUhrMHDihN4HTEWVZfvZZpxoFrB3VKRAMsRPo99mQ/s400/Meebops+216.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373458873558929570" border="0" /></a>Nifty little machines they are...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-6KqFSSWcdqADir5-rQZtt07mtEcAKHSuNv89aw9Q3x1ERmhLVDKC3PmBgeBl1GydS5batEUL_h2ATL7TXEbr98heiZsV7x-PzINklG8b4XNit7z_wZ-mYi3foOeTtLmx7wmuqyIQs-I/s1600-h/Meebops+223.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-6KqFSSWcdqADir5-rQZtt07mtEcAKHSuNv89aw9Q3x1ERmhLVDKC3PmBgeBl1GydS5batEUL_h2ATL7TXEbr98heiZsV7x-PzINklG8b4XNit7z_wZ-mYi3foOeTtLmx7wmuqyIQs-I/s400/Meebops+223.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373458901660024802" border="0" /></a>Behold the views!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirvs3bP3xOoIuml5BsKPhFYElXbbl6u7YvKROVFoiEntwJChPTHnGHFaGK3tZkz9k1NAbrHXDQ2aMOl3j4LCXtG18TetsUWH6kOKYBRaKmP1nntWIXQ1d2F6ocFHb8V2jPi54Pk4jYZhE/s1600-h/P5210128.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirvs3bP3xOoIuml5BsKPhFYElXbbl6u7YvKROVFoiEntwJChPTHnGHFaGK3tZkz9k1NAbrHXDQ2aMOl3j4LCXtG18TetsUWH6kOKYBRaKmP1nntWIXQ1d2F6ocFHb8V2jPi54Pk4jYZhE/s400/P5210128.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373460483451806642" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRm3yJl2OjM1qUlV1WtXIHDsDJixOogVA5SR8fxwDC7kOqN4mjfOziTRNJnZT6DEXMKbkHo2qPAioKE5HiH3fK0XNekfTQMDeujCY6vupb8XdFvHXpXD2uJbKG_2kqjnaApBcMeEBmhcg/s1600-h/P5210130.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRm3yJl2OjM1qUlV1WtXIHDsDJixOogVA5SR8fxwDC7kOqN4mjfOziTRNJnZT6DEXMKbkHo2qPAioKE5HiH3fK0XNekfTQMDeujCY6vupb8XdFvHXpXD2uJbKG_2kqjnaApBcMeEBmhcg/s400/P5210130.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373460445061420834" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiP5aG6E23a4rfAfQwdIVHNEdQ0VXbmcUhrJq0ocnBA5K5zQwTnVXFWJu1oXMc5z1GgQKL0wPTm6V7R26mnQ81Z3zHC_YekfiUm7s63BZl50ivkHDqVRxDgWK60soUfyLtkLB0sSdntpU/s1600-h/P5210132.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiP5aG6E23a4rfAfQwdIVHNEdQ0VXbmcUhrJq0ocnBA5K5zQwTnVXFWJu1oXMc5z1GgQKL0wPTm6V7R26mnQ81Z3zHC_YekfiUm7s63BZl50ivkHDqVRxDgWK60soUfyLtkLB0sSdntpU/s400/P5210132.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373460455883694082" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBZ8TpHnxFquoO-KV1-jaq94GACKA-JB1g92jbnkfGsmOuRN0x9ERlm_xncofS1DGJPkIwWDhnyg19L-gbXIiWufiJZmwicU0pzKRpBlmD7zA0_63XpKcV4k-G6tfdAlTyT8p_020c__w/s1600-h/P5210135.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBZ8TpHnxFquoO-KV1-jaq94GACKA-JB1g92jbnkfGsmOuRN0x9ERlm_xncofS1DGJPkIwWDhnyg19L-gbXIiWufiJZmwicU0pzKRpBlmD7zA0_63XpKcV4k-G6tfdAlTyT8p_020c__w/s400/P5210135.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373460463416356578" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP5f5-Byj_2jrsniyz7jFA9GJq3x6CVOkAdJ2A9Ur-ey_DBsEdiNvqXV4PM6kE-qzXEA34QCgdch1B3MlflgguLobq7yzLTEzFQFc_nryDd7giAiLpJkjwwhQBuginzUG41myab5IeVhs/s1600-h/Meebops+234.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP5f5-Byj_2jrsniyz7jFA9GJq3x6CVOkAdJ2A9Ur-ey_DBsEdiNvqXV4PM6kE-qzXEA34QCgdch1B3MlflgguLobq7yzLTEzFQFc_nryDd7giAiLpJkjwwhQBuginzUG41myab5IeVhs/s400/Meebops+234.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373463259274228882" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWDPMBNJlKiS6WEBfDVztpsIg0iR38LXmk5cLBnua-IFJmQN_bbjYK3mNNeseTY2Z3fE6jk061ovKzkyb34LTTDZoeKsbE9VuQyPQurXX9q_Z9thyphenhyphen9D1DnIOrwlYBAZX_D7G7R2fGpIdE/s1600-h/P5210147.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWDPMBNJlKiS6WEBfDVztpsIg0iR38LXmk5cLBnua-IFJmQN_bbjYK3mNNeseTY2Z3fE6jk061ovKzkyb34LTTDZoeKsbE9VuQyPQurXX9q_Z9thyphenhyphen9D1DnIOrwlYBAZX_D7G7R2fGpIdE/s400/P5210147.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373460477931107842" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk-lQqdjVi98YuUI5KJdRqoqP7ajcc97iKKNjR5xWI2uTUBR6VJ18AAHilnzsTvpVCUD94cLFe4i6yVIvdaAFSkjp-3_YFKRCh-eYLham7iqnMrcRJ6Me9a0ke2zKlKPT-hnm_y_ytH3E/s1600-h/Meebops+238.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk-lQqdjVi98YuUI5KJdRqoqP7ajcc97iKKNjR5xWI2uTUBR6VJ18AAHilnzsTvpVCUD94cLFe4i6yVIvdaAFSkjp-3_YFKRCh-eYLham7iqnMrcRJ6Me9a0ke2zKlKPT-hnm_y_ytH3E/s400/Meebops+238.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373463282205623650" border="0" /></a>Stunning ain't it??? :)<br /><br />Along the same coastline is also the mysterious <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ard_Gorge"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Loch Ard Gorge</span></a> <span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" >(LAG)</span>, which after visiting The Twelve Apostles, you will come to realise just how really charismatic these carved limestone looked like up-close. LAG is the real deal... Up close and personal - so close you can talk to it!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs9eEdSln_6ktUc3XwBeq1hKkbWoM4yrrKmTqbS55GcZz-ZNWySscpyd22dDmVAztsukMgqz1QDg882t5rJWR88sDjy47928QERNSt6kpWvAbltaoTicC7b90z0Sd639W87mkShm6zSwU/s1600-h/Meebops+288.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs9eEdSln_6ktUc3XwBeq1hKkbWoM4yrrKmTqbS55GcZz-ZNWySscpyd22dDmVAztsukMgqz1QDg882t5rJWR88sDjy47928QERNSt6kpWvAbltaoTicC7b90z0Sd639W87mkShm6zSwU/s400/Meebops+288.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373466357187088498" border="0" /></a>The Blowhole cave...<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQLUVp9afEjM83kVO82aKBeVBk-ub3gyEg_ArkfCcrO8zi8ID25vzMdsY3R9SHFVa70yVCMF-w-bL1DDrAQVBw_AXmygAmKfVe3V66QHy9ZfQqk27HHM7nKwpi_s3KsEgA8ogqUNNnBo0/s1600-h/P5210157.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQLUVp9afEjM83kVO82aKBeVBk-ub3gyEg_ArkfCcrO8zi8ID25vzMdsY3R9SHFVa70yVCMF-w-bL1DDrAQVBw_AXmygAmKfVe3V66QHy9ZfQqk27HHM7nKwpi_s3KsEgA8ogqUNNnBo0/s400/P5210157.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373466373901745170" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzriKzhPWlKxPyWdbLY_7C4utHl3qJCBnU3aeQtxRS2EqMP78YfivMhrX1V1A6m2xZq9zl6SvFdrQ22kojaFxvVxvbiK2cmfqN6vjtv6sZ9ZbwIng8p3qUesmu7aW0gtn-F1kB5PmjEKA/s1600-h/P5210158.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzriKzhPWlKxPyWdbLY_7C4utHl3qJCBnU3aeQtxRS2EqMP78YfivMhrX1V1A6m2xZq9zl6SvFdrQ22kojaFxvVxvbiK2cmfqN6vjtv6sZ9ZbwIng8p3qUesmu7aW0gtn-F1kB5PmjEKA/s400/P5210158.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373466382971270578" border="0" /></a>This is the Island Archway, before the <a href="http://www.standard.net.au/news/local/news/general/loch-ard-collapse/1537711.aspx">arch collapsed in June 2009</a>. TTT would like to consider themselves lucky enough to have witness the Archway in its full glory in May 2009 :)<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiRdJQsH1Pp0WANJl_UP5rdnyXcz9MZVrBDy8G_fQopEo0Tde2MZAxbmZzSvpnJJ4y4cBSGeHgYUawJWoAW-AXkqi6I5aZ7rwjFeskO5EZf70Vxtddrgpsj_XE_VRX4WFL6wRmvC8uGl0/s1600-h/Meebops+262.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiRdJQsH1Pp0WANJl_UP5rdnyXcz9MZVrBDy8G_fQopEo0Tde2MZAxbmZzSvpnJJ4y4cBSGeHgYUawJWoAW-AXkqi6I5aZ7rwjFeskO5EZf70Vxtddrgpsj_XE_VRX4WFL6wRmvC8uGl0/s400/Meebops+262.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373466364633687170" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSKhLgEps-Rd5f8FlqD-k3IG0d2vf9VkO7QvbtRlnCBuKgL4CEbBRtUpR8NOPivxqqZ6GXq25zsPRa5mZMuvIKEorIE_jJXk0SKS29M3PNCrUI91sWVSnnrkm3vWPuafkMgaAoL1EbcM/s1600-h/P5210165.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSKhLgEps-Rd5f8FlqD-k3IG0d2vf9VkO7QvbtRlnCBuKgL4CEbBRtUpR8NOPivxqqZ6GXq25zsPRa5mZMuvIKEorIE_jJXk0SKS29M3PNCrUI91sWVSnnrkm3vWPuafkMgaAoL1EbcM/s400/P5210165.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373743616105337922" border="0" /></a>This one's here called the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Shipwreck Coast</span>, and you can actually (again) take the stairs down for a greater appreciation of its sheer size and magnitude.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJYBY_NEvD66JeJ-nBSm1Kev4pcBEhKuRFBxM_YFB46PjVHGvSPAgyYouWMPFvzJ9hu7QPu_s6ocOxC3Tq5YCD962DknC-kYM4jJR4wC5i8JQk9GQWtvms_gXKZbhmHizDYlgW23I6IZY/s1600-h/P5210169.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJYBY_NEvD66JeJ-nBSm1Kev4pcBEhKuRFBxM_YFB46PjVHGvSPAgyYouWMPFvzJ9hu7QPu_s6ocOxC3Tq5YCD962DknC-kYM4jJR4wC5i8JQk9GQWtvms_gXKZbhmHizDYlgW23I6IZY/s400/P5210169.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373466389967367570" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI_ZA0ghS5wh2FOIr5rDFWMvrAhNWkwKyAKo2lauemMSe0lKUpDBJwhBWYD0jJ-FJ5FTglLTiBVKDst8dejb6GlW82FQZx2oZBbrqxO6mNpoFm1gwd1Ub6ksCqb08ht_3pp8hnaUzofeY/s1600-h/P5210173.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI_ZA0ghS5wh2FOIr5rDFWMvrAhNWkwKyAKo2lauemMSe0lKUpDBJwhBWYD0jJ-FJ5FTglLTiBVKDst8dejb6GlW82FQZx2oZBbrqxO6mNpoFm1gwd1Ub6ksCqb08ht_3pp8hnaUzofeY/s400/P5210173.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373743630450483730" border="0" /></a>Some new friends i waved and smiled at....<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi59oUosVUpJ6ofVs8_SHxfJzQ6RIlod8LW5TN8-g6hYRWvKpeyiH1ltpD36xZCuGL2-E37eg0BlMcXTmTthrVnpXc0hgW9eMx-OYfmQNIviOC0X0i61v5RgEW2ZHfdlDAISxYfHBqj_lg/s1600-h/P5210176.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi59oUosVUpJ6ofVs8_SHxfJzQ6RIlod8LW5TN8-g6hYRWvKpeyiH1ltpD36xZCuGL2-E37eg0BlMcXTmTthrVnpXc0hgW9eMx-OYfmQNIviOC0X0i61v5RgEW2ZHfdlDAISxYfHBqj_lg/s400/P5210176.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373467770025222594" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Oh hellooo..!</span></span> LAG was also where i met an acquaintance, Little Pet Kangoo. Someone obviously abandoned it. Though quite pleased that i met a friend, i am also sad that its there alone, waiting for someone to adopt it. I can't adopt it obviously... i have Meebops.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaZXFi8CZN6yxiPnrJ5_1MkKLsWXSVocwly4-R2gx-l4RcfH6hbAQKFMId3Me_YpxqqId14nH2DaCbQdQiOkglxasTunzuoLF5UvRH8JfPHfU0qeJPmK2Wa_zo6FHEK0pMSyqZ77vp66Y/s1600-h/P5210178.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaZXFi8CZN6yxiPnrJ5_1MkKLsWXSVocwly4-R2gx-l4RcfH6hbAQKFMId3Me_YpxqqId14nH2DaCbQdQiOkglxasTunzuoLF5UvRH8JfPHfU0qeJPmK2Wa_zo6FHEK0pMSyqZ77vp66Y/s400/P5210178.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373467777654943666" border="0" /></a>Our last stop for the day was at Port Campbell. We didn't get anything to eat while we're there cos we do want to have something back in the city. But it is a nice little port town overlooking a quaint pier.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b1W7xxVyqgrN_-U8cyZA-jDcmBa-ACEEpVRSY7INpgRCcaos_kaqj0TgWUfzt_OP4sIS6fVKASIbsbcH1GNE2xsQErmyZSTTXiwdTGYLtOXZYac9wzfti7sXxr4QAmEANalyU5Mnq24/s1600-h/Meebops+284.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b1W7xxVyqgrN_-U8cyZA-jDcmBa-ACEEpVRSY7INpgRCcaos_kaqj0TgWUfzt_OP4sIS6fVKASIbsbcH1GNE2xsQErmyZSTTXiwdTGYLtOXZYac9wzfti7sXxr4QAmEANalyU5Mnq24/s400/Meebops+284.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373471427042623730" border="0" /></a>Our drive back was a snooze ride all the way! <span style="font-size:180%;">What a day!</span> :)<br /><br />Oh! Not without what i snacked on all the way back to the city!!! Homemade fries in dog poo bag... :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaz_Ul91AMgGQjUo5DbCFrdET4GTMjjcND5UhO-sZCkVlb2ll7cGOo2JKaAEdaO0BN8BsGx9M9JUknOGxHvwdfSwU0vvuRV9dTIMkg3deuSzSRXPM_f8LIlSZWY4Xoea5GPZmL7jUCuMU/s1600-h/Meebops+289.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaz_Ul91AMgGQjUo5DbCFrdET4GTMjjcND5UhO-sZCkVlb2ll7cGOo2JKaAEdaO0BN8BsGx9M9JUknOGxHvwdfSwU0vvuRV9dTIMkg3deuSzSRXPM_f8LIlSZWY4Xoea5GPZmL7jUCuMU/s400/Meebops+289.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373471425114357346" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">USELESS INFO ANYWAY:</span> I don't know how many times i actually peed on that day. The reason being the fact that it was already late Autumn/early Winter and apart from the sweatshirt i was wearing (over the thousand strands of bear-fur on my body), i had only my socks and my cute little Crocs sandals on (that Meebops got me as a gift!) . Now Crocs has holes in it so i guess with the air-conditioning on the bus and the cold weather outside and the lack of necessary protection for my furs, i got cold! And if there was ever an award for "The Most Number of Times Someone Uses the Tiny Toilet in the Bus" - I would've won a lifetime achievement award for it!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Till our next post: <span style="font-size:130%;">Day 3 - Sleep In Day And My God, Aren't Those Tiny Penguins Bloody Exhibitionists?!!</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >Cheers, mate!</span><br /></div><br /></div><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-36065807592758476862009-08-12T17:31:00.008+08:002009-10-02T15:29:04.570+08:00Come A-Waltzing Matilda with Cubbies to Melbourne!<span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Gosh we had so much fun in Melbourne, it was unbelievable! There were petting zoos, Kangaroos and Koalas and nice cool weather... Sigh! I am in love! :)<br /><br />So since there's plenty to talk about, i wonder where do i begin? Do i go with Day 1 - what we did... Or do i go with what you really need to know when in Melbourne and compress everything i can into 1 post... ORrrr... gloat and gloat about how wonderful the weather was, and how warm the Aussies are... and and and!... how wonderful the weather was... :) <span style="font-size:100%;">*Did i mention how wonderful the weather was???*</span><br /><br /><!--[endif]-->Seriously folks, <span style="font-size:130%;">Melbourne is simply gorgeous</span>. Its a charming city that emits a buzzing metropolitan air, almost akin to Sydney, yet it still held back an alluring charm you can only grow to love (or for me, absolutely head-over-heels for!)... Melbourne leaves you, or rather you leave Melbourne cuddled with a nice, quaint feeling.. and a desire to want more <span style="font-size:130%;">more </span><span style="font-size:180%;">more!</span> Sure the streets are a little on the "scruffy" side, especially along the cobbled sidewalks, what with the graffiti up on the walls and just plain dampness to everything in the air (Yup! Blame it on the weather!). But hey, that is what we call a city with "character"! :)<br /><br />Anyway, less talk and more show and tell... Let's start with a picture of the wings to the plane that brought us there, Air Asia X (which TTT already <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">XXX</span></span> over it many many many times!).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBrLRWwt_0L9NoySJQ-9gP89RrhqvOT85v6lgLtVxALkymLA1v8QfK9yi8nxbdJiaB3H7L9809zk_it29P0mq80zDaYCJju9eL6sRZ8p-6PREX5z_BfxoSDvA87PLLS7c6Epktc9nzC50/s1600-h/P5190001.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBrLRWwt_0L9NoySJQ-9gP89RrhqvOT85v6lgLtVxALkymLA1v8QfK9yi8nxbdJiaB3H7L9809zk_it29P0mq80zDaYCJju9eL6sRZ8p-6PREX5z_BfxoSDvA87PLLS7c6Epktc9nzC50/s400/P5190001.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368629966432657010" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Incident No. 1</span> - At time of travel, State of Victoria has not yet been crowned the "H1N1 Pandemic Capital of the World" but they did take several precautions here and there. This is how they did it - Quarantine Officers boarded the plane after flight crew informed ground staff that 1 passenger on the flight was coughing profusely throughout the entire journey. Quarantine guys boarded the plane (dressed like scenes from the movie "Sequel to Biohazard") upon touching down. They made everyone else who is not affected stay on board the plane (therefore prolonging time of contact with suspected victim) until all Q&A with the affected completed. By that time, it was well pass 11pm. We took at least 45 mins waiting and wondering... Not good.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" >"Uhh... what happened arh?..."</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" >"I dontch know. Not sure whether true or not, but someone said that woman got the pig flu lah!..."</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" >"Alamak, bloody selfish you know she... Cough cough cough, never cover mouth one! I sat right in front of her you know!"</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3tW_1ARe_ZeW2LdB3qCUgV93iw03PmpQvDJGSkzwypmmO5Ne27iNQEhBNGA6J8t-WM_SU-Jgx5d-l-NFWVcHYgkFA5dkzmyQs9LsJT_mcptWY14xU24n0DR_GHb3-7emwVZNyFObec0/s1600-h/P5190018.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3tW_1ARe_ZeW2LdB3qCUgV93iw03PmpQvDJGSkzwypmmO5Ne27iNQEhBNGA6J8t-WM_SU-Jgx5d-l-NFWVcHYgkFA5dkzmyQs9LsJT_mcptWY14xU24n0DR_GHb3-7emwVZNyFObec0/s400/P5190018.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368632321219105650" border="0" /></a>Actors from the movie "Biohazard II" :) Clever marketing gimmick? NOT!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigHNnNgkYhiAhuqCvtKk3CtqLm2qW4iGHeUWB5zfeUU1ihKvRQ7_qlRDHsFX6kvvx2cGaA19cR3DZjCLQcCqY24bYGJgOBHsDs8dDSMVqDyyj9Nn5lBaNvoShZ25gHdn_YUrmL7uQNDnc/s1600-h/P5190019.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigHNnNgkYhiAhuqCvtKk3CtqLm2qW4iGHeUWB5zfeUU1ihKvRQ7_qlRDHsFX6kvvx2cGaA19cR3DZjCLQcCqY24bYGJgOBHsDs8dDSMVqDyyj9Nn5lBaNvoShZ25gHdn_YUrmL7uQNDnc/s400/P5190019.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368632325502347218" border="0" /></a>Actually, we took more pictures of the Quarantine Officers (we were the only ones on board the plane taking photos like paparazzi, by the way) than this but were instructed to delete all of them before alighting. So we grudgingly did (with everyone else on board laughing with us) - ah yes, ALMOST! ;)<br /><br />The super-intensive checks and cumbersome Melbourne immigration took us probably another hour or so - the questioning and checking and looking at us up and down and down and up and round and round (they probably couldn't believe how gorgeous Cubbies is despite the furs from a little cubby bear!) - all while trying to keep conversation and spot if we were hiding anything illegal - you know, the usual "immigration" stuff that took an unusually looong time to get through in Melb. <span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" >HAH! They didn't know that i had a mock Koala outfit in my bag, with the intention of dressing up as one!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">WORD OF CAUTION!</span> Based on our keen observation, they single out travellers who are young (or too young, like Cubbies), who travels alone, and especially those travelling with backpacks. Meebops had this theory that we were asked to exit through a different channel because we indicated that we are "professionals" in our occupation list but we looked young (thank you...) and definitely not dressed as how professionals would. We only had t-shirts, shorts and sandals on, so it was contradictory and aroused suspicion... *shrug* Possibly. So <span style="font-weight: bold;">BEWARE</span> folks! Don try to be funny especially if you're a backpacker ;) That is, if you want smoother clearance (the Aussie immigration is probably the least friendliest ever...)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm27_qJdYDIqg0r8c76ua_UgJPbrh3ya_9FlCwOfqGKlFmtTbF61o4x92A_boIWCBiPUvEEHnkasKLMq7WP_QzvFrbMsKDEWZstt12omX9y-wiD2306rOt2jcx071xGnYedZoFfICyU8I/s1600-h/Meebops+150.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm27_qJdYDIqg0r8c76ua_UgJPbrh3ya_9FlCwOfqGKlFmtTbF61o4x92A_boIWCBiPUvEEHnkasKLMq7WP_QzvFrbMsKDEWZstt12omX9y-wiD2306rOt2jcx071xGnYedZoFfICyU8I/s400/Meebops+150.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368652309699191730" border="0" /></a>We were really too tired by the time we got to the hostel. We shared a cab from the airport with a couple of students from the US. Poor kids didn't even know where to stay but decided anyway, <span style="font-style: italic;">"Yes, we'd like to go to the Elizabeth Hostel please..." </span>Our driver was a Pakistani who barely speaks English, drove them to another hostel on Elizabeth Street. <span style="font-style: italic;">Whatever...</span> I just want to go to bed. The cab ride at 2ish in the morning costs us about AU$80. Expensive? Very.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Fast forward few hours later...</span><br /><br />We woke up to the buzzing sounds of traffic from the highway opposite the hostel. My God the air was fresh! :) It was unbelievable.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVLnqDgd84OldGSWnP_Lr_4mSI40Jjvzo6fWc3qHsuayq9Ge-62U82xLvbykjxLWsMIxi7B04yX1vTxSOQJJMSk3KIKnxQAz9csfiKBbk-tzy4r08jLQ5AkRFobpPJnPqTAtsJFozOd58/s1600-h/P5200023.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVLnqDgd84OldGSWnP_Lr_4mSI40Jjvzo6fWc3qHsuayq9Ge-62U82xLvbykjxLWsMIxi7B04yX1vTxSOQJJMSk3KIKnxQAz9csfiKBbk-tzy4r08jLQ5AkRFobpPJnPqTAtsJFozOd58/s400/P5200023.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368639948144747010" border="0" /></a>Here is our first foray into Melbourne as a city, just slightly on the fringe of the CBD areas. We stayed at the Urban Central Hostel, conveniently located on Collins Street in Southbank - the quiet side of Melbourne, but an easy 5 minutes ride into town or 20 minutes stroll on foot - which was what we did every day. UC is a neat hostel that's clean, hassle free and one of those few that has a FULL-SIZE kitchen for you to prepare your own meals. Now we will talk about that <span style="font-style: italic;">later</span>... heh! heh!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDkGHlLPwxkFrY6Rr3mfxPxj7lJCMqNTmIdOlwVtt8YLsNKewtTqBMymIGvBETTLVPf3mM-7ymH1-iRrIrTYkHjY074cDqFrwOV8sXqZGclmyBjftkTHz7bc0A5uWZ-P7-xHwQFLgc3k/s1600-h/P5200028.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDkGHlLPwxkFrY6Rr3mfxPxj7lJCMqNTmIdOlwVtt8YLsNKewtTqBMymIGvBETTLVPf3mM-7ymH1-iRrIrTYkHjY074cDqFrwOV8sXqZGclmyBjftkTHz7bc0A5uWZ-P7-xHwQFLgc3k/s400/P5200028.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368646208409983810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Moving along...</span> So our initial plan was to travel outside the city centre on our own, travelling with public transport or even drive! When we calculated the monies though - travelling to and from the city, it adds up to even more than if we go on guided tours. So we weigh the options out and decided that since we are travelling on very limited time and with very very very little money, we might as well make our monies worth and go for the cheapest, most convenient option.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" >TIP 1! </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Do not</span> pre-book your tours online - they are usually very expensive! Enquire from travel desks upon arrival and compare prices. Most of the tours offers very very similar experience and itineraries so pick the best bang for your buck! ;P<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:130%;">TIP 2!</span> </span><span>If you</span> happen to stay at a backpacker / budget hostel and want to join a tour, make sure the first place you ask is the travel desk based at your hostel. They'd usually recommend the cheapest and best tours for your money (which was not a lot for our case). And if you are one of those lucky few (like us) who look young for their age, EVEN BETTER! All you pay are student concession rates! We get to join full service Gray Line tours at a student price. Think double-deck coaches on the GOC - <span style="font-style: italic;">it can't get any better than that!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >DAY 1:</span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Explore the City on foot! Make sure you have good walking shoes on!</span><br /><br />We couldn't join any tours today because we woke up at noon on our first day in Melbourne - thanks to Biohazard II and Australian immigrations. So we had a quick brunch at McDonalds and walked into the City, towards Crown Casino complex, crossed the Yarra River, took pictures on Flinders Station and marched all the way to Federation Square. before heading back the same way we came. We also made a pitstop - because Cubbies wanted to visit her "aquatic comrades" at the Melbourne Aquarium - it was well worth it though (cos Cubbies was given "child price" for her visit... yayayayayyy!!). Some pictures here...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4HTAG6QAI0hnVYccYMh_XB4-UwwpjzJ898kLIJMvwsbcLTnbrEOifpYUH1RLJyPJG52Zxr1Ndz758ATCVHsbQa_yV6nEjYS2uUAH-3gZozH3CeQYyigtvMMYxjEeDeBQlEP4gm5FFko/s1600-h/Meebops+022.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4HTAG6QAI0hnVYccYMh_XB4-UwwpjzJ898kLIJMvwsbcLTnbrEOifpYUH1RLJyPJG52Zxr1Ndz758ATCVHsbQa_yV6nEjYS2uUAH-3gZozH3CeQYyigtvMMYxjEeDeBQlEP4gm5FFko/s400/Meebops+022.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368646206028615010" border="0" /></a>The Penguin Parade... Live from Melbourne Aquarium!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_aNsANoXv1aXC0MqFYXeV7zSppqlWzJalyq_qpHYrjVADrT9WzfuLa790nDmJs34p8YycyFTejMFk1SuCwjMkuBxcDi9TTHOfcyLZAvHTvwRT5SC2d6bo62Tmp7klYo6L58ZfhEtFsrE/s1600-h/Meebops+039.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_aNsANoXv1aXC0MqFYXeV7zSppqlWzJalyq_qpHYrjVADrT9WzfuLa790nDmJs34p8YycyFTejMFk1SuCwjMkuBxcDi9TTHOfcyLZAvHTvwRT5SC2d6bo62Tmp7klYo6L58ZfhEtFsrE/s400/Meebops+039.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368646718948468930" border="0" /></a>The river that runs through it... Yarra River running through Melbourne.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD7BGR3MshX5jfK1qE8N3GXwzF8aCHYa2N0f3-Zfh78X88SGixkf-hILxKreFpNbnrJeNDfXahNGJw1N4_IvjUoPCvzICqErjgLTOiU-y1GmlbRcFCHnuDbAVTDzo9rmxG5lYjijqrTtQ/s1600-h/P5200031.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD7BGR3MshX5jfK1qE8N3GXwzF8aCHYa2N0f3-Zfh78X88SGixkf-hILxKreFpNbnrJeNDfXahNGJw1N4_IvjUoPCvzICqErjgLTOiU-y1GmlbRcFCHnuDbAVTDzo9rmxG5lYjijqrTtQ/s400/P5200031.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368647373419312546" border="0" /></a>You can't miss the very icon for Melbournians - Flinders Street Station. The crowded, noisy, unpleasant-smelling old dame still stands tall and proud today. A visit to the CBD means passing by Flinders Street Station at least once in a day :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKB1hgRmeRJVISuhelRX8G2jpGOeQc_-qhfamXXlePGdDQEwK29eYei2qYWsl7-qhb_4hhXWiFd3uVjclY_TJeYrYJLLMZtBpoMi7oJFofR3NIGqKw6dnFLh801brP8TUvuum4sDcY3Rg/s1600-h/P5200084.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKB1hgRmeRJVISuhelRX8G2jpGOeQc_-qhfamXXlePGdDQEwK29eYei2qYWsl7-qhb_4hhXWiFd3uVjclY_TJeYrYJLLMZtBpoMi7oJFofR3NIGqKw6dnFLh801brP8TUvuum4sDcY3Rg/s400/P5200084.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368648664438181586" border="0" /></a>Directly opposite the Flinders Station is the Federation Square - which is the heart and soul of the culture and entertainment scene in downtown Melbourne. Its buzzing, full of activities like demos and people sitting around and chatting on Sundays. Fascinating :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEQabXsj5HY2VwrpWbiHA7AJG0Kjw7OFYPPDeRLjz4DA0H6JNbzWso_caBh-2zZeoMV_xrFErdGTLdX-vhnJ0jGpczWB2zX2XHzK5Qtmp10Mju_lHhxblBu-x0w8OHFTo4qrtrmJ4f5fY/s1600-h/P5200087.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEQabXsj5HY2VwrpWbiHA7AJG0Kjw7OFYPPDeRLjz4DA0H6JNbzWso_caBh-2zZeoMV_xrFErdGTLdX-vhnJ0jGpczWB2zX2XHzK5Qtmp10Mju_lHhxblBu-x0w8OHFTo4qrtrmJ4f5fY/s400/P5200087.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368648675956174834" border="0" /></a>There what did i tell ya? Demos... <span style="font-weight: bold;">LOTS OF THEM.</span> On Sundays, they get even more violent and chanted!!! Tsk...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ6L98d_vjtASZTLEp8-WOyS9ZeiVIzacCHey3n_amvs72effCCfi0Z5W5GV6U7qw4POOyK6VijbwDoMbWUOWqiBmdvltGziPYtHosQGQveQQ_XNNDGfeV02OdxolK2GN6XKz7CPikayY/s1600-h/Meebops+110.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ6L98d_vjtASZTLEp8-WOyS9ZeiVIzacCHey3n_amvs72effCCfi0Z5W5GV6U7qw4POOyK6VijbwDoMbWUOWqiBmdvltGziPYtHosQGQveQQ_XNNDGfeV02OdxolK2GN6XKz7CPikayY/s400/Meebops+110.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368648688654548850" border="0" /></a>And there you go, Crown Casino. Everything you need in ONE massive building - food, movies, entertainment, women, Cuban cigars, roulette and sin... All in one. Pretty fascinating!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNRQgJvcKWupX06tc1blaYgyXhUslAdEj6DFXMfOh8wxp2x3z6P3cXzzIGtX-DVW32m2Xg4Jqea0kVkW_9F3dTTrKAgUu0Vg7xcCm9ww73yhxr3GBeRM-zYjIJA2iVIEJ4BHMKRRj4GA/s1600-h/Meebops+140.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNRQgJvcKWupX06tc1blaYgyXhUslAdEj6DFXMfOh8wxp2x3z6P3cXzzIGtX-DVW32m2Xg4Jqea0kVkW_9F3dTTrKAgUu0Vg7xcCm9ww73yhxr3GBeRM-zYjIJA2iVIEJ4BHMKRRj4GA/s400/Meebops+140.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368652312576213266" border="0" /></a>Oh and they have night shows too. They call it... well actually i call it, "The Great Balls of Fire Show" - huge streams of fire balls burns from massive gas cylinders every night at 8pm Melb time. Can get a little intimidating really, especially when they blow right above your tiny head. <span style="font-weight: bold;">FUN FACT: </span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Did you know, that the RSPCA was petitioning to shut down the fire balls because it kills heaps of pigeons daily? </span>Love them birds and animals, but ermm... I 'd like mine roasted please ;P<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilWCPSe7SKpw6Q9Z-jyFfeu4Y-ffkkfIaQYyV3NcOosEzYohEmJvMp553nAxWqhNDAEpybWiKcS3FFFGeRNBawhsfjakyVEPpDqbJbfvwfJK_Mm5Bkpuz6Y9c0j5b_HXFm0KmK_z5LkXY/s1600-h/Meebops+130.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilWCPSe7SKpw6Q9Z-jyFfeu4Y-ffkkfIaQYyV3NcOosEzYohEmJvMp553nAxWqhNDAEpybWiKcS3FFFGeRNBawhsfjakyVEPpDqbJbfvwfJK_Mm5Bkpuz6Y9c0j5b_HXFm0KmK_z5LkXY/s400/Meebops+130.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368651135703924114" border="0" /></a>So that's pretty much what we did on Day One - woke up late because immigration took so much of our sleeping time, had brunch, enquired about tours (and pretty much booked everything we need to see in Melbourne/Victoria with a little extras here and there...), walked around, explored the city on foot and just basked in the sun and cool weather. Neat? Sure was!<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">OH! </span></span>Here's the food section for you ;) Remember we had brunch at McDonalds? And it wasn't until late that we felt the hunger pang yet again. So we went around looking for food. Someone told us that at Level 1 of the Crown Casino building, there are food available "foodcourt" style. So we went to check it out and true enough, among the food vendors and Singapore-style food court, there were probably a million other Singaporeans. Bleargh!!!!!<br /><br />So here's the food. For my Muslim friends, its very true, there are lots of halal food in Australia. You just need to find them, which thankfully, isn't very difficult.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZiczAmyfMwc8x58HTVn6OtErP12LNQmmWImOpQLRkpXVyj3QGN0J2RMM2cUZOEmeuen_Q7NWPPao7vnoQ8v7mTIcHLr_x76js_jqgopav9w-EdWSZNgbB_1N8MIfP2wX9QzNn-JhnRlk/s1600-h/Meebops+138.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZiczAmyfMwc8x58HTVn6OtErP12LNQmmWImOpQLRkpXVyj3QGN0J2RMM2cUZOEmeuen_Q7NWPPao7vnoQ8v7mTIcHLr_x76js_jqgopav9w-EdWSZNgbB_1N8MIfP2wX9QzNn-JhnRlk/s400/Meebops+138.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368985827271276882" border="0" /></a>We must be very hungry because i remember we bought 2 main complete meals and a serving of Mediterranean-hummus salad. All we took was a picture of, well, the salad ;P Go figure.<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Till our next post: </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span>DAY 2 - Billy's Bush Tea (??!) And Why You Haven't Seen Victoria If You Haven't Been On The Great Ocean Road (GOC)!</span></span></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >Cheers, mate!</span><br /></div><br /></div></div></div><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-47227861479823634662009-07-28T10:23:00.027+08:002009-08-02T16:18:04.491+08:00PHEW! What a weekend!<div align="justify"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><br />So, The Travelling Teddies went on a solo roadtrip to Malacca (yes, again...)<br /><br />Since receiving my full-fledge driving license, i have been driving around every weekend to some previously unexplored areas within Singapore with my beautiful black <a href="http://cms.perodua.com.sg/popup_images/kenari_side.gif"><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Kenari</span></a> (which Meebops affectionately named, "Little Black Bird"). I suppose being one of the travelling teddy, my insatiable lust for exploring the unknown spurred me to venture further out of this tiny island. Hence, we decided on Malacca.<br /><br />Now <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">why</span> Malacca you asked? Why not Johor Bahru (or JB they say..)? Its nearer, a lot of places we have not yet explored in JB. Makes perfect sense... but the reason is simple - we wanted to test our resilience to driving long hours, over long distances. We were thinking Kuala Lumpur, but may be stretching it a little too far. So we started small - and driving along the North-South highway for 3.5 hours (with 1 meal + toilet break) seemed more manageable for a "newbie".<br /><br />We started the journey early last Saturday - we were at the Tuas checkpoint by 8.30am and on the highway by 9.15am. Everything went smoothly and the mood was light and cheerful :) Here's our ride: </div><div align="justify"></div><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365248708356219746" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhURPgSg2ijnxK1V-KgG09wuhKLsDj7ogs0jHXUUPRTSNzjMTnSgaozkJ1Yv1ajPvjK-tdsevtpzsbjfvBs4QatsggHeHF-BUL43d8w-x-KibnmaWOzx-OWIVlj16RR6To7w1yYwzMiUcE/s400/P1060182.JPG" border="0" /> </p><p>The view of the massive badonkadonk.</p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365248726957044850" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoRIo8SBZ81gT6wyYEGqDyita2DMQuo_2ZATmG1S-1VOYxoH1s9ub6eTqvoJz_-DfrulcgP9lWJ-V79ITtuEL6h6TLHuPQynwAwRU4xRlZe_Vqyt18bpdIuatHdAcEU4cEAQrzIeuqNus/s400/P1060186.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="justify">We intent to take the first leg up to Malacca by taking turns to drive. Meebops and her "so many more years of driving experience than Cubbies" drove the first half, about 1.5 hours up to Machap rest area.<br /><br />There we had breakfast and were swarmed by very very intrusive army of annoying houseflies buzzing around your undies while you're trying to get some relief from the pent-up bladder. Not a good thing and food weren't that great either (with half of the time, you're shooing flies away). <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">NOTE:</span> <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">If driving from up-North from SG, give Machap a pass. Try Pagoh stop instead - heard it has been newly renovated. As long as its clean, fly-free and food is OK, then its good for a stop!</span><br /><br />We continued our journey after about 45 minutes of refueling our tummies and this time, Cubbies drove. It was quite overwhelming at the start because we rented the Hyundai Trajet MPV - which is essentially a HUGE car. Gave us lots of problem too... but... we'll get to that later. </p><p align="justify">Here's the "cosmetic" interior.. Don't be fooled. It's about as surprising as getting an A for a paper you didn't study for. </p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365252031415683986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhql2fUH2OF3WiMVKoIRYbaU0_Kyoaqj1eR94gZfmR94vn3MaPN0RyfAJekEPSS6aUVEx6Mo8Dq5wOrQE2s3uy6AMxDa2J5xiDNjL3P1h5_XcH2KcWKTkuX5F8d3BBdSiku8Ax2TsuJwOo/s400/P1060192.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="justify">Driving along the NSE is relatively simple because the roads are quite wide. My advice is to ALWAYS keep to the left lane, where all the good cars driving within the speed limit stick to. The speed demons drives on the right lane (which is also the "overtaking lane") and try to intimidate you if you are in their way by flashing high beams, tailgate you very very closely... so you are really better off on the left and move at a speed that you are comfortable with. Lorries will also overtake you if you are a slow coach, so do watch out for cross winds from the side, which if not careful, can steer you away off course.<br /><br />We arrived in Malacca at about 12:30pm and to the city centre at about 1:30pm. This time, because the company was larger, we decided to stay at a less "glamourous" hotel as a cheaper alternative... hehehe... So, Hotel Seven became the choice hotel - which is located at Jalan Laksamana Cheng Ho, opposite Bukit Cina. </p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365250748854597586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBgw2a9lLCoCO6DUAn9Vv6HEY2KfMiSIGaKS2AusPuRe2xY69HwPHOTlLUkNIKdpid_oJvDPWX11Re6R4ITZ-Ecv5WXYmlXR3H5ppLgVbgg3EwHQ9GOpaiNOyYgeetMCG9tDAW2MbPuJA/s400/P1060199.JPG" border="0" /> Nice clean rooms, nice new beds... Cannot yet feel the "boingness"...<br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365250755448084146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ6L3gILgvCrYe_Gfi-K_HWT9U805_7lFwhyphenhyphenBKNjjp471X4sjnRu06RMo_d0fAdcH6LZkeoD7J15tGgcbXysu6DtDv6QtkZ6Why8n38WZTWjKK_yPpNc4xVoG6cQ28qYxrNV73qRKKWRQ/s400/P1060195.JPG" border="0" /> </p><p>Clean toilets - very important for Cubbies, cos she have had enough experience and memories of dirty, grimy toilets to last her a lifetime. Travel with her, and the first thing she'll ask, <em>"Are the toilets clean?...."</em> Hehe..</p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365250760580953922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH09FdDbnHP9V0hm_G0bo7d-RCxXqpCYYe9OCW7dXmtQa8xT2sQC26_owMimqFmu6hkoHTchi-aq9bnwKZ6Jp6RtXDF9x2jxVxwUwpsb0zZEg2LIbhICidpCjAIm9KeE2JI-17W2JadDs/s400/P1060198.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="justify">Now, location wise, this hotel is a little inconvenient for people who don't drive (about 20 minutes walk to city centre) but what it lacks in terms of location, it makes up for the fact that it is new, and therefore SQUEEAKY clean. The rooms are no-frills, no-nonsense with basic amenities. May i remind you that it is new but i am absolutely in love with the fact that it comes with a smaller pricetag but very very clean (so, i just hope they stay that way!) because a clean room makes me a happy cubby :)<br /><br />Just right next to the hotel is the famous <strong>Sop Lembu Tangkak</strong> restaurant - which pleasantly is halal-certified. So that became the outlet where we drown our joys and sorrows. Honestly, it was. It was the beefy version of Central Perks. Oh and when you're there, do get the Honey Lemon drink - its UDDERLY good and refreshing.. HA!</p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365252870718771426" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSob0TH6M_8HdgbOykOLXbfCoyHzFowCGoYHpT8T0m528GmJCH9mExv3xFnEBwXH_h89w8GhyRnZFnIaM5NwCB601O6c-TAGZeVZkxjEhkzBCFH7u3n0sTKYyaj7F9tv73FKV2ADXLbdY/s400/P1060265.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365252881657106738" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_tyuusKE95RZc8FKLdo4AUPHI-ZPz71IG1E6oXxBzGGwMODypB8HAa3U7WzPXKX2hT4Xdu797XYt5hUN-nOXoTmP8E8UWzpp1bIy272HL9KOE5Lri9GcJ4Keq0Fh_OCKsLbO1AmdAKUY/s400/P1060266.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="justify">Anyway, after about an hour or so of resting and prayers, we set out to explore Malacca. By this time, most of us are hungry and our main aim was to look for food! It was rather disappointing really cos one of us wanted so much to try the Asam Pedas recommended by her pal - which we later found out was called<span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"> Asam Pedas Selera Kampung </span>but it only operates until noon - by the time lunch hour is over, the food would've been sold out. So we settled for some very expensive but non too tasty food at the foodcourt - which is really just a waste of calories.<br /><br />Another disappointment is the constant heavy traffic in Malacca city centre and especially on Saturday evenings where peeps from KL and SG visit the city with their four-wheelers. <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Driving is NOT fun in Malacca city</span>. What will normally take you 10 minutes to walk, will take you 45 minutes by car.<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-STYLE: italic">BEAR NOTES:</span> <span style="color:#000000;">If you do drive, you are better off parking your car at either the major hotels like Equitorial or at Pahlawan Mall and then walk all over the city centre - starting from Dataran Pahlawan to Melaka Raya and Mahkota, along the river and finish off at Jonker Street for a nice bowl of Chendol.</span><br /><br />Then we were off to Jonker by the time night falls. We didn't want to go to Aunty's chendol this time round so went further and queued at this very very insanely popular cafe, called the Museum Cafe, that has endless queues for both its Laksa and Chendol. <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">What's the hype anyway? </span>God knows, so we tried this time round, adamant and joined the never-ending queue. </p><div align="justify"></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365253615934209842" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKRle5jRFdFMnom8OYz83tTcC7X4GN0_P_XwISBRjz48qccJqX_egLY3Etb7ZPq1M9PSjAyz-AEy4kbx27OfT4WhceDzTcINX7t7jRIYO7j4Q_mzVmd8GJ8AsPHrpUHTd9YLXrLpHDeTw/s400/P1060207.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="justify">Sad to say, i think way too many people has poor taste buds that they are unable to differentiate the real goodness of <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Gula Melaka</span>. GM is supposed to be sweet, very sweet, potent, aromatic and just very lightly earthy. The GM at Museum Cafe is sweet, but way too thick and has a bitter aftertaste, almost burnt! The coconut cream is less consistent and less concentrated than the ones i've tried before this. <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic;font-size:130%;" >So why? Why the very very long queue?</span> *shakes head*<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">The best part of the ENTIRE journey came right after this.</span><br /><br />We were out buying supper for the rest of us, when the MPV we rented from a certain someone broke down. Mind you, it didn't just break down - it broke down in the middle of night (at 11.30pm) at some place we don't even know where!<br /><br />To cut the long night short, we only got back to the hotel at 3am after we met a group of very helpful Indian guys who jump-started the car. What a nightmare! Nobody was willing to help really, even though they see distress. There was this uncle, Malay man, who put up his hand and said, "<span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Sori puan, kita tak boleh tolong lagi... Takde apa yang kita boleh buat. Sori puan.."</span> (Kapla hotak kau berjambul pakcik...) Anyway, we had to camp out in the car and wait for the engine to fire up before turning it off and see if it starts again. All that took our entire night. Naturally, supper was to-go, in the car.</p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365262922385414034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4DjKQxMsX_48rA7QWSa5VhS45WUnUGMmxE2vRX7LXZouqpp_1cQf0iLuug0oUsIsgvOdEvzOY02sHyECWSJVCehF1pxtxHq7eU16_xI8ANEOT4xuOtYkWbaXlnEhKGFvUVrNDia5mKXo/s400/P1060217.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="justify">By the time we get to bed, all was good. We managed to get some breakfast the next morning. One of us again, craved for the local Asam Pedas. So we did, drove all the way to Bandar Hilir near Mahkota Parade, where <strong>Asam Pedas Selera Kampung</strong> is. </p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365264501789629554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD5lSBRQlzMw2EwjvAplfA96ZLh9j8WT43uOySpV6yIzCijGKBuISU_BoChRbKoaf3Jqw0FdLZNCTQYMKKIZoRAs5VVubskESV5MTBUMvzJKCLrAi9NKb-ec5rny70QvquqU5hdzqu8-Y/s400/P1060262.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="justify">The famous asam pedas kepala ikan. Slightly tangy, spicy... the difference is the black pepper added to the gravy.</p><p align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365264534063025186" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7_S7EauPcKmw0zxJqw1f60Rxyywow3sXrdwJ_qhEiIF5-qynYRqGDeAM4JUx-QrxdYXZ3PuBwFYwdSX_CnMh2a1D2P2pDVA6ZPnOHFEYr8omcvRJcWSjwgFnRw1xZtg_f-DuJWyPaENw/s400/P1060241.JPG" border="0" />Giant King Prawns... A whopping RM20 PER prawn. Errrgh! Expensive.</p><p align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365264506744539970" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3zmdCw2hFOAW-CbvtPmS8HkZ_adrWaNSOUwhXKc0a-GA1FuQrcT9zDO9OQmckiLZblaUs2QzfNZlBnuIaB23Fn0v4RJbVkajERpp1lNruUd7x7192_QUMWMOkaQG0MhM1m1lEgaaAtAE/s400/P1060230.JPG" border="0" />Sambal Belachan. This one is a classic malay appetiser dish. Its chilli, shallots, fried shrimp paste - mix it up, ground it down and you get a concoction that's truly, an acquired taste. Normally eaten with rice and raw vegetables.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365264522921412034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdhsVnxyXWVYmE_Yji0dXLBcipapmPepTsSdPZREybY4AGafSgiidHlvTWdnDbWhyQ0WoULzF5kvlnN5ySh_bOMQXhfJUzwUqh3Bjj4J4C2VPBoDspiLbW_MTJy5hqla6w07hD94Y5z2o/s400/P1060232.JPG" border="0" /> The sambal belachan should be eaten with these raw vegetables.</p><p align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365264515973355042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaKoIHDy6JVN3BOHyUycIDYPe19Yp2RO9PlfWG-xMQRYJakC88Ge7jPbo1uGRv56nzHXLiuW_zqGWC5rHfWu1KnOv4BDHy6_XtDQmsXQ5qF1nC1P_z11RJ9HXAEP8tllZuqmAUFgrCChY/s400/P1060234.JPG" border="0" />Nothing much to shout about honestly. Annoyingly expensive is what it is - some prawns, veggies, asam pedas costs us a whopping RM 124 for breakfast. What the... </p><p align="justify">All the hype with Asam Pedas in Malacca can only question the true meaning of taste buds. Like hearts, whose can you trust? Yours only of course! S0 just go with your gut and try try try until you hit the purrrfect spot. Meebops and i however have developed the "similar taste bud syndrome" after being together for more than 7 years. Hee! Hee! :) <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Yeah it happens...</span><br /><br />Supposed to leave for home that afternoon so all ready packed and checked out there was car trouble again... <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">treeet treeeeeeeeeet treeeeeeeettit tit tit... </span>That was how it sounded like when we turned on the ignition. So we had to call in certain people that the owner of this car knows and get someone to jump-start the car, then drive it to the workshop to get whatever thingy repaired.<br /><br />Apparently, the battery died flat (didn't he check his stupid car before renting it out???) and the IC-Unit, some electricity-aircon-alternator thingamagic (god knows what that is...) burnt. I had to fork out RM 400 to get the battery changed but we decided to keep the IC-Alternator thing intact and by the "expert" advice of the owner, to drive the car back home anyway.<br /><br />So we did... But the mechanic didn't let us leave without a <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(255,0,0)">warning</span>. He said, <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">"You are taking a very big risk. I dunno whether you'll make it back to SG safely but you can try. The least you can do right now is wind down the windows, turn off the AC and no radio or headlights should be turned on... Just drive straight back."</span><br /><br />He is definitely crazy! By the time we left the workshop, it was already 5.30pm. Expecting us to not turn on the headlights on the highway is like asking us to cross the mountains blindfolded! But we decided to take the risk, went for the gusto and drove home. Bear in mind, the IC unit damaged/burnt and electricity cannot pass through the car properly - hence, causing further damage to the system and at the same time, do not charge the battery. But we drove... happy to be able to finally get home.<br /><br />Drove drove drove.... suddenly,<span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"> BOOMBAM!</span></span> Just few hundred metres before we reached the start of the highway at Ayer Keroh, it felt like as though the car hit something big and hard, like a big rock or something. I was literally off my seat and chills went down my spine upon hearing the ferocity of the loud bang.<br /><br />We pulled over to the nearest civilisation (which was McDonald's Ayer Keroh) to check the car. Nothing... Then we tried again. This time, no more <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">treeet treeeeeeeeeet treeeeeeeettit tit tit... </span>There was complete silence. God knows what went wrong. It was only later that someone told us the was a possibility of the car exploding without our knowledge because the electricity is unsecured.<br /><br />And we didn't even get any insurance for the trip. I don't know why we decided to help out and send the car for repair on his behalf (stupid stupid stupid!).<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">BLEARGH!!!</span> We couldn't get it fixed and we couldn't get any other form of transport home that night. So we had to fork out MORE money to stay another night in Malacca. The owner of the car wasn't even sensitive enough to refund us of the night's stay or offer comfort for causing us emotional distress. It's pathetic. I am still fuming mad that we had to fork out a lot of money for a supposedly budget vacation. It's just plain stupid.<br /><br />It is only after this unfortunate incident that i realise something about myself. I always thought that the Malays are more willing and helpful, ready to give helping hand to others. I've dealt with so many Malays in Malaysia before, both personally as well as professionally. They seemed nice.<br /><br />But that night also made me realise, that some of the most helpful people in Malaysia are those of the other races - the Indians, the Chinese... friendly, down to earth.<br /><br />Note from the boy who camwhored himself: <em><span style="font-size:130%;">Nak drive gi KL????? Hehehehe!</span></em> </p><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365267318962927922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc647KOl2xHbro2Id9eKQjznBFlohljgxhf6SN-TX7hYeeVjah8bRinrupOaYKaQ3fgmTxyACDyXGzSaqHcWToasqCVlpVMq0YFT0k-CMGHnRHYceodFZvnAYzahRretg5GZ78RfBe9IM/s400/P1060254.JPG" border="0" /></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify">Oh and to top off the adventure, Malacca City was flooded before we left it... Go figure. Probably crying that we're leaving.. Bah! </div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365267328177398322" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtpieZHfpUvkGiO1WAiGomXGEUkckhKDPXLeg73-Z92neS6sOsv-rll56SZDw2tqhMUyOQXDT5Sm7eCbjKXO_h09H9uCjFcmFwx_lIKcSJ40nObRiRSCq-x_E2-qSg-Z2gq1ssCavKzSc/s400/P1060270.JPG" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-60756879616872551732009-07-20T13:27:00.001+08:002009-07-20T13:27:08.272+08:00The Daily SHOOT! - Churning of the Sea of Milk<div style="text-align: left; padding: 3px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/3074162422/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3193/3074162422_bc9480530f.jpg" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" alt="" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/3074162422/">P6270490</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/thetravellingteddies/">tgtwb</a>.</span></div><p>Pathway to one of the most famous bas-reliefs in Angkor Wat; this is the route to the display of the Churning of the Sea of Milk reliefs carved onto stone at the main complex of the Angkor Wat. <br /><br />We were very lucky that this picture was snapped when no one was walking around the alley. Reason for this? We were there in the morning! We told Mr. Tuk-Tuk driver, we wanted him to fetch us at 7am. He was wide-eyed in disbelief - even though at that point, we can't tell whether it was a good thing or some bad sign! :)<br /><br />Turns out, it was bad for him (cos he had to wake up early!) and a good thing for us! Ha! Ha!</p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-33420107186840176192009-07-16T15:01:00.011+08:002009-07-17T15:36:06.349+08:00Can We Live On...<span style="font-weight: bold;">Grrrowl!!!</span><br /><br />Oh my my my... I haven't blogged for (24 June - 17 July = 7 days???) ... Nah... I haven't blogged since 24 June, which makes it about 22 days now! Arrrgh...<br /><br />I've been really busy with stuff at work and some other stuff i can't say on this blog - sometimes i wish i can just disappear! Not die or anything, that will be bad - but just<span style="font-size:180%;"> poof! </span>disappear... He! He! Many times i envisioned a cute little cubby bear sitting atop a pristine white lump of cloud, alone, with legs and hands crossed, smiling down saying,<span style="font-style: italic;"> haha... i don't want to do that anymore and no can tell me i shoul</span><span style="font-style: italic;">d! Hmmph!...</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8tuOpEZjRKonHyAKBn3gMsk7cnZ4CThI7HzhbKZZIGch2qZjpSpQb40KJEHwkMR6_pF8vHom5odNjVfkaS3K_EIZeOJFB2uzsAY0jKc5uUjy-Gdm9a1Zx5OGCWSEhHEHg_5EmciLiPkE/s1600-h/cute_baby_boy_bear_on_cloud_photosculpture-p153333851097869320qdjh_400.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8tuOpEZjRKonHyAKBn3gMsk7cnZ4CThI7HzhbKZZIGch2qZjpSpQb40KJEHwkMR6_pF8vHom5odNjVfkaS3K_EIZeOJFB2uzsAY0jKc5uUjy-Gdm9a1Zx5OGCWSEhHEHg_5EmciLiPkE/s200/cute_baby_boy_bear_on_cloud_photosculpture-p153333851097869320qdjh_400.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5359322912083662418" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Kinda like this one right here, only i am much much cuter than that.<span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /><br />So i'm thinking if i can disappear, where is the next best place that i can disappear to? Another country perhaps? Another state? Another city?... then i read somewhere that all those smart people called "Scientist" are researching the possibility of humans (Cubbies included...) living on "alternative planets" - which is really, 8 other planets besides Earth.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Now wouldn't that be fascinating?</span><br /><br />I mean, really... can we live on....... SPACE? Space explorations and travel have always fascinated me and wouldn't it be just exciting for us to start a new life, on some planet we barely know, doing everything from scratch?<br /><br />You see, there are nine planets in the Solar systems, with Earth being the only one with the perfect balance of everything - good amount of natural gases, liquid water (safe for human consumption), wind, air, food. The other eight are Pluto, Mars, Venus Mercury, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Saturn.<br /><br />We can't possibly live on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mars</span> because it is too cold and there's too much carbon dioxide. Sure we can use all those high-tech gadgets to sustain life but who's gonna stay indoors with a helmet on for oxygen all the time. Not sexy.... And on Mars, gravity pull is only a mere 38% as strong as earth, so we will need to wear special shoes to keep our weight and balance on the ground. But most importantly, the atmosphere offers very little protection against things falling from the sk<style>- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"MS Mincho"; panose-1:2 2 6 9 4 2 5 8 3 4; mso-font-alt:"MS 明朝"; mso-font-charset:128; mso-generic-font-family:modern; mso-font-pitch:fixed; mso-font-signature:-1610612033 1757936891 16 0 131231 0;} @font-face {font-family:"\@MS Mincho"; panose-1:2 2 6 9 4 2 5 8 3 4; mso-font-charset:128; mso-generic-font-family:modern; mso-font-pitch:fixed; mso-font-signature:-1610612033 1757936891 16 0 131231 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"MS Mincho"; mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;}</style>y. So that can't be good.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Pluto</span> is really, just too small and we don't even know how the surface on Pluto looked like.<span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Venus</span>, too hot, great ball of molten fire. We wouldn't wanna end up wearing thick hot-suits all our lives now would we.<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Mercury</span> on the other hand, has no water, no air, no atmosphere... (that can't be good for the soul either). Why would anyone wanna live on a planet that has no atmosphere? That's just nuts!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jupiter </span>has too much gas - hydrogen, helium (yup, the laughing one!) and too many strong winds and hurricanes. We'd be flying all over - so that's not good either. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Uranus</span> is too cold, too windy and too much poisonous gas. Like Uranus and Jupiter, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Saturn</span> is also nothing but a big ball of gas... now who wants to live on gas?<br /><br />Last but not least, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Neptune</span>. Neptune are cousins to Uranus, Jupiter and Saturn and all those other gas guys... 'nuff said.<br /><br /><span>So now, the question is,</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> how come only Earth is suitable for humans and animals? </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">C</span><span style="font-style: italic;">ould there be other living things on other planets that we cannot see? </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">As we speak, are there any forms of life checking out our planet and see whether its liveable for them?</span> <span style="font-size:85%;">(maybe only to find that there's just too much crap and pollution for their kind to live in.. hehe)</span><br /></div><br />Maybe. But one thing for sure, it is amusing yet calming to know how Earth has everything the other eight planets have but all in small moderation. Well, Earth is the only planet in the solar system where one can explore all that it can offer without the need to use a gas mask, a thick suit... heck, you can even explore Earth with nothing on! That's the beauty of Planet Earth - the planet we live in!<br /><br />So who says there are no perfection in this world?<br /><br />At least Earth is... Perfect for us :) <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">So take care of it because it belongs to you!</span></span><br /><br /><a href="http://s315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/?action=view&current=cubbies2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll456/thetravellingteddies/cubbies2-1.jpg" alt="Photobucket" border="0" /></a>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-26165477513133592142009-06-24T15:41:00.001+08:002009-06-24T15:41:09.536+08:00The Daily SHOOT! - Disneyland, Hong Kong<div style="text-align: left; padding: 3px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2140443203/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2201/2140443203_98d22a43af.jpg" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" alt="" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2140443203/">Disneyland, Hong Kong</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/thetravellingteddies/">tgtwb</a>.</span></div><p>Ok so Meebops have to take the credit for this one cos she was the one who snapped the camera... Ain't it cool??? Blue, black and gold :)<br /><br />This was taken at Hong Kong Disneyland. The fireworks was (and probably still is) the final act of the day - like a premiere before closing time. At that time, the fireworks display started at about 8pm (HKG Time).<br /><br />Sure they have fireworks display every night, but it can get very very crowded. And the schedule changes with the season. Usually it is between 8pm and 9pm, depending on how much daylight you're saving ;)<br /><br />Hong Kong Disneyland is a small 100 acres theme park. My advice is to just set aside 1 day for a visit. I believe they have 2 days, 3 days pass but you need only 1 because of its small size. <br /><br />To get there, you either take a train, a bus, a cab from the city or stay over for the night at the Hollywood Hotel (where we stayed!) and have everything shaped like good ol' Mickey's head - from bed posts to the pool, even your pasta!!! <br /><br />Stunning for lovers of Mickey and Disney cartoons! :)</p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-40976071748966285282009-06-18T17:55:00.001+08:002009-06-18T17:55:58.705+08:00The Daily SHOOT! - Bayon Temple, Cambodia<div style="text-align: left; padding: 3px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/3073346085/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3146/3073346085_66d27545e3.jpg" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" alt="" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/3073346085/">Hope</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/thetravellingteddies/">tgtwb</a>.</span></div><p>I call this "Hope Is Alive"! Amazing contrast in colours don't you think...<br /><br />The Bayon is another one of those famous temples of Angkor in Cambodia. As you know, the Bayon temple's unique feature are the massive sculptures of stone faces on several towers (i have a t-shirt with only the Bayon temple on it!). <br /><br />It is also one of those temples where EVERYONE wants a picture taken with the 3 faces (facing South, East and West). So if you are there, be sure to snap fast or face the wrath of evil eyes from other travellers!</p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3528199606674579298.post-41310351468222991662009-06-17T09:13:00.001+08:002009-06-17T09:13:17.663+08:00The Daily SHOOT! - Budapest, Hungary<div style="text-align: left; padding: 3px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2141231410/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2057/2141231410_9698c0ec91.jpg" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" alt="" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetravellingteddies/2141231410/">Budapest, Hungary</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/thetravellingteddies/">tgtwb</a>.</span></div><p>A day at the museum in Budapest, Hungary.<br /><br />God knows where this was anyway (Gasp! I forgot to take notes!) but it was waaaayyyy back in 2005 when we were there. I know its Hungary, and in Budapest - just not sure where this was. Maybe, they were in the castle...<br /><br />Anyway, these soldiers were pretty intimidating. Almost life-like... just without soul and flesh. They had other medieval exhibits around as well. Very fascinating!<br /><br />PS: Avoid Europe (and esp. Hungary) in June and July... Its bleedin' hot and in July especially, is their Formula-1 Racing season. If you are a fan, then by all means. But if you are not, hotel rooms will cost you an arm, a leg and both your front and back pockets too. We paid GBP 99 per night, at a former monastery, 15 minutes bus ride into city centre! Daylight robbery? Indeed!!!</p>The Travelling Teddies...http://www.blogger.com/profile/06944783789579307422noreply@blogger.com0