The year in review - Jan to Mar 2006

Yeah... it's time to pop the champagne and don the party hats...

Time say goodbye to the old year and usher in the new.....

In less then 4 hours, it will be 2007.

Where did 2006 go? Didn't I just celebrate it recently? Time doesn't just fly. It zoomed by in a supersonic jetplane.

Is anyone making new year resolutions? I've never really done any New Year resolution. Perhaps because instinctively I know that I wouldn't really follow it through. But losing 2 inches off my ever-increasing waist would be nice.

January 2006
I saw snow for the first time. I was really excited. So much so that I woke up hubby, who was sleeping away soundly. Wonder why we still get excited over such seemingly small things? Perhaps nature has a way of affecting us that we're not even aware of. Isn't this beautiful?
This was part of my FIL's garden, covered in snow.

Rang in the New Year on the Isle of Man. (I just found out that the island is a possession of England. Hmmm... ) After the obligatory round of champagne and well wishes, the whole family was in bed by 12.15am. Very civilised. And yet.. it felt right. It was certainly nice to snuggle up in bed with with hubby, warmed by a few glasses of champagne. I'm either getting old or sentimental...or probably both. Above is photo of my BIL's garden. It's big.

In Scotland for the first time (at least for me), we visited our friend's lovely place by the stream in a small village called Garvald.


It has only a couple of roads and one restaurant/pub/ eating place. The post office opens only ony alternate days I think. And yes, everyone does know everyone.



In Dalrymple, Scotland, we stayed in this lovely 100 years old pub, Kirkton Inn. I feasted on my English breakfast (I wrote about my love for this breakfast here), whereas hubby enjoyed the range of whiskey available there to the fullest.


I was looked upon with much curiosity, though they try to do it as discreetly as possible, unlike Singaporeans, who often gaped at hubby when he ventures into the heartland areas.

Snapped this photo on the beach of Ayr ---->
I read that it gets really crowded during Summer. But on that day in the cold winter, there was only a handful of people out there...mostly walking their dogs.


We (or rather hubby) had to do a lot of driving along what the British call the motorways. I'm always intrigued by the rest stops along these roads. Not only do they provide a welcome break but there always seemed to be so much activities in these stops. They even provide free food and drinks for the travelling pets...but not for the owners though. Hehe!

Instead of flying into the Heathrow airport and spending time in London, we flew to Manchester this time. I like Manchester. Not as buzzing as London perhaps. But that means it was also less stressful. It had a more 'homey' feel.
Salford Quays

One last note before I finish off with Janaury, did you know that Robert Burns was born in Ayr, Scotland? Robert who? Don't know who he is? Perhaps you know this poem?

Red, red rose
O my Luvs's like a red, red rose,
That's newly sprung in June.

No, then perhaps you'll find the song being played on my blog vaguely familiar?

Auld Lang Syne. The song that's played practically everywhere on New Year's Eve. Only that this was the orginal version. If you like this song, you can check out the album here

Auld Lang Syne
Should auld acquaintance be forgot, (Should old aquantaince be forgot)
And never brought to mind? (And never remembered?)
Should auld acquaintance be forgot, (Should old aquantaince be forgot)
And auld lang syne! (For old long ago)

For auld lang syne, my dear (For old long ago, my dear)
For auld lang syne. (For old long ago)
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet, (We will take a cup of kindness yet)
For auld lang syne. (For old long ago)

Lyrics credit: Robert Burn official site

Altogether now......

For auld lang syne, my dear (For old long ago, my dear)
For auld lang syne. (For old long ago)
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet, (We will take a cup of kindness yet)
For auld lang syne.

February
The all important Chinese New Year. I always make it a point to go down to Chinatown. Somehow CNY doesn't seemed like CNY if I don't visit Chinatown and jostle with all the crowd there.




Every year the prices for the BBQ Pork at this particular stall shoot up higher and higher... but the the queue continues to get longer and longer and it starts earlier and earlier. Wonder what time will it start this CNY?



But it is really nicer than the other brands. Yummy!

CNY lunch on the 2nd day is an event I always look forward to. Everyone (including close family friends) comes back for lunch. That means there are about 40 of us cramming inside my grandmother's small flat. It is also introduction time for that girlfriend/ boyfriend..... if it's serious.....
Men on parade...the men in my life...

This year, shortly after CNY, I did one of the craziest thing in my life. I went on a climbing trip. Though I'm not sure I'll do it again, I have no regrets and enjoyed every single minute of it...after it was over and I could sit down and reflect upon it of course. Hehe!




To read about my climb, read Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3


March
Hmm... there was no photos...so no major events. What I didn't do anything special?
But as I read my blog.. I realised I had lunch with one of bestest friend. I worked. I went to the gym. I spent time with hubby.

Sometimes it's a joy to be just normal and ordinary. Doing the routine things can be special too... when you're healthy and am surrounded by loved ones.

The biggest joy of travelling

What are the joys of travelling?

No doubt there are many. That's why we travel.

See new sights
Meet new friends
Taste new food
Discover new customs

What I learn when I'm away in a different country, whether on business or pleasure, short or long...the lessons are invaluable. The joys and pleasure I derived from these visits are immeasurable. I realised just how small I am. The world is infinite. Maybe that's why men have travelled from time infinite.

To quote the Mastercard tagline- "Priceless".

And yet....what is the biggest joy of travelling?

The biggest joy, the best part of any travel is...

coming home

knowing that there's someone waiting for me...

I think that's the best part of travelling.

It's good to be home.

New blog on the block

Not another blog???

Yes, another one.

But this wil be different as it's meant to showcase the various publications and products that I sell. They are mostly from Korea at the moment...books, magazines, posters etc.

Eventually, who knows, it may be extended to other areas.

I've only just put it up over the weekend, so bear with me whilst I slowly, slowly put up the products on the site.

감사합니다!

My new blog:
Tiffany's Attic

Weekends

Finally... I have a little breathing space.

I wanted to blog over the weekend but you know what? As usual weekend is busier than weekday.

I know God created the world and everything else in it in 6 days.

But God didn't have a niece's birthday party to go to...
He didn't have to do the laundry...
Nor sort through all the paperwork...

Sigh...

Actually, I wouldn't complain so much if the weekend has 3 days instead of 2 days. I think 3 days would be just nice and a good balance between work and leisure.

See.. you need the first day to do the things that you have to do... like grocery shopping, banking, laundry etc

You need the second day to do the things you want to do... like going for a play, or watching a movie or going to the gym.

And then finally, you need the third and last day to just rest. You know, chill out? Catch up on lost sleep etc. Laze around at home.

By then, I would be ready to go back to work and slough it out for another 4 days. ^^





The above items belong to this little girl below. My little niece. She turned 1 during the weekend. I don't think she knew what was going on and in fact was a little bewilded by all the fuss and the people. But she loved it when we sang Happy Birthday and she got to blow out the single candle, ^^





I was jogging around the park on Sunday morning when I saw this cat, sitting in a small field, watching the crazy world go by. I think her idea of how a Sunday morning should be spent is absolutely correct!

Old Friends

It was Hari Raya last week. The end of the fasting month for the Muslims. For the last 20 over years, it also provided a time for a group of old friend to meet and catch up Nora's place.

We would all happily eat the spread of food prepared by her mother and talk the whole afternoon away. Sometimes the husbands would come along. But more often than not, after the obligatory first visit, they stay away. Because not only are they clueless about our conversation, they are also rather intimated by the prospect of facing over 10 girls.

The gathering is always very informal. She doesn't send out any formal invitation. It's understood that we're to just turn up somewhere in the afternoon. BUT, this year, she actually sent out invitation via sms. It caught all of us by surprise and was a hot topic of discussion during our gathering. hehe!

I still remember the times we spent together in Biology class. The fun we had in that old fashion lab. Nora, Irene and I were always somewhere at the back and we did fool around abit. I don't think we did a lot of studying but somehow by some miracles, we managed to pass. No doubt due to the fact our teacher was 'fond' of picking on us.

Ahh.. to be 16.

Who cares about study? (Actually we did lah but it's not very cool to say so.)

We did a lot of shopping in Orchard Road.

We ate at MacDonald's (the first MacDonald's opened around then).

There was often some waiting at the school bus stop for a certain number bus at certain time.. because that was when the boys from a certain school nearby would be in it.

Ahh... those were the days.

Over the years, the group of us have grown up... some have found boyfriends, gotten married, gotten divorced, had children. But still, we meet about once a year and catch up. It's good to have friends. ^^


This photo was taken during our prom night when we were 16. It was the first ever prom night for the school and was held in the school grounds. We looked a bit 'biang' hor? But this was more than 20 years ago and we were alot more conservative then. Those of you reading this.. can you recognise yourself? haha! Luckily for me, I think the photo too blur to see me. ^^


Aren't these 2 boys cute? Once upon a time, their mothers were talking about boys. Now they're the mothers of boys. One day soon, these boys will also be looking out for girls.

I Came, I Saw, I (almost) Conquered- part 3

Sorry for not posting the last few days. Long weekends maketh a person lazy. hehe! Hope eveyrone had a wonderful time recharging the last couple of days.

I Came, I Saw, I (almost) Conquered- part 2

I Came, I Saw, I (almost) Conquered- part 1




The beautiful sunrise which I missed.....

Without me to slow down the pace, hubby amazed the guide and overtook about 70% of the other climbers to reach the summit before surmise. He took pictures of dawn breaking over the mountain for me.....

Descending from the summit. Don't you think it looks very 'futuristic' and 'moon-like'?

We started climbing down after 7am. In daylight, I could see properly how the top of the mountain looks like and what I was doing at 3am in the morning. Laban Rata seemed so, very, very far away.

The thought of a warm breakfast was very, very appealing though. With the help of the guide, we were back to Laban Rata by 9am. The hall was already humming with activites and climbers having a toast with each other. I was still feeling every sore with myself for not pushing myself during the final stretch to reach the summit though hubby kept comforting me.

Anyway, there was no time for self pity because we were setting off an hour later for the descent- which meant at least another 6 hours of walking.

The climb down was rather uneventful except for the fact that hubby was amazed at the way I just kept going, almost non-stop. I told that if I stopped any longer than necessary, I'll never make it down. My jelly legs were really very wobbly by then and every muscle was hurting, some in places that I didn't even know I had muscles in.

But we saw some beautiful flowers along the way, including the second largest pitcher plant.

We finally reached Kinabalu Park's HQ by 4pm where we would be staying for another night. I was wincing with pain with every step I took and "walking" like a crab as someone said. Early night that night.....

The next day, we checked out and went to Poring HotSprings, which is also within Kinabalu Park. This place supposedly has hot sulphur springs that's good for soaking aching legs, and surprise, surprise more walks... hahaha!

We only went to the nearest waterfall, which is a very small one and because of the lack of rain, the waterfall was more like a waterwhimper. Lots of butterflies though.

The canopy walkway was supposed to be the highest in Malaysia but with my wobbly legs, I thought it best not to do it lest I fall off the walkway with my crab walk. Hahaha!

NO MORE long walks!!!

We booked a private room with jacuzzi. The facilities in it were a little err.. lacking. The toilet door was falling off. There was no toilet paper. The floor was a little flooded. There were cobwebs in the ceiling. I shan't go on. BUT, the place was spacious and for RM$20, I supposed we can't complain much.

A last view of KK

We were back by 5pm in KK to spend our last night there.

The next day, we were at a lost as to what to do. Our flight wasn't till 9pm at night and there REALLY isn't anything to do in KK itself. Then we spotted these brochures about island hopping. A day on the beach sounds good to us.

And we did not regret it. The water was crystal clear and you can do snorkelling, with lots of fishes to look at. We were told it was even better in the morning. Still, with 3 islands to choose from, there was plenty of space for everyone.... If anyone of you are thinking of going, I would strongly advise to spend the whole day here and either just hop from island to island or laze on one island.

The last boat back to the mainland was at 5pm, with another 2 hours to go, we decided to chill out and a have a drink at the 5 star resort hotel- Nexus Sutera Harbour..

Ahhh... it was a perfect end to a wonderful, memorable, if aching holiday.. Now, if only there was a hunky, young masseur around.

Would we go back to Sabah again? Yes, for the wild life and nature and diving (hubby's interest). To climb Mt Kinabalu again- probably not...

My only regret, as I've said, was not reaching the summit. I wanted to blame this on my age but there were many others, who were obviously older than me, who made it that I can't use this excuse.

So I think I'll blame it on my physical disadvantage- my short legs!

Hahaha!!

Hubby looking longingly at the mountain. One more time?

Me looking very much like a 'pau' and totally unglam whereas hubby was ultra cool. Sigh.. it's so unfair.

I Came, I Saw, I (almost) Conquered- part 2

I Came, I Saw, I (almost) Conquered- part 1

This photo was taken about halfway through our climb. You can see that there's less vegetation because of the altitude.


We started to climb at about 9.30am and it nearly killed me within the first kilometre! The steps were as high as my knees! Added to that, my backpack must have weighed at least 7 kg! And because I thought it would be cold (it will get colder higher up in the mountain), I wore my thermal underwear, only to find myself sweating away profusely as I huffed and puffed my way up. Some parts were relatively easy (by this, I mean the ground was fairly flat) and other parts were tougher (when I couldn't find any cracks to put my feet or the steps were really high). During these tough moments, I would tell hubby in my grumpiest voice: "I'm not doing any more mountain climbing!"
 
But despite my ranting and ravings, the scenery was really, really beautiful, especially when you looked down and beyond and all you see are trees and flowers, and all you hear are the birds and the crickets. I only wished I was fitter and could have enjoyed all these more.

We could see all the other mountains nearby. It was truely a beautiful sight.
 
I must have irritated the guide no end with my most frequently asked question: "How far more to go?"
 
Along the way, we met groups who were either going up or coming down. Besides the Caucasians, the Asians were mainly from Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and of course Malaysia. Basically people from countries where mountain/ hill climbing is the norm. Strangely though, there were no handsome young hunks!!! Where were they? I thought I would be able to meet some handsome young men but all those I met were rather elderly, unless you are interested in young teenagers. (Whoops! hubby is going to kill me for this! hehe!)

Laban Rata...one of the only two accomodation at the top. Not your usual resort...
 
I was never happier when I finally saw Laban Rata, our stop for the night, and if I have the energy, I would have done a little dance. As it was, I could just about drag myself into the hall. By now, it was cold as Laban Rata was 3,353m high. It was about 4.30pm and we've been walking for the last 7 hours. Really all I want to do was to have a cup of tea and a shower.
 
Well, the tea is not a problem but the shower.... was a slight problem
 
Because of the dry season, they had run out of water, so they had to pump more water up from down below. So no water till about 7pm and no hot water either. Also, only two bathrooms will be opened, to be shared amongst all the 100 or so guests, both male and female... But the weather was so cold and the water even colder that nobody took their time in the shower. For me, I was out within 10 mins. Ok, I was probably not very clean, but then neither were all the other 90+ people. Nobody is going to bother.
 
To compensate for the lack of water heater, they had the room heated up and boy, it was really heated up. It was like going from the freezer (after the shower) to the boiling pot (the room). Oh, forgot to say that that they are all dorms (except for 2 VIP rooms which have already been booked). It was 6 people to a room. I've not slept in a dorm for a long, long time. Luckily for us, there was only one other person in our room, which we called the jolly green man, as he was a very big size guy wearing a green t-shirt. Whilst both of us were having a migraine coping with the heat, he had covered himself up completely with a blanket and gone off to bed by 7.30pm. Amazing!
 
Now that I've done all the complaining, hehe, I can quite safely say that the view up there at Laban Rata is beyond description. Just look at the photo.


 
Side note 2: we had bought some beer back during our night stay at Kinabalu Park but could not finish them, so we lugged two cans of Tiger (or rather hubby did) up to the mountain and we were determined not to bring them down with us. We must have looked like two alcoholics to the other guests, who were basically having a cup of very safe tea or coffee.
 
We had our beer after our shower and were in bed by 9pm. We were supposed to set off for the summit at 2.30am, so that means we will have to be up by 1.30am, with about 4 and 1/2 hours of sleep. But it was so hot and stuffy in the room that both of us couldn't really sleep and were up by 1am and went down to the hall for a breath of fresh air. Actually by then, quite a lot of people were already up and about. Considering that there were about 100 of us, sharing 2 bathrooms and 4 toilets, all of us were determined to beat the queue.
 
By 2.30am, we were all wrapped up in our winter wear and armed with our camera, binoculars, water and a torchlight, we met our guide and set off, together with almost everyone. It would be another 1km to the last control station and from there, 1.7km to the summit. To catch the sunrise, we have to be there by 6am.

It was the hardest part of the whole journey.

Not only was I tired with the 7 hours of hard trekking the day before, I was doing the toughest 1km trek in near pitch darkness. A few gave up along the way. At one part, there was nothing to hold on to except the rope. It was pretty scary when all you have is this little torchlight and you are trying to see where to put your next step, knowing full well that if you missed your step, you would be rolling down the mountain. Ok, before I frighten off everyone, it's actually not so bad when it's daylight but when you are tired, hungry and it's dark... every fear is magnified 100 times.

Me hanging on for my dear life... and I'm not joking...
 
By 5am, I had reached the last control check point- Sayat Sayat Hut. This was at 3,668.1m and I have been climbing for more than 2 hours. I just couldn't go on anymore. It will probably be one of my few regrets in life...but I told hubby to carry on without me. I'll wait for him at the hut, where there were 3 other girls huddling together.
 
The hut was really very rundown and it had a musty smell about it. It was also cold but I was too dead tired to care anymore. I fell asleep only to wake up an hour later to find my fingers frozen cold (despite wearing thick gloves). I am definitely not suited to the cold climate!
 
I could see sunrays shining through the windows. Hurray!!!! Dawn at last! I wonder where hubby was and if he made it to the summit in time....
 

妹妹

The woman at the carrot cake stall at 'my' coffeeshop last night made me a very happy person.

When my food was ready, she said: "来，妹妹，你的." *

I haven't been called a 妹妹 for the longest time. Needless to say, I was walking away with a smile on my face. The carrot cake tasted extra delicious.


hahahahahaha!!!!!!

*妹妹- younger sister... a term you use if you don't know that person well and she seems to be younger than you. Like using the term uncle or auntie.

Happy Birthday Julia

Not sure what she is doing now...

Probably shopping in Myeongdong or having lunch in Gorilla or maybe eating one of those delicious cake in O'sulloc. Whatever it is, I'm sure she is having a great time... eating all my favorite food in Korea. See my post here


Or maybe, she's just sipping coffee in one of those posh cafe in Apgujeong...looking out for good looking actors...


Sigh... I know she already saw one yesterday... This man----->







Anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULIA! Many, many happy returns!




And for the other pretty girl.... looking forward to seeing a brand new you soon.... ^^

Just in case you ladies want to have some nice cakes and are reading this blog... check out the KNTO site here

The Plaza Hotel sells specially made Sam Soon and Sam Shik cakes.... yummy....

Can't wait to see you girls and catch up on all the news. : )

生日快乐！


생일 축하합니다!


Happy Birthay!

p/s- Could you please either bring back either my main dish or any of my side dishes....*hoping*

I Came, I Saw, I (almost) Conquered- part 1

I posted this sometime last year, shortly after my 'walking' experience. Whilst going through my emails, I came upon this and decided to post it here, to relive that trip. To those who have read it before, err... maybe you want to read my kimchi blog instead. hehe! ^^

Written on 1st March 2005
Tim and I had a very eventful holiday week (well, it was more eventful for me than for him).

Our interests are quite similar. We both love nature and animals and don't mind going for walks. However, his definition of walk sometimes goes a little further than mine. So when he suggested climbing Mt Kota Kinabalu (which basically, is the highest mountain in SEAsia), I was a little apprehensive. But he assured me, I quote: "No problem, you can do it. Everyone says it's easy!" I have reminded him of this assurance that conned me into going, with every aching opportunity.

We decided to try out one of those budget airline for this trip. We took Air Asia, which was basically ok except for the troublesome fact that you HAVE to travel to Senai airport. We also did not know that it was free seating till we got on the plane and realised that most of the good seats were taken. No wonder everyone was queuing up at the gate earlier! Jetstar and Value Air definitely better but unfortunately, they don't fly to Sabah.

Mt Kinabalu is in Sabah and part of East Malaysia. Compared to Sarawak, Sabah seems less laid back, We covered the national museum and the Bird Sanctuary within one afternoon (frankly speaking, Singapore's Sungei Buloh is much better in terms of birds viewing). The museum is adequate and we spent a very pleasant lunch hour in the park just behind the museum, where they had put up lots of traditional houses. It was a very nice surrounding, except for the Chinese pop music that the guard was blaring away on his radio.


KK is pretty boring but beyond KK, there's lots to do, particularly if you're into nature, adventure or sports. However, the view from our hotel was quite something. And it was a little more happenning along the waterfront..if you are into cafes, food and drinking. View from Hyatt Hotel.

Anyway, after spending 2 rather uneventful nights in KK, we were off to the exciting part of our holiday on Sunday morning. Along the way, we had our first view of Mt Kinabalu. I must say it looks magnificent and rather scarily high.

Mount Kota Kinabalu

We checked into the Kinabalu Park HQ. Kinabalu Park, with Mt Kinabalu within it, is Malaysia's 1st world heritage site. There are beautiful lodgings at the Park's HQ and most climbers will stay for at least a night here before starting off for the climb the next day. The room is spacious, roomy though a little basic. But the views more than made up for it.

Hill Lodge- one of the accomodation at the Park

The park has hundreds of wild orchids, including the world's smallest orchid, as well as numerous pitcher plants and the famous, rare Rafflesia. It has beautiful and vast biodiversity, ranging from the lowland rainforest to the bare granite. The temperature ranges from the normal tropical 30's deg C to the freezing cold of below 0 deg C. There are also many trails that you can wonder on your own (in case you are not crazy enough to attempt the mountain) and we tried out one on our own in the afternoon. Although on hindsight, I should have just stayed put inside our lodgings and enjoy the view as I would be walking ALOT the following 2 days.

The view of the mountain right outside our front door was a sight to behold! At night, the sky was brilliantly clear and you could see all the stars as well as the beautiful moon. Definitely cannot get that kind of view in Singapore. Sigh....

View of the mountain from outside our room
The next morning we were off at about 8.30am. The summit trail starts at the Timpohon Gate, which is 1,829m high. Our guide must have thought I was very fit because he began to walk at a rather fast pace (well, fast for me anyway. Considering that for every step he took, I have to take two steps!)

Oh, before I continue, just a few things to point out.

A) We have to get a guide as well as a permit.

B) We have to carry our own luggage on the 6km trek up the mountain to our next lodging for the night before the final summit. That means no unnecessary stuff like toner, cleanser, cosmetic etc.... But you have to carry the necessary things like warm clothes (temp is below zero on the summit), raincoat (it can rain within minutes), and lots of water! Bottled water costs about 5 times as much up there because they are carried all the way up by the locals who are paid about RM$3 per kilo for food. Some of these porters wear only slippers and they cover 12 km within an afternoon- up and down to Laban Rata, the lodging in the mountain!

C) If you really, really do not want to carry your own barangs- barangs, you can hire a porter to do it for you. Cost RM$7 per kilo. But then why attempt to climb the mountain if you are going to pay someone to carry your things?

Side note: One of the list of things to bring was toilet paper and dear hubby brought along a big, fat, brand, new roll, thinking that we would need it throughout the whole 4 days. Turned out we only need it at Laban Rata. So this very special roll of toilet paper has been to Mt Kinabalu and back. hahaha!

These porter are amazing. They walk up the mountain in shorts and slippers, carrying heavy stuff like water and food for Laban Rata, the only accomodation up in the mountain. Whilst we take about 7 to 8 hours to do this trail, dressed in protective gear, often armed with a walking stick and with many rest stops, these porters take only about slightly more than an hour to do so. Incredible!

How much is that doggie in the.... moon

Well, I was looking forward to looking at a nice, big,round, clear moon on Friday night and what do I get? A hazy, blurry moon. The $%34#@&^ haze from Indonesia had made everything all hazy. So instead of a nice romantic-filled night, gazing at the moon, it became a let's-light-the-lanterns-now-and-shut-the-the windows quick night.

Well.... I was determind to light my lanterns, which I was really looking forward to... so...


Hubby thought I was overdoing it a bit. Really meh? But it's only four lanterns what? Not many right? Afterall, mid-autumn festival comes only once a year. :p

Actually, I would have loved to light up this lantern which I bought especially. This is the old fashion type that I grew up with. Made of cellophane, it's brightly coloured and came in all sorts of shapes and models. It's still being sold nowadays but not as common anymore. Most parents buy their children the safer version- electric bulbs. Personally, I think having a lantern without candles...just isn't a lantern. Oh... I didn't light this lantern in the end as I noticed that holder was too near the bodyframe. The whole lantern would have gone up in flames if I did.

Not that the other lanterns didn't. Went up in flames that is.

Oh yeah... I almost burned down our balcony as one of the paper lanterns caught fire. It was hubby to the rescue as I was just flapping my arms and going:" ohh... ohh.... fire....fire." Good thing I didn't go: "Ottoke? Ottoke?"

I know, I know, not very helpful and bright right? Luckily, there wasn't much damage. Whew! And that was really the end of the Mid-Autumn festival.

If you want to know more about this festival, you can go to Jos's post. She's written a comprehensive post on this subject. ^^

Sad to say, the haze was just as bad on Saturday...bleah....

Luckily, it cleared on Sunday and we went to the this Dog event organised by the SPCA held at the Bishan Park. hehe! The dogs are so cute.. Well..actually, the owners are just as cute. hehehe!















But I really like this dog.. I'm sure Julia will agree with me. hehehe!



Oh... what's the dog got to do with the moon?

Hubby insists there's no rabbit or moon fairy on the moon... only cheese. You will have to watch Wallace and Gromit- A Grand Day Out to know what I'm talking about.

From the official W&G site:















Btw, the song that I'm playing now is called "月亮代表我的心”(The moon represents my heart) by Teresa Teng. It's a classic that's been sung many times by other singers But just like Moon River, the original version is still the best. Teresa's voice is crystal clear.

For those still eating their mooncakes (and you know who you are), remember, too many round mooncakes maketh a round body.

hehehe!