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Published: December 21st 2010
Raffles Hotel
All decked out!Hello from Melbourne, Australia. If you didn't know, we're 11 hours in front of the UK, which means that we know the future before you do. Good eh?
We last blogged just as we arrived in to Singapore. Our hostel was probably the nicest we've been in. We had free wi-fi, free breakfast, free tea/coffee/hot chocolate all day, a duvet (our first in 3 months!), a widescreen TV along with a PS3, Nintendo Wii and an unlimited amount of films and air conditioning. Need we say more? Our location we pretty good as well, we were right in the middle of the vibrant Chinatown, and just a stones throw away from the MRT (Singapore's underground system). The hostel was decked out with a Christmas Tree as well so we both felt right at home!
Singapore was definitely not for the 'broke budget traveller' type, i.e us! It's a shopaholics' dream, but it's expensive. We spent the first day wandering round the CBD, taking lots of pictures along the way. It's so humid in Singapore, so the norm is to walk around the city via every air conditioned shopping centre you can! We also saw the infamous Raffles Hotel, which
looked stunning with its Christmas decor! We even found a street called 'Coleman Lane', so we took the obligatory photo's to Ambers delight! Oh... The first thing we did in the morning was to collect our new passports! This finally put closure on our awful experience in Vietnam, so we took great pleasure in bouncing into the British Embassy and picking them up. We were also able to keep our Emergency Travel Documents which made us even happier! Can't wait to show people what they look like on our return home, they're collectors items!
Singapore is ridiculously clean... Mat's dream place! You even get fined for throwing your chewing gum on the floor here, so you can imagine how tidy the streets look. In the evening we went to Orchard Road, where they hold a huge christmas competition for the shops on the street. Going from no decorations anywhere to a place where you couldn't move for lights was incredible... Although it
still didn't feel christmassy to either of us because it was still so humid even at 11pm!
The next day, we visited Sentosa Island. Sentosa is pretty much like a mini Florida (or at least how
we'd imagine Florida to be!), the place was a bit of a flop a few years ago until an American guy revamped the whole place, which explains the whole feel to it! It was very expensive so we had to skip the Universal Studios that Mat wanted to visit (70 dollars each was way out of our budget!). We did visit the Aquarium though, for one sole reason - So Amber could see pink dolphins! Ever since she was told about them in Laos, she has made it her mission to find them. Mission accomplished! As one mission is accomplished, one mission starts. Goodbye Asia, hello Australia!
Well, we nearly didn't say hello to Australia at all. In typical Amber fashion, we decided to leave our hostel at 6.50pm for a flight that was leaving at 8.50pm! We got to the check-in desk 50 minutes before our flight and we were greeted with angry looks from the Jetstar staff. Once we were told it was Jetstar's first direct flight from Singapore to Melbourne (which had also received a lot of media attention), we ran all the way to Gate 39 where our flight was already boarding... Or at least
that's what the overhead screens told us. We kept running, flashed our tickets at the staff and ran on to the plane. We were greeted by... Nobody! Somehow, we had managed to be the last to check in and be the first on the plane! We wondered what all the people waiting at the gate were doing!! It was great to have our first flight in two and a half months, and we even got a mini bottle of champagne to celebrate the first flight!
We touched down in Melbourne at 7am, and made our way over to Tim's (our friend from London who we are staying with for a few nights) work. It was so nice to be reunited with a friend from back home, it was funny when 2 stinky backpackers turned up at 'Armadale Classics' Boutique! We spent the day resting up, and in the evening we headed out for coffee and dinner with Tim and one of his friends (who was a good laugh!). The following day we slept through (see the pattern emerging here?!), and then in the evening we had our first night out in Melbourne! It was a gay night on a
Tram
Melbourne City Centre rooftop bar surrounded by the city lights and buildings. It was amazing! Ryan Paul Harvey - We expected you to walk through the entrance at any second... We were disappointed! The next day was spent sussing out the area, with lots of coffee stops along the way!
Yesterday, well, was a bit of a disaster. We were meant to be moving out of Tim's and set off in the morning to meet our new landlord. It turns out that he was a creep who shook hands like a wet fish. There was something about him that just didn't sit right with either of us. Maybe it was the fact that he didn't speak a word to us whilst walking 20 feet in front of us on the way to the property. Now, the property; It was vile. Potentially our worst accommodation since we started traveling. It was just dirty, dingy, so dated - Amber had to hold back tears whilst we were walking around. We knew we couldn't spend christmas there. Tim to the rescue!! Tim and his flat mate are both cool with us staying at theirs over the christmas period, needless to say we are elated! We
MCG
Melbourne Cricket Ground cannot even begin to thank them enough, it's a lovely flat as well and reminds us of being back at Westland Place in London! So the evening was spent in celebration eating $4 pizzas at a local restaurant. We even tried desert pizzas... Incredible!
So, we leave you in good spirits, finally grasping a bit of christmas feel as well! We are both in a very good place. Mat's in an even better place as he's counting down the days until we go and watch England V Australia in The Ashes on Boxing Day!!
We are about to head to the 2 dollar store to purchase christmas gifts for each other! Proper traveller's christmas!
Papa Coliman - Thank you for your very thorough email detailing how to make the perfect christmas dinner - We'll try our very best!
HO HO HO!! Merry Christmas!!
Love to all, have an absolutely cracking festive period - Miss you all (oh by the way, it's going to be 28 degrees on christmas day... SCORCHIO!)
Amber and Mat
xXx
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