Close All

Not a bad change at all, Sze Ling!
Good to look neat.
Will consider whether to join your league in one year's time bah!

Yours T

Labels: casual

Hahaha hey all! I just made a really big decision. I'm going to start tying my hair next year, omg. Hahaha yes. I guess after growing it out a little (as I was lazy to cut it during the hols) I guessed my slightly longer hair looked nice and I don't want to cut it, so I have to tie my hair. Doesn't look too bad, I guess, haha.

Szeling.

Labels: casual

Oh of cos, Pearly...parents' decision gotta be respected! :)

People, I hope you are all ready for the next chapter of your academic life!
Look forward to it! Have fun learning and making new friends!

Yours T!

Labels: casual

To ms chan:
Point noted. and I thought we might want to settle down a bit in our new environments first. and approval of parents...

To all:
sorry...but I was going to ask my parents about it first that's why I put it under drafts...but it was leaked...(not blaming anyone). Don't get too excited yet...It won't start anytime soon as we haven't started our sec 1 lessons yet. I'll call when we've settled down in our schools and confirm.


Pearly







And weiling: check your email, the princess one.

Labels: casual

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to you and your family.
6/6ers~ and of course the teachers!

Evonne~

Labels: casual

Ho! Ho! Ho! Blessed Christmas to all 6/6ers and all at home!

May your coming year be filled with joy, peace, good health and bags of A's!

Yours T!

Labels: casual

I now realised what happened! Someone hacked into my Google account! So any offending thing I've posted is thanks to some evil hacker. I realised that because I have things on my blog I did NOT post. Sorry again.

sk8er

Labels: casual

If not, how about Saturdays around 3pm?

PHEEsible

Labels: casual

Why don't we do it on Sundays before our English tuition which starts at 5pm?

PHEEsible

Labels: casual

Labels: casual

Count me in on the study group. :D

Szeling.

Labels: casual

Oyae, I'll join in.

Ping

Labels: casual

I think it is a good idea too. Count me in!
But we will not be going far, right? etc. Pasir Ris?
haha...
Evonne

Labels: casual

count me in as well, pearly!
oh ya, anyone want to watch 'yes man'?

weiling

Labels: casual

I think its a good idea, count me in

OMH

Labels: casual

Hi Pearly,

Happened to see your draft and hope you do not mind me posting. Feel very happy for you that you've managed to make it to your first choice.

And I think it's a good idea to study together if the members of the group are all very disciplined and determined to do well. But it is important to keep the group at a comfortable size.


And to all of the 6/6ers,

Many of you may be very excited now about starting a new chapter in your secondary school. Those who have been posted to schools with a high cut-off point must remember not to be complacent there. You must study diligently right from first year so that you can have smoother years ahead.

And to those who feel that you have not done too well to get into your ideal school, I urge you to brace up and set a new positive record for yourself. It is not the school that makes you.

It is what you want yourself to become.

My best wishes go out to all of you wherever you have been posted.

Yours T

Drima, it's all right to share videos with everyone on this blog but posting the URLs will do. Apologies and pardon me for deleting them. You may wish to post again but let's ensure that the content is suitable and relevant to all our friends here.

Labels: casual

haven't updated in a long long long time...

Hey, how is everyone doing?

anyway, went to report to nanyang today and saw weiling there. Yippee! There is someone there from the same primary school.(and weiling if you're reading this do not doubt my words-I'm really excited but apparently I don't show it on my face...)

And...I had this sudden IDEA! a few of us (anyone who's interested) can get together every week at different venues(places like west mall, jurong entertainment centre(after it reopens), libraries). I was thinking about places near libraries 'cause we can study together and exchange materials. We all want to do well, right?It won't just be a club for 'nerds' as some of you might think. We can go out and hang out. there will be no 'person-in-charge'. anybody who's interested can inform me on the blog.(one time thing)

Then we will take turns to decide venues and check out who's coming.


And, this applies to everyone except noisy attention seekers!


Bye

Pearly

Labels: casual

Hi all, just touched down to Singapore and saw that some of you have updated me with smses on the school you have been posted to. Apologies for not being able to reply promptly.

Will post next day or so...very extremely sleepy now.

Yours T

Labels: casual

-repost because i failed to publish post just now and then when i pressed back the whole page was empty zzzzz-

I appealed already.

How to appeal against the secondary school you are posted to

For those who are curious or wanting to know how to appeal..

1. I'm not sure, but try to make a copy of all your achievements, P5&P6 results and try to bring your report book. Plus a pen and a correction tape if you do not want to waste money purchasing stationery from the bookshop.

2. Head to the school you want to appeal to and get the appeal form there. Fill it in and attach the things they request for.. Also, be ready to self-praise as they will probably ask you questions like, "Reason for transfer", "Special Talents" and stuff like that. Yes, get ready to self-praise. I'm not sure if you're supposed to be humble or proud but I did it the stuck-up way >.>

One of my sentences were "I received the EAGLES award for outstanding performance in....." So yes, you roughly know what I'm trying to say. I hope they won't think I'm a stuck-up spoilt little brat, ugh.

And hand the form in to the General Office.

Try to bring anything related to the PSLE. Eg. Your results slip, your option form, your letter for eligibility of HMT/3rd language, your report book. Just bring everything, it's safer that way and you would not need to make a second trip down just because you left out one item.

Some schools provide photocopying service but I'm not sure if the one you are going to does so.

Then, after you hand in the appeal form, you MUST still report to the secondary school that you are posted to. Tomorrow at 8.30am, if I'm not wrong. Register, but DO NOT buy the textbooks and uniforms yet. Just register and secure a place.

After that, wait for news. If you have not received any news by 29December, do call in to the school and ask. If you are unsuccessful in your appeal, then you can now go back to the school that you are posted to. Now you can get your uniforms and textbooks.

If you are successful, congratulations :) And I don't know what to do next, haha! I think you can now go to the school you successfully appealed to and get your uniforms and textbooks :)

Some schools will only inform you if you are successful. So do remember to ask about this and ask about when you will receive news.

Hope I've helped you. And sorry if there is any mistake.

Hui Ping here wishing you good luck :)


Edit: Some schools(Eg. Commonwealth) has an interview, so do be prepared with all your "Proofs of achievements" and results slip. Bring a copy of them okay! You must bring your achievements along. They're very important.

Be prepared ^^

Labels: casual

I got into SCGS. 2nd choice. What do we have to do to appeal? Because I want to appeal for NJC. Aaah! I don't know what to do!!!!!! Ira doesn't want to go to RV because I think Darren Lim went there. Now she wants to appeal for SCGS. Lol!

sk8er

Labels: casual

er, wat do we bring tmr?

Labels: casual

no~~~~~
not darren lim!!!!
argh
not him [].[]

qianqian

Labels: casual

Got into my 3rd choice - CGS. (Crescent Girls' School)

Going to appeal..

But even so, I have to report to the school I'm posted to and register right?

Thank you.

Ping

Labels: casual

1st post of the day!
Can anyone post wat school they got in to?
Or the blog will b dead

Daniel

Labels: casual

Channel NewsAsia - Tuesday, December 16

SINGAPORE : Secondary One posting results will be released on December 18 at 9.00 am.ADVERTISEMENT



The results will be made available via several channels, including the Ministry of Education’s website and at primary schools.

Parents will also be able to receive the posting results through Short Messaging System (SMS), if they have submitted a local mobile phone number during the submission of school choices.

Pupils will have to report to the secondary schools they have been posted to on December 19 at 8.30 am. — CNA /ls

I hope none of you wake up at 8.55am to find yourself spamming refresh at the MOE page.. Wahaha.

Since I wake up only at 11am~12nn recently... bleh XD

Will probably be woken up by a call by my mother anyway >.>

Labels: casual

The guy on Nat Geo is an albino, yes. But that doesn't explain why he ages slower...

And about me being scientific and fiction is 'scienless'... FOR THE ZILLIONTH TIME, THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME FACT BEHIND FICTION! UNLESS STEF MEYER'S CREATURES ARE ALIENS, THEY NEED OXYGEN! AND IT IS NOT ONLY HUMAN, EVERY CREATURE NEEDS OXYGEN!!!!! WHO ASKED BLOODY MEYER NOT TO WRITE FICTION. EVEN FICTION NEEDS IT'S BASE IN SCIENCE. SHE CAN WRITE ABOUT GOODY-GOODY BELLA GETTING PREGNANT WITH ED CULLEN'S BABY (WHICH IS COMPLETE CRAP BECAUSE THEY ARE DIFFERENT SPECIES ALTOGETHER AND CAN'T CROSS BREED WITHOUT IN-VITRO FERTILISATION). SHE CAN WRITE ABOUT ED AND BELLA FALLING IN LOVE, SHE CAN WRITE ABOUT VAMPIRES, WHICH BY THE WAY, IS STILL FICTION! BUT AT LEAST WRITE SOMETHING THAT IS REAL. EVEN ENID BLYTON'S CREATURES WERE MORE REAL THAN THIS!!!!

You have gotten the meaning of fiction wrong, Szeling. Even if Stef had taken her base in science, it would still be fiction, because Ed and Bella and Jacob never existed in the first place. Even if Ed wasn't a vampire and was a human, it would still be fiction.

(Plus, vampire bats are cute! Vampires can't shape-shift--- another paradox...)

And who said all albinos are vampires? I didn't! My cousin is an albino, and if he were a vampire, he'd be the luckiest person on Earth!

Okay, you say what do I know about whether animal blood will not have enough nutrients to support Ed... It won't! Ed has a 17-year old's body and he would need his own weight in blood. Human blood. If the Cullens drink animal blood, they'd need even more blood and their stomachs are not big enough to contain that much blood!

sk8er

Labels: casual

wat a debat
...
...

qianqian

Labels: casual

Drima, chill!
Alright, so say that vampires really do exist on Earth (omglolbbq wow). But it has not been proven. "Innocent until proven guilty." applies in that until you prove that vampires do exist, they're just a figment of your imagination. Until the scientists found colossal squids, it was just a figment of their imagination.

Imaginations run wild. Because it is not proven that vampires do exist, we can only dream of what they are like. By injecting the dose of reality in, you're limiting your imagation and people achieve great things by imagining/visioning them first.

Don't be so scientific about everything. True, water is two atoms hydrogen one atom oxygen, the Earth ain't flat and the Moon isn't made of cheese. But when it comes to volatile and not solid facts like vampires, there is no saying what's right or wrong. There is no saying that vampires' bodies are made like the human body, and needs oxygen for certain processes.

And in writing, you have to be realistic but there is no limit of "realism" one can give to not-proven-to-exist creatures like vampires. In writing, your imagination grows wild. If everyone were to be so skeptical and "thou shalt only stick to reality", then 'fiction' wouldn't exist, would it?

-- Start of sidenote--
Yeah, I know that in school, Ms Chan asks you to be "realistic". A small crack will not release hundreds and thousands of rats and a bomb hoax in a storytelling competition is way off-track. However, if you look at, say, the bestselling romance books, you'll say "Aiya, this will definitely not happen in real life." (or has very very minute chance of happening). Why is it that when the most popular guy can have all the girls he wants, he chooses the most ignored, most shy girl? A little farfetched now, isn't it?

If every book were to be 100% realistic, then life would be dull.
--End of sidenote--

If you ask me that who are we to say that vampires don't exist, I ask: who are we to say that vampires do exist, then? Who are we to say what a vampire is and is not? And you say that maybe vampires do exist on Earth. So why contradict yourself and say that is definitely no creature on Earth that can live without breathing in oxygen? How do you not know that maybe, lying somewhere hidden in a deep dark cave or something, such creatures that do not need to breathe in oxygen exist?

If you are that sure that such creatures do not exist, then do not give leeway and say that creatures like vampires exist. Because, truth be that scientists have not found either sort of creature.

Our imaginations were given to us for a purpose. If we do not use them, what for are they there? Our imagination is where all our dreams and aspirations come from.

That guy who gets a high risk of skin cancer. Maybe he's like, a type of albino? Albinos easily get skin diseases/problems and can't be exposed to a lot of sunlight. They also easily get sunburnt. So are you saying that all albinos are vampires? Wow. (Okay, disclaimer: I did not say that the man is a confirmed albino, but maybe he is a kind of albino.)

Tsktsk, I said that some people think vampires can turn into bats. I know that vampire bats exist. They're pretty harmless bats, but they're named vampire bats.

Lastly. If you say that Smeyer is wrong, then who knows? Maybe you're wrong too. If you want to get all scientific and apply human/life facts to 'vampires', then I shall get scientific too. Until the scientists prove that vampires do exist, there is no right nor wrong about vampires. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion of vampires. Just because you feel that vampires are supposed to be like a certain way, you cannot say that others' opinion (which aren't the same as yours) are wrong. Because truth be vampires have not been proven to exist.

Ohohohoh. And how do you know that animal blood does not have enough nutrients to support vampire life? What we may need to survive may not be what the vampires need to survive on.

There isn't any fact/fiction to vampires as really, vampires are fiction and whatever you say about them is fiction until we can find a real vampire and study the ways of vampires.

Szeling.

Labels: casual

Szeling, for heaven's sake, vampires canNOT live forever, nothing can! What would happen when the world ends 5.5 billion years or even earlier. And Ed Cullen must respire, even if he sometimes doesn't breathe, so what happens to all the blood he drank or if he ate food or something if he doesn't? And it's not that I'm comparing Stef Meyer's vampires to humans, I'm comparing them to life itself. Stef Meyer's creatures should have had some 'reality' in them. The first thing about them is wrong. Every creature breathes. Even fiction should have science behind it. Unless of course Ed Cullen can hold his breath for two hours like a sperm whale. And even that isn't possible, because his lungs are nothing in size compared to a whale's. So even though their breathing may not be like a human's, their bodies are made out of carbon and they need to breathe Oxygen, which will age them as a side effect. There is no such creature that lives without breathing Oxygen, unless the Cullens are aliens. Then I give up...

BTW, there is such a thing in real life called Vampirism. Nat Geo showed a man in Scotland or Ireland who is a 'real' vampire. He drinks real human blood, can't go out in the day because he has a really high chance of getting melanoma (skin cancer) and gets sun burnt like crazy and ages slower than normal people.

Plus, who are we to say that vampires don't exist. Just because it isn't scientifically proven doesn't mean it doesn't exist. People thought that colossal squids (a.k.a. giant squids) were science fiction, but now scientists confirmed it. So vampires are like the Loch Ness monster, people claim to have known or seen them.
And unlike Nessie, the also claim to be them. Who knows? Maybe 'Vampirism' is a lack of iron in people which causes people to drink blood. And BTW, vampire bats do exist but aren't harmful, except for the fact that they can cause Rabies. Only 2 out of hundreds of bat species are vampires.


And I'm supposed to be a skeptic. "-_-


Plus, animal blood does not contain enough nutrients to support 'vampire' life and I read from Wikipedia that the Cullens prefer animal blood. Plus, if 'vampires' only want to survive on human blood, they must drink their weight in blood every day.

Even though the idea of vampires is absurd, it's COOL!

(Feed me on the 'facts', I only read the Twilight series on Wikipedia, so I probably don't know anything other than the main bits...)


sk8er

p.s. I still think Dracula and The Saga Of Darren Shan are better books that potray 'vampirism'...

p.p.s. @ qian qian: I love cats too, but my mother will kill me(x_x) if I buy one. She's a dog person. I'm a both cat and dog person. I had a pigeon once and it flew away and got attacked and probably killed by crows. So I am weary about pets. Though I have fish at home, they are my father's and I don't take care of them AT ALL and pretty much hate them! Or maybe I can get a bat. They are cool and are better than cats any day! And they have sonar, which is even cooler than a cat's 'always falling on it's feet' thing.

Labels: casual

wwooh!
szeling is right!
so so so right!

and i love catss!
meow

qianqian

Labels: casual

Well technically, people love Twilight because of the story and not because Edward is a -legasp!- vampire.

Also, vampires don't exist and they're just a figment of people's imaginations. So if they don't exist there's no right or wrong about them. Some people imagine vampires to be eternal beings while others (like Drima) say that they just age slower. Some people imagine vampires to be driven away by garlic and others (like Bella, in the book) imagine that vampires 'sleep' in coffins.

Everyone has a different view of what vampires are like because in reality they don't exist. And Smeyer's view of vampires is that they just stop aging when they become a vampire and are eternal beings. According to her 'theory' (or as shown in the Twilight saga), vampires are breathtakingly beautiful creatures - who cannot be exposed to sunlight because they're really 'shiny' - and they have pale skin.

Also, her vampires function like normal human beings, exception of breathing, eating or sleeping. (Yeah I know Edward breathes but sometimes he doesn't, yeah? Which means that Smeyer's vampires can don't breathe and still live, meh.) And then there are people who envision vampires that can transform into bats and etc. The possibilities are endless.

So Drima, the 'facts' aren't 'wrong'. Because in the first place, they aren't even facts in that vampires don't exist in the real world. And they also can't be wrong. Because who's to say that your theory of what vampires are is wrong? (Which can't be said unless you find a real-life vampire. =3=)

Szeling.

Labels: casual

Why does everyone love Twilight? There are a few facts wrong. Vampires cannot live forever, they just age slower. Everything has to age, unless they don't breathe in Oxygen. Plus, what would happen when the world ends? Plus, Bella couldn't have gotten pregnant in the 3rd or 4th book. Vampires are sterile. Every vampire fan knows that. Ira and I were discussing on this and we two are two of the biggest vampire fans alive! But I kinda like werewolves too. And I hate slayers. How could they kill vampires and werewolves and hybrids? Evil!

Viva Vampires!

Read The Saga Of Darren Shan by Darren Shan, all 12 books. It's about a kid named Darren who steals a spider from a vampire. He hypnotises the spider to do cool stuff, but a lapse of concentration caused it to bite his best friend Steve. To save him, Darren decides to get blooded (become a vampire). Mr. Crepsley (the vampire) saves Steve but makes Darren fall out of a window to fake his death and digs him out of his grave. Steve finds out and thinks he struck a deal with Mr. Crepsley to become a vampire when Mr. Crepsley told Steve that he couldn't because he had evil blood. The story continues throughout the next 11 books.

sk8er

Labels: casual

Fluffy(she's really fluffy isnt she!)

Mochi

Slime

Labels: casual

hong kong photos that i took are all on my blog :P alot of photos!!!

www.i-are-cute.blogspot.com

-Olivia

Labels: casual

This is a rare post from me - because this entry is posted on an early SATuRdAy morning.
It's probably going to be the first and last time this happens.

Yawn...woke up real early today at 5 plus, considering that it's a weekend.
Thanks to my husband's hardworking alarm clock.
He forgot to switch off the alarm the night before.
Grrr....

Being the light sleeper that I am, tossing and turning around the bed became my morning warm-up.
Was told by the significant other that I would automatically be shipped off to slumberland if I stopped all my movements.
So I shut my eye and lay very still for a good 15 min or so.
Sleep didn't come.
No patience to waste my time behaving like a mummy.
Took out my ipod and watched the trailer of Twilight, much talked about by my beloved 6/6 girls. The trailer's been in my machine for quite some time but I just didn't have the motivation to view it.
Okay, the mood of the movie is quite like the kind I may like...
but maybe I have that vampire/dracula/biting-bloodsucking behaviour fatigue ever since I watched something similar almost a decade ago.
And I prefer human-human relationship to creature-human ones, haha!
Anyway, to each his own :)
I hope you fans out there will enjoy your movie break!
I'm looking forward to a few movies yet to be screened...'The Secrets' is one of them.

After exhausting all the trailers, I decided to tune in to 'Before Dawn' by Isaac Shepard.
Was told that it is very good but I could not appreciate it at first hearing, perhaps due to the many distractions around me then.
Played it over and over again...in the quietness of the early morn, the tune became more and more captivating.
That made me more awake.
Decided to get out of bed finally.
Played the music on speaker until now.
Really nice - go listen to it if you like piano pieces. :)
'Ave Maria', a remix by Beyonce (Sasha Fierce) is also very nice, and only discovered by me yesterday...how late.

All right, that's all for now!
I'm going to get ready to go Bt Timah Hill, my 3rd time this week.
Just went yesterday and saw a nice pair of brown track shoes by CHACO selling for half price at $130. If you're a size 7 (I need an 8!) and looking for a pair of reliable ones - head down to the shop at the hill!

Yours T

Labels: casual

In Malaysia it's NC13. In America its PG13.

So since it's PG in Singapore, I bet they cut out all the gory part(eg. Bella thrown at mirror etc)

So all we can watch is Bella driving into forests and stuff >.>

Ping

Labels: casual

oo i love the story, all the four books!

-qianqian

Labels: casual

Qianqian, movie critiques say Twilight's a chick flick...only girls will enjoy...
Judging from your response...how true!

Yours T

Labels: casual

twilight in cinema 18 dec '08!

-qianqian

Labels: casual

Appreciate your coming to the rescue, Sze Ling.
I thought something's wrong with my laptop so I waited.
Then discovered that it wasn't.
As usual, such IT disease is too complicated for me.
Helpless.
Thought of you and Huiping but still I waited to see if it will just disappear.
Apparently not, until you intervened.

THANKS a BUNCH :)

Yours Truly

Labels: casual

Okay people, the image issues have been resolved. The creator's Photobucket account exceeded its bandwidth, but yeah, it's fixed now. :)

Szeling.

Labels: casual

Hi again now abt hong kong(for caleb and others interest)

did not take much pictures in hong kong but we went to disneyland there......was fun but tiring.....

other than that...
we went to victoria peak to see the scenery..........but it is extremely cold there.........then we went to the museum named Madame Tussauds...there you can see many statues of popular people all over the world(all looked very real) example david beckham, bruce lee, jackie chan, lee kuan yew, michael jackson,madonna and many more......... David Beckham Bruce Lee

there are many more things there that you should see..............go and visit..........

my family spent most of the days in disneyland so not many things in hong kong...........

that is all for my post.............

gtg

~Clarice~

Labels: casual

Hi everyone, finally back from hong kong and macau!!!(this post is actually for caleb after seeing the post saying you wanted recommendations)

Sadly the weather here is not as cold as it is there...the weather yesterday was freaaking cold.....it was like abt 13 degrees there!!!

well starting off with Macau, you can go to various hotels as wad ms chan said, there are lots of casinos there...(children aren't suppose to enter.) you can go to Venetian Hotel(picture below): center when you first step into the hotel
outside of venetian hotel...tall building i think is a clock...
now inside venetian the ceiling is actually a wallpaper of clouds in the day...so even if you are visiting at night, it is still day inside...heehee
this is inside venetian too in the center is a lake where there will be boats rowing about by the people in charge...they will row you in the boat from one end to another they will also sing while they are rowing. you are welcomed to have a ride in the boat.
this is a picture of the boat.
example of the person in the boat rowing while she is singing.

i think that is all in Venetian, there are quite a number of shops inside too but i think mostly are branded shops.

next up is Grand Lisboa hotel:

the side view of grand lisboa hotel.
inside the hotel most of the things are made up of jewels and stuff like that.

more jewels..............

bottom view of the hotel outside.

that's all....................

MGM GRAND hotel:there is a huge christmas tree inside i suggest that you go in and take pictures quite nice.....
i did not take much pictures of this hotel but it is quite though.....the outside of the hotel is gold ,silver and bronze easy to identify....


Wynn hotel:
i did not take a single picture that time but this hotel is one of the hotels i prefer in macau....cos in the hotel there is a programme which is a show called the prosperity tree...the show is superb must watch very nice.........


guess that is all for hotels in macau...............

i went to fisherman's wharft too pictures below:

this is the tang dynasty section.........

the entrance of the tang dynasty but sadly it was not open that day......and i dont think we can enter.....

this is the volcano at the fisherman's wharft.very high........this is part of fisherman's wharft........inside.......

there is this gigantic helicopter ........can take pictures.........


that is all for fisherman's wharft......

SENADO SQUARE:
there are many stalls there that sell food eg. bbq pork, almond cookies, egg rolls with seaweed and pork floss and many more.... then you walk up up and up you will see this building you can take pictures there...... my father said that this is known as the RUINS OF ST. PAULS.you can go behind and take pictures too!!!

that is all for macau.............so many things to see there but hongkong has more..i will post abt hong kong on the next post...........


~Clarice~

Labels: casual

if yes, too bad....haha

Oh yes, thank-you Ms Chan for your recommendations, I'll tell you about my experiences when I return.

Pheesible

Labels: casual

caleb!! what time is your flight??? what if we are on the same airplane??????

-Olivia

Labels: casual

Hi people!

Just dropping by using the computer at Changi Airport. FYI, I am heading to Korea and won't be back until 11 Dec(night).

Farewell,
Kim Yao

Labels: casual

Hi Caleb, I can’t advise much on HK till a fortnight later because I didn’t have much time to roam around leisurely when I brought my students there in 2005.

But I can give an amateur-ish review of my Macau trip.

Macau’s a place for casino addicts, history buffs and cultural/heritage lovers. Regretfully and fortunately (that I'm no gambler), I don’t belong to any of the group. But I guess for the 99-cent air ticket I paid (though not inclusive of tax and fuel charges), it’s not a bad deal to pop by for a 3-day feel of the country.

The night scene of Macau is hogged by the grandeur light-up of the casinos, living up to her name of being the Las Vegas of the East. I went into several very well-known ones (The Venetian, Grand Lisboa, Sands) to admire their more-than-glamorous interior decoration. It’s amazing how much $$ they pumped into these sinful hangouts. That aside, I couldn’t wait to get out after a while for a whiff of fresher air because smokers puffed their lungs out in there. Seems that they were not just there to gamble their wealth away…their own health was part of the stake on the table and at the jackpot machines too…My parents, aunt and uncle could not resist the ‘cute’ animated cartoons on the slot machines and decided to spend a tiny-weenie fortune feeding them for some cheap thrill, of course expecting rewards of which came none. I had the last laugh :D Anti-gambling statements aside, I must say I was (and still am) very impressed with their casinos, especially The Venetian, which was very tastefully built.

Macau’s full of catholic churches, both functional and ruined ones, a result of their Portuguese heritage. I guess the most famous one is the St.Paul’s ruins, tucked at the end of the famous Senardo Square…I missed taking a shot with that heritage structure because none of my ‘rather senior’ travel companions want to take a long walk with me. And being the ‘youngest’ in the troop, mummy said I could not roam around in that casino-land on my own in case I got ‘kid’napped. Sigh!

The street names are in Portuguese…pretty difficult to read and remember (e.g. Avenida.de Almeida Ribeiro). Even common signages such as ‘toilet’ etc have Portuguese translations. My tongue almost got twisted…

The Macanese seem to have a fetish for watches. You see watch shops and goldsmiths almost everywhere.

Besides the casinos, the only touristy landmarks I visited were the Fishermen’s Wharf and the Senardo Square (which was rather vast). I spent one of the days travelling up north into China (Zhu Hai) to see how real their fakey products are and another day south to Taipa, where the awesome Venetian is.

One tip for travelling around is to make use of the casino shuttle buses so you can save on taxi fares, though taxis take you straight to your destination. The HK-Macau Ferry Terminal has lots of shuttle buses to various hotels and casinos, so I hopped on and off different buses. The coaches were very super frequent and pretty comfy so the slight inconvenience could be overlooked. Saved quite a bit of $.

For food, you can’t miss their famous Portuguese egg tarts. I settled most meals at the cafes and restaurants near the hotel. Travel sites and books recommend the ‘Three-lamp District’ for food so I went and was rather disappointed because it was pretty run down. The funny part is that place has plenty of Burmese restaurants. I wonder why! The Burmese café I stepped in for my first meal there was highly recommended (XX香). I can’t remember! But you won’t miss the shop because there are many celebrity photos and magazine reviews of the shop pasted on the windows. Except for the low rating on the ambience of the eatery, the food wasn’t that bad but my parents and relatives weren’t won over. I am, as usual, easily contented (though not the case with A-stars).

Oh finally, it’s a common sight to see tourists lugging back bags and bags of ALMOND BISCUITS (咀香园 especially)…but my favourite brand is 钜记! Their biscuits are more expensive but totally yummy! Grab some home!

Yours Truly!

Labels: casual

hey caleb, i am also going to hong kong on monday!! but i don't want to see you there!! cos' it will be very awkward

-Olivia

Labels: casual

Dear Ms Chan,

May I know where are some of the places of interest in Macau and Hong Kong? I'll be going there with my family this coming Monday. Are there good food there? Where can we find them?

Thanks.

Pheesible

Labels: casual

Yea Huiping, now doing my part to breathe some life into this blog from Macau Int'l Airport...my flight back home has been delayed for an hour plus due to technical fault. I want to go home...Macau's not very interesting...(Wait! Airport announcement!)

YEP! I can finally board now! Byes! ;D

Yours Truly!

Labels: casual

@Ping
thanks

Labels: casual

IT'S okay already Ms Chan :D I found a reliable source..

Thanks anyway~


Keep this aliveeeeeeeeeeeee.

Yawn holidays are boring.

@Daniel: Boxing Day? And.. a 2 or 3 year anniversary of the deadly Tsunami..

Ping

//seriously wonder how people in other schools quarrel like crazy among themselves. and end up hating one another immediately after graduation. ;|

Labels: casual

Can someone please tell me if there is anything on on the 26 dec 08?

daniel

Labels: casual