Day 02: Perth to Kalbarri

So started our outback tour. We had to get up very early in the morning for the 7am pick-up at our hotel, and since there was no breakfast included with our hotel room, we had instead an apple pie from.....MC'DONALD'S!!! Nutritiously yummy... .

Anyway, I hate it when I make an effort to get up EARLY (me not being a morning person at all) for a 7am pick-up, and after ½hr from the appointed time, we're still waiting. Grrrr. Was almost worried that we were forgotten...until the bus finally arrived. Well, it was a bus that drove us down to another pick-up point so that we could change to another bus...depending on what tour we had booked.

The company we booked our tour with was called "Western Exposure", and our tour was the 7-day to Exmouth and return tour. Highly recommended. This was the general route we took:

To see the bigger picture, this is a map of Western Australia itself:

Circled parts are where we had been to, starting from Perth.

Our bus was filled up to its full capacity of 21 passengers and 1 driver, but about ½ the group were only doing the 4 day tour, so they took another bus back to Perth half-way through. We had a nice mix from all over the world. Unfortunately, no one from the African continent, nor any from the South American continent, though. But yeah, 1 from Singapore, 1 from Denmark, 2 from Germany, 1 from Switzerland, 1 from Lichtenstein (how cool is that?!), 1 from Italy, 2 from France, 1 from Scotland, 2 from England, 2 from Canada, 2 from Japan, 2 from Korea, 3 from Australia, plus our Australian driver.

Most in the group were from 20 - 35 years, and 1 who was probably in her 50's or so (she was so cool!). Definitely made a lot of new friends on this trip, and we all clicked quite well so that made it easy for our young driver too.

Ok, here come the pictures now - our journey towards Kalbarri!

As mentioned in the previous post, in Australian slang, a woman is called a "sheila", so I do get to see/hear my name quite a lot. In this case, "Sheilas" was used to indicate where the "Ladies" was. "Blokes" was used for the "Gents".

Ice-cream-looking flowers... .

Our original group of 21.

Yup...here we are at the Pinnacles in Nambung National Park.

Amazing, huh?

Like we had landed on another planet.

An alien!!!

In Bollywood movies, the girls tend to run and dance around trees. Since I'm ½ Indian, the Bollywood inside of me was jumping out, but since there were no trees around, then even strange rocks would do.

There's that alien again...waiting for the right moment to attack me.

Like my Australian hat? Not sure when I'll get to use it in Denmark, but it sure was useful Down Under. Yiii-ha!

More of those strange rocks.

See the sand dunes in the background? That's where we'll head off to next for SANDBOARDING!!!

Almost looks like snow, but it's not snow.

Lots of sand...but where's the beach?

This was the closest to surfing I got while in Australia.

Wheee! What a pro! But ok, he was from Switzerland, so I would have expected him to do a lot of snowboarding in the Swiss Alps.

For the amateurs (like me), we go sitting down.

Like this... .

View from the bottom. See the sand blowing? If I have a choice between snowboarding and sandboarding, I'll actually rather choose snowboarding. It's really annoying with the sand blowing into your eyes and mouth. Should have had a pair of googles with me.

View of the bottoms... .

Beautiful? Water was too cold for me, though.

Leaning tree? More like loser tree.

See? Tsk, tsk, tsk.

Our driver, Chris. I don't think I could drive the many hours he did without falling asleep at the wheel!

The 2 Michelin chefs of the evening.

A bit of social time before bedtime.

Our twin room for the 1st night. We had to pay a bit more for this, otherwise we would share dorm rooms with the rest instead.

So ends our first outback day.

Day 01 + Day 10 + Day 11: Perth

Many people who had been to Perth before didn't think that it's an interesting city. The only reason why we chose Perth as the first Australian piece of land to set foot in was because we could get very cheap flight tickets from Tigerairways. The price of 1300 DKK (S$350) return per person including tax was simply unbeatable! Well, also that Tigerairways only flew to either Darwin or Perth, so it wasn't like we could choose Sydney if we wanted to fly with Tigerairways.

Anyway, Perth / Western Australia (WA) it was! It's true though, that there's not much to do in Perth itself, since it's a very small city. Of course, we were hanging around mainly just in the city centre, so we didn't really go too much outside it to explore.

Not many pictures from Perth, but here are the few selected ones for you to see:

Just thought it was funny how the bag of chips expanded as the plane ascended into the air. Unfortunately, the contents inside that bag remained the same... .


Part of Perth's skyline in the background.


The view across Swan River.


More of Perth's skyline.


Swan Bells - one of Perth's main attractions. We didn't bother going in there though.


Murray Street Mall. There's another street mall parallel to it called Hay Street Mall. Didn't do much shopping in Australia, actually, except for my Australian hat (which came in VERY handy in the hot Australian weather!). Things were just too expensive there, and not that interesting, so would rather shop in Spore.


A$0.50! See how big it is?! It's heavy too! Would not like to have more than 1 of these in my wallet, that's for sure.


My very own postcard :o). Well, women are called "sheilas" in Australian slang, so it's not that personalised. But hey, it's still my name!

Yup, that's it on Perth! Told you there won't be many pics from Perth. The next few days in WA will be more interesting, though...so stay tuned!

Starting Down Under

After spending 2 weeks in warm but wet Spore, my parents-in-law flew back to Copenhagen, while Martin and I continued to Western Australia. We were there for a total of 12 days, out of which, 7 were spent on an outback tour.

Before I start writing about our adventure Down Under, here is something just for fun. The below are some Q & A's that are supposed to be from potential visitors and Australian Tourism officials. Not sure if it's for real, but if so, then I'd like to be an Australian tourism official with a wicked sense of humour ;o).

Q: Does it ever get windy in Australia? I have never seen it rain on TV, so how do the plants grow? (UK).
A: We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around watching them die.

Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street? (USA)
A: Depends how much you've been drinking.

Q: I want to walk from Perth to Sydney - can I follow the railroad tracks?(Sweden)
A: Sure, it's only three thousand miles, take lots of water.

Q: Is it safe to run around in the bushes in Australia? (Sweden)
A: So it's true what they say about Swedes.

Q: Are there any ATMs (cash machines) in Australia? Can you send me a list of them in Brisbane, Cairns, Townsville and Hervey Bay?(UK)
A: What did your last slave die of?

Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Australia?(USA)
A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe. Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does not . . . oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in Kings Cross.

Q: Which direction is North in Australia? (USA)
A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we'll send the rest of the directions.

Q: Can you tell me the regions in Tasmania where the female population is smaller than the male population? (Italy).
A: Yes, gay nightclubs.

Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys' Choir schedule? (USA)
A: Aus-tri-a is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which is . . . oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday night in Kings Cross, straight after the hippo races.

Q: Can I wear high heels in Australia? ( UK)
A: You are a British politician, right?

Q: Are there supermarkets in Sydney and is milk available all year round? (Germany)
A: No, we are a peaceful civilization of vegan hunter/gatherers. Milk is illegal.

Q: Please send a list of all doctors in Australia who can dispense rattlesnake serum. (USA)
A: Rattlesnakes live in A-meri-ca which is where YOU come from. All Australian snakes are perfectly harmless, can be safely handled and make good pets, especially The Taipans.

Q: I was in Australia in 1969 on R+R, and I want to contact the girl I dated while I was staying in Kings Cross. Can you help? (USA)
A: Yes, and you will still have to pay her by the hour.

Q: Do you celebrate Christmas in Australia? (France)
A: Only at Christmas.

Q: Will I be able to speek English most places I go? (USA)
A: Yes, but you'll have to learn it first.

Nimal and his girl

Here's a video (as promised in a previous post) of my stepbro playing his guitar. He's really good, isn't he?

"Straight from the mouth"

While at a halal Thai restaurant in Spore for dinner... .
Martin (to waitress): I'll have this dish (points to menu).
After 5 mins... .
Waitress: I'm sorry sir, but we ran out of pineapples. Would you like to choose another dish instead?
Martin: Ok, I'll take the sweet-and-sour beef.
After 5 mins... .
Waitress: I'm so sorry sir, but we don't have anymore beef :o(.
Martin: Hmm...right. Ok, I'll have sweet-and-sour pork then.
Me: Erhm...bunsi, we're at a halal restaurant...
Martin: (processing information)
Me (helping him): That means they don't have pork... .
Martin: OHH!!! Chicken then! Chicken. Sweet-and-sour chicken.

And he gets his chicken... .

Food, food, glorious food!

This will be the last but very important part of my Singapore trip - FOOD!!! As Spore is a multi-racial society, we get the benefit of having a wide variety of food from all over the world. A lot of our dishes are also influenenced by each other's cultures, so you can be sure that there are many unique Sporean dishes there. Only dishes from Malaysia are similar to ours.

Anyway, here are pictures to make you salivate (they're making me salivate already!):

Ants! I remember one of my colleagues who asked me a long time ago if we eat ants in Spore, so here's proof of our crunchy delicacy! Ok, seriously? I grew up almost 2/3s of my life in Spore doing only 1 thing to ants: stamping on them to kill them and leaving them for dead. Am SO glad that there are hardly any ants and cockroaches in Denmark :o).

A typical hawker center in Spore. This is where several food stalls can be found conveniently in 1 place. It's also the cheapest kind of place to eat out at, since you can get a full, warm meal for just S$3/S$4 (12DKK/16DKK). You should ALWAYS remember to bring a packet of tissue paper, though - they don't provide this at such places, and if you're slurpping your soup hungrily, you will find your packet of tissues very handy.


A noodle store at a food centre, which is basically a hawker centre with air-condition (therefore, sometimes slightly more expensive, but still under S$5 / 20DKK).


The noodles cooked right in front of you! Wanton noodles (on the left) is 1 of my favourite dishes.


Here's how it's done!

Japanese sushi moving in front of me! Does this mean the fish is really alive :-/? Why are there no sushi restaurants with a moving belt here in Copenhagen?!?


Chicken rice - one of the national dishes of Spore. This place at River Valley Road where we were at is quite famous for its chicken rice.


Indian food on banana palms. Here's where you may eat with your (right) hand. Ok, I have to say something about this thing regarding it being an insult if you eat with your left hand. "They" say the reason is simply that you use your left hand to clean your behind, so you shouldn't use this same hand to eat your food with. Ok, is it just me, or does anyone else see a flaw in this reasoning? I mean, how would you know if I use my left hand or right hand to clean my behind??? Maybe all Indians are trained since young to use their left hand whether they are left-handed or not, but not all non-Indians are brought up with this "training". You see, the logic for me is that since I am right-handed, I would use my right hand to clean, since my right hand is stronger, and hence, my right hand does all the dirty work (pun intended) anyway. My left hand is on vacation a lot, it being weak and lazy and all... . My clever brain would not assign the job of cleaning asses to someone who's weak, now would it? I mean, if you really want to get the job done right, that is. Another thing about it being an "insult" is this: why would anyone care if I choose to "defile" myself when I eat? After all, I would be the one suffering if I get "food poisoning" from using my "unclean" hand, right? Not the other party. Anyway, that's the whole irony of this thing: I use my right hand to eat, when all the while, my right hand is the real "unclean" hand, hence, defeating the purpose of this hoo-ha about "Oh, we must only use the right hand because...." And guess what? I'm still alive! (Btw, now that you all know which hand I use to clean my butt crack, please don't look at me strangely if you see me using my right hand to eat my food, ok? Whether it's tradition or not, I would still use my right hand since like I said earlier, it's the stronger one ;o)).


Satay (diced meat on sticks) - another MUST TRY in Spore. You can choose between eg. beef, chicken, mutton and pork, and it comes with peanut sauce and gluttenous rice (that's what's wrapped up in the leaves).


One of my all time favourites: BBQ sting ray! It's rather spicy, but DELICIOUS! Revenge for Steve Irwin!


Fruits of Spore. What? Don't I look like an exotic fruit???


Ok, if there's any special fruit in Spore worth mentioning, it has got to be the durian. Does it scream "STAY AWAY FROM ME!!!" or what? Here's the other thing that the picture cannot deliver: its SMELL! Well, to most, it smells like it grew in the toilet...but to those with a more evolved sense of smell (like me), it smells just HEAVENLY!!!


For those who don't want to get hurt opening it, you can buy them nicely packed up too. It's actually the 1 fruit that is not allowed in the trains, taxis and airplanes in Singapore because of its smell.


Tastes mmmmm... . Heard that eating durians was part of a Fear Factor episode. I should have participated in that one. "Gimme MOOOORE!!!"


Food at Bistro Indulgz:

Ok, I'll have to say that this is one of the best bistros I've ever eaten at in Spore! It's just a quaint little place in Bugis that is quite hidden, but once found, it's like finding a precious gem! Food was EXCELLENT, and price was quite reasonable. Definitely a place to go back to during future visits.

Hmm...if I remember correctly, one of them was a Banana & Cream Smoothie, and the other was a French Vanilla Crème Thickshake. Either way, I do remember that mine was better ;o). Both were good, though.

Beef Bolognaise Melted Cheese Fries - must try if you ever go there! Was SOOOO good!

Indulgz's Signature Butterfish Steak - my main course.

Lemon Soufflé - my dessert.

Speaking of desserts, check out the dessert that I had at Swensen's Restaurant! Can't remember what it was called, but damn! It was good!

Anyway, guess who I bumped into when I was out buying some Danish pasteries?!? How appropriate for a Danish to sell danish ;o).

At an Asian coffee-shop looking kind of place...which happened to be in the prestigious Raffles Hotel. Waiting for my Danish and my danish ;o).

In Spore, it is possible to eat ANY time of the day. There will always be somewhere opened, even past midnight. Here's something one can eat at tea time.

The results of what's made from the above - tutu kueh (tutu cake)! One of my favourites, with coconut filling. The other option is with peanut filling.

Ok, just wondering, what's up with this? (Click to read better)

I know this has nothing to do with food, but since it's my last post on my Spore trip, I thought it'd be appropriate to end at the airport on the way back to the North Pole. Just wanted to show how cool it was actually to be able to use my biometric passport that the self-service customs gate. Just place my passport at a slot to allow the machine to read it, then the 1st sliding gate opens, then I scan my thumbprint, and if it's really me, the 2nd sliding gate opens...and I'm through!

It sure beats standing in line like the way Martin had to do ;o).

Anyway, bye bye Singapore! See you again perhaps in 2010!!!

Life is so fragile. Carpe diem.

Last year was a year of LIFE (non-stop pregnancy news). This year has been a year of death...so far. 4 death news in 4 days, 1 of which is personal.

The avalanche of death news started on Tuesday, with a friend of a good friend who got ran over by a truck while on his bicycle. He was just 30. May his soul rest in peace.

Yesterday, Martin told me that our doctor had passed away last month. He was probably in his 50's. I had never met him before since I never needed to visit the doc, but Martin had been there a few times, so he kinda knew him. May his soul rest in peace too.

Today, I received an email from my mum about 2 deaths: one of her cousins (52 years old - may he rest in peace)...and the one that hit home - a friend of mine, Joline (who's also the daughter of one of my mum's very good friends).

Joline and I met way back in 1993. Like I said, my mum became friends with her mum, and Joline was her oldest daughter of 3 children. She was my age, so it was wonderful that we could start to hang out together. As our mums' friendship grew, Joline and I got to see each other quite a lot, visiting each other's homes, and joining various family activities together.

Unfortunately, after secondary/high school, we started to lose contact because Joline then moved to Switzerland (her dad's Swiss, mum's Singaporean Chinese), the rest of her family moved to Australia, and my family eventually moved to Denmark. I never heard from her again, especially since email addresses were not quite existing back then, and it's never easy to keep in touch with snail mail over long distances.

In 1994, I received a friendship band from Joline. I had it tied around my right ankle, and it stayed there for 13 years. Last year, around October, that friendship band came off due to wear and tear. I tried to tie it back on again, but it was not possible, so I left it.

Not long after that, in early November last year, I finally got reconnected with Joline again....because of Facebook. It was wonderful. She had been married for 5 months with her looooong time boyfriend (of around 8 years), and had just moved to Mozambique and loving it there. She was also back in Spore in the 1st week of December before continuing to Australia to visit her family. We were therefore not able to meet up again, since I would be there only in March.

She died...while I was in Australia. 20 March 2008 - 6 days after her 31st birthday, in a car crash in Mozambique, on the way from the airport to a vacation hotel in a limousine. Her husband survived the crash, but it took 1 hour before they could get Joline to the hospital.

Joline lived short...but she lived deep. She had been involved in a lot of charity work, also with the UN, helping those who needed help, those who were less priviledged than her. Life was rich for her, and she shared her riches with others. Therefore, the impact she had left behind in so many other people's lives means that she will live on forever. I think that what she had accomplished in the 31 years of her life is more than what many of us will ever accomplish in a long lifetime.

Funny thing was that this was exactly what I was thinking about on Monday - the day before the avalanche of death news. I was thinking about my life, and if I have done anything in it that really matters. So far, the answer is no. I don't want 5 years or worse, 10 years to pass, and such a thinking day like this comes again with the same question, and the answer is still no.

Not that I know what I will do about it now, though. Perhaps the hard realisation this week of how fragile life really is will set some things in motion in my own life. I hope so.

The other "funny" thing was that while out with a Singaporean friend of mine (Ginny) this afternoon (before I received the tragic news), we were talking a bit about Joline's brother. Ginny and I first got to know each other in Singapore 12 years ago - in Joline's home. She was going to the same school as Joline's brother, but her family eventually moved to Copenhagen too.

Anyway...

Dear Joline Wong Koller Elmer: may your soul rest in peace. Death leaves behind a heartache no one can heal; love leaves behind a memory no one can steal. You will always be in my memory, and though our reconnection after all these years was shortlived, I am still very thankful for it.

Update - 10 March 2009

It has been almost a year since Joline's passing. 10 days short of a year, to be exact. Many things have been happening over this period, and it is heartening to see that Joline's spirit really is living on!

I received a message on Facebook from Joline's husband this morning. I don't know him, except from what Joline had fondly told me about him during our short re-connection, but he had chanced upon this post on my blog some time ago, found me on Facebook, and wrote to share some good news for me to pass on: Joline's Habitat Houses! It is a housing project in Mozambique that was undertaken by family, friends and volunteers in honour of Joline.

What a wonderful idea! I'm sure this is what Joline would have wanted - no, not to be honoured, but rather, to put roofs over the heads of those in dire need, particularly abandoned women and children. Please take some time to read about this project - you'll also see what a truely beautiful girl Joline was; both inside and outside.