confidence

It didn't instill a lot of confidence this morning at Melbourne airport seeing the pilot and co-pilot struggling to figure out how to release the rope on the barricade to get to the gate. Fortunately, they were much better at flying the airplane and after a very smooth flight, am now in Singapore waiting for my next flight to Helsinki (sadly, it will be on a crappy old Finnair plane).

Helsinki bound

Yep...Just a few weeks after returning from Europe, I'm about to head back to Europe. I'll be there for six weeks this time 'round. Sadly, Truffles and Nathan have to stay at home but I'll get to bring one of my students. Am looking forward to spending some time at the research station. It'll be nice to spend a decent block of time out of the office.

sunday animals and art

Nathan and I headed to the junk company today and I couldn't resist getting some of these cute lead toy animals.

After lunch, we headed off to the NGV. We started of at NGV Australia to check out the top arts exhibition.We then headed went to NGV International to check out the Dior & Yamamoto exhibition – and to eat scones. This is a new art installation in the foyer....mesmerising.

truffles by the bay

Nathan and I took the dog for a walk today. We made our way from Docklands to South Melbourne and then onto Port Melbourne. 

It's the first time any of us had actually walked to Port Melbourne and I was surprised by all the nice shops we walked pass on our way to the water.

Here I am with Truffles on one of the dog-friendly beaches talking to a girl from the UK who was taking her friend's spaniel for a stroll. Truffles is having a great time.

We then took Truffs off to see the Spirit of Tasmania. Like us, she is longing to get to Tassie to see Mona.

beyond Melbourne

Early last week, I took my honours and PhD students to country Victoria for a work retreat. The students had a cook off, we sat around the fireplace in the huge house we rented, and generally had a good time.

Later in the week, I headed to Sydney for an invited seminar. After that, the postgrad students from Sydney Uni whisked me off to the the Central Coast for the weekend. We went on nice walks, had great food, and the students asked me for career advice.

Here is a picture of a friendly kookaburra who came to say 'hello' when we were having brekky (in truth, I think it was after my food).

poo in the foyer

I took Truffles for a walk this morning and forgot to bring a plastic bag. Fortunately, I realised when we were walking with Nathan to the train station so he gave me some tissue paper instead. Just as well because Truffles decided to wait until we got back to the apartment complex where she then proceeded to take a huge dump right inside the foyer as I was checking the mail box. I was panic-stricken and started grabbing at the droppings with the tissues and running outside to dispose of them in the bin. It took several trips, back and forth (at one stage I was even using the free newspapers left in the foyer). And 'of course' someone walk through the foyer as I was trying to get rid of the evidence.  I was so embarrassed.

Singapore

I had a really nice flight from Helsinki to Singapore (and 'yes' it was on the plane with the marimekko livery). I even managed to get some decent shut eye.

I'm now relaxing in Changi. I've discovered the wonders of the airport shower facility at the 'Rainforest Lounge'. Well worth the $8 (it even comes with a complimentary beverage afterwards). I feel completely rejuvenated and, of course, I'm now thinking of food.

Update: In the 30 mins since I published this post, I've managed to eat a bowl of mee siam and a plate of chicken rice (with extra meat). In my defence, the mee siam was a very 'small' portion.

Arlanda

I'm already at Stockholm's Arlanda airport waiting for my flight (I arrived 5 hours early). I had planned to walk around the shops but that took all of 20 mins. Thank God for free wi fi in the terminal.

Was hoping to get a final taste of Scandinavian food but there are only 3 restaurant options in the terminal (and one of them is a Starbucks)....I should have done more homework.

Speaking of homework, I have been once again keeping a close eye on Finnair flights via flightradar24.com in the hopes I don't end up on one of the crappy old ex-air france planes.

The good news is that one of the planes (OH-LQG) is still enroute to Helsinki from Deli and the other one (OH-LQF) just left for Shanghai so it seems I will be taking one of the newer planes from Helsinki to Singapore.

I'm hoping it will be OH-LQD, which was repainted last year with the distinctive Marimekko poppy design 'unikko'.

(yes, flying is boring and I need to keep myself occupied with trivial things).  

tropical house

I finished my work engagements today and decided to check out the tropical glass house next to the University. There were a few things in flower, mostly orchids. There are suppose to be poison arrow frogs free-living in the glasshouse but, alas, I didn't see any. Here are some images.

I head back to Oz tomorrow night – less than a week after I arrived.

Hambergs fisk

It was wet and gloomy today so I decided to work in my hotel room. I set up the lap top on the windowsill, which overlooked the cathedral (much nicer than working behind the desk).

Given the huge breakfast this morning, I managed to survive the day without the need to break for lunch. However, by late arvo, I had decided it was time to grab an early dinner.

By now the sky was clearing so it was a perfect opportunity to head out to find Hambergs Fisk. I've had a craving for seafood since arriving in Sweden and had found the place doing a search of potential restaurants the day I arrived.

Hambergs Fisk is an interesting place: part restaurant, part fishmongers (the latter gives the impression that the seafood must be super fresh).

I ordered the 'assortment' of house specialities for starters (poached salmon, cured salmon, shrimp in mayo, quiche with roe, seafood terrine). Delicious. This was followed by a delectable bouillabaise with a sizeable portion of garlic aioli on the side (all of which ended up in the soup, of course). Amazing.

smorgastarta

I had a new dining experience today. A savoury cake or smorgastarta. It was quite an eye-opener...a cake smothered in cheese, mayo, meatballs and shrimp (with layers of ham and pate in between). Apparently it is very traditional. To me, it looks like something a contestant from the Biggest Loser would try to sneak onto the show. I wanted to take a photo but, alas, the whole thing was devoured in half an hour so here is a picture of a healtheir-looking version I got off the internet (at least there are more vegetables in this example):

Sweden

I arrived in Uppsala yesterday morning local time. This is the view from my hotel room. Every European city seems to have a grand cathedral.

I went exploring the town soon after unpacking my bag. The weather was crappy (drizzly and cold) so I headed to the nearest H&M for shelter (and retail therapy). A new shirt and pair of trousers later, I went looking for a place to eat before heading back to the hotel for a 'quick' nap that lasted 8.5 hours. This, of course, meant that I woke up at 10.30pm local time and couldn't get back to sleep. Silly me.

50 shades of grey

I have just arrived in Helsinki. Not long to go before my flight to Sweden (the last of three to get to my final destination).

At this point, I wish to thank my family (again) for the amazingly well-considered gift of noise cancelling headphones several Christmases ago. The head phones came in handy (once again) on my Singapore–Helsinki sector when the baby sitting behind me decided to scream at the top of his lungs for a sizeable portion of the 11+ hour flight.

I was surprised to see how grey it is flying into Helsinki this morning. There is still snow cover on the ground. I hope I don't regret my decision not to bring gloves and fur-lined hat on this trip.

plane

Found out I will be flying in one of the newer Finnair aircraft from Singapore to Helsinki (rather than one of the crappy ex-Air France planes). I'll be on this very aircraft in fact (sporting the 'one world' alliance livery). It's so pretty.

Sweden bound

Off to Sweden tomorrow. Am closing monitoring flight radar to see exactly what Finnair plane I'll be getting from Singapore to Helsinki (I am hoping it is not one of the two crappy ex-Air France planes with the dodgy seats and impossibly small tv screens).

a huge relief

I went to the GP earlier in the week to get my prescriptions in order prior to my trip to Sweden on Sunday.

I mentioned I had experienced chest pains a few weeks prior so the doctor advised I do an ECG.

The next day, my GP contacted me early in the morning to tell me to see him right away. Apparently the ECG was abnormal. When i saw him, he said that I may have had a heart attack.

More tests were ordered, along with an appointment to see a specialist.

I went to the cardiologist today and everything checked out fine. What a scare.

celebrity overload

So yesterday, on our flight back, Nathan and I noticed a lot of tv 'personalities' on our flight – from lifestyle presenters to soap stars. Today, we realised why: the Logies.  

Sydney

This is going to be an extra-long post (which happens when one has not had access to internet for three days but has plenty of things to write about)....

Nathan and I have been in Sydney. We booked the flights a while ago believing that we had a wedding to attend on Friday. Unfortunately, we got the wedding date wrong. Oops. Oh well. We figured we might as well go to Sydney anyway, especially as the tickets were non-refundable (and I will miss the actual wedding because I'll be overseas for work).

We arrived in Sydney on Thursday morning, dropped off our bags at the hotel, and headed straight to the fish market for lunch (priorities). Normally, I'd make Nathan walk but because of the rain, we ended up catching the light rail from Darling Harbour. By the time we had finished lunch, the rain had eased enough for us to make a beeline back to The Star for Adriano Zumbo's macarons (the 'popcorn' flavoured ones were my favourite). Then, it was a matter of wandering around the city to kill time before dinner, which consisted of pork ribs at The Hurricane (you can see what the priorities of this Sydney visit were going to be).

On Friday, we spent the day exploring. First up, was congee in chinatown, followed by a ferry ride to Manly. When we got back to Circular Quay, we took the train and bus out to Bondi for a walk (and a late lunch at Ms Chu's). In the afternoon, Nathan and I headed off to the Art Gallery of NSW to check out a photography exhibition there. That night, we caught up with the friends who were getting married at some Belgian beer cafe which specialised in beer (good for Nathan) and mussels (good for me).

Today, we caught up with fellow blogger Victor for brunch. Victor and I first met when he visited Melbourne (quite a while now). I had such a good time meeting up with him then, I've been wanting to to meet up again ever since. Unfortunately, my visits up to Sydney are usually really rushed or family-oriented. This time, however, I texted Victor ahead of time to organise an outing.

We ended up going for brunch on Crown Street and had a really nice time. Nathan later remarked that he found Victor really interesting and could have spoken to him all day.

Nathan and I are now back in Melbourne. Next weekend, I'm off to Sweden for work. More from there in due course...

Some sad news

Nathan called me earlier to tell me that our friend's partner had died in a car accident overnight. Our friend found out at work and was so distraught he had to be escorted out of the building. Andrew is now a statistic on the easter road toll. I'd only met him once, a few months ago when we had them over  for dinner. Andrew was such a lovely guy. Smart. Funny. I keep thinking about the night they came over and how much Nathan and I liked the guy. I remember him showing me pictures of his two shitzus (one of whom, coincidentally, is also called Truffles). We were suppose to do brunch in South Melbourne next time. It's all very sad.

Easter in the country

Nathan and I headed to Gippsland to spend some time with his family. We took the dog so she could run wild without risk of being hit by a car or a tram.

We headed off on Friday and decided it would be easier to take the commuter train to Pakenham and to ask Nathan's mum to pick us up and complete the rest of the journey by car (instead of taking the vline, which has stricter pet transport regulations). Anyhow, three metro trains later, we arrived in Pakenham. Nathan's mum was already waiting for us so we packed the bags, dog and easter eggs into the car and made our way to Warragul.

We spent Saturday at Yarragon, visiting with Nathan's dad. We went to the farm and let Truffles loose among the livestock (she successfully stared down a steer and then went chasing after the cows). Meanwhile, I raided the blackberry bushes and gorged on berries until my fingers were stained a deep purple.

We spent Easter Sunday at Nathan's sister's place. She made a fantastic roast lunch for us. We had planned to come back to Melbourne Sunday evening but had to spend an extra night because Nathan's mum had really bad back pain and we had to take her to hospital.

We arrived back to the city today. We (i.e. Nathan, me and the dog) are all exhausted. Truffles had a ball (she ate cat shit, chased mice, and generally ran around like a crazy bitch the entire weekend...and is now asleep on Nathan's pillow).

Luckily I get another day off tomorrow (a weird quirk of being an academic...we don't get the State holidays but we get an extra day over easter...go figure).

Oh...we are off to Sydney on Thursday (it was suppose to be for a wedding but Nathan got the dates wrong). Victor, I'll be in touch shortly for a possible catch up. 

The perfect sunday

I've had the best day today (well, the best kinda day that a plant-obsessive, gluttonous art collector can possibly have).

I started the day by taking Truffles out for a morning walk (getting a dog has been a great incentive to do more exercise...especially when Nathan is not in town to take the dog for a walk).

I then headed off to the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show, where I got to see (but resisted the temptation of buying) heaps of really cool orchids, fern, bromeliads and carnivorous plants.

On my way back into the city, I decided to drop into one of my favourite places, The Grand BBQ, for lunch.

And now I'm sitting at home monitoring an art auction online and eating gnocchi. I'm not normally a gnocchi fan but I guess it's one of those days where even gnocchi tastes good!    

the (old) scruffy truffles

Truffles' terrible trim

Nathan took Truffles for a hair cut on Friday. The dog groomers did a terrible job. Truffles ended up looking like she had been attacked by a whipper snipper. The hair cut was so terrible that when I got home, we had to use my hair clippers to give her another cut. She now looks naked. I want my scruffy little bitch back.

long time between posts

Wow...I was surprised to see how long ago I had last posted something on my blog. I guess I've been busy with life and neglecting to write about it. Let's see...where to begin? Maybe the negatives first. The dog ate a hole in wall. Yep. It happened two mondays ago. I was working from home and I heard 'cruch crunch' noises from the wall behind the stairs. And sure enough, Truffles has gouged a hole in the wall and actually ate the plaster (she won't eat the dog biscuits but evidently she likes plaster). Aside from the hole in the wall, the only other negative in the past few weeks has been the weather. My aircon at work is broken so it feels like a sauna in my office (minus the naked bodies). Ok...that's it for the negatives.

Now, the positives. My folks have been in town, which means a lot of excessive (food) consumption. Over the past weekend I have been wallowing in excessive feast, gorging on roast duck, mud crab with ginger and shallot, and yummy steamed fish (among other things). I am also looking forward to the opening of the new hang of indigenous art at the National Gallery of Victoria. The last exhibition had been on for almost two years so it will be nice to see some new stuff (I have been attempting sneak previews by going up to the first floor and looking down over the balconies onto the indigenous galleries but there is only so much I can see).

flowers (still) in the loft

These pineapple lillies sure have staying power. They are the same bunch I blogged about several weeks ago and they are still looking fresh (albeit a bit greener in colour than when I first bought them). Great value for money.

New acquisition

Nathan and I bought this little side table yesterday. Still haven't decided what to put on top of it yet so Wal and Norm (my bird sculptures from Central Australia) are having a go at perching on it.

Dinner tonight is...

...Thai green curry crab.

I was at the Queen Vic Markets and couldn't resist getting some blue swimmer crabs for tonight.  Can't wait to tuck into them. Yum, yum.

art well hung

The Leopold museum in Vienna recently held an after hours showing of their exhibition 'Nude men from 1800 to Today', where visitors were allowed to tour the exhibition naked. I wonder if similar showings would do well at the NGV? Perhaps at the nest 'winter masterpiece'?

The joys of pet ownership

Nathan had been away in Perth. And I had been left in charge of the dog for the week. Total disaster. The dog had an upset tummy and left a mess on the balcony. She also had dingleberries. Yesterday I decided to clean up the balcony...which involved a pair of latex gloves, reams of paper towel, two garbage bags and several kinds of cleaning products. It was not a pleasant experience. I had intended to leave the dingleberries for Nathan to take care of but they were starting to gross me out so I decided to give the dog a bath.  I donned the latex gloves and carted the dog off to the laundry sink. She was not very cooperative. I ended up washing her under the shower instead.  I ended up wetter than the pooch. Oh well, at least she smells nice again and the balcony looks presentable.

Happy year of the snake

Nathan and I are back in Canberra celebrating chinese new year. As is typical of any trip back to Canberra, the menu for the entire duration of our stay has been meticulously planned out by my parents. And because this is chinese new year, the meals have to be even more spectacular and elaborate than usual. So far, we have been treated to a gluttonous feast of (among other things) braised whole duck stuffed with eight treasures (I could only count 5 but have been assured there are, indeed, 8); lobster with ginger and shallot; a raw salmon salad which we have to toss around with our chopsticks for luck (don't ask me why); another salad that would sit comfortably in any episode of fear factor (picture a plate of jellyfish, chicken feet, century egg); and dumplings (some of which have had coins or dried dates hidden within to symbolize wealth or luck for anyone fortunate enough to get them, which inevitably means over-eating in a quest to nab a wealthy/lucky dumpling).

Phew...

Been watching the havoc being caused by ex-tropical cyclone Oswald as it moves south. In hindsight, I think I was lucky to have been in Townsville and to have flown out when I did. Although the rain was quite intense and there was some minor flooding, the weather system seemed to have caused far less damage in Townsville than in other areas.

flowers in the loft

Went and bought these today. They are called pineapple lilies (I guess because of the leaves that sit on top of the flowers). The plants are native to Africa and look rather exotic don't you think?

Back from Townsville

Wow, we sure picked a good week to head to north Queensland. Trying to collect aquatic animals in streams during a torrential downpour was an experience I won't be forgetting too soon. The "highlight" was having dozens of cockroaches and spiders crawling up our legs and perching on top of our heads to escape the rising waters.

savage garden

Check out my new pet. It's a Nepenthes (also known as a tropical pitcher plant or monkey cup). I have to give it water and the occasional housefly but I won't have to worry about it pissing on the carpet.  

heading north...again

I've been back in the office only three days and I'm once again heading off...this time to Townsville. I'll be going up with a couple of my grad students for fieldwork. I haven't been up there since my own PhD days and I must say I'm kinda looking forward to it – even though Townsville isn't quite as lush or glamorous as Cairns. I'll still have to keep a look out for crocodiles though...but fortunately the areas where we will be going are only meant to be inhabited by freshwater crocs which, unlike the salties, are not known to consume humans. I am more worried about bumping into red necks (in the course of my research, I've been subject to more xenophobic comments in North Queensland than anywhere else in the world). On the plus side, I'm looking forward to spending some free time gorging on ice cream at Frosty Mango.

sexy stag...

I bought this from a vintage shop last week. I think it's made of brass and only has one antler. I'm trying to figure out what it might have originally been attached to as there is a chain near the back leg. The shop owner thinks it might have sat on top of an old clock. Any ideas/guesses?

Sydney

There was the obligatory trip to the Fish Market for lunch and a visit to the Art Gallery of NSW to see the Francis Bacon exhibition. The highlight, however, was a giant 'rubber ducky' moored at Darling Harbour.

On the whole, it was a flying visit...we decided to go back to Canberra super early on the Tuesday due to the catastrophic fire warnings. Am now back in Melbourne enjoying some cooler weather. Truffles seems to have turned into a giant in the week I was away.

the holidays

My folks have been in town for Christmas and New Year. There has been a lot of wallowing in excessive feast, from turkey and ham on Christmas Day to pho in Springvale a couple of days ago. So it was nice to finally spend some quiet time at home last night. Nathan and Truffles went to a friend's place at Point Cook for New Years Eve, while I spent the last 24 hours or so home alone, eating pasta and cleaning up the apartment. I'm heading back to Canberra tomorrow with the family and will be making a flying visit to Sydney while I'm up 'north'. Hopefully I'll get a chance to see the Francis Bacon exhibition at the AGNSW. It's going to be a busy 2013 but I'm going to ease into it slowly (I'm on leave until mid January...hoorah...no bloody research grants to write or worry about this year).