Life #7

Some things happen for a reason - you either recognise their significance or you don't
So do you shrug your shoulders and just brush them aside?
Do you let your heart overtake or let your mind decide?
Or do you just sit back and relax and let life take you on a ride?

Some people you meet for a reason - you either keep them in your life or you don't
So do you let them stay in your memories or just let them pass you by?
Do you let them make you happy but yet refuse to let them make you cry?
Or do you accept them with an open heart and let them set your soul out to fly?

Why don't we ask how to make everything work after we ask why?
Why don't we focus on our own truths rather than on other people's lies?

We are all not perfect, but at least, we all try.

Levendi Cafe

Nestled cosily in Wollongong Harbour is Levendi Cafe, Illawarra's Best Takeaway. Despite the threatening sky, I insisted on giving a second shot at trying what they have to offer.

With a variety of value packs, seafood packs, burgers, chips and Vittoria coffee to choose from, the place was a bustling hive of activity when we placed our order of grilled salmon.

I sure hope it was ocean salmon and not farmed salmon...

It was ironic to watch patrons feed the seagulls when told specifically not to...

I guess we cannot help but watch in amusement each time we throw a chip or two at the flock of white feathers... hey, do not look at me, I did not do it okay...

Choosing to sit under the shade of the tall pine trees, lunch (actually, it was more like brunch) was had with the view of the Belmore Basin.

The salmon was a little dry for my liking but it was still grilled nicely. The chips, well, who can fault fat, piping hot chips?

For a convenient and hassle-free option, I do not mind coming here again with friends the next time we drop by Wollongong. After all, you can take it away to save yourselves from the prying birds...

My first sunrise

I know. It is rather sad. I am turning 27 this year, have had three boyfriends (the last one for five years), have been on numerous crazy trips with friends and I have not seen sunrise. Sigh. But hey, I finally got to it!

It is funny that it is when we stop in our tracks to watch the most common occurrences in life take place that we are reminded of how miniscule we are in this world. Who are we to demand so much out of life, out of the people around us, especially the people we love most?

I was humbled and awed by how this magnificent star is able to influence life to its very core. Its magnificent rays seeping through the darkness of the universe, spreading light like how soil absorbs water. Ah, sunshine...

I need to keep my head held up high, for to some people, I am sunshine. And some of you, are mine.

My first sunrise experience: memorable. Extremely.

A Bald Hill & A Sea Cliff Bridge

A hill and a bridge. Of highlands and oceans. It is like yin and yang, don't you think? Very good feng shui elements.

A popular stopover for biker groups and a well-visited lookout point for tourists and locals alike, Bald Hill boasts a breath-taking panaroma of the Tasman Sea.

You could also see our next destination...

The name is also synonymous with hang gliding, as it serves as a world-renown hang gliding centre.

Have a look at the exterior of the public toilets:

Yup, it is THAT synonymous. It was on the beach below Bald Hill that Lawrence Hargrave, an Australian pioneer of flight, experimented with box kites in the early part of the 20th century. The Lawrence Hargrave Drive that the hill is situated along, is named after him and begins at the Helensburgh exit of the Old Princes Highway.

Having soaked in the scenery, we then drove down the windy road and parked the car. The next part of our day involved traveling on foot. To get to our destination, we passed a playground with a view...

... and many houses with designs my dear friend kept in mind. Rock pools making convenient fishing spots and steep cliff faces lined with tall pine trees skirt the Sea Cliff Bridge. The 665m long, award-winning off-shore and parallel-to-coast structure forms part of the Grand Pacific Drive. If you ask me, I'd reckon that it is a route not to be missed if you were planning on traveling from Sydney towards Wollongong.

The walk along the fully pedestrian and cycle-accessible bridge also provides information, should you like to know more:

However, this time around, we did not walk the entire length of the bridge. Perhaps, next time?

Not belonging

It became clearer today. I could decipher my feelings better today. Or perhaps, I was more prepared to face the matter(s) today.

From past experience, I have come to understand that people who may matter to you in the past, may not mean one dime to you in the present. The same works for the other way around - the significant figures in your current world could have been mere passers-by previously. What I have not come to fully understand is the reason behind it.

Some of you may think that it is due to one reason and yet to some of you, it may be due to several reasons. I do not know if there is 'the' reason or if there is a whole range of explanations for birds wanting to flock together or not.

One thought that did cross my mind was that people change. We change. Everyone is different all the time, which essentially means that none of us are the same 'us' the next minute. We incorporate the world around us - what we see, hear, taste, feel - thus constantly editing our thought process as we progress along with time.

What seemed trivial before, may be important now. What I used to like, I may detest now. People I used to enjoy being with, I may feel uneasy with now. Why?

I would love to say 'I dunno' but that would be rather irresponsible. It is as if taking the easy way out of the maze by pruning off part of the hedge. Well, I guess that takes away much painful effort if compared to beating around the bush with the same problem(s). Beating around the bush is definitely more tiring especially for someone with low stamina, both physically and emotionally, like myself. Hm, I may just well opt for the hedge pruning choice, as irresponsible as it may seem.

Not my style, I hear you say?

Haha, well then my friend, I guess you do not know me the way you ought to. Let me remind you that like you, I am human after all, imperfectly human.

When you feel like things - people, topics of conversation, tone of voice, body gestures and expressions - are different, you tend to clam up. I do not know, maybe not everyone, but I have that tendency. I may come up with some silly topic to 'talk about' to test the waters, to confirm if things are really different, which would then lead to me clamming up.

Less talkative. Less animated. Less myself.

For the simple reason of not feeling like I belong.

Pondering the thought now, am I that much different? Or am I just portraying myself to be different? Did I choose to not want to belong?

Not belonging to the place, not belonging to the group, not belonging to certain people.

Insecurity seeps in. Self confidence gets shaken. And the hard-built self-esteem gets knocked down yet again.

Losing a sense of identity is always hard to deal with, especially when pillar of supports that are genuine are harder to keep as we grow older. And so, yet again, I find myself floating through rough waters at half mast, not knowing what lies beneath the choppy sea and if blue skies lie ahead.

Floating across life, trying to cross boundaries, in the effort of seeking solace in comfortable humility. Is that, or that not too much to ask of oneself? Sigh, I wonder if I will lose myself totally if I continue feeling like this...

Kellys Falls

Has anyone heard of Kellys Falls? No, I did not think anyone would have, as there is hardly any info on the Internet regarding the place either. But, that did not stop us from exploring the place, which is situated in the same area as the Sri Venkateswara Temple. It is sort of next door. The entrance was not conspicuous, which had us making a U-turn further down the road.

What was supposed to be a short 5-minute drive to the car park area became a bumpy 10-minute one due to the many potholes along the access road. Picnic tables and benches were visible but with an access road like that, I wonder if many people visit the place.

Walking down the rocky path, I was not sure what to expect. Was this a waterfall that we could touch? Or just one that we could admire from afar?

I was pleasantly surprised, as behind the shoddy signposts flowed a picturesque rocky waterfall...

... which I could walk across!

Marking the start of the Hacking River, there are bushwalking tracks on the other side of the waterfall. From the lookout, you could see parts of the falls...

... and also the sea!

As we were about to follow the path, two youngsters came back from the opposite direction and we found out from them that there was nothing much to see from there on. However, we decided to move on, just to see 'nothing' with our own eyes.

I was glad that I decided to push on, as the 'nothing' they mentioned turned out to be...

How could this be 'nothing'? It's pretty! And not to mention freezing cold. Haha, yes, the water was absolutely freezing but refreshing.

The track continued on the other side of this smaller falls but looking at the time, we thought it would be better not to attempt it. If you ask me, it looked as if it hardly had been trodden on. Perhaps more maintenance would bring more visitors?