Tengok Ikan Paus (Whale Watching)

So it’s right smack in the middle of winter and guess who decided to hit the beach. Me… and a group of Malaysians and the ever i-don’t-care-if-its-freezing-cold-i-want-to-get-a-sun-tan locals. This time around, UQMSA (credits to the organisers, thank you ) organised a Whale Watching trip. Members paid only AUD 60 which is a deal, considering that transport was also provided! Gathering point was at the UQ bus stop and Malaysian timing got the best of us.. hahaha (okay, most of us came on time!) Organising committee gave us a curry puff, juice box and a pill for seasickness each. “Take your pill 1/2 hour before going on the boat!”. Ah yes, I was screaming… “PILSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS”, just like the guys in L4D. Classic game. Loved it lots

Okay, we got on the bus and before we knew it, we were already there. Quickly received our boarding passes and off we went! The “ushers” constantly invited us to proceed to the boat. Wonder why? We were not even late at all. Geez. (Guess they just want everybody on board the boat ASAP). Just like in L4D, I didn’t take my pills. Reason being I don’t know for sure whether I suffer from seasickness and wanted to test it out. Board the boat and greeted the personnel “pirately” and got a “pirate” reply.. hahahha. Bla-bla-bla, yada-yada, we were out to the vast ocean, hopeful to catch some whale action. Ah, I never expected anything fantastic today as the longest focal length I was a pathetic 70mm (x1.6 crop factor) – similar to your eye. T’was this guy with a 300mm F2.8L IS USM with a 1.4x extender.. holy cow!

A first for whale watching, it was almost my first time having a polarizer attached to my lens. I noticed dust on my sensor (looking at the pictures) and tried to “clean” it. Whatever I did didn’t do anything. Got fed up and didn’t bother about it. Photoshop to the rescue!! So, the boat runs on a combustion engine (DUH). Fumes from the engine just messed up my head. I got a headache after taking a whiff … wait, make that 100000 whiffs. So I can’t conclude 100% whether I am immune to seasickness or not. Though I can say that the first 30 minutes of the boat ride I was feeling great. I so need a military grade biological mask. Ah yes, the waves were moderate today and everyone was treated to a roller coaster ride. Those at the “front” (okay, I don’t know terms for boats!) had “fun” with water splashing on em…

Woopiee yai yay, we did see some whales but unfortunately they “were not on drugs”. All we could see was just a tiny part of the whale on the surface to exchange air. Only once did a whale make a big splash. I missed it. Was more interested with covering my nose with my sweater. Remember the fumes? Ugh. Gave up on trying to take pictures and just enjoyed myself. That was certainly much better. Heh. Was glad to set foot on shore again .. because I DIDN’T HAVE TO INHALE THE TOXIC FUMES ANYMORE! After the “exciting” whale watching expedition, we rode the bus to Surfer’s Paradise for “free time”. Everyone went their own ways. I took a walk along the beach with my buddy. Oh no, they weren’t any topless women.

Reached UQ at 6.00 PM or so.

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