Holiday Down Under - Part I

This is a day-to-day journal of sorts of my recent holiday in the Land Down Under. Sorry for the long absence from my blog, but as I said, I was away on holiday :)

Day 1 - "If you can finish it, you can have it"

I opened my blurry eyes slowly waiting for my vision to clear...this is what happens when you sleep, or try to sleep for about 7 hours sitting uncomfortably in an aeroplane chair. Usually I can never sleep on the plane, however, this time due to the fact that I had not slept properly for 3 nights in a row immediately preceding my flight, this was an exception. Anyway, I collected myself together and proceeded wearily into Adelaide International Airport, bracing myself for another long wait. It takes forever in this place to clear immigration and customs due to Australia's very strict regulations on bringing in any form of food or plant produce. I stood in line waiting for my turn at the counter. Finally, I was through but I still had to collect my luggage and clear customs. Nevertheless, today seemed to be a day of exceptions. Normally, if you have nothing to declare, you will be able to get through with a minimum of fuss. Today, however, Mr Customs, Robert something-or-other, insisted on turning my bags inside out. So there were all my most personal belongings a.k.a. underclothings etc. sitting on the counter for the world to see and all the while Mr Robert what's-his-name was making small talk like he did this kind of thing every day (which he probably does). The funniest thing was when he asked me about my water bottle. He asked if the water in it came from the plane or from Malaysia. When I said it was from Malaysia, he told me, "If you can finish it, you can have it". Well, I wasn't prepared to let him take away my beautiful purple bottle which has served its purpose as more than just a water bottle (it has been known to protect me and my friends from unwanted predators). So there I had to stand and finish the water, amidst his telling me to take my time. Good thing there was only a little bit left, otherwise I might have had a very bloated tummy.

Day 2 - Sandcastles on the Broadwater

The very next day, I was on a plane (again!), this time on the way to Brisbane for a week's holiday with my family. Upon arrival, the first thing that struck me was the weather, which was so like Malaysia, hot and humid. You sweat and get sticky, much different from the dry hot weather in Adelaide. We then proceeded to our holiday destination on the Gold Coast, a small block of service apartments quite aptly named "Sandcastles on the Broadwater". Broadwater was the name of the area where the apartments were located. The place was just perfect for the four of us - two rooms, a kitchen, dining, and two bathrooms (most important!)

Day 3 - Movieworld

Apparently this is the home of Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman, The Flash (I just found out his name- I always refer to him as the guy in the red suit) as well as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and all their friends. I must say that it was rather an entertaining day. I'm not much a person for roller coasters (my sister says that theme parks are wasted on me), but I did enjoy browsing the souvenir shops and shaking my head at their ridiculous prices. Also, there was a main street parade Disneyland style where all the characters strutted down the street in their costumes as well as on floats. I couldn't help thinking that they would be cooking in those outfits as the day was extremely hot. But oh well, it's not anybody who can put on a funny suit and entertain children (as well as adults) day after day after day. Thus after a day of taking pictures, watching silly shows and going on a few rides ( yes, I did go on some), I came back hot, tired but thoroughly happy. I guess there's still the child in me who likes to take pictures with Bugs Bunny and Batman :)