09-10 Jul 2011 Outback New South Wales

Term 2 school break... I worked from home for a week and took 2 days off to have some 'us'  time with Mon & Justin.

Checked the availability of hotels/motels somewhere at Mildura / Wentworth.  It's not so bad going without pre-booked accommodations.

09-Jul.  We packed our bags, took a quick shower, filled up the petrol and off we go - drove along Calder Highway.   Since we passed Charlton, noticed that we had been driving for a few hours without a sight of even Maccas or KFC or any other fast foods.  Haven't had lunch yet, lucky we had biscuits and grapes in the car.  

Redcliffs. 

After long hours of driving, we stopped over at Redcliffs to fill up the patrol again.  Then dropped by to take a photo of Big Lizzie, an old, enormous machinery used to clear vast expanses of land at the Redcliffs Soldier Settlement.  It was purchased by a Big Lizzie Commitee, restored and now becomes a monument at Redcliffs Barclay Square along Calder Highway.

We took our chances that there might be a place open to get some food to eat around the area... it was already nearly 4pm and we didn't have a decent meal yet.   Alas! Found a BBQ chicken  and Fish n Chips take-away.   Not very satisfying but good enough to fill our hungry stomachs.

Just a few minutes drive after Redcliffs,  Justin felt disappointed seeing Maccas at Mildura.  Drove further and checked-in at a motel somewhere at Wentworth.   Our trip was supposed to be just a night getaway but later decided to extend it.  Thinking of staying on the same motel but changed our mind the moment we took a shower.   Mon said.. "Mas malakas pa ang ihi ko sa shower na'to."  LOL.



Abbotford Bridge



10-Jul.  Left Wentworth, drove to Abbortsford Bridge over the Murray River, then to Calder Highway going to Mildura. 

Along the way, we stopped by a "Honesty" fruit shop to see what they got in there.  It was a good price, $5 for a 10kg-pack of oranges.  But thought that it might not be a good idea to buy then as it would be hard having the fruits in and out of Sunraysia Region if we are travelling.  Thought of buying one before we got home.



We stopped over again and parked opposite the Top of the State Merbein Entrance sign.   Merbein is the northermost part of Victoria.

Reached Mildura and had breakfast at Centro foodcourt... then drove to the outback of New South Wales.

Lake Mungo National Park.

Felt a bit scared being alone on the road along the Fletcher's Lake Road on  the way to MungoNP.   Phone - no service.  Alone on the road and we couldn't see anything but 360deg-view of a flat empty land... not even a single tree in sight.   

We were relieved to see a company on the road along Wentworth-Pooncarie Road and seeing trees and vineyards once in a while.  Scared of being lost :-).

We reached the Top Hut Road intersection from Wentworth -Pooncarie Road, where we had to drive more than 60 kilometers on unsealed road to the Mungo NP's Visitors Centre.

  

At the end of Top Hut Rd is the entrance to Mungo National Park. 










On the way to the Walls,
we saw more emus... really cool!  

  

We stopped to take a photo...  and were amazed when we saw two roaming wild emus.  It's not as if we haven't seen emus before... but seeing emus outside the zoo, in the wild was simply awesome.    Mon kept on telling us to get in the car for one of the emus, headin' to our direction, might run after us.  Cool!

We stopped at Zanci Buildings site then went to the Visitors Centre.  The self guided tour was closed but the Walls of China was open.

Mungo - Walls of China.


Overlooking Mungo Walls of China

Ahead was an exellent view of the lunette Walls of China.  We were on the bed of Lake Mungo, dried up thousands of years ago.  From the brochures, they named the different layers in the erroded pinnacles of the Walls:

• Gol Gol Unit - pink soils at the base of the lunette 
• Upper and Lower Mungo Units - brownish cream and white sands formed when the lakes were full.
• Arumpo/Zanci Units - grey clays which cap the residual pinnacles.

  

 

 

We walked a bit and took a few photos then left.  Driving back to Mildura was quite OK... Not too bad as we already knew what to expect.  We even stopped and took a shot of Fletchers Lake along the way.  

Mildura Wharf

At Mildura, we went to buy a take-away meal at KFC then drove to Mildura Wharf.

It was a quick meal before headin' to Sacred Heart Parish along 11th Street to attend a 5pm-Sunday mass. 

It was not peak season and we didn't have a hard time finding a place to stay for a night. The day trip ended with a meal at a Chinese Retaurant close to the motel.

More Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2134768403100.123468.1062778089

25-Jun-2011 Our Fishing Trip at Buxton Trout and Salmon Farm (VIC, Australia)

25^th June 2011. We went fishing with our family friends.  My mum didn’t go so it was up to me to do this blog.  Me and my dad went to Tito Dennis’ house.  There was a misunderstanding, as Tito Dennis was already at Tito Lorenz’s house – waiting.  We drove to Tito Lorenz and Tita Jac’s house. There were also some other people who went fishing with us, Tito Larry with Trina and Sabel, Denise, and Uncle Stewart, Tito Lorenz’s colleague.  We did a little bit of chatting while waiting for all the people who will go fishing with us. Then, we were finally off!

The fishing pond was in a quiet place called Buxton Trout and Salmon, close to Marysville . It took us about two and a half hours to get there.

We finally arrived! When we reached the counter, we had to choose a fishing rod from a shelf. The counter lady gave us bait for the fish and told us that if we catch a fish we have to go to the counter so the lady could clean the fish up, weigh and pay for it.

There were only two types of yummy fish to eat. They were rainbow trout and salmon. 

After we chose our rods, we saw each pond had a sign of saying what fish there were. We all spread out into different ponds. Me and my dad went fishing in an awfully quiet pond with no fish. Later on,  me and my dad joined Tito Lorenz and Stewart in another fishing pond.

 

My Dad caught the first fish. Then Tito Lorenz and Stewart after. I was now really desperate to catch a fish. I then managed to catch a fish after my dad put his fish in the bucket. Once I lifted the fish out of the water, it was wiggling a lot trying to escape. I caught a small rainbow trout.

There was a part which I really hated to do and that was taking out the hook. I just wanted to pull the hook out of its mouth but my dad didn’t let me. I had to touch the squirming fish full of blood while my dad just took the hook out of its mouth for me. When I touched the scales of the fish, it was all sticky with fish oil.  

All of us managed to catch at least two fishes each except Tita Jac as she was cooking the fishes for our lunch. We did have to wait quite a while till the fish was cooked. She put onion, lemon and she also stuffed the fish with tomato. She wrapped the fish in foil and put them on a grill.

Once she finished cooking, we got the table ready and sat down to get ready for the food. The trout looked so yummy when Tita Jac put it in the table. The meat looked kind of like salmon meat because it was orange just like salmon. The trout was so yummy. We also had chicken from Nandos Restaurant and rice to go with it.

To make everything fair, we let Tita Jac catch a fish. This time, she caught one from a salmon pond. It was so heavy. The counter lady said the salmon was just over 1kg. One of our family friends wanted to catch another two fish for themselves. They caught a salmon as well and a rainbow trout. The disgusting part was that it was pregnant and once they put it in the bucket, fish eggs (roe) came leaking out of the fish.

It was nearly 5:00pm, so that meant the ponds were nearly closed and it was time for us to leave. While Tita Jac and one of our family friends were paying, I saw what damage the Victoria Black Saturday bushfires did in 2009.  They had to carry out 40 tonnes of dead rotten fish and buried it.

It was time to leave.  Everyone decided to go to our house for dinner. Tita Joy, Tita Bheng and her mum, Lola Thelma joined us.  We played different Nintendo Wii games like racing and Just Dance.

For dinner we had teriyaki trout and salmon caught from the pond cooked by my mum. I had enough of fish for the day so I just had pasta with home cooked tuna white sauce,  also cooked by my mum.

After that, we watched Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince movie.

It was already past midnight when the gathering ended.   It was a good experience… my first fishing adventure.

JR

(Photos : http://www.facebook.com/mobileprotection#!/media/set/?set=a.1845771306566.2096128.1309143858)

12-Jun-2011 Mt Gambier, South Australia and Nearby Attractions

Saturday, 11th of June:

It's long weekend, hence we took the opportunity to take a break.  As usual, Justin's swimming lesson at 10:30 a.m... washed the laundry til 12 noon while making a jello for the party at Grace's house later, then packed the clothes and toiletries for a night getaway. 

We're supposed to pick up Jac and Lorenz at 11:00-11:30 am but arrived at their place at 1:00 p.m.  "Malamang dilat na ang mga mata non!", we thought.

We went to Grace and Dennis Mansion at Pakenham for the celebration of Hennie, LJ, Gwen and Beia's birthday and left there at 3:30 p.m... (Apologies to Egay/Kat, hindi na namin kayo naantay.  Sayang, na-miss namin ang masarap na luto ni Egay!)

Set the GPS to Federal Hotel, Mt Gambier.  It was roughly 6-hr drive from Pakenham.   We stopped at McDonalds around 8p.m. at Warrnambool... dinner solved.  Then drove again... Along the way, we almost ran over a small fox crossing the road or could be possum.. not quite sure.  

From Lorenz's 'school' and 'chikababes' adventures ... to Justin's 'name that tune' and 'guess the movie'... the 6-hour drive went so fast.  We didn't realize the time.  For the first time, Mon was awake throughout the journey.  I didn't have to slap and pinch him to stay awake :-)

South Australia is 30 minutes behind Victoria.  We arrived at Federal Hotel around 9:15 p.m.

Sunday, 12th of June:
We checked out at quarter to 8 in the morning  and started touring.

Mount Gambier, the Limestone Coast of South Australia 

Old Town Hall and Gardiner Fountain.

The old town hall was constructed out of the local dolomite and limestone and was completed in 1882.  Beside the building was the Gardiner Fountain, donated to the city by Captain Robert Gardiner in 1884. It is claimed to be the first marble fountain made in South Australia.

Cave Gardens

Located at the heart of the city centre, next to the Old Town Hall.  It features a sinkhole.  Visitors can walk down onto the suspended viewing platform for  the view of the cave. 

The Extinct Volcano Crater Lakes within Kanawinka Geopark:
Browne's Lake - We kept on driving around the park where it is located and ended up concluding that the lake was now dry as we couldn't find any sign of water from where the map was pointing us.

Leg of Mutton Lake - It's a dry lake bed in a volcanic crater,  now bushy with grass and trees.



Valley Lake - a scenic lake surrounded by hills with playgrounds, bbq and picnic grounds and shelters.




Adam Lindsay Gordon Obelisk
near the Blue Lake



The Blue Lake in winter.

  Blue Lake - The most famous of all  the lakes in Mount Gambier.  It is the source of the city's drinking water.  Each year at the start of summer, the lake starts its colour change from greyish/steel blue to brilliant turquoise blue.  Throughout the years, there had been a number of theories said on why the blue lake changes colours. It's winter time, so we didn't get a chance to see the lake in its most beautiful colour/scenery.

The Rook Wall and Lookout
facing the Blue Lake

We ate lunch at KFC then went to Engelbrecht Cave.  We had to wait for 45 minutes for the next tour and the man at the counter told us that there was really no stalactites/stalagmites there.  It's a dry cave, so was not really eager to wait.  We left and decided to go the next destination---

Umpherston Sinkhole (The Sunken Garden) - similar but bigger and better than the Cave Gardens.  It was once a cave with sinkhole created when the top of the chamber collapsed downwards. The soil on the ground of the cave had been landscaped with terraced gardens and is floodlit at night. It is an impressive garden with  plants hanging over the edges of the sinkhole.  It was originally beautified by James Umpherston where the garden got its name. 

Seeing the 2 honeycombs on the wall of the cave  and a possum that scared Lorenz away were considered a bonus during our visit.   Had fun photo taking on the log truck on display at the park before going back to the car.

Leaving Mount Gambier...

Princess Margaret Rose Cave - the Underground Wonderland. It is located at the Lower Glenelg National Park via Nelson Victoria.   It features stalactites, stalagmites, helictites, columns and pillars with formation of a wedding cake, bacon and egg, shawls, blankets etc.   Been to a number of caves before but our first time to hear the term  helictites. Unlike the stalactites and stalagmites, helictites formed in different directions.. not simply upward or downward.  The jewels underground were amazing as expected.

After the cave tour, we went southeast, heading to Cape Bridgewater, southwest of Portland Victoria.  It was truly a place for paragliders/hang gliders.   'Wish we could take a ride (maybe not for Mon though.)

Cape Bridgewater Wind Farm -  It's part of the Portland Wind Enegry project.  Stopped the car at the side of the road to take a photo... with Jac, making up faces everytime a car came from both directions... only to realize later that there's a dedicated bay ahead for cars wanting to give way or stop.

Cape Bridgewater Blowholes - the force of the ocean was not as spectacular as I had expected.  It was a calm day.  The sunrays over the ocean were beautiful ... it's like stairway to heaven...

Cape Bridgewater Petrified Forest - It's a short trail  from near the blowholes with view of rock formation that resembles a number of broken pipes/tubes.  I found from surfing the net that petrified forest was formed when the forest of Moonah trees was smothered by a large sand dune. Water seeping through the sand formed a crust of sandstone on the outside of the trunks, decaying the organic matter, leaving behind petrified trunks.

Time to go home.  It was already half past 4.  The time flew on the road without us knowing while me, Jac, Lorenz and Mon exchanged stories of our childhood, teenage years, marriage proposals, about our ex-es, siblings, our differences and similarities,  embarassing experiences and many more.    Felt hungry and so we decided to stop at a Chinese Resto at Colac and had our dinner there...  It's a continuation of the past until we got movin and back to the road... 

Had a cup of hot choco at Jac & Lorenz' house while they're chatting with Peter before ending the night.

I don't know if there would be more things to talk about after this trip...  It was a good trip...  all in one fine day.

More Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2013916580469.115787.1020438581

8-May-2011 Hot Air Ballooning Over the Beautiful Yarra Valley

A Birthday or a Mother's Day Treat?   The voucher was my gift to Mon's Birthday last year (March 2010).   Supposed to expire within a year...  but due to popular demand, I was able to get a booking only on the 8th of May this year.  In time for Mother's Day celebration :-).

The forecast was cloudy and rain.  We rang Balloon Sunrise to reconfirm the flight a night before.  It's our first time so a bit excited.  Meeting place was at Belgownie Estate, Yarra Glen at 6:00 a.m. , so we left the house around 5 a.m. 

The pilot was on the phone trying to reconfirm the weather... We're not very confident, current forecast was saying that this trip could be cancelled.  But the pilot announced after a few minutes of waiting that we're going ahead.  He briefed us of what was expected from us. Teamwork.

We left Belgownie Estate and drove uphill to test the wind.   It was foggy and quite cold.  We decided to stay inside the van with 2 good looking men busy taking pictures of themselves.    Meantime, the guys outside released small balloons  twice or thrice...  to check the wind (I guess).   Then, we saw them talking seriously.  'Oh no! Are they going to come back and tell us that today is not a good day to fly?" 

The other passengers and the driver came back... The flight was still on but we needed to find another place.

Later, we saw 2 hot air balloons already flying from afar.  "This is it!", I thought.  They were able so it means we could.

We continued our journey away from the other hot air ballooners... Then stopped.  They let us walked to a grassy vacant land.  Setting up the hot air balloon was done with both the staff and passengers' helping hands.   It's a bit pricey but I think it's a good team building exercise.

We loved it.. being on top.  I'd anticipated that it would be cold up there but it's not.  The Yarra Valley was beautiful.  I'm sure, Mon who is scared of heights, would love to fly again (given another voucher hehe).  The flight was so smooth... great sights..  overlooking the farms, hills, isolated houses.   We saw a big shadow of our balloon surrounded by rainbow over the clouds... an art in which God was the artist. 

We landed after an hour and a half trip.  

Taking the air off the balloon, putting the giant balloon inside the big bag, getting along with other passengers... all these activities made this trip a memorable one. 

The trip ended with a sumptuous Champagne Breakfast inside a reserved dining room at Belgownie estate overlooking the vineyard, along with the pilot and the other passengers.

Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2004092374870.115274.1020438581

24-Apr-2011 - It's Over But Not Quite - A Trip to Rhine Falls ("Huling Hirit!")

Our flight to Melbourne was at 11:22 p.m. from Zurich via Dubai.

I got over with my 'iPhone drama'... we packed our things and took the hotel shuttle bus going to the airport. That was nearly lunch time already. In the airport, we stored our luggage in 2 self service, unattended lockers.  There was a token for each locker which we could use to unlock later.

Schloss Laufen

We still had a fair bit of time to get around, so we had decided to go for a day trip at Rhine Falls.  We took 2 short train rides from Zurich to get to Schloss Laufen.  

The Rhine falls (Rheinfalls) -  It is said to be the largest plain waterfalls in Europe (in terms of width). Similar to Niagara falls in Canada (definitely not as grand as), tourists can take boat trips to go near and enjoy the power of the water falls.  Walking dowhill from outside of Schloss Laufen station was the station for boat trips.  Tickets can be bought there.

We walked uphill, leading us to the viewing platform of the magnificent falls and a small museum.  Then had lunch at a restaurant at Schloss Laufen before coming back to Zurich.

Overlooking the Rheinfalls

Justin had a habit of checking his iPhone and other things every minute after the previous day's incident.  He reminded Mon, "Do you have the tokens of the locker with you?" 

You wouldn't believe it!   Two days in a row- we felt like we're being "jinxed" or something!!!  When Mon checked it out, he only found one.  He said that he remembered putting it in 2 separate pockets.   How can we collect our luggage without the token?  "Thanks to Justin for the reminder.. otherwise, it could cause us big problems later..." 

Zurich Central Station

Instead of doing some shopping at Zurich City Centre, we went to the airport, trying to figure out what to do.  Our flight would be in a few hours, and we had a problem taking our luggage out of the lockers.  We asked the information counter and she directed us where to go and ask for some help.  A guy rang the office that manages those unattended lockers and asked us to wait. 

Wohoo! No sweat!  It was not a long wait but we have to pay of course for losing the token.  Emirates counters were already open, so we checked-in all our luggage. 

Then we took the train again, off to Zurich City centre.  It was around 5:00 p.m. already, walked a bit... but most of the shops were already closed, so just decided to go back at the airport... Bought some Swiss chocs and made our way for our flight back to Melbourne via Dubai.   (Wonderin' why Toblerone, a product of Switzerland, was more expensive if bought in Switzerland (comparing with price in Australia.)

A bit of shopping at Dubai ... then back to Melbourne... Back to reality - unpack, washed the dirty clothes from the trip, tidied up the house, drove to Rey's house for a quick chat and dinner as his Mum/Dad was due to leave Oz the following day... and before we knew it ---- it was already morning.  Time for Justin to go to school for the start of Term 2 and me/Mon to work.

Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2004077934509.115271.1020438581

23-Apr-2011 "Some Good Things Never Last"

We were at Milan quite early, but the train ticket that Mon got would only leave around lunch time.  Had to wait for more or less 3 hours.  We're running out of things to do.  I have a phone number of a relative... 'thought maybe it's a good time to catch up.... tried to call him a few times but couldn't reach him.

We found a bench in the station... Justin was playing, Mon was sleeping, I just walked around the station. I still have less than a hundred Euros to spend before leaving Italy.  Justin was sooo happy with iphone Ferrari case that I bought.   I woke up Mon telling him about some of the shirts and cardigans I saw at Zara... Just want to get his opinion whether I should buy them or not.  Comparing the price in Melbourne, I thought they're cheaper.    I ended up buying 4.. 2 ladies shirts and 2 cardigans... It was only just a few minutes before our departure... I didn't have a chance to try some of them as I was rushing.   The guard at the store reminded me to close my bag before I walked out.  It's like a premonition/warning of the unforunate events ahead of me.

We travelled from Milan to Brig, intending to go back to Geneva before going to Zurich.  

Justin while waiting for his cheese burger at Brig

The train stopped at Brig a quarter past one.  

Gosh! Gosh!  Silly me!!! I checked all the luggage before getting off but missed to take my shopping bag with me.  Hu Hu Hu ;-(  I shopped for nothing.  I felt bad but what can I do.  So I just decided to move on and didn't let this incident ruin my day.

We went out the station...  Nice view, also a good place to stay for a night.   We bought 3 'take-away' cheese burgers for lunch and back to the train platform, heading to Geneva.  As mentioned in my previous blog re:Geneva, we went there to visit the Palais des Nations.

We're pretty much in the train the whole day today.  After visiting Palais des Nations, we went to back to Geneva Central Station to take a train to Zurich airport.

At Zurich airport, we collected our luggage, those we had deposited from St Moritz a few days ago before going to Italy.  At the foodcourt in the airport, we asked Justin to look at our luggage while me-withdrawing some cash at the ATM and Mon-buying dinner.

While eating dinner, I checked my iPhone in the bag.   IT'S NOT THERE!!!  Waaaah!  We're already about to go home... "This can't be happening!"  We all looked everywhere... every pockets of all the luggage... pockets of all our coats... but we couldn't find a trace of my Iphone.  

We started to recollect..
   - The last time I saw it or at least remembered holding it was at the platform at Geneva Station while waiting for the train to Zurich airport.  I was looking for my credit card which I used at Zara... I checked if it's in my Iphone case.  I thought I lost it but I did find it later.
   - The train to Zurich arrived shortly.  I couldn't remember if I returned the iPhone back in the bag or if I put it in my coat's pocket.

Our theories:
   -  Had I dropped it accidentally at Geneva station and could somebody had picked it up?
   -  Was it snatched without me knowing by a robber at Geneva? 
   -  I put my coat at the 'open' overhead compartment in the train above our seat.  Could it be inside the coat and was dropped accidentally at the compartment when I put my coat there?
  -  Was it stolen while Justin was attending the luggage and playing PSP at the same time when I went away for a few minutes to withdraw some cash?
  -  With hesitation, Justin uttered,  "I don't really want to say it, Mum.. but the lady next to us on the same table.  She's acting weird. Could it be...?  Sorry, Mum, she's just acting weird while we were busy looking for the Iphone."  I must admit, it did  occur in my head, as I noticed it myself.  She was acting weird.  I saw that expression before, the way she smiled was similar to what I saw from the  snatcher, sitting next to me before he committed the crime, when I was in a bus a few years ago in Manila.  But I said to Justin, it's not good thinking bad about other people.  He agreed.  He himself was hesistant when he said about his suspicion to us.

 With our experience in Switzerland, highly unlikely for my phone to be in a place with poor reception, even if it's accidentally dropped at the overhead compartment.  I tried to call my number.. but nope, i had not heard a single ring... only heard a voice mail.  It was a sign - telling me that the chance to recover my iPhone would be very, very low.  Whether it was stolen or accidentally found by a stranger... seemed that it had been switched off/disconnected in just of a short period of time.

Tried to send SMS but no response, rang it a few times... all failed.

Twentyt-third of April -  the day when I parted with my dear iPhone ;( .  With it was the Michael Kors case given to me by Mon on my birthday this year.  She's been a great help to me... in tracking Justin's activities, appointments, emails, etc... and I must admit I did miss her.   I had some notes in there that I failed to back-up, history and ugly photos of my medical check up when I was being monitored for a year, photos of my pamangkins, and many more...    When you lose something like your phone or laptop where you store some of your personal infos, we couldn't help but think of the security threat and possible invasion of privacy that this incident might bring.  My phone had a pin... but that should be easy to decode, I guess.   

We checked in at Holiday Inn Express near Zurich airport.  First thing we did was to change our accounts' password - emails, facebook, etc.  I reported at SBB all the items I lost in one day in the train... hoping a person with a good heart might return those.

As what I always say to myself  --- nothing is permanent  --- and as above title "Some Good Things Never Last".   Think of all the material things around you as not yours.   They are all borrowed from your Creator.   When you lose any of them, just think... they're not yours... it's not with you anymore for the owner took it back.  In this way, you won't feel so bad losing them.

This way of thinking normally works for me...  We still had a day to spend at  Switzerland before flying back to Melbourne.  We should not spoil the day.

Additional Notes: 29-May
A few days after we arrived back to Melbourne, I had received a job offer from Germany.  I haven't been updating my CV in the job sites for few years now... hence me and Mon were discussing, could it be related to my lost phone?

I recently discovered a way to see locations of people viewing my blogs and what traffic/operating systems they used... I could tell that some of them could be my friends overseas and some could be visitors who just found me at google.  But I was wonderin, it seemed I have regular follower(s) from Germany. I could see 1 to 3 views everytime I posted a new blog... And just last weekend or so, it was viewed for more or less 25 times in one day.  Is this a coincidence or somehow related to my lost iPhone?  What do you think?

I am not hoping anymore, but if by chance the person who found my phone can read this... you may return it at SBB office if you still want to return it.
 

22-Apr-2011 Pisa, Tuscany

We boarded the train from Firenze SMN to Pisa around lunch time.  Tsk! Got fined for not validating our train ticket.

We were running to board the train on time... It did cross my mind to have our ticket validated while running but I didn't see a machine on the way so 'just went ahead... I didn't think that it was mandatory to validate the ticket... though we always did the last few days.  Well, at least the fine was not too bad... Eur5.00 for all of us.

At Pisa, we left our luggage and bought a map at the station.  Like many others, 'just visited the place to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa, good to know that it's only walking distance from the central station.

A part of the walking path from Pisa Centrale to Piazza del Duomo was being renovated... Further down, we could still feel a good ambience, a street with shops and restaurants at both sides.. It's a busy street, but not so crowded with  tourists walking... (or maybe because it was Good Friday.)

Highlights:

Ponte Di Mezzo - one of the ancient bridge over Arno River at the heart of Pisa.

St Mary's Cathedral - also known as the Cathedral of Pisa... It's a splendind cathedral beside the leaning tower.

Leaning Tower of Pisa - the famous white marble bell tower of Pisa Cathedral.  It was not really built to lean but it did even before its third story was finished.  It was an embarassment for Pisans but come to think of it, Tower of Pisa gained it's popularity from it.  It became famous for visitors of the tower to pose in front of it, pretending to hold it up at jaunty angle to stop it from falling.  I grab the camera and did so for Mon and Justin.   

From where we were, Pisa was leaning to the left.  My head literally ached, doing the same pose, for 15 minutes maybe.   First, it took Mon longer to setup the camera, seemed trying to make it perfect for me, then when I saw the photo.. I said,  "What!? It is supposed to be leaning...  why did you make it look like straight?"   So he tried again.  When I looked at it, I said, "It doesn't look natural.  Look at the bottom.  And why did you make it lean to the right, should it be leaning on the left?"   I posed again, and he tried another shot.  Again it was leaning to the right... I said desperately, "Don't you know your left and right?  The tower is leaning to the left.",  pointing to him the tower and also showing him the shot that I made for them.  And then he said, "I'm just pressured!!!"  He probably tried it for more or less 10 shots of the same pose.  "Hu!hu!  I looked crazy doing the same pose for such a long time... Maybe, let's just have a walk and forget about it."   Justin said, "I'll do it, Mum."   Well, in fairness, Justin got it.  When I remembered this scene... I can't help but smile.  I felt like a child desperately trying to get it perfect... hehehe.  I am being so silly, am I?

We walked around, bought a souvenir and take-away lasagne for dinner.   We hadn't done the laundry for a few days, already running out of socks and undies, so we went to shop... only those things that we would need till we fly back to Melbourne.   I asked the saleslady where to find them... I used the word "boys' undies".. the sales lady couldn't get what I meant.  Then, I said 'brief', still they couldn't get it.  Finally, I said, "underwear", and they understood me.  

We're back to Pisa Centrale... headin' to Milan, hoping to catch a train to Zurich.  Otherwise, 'would stay there for a night.

When we arrived at Milan, it was already late and we couldn't get anymore trip to Switzerland.  The train station would close at 1:00 a.m. according to one of the guys we spoke with.  Thanks to SYGIC Iphone Apps!  Very useful and doesn't require any WIFI signal... It was a big help for us in searching for the phone numbers and addresses of nearby hotels.  Most of them were already fully booked... But thank God, we're lucky to find one!   The fate didn't let us down... we didn't have to sleep in cold night in the street outside the station.

More Photos:
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