Friday, November 14, 2014
The Ideal Vacation..
[6:33 pm]
A question pertaining to your ideal vacation set you thinking.
Being a free and curious spirit, you always have a burning desire to explore the world with just a backpack, immerse in the culture and capturing the beauty of the place. But yet you are also apt at lazing on a hammock on some obscure island enjoying a good book with a wine or beer. Thus, from those back-packing, cultural immersing trips to those free-and-easy tour group-led trips, you have already formed a mental picture of your ideal vacation.
Vacation, as aptly described by the dictionary, means: "a period of suspension of work, study, or other activity, usually used for rest, recreation, or travel; recess or holiday". Since you are surrounded by chaos and the attention-seeking mobile devices on a daily basis, a place devoid of such things is definitely a good place for you. A place with plenty of fresh air, warm and friendly people and not to mention an awesome scenery would be an ideal place for you to recharge your battery.
Your vacation routine will revolve around the following;
1. Lazing on the bed or hammock with a view of the ocean or mountains.
2. Reading a book with a bottle of white wine or beer.
3. Immersing in the local culture and capturing the local landscape.
4. Enjoying street food. But you will toe the line at consuming fried insects, monkey brains or worms.
5. Catching the sun rise and sun set.
Knowing your own stress tolerance, you definitely have to go for recharging trips once every 3 months. Ideally you would have like to go for trips of a long duration such as back-packing/self-drive/diving trips, but you have to be realistic as leave and money is always a concern. Thus you have worked out a balance of 3 weekend short trips/staycations and a long trip lasting at least 2 weeks.
In fact you have already mapped out a plan of those to-go places, which you will hopefully execute next year, once you have gotten a stable job.
Labels: Trips
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Sunday, January 03, 2010
Reflections of a HK trip
[7:42 pm]
The trip to HK was quite a break for me...even though I was travelling alone.
Alot of people have asked me why do I always travel overseas for holidays alone. Don't I have friends? Well, humans, no matter how social by nature they are, will always need some time alone. Time to reflect on themselves, their actions and what they wish to achieve in their life.
Again, people will question the soundness of this reasoning but travelling alone has allowed me to dictate my pace of travel instead of going along with the majority of the flow. Besides going on a shopping spree (and buying too much diecast airplanes and clothes), I took the opportunity to see and experience the real Hong Kong, which the ordinary tourists would not even notice or step foot into.
As much as possible, I tried capturing the everyday life using my trusty camera, such as an old lady praying for health and prosperity at a temple as tourists walked by her. Stumbling onto a bustling wet market while walking to Times Square was an experience by itself. It was a waste I did not manage to capture those moments.
It was also at this time I met J over there and we went to Macau for a short day trip. Nothing came out from our little day trip. My relationship with her can only be surmised by the quote; "Not her cup of tea, but rather the kopi siu tai that is consumed every morning but yet often overlooked"
She knows how much I feel about her and I have told her before she came back last night. I know my closest friends have expressed their concerns about my devoted love for her, which sadly, wasn't reciprocated. They even questioned why a good guy (am I really such a good guy? A female friend told me that last night over drinks) like me deserved to be treated like this, which is so wrong.
Perhaps its a fervently and blindly optimistic belief that it may really work out..a typical Sagittarius trait that is so...wrong..when it comes to love. But whatever it is, I will not give up on her, until she's married.
For I have screwed it once with S years ago due to my career and I am not going to repeat the same mistake again. I can tell you, till date, I am still very bitter about my lack of action back before S got married. The career can now take a back-seat for I have reached where I have planned to be. Now the focus will be making it up for what I have lost in terms of my personal life.
Labels: Matters of the heart, Trips
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Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Homeward Bound
[11:30 pm]
16 days in-country and I am all packed and ready to go back home.
I have already mapped out the food that I have been craving for the past two weeks or so and it is to be completed over the weekend..and of course, some company would be desired. It's never fun to enjoy good food alone.
So hopefully SS would be able to accompany me on the food jaunts.
The only thing I fear will be the amount of work that is piled up back in the office..haiz..
Labels: Trips
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Monday, October 05, 2009
Boring weekend..
[6:04 pm]
Didn't do much over the weekend, except to take the drive down to Dead Sea for some "pampering".
That place never ceases to amaze me as the salt content of the sea is an instant cure for foot rot and the mineral-rich mud, an instant spa for the skin. So, there I was, covering myself in the mud and baking myself under the 37 deg celsius sun to "beautify" my skin.
After the little adventure, I spent the rest of the day at the sauna and at the beach with a fellow colleague. That night, I slept a log. My sleep debt sure has been repaid. Now that the weekend is over, I am going to plan for a day trip, perhaps to Petra,Jordan to see the ruins there.
Two more weeks and I am going to be home..to the land of my Ba Chor Mee, Char Kway Teow, Bak Kut Teh and Orh Luak!!
And of course, its not only the food that I missed, but also SS. Due to the time difference (6 hrs), there isn't much opportunity for us to chat. Sianz..
Labels: Trips
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Friday, October 02, 2009
Life here thus far..
[12:34 am]
Its our third day here so far..work wise. The work days has been long so far; we ended our work at 2200 and had our dinner at 2300.
Despite, the long work days, I still managed to take time out to do my runs and utilise the hotel gym to keep myself mean.
Now as weekend is approaching, we are starting to think of places to visit..Dead Sea, Cairo or Petra in Jordan? Hmmz..we are spoilt for choices..haha..
Besides work, exercising and sight-seeing, I am starting to miss the food back home and its only the third day..time to break open my maggi mee. The best thing is; I forgot to bring my belacan chilli!!!!!
Sianz...
I also miss SS; I think of her everyday...haiz...but i know that she won't miss me..haha..for I guess I haven't make a big impression on her yet..
Labels: Trips
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Saturday, November 22, 2008
Back!!
[1:37 am]
Seems like this blog has been pretty neglected by me. Well, I must admit so because I was so caught up in my work for the past few weeks. And also, I was overseas for work for close to a week plus or so, and without the ability to tap free wireless networks, I was kind of free from the temptations of the cyberworld.
The working trip was pretty enjoyable and I managed to squeeze in some time to do some sight-seeing. So if you are in my facebook, you will be able to see the photos which I have uploaded. This country never ceases to amaze me, even though this is the second time I have visited them. I love this country for its resilence and pragmatic attitude, which I guess was born of their need for survival. And I will be back to visit them again, this time round for a longer duration..in fact, I should be going sight-seeing again, to the southern parts and this will end my coverage of the country.
As for the flight back, it was not so nice an experience. First of all, my flight to Germany was delayed for two hours due to the weather. This caused a domino effect which made me miss my connecting SQ flight back home. Man, was I upset about that. I was looking forward to the SQ flight after suffering a lack of in-flight entertainment on the Lufthansa flight.
In the end, the Lufthansa ground staff transferred us to another Singapore-bound flight, which was Lufthansa again..argh!!! Imagine I had to suffer 11 hours+ of no personal inflight entertainment programs. Damn. I have to suffer another setback when our plane touched down, minus our luggage. Seems like due to the haste of catching the connecting flight, they did not have time to off-load our bags from the plane.
So, we had to file for lost baggage and hope that they find our luggage, which eventually they did and sent it back to me the following day. I should have bought travel insurance which would had covered the cost, but I did not buy..so another big heart-ache..
But coming back is a good feeling. Now I can feast of my char kway teow, roti prata, local delights..
Labels: Trips
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Monday, October 27, 2008
Trips next year..
[7:24 pm]
Next year will be a year of constant travelling, with an overseas trip at least every quarter. But at least it will be a break for me, away from all the fire in the office. Now, lets see where I would be going;
Febuary - Israel
I have promised to go down to the seaside resort of Eilat. If I can't go down to Eilat, maybe I will tour whichever country that I am transiting at..so it may be Turkey or Germany. At least a 5 days extension would be enough.
March - Pulau Redang
A standard 4 days 3 nights diving trip to maintain my currency. I will be going with a bunch of diving buddies plus a couple of ladies, who sad to say, won't be able to join us in our underwater conquests. Oh well..
April/May - New Zealand
This is a best time to make use of the long weekends to complete the circuit of New Zealand which I started out in 2006. But this time round, it will be at South Island only. I still miss driving on the long stretch of road, stopping at those small-town bakeries to buy meat pies and coffee. And, of course, the scent of the freshly-baked bread.
June - Canada
This is a land of the maple leaves and grizzly bears. I have expressed interest to boss to let me go there for the last time I have been on overseas training was two years ago. Hopefully, he will let me go.
June - Maldives
This is one of my to-dive spot and now I have finally found someone to go with. With S, I hope. Remember my last post? Well, if nothing goes wrong, I hope that we can dive together and slowly work out some romance during our stay there.
Sounds fun? But all these needs money. And that's where all my bonuses will go to. Haiz..seems like my new camera lens and struct-bars for the car will have to wait for a while longer..
Labels: Trips
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Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Back without a scratch..
[10:19 pm]
Greetings my fans!!
Did any of you peeps miss me? Hope so, because it always feels good to be missed.
Actually I really looked forward to coming back. It's not that it wasn't enjoyable over there. On the contrary, the trip was really an eye-opener and I learnt alot about their culture and their resilence. It is amazing to see that despite the negative reports you see on the papers, life still goes on, albeit with the heavy yet non-invasive security. Their seriousness in protecting their way of life impressed me tremendously, how I wished we could be like them!!!
During my short stay there, I managed to visit some of the historical sites, so if you are interested to see the photos which I have taken, go and visit my facebook.
I did say that I looked forward to coming back and the reason was that it was due to the food. There wasn't any resemblance of Chinese food there!! Everyday we have salad, meat, chips and bread for our meals and they are in American portions. I sure missed my Char Kway Teow, Laksa, BBQ Stingray and many more..
I nearly cried onboard the SIA flight back home when they served sweet and sour pork with real rice. The next emotional moment came when the Captain said this after making a smooth landing in the midst of a thunderstorm; "Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. Welcome to Singapore. For those who residing here, Welcome Home"
So, that concludes my trip to the Holy Land. If nothing goes wrong, I should be going there again in December and I will extend my stay further and go down South to do some diving.
Labels: Trips
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Sunday, June 15, 2008
Off to the Holy Land!!!
[12:18 pm]
As I am typing this, I am at the airport, awaiting for my 16 hr flight to the Holy Land. I am so excited and apprehensive at the same time. But what's life without an adventure like this?
Even though I am not on a sabbatical, but I guess I will be the envy of many of that faith as going there is not many will get to do so in their lifetime as the security situation is forever very tight.
Watch this place for any update!!
Labels: Trips
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Thursday, January 03, 2008
Back from Australia
[8:17 pm]
I am back from my long trip from Australia and it was really an enjoyable one.
For once, I led a truly Aussie lifestyle, assimilating into the local culture. Weekend mornings were spent going to the wholesale market to buy super cheap produce and seafood, which, believe me, was super cheap. Sometimes my aunt and uncle will bring me around when they are not working. A particular memorable trip was to her friend's house for lunch where her friend plied me with countless glasses of pink champagne.
That champagne was enough to knock me out for a couple of hours before waking up for dinner. So much for the warm hospitality...hahah
It was a blast catching up with my Aussie and Bruneian cousins since the Bruneian one was visiting with his family. What caught my attention was that the Aussies don't celebrate Xmas like we do here in the form of celebrations in the streets, prefering to do it in their homes with their close friends and families.
The city center was a dead town with no soul in sights and not much of a light-up like we have in town. Their light-up tends to come in the form of lavishly decorated homes similar to what our Malay friends do for Hari Raya. They also enter their houses for decorations and use the occasion to open up for others to view and also raise funds for the needy.
I and my Bruneian cousin spent our Xmas eve night helping to roast the turkey using coal-fired stove. Xmas day was spent having a Xmas lunch and opening Xmas presents. Even for a visitor like me was given a present, which made me feel bad, as I came pretty empty-handed. In the end, I bought some gifts during the post-xmas sale for them as a token of appreciation to my aunt and family for taking care of me.
Besides leading a typical Aussie lifestyle, I drove down to Fremantle, Albany and the famed Busselton jetty. I didn't have much of a time to go down to Magaret River and the Wave Rock. In fact, I spent alot of time in Fremantle as yours truly adored the Fish 'n Chips there. So be sure to visit Kailis for the Fish 'n Chips the next time you are in Fremantle.
My only gripe was the hot weather; it hit 40+ deg on Xmas Day itself, and the irritating bottleflies. Other than that, Down-Under was a relaxing place with plenty friendly and warm people. I am planning to go back there somewhere in Oct, but I am going to do Adelaide first before spending a few days in Perth visiting my relatives. Anyone interested?
Labels: Trips
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Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Back from Penang..
[6:55 pm]
Penang gives me an impression of a sleepy town where everyone is warm, things are slow and easy..you get the gist?
I was filled with apprehension when I had to take Air Asia there as I had a bad experience with them when I flew to Sabah many years ago. But I was in for a surprise as apparently the standard has improved with new aircraft, better service and of course, good looking flight attendants. Guess, they must have learnt from the best, SIA; even the safety brief sounded and looked so SIA.
Just to side-track, there was this flight attendant on my inbound flight which just reminded me of her...her long silky black hair, smooth and fair skin..was a stark reminder of her..
Going there with the family can be at one moment, full of fun and laughter, at another moment, full of frustrations as we argue about whether we should hire a cab or take a cheaper option, the bus.
But it was fun, can't remember the last time the family went on a trip..think was to Genting, last year?
Penang, as told by my friend, is full of beauties..smooth, fair-skinned and extremely friendly..unlike the bigger cities like KL and JB. Even those from the smaller towns in Penang are not an exception. We managed to pop by to visit a long time nanny who took care of us when we were young, and she is still fit and hearty at a grand old age of 92.
The BEST part of it? I was told by nanny, not to be too choosy and get a girlfriend; apparently, father has been telling her that 2 of my brothers are attached and yet the eldest one is still unattached. That started the match-making proposition of introducing one of her grand niece who is working at an local hospital here..isn't that GREAT?
Haiz...
Other than that, Penang offered many great photo opportunities, which, due to time constraints I did not managed to cover..if you want to see the photos I have taken, just check out my fb.
Penang is a unseemingly quiet place, but hidden beneath it is an island full of enthusiasm and vigour, and I will definitely be back again!!!
Labels: Trips
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Monday, July 30, 2007
My photography exploits..NDP 2007 Preview
[9:02 pm]
Nothing much..since I am involved in this year's NDP somewhere or another, might as well fully exploit it and practice my photography skills..might not be as good as the pros in the forum, but getting close..
Guess this is the only enjoyment I can derive out of my mundane life, besides running..so enjoy them!!!
The solemn wait in the Convention Hall prior to the uncasing of Colours at the foyer
The Colours uncased..now waiting for the long march to the Form-Up Point.
The pace-setters of any parade; the military drummers
The Air Force Guard-of-Honor
The Police Guard-of-Honor
The State Flag flypast, escorted by 4 Apache Attack Helicopters
"Split Now!!!!" Salute to the Nation..
Don't worry, it's not too loud..just enjoy the beautiful flypast..
Commemorating 40 years of NS..We may not remember your sacrifices, but we will never forget.
The mass display
The "jelly fishes" moving out to the floating platformAND
The Highlights of every NDP: The Fireworks Display
Labels: Trips
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Saturday, June 02, 2007
Day Trip to Kota Tinggi and Desaru
[6:37 pm]
After taking over a hundred shots with the D40x and seeing the photo qualities, all I can say is that its awesome!!!!
Well, while on leave yesterday, my friend and I made a day trip up north to Kota Tinggi and Desaru. Kota Tinggi has changed much since I last visited it as a toddler eons ago. It has morphed into a mini water theme park.
As for Desaru beach, this was my first visit there and if you ask me, if ECP is transplanted here, it would sure be an more interesting place and not too sleepy. While the beach was long, 25 km, to be exact, it was also dirty..I don't understand why beach-goers can be so irresponsible and throw stuff like disposable baby diapers and flourescent tubes, yes flourescent tubes there!! What if some of the kids visiting there steps on it?
This is what irks me..all it takes is some irresponsible idiot who cannot walk further to the bin and throw these stuff to spoils the rest of your day. So hopefully our dear neighbour do something about it and clean up the beach..
See pictures below, courtesy of my brand new Nikon D40x:
One of the many beach resorts fronting the beach.
The long, sandy beach beckons..
A flowing river flowing into the blue sea and yes, no container vessels in the horizon, unlike ECP.
The one and only mini natural water-themed park
The upper falls..
The lower falls...
A boy awed by the beauty of the waterfallLabels: Trips
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Sunday, March 04, 2007
Reflections at Bukit Chandu
[5:59 pm]
Instead of studying for my test tomorrow, I drove down to Bukit Chandu to visit the place, since it was the site of our country's last battle.
Actually, to quote from National Heritage Board's website; " Reflections are Bukit Chandu is a World War II interpretative Centre housed in a restored colonial bungalow. Set in lush green surroundings amidst the picturesque Pasir Panjang area, it tells the tale of the Battle of Pasir Panjang on 14 February 1942 when 1,400 brave and valiant soldiers from the Malay Regiment chose to fight to their death against 13,000 Japanese soldiers."
I didn't go in to see the exhibits as I always feel that visits to museums should be free like what it is practiced overseas. Instead, I walked around the perimeter and went on to the canopy walk..the pictures are posted below..enjoy!!!
The entrance from the carpark
The restored Colonial Bungalow with a war mural depicting the last battle at Pasir Panjang Ridge. The exhibits are all inside.
The canopy walk
An expensive Condominium located at the top of the ridge. Don't know how much it costs, but I think it should be pretty expensive judging by the views below from the balcony;
View of Rochester Park..not bad right?
The balcony overlooking the views above
The view from Pt 226. The last point of defence for our heroesLabels: Trips
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Saturday, March 03, 2007
More photos..
[11:27 am]
Just a random post to showcase the photos I took not too long ago..
Photos were taken when I dropped by Cosy Bay to capture the night scenes. As usual, only settings on the exposure and shutter speed were used to captured the images. No flash was used. Enjoy!!! Comments and critics are welcomed..heh..
Labels: Trips
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Sunday, February 25, 2007
Another quality work by yours truly..
[11:10 pm]
the budding amateur photographer..yes yes, Mr Liang as usual will start his story about how bhb I am again..but.."nyah nyah nyah nyah!!!!" wahahaha!!!!
Yup, today I went down to Marina Bay to photograph the fireworks using my newly acquired photography skills...and these are the results..enjoy!!!
Labels: Trips
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Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Another day of photography..
[6:59 pm]
Tip no 1: When on leave, it's always ideal to switch off the mobile..for office will call you even though you are on leave.
Tip no 2: Always apply for overseas leave even if you don't intend to go overseas. Gives you the excuse to be uncontactable and hence do the above-mentioned.
Well, I have finally learnt my lesson from the last time when I applied for local leave and my office people kept calling me for the knick-knacks..how I hate it!!!! When you are on leave, you are supposed to be freeing your body and soul from all the stress-induced shit people throw at you..no wonder so many of us has so many unconsumed leave at the end of the year; people keep pushing you so much that you don't even have time to clear your leave.
Or..you are doing your work even when you are clearing your leave. Why is it that bad? I don't understand. You just can't practically drop everything and go for your leave when it comes..haiz..
To put my mind at ease, I took my trusty Canon A700 camera out to the CBD area to take some pictures. When I have more $$, I will get a Pentax K100D Digital SLR. Or if any of you fellas are feeling rich, I don't mind some sponsorship..hehe..
The CBD skyline
The old buildings (foreground) dwarfed by the new buildings (background)
Victoria Theatre
Victoria Theatre
Connaught Bridge
The imposing skyscrapers of CBDLabels: Trips
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Sunday, February 11, 2007
My Friday night out with..
[10:36 am]
......my camera and tripod!!! I have finally gotten have my lazy butt and made my way down to Marina Bay area to fire up my dormant photography skills.
Even though my camera ain't those digital SLR costing thousands of dollars (I will get one once my skills are better), it is better than those dainty-looking point and shoot cameras we are all used to. I love experimenting with the manual settings, which allows me to decide how the end-product should be.
I spent close to two hours at that area taking close to a hundred shots, in the end, after filtering through them, these are the ones which I think were superby taken..well I am open for comments and guidance, so please unleash your brutal honesty and fire away..
The Esplanade or more affectionately known as The Durian..haha..
The CBD area with Fullerton Hotel in the foreground.
Our national icon; The Merlion
Marina Bayfront Labels: Trips
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