Previously @ Down Under…

25.12.2009 (Day 3), Sydney  - It was Christmas, I took a flight back to Brisbane via Jetblue. The flights were packed and reached within an hour 25 mins. Cab was expensive but luckily I booked the airtrain online (CBD Transferin advance since there's a 10% discount. As I walked out from the arrival hall, I glared on a 17" monitor with 'Joseph Teo' on it and chuckled. haha! Man… it looks like I am the one and only to book ticket online. The reservations were prioritize. lols!

The airtrain I sat on was equivalent to our KLIA's ERL, at least it's less noisier and cleaner than normal train. The moment I alighted at CBD Central Station… MAN! It was so deserted! Not even MacD was in business. Summer Christmas down under is all about family reunions or probably there's something hip @ Sydney that I don't know of, definitely not Brisbane! Lawrence was supposed to join his aunties & uncles till evening but was disturbed by this alien traveler who need a lift – and off we go to D-Hao's home for some Christmas reunion (refer video) dinner. Some new faces to me but glad to know that most of them were from Malaysia. What surprised me was the presence of Sarawak Laksa brought over by Shiela. haha… nom nom nom!!! Been craving that for long! Of course, everyone was enjoying themselves, after that it was time for WII Sessions & poker as well. Gawd… I gambled till 4am in the morning… How crazy could this be but it was pretty addictive to play along with those guys. lols. Should I just compile a short video session during poker? oh yes.. check below!

P / S : Click image to zoom

Weather's gloomy on Christmas Day and  taken this @ the bridge, on the way to airtrain.

Inside Aerotrain. It's clean but the seats are not that comfortable. Not too bad!

CBD of Brisbane. This is Anzac Square

Central Station… Aiks… so deserted!

Memorial to men who service NS out of the country, check here.

 

Video Session

Enjoy the video! Click here if you cannot view the above!

26.12.2009 – Boxing Day! Yay!!! It's a whole day of shopping all for us. And this Lawrence got the "bak gua" on his wiper. -.-; I don't understand the parking system in Brisbane! It was so confusing alright.

Queenstreet mall is located at the heart of the city. Surprising crowds here and yeah looks like everyone is on shopping spree. Personally, I had 3 bags with me, some guess jeans, random local brands, some souvenirs and that's it. You hardly had any time for meals since everyone is busy looking for a fit out, you follow suit as well. Ans yeah, the boxing day lasted only within 24 hours. Grab it while stocks last!

The aboriginal and his long pipe! The sound goes…. Bon~~~~~

Some chit chat, some with bags, some counting wallet and that's what people do!

la la la la la la~~~~

Inside one of the mall and saw this huge ferrero rocher christmas tree. I wonder if the choc is real hmmm

There…. Charles Chaplin was shock! haha! The busker was trying some tricks for his audeince. lol

The shopping spree lasted for hours, from noon till evening! Had Hungry Jacks (or what we called Burger King here)  for dinner…

Later, we had a stroll at South Bank Parklands. This is Brisbane Skyline taken there.

One of the footbridge along Brisbane river. Thanks to Lawrence for this shot. Credit to him. I would not have found this image identical without his guidance. It looked marvelous. 

Wheel of Brisbane! Playing Aperture here!

Din't get to try on those.. I thought it was the same as any other Ferris Wheel.. Oh well…

Read this… yes! Brisbane is so similar to Kaoh Siung. The moment I was there, it sensed the identicalness. Check it out here. After this, we head to D-Hao's home and continue the Poker saga. XD

27.12.2009 – Ah, Sunday! You know, it's really nice to have breakfast with friends but holiday season it's unlikely to get any shops open, except a few – chinese owned. I was acknowledged that there's a bread shop @ The Coles (Mall) owned by one of the Sibu (Sarawak Province) family. I had forgotten the name of the shop. I didn't believe until I tasted those bread. Oh, it feels like home.. lols. Oh, we dropped by this chinese restaurant for breakfast and let's see what we have…

The dim sum is not above par, unlike Hong Kong's, still edible. That Cheong Fun taste like Singapore's, they put thick soy + mustard sauce on it (with sesame)… EW!!!!! The pork porridge taste norm, same goes to the fried noodle. Nai Cha (milk tea) is tasteless. X_X

1.5 hours of drive down south to Sunshine Beach, Goald Coast! And visiting The Movie World Theme Park. Oh, I get the annual pass from D-Hao so it's free! LOL! The securities didn't bother to make any comparison between ID & the entrants, well be it. Check out Movie World here. Oh yeah, we got to try a number of 4G rides, it's fun! WEEEEEEEEE! SFW~ It went vertical and then slopes. That's what thrill is all about! Luckily I didn't get cardiac arrest. haha! Still young at heart heh.

The Sweet Escape! NaBeh! Look at that 90 Degree tracks. "Eh Si ar!!! (die literally )" This one!

Wow, if Singapore's MRT can bend! LOL Ahahahahahaha! How I wish there's someone capturing our moment during the ride!

Now here goes! Ascend and Descent!

Eeeee… Rabbit Teeth I have also!

Now this vehicle is so familiar!!!! Yeshhh!

It's Batman! Never knew I still had the chance to shake hand with "Christian Bale" himself! LOL!

Lalat with 2 DC Comic characters, Green Lantern & Flash Man!

Epic! I like this kinda vintage vehicle (with holes on it) LOL!

Scooby Doo Bee Doo, Where are You! Didn't get to try this spooky coaster – oh well!

This picture looks odd, as if am walking into the painted wall!

Ya… am sitting on the picture.. Everyone does that! hahaha!

Did some posing… thanks to Lawrence for the shot!
Eh… I am not narcist….. Posing was just for fun!

The Wildwest Falls Adventure Ride, which I didn't get to try cuz…. you have to get wet!!

The Famous O-Marilyn Monroe heading towards the crowd! She's lovely!

Okay I don't want to do this! But those were my fav. characters behind!

Yeap it's Bugs Bunny! But heck this is kids corner… Yieks!!!!!

Oh… Marilyn Monroe with a flying kiss, heading this way!

I tried this 4G ride (Lethal Weapon)! It's definitely heart Pumpin'!

This ship wreck is a showcase! But uh, we're actually in a factory studio!

Looks peachy!! HAHA!

I wouldn't want to stand next to Mr. Tummus if I were you! Look at stick pointed! LAWL!!!!!!

Some statues from the movie… Here's the 3 accompanied along

It's really huge!!
Yes, this is the ship that you're gonna see in 
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010),
still in the progress of filming…

 

Check this out!

Large dragon head!

Okay the fun was over, let's get the hell out of here and check out the following…

Did a little shopping here @ Harbour Town, a short ride away from Movie World..

After that, we head down Gold Coast!! Weeeeee!

Gold Coast town is relaxing!

Spooky stuff sold here!

Residential tower and hotels around town!

Oh yeah hard rock cafe!

Limosine! First time to see in Brisbane. That's Bentley if am not mistaken!

This is Gold Coast. It was pretty windy an sandy mate! I don't the feel there as you get sticky easily…. Eww! Cuz I didn't brought along my swimming trunks and extra cloths. Yeah again, it's windy!

Sandy shores!

The gangs were craving for Japanese food and we ran into the wrong restaurant, glaring at those scrumptious expensive menus. We decided to leave but it's kinda embarrassed that you sat down and leave within a short period of time. But whalla, luck's at out side, and we found another reasonable Japanese restaurants below….

Steamed Gyoza~ Not Bad.. just like the chinese Wo-Tie made!

Agedashi Tofu! Mmmmm Delicious!

Unagi!~~ just like any other!

Okay I have no idea what's this called, there's some chicken and shredded onions.

Tempura Rice!

Soba with Tempura! Not too bad! Cold noodle is interesting as always.

There you go with 3 fun & exciting days down under. Stay tune for more @ Day 6 and 7 (Epilogue)
Hope you enjoyed!

21.12.2009 – The night was calm. Off from work and head straight back home. I did a bit of instant packing before dashing off to the airport. Flight was SQ255 departed from Terminal 3. Again, my time management gripped off the trail that looned my concern. Yeah, I was late to my boarding gate once again. That burger king taste good though… So, I ran to my boarding gate just like the hicks' and care not with my surroundings whatsoever, such scampering manner made me exhausted easily.  Seriously, it was hasty alright that I almost tipped off – with 10kg behind me. Luckily I was the last few to board and the printed boarding pass instructed passengers to board at approximately 11:20PM and the exact time for the plane departure was on 12:10AM.  Heck, the flight delayed for another 15 mins on the tarmac for flight clearance.

Terminal 3, Singapore Departure

In the Departure Hall Concourse

So I flew again. This time am heading down under solo, 7 hours of journey that was. The plane was crowded with different nationals that you could barely understand what were they yabbering at. Say, this cute little girl that sat next to me had a little of her time onboard conversing alien language with her dad but I have no idea what language spoken by her, my wild guess – Norwegian. Not until she showed her workbook in Deutsch. AH! EIN DEUTSCH!! I almost wanted to greet her in German language but am impressed with her understanding towards English though, so be it. After the seatbelts sign was turned off, I was being served with a COLD Platter… a CHILLING Kosher Meal. My mind goes apathetic as I had no idea what response to give but also have had my BK (Burger King) supper for the night and proposed to have it later on while all passengers were being served along with. Well, priority goes to my pre-booked meal on board… so everyone looked at me… oh yeah! I felt so pampered once again! LOL!

This German moppet sitting next to me were kinda polite & innocent. She skipped her midnight supper but had some light snacks that she brought onboard before dozing off during my midnight breakfast. There, my Kosher meal appeared right just in front of my own eyes and guess what? This time the catering was so damn hot (not warm) as compared to earlier serve. This Kosher meal of mine was made according to Jewish orthodox & dietary laws for the right Jewish meal. And to be frank it was my first try on such odd culinary – that is The Cuisine of the Jews. The odor was somewhat cheesy but not quite. The dish served along with creamy carbonara with fish, not sure what the fish was called but there’s tiny bones in it that you ought to be careful for that throttling chuck.

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Ah… she's sleeping soundly. How am I supposed to go to toilet like that XS jio kin ah!!

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Here's the Kosher Meal served (midnight breakfast)… that fruit platter on the left was kinda dry and sweet.. ugh! The portion was huge.. Fish atop of the creamy jewish carbonara with tomatoes, capsicum and pickles.

22.12.2009 – 2AM – After meal, I bloated and couldn’t help much but to just sit there and enjoyed krisflyer onboard entertainment, range from tourist information to soap opera and blockbuster movies while being served with unlimited flow of red wine. Hehehee! The seats were not as comfy as expected but it’s far off better than Malaysia Airlines while SQ as world’s best serving you with the finest. Not doing any advertisement here but that's true comment coming from a passenger. Pampered is the word best to describe. While little moppet had her sleep, I tried not to arouse her by any chance. So I had my little nap as well with the blanket and pillow provided.

It was 6am and everyone was awaken and little moppet opened her eyes too. I asked for her pardon and had my face cleaned in the washroom. WHAT A NIGHT!! Ah, refreshed and good to go. Later on at 9AM (+10gmt), I was served with Kosher Breakfast which is far better than the earlier served I supposed. Hmph. At least, it’s bread and butter with some fresh juices

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Still, that fruit platter tasted like preserved food! omg!!! The rest of the bun & croissant was fine.

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Australia's Outback!!

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Touching down… this is Brisbane….

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Brisbane International Airport

The plane touched down at 10.30AM (+10GMT) and hello to Brisbane. Oh, as soon as the plane landed, little mppet prayed hard and gave a huge relief there after. How sweet of her! We'd safely landed! During the immigration clearance, I was being halted and brought aside for an interview. The officer asked number of questions that will burn your patience! She interrogated me with questions like… Where to? For what purposes? Cash on hand? Any other monetary options? Friends/Family contacts? Fret not, you just have to be honest with them and answer whatever questions on you but the process took about 10 minutes or so which was pretty intense (I felt so). Why so? Pretty embarrassed to hold a Malaysian passport which was blacklisted to be precise due to number of illegal migrants who overstayed in Australia without permits on hand. If caught red handed, these illegal migrants will be deport back to their own country ergo, passport will be permanently blacklisted! It's rather dispirit to travel on such continents that had blacklisted Malaysian passport from visiting the country, but pretty much sooner or later the enactive decree will ward off transmigrant at all cost. Grim on, travelers! It's likely you'll get a green light for a Go or red light for a Fall.

Worse of all, the security channel took about 45 minutes or so for clearance. Do familiarize with the Australia regulations before visiting. Luckily… I just brought over my cloths and electronics but too bad I've totally forgotten about Lawrence's Ciggie. omg! He grumble mumble! hahahaaha!

Brisbane Airport at a glance

Lawrence had waited me impatiently at the arrival hall for almost 2 hours I reckon. Oh dear…. So I settled down at Lawrence’s place for a short nap before inviting Adam along to Coles Mart for windows shopping and watched Avatar 3D for the second time. Movie was awesome but can you imagine that I dozed off a few mins on random section during the movie play. Bought the ticket for $20 with a free 3D glasses. Lawrie woke me on every snort that I made and there you go, a tiring Avatar adventure. Then, there’s a short gathering at Lalat's house for Tang Yuan Celebration (冬至, Dong Zi Festival). Met most Malaysians and a few meowgites there for a warm OZ-style home-made tang yuan, it was lovely of course. The gathering ended at midnight but some of us were hungry so we drove downtown for supper / breakfast.

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Coles Mart and some mall christmas settings…

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One and only cinema near the Coles… well not bad.. that seat was comfortable enough that made me doze off easily… lol…. As you could see here… it rained… cyclone made landfall @ Queensland on that particular week. 

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3D specs up for grab!! Yeah.. this spec was used during the Scooby Doo Epic in Kuching hahhahaha!

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You sure u wanna watch the 3rd time?? NO!!!! twice is more than enough

Lalat's house warming with Malaysians, Hongkees, and Singaporean…. Tang Yuan Tang Yuan~

Red Bean soup and Tang Yuan were served. Some helped up in the kitchen….

Mmmmm.. Sibei Hoh Jiak!!  Taste good!! Although some tang yuan looks like crap! hahahaha!

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Supper / Breakfast @ Jin Lei

Jin Lei Menu of the night…

That Yummylicious chicken porridge! Oh yeah!

The chinatown chicken porridge from Jin Lei (金壘) was dang delicious. Where can you find asian food in OZ in the middle of the night? hehe! $3 per bowl. Wokay lah…. Hong Kee Style Congee!

After meal, we went back home @ 1AM and I did some homework before heading to Terminal 2 to catch a flight to Sydney @ 5am via Jetblue. Dang Lawrence slept so soundly that I woke him twice but still, he fall back to sleep. Luckily Adam was playing game and he drove me to the airport. Purr…

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Skies of Sydney…. man.. that morning sun was so striking hot! >.> The feeling atop of the metropolitan was different though… certain part of the city looks alike the big apple!

Meanwhile… enjoy the video I've shot during on Day 1, Brisbane… after touching down and night cruise @ the city of Brisbane… yah… found it pretty boring at night when the city was dimmed and shops closed after 5pm… pur…. 

Here's the video taken @ lalat's house harming… Well, to be frank my mandarin spoken are following The Republic of China's standard… I use to speak local Kuchingite chinese probably due to de facto of colleague influences around but sometimes I unobtrusively speak our very own mandarin.. who knows? Well.. hope people me will get use with Ah.. maybe some chinese genes originated from my maternal's side. hahahha!

Stay tune for more exiting tips n tricks down under…