The world's smallest penguins only stand 33 cm tall, thats a little over 1 foot. They are cute little critters. Living only in Australia and no where else, they are protected and are one of the fine gems of Australian wildlife. The largest colony lives on Phillip Island, a 2 hour drive from Melbourne and on the outskirts on the Southern most tip of Australia, besides Tasmania. Below is a postcard photo that I took as no photography was allowed at the park as the flashes disorientate the penguins and can cause anxiety. The life of the Little Penguin begins at sunrise. Prior to the sun rise before it peaks above the horizon the Little Penguins waddle from their burrows that can be up to 2km from the beach and into the surf. From there they swim all day feeding and filling their bellies until sunset (roughly 9pm during the summer months of December to January). At sunset the 1500 or so Little Penguins that are located at the Penguin Parade National Park, arrive and dash across the open beach to the protected dunes and bluffs. From there they scamper back to their burrows to feed their spouses and little ones. They repeat the same thing the next day. Quite the life they live!
These are the Little Penguins, the smallest penguins in the world and are only found in Australia.
Where I sat was at the Penguin Plus area where you can get an up and close experience and see them fairly close. The wait was long; however, once the sun set it was a thrilling experience.
The beach where they crossed the beach. It was super close.
Overlooking the other beach where the other penguins come ashore. This also overlooks the general admission area
Some of the penguin man made burrows
Man made burrow with a waiting penguin.
Prior to the pivotal evening, my uncle and I drove to Phillip Island's wildlife park to give him the Australian experience of feeding the kangaroos and wallabies. So more photos of this safari.
They are soo cute!
Thats an emu
At the watering hole
Kookaburra sitting in the old gum tree.....merry merry
Wallaby
Dingos
After the wildlife park, we drove to the Nobbies, one of the other national parks that has a large population of seals, shearwaters, and sea gulls. The sheawaters migrate all the way from Alaska to Australia, our visit didn't see any; however, there were thousands of gulls with their chicks.
The visitor's center
Surfs up dude!
Seal on the beach!
It was another great weekend!
This past week was a hot one, it reached above 102 degrees and it was terribly hot, something that I am not use to at all. It can get up to 110 degrees easily in January. As long as its sunny thats fine with me, I swear I am in a happier mood when i get plenty of Vitamin D. :)
It was 1 degree hotter but I missed it for this photo shoot.
Next week should be full a normal weather week. This weekend and next weekend won't be too exciting besides working on Saturdays and resting and taking it easy on Sundays. Should be a peaceful two weekends and plenty of time to rest up and plan for the next two months worth of activities.
It's been a while since my last post and lots have been going on. Work has finally picked up and things are flying by. Mostly I work a good 10 hours and then come home and cook dinner and quickly head to bed. The weekends are for mostly relaxing and resting up. Over the holiday break I plan to head to Sydney and in mid-January prior to my return I have scheduled a trip to Airlie Beach, the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef for some exciting snorkeling. Yes, time is short and I must do as much as I can in order to maximize my 16 weeks here. Sure, I could be extended but for the meantime Ill plan on a scheduled return to the US by end of January. If time persists I hope to make it to New Zealand. We will have to see.
In the mean-time, summer is around the corner and the days are staying lighter and lighter in the evenings. Sun sets around 8.30pm now and the temperatures are warming, staying in the 70s now and the weather service is forecasting for an above average temperatures for this summer. Looks like Ill need to load up on sunscreen.
Also, my uncle from Alaska has made it down here for a nice three week visit and I have been having a great time wandering around the area and playing tour guide. Its been fun. We discovered the Queen Victoria Night Market on Wednesdays. Last Wednesday was the first night of the summer event. Atleast 50 stalls of street food from around the world is available to taste or chow down, plus beer and wine from the region. With local entertainment and local crafts its an amazing event not to miss.
The previous weekend, my co-worker and I ventured to the Dandenong Ranges National Forest for a bushwalk, we actually ended up doing an intense cardio workout instead. But with surprises come a sense of achievement as we climbed the 1000 steps to the top of a mountain. Giant ferns and giant trees encompassed the forest and the disney movie Fern Gully was named after this Fern Tree Gully Valley. The Kokoda Memorial Trail for the remembrance and memoriam of Australian soldiers in World War II is what the trail was called. Super busy, with lots of trainers running up and down these steep and slippery stairs. It was a hot day and it was quite the climb. No spectacular view on top either....but it was a good experience. :)
Last weekend, my uncle and I ventured to Melbourne's (Melboune - they do not pronounce the R in Melbourne here, if you do you are a tourist!), the Shrine of Remembrance (Melbourne's equal to the US' Tomb of the Unknown Soldier), Albert Park and St. Kilda.
The Shrine of Remembrance is an impressive monument that is located South of the Yarra River in Melbourne. The memorial is for remembrance of all Australian and New Zealand soldier's who sacrificed the ultimate price for the sake of their country. One of Australia's and New Zealand's most devastating loses in a war was the battle of Gallapoli during World War I. Over 10,000 Australian and New Zealand soliders lost their lives in a fateful battle to begin with. The massive shrine was erected in the 1930s to commemorate them as well as all other soldiers for their country.
View of the city from the top of the shrine
After the Shrine, we ventured on a walkabout through Albert Park, the city's largest public park complete with a lake, multiple cricket grounds, walking trails and of course the location where the Melbourne Grand Prix is always hosted.
We walked through this park and ended up in the neighborhood of St. Kilda. This beach side neighborhood is diverse with culture and has an amusement park, good restaurants, and a laid back atmosphere, and lots of venues for entertainment.
Luna park the local amusement park mainly for the kids. Kind of scary entrance.....
Sunday was another adventure out to the Great Ocean road with my uncle. This time my first time driving outside the safe haven of Docklands to my work place. It was easy and the weather couldn't have been better!
This weekend Ill be taking my uncle to Phillip Island, the place where there are thousands of little penguins and all of them come home at sunset. It will be something to see and experience for sure!
Here are some photos of Melbourne. Crown Casino the large Casino and entertainment center has giant granite pillars along the Yarra river that light up with gas bursts on the hour every hour after sunset. They are pretty spectacular.
Along the Yarra River at night with a full moon in the back.
Melbourne Central a shopping mall in the city was built around this historical landmark building. Pretty Cool!
Giant Red Steps art work along the river
Getting a nice per diem allows time for slurging on good food. Not a spectacularly tasty fish - New Zealand Grouper, but was made flavourful with the nice garnishes.
Costco is across the street from where i live. It was the first Costco in Australia and its a booming business. Today was the day that i caved and joined! Cheap beer yes kirkland beer is here and comforts of home with loads of great snacks and essentials! Bought my first item.....korean style australian beef jerkey......its an odd combination.....
Singapore in two full days! Plenty of time to explore the largest city-state in the world! With a population of a little more than 5 million, I flew from Melbourne on one of the best airlines in the world. Flying the 7.5 hour flight via Singapore Airlines economy class flew by as economy class consisted of a 3 course meal and plenty of legroom via the Boeing 777. I arrived late in the afternoon with the temperature roughly 88 degrees and 70% humidity. It was a shock to jump from 60s and wet weather of Melbourne to this sauna.
Despite the grandeur of Singapore it was very easy to navigate to my hotel within the first couple of hours. I arrived on Saturday November 3rd and planned to depart on Tuesday November 6th, plenty of time, maybe too much time to see and enjoy this international pot.
With little time, I had pre-arranged a guided tour the first full day in this Fine city. Known for its cleanliness and aptitude towards capital punishment, the city is the finest city in the world. Fines and rules are everywhere and if you don't follow them you are going to be fined or even caned! Its quite the shock; however, with all these rules and consequences it makes it a great tourist destination as everything is clean, easy to navigate and people are friendly.
I arrived at my hotel, the Swissotel Stamford which was the tallest hotel in the world, before some hotel in the middle east took its reign. This 5 star hotel was a bargain on a deal on Expedia and out of it I was even able to get a free upgrade to the business lounge and a bay view room. Worked perfectly! Exhausted from the flight I went to bed early and woke up extra early to grab a coffee at Starbucks!
At 8am I had arranged for a guided tour of the city's historical and significant sites. I was picked up at 8.15am promptly and roughly 30 others joined as well. This introductory tour lasted 4 hours and gave a great insight of the city.
It began at the Singapore Flyer, the world's tallest Ferris wheel, I decided not to on this as it was roughly 35 dollars and my hotel was taller with equivalent views. :P
We visited the Merlion the symbol of Singapore. Half Lion and Half fish this statue is found on every postcard!
After Merlion, we headed to Chinatown for visiting Singapore's oldest Buddhist temple, built in 1840. Roughly 74% of Singapore is Chinese and the rest is divided up as Malaysian, Indian and others.
From there we headed to The National Orchid Garden which is world famous for its naturally grown orchids. Its a huge park, and given our 30 minute limit we could only explore roughly 25% of the entire park.
We then headed to Little India which was packed and where the tour ended. With the Hindu festival of Denpasar (walking on fire) on full throttle, thousands of Hindu's had pilgrimaged to Singapore to celebrate this religious festival. They congregated in Little India and then paraded barefoot to Chinatown where the oldest Hindu temple in Singapore is located. This is where they then proceed to walk across burning coals.
It was quite the sight and neat to share in their experience; however, I did not participate in the fire walking. :P
After the tour, I wandered around Chinatown and took in the sights, ate odd food for cheap less than 2 dollars and saw another Buddhist temple with a relic of Buddhas tooth.
I ventured back via the subway (MRT - Mass Rapid Transit), literally costs only $.25 cents per trip! Amazing, to my hotel for a quick rest. Around 6pm, I boarded a shuttle bus from the hotel to Singapore's Night Safari!
This unique zoo experience is the only one like it in the world! I arrived not knowing what to expect and was blown away by the opening "Fire Breathing" performance by the local Malayasian cultural center, and then boarded a tram that took us around for 45 minutes to view all of the animals. It seemed a little bit like a Disneyland adventure; however, it was pretty neat to see all the animals out and active in the darkness.
I stayed at the Night Safari wandering around in the dark taking in as much of the animals as possible. Very fun and very neat experience, probably the closest I will get towards the real deal!
I made it back to my hotel via the shuttle around midnight and then slept in the next morning. Little did I know that Singapore is one of the shopping centers in the world, I used my second day to explore Orchard Road one of the most densely populated streets in the world with Shopping Malls.
Overwhelmed with my arrival to Orchard Street, I didn't know what to do! I entered one mall right above the subway station and couldn't find my way out for about an hour. Thousands of stores and hundreds of luxury goods stores were everywhere and each one of them was packed with shoppers!
I decided to take part in consumer behavior and shopped around and literally didn't stop window shopping/shopping for 4 hours!!! The most I have ever done! There was so much to see and explore. Some of the best food I have ever had was in the food courts of these malls. Super cheap and everything being rated A, B, C, D based on their hygiene, A's were always best and for less than $3.00 I could get a full meal and have leftovers!
Phad Thai for less than 3 dollars!!!!!
Chicken Rice the steamed chicken in butter. A Singaporean specialty!
After being shopped out, I wandered back through the city stopping through Clarke Quay the entertainment area with clubs, bars, restaurants all along the Singapore River. Very pleasant and nice.
I returned to my hotel and then ventured out during the early evening to see what the city looked like at night. I went to one of the famous "Hawker" centers (Food Courts) where you could get almost any type of food cheap, plus some delicious satay for less than 40 cents per stick!
On my way back, I ventured towards Marina Bay, where the city's largest and most luxurious hotel, Marina Bay Sands Hotel is located. There, I was able to see the evening's light show which was a little bit cheesy but was entertaining!
Entrance to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel
Artwork of Obama in my hotel lobby
My airplane home, the A380 the worlds largest passenger airplane
It was a great way to end my time in Singapore!
It was an interesting city to explore and I am now able to say that I have been there and probably not return as a final destination....too much shopping for me.
My return trip was interesting as well, instead of flying a Boeing aircraft I flew on Singapore's Airbus A380, the largest airplane in the world with two levels of seating. I was able to snag a seat on the upper deck and it was very spacious and I didn't have a neighbor next to me so I was able to stretch out and have a comfortable flight back to Melbourne. It was a nice way to end my fun weekend trip!
