Swimming in Gordons Bay
Yesterday I flew from Brisbane to Sydney to meet up with
Cibbuano and enjoy a day - a Jack Bauer kind of day that steadily ticked on for 24 hours and showed no signs of slowing down.
He dropped by the Radisson on Liverpool, and we exchanged secret gang signs under the whir of an overhead monorail.
After grabbing some Chinese dimsum that was delicious but barely tolerable by my then alchohol weakened stomach (my last night in Brisbane was intense), and following that up with a refreshing honey milk tea, I started to slowly regain my strength. With the colour returing to my face, we hopped into his Falcon and headed down Anzac Parade to Alison Road, final destination: Gordons Bay.
The view of the bay from the cliffs above was beautiful. This was truely a little gem that C & R had found. Unlike Bondi Beach or the other popular places to be seen in the sun, Gordons Bay is a sheltered alcove that focuses more on the beauty of nature than the beauty of Aussie metermaids.
Once I was out in the water, I felt amazing. I also realized how incredibly lucky people are in Australia's coastal cities to be able to access nature this way.
After that highlight of the day, Cibbuano showed me his diner, and while he worked I took a walk up and down Oxford street. There were a ton of cool restaurants and stores, unfortunately most of them were closed but I did manage to get a really nice bottle of wine at a little boutique shop called "The Five Cellars".
With work out of the way, we checked out the local pubs until 2am, picked up his girlfriend, and then set out for Kings Cross. A requisite of hitting "the Cross" is indulging in the vice supplied everywhere, and indulge we did until 3:30am.
When I got back to my suite, I had 2 hours of sleep to look forward to before checking out of the hotel and checking in at the Sydney International Terminal to start my multi-day journey. Actually with the time zone magic involved in crossing the date-line, my trip back consisted of only one day (Sunday) but easily consumed more than 32 hours. Take that Jack!
Cibbuano's take on the day can be found here.Labels: Australia, business trip, Sydney
30 Hour Voyage
The trip here was an ordeal. From door to door, it definitely took more than 30 hours.
I was packing until 2 hours before my limo-taxi would arrive, after a couple winks (not quite 40) I took a shower, rushed downstairs and jumped in. Off to the Toronto Pearson International Airport.
I slept most of the way to Vancouver, aided by my decently sized business-class seat. Before we landed I woke up and took in the impressive beautiful view from my window. I had to get my thoughts together because shortly after landing I would have to get on a conference call with colleagues in Australia and the United States.
That done I collected my bags in US customs and sent them on their way again. Of course I couldn't have known at the time that would be the last time I would see my laptops.
Next stop, Honolulu. Unfortunately on these trips I always get in to Hawaii late at night, and the airport is totally dead. It's a horrible layover because it's like a slap in the face. It's a tease. It's warm weather and beautiful scenary just out of reach, a gentle spray of mist from an ocean you can't see caressing your face.
Getting back on the flight, I travelled to Sydney, and then after a brief layover I continued on to Brisbane.
After a short taxi ride, I arrived at a very nice 5 star Hilton Brisbane. The location is great, it's right off the "Queen Street Mall" - which is a pedestrian only street lined with stores and multi-level malls on either side.
Labels: Australia, Brisbane, business trip
Stolen Laptops
Well my bag finally showed up.
I could tell immediately that something was wrong, it was WAY too light. Of course, both of my laptops were missing, along with my external USB harddrive and DVDs that held backups of my work.
I'm royally fucked.
Thanks Air Canada, your $9000 flight just cost a hell of a lot more.
Labels: Australia, Brisbane, business trip
Surfers Paradise
Seeing that I had not yet received my bag, and thus a means of accomplishing work, I decided to take a train from Brisbane down the Gold Coast to Surfers Paradise.
There were tons of tourists, and many new luxury condo buildings being built and advertised - it was much more commercialized than I had guessed
It was such a mellow day, walking up and down the shore while listening to the waves break, smelling the fresh air, and feeling the brown-sugar like sand beneath my toes.
Labels: Australia, Brisbane, business trip
Lost Bag
Air Canada does it again.
While I travelled Toronto Vancouver Honolulu Sydney Brisbane, my bag somehow forked off to Los Angeles.
Now I don't have my laptop, which I need to do my work.
Great.
So... off to the beach?
Labels: Australia, Brisbane, business trip
Yesterday I flew from Brisbane to Sydney to meet up with Cibbuano and enjoy a day - a Jack Bauer kind of day that steadily ticked on for 24 hours and showed no signs of slowing down.
After grabbing some Chinese dimsum that was delicious but barely tolerable by my then alchohol weakened stomach (my last night in Brisbane was intense), and following that up with a refreshing honey milk tea, I started to slowly regain my strength. With the colour returing to my face, we hopped into his Falcon and headed down Anzac Parade to Alison Road, final destination: Gordons Bay.
The view of the bay from the cliffs above was beautiful. This was truely a little gem that C & R had found. Unlike Bondi Beach or the other popular places to be seen in the sun, Gordons Bay is a sheltered alcove that focuses more on the beauty of nature than the beauty of Aussie metermaids.
After that highlight of the day, Cibbuano showed me his diner, and while he worked I took a walk up and down Oxford street. There were a ton of cool restaurants and stores, unfortunately most of them were closed but I did manage to get a really nice bottle of wine at a little boutique shop called "The Five Cellars".
When I got back to my suite, I had 2 hours of sleep to look forward to before checking out of the hotel and checking in at the Sydney International Terminal to start my multi-day journey. Actually with the time zone magic involved in crossing the date-line, my trip back consisted of only one day (Sunday) but easily consumed more than 32 hours. Take that Jack!
