Australia 2009: Day 02

Today I am taking on my first babysitting assignment.. Caring for my godson, Rio from 8am to 5pm as Dean has to go to work (flying on Qantas as steward to LA), Voone needs to go for her childcare course and Cody is attending childcare..

Rio came knocking on my door around 6:30am.. As Voone was preparing breakfast and Dean went jogging on the treadmill, we played ball in the kitchen.. :) Kicking and rolling the ball to each other..

Once everyone left the house, it was just the two of us.. and we played with Thomas the Tank Engine..
After playing, Rio was a very good boy, as he picked up his toy and kept them away.. :)


Rio was "obsessed" with a toy that sings "Jingle Bells".. he would hum along with it.. So I managed to get him to wear a Santa's hat and record this.. :)

Then we played toy insects, balls and rocking horse.. Gave him some grapes.. and fed him a ham & cheese and a peanut butter wholemeal sandwich.. he took a 2-hour nap during which I did my translation.. I read about 10 books to him.. :) changed his diaper and wiped his poo.. played horse riding on my knees.. played finger puppets..Entertained him thoroughly.. :)

No bad for a first time babysitter.. :) Looking forward to more play time with little Rio in these few weeks..

Western Japan 2009: A-Bomb Memorial Statues

Visited the two cities in the world which had suffered A-Bomb more than 60 years ago during my trip to Western Japan.. Lots of memorial statues were built to commemorate the bombings.. Many were from countries all around the world..

Took some of photos of these statues..

Hypocenter in Hiroshima, marking the exact point above which the bomb exploded.

Hiroshima's famous author, Suzuki Miekichi

The Atomic bomb struck Jizoson near the Hypocenter of Hiroshima

In the center of the above-ground area of The Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims is the Monument to 8:15 － the moment the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.

Children's Peace Monument in Hiroshima, completed May 5, 1958 (Children's Day).

"Atomic Bombing 50th Anniversary Commemorative Projects Monument", unveiled in 1997, Nagasaki.

"A Requiem for that Summer Day", Nagasaki

"Children of the Future", Nagasaki

"Infiniti", a statue from the Republic of Turkey in Nagasaki Peace Park.

"Earth Constellation" from USA in Nagasaki Peace Park.

For the children of Nagasaki in Urakami Cathedral.


More photos of statues here..

Australia 2009: Day 01

Touched down at Coolangatta Airport around 7.15am.. by the time I cleared the Immigration and Custom, it was more than 1 hour later!! I met up with Voone immediately after I came out without having a look around the airport, which is under some renovation.. Dean then picked us up, with the kids.. He then drove us to the nearest beach, Capers Beach..
We then went back to the house.. and to the guest room that I am gonna stayed for the next 5 weeks..
After a short rest, off we go!! Dean drove us to Mt Tamborine... I was seated at the back, with the kids..
We went to get lunch at a bakery and then drove to a nearby playground to eat.. Then the kids went to play with their dad.. and the playground, of course..
Then we went to the Witches Chase Cheese Co, to get cheese! (what else.. :p ) and some ice-cream..
Next up was a visit to the many wine cellar in the area.. Since I wasn't much of a wine drinker, I went out to see the vineyard..
After that we went to Tamborine National Park and walked about 15 minutes to Curtis Fall.. however, this being summer, there wasn't much water to be seen.. what a sad looking waterfall..
We all went back home and had pizza for dinner!! :)

Tomorrow will be a challenge, as I am to babysit my godson from 8am to 5pm, alone.. as Dean is flying off to LA for work, Voone has to attend a class while Cody (the eldest) is going to childcare..

Western Japan 2009: Cute little Buddhas

Went to Daishoin Temple (大聖院) in Miyajima and was surprised to see so many cute little figurines of Buddhas, in all shapes and sizes around its vicinity..

Here are some of them.. :)

Australia 2009: Day 00

As mentioned in my previous entry, I traveled via Air Asia X to Gold Coast.. and frankly, I don't recommend it.. why? Imagine being stuck for almost 8 hours in a seat smaller than any airlines that I have taken, seated next to a Caucasian (who was, luckily, around my size), no free flow of beverages, no blankets and other things you would want for long-haul flights..

My dad drove me to LCCT from Taiping on Tuesday.. Reached there around 12pm..
First time at LCCT. Felt messy and chaotic. Not enough signboards and too many people.. It felt more like a bus terminal than an airport. But again, I have never been to any other budget terminals so this might be the norm.

I had more than 7 hours to kill before my flight.. Walked around the LCCT many times.. before I sat down near my check-in counters to take a short nap..
Took my dinner at the Coffee Beans near the domestic arrival hall which was very disappointing.. before boarding at 9pm.. Lots of Caucasians, with some Asians among the passengers.. We had to walk to our plane, which was no big deal.. and we had to walk up the stairs to get into the plane.. and when I saw the seats, I knew immediately that this was going to be a looooong flight..
One thing I must give praise is that the food was good.. although the price is, as usual, inflated..

and the steward(esses) are better than MAS in terms of service attitude and overall impression.. Maybe it was because they had to persuade people to buy stuff from them..

Anyway, didn't really get any sleep on the flight.. even though I had bought their comfort kit..
Reached Gold Coast Coolangatta Airport around 7.15am.. but got stuck at the Immigration and Custom area.. There was a long queue at the Immigration as several budget flights arrived at the same time.. As this was my first visit to Australia, I was "interviewed" during Custom check and was required to have my luggage scanned, but everything was okay in the end.. :)

Met my friend immediately after I came out from the Custom.. Met up with my godson, but that shall be in my next blog entry.. :)

Western Japan 2009: Hiroshima

Next stop was Hiroshima (広島).

I had two main destinations in mind, the Peace Memorial Park and Miyajima (宮島). Decided to skip the Hiroshima Castle, as the review I read of it wasn't very impressive, and concentrated on these two places..

Wrote about my trip to the Peace Memorial Park and my chanced meeting with Mr Mito earlier.. Thus I won't repeat myself here and shall just show some of the photos I took around the area..
I decided to spend one full day exploring Miyajima (宮島), again on foot.. and to hike up Mt Misen (弥山).

Visited the Itsukushima Shrine (厳島神社), a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is famous for its red floating O-Torii gate..
Went to a couple more shrines and temples around the area, like Daiganji Temple, Kiyomori Shrine and Daishoin Temple before taking the Daishoin Course to hike uo to the Mt Misen Observatory at 535m above sea level. The hike took me about one and a half hours with brief stops to savour the view and take pictures..
By the time I reach the top, it was almost 2pm.. After spending another 2 hours exploring the peak area and taking more photos, I took the Ropeway down as I was totally exhausted from the hike.. I was just in time to catch the low-tide and saw another view of the torii..
I then spend some time exploring some of the interesting shops at the Omotesando Shopping Arcade..
I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in Hiroshima.. :)

Western Japan 2009: Kumamoto

Last stop in Kyushu was Kumamoto (熊本).

I took it easy in Kumamoto as I didn't want to overexert myself since this was only my 3rd stop.. Luckily, Kumamoto was pretty boring.. :p And I had a couple of translation jobs to rush too, so I only went to 3 places:

1. Kumamoto Castle (熊本城)
2. The Suizenji Jojuen Garden (水前寺成趣園）
3. Window shopping at Kamitori (上通) and Shimotori (下通り)
Bought some tit-bits/food and drinks and went back to my room even before the sky turned dark on both days.. :p

More photos of Kumamoto here..