Thursday, April 19, 2012
Today has been a poignant date for me in the 2012 calendar, marking a huge milestone in my life.
A year ago today was a very special time for me - leaving Australia for Singapore and then Europe for the first time by myself.
It was an emotional morning after a 4:30am rise. I was worried I'd packed too much (as always), worried I'd forgotten something, and then after all that had major self-doubts about the 15 weeks I was about to embark on. I'd been unsure of the direction I wanted to take in life after failing to find a 'career' job post-university and felt guilty for wanting to experience Europe a second time... all sorts of things were going through my head.
I cried for most of the way from Adelaide to Melbourne. Then stepping on the connection to Singapore breathed new life into me and I was excited. I remember the amazing feeling I had walking through Changi Airport on arrival so vividly still, and then in the shuttle into Singapore City...
My first photo off the plane, from the shuttle.
First song I heard on the radio: Wonderwall by Oasis. A foreshadow of the epic events that were about to take place.
***
I heard Wonderwall today as I hopped in the car for a five-minute trip. Fancy that... I remembered how HAPPY I was in that moment a whole year ago, hearing that song and looking out the window to this and more greenery. Rushing towards me was a feeling of every possibility opening up to you and wanting to grab everything with open arms, the good and the bad. I'd had that experience in 2010 with my friends but now I was going it alone. And the thought of becoming a true solo traveller thrilled me.
I'm going to be posting a bunch of A year ago today... posts over the next few months to make up for my lack of picture blogging during the trip itself. And also to act as a bit of catharsis because I can't believe that much time has already passed. The last 12 months have been truly life-changing, during that trip and the events following.
***
In those 12 months I was lucky enough to have my 2012 adventure across the ditch. I loved the two weeks I spent in New Zealand and it clearly wasn't enough. I've just written a series on my time there; I hope those who saw my entries enjoyed reading about my experiences as much as I've loved reliving them!
The series in full, if you want to go back all over again too:
New Zealand makes you: test your limits
New Zealand makes you: buy vintage and not buy shoes
New Zealand makes you: spend all your money and then some
New Zealand makes you: thankful for the Australian summer
New Zealand makes you: discover their sweet as confectionery
New Zealand makes you: too busy to record your thoughts
New Zealand makes you: realise they're not Australian
New Zealand makes you: laugh at misfortune
New Zealand makes you: dress up as an elf
New Zealand makes you: try McDonalds
Thursday, January 19, 2012
If you didn't know that about me, shame on you! Well, you do now.
So I love shoes. These I purchased in Europe over the course of my 15-week trip. I can't believe I never did a fashion wrap-up this time around... having said that, these were the more notable buys as opposed to 2010 when London vintage clothing reigned supreme.
The European sales are awesome.
Back row (from left): New Look khaki boots from the UK, 15 pounds. Platform wedges from Harrods London, 59 pounds. exe cork nautical wedges from Greece, 39.80 Euros.
Middle: Grey wintery heels from Singapore, 40SGD. Silver flats from Greece, 15 Euros.
Front: Platinum hand-beaded thongs from Greece, around 70 Euros. Fluoro jelly thongs from Greece, 13 Euros. exe dressy thongs from Greece, 29.80 Euros. Closed flats with beige bow from Spain, 5 Euros.
***
Mum realised I wasn't going to have a wall calendar like I had the past seven or eight years, so thoughtfully bought me a tear-off calendar for my fridge - of SHOES!
It started off well with a quote: "You should do shoes."
But since then it's gone kind of downhill. Here's a few examples that speak for themselves.
I've now decided to share with you my "favourite" shoe of the week every Friday as a result of my intrigue to see which tacky shoe will win my heart. Keep an eye out starting tomorrow!
Monday, September 05, 2011
Backstory: in 2010 my bff Penny came up with the idea of eating McDonald's in every country across Europe (because she had a fleeting thought the food o/s wouldn't be up to standard) - but we got there and she changed her mind. No-one else in our group was game so I carried it through. For most of these samplings I was on a Topdeck tour.
I first felt like Morgan Spurlock in Super Size Me because I was eating it so regularly - at least every second day while on the tour - and hoped it wouldn't affect my health too much. Actually... that was a slight lie. I wasn't too concerned.
I should add, I went on this odyssey only to discover the specialties - the 'limited time only' specials, or something unique to the country. No Big Macs for me. So now to the photos.
After six months of not having a bite (okay so I had a hash brown at Athens Airport when I first got over there) I had my first 'McDo' meal, as they call it in France, in the restaurant that's part of the Louvre complex. I discovered that the French don't eat small and I was forced to buy a medium meal. To be blunt, the chips weren't great (however they were less salty than ours) and the burger appears rather plain. The bread was interesting, but the filling was merely beef, cheese, tomato and actual slivers of onion (not the tiny chopped up things in a lump). For its similarity to a cheeseburger, I give it (and the meal) 5/10. Good to taste the familiar beef again but an average start.
Although we couldn't really do that much in Vienna because it was a Sunday (aaargh), I still only found little time to find myself a Maccas lunch because everyone else had already eaten. Although I only picked a snack as such, what a snack it was - Cheesy Broccoli Nuggets. The pack gave me six bites of gooey goodness - warm and indeed cheesy on the inside. Never seen anything like it before. Perfect snack, but six wasn't enough! 8/10.
Bratislava was only a day-stop; we only spent 60-90 minutes there - and 3/4 of that was in rain. But it cleared up by the time we ventured from coffee to continue my quest, and it was so worth it. Complete with delivery to your table, this Maccas offered a taste of Greece (the food I missed so much at this point) with a Beef Tzatziki burger (and crinkle-cut herbed wedges). This is my style. With the usual culprits as well as fetta cheese, tzatziki and a herbed bun, this was unbelievably tasty even after having eaten a decent amount of the stuff over the past week and a half. With the mouth-watering wedges, I'm going to say this was perfect, if a bit messy. 10/10.
By the time I got to Budapest I'd seen these on a few menus, with different meats. And heaps of the tour peeps had seen my photos and were aware of my quest... which made me more persistent to explore the menus. I went with the beef McWrap, and although small it had a lot of flavour. The tangy yellow sauce went well with the beef and the strange mix of stuff (is that mango in the picture? It's been a while, I don't remember that...) packed a punch. On the run this worked easily, 7/10.
We stopped through on the way to Prague at this McDrive (although we sadly didn't fit through the thing being on a bus and all - but to be fair the seats inside were fairly accommodating). Notable for its similarity to the Slovakian menu (Beef Tzatziki burger and all) - I wonder why... oh and according to Irishman Chris it was the first along his travels to have Double Cheeseburgers. Well spotted. I went for prawns and their 'special sauce.' Point lost for having to pay extra for the sauce, and another for the prawn itself being miniscule in relation to all the (badly amazing) crumbing around it. But the sauce was between tartare and aioli and suited, and the prawns tasted fine from what was there. Fine as a really light snack but fair average. 5/10.
The most fun I've had at McDonald's in a long time. Probably since I used to play 'the pickle game' with my brother and cousin, trying to see who'd step and possibly slip on our dropped cheeseburger pickle... ah those were the days. ANY-way, after 3:30am we found this open on our way home... and the menu was SO impressive. I settled on a two snack burgers; the first an Italian-style chicken burger, crumbed and with Napoli sauce. Something similar was once released at home as a proper burger and this was just as tasty. Then... the Nurnburger. Three small sausages and mustard in a flour-dusted bun, a likely homage to their apparently famous currywurst. Definitely an acquired taste, but good quality meat. I managed to polish off 1.5 of these. Italian: 9/10. Nurnburger: extra point for most patriotic, fun item I've ever seen. 8.5/10.
After being in Athens for five days I manage to come around full circle and try something which I thought was completely crazy at their airport. The picture above shows a burger. This particular burger contained a prawn pattie. Yes, a prawn pattie. It didn't have an overpowering fishy taste but with the regular fillings and sauces eating it still had a strange feel. Was neither here or there. 5/10.
***
I ended up having Maccas brekky back in Melbourne Airport on the final stopover with one of their wraps (new for the time, seems the local menu shook things up too). Lament the missed op of trying a pork, a breakfast and a UK option. And I should probably go a Big Mac too on my next run. But the quest in 2010 was a lot of fun. I can only imagine the possibilities of what I'd do next.
2011
Walking down Orchard Road for the first time, even at night the humidity was getting to me. There's a LOT of McDonalds stops along the shopping mecca, and I was rather intrigued by one of their dessert cafes just off the main strip. I've still never seen anything like it! First treat of the trip (and definitely not the last) was a Supreme Milo McFlurry. An explosion of chocolate goodness, Milo and ice-cream have always gone together. Perfect mix, and the last time I would see Milo for a fair while. 9/10.
My meals in Belfast had no room for McDonalds so I settled for a Drifter McFlurry. Now, I'd never heard of the chocolate before so thought it sounded safe enough. Turned out to be too safe for my liking - wafer pieces and a 'toffee' sauce (*cough* caramel) didn't do enough to make a strong flavour for the ice-cream. Bored. 3/10.
Gosh I loved Galway. First stop there was McDonalds as I still hung out with tour-mates before they continued back to Dublin without me. The UK had the wraps you see here, but while Scotland and England had them as daily specials, in Ireland you could pick what you wanted whenever. Win! Vegetarian wrap with chickpea pattie was my healthiest McDonalds meal so far. Sweet chilli sauce complimented the packed flavour of the pattie while cucumbers evened out the spice factor. Rather full, I was happy as Larry. 8/10.
Still feel like I have unfinished business with this place. Trying one of the other wraps was purely for mealtime, but the Chicken Caesar Wrap was pretty good. Crispy chicken, decent bits of bacon. Well prepared. 8.5/10.
***
5/12/2011
Not so long after all... turns out Maccas celebrated 40 years in Australia earlier this year with some celebratory returns to mark the big occasion.
My big move to Dubbo meant I was eating a bit more junk than desired as I settled in and found a place. But what I ate was nothing short of substantial. It's been a while since these came and went but the memory forever lingers...
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
So I'm sitting in my hostel room in Istanbul post-ANZAC tour, head bent at a very awkward angle but loving the view over the Bosphorus. It's chilly today as it has been all week, and waking up with a sore throat that's gotten worse all day cannot be good. Incase you were wondering, nooo I was not drinking heavily last night!
What a beautiful city Istanbul has been... have one more day here but I've seen and done so much. Except Macca's - that's either tonight or tomorrow. Came back from the Hagia Sofya just before, luckily got a local tour guide who got us in pretty quickly and told us all the intricate details about its wonderful history. I've cruised across the Bosphorus River, been repeatedly told I'm one of (millions of) angels from paradise, relaxed in Turkish baths that are over 500 years old, tried to be set up with the guy whose family owns the shop across from the tour hotel and sampled what's said to be the best Turkish Delight, honeycomb and nut delicacies in the Egyptian Bazaar (Spice Market) – check it out!
Then there was Gallipoli. What an absolute privilege to be a part of. Such a fun and sombre experience... the ride was long, we were told no pre-tours of the sites would be allowed, killed time in the next town over, went back to wait only to see buses moving through (must be mentioned our local driver was a gun – craziest ten-point-turn I've seen in my life, let three of the group back in as we were moving, got through past half the other buses and we were some of the first to get into the site...). Had a great vantage point snuggled in my sleeping bag, spent the night slowly getting colder and colder, but got through on cold bread and dips, chocolate and chips... sooooo many chips. Thanks to a drunk Katie the day before ;D Oh yeah, and we may have been on Turkish TV flicking through the program... have to look that up.
The Dawn Service itself was the most moving for me. The Last Post is incredibly haunting and it moved me to tears. Australian service was professional but nice – but apparently the NZ version was much more laidback. The stands were minimal so my small group missed out on that one. We were blessed with dry weather and little wind through the night. And less people than previous years too apparently – we didn't have to move at all.
A shipping ferry's just passing called the Euronav – Nav, I went to Food Republic in Singapore! But there were two along Orchard Rd so I hope it was the right one. But amazing and cheap. Walked/Metroed around Singapore City for about 12 hours straight – took Sentosa Island in, had the spiciest chicken tikka masala of my life in Little India, and promised myself I'd be back to Haji Lane to stock up on some wicked clothes before hitting home.
The Royal Wedding's coming up on Friday, very keen on trying to discover what the weirdest souvenir is. But I think tomorrow calls for a relaxed (and cheap) last full day in Turkey. Just wish I could've discovered more of this inviting country.
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