Lake Thetis

So yes I was going to blog about a day trip. I decided to break the story into a few parts so I won't bore you guys. The first part is about a place called Lake Thetis. From afar it just looks like any other lake. Just the same big puddle of water expected of any other decent lake on the planet.

There. A big puddle of water in the middle of nowhere.

Asking you to look for some birdy. Did not see it.

 

You need to walk out to the lake. It was 300 meters from the car park.

Here's an information board about the lake.

The board says that the base of the lake is PURPLE. Which is really COOL! The purple hue is caused by communities of sulphur bacteria residing at the bottom of the lake. Some of this purple stuff is washed up to the shore during stormy weather, causing the edges of the lake to look a bit pinkish.

See the very light pink between the blue and yellow?

The signboard also tells you what these dome-like objects are.

They're actually colonies of bacteria! Yes there is a lot of bacteria in the lake. The domes come in different, irregular shapes because they are formed by different species of cynobacteria. Essentially, what you are looking at are colonies of bacteria and calcium carbonate growing upwards. These domes took thousands of years to form (it takes a lot of microscopic organisms to form an ugly pile of rock visible to the eye). The lake is 1.5 times saltier than the sea, so few predators live there and the bacteria are left to mind their own business.

Behold the armies of bacteria.

 And we take a happy group photo with this fantastic lake!

The upcoming 2nd part of this post will be about the Pinnacles, which I will describe as a yellow desert full of erect rocks. Spot-on description.

Food

The blog has been dead for more than a week. That's against the laws of physics, nature and the universe. I did not intend to officially update this until after my midsem test on Monday, but the laws of the universe must NEVER be breached. No no. So I'm doing a quick unofficial update here.

The easiest way to update a blog is to throw a bunch of food photos in and put in a few unimaginative captions. Heaven willing, you shall stare at those photos as though you have never seen proper food served on the table since the second World War.

My new friend Lucas and his Hong Kong version of our ABC soup. Potatoes, tomatoes and egg.

Having friends from different countries is great, but having friends from different countries who know how to cook is BEST! You get to try all sorts of new stuff, which they deem 'local' and you deem 'alien'.

Zhong Yang's Carbonara. If you feel it tastes bad, you have no taste buds. That simple.

Home-made Nasi Lemak with some weird curry. Not bad.

This is an unnamed weird spicy pasta we invented.

Food. *Unimaginative caption*

Out tom yam soup! It actually exceeded my expectations, save for the part it wasn't spicy enough.

After I deal with the unusually annoying Derivative Securities midsem on Monday, I'll talk about a day trip to the Pinnacles Desert. The Pinnacles Desert is a hot, dry place where Australians go to see sand pillars. That's all you need to know for now.

Beach Photos

Here are a couple of beach photos I took around Perth when some relatives visited. Great weather, bright sun, perfect for a beach day provided you have enough sunblock. Sunblock is important here for those of you who do not intend to incinerate yourselves.

First up, Cottesloe...

Next is some part of Rockingham (north I think)...

 

 

Below is another part of Rockingham. Across the water is what everyone calls Penguin Island. Yes, you can really see penguins there they say. Tiny furry ones. A sand bay connecting the island and the mainland emerges every time the tide recedes, and you can walk over to Penguin Island in knee-deep water. Just be careful not to get trapped off the mainland when the tide rises back!

I love how the water is so clear in Perth! The only downside is when the water is clear and the beach is clean, you will never get any clams to dig up...

Beach Art

I learned the Australians build sculptures and place them on Cottesloe beach once a year. This show of creativity involves artists exhibiting their artwork on the stretch of sand making up the famous beach, where many flock to during the summer for a picnic/swim/surf.

My visit to Cottesloe was an entirely spontaneous decision made at 11.30pm Saturday. Cottesloe beach is delightfully tranquil come nightfall, with the only downside being me unable to take very clear photos of the beach art.

This I think was made out of paper mache.

A crocodile made out of fish nets.

Some joker decided to build a jumping skeleton.

This is my favourite. They're like wind turbines made out of bamboo.

When the blades spin, the turbines emit a humming noise. The pitch depends on the height of the stick. Fascinating!

A bunch of toys hanging from a tree.

Rolling pin...

...complete with victims and perpetrators! Haha

Car accident? No. This was another piece of creative artwork.

 

Aluminium rotors spinning in the wind. They look like they're floating, but they're actually tied to trees.

I wonder why we never get such exhibitions in Malaysia. It would be pretty cool, since Penang has some reasonably clean beaches (Batu Ferringhi/Tanjung Bungah) suitable for such an event. Vandalism would be a problem, I guess. 

Hello Again, Perth

Few classes, but heavy duty. I believe that sums up my final semester. And for those that do not know, I'm back in Perth. It's going to be my base of operations again, at least for the next few months until I graduate. Do I intend to stay on after that? Well heaven knows.

For now, it's back to doing my own laundry, housekeeping and cooking with Master Chef Zhong Yang. Time to work some magic in the kitchen again! Being away from home isn't always bad. You get to meet new people, do some crazy stuff you would never do at home and experience new cultures.

Oh, and you get to watch late night horror movies with friends and tease them when they scream their lungs out. That has to be a highlight.

Goodbye Penang!

In less than 6 hours, I'll be on a plane to Singapore, then Perth. So here's a shoutout to my number one island, Penang! Goodbye and see you in a few months, when hopefully, the country has observed a spectacular election and is being run by a better government.

Only when we leave do we ever realise there's no place like home. But to do great things, one has to take brave steps. Even if it means going someplace far away from home.

May we all achieve the great things we leave home for.