Australia Trip Report : G'day Mate!
[Edit: After almost a month, the report is finally complete =)]
Our money-saving route was SIN-JHB-KUL-OOL-BNE-SYD-KUL-SIN/JHB (for those of you who don't speak IATA, its Singapore -> JB -> KL -> Gold Coast -> Brisbane -> KL -> Singapore) Our budget was AUD$1000 for everything including air tickets which I managed to achieve with change to spare! :) Well, here goes...
Day 0 : Singapore-JB-KL
Summary : We met up at Woodlands bus interchange, where our adventure would soon begin. Yihui and JC were late (by 45mins!) When all were accounted for, we took bus 950 to JB. On arrival at JB, we walked to City Square to rest before heading to the KTM station to board the train to KL.
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Day 1 : KL Sentral-Batu Caves-KLCC-KLIA
Summary : We arrived early (6+am) in the morning at KL Sentral (yes its spelled that way) and had breakfast at MacDonald's (it was the only thing that was open). Then we proceeded to take the monorail and the bus to the Batu Caves! We climbed up the 272 steps to the entrance of the caves, where we had a spectacular view of KL City (and accumulated a litre or sweat as well). We stopped for drinks at the entrance before proceeding in to look at some divine statues and unruly monkeys! We then took 2 buses to go to KLCC (the twin towers), where we had lunch and some lite (window) shopping. We then took the LRT back to Sentral and a bus from there to LCCT (airport). There, we boarded our (delayed!) flight to gold coast.
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arrival at KL Sentral
KL sentral, with its glassy modern interior, looked more like some fancy airport, then it did the simple train station that it was
macdonalds breakfast (CHEAP!)
buying tickets for our return train ride from seremban (south KL) to Singapore
After that, it was a short walk to the nearby monorail station...
KL Sentral Monorail Station
Rachel posing with the magnetic farecard... (remember the non-ezlink days?)
the girls : on the train
the guys : on the train
monorail's interior
looking out~
KLCC twin towers in the background
Malaysia's HDB flats... erm...
the monorail's exterior as we exit at Titiwangsa Station o.0
we had to transfer to another bus to get there...
me n yihui on the bus (notice the large plush leather seats!)
rach n px..
jc..
the view out of the bus...
you wont see these in Singapore...
atap houses?
alighting from the bus..
posing at a pond at the foot of the caves
pigeons galore!
the large statue of {insert name of god}
px n rach about to embark on the step-climbing
px, rach, jc
MONKEY!
more MONKEY!
isnt it CUTE?
the back of the statue
the view from the 272nd step!
a drink at the top!
all of us (was taken using timer with the camera on top of a coconut!)
in the caves: me n px...
see a skull somewhere?
more MONKEYS INSIDE the caves... These were AGGRESSIVE! They actually stole food offerings meant for the gods from some innocent Indian family and climbed up to consume his loot while looking down and mocking the family. It almost wanted to take my water bottle too! We quickly guarded all our belongings, and surveyed 360 before taking each step! MONKEYS! Arghhh...
there was a hole at the top of the cave!
light spilling in! (literally!)
We went to take the same bus back to Titiwangsa Terminal and took another bus from there to KLCC. Apparently if you bought a bus ticket (RM2), u get unlimited rides for the day on all services with the same prefix! Eg. we took bus U6 and then we got U(some other number) for free!
KLCC!
from inside the KLCC shopping center
our lunch from Cold Storage!
After some (window*) shopping, we headed for the LRT station to go back to Sentral... (* rach bought shoes~)
KLCC LRT station (LRT is not the monorail, the LRT is something like SG's MRT)
px n rach on the LRT
we (except rach n px cos their bags were too big) had earlier put our bags into the large lockers at Sentral and they were packed and squashed in by us :P
our bags are out and all over the floor :)
We then took a coach to KLIA LCCT at around 4+pm.. that was NOT our coach, we took a lousier one at RM8, (this one would cost RM9) cos it departed earlier. That RM1 made a world of difference and I regretted not taking this bus instead...
rach n jc at the airport before check in (we arrived WAY too early n counters would only open an hour later)
resting... (still before check in)
the gigantic food court (doesnt it look abit like koufu or something?)
After check-in, we had to repack our bags to ensure that we maintained out 7kg baggage limit (we have no check-in luggage) before entering the restricted area...
waiting at the gate..
still waiting...
then when it was time for boarding... the announcement was made..
"Attention all passengers on the Air Asia X flight to Gold Coast. Due to Operational Constrains, this flight has been delayed infinitely. On behalf of Air Asia X, we apologize for any inconvenience caused." A commotion and loud chattering ensued, as passengers who had stood up on hearing the the PA sound hurriedly rush back to their seats to avoid others taking them.(seats were very limited at the terminal and many had to stand at the gate)
When I heard 'Operational Constrains', I immediately thought of flight crew exceeding work hours and prepared for the (tens of) hours it would take to call in another A330 crew or for a flight cancellation annoucement... Thank goodness nothing like that happened! It was simply a catastrophic failure in the KL airport's computers and check in systems. So, 1 hour later, boarding was done manually and a free seating system was imposed on a first come first serve basis (we regretted not rushing up the plane as we thought seats were assigned). The Caucasians in the queue were clearly pissed (and I would be too) and one expressed her discontent (in a BIG way) at the airport officer (everyone was staring at her) since they paid RM100 more for exit row seats that were now taken by freeloader already on the plane... (in the end, she didnt get the seats or the refund or not every an apology for that matter..)
walking on the tarmac to the plane parked in the middle of nowhere
on the plane! (look at the extremely uncomfortable ancient old seats, 14 yrs old to be specific)
me n yihui... OUR SEATS COULD NOT RECLINE!!!! And our armrests were ripped out, with live wires dangling between the seats!
perhaps the ONLY thing good on Air Asia X, is its meals. This Nasi Lemak tasted really good!
rachel got the kids meal... abit pathetic yea?
Well after our meals, we tried to get some sleep on our 8 hr overnight flight. But the extremely HARD seats with NO recline did not allow me to sleep AT ALL... Imagine trying to sleep on a chair that has a 90 degrees back! I tossed and turned, and played my mp3 over and over again and waited for the morning...
Click to hide Day 1's pictures
Day 2: Australian Landing! Viva La Gold Coast~
Summary: We touched down at in Gold Coast, Australia at 9.15am*.... (1hr 45mins late!!!) We then took the public bus to our hostel (the bus took an eternity to arrive!) but we overshot by a few kms and had to turn around and walk back. On the way, we saw a bistro and had brunch. By the time we reached the hostel, it was way to late to stick to our original plan, so we changed it. We took a SHOWER (our first in almost 2 days!), rested and dozed off for awhile. We later decided to walk around Gold Coast's CBD and later went to the wax museum! It wasn't exactly what we had in mind but its something new. We then had dinner and took a stroll along the highly coveted Gold Coast Beach, before heading back to the hostel for a good nights rest.
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Light at the edge of the world : You can almost see the curve of the earth by the way the lights spilled! (not in this pic)
I had this RM5 milo from the non-smiling crew! (extortion! but i really wanted something hot)
Vivid : The amazing colours that you would never see anywhere else!
the cabin in the morning...
the window...
the first blue
Flying low over gold coast!
landing...
the stairs being driven toward our plane
taken as I walked down the stairs (GC Airport has NO AEROBRIDGES!)
our A332 that took us here
the very colorful (almost abit cheapskate) terminal after clearing customs...
waiting for the bus
in the bus
thats the gold coast surfside bus
walking (trying to) back to our hostel
the eartery we stopped at to have brunch
settling down...
i had the AUD5 fish n chips (look at the SALT on the plate!! He must have dumped the entire bottle of salt in!)
yihui had the AUD9 burger
these birds are everywhere in AUS... (its NOT a statue, its real and its actually a pest, much like how crows and mynas are to us)
pausing to read the map
these properties must cost millions!
the hostel... (looks very motel-like)
timer shot somewhere along the street
the tallest residential estate in Australia!
some retro hotel... (downtown GC looks like a cross of Miami and Hollywood~!)
style...
the wax museum (we thought it would be like 'The Wax Museum' in the movie, but it ended up being just wax figure BEHIND glass...)
Kyle Minouge
MJ
the crown jewels! (REAL!)
Gandhi
I think that King Henry
King Henry's wifes
Neil Armstrong
The 2nd part of the museum didn't allow photography, so no pictures. It was a guided tour of Human torture in Wax. It showcased every possible way a person could be tortured from the caveman days to modern times. (one of which is hanging which SG still practiced) Our guide was Scottish, and had a heavy acent plus a humorous attitude to make the tour memorable. After that we went up down and around looking for a place to have dinner around downtown GC and found a souvenirs store...
the shop
yihui, px, rach
downtown GC by night
dinner!
1/4 chicken meal
SMILE~
strolling by the beach... couldnt see much as it was really dark
we went back to our hostel for a good nights sleep :)
Click to hide Day 2's pictures
Day 3 : Gold Coast -> Dream World -> Brisbane
Summary: We woke up at 5am to see the sun rise (the sun rises and sets almost 2 hrs earlier then in SG) at the beach (damm nice!) then we went back to freshen up and set out for breakfast. After which, we took a bus to Dream World! where we spent the day =) In the evening (after the theme park closed), we took a bus and train to Brisbane City! We took a (long) walk to our hostel (which we had alot of trouble finding) only to be told on arrival that it was full, so we headed for a hostel we saw on the way (not as good... but it was late and we were tired) so we settled for that. After dropping our bags, we had dinner at a pizzeria before heading back.
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Sunrise by the beach, with the moon still visible[i LOVE this picture!]
still dark...
brighter
hurray!
tah-dah! the very BLUE Australian sky!
rach n px with the GC CBD
on the way back...
interesting fire hydrant?
I have no idea why, but aussies love hanging shoes on the power lines...
ebi - the Australian National Pest (kinda like mynas and crows in SG)
waiting for breakfast
my breakfast! (look at the cold slaw yihui is holding!!! SUPER DELICIOUS!)
JC's breakfast (twice the quantity of mine and twice the price!)
Rachels (VERY) lite breakfast
After that, we headed took bus TX2 to DreamWorld!!!
walking to the entrance..
posing for pictures...
at the 'old west' part of dreamworld
more of the old west
there was this helicopter at the dreamworld helipad...
JC asked the pilot to help us take a group shot...
our first ride...
on the (wet) ride..
rach n px
photo ops...
more...
more...
QUEEN rachel
Nick nick nick na-nick nick nick, NICKELODEON!
Dora the explora
TOMMY and the RUGRATS!
CHUCKY! (i think)
tiger stunt show..
tiger=cat=can climb trees =D
mini-train to the zoo-section
the girls
horse
pelican
croc!
(i cant rmb what animal this is - except that its native to AUS)
kangaroos!
more lazy roos! (note the lens flare and light spilling!!! =D)
DINGO!
(a nocturnal animal whose name I cant rmb..)
an owl!!!! o.0
some vintage car... (a car in the zoo?)
JC n a kangaroo
the girls posing...
koalas!
yihui (trying very hard to) feed the roos!
px offering food
baby kangaroo taking refuge in its mothers pouch!
rach feeding the baby!
the baby eats anything from anyone!
Koala bear!!!!
(something like Genting's shot up)
JC and I on it...
the spin round up down and around ride...
Tower of Terror!!!! Yihui and I only...
[Quick Fact: This was the fastest ride in the world until 2001]
a milder roller coaster (but still with loop-de-loops)
the claw (our last ride..)
the claw in action!
a view of White Water World (which we did not go to..)
At 5pm when the Park closed, we took a bus to Coomera Station to catch to train to Brisbane City.
the sun setting at the station
the tracks...
(I love this shot!)
waiting...
Coomera Train Station ['Open' Station - No gantries, so you just walk onto the trains with your ticket]
the QRail train
rach n px (u can see the guys in the window's reflection)
After reaching Brisbane, we (found our hostel had no room, so we found another one near by and) checked in, dropped our bags, and filled our VERY hungry stomach with PIZZA!
Fam-size pizza (pizzas here are hand made on demand! FRESH! and they some in personal, regular, large and FAMISH. we had famish~:])
Spongebob on the hostel bed before we slept.
Day 4: Brisbane - Sydney
Summary: We checked out early in the morning and headed out for breakfast at an eatery nearby. Following which, we had originally intended to head out to Mt. Coota, but missed the bus (by a few seconds) (and the next one was 1hr+ later!!!) As we had an early afternoon flight to catch, we ditched that plan and walked around the Brisbane CBD to City Hall, MarketPlace and the very disappointing flower-less Botanical Gardens. At about noon, we were supposed to go back to the hostel to get our bags and take the train to the airport, but we lost track of time and were almost 45mins late! We ran to the train station and later to the terminal and hurriedly tried to check in, lest we forfeit our tickets, only to be told that our flight was canceled (not delayed, not re-timed, CANCELED!)and went to Customer Service for 'compensation'. They rebooked us on a Qantas flight departing 4hrs later then our original. (Great considering we paid a mere $58 and everyone else, upwards of $200. But bad since we were stuck in a tiny domestic airport lacking sorely in transit facilities.) We took off at 6.45pm (instead of the original 2.15pm) and arrived at Sydney at around 9pm where we hailed a cab to our hostel.
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Our room...
the neighborhood
where we had our breakfast
my breakfast with a breaka
walking...
some weird statue with a traffic cone
some landmark church
City Hall
Outside city hall
and its grand and majestic inside
some old restored building
Brisbane River Bridge (i don't think thats the real name of the bridge..)
Brisbane Waterfront with yatchs and sails
the only non-green thing at the Botanical Gardens
the first water fountain here!
bamboo trees!
carvings on the bamboo! sumimaze? (spelling error i guess...)
The Great Brisbane City Flood 'Water Level marker'
the ONLY flower in the Botanical Gardens!
street art is everywhere
retro telephone booth inside city hall
we took the old lift up to the top of the clock tower...
the view of Brisbane City from the clock tower
back at the hostel to get our bags
The train to the airport cost a whopping $13.40/pax!!!~
The tiny, aged terminal...
my Qantas ticket. (the plane was sooo full, we couldnt seat anywhere near each other. but the ticketing staff did try and JC, PX n rach were together. She had to reprint and tear 4 tickets to get the seats! The standby queue was LONG!)
The 763 that would take us to Sydney...
Click to hide Day 4's pictures
Day 5: Bondi Beach -> Coogee -> DFO -> Sydney Harbour
Summary: We left for Bondi Beach early in the morning and took a (LONG) stroll to Coogee beach where we took in the breathtaking views. After lunch, we took a long bus and train and bus again ride to DFO Homebush (Factory Outlet Store). In the evening, we went to the famous harbour and saw the Oprah house and Bay Bridge. :)
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Bondi Beach
the beach community...
grafiti
strolling by the beach
(i have no idea what bird this is)
some important landmark
we got some passer by to take this for us
px was talking non-stop on the phone (expensive phone bill coming...)
salt water swimming pool by the sea
fishing a1one
timer shot that failed (the gd shot was on rach's cam so its now non-existent)
px with a very 'jupiter-ish' rock wall background
yihui fascinated by puddles of water..
or actually, its the drowning ants that caught his attention
squatting (in AUS?! wow... i thought this only happens in the 3rd world)
sky/sea+rock wall =D
green sees blue
white water!
one of the other beaches
lunch at a jap restaurant...
we then took a LONG bus+train+bus ride to DFO Homebush
we stayed til closing time (5pm..)
Sydney Harbour!!!! (I LOVE THIS SHOT!)
The Oprah House
The Bridge
I tried capturing them both together in the same picture, but my lens werent wide enough...
Day 6: Central + Chinatown + Blue Mountains!!!
Summary: We slept in late(r) and went to the CBD and Chinatown in the late morning. We had lunch at Chinatown mall before heading to Central Station and taking the train to Katoomba, Blue Mountains. We missed the Katoomba train by 30 seconds!! (and would have to wait an hour for the next) The ride to Katoomba was 2 hours long and you have to keep your ears wide open to listen out for the stop name which is announced manually by the driver when the train departs from the previous station (no announcement is made on arrival). We took a long walk to Katoomba Falls to see the 3 sisters and trekked around for abit. We took a long train ride back to Central and tried to walk back to our hostel. (instead of taking the 15min bus ride)
Click to show/hide pictures
(no pictures of Chinatown)
Grand Central Station
Open Platform (no gates or gantries.. ticketing is at your own integrity)
trains here are double-decked
the tracks
halfway up the mountain
Arrival at Katoomba Station! (ITS COLD!)
its a long road down...
homegrown berries
the 3 sisters!
the queen...
posing for a shot...
resting
Natures Path
Mud road block
look out!
on the edge...
A mini cave
Ah Lam Lookout =D
px...
Titantic anyone?
Timer shot
orange sun reflection
Waterfall
the walk
scratching his head...
Sunset at the clif!
Playground Shadow of Sun
Yihui watching the sun set...
floating?
The train station by night :)
look at Rach's expression! Priceless!
The upper deck of the train...
Day 7: Sydney -> KL -> Seremban
Summary: We woke up, packed up had breakfast and walked out to the 'main road' to hail a cab to the airport, but couldnt find one that would take us as there were 5 of us. So we had to call a cab from the public phone... We checked in and ate lunch before going into the restricted area for Duty Free shopping. We boarded our jetstar flight to KL. The seats were SO comfortable that we fell asleep shortly after take off, when we woke up, we watched Juno and an Australian Comedy (something like Friends or Little Britain, just aussie style). After landing in KL, Rachel called her aunt, who picked us up from the airport and took us to dinner near her grandmothers place. After dinner, her aunt drove us to Seremban train station where we took our KTM train.
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our room...
the hostel entrance
benches...
a very resort-like hostel
breakfast!
the kitchen
Our hostel =)
Reception
This sign was along the road near our hostel o.0
queuing up to checkin
Macdonald's McFeast w/Bacon!!!! DAMMM NICE! (pity they don't have it here)
The A332 that will be taking us to KL...
The cabin...
Peixuan showing off the adjustable headrest!!!
while taxiing, we passed by 747 after 747...
SIA 747
BA 747
QANTAS 747
taking off!
heading out to sea!
high in the sky
frosted window
look at the light bend!
Some bendy meander near KL
flaps up!
taiixing to satellite terminal C as the sun sets..
the KL airport terminal! (LOOK AT THOSE SEATS!)
having fun...
very blurred shot while on the sky train to get to another terminal
where we had our dinner
chili
food
After eating, we went to Semremban Station to take the train to JB(me n yihui) /Singapore (the rest)...
Day 8: Seremban -> (JB -> ) Singapore
Summary: (In the middle of the night, Rachel got robbed. details on her blog) Yihui and I alighted at JB station and went tried to take a bus across the causeway to no avail.. the queue is not followed and people just ran and surrounded the buses when they are approaching the bus bay. We waited for 3 buses and gave up as we was unable to push our way through the determined M'sians desperate to shove their way onto the buses by pushing people out of it. In all cases, the bus doors couldnt close, so the bus officers had to ask those hanging on the doors to alight (took quite awhile, since they pleaed and argued like their lives depended on it). So we ended up walking across the causeway with a load on our backs. After getting through Singapore Customs, we managed to hop onto bus 950 to the MRT station and took the train home.
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walking across the causeway 5.50am...
Sunrise at Seletar Reservoir as seen from the MRT between Khatib and YCK.
I went home, took a shower and took 162 to NYP for orientation...
-The End-
Our money-saving route was SIN-JHB-KUL-OOL-BNE-SYD-KUL-SIN/JHB (for those of you who don't speak IATA, its Singapore -> JB -> KL -> Gold Coast -> Brisbane -> KL -> Singapore) Our budget was AUD$1000 for everything including air tickets which I managed to achieve with change to spare! :) Well, here goes...
Day 0 : Singapore-JB-KL
Summary : We met up at Woodlands bus interchange, where our adventure would soon begin. Yihui and JC were late (by 45mins!) When all were accounted for, we took bus 950 to JB. On arrival at JB, we walked to City Square to rest before heading to the KTM station to board the train to KL.
Click to show/hide pictures
Day 1 : KL Sentral-Batu Caves-KLCC-KLIA
Summary : We arrived early (6+am) in the morning at KL Sentral (yes its spelled that way) and had breakfast at MacDonald's (it was the only thing that was open). Then we proceeded to take the monorail and the bus to the Batu Caves! We climbed up the 272 steps to the entrance of the caves, where we had a spectacular view of KL City (and accumulated a litre or sweat as well). We stopped for drinks at the entrance before proceeding in to look at some divine statues and unruly monkeys! We then took 2 buses to go to KLCC (the twin towers), where we had lunch and some lite (window) shopping. We then took the LRT back to Sentral and a bus from there to LCCT (airport). There, we boarded our (delayed!) flight to gold coast.
Click to show/hide pictures
arrival at KL Sentral
KL sentral, with its glassy modern interior, looked more like some fancy airport, then it did the simple train station that it was
macdonalds breakfast (CHEAP!)
buying tickets for our return train ride from seremban (south KL) to Singapore
After that, it was a short walk to the nearby monorail station...
KL Sentral Monorail Station
Rachel posing with the magnetic farecard... (remember the non-ezlink days?)
the girls : on the train
the guys : on the train
monorail's interior
looking out~
KLCC twin towers in the background
Malaysia's HDB flats... erm...
the monorail's exterior as we exit at Titiwangsa Station o.0
we had to transfer to another bus to get there...
me n yihui on the bus (notice the large plush leather seats!)
rach n px..
jc..
the view out of the bus...
you wont see these in Singapore...
atap houses?
alighting from the bus..
posing at a pond at the foot of the caves
pigeons galore!
the large statue of {insert name of god}
px n rach about to embark on the step-climbing
px, rach, jc
MONKEY!
more MONKEY!
isnt it CUTE?
the back of the statue
the view from the 272nd step!
a drink at the top!
all of us (was taken using timer with the camera on top of a coconut!)
in the caves: me n px...
see a skull somewhere?
more MONKEYS INSIDE the caves... These were AGGRESSIVE! They actually stole food offerings meant for the gods from some innocent Indian family and climbed up to consume his loot while looking down and mocking the family. It almost wanted to take my water bottle too! We quickly guarded all our belongings, and surveyed 360 before taking each step! MONKEYS! Arghhh...
there was a hole at the top of the cave!
light spilling in! (literally!)
We went to take the same bus back to Titiwangsa Terminal and took another bus from there to KLCC. Apparently if you bought a bus ticket (RM2), u get unlimited rides for the day on all services with the same prefix! Eg. we took bus U6 and then we got U(some other number) for free!
KLCC!
from inside the KLCC shopping center
our lunch from Cold Storage!
After some (window*) shopping, we headed for the LRT station to go back to Sentral... (* rach bought shoes~)
KLCC LRT station (LRT is not the monorail, the LRT is something like SG's MRT)
px n rach on the LRT
we (except rach n px cos their bags were too big) had earlier put our bags into the large lockers at Sentral and they were packed and squashed in by us :P
our bags are out and all over the floor :)
We then took a coach to KLIA LCCT at around 4+pm.. that was NOT our coach, we took a lousier one at RM8, (this one would cost RM9) cos it departed earlier. That RM1 made a world of difference and I regretted not taking this bus instead...
rach n jc at the airport before check in (we arrived WAY too early n counters would only open an hour later)
resting... (still before check in)
the gigantic food court (doesnt it look abit like koufu or something?)
After check-in, we had to repack our bags to ensure that we maintained out 7kg baggage limit (we have no check-in luggage) before entering the restricted area...
waiting at the gate..
still waiting...
then when it was time for boarding... the announcement was made..
"Attention all passengers on the Air Asia X flight to Gold Coast. Due to Operational Constrains, this flight has been delayed infinitely. On behalf of Air Asia X, we apologize for any inconvenience caused." A commotion and loud chattering ensued, as passengers who had stood up on hearing the the PA sound hurriedly rush back to their seats to avoid others taking them.(seats were very limited at the terminal and many had to stand at the gate)
When I heard 'Operational Constrains', I immediately thought of flight crew exceeding work hours and prepared for the (tens of) hours it would take to call in another A330 crew or for a flight cancellation annoucement... Thank goodness nothing like that happened! It was simply a catastrophic failure in the KL airport's computers and check in systems. So, 1 hour later, boarding was done manually and a free seating system was imposed on a first come first serve basis (we regretted not rushing up the plane as we thought seats were assigned). The Caucasians in the queue were clearly pissed (and I would be too) and one expressed her discontent (in a BIG way) at the airport officer (everyone was staring at her) since they paid RM100 more for exit row seats that were now taken by freeloader already on the plane... (in the end, she didnt get the seats or the refund or not every an apology for that matter..)
walking on the tarmac to the plane parked in the middle of nowhere
on the plane! (look at the extremely uncomfortable ancient old seats, 14 yrs old to be specific)
me n yihui... OUR SEATS COULD NOT RECLINE!!!! And our armrests were ripped out, with live wires dangling between the seats!
perhaps the ONLY thing good on Air Asia X, is its meals. This Nasi Lemak tasted really good!
rachel got the kids meal... abit pathetic yea?
Well after our meals, we tried to get some sleep on our 8 hr overnight flight. But the extremely HARD seats with NO recline did not allow me to sleep AT ALL... Imagine trying to sleep on a chair that has a 90 degrees back! I tossed and turned, and played my mp3 over and over again and waited for the morning...
Click to hide Day 1's pictures
Day 2: Australian Landing! Viva La Gold Coast~
Summary: We touched down at in Gold Coast, Australia at 9.15am*.... (1hr 45mins late!!!) We then took the public bus to our hostel (the bus took an eternity to arrive!) but we overshot by a few kms and had to turn around and walk back. On the way, we saw a bistro and had brunch. By the time we reached the hostel, it was way to late to stick to our original plan, so we changed it. We took a SHOWER (our first in almost 2 days!), rested and dozed off for awhile. We later decided to walk around Gold Coast's CBD and later went to the wax museum! It wasn't exactly what we had in mind but its something new. We then had dinner and took a stroll along the highly coveted Gold Coast Beach, before heading back to the hostel for a good nights rest.
Click to show/hide pictures
Light at the edge of the world : You can almost see the curve of the earth by the way the lights spilled! (not in this pic)
I had this RM5 milo from the non-smiling crew! (extortion! but i really wanted something hot)
Vivid : The amazing colours that you would never see anywhere else!
the cabin in the morning...
the window...
the first blue
Flying low over gold coast!
landing...
the stairs being driven toward our plane
taken as I walked down the stairs (GC Airport has NO AEROBRIDGES!)
our A332 that took us here
the very colorful (almost abit cheapskate) terminal after clearing customs...
waiting for the bus
in the bus
thats the gold coast surfside bus
walking (trying to) back to our hostel
the eartery we stopped at to have brunch
settling down...
i had the AUD5 fish n chips (look at the SALT on the plate!! He must have dumped the entire bottle of salt in!)
yihui had the AUD9 burger
these birds are everywhere in AUS... (its NOT a statue, its real and its actually a pest, much like how crows and mynas are to us)
pausing to read the map
these properties must cost millions!
the hostel... (looks very motel-like)
timer shot somewhere along the street
the tallest residential estate in Australia!
some retro hotel... (downtown GC looks like a cross of Miami and Hollywood~!)
style...
the wax museum (we thought it would be like 'The Wax Museum' in the movie, but it ended up being just wax figure BEHIND glass...)
Kyle Minouge
MJ
the crown jewels! (REAL!)
Gandhi
I think that King Henry
King Henry's wifes
Neil Armstrong
The 2nd part of the museum didn't allow photography, so no pictures. It was a guided tour of Human torture in Wax. It showcased every possible way a person could be tortured from the caveman days to modern times. (one of which is hanging which SG still practiced) Our guide was Scottish, and had a heavy acent plus a humorous attitude to make the tour memorable. After that we went up down and around looking for a place to have dinner around downtown GC and found a souvenirs store...
the shop
yihui, px, rach
downtown GC by night
dinner!
1/4 chicken meal
SMILE~
strolling by the beach... couldnt see much as it was really dark
we went back to our hostel for a good nights sleep :)
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Day 3 : Gold Coast -> Dream World -> Brisbane
Summary: We woke up at 5am to see the sun rise (the sun rises and sets almost 2 hrs earlier then in SG) at the beach (damm nice!) then we went back to freshen up and set out for breakfast. After which, we took a bus to Dream World! where we spent the day =) In the evening (after the theme park closed), we took a bus and train to Brisbane City! We took a (long) walk to our hostel (which we had alot of trouble finding) only to be told on arrival that it was full, so we headed for a hostel we saw on the way (not as good... but it was late and we were tired) so we settled for that. After dropping our bags, we had dinner at a pizzeria before heading back.
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Sunrise by the beach, with the moon still visible[i LOVE this picture!]
still dark...
brighter
hurray!
tah-dah! the very BLUE Australian sky!
rach n px with the GC CBD
on the way back...
interesting fire hydrant?
I have no idea why, but aussies love hanging shoes on the power lines...
ebi - the Australian National Pest (kinda like mynas and crows in SG)
waiting for breakfast
my breakfast! (look at the cold slaw yihui is holding!!! SUPER DELICIOUS!)
JC's breakfast (twice the quantity of mine and twice the price!)
Rachels (VERY) lite breakfast
After that, we headed took bus TX2 to DreamWorld!!!
walking to the entrance..
posing for pictures...
at the 'old west' part of dreamworld
more of the old west
there was this helicopter at the dreamworld helipad...
JC asked the pilot to help us take a group shot...
our first ride...
on the (wet) ride..
rach n px
photo ops...
more...
more...
QUEEN rachel
Nick nick nick na-nick nick nick, NICKELODEON!
Dora the explora
TOMMY and the RUGRATS!
CHUCKY! (i think)
tiger stunt show..
tiger=cat=can climb trees =D
mini-train to the zoo-section
the girls
horse
pelican
croc!
(i cant rmb what animal this is - except that its native to AUS)
kangaroos!
more lazy roos! (note the lens flare and light spilling!!! =D)
DINGO!
(a nocturnal animal whose name I cant rmb..)
an owl!!!! o.0
some vintage car... (a car in the zoo?)
JC n a kangaroo
the girls posing...
koalas!
yihui (trying very hard to) feed the roos!
px offering food
baby kangaroo taking refuge in its mothers pouch!
rach feeding the baby!
the baby eats anything from anyone!
Koala bear!!!!
(something like Genting's shot up)
JC and I on it...
the spin round up down and around ride...
Tower of Terror!!!! Yihui and I only...
[Quick Fact: This was the fastest ride in the world until 2001]
a milder roller coaster (but still with loop-de-loops)
the claw (our last ride..)
the claw in action!
a view of White Water World (which we did not go to..)
At 5pm when the Park closed, we took a bus to Coomera Station to catch to train to Brisbane City.
the sun setting at the station
the tracks...
(I love this shot!)
waiting...
Coomera Train Station ['Open' Station - No gantries, so you just walk onto the trains with your ticket]
the QRail train
rach n px (u can see the guys in the window's reflection)
After reaching Brisbane, we (found our hostel had no room, so we found another one near by and) checked in, dropped our bags, and filled our VERY hungry stomach with PIZZA!
Fam-size pizza (pizzas here are hand made on demand! FRESH! and they some in personal, regular, large and FAMISH. we had famish~:])
Spongebob on the hostel bed before we slept.
Day 4: Brisbane - Sydney
Summary: We checked out early in the morning and headed out for breakfast at an eatery nearby. Following which, we had originally intended to head out to Mt. Coota, but missed the bus (by a few seconds) (and the next one was 1hr+ later!!!) As we had an early afternoon flight to catch, we ditched that plan and walked around the Brisbane CBD to City Hall, MarketPlace and the very disappointing flower-less Botanical Gardens. At about noon, we were supposed to go back to the hostel to get our bags and take the train to the airport, but we lost track of time and were almost 45mins late! We ran to the train station and later to the terminal and hurriedly tried to check in, lest we forfeit our tickets, only to be told that our flight was canceled (not delayed, not re-timed, CANCELED!)and went to Customer Service for 'compensation'. They rebooked us on a Qantas flight departing 4hrs later then our original. (Great considering we paid a mere $58 and everyone else, upwards of $200. But bad since we were stuck in a tiny domestic airport lacking sorely in transit facilities.) We took off at 6.45pm (instead of the original 2.15pm) and arrived at Sydney at around 9pm where we hailed a cab to our hostel.
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Our room...
the neighborhood
where we had our breakfast
my breakfast with a breaka
walking...
some weird statue with a traffic cone
some landmark church
City Hall
Outside city hall
and its grand and majestic inside
some old restored building
Brisbane River Bridge (i don't think thats the real name of the bridge..)
Brisbane Waterfront with yatchs and sails
the only non-green thing at the Botanical Gardens
the first water fountain here!
bamboo trees!
carvings on the bamboo! sumimaze? (spelling error i guess...)
The Great Brisbane City Flood 'Water Level marker'
the ONLY flower in the Botanical Gardens!
street art is everywhere
retro telephone booth inside city hall
we took the old lift up to the top of the clock tower...
the view of Brisbane City from the clock tower
back at the hostel to get our bags
The train to the airport cost a whopping $13.40/pax!!!~
The tiny, aged terminal...
my Qantas ticket. (the plane was sooo full, we couldnt seat anywhere near each other. but the ticketing staff did try and JC, PX n rach were together. She had to reprint and tear 4 tickets to get the seats! The standby queue was LONG!)
The 763 that would take us to Sydney...
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Day 5: Bondi Beach -> Coogee -> DFO -> Sydney Harbour
Summary: We left for Bondi Beach early in the morning and took a (LONG) stroll to Coogee beach where we took in the breathtaking views. After lunch, we took a long bus and train and bus again ride to DFO Homebush (Factory Outlet Store). In the evening, we went to the famous harbour and saw the Oprah house and Bay Bridge. :)
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Bondi Beach
the beach community...
grafiti
strolling by the beach
(i have no idea what bird this is)
some important landmark
we got some passer by to take this for us
px was talking non-stop on the phone (expensive phone bill coming...)
salt water swimming pool by the sea
fishing a1one
timer shot that failed (the gd shot was on rach's cam so its now non-existent)
px with a very 'jupiter-ish' rock wall background
yihui fascinated by puddles of water..
or actually, its the drowning ants that caught his attention
squatting (in AUS?! wow... i thought this only happens in the 3rd world)
sky/sea+rock wall =D
green sees blue
white water!
one of the other beaches
lunch at a jap restaurant...
we then took a LONG bus+train+bus ride to DFO Homebush
we stayed til closing time (5pm..)
Sydney Harbour!!!! (I LOVE THIS SHOT!)
The Oprah House
The Bridge
I tried capturing them both together in the same picture, but my lens werent wide enough...
Day 6: Central + Chinatown + Blue Mountains!!!
Summary: We slept in late(r) and went to the CBD and Chinatown in the late morning. We had lunch at Chinatown mall before heading to Central Station and taking the train to Katoomba, Blue Mountains. We missed the Katoomba train by 30 seconds!! (and would have to wait an hour for the next) The ride to Katoomba was 2 hours long and you have to keep your ears wide open to listen out for the stop name which is announced manually by the driver when the train departs from the previous station (no announcement is made on arrival). We took a long walk to Katoomba Falls to see the 3 sisters and trekked around for abit. We took a long train ride back to Central and tried to walk back to our hostel. (instead of taking the 15min bus ride)
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(no pictures of Chinatown)
Grand Central Station
Open Platform (no gates or gantries.. ticketing is at your own integrity)
trains here are double-decked
the tracks
halfway up the mountain
Arrival at Katoomba Station! (ITS COLD!)
its a long road down...
homegrown berries
the 3 sisters!
the queen...
posing for a shot...
resting
Natures Path
Mud road block
look out!
on the edge...
A mini cave
Ah Lam Lookout =D
px...
Titantic anyone?
Timer shot
orange sun reflection
Waterfall
the walk
scratching his head...
Sunset at the clif!
Playground Shadow of Sun
Yihui watching the sun set...
floating?
The train station by night :)
look at Rach's expression! Priceless!
The upper deck of the train...
Day 7: Sydney -> KL -> Seremban
Summary: We woke up, packed up had breakfast and walked out to the 'main road' to hail a cab to the airport, but couldnt find one that would take us as there were 5 of us. So we had to call a cab from the public phone... We checked in and ate lunch before going into the restricted area for Duty Free shopping. We boarded our jetstar flight to KL. The seats were SO comfortable that we fell asleep shortly after take off, when we woke up, we watched Juno and an Australian Comedy (something like Friends or Little Britain, just aussie style). After landing in KL, Rachel called her aunt, who picked us up from the airport and took us to dinner near her grandmothers place. After dinner, her aunt drove us to Seremban train station where we took our KTM train.
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our room...
the hostel entrance
benches...
a very resort-like hostel
breakfast!
the kitchen
Our hostel =)
Reception
This sign was along the road near our hostel o.0
queuing up to checkin
Macdonald's McFeast w/Bacon!!!! DAMMM NICE! (pity they don't have it here)
The A332 that will be taking us to KL...
The cabin...
Peixuan showing off the adjustable headrest!!!
while taxiing, we passed by 747 after 747...
SIA 747
BA 747
QANTAS 747
taking off!
heading out to sea!
high in the sky
frosted window
look at the light bend!
Some bendy meander near KL
flaps up!
taiixing to satellite terminal C as the sun sets..
the KL airport terminal! (LOOK AT THOSE SEATS!)
having fun...
very blurred shot while on the sky train to get to another terminal
where we had our dinner
chili
food
After eating, we went to Semremban Station to take the train to JB(me n yihui) /Singapore (the rest)...
Day 8: Seremban -> (JB -> ) Singapore
Summary: (In the middle of the night, Rachel got robbed. details on her blog) Yihui and I alighted at JB station and went tried to take a bus across the causeway to no avail.. the queue is not followed and people just ran and surrounded the buses when they are approaching the bus bay. We waited for 3 buses and gave up as we was unable to push our way through the determined M'sians desperate to shove their way onto the buses by pushing people out of it. In all cases, the bus doors couldnt close, so the bus officers had to ask those hanging on the doors to alight (took quite awhile, since they pleaed and argued like their lives depended on it). So we ended up walking across the causeway with a load on our backs. After getting through Singapore Customs, we managed to hop onto bus 950 to the MRT station and took the train home.
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walking across the causeway 5.50am...
Sunrise at Seletar Reservoir as seen from the MRT between Khatib and YCK.
I went home, took a shower and took 162 to NYP for orientation...
-The End-
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Alighting at Woodlands Checkpoint
Timer shot on the way to City Square...
We went to city square to buy water, grab some food and use the toilet, before crossing the bridge to the train station
The JB train station
Timer at the station
the train on the opposite track, heading to Singapore
The JB station Sign Board.
Yihui taking photos of my taking photos
posing on the train
rach, jc n me
px n yihui
self explanatory
the train
some no-name station that was outside my window when i woke up
Click to hide Day 0's pictures