Day 4: Watery Fun and A Theme Park

It was not easy getting you out of bed. Especially since you had such a late night the day before as we had strawberries, wine (milk for you), and squid which daddy had ran off to the nearby Family Mart. You refused to go to sleep but after I finally managed to drag you back to the room, you KO-ed as I was packing up our bags.So after I managed to get you out of bed and dressed you up, we headed downstairs to a place which looked like the hotel ballroom for breakfast. After breakfast, we grabbed our bags and met the rest of the tour group in the lobby and to go to the next stop.

Next stop after around 40 minutes drive from Phoenix Park was Ocean 700 which is located in Alpensia. After briefing from Bob, we got our locker number, dropped our shoes inside, dressed up then went swimming in the indoor heated after we rented the swim caps and life floats. It was so much fun. You could not go on the tube rides as you were not tall enough, but you did have fun with the other games including the wave pool. Daddy and I tried out some of the tube ride. It sure was fun.

After some time, we got ready to go to the next stop. Before we left, one more shot with the ski fields of Alpensia:

And of course you played one last time with the snow:
On the way back to Seoul, we stopped at a restaurant to have lunch. This was the steamboat (yes, again) cooked with the dried pollack fish. Here's a shot of the fish which daddy took:

After a ride of over 2 hours (I think) we arrived in Seoul. The next stop for the day was Lotte World Theme Park. It was so super crowded as it was Korea's school holiday. The queue for all the rides were so long. We walked outside took a look at the rides which were actually more suited for older children/teenagers and headed back inside. Daddy asked you what you wanted to ride and you wanted to take the monorail. So off we went. It was such a confusing place and the map did not help much. When we had finally found the place, the queue was so long. We had no choice but to queue up. One good thing was that the queue was moving, but after moving a while, we came to a sign which said "Waiting time from this point is 1 hour". Our hearts dropped to the floor but we stayed in the queue. In the end, the wait was just over 30 minutes. We got into the monorail and the ride lasted a grand total of THREE minutes! We walked out and joined the Jungle Ride queue but when the person in charge measured your height, you did not meet the 112cm minimum height requirement.

We only had time to queue for another ride, so we queued at the Sinbad ride which was recommended by Bob as a "family ride". It had a very long queue when we walked past it earlier on. This time the queue was shorter or so we thought. It took us 20 minutes before we entered the "cave" but in actual fact the queue continued inside the cave. We waited another 10 minutes or so and then it was our turn to get into the boat ride. Less than 5 minutes into the ride, you were screaming and crying out of fear when you saw the rather scary scenes. Aiyo.. you said that it was too scary. And the rest of the ride was spent consoling you. You only started to look around as we reached the end of the ride when Sinbad had rescued the princess.

We tried to look for a place to grab a quick bite, then headed down for the 7pm parade. After the parade, we gathered at the meeting point then headed to check into our next hotel.

At the hotel, we dropped our luggage and headed to the Korean BBQ restaurant just across the road from the hotel. Dinner was so yummy. After that I left you with daddy while I went to Doota with the 2 che-che's. When I got back, I had expected you to be asleep, but no you were still so energetic. At last it was zzzz time for us all.

Day 3: More Pictures

Here are some pictures taken from Ah Kong's camera:

Our beef steamboat

Side dishes to go with the steamboat and rice


Enjoying lunch wrapped in seaweed

Getting ready to ski: Fighting with the ski boots

First one ready: Evan Ban

Stylo or not? Ski suit complete with skis and even ski goggles

Evan and mummy trying to balance

You managed to sort of ski down the little slope, but I had gone ahead of you and fallen down and before I could get up, you crashed into me. Shortly after that Ah Ma went to rent a sled for you which was what you played with till we (as in daddy and I) were too tired and had to drag you back to the hotel.

Day 3: And Away We Go

We made a pit stop halfway to the ski fields. You were so excited with the ski fields that it was easy to get you out of bed that morning. As we drove nearer to the ski fields, we could see more and more snow on the ground. And it had started to snow too. You could not see the snow very well as the bus was moving, but when we stopped for lunch you were so excited. Here you are happily posing for daddy in the snow:

Lunch was a yummy steamboat and you got to stop and play with the snow on the ground before we got into the bus. Daddy stayed outside for a while and we were chatting in the bus when suddenly.. *SPLAT*.. a snowball hit the bus window. It was daddy. You immediately wanted to get out of the bus to join daddy in the fun, but it was too late.. time to continue our journey to the hotel on the ski fields. We made another quick stop to pick up the rented ski suits.

We checked in and were supposed to meet Bob after an hour but as the ski fields were closed for a while, we decided to go down and have some fun in the snow before we get our skiing instructions from Bob.

Daddy set up his tripod and had our family picture taken:

We only managed to pull you away from the lure of the snow to take a few pictures which surprisingly you happily posed for before you started to play with the snow, attacking daddy and Ah Kong:

It's a good thing you were wearing a rented suit. Else I don't know what you'd be wearing the next day since this suit was very wet (although, the rented suit dried up very quickly)

I need to get the pictures from Ah Kong's camera as we were all decked and ready for skiing except for Ah Ma so she was the photographer for the ski adventure.

Day 3: Changing of the Guards

Day 3 began early in the day with a morning call at 7am. But of course since there were 3 of us, daddy and I woke up at 6.30am knowing that we needed more time to wake you up and to get you ready. Brought our bags down at 8am and quickly bundled into the bus away from the cold morning.

We drove for a while before arriving at our breakfast location. It was a buffet style of breakfast serving mainly Korean food (imagine kimchi for breakfast!!) in a big hall with many people from many tours having breakfast.

Next stop was Kyongbok Palace to watch the changing of the guards ceremony. The center of the walkway was cleared and we stood around watching the guards. Jeff Ko-ko gave us fliers which showed the different guard uniforms and the status represented by each uniform.

We took a group picture before we began the tour of the palace with Bob:

We felt so cold, so we put on our beanie but you refused to put on the beanie, complaining that it was poking your hair.

Here's a family shot which Jeff Ko-ko had helped to take:

After that we hopped onto the bus to head for the next stop.

P/S: Jeff Ko-ko is the freelance photographer who was with our tour. He seemed to take a liking to you, carrying you around, fooling around with you and taking quite a number of pictures of you despite being able to speak very little English. And he called you "Pororo" which at the end of the trip became a name which some others in the tour started to call you too.

Day 2: Ahn Nyeong Ha Se Yo

Yup.. we're in Korea. It was a last minute plan (well all organized in less than a month.. so I reckon still can be counted as a "last minute plan"). The plane arrived at 7am local time. After clearing immigration, collecting our bags and meeting with Mr Lai, the tour leader and the rest of the tour group, we headed to the bus after we were introduced to Bob our tour guide. It was SOOOOO cold. When we arrived it was -3 degrees. Yikes. Good thing we packed our warm clothing in the hand carry and had bulked up before walking out of the airport. Incheon airport was quite a distance from Seoul, you took a nap of almost an hour while Bob shared some information about Korea to us. First stop for the trip was a museum (I have no recollection of the exact name). We bundled up and got of the bus. First thing that hit us is the COLD. It was SO SO cold. The short walk from the airport to the bus was nothing compared to this. Ah Kong and Ah Ma agreed to have their picture taken, but I was too cold to pose for daddy to take a picture of us.

We ran into the museum, walked a little and sat around for a hot drink. Having warmed up a little more, we headed out for pictures:

Then we got into the bus and headed to the next stop "Ice Gallery". Bob kept telling us we'll be making our own cups, but somehow I could not get what he meant until we walked into this open room. There was another group of tourists chipping away at blocks of ice. Ah.. it was a "cup designing" competition. Each one was given a chisel and a block of ice with a pair of knitted gloves and plastic gloves. We got started on our creation after receiving some basic instructions from the instructor. It certainly looked so simple when he made it, but it was not when we tried. You were so excited and immediately started on your ice block the moment we were told to start. Shortly after someone came and gave you a plastic apron to keep your jacket dry. I had to keep an eye on you and help you hold your ice for fear of your chipping off your finger (or even poking your eye) instead of the ice!

When ten minutes was up, we took our "cups" to be washed and filled with orange crush to drink. Then our creations were judged and 1st, 2nd and 3rd place were announced. Daddy was placed in first place. Wow!

Here's daddy with his creation in one hand, a ice vase with flowers in the other and an ice crown along with his gold medal. Great job, daddy!

Next, we went down one floor to the ice gallery. Everything was carved out of ice. Here is daddy and you trying out the ice-slide. Look at the temperature here:

Clockwise from top left: Daddy trying out a "frozen throne" to see if this is better than the one at home; with mummy posing with the cute bear; trying out the "frozen PC"; also trying out the throne.

After the ice gallery, we had lunch. It was a local dish called Samgyetang (Korean Ginseng Chicken Soup). Er.. the taste seem rather bland to me but you loved it. Ate a little of the chicken and kept asking Jeff Ko-ko (the photographer for the tour) to add more noodles for you.

Next we hopped onto the bus for a drive to Nami Island. This is an island which is very famous ever since they filmed the Korean movie Winter Sonata. We waited in the super cold for the ferry to arrive and quickly hopped into the warm ferry. It was just a short ride. After being given instructions and a map we started to walk and look around this little island. Many decorations on this island were made of recycled items.

Clockwise from top left: So excited for being able to stand of the frozen lake which we had to access via a very slippery walkway; cuddling with mummy in front of the ice sculpture; a family picture framed by the trees; grinning with mummy in another picture with the trees.

After walking quite a distance, we stopped to feed ourselves the pancake called Hotteok. It was highly recommended by Bob and you happily ate it all, although I thought you may not like it as the dough had green tea. It was so delicious eating this warm pancake in the cold winter.

We were too tired to walk back so we hopped onto this train, which is the UNICEF charity train. It took us back to the wharf where we quickly hopped onto the waiting (and warm) ferry.

It was another long drive back to Seoul but we had some time for a little shopping in Doota in Dongdaemun before dinner and checking into the hotel. A long day, but the bus ride gave us all opportunity to catch up on sleep which we missed during the flight to Korea.

Day 1: And Away We Go

The day started as usual after a busy evening the night before in Uncle Sin Tien's house for the Christmas party. Went out for lunch then back home to check that everything was packed and got ready to wait for Uncle Sin Tien who came to pick us to the airport.

At the airport we checked in and had to wait for Uncle Sin Tien to round back home to pick up something for Ah Ma before going into the departure hall to wait for our flight. We had a rather long wait as we went to the airport earlier to ensure we got good seats for the connecting flight. As it was a tour, we could not pick the seats upfront online.

Soon it was time to embark on the plane and off we went to KL. At KL, we had quite a lot of transit time so we walked around, looked for something to eat for dinner. The choices was very limited and we ended up with Deli France then headed to the the Plaza Premium Lounge as we had nothing else to do until the time to get to the boarding gate. At last when it was nearly time, we stopped by to pick up a bottle of wine then headed to our gate.

We met our tour leader then proceeded to board the plane. Supper was served and you got a child's meal. After that I had to convince you to go to sleep. It was already past 12 am by then and contrary to what I expected, you seemed very alert still. But at last you fell asleep. It didn't feel like a very long sleep (should be only considered a "nap") then it was time for breakfast.

And so that is how we spent Day 1 of our tour.

The First Day of Our Holiday

Daddy had started his holiday earlier as he still had leave which he needed to clear (of course, he still had to work a little during his "holiday"). And since we did not bring you our anywhere since your school holiday started I also cleared my work and decided to take Friday off.
The night before we booked movie tickets to Alvin and The Chipmunks which is your favourite (you have watched the second movie so many times!!). In fact the day before you called me at work and said "Mummy you have to buy me Happy Meal.. because they are giving Alvin and The Chipmunks toys".
So on Friday morning, we settled some errands, then headed to Gurney Plaza for lunch. Daddy wanted to try Michealangelo's but you insisted on Dragon-I. Aiyo.. ok fine.
Shopped a little then headed to catch the movie. It was funny and I think you enjoyed it. Of course there was also the popcorn part which you liked. We bought some groceries before heading home. But before that, one quick stop at Irrawady Fine Foods to pick up a couple of packets of Serrano Ham for the Christmas dinner in Uncle Sin Tien's house this Sunday.
Before we got home, you'd dozed off. Must have been a long day for you, as you already don't take naps. Anyhow, we let you nap for about an hour before waking you up to get dinner. Ah Ma did not cook as Kakak had gone to clean the condo. We were having guests staying at the condo. Dinner was McDonald's and obviously you got your Alvin toy. So the whole of Friday was "Evan's" day.

Visa Rejected

Poor daddy. He is on leave today and thought that he could go for a game of golf while you go for art class, but his "visa" was rejected by the Deputy Home Minister (you..!!)
In the end he could only squeeze in a quick game of 9 holes with Ah Kong and he had to wait for you to leave before they could leave the house. And when he got back he quickly took a shower before you got back from art class.

Mega Sports Camp Day 4

Oops.. just realised I had one more post to go on the final day of the camp. As usual we dropped you off after registering and you went up to join the other children before the games began. One of the games was playing with balloon filled with water.

And when I got back on Friday, I was surprised to find that you brought back something else:

A medal for "Best Child". It was given to one child per team. We're so proud of you.

On the next day you told me in a very sad voice "Mummy why was Mega Sports Camp only for 4 days?". Yup, that confirms that you had a great time. And I heard that this is the last round of Mega Sport Camp and they would be organizing other types of camp next year. Either way, I'm glad that you made it to the camp this year and if it's a different type of camp, I'm sure you'll have just as much fun.

Little Fella

Picture source

Got back from work one day to find you watching Phineas and Ferb, one of your favourite cartoons. And for a moment I could not remember this cute little girl's name. So I asked you and you told me her name was "Little Fella". I double confirmed if she had another name and you insisted that she didn't and that Phineas only calls her "Little Fella".

After thinking for a while I saw the credits and saw her name.. "Isabella". You must either need to get your ears cleaned or you need to turn up the volume of the tv.

Change Name

You just came up and said this to me:
Evan: mummy, so shall we change our names tonight??
Mummy: Huh?? What do you mean?r
Evan: Change my name-lo...
Mummy: So what would you like to change your name to?
Evan: Super Racer Runner
Mummy: why would you want this name?
Evan: because I can run really fast. (This was followed by a demonstration on how fast you could run)
Mummy: But your name has already been picked when you were born and it's now in your birth certificate. I don't think you can change your name.
Evan: Ok then. But you can still call me Super Racer Runner
Mummy: Super for short?
Evan: No, Racer Runner for short.

Interesting... I wonder when you'll decide to change your name again... And what was to be my name? "Super Cockroach Catcher". Just because I caught one while we were deciding on a name for me :(

Mega Sports Camp Day3

On day three.. you told me there was a game where you were to throw rings into a specific place. You tried a few times before you finally got it in.

And of course, the important thing was "Vico". You had started to develop a slight cough and runny nose, so I told you that you could have no more than 2 cups of Vico. But when I asked how many cups you had at the end of the day, you told me that you had only 1 cup because you had runny nose. I'm proud of you. You knew your limits!

Mega Sports Camp Day2

So what did you do on the second day? Well one information your volunteered happily was the abundance of Vico which you got to drink...

Ah.. another thing which you were very excited to tell me was that your team P5 beat P6 in the tug of war. You also got a little football gift along with another card about a famous sportsman. Interesting way of introducing sports to children and I'm glad I registered you for the Mega Sports Camp.

Other than that, you were confused about what you did on day 1 or day 2. Aiyo.. Nevermind.. as long as you had a good time.

Mega Sports Camp

Today is the second day of your school holidays but you headed back to school.. for the much anticipated Mega Sports Camp. I remember many months back when Mr Tan had given you the form, that very night you had asked me to fill up and sign the form. And at long last, the day has come.

Had a bit of difficulty getting you out of bed as you would not sleep earlier yesterday night. The you slowly ate breakfast while watching TV *ggrrr*. At last we managed to get you out of the house and off we went to school.. or almost. The registration was held in the lobby and after getting you a sticker, getting instructions for the pickup, we left you on the second floor with the volunteers of the camp. There were so many children: 300+ of them from aged 5 -12.

As daddy was rather worried about how the procedure was to pick up the children and since the "pick up card" was with us, we decided to have lunch in town and to pick you up. Surprise, surprise.. it was a very well organized pick up. No worries there. We got our sweaty (and stinky) little boy quickly and we were off.

So what did you do in camp today? You told me you played basket ball where you get to pass the ball and you also had a chance to throw the ball into the basket. There was also story telling, songs to sing and of course the children were given snacks: lots of Vico and "plain bread with nothing".

An interesting day, and I'm glad you had a good time. 3 more days to go.

Swimming

You had a wonderful time swimming over the weekend. So since the school holidays is approaching and there is no homework for you to do in the afternoon, Ah Kong brought you swimming at the Penang Sports Club yesterday. There you met the swim coach and when Ah Kong asked you, you were keen on having lessons. So Ah Kong spoke to the coach and the same night, the coach called and arranged for the first lesson to be held today.

When asked how it went, you said you enjoyed it. You said that you have "completed the first step". I had question marks in my head, wondering what the first step was. After asking a few more questions, I found out what it was : breathing in the water and putting your whole head in the water. Also you told me that the coach held you in the water as the water was "1.1 meter".

Wow! This is an improvement from when you had swimming lessons in your other kindy. After a few classes you simply refused to allow me to pack your swimming stuff to bring to school!! Great job, my little guy.

Drive Me Nuts..

Here's some instances when talking to you makes me want to faint!
During our "drawing session" today:
Mummy: I have no idea what to draw.
Evan: Use your brain-o..
Evan 1- Mummy 0

You being difficult, day dreaming instead of doing your Chinese tuition homework:
Mummy: EVAN BAN!! Why aren't you doing your homework? You stand in the naughty corner and think of why you weren't doing your homework!!
.. less than 2 minutes later..
Evan: Mummy I have thought of why I didn't do my homework.
Mummy: Ok tell me. (Thinking.. this little boy.. has no fear!!)
Evan: Because I don't like Chinese. So much homework!
Evan 2 - Mummy 0

Someone wet the bed this morning. Daddy's not around, but I'd already told him about it before he called you. During dinner time:
Mummy: Did you tell daddy who is the "Wee Wee Monster"?
Evan: Daddy already know. How come he knew?
Mummy: Daddy left one eye at home. So he saw you wee wee... Muahaha...
Evan 2 - Mummy 1 (Phew.. I'm catching up.. I think *grin*)

11.11.11

So what did we do on this special date? We woke up early that day and packed the car and headed to KL. First stop was The Gardens for dim sum with Kor Poh, Jack Chek chek, Jackie Ah Chim and little Eason. Then we headed to Cyberjaya to check into Cyberview Lodge again.

It was still early in the day so we quickly changed and headed to the swimming pool. It was lots of fun.

Went back to the room (we requested for the lake view room and surprise surprise, it was the exact room we got as the last trip. And almost everyone else stayed in the lake view rooms.) then it was time to shower and get ready for dinner.

It started with the cocktail party and lots of pictures was taken:

You said that it was rather warm but the lure of the muruku was stronger than the rain *grin*. Here you are parked next to the container of muruku eating lots of it.

Then you discovered the nice air cond inside and was permanently inside Bistro Cascata where the dinner was to be held, away from the mosquitoes. Here's some of the pictures taken by Uncle Jamie:

Being cheeky with Eu Jin Ah Pek:

Grudgingly posing with Ah Ma:

The hosts of the day, Yvonne Kor kor:

.. and Uncle Peter:

Here's daddy with Eason. Way past his bedtime, but he seems to be enjoying the dinner too!!

Dinner that night was delicious. The restaurant served fusion Italian food. By the time everything was over it was almost 11pm, but the party continued later in Ashley Kor-kor and Uncle Dennis' room. There was another cake there as we celebrated Uncle Jamie's birthday.

And so this was how we spent this special day with a special date: 11.11.11

The Wedding Dinner

After a rest from the afternoon events (actually daddy tried to nap and you just lie beside him.. refusing to nap!!) we got ready to go to the restaurant then off we went. It was just 5 minutes away from the house. Daddy did not take many pictures during the dinner as Yvonne Kor-kor had engaged a photographer for that night.

So here are some shots he took:

Here you are in your vest (specially bought for this occasion) and red bow tie which you picked and me in my Ao Dai which daddy bought for me.

And you with Yvonne Kor-kor. As usual.. after a few shots you got bored and refused to smile for the camera:

Here's one of you and daddy:
One with Ah Ma:

And of course of you doing another task set for you, to be the page boy, leading the way for Hailey and Jamie the flower girls:

And another shot:

And finally the bride and groom making their entrance:

Then the camera was kept and we paid attention to the delicious food served. Yummy.

Congratulations to Yvonne Kor-kor and to Uncle Peter (now officially called Kor-Teo)