LUANG'S Journal

Relationship

2012-01-22T18:52:00.001+08:00

In a relationship, girlfrined boyfriend or husband wife, it is about

WE,

not

ME!

Reflection

2012-01-19T21:03:00.002+08:00

Sometimes in life, we must take the risk and go off the beaten path! Now, not at 90!

Not get caught in the rat race nor be a blur sheep in the herd society....

Ya, that's right. Take time to REFLECT too.

The Greatest Leader

2012-01-18T23:06:00.000+08:00

....is the greatest servant ....

Thank You Lord

2012-01-17T16:09:00.002+08:00

Thank you Lord, for being with me everyday, helping me and inspiring me to do my work well, teaching me and guiding me and never look down on me, no matter how 'little' I am. In everything, thank you.

The Parable of the Talents

2012-01-07T23:50:00.000+08:00

MATTHEW

14 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15 And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. 16 Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17 And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. 18 But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.
20 “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ 21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 22 He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ 23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’
24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’
26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.
29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Mum's Favourite

2012-01-04T13:07:00.000+08:00

by Simone

(mum's favourite)

Imperfection Made Perfect ...

2012-01-04T13:05:00.000+08:00

by Simone

Love Is Patient, Love is ...

2012-01-04T13:04:00.000+08:00

PEACE & FAITH

2012-01-04T13:03:00.000+08:00

by Nick and Karyn

Destiny

2012-01-04T13:01:00.000+08:00

Telunas Bliss

2012-01-03T22:30:00.010+08:00

Telunas, this is our second visit but we do not have enough of it. The heaven for relaxation. Only the final day, it rained cats and dogs at dawn .....

Children playing water bomb on the grass patch by the beach ...
Found a sea grass?....

Hermit crab coming out of its shell ...

Fishing, we had quite a few fish for lunch. Thanks to brother-in-law...

Our visit came with the moon eclipse. We are indeed blessed. We saw the moon disappeared and reappeared. It was a full moon night...

Found a crab?....

The right way of drinking coconut 'juice'....

Spoon made of coconut husk....

My brother cutting coconut the traditional way ...

Seldom has the chance to drink it this way ...

Serenity ....

Birds at our verandah ....

Sunrise ...

Caught a worm??? ....

Starting bonfire ...

Squid caught ....

The three squids became our supper. They were the freshes I have ever tasted as they were brought to the kitchen to be cooked straight away...

Before the squid was hauled up ...

Fit for postcard .....

Pizza freshly baked by the beach .... our dinner one evening ...

Pizza baked in traditional charcoal oven burned scratch from wood...

A nice jump into the sea from the platform ... it was thrilling ...

Night scene of the chalet ...

Night scene outside our family suite ....

Sun setting ...

Children kayaking in the calm sea ...

The boat that brought us here. It sped for 1.5 hours...

Fit for another postcard ...

Another sun set ....

We climbed the mountain and came to this rope course. It was great fun for all ....

My little nephew did it so well ...

Everyone, pose with the rope ...

Another 3 squids for supper ....

Nice swim in the sea ...

Nick has a small cut on his toe ...

Telunas bliss .....

Hornbill

2012-01-03T17:55:00.000+08:00

Found 2 Hornbills in Pangkor Island resting on a tree.

Teluk Intan Fishing Village

2012-01-03T17:47:00.003+08:00

We visited my uncle in Teluk Intan. They are in fishing business. See picture below, one of the boat has come back with fish.

Unloading the fish..

Pouring the fish onto the table for sorting ....

Fish being sort before packing into ice boxes....

Fish packed with ice in boxes ready to be sold ....

Flowers from Orchid Exhibition Nov 2011

2012-01-03T12:56:00.008+08:00

Anti-Drug Headphone Design

2011-12-31T13:55:00.002+08:00

Anti-Drug Headphone Design Competition

Simone

My Beautiful World

2011-12-31T13:47:00.000+08:00

Octoburst Art Competition Participation

My Beautiful World

Simone

My Favourite Neighbour

2011-12-31T13:40:00.001+08:00

1st Prize HDB HeartLand Beat Art Competition 2011

Simone

Beware of The Serpent

2011-12-31T13:37:00.001+08:00

My Neighbourhood

2011-12-31T13:35:00.002+08:00

My Perfect 2012

2011-12-31T13:30:00.000+08:00

2nd Prize of Citibank Art Competition

My Perfect 2012

Simone

My Idea of Tampines Tree Top Community Club

2011-12-31T13:26:00.002+08:00

Winner : Tampines Project Hope

Karyn

My Idea of Tampines Bowl

2011-12-31T12:44:00.006+08:00

Winner : Tampines Project Hope

Simone

Beautex Art Competition Participation

2011-12-31T12:38:00.002+08:00

Conserving The Wild Life

2011-12-31T12:33:00.002+08:00

Poster Colour Print, Colour Pencil and Permanent Pen

National Day Shaker Design

2011-12-31T12:30:00.002+08:00

Medium : Permanent Ink Pen

Three Friends Batik Abstract

2011-12-31T12:24:00.004+08:00

Medium : Poster Colour

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day 8

2011-12-14T22:39:00.005+08:00

Day 8, we completed our voyage down the Yangtze River. We disembarked at Chongqing.

Chongqing is a hilly city.
We visited the Chongqing Three Gorges Museum. The weather was hot!

Chongqing is under fast development. There are many highrise buildings.

Look. another unique 'installation'!

Lunch was great. It was porridge with all kinds of seafood. Something we can easily cook at home!

We visited a famous street after lunch (Huh, I forgot the name of the street!) See, a man making nut candy outside his shop!

More food for sale!

This is very familiar. Something we can find in Singapore and Malaysia. But they have all kinds of favour such as spicy ones!

Nuts fried with chilli??!!

See how crowded! And many people are spitting everywhere?!!! I have to fix my eyes on the road to avoid stepping on a sputum.

Indian Roti shop but was is the durian doing there?

Perfume filling station??? How?

Cutting biscuits/local snack!

Finally, a sumptuous steamboat dinner for our happy bellies!

We flew home the next day...just spending most of the time in the air!

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day 7

2011-12-14T18:43:00.005+08:00

Day 7 is the last second day on the cruise. We stopped over at a place visiting a 'ghost' town! See the low 'tide' and long walk to shore!

Since it is the last dinner, we had dinner with the captain. It was comfortable and delicious dinner on board!

Here's the crew. Instead of we thank them, they were thanking us!

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day 6

2011-12-14T16:12:00.004+08:00

Day 6 is another day spent in the cruise, admiring the breathtaking view throughout the journey down the Yangtze River.

Just sit, relax, view and take photo!
It is so relaxed to just sit and admiring the view.

Spotted a bridge linking the mountains.

We changed to a small boat to tour the small Yangtze (Siao Sansia).

Can you spot monkeys by the mountain side?

Can you spot coffin by the mountain side? How did they put it up there?

The small boat that took us along Small Yangtze.

Out boatman. He even sang us a 'mountain' song.

Road along the mountain side!

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day 5

2011-10-21T18:56:00.005+08:00

Day 5, we embarked on our voyage on Victoria Cruise down the Changjiang River and the Three Gorges. We boarded the ship at Yichang, somewhere near the Three Gorges Dam.

Above is our cruise ship.

We visited the Three Gorges Dam. It is a gigantic project. It was really eye-opening for us. Coincidently, we went at the time when there was much report about drought at the downstream that caused the authority to release water from the upstream. That cause the width of the river upstream to narrow and it could be dangerous for the heavily traffic waterway.

We had a pitstop. There are many stalls selling souviniers along the way.

It was a very nice cruise. Very relaxing! We could just laze around our ship balcony outside our cabin and view the scenery. Above picture shows a bridge we were passing through.

This is the exciting part. In order to move through the dam, we have to go through steps like staircase for the ship. Each time the door will open, we go in, then we waited for the water to rise, then the next door open, we went in, and again wait for the water to rise... We went through 5 of those.

The door open, our ship moving in.

From our balcony, we could see barge line up next to our ship climbing the steps together.

We decided to sit right at the front of the ship, witnessing the process of step climbing by the ship.

After a sumptious dinner, we watched a performance. The dancers and performers are waiters, waitresses and staff on the ship. They are indeed talented.

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day 4

2011-10-20T23:28:00.006+08:00

Day 4 was a perfect day in Zhangjiajie, the highlight! We visited Tien Men Shan, the site for filming Avatar.

In the morning, we took a long cable car ride up the mountain.

You don't imagine what happen if the cable car stalled or dropped!

The long and winding road at the mountain side.

Ah, we found a special type of spider with little red balls on its 'knee'.

Walking along a bridge that is glued to the mountain side. If it gave way, we would be the exhibit of the next visitor.

Another view of the cable car going into the clouds.

This is the natural hole in the mountain where Avatar was filmed.

It took some of us (not me) 999 steps to reach the top!!!!

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day 3

2011-10-20T22:41:00.005+08:00

Day 3 morning was the only time the weather was not cooperating. When we arrived at the first destination of the day, the song 'Raindrops keep falling on my head' started to curse. We would have been drenched if not for the raincoats and umbrellas we armed with.

We were brought to a queue that snaked like a long python with unending turns. People where pushing and shoving as if the queue could move another inch nearer to the entrance. We did not understand the behaviour of what seemed to be some less-cultured species of our kind. Anyway, there was still one gem among the rocks. He kindly let my old father-in-law move more comfortably forward with us strung behind him. When we went safely into the tram, we were told we were going to visit a gallery. After about 15 minutes, the tram stopped and let us alight. Where is the gallery??? Well, the guide then explain that what we saw above (in picture) is the NATURAL art gallery. That was the view along the tram ride. After visiting the washroom, we got back into the tram and back down to the same place where we have queued earlier. Oh, we then realised, after much 'effort' , it was just the NATURAL gallery that we were visiting.

The road was closed due to the heavy downpour. So, we were unable to continue sightseeing. We returned to town for lunch.

After a sumptuous lunch, we were brought to a jewellery shop. There (as usual for those of us who travel before to this country will know), a man, who called himself the owner of the shop came in and told us the most interesting 'fairy tale' that you have ever heard. He said we are his father's saviour as the father was ill and someone from our country saved his life. Therefore, to repay our kindness, he is giving us a big discount on the jewelleries. Ah, I don't understand why some people still believe in him!!!!! It wasted more than 2 hours of our precious sight-seeing time, as by then, the rain has stopped. So, only about 2pm, we managed to get back to the mountain to resume with our main purpose. We came to the world's tallest lift. See the picture above. It took us all the way up.

The scenery was breath-taking. I begin to understand why Chinese painting looks as such.

Another painting like scenery. It was awesome!

In the evening after dinner, we watched a big scale musical. The mountain is the back-dropped. It is worth every dollar.

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day 2

2011-10-20T22:09:00.005+08:00

Have been very busy and all of a sudden it has been a few months since I last posted.

Looking out of the hotel window in Zhangjiajie. Isn't it beautiful? It was drizzling and the misty atmosphere creates a special effect on the picture.

This is an elaborate piece of furniture in the hotel lobby. My father and father-in-law were so intrigued by it!

Ah, does the poodle look like a cudley toy??

On top of a mountain, the Baifong Lake. We had to climb quite a bit to be able to enjoy this beautiful scenery. Thank God, just when I was about to give up climbing, the lake appeared round a corner behind the bush!

Look at the scenery. It is worth climbing the many steps after all.

Now, taking different sets of steps to decend the mountain!

Zhangjiajie & Three Gorges China - Day1

2011-06-26T22:23:00.005+08:00

Recently, my family and extended family visited China, Zhangjiajie and The Three Gorges. We flew to Xiamen and then transit to another town called Changsha. By the time we arrived, it was already late in the evening. What we awaited for was a sumptuos dinner. We were brought to a huge restaurant resembling a palance of olden China. See picture below. It was said the restaurant can accomodate 1000+ guests. All was good except that the floor of the restaurant was oily and slippery!

Dinner served in the restaurant (below)

HL Marigold Milk Carton Design Competition

2011-05-28T23:04:00.004+08:00

Category B, Merit Prize.

EARTH DAY - 26 March 2011

2011-04-03T21:27:00.004+08:00

Since mankind sinned, our earth is polluted. Now, a small group of people has realised how important it is too keep our earth pollution free. However, greed and sometimes necessity have prevented Earth from going back to how it was when it was created. On 26 March, a handful of people around the globe celebrated EARTH DAY. This was also to bring awareness to more people....... to love our mother EARTH more and spare her from deteriorating further. On the same evening, my husband and I brought my father and my father-in-law to the Sky Garden of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. It was breath-taking! My father has wanted to go there before. Now finally, we managed to make it up there on the special day. Below is the model of the Marina Bay Sands Hotels, on top of it is the Sky Garden. It looks like Noah's Ark has landed on the three building. (see first picture below) Next picture below, was the view taken from the Sky Garden. It was about 9pm. Singapore was supposed to be pitch dark as many should have participated in the one hour light out to celebrate EARTH DAY. However, we still have a bright breath-taking view.

My daughter did a piece of art for her school work to commerate the important day. See below ....

Race Race Race

2011-03-22T15:57:00.001+08:00

In Loving Memory Of My Beloved Small Uncle

2011-03-10T18:32:00.004+08:00

Small Uncle went for a drive. He is 70, strong and good-looking for his age. He met with an accident. He went home himself. Two days later, he died of brain hemorrhage (bleeding). Life is as such, so fragile!!!

I felt like writing a poem. Not sure if it really relates to him, but I need to get some words out of my chest.

Life comes…
Life goes…
Disappears in the cold thin air,
Life dreams…
Life hopes…
How much do you dare,
Life screams…
Life pains…
How much should you bear,
Life games…
Life bets…
Has it been fair,
LIVE
LOVE
Don’t you care,
Life starts…
Life stops…
Do you know when... where.

Naive Art

2011-02-26T00:45:00.003+08:00

By Simone (above)

By Karyn (above)

It was the first time we heard about Naive Art in December 2010.... Well, we are not professional artist nor we are formally trained, so we do not know all the 'technical terms'. I was happy as Naive Art is art painted innocently or what they called child-like painting. So, we can kind of anyhow draw and paint! (I thought)

Simone and I decided to take part in the National Art competition for the Chingay Celebration 2011. Well, we met 205 strong competitors. We did not win but we were happy that we were able to finish drawing and painting our art in 1 day. The piece is 0.75m X 1.1m each. I felt like my bones were breaking after I completed the painting. Our tables were just too small and we painted on the floor.

We are also happy that the paintings were displayed and thousands of people got to view them.

Incidental Agar Agar Art

2011-02-26T00:40:00.003+08:00

I was going to make a birthday agar-agar for a friend. Wanted to make the alphabets in the agar-agar but it sank too deeply. I took them out, and here's the result.

My Robot Gallery

2011-02-26T00:36:00.003+08:00

Doodle Art and Craft by Simone

The Beauty Of Sailing

2011-02-26T00:31:00.001+08:00

Collage, dedicated to my daughter.

Flowers In Vases

2011-02-26T00:23:00.003+08:00

Inspired by a withered rose I gave my daughter for her birthday, the three vases of flowers painted on canvas are dedicated to her. At least, they are more permanent.

My Home

2011-02-26T00:19:00.000+08:00

Medium : Colour Pencil

By Simone

I Will Practice Good Manners

2011-02-26T00:16:00.002+08:00

Medium : Colour Pencil

By Simone

Fruit And Vine Art

2011-02-26T00:08:00.003+08:00

This art is inspired by John 15:5. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit.........."

Done with acrylic on canvas....by Karyn

Day 6 (Final) - Shantou

2011-02-25T23:47:00.002+08:00

It was time, we said good-bye to Shantou. It has been wonderful and memorable for the last five days. Although it was a short visit, I thank God for the opportunity, to let me see both my grandfathers' home before they immigrated to Malaysia.

Day 5 - Shantou

2011-02-22T20:22:00.015+08:00

Eventhough this was the last second day of our trip to Shantou, it was the 'last' day as we had to check out of the hotel early to go to the airport to catch the noon flight the next day. So, there would not be much sight-seeing on Day 6.

On Day 5, we had 2 relatives visiting. The first one was to visit the uncle (my father's cousin) and his family. They brought us to Puning and also took us to many places in Shantou for sight-seeing. It is really nice of them. The second one was my brother-in-law's relatives, this time the family name is Phua.

On the way to Uncle's home, we discovered some local 'gems'. It was a little street that sells almost everything. This street leads to Uncle's home. It is definitely not touristy but a market street for the locals. We like to check out what locals sell and buy. It is also a great place for photography!

Firstly, we saw a cobbler along the street (see below). The customer was waiting for his shoes to be mended. The cobbler was equipped with a manual sewing machine.

Big juicy mandarin oranges (see below)

Big fresh caulliflower (see below)

Fried spring onion pancake (see below)

Baked-on-the spot 'Tao Sa Pia' (see below)

More fresh vegetables (see below)

Wow, a liquor shop in the market (see below)

Red Chilli. Not sure spicy or not (see below)

Another cobbler at work (see below)

Fish (see below)

Fresh eggs , yummy! (see below)

All kind of grains. Auntie helping mum to buy black sesame (see below)

Yummm....'You Tiao' or 'You Zha Kue'..(see below) One of my uncles could not resist and bought a bag to share with us.
Pork stall (see below)

See below, it is a crowded market street.

They even have a barber (see below)

Live bird on sale (see below)

Bamboo rice from Yunnan? (see below)

Ahh, finally, we reached Uncle and Auntie's house. It is a walk-up aparment. Below picture shows the entrance. We were quite shocked as it was dark, but we were humbled by the hospitability of our uncle and auntie.

When we were at Uncle's home, we were treated to the famoush 'Kang Hu Teh' or 'Kung Fu Cha' again (see below)

And some local sweets and cakes. Very special indeed (see below)..

Dad at the attic of Uncle's apartment (see below)

After visiting Uncle and Auntie, Auntie and her daughter brought us to the Shantou Pedestrian Street. (see below)

According to Auntie, it was not as crowded as she expected. There are many shops at both sides of the street. The things are quite cheap if you can compromise with quality. (see below)
One of my uncles buying 'Ping Tang Hu Loo' for his grandchildren. (see below)

Aren't they beautiful close-up? It is a kind of fruit coated with sugar. Sweet outside and sour inside (see below)

See, a row of bicycle with two seaters. We wished we could take one home. (see below)

After a nice stroll at the Pedestrian Street and our bags packed with new purchases, our stomachs were growling again. This time, Auntie brought us to a shop that sells all kinds of rice porridge (see below)

The porridge are boiled in little pots. You can choose what you want to be added to the porridge (see below)

We chose fish porridge, cuttle fish porridge, pork porridge, oh and what else, I cannot remember .....see below, our porridge is ready!

After a great lunch, we resumed with our visiting. This time, the Phua family. It took us quite long to study how this Phua family in Shantou is related to my brother in law. Until now, we are still not sure. We just know, many many years ago, they shared a same 'great ..(not sure now many great) grand father'.

We find that this family has the least tradition and most modern of all compared to those that we have visited. The gate of the home is made of stainless steels (see below)

The window grill is also stainless steel. It is definitely durable.

The Phua family (see below)

After leaving the Phua family, we headed to downtown. There is a big park by the river. It is a nice place for the children to run around, a chance for them to exhaust their energy. (see below)

Then, we headed to the river. Auntie said we could take the ferry for a ride, a quick 'river cruise'

This is the river, (see below). The background is actually the Queshi Bridge. It is a very nice and relaxing place for a group phota taken.

Then, we got into the ferry. The ferry is used by locals to cross the river. There were many school pupils as we were there about 6pm. They must be heading home after a day at school (see below)

Queshi Bridge in the background (see below)

More view at the river ...(see below)

It was indeed a great experience on board the ferry. We could not imagine how crowded it could be. We thought to hop down at the opposite side of the river for a walk and took the next ferry back, but we changed our mind immediately when we saw thousands of human beings dashing towards us and the ferry. So, we took the same ferry back.

After a nice 'final day', we had a sumptuos dinner.

We hope we can come back again to be immersed in a place where our grandparents (paternal and maternal) came from. It is just special!

Be Thankful

2011-02-22T18:05:00.002+08:00

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire,

If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don't know something,

For it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.

During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations,

Because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge,

Because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes.

They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you're tired and weary,

Because it means you've made a difference.

It's easy to be thankful for the good things.

A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.

Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.

Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,

And they can become your blessings.

Author Unknown.

Day 4 - Chenghai

2011-02-15T22:57:00.026+08:00

Another much awaited day had come..... this time was a visit to my maternal grandfather's home before he migrated to Malaysia.

See both the pictures below.

Now, we knew what to expect for breakfast, so there was no surprise anymore. So, we could not wait but headed to the town where my maternal grandfather came from straight after breakfast. It is a town called Chenghai, not too far from Shantou. In fact, it took us not more than 30 minutes to reach. Again, a relative, my mother's nephew who lives there came to lead the way.

When we arrived, we were greeted by people from the neighbourhood. (see picture below) The neighbours must be very surprised to see a group of 19 people visiting their small village.

Just round the corner where our bus dropped us, we came to our uncle's house. Well, this was not too difficult comparing to visiting my paternal grandfather's house the day before. We were relieved we did not need to walk much.

We were greeted by my uncle, my mother's cousin, and his wife. He is my mother's father's brother's son (first one from the right at the forefront in the picture below). We took a few minutes to go through another lesson of linking relatives. We were amazed that my Uncle could remember my mother's and her sisters' names eventhough it was just mentioned to him in letters when my mother and her sisters got married. Again, we were received with warmth and love. Like my father's relatives, we felt instantly connected with my mother's as well.

After much excitement of introducing everyone, my uncle led the way to where my grandfather's house was. We were surprised that it was just at the back of his house. See picture below, this is the path next to my uncle's house leading to my grandfather's house.

Ah ha! See below, this is my maternal grandfather's house. The main door is not too big, I believe it was to keep warmth in the house when the weather was cold. This house is also not more than 25 sq meter but we were told that 3 families lived in it before. We could not imagine how the members were packed in such a small place. We have to queue and take turn to go in.

Everyone was so excited and happy to see the house. Quickly and again, we lined ourselves up to take photos in front of the house. See below..

Below shows the interior of the house. There is no one living in there now but my uncle locked it up and therefore it could be preserved as long as possible.

See below, is one of the roof tiles missing or is it intentional to let the light in?

There seem to be quite a great amount of hay in the house (see below). Looks like it has become someone's 'store room'.

There is a little window that permits light to come in (see below). There is no electric and the little window helps to brighten up during the day. Too many window or too big window will create too much draught in cold nights. It was hard to imagine how and where my grandfather would sleep last time. After a nice orientation around my maternal grandfather's old house, we walked a few blocks and round a few corners and came to a bigger and newer house. This one belongs to my uncle's son who lived there. (see below). The children were intrigued to see a big drain just next to the house. They built 2 steps down the drain , so that they could go down to collect some water if needed. But according to my uncle, the water was much polluted by the factories nearby and also by the waste from the ducks which were reared at the back of most homes.

See the ducks below ....

A walk round the back, we came to a lake... it is called Chao Che (Grass Lake) the name of the village! My mother's brother always wonder why the address is directed to a lake when he sent letter to his cousin, and now he understand that it is really the name of the lake marking the village.

Next, our relatives took us to a vegetable farm nearby. There was a temple there where my mother's brother performed his anchestorship prayers. The rest of us were more interested in the vegetable farm.

Look at the fresh vegetables below ..

Kailan (close-up) below ..

Sweet corn harvesting below ...

It is indeed educational for the city kids (below)....

I asked the farmer below why didn't he use a cow to help him. He laughed at my ignorant question. He said, it would not be economical for such a small piece of land!

The youngest and best dressed farmer at work .. see below

The weakest farmers at work ... see below..

After the 'educational tour' to the farm, we headed back to Cousin's house again for a rest.. Same again, we were treated to the famous Teochew Kungfu Cha/Teochew Kang Hu Teh...see below.

The children were treated to sugar canes. Hey, no one will juiced for you, use your own teeth... It is indeed a geat experience for the city kids who usually only drink sugar cane juice from the can off the shelf. (see below)

See below, looks like someone gave up and threw one away that was still juicy..

Below shows a type of Teochew 'kueh' made by Auntie. It was just delicious. She made so many of them that we were asked to bring some home with us. How nice she is!! Our relatives are all so hospitable. We want to learn to be like them.

What do you think the white plain rice porridge is doing below? Huh, my brother got an upset stomach and settled to drink the porridge while the rest of us feasted on all the delicious food including the famous braised goose in Shantou. We went to a restaurant and he was sleeping in Cousin's house. We didn't even take a picture of the famous goose for him, so he vowed to go back again.

In the restaurant, we found something exotic on the menu. See below. Well, we did not order ....

There are a lot of fish as Chenghai is near the sea .... (see below)

Huh, the most hygenic tableware in China ... see below .... we were really amazed. These bowls, cups, saucers and spoons were sterilised.

See below, a special dish... a kind of dumpling that we have never tried before.. I am not sure what is inside. It is supposed to be a specialty.

After a sumptuous meal, it was time to bid farewell. See below. Haha, my brother has also recovered. Why did the upset stomach come at such a wrong timing earlier?

See below. Just opposite the road, someone was selling shoes. What a great way! Who needs a shop to pay fixed cost??!!

Just along the way out, someone was selling balloons and toys.. see below ... no fixed cost again.

Our next mission was to look for my mother's friend who would take us to a mandarin orange farm. Ya, the type of mandarin orange from Swatow that we use for Chinese New Year. My mother's friend is from Shantou but she will go to Malaysia to sell clothes a few times a year. Look below, how big and juicy the oranges are. And yes, this is the first time we witnessed it growing on the tree.

Haha, simply irresistable.....see below

After the orange farm, my mother's friend invited us to her home. It was a valuable experience we would not get easily on other overseas tour we made. By visiting friends' and relatives' home, it gave us an understanding and eye-opening to their way of lives. See below, home of my mother's friend..

At her place, my uncle saw some orchid that my mother's friend wanted to throw away. He asked for permission to let him bring back some to grow in Malaysia. My uncle, my mother's brother is an orchid enthusiast.

Our next destination would be the Shantou Orchid Centre. On the way, we saw some golden grains spilt on one of the two lanes road and the opposite direction as well. What were they? See below ...

We then realised that it was actually not spilt but someone has decided to sun the grains on the public road. Oh, what a culture shock for us! (see below). It stretched out for the whole kilometer/s.

Upon reaching the Orchid Centre, we were more fascinated by a huge table, chair and many stools carved from big trees welcoming us at the reception. The wood is so solid. All of us wanted to lie on the huge chair. It seemed too comfortable to be missed. (see below)

The children are more fascinated by the creature below in an aquarium. The fish looks as if it has an extra brain.

There were so many orchid plants but very little flower. It was quite disappointing as we thought we would see flowers all the way to the end of the horizon! (See below)

We found a few beautiful orchids finally, see pictures below ..

Outside, at the yard of the Orchid Centre, we found a tree which branches formed a special arch. (see below)

And more trees in the yard (below)...

The sun has begun to set as it was almost 5pm (Below)

We were all ready for another sumptuos meal. The driver took us to a porsh restaurant that served fresh seafood, meat and vegetables in individual steamboat. See below, can you recognise the reptile? Well, of course we were not game enough to order the crocodile meat as one of the dishes....

It was a much disappointed meal. The service was extremely poor in this porsh restaurant. The soup was boiling dry but the ingredients were still not there... Then, there was not enough rice. It is strange that such a huge and porsh restaurant could run out on rice which is the most common Chinese staple??! Anyway, we will not go to this restaurant anymore.. the small shops are much better .. (see the little steamboats/hot pots on the table below).. They were drying up!

Day 3 - Puning

2011-01-25T19:06:00.026+08:00

Hi, for those of you who are waiting for more news on the fun we had during the Shantou trip, I apologized for the delay. Recently, we are into the budgetting season at work. It is tedious, boring and time consuming, but it is something needs to be done within stages of tight deadlines. I asked my boss to let me recuperate for 2 days, hence I can do what I like to do .

Let's resume ....

On our third day of the visit, it was the much awaited Puning city that we were going to visit. It is the city of where my paternal grandfather came from. Below picture shows my paternal grandfather on the right and grandmother on the left. My grandmother also came from the same city. We found out that my grandparents villages are just next to each other. My grandfather came from the village where all the people with 'Fang' surname lived, and my grandmother came from the village next door where all the 'Lee' people lived. It is all within walking distance.. Again, we started the day with an anticipation of steaming nice local breakfast. The local tour guide we engaged decided to bring us to a shop that sells 'chee cheong fun', congee and noodles. (see picture below) Yummy 1 : Congee with 'You Char Kueh'. Warm and nice for the cool morning (see picture below)

Yummy 2 : 'Chee Cheong Fun' - made on the spot (see picture below)

Yummy 3 : Noodle soup with so much meat. Enough to keep the stomach full for at least 5 hours! (see picture below)

After a hearty breakfast, we started our journey. It would be about close to 2 hours trip as we did not take the highway. Along the journey, we passed by little towns....we could see people selling 'pau' by the roadside. (see picture below)

We also came across many ponds where people rear goose/duck! Look at those white glistering objects floating on the water in the picture below. They are thousands of geese/ducks!! It is more likely they are geese because Shantou is famous for her goose meat!

More beautiful view along the way below..

There are also many vegetable farms.. Well, in China, land and human resources are abundant...(see below)

Finally, we came to a village where one of my father's cousins is living. We have contacted my father's cousin to take us around. If not for them, we would have trouble navigating our ways, and our 'mission' would not be successful. It was such a joy to meet cousins of my father whom we had never met as they are living in China. First, it was my father's 5th uncle's son (brother of his mother) who lived in Shantou. He and his wife showed us the way to Puning and then the village 'Hong Yang'. At Hong Yang, my father's 3rd uncle's son and his first uncle's grandson took over to bring us to our grandfather's home.

The village is really the type I would call an authentic village. It is so picturesque...See the picture below ... Where can we find such view anymore in the modern world???

Chicken scrambling for food in a rubbish dump (see picture below). However, look at the feather, how beautiful, how healthy and how happy they are .. Life is definitely great compared to those here that sit in the cages, so small that they could not turn their bodies but just sit , waiting to be slaughtered and sold to the supermarket.

A beautiful stream adorned the village, you can see below. Eventhough the villages did not take care of its cleanliness, it still give a perfect reflection of the hundred-year-old houses of the village.

Drying the laundy with a nice backdrop!! See picture below.

Huh, this man is the culprit on why the stream is dirty! What is he washing??!!! (see below)

Then he dried it outside his or neighbour's houses. It must be recycled sacks. (see below)

Walked a bit further along the village, you would find many 'public toilets'..see the next 3 pictures. Our 'cameramen and camera-women' were much intrigued by these toilets. I found so many pictures of them. Some were full of maggots, imagine!!!! I would not post them here to avoid getting a complain.

Everyone was so mesmerised by this authentic village. We found so many new, interesting and also culture-shocking things before we said a good hello to our uncle and auntie. I was amazed that these hundred-year-old houses are still homes to many people. Our uncle and auntie who live in one of the houses came out and greeted us with warmth. Instantly, we felt connected and we were so touched by their love and hospitality.

Se picture below :

From left : grandson of father's first maternal uncle (living in Puning), son of father's 3rd maternal uncle (living in Puning), son of father's 5th maternal uncle (living in Shantou), father, mother, wife of son of father's 3rd maternal uncle (living in Puning), wife of son of father's 5th maternal uncle (living in Shantou). Well, it took us quite long to link and understand who they are to my father, so don't worry if you do not understand.

My brother could not wait to take a photo with uncle for remembrance. (see below)

We were treated to the famous 'teochew kung fu cha/teochew kang hu teh' inside the home. (see below)

We were also treated to packets of cigarettes...but none of us smoke. It is their turn to feel culture-shocked. (see below)
Then, auntie started busy frying eggs. (see picture below) It is a culture that eating egg is a must when you meet up with long lost relatives. Maybe egg is round...so , the word 'yuan' (round) is same as 'tuan yuan' (reunion). Sometimes it is round rice dumpling that is served, also mean reunion.

After auntie fried the eggs, she put each egg into a bowl and soaked it with syrup.( see below)

There were too many of us to fit into the house, therefore, some of us overflowed to the yard. We had a great time savouring the eggs..(see below)

While immersing ourselves in the new culture, we were also shown life back to basic. They sleep on bed without mattress but a thin layer of mat. The bed frame is made of solid wood, nicely carved for a nice design. (see below) It could mean luxury to them, something which I believe my grandfather did not have when he was still living in the village.

These hooks below are meant for hanging meat. Auntie told me that rats would not be able to reach the meat this way.

Below is a peep into a neighbour's home.

After spending much time orientating ourselves in our new found village and home, and having our welcoming sessions with Auntie and Uncle, we started to walk to my grandfather's house which is nearby.

We walked along narrow paths sqeezed in between homes, some back doors facing each other, some front doors facing each other. The path is narrow enough to hang a string of laundry across two houses opposite each other. (see below)

Every household have the same surname as I have, 'Fang', and thus my father and grandfather. See the lanterns in the 2 pictures below with the word 'Fang'. The same one is hung in majority of the houses in the same village. For us who have the same surname, felt suddenly, that we became the majority. We are usually the minority anywhere we go in the world.

Twist and turn, it was quite a long walk. We came across someone selling pork just outside the house. (see below) See the amount of fats. It is still common ,I believe, for people there to add lard into their cooking.

Next, we came across people selling vegatables too. Motorcyles and bicycles seemed to be sharing the same narrow path. We were rather stressful. (see below)

Even seafood are sold along the way. (see below)

See below, a modern building next to the old village. It is rare.

More twist and turn. Without our uncle who lives there, we would not be able to find our grandfather's house..

Finally, someone said, "After this bridge, you will come to your grandfather's house!" Oooh, the much awaited moment!!!!! Everybody look excited suddenly. (see below)

After the bridge, we must borrow someone's house to go through. This is a short cut. It was quite embarrassing as there were so many of us. We had a glance inside the home. Everything was there, from washing machine to dining etc. It looked less than 25 sq mtr for the whole house. (see below)

We then found out that my grandfather's house is No. 123 ..(see below)

After emerging from the neighbour's house, we reached our destination. So, it was my grandfather's house, a home were he lived before he migrated to Malaysia. It was as small as the neighbour's house...less than 25sq mtr I believe. See below, my parents standing at the entrance of the house. I think my dad would have felt like he has reached the 'summit of Mt Everest'. But this one is even more special. It is his father's house.

The house was left vacant for a long time. We heard that a relative had sold the roof many many years ago. So, what we have is only wild plants in the house. (see below)

A place to rear pig outside the house (see below)

This seems to be the main entrance to my the house. (see below). Then the following picture below shows all of us in the courtward outside my grandfather's house. We spent a fair bit of time there talking to the neighbours and also our relatives to find out as much as possible, story about our grandparents.

After leaving my grandfather's house, we walked back to my uncle's house. Along the way, we met and found more things. We met a group of local students. My uncle who went with us, started interviewing each of the students what their surnames were (see below). To our surprise, they are not all "Fang". Perhaps there are people coming into the area to live now.

We found a beautiful bridge like those filmed in the traditional drama. The bulding next to it has a nice roof art..(see the 2 pictures below)

As we walked on, we found people selling 'te ka tang' (Pork Throtters Jelly). This is an authentic Teochew dish. It is usually craved by our grandparents' generation .... See , how fatty!!! (see 2 pictures below)

As we walked , we saw a house with thick smoke billowing from the chimney. We thought something was on fire. (see below)

We peeped and saw a man making tofu/ tau kwa. If you have tried Puning tau kwa, you would know how nice it is. Here it comes from! (see below). The man said he was making on that day and then he would sell them at the market the following day. Of course we conversed in Teochew. Everywhere you went from Shantou to Puning, Teochew is spoken everywhere. It is kind of strange but you feel very at home for Teochews.

The used soya fibres were used to feed the pig behind his house (see below)

If you like history and cultural, you would like to read on...of course the facts below are all written NOT by me, but my sister ...

Thereafter, we came to a temple called Chenghuang Temple. It is believed by local folks that Chenghuang is the guardian god of a town. Normally the door of a temple is painted with two marshalls, but this one is painted with two officials. The temple received a lot of donation from overseas Teochew and was recently renovated. We can see the roof being decorated with Jian Nian, literally means "cut and paste", an unique ornamental art in Teochew. Teochew has been famous for its ceramic industry and of course there has always been broken ceramic during the production. Teochew people cut these broken ceramics into small pieces and paste on figurines decorating the roof and pillars of architecture. Very similar to mosaic art. Sometimes they even use clam shells. As the figurines is not painted, their colour can last for very long time and won't fade because of sun and rain. It is very famous in Teochew and has been now widely used in Southern China architecture. In almost every old temple or big buldings in Teochew, we see a pair of drum like stone at the entrance and a pair of stamps engraved on stone at the top of the door. According to the locals, these are called Men2 Dang1 Hu4 Dui4. Mendang refers to the pair of stamps and Hu Dui refers to the two stone drum. It is an architecture exclusively for important temples and influential families. Below are some pictures...

Next to the temple is another small building called Wen Chang Ge. (See picture below) This building used to be a hostel for officials of Qing Dynasty. It is famous because Lin Ze Xu passed away here. Lin Ze Xu was the famous official during Qing Dynasty who burnt the opium, the drug that caused the fall of the Qing Empire to Western power. He fell sick on his way to Guangxi and passed away in this building.

After much walking and visiting, our stomachs began to growl.

What's for lunch???? What? ??? Cats and dogs meat? Kidding!!!! (see below)

Thank God, we went to the restaurant next door. Not the one selling meat of cats and dogs. We had a good variety of other delicious things to choose from...(see below)

Fish and Puning Tau Kwa. How can we missed Puning Tau Kwa?? See below.

Nice bowl of soup...(below)

Roast chicken ? (below)

After a sumptuous lunch, we continue to move around Puning. First we came to the relative's daughter in law's fruit stall. Look at the fresh fruits!! (see below)

Then we went to visit Fang Yao's mansion. (See picture below) Fang Yao, or Fang Thirteen, was a Navy Commander during Qing Dynasty. He is the most famous person among Fang people in Puning because of his high rank and military achievements. He also did many good things in Teochew. Althought it is called mansion, it is actually a clan village made up of some 700 houses for the whole Fang Yao's clan to stay here. Usually people would share the ancestral hall with other families of same surname, but this family is so big that they even have their own family ancestral hall. After Fang Yao's death, the mansion's condition deteriorated. The mansion was even used as a factory and a school. It was only until recently that the government decided to move the school and factory out and restore the building. Now it is a museum cum art gallery. In the building we saw a lot of wood carvings and painting on the beams and pillars. Just like other traditional old buildings in China, no nails are used in the construction of the building. The entrance of the mansion used to have a very high threshold. The higher the official rank of the owner, the higher the threshold. As it was too high for the old folks and young kids to go over, small walkaways has been built between the houses for them to use. These small trails are called zisun men子孙门.

子孙门 (below)

Dad was looking over Fang Yao's journals? (see picture below)

We heard from a cousin and then aunties

after we came back, that Fang Yao was the person that brought my great grandfather to Taiwan, and eventually my great-grandfather passed away in Taiwan.

The alley that divides the houses in the mansion itself (see below)

We continued to walk on... and see below, we passed by a tree that grows on a brick fence! It is very interesting..

Below is an ancestral hall of those with Fang surname. There are many branches of Fang's ancestral hall and this one is called Feng Xian Tang奉先堂. We spent quite a long time here to wait for the people in charge here to help us check our great grandfather's name in our jiapu (the great family tree book). However, they could not find the name, so my brother decided to buy a set of Jiapu back to check himself. Guess he was hopeful to see if we can traced to our ancestor who might be an emperor. To date, he found nothing. He should look in the Bible and found Adam, our first anchestor easily.

It was a tiring but memorable and special day. As the journey back to Shantou would take about 2 hours, we headed back at about 4pm.

We went for a sumptuos dinner in Shantou ..look at the amount of seafood below ...

Back in the hotel, our cousin from Shantou who works in a sweet factory brought the children all kinds of sweet. The children were elated!!!!!

Day 2 - Chaozhou

2010-12-29T21:05:00.018+08:00

The weather was great. The temperature was perfect. It was cold but not too cold for us. It was just comfortable. We woke up to the greeting of Mr. Golden Sun on our second day in Shantou. However, the true fact is, only few of us managed to say 'hi' to him. This is because, half of our rooms faced the west where the sun goes down instead. My avid photographer brother was the one that said 'hi'. The picture below from him is the evidence.

Visiting Shantou means, we must taste as much of the local food as possible. We must embrace the local cultural, come on kids, for at least the 6 days. No point eating at McDonald's Shantou or KFC Shantou!

So, we bravely asked the bus travel agent to suggest to us any local eateries for our first breakfast. So, we were sent to a shop that sold Teochew Porridge and Noodles. It sounded really good, as we were familiar with them and wanted to see if they resembled any we had back in Singapore and Malaysia. Below picture is the shop.

Wow, see how yummy the food seemed...They were cooking right in front of the shop ....

The senior citizens were marvelling over the different familiar dishes that could be eaten with the Teochew Porridge (plain rice porridge). See the varieties in the 2 pictures below ...black kana (olive), kiam chai (salted vege), kiam neng (salted duck egg) etc etc

And this one, see picture below, a big pot of pig intestines braised in 'lou' (black soya sauce gravy) with bean curd and pig skin. This is another common Teochew dish. Well, it looked too good not to try. But well, the taste of the original smell was just too strong for me to swallow!

Here comes the Teochew Porridge. See picture below. It was soothing for the stomach in a cold morning. The breakfast were rather heavy for us.

Here, in the next 2 pictures below were what the adults chose. All were typical Teochew dishes we ate since young.

Most children had chosen noodles. When the first bowl came, everyone rushed to warm their hands on the hot steam. How clever!

Yummy wasn't it? I was amazed that most children could finish the whole big bowl. I could not!

My uncle has specially ordered his noodles with different variety of meat and internal organs..see below. He is an expert of Shantou among us as this was his 4th visit.

Well, the food was delicious.... but eating in a local stall means, don't look what is under the table and what is in the kitchen. Now that we have finished eating, take a look if you are still curious ---->

Oh, well. So much about food for the first day and now the second day morning, we were all ready to 'cheong'.. Let's go!

We decided to visit Chaozhou first, a town abt 30 minutes from Shantou, before we embarked on tracing our anchestors homes. Chaozhou is a must-go place as most of the Teochew culture originated from this place. It is the most touristy place in this region.

Our first stop in Chaozhou was the FengHuangzhou Park. It is not a very big park with trees, children playground, a couple of old temples and a pagoda overlooking the Hanjiang River.

Below picture shows mum, dad and aunt taking a break from the stroll in the park.

The beautiful pagoda, standing majestically, welcoming us from the distance.

Hey, we better take a picture here for remembrance .. what a nice backdrop.

Here....we came close to the pagoda--->

It was very relaxing to stroll in the park. No boss screaming down our necks, no homework to pass up and no time limit! We took interest in everything. See what is on the tree?? (see picture below)

Oh, tree gets to grow old here...Its branches got the chance to develop anyway it likes. Will it envy its cousins in Singapore that always need to be trimmed or is the Singapore cousins envying those here that gets its freedom to grow old? (see picture below)

Twins (see picture below)

Art in China certainly has its status and history. I am most impressed with the roof art that I saw this time. Perhaps, I seldom took noticed of it but this time, we have about 9 cameras with us and I found so many roof art pictures taken, there is no way to miss. See the next 4 pictures, all taken in the same park.

Next, we hopped onto our bus and headed for a place called Hanwengong Memorial Temple. This was build in the Song Dynasty. To me, it was a place that we had to climb many steps as it as build on a mountain side. See all of us in the picture below, at the entrance before we climbed the steps.

When we finished climbing, we found more steps to climb. Dad and aunt decided to just wait there to rest their feet ---->

What is so special about the plant here, mum?! ---->

Nice view was the reward after you made the climb (see picture below)

We found more roof art at Hanwengong Memorial Temple too..see the next 2 pictures below --->

A walkway decorated with red lanterns in the Hanwengong Memorial Temple. See picture below.

After the climb, we decended back to the entrance and at the side, there were a couple of shops selling local tidbits and tea. The popular stuff we are familiar with were 'lao heo ng' (preserved buddha hand?!) and preserved kana (olive). The owner was happy to see us patronising his shop. He quickly made us tea...which is another common 'must-have' thing in the Teochew culture. This practice has somehow died when our grandparents migrated to Singapore and Malaysia. The local in Shantou and Chaozhou called this 'Ganghu' Tea. It is tea made in a bigger cup and then served in small cups. Then the cups are wash there and refilled with tea again. For us that live a fast pace of life, would not be able to find time to sip tea that way 'lah!'. Nevertheless, I bought a set of the tea cups for fun!! Yes, and my daugter used it once as if they were her toys. See picture below. The boss of the shop was busy making tea.

My uncles were following the traditions of consuming Ganghu Tea -->
Huh, if you are from Singapore and Malaysia, you would likely recognise from the next picture below who has visited the shop. Because of her endorsement, I bought some 'lao heo ng' from the shop. (Kym Ng, celebrity from Mediacorp - 2nd from right)

After satisfying our shopping needs, we hopped onto the bus and headed for lunch. Picture below shows the Han River North Bridge in Chaozhou.

Picture below shows common preserved fruits from Chaozhou.

I was surprised to see so many guava farms and guavas in Shantou and Chaozhou. My uncle bought a few and I have not tasted such good guavas for a long time. This was sold by an old man at the back of his bicycle. This must be fresh from his farm. See picture below.

Fresh kana (olive), another specialty from this place. My uncle loves it and he has always hunt for it in Singapore during the Chinese New Year period. Here you are ...loads of them! But he told the woman that sells them, I only wang RMB1. The auntie said, oh, then I give you for free. But uncle said, no no no, I pay you RMB. He still have a handful of kana for RMB1.. Everyone was happy to get a taste.

Lunch, we had vegetarian. Below picture shows another of my favourite dish. Sweet glutoneous roll. Ahem, pls give me the recipe, anyone?!

Vegetarian pork with the fats intact. Amazing! ----->

Vegetarian fish with fish skin intact ---->

After a sumptuous lunch, we headed to a temple called Kaiyuan Temple. This temple was built in the Tang Dynasty which has history over 1260 yrs. --->

We found more roof art. It is like our mosaic art but I think it is made of ceramic. Chaozou city is also famous of its ceramic manufacturing. --->

Below picture shows a very artistic photo taken from the temple. But what are the shoes doing there?

A visit to the toilet was stressful. Why must there be a hole on the door for a squatting toilet?? --->

Next, we walked down the street from the temple and came to a Commerce Pedestrian Street. There are many shops along the street --->

Stalls were set along the back lanes --->

A pet shop ----->

A shop making sesame oil. They were filling the oil into bottles when I passed by earlier --->

Putting noodles to dry in the sun outside the shop -----> Hygenic? No? Yes?

We went passed some old houses, old enough to have plants on the roof. Another roof art? ---- >

This appeared to be like the riches man's house on an old street ner the pedestrian street. Quick, take a picture before anyone comes out!

Knock and it shall be answered ..........

Hey, and we found a well along the street ---->

A musical instrument shop ----->

All things Made in China shop ---->

Teochew kueh mould. My mum and aunt were hot on these.--->

Traditional weighing scale. See picture below. I regretted so much that I did not buy one of this. This is a very sentimental thing as my dad used to have them when we were young. I have a special liking for it and I tried to make one myself when I was young. I am still in love with it. Why didn't I get one home? Whoever is going, pls get me one ---->

Trishaw is still a means of transport in this part of the world. --->

Next, we walked towards the Guanji Gate Wall. It is constructed during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) ---->

Wow, our feet needed a break, all young and old. ----->

OK, come on everyone. Next moved to the most interesting place in Chaozou. It is interesting because we have heard this so much from our grandparents. It is the Guanji Bridge. The current one has been rebuilt. The old one was there 800 years ago. The whole bridge consists of one part of stone plate bridge, one part of arch bridge and one part of floating bridge. The floating bridge is hown below which is connected with 18 boats. The part of the floating boat can be disconnected for the passage of bigger boats. There are 24 pavilions with different styles on teh 24 piers for doing business. ---->

After mesmerizing the beauty of the bridge, we decided to ask the driver to bring us to any ceramic shops as we were told there were many here. So, we ended up in one before the sun went down. It was pretty impressive to see the fine art, they could even make patels of flowers that looks real with ceramic. And what a big teapot for Ganghu Tea??? ---->
Mr Golden Sun was saying goodbye, and the time was not even 6pm yet. What a shame! Anyway, we still have next time if we want to see more......

Dinner was sumptuous, now, we started to get familiar with the dishes and we also not failed to ask the chef for 'less salt and less oil'. My favourite dish for the night was another sweet cake kind of thing. Any recipe please?

Wonder you feel as tired as we were after reading Day 2?! Stay tuned for Day 3, which is Puning City, my paternal grandfather's hometown!

Day 1 - Shantou

2010-12-27T21:07:00.011+08:00

On the 13th of December, 2010, nineteen of us, family and relatives, old, young and small, flew to Shantou, China. This was a much anticipated trip, unusual from other holidays that we have made before. It is special and very sentimental. The reason is because, both my grandparents (paternal and maternal) came from this place long ago. They have migrated to Malaysia when they were in their teens I so heard. Visiting to their place of origin means seeing and experiencing the place and lives there. I could not help thinking, what if they did not migrate??! Would we now all be living in Shantou?!!

Another thing special about this place is that, it is a place of Teochews (a dialect). The nineteen of us are all Teochews and only in Shantou, the only part in China that we could hear everyone speaks Teochew. And, the relatives were amazed that we, non-locals, could speak some Teochews too.

Before reaching Shantou, I had an impression that Shantou (literally translated as 'Mountain Head') was a small village on top of a mountain. Well, as I was researching more about the place, I realised that it is not only not a small place, but it has skyscrapers everywhere in the city.

On approaching Shantou in the aeroplane, we had an aerial view confirming how modern and big Shantou could be. See picture below.

Jetstar was the only flight that goes directly from Singapore to Shantou. As we were travelling during the peak season, the airfare was almost double of the non peak season airfare. We paid about SGD620 each/return. There was no food served but there was quite a good variety on the menu which we could order. There were chicken rice, laksa, sandwiches, beef stew, porridge, desserts like black glutoneous rice but the desserts were cold. They all cost abt SGD8 on average. Juices/beverages were from SGD3 onwards. I find that a lot of the food went out of stock on the flight from Shantou - Singapore.. So, it is advisable to fill up the stomach before on board the plane home. The picture below shows the plane that we had just alighted in the Shantou airport.

As the nineteen of us who went are all related and our main objectives were to trace our anchestors/relatives' homes, we went on our own free and easy trip. We booked a 22 seater bus as shown in the picture below. The size of the bus fit us just right.

For convenience and comfort, we booked ourselves into the Golden Gulf Hotel, which called themselves a 5 star hotel. It costs us RMB400 per night. We were blessed to have booked earlier as the rate has increased to RMB700 per night when we arrived due to a local function that was going on. The rooms are clean and comfortable but well travellers would say it is just abt 4 stars to be true.

The picture below shows the view from my hotel room window. It overlooks part of the city.

I was really impressed to see the Christmas decorations in the hotel lobby. I never thought that Christmas has gone as far as Shantou. They also played Christmas carols in the shopping centres. The following 2 pictures below shows the Christmas deco in the hotel lobby..

As we arrived around 1pm, our stomach alarms rang for lunch. We got the bus company, which was a travel agent to arrange lunch for us. It was very special and interesting to find food that was similar to what our grandparents had cooked or introduced to us since we were young.

Picture below shows sumptuous lunch waiting for us.

One of the dish was just steamed sweet potatoes. I wonder why the sweet potatoes there were so sweet, juicy, huge but not 'old'??!!! This was the favourite for most of us. Simple and organic! (See picture below)

Next, steamed fish head! Not many of us 'young people' know how to appreciate this dish. But our senior citizens truly enjoyed this dish. (see picture below)

Next picture below shows salted preserved vegetables fried with pork. This is a dish that I have eaten a lot when I was young. I guess they used a lot of lard to fry the dish. It was tasty and nice.

In the next picture below, steamed prawns. The prawns were very fresh and juicy. This is also a common Teochew dish at home.

Next picture shows the goose meat. This is a dish we had in almost all the restaurants. Goose meat is a specialty of Teochew dish. However, my uncle was saying that the goose meat below looked more like duck meat. I think the reason is, the goose was a young goose. The best goose meat can be found in 'Chen Hai' where my maternal grandfather came from.

Next is fried fish braised in soya sauce gravy. Wah, this dish was so salty that everyone was complaining!!! It is also a common teochew homecooked dish.

In the evening, we headed to the nearby Walmart. Walmart is just about a 5-10 minutes walk from the hotel. It sells a lot of cheap household stuff if we are not particular about quality.

After shopping for about 2 hours in Walmart, we decided to look for dinner. We got a map from the hotel lobby that there was a nearby eating street 'just across the road from Walmart'. So, nineteen of us, old, young and small started bracing the street to look for the much anticipated yummy food.

However, after walking for some 15 minutes or so, we still did not see any food stall. All we saw was street lights and high rise buildings.????!!!!?? The small ones were falling asleep while walking. The old ones were frustrated as their stomachs could not wait any longer. The dark sky was not helping.

As we were about to give up, someone on the street we met said the stalls were actually only opened during the day time! Oh no!! And then we decided to cross a busy street and came to a few food stall finally ....Yipppeee. But we were not sure if the food were edible. As most of us were still puzzzling and hesitating, my sister said..'Why aren't we going into this shop. This shop is featured in the website.' Wow ...when we heard that, we felt that why could we not recognised it when a piece of diamond was put in front of us!!!! We quickly made our way into the shop eventhough it looked as though it was going to close anytime. By then , it was already passed 8pm. See picture of shop below.

Wow, we had the familiar fish ball soup. It was said that fish ball is very popular in Shantou but trust me, Singapore fish balls are still the best!

Next, we had fried egg. All the dishes were really delicious. We only wished that it could be less salty and less oily.

Next, another soup. It is strange to have 2 or 3 soup in one meal. But it seemed quite common in Shantou! This a tasty bowl of pig stomach boiled with salted vegetables. The stomach was not washed cleaned enough ...you know, that stomach smell was still there.

Next, a strange 'kucai' soaked in salt water. They said this is for dipping the beancurd (Taokwa). This is something new, we had never have this in our Teochew family meals before.

Next, the tasty Kueh Tiao. As we were really hungry, we continued to gobble down the food.

Next picture below shows the ever famous 'O Luak' , fried oyster. We felt that it tasted good but was just too oily. This is also another common Teochew dish.

Next, ah, one of my favourites. The Puning TauKwa (Beancurd). Puning is where my paternal grandfather comes from, a small town about 2 hours away from Shantou. The TauKwa tasted so pure. Those in Singapore tasted like they have been added a lot of chemicals. These one here won't.Below, is a special dish, my favourite too. It is made of sweet rice cake. I wonder why there isn't any sold in Singapore. It is rather common to have sweet rice cooked in different ways in Shantou. Whoever that has the recipe, pls drop it in the comment. Thx.

Having finished our sumptuous dinner, we paid that bill and found that the little shop is not cheap indeed. We walked the same way back to the hotel, this time, feeling that it was actually not too far after all.

Good Neighbour Art Competition

2010-12-03T19:54:00.003+08:00

Colour Medium : Crayon and Water Colour.

Merit Award National Level

A Sailing Regatta Day

2010-12-03T19:49:00.000+08:00

Bangkok 12-14 Nov 2010

2010-11-29T21:03:00.004+08:00

Recently, we made a short trip to Bangkok. Hmm, things are quite expensive there nowadays except for souveniers in small shops. Perhaps, we have gone to the wrong places!

Picture below : Opposite our hotel, the part of Central World that was burnt .. during the red shirt demonstration.

Picture below : The whole comb of beehive + honey in the hotel restaurant. Tasted very pure!
Picture below : Thai Beef Noodles, at Siam Paragon foodcourt.

Picture below : For daughter's sake, we took the tuk-tuk!!

Picture below : My favourite PadThai

Card

2010-11-09T23:15:00.004+08:00

Found 2 pictures of card made in 2006 for a friend.

Paper Collage.

Rubbish Picking

2010-09-29T20:30:00.003+08:00

Last Saturday, we went rubbish picking organised by the Nature Society. It was fun and educational. It looked like it was the place Mas Selamat swam across to Johor. From the picture, you can see the seaside overlooking JB.

We human beings, pollute our own earth. The most collected rubbish from the few of us were plastic bags and industrial wastes like plastic pipes. It will take a lot of work to prevent people from throwing rubbish or to clean up. I think every school have to put a compulsory 'save the earth' lesson to drill into human being's brain from young. Everyone should behave like they are citizens of the earth and not just dwellers of your own home.

In Loving Memory Of My 2nd Aunt

2010-09-07T10:45:00.002+08:00

My 2nd aunt, my dad's 2nd sister passed away on 2 September 2010 at the age of 82. She was one of the nicest, kindest and most soft-spoken person around. Nobody would agree that she should suffer or die.

She was still walking around, up and healthy when I saw her at the beginning of this year during Chinese New Year. But when sickness struck, she was gone in just a blink of an eye. It was like a nightmare that you never wished it was true. But I attended her funeral, saw her lying lifelessly but peacefully, it closed the chapter of her life.

Now, my 2nd aunt lives in my heart. Forever, she is the loving, kindest, nicest and most soft spoken person. Wherever her spirit is now, I asked for God to have mercy and grace for her.

It Is The Journey And The Process Not Always The End Result

2010-08-25T19:58:00.004+08:00

Just watched a talk on TV by Joscelin Yeo ex National Swimmer of Singapore. She said she cannot remember how many medal she has won because that was not important. What is important is the journey, the process, the friendship you built and the value you learn. The process is more important because she could be training for 4 yrs for a race that took less than 2 and the half minutes or lesser.

How To Peel Garlic?

2010-08-13T13:01:00.001+08:00

Without a domestic helper really does my little daughter good. Yesterday, I was preparing dinner when she walked into the kitchen. She offered help, so I asked her to get 2 cloves of garlic for me. Then she offered to peel it. She started doing that with her finger nails. After a couple of minutes, it was not successful. So, I showed her ....put them on the chopping board, crushed them with the flat part of the knife, the garlic peeled by itself! She was so amazed that it was that easy!

YOG Torch

2010-08-10T22:11:00.001+08:00

Today, the YOG torch relay came passed by our block. We rushed downstairs in time to take a few shots. It is indeed a moment of a lifetime. Just a few minutes, it was gone!

Pencil Case

2010-08-02T17:59:00.003+08:00

Pencil Case made of recycled materials. By Simone.

Leek And Potato Soup

2010-08-02T17:38:00.002+08:00

I got this recipe from the recent Sunday Times. I decided to try it out as it is so easy. Just put chicken, leek (cut into pieces) and potatoes into the pot with water and simmer for about 1-2 hrs. Add salt and pepper to taste. The outcome was so much more delicious than expected. (Thumbs up)

Fireworks At Marina Bay Sands

2010-08-02T17:31:00.002+08:00

This was the first time I witnessed fireworks with Marina Bay Sands as backdrop. It was the night , last Saturday, when there was a National Day Parade rehearsal. We were having dinner at the Esplanade area with our friends from Australia, Rob and Ellie. We had a great time and the fireworks were bonus.

Fish Porridge

2010-08-02T17:16:00.004+08:00

Fish Rice Porridge is a simple and healthy meal. Just add fresh fish slices to rice porridge about 4-5 minutes before porridge is cooked. Add a bit of salt/light soya sauce. Let porridge and fish boiled together for 2 minutes and we have a tasty and healthy meal.

Other ingredients to add (optional) : -

any kind of vegetables, I tried added cauliflower the other day and tasted good. Adding vege makes the simple meal balanced.
Chinese celery and fried shallot for ganishing.
Tientsin Vege for added authentic Teochew taste.

This meal is our favourite lunch.

What Is My Horror Of Wisdom Tooth Extraction?

2010-08-02T16:23:00.002+08:00

I found the best dentist in town, best means a guarantee of no pain! Well, indeed , during the operation, there was almost no pain except for the part when the needle went a bit deeper. That was not bad considering there were more than 30 injections. During the operations, I was covered up with the green cloth which has an openning where my mouth was. No pain, but what tensed me up was the grinding/cutting noise the machine made. Apparently, the dentist needed to cut one of my wisdom tooth into 2, so that it could be removed. Upon hearing the noise that sounded like house renovation, I was rather freaked out. The doctor thought I had pain!

Phew..., everything finished within one hour. I went home happily. I could bear with the bleeding and numbness for a while.

Well, the bleeding completely went off only after 3 days. I was amazed that there was indeed not much pain at all despite the 2 huge teeth that the dentist had returned to me being taken out. There must be 2 big holes in the gum.

However, the real horror came about 3 weeks later. I could not open my mouth. I could hardly stick my pointing figure into my mouth. I could not eat well and could not brush my teeth. I checked the internet and some people said it could be irreversible! I was worried. So, I went back to the dentist and he assured me I would be able to open my mouth again eventhough I felt that it would be a miracle for it to happen. He also recommended me a tooth brush with a small head that could reach the inner part of the teeth and I could brush my teeth.

Now, almost more than a month has passed, I could open my mouth again. Not maximum yet, but I am relieved it is reversible : ) So, for those that is experiencing your mouth not being able to open after wisdom tooth surgery, do not worry.

Irobot, My New Maid

2010-08-02T15:58:00.002+08:00

(In picture below, Irobot Roomba, a vacumn cleaner that does the work itself. After finishing, it will return to its charging station on its own)

Last month, my full time domestic helper decided to stop working for me to return to her home country. I decided not to get another full time maid, at least, I want to try out without one first before jumping into hiring another one. I have had full time domestic helper for a total of seven years. Besides they were great help to me, I lost the privacy in my own home. As I work from home, I spent 24 hours, almost everyday at home. Therefore, I missed the joy of having full privacy at my own home.

Now, the time has come for me to redeem my privacy, but it is also a test, yet it should not be something unachievable. My child is no longer toddler, and I still enjoy the privileges of working from home.

So, I decided to do some adjustment.

Firstly, I check what would take up most time of doing housework. Then I substitude as many as I could by machines and robots.

Below are what I do, I hope it could give whoever that has no domestic helper, work full time and has a family some ideas as well. Of course, suggestions are also welcome.

1. Bought an Irobot vacumn cleaner that could do the vacumning by itself. It cleverly does the work while I do my work.

2. I am also going to get a Irobot that can mop/wash the floor by itself.

3. I programmed the washing machine to wash the laundry at abt 5am. By the time I wake up at 6am+, it is done.

4. I transfer the clean laundry from the washing machine to the dryer. After my morning exercise, the laundry is dried and ready for folding and putting into the cupboards.

5. I get a part time maid once a week that can wash the toilets, iron, clean the kitchen/rooms/windows and change the bedsheets.

6. What left for me to do is cooking which is what I enjoy. When I am busy, I will cook simple dishes. When I have more time, I will try out new recipes.

I feel happy with this little hardwork compared to no work!

LTA Art Competition

2010-08-02T14:58:00.000+08:00

A participation of 2010 LTA Art Competition.

Hotboys, Here We Come!

2010-06-23T11:51:00.006+08:00

Hotboys! Is it a new 'Full Monty' in town??! Of course not!!! It is a fishing Kelong off Tanjong Leman, about a 25 minutes boat ride from the jetty. Located off the States of Johor, Malaysia, near the town of Mersing, a heaven for fishing....

We spent 2 nights and 3 days at the rustic venue... doing nothing but fishing, visiting a nearby island and relaxing. Everything was good, except for the 'no star' public bunk beds, and 'no star' public toilets cum bathrooms. You have to go and find out for yourself, 'no star' but good experience for the spoilt city kids to live with for a couple of days.

Below is the link to the website : -
http://www.kelongfishing.com/

Below picture shows one side of the Kelong. Anyone can sit there and fish.

Below shows the interior of the Kelong with an exposed floor area for those who hates to fish in the hot blazing sun outside. We looked carefully and saw a medium size sea snake resting on one of the stilts. Will it crawl into your bed at night?!
N got a small fish, but very happy....."Not big, small is good too to go with nasi lemak, a coconut flavoured rice" (below)

Fishes that some fishing enthusiasts caught. Since we did not catch so many, borrow theirs for a picture taken. (below)

Oh, what a big starfish (sea star)! Again, another catch by someone else. (below)

It is indeed a view to behold, to wake up with such a beautiful sunrise (below)

Oh, someone has a huge catch.. Quickly, I stole a picture again!

Hey, here's S caught a teeney weeney fishie..(below)

See picture below, so many fish but not many wanted to get hooked by us!

The chicken below were not the product of the sea. They were our dinner, a special recipe...first step is to dry them in the sun, at the back of the toilets!!!!!!!!

See below, so many people came on the 2nd day. It was good we hopped to an island for some peace at that time.

Serenity of the island (below). It was about a 10minutes boat ride away from the Kelong.

Beautiful coconut trees on the island (below)

Nice, relaxing & beautiful (below)

The children could not wait to rush into the sea! (below)

Bye bye Hotboys! (below)

A Visit To HortPark

2010-06-23T11:21:00.005+08:00

Last week was my first time visiting Hortpark.
http://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/index.php?option=com_visitorsguide&task=parks&id=17&Itemid=73

Found a couple of art that I like.

Below picture shows mosaic art at the entrance of HortPark. Very pretty and very welcoming with its floral design!

Walk further into the park, in a resting shade, there are some tile art that are really pretty too. (see picture below)
HortPark offers a nice short tree top walk. A 15-20mins up and 15-2o mins down, is good for a day's exercise.

Just outside of HortPark, we walked to the bridge called Alexandra Arch to be closed to the arch that changed colours with the lightings. (picture below)

Shower Of Blessings

2010-06-10T17:32:00.003+08:00

by Karyn

Let's Dance

2010-06-08T21:17:00.002+08:00

Let-s Dance - by Karyn

Acrylic.

Fishing In A Pond

2010-06-02T21:39:00.002+08:00

It was an exciting day for the children. We were heading to my parents' backyard to fish in a pond. We have a rod, so everybody waited patiently for the fish to open its mouth.

While waiting for the fish, we wandered around. Examined the spores on the underside of the fern leaves (below).
More spores below.

These are the earthworms (below) we used as baits. Yes, I was holding them. I don't know why I like holding them, but I would scream at the sight of a frog. They should feel the same except for the size.

Ah, we caught a fish finally. Everyone is happy now!

We forgot to deep fried it for lunch though!!!

Fruits on the tree

2010-06-02T21:00:00.006+08:00

Living in a city, we could hardly see how the fruit trees look like, how the vegetable plants look like and so on. I managed to take some photographs of plants found around my parents' place in the village.

Below is lime/lime leaves.

Below is Dragon Scales growing on a tree, not a vegetable but a common plant in Singapore and Malaysia.
Below is moss, we can feel its softness like carpet.

Here comes the earthworms below. We caught them to be fish baits.

See the long bean below. My 5 year old nephew could tell us which one is ready to be harvested. He and his parents live with my parents. Shame on folks in the city, have not even seen the plant itself : )

Imagine you are an ant. Below is your villa.

Ant, below is your covered walkway

Below shows a Ciku on the tree, a very sweet fruit, too sweet for me. Not my type.

Below shows a passion fruit that is not riped yet. The plastic are used to wrap it to prevent insect bites.

The whole passion fruit plant below. Have you seen it before? It has vine and is a climbing plant.

Here comes Aloe Vera below.

Remember, to stop and smell the flowers ...

2010-06-01T23:19:00.002+08:00

Navy Open House 2010

2010-06-01T22:56:00.005+08:00

It was Sunday, 23 May 2010. At 3pm in the afternoon, we decided to visit the Navy Open House to take Simone and her cousins to see the big SHIPs. Despite it was already almost 4pm when we arrived, the sun was still shining mercilessly from the photogenic blue sky. The thin clouds could not help to shelter us from the burning sensation. However, our spirit were still high especially when we saw the gigantic ship.

It took us about 30minutes on a queue for our turn to go inside the biggest ship. Below picture shows many staircase which we need to climbed and decent.

Below picture shows view looking down from the ship.

Below shows the dashboard of the ship.

A lounge inside the ship (below)

A bedroom in the ship (below)

Dining room in the ship (below)

We were taken for a cruise in a smaller boat from the stomach of the big ship. The children were just estatic. (below)

Who is the man in the shadow below?

More ships...

Below shows the mouth of the ship which we came out from. Very interesting!

We had a fun time and great experience!

Fungi In The Carpark

2010-06-01T22:41:00.001+08:00

We found a fungi in the carpark downstairs!

The Parable of the Talents

2010-05-19T13:44:00.003+08:00

Matthew 25 : 14-30

I learned that each person will be given the talent based on his or her ability. We must make full use of the ability.

For those that are lazy, the talent will be taken away.

29 : For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him....

Outside My Window

2010-05-10T13:48:00.002+08:00

3D art and craft.....Outside My Window

by Simone

Mother's Day Gift

2010-05-10T13:21:00.000+08:00

From Simone & Rachel

....a new hand-made designer bag!!!!!

A Tribute To Mother

2010-05-09T19:43:00.002+08:00

Casting my memory back to when I was four,

That was when I felt very sore,

My little cousin had my favourite book tore,

Immediately mother came to hug me more.

Her smile, the first thing I saw,

When I stepped through the door,

In a beautiful sweet dress she wore,

My mother, a person I would die for.

My secret, to her I poured,

My choices, she said has no force,

Just gently telling me what the right way was,

Not to listen, I would be lost.

Mother, mother, mother, here I toss,

When I came like lightning on a horse,

When I see your smile I pause,

A beatiful rose from me .... is all yours.

... Simone

Mealworm Our New Pet

2010-04-08T16:57:00.006+08:00

Last school holiday, Simone came home with 7 mealworms. They were studying the cycle of the mealworm. Well, since then I looked at them everyday, trying to catch the moulting process (changing of its skin) in a video. But when it happened, the video was not clear. So I took pictures instead.

1. A bowl of mealworm. Not sure what to feed, gave it some biscuits.

2. A mealworm moulting. You can see the lighter one, coming out of its skin. Decided to give the mealworm some brocolli so it could get water.

3. Mounting process...continue

4.The mealworm just came out of its skin (exoskeleton). Each one will moult many times as it grows. This is the larva stage of the mealworm.

5. The skin or exoskeleton of the mealworm.
6. The lighter one on the right has just moulted. Chicken loves to feed on mealworm that has just moulted as it is soft and juicy! You can try too.

7. Now, one of the mealworms having its last moult and turned into a pupa. Before that happened, the mealworm did not move for 2 days and I thought it has died.

8. Notice the mealworm at larva stage looks different from its pupa stage. And, the mealworm could walk with its 6 legs but the pupa just stays still. It does not eat also, but it keeps growing.

9. Looks like the pupa is quite ready to turn into an adult bettle. It looks browner and started to move a little. Simone worrieed that it would turn into an adult while we were asleep and flew to her face. So, we transferred it from an uncovered bowl to a bottle covered with peforated plastic wrap.

10. This is the bettle, just coming out of the pupa stage. It sheded its skin too. It looks wet.

11. One day later, the adult bettle looks brown and strong. We gave it some carrot first but will give it some grains later. Now, we are waiting for the other 6 to turn adult, and lay eggs , and then repeat the cycle again. Fun!

Housing Around The World

2010-04-01T21:43:00.001+08:00

Simone's Social Studies school project.
Collage.

Man Dropped From Building

2010-03-30T10:33:00.002+08:00

The morning sun has not shown its face at 7am this morning. It was still cooling. As usual, Nick and I were sipping coffee and reading the morning paper.

All of a sudden, we heard a cry of anguish and a loud thud. After about 5 seconds, I told Nick that it could be someone jumping off the buiding. He agreed. So, we walked to the window, looked down and saw a motionless man face down. Immediately, I asked him to call the police.

I saw some people passed by, a lady gave him a kick and there was no response. A man came on a bicycle and told the lady, the man on the ground was bleeding. He also asked the woman to call the police.

More people passed by. One thought the man was drunk and had been falling asleep since the night before. Another said, "No, he is dead".

About half an hour later, police and paramedics came. After some resuscitation procedure, the man was put on a neck brace, put on a stretcher and gone.. Perhaps he is not dead. I prayed that whatever it was, he would live to have another chance.

It is just too cruel to die such horrible death. May God bless him.

Mars and Saturn

2010-03-30T09:28:00.002+08:00

Last Saturday, we went to the Marina area in the evening to be in the crowd, to celebrate Earth Day. The most amazing thing was , we saw Mars and Saturn in the telescope set up.

Mars was red and Saturn was just so beautiful with the ring around it!!!!!!

The feeling was, the universe, God's wonderful creation was just round the corner.

Do Not Procrastinate

2010-03-18T16:12:00.002+08:00

I was watching a documentary earlier about a young cancer survivor who got cancer at the age of 20+.

His advise was, whatever you want to say to your love ones, or whatever you want to do so you do not have regrets, ......do not procrastinate!

Yesterday is history, today is present, tomorrow is bonus.

Cherish Your Love Ones While You Can

2010-03-17T12:13:00.003+08:00

Take a step back from chasing your daily newspaper and wind, and plan daily, a few special moment with your love one. Tomorrow might just vanish in the air. You wish to hold his/her hands but they are turned to ash.

Aneurysm

2010-03-01T20:27:00.006+08:00

http://a-luang.blogspot.com/2010/02/prayer.html

Recently, I blogged about my sister in law (SIL) getting a stroke despite being so young (33), not fat, no cholesterol and no high blood pressure. The cause was aneurysm in the brain. An aneurysm is a balloon dilatation of a blood vessel. It normally occurs because of long-term stress on the blood vessels.

Day 1
What happened : Aneurysm in my SIL's brain ruptured. In general, about 30% of victim could not make it to the hospital.
Symptom : When she stood up from the toilet, she had a severe headache and started vomitting.
Action : She visited GP and was given usual headache medication.
Doctor's opinion : Usual headache.

Day 2-3
What happened : Bleeding from ruptured aneurysm flowed into brain.
Symptom : On and off giddiness, headache and blury of vision.
Action : She visited one more GP and was given usual headache medication. She still went to work.
Doctor's opinion : Usual headache.

Day 4

What happened : Vasospasm took place. This is narrowing of blood vessels from chemicals released by the blood etc, which can lead to a stroke.
Symptom : On and off giddiness, headache and blurry of vision, lost balance on one side and kept falling down. Unable to walk by evening.
Action : She visited the GP again in the evening and was asked to be admited to hospital immediately.

Doctor's opinion : Not usual headache.

Day 5-8

What happened :Stroke.

Symptom : Left side paralyse, affecting leg, arm and face.

Action : Doctor did CT Scan and MRI. I sms all Christian friends to pray.
Doctor's opinion : Saw brain vessels all very small in CT Scan and MRI. No sign of clot or bleeding. Advised it could be conginetally small blood vessels and caused stroke. No cure.

Day 9
What happened :Stroke.
Symptom : Left side paralyse, affecting leg, arm and face.
Action : Doctor did CT Scan with dye.

Doctor's opinion : Cannot see clearly as my SIL moved during CT Scan.

Day 10

What happened :Stroke.

Symptom : Left side paralyse, affecting leg, arm and face.

Action : Doctor did CT Scan with dye again.
Doctor's opinion:Saw 2 aneurysms. Advised to transfer to another hospital asap as the hospital did not have angiogram facilities to do surgery.

Day 11

What happened : Vasopasm continue. Affected some brain cells.

Symptom : Left side paralyse, affecting leg, arm and face.
Action : First doctor in new hospital (neorosurgeon) gave stroke medication. (Which later another doctor said not supposed to).

Doctor's opinion :the end of the world, and saw 3 aneurysms and surgery cost can be >RM80K or even more than 100K...!! Ask my bro to look for cheaper hospital if cannot afford.
Day 12-13

Awaiting another doctor who is on Chinese New Year to come back as he specialised in stent operation for aneurysm. At this time as I prayed, God gave me a vision that my bro and SIL are dancing. Yes, she will recover.

Day 14

What happened : Stroke

Symptom : Left side paralyse, affecting leg, arm and face.

Action : Doctor specialised in stent surgery came back. I checked and it happened to be friend of a couple of my friends and one of their sisters. They helped me to call this doctor to take good care and give immediate attention to my SIL as she is crucial. Doctor acted immediately. Upon checking, stopped all stroke medication and prepare for surgery the next day. Put my SIL in ICU for preparation.

Doctor's opinion : This doctor is very clear in explanation and patient. Explanation that gave my bro comfort and not confusion and clearly there is hope. He said aneurysm has ruptured and had to be quickly treated by doing a coiling surgery. He said there looked to be 2 aneurysms only but will do the big one first.

Day 15

Action : Surgery took place from 6 pm to 9pm+

Doctor's opionion : Successful and blood vessels have opened up. No more vasospasm. And good news was, there seemed to be only 1 aneurysm after all from angiogram pictures.

Day 16-20

In the midst, first doctor still had different opinion and said further investigation needed as it was not so simple. Another neurologist also wanted to put my SIL through many other tests. But stent expert reckoned my SIL just need to concentrate on physiotherapy to improve stroke condition. After much coordination and persuasion from my bro, my SIL was given the greenlight to be discharged. He and my SIL did not want to listen to so many other doctors opinion anymore.

Day 21

My sis in law is discharged today.

During this time many relatives and friends stepped forward to help. Some check on other hospitals and doctors expert in this area, one gave wheel chair, a lot gave moral support and a shoulder to cry on, and many stand with me for prayer support. We wish to thank all , words itself are not good enough to say how grateful we are.

Now my SIL could move her affected leg slightly, and will continue to work on the rest. She will be completely heal!

Know Where You Are Going

2010-02-26T22:46:00.000+08:00

My Auntie Sent This To Me ...

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican fishing village.
A tourist complimented the local fishermen On the quality of their fish and asked How long it took him to catch them.

"Not very long." they answered in unison.
"Why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?"
The fishermen explained that their small catches were Sufficient to meet their needs and those of their families.
"But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
"We sleep late, fish a little, play with our children, And take siestas with our wives. In the evenings, we go into the village to see our friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs.
We have a full life."
The tourist interrupted,
"I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."
"And after that?"
"With the extra money the larger boat will bring, You can buy a second one and a third one And so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, You can then negotiate directly with the processing plants And maybe even open your own plant.
You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City , Los Angeles , or even New York City !
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From there you can direct your huge new enterprise."
"How long would that take?"
"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years." replied the tourist.
"And after that?"
"Afterwards? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting, " answered the tourist, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!"
"Millions? Really? And after that?" asked the fishermen.

"After that you'll be able to retire, Live in a tiny village near the coast, Sleep late, play with your children, Catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife And spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."
"With all due respect sir, but that's exactly what we are doing now. So what's the point wasting twenty-five years?" asked the Mexicans.
And the moral of this story is:

Know where you're going in life.... You may already be there!!

Chinese New Year Flower In A Vase

2010-02-22T18:15:00.004+08:00

Above, Simone's CNY flower vase. Below, Simone's with other young artists art decorating NAFA's notice board.