Australia Day, a day of fun in the sun

Oh Harro,

Australia day was on Saturday 26th January. It is huge over here. It’s basically Waitangi day but without the protesting.
BBQ goes hand in hand with Australia day so a couple of us decided to head down to the park. We played the guitars, game of football, rugby, Frisbee and even petanque. We also ate like kings. All I needed was someone to fan me down with a giant leaf and feed me grapes.
There was also a 21-gun salute at midday. These canons were huge; the ammunitions were the size of my head. I think my heart stopped beating after each shot. 4.4MB video clip can be seen here.

Then it was back to the apartment to freshen up and straight down to the pub. After 7 hours in the sun, it was definitely catching up on us so the deck of cards came out and it was down to business with drinking games. Yes, I carry a deck of cards with me at all times and it has paid off well.
We decided to go for pancakes at 3am. 45mins after ordering our meals, there was still no sign of it so we got up and walked out. The dumb thing is, the place wasn’t even busy. In 45mins, I could walk in my drunken state to the supermarket, go back home, cook pancakes for 20 people, kick them all out and shower with time to spare. Ah well, the mince pie from 7-eleven tasted good…….I think.

On Sunday, we decided to play some games at the arcade. I have forgotten how much fun it is. Grown men mounting a horse, shooting bucks and even playing Dance Revolution. Just because I’m Asian doesn’t make me good at this game. But Lyncy, well he is like a Maori Justin Timberlake. Check out his 1.8MB video here.
We had another BBQ on Monday. Guitars, alcohol, eyetoy, xbox and cards all came out to play. Another great day to top off the weekend.
I’ll leave it at that for now, this is getting way to long and I’ll be cranky for work if I don’t get any sleep.
Australia Day Photos here

Good Night

Sam





Ozzy, Ozzy, Ozzy








Lynchy and Jax









Guitar lessons with Pommy Matt







Cresswell and Pheak from Sydney







Kids, don't do drugs

Busy, busy, busy

Greetings fellow Wellingtonians,

It has been a busy couple of weeks. Although it is still the silly season in Australia, time has been scarce. I’m back into my Microsoft studies just to get a few more certifications before I head off to London in April. I have always wanted to learn to play a musical instrument so I went out and purchased an acoustic guitar. Whoever ever said “Learning to play the guitar is easy” is a total tool. This thing is damn hard; OK I may be a little bit retarded but in no way is learning to get tone out of wood easy. My French is still poor as usual so I will be enrolling in some classes along with guitar lessons. To top it off, I am going to be making a lot of changes at work so that involves after hours work.

So yeah, the above is basically my Monday-Friday timetable so I try to make the most of my weekends with wining, dining, entertainment and getting WASTED! Nothing new I guess. Although it is never good when your flatmates show you photos of your drunken state.
The casino has been good to Lynch and I this week. We pocketed around $800 each. He went and bought an xbox 360 and I bought protein shakes.…maybe I’ll get a Hugo Boss suit. It has worked out quite well for us since the sharemarket is dieing.

Not much more to say but “a picture says a thousand words”

Sam




Dinner at Sizzler, the Australian version of Valentines








Suppose to be an Apple Crumble








umm, need I say more








Sunday session's are grand

New Year, New Job and Bats!

Well where do I start?
We ended up having a house party on New Years Eve. It was well planned as it was raining cats and dogs in Brisbane. Drinks on the balcony, steak BBQ, prawns, oysters and vodka jelly all went down a treat. The blender and shot glasses decided to join the party and it got messy as expected.
When the sun started rising, it was time to call it a night. The walk home at 5am took longer than usual as I was zig zagging across the footpath.
Party rating 11/10.

The routine of work was actually very hard to get back into. Maybe it’s because I’ve only been there for 3 days or maybe it’s because I’m working for a government department. But at least I’ll have some kind of income till my return to New Zealand in April 08.

Last but not least, Bats! Now I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this but there are bats flying all around Brisbane. I mean, how weird is that? I’m used to seeing pigeons fly around but not Bats! The lizards here are the size of large Tuataras. Sitting at the top of the stairs staring at you. The rats are the size of a small cat. Must be something in the water.

Time to hit the hay.
Have a prosperous 2008

Sam






Cresswell and Jackie







I think we can pass as Japanese








Drunken twister

Christmas is not the same without family

I spent Christmas at the Gold Coast with Matt’s auntie and partner.
Nice gourmet lunch and good wine but I still felt out of place. Mum and Dad had a gathering with close friends, wished I was there.
Moving on, Christmas is now over and New Years is only around the corner.
New Years in Brisbane is going to be quieter than usual this year as most people tend to move away from the city toward the coast. None the less, it will still be over crowded with drunken individuals.
Does anyone remember the white rapper Vanilla Ice with hit song “Ice Ice Baby”? Well he’s going to be playing at the New Years Eve party at the Gold Coast. He was my idol when growing up and according to his website he’s still touring. I don’t know whether to be excited or hang my head in shame.

My last day at work was a blur. 1st drink at 12pm, 8th drink by 2pm. A lot of photos were taken but I don’t recall any of them. But I had fun, I think.
I’m having a mind blank right now so I’ll just post pics instead.

Have a great New Years

Sam





Having a nap at a bar







Christmas lunch at a pimp palace








Scotch scotch scotch, I love scotch

Perth, a giant mud pool

That is what the city looked like as the plane was descending. Due to all the mining and development, there are building sites everywhere.
Perth is a quiet and peaceful city. Walking outside the hotel reminded me of a Clint Eastwood movie in the desert.
The population of Perth is comparable to Brisbane 10 years ago but look at Brisbane now! There isn’t much going on in Perth CBD, all the restaurants are out in Fremantle or Northbridge. I didn’t get time to go out but I ate the best Fish & Chips since being in Australia.
My last day at Cardno is on 21st December so I will have a nice break.
I also start my new role at Smart Service Queensland on 2nd of January 2008.
Government departments are all very confusing in Queensland but I think Smart Service is the front end to other Government departments.

Party on

Sam

Back in Melbourne, this city is so much fun!

So much to tell but not enough time. In the events leading up to Sunday, I stayed at a five star hotel, ate good food, drunk a lot of alcohol, called the Victorian police “Rent-a-cops” and nearly got arrested.
I got Sunday off work and decided to be a tourist and ride the trams around Melbourne. Moments later, I found out that a Canadian couple that I knew from Brisbane were also in Melbourne so we decided to rendezvous and tour the city together. First stop was the St. Patrick's Cathedral. The gothic architecture was overwhelming. There was also an airy presence in the Cathedral, spooky eh? In 1986 Pope John Paul II paid a visit to this Cathedral.

Next was the Melbourne Gaol (Jail). We went on a re-enactment tour of the watch house of how humans were treated back in the days. Built in 1908, it remained operational until 1994. So the tour consists of being yelled at, locked up, obeying rules and responding with “Yes Sergeant”.
Drunks, murderers and those charged with minor offences were all housed here together to await their day in court. Next door was the actual cells. The infamous Ned Kelly spent his last days in this Gaol and was also hanged here. His body dangled for 30mins before guards decided to remove him.
The cells had stories of criminals along with their death mask. It was an eye opener. Obviously the day cannot end without alcohol so off to the pub we went. Drinks, dinner, drinks, sight seeing, drinks, drinks, sight seeing, drinks, snack, drinks, drinks, drinks, bed.
We finished off the night by the Yarra river with wine and a spectacular flame show. Picture eight 10 metre tall Bunsen burners spread out 10 metres apart and expelling gas. You can feel the heat from below.
At 3am, it was time to call it a night as I had to be awake at 6am for work.
Sunday’s are fantastic in Melbourne and I recommend it for all that loves to party.
I took so many photos that my camera went flat. Melbourne photos can be viewed here.

Sam





St. Patrick's Cathedral










Kristie sitting on the dunny in lock up










Mug shot









Deathmask of Ned Kelly

Canadian couple Kristie and Jess

Party Party Party

My agenda for this weekend was to get loose. With 3 parties to attend, I was in for a night of liver destruction.
The day started off at 3pm at Matt Cresswell’s place with a lot of drinking games. At 8pm, I said goodbye and made my way to the work function. I was unable to walk a straight line and my speech was incoherent. The work function was very typical, people standing around in their group of work colleagues.
So Olger (He’s Dutch) and I decided to liven up the party by getting on the dance floor in front of 250 people. Although it seemed like a good idea at that time, I am slowly regretting it now. I hope no one recognises me at work tomorrow. We left the work function at 11pm to attend the cocktail party. Everything was thrown down my throat; there was basically a party in my belly. They should have called it a Rocket Fuel Party, the drinks were all very potent! I decided to call it a night at 2am, my liver was unable to handle anymore alcohol.
I spent today at Cresswell’s place hung over watching Ocean’s Thirteen and eating pods and watermelon. Mmmmm……….watermelon

All and all, a great weekend. I’m off to Melbourne this week and Perth the week after. Hopefully I will have time to provide an update.

Merry Christmas

Sam




I don't know what Cresswell was doing, looked like the funky chicken






Lisa the Kiwi









Olger the Dutchman

Go Kevin 07!!

As you all may know by now, Kevin Rudd has won the election and Labor is now in Government. It will be interesting to see how everything pans out from here.
I wasn't going to update the blog tonight but Lynch, Cresswell and I went out to dinner at a Turkish restaurant. The whole place had a turkish theme (obviously) so it was nicely decked out with weird benches with cushions and low tables. I think this is the only time being short is an advantage as my legs fit quite comfortably under the table. It would be a total bitch if you were built like a tree. After dinner, we fluffed around as usual and Lynch decided to deep throat a kebab. He is also a part time G porn star. I'm not sure if anyone was paying attention but we were pretty loud in the restaurant.
2.5Mb clip can be viewed Here





Lynchy and Cresswell








Cresswells dirty Mo

Home Sweet Home

As I walked outside the terminal at Wellington airport, my first thought was “I miss the cold” but after a few minutes, I was thinking “Man Wellington is cold!”
The main reason for my trip back to Wellington was to attend a wedding but I also managed to catch up with most people and partied throughout the night.
Dinner with the lads on Friday night was great. Lots of food, wine and a lot of tourist action with the camera. I caught up with Gav and Will around midnight. I was fully mashed by this stage. What better way to carry on the night than to smash Jager bombs at Basement, memories. The night ended with more liver destruction and I had to call it quits at 3am as the groom wanted me to be at his place by 9am.

Saturday morning started at 8am with a raging hangover and stinking of wine, vodka and jager. I basically had speech impairment till about 2pm. During this time, the tea ceremony begun. It is very traditional and symbolises respect. This was all very new to me so it was kind of exciting. The banquet dinner was held at the Duxton Hotel with 140 guest, 3 course meal and lots of alcohol mmmm….Hennessy……..
Basically, the trip home was fun; I got to catch up with everyone and at the same time got very drunk.

On Monday morning, I flew to Melbourne for work. I was totally shatted by 10am due to the early flight and slight jet lag. We left work at 9pm and went straight to the bar at the Hotel. I worked out that I have been awake for nearly 24 hours and only slept for 19 hours during my 4 nights in Wellington. The next morning, I missed breakfast again and got to work at 10:30am. This is starting to become a regular occurrence, not a good sign.
I went for a walk one night to take some pictures and of course try to win some money at the famous crown casino. The casino was huge! I almost got a cramp walking from one end to the other. It has its own food court and plenty of fine dining restaurants. Outside the casino, more cafes and restaurants were stacked side by side and runs for about 500 metres. Tremendous sight.

Melbourne is an awesome city; it is basically a larger Wellington with better weather. Although there are also more to see and do in Melbourne but you would expect that for a population of 3.8 million people compared to Wellington’s 450,000.
Its late, I’m tired and cranky.

Night

Sam




Everyone having a blast at dinner








oh snap......









Pimping it at the wedding










4am on Mike's couch eating Burger King

Speed Dating is hilarious

Where do I start, the boys here decided to sign up for speed dating. After 2 weeks of peer pressure, I gave in and decided to join them. The night started off at the lads apartment (Cresswell, Lynchy and Jimmy) with a few beers then every got into their number 1’s. Everyone looked pretty good, and there I was in jeans and a t-shirt. At this point, I’m still very skeptical about all this, it just seems weird having to judge someone in 6 minutes.

Anyway, we made an entrance at the venue as we were the last to arrive. The email did state “Be there early”, ah well.
After getting some 42 below vodka, we were straight into it. Everyone sitting around with their name tags with a number assigned to each name. After each 6 minute date, we had to tick whether we wanted to be friends, go on a date or simply “no”. It was quite hard to judge someone when they are sitting right in front of you. But everyone had to do it so it was equal feelings all around.
After 17 dates, it was time to hand in my card and head on home.
The organisers will then put all the values into a program and see if there are any matches. Should be some funny results coming out.
The whole event took 3 hours as we had 2 intermissions.

The funniest part of the night was the debriefing session back at the apartment. We sat around and discussed all 17 dates including the Friends, Date or No option that we chose. We sounded like little girls.

Conclusion: Speed dating is fun. Everyone is having a good time and in the same shoes as you are. Although there are some people out there looking for girlfriends/boyfriends. The majority are there to meet new people and see how it evolves.

Anyway, its 1am, I’m off to bed as I’m flying back to NZ tomorrow. WOOHOO!

Rating: 8

Sam





Debrief Session








Jimmy, Lynch and Cresswell identifying a UFO