sunshine through the fog

It's long overdue. This being the 3rd trip we took to this year.

I'm just too lazy. Some photos...

 

But first, the specs:

What: Packaged tour

Where: South Kore

When:  22 ~ 29 Oct 2007

Who: Us

How: Korea Air (sigh... part of package)

 

Food Glorious Food.. How much we ate... 

 

Bibimbap, kimchi, bibimbap, kimchi, porridge, kimchi, bbq pork chicken pork chicken, kimchi kimchi,more kimchi, steamboat, kimchi, breakfast buffets, kimchi kimchi kimchi, spicy fried nian gao + bbq chicken, kimchi... 

 

And one of my fav - the ginseng chicken. They add mee sua in theirs - slightly thicker than what we're used to in sg but ooo so yummy... I wish they do that here... 

 

One of the items on the itinerary was an hour-long shopping thing at some underground mall that was so decrepit and stuffy we popped out after 10 mins. And what a wise decision that turned out to be!

Discovered this quaint little fish market selling all sorts of kimchi, weird-looking sea/river creatures, and even whole pig heads sitting on countertops! How convenient for ah-longs. "Hmmm... this looks nice and fresh. Just the right size and facial expression. It'd look mighty good hanging on xxx's door!" :p

 

 Also chanced upon this really adorable ah ma on the streets of jeju selling what I've always wanted to try - those dip-stick-into-soup-pot thinggies! Been wondering what they are everytime I watch those Korean dramas. Guess?  It's actually sticks of fish cake! Kinda like the 甜不辣 in Taiwan. They also have this deep fried pastry thing that's like our ham jin piang but instead of red bean, they're filled with some sort of caramel mix. Very very addictive. Regretted not buying more. Hee...

 

 And of course, beautiful maple leaves, scenery + lotsa touristy touristy stuff...

 

 

 Last but not least, our favourite pose...

 

During last week's team training, one of the warm-up qns was "Who (in our team) has travelled to the most countries?"

Definitely not me... Our boss has been to 30 countries! Nevertheless, prompted me to tally my own "score". Just to see how far behind I am. :p

Apac

(1) Australia (Gold Coast, Perth)

(2) Cambodia (Phnom Penh, Siem Reap)

(3) China (Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Zhuhai)

(4) Hongkong & Macau (ahem...)

(5) Japan (Hokkaido, Tokyo)

(6) Malaysia (JB, KL, PJ, Ulu Yam, Malacca, Penang, Genting, Sibu, Tioman, Langkawi)

(7) Indonesia (Bintan)

(8) Taiwan

(9) Thailand (Bangkok, Hatyai, Phuket, Songkhla)

(10) Vietnam (Hanoi, Halong Bay, Sapa)

Europe

(11) UK (London, Oxford, Bath)

(12) Austria (Salzburg, Innsbruck, Vienna)

(13) France (Paris)

(14) Holland (Amsterdam)

(15) Italy (Florence, Venice, Rome)

(16) Switzerland (Luzerne, Interlaken, Zurich, Basel, Geneve)

(17) Vatican City


Sheesh... I'm still a long long long way behind... :(

19 March 2007 8:10pm Hanoi time 

We spent SGD54 preparing for the chill in Sapa. On these:-

•  A thick bomber jacket for him
•  A thick bomber jacket for me
•  A light sweater for him
•  A light sweater for me
•  A pair of gloves for him
•  A pair of gloves for me
• A woollen cap for me, just in case

 

Nothing on souvenirs. A few bucks on snacks for the train ride later.

 

Hope we don't get scary people sharing the cabin later overnight. Nor on the return trip.

 

P.S. Halong Bay was terrific!

17 March 2007 7:40pm Hanoi time 

 

Landed at Noi Bai last night straight into a light drizzle... That hasn't stopped yet.

 

We packed for Singapore-like weather.

 

What I wore today: tank top, 3/4 pants, slippers. And a jacket, just in case.

 

The weather today: 18 °C

 

:s

26 Jun 2006 (Mon) Rainy

Long long long flight. Didn't sleep a wink the whole 13 hours. Why I dislike flying. Envy those people who sleep through flights. Makes the dreary journey literally fly by so much faster. Not for me. I either stay wide awake or if I do manage to doze off, it'd be time to wake soon again for a meal or arrival. But I digress.

Drizzling. Landed at Heathrow early but can't debark as the landing dock was occupied. Waited nearly an hour on the plane on land. Customs and luggage retrieval took forever. By the time I finally walked out and looked around for the chauffeur, nothing. I've a bad feeling he's left. And I'm right. Called the car company. They'd send another driver but, more waiting.

Enthusiastic driver took me on a mini tour of London city. Appreciate the gesture but too tired to enjoy it. Reached apartment, rest a bit and ventured out to look for food and water (tap water here tastes weird). Cold. Still drizzling. I thought it's summer? Why's it so cold then?

Wandered around Canary Wharf. Found some chicken place for dinner then Waitrose to buy groceries. Lugged a dozen mineral water back myself. Heavy. Arms ache hands pain.

Cold. Miserable. Pathetic. Alone.

I miss my darling.

And to round off a fabulous day, no hot water for my bath.


27 Jun 2006 (Tue) Sunny

First day in office. Worked. Returned to apartment. Slept.

I miss my darling.


28 Jun 2006 (Wed) Sunny

Woke. Went office. Worked. Returned to apartment. Slept.

I miss my darling.


29 Jun 2006 (Thu) Sunny

Woke. Went office. Worked.

Went for drinks with colleagues at Bar 38. Left at 9+ as I started shivering from the cold while everyone else seemed to be enjoying the nice english summer weather. Starving since haven't had dinner. These people don't seem need for food when there's beer.

Ta-pao'd Burger King for dinner. Not nice - Singapore's better. I wanna have mushroom swiss when I'm back!

I miss my darling.


30 Jun 2006 (Fri) Sunnier

Woke. Went office. Worked.

Met Dingyang and Shiyan for dinner. Tube was so so so crowded. Scary.

Went Chinatown for dinner. Funny. Come London eat exorbitant zi cha.

I miss cooking for my darling.


01 Jul 2006 (Sat) Trés Sunny

Took the Thames Clipper ferry on advice of an English colleague. Very nice. Much better than the tube. More expensive but well worth it.

The tube's a moving oven. Sardines packed in the summer heat with no airconditioning and minimal ventilation. It also has different parts of the line down almost everyday. Test of tube map reading skills and coming up with different ways of getting from A to B. Surprised as didn't remember it was that bad. Really appreciate our MRT now.

National Gallery. Spent a leisurely 2 hours strolling around and attending a (free) guided tour. Very nice. Apart from the blistered feet from getting lost previously.

Covent Garden. People people people everywhere. Lunch alone at courtyard restaurant. Wish my darling were here with me.

Met DY+SY & friends to watch the England v Portugal match. Thought it's a good opportunity to experience the atmosphere, especially given England's widely thought to be a shoo-in. (Alas!) Pub at New Bond Street. Very crowded but we managed to get seats in front of the screen! At one point (when Portugal missed the first penalty) a few of them were so happy they jumped up, hopped around and hugged each other. Very violent. Dangerously near me. As soon as it ended, friend said to quickly leave. In case the drunken and disappointed turn aggressive and we get embroiled...

Went Chinatown for dinner. Funny. Come London eat exorbitant malay food.

Watched the France v Brazil match at a Soho Pub.

It's been a long while since I've watched a complete football match. And today I watch TWO, in London, on the day that England lost to Portugal for the third time, in penalty shootout. My heart goes out to them.

Went Chinatown for supper. Funny. Come London eat exorbitant chinese dessert.

Arrived back in apartment past midnight. Surprisingly quite a few security guards still milling around Canary Wharf. Still feel relatively safe. Fortunately.

I wish my darling were here walking back hand in hand with me.


02 Jul 2006 (Sun) Trop Sunny

Trés fatiguée. Can barely drag myself out of bed.

Met up with Ros at Camden Town. Camden market was a colourful place with colourful people and lotsa little stalls. A huge ang-moh pasar malam. Didn't buy anything but was fun looking around and absorbing the festive mood.

Went to a nearby Belgium restaurant for mussel and fruit beer. Strawberry beer for me. Passion fruit beer for Ros. Very nice. Very palatable especially for the girly tastebuds. Wonder whether it's available in Sgp. Must go back and look for it at belgium restaurants back home. Mussels were yummy too. :) One of the better meals I've had since I arrived.

British museum. Focus - Egyptian Mummies. Thought it might be rather morbid but not really. Quite fascinating. Amused by the mummification of animals. Especially the one of this big bird with a minuscule head. very funny looking.

I wish my darling were here laughing at the silly birdie with me.


03 Jul 2006 (Mon) Sunny

Trés trés fatiguée. Can barely drag myself out of bed.

Woke. Went office. Worked. Returned to apartment. Slept.

I miss my darling.


04 Jul 2006 (Tue) Sunny

Woke. Went office. Worked.

Decided to treat myself to a nice dinner (on company expense of course :p) on my last night in London. Opted for the Plateau Bar & Grill as it's near my apartment and seems decent.

Very good choice it turned out to be. I opted for the 2 courses menu prix fixe. Starter was a salad I've been wanting to try for the longest time - buffalo mozzarella with tomato and fresh basil. Delish. The slightly bitter basil was a perfect accompaniment with the salty cheese and sweet tomato. Drizzled with some olive oil (I think) dressing, it's a nice and light salad to begin the meal with.

The salmon a la pancha (main course) was exquisite. Definitely one of the best I've ever had. The skin was crisp and savoury but the meat done just right, barely crossing the border between sashimi and grilled. The sauce tasted vaguely of teriyaki and wine but surprisingly not boring. It was accompanied by aubergine caviar (not bad - goes well with the fish) and fig caviar (interesting taste but a bit too sweet for my palate). All in all, very much to my liking. *yum*

The waiters were very friendly. At least 3 of them stopped to talk to me and asked me how's everything. Perhaps because I look lonely - a young (still!) chinese girl having dinner all alone in a noisy chic restaurant? One of them even brought me a fresh fig to try as I told him in passing I've never had it before. Cool huh? It was not bad either. I like the fresh one better than the cooked caviar/jam more like.

I miss my darling were here to taste the fabulous food with me.


05 Jul 2006 (Wed) Sunny + Noon Drizzle

Woke. Checked out. Went office. Worked.

Rushed off from the office at 615 - worried late for the car and the driver won't wait for me (again!). Reached apartment at 630 sharp. Slight jam on way to airport.

France vs Portugal. 1-0

I'm seeing my darling soon...

Singapore home I come! :)


06 Jul 2006 (Thu) Sunny

~ Home Sweet Home ~

Here begins the log of the 2nd lap of our Cambodia trip. Sorry I took so long - been feeling under the weather and... I admit, inevitable sloth. :p

I've also decided to divert from the original intention of separating this travel log into two, by the town we visited. On second thoughts though, considering the length, numerous photos, richness of Angkor and personal propensity for procrastination, the blog for this trip's gonna be split into 3 parts - Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Ankor. As a result, the entries might not run in chronological order as obviously, Siem Reap and Angkor are inextricably interlaced. However, that's something we all have to live with. As with so many other things in life...

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21 Oct 2005 (Friday) pm ~ Rainy

Reached Siem Reap town slightly after 1pm - the Mekong Express is pretty prompt and on-time. I approve. Instantly mopped by the moto/remorque touts on descent from the bus. I was rather taken aback and, what with the "security guards" holding back the over-zealous beings, wacking them on the leg with canes, I momentarily caught a very very mere glimpse of what being a celebrity might feel like. *smirk*

We were met by a remorque driver sent by Sokha, who couldn't make it there himself and were safely transported to our hotel - Borei Angkor - without too much hassle or trauma. Wanted to upgrade as we realised the room we booked was in the old wing but unfortunately, the deluxe rooms in the brand new main building were all fully taken up. Apparently, the peak season's near and it's a popular hotel. Oh well, we got a good deal on the Standard room rate courtesy of Sharonne, so we shan't complain. It's a decent hotel with very friendly, helpful staff and the room's clean, albeit a bit old.

Took a remorque down to the Old Market area for some shopping and makan. Had lunch at the Blue Pumpkin - highly recommended by Ruiming who was there a month before moi. Loved the decor - very clean, modern, minimal and comfy. Upstairs indoors is nicer - airconditioned and with huge white couch/beds to sit on (see photo). You can tell right away it's a tourist haven, for resting of tired feet, flipping of travel guides to decide on the next destination, hide away from the blazing Angkor sun and a nice spot of essential body nourishment. On the right's our favourite dish - Amok Fish Ravioli. Amok is a popular Cambodian curry which is steamed instead of boiled and is solid, but moist. Here is a twist to the traditional dish which marries the Amok with pasta, a totally fantalicious union. We enjoyed it so much we went back again two nights later, ordering the same thing! We tried the burger too - not fantastic, not great. Not advisable to try unless you have serious craving for american-style burger.

Siem Reap's a small provincial capital that prospered from its proximity to the pride of Cambodia - Angkor Archaeological Park. Nestled between rice paddies and stretched along the Siem Reap River, the town is actually a cluster of old villages, which originally developed around individual pagodas, and later overlaid with a French colonial-era center. It now serves as a gateway to millennium-old temple ruins of Angkor, offering numerours hotels, guesthouses, restaurants, pubs and shops. Personally I prefer Siem Reap to Phnom Penh as I find the people friendlier, the pace more laidback, and buzzing with Angkor preoccupation with names of most establishments derivatives in one way or another of the temples of Angkor. It's touristy but hey, that's their main revenue generator and it's quaint in a corny cliched manner.

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24 Oct 2005 (Monday) ~ Sunny

After two days traipsing from temple to temple and with Angkor Wat left as the grand finale, we decided to spend a large part of our last full day in Cambodia experiencing traditional Cambodia with a morning boat trip on Tonle Sap Lake and buffet dinner watching Apsara dance performances.

Tonle Sap

The Tonle Sap Lake, 30 minutes south of Siem Reap, is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the world, cyclically swelling from 2500km² to more than 12,000 km² in the wet season. Floating fishing villages dot the semi-submerged forest that lines the flood plane rim of the lake, offering an excellent place to see lakeside rural Cambodia, and a unique ecosystem rich with birds and other wildlife.





The lake is so large that when we reach its centre, it's difficult to differentiate the horizon from that of the sea's. Kids roll towards you from cute little basin-like contraptions - to ask for money. At once offputting and saddening at the same time...





A small fish farm we visited - snake-head fish (on the left) and crocodiles (on the right).



After the boat trip, we went to the Old Market for a last spot of shopping and lunch before going back to the hotel for a rest. Angkor Wat in the afternoon! But that's in Part III... :p

Apsara Dance

Innumerable apsaras - celestial dancers - adorn the walls of many of the Angkorian temples. Their earthly counterparts performed traditional dances for the kings, and these dances have been passed down through the ages. For our last night in Cambodia, we decided this experience should be part of ours to keep. So, on recommendation from Sharonne, Khorn sent us to Bayon II restaurant amidst thundering skies and pouring rain. Frankly, it looks very much like the Thai dance performances to me, especially the headdress and moves etc. But apparently, according to Khorn, Apsara dancers have to start training from a very young age so as to make their bodies, especially their hands very very flexible. Oh well... The photos are not of very good quality as it was at night and the lighting wasn't fantastic. Hey, at least the downpour relented enough in time for the performance...

By the way, just an aside on what happened that night before the performance. Khorn's really very nice - invited us to his home for a drink and chat after Angkor Wat. Rather enjoyable, really. However, on arrival, turned out the place is full from tourist groups. We had to virtually beg for them to accomodate us, which was really silly as it's a buffet so for them, there's no additional cost at all! And there're only the two of us, it's raining cats and dogs and we told our remorque driver to pick us up there after the performance so we couldn't leave anyway. Anyway, in the end they "reluctantly" sat us at a corner of a long table of french tourists. Ravenous us couldn't wait to get to the buffet table - someone's obviously happy. :D

Finally I see Ta Phrom. After seeing a photo at the National Arts Museum last year of the jungle temple, I simply couldn't get it out of my mind... So happy I've finally done it and gone to see the real thing...

So, here's my first photo log. All in all we took 800+ photos. After editing, I'm left with 686 of them. Impossible to show them all here, you'd probably start dozing off soon and the site might not be able to take it anyway, but I'll do my best to capture the "essence" of it all. :D If you're sincerely interested in seeing all the photos, just leave me a comment/email/sms/msn and I'd be delighted to share them with you!

Oh, I'm gonna do this in 2 parts so you don't have to wait too long for it! ;>

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18 Oct 2005 (Tuesday) ~ Sunny

Arrived at Siem Reap airport at 1005 local time. Short punctual flight. My favourite kind. It's the smallest plane I've ever been on though (Silkair MI622 Airbus A320) - quaint, huh? ;>

Our remorque driver, Sokha, picked us up at the airport and drove us to buy tickets for the 12:30 Mekong Express to Phnom Penh (PP) (USD6 per pax). Spent a boring hour plus at the hot, mosquito buzzing place waiting for the bus to go. Meanwhile, self-entertained with some photo-taking.

Apparently, overcrowding's a common scene atop motorbikes in Cambodia - sometimes as many as 5 people on one. In this case, one man and 3 huge pigs.




Look at these calendar girls!
Recognise them???

Yes. I was very tickled. :p

Hot, bored Joo drinking very expensive bottled water (USD0.50 per bottle).



On the bus finally! And so begins our 5 and a half hours bus ride to PP.

The bus is not too bad - provides cold towel (didn't use), bottled water (recycled bottles!!!) and "lunchbox" containing some bread. Though a long tiring ride, it's pretty interesting what we saw along the road - a glimpse of rural life, of which we'd not get to see if we'd flown to PP.







Finally reached PP at 6pm. Felt later though as the sky was pretty dark by then. Mopped by remorque/cab/moto drivers at the bus station on arrival. A mini price war ensued (amidst themselves) and we got ourselves a ride to our guesthouse - California 2 at Sisowath Quay - for USD0.50. The guesthouse is actually just down the road anyway.

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19 Oct 2005 (Wednesday) ~ Sunny

Decided to fulfill most, if not all, the touristy sightseeing today. Rented a remorque (same one we used the night before) for the day for USD12.

A short summary of the places we went:-

Choeng Ek Memorial (Killing Fields)

From April 17, 1975 until January 7, 1979, the ultra-Communist Khmer Rouge (i.e. Red Khmer) regime, led by Pol Pot, controlled the whole of Cambodia. Under the Khmer Rouge regime the country was known as ‘Democratic Kampuchea.’ During the short reign of the Khmer Rouge, between one million and two and a half million Cambodians perished, some killed outright, others dying from disease, malnutrition, neglect and mistreatment. Many of the dead ended up in various ‘killing fields’ that can be found scattered across the country. The killing field were essentially ad hoc places of execution and dumping grounds for dead bodies. The memorial at Choeung Ek just outside Phnom Penh was an orchard and a Chinese cemetery prior to 1975. During the Khmer Rouge regime it became one of the killing fields - this particular killing field is the site of the brutal executions of more than 17,000 men, women and children, most of whom first suffered through interrogation, torture and deprivation in the S-21 Prison (Toul Sleng) in Phnom Penh. Choeung Ek is now a group of mass graves and a memorial stupa containing thousands of skulls.

I find it a bit too morbid for me so I didn't go in. Joo did, and took some pictures of the skulls, which I've decided not to show here. If anyone's interested, just google it and you'll find lotsa photos floating around.

Toul Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21)

Prior to 1975, Toul Sleng was a high school. When the Khmer Rouge came to power it was converted into the S-21 prison and interrogation facility. Inmates were systematically tortured, sometimes over a period of months, to extract confessions, after which they were executed at the killing fields of Choeung Ek. S-21 processed over 17,000 people, seven of whom survived. The building now serves as a museum, a memorial and a testament to the madness of the Khmer Rouge regime. Much has been left in the state it was when the Khmer Rouge abandoned it in January 1979. The prison kept extensive records, leaving thousands of photos of their victims, many of which are on display. Paintings of torture at the prison by Vann Nath, a survivor of Toul Sleng, are also on display.

Russia Market (Phsar Toul Tom Poung)

No pics taken. It's basically just a tourist souvenir market.

Independance Monument

The Independence Monument (Vimean Ekareach) was inaugurated in 1958 to celebrate Cambodia’s independence from foreign rule. It now also serves as a monument to Cambodia’s war dead. It is the site of celebrations and services on holidays such as Independence Day and Constitution Day.

Nothing much. We just passed by and took a photo from the remorque.

Central Market (Phsar Thmei)

This unique, art-deco building is a Phnom Penh landmark. Prior to 1935 the area was a swamp/lake that received the runoff during the rainy season. The lake was drained and the market constructed in 1935-37. Wet season flooding in the area around the market is a vestige of the old lake.

This was taken from the top level foodcourt of modern Shopping Centre Sorya behind the Central Market. Come to think of it, it's the most modern building I've seen there during my whole time in Cambodia. In case any of you are wondering, the round yellow building with four "arms" right at the centre of the photo is the Central Market. On the right's another pic from another angle - I think that's the Royal Palace at the corner but don't take my word for it. :p

Wat Phnom

A small hill crowned by an active wat (pagoda) marks the legendary founding place of the Phnom Penh. The legend of the founding of Wat Phnom is tied to the beginnings of Phnom Penh. Legend has it that in 1372 Lady Penh (Yea Penh) fished a floating Koki tree out of the river. Inside the tree were four Buddha statues. She built a hill (‘phnom’ means ‘hill’) and a small temple (wat) at what is now the site of what is now known as Wat Phnom. Later, the surrounding area became known after the hill (Phnom) and its creator (Penh), hence ‘Phnom Penh.’ The current temple was last rebuilt in 1926. The large stupa contains the remains of King Ponhea Yat (1405-1467) who moved the Khmer capital from Angkor to Phnom Penh in 1422.

And this kitty cat's just posing, staring at us most intently, absolutely begging to be in our camera. So we obliged. :)


And this is just to show how cool and happy we are. :p

Boeung Kak Lake

Formerly home to families returning to Phnom Penh in the 80’s and early 90’s, the lake area has more recently acquired a reputation as a haven for intrepid backpackers, Phnom Penh’s equivalent of Thailand’s Khao San Road . The street is ripe with a plethora of inexpensive guest houses, too numerous to name and a full range of services geared to the budget traveller, including Internet shops, money-changers, a mini-mart and travel agents sporting low fares to Vietnam, Thailand, Laos and beyond.

We spent nearly 3 hrs (not entirely intentional, but better not to dwell on that) at the Lazy Fish Guesthouse. It's a cosy, friendly place on the edge of Boeung Kak Lake, pushed right to the end of a dirt road crammed full of backpacker's bars, restaurants and guesthouses. Drink prices were not so exorbitant and we enjoyed a nice relaxing time sitting by the lake just sipping our orange juice and simply taking in the view from the veranda while waiting for the sunset. Free pool, laid back atmosphere, hammocks and cambodia tv at the back. Good place to unwind after a hectic day of sightseeing.

Sunset at Boeung Kak Lake. We were so bored waiting for Wandi (our remorque driver for the day - no sense of punctuality at all!) we just kept taking photos. This is the best of the lot, according to Joo.

All in all, a very nice day indeed.

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20 Oct 2005 (Thursday) ~ Sunny with slight drizzling

It's a beautiful day. The view from the balcony outside our "river view room" (USD20 per night) greets us cheerfully and we decided to start the glorious day with a walk along the river front. Staying at a guest house along the pub stretch has this advantage - view of the confluence of the Mekong and the Tonle Sap just across the street.

Originally planned to visit some more touristy places that are within walking distance of our guesthouse. However, on second thoughts, decided that we're not in the mood for museums and artifacts. So we went on a walking tour of these places and just took photos from the outside. Cheapo, but what the heck. It's our holiday. We should be able to decide what we want or not want to do / see. ;) Out of "respect" for them, here're the exterior pics and what they're inside (supposedly).

Wat Ounalom

Wat Ounalom is the most important Wat of Phnom Penh, and the center of Cambodian Buddhism. It was built in 1443 to keep a hair of the Buddha. Before the Khmer Rouge emptied Phnom Penh in 1975, more than 500 monks used to live at the Wat. The Khmer Rouge killed the abbot and a large number of monks and vandalized the buildings and their treasures. After the Vietnamese invasion on 1979 the Wat was restored, and today again serves as the center of Cambodian Buddhism.

National Museum of Art

The distinctive rust-red National Museum next to the Royal Palace was dedicated by King Sisowath in 1920. Over 5000 objects are on display including Angkorian era statues, lingas and other artifacts, most notably the legendary statue of the ‘Leper King.’ Though the emphasis is on Angkorian artifacts, there is also a good collection of pieces from later periods, including a special exhibition of post-Angkorian Buddha figures.

Royal Palace and ‘Silver Pagoda’

The Royal Palace was built in 1866 under the French protectorate and King Norodom, though many of the buildings in the complex were added over the following decades.

The ‘Silver Pagoda’ (Wat Preah Keo Morokat) is the city’s most often visited pagoda because of its display of priceless historical objects. It draws its name from the over 5000 silver tiles which cover the floor of the vihear.

In between taking photos for above, we visited the famous Friends Restaurant(Mith Samlanh) - a cheerful tapas restaurant run as part of a program to teach street youth marketable skills. At the back of the restaurant is the actual school itself. We cannot go in but can see the kids running aroung playing - quite heart-warming.
It's a good place to hide from the fiery noon sun. We spent a good 2~3 hrs there sipping our lovely colourful drinks, reading, chilling, taking "thoughtful" photos and having lunch. Good food, friendly staff. Slightly pricey but hey, it's for a good cause. Highly recommended. There's also a souvenir shop right next to the restaurant selling stuff made, I presume, by these same youths. Staff not as friendly as those in the restaurant though.

We spent the "savings" on the entrances fees to the 3 places of interest on a Khmer massage. Very relaxing. Unlike other massages I've been to. They use the snake powder instead of essential oil / lotions. The technique is different - they don't "knead" but instead adopt a more "grab and release" motion. Twists you slightly into weird positions to stretch - not unlike a thai massage, but not the same. I gather you get the drift - it's difficult to explain in words. What matters is that it's not bad at all and also very reasonably priced - USD6 per hour. I likey. :D


Tonle Sap River

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21 Oct 2005 (Friday) am ~ Sunny

Woke up early to take the 7:30am Mekong Express back to Siem Reap. Were told that the bus would pick us up outside the guesthouse at 7am so we were down there waiting by 6:50. Turned out they played us out and "forgot" they had to pick us up so we had to spend USD1 to take a remorque down to the bus station. Oh well, minor travel mishaps.



Another 5.5 hrs ride. This time, luckily we got to sit at the same side of the bus as when we came so we get a view of the other side of the road. Hahaa... Small little self-consolations. Again took lotsa photos to entertain myself while Joo read (I can never read in buses - I'd get terribly sick and nauseous).

Here's my fav of the lot:

This was an accidental shot - I forgot to "unzoom" the camera. But the accidental effect's very nice, huh? Can see his dimples, very nice smile. And my hair on his shoulder at the side. Sigh... I'm a genius. Hahaahaaa...

Bye bye Phnom Penh.

Hello Siem Reap & Angkor...



{to be continued...}

Departure: 30 May 2005
Arrival: 13 Jun 2005

30 May 2005 (Monday) ~ Sunny

Flight delayed slightly. Turbulent flight - it occurred to me at various points of the trip - should I have taken SQ instead?

Safe arrival. I recognised Weiche (almost, uncertainly) but he didn't. I changed more than him?

Lunch at Metrowalk mall food court - pork ribs noodle soup.

Went to his place, watched tv with his parents and brother.

Dinner was 夜市小吃 - 盐酥鸡, 黑轮, 盐酥菇, 卤味.

31 May 2005 (Tuesday) ~ Sunny

Morning: Stayed in while Weiche's mom prepared the ritual for the official moving in of the house.

Afternoon: Visited 新竹 with Weixiu (Weiche's younger brother). Went shopping around the train station as well as Taiwan's top 2 universities - 兴华大学 & 交通大学. So much walking. Fulfilled the week's quota of exercise. Hee...

Evening: Met up with 世晃 and his girlfriend, Joyce. Went to watch 萤火虫. As it's too late, didn't manage to see many. Saw a total of 11. Not too bad. At least not total wasted trip. My first 萤火虫 sighting. :)

01 June 2005 (Wednesday) ~ Slight rain

Today I'm staying home as online support for NSL FINC - monthend closing. Anyway, after all the walking done yesterday, it's good to take a rest.

Went out exploring during lunchtime hoping to grab some lunch. Result: nothing. There's nothing here. The "Homebox" shopping complex Weiche and Weixiu told me about turned out to be a DIY home depot. This pair of Taiwanese brothers need lotsa female education. *rolls eyes* :P

Surf net, watch crap taiwanese tv, read, nuah nuah nuahz...

Kinda like this aloneness though. It's refreshing and a welcome rest.

Must remember to buy more instant noodles to stock up.

Near midnight - my first experience of earthquake. Luckily it's a minor one in the 中壢 area - 3.0 on the richter scale. I heard it's 6.0 on the richter scale in other areas!

02 June 2005 (Thursday) ~ Breezy, Drizzle

Nuahz day again... {NSL month-end final close - I'm online support for them again}

03 June 2005 (Friday) ~ Rainy

After 2 days of life as a pseudo-Taiwanese housewife, it's about time I venture out on my own!

Agenda: Shopping!
Location: 西门町, 台北

Took a train from 中壢 railway station to Taipei. It took only 40 mins via 自强号 - the fastest line (TWD162 for return tickets). Then from Taipei station, took the mrt to 西门.

Conquests {or was I conquered? hmmm... :p}: 2 pairs of shoes (bargain!!!), 1 dress, 1 jacket, 5 tops (2 for mom, 2 for me, 1 for bro). I only had NT68 left in my pocket by the end of my shopping extravaganza. Should have charged more items to credit e.g. the NT2980 dress - regretted. Oh well, I can alway go atm withdraw, I guess.

Rained heavily from time I left the house to 4:30pm though - such a hassle, had to take a brolly while shopping around. Heard from cab-driver that it's because typhoon is coming!

Weiche said suddenly all these phenomenons arrive after I'm here - first earthquake, now typhoon. Hmmm... I hope it's not too serious, else it'd affect our weekend plans!

KTV at night with Weiche and Weixiu. Partyworld "钱柜".

Main differences between KTV in Taiwan & Singapore:-
* Huge, and I mean huge premises
* Buffet included in the price! - they charge hourly for the room as well as per pax. Included is a bugget area where you get free-flow of food and drinks. There're other a la carte menu items that are charged separately - we ordered my fav chix wings. Yummy!
* More modes of input for choice of songs - remote control, keyboard as well as side switches on the wall. Both computer selection and song books
* No analog/digital switching
* Limited English and Cantopop
* Attached toilet in every room
* Microphone covers!

04 June 2005 (Saturday) ~ Sunny

Drove to Taipei - actually, Weiche drove, Weixiu and I rode. :p Went Taipei 101 - nice building & food court but all branded stuff I can't afford *pout*, New York New York, Shin-Kong Mitsukoshi Dept Store, KMall - techie place a la Sim Lim. Dinner was at Shih Lin night market - junk food meal of octopus hot dog, fried chicken chop, 蛤仔煎 (fried oysters with egg), 十全排骨, grilled corn, washed down with honey green tea and 苦茶 (bitter tea).

After that, accompanied by 2 reluctant taiwanese men, decided to go experience nightlife in Taipei. As these 2 have never (yes, never!) been to a pub in Taipei, it's left up to me, a Singaporean, to tell them where to go. Didn't bring my printouts as it was a last minute impulse outing, the only place which address I can remember is Ziga Zaga at Grand Hyatt Hotel, so that's where we went. Pretty cool place, lotsa caucasians and a pretty good band. Had fun. One interesting observation - lotsa hot "ah ma's"! Accompanied by young men!!! hmmmm.... hahahaaa... Makes one's imagination go wild... Left after an hour as we're all tired and I realise it's really not their cup of tea. But pretty touched that they still went with me. Weiche even went down to the dance floor with me! Such a gentil host. Hee... This is his first pub/club outing in his life! I'm honoured. ;>

P.S. Weather was fantastic! Sunny whole day, not a drop of rain. Typhoon? What typhoon? Or is it the calm before the storm? Hmmm...

05 June 2005 (Sunday) ~ Sunny

Another nuah day. Weiche had to work {on a Sunday! Poor thing...} so didn't manage to go out much.

I cooked lunch for them - authentic Singaporean fare of curry chicken, fried eggs with spring onion, stir-fried baby kai-lan. And if I do say so myself, it wasn't bad at all! Hee...

The typhoon seems to have missed us. Nice and sunny whole day. To be perfectly honest, slightly disappointed though. Rather silly. Hmmm...

06 June 2005 (Monday) ~ Sunny

Not a very lucky day.

At ZhongLi train station, met weird guy named 小傑 - came up to talk to me and pestered me into being his friend. Irritating. He tried to convince me to spend the day with him at 桃園, go with him to his home to collect his car (think I dumbo is it???). When that failed, he offered to go with me to Taipei! I said no need but he said he's free anyway and followed me all the way. Apparently, he's a deejay, still studying, 27 yrs old, earns NT70~80k per mth, acted before in japan and hk, and is an absolute freak! Sang at the station demonstrating to me he can imitate lotsa artists - so embarrassing! Oh yea, lotsa flattery - said I'm very pretty, gentle, cute, etc. {ok. stop puking! :p} Kept telling me not to worry and said he respect girls a lot. Despite that he kept using tissue to wipe my forehead of perspiration but I don't feel hot at all! Touched my arm on pretext of guiding me along, touched my head, took my hand to read my palm *rolls eyes* I always politely retreated as I don't wanna create a scene or incur the wrath of some wacko. But the last straw was when he tried to take my hand! I just ignored him and walked on while he rushed after me apologising and looking very hurt when I said I prefer to be alone. He actually had the nerve to ask me to be his girlfriend (to "jiao wang" with him")! What kind of wacko does that? I don't even wanna befriend him. Pestered me a few times until he gave up. After that, got me rather worried - kept looking over my shoulders to make sure he's not following me. Why do I always meet such freaks? Sigh...

Wanted to go 淡水 originally. On mrt there, decided to stop by 北投 to go take a look at the hotsprings {partly my fear that the idiot is really following me since I let slip that I wanted to go 淡水 today - so thinking if really so, me going Beitou should throw him off. Hahaa...}, specifically, Hell Valley (地熱谷). Aftwe a 15 mins walk and reaching the place then I was told that it's closed on Mondays. So disappointing. But thinking on the bright side, Beitou's quite nice - can see flowing spring water on the streams and rather nice scenery. Took some photos. So not total loss.

While waiting for the mrt at 新北投 Station (as it's a side track, the train comes every 15~20 mins), reread the brochure and realise most tourist attractions, including those I wanna visit at 淡水, are closed on Mondays! It wasn't mentioned that Hell Valley's closed on Mondays though. Hmmm... So changed plans and went shopping instead at 忠孝东路. I walked from 忠孝复兴 station to Sun-Yat-Sen Memorial (国父纪念馆) station and back. That's a total of 6 mrt stations' distance - 3 stations to and fro. My exercise for this week. Would've continued walking to Taipei station if Weiche had not called me to tell me he knocked off.

Weiche cooked dinner for me. Dry mee Sua with spring onions and canned tuna - not bad, nice and light.

07 June 2005 (Tuesday) ~ Sunny

Woke up feeling lazy - not in the mood to go out again. So ended up leading another "pseudo taiwanese housewifey day". Accomplished the following:-
* Found the wet market (walked very far - my exercise quota for the week fulfilled :p) and did some marketing. Bought pork ribs, broccoli and green leafy vegetables - wanted to get prawns too but still no fridge, not sure whether it can keep well, so have to make do with 2 kinds of veg.)
* Washed clothes
* Vaccuumed
* Called B&B in Taroko Gorge to check room availability
* Cooked dinner - bak kut teh, broccoli, stir-fried vegetables

Rest of the day watched more crap tv and read comics - KeNan the small detective. Leisurely day. Hee...

08 June 2005 (Wednesday) ~ Sunny

Shopped around Taipei train station area. Hoped to buy cheap flash memory cards but realise it's not that much cheaper anyway. Wandered around the area but found nothing fascinating.

Proceeded to 淡水. Finally.

My luck re tourist attractions seem really really bad. The first place I wanted to go - Red Castle "紅毛城", supposedly "the main reason to visit Danshui" according to Insight Guides - is closed for renovation until October 2005! And I only knew it when I reached the doorstep. Sheesh...

Toured 淡水 老街. Lotsa 小吃. I had prawn rolls, ah-gei, sotong balls and plum juice. Niceeee... Bought back fish balls, 鐵蛋 (eggs) and lotsa preserved plums. But buying the preserved plums from an over-enthusiastic ah-ma caused me to miss the sunset. So didn't manage to go Fisherman's Wharf (漁人碼頭)as planned to watch the sunset... Sigh... I really not fated to do touristy stuff...

Went 八里碼頭 and 左岸公園 too. Nothing much. Quite nice place, but nothing especially fascinating. Oh well, the boat trip was only NT36 to and fro - so still go-able. Hee...

The fridge finally arrived! Went Tesco with Weiche and bought lotsa stuff to stock up his fridge. Hahaaa... Quite fun sia. With the living room aircon installed too, finally his home is complete. Hurray!

09 June 2005 (Thursday) ~ Sunny

Decided to stay home and rest. Was pretty tired after yesterday's excursion.

Realised too that I'd have no time for rest after I arrive back in Singapore. So will take these 2 days to nuahz some more while I still can. :>

Oh yes. Today's Weixiu's birthday.

We're gonna have bbq dinner tonight to celebrate. The 2 guys said they usually don't celebrate unless got girlfriend. I said at least must have dinner. I bought a Body Shop gift set for him too. Happy 29th Birthday, Weixiu!

10 June 2005 (Friday) ~ Sunny

I'm getting younger and younger! Today woke up at 10:45am! Hahahaaaa...

Didn't think I was going to go out again. Wanted to rest well for this weekend - going 花蓮 and Taroko Gorge! Woohoo~

But around 2pm I got real bored of staying cooped up at home again. So I picked my lazy bum up and headed to 中壢 Sogo for some shopping. That's the only respectable shopping centre I know of here and I figured, where Sogo is has got to be centralised! And clever me was right! Hahahaaa... There's Sogo 1 and Sogo 2. Took a cab to Sogo 1, had nice afternoon coffee at the UCC cafe there, walked to Sogo 2, discovered lotsa small shops around the area, shopped around, reached Sogo 1 again, shopped some more along the alley ways, somehow reached the train station (?!?!?!!) and then walked back to Sogo 1 to take a cab back.

Cooked dinner with Weiche. Too tired to venture out again. :p

I cooked: rice, fishball (bought from 淡水 yesterday) soup with veg, fried egg with onion

He cooked: chicken salad thing with onion, spring onions, parsley and lemon

His one dish took more time and effort than all of mine together! Hahaa... Ended up we only ate around 10pm. But it was pretty nice. Something different. Light and healthy. Too much though - kept leftover in fridge. The danshui fishballs were nice!

Oh yea... Joo said,"ur blog so long and no mention of moi". So here's to Joo: I love your entry tonight! ;)

11 June 2005 (Saturday) ~ Rainy

Woke up at 8:40am, thinking Weiche sure cannot wake up so early. He was actually already awake and waiting half-asleep at the sofa! Made me feel so guilty. Hee...

Set off at 10:20am. By 1pm, it started raining heavier and heavier. And we're less than 1/3 of the way there! Who said it takes 2~3 hrs to reach Hualien must be joking! Insight Guide's info needs to be re-verified. :< Due to the heavy rain and impending long distance (as it's driving along the winding hilly roads, speed can only be 20~40km and according to the GPS there's another 140km to go!), we decided to turn back. Stopped at a resort villa (明月山莊) for expensive lunch then drove back. So basically, we spent most of the day driving along 北橫公路. Hahaaa... It's still not that bad for me as I just sit there. It's poor Weiche who's all tired out from a whole day of tedious driving along those hell roads a la Initial D. One day wasted... Seems like I really have no affinity with Taroko Gorge. Been to Taiwan twice but failed to be there at all. Sigh... I seem to have general bad luck with tourist attractions (pls refer to previous Hell Valley and Red Castle visits).

12 June 2005 (Sunday) ~ Rainy

Weather report this morning: heavy rain yesterday resulted in flooding in Tainan and traffic jams in Taichung.

Raining this morning too. So decided not to go Taipei since Weiche said there's some activities going on so there might be a jam on the highway. Think he's pretty tired out after a whole day of demonic driving yesterday. Hee...

Went Metrowalk for lunch. Wanted to go Friday's for his favourite pork ribs but it's too crowded - need to wait 45 mins to get a seat! As we were both famished, decided to eat elsewhere.

Came back to watch movie after shopping for a while. Watched "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind". I've wanted to watch this movie for ages (ever since I read about it in Jo's blog) and when Weiche mentioned he has it, we decided to come home to watch. It's nice! I liked it.

For dinner, decided to try Friday's again. Again, no seat (need to wait 20 mins) and quite a few of the main courses, including the pork ribs, have run out. Another thing I seem to have no affinity with - Friday's. Sigh... Had quite enjoyable dinner at this korean bbq and steamboat place eventually.

It's been a nice, relaxing holiday. Just what I needed before starting the new job. Many thanks to Weiche for his hospitality and taking care of. Hee... But I am starting to feel rather homesick. Looking forward to being back tomorrow...

13 June 2005 (Monday) ~ Drizzle

Woke up at 8:30am - the anticipation of being home? Hmmm...

Left house at 12pm. Reached CKS Airport by 12:30pm. Over-estimated journey time. Singapore Changi Airport really is the best airport I've ever seen - in terms of facilities, maintenance, efficiency, shopping available. Hahaaa...

One observation: whenever I travel alone on planes, the person seating beside me always sleep for the entire trip, waking up only to take meal. Am I so sleep-inducing? ... ... ...

These 2 weeks seemed to have flew by now that I'm at the end of it. It's been a fantastic and much needed rest.

Glad to be home though... Very very happy to see Joo waiting for me at the airport. Thanks, sweetie! For everything. You've got good taste! ;)

Looking forward (albeit with apprehension and butterflies wreaking havoc in my stomach) to starting new job. Keeping my fingers crossed. Hee... Wish me luck!

P.S. This has to be the longest blog entry ever for me! Hahaaa...

Departure: 20 May 2005
Arrival: 26 May 2005

I'm back! Touched down last night at 7:40pm - flight was delayed both at 广州 白云机场 and at Changi Airport *grumble grumble*. Was "fooled" by Joo who sms'd me he was stuck in meeting at 7:12pm - bluffer!!! Made me so disappointed for a moment but had to tell myself it's ok because it's for work and I'm used to going home from the airport on my own anyway. But it did occurr to me he might be bluffing - and he was! He was there since 6:40pm! Hehee... So I shall magnanimously forgive him this minor travesty. :p

Ok, getting back to my trip. It was great! 广州 is pretty modernised and clean, albeit the air pollution is horrific! Too many cars and too few of them with proper filtering systems. It stinks even when we were in the cabs! The streets though, definitely felt cleaner and more organised than HK - was pretty impressed. They had some really nice architectures too. Plenty of construction going on all over the city - evidence of the speed and scale of growth currently taking place in 广州 and other parts of china.

And also because we had Alice and her family there who took such good care of us, bringing us around the whole trip and planning what to do for us. Moira and I basically just went along worry-free and enjoyed! Thank you to Alice, Kelvin and Lynette for their hospitality, accomodation and guide. Isaac (Kelvin's son, Alice's grandson) was so so so so so so so adorable!!! He's got to be the cheeriest baby I've ever seen. He smiles and giggles at the slightest provocation, "talks" on his own to total strangers and always has adult babes eating out of his tiny hands. I love it when he laughs - really melts one's heart. Another 收获 from this trip - Moira got herself a god-son and Isaac's got a new god-mother! Hahaa... Moira turned out to be pretty good for a trainee mom! I'm not too bad too (hee... :p), apparently, though my shoulders ache like hell the next day after carrying him in the baby carrier for less than an afternoon. It's definitely easier to carry the baby by hand but for safety precautions, it's better to use the carrier. The way those people look at a cute baby boy was pretty worrying.

A brief run-down of my itinerary when I was there:-

* 20 May (Fri) : Arrival at 广州 白云国际机场. The queues were terrible - our first of many many arduous queues in China for the trip. Met by Alice and driven back to their place (二沙岛－金亚花园）by Kelvin's chauffeur. Went shopping at some wholesale market specialising in women's stuff (dunno what it's called. Moira and I basically just sat in the car and wait to be brought around. Hahahaaa... ). We got "stuck" at the 5th or so stall because we saw some really nice bracelets selling for ridiculously low prices! Moira and I "invested" some money and bought 50 of them, planning to bring back to singapore to sell - perhaps we can cover back some of our shoe/clothes expenses for this trip. :p Due to time limitations, we had to go after making our purchase - need to go pick up Kelvin for dinner. Dinner was at this huge seafood market restaurant at 番禺. It was humongous! Half of the ground floor was in the form of a wet market with live seafood, vegetables, stalls selling sashimi, desserts, etc for you to choose and cooked to your specifications. Service was very efficient! Minutes after we finished ordering, went upstairs and took a few photos, the food arrived. Mamamia! It was good! I foresee myself putting on weight by end of the trip (and I think I did! *sob*)

* 21 May (Sat): Kelvin drove us down early morning to 珠海 - a coastal, resort place where we checked into Grand Bay View Hotel for the weekend. 珠海was nice - though I didn't know it existed before that day :p - it was clean and well-maintained (heard it was because they were competing for the rights to open a Disneyland vs HK but lost, obviously). Nice breeze since near to the sea, though the beach don't look that good. And guess what, it was so near Macau! It was a short 5 mins ride from our hotel to the Jiuzhou bay where we can clear the customs and walk across to 澳门 - the walk was less than 5 mins! I expected a bridge or something, pretty much like the Sg-JB causeway, but it's not. It's more like walking a block from one building to the next, We learn something new everyday, huh? ;> Macau feels very much like HK - dirty buildings and messy roads - but the city centre was much nicer, full of old european-styled buildings albeit not very well-maintained. Took lotsa photos including the famed Ruinas de Igreja São Paulo. The portugal colony influence was still pretty evident everywhere, as most of the street signs, buses and shop signs still bear portugese words. Very interesting. Dinner at this small obscure Portugese restaurant. Never fails to amaze me how Kelvin knows to go these places! Food was fabulous - savoury curry crabs, mouth-watering lamb chops, spicy interesting chicken chop, weird but delicious fried rice. First time I tried portugese food - I likey! :D

* 22 May (Sun): Woke up at 7am+ to go suntanning with Moira at the hotel pool. Checked out of hotel at 10am, had lunch at a small restaurant. We had, like tons of food for 5 persons, but the bill came up to only around RMB150, that's approximately SGD30 - so cheap!!! Proceeded to go to some pseudo summer palace place where went around in a buggy, took photos, all very touristy stuff. The highlight was the Imperial Hot Spring which we went to in the afternoon. It was located at some obscure hillside - took us ages to reach it though along the way we kept seeing signs indicating we were near. But it was worth it! For RMB287, we got access to the hotsprings (RMB128 entrance fee standalone), a lymphatic massage, a glass of floral tea and a glass of fresh fruit juice. We expected those natural hotspring with rocky sides etc but it turned out much more "man-made" than we thought. There were more than 30 different pools with water from the natural hotspring in the area, but with different "essences" added in. Some of the weirder ones we tried - red wine, coffee, dead sea salt, floral. There's also the natural one, jacuzzi one, super hot one and super cold waterfall one. The 100 mins massage was heavenly - came out all relaxed and light. Went back to 广州市 for dinner. It was at this huge castle-like restaurant - really posh! We had big pots of sharksfin (individual servings), kobe beef and other delicacies in an exclusive room with a couch, tv and our personal waitress. Cool sia, but the "captain" wasn't very friendly though - when we wanted to order dessert, she coldly informed us the kitchen is closed and the kitchen staff has left! :s Perhaps she's unhappy that we started so late and delayed their knocking off? Hmm... Attitude problem! Blemish in an otherwise perfect setting. Bill wasn't cheap - RMB1649, moira & my treat - but considering what we ate and the place itself, it's still much cheaper than Singapore. Good meals again! I'm getting fat...

* 23~25 May (Mon~Wed): Shopping shopping shopping!!!

* 26 May (Thu): Went for breakfast at the condo cafe, had hair wash (again!) at the hairdresser inside the condo (RMB28 nia!) and then off to the airport...

~Home Sweet Home~

Departure: 14 May 2005
Arrival: 16 May 2005

Had a glorious 3-days of sun, sand, sea and R&R at Bintan Lagoon Resort though it rained for 2 of the days we were there - on the day we arrived and on the day we left. So all in all, only managed to get a morning's worth of sun (afternoon sun too harmful - skipped it). Nevertheless, I've received various comments that I'm quite tanned now. This, after just a morning's tanning. Imagine if I'd managed to get the full 3 days' sun! Hee...

Strangely, I never used to tan easily. I'd go in the sun, become red, very red, and revert to my fair self again within days. Hmmm... Do one's melanin-producing capabilities increase as one age? :s