Lair of Flying Green Song Rabbits

Over the Christmas holidays I went on a family holiday to Tasmania on an Asian Tour with Apollo Travel. We travelled quite thoroughly around the whole of Tasmania and here's day ONE!

Here's a map of Tasmania and the route I think we took.




We took a maxicab to the domestic Airport and took the Virginblue plane. Here's my bro posing with the airplane lol.


Landing in Hobart airport. The view out the window is basically Tasmania in a snapshot. A LOT of Tasmania looked like this....

After we gotout the airport we took quite a long drive to Hobart city. Along the way we saw barely a soul on the street.... The place was absolutely deserted for Christmas day.


The Tasman Bridge. This is the main way to Hobart CBD from the eastern shore. It's a really massively long bridge across the Derwent River. At some point in history a boat struck the bridge and the bridge had to be repaired. The remains of the boat are still under the water since the river was too deep!

We were suppose to go to Port Arhur that day but because it was Christmas Day many attractions were not open so we went to Mount Wellington instead that provided a good lookout of Hobart.


Hobart City! And you can see the Tasman bridge from here.

After the short stop we got back on the tour bus to travel to Mount Fields National Park.


Much of the trip looked like this.


Lots of poppies! Look at all the possible opiates it produces! Tasmania has the largest legal poppy plantation in Australia (My Tasmania facts are not cross checked.... some/all of them may be incorrect lol).


A hops field. Hops is used in the production of beer. It was a previously flowering industry but now it's slowed down, we saw many abandoned hops fields.


Intermission! Lookie my cute bro with his chubby baby cheeks lying on his best friend/brother's shoulder.


Mt Field's National Park Walkway!


Masively massive trees. The forest apparently houses some of the tallest flowering trees in the world....


There was a lot of moss growing on all the trees and a lot of fallen trees. It was like circle of life happening in there; Large trees growing then falling and being covered in moss and new plants, housing a whole new ecosystem.


My mum demonstrating the monstrosity of this fallen hollow tree.


Russell Falls. This waterfall was really beautiful!


Me + said waterfall.


There was a lot of different mushrooms growing in the national park. Here's a cluster of orange ones.


After the short and easy walk to the waterfall we embarked (minus my grandmother) on a harder walk to the next waterfall. This is the top of Russell Falls!


Lone red mushroom!


Next waterfall. This picture looks like a good background/screensaver. Seriously the water was so clean.


Feel the sisterly love!!


I'm tipping a rock of of my shoe here... These shoes took me EVERYWHERE in Tasmania. I only brought a pair of flats and these boots with me but as you'll see, we did a lot of trekking so I only ended up wearing the flats once to dinner. These boots are probably the most expensive but best shoe purchase ever... It's gone more kms with me than most of my other shoes and lasted through a lot of different weather and terrain.

But yeh I think mum took this photo and I kept it cuz my hair looked nice XDD


More strange mushrooms growing on trees.



That's all the photos I have from Day 1. After trekking for a bit we lost sight of my brother and dad as they walked ahead. We stopped for a while waiting for them and they didn't come back for ages and ages and we were almost late for the bus! Mum got pretty pissed since for the entire trip they kept walking off ahead. We don't have many family photos because everyone was so separated all the time -.-.

After Mount Fields we went to stay in a 3 star hotel called Junction Hotel at New Norfolk and had instant noodles for dinner (No where to eat during Christmas). New Norfolk is a tiny town where the Princess Mary of Denmark grew up. I don't have any photos of the hotel but it was average motel like. Clean and comfortable enough but not luxurious. Luckily they had electrical blankets and I was kept warm! Although not the best hotel we stayed at it was my favourite because it had the best breakfast food ever. More on that later.

Happy belated new years everyone!!

This year went by in a flash for me. I didn't feel the christmas nor New Years cheer at all so haven't really felt like it's 2011 until now. For Chrsitmas I spent the time on a plane to Hobart then getting my first glimpse of Tasmania before having instant noodles and meat buns for dinner because nowhere is open on Christmas day in Hobart... More on that in another post (I will do a 6 part series on Tasmania! I have 500+ photos and no one to share it with except you guys >.>)

For New Years I spent it at a party without much new years festivities.... The fireworks just arent the same on TV! However I enjoyed myself immensely and celebrated it in our own geeky way. I also crashed at someone's house for the FIRST time!!!

Anyway new year is about reflecting upon the year and looking forward to what's ahead so I'm going to try and summarise this here.

At the beginning of last year (2010) I spent it with my then, not officially, bf. We spent 12 hours together camped out to watch the fireworks on some rocks at the bottom on bush tracks. Isolated from the rest of the world for 12 hours straight. It was one of the best and most magical 12 hours I have ever spent. I had a great start of the year with, who I acknowledge now to be, an amazing guy. I took a brave move and took him with me on a holiday before really knowing enough about him; very unlike me but I don't regret it now. He's been there when I cried, laughed very unlady like, gave me massages when I'm stessed, watched me sleep, fall clumsily and helped me up again. He has been my constant throughout the year and hopefully through this year too and I can't thank him enough for always being there for me.

To my friends who are always there when the situation calls. It always amazes me how on important occassions and parties we somehow ALL are able to get together. With everyone getting jobs this seems to get harder and harder but I love how when we do get together the friendship is just as it was before. It's funny to look at how we've evolved: from parties where several gaming consoles are set up and we all huddle and play games, to dressed in suits and dresses while huddling around Norman pegging a toy at him or making maccas runs for 50+ soft serve cones or 60 chicken nuggets. Many more people are graduating this year and I hope those who have graduated find great jobs!

I don't have any new years resolutions this year. They usually consist of losing weight or finding a job.... maybe I'll have better luck without new years resolutions!

Okay got to go now, Hope everyone has a great year full of lots of laughter and enjoyment!

When you hit rock bottom and cry yourself to sleep every night.

When you hit rock bottom and do nothing else but sleep.

When you hit rock bottom and sleep 16hrs a day.

It was recently the bf and I's anniversary so if you're in the mood for a lot of mushy lovey dovey cheesiness with photos and all read on!

I had planned a lovely getaway at Sheraton On the Park Hotel which is located right opposite Hyde Park in the city.

Bf said dinner reservations were at 5:45pm and I told him we should meet up at 4 which he got all curious about. The night before I had to tell him to pack his bags which ruined my suprise a bit but he still wasn't sure where we were staying at until I led him there!

I really wanted to go earlier and go to the pool there (the sole reason I picked Sheraton is for their amazing pool!!!) but I already promised mum I would pick out a pair of sunnies with her and she wasn't available till 2.

Anyway once I got to the city I went to check in and my debit card got declined... Fail.. I then realised the cheque I deposited hadn't gone through yet so I had to stand there awkwardly on my iPhone and transfer money through to my account. Seriously this has happened too many times...

The reception area was pretty classy. These massive pillars were very nice and there was christmas decorations that really gave it a festive cheer. My phone photo was blurry so this will have to do... Also my camera broke so all photos are from my phone.

Picked up bf and led him to the hotel and up to level 5 where our room was! Upon entry the room was kinda disappointing. Upon openning the door you're greeted with a white wall and a closet and you gotta sorta walk inside, get past the bathroom to the actual room. When we entered, the room was dark as there was timber shutters that were all closed so it didn't feel very welcoming.

We had the City view room which I wouldn't exactly say had a view... Our windows directly faced an office buiding that obstructed almost the whole view so there wasn't much to see and we left the blinds mostly closed with the lights on. Anyway the interior looked like this but with shutter blinds so not as brightly lit as this and this is the park view rooms.


After I showed him my suprise he came to me with a little golden box that contained my suprise:


WOOOT Diamonds! Girl's best friend! Although I did tell him I didn't want any diamonds unless he was getting down on one knee wtf.

He had planned to get me diamonds ages ago, and had messaged a mutual friend that he was settling for the T & Co bracelet for my birthday and saving the diamonds for the anniversary. I sneakily saw the message and knew about it.... I told him I didn't want diamonds!! But the sweetie bought them for me anyway. They're from Angus and Cootes and I think they're about 1/4 carat but he says he forgot wtf.

After exploring the place and playing guess the price on the food in the fridge, we headed to his "surprise dinner place." he remarked at how funny it washe booked a dinner place near where we're staying and the only place I could think of was the restaurant at the top of central Tower and that was exactly where he brought me!

360 Bar and Dining

Sitting on top of Sydney tower the restaurant offered a revolving restaurant that did a full turn every hour, offering the best views of the city.


Look! Okay Sydney skyline isn't that pretty to be honest... We don't have many sky scrapers and they're all ugly and bland looking. We had a bit of fun playing "I Spy" before the food arrived.

We ordered the 3 course meal at $95 pp.

Bread came out first and it was so disappointing!!! They gave us 4 slices with each slice different eg. multigrain, sourdough etc but they were cold and not soft at all! The butter didn't really help either. It was really quite awful. I still hadn't finished my 2nd piece of bread by the time the entree arrived.

The dishes had just simple names of the meat and then the escription under it. This is just going off the menu oon the website.


Pork Belly: 12hr confit pork belly, pickled beetroot, apple puree, water cress salad (come to looking at it.. I think the menu changed.. those 2 little blobs do not look at watercress salad)

I think i liked this the best. Not so much the beetroot but the pork and the sauce went so well together. Also the pork somehow didn't look all glistening and fatty which was kinda odd.


Bf's entree. Not on website but it was soem duck thing with some sort of salad looked like sprouts. It was kinda odd cuz it tasted a lot like duck but looked nothing like it and the texture wasn't duck...


Mains: Beef. Beef fillet with fois gras, portobello mushrooms and some potato like thing in sheets. Pretty delicious!! The yellow thing on top had a really strong strange flavour... I'm guessing fois gras...


I hve no idea why this picture is upside down.... But it's some lamb shanks with peas and asparagus and some sort of green puree.


Hehe intermission showing off my pretty earrings. I was all ready for dessert and got so excited when they were taking away the my polished off main until bf told me dessert is usually served a little bit later to allow the main to sit.... Then i decided we'll wait a while so the sun will set and we can watch the sunset!!


Said bf who ordered wine and I told the waiter I was fine with water. He gave me a funny look... I should get used to drinking wine so I look classy!


Weeee dessert time. I kept smiling while eating yummy dessert and bf was like "wtf??" and I had to tell him I was "happy to be eating at a beautiful place with him" which is true but really it was about the dessert =P


Vanilla bean creme brulee with poached strawberries. The portion was massive much to my delight! The creme brulee was fantastic but got a bit sickening at the end. The pistacio biscuits were just alright, weren't crunchy enough and the strawberries were disappointing. I would have preferred fresh stawberries cuz the poached ones tasted canned.


Bf's dessert looked really yummy it was some mango salad with coconut sorbet I think. The icecream/sorbet thing was really yummy but the mango salad not so much.


The sink in the bathroom was entirely glass which was pretty cool. My frilly lacey dress! I was super unsure about buying this dress since it was a lot more frills and lace than I ever dare to wear but it was on sale at Forever New so I got it. Mum remarked how pretty I looked in the morning for the first time in a long time -.-. Sadly minutes before I met bf I saw a girl in the same dress!! I never want to wear it again!! *sniff sniff

After dinner we decided to go up the observation deck of the tower. The annoying part is going back down the escalators then going up again -.- Oh and secuirty is so tight! They have one of those airport doorway scanners!

We had an annual pass to the observatory and I used my card while Bf forgot his but they found him in the system.

Somehow between waiting for the escalator and getting up there the sun had set and the whole city had its lights on display. It was quite beautiful if it weren't for the annoying asian tourists. The place was so packed and it was 9pm.


We kept trying to take pictures with the background but failed =(


Hehe.

After getting back to the hotel the pool was closed so we didn't get to go to the pool!! We decided on the bath instead and had a nice bath until we were old and wrinkly. Pretty tired by then so turned on some tv before realising nothing was good and decided to go to sleep. Just before climbing to bed we shared a look that could only mean one thing... WE WERE HUNGRY!!! As bf looked across at me I knew he was thinking the exact same thing as me and we reached for the room service menu to find a bowl of pasta at $50... Instead we got dressed again and went down to maccas and brought some food back to the hotel to snack on.

Next morning bf couldn't get up T_T We kept switching off the alarm until it was quite late. Check out was at 11 and we got up at 9. We rushed to breakfast downstairs and was greeted with a magnificient buffet. There was everything imaginable!


2nd plate. First looked way nicer. Everything from traditional eggs, bacon, hash browns, to cereals, yoghurt, oats. Then there was the miso soup, fried rice, chicken wings. Honey in comb form, all kinds of juice and like 15 different types of fruit. Anything you ever wanted.... If it wasn't there you can tell the chef to cook it. We had a window seat next to hyde park as well. Breakfast was truly magnificient!

After breakfast it was about 10am so we really had no time and quickly packed and went up for a look at the pool. I couldn't possibly go for a dip as I would need to straighten my hair later and we barely had an hour!


Bf looks unhappy >.>




Look at the view of hyde park from the roof top pool area!! It was amazing! I wish we had gone the day before!


The pool with window side and ceiling panels. Wish I had a swim =(



With bf again hehe. I hope his face is cuz he's squinting and not frowning >.>

I had such a lovely weekend and can't imagine anyone else to spend it with. Although sometimes he has difficulty saying how he feels and a lot of the time he doesn't agree with me, I love how he makes me think he's the luckiest guy in the world to have me and yet he's the one making me feel like the only girl in the room he has eyes for.

To the bf who always knows when to spoil me and always treats me like a princess: thank you =)

Diamond Zuan Shi (English) | Upload Music

The following showed up in my announcement box for uni's webct. I found it quite amusing. Our lecturer is pretty cool.



For the Lecture on Monday 11th (which by massive coincidence also happens to be Week 11), please download this paper

Functional Heterogeneity of CD11c-positive Adipose Tissue Macrophages in Diet-induced Obese Mice
Li et al (2010) J.Biol. Chem. 285 p15333

Try to resist the urge to read it. I know it will be hard. Nine figures each containing 10-20 graphs looks so appetizing and enticing. You just have to be strong. If your friends try to cajole you, just say "No". I know it's asking a bit much... getting you to print it out but NOT look... sheer cruelty. But just use the same tactics that you employ when you're studying and you're tempted by:

* getting up to make endless cups of tea
* create ever-more detailed revision timetables
* take a 'well earned' break by watching day-time soaps
* taking the trouble to tell everyone on Facebook how you're going with studying...

You wouldn't fall for any of those traps, would you... so you CAN do it... resist, resist...

PS. The PPT will go up on Friday afternoon. Probably.

The following article was something I had saved, but figured I'd share it with everyone here too so we can all enjoy some relaxation time!


A treat for your feet
Sit down, get comfy and arm yourself with some warm water, nail clippers, a foot file and a buffer for a professional quality pedicure at home.

Face fantastic
Facial masks are the ultimate in relaxation and if used a couple of times a week, they can drastically improve the quality of your complexion.

Salt soak
A simple soak in the tub can release the tension from aching muscles (or cure the pain of last weekend's cocktail bender) and will leave you feeling relaxed and refreshed. Fill your bath with warm water and add bath salts or essentials oils. If you're feeling adventurous, try a milk bath. Pick up a packet of milk powder from the grocery store and add two table spoons to warm water. The enzymes in the milk will activate on your skin and leave your body feeling super soft. Add some lavender oil for the ultimate relaxation.

Sweet as sugar
Smooth and glowing skin is easy to achieve using a homemade sugar scrub. Mix brown sugar with aloe vera and jojoba oil until it forms a smooth paste. Rub into the skin in a circular motion, and watch the dead skin cells literally wash away.

Treasured tresses
To spruce up your mane, opt for a DIY hair treatment. To counter dry, brittle or damaged hair, try mashed avocado, banana, cocoa butter, olive oil or honey. Massage a small amount of ingredient into damp, unwashed hair, making sure special attention is paid to the ends.

Nail it!
Start with removing dead skin from the nail with a cuticle stick. Then shorten and shape your nails with a good quality nail file, ensuring you file in the one direction to avoid nail damage. Massage cuticles with a few drops of cuticle oil and buff to give the nail a healthy base. Add a quality base coat and finish with a super-glossy nail lacquer.

Cucumber cure
Whether it is a constant dryness, fine lines or crow's feet, the eye area is considered the most complained-about area on the face. To make simply steep chamomile tea in boiling water, add one tablespoon of aloe vera gel, two teaspoons of peeled and seeded cucumber and half a teaspoon of honey and blend until smooth. Apply to the eye area and leave set for 30 minutes.


Article taken from http://www.30daysoffashionandbeauty.com.au/buzz/beautybulletin/7954536/top-home-pampering-treats

Also included waxing, but how is that relaxing as much as painful?