We self drive to KUKUP on 19th Jun 2010

We self drove to Kukup on 19th Jun 2010 at about 9am. There was a traffic jam in JB and by the time we reached Kukup, it was 12:30pm.

We headed to the causeway seafood restaurant to have our lunch. It was supposed to be the best restaurant over there at Kukup after I read those surveys at the internet. However,there were not many eaters there when we reached there. Nevertheless, we proceeded. And it turned out the prawns were nicely cooked, the promfret was very fresh and the pepper crabs were hot hot but very yummy. Thumbs up!!! And all these plus a pot of hot tea and 3 plates of rice only cost us $88.10 Ringgit. $39 s$. :>

Then we took a boat ride to see the kelongs which was the main reason why we brought Wan Qi to Kukup. The ride per person is only $5 ringgit two ways plus the boatman are good "tourguide " too. Nice and pleasant people at kukup. :>

At the kelong Wan Qi was running happily along the wooden platform. I was scared that she might fall but in the end she was even more agile than me. :P

As we were the only group on board the ship,the little tourguide told us a little background about kukup. And when we reached the kelong, he actually told the kelong people that we just arrived and requested them to demo the catfish to us again. (As the previous big group had already seen the demo) He also let us feed the small promfrets and the shooting fishes. He also demo how the shooting fish will shoot water up in order to get the ikan bilis from us. Then another kelong boy went to catch cat fish for us to see. He also explained about the nature of the catfish. Hey we learnt a lot from these boys. - Very good natured boys.:>

After half an hour or so, we went back. Thats it. Our whole kukup trip ended at 3pm.

It was not that the stay was terrible that made us looked so grumpy.

Haha rather Malacca is very hot. It's a very sunny morning.

We thought it was a bit too fast and hence decided to head to KL. It was a long ride so Xihong suggested we stopped over at Malacca. So we did. Xihong was proud of that as he said if not we will be too tired by the time we reached KL. And he managed to eat his favourite durians while driving to Malacca by the roadside. Yee but there were so many flies. :P

But the thing is we didnt book a hotel at Malacca. The shocking thing is all the hotels in Malaccas were full house due to holiday season. In the end, we found a room but it was sort of inn more than a hotel. I was very reluctant as I saw lizards along their corridors. I am afraid there will be some in the hotel rooms. However, we were really tired and it was very late. I decided to go ahead with it. It turned out to be better than I expected. It was clean and quite spacious. Phew but I still cant wait to leave the next morning. Hee.

We headed to KL and we also didnt have not book a hotel. Oh my gosh. Frankly speaking, I was quite worried that we will end up staying in an inn again. We went back to bukit bintang but Iwas determined to stay beside Mid Vally Mega Mall - Boulevard Hotel so that I can shop and do my facial there. Hee. But we were not sure how to get there. So in the end I suggested I take a taxi while Xihong followed the taxi. Tata and with 10 rinngit, we reached Boulevard. Nice newly renovated hotel and best of all just beside the the Mega Mall. It was an extremely big shopping mall. But Xihong said this is not the kind of road trips he wanted. Not the shopping type. Hee it was meant for me. I was shopping for my bags but couldnt find the shop - Vinnci plus cos the shopping mall was really big, enormous. We walk for dont know how many times north then east then south then west then north then east and finally found it. And by then Xihong was rather mad with me for dragging Wan Qi and him all around the shopping centre. Well but in the end I got 1 more bag which I orignally planned to buy only 1. I asked him if its ok. He just said "It's ok just buy if you like it." Haahhaaah he 's the best when it comes to buying things for me. I was so happy. Then I said "Thank you I love you" Wan Qi heard it she also said "Thank you I love you" And tala he 's not mad at me anymore. So the 2 of us the happiest one came out of the shop with two big bags and beaming with smiles.
Wan Qi thought that one of the bags belongs to her so she is happy too.

Olden Wang Ye Fu now become "NIE"in China

Visited this place at Naning. Its a NIE in Naning but they also have a museum introducing olden time KE JU examination. The guide told us the hsitory of olden times examination and also introduced the top scholars. After that we get to experience the examination too by taking exams. Its fun! We are seated in the above small room to take exam. But the result is kelong one as only guys can be the scholars. Since our whole tour group only has these two guys so they became the scholars:>

The Helpful Wan Qi

Throughout the trip, Wan Qi has been very independent. She had been helping to carry her own luggage. Bought the sheep Chinese wear for only RMB25.

Wan Qi with the tour guide Xiao Hong

It was drizzing when we are at Elephant Mountain

I bought the hand made knitted hat for RMB15 The tour guide bought a cake for Wan Qi. Wan Qi likes her very much.

Day 3 at Yang Shuo

We have another river ride here where we saw buffalos enjoying their bath in the river and groups of ducks swimming in the river. It was drizzling a bit but when we alight to take pictures, the rain stopped. :> The scenery was breathtaking. I sat on the deck of the boat to enjoy the breeze all the while after realising that my mum and Wan Qi disappeared back to their seats. The reason- They bought fried small fish and crabs and are tasting them. Wan Qi is very fond of such small where one eatsthe whole fish together with bones. She also ate the whole crabs. As for me, I dont dare to. She is more daring when it comes to tasting first time food.

YING ZI YAN a cave with beautiful natural limestones

On the 2nd Day we visited the cave called YING ZI YAN. Direct translation will be olden times money stone. Hee. It gets this name is because of the precious limestone in the cave. They are beautiful, some has the shape of monkey god, umbrella,buddha etc all formed naturally!! And some of the limestones are white in colour and they are sparkling that looks like crystals. And the limestone structure in this particular photo is gorgeous as there is a small pond just beside it. One can see the reflection of the limestone in the lake. It's truly amazing. We took a 70min walk in the cave and Wan Qi followed us all the way from the entrance to the exit without having us to carry her. :>

Li Jiang River

On Day 2, we went to Li Jiang River. Yipee over there we get a chance to sit on the raft which we wanted so much when we were at DE TIAN WATERFALL (but the tour guide said is too dangerous for singapore tourist- they were meant for the locals) However, the raft were the big sturdy one so it was not thrilling at all. :>

We enjoyed ourselves a lot as we met the Chan Brother tour group,(we are from SA tour group), so we actually have LIU SAN JIE singing competition. And guess what Wan Qi volunteered to sing. I was shocked and she sang the tv serial song. So she was given a XIU QIU. It was the ZHANG zhu 's culture that they need to sew this XIU QIU before they get married- a blessing for the girl so that they will find good husbands.

We also get to see the YU YING- a kind of duck who are very very good at catching fishes which made me teared. It was such a cruel act. The fishermen tied a string the YU YING's neck to prevent it from eating the fish. Once the YU YING catches the fish, the fisherman will quickly grab the YU YING's neck and take the fish out from the YU YING. The fisherman will then put the big fish in a net. Sign, humans are really the most cruel animal.

Then we get to go to a tent where they sell pineapples. Wan Qi saw a few Chinese boys and decided to give all her OREOS to them even though she cherished them so much.(This is the only time that she can eat OREOs as I always restrict her to eat biscuit ) I was touched by her act. The countryside boys were very delighted too as they are actually quite poor. (Guangxi is one of the poorest state in China told by the tour guide)

Brought my mum and Wan Qi to Guangxi Guilin

During March, I asked my dad if he wanted to travel and he said yes. So I went to NATAS FAIR to book a package for him to Hainan Island. However, my mum does not want to go with him as they generally cant click during tour. hee. So during the June holidays, I decided to bring my mum and Wan Qi to China as my mum loves China.

Off we went on the 5th June2010. The airplane trip was a smooth one - a 5hr ride. By the time we reached China- Nanning it was already night time. We went to DE TIAN WATERFAll the next morning. Oh my gosh it was a bumby 4 hrs ride. Throughout the journey, there are people puking. Then ended up my mum and I puked a little too. And Wan Qi, she was happily sleeping throughout the journey. By the time she woke up, we had reached DE TIAN WATERFALL. (I am thankful to Buddha as I always make a trip to pray for our safety before our tour)

This waterfall was the second largest in Asia but I thought having to travel 4hrs just to see this waterfall is not very worth it until...................the horse ride along the mountain. Hooooo it was a bit scary when we were posing near the waterfall. But it was fun too. The scenery at a higher height (on the horse back) is more magnificient.

Wan Qi's progress 2010

Haha I left her on her own to do this page. But she mixes up eyes and ears. So in the end, she told me it s ok she will do her correction. But its not on the sentence itself but I thought it's a good effort so I said good job to her.

Hee her drawing is still not up to standard , oh and her handwriting too. She is trying to label them like what she saw in some books. Good effort though so didnt ask her to redo. She told me its a bit messy but I reassured her it's quite good as this is her first attempt.

This time round she didnt draw the girl showing her teeth. My mum and I had a good laugh the other time when I saw her completing another assessment book. The girl that she had drawn looks hilarious or should I say like a monster. Cant remember which book but will post it if i find it. Wan Qi drew the girl showing her squarish teeth and her eyelashes oh my god are on her lower eyelid.

Because of her blending skills, she is also able to do the comprehension. I am really proud of her.

Wan Qi is able to do it on her own. If you try to spell it for her. She will be very angry and starts to throw tantrum. With her blending skills, she is able to guess the helping words so she has no problem doing the work with the help of the pictures too.

She will try to spell on her own, when she is wrong I will try to pronouce the words again so that she can do her blending. Really have to thank Sharon for this.

We promised that we will get her a pair of DOra high heeled shoes. But OG still haven have discount lei so on hold first.

Wan Qi had finally completed her pink series phonics book. I thought she did pretty well. 12As and 3Bs. Initially, I was a bit lazy and did not revise with her until she got a consecutive Bs for her reading. I thought to myself since I am spending the money then I should spend some time reading with her. At least before she goes to Auntie Sharon's house. Hee and bravo she didnt disappoint me. She got all As subsequently. In fact, I dont have to revise with her. Once she read once, she will be able to read it when Auntie Sharon test her as she had already acquired her bending skill quite well. Thanks to Sharon.

To tap on her ability to blend, I decided to go further by letting her do some K1 assessment books which I bought from popular. Initially, she dreads it but after doing every morning, she starts to like it. She even asked to do it without having me to tell her. Thats why I did the assessment with her until I missed my lunch. Hey but it's worth it. When we get home at 9pm tonight, she still went to do on her own.

In addition, she has been doing well in living santuary kindegarten. When I went to take her homework that day, the teachers told me that Wan Qi was an independant learner and she can learn very fast. She knows all her songs and rythmns even though she just joined them. I was really happy that she is back to her old self again. JIA YOU my little Wan Qi, the happy learner.

To reward her, Xihong actually bought a strawberry doll for her which she had been eyeing for a long time. There's a discount for this doll for her so we bought it for her. It cost $29.90 now instead of $49.90. Gosh, Xihong really pampered her when it comes to buying dolls. Till now she already has 7-8 dolls. And one is not cheap, the one that can poo haha cant remember her name already cost a big hole in our pockets. In the end, she suffers the same fate as her other dolls - no clothes on - including no diaper. For some reason, Wan Qi always likes to take off their clothes - not sure is it because she dont know how to dress them back thats why they always become naked. :P Luckily this stawberry doll s clothes are sewn to her body if not she will end up like the rest of the dolls too.