Stanly Park

O.K so today I made the hike across town again and up to Stanly Park, which is the second biggest urban park in Canada!! First stop was supposed to be the aquarium but I got a little lost and ended up on a horse drawn tour (another card feature). I can tell you it was great because my the time I walked up to the park I was boiling and sitting in a nice little covered carriage with the cool breeze blowing was just heaven!! So anyway this tour went for like an hour and took in some great views of the harbor and then into the forest which where just awesome. You know there is like a special thing being from Australia, every single person on that tour was from out of town about half where from the US and then the other half where from various countries mainly in Asia, I know this cause we played the where are you from game, we went from the front to the back finding out where everyone was from and nobody was really that impressed by any ones answer cause they where all tourists until they got to me (who happened to be last) and I said I was from Australia and everyone gasped and all the yanks where just staring at me. I don't think the people next to me where very impressed they where from Lithuania and nobody cared about them so after that they where giving me evils for the rest of the time.
After I finished the horse drawn tour I found my way up to the aquarium which once again was just jam packed with heaps of kids. It's not really that big of an aquarium although they have some pretty cool animals my favorite being the otters. I debated paying $150 to do a private training session with the beluga whales but for the time being decided to give it a miss. I figure I can head up another weekend if I decide to do it. Anyone got an opinion on that? To expensive or worth it? Let me know!! I finally managed to pick up a few souvenirs as well oh yeah tacky all the way but still cool!!
Finally I strolled around the Park taking some photos of all the gardens for my mum. She would have freaked and we never would have gotten out if she had come. It's a pretty warm day so I am thinking of heading back to the Y for a couple of hours until things cool down. Tonight I will hopefully have the energy to finally check out the Chinese gardens and then it's off to Canada place for the Festival of Lights (check the news tonight it may be on) The festival of light is a big fireworks display that is held in different countries over a few days and Canada is the opening country with the fireworks starting a 10pm tonight YAY!

The good and the bad

Wow, do I love cable!! O.K so for some weird reason the Y actually has cable which is just great cause after a long day of sightseeing and trekking around the town there is nothing better than kicking back to 80 channels of television goodness. It's heaven with shows like Family guy, Futurama, Simpsons and South park on late everynight wow it's just so good. I'm going to overdoes on cartoons!! : )
O.K well I just though you would like to know that......you right thats much to positive for me I need to way this up with somthing I really don't like hmmmm well thats easy the food!!
The food here suck!! The bread has sugar in it and everything I have bought to eat has tasted aweful and I have ended up throwing most of it out!! It's just blah, damn hamburgers and hotdogs and weird looking salads and baked goods!! I guess you would say the upside of this would be I wouldn't be eating so I would lose weight!! Yeah well that was wishful thinking cause even though the real food might be crap the snacks are great, ice cream, chocolate bars cookies and the list goes on. Oh yeah everyone invision the fat blob lopping up the field for the finals when I get back this year!! Ewwwww. No seriously though I have been trying (every cand on the shelf that is lol.) Nah I just need to find a few staples and then I'll be right....... I hope I don't need to buy an extra seat to fly home!!

Tuesday

O.K so yesterday I headed over to Since Works cause it was free on my card and I thought it would be fun, which it was except for the fact that you could barley move through the stream of excited children. It was cool to see them really getting into and most of it was pretty fun and best of all hands on (all though one has to try not think of where all the previouse little hands have been). It's about the same as the one in Melbourne for thoes who have been.
After that I headed over to the IMAX to see some film on Alaska which I really enjoyed and which was also free mwahahaha!! All I can say is Alaska is way harsh only 6 weeks off snow freeness?! You can keep that! Um other than that I was a bit slack and just wandered around some more, tried to find some gifts to buy people. It's so hard buying stuff for people, mainly cause I want to keep everything for myself. I was going to head across to the Chinese garden in the evening (apparently it's the only truly authentic garden out of China) unfortunatly I lost track of time so it will have to wait for anouther day.

Harry Potter

Finished Harry Potter on Saturday night after I reached the point of no return, couldn't put it down and spend 4 hours completing it. I have to say I liked it very much and although I didn't think the story was any better than 4 (which is my favourite) this is the first one I just had to keep reading. Anyway I kind of guessed what was going to happen but still......I won't say anything. And let my deepest heart felt sympthy go out to Annwen who had it spoiled by the news paper. Damn them all to hell. It's the sixth sense all over again. *sniff*

To much of a good thing.

O.K so I was up bright and early and out the door this morning to start seeing some of the attractions on my card. First stop was an observation deck which was very cool except for the glass elevator yikes!! Unfortunately you can really take photos cause the angle of the glass but still very cool. Second stop was the Art Gallery which was also very nifty, the highlight being the Rodin exhibition which included the thinker which I liked very much (Just for most of you who don't know even though I'm onto the arts I don't actually like most of it.) I did wonder though why does the thinker have 6 toes on each foot? Some one needs to look that up and get back to me cause it's going to annoy me. Anyway his work is very nice and well worth seeing if you happen to have the chance. Other than one other thing I though the rest was crap including Emily Carr who is some famous local (dead) artist who has a permanent exhibition at the gallery. It's funny really how they where talking about how her paintings became abstract in the latter part of her life. Like of course it didn't have anything to do with the fact that she had suffered 2 strokes and 3 heart attacks!! Anyway the other thing I did like where these sculptures which used the same principles as drawing with perspective which of course means that is you view the sculpture from the right angle it looks really awesome but when you move around it it's all wack with huge arms or feet or whatever.
O.K so after the gallery and some lunch I headed up to Stanly Park and jumped on this tour ship of the bay which was just dumb!! O.K I say there is nothing like a tour of the industries in the harbor. Fun on a bun!! Anyway after and hour of that I got of the boat with a cracking head ache (to much sun me thinks) so I decided to cancel the rest of the day and head back to the hotel. At the moment it's about 3:30 so I'm thinking I might go catch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory later which is on at the IMAX and leave the rest of Stanly Park for another day. Oh although on the way back to the Y I have to swing past Seymour St again. I passed through there about 10 this morning and they where setting up a movie shoot so I might see if they are still there, fingers crossed. I also found some promising gifts for those of you who they will be bestowed upon, although I'm defiantly not going as insane as last time.
Oh yeah and before I go I found a picnic bar except there called Mr Big lol.

Hmm this dosn't look safe.

O.K so this morning when I got up I looked thorough my travel book again for something to that wasn't free on my 5 day card. As I was flicking through I found the police museum which had all kind of cool stuff like body parts form autopsies and other way cool stuff so I was like yeah off I go. So I headed out the door and up to Gastown (I'm not sure why they call it that). Any how after strolling around the streets I noticed the area I was walking through had gone decidedly down hill, but I had been through a bit of this area the night before and it had picked up after a couple of blocks. So anyway I kept on going and by the time I found where I the museum was supposed to be I was becoming quite concerned about the state of my surroundings (o.k. so why is the police museum in the worst part of town anyway). So there I was standing in the middle of possibly the worst area in downtown Vancouver by myself, well I wasn't really by myself I was surrounded by lots of homeless and a few insane people. Oh yes I believe they really where insane, one woman who looked about 50 was skipping up and down the street and giggling to her self. O.K so I decided not to stick around and have a good look for this museum, I also decided not to pull out the map for a closer look, and finally I decided not to backtrack the way I came because everyone was looking at me. O.K so I'm not sure how much danger I was in but considering I was about the only person in the whole area who was under thirty and who has showered recently I decided that it was enough trouble for my liking. So I just kept walking round the corner and back up the next street (which may I say was even worse) back into the centre of town. Anyway I will admit I was a bit freaked out so I just kept walking and pretended I knew where I was going and didn't make eye contact. I also decide to look a bit pissed off you know anti social, not that skill doesn’t come very naturally to me. Oh yeah and when I kept getting asked for money I decide not to open my mouth haha dead give away that would have been. Wow may I say I have no idea what that smell was and may I say it was disturbing that it persisted over 3 blocks. I also had the good fortune of walking past about 20 bums lined up to sell the cans and bottles they collected that was a smell sensation. Anyway I made it with out any real trouble and all I can say is God bless Canada because if it had been the US I would have at least been mugged.
Oh yeah and don't mention this to my Mum or Dad, no seriously.

The whats diffrent list.

O.K so here are all the things that I have noticed that are diffrent for all your cuture curiouse people.
- everybody says yeaaaah (but I guess most of you knew that).
- there is no button to push to cross the road instead the walk cycle comes on everytime.
- there is no noise when the walk man come on which sucks when your not paying attention.
- they have thoes big arse buses which are just two buses joined in the middle with thoes plastic things so they can go around corners. Do they have them in Melb I havn't seen them there so don't laugh if they do.
- when you go to the supermarket you change is givin to you by a machine.
- Minute maid frozen orange juice concentrate cost 18c per glass compared with 80c a glass for the leading not concentrate variety.
- A pack of 10 AA batteries (the good kind) only cost $10. SCORE!!
- It is more difficult to find a cinema and movie times in this city than to find Osama.

O.K that's it for now.

Pacific Centre

I finally managed to drag myself out of bed at about 9am yesterday and laid out all my maps and stuff trying to figure out what to do. I got this little card that lets you into all these things for 5 days but I didn't want to use it over the weekend cause it would be extra busy and things would be closed. So I decide just to have stroll around and so forth, I noticed on the map there was a shopping centre about 5 or 6 blocks away so I though I might head down there have a browse catch a movie and just kick back and relax. So off I went down the street wich ran east all the way across downtown right down to the coast and Stanly park. I have to say it was a really nice walk the streets are really clean and there are trees and flowers everwhere and all the building are really nice. Anyway about 15 minutes in I was begining to think I had already walked about 6 blocks and was thinking this was taking for ever and I decided that I was definatly not walking to Stanly park!! Anyway convinced I wans't even bling enough to miss a giant shopping mall (you can see where this is going right) I kept on walking oh and you guessed it I managed to walk about 20 blocks clear across the whole town and right to Stanly park. Shame on all you who would deny me a GPS!! Anyway I though you guys would enjoy that. After a short rest I headed back to the Y for a short afternoon nap and to look at the map again. You will all be happy to know I headed back down again later and found it and I'm happy to say that there are two good reasons I missed it. Firstly I was staring at the awesome art gallery on the other side of the road which is just cool as, and B the centre entrance is just a glass dome the rest of the bloody thing is underground. Oh also I went to Sears and got a new pillow not only just a pillow a Mather Stewart pillow. When I bought it I think I freaked the lady out behind the counter cause I gave her my police co-op card and she just kept repeating heheh police co-op, hehe police.

T&T

O.K so as you can imagine I was soooooo happy to finally arrive!! After taking two hours to get out of the airport and about a 15minute bus ride I finally made it to the Y. The digs are pretty comfy with a tv (with cable, score) and a mini fridge and the bed is o.k the view out the windows is of the hotel carpark but hey you can't win them all. Anyway after a shower and a quick unpack I thought I should go for a short stroll and try and find the school and a supermarket. So on my way out I asked the guy at the desk if there was a supermarket around and he said there was a T&T two blocks north. Anyway after I found the school wich was only on the next block I headed down to the T&T. O.K anyway I walk in the front door and right in front of me there are these huge fish tanks full of live fish and crabs and I was like wow that is seriously cool.....it took me about two more minutes to realise this was a huge asian supermarket. So there I was strolling around the supermarket and the only things I recognised where jello and rice krispys (which are rice bubbles I mean really they are made by kellogs and have snap crackle and pop on the box, although I'm not sure if that is what they are called here.) O.K so as I wandered around I though all I really need is milk for breakfast tommorow........you guessed it NO MILK. *sigh* so by that time I was completely exhausted so I gave it up as a bad joke and headed back to the Y. Oh and yeah I know I was exhausted after walking only a couple of blocks but long flight will do that to you so lay off.

Did I metion I don't like flying anymore?

O.K so last time I left you all I was in Singapore. Which unfortunatly is the last time I ever saw my pillow, we got seperated some where and has been missing ever since *sniff* RIP pillow. O.K so finally after like 3 hours I got to bored my next flight, I got on a found my seat and the guy I was sitting next to said hi and I though well this guy is alot nicer than Mr It's nothing personal. Anyway about 10 seconds later I start looking at this guys pants (don't ask it's not intersting) and I'm like wait a bloody second this is Mr It's nothing personal!!! Well apparently we where on good enough terms for him to say hi, but still not good eough for him to sit with me. The middle section next to us was completly empty so he was gone berfore we even took off!!

Anyway I got over it and settled in for the long haul. After about an hour I decide to look up the flight path details and it said 5 hours until arrival, I was thinking 5 hours it's supposed to be an 18 hours flight. So I look at the map WTF!! We are going to Seuol?? O.K after some major panicing and what I though where some rather late announcments by the captain I find out that yes I'm on the right flight. So after anouther 5 hours we stop in Seoul and had to go through a billion passport checks and what not to get on the other plane. Which I may say in one line this Indian guy and his whole family just pushed in front of me when I was like 3 from the front and the bitch ean over my foot with her luggage. Well I'm pretty sure I could have taken all7 of them but I was not really in the mood so I let it go.
So anyway we get back on the plane with all these new passangers and what do you know, the plane is full and Mr It's nothing personal comes slinking back to sit with me. Anyway long story short it was a very long boring flight but me and Mr It's nothing personal made peace about 10 minutes before landing and it all ended well.
I would write more but I just wrote a huge email to the parents so you will have to hear about todays adventure anouther time.
Seeya

Singapore

Well I just landed in Singapore about 15 minutes ago, pretty nice airport all though I'm not quite sure what a sqatting tray is!?! The flight was a bit weird I ended up leaving half an hour late this morning which meant we departed at 1am but some how we still managed to arrive 45 minutes early, soooo you know you would think they do this enought to know how long it takes to flight everywhere. (o.k nobody leave me a comment to say it's time zones, I'm not that stupid) Anyway the fight was pretty good, the guy next to me got up and left straight after take off, he said it was nothing personal but I am so not convinced, I mean damn who wouldn't want to give up having three seats just to sit with me?! I ask you what is the world coming to.
I tell you what though Singapore airlines look after you it's 2am in the morning and there feeding you spicy noodles and vegtables YUM!! O.K not that I genrally endorse eating after midnight but damn it I was bloody hungry.
That's about it for the moment, and seing I have only had about 4 hours sleep I think I am going to invest in a coffee. Oh yeah that reminds me haha I dozed of again as we where decending boy did I jump a mile when the tires squeeled and we hit the ground!! hahahaha ok well I better be off people are starting to glare at me cause I am hogging the free internet.
Catcha all later.

O.K I'M AAAAAAAALL GOOD NOW I GOT MY COKE!!

 

The calm before the storm.

So there is about 33 hours until I go and well things are getting a bit weird, well no to be truthful it’s just me who’s being weird well actually to calm but I should be ultra pumped so to calm is the same as being to weird.  Right?  Anyway I’m leaving tomorrow so you think I would be climbing the walls but no I’m aaaaaaall good, well actually I would like a vanilla coke but other than that I’m aaaaaaall good.  Anyway I have been sitting here thinking about why I am super calm and here are my theories.

a)       Having been on a long flight before I’m containing my self until I actually arrive.

b)       I’m in denial and I don’t want to go overseas by myself.

c)       I’ve been counting down for six months and I’m not sure exactly what I’m counting down to.

d)       If the plane should crash and I die I have been spending the last 6 months counting down to my funeral.

 

O.K so that’s what I have so far but I’m hoping a. is right and I’m defiantly hoping we don’t test d at all!! J   Anyway I guess I will just have to wait and see on this one.  Other than that this has been a pretty good week actually, at work I have been training one of the guys to do my job.  I must say it’s been pretty amusing, well and embarrassing I think it’s quite possible that more went wrong in the last two days than my first month on the job.  Given that it wasn’t all my fault but I think I have been in need of a holiday for a while now and my grasp on reality has slipped slightly in the last month.  Either way I have completely freaked poor Adam out and I think he’s going to need a holiday when I get back!!   I guess he will get his revenge by stuffing up some of the accounts and leaving them for me to fix on my return.  TYPICAL!! J

 

 

      

Almost Time

Well it's just under a week until I take off to Vancouver and I can't wait!! I was checking the forecast this morning and the day I arrive it is supposed to be sunny and 25 :) which is a far lot better than the current 9 degrees in Bendigo!!
So far I have managed to contain my excitement except for the few poor souls who have had regular "hours to go" updates for the last 6 months (sorry guys), but this weekend is the big pack and panic YAY!! It always seems like you have so much to do until you pack and you realize that was 90% of the stress. It's funny really how everyone rates packing at a different importance level. I am a serious packer I do the packing list and the big laundry wash the day before and then set everything out and well you get the picture. See I though this is how everyone packed but it's not!! I couldn't believe it last week when Thumper said that she packed the same day she went to New Zealand!! I would have a brain hemorrhage trying to organize that, then on the other extreme my travel agent said she had a friend heading off in a couple of weeks and she has been packed since April!! Well to each there own I guess but I think I will stick with my method for the time being as it has served me well so far. Although last time I learnt not to pack so much. Before I left last time my bag was bulging so I ended up having to buy another huge bag just to bring everything I brought home!!

Oh yeah that reminds me 154 hours left!!