Canberra

Canberra reminds me a lot of Putrajaya with its layout, the non-descript admin and ministry buildings, and the overall air of suits and bureaucracy. although there was also the feel of a college town when you're at certain spots, like Dickson's Place. at least those spots give the city a little bit more a cultural feel. it only took us two short hours to see most of the place. but in the end, administrative cities like these don't have much going on when its core purpose is nothing but administration and bureaucracy.

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Melbourne

ah, Melbourne. to put it bluntly, i fucking love this city. granted that i was there - as a tourist - for under a week, but the city left such a deep impression in me. this is a city with culture, character, a melting pot of everything from everywhere, and so much good food! i sincerely wish i had more time to prowl through the city and their adjacent neighborhoods (Fitzroy and St. Kilda comes to mind). perhaps i'll come back again next time and spend a little more time exploring. for now, all i have are recollections of that very windy day in the city where i swear the wind nearly blew my DSLR off of my hands.

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Water

taken from various locations across South Australia and Victoria. i honestly cannot articulate or even begin to describe all the gorgeous and spectacular scenery i've seen throughout our interstate drive thru. it boggles my mind how the world is so beautiful and so... big. the word "big" doesn't even begin to describe the vastness of the Australian landscape. getting from one major city to another is such a long drive, and here i am complaining about how far it is for me to drive from my home in Puchong to PJ.

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Glenelg

irregardless of whether it is spring or winter, the winds of Glenelg will always attempt not only to chill you down to the bone marrow, but also attempt to knock you off the pier. i've always liked windy places like these.

that was, until i got to Melbourne.

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Hahndorf

what else can i say about Hahndorf? just thinking about this place brings back memories of one of the best meals i've ever had in my whole life. the Hahndorf Inn, specializing in awesome pork dishes served in staggering portions that would make a seasoned foodie gripe in shock and horror! who would've thought that a "platter for two" could feed a party of six? i sure as hell didn't, but i didn't care. i gorged myself into delicious, roasted, fatty goodness. and for one meal, i had completely forgotten that i was on a fucking diet.

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Stirling and Mt. Lofty

there was this quaint bookstore in Stirling that sold used vintage books - the kinds i used to browse through in my high school library with complete disinterest. over the years since high school, i've gone through so many phases of appreciating vintage goods, to despising them, and back to finding a whole lot of charm in these old quirky books with their browning paper, intricate (and sometimes interesting) covers, and simply loving the smell of old books. to step into a vintage bookstore is such a joy for me. finding a bookstore (especially a second-hand bookstore) throughout my trip always excited me. and this first vintage bookstore in Stirling (also the first bookstore where i made a purchase - Dante's Paradiso) opened a whole world of appreciating books not only for their content, but for how damn well they age!

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there was a group of Taiwanese college kids in Mt. Lofty and it appeared that they had either cycled or hiked up to the observation deck. it's always nice to see a group of friends traveling to foreign places and having a great time creating memories and inside roadtrip jokes. i always loved inside roadtrip jokes. they're what bond a group of people together - and these jokes will always stay with them, no matter how the years have chipped away on their respective lives.

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