Day 3 - 9th of Dec - Seoul, Korea

We were told by Auntie Bonnie that we were supposed to meet our tour guide at 0915 and hence we woke up early to make the necessary preparation. We ate breakfast at another Tea House. I chose soyabean and youtiao while mum chose pig blood's porriage (her favourite).

Daddy concentrating as he talked to the taxi driver over the phone. Hong Kong's Taxi Service is slightly different from Singapore. You get a 20% discount if you call for a taxi, an extra pay is not needed.

We arrived at Hong Kong International Airport 15 minutes before time. To our surprise, no one was there to attend to us. Auntie Bonnie actually got us the wrong timing, the actual meeting time was 1015. So, we waited and waited.

A pic with Christmas Tree at the airport.

1020 - Our tour leader, Ms.Cherry Wong, briefed us on the boarding and landing procedures and the place where we would meet again in Korea. Our group of 34 people splitted. Mummy then dragged me around to look at good food. ;P

The plane took 3 hours and 16 minutes to reach Gimpo Airport, Seoul.


1720- Arrival at Gimpo Airport. Surprisingly, the queue for foreigners was shorter than that of the locals.


That night, we had our first meal at the above local restaurant. Everything was cool. There was 5 side dishes accompanying the main course which is "dry steamboat". First - Cook the pork over the hot pan
Second - Wrap it in a lettuce
Third - Dip it in toenjang tchigae (Bean paste sauce)


A very special combination and taste. Yet, I don't find it especially delicious.

Mummy eating the samgyopsal. ^^

The leftover.


This is a mandarin stall outside the restaurant.
Korean mandarins are only grown in Jeju-do island, North of Seoul. Yet, this kind of stalls can be found almost everywhere on the street. My dad's favourate!^^

That night we stayed at Imperial Palace. It is a 5 stars + golden flower hotel, considered the best hotel throughout my whole trip.
For your info: There is no 6 stars hotel in Korea, the highest one can go is 5 Stars + 3 golden flowers, followed by 5 stars + 3 green flowers.

Day 2 - 8th Dec 2006 - Hong Kong

I woke up quite late the other morning. Around eight o'clock. As usual, Mummy woke up at 6am and went to Aunt Bonnie's house to pass her our gifts. Daddy and me then met up with them and together, we went to Mong Kok to make my Adult Identification Card, known as "香港智能身份證". The queue was extremely long; it took about 2 hours before everything was completed. Breakfast was superb that day, I finally had a taste of my favourite Satay Beef Macaroni and Butter "Pineapple" Bread! ^^

香港智能身份證


We travelled to Shatin in the afternoon and met up with Uncle Shui's mum to pass her the Magic Oil from Singapore. She recited her story on how she fought against her cancer and that took away few hours of our time. Later, we visited Uncle's Dennis best friend - Uncle Zhong. It was the first time I saw such a small house for a family of 3. There was only one room and a small kitchen and washroom. Suddenly, I felt so fortunate for myself.

Daddy went to Uncle Zhong shop for a high-tech spectacle.

That night, we visited Aunt Bonnie's house. Cousin Wongs were as cool as ever - concentrating on his animates. Uncle Gordon and Dennis were there too. We gossiped, laughed and exchanged ideas. I got my first Christmas present from Bonnie Yi too - cutie night lamps legos. ^^

Took some pics of Hong Kong - my birth place!

Old residential area - next to my hotel.


School next to a bustling street in Prince Edward. Look at the condition of the school. *_* Singapore students should feel real fortunate and lucky for themselves.


Look at the building on the right hand side of the background. That was the place Mummy and Daddy stayed when they were first married. :)

Day 1- 7th Dec 2006 - Changi Airport.
To our frustration, our Cathey Pacific plane was delayed for 2 hours.



The queue for checking in was long. Mummy went to take a rest and turned out socialising with a lady next to her. Unintentionally, she criticised the stranger's 7 years old daughter for not knowing the word "delayed". As expected, the lady stopped talking to her and went off.

The queue - not as bad as it seems though.

We landed in Hong Kong at around 5pm. The journey didn't start too well. Mummy was a bit turned off due to the fact that we couldn't go according to her plan. She wanted us to buy the People's sim card but we ended up buying a Sunny IDD card. Daddy was there frowning and Mummy was there nagging. I was thrown in a dilemma of not knowing who to stand up for. Luckily, everything was fine since that day onwards. We were able to give in to each other's need.



My parents decided to have a real vacation and hence planned to stay in a hotel. This was where we stayed for the first night - Metro Park hotel in Prince Edward.



That night, we went to Tai Koo to meet up with Daddy's Third Aunt. On the way, my parents met an old friend whom they have lost contact for twenty years. They remembered each other's faces but not the name. The world is real small!

We called that a day. Pretty normal day.