Version 2.0

My husband and I were on the subject of my sojourn in Melbourne 6 years ago, and I thought of sending him old photos from my phone. Disappointed of such insufficient proof, I remembered I had posted some in my blog. Yes, you read that right. In October 2012, I started a blog as an outlet for my anxieties during my darkest times. (read: major d-r-a-m-a)
As I reread my old posts, I couldn't help but cringe at all the emotional turmoil I went through. I cringed even more knowing my husband was on the other side of the world reading my blog for the first time. As I watched him read my posts, I was mentally preparing myself that he would ask me a multitude of questions. To my surprise, he simply said "Why don't you continue blogging?". Immediately, I dismissed the idea of resurrecting my blog but then I found myself frantically trying to retrieve the email and password...... aaaand here I am with a revival! What a way to celebrate my blog's 6th birthday!

It's Like a Pacquiao event, But With Horses

Today is a holiday here in Melbourne. Back in CDO, November 1 and 2 were reserved for the day of the dead and almost everyone would be on a holiday. This was my first time not physically celebrating that event. It felt weird seeing people going to work during those days but it was weirder thinking that people don't go to work because of horses. For every Melbournian, the first week of November is for the Melbourne Cup, and on this day, it showcases the horserace of all horseraces. With that, it is an excuse to place your bets. Not into gambling? Lucky for most women who love to dress up, there's a spot for us. This week is also an excuse for fashionistas to dress to kill, for the event is a whole meet market. What's Melbourne Cup fashion for women, you ask? Think cocktail or shift dresses paired with flamboyant hats or headpieces, or in Melby speak, fascinators.

(I DO NOT OWN THIS PICTURE.) Nicole Kidman at the event two days ago

Photo from www.fashionfile.com.au/blog

Very prim and proper, wouldn't you say? Very English. Oh, speaking of English, Prince Charles and Camila graced today's event and gave out the awards. I was hoping Kate dropped by because I was itching to see what she would have worn.

Anyway, my cousins came over for lunch and watched the race on TV. Our lunch consisted of leftovers and newly cooked pansit, and dessert was a choice of banana cake or apple crumble topped with vanilla ice cream. The crumble was so good, I had two servings. No judging please!

Dessert option 1: Banana cake

Dessert option 2: Apple crumble

... With vanilla ice cream? Yes, please!

 Apparently, there were many races in line but THE race - "The race that stops a nation" - was scheduled at 3o'clock. You know how Filipinos are with a Pacquiao event? All the streets are quiet because everyone is at home tuned in to the TV. Plus, there's a pre-match before the actual fight. Today was like that - like a Pacquiao event, but with horses! It was fun seeing my aunt and uncle getting into the action. They placed their bets, hoping that they chose the lucky ones. Ever since last week, I keep hearing names of the horses who were popular with the crowd and whom was likely to win.

At 3 o'clock. Watching the race that stops the nation.

 While watching the race, I was expecting one of those names to pop up as they announce the winner. It turns out the underdog won! There goes my aunt and uncle's money! haha.. I'm hoping next year I can actually be part of this madness by either a) placing my bet, b) dressing up in Melbourne Cup fashion, or c) both!

Cheers!

Of trees, rocks, and ice cream

My relatives and I went on a roadtrip last Sunday.  After travelling for almost 3 hours southwest of Melbourne, we arrived at the Otway Fly Treetop Adventures site. On this location, you can choose to do the treetop/canopy walk or go ziplining. Originally, my aunt wanted some adrenaline rush but the rate was pretty steep and the tour was 3.5 hours long. She opted for the calmer activity since my cousin  wanted to drop by The 12 Apostles afterwards. Fortunately, we prepared some food and some picnic paraphernalia because the food being served at their cafe was expensive. For our lunch, my aunt brought some fresh tasty bread and different spreads (chargrilled mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, turkey slices, salami, or hommus), plus fruits for dessert. In my book, the healthier the better! Now that we were all filled up, we started walking towards the visitor center.

 

I was warned that it might get a bit cold so I layered up before leaving the house. As we were walking, Mr. Sun was up and shining, and it made me think about my state of being in the next 2 hours. So I just had to remove my thermals and drop it back into the car. After confirming our booking, our trek began.

Don't. Look. Up.

Should not have looked up.

Green carpet

You'll notice that we've met some prehistoric creatures along the way. We decided to take this route first before starting the treetop walk.

Can you see the zipliners? At this point I was craving for some action, I didn't care if I paid AUD$100 or if the ride lasted for 3 hours.

"What's my age again?"

Let the Treetop Walk begin! Meet my cousin, Cherry.

Interesting vegetation formation

Don't look down either!

The walkways are made of lightweight material and they sway at the slightest movement. I was actually trying to scare my family but ended up scaring myself!

Hokay, after an hour of tree appreciation, we had to walk back to the visitor center for a good 5-10 minutes. No matter how much water I drank, it didn't do me any good. I was craving for something cold. And sweet. ICE CREAAAM!! I was glad that my cousin was feeling the same way. Since the cafe wasn't selling any of them good stuff, we had to settle for apples and water for the meantime, and stop by a cafe along the way. So we were back on the road heading for the Great Ocean Road, which was 1 and a half hours away from our previous destination. This is one of Victoria's famous tourist spots where you can appreciate natural beauty. If you're like me who prefers beaches and coastlines over mountains and trees, this is the place for you. 

The Great Ocean Road is where you'll find the Twelve Apostles. Basically, they're a bunch of rocks (made of limesone, I believe) off the coastline. Unfortunately, each rock is not named after the biblical apostles but they're just collectively known by that name. But don't be disappointed because the view is just breathtaking! This was actually my second time to visit but it never failed to amaze me. Being the OC that I am, I did a headcheck on the "apostles" and I realized there were only 8! Well, boys and girls, that's erosion for ya! Anyhoo, here are my photos although I think these won't do Mother Nature justice.

The view to the east

From the left: my two cousins, my cousin's hubby, and moi

The view to the west

The sea was calling me!

Indeed, the water was so tempting, or maybe I was really that dehydrated. Nearby, we saw people on the shore and felt like joining them so we drove off to a point where we needed to go down lots of steps just to reach sandy bliss. My mind said Go! but my legs were screaming No. I guess everyone in the car felt the same way so back to Melbourne we go.... erm, not really. We still had our ice cream cravings! Lucky for us, we passed by KFC later on and lowered our standards to Krushers. We still felt fulfilled nonetheless. 

How was your weekend?

F**k yeah, It's Friday!

Forgive the expletives but just last night, I realized that I'm about to hit the one month mark of being a homesick bum here in Melbourne. I'm actually pretty happy about it because I'm optimistic that nothing will come up by December. I mean it's already November, and gods be good, time will fly really fast. I reckon not a lot of employers are looking for people to hire during the end of the year anyway. And towards the end of December, probably after Christmas, I'm hoping that talks of my impending homecoming will definitely come up because my 3-month stay will expire on the 3rd of January. Goodness, if only I can sleep starting tonight and wake up on December 1! Oh, that reminds me - my birthday. I'm not sure if I want to go through that without the people I love. And Christmas and New Year's too! Dang, no worries. The important thing is I'm going home after that.

Another reason why I'm celebrating the whole week is that I have already completed two sessions of driving lessons. I'm still in the process of tweaking my driving habits, that is, to get rid of the old dangerous ones and taking in new ones. I hope I won't need more than 5 sessions but I still can't tell at this point.

This week, as I promised myself, will be mainly about me. I'm happy to say that I have kept that promise. It was all about rediscovering my past loves and venturing into new beginnings. Being on a social network hiatus, I had my driving tutorials, I jogged, listened to songs from the previous years, read about makeup techniques, and I kept looking up Google for recipes - hopefully I can whip up a good meal anytime soon. Anyway, I'm thankful that I found joy in the little things.

After the fiasco that was last week, I had this chronic nagging feeling of wanting to be understood. I knew I had crossed some lines and offended some people but I felt they didn't know the cause of such actions. I wanted to let those people know how sorry I was and how I desperately want to make things better. I know that time heals all wounds but I figured two weeks was too far off. Sometime during the week, I impulsively reached out to them and told them how I felt. Even though I didn't get the response I expected, I was relieved of that nagging feeling. You know how your stomach aches and you feel like vomiting, and when you let it out, that's the only time the pain just disappears? It felt just like that. Then I realized that giving time out started just after that. Not to worry, I have my little things to keep me busy.

P.S.
As I was finishing the last paragraph, my aunt was telling me that waiting around for an employer during December is useless. She said that IF I WANTED TO, I can go home early next month and I'll come back when someone will hire me! *tears of joy*

A Dose of Sunshine

Last Sunday afternoon, I decided to do something different for this week: abstain from my social media accounts and focus on me. It's my second day and I feel like I've gone cold turkey. I still find myself crying from time to time and itching to open my Facebook and Instagram accounts, but I'm proud to say I never did. I hope it will stay that way until the end of the week.

My beautiful friends keep telling me to explore the city but it's really hard to enjoy it when you're alone and short of cash (read: still a bum). Fortunately I have driving lessons to keep me out of the house for an hour. I had my first session yesterday and it was a bit daunting because I had to get rid of my old Filo driving habits and adapt to the Aussie way which was to be extra defensive! For example, the instructor kept reminding me to check my rear view mirror first before stepping on the brakes or signalling a turn. Back in CDO, I cared less about anyone behind me! Anyway it was challenging and since I booked one session, I let him know that I needed more time and reserved an appointment the soonest time which was next Wednesday. Bummer! Good thing I found another driving instructor who was available tomorrow. Hoping she'll be as good as the other one.

Since today's weather forecast was pleasant, my uncle and I agreed to drive to a park for some cardio. He walked the dog, Rumbu, while I went ahead and jogged. I was sooo happy to be out under the sun! We started past 7:45 but the sun still didn't hurt. Although locals consider 20 degrees warm, I still had to layer some basics so that I'd sweat a bit, and sweat I did! My face was dry though - not a bead of sweat in sight. I guess it's been a while since my jogging days so I was pretty much breathless the entire time. Nonetheless, the fact that I was moving was essential. I was motivated to jog there everyday (or as long as my uncle agrees to come with so that someone can drive me! hehe).  At this point, you're wondering why THERE. I must say that the view is pretty. It calms me while I'm huffing and puffing away. Allow me to show you....

Rubber ducky, you're the one!

If my mommy friends were here, they would love this place because of the nearby playground for their kids.

The lake is a haven for ducks

That building behind the fountains is a cafe. Haven't eaten there yet.

Aside from joggers, dog-owners also love to come here.

Cool down

I'm glad my uncle and I enjoyed the exercise. No surprise, we'll be back tomorrow and hopefully, days after that!

Lost in Transition

As I'm typing this, it's 10:58pm Melbourne time and all I can see is a blur. Tomorrow morning my parents will fly out to the Philippines, leaving me behind. What I would give just to buy a ticket home! Only time will tell as to when I will see them again. Oh, and my siblings. And my cat, my friends, my city. And of course, the one I gave my heart to. Yup, here come the waterworks again. Excuse me while I cry a bucket or two.

The last two weeks have been heaps of fun. My family had a mini reunion to celebrate my cousin's wedding here in Melbourne. Daily trips to the city and countryside exhausted everyone but hey, no one complained! Then at the end of the first week, relatives started saying goodbye until my parents and grandfather were the only ones left. During their last few days, it felt like the spotlight was on me because the biggest concern now is finding me an employer. Within three months. You read that right, I have a deadline to find a job. You see, my visa allows me to enter Australia for how many times in one year, as long as the duration of each visit does not exceed three months. So if I will still be unemployed by January 2013, I have to go home. Wish come true, yes? Then I will carry on job hunting whilst in my beloved country, waiting for opportunities. And if I do get a job before my 3 months expires, my visa will be converted to a different one, which is another story. Anyhoo, the other day, we had a consultation with one agency who promised to assist me in getting an employer to sponsor my working visa. The services included CV editing and prepping for an interview. Sounds really promising to me and my family but it came with a price. But then again these people do the hunting for me. Another thing my parents and relatives did was call/talk to just about any Filipino they can think of: cousins, friends of cousins, sister of my uncle, even the lady who owned the Filipino store! Yes, my dad even asked her if she knew of anyone who was willing to hire little ol' me!

As for me, I was lost in my own bubble. I DO miss home but a part of me (like 5%) wants to find that employer. Earlier upon waking up, it felt so surreal organizing my closet. My favorite clothes, from back home but now they're kept in a new closet, to be used in a different place. Reality just bitchslapped me right there. I'm just caught up with the changes and uncertainty. It feels like so many things are happening at the same time and I dont know what to do. It's bad enough that I'm living with my aunt and uncle which makes me feel like I'm their adopted daughter after their own two have moved out years ago.

I know I can always call on my cousins but some of them are married and with kids. I have always preferred the comfort of my friends which is, unfortunately, thousands of miles away! So if any of my lovely friends are reading this, please feel free to comment or better yet, Skype or Viber away! Talk to me about anything... anything just to keep me sane!

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Testing, testing... Is this thing on?
After a long mental tug-of-war, I finally gave in. I'm now officially part of the blogosphere. Lord knows how long I can keep this up, but if it's therapeutic to me, then I'm all in!