It's Christmas
Sunday December 27, 2015
The last month of work has been pretty manic, with builds of all our games going out on various platforms and systems all at once. In our last week, we had our annual game jam, which was pretty manic, but the end result was a quality set of very impressive games from all teams.
Social wise, there's been a lot happening too. There was Campbell and Linda's wedding, we got some kittens delivered to the office thanks to Uber, we went out to Cape Palliser for a miniroad trip, there was the 80's Party IV and Jordan's 30th, and we had a week-long set of Christmas events to round out the end of the year.
Last Saturday, six of us began our roadtrip up to Auckland via Owhango, where we stayed the night. On Sunday, we headed to Tauranga for some white water rafting down the Wairoa River, only open 26 days a year due to it being controlled by a hydroelectric dam. However, due to some problems with the booking system, we had to be rebooked for 1.30pm instead of 11.30am, so we went up to Mount Maunganui for a squizz at the beach. I've never actually been there before, but the sand and water were fantastic and inviting. Eventually we returned to our white water rafting meeting point and geared up for an exhilarating ride down two Grade V waterfalls. It was an amazing experience and one to be remembered for a long time!
I didn't really make any plans with people before I arrived in Auckland, but as was expected, my calendar started filling up very quickly. On Monday, I was pretty tired from the roadtrip, so spent most of the time at home. On Tuesday, I met Mat and Will in town for lunch at Ortolanas and we got some take away Milse too. I went to the cat cafe on Queens St with Reagan and Erica, then met Mana out in East Tamaki for Korean BBQ. On Wednesday, I met up with all the Wellington crew for dinner at Kushi, dessert at Giapo and drinks at the Belgian Beer Cafe, before going for a quick drive down Franklin Road - and by quick, I mean a very slow paced crawl from all the traffic. On Thursday, I was at my sister's house catching with my nephews and then off to Tatsumi with my parents for an amazing eight course degustation.
Friday was Christmas, and that was double dinner at my sister's and then a family friend's house nearby. On Boxing Day, I was at Long Bay Beach with my schoolmates, and a good old traditional Kiwi barbeque at Mat's, and today I've been hanging with the guys from KCC. There's been mafia, Love Letter and Dota, and it's been pretty full on!
Posted by Jeremy at 10:11am on Sunday December 27, 2015 :: 0 comments :: 
Jonah Lomu
Wednesday November 18, 2015
And yet more tragic news...one of New Zealand's greatest rugby icons, Jonah Lomu, passed away today from cardiac arrest. He had been battling kidney problems for much of the past decade, but as of late, seemed on top of it. As the tributes flowed from across the world - such was his impact on global rugby - they recounted stories about his character and his athleticism. He was more than a hero, and he will go down in the books as a rugby legend.
As for myself, I have my own Jonah Lomu story to share. Back in the days when we were Sidhe and still working on console games, Jonah Lomu had visited the office to have a look at progress on Rugby Challenge. Though it was the All Blacks Rugby Challenge in New Zealand and the Wallabies Rugby Challenge in Australia, the rest of the world knew it as Jonah Lomu Rugby Challenge. He came in to give the team some pointers and to do an interview. Luke, the associate producer on the project, convinced me to get a photo of Jonah with my glasses on. Nervously, I approached this 6' 6" giant, introduced myself, shook his hand, bumbled out some words, and then asked if I could take a quick picture of him with my glasses on.
I bumbled out more words of thanks and shook his hand again. I was giddy and internally screaming like a little schoolgirl. He was awesome. I'll never forget that. Rest in peace.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:10am on Wednesday November 18, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Nous Sommes Avec Vous
Tuesday November 17, 2015
What tragic news to hear on Saturday afternoon after badminton. Several coordinated terrorist attacks hit Paris, killing 129 people and wounding more than 400. In the midst of France's darkest hour, it is comforting to see the outpouring of sympathy and solidarity: the hashtag #PortesOuvertes from Parisians to offer shelter to tourists or displaced people who didn't have accommodation for the night; the stories of people who took bullets to save others at the cost of their own lives; the red, white and blue lights on landmarks around the world.
People express condolences in different ways. Some pray. Some light candles and lay flowers. Some sing songs. Some will change their profile picture on Facebook to one with a Tricolore overlay. And that's okay. As long as you can truthfully say with purpose and intent that you stand with the French people, then people are entitled to reflect and remember in a way that has integrity for them. At the same time, we should also think about other devastating attacks that have amounted to a huge loss in human life and continue to remember those in constant struggle, in places like Syria, Iran and Iraq. May we be forgiven for not always knowing about these events, because any loss of human life like this is tragic.
I was out last night at Owhiro Bay for the Leonids meteor shower. I saw an opportunity as the clouds cleared late yesterday afternoon, so I made a call to commit and recruited my trusty crew. The moon was 19% illuminated and definitely affecting the visibility of the night sky, but the brightest Leonids shone through. None of them were as spectacular as the Orionid we saw a month ago, but all in all, I would have seen around seven meteors. As the weather warms up, hopefully we can make these trips more frequent.
We had our PikPok Developers Conference for the year and I spoke on two topics: development for the new Apple TV, and ray tracing, a subject I hadn't touched since 2007 back at the University of Auckland's COMPSCI372 course. I also ran the second PikPok Programming Puzzle-o-rama with much success, and on the same day, rushed down to the council to watch the All Blacks victory parade. I've been to karaoke twice in the past few weeks, had yum cha, had all you can eat chicken wings from Tequila Joe's and watched the fireworks display at the waterfront.
The social calendar is filling up fast for the rest of the year!
Posted by Jeremy at 9:35am on Tuesday November 17, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Big Weekends
Sunday November 1, 2015
For Labour Weekend last week, my schoolmates and I made our way to Queenstown to do the Routeburn Track, one of New Zealand's nine great walks. Leaving Wellington on the Friday, at an absurdly early hour and in grey, dreary skies, I took the 90 minute flight to the South Island where I was greeted with a somewhat chilly breeze but glorious blue skies and snow capped peaks around the city. I met Tom at the backpackers and we did our grocery shopping for the hike, as well as grabbing some Fergburger, naturally. We met Mat in the afternoon and got some pizza from The Cow on Cow Lane, and retired for the night.
Will, Richard and Tanya arrived in the morning and after sorting out our belongings, we headed into town to get some hut passes from DOC. However, they advised us that there were increased avalanche warnings for the Routeburn, and for a moment we were almost uncertain about whether we should continue. Some reassurance from the transport company gave us the confidence to stick to the Routeburn instead of doing the Greenstone/Caples and we were off to Glenorchy to begin the hike.
The first day takes you from the end of Routeburn Road in Glenorchy to the Routeburn Flats Hut over 90 minutes and 6.5km. The walk is through forest over several rivers and streamlets, finishing at a wide grassy expanse in the middle of a valley. Another 90 minutes and 2.3km up a steep incline leads you to the Routeburn Falls Hut, our accommodation for the first night. We're lucky that the flushing toilets are operational as we are technically outside the Great Walk season, and we take a break, cook up a stir-fry for dinner, and relax for the night by playing some games of Love Letter. It's a nervous time for us as we have no way of finding out the result of the All Blacks vs South Africa semi-final the next day...
Thankfully, the roaming DOC Ranger comes to our rescue and radios for the score. Success! 20 - 18 to the All Blacks. Satisfied, we continue our second day of the Routeburn. The track today leads us from the Routeburn Falls Hut to Lake Harris and the Harris Saddle, the highest point of the track, then down to the Lake Mackenzie Hut for a total of 5 hours walking. The walk to Harris Saddle is steep and rocky, with patches of snow and ice blocking some parts of the path. The scenery is breathtaking - the vastness of the Routeburn Valley, the serenity of Lake Harris as it sits at the foot of snow-capped mountains, the colours and vibrancy of the terrain and flora around us. We stop for lunch at the Harris Saddle and decide to climb Conical Hill, but quickly abandon the idea about 200m up the mountainside as it is too icy to continue. We continue on through the Hollyford Valley to Lake Mackenzie and stop for the night at the huts there. Dinner that night is pasta with bacon and kransky sausages. It is a cold night because the sky is crystal clear, but unfortunately the moon is near full so it is too bright to do some proper stargazing. Nevertheless, the Dutch and French visitors are impressed with my astronomy ramblings as I show them Scorpio, Sagittarius, Saturn and the Southern Cross in full glory.
Our final day takes us from the Lake Mackenzie Huts to the Howden Hut, Key Summit and the Divide - the end of the Routeburn Track sits on the road from Te Anau to Milford Sound. The walk to Howden Hut takes us three hours over 8.6km through mostly bush, but through some avalanche risk areas. On the way, we pass by the Earland Falls (174m) and see a kea and a kereru! From Howden Hut, it is a short but very steep climb to the base of Key Summit, a side track which offers views of the Darran Mountains and Hollyford Valley, and we stop for lunch at a sheltered location away from the strong winds. It is only a short hour and 3.4km to the Divide, and just like that, we've completed the Routeburn Track.
I cannot describe just how spectacular the scenery is. Every photo is postcard quality. We were so fortunate with the weather too - forecasts had said there were going to be heavy showers over the track for the second and third day, increasing the chance of avalanches, but there were none - just calm breezes and blue skies - at most, cloudy patches. My legs were quite iffy at times, but we could have easily taken it slower. It is a well worthwhile hike and it is not hard to see why it's been labelled a Great Walk.
I was back at work on the Wednesday, still a little broken after the big walk, but the week was short and soon it was Friday. There were some sudden surprises to battle late in the afternoon, but thankfully that resolved itself quickly and we were able to relax with a rocking 2.5 hour karaoke session at K Zone! Saturday was pretty busy too, with badminton in the morning and Chloe and Fraser's barbeque in the afternoon. I was feeling sorry for myself after gym (do not go to the gym after drinking) and didn't feel like cooking, so I met Navi, her friend Michael, Jordan and Tim at Tequila Joe's for food, and happened to bump into Phil and Alanna there too. It was a good night, and we decided to leave early (11pm) because I would be getting up early for the big game the next day.
And what a game it was. At 4.30am I was somewhat dazed and incapable of functioning properly, but I managed to get into the car and drive to D4 on Featherston Street with Will and Alanna. The bar was packed full of supporters in black, and what a rousing atmosphere. The chills down the spine as the New Zealand Anthem was played, that solidarity as we watched the All Blacks doing the haka - so full of raw emotion for some of these guys who are playing for the last time in the black jersey. There was jubilation and fist pumping and cheering as we scored first blood, then there was Dan Carter's bulls-eye penalty kicking and Ma'a Nonu's amazing try, but the feeling of joy subsided as the Australians clawed back while Ben Smith was sinbinned. The gap is down to 4 points and the score is 21 - 17 to the All Blacks, a very unsafe margin.
But like a godsend, Dan Carter punts the most beautiful drop goal in the 70th minute, sailing right through the center of the posts and giving us a 7 point lead. Soon after, a penalty kick off Carter's magic boot puts us at a safe 10 point lead with 7 minutes to go. Not content with this, the All Blacks hit the nail in the coffin of the Australians with a converted try from Beauden Barret in the final stages of the match, giving New Zealand a 34 - 17 victory over our adversaries, and with it, the Rugby World Cup for 2015. We are the first nation to have the cup for three times and the first to successfully defend it. What a game. D4 erupts into deafening roar of celebration and we're jumping in the air and singing Queen's We Are The Champions. There is rapturous applause during the medal ceremony for the All Blacks who retire on the highest possible accolade for their sport, for the captain, Richie McCawesome, and for the man of the match, Dan Carter. They've done the country proud.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:06am on Sunday November 1, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
More Overtime
Monday October 19, 2015
We thought we'd heard the last of it, but we were required to do submit another build within 24 hours - totally not stressful at all - on Thursday. We got bounced twice before the damn thing went through processing late on Saturday, and then today we received the good news that we were all good to go.
My weekend was pretty quiet. I got to have the WOAP burger from Grill Meats Beer a second time on Friday, then had regular badminton on Saturday, and went into work for a couple of hours with Mana. We went out to Lyall Bay's shopping area to grab some gloves for the gym and hiking shoes for the Routeburn that I'm doing this Labour weekend, and we met up again for a play called Bubblelands at the BATS theatre. A friend of mine, Ben, has been touring around the North Island, starring in this play as a crayfish who meets a blue cod in the aquarium of a Chinese restaurant. Good stuff! We had dinner at Cha and dessert at Strawberry Fare.
I was up early and off to watch the second half of the NZ vs France rugby quarterfinals with Will and Alanna at their place. I was too nervous to front up for the first half, but once I saw the score at half time, I was quite relieved and happy to enjoy the remainder of the match. The weather for Sunday was clear, but very windy; I tried to get a crew out to watch the Orionids meteor shower at Owhiro Bay but alas no one was keen. Today, however, I managed to get Mana, Loic and Dana along for an hour. Despite the wind and brightness of the moon, our patience was rewarded with a brilliant streak of light heading southwards across the sky - magnificent!
Posted by Jeremy at 10:43am on Monday October 19, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Overtime
Monday October 12, 2015
It's been a while since I've done such heavy overtime. It's made me remember how disruptive it is to life in general; gym schedule went out the window, food that I had planned to cook started to rot, I was tired and became less tolerant of people as the week progressed. By the time Friday hit, I was completely over it and couldn't stay past 8.30pm. All technical possibilities for solving our problems had been exhausted. I ended up escaping to Pan de Muerto with the Frenchies. It was Vincent's last day, and I had unfortunately missed yet another departure speech because I'd been working.
The weekend was full of sunshine, but all I wanted to do was sleep and relax. I did my regular badminton and gym exercise, but I also caught the final show of the NZIF - a battle of improv between New Zealand and the international artists that were visiting from the UK, Taiwan, Japan, France, Germany and Australia. Such amazing talent and full of laughs and feels, it was exactly what I needed after a long week of work.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:01am on Monday October 12, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Mooncakes
Sunday October 4, 2015
It's October already. Time has sure flown by this year. There's been plenty to keep me busy and that's probably why things have gone by so quickly. Last weekend was pretty big; we went out for dinner at Pan de Muerto and had some delicious lamb shanks. Uncontent with the amount of food, we went to Enigma for some cake and decided it would be a great night for karaoke. So it happened! Tim, Will, Mana, Hannah, Nicola, Victoria and myself bundled into a little room at K Zone on Wakefield Street and sang to our hearts' content, finishing triumphantly with Let it Go!
On Saturday, I was at the Sprig and Fern for a mini-mooncake celebration and Wei's two year anniversary in Wellington. And of course the next day, I did my regular mooncake festivities and cooked for a big group of people, with the usual menu of fried tofu, roast pork and roast duck. Probably cut it a bit close in terms of the amount of food, but people seemed happy with what they got, so I'll mark it off as a success. It was good to celebrate with friends when I couldn't celebrate with family.
Work has been busy, and we are rapidly approaching a "drop dead submission date" of October 9th. There's still a bit of work to do, but I think we can make it. It'll be tight though, naturally, as all things usually are. Hopefully when this is done, I can let people know what ~secret things~ I've been working on.
Posted by Jeremy at 6:49am on Sunday October 4, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
September Birthdays
Wednesday September 23, 2015
The NZHerald posted an infographic detailing the distribution of birthdays in New Zealand. It turns out that September is the most popular month for birthdays, and sure enough, I've been up to Auckland twice in the last week to celebrate two birthdays. Both were very special occasions and good times were had by all. For my step mum's birthday, we went to Chiko's out in Lincoln Road for dinner; for Mat's birthday, we were at Snapdragon on the water front. It was good to catch up with family and friends alike over the two weekends.
Work is getting busy now that we have some hard deadlines. There's something exciting thing on the horizon that I can't publicly reveal at the moment, but when the veil of secrecy has been lifted, I'll write more about my experiences and where I've been.
Though Wellington on a Plate has finished, the foodening continues. We started the month off with a big steamboat at Jordan, Mike and Mana's, then headed to Dianne's for a flat cooling party. Six people bundled into my little car - we stuffed Philip in the boot and he wouldn't shut up for the whole journey. This weekend is Mooncake Festival, so I will be organising yum cha on Saturday and then cooking up a storm on Sunday. I've got my favourite pandan mooncakes ready to go! In addition to it being a supermoon this weekend, there will also be a total lunar eclipse visible from Europe and Africa - a very auspicious event for the mid-autumn festival!
Posted by Jeremy at 11:55am on Wednesday September 23, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
It's Over :(
Sunday August 30, 2015
Wellington on a Plate 2015 has come to a close. I've been so busy eating that I've fallen behind on my food blogging, but I will be trying to catch up as fast as I can over the next few days. How much did I spend? How many burgers did I eat? What was the best and worst? You'll find out soon! It's back to cooking, gymming, and all those other routine things I do during the week. It was good having my parents down last week, and I also caught up with Reuben, Shereen, Sam, Andrew and Julia. We visited all the regular Wellington sights - Makara, the wind turbine, Mt Victoria, Oriental Parade, the Weta Cave and so on. We had a quick squizz around the Lux Festival too. Oh, and yeah, we ate heaps of food.
As a result of all these things happening, I missed a chance to go back to the US for my big secret project. Instead, I'm locked away in a room with special access, working away by myself lonesome self until Rob returns next week. Things are progressing... but that's about all I can say! Yep.
I was out with Joe on Thursday night to see Suddenly! A Musical, an improv show where a musical is created before your very eyes! That night we saw the epic tale of a recently engaged couple who return to Wellington from the OE with their cat Trixie, only to have her lost in Mumbai (it rhymes with Hataitai) due to the carelessness of the baggage handlers! I can't imagine how difficult it must be to try and come up with rhyming couplets on the spot like that, but these guys were amazing and it was such a good show. So impressed, congratulations to Playshop crew and Jen the director!
Posted by Jeremy at 11:40am on Sunday August 30, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Wellington on a Plate
Sunday August 16, 2015
WOAP 2015 is well and truly underway, with several establishments serving their special menus for this 17 day festival celebrating the region's finest produce - Wellington craft beers and seafood, Wairarapa meats and wines, Kapiti produce and dairy. Some have embraced the festival with open arms, others have dropped the ball and had troubles coping with the sudden influx of keen foodies. Who are the winners? Who are the losers? Check out my food blog for regular updates during Wellington on a Plate 2015!
It's been a busy few weeks. Rob and I arrived in San Francisco safely and had the rest of Monday to settle in. We went into work on Tuesday until Friday and then spent the weekend in San Francisco, seeing all the familiar sights like Chinatown, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Castro, Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39. I had a mango key lime cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory in Union Square, and it was everything I had dreamed of. I had some good seafood from Pier 39, did some shopping, caught up with Tobias and thoroughly enjoyed being back in this vibrant, energetic city, especially with some magnificent summery 25C weather.
We were back in New Zealand two Fridays ago, just in time for Dewi's last day at PikPok. I took it easy on the Saturday, but on Sunday I was at the zoo with Linda, Campbell and Will for the red panda up-close encounter. Honestly, these critters are the cutest things ever. We got to go into the enclosure and feed them fruit right out of our hand. They're fuzzy and playful, and super keen to get the noms. We were fortunate enough to meet one of the newer red pandas, a girl who had just started doing the encounters. Her face had distinctive white markings and she was a bit uncertain at the start, but as soon as she sensed the fruit, she was all over our laps. At the end, as we left, she scampered up into the trees to watch us, and I held out my hand to see if she would react... she lent in to see if I still had fruit, and I managed to capture this adorable photo.
The game I've been working on for the past year or so has finally been released on iOS and Android - it's published by AdultSwim and it's called Monsters Ate My Metropolis. Using the monsters from Monsters Ate My Condo, you battle it out against unsuspecting cities with the most outrageous abilities, like Trojan Unicorn Attacks, cake bombs and chunder attacks! The game looks amazing and is full of colour and action, so well done to the team for putting it out and making it look as good as it does.
Posted by Jeremy at 8:57am on Sunday August 16, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Wellington 150
Sunday July 26, 2015
It's been 150 years since Wellington became the capital of New Zealand, and in celebration, there have been several events around town celebrating government and Parliament. Parliament House was lit up with several projected images, much like how the War Memorial was done for Anzac Day, and under the clear skies of Wellington, we listened to the Kiwi tunes of Dave Dobbyn - so poignant was the moment he sang Welcome Home. I absolutely love the imagery that this particular lyric holds:
There's a woman with her hands trembling - "Haere Mai"
And she sings with a mountain's memory - "Haere Mai"
There's a cloud the full length of these isles
Just playing chase with the sun
And it's black and it's white and it's wild
All the colours are one
Standing with the half moon and Southern Cross clearly visible in the sky, with hundreds of other Wellingtonians and New Zealanders on the lawn of Parliament - where we gave women the right to vote, where we stood strong against nuclear policies and where we recognised equality for same-sex marriages - it was hard not to tear up and be proud of the country. Though there are still issues that divide the country, it was good to celebrate what we have achieved and what we hope to achieve in the next 150 years.
I was with Loic, Tim, Mana and Mike, and after Dave had finished his set on stage, we sang Happy Birthday and then left the ground of Parliament, slightly disappointed at the lack of cake. We ended up at KFC because of Hot n Spicy, then Espressoholic for dessert, and then JJ Murphy's to meet up with Kiel, who had been drawing there. We saw Victoria there too, whose boyfriend was part of the live entertainment for the night.
Today has been pretty manic for me, I need to sort out my life due to a very short notice trip to the US! This project I'm on has been codenamed "Enchanted Fixer", from Nic's cryptonym generator. Can't say too much about what I'm working on, but it's an opportunity I can't pass up. It does mean I will miss the ski trip next week though, which is a bit sad, but with a stunning weather forecast of 25C to 35C and sunshine every day, I'm not too disappointed.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:11am on Sunday July 26, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
The End of an Era
Wednesday July 15, 2015
The weekend turned out to be busier than usual; we had a big party at Mexico to celebrate the "end" of our project - though we haven't officially finished, we decided it was a good way to get the team together for some sangria, margaritas and fried chicken. We ended up at Goldings for a bit, then to Pineapples for the rest of the night.
On Saturday, there was badminton in the morning, and then I met Jono and Karlyn and others at Strawberry Fare. I tried their black doris plum pie - the only item on the menu I hadn't tried before. It was a warm, hearty pie on a cold winter's day, without being too sickly sweet or overly rich. Yum! We had walked by the waterfront to the TSB Arena and had a squizz at the bookfair, but I was tired so I went home and napped for a bit. That evening, I was at Joe's house playing board games and party games like Quiplash over Steam. I had music on Sunday at Central, then went for yum cha at Big Thumb, then back home for a quick nap before heading to Beth's new place out in Newtown.
The big news in the gaming industry at the moment is the tragic passing of Nintendo's President, Satoru Iwata. One of his best quotes is "On my business card, I am a corporate president. In my mind, I am a game developer. But in my heart, I am a gamer". You can see in his work the passion he had for creating entertainment. He was a huge contributor to the industry and he will be sorely missed.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:26am on Wednesday July 15, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Winter
Wednesday July 8, 2015
Winter is definitely here, with a sharp cold front hitting the country and plummeting the temperatures to 3.1C. Thanks to the wind chill, it currently feels like -4C. It was hailing a few moments ago, but now it seems to have quietened down, however the forecast remains grim for tomorrow and Friday. There is a small chance we could get some snow flurries in the CBD like in 2011, so hopefully that eventuates.
It's been ludicrously busy recently, with my project expected to submit a gold master candidate this Friday. I've felt like freaking out a couple of times because I've simply been overwhelmed by several things happening at once. Sometimes it's difficult to juggle the needs of people as well as the programming tasks assigned to me, but I think that my ability to stay calm and rational (or at least appear calm and rational) has improved over the years. I think the project is in an okay position, and we'll make our deadline, but it wasn't easy getting here.
Last month, there were a few birthday celebrations. We went to Gasworks in Miramar for Phil's birthday, where Mana and I had all you can eat ribs. Dale had his birthday at Matterhorn on Cuba St (which I've written a food blog entry about) and James had his birthday at his new place on Tory St. Lizzie had her birthday with some drinks at Goldings and karaoke at KZone, naturally. Rob had an "old man brunch" out in Elements at Lyall Bay last weekend, and it was so glorious and sunny that I was in shorts, in the middle of winter. I've been sightseeing with the guys too. We've been to the Brooklyn wind turbine, the Miramar gun emplacements at night, and the Wainuiomata Coast during the day. I tried the Flaming Dragon pizza from Hell Pizza, watched four workmates do a 1kg burrito challenge, had a massive pork hock from Grill Meats Beer and got some Moustache cookies delivered from Auckland. I also caught the Venus Jupiter conjunction, though not at their closest. It's amazing seeing the planets come together like that, two of the most prominent night sky features in clear view.
Last weekend was busy too. We went to Mishmosh to try out their food and see if it would be a worthy destination for Wellington on a Plate (not bad, would recommend!), then went to Fringe bar and sang Hakuna Matata at the public karaoke. On Saturday I went to two flatwarmings and watched the Hurricanes/Highlanders game. This weekend is going to be busy too, with the end of project celebration, a lunch at Strawberry Fare, and music at Central.
Phew.
Posted by Jeremy at 11:24am on Wednesday July 8, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
The Moment When You Get Internet at a New Place
Sunday May 31, 2015
Blogging has been quiet since my move because I've been lacking a proper Internet connection. Unlike several of my friends who have been waiting for fibre to be installed in their building, this failure of connectivity was completely my own fault. I bought two modems off TradeMe, unfortunately neither of them supported PPPoE/VC-MUX which was required by my ISP for their service. ANYWAY, now that I have a working modem, I can sell the other two off on TradeMe; it's still cheaper than buying a new modem. And most importantly, I'm back on the net.
The past two weeks have been pretty busy. The move went as well as it could have. We had arranged for the Salvation Army to swing by and pick up our beds, cabinets, shelves and what not. They only did weekday visits, so I had to move my bed down from the first floor on Thursday night, which meant I was on an airbed kindly loaned from Vincent for two nights. However, on Friday morning, they called us to say that the torrential rain and subsequent flooding of Wellington's northern suburbs meant they were unable to make it. Instead, we had to hire a van and drive all of that to the store in Newtown. Thankfully, the weather had cleared by Saturday, so moving was not a problem. Thanks to Phil, Will and Vincent for their help!
Since moving into my new place, I've had a solid worship session on the piano at Central Baptist, karaoke, dinner at Dragons for Wei's birthday, steamboat at Campbell and Linda's and also managed to catch the Eurovision song contest. We said goodbye to Charles and Pete on Friday with some drinks at Fork and Brewer with the programmers, then karaoke at New Kor with all the artists - so good to see so many people out having a great time. Yesterday was weekly badminton in the morning, gym in the afternoon, and drinks for Charlie and Donnie's birthdays at Goldings, Hashi's and Southern Cross. I really enjoy how the long weekend just seems to populate itself with events and social gatherings.
Posted by Jeremy at 2:43am on Sunday May 31, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
May
Monday May 11, 2015
May has been pretty damn busy for me, and it's only going to get busier. There were heaps of social things to keep me occupied, but more than anything, the big house move is on Saturday and that's been the cause of most of my stress.
We started off the month with Laser Strike at the complex on Tory St for Dianne's birthday, after some sushi train and a sneaky cocktail from CGR Merchant and Co. On Saturday, I saw the final night of Definitely Not The Babysitter's Club, an improv show presented by the cast of Definitely Not Witches. Today's topic was a rival babysitter's club, so cue awesomeness and chaos as each of the six actors on stage juggled three or four characters each. It was amazing. We chilled at BATS for a bit and then helped Joe pack down the stage before retiring to his house for a few drinks.
Then, on Sunday, we said our farewells to Josh and Christine at the Southern Cross, while following the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight on a live blog. Finally, early on Monday morning, Vincent flew in from Nepal via Australia, safe and sound after the devastating 7.8 earthquake that had hit the region. I caught up with Ben at Fork and Brewer on Tuesday. He'd been in town over the weekend, filming for the 48 Hour film festival. It was good to chit chat and see that him and Jill had settled in Melbourne alright, and said that I would someday be back for more food. And of course, one of those chicken parmas he keeps going on about.
We had some torrential rain hit the city on Thursday. The full force of northerly winds blew all the rain straight into my face, soaking the entire front portion of my jeans. I found out that several others had arrived quite soggy and miserable. I managed to secure a fan heater for myself to start drying all my wet clothes, but unfortunately it overloaded the circuit and shut down a few computers on my side of the office.
We celebrated Vincent's birthday at the Boat Cafe on Oriental Parade. One of his friends is part of the waiting staff there, and was telling me about their entry for the burger competition for Wellington on a Plate 2015 - a mussel and kumara burger - that was currently available for patrons to try. So, unable to resist the chance to start the WOAP journey early, I agreed to give it a go and provide feedback. The burger had good texture, perhaps a bit too much bun on the bottom, but a lovely crunch from the pickles, green salad and lightly toasted bread. The patty was interesting and I do like that they chose some adventurous ingredients, but I couldn't taste the kumara at all, and wouldn't have been able to tell there was any if I hadn't been told. Several others on the table agreed, and I suggested that maybe they could enhance the flavour with more kumara, maybe making it a bit more chunky, or adding something with a bit of kick like a chilli salsa. We shall see what the Boat Cafe offers in August!
On Saturday after badminton (and a nap), I joined Sam and Sarah (and 2000 others) at the War Memorial to see if we could spot Prince Harry doing his rounds around Wellington. Sure enough, at 4.30pm, he arrived at Pukeahu and went inside the memorial for a bit, before walking around greeting the crowd and shaking hands. A very personable, down to earth guy, I must admit! I got some good, close pictures of him and tried to get him to fistbump me, but alas it just wasn't my day. Sam and Sarah were much more successful and managed to grab a handshake! I was so tired after gym that day that I gatecrashed the kids' apartment and chilled for a bit before heading out to Grill Meats Beer with Will and Phil. We texted Mana and Mike as well, but they were pretty cosy at home, so we headed there after dinner for a while. They got Josh and Christine's couches, so it's finally feeling a bit more homely in their flat.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:24am on Monday May 11, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
ANZAC Weekend
Monday April 27, 2015
Whew.
I've been on the flat hunt for a while, but have finally signed the tenancy for a studio apartment just around the corner from my current place. More than anything, it's the relief of having accommodation and knowing that it's all sorted. Flat hunting sucks. There are so many overpriced places out there, really looking to screw over potential tenants. This place is going to cost me twice what I'm currently paying, but it comes with a carpark and is in a good area of town, so I'm happy to go with it for the time being.
Jono and Charlotte have been in the country and visited Wellington this weekend. It's been awesome catching up with them at all the various good food places around Wellington - brunch at Spruce Goose, yum char at Majestic Cuisine, lunch at Fisherman's Plate, dinner at El Matador ($80 worth of lamb!), pastries from Louis Sergeant and ice cream from Kaffee Eis. We celebrated Andrew's birthday at Heaven's Pizza and then had karaoke at K Zone. We played a few games of Love Letters, messed around with the foosball table and table tennis table at work, and played some Sega Mega Drive too. It's been an action-packed weekend with lots of social interaction and I'm pretty exhausted from it all - but so worth it!
I went to the dawn parade on Saturday morning too. They estimated 40,000 people had turned up at 5.30am at the newly renovated Pukeahu National War Memorial to pay their tributes and to remember the tragedies that had occurred 100 years ago to the date. It was an emotional, poignant service, with a great sense of unity and respect. It was awesome to sing the national anthem with so many others in honour of those who had died at Gallipoli.
Work-wise, we had a pretty informative Tech Day last Friday where I gave a presentation of how my project had been going, as a follow up to the presentation I did earlier in the year on how I intended to plan the project. We had a good product review last Thursday and we're hitting alpha this Thursday, so things will be busy in the coming week!
Posted by Jeremy at 10:19am on Monday April 27, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Easter
Sunday April 5, 2015
Easter has been pretty quiet; I opted to stay in Wellington instead of flying up to Auckland for the first time in seven years. This was partially due to the fact that my schoolmates were supposed to organise a trip somewhere but nothing eventuated. Nevertheless, Jordan, Christine, Josh and I ended up day-tripping up to Martinborough to visit Damon on Saturday. We went for a wine tasting at Haythornthwaite Wines - for only $5, this was a bargain. Most of the ones we had were quite dry and tart, but I was partial to the Gewürztraminer dessert wine. Full of lychee aromas and delightfully sweet!
Afterwards, we headed to Poppies for some food platters - there was a delay in getting our table ready so it wasn't until quite late that we were seated, and when the food arrived, we ravenously devoured the olives, salmon, capsicum, beef, roast pork, tomatoes and cheese on the plate. So goooood. We had a bit of time to kill before heading back to Wellington, so we played a few games of werewolf, and by 6.30pm we were on our way back to the city.
The sky had begun to cloud over around 3pm, and by the time we hit the Rimutakas, it was already raining. Not good news for the total lunar eclipse that night. However, when we reached Wellington around 8pm, the skies were pretty clear and the moon was definitely visible. I dropped everyone home, got changed, and picked up Jimmy, Charlie, Phil and Joe, and headed out to Lyall Bay for Fleur's birthday party. There was a perfect view of the full moon from her balcony with no clouds around, and sure enough, around 11pm, the face of the moon began to enter the penumbra of the Earth's shadow. As time progressed, we saw the first glimpses of red as the moon slipped into the main shadow, and finally at 1am, we had totality. Awesome! We set off some fireworks down by the beach, but I was tired and had to head home because I was on music at Central Baptist the next day. Thankfully, I got an extra hour's sleep from daylight savings, so I wasn't too out of it for the Easter service.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:04pm on Sunday April 5, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Frustration
Tuesday March 31, 2015
There's a story somewhere on the Internet that shows an insight into a couple's diary entries for the day. The girl laments about her boyfriend's inattention, the lack of conversation, and worries about his emotional needs, whether she's done something wrong, whether he's cheating on her, and it goes on and on and on. The guy's entry is a single line: "Code is broken, don't know why."
Well that's me today! Code is broken, don't know why. Yesterday I spent the day upgrading the project to Unity 5. The animation stuff is pretty fantastic, and hopefully provides lots of optimisations, but unfortunately they've reworked the internals of it completely so lots of our animation-related tools have broken. Today I was trying to fix up a tool that duplicates a Mecanim graph into several different layers, but the state machine on the second layer just won't serialise.
In addition to that, I'm also worrying about finding a new place to live. Our property managers, Quinovic Vivian St, served us 90 days notice because they thought we'd signed for 12 months but in fact we had signed for six months ending February 2015 and have since rolled on to a periodic tenancy. I know three months is a long time but that doesn't mean I can be relaxed about it. The sooner I find a place, the sooner I can move and get this over with. Being on a periodic tenancy does mean we only have to give 21 days notice if we find a place, so hopefully that works in our favour.
Posted by Jeremy at 8:59am on Tuesday March 31, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Supa Dupa Cuba Dupa
Monday March 30, 2015
Last weekend, Mat was down for a visit so we checked out the Cuba Dupa festival and its eclectic shows and performances, as well as the amazing smells of the street food being served by local businesses. Got a delicious Bluff oyster from Matterhorn, and unfortunately was too full to try the smoked ribs proudly on display outside El Matador! The weather was a little wet and windy, but despite that, the crowds had turned out in force. Good times! We ended the day with dinner from Origami and dessert from Strawberry Fare.
On Sunday, I caught up with Vaughan, Alan, Aaron, Charles and Megan at Spruce Goose on a very sunny Sunday morning. The weather worsened over the day and I was a little rained out heading to the gym, but otherwise it was good to see more of Cuba Dupa still happening in the afternoon. I joined some workmates at the Bruhaus for a very disappointing Cricket World Cup final.
Ah cricket.
It was only in this last week that the whole nation suddenly began caring about cricket. Normally, we find it boring as hell, with really only the highlights being watchable. But at the semifinals between New Zealand and South Africa, there was a sense of excitement and tension. There was drama. There were epic moments. We began strong, striking wicket after wicket but South Africa posted a commendable 281 runs from 43 overs. When it was time for New Zealand to bat, we had a tough 298 to chase thanks to the Duckworth/Lewis method for calculating targets from play interrupted by rain. But what a close call - Grant Elliot's final triumph in the second to last ball of the game. With five runs needed, he smacks the sweetest six you've ever seen into a crowd of excited Kiwis - moments before, so still and nervous at the prospect of losing this match. Truly fantastic.
Quick summary of the last few weeks: we farewelled Joe on Friday with some tequila shots and a strong showing at karaoke, it was Will's birthday on Thursday so we were out pretty late at the Bruhaus, had a Disney Marathon and saw Tangled, Tarzan and the Lion King, and also saw Chappie (it was the worst). Work has been pretty samey lately, but next month will be a tough slog. It's almost April already...sheesh.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:13am on Monday March 30, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Definitely Not Anything Special Today
Sunday March 1, 2015
It's been a tough week. I've had to cram six days' work into four days (rather reminiscent of what happened on Auckland anniversary weekend), and towards the end of the week, both my lead artist and I have been under increasing pressure to complete our tasks as well as co-ordinate other members of the team and ensure we have a build to send out for our milestone. There have been a lot of distractions around our area and we've just found it difficult to focus and be productive. There was a big news bombshell dropped on us on Friday, as well as being Josh's last day at work. It's sad to see people go; we've lost so many in the past couple of months. It's not an indication of the company's health, I think people are just at that point in their lives, all coincidentally. I can't expect people to stay forever, but at the same time... it just seems to have happened all so suddenly. Sigh.
So I was thankful to Christine and Jen, as well as their co-stars Rose, Abby and Caitlin, for their performances at BATS Theatre in an improv show called Definitely Not Witches. Laughter truly is the best medicine, and the show on Friday was so impressive that I booked tickets for the Saturday show too. It was good to hang with friends and go for dinner and have the week behind me, but it was a bonus to be able to be entertained and laugh so much on two successive nights.
Yesterday was the PikPok family day too. We started off at Mission Inflatable just by the train station in the morning, then to Thorndon pools for a barbeque and dip in the afternoon. We learned that we aren't as durable as we thought we were, but still had heaps of fun on the obstacle course, mechanical bull and various other bouncy arenas. Didn't come away with too many injuries! The pools were a bit more relaxed, I busied myself with food preparation and cooking, but couldn't resist the chance to dive into the water just before lunch was ready. The spa was pretty relaxing too; again, it was just awesome to hang out with cool people whose company I enjoy. After heading home for a quick nap, I went into town again for a Chinese New Year dinner at Big Thumb, then the last night of Definitely Not Witches and finally a good solid two hours of karaoke at K Zone.
At some point heading home, I did let it slip that today was the 1st of March.
But it doesn't matter what day it is, people still turned up for a good time and I really enjoyed this weekend. Thanks to all who made it so memorable, I'm truly blessed to have people like you as colleagues and friends.
Posted by Jeremy at 1:33am on Sunday March 1, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Chinese New Year
Wednesday February 25, 2015
So much food.
I've been up in Auckland with family celebrating Chinese New Year. 2015 is the year of the sheep! I drove to the airport last Thursday with Phil and was surprised to see Dana and Angeline taking the same flight to Auckland; Dana for the Foo Fighters concert and Angeline to get back to University. Angeline is taking CompSci and was keen to chat to me about courses and careers and things like that, and it was kinda interesting to hear that not much had changed with CompSci101.
I followed dad into town on Friday and saw Andy at Wedge Juice Bar, and met up with Bobby and Raymond for lunch at Nol Bu Ne, then dessert at Meet Fresh. We went home early because they had cooked a rich abalone stew on Wednesday night and needed to finish the leftovers before the weekend, so we gorged ourselves with this amazing dish, before heading out to Musashi for dinner - soft-shelled crab!!! Still in the mood for more, we went to Chiko's for their summer special dessert - halo halo, which is like a Filipino ice kacang. This one had taro ice cream, red beans, green beans, French pastries and some miscellaneous jellies and fruit strewn throughout the shaved ice. Yum!
On Saturday, we had music practice at KCC and yum cha at Wing Wah, before I headed home to help cook for our belated reunion dinner. I did my lettuce wrap, dad made a stir-fried prawns dish, Khim made dumplings and Anita brought some roast pork and barbeque pork. What a feed! Still, it didn't compare to the feasts happening back in Malaysia. Plenty of updates coming through from WhatsApp showing us all the delicious things we're missing out on! One day I will go back to Malaysia for Chinese New Year.
Music went well on Sunday morning at KCC, and I was back at Wing Wah for yum cha again. On Sunday night however, we went to KK in Greenlane for a special Chinese New Year banquet menu for invited guests only! It was a nine course dinner with dishes they don't normally serve on the a la carte menu. On Monday, I was in town again meeting up with my school mates for lunch at Mezze. I caught up with Will, who I hadn't seen in over four years, and we wandered around town via Giapo and Moustache. Good times.
Last week was the inaugural PikPok Plunge, a company challenge to jump off the wooden plank down by the waterfront. Brett organised a barbeque and Juliann, Mana and I sorted out the food for several hungry colleagues who had turned up to Frank Kitts Park to watch a team of thirteen sport their best costumes, dives and splashes into the harbour. The weather was absolutely stunning for the event, and it really is true that you can't beat Wellington on a good day.
We also farewelled Prashant, the animator on my project, and Jimmy, who has been my designer for every project except one, for the last five years. We celebrated their time with us with a meal at Thunderbird Cafe and some French delectables from Louis Sergeant afterwards. This one I got was a violet dome of white chocolate and blackcurrant mousse. Furthermore, I brought a black forest cake, pandan cake, pineapple, melon, lychee and mango biscuits, some sesame balls and some mango and lychee jellies to celebrate Chinese New Year, my work anniversary and my birthday at all once.
This weekend, we'll be at the PikPok Family Day and a Chinese New Year dinner that coincides with the beginning of autumn. There has been so much food, but there's no other way I'd celebrate Chinese New Year. Family and food are the best.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:18am on Wednesday February 25, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Seven Years
Sunday February 8, 2015
It has been just over seven years to the date when I left Auckland to start a new life in Wellington as a fresh graduate programmer for a video games company that no one could pronounce called Sidhe. Seven years...that's a quarter of my life now. It's been an incredible journey and I've learned so much in that time. I've worked with heaps of cool people and made some awesome games, and I have many proud achievements from my time at work.
Despite the physical separation, I have kept in contact with many of my friends at KCC, my church in Auckland, and regularly see them and hang out whenever I'm back up for holiday. This past Waitangi weekend, I flew up specially for the KCC church camp at Chosen Valley in the Ararimu Valley, near Bombay. Though I did miss out on quite a few of the team activities, I managed to participate in the clue hunt and relay, where I was the kayaker for the first leg of the race. There was amazing food thanks to Uncle Sam and Auntie Cynthia, several games of late night Mafia, karting, flying foxes, archery, a bonfire, plenty of singing and lots of good learnings to take away from the camp.
The bonfire was quite a highlight. As we gathered around the warmth of the flames, we started singing some good old Christian songs like How Great Thou Art and Refiner's Fire. As the adults started to leave, we started busting out some more mainstream tunes like Maroon 5, Backstreet Boys and every Disney song imaginable: Let it Go, Circle of Life, Be Prepared, Colours of the Wind, I'll Make a Man out of You, Under the Sea, Be Our Guest.... so good.
And of course, Mafia was another big highlight. There were so many people interested in playing Mafia... it's been ages since I've last had to juggle more than 20 players. In addition to the regular detective, doctor and sniper, I threw in a resurrecting character (aptly named Jesus, because he rises again on the third day), the pig (who can only say "pig") and the jester (who wins if they get hung by the citizens during the day). Moreover, I imposed a six minute time limit with a random death if none had been decided on during the day, and the mafioso got to kill two people per night. The dynamics worked well once I had gotten my head around managing the characters, but I find with a crowd that big, interest begins to wane quite rapidly among several players (especially since we often play past midnight, people get quite sleepy) and it isn't as intimate or intense as with, say, fifteen people. It's good to see my regular crew being strong players - I feel like I have taught you well!
When I arrived on the Friday, I was a bit overwhelmed with how many faces I didn't know, but there's nothing like a good solid game of Mafia to get to know people. The congregation has changed so much while I've been away, but the people of KCC are always so welcoming and warm, it feels like I've never left at all. It's been a most memorable weekend.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:22am on Sunday February 8, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Sixty Years
Monday January 26, 2015
I've been up in Auckland to celebrate my father's 60th birthday. What a milestone! Of course, food was involved; we went to Sun World in Newmarket for Peking duck, prawn balls, long-life noodles, steamed orange roughy, deep-fried tofu and some seasonal vegetables. Always a good time there. We topped the night with a deliciously rich and moist chocolate cake, though dad was adamant that there was to be no public singing.
The weekend didn't start well though. I was in the concept art room at work saying my goodbyes to Joel on Friday night when a dried ghost pepper chili was being handed around. After everyone had taken their bite, I took mine (after scooping out about twenty seeds) but oh boy I was full of regret. I immediately began hiccuping, and had to rush for some ice cream and milk. Still having troubles, I took some antacids and managed to calm down for a while, but had troubles walking for more than 50 metres at a time. I eventually made it to St Johns for a bit, then we headed to the night markets once I was feeling much better, but I lost track of time and had to run off to catch my flight. Unfortunately, since I had booked with Jetstar, they were super unforgiving about check-in and I ended up missing my flight by ten minutes.
Sulking, I left the airport and watched as the stupid plane took off from the runway. Jerks.
I took the next flight to Auckland in the morning, for only a $50 penalty, but once I was at home, everything was pretty much back to normal. I grabbed some Wendy's, did some shopping at West City and dozed off in the afternoon before dinner at Sun World. All's well that ends well.
On Sunday, I was at KCC early to join the music team for the first time in many, many years. So good playing with the guys again, plenty of dynamics and passion in the music. The sermon was pretty ace as well, we had a guest speaker who did a spectacular live painting on stage after the message. After church, we were at Musashi in New Lynn for some soft-shelled crab and then I was back home to help with dinner preparations for that night.
Today was pretty cruisy, we were supposed to meet for some Smash Bros but those plans fell through and I ended up just sitting at home playing Pokemon on my 3DS. We went over to my sister's house to celebrate my nephew's fourth birthday with a family afternoon tea before heading to the airport (early) for my flight back to Wellington. Good times.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:06am on Monday January 26, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Melbourne
Monday January 5, 2015
I'm finally back at home in Wellington after a 10 hour journey with Mike and Phil down State Highway 1 from Auckland yesterday. The past week has been amazing, having spent most of it exploring Melbourne and sampling some of the delicious things the city had to offer.
Last Monday, we took the train from Wallan to the Southern Cross Station, then took a tram to Southbank where we dumped all our belongings in our apartment just across from the Crown Casino Complex. We met up with the others from KCC at a Vietnamese restaurant called Rice Paper on Swanston Street, then walked around the expensive Emporium before heading back for a break. We struggled to find a suitable place for dinner that night - several popular places were booked out or unavailable over Christmas and New Years, but eventually we settled for a place called Gingerboy, which served contemporary South-East Asian cuisine. On our way back home, I got some Nitrogen-frozen gelato from this place called The Lab, but it wasn't really anything special.
On Tuesday, I said my goodbyes to the KCC gang and went to Ants and Jo's place in the center of town. I rushed to meet Dave and we set off on a foodie tour of Melbourne! Dave showed me a few places that had his art on display, which was super cool. I don't remember where half of these places were as I was still trying to get my bearings, but we did end up at the Queen Victoria markets. Rows and rows of fresh fruit and vegetables on display, bustling with people seeking the best bargains and shop keepers yelling (aggressively?) about their produce. Awesome stuff! We got some fresh fruit juice and some American style donuts, and continued on to the deli meats and cheese section before heading down to QV for some lunch at a Japanese place called Don Don. The tour continued to the Old Melbourne Gaol, Melbourne Museum and the Carlton Gardens, Lygon Street (for some pretty good gelato and an amazing dessert shop called Brunetti) and Federation Square and ACMI. Great to catch up with you Dave, and thanks for the awesome guided tour! I went out with Ants, Jo, Ben and Jill for dinner at Red Spice QV before having a quick tipple at Cookie Beer Hall. Big day!
I decided I needed a bit of time to myself, so on Wednesday, New Year's Eve, I went solo around the city, visiting the Lindt Cafe, Melbourne Central, Chinatown, Christmas Square (appropriately decked out for the season), Hosier Lane (with all the street art), Birrarung Marr Park on the way to Rod Laver, MCG and the Royal Botanic Gardens, the Shrine of Remembrance and back up to Southbank. There was a lot of walking but the sun was brilliant and pleasant. Being solo meant I could easily get a seat at some of the more popular establishments, namely the two big ones on my list - Chin Chin, a famous South-East Asian eatery on Flinders Lane, and Om Nom, a dessert restaurant in the Adelphi Hotel. Fantastic experiences there, be sure to see the write ups on my Food Blog! I ended the day back at Ants and Jo's with a good old Australian barbeque, but the night's festivities had just begun.
The five of us made our way to Federation Square, where hundreds and thousands of people had packed the area, hoping to usher in the New Year with a bang. The atmosphere was awesome, and despite it being totally crammed (people had brought along prams and babies - what the hell?), it was pretty great to be in such an exciting place. When the countdown hit zero, fireworks from all around the city's buildings shot into the sky, synchronised with each other. Fantastic stuff! So much better than those Auckland fireworks. We ended the New Year celebrations clubbing at the Irish Times Pub, right around the corner from home.
New Year's Day was a slow start, with a delicious champagne brunch in the late morning as we slowly roused from a night of lights and sound. I followed Ben and Jill for a walk around town but ended up splitting from them at Melbourne Central. As I walked down to Southbank, I casually strolled by Rice Paper, the restaurant from the first day in town. When I looked inside, who should I see but my KCC crew, having a late lunch there. I followed them back home for a bit, and headed out again to the game arcades to watch them claim their 2000 tokens. I said my goodbyes and trekked to the Eureka Tower for some stunning 360 degree views of the city. Melbourne's pretty cool like that - almost all the tall buildings are localised to the inner city, leaving the urban sprawl visible for miles. The weather was stunning and it was such an awesome view of the whole area.
I rushed over to the Queen Victoria Market area to meet up with Andy at Coconut House, a Malaysian place famous for their laksa. Good stuff - Melbourne's definitely got standard in this respect, with some of my family members back in Malaysia commenting on how good the laksa looked. We continued on to Dessert Story, where I got a mango pomelo sago pudding for myself and Andy proceeded to order a two-person mango shaved ice dessert for himself. We went back to his place to play some Smash Bros for a bit, then I left to see the Gas Brigade Fireballs shooting out on the riverbank by the Crown Casino.
On the day I left Melbourne, the forecast said it would be a whopping 38C - apparently this is like a hairdryer continuously in your face. I would have liked to experience this phenomenal heat just once, but unfortunately I had a plane to catch at 9.30am. I was walking around the airport hungrily when I spotted my last chance to have a chicken parma - so I took it. It was okay. Would have probably been better at a proper place that wasn't the airport, but at least it's another checkbox I can check. I met up with John, who was also on the same flight and we headed to the departure gate. However, on the way, I spotted a piano in the middle of the shopping area, and after checking to see there were no restrictions, I sat on the stool and started my rendition of Let it Go on a baby grand piano in the middle of Melbourne Airport. And that was awesome. I began to build confidence as the momentum of the song followed through to its climax, and a small family sitting nearby burst into applause at the end of the song. What a wonderful way to finish my time in Melbourne!
Posted by Jeremy at 10:34am on Monday January 5, 2015 :: 0 comments ::