Bear with me, this might be long. :D
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia SOT 18-25 September
This dear lovely boyfriend of mine was supposed to perform with Gamma Rays for Rev Up at Orchard that night but he was requested to not perform due to the lack of stage space. I was pissed when I found out because he was one of the few who always turns up for practice without fail (proud girlfriend speaking here. :p) but they chose to kick him out instead of someone else. Being a newbie sucks. I should know, cause I didn't get to perform for the Balinese performance at NAC when I returned either. But that's beside the point. So, anyway, I was on the way to T3 with my family and I texted him, saying that I'm already on the way yada yada yada. & this dear boy said, "I otw gi pasar." So that line was used before which was why I knew what he meant but I just didn't want to believe it. I mean, it was a Sunday night which meant ngaji for him so yeah, go figure. I was greatly superbly happy that he came, honestly.
In his words, "Things took a turn, I never perform. It's the universe telling me I should send you off."
<3
It was my first time on a long journey flight where I can actually remember it for real. My first was when I was in 5 or 6, towards the same destination, but I can hardly remember that. So yeah, this sunrise was breathtaking. :)
So when we arrived, we had lunch and straightaway went for the campus tour at RMIT. It's a nice campus. The most shocking thing for me is the fact that there were quite a number of girls with hijab on campus. Well, not just on campus but everywhere we went. I was like, this is good man, real good. But honestly, during the introductions that the lecturers did, I totally fell asleep! HAHAHA! It was interesting to a certain level, knowing about the different courses they have but it was like, meh. I enjoyed the campus tour though. Cute ang mohs galore! :p
The next day was the campus tour at 2 Monash campuses: Caulfield and Clayton. At Caulfield, I talked to one of RP's graduates who took the advanced pathway to Monash and I got all the information I wanted from him. He was really friendly and funny. The most amazing thing is, he paid for his education without his parents' help. So independent, unless he had a personal family problem that made him have to do so. I didn't want to pry so I didn't ask. The Clayton campus was huge!!! When we were walking down the botanic garden, there were condoms everywhere. Yes, C-O-N-D-O-M-S. The ang moh guy who brought us around was like, "Oh, nah, it's normal here." All the girls were like, O.O!
HIMSS! 2 days of endless talk sessions that had me yawning away at many points, and proud CIOs who sometimes refuse the evaluation forms we give out. The first day was damn boring, and lunch for me was just a doughnut because they served possibly not halal chicken sandwiches and sushi. The second day was better because we were in charge of a small room instead of a big theatre. Sitting outside at the table and joking around was never more fun with people like Eddy and Rezwan. Lunch on that day was just a chocolate tart because they served pork. Sigh. Some of the delegates were friendly and even chatted with us a little. Nice to know that there are still nice big shots around. We walked back to our hotel that day instead of taking the bus. & it was a good idea because the night city lights were absolutely gorgeous. We walked down the Yarra River and it was spectacular at sunset and after sunset. You could say it was romantic too. :p
Philip Island the next day was a real retreat. The chocolate factory was a fun journey, being able to make our own chocolate while learning about how it is made. Shopping for the chocolates was never so miserable. Bloody expensive. I could only get as much for GNK and my family. Quite sad, actually. & the chocolate was delicious too! After that, we headed for the Penguins Reserve.Along the way, we passed stretches of long grass (I think) and we saw kangaroos too! The moment we saw the kangaroos, everyone in the bus got over-excited! It was hilarious, and they were all making dialogues and stuff. Hilarious max. The Little Penguin experience was out of this world. I plan to bring my family there someday. It's like, you wait on the benches facing the cold wind blowing from the ocean, and your eyes watch the shores expectantly, waiting for any sign of the penguins arriving. & they're really tiny! I was shocked at first, until I found out that they were the smallest species of penguins. & I also learnt, that when they have a mate, they stick together for life. It's like, awwwwwwwwwwwww~~~!!! This picture below is my favourite out of all the pictures on Philip Island. Credits to Rizwan! :D
Finally, the main highlight. The bus ride up to come here was maddeningly nauseating. I was really on the verge of throwing up. There were so many turns and bends, I really needed fresh air at one point. Then, a miracle! We stopped for lunch. It was during lunch that they were all talking about their boyfriends and girlfriends and I realized that I hadn't called Ahmad yet. Oops. 6 days there and no phone call. When he went to Sydney last February, he called me on his second day there. (Hee, jangan marah. Call jugak pe. :p) He sounded happy though, and I even got to tease him. Yeah, about a super long message he sent me the night before. WHILE I WAS STILL ASLEEP. Time difference is 2 hours, by the way. Melbourne is earlier. Anyway, this below is Twelve Apostles. Beautiful, gorgeous, spechlessly breathtaking. The wonders of Mother Nature, the beauty of Allah's creation. :)
Loch Ard Gorge
Loch Ard Gorge
The trip home was on the Airbus! I dunno which one, don't really care, but it was suuuuuuper cool, I swear. I had to sit next to Syazwan Mr. Annoying But Funny At Times who snored soundly during take-off. Watched 3 movies: Pirates, On Straner Tides (which I laughed my ass off because Jack Sparrow is simply hilarious!), Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (#amirkhanforever, plus I cried like crazy, Romeo & Juliet storyline) and Water for Elephants, which I didn't get to finish cause of touchdown. But seriously, it was a great trip with great friends and classmates. Making new friends and joking around with them, this trip was worth my money. :D
So that's it, my Melbourne trip, summarized edition. Heh. Might I add that Shy-Me ran away from home the day I left. She knew her mistress will be away so she slipped out to be naughty. HAHA! Made my whole family panic because when I left, I specifically told them to watch Shy-Me since I won't be around. My sis felt guilty, and my parents wanted to buy me a new cat if they couldn't find Shy-Me. This was the reason why I dreamt about that lovely cat on the second night in Melbourne. :D
Back to reality now. School starts next week. Bummer. I've been having headaches since my return but it's slowly dying off. I have one class with a girl I don't really like, I don't know how I'll survive. The up side is Business Finance with B Zulaiha Jalani, at least a familiar face in this class.
The most depressing part, as we have learnt today, is internship this whole semester for Ahmad Mustaqim. Need I say more? :( x892376432871084328724309
But we'll survive. We always have. :)
I miss the nice cold weather in Melbourne. Sigh.
Jangan pergi, jangan pergi
Jangan kau pergi
Ku tak ingin sendiri
Ku tak sanggup, ku tak sanggup
Sungguh tak sanggup
Hidup tanpa cintamu
