北京

It has been slightly over a week since the Missus of the Heng Family has arrived. Since then I have been living a life of a Part Time Tourist and Part Time Tour Guide! Before my mum's arrival I had a schedule drawn out, I spent a long time revising and perfecting the itinery and on the day of her arrival I felt I was ready to Host her! Yet on the second day, my so called 'perfect' schedule had to be thrown out of the window! We were not going according to plan! We were spending longer at the attractions, & we were visiting attractions which I didn't plan for! So a piece of advice if you plan to visit BJ. Be Flexible as there are many hidden gems around they city just waiting to be discovered! go FREE and EASY - be Flexible Regardless of Every activity scheduled Everday & Enjoy And maximise your Stay, nobody is chasing You away:)

北京

Limited Edition Bra of 08, costing 359rmb!

Will you buy it in 09?

北京

I said Goodbye to 2008, by junking out my favourite pair of Jeans which has been with me for the past 6 years. Found a rip on it on 31/12/08! I counted down to 2009, by watching Mulan 2 and I found my favourite Disney Prince!

General Li Shang

北京

Just one month and I will be Home. Considering that my wardrobe has been revolving around 7 long sleeves top, I am looking forward to having a full wardrobe! Christmas and 2008 has gone and now we are into 2009! Clara joined us during the Festive Season and she brought along jelly beans, jelly bears, home-made cookies and foreign chocolate for the both of us! What a treat!

Our first adventure together was a day trip to Silver Fox Cave in the Fangshan District! We had to catch a bus from 苹果园 to the Cave . Do not be deceived by the name 苹果园, there is no 苹果树 there! There may not be 苹果树 there, but that area is famous for pickpockets so do watch your belongings! The bus came every 1 1/2 hours, so we spent slightly over an hour waiting for the bus! If you plan to go to Silver Fox Cave be prepared to be harrassed by touts while you wait for the bus. Clara was so irritated that she turned to one and said this 你知道你多么烦！像乌鸦一样kwa kwa 的叫!

our 导游 who followed us all the way to the cave and back to the main road to wait for the bus!

Silver Fox Cave is none other than a Limestone Cave, with various limestones formations inside with fancy names accompanying them! The highlight of the day The Silver Fox

We missed the earlier bus, so we ended up waiting for slightly over one hour for the bus! This time instead of Vultures hovering around us looking for prey. We were surrounded by a couple of 黑车, confronted with the prospect that we might have missed the last bus and we were stranded almost 80 over km away from BJ City! Darkness was creeping in, the temperature was dipping to below 0 degrees and we were v v v v v cold & hungry! Not exactly a nice position to be in!

Our little misadventure at the Ski Resort! Clara fell off the pulley lift and I resembled a cartoon character crashing into a wall, when I crashed into the Padded Barrier! We had this bright idea to take the ski lift up to the expert slopes, even though there was a sign warning us that Beginners should not get on! Upon arrival at the top we realised that there was no other way down aside from skiing down! After the dreadful fall, I kind of lost confidence and I didn't trust my skills and ability to be able to navigate the sharp bends and steep slopes! Safety nets surrounded the edge of the cliff, however I was not confident that the nets could save me if I crashed into them! Erm.. in the end after deliberating for about 1/2 hour, I managed to get down. I bid farewell to the ski resort by leaving my bum imprint on the snow for the very last time!

We decided to try Ice Skating on the Lake at HouHai. Being novice skaters, it was hard to find our centre of balance as the ice was so slippery. The task was near to impossible so we gave up attempting to skate after 5 mins and traded our skates for a chair skate! So we spent Christmas Eve chair-skating around the lake!


clara gamely agreed to try deep fried insects with me and in my opinion they were simply delicious!

北京

S for Saturday and Sichuan Kids

Project Love (a nickname coined by me)

it is a bi-monthly project run by local varsity students and international volunteers. To find out more about this proj (Sichuan Orphan Development Programme) or other volunteering opportunities in Beijing do log onto :
http://www.bicf.org/

click on ministry teams

followed by BICF Impact Centre

what does Family mean to you?Pure Coincidence that we all have asian features! The Team of international Volunteers from different parts of the globe!


"So long, farewell it is time to say Goodbye"老师 再见


Children are a precious gift. They Need C-Care, H-a warm Home,I-Individual Attention,L-Learning opportunities to grow,D-Discipline,R-Respect,E-Encouragement,N- Never-Ending LOVE (which is the theme of this programme: to teach them about love)

ONE

TWO

THREE

cheese

北京

The Grossiest and Yuckiest Substance my Housemate flushed down the Toilet Bowl since I arrived!



Rancid Pumpkin Soup

北京

Our Latest Warming & Defrosting "Machine"