I've heard mighty lots about Vodafone – often favorable – hence deciding to sign up with them.

After lots of research, KISS mobile is the only reliable telco carrier that offers a prepaid, no contract Blackberry Internet Service (BIS) enabled SIM card

They run on Vodafone cell towers and network too.

 

As most of you would already know, I have been in the city for 2 weeks upon arriving in Melbourne. That was where I had full bars of signal, running on 3G. Excellent reception!

I was so pleased with everything, as none of my emails, instant messaging nor social networking had been affected when I touched down in Australia.

 

Upon signing up, my SIM card came in the mail the very next day

 

Oh and just FYI, their customer service is brilliant.

Should you have any problems at all, all you gotta do is to write the enquiry on their website. When I wrote it, it's actually amazing how the KISS care staff replies me so quickly and personally too.

So far, I've never had any issues with their customer interaction; as their friendly staff – namely Peter Griffin – has been extremely informative and helpful!

 

          

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

                

I also love the way they give me my itemized billing on my call/SMS/data charges so precisely

So you can actually find out where all your money goes to!

 

Even better, the method of recharging credit to your phone is so convenient.

 

I do it via credit card, but there are other options such as paypal, Bpay or even pay it in person at any Post Office.

My advice to any tourist/student/immigrant on Blackberry who plan to reside in Australia for a short period of time (less than a year), is to sign up with KISS mobile.

 

BUT

Yes, there is a big, big BUT in question.

 

ZOMG ZOMG what on earth is this!

I didn't sign up with KISS mobile to have zero signal at my university campus and residence

If you reside ANYWHERE AWAY FROM THE CITY, please do not sign up with Vodafone, KISS mobile, Crazy Johns or any other carrier equivalent, running on Vodafone network.

 

I can definitely handle low reception, but NO RECEPTION is just too much!

Just need to yell this out loud and clear

 

DEAR VODAFONE,

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

IMPROVE YOUR

CELLULAR TRANSMISSION

AND COVERAGE AREAS!

 

It's bad enough that my friends and I do not have a single trace of reception at all in most parts of Gippsland, but I can't believe I have almost non-existent signals in Vermont, Blackburn, Berwick and its counterparts.

 

I was on the phone with my friends discussing our weekend plans and whaddya know? Call dropped.

I even made my best friend cry, because she thought I wasn't replying her on Whatsapp anymore.

 

What a killjoy! Not cool guys, not cool.

 

 

Please, your establishment has impeccable customer service, benefits, call plans and everything else.

The only thing that will steer your customers away are your POOR TRANSMISSION

 

Comparatively, my friends on OPTUS or TELSTRA has full hi-speed 3G signals; while I am only down to nothing, or if I'm lucky, GSM and GPRS here in Churchill and edge (not EDGE, mind you) in Morwell and Traralgon.

 

Does this mean that customers will have to keep travelling to the city

just to get the mobile signals we deserve?

 

It sucks that I have to walk out of my residence and stand in a particular spot e.g under a specific tree, stick my hand out of the window in the carpark, walk around like a quantity surveyor to locate spots that Vodafone ACTUALLY has enough transmission to receive an SMS and so on.

Come on, it's ridiculous doing this in the year 2011. Say, 1991 and I will understand the constrains of technology.

 

DO SOMETHING VODAFONE, PLEASE!

I IMPLORE YOU TO

 

 

Houmaigawd holy bejeebus it's freezing and the thick cashmere gloves that I'm wearing is not making it easy for me to type at all.

The heating system has just been turned on but the ice-cold wind wouldn't stop howling, and vapor fogged out from our mouths as we spoke to each other.

 

 

Throughout my stay in Melbourne so far, there was only 3 outta 11 days that had somewhat warm/sunny weather. The rest of the days was just blistering with gushes of cold wind and rain… you call this summer?

Anyway, I miss the city! Badly!

Driving past Melbourne city for the very 1st time

 

I spotted lotsa pretty sights and sounds all around me! The transport system is cool and buildings here look really colonial -a different architecture from Malaysia's altogether!
 

Take a look

 

People waiting for the tram – which arrives under 10 minutes flat!

 

Melbourne's General Post Office. It has restaurants and bars in it too!
 

 

 

Funny/unique names!

 

Saw a railway track like, right across the middle of the road

 

Drove past the Flinders Street Station yay! Nice

 

Couldn't help taking a picture of this old man jaywalking the streets

 

It was so nice of Mr. and Mrs. Lee to take me for a drive into the city center just to lemme have my 1st sight of it on my 1st day in Melbourne. I lived with them for more than a week, they were so accommodating and made me feel so at home
 

So yeah, here I was for those 9 days of my stay. In a beautiful suburb, called Camberwell

 

Their humble abode, a very impressive double-storeyed brick house in my opinion!

 

I was pretty intrigued by their garage, hedges and gateless/fenceless neighbourhood.

In fact, almost every house has all of those.

 

Their neighbour, 2 Italian men! Hubba hubba!

 

And their suburbs are different from the one in Malaysia because the houses here are hardly terraced. It's like an entire house with a backyard and lawns which run throughout the sides. Back at my home country, those types would be considered a bungalow already.
 

But here, almost all landed properties are constructed as such.

 

My room! Yes I know, the clothes, the mess and my huge red luggage

 

The view from my window when I wake up in the mornings 
 

 

When the Lee's ain't around at home, I pass my time blogging, jogging in Lynden Park (more of that soon!) and playing with Ruffey.

Who's Ruffey? As mentioned here , it is their pet dog, a Japanese Chin.
 

Ruffey here isn't a puppy anymore.
 

He's a 12 year old dog in human years, which makes him 84 years old in dog years!

Now, that's pretty old, ain't it?

 

I see him on the carpet every morning while eating my breakfast

 

We bond pretty well despite Mr. Lee telling me how grouchy and territorial it can get.

I honestly don't see Ruffey in that light at all. It's actually very friendly to me!

 

I've even taken Ruffey out for a walk at Lynden Park too.

 

Dinnertime was at Chadstone Shopping Center (fondly known as Chaddy) a popular mall in Malvern East.

I superloved that mall!  Totally reminded me of One Utama Shopping Center back at home.

 

Sorry, only took pictures of the food zone because I was too busy shopping to take pictures

 

As a Malaysian, I couldn't help converting the prices I see here into Ringgit Malaysia (RM).

I multiply everything I see – according to the exchange rate – by 3 times.

 

The only way I reckon I can stop doing that is to get a part time job here… which I will. When I find one
 

Omelette Sandwich | AUD$9.90

THAT'S 30 BUCKS IN RM FOR SOMETHING AS MEAGRE AS THIS! *faints*

 

Since it was my first meal out in Melbourne, I guess the figures hadn't really gotten to me yet.

So I bought some salad after that

 

Pumpkin Chick Pea Salad | AUD$5

THAT'S 15 RINGGIT FOR THIS TINY CONTAINER OF COLD BITES.

Good heavens, I can get some elaborate food in a swanky restaurant for RM45 back at home 

Oh well. What am I to do? I only have 3 choices. Get a job, get used to this or get lost.

 

Mrs. Lee and I at Chaddy.
 

It was funny how after Sunday service (yes they brought me to church) at Clayton Church of Christ, my new mates and I decided to go to Chaddy. AGAIN, for me. LOL!

But hey, I didn't mind at all cos I actually fancy that place

 

 Lunchtime/teatime woots! Heading towards Chaddy

 

 

Camwhoring with Tim! We hopped into his car and he gave me a ride

 

As we had a BBQ early lunch already in church, Tim and I were still feeling quite full

But not Stuart! He ordered some huge Beef Steak

 

At Reactor in Chaddy

 

We got a complimentary basket of Garlic Bread wheee!

'Cos Stuart knew one of the staff who worked there

 

Tim and I munching on free Garlic Bread woohoo

 

After eating, Tim had to leave early. Stuart and I then walked around Chaddy and he showed me around!

This part of the mall reminded me of Pavillion/KLCC back at home.

 

Somehow lah! Gave me a feeling of home for a sec

 

Bought a couple of stuff and soon after, Stuart gave me a ride home

 

It was already 5pm! Didn't know we all spent so much time in the mall

Oh and did I mention that Stuart had this really awesome car? It's wicked! I like

 

Obsessive compulsive disorder and devil's code 666!

Nais

 

So that was my short adventure in the suburbs. The next day, Stuart took me to another suburb too, called Glen Waverly. More of that soon okie? Next post, I'll be heading downtown to Melbourne City alone! Exploring so many sights and sounds.

Join me, aight? See ya! 

 

 

Hiya!

As you know, I'm in Ozzieland now and I do tend to get lazy lugging my Nikon DSLR around! Imagine walking around so tired, sweaty and having an extra weight on your shoulders I’ve been scouting around for something compact instead! Everyone needs some form of a back up
 

Remember my tweet  a fortnight ago being all excited about a supercool gadget by Nikon?
 

Yup, so I've been toting around the new Nikon S1100pj for a month now and I must say, it is one swell piece of technology!

 

First of its kind. You bet!

 

A projection thing-a-ma-jiggy all in the palm of your hand. I shall show you how awesome it is in a while.

But first! Lemme review some of the photo specs and features.

 

Here are some of the piccies I've taken with my new baby Ready?

 

Arguably the easiest mode in this camera, the Easy Auto Mode changes to the best adjustments to suit all types of settings. Perfect for camera newbies and/or lazy photographers Take a look!

I like how it's so bright and cheery

 

Test-shot with some of my gurls during lunch at Fika Swedish Restaurant & Cafe

 

This one's taken with flash mode on with my gurls YingZi & June

  

And this one is shot without the flash

I love how it brings out the best of natural lighting!

 

Despite taken in dark areas, the shadows casted by it all fall in the right places for a nice silhouette

 

Another feature I've put to test is the Smart Portrait Mode

This one detects faces, smiles or expressions pretty well

 

Smile as widely as you can! This smart baby of mine can recognize our Cheshire Cat grins LOL

 

But it can sometimes get rebellious/emo and decide not to detect my smile.

A rebel. Like owner like camera.

 

But the photo turned out pretty well!

*grins widely*

 

Venessa and June had fun with the face detection mode too

 

The next feature that I tried was Scene.

It boasts 17 different Scene selections to cater specifically to each different setting we want to take photos in

Just tap on the SCENE selection and take your pick

 

From left to right (in order)

Portrait | Landscape | Sports | Night Portrait |Party/Indoor

Beach | Snow | Sunset | Dusk/Dawn | Night Landscape

Close-Up | Food | Museum | Firework Show | Copy

 

 

I've put some of the Scene Selections to test!

 

These are my faves taken with the (food) mode I've played around with :

Delicious Mushroom Bruschetta from Dish Deli Cafe in Mont Kiara

 

Creamy Pumpkin Soup!

 

The very rubbery, icky and dry Chicken Thigh from that restaurant as well

 

Beef Steak medium done in Fika, Singapore

 

Swedish Meatballs also from Fika!

 

Salmon Mentai from Oh! Sushi in De Garden, Ipoh

 

Unagi Roll also from my sushi dinner

 

Lovely. I like how it macros up the food yet maintain its natural atmosphere of wherever food outlet you're in

Takes food photography to such an easier level for those budding photographers!

 

After dinner, I decided to take some pics of the interior of Dish Deli cafe.

All taken with the (party/indoor) mode.

 

Love the vibrancy!

 

Kelly and I at dinner. The colours are all pink and cheery!

 

With this mode, the flash doesn't completely bring the photo into a white-out overexposed shot

It's really nice how it captures how it exactly looks like in real life.

After dinner, we headed out for a walk. Another scene I've used was the (portrait) selection.

Makes portraiture so fun!

 

Kelly and I couldn't stop taking picture-perfect portraits of ourselves up on the rooftop

 

Playing around with this new Nikon s1100pj made me wanna explore further.

I soon ventured out with Kelly to the other side of the upper levels of Solaris Mont Kiara to take in the scenic night atmosphere. Ideally, I used the (Night Landscape) mode to take this photo below.

It surely complemented the colored spotlights

 

We then decided to go for drinks and chillax our Thursday night away.

 

Here's when I chose a different scene selection, the (night portrait) mode. It's something like the (portrait) mode but gives a different effect. The former brings out all the source of lights within the frame and the latter focuses more on the main subject itself.

 

Love the exposure and the entire perfect picture.

 

 

 

Night portrait scene selection FTW!

 

With such decent pictures it can take, I was also impressed with the video mode too.

It shoots footages all in High Definition and just by one press of a button. Unlike other cameras, there's no need to go through the hassle of searching into the menu to pick out the video mode.

 

This works like a real video camera. One red button to start recording!

Here's just one still scene of my house foyer.

Last day of Chinese New Year already!

 

 

 *DRUMROLL*

Now here's the best part of this new Nikon s1100pj. The extra kick why photo enthusiasts want it and flaunt it!

 

Uber cool ey? That's theboyfie Josh and I. But how did we get on the table?

 

 

Watch this awesome video advertisement to find out

 

Pretty nifty ey? One heck of a technology packed into a compact camera

 

 

So, best part is pretty obvious by now. It's the built-in projection feature.

Great for presentations or visuals! Also, I just hate to pass around my camera to random people whenever a group photograph is taken, for you'll never know whether it'll be returned rightfully to you.

That's actually how I lost my previous camera. During my convocation, it never came back to me!

 

With this kick-ass feature, I bet you won't suffer the same fate as me.

Here's how you can show everyone the picture SAFELY in your own hands.

It may be small now, but it can be enlarged clearer to the size of an A4 paper

 

Oh and just so you know, I loved that video ad I embedded above. It's so expressive!

So, I've put together my own version of the video montage too, just for the fun of it! Imma video editing newbie at the moment so pardon the not-as-impressive-as-the-official-Nikon-video-advertisement-skills of mine.

 

 

 

So, what dya think? I think it's a pretty good buy.

It's been almost a month with my new baby now and I'm having fun thus far! Still getting used to all the attention it rakes in by its awesome pictures and projection power.

 

Just the other night whilst back in Penang I showed some of the piccies I took in KL to my homies (there were 7 of us at the table) just by projecting the slideshow on the ceiling of the cafe! That way, everyone can see it at the same time.

Standing ovation please?

The s1100pj is yet another fine piece of Nikonian tech to salute to!