Back...

KL is hot. and bloody humid.

Arrived early Saturday, went for David Tao's fantabulous concert at Bukit Jalil, whined bout how humid KL is, went shopping and today - dropped by the office for a medical checkup and briefing.

Heaps of forms to fill in, but that was after the ECG, x-ray etc. Office is very very close to an LRT station, which is convenient in case we ever have to run in the pouring rain. 7 of us metup today, and 8 others in the intake meeting tomorrow. My fellow colleagues are all from different universities. The only one who's really from a local uni is prob a lass from MMU, the rest were from private/twinning programmes or overseas uni grads.

T'was kinda funny that I was the only one out of 7 of us today to actually ask bout benefits and the overall package during my recruitment process. The rest said it's "etiquette" to not ask - which I know too, but heck I needed to make my decision so ask saja le. They were all quite curious n its good to clarify everything today. Turns out a certain allowance is indeed given after we've passed the trainee period. In a way its great that the deal's fantastic. But obviously when you're paid well, they've very high expectations of your performance..so whether it works out to our benefit remains to be seen. But then again, money's a very powerful motivator. Very useful to pay off my debts!!

So now... start next Thursday, next Sun we go to Outward Bound school in Lumut for 5 days. After that's induction till end Nov. Work proper starts Dec 1st. Chen Ximin's coming by KL next weekend. I'm gonna be busy ^_^ Yes life is picking up in KL...

In Sydney

I am so not going to visit the same destinations when I travel in the future. This time's an exception where I'm bringing the parents around, going "ahh Opera House, The Rocks, Darling Harbour blablabla......."

Fish Market - think sashimi which melts in your mouth, lobsters, oysters and stinky seafood smells, oh and some pelicans by the sea.
Opera House - crowds, sunset, the steps.
Darling Harbour - sesame ice-cream at Passionflower, rain, National Maritime Musem, clambering onto submarine (HMAS Onslow), more rain.
City - shopping!

I think I've had enough of Sydney. Can't wait to get back to Melbourne. God I've only got a week left in Melbourne. :'(

"Busy enjoying life"

While preparing my tax return, I belatedly realized I won't get to “enjoy” the tax-free threshold on first $6000 of income. Instead, since I'm leaving Aus 8 months before the end of the next income year, I get only 4 months x $500 as the tax-free threshold. I'll still be taxed on the rest! sobb..Superannuation will be taxed another 30% when(if) withdrawn upon departure. Tax returns = headache..which explains why I'm staying up tonight since I have 2 years worth to lodge.

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The days pass by in a whirlwind of "stuff" - birthdays, mid-autumn festival, house-warmings, meetups, and even a wedding.

October 7th was John and Rose's wedding ^_^ After the ceremony and lunch, we headed to Alexandra Gardens for a short photography session. Weather was fantastic. Skies were a wonderful shade of blue, sun was out. Perfect day for a wedding.

At the gardens..

I like this picture! (re above)

Ervina, Rose & John, David, Jason.. plus me (aka 'the hidden photographer')

After the wedding shoot I did my usual last-minute dash to the NGV (National Gallery of Victoria - International) for their annual Winter series exhibition. This year we fortunate Melburnians get to see "Picasso: Love and War". But that wasn't before I stopped to take this..

~Melbourne has an elegance I find difficult to leave behind..

More friends have visited this exhibition than I'd expected. Perhaps it was the draw of the artist, perhaps it was this..
They've obviously put alotof effort into curating this exhibition, with more than 300 works showcased interpersed with Dora Maar's works. It highlights some 10 years of Picasso's works when he was infatuated with Dora Maar, tumultuous war years as backdrop. Hence "Love and War". Might be abit quirky but I was particularly drawn to a few sketches of horses in his works, really liked those, plus La Suppliante.. Overall it was good, but wasn't "great" for me. Prefer different styles..

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Oct 5th: Mey's birthday, she's the pretty lass seated 2nd from right ~

Birthday dinner at Southbank .. a great night out with the girls.

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Sometimes we do stuff like these ~ in late Sept ~ dessert @ Soul Mama's

~ Di, MeiZhi, MinHui, LeeInn and Mey in a rare group pic

Espresso pot with soy on the side, passionfruit tropical cheesecake with pistachio yoghurt, mud cake (out of view) and something else :)

People've asked "so what're you busy with lately?"

As my sister'd probably say on my behalf - "Busy enjoying life" :D

Ja, mata (goodbye)

I think I...

I think I ... am going to leave with a broken heart.

September was spent living in denial. 5 days in Adelaide, and by day2 I was missing Melbourne. I hadn't realized it was going to be so hard to leave. Come October, reality sets in. I start preparing to leave for KL (in exactly 3 weeks time). Bouts of insomnia remain persistent. It seems foolish to spend the remaining hour/days here on irrelevant things such as sleep.

Its not the end, its merely the beginning. But there's this reluctance to leave the comfort zone. I know what its called too - reluctance to "grow up". Reluctance to separate from friends whom I may never meet again, reluctance to leave behind the community work I've grown accustomed to. Reluctant to accept the fact that life will be consumed by work back home.

Fortunately I have naught but hope - I do my best, God takes care of the rest. Nobody ever said change was easy...

On other things..its the Mid Autumn Festival tomorrow. Happy mooncake festival folks! If you're playing with lanterns, be careful not to burn the field/house down :) As for me, I'll be off celebrating with a chinese dinner. Funny how I am more "traditional" when I'm overseas..

Ta.