OK. My birthday had ended and the last day of the year has arrived. This blog was supposed to be complete and publish on 30 Dec 2015. :)
This year had been eventful.
I spent 6 hours in a queue with my colleagues to pay my last respect to Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore founding prime minister. My youngest aunt left me to join the angels in heaven. I fulfilled my dream on touring Turkey. I embarked on a big project, renovating my house and it is nearly 3 months and yet to complete. Hopefully it can be completed and have no problems on 18 January 2016, which is about 2 weeks before Chinese New Year.
I only managed to keep my healthy lifestyle for 6 months and I lapse into laziness after starting on the renovation.
The renovation is a big headache. There are so many packing, storing, shifting, decision making, learning, buying and of course paying. I will blog about this renovation after everything has completed.
The new year is coming, I hope I can return to my healthy lifestyle after the renovation and after I shift back to my house.
I also hope my mum will eat more and regain her weight and her health. I am sad and regretful that I had been busy with the renovation and my work and I had sort of neglected her. I hope I can spend more time with her and my father next year. I must make an effort to do that.
P/S: My sister gave me a wonderful birthday present. Thank you, Da Jie.
Thursday, December 31, 2015
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
The fighter is getting her well deserved rest
I lost my youngest auntie today.
小姨 or 丽姨 is always the most jovial among my aunties. She can crack jokes in a sarcastic way that makes you laugh out loud.
I remember her taking out her Japanese sword to frighten me when I didn't want to eat my rice when I was very young.
I remember her buying me presents every christmas and giving me and my cousin surprises when I was young.
I remember bunking with her in her room with my siblings and cousin during our school holidays while we are staying over at our grandma house.
I remember her encouraging me when I was diagnose with SLE, and visiting me when I was hospitalised.
I remember she will always sms me birthday greetings on my birthday.
I remember her encouraging my mum when she was sick, even though 小姨 wasn't feeling well herself.
She had been receiving treatment for her cancer for nearly a year. She had been a fighter, who fight till the end. But the fighter also need her rest and put down her weapons. And she had chosen today to do so peacefully.
Do rest in peace, 小姨. You deserved the rest. I will always remember you in my heart.
小姨, you came from heaven on 14 July 1960, and you return to heaven on 10 November 2015.
小姨 or 丽姨 is always the most jovial among my aunties. She can crack jokes in a sarcastic way that makes you laugh out loud.
I remember her taking out her Japanese sword to frighten me when I didn't want to eat my rice when I was very young.
I remember her buying me presents every christmas and giving me and my cousin surprises when I was young.
I remember bunking with her in her room with my siblings and cousin during our school holidays while we are staying over at our grandma house.
I remember her encouraging me when I was diagnose with SLE, and visiting me when I was hospitalised.
I remember she will always sms me birthday greetings on my birthday.
I remember her encouraging my mum when she was sick, even though 小姨 wasn't feeling well herself.
She had been receiving treatment for her cancer for nearly a year. She had been a fighter, who fight till the end. But the fighter also need her rest and put down her weapons. And she had chosen today to do so peacefully.
Do rest in peace, 小姨. You deserved the rest. I will always remember you in my heart.
小姨, you came from heaven on 14 July 1960, and you return to heaven on 10 November 2015.
Monday, June 29, 2015
Of Ancient Rome, Greek mythology and Ottoman Empire - Turkey
My sister and I just came back from a Turkey tour. This time round, it is not F&E but a package tour. We are not familar with Turkey so it is safer to go by package tour.
It was an enjoyable trip. There were times we are pissed off with the tour guide, lamented that the time spent on certain interesting places were very short, and complaining about trips to expensive shops for turkish delights, carpets and leather jackets. The early wake up call ... gosh ... But that is a package tour.
We covered a lot of places. Istanbul, Canakkale, Bergama, Kusadasi, Selcuk, Pamukkale, Dalyan, Fethiye, Kekova, Demre, Antalya, Konya, Cappadocia and Ankara. All these in 11 days.
There is a lot of travelling on the road. Most of the interesting places were ancient cities such as Troy, Pergamon, Ephesus, Hierapolis and Simena. All these ancient cities are in certain state of ruins due to age, wars and natural disasters.
It is not surprising that most of the theatres in these ancient cities have remain intact and were preserved very well. In ancient times, theatres played an important role in the cities. This is the place where people gathered to listen to their leaders, watch plays and gladiator fights. The place where they find entertainment and gathered to update themselves on the latest news. Aspendos Theatre is the best preserved theatre. But I felt Hierapolis Theatre is nicest because there is no crowd.
We had a hot air ballon ride in Cappadocia. It was the best activity in this trip. We woke up at 4.30am to go to the site and took an 1 hour ride in the air to see sunrise over Cappadocia, the rock formation, valleys and dwellings in the rocks (cave houses). It is a spectacular sight to see all the hot air ballons raising and flying with wind.
We had lunch and photo stop at ancient caravanserai. In ancient time, this is a place where travellers will stop by for a few days to restock their supplies, feed their animals and refresh themselves before continuing their trip.
We also visited churches and mosques. For historical reasons, the mosques in Turkey has incorporate some the churches features. There are tall thin towers surrounding the main tower which is lower and rounded. It is like a mixture of church and mosque. Well, they were being ruled by Romans who believe in gods, Greek who idolise mythological characters and Ottomans who are Islam believers. The St Sophia Church Museum is an example of a church which turned to a mosque and is now a museum.
Turkey is a place prone to earthquakes and volcano eruptions in ancient times. This is why they have a lot of rock formations (Cappadocia) and thermal springs (Pamukkale). The ancient cities were in ruins are also partly due to the natural disasters.
In terms of cities, Antalya gave us a better impression than Istanbul. The people in Antalya are friendly and we felt safe walking around. We took a tram ride on our 1st night in Antalya and got lost. 2 wonderful women who do not speak English brought us back to the hotel, taking the bus that they directed us; and making sure we dropped at the correct bus stop. Thank you, ladies. As in most cities, there will be dishonest people, so we make sure we question the cashier whenever we bought things if they did not charge the amount that was being displayed.
In Istanbul, people will try speaking Mandarin to us and keep pushing their stuff in front of us to sell them. And I don't like the fact they keep thinking all yellow skin tourists are from China. Avoid shopping in places like Grand Bazaar and Spice Market if you cannot bargain. The sellers are not honest. We got cheated in the weight when we bought Turkish delights and nuts from Spice Market. Even though we did not buy much, well, it is a still a learning experience.
Turkey is a nice place to visit. It has very long history, nice scenic places, beautiful architectures with rich interior designs. These places are very good for photography shots, even though they are always crowded with tourists. We are glad we managed to capture some nice photographs even though we can't stay long in these places.
I had tried Turkish bath, drank Turkish coffee and cay (Turkish tea); ate Turkish delights and kebab. These are wonderful experience ...
We enjoyed the trip, but I think we won't be taking package tour in our next trip. Let's see ... did I hear Europe calling?
It was an enjoyable trip. There were times we are pissed off with the tour guide, lamented that the time spent on certain interesting places were very short, and complaining about trips to expensive shops for turkish delights, carpets and leather jackets. The early wake up call ... gosh ... But that is a package tour.
We covered a lot of places. Istanbul, Canakkale, Bergama, Kusadasi, Selcuk, Pamukkale, Dalyan, Fethiye, Kekova, Demre, Antalya, Konya, Cappadocia and Ankara. All these in 11 days.
There is a lot of travelling on the road. Most of the interesting places were ancient cities such as Troy, Pergamon, Ephesus, Hierapolis and Simena. All these ancient cities are in certain state of ruins due to age, wars and natural disasters.
It is not surprising that most of the theatres in these ancient cities have remain intact and were preserved very well. In ancient times, theatres played an important role in the cities. This is the place where people gathered to listen to their leaders, watch plays and gladiator fights. The place where they find entertainment and gathered to update themselves on the latest news. Aspendos Theatre is the best preserved theatre. But I felt Hierapolis Theatre is nicest because there is no crowd.
We had a hot air ballon ride in Cappadocia. It was the best activity in this trip. We woke up at 4.30am to go to the site and took an 1 hour ride in the air to see sunrise over Cappadocia, the rock formation, valleys and dwellings in the rocks (cave houses). It is a spectacular sight to see all the hot air ballons raising and flying with wind.
We had lunch and photo stop at ancient caravanserai. In ancient time, this is a place where travellers will stop by for a few days to restock their supplies, feed their animals and refresh themselves before continuing their trip.
We also visited churches and mosques. For historical reasons, the mosques in Turkey has incorporate some the churches features. There are tall thin towers surrounding the main tower which is lower and rounded. It is like a mixture of church and mosque. Well, they were being ruled by Romans who believe in gods, Greek who idolise mythological characters and Ottomans who are Islam believers. The St Sophia Church Museum is an example of a church which turned to a mosque and is now a museum.
Turkey is a place prone to earthquakes and volcano eruptions in ancient times. This is why they have a lot of rock formations (Cappadocia) and thermal springs (Pamukkale). The ancient cities were in ruins are also partly due to the natural disasters.
In terms of cities, Antalya gave us a better impression than Istanbul. The people in Antalya are friendly and we felt safe walking around. We took a tram ride on our 1st night in Antalya and got lost. 2 wonderful women who do not speak English brought us back to the hotel, taking the bus that they directed us; and making sure we dropped at the correct bus stop. Thank you, ladies. As in most cities, there will be dishonest people, so we make sure we question the cashier whenever we bought things if they did not charge the amount that was being displayed.
In Istanbul, people will try speaking Mandarin to us and keep pushing their stuff in front of us to sell them. And I don't like the fact they keep thinking all yellow skin tourists are from China. Avoid shopping in places like Grand Bazaar and Spice Market if you cannot bargain. The sellers are not honest. We got cheated in the weight when we bought Turkish delights and nuts from Spice Market. Even though we did not buy much, well, it is a still a learning experience.
Turkey is a nice place to visit. It has very long history, nice scenic places, beautiful architectures with rich interior designs. These places are very good for photography shots, even though they are always crowded with tourists. We are glad we managed to capture some nice photographs even though we can't stay long in these places.
I had tried Turkish bath, drank Turkish coffee and cay (Turkish tea); ate Turkish delights and kebab. These are wonderful experience ...
 |
| Hot Air Balloon over Cappadocia |
 |
| Blue Mosque |
 | |
| Extensive Dolmabache Palace |
 |
| The 'Old City' of Istanbul |
 |
| Ephesus Library |
 |
| Aspendos Theatre |
 |
| Hierapolis - beyond the stage was once a large city |
Sunday, March 29, 2015
A final goodbye to the Giant
23 March 2015, Monday, the start of a normal working week. Singaporeans woke up to hear the sad news
that our founding prime minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, had passed away
peacefully. Everybody knew that the day
is bound to come, as news of his ill health were released to the public
daily. But in our hearts we still linger
a hope that he will get well, that he will be able to join us in our 50th
nation celebration gala on 9 August when 50 years ago (in 1965), he announced
the birth of our country.
But that
was not meant to be. A week of mourning and
Lying-in-State period was declared. Singaporeans
and residents from all walks of life started to stream to the Istana, community tribute sites and the Parliament House to
thank the man who created a safe and peaceful environment for us to live in,
with vibrant economy growth and policies that ensure that we will have a roof
over our heads, jobs in our adult life, education for our children and affordable healthcare when we grow old.
Today, we
say our final farewell to him. The Giant
in our hearts is now a star in the sky, a shining star always looking upon us.
Thank you,
Mr Lee Kuan Yew. And goodbye.
(Bow 3 times)
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
新年咯！！恭喜恭喜！！！发大财！！！
农历新年又过了。今年的气氛很平淡，街上也没那么热闹。可能是因为长假期，很多人都出国旅行。
今年我和大姐为了初一的年饭大展厨艺，煮了咖喱鸡、豆皮黑木耳和炒米粉。当然还有煎炸的小食。弟弟也来帮忙。往年我们都是订自助餐，因为吃腻了，再加上有女拥，所以今年就打算试试自己煮。
味道还不错！！我的亲戚都赞我们。哈哈哈 。。本来还以为他们说客套话，结果他们真的把大部份的食物都吃了。
初二就像往年到外公家。外公已经不在了，我应该改口说是二舅家了。那里分成两个看管所，一边是“托儿所”，一边是“托老所”。那些有小孩的表弟表妹都在托儿所顾孩子，没孩子的就呆在托老所陪舅舅阿姨聊天。就这样说说笑笑、吃吃喝喝过了一天。
初三除了晚上有演出和社区晚餐就没什么特别。
姑姑全家初四来我家吃午餐。一样是自己煮，不过是煮小菜和火锅。没大展厨艺！！！两个可爱的侄儿玩翻天。可惜我弟弟一家都出国，不然再加上他的儿子，就更热闹了。
就这样过了新年。
新年当然要有愿望。希望福禄寿喜都到我家，让我们都能健康、平安、顺利、快乐。当然还要请财神大驾光临，让我们财运广进、4D，Toto 常常中奖。哈哈哈！！！
Hmm…
该划明年要煮什么菜了！！！
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