When MamyPoko is not the SAME in China!

We were excited when we saw it...we have found Mamy Poko in Carrefour in Beijing and for 100 pieces (M size), the price is only RMB129 or RM64.50. That is RM0.645 per piece, almost the price of which we will hunt for during bargains back in Malaysia!

 

And we were afraid that either we could not find any in Beijing or the price would be exorbitant. We actually shipped 5 packets via air which arrived yesterday with another 10 packets on the way via ship shipment, just to make sure that we have enough for Chenya.

 

So, we bought a packet home to try (which was rather smart of us I think) and fortunately we did. Not only are the diapers thinner but they actually do not absord as well as the one we used to use back home in Malaysia. We changed to Mamy Poko after trying out Pampers and Huggies because Mamy Poko has provened that leakages are far and few in between, even after long hours of use.

 

The same however, could NOT be said about the Mamy Poko here in China.

 

The first day we put them on Chenya, she sprang a leak only after 4 hours or so. Either she wee wee more here or than Ryan or the quality is simply not there, and we would like to think it is the latter.

 

We used to be rather confident when we bring Ryan or Chenya out with their Mamy Poko on, but with those made in China, we simply do not know when it will leak!

 

We are glad that we did ship those five packets and the other 10 which are on their way to our home in Beijing. It looks like, Mamy Poko will be another item for us to bring over each time we go back to Malaysia for a visit (until Chenya outgrows them).

 

The other item incidentally, that we shipped in volume (with restriction) over to Beijing are Pedisure, milk powder for Ryan currently and probably soon for Chenya too. The price for Pedisure here in Beijing is truly exhorbitant. We could get a can of 1.8kg for about RM138 back home but it cost RM128 for a smaller can here! The price is almost DOUBLED!

 

With the restriction that we could only ship a max of 10kg with our sea shipment, we max it out besides carrying two can each in our luggage. With Ryan's consumption of one 1.8kg can every two weeks, it also seemed like this would be another item that we would have to buy and carry over for every trip we made back to Malaysia ....or......

 

.....to any visitors who would love to visit us in Beijing.....

 

.....we promised to provide lodging (HAHAHAHA)....and Pauliner (if you drink) .....

His teacher has been `Unclefied!'

Ryan's new class teacher in Beijing, Jeff walked in, greeting us with a smile.

 

It was an impromptu arrangement and we were glad that Ryan (yes, he shared the same name as our cheeky Ryan), the Campus Director made that last minute meeting so that we could hear what his class teacher has to say about Ryan after a few days at his new school.

 

After all, we were a little worried as to how he has been adapting to his new environment, friends, routine and teachers.

 

For a start, he has started to take the school bus to and from school everyday instead of being fetched by me. To an extend, I think he likes it because there are other friends on board as well.

 

"Hello. I'm Jeff" Jeff extended his hand for a handshake...."and I am the UNCLE" with a smile.

 

For a moment, I could not comprehend what he meant.

 

"I am the UNCLE!" Jeff repeated.

 

And then, it dawned upon me that that was what Ryan has been calling him, his very own teacher "Uncle!"

 

He has managed to bring something very Malaysian over to Beijing China and introduced that to his school because it is customary for us back in Malaysia to teach our children to politely address an older gentlemen as `Uncle' and a lady 'Auntie', although not every lady would take to being called an `Auntie' happily as it suggest that they are no longer qualified to be categorised as sweet and young.

 

Well, at least, he was smart enough to only address his male teacher as Uncle and has not called his sweet looking assistant teacher as "Auntie".

 

We are glad that we have been told that he has been adapting well in school and getting along with his friends and teachers. With that anxiety finally put to rest, we know that our settling down process is taking shape quite nicely and soon, we could start exploring this new land and adventure.

Ryan's Farewell Speech

"Good morning children" Ms Mary greeted the children in Ryan's class.

"This morning we are here because Ryan Looi leaving you and will be going to China already. And he wants to say Good bye to all of you.." she continued.

 

We were having a small farewell gathering for Ryan Looi at his school before he flies off to Beijing to start his new adventure. Over the last two years, he has made quite a number of friends and he has several favourite teachers who in turn adores him.

 

As the day to leave drew near, we were told by the teachers that he has been going around telling his friends and teachers that he will be leaving soon and that he loves them. They were obviously very touched.

"Let's get Ryan Looi up here to say to few words, ok." Ms Mary, his class teacher went on.

"Come Ryan Looi..." she gestured Ryan to come forward.

 

In my heart, I was apprehensive as to what this hyper active and talkative son of mine would say. After all, this is going to be his first farewell speech in front of his class of about 20 other children.

 

"Now..what is he going to say?" I thought to myself.

"Is he going to say something totally stupid and make a fool of himself?"

 

As parents, we always wanted them to make us proud and I was just hoping that he would not go on rambling something about dinosaurs and Ultraman saving the world.

 

He got up the front of the class, stood there, looking very serious and composed. There was not a single iota of the ever playful and unfocused Ryan that he is.

 

He looked at his class for a second and two and said the most appropriate, beautiful and meaningful words that could come out from a 4 year old boy, saying farewell for the very first time to his classmates, words that totally knocked me off my senses and for one moment, he is a very mature, grown up boy.

 

"I LOVE YOU ALL VERY MUCH!" he said and bowed.

 

With these words, he left behind his pre-school days chapter in Malaysia and embarks on a new chapter, new adventures, new friends, teachers, culture and environment in Beijing China.

 

We are so proud of him.

First day to school in Beijing

The weather is 3 degrees outside but the sun is shining brightly and the skies blue and clear.

This is the day. This is the day that Ryan starts his first day at Ivy Academy at Beijing China. This is also his big adventure. This is also his next milestone, just like us, who are starting our life from scratch in this new land, new culture, new faces and un-chartered with unexplored territories.

Honestly, we were rather fearful that Ryan would not want to go to his new school as he was very very comfortable with his school back home in Malaysia. He said that he only want to go the school for only ONE day and he would want to return to his school back home in Malaysia.

But he got up without a fuss. We changed him and got him to wear so many clothes that he has never worn before. He was excited.

We were not quite sure what to pack for him today. We just packed what we thought was necessary. He looked dashing in his blue winter jacket.

While waiting for our rented apartment to be ready, we are currently staying at a service apartment which is just 10 minutes walk away from the school. Since, we have not arranged for the school bus to pick him up for this first day, we have to walk him to school and the experience was nothing short of memorable ….walking in freezing temperature in a country we hardly know, in winter clothing so thick that we all looked bloated up but surprising, pleasing to the eyes.

 

We were glad that he took to his new teachers rather well and was soon off to his class on his own while we wait at the administration office to settle all the necessary documentations and payments.

We are slowly settling down with our life in Beijing and getting Ryan to his school is just another step forward.

This is How Much She STOLE!

We finally got our stolen stuff back from the maid agency a couple of days before we left for Beijing. They were keeping it for a while to painstakingly take pictures of every piece as evidence.

 

Since we have no pictures of the stolen item as well, I laid them out one piece at a time and grab a picture. Believe me or not, I took my wife and I a full one hour to unwrap and photograph them.

 

And once I was done, this is how much she has stolen (or attempted to steal from us since she was caught) ....

Yupe. We were careless and we were too trusting and we were also too busy in the last couple of months leading to our decision to relocate the family to Beijing.

 

But it has never occur in our wildest imagination that we could have employed such a dastardly character to stay with us in our home for the last five months. Does she not feel guilt when she give those clothes that she has so conveniently stolen from us, to her youngest son named `King'. How can she look her son in the eyes and gave him the very shirt that we have bought for Ryan, knowing fully well, that that shirt was NOT meant for his son. How can she honestly gave out those stolen items as Christmas presents?

 

How can she began to tell her children to live a good and honest life and that stealing or taking things from others without permission is VERY wrong, a crime and could lead them being branded as a criminal.

 

We could not comprehend what she was thinking of when she wrapped and labelled those items so meticulously and honestly, we are right now, too angry and disappointed to really care.

 

And to rub salt to the wound, the agency actually told us that we still have to pay to her, her balance salary and to get her an air ticket to send her home. We practically told the agency off and reiterated that she could get her salary and her air ticket from us at the police station, if she so wishes.

 

Needless to say,the agency left the issue as it is and dare not pursue any further.

 

Well, after having lived with the help of a maid over the last 4 years, it can be difficult adapting. It is in time like this, we are thankful that we have our moms and in our case, my dear mother in law who not only helped us out when we were busy packing and shifting but also followed us to Beijing.

 

I am still coping and my daily routine has been drastically changed to accommodate the additional chores without the maid. In a way, as we slowly settled down into our life without a helper, we sort of enjoy the extra privacy of not having a stranger in our home.

 

Well, enough said about this maid. It's good riddance to bad rubbish.

 

For now, several baby bottles awaits me in the basin to be washed before I proceed to put our clothes in the washing machine to be washed. Life is SO MUCH FUN!

The Performer in our Home ....

“It’s 7:30am already! Ryan…wake up! Wake up! Or you will be LATE!” I repeated over and over again like a broken down recorder.

I sounded more excited than he was and so was mommy who purposely flew back from Beijing the night before.

Yes. It’s that time of the year again. It’s time for his year end concert and this year it was held on the 20^th October.

Being parent, I must admit that we get all excited to see our little ones dressed up in some funny costume, with make up that transform them into little super stars and getting all ready to go up the stage to do what they have been secretly practising for weeks at the school or day care.

I can still remember Ryan’s very first concert when we could not believe our eyes when he went up the stage, all dressed up as little Simba, the Lion King! When he made those moves, GOD, we went ballistic, especially mommy who just could not believe her eyes, seeing her little one swinging and twisting to the tune of “The Lion sleeps tonight”

Two concerts later, we were still equally excited to see what he was going to do or perform for this year although his teacher has assured us that he has absolutely no trouble following and remembering all the moves, especially since he has been absent from school with all his recent travelling to Beijing and Disneyland.

We knew that he would be doing two numbers. One from his class and the other from his Day Care After School Program (ASP) class. When the first show was announced and that it will be from the ASP children, I strained my neck to try to catch a glimpse of him, not knowing what exactly to expect. Pushing and struggling (sorry to the other parents), I positioned myself right in front just below the stage to get the best angle I could to grab some pictures. I will be dead meat if I reached home without any good pictures and would probably get an earful from his mommy. Times like this, I really wish that I have the super 70-300mm f2.8 lens but to be realistic, why would I want to spent over RM7000 for this lens just for a concert. So, my simple reliable Nikkor 18-105mm kit lens would have to do.

And suddenly, I spotted him, in his orange costume dancing and jiggling to the lively tune of “Let’s Get Loud” by Jennifer Lopez. With his hair gelled, I must said that he looked dashing to say the least (something that he must have picked up from my genes…HAHAHAHA)

He was going through his silky smooth moves with ease and for that moment, there was a deep sense of pride and a compelling urge to shout “Hey..that is MY SON!"

But then, I guessed every parent there was feeling the same pride and the same urge as me. Which parent would not?

For his second number representing his class, he came out dressed as a Life Guard, dancing to the tune of “Under the Sea” and God, was he agile or what. He was simply awesome, going through the moves with such flexibility. No wonder, the teacher kept on assuring us that we have nothing to worry about.

He nearly did not make it for this year concert since our original move to Beijing was supposed to be early October. However, the complications with visa and the securing the right apartment in Beijing pushed the date back a month, which then allow Ryan to take part in his school’s concert for one last time, and we are definitely glad that he did.

 

The next concert post will be from Beijing!

Club Med Kani Maldives - Paradise on Earth

A school of five silver color fish slowly makes their way to where I was sitting, a small little wooden platform at our lagoon suite villa, my legs dipped in the icy cold water, inches away from the green, oh so green seaweed on fine white sand, waving gently under the magical spell of the sea current.

Meters away, a lone black tip baby shark of a meter long, cruises by oblivious to my presence. A sudden disturbance in the seabed caught my attention. A grey mantra ray of almost three feet in diameter glides by.

The sound of waves beating against the concrete pillars of the villa coupled with the gentle sea breeze blowing onto my face and the dancing sunlight reflected on the clear blue seabed has almost an hypnotizing effect. For a moment, you are in complete total peace with yourself, with mother nature, with God. For that one moment, the world you know and left behind does not seemed to exist or matter.

There is only you, the sea, the blue skies with fluffy white clouds drifting by and the wind, blowing and singing her gentle soothing melody.

This is Maldives.

Read the full story and more pictures at Clud Med Kani Maldives - Paradise on Earth (myNikon&I)

A New Chapter Begins in Beijing

The phone finally rang at approximately 9pm.

“Hello. I am your pet relocation agent. Your Zoewe has arrived. We are now downstairs at your service apartment.” the voice on the other side of the line said.

“OK OK.” We jumped to change and put on some thick clothing and rushed down to the lobby.

After all, we have been worried sick since she was taken from us 2 days ago by the agent in Malaysia to prepare her for her flight to Hong Kong, then to Shenzhen and from there, ultimately to Beijing, her new home for the next two years.

After all the formalities, there she was, finally with us in the living room, clinging on to us. I guessed she was fearful that she could be taken away again.

With her joining us, our family is now complete in Beijing, our new home for the next two years. The thought is only slowly sinking in that we have left Malaysia for our two years adventure in this land of the Dragon.

Events leading up to this week has been rather dramatic and stressful to say the least. With so much to pack  and not knowing what to pack, the discovery of our maid stealing from us and her sacking at the last hour, just before we proceed to process her visa to China, and arranging for my mother in law to step in for the next three months at least to help out in our new home, have certainly been a contributing factor to the additional few strands of white hair.

 

We thought that we would have little to pack. After all, we are only shifting our master bedroom king size mattress, a sofa bed and a single bed over. How much could that be? Right? WRONG!

Wrong for the two reasons. Firstly, we are shifting with two toddlers. Their clothes, winter clothing, toys, milk powder and diapers have already taken up several boxes.

Secondly, we might be shifting for good. Although we are expected to be here for the next two years, there is every possibility that we might either stay longer or move on to our next destination. Hence, if we do not pack those stuff now, what if we do not come back after two years. And we still have to pack the pots, pans, cutlery, pillows etc over, right? I am not going to spent money buying all these and leave them behind when we leave Beijing.

In the end, the final count was a STAGGERING 113 BOXES! But, we were glad that we got that done. The professional movers were a great motivating factor. They were literally behind our back, pushing us almost every minute to decide what to take and what to leave behind.

We were still packing our luggage just 3 hours before we left for the airport and my wife was so stressed out! Being a meticulous lady and a self claimed perfectionist, this move was ANYTHING but perfect and meticulous so to speak. I thought that at one point in time, she almost burst out in tears and that was when a totally random, careless and last minute guy, yours truly, stood in and took charge. I just told her to pack what she can remember, take it as a adventure, part and parcel of an experience and anything that we have forgotten to pack, we would just either have to make do in Beijing or buy them. After all, we are not moving to the Sahara desert or the interior jungles of the Amazon. We did just that!

We were glad that our flight into Beijing was only half full, and hence, we could have the entire row of seats to ourselves. Ryan was his usual irritating self, switching from games to movies to TV shows on board and wanting attention. Chenya, being her first flight was just as curious and refused to sit still for a good 2 hours!

They finally settled in half way through the flight and slept which gave us all, a time to rest and me, to enjoy my beers and wine.

We are fortunate that we still have the service apartment provided by the company till the 24^th Nov and hence, we do not have to worry about going straight into our rented apartment (although fully furnished) with no pillows and no cutlery. We still have the next 2 weeks to wait for our air shipment to arrive and prepare ourselves to shift into our new apartment.

Ryan will be going to his new school on the 12^th Nov which is next week and I will have to work out my new daily routine, but I am excited of the new uncharted path ahead. It’s not going to be rather that easy for a 50 years old man like me, but nothing is impossible and insurmountable. I am not a perfectionist and neither am I meticulous but I guess that those traits are playing to my advantage now.

To get myself right at home and to help everyone settling in into this new chapter of our lives, I do what I do best….I cooked our very first home cooked meal for dinner. A simple meal of Chicken Drumstick marinated with soy sauce and black pepper, fried with shallots, garlic, ginger slices and broccoli....that is the least I could do at this moment in time....

Temptations @ Ara Cooked her last meal

It all started with just this two books .....

I bought these two confinement recipe books way back in 2008 after my wife gave birth to Ryan. The original idea was to get the confinement lady to cook some of the dishes listed in these cook books instead of the one or two standard dishes that she would cook everyday. She was accommodating enough to try some of the dishes we asked her.

After the month was over, I took over the cooking, trying out some of the recipes listed in these two cook books. Now, I have never really cook before and the best I could do before this were probably frying eggs and rice. So, it was quite a challenge to me then but I was determined to try and learn. I would faithfully follow the book to the letter and whipped out dishes after dishes, and my wife was gracious enough to be my guinea pig to try them out. (Anyway, she does not have much of choice does she). I remembered one of our good friend (Winnie) commented that I looked funny running in and out of the kitchen with the recipe book in hand while cooking.

Over time, I began to get comfortable cooking and does not find the task daunting. In fact, I find it rather interesting and began to experiment with different ingredients. My passion for photography fueled my interest in cooking further because I delight to making sure that my dishes are `visually delicious and inviting'. Hence, my cooking adventure takes shape .....

In the last four years, some of our close friends and my sister have been kind enough to partake in most of my `food experiment' and Temptations @ Ara takes form, only opened to serve my lovely wife, my sister, family members and friends, sharing food, wine, beer, laughter and a good time.

Well, Temptations @ Ara served her last meal on 30th and 31st October 2012 with our shifting to Beijing in next several days. And who better should her last guest be if not, the very same person that prompted her very existence....my wife....

With the ingredients left in our fridge, Temptations @ Ara served the following:-

I missed my kitchen here but our life and adventure beckons us else where.

With these four dishes, all the pots and pans have been packed to be shipped to Beijing, and hopefully Temptations @ Beijing will open soon to cook for her number one fan....my wife....and whoever, who happen to drop by for a visit in the future and daring enough to try ....Till then, Tempations @ Ara signing off.....:)

Even the Ultraman was not spared ....What the hell was she thinking of?

My mouth gasped in disbelief. 

My mind was spinning and trying to comprehend what the hell was she thinking of when she packed the items laid on the floor in front of me.

On the floor, were packets after packets of neatly rolled up clothes, packed in small transparent plastic bags that I bought for her to pack our food, each packet meticulously labelled not only with the name of the recipient but also a brief description of the content.

"6 piece toys. Ultraman" reads one label and inside this neatly wrapped plastic bag was six of Ryan's favourite Ultraman figurines.

"3 piece girl baby clothes. 1 pink, 1 white and 1 stripe" reads another with three of Chenya's new branded clothes that we have just bought from US, neatly rolled up, taped, wrapped and labelled.'

But nothing tops these two ....

"This is for outdoor activities only" reads one plastic bag with one of Ryan's outdoor shorts, meant to be given to her son.

"For `so and so' birthday. Happy Birthday. From {Maid's name}" was written on one of the label where another Chenya's cute dress was neatly packed.

Not only were my wife and I stunned and shocked. The magnitude of the volume of such packets found in three huge bags and the manner of which they have been packed and labelled sent ripples literally throughout the maid's agency. In all the years that they have been there, they claimed that they have not seen something akin to what was slowly unfolding before their very eyes.

It took 4 staff to slowly laid all the loot over the floor, carefully photographing them, unwrapping them and documenting them. The last count was 250 pieces, discounting those that came in pairs! 250 fucking pieces of clothes, taken right under our nose!

And just the day before, we were just about to process her visa and bring her along with us to Beijing, China to take care of both Chenya and Ryan for the next 2 years.

However, we are thankful and grateful because the heavens are definitely looking out for us. The timing could not have been more timely and how the entire conspiracy and scheme unraveled was rather unexpected to say the least, and it's nothing short of a meticulous and calculated conspiracy between my Pinay maid and the one behind our house.

Being with us for the last 5 months, we have learnt to trust her with our children and house chores. She has started off well, although lately she has somewhat slacked and was caught on various occasions by my mother and mother in law staying at our house, in our absence while travelling, chatting and having a good time with the maid behind our house and another from the corner unit. I have verbally told her off and that she is not to waste her time chatting away when there are loads to do.

So, how was she caught?

On Sunday evening, when we got back with her to have her picture taken for her visa application, we found our neighbor's car parked in front of our house. When my wife got down, our neighbor showed her two bags and asked her if they were ours. The bags were clearly ours and on opening those bags, we were shocked to see neatly rolled up, wrapped baby clothes with name of various people written on them.

We were then told that these bags were recovered from the maid behind our house, when she was fired and were asked to leave. When our neighbor checked her belonging before letting her go, these bags were apparently found and upon questioning, were told that they belong to our maid who gave these items to her to be sent back to Philippines.

My wife was fuming and I can not blame her because we both felt betrayed! We were hurt because we have attempted in the last five months to be as positive and caring as we can (as an employer) to her. We have even bought her clothes from US during our last visit as souvenirs and here she was, stealing from us, right under our nose! We wanted to confront her there and then, but realising that we have no place to sent her to in the night, we refrained ourselves waiting to get that done in the morning.

I was certain that she has suspected her deed uncovered when the neighbor brought down the two bags. Although she has said nothing, she was not her normal self, looked somewhat disturbed and worried. I was fearful that she would just run away that very same night and to ensure that does not happen, I have resorted to keeping every key to the house in my pocket and slept on the couch downstairs to make sure that no one leaves the house without my knowledge.

We called the maid agency the following morning and was advised to bring her in. We told her to get ready because we have to bring her to the embassy to get her visa done (which we planned to do originally anyway) and would drop by the agency to get her documents certified. I could see that she was worried but having little choice but to follow.

Upon reaching the agency, she was brought into a room and was then immediately questioned by the person in charge as to whether she realized why she was brought back to the agency. At that point, she admitted that she did something wrong and that she `took' some T-shirts and baby clothes. She was then asked to list down everything that she `took'. She was reluctant at first and listed down only 3 to 4 items. Upon being threatened that we have already had the loot, she began to fill up a piece of A4 paper!

When the two bags that was returned by my neighbor was brought in and the loot laid on the table, we found that many listed on the paper were actually not there. Upon being pressured, she admitted that there is another bag..."half more she said".....given to the maid from the house behind.

GOD! We just could not believe our ears. What we have seen in the two bags were bad enough and here she was, telling us that there is another bag!

We made a quick call to our neighbor to check and 5 minutes later, she called back and said that she found another 3 bags hidden under the maid's bed and one bag was so heavy that she could hardly pull it out.

With a staff from the agency, we made our way to our neighbor's house to recover this one bag. We were shocked! The third bag is even BIGGER than the first two and stuffed to the brim with items from our house!

We were told that she has been silently packing whatever she fancied and passed them over from our wet kitchen window to the maid behind who would then kept it for her over a period of two months.

250 pieces of my branded shirts and shorts, wife's T-shirts, Ryan's clothes and Chenya's clothes (both hardly used or brand new, still with price labels that we bought recently from US), besides Ultraman, hotwheels, USB thumb drives and Angry Bird keychains!

So, what was she thinking of? What was her or rather their strategy? Don't they know that she would have to follow us to Beijing as agreed? Do she know that when they leave for home, all their bags would be checked? How on earth are they going to move three such heavy bags beside their own bags?

Here is what we think ....

• She has gotten braver and greedier as the days went by, starting with used items to brand new items that we have just bought because she was not questioned about these missing items. (We have been noticing that our children are wearing almost the same clothes everyday and she has been questioned. She acted dumb and we thought that she was too lazy to take out other clothes and kept on using the same ones to her convenience) With our relocation pending in weeks, we were also very busy to really check on the items we have bought home.
• She has been instigated and she was tempted thinking that she could get away with the crime.
• She has no intention whatsoever to follow us to Beijing in the first place, because has been constantly asking my mother in law, the exact date of which we will shift. We have been keeping this date from her for security reasons.
• She has planned to run away just before we fly to Beijing, very likely with the maid from the house behind and if that is so, they would have very likely made arrangements with another party at large with transportation to help them to cart away the loot.

The entire conspiracy would NOT have been uncovered if the maid behind was NOT terminated and asked to leave unexpectedly. Our believe is that both maids have planned to run away with the items stolen from both our house and our neighbor's house when the timing was right. However, the unexpected termination forced the maid to leave early and hence, the stolen items discovered and the plot unraveled.

So, God has been very kind to us. We could not have imagine our loss (not only the items stolen, visa application and air ticket) but also our predicament at the very last minute when we do not have a maid to bring over to Beijing to take care of both Chenya and Ryan. At least now, we can still proceed with our back up plans for our relocation to Beijing.

And if you think that all the above are bad enough, wait till you read this....

My maid was given a stolen handphone by the maid behind to keep their communication line opened. (Our agreement with our maid when we employed her was that she will not have a handphone, hence we paid her a premium on top of her monthly salary with a promise that we will allow her to call home twice every month using our phone card)

When we went through her items to be packed and given back to her at the agency, my mother in law pass a black bra to my wife and asked if that was the maid's. My wife's eyes nearly fell off her sockets. She was holding her black Victoria Secret bra, bought back from the US sometime back but have not wore it since. The maid has conveniently took it and wear it as her own, and so brave and arrogant that she has became, that she actually washed and hung it out to dry (at the back) right under our nose!

We were very hurt because we have always attempt to make our maid's stay with us as pleasant as we could. We even have her birthday coming up in November updated in our calendar so that we do not forget to celebrate it with her, just like we did with the maids before her.....

We felt BETRAYED!

Are we the WORST? Really?

At the time when I read that Malaysian taxi drivers were rated one of the worst in the world, I have just came back from taking an approximately 30 minutes taxi ride from Bellevue in Seattle to downtown Pikes Market which cost me USD39 besides the USD5 tips that I have to pay, which means that my 30 minutes ride cost me a cool RM136.50 at today's exchange rate of 3.104. I barely spent 2 hours at the Pikes Fish Market before I had to go back to the hotel with Ryan whining about being tired and sleepy. Hence, my 2 hours escapade cost me a whopping RM273!

So, before we start to jump blaming our Malaysian taxi drivers and pointing fingers that the report is true and they deserve what they deserves, I believe that we should look at the `so called' poll and report and the results objectively before we judged.

I have the privilege to travel quite a fair bit recently, and taking taxis in some of this countries that I have visited and the experience related to this group of people and their occupation.

I must said that I do agreed that we simply do not have the best taxi drivers in the world but I am not quite sure if they deserved being called the WORST!

Read more about my experience with taxis from other parts of the world and see for yourself if we deserved to be called the worst taxi drivers in the WORLD at MyNikon & I : Worst Taxi Drivers.

You are giving me a HEADACHE!

As I was browsing through the Tomy Roma's menu at Anaheim, Los Angeles after a two hours drive back from San Diego where we have spent a day earlier at the Sea World, carefully selecting a hearty meal that would hopefully gives me enough energy to last me till midnight later at Disneyland, Ryan, as usual wanting attention, asked me which ultraman figurine that he has brought along for this holiday would I want?

"Daddy, you want Dyna or Ultraman Gaia?" he asked, shoving the two figurines into my face.

Irritated, tired and just wanting to get him off my back, I said "Tiga". For the uninitiated, Tiga is yet another Ultraman in the huge ultraman family.

"Huh? Tiga? No! I don't have Tiga!" he screamed.
"I asked you which one you want? Dyna or Gaia?" he continued.
"But I want Tiga" I repeated, wanting to agitate him and give me a piece of his own medicine when he agitates me non stop.
"I told YOUuuuuu. I don't have Tiga!" he repeated.
"Why not?" I asked, sensing blood, knowing that he was getting impatient.
"I didn't bringggggg!" he explained.
"Why not?" I persisted.
"I told youuuuu, I didn't bring!" he said
"Why? I wanted Tiga because he is so strong!" I insisted.
"But I didn't bringggggg!" his eyes rolling with frustration and agitation.
"But I want!" I pressed on, a line that he uses so often on us that will never fail to drive us up the wall.
"I told you alreadyyyyyy, I didn't bring!" you can have either Dyna or Gaia Onlyyyy!" trying to stress his point.
"But I only want Tiga." I insisted.

At this point, he was already irritated with me to the max, a moment of which I enjoyed tremendously. What a evil daddy I am, but hell, I am having fun for once and having him at the receiving end.

He rolled his eyes and one hand on his head and exclaimed, "Daddy! You are giving me a Headache!"

Both my wife and I burst into laughter and we were laughing so hard till we cried and I am pretty sure that the patrons next to us must have thought the Chinese next to them have absolutely gone mad and were too loud, like all other Chinese they must have came across.

It's pay back time ! Hehehehehe

Club Med Kani Maldives - Arrival

Mynikon & I : Club Med Kani Maldives - Arrival

We arrived at 9:45 p.m. local which was 12:45 a.m. Malaysian time. After a 4 hours flight, we were tired. Maldives international airport looks pretty much like the one we have at Pulau Langkawi. Small and rather unorganized. After clearing customs, we walked out of the arrival hall expecting greeting cards from Club Med with our name but there were none. Lost and unhappy, we asked around and were directed to a small Club Med counter. We were tagged with a green wrist band (something which  will bring us much more attention and privileges as we found out later) and  were asked to wait. And we waited and waited. We ended sitting by the roadside because we were supposed to wait for another flight from Singapore and since both flights are arriving apparently 5 minutes apart in the middle of the night, the management thinks that it is good logistic to group guests from this two flights together.

Read more about our experience about the Lagoon Suites at Club Med Kani Maldives and our experience upon our arrival ....(http://mynikonni.blogspot.com/2012/09/club-med-kani-maldives-arrival.html)

The Irony of Travelling as a Parent

The day before we travelled has always been stressful as far as I could remember. There are always so many last minute errands to run and things to settle. Packing has always been done hours before we are to leave for the airport. I must confess that most of the packing is done by my better half, who would meticulously write down a checklist to ensure that every necessity are packed and taken care of, down to the quantity of every shirt, every pants and underwear packed. I, for one, am the careless one. Packing to me would probably take a fraction of the time that she would need but then again, please do not ask me the exact number of collar t-shirts I have taken, round neck shirts I have tucked away nor the exact location of my toothpaste or my shaver.

Instead of careless, I would rather say that I am more carefree. I am happy just travelling with as little luggage as possible besides my camera and my lens. To me, travelling, especially if it is for leisure and not business, got to be more spontaneous and carefree. As long as my passport and all necessary documents are in place, who cares if I should run out of shirts while I am away? Who cares if I bring back exactly the five pieces of underwear that I brought along? But then again, that is me.

However, now that I am no longer unattached nor have the privilege to travel alone like I used to, going on a holiday, or I would rather said, preparation to go for a holiday has become a totally different story especially when my children are travelling with me. I would love to be carefree but I can no longer afford that luxury. Besides making sure that I have enough milk powder to last through the journey, number of pieces of diapers, I have to ensure that all the necessary medication for any possible emergency are taken along, nasal spray, nose drops, paracetamol and the list goes on. With Chenya travelling as well, I would have to make sure that baby bottle special washing liquid, brush and sterilizing steamer are packed as well.  I will make sure that if we ever have to bring Ryan (when he was below 3) or Chenya now, I would avoid flying or taking any type of transportation other than my MPV. If I can not park my MPV in front of the hotel to unload all the stuff that I have brought along, you would NOT see me there. If I can not unload all the luggage and bags that I have skilfully fit into the luggage compartment right in front of the hotel so that the bell boy can take over, I am not going.

I used to enjoy travelling and being away from home for weeks and if it is a dream holiday, for months or never coming back to the reality. But with Ryan getting older and more attached and with Chenya growing up so fast, surprising, we find ourselves missing home the moment we left home without them. That is a deep sense of relief, to our disbelief, on the day we checked out.

Relieved, knowing that soon we will see our two little precious one that we have left home, soon. Relieved, knowing that soon, we could have them in our arms, and we showering them with our kisses and hugs. Relieved, knowing soon that Ryan will be running into our arms, yelling at the top of his lungs, “Daddy! Mommy! I LOVE you!” and Chenya waving her arms frantically in the air shouting “Aaeyyyyyeeeee!” with her cheeky smile. Relieved that soon we will be seeing Ryan jumping off the sofa and we will be shouting at him at the top of our lungs, “Ryan! STOP! You will break your leg!”….

OK…I need another holiday soon……

"No Way!"

Mommy came back from Beijing recently and the kids were totally excited to see her after so long. All her fears that Chenya will not recognised her or would want her anymore after not seeing her for over three weeks were unfounded when Chenya screamed in delight the moment she saw her mommy. Mommy of course was over the moon.

My mom came over for a visit and stayed for a week with us and an opportunity to do some bonding with her grandchildren especially the cheeky Chenya before we move to Beijing in October. One day, my mom, not being literate in English, asked us, what does "No way!" meant.

"Why?" I asked. She said that she heard Chenya uttered those words when fighting with her brother over toys. "Are you sure?" we asked her again in disbelief.

"I don't know" she replied. "But sounded like that. You know me. I don't know what they were talking in English." she continued.

When mommy came back from Beijing, she brought back with her gifts for both of them and as usual, they would fight over their toys. Somehow, children being children, always find toys belonging to others seemed to be more attractive than their own.

While Ryan was not looking, Chenya quietly grab hold of her brother's box of snake and ladder board game. The moment Ryan saw it, he got up and went after her sister. "No. Chenya! Kor Kor's one! Cannot Play!"

The moment she saw her brother coming, she turned around and ran.

"No Chenya!. Give me back!" Ryan went after her and was trying to grab the toy out of her hand...

"NO WAY!" she screamed back, pulled hard and with the toy firmly in her hands, she scurried to the kitchen with Ryan hot on her heels, screaming..."Daddy! Chenya took my toys!"

Both of us were too shocked and at the same time, utterly happy hearing what she said, to intervene in helping until Ryan shouted again..."Mommy! Chenya took my toy!"

"No Chenya....Give kor kor back his toy!" mommy went after her while Chenya was giggling cheekily in the kitchen, waving the toy in her hand as if to exhibit her victory in her `battle' with her brother.

She is definitely the fiercer one with a temper in the family and will probably soon be establishing her turf and boundaries and territories.

US San Francisco : Pier 39 & Fisherman Wharf

"Make sure you get all the itineraries sorted out and all the places we want to go planned ya ..." my wife reminded me again and again like a spoilt CD repeating itself. Well, her concern is well justified as I am one who would like pro-castinate and pushes things till the very last minute before I actually act on them.

Forcing myself, I googled for the top places and must do activities for our up and coming visit to San Francisco and checked through the various reviews from the different sites. One such apparently `must do' place is Pier 39 and Fisherman Wharf of course. However, checking on the numerous reviews written on this site left me rather uncertain as to whether I really should waste time getting there. To be honest, while it does get some rather good reviews from visitors, there were also almost an equal amount of bad ones, ranging from over crowded, too commercialized, bad food and some puts it as outright `rip-off'. It seemed that the only repeating consolation to warrant a visit is to see the sea lions who have made Pier 39 their home. It seems that this place is a darling to visitors of San Francisco but locals seemed to avoid it like a plague.

Read the full story at my travelling and photography blog:-

http://mynikonni.blogspot.com/2012/09/us-san-francisco-pier-39-fisherman.html

When in Rome do what the Romans do!

My first impression of Beijing China was not exactly nice nor charming. Having heard too many horror stories of how obnoxious the Chinese can be and their rather disgusting behavior, I was really apprehensive.

For one, Chinese in China do not seemed to understand the meaning of queuing up for anything. They seemed to be a rather single minded very focused people who only sees their objective and where they want to go and what they want to do, and in the process, are totally ignorant of the people around them or the inconvenience that they could have caused others in their pursuit of their objective.

They don't seemed to understand nor have ever heard of the concept of `first come first serve'. There seemed to be only one concept in China (or places that I have observed so far) and that concept is "Me First and Now!"

Hence, during my first visit, being accustomed to queuing up for anything and everything, I find myself totally frustrated at every turn. At the airport, we have people cutting queues without an iota of guilt. It was even frustrating when it comes to taking a good picture. While I am accustomed to waiting in line for my turn to take a picture from a certain location, I found out too soon that that does not always work. You could end up waiting for hours because there will always be some Chinese who would just sneaked in. And the worst part of it was, they don't leave after having their picture taken, oblivious that there are still others waiting to take a picture. Instead, they would linger on, either having a conversation or comparing their pictures in their camera.

Well, the phrase "When in Rome, do what the Romans do" holds true. On my subsequent visit to the Forbidden City, I told myself that I will not be intimated and I will behave exactly like how a Chinese in China would behaved. Although I would still queue as much as I can, I will do everything I can to ensure that no one would be able to sneak in front of me. As far as taking a pictures is concerned, no more Mr Nice Guy who would wait till the person in front is finished with their pictures. I will just stationed myself where I feel would give me the best angle and I will make sure that I will not move either until I am satisfied that I have captured the angle I wanted.

There were certain occasions when I find some inconsiderate idiots just walking up in front of my camera while I was taking my shot. Instead of being frustrated and gets totally irritated, I find myself coolly picking myself up and walking right in front of them, oblivious that they too are in the midst of taking a picture, and anchored myself for the shot that I have originally intended to take.

I find myself happier, less irritated and suddenly more at home in Beijing as if I am now just one of the crowd. After all, that is what everyone else is doing. I think I am going to do well and fit Beijing before too long.

His first trip to CHINA!

"I missed the children so much. Depressed...This is not working out..." my wife messaged me on skype...

...and that is only the 2nd day she was in Beijing alone. She still have at least two full months before the entire family can join her...

"OK..that's it" I told myself. 

"Since next week is Raya holidays, we will be coming to see you..ok?"

So, I got Ryan's China visa done, got our tickets and packed our bags for one week in Beijing. For Ryan, this would be longest flight ....6 hours. I have apprehension as to how he would cope with the hours but then, it would be a good preparation for his September's trip with us to Seattle which will take over 20 hours....

When I told him that he was going to China, he was over the moon and started telling teachers, friends, classmates and everybody he met that he is going to CHINA!

I told him that he cannot speak Mandarin and that he can't go. He said he will learn and ask his grandmother what "Eating Rice" is in Mandarin. Grandma said "吃饭". He repeated it and then proudly proclaimed "I can go CHINA already! I know how to speak 吃饭!"

He was so excited about the trip that he even offered to help to pack his own clothes and bag. On the way to the airport, he was talking non stop, telling the taxi driver about his going to China and to see his mommy. At the airport, he even helped to pull our hand held luggage, and stopped every now and then and asked for his picture to be taken...vain!

Waiting for boarding at the Premier Lounge .....

We took MAS and we managed to secure a window and aisle seat all to ourselves. By the time, he board the plane, he was totally exhausted and fell asleep even before the plane took off !!! He slept the entire 6 hours on my lap and only got up when we were about to land. 

So, the journey was much much much simpler than I anticipated and I guess he is ready for the long flight to US now.....

More on his visit to CHINA in the following post .....