December 12, 2006



















Never have I seen this kind of Christmas Tree, an upside down Xmas Tree! At first I thought that maybe it has been displayed this way due to limited space, but when I saw one in an advertisement from a catalogue we receive weekly, it dawned on me that this is how the way it stands. Dont't ask, but the answer is "I don't know, too!"

November 06, 2006

We frequent the bay coz we love to smell the fresh breeze from the sea. Summer is fast approaching and a lot of people enjoy windsurfing at the bay which can be seen at the background.
One of Alie's creations shown here which we delightfully devoured in no time.

September 11, 2006

We went to IMax Theatre and watched a 3D film entitled "Deep Sea" narrated by Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet. It was nice but ran for 45 minutes only. Since IMax is located inside Melbourne Museum, we visited the museum for a few additional dollars. We weren't disappointed as there were loads of stuff to see.
Actual bones of a T-Rex dinosaur. I wonder how much was the cost to buy this.
Seen at the background are Australia's native animals.
A pose with a preserved polar bear, king crab and mmmm, i don't know what the other one is.
Traffic during the earlier decades in Australia was maintained by this colorful contraption.
This massive machine is Australia's first computer. It had a capacity of 2,000 bytes and its power consumption was 30,000 watts! Those were the days...
I could not help but admire these beautiful crystals inside a rock formation. These crystals can be appreciated more when viewed under dim conditions because they are luminous and glow in the dark.
Taken at the Discovery Centre in the museum where a variety of collections can be viewed such as fossils, preserved birds and bugs, australian coins, minerals, etc.
Luke making some free art at the children's gallery of the Melbourne Museum.

August 28, 2006

We went to Scienceworks Museum where the kids and adults alike had fun exploring science in everyday life. It was like a huge educational playground inside. We watched a presentation in the Planetarium located inside the building entitled "The Search for Life: Are We Alone?" narrated by Harrison Ford who had a mesmerizing voice. Now, how cool was that?
Orly having fun at the Pumping Station located beside the Scienceworks Museum















Look! We are building a bridge
Jacob operating a mini backhoe.
Luke discovering what happens inside a vacuum cleaner, as well as what consists of the average household dust.

August 14, 2006


Taken at the Exhibition of Leonardo da Vinci's Machines at Melbourne Docklands. We could not resist taking a photo beside the greatly admired Monalisa portrait. Would have bought a Monalisa portrait, unfortunately, it was already out of stock. We didn't want to go home empty handed so we bought a copy of The Last Supper (I got the last copy on the stand)















One of Da Vinci's design of a flying machine based on the principle of flapping flight with a flexible wing. This design, one of his earliest, consisted of a wooden framework and two movable wings.











He produced many drawings of flying machines, one of which was the helical airscrew or helicopter. It was a four-winged flying machine that was designed to be driven by one person standing inside it. Leonardo da Vinci was not only a painter, but an engineer, inventor and philosopher.
From the Museum of Leonardo da Vinci in Italy, 64 interactive models of Leonardo Da Vinci's famous machines consructed by Florentine artisans which are based on Da Vinci's famous codices are now on display at the Waterfront City, Docklands, Melbourne from July to September 2006.

July 18, 2006

Jacob and Luke in their winter school uniform. Asking them how school was, Luke found it enjoyable even though he can't understand what was being said at times. Jake's comment was that kids were so loud. They are the only Filipino in their class so they should be able to understand and speak English in a few weeks.

July 04, 2006

SALE, SALE and more SALE. Every week we receive these catalogues from different stores being distributed and left in our mailbox. Browsing through the pages and finding some items really tempting, we are heading to KMart on the first day of their July Sale and hope we can buy something we really like.

June 26, 2006

Jacob has developed his reading because of the wide array of children's books found in the library. To my delightful surprise, he now regularly reads kids' pocketbooks at home.
We love to go to the local library where members can borrow up to 25 books at a time. VHS, music CD's and movies (mostly educational) are also available. They have around 15 computers where internet surfing is free except for e-mail and chat, these they charge for AuD2.10 per half hour, yikes!

June 13, 2006

View of the Yarra River at about 4 pm. The winter season has officially started and it gets quite dark early these days.
Still more snapshots of the Business District.
View of Melbourne CBD as seen on the Observation Deck.
Alie and Kitchie went to the City on their own and explored some of the places such as the Rialto Tower which is famous for its Observation Deck where you can have a bird's eyeview of Melbourne.

June 07, 2006

Is this a duck or a swan? Seems to be too big for a duck, but is it a swan in black? Do enlighten us please...
Melbourne's first port is Williamstown, located at the mouth of the Yarra River. It is now one of the metropolitan suburbs near Melbourne City. View across is the city's Central Business District.

June 04, 2006

What a big fat fish! You'd love to pat it on the back like a pet doggie.
This is a large plexiglass fish tank simulating a pond popularly known here as a Billabong which dries up in the summer months.
Overhead tank with lots of huge manta rays and sharks. Taken at the third underground level of the aquarium.
Facade of the Melbourne Aquarium
Jacob's profile against Melbourne skies. Air is so fresh and clean. No trace of smog, what a relief!
Boats cruise along the Yarra River for a fee. This is a must ride for tourists.

June 03, 2006

Taken along the Yarra River at St. Kilda Road. It's quite cold at this time, around 15-16 degrees.
Trams at the background ply Melbourne City and surrounding suburbs.
Flinder's Station is the yellow building at the back which has an underground train stop. On the left side, trams can be seen. These trams are one of the major transport operating around Melbourne City and its nearby suburbs.
Taken at Melbourne City. At the background is the Visitor's Centre wherein information on Melbourne City and regional Victoria can be found.

April 07, 2006

Daytime Melbourne, along the Yarra River
Melbourne at night