July 2019

After what happened to T, my exams, wedding preparations were all delayed. Initially, my plan was to take them around and have a good time whilst preparing for the wedding. But plans sometimes don’t work.

As we pick them up from the airport, I knew I won’t be able to tour them much because I had to prepare for my exams. So unfortunate that the exams were scheduled a week before the wedding, until Friday afternoon while the wedding was Saturday. Anyway, we did what we could do. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful family.

Another misfortune was I realized the wedding ring my parents originally gifted us was gone. For some reason, it wasn’t where I originally placed it. Luckily, my sister was still back in the Philippines and was able to help us find a not-so pricey one. Our rings went from Gold to Tungsten, from fitting to too tight and from sentimental (cos it was from my parents and personally picked and fitted them in a shop in the Philippines) to a semi-sentimental one as it was bought via online communication.

Anyway, this post is about my parents’ getaway and explorations. I was impressed with their ability to walk in the cold. There was one time we walked 11km and they still wanted more. I just had to cut the walk as I had to study.  We managed to go around the trails of Dandenong.

We also did the Free walking tour by https://www.imfree.com.au/melbourne/ . As per all the free tours, they run by donation. It was an educational walk around the city. We also went to the Firelight Festival and enjoyed the free performances and fireworks display. This festival only ran for 3days and we are fortunate to have witnessed it. We also watched the sunset at Chelsea Beach one afternoon.

— Side story: Singapore Night Festival was as interesting. T and I ‘s first date involved enjoying Singapore Night Festival.

We also managed to buy an affordable tour to the Great Ocean Road with  ‘New to Melbourne’, a Facebook group that offers big group tours around Victoria for a cheaper price. Check them out as they’re more affordable than most tours.

I could see how my parents are having a great time and looking at them happy makes me want to take them to more places. Unfortunately, because of my life choices, I can’t do that as much as before yet. I know, I will be able to eventually.

The remaining days they were here were spent preparing for the wedding (mum helped arrange the flowers and make/design the souvenirs. I couldn’t have done it without her help), helping Tim and I and having occasional meet-ups with my sister in the city.