#1: View from the plane. HIGHLIGHTS: Lismore Campus Hostel (Orion College), Lismore Campus, Lismore Shopping Square. Woke up at 6am today again to get ready for the Ballina flight. The flight is at 10am and it's about an hour flight to Ballina. Travelling on Jetstar this time. Mmm... I think I would prefer Scoot instead as there are more leg room. The plane alighted at Ballina Byron Gateway Airport. It's like the smallest airport I've ever been to. It only has one entrance/exit to the plane and one entrance/exit to the roads, and one baggage conveyor belt. That's it. Our pick-up transport is really cool! It's a mini bus with an attached wagon to transport our baggages. It's a 40mins drive to Lismore where our Lismore campus and our second accomodation - SCU Village (campus hostel) - is located. We will be spending two nights over here and I am sooooo in love with this place.
#2: Our mini bus with a wagon. We are staying in a 6-bedroom apartment with kitchen, dining table for 6, living room and 2 bathrooms. So each of us gets our own room, yay!! Each room consists of windows with blinds, a wardrobe, a bed, a study table with chair, wall shelves, notice board and ceiling light and fan. SCU VILLAGE (ORION COLLEGE) Site: http://www.scuvillage.com.au/lismore/ Address: SCU Village, Southern Cross University, Military Road, East Lismore NSW 248, Australia. Check-in: N/A. Opening Hrs: N/A.
#3: Hostel, living area.
#4: Hostel, dining area.
#5: Hostel, kitchen.
#6: Hostel, 2 bathrooms.
#7: Corridor to 6 bedrooms.
#8: My bedroom.
#9: Study area.
#10: Hostel, complimentary items. Unlike Sydney, Lismore and Gold Coast (tomorrow) are more like a village. It's not as accessible as compared to Sydney. The best way to get around is to get a driver or rent a car. There are a couple of car rentals available around the corners near to the airport. Alternative way is to book for a cab. After a quick fresh-up, we headed down to the campus. The weather is sooooo warm, like Singapore, and the campus is sooooo big that I almost died walking around it. I think it's even bigger than NUS...
#11: Auditorium of Lismore campus. Finally, the campus tour ended and we headed to the 'canteen' to get some food for lunch. There wasn't much choices to choose from and the food doesn't look appetizing at all. End up, I just got vegetarian curry with rice and a bottle of coke. The coke is like $3.80, WHAT?!! Isn't campus food supposed to be cheaper?
#12: View around the campus. The walking back from the campus to the hostel is killing, really killing. It's uphill and there are so many steps! My knees and shins are aching already. Phew! We had a short rest before heading out to the nearby shopping mall - Lismore Shopping Square.
#13: Lismore Shopping Square. LISMORE SHOPPING SQUARE Site: http://www.lismoresquare.com.au/ Address: Tenancy 48, Lismore Square Shopping Centre, Cnr Brewster & McKenzie Sts, Lismore NSW 2480, Australia. Opening Hrs: 0900 - 1730hrs (mon to wed, fri), to 2000hrs (thu), to 1600hrs (sat). Sun: 1000 - 1400hrs. Major Stores: Coles, Kmart, Woolworths, Big W. We went to Kmart first. The things here are so cheap! Children books like $1, $3, $4... I bought 2 pairs of boots for $20 and $5, and many other things. I spent like $75 in total, but that's a lot of stuff, not just a few.
#14: 2 trollies full of grocery shopping. After that, we went to Coles and bought even more stuff, but food instead. Some snacks and items for breakfast. And also some birthday materials and a cake to celebrate Lee Shin's birthday. We planned a surprise party for her and it was 100% SUCCESS!! Had Mcdee for dinner. Finally, I got to try McChamp and it was a huge disappointment, nothing fancy at all. This burger is only available in McDonald's of Australia and New Zealand. It is a chicken burger with wheatgerm bun, lettuce, garlic mayonnaise and tomato sauce. When I was about done with the burger, I found an ant in the patty and got a FREE McChicken with Cheese in exchange!
#15: Dinner at Mcdee. Had a quick shower and am gonna rest now. That's it for now! EXPENSES OF THE DAY: Train to Airport - AUD16.40 Transport from Ballina to Lismore - AUD28.64 Orion College Accomodation - AUD65/night (per pax) Cab - AUD3.30 + 3.50 Kmart - AUD75 Coles - AUD7.50 + 14.40 Big W (baby's clothes) - AUD10.50