Interesting Experience in Melb: A Not So Ang-Mo Life

All my life, I have not visited any countries except for Malaysia (home-country), Singapore (how modern Malaysia would look like in Lego world) and Thailand (somewhat like a non-Malay/Chinese/Indian-speaking Malaysia).

Basically, I have never gone out of Malaysia, or her lovely influences.

Melbourne, Australia...

When hubby told me that we're going there, I pictured us staying in a foreign land filled with western influences and surrounded by fair-skins, blond hairs and blue eyes. I pictured an ang-mo life in Melbourne...

It's been 2-3 months now since we first arrived. And to my surprise, life here is not as ang-mo as I thought.

I pictured myself eating corn flakes, milk, sunny-side-up eggs for breakfasts.
I drink Milo for breakfast. The Milo here is A LOT tastier!! More chocolatie and not so sweet!! And yes, I can finished up a 1.25 kg Milo in 3 weeks! Ok ok, I'm denying the fact. I actaully finished it in 2 weeks.

I pictured myself eating sandwiches and pasta for lunches.
People here seldom go out for lunches. Usually, some would pack their own lunches. And some would just eat whatever they can find in the pantry. My office pantry has frozen expired bread (yes, FROZEN & EXPIRED since July), peanut butter and fruits. So, they'll make peanut-butter-banana-sandwiches (@_@)... I usually cook more the night before and pack some for my lunch the next day. It's usually chinese food - rice, stir-fry vege and meat.

I pictured myself preparing whole chicken to be roasted for dinner.
Well, this is kinda true. My kitchen is equipped with an oven. And I just looooove experimenting new dishes with it (n_n)/ I've tried making roast chicken, baked fish, baked potatoes + pumpkins + vege, etc etc etc, and the latest, TANDOORI chicken!

I pictured myself surrounded by blond-hairs and blue-eyes.
There's soooooooo many Indians & Asians around. Sometimes, I don't think I'm in Australia.

I pictured myself to be shorter than average girls.
*ahem* I am taller than I thought :P Ya man, I'm proud of my height.

I pictured a world with less shopping malls and less people in the malls
Till I found Chadstone and Southland. Super big, mega-mall. Packed with billiooooons of people. OK, billions is a bit exaggerating. But there's so much people!

I pictured myself having a hard time finding Asian food and ingredients
In the area where I'm living, there's about 2-3 Thai restaurants, 1 Malaysian restaurant, 4-5 Korean/Japanese, and somewhat a few more Asian restaurants... and then there's 3-4 Asian grocery shops (opened by Chinese and Koreans), 1 Indian grocery shop, and 2-3 Asian mini-markets. If you're looking for authentic Asian stuff (like, the classic blue-red china plastic bag, paper tang lung, penyapu lidi, bright pink laundary basin with a classic flower print at the bottom, etc.), you can find them here.

Oh ya... speaking of Asian grocery items, I took some pictures of some interesting items I found :)


Is mooncake festival coming???


Lotsa lotsa mooncakes in so many flavours.


I found A1 Bah-Kut-Teh!


Lotsa Asian sauces and spices. Lotsa Lee Kum Kee stuff too...


Traditional, classic penyapu :)



I wished I took more photos. But people in the shop were looking at me as though I just came out of prison. Haha...