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Monday, November 28, 2011

Tesselaar Tulip Fest part 2

Here's part 2 of the Tesselaar Tulip Fest pics! When I finally finished taking pictures, I realised the last shuttle bus to the city had left early and I was literally stranded in Silvan for a while! And of all times - the public bus didn't arrive and it was getting dark. It was really scary, as the people in the tulip fest area were also starting to leave and there was no one out there. I was lucky though - there was a very kind lady who was driving out of the tulip fest area and she offered to give me a lift back to the city. I'm so thankful that she was there though - and I'd like to meet her again, to thank her once again for her kindness and sincerity.

Anyways before I start, I took a few pictures of the college and Aggie (of course!) - the evening before I left. I've been back in Singapore for about 2 days already and I'm enjoying every moment of it, especially the food! I miss cuddling Aggie though!





Woke up at 6am to get to the airport on Saturday. Starbus (the shuttle bus I took to the airport) was so awesome! I got there at least 3 hours early and I had a lot of time to roam around. So I bought some snacks and as I was wandering down the departure lounge, I saw this:

Grand piano wasn't accessible though! But it made my day.




Dandelions are also springing up everywhere in Melbourne.




Ok back to the tulip fest. Part 1 was about the surrounding areas, while part 2 will be about the tulips themselves! The bulk of my pictures were from the actual fields.



Although I went early in the season, some of the tulips had already opened.




And one of the fun things to do while taking pictures in the main fields - stalking people! :P Well...not exactly stalking, more like taking candid shots! Like these:

"Mum! Stop taking pictures of my sis! Pay attention to me instead!"



"Hmmmm let's pick more tulips!"




Or....even counting the number of tulips that have been picked out.





There was one who even attempted to "re-plant" the tulip she picked. Failed pretty miserably but oh well...



And these pictures show the variety of colours present in the main fields. I took lots of pictures of pink and orange tulips, but there were yellow, white, red, purple and even bicoloured tulips.








When I was taking the pictures, there was a family who was trying to take pictures of this girl here. She seemed really cooperative, so I took one too. This was candid, though. :)



And of course, there were pictures of people taking pictures of the tulips. Using cameras of all shapes, sizes, colours etc...as diverse as the tulips themselves.





And these were probably taken before I actually decided to leave the main fields.




Just another representative of the variety of colours. There were 3 main blocks, with at least 6 aisles of tulips (if I'm not wrong), and each one of them were strategically arranged based on colour.





The main fields were actually on a gentle hill, so when I reached the top of the hill, this was what I got. Took a few wide-angled shots too!





The festival area was already empty by then, and people were starting to pack up and leave the place. Just a snapshot of the various areas outside the main fields...






Speaking of which, I bought a bottle of cajun sauce from the Rayner's Stonefruit Orchard tent. I walked in there, tried some bread (with the same cajun sauce), and oh my gosh it was sooooooo delicious! So I bought the bottle, then took some more of the bread. :D My only regret is that I only bought 1 bottle. Oh well, there'll be other opportunities.

Note to self - take down the address of Rayner's.

Just before leaving, I took some more remaining shots here.







And that was it! Had a good dinner that night in the city after getting back, safe and sound. Whew it was an epic adventure indeed!

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Tesselaar Tulip Fest part 1

It's around 1am as I type these words...which means I'm going home TOMORROW!!! Back to Singapore for yummy delights, and mum's gonna make CURRY!!

Anyway I've got 1 more piano exam to go before I leave. I miss piano lessons already. :( Hope to continue playing hardcore piano even after I graduate.

Ok I'm pretty backdated here - but these are pictures from the Tesselaar Tulip Fest 2011. I went in the earlier part of the fest (SEPTEMBER!!!), and it was really, really gorgeous - in fact, as gorgeous as it was in 2010. Hope to go again next year - and that will make it 3 years in the row!

On the Metro train to Lilydale - going through the outer suburbs of Melbourne, which was getting less densely populated as we headed away from the city.



Fest was in Silvan (a town outside Melbourne), and we had shuttle bus tickets to and from the event itself.



Made a quick trip to the bathroom straight after arriving, and then went off to take pictures of course! The first few pictures were taken mainly at the events area - away from the main fields.








And guess what? One of the main features on that day was a Fairy area - with MUSHROOMS! I LOVE MUSHROOMS AND FAIRIES!!! And gnomes and elves and....the list gets longer...








One of the smaller tulip areas, near the childrens' play area, and near the awesome Fairy area.






Tents were also set up for food, souvenirs and other events, such as live performances.

Had great beef curry for lunch too!!!








And this is the entrance to the main field!




Every now and then there was a tractor from Rayner's Stonefruit Orchard, giving rides around the main fields. There was also a tent from Rayner's, selling jam, sauce and so on. I tasted the cajun chutney and it was SOOOOOO GOOD!!! So I got a bottle (which I'm currently savouring), BUT ate a few more pieces of bread with the chutney. :) Mmmmm...addictive!!

Actually the chutney went well with BOTH bread and rice!



I shall reserve the remaining pictures of the main fields for part 2.

Meanwhile, I went to see Aggie the college cat yesterday, and she was looking as good as ever! Here're some of her vain shots...I'm gonna miss her when I leave!

That's the problem with being an international student I guess - being "stranded" in the middle of nowhere - missing Melbourne when I'm in Singapore and missing Singapore when I'm in Melbourne. Gosh...pretty confusing huh?








Will post pictures for part 2 of the fest soon!