A day at Shanghai Botanical Gardens

One of those weekends where everyone is together in Shanghai, and we can take a breather. We went to Shanghai Botanical Gardens for a little relaxation and a little walk walk. Shanghai Botanical Gardens is located outside of the city at Xuhui District. We were there for like 2 hours, went a little too late. Jojo was perhaps rather unhappy that we went so late, but te good thing is that he managed to take some good pictures.

It was pretty congested in the park, with families and groups of friends taking pictures around. We avoided the ground, enjoyed the many tulips found in the garden, went a little oooh-aaah when we saw some sakura and blossoms. There were some hobbyists flying kite in some areas of the park, and some doing their little BBQ with the much-loved yang-rou-chuan (羊肉串).

Went off around 6 in the evening. Push ourselves off to this Malaysian Restraunt called Sakura in the city. Good food, a little pricy. Along the way, I was sharing a cab with Yida and Caihui. The taxi driver who took us there kept talking to us. Reason: fatigue. He was a hell driver, swearing and cursing throughout the trip as if the road only belonged to him. Occasionally, doing a couple of unnecessary and daring angry road overtaking. We smell the tyre burning, apparently he did some damages to his gear. Bad luck for us, but we arrived to whereever we want safe and sound.

We don't do much nowadays. With most of them working, and some of us never in town, Mahjong at night is just what we do nowadays. This trip happened 3 weeks ago during a shiny sunday. And yes, it is still damp and cold here in Shanghai. Where is the sun?!

Travel to Rome end of the year for the perfect family Christmas Celebration

School holidays are coming soon. And for those in Singapore, I know you kids are going to end their holidays soon. Why not bring them for a last vacation? Or even better, spend you Christmas overseas with your kids.

So, in promoting Christmas, let's go somewhere where Christmas can be felt in full hit. Rome.

Being the central of Christianity beliefs, Rome highlights a series of beautiful churches where mass are held and Christmas can be felt at full blown. You can take a chance to visit one of the seven wonders of the world while you are there. Your kids will love it, the sudden difference in temperature will mean delights for those who never live in a temperate country before.

If you need to find Rome accommodation, fret not. Being a touristic city, Rome offers many different types of accomodations, available to all type of travellers. You can check out Hotel venice if you like. For family travellers, it is best you book a Rome apartment in which your family as a whole can stay together and enjoy a different lifestyle in a new environment.

And if you can afford the time, why not stay for the new year celebration of 2008? I am sure your kids will love to see the fireworks cracking through the air. And if you are worried about accomodation. Let Freereservations do the job for you. You can book online for a discount. At the same time, you know prices while before your travels what you should expect down there. Don't worry about the safety while you are staying there. Rooms are inspected to ensure your well-beingnes. On the street, do take care of your kids and family while you are in foreign land. Stick together like a flock of sheep :)

There is an interactive photogallery allowing you to see what you should be expecting in Rome during your trip.

So what are you waiting for? Book your way to Rome this end of the year!

Torres came back to me - Baggage found

found. everything intact.

torres: gran vina sol. chardonnay 2006 intact
torres: fransola sauvignon blanc 2006 intact
torres 10 years imprerial brandy intact
segura viudas: brut vintage cava intact

let me worry for few nights. Zzzz. period.

Baggage Loss

I encountered my first baggage loss after travelling for a year.

There's a reason why I never like to check in. Even if it's whatever you deem call it: Star Alliance. Its got nothing to do which airline or what Star Alliance at all sometimes. Just never secure because my backpack has no locks, no safety measures at all.So this time, I lost a green canvas bag, together with:
1. tommy colonge 100ml
2. 4 bottles of excellent wine from spain Torres torress toress :(
3. guo shi gai yao which belongs to mr lolli
4. all my notes from lectures
5. food.
6. toothpaste, shampoo, tooth brush
7. other things i cannot remember.

So, where does all this lead to? Its not safe to check in a normal bag nowadays if there is no bag? Or issit just depending on which country you visit? Comeon, its Europe. Not some poor country who need to TAKE daily life stuffs from strangers.. .-.even the luggage track system sucks. "still checking" "come back next time"confidence man, my friend. do your job, baggage tracking system. zZzzzZzz

Bai Han Lou - Tibetan-Catholic Community in Isolation

In Baihanlou, an isolated village in the Nu River Valley, located in the northwest corner of Yunnan Province, lies an isolated Tibetan-Catholic community and their long, lasting blend og religions. It is interesting to note that how this Tibetan-Catholic community has survive for so long unmolested. One could only wonder if this was a miracle worked by means unknown.

During the 1800s, French missionaries came and converted a small part of the pop in Tibet to Christianity. Baihanlou is a beautiful mountain village nestled in the foothills of the Tibetan plateau. At night, one can hear the river faintly in the distance. In this part of the world, nature and people seem uninterrupted.

Entering the centre of the village, a 130-year-old Catholic Church stood stark white from the back and sides, but the front is Chinese Pagoda style with a wooden winged tips on either side of the building darkly painted in blues and fadings reds. The Entire Village is involved in the church from birth till death - when they are not farming for their livelihood, they are praying in unison. When they are not praying, they are farming.

Entering the humble church, bare wood beams make up the basic structure of the interior. Three exposed light bulbs provides all the light needed. On the left hand side of the church are pictures of Jesus carrying his cross with Roman soldiers whipping him, to the right there are three large windows facing west. Each pillar of wood extends from the floor to the ceiling and has various carvings, some inscriptions read, "We will follow you Jesus." At the front of the church is a small and humble altar, decorated with artificial flowers in bright reds and pinks, beside it is a life-size marble statute of Virgin Mary.

Attending mass, one can notice directly how devoted the villagers are. Prayers continue almost uninterrupted, as if a perfect routine is already in place. The minister doesn't speak to or direct his flock in any way. Their prayers are in their bones, from the small children to the weather-beaten faces of the elderly, the community moves and prays together as one. They do not participate in the Vatican's strict Catholicism, but rather their own religion that part of the this community's traditions that has been passed on for generations - it is their way of life.

The villagers called themselves Catholic, but as they sit and kneel in prayer, there is nothing typically Catholic about them. The chanting, or praying, is deeply moving and incredibly unique and is combined with a small head bobbing. Every once in a while there is prostration where everyone kneels and touches their head to the ground. There are hints of Buddhism, Islam and Catholicism all wrapped up into one single mass.

And then suddenly, it all stopped.

In an orderly manner, everyone rises from the low wooden benches and exits the church. No words have been exchanged, the community seems to live in silence after they are through chanting their prayers.

A small, poor Tibetan community chanting Catholic prayers before and after a long day of farming. How had Catholicism lasted so long in such an isolated environment? But that was just it, isolation is the answer.


reading materials:
China's Catholics: Tragedy and Hope in an Emerging Civil Society
Religion and Biography in China and Tibet

School Term started; will I be able to graduate on time?

School started for a week.

What did I do during these holidays?

No work. No job.

I went to Guangzhou. Took a bus down with Teng to HongKong.

When I got back, Mid August went down to Hei Long Jiang with Song Bai Hua

I moved house. I am living in the city now. French concession Area. Its a lovely district. Just somehow, you start to realise you dun belong really in here. Everyone looks rich and properly civalised. I look more like some beggar who somehow got himself into Sunset Boulevard.

I did not manage to go to Greece as planned.

My Star Alliance Gold Card will expire Feb 2008. There was no imput of any mileage since October 2006.

Guess I will lose the Card soon no matter what.

Meanwhile I hope those points i accumulated will still be on time for a trip next year to Greece. I will take a gamble, and book 2 tickets there. Whether a not, I am going, that is another story.

About the trip to Hong Kong and Harbin, I will write about it when I am more clear-headed. I am depressed. Somehow.

Edgar might be coming to Shanghai this October/November. He will not be coming in for the Special Olympics as planned. I wonder whether he will be comfortable sleeping on the couch in my living room. Bad ventilation, and most probably a cold period as Autumn breaks into Winter. Shanghai is a bloody cold place. No central heating system. We all just freeze like chickens in freezers.

Star Alliance Gold: Will you be able to choke out 50,000 mileage points before Feb 2008 miraculously? o.O

traffic 2007

jan:
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feb:
chicago stomped

mar:
adelaide stomped

apr:
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may:
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june:
stuttgart stomped
chicago stomped

july:

august:

september:

october:

november:

december:

06.06.07

Photographs taken with Yashica T3, Le Kai 乐凯 B&W Film Asa 100
2006

Changxing Island - Take a trip out of Busy Shaghai

Brief introduction:

Changxing Island covers an area of 76.32 sq.km. It is reputed as a green jadeite for its “pure soil, pure air and pure water”. The orchard is located in the middle of the island, occupying an area of 451.67 hectares. It is the largest production site of the “green food”. There are rockeries, long corridors, a potted landscape garden, a Mongolian village with yurts, a horse track,a conch hall, and a hotel entertaining visitors with each of their own attractive characteristics. In autumn, amidst the ripe fruit in the orange orchard, visitors many feel the joy of a bumper harvest.

Changxing Island is closer to the center of Shanghai City and enjoys the reputation as “Longevity Island”, “Clean Island” and “the Hometown of Oranges”.

Place of Note: Novel farm
It is located in the middle of Changxing Island, with an occupation of 451.67 ha. As one of the national largest orange production base, this novel farm enjoys the high reputation in Shanghai and even the Eastern of China.

Tangerine oranges from this farm look bright and smooth, and taste sweet and juicy, with thin skins and few pits. Besides, there are some attractive scenic spots and well-equipped entertainment places and hotels in this farm.

Future Infrastructure accessing the islands to Shanghai Mainland
Shanghai will extend the planned No. 9 Metro line to Chongming Island as part of an already started bridge and tunnel project linking the island to Pudong.

The Metro line will run from Songjiang District in western Shanghai, through Xujiahui, and Waigaoqiao in Pudong. It will then be linked to Changxing Island by tunnel. From Changxing, it will run across a bridge to Chongming Island.The city has announced that it plans to turn Chongming Island, the third largest island in China, into an ecological zone that will be ideal for tourism and international forums.

While many details of the Metro project haven't been worked out yet, the line is expected to be complete by 2010, according to Mao Jialiang, director of the Shanghai Urban Planning Administrative Bureau.

"We are planning to merge the new subway line with the tunnel and bridge connection to reach the island," Mao said.Construction has already begun on the 8.9-kilometer tunnel connecting Pudong to Changxing Island."The tunnel will be a two-level tube - its upper level will be used for vehicles and its lower level has been reserved for the subway line," said Yu Sijia, director of the bureau's planning department.

Engineers haven't decided yet how the Metro line will be integrated into the planned 10.3-kilometer cable-stayed bridge connecting Changxing and Chongming.

"One possibility is to build the subway line in the middle of the bridge, dividing the traffic lanes into two parallel sections running in different directions," Yu said.

A 6.3-kilometer elevated highway will also be built on Changxing Island to link the tunnel with the bridge. Yu said city planners are still conducting a feasibility study of how to merge the subway with the bridge.

Location: Changxing Island lie between Congming Island and Pudong New District and belong to Baoshan District.

Transportation: take bus No.5, 51,116,522,728,848,849 to Wusong dock, where you can take ship to Changxing Island, Hengsha Island and Chongming Island.

Above: A local market scene selling fresh vegetables locally produced.


above: a local vendor selling local made Tofus and specialties.




Above: Fishing is an important source of revenue for the islands. During the spring festival, it is the most lucrative period for the locals to sell their catch to the mainland.


Above: A genuine smile you seldom see in the city. An old man posing for a shot at his orchard. The locals grow chinese mandrin for their own consumption as well as exporting to the mainland. Current projects in developing the island into a more robust and industrialised area forces many villagers to relocate. Many chose to build their houses higher in order to receive more stipends and supports from the goverment when they relocate.

ｃｈｅｅｂｙｅ ＺＡＫ！！！！！

Miel 发表于 2006-06-17 20:29:46

ｔｍｄ　ｄｕｎ　ｅｖｅｒ　ｂｅ　ｎｉｃｅ　ａｎｄ　ｌｅｎｄ　ｕｒ　ｐｈｏｎｅ　ｔｏ　ａ　ｓｔｒａｎｇｅｒ　ｕ＇ｄ　ｊｕｓｔ　ｋｎｏｗｎ　ｗｈｅｎ　ｙｏｕ　ａｒｅ　ｏｖｅｒｓｅａｓ．．

ｃｈｅｅｂｙｅ．．　ｗｈｅｒｅ　ｉ　ｆｉｎｄ　１０００ｒｍｂ　ｔｏ　ｐａｙ　ｐｈｏｎｅ　ｂｉｌｌ　ｎｏｗ？

ｓｅｌｌ　ｂａｃｋｓｉｄｅ　ｌｉａｏ．．　ｓｅｌｌ　ｂａｃｋｓｉｄｅ　ｌｉａｏ．．　ｚｚｚｚｚ