WHAT DID I WATCH ON NETFLIX: "PENGUIN BLOOM"

When Sam fell off the roof of a building while vacationing in Thailand with her family, she became paralyzed and wheelchair bound. She started to distance away from her husband, kids, and other family members and friends as well. Then came a bird named Penguin, which was not a penguin at all, into their house and this animal had given her the strength and courage to start anew - and it had become the element that bonded the family back together.

Based on a true story in Australia, this is a family drama that tells the viewers there is always hope if one believes. Serious content but not a heavy kind of drama which you would enjoy watching.

A PICTURE POSTCARD FROM PERTH

How often do u get a postcard from Perth?

When was the last time you got a postcard from someone?

This postcard, all the way from Perth, was in my mailbox when I came back from school on 12th March 2018. A dear friend of UPM TESL class of 1993 was there, sending off her daughter for her tertiary education there. She had taken the effort to send this to me. It might look something small (and might be not that expensive) but it had made my day. 

Thanks a lot Puan Janariah Othman for the kind thought. Hopefully you will take care of the koala before you could hand it over to me when we meet later. :)

BOOK REVIEW - "VELOCITY: A MEMOIR"

I read another autobiography - this time written by an Australian, Mandy Sayer. She was telling about her difficult and troubled childhood, coming from a broken family. Being a single mother, her mom seemed just could not be independent without a man beside her and unfortunately, she chose to live with someone who was abusive. The mother herself was an alcoholic and had attempted suicide numerous times. They ran away from Sydney to Melbourne, and yet, the man still managed to track them down. Despite all the difficult times she had to face, the writer still attended school, completed her education and survived.

I think almost all the autobiographies I read had very sad beginnings, especially when the writers were all growing up. Sayer had successfully told her story living in Sydney in 1960's and I am glad I am familiar with many of the places mentioned in the plot. 

I am already reading another book, but I don't think I could finish it before the school reopens next week.

MELBOURNE REVISITED, AFTER MORE THAN 4 YEARS

8th December ~ I was on an 18-hour transit in Melbourne so I had to go out to entertain myself. The main event: meeting an ex-student who is now doing her internship there, Miss Yazmin Johari Halim Shah. As promised, we met at Southern Cross Station and then Yazmin took me to this one eating place hidden in a small walkway among buildings of the city named Manchester Press. I checked on the internet and this place is actually quite well-known among the locals but as it is not located on the main road, then visitors will only get to know it by accident or reading the review in Trip Advisor.

The place was swarmed by hungry people. We had to wait outside for a short while to get seats and the waitress simply wrote the names of people waiting on the red brick wall with a piece of chalk. This concept of this restaurant could be just urban restaurant for busy people. We had brunch: coffee/tea and bagels.

 

I had no plan and there was no exact place to go so we just walked around the city. The next stop after brunch was The State Library of Victoria. This time, I went inside and went to its history gallery but of course we were there not to read and one reason to be there: there was free wi-fi for everybody.

We then took a ride on the famous Melbourne tram which was free for all and headed to Harbour Town. When I was there many years ago, this place was just starting its business but it was doing well from what I could see. Most probably people were doing their shopping for Christmas. Yazmin had to go home by 3 o'clock so I was left on my own again after that.

the beautiful station in the background

I decided to go to this one place near Flinders Street Station. Lucky me, that place was buzzing with activities. There were street performances opposite the station and at the Federation Square, there was a cultural and arts festival organized by people of Turkey. Other than visiting the stalls set up, I just sat there to enjoy the singing and traditional dancing shows on stage.

St. Paul's Cathedral

 

 

I really love the ceramics that were put on sale on that day. Too bad, there was no more space in my backpack if not I would have bought a few pieces. There was also a painting demonstration. The painting was first done on water (mixed with something to thicken it) and then only a piece of paper was put on top of the water and the piece of art was printed on the surface of the paper.

 

 

It was just a short trip but I really enjoyed myself the whole time. I had never thought of visiting the city again after my last trip in 2009 but thing might just happen without planning.

WELCOME TO TANAH MERAH, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA

If you look carefully at the sign board, you can see "Tanah Merah" but it is not in Kelantan. This was what I saw on my way from Gold Coast to Brisbane many, many months ago. It is amazing to know that there is a place in Australia in Malay/Indonesian words and I am yet to google for the story behind it.

IMAGES OF MARINE LIVES AT SEA WORLD

I am in the process of "cleaning" my picture folder and found these photos that I would not want to put into waste. The most amazing thing was to be able to observe live fish swimming happily that I used to only see only on the dining table before this. This posting is most probably for fish or nature lovers/anglers/restaurant operators.

THE LAST DAY IN SYDNEY: LAKEMBA AND THEN GOING THAI

With a few more hours remaining, Mr. Ridwan took me to another small town called Lakemba. Here, many Asians are residing so it is one place where you can shop for local groceries although the price would be much more expensive than you can get at home.

And we ate out again and this time we went to a Thai restaurant. One good thing about Australia is there are many immigrants from Asian countries so you can get halal food and restaurants around the place.

I think that is all about my journey to Australia for 9 days - 3 days in Gold Coast and 6 days in Sydney. It was definitely the days I enjoyed and would not know whether I could have the chance to experience Australia in the future. Thanks again to Mr. Ridwan, Puan Suhaila and their daughter, Reihana for welcoming me and making me feel at home. Goodbye Australia, goodbye Sydney.