What I did this summer-Part 1

Four weeks ago, we went on a trip to Milford Sound to usher the new year and celebrate our anniversary. We left home on 30th December and began our road trip to the south, away from shaky Christchurch. As usual, the journey through the Mackenzie country was nothing short of spectacular. We drove through a picture perfect highway with snow capped mountains in a distance and fields of sheep as far as the eye could see.

After a three hour drive, we finally stopped at the Church of the Good Shepherd, Lake Tekapo. The little chapel, named after the Good Shepherd of the New Testament, was built by the European sheep farmers to commemorate the ‘good shepherds’ of pioneering days. Despite being my 4th visit to the chapel, I couldn’t resist taking lots and lots of photos. Let me just show you the decent ones plus the ones taken from the previous years.



Summer 2010



Winter 2011




Summer - December 2011







After half an hour of photo shoot, we continued our journey. We had planned to stay in a cabin next to Lake Tekapo but most of the motels were fully booked. The only ones left were the expensive suites. It didn’t really surprise me ‘cos summer is the most peak season in NZ and it was the school holiday. The fact that Peter Jackson was filming a movie at the site also made the area even more crowded. Have you heard of the  Hobbit? That’s the movie they were filming.

We had a quick toilet break at Lake Tekapo town area before heading straight to Omarama. It was getting pretty dark when we left and the kids were already getting restless. I looked at my watch and was surprised to see that it was already 9.15 pm. As the sun set deeper into the valley, we could see a ray of light piercing through the clouds. It was a magnificent sight. Hubby pulled over to take pictures of the glorious sunset and the kids were absolutely wowed by the view.

After a brief moment of 'wow' and 'wahhh', we drove  another 10 km before we finally reached Omarama, our pit stop for the day. It wasn't hard searching for our chosen accomodation, the Heritage Gateway Hotel. After checking-in and getting our luggage sorted, I quickly prepared dinner for everyone. The menu: instant food. Ready made lasagna for the kids and noodles with veggies and fish for the adults. After a satisfying dinner, everyone went to bed, exhausted. Well, everyone except me.

Sleepy Alden

I don't know what got into me but I just couldn't sleep. I was probably too excited about the trip to Milford Sound. After tossing and turning in bed for an hour, I decided  get up and watch 15 episodes of Pretty Little Liars. That's how I ended up sleeping on the couch.

source

There was more excitement the next day but I'll save that part for the next post :)

Agony

"There's nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."
                                                                                                                        

                                                                              - Ernest Hemingway

I'm bleeding alright. Can't wait to finish my thesis.

 

Wool Anniversary

Dear Alex

Today is our 7th wedding anniversary. Reminiscences of our wedding day this morning made me smile and think “wow, we’ve come a long way”. We’ve been together for 9 years, married for 7 years and blessed with two kids. Aren't you glad we said "I do" ? I am. Thank you for continuously putting up with my crap and loving me the way you do.




1.1.2012

 

Love,

Your soul mate

Friday Fingers: Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! :)

I shop, therefore I am

"you know that thing, when you see someone cute and he smiles, and you heart kind of goes like warm butter sliding down hot toast? Well, that's what it's like when I see a store. Only it's better."

- Confession of a Shopaholic

Yes, this post is all about shopping.

Recently, a Christchurch perfume wholesaler organised a 4-day fragrance and cosmetic sale in the city. I knew the response was going to be crazy, it being Christmas and all, but that didn't stop me from going. Here's a glimpse of what it looked like.



Make-up section




Nail polish section



Despite the shop’s unappealing presentation, the turnout was massive. Women of all ages, from teenagers to senior citizens turned up at the sale, all eager to get their hands on something. When I got a closer look at the items, I could see why everyone was possessed. So many designer perfumes were sold at just a fraction of the retail price and cosmetic items like lipstick, mascara, eye shadow and foundations were sold for less than $10.

When I saw the nail polish section, my heart skipped a beat. LA Colours and Sally Hansen were selling for only $3 each! There were heaps of women crowding the long table, but I wasn’t bothered. I quickly joined the circus and created a mental shopping list. All I wanted was to get 3 nail polishes; 2 Sally Hansens and 1 OPI. That's it. I had bought myself an early Christmas present the week before so I wasn’t planning on making a splurge. My plan was to follow the list.

When I got to the table, I was hit with amnesia. List? What list? I ended up doing what I do best and that was to shop compulsively. The first brand I searched for was Sally Hansen, simply 'cos it was the cheapest. I searched through all the boxes but I couldn't find any. Not even one. I soon discovered that all the nail polishes were selling so fast, only a few colours were left. Unperturbed, I continued searching through each basket and after some serious digging, I managed to get a few decent colours; red, pink, brown, peach, a top coat and a pink cracked nail polish. When I put them in my shopping basket, a familiar feeling of euphoria  overtook me. Bliss!

After nail polish, it was time to hunt for cosmetics. I headed to the cosmetic section and struggled my way through the isle. Too many devoted shopaholics around was indeed nauseating. Everyone was on a shopping frenzy, digging for their own treasure. 

I got a bit disoriented at the sight of so many people but I continued digging for my treasure.  It wasn't an easy task 'cos all the make-up were jumbled up in boxes and sold like vegetables. It felt like I was at tamu Dongongon. Although there was a sign that said "Do not open the products", most of them  were opened and tested. This made shopping 100 times harder cos I needed to scrutinize each item carefully. After some serious effort, I got myself a cheap Revlon mascara and a blue eyeshadow palette from Maybelline. Mission accomplished!

Next, lipstick. I spent about half an hour scanning and testing different brands of lipsticks before I ended up at the Calvin Klein section. I'd never bought a CK lipstick before so I thought I'd give it a try. It was only $8 each. I found a perfect shade of pink  while sampling the testers and quickly rummaged through the boxes to find a new one.

Apparently, a blond next to me also wanted the same colour. I heard her saying "Mesmerize, Mesmerize, Mesmerize" while searching through the boxes.  It wasn't easy finding a particular colour amidst hundreds of lipsticks but the blond and I were dedicated. I kept on digging even when my tummy was oozing with acid and when I needed to pee the voice in my head said “nature call can wait. Must get that lipstick before the blond gets it!” After what seemed like an eternity, both the blond and I found Mesmerize! YESSS!! That was probably the best shopping orgasm I had this year. 

After digging for lipsticks and nail polishes, I got a bit tired. My tummy was grumbling and my bladder was going to burst anytime soon. The stupid warehouse didn't  have a toilet or a cafe so there was no way I could  ease myself without leaving the premise. Because I hadn't bought anything for hubby, I decided to suck it up for a few minutes more. I changed my hunting mode to turbo and began shopping like a dude. I sampled a few fragrances, looked at the prices and quickly chose 3 for hubby. I did this in less than 10 minutes! Efficient kan? I couldn't leave without rewarding myself so I took 3 perfumes as a token of self-appreciation. And then I was done!

When I got home, the first thing I did (after going to the loo) was show hubby what I bought for him. He smiled and said thank you. When  he asked me what  I bought for myself, I said "Cat kuku sama make-up seja". I didn't show him everything cos he was busy watching a rerun of Manchester United vs. QPR. Plus, I didn't want to  see that raised-eyebrow expression on his face. Hehe.

Since I didn't show them to hubby, I might as well show them to you.

for hubby

for myself

early Christmas presents for myself



my two-hour effort



The shopping trip was more challenging than what I'm accustomed to but my scavenging effort was really worthwhile. What's a sale without a dose of chaos right? :)