next morning... aunty brought us to nearby boxhill shopping centre for breakfast. grain asian cafe... had congee with timsum... yuM yUm~ then we went to rent car from budget b4 aunty went to work. made our way to warrook cattle farm. paid aud25 for the farm tour... & the nice lady gave us complimentary coffee/tea while waiting for the rest to finish their lunch. got on a farm truck and sat on hay blocks... to see cows. fed the aggressively hungry baby cows... all snatching for the milk bottles. then saw some baby sheeps who were so timid... kept running away from humans. then everyone had the chance to milk a super obedient dairy cow... as said by the guide. it was warm and so fresh! didn't have any weird raw taste which we thought. kekeke the freshiest it can get!
next, we went to pick up 2 sheepdogs on the way. the younger one jumped up the truck... with no trouble at all. the older one needed a lift up. both so enthu... to start working. with the voice commands from the guide...they gathered the sheep. english educated dogs! hahaha its amazing. they ran far and fast...brought a herd of sheep towards us. guide explained to us how great the dogs were... and that the whip was used previously to gather herds. when she whipped... the sound was loUd! we tried...but it was so difficult. she sure had alot of strength~
then we walked towards the sheering hut... where sheep's wool was sheered. the sheep sure felt so much lighter after the shave... hahaha it's a real tiring job... working in a farm. see the amount of strength & effort put into farming. although its a laidback lifestyle... its certainly not an easy one. next, we were given food to feed the kangeroos! so excited~ there were so many of them... and they were all tourist-friendly. so cute la... as they nibble off our palms. & there was a pond full of ducks living with them in that park.
then neo wanted to try... so she took over the wheel. i wasn't confident on being the driving "tester"... but she was steady enough.. except for the last min turn into wildlife wonderland. pHeW. hahaha we entered at a cheaper concession rate... nice pple again. how lucky are we! we were allowed to walk freely.... but didn't expect that much freedom...
the curious wombat was so excited to see us... so cute la.. like a huge fat guinea pig. then there was some kind of wolf dog... can't remember the name. we thought that was all... coz they were all enclosed. but then...there was a closed gate with huge kangeroos behind. didn't noe if we were supposed to go in... coz they looked kinda hungry & we didn't buy any food. so after the owner told us we could go in... quite scared coz the roos were looking at us. while hesitating... we witnessed a kangeroo fight. 1 roo made the other angry... and it stood up real tall... attacking each other. like what u can imagine... kangeroo boxing. it was onli a short while but it made us even more afraid to enter the gate. eventually... we entered slowly... and walked passed all the kangeroos. they were like hoping we had food... but luckily were not attacked. we were hoping to carry koalas... but onli managed to spot 2 high up. hugging onto the tree...sleeping. couldn't even see the face... dissappointed. then there were emus and alpacas!
if u're wondering wat's alpacas... its those 2 walking towards us. so scary can! never see them b4... & didn't know if they'll attack us. so we slowly walked... and they passed us too. it was a real close-up experience in this wonderland... something quite unlike what we've thought. but it was all good.. that moment of intense. imagine all the fun we'll miss... if we hadn't enter the gate!
so off we went... towards phillip island. its a common sight to see cows & sheep while driving. they're like everywhere. even horses were seen wearing "clothes" haha it was leong's turn to try... & its all fated. she drove...& as i enjoyed the scenery..there it was! rainbow!!! oh manz... its the 1st rainbow i've ever seen! in real life! & its a full one~ realli made the dae even better! so we stopped over at the information centre to check penguin arrival time... b4 i continued the drive to penguine island. thanx for giving me a break from all that driving... i noe they were guilty... kekeke
we stood by the beach... with freezing wind...awaiting the penguins' arrival. they came in groups. black & white dots moving... so tiny! thanx to neo's binoculars... we saw lots of cute little penguins waddling away into their hideout. didn't have any close views.. until we walked back to their "homes". we saw them shaking off the water... warming themselves up on land. & we're so lucky coz we caught 2 penguins mating! so funny la... the penguin on top kept flapping his flippers up & down at an extremely fast pace. no cameras allowed... so no pics to share... haiz. our drive home was so dark... luckily managed to stop in time as a rabbit hopped across the road. had a good night's sleep... b4 the next adventure to great ocean road!
sort of got used to the long drives... coz traveling 1+hrs is actually the norm there. it was a 3hr drive... with mountains on one side & an endless stretch of ocean on the other. the great ocean road is like the ultimate scenic adventure. along the narrow journey round the mountains... we stopped occasionally to enjoy the wind and the smell of fresh ocean breeze. we settled at apollo bay for lunch. had fish & chips and creamy pasta. next, made our way to the 12 apostles to see how many there's left. according to non-pro judgement... i think there were 7 remaining? not sure actually... coz don't know which are the ones that are counted as apostles. so maybe there were more...? hahaha the pic on the right is loch ard gorge where huge waves rushes up the shore. almost got washed...i mean wet..
drove a little to thunder cave (pic below on left) where water gushes thru' the cave... sending roars like thunder. that explains the name. so then the high-speed water swirls roughly to the dead end (pic on right) and splashes around the blow hole. guess its this force that creates the blow hole. no tour guide with us... so we gotta figure them out & hope our assumptions are right. hahhaa
before sun set... we went to see the fallen london bridge. the original arch was formed and eroded by the waves. with only the two sides remaining. pretty soon the other small arch will fall too. its amazing how nature forms and breaks down nature. these are sights that can never be caught again. each different at their own time. & the sun... i juz love how it blends with the sky and clouds. the common light/sky blue... the orange/red... and occasional pink/purple skies that are so pretty! i kept asking them to take pics of the coloured sky while i was driving... coz its so special! travelled to warrnambool & checked into comfort inn motel. we were quite tired and it was too cold outside... so we ordered piggy's pizza. simple & cheap.
sunrise.. made our way to tower hill reserve to see volcano craters. hiked up the hill and walked around the crater. quite tiring for a morning exercise. nothing much to see actually... juz a hallow center with browns and greens. with wild emus and kangeroos.
as we drove out... there was an even larger crater at a higher view. i pieced up 3 pics to form a complete picture... although not perfect... but u can image how huge it was! there must have been a great eruption many decades ago...but it was still eventually all browns and greens.
next, continued our journey to halls gap aka grampians. had lunch at black panther cafe... delicious capricciosa pizza and cooling alfresco dining. despite the cool weather... we shared coolas ice creamery.. some mixture of unique flavours. started our grampians sight-seeing at boroka lookout which was all the way up. it was freezing cold. we ran to the viewing point... took photos at the fastest speed possible and ran back to the car. that was how cold it was. drove down to the reed lookout also known as the balconies or jaws of death. had to trek a little in order to reach the viewing point... so along the way took pics at protruding rocks with the open backgrd. we look so tiny as compared to the wide background. when reached the jaws... a little disappointed coz that's all we see after treking quite a distance. can see the jaws rite?
the last stop was mackenzie falls. but it was quite a task. quite a walk to the top of the falls.. followed by a long steep flight of stairs down. it was a tall waterfall... but we were all too tired to be hyper. going down the stairs was no problem... it was the climbing back up... that i almost died. figuratively speaking. hahaha see how high? so tired can! the cool weather prevented humidity but increased throat dryness. i was so glad to be back in the car... drove all the way back nearer to home & had a quick kfc dinner at 10+pm.
next dae... it was a foggy morning. 4 degrees aunty said. ate vietnam hot bread for breakfast while did some shopping at victoria market. took the tourist shuttle to queens bridge for some photo-taking b4 heading to melbourne museum at carlton gardens. guess wat... nice pple again~ gave us concession rate... free! the museum was fantastic la! so educational. separated into human, animals, underwater, and a few more. we didn't have much time to spare... so didn't manage to see all in detail.
took the city circle tram to federation square to see melbourne's landmark. that's flinders station. took pics around that area before uncle & family brought us to sofia for italian dinner. it was very crowded... but didn't have to wait long for the food to arrive. food was so yummy! brandon was so excited and couldn't wait for his dessert to arrive. 9 flavours ok. 
next morning aunty brought us to garage sales. had outdoor-cooked hotdog for breakfast... simple & yummy~ went to 3 different ones... selling books.. toys... accessories... furniture. practically anything that's not 1st hand? some look realli knew... but some are expectedly old. antique? it was a good experience. guess this is part of their lifestyle... socializing and enjoying their weekend. happy faces all around... next, we went to view house auction... but there was no action. no bids. but i got to see how it was carried out along the roadside. afternooon, uncle drove us to mount dandenong to enjoy breath-taking views from skyhigh. u can even see the city outline through the clouds in this zoom-in pic...
there was a wishing tree with a story behind it. saying that someone looked through the hole & make a wish... it came true. dunno fact or fiction... but i was busy smiling for the pic that i 4got to make a wish. there was a long structure... its the australiana tree. carved with many animals all around. think there are more than 15 of them on that thin "trunk". & yes... we sat on the giant's chair... looking like dwarfs. went for teabreak at cuckoo restaurant. supposed to be a short one... but we ended up hanging around for quite some time. they had a great big cuckoo clock... the only one left they said.
the waitresses were dressed in traditional dutch outfit.. so pretty rite! her face was flawless la... never seen such smooth and fair complexion. so xian mu! there was a singer entertaining everyone there... he's so funny! making the whole atmosphere so fun! & the tea-time buffet that we had.. the best was the pancake!! think we shared more than 6 of it. we were hooked onto it. although its simple... but the taste was juz scrumptious.
met up with my uncle & aunty for dinner at brunelli... brought neo & leong along. glad they enjoyed themselves... coz they found my relatives so hilarious. i caught up with my cousins... like a mini family reunion. so glad they all could make it for the dinner... coz i haven't seen them for very long!
cambodian breakfast was what we had the next dae b4 going to st kildas to shop! its like a stretch of stalls alongside the jetty. also known as esplanade market.... we managed to buy souvenirs there. neo & brandon playing with puppets...
then went to the city for some shopping. there was a stationary horse carriage there... kinda smelly though. didn't do much shopping in the city coz saving for next dae's shopping. while walking... we chanced upon this alley full of graffiti.. both sides of the wall are painted with art. so nice la~ then sat at hudsons coffee for a break while waiting for uncle to pick us up to go crown casino. we registered for the membership card which entitled us some credits to play! so we juz tried our luck at one cent jackpot machines. apparently... i'm not lucky. neo & leong are! they both got win abit leh. juz anyhow press...very heng lo~ ahhaha wanted to have buffet dinner but the queue was incredibly long! so we went back nearby home to eat at 'the booth'... some taiwanese gourmet. the food was yummilicious to the max!
next morning, had our usual congee for breakfast b4 going to DFO for cheap shopping spree. another rush shopping dae again... coz wanted to go chadstone shopping centre to shop too. after a dae of shopping till we drop... we went to tah bao red rooster and sushi back home. have a warm cosy simple last dinner with the family which took such great care of us. had heavenly ice cream after that and played our last few rounds of wii....before flying back to spore the next dae.
overall... the trip was so memorable. realli had loads of fun & so grateful to sylvia & leong's relatives for taking such good care of us. we 3 graduates are real lucky to have had such a fun and safe trip at australia! thanks~ 
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