Trip to Hong Kong and Macau [Part 3]

Our Day 3 adventure is something 'out-of-the-ordinary!'  It is not something which we've planned but it spontaneously comes from Grand Uncle during the discussion between Karen and him.  With the directions given by Uncle/Granduncle, we both made our way by bus to this so called place Stanley.  It's a long and winding journey and finally we made it there.....

The place have many interesting things to see and we love the beautiful and captivating scenery.  After we have ventured enough we took the bus back to the center of Hong Kong and moved along the busy streets, then find our way to our next stop......

It's another long and winding road by bus right up to The Peak ~ cool ~  After a late lunch we head direct to.....

We enjoyed capturing photos with the wax statues of celebrities and important people throughout the world. It's indeed a great experience.  By the time we completed adventuring this Wax Museum, we found that the sun is almost setting, and in order not to miss out the beautiful scenic views, we rushed up to the Peak Tower. To our astonishment the views are fantastically beautiful and being there really gives us great pleasure!

before sunset

after sunset

The next day, 2nd November, as usual after breakfast we start our day's adventure - The Avenue of Stars!

supporting our Malaysian actress....

We moved on to Ladies Market......

after which we stopped for Pizza at The Spaghetti House.....

then made our way back home.  We both decided to take an early break from our adventures today and having dinner with Uncle/Granduncle.  Karen is still at work while on holiday, even on the MTR ~ sigh ~

Counting down the New Year 2014......

Eleven days ago, on 18th December, I've just made my count down to Christmas..... who could have imagine today is the 5th day of Christmas!!  In  just two short days we will be ushering the New Year 2014..... time really, really flies!

We are experiencing a rather wet Christmas this year, especially in Kuching.  Hope that the rain will end with the coming of 2014.  As usual the Chinese families are busy doing their Spring Cleaning, myself included. in preparation for the Chinese Lunar New Year which falls end of January 2014.  With lots of washing we really need sunlight to dry our laundry.  

What to expect for the new year?? Well, let's move  forward positively with peace and pray for the best.

A meaningful quote from Lao Tzu to share.....

YES, Finally......

YES, Finally...... myself and hubby are RELIEF from the heavy load which we have been shouldering from the moment Alex completed his Form 6, then further his education at UPM in the year 2002, followed by Karen in 2004 and four years later Aaron. It's indeed a heavy responsibility in terms of financial, anxiety, worries, concern, safety and care. 

For those who have been in such a situation you will understand how I feel.  Patience and positive thinking are all that we need to get through it.  I recall having sleepless nights thinking and worrying about their well being - whether they have their meals, enough rest, how they get along with their studies, course mates, lecturers and how they adapt to their new environment, etc.... etc......

The starting years have been rather difficult for me and by the time I get settled in with Alex's away from home, soon enough it's Karen's turn.  Her situation is of more concern as she left for KL soon after she completed her Form 5 and just turned 17 years old.  During long semester break we will make sure that she come home and we are always in constant contact through phone calls.

Aaron, being the youngest gets to study in Kuching and is considered to be the most lucky of them all - not having to worry about food, accommodation, transportation and help as and when needed! But, it's not easy for us either, why??  Well, we watch him through his one year of Foundation followed by four tough years of degree - the struggles, tiredness, stress, sleepless nights, worries, being sick just before semester exam, etc....

It's been 12 long years seeing our three children through their studies.  Throughout these years I have been in constant prayer to God for their safety, protection, guidance and success.  Thank you Lord for your continuous blessings upon each and everyone of us in the family.  I trust that with your constant presence in our lives, everything is made possible for us all.  Praise The Lord, Amen!

Today, with Aaron completing his studies we are free from this part of a parent's responsibility - Education! With the closing of this chapter of his life, he's now looking forward to the next chapter, which is CAREER!

CHEERS to Alex, Karen and Aaron.....

Christmas countdown.....

It's a week to CHRISTMAS!!  How fast time flies.....  

This year I'll be spending Christmas with my children and grandboy Brendan away from my hometown. Well, I am feeling happy and joyful at the same time will be missing dear hubby and Aaron.  That is life, we simply can't get the best of both worlds right??  Look at the positive side of life to get the best out of everything ~ SMILES ~

The beautiful Christmas decorations in Shopping Malls and the soothing, lovely Christmas Songs which are played and aired really makes the Christmas Season comes alive. May we be filled with peace, joy, happiness, cheers, good tidings and merriment during this special season and the whole year through. Wishing everyone MERRY CHRISTMAS in advance - ENJOY & Be HAPPY!

Trip to Hong Kong and Macau [Part 2]

The sun is shining brightly on a cool Wednesday morning.  We started off with Dim Sum for breakfast at a nearby Restaurant with Uncle and his god-daughter. Though Dim Sum sounds light but the quantity that is ordered and being served before us really makes our eyes 'pop-out!' Oh my,my!! How are we going to finish eating them?? So many varieties!  It takes us all quite a while to finish munching and swallowing them all and by the time we finished, we are all SO FULL! Karen's words still rings in my ears "never mind mummy, we have to walk many miles today" and we both SMILES.....

Based on our itinerary, we will be going to Ocean Park! Yeah.....

When we arrived there, we learn that it's Halloween and the whole place are beautifully decorated with pumpkins ~ cool ~

We started off with the Grand Aquarium - so huge with many sea creatures to see. We enjoyed being in the depths of the ocean!

We get to watch An An, the Giant Panda walking up and down, but Le Le is inside the house so we only get to watch her through the TV screen. The Pumpkin Creation Lab is fabulous. We enjoyed viewing the different types of images which are beautifully created - very innovative indeed!!

We moved into the Streets of Old Hong Kong......

Next, we get to feel the freshness of nature as we take the trail path - ponds, shrubs, trees and different types of plants.  All of a sudden we saw a suspension bridge, which is Karen's 'must-walk' adventure hehe!

As we continue venturing many  things capture us with interest - Fun-tastic Funhouse, Panda Village, Goldfish Treasures, Whiskers Harbour, and then we found ourselves in this ride "BALLOONS UP-UP-AND-AWAY."  What thrills us is not the ride itself, but the gorgeous views.....

A Halloween Fest show is being put up for kids after which we get ourselves seated among many visitors waiting patiently to watch the bird show.....

The bird show is great with them being so well trained and smart!  We have covered almost all of this part of Ocean Park, and we went to the Ocean Express Waterfront Station to take a train/tram to another section....

WOW! Karen is so excited then...... I could hear her saying,  "I wanna ride this, that and... and....." her face full of bright SMILES! There she is on the queue......

While waiting for her I was taking a long stare at the Whirly Bird Ride...... can I go for this ride??? I could hear myself asking the same question over and over?? Not long after that.....

YES! I am flying high up in the sky!!! Enjoyed this ride very much ~ smiles ~    We both decided to grab something light to eat and drink as well as to rest our feet.  Soon after that we are back on our feet and we caught sight of this beautiful view......

Our first intention is to have a ride in that Flyer but sadly we didn't manage to get there, which we also believe that there will be a very long queue!  We take a quick stroll into the Rainforest - birds, fishes and flowers.  What comes up next?? The Ocean Park Tower, which capture the 360 degree views of the whole Park....

We walk on towards the Pacific Pier to view the California Sea Lions enjoying their playful acts both in water and on land.  Next, we took several rounds of escalators and come to this Mine Train Ride, another ride which Karen is eagerly waiting to go for it. With a waiting time of only 20 minutes, she decided to go for it and by the time the ride is over the sun is almost setting.....

It's another long walk we have to take to reach the front area, and Karen go for her final ride - The Eagle!

We are on a very long queue for the Cable Car ride over to the Old Hong Kong.  We managed to capture some photos at the beautiful musical fountain, which can only be viewed at night. The place are getting very pack and people are coming in for the Halloween celebration.  Many of them are wearing scary costumes with weird make-ups, scaring people at every corners! 

We made our way out of that congested place and back to Hang Hau MTR Station, get something to eat and then head for home.  It's a tiring yet enjoyable day for both of us.  Mind you, that is only our day one touring this huge city of Hong Kong!

Trip to Hong Kong and Macau [Part 1]

Couple of years back, I have been wanting to make a trip to Hong Kong to visit Uncle Kee and her daughter and son-in-law.  Opportunity doesn't seem to come my way then, till recently.  With my daughter Karen's tight schedules she simply can't plan for any holiday, thus we just go ahead with the purchasing of our air tickets as far ahead as one year.  I remember what she told me "just buy the air tickets, if needs me to come up with dates we will never make it!"  

The one year long wait finally comes, on 28th October I fly to KL and on the morning of 30th October we both flew to Hong Kong.  

At the airport we were both met by Uncle/Granduncle Kee, whom we have not seen for many years.  He has been waiting for us relatives to visit him in Hong Kong.  

Our bus journey to Uncle Kee's residence is fabulous.  Being the first time in a double-decker bus we get the opportunity to sit right above the driver's seat, and this is where we get to capture all the great views.  It's indeed 'love at first sight' for me, with all the beautiful high rise buildings, it's hills, big and huge fly over and bridges, clean surroundings, beautiful landscapes, etc..... WOW!!

To our surprise Uncle Kee's apartment is beautiful, clean, new and has a huge beautiful nice garden!  Let the pictures tells it's stories.....

We really envy the residence there, as after a hectic day's work or school they are able to sit back and relax  in this beautiful garden which is called.....

They can also watch the beautiful sunset, which we did too......

Being there end of the autumn season, the weather is cool in the morning as well as night.  What both me and Karen experience during our stay there is that, we both didn't get to switch on the fan ~ smiles ~ Back in our country Malaysia, we never let the fan stop working for as long as we are indoors!!

Cousin Kailing and hubby treat us to a sumptuous dinner on the day of our arrival and not to mention the yummy Hong Kong Desserts!!

The power to 'control'....

In today's society it can be seen that many people prefers to control than being controlled - be it at home, in school or at work place!  Why is it such?? 

In the days of our fore parents, family members are able to live together happily under one roof without much problems; children of all ages, of different race, religion, and cultures are able to get along well and respect each other; workers of different ranks are working well with each other, not having to push left and right to get promoted; neighbours are socializing and supporting each other and many others.....

Today, many of these good qualities of life are slowly diminishing!  What people care most is power to control, wealth, name, titles and promotions!  What will all these bad qualities of life brings them?? This is why many people are suffering from depressions and stress.  Jealousy, hatred, strife, resentment, and unhappiness will quietly creep into their life.

If we care to observe, today's society are living life that are directly opposite to the days of our fore parents - family members are not able to live together with each other, including husbands and wives; children are becoming more aggressive, thus they are not able to study well with each other due to their differences; most employees are  fighting their way up the corporate ladder thus creating jealousy, hatred and unhappiness in work places and neighbours are strangers to each other!  What will become of mankind in particular and society at large in the generations to come??

Is it necessary for people to control everything?? What do they gain from it??  I am much delighted to share this simple and meaningful phrase with everyone, hoping that we are all able to learn something from it, thus making this world a better place for everyone to live in!

"The man with a big heart!"

I believe that we have all heard, read or come across this simple phrase "The man with a big heart" quite often in our life.  What do we understand from it? Different people might have their own perception and understanding of it.  Personally for me I see such person as kind, generous, helpful and willing to share what they have with others.  

In today's sophisticated and fast pace world, I am just wondering,  are there many of such people around? People with those good qualities who will put others first before their own??  

The word 'man' might give us a perception that it implies to grown ups only, but if we think outside the box it is not!  If we care to take a closer look and be more sensitive to situations and people around us, we might come to realise that some young children have a bigger heart than grown ups!  Let me share this beautiful picture and meaningful phrase with all in the hope that we can all be a better person and the world will be a better place for us all to live in!

Sarawak's local sour brinjals or commonly known as Terung Asam

The sourish taste of this brinjals puts our palate 'out of control!'  If this dish is included in our meal, I can definitely assure that we need to cook more rice than usual.  Most people will cook this brinjals with fish in the form of spicy-sourish soup.....

Though only few simple ingredients are needed to cook this sumptuous terung asam with fish, it's a delicacy dish indeed! Here's to share.....

By cutting it into thinner slices it can also be stir-fried, then stewed till it's soften to make a delicious vegetable dish too!

For those who haven't try this dish, make sure you don't miss out, it's a dish that you must try!

Something Magical of Christmas.....

CHRISTMAS has always been the joyous season of the year for me!  What is the real thing behind it?? Presents?? Well, when I am young it may sound like it, but even now I still get that magical feeling which is hard to describe but one thing for sure I can share is that, it's a season full of cheer, peace, joy, good tidings, merriment, sharing and most of all thanksgiving. 

For as long as I can remember, back when I was a young child we have a Christmas Tree being put up in the comfort of our sweet home, the only difference is that those days I doubt we have  fake Christmas Trees being sold.  That is why my dad would scout around our huge big garden to look for one suitable Christmas Tree, cut it and bring it into our sitting room, decorate it, put presents underneath it and that is where the magic of Christmas begins......

Christmas after Christmas..... everything is still the same, except that for my children's generation they get to have a fake Christmas Tree with many more choices of beautiful and colourful decorations for us to choose from and the styles of decorations can change from one year to another!

Wherever we are and  whatever situations we are in I trust that God is blessing each and everyone of us with his special blessings during this season of the year.  Let us let the magic of Christmas fills the air, flow through us and rejoice! May the peace and joy of Christmas live in our hearts all year long - Amen!