7-8th March - Auckland & Home Sweet Home
It was a sad day for us today as we had to leave our favourite Taupo to Auckland. It was a long ride that we had to stop for some "stretching exercises' along the way.
And of course, we had to buy our favourite Tauranga's Domino's Pizza! It was just as good and we enjoyed our delicious lunch at Memorial Park. Even the birds are eyeing our food...
Finally, we reached Auckland at around 5+. However, there were so many cars and it was confusing to drive around Auckland City. We managed to find the hotel, but it was just so difficult to drive to the doorstep. In the end, we decided to park by the road side and checked in first before driving our car to the hotel's parking lot.
Copthorne Auckland Hotel was a disappointment. It was small and it looked old. We certainly preferred those motels in Tauranga, Rotorua and Taupo. After checking in, we rested for a while before going to the same Jap Restuarant for ramen.
It was going to be our last day in NZ. We were feeling so blue about going back to Singapore...
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8th March
We had so much fun in NZ, and now it's time for us to go back home. We drove to the airport at 9am. After returning the car, we checked in our luggage. Despite that we had tried our very best to minimize our check in luggage, we had exceeded our luggage limit. And we had to pay $270 for it. :( It's only 5kg. Why can't they just allow us to check in our luggage for free?
IronMate & IronMan
We had MacD before boarding the plane for lunch. Due to the different time zone, I had lunch for 3 times on my way back to Singapore. I was so sick of the smell of the food that I feel nausea. I don't feel like eating anything on the plane back from Melbourne to Singapore.
After such a long flight, I had finally reached Singapore! My sis, Alan and Gwyneth were there to welcome me back! And my sis even bought KOI for me! I'm so touched and happy.
It's nice to be back home! I miss home!
Home sweet home!
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Angeline winks
at |2:18 PM|
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5th Mar - Taupo (Race Day) & 6th Mar
In a blink of eyes, today is already my last 4 days in New Zealand. It has been a long and relaxing holiday that I afraid it will be very difficult for me to go back to work next Wednesday. The thought of going back to work certainly does not excite me. Oh well, just hope that I won’t suffer from jet lag and fatigue when I am back in Singapore on Tuesday.
Today is an important day. It’s the race day for Ironman NZ. Jianhui is participating it for the first time. It is definitely a challenging race and to make things worse, it has been raining for the whole day since 4am. It is freezing cold, even for supporters. I was freezing like hell this morning as I didn’t have an umbrella with me. And yes, I was waiting for him at the transit area in the rain. It was super cold for me, but I know that this is nothing compared to what Jianhui is experiencing, so the least I can do is to be there for him. When I saw him coming out from the lake, I was relieved and excited for him since swimming is definitely not his strongest segment. As for now, I am waiting for Jianhui to cycle past the motel for the 2nd time before he proceeds to the full marathon. At this moment, I am excited about him doing the Ironman, yet at the same time, I can’t help but to feel worried for him.
Around 4 plus, I saw Jianhui cycling past me outside the motel! I was so happy as this would mean that he had completed his 180km of cycling! This is definitely an amazing feat as I would feel super shag even after cycling 40km! And so, I packed my stuff and walked to the running route. I was so lucky that despite that I was walking very slowly (due to the rain), I had managed to catch him at the starting point for the running segment. At this moment, the rain persisted and I guess it must be so freezing cold for all the participants. I cheered them on, hoping that this will at least motivate them to complete the last segment of Ironman. After all, they have come so far. It will be a waste if they were to give up now.
I had a quick MacDonald’s meal before going back to the running route to look out for Jianhui. And finally, I saw him! Running is indeed his strongest event. After such a hectic day, he was still able to run a half marathon faster than me. *Shame on me*
Then I walked to the finishing line and the atmosphere there is fantastic. Everybody cheered loudly for all finishers even it was raining heavily. It was really a good event and I was there to cheer for all the finishers. They are really awesome to complete Ironman! At the same time, I keep on looking out for Jianhui as he may run in anytime. When I saw him running in, I shouted loudly for him as I was worried that he couldn’t see me among the crowd. Luckily, he saw me and I was so relieved and happy for him. The feeling is indescribable. He stopped right in front of me and started taking off his so-called amazing necklace which he claimed that can help to relieve all pain and relief. And then, I saw a sparkling diamond ring! He kneeled down right in front of me! I was happy and speechless. In fact, I was touched to tears. Mike, the MC came over and Jianhui proposed to me! And of course, the answer is YES, I DO! Everybody cheered for us and those supporters beside me congratulated me.
This was definitely a memorable night for me… I would never forget this amazing moment on 5th March at Taupo. Jianhui, thanks for giving me such a wonderful surprise which I will remember for life.
------As for the last day at Taupo, we went to Great Lake Centre to do some last minute shopping and to collect Jianhui's Certificate. Thereafter, we went to Pub and Grub for lunch. The Southern Man Steak is just as good as before. We also bought beer to drink and relax at the pub. It is such a relaxing and beautiful afternoon. We went to the Convention Centre for Ironman's award dinner. There wasn't anything exciting and so, we went to KFC for dinner. Somehow, I find that the KFC at Taupo is nicer. After dinner, we decided to go to Lake Taupo for one last time before we leave this place. And we saw rainbow! It's such a beautiful sight. :)Then, we went back to our motel to pack our luggage to go back Auckland. We love Taupo so much that we are starting to feel sad to leave this beautiful place tomorrow.
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Angeline winks
at |11:06 PM|
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1st - 4th Mar 2011 - Taupo
1st Mar - Taupo
From Rotorua, we drove about 1 hour to Taupo. When we reached Taupo, the weather is kinda hot and you can see that many people on the road are just wearing T-shirt with bermudas. We checked in to Chantilly's and we are quite happy that it's a nice place to stay for 6 days. Imagine if we don't like this room, we have to bear with it for 6 days. Bleargh... Besides that, we can borrow DVDs from them to watch!
Our cosy "home" at Taupo
Our happy pantry!
Once we had settled down, Jianhui started to assemble Che Che! To me, it's so tedious to assemble Che Che, but it seems to be so easy for him. Within half an hour, Che Che is ready to go for race!
Jianhui had a short ride just outside our room. Thereafter, we went to Lake Taupo for a walk. It's nice to sit on the bench, facing Lake Taupo. It's so peaceful and serene. I simply love this kind of feeling. It's something which we cannot find in Singapore. We went back to Chantilly's after having dinner at BK.
2nd Mar - Swim Trial + Bike Recce
Early in the morning, the weather feels much colder. We brought the wet suit to Lake Taupo for wet dip before Jianhui got dressed to go for a swim trial. Many other Ironman's participants are there for a quick swim too. According to him, the water does not feel cold with wet suit on.
Looking good after a good swim!
In the afternoon, we went for car ride around the town along the bike route. It seems to far to me! Completing 180km of cycling is definitely not an easy task. Jianhui went for so bike recce while I waited for him in the car. Unfortunately, it started raining after a while, and so he had to stop cycling and we went back to our motel.
Throughout the day, we could see that there were many participants cycling around the town. They are just so on. It is interesting to see so many cyclists and runners in town.
3rd Mar - Registration
After having our breakfast, we went to Great Lake Centre for registration! There was quite a long queue and we had to wait under the sun. Luckily, we didn't have to wait too long before Jianhui could collect his race pack! His race pack is quite good. He got a bag for his wheels and some useful stuff in his goodie bag!
While walking around Great Lake Centre (actually our intention is to get free Kellogg's nutri-grain), we saw Bozzone, Ironman NZ No. 2! We took a photo with him and most importantly, we got 2 boxes of nutri-grain! =p
After lunch, we went to Huka Fall! Huka Fall is a beautiful waterfall. It is so beautiful that I feel like jumping into it for a swim. Haha. We also went to Honey Hive to look for Manuka Honey. The honey isn't that cheap and so we didn't buy any. It had proven to be a wrong choice as we couldn't find any cheaper honey anywhere else. Oh ya, the honey ice cream at Honey Hive is very nice!
Around evening time, we went to Great Lake Centre for the carbo dinner. When we saw that the place was so quiet, we sensed that we had gone to the wrong place. True enough, we had gotten to the wrong place. Thank to a guy from London, we got a ride to the destination. Everybody was seated and we were considered late comers. We had a quick dinner before the actual briefing started. The briefing was quite interesting. I was glad that I was able to attend this briefing. I feel so excited even when I was just a supporter.
After the briefing, we were thankful that the London guy decided to give us a ride back to our motel! And so, Jianhui started to pack his stuff for the check in tomorrow.
I am an IronMate!
4th Mar - Bike Check-in
We brought Che Che and the 2 bags to the race site for check in the morning. We also walked around to understand the race route better.
After that, we had a relaxing afternoon by Lake Taupo, drinking coffee. I simply love Lake Taupo. :) We also shopping around the town, hoping to find some souvenirs and honey. But, it seems like we do not have much luck.
Nevertheless, I managed to get materials to make a banner for Jianhui! Haha. Here is my banner! It is quite nice, isn't it?
We slept early at night as we know that it was going to be a long day ahead... I was so excited that I couldn't sleep well!
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Angeline winks
at |1:44 PM|
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28th Feb - Rotorua
After having our happy breakfast at MacD at Tauranga, we drove down to Rotorua! It was an hour drive from Tauranga to Rotorua. We checked in to Alpin Motor Lodge which is spacious as it has a living room and small place for cooking. Once again, we can park the car outside the room which is very convenient. :)
Then we went to Waimangu Volcanic Valley as recommended by the receptionist from Macy's. It was a nice walk looking at the craters and learning about Volcanos. By the time, we were done, it was already 3.30pm. So, we waited for the bus to fetch us to the starting point.
While driving back, we made a trip to Countdown, the supermarket. We started shopping for grocery and Jianhui suggested to cook spaghetti for dinner! We also bought one whole BBQ chicken for dinner!
Once we had reached home, we started cooking! Or rather I should say, Jianhui started cooking for me! I feel truly blessed to eat the spaghetti cooked by Jianhui. Haha.
After our dinner, we went for a walk to Lake Rotorua...
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Angeline winks
at |10:41 PM|
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27th Feb - Tauranga
We woke up early in the morning to drive to Tauranga! With the "help" of GPS, we actually took a longer route to Tauranga. Somehow, this GPS prefers to go a longer route.
We checked in at Macy's Motor Inn and we love the room! The receptionist is very helpful too! She was so nice to offer us a bottle of milk. (In the end, we realize, it is a norm for them to give a bottle of milk, Meadow Fresh to guest. Nevertheless, we are grateful for this bottle of milk!)
After checking in, we went to Tauranga Airport for scenic flight! It would be my first time taking a helicopter! Yeah! The pilot is super nice and funny! And he loves to help us take photos too! Haha. Tauranga is such a beautiful place! I love the view from the helicopter!
This is the helicopter!
We are the happy passengers!
View from the helicopter
After this, we went to Mount Maunganui. The beach there is like East Coast Park with all the bars and restuarants near the beach. We climbed all the way to the top of Mount Maunganui and I must say it is really tiring! Nevertheless, it is worth the effort. :) After resting for a while, we walked down the mountain and we bought ice cream which was super cheap and nice. This must be the best reward for climbing Mount Maunganui. Haha.
View from Mount Maunganui
It's time for dinner and we decided to eat Domino's pizza. It is super cheap! One large pizza, one loaf of garlic bread, one box of fries and one 1.5L of coke costs us only $18.90! It is so cheap and nice! In fact, it is nicer than Pizza Hut!
We definitely had an enjoyable time at Tauranga today. We love the place so much that we wish we could stay one more night and we would definitely come back here.
We had our best sleep at Tauranga... (The best thing about Macy's is, we have free wfi throughout the stay!)
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Angeline winks
at |10:03 AM|
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26th Feb - Auckland
Early in the morning, we woke up for breakfast. But, to our disappointment, we couldn't find any MacD! Most shops were closed and we had no choice but to eat muffins from Muffin Break which was the only shop opened. It was definitely a wrong choice. The muffins weren't that good. :( And you know what? In the end, we realized at a shopping centre near Muffin Break, there was MacD and Burger King! Ah!
Then we went to Sky Tower! The tickets are freaking expensive, but I guess since we were on holiday, we would just spend the money. The view of Auckland City from Sky Tower was good and they even helped us to identify some of the iconic buildings or places in Auckland City. You can also sky walk or do sky diving over here!
After this, we went to buy tickets for Harbour Cruise! It is nice to go on cruise!
On board at Fullers
Auckland City BridgeYou can also do sky diving or sky walking here. Basically, everywhere you go in NZ, you should be able to do such activities. After cruise, we had subway for dinner before we went back to City Lodge to pack our stuff to head to Tauranga!
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Angeline winks
at |8:44 AM|
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25th Feb - Auckland
After a long flight, we had finally reached Auckland! It feels like being in Australia, except that the weather isn't that cold over here as it is summer time now. The temperature is about 18-21 degree celsius which is like being in an air con room in Singapore. It was to our relief to see that all our luggage and Che Che had touched down successfully! Che Che plays an important role in this trip so imagine what will happen if he goes missing?!
Once we had gotten our car, we drove to City Lodge. It was quite an easy drive from airport to City Lodge. It is quite a disappointment as the service is really bad and the room is so small and packed. I am so glad that we would only be staying here for only 2 nights if not I would go crazy.
Boo boo!After taking a short rest, we walked around Auckland City and most shops was already closed. We were happy to find a Jap restuarant which sells ramen. It is quite a satisfying dinner compared to what I had eaten on the plane. :)
We slept early on the first day as we were just too tired...
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Angeline winks
at |11:54 PM|
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Wednesday, March 09, 2011
24th Feb - Flying off to NZ
After waiting for so long, I am finally flying off to New Zealand! It will be a long holiday for me with Jianhui. My parents and Gwyneth sent me to the airport while my sister couldn’t send me off as she had to study for her exam. Teck Loon came to meet us at the airport too!
A group photo before we check in our luggage which is > 46kg!
Look at Jianhui's BIG BOX which contains Che Che! His luggage is really heavy!
After having some drinks, we went into the departure hall. We were excited to board the plane, but when it was near the boarding time, we were told that the flight would be delayed due to some technical fault. We were so worried that due to this delay, we would not be able to board our next flight. Luckily, we made it in time for our transit flight at Brisbane. We were quite sad that we could not have a proper rest at our favourite resting couch before boarding the plane. Nevertheless, at least we made it in time. This would mean that we are nearer to Auckland!
As usual, I couldn’t sleep on the plane… I just can’t wait to reach Auckland.
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Angeline winks
at |11:18 PM|
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