Just saw Manchester United defeat Malaysia 2-0 at the National Stadium...Last minute match as they (ManU) were supposed to play in Indonesia but due to bombings it was cancelled.
And it's 12am...I just turned 22 :)
xoxo
Monday, July 20, 2009
Back to school
Hello, hello
First day back at uni and my second lecture was canceled…what a great start! So, thought I’d take the time to tell you ALL about what I’ve been up to.
O week was short and sweet. Came in on Monday for some introductory stuff. Not very interesting but good to see the campus…it was a quick visit to say the least. It’s tiny (compared to Clayton standards). About 9 buildings, that’s all…but really nice, brand new, nice cheap cafeteria, no smoking on campus (lovely!), crazy air con (that’s more a general Malaysian thing I think though, I hope I don’t get sick from it) and super cheap textbooks…about a third of what I might pay back home. So if anybody would like some light “thermodynamic” reading, just let me know.
There wasn’t much else to do throughout the week so seeing as we have to hand in our passports (for 6 weeks) to get our visa, we decided to make the most of the holidays and make a quick trip to the duty free island of Langkawi, up north. Craig, Ally and I took a bus and ferry overnight before crashing in a random hotel we’d booked the night before. We went snorkeling off Payar Island. Saw some very pretty fish although most of the coral was dead, which was a shame. Also went on an Island hopping tour with eagle feeding and a visit to the Lake of the Pregnant Maiden. It’s a freshwater lake that is supposed to make ladies more fertile if they drink it…We didn’t, just to be safe. (Although I’d like to see the effect it might have on Craig.) Went to a wicked night market where we managed to buy a feast of new foods (noodles, rice, cakes, whatever we could find) for not more than $1. Crazy, crazy cheap. And finally some general lounging around on the beach. The water was so hot, almost the same temperature as outside. It was great for snorkeling but I would’ve liked something a bit more refreshing at times. (That’s right, I just complained about how warm the water is here…I may have been a little too spoilt recently!!!). Met lots of people - other Monashians from Australia, Irish backpackers, Malaysians, American travelers and I have no idea who else. Got back late Saturday night…or early Sunday morning, depending which way you want to look at it.
Ally and I had our first attempt at grocery shopping yesterday…there’s a superstore, MYDIN, right next to Casa (where we live). It’s similar to Carrefour in France, where they have EVERYTHING. You go in, you’re swamped with things to buy and struggle to find your way out. Would like to find a fresh fruit market but will see how we go. For now, we just wanted lots and lots of vegetables to keep us going for the week. If we stick to our current noodle, fried rice, meat and no-veg diet…well, we want to keep horizontal expansion to a minimum.
Also, they’re big on packaging and plastic bags here. And I haven’t seen any signs of recycling. It was quite a shock at Langkawi because from far away the beaches and surrounding islands look beautiful but when you get up close there is rubbish just everywhere. It’s amazing. Unfortunately, the quest for my favourite beach still always ends back home. :)
Other random things –
• Bus trip to uni this morning was sooooo long. Really have to figure out how to walk but a bit of a worry with my sense of direction. It’s very frustrating because I can see the uni from my bedroom window!!!
• Went to Ministry of Sound Club when we first arrived. Very fun
• Loving the heat and longer days but am used to being on holidays in this kind of weather…don’t know how that will go down with the study :P
• Managed to get Fridays off with my timetable…yippee!
• Bought plenty of DVD’s in Bali…started with Gossip Girl (xoxo), a bit of Underbelly last night…I really have too much time on my hands. All good, it’s only the first week back
• Birthday bash tomorrow…not sure what just yet but am sure I will tell you ALL about it :)
OK. I think that’s enough…
Love to all
A-ROD
xoxo
First day back at uni and my second lecture was canceled…what a great start! So, thought I’d take the time to tell you ALL about what I’ve been up to.
O week was short and sweet. Came in on Monday for some introductory stuff. Not very interesting but good to see the campus…it was a quick visit to say the least. It’s tiny (compared to Clayton standards). About 9 buildings, that’s all…but really nice, brand new, nice cheap cafeteria, no smoking on campus (lovely!), crazy air con (that’s more a general Malaysian thing I think though, I hope I don’t get sick from it) and super cheap textbooks…about a third of what I might pay back home. So if anybody would like some light “thermodynamic” reading, just let me know.
There wasn’t much else to do throughout the week so seeing as we have to hand in our passports (for 6 weeks) to get our visa, we decided to make the most of the holidays and make a quick trip to the duty free island of Langkawi, up north. Craig, Ally and I took a bus and ferry overnight before crashing in a random hotel we’d booked the night before. We went snorkeling off Payar Island. Saw some very pretty fish although most of the coral was dead, which was a shame. Also went on an Island hopping tour with eagle feeding and a visit to the Lake of the Pregnant Maiden. It’s a freshwater lake that is supposed to make ladies more fertile if they drink it…We didn’t, just to be safe. (Although I’d like to see the effect it might have on Craig.) Went to a wicked night market where we managed to buy a feast of new foods (noodles, rice, cakes, whatever we could find) for not more than $1. Crazy, crazy cheap. And finally some general lounging around on the beach. The water was so hot, almost the same temperature as outside. It was great for snorkeling but I would’ve liked something a bit more refreshing at times. (That’s right, I just complained about how warm the water is here…I may have been a little too spoilt recently!!!). Met lots of people - other Monashians from Australia, Irish backpackers, Malaysians, American travelers and I have no idea who else. Got back late Saturday night…or early Sunday morning, depending which way you want to look at it.
Ally and I had our first attempt at grocery shopping yesterday…there’s a superstore, MYDIN, right next to Casa (where we live). It’s similar to Carrefour in France, where they have EVERYTHING. You go in, you’re swamped with things to buy and struggle to find your way out. Would like to find a fresh fruit market but will see how we go. For now, we just wanted lots and lots of vegetables to keep us going for the week. If we stick to our current noodle, fried rice, meat and no-veg diet…well, we want to keep horizontal expansion to a minimum.
Also, they’re big on packaging and plastic bags here. And I haven’t seen any signs of recycling. It was quite a shock at Langkawi because from far away the beaches and surrounding islands look beautiful but when you get up close there is rubbish just everywhere. It’s amazing. Unfortunately, the quest for my favourite beach still always ends back home. :)
Other random things –
• Bus trip to uni this morning was sooooo long. Really have to figure out how to walk but a bit of a worry with my sense of direction. It’s very frustrating because I can see the uni from my bedroom window!!!
• Went to Ministry of Sound Club when we first arrived. Very fun
• Loving the heat and longer days but am used to being on holidays in this kind of weather…don’t know how that will go down with the study :P
• Managed to get Fridays off with my timetable…yippee!
• Bought plenty of DVD’s in Bali…started with Gossip Girl (xoxo), a bit of Underbelly last night…I really have too much time on my hands. All good, it’s only the first week back
• Birthday bash tomorrow…not sure what just yet but am sure I will tell you ALL about it :)
OK. I think that’s enough…
Love to all
A-ROD
xoxo
Sunday, July 12, 2009
On the road again...
Well, it's been a crazy start to a new semester.
Bali with Ally & Sally - Went to Ubud for 3 days. It's more in the centre with lots of temples, traditional dancing and rice paddies. Did some white water rafting and a bike tour. The bike tour took us all the way up to see an active volcanoe with a beautiful lake view. We went to a place where they make super expensive coffee ($50 a cup, they use luwak, cute little possum like animals that eat the coffee and the bean is then collected in the...well, maybe you know what I mean). Had never seen how pineapples grow before. And we were invited into a balinese compound. The compounds are where they live as a family...like ALL the family. In-laws and everything. It was very interesting. The balinese are really friendly and relaxed. It's great. The food is delicious as well, although I did have a bit of an upset stomach on our first night in Legian, not so cool.
So the rest of the week was in Legian, near Kuta. Lots of beaching, eating, surfing (Ally and I managed to break 3 fins between us though, it was very shallow :P ), cheap massages and a few nights out. Highlights - Lembonganan Island, it was beautiful and the boat trip was much fun & Balinese cooking class, $10 US for an absolute feast and the balinese food is delicious. So many ingredients I'd never heard of before. Was great.
Was sad to see Sally go home but the arrival in Malaysia has been exciting.
Arrived here with Ally on Thursday. We're in a four bedroom, furnished, air-con (very important in this humidity) apartment living with 2 other guys. James, fellow Aussie (there are heaps of them around, it's ridiculous) and Craig, South African IT nerd. Both lovely. Ally and I arrived first so we got the best rooms. We've even got a kitchen with large fridge, 2 stoves!, microwave, even a TV.
Lots of fellow monashers in Casa Subang (the apartment block, it's in Sunway about 20 mintues out of KL although that is really dependent on traffic). We're literally all over the place. Met a lot of them last night in Chinatown. Had delicious dinner and then went to a beatles bar...yes, they only play the beatles. We have a pool as well, not really convenient for lap swimming though which is really weird because it is absolutely massive so it seems a bit like a waste of space.
Good food places at the Casa to eat at. It's so cheap. Meals with drinks for $3 easily. You can also get free maccas delivery here which I think is a real novelty. Laundromat downstairs is cheap too but I'll refrain from giving them any clothes I really like...they already shrunk a top and some shorts...sooo disappointed.
Oh yes...Quarantine was cancelled. I think the swine flu spread too far in Malaysia anyway so we just have to be careful and make sure we're not sick basically. So O Week starts tomorrow. Looking forward to checking out the campus. Looks a bit annoying to get to. We can see it from our window but there's a massive highway to cross which makes it complicated...we'll see.
If you want to check out photos...http://picasaweb.google.com/alrodriguez87/BaliMayhem#
Love to all
xoxo
Bali with Ally & Sally - Went to Ubud for 3 days. It's more in the centre with lots of temples, traditional dancing and rice paddies. Did some white water rafting and a bike tour. The bike tour took us all the way up to see an active volcanoe with a beautiful lake view. We went to a place where they make super expensive coffee ($50 a cup, they use luwak, cute little possum like animals that eat the coffee and the bean is then collected in the...well, maybe you know what I mean). Had never seen how pineapples grow before. And we were invited into a balinese compound. The compounds are where they live as a family...like ALL the family. In-laws and everything. It was very interesting. The balinese are really friendly and relaxed. It's great. The food is delicious as well, although I did have a bit of an upset stomach on our first night in Legian, not so cool.
So the rest of the week was in Legian, near Kuta. Lots of beaching, eating, surfing (Ally and I managed to break 3 fins between us though, it was very shallow :P ), cheap massages and a few nights out. Highlights - Lembonganan Island, it was beautiful and the boat trip was much fun & Balinese cooking class, $10 US for an absolute feast and the balinese food is delicious. So many ingredients I'd never heard of before. Was great.
Was sad to see Sally go home but the arrival in Malaysia has been exciting.
Arrived here with Ally on Thursday. We're in a four bedroom, furnished, air-con (very important in this humidity) apartment living with 2 other guys. James, fellow Aussie (there are heaps of them around, it's ridiculous) and Craig, South African IT nerd. Both lovely. Ally and I arrived first so we got the best rooms. We've even got a kitchen with large fridge, 2 stoves!, microwave, even a TV.
Lots of fellow monashers in Casa Subang (the apartment block, it's in Sunway about 20 mintues out of KL although that is really dependent on traffic). We're literally all over the place. Met a lot of them last night in Chinatown. Had delicious dinner and then went to a beatles bar...yes, they only play the beatles. We have a pool as well, not really convenient for lap swimming though which is really weird because it is absolutely massive so it seems a bit like a waste of space.
Good food places at the Casa to eat at. It's so cheap. Meals with drinks for $3 easily. You can also get free maccas delivery here which I think is a real novelty. Laundromat downstairs is cheap too but I'll refrain from giving them any clothes I really like...they already shrunk a top and some shorts...sooo disappointed.
Oh yes...Quarantine was cancelled. I think the swine flu spread too far in Malaysia anyway so we just have to be careful and make sure we're not sick basically. So O Week starts tomorrow. Looking forward to checking out the campus. Looks a bit annoying to get to. We can see it from our window but there's a massive highway to cross which makes it complicated...we'll see.
If you want to check out photos...http://picasaweb.google.com/alrodriguez87/BaliMayhem#
Love to all
xoxo
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