Well, day 9 into #project21!
Well, if you've been wondering...Project 21 is a project which I've created. A countdown to the things I do before the day of my 21st birthday!
Boarding the plane in 8 hours time. Time difference between SIN & LON is 7 hours. It should be 8 hours. But because of daylight saving it is 7 hours.
Hope I won't have jet lag.
Official first trip overseas alone.
I will update you guys after my trip!!
Till then, ciaos!
Monday, September 16, 2013
Sunday, September 15, 2013
6 days of M A D N E S S!
Alright, I'm finally back from Melbourne, Australia!
One thing about Australia is that you need to fill up the Immigration form as you enter the country, and also when you leave the country. Both forms are quite similar. And don't forget, check if you require a visa!
After you've cleared the customs, you can get into the city by taxi, bus or skybus. It's quite convenient. The terminals are just beside each other. So, from T2 (International flights), walk for 2-3 minutes and you'll be able to spot the Skybus ticket counter. One way: AUD$17, Return: AUD$28.
There are 2 stops. The stop where you are suppose to board the Skybus to the city will be the one behind the ticket counter. The stop in front of the ticket counter is for people to alight.
20-30 mins ride to the city. And you will stop at Southern Cross Station. Once you've reached Southern Cross Station, and you can't find your way, it's fine! Just a 3-5 minutes walk towards the station, you will find a place called Traveller's something something. Can't remember the name. From there, you can ask for help! (:
Anyway, I was quite surprised when I went to Australia. People there were friendly, and I didn't expect to see a lot of Asians there!
Back to the topic.
I went there to visit my friend whom I got to know 5 years ago in Poly.
When I first stepped onto Southern Cross Station, ohhh man! It was cold! I was not used to the weather! From 30d.c to 13d.c. Wrapped in a trench coat, fleece jacket, jumper, shirt, and a scarf, I still feel colddddd~
Some training before I head to London. Haha.
It was 6 days of MADNESS. 6 days of lame jokes, 6 days of stuffing ourselves with food, 6 days of running after trains, 6 days of cold wind, 6 days of laughter, 6 days of each other's company! Well, you got the idea here right?
My friend told me Australia is an expensive place in terms of food, shopping, sightseeing, which is true.
Here are some tips. If you wanna shop, you can get super cheap clothes as well. But you gotta know exactly where to go!
For me, I got some pretty stretchable quality comfortable jeans at Dotti for AUD$15! That is if you go to "Spencer Outlet" at Southern Cross Station, or "DFO" at South Wharf. If you visit Dotti at other outlet, the price would be AUD$59.95 I think. My friend also recommended me to go to Outer Harbour. But I didn't get a chance to go there. If you have, you can check it out!
Some places I would recommend for girls to shop at:
Dotti
Valleygirl
Factorie
For food: Queen Victoria. Go during weekends, and you will score yourself some fresh and cheap (A$10) seafood near the closing times.
I think that's about it.
Hope you find this post useful!
Next up: London!
One thing about Australia is that you need to fill up the Immigration form as you enter the country, and also when you leave the country. Both forms are quite similar. And don't forget, check if you require a visa!
After you've cleared the customs, you can get into the city by taxi, bus or skybus. It's quite convenient. The terminals are just beside each other. So, from T2 (International flights), walk for 2-3 minutes and you'll be able to spot the Skybus ticket counter. One way: AUD$17, Return: AUD$28.
There are 2 stops. The stop where you are suppose to board the Skybus to the city will be the one behind the ticket counter. The stop in front of the ticket counter is for people to alight.
20-30 mins ride to the city. And you will stop at Southern Cross Station. Once you've reached Southern Cross Station, and you can't find your way, it's fine! Just a 3-5 minutes walk towards the station, you will find a place called Traveller's something something. Can't remember the name. From there, you can ask for help! (:
Anyway, I was quite surprised when I went to Australia. People there were friendly, and I didn't expect to see a lot of Asians there!
Back to the topic.
I went there to visit my friend whom I got to know 5 years ago in Poly.
When I first stepped onto Southern Cross Station, ohhh man! It was cold! I was not used to the weather! From 30d.c to 13d.c. Wrapped in a trench coat, fleece jacket, jumper, shirt, and a scarf, I still feel colddddd~
Some training before I head to London. Haha.
It was 6 days of MADNESS. 6 days of lame jokes, 6 days of stuffing ourselves with food, 6 days of running after trains, 6 days of cold wind, 6 days of laughter, 6 days of each other's company! Well, you got the idea here right?
My friend told me Australia is an expensive place in terms of food, shopping, sightseeing, which is true.
Here are some tips. If you wanna shop, you can get super cheap clothes as well. But you gotta know exactly where to go!
For me, I got some pretty stretchable quality comfortable jeans at Dotti for AUD$15! That is if you go to "Spencer Outlet" at Southern Cross Station, or "DFO" at South Wharf. If you visit Dotti at other outlet, the price would be AUD$59.95 I think. My friend also recommended me to go to Outer Harbour. But I didn't get a chance to go there. If you have, you can check it out!
Some places I would recommend for girls to shop at:
Dotti
Valleygirl
Factorie
For food: Queen Victoria. Go during weekends, and you will score yourself some fresh and cheap (A$10) seafood near the closing times.
I think that's about it.
Hope you find this post useful!
Next up: London!
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Don't be complacent!
2 more days before I fly to Melbourne! (:
Today I received an email from SingaporeAir.com RE: my flight info. But I was wondering why they didn't send me the details RE: checking in. Because for my HK trip, they sent me 2 emails instead of just one.
So during my break time at work, I went to SingaporeAir.com to check in. But I couldn't because there was a note stating that I don't have a valid visa so they couldn't check me in.
My reaction was like WHAT?!?!?!? at that moment. I began to panic because thoughts of how my hopes would be dashed because of my complacency. Singapore passports allow Singaporeans to travel to a lot of countries without having to purchase a visa. So I assumed that I didn't need a visa to enter Australia.
Anyway, I went to do some research, and made a few phone calls to the Australia Embassy situated in SG, and to SingaporeAir. And I was so blur as a sotong. I used my mobile phone instead of my laptop to purchase the visa. And because the font was so small and I was so worried, I saw wrongly and bought the wrong visa. I should be buying a ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) which lets you stay up to 90 days, and it can last for a year. It costs AUD20 and is instantly approved. But I went to buy the Visitor Visa. Takes from 1 day to 1 month to be approved. Let you stay from 3 months to 1 year. It costs: AUD130. So in the end, I bought both & I spend AUD150?!?!?! Arghhh!!!
So, ALWAYS ALWAYS check.
It's such an irony. My itinerary is so detailed yet I missed out such an important detail!
But the thing which I've learnt today is that God is my provider. Though I've lost this amount of money, but since God is my provider, He will definitely provide.
A blessing in disguise. I've saved the price of my air tickets and road trips though I've spent AUD130 to learn a lesson.
"Prayer is the answer to all your problems."
Today I received an email from SingaporeAir.com RE: my flight info. But I was wondering why they didn't send me the details RE: checking in. Because for my HK trip, they sent me 2 emails instead of just one.
So during my break time at work, I went to SingaporeAir.com to check in. But I couldn't because there was a note stating that I don't have a valid visa so they couldn't check me in.
My reaction was like WHAT?!?!?!? at that moment. I began to panic because thoughts of how my hopes would be dashed because of my complacency. Singapore passports allow Singaporeans to travel to a lot of countries without having to purchase a visa. So I assumed that I didn't need a visa to enter Australia.
Anyway, I went to do some research, and made a few phone calls to the Australia Embassy situated in SG, and to SingaporeAir. And I was so blur as a sotong. I used my mobile phone instead of my laptop to purchase the visa. And because the font was so small and I was so worried, I saw wrongly and bought the wrong visa. I should be buying a ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) which lets you stay up to 90 days, and it can last for a year. It costs AUD20 and is instantly approved. But I went to buy the Visitor Visa. Takes from 1 day to 1 month to be approved. Let you stay from 3 months to 1 year. It costs: AUD130. So in the end, I bought both & I spend AUD150?!?!?! Arghhh!!!
So, ALWAYS ALWAYS check.
It's such an irony. My itinerary is so detailed yet I missed out such an important detail!
But the thing which I've learnt today is that God is my provider. Though I've lost this amount of money, but since God is my provider, He will definitely provide.
A blessing in disguise. I've saved the price of my air tickets and road trips though I've spent AUD130 to learn a lesson.
"Prayer is the answer to all your problems."
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