Captain America: Civil War

♣♣♣♣♣/♣♣♣♣♣

Try as they might, the Avengers find it hard to leave a collateral damage free scene whenever they pursue their enemies. Despite their obvious efforts in making the world a better place, a part of the general public is demanding for accountability, prompting world governments to come up with a mutant registration initiative in an effort to protect their citizens from those who are actually protecting them. Considering what happened in Sokovia, such a political move is just understandable, but the Avengers are not in unison as to how they should react to the issue. Iron Man (Tony Stark) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) both agree, which is a first, but Captain America (Chris Evans) thinks that this would limit their efficiency and freedom as a group. When Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) is framed for a crime that he did not commit, Steve Rogers is forced to choose between his best friend and the ensemble that has been his family since he was thawed after decades in the ice.

[WESTERN AUSTRALIA] Budget and Itinerary

MONDAY: 25 April 2016

Qantas (Adelaide - Perth) - 225.00

Air Asia X (Perth - Kuala Lumpur) - 159.00

AUD384.00

Estimate of AUD1 = PhP35.00

TOTAL – PhP13,440.00

[PERTH] ANZAC at Kings Park

Like Adelaide, Perth was more of another rest leg of my Australia trip, an opportunity to sit down, relax, and recover from all that occurred the week before. I don’t think I would even be including Western Australia in my itinerary if I had no family to visit there, not to mention the cheapo flight ticket I got from Air Asia X. And so that is clear, I did not go to Perth for sightseeing, although we still managed to squeeze in an attraction or two in the form of Kings Park and Botanic Garden.

[SOUTH AUSTRALIA] Budget and Itinerary

SATURDAY: 23 April 2016

Tiger (Sydney - Adelaide) - 120.00

Tiger (Cabin Plus) - 23.00

Airbnb (2 Nights) - 65.00

Cibo Espresso (Panino Salame + Iced Choco) - 20.10

Metro Card (Card + Top-up) - 15.00

Wokinabox (Fried Rice + Pepsi) - 12.35

Metro Card (Top-up) - 10.00

AUD265.45

[ADELAIDE] City of Churches the Movie

Nah, I just couldn’t think of a creative title, but I do imagine a horror screenplay that I can write in my head to summarize my stay in Adelaide. The only thing is that it has nothing to do with Adelaide, in general. You see, this Airbnb place I reserved was a really huge bungalow rented by two Chinese girls. Next to my room was a stock room with dolls and a little wooden pony. To get to the toilet, I needed to pass by a large and empty living room which had a good view of the equally spacious kitchen.

Game of Thrones (HBO): Season 6/Episode 1

6.1 The Red Woman

Jon Snow’s friends want revenge, but Ser Davos counsels them against doing anything rash. Sansa and Theon cross a frozen river to escape Ramsay’s hounds, but are still caught anyway. Theon prepares to sacrifice his life, when Brienne and Podrick arrive just in time to rescue them. She once again offers her services, and Sansa accepts it wholeheartedly this time around. Cersei rushes to meet Jaime and Myrcella, but her glee quickly turns into grief as she learns about her daughter’s fate. In Dorne, Ellaria launches another coup and assassinates Doran while the Sand Snakes murder Trystane. In Meereen, Tyrion and Varys wander about town thinking how they can fix such a mess. Ser Jorah and Daario find Daenerys’ ring. She has been taken to Khal Moro and is saved after dropping Khal Drogo’s name. They tell her that the place for a Khal’s widow is with the other widows at Vaes Dothrak. Back in Castle Black, Melisandre takes off her clothes, and then her choker, revealing a really old woman underneath it all.

[NEW SOUTH WALES] Budget and Itinerary

WEDNESDAY: 20 April 2016

Tiger (Melbourne - Sydney) - 60.00

Tiger (Cabin Plus) - 43.50

Airbnb (3 Nights) - 145.00

Opal Card (Card + Top-up) - 20.00

Discount Foods (Salt & Pepper Chicken w/Rice + Coke) - 7.00

B&C (Ice Cream Sandwich + Oreo Shake) - 17.00

Subway (Italian BMT + Coke + Water + Cookies) - 14.00

AUD306.50

[SYDNEY] Shirts Off at Bondi Beach

Gee, Bondi Beach is full of ripped guys taking their shirts off. How inconsiderate. They don’t care about how other people feel. By “other people” I mean us who are too lazy to lift a dumbbell, as if anyone has time for that shit, seriously. And then you suddenly find yourself wandering at Bondi with half naked people running in slow motion like they are auditioning for Baywatch. And suddenly you’re, like, WHERE IS THE GYM? TAKE ME TO THE EFFIN’ GYM! I WILL WORK OUT! RIGHT NOW! TAKE ME TO THE GYYYYYYYM!!

[SYDNEY] Date a Koala

So sometimes you lose faith in going out with your fellow mammals, right? Because sometimes the dating pool starts to thin out or it’s not as interesting as it was before, right? Because sometimes it’s a prerequisite that you have a six pack or a V-Torso to get noticed, like you are auditioning for effing Century Tuna Superbods, right? In Australia, you have the option to try your luck with your marsupial cousins, you know, right? Maybe they aren’t as hard to please, right? So I went to Taronga Zoo, right?

[VICTORIA] Budget and Itinerary

SUNDAY: 17 April 2016

Visa (Australian Embassy) - 135.00

Air Asia X (Kuala Lumpur - Melbourne) - 125.00

Airbnb (3 Nights) - 150.00

Skybus/Skydeck (One-Way Tandem Ticket) - 36.00

Network Public Bar (Carbonara + Coke) - 23.00

Myki (Card + 1 Trip) - 10.00

Myki (1 Day Pass) - 8.00

Ena (Lamb Gyros + Coke) - 20.00

AUD507.00

[MELBOURNE] Down Under from Up Above

While exploring Wikitravel’s Melbourne page, what caught my attention was Skydeck which is located at the topmost floor of the Eureka Building just a stone’s throw away from the Yarra. They have this attraction called The Edge where you are led to a small glass cube dangling at the edge of that skyscraper for some awesome panoramic views of the city down below. Why did I decide not to buy another ticket for that when I got there? Well, selfie sticks are not allowed, and the souvenir pics they take are so boring and generic.

[MELBOURNE] G'Day, Mate

I don’t think I like Melbourne just because it’s the first city that I’ve been to down under. I think I love it because it’s easily likeable. I mean, you don’t land on the top tier of the world’s most livable cities list for nothing, right? After an exhausting 8-hour flight on a cheapo airline, I wouldn’t say that I was refreshed and ready to roll right after landing, but the excitement of being in a new continent sort of overcame that. The excitement died right away at the immigration counter.

[VISA] Australia (Single Entry)

I think Australia is the only country so far that allows Philippine passport holders to apply for a visa entirely online. You can’t imagine how convenient this is to people who are always on the go. I completed my application before I left Manila in December, and then I received a PDF copy of the visa grant almost a month later when I was already in Morocco. It took a while to process because the embassy seemed to have a huge backlog during that time, but whatevs, you don’t have to surrender your passport anyway.

[COLOMBO] Budget and Itinerary

WEDNESDAY: 30 March 2016

Flydubai (Dubai - Colombo) - 659.20

AED659.20

[COLOMBO] High as a Kite

If you thought I didn't do Dubai justice because I just chillaxed there, wait until you hear what I did in Colombo, or perhaps the more appropriate term is what I did NOT do here. It seems that for anyone who has been to Sri Lanka, there's this consensus that you have to get out of the capital to make the most out of it. Given that this was the last leg of my trip and I was exhausted AF, it served more as an extended transit leg to break what could've been an 8-hour plane ride from the Middle East to Manila.

[VISA] Sri Lanka (Double Entry)

Well, to be honest I think it’s the Taiwanese visa waiver that is the easiest to get online, but I don’t think it counts because you don’t even have to pay anything for it. Technically, it’s not even a visa. If anything, it’s more of a formality. I’d say that Sri Lanka’s e-Visa processing is just as easy as that of Turkey, except that having a visa from an OECD country is not a requirement. For Sri Lanka, you just have to pay USD35 and that’s it. Oops, I forgot you have to fill out an online form with the usual passport details and stuff.