It’s good to be out of Singapore, and finally on to what I’m sure will be a much more exciting country. Australia! Oi! Oi! Oi!
There’s our trusty steed that took us to the land down under…
…under the freezing skys high above.
To the land where kangaroos roam the plains (er, sidewalks).
It’s amazing how similar the west coast of Australia is to the west coast of the United States. The weather…
…the foliage…
…the skylines.
It all feels so much like home. The only difference is the latitude & longitude.
Perhaps it also feels so much like home because of the strong connection between Western Australia and Holland. This memorial commemorates the voyage of a Willem de Vlaminghand who mapped the western coast of AU in 1697. It’s a unique dual-time piece that simultaneously tells the time in Perth and Amsterdam.
Authored by: Digital Knowmadd on December 19, 2008.
Filed under: Australia,Oceania,Travel | No Comments »
I’ve been waiting my whole life for this moment.
No, not THAT moment. Eww Gross!
I’ve been waiting to witness the Coriolis force in person. To see water drain out of a toilet in the opposite direction in the southern hemisphere from that of the north. But here I am, south of the equator, and what do I see? It drains in the exact same direction as the last toilet I used!
Either this toilet is broken (I blame Jay) or my elementary school teachers lied to me!
This is upsetting.
Authored by: Digital Knowmadd on December 19, 2008.
Filed under: Australia,Oceania,Travel | 1 Comment »
Despite their attempts to try and spice things up a bit (like putting chili peppers in their drinks)…
…I have to say, this place is pretty boring. But don’t take my word for it. Check out the corner eatery…
One, Two, Three…
Four…
Five…
Six.
SIX people sleeping in the middle of a well lit resteraunt. And it’s not even that late at night!
My god. This blog post even bores me to death. I’m going to bed.
Authored by: Digital Knowmadd on December 17, 2008.
Filed under: Asia,Singapore,Travel | 2 Comments »
Flying into Singapore was sort of like flying into Los Angeles International Airport and looking down at the sea of traffic lined up on the 405 freeway. The only difference is that you are actually looking down into the actual sea, and instead of cars, there are boats for as far as the eye can see. Freighter after freighter lined up waiting to enter port.
Once inside the airport…
…we noticed how spotlessly clean it was. Not a spec of dust anywhere. I guess that was to be expected in this gum-free land.
I guess in that regards Singapore reminds me of Japan. A very clean country.
And just like in Japan, they also have similar anti-suicide measures in place at the train platforms. But unlike the ones in Japan, you’re sort of on the honor system.
Other than that though, there really wasn’t all that much in Singapore that was exciting and blog worthy, so we spent a good deal of time just getting some work done.
On one of the days however I did venture out to a nearby modern art museum. There was this giant balloon sculpture on the front lawn. I just couldn’t resist seeing what else was inside.
And ya, it was modern art. A lot of cool/weird/funky/bizarre/senseless/wacky stuff.
A lot of it was pretty cool, but then I stumbled upon this piece.
Curious if this was just a place holder for something that was coming soon, or the other end of a surveyors theodolite, I looked closer at the nearby plaque…
…and that’s when I realized: I HATE ARTISTS! Come on Oliver! Seriously!? That’s some maniacal marketing! You sure pulled the wool over someone’s eyes when you convinced them that your single geometric shape on another geometric shape qualified as “art.” Pshaw!
At least I had a chance to see some original Andy Warhol paintings.
You’re lucky Oliver! For if it wasn’t for the chrome devil in a boat…
…I’d have asked for my money back. Just because of YOU!
Authored by: Digital Knowmadd on December 16, 2008.
Filed under: Asia,Singapore,Travel | No Comments »
With two successful dives under our weight belts, our confidence was riding high. I was starting to really get a hang of this underwater breathing thing. Like yesterday we had an 8am dock call. Today we a piled into a little dingy and took it out to the main boat anchored off shore.
And that’s when we hit a snag…
…literally. After further inspection…
…it was determined that we accidentally ran over a buoy line! And that’s not a good thing. If the rope gets caught in the propellers it can cause engine damage. So Walter and Daniel suited up to save the day.
Good thing we had scuba gear and divers on board! They dove in under the boat with knives in hand to untangle us. After several tense minutes, they emerged from the depths below…
…with quite a catch!
With that all out of the way… it was full speed ahead!
To Palong Bay & then Bida Nok for dives 3 & 4 respectively.
On our 4th dive we saw some more turtles, sea cucumbers, lion fish, puffer fish and… drum roll please…
…wait for it…
A 2 meter long zebra shark (aka leopard shark)!! It was awesome swimming with a shark! Experience of a lifetime. Quite the way to end our final dive!
After that it was back to the dive shop for our final exam where we all passed with flying colors!
You are now looking at the latest PADI open water certified scuba divers! Look out below!!
To celebrate our accomplishment we hiked to the top of the island…
…for a view of the sunset.
..and then it was off to Reggae Bar for some drinks…
…and boxing.
A highly successful 4 days on Phi Phi island! We’re gonna miss this place. Memories forever.
Authored by: Digital Knowmadd on December 12, 2008.
Filed under: Asia,Thailand,Travel | 1 Comment »
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