MY Staycation

Nothin is happenin. But it is exactly the way i want to spend the last few weeks of 2008. And so i'm clearing the remaining annual leave from 2007 and am taking 2 weeks off to be on a staycation.

It is MY period of time in which im staying home. I DO NOT want a plan, which is very unusual because i plan what i want to achieve in a day and i would plan stuff for G and i to experience and do together, or activities with my friends (as you can see from my previous posts!). But instead, I'm waking up at any time of the day i want to, I'm sleeping late and am not worrying about the responsibilities of the next day, spending time on the phone and on the internet, catching up over coffee/ beer sessions with close friends either at their homes or in town, relaxing at home with favorite streaming dramas before my favorite time of the day- meeting G.

Although a staycation also usually involves one taking day trips from one's home to a day by the beach, visits to art exhibitions which are in town, and attending local festivals- feeling bummed out from work-activity filled 2008 and daily conscious mental focus on what i need to achieve, i just didn't want to plan for anything, at all. OMG. I'm watching The Hills, The City, Bromance, Gossip Girl, A Shot at Love, A Double Shot at Love, The L Word and Forbes Billionaires series. I can't help it, LOL. It's super mindless! I like!!!! Every morning, through the work day, through the WHOLE year- it's Channel News Asia news, Money Mind, Business Tonight, CNBC and Bloomberg channels, Business Times, Newsweek, etc. It is now, BIMBO payback time!!!! Hahahaha!

Staycations have achieved high popularity in current hard economic times in which unemployment levels are high and discretionary income are at low levels. With the first vacation of the year of 2009 in FEBRUARY with the family to Malaysia, to celebrate Sharon's birthday in Bangkok in MARCH and a surprise trip I'm planning for in MAY because it is a special month of the year. There may be possible trips to Bali and other islands too in between!And then in NOVEMBER and DECEMBER, I'm planning to fly up to Tokyo for Louisa's hen nite in and continue my travel to New York to meet Angie and to LA for Leanna. Hawaii would be nice too! Hopefully, i get to experience it all with you... especially the States. I would love to share with you your haunts and where you used to study too ;) With some investments in mind and the vacations lined up for 2009, a staycation is far less costly than a vacation involving traveling. There are no lodging costs and travel expenses are minimal.

In order to enjoy all staycations and go on these vacations, i'm happy bagging 21 days of annual leave each year and 3 days of family day leave. Since i was trying so hard to clear 07's in 08, it adds up to 48 DAYS for 2009!! Woohoooooooo! Till the merry making and counting the milestones-of- personal-success for 2008 and setting up a new-year resolution list for 2009, PEACE!

Vacation Tip:

Replace 2 vacations (example, to Bangkok) with 2 staycations , to save possibly, SGD $2000. Which you can then use to buy 1lot of Singtel Shares, it pays dividends too!

Employment Package Tip

Always look for employment packages with more days of annual leave. Not only because we want more days of leave to have a LIFE (campaign of work life balance in Australia- NO LEAVE, NO LIFE), but because in recent cases where Some 180 workers at the Westbury Hotel in Dublin city centre have been asked to take whatever holidays they have left from last year and a week's leave from this year's allocation in an effort to cut costs and save jobs- that it doesn't affect one's salary. As compared to taking unpaid leave, and the month end wage is salary is affected.

Personal Wealth

Assessing for a few clients their personal finances earlier today made me think of Francis Chan's article, published in the Straits Times over the weekend, on being a spend-a-holic (living from dollar to dollar), to now, having started planning for his life. In light of the economic recession that the world is in now, let's take CONTROL of what we can and make some sound personal financial decisions to obtain, save and SPEND monetary resources, all at the same time. We must have a plan, a strategy, the know-how, so that we can work towards our own goals.

So what i'm gona do is to provide some information, at the end of every entry, on some top things i share with clients, that i'd wana share with you that you can do too. So that we can all relish in abundance :)

So, for a start, let's start with a budget.

Budgets are necessary evil.

You get a grip on your spending and YOU make sure the money is being used the way YOU want it to be used. Determine your pattern of spending over the past 3 to 6 months and put percentages to each category. Keep that in mind and i will share with you in my next entry what you can do to create your budget with all your BAD habits, then only good habits, in mind :)

Surrrrprise!

Surrrrprise huneys!!! ;) It has always been somethin i've wanted to do for the 2 most important people in my life!

Markets and business has been reaaally slow, hence with more efforts put in, sometimes longer hours are the only way to go. With the lil time and all that energy focused on managing others' monies and bringing in more revenue, i'm relieved i started plannin for this WHOLE birthday party in advance and with much ease (with Vic) to surprise them both. I'm elated the party on Sunday turned out so fun for everyone, especially the 2 birthday gals! :)

It all started with thoughts of wanting to do something SPECIAL. And of course when Jules plans for somethin, it will always be stylish and glamorous!

The NOMINEES were...

'TheVilla'
from Amara Sanctuary Resort & Spa, with a private pool
(20 guests were intended but only 4 guests can stay overnight. definitely not for a wild party!)


'The Penthouse'
from Siloso Beach Resort, with a roof terrace for sun tanning and a private jacuzzi
(No barbecue pit/ barbecue. Which means no food after a cool dip!)

'The Rifle Range'
Shootouts and cocktail/ cheeze party at the The Singapore Gun Club
(It will be too challenging if it pours. Guests may be drenched. It is a CRIME if white loafers are soaked, styled hair becomes dripping wet and make-up smashed!)


In the end...


'The Yacht' choice came out tops!
The Birthday Party of the 2008!! =)

In the end, 'The Yacht' came out tops as we could incorporate the barbecue, space for everyone to mingle and for everyone to experience something different. So after making wise decisions, decisions, decisions, Vic and i started planning for it all through just one day of meet up!! We chose the yacht (good thinkin Vic for suggesting we head to Keppel Marina too! If not we would have missed out viewing the other 2 yachts) we planned the guests list and what food items we should get. I'm impresses at our efficiency and effectiveness! But it was so difficult keeping from them!!

Sourcing for this contact was a real feat. Not knowing of any more charters, i found SUMMIT on the 29th page of google, much so after 5 nights of surfin and finger-clicking numbing actions, the deal was sweeeet. We had a barbecue package (with charcoal and pit provided), 1kg of prawns thrown in for fishing and soft drinks included. All within my budget! Hence always start out with a budget in mind and think of the resources you have and go in search for it. Chances are, if you really want it, you WILL get it. Cus all through the time, i only found yachts which were between the range of $2500- $3500. What more, the vessel could fit 10 people and were about the same length too. It was also rental for the whole day (8hours) and food items could not be purchased on your own. Which means, you have to pay for the 'house' price. Let's just say i got it at a fraction of that range. So call me if you want Jules to plan for anythin stylish AND within your budget! *beams*

I was just as excited at the thought of driving the yacht, just as i was thinkin what their reactions will be when they see all their friends on board and that it wasn't just two for company! *giggles*

Surprise lineup
The plan was to make them think we'll be havin someone barbecue for us and that we may take a dip in the pool after a nice barbecue at a chic joint in Sentosa. They were both only told to wear beach wear and to bring biks, just in case.

• Meet Gen (Challenge: without any picnic bags!)
• Meet Alexxis and Vic at Vivocity (Planned: she knows Gen is goin, but Gen doesn't know she is)
• Surprise 1: Shout "SURPRISE" when both cars meet (wanted reaction: Shocked)
• I have to call Alexxis' to 'direct' Vic the way (Planned: Vic will have to lead cus we don't know the way to 1Degree15)
• Find parking (Challenge: to digress and distract them while on the way)
• Suprise 2: Meet at Vic's car and will open the boot to reveal 'picnic', "SURPRISE!"
• Walk to 1 Degree 15 Marina Club (Challenge: to make them still think we're goin for a picnic by the beach)
• Surprise 3: Shout "SUPRISE" at the reception (Challenge: to all have gathered at the reception before we arrive. We have to text message them wowithout them suspecting)
• Surprise 4: Birthday-Yacht, shout: "SURPRISE!!!" (Challenge: while walking away from reception to the beths, to still make them think we're havin a picnic)

What really turned out!

• Unexpectedly my mom took the picnic mats out to air and so i spent 10mins folding it!
• I waited for Gen for about 30mins outside her house cus she didn't think we had a time to keep to!
• I got out of the car to withdraw $ at meet-up point and Vic drove off!
• While Vic was drivin off, Gen noticed Vic's car cus she was honked at by another for obstructing his way!
• "Surprise!". But Gen wasn't that surprised cus Alexxis' messaged to say "see you on Sunday" when they wished each other happy birthdays on Wednesday!!
• Vic couldn't find the car park and parked at one of the available spaces. We were lost and had to walk for about 20mins to the club!
• Being 45mins late, we were met by Alexxis' friends while Gen's friends were waiting on the boat instead!
• Tottering on board at 11 45am, instead of the intended 11am, we found Xueling missing! She had not been 'picked' up at the bar yet! (She was way too early and waited for us for 2hours!)
  
• We finally had everyone on board and left at about 12pm with everyone jolly but famished!!!

LOL. In any case, it still turned out fabulous. We caught 7 fish all together. Courtesy of Sharon (who had to earn her keep on board) we had 3 yummilicious ones from her, 3 from Andrew (who totally was totally enjoying it) and 1 from Gen. She was a natural! She caught it within 2 minutes while just wanting to check her bait! The fish were scaled by Jumari, our skipper and barbecued with chilli. It was the freshest fish i've had! Maybe it's cus of the satisfaction we caught the fish ourselves, and the joyous occasion.

Gleeful and content with being together, all that food, booze and smokes. We were all happppy people!!!

The champagne was popped and birthday wishes made.

Splendid.

Captain of the boat. Honk Honk!
Till the next time!

Thank you all, for the success of the party!!:
Karen: for the lovely champagne
(and for being such a sport even though you were feeling sick and throwin up!)
Belle: for the 4 bottles Soft Drinks
Candy: for being the other photographer
Louanna: for the space and pick up
For sheltering the food in the trolley with your poncho and dashing through the rain with me- to leave all the food items at your place (although your mom would've preferred it not to be there!)
Andrew: for the snacks and soy sauce
Sharon: For the 4 bottles of beer and wine
Trina: for the 3 packets of Beehoon
Jumari: for scaling the fish and barbecuing for us
Peter: for helping us with the fishing and offering to take us out on his other yachts in future
Vicki: for planning this together!
Birthday gal, Alexxis: for the wine and enjoying yourself with me!
Birthday gal, Gen: for pretending to be SURPRISED even though you knew it 3days earlier!!

Pictures from choosing the yachts- Choices, choices, choices!

Pictures from the surrrrprise birthday-yacht bash!

A Blast From the Past

Unlocking some memories of the stored

Visiting the compounds of what were the 'prime' years of one's academic education, i found myself in a mixed state of whether i liked being associated with the school...a public school whose students associate being 'cool' with being the ah bengs and ah lians (many of whom were in gangs or wanabe thugs), a school whose extra circular activities achievements weren't known for being in any way outstanding (Whether it is academic value-added, aesthetics, physical health or sports) and whose identity and culture i couldn't associate with. Hmmm. I would have preferred being in an institution where the school values are based on the gospel. I would've liked if it was spent in a communal like, positively charged energy-in-the-air kinda place, where people are just as motivated to excel, with a community who wants a better-than-average future and fellow students who believed they are the leaders of tomorrow. Haha but the then 6-12 year old me couldn't keep day-dreaming till after school hours. Just as my dad has instilled this in his kids- it always is the attitude of the person that makes the situation. In every moment, there are always 2 choices- you either make it an ideal outcome or you can make it not-so-good. That's how the very few kan-tangs back in school noticed each other and hung out. And since then, we have been hanging out for 12years :)

Going back to the premises brought back so many memories- of the different spots in school which meant different things for me. Like that particular spot in the parade square (i got caught for wearing my short hair, Faye Wong inspired, too wildly after the last holiday), that damn chin-up pole which i would dread walking to (I tried very hard!), the particular corridor on the 4th level which i was chosen to be part of the school's choir team, for the hall-cum badminton court i used to practice for matches in, the corner of the bend which i would rush to, the water cooler, after a 2.4km run, the 4 inter-class games we won (so ah lians were pissed and wanted to slap me but instead started to pick a verbal fight!!) and the ramp which i always dreaded walking up to- it meant we had to grind our teeth and bear with then, new principal Ms Monica Quek as she would pronounce brands like Esprit (pronounce EX-SPIRIT. Way off!) but i loved walking down from it =) the most memorable year was when the class locked the Literature teacher out of the classroom and pretended that no one was in class. Looking up at the second floor yesterday also reminded me of that year where i was the class chairman and how i really forced myself out of my shell from being the most shy girl in class (since primary 1 and geek in Seconday 1 and 2!) to being in the leader of the class in secondary 3!It was a feat!!!

So many, many flashbacks and feelings attached to that era when the boy group, Boyz-to-Men was every gal's dream date! Strangely, throughout the whole trip, my friends were laughed at me whenever i mentioned a certain connection to a certain spot!!?? Maybe instead of 55,000 thoughts going though my head in a day, i have 55,000 thoughts going through my mind in a second! My imagination and association is splendid. Oh well! (I still can't get what Angie told me-I'll look at the ramp differently now!! Ewww.)

I don't know why.... but i was frightened by my own thoughts twice last night. I even had a nightmare. It definitely was the cold in the air and the thought of what life there would be, of the tables and chairs, and what goes on in the hall and the back stage, what life do the test tubes and huge basins in the science labs have, now that the school is abandoned? To think there were so many changes since that year we left- change of school uniform colours, change of principal, occupying the primary school campus next to ours (which meant the school had 2 of everything-2canteens,2 football fields, etc) and then finally the few remaining students were then transferred to another school and had a choice to retain the school uniform or purchase the 'new' schools' one. It has been 3 years since the school's closure....I don't know. It was strange going back there. So, what's going to happen to these buildings?Well, the campus is rumoured to be taken up by Raffles Institution and be added to the existing adjacent Raffles Institution/Raffles Junior College campus. On top of that an underground tunnel below Braddell Road connecting both sides of the campuses is also rumoured to be built! How cool is that!

A brand new lease of life for that old, unkept building which held the many good memories for so many............

Oh btw! I managed to find our school's blog (Year 1984-1987), which is maintained by a senior!! Check it out!

Here are our blast from the past pictures!

An Annual Affair

The Thai Barbarians (The Thais run real fassssst!!)

Competing for the Ablitt Cup- a trophy currently held by the SA Vipers from South Africa

I was so lookin forward to our annual affair, a rugby's league. Aside from the hard hits, tough players, vicious mauls, and of course, beer and the food, it always reminds me of the great memories why i love the game so much ;) This is the 4th event now, each and every one had a story to tell! However, this time around, instead of heading to the Singapore Stadium, we had tickets to Singapore Cricket Club (SCC).

61st International Sevens (SCC)
Rugby spectators are always spontaneous & fun

I was pining for the few weeks running up to this - for the ALL DAY LONG happy hour prices, the variety of food and beverage stalls we will find, the world-class athletes charging at each other in the fast-paced 15-minute-per-match format of sevens competition and the celebratory tunes which sets everyone in the party mood!!!

I love the carnival-like atmosphere with the fantastic backdrop!

I wouldn't pass this carnival-like atmosphere for anything! With good sportsmanship, sporting action, food (& beer!), great fun (it's outdoors and there's the sun.but at least i don't get tan) and great company (yesss, it's so difficult to date my celebrity friend, Ms Wong Siew Ying!), i couldn't ask for more of a weekend :)

Furthermore, it's held at SCC! It brings back wonderful childhood memories of how my whole family would make it a weekly affair to go to the club for lunch after church/ grocery shopping. I always remember this image of my mom and i in the changing room (which we go to every time after a meal), to weigh ourselves, never fails to crack me up! I've had so many significant moments there. There was one time when my parents called me on the phone and they said they wanted to talk. I was thinkin oh-oh... And so we had a chat by the veranda. I still remember i made sure to wear my sunnies so they wouldn't be able to see my eyes when i was talkin to them! (It was during the period when i was a rebel!). And there was another time when my dad offered me a beer cus i had a sore throat (i was barely 14, i think!). And from then, i was hooked!! Of course my favorite lunch set to order was chicken chop with french fries. Hey, it's every lil kid's 'weekend' meal!

Rugby Tradition- always a prank
Kids from all directions ran and stole the sheep from the girls who committedly gave chase!
Always a look-out for at every game!

I had a sweeeet time!
And i'm lookin forward to yet again, the next game.

Just in case you might wana buy your tickets for next year's Sevens, here's a peek at how you will have it too- pictures!

As always, there's an adventure whenever one's with me- we headed to vicki's party and surprised her for her birthday! =) By the time i got to the gathering for the barbeque, i was a happy gal! And even happier when my boss shared his good wine and we had lots of it flowing, with heartwarming bonding and food!!

The Graceful Dead

"Corpse Bride" Emily, an undead girl in a moldy, flowing wedding dress

My version of EMILY :)

2 Halloween parties for the past 2 weeks, made me have nightmares!

Angie wanted to have a Halloween party at her place since she'll be leaving for New York for the next few years. So she went out to the stores to buy pieces to turn her house into Tanslyvannia and invited 13 of us over. It was a gluttony time for me with delicious fresh mushroom soup made by Jessica and a wide dinner spread prepared individually by each of us, i was just happy watchin The Exorcist and The Scary Movie with a tub of ice cream after that. I was the official photographer, hence i came as the DEAD photographer. I didn't need to dress up, i already looked dead myself!

Eager to the be creeped out on the ghost trail at the Night Safari with everyone else dressed up, i met Alexxis' and Belle & co only to find word that Night Safari is packed and some even waitied for hours to get in. So... we had our lil fun outside :) I didn't have much time to shop for get ups but hey! i was EMILY (all accidental!) from Tim Burton'sCorspe Bride.

Pictures at Tanslyvannia
Pictures from the ghostly trail

The RED Picnic

Trick-or-treating?
It was tricky keeping a balance on the boat back after the treat of a whole afternoon's RED flow!!

It was only Vesak day's weekend, perhaps 5 days a lil too early for Hallow's eve, but as always, there's always a reason to celebrate. And so the traditional characters were out during the Jack-O's one-week too early weekend- The Grim Reaper (Me, targeting the full carton of wine *slurp*) , the zombie (Vicki, a lil stoned from the nite before) and the vampire (Alex, lurvin the neck *wink*) were out. All in broad day light!

Creating our own rulezz!

We didn't kneel on the ground with a fork between our teeth and try to drop the fork into an apples dunk or bob any apples in a large basin of water; nor did we get our faces sticky because we tried to eat the syrup-coated scones tied to strings without using our hands. We were just on all fours at times (gosh), moving ourselves outta the direct sun (oh boy!), worrying if the weather will turn bad on us (as usual, we have such great luck whenever we do outdoor events!), laying down enjoying our wine and a good chat (finally!). That's what i enjoy most with my bestie- spontaneous activities and random adventures. Simple things made so meaningful :)

Irrespective of religion, the celebrated Hallowed' End pictures.

Fast & Furious

Karting- Stepping stone into professional racing career for Nascar and Formula One drivers

With the Formula One Night race craze, we decided we too wanted to partake in this whole frenzy. And so we organized our own lil Karting race and headed for the race tracks!

Always the point we are all conerned with

Arrive and drive- No driving license needed!

Pictures of the race day and after race driver-pampering

Visual Treats

Makin Leaps and Bounds

Snap Happy- PHUKET

A Rapturous & Ravishing Island Getaway

Martin Buber said that all journeys have secret destinations of which the traveller is unaware. He reminded me why i used to yearn and have this strong desire to explore and travel: to learn and grow, to challenge myself, stretch my limits and foster an appreciation of both the world at large and the chair in the coffeeshop back home. It is easy to forget some sides of yourself when you feel like you MAY have turned into a human gerbil!!

Well, i hope i haven't! A human gerbil is a hamsterlike, ratty type animal. It lives in a cage and plays on a wheel. They are the busiest lil suckers in the world! They get on the wheel and they just fly. And when they're done, they just lie there exhausted, because theyre so damn busy! It' so easy to become one don't you think?I MAY just be becoming one. I need to remain HUMAN. As i was just reading Warren Gareshes', The Best Damn Sales Book Ever, about 2 weeks back, it sprug from the page that human gerbils never get anywhere; they never get off the wheel. That's what happens to people who aren't willing to stop and take a step back in order to take three steps forward. It has been a full year of non stop mental energy focused on getting to this point, i sure wanted and needed a break- BAD!! I miss that venturous side of me. I miss that feeling of overwheling newness, that feeling of no end to the adventures i can have if i seek them with my eyes open and the journey best measured in friends, rather than miles. I experienced all that on this trip and a rapturous time...but not in the same way as i did when i embarked on a mission in Laos for a month, back in 2003... BUT, royale birthday style like in a Laguna Beach/ The Hills/ Gossip Gal kinda way =)

Living just like in the pages of magazines

Travel and change of place impart new vigour to the mind- Landing in the early morning of Phuket's International Airport, you come to feel or can only imagine what they feel, the thousands of foreign tourists who were stranded here, the beach resorts and a nearby tourist town, for more than 24 hours after anti-government protesters forced the airports (including Krabi's) to close. Fortunately, the protests lasted only for 2 days and we didn't have to change our holiday plans and went ahead to book the hotels after much monitoring. I wouldn't know what to do if upon landing, hundreds of supporters of PAD, a motley group of businessmen, academics and activists seeking to oust Samak from office, find runways invaded and roads being blocked at the airport!! I counted our blessings as we walked down the stairs onto the tarmac as i looked forward to the land of smiles and an euphoric time.

1 Sep 2008: People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) trying to oust "puppet" Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to step down.

OPRAH says it is good to keep a vision board/ list

It's true, it turned out like i imagined it!

I had been yearning for adventure. So i began imagining a trip filled with many new experiences and then retreating to a sanctuary in an idyllic location. And what better time to, than the most festive period of MY year :) Sitting in Phuket's main tourit area, with Jungceylon shopping complex just next to us and the most popular Patong beach just a 15min walk away (usually just 2mins cus we always asked for the personal tuktuk to fetch us out of the loooong driveway hehe!), Millenium Resort still makes you feel that oasis of calm, like it is described, when you enter its compound.

From the early mornin travel and the 50mins ride from the airport, it was nice just lazin around, enjoyin the balcony with my smokes and checking the different maps on what to we could do for the day- I love that feeling of what could be in store!=) And so we picked our first activity and unleashed our precarious sides!

The Monstrous ATV

My friends think I love speed. I think i love being bold with speed too. I think it was from the time when i tried driving a manual car on the rootop of this multistory carpark- undaunted that i wasn't even licensed to drive, I controlled the car with speed and accuracy, and drove them so close to the edge! Since then, i was labelled a speed-ster. I couldn't wait to free the audacious Jules!!

We started out on a slow ride on the road, getting used to the handlebars for the steering control and getting comfortable straddling the seat; it felt like i was riding a motorcyle, with extra wheels! We sped up towards a trail and followed our guide and explored the countryside along the natural tracks and paths of the forrests.

The first half an hour was scenic riding close to the edge of the hills, with a view of the other little islands that surrounded us. I was enjoying the fresh air but the ride just got bumpier and bumpier. Before long, it got more and more difficult to ride through the huge portholes and ditches. The light weight, high power, good suspension and a low center of gravity machine gives much stability when the trail got really tricky. Controlling it uphill along uneven dried mud was no feat at all for me, it was a matter of shifting your weight, lifting your bums and powering up and letting go of the accelerator when goin around the steep sharp bends (it was almost every 5 seconds!). I felt like i could use this ATV to trespass someone's mansion! Ya know...travel through a forest on a trail like this...then i could like leave the bike in the bushes, slip into their pool in my biks and then push the bike out; no one would even know!! You could bring this ourdoorsy vehicle anywhere! The sneaky illegal cheeky thoughts jumped out of my head when my butt hit the seat so hard- I had hit a huge rock on the edge!! I quickly yanked myself off the ATV alerting our Burmese guide, Peter, who got a lil worried for this daydreamer and signalled in his best english that he take my bike out of the ditch and not worry about goin down this steeeeeeeeeeep slope with bends up ahead!!! I now know i am not that fearless afterall. Boohooo!

On the dirt trail down a steeeeep slope

Having experienced all that with the other 2 adventurous Singaporean travellers, we decided on an impromtu dinner after sunset. So we decided to head back for a dip in our pool first, while the sun set on the impressive ride as we passed Kharon and XX beach.

An idle dip at dusk

No effort in stimulating one to take a longer dip

We were all groomed and dolled up for dinner, with a wide spread of Thai food layed out right in front of us on the table, but i was nodding off big time from the outdoorsy day and no sleep from the previous nite (cus i was too invigorated of my holiday!), we had to bail on drinks with the other travellers haha!

Pictures of DAY 1 (Part 1)
Pictures of DAY 1 (Part 2)

What do birthdays mean to you? What do you love about birthdays? I love the celebrations and the marking of another year of being wiser! It is a time where i count my blessings and thank god for the love and care i have in my life. It is MY time of the year of showing even more appreciation to those i love and by spending it with the people who matter most to me. My birthdays are always a look forward cus since young, my family has this tradition of celebrating all birthdays without fail. It is of course one of my favourite times of the year! It is also considered, in my calendar, a festive period =)

18th September- Analysis of me!

You are a cohesive force - able to bring many people together for a common cause.
You tend to excel in work situations, but you also facilitate a lot of social gatherings too.
Beyond being a good leader, you are good at inspiring others.
You also keep your powerful emotions in check - you know when to emote and when to repress.

Your strength: Emotional maturity beyond your years
Your weakness: Wearing yourself down with too many responsibilities
Your power color: Crimson red
Your power symbol: Snowflake ??!!

Snorkeling!

It's MY BIRTHDAY!! Waking up to a lovely feeling... knowing i'll meet smiley Thai people and the thought of all new experiences we will have, got me samurai-ing out of bed! We started the day grabbing a pastry from Bistro 98 and dashed into our pick-up when it whizzed in to the hotel drive-thru at 715am. We're in a hurry to go out to sea to snorkel at the Khai islands, which consists of Khai Nok, Khai Nui and Khai Kok. An enjoyable 20-minute "private" speedboat ride(as the shop assistant prclaimed), it captured the energy and excitement of my day. With the thrill of wind and water in our hair, we wore our masks and fins to get in (step in- we anchored near the island) with the fish and coral at our first stop, Khai Nui islands.

Khai Islands- Koh Khai Nok

Off we pile onto our 2nd island, Koh Khai Nok, the biggest of all 3 khai islands. First thing you' notice is the colourful deck chairs. I wa so tempted to clamber into one of them under the shade of a parasol and take in the beautiful clear blue waters and tourists spilling in, boat after boat. And soon, i knew what it meant exactly when the term toursit dollar is used! Like Ton's family, they own this beach bar on this island. And their monthly profits are pegged to how many customers that arrive on the island and whether it is a low or a high season. So many jobs in Phuket are dependent on the our tourist dollar, like our guide Samao, our life guard, Peter the Captain, Ryan the Monkey Boy who guided my parasail later, Ton the surfer dude, the Song Tui drivers the taxi drivers, many guides and of course the night bars crawling with tourists, especially caussian men. While walking past Patong beach bars that nite, i even heard a Thai a-go-go gal say to an ang moh man " I Love you". She forgot to add, and the tourist $$$!

Tourist Dollar!! $$$

I couldn't resist the photo opportunities. It must have felt like Oscar night huh! :) The beautiful turquoise water stretching out, with tropical fish swimming through my legs sure wasn't my idea of a classic poise for the camera!! Because everytime a piece of bread was thrown in, there would be a colourful (mostly yellow) feeding frenzy. Cus when you feed it to close to you, the fish bites! I definitely wouldn't like fish therapy! I sure didn't like that feeling and ran away with my camera in hand and the klutz tripped and scrapped her chin on a rock in the water. Ouuuuch, my camera was slightly showered by the splash! But thankfully,it was taken care :) I need an underwater camera cover!!

Excellent Millenium room service- my surprise birthday cake greeeting me in our room after snorkling!

Feeling sunburnt and good at the same time for havin a golden brown tan, i was surprised with a birthday cake as we entered the room. The management of Millenium Resort had noticed that we were leaving the hotel in our bikinis and that a pickup was getting us, they knew approximately what time we would get back. I'm impressed!! All gleeful, we headed off for more drifts!

The Great parascender- Soaring with the eagles

Knowing Joe and co made things so much easier. I got to choose which handsome dude took me up to in the skies and controlled my parasail, Gen had ride on the boat while i soared with the eagles (and Ryan! The Monkey boy too), had 'priority seats' on the deck chairs, smokes bought for me (from across the street, when i forgot mine) and frienship bands with well wishes were given to us. But it doesn't mean you get great discounts!!

Parasailing- an amusement ride!

The day was planned for me and I was way looking forward to the all the water activities on the iternery :) So the next was parasailing! Although it was not what i had thought it might have been, i kinda expected it to be like paragliding, I must say i wouldn't have not done one over the other. Snorkeling is a romantic experience, parasailing is an amusement ride and jet skiing is MY joy ride. I loved it the most! Especially how you can race against the wind, freestyle and jump the waves any way you like. The thrill of the plunge from flying off a big wave at high speeds just makes you wana perform different tricks. Perhaps like those of a big air or technical tricks just like in the BMX and Motorcross competitions, where they're judged on the quality and skill shown in routines.

My Joy Ride

My favourite Thai Beer- Singha

The Current- La flora Resort Patong

My Birtdaydinner

Pictures of DAY 2

Motorcycle Taxi for 2!!
TukTuks-I'll take you for a 'ride' (to rip off tourists that is)

Rooftop Dinner @ The Sala Phuket

The Sala Phuket

Our Villa- The Sala Phuket

My dream picnic set!

Pictures of DAY 3 (Part 1)
Pictures of DAY 3 (Part 2)

Our private limosine service, with a menu of songs (from Jazz to pop rock), for selection for the ride!

Pictures of DAY4

Swing with me!
Till the next place....