Finale to 2009

Time really flies, I think most probably this would be my last entry for 2009.

As it is life itself, full of ups and downs, happiness and sorrow, leaving one with mixed emotions. But the moral of the story is always to treasure what you have, and live like there is no tomorrow. Never, never leave a chance for regret.

2009 begins with a mission, to end the year with a bang on the career front, and build on the foundation of my future. Things started ok but it was really until the 2nd half of the year that the sales result began to show. From then on things look much rosier, and sales came by much easier, due largely in part to the amount of effort put in, and with the support of able colleagues.

In August, I finally proposed to my significant other after almost 3 years of dating. It was her birthday and we were staying at Sentosa for the night. Nothing fanciful and I just wanted to do it in the most sincere way possible with words from the bottom of my heart. I don't think anyone can refuse after what I said and did. Hehe.

Next up, the HDB dream. Months and months of waiting for Bedok Reservoir DBSS didn't materialise, that project is apparently put on hold due to unknown reasons. That would have been the ideal location for home. And so, Punggol Residences came by during this time. This BTO premium flat is located in the heart of the proposed town centre, beside the MRT/LRT and conveniently located near the proposed waterway in the new Punggol 21 landscape that was being envisioned by HDB. Competition was stiff for the 5 room flat I was balloting and it ended up being oversubscribed by 1:11.

Imagine the look on our face when we were listed as no. 64 in the queue. Better than striking toto I tell ya! Speaking of which, my car license plate no. strike 4D on 3 separate occasions. All these within a space of 1 year! And the best part is everybody won something during the 3 times the number came up. And I'm banking it to come up as first prize soon!

So we finally selected our unit on the 8th floor, its not too bad and we're waiting for the flat to be ready by 2013. Yeah long time if you asked me, but allows me to save up for the renovation costs & such. Its really a lot of money if you want things to be done up nicely. And the wedding of cos.

December was to be a sad month. First I lost my grandma, whom has been bedridden for years with deteriorating health. The only thing I can take comfort from it is, that she passed away peacefully and I managed to catch her for the last time. But why is it always when you have to wait till someone has gone, that you regret not visiting them more often? Even though she could not speak, I knew she was happy her "ah chao" was here to visit her, sometimes with his girlfriend. I also knew she could hear me everytime, trying to converse with her in my limited hokkien. My grandma was a tough woman who was widowed very early in her married life and had single handedly raise up 9 children who in turn gave her many grandchildren and great grandchildren who had the privilege to be around her in her lifetime. I think she could not ask for a more blessed life than this. Rest in peace ah ma.

Second was to receive news of the sudden death of one of my motorcycling acquaintance. A gung-ho, friendly and affable guy who is always willing to lend a helping hand to others. Even though we weren't very close, I could feel the loss of a guiding light to the motorcycle & adventure community where he was very active. It was a cruel way to take away the life of someone who had the whole future in front of him, and the irony was he wasn't even in a motorbike when the accident happened. I hope you've found peace up above my friend.

As I've mentioned, life is a rollercoaster ride but still, life must go on. We will all strive to be better people for ourselves, for our loved ones, and for mankind. I think love makes the world a much better place to live in. While in pursuit of your material goals, always take a step back and ask yourself if you still remember how to love the ones around you?

Happy new year everyone and may all of you have a great 2010 ahead!

Painting Singapore RED!!!

The Reds are in town!

As a lifelong supporter, I shouldn't be sitting in front of the telly cheering them on. In fact, I should be soaking up the atmosphere at the national stadium!!! Sheesh, seriously I felt the ticket were overpriced, and by the time I wanted to even consider buying the tickets, only the north and south stands were left. Not the best of places to view those players yeah? And bob had to give me only 1 ticket to the East stand... hehe

Oh well, a throwback to Istanbul, happy memories of Stevie G lifting the European Cup on that glorious night!

As expected, the Lions were soundly trounced 5-0. I thought our boys played all right until the end where they lost all shape. Still, there's a lot of room for improvement. Raddy must have sounded them out after the match. A reporter asked a Liverpool player what the scoreline would be, and he said 1-0 or 2-0 to the Reds. Ahhh, he couldn't get any more modest. :P

Shigoto (work)

Hey people, its been ages since I last logged in.
Everything's fine, just that it's only about work work and work.
Which is good, if you have a goal in mind, and motivated to achieve it.
Other than, life will pretty much stay stagnant and you will grow complacent.
Never a good thing for people my age.

The only reason why I'm able to pen this entry is because:

1) There is no sunday soccer session (for the past 3 weeks already) and I'm getting irritated by some people whom I perceive to be very childish and immature in their behaviour. Looks like I have to regroup and recruit new people already.

2) I've been sick for the past few days. Guess the late nights have been getting to me. I need a break soon! Anyhow I have just deferred my ICT from 13th July to 5th Oct. All this in anticipation of a huge breakthrough in my sales. Hehe. There has to be someone getting a hold of things and on top of it. It is too big a case to lose.

Going to finish the remainder of my Blood+ now.

Liverpool FC vs Lions beckons.

Let the slaughter begin!!!

New mobile phone!

Hehehehe... presenting the NOKIA E71!!!

First time trying out a smartphone/pda phone... whatever you call it.
Still trying to get used to the QWERTY layout, the tiny buttons are a bit tricky for my pudgy fingers.

Goodbye dearest xiao hei!

Good bye my dearest xiao hei!

For all the time you've given me endless joy & excitement

From Cameron to Katong

There was never a moment's dull with you by my side

Who can forget the days we rode with the wind

Cruising and cornering we've conquered many a miles

Falls & crashes we've been through thick & thin

Even dying on me on a wet sunday afternoon on the PIE

I just want to say you will remain close to my heart no matter who you are with

I hope he will take care of you as much as I do

Bye Xiao hei...........

Shanghai trip with the gf

This is a very backdated entry about our trip to Shanghai from 25/Dec '08 to 3/Jan '09.

We had planned for our trip about 2 months in advance, in order to make full use of the Krisflyer miles I had accumulated & the long holiday season break. We wanted to have a break to somewhere far far away, and shanghai it was to be (actually not that far... haha).

Uncle Jerry had graciously invited us to stay at his place during the trip. Ever the hospitable man he is, as was the last time when I had stayed over during a short stint working in Shanghai. I returned to familiar places which brings back memories of me trying to navigate around this huge-ass metro city.

We had set up base camp at Shanghai. We arrived into Pudong International Airport and was greeted by the chilly weather (winter finally!!!) & Uncle Jerry's personal chaffeur, Uncle Quhui. We really appreciate the efforts to make us feel welcomed, much as I don't mind trying out public transport in Shanghai. :)

We have already planned our schedule & this is how it will look like over the next 10 days:

25/Dec: Touchdown Shanghai
26/Dec: Shanghai & dinner with old friends
27/Dec: Depart for Huangshan (Yellow Mountains)
28/Dec: Huangshan
29/Dec: Huangshan/Back to Shanghai & dinner with Uncle Jerry
30/Dec: Suzhou day trip
31/Dec: Depart for Hangzhou
1/Jan: Hangzhou/Back to Shanghai
2/Jan: Shanghai city tour & last min shopping
3/Jan: Back to Singapore midnight flight!

Detailed account of day to day activities...

25/Dec: Touchdown Shanghai
Me and the gf checked in early into Changi airport T3, eagerly anticipating SQ830 scheduled to leave for Shanghai at 10:05am. We had MacDonald's for breakfast, then proceed to do some window shopping in the duty free zone. Soon after, time to board the plane.

After a 5 hr journey, we finally landed at Pudong International airport. It feels great to be able to finally experience winter time, but the sad thing is no snow. But dunno why I just lurrrvee cold weather!!! and wearing those cool looking winter clothing! hahahaha!!! Uncle Quhui fetched us in a swanky new 7 series, and I felt like some VIP really. Hahaha! I caught up with him since 2005 and he would dropped us off at Uncle Jerry's place for OTOT.

We unpacked our stuffs, and went out searching for food cos' apparently we get hungry more easily in winter! Strolling along the streets in the cold is damn shiok, and we finally settled for dinner at a nice restaurant serving steaming boiled soup brewed with the richest of ingredients. Satisfied, we proceed to walk around the surburbs look look see see before tucking in after a long day. So much for X'mas day in Shanghai! Hehe.

26/Dec: Shanghai & dinner with old friends
Spent the day shopping at Qipu lu, the garment & textile market. The gf is damn happy & ecstatic about able to choose any material, in which the tailors can copy into exactly the same piece of clothing which you show them. Sheer pleasure for the lady, unspoken pain for the man.

Afterwards we went back to the office which I worked in before, met up with old friends & do some catching up. The office address hasn't changed, it is still located in the heart of the city, overseeing the entire metropolitan from its 51st floor viewpoint. Truly a remarkable sight to behold. Later in the evening, Uncle Ho invited us for a delectable meal of mushroom hotpot! Oishii!!!

27/Dec: Depart for Huangshan (Yellow Mountains)
We woke up early morning to make ourselves breakfast consisting of instant noodles & dumplings. Then it is off to the Shanghai South Bus Station where we will take a 3 hr journey by coach to Tunxi, the nearest city before the ascent up to the foot of Huangshan. We still have to transfer to another smaller bus, together with some funny looking people... :S

It will be another 1.5hr before we make it to foot of Huangshan. Guess what, another transfer again! Nabeh wtf!!! this time to the place where we either climb up this monster of a mountain, or take the cable car up to the western steppes. No prizes for guessing what we chose :P

FYI, Mt. Huangshan (Yellow Mountains) is a mountain range in southern Anhui province (Eastern China) and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The cable car ride was so damn bloody high that it got the gf really scared. The strong gusts of winds didn't help much either. She was so stiff to the extent that she even held her breath and control as she exhale. Hahahaha! She couldn't be more relieved to have make landfall.

Upon disembarking from the station, we searched for signs to direct us to our hotel, which means navigating the sometimes confusing pathways in the omnipresent mist. And be careful of the path you take! Make sure it is correct cos' I don't think you want to retrace 1km+ of roads! I must say the air up there is damn bloody fresh lor, I feel so energetic and raring to go! Not even the slight drizzle that is falling down on us can dampen my spirits!

After 2km+ of walking up and down undulating terrain, we finally reached our hotel - Shilin hotel. Machiam oasis in the desert, cos' we were walking for quite a while with nothing in sight. Starting to get worried as the dark starts to creep in at 4 plus. We put down our backpacks and took a hot shower. Then, it was time to feed our hungry stomach at the hotel restaurant, cos' thats the only place that serves food. No choice, eat whatever lah!

28/Dec: Huangshan
Day 2 began with us waking up at 5am trying to catch hold of the famed sunrise at Huangshan. That morning was raining, damp, dark & with nothing to guide us, we gave up. Anyways nobody could catch hold of any sunrise as the mist is shielding that fabled sight from us all. So we checked out of the hotel after breakfast to embark on day 2 of Huangshan tour! Armed with a map in hand, we tried to cover the various peaks noted for their distinct names & naturally formed unique rock formations.

The walking really damn siong for this day. I think we have covered about 8km of paths, be it winding roads or steep steps, we overcame it. I was particularly impressed with the gf. All along I thought she would be complaining about this & that. + 1 point :P Guess I have to compensate her with more shopping when we get back to Shanghai city. :( We finally reached Tian Hai Shan Zhuang about 4pm. Just nice also. Hehe

29/Dec: Huangshan/Back to Shanghai & dinner with Uncle Jerry
We got up early again, to catch the sunrise of cos. Where got people come all the way to Huangshan to miss it one? Fortunately the heavens is smiling on us. The weather is good today, but not good enough to see the fully glory of the majestic sunrise. This was where we took tonnes of pictures, along with many crazy chinese people who risked their lives by hanging precariously near the ledge of the barriers. Yes, I do have a serious case of height phobia.

Satisfied with our catch of the day, we proceed back to hotel, washed up, had breakfast, then hurriedly made our way to the cable car station located at the eastern steppes, which will bring us down to the foot of the mountain. There, we would need to get on a bus to catch which would need to bring us to Tunxi bus interchange to catch our coach back to Shanghai. Had we missed it, that's it man.

It was then I made the decision to pay extra money to get a local taxi that would sped us up to our destination. It was really money well spent I tell you. I shudder to think how we would spend our day at Tunxi had we really missed the return coach. Upon arriving in Shanghai, there was uncle Quhui waiting patiently to fetch us to have dinner with Uncle Jerry who would be flying back to Singapore that same night.

30/Dec: Suzhou day trip
We had went on this impromptu trip at the suggestion of Uncle Jerry, who thought we might as well made full use of our trip here. He recommended that we visit the state silk museum & store that sells authentic silk products. We didn't mind at all since Uncle Quhui was driving us there... Not too far actually, it was roughly an hour and a half's journey by the comfy 7 series. :P

We visited some touristy spot - The Tiger Hill upon reaching Suzhou city, and then off to the state silk museum before calling it a day. We asked uncle Quhui to drop us off near the office as we wanted to take a stroll at Nanjing Road - a long stretch of pedestrian shopping district filled with bright lights & hordes of people. Dinner was settled over MacDonald's - Shanghai flavour. Eh must try fast food all over the world mah...

31/Dec: Depart for Hangzhou
We got up early morning as usual to catch a train to Hangzhou. Damn, never had chance to sleep late one! We had earlier booked the tickets for the best seats of a newly set up train service that runs between the 2 cities. It was one of the fastest & well maintained trains you can ever find, we had clean seats, with city dwellers as fellow passengers. Nothing of the sort where you have to squeeze with total strangers, stand throughout the journey and contend with livestock shoved in your face. Hahahaha!

The journey took no longer than 2 hours and we were in Hangzhou. Then we hailed a cab, and checked into the Merchant Marco hotel which we had booked online via CTRIP. The view was fantastic cos' we asked for a lakeview room but the West Lake ("Xihu") wasn't that close as we thought. It was still about a good 10min's walk away, but in those cool weather, we aren't complaining much.

The rest of the day was spent walking around Xihu and admiring the various attractions around it. As night falls, we went for a stroll at the local night market where we bought some tea leaves for the folks back home, and then proceed to have our dinner at a local restaurant. We continued the slow walk back to the hotel, guided by the tourist map, having already covered half of Xihu. Along the lake front, there were celebrations in place for the countdown happening in a few hour's time and we took the opportunity to soak in the rather muted activities.

We walked past a nice cafe, had some hot drinks to warm ourselves, along with some cakes to satisfy our sweet tooth. Seeing there was nothing much to do, we went back to our hotel room for a good night's rest. And so new year's eve was spent watching channel newsasia (yes they have that) on cable tv, and admiring the city lights & some small scale fireworks from our 21st floor suite.

1/Jan: Hangzhou/Back to Shanghai
In Hangzhou, locals say a visit to "Lingyin temple" is a must on the first day of the new year. We also went there to jostle with the crowd, and to pray for a good start to 2009. After that, we came back to Xihu lake area, where we took a boat ride that takes us to some of the little islets on Xihu. The sun was shining brightly, but it was anything but hot. The breeze didn't help things much, as soon as you take out your gloves to take some pictures (or dig your nose), you will be dying to put them back on because it is soooo cold lor! Before we left for Hangzhou, we still have so many other places yet to cover, maybe should do another trip again next time.

2/Jan: Shanghai city tour & last min shopping
This is exclusive shopping day reserved for the gf, after her commendable performance at Mt.Huangshan. Hehehe. We started off with breakfast at this really nice roadside stall that sells traditional Shanghainese style "la-mian". Fuckin' cheap & delicious also, nevermind the rundown conditions. One of the best I've ever tasted. We went to hunt down brand name shops like H&M, and Uniqlo around Shanghai city downtown. We also went to the "must-go" bund area, which the trademark oriental pearl tower can be seen & have a photo taken with you. Hahaha. Actually that place is really damn blardy boring can?

Afterwards, we went back to Qipu lu to get our tailored clothings. I had made for myself some business shirts which is quite value for money, I must say. The gf was also quite satisfied with how they managed to replicate her dresses. We then bought some gifts for friends back home before proceed to take a cab back home.

By this time, we more or less had our stuffs packed nicely, save for the shopping we just finished earlier in the day. Uncle Quhui was ready to pick us up at 9:30pm to send us to the airport. With a heavy heart, we bade farewell to Shanghai (and the "pubic" carpark sign I saw prior to entering the airport area) Damn funnnyyyy can????

3/Jan: Back to Singapore midnight flight!
Time to board the plane SQ825 back to Singapore. I'll miss the nice cold weather, but unfortunately I still didn't get to see snow this time round cos' Shanghai rarely snows...

Many thanks to Uncle Jerry & Uncle Quhui for taking good care of us during this trip, we'll be back! hopefully soon! :)

Leaving you with a nice pic from Huangshan...

CANON sales training

And so the official training for new inductees has finally began. Soon, I'll be out on the field come Feb 2009. Time to fight for a better future!!!

Hope 2009 will be a bright new start!!!