Day 29/30: UTS/City/Visits/Cisco
On Saturday, my cousin Dee and I went to the City so that she can get her paperwork ready for Japan in two weeks. It was rainy and a little chilly. We went to her University so that she can do the first part of her paperwork. UTS (university of technology, Sydney) is huge and have 11 buildings. It’s located in the city and very open, near bars and there’s even a pub inside. We had lunch in one of their “cafeterias” (basically a place in a mall nearby). I had more Turkish food with kebabs. The plate was huge and very filling. Couldn’t even finish it!
We also bought some awesome clear umbrellas from Daiso since the one we were using broke while we were in the rain. Luckily, the ones we bought were pretty cheap and affordable :). We walked around and went to the Capitol to play some games. There’s this big machine where you put tokens in and you basically try to catch the fishes/mermaids/dolphins. Dee had some extra tokens that she had from the last time she was here. I thought I wouldn’t get obsessed with the game but once you hit jackpots for catching the fishes, it gets quite addicting. We started off with one basket and ended with 2! So we jumped from 300-ish tokens to 500-ish tokens. We were able to “cash out” as in we exchanged it for a ticket so that we can use the tokens again later.
It was a pretty chilled day. We talked about family dramas and stuff and headed to the Japanese council so that she can get her stuff. That place is pretty secure. No phones and you had to go through the metal detectors. We then headed to Paddy Market so I can get more souvenirs. I’m finally done! yay! I just need to get me some Tim Tams and I’m good! We also went through the night market that happens on friday. Lots of food and treasures!
Lastly, we bought some hot cross buns and bread at a bakery called The Dough Collective. My Aunt Hai really likes the cheesy bread from that place. We bought some chocolate and green tea hot cross buns and they were pretty yummy! On the bus ride back, we just talked about my great aunt’s funeral and the ceremony in Vietnam when they brought back her ashes. It’s been 10 years since she’s passed. She was my aunts’ and dad’s mother figure.
Anywho, we had some bo kho for dinner and then I headed over to Aunt Sue. It was really quiet since everyone went to bed. I stayed up and watched a couple of episodes of Fuller House. I don’t know why but Fernando in that show kinda bothers me. I think he overdoes the accent. Mehr, who knows.
Bye y’all!
Today, my aunt and uncle Hai, cousin Lou, and I went to Bankstown. We had Pho An. It’s not as great as I once remembered it, which is quite disappointing but I think it’s because I built it so much in my head. My aunt then shopped around for food. It can take forever because she goes in and out of many stores to get the best stuff, which makes sense. Then we headed back home. The drive can be super long. All these markets are almost 30 minutes or more to get to. Plus, sitting in the backseat with my aunt or uncle driving kinda makes me nauseous. I’m not sure if it’s their driving or sitting in the backseat, but it really doesn’t help my nausea. In the car, they were telling a story about my cousin Lou. Once when my aunt asked him to make rice, they had everything cooked and ready for dinner. When they opened up the rice, all they saw was the grains of rice and not cooked rice. Apparently, Lou didn’t put water in so the rice didn’t cook! Lol, I thought it was a funny story but he learned his lesson and can make it now!
When we got back, there were these cars blocking the driveway. Across the street from their house is some construction going on for an apartment complex. It was annoying and rude because they blocked the driveway to people’s home. Obviously, they didn’t care. Smh…
My Aunt Hai made some last minute additions to the porridge she was making for my grandfather and Aunt Sue. We headed to the hospital first to give my Aunt Sue some porridge. Vietnamese people enjoy eating home cooked meals rather than the hospital food, with a few exceptions of course. My aunt hai came in with the porridge and it was dinner so they also brought in hospital food. Aunt Sue ate the porridge while my Uncle Sue and cousin Tone ate her food lol. Smh…they were saying it was really good! She’s better although the meds are making her nauseous. We’re hoping she will be home soon. She has also been getting lots of visitors, flowers, and treats lol. Lou and I were also talking about the health system. I remember I was in the hospital for a few days and that cost me almost $2000. My aunt sue probably wouldn’t pay anything. Oh America…land of debt!
My uncle Hai works for Cisco, which is right next to the hospital. He was able to get me in so I could take a small tour. If only Cisco had been quicker with their offer! I could’ve been a Cisco employee (in California!). But they were slow so I had to accept a different offer. They used to have an abundance of soft drinks and snacks back in the day but it has since been removed. My aunt Hai told me that my uncle wanted to sue them because he got diabetes from eating sweets and drinking soft drinks from their kitchen lol. He was being silly I think. But anywho! I got to get some coffee from their awesome coffee machine. Theres a fridge of milk next to it that connects to the machine so you don’t have to grab milk! One day, I’ll reapply!
Then we headed to the nursing home. Good thing we go every day. Apparently for today, my grandfather only ate a little less than half of his dinner. I think he was waiting for my aunt’s cooking. He’s used to eating Chinese/Vietnamese food and not American food. It can get very tiresome for him. He ate everything and so I’m sure he’ll have a good night’s sleep. When we’re visiting, there seems to be at least one other resident who comes into his room lol. Today, Susan (names are always changed!) came in. She was talking and when I tried to lead her out, she stopped and started singing. Then she spitted! lol As we were nearing the door, she was gazing at my aunt’s purse. Susan loves purses!
I’m also starting to get numb to my grandfather’s condition. It makes me very sad but I can’t muster up to cry about it. I feel guilty not being near him. My aunts want me to go hang out and enjoy my vacation since there’s not much for me to do when I go to the nursing home, but I don’t mind coming. My cousins don’t go as much (at least inside) because they want to preserve the person they knew and not how he is now. But for me, living in the States never gave me that much time and opportunity to bond with him. I grew up with grandparents on my mother’s side but their love was not as strong as my Grandfather here. He can’t see so he can’t see how much I’ve grown since I’ve last seen him. I saw him when I was 11 and when I saw him again when I was 18, his memory was already starting to get bad. He can’t remember either so any news about my new job and recent graduation will be forgotten.
Anywho…for dinner, we had porridge! And special chicken slaw. Porridge is actually one of my least favorite meal. It reminds me of when I got really sick back in the day and that was all I was allowed to eat. Luckily, it was good enough so it wasn’t bad to swallow lol
Bye y’all!
