My Chinese New Year!

Chinese New Year is awesome and I actually break my record because it’s been a year I didn’t go back to my hometown. Although my mum visited me and my bro once in a while, going back hometown makes me feel so much relaxing. Stress-free life is what I mean. J I don’t feel much intense as compared to when I’m in the city.

I can teman my grandmother watches TV for the whole day, while playing “Candy Crush” (the hottest game for this moment) my mum cook all my favorite food, my aunty make desserts for me. My cousins has all grown up, not like last time the little tiny who will always cry for milk. We spent time together as we seldom meet each other ever since I started working, and they further their studies elsewhere.

I always feel a bit sentimental during Chinese New Year. I don’t know why J and this year my brother wasn’t around due to last minute arrangement, he has to travel to China for 8 days. My cousin who supposed to come back from UK was delayed cause of the company arrangement. Thank you for technology and we can still take our yearly reunion photo *excluding my bro*.

Unto this age, Chinese New Year is not so much about ang-pow anymore. In fact, I love it when I can bless my family members in return by giving them ang-pow. It is more blessed to give than to receive.

Meeting friends in hometown is like tuning into news section. Getting updates on who’s getting married, who’s having new babies, and lots more. Sometimes I really couldn’t believe that we had actually grown up. Things that seems will not happen during our school times has all came to passed. Well, I’m happy that all my friends are doing well.

And now Chinese New Year is over, get back to reality and … move on!

My 2013 Resolutions

I know it's a bit too late to write this post when it is already mid of January. In fact I'm still sorting out what are the things that I would like to achieve in this year. It is quite funny when I start to think about this topic, suddenly my mind floated this - Be Happy! Well, it is not that I'm sad for the last whole year, but I've been through a lot of challenges and struggles. Of course, I still have some good and happy memories (which I supposed to write my "Reflecting 2012").

This brand new year, I would like to make a [c h a n g e]. Change is necessary for growth and I think I should have take the initiative after procrastinate for so long. I would like to (1) learn something new and (2) read more books this year. It's been a long time since I pick up a book and read it ever since I started working. While sinking in the working environment, reading a book should be able to refresh my brain :)

As for what to learn, I'm still figuring it out. I know I need to have a specific goal in order to work towards the goal. Please share with me what's interesting if you know one :)

2013 should be a great year, striving to make a better living for myself and my family. 

Flower Dome

Just realize that I did not have much photos in Flower Dome when I started writing this blog. As mentioned, Gardens by the Bay in Singapore is a must visit place, which is located strategically next to Marina Bay. Beautiful scenery which will blow your mind away :P 

I've wrote about Cloud Forest, this post will be about Flower Dome and the Skyway at night. What welcome you is a super big compound which makes me don't know where to start @.@ Showing the panorama photo of my beloved 'grandma', please ignore the distorted lady on the left. *Blame to my shaky hand while taking this photo*

This is me at the entrance before getting lost in this big garden. A lot of visitors but fear not, this place is so big that you can still easily move around and take lots of photos in this indoor garden. Plus the air-conditioned, you can admiring without getting sweat. Awesome!! Flower Dome is divided according to region, such as American, African and so on. I don't know why we don't have much photos here, maybe we were busying on the flowers :P

These are some of the plants inside the Dome.

As that time was end of October, they decorated the place in conjunction with Halloween. You can see lots of pumpkins were placed in the garden. There are some pumpkins' balloons too! There is a big garden at the middle where lots of visitors just sit on the bench to enjoy this indoor garden. Surrounded by beautiful and colourful flowers make us happy! Practice ethics, do not pluck the flower :) After walking for the whole day, we just want to find a place to rest our feets. Can you believe that we walked non-stop for 5 hours? Oh wait, we still have the Skyway ticket with us!! We shall have our dinner before the skyway :D

There are few restaurants there for your options. Just that all the restaurants are crowded and we were too hungreeee at that time, we chose one of the restaurant where the queue is shorter because we just want to sit down and eat! The food is okay, not too bad when we have limited choice at that time. Hehe...While chit-chatting, the skies get darker and a lot of people are sitting on the greeny greeny grass and enjoy the beautiful scenery. How often can you see this in a city? When is the last time that we 'pause' to enjoy life? It was so relaxing.... and loving! At specific timing, there are lights and music shows at the Supertree Grove. When that is playing, we were already high-up on the skyway.

I thought it will not be scary, but I'm wrong. In the beginning, you can still happily take photo because it is so excited to be up at the skyway. When you walk further, the tiny bridge is so scary. I know it is not going to break, but I'm scared :( Well, aiming the end I have to finish the whole journey because there's no turning back. *So serious* But the whole place looks more beautiful when we were at the skyway. The lighting, the city, the walkway, the supertree, looks so beautiful! I feel like staying there at that point of time. The wind is cozy, the weather is good. Perfect! There's also a restaurant on one of the supertree, you can dine in the sky :) Cool right?

Here are some photos when the skies get darker:

I'm brave enough to take photo towards the end of the bridge. We even sat on the floor to enjoy the cool breeze... by thinking of it is already so relaxing. I really don't mind going back again for the second time. Awww.... writting this blog at this moment makes me miss that time so much!!

Okay, I have to wake up. That's all about Flower Dome and Skyway in Gardens by the Bay! 

This Christmas, Think Others.

Do you have any plan for Christmas this year when expecting for 'end of the world'? Christmas always makes December so beautiful. I love Christmas, and to countdown for another brand new year. Every year has been like that, to shop for Christmas gifts, celebrate and makan. This year, on this day - Christmas eve, I decided to fulfill one of my resolution which has been pending for the past two years, which is to -- sponsor a child via World Vision Malaysia.

I had this idea when I first started working. I'm not quite sure where I got this idea, maybe in a way of thinking contribute back to the society? World Vision do not directly pass the money to the sponsored kids, and they don't encourage the sponsors to send monetary items to the sponsored kids as well. For more info about world vision, you can log on to their official website www.worldvision.org.

So, with little monthly committment, I'm happy on what I can contribute.

It is more blessed to give than to receive.

Gardens by the Bay

Hello, Singapore! This is an out-dated blogpost, I actually visited this beautiful place on October. Aww... how I miss this fun and happy trip :( Look at the photo, my grandma a.k.a. San San is flying off to Japan in another 4 days. Happy-nyeer. How I wish I can travel non-stop and no need to work *wake-up, it's not going to happen at this point of time* Well, that's actually one of my dream :) 

Gardens by the Bay is strategically located next to Marina Bay, the iconic spaceship building with hotel, casino and shopping mall all together. There is a link bridge you can walk from the hotel too. A very nice bridge especially night time, you can just sit on the benches and see the car passes by :) Relaxing if it is a windy night.

Wait no further, we got the tickets and ready for our adventure to the bay! This beautiful place had killed our camera battery life badly. Even the memory card got affected. The admission fees for two conservatories is SGD 28 per adult and another SGD 5 for the skyway. Two conservatories include Cloud Forest (云雾林) and Flower Dome (花穹). 

The sun is shining bright, so we decided to keep the walkway till the evening and go for Cloud Forest first. Wow...wow...wow... Present to you, The Falls!!! How can you not taking photo in front of this beautiful waterfalls? They are moving the beauty of nature into this dome! oMg... and this is just the beginning.

Though it looks small from the outside, it has 4-5 floors in this dome. You just gonna walk walk walk and continually be amazed. What keep repeating in my mind is that: how they do this ah? Who is the big mind behind this? It is tremendously amazing to me. It is kinda hard to have a garden in a developed city, and now they make this garden in a building. *speechless*

You will not feel warm because there are air-conditioner everywhere. In fact, you will enjoy the scenery more than anything. 

This the the true Gardens by the Bay, check out the view behind. I'm not sure if there's any attractions coming up next. We spent almost four hours in this place, not including Flower Dome yet. I shall keep Flower Dome in the next post then.

Stay tune!