The Holiday - Aussie Style (Part 2)

Day 5: Sydney - Here We Come!

This poster compliments me larr... Hehe!

Flew a Qantas domestic flight to Sydney & reached there at about 1pm.

And we simply luuurve our room at Hilton Sydney!

We got a room on Level 38, mind you! Fantastic views of the city. The shopping & makan areas are spread nicely around the hotel too. So good location!

After cam-whoring a bit in the room, we went to check out Queen Victoria Building, which is just opposite the hotel. The stuff sold there are kinda upmarket & the structure of the building reminds me of those in Melbourne. We got hungry & thought of an early dinner. Took a taxi (coz we were tired of figuring out the map) & proceed to The Rocks! Fairoz told me to try this eatery called Pancakes on The Rocks. We ordered Chicken & Mushroom crepe, a bowl of nachos & a side salad. Not forgetting Devil's Delight, which consist of 2 chocolate pancakes, topped with chocolate ice-cream, strawberries & chocolate drizzle! Yummy yum yum!

After the sumptuous dinner, we walked down to Sydney Opera House & Sydney Harbour Bridge. It was a lovely sight....I wish THAT someone was around but I enjoyed Liah's company too. We talked about life, future..stuff like that. :)

Then it's to Hard Rock Cafe next! My sis was bugging me to get something for her from Hard Rock's collectibles. I already bought myself a shirt from Hard Rock Melbourne so I just got her one from Sydney's. Walked back to Hilton Sydney, put our stuff in the room & head downstairs to Zeta Bar for drinks. There was a small alfresco area at the bar where you can see the Queen Victoria Building smacked right in front. Beautiful....

Day 6: Shopping & Bondi-ing.

After breakfast, we went to Paddy's Market, near Chinatown. Most of the shops are selling the same stuff, it's like Bugis Market actually. I got my bro a shirt & 2 mats for my mom. Then to Pitt St (which is just beside Hilton Sydney) for serious shopping! Bought a few tops, a pair of jeans & a bangle!

And we had Krispy Kreme! The doughnuts are soft & tasty. Best larr!

Bondi Beach to look for surfer dudes! I wanna get a house there too. :)

By the time we got back to the city, it was rather late & we were so hungry! You see, we had a big breakfast at the hotel & doughnuts for like lunch cum tea time. After so much walking & braving the cold wind throughout the day, we could eat like carnivores! Liah & I decided to get take-aways & enjoy them in the comfort of our gorgeous room. :)

I had lahmachun (Turkish styled pizza), Liah bought a kebab & then we were craving for sushi! Buy 2 sushi & get 1 free. We were greedy lar....so we got 6! We were struggling to finish them! Haha... Heavy dinner but a good one!

Day 7: Blue Mountains & Jenolan Caves

Liah & I would take pics EVERY morning by our room's windows. It's nice to see the bright & sunny view of the city. I especially like the above, first on the left pic of myself by the glass window. Even Helmi said I looked good. Now...it's not easy to get REAL compliments from Helmi, ok. :) Anyway, we waited to be picked up for our tour to Blue Mountains & Jenolan Caves after breakfast. The journey to see the mountains took about 2 hrs from Sydney. We had 2 handsome Italian men sitting behind us in the coach. They were talking so loudly that I couldn't catch a proper nap. Tsk!

Blue Mountains & The 3 Sisters. Whoa....

It took another hour to reach Jenolan Caves from Blue Mountains. The cave tour was interesting AT FIRST. Liah & I got bored somehow & we were yawning non stop. Haha! I felt a lil claustrophobic being in the caves for too long. 2 hours, ley! We climbed up... walked down the small steps. Gosh...this holiday is really testing my stamina!

Was thinking of dinner at Hungry Jack (the logo is EXACTLY like Burger King's) on our way back to Sydney. We dropped at Darling Harbour & gladly saw an Oporto outlet there. Oporto is this famous fast food chain in Australia that serves flame-grilled chicken & burgers larr. I had a Bondi Burger Meal (How Sydney-ish is that!) & Liah had 1/4 chicken meal, dipped in Oporto's special chili sauce. Just beside Oporto, I saw Cold Rock ice cream parlour! Marc told me before how wonderful their ice-cream is. So, it's another must try!

I only understood the tagline AFTER I got my cuppa...

I chose Double Chocolate ice-cream & cookie dough as the topping. The staff then placed the ice-cream on a cold board, (Liah said it's ice. I'm not sure either) add the cookie dough on top of the ice-cream & started to "smash" & mix it with the ice-cream! I'm impressed!

Still mixing...making sure it blended nicely for dearest me.....

It's almost like Ben & Jerry's! Just that I see the making of the cookie dough chocolate ice-cream live at Cold Rock! Hehe~

Our last night in Sydney. Kinda sad to leave....

Day 8: Home Sweet Home

So it's our last day in our gorgeous room! What else can we do besides making the best out of the camera, the room & myself! I like my outfit AND the poses. Haha...feeling model for a while. And Hamsa said I'm not photogenic enough. Such audacity! *Laughs out loud*

Thank God our luggage didn't exceed the allowance of 20kg!

I insisted on grabbing a bite before boarding our flight back. The food served on planes are usually sucky anyway. I was happy...that I got my favourites. I couldn't ask for more. Starbucks' Mint Latte (Starbucks in S'pore only carry mint syrup during Christmas worr), Jester's beef & mushroom pie & Krispy Kreme's Easter bun! Who cares about calories..for now at least. :) And guess what Liah ate? Oporto's fries & special chili sauce!

A trip with all the delicious food!

Goodbye Australia & welcome home to us.....

Liah: We shall make our JB outing come true, ok? Insyallah. And where are we going next? Though you are such a camera whore & couldn't get directions right for Heaven's sake, I still wanna travel with you again larr...*winks*

The Holiday - Aussie Style (Part 1)

I am back from Australia! Touched down safely on Sunday at about 9.30pm. My dearest colleagues & friends are dying to see the pics that Liah & I took. This gonna be a long blog & I planning on 3 episodes. First will be on Melbourne, then Sydney & lastly, a bonus one on what I got for myself from my holiday! I know the last part seems duh but I really like all the stuff I shopped. :)


Day 1: The Major Sent Off

My family sent me to Changi Airport & it was really sweet of Helmi, Chandran, Daniel & Eve to see us too, right after their busy morning shift. Suliana came as well! I got nice wishes from Daphne, Frankie & Naz for me to enjoy the trip. Though I must admit I was hoping for THAT someone to appear or at least, give me a call, the hope was just in my dreams. Oh well, nothing beats my lovely friends & family. It's just a someone anyway.

They represented the entire Front Office lar... Helmi gave me & Liah a packet of nasi sambal goreng each! He's an OBEK I never had! Haha!

My Bedah rushed from her family outing to see me off! She almost teared when she hugged me. Aaww~

And they all waved...wishing that they can fit into our luggage & follow us to Australia. Helmi: I know you were making fun of me & Liah! That explained their glee!

Day 2 : Welcome to Melbourne!

Arrived in Melbourne at 5.30am. Stayed at this hostel called Urban Central. Didn't have much of a choice coz it seems that the entire Melbourne city hotels are full. Imagine me & Liah with our trolleys in a hostel...Haha! Lotsa cute backpackers though...

We have to wait for check-in till about 2pm so we freshen up at the hostel, stored our luggage & head out to explore the city. The weather is cool yet sunny. Shiok!

And I saw a Singapore Chomp Chomp!

Fairoz recommended fries at this place. It's nice but the serving is huge! I bet 4 persons can share a box of fries! Basically, it's home-styled cut potatoes, deep fried & you can choose a variety of sauces to go along. Yummy but kinda overwhelming.

London Stores...in Melbourne. :)

I love the sights of the Victorian buildings. I stood at a busy junction along Bourke St & Swanson St (the main shopping belts) for awhile & just admire the surroundings. I know where I wanna go for my next holiday....Spain or Italy, please!

After shopping, we walked back to Urban Central to check in. Took a short nap & went to St. Kilda's Pier. Sighs...it's such a serene place to be at. The sky is clear, the water is blue & I felt so at ease.

St. Kilda's Pier before and during sunset.

Had dinner along the pier. We were starving! We ate at a cafe called BeachCombers. The view was great larr...Food was good too. Liah & I shared a plate of pasta & fried calamari. We then made our way back to the hostel for an early night. Tired from all the walking & sleepless flight!

Day 3: Great Ocean Road

When I went to Melbourne 7 years ago, I remembered Great Ocean Rd. I told Liah that she had to see the 12 Apostles if she comes to Melbourne. So we bought a 1 day tour...enjoyed the road trip & the company of Bernie! Bernie is the driver AND the tour guide too. He was making fun of Liah the whole time & even nicknamed us the Singapore girls. Haha!

The houses along Great Ocean Road. Aren't they amazing??

Oh yeah, Liah & I took a helicopter ride to view the 12 Apostles! My virgin ride worr... :)

Bernie man & I!

Day 4: Shopping..& walk, walk, WALK!

Actually, the plan was to go for 1 more tour on our last day in Melbourne. Unfortunately, the tour we wanted wasn't available. Had brunch at Brunetti's, along Swanson St & then to the Shrine of Remembrance. Gosh, I read the map wrongly & we ended up walking for a good 90 mins! It could have just took about 20 mins to reach the Shrine, ley. Then we thought of Queen Victoria Market but it's closed on Mondays & Wednesdays! Geez...God didn't want me to spend I think. Went to a souvenir shop called "Something Aussie" instead & had coffee at Hudson's. Walked AGAIN & realised we were back at Swanson St. Liah & I must have combed the entire city! Shopped for a bit, had a North Indian dinner at one of the food courts, drank Boost juice & back to the hostel. Couldn't wait for Sydney!

Going Down Under

After almost a month of alternate morning & night shifts, I'm finally on my way to...my 11 Days leave!! This week especially, was a gruelling one. Started work at 7am & only finished between 5 or 6 plus in the evening. On top of that, I had errands to run. Haha...could be avoided but I don't want to. Errands like meeting my cousin for coffee (with updates on his Australia trip!), accompanying Sue to do her brows (sounds girlish, I know), settling my so-hard-to-plan holiday...& shopping for my personal groceries! At least, I ended my last morning shift swee-swee just now. I got off work before 5pm, ley! That's like once in a bright blue moon! Hamsa wasn't free to meet up so I decided to head Balik Kampung Spa for a retreat! I need a massage badly....so much that I told the therapist to give me a body scrub, foot massage AND a hot stone massage. Shiok larr... I'm letting go of my work stresses for awhile & allowing the holiday mood to set in.....Hehe~

So, let's now talk about my upcoming holiday...which starts tomorrow! I'll be going to Australia with Liah for 8 days! The planning of this whole trip wasn't easy...but I hope everything will go smoothly over there. Initially, supposed to be on group tour but due to LOADS of unforseen circumstances, we'll be on F & E instead. So...pray for my safety & insyallah, I'll be back next Sunday. :)

And then, I finally plucked the courage to ask someone something just now. But that someone hasn't get back to me yet. Geez....hopefully, I can have the reply before I board the flight to Australia tomorrow. Liah warned me already...that no matter what, I have to enjoy my trip. I HAVE TO....coz the trip cost me my entire bonus! I'll be so broke when I come back. :(

Well..till then...good day, mate!

A Movie-Weekend

Not often I watched 2 movies in a weekend. I caught "Music & Lyrics" with Fizah yesterday & "In Pursuit of Happyness" with Suliana today. The movies are alright...but I prefer the later one. It's based on a true story & personally, I like inspiring movies. Romantic ones are fine too..provided it's not tooo cheesy until it's somewhat unrealistic. :) Last week I watched "300" with Hamsa...& it was gory (is there such a word?). The show was full of blood scenes & honestly, war movies make me depressed. Haha...I mean, like life isn't bad enough, you know.

After the movie yesterday, Fizah took me to Ice Cold Beer for drinks. My first time to that place & it was packed with people of the conference industry. I must admit that I felt a bit intimidated! Then we head to MOS, which was a mistake (most boring night ever!). Not for long, Fizah suggested going to Attica. Not bad...shall get Nickole & Liah to party there soon. Hehe!

Thanks Helmi, for the luggage! Hope everything fits. One more week... I'm excited for the trip AND for THAT as well. How do I get down to it, ah? Hhmmm~

Attack Of The Chocoholics!

Had another nice evening with my ex-colleague & colleagues just now. Sadiq (who's at Four Seasons now), Liah, Rynn & myself went for dinner at Thai Express & a generous round of desserts at Coffee Club. We decided to go to Holland Village (my suggestion!) since it was so crowded at town. It's been some time since we catch things up with Sadiq.... :) And for the later part of this entry...it's a tribute to Nickole actually (aka the Chocolate Queen). Haha! I'm sure she'll be hopping mad & drooling about her fav Movenpick ice- cream after this!

Picture taking before the arrival of the Thai dishes. Poor Sadiq has shed some weight!

Pad Thai. Yummy, juicy & oily....

The famous Boyanese clan. We miss out Helmi & Zaini larr....

My 3rd Coffee Club session at Holland Village in a span of 2 weeks! I told you I'm loving that place!

Each of us had an individual plate of dessert! It was a night full of sins (for all those sugar content) & chocolate fetish. Nickole: DO NOT copy the above pic, ok? Oh yah...Suelyn & I just had Haagen Daaz yesterday. Hehe!

Boasting & posing with our desserts! Nickole: These pics are THEN for you! Hahaha! *evil grin*

Blogger Under The Weather

I'm not feeling well....almost a week already. First, It was fever. Then I'm down with a very bad cough. Had stomach upset (Toilet sessions for 5 times....my knees going weak!) ...I don't even dare to eat anything. Someone asked me to drink carrot or orange juice for Vit C & commented that I am so lazy to even see the doctor. :) Anyway, I had no choice but to visit Raffles Medical just now...

My stomach wind medicine is called Aromatic Magnesium Carbonate. Hmmmm~

Off Day...Again~

Thanks to the great Governor, I have to be on off today. It's like...I was just off last Thursday & Friday, you know. And I have to stretch till next week! Bloody hell....

Met Fizah to return her the dresses I borrowed for Conrad D & D last month. Stayed for awhile at her place before dropping by Holland V to have a light dinner & coffee. It's the 2nd time in a week that I had Coffee Club at Holland V. And I sat at the very same seats! I tell you, I'm beginning to love the Coffee Club outlet there & I shall name it as THE place to go whenever I head Holland V! I like the songs they play & it's just so comfy to chill with my friends. Don't worry...I'm not forsaking Starbucks as yet!

Liah has made her move on someone but the outcome wasn't that fantastic, lar. Not fantastic in a sense that..It wasn't something she wanted but, apparently she's cool with it. Sighs...I wonder how mine will turn out. No.. I'm not gonna blog about it or divulge any info now...or maybe ever. Helmi is kind enough to give we girls tips but I guess I'm not up for it. Like so not me. :) Thanks anyway, Helmi!

My first Fidelio Training tomorrow! Wish me luck, pray patience will be with me & drink lotsa water!