Tuen's Blog

The Bali holiday was really good and refreshing, and it was wonderful to catch up with relatives whom we had not met for a while.

The first 4 days of Bali was spent with the Chongs. Since we were coming from Australia and the rest of the clan were coming from Singapore, we felt that since we were going to travel such a long distance, we might as well spend a few more days in Bali, rather than just the 4 official clan reunion days. So the Chongs and us stayed at a place called Villa Alumbrera in Canggu. We had a very good time there, especially the kids, who had their own villa where they could party all they want and leave us ‘oldies’ in peace. We had a staff of several waiters and cooks to look after our needs, and they prepared most of the meals for us. For Aussies, this was a real pampering that we don’t normally get at home.

On the 4th day we checked out of Villa Alumbrera and moved into Hard Rock Hotel. The clan gathering was also very enjoyable and activities included White water rafting, surfing, pool games, shopping, gambling and a Karaoke competition. We stayed for 4 nights there and had a grand time. This gathering was made possible thanks to the sponsorship of a rich relative; Bernard. Bernard has been living and working in the UK for many years, and this gathering was an idea mooted by him and Adeline, another relative of ours.

We left for Singapore on 15th Dec to start the next phase of our holiday.

Photos of Bali can be found here.

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I am typing this post whilst flying over the Indian Ocean, on a Virgin Airlines flight. It’s the 8th of December. We are on our way to Bali for a family holiday, with members of our clan. All in, there should be about 50 of us attending I think. We shall be in Bali for about a week, and since from Bali to Singapore it’s such a short hop, we decided to spend about two weeks in Singapore after that. The three boys won’t be flying to Singapore, but will fly directly back to Melbourne, together with Al. And our two girls will be extending their stay in Singapore for a further two and four week period respectively. Looking forward to Bali and Singapore…

Jie sent me to the airport on 10th Jan, and I took my flight to join Mary and the rest of the family in Singapore. The flight was uneventful and Mary met me at the airport when I arrived. Surprisingly, the weather was not too hot, and I didn’t feel clammy and sweaty. I had a little trouble adjusting to the time difference the first two days, but this sorted itself out after that. The first week was spent catching up with old friends, especially members of the cult. We met at the Chuas and we also spent an evening out on the town after visiting Francis’ shop. Co-incidentaly, the Lims were in Singapore at the same time, so it was great catching up with them. Furthermore, their good friends, the Murphys, whom we had met before, were also in Singapore and we had an opportunity to catch up with them too. During this time, we stayed at my parents’ place.

More photos can be found here.

On Friday 16th, we boarded the cruise ship Legends of the Seas for a 4 day cruise to Penang and Port Kelang. It was really nice on board ship, and we spent most of the time eating. The amount of food available and the number of times the food was served was almost sinful. It’s like you simply pass the time awaiting the next meal! Anyway, we also participated in some of the activities on board, like rock climbing, karaoke, Bingo and of course, I spent some time at the casino. No luck for me at the casino unfortunately! At Penang and Port Kelang, some of us disembarked to do some shopping on land.

It’s interesting that when we disembarked and entered Malaysia, we didn’t need our passports, nor did we need to clear immigration. All we needed was our cabin cards. This must be some kind of arrangement between the Malaysian immigration and the operators of the cruise. I wonder if the same process applies to foreigners entering Singapore from on board a cruise?

Photos of the cruise can be found here.

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