Last Post

This will be the last post.

Guys remember to take overseas notification.

Here is the link. www.ns.sg

Limin wrote me a list today on what things to bring and I think I should share it with you guys.

Panties
Jeans
Shirts
Socks
Pyjamas
Toothbrush & Paste
Shaver
Facial Wash
Shampoo & Soap
Gel
Hairdryer
Slippers
1 Towel
Plastic bags
Notebook/Pen
Medicine
Empty Water Bottle
Camera & Charger
HP & Charger
Tissue Paper
*Passport with Visa* important! please double check!

I hope the compilation of places to visit and addresses is going well. We can name it our travel guide. We can include in our travel guide places to eat and also prices of transport etc. We can update the guide as we go along.
I also understand that we will have to make alot of decisions along the way, so please be firm and direct. Don't be wishy washy!

I also suggest that we should be in a buddy system. Josh/Amelia, Limin/Silin, Me/GH/ZH. So wherever your partner goes, you follow.

Anyway, lets meet at 6.45pm on Thursday. Have a light meal, cos I think there are some refreshments on board.
I believe that at this point, we are still a red light for driving, but I still believe that we can make decisions on that as we go along.

I read the travel guide and found out some transport cost information. Money is in AUD. Silin you might want to write this info in the Travel Guide.
Train from Brisbane to Surfer - $40
Bus pass around Surfer - $60 for 3 days unlimited ride
Train from Surfer back to Brisbane - $40
Public Bus in Brisbane - $2
Bus pass in Sydney - $7 OR Bus/Ferry pass in Sydney - $16
Public Bus in Sydney - $2
Tram in Melbourne - $2.60

So I think we can safely put our budget for Transport to be $200 - $300. This estimate is actually very generous, as I believe we will struggle to hit the $200 mark if we plan our trip wisely. We can substitute some bus for cabs etc in case of emergency, so no harm increasing the cap.
If we use the calculations from our previous budget overview in the previous post, we will have about AUD$1054 to spend. Minus Transport, we will be left with about AUD$700.
As we already have events such as Dreamworld, Blue Mountains tour etc covered, we can safely spend about AUD$50 per day. I am ready to give up Lonepine(Hug Koalas) as it is too expensive to just travel to Brisbane to hug some animals. *sniff*
Anyone with me on this? We can spend our day doing something else instead. I'm sure there are lots to do :)
It would also be beneficial to save some money for Melbourne, as although there are DFOs all around in Australia, we can really shop in Melbourne as it will be our last stop. I sincerely plan to spend at least half a day shopping!

A small video about Melbourne


Pack early, prepare and please get international roaming for your phone so we can contact each other in times of emergency.
Happy Holidays!

Slight Reminder

Hi, please pay $48.16 to Amelia ASAP.
Her account no. is 002-47947-8 POSB Savings.

Here are few things I want to announce too.

1. The main reason why we are going to Brisbane (city) is because of Lonepine, hug koala place. I was thinking maybe we can save money by not going back there, and spend some time in Surfer Paradise. We can see koala in Melbourne or Sydney where it is more convenient.

2. Jenolan Caves
I think this cave is quite zai. Its at the Blue Mountain area, but I don't know if we can see both in a day or we can split it into 2. Have to ask the locals.

3. Cataract Dam
The Cataract Dam is the first and oldest of the great dams of the Upper Nepean River, tamed to provide water for the growing population of Sydney.

4. Caves
Some caves in Melbourne. Not sure of the location and details, so need some help in finding out more. There are more details in this website, which Amelia introduced. Its quite good, take a look.
Visit Melbourne Webby

5. The Sydney Opera House. We can don't go there if all of you don't want. Can just tour the outside etc.

Also, I feel that as we are not familiar with some of the attractions, we can be impromptu and make decisions on the spot. It feels adventurous right? Haha!

Budget - Overview

Now that we know how much sunk cost we have, I came up with an overview of how much we can spend.
This is assuming we go to Blue Mountains etc and the tour cost which I estimate it to be around AUD$120.
I still have not factor in Food and Transportation, so what we have left will be even smaller than this.
Additionally, there is still some places which have not been taken in account, like GOR, Philip Island and the days that are still blank. We also have not booked 1 night in GOR.

I'm beginning to worry that we might overspend.
No more 100 oysters :(

Feeling Excited?

Updated!

I'm starting to get abit jittery, as I'm worried that something may cock up.
I checked our flights and program etc, and have a few things to announce.

For our flight from Singapore to Brisbane, we have to check in 90mins earlier from our departure time. Recommended to be 2 hrs earlier.
Our flight is at 9.25pm, so I think we should gather at 7.30pm to 8pm. We can have dinner at Changi Airport and then go through some last minute discussion.

A reminder to Josh/Amelia, remember to print your airline tickets!

By now, everyone should have their visas ready. Please remember to staple it to your passports!

I would recommend everyone to bring a small ziploc bag, where you can keep important documents like your passport, a pen and notebook. You can also hide some money inside just to be safe in case you need some emergency money.

Here is a small checklist. It will be updated as the days get nearer and we start to pack our luggage.
1) Passport
2) Visa
3) Pen and Notebook (Don't underestimate this!)
4) Lock
5) 2 or 3 pin converter
6) Mobile Phone/Charger (For emergency phonecalls)

Also, can anyone bring some extension plugs? So we won't need to fight over power points and we will need only 1 converter to supply everybody power needs.

I found some interesting places we can go in Brisbane. Click on the links to find out more.
Zorb - Roll down the hill in a large ball
Infinity - Some special effects place. Check the video for more. Looks good.
Brisbane Bridge Climb - Recommended by Amelia
Chocolate Tour - Recommended by Amelia. In Melbourne

Also, I have found out that it takes 3 hours to drive to Mount Buller. Wheel chains might be needed. We can find out more when we reach there.

Email from ZH friend

As requested, here is the email from ZH's friend.
Its quite long, so take your time.

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I highly do not recommend the Melbourne Goal as all you'd be doing would be to visit a old jail and undergo shouting like during CST.
Would on the other hand recommend going to the Eureka skydeck (bring your student passes as it would allow you student prices, yes be unscrupulus asians...). Its just a sight see of the entire city, or simply go shopping or lunch at Victoria Market.
Electronic goods are surprisingly cheaper than in Singapore, just purchase over 300 bucks and you'd be eligible for a 11% tax back rebate at the airport (as long as you remember to hand carry it).
You can technically sneak lots of wine back into Sg and wine/liqurer is cheapest at Dan Murphy's which is situated in QV basement.
On the free day, I'd recommend you go skiing if the weather permits. It would set you back about 300 bucks per pax.

Do get lots of nice music when you are driving as it can get very monotonous. Speed at your own risk as they are urber strict on that though the speed limit can go up to 110km/h at some places (just look out for Holden Commodores parked by the side of the road or camera boxes). You get charged a age tax if you're not over 25.
Great ocean road drive is about 285km via the scenic route via the Princess Freeway (M1) to Geelong followed by the Great ocean road drive (B100). Roads are rather long and winding at times especially at the coast. When going back, take the Princess Freeway back all the way to Melbourne (A1-M1).
Not very sure bout the toll points though.

Drive to Philip Island is just as bad (144km on rather straight and bare roads) and when driving at night especially, remember to make sure the driver and the co-pilot is awake. Petrol at this point of time is no more than $1.20 per liter for unleaded 91 and you can get up to 6c off per litre price with fuel dockets from the supermarkets (spend 30 bucks or more).
Drop by http://www.caldermeadecafe.com.au/ for a meal or something on the way to Philip Island.

Places to eat (the most important thing for Singaporeans) wise, I'll not recommend any chinese cuisine since it would be idiotic to come all the way here to eat chinese food.
Melbourne city has a very wide selection of fine cuisine available at reasonable prices and a decent meal (portions here are larger than in Sg so be warned) would cost about 15 per pax, excluding drinks (tap water is free).
You can find lots of food at places like Degraves St, Hardware Lane & Lygon Street (just to name a few). There is a hell load of stuff to choose from and you'd be simply spoiled for choice. Coffee is also an essential part of Melbourneian's lives and you would be gurrenteed to find good coffee here (latte, flat whites, espresso, etc etc).
Please don't be decieved by the looks of some of the places I'm recommending you, the outside may look extremely dodgy but the quality of the stuff being served is just the opposite.

www.trotters.com.au
www.cafeno5.com.au
www.brotherbababudan.com.au
The Quarter: 27-31 Degraves St Melbourne 3000 (No link)
www.movida.com.au
www.innocentbystander.com.au

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Please read through! You will be tested!

Itinerary 2

Recently, Amelia has been wanting to fill in the last 2 days of our itinerary.

I don't have any idea on what to fill those in, so I'm open to any suggestions.
One day in Brisbane and another day in Melbourne.

My friend recommended this place, call Point Nepean.
He mentioned that as Philip Island's Penguin Parade is in the evening, we can go to this place in the day.

I highly recommend we go to Mount Buller for some skiing for our last day in Melbourne. Not sure how much or whether we can do it in a day though.
As for Brisbane, I have checked the tourbook and the only things interesting are the national wildlife parks. So, I can't contribute on this.

For our GOR trip, the sights I am hoping to see are the 12 Apostles and the Grampians National Park.

So feel free to let me know any suggestions you want to go. :)

Single In Australia

Was watching videos in YouTube when I came across this.



We might get to see some of this!