Monday, July 11, 2011

Kiama - the blow hole. What is that? See it yourself

Another great destination in Great Ocean Road would be Kiama. Its name is derived from an aboriginal word, means 'where the sea makes noise'. What a great name?! Kiama Blow Hole is its main attraction, and it is well-signaged and we can just follow the signboards (without GPS) and found our way.





Good explanation on the formation of blow hole. Basically, large waves enter the mouth of Blowhole and compress the air within the inner cavity. The escaping air forces the trapped water up the blow hole with a loud 'whoopm'.





Beautiful mountain, strong winds, rapid current of sea water...




The blow hole is very big and the rocks are gigantic if compared to the visitors standing on top of it. Where is the blow hole?







Here you are.



Wow... speechless... something that must be seen with our own eyes







Some history about Kiama Blow Hole. It was first visited by a mat salleh about 300 years ago.






Kiama Light House- used to be very important during the old days







Other than the Kiama Blow Hole, another interesting place in Kiama is the Rock Pool. It is actually sea water, but it is a enclosed swimming area where visitors can swim or play around in a safer place. So, if you happen to visit Kiama, dont forget to bring along your swimming gears. If not, you may end up as regret as I was.







Planning to spend more times in Kiama, there are plenty of accomodation in Kiama. By the way, there is a public toilet, just adjacent to the rock pool. It has shower facilities too.












Overall, What an enjoyable day... I will come back again.... :)





For summary of our journey of the day:



we departed from Sydney around 11am ----> Bald Hills ---> SeaCliff Bridge---> Nam Tian Temple + lunch ---> Kiama Tourist Centre, just near to Kiama Blow Hole ---> Kiama Blow Hole ---> Wollongong ---> Reach Sydney around 7pm.










Saturday, June 25, 2011

yummy food in Nan Tien Temple

We had a enjoyable lunch in the DewDrop Tea House in Nan Tien Temple. The first thing that we love about it is its tranquility and simplity. We love thier food too. All food served are vegetarian and there are so delicious.



Curry Laksa - It is surprsingly delicious~~~ The best curry laksa that I had tasted in Australia. Really taste like Malaysian curry which is my favourite.




A closer look of this yummy curry laksa. Though it looked oily, but actually when we put it into my mouth, we didint feel the creasiness. MUST TRY!!!


Mushroom and Tofu Noodle Soup - it is another great choice. We ordered two type of noodles and both of them were delicious!!!





The food is not only tasty, it is also with some small surprises such as the big wooden spoon. Eating my noodle with the wooden chopsticks and the spoon, I felt as if I was back in ancient China. Haha..







Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Wollongong- Nan Tien Temple ( The largest temple in Sourthern Atmosphere)

Nan Tien or The Southern Paradise Temple is the largest temple in the sourthern hemisphere. A buddhist temple in a western country... this really stir up my curiorisity and must go and witness it by my own eyes. After looking at thier official website (http://www.nantien.org.au/) and been there myself, only I got to know that Nan Tien Temple is not only a big temple for praying, but it only serves as an educational centre for meditation retreats, excursion, art classes and including a lodge too.

Driving there is not really tough because there are signage in most of the road.



This was temporary set up in conjuction of Buddha's birthday with the inspiration of the birth of Buddha in Lumbini. Miracally, after birth, the little Buddha stood up and walked 7 steps. As he walked, lotus flowers bloomed.



Wishing ponds - I guess this is one of the favourite of most people as we have lots of wishes and we hope that by throwing coins into the little wishing pond, our wishes would be granted. Well. I think the intention is good because as we pray whole heartedly and sincerely, I believe that we can attract the good thing. Law of attraction.



Beautiful architecture and each one of them has their own story and meaning. In order to know about Nan Tian Temple, we joined the guided tour which cost AUD 4 per person for 90 minutes tour. I think it worths every cent of it because it is really informative!!! If not mistaken, it is only conducted on weekends at 1pm.



Little guardians on the rooftop



Can you see the difference between these two 'lions'? Clue : one of them is female and the other one is a male. The one that holding a ball with its right leg is a 'HE' and 'SHE' is the one holding a baby with its left leg. All these information were given by our tour guide.




Pagoda - only the ground floor is open for public.




Walking up the hills and heading up to a special place




This is the special place - Nan Tien Gratitude Bell. It is to acknowledge the gratitude we have for our parents and ancestors. Filial piety is one of the virtues of marality and one of the most imprtant one too. As young, we were tought to always practice filial piety in respect of our parents. This is not a normal bell, but a bell which Filial Piety and Respect to Parents Sutra are inscripted on the bell. It is believed that we can send good wishes to our parents and family by sounding the bell.




Overlooking the beautiful view beneath the Gratitude Bell




The temple is very spacious and though it was full with tourist on that day, we still felt very calm and peaceful. Everything seem in a slower pace and relaxing. Another features of the temple is .... all these cute little monk in different posture. REally adorable.



Every pillar, flag and drums also has its own story. Our tour guide told us lots of information during our 90mintues tour. We also got to know that there is a lodge inside Nan Tien temple which is the Pilgrim Logde. If I have more time, it would be good to stay overnight and join their activities such as medication retreat.




This is interesting. Before we going out from the temple, we saw a chinese phrase on the door. The direct translation is : if you do something bad/wrong, but if turn back, you would back to shore or else you may face deep fierce sea in fron of you. Actually, it means if you make any mistakes, please stop doing that and you will be safe or will not trap deeper and deeper.









Monday, May 30, 2011

Wollongong - How I wish this is my house!!!

Along the journey, we saw many beautiful beachside house. This is just one of them and it was for sale at the time.






Spacious deck at the back and overlooking the Pacific Ocean


Imagine this is what you see every morning, every afternoon, or 27/7.... a perfect holiday house







Wednesday, May 25, 2011

wollongong- A place that shouldnt be missed

If you want to have a day trip or short trip away from Sydney, where would you go? Central Coast? Wollongong? My friends always tell me that Wollongong and the Grand Pacific Drive are very gorgeous and I should go there one day.

Wollongong is a seaside city in the Allawarra region of New South Wales and it is the 3rd largest city in NSW. The quickest way to go to Wollongong from Sdyney is via M1 and Princess Highway South. If you have a little longer time, I would highly recommend to go for the Grand Pacific Drive. It is a very scenic way to see more of Wollongong, the escarpment and the cliffs. Dont have GPS and worry may get lost? No worries. Grand Pacific Drive is well signaged.



Look for 'Wollongong' or the brown signage of 'Grand Pacific Drive' and it would lead you to all the interest spots of the journey, namely the Bald Hill, Sea Cliff Bridge and others. If you have more time, you can also drop by the National Park along the way.




A detailed signage explaining the geography and things to see or do along the Grand Pacific Highway. The tourism board really does a great job.





All the seaside cities... so beautiful..



It took us around 90 minutes to reach the first stop in our journey- The Bald Hill. Standing there, really relaxing and the view is really fantastic. The only downside is the wind is extremely strong, as if it may blow us away. The 'snaky' looking bridge down there is the famous Sea Cliff Bridge.


But the strong wind is what needed for tandem hanggliding. If you like to take changllenges and with extra cash in your pocket, you should try this out with about AUD 245 (weekend & public holidays) or AUD 220 (weekdays).




A view from Bald Hill. It is just so magnificient and put me off all my narrow perceptions because the world out there is so BIG. Acceptance....



From Bald Hill, we drove down to Sea Cliff Bridge. There are parkings before and after the bridge. Pedestrians are alllowed to walk on the bridge using the pedestrian path.



Love locks in Sea Cliff Bridge



So romantic



To be continued........






Thursday, March 24, 2011

Buffet in Rosehill - All you can eat for AUD 12.90

Buffet... should I love it or... hate it? Love it because there are plenty of great food and the price is reasonable. Hate it because I can only eat that much and it is not easy to maintain good body shape while fighting for the seduction of great food.

Anyway, I really like this buffet. Top Taste Buffet of Rosehill Bowling Club

All you can eat for less than AUD 15 and even cheaper if you are a member. Well, a bowl of Fried Noodle costs about AUD 10 in Parramatta, so, I think it is really worthy to eat here as we can eat all kind of food until we are very very full.



Really mouth-watering !!! Steak, chips, deep fried scallop, spring rolls



vegan? No worries. There are plenty of salad such as Mixed bean salad, Angel hair salad, Greek Salad, Coleslaw Salad.... Yum yum


Only like Asian food? Here you are. Salt and pepper Squid, Mussels with sweet chili source, honey chicken, omelette...


Here comes the desserts- cakes, puddings, fruits.....


Free flow of coffee and tea. If you want to have cold drinks or beers, then you can to pay for it.


What is this?? This is a self-service 'Mc-Donald-like' ice-cream machine. take as much as you can eat!!! wow....


Delicious...


Tasty....


so enjoyable...


Tired of chewing? Then, you can look out for the green or see the elderly playing balls outside. What a relaxing day?!



Top Taste Buffet, Rosehill Bowling Club
Location : Cnr James Ruse Drive & Hassell Street, Parramatta, NSW
Cuisines : Modern Australian & Chinese

Open for lunch and dinner 6 days a week ( closed on Monday)
Trading hours : Lunch - 11.30am to 2.15pm
Dinner- 5.30 pm to 9 pm ( Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday)
5.30 pm to 9.30 pm ( Friday and Saturday)