Michi Photostory

September 10, 2024

Day 7 in Sydney Australia: Sydney Australia to Manila Philippines

“Vacations comes and go, but happy experiences are forever” - Hermione GT

Time passes very quickly and after several days, it was time to say goodbye to Sydney, Australia. Our last day was our flight to Manila, Philippines so we woke early to prepare for our afternoon flight.

Since it was our last day, I cooked our leftover ham and hotdog and we need to eat and drink all the complimentary breakfast like the bread, fruits, milk and juice, para walang sayang.

We check out at Hyde Park Inn around 8:30AM and we arrived at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport three hours before our flight. Unfortunately, all check in counters were still closed, as in we didn’t know where to fall in line, nagkahalo-halo na yung pila ng mga airlines to Manila. Our flight was 12NN and past 10AM na kami nakapagcheck-in and because of that, sobrang nagmamadali kami.

Immigration is via Smartgates so you just need to scan your passport + facial recognition and that’s it. My son and I were able to pass through Smartgates but my husband needs to go to Manual Passport Control Counter because for some reason, hindi nareread passport niya doon sa Smartgates. After that, we went straight to our boarding gate just to make sure kung malapit ba or malayo and if we still have time to eat.

The House Airport Lounge

My husband went to “The House”, this is the complimentary lounge of Philippine Airlines at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport. He just ate here and we will meet na lang ulit sa boarding gate.

Opening Hours: 5:00-20:00

Location: The House is located before gate 50 and next to Amcal pharmacy

My son and I just ordered the boxed meal at KFC, the meal includes Original Tenders, Popcorn Chicken, Fries, Mashed Potato and Drink + additional drink. Food is around 22AUD. PHP800+ na yang isang meal.

Pasalubong from Australia

After eating, we went to Think Sydney and Pharmacy to buy some souvenirs before going to the boarding gate. Nagmamadali pa kami pero delayed naman pala flight namin. Tapos, boarding took a long time pa because we need to ride bus.

After 8 hours, we were back to Manila. End of vacation and back to reality.

Read: Manila - Sydney- Manila flight via Philippine Airlines

7 Days Trip in Sydney Australia

September 06, 2024

Happy Grandparent’s Day Card

Growing up, I was not aware that there was Grandparents’ Day or National Grandparents’ Day because we never celebrate this occasion. It was sad to think because my late grandmother raised me but I never greeted her on this special day.

I discovered that Grandparents’ Day started in 1965 and Poland was the first country to celebrate it. The date varies per country and here in the Philippines, it is celebrated every second Sunday of September since 1987. Grabe ang tagal na noh pero kelan lang ako naging aware.

I no longer have grandparents so I decided to make a card for my mom. Using the Peg Doll Family Creator, I mixed and matched the elements so I could personalize this card. A picture of my mom with six grandchildren. The font is Happy Heart. Another option is printing the card and putting it on a photo frame.

This is a simple printable card. I printed, die cut, and attached the design to my card base. This is my entry for Bee Happy Weeklies Week 36: Grandparents.

September 04, 2024

Day 6 in Sydney Australia: Taronga Zoo and Sydney Harbour Hopper Cruise

I am done with my Animal Layered Craft so let me continue my Sydney, Australia series. For our sixth day, we went to Taronga Zoo via Fantasea Cruising Sydney. There are three zoos that you can visit in Sydney, you can go to Sydney Zoo, Featherdale Sydney Wildlife, and Taronga Zoo. I chose the latter because it is the most booked zoo in Klook and an opportunity for us to ride a ferry.

You can purchase tickets only but I chose the combo voucher; Taronga Zoo with 1 Day Sydney Harbour Hopper Pass so I don’t need to buy separate tickets for Ferry.

Taronga Zoo and Sydney Harbour Ferry Ticket

Admission to Taronga Zoo

Admission to 1 Day Sydney Harbour Hopper Pass

English-speaking staff

1-Day Access to Manly – Watsons Bay Ferry

Round-trip ferry transfers

Taronga Zoo is not for profit. It is a government-run public zoo and the money you spend supports the future of wildlife. It is located on Bradleys Head Road in Mosman and the right side of Sydney Harbour. You can reach the zoo via ferry, bus, and private car.

We can collect the ticket at Darling Harbour, Pier 26, or Circular Quay. We chose the latter so from Hyde Park Inn, we walked to Museum Train Station to ride the train to Circular Quay. Then we walked to Wharf 6 and looked for the Fantasea Cruising Booth. I just presented our voucher and the staff gave us tickets and Sydney Harbour Hopper Timetable.

The zoo opens at 9:30AM and the first boat trip is 9:04AM. The ferry trip is about 15 minutes and from there we walked to the Taronga Zoo South entrance (3 minutes). You can get a map or download the Taronga App so you can plan your tour.

Taronga is an Aboriginal word meaning “beautiful view” and true to its word, you have a stunning view of Sydney Harbour while in the zoo. This zoo is over 100 years old, it started operating on October 7, 1916. It is so big tapos, up and down pa so nakakapagod talaga.

Since the ticket is not cheap we really took our time exploring the zoo. We also watched Giraffe Keeper Talk, Free Flight Birds, Dingo Keeper Talk, and Seals for the Wild.

There are 3 restaurants inside the zoo; Saltwater Bistro, Forage & Graze Cafe, and Taronga Food Market. We ate at Taronga Food Market but I can’t remember what we ordered, ito lang yung photo na nasa phone ko. I don’t know kung chicken or fish + chips ba yan and anong burger. Hehehe!

Taronga Zoo Admission Fee

Adult - $47.70

Child (4-15) - $27.90

Concession - $36.90

Infant (0-3) - Free

Note: Taronga Zoo Sydney is now cashless, with contactless payments accepted when purchasing General Admission Zoo tickets and across our retail, food, and beverage outlets.

Taronga Zoo Opening Hours

Winter - 9.30am to 4.30pm

Summer - 9:30am to 5:00pm

Sydney Harbour Hopper Cruise

After watching the Seals for the Wild, we immediately walk to the wharf so we can catch the 14:46 ferry and start our Sydney Harbour Cruise. We could explore Watsons Bay and Manly Wharf but we were so tired already and we didn’t want to walk na so we just stayed on the boat and enjoyed the cruise. Naka 23,745 steps lang naman ako ng Day 6.

There is complimentary self-service tea and coffee onboard. Soda in can is 3AUD but they don’t accept cash payment.

This was our last day to enjoy Sydney so when we arrived at Circular Quay, we explored the area again, ate gelato, and shop some souvenirs.

It was funny because we were in Sydney for 6 days pero wala kami evening photos kasi lagi kami umuuwi before dinner and nasa hotel na kami bago pa maggabi. Yung body clock kasi namin, pang Philippines pa rin.

Read: 7 Days Trip in Australia

September 01, 2024

Teacher’s Appreciation Cards

Time is slipping away and I can’t believe we just entered the “ber months”. Wow, September na and I am not yet ready for the holiday season.

Anyway, last year I was stressed because my son’s school celebrated “Teacher’s Day” in advance, so I was cramming to finish my craft project, Gnome Teacher Easel Cards. So this year, ayaw ko na mastress so I made my Teacher’s Day cards earlier than expected.

I purchased this Teacher Thank You Card Bundle a few years ago and I already cut this design two years ago. You can check the Teacher Insert Cards here.

This year, I used the same design but I changed the design to draw because I wanted to color the design. You can purchase the bundle or if you have a Cricut Access Subscription, it is also available there.

August 30, 2024

Animal Layered Craft

Do you like visiting zoos? When my son was still a kid, I always included zoo in our itinerary, feeling ko kasi educational trip. hehehe! Suppose you are a regular reader of this blog. In that case, you know that we’ve visited different zoos already and I will never forget our Singapore trip because we went to River Safari, Singapore Zoo, Jurong Bird Park, and Night Safari in three days. Imagine, puro animals lang nakikita ko sa bakasyon namin.

Read: 5 Days in Singapore with Kid

But how time flies, nakakamiss din pumunta sa mga kid’s attraction so even though my son is no longer a kid, kapag gumagawa ako ng itinerary, feeling ko bata pa rin siya kasi may zoo pa rin. I was about to blog about our trip to Taronga Zoo in Sydney last year but crafting is life, so nagcraft muna ko. I don’t usually buy souvenirs so i-craft ko na lang.

So I am sharing the animal-layered craft that I finished this week. My favorite is the giraffe. All these projects are designed by Craft with Sarah.

Giraffe and Baby

Kangaroo and Joey

Koala in a Tree and Australian Koala

Sea Lion

Seal Mother and Baby

August 28, 2024

Birthday Celebration at Orange Bucket

There is always a long weekend during my birthday month so pwede talaga kaming magtravel. However, this year, I did not plan any birthday getaway because I still remember our experience last year when we went to Puerto Galera na inulan lang kami. Weather is unpredictable and I don’t want to take risks so I told myself na kakain na lang kami sa labas.

I searched for different credit card promos and I found some hotel buffets so I suggested this to my husband pero hindi kami natuloy. Kasi naman bigla nalipat yung holiday so nagbago din schedule ng anak ko sa school. I want to eat during weekdays kasi, bukod sa mura ang rate, feeling ko lang mas konti ang tao.

My husband suggested some restaurants in Tagaytay but I declined. Hello, nagkaroon nga ng volcanic smog tapos doon pa ko magcecelebrate. Hehehe! So I told him Orange Bucket na lang then IKEA.

I always see this restaurant on social media but there is no branch in our area so dadayuhin pa talaga. Also my son doesn’t like seafood pero dahil birthday ko naman, ako masusunod. Hehehe!

So last week, we went to Orange Bucket Newport branch, we arrived before 11AM and there was only one occupied table but most of the tables were reserved so hindi kami makapili ng magandang pwesto.

The staff gave us the menu but we saw the August Special for PHP1999 + SC, it includes the Signature Seafood Bucket, 4 cups of rice and 1 pitcher of blue lemonade so yun na agad inorder namin. My son ordered TOB Buffalo Wings PHP365 + SC.

The Signature Seafood Bucket includes 500g crab, 400g shrimp, 300g mussels, 300g scallops, 200g potato marble, and 2 pieces of corn. They have The Big Bang, Garlic Butter, Lemon Pepper, and Black Pepper for flavor, but I chose Garlic Butter since hindi ako mahilig sa spicy.

TOB Buffalo Wings - Fried chicken wings tossed in secret buffalo sauce, served with carrots, celery stick, and blue cheese dip. They served our food after 15 minutes and the feasting began, There were plastic aprons, gloves, and tissues so hindi ka madudumihan kapag kumain.

The food was just okay for us, konti kasi yung garlic butter sauce so hindi ko siya gaano malasahan. My husband and I were not able to finish the seafood bucket so take-out and yung lemonade, pwede din itake-out. Nasobrahan lang sa tamis yung juice. Service is good and we still enjoyed our experience. If ever we go back, I will try the other sauces baka mas okay ang lasa.

We were done after 30 minutes and we went to IKEA para lang bumili ng sampayan. Hindi kasi pwede for delivery ito kaya hindi ko naisabay sa mga online order ko. It was a quick trip kasi ang dami din tao.