Cheryl Q's Birthday

Celebrated Cheryl's birthday last week.

Had a great time and it was really great to catch up with all my 'family members'.



Note: Photo courtesy of Penny

Phonecall

I was working in the office yesterday afternoon when i received a call from a friend. She called to inform me that someone dear to the both of us was going for an eye operation in 45 mins time. Apparently, the condition seems to have worsen after the first operation barely just one month ago. At the back of my mind, i knew the seriousness of the situation and that the worst scenario is blindness.

As i was talking on the phone, my eyes were focused on the time on my computer screen. Time didn't stand still. Minutes have passed. There is nothing much we could do except to pray and hope for the very best. Somehow, i hate this questioning & bagarning thing with God. Questions of why .. why .. and why.

With just 45 minutes to go before the operation, all we could do is to encourage him through bible verses. Yes, i know my friend needed just that. If the text message doesn't get to him, it'll reach his wife for sure.

Isiah 41:13

"For i am the Lord your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; i will help you."

At about 8.30pm, a message came in to say that things went well and operation ended earlier than expected. Thanks for the prayers. Phew! What a Relieve!

Trust In The Lord With All Your Heart

Prov 3:5 - 6
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight."

This verse just comes on just so timely. Especially at a time when i am seeking God earnestly for answers in specific areas, times where i just feel so helpless. For the unknown that i worry about, this seems to be the answer.

Flight Delay

Currently blogging from T2.

When it comes to travelling, one of the things which i dread most is actually flight delay. Yes .. my flight has been delayed. Flight was suppose to take off at 8.55pm. And now, it's been changed to 00.40am. My goodness ... and i have a presentation at 9am in the morning. By the time i check into the hotel, it'll be probably 3.30am or 4am in the morning.

I am in Lala land already .....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!


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Great! It's 1am in the morning and flight is further delayed to 3.15am. This is real BAD! Sigh!

Ah Po Turns 90

Two weeks back, my family celebrated Ah Po's (Grandma's) birthday. She turns 90. Incredible! She is still as strong as ever and i believe the weekly majong session helps in a way or two.

Mom's mom has had a hard life when she was young. I have heard of the many stories from mom and from the various aunties. Stories of the many sacrifices which grandma went through. Stories of the unhappy marrigage between my late grandfather and her as they were match-made. Stories of how she had to take care of all the kids by herself as grandpa is a seaman and is hardly at home. There were many tales and stories .. but all these experiences and struggles in her life have made her strong in character and her perseverance in life is simply remarkable.

Sad to say, i hardly spend time knowing my po po as i am closer to my grandma from dad's side. I suppose part of the reason is because mom seldom bring us back to her side of the family much when i was young.

One thing which touches me this year is the birthday wish that Ah Po made. It was all for her grandchildren.

So one thing which i am telling myself to do is to make more effort in knowing her and spending time with her. The least i want is to regret when things are too late.

Wishing Po Po good health and happeiness always.

A Sparkling Journey To Korea (Part 3)

Seoul is just an hour away from Jeju. But the 'FEEL' is really different between the two places. Jeju gave me a very relaxed feel. I enjoyed the quietness, scenic view and coastal breeze. I felt that i was on holiday. But back in Seoul, it was as if i was transported back to reality. Hill rise buildings, traffic jams and lots of people.



As time is short, Ginger brought us straight to lunch after we arrived in Seoul followed by some sight-seeing. I was taught how to make kimchi @ The Kim Chi School. It was really enjoyable and interesting. The teacher told us that it is a tradition in Korea that housewives prepares a large amount of winter kimchi sometime between late November and early decemeber. My tour guide also told me that in Korea, all the girls must know how to make kimchi.

Anyway, here's the prove. My graduation piece. Ha Ha!



And yes, i loved the 'NANTA' Performance which i went to watch. It's really entertaining. In NANTA, knives and other kitchen utensils are transformed into musical instruments in the hands of the performance.



Some other places of interest which i went to visit are:

The N. Seoul Tower

It offers visitors a scenic view of the city. The nite view is pretty. My group stayed up there for about half-an hour. My tour guide told the guys in my group to check out the male toilet (one level below the main observatory deck). The guys in her previous tour groups have told her that there is something interesting and unique about it. Thanks to a colleague, he took a video clip and some photos to show it to us (minus all the censored part of course). Hmm .. now we know what Ginger is talking about.



Another very interesting thing is actually at the base of the tower. Surrounding the deck at the base of the tower is a fence full of pad locks.The pad locks was a new tradition among the new generation. When a new couple is about to marry, they connect two padlocks to the fence to represent their lives together forever. Jokingly, my colleagues said ... if they quarrel or divorce, they better remember to come here to unlock the padlock. Hmm .. but what happens if you loose the key. Ha ha



The Blue House

Cheong Wa Dae (translation: The House of the Blue Roof Tiles or the Blue House, Office of the President of the Republic of Korea) is the executive office and official residence of the South Korean head of state, the President of the Republic of Korea. At present, Cheong Wa Dae consists of the main office building, the official Presidential residence, Yeongbin-gwan (영빈관, 迎賓館) or the guest house, the Chunchugwan (춘추관, 春秋館) press hall, and the secretariat buildings.





360 degree view of surrounding & Jeff. Photography and art direction by Nic. Creative Shot? I wonder what the guys are trying to do.



Changdeokgung Palace

I love the beauty of traditional landscape architecture of the place. It was built in 1405 during the early Joseon Dynasty as the main residence of the royal family.
The palace retains remarkable asymmetric beauty in terms of layout and it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. It is also the main set for period dramas.

Cute little korean kids in hanbok. Afew of my colleagues couldn't resists and took some pictures of these kids. Yes, they actually ran after them. Nic was so excited and immediatedly volunteered to use my camera to take photos of these kids.



Pictures of the palace





Transition scene where small Dajangeum turns to Dakangeum in the drama



The Korean House

One of the best meals I have ever tried in Korea. It is a traditional Korean-style house where people can experience Korean culture through traditional food, performance, experience wedding ceremony and cultural goods. Had lunch with my counterparts here. The food is so yummy. But well, the meal is not cheap. But i can't imagine myself doing the washing up. It's just one meal and they actually used so many bowls and plates.



Korean Folk Village

I am surprised to see so many small kids here. But i would say that it's a really interesting place and yes, educational for the kids. There are more than 260 traditional houses from the different regions here and the living culture of the late Joseon Dynasty are revived right here at the Korea Folk Village. For entertainment, you get to see acrobatics on a tightrope, seesawing act and of course, the famous farmer’s music and dance.





Dance and entertainment Performance



The filming location where Daejangeum was asking people to investigate about village epidemic.



Itaewon

It’s lined with shops, jazz bars, nightclubs and restaurants. Hard Rock Café is here.





Before you know it, holiday is over. On the flight back to Singapore, I was listening to a sermon which talks about faith and trust. Rite after, i looked out of the window and saw a shining star directly above the moon. At that very moment, it seems to me that God is really reassuring me to have complete trust and faith in him. It was just so amazing.

The beautiful sky



And yes, hope to go back to Korea soon. This time, i will visit the other parts of Korea. In the meantime, i'll need to brush up on my Korean and learn afew more words.

A Sparkling Journey To Korea (Part 2)

There are lots to do and see in Jeju. As some would call it, it's a treasure island. I would love to come back to visit the other places of interest here some other time.

Other places which i visited are the Cheonjeyeon Waterfall. The name literally means 'The pond of the Gods'. However, i'm kind of dissappointed with what i saw. Not sure if it's because i was expecting more. There are suppose to be 2 waterfalls there but well, one is not really functioning. Only the second one was.



The famous Teddy Bear Museum is just a short walk away from the Cheonjeyeon Waterfall area. We just need to cross over the bridge. The teddy bear museum is where some of the scenes from the drama, Goong (Princess Hours) was filmed. The scenery at the bridge is superb and i love seeing the sky.



The Teddy Bear Museum is the world's largest museum that is wholly dedicated to teddy bears. The museum has on exhibit a wide collection of teddy bears from all over the world and is a great place to take pictures.



There are 1,300 captivating displays of Teddy Bear over a 100 year tradition. Teddy bears from well-known master pieces of art work. And of course, not forgetting the most expensive bear (Louis Vuitton Bear : Most successful charity-auction bear).

This bear raised more money than any other bear has even done at a charity auction (US$193,000). The proceeds from that auction in Monaco went to abused children around the world. And yes, my favourite piece of art - THE KISS is here too. Check it out.



Some of the bears on displays are:
Armstrong takes the first step on the moon (1969)
The tragedy of Titanic (1912)
Teddy Bear Collection (Fashion Show)
Teddy the Great (Ghandi)
Jeju Folk Village











I also visted the beautiful Mt. Songak which is a 104m mountain with gentle fields. The first thing which we saw when we were there is the big Daejanggeum billboard. This states that the show has been filmed here before. Ginger, our tour guide pointed to us the Jeju Jingjigul Cave. In episode 54, Jang-geum finds a woman in labor inside the cave. She performs an operation that saves both the woman and her child. Jinjigul Cave is actually man-made. The view here is magnificent.









And yes, i love the scenery of this red lighthouse. It was a scene where the drama BAD LOVE (by Kwon Sang Woo) was filmed here.



And of course, there's Dokaebi Road 'Mysterious Road' where cars roll uphill even when the engine is off. This is not unique to Jeju alone but the Koreans have done a great job marketing this Mysterious Road into a tourist spot.



Note: Stories and blog on Seoul coming up in Part 3!

A Sparkling Journey To Korea (Part 1)

안녕하세요 (An-Nyeong Ha-Se-Yo)

It was the trip which i have been looking forward to for the longest time. KOREA!

Took a overnight flight to Seoul last friday. It was a full flight and coincidentally, Aileen Tan (the Singapore actress) was also on the same flight. She was leading a tour group. The nite flight was bad in my opinion because it was really stuffy and i couldn't really sleep. But i guess the food which they served compensated for that. I love the bibimbap. Really delicious considering that airline food is always not too tasty.

Reached Seoul @ 6am in the morning. We had afew hours to spend in Seoul before taking the domestic flight to Jeju in the afternoon. We were met by our local tour guide called Ginger. She's one of the prettiest tour guide i ever met and is eloquent in mandarin and english.

Our first stop was to visit the top rated TV drama 'Daejanggeum' filming site. We were there really early and everyone was really excited. The weather was nice and cool. The village set for the drama series is an open set built at Yangjoo city Gyunggido, inside the MBC cultural valley.



At the DaeJangGeum Filing Site, i relived the memories of the drama series. All my colleagues and me watched the drama. So you can imagine the excitement in us.



Do you remmember these?

Doorway into the Palace
The doorway into the palace is used for those scenes moving in and out of the royal palace.

SuRaGan
This was the royal kitchen mainly used to make the food for the king.

Refrigeration Room
This was the set created as the place where all pastes, and other ingredients were kept in jars for the palace kitchen.





There were also some filming going on and it was a real treat for us to see what the professional does. Suddenly, none of us felt tired or sleepy anymore.



This was the first sight-seeing place which i saw in Seoul. Next stop is to Korea's largest island southwest of the Korean Peninsula - Jeju Island. I have friends who have been there and they have been telling me how beautiful the place is. Yes, now that i have experienced it for myself, it is really true. While the place is known as a honeymoon venue, it's really relaxing and fun when you are there with good company.

Jeju is filled with an abundance of natural attractions and it’s a delightful blend of cultures, natural wonders, and attractions. It has also become an even more popular destination since it has been the scenic set for several Korean TV dramas and movies. Yes - we were on the look out for it and i'm happy to see some of the sites which 'have been used for filming some of my fav Korean dramas.

The first visit is to the Yongduam Rock, an unsual lava formation that lies on the west coast of the city, like a dragon flying from the sea. This basalt dragon's head with its mouth opened, is one of Jeju's fantastic coastal sceneries.

You will see a large basalt rock that resembles the head of a dragon. Legend has it that the dragon was sent to Halla Mountain to gather a herb of eternal youth, but he was struck with the arrow of the enraged Mountain God. This turned him into the rock with his head looking up towards heaven and his body submerged into the water.



Next was to visit the Jusangjeoliddae, situated on the Jungmun coastline. The view is really picturesque and it is no wonder that this seashore has been proudly designated as National Nature Reserve No. 443. From where i am, i could see the Jungmun Resort Complex. The Jungmun Resort was the largest cluster of lavish hotels and golf courses and it has become famous for movies, dramas and TV commercials. Situated next to the Jungmun beach, the star attraction is the world class International Convention Center Jeju that became the dramatic landscape for the 2002 TV drama ‘All In’.









I love this picture which i took. 'Boat Out @ Sea'. Looking at the sea is so refreshing and peaceful.





Second day in Jeju was spend at the Seongeup Folk Village, a popular place for foreigners to experience the unqiue Korean native culture.



A short visit to the Jeju Haenueo Museum was educational too. It gave me a better insight into the background of the island's aging women divers, or Haenyo which is one of Jeju’s most celebrated phenomena. Reaching depts. of up to 20m for 2 minutes at a time without the use of any breathing apparatus, they harvest abalone, octopus, and other seafood.





Jeju is popular for its seafood, largely because it is a coastal/ seaside place. I tried the seafood steamboat which unfortunatedly, is the lousiest meal that i have eatten in Korea. The soup base was really bland and i thought the kimchi was tastier. Not a satisfying meal but well, at least it was a proper meal.