Ok, so I couldn't think of another title for this post, still it pretty much describes everything I did when I went to Melbourne. Why I went to Melbourne was to take the IELTS English test for my permanent residency. What really happened is that because the test was split up with a few days apart between tests, I had all the time to sample Melbourne and the rest of Victoria. Armed with my new FinePix F30 (which I bought on an impulse and for a bargain), here is what happened in between.

Mel started buying Hello Kitty collectables. I started testing out my camera's macro mode. It's one of those matches that work out perfectly in the end.

Not something you'd see very often especially if you're in Malaysia, but we're in Australia and with Chinese New Year coming up, you'd expect these sort of things.

Power lines that you don't see everyday. Now I wonder how much is the rent for that?

Not exactly perving material, but all pretty all the same.

No guessing what this was…or could you?

Formerly known as the Sow and the piglets (I'm not joking) before the influx of tourist, The 12 Apostles stand by the Great Ocean Road for all to see and be awed at. Until you realize that seeing one rock means you've seen them all.

Even collectable figurines need a holiday every now and again.

Still, I couldn't help but take pictures of other wildlife on the beach.

Hey, a Korean Barbecue. You can never get away from too much good food.

I managed to find time to catch fellow blogger and 9ruler Lelia. You have no idea how glad I felt to know that people who blog are actually real people and not just those I see on screen all the time.

You think this will win me any humanitarian awards? Or would that be the marsupial ones?

Can I have one? Pretty please with chocolate coated cherry on top?

No, I don't think Mel is going to win any awards for this one.

But she more than makes up for it after talking to the locals.

If there is a reason never to feed the seagulls, this sight right in front of you would be it.

Shhh…it's a penguin in the nest waiting for the take away to arrive.

This was supposed to be the long awaited parade of penguins on Philip island that I have been dying to see since I got here, but it degraded into a bunch of splotches for two reasons. One is that I still haven't gotten the hang of night shots without flashes. Two is that it's illegal to take photos of the penguins and I was doing this in secret from my waist so the camera wasn't really steady.

Still…out of the 10 shots I took. At least I got this one right. Boy they are small, but for all the cuteness that they are, you can bet your wallet it was worth it.

Man I haven't had a decent Nasi Lemak in a long long time and in Australia, at least this comes close to it so far.

The next time someone answers you with "When pigs fly", just show them this picture.

More of course can be found at my gallery. Yet with all that, you'd expect that I've come to like the city of Melbourne. Then again, I find myself comparing Melbourne to the Mac. Artsy, stylish, user friendly and completely devoid of practicality. Not exactly something I've come to like. Still, I'd come back just for the food and friends. That alone is worth it, even if it is for a little while. So to the penguins of Phillip Island, I bid you farewell but not goodbye. I will return one day, but in the mean time keep waddling one step at a time. That of course is our motto and that which we can never ever forget.