Let's see - where did we leave off yesterday? Ending of the first night .. The sleep was great. Didn't wake up even once all the way till morning.
Second day (if you count the arrival day as the first day) was about exploring. Went around town looking for stuff needed for the apartment. Felt so weird that not too long ago I was getting rid of stuff and even having to plead with some people to take in stuff I had to give away. Now I am back to searching for stuff needed for the apartment and such. From plates to coffee mugs to this and that.
Even had to find really inexpensive bedsheets for the bed. The apartment, I was told, will come with a Queen size bed. But when I got here, I found out that they have a King size bed. Or rather it is two single size bed zipped together to form one BIG bed. Drats. So my soft and smooth bedsheet will not work. For the night, however, I had to use it to go to sleep. Fortunately, they did provide a duvet and duvet cover. Albeit a bit old (and grandma like looking cover), it kept me warm and toasty. Not that it is "cold" here - but it does get a bit "chilly." No need aircond that's for sure.
Anyway, found a really inexpensive king size sheet at the Salvation Army Family Store. Ya ya - before you go there, you don't need to tell me they are from people who have passed away. A friend already tried to convince me she saw the face of a lady in a plate I picked up from there. Yikes! Luckily I don't care much about that .. not much anyway. Gotta be trifty all over again - just like Uni days when we had to buy mix and match stuff. But who is complaining? Not me, for sure. Quite fun to rummage around the store for used items. It is kinda like the flea markets or yard sales I used to go to when I was in the US. You do come across a lot of interesting stuff. And - by the way - these are all stuff from people who have passed on. Sometimes, they are just stuff people get rid off because they have to move or make space for new members of the family etc. However you look at it - this can still be a humbling experience to go shopping for "old" and "used" items. No harm in that. So - whiners out there, quit your yapping and horror stories.
I mentioned the Warehouse in yesterday's posting. Well, as predicted I was back there again on the second day. And the third as well. Today being the fourth day - I decided to skip it. In place, I went to another store called KMart. If you have been to America, you will be familiar with this. It was, over there, a competitor to WalMart. And while I preferred WalMart, KMart is not too bad. Here, I found it - it is even better than the Warehouse where pricing is concerned. But they didn't seem to have as much as the Warehouse - and plus the Warehouse has free parking.
Anyway, second day was mainly about equipping myself with more stuff needed for around the house - including washing detergent, laundry powder and such. The apartment is coming around just fine - more and more ME in the apartment now. The last shop I went to on the second day was this place called Pak n Save. Household stuff, particularly food items, are best bought here. It is a BIG supermarket. Meat, vegetables, etc - this is the place to go. But lo and behold when I got there, I found out I had no wallet with me. So no point going around selecting stuff. So I decided to leave. But before I did that, I kinda stopped by and took peeks at how people check out. I had done this before when I visited NZ the first time. They have these self-check out counters. You just scan your items and place them in a bag yourself. At the end, it will ask you if you want to pay by cash or by card (they use some kinda debit card I think - not a credit card) to check out. Thought I'd get a quick lesson vicariously so I wont look like a nut when I had to do my own checkout.
Since it was still bright out when I left the supermarket - was wondering if I would want to wander around. Decided to go "home" instead and just settle in. But enroute back to the apartment, I saw a turn off - and on impulse I decided to turn into this narrow lane going up slight slope. Wasn't sure if it was allowed cos one lady who was jogging along the lane, slowed town and moved aside to let me past. Well, I just went on slowly - not really worried as I had my trusty Waze with me. After a minute of two of driving, I came to a huge car park. A couple of cars parked there (and a super bike too) told me it was ok to drive up that lane after all. WOW! What a view from this place. Reminded me of my visit to Apollo Bay last year. View was gorgeous (both in AB and here). The wind was blowing - and it was chilly but pleasant. Stayed awhile - took some shots - admired the beauty and gave thanks for such great opportunity afforded to me. Thought of all those people who would love to see this place but never get to. I am lucky beyond words.
Sleep on the second night wasn't as great as I had loads of dreams. Sorry can't write them here - cos mainly can't remember them. And if I did, would have to do a lot of censorship anyway - if you know what I mean. Hahahaha. Maybe it was the lady from the plate my friend claimed to have seen "bothering" me. Who knows?
Third day was also about exploring. Went downtown to settle some business at the postoffice. I think they call it Post Shop. That was taken care of rather quickly, I decided to take a walk around to check out the place. Looked like what is the town centre with a huge and gorgeous park for people to just sit back and enjoy. Everything seems so peaceful and easy going here.
On the way back, stopped by Pak N Save again to get some food items. Now armed with my wallet - no problemo. Stocked up a little with the usual "poor man's" items like instant noodles and such. After that, went back to the Indian shop I saw the day earlier to see if I can get any spicy stuff. Also did a takeaway for my lunch (and also dinner since I normally split my meals into two portions).
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| Indian Food for lunch on Day 3 |
On my way back, the office staff stopped me and handed me an electric pan I had asked for. They normally only provide these to short-term tennants since their cost of staying is a lot higher. But they had agreed to loan me for the time being so I could go hunt for these items myself after I settle in (and did some price comparisons). Thought I would be able to cook my noodles for the night and kept the left over for the next day - but too bad. The electric fryer would not work. So back to the original plan - finished up the Nan bread and curry! Still yummy. :)
One more day of running around a bit - on the fourth day. As mentioned earlier - this time I went to KMart. Found out it was actually attached to the Plaza. Prices here are even better than the Warehouse. Got me a hot plate for cooking - at half the price from that at the Warehouse. Couldn't find one in the Salvation Army. So now I get to start cooking - first with the instant noodles of course.
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| First "home" cooked meal - instant noodles. |
Gonna stop here.
Peace
Syl
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