https://stevedrice.net/ 2026-04-26T21:30:42+00:00 https://stevedrice.net/ https://stevedrice.net/_media/wiki/dokuwiki.svg text/html 2016-02-21T14:29:56+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/australia-pics Australia Pictures Flickr pictures from the Australian portion of our trip... text/html 2015-12-22T10:52:28+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day0 Thursday, November 5th We are leaving tomorrow evening but we really have not yet done any packing. We got the bags down the other day after deciding we would use one big bag, one smaller bag (that can actually be used for carry on but we always check) and our two rucksacks. These are well within our limits with the airlines and we did not want to have too much luggage to take around with us given the amount of travel we will be doing. Even so we will probably have lots of room to spare. text/html 2015-12-22T11:33:08+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day1 Friday, November 6th On Fridays and Mondays I work from home. One the perks of my job and one that I really relish. In fact, I have access to the same resources I need for work at home as if I was in our offices - Computer (laptop), and Internet. Being an IT company our office generally consists of people sitting around tapping away on keyboards anyway with the occasional meeting thrown in to keep things interesting and even those are often on the computer anyway even though many of us might… text/html 2015-12-22T11:37:22+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day2 Saturday, November 7th Well, it was extremely difficult to sleep as I was not able to get my feet into a comfortable position so I ended up continuously contorting. Eventually I did manage to at least get a few hours though in time to wake up for breakfast. I picked the Asian option - Congee (rice porridge with a few mushrooms on top) - Mel picked the “English grill” which seemed a bit heavy to me after two dinners last night/this morning/whenever it was. text/html 2015-12-22T12:18:43+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day3 Sunday, November 8th Well, the phone kept me up a large part of the night. Silly, I know, but we are a long way away from things and it makes me feel a bit unsettled. Throughout the night I kept trying to get it to connect to one of the many local networks that I could see but it refused to use. Ok, the cold also had me shivering a fair amount as well text/html 2015-12-22T12:49:03+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day4 Monday, November 9th It was an early start this morning if we were going to catch the orangutans being fed so we reluctantly got up at 7 to have a bit of a shower then head out. Sian wanted to take us to a small local restaurant for breakfast of handmade noodles. The utilitarian interior was like a step back in time with old pictures on the walls and slow service to match. Sian assured us it was worth the wait and about 10 or 15 minutes later we were rewarded with a small bowl of noodles t… text/html 2016-02-21T14:27:26+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day5 Tuesday, November 10th Today is our last day with Sian in Malaysia and it has been quite a visit so far. Packing is always such a sad thing and it seems we have only just begun to see this place. The laundry from last night is still wet but we packed it anyway. text/html 2016-02-16T18:12:44+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day6 Wednesday, November 11th Yeah, not so much on the sleep side of things on the plane. We did have a bit to eat for breakfast before we arrived in Sydney at just before 11. Believe it or not the Australian border was the one that caused me the most worry. For Malaysia we had no visa issues or anything but for Australia not only did we have to do an electronic visa we also know that they were very concerned about “biosecurity” - bringing plant or animal products into the country. What has been… text/html 2016-02-16T20:16:00+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day7 Thursday, November 12th I started the day with a shower and did a bit of laundry while I was in there - There is laundry hanging in the bathroom as well as the closet. Makes sense, as far I can see, to wash it when you can and take advantage of the fact that it should be able to dry before we leave. text/html 2016-02-16T20:34:24+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day8 Friday, November 13th A few months ago a colleague from Mel’s work, Liz, moved to Sydney so we had arranged to meet up for coffee while we were here. We arranged to meet her near where we had joined the free tour yesterday at City Hall which has a number of places to eat and drink nearby including the QVB and, as we saw yesterday, in the shopping areas below the street. text/html 2023-04-30T18:22:02+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day9 Saturday, November 14th Our first full day of driving though this particular trip was familiar to me having done it last year when I visited. We are even staying at the same place in Canberra as I was quite happy last year (and I also got a really good price for this trip). text/html 2016-02-16T21:50:10+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day10 Sunday, November 15th I do remember the good breakfasts here at this hotel. We were up fairly early to head over the restaurant which is only a short walk for us from our suite through the main lobby. We nabbed a table near the window and helped ourselves to the cooked meal including tater tots! Mel brought a small plate full of fresh fruit: Watermelon, melon and cantaloupe. The hotel is not very busy and, as expected for a weekend, not a lot of business people around. I remember last year,… text/html 2023-04-30T18:22:02+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day11 Monday, November 16th Out into the great unknown. From now until we get to Phillip Island the area is largely unfamiliar to me. I know we have to be on the island on Wednesday evening but how we get there and what we do along the way is up to us. The only thing I am really worried about is accommodation along the way as we will be a bit off the beaten track (which would be the motorway that links Sydney to Melbourne). The idea is that we, roughly, follow the south-east coast around until we… text/html 2023-04-30T18:22:02+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day12 Tuesday, November 17th We slept ok on our tiny double-bed in the dorm. People seemed to go to bed fairly early so no late night. We got up at about 8 am. We did not have breakfast included in the room and were not too impressed with the look of the restaurant here so decided we would take our chances up the road to see what we could find. text/html 2023-04-30T18:22:02+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day13 Wednesday, November 18th It has been a very long but satisfying day for us. It was a very pleasant night last night. We really enjoyed our stay at Lakes Entrance in the nice, though not fancy, hotel and at the wonderful restaurant in the evening. Next time we come back we should probably try to stay there for a bit longer. text/html 2023-04-30T18:22:02+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day14 Thursday, November 19th We slept well last night after a rather late day yesterday. Breakfast was at a small café serving breakfast that was recommended by the hotel owner and located down at the Cowes waterfront, “Madcowes” (<http://www.madcowescafe.com.au/>), which specializes in organic, local produce. Mel had the “Eggs Emperor” (“two poached eggs, beetroot, feta, asparagus & smoked salmon on sourdough toast”, $18.50) and I had the text/html 2016-02-21T14:20:10+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day15 Friday, November 20th Our last full day in Melbourne (and OZ) and I, personally, was determined to do a few things that I had not done when I had last visited and, in particular, I wanted to visit Queen Victoria Market. While here for my convention I had been busy attending that rather than seeing the city though my mother had, every day, headed up the market for breakfast but, for some reason, I had never made it. Mel seemed to be OK with the idea so off we went text/html 2016-02-21T14:48:43+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day16 Saturday, November 21st I always get nervous on travel days and when there are multiple flights involved it is even more so. Today was a complicated travel day, to be sure. First we had to drive to the airport then catch a flight to Singapore then about 5 ½ hours later catch a flight to London Heathrow then, of course, get back to our flat. text/html 2016-02-15T21:27:08+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/day17 Sunday, November 22nd I can’t say I feel all that great. We did not really end up sleeping that much. By the time we got to London we had to circle a few times as we arrived before the airport was open. Then there was a big queue at immigration but there were no problems. Of course, our bags were at the farthest baggage reclaim but we were not really in any great hurry. We treated ourselves to a taxi ride back home though text/html 2016-02-21T14:57:17+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/introduction Malaysia/Australia Journal 2015 Introduction Last year I was sent to Australia for work and at the time I realized it was a ridiculous thing as I was really only there for six days with four those actually working. Travelling that kind of distance from London is really only realistic for at least two weeks so I felt I had short-changed the place. True, I had actually visited previously but that was FIFTEEN years ago and, of course, things change and, indeed, I have changed a lot since then. … text/html 2016-02-21T14:27:54+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/malaysia-pics Malaysia Pictures Flickr pictures from the Malaysia portion of our trip... text/html 2016-02-21T14:53:09+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/postscripts Postscripts It has taken me several months to put this journal together based on my notes and information I kept from the trip. It is now February when I am completing it. There has been a lot of material to put in place and I hope you have enjoyed reading it. text/html 2016-02-21T14:28:30+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://stevedrice.net/travel/asia/malaysia/journal/sidebar * Malaysia/Australia Journal 2015 London * Thursday, November 5th * Friday, November 6th Malaysia * Saturday, November 7th * Sunday, November 8th * Monday, November 9th * Tuesday, November 10th Australia * Wednesday, November 11th * Thursday, November 12th * Friday, November 13th * Saturday, November 14th * Sunday, November 15th * Monday, November 16th * Tuesday, November 17th * Wednesday, November 18th * Thursday, November 19th * Friday, November 20th * …