dimanche's VirtualTourist Home Page

home is always the best place to be. it is one's cradle when one needs escape from the thunderstorms outside. no matter how beautiful some of the places are in the world, home is still the perfect place to be.

i was whisked away to the faraway USA, Japan and Thailand when i was about 4 by my parents. i always think i'm a very blessed person as compared to my friends. i had been to Disneyland, the Hoover Dam, beautiful Tokyo and the Thai culture before the age of 5! some of the people i know haven't even taken a plane out of here before. all thanks to my wonderful parents who are pretty eager travellers themselves. :D

this photo was taken just last year. on our family trip.

i really adore australia and new zealand. as a reward for my good grades in grade 4, my parents brought me and my sister to australia where we visited sydney, ,melbourne, brisbane and gold coast. we saw the opera house, met the famed koalas and kangaroos and had a great time at the theme parks.

when i was 16, the women in my family went to perth to have a farmstay experience. the most memorable part of it all was when we went fox hunting at night within the farm with me only having a pair of shorts on under a temperature of 17 degrees celcius! GEE! after that we were served this extremely sweet dessert(forgot the name) by the hosts and went crayfish hunting earlier in the day.

New Zealand is another amazing place. the temp is quite cold really(being a singaporean), the culture is rich, the food is good, and the place is beautiful! the people there are simple and environmentally friendly! they are quite proud of what they have and will do what they need to preserve and protect it.

i especially enjoyed the "HAKA" performed by the maori men. it really is a chant that will scare and warn you of their prowess. i've seen it before at rugby games on tv but the real thing was really powerful. the maori women sing so well!! their voices are just melodious when put together.

love climbing mountains although i've only done mostly malaysian ones this is mount ophir(also known as Gunung Ledang) its only one -third of Mount Kinabalu(highest in SEA) but its definitely more challenging! well...the more challenging the better!

football is my life as well as my religion. most people choose something like buddhism or christianity as their source of faith, but for me a mere 90 mins of passionate football would cajole me into staying glued to the the screen for almost 6 hours every weekend. and that's only the english premiership! the champions league forces me to stay awake till unearthly hours(singapore time) to cheer on my heroes. football is a great sport that promotes team spirit, distinguishes racism and unites nations.

2008

July -- Bangkok, Kanchananburi

September -- North Korea

October -- Hongkong, Macau

Dec -- South Korea

Over the mountains and the sea,
Your river runs with love for me,
and I will open up my heart
and let the Healer set me free.
I'm happy to be in the truth,
and I will daily lift my hands:
for I will always sing of when
Your love came down.

I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever.

Oh, I feel like dancing -
it's foolishness I know;
but, when the world has seen the light,
they will dance with joy,
like we're dancing now.

80s

1985 -- Genting, Malaysia
1986 -- Thailand(Chiangmai and some other parts)
1988 -- San Francisco, Hawaii, Arizona/Nevada, Las Vegas, California, Mexico,Japan
1989 -- Genting, Cameron Highlands, KL, Malaysia

90s

1994 -- Gold Coast, Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Australia

00s

2000 -- Perth, Australia
2001-2003 -- Genting, Pulau Tioman, Malaysia

2004 -- Pulau Sibu, Johor, Malaysia
Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Wellington, Auckland, North Island , NZ
2005 -- Pulau Redang, Tregganu Malaysia,
Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand
Beijing, China
2006 -- Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia,
Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand
Pulau Lang Tengah, Trengganu, Malaysia
Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Bangkok, Thailand
Bintan, Indonesia
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Krabi, Thailand
2007 -- Batam, Indonesia,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Koh Samui & Phangan, Thailand
Bangkok, Thailand
Vietiane,Vang Vieng, Luang Prabang, Laos
Kunming, Dali, Lijiang, China
Hanoi, Vietnam