Adventures of JinJin

2010-06-28T22:42:00.000-07:00

TRIP TO JAVA (25 TO 30 MAY 2010)

Sri Che Che has worked for my family for about 3 years now and we've always been curious about her hometown of Wonosobo. Deep in Jawa Tengah (Central Java), Wonosobo lies between 2 active strato-volcanoes, Mount Sindoro and Mount Sumbing. The town is still very rural, with its population relying mainly on growing crops as a way of life.

In mid May 2010, Mommy saw the opportunity for a short getaway and thought of Java. It would be highly interesting to visit Sri Che Che's hometown and experience the local way of life. The travel plans were put together very quickly, which added to the excitement of this trip.

On learning that she would be seeing her family so soon, Sri Che Che could hardly contain her joy. The night before we boarded the plane, Sri Che Che didn't sleep a wink. She spent the whole night packing her bags, thinking about her family, and worrying about what we would think of her home.

Eti Che Che was very excited too. She is also from Central Java (but not from Wonosobo). She had barely worked a month for my family and was already heading to Central Java for a holiday!

25 May 2010 (Tuesday)

At 0915 hrs, Ah Gong dropped us off at the Departure Hall of Terminal One. Just before Ah Gong drove off, Mommy checked the backseat of the car and found a handphone on the seat. Sri Che Che was a bundle of nerves this morning, and had accidentally dropped her handphone in the car. Mommy grabbed the phone and Ah Gong waved goodbye to us, then drove off.

Whilst queuing to check in for our flight, Mommy asked Sri Che Che where she had put 2 of our bags. Those bags were empty ones which Mommy wanted to take along in case we needed extra space for our shopping, etc. That was when Sri Che Che realised she had left those 2 bags in the car as well! We quickly got in touch with Ah Gong and begged him to return to the airport. We hadn't even left Singapore yet, and Sri Che Che had already forgotten 2 different things.

Within 15 mins, Ah Gong was back at the airport with our 2 bags. Those bags proved useful immediately because Air Asia demanded that we repack our bags because of a weight issue...

After the morning's drama died down, we proceeded to the children's play area in the transit area of Terminal One. We had about 30 mins to play before it was time to board the plane.

Air Asia Flight No. QZ7139 took off 20 mins later than scheduled at 1130 hrs. It was only a short 2 hr 10 min flight to Yogyakarta, but Mommy was worried that Su Ann and I would be hungry on board. Mommy pre-ordered chicken rice and a chicken sandwich for the both of us, and the food was served shortly after take-off. Both items tasted vile...

At 1240 hrs, we landed safely at Yogyakarta's Adi Sucipto Airport. The airport was very small. Within 30 mins of landing, we had cleared customs, collected our bags and were outside the airport searching for Sri Che Che's father. We found an adorable little old man with a green songkok waiting for us amongst the crowd. He was Pak Winaryo, Sri Che Che's father.

Sri Che Che had arranged for a driver from her kampong to take her dad to the airport, and to drive all of us to Wonosobo. The driver, Mas Nasihin, lived in the same kampong as Sri Che Che, and he was the only man in the kampong with a car. He would be our driver for 3 days at the agreed rate of Rp1,700,000.00 (i.e. about S$260.00), inclusive of fuel.

We left the airport at 1330 hrs (1430 hrs in Singapore). It was way past lunch time for us, and everyone was famished. Mommy had read online about a restaurant close to the airport called Ayam Goreng Suharti and that was where we were headed. The restaurant is reputed to serve Yogyakarta's best fried chicken. How can anyone go wrong with fried chicken? But we were wrong. We're big fans of ayam penyet (Indonesian style smashed fried chicken), but this has got to be the worst we've ever tasted. The chicken was dry and hard. We really didn't know what the fuss was about.

We left the restaurant at 1445 hrs. We still had a 3-hr journey to Wonosobo ahead of us. The drive to Wonosobo took us through farmlands and kampongs. We saw bright green padi fields, cattle on trucks, a boy slightly older than me riding a motorbike, a school band performing on the road, etc. Barely 2 hrs away by flight from Singapore, and we were already a world away.

We noticed that minor back roads would only have one lane i.e. traffic heading in opposite directions would share one lane, and major roads would only have one lane going up, and another lane coming down. To overtake another vehicle in Central Java, the custom was to sound the horn then overtake on the right. On hearing the horn, the vehicle in front would slow down and keep to the left. Don't try this in Singapore, unless you want to be the victim of some kind of road rage!

Mas Nasihin was very familiar with the roads. He was constantly overtaking other vehicles on the major roads, and travelling at top speed down the narrow back roads where they'd be other vehicles, as well as old women in sarong kebaya, school children and farm animals walking about. On more than one occasion, we would be travelling in the path of an oncoming vehicle with barely enough time to cut back into our own lane. It was a white-knuckle experience. It was only after the trip that we learnt from Sri Che Che that Mas Nasihin had injured and killed several people on the streets before and was imprisoned for the offences.

With Mas Nasihin driving like a race car driver, we arrived in Wonosobo 30 mins ahead of schedule. There was only one international class hotel in Wonosobo and it was the Gallery Hotel Kresna Wonosobo (www.galleryhotels.com/wono.htm). It is said that Charlie Chaplin once stayed there, so you can imagine how old the place was. The rooms looked rather dated, and weren't cheap. This time, Mommy decided to go along with the Lonely Planet's recommendation and made a booking with Wisma Duta Homestay instead. The homestay didn't have a website or e-mail address, so Mommy had Sri Che Che ring them before we left home.

The homestay was at No. 3 Jln Rumah Sakit. Yes, it was withing walking distance of the town's hospital. The property belonged to a Chinese family and they lived in the quarters just behind the guesthouse. The guesthouse had a spacious living and dining area, and 4 ensuite guest rooms. Mommy had booked 2 out of the 4 rooms for our group. Each room cost Rp300,000.00 (about S$50.00) per night, inclusive of breakfast.

Wisma Duta Homestay was recently renovated and it was tastefully furnished. The ensuite rooms were quite basic though. There was no tv, aircon, fan or wifi. Daddy thought he wouldn't be able to survive the next 2 nights, but he did in the end and managed to sleep quite well too!

After dropping our bags off at the house, we hopped back into Mas Nasihin's car for the 20-min ride to Sri Che Che's kampong at Kalierang-Lempong. The car had to go down a fairly steep and narrow path to get to Sri Che Che's house. As we passed the houses which lined the path, Sri Che Che pointed out the houses which belonged to her relatives. We passed her uncle's house, aunty's house, cousin's house, and another uncle's house before reaching hers. Yes, it was a close-knit kampong where everyone knew everyone else.

Once we stepped out of the car, a voice called out to us in English. "Welcome to our kampong!" We turned and saw Sri Che Che's aunty smiling and waving to us from her house. This aunt lived directly opposite Sri Che Che's family. This aunt was Sri Che Che's mother's cousin and, this aunt was married to Sri Che Che's father's younger brother. Yes, everyone knew everyone else. This aunt had spent 10 years working as a domestic helper for a family in Serangoon Gardens, Singapore, and so was fluent in English. Sri Che Che said that many families in the kampong had at least one family member working in places like Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore, where there were better paying jobs.

We stepped into Sri Che Che's home, and were warmly greeted by Sri Che Che's mother (Ibu Faini), older brother and younger sister (Mbak Suwati). Sri Che Che has an older sister who is currently working in Taiwan.

Sri Che Che gave us a quick tour of her house. The house was constructed out of wood and had a zinc roof. It was very basic. There was a living area with a sofa set, a tv area with a 14-inch colour tv, DVD player and one armchair, 3 bedrooms, an outdoor toilet and bathroom area where one had to scoop water from a storage tank to bathe, and a kitchen without any modern appliances. The kitchen floor wasn't made out of cement or tiled. It was just mud! There was a larder and a wood-burning stove which Ibu Faini used to cook everything from boiling water to frying chicken.

Sri Che Che said that electrical supply to her house was very limited. Her family couldn't afford to pay for more, so they only had sufficient electricity for the lightbulbs at night and the tv. She said there was certainly not enough electricity for them to watch tv and iron a shirt at the same time! Before this visit, we couldn't imagine life without air-con, fan, refrigerator, microwave oven, laptop, etc., and this was happening right before our very eyes.

Sri Che Che's family didn't have much. Yet, they were very willing to share what little they had with us and had put together a grand meal to welcome us to their home. We were all very moved by their kind gestures. It was a very humbling experience.

Ibu Faini and Mbak Suwati had toiled in the kitchen the whole day. There were garlic and prawn crackers waiting for us on the coffee tables. As we munched on those, more food was brought out. Three different types of vegetables, sardines and onions, fried chicken, beef ball soup, mixed vegetable soup and a steaming pot of rice. We dug into the home-cooked food and chatted with Sri Che Che's family, with Sri Che Che and her aunty acting as our interpreters.

After dinner, Sri Che Che presented her parents with a pair of watches which Mommy had bought as gifts for them. Ibu Faini had never owned a watch in her life before. She was moved to tears. Pak Winaryo was also blinking back tears. He had never received such an exquisite gift before. We had also brought along a DVD with pictures we'd taken with Sri Che Che over the last year. Everyone gathered on the floor to watch the slide show on the 14-inch tv.

At 2015 hrs, Mas Nasihin came by to drive us back to Wisma Duta Homestay. We made arrangements to meet Sri Che Che's family first thing in the morning and said goodbye to them.

Enroute to the homestay, we stopped at a carpenter's shop for Sri Che Che to say hello to her best friend, Muna. Sri Che Che was the one who introduced Muna to the carpenter a few years ago, and now Muna and the carpenter are happily married with one child. Daddy and Mommy were hosting dinner for Sri Che Che's loved ones the next night. The dinner would be at Wonosobo's best restaurant, Restoran Asia, and Sri Che Che wanted to invite Muna's family to the dinner as well. Incidentally, Muna's mother has been head chef of Restoran Asia since Sri Che Che and Muna were little.

Muna had no idea that Sri Che Che would be visiting. When Mas Nasihin's car pulled up outside her shop (which doubled as their home), Muna and her family were sitting around in their pyjamas. Muna thought some rich client had arrived to make a late night purchase, so she approached the car in her pyjamas. When she saw Sri Che Che sitting in the car, she exclaimed: "Woman! You're crazy!" and both women burst out laughing. It was heartwarming to watch the reunion of two lifelong best friends.

We were back at the homestay by 2045 hrs, bedtime for most Wonosobans, where nightlife was non-existent. Whilst preparing Su Ann and I for bed, it dawned on Sri Che Che that she had forgotten to pack ALL her toiletries. Mommy was going to offer Sri Che Che some of her toiletries when she realised that she too didn't pack any toothpaste! We had no choice but to go in search of some kind of mini-mart at 2100 hrs.

Just when we badly needed a 7Eleven, there wasn't one to be found. Wonosobo is probably one of the few towns in the world where 7Eleven hasn't infiltrated. The only place with some life at that time of the night would be the street in front of Wonosobo's only shopping centre, where a handful of roadside vendors would park their carts. Fortunately, there was a cart selling provisions still open, and we were able to purchase all the toiletries we needed.

Meanwhile, Daddy found his way to a cart selling beef satay and was salivating at the aroma of beef being grilled. Sri Che Che ordered a few sticks of satay for Daddy to sample. The verdict: smelt way better than they taste. Daddy couldn't finish the satay, but they were very cheap. Less than S$1.00 for about a dozen sticks. We called it a night after that culinary flop.

26 May 2010 (Wednesday)

Mommy had spent the entire night tossing and turning, whilst the rest of us had slept very soundly. Although there was no aircon nor fan in the room, the temperature definitely fell quite drastically in the middle of the night, and the chill kept Mommy awake for most of the night. At about 0400 hrs, the loud hailers crackled and all the mosques in Wonosobo (and there was one for every few households!) simultaneously broke into song, urging everyone to start their first prayer session of the day. Until you've been in a town like Wonosobo, you wouldn't know what hearing the holy Qur'an in stereo surround sound was like. At daybreak, Mommy was startled by a supremely loud screeching sound. It sounded like some animal was being dragged into an abattoir, but it was actually the morning call of some kind of fowl. It was so loud and annoying that it almost drowned out the sound of the rooster crowing (which Mommy heard too).

By 0630 hrs, Mommy was all ready to head out for the day and she shook the rest of us up. It was a lovely morning. A simple breakfast of bread, jam, pisang goreng (banana fritters) and sticky glutinous rice with brown sugar had been laid out on the breakfast table by our hosts, but Daddy wanted to try some traditional Indonesian bubur ayam (chicken congee) for breakfast, so Sri Che Che and Mommy went out to get him some.

Sri Che Che asked a passerby for directions to a bubur ayam stall, and she was directed to the pasar (market). Mommy had never been to a market like this before. Fruits, vegetables, tofu, tempe, etc. were laid out on the floor for sale. A few of the vegetable sellers recognised Sri Che Che and called out to her. Sri Che Che said they were farmers from her kampong. Sri Che Che and Mommy couldn't find the bubur ayam stall though.

They ended up buying a loaf of fried bread with strawberry jam and a loaf of fried bread with pandan jam from a stall with a queue instead. The bread was coated with a layer of condensed milk and margarine before frying. It was sinfully sweet and greasy.

At 0800 hrs, Mas Nasihin came by with Sri Che Che's parents and younger sister. We were all going on a trip to the Dieng Plateau together. The Dieng Plateau is an area famed for its volcanic scenery and for being the site of Java's oldest Hindu temples, which date back some 800 years.

It took about an hour to drive to the Dieng Plateau. The climb up 2000m above sea level took us past bright green rice padis, and terraced farms where vegetables, spring onion and tobacco plants were being grown. Mount Dieng is a complex volcano which last erupted in 1996. The soil in this area is known by locals for its fertility.

As we neared the Plateau, we saw that a landslide had destroyed part of the paved road. Whilst workmen repaired the road, the only access was by a narrow, rickety wooden bridge. The bridge was shrouded in thick mist, so we had to cross it almost blindly. As we inched across the bridge, we could hear it creak and rattle under the weight of our car. We all prayed that we wouldn't be sent plunging straight down a few hundred metres...

At 0915 hrs, we arrived at Arjuna Complex. Ours was the only car in the carpark. A man immediately stepped forward to ask if we needed a tour guide. He quoted a fee of Rp100,000.00 (about S$15.00). He spoke fluent English and seemed knowledgeable about the area. Daddy agreed to engage him.

The guide led us down a path lined by beautiful hydrangea to the site where 5 ancient Hindu temples stood. The 5 temples were Candi Arjuna, Candi Srikandi, Candi Puntadewa, Candi Sembadra and Candi Semar. The ancient stone structures stood on the vast plateau, surrounded by farmlands.

Our guide pointed to the surrounding potato farms and commented that the popularity of french fries in Singapore has made wealthy men of Dieng potato farmers! Our guide then went on to entertain us with interesting nuggets of information about the temples, and to tell us more about the temples and the Indonesian government's geo-thermal project in Dieng.

The attractions at the Plateau were scattered all over, and we had to drive from one attraction to the next. With the guide, there were 9 adults and 2 kids packed into a car. After visiting Arjuna Complex, we drove to Kawah Sikidang, a volcanic crater with steaming vents and bubbling mud ponds.

The first thing which struck us at Kawah Sikidang was the horrible stench of rotten eggs. Sulphur! We walked as quickly as we could to the largest bubbling mud pond for a look-see. Our guide told us the story of how a local girl had jumped into the boiling water to commit suicide a few years ago. He showed us a horrific picture of the mutilated corpse. He also showed us how to get steam out of the vents in the ground with a lit cigarette.

We spent half an hour at Kawah Sikidang, then moved on to the next attraction, another Hindu temple by the name of Candi Bima. We were told that, for good luck, we had to walk round the perimeter of the temple 3 times without smiling or talking. None of us could do it without breaking into some kind of grin after one round! Haha!

After that, we proceeded to Telaga Warna, a beautiful lake with turquoise hues caused by the bubbling sulphur deposits around its shores. We had to pay an entrance fee to enter Telaga Warna. It wasn't expensive to visit the lake, but the fact that it was a gated attraction stole half its charm. Rightfully, a natural attraction shouldn't be gated, but freely enjoyed by all. Having said that, we also understand the need for a gate and funds to conserve and maintain a precious gift of nature like this lake.

The calm beauty of Telaga Warna would be best enjoyed in a serene environment, but that was stolen from us by our guide. At the start of the tour, the guide gave good information, but after a while, he really got on our nerves. He started getting touchy-feely with Sri Che Che and Mbak Suwati, taking pictures of them and generally making them feel uncomfortable around him. He loved to talk and tried to dazzle us with English proverbs, but his attempts only succeeded in irritating us. In the end, we had to cut short our visit to the lake just to get away from him.

Our first mistake of the day was to hire the guide. And our second mistake of the day was to listen to his advice on where to have lunch! He had told us that the best local dish to try in Wonosobo was mie ongklok (noodles topped with chopped vegetables, served with a thick brown sauce and beef satay), and that the best place to try mie ongklok in Wonosobo was Mie Ongklok Pak Muhadi along Jln Ahmad Yani. Mas Nasihin and Sri Che Che's family all knew the place.

We left Dieng Plateau at 1130 hrs and arrived at the rumah makan (eating house) about an hour later. It was raining heavily when we got there. The sky was dark and it was even darker inside, but no one turned on the lights. There were quite a few customers in there, but everyone sat in darkness and ate in silence. It was a strange sight.

Sri Che Che explained that, unlike in Singapore where people would chit chat whilst enjoying their food, Wonosobans didn't treat eating as a social activity. To Wonosobans, eating was just the act of filling one's stomach. She was right! We observed that, on reaching the rumah makan, Sri Che Che's parents, sister and Mas Nasihin sat at random spots in the rumah makan and they devoured their food in silence when the food was served.

Now, our verdict on the mie ongklok: worst noodle dish ever tasted. I'm sorry. I really wanted to have something nice to say about Wonosobo's pride and joy, but Sri Che Che didn't like it either. Eti Che Che, who usually eats everything up with no complaints, couldn't even finish her noodles! The beef satay was as bad as the ones Daddy bought the night before. The cut was all wrong, and the beef was tough and inedible. Sri Che Che said she was tempted to dissuade us from eating here when she heard the tour guide recommending the place, but wasn't sure if it would be rude... Oh well, at least we can say "Been there. Done that." when it comes to mie ongklok.
After lunch, we dropped Daddy off at the homestay and the rest of us proceeded to Sri Che Che's house. Ibu Faini was going to cook us some instant noodles on a wood-burning stove instead.

Sri Che Che showed us the compost heap at the back of her house and explained that it was the rubbish dump for her household. Basically, any organic waste (eg. the peel of fruit, skin of garlic, etc.) generated by her family would be dumped in that area. Her brother would then use the decomposed matter to make fertiliser for their crops. Theirs would be the most eco-friendly family I've ever met. Their electrical consumption was minimal, and they recycle and reuse their waste! How admirable!

At 1430 hrs, after we'd polished off Ibu Faini's instant noodles, Sri Che Che took us for a walk around her kampong and surrounding farmlands. Sri Che Che's aunty and Mbak Suwati also came with us. We met Sri Che Che's neighbour who was walking his ducks. We saw freshly ploughed fields, coffee plants, a scarecrow, and a fish pond where the fish fed on human waste! A simple, open-air toilet was built directly next to the pond and Sri Che Che said that human waste would be manually flushed into the pond. A man quickly exited the toilet when he saw us approaching. Sri Che Che also pointed out to us a fish pond where the fish didn't feed on human crap. She said the fish in that pond commanded a much higher price. Poultry wandered about the kampong pecking the ground.

We stopped at Sri Che Che's aunty's house at the end of our walk to wash up. After working 10 years in Singapore, her aunt had made enough money to retire, and build her family a nice house with tiled floor and furnish it with modern appliances like a refrigerator, electric stove, electric drinkwater dispenser, stereo system, etc. Mommy took a picture of all of us in her living room, mouthing the word "Singapore!". The common thread amongst everyone in the photo was that we have lived or still live in Singapore.

Just as we were leaving this aunty's house, her sister came by. Her sister worked in Singapore for 15 years and had recently returned to Indonesia for good. She lived in the same kampong as Sri Che Che's maternal grandmother, which was about 25 mins away by car. A sudden decision was made to go to that kampong to visit Sri Che Che's grandmother.

Mas Nasihin drove us to Sri Che Che's grandmother's kampong. The kampong was perched on a hill. At the base of the hill, there was an "Ojek" (transport by motorbike) station. Men with motorbikes made a living by providing transport to those who wanted to travel from the base of the hill to the kampong.

When we got to Sri Che Che's grandmother's house, we were told that she had gone to the mosque and would be back in 30 mins. We had wanted to surprise her, but the plan backfired! Sri Che Che's aunty invited us to her house instead. This lady had spent 15 years working in Singapore, during which time her husband left her for another woman and her son grew up without knowing her. Such is the plight of many Indonesian women who go abroad to find work. Sri Che Che said there were many broken homes and broken homes in the making, but driven by the need to get out of poverty, people really didn't have the choice but to work abroad.

Sri Che Che's aunty was fortunate to have found a suitor again at her age. After returning to Indonesia, she remarried and was looking forward to a second chance at motherhood. She proudly showed us her wedding photos and told us about her plans to start a food and beverage business from a home. Her house was located right next to the kampong's only school and she was going to entice the schoolchildren with es campur, cendol and other sweet things... Clever!

We returned to Sri Che Che's grandmother's house half an hour later to find her waiting for us in anticipation. Sri Che Che's uncle (her mother's brother) had just returned home from the coconut plantation as well, and the family showed us how coconut palm sugar was made. Mommy whipped out her digital camera and everyone wanted their photos taken. They had never seen a digital camera before and were amazed that they could look at the pictures immediately.

Dinner reservations at Restoran Asia had been made for 1930 hrs, and we needed some time to shower and get changed. We bade farewell to the family, and Mas Nasihin took us back to our homestay. We left the kampong at 1715 hrs, and we reached the homestay just before 1800 hrs.

A quick shower and we were off again. We were going to walk to Restoran Asia from our homestay. Mommy had arranged for Mas Nasihin to ferry Sri Che Che's family to the restaurant instead. Restoran Asia was a 10-min walk away from our homestay. We had just enough time to zip into Wonosobo's only shopping centre for a browse and make it to the restaurant for 1930 hrs.

There were 17 of us at the dinner. To feed everyone, Daddy and Mommy ordered 3 portions of hotplate black pepper beef, fried chicken, calamari, 2 types of fish, omelette, claypot tofu, chili kangkong, and brocolli in garlic sauce. When the food was served, all our guests ate in silence, just like what we observed during lunch. Mommy tried to get everyone talking, but they just kept very quiet. It was so strange.

There was way too much food. We got the leftovers packed for Sri Che Che's family. It seems the concept of taking away hasn't caught on yet over here. The restaurant took an exceptionally long time to pack the food. They squashed all the different dishes into one cardboard box and tied it with a string like a gift! The bill came up to about Rp1,300,000.00 (about S$200.00). It was very pricey for Indonesia, and was clearly not a local's regular hangout. The restaurant only had 2 groups of people having dinner there that night - us and a group of beer-chugging European tourists.

Sri Che Che's family and friends thanked us profusely for the meal. We said goodbye to everyone and walked back to our homestay. It was only 2100 hrs when we got back to the homestay. We packed our bags (as we were leaving Wonosobo the next morning), washed up and had an early night.

27 May 2010 (Thursday)

The next morning, we were all at the breakfast table by 0700 hrs. In addition to what was prepared for us the day before, there was also tempeh kemul (deep-fried battered tempeh) for breakfast.

"If only I could have a bowl of mie ayam..." Sri Che Che lamented. Mie ayam was Sri Che Che's favourite noodle dish and she claimed it was the best noodle dish ever. We were a little sceptical, but Mommy agreed that we could all have some this morning.

Sri Che Che led us to the market and then to a random roadside stall for mie ayam (chicken noodle) and bakso (beef ball noodle soup). Both were delicious, and the best part was that 3 bowls of noodles only cost us a total of Rp13,000.00 (S$2.00)! The beef ball at this stall was also the largest we've ever come across. We were glad to have plucked up the courage to eat at such a random roadside stall.

We had arranged for Mas Nasihin to pick us up from the homestay at 0800 hrs. By the time we were done with our meal, it was already 0815 hrs, but there was still one more thing we wanted to do in Wonosobo before leaving town - ride a dokar (horse-drawn buggy which is still used as a means of transport in Wonosobo).

There were plenty of dokars near the market. We hailed one quickly. It was a very short ride to our homestay, but the driver wanted Rp4,000.00 (S$0.60). We didn't care to bargain. Mommy, Sri Che Che, Eti Che Che, Su Ann and I hopped on, whilst Daddy walked back. We trotted past Istana Karpet where Sri Che Che worked as a carpet salesgirl in her teens. We didn't go very far at all before we heard someone shouting out to Sri Che Che. It was her friend who was riding pillion on a motorbike. The motorbike travelled alongside our dokar as the two ladies chatted.

Five minutes later, we were at our homestay. Mas Nasihin's car was parked in front of our homestay, and Daddy was already bringing our bags to the car. We thanked our dokar driver, then rushed off to help Daddy load our bags into the trunk of our car.

We checked out of our homestay and Mas Nasihin drove us to Sri Che Che's kampong so we could bid everyone a final farewell. We would leave Wonosobo this morning to return to Yogyakarta. Enroute, we would stop at Borobudur for some sightseeing. Pak Winaryo would join us for the day.

But first, Mas Nasihin needed to pick something up from his house and he invited us in. He lived just up the road from Sri Che Che's house, close to some of Sri Che Che's relatives. They all gathered round when they saw Sri Che Che step out of the car. Mas Nasihin's wife ushered us into their house and offered us drinks, tempeh kemul and keropok udang (fried prawn crackers).

We stayed for 10 mins then proceeded to Sri Che Che's house to say goodbye to her family.

We finally left Wonosobo at 0930 hrs. About half an hour later, we came across a big hole in the road. Part of the road had collapsed. The workmen repairing the road stopped the traffic to collect money from the motorists. We slipped them a Rp1,000.00 (S$0.15) note and drove on. It was puzzling how things worked around here. Who was in charge of repairing the road? Were repairs funded by the Indonesian government or by passing motorists? Sri Che Che couldn't provide us with a coherent answer...

At about 1100 hrs, we arrived at Borobudur, a 9th century Mahayana Buddhist monument. The monument comprises of 6 square platforms, topped by 3 circular platforms and is decorated with 504 Buddha statues. The monument was abandonned in the 14th century, following the decline of Buddhist and Hindu kingdoms in Java and the Javanese conversion to Islam. Its existence became known to the world in 1814 when Sir Stamford Raffles was informed of its location by native Indonesians. It is today a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is the most visited attraction in Indonesia.

Once we stepped out of the car, hawkers selling all kinds of souvenirs started running towards us. Sri Che Che and Eti Che Che tried to tell the hawkers nicely that we didn't want to buy anything, but they wouldn't listen and followed us everywhere and even waited for us outside the toilet! The only person they didn't bother was Pak Winaryo, who found a shady spot to squat, lit his cigarette and watched the bevy of hawkers harrass us.

It was baking hot at Borobudur. I wanted to go swimming, but Mommy wouldn't listen. She insisted that we visit the World Heritage Site and climb to the top of the monument in the sweltering heat. I was very angry and I kicked up a big fuss.

The view of the surrounding greenery was actually very beautiful from the monument, but the heat and relentless hawkers killed our trip to Borobudur. There was a massive market between the monument and the carpark. Barricades forced everyone to walk through the massive market to get to the carpark. This was many times worse than Bali, if you know what I mean.

It was about 1300 hrs by the time we got to the car, but none of us wanted to have lunch at Borobudur. We just wanted to leave Borobudur far far behind us. Mommy had read rave reviews online about a dish called nasi gudeg (rice served with a jackcut stew, chicken and boiled egg) which originated from Yogyakarta and suggested that we tried it for lunch. We headed for Yogyakarta's most famous nasi gudeg place, Nasi Gudeg Yu Djum.

It took about an hour to reach Nasi Gudeg Yu Djum. All the tables were taken and there was a queue. "This must be good!", thought Mommy and Daddy. We stood in line until we got 2 tables for our group. The tables were very low and we had to sit on the floor to eat. Sri Che Che ordered nasi gudeg and teh botol sosro (bottled tea) for everyone. Unfortunately, Daddy, Mommy, Su Ann and I didn't enjoy the meal. Errr... it just didn't taste very nice at all, and there were way too many flies kissing the mushy stew called gudeg. This and mie ongklok tied for the worst meal in Java. The 4 Javanese in our group enjoyed the nasi gudeg though.

After lunch, we asked Mas Nasihin to take us to Villa Hanis, where we'd be staying for the next 2 nights. Mas Nasihin wasn't familiar with the roads in Yogyakarta and we had to stop to ask people for directions many times. It took an hour for Mas Nasihin to find the villa. On the way there, we were shocked to see a naked man walking down the street, but Sri Che Che said it wasn't uncommon for men and women who were mentally ill to walk around naked.

We arrived at Villa Hanis at 1600 hrs. Mas Nasihin and Pak Winaryo still had a 3-hr journey back to Wonosobo ahead of them. We parted ways at the driveway of Villa Hanis. Sri Che Che tried hard to fight her tears as she watched her father leave.

Villa Hanis (http://www.villahanis.com/) was located 5km away from the hustle and bustle of Yogyakarta. It stood behind Hani's Restaurant & Bakery, which we learned in the days to come, served excellent food. Farmlands surrounded the villa and we could see Indonesia's most active volcano, Mount Merapi, fuming away on a clear day. The villa was constructed out of wood in traditional Javanese style. It had 2 bedrooms, 2 outdoor bathrooms and a private pool. The main bedroom had a huge 4-poster bed which was big enough for a whole family and the outdoor bathrooms were luxurious. The lemongrass soap which they provided were really fragrant. The owner was a furniture maker, and had chosen some exquisite pieces for the villa. It was low season, and Mommy had paid USD125.00 nett (about S$175.00) per night for the villa, inclusive of welcome drinks, fruit platter, daily breakfast, and daily housekeeping. Very good value indeed!

The lady in charge of the villa was Mbak Wanti, and she took care of everything beautifully. She did a wonderful job as a housekeeper and was a meticulous concierge. We wouldn't stay anywhere else the next time we visit Yogyakarta!

After a very unsatisfactory lunch at Nasi Gudeg Yu Djum, Daddy and Mommy decided to order steak frites, pasta and mushroom soup from Hani's Restaurant & Bakery. Good quality food at a decent price. Whilst Daddy and Mommy savoured their food slowly, the rest of us took a swim in the villa's private pool. Finally, it felt like we were on holiday.

At 1900 hrs, we took a taxi to Jln Malioboro, Yogyakarta's main shopping belt. Streetfood vendors lined the left side of the street. The right side of the street had hundreds of becak (trishaw) and dokar (horse-drawn buggy). Unlike in Wonosobo where the dokar was actually used as a form of public transport, the dokars in Yogyakarta seemed to be used mainly by tourists.

We asked the taxi driver to drop us off at the largest mall along Jln Malioboro. The metered fare was about Rp25,000.00 (S$3.80). The shopping centre was like any other in Singapore, just smaller.

We bought some clothes, then had dinner at a mie ayam restaurant in the shopping centre. Mommy thought it wasn't as tasty as the roadside stall in Wonosobo, but it was satisfying nonetheless.

I didn't try the mie ayam though. There was a 24-hr MacDonald's in the shopping centre. Su Ann and I made Mommy buy us our Happy Meals. MacDonald's in Yogyakarta had a different menu though. We had a choice of spaghetti bolognaise or fried chicken with steamed rice for our Happy Meals. No french fries!

The shopping centre closed at 2100 hrs, and we were one of the last customers out of there. We walked along Jln Malioboro, and watched some crazy tourists dance to Javanese gamelan music. Jln Malioboro was quite an interesting street, with the roadside vendors, becak, dokar, gamelan musicians, etc. creating a-step-back-in-time atmosphere.

At 2145 hrs, we took a taxi back to the villa. This taxi-driver tried to rip us off by going the long way. Daddy sensed something was wrong, but the driver pretended not to understand Daddy's displeasure. In the end, it was Eti Che Che who told the driver off sharply.

That night, we chilled in the villa's lounge till 2300 hrs before going to bed. As we were getting ready for bed, Mommy saw a black rat, the size of a cat, sprint across a wooden beam in the main bedroom. The rat disappeared behind the beam, but it freaked Mommy out so much that she had trouble sleeping again! Poor Mommy, it was her third sleepless night. We found out the next morning from Eti Che Che that the huge rat had disappeared behind the beam and re-appeared in her room... She said there were many rats and mice in farms, and it was very common for them to enter homes near the farms.

28 May 2010 (Friday. Vesak Day)

Breakfast in the morning was lovely. From where we were seated, we could see the peanut plantations, with Mount Merapi in the backdrop. We had a choice of American or Indonesian breakfast. The Indonesian breakfast turned out to be a much better choice.

Mbak Wanti had arranged for a driver to pick us up from the villa at 0930 hrs. Daddy and Mommy had plans to visit some furniture makers in Bantul and the pottery village of Kasongan. It cost Rp400,000.00 (S$62.00) to hire a driver, inclusive of fuel, for the day.

The driver wasn't familiar with Bantul so we kept going in circles and stopping to ask for directions. It was a boring morning for Sri Che Che, Eti Che Che, Su Ann and me, but Daddy and Mommy did make contact with a furniture maker whom they hope to work with in the future and found some fancy but affordable decorative pieces at Kasongan.

It was almost 1400 hrs before we stopped for lunch at Gubug Makan Mang Engkin at Jln Godean Km8, Minggir, Slemen. It was a long drive from Bantul to Slemen, but for once, our hunt for food was well worth it! Mommy had read favourable online reviews about this seafood restaurant. We were initially skeptical after our disappointments at Ayam Goreng Suharti and Nasi Gudeg Yu Djum, but Gubug Makan Mang Engking bucked the trend.

The restaurant was set amidst rural farmlands. A series of bamboo longhouses on stilts above water formed the seating area. The dining tables were very low and diners had to sit cross-legged on the floor. A waiter ushered us to a table where we had a great view of the farmlands. We could see sheep grazing in the distance, fish and even water snakes in the water just beneath our longhouse. Daddy ordered the popular set meal which was excellent value. We had 2 types of fish, 3 types of prawns, gado-gado, chilli kangkang, steamed rice and drinks for under S$50.00. The food itself wasn't exceptional, but it was tasty, especially the honey-grilled prawn and the chilli fish. That combined with the ambience of the place made Gubug Makan Mang Engking an excellent place for lunch.

We left the restaurant at 1500 hrs, and Mommy asked the driver to take us to Prambanan. Prambanan is the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia. It was built in the 9th century and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We reached Prambanan at 1600 hrs. We saw the massive souvenir market and roving hawkers, and were turned off instantly. We caught a glimpse of the temple, snapped a quick shot and left without entering the main compound of the temple. This time, when I said I wanted to go swimming instead, Mommy complied.

The driver dropped us off at the villa and we went swimming! Mommy ordered sandwiches, cheese croquettes and chicken cordon bleu from Hanis' Restaurant & Bakery. and we pigged out after the swim.

Sri Che Che was still craving mie ayam, so at 1930 hrs, we met our driver and asked him to take us to the best mie ayam place in Yogyakarta for dinner. We had expected him to pull up at some roadside stall, but he took us to a restaurant called Mie Pasar Baru Jakarta. Apparently, they served award-winning noodles. The noodles were nice, but couldn't beat the simple mie ayam stall in Wonosobo. The service staff there were really friendly though. Su Ann and I received a mask and balloon from them.

By 2000 hrs, we were done with dinner. The night was still young, so we asked the driver to drop us off at Jln Malioboro and we bade farewell to him. It was very crowded on Jln Malioboro that night. Thousands of people thronged the street, probably because it was Vesak Day, a public holiday. We walked the length of the street, then hailed a taxi to take us back to our villa.

We had a flight to catch the next morning. After packing our bags, we all went to bed.

29 May 2010 (Saturday)

By 0700 hrs, Mbak Wanti was already at Hanis' Restaurant & Bakery waiting to serve us our breakfast. We'd pre-ordered our breakfast the day before so we'd have ample time to eat before leaving for the airport. The freshly squeezed juices at breakfast were such a treat.

At 0745 hrs, our pre-booked taxi pulled up at the villa to take us to the airport. We were at the airport within 30 mins, and were in the transit lounge by 0840 hrs.

At 0925 hrs, Lion Air Flight No. JT553 took off for Jakarta. There were many saffron-robed Buddhist monks on the same flight. They must have gone to Borobudur for Vesak Day. We landed safely an hour later at Jakarta.

The domestic terminal in Jakarta was old and the toilets were filthy. The baggage handlers were also very inefficient, and it took an exceptionally long time for us to claim our bags.

When we stepped outside, we realised that there was no proper taxi rank. Mommy had read online that BlueBird taxi was the most reliable taxi company in Jakarta. The others had a bad reputation for not using their meters. We spotted a counter for BlueBird taxi, but it was not manned. A man from a different transport company stepped forward and started persuading Sri Che Che and Mommy to use his company's services instead. Since there was no one at the BlueBird desk, they had no choice but to go along with this fella. We paid Rp200,000.00 (about S$30.00) for the ride to Novotel Mangga Dua.

Jakarta's roads had no lanes drawn on them. A road wide enough for 3 cars would have 6 cars jostling for space, and hawkers peddling goods walking in between the cars. It was crazy and traffic was very sluggish as a result. It took almost an hour for us to get to our hotel, which was in a district which was supposedly not too far from the airport.

The receptionist informed us that our rooms would only be ready for check-in after 1400 hrs. It was 1230 hrs, so we decided to leave our bags with the concierge and head off for lunch at the adjacent Mangga Dua Square shopping centre.

Karaoke was available at one end of the food court, and an elderly Chinese man was crooning away. We chose a table at the opposite end of the food court instead. There was more mie ayam to be had...

After lunch, Eti Che Che took us to the arcade, whilst Mommy and Sri Che Che went shopping for clothes.

Daddy returned to the hotel to move our things into the rooms. The hotel said they had upgraded us to larger rooms for free because we had asked for non-smoking rooms, but they could only provide us with smoking rooms. The rooms we had had a separate sitting area, but the rooms didn't look very new.

The hotel's pool was very nice though, and we spent the rest of the afternoon swimming. The hotel also provided us with welcome drink coupons, which we used at the lounge by the pool.

That evening, we took a taxi to Ancol. This area is by the sea. There was a marina which Daddy wanted to check out. We weren't too impressed with the marina though. A far cry from marinas like One Degree 15, Raffles Marina, etc. in Singapore. We walked along the seaside promenade and watched the sun go down, then we took a taxi to the famous Bandar Djakarta seafood restaurant.

We got to the restaurant at about 1830 hrs, and there was already a phenomenal queue. This restaurant was positively the largest restaurant any of us had ever been to. It could feed thousands of hungry diners. Part of the restaurant was sectioned off as the waiting area. Sri Che Che registered her name at the counter to join the queue. Fortunately, the queue moved fairly quickly, and we got a table after half an hour.

Daddy ordered gurame fish, prawns, cumi-cumi (calamari), otah, fried chicken, and sambal kangkong. The meal cost about S$50.00. Having seen the queue, we had expected the meal to be really good, but sadly, it wasn't. Half the meal was overcooked, and the other half mediocre.

We were back at our hotel by 2045 hrs, but we weren't ready for bed yet. We zipped back into Mangga Dua Square shopping centre. Mommy bought me a pair of sandals and ice-cream. At Rp2,000.00 (S$0.30) a cone, it was the cheapest soft-serve ice-cream we've ever had.

We were still feeling restless after that and there was still one other thing which Mommy wanted to do in Jakarta - taking the bajaj (a 3-wheeled taxi). Daddy wasn't keen though, so he returned to the hotel. The rest of us piled into a bajaj which was waiting near the mall. The back of the bajaj was designed to carry just 2 passengers, but 5 of us managed to squeeze into the tiny space. It was such a tight fit that the door flew open in mid-ride! With the noisy engine ringing in our ears, we manoeuvred through the busy streets of Jakarta. It was an exhilarating experience!

We got the bajaj driver to drop us off at the Monas (national monument in Central Jakarta). Thousands of Indonesian teenagers were hanging out in the breezy compound of the Monas, chatting and laughing. Everyone was having a good time. There were several pushcart stalls outside the Monas selling food, and this was where Sri Che Che and Eti Che Che had their final dose of mie ayam before our flight back to Singapore.

After supper, we returned to the hotel by taxi. It was 2330 hrs and Su Ann and I were very tired. We fell asleep as soon as we slipped on our pyjamas.

30 May 2010 (Sunday)

Mommy caught the sunrise at 0530 hrs. She didn't manage to sleep well during this trip. She packed our bags, then woke us up for breakfast.

At 0700 hrs, we were at the breakfast table in the hotel's coffeehouse. We spent an hour devouring the buffet spread. The bubur ayam was delectable and we each had a few helpings.

We checked out of the hotel at 0845 hrs and caught a Bluebird taxi to the airport. BlueBird was indeed reliable. It cost us 50% less to go back to the airport by taking BlueBird. The roads were pretty clear on a Sunday morning, and we arrived at the airport 30 mins later.

Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport was definitely more chaotic than other airports we've been to. There were no clear signages to direct passengers to their check-in desks and we had a hard time locating ours. There were also large groups of Indonesian women sitting on the floor of the airport obscuring the path to the check-in desks. Sri Che Che explained that Indonesian domestic helpers heading to the rest of the world to work would fly from this airport, as Jakarta was the site of many training centres for domestic helpers. Sri Che Che and Eti Che Che both flew from Jakarta when they first came to Singapore. Sri Che Che pointed to the women in Muslim garb and said that they were probably headed for Saudi Arabia. Her own mother worked in Saudi Arabia as a domestic helper for 6 years when she was a child.

By 1000 hrs, we had checked in for our flight and were milling about the transit area. The shops weren't very interesting, but I had fun pushing our trolley about the various wings of the transit area.

At 1120 hrs, Lion Air Flight No. JT154 departed from Jakarta. It was a short flight to Singapore, and we landed safely at 1400 hrs. This would count as one of the most interesting trips I've ever been on.

2010-06-23T23:34:00.000-07:00

SECOND TRIP TO SHANGHAI & WHISTLER (22 JANUARY TO 7 FEBRUARY 2010)

22 January 2010 (Friday)

We had planned this ski trip a year ago, but a few weeks before our departure, Chia Yee broke the news to us that she wouldn't be able to join us on the slopes anymore. Chia Yee had just found out that she was pregnant! We were overjoyed to hear the good news, and agreed that she shouldn't be skiing in her condition. She would still be travelling in Canada with us though.

At 0055 hrs on 22 February 2010, Ah Gong, Ah Ma and I flew China Eastern Flight No. MU544 to Shanghai. It was an uneventful flight with me sleeping most of the way to Shanghai.

We landed safely in Shanghai at 0610 hrs. We were originally meant to catch a connecting flight to Vancouver the same day, but China Eastern Airlines rescheduled that connecting flight at the last minute and they had to put us up at a hotel in Shanghai for a night.

China Eastern Airlines arranged for us to be picked up from the airport and taken to the hotel, the Shanghai Jin Li Hua Hotel in Pudong. The hotel was the very first 3-star hotel to be built in Pudong, so it was rather old and run down. We were given a suite.

We took a rest in our suite, then went for lunch at the revolving restaurant on the 22nd floor of our hotel. Ah Gong ordered crab, brocolli with abalone mushroom, and fried noodles. It was an excellent meal. The highlight being the crab. None of us had tasted crab this good before. For dessert, we had dumpling in Chinese wine soup and egg tarts. The meal cost about Rmb200 (S$40.00) for the 3 of us, which wasn't exactly cheap but the food was good enough to lure us back again.

After lunch, we went shopping and Ah Ma bought me a new pair of snowpants and boots.

By the time we were done, it was dinner time. All of us enjoyed our lunch so much that we decided to have dinner at the same restaurant. This time, Ah Gong ordered crispy Pipa duck, mixed vegetables and rice. We fell in love with the duck, but were too full to order another portion. The bill came up to Rmb100 (S$20.00).

It was a blessing in disguise that we had our flight cancelled. We were able to break a super long journey, we had a free night's stay in Shanghai and we discovered a gem of a restaurant. We all slept very well that night.

23 January 2010 (Saturday)

After breakfast at the hotel, we had a few hours to spare before our free ride to the airport at noon. We wandered around the neighbourhood and Ah Gong got me a cheeseburger for lunch from MacDonald's.

By 1245 hrs, we had completed our check-in at the airport and I was able to nibble slowly on my burger at the transit lounge.

At 1450 hrs, we were on board China Eastern Airlines Flight No. 581 and were ready for take-off. The 10 hr 40 min journey to Vancouver was uneventful. We crossed the international dateline and arrived in Vancouver on the same day at 0930 hrs.

Once we arrived in Vancouver, we took a taxi to Hotel Le Soleil in downtown Vancouver. The taxi ride cost about CAD30.00.

Daddy has a friend who moved from Singapore to Vancouver several years ago. Daddy's friend had requested for his mail to be brought to him, along with 3kg of pineapple paste for the upcoming Chinese New Year, and Ah Gong had kindly obliged. After checking into our hotel, we met up with Daddy's friend and his wife. They were so happy to receive the items and offered to take us out for lunch, but Ah Gong politely declined.

Although it was lunch time in Vancouver, we weren't hungry at all. There was a 16-hr time difference between Vancouver and Singapore. It was 0430 hrs back home and all we wanted to do was sleep. We retreated to our hotel room for a nap, only to wake up many hours later.

Uncle Craig and Chia Yee had flown in on the same day. By the time they arrived at the hotel, it was already 2030 hrs. One of Chia Yee's favourite restaurants in Vancouver was Kirin Restaurant, and she never fails to have at least one meal there when she visits. Upon meeting Uncle Craig and Chia Yee, we rushed to Kirin Restaurant, only to find it closed for renovations.

Another of Chia Yee's favourite restaurants in Vancouver was the Imperial Chinese Restaurant, so we rushed there instead. However, by the time we got there, the kitchen had closed. Alas! We had to settle for MacDonald's instead... which was my first choice anyway...

That night, sleep was hard to come by. I had slept so much during the day that I was wide awake late at night.

24 January 2010 (Sunday)

For the last 20 years, Ah Gong, Ah Ma and Chia Yee have visited Vancouver once a year and there's a particular routine they keep to every year. Without fail, they will have a meal at Kirin Restaurant, Imperial Chinese Restaurant and dim sum in Chinatown.

You guessed it. For lunch today, it was dim sum in Chinatown, followed by a walk around Chinatown, then dinner at Imperial Chinese Restaurant.

We had an early bus to catch the next day to Whistler, so an early night it had to be. My little body was tired out from the day's activities that I fell asleep more easily than the night before.

25 January 2010 (Monday)

I was out of bed by 0400 hrs. The Greyhound bus to Whistler was leaving at 0515 hrs, and we couldn't afford to miss that bus because my 5-day ski camp was due to start at 0900 hrs!

We boarded the 0515 hrs bus and arrived at Intrawest Resort in Whistler 3 hours later. It was snowing lightly and the scene looked like a page out of a fairytale, but we didn't have time to savour the beautiful scenery. Ski camp was starting in less than an hour. I put on my ski apparel as quickly as I could, and was whisked off to ski school for registration. We made it just in time!

There were 6 of us in the class and our instructor was James. The 5-day ski camp cost CAD657.38 (about S$880.00), inclusive of equipment rental and lunch.

I was issued a special GPS device which allowed my family to track my whereabouts and achievements during the camp. Just go to http://www.flaik.com/ and register for a free account. My Flaik ID for 25 January 2010 was GMC-8.

On my first day at ski camp, we warmed up at the bunny slope near the ski school on Blackcomb Mountain. It had been a year since I last skiied, but I was surprised that I could still remember most of what I learnt the previous year and maintain my balance quite well. Some of my campmates didn't fare too well though. They kept falling over.

When my family came to pick me up at 1520 hrs, I was in high spirits and was looking forward to the next day's lesson. Instructor James told Ah Gong that I was one of the best performers in my class.

I returned to Intrawest Resort with my family. Our 2-bedroom apartment had a funky curry smell (left behind by the previous occupants). Poor Chia Yee who was suffering from morning sickness didn't take to it too well. It was freezing outside, but Chia Yee chose to sit out on the verandah to stay away from the smell. That night, Ah Ma prepared dinner (not curry!).

26 January 2010 (Tuesday)

I was up bright and early this morning, and Ah Ma made me a ham sandwich for breakfast. After breakfast, my family walked me to my ski school.

My Flaik ID for 26 January 2010 was AAB-4. We spent most of the day practising our skills on the Yellow Brick Road run.

There was another 5 year old girl in my class and her name was Lily. Lily was from Seattle, USA and she was 5 months older than me. We were naturally drawn to each other and she became my best friend at ski camp. At 1515 hrs, Ah Gong and Ah Ma picked me up from ski school, and I introduced them to Lily.

That evening, Uncle Craig made dinner. We had spaghetti bolognaise and it was yummilicious!

27 January 2010 (Wednesday)

My Flaik ID for 27 January 2010 was GLR-7, and today we covered a lot more ground than the previous 2 days.

After warming up on the Yellow Brick Road run, we rode on the Wizard Express chairlift followed by the Solar Coaster Express chairlift to our training ground higher up on Blackcomb Mountain. We skiied the green run down to the start of the Solar Coaster Express, rode the chairlift to the top again and practised skiing in the Jersey Bowl area. Our instructor gave us some playtime at the Children's Adventure Park as well, which was a lot of fun. We ended our day by skiing all the way down to the base of Blackcomb Mountain. We covered more than 9 miles on skis today.

Ah Gong and Ah Ma picked me up from ski camp at 1500 hrs, and I had lots to tell them about my day. Ah Gong and Ah Ma didn't fare too badly either. They did a fair bit of skiing themselves.

After dinner that evening, I went tobogganing with Ah Gong, Ah Ma and Uncle Craig. Poor Chia Yee wasn't having much fun in Whistler at all.

28 January 2010 (Thursday)

My Flaik ID for 28 January 2010 was BOO-2, and our training was going to get tougher.

After warming up on the Yellow Brick Road run, we rode on the Wizard Express chairlift, followed by the Excalibur Express chairlift to our training ground at Jersey Cream Bowl.

Jersey Cream Bowl is home to a few double black diamond trails. Although we weren't taken to those runs, the runs we were taken to were still quite challenging. With our instructor's guidance, we made it down in one piece and we were rewarded with some playtime at the Children's Adventure Park. Like the previous day, we ended the day by skiing all the way down to the base of Blackcomb Mountain. We covered slightly under 9 miles on skis today.

Ah Gong and Ah Ma picked me up at 1500 hrs, and they were very proud of me.

29 January 2010 (Friday)

It was Ah Gong's birthday today and we were going to celebrate the occasion today. But first, I had to attend my final lesson at ski camp. My Flaik ID for 29 January 2010 was BBT-6.

After our usual warm up at the Yellow Brick Road run, the Wizard Express chairlift and Solar Coaster Express chairlift carried us up the mountain. Thus far, we had stuck to green runs, but Instructor James was going to make us try some blue runs today. We were taken to the start of a blue run called Wishbone. It was very steep and scary. Lily and I couldn't contain our fear and we burst into tears. The boys in our class cried too. Nevertheless, Lily and I tried our best and we made it down successfully, together with one other skier in our class. The other 3 classmates had to be rescued by ski patrol! Looking back, it sounds a little amusing now, but it sure wasn't funny when we were on the slope. Lily and I were both quite shaken by the experience.

We covered a lot of ground on our skis today. We managed to do slightly more than 12 miles, the most we'd done in a day thus far. To wrap up our 5-day ski camp, our class skiied down the Yellow Brick Road run. Our family members were there to cheer us on during our finale slalom.

Instructor James was very nice. He was all praises for me. He told Ah Gong that I'd done extremely well, and rated me "very high level on Level Two Star Star". Instructor James gave me the "Angel Award".

We had been eating at the apartment the last few nights. Tonight, in celebration of Ah Gong's birthday, we got to eat out. Our pick was Kaze (http://www.kazesushiwhistler.com/) at the Westin. When Daddy and Mommy got married in Whistler in 2001, Kaze was where they hosted their wedding lunch. Uncle Tom, who owns the restaurant, knows our family by now. We spent a good 2 hrs feasting on on sushi, yakitori, tempura, tofu, shabu-shabu, etc. It was an excellent meal!

We walked back to the apartment after dinner and surprised Ah Gong with a chocolate birthday cake.

30 January 2010 (Saturday)

I had completed my 5-day ski camp, but Ah Gong and Ah Ma felt I should continue taking lessons so I could make better progress. They signed me up for one-day ski lessons on 30 and 31 January 2010. Each one-day ski lesson cost CAD158.96, inclusive of equipment rental and lunch. My Flaik ID for 30 January 2010 was ATG-9.

My instructor was Patrick. The group consisted of skiers of different levels. Although most of the kids were about my age, there was a 10-yr-old boy who was a Level 1 skier. Most of them had just arrived in Whistler and hadn't had time on the snow yet. It took a long time for the group to warm up and get ready for the chairlift. As a result, I didn't cover as much ground as I did the last few days. We only managed to go up the Wizard Express chairlift twice to ski down the mountain. Terrain which I'd covered several times before. Today, we did slightly less than 7.5 miles on skis.

At the end of the lesson, Instructor Patrick told Ah Gong that I'd done well and was a confident Level 3 skier already.

Ah Ma made me bee hoon soup with chicken that night. Everyone else had laksa for dinner. Ah Ma always packs Prima Taste local delicacies in her suitcase when she travels...

31 January 2010 (Sunday)

Today would be my final ski lesson for the season. I signed up for another one-day lesson. My Flaik ID for 31 January 2010 was DZA-1. My instructor was Sophia.

We covered similar terrain to that during my 5-day ski camp. I did more than 10 miles on skis today, and Ah Gong and Ah Ma ran into my group when we were having lunch at Rendezvous on Blackcomb Mountain. It was a fun and exhilarating day.

By the end of my 7th ski lesson for the season, I had become a more confident skiier, capable of all green runs and simple blue runs. I was ready for new challenges, and would join Ah Gong and Ah Ma tomorrow. Perhaps, I would be called on to rescue Ah Ma? *hehe*

1 February 2010 (Monday)

Today would be my 8th consecutive day on skis. Surprisingly, I had not complained of muscle ache and my body was coping very well. Ballet throughout the year had done my leg muscles plenty of good!

Ah Gong, Ah Ma and I started the day at 1030 hrs. We took the Wizard Express chairlift, followed by the Solar Coaster Express chairlift, before switching over to the Peak-to-Peak gondola, which would take us to Whistler Mountain. Whistler/Blackcomb would be hosting the Winter Olympics in a few days, but the highly anticipated crowds had still not shown up at the resort. We had the entire Peak-to-Peak gondola to ourselves. Our gondola pierced through the clouds during the 11-min journey and the scenery was just breathtaking.

We skiied Upper Whisky Jack, Pig Alley and lower Ego Bowl, then we took the Emerald Express chairlift to the top again, and skiied down the entire length of Whisky Jack. After that workout, we headed to Roundhouse Lodge for lunch, where we had chicken burger, hot dog and fries.

We left Roundhouse Lodge at 1400 hrs, and skiied Ego Bowl two more times. Even though the trails were new to me, I was confident and led the way. I was relaxed whilst skiing, and was able to ski quite fast and sing at the same time! I never once fell. In fact, Ah Gong noticed me bending down whilst skiing to pick up snow to play along the way. I wanted to try more challenging runs, but Ah Gong and Ah Ma said I had to wait till next season. Ah Gong and Ah Ma were very pleased with my progress.

At 1500 hrs, we took the Whistler Village gondola then switched to Excalibur gondola to return to Blackcomb Mountain. My final run for the season was down the all too familiar Yellow Brick Road. We arrived at the ski rental shop at the base of Blackcomb Mountain just before they closed at 1600 hrs to return my equipment. It was a fine season indeed!

That evening, we had dinner at Caramba! Restaurante (http://www.caramba-restaurante.com/) in Whistler Village. This is one of the restaurants where Ah Gong, Ah Ma and Chia Yee make their annual stops at. Ah Ma likes the calamari here.

Midway through dinner, I fell asleep in the restaurant. I had been waking up early, exercising for 5 to 6 hours every day for the last 8 days, and was visibly exhausted. No matter how Ah Gong and Ah Ma tried to rouse me, I just wouldn't wake up. We missed the last bus back to Intrawest Resort and there were no taxis in sight. Walking was the only way back and poor Uncle Craig had to carry me all the way back.

2 February 2010 (Tuesday)

For once, we could wake up late and have a lazy day chilling. We had no plans for the day, other than to go swimming in the resort's pool in the afternoon when it would be relatively quiet.

That afternoon, we put on our swimming gear and went swimming in the heated, outdoor pool. I'm not sure if it was the cold or what, but I didn't feel well at all in the pool. I wanted to throw up. Fortunately, I got out in time and didn't make a mess in the pool (only on the pavement...).

A new Chinese restaurant called Gold Leaf Chinese Food had opened up next to Whistler's IGA Supermarket. Ah Gong and Ah Ma bought takeaway food from the Chinese restaurant, and some chicken strips from KFC for me. The Chinese food was not bad at all, and it cost CAD47.00 for our family, probably one of the cheaper places to eat in Whistler.

For dessert, Uncle Craig made jelly for me. He's such a star!

After dinner, Ah Gong helped me work on my "Chinese spelling". In Growing Up Gifted Kindergarten, we've to learn 8 new Chinese characters a week, and there would be a "Chinese spelling test" at the end of each week. I had missed out on quite a bit of school by taking this ski trip.

3 February 2010 (Wednesday)

Yipee! Another day of chilling. We wandered around Whistler Village and checked out the shops today. Ah Ma bought me some new clothes.

With nothing left to do in the evening, we caught a movie in our resort's theatre and had takeaway food for dinner. We would be heading back to Vancouver the next day.

4, 5, 6 & 7 February 2010 (Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday)

On 4 February, we caught the Greyhound bus back to Vancouver, and checked into the St Regis Hotel (http://www.stregishotel.com/) in downtown Vancouver. The rooms were newly refurbished and they served a good fry-up for breakfast. Recommended!

At 0930 hrs on 5 February, we caught the SkyTrain from downtown Vancouver to the airport. This line had opened in 2009, ahead of the Winter Olympics 2010. The train was brand new and the ride was smooth, efficient, and a lot cheaper than the taxi. We wouldn't be taking the taxi again!

At 1220 hrs, China Eastern Flight No. MU582 departed from Vancouver. It would be a 12 hr 35 min journey to Shanghai. We would cross the international dateline once again, but would lose a day this time. We were scheduled to arrive in Shanghai at 1655 hrs on 6 February.

The flight was uneventful and we landed in Shanghai at the appointed time. We had a 7-hr layover before our next flight out. At 2355 hrs on 6 February, we departed from Shanghai on China Eastern Flight No. MU543.

At 0505 hrs on 7 February, we arrived safely in Singapore. I couldn't wait to see Daddy, Mommy and Su Ann, and tell them all about my adventures!

2010-06-10T21:58:00.000-07:00

VACATION @ THE AIRPORT (23 DECEMBER 2009)

We had accummulated enough points from our travels to redeem a free night's stay at any hotel belonging to InterContinental Hotels Group (http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/). Since there were no plans to go abroad in the pipeline and the points would expire by the end of the year, we decided to have a mini-vacation at InterContinental Hotels Group's latest addition in Singapore, the Crowne Plaza Hotel at Changi Airport. Beverly's family joined us on that day.

For Xmas, a massive jumping castle had been erected in Terminal Three, opposite the entrance to the Crowne Plaza Hotel. We arrived at the jumping castle at 1130 hrs and quickly joined the queue for the free 15-min playtime at the castle. The air-filled castle was very bouncy and we had loads of fun bouncing down the slide. Every 15 mins, artificial snowflakes would be blown from the top of the castle. It was simply magical.

When it was time for lunch, we trooped over to the Kopitiam foodcourt at Basement Two of Terminal Three. We had time to kill before we could check into the hotel, so we took our time with lunch and amused ourselves at the playground near the foodcourt.

Finally, at 1400 hrs, the room was ready. It was a beautiful room with a lovely bathtub. At same point today, we must have a bubble-bath! Mommy thought Su Ann would want to nap, but she was wrong. On seeing the super-comfy bed, all Su Ann wanted to do was to jump on it.

We explored the grounds of the hotel, and checked out its swimming pool. Swimming had to wait, as all the kids wanted another go at the massive jumping castle.
At 1630 hrs, Mommy pulled us away from the jumping castle and suggested we took the skytrain to Terminal Two. The drinking fountain at Terminal Two was one of the highlights of our day. It was such fun drinking from the fountain that Mommy really had to drag us away from it.

From Terminal Two, we caught the free shuttle bus to the Budget Terminal, where Su Ann made friends with a girl at the playground.

It was close to 1800 hrs by the time we were done at the playground. Gosh! Where had the whole afternoon gone? We hadn't even swum at the hotel's pool and we still had the Musical Ball Competition to take part in at Terminal Three.

Whilst waiting for the shuttle bus to Terminal Two, Beverly's brother, Winston, and Su Ann fell asleep. We decided to return to the hotel, so Winston and Su Ann could rest comfortably. Once back at the hotel, however, Winston and Su Ann awoke and refused to nap anymore. It was dinnertime anyway, Ronald MacDonald beckoned.

After dinner, we rushed to the Musical Ball and we were in time for the 2000 hrs competition. There were prizes to be won by catching the correct ping pong ball. Lucky Su Ann! With Ning Che Che's help, she won a backpack. The rest of us weren't so lucky, but there were plenty of candies for everyone anyway.

By the time we returned to the hotel, it was almost 2100 hrs. Too late for the pool, but we could still have a bubble bath! We had a splashing good time cleaning ourselves.

At 2200 hrs, we snapped a final shot at the hotel room and checked out. The bed was big enough for 4 kids, but too bad, I couldn't convince the adults to sleep on the sofa and in the bathtub, so home sweet home it had to be.

2010-06-07T22:43:00.000-07:00

SU ANN TURNS TWO (10 DECEMBER 2009)

Barely 4 days after my birthday, there were more celebrations to be had and more cake on the table. This time, my pumpkin of a sister was turning two. Like me, Su Ann celebrated her birthday with her classmates in Growing Up Gifted.
Gwen and I were invited to her party and we felt so grown-up there. :) Su Ann had to play peek-a-boo with each party pack before giving it away... Oh so 2-year-old! *Kekeke*

That evening, Su Ann got dressed up like a Korean doll and we took her out for dinner. Mommy got her a second birthday cake from Swensen's as well. Su Ann picked the cake herself, and she was very happy with her choice.

2010-06-07T00:40:00.000-07:00

TURNING FIVE (3 & 6 DECEMBER 2009)

"Ding dong..." The doorbell rang, and there stood Gwen and her big brother, Enzo, at my front door first thing in the morning on 3 December 2009. They had come clutching a birthday present for me, and they wanted to take me to school. How thoughtful of them!

Midway through class, another lovely surprise greeted me in school. Ah Gong, Daddy, Sri Che Che and Ning Che Che showed up in class with a birthday cake, party packs for all my friends, and my lil' sister, Su Ann, to entertain the class. Everyone had a wicked time!

That wasn't the end of my birthday celebrations. That Sunday, Mommy organized a family lunch at the Spice Brasserie at ParkRoyal Hotel on Kitchener Road. I put on my brand-new red dress and gold heels for the occasion. The beautiful red dress was a birthday gift from Grandma Nancy and Ah Ma had bought me those smashing gold heels.

After a very filling buffet lunch, the family checked out the newly-opened CitySquare Mall opposite the hotel. Quite the run-of-the-mill mall. We didn't stay long, as my second birthday cake was awaiting its collection. Mommy had ordered a pink ice-cream cake from Swensen's for me.

The day ended in style with Daddy and Mommy taking me to the Xmas foam party at IMM. IMM has got to be the most child-friendly mall in the entire universe. They've this massive water play area and playground for kids to play for free all year round, and they host the best parties for kids at Xmas. In addition to the foam party, they had a bubble play area and everything was free. Parking was free too. Unbelievable but true!

2010-02-05T22:57:00.000-08:00

GUG YEAR-END CONCERT 2009 (19 November 2009)

Last year, we did the hula-hula in our lil' grass skirts. This year, it was the cheerleaders' routine in the High School Musical. I was lost for most of the way, out-of-sync and my cheerleader's outfit was much too long, but hey, I had fun anyway!

2009-12-12T20:44:00.000-08:00

LAZARUS ISLAND (23 & 27 SEPTEMBER 2009)

School ended with a nice surprise on 23 September 2009. Daddy picked me up from school, and when the door to his mini-bus glided open, Mommy, Ah Gong, Ning Che Che and Su Ann were all on board with my beachwear, sand bucket and lunch of chicken nuggets and fries. Daddy was taking all of us to Lazarus Island, an island just a few minutes' boat ride away from Sentosa.

The trip started with Daddy taking us for a quick survey of the luxurious waterfront homes at Sentosa Cove. People with money to burn had thrown millions into small, 99-year leasehold plots for their weekend homes. The development reminded us of the waterfront homes we'd seen in June 2009 in the Gold Coast.

Oopsii was waiting for us at One Degree 15. She was all ready to take us to the beach. We climbed on board for the short, but choppy, ride to Lazarus Island.
My eyes glistened at the sight of the stunning white sand beach fringed by coconut trees. The sand was soft and powdery. The seawater was warm, calm and blue. None of us thought a beach paradise like this could be found in Singapore waters, but we were wrong.

We arrived on a weekday afternoon, and the island was desserted. Ning Che Che, Su Ann and I busied ourselves with our sand buckets and spades, whilst Ah Gong, Daddy and Mommy explored the island on foot.

We spent a relaxing afternoon at the beach, and Daddy promised to take us back again with my friends.

On 27 September 2009, we returned to Lazarus Island with Gwen's family. It was a Sunday so the island wasn't quite as desserted, but we still managed to have a whole stretch of the beach to ourselves.

Gwen's older brother, Enzo, tried to catch fish with a net, but didn't catch anything other than a tiny hermit crab.

Gwen and I enjoyed swimming in the sea with Daddy and Su Ann.

The lil' beach bum liked the beach so much that she planted herself on the sand and refused to budge even during milk time.

We had an awesome time at the beach!

2009-10-12T22:41:00.000-07:00

OOPSII AND OUR TRIP TO THE FISH FARM (15 AUG 2009)

Since Daddy got his new toy, Oopsii, he'd been obsessed with taking Oopsii out. He goes fishing a lot, and as a result, our chest freezer is now constantly filled to the brim with his prized catches - Stingrays, Snappers, Golden Travelly, etc. One night, Daddy even fished 3 human beings from the sea! Don't worry... they're NOT in our chest freezer.

On that fateful night, Oopsii was chartered by a group of men who wanted to go night fishing. Daddy was their skipper. The night started beautifully, but about 2 hours into the charter, they spotted a storm coming towards them fast. Oopsii raced to seek shelter at a yacht club. After the storm passed, Daddy steered the group back to Punggol Marina and everyone went home, except Daddy who stayed back to clean Oopsii. During that time, Daddy picked up an SOS message on the radar. It was in the dead of the night, and no one else was at the Marina. Courageously, Daddy went off alone to search for the people who'd sent out the SOS message.

Daddy found 2 men clinging precariously to a capsized boat, and a third man who was unconscious drifting away. Daddy pulled the 3 men up onto Oopsii and drove at top speed back to the Marina. Enroute, he was stopped by the coastguard, who didn't even pick up the SOS message (!) and questioned Daddy for going so fast. When Daddy explained the situation to the coastguard and they saw the comatose man on the boat, they escorted Oopsii back to the Marina. An ambulance whisked the 3 men away.

The next day, a newspaper reporter picked up the lead and wanted to interview Daddy, but Daddy declined.

On 15 August 2009, Daddy suggested taking the family out on Oopsii to visit his friend's fish farm. The farm was out at sea, near Punggol Marina. The fish farm isn't open to the public, so we were lucky to be able to visit it. Gwen's family joined us that afternoon.

When we got to the fish farm, the caretaker handed us a big bucket of small fish for us to feed the fishes and showed us around. The farm reared many different types of fishes in pools of seawater segregated by nets. It was similar to the kelong we visited in Kukup, except this farm was bigger, cleaner and much more professional. They even had 2 monster grouper in one of the pools, but we didn't get to see them during our visit.

At first glance, the deep pools of seawater didn't appear to contain any fishes, but the moment we tossed a small fish into the pool, the reared fishes would appear at lightning speed to eat up the small fish. The caretaker showed us where they reared Tilapia, and that was the most fascinating of all the pools. There were thousands of Tilapia. When we tossed the small fish into the Tilapia's pool, the Tilapia jumped, thrashed about and fought so hard for the small fish that the pool looked like it was boiling. It was fascinating.

By the end of our visit, our hands were all bloody from handling the dead, small fish and I had fish bits on my face and in my hair. Yucks! I really really stank.

On the way back, rain came splashing down. As Oopsii zipped through the water, the raindrops felt like bullets when they struck our faces. Ouch!!!

We were dirty, smelly, and in pain, but the trip was well worth it. :)

2009-08-27T08:20:00.000-07:00

EXPLORING JOO CHIAT (26 JULY 2009)

Grandpa Eddy is an ardent fan of the wanton mee stall at Tembeling Road called Hong Mao Noodle. Four mornings a week, he'll be there tucking into a bowl of wanton mee for breakfast. He said the wanton skin was so silky smooth that the flavourful wanton would literally melt in your mouth. He spoke so highly of the stall that the rest of us decided that we should have a bowl of wanton mee for Sunday brunch one day.

Two Sundays after our cruise to nowhere, we pulled up at the wanton mee stall in our MPV. We quickly found 2 tables in the coffeeshop for our whole family, but the wait for the wanton mee was horrendous. Forty-five minutes later, my noodles were still not here. I couldn't wait any longer, so I had prata instead. Ah Gong, Ah Ma, and Mommy who waited for the wanton mee weren't too impressed. Fairly ordinary noodles with an extraordinarily long wait was their verdict. Hygiene was also very poor at the stall. Sorry Grandpa Eddy! We're in no hurry to go back...

Feeling rather dissatisfied with the culinary experience, Mommy suggested that we explored the rest of Joo Chiat to see what else there was to pop into our mouths. We passed a row of very pretty conservation shophouses, an old Chinese shop which sold cane furniture, and an equally ancient Chinese bakery. By the time we got to East Coast Road, we were all very sweaty and pining for something cold.

An icy dessert would be perfect, so Grandpa Eddy suggested having chendol at Glory Catering on East Coast Road. He ordered a round of chendol and an assortment of Nonya kueh for everyone. Mommy and I both liked sticky kueh with 9 layers of colours.

A little further down the road was Gina's Vadai stall in a coffeeshop called Carlton Restaurant. Grandpa Eddy loved vadai and he reckoned this stall had the best in Singapore. The rest of us had never tried vadai before, so Grandpa Eddy bought some for us to sample. It was sinfully oily but flavourful. I liked it!

On the other side of the road, we stumbled upon an interesting find - Katong Antique House, a museum showcasing all things Peranakan. The owner and curator of the museum, Mr Peter Wee, welcomed us in and introduced us to his wife and friend who were having lunch at the back of the shophouse. Mr Wee was fiercely proud of his Peranakan roots and he had spent about 30 years collecting Peranakan clothing, jewellery, beaded shoes, porcelain, portraits and pictures. We learnt that Keong Saik Street was named after his great grandfather. We had a nice chat with Mr Wee and his wife, and Ah Ma and Grandma Nancy bought some homemade nonya goodies from the lovely couple. We promised to re-visit one day before saying goodbye to them.

We continued walking. We passed Mary's Corner Tau Kwa Pau shop, the row of laksa stalls all laying claims to serving the original and the best Katong laksa around, and the Red House (an old-fashioned confectionery which has since been hoarded up because the building is dangerously close to collapsing). No traditional cream cakes for me... but we did come across some really cute terrapins in a tub. All in all, it was an interesting day-out.

2009-08-27T07:21:00.000-07:00

CRUISE TO NOWHERE (19 JULY 2009)

Daddy had spent the last one year dreaming, conceptualising, designing and building an all aluminium fishing powerboat.

When OOPSII The Boat was finally on water, Captain Daddy welcomed us on board her maiden voyage. Brand new lifevests were handed out by Captain Daddy, and bags of munchies were handed out by First Mate Mommy. After Captain Daddy's safety briefing, we were off to explore the smelly waters near Punggol Marina!

Seasickness didn't seem to feature in anyone's mind. Those nasty memories of being sick on board the whale watching cruise in the Gold Coast were kept out of Grandma Nancy's head, as she happily competed with Ah Ma on finishing a bag of Twisties.

We saw several kelongs in the water during our cruise, and Captain Daddy made a brief stop on Seletar Island for us to check out the beach (or rather, lack thereof). The narrow strip of brown sand was riddled with trash and populated by sandflies. Double yucks! We stayed long enough for a group shot before heading back.

Everyone had full confidence in Captain Daddy's boating skills, and he didn't disappoint us. It was a smooth ride from start to finish. :)

2009-07-04T20:21:00.000-07:00

TRIP TO PULAU UBIN (28 JUNE 2009)

Pulau Ubin (which means "Granite Island" in Bahasa Melayu) is an island to the north-east coast of Singapore. Years ago, granite quarries, plunging 30 to 40 metres deep into the ground, used to operate on the island, but the whole island has since been acquired by the government and is now state land. Since then, the government has stepped in to improve the infrastructure on the island, but it's still relatively undeveloped compared to the rest of Singapore. It's probably the only place in Singapore where one can readily sample "kampong life".

Grandma Nancy's brother, Granduncle Alvin, visits Ubin regularly and he told Grandma Nancy about the bumper crop of durians on the island this season. All of us thought picking durians in the wild would be a fruitful way of spending a Sunday.

Our plan was to get to the island in the morning, bike around in search of durian trees, pick durians to our hearts' content, have lunch on the island, then return home to enjoy seed after seed of bittersweet durian. But of course... things never really go according to grand plans, do they?

We were supposed to be on the island bright and early, but as it turned out, the allure of sleep kept our plans at bay. We got up late, and by the time we arrived at Changi Village to catch the bumboat to Ubin, there were no carpark lots left at Changi Village! We had to wait a really long time for a lot to free up.

When we got to the jetty, we saw many groups of people returning from Ubin with gunny sacks filled with durians. "Leave some for us!", we almost yelled in panic. Well, the early bird catches the worm, they say.

The bumboat ticket to Ubin cost S$2.50 each one-way. The ride to Ubin only took about 15 mins.
Once we arrived at Ubin, we were greeted by the sight of a leathery old man selling his pickings for the day, whetting our appetite to pick our own. But first up, lunch.

Daddy steered us to a restaurant, where he'd been before. We ordered mee goreng, fried Hokkien mee, fried beehoon, steamed crab, sambal sotong, chilli mussels, leatherjacket fish in black bean sauce, fried chicken and sambal kangkong. Everyone heaped praises on the mee goreng and fried chicken. Only Daddy stayed silent. He had had a peek of the kitchen whilst looking for the toilet, and had seen sewage in an exposed drain flowing right through the kitchen. That pretty much killed his appetite. Fortunately, none of us fell sick after the meal.

After lunch, we hired bikes from a random shop in the village. Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy shared a tandem bike. Ah Gong and Ah Ma were supposed to share a second tandem bike, but Ah Gong had great difficulty keeping his balance with Ah Ma on the bike! Daddy had to take Ah Ma as his pillion in the end. Much to Daddy's dismay as he had to suffer her nags in stereo the whole journey... Ah Gong, on the other hand, was very glad to have a bike all to himself. Mommy took me on her bike, and Ning Che Che took Su Ann on hers.

None of us knew where the durian trees were, so Grandpa Eddy rang Granduncle Alvin for directions. Granduncle Alvin tried his best to give us directions, but it was way too difficult for Grandpa Eddy to ride a tandem bike and receive directions on the phone at the same time. Grandpa Eddy gave up on receiving directions after a while. We would just have to sniff the air for the signature, pungent fragrance of the durian fruit, and keep a lookout for the trees as we rode.

We passed abandonned granite quarries, a mangrove swamp, a boy who caught a stone fish, coconut trees, rambutan trees, jackfruit trees, but we just didn't spot any durian trees!

Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy had been struggling to keep up with the group, so when the rest of us got to the top of a slope, we stopped by the side of the road to wait for them. It was then that both my grandmothers fell!!! Grandpa Eddy had trouble cycling up the slope, so Grandma Nancy pushed their bike up the slope instead. She somehow managed to lose her balance whilst pushing the bike and fell, with the bike landing on top of her. Her elbow got scratched up pretty badly. Then, Ah Ma got off her bike to have a look-see. She too somehow managed to lose her balance and tumbled onto a bush. Poor bush!

After their falls, the enthusiasm of both my grandmothers to look for durians waned. Ah Ma kept using Su Ann and me as excuses to get the group to turn back. She kept going on and on about the heat, about how Su Ann and I shouldn't be under the sun for so long, blah blah, until Daddy couldn't take the nagging anymore and decided to steer the group back to the village. The truth was Su Ann and I were comfortable and we were really enjoying the ride. I was looking forward to going to one of the beaches on the island as well, but I would now have to give that a miss.

I was feeling rather disappointed when Ning Che Che caught sight of a durian tree and signalled to our group to stop. The tree was actually pretty close to where we started our ride. Both my grandmothers eagerly scoured the forest floor for fallen durians, but the "early birds" had picked the area clean, except for... one fruit which had been obscured by leaves. Grandma Nancy spotted that one and proudly held it up like a nugget of gold! Finally, we had one and we returned to the village triumphant!

After returning our bikes, the tribe descended on the village's only provision shop. To celebrate her find, Grandma Nancy ordered a round of icy cold coconuts for everyone. She also bought some rambutans from the shopkeeper, and got them to split open the durian for us. Each of the adults took a seed, and they said it was "very shiok"!

On the way back to the jetty, we stopped for mee rebus at a little coffee shop. Ubin was a lovely adventure for all of us. We will certainly return for more.

2009-06-28T05:21:00.000-07:00

Less than a week after returning from Brisbane, I underwent surgery.

The bottom lashes of both my eyes had been growing inwards for the longest time. They poked and rubbed against my eyes each time I blinked. I grew to live with the discomfort, so no one knew I had a problem until I started blinking really hard one day. At first, my family thought I had picked up the bad habit of blinking super hard, and I had to endure both the discomfort and their scolding! Poor me!

Despite their scolding, I continued to blink really hard and my eyes turned red one day. Mommy took me to the pediatrician who suspected I was allergic to something. Mommy wasn't quite convinced so she took me to the National Eye Centre ("NEC") for a thorough check. It was the NEC which broke the news to Mommy that I needed surgery, and quite urgently, as my eyes had already been scratched up pretty badly by my lashes. The doctor said he could see the scars on my eyes and an infection had caused my eyes to turn red. He prescribed an antibiotic eye drop and a date was fixed for me to undergo an operation after my trip to Australia. Mommy felt really guilty for scolding me...

I was under general anesthesia for the operation. After the procedure, the area under my eyes was bruised and bloody. I had to miss my school's field trip to the zoo, but I wasn't about to miss Mommy's cousin, Aunty Eu-An's wedding. I was looking forward to being a flowergirl! Mommy, Ah Ma and Ning Che Che cleaned my eyes and applied medication for me every day. Fortunately, by 20 June 2009 (the wedding day), my eyes were pretty again.

The solemnisation and wedding banquet were held at the Grand Ballroom of the Ritz Carlton Millenia Hotel. It was a lavish affair with about 800 guests. Aunty Eu-An praised me for doing well as her flowergirl!

2009-06-07T02:43:00.000-07:00

TRIP TO QUEENSLAND (29 MAY TO 7 JUNE 2009)

When Mommy discovered that Emirates was offering Singapore-Brisbane return tickets for only S$430.00 all-in, she could hardly believe her eyes. She grabbed those tickets for the whole family before they were gone.

Mommy planned to take us all to Brisbane, Rainbow Beach, Fraser Island and the Gold Coast. She painstakingly pieced together our itinerary, booked our accommodation and hired a mini-bus for the whole family, but the unpredictable weather and a really unreliable vehicle rental company nearly ruined our trip, even before we set foot on Oz.

About a week and a half before our trip, Mother Nature wreaked havoc on South-East Queensland, bringing freak high tides and dumping so much rain so suddenly that there was widespread flooding, road closures and power outages. Things were looking quite bad, but there was nothing we could do, except pray that the high tides would recede and the sun would come out in time to bring cheer to our plans.

Just when the weather reports started to look rosier, Mommy received an e-mail from the vehicle rental company called Rolo (http://www.rolo.com.au/) that we'd to pay an additional AUD150.00 to pick up the mini-bus from the airport after office hours. Before Mommy made the booking with Rolo, they had given Mommy a fee quote of the hire based on the dates and times of pick-up and return of the vehicle. Rolo knew full well that we'd be picking up and returning the vehicle late at night, but their fee quote had made no mention of an additional after hours fee. This additional fee was also not stated anywhere in Rolo's terms and conditions or their website when Mommy made the booking. All of a sudden, just 3 days before our trip, Rolo decided to tell us of this hefty additional charge (AUD150 to pick up after hours, and possibly another AUD150 to return after hours). Mommy wrote to Rolo to seek a waiver of this additional fee, and was told that the company would look into the matter and revert. Just one day before our flight, Rolo reverted to say that the additional fee was still payable. Then barely an hour after e-mailing us to say that, they suddenly e-mailed us again to say the vehicle was no longer available and that they'd refund the deposit they'd collected from us! The news dropped on Mommy like a ton of bricks. Only a mini-bus could ferry our whole family, and not many vehicle rental companies in Brisbane had mini-buses amongst their fleet. Where were we going to find an alternative mini-bus at such short notice?

After digesting the bad news, Daddy managed to get in touch with a different vehicle rental company minutes before they closed for the day. This second company told Daddy over the phone that they had a mini-bus available for hire, and that Daddy should send over his credit card particulars straight away to secure the booking. Daddy did as told, only to be met with an e-mail minutes later to say that they'd made a mistake and that the mini-bus was actually broken!

Daddy stayed up all night trying to look for an alternative, and eventually secured a booking with Europcar (http://www.europcar.com.au/). Europcar really saved our trip, and we've no qualms about recommending them to anyone who wants to hire a vehicle in Oz. The Toyota Hiace mini-bus we got was a new-model vehicle, it was in pristine condition and their rates were reasonable. Their rates were not the lowest, but the company was reliable and we had no problems at all returning the vehicle at the airport late at night.

As it turns out, the weather was fine for most part of the trip, and Su Ann and I had an adventure of a lifetime. Here's what we did.

DAY ONE - 29 MAY 2009 (FRIDAY)

1330 hrs: The usual travelling suspects (Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy, Ah Gong, Ah Ma, Laoyi, Daddy, Mommy, Ning Che Che, Su Ann and I) had just collected our boarding passes from the Emirates counter. Emirates Flight No. EK432 to Brisbane was scheduled to take off at 1520 hrs. With some time to spare, we headed to the staff canteen at Terminal One for lunch.

1430 hrs: After lunch, we took a brisk walk to the boarding gate. The gate was a fair distance away from the customs checkpoint, and it was closing in 20 mins. As usual, no time for any duty free shopping!

1445 hrs: We were at the boarding gate, watching airplanes take off and land.

1515 hrs: Our flight was finally ready for boarding. Mommy, Ning Che Che and Su Ann sat up front where the bassinet seats were. Next to them was another Singaporean family with a toddler who was a month older than Su Ann. Su Ann had company! Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy, Ah Gong and Daddy shared a row of seats further back. Ah Ma, Laoyi and I shared a row of seats adjacent to them. The flight was full.

1550 hrs: The take-off was delayed by 30 mins, but the Captain said the flight would be assisted by a very strong tailwind, so we'd be arriving in Brisbane a little earlier than anticipated. Su Ann was distracted by a bottle of milk during take-off and didn't shed a teardrop.

DAY TWO - 30 MAY 2009 (SATURDAY)

0030 hrs: Su Ann and I enjoyed the 7 hr 30 mins long flight. We had good company, Emirates had plenty of goodies for the both of us, food and drinks were plentiful and the inflight entertainment system was top notch. Before we knew it, we had landed safely in Brisbane.

0140 hrs: There was some drama clearing customs at the airport though. Ah Ma had packed rice, instant noodles and 2 boxes of Prima Taste Hainanese Chicken Rice mix in her suitcase, but hadn't declared them to customs. When her suitcase went under the X-ray machine, Ah Ma was pulled aside and her bag searched. Customs wanted to fine Ah Ma AUD250 for the offence.

Fortunately, Mommy had declared "Baby Food" to customs, so Daddy explained to the customs officer that some of the baby food was in Ah Ma's suitcase because we were travelling together as a family. The customs officer let Ah Ma off with a stern warning.

Apparently, something similar happened to Grandma Nancy when she last travelled to Australia. Oh dear! Both my grandmas have been blacklisted by the Aussie government! We made them pose with the warning letter.

0150 hrs: Daddy hailed a Maxi-taxi to take our family to Hotel Ibis in downtown Brisbane.

0220 hrs: We had arrived at the hotel. The taxi fare was AUD51.30, which was reasonable for that time of the morning and for ferrying so many of us.

0230 hrs: The check-in process was swift and we were in our rooms within 10 mins. The hotel was a little dated, but clean. The room was spacious and each room had 2 double beds. Laoyi, Ah Ma, Ning Che Che and Su Ann shared one room, whilst Daddy Mommy, Ah Gong and I shared the interconnecting room. Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy had their own room. We paid an average of AUD165 per night per room, with buffet breakfast included.

0300 hrs: We washed up and went to bed, whilst Daddy and Mommy went on a food hunt.

Hotel Ibis was just a short distance away from Queen Street Mall, the heart of Brisbane. Daddy and Mommy discovered that, aside from the Conrad Treasury Casino, MacDonald's, Hungry Jacks (that's what Burger King is known as in Oz) and 7/11, no one else was serving food at that hour. Daddy joined the queue of intoxicated teenagers waiting for burgers and fries at Hungry Jack's.

0400 hrs: Bars and dance clubs must have shut their doors because the area around Queen Street Mall was filled with drunk teenagers talking, singing and puking their guts out. Not much else was happening at that hour in this city of 1.8 million people, so Daddy and Mommy returned to the hotel to catch some sleep.

0900 hrs: Rise and shine, and we were at the hotel's cafe for buffet breakfast. The food was terribly salty. The selection was the poorest we've seen at any of the buffet breakfast we've been to. We were in and out of there fairly quickly.

1000 hrs: Daddy's friend, Aunty Sam, had come to the hotel to meet us. Aunty Sam has 3 kids, but they were in school that morning, so she came alone... with a bag choked full of goodies for Su Ann and me. :)

Aunty Sam took Daddy to Europcar to pick up our rental mini-bus, whilst the rest of us walked to Queen Street Mall. Ah Gong bought some books for Su Ann and me. Mommy bought a lovely strawberry shortcake for Aunty Sam. The rest of us left the mall empty-handed, but we all had a good time window-shopping, watching the balloon man make animals out of colourful balloons, and watching a fashion show on the mall. The clean-up crew had done a good job of cleaning up all that stinky puke the rowdy teenagers had left behind just a few hours before, as we didn't encounter any traces of that.

1300 hrs: We were back at the hotel to check out of our rooms. As we had arrived really late the night before, the hotel had kindly agreed to extend our check-out time till 1300 hrs for free. Aunty Sam and Daddy were already at the hotel with our rental mini-bus.

1330 hrs: We bade farewell to Aunty Sam and were on our way to Sunshine Coast via the Bruce Highway. The mini-bus was perfect for our family. It had the right no. of seats for all of us and sufficient storage space for all our bags and pram.

1430 hrs: An hour out of Brisbane, Daddy turned off the highway at the Big Fish / Humble Pie Exit. There was a strawberry farm called Rolin Farms (http://www.rolinfarms.com.au/) at Rutters Road, Elimbah where one could pick-your-own-strawberries from late May. After learning about the terrible storms which hit Sunshine Coast and destroyed millions of dollars for strawberry farmers, Mommy had e-mailed the farm to find out if it was open to the public but hadn't heard back. We kept our fingers crossed as Daddy turned into the carpark of the farm.

The farmer's wife greeted us. She welcomed us to visit the farm, but said the farm wasn't ready for pick-your-own yet, which triggered a collective sigh from our family.

We walked about the farm and I saw big, red, juicy strawberries hanging from their plants for the first time in my life. Strawberries are my favourite fruit and I usually eat about 10 a day. Naturally, I got very excited when I saw the strawberries and started running about the farm happily. Su Ann followed suit. She kept pointing and saying: "Berry. Berry. Berry."

Imagine our excitement when we saw Daddy walking towards us with a punnet for pick-your-own in his hand, together with Farmer Rob and his little daughter, Ashley. Whilst the rest of us were busy walking about the farm, Daddy befriended Farmer Rob, who eventually agreed to allow us to pick a few strawberries for the road.

We were the only visitors to the farm that afternoon. Farmer Rob took us on a personal tour of the farm, showing us the various species of strawberry plants, demonstrating how to use wooden carts to harvest the strawberries, telling us about the wildlife which ate his crop, the bait which he used to stop them, and the recent flood which caused him massive losses. His daughter, Ashley, showed us how to pick strawberries. No one spent more time picking and eating strawberries fresh off the plant than Ashley, as evidenced by her mud-crusted feet and mud-streaked happy face.

1545 hrs: All of us had an interesting afternoon at the farm. Farmer Rob's family waved us goodbye as we pulled out of his driveway with punnets of fresh strawberries, home-made strawberry jam and freshly-made strawberry ice-cream. The haul wasn't cheap, but the fresh strawberries were really sweet and Farmer Rob and his family made our day.

1700 hrs: After driving for about an hour, Daddy found it difficult to keep awake. He really needed his caffeine fix, so we stopped at a random rest-stop which served hot food and drinks. We ordered some food to share and enjoyed the meal on an outdoor porch which had a great view of hundreds of birds in the setting sun.

1745 hrs: Energised by his lamb chops and coffee, Daddy was ready to hit the road again. We piled into our mini-bus and off we went towards Rainbow Beach, a quiet settlement in Cooloola Coast with a population of about 900. The sun had set and we had to drive in darkness through a vast expanse of bushland to get to Rainbow Beach.

1845 hrs: We were finally at Rainbow Beach. The Golden Casket Newsagency & Supermarket (what a name!) directly across from our resort was closing in 15 mins, so we made a mad dash for bread, bottled water, and some snacks.

1900 hrs: Mommy had booked 2 units of 2-bedroom self-catering apartments at the Plantation Resort (http://www.theplantationatrainbow.com.au/), but the reception was already closed. The reception had e-mailed Mommy with instructions on entering the premises after hours and we had no problems finding our apartments. In a word, the apartments were beautiful. Right at the top of the list of accommodation we've stayed at on all our travels.

The resort was newly opened, and everything in the apartments was brand new. The luxury units were very spacious and well laid out; plenty of room for Su Ann and I to roam about. The units were decked out with a fully-equipped kitchen, washer, dryer and LCD tvs. The resort had a lovely swimming pool and heated jacuzzi.

The resort was right by the beach, directly across from the town's main shopping belt, which consisted of 3 cafes, 1 post office, 1 bottle shop, 1 butchery, 1 bakery, 1 chemist, 1 surf shop, 1 hair salon, 1 internet cafe and 1 newsagency cum supermarket. Not much, but sufficient.

Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy, Ah Gong, Ah Ma and I shared one apartment, whilst Daddy, Mommy, Laoyi, Ning Che Che and Su Ann shared the second apartment. The resort was going to be our home for the next 5 nights. My apartment was chosen as the "home base", where the meals were prepared and eaten.

The resort was offering a "pay for 3 nights and get 2 nights free" promotion. Mommy had paid AUD1784 for 2 units of 2-bedroom apartments for 5 nights. It worked out to be AUD89.20 per room per night for each of the 4 bedrooms we had. Superb value for money for the luxurious apartments.

1930 hrs: After unloading our bags, we headed out for dinner. We had passed a Chinese take-away restaurant called "Rainbow Woks" on the way into town, and thought that would be our best bet. We had a look at their menu, but the Westernised Chinese menu didn't sound appealing to us.

1940 hrs: Mommy decided to get burgers from one of the cafes across the road from our resort for Ning Che Che and herself. The rest of us followed Mommy to the cafe, starred at the menu for a really long time, then decided to head back to Rainbow Woks for fried rice and noodles. The last resort. We were all now very grateful to Ah Ma for sticking her neck out to smuggle the chicken abalone flavour instant noodles and 2 boxes of Hainanese chicken rice mix in her suitcase!

2030 hrs: Mommy and Ning Che Che had finished their burgers by the time the rest of us returned from Rainbow Woks. The restaurant was Aussie-owned, but the chef was actually from Jiangsu, China. He had a long chat in Mandarin with Ah Gong and Ah Ma. He claimed that he was an award-winning chef, but that his hands were tied by the limited ingredients available at Rainbow Beach. He tried his best, but the fried rice and noodles were merely oily and salty. The wok's fire was probably all wrong. The 3 packets of rice and noodles cost Daddy almost AUD50. We wouldn't be going back there again.

2130 hrs: After dinner, we had fresh strawberries for dessert, then went for a walk to the beach under the moonlight. The night sky was bursting with shining stars.

2200 hrs: Just like that, the day was over and it was time for bed.

DAY THREE - 31 MAY 2009 (SUNDAY)

0800 hrs: I was up bright and early for toast and home-made strawberry jam. We were going to the Pumpkin Festival at Goomeri (www.goomeri.org.au/pumpkinfest/) today!

0830 hrs: Mommy completed the necessary paperwork for check-in at the resort and we were off to Goomeri, a town so small that the resort's reception didn't even know where it was.

1020 hrs: It was about 150km from Rainbow Beach to Goomeri. It was an interesting drive into the rural outback, as the roads wound through horse and cattle farms. It was a chilly morning, and I noticed some horses wearing "jackets". We got to Goomeri just shy of 2 hours.

1030 hrs: We parked our mini-bus on the grass verge next to a gas station, and quickly made our way to the Heritage & Outback Street Parade. Farmers showed off their antique tractors and other farm implements at the parade. There were horsemen, whip crackers and not forgetting the giant pumpkin!

1100 hrs: After the parade, our family gathered at the Town Clock for the judging of the Pumpkin Pageant Competition. There were only a few contestants, and almost everyone won a prize.
We were the only Asians at the festival. A curious onlooker offered to take a picture of our whole family.

1115 hrs: There were about 200 outdoor stalls at the festival selling everything from vegetable peelers to essential oils. Much like a pasar malam in Singapore.

1130 hrs: Right at the end of the marketplace was the camel ride. It was AUD7 a ride on the camel and I really wanted to go on it. It was a rather short ride, but I enjoyed every minute of it. It was a funny feeling being rocked about so high. Getting off the camel was equally thrilling when the camel knelt down to a sitting position. I giggled non-stop from start to finish.

1145 hrs: We caught a little of the working collie dog demonstration. It was great that we could catch glimpses of outback life at this festival.

1200 hrs: Lunch time was approaching. We followed our noses to a stall selling hotdogs and chips. There was a long queue outside the stall, and our family grabbed the last of their hotdogs. The festival was from 0600 to 1800 hrs. Until we got to Oz, where shops were typically opened by 0600 hrs and closed by 1700 hrs, we didn't think anything other than a rooster would be awake at 0600 hrs!

1215 hrs: We stood by the Dreamtime Reptile's pit to have our lunch, so we could have prime standing spots when the show started at 1215 hrs. I was right up front and got to touch a snake for the first time ever! I wasn't afraid.

1230 hrs: We went through the rest of the 200 outdoor stalls, then returned to the mini-bus for some rest, as we waited for the highlight of the festival - the Great Australian Pumpkin Roll from the top of Policeman Hill at 1400 hrs.

1400 hrs: Thousands of people lined the streets to watch 350 rollers take turns rolling their pumpkins down the hill. Watching an assortment of pumpkins tumbling down the slope at top speed was such a laugh!

1445 hrs: We didn't stay to find out who the winner was. We left Goomeri before the bottleneck of vehicles getting out of town worsened.

1645 hrs: We were back at Rainbow Beach, after making a slight detour to look for a supermarket in Gympie without any success.

Gympie is a town about an hour away from Rainbow Beach with a population of about 11,000. As the town was substantially larger than Rainbow Beach, we thought the supermarket there would be more well-stocked. Unfortunately, it was Sunday and everything was closed in Gympie. We drove through the town twice, as we were driving to and from Goomeri, and both times we didn't see a single soul in sight. Perhaps everyone had gone to the festival... It was eerie nonetheless.

We ended up at IGA Supermarket at Rainbow Beach, which had a decent selection of groceries and was open on a Sunday. We bought 2 roast chicken, broccoli and frozen corn for dinner, and frozen mango yogurt for dessert.

Next to the IGA was a bottle shop which had cheap wines. Mommy bought a bottle of Jacob Creek's white as well as sparkling rose.

1745 hrs: Once we got back to the resort, Su Ann and I washed up, as Grandma Nancy, Laoyi and Ah Ma got dinner ready for everyone.

1900 hrs: We had a relaxing time tucking into roast chicken and recounting the events of the day at dinner.

2100 hrs: After our dessert of frozen mango yogurt and strawberries, the ladies cleaned, whilst the men relaxed.

DAY FOUR - 1 JUNE 2009 (MONDAY)

0600 hrs: Daddy usually has a hard time getting out of bed early in the morning, so we were all shocked to find him at our doorstep at 0600 hrs with a treasure trove of freshly baked goodies from the bakery. With absolutely no nightlife at all in Rainbow Beach, one was forced to go to bed early, so rising early really wasn't a problem.

0630 hrs: After tucking into chocolate eclairs and blueberry turnovers, we climbed into our mini-bus for the drive to Tin Can Bay.

0700 hrs: Half an hour later we were at the bay and we could see 2 Indo-Pacific Humpback Dolphins already at the bay. The 2 dolphins were Mystique (an 18-year-old male dolphin) and his son, Harmony. Mystique and Harmony are wild dolphins who usually appear at the bay between 0700 to 0800 hrs.

0800 hrs: Our family was amongst the first to arrive at the bay. By 0800 hrs, there was quite a crowd at the bay, including a coachful of tourists. Ah Ma, Daddy and I were at the head of the queue for a bucket of fresh fish each to feed Mystique and Harmony. It was such a thrill handfeeding the dolphins! It really didn't matter that my hands stunk of fish afterwards!

0830 hrs: There wasn't much else to do in Tin Can Bay other than feeding the dolphins, fishing, boating and horseback riding. Daddy drove us to the horseriding centre, but it was closed because of equestrian influenza. We raced to the mini-bus the minute we saw the "flu" sign!

0900 hrs: The sun was out, so we hatched the idea of having a picnic on Carlo Sand Blow. We stopped at IGA Rainbow Beach to pick up some bread, butter, and 2 raw chicken for dinner tonight. Mommy bought another bottle of Jacob's Creek sparkling rose from the bottleshop next door.

0945 hrs: We had some roast chicken left from last night, so we returned to the Plantation Resort to make roast chicken sandwiches for our picnic.

1100 hrs: It was a short drive up Cooloola Drive to the carpark, and then a 600 m walk through a forest to Carlo Sand Blow, a massive expanse of sand covering over 15 hectares.

On a windy day, one could see sand grains being blown towards the steep western slope, only to tumble down the slope in a series of mini-avalanches. We didn't stand close enough to the western edge to witness the mini-avalanches, as there was a sign warning people of the instability of the edge and possibility of collapse.

From Carlo Sand Blow, one had a bird's eye view of the ocean and Coloured Sands of Rainbow Beach to the east, as well as Tin Can Bay and the Great Sandy Straits to the west. The view was breath-taking.

1130 hrs: None of us had seen anything quite like Carlo Sand Blow before, and we were awestruck by its natural beauty. It was very quiet up on the Sand Blow, and we had the whole place to ourselves. Su Ann and I ran loose on the soft sand.

We were about to unpack and settle down for our picnic on a slice of paradise when the rain spoilt our fun.

1230 hrs: We ran to the carpark as quickly as we could, and had our sandwiches at our apartment instead.

1330 hrs: After lunch, Daddy and Mommy sorted out the paperwork for hiring a 4WD for the next 2 days at the Rainbow Beach Adventure Centre (http://www.adventurecentre.com.au/). They also went to the rangers' office to obtain the vehicle access permit for Fraser Island. They promised to take Su Ann and me to the beach when they got back.

1500 hrs: Daddy and Mommy were back. Su Ann and I were already all set to go to the beach. Everyone else decided to come along, so the entire family trooped down to the beach.

When we got there, we were disappointed to find most of the beach had been swallowed up by high tide. Su Ann and I only got to play on the beach for a short while before the tide forced us to retreat.

1545 hrs: Daddy took me to the resort's pool and jacuzzi instead, where I had a splashing good time.

1700 hrs: Grandma Nancy, Laoyi and Ah Ma busied themselves in the kitchen. They were cooking Hainanese chicken rice for dinner tonight. Ah... bliss!

1930 hrs: Dinner was ready! The adults dived in on the dark soy sauce, chopped ginger and, of course, the all important chilli sauce. Everyone was very satisfied with the meal, and there was just the right amount of chicken left for making sandwiches for our picnic on Fraser Island the next day.

2030 hrs: Mommy briefed everyone on our day trip to Fraser Island the next day. At 123km in length and 22km at its widest point, Fraser Island is the world's largest sand island. It's eastern beach is the island's main highway. As we'd be travelling on the beach highway, it was crucial that we kept watch on the tide times. Low tide would be at 1013 hrs, and high tide would be at 1657 hrs the following day. The Adventure Centre advised us to get off the beach highway by 1400 hrs, to avoid being washed away by the tide.

The plan was to pick up the rental 4WD when the Adventure Centre opened at 0700 hrs and make it to the island by barge as soon as possible. We wanted to visit Eli Creek, Maheno Wreck and Lake McKenzie for the day. As we had a tight schedule to keep to, Mommy assigned tasks to everyone so everything could work like clockwork.

Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy and Laoyi would be in charge of our food and drinks supply. Daddy would be our driver, and Mommy our navigator. Ah Ma would be in charge of me! She had to make sure that I got up on time and watch me like a hawk so the dingoes wouldn't gobble me up. It was dingo mating season this time of the year, so there was increased dingo activity on the island. The dingos have been known to attack people. Su Ann was Ning Che Che's responsibility and Ah Gong would be our camera-man.

It was Daddy and Mommy's second trip to Fraser Island, so they knew what to expect. As for the rest of us, we got increasingly excited about our day-trip as the briefing went on.

2100 hrs: It was time to retire to bed, as we had yet another early start the next day.

DAY FIVE - 2 JUNE 2009 (TUESDAY)

0700 hrs: Daddy was already at the Adventure Centre to pick up our 4WD. The rest of us waited for him at the lobby of our resort. Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy and Laoyi had made plenty of Hainanese chicken sandwiches for everyone, and they'd packed drinking water, cookies and fruit as well. Ah Ma and Ning Che Che had packed swimming gear, sand bucket and spades for Su Ann and me. Ah Gong had all his camera equipment with him. Mommy clutched the map of Fraser Island and checked her watch anxiously as the minutes ticked by and Daddy wasn't back yet. We needed to get to the island pronto to cover the route she'd planned.

0730 hrs: Finally, Daddy was back with our Toyota Landcruiser! Greg of the Adventure Centre had taken Daddy on a test drive which had taken longer than expected. We quickly climbed into our vehicle and off we went to Inskip Point to catch the Manta Ray Barge (http://www.fraserislandbarge.com.au/). Return barge tickets cost AUD90.

0750 hrs: We were at Inskip Point, but we could see that the Manta Ray Barge was already on the other side of the straits.

0815 hrs: Ours was the only vehicle on board the Manta Ray Barge. Aside from our family, there was a lone fisherman heading to Fraser Island to surf cast. The barge waited for more customers but none came. It was probably low season, as Mommy remembered having to queue to get on the barge back in April 2003.

0830 hrs: The barge was making its way over to Hook Point on Fraser Island. It was a short 10-min journey.

0845 hrs: The tide was on its way out, so we took the beach highway round Hook Point to the 75mile long straight. It was exhilarating watching the waves crash onto shore as we drove along the beach highway. Shortly after arriving on the island, we spotted large predatory birds hovering in the sky above us, smaller birds feeding by the sea, and dingoes.

The beach highway near Hook Point was punctuated by a number of creeks running out to sea. Each time Mommy spotted a creek, she'd yell: "Creek!", so we could all brace for the bump and splash.

At around the area of Happy Valley, rocks which used to be buried under several feet of sand were exposed by Cyclone Hamish back in March 2009. The exposed rocks made traversing the beach highway a little tricky, but Daddy, an experienced offroader, found no difficulty there.

0930 hrs: The 80km ride to Eli Creek was a fun one, and everyone was all smiles. Eli Creek is the largest creek on the eastern beach. It is fed by a natural aquifer (water table) several kms inland. It produces up to 80 million litres of water each day. Since it takes up to 100 years for water to be filtered through sand, it is theorised that, by the time the water reaches the mouth of Eli Creek, this water would be hundreds of years old.

We waded through the ancient, superclear freshwater of Eli Creek to get to the boardwalk. In the hot summer months, people would be swimming and floating down the creek, but it's winter now and the water was just too cold for any of that.

We walked along the boardwalk and watched freshwater fish dart about. Su Ann and I had a little fun playing by the creek.

1015 hrs: We climbed back into our vehicle for a 6km ride to the site of the Maheno Wreck. The MV Maheno was driven ashore during a cyclone in 1935. The rusted hunk of metal was the first shipwreck I'd encountered in my life.

1045 hrs: We started our drive southwards on the eastern beach. We traversed the rocky section with caution then turned inland at Cornwells Smith Road.

Inland roads are narrow, one-way and extremely bumpy. Daddy tried to travel as slowly as he could, but the bumps were too much for Su Ann to handle. She cried so much that Ah Gong thought she'd suffered whiplash or worse. She kept pointing to the vehicle door and screaming: "Open! Open! Open!" She really wanted to get out of the vehicle, so the ride could end. I didn't like the bumpy ride either.

1115 hrs: Several kms inland we came across a lookout point with a carpark. Daddy quickly turned into the carpark, so we could try to calm Su Ann down. There was not much of a view at this lookout point, but I was fascinated by a big family of toadstools near the carpark.

1130 hrs: We got back into the vehicle when Su Ann stopped crying. Mommy's original plan had us at Lake McKenzie by 1130 hrs, but we still had a long way more to travel on inland roads before we could get to the lake.

As we ventured deeper and deeper inland on the one-way track, we got increasingly concerned that we'd not make it out to the beach highway before the tide came in. We had no supplies for spending the night at Fraser Island. Daddy and Mommy, who'd camped on the island before, knew how cold it could get in the middle of the night. We also had insufficient food and water to last us past lunch. The atmosphere in the 4WD became pretty tense as everyone silently accessed the situation in their minds. It didn't help that Su Ann burst into tears again, and worse still, our vehicle got stuck in a rut!

1200 hrs: Daddy tried to get our vehicle out of the rut, but the clutch was not functioning properly. The track we were on was also very narrow, with a mud wall on one side and a sharp drop into the rainforest on the side. We hadn't seen another vehicle for the last one hour. Help certainly wasn't going to come any time soon. Everyone in the vehicle was frigid with fear.

1210 hrs: Finally, our vehicle was free to move on again! The last 10 mins brought cold sweat to everyone. Daddy tried to calm everyone down by saying that the beauty of Lake McKenzie would be well worth the trip, but no one was listening. We were too busy trying to cope with the terrible bumps and Su Ann's cries.

1230 hrs: Into the carpark of Lake McKenzie our vehicle turned. Mommy estimated that we'd need another hour or so on inland roads before we could make it out onto the beach highway at Eurong. From Eurong, it would be another 14km on the beach before we could get to the first inland access point to Hook Point to catch the barge, and we needed to be off the beach by 1400 hrs. Mommy gave us 15 mins to see Lake McKenzie before we'd to start our journey on bumpy roads again.

1235 hrs: Lake McKenzie was stunning. We were all blown away by how electric blue the freshwater lake was, and how white and fine the pure silica sand was. The beauty of the lake lit up everyone's faces and, for a moment, we forgot about the harrowing journey we'd just been through and were about to embark on again.

It was surprisingly quiet at the lake. Su Ann and I splashed about happily in the clear, blue water. Su Ann kept patting the water on her face, and tasting it.

1245 hrs: We all got back into our vehicle. Mommy's original plan was for us to have our picnic at Lake McKenzie, but that was clearly not possible anymore.

1340 hrs: Daddy drove as quickly as he could on inland roads to Eurong. The bumps were dreadful, but everyone suffered in silence (except Su Ann, who made her discomfort known extremely vocally). We all knew how crucial it was for us to get onto the beach as quickly as possible. Grandpa Eddy, who was seated right at the back of the vehicle (typically, the bumpiest part), spent half the ride in the air! The jolts hurt Grandma Nancy's back, and she clung so hard onto the seat to steady herself that her arm was sore too.

When we eventually arrived at Eurong, we breathed a collective sigh of relief. But the adventure was far from over. We had 15 mins left to cover 14km on the beach to get to the first inland access point before the tide rendered the beach highway inaccessible.

1350 hrs: Daddy drove past the mouth of the first inland access road. Mommy begged him to take the inland access road, but Daddy insisted on taking the second and final inland access road instead to save time. The final inland access road was 7km away, and we had 10 mins left before the tide shut the beach highway off from traffic.

1355 hrs: Excellent! We could see the final inland access road coming up! We were safe... or were we?

It suddenly became apparent to us that there was trouble ahead. Three vehicles carrying 20 odd backpackers had become stuck. They couldn't go up the soft, sandy slope to get onto the final inland access road.

Daddy got out of our vehicle to access the situation. The backpackers were desperately packing down the sand and laying wooden planks on the slope. But they were laying the planks the wrong way! Daddy put things right and had a word with the backpackers. They asked Daddy to go up the slope first.

1400 hrs: Daddy reversed our vehicle as far as he could. We turned back and saw the waves licking our vehicle. Daddy stepped hard on the accelerator and tried to run us up the slope, but we got stuck. We moved our vehicle out of the way so another vehicle could have a go at the slope. The other vehicle got stuck as well.

1405 hrs: Daddy ordered us out of the vehicle. It was too late for us to turn back to the first inland access point. He would try to run the lighter vehicle up. And... he did it!!!

All the backpackers joined us in clapping and cheering. We ran up the slope as quickly as we could, to get out of the way of another vehicle which was trying to run its way up. The other driver managed to go up the slope as well!

1410 hrs: Daddy yelled at us to get back into the vehicle, so we wouldn't get hit by vehicles charging up the slope. We didn't stay to find out if the rest made it out of the beach ok.

The inland road to Hook Point was corrugated, but it was nowhere near the bumpiness we'd experienced earlier. Everyone was relieved that we'd be getting off the island soon.

1435 hrs: We were on the beach at Hook Point, waiting for the Manta Ray Barge to pick us up. It dawned on us that we'd missed lunch, so Grandma Nancy quickly passed the sandwiches round. We polished off the sandwiches hungrily, keeping a lookout for dingoes in the process. The area around Hook Point was known for dingo activity.

Only Ning Che Che didn't have anything to eat. She was car-sick from the ride, and wanted to throw up.

1445 hrs: The Manta Ray Barge was here to take us back to Rainbow Beach. Daddy found out from the backpackers in the vehicle behind us that the last 2 vehicles didn't make it up the slope at the final inland access point. Those people would probably have to spend the night on the island and pray that their vehicles don't get washed away or damaged by the tide.

1500 hrs: We had landed at Inskip Point.

1520 hrs: Daddy dropped us back to the resort, so everyone could recuperate from the rather rough day we'd had. Ning Che Che was still feeling ill.

Daddy would head over to the rangers' office for some advice on our itinerary for the following day. Mommy's original plan was for us to return to Fraser Island to visit Indian Head and Champagne Pools, but after today, no one (except Ah Ma) seemed keen to return to the island so soon.

1550 hrs: Daddy was back from the rangers' office. The rangers had advised Daddy to visit Double Island Point instead. They said there was a good chance one could spot migrating whales, pods of dolphins or hammerhead sharks from Double Island Point at this time of the year.

To get to Double Island Point, we would have to travel by 4WD on a hard-packed mud track for about 45 mins, then turn left onto Teewah Beach for a few minutes. Double Island Point would be right at the end of Teewah Beach. The rangers couldn't tell Daddy if the hard-packed mud track would be more or less bumpy than Fraser Island's inland roads. We would also have to watch the tides for Teewah Beach. Low tide would be at 1053 hrs, and high tide would be at 1745 hrs the following day. This meant we had till 1445 hrs to get off Teewah Beach.

It all sounded easy enough, but none of us had travelled to Double Island Point before, so no one really knew what to expect. Buoyed by the prospect of seeing migrating whales, Daddy and Mommy decided that it would be best to go along with the rangers' advice to skip a second day-trip to Fraser Island.

1600 hrs: Ning Che Che remained at the resort, whilst the rest of us went to IGA for groceries. We bought bread, a tray of eggs, and a can of tuna, so we could make sandwiches for tomorrow's outing.

1630 hrs: We saw an advertisement near the IGA for a Thai restaurant and thought we'd investigate. We followed the sign to Carlo Point, but the restaurant was closed.

Some people were fishing at Carlo Point, so we stayed to watch a while.

1655 hrs: Daddy and Mommy bought a AUD9 bottle of white from the bottleshop opposite our resort and picked up a large lemon meringue pie from the bakery for just AUD6.50.

1700 hrs: Ah Ma and Daddy took me swimming in the resort's pool and a soak in the jacuzzi. The water therapy was perfect for washing away the stresses of the day!

1900 hrs: Dinner was ready. We were having instant chicken abalone noodle with egg and vegetables for dinner tonight. Mommy took away battered cod n chips from the cafe across the road and I nicked some of her grub.

2000 hrs: We had lemon meringue pie for dessert. The pie looked yummy, but tasted like congealed dishwashing liquid. No one asked for a second helping. :(

Grandma Nancy staged a brief strike at the after-dinner briefing. Our Food & Drinks IC refused to join us on the trip to Double Island Point. She wanted to stay put at the resort the next day. Luckily, we managed to persuade her to change her mind.

2100 hrs: Exhausted, everyone went to bed.

DAY SIX - 3 JUNE 2009 (WEDNESDAY)

0730 hrs: We timed our departure from the resort such that we'd have optimum time at Double Island Point and Teewah Beach. Mommy made sure Su Ann and I had our swimming gear, sand buckets and spades with us, and off we went for another day of adventure in our 4WD!

0745 hrs: We found Freshwater Road, a 4WD track just outside Rainbow Beach. Shortly after the turn-off, the bumps began. Not as pronounced as the previous day, but we were bounced about nonetheless.

The road wound through a forest, and we could see the rays of the morning sun beaming through the thick foliage. Some of the trees were really tall, and their trunks hollow, probably from termites feeding on the wood. We saw some birds in the forest, but didn't spot any other animals. Wild animals were probably watching us, as not many vehicles came through this way.

0845 hrs: Just before the turn-off to Teewah Beach, there was a rest-stop. We took a break there, and listened to the sea.

0900 hrs: Travelling on Teewah Beach was similar to driving on the eastern beach of Fraser Island. Right at the end of the beach was the lighthouse of Double Island Point on a steep hill. We parked our vehicle on the beach and took a slow walk up to the lighthouse.

The trek uphill was roughly 1.1km. It was an enjoyable walk as the views were wonderful and there were some interesting plants along the way.

0940 hrs: Ah Ma and Mommy got to the lighthouse first. They starred at a dark object at sea a fair distance away, and started screaming: "Hurry!!! Hurry!!! Whale!!! Whale!!!" Everyone got very excited and charged up the hill.

A group of gardeners shot us a bemused look. They pointed to the dark object and said: "That's Wolf Rock", spoiling our fun. When the waves crashed onto the rock, the splash resembled water coming out of a whale's blowhole. Thus the mistaken identity. :(

1015 hrs: We spent a few minutes at the lighthouse taking in the wonderful sea view, and trying our best to spot for marine life, but didn't see any. The lighthouse keeper told us he'd seen some whales earlier in the morning. He looked through his binoculars for us, but didn't spot any marine life either. Just our luck!

1045 hrs: The walk downhill was a lot quicker. We saw a really big lizard on a tree along the way.

By the time we got to the base, we were famished. We devoured the egg and tuna sandwiches which our Food & Drinks Committee had prepared.

1100 hrs: After eating, I picked seashells from the seashore. :)

1130 hrs: I was having loads of fun when the drizzle brought an abrupt end to my fun. Daddy chased us into the vehicle and we drove to the rest-stop along Freshwater Road to wait for the rain to stop.

1145 hrs: We were waiting at the rest-stop when Grandma Nancy met with an unfortunate accident. She was trying to close her umbrella when one end of her umbrella sprung onto her eye. She screamed in pain, and for a moment, we thought she had blinded herself. Fortunately, her vision was not impaired, and she only suffered a black eye.

1200 hrs: The rain stopped briefly for Su Ann and I to have some time on Teewah Beach with our buckets and spade. Daddy picked a spot next to Little Freshwater Creek to park the vehicle, so Su Ann and I could splash about the creek and poke about the sand. It was an excellent spot!

1220 hrs: Just when we were having lots of fun, the rain had to come again. :( Su Ann and I were plucked abruptly from the beach. We screamed blue murder, but the adults wouldn't let us play in the rain. Mommy promised to take us to Rainbow Beach for us to continue our sandplay once the rain stopped.

1330 hrs: Daddy dropped us off at our resort, then went to return the 4WD to the Adventure Centre. The sun was out at Rainbow Beach, so Su Ann and I could play on the beach.

1530 hrs: We had been rushing about the last few days. It was nice to finally have a chance to spend a lazy afternoon on the beach and at the resort.

1900 hrs: Roast chicken from IGA and rice for dinner again! *Yawn* It was our last night on Rainbow Beach, and we were looking forward to the Gold Coast, where there'd be more food choices.

2030 hrs: We were leaving early the next morning, so the adults made sure that we were all packed up before they went to bed.

DAY SEVEN - 4 JUNE 2009 (THURSDAY)

0730 hrs: Daddy wanted a break from all that driving, so Mommy handled the first leg of the drive today. Mommy downed a cup of coffee and took to the wheel.

0915 hrs: Mommy got us to a strawberry farm at Palmview in Sunshine Coast in one piece. *Phew*

The farm was called Strawberry Fields (http://www.strawberryfields.com.au/) and it was professionally set up for the tourist market. The farm had a coach parking bay, cafe, shop, playground and even 2 orange trees. It was beautifully presented, but what it lacked was the homely feel of Rolin Farms and, more importantly, ripe strawberries. Strawberry Fields said their farm was ready for pick-your-own, but most of their strawberries were still green!

0940 hrs: We moved on to Rolin Farms instead. This time, Daddy did the driving.

1020 hrs: We were at Rolin Farms. Farmer Rob's wife greeted us again.

We must have picked all the ripe ones 5 days back because the strawberries in the fields today were still unripe. It was fortunate that we had the opportunity to pick our own a few days ago.

We bought a few boxes of fresh strawberries and strawberry ice-cream, then bade Farmer Rob and his wife farewell. Ashley was in school today.

1030 hrs: Daddy continued the drive to the Gold Coast.

Mommy's plan was for us to stop at Harbourtown Shopping Centre (http://www.harbourtownshopping.com.au/) at the corner of Gold Coast Highway and Oxley Drive for lunch and our first real dose of retail therapy since arriving in Oz.

1245 hrs: We got a little lost on our way to Harbourtown, but a kind lady pointed us in the right direction. We got to Harbourtown just in time for lunch.

1300 hrs: Everyone craved Asian, but I wanted pasta. Daddy and Mommy accompanied me to a pasta restaurant, whilst the rest settled for noodles at a place called Noodles Now.

The noodles at Noodles Now were as expensive as our pasta. On the whole, eating out in Oz was costly and the food not that great. Mommy's spaghetti marinara gave her food poisoning several hours later.

1345 hrs: The shopaholics amongst us - Grandma Nancy, Laoyi and Ah Ma, unleased their pent-up addiction at Harbourtown, sweeping through each store like a hurricane.

Su Ann had a good time too. She got a new pair of sunglasses, and there were plenty of those automated toy car rides at Harbourtown to amuse her.

1745 hrs: After a whole afternoon, they were still not done. We had to tear them away from the shopping centre to check into our hotel.

1805 hrs: We had booked to stay at the Holiday Inn Surfers' Paradise. The hotel was rather old, but was refurbished in recent years. The hotel was in a good location, being close to the beach and Cavill Avenue, the heart of Surfers' Paradise. We were quite satisfied with our pick of accommodation.

1830 hrs: We chucked our bags in the rooms, then hurried off to Pacific Fair Shopping Centre (http://www.pacificfair.com.au/). Thursday was the only day of the week that Pacific Fair extended its opening hours to 2100 hrs. Grandma Nancy, Laoyi and Ah Ma were in luck.

1850 hrs: Mommy had read online that tourists could register at the Information Counter for discounts at Pacific Fair. We were each given a leaflet which served as a discount voucher for the various outlets in the mall. With that, we went to the food court for dinner.

It was the first food court we'd encountered in Oz. Somehow the concept of food court dining hasn't taken off here yet.

1945 hrs: We gave the shopaholics an hour to check out the stores, whilst the rest of us walked around aimlessly. We came across a pet store which had really cute kittens and puppies, as well as a weird Mexican walking fish.

2100 hrs: We returned to the hotel when all the shops had closed. It had been a long day, and the bed looked really inviting.

DAY EIGHT - 5 JUNE 2009 (FRIDAY)

0830 hrs: We had paid AUD209 per standard room for the first night, which included buffet breakfast and buffet seafood dinner. I'd been eating toast with strawberry jam from Rolin Farms for the last 5 days, so the buffet breakfast was a nice change. The spread was much better than that at the Hotel Ibis in Brisbane, but still didn't have the wow factor. We'd been utterly spoilt by hotels like the Pullman Bangkok King Power, which really cater to every taste.

0930 hrs: After breakfast, Ah Gong, Mommy and Ning Che Che took Su Ann and me to the beach. The rest went shopping again! *Boring* Why they would choose shopping over playing on the beach was beyond me!

1000 hrs: I loved the beach at Surfers' Paradise. The beach was very broad, so there was plenty of sand to play with at all times of the day. We didn't have to watch the tide or traffic closely like on Rainbow Beach or on Teewah Beach, but there were far fewer seashells to pick.

1230 hrs: It was time to return to the hotel, as we had to get ready for our whale watching cruise with Whales in Paradise (http://www.whalesinparadise.com.au/). Whale watching season had just begun on the Gold Coast, so we'd arrived here at the right time.

1310 hrs: We strolled to the meeting point for the cruise, which was just a few blocks away from our hotel. Ning Che Che and Su Ann remained at the hotel, as the cruise company didn't allow kids below 3 yrs old to join in the cruise. Good thing they didn't come along or we wouldn't have known what to do if seasickness had gripped Su Ann.

1330 hrs: Boarding was supposed to commence at 1330 hrs, but the crew couldn't get the boat ready on time. They made everyone wait out in the blazing hot sun without any shade. Coming from the equator, we should be very used to the sun, but we found the sun out here much hotter. It really burnt.

1350 hrs: There was a large crowd of people waiting to board the boat, and everyone got very agitated, but the crew refused to let anyone onto the boat without sorting out the payment first. The cruise wasn't very well organized at all.

1400 hrs: With everyone on board, the Mahi Mahi departed from the harbour. She sailed down the canal past the multi-million homes of the rich and famous. Many of the houses had yachts moored out front, but one house even had its own helipad and chopper. Impressive!

1430 hrs: It took a while for the Mahi Mahi to reach open seas, and when she did, the choppy waters made us wish we had stayed home. Ah Ma and Mommy had already popped motion sickness pills before leaving the hotel, but the seas were so rough they swallowed the backup ginger pills on board the Mahi Mahi as well.

Grandma Nancy didn't take any pills, which was a costly mistake. She threw up so much that she couldn't even get up to see the whales when the mammals finally showed up.

1545 hrs: The crew spotted the dorsal fin of a whale, and everyone (except Grandma Nancy) scrambled to the starboard side of the Mahi Mahi. Quite a few others were seasick too, but they could still clutch their vomit bag, puke and whale-watch all the same. Poor Grandma Nancy was the worst affected of the lot. She just couldn't get up.

The Mahi Mahi followed alongside the whale as it swam. After a while, it was really easy to spot the footprint of a whale. We didn't see any tail slapping, but it was still a thrill to see the dorsal fin of a whale in the wild so close to our boat swimming and blowing water from its blowhole. At one point, we even saw 2 whales - mother and calf.

1615 hrs: It was time to turn back to the Gold Coast.

1730 hrs: The trip back was a lot more enjoyable, as the seas were calmer. We spotted dolphins in the wild and witnessed a magnificent sunset out at sea. Grandma Nancy felt much better by the time we arrived at the harbour.

1830 hrs: Our night at the hotel was inclusive of buffet seafood dinner at the hotel's cafe. We hadn't eaten anything since breakfast this morning, so were famished. Grandma Nancy took a shower and was all ready to attack the buffet spread.

Unfortunately, the seafood was very disappointing. The restaurant boiled all their fresh prawns, crab and crayfish in brine, so everything tasted of nothing but salt, but that didn't stop Ah Ma from piling her plate. As for me, they had pizza, chicken drumstick, pasta and ice-cream, so I was happy!

2000 hrs: We thought we'd be spending the entire evening at the buffet, but ended up leaving much earlier than expected. It wasn't a bad thing as there was a Friday night market on the Esplanade which we wanted to check out.

2130 hrs: We checked out the stalls along the Esplanade and took a walk around Cavill Avenue until our lids wouldn't stay open anymore. Ah Ma almost fell over as she suddenly nodded off whilst walking!

DAY NINE - 6 JUNE 2009 (SATURDAY)

0930 hrs: Our flight out of Brisbane was at 0245 hrs on 7 June 2009, and we had to return our rented mini-bus to the airport by 2330 hrs on 6 June 2009. Mommy paid for us to keep one room at the hotel, till we were ready to head to the airport.

The room to be kept was Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy's room on the 18th floor of the hotel. The rest of us checked out of our rooms and moved our things into their room. The view on the 18th floor was much better than our 8th floor rooms.

1000 hrs: Mommy had read about a weekend market on the Gold Coast called Carrara Markets (www.carraramarkets.com.au) and she wanted to take us there. We got a little lost on our way there, and ended up at Pacific Fair Shopping Centre once again.

1020 hrs: Everyone agreed to have brunch at Pacific Fair instead. There was a Chinese food stall called Cathay Oriental at the food court which caught Ah Ma's eye. Pay AUD12.50 for a styrofoam plate and you could pile as much food as you liked from the buffet spread onto the plate. You were only allowed one chance at the spread. Ah Ma spent a good 20 mins arranging and re-arranging the food on her plate. She managed to pile enough food to feed 3 mouths - Laoyi, Ah Gong and herself! Talk about kiasu! We were surprised that the owner of the stall didn't stop her... or issue her a warning letter like the Aussie customs did...

1115 hrs: We were done with brunch and had received directions to Carrara Markets. We were going to look for the market again.

1130 hrs: We found the market, and couldn't believe we'd missed it the first time.

Carrara Markets had an interesting array of stalls. We bought some t-shirts, sunglasses, and I even went on a pony ride for AUD5.

The highlight of the market though was a musician called Matty James (www.mattjames.com.au) performing right at the centre of the market. The unique blend of guitar, drums and didgeridoo filled the air, giving the market a wonderful feel. Daddy was so impressed with the sound that he bought 3 CDs from Matty James.

1315 hrs: We had to rush back to the hotel, as we had a lot more plans for this afternoon. Everyone had something which they wanted to do, so we all went our separate ways.

1330 hrs: Ah Gong, Mommy and Ning Che Che took Su Ann and me to the beach one last time. Grandpa Eddy went off for a steak. Grandma Nancy, Laoyi and Ah Ma went shopping. And Daddy went to look at some boating and fishing equipment.

It was sad when it was time for me to say goodbye to the beach. Ah Gong took a picture of our goodbye shadow, and I scrawled "bye bye" on the beach.

1545 hrs: We agreed to meet back at the hotel at 1500 hrs, but Daddy was late. Mommy's plan was for us to drive to the Natural Bridge Section of Springbrook National Park to see the waterfall and glow worms in the cave, come back for dinner, then head to the airport. The drive to Natural Bridge would take roughly an hour and a half.

1715 hrs: The winding path up to Natural Bridge was an interesting one. Some sections were very narrow, and only passable by one vehicle at a time. We were behind time in leaving the hotel, so the sky was already dark by the time we arrived at our destination.

The evening air in the hinterlands was chilly, especially since it was winter at the moment. Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy and Laoyi didn't relish the idea of walking 1km through the forest in the cold and dark. They decided to remain in the vehicle. The rest of us proceeded into the forest with our torches.

1745 hrs: We walked as quickly as we could. It was a shame we got to the waterfall so late, as the tumbling water would have made a lovely picture in the day. It was a romantic spot, and a couple was busy locking lips in front of the falls.

1755 hrs: The glow worms looked like luminous green dots. They lived in a cave behind the waterfall.

1830 hrs: Daddy led the way back to our vehicle. He spotted a big snake on the trail, but didn't say anything to us till we got back to the vehicle. Good thing he didn't alarm us unnecessarily, or we wouldn't have made it back to the vehicle at all!

1945 hrs: Daddy went a lot faster going downhill, so we got back to Surfers' Paradise quicker than we thought.

Grandpa Eddy suggested that we have dinner at the Clock Hotel (www.clockhotel.com.au), a short stroll from our hotel. They had a AUD9.95 Recession Buster menu with Angus Beef steak, chicken schnitzel, fish n chips and pasta.

The Recession Buster menu was obviously popular, as all the tables were taken when we got there. It was a self-service restaurant, where we'd to look for our own empty tables, order and pay at the cashier, and collect the food from the kitchen ourselves. The portions were generous for the price. The food was not bad too, but Daddy fell ill after eating a medium rare steak. Second food poisoning case since we got here.

2115 hrs: After dinner, we returned to the hotel to pack up our belongings. Ten of us were squashed into one room. The room was teeming with activity and every inch of space was in use.

2145 hrs: We checked out of the Holiday Inn Surfers' Paradise and Daddy drove us to Brisbane International Airport.

2300 hrs: Su Ann and I were fast asleep when we arrived at the airport. Mommy sorted out the check-in for everyone, and Daddy sorted out the return of the rental mini-bus.

2330 hrs: Emirates flight no. EK433 was due to take off at 0245 hrs, so we had a few hours to kill. Mommy found a corner with a few comfy sofas for the family, and we fell asleep there.

DAY TEN - 7 JUNE 2009 (SUNDAY)

0245 hrs: Our flight took off on time. Su Ann surprised us by staying asleep during take-off, and spending the next few hours soundly asleep in her bassinet. When she eventually awoke, she was well-behaved.

0830 hrs: When it was time to land, Su Ann fussed a little because cabin pressure hurt her ears. It wasn't long before the Captain brought us safely to the ground, and Su Ann's cries stopped. All in all, it was a pleasant flight home and we all feel more encouraged to take Su Ann further afield.

2009-05-04T09:21:00.000-07:00

MARCH & APRIL 2009

Sorry for hitting the "Pause" button for so long. As I speak, the world is still in recession, a swine flu pandemic is about to be declared by the WHO, travel advisories are up urging people to stay home, so what better time than this for one to pick up some really good airline offers? If everything goes as planned, Su Ann and I will be digging for clams on a desserted white sand beach by the end of May. I can't wait! :)

Meanwhile, I've been good. Going to school everyday, completing my schoolwork, enjoying my ballet class every Monday, trying my best at swim school every Tuesday and paying attention during my violin lesson at the Magic Fiddler every Thursday.

In March, Mommy turned 34. Grandma Nancy suggested that we celebrate the occasion at the Feast @ East Buffet Restaurant in the Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel. Everyone gleefully went along with the idea. Birthdays are this family's favourite excuse for overeating.

Cousin Emmalyn and her youngest sister, Lynn, also celebrated their birthdays in March. Their parents booked the Function Rooms at the Singapore Island Country Club, splashed out on a yummilicious buffet spread, and hired a pastry chef to conduct a baking session for the kiddies. For the first time in my life, I made a batch of cookies.

In April, Mommy and Daddy's friend from Norway, Uncle Jon, came to Singapore with his family. The last time Uncle Jon saw me, I was just one month old! Uncle Jon's mom is a schoolteacher. Ah Ma told her about my first ski trip to Whistler, and she said that cross-country skiing was part of the curriculum at the school she was teaching at. Wow! She said kids from age 2 learnt to ski at her workplace. Impressive!

April was also when Ben & Jerry's held their annual Free Cone Day. The event was from 1200 to 1900 hrs, but Mommy only learnt about it at 1730 hrs. She woke me up from my nap, grabbed the car keys and we made it to the outlet at United Square just before 1800 hrs. There was a sea of people waiting for free ice-cream, and Mommy didn't think we had a chance before the staff stopped scooping at 1900 hrs. She contemplated quitting the queue, but Ah Ma stood firm. She wasn't leaving till she got her free ice-cream! Fortunately, we managed to get one scoop each before the staff called it a day. Mommy's strategy for next year is to start lining up by 1130 hrs and eat it to her heart's content! Needless to say, Ah Ma has already marked her calendar and applied for leave. :)

Su Ann became a lot more demanding and talkative after her trip to Shanghai. The locals' art of arguing must have rubbed off on her. It started with "Gibbe! Gibbe! Gibbe!" in a cute, adorable way. Then it progressed to "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" in a more no-nonsense way. If I don't co-operate, she'll sometimes say "Gimme pea..." (as in "Give me please"). And if I still don't give it to her, she'll let out a bloodcurdling "GIVE ME!!!"

She likes my pearl necklace. When I give it to her, she'll wear it, flash her toothy grin and announce: "Necklace. Pretty." Lately, she's been hogging my dressing table playset, pretending to put make-up on, and she sometimes walks around the house with a tiara on her head.

I used to be able to snatch things right out of her hands without any protest, but the era of "Su Ann The Pushover" is now long gone... *sigh* She will even put her foot down in class when she doesn't want to do something. She doesn't like getting her hands dirty, so she'll refuse to participate in finger-painting in her GUG class. When her teacher tried to get her to do it, Su Ann wouldn't budge. "I don't want!", she said with such clarity that it stunned her teacher.

She's quite the stickler for cleanliness. She once picked up a grain of rice from the floor. Mommy thought she was going to put it in her mouth, but Su Ann said: "Yeee.... yeee.... Dirty. Throw." When the table's wet, she'll point to the puddle and say: "Wet." She'll then look for a piece of cloth, wipe down the table and say: "Wipe." She likes to push the Magic Clean broom around the house too. When Mommy and Ning Che Che tells her to put her toys away, she'll comply by putting them back in exactly the same position as she'd found them.

For a 16-mth-old, she can be quite polite. If you're blocking her way, she'll say: "Excuse me" (pronounced "Accu me"). She thanks people by saying "Ye Ye" (her way of pronouncing "Xie Xie", which is Thank You in Mandarin). Once when we were out, she accidentally walked into a lady. She looked up at the lady and said: "Knock. Yoyee." (her way of pronouncing "Sorry"). The lady couldn't believe her ears. She picked Su Ann up and gave her a cuddle.

I must say we get along very well these days. Her verbal vocab has expanded quite significantly, so it's possible to hold simple conversations with her. Everyone tells me she misses me a lot when I'm in school, and will constantly ask for me. It's great to come home from school each day to see her perched on her highchair beaming from ear to ear and yelling: "Che Che! Che Che!"

2009-02-14T08:37:00.000-08:00

SU ANN'S TRIP TO SHANGHAI (7 TO 12 FEB 2009)

7 FEBRUARY 2009 (SATURDAY)

0550 hrs: The Maxi-cab was here to take us to the airport. Ten minutes early, but no midnight surcharge. Awesome!

0555 hrs: Yet again, we had to forget something! This time, Daddy forgot his handphone. The driver was very understanding. He turned back at no extra charge.

0615 hrs: We were at Terminal 3 of the airport to check in for Singapore Airlines Flight 828. For once, we were not flying budget! Mommy had spotted the S$598 all-in promotional SQ tickets in the newspapers and snagged them before they were gone. They were the cheapest tickets to Shanghai one could get.

There were 7 of us on this trip - Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy, Laoyi, Daddy, Mommy, Ning Che Che and me. Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy were already at the airport waiting for us.

0650 hrs: We got to the Departure Gate just before it closed.

0725 hrs: We were up in the air, 10 mins ahead of schedule. Just before take-off, a senior air steward, Mr Harry Lim, came forward and advised Mommy to sing to me as much as possible during take-off. He said that a baby would be greatly comforted by the sound of his mother's voice and would not cry as much during take-off. He fashioned a toy bunny out of a wet towel and rubber band, and gave it to me.

Mr Lim's advice worked! I didn't cry at all. Mommy's out-of-tune singing stunned me to silence.

0800 hrs: After take-off, an air-stewardess came forward and fitted on a bassinet for me. I drank my milk, played a little with Laoyi, Mommy and Ning Che Che, then fell asleep in the bassinet. What a comfortable bed!

Daddy fell asleep too... not in the bassinet, but with a blanket draped over his head.

0930 hrs: Breakfast was served. There was a choice of cheese omelette or beef noodles. Grandma Nancy and Laoyi didn't take cheese or beef. Mr Lim kindly arranged for them to have food from Business Class instead. Grandma Nancy was all smiles as she ate her dim sum, and Laoyi said her vegetarian noodles were delicious. Well done Singapore Airlines!

1230 hrs: We had landed safely at Shanghai's Pudong International Airport. Cabin pressure hurt my ears during the landing, but Mr Harry Lim was quick to hand Mommy a carton of strawberry yogurt to prompt me to swallow. That, coupled with Mommy's attempt at singing, were distractions enough.

Pudong International Airport's eco-friendly design puts Singapore's Changi Airport to shame. The design of Pudong International Airport cleverly let in natural light and used only a small fraction of the light fixtures which Changi Airport did. We have much more sunshine than Shanghai, but the designers of Changi Airport have chosen not to let sunlight in.

We cleared customs very quickly, and our suitcases were out on the carousel in no time. Two thumbs up to Pudong International Airport for being eco-friendly and efficient.

1245 hrs: We were on our way to the Maglev train station at the airport. "Maglev" is short for magnetic levitation, a system of transportation that suspends, guides and propels vehicles by magnetic forces. The Maglev train in Shanghai (http://www.smtdc.com/) is the first commercial, high speed Maglev line in the world, and can reach a top speed of 431 km/hr.

1310 hrs: It took the Maglev train only 7 mins and 20 seconds to complete the 30km journey from Pudong International Airport to Longyang Lu Metro Station. When we flashed our same-day boarding passes, the cost of each Maglev ticket was RMB40 (S$8). Free for me! The ride was quick and comfortable.

1320 hrs: We were at Longyang Lu Metro Station to transfer to the metro to Nanjing Xi Lu Metro Station. The touch-screen ticketing machines had Chinese and English instructions, and were easy to use. More advanced than the ones in Singapore, which are not even bilingual. The 8-stop journey to Nanjing Xi Lu Metro Station cost RMB4 each (S$0.80); cheaper than the cost of transport in Singapore.

1330 hrs: We were on the metro to Nanjing Xi Lu Metro Station. There were "priority seats" for the disabled, elderly, young, infirmed, etc. in each compartment, and there would always be an announcement to remind passengers to give up their seats to those who need them more. Exactly the way things should be! I was strapped onto Ning Che Che, and passengers immediately stood up to let her have their seats.

We took the metro many times during our 6-day vacation in Shanghai. No matter how crowded the metro was (you can imagine how crowded it can get in a city with a population of more than 20 million), there would always be passengers giving their seats to Ning Che Che and me.

The metro system in Shanghai is indeed commendable. Modern, cheap, swift and clean. The only drawback was the lack of ramps, elevators and escalators going down, which made it inconvenient for passengers with heavy suitcases and bulky belongings, and impossible to use for wheelchair-bound people.

1400 hrs: We were at Nanjing Xi Lu Station. Two hawkers were having a shouting match in the station. Just for laughs, Daddy started yelling Mommy in the station. No one turned to look; no one batted an eyelid. We learnt in the days to come that arguing was a favourite pass-time of the Shanghainese.

We walked from Nanjing Xi Lu Station to our hotel at Shanxi Bei Lu. Nanjing Xi Lu is the upmarket shopping area of Shanghai, and it was a lovely, quiet neighbourhood with pretty boutiques and large, modern malls. The cool, winter weather (about 12 degrees celcius) made walking very enjoyable.

1410 hrs: We had booked to stay 3 nights at Central View Suites (http://www.cvsh.com.cn/) through http://www.ctrip.com/. A deluxe room cost RMB550 all-in per night (S$110) and it came along with VIP check-in at the Executive Reception on the 9th floor, buffet breakfast, "Happy Hour" buffet from 1800 to 2000 hrs daily, and in-room broadband internet access. The hotel was only a short walk from Nanjing Xi Lu Metro Station, so was very well appointed. Mommy couldn't find better value than this in Shanghai!

1445 hrs: It took a while for the hotel to sort out our bookings. Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy were allocated Room 2506, Laoyi, Ning Che Che and I shared Room 2622, and Daddy and Mommy shared Room 2627.

Our rooms had views of the city and were spacious. There was a separate sitting area and kitchenette in each room. The shower cubicles were equipped with full-body showers i.e. rainwater, 4 nozzles for various parts of the body, and a separate showerhead.

Our only complaint was the firmness of the bed. The mattresses were like wooden planks wrapped with a thin layer of cotton. Mommy is accustomed to sleeping on very firm beds because of her slip-disc problem, but even she had trouble sleeping on this super hard bed.

1600 hrs: Everyone was hungry and raring to find a restaurant for our lunch cum dinner. We didn't quite know where to start looking for a restaurant, so we walked down Shanxi Nan Lu towards the French Concession, where we thought we would be able to find some restaurants.

We passed a snack shop with a very long line outside, but we needed something more filling than just a snack, so we continued walking. Shanghai is famed for its xiaolongbao (steamed meat dumplings filled with broth) and shengjian (pan-fried meat dumplings with its base browned to a crisp), both of which are snacks and not filling enough for lunch or dinner (by Singaporean standards at least...).

1700 hrs: We stopped at the first decent restaurant we saw and went inside. We were too hungry to walk any further. The restaurant turned out to be a branch of a popular chain called Bi Feng Tang (http://www.bifengtang.com.cn/), which simply means Storm Shelter in Mandarin.

We ordered flower crab congee, duck congee, steamed chicken, roast duck, grilled squid, wanton soup, and fried vegetables. The food was, at best, mediocre.

To be fair, even before the food was served, Mommy had already lost her appetite. Suffice to say the English translation for "Chee Cheong Fun" in the menu was "Bowel Powder". The Mainlanders should really stop using Google Translator for their signs and menus!

The bill came up to more than RMB200 (S$40). Everyone was just as hungry after eating, so Grandma Nancy suggested that we returned to the hotel for the free "Happy Hour" buffet from 1800 to 2000 hrs.

The temperature dropped to around 6 degrees celcius on our way back to the hotel, so we walked as fast as we could.

1845 hrs: We were back at the hotel for the free buffet. A selection of hors d'oeuvres, sandwiches, satay, chicken wings, dessert and fruit were laid out neatly on the buffet table. Coffee, tea, soft drinks, beer, wine and hard liquor were provided for free as well. We were happy campers.

Daddy and Mommy didn't join us though. They had to go to Shanghai South Railway Station to try to buy train tickets for our day-trip to Hangzhou.

2000 hrs: We were the last to leave the buffet. Everyone was exhausted from rising so early in the morning to catch the flight to Shanghai. We decided to retire early and meet again at 0800 hrs the next day.

Only Daddy and Mommy stayed up late. The ticket office at Shanghai South Railway Station was closed for the day by the time they got there, so they ended up walking around in search of food. They returned with 8 pieces of shengjian (pan-fried meat dumplings), a sandwich from Subway and a Fillet O Fish meal from MacDonald's. The shengjian was cheap. RMB4 (S$0.80) for 4 pieces. Super greasy, but not bad. The Fillet o Fish meal raised doubts about the authenticity of MacDonald's in China. Fillet o Fish was spelt wrongly on the packaging, the burger only had half a slice of cheese, and the fries tasted odd. Either the quality control by MacDonald's was really poor or they've fallen victim to fakers.

You never know what's real and what's not in China. We even saw some men peddling fake banknotes in the streets.

8 FEBRUARY 2009 (SUNDAY)

0800 hrs: We met for breakfast at the hotel's cafe. The usual Western and Asian fare were available buffet style. The selection was adequate.

0930 hrs: After breakfast, we signed up for a local, conducted tour to Hangzhou for the following day. The concierge recommended a tour package which cost RMB268 per person (about S$55), inclusive of return transport, transport within Hangzhou, Mandarin-speaking tour guide, boat tour on West Lake, and the RMB35 admission to the Peak Which Flew From Afar Cave.

Mommy's original plan was for us to take the train to Hangzhou and spend the day there ourselves, but all things considered, it was just less hassle to join the tour.

0945 hrs: We began our self-guided walking tour of Shanghai by walking down Shanxi Nan Lu towards Huaihai Zhong Lu (once known as Avenue Joffre), the heart of the French Concession.

The French Concession was founded in 1862 as a result of the Treaty of Nanking. The buildings in this area had a distinct European style, but what was more striking was the way clothes were being hung out to dry in this area. Undergarments, shirts, sweaters, linen, blankets, etc. were hung from trees, street lamps, poles, etc. to dry. We'd be walking past some trendy store, and right above us would be someone's underwear drip-drying.

In between blocks of buildings were narrow alleyways called "Long". Some of the "Longs" were gated and guarded. They appeared to be entrances to people's homes.

Huaihai Zhong Lu itself was a major shopping belt, with large shopping centres, restaurants and cafes. We looked hard at the food options available but didn't see anything appealing.

1145 hrs: Lunchtime was drawing near, so Mommy suggested walking to Xintiandi (http://www.xintiandi.com/) to have buffet dim sum at Ye Shanghai, rated as one of Shanghai's finest restaurants.

We walked along Huaihai Zhong Lu till we reached the Xintiandi area. Xintiandi is bounded by Huangpi Nan Lu, Ma Dang Nan Lu, Tai Cang Lu and Zi Zhong Lu. It is an area famed for its restored Shikumen (stone-framed door) buildings which now house cafes and pubs which are popular with well-heeled yuppies.

1230 hrs: We got ourselves a table at Ye Shanghai. The buffet dim sum cost RMB98 all-in (almost S$20) per person. The a-la-carte buffet menu was somewhat limited, but there were a few dishes which we enjoyed, like the spicy chicken in peanut sauce and the xiaolongbao, which had really thin skin and a tasty broth within. Overall, not much to rave about, as any dim sum restaurant in Singapore would have beaten it hands down.

1430 hrs: The service was so slow that Daddy fell asleep at one point. The rest of us took our time to savour the food.

Across the road from Xintiandi was a Bentley car showroom. Shanghai exuded affluence. We spotted quite a few flashy cars on the road during our stay, and the Porsche Cayenne appeared to be the SUV of choice.

1500 hrs: We walked along Hubin Lu towards Fangbang Zhong Lu, the heart of Old Shanghai. Enroute, we stumbled upon two markets - Dongtai Lu Antique Market and the Flower, Bird, Fish & Insect Market.

As its name suggests, the Dongtai Lu Antique Market was a street lined with stalls selling all sorts of old collectibles, or rather what appeared to be old collectibles. Most of what the vendors were peddling were probably imitation antiques i.e. things recently made to look old. It's just too coincidental for every stall to have several antique Omega watches for sale.

The Flower, Bird, Fish & Insect Market was just a short distance away from the Dongtai Lu Antique Market. It was hard work pushing my pram through that market. The maze of passageways was extremely narrow and the market was packed on a Sunday afternoon. We gave up after a few minutes.

Daddy used the ancient public toilet in the market, and he was traumatised by the experience. He described the latrine as just a wall where all men peed against. The pee flowed into a single hole at the end of the wall. There was no flush system whatsoever and the stink was overwhelming. When Daddy was at the latrine, a man came in, unbuckled his pants and squatted over a hole in plain view of everyone and defacated.

Mommy wasn't surprised by Daddy's description of the public toilet. She first visited China in the 1980s and public toilets were all like that. Some places didn't even have public toilets. You'd be lucky to find a shrub.

1530 hrs: We walked along Fangbang Zhong Lu and gawked at the old-style shops, ducks (yes, ducks) and clothes being hung out to dry, and street food being prepared.

There was plenty of activity in the street, especially around the makeshift stalls selling pornographic DVDs. Trash was casually being tossed on the floor, and there seemed to be more spit on the road than anywhere else in Shanghai we'd seen.

Fangbang Zhong Lu was a "breath of fresh air" from modernised Shanghai. This was a slice of old China in the bustling metropolis, the closest to what one would call a Chinatown in Shanghai.

Further down the road was the entrance to Yuyuan Bazaar, a pedestrianised marketplace. Heaven for the souvenir-hunter. This is the place to come if you're looking for a Mao t-shirt, poster, etc. The marketplace was very crowded. Thousands were just milling about.

Just for the experience, Daddy paid RMB1 to pop into a public toilet here. Yuyuan Bazaar has been sanitised. The public toilets not only had doors, they had LED panels on each toilet door to tell you how long the occupant has been in there. Wow.

1600 hrs: It was the second last day of Chinese New Year, and Yuyuan Garden was hosting a big lantern exhibition. Public response for the lantern exhibition was so overwhelming that crowd control marshalls were stationed at the entrance to stop more people from entering the Garden after 1600 hrs. We arrived at Yuyuan Garden at exactly 1600 hrs, and saw people being turned away.

We continued our walk in the direction of The Bund. We walked along Zhongshan Dong Lu, but found the footpath to The Bund blocked off by construction works. We didn't want to brave walking amongst motor vehicles. Even when the traffic light was in the pedestrian's favour, we found crossing roads in Shanghai very tricky. Motorists generally did not slow down for pedestrians, and they'd drive on with the green man on.

We followed Zhongshan Dong Lu to Renmin Lu, then turned in the direction of Nanjing Dong Lu.

1730 hrs: We finally made it to Nanjing Dong Lu, Shanghai's main shopping belt, and possibly the world's busiest shopping street. Much of the street has been pedestrianised and a sightseeing train will take you from one end to the other for RMB2 per person. When it gets dark, neon billboards light up the street, bringing with it festive cheer.

We walked along Nanjing Dong Lu aimlessly until we were flagged down by a restaurant tout. The menu she shoved into our hands claimed they had Shanghai food from RMB3 per dish and it seemed quite crowded in the restaurant, so we went inside.

Alas, another culinary failure... Daddy ordered quite a few dishes (all of which cost much more than RMB3), but none of it tasted any good. The bill came up to about RMB250 (about S$50), but the food was so bad we left much of it untouched.

1900 hrs: There was still time for us to make it to the free "Happy Hour" buffet at the hotel. We made a mad dash for the metro and sprinted back to the hotel, with half an hour to spare for wiping out the buffet. Honestly, the food at the free buffet was better than any other food we'd tasted in Shanghai thus far.

2015 hrs: Our feet were sore from walking all day. The tour bus was picking us up at 0635 hrs the next morning to take us to Hangzhou, so we decided to have an early night.

9 FEBRUARY 2009 (MONDAY)

0630 hrs: We had booked our tour through the hotel's concierge, and they kindly arranged for us to take away our breakfast.

0635 hrs: A mini-van pulled up at the hotel to drive us to Renmin Guangchang (People's Square), where the rest of the tour group was waiting.

0700 hrs: We met our tour guide, a frizzy-haired lady from Hangzhou. She ushered us up a 50-seater tour bus. Altogether, there were more than 30 people on this tour, and we were the only foreigners.

1100 hrs: The drive to Hangzhou took almost 4 hrs. Traffic out of Shanghai was slow and we had made a toilet stop, then a detour to travel on the Hangzhou Bay Bridge, the world's longest trans-oceanic bridge. It was a foggy day, and we couldn't see much on the bridge, other than its colourful railing.

1115 hrs: The tour guide led us across Su Di (Su Causeway) to a garden with a koi pond where Emperor Kangxi once visited. It was a chilly morning, and all the kois were lying at the bottom of the pond, where the water was warmest.

1140 hrs: We boarded a wooden boat for a cruise on West Lake, world renowned for its picturesque landscape. The tour guide said the government did not permit buildings beyond a certain height being constructed near the lake, to preserve the beauty of the lake. However, their efforts in preservation did not totally pay off. We could still see the skyscrapers from our boat.

Mommy visited Hangzhou as a child, but the city is now very different from what she remembers. It is now a concrete jungle with an overrated lake.

1230 hrs: Our pleasure ride on the boat was over. The guide said we had a very tight schedule in the afternoon, so she was only giving us 30 mins for lunch. She encouraged us to group ourselves in 10s, and go for the RMB150 set menu for 10 persons.

1245 hrs: We were dropped off at a nearby restaurant, and everyone grabbed their seats. We were the last to get to a table. The guide grouped us with a solo female traveller from Guangdong province, and we agreed to go ahead with the RMB150 (S$30) set menu for 10 persons, even though there were only 7 of us eating.

1300 hrs: The food was served, and we had 15 mins left to polish off everything. It was an impossible feat.

1315 hrs: The guide hurried us up the bus, and we had to leave most of the food untouched.

1335 hrs: We were taken to a "Silk Museum" and the large, wooden doors were pulled shut behind us. A lady began her sales pitch on how smooth and fire-proof her silk was. We were led to a room where silk bedlinen and blankets were displayed, and a dozen pushy sales personnel came forward. It was like being thrown into a gladiator's pit. Daddy and Mommy were furious that we had to skip a proper lunch because of this.

1400 hrs: When it was apparent that no one in our group was keen to buy a silk blanket, we were then ushered to a small room with a short catwalk, where we were told a fashion show would be staged for us. The "Silk Museum" had 6 ladies model their products. Thereafter, a dozen pushy sales personnel came forward again to try to talk us into buying silk garments.
Our tour guide stood quietly in a corner, waiting for a sucker to buy something so she could collect her commission. Suddenly, she was no longer in any hurry and we could spend as much time as we liked in the silk store. To our astonishment, one guy actually bought something!

1425 hrs: We got back up the bus, and the tour guide announced that we would be visiting Mejiawu Longjing Tea Plantation next. More time wasted at another tourist scam.

1435 hrs: Daddy and Mommy refused to visit the plantation, more like a room where tourists were asked to sample tea then pressured to buy tins of tea at high prices. They remained outside with Ning Che Che to feed me my mashed pumpkin.

1500 hrs: The guy who bought the silk garment bought 6 tins of tea! Everyone else went up the bus, annoyed that we'd wasted so much time.

1525 hrs: We alighted at Lingyin Temple (Temple of the Soul's Retreat). This 1700 yr old temple dates back to the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317 to 420 AD) and is one of the 10 most famous temples in China. The tour package didn't include the admission to the temple, so we each paid another RMB30 (S$6) to enter.

Grandma Nancy is a Buddhist and she wanted to say her prayers at the temple. The tour guide gave us some cock and bull story about how incense should only be bought at a specific shop, otherwise the prayers would not be answered. Predictably, she led everyone to a particular incense shop and made sure she received her commission. We were not given the opportunity to buy the joss-sticks from elsewhere, and Grandma Nancy had to shell out RMB99 (S$20) for a bunch of incense.

1600 hrs: The tour guide said we were free to explore the temple and the Peak Which Flew From Afar Cave, but had to be back at the meeting point by 1645 hrs. No more commissions to receive, so suddenly we were in a hurry again.

1635 hrs: By the time we were done exploring the temple, we only had 10 mins left before we were expected back. There was insufficient time for us to explore the Peak Which Flew From Afar Cave, which was just across from the temple. On its slope and inside the cave are more than 300 stone Budhhas, carved during the period of the Five Dynasties to the Yuan Dynasty (907 to 1368 AD). Mommy had really wanted to see the carvings, so she regretted joining the tour package instead of coming to Hangzhou on our own.

1645 hrs: We were back at the meeting point, but 4 persons were late. The tour guide waited 5 mins then rang them and yelled at them. Unlike guides serving foreign tourists, guides serving domestic travellers didn't expect tips. She really gave her comrades a shelling.

2015 hrs: The drive back to Shanghai was shorter, as we didn't make a detour to go on the Hangzhou Bay Bridge. Nevertheless, we still couldn't get to back to Shanghai in time for our favourite free "Happy Hour" buffet.

It was the last day of Chinese New Year. Individual buildings in Hangzhou were setting off fireworks and fire crackers. We went right past some fireworks whilst travelling on the highway. We passed many villages on the way back to Shanghai, and lost count of the number of times we saw fireworks during the drive.

The bus driver dropped us off at Raffles City Shopping Mall at Renmin Guangchang. The shopping mall is owned by Capitaland of Singapore, and the food court called Megabite in there is run by Food Junction of Singapore. Mommy had read good reviews about Megabite before our trip and we decided to have dinner there.

2045 hrs: The food was not bad, but the selection was poor. Beef and rice, or beef and noodles appeared at almost every stall.

2200 hrs: We stayed till the foodcourt closed. Renmin Guangchang was just one metro stop away from Nanjing Xi Lu, where our hotel was. We decided to take a stroll back to the hotel. Enroute, we saw the pedestrianised section of Nanjing Dong Lu flooded with merrymakers. It was the last day of Chinese New Year, and people were out and about.

2300 hrs: It took us an hour to walk back. Everyone was tired, and I really wanted my milk bottle so I could go to bed.

10 FEBRUARY 2009 (TUESDAY)

0900 hrs: It was the last time we were having breakfast at this hotel, as we were shifting to another in a different part of the city later that day.

During the night, Ah Gong had sms-ed Mommy to let her know that their flight from Vancouver to Shanghai had been delayed by 7 hours. Everyone was really looking forward to spending the day with Ah Gong, Ah Ma and Che Che, so the news came as a huge disappointment.

We took our time with breakfast, then got ready to check out of the hotel.

1145 hrs: We checked out of the hotel, and left our suitcases with the concierge. Mommy had read about the warren of art shops at 50 Moganshan Lu, and thought it would be an interesting place to visit.

We caught the metro from Nanjing Xi Lu Metro Station to Shanghai Railway Station Metro Station, the nearest station to Moganshan Lu.

1230 hrs: Near the Railway Station were many travellers balancing heavy bags on their shoulders. We even saw a man travelling with his kettle. Chinese New Year had just ended, so lots of people were coming to the city to look for work.

We followed our map to Moganshan Lu. It wasn't the easiest to find. We took a wrong turn and walked through one of the filthiest areas in Shanghai. The stench of urine on the streets was so bad we had to hold our breath to walk. Thousands of travellers disembarking at the railway station must have been relieving themselves on the streets, instead of paying RMB1 ($0.20) to use the public latrines at the station. We even came across the largest pile of human crap by the side of the road. That guy must have held in it for many days before unzipping his pants by the road! Gross!

1320 hrs: We found Moganshan Lu. It was in a disused industrial zone by the river. A particular art shop stood out from the rest - Outstanding Art (http://www.outstandingartshanghai.com/), but their prices were way above our budget!

1420 hrs: We spent an hour browsing, but left 50 Moganshan Lu empty handed. Nevertheless, it was interesting to go off-the-beaten-track. Here's a picture of something which looked like an art installation, but it was not. Just a whole lot of styrofoam boxes on a bike.

1455 hrs: The walk back to Shanghai Railway Station Metro Station was quicker, and we didn't have to pass the stinky zone. We caught the metro back to Nanjing Xi Lu Metro Station, and had lunch in the Megabite foodcourt at Westgate Mall.

Our encounters with the service staff in Shanghai had not always been pleasant. On the courtesy front, the service staff in Shanghai generally have very much catching up to do. We stayed at 2 different hotels (both supposedly 5-stars) during our 6-day vacation and the receptionists at both hotels were equally impatient. At the hotels' cafes, clearing used plates wasn't the norm, and when Daddy asked for sugar for his coffee, the waitress tossed 2 packets of sugar on the table and walked off. That same waitress was seen squeezing her pimples at the service station when Daddy went up to her to ask for a cup of coffee. You could be eating at a foodcourt and a cleaner would come right up to you and mop at your feet.

The service staff at the Megabite foodcourt in Westgate Mall takes the crown for rudeness though. When Laoyi asked for a pair of chopsticks at the Shanghai food stall because they'd served her a bowl of noodles without chopsticks, the service staff threw a pair of chopsticks at her! Unbelievable but true! Daddy bought a bowl of dessert and when he asked for an empty bowl so he could split the dessert with Grandma Nancy, the service staff said "No."

1630 hrs: We were out of Central View Suites with all our bags. We made our way to Nanjing Xi Lu Metro Station and took the metro to Pudong Avenue Metro Station.

1730 hrs: We booked to stay our final 2 nights at The Eton Hotel along Pudong Avenue. Our first 3 nights was spent on the Puxi side of Shanghai, so we thought moving to the opposite side of the Huangpu River would be interesting for a change.

Pudong was first developed in 1990, and it has already emerged as China's financial and commercial hub. It has a very impressive skyline which comprises of some of the world's tallest skyscrapers - Shanghai World Financial Centre (currently 2nd tallest in the world) and Jin Mao Tower (currently 8th tallest in the world). It is also home to the iconic Oriental Pearl Tower.

1745 hrs: Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy shared Room 2918, Laoyi, Ning Che Che and I shared Room 3518, and Daddy and Mommy shared Room 3527.

Daddy and Mommy picked the shortest straw and got the smallest room. The rest of us had spacious, corner units with king-sized bed and a bathroom with a tub big enough for a family of 4. Daddy and Mommy's room had twin-beds and a tub fit for one. Just their luck!

There were 2 LCD tvs in each room, one in front of the bed and another in the bathroom. From our window, we could see the Huangpu River and the Pudong skyline. The Eton Hotel was probably the most luxurious hotel we've stayed at on our travels so far.

Mommy had booked the deluxe rooms through http://www.ctrip.com/ and they cost RMB788 all-in (S$158) per night. Buffet breakfast was provided. Broadband internet access was payable at RMB120 (S$24) per block of 24 hrs.

1945 hrs: It took a while for us to get ready to head out because Mommy needed to check-in online for our flight back to Singapore. By the time she was done, it was almost 2000 hrs.

2000 hrs: We took a taxi to Super Brand Mall (http://www.superbrandmall.com/) in Lujiazui, and it cost only RMB11 (about S$2). We spent an hour walking round the mall, checking out the various food options, including the buffet restaurant called Xi Duo Wu. Xi Duo Wu had a very large selection, but it paled in comparison to the mega buffet restaurant we dined at in Shenzhen. The food at Xi Duo Wu didn't look very good either.

2100 hrs: We settled for Cafe de Coral in the end. Turned out to be a really good choice. The food was tasty and affordable. The set meals cost around RMB25 (S$5) with a drink. Daddy ordered 2 set meals for himself - the garlic pork and ginger chicken, and he was convinced this was the best meal he's had in Shanghai thus far.

2200 hrs: Outside the Super Brand Mall was a phenomenally long taxi queue. We followed some locals to Lujiazui Metro Station instead.

Lying outside the station were several carts from which hawkers were selling street food. We watched a lady prepare vegetarian pancakes on her cart. The pancakes looked so good we had to try some. They cost only RMB2.50 (S$0.50) each and they were a wonderful snack. Crispy, fragrant and lightly salted.

2240 hrs: We were back at the hotel after hopping into 2 taxis near Lujiazui Metro Station. Daddy was looking forward to watching tv from the bathtub!

0115 hrs: Daddy and Mommy stayed up that night for the arrival of Ah Gong, Ah Ma and Che Che. I couldn't keep my eyes open, and would only see them in the morning.

11 FEBRUARY 2009 (WEDNESDAY)

0845 hrs: Che Che!!! Che Che!!! Che Che!!! Thanks for returning my Ah Gong to me... :)

The family had a joyous reunion over breakfast.

1100 hrs: Buffet breakfast at the Eton Hotel was great. Western, Chinese and Japanese... there was something for everyone.

After breakfast, we took a ride on the metro to Nanjing Dong Lu Station. The Eton Hotel is directly opposite Pudong Avenue Metro Station, which made is convenient for us to get around. However, the immediate vicinity around the Eton Hotel had no shops or restaurants whatsoever, just plenty of construction work.

1135 hrs: We left Grandma Nancy, Ah Ma and Laoyi to do their shopping along Nanjing Dong Lu. The rest of us watched the world go by on the pedestrian mall.

1240 hrs: Daddy discovered a food complex and waved us in. i think it was called Shanghai's No. 1 Food Store or something like that. The store was very crowded. It sold everything which a Chinese housewife would need for her kitchen, as well as ready-to-eat food. One stall had a particularly long queue - Yang's Fry-Dumpling. Daddy and Mommy had already tasted shengjian and they didn't think it was good enough to stand in line for.

Che Che and I wanted something to eat, so Daddy bought us a corn cup from MacDonald's.

1400 hrs: We met up with Grandma Nancy, Ah Ma and Laoyi, who happily showed off their purchases.

We tried searching for a food court in a shopping mall along Nanjing Dong Lu, but it wasn't as easy as we'd thought. We gave up after a while, and took the metro to Lujiazui to have lunch at Cafe de Coral in Super Brand Mall instead. At least we knew the food would be alright.

1530 hrs: We were back at Cafe de Coral, tucking into lunch. The service staff were very happy to see me again. We had a good babble.

1630 hrs: After lunch, Mommy suggested walking along the Riverside Promenade to have a look at The Bund from across the river.

1645 hrs: Ah Gong bought me an ice-cream cone from MacDonald's, and we watched the sun set over The Bund at the River Promenade.

As it got darker, a boat carrying the largest LCD panel I'd ever seen sailed by. The LCD panel was about 4 storeys high. Daddy's dream tv set.

1740 hrs: We hopped into 3 taxis and returned to the hotel.

1930 hrs: The hotel was promoting its Hokkaido Buffet Dinner, so we went ahead to make reservations at its cafe. RMB148 plus tax (S$35) per person. Mommy enjoyed the sashimi, beef steak, pasta, cakes and Movenpick ice-cream.

2200 hrs: We toured the hotel's gym and pool facilities. We were too full to exercise... so we went to bed instead!

12 FEBRUARY 2009 (THURSDAY)

0845 hrs: We made plans over breakfast on what to do for the day. We were due to fly out later that afternoon which didn't leave us with much time for sightseeing or shopping. Ah Gong has an apartment in Shanghai and it was only 4 metro stops away from our hotel. All of us were interested in having a look at the place, so we quickly finished breakfast and proceeded to the metro station.

1000 hrs: We took the metro from Pudong Avenue to Hailun Lu. Ah Gong's apartment was occupied by a tenant, so we could only look at the exterior of the block of apartments. Ah Gong spoke to a real estate agent, and was happy to learn that the value of his investment had appreciated.

1115 hrs: Close to Ah Gong's apartment was the Sichuan Bei Lu shopping belt. We took a walk down Sichuan Bei Lu for some last minute shopping, then made a loop back to Hailun Lu Metro Station.

The temperature had been hovering around 10 degrees celcius the last few days, but it suddenly shot up to 23 degrees celcius this morning. The weather here is so unpredictable!

1240 hrs: We were back at our hotel to do our final packing.

1300 hrs: The hotel had graciously extended their usual check-out time (1200 hrs) by an hour. We checked out of our hotel, and jumped into 3 taxis to Pudong International Airport.

1350 hrs: The taxi ride cost about RMB130 (S$26). We checked our bags in, collected our boarding passes and snooped around for something to eat.

1500 hrs: There were very few food options available. We settled for Burger King in the transit area in the end.

1555 hrs: We boarded Singapore Airlines Flight SQ833 for Singapore. The air stewardess handed me a stuffed toy and a jigsaw puzzle. I also had a very comfortable bassinet all to myself.

1620 hrs: I didn't cry during take-off.

2140 hrs: But... it was a different story during the landing. I bawled my eyes out, so much so that Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy, who were sitting in a totally different section of the plane, could hear me.

Mommy's singing frightened me more than comforted me. :( I hate flying. Why can't we just go on a cruise instead?

2009-02-03T00:08:00.000-08:00

TRIP TO WHISTLER (27 JAN TO 9 FEB 2009)

This year, the excitement of Chinese New Year was overshadowed by the preparations for my trip to the winter wonderland of Whistler (http://www.whistlerblackcomb.com/). Whistler is North America's largest ski resort, and it was where Daddy and Mommy got married in December 2001.

Mouth-watering smells of freshly baked pineapple tarts, chocolate chip cookies and pandan cake wafted through the kitchen, but my mind was on the suitcases we had to pack. I had bought my ski apparel in Hong Kong when we were there in July 2008, and Chia Yee had picked up more gear for me from London. Sweaters, hat, mittens and snow boots. Ah Gong had been showing me "How to Ski" videos for a few weeks now. I couldn't wait to get to Whistler, snap on a pair of skis and zip down a slope!

Celebrations to usher in the Year of the Ox came and went quickly. Our family had our Reunion Dinner on 23 January 2009 at Grandpa Eddy's house. We tend to have our Reunion Dinners before Chinese New Year's Eve because Daddy and Mommy have to work through the public holidays. Dinner at Grandpa Eddy's was a potluck affair. Grandma Nancy prepared most of the dishes, with the big, steaming pot of "buah keluak" as the usual piece de resistance. Ah Ma brought the "yu sheng", so we could have our first "lohei" of the year. Mommy's contribution was a chicken from Wee Nam Kee Chicken Rice Restaurant. Lao Ma (Ah Gong's mother) and Lao Yi (Ah Ma's older sister) joined us for dinner as well. Lao Yi made cocktail jelly for dessert. The jelly was smooth and refreshing, and Su Ann kept asking for more.

Su Ann is now 13 months old. She can manage a few steps on her own, and has begun to talk. A real foodie, she can say "milk" (but she'll usually say 'neh', which is the international language for milk according to Priscilla Dunstan of Baby Language), "bot" (for bottle), "cup", and "more... more" (whenever she wants more food like Ah Ma's chocolate chip cookies). She can say "nose" (pronounced as 'no'), "clock" (pronounced as 'colk"), "star" (pronounced as 'dar'), "bag", "book", "dog", "cat", "walk", "drop" (pronounced as 'dop'), "up", "no no" (when she doesn't want something), and "no more". She can say "care" (when she wants someone to carry her) and "Ah Ma bao" (which is 'Ah Ma carry me' in Mandarin). She calls me "Dair Dair" (her way of pronouncing 'Che Che' which means big sister in the Teochew dialect). Her favourite word though is "there". She knows exactly where she wants to go and what she wants to hold, and she'll point and yell "There! There!".

I was travelling to Whistler with Ah Gong and Ah Ma. Daddy, Mommy and Su Ann were staying home because Mommy didn't think Su Ann would be able to take the loooong flight to Vancouver. Mommy was worried that Su Ann's cries on such a loooong flight would spark off another air rage incident by a fellow passenger. Su Ann will still be doing some travelling though. She'll be spending a few days in Shanghai with the rest of the family, and Ah Gong, Ah Ma and I will be meeting up with everyone in Shanghai, on our way back to Singapore from Vancouver.

Late at night on 27 January 2009, after 2 days of visiting relatives for Chinese New Year, we made our way to the airport for our flight to Vancouver. We were flying China Eastern Airlines and the flight was departing at 0055 hrs on 28 January 2009 from Terminal 3. Su Ann took time off from her bedtime schedule to send me off, so we played together in the playground at Basement 2.

It was way past my bedtime by the time we boarded the plane. After take-off, I stretched myself across a row of seats on the relatively empty plane, and quickly fell asleep. Five hours later, we were in Shanghai for a five-hour stopover. I rested some more. The China Eastern Airlines flight to Vancouver took off again at 1110 hrs on 28 January 2009.

We crossed the international dateline and gained a day. We arrived in Vancouver close to 0600 hrs on 28 January 2009. After clearing customs and collecting our suitcases, we took a taxi to the Metropolitan Hotel (http://www.metropolitan.com/vanc/) in downtown Vancouver. There were heaps of snow by the side of the road. For the first time in my life, I saw snow. Not the man-made, artificial fluff they have at theme parks, but the real thing. I couldn't contain my excitement, and kept pointing and shouting "SNOW! SNOW!" during the taxi ride.

After checking into the Metropolitan Hotel, I plonked myself onto the bed and tried to sleep my way out of jet lag. In fact, I spent much of the next few days doing little other than nursing my jet lag. I found it very difficult to adjust to the massive time difference.

When Chia Yee and Uncle Craig arrived in Vancouver on 29 January, I pulled myself out of bed to see them and we all went out for a seafood dinner at Kirin Mandarin Restaurant (http://www.kirinrestaurants.com/) to celebrate Ah Gong's birthday. The food was delicious! The geoduck and crab were excellent.

The food at Kirin Mandarin Restaurant was so good that we returned for dim sum lunch the next day. After lunch, I garnered enough energy to walk around the shopping malls in downtown Vancouver. It helped that Chia Yee enticed me with ice-cream.

We checked out of the Metropolitan Hotel very early in the morning on 31 January 2009, and caught the 0730 hrs Snowbus (http://www.snowbus.ca/) to Whistler. As we approached Whistler, we could see more and more snow, and I got increasingly excited. I couldn't wait to get off the bus and touch the soft, fluffy snow.

We arrived in Whistler at about 0900 hrs that Saturday morning. It was too early in the day for us to check into our accommodation at Club Intrawest, so we dropped our bags off and headed to a cafe at Le Chamois for breakfast.

Ah Gong and Ah Ma were anxious for me to start my ski lessons, so the first thing they did after breakfast was to sign me up for a full-day ski lesson for the following day. They couldn't wait to get rid of me so they could hit the slopes themselves! It was snowing that day in Whistler, and the forecast was 20cm of new snow for the weekend. I don't blame them for lusting after fresh powder...

That afternoon, we checked into our 2-bedroom apartment at Club Intrawest (http://www.clubintrawest.com/). Ah Gong, Ah Ma, Chia Yee and Uncle Craig are all members of the Club, and they spend at least a week here once a year. It was my first time in Whistler, and I could already understand why skiiers from all over the world would make their pilgrimmage to Whistler year after year. Come 2010, this resplendent beauty will play host to the Winter Olympics. The mammoth resort is made up of 2 mountains - Whistler Moutain and Blackcomb Mountain, and together, the mountains offer more than enough runs to please skiiers of every level.

After my nap, Ah Gong and Ah Ma took me to a ski rental shop at Day Lodge to get my ski equipment sorted. We passed the snow-covered boulders of Fitzsimmons Creek on the way, and the view was breath-taking.

After sorting out my ski equipment, we took a walk around the village. The village had a myriad of lovely shops, and plenty of restaurants. However, a lack of Chinese food options meant that Ah Ma preferred to do the cooking in our apartment, rather than eating out. We went to the supermarket to stock up on groceries, then returned to the apartment for a home-cooked meal. I went to bed early that night, as I had an early start the next day.

My first ski lesson started at 0830 hrs on 1 February 2009. Ah Gong and Ah Ma dropped me off at ski school, then joined Chia Yee and Uncle Craig on the newly opened Peak to Peak Gondola which connects Blackcomb Mountain to Whistler Mountain.

I met Instructor Joe at ski school. The class was meant for 3 to 4 year olds, and there were only 2 other kids in my class. We began our day, not on our skis, but with a box of crayons. After we finished colouring, Instructor Joe took us outdoors to build a snowman and make snow angels. We played a while in the snow before starting our lesson proper on the bunny slope by the Magic Carpet travelator. By the end of my lesson, I was able to ski down the bunny slope and stop by making a snowplough. I was exhausted by the end of my lesson. When Ah Gong and Ah Ma came to pick me up at 1515 hrs, they found me sound asleep on Instructor Joe's lap! There was no where to lie down in the ski school, so Instructor Joe held me whilst I slept for a whole hour!

The full day lesson, inclusive of rental of skis, ski boots and helmet cost CAD158.96. Instructor Joe was full of praises for me, which gave Ah Gong the confidence to invest another CAD479.28 (after 40% discount) in my ski education. He signed me up for a 5-day ski camp, beginning the very next day. The package was very good value, considering that it was a full-day child care with ski lesson, equipment rental and lunch thrown in. With the economic crisis and poor snow year, it had been a quiet season at Whistler, so discounts were used to lure more skiiers.

The next morning (2 February 2009), Ah Gong and Ah Ma dropped me off at ski school at 0845 hrs for my first day at ski camp, then went off to join Chia Yee and Uncle Craig on the slopes.

I introduced myself to Instructor Georgie. She was originally from Brisbane, Australia. There were 4 kids in my class, 2 boys and 2 girls. Jack, Gabriel, Vivian and me. Once again, we began our day with art and craft time, before heading to the bunny slope by the Magic Carpet. We were taught basic moves on skis, with an emphasis on turning. By the end of the lesson at 1500 hrs, I was confident of coming down the bunny slope and was ready for new challenges.

That evening, our family went tobogganing at the Yellow Brick Road ski slope. My toboggan was like a big, red plastic spade. Just right for my butt. I really enjoyed the adrenaline rush as I slid down the slope. It was a really enjoyable evening filled with plenty of laughter.

My second day at ski camp (3 February 2009) was more challenging than my first. Instructor Georgie took us up the chairlift at the Yellow Brick Road. When I first got off the chairlift and looked down the slope, I actually burst into tears. I panicked when I saw how steep and long the run was. There was no way I could ski down that slope and I kept telling Instructor Georgie that it was dangerous! Instructor Georgie was very encouraging. By the end of my lesson, I had gone up the Yellow Brick Road chairlift twice and had skiied down that slope twice. My very first green run! Here're some pictures of me on the Yellow Brick Road run. I'm the one in the bright orange jacket, dark grey ski pants and pink ski goggles.

Instructor Georgie proudly reported my progress to Ah Gong and Ah Ma, who were anxious to know whether I'd be able to go off-piste by the end of my fifth day at camp. Hehe!

The first part of day three at the ski camp (4 February 2009) was spent honing our skills on the Yellow Brick Road run. Instructor Georgie was very pleased with the progress of my class and said that we were ripe to try new runs. We took a ride up the Wizard Express chairlift, then switched to the Solar Coaster chairlift. I'd never been this high up a mountain before (top of Solar Coaster Express chairlift was 1860 m high). We stopped for lunch at RendezVous Lodge, before skiing down a green run to the Children's Adventure Park. There was a make-belief castle at the Adventure Park.

After our playtime at the Adventure Park, Instructor Georgie led us all the way down to the base of Blackcomb Mountain via a green run. From the Solar Coast Express chairlift to the base of Blackcomb Mountain was a vertical drop of 1200 m. We skiied in a line, with Instructor Georgie right in front. We covered a really long distance on skis today and I was exhausted by the end of the lesson. Once back at our apartment, I fell asleep instantly.

We spent Day Four of my ski camp (5 February 2009) on the Yellow Brick Road run. Instructor Georgie wanted us to improve our turning skills and control over our skis. We took the chairlift a total of 8 times, and skiied the run 8 times. Tedious, but practice makes perfect.

When Ah Gong and Ah Ma came to pick me up from class, Instructor Georgie informed them that I had shown marked improvement! Ah Gong and Ah Ma beamed when they heard the good news. It was a tiring day, and I actually fell asleep on the chairlift when we were going up the eighth time.
Time passes really quickly when you're having fun. Before I knew it, it was already the last day of my ski camp (6 February 2009). Instructor Georgie led us on the Village Run from Blackcomb Mountain to the base of Whistler Mountain. We skiied across a bridge. After that, we returned to Blackcomb Mountain via the Excalibur Gondola. Just before our trip to Whistler, there was an accident on the Excalibur Gondola when a gondola tower collapsed and sent some of the gondolas onto the ground and one nearly into the river. Fortunately, no one died.

That morning, we also rode the Wizard Express Chairlift up Blackcomb Mountain and skiied down. Here's a picture showing the last bit of the run:-

At 1445 hrs, just before my last lesson ended, there was a ceremonial ski parade for all the students who were graduating from their 5-day ski camp. We had our faces painted. The boys had rocket hats stuck onto their helmets, and the girls had princess tiaras stuck onto our helmets. We had to ski down an obstable course. I had no problems completing the obstable course.

Instructor Georgie presented each of us with a report card and a Whistler Ski School water bottle as a parting gift. On my card, Instructor Georgie wrote: "Great work Su Jin! You have tried very hard all week. You are making strong snowplough turns down the mountain and are skiing faster. You were a pleasure to have in my class! Have a safe flight home. Georgie:) " Instructor Georgie told Ah Ma that I was ready for Level Two, when I return to Whistler.

Ski camp has certainly done me and my parents lots of good. I lead a very sheltered life in Singapore, and in many ways, this experience has been life-changing. Aside from learning to ski, the experience has been a tremendous confidence booster for me. For 6 straight days, I looked after myself. I had no problems feeding myself and finishing my lunch on time to join the rest of the class. I had no problems going to the loo on my own. A slope may look steep and daunting at first, but I've learned to overcome my fear by maintaining control over my skis. I leave the camp with the "I Can Do It" spirit, and my parents have no qualms about sending me to ski camp again.

I also made a new friend in Whistler. Vivian is 3 months older than me, and it was her second time at ski school. Her parents were originally from Shanghai, but Vivian was brought up in Vancouver. She first attended ski school when she was 3 years old, but her mother told Ah Ma that Vivian had refused to learn to ski at that time. She insisted on lying down and eating snow!

On our last night in Whistler, we gave Ah Ma a break from cooking and we had dinner at Teppan Village in Whistler Village. The Japanese chefs there juggle when cooking. It was fun watching them. After dinner, Chia Yee treated me to a marshmallow stick from the Chocolate Factory. Lucky me!
We checked out of Club Intrawest on 7 February, and caught the 0930 hrs Snowbus back to Vancouver. We arrived in Vancouver just before lunchtime. We checked into the Metropolitan Hotel, then walked over to the food court in Pacific Mall for lunch. A television crew was in the mall conducting interviews for a tv programme and they spoke to Uncle Craig!

After lunch, we took a taxi to Stanley Park for some sightseeing. It was a lovely park by the water with lots of cute ducks and totem poles. There was a playground there as well where we spent some time. It was a nice change from being on skis everyday.

The next day (8 February 2009), we walked through Vancouver's Chinatown, had dim sum lunch at Fu Ta Hai Restaurant, and visited Sun Yat-Sen Park. For dinner, I requested for crab, so we found ourselves back in Kirin Mandarin Restaurant once more.

On 9 February 2009, we checked out of the Metropolitan Hotel after breakfast, and took a taxi to the airport. Our China Eastern Airlines flight to Shanghai was supposed to depart Vancouver at 1130 hrs, but when we arrived at the airport, we suddenly realised that the flight would only be taking off at 1900 hrs. The airline explained that the 7 1/2 hr delay was due to poor weather enroute from Shanghai to Vancouver. Disappointing news indeed, as I was really looking forward to seeing Su Ann and the rest of my family in Shanghai. They had been waiting for me in Shanghai since 7 February 2009.

To compensate us for the delay, the airline gave us each a CAD10 food voucher for our use at the airport. I suppose it could have been worse... We made our way to the food court, and parked ourselves there. When I was tired, Ah Ma joined 3 chairs together and made me a bed. Ah Gong found a socket where he could plug in his laptop, and I watched movies on his laptop to pass time. Man's best friend is indeed a laptop, and not a dog.

Our flight to Shanghai finally took off at 1900 hrs. We crossed the international dateline once more, and this time, we lost a day. We arrived in Shanghai at 2350 hrs on 10 February. I was exhausted after the long flight, but I perked up when I realised that I would be seeing the rest of my family.

I'll leave Su Ann to write about the trip to Shanghai, as she arrived in Shanghai before I did.

2009-01-08T08:20:00.000-08:00

SU ANN'S FIRSTS

The new school year has just started, and I'm now in Kindergarten One. Quite a few of my old classmates are in my K1 class, and Teacher Inah is once again our form teacher. However, my good friend, Gwen, is no longer in my class and I wonder how she is. I do miss her so.

Su Ann has started twice-a-week lessons at GUG too, and from what I've heard, she's having a ball of a time. She tried her hand at finger-painting for the first time today.

Su Ann's had quite a few firsts lately, including her very first birthday on 10 December 2008. The family celebrated the occasion with a sumptuous buffet dinner at Cafe Brio, Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel. The trainee buffet eater chomped on a grand total of one jelly with her 6 lil' milk teeth. Daddy and Mommy bought her a baby doll as her first birthday present. Su Ann picked the gift herself from Toys R Us. The doll was the only thing in the store which made her laugh.

Su Ann also had her very first tricycle ride recently. We chanced upon a really nice bike trail along Changi Coast Walk one night, after having nasi lemak at the hawker centre in Changi Village. The entrance to Changi Coast Walk is next to the hawker centre. Daddy rewarded Su Ann with chocolate chip ice-cream for her effort.

2009-01-06T21:18:00.000-08:00

ZOO, SENTOSA & BIRDPARK

It usually rains cats and dogs in December, but December 2008 had been uncharacteriscally sunny. Perfect weather for outdoor activities.

One afternoon, Mommy decided to take us to the Singapore Zoo. My last visit was about 3 years ago and I was asleep for most of the trip, so have no recollection of it whatsoever. Su Ann has never been before. We arrived at the Zoo at 1300 hrs, and stayed till 1730 hrs.

We moved fairly quickly from one enclosure to the next, and managed to cover all the walking trails. I especially enjoyed watching the free-ranging orang utans swinging from branch to branch, the baboons fighting, those super long and fat snakes slithering away in the reptile house, and two giant tortoises kissing. I got to pat a pony and went up close to a kangaroo. The last I saw a roo was during my trip to South Australia in October 2007.

We caught one animal show, but didn't make it any of the animal feeding sessions. I also played a little while at the newly opened children's play area. We would have stayed much longer, had Mommy brought along my swimwear. What a pity that Mommy didn't know that a large water play area had opened up in the Zoo in November 2008! The water play area looked like oodles of fun. Oh well, we will just have to return to the Zoo one day then!

I thoroughly enjoyed my day out at the Zoo, and Su Ann did too. She was really excited to finally see the animals. Before the trip, she only got to see them on flashcards!

A week after our visit to the Zoo, Mommy took us to Sentosa Island. We parked ourselves at a shady spot on Siloso Beach, and I dug away happily with my spade. I haven't been on a beach since June 2008, so it was a joyous reunion with all the sand I could play. Su Ann had a good time too!
After playing on the beach, we adjourned to the fountain next to the beach for a splashing good time. I didn't want to leave Sentosa Island, but Mommy promised to take me back again to visit the Dolphin Lagoon & Underwater World.

Mommy kept her promise and we returned to Sentosa Island the following week. This time we took the beach tram to Palawan Beach.

We caught the Dolphin show at Dolphin Lagoon, then proceeded to the Underwater World by bus. Transport on Sentosa Island was free.

The Underwater World had two petting pools, one for fishes and a larger one for stingrays. The petting pools were the best bit for us. The fishes liked Su Ann. Whenever she put her hand in the water, they would all swim to her and the rest of us got to touch them. They were really smooth. I was impressed with the giant crabs and luminous jelly fish in the aquarium, more so than the sharks and dugong. A diver dressed as Santa Claus was amongst the fish in the aquarium too. Perhaps he was handing out Christmas pressies to the fishes?

Just after the New Year, Mommy took us to Jurong Birdpark. We saw some really brightly coloured birds, like the blue and yellow macaws and the chilli red scarlet ibises. There was a darkened area where nocturnal birds were kept, and we got to see different species of owls.

We watched two bird shows, the first of which (the Birds & Buddies Show) was highly entertaining. They had trained a parrot to count 1 to 10 in English and Mandarin, and to sing Rasa Sayang, Ke Ren Lai and Happy Birthday. Amazing! The second bird show featured some really big birds like the hawks and vultures. Those birds spooked Mommy when they flew too close to her and brushed their wings against her head.

2009-01-05T16:29:00.000-08:00

MY DECEMBER 2008 SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

One day I'll look back at my December 2008 school holidays and think of it as being one of the most carefree times ever. Whilst the world was reeling from a financial meltdown with no recovery in sight, a USD50 billion Ponzi scam by Bernard Madoff, massive job losses, rising global temperatures and sea levels, and war on the Gaza strip, I had no worries at all. No activity sheet to complete, no homework, no lack of playmates; just a whole lot of fun to look forward to each day.

My good friend, Beverly, came over to play. What was even better was being invited to her house to play. Beverly lives on the top floor of a 4-storey block of apartments. When Mommy and I arrived at her block, Beverly and her younger brother, Winston, yelled my name "Su Jin! Su Jin! Su Jin!" down the stairwell with so much excitement that the neighbours came out to look. Mommy and I were overwhelmed by the warm welcome!

Beverly gave me a Princess playset, with a sparkling tiara, necklace, earrings and ring. Beverly had her own Princess playset, and both of us pretended to be Princesses that afternoon. Two Princesses went travelling on the Orient Express, with Winston as the railroad engineer. Beverly wanted to go to Australia on the train, whilst I disembarked at Kuala Lumpur. Beverly got off the train to persuade me to get back on again, whilst Winston went steaming on ahead on our pretend train. :)

I wish I can play with Beverly and Winston more often. We had planned to visit the Science Centre together with their cousins during the school holidays, but I had to attend a wedding on the chosen day. Can't wait to see Beverly again when my ballet lessons resume next week!

My good friend, Gwen, also came over to play. Gwen loves my two cats. She's got five herself!

A fiesty little girl, Gwen's the most up-for-it person I know. We went to the soft play area called Fidgets (http://www.fidgets.com.sg/) in Turf City together, and her infectious energy gave me the courage to try the different playthings there. Gwen took me ice-skating at the temporary rink in Novena Square. We also hung out at the playground in Suntec City with her older brother, Enzo, sliding down the fireman's pole and chasing bubbles.

I'm going to miss Gwen like crazy when school starts. She's been my partner in GUG class for a whole year, but when school starts, she'll be in the afternoon session whilst I remain in the morning session.

Mommy's younger sister, Chia Yee, and her Aussie-born hubby, Uncle Craig, also came to play. Chia Yee returned to Singapore for a 3-week-long vacation. Chia Yee has been residing in the UK for the last 14 years. One of the highlights of their visit was Uncle Toh Lick's wedding to Aunty Ilka on 22 December. Uncle Toh Lick and Aunty Ilka are also resident in the UK, but Aunty Ilka was originally from Germany. My family has become more and more multi-cultural!

The wedding banquet was held at Raffles Hotel. It's been a while since I last played with my cousins, and it was great seeing all of them again at the banquet. At the end of the banquet, Aunty Ilka gathered all the single ladies together for the bouquet throwing session. I joined in and the bouquet came flying towards me, and landed squarely on my feet! Hello S****l... I've got my eyes on you... *blush*

A few days after the wedding, Chia Yee's in-laws from Darwin arrived for a holiday in Singapore. Uncle Craig's older brother, Steven, has 2 kids - Archie (3 years old) and Lara (14 mths old). I met Archie for the first time at dinner at Jumbo Seafood Restaurant and we really hit it off.

We spent the following afternoon playing at Jacob Ballas' Children's Garden, running across the suspension bridge, getting lost in the maze, digging at the sandpit and squealing at the waterplay area. For once, Su Ann had her own playmate - Lara, who's only 2 mths older than her. They got along really well too!
Archie and Lara spent 10 days in Singapore, and they too came over to play at my house. Lara walks with ease, but Su Ann still needs to be supported. Lara is Su Ann's inspiration to walk!

2009-01-05T08:12:00.000-08:00

FIELD TRIP TO PASIR RIS KIDS' KAMPONG (3 DECEMBER 2008)

It was nearing our year-end school break, and GUG had organized a final field trip for us to visit Pasir Ris Kids' Kampong (http://www.prkidskampong.com/) on 3 December. The field trip was full of new experiences for me, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

My classmate, Yong Shing, was my partner for the trip. Gwen was absent from school that day. We were taken by coach to the farm.

At the farm, we were shown white mice, a grey rabbit and ducks. We were given pellets to feed the kois, and we tried our hand at "longkang fishing". I caught a grand total of one guppy, and Yong Shing's mom helped me scoop up a whole bunch more. My catch was placed in a plastic bag of water and handed to me as a parting gift.

Mommy was a little shocked to see me return home with a bag filled with fishes. We didn't have a tank, pump and the works at home, and were unprepared to adopt the fishes. Ah Gong wanted me to keep the fishes to learn about the life cycle of fishes, but Mommy thought it was a better idea to release them into a freshwater pond. The thought of imprisoning fishes in the narrow confines of a tank has always irked Mommy, so she got Daddy to take them to a pond. I got to keep my pets for a whole hour, before kissing them goodbye. Hope they're doing ok wherever they may be.

2008-12-13T23:05:00.000-08:00

TURNING FOUR (2, 5 & 6 DECEMBER 2008)

Mommy asked how I'd like to celebrate my birthday this year, and I chose to celebrate it with my GUG classmates, just like last year. Mommy took me to Coffee Bean and I picked out my own cake - Candy Heaven, a white chocolate and raspberry cake laced with heaps of candies.

On 2 December, 4 days before I actually turned 4, I had my birthday party in class. Su Ann attended the party as well, and it was like "Show & Tell" with my baby sister as the centrepiece. Everyone crowded round to pat her.

On 6 December (my birthday), Grandpa Eddy and Grandma Nancy bought me dinner at Safra Sea Sports Centre (great playground they have there!), a strawberry shortcake from Bakerzinn and some new outfits. Daddy and Mommy bought me a new dressing table playset. Ah Gong and Ah Ma had other engagements on 6 December, so they took me out for an a-la-carte buffet dinner at Raffles Marina a night earlier. As usual, we stuffed ourselves silly there.

2008-12-03T08:21:00.000-08:00

SWIMMING WITH ALEXIS

Thanks to Alexis, who's in my swim class, I can now jump into the pool and move around in the water with confidence. Ah Gong doesn't accompany me into the pool anymore. Alexis is a year older and she's a stronger swimmer than me. She's always full of encouragement for me.

It's a joy attending swim class with Alexis and hanging out with her and her younger sister, Alicia, at the playground after class. Mommy says that I'm on the waitlist for a swim class next term, and even if I get a slot, I may not be in the same class as Alexis anymore. Oh dear! What am I going to do without my pillar of strength?

2008-11-26T09:06:00.000-08:00

DAYTRIP TO SUNGEI RENGIT (26 NOVEMBER 2008)

Whilst researching on Kukup, Mommy discovered another popular destination for Singaporeans in search of fresh and cheap seafood - Sungei Rengit. So off we went to Malaysia again last Wednesday.

Sungei Rengit is about 30 km away from the beach resort of Desaru, where I've visited several times before. Mommy promised to take me to the beach after the adults had their fill of lobsters. We left the house at 1030 hrs, and arrived at Sungei Rengit at about 1330 hrs.

Much like Kukup, this rural, seaside town was tiny. We made a quick loop around the town in search of Good Luck Seafood Restaurant, which had received good reviews online. Whilst making the loop, we came across Sungei Rengit's fire station and its stable of ancient fire engines. Reminded me of those we saw in the museum at Central Fire Station in Singapore!

We found Good Luck Seafood Restaurant along a quiet lane, devoid of customers. We debated on whether to try a different restaurant instead (Jade Garden Seafood Restaurant looked more appealing), but decided to stick to our original plan in the end. Daddy ordered two steamed lobsters topped with a generous portion of chopped garlic, one butter lobster, one assam fish, one oyster omelette, a plate of sambal kangkong, and a plate of bitter gourd with pork.

The bill, including steamed rice and drinks, came up to RM254.60 (about S$110.00). The adults enjoyed the meal, but I didn't. I couldn't wait to get it over and done with so I could go to the beach.

Immediately after lunch, we hopped back into our car and drove towards Desaru. We passed a big sign screaming "Ostrich Farm". Daddy turned into the farm and found out from the farmer that there were 300 ostriches on the farm, and there was a RM10 charge per adult for a tour of the farm, which included ostrich egg tasting. Grandpa Eddy said he'd rather spend the money on another lobster instead. Spoken like a true foodie.

As soon as Daddy got back into the car, big, fat raindrops started coming down. Daddy tried to drive as quickly as possible towards Desaru, but we couldn't "outrace" the thunderstorm. It was one of the heaviest thunderstorms I'd ever witnessed, and it washed away all hopes of playing at the beach. What a disappointment! :(

Mommy then suggested that we catch the ferry back to Singapore from Tanjung Belungkor. Years ago, Daddy and Mommy had caught a ferry from there and they had seen cars being driven onboard the ferry to be taken across to Singapore. Daddy thought it was a good idea. He'd do anything to avoid being stuck in jam at the causeway. So we drove 30 km to Tanjung Belungkor. Turned out to be a poor decision after all. We missed the ferry...... by 10 years! Yeah, the ferry service which took cars onboard was terminated about 10 years ago. Double disappointment!

We left Tanjung Belungkor at 163o hrs. We didn't want to be stuck in rush hour traffic in Johor Bahru like last week, so we decided to drive across the state to use the Second Link instead. It was a longer drive from Desaru and toll had to be paid, but boy were we glad that there was absolutely no jam at the Johor customs! We were congratulating ourselves as we drove across the causeway when we saw the pileup on the Singapore side. Three letdowns in a row!

Tuas Checkpoint is a large facility with Block A1 and Block A2 dedicated to cars and motorbikes. Buses, lorries and other vehicles have to proceed to other blocks to clear customs. Tuas Checkpoint is well-equipped to provide clearance in an efficient way, but the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority decided to shut down Block A1 as well as half of the booths in Block A2, leaving only 7 lanes passable to cars. We were stuck in a jam for 1.5 hrs as a result. Such a shame that something like that be allowed to happen! Surely, the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority should know by now when peak and off-peak periods are and utilise their resources accordingly?

We finally made it into Singapore at 2000 hrs, and had a simply divine dinner at Raffles Marina, where Ah Gong, Ah Ma and Sri Che Che had been waiting patiently for us.

2008-11-19T07:44:00.000-08:00

DAYTRIP TO THE FISHING VILLAGE OF KUKUP (19 NOVEMBER 2008)

Kukup is a rural fishing village located about 40 km southwest of Johor Bahru, Malaysia. No one in my immediate family had ever visited Kukup, and since I didn't have classes today, Mommy decided to organize a family outing to Kukup.

We started our drive to Kukup at 1030 hrs. Grandpa Eddy, Grandma Nancy, Ah Gong, Daddy, Mommy, Ning Che Che, and Su Ann were in the car with me. Ah Ma was at work, so she couldn't join us on this adventure.

We took the Tuas Second Link to get across to Malaysia, then exited at Gelang Petah. We drove through Pekan Nanas. "Nanas" means pineapple in Bahasa Melayu and we saw many roadside stalls selling pineapples and other fruits in this area. Pineapples are probably grown in this area, though we didn't see any pineapple plantations. Oil palm plantations were aplenty though. We then travelled along Highway 5 and Highway 95 to get to Kukup at 1245 hrs. Daddy had driven at a leisurely pace, and we had made a toilet stop at a petrol kiosk.

Kukup is a one-street village with a handful of seafood restaurants, provision stores and a bunch of houses on stilts. We drove to the end of the street, then turned right into the carpark of High King Seafood Restaurant. Mommy had read online reviews that the food there was delicious, and that the restaurant organized guided tours to a "kelong" (fish farm on stilts in the sea) for RM5 per person.

The online reviews didn't warn us that the restaurant was also the capital of houseflies though! The restaurant sat on stilts above the sea. The restaurant was laid out in such a way that customers had to walk past its food preparation area to get to the dining area. Women were shelling prawns in the food preparation area, and we could see swarms of houseflies buzzing around and covering the raw food and food preparation area in jet black dots. The flies were also busy attacking the uncleared tables in the dining area. We had all been very excited about a seafood lunch, but were suddenly not hungry...

Since having seafood was a quintessential part of any trip to Kukup, we forced ourselves to put aside the fear of cholera, selected the cleanest-looking table and sat down to study the menu. Mommy ordered butter lobster, steamed live prawns, crispy baby squid, sambal mussels, sambal kangkong, mee goreng and fried rice. Total bill (including drinks): RM134 (about S$60.00). Verdict: The food was tasty, but once is enough. Not worth the risk of food poisoning.

After lunch, we watched the local fishermen load their wooden boats with bait and fish feed. Grandma Nancy bought tickets for us to go on the guided tour of the kelong. We were taken by boat to a kelong a short distance away from the restaurant. A little boy was our guide and he showed us round his kelong with great enthusiasm.

First, he introduced us to his school of spitting fish. After he placed small pieces of bread along the edge of a pool, the fish took aim at the bread by spitting water at the bread. They would then gobble up the pieces of bread which fell into the pool. Bravo!

Next, the little boy showed us a king crab. Daddy said that king crabs have blue blood, and that scientists were studying the use of their blood for medicinal purposes. I didn't know that!

The little boy then hauled up a nurse shark from a pool and asked us to feel the rough texture of its skin. He also handed Daddy a yellowish seahorse, and Daddy let me hold it for a little while.

Grandma Nancy bought some fish maw from the kelong, before all of us crossed the rickety planks to get back to the boat. The tour was about 30 mins long, and we were back at the restaurant by 1500 hrs.
Opposite the restaurant, a narrow alley led us to a maze of houses on stilts. According to our boatman, these houses accommodate Kukup's 2,000-strong population, most of whom were ethnic Chinese from the Hokkien dialect group. Some of the houses were also rented out as holiday homes. We walked past a lady selling wanton noodles. The way she mixed the noodles with the chilli and other sauces made Grandpa Eddy and Daddy salivate. They were so engrossed they seemed oblivious to the ever-present flies. They wanted a bowl of noodles when we were done exploring.

We found a Taoist temple at the end of one of the narrow passageways, and Grandma Nancy lit some incense there. After that, we re-traced our footsteps back to the noodle seller. Enroute, we spotted the FLOATERS in the water. No, not dead bodies in the water, but faeces. Yes, we're perfectly aware that human waste commonly goes straight into the sea at kelongs, but the thought of an entire community of 2,000 peeing and defecating into the very sea where our seafood lunch was just fished out of was just REVOLTING. We could feel our lunch rise up our throats. We hurried past the floaters. Any thought of tucking in a bowl of wanton noodles evaporated that very second as well.

We left Kukup at 1545 hrs. The plan was to head back to Tuas Second Link, but we missed the turnoff because of dubious signage and ended up in Johor Bahru. A huge mistake because the pile-up at the checkpoint was so bad we ended up being stuck in the jam for 2 hours. Fortunately, Su Ann didn't cry her eyes out in the car. Ning Che Che and Ah Gong entertained her with a bag of toys.

It was already past 1900 hrs by the time we cleared the Woodlands Checkpoint. We updated Ah Ma on the day's activities. Kukup is so close to Singapore, yet a world apart. It made a very interesting day out from highly sanitised Singapore. For those who haven't been, go, go, go!

2008-11-14T09:24:00.000-08:00

MY VERY FIRST PERFORMANCE (13 NOVEMBER 2008)

Here are some pictures of my very first performance - The Coconut Dance at the GUG Concert & Graduation Party 2008.

My classmates and I had practised long and hard, and we put up an entertaining show. Everything went according to plan till right after our performance when I spotted Daddy taking pictures near the stage. I ran towards him, and my female classmates followed suit. Haha! Soon, we were chasing each other on the stage and treating it like our personal playground. Hahaha! We were laughing, squealing and having so much fun when a teacher halted our play and cleared us off the stage, so the next performance could commence. :(

Ah Gong, Daddy and Mommy paid S$105.00 in total to watch me perform. Dinner was included in the price of the ticket as well. Ah Ma was at work and Su Ann stayed home, so both missed the show.