Sunday, September 22, 2013

Sydney





   I remember my first day in Sydney, I  had to walk  for an hour from the city central station just to find the YHA Railway, which actually if I was smart enough ( I am, believe me ) , the hostel is located just next to the station, behind the Adina hotel, less than 2 minutes ! My phone was dead, and even though I didn’t sleep well at the airplane, I was sooo wide awake, fully charged, excited to explore this place that has been on my travel bucket list. Except the only problem after walking around the lovely neighborhood at George street and still couldn't find the hostel, this small girl wearing colorful knitwear and boots got  back pain from the heavy backpack that actually looked much bigger than her actual size, and aaah  got this important meeting at 1.30 pm at the ABC Studio at Ultimo Road that I couldn't miss. Saw this Bounce Hotel just in front of Central Station, decided to stay there for one night ( AUD 39 / night for female dorm room ) , quick shower, dressed up nicely then heading up to Ultimo Road. The receptionist lady from Bounce Hotel gave me a direction how to get to the TV station, it wasn't that far so I might make it in 10 minutes . 
    I made it on time to ABC Studio. Met some of the amazing crews, make up artists, even did a short tour to the radio station, news studio, make up room, costume department…It was like a dream came true to see how the crew created a show. The whole building and dynamic work environment just exactly my kind of dream job, a place I wish to explore and develop my skills, creativity, working with incredible team on set. Still working my way for it...
    The excitement of the first day in Sydney continued to a lovely afternoon walk around Darling Harbor. Gotta love clear blue skies, chilly winter, sipping hot coffee and people watching. Back to the Bounce Hotel, do not miss  $1 Aussie hot dogs every Thursday night at the terrace rooftop, a sweet deal you can't miss if you're on budget, even though after that my Argentinian gang took me to China town for another big dinner to celebrate Lolo, Ally and Curtis new jobs in Sydney.
     To be honest I'm glad to visit Australia, knowing there's a lot of good friends in Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne to see. If you plan to stay in the Central, I recommend you to stay with Bounce Hotel or YHA Railway ( $32 / night for dorm room ), only walk distance to the Central station and close to Darling Harbour, Opera House, and many more. Feel free to check out my previous post about Tidbinbilla & Cockatoo Island, stay tuned for more stories and photos from Australia trip..
















YHA Railway Sydney
Fireworks at Darling Harbour
'I Feel Good Today' from YHA Railway Sydney


ABC Studio Ultimo St
Poser !!

Cockatoo Island




    Since my roomie Marlen and I aren't  really big city girls, after staying for few days in the city central and we thought we saw enough those buildings and in the end they all looked ( almost ) the same like what we had back in Switzerland and Jakarta, we both decided let’s just catch a ferry from Circular Quay to Cockatoo Island and Manly. The short ferry ride is always fun, as two tourists in Sydney, we're happy enough to take lots of photos of Opera House and Sydney harbour bridge from different angles.
     Cockatoo Island, located at the junction of Parramatta and Lane Cove rivers in Sydney Harbour somehow reminds me of those dead cities in Resident Evil or other zombie movies. We had this crazy imagination of bunch of zombies out at night and dance like Michael Jackson "Thriller" but of course that was just on our mind for a second. In fact we really enjoyed how it was so quiet there, old buildings and houses, and this large camping site with BBQ area, definitely different thing to experience while you're visiting Sydney. Check Cockatoo Island for further info about camping and activities in the island.















Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Tidbinbilla - Australia





    While most people I met always have the same opinion about Canberra is boring, nothing much to do, just roundabout, I actually think Canberra is a pretty nice place, especially in winter time. Plus how lucky I am to get a chance reunited again with my all time favorite couple here, Robin and Tieke Brown ready to show me around Canberra for couple of days.  
    Rob picked me up from the Rex Hotel in the morning and drove me around the city. We’ve got few places to visit today and Spanish food for dinner at Legends Spanish Restaurant at Manuka in the end of the day, sooo excited ! Canberra looked busy in the morning, gentlemen in coat, nice suit and black tie, corporate ladies walked down the street with coffees and professional work attire. I gotta say, lucky all of you  Australian to have beautiful places to live, many parks, gardens, nature and beaches. We sat down for a while at the National Library waiting for Ibu Tieke to finish working, kinda wish my hometown has a library like that so I can sit there for hours to work and read books. 
     The Browns took me to Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex at Tidbinbilla around 40 minutes drive from the city center then we visited Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve. Entrance fee is $10 for day pass private vehicle, experience outstanding wildlife experience, the sanctuary wetlands, jungle walk even picnic on the grass with kangaroos and great BBQ spots. Happy to be away for a while from big city and skyscrapers, driving through the hills and...ah here's my favorite part, sitting at the backseat of the car and watching Rob & Tieke joking, teasing, loving and looking at each other with that deep look of love even after 25 years of marriage.










Saturday, September 7, 2013

Morrisey Hotel Jakarta


Wondering,..
I know, I know I should have posted about my road trip in Australia, got around 2500 photos in my camera, will take sometime to edit as I only gonna give you the best photos and info, promise it won't take a long time..during next week you can catch new posts about Australia.

Meanwhile, me and the girls had a ladies night and farewell party for one of our babes. Mandy is leaving soon to Korea then UK for 2 years. I came up with the idea to spend a night at Morrisey Hotel Jakarta as I've heard some good reviews and we decided to sleepover and spoiled ourselves with big dinner at Ocha & Bella and of course good cocktails at the rooftop.

The rate was Rp 850.000 per night for studio room, plus Rp 500.000 for deposit, including breakfast for two.The studio room was simple and nice, with mostly black and white color. I spent sometime in the kitchen cooking for the girls before we went to the rooftop pool for afternoon cocktail and swimming.

I love the pool and lounge, spent most of our times there just hanging out, reading books, swimming and aaaahh you know when girls hang out together, we talk about our jobs, next travel destination, clothes, food and boys. I'm happy Mandy decided to continue her study to UK, and Eno soon to France. As for me, travel a bit to Australia - Thai - Laos and catch up on some projects.

Strategically located in the center of Jakarta, at Jalan KH Wahid Hasyim no 70 Menteng Central Jakara just next to Jalan Jaksa - a very popular backpacker's district in Jakarta, we do recommend you to stay with Morrisey, only minutes walking distance to shopping places like Grand Indonesia and Plaza Indonesia, few minutes to The Monument National and Kota Tua. And ohhhh you really should grab a bite at Ocha & Bella. We had pizza, tacos, dessert platter and soup last night, spent around $60, a bit pricey but all the food and ambiance last night was super nice, so it was all worth it.

I guess its the photos will help you to decide whether you want to stay in Morrisey Hotel Jakarta next time.


Duo Cancerian sister.

Mandy




Studio room at Morrisey Jakarta



Always.happy.

Kisses for Mandy