Daisypath Vacation tickers

Monday, June 30, 2014

Melbourne Day 4 - 30 June 2014

I went on a cultural & heritage tour today. After a hearty breakfast of Belgian Chocolate and Red Velvet Cupcake, I made my way to the Hellenic Museum located at William Street. This museum is housed at the Melbourne Mint and shows historical records and artifacts to chronical the Greek immigration into Australia. 


My next stop was supposed to be the Chinese Museum at Chinatown. However, on my way there, I caught glimpses of Les Miz's publicity posters and my itinerary diverted to Her Majesty's Theatre instead! :p These posters are everywhere and I understand there's a "Do You Hear The People Sing" campaign being run everywhere. It's so great to be at the Her Majesty's Theatre and I can't wait to watch the musical I've been waiting for this Saturday!


After visiting Her Majesty's Theatre and Chinatown, I left for Melbourne Museum as I had arranged to meet Hwee for coffee at 2pm at Lygon Street. I didn't have the chance to take more photos on my iPhone today as it died on me at noon and the powerbank was faulty. 

With the iPhone gone, there goes Google Maps too and I had to rely on my instincts and whatever I could remember of the streets of the city to navigate. I was really glad I managed to make my way to the Melbourne Museum located in Carlton from Chinatown. 

The museum is grandeur in architecture and exudes its own air of magnificence, amidst the beautiful Carlton Gardens. Walking through the tree-lined walkways make me feel like walking in a forest in autumn. Unfortunately, I only had 30 minutes to view the exhibits as I had to reach Lygon Street by 2pm.  The main exhibition was impressive though, as it showcases the history of Melbourne through the use of old artifacts, photos and items of bygone years such as telephones, electric trams, horse carriages, gramophone and more!

I spent the rest of the day catching up with Hwee in Lygon Street, and she even invited me to her beautiful apartment!  At Lygon Street, we went to Brunetti for lunch and desserts again. This is the main branch in Melbourne and I'm awed by its size and huge variety of desserts available. It's definitely a not-to-be-missed cafe in Melbourne if you are someone with a sweet tooth. 

After four full days of itinerary, I feel totally drained and exhausted. Hope to catch a good night's sleep tonight for my day trip to Ballarat & Sovereign Hill tomorrow. 

Sunday, June 29, 2014

Melbourne Day 3 - 29 June 2014

I was looking forward to today's itinerary as we are driving up Mt Dandenongs. Unfortunately, the weather forecast for today wasn't ideal as rain is expected the entire day :(. 

Joyce came to pick us up about 8.30am for Mt Dandenongs. The road trip was expected to take about an hour. On our way to Dandenongs, we passed by Carribean Market and decided to stop over for a look. The market was huge with lots of goods and groceries being sold such as fruits, vegetables, clothes, shoes and homewares.  Love visiting markets as they are so different from the markets in Singapore, and there are so much to see and do. 

On the left of the market, I was pleasantly surprised to see a lake with ducklings swimming and other local birds waddling among the green pasture. 



We reached Dandenongs about 11am and utterly disappointed to see that the rain has gotten heavier. We went straight to Mrs Marples, the famous tearoom for tea and waffles. My heart skipped a bit before I even entered it, as this quaint country-style tearoom looked so inviting even from the outside! I couldn't stop clicking my camera inside as I love all its country decor, from photo frames on the wall, to teapots and cups on the display shelves! There's even a real fireplace inside the tearoom!

We ordered their famous fish and chips, scones, cheese toast & waffles for lunch. So fulfilling! Lunching here makes me feel like I'm in a cosy country cottage in England in the 18th century!



After our yummy and "sinful" lunch, we went shopping at Sassafras and Olinda villages, two very charming and vintage villages on Dandenongs. Seeing all these country vintage shops drove me crazy and kept me occupied for the entire afternoon. 

We first entered a shop known as Tea Leaves. Oh my! They had shelves after shelves of pretty and vintage teapots and I wished I could buy over the entire shop! In addition, they had the widest variety of tea leaves I've ever seen, from black tea, to Japanese sencha to herbal teas and more. My damage at this shop was huge!  Ended up buying a teapot, tea bag holder, tea canister and many packets of loose tea leaves!




Other shops we visited included a candle shop, candy shop, gift shops and other shops selling vintage homewares.  Bought a few jars of candies and soap as gifts. 


We had earlier planned to visit the beautiful gardens, rainforests and Sky High Mount Dandenong. Unfortunately the heavy rain made all these impossible. :( We went to The Pie Shop at Olinda Village for hot beverage before going for more shopping and left for Melbourne City thereafter. 

The weather forecast for the next few days show good weather...praise God! Hope it stays this way for the whole of my vacation!  Will be visiting the museums and Carlton Garden tomorrow. 

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Melbourne Day 2 - 28 June 2014

I had yet another exciting day in Melbourne today though there was a short daylight due to winter. Today seemed extremely cold too, much more than yesterday. Thank God I'm fully prepared & geared up in my full winter wear after my first day in Melbourne yesterday. 

First up, we went to the Rose Street Artist Market which everyone was raving about. What struck me when I reached Rose Street was the awesome street graffiti, which was so tastefully done! They were everywhere, on walls of buildings, dustbins and even lampposts! What talented graffiti artists they had there!

The artist market was fabulous too, with many talented crafters peddling their handmade crafts, which included jewellery, cards, candles, ceramics and more! I even spoke to a talented lady selling handmade fabric crafts and exchanged contacts and tips! So happy to be able to connect with a fellow crafter in Melbourne!


The only damage at the market was a hand poured soy candle in a French Lavender scent which I bought for 20AUD. There were so many different scents and I was spoiled for choices!


After we had our fill of crafts, we went to fill our hungry stomachs at a quaint cafe beside the market known as Young Bloods Diner.  The name may sound gory but the food is far from being bloody! I had Roasted Chicken Salad with Quinoa which tasted out of this world. It's my first time trying this out and it definitely didn't disappoint! 


After leaving Rose Street, we took a tram to Smith Street for some vintage shopping & photography.  Smith Street is a not-to-be-missed place in Melbourne for all vintage-goers. The shops lining both sides of the street may look ordinary, but you'll be in for a great surprise when u peep in! It's vintage clothes galore! Bought this pretty vintage dress in my favourite pink for 45AUD. Heart this!


We chanced upon this gelato cafe in Smith Street known as Messina. Heard they are new in this area & serves one of the best gelato in town. Sorry I've forgotten to take photos of the gelato in my haste! It's indeed freezing to be eating ice cream in winter but a brand new experience!


Wished I could have more time at Smith Street but due to time constraints, we had to leave for the Lost and Found Market at Lygon Street.  This place took my breath away with all the vintage & pre-loved clothings and homewares. There are indeed lots of hidden gems in this cosmopolitan region of Victoria!





What do u do on a cold winter evening after hours of vintage shopping? Dinner of cause! :) We went to this famous Thai Restaurant in Lygon Street called Ying Thai (which Singapore has too!). We had tom yam soup, papaya salad and steamed fish, all hot & spicy but perfect to keep us warm in winter! Yummy!

I will be back for more updates tomorrow as I bring you to Mount Dandenongs! Looking forward!

Friday, June 27, 2014

Melbourne Day 1 - 27 June 2014

I arrived safely in Melbourne at 9.15am this morning. It was a cold winter morning at 10 degrees with strong winds expected...grrrrrrrrr! Such a huge contrast from Singapore at 32 degrees yesterday. 

Hannah picked me up at Southern Cross station's Skybus depot, where we took a short tram ride back to Southbank to drop my luggage. Thereafter, my adventure for the day started!  

The first stop for my itinerary was the Craft & Quilt Fair at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, which was just a short stroll away. I arranged to meet Hwee there, a good friend whom I've not met for more than 8 years! It's such a great & thrilling feeling to be catching up with old friends during my vacation! What's more, I just found out that she's also an avid crafter like me!

Boy! It was truly an eye opener. This is my first time visiting a craft exhibition and I was in awe of all the beautiful quilts and craft ideas on display! It was more fantastic than what I had imagined! I think this would probably be my best takeaway for the trip!








My damage at the fair are these cute kits & patterns!


We left the exhibition at 3.30pm and headed to Swanston Street for the famous Brunetti. Check out the yummy desserts we had!


I took the liberty to introduce both my good friends to each other as they are both true blue Singaporeans staying in Melbourne and wouldn't mind getting to know each other! We had a good time catching up with each other and headed to the Taiwan Cafe near Bourke Street for authentic Taiwanese food. 

Till my next blogging tomorrow!  I will be visiting the Rose Street Artist Market and doing some shopping at Queen Victoria Market and Smith Street. 

Thursday, June 26, 2014

It's Boarding Time

The moment I've been anticipating has arrived. I'm now at Gate A11 waiting for boarding. Woohoo!!!

Though excited, I feel so emo at the same time, cos I'm leaving without my loved ones. Hope this new found 2-week freedom will do me good. 

Bye friends & sweethearts! Will miss you all! Stay tuned to my blog for my travel adventures in Melbourne!











Wednesday, June 25, 2014

One Day More!

Yes, it's just one day more (humming to the tune of "One Day More" in Les Miz, but this is one day more to my well-deserved holiday and not to the French Revolution :P)!  It seemed so far away when I first started planning for this trip, but now it feels so surreal as I'm leaving for Melbourne tomorrow.

Praise God for this holiday and making it possible for me to leave Singapore, without having to worry about my kids as they are in the good hands of my loving family.  Well, this is a lie, because a mother can never leave town on her own without a feeling of guilt!  :(

Not only has God fulfilled my heart's desire to watch Les Miz again, He has planned this trip to coincide with many other arts & crafts events in Melbourne, which I'll not be able to experience here in Singapore.

The one event that I'm really looking forward to is the Craft & Quilt Fair which is taking place at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre from 26 - 29 June.  The best part is, the location is just behind where I'm lodging.  I've always seen awesome quilt fairs in the USA, Europe and Australia online and always looking forward to attending one.  However, there is almost a zero chance for Singapore to have a craft or quilt event of this nature.  Therefore, I will not give this a miss as I've never been to one.  Can't wait to see the awesome craft ideas and gorgeous quilts that will be on display at the show and attend workshops conducted by the experienced quilters!

In addition, I also found out that there will be a world premiere of DreamWorks Animation at the Australian Centre of the Moving Image (ACMI), featuring many never-before-seen concept drawings, interviews, models and original artworks and interactive experiences.  This would be another great exhibition not to be missed!

Not forgetting many other famous contemporary art galleries that I will be visiting such as the National Gallery of Victoria, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art and the Centre for Contemporary Photography.  What an arts-tronomy trip!

To remind myself that this trip is for real, here's a screenshot of my boarding pass!


Now, time to do some packing as I've not found the time to do so over the past week!

Thursday, June 19, 2014

The Les Miz Buzz

I'm still in Singapore but I heard that there's already a crazy buzz surrounding the opening of Les Miz in Melbourne right now!

This world-acclaimed musical opens in Melbourne this Sunday, 22 June!  How exciting!  Check out the photos below on how Her Majesty's Theatre has been decked out currently.  Photos courtesy of my good friend Hannah, who was there over the weekend to take these awesome photos to hype me up before my intended trip next week.







Les Miserables Australia is currently running a sweepstakes for their Facebook fans to win The Ultimate Opening Night package which consists of the following:
  • 2x Tickets to the Australian Premiere of Les Misérables on Thursday July 3, 2014
  • 2x Tickets to the Les Misérables Official Opening Night Party
  • 1x Les Misérables Souvenir Program
  • 2x Tickets to the Victor Hugo Page to Stage exhibition
Hop over to http://bit.ly/LesMisPromo now if you've not gotten your tickets!

Monday, June 16, 2014

9 More Days!

Oh boy!  It's just 9 more days to my long awaited trip!  I've been too busy at work to update my travelling plans since the first blog post in February, but I've been religiously researching on cool places to visit and planning my itinerary.  I should say it's pretty much set by now, still subject to minor changes, weather dependent.

Here's how my 12-day itinerary looks like in a gist!

Day 1 (26 June)
- Departure to Melbourne on SQ237

Day 2 (27 June)
- Arrival in Melbourne
- Visit to Craft & Quilt Fair
- City Sightseeing, Dinner and Shopping

Day 3 (28 June)
- Breakfast and shopping at Queen Victoria Market
- Lunch and Shopping at The Rose St. Artists’ Market
- Shopping at Smith Street & Gertrude Street
- Shopping at The Lost Weekend Vintage Market 
- Dinner at Lygon Street
 
Day 4 (29 June) 
- Day trip to Dandenong Ranges

Day 5 (30 June)
- Visit to Museums (Hellenic Musuem/Chinese Museum/Old Treasury Building/Melbourne Museum)
- Visit to the Carlton Gardens

Day 6 (1 July)
- Day tour to Ballarat (Sovereign Hill and Wildlife Park)

Day 7 (2 July)
Visit to art galleries (Australian Centre for Contemporary Art/National Gallery of Victoria/The Ian Potter Centre/Australian Centre for the Moving Image/Centre for Contemporary Photography)

Day 8 (3 July)
- Visit to St Kilda Beach/Esplanade
- Visit to Linden Centre for Contemporary Arts
- Visit to Royal Botanic Gardens 
- Visit to Shrine of Remembrance    
- Sightseeing at Docklands
- Shopping and dinner at Harbourtown 

Day 9 (4 July)
- Day tour to Puffing Billy, Yarra Valley and Healesville Sanctuary

Day 10 (5 July)
Shopping and lunch at Northern Regards Artisan Market 
Les Miserables Musical 
Shopping and dinner at city laneways

 Day 11 (6 July)
- Shopping and lunch at St Kilda Esplanade Market 
- Shopping at The Arts Centre Sunday Market 
- Departure to Singapore on SQ208 

Day 12 (7 July)
- Arrival in Singapore 

So exciting huh?  The priority of this trip focuses on the arts and crafts and I've tried my best to slot in visits to art galleries, museums and craft markets/fairs to the best of my ability.  And not forgetting the long awaited Les Miserables Musical!  I just can't wait to come face to face with my favourite musical again, after a long wait of 20 years!

In addition, I'll be catching up with my old friend Hwee, whom I've not met for more than 8 years, after she moved to Melbourne.  We are going to spend a few fun days of chatting, shopping and good coffee and food together!