[{"content":"A summary of weekend trips taken and events that we have attended during 2026, for memory keeping.\nFeb: Batemans and Malua Bay 3 days w/ B\u0026amp;T Shepherd\u0026rsquo;s Lookout beautiful place! w/ B\u0026amp;T March: National Multicultural Festival w/ B\u0026amp;T March: Canberra Balloon Spectacular w/ B\u0026amp;T March: Canberra Day fireworks - Sky Fire 3.14 8:30pm w/ B\u0026amp;T 7:55 pm: RAAF F-35A Lightning II flyover March: Enlighten Festival Canberra 2026 w/ B\u0026amp;T March: short trip to Sydney (work) March: Blue Range Barry and Tom Haig Park Village Markets, Sunday 8:00am to 2:00pm. Dogs are welcome. Dog agility training park next to it. w/ B\u0026amp;W Epic farmers market - a lovely place to walk with your dog and people. w/ B\u0026amp;T Experience Breathing Space, an evocative sound installation created for the Garden of Australian Dreams at the National Museum of Australia. w/ B\u0026amp;T Composed by renowned musician Genevieve Lacey, Breathing Space pays homage to the deep time and ecological abundance of our continent, the ancient, vibrant cultures of First Nations Australians and the waves of migration that have shaped the land. Wander through the Garden and discover sounds and melodies that change subtly, hour by hour, day by day, season by season. Whenever and wherever you are in the Garden, you will hear something new. Saturday 2026-03-21 Harvest Day Out 2026 Lanyon Homestead, 10-3pm w/ Tom 2026-03-27-29 Japan StrEat Party w/ T\u0026amp;B Barry and Bron April: short trip to Sydney w/ Tom late April: Bendora Arboretum ACT beautiful picnic w/ B\u0026amp;T Barry and Bron May: Halls market - very nice outing. Dogs are welcome. w/ B\u0026amp;T May: Mother\u0026rsquo;s Day Classic walk w/ B\u0026amp;W July: Winter in the woods National Arboretum Canberra w/ B\u0026amp;Barry July: Christmas in July w/ B\u0026amp;Barry September: Gold coast (work) ","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20261231tripsevents/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eA summary of weekend trips taken and events that we have attended during 2026, for memory keeping.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Feb: Batemans and Malua Bay 3 days w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://www.parks.act.gov.au/home/features/explore-shepherds-lookout\"\u003eShepherd\u0026rsquo;s Lookout\u003c/a\u003e beautiful place! w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e March: \u003ca href=\"https://multiculturalfestival.com.au\"\u003eNational Multicultural Festival\u003c/a\u003e w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e March: Canberra Balloon Spectacular w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e March: Canberra Day fireworks - Sky Fire 3.14 8:30pm w/ B\u0026amp;T\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e7:55 pm: RAAF F-35A Lightning II flyover\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e March: Enlighten Festival Canberra 2026 w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e March: short trip to Sydney (work)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e March: \u003ca href=\"https://www.google.com/url?sa=t\u0026amp;source=web\u0026amp;rct=j\u0026amp;opi=89978449\u0026amp;url=https://www.parks.act.gov.au/find-a-nature-park/murrumbidgee-river-corridor/blue-range-recreation-area\u0026amp;ved=2ahUKEwjW8eHkocyVAxXosVYBHV_nAVsQFnoECBYQAQ\u0026amp;usg=AOvVaw3yoa4Z4bp1PmTD0o2_y5ZY\"\u003eBlue Range\u003c/a\u003e Barry and Tom\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Haig Park Village Markets, Sunday 8:00am to 2:00pm. Dogs are welcome. Dog agility training park next to it. w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://thelittleburleymarket.com.au\"\u003eEpic farmers market\u003c/a\u003e - a lovely place to walk with your dog and people. w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Experience Breathing Space, an evocative sound installation created for the Garden of Australian Dreams at the National Museum of Australia. w/ B\u0026amp;T\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eComposed by renowned musician Genevieve Lacey, Breathing Space pays homage to the deep time and ecological abundance of our continent, the ancient, vibrant cultures of First Nations Australians and the waves of migration that have shaped the land.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWander through the Garden and discover sounds and melodies that change subtly, hour by hour, day by day, season by season. Whenever and wherever you are in the Garden, you will hear something new.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Saturday 2026-03-21 Harvest Day Out 2026 Lanyon Homestead, 10-3pm w/ Tom\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e 2026-03-27-29 Japan StrEat Party w/ T\u0026amp;B Barry and Bron\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e April: short trip to Sydney w/ Tom\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e late April: \u003ca href=\"https://australianhiker.com.au/trails/bendora-arboretum-act-3-7km/\"\u003eBendora Arboretum ACT\u003c/a\u003e beautiful picnic w/ B\u0026amp;T Barry and Bron\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e May: \u003ca href=\"https://www.hartley.org.au/markets\"\u003eHalls market\u003c/a\u003e - very nice outing. Dogs are welcome. w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e May: \u003ca href=\"https://www.mothersdayclassic.com.au\"\u003eMother\u0026rsquo;s Day Classic\u003c/a\u003e walk w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e July: \u003ca href=\"https://www.nationalarboretum.act.gov.au/visit/whats-on/feature-events/winter-in-the-woods\"\u003eWinter in the woods\u003c/a\u003e National Arboretum Canberra w/ B\u0026amp;Barry\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e July: \u003ca href=\"https://christmasinjuly.com.au/canberra/\"\u003eChristmas in July\u003c/a\u003e w/ B\u0026amp;Barry\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e September: Gold coast (work)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e","title":"2026 Trips and Events"},{"content":"My furbaby absolutely loves visiting the pet shop.\nHe knows the routine perfectly: he steps onto the weighing machine, waits for me to tell him to get off, checks out some treats and toys, sniffs around (oh so many smells!), and finally gets a free treat at the checkout from the shop assistant.\nMy furbaby thrives on routine. He’s completely on autopilot in the pet shop, going through everything step by step. He hardly has the time to greet other dogs or human, he won’t let himself getting off track like that. 🤩\nWhen I’m getting our shopping scanned, he sits patiently behind the counter, waiting for his treat. If the shop assistant doesn’t notice him, he stretches up to the counter to get some attention. Once he’s had his treat, he’s out the door, not bothering with a thank you or even a farewell look. 挥挥手不带走一片云彩。He might enjoy the military!\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20260606thedrill/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eMy furbaby absolutely loves visiting the pet shop.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe knows the routine perfectly: he steps onto the weighing machine, waits for me to tell him to get off, checks out some treats and toys, sniffs around (oh so many smells!), and finally gets a free treat at the checkout from the shop assistant.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"image of dog getting treats at pet store\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://raw.githubusercontent.com/huatuostudio/site-images/refs/heads/main/20260606.png\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy furbaby thrives on routine. He’s completely on autopilot in the pet shop, going through everything step by step. He hardly has the time to greet other dogs or human, he won’t let himself getting off track like that. 🤩\u003c/p\u003e","title":"The drill"},{"content":"Enjoyed a night @enlighten_canberra with T and my furbaby.\nEnlighten is Canberra’s annual light show.\nEnlighten Festival 2026 lit up Canberra once again with eleven nights of spectacular Illuminations, stunning art installations, captivating performances, live music, food and after-dark experiences. (Enlighten Festival)\nI’ve been to this event almost every year. Walking around can be tiring. I had to carry my furbaby in the end 😄 it was well past his bedtime. I wonder if I would come if I didn’t have a guest 😜\nSome photos from the event:\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20260306enlighten/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eEnjoyed a night @enlighten_canberra with T and my furbaby.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnlighten is Canberra’s annual light show.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnlighten Festival 2026 lit up Canberra once again with eleven nights of spectacular Illuminations, stunning art installations, captivating performances, live music, food and after-dark experiences. (\u003ca href=\"https://enlightencanberra.com/\"\u003eEnlighten Festival\u003c/a\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/blockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI’ve been to this event almost every year. Walking  around can be tiring. I had to carry my furbaby in the end 😄 it was well past his bedtime. I wonder if I would come if I didn’t have a guest 😜\u003c/p\u003e","title":"A night at Enlighten"},{"content":"Here is a list of useful website building/maintenance tools that I\u0026rsquo;m using:\nAll posts on this site use Markdown. So here is the always useful Markdown Cheatsheet.\nEmbed YouTube Video with Markdown with a preview image\nDetails on this Github repo\ne.g.\ncode used for above ^^:\n[![watch the video](https://img.youtube.com/vi/0VxtlFkuDMs/0.jpg)](https://youtu.be/0VxtlFkuDMs?si=tfDuvuYZt-WvZMbn)\nhow to create descriptions for SOE by Google\nAdd-ons for Hugo\na nice YouTube training course on Hugo\ngood info on Git submodules for your Hugo Themes - How To Add and Update Git Submodules\nMermid Live Editor - markdown graphs\nTBH, I quite like this Hugo theme too: Hermit, clean, simple, easy to read typography 👍\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20250615tools/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eHere is a list of useful website building/maintenance tools that I\u0026rsquo;m using:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll posts on this site use Markdown. So here is the always useful \u003ca href=\"https://www.markdownguide.org/cheat-sheet/\"\u003eMarkdown Cheatsheet\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEmbed YouTube Video with Markdown with a preview image\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://gist.github.com/bitsurgeon/acd769ae3236c48a433e0acb11784c2e\"\u003eDetails on this Github repo\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ee.g.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/0VxtlFkuDMs?si=tfDuvuYZt-WvZMbn\"\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"watch the video\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://img.youtube.com/vi/0VxtlFkuDMs/0.jpg\"\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ecode used for above ^^:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ccode\u003e[![watch the video](https://img.youtube.com/vi/0VxtlFkuDMs/0.jpg)](https://youtu.be/0VxtlFkuDMs?si=tfDuvuYZt-WvZMbn)\u003c/code\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ehow to create descriptions for SOE by \u003ca href=\"https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/snippet#:~:text=and%20popular%20pages.-,Include%20relevant%20information%20about%20the%20content%20in%20the%20description,of%20publication%2C%20or%20byline%20information.\"\u003eGoogle\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://hugocodex.org/add-ons/\"\u003eAdd-ons\u003c/a\u003e for Hugo\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ea nice \u003ca href=\"https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFL09qhKi5I\"\u003eYouTube\u003c/a\u003e training course on Hugo\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003egood info on Git submodules for your Hugo Themes - \u003ca href=\"https://devconnected.com/how-to-add-and-update-git-submodules/#Configuring_submodules_for_your_repository\"\u003eHow To Add and Update Git Submodules\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Website Tools"},{"content":"This website is powered by Hugo.\nI\u0026rsquo;ve been using the Hugo theme LoveIt for a long time and it just won\u0026rsquo;t do anymore. I\u0026rsquo;ve found Paper and liked it. So, I\u0026rsquo;m using PaperMod now for this webiste. 😺\nI\u0026rsquo;ve been avoiding from spending time learning Hugo for so long. For this update, I\u0026rsquo;m going to learn while I build so I\u0026rsquo;m not hacking it blindly. I\u0026rsquo;m actually going to put some thoughts into designing and structuring the site. 😺\nPlanning What does the website need to have?\nSubscription - good to have Comments/discussion board - good to have Multilingual - must have Search - must have Archive and category - must have Image gallery - good to have Embed Instagram - maybe Payment - maybe It\u0026rsquo;s a sunny winter afternoon (-4 degrees in the morning), perfect, lets get on with this.\nBuild the site copy and backup the while website folder locally check hugo version, run \u0026ldquo;hugo version\u0026rdquo; in terminal I need to update hugo, run \u0026ldquo;brew upgrade hugo\u0026rdquo; in terminal go to folder 1 level above - parent folder run \u0026ldquo;hugo new site huatuostudio.github.io \u0026ndash;force \u0026ndash;format yaml\u0026rdquo; in terminal download PaperMod theme and extract the folder from zip file move the folder inside of the themems folder run \u0026ldquo;git init\u0026rdquo; in terminal Configurations Display the full language name One of the major decision point to use the theme is that it has multilingual support. Look Scanned Blog has a good post on how to modify the language selector.\nI wanted to keep things simple but I want to have the language display fullname i.e. \u0026ldquo;English\u0026rdquo; istead of \u0026ldquo;en\u0026rdquo;. To do that, just add the line below to the hugo.yaml file.\nparams: displayFullLangName: true Add a CNAME Add a favicon Add Apple touch icon TBC\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20250610newlook/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eThis website is powered by \u003ca href=\"https://gohugo.io\"\u003eHugo\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI\u0026rsquo;ve been using the \u003ca href=\"https://themes.gohugo.io\"\u003eHugo theme\u003c/a\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://github.com/dillonzq/LoveIt\"\u003eLoveIt\u003c/a\u003e for a long time and it just won\u0026rsquo;t do anymore. I\u0026rsquo;ve found \u003ca href=\"https://themes.gohugo.io/themes/hugo-paper/\"\u003ePaper\u003c/a\u003e and liked it. So, I\u0026rsquo;m using \u003ca href=\"https://themes.gohugo.io/themes/hugo-papermod/\"\u003ePaperMod\u003c/a\u003e now for this webiste. 😺\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI\u0026rsquo;ve been avoiding from spending time learning Hugo for so long. For this update, I\u0026rsquo;m going to learn while I build so I\u0026rsquo;m not hacking it blindly. I\u0026rsquo;m actually going to put some thoughts into designing and structuring the site. 😺\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Website rebuild"},{"content":"A summary of weekend trips taken and events that we have attended during 2025, for memory keeping.\nJanuary: Bangalee \u0026amp; Shoalhaven Heads 3 days w/ B\u0026amp;W March: National Multicultural Festival w/ B\u0026amp;W Haig Park Village Markets, Sunday 8:00am to 2:00pm. Dogs are welcome. Dog agility training park next to it. w/ B\u0026amp;W Corin Dam - National park, no dogs allowed. w/ B\u0026amp;W Experience Breathing Space, an evocative sound installation created for the Garden of Australian Dreams at the National Museum of Australia. w/ B Composed by renowned musician Genevieve Lacey, Breathing Space pays homage to the deep time and ecological abundance of our continent, the ancient, vibrant cultures of First Nations Australians and the waves of migration that have shaped the land. Wander through the Garden and discover sounds and melodies that change subtly, hour by hour, day by day, season by season. Whenever and wherever you are in the Garden, you will hear something new. May: RSPCA Million Paws Walk w/ B\u0026amp;GM Halls market - very nice outing. Dogs are welcome. w/ B\u0026amp;W Little Burley Market - a lovely place to walk with your dog and people. w/ B June: Malua Bay for the long weekend w/ B\u0026amp;W July: Sydney w/ JB Young’s cherry festival w/ T\u0026amp;B Dec: Sydney w/ T\u0026amp;B\u0026amp;Ming Dec: NYE fireworks w/ B\u0026amp;T ","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20251231tripsevents/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eA summary of weekend trips taken and events that we have attended during 2025, for memory keeping.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e January: Bangalee \u0026amp; Shoalhaven Heads 3 days w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e March: \u003ca href=\"https://multiculturalfestival.com.au\"\u003eNational Multicultural Festival\u003c/a\u003e w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Haig Park Village Markets, Sunday 8:00am to 2:00pm. Dogs are welcome. Dog agility training park next to it. w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"http://www.corin.com.au/\"\u003eCorin Dam\u003c/a\u003e - National park, no dogs allowed. w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Experience Breathing Space, an evocative sound installation created for the Garden of Australian Dreams at the National Museum of Australia. w/ B\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eComposed by renowned musician Genevieve Lacey, Breathing Space pays homage to the deep time and ecological abundance of our continent, the ancient, vibrant cultures of First Nations Australians and the waves of migration that have shaped the land.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWander through the Garden and discover sounds and melodies that change subtly, hour by hour, day by day, season by season. Whenever and wherever you are in the Garden, you will hear something new.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e May: \u003ca href=\"https://www.millionpawswalk.com.au\"\u003eRSPCA Million Paws Walk\u003c/a\u003e w/ B\u0026amp;GM\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://www.hartley.org.au/markets\"\u003eHalls market\u003c/a\u003e - very nice outing. Dogs are welcome. w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://thelittleburleymarket.com.au\"\u003eLittle Burley Market\u003c/a\u003e - a lovely place to walk with your dog and people. w/ B\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e June: Malua Bay for the long weekend w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e July: Sydney w/ JB\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://nationalcherryfestival.com.au\"\u003eYoung’s cherry festival\u003c/a\u003e w/ T\u0026amp;B\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Dec: Sydney w/ T\u0026amp;B\u0026amp;Ming\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Dec: NYE fireworks w/ B\u0026amp;T\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e","title":"2025 Trips and Events"},{"content":"My neighbours are in their 90s. Today, they have celebrated their 69th wedding anniversary in the garden with their friends, including another couple who were celebrating their 64 years of marriage! The party started at lunch time and they were still there at 5pm 😺\nSuch an amazing milestone! Long marriages - I wonder if it’s going to be a thing belongs to the past generation only. Most of my friends got married later in life and many marriages did not last long. There seem to be a different kind of expiration date on marriages these days. Not sure if that’s sad or just the way things are now.\nImagine spending every day with someone for 69 years! My neighbours are happy. They support each other in their fragile old age. They have great grandchildren now. Their sons and daughters take turns to visit with their grandchildren. The husband still cracks jokes in his 90s. Just today, he has said that his wife was changing to go out to night clubs when I asked why she has left the party early. I went inside of the house to talk to her. She laughed and said that she was tired and her hearing aid was failing so she couldn\u0026rsquo;t hear all the conversations.\nThey live independently. I offered to do grocery for them or to drive them to the shops sometimes. They always said that if they could, they would manage themselves. Luckily we live within walking distance to the shops. Keep moving and be happy must be the key to longevity.\nI hear more and more on AI and robots used to assist older people. It\u0026rsquo;s not just a trend; it\u0026rsquo;s inevitable. But would that really able to replace human interactions?\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20250422worthycelebration/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eMy neighbours are in their 90s. Today, they have celebrated their 69th wedding anniversary in the garden with their friends, including another couple who were celebrating their 64 years of marriage! The party started at lunch time and they were still there at 5pm 😺\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSuch an amazing milestone! Long marriages - I wonder if it’s going to be a thing belongs to the past generation only. Most of my friends got married later in life and many marriages did not last long. There seem to be a different kind of expiration date on marriages these days. Not sure if that’s sad or just the way things are now.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Worthy a Celebration"},{"content":"A summary of trips taken and events that we have attended during 2024, for memory keeping.\nVisit Goulburn - day trip w/ B\u0026amp;W Visit Bungendore - day trip w/ B\u0026amp;W Visit Lake George w/ B\u0026amp;W New Year’s Eve 2024 firework w/ B\u0026amp;BB Floriade w/ B Balloon Festival w/ B National Multicultural Festival w/ B Christmas Picnic at Uriarra East w/ B, W\u0026amp;BB Dec: NYE fireworks w/ B ","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20241231tripsevents/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eA summary of trips taken and events that we have attended during 2024, for memory keeping.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Visit Goulburn - day trip w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Visit Bungendore - day trip w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Visit Lake George w/ B\u0026amp;W\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e New Year’s Eve 2024 firework w/ B\u0026amp;BB\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://floriadeaustralia.com\"\u003eFloriade\u003c/a\u003e w/ B\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://canberraballoonspectacular.com\"\u003eBalloon Festival\u003c/a\u003e w/ B\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e \u003ca href=\"https://multiculturalfestival.com.au\"\u003eNational Multicultural Festival\u003c/a\u003e w/ B\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Christmas Picnic at \u003ca href=\"https://www.parks.act.gov.au/find-a-nature-park/murrumbidgee-river-corridor/uriarra-crossing\"\u003eUriarra East\u003c/a\u003e w/ B, W\u0026amp;BB\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Dec: NYE fireworks w/ B\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e","title":"2024 Trips and Events"},{"content":"If you are a Canberran and you enjoy gardening and growing vegetables, you should know about Rodney\u0026rsquo;s nursery and his café. Ever since my mother moved to Canberra in March this year, I have been wanting to take her here for a meal. It has been raining for the past few weeks, and today it finally cleared up. The three of us wander here for lunch.\nThe garden café was already quite busy at around 11:00 on a Sunday morning. Although it was a cold winter morning, the sun was out, and sitting by the outdoor electric heater, it didn\u0026rsquo;t feel cold at all.\nRodney\u0026rsquo;s nursery café is dog-friendly, and we even saw a guest bring in a little pig, which was so cute!\nWe had a sumptuous meal, chatted, read the newspaper, and enjoyed the joyful atmosphere around us. We happily took a stroll around the nursery. Although we didn\u0026rsquo;t buy any plants, we thoroughly enjoyed the various blooming camellias, which were beautiful and vibrant! It was truly a lovely morning!\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20240719rodneys/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eIf you are a Canberran and you enjoy gardening and growing vegetables, you should know about Rodney\u0026rsquo;s nursery and his café. Ever since my mother moved to Canberra in March this year, I have been wanting to take her here for a meal. It has been raining for the past few weeks, and today it finally cleared up. The three of us wander here for lunch.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe garden café was already quite busy at around 11:00 on a Sunday morning. Although it was a cold winter morning, the sun was out, and sitting by the outdoor electric heater, it didn\u0026rsquo;t feel cold at all.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Rodney's Nursery \u0026 Garden Center"},{"content":"A summary of trips taken and events that we have attended during 2023, for memory keeping.\n20230520 - Sydney Manly w/ B\u0026amp;GM 20230924-25 - Malua Bay w/ B\u0026amp;W https://www.travelnuity.com/dog-friendly-batemans-bay/ https://www.esc.nsw.gov.au/residents/pets/dog-friendly-beaches-and-areas ","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20231231tripsevents/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eA summary of trips taken and events that we have attended during 2023, for memory keeping.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e 20230520 - Sydney Manly w/ B\u0026amp;GM\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e 20230924-25 - Malua Bay w/ B\u0026amp;W\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://www.travelnuity.com/dog-friendly-batemans-bay/\"\u003ehttps://www.travelnuity.com/dog-friendly-batemans-bay/\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://www.esc.nsw.gov.au/residents/pets/dog-friendly-beaches-and-areas\"\u003ehttps://www.esc.nsw.gov.au/residents/pets/dog-friendly-beaches-and-areas\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e","title":"2023 Trips and Events"},{"content":"I\u0026rsquo;m using this space as my travel diary. Thank you for dropping by! 💕\nPlaces I have been so far\nView details on Google Maps\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/about/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eI\u0026rsquo;m using this space as my travel diary. Thank you for dropping by! 💕\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePlaces I have been so far\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Places I have been so far\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AL9nZEVMyJajI52amyotXRGt5oMznMI7uo-IvZKFFpVjVu6np7GXjOS-7vegcD3M9MutaTaOxxJT4P5h2m1-wcrxaXf6dxqXjSQWs0wg_zSGe8W24SZ61KNR91i7ZLNUOsKN_ump3ZG0IwEi_tYMwPjJ2wlY=w2166-h1194-no?authuser=0\" title=\"Places I have been so far\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1bm8-7T-QWLr1JjvlXFSu4EDWgyVr4Fr3\u0026amp;amp;hl=en\u0026amp;amp;w=640\u0026amp;amp;h=480\"\u003eView details on Google Maps\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Ansel Adams quote\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AL9nZEX_RC4xVZjO1eektTPAhj4YzRJ1kh02yea-q3nCWROJGJn-RnGBu2QbVqXZWs13ssmoRTb4YV72UXe91mALC-KCxMZH1GGpOhBvt75ndpmLJKOoeBvsTx-BOZt3cc_59ZrPMnB4FULghDiRqt90OME9=w782-h194-no?authuser=0\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","title":"About Hua Tuo Studio"},{"content":"Life is simpler with a checklist. This is what I use before my travels:\nTravel Documents Check all your travel documentations carefully and contact your travel agencies immediately if you have any queries or problems, It’s a good idea to have separate copies of all your documents (including passports) to carry and leave a copy of your itinerary with a relative or friend at home, All names on the booking match passport names of all travellers, Frequent flyer number has been advised and used in all bookings. Passports Check that your passport and visas are in order. Most countries require a minimum of 6 months’ validity on your passport (from your return date). If you are travelling on a non-Australian passport then you must carry correct re-entry documentation. Check that you have the correct visa and passport type for your destination Flight confirmation Although most airlines do not require you to reconfirm, still, check your flight schedule at least 24 hours prior to departure. Airlines have the right to change flight times and dates without notice. Download the airline\u0026rsquo;s app and turn on notification.\nMake sure that seating and meal requests for flights are confirmed.\nBaggage Allowances and Regulations Check your baggage allowance carefully as you may incur an additional charge for excess baggage. Check your airline baggage safety notices that detail items that cannont be carrid or only carried in checked baggage. Strict regulations are in place regarding the carrying of liquids, aerosols and gels in hand luggage on all international flights into and out of Australia. Check with your travel agent or airline for further information or refer to the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development (Australia) and local government websites on what can or cannot be brought into Australia. Duty-Free goods These vary depending on your country of destination. Visit Australian Customs website for the latest allowance information.\nTravel advice Sign up for the latest travel warnings at smartraveller.gov.au. The Department of Foreign Affairs and trade recommend you register your travel plans and contact online with Smart Traveller (Australia) before you travel.\nTravel insurance Carry the following information with you when travel:\nProvider:\nPolicy number:\nConsider:\nInternational Travel Insurance Purchase Protection Insurance Extended Warranty Insurance Guaranteed Pricing Scheme Transit Accident Insurance Emergency contacts Carry the following information with you when travel:\nThe Australian Government provides 24 hour consular assistance to Australian citizens overseas through its Consular Emergency Centre.\nWithin Australia: 1300 555 135 From overseas: +61 2 6261 3305 The Consular Emergency Centre provides assistance in situations such as:\nSerious illness or injury Arrest or detention Death of an Australian citizen Crises overseas Lost or stolen passports Welfare and other serious matters The Australian Government also provides consular services through its embassies, high commissions, and consulates around the world. For non-emergency consular inquiries, you can contact the relevant embassy or consulate during business hours, or submit an online inquiry.\nTravel agent information Carry the following information with you when travel:\nTravel agent store ID Travel agent consultant name and contact Finally,\nBefore leaving home Advise bank of international travel plans Get an overseas mobile SIM card for data, disable roaming Arrange mail to be collected Organise someone to water plants and collect the garbage bins Turned off unused electricity power plugged Lessons learnt Lessons learnt so far from my travels:\nAlways bring some local cash for airport and taxi because some places charges cash! Book tour on location will waste at least one day, prebook is the best Travel document backup: photocopy or scan them and tell someone where it is, so they can help if you lost yours. I keep an electronic copy in the cloud these days. Visa International Assistance: 1 866 795 9644. (Freecall in the USA) Outside the USA, contact the telephone operator to make a reverse charge call to 1 433 641 2004. Just in case. Or, knows how to contact own back from overseas. References 40 Travel Must Haves According To Flight Centre Experts ","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20181224travelchecklist/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eLife is simpler with a checklist. This is what I use before my travels:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch1 id=\"travel-documents\"\u003eTravel Documents\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCheck all your travel documentations carefully and contact your travel agencies immediately if you have any queries or problems,\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eIt’s a good idea to have separate copies of all your documents (including passports) to carry and leave a copy of your itinerary with a relative or friend at home,\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAll names on the booking match passport names of all travellers,\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFrequent flyer number has been advised and used in all bookings.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch1 id=\"passports\"\u003ePassports\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCheck that your passport and visas are in order. Most countries require a minimum of 6 months’ validity on your passport (from your return date). If you are travelling on a non-Australian passport then you must carry correct re-entry documentation.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCheck that you have the correct visa and passport type for your destination\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch1 id=\"flight-confirmation\"\u003eFlight confirmation\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlthough most airlines do not require you to reconfirm, still, check your flight schedule at least 24 hours prior to departure. Airlines have the right to change flight times and dates without notice. Download the airline\u0026rsquo;s app and turn on notification.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Travel Checklist"},{"content":" Soak in the Pamukkale thermal pools, Turkey\nExplore the fascinating Salar de Uyuni salt flats, Bolivia\nFind paradise on Palawan Island, the Philippines\nSee the spectacular Northern Lights\nDiscover the “temple that is a city” at Angkor Wat in Cambodia\nScale Japan’s highest peak, Mount Fuji\nTake a trip into the wilderness on an African safari\nAscend the arch of Sydney Harbour Bridge - read my story here\nTrek the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu\nView the Big Apple from the top of the Empire State Building\nFloat effortlessly on the Dead Sea\nTake a walk along the Great Wall of China\nDrive along the Great Ocean Road, Australia\nWatch the sun set behind the Eiffel Tower\nHike the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, New Zealand\nRide a gondola through the canals of Venice\nSail around the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador\nTraverse the Grand Canyon\nStroll through the lanes of Hoi An, Vietnam\nBe mesmerised by the Taj Mahal, India\nTake a dip in the Blue Lagoon, Iceland\nThrow a coin in the Trevi Fountain, Rome\nHike the W trek in Patagonia, Chile\nScour the souks of Marrakech\nWatch Australian Open in person\nBe on The Ghan\nWimbledon\nGo to Prague\nExplore Southeastern Europe: An 11-Day Tour Through Bulgaria, Serbia \u0026amp; Romania\nBeerburrun Forest Reserve\nOutback sprit Kimberley\nAitutaki Island, Cook Islands\nRecognized as the world’s most beautiful lagoon, Aitutaki in the Cook Islands will exceed your expectations. Stunning shades of aquamarine in the calm, tranquil waters make this the place to swim with the fishes and other marine life. It’s also a great spot for watersports and glass bottom boat cruises. As the only resort facing directly onto the gorgeous lagoon, Aitutaki Lagoon Resort \u0026amp; Spa has made the most of its prime location with eight overwater bungalows. Decorated with authentic South Pacific textiles and artworks, the bungalows represent boutique luxury in an unforgettable location. Notes:\nTravel inspiration Travel Italy 🇮🇹 Solo traveler ","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20180629travelbucketlist/","summary":"\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Soak in the Pamukkale thermal pools, Turkey\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Explore the fascinating Salar de Uyuni salt flats, Bolivia\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Find paradise on Palawan Island, the Philippines\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e See the spectacular Northern Lights\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Discover the “temple that is a city” at Angkor Wat in Cambodia\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Scale Japan’s highest peak, Mount Fuji\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Take a trip into the wilderness on an African safari\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cinput checked=\"\" disabled=\"\" type=\"checkbox\"\u003e Ascend the arch of Sydney Harbour Bridge - \u003ca href=\"https://www.huatuostudio.com/20130406harbourbridge/\"\u003eread my story here\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Travel Bucket List"},{"content":"I\u0026rsquo;m joining a 10 days La Petite France trip with Albatross Tours. So excited!!! 😻😻😻\nTour Overview Sleep in a picturesque château in the Loire Valley, walk amongst the flowers of Monet’s Gardens and Château Villandry and dine on exquisite seafood in the ‘pirate town’ of St Malo. Stand on the Normandy beaches, visit magnificent Mont-Saint-Michel and sip Benedictine in a palace! C’est magnifique…\nHighlights Stay 3 nights on the verdant Normandy Coast in the classic seaside resort of Cabourg\nWander through Monet’s glorious gardens in Giverny\nExplore the pretty harbourside town of Honfleur\nSip Benedictine in Fécamp where it was invented\nStay 2 nights in the ‘pirate town’ of St Malo\nExplore the magnificent 11th century Mont-Saint-Michel (I always wanted to visit!!)\nEnjoy time relaxing in the ‘oyster village’ of Cancale\nVisit the famous city of Tours and explore the old town\nEnjoy a relaxing evening in the pretty village of Langeais\nEnjoy the gardens and interior of the elegant Château Chenonceau\nVisit Da Vinci’s residence – Château du Clos Lucé in historical Amboise\nVisit the Royal Abbey of Fontevraud, the largest in Western Europe\nVisit the classic 16th and 18th century gardens of Château Villandry\nEnjoy a farewell dinner in your Château\nTour Itinerary Day 1: Monet’s Gardens, Rouen and Cabourg Your tour commences this morning in Paris. After meeting your Tour Manager, we board our coach and follow the River Seine north-west to Giverny for our first stop, a visit to the house and gardens of the impressionist artist Claude Monet. World famous, these colourful gardens with lily ponds and shaded walkways are instantly recognisable as the inspiration for so many of his classic artworks.\nLunchtime will be spent in the medieval city of Rouen, where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in 1431. The old town still boasts wonderful half-timbered buildings and the Notre Dame Cathedral. Later we will continue to the Normandy Coast where we will stay the next three nights in the traditional resort town of Cabourg. Created as a fashionable French seaside resort in the 1880’s Cabourg still offers that ‘olde worlde’ experience of café lined, seaside promenades and smart belle époque villas and hotels. Your welcome drink and dinner tonight is a perfect way to meet, and get to know, your Tour Manager and fellow travellers.\nDay 2: WWII Normandy landing beaches We will spend a fascinating morning driving through the lush Normandy countryside, dotted with small, pretty villages, ancient farms and apple orchards, to explore the famous WWII Normandy landing beaches. At Arromanches-les-Bains we will visit the fascinating Landing Beaches Museum. From here, looking out over the English Channel you will clearly see the remains of Mulberry ‘B’ Harbour, often referred to as the ‘key to Normandy’. This afternoon we stop in the historic town of Bayeux, which sits on the River Aure, and enjoy a visit to see the magnificent Bayeux Tapestry, depicting William the Conqueror’s invasion of Britain in 1066.\nDay 3: Cabourg,Honfleur and Palais Benedictine After time at leisure to explore Cabourg, we head east to explore the pretty harbour town of Honfleur which is located on the estuary where the River Seine meets the English Channel. Lined with 16th, 17th and 18th century houses the old harbour is filled with colourful fishing boats. It is no wonder it was one of the classic ‘painting by numbers’ settings. Make sure you wander around the cobbled stone streets to find the perfect bistro for lunch. In the afternoon, we will visit the Palais Benedictine in Fécamp. Five hundred years ago, a Benedictine alchemist discovered a secret elixir that we now know as Benedictine liqueur. Built by Alexandre le Grand who made a fortune with this brew, the opulent interior of the imposing gothic/renaissance style palace is rich in art, sculptures and a wonderful old library. Following a guided tour, we will enjoy a tasting of this ancient elixir.\nDay 4: Mont-Saint-Michel and Cancale Crossing to Eastern Normandy, we visit the amazing structure of le Mont-Saint-Michel. The 11th century Romanesque abbey is perched atop a rocky outcrop linked to mainland France by a kilometre long, narrow causeway. The giant monastery dominates the tiny village below, and the entire complex has been listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage site.\nEntering Brittany we make an afternoon stop in the ‘oyster village’ of Cancale. The region’s giant oysters have been famous since pre-Roman times, and from the old fishing port you will see the seven square kilometres of oyster beds stretching out to sea. Take time to stop in one of the pretty fishing house restaurants and try a few freshly shucked oysters, and maybe a glass of wine. We will stay the next two nights on the Emerald Coast, in the ‘pirate town’ of St Malo.\nDay 5: Dinan and ‘My Time’ in St Malo This morning we will visit the attractive and beautifully preserved village of Dinan. The whole upper town is filled with historic, half-timbered houses which date back up to 600 years. Down near the old port you find stone houses and bridges, and cobbled stone streets lined with craft and artisan shops. The town still has kilometres of ancient ramparts and a massive viaduct built by Gustav Eiffel. Next we enjoy lunchtime in the classic seaside resort of Dinard, with its sea front that is lined with 19th century villas and townhouses. Time to shop and enjoy lunch in the old town centre. Later we catch the ferry across to the old port of St Malo. Arriving by boat we can get the very best view of this fully walled and fortified town. Originally an island stronghold, the town grew on the wealth bought in between the 16th and 18th centuries by the ‘authorised’ pirates and freebooters. The rest of your day is at leisure to explore the cobbled streets, alleys filled with shops and cafés. Perhaps enjoy the 2 km walk along the ramparts that completely encircle the old town.\nDay 6: Angers Château and Saumur Travelling south we make our way to the verdant Loire Valley where, during the 15th and 16th centuries, the Kings of France and their courtiers created their grand holiday palaces. First stop is in the city of Angers with its massive 13th century granite château. In the afternoon we will make a stop in Saumur, famous for its castle and elite riding school. Later we reach our wonderful Château hotel where we spend the next four wonderful nights. This evening we enjoy dinner in our château.\nDay 7: Tours and ‘My Time’ at your Château After a leisurely start, we make our way to the city of Tours. As you would expect of a regional capital there is much to see, from the Cathedral Saint-Gatien and the adjacent cloisters of La Psalette, to the shopping, the vieille ville (old town) and Place Plumereau filled with al fresco cafés and bars. A great place to relax over lunchtime. Late afternoon, after time at leisure back at our château to relax \u0026amp; freshen up, we enjoy an evening in nearby Langeais. The enormous château which dominates the beautiful village can still be visited, and this evening you will have the chance to discover your own intimate bistro for dinner.\nDay 8: Château Chenonceau and Château du Clos Lucé This morning we enjoy a visit to the magnificent Château Chenonceau, spanning the River Cher on a series of graceful arches. Possibly one of the most photographed of the Loire châteaux this was the former home of Diane de Poitiers and Catherine de Medici. Explore the stunning gardens and interior of the château. Later we stop to explore the charming riverside town of Amboise, on the banks of the River Loire, with its Royal Palace, where Leonardo da Vinci once lived as a guest of King Francois I. We have included a visit to da Vinci’s residence – Château du Clos Lucé. Here in the underground rooms you will see on display, forty machines designed by this amazing inventor. After freshening up back at our château your evening will be free in the old town of Tours around Place Plumereau, to discover your own provincial bistro for dinner.\nDay 9: Fontevraud, Chinon and Château Villandry Our first stop of the day will be to visit the Royal Abbey of Fontevraud. Built nearly 1000 years ago, this is the largest Abbey in Western Europe. The Romanesque abbey church with its royal tombs and the renaissance cloister, have all been beautifully restored and the complex is now a museum and cultural centre. Lunchtime will be spent exploring Chinon, with its massive castle looming over the narrow cobbled streets of this riverside town. Time permitting, in the afternoon we will detour from our route to pass through Ussé to make a photo stop at the 16th century château overlooking the Loire and Indre River Valley. Accredited as the castle in Charles Perrault’s story ‘Sleeping Beauty’ it is also sometimes called the ‘Castle of Dreams’. We then visit the gardens of Château Villandry which got its inspiration from the classic gardens of the 16th and 18th century. Different levels of the gardens include ponds, topiary, ornamental hedges and an extraordinary kitchen garden covering 12,500 square metres. Your farewell dinner tonight is included at your château.\nDay 10: To Paris Going home and back to work!\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20180513lapetitefrance/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eI\u0026rsquo;m joining a 10 days La Petite France trip with \u003ca href=\"https://www.albatrosstours.com.au/la-petite-france\"\u003eAlbatross Tours\u003c/a\u003e. So excited!!! 😻😻😻\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"tour-overview\"\u003eTour Overview\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSleep in a picturesque château in the Loire Valley, walk amongst the flowers of Monet’s Gardens and Château Villandry and dine on exquisite seafood in the ‘pirate town’ of St Malo. Stand on the Normandy beaches, visit magnificent Mont-Saint-Michel and sip Benedictine in a palace! C’est magnifique…\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Tour Map\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AL9nZEXDf69xLEqPzHIQDidCec6pgZnLPzhvKbrcMGGDZoiD4WlKWYehJJSnwLDmn7AFVoWdNDwzd8ClgeMH00gb1W0vvcsXovemf_ocfI4GuiWwuceChF7OaDrgRSKFkmXbLYF8mo-_99KSsyQpQxXtB3AI=w650-h800-no?authuser=0\" title=\"Tour Map\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"highlights\"\u003eHighlights\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStay 3 nights on the verdant Normandy Coast in the classic seaside resort of Cabourg\u003c/p\u003e","title":"La Petite France"},{"content":"","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20180309canberra/","summary":"","title":"Canberra"},{"content":"","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20180427eucumbene/","summary":"","title":"Road Trip Eucumbene"},{"content":"\nDay 1: Arrive in the enthralling city of Budapest, where your premium river ship awaits on the Danube River. Enjoy a Captain’s Welcome Reception and meet your fellow travellers and Cruise Director before a relaxing twilight cruise following dinner.\nDay 2: Awake to views of one of the Danube’s most enchanting cities this morning. Disembark and learn the vibrant history of Budapest as your local guide takes you to a host of impressive sights such as Matthias Church, the Fisherman’s Bastion, Heroes’ Square and Buda Castle. Back on board this evening, enjoy a delightful Gala Dinner while you cruise.\nDay 3: Embrace the elegance of Vienna as you drive around the Ringstrasse this morning, taking in some of the city’s most famous buildings – the Vienna State Opera House, the Museum of Fine Arts and more. On arrival in the city centre, a walking tour will provide an insider’s view of sights such as St Stephen’s Cathedral, the Graben, Hofburg Palace and the Albertina.\nDay 4: With the day at leisure, you may like to further explore the Hofburg area – home to the Imperial Treasury and the Spanish Riding School – or wander along Karntnerstrasse, the city’s famous shopping strip.\nDay 5: Cruise to the town of Durnstein and enjoy a stroll past rustic town houses and taverns. Along the way, gaze up to the hilltop ruins of the castle where King Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned. Later, dock in Melk and tour through Melk Abbey. An active Benedictine monastery since 1089, it sits atop a rocky outcrop overlooking the Danube River.\nDay 6: This morning after breakfast, you will cruise to beautiful Passau. Enjoy a traditional Bavarian experience on board your river ship. Sample delicious local beer and snacks, accompanied by traditional folk music, song and dance.\nDay 7: Continue along the Danube River to the enchanting town of Regensburg, located in the southern region of the Bavarian Forest. Here, a guided tour along its cobblestone lanes tells of the medieval town’s journey through the ages. Afterwards, wander the historic streets at your own pace.\nDay 8: Arrive in Nuremberg, the site of Hitler’s now infamous rallies, which played a pivotal role for the Nazis during World War II. Take a city tour this afternoon, which includes sights such as the Zeppelin Field and Palace of Justice.\nDay 9: One of the few German cities that wasn’t destroyed during World War II, World Heritage-listed Bamberg beckons your attention this morning. You’ll gain great insight during a locally guided tour of the historic city centre.\nDay 10: Verdant hills and rich vineyards sit on the edge of Würzburg, while the Main River is a prominent feature of this stunning city. The architectural beauty that further defines Würzburg is on show today as you admire its magnificent baroque palace, the Würzburg Residence. Here, a walk through Würzburg Court Garden is a delight, with its terraced gardens and serene water basin.\nDay 11: Arrive at the beautifully evocative town of Miltenberg. After morning tea return to your ship and enjoy time at leisure. As the sun sets, watch the glittering lights of medieval towns slip past as you sit down to dinner and cruise through the night. Discover true German hospitality as you are welcomed into the homes of friendly Miltenberg locals for coffee and cake.\nDay 12: In Rudesheim, the Winzerexpress mini-train will take you through town to Siegfried’s Mechanical Musical Instrument Museum. As you continue cruising, you will encounter a true holiday highlight – the spectacular Rhine Gorge. Watch in awe as you drift past steep vine-covered slopes dotted with ancient castles and strongholds. Enjoy dinner on board tonight, as your journey continues late into the evening.\nDay 13: Disembark your ship in Cologne and drive to the town of Bruhl. Return to Cologne and enjoy some time at leisure. Pay a visit to Augustusburg Castle and Falkenlust hunting lodge, the lavish residences of archbishop-elector Clemens August. On a tour of the castle, learn stories of its infamous former resident and enjoy a walk through its gardens between the lodge and the castle.\nDay 14: Studded with low bridges and historic houses, Amsterdam’s network of canals lends the city its nickname, ‘Venice of the North’. Dock in the city’s heart and board a glass-top boat to discover the city’s waterside facades, watching the bicycle-loving locals ride along with carefree abandon as you drift by. Back on land, enjoy some free time to explore the city, before a Captain’s Farewell Dinner on board your river ship.\nDay 15: After breakfast, disembark your river ship and transfer to the airport for your onward flight.\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20170727eurorivercruise/","summary":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Map for the cruise\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/O-nl_YNgEE8fpk4jnYSGJSmWiegfFEF9XEIokO_FzUP420RQIDpfnkoytAcqp8ySmDe-GrlnBPgzQ4b3D9Ssmzu-CkEVy_4CYw_ZZPFX5mV327-liyofLX9dVEwYfpEtJNEWN1fCT2KLulbSyZLibM019mmaDUCp9dMNd-kx8UlYj4eXxAeHUaUva3s4lM0Lq1mIT0Bjue4fsZr6vyacyhLUlq9IkovpG7051HiHu1MWGO5Qpt_NzN0IaFyuGIwWFZG_2-oFr0kfZK50kYuDyHb7piViCtcXck97I9J6QACn-tpPtzo-l37gi19frhWf7-NwTgp1hh3uW4Vtbgeb2ngt455iI22weN5q467LagdV5l9XAM7akGozCDRDTtEBulAbfYAwSu9jxYE2skTIG8WFRsImbkf9pEyDyJZjSh98rvK2vKmIgvp2EMFp5k7-Cl6957EA6TwT7TOVhRvHQgWY7tMcsGI8FSVK6SJ3UopDYOQCC9sOlUcMrjq4zxJI6lvfJv5v4v3IAej6tRNaTZv_ciSp5iAbPJfpHtPGUNOwdqHJ44fqtfEybCSY6oVJ5XLzcTPSubAunMDRbSLnTKAxlf01A9woVTHZuUJ-IF71OuVkl-OmCEYxag_FUqbiNEKTKWlV5wOYiDES_eyfPRyRcI12IOsb=w1105-h609-no\" title=\"Map for the cruise\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Cruise itineray\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/YzmCf6AOPUgitGo47i9C6ijfF_DaxpDcv_Es_noE4wf_z--GEMSFcdlaD_GFyXopJZMtAQWAMlwplua2rxF6Z56jVMQ-tk_uO2-1Bp0ZZqWvnB5S_gkuDzRjsMB2kjK1tlhvr8MBHfvnwlSslzwhYZ4WqMqL39Q3ixqDDHSneZbEE3d8wuDM2K-1ms8eVVXUkQj4B1u7_Armv9X-pcPfk2xlXh3lFvrTvEf9rlLfTtOmyaRa8Q1Nza7Nc16iqIwRumYjPzh3-SZyU2sM91QptGJIk6pUeLPPXJaEBQ_TxcA_t-Ucrf8xiN1JQGar0yohEPaRp2NJDZKZtAJDX1VPgIv_hBv3FxHgrvkxJFtxYe7UBSTXdIMrxHkeCWy-6r3CY3qCEMoiH-vKyuk7vOfbzMC01ScfuGO5wZso2jd7BPESj3oamJ4RcSd-NyhBLMxN_vN1UD0MP6emMRHttZZF4oP88Phlaq_m39EWV0uq7pYie75TUPkWfxO43X0VPlJm6gHKFg8K6F3tuaZlz4dQtHc816UNzS3Ru8dky8N_WSFchR38178zMUiPZjby-gECsoFOFCDzZKPDrMh-f40EMrEZNikH1YbrBBkdhVEH8SgUpc6iwXpEfEutdSKbEzF_GjVl60YvVVf8qDnCRulu8OtRN-hwpBvY=w294-h720-no\" title=\"Cruise itineray\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDay 1\u003c/strong\u003e: Arrive in the enthralling city of Budapest, where your premium river ship awaits on the Danube River. Enjoy a Captain’s Welcome Reception and meet your fellow travellers and Cruise Director before a relaxing twilight cruise following dinner.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDay 2\u003c/strong\u003e: Awake to views of one of the Danube’s most enchanting cities this morning. Disembark and learn the vibrant history of Budapest as your local guide takes you to a host of impressive sights such as Matthias Church, the Fisherman’s Bastion, Heroes’ Square and Buda Castle. Back on board this evening, enjoy a delightful Gala Dinner while you cruise.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDay 3\u003c/strong\u003e: Embrace the elegance of Vienna as you drive around the Ringstrasse this morning, taking in some of the city’s most famous buildings – the Vienna State Opera House, the Museum of Fine Arts and more. On arrival in the city centre, a walking tour will provide an insider’s view of sights such as St Stephen’s Cathedral, the Graben, Hofburg Palace and the Albertina.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDay 4\u003c/strong\u003e: With the day at leisure, you may like to further explore the Hofburg area – home to the Imperial Treasury and the Spanish Riding School – or wander along Karntnerstrasse, the city’s famous shopping strip.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"European Gems Cruise with Travelmarvel"},{"content":"– 1 – When we were in the fifth and sixth grades, Mr Cheng\u0026rsquo;s geography classes were captivating and lively. He often veered off-topic, sharing interesting tidbits that kept us engaged. However, this meant the teaching plan frequently fell behind. The curriculum intended for the first semester of fifth grade had to be pushed to the second semester, continuing the cycle. By the second semester of sixth grade, there was no more room for postponements. What was the solution? Sunday make-up classes!\nI often struggled to wake up early in the morning, and Sunday make-up classes made it even harder, leading to frequent tardiness. Fortunately, Mr Cheng was lenient about it. However, several times, just as I reached the classroom door, he would call my name, \u0026ldquo;What is the main product of the Liaodong Peninsula?\u0026rdquo; I was still at the door, stammering out \u0026ldquo;Peanuts!\u0026rdquo; after a long pause, which always brought a wave of laughter from the class. \u0026ldquo;Good, sit down, one point.\u0026rdquo; Back then, we used a five-point grading system, and that’s how I ended up with three \u0026ldquo;one points\u0026rdquo; in a row. As the final exam approached, I realized these three \u0026ldquo;one points\u0026rdquo; were serious. I focused diligently on reviewing geography and managed to score \u0026ldquo;five points\u0026rdquo; on the exam. However, because of those three \u0026ldquo;one points,\u0026rdquo; Mr Cheng gave me a \u0026ldquo;three points\u0026rdquo; on the report card, not quite in line with the five-point system. But I didn\u0026rsquo;t mind. Once, in the library corridor, I overheard Mr Cheng telling another teacher, \u0026ldquo;Cao Zhong is a really smart kid.\u0026rdquo; That meant the world to me.\nMr Cheng frequently assigned extracurricular tasks like drawing maps. We drew maps of each province using the grid method by hand on blank paper. He also introduced us to a fun game, \u0026ldquo;taking the train,\u0026rdquo; where we\u0026rsquo;d plan routes from Nanjing to Beijing, identifying major cities and even making mid-journey transfers. These exercises ingrained the maps of China and the world in my mind. I became very familiar with China\u0026rsquo;s transportation lines.\nDecades later, when a neighbor was planning a business trip, I advised her on the best route: take the train from Nanjing to a specific location, switch to a boat, and then transfer to a long-distance bus. She asked curiously, \u0026ldquo;Have you traveled this route?\u0026rdquo; I replied, \u0026ldquo;I learned about it in elementary school from my geography teacher.\u0026rdquo; Mr Cheng\u0026rsquo;s influence instilled in me a habit of looking at maps. I consult maps when needed and enjoy looking at them in my free time. Studying maps feels like a mental journey to me. Mr Cheng brought geography to life, and I am forever grateful to him and remember him always.\n– 2 – Before the summer vacation of the fifth grade, a few boys in our class secretly went to bathe by Xuanwu Lake at Taiping Gate. The first time, Mr Cheng didn\u0026rsquo;t find out. The second time, a few classmates went again (I didn\u0026rsquo;t go that time), and somehow, Mr Cheng found out. Despite his age, Mr Cheng ran all the way to Taiping Gate to bring them back. After explaining the reasons, he didn\u0026rsquo;t criticize them in front of the class. It was his sincerity that deeply moved the students. At that time, there were no bicycles, and TeacMrher Cheng was quite old, yet he made the effort. From that point until graduation, no student ever bathed at Xuanwu Lake at Taiping Gate again. This is why I previously mentioned Mr Cheng as a kind teacher.\nOn a side note, several years later, a boy in our class, mistreated by his parents, committed suicide by ingesting potassium cyanide at the same spot by Xuanwu Lake at Taiping Gate.\nThe days in primary school were the happiest times of my life. Consequently, I often reminisce about my life in primary school. Mr Cheng, our homeroom teacher for fifth and sixth grades, is someone I frequently remember. He was a kind teacher and a compassionate elder. During my time in Siyang, we often met since I was a teacher there. After Mr Cheng returned to Nanjing, we lost contact. In the blink of an eye, several decades have passed.\n–§–\nToday, I received an article from Cao Zhong, one of Grandpa’s students. It filled with fond memories (see above 1) about Grandpa. Along with recollections of Grandpa from Liu Hong, a classmate from Nanshi Affiliated Primary School (see above 2). Grandpa never taught me at school; naturally, the Grandpa I knew at home was a completely different person. Reading these little stories brought a smile to my face. Being a teacher is truly wonderful; they remain forever in their students\u0026rsquo; memories. 👏\n–§–\nThis post was originally written in Chinese.\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20160410teacher/","summary":"\u003ch2 id=\"-1-\"\u003e– 1 –\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen we were in the fifth and sixth grades, Mr Cheng\u0026rsquo;s geography classes were captivating and lively. He often veered off-topic, sharing interesting tidbits that kept us engaged. However, this meant the teaching plan frequently fell behind. The curriculum intended for the first semester of fifth grade had to be pushed to the second semester, continuing the cycle. By the second semester of sixth grade, there was no more room for postponements. What was the solution? Sunday make-up classes!\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Memory of Mr Cheng"},{"content":"24-25, March 2016, Easter. Another year and another Easter, time goes so fast. Three of us has decided to take a road trip to the Western Australia\u0026rsquo;s Southern Forest Region. We all knew the region pretty well so the trip was roughly planned and the accommodation was booked a few days before the trip.\nThe Itinerary Day 1 Leave Perth\nRest at Bunbury (1.5hrs), change driver\nTake the National Route 1 from Bunbury to Walpole, rest at Bridgetown and Manjimup\nArrive at Nornalop accommodation (3+hrs), rest\nArrive at Valley of the Giants\nVisit the Tree Top Walk\nDinner at Walpole (10min drive from Nornalop)\nDay 2 Leave Nornalop\nVisit Elephant Rock and Greens Pool (William Bay National Park)\nLunch at Denmark\nDrive back to Perth (Albany Highway is the closest and simplest way to get back to Perth - just keep driving for 3-4 hours and you are there. Take the left turn to Mt. Barker Road outside of Denmark, to cut through to Albany Highway, instead of driving from Denmark to Albany. It\u0026rsquo;s a nice drive through the State Forest too.)\nRandom, 😂 I was in Perth City when I found this:\nI thought that it was a fantastic discovery before starting a road trip! 😃 In case that you want to find it yourself, it\u0026rsquo;s near the corner of the St. Georges Terrace and Barrack Street in Perth City, opposite of the Stirling Gardens.\nDay 1 Walpole \u0026amp; Nornalop We planned to leave Perth at 8am. We actually left Perth around 9.30am due to the last minute search of a GPS. I decided not to get upset about it. 😃\nOur first resting stop: Bunbury. It\u0026rsquo;s been years since I last visited Bunbury. We drove straight to the Marlston Hill Lookout Tower. It was a bit windy at the top of the tower but the view was stunning. It\u0026rsquo;s a great resting point.\nThe sandy beach of Bunbury. I took this photo while dad ran onto the beach to chase his hat. :) I caught a photo of him with his arms in the air (trying to hold onto his hat) and his hat floating in the air too (flying away). I laughed every time when I saw that photo.\nThe second part of the drive was not boring. There were plenty stopping/resting points at one of the little towns along the route. We kept eating and chatting. The view was gorgeous whence we entered the Southern Forest Region of WA. Giant tress covers both side of the road. It was a fantastic drive. I was also pulled over 3 times by the cops checking for alcohol, 3 times!\nWe stayed at Nornalup Riverside Chalets. It was difficult to book for an overnight accommodation during Easter. Marge was nice enough to take us in. The Chalets are located on the Riverside Drive by the side of the Frankland River. The Chalets were reasonably priced and they have everything you need for a night\u0026rsquo;s stay. You can cook your own dinner or drive to Walpole for a meal. We went to the Top Deck Cafe in Walpole. We were happy with the food, the service was good too.\nI discovered some mushroom on the road side. They pushed through tar and gravel road surface and stood like little soldiers. I was so proud of them. Isn\u0026rsquo;t life amazing?\nValley of the Giants The Tree Top Walk 600-metre walk has a gentle gradient, suitable for children and all ages, including wheelchairs and strollers. A walk trail links the Tree Top Walk to the Ancient Empire boardwalk where you can get up close and personal to the 400-year-old giants of the forest.\nThis is the first time I come to the Tree Top Walk in Western Australia.\nThe Tree Top Walk is located at the Valley of the Giants. Don\u0026rsquo;t you just love the name! Whenever I saw the name, I always had the image of the Ent from the Lord of the Rings in my mind.\nThe Valley of the Giants\u0026rsquo; website contain good information about the place and everything else related to it. Head over there if you would like to plan for a trip too.\nI enjoyed my walk at the top. Although, I don\u0026rsquo;t think one should be on this walk if one is not comfortable with heights. The walking path wave slightly when a few people walk on it with unsynchronised steps. It was pretty fun for me! It sounded like the waves in the ocean when the wind blew pass - the trees started dancing and I could hear them whispering in our ears! I wonder what stories they would tell after standing there for 100s of years.\nThe Ancient Empire boardwalk is a 20 minute walk under the Tree Top Walk. It was certainly a different view from the bottom up! I could really appreciated the height of the Giant Tingle Trees (Eucalypts) from the ground - like the giant protectors of the forest. The air was crisp and sun shone through the branches. I\u0026rsquo;ve read that it\u0026rsquo;s a quite busy touristy attraction but we must have missed ALL the tourist groups! We gladly enjoyed the quietness and serenity of being one with the forest - it was such a magical feeling! I\u0026rsquo;ve learned so much from the stories left along the walkways describing the trees, the eco-system and the surrounding area. I was sure that I could easily spent an hour there, wandering around and marvel the lives in the forest. I strongly suggest everyone to take a trip there when in the area!\nDay 2 Denmark After a good night sleep, I woke up to cool crisp air. I put on a jacket, picked up a cup of coffee and walked out of our chalet. It was a bit cloudy and the air was the mix of the tree, the flowers and the grass. I wished that I could put them into jars for late (or sell them to China and make millions! 😃 ). The front lawn felt like a green carpet, slightly wet. The kookaburras and some other birds were already singing and playing amongst the trees. I walked straight down to the river side. The water flows south in a steady pace and on the other side, it was a national park. Giant trees stood there along the banks. The more I looked at them, the more mysterious they seemed. I was fully expecting some kind of monster jumping out of the woods - thank goodness that there was a river protecting me. LOL! What would the monster look like? I hoped that it could not fly! 😃 I dragged my rampaging imagination back and sat down on a small jetty, sipping hot coffee, relaxing and just enjoying this peaceful morning all by myself\u0026hellip; until the others got up. They joined me for a walk into the woods. The topic for discussion was how long would each of us live in the woods like this. I was pretty sure that I could easily stay there for a month. 😃\nAfter breakfast, we took off to Denmark and saw the Elephant Rock with the Green Pool. I have been there before and Denmark is truly a beautiful spot in south WA.\n\u0026quot;\nWe started a long drive (\u0026gt;4hrs) back to Perth after a lovely lunch in Denmark. There is a shortcut to Albany Highway from Denmark: drive out of Denmark and take a left onto Mt. Barker Road.\nWe had a great time on this road trip. We are truly blessed to be able to call this beautiful land home.\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20160323roadtripwa/","summary":"\u003cp\u003e24-25, March 2016, Easter. Another year and another Easter, time goes so fast. Three of us has decided to take a road trip to the Western Australia\u0026rsquo;s \u003ca href=\"http://www.southernforests.com.au\"\u003eSouthern Forest Region\u003c/a\u003e. We all knew the region pretty well so the trip was roughly planned and the accommodation was booked a few days before the trip.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"the-itinerary\"\u003eThe Itinerary\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Itinerary Map\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/hH--bSMRKVwW5-xaF4uxMmZ5hfX7ngG2TpsrUnwLOvSl7r59g0Yx3RZ6qtbR4-tbDgcrYhltWxAyYzClargXCaLjZ9yG_bs6E6rhqOnl0wbIKjgpI-E2oUimpiBrijUm3WRQxSDNuzldCqSoCrUQWQ4N9Nk-Wtk09XH8wt5TwZ7xZ9E5fx4peaK5q59fo8KNzVo5bf-aidpF9Ur6x_h--ofZ_5bQFhXBIlVNtKb3BqnKWITKY7IoorYHOqqmTeBqOuNry4VlI93MCwQlntVisa5EVNeVTeJCLmYk06iC3LxTiMU2PpNYX66N-tHwwt0b9uAfwPwMp_XIjOSK00ZQZ_Gt1mxXrQHc7-Q3hgxNFXfBY2yiR6P4eV33NXFM6hyT_uUM8PZXQXN5wrVm8P4jfWsP6LfWhNFjBASMjRnD_07q8xce-19zP0OKvNHPGk9xsoaseUVISmcB4QYAdmBN29S3tQ24_URX_JAIGt0S4ynkJw0yHp98QkZlLzBn6fSXSON1Xfhd03PfvUwQDmaHkcrZj7RE5xrV1IqUwN-DlesLtG285C-SLM-qWzfd2lEDeGw_8sqxdbjJtU3KkgcWSx_c5_fEtGN_S2E4ETBMVRgp1_LI=w539-h689-no\" title=\"Itinerary Map\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"day-1\"\u003eDay 1\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLeave \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perth\"\u003ePerth\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRest at \u003ca href=\"http://www.bunbury.wa.gov.au/\"\u003eBunbury\u003c/a\u003e (1.5hrs), change driver\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTake the National Route 1 from \u003ca href=\"http://www.bunbury.wa.gov.au/\"\u003eBunbury\u003c/a\u003e to \u003ca href=\"http://www.walpole.com.au/\"\u003eWalpole\u003c/a\u003e, rest at \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridgetown,_Western_Australia\"\u003eBridgetown\u003c/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manjimup,_Western_Australia\"\u003eManjimup\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Road Trip WA"},{"content":"Sleepless In Hong Kong Chinese say that 4 is not a lucky number, clearly 04/04 is worse and it was totally true - I\u0026rsquo;ve had a terrible run today! 😢\nThe flight from Sydney to Hong Kong was delayed and the connecting flight from Hong Kong to Taipei left without me. :( Apparently, it was also the last flight for the day to fly over the channel. I was stranded in Hong Kong for the night with just my passport and a wallet in my bag. Note to self, I should always put an extra pair of undies in my carry on!\nThis is part of the fun of traveling - dealing with problems on the go, regardless how well I planned for weeks before the trip. :) I actually have never been left stranded with no luggage before. Sigh, there is always a first hey. I started to wonder what else could go wrong now.\nAfter some negotiation, the airline put me in the Hong Kong SkyCity Marriott Hotel. I\u0026rsquo;d gave it 5 stars for the facility and the service! It was 12am when I checked in and I have to get up in 5 hours. I planned to watch some movies but after a hot shower, I pretty much passed out. 😃\n5 hours went so quickly and before I knew, I was on my way back to the airport - I won\u0026rsquo;t want to miss my plane again, do I?! I have not been in Hong Kong for at least 5 years and I still don\u0026rsquo;t like the humidity. I had lots good memories here, mainly the great food! 😃 There was nothing special in the Hong Kong airport. I didn\u0026rsquo;t expect to queue up for food this early in the airport though. Why don\u0026rsquo;t they have gyms in the airport? I\u0026rsquo;m sure people will use them, especially now they ask you to arrive in the internation airport hours before your departure. I walked around the airport for some excise and then hogged on the free wifi. I should soon arrive in Taipei drama free! fingers crossed 🤞\nTaipei I was exhausted when I arrived in Taipei after my unplanned stay in Hong Kong. I was still the first of my group to arrive in Taipei. This time, my luggage finally arrived too! I found a charger and hogged the free airport wifi, no surprise there!\nIt turned out that my flight from Hong Kong was considered domestic so I arrived in the Terminal 1. Meanwhile, everyone else from my group who flew over from Australia had arrived in the international Terminal 2. There were only 2 terminals in Taipei airport but you would need to catch a train to get from one to another. Grrr, I waited for 30 minutes in the wrong Terminal until one of them called me on Skype. Actually, it was not a total wast of time, I managed to charge my phone and checked my email! 😃\nPC knew Taiwan the best and had plan the whole trip. This was going to be a stress free holiday for me, I couldn\u0026rsquo;t stop smiling! I was so tired when we dropped off our luggages, but sleep/rest was for the weak, I cleaned up a bit and went out with the group.\nThis was my first time in Taiwan and yet Taipei felt familiar. It felt like Beijing or Shanghai in the 90s and I loved it. I was in Shanghai in 2010, it felt crowded and dirty then. The financial district was full of overpriced imported goods, LV, Coach, Hermes, blah blah. The residential suburbs were fully of newly built high-rises. I was brought to a restaurant for a thousand Yuan Australian beef. Everything felt a bit pretentious to me. I rather eat my Australian beef in an Australian pub down the road for $25 with a beer. 😻 That\u0026rsquo;s just me.\nTaibei was not as crowded, little old stores can be seen along the streets, there were street stands and many markets, the food, oh, I could go on and on about the taiwanese food! We went to a day and then a night market today. Both markets sold nothing but food. I couldn\u0026rsquo;t eat street food when I was travelling in China (I always got sick) but it seemed fine in Taipei. The food were mostly traditional Southern Chinese food. We would buy something from one store and share it around, then move to the next store. Just to name a few of the dishes we had: clam omelet, pork rib herb soup, seafood fired noodle, sticky rice pudding (see my gallery link below for photos)\u0026hellip; Oh my god 😳, I then managed to wash them all down with some pickled fruit and a cup of ice plum juice! The plum juice was cooked so well, it brought back some sweet childhood memories! I\u0026rsquo;ve never had the pickled fruit before; its called Ba Le. It tasted like a mix of apple and pear and very nutty. I bought a little bag of the fruit pickled in plum source. They were amazing!\nI insisted that we walked the 2 blocks back to Peggy\u0026rsquo;s house. I crashed in my bed with a smile - I was falling in love with Taiwan! ❤️\n–§–\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20150405taiwan/","summary":"\u003ch2 id=\"sleepless-in-hong-kong\"\u003eSleepless In Hong Kong\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Hong Kong - view from the hotel\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AL9nZEWzV3evshgVfSmvBGUQ1fcFmlUCOrPPI4YXdX7mrZxCwvIhX4Fy05g_g-ZK2Xive7sM4_F3f8Ek1fz8puQEtlZpeN3hNksndI8QIO-a1J9u9RO7j12AGHRDwTjYnP0B9PxVbueGZMkH3JNbvdeKnk7S=w2120-h1590-no?authuser=0\" title=\"Hong Kong - view from the hotel\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChinese say that 4 is not a lucky number, clearly 04/04 is worse and it was totally true - I\u0026rsquo;ve had a terrible run today! 😢\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe flight from Sydney to Hong Kong was delayed and the connecting flight from Hong Kong to Taipei left without me. :( Apparently, it was also the last flight for the day to fly over the channel. I was stranded in Hong Kong for the night with just my passport and a wallet in my bag. Note to self, I should always put an extra pair of undies in my carry on!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is part of the fun of traveling - dealing with problems on the go, regardless how well I planned for weeks before the trip. :) I actually have never been left stranded with no luggage before. Sigh, there is always a first hey. I started to wonder what else could go wrong now.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Hong Kong airport\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/9RdMR9gQVLt8CNKbYlVmkKqqGYXWXR1s9XkBNJohSUlGRPsXIbTheSeFLvT8Cpd2hiQtpV5z-uAiQw-CFE99x_HWBA8PmwUq3DYlc-dtNC920whORbQnc3fgXHRjJ0_a3QEXA0mEwfkeK-lWrqkK39hsjOx3MvABaqTHjhO3zut_9d0xDPhXB4VX0zw-qKI0jfMOCuzcziIhooMMs1FtF98Yc2T5ijcmFW3FK4nqapjPP0lvkHzK0pfI10bos5-DctGzsvz25XBiCTUDI7J6B9lR60435SQSfZukfeGW2wxZKXrZjBNW-LdTujWqnNm-7EpUpbdenorIqcJdXLxXEJVp4IrpMySFxDewEeNzL63CP22lgxq5RKKgMnduxiPcw2c5zfBtEaIRq_Fom5wIlomAvYTNQZu2IdbjOPkQ5shctnnvVAnx9KaCJYGu9KaVych-T-SPMVPar-eAUc04i99Sbps0o7Y33wImqT4Dc20s1pMSZCQBFWfWsciGciLgRK20CgQeJvrWm0HewR-elC_B16gu1K5fOjke-U_UH98J0NTMiIZ08mNF59qkSLihzmw7B5XZpEX6Z4diaEYyQN3RfTxamAMW46FjZ2SL-taMZpIwBP10cT4skzaCXrJX-0Ud6JxY9K44lOe2VwIeJzhpGRFdm1K7=s720-no\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter some negotiation, the airline put me in the \u003ca href=\"http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/hkgap-hong-kong-skycity-marriott-hotel/\"\u003eHong Kong SkyCity Marriott Hotel\u003c/a\u003e. I\u0026rsquo;d gave it 5 stars for the facility and the service! It was 12am when I checked in and I have to get up in 5 hours. I planned to watch some movies but after a hot shower, I pretty much passed out. 😃\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Taiwan Impression"},{"content":"I\u0026rsquo;m giving myself a 🌟 for finishing a little volunteer project for RSPCA (AU) ACT. :-)\nThe idea is to create a website that contains a Pet Quiz where people answer a few questions to find out what kind of pet is the best suitable for them. The logic for the website is pretty simple so I kept the design simple and clean too. The website is going to be used on iPads in RSPCA ACT\u0026rsquo;s booth at this year\u0026rsquo;s Florida (URL: http://rspcapetquiz.com).\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20140905petquiz/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eI\u0026rsquo;m giving myself a 🌟 for finishing a little volunteer project for \u003ca href=\"http://www.rspca.org.au/\" title=\"RSPCA Au\"\u003eRSPCA (AU)\u003c/a\u003e ACT. :-)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe idea is to create a website that contains a \u003ca href=\"http://rspcapetquiz.com\" title=\"RSPCA pet quiz\"\u003ePet Quiz\u003c/a\u003e where people answer a few questions to find out what kind of pet is the best suitable for them. The logic for the website is pretty simple so I kept the design simple and clean too. The website is going to be used on \u003ca href=\"https://www.apple.com/au/ipad/\"\u003eiPads\u003c/a\u003e in \u003ca href=\"http://www.rspca.org.au/\"\u003eRSPCA\u003c/a\u003e ACT\u0026rsquo;s booth at this year\u0026rsquo;s \u003ca href=\"http://www.floriadeaustralia.com/\"\u003eFlorida\u003c/a\u003e (URL: \u003ca href=\"http://rspcapetquiz.com\"\u003ehttp://rspcapetquiz.com\u003c/a\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e","title":"RSPCA Pet Quiz Website"},{"content":"I took the train back to London. It was cold comparing with the barmy 22 degrees in Edinburgh a few hours ago. Nevertheless, I was so excited. Here I come, road trip to south England!\nLove The Car First thing first, I needed a car! It was booked a month ago with Avis. The Avis branch can be found inside the St Pancras Station car park. St Pancras Station is cross the road from the King\u0026rsquo;s Cross Station; one is international and the other is domestic. From the main departure information hall, follow the signals to the Car Park passing Boots, Patisserie Valerie and Pret A Manger. It took me a while to locate it because the office was small, shared with other rental companies (so do not just look for the Avis sign like I did) and it was at the entrance/exit of the car park.\nI booked for a base model 4 door auto and they gave me a BMW M135i! Apparently that was the only available car they had on the day. Well, I would not say no to a free upgrade with a nav system.\nThe car was fantastic to drive and was very comfortable. I hated its build-in navigator though. It was not a touch screen and I could barely hear it with the maxi volume! I Google d it but apparently, that was just how it was built. ! Yay\nDriving in UK Driving in London was a bit scary at first especially when I was facing the 6pm traffic. Back home, both George and Chris told me that it was not easy to drive on those small roads in Scotland, so I booked a tour over there. They said that I would need a car while traveling in south England. I listened to them. I was definitely cursing them while trying to drive out of central London. It took me an hour to drive from King\u0026rsquo;s Cross to M3. I came from a place where there is no traffic so that little drive was killing me. At one stage, it took me 5min to drive through one traffic light. OMG!\nI was amazed that Londoners seemed to have a mutual understanding on when to give away to the traffic. It took me a bit to get use to seeing a double decker bus heading towards me on a one lane road with high speed. I had no idea if I should give away or not! I was pretty freaked out for the first few times then I slowly channeled in to their frequency. I would just go if the opposite side traffic stopped for one second.\nI really enjoyed driving in the English country side though. Not only the lush fields looked fantastic in the sun or after rain, the hedges were so high that they became green caves. I love to drive through them!\nUpdate: In a way, I could blame myself for picking up the car fro St Pancras Station. I leant from others later on that I should have booked a car outside of London. That would mean that I had to drag my luggage with me around. It was not a win win situation for sure.\nUpdate: Later, I also realised that George and Chris must have meant that it was difficult to drive when it was raining or snowing in Scotland. After experiencing driving in south England, I actually found that it was easier to drive in Scotland! In Scotland, the roads are more open and they often have space on the side of the roads for cars to overtake.\nSouth England The plan is to drive from London to Folkestone - Canterbury - through Ashford to Rye - Hastings - Bodiam Castle - Brighton - London\nI stayed in Bed and Breakfast and pubs along the way - just the thing you do there. All the accommodations were fantastic except the one in Brighton.\nFolkestone was a small town but full of history. I visited a family friend and it was great to catch up. I could see the French coastline across the English Channel on the beach in Folkestone.\nI spent a day in Canterbury. It was just nice to walk around to see the castles etc. I had the best Italian lunch at a small cafe in one of those side streets. Yum!\nRye is a pretty small town in East Sussex, England. It sits on 3 rivers and the Rye Harbour is not far away. The town was full of antique shops. I had to keep telling myself that anything I bought would add weight to my luggage. I stayed in a little pub called The Ship Inn. The food there was very nice and they gave me free local beer to try. I called that great customer service! Make sure to visit the little 200 years old antique house. I would not fit in through the door! LOL! Here is a little cool map of Rye. Rye was a great place for a stop over.\nHastings for lunch and Bodiam Castle for afternoon tea were all worthy stops.\nI did not have a great impression of Brighton. It was difficult to drive and park in Brighton. It took me a while to locate my hotel even with a nav system. I was lost in words when I saw the hotel. It was sh3t. I told myself that I would put up with it because it was for one night\u0026rsquo;s sleep only. I went out to see Brighton but nothing special struck me. I was a bit disappointed with Brighton because before I arrive, I read somewhere that Brighton is the London on the beach. MMM\u0026hellip; The beach was full of pebbles. It was the night when England played in the 2014 World Cup. There was a big screen setup on the beach. I joined the crowd to watch the game for a while but all I could hear was the sound the pebbles made when people walked on them. It was crazily loud and I couldn\u0026rsquo;t stand the sound. I watched from a stand off the beach. England lost the game. People on the beach were either too drunk or too upset by then. The breakfast in the morning was also shit. I found a parking fine on my car. So, I did not like Brighton!\nLive in Greenwich like a Londoner I stayed in a serviced apartment (Apple Apartments) at Greenwich, London for a week during this trip. The apartment was nice and new. It was close to trains and shops. Most importantly, it was by the River Thames.\nOne afternoon, on my way back to the apartment, I discovered Deutschland. It was right outside of my apartment, stopped in the middle of the Thames, of course. It was scheduled to leave before I was leaving London so I went down to watch it getting towed out of the Thames. People on the ship, assuming Germans, were waving at us so we waved back. 🙂 I was feeling a bit sad because that I had to pack up and leave London too. 就这么我也挥一挥衣袖，不带走一片云彩的离开吧。再想想，原来是因为大家都把云彩留在英国了，所以那里经常下雨呵。\nA Long Way Home It was a long way home indeed! Everything went smoothly but it took me almost a day to get back home! After 6.5 hours of flying from Heathrow to Dubai International, I floated around the airport like a ghost to keep myself awake. I was NOT looking forward to another 10+ hours flight to Sydney even though I kept telling myself that at the end of this trip, there would be a hot shower and my own bed to look forward to!\nThe shops were all open at 3am in Dubai International so I bought a few things to support their economy. I soon lost interest because I was so tired that it took more effect to just keep myself awake. I walked around like a zombie for a long while!\nOn the Sydney to Dubai flight, the girl who was sitting next to me cried her eyes out watching the Winter\u0026rsquo;s Tale so I watched RoboCop (2014)instead. It was okay, nothing special. :( To continue on the super hero theme, I put on Captain America: the Winter Soldier. Again, nothing special. The plane landed in Dubai when I was half way through the Hunger Games: Catching Fire. I was able to finish it on the next flight. On the flight to Sydney, I opt to Miss Fisher\u0026rsquo;s Murder Mysteriesand Frasier Season 1 box set, hoping that it would put me into sleep! :-) It did not work; I ended up watching the whole box set - a great Australian drama!\nThe man who sat next to me on the Heathrow to Dubai flight started to sing along while watch the Classic Hindu Songs. I wondered if he knew how loud he was or cared if others were listening. It was funny at first until I saw that what he was watching was 1.3 hours long! Thank God that his mobile rang so he had a loud chat with whoever on the phone and did not go back to his singing. We couldn\u0026rsquo;t even leave our mobile phones along on a short flight these days.\nI must have been one of the first 10 people to clear Customs at Sydney. The trick was to go to the first e-passort machine outside of the duty fre instead of the ones at Customs. The annoying thing was that my luggage did not come out until 20 minutes later! A negative point for be on an A380 - it took longer to unload! Oh well, at least, the good news was that I was standing on the ground again and home, sweet home! 💕\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20140618uk/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eI took the train back to London. It was cold comparing with the barmy 22 degrees in Edinburgh a few hours ago. Nevertheless, I was so excited. Here I come, road trip to south England!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"love-the-car\"\u003eLove The Car\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"my rental car is a BMW-M135i\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http://www.zercustoms.com/news/images/BMW/BMW-M135i-5-door-4.jpg\" title=\"my rental car is a BMW-M135i\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFirst thing first, I needed a car! It was booked a month ago with Avis. The Avis branch can be found inside the \u003ca href=\"http://www.networkrail.co.uk/st-pancras-international-station/\"\u003eSt Pancras Station\u003c/a\u003e car park. \u003ca href=\"http://www.networkrail.co.uk/st-pancras-international-station/\"\u003eSt Pancras Station\u003c/a\u003e is cross the road from the \u003ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Pancras_railway_station\"\u003eKing\u0026rsquo;s Cross Station\u003c/a\u003e; one is international and the other is domestic. From the main departure information hall, follow the signals to the Car Park passing Boots, Patisserie Valerie and Pret A Manger. It took me a while to locate it because the office was small, shared with other rental companies (so do not just look for the Avis sign like I did) and it was at the entrance/exit of the car park.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Road Trip and Walk Like a Londoner"},{"content":"Edinburgh I love Edinburgh!\nThe receptionist at the hotel told me that it would be quicker to go to the King\u0026rsquo;s Cross train station by the Tube than taxi. It took me 30min on the Tube from Gloucester Road to the King\u0026rsquo;s Cross train station, not difficult at all.\nNot many people were at the Platform 9 3/4 so I had a photo taken in front of it. By 9am, there was a long queue of people waiting to take photo there and the station staff had to put signs around to keep things in order.\nThe train trip was booked a month ago with East Coast Co. and it cost £80 return from London to Edinburgh. I\u0026rsquo;ve got a seat with table and power plugs (make sure you specify when make a booking). First class tickets include food and wifi while standard class tickets have only 15min of free wifi, you pay for everything else. The train stops at a few stations. The look of the York station made me want to get off and have a look around. Again, it was a sunny day with blue sky and the view of the English countryside was spectacular! After Newcastle, the train line touches the coast of Scotland. Imaging that looking out of the window, you first saw the lush grass coving the cliff, sheep lazing around, beyond that, the ocean was the backdrop. It was an amazing view that stretch for miles. I\u0026rsquo;m staying at Carlton Hill Edinburgh. It\u0026rsquo;s an amazing place!\nEdinburgh is an amazing place. I\u0026rsquo;m so in love with it and I\u0026rsquo;ve only been here for a few hours. The sky is so blue, the hills, the trees are so green and the wild flowers are blooming like crazy everywhere (so is my hayfever!). It\u0026rsquo;s like another world comparing with London. I cannot wait to explore more of the city tomorrow.\nI was lost for words walking around Edinburgh. I love this city more by the second. It didn\u0026rsquo;t matter where I looked, Edinburgh was a perfect picture. The day was spent walking around the old town, the new town (nothing new about the new town, its built in 1700s :p), the royal mile, Edinburgh Castle etc. Edinburgh is not big, even though the tram was running, I still preferred walking. The bus ticket was cheaper than London but you need to have the right change. If you plan to go to the Edinburgh Castle, make sure that you watch the One o\u0026rsquo;clock Gun fire at 13:00 hours (every day except Sunday). I didn\u0026rsquo;t plan for it but I was lucky. :p It was so loud because I was steps away from the canon. Very cool!! I looked up for the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo though but it was not meant to be. I saw them putting up the ground at Edinburgh Castle. I was amazed how small the ground was - it looked so much bigger on TV! I shared this thought with others later on and everyone seemed to feel the same.\nRoad trip I booked a 3 Day Skye Experience tour with the Highland Experience (Adult Price from £140). The tour would take us from: Edinburgh - Glasgow - Stirling - Glen Coe - Eilean Donan Castle - Skye - Inverness - Loch ness - Pitlochry - Glasgow - Edinburgh.\nI was pretty excited about this tour. Edinburgh impressed me so much that I had no doubt that the rest of the Scotland would too!\nDay 1 A Spectacular Route North route to Skye takes you past beautiful Stirling Castle, across the brooding expanse of Rannoch Moor and through Glen Coe. As the road nears the coast, it passes Eilean Donan Castle at Dornie - the castle that featured in the film Highlander. Then it\u0026rsquo;s time to cross the bridge to Skye.\nHere we go, day 1 of my Scotland road trip and I\u0026rsquo;m not driving! Yay! I was ready to put up my feet, relax and enjoy the ride. We were a small group of 10 people so it did not take us long to get to know each other. First stop, Glasgow. Glasgow was much busier than Edinburgh. It\u0026rsquo;s a beautiful city by the river and is only an hour away from Edinburgh. We were told stories about Glasgow, how it had grown to be a financial and education centre for Scotland. Glasgow maintained its historical buildings but I still think that Edinburgh has more character.\nI might sound like a broken record but Scotland is just so beautiful. Everyone was amazed and our cameras were overworked. Glen Coe has a 3 sister as well but nothing like the 3 sisters in Blue Mountains back home. Make sure that you look out for them when you are there. The mountains still had snow tops. It was drizzling but somehow, I felt that the mountains looked better in the rain. The low rainy clouds softened the mountain edges. The air was crisp clear as well. We made a few stops and everyone jumped out of the bus to enjoy the view.\nWe were often overtaken by motorbikes on the road. I was jealous. It must be so fun to ride on these winding mountain roads! There were hikers as well. Hiking in Glen Coe looked crazy and exciting! I would love to give it a go if I\u0026rsquo;m here again! It would be some experience! Don\u0026rsquo;t they say that if it doesn\u0026rsquo;t kill you, it will make you stronger!\nI stayed at Mrs McLeannan\u0026rsquo;s B\u0026amp;B at Kyleakin on Skye. Kyleakin is a small town by the river, quiet and full of clean air! :-o Seafood platter with local warm beer at the pub was my dinner. I took a walk around the jetty before I went back to the B\u0026amp;B to give the Wifi a try.\nWell, I was not too shocked that the Wifi here worked better than Vodafail AU back home. The Wifi device clearly had a limit on connection, so the tick was not to disconnect from it so you lose your spot to others. I was not sure how many were staying at this tiny B\u0026amp;B until the 2nd day morning.\nDay 2 A full day on Skye exploring the island such as the craggy Cuillin Mountains and outstanding beautiful Trotternish Peninsula then say goodbye to the Isle and head south to Loch Ness.\nIn the morning, a bowl of porridge landed in front of me right after I sat down at the breakfast table. The porridge was salty. I\u0026rsquo;m not sure how it was cooked but it was really nice and I loved it. There was a couple from Holland at the table. They put their car on the ferry and came over to tour around Scotland. Oh, how I wish that it was that easy for me to travel over. I flew more than 12 hours to be here! While we were chitchatting, Mrs McLeannan brought me a plate of the traditional Scottish breakfast. It was lovely to have someone looking after me like that and the food, oh, it was heavenly!\nAfter London, I was not too bothered with confined spaces anymore. My room at the B\u0026amp;B was so tiny that there was hardly any space to turn around. I managed it. I was a bit shocked when I counted around 8 people at the breakfast table. How did we fit everyone in this place?! That was amazing! Space is clearly not an issue in Scotland but they still built everything so small here!\nWe drove around Skye. Everything was so lush on the island, mountains surrounded by the ocean, it reminded me of New Zealand but yet so different. It was sad to leave. Maybe one day, I will come back.\nWe were learning Gaelic on the road e.g. Loch means lake, Kyle = mouth of water, Eilean = island, etc. Now, the road signs started to make a lot more sense.\nThere was a German tour bus \u0026ldquo;stalking\u0026rdquo; us. We kept meeting them at different visitors\u0026rsquo; lookouts. It was \u0026ldquo;annoying\u0026rdquo; to \u0026ldquo;bump\u0026rdquo; into them in the mornings for while we were eating a a pack of chips or drinking a cup of takeaway coffee, they would lay out the tables and have a fully cooked breakfast, with hot coffee and fruits, on the side of the road! Not only that, the food smelt so good too! Everyone in my tour group would cry out, \u0026ldquo;Oh no, not them.\u0026rdquo; if we cross path with them at morning or afternoon tea time.\nDay 3 Explore Loch Ness. Why not take a boat tour over to Urquhart Castle, visit the Loch Ness 2000 Exhibition, or just monster hunt from the shore? You\u0026rsquo;ll then head south and have the chance to visit the battlefield of Culloden, the site of the defeat of the Jacobite forces. Then you\u0026rsquo;ll pass the stunning Cairngorm mountains, stopping en-route to visit a distillery and discover just how whisky is produced, then you will be able to explore the picturesque town of Pitlochry before arriving back in Edinburgh.\nIt was a bit wet this morning. Loch Ness was covered by a thin mist. It sat there like a big mirror. How would anyone miss the Loch Ness monster if it every existed? I asked Michael, our guide. \u0026ldquo;Because its deep.\u0026rdquo;, he said. I see, I see. A ferry came towards us and we could hear the music blasting from it. \u0026ldquo;Why was it totally empty? It was full when it left here.\u0026rdquo; \u0026ldquo;It just delivered breakfast for the Monster.\u0026rdquo; I answered with quick thinking. Some people laughed. Win!\nI enjoyed hearing all the clan and warrior stories on this trip even though some of them were very sad. We heard the ancient (Bronze Age) clan stories when we stopped at Balnuaran of Clava (Invernes). Scotland\u0026rsquo;s last battle was fought at the battlefield of Culloden. Walking along the fields at Culloden, it was a very different feeling. The ground felt alive to me.\nPitlochry was such a pretty little town. A festival was taking place so its dressed up for celebration. We ate, drank and walked around with an ice-cream each in hand.\nI actually learnt a few things about whisky at the distillery, had a few for tasting and bought a few bottles. In Scotland, people would buy a cask of whisky for their children and keep the cask at the distillery. years later, the child would be able to celebrate his/her 50th birthday with a 50+ yrs old whisky. Nice!\nWe drove along the Caledonian Canal. It\u0026rsquo;s definitely worth a visit if you are in the country!\nI was back in Edinburgh again. Just being here brought a smile onto my face.\nWe met this group of highland cattle at Culloden. Michael, our guide, had been telling us that he possess the magic skill to control the cattle. \u0026ldquo;The Scottish way\u0026rdquo;, he called it. He was very happy to do a demonstration for everyone. We all gathered around the fence to support him. Other tour groups saw us and followed suit. Before we know, we had a group of 20+ people around us, waiting for the show to start. Michael started calling the cattle out loud with the words \u0026ldquo;here cow, here cow\u0026rdquo;. It looked silly so I instantly started laughing. The funnier thing was that the cattle turned around, after a short stare at us, they started to walk towards us. Everyone was so excited and started to praise Michael. A lady from the other tour group \u0026ldquo;taught\u0026rdquo; her late arriving guide what she just learnt. His response was simple, \u0026ldquo;that was a load of rubbish\u0026rdquo; (say it out loud in Scottish - it\u0026rsquo;s funnier that way). LOL. Before I knew, I was face to face with a group of highland cattle. They were very lovely! I wondered if they ever got frustrated with the long fringe on their faces! Nice bangs guys!\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20140612scotland/","summary":"\u003ch2 id=\"edinburgh\"\u003eEdinburgh\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI love Edinburgh!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Edinburgh\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AL9nZEWvT7GRF6Tlu6khvf2iZa_o5_-M_4Vs21sdAXYhs4jt4BFCVJ9ld3Hi7UN5FfcKtpZc-fQuEnrWDN5cBYpjPl1H1f750DFjNX0yOO8vC-cUGrD-VHnnNVgVg-I51CFnFU6c3UWANdA7jL5GU4S2rwek=w800-h533-no?authuser=0\" title=\"Edinburgh\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe receptionist at the hotel told me that it would be quicker to go to the \u003ca href=\"http://www.networkrail.co.uk/london-kings-cross-station/\"\u003eKing\u0026rsquo;s Cross train station\u003c/a\u003e by the Tube than taxi. It took me 30min on the Tube from Gloucester Road to the \u003ca href=\"http://www.networkrail.co.uk/london-kings-cross-station/\"\u003eKing\u0026rsquo;s Cross train station\u003c/a\u003e, not difficult at all.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNot many people were at the \u003ca href=\"http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/King%27s_Cross_Station\"\u003ePlatform 9 3/4\u003c/a\u003e so I had a photo taken in front of it. By 9am, there was a long queue of people waiting to take photo there and the station staff had to put signs around to keep things in order.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Scotland!"},{"content":"The flight was so long. I kept walking around, eat (funny that I still felt hungry even though I did nothing but sitting there), nap and watch movies:\nBones season 8 - seem them all before, just killing time\nGravity - meh, its okay\nThe Grand Budapest Hotel - I loved it! It\u0026rsquo;s witty, smart, touching and shows the 1930s Europe\n3 days to kill - Kevin Costner looked really old\nI took Ben\u0026rsquo;s advise and booked a car with Swift. The driver held a name card at the arrival and we were at the hotel within 30min.\nHello London! OMG, after what seemed like a life time of flying, finally, I\u0026rsquo;ve arrived in London!\nI\u0026rsquo;m staying at the Millennium Bailey\u0026rsquo;s Hotel Kensington. This is a nice hotel at a great location. The local bus, hop on and hop off bus and the Tube station are all across road. There are plenty shops (Tesco and Waitrose), hotels, restaurants, bars and pubs around. I love the gardens and parks here too. It\u0026rsquo;s in walking distance to Knightsbridge, Hyde Park, Kensington Palace, VandA Museum etc.\nIt rained only one morning since I\u0026rsquo;ve arrived in UK. The sun is hot during the day and the air is crisp clear at night - perfect! The day light lasts from 5am to 9pm - just right for get out and about.\nDay 1 Buckingham Palace\nThe Mall\nThe Admiralty Arch\nSt James\u0026rsquo;s park\nGreen park\nLeicester square\nNeal\u0026rsquo;s Yard\nNational gallery\nTrafalgar Square\nCovent garden\nDay 2 London Bridge\nTower Bridge\nThe Tower of London\nDay 3 VandA Museum\nScience Museum\nNatural History Museum\nKensington Gardens\nKensington Palace\nHyde Park\nAlbert Memorial\nRoyal Albert Hall\nDay 4 Westminster Abbey (amazing place)\nHorse Guards Parade\n10 Downing Street\nLondon eye\nKnightsbridge\nI discovered Ricola drops in London and I had it with me during the whole trip, very addictive.\nFive days in London was great and I really enjoyed it. However, it felt like that I was just ticking off places on a to-go list. I have seen all those places on TV etc and now I have seen them in person. Nothing had shocked me yet, the TV shows were telling the truth! :) It was getting a bit boring and I was looking forward to leave for Scotland.\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20140609uk/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eThe flight was so long. I kept walking around, eat (funny that I still felt hungry even though I did nothing but sitting there), nap and watch movies:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.fox.com/bones/\"\u003eBones\u003c/a\u003e season 8 - seem them all before, just killing time\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1454468/\"\u003eGravity\u003c/a\u003e - meh, its okay\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2278388/\"\u003eThe Grand Budapest Hotel\u003c/a\u003e - I loved it! It\u0026rsquo;s witty, smart, touching and shows the 1930s Europe\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2172934/\"\u003e3 days to kill\u003c/a\u003e - Kevin Costner looked really old\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Wondering around London"},{"content":"Overnight in Sydney I was still packing when Chris came to pick me up for the airport. :) I definitely started packing early this time but still, it became a last minute thing again. My Qantas flight was late as usual (One day, they will surprise me by being on time). The airport hotel Sydney for a night of transit is as boring as it can be. I don\u0026rsquo;t even get a phone in the room! Oh well, I really just need a place to sleep for a few hours.\nSydney is wet but I\u0026rsquo;m going out for a walk - its time to catch up with the Anderson family for dinner.\nI will be in London tomorrow, yay! The gangster monkey is breaking out! (monkey story?)\nDubai Last night, I booked a taxi to pick me up at 3am this morning. This morning, after another 2 calls to the taxi company, finally, at 3.40am, I was picked up by a taxi and headed for the airport. It turned out that it was not easy to get a taxi on an early Friday morning. Sydney taxi drivers only do “individual jobs” which means that they would not let you share taxi with others. What do you do then? Keep calling taxi until you get one, I guess. The trip to Sydney International from the hotel was only 10 minutes yet it created so much drama.\nThe second after I walked through the Customs line - you know, the white line taped that\u0026rsquo;s on the floor next to the Customs Officers\u0026rsquo; booths\u0026hellip; I realised that I had left my camera bag behind. Sadly, I was behind the white line so I was officially outside of Australia already! :-o I was not allowed to turn around the get my bag. I had to ask a Customs officer to get the bag for me. :-o Almost losing my Canon before the holiday even start? Clearly, getting up at 2am with only 3 hours sleep had proven to be a disaster.\nThe TRS booth opened around 5am and there was a long queue in front of it. The airport has just opened, where did all those people come from? It looked as if they camped here overnight like an Apple new release event.\nIt took 40min for everyone to board the A380. My feet wanted to touch the ground a bit longer so I sat and watched them. A meal and a nap later, I got up for a walk only to find out that we were just flying over Singapore. That was a bit depressing! :-o The young couple next to me watched movies on different screens. They started and paused the movies at the same time so they were on the same scene all the time. How cute! :-) The food was better on Emirates and there was more seat space. The best thing would be the power supply on each seat for the devices. My phone was on low battery already since I played with it none stop this morning - Sydney airport still offered free wifi. The headsets are horrible on Emirates\u0026rsquo;s flights, bring your own. Emirates\u0026rsquo;s OnAir Wi-Fi service lets you connect to the internet while in flight, price plans for Wi-Fi start from just USD 2.75 for smartphones and USD 7.50 for tablets and laptops (feels a bit expensive comparing with what we used on flights in US). Select A380 flights also offer mobile phone use and data roaming using GPRS/EDGE. Every seat on board the Emirates A380 has a satellite telephone and onscreen email/SMS services.\nI got off the flight from Sydney to Dubai, walked from arrival to departure and it was already the time to board the flight to London. I decided to be the last to board again. I just sat down and the old lady next to me leaned over and asked, \u0026ldquo;What did they say love?\u0026rdquo; \u0026ldquo;Section D can start boarding.\u0026rdquo; I answered. She then started telling me her life story. Her husband had passed away recently and she then was diagnosed with breast cancer. After chemotherapy, she was in remission so she decided to spend her savings to see the world. She then told me that she had missed her flight yesterday but the good people from Perth got her on another flight. \u0026ldquo;Perth? In Australia? I love Perth!\u0026rdquo; I said. \u0026ldquo;Yes, yes, me too.\u0026rdquo; She added. We smiled at each other - now we have so much to talk about. This is the part of travelling that I enjoy the most - meeting people along the way and hear their stories.\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20140605uk/","summary":"\u003ch2 id=\"overnight-in-sydney\"\u003eOvernight in Sydney\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Cubee Monkey\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AL9nZEXJKVUmsk8dFOtiMGaLn6DWfpwt7su3qLHNHmOLK6EjVbeOgsYxhY2Tc8-S5q1qkjaTBwo87v6p5EBmAoSZkPPakS4ig2S-9Ki_ubP311Zcq9ldRr328LXITDh9W4mVIYz1ol2cby7HGz6J7ATPTw53=w600-h800-no?authuser=0\" title=\"Cubee Monkey\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI was still packing when Chris came to pick me up for the airport. :) I definitely started packing early this time but still, it became a last minute thing again. My Qantas flight was late as usual (One day, they will surprise me by being on time). The airport hotel Sydney for a night of transit is as boring as it can be. I don\u0026rsquo;t even get a phone in the room! Oh well, I really just need a place to sleep for a few hours.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Going to UK"},{"content":"Oyster Card My visitor\u0026rsquo;s Oyster Card has arrived today! If you want to get an Oyster Card before travelling to London, do a Google search to find an agent in your own country so you can purchase the card in your local currency. Transport for London has more information on the Oyster Card and a list of agents around the world.\nLondon, I will see you soon! I\u0026rsquo;m so excited!! 😂 🐾 💋 💓\nPlanning I\u0026rsquo;m so excited that I am planning my trip to UK! I\u0026rsquo;ve always wanted to visit UK, it feels like a dream becoming true!\nFirst thing first, Matt \u0026ldquo;educated\u0026rdquo; me with the Youtube video below on the differences between UK, England and the Great Britain. It turned out that UK = United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland . The fact that I\u0026rsquo;m only going to Britain + Scotland + Wales (if I have time), not Ireland, I should really tell people that I\u0026rsquo;m going to England, not UK. Watch the Youtube video, it\u0026rsquo;s pretty fun!\n1. Hotels I find booking.com a good source to start with and I booked most of my stays for this trip using this site. I like the fact that booking.com allows me to:\nadd bookings to my ical add bookings to passbook give me directions to the booked locations booking.com also had a few more choices than expedia.com.\nAlways check with tripadvisor.com for reviews and \u0026ldquo;real\u0026rdquo; photos before make the booking!\nTo read up on the local area where you are staying, I use Street Check UK (a very useful site).\n2. Transport A few people told me that for long train trips, one must book as early as one can. I booked return train ticket from London to Edinburgh a few weeks before travel date for 80£* - I\u0026rsquo;ve been told that price was very cheap!\nI recommend walking when traveling in London. If needs to, take the iconic double decker bus or get on the Tube. Here is a map for the Tube, it\u0026rsquo;s easy to use and worry free. Pre-order an Oyster Card can save you time and money when using the Tube.\n3. Wifi I only purchase data packs when I\u0026rsquo;m overseas and if I need to make phone calls, I would use Skype credits. It\u0026rsquo;s cheaper too. Most decent accommodations will offer free wifi these days so I can check email, backup photos, make FaceTime or Skype to Skype calls.\nI carry a wifi device that connects 5 devices. My wifi device is not locked down to any telecommunication company so any SIM card would work with it, but it also means that I need to update its APN settings when I\u0026rsquo;m in a different country before I can use it. APN settings for vodafone.co.uk is: APN : wap.vodafone.co.uk Username: wap Password: wap\n4.Roaming I do not use international mobile roaming services but for your information, here are Optus\u0026rsquo;s rates for United Arab Emirates (collected at June 2014):\ncalls to Aus = $2.00/min to make and receive, calls within United Arab Emirates = $2.00/min to make and receive, SMS = $1.00 per SMS to send and free to receive, data = $1.00/MB. Check your balance for free: call 555 or SMS \u0026lsquo;Bal\u0026rsquo; to 9999. To recharge: call 555. More info at optus.com.au/travel. To stop roaming while overseas free call +61280825678 from an Optus mobile. Finally, if this is your first time in UK, even though you speak English well, the following might still be helpful:\nNote: how to type £ on a Mac? Option + 3\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20140522uk/","summary":"\u003ch2 id=\"oyster-card\"\u003eOyster Card\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"My visitor\u0026rsquo;s Oyster Card\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/CoNLP-vSrR1tDerYDrSGAvzcif8xlA9pCi0vdIgc7ae6wfsluxLrz_I9dxsOSYuTNMkZioqp1cfVQmAO3XbQqozyRxjKXxXMtmMJXjvAew2L53Y2o7A74m1OIMpKGF9mAmZEXe_prdxGjJo8178uylJIt46qUHpONtsclnPqDOrRaGbyLUycpmZATXk-zfFVd3b9ltsXU5enrm90TRXA-cgMBgOheUmQNLU8vCuKSs2k9STanFWY-BU0xAk8cE4DC7dsgFV-XWZoOzNExt9I_ErCMr2Giu16aO7Z69vwaP4VvxAmTyqHDxqmAG-JKEOAvRsGvvH20wXCMl1J9F8rZqpSNR_s2WNdYM6kk46iejz52GKYweqJvPVkkq-lrWdooQAfJGhxb5od09CiOZ_5E2VryBBfsLKPjwloragLTSPuhtc6oVIYybSqlMvLmbEs1oA4AurCWGouVKftHe-xUZNhBMVE2nc-q4up33E5RZHt873LzABg37MygGLFcWWROigko5ILxRz5yTS2Q07as1ExeWymJ-hHTUCjs-IaM_3nkrx6Lo_6EJYyiOWSyWEvaBKb0UpZjYPPPmw6PHKiAfQF0pQvI8c-PD3Vg4pjiyCCASwa=w620-h418-no\" title=\"My visitor\u0026#39;s Oyster Card\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy visitor\u0026rsquo;s \u003ca href=\"https://oyster.tfl.gov.uk/oyster/entry.do\"\u003eOyster Card\u003c/a\u003e has arrived today! If you want to get an \u003ca href=\"https://oyster.tfl.gov.uk/oyster/entry.do\"\u003eOyster Card\u003c/a\u003e before travelling to London, do a \u003ca href=\"http://www.google.com\"\u003eGoogle\u003c/a\u003e search to find an agent in your own country so you can purchase the card in your local currency. \u003ca href=\"https://www.tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/oyster\"\u003eTransport for London\u003c/a\u003e has more information on the \u003ca href=\"https://oyster.tfl.gov.uk/oyster/entry.do\"\u003eOyster Card\u003c/a\u003e and a list of agents around the world.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLondon, I will see you soon! \u003cstrong\u003eI\u0026rsquo;m so excited!!\u003c/strong\u003e 😂 🐾 💋 💓\u003c/p\u003e","title":"UK Trip Planning"},{"content":"It\u0026rsquo;s all over the net at the moment - ginger is the essential healthy power food! I don\u0026rsquo;t put a lot of ginger in my cooking but I love to eat Japanese pickled ginger from time to time. This is a recipe I\u0026rsquo;ve been using. The result was great, even mum gave it a thumbs up. Here is the VERY simple recipe on how to make Janpanese pickled ginger:\n","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20130430japanesepickledginger/","summary":"\u003cp\u003eIt\u0026rsquo;s all over the net at the moment - ginger is the essential healthy power food! I don\u0026rsquo;t put a lot of ginger in my cooking but I love to eat Japanese pickled ginger from time to time. This is a recipe I\u0026rsquo;ve been using. The result was great, even mum gave it a thumbs up. Here is the VERY simple recipe on how to make Janpanese pickled ginger:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Japanese Pickled Ginger Recipe\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Qoc0!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F88dcc854-bc1a-42c4-b088-e3e7bb0a7b56_800x496.heic#center\" title=\"Japanese Pickled Ginger Recipe\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","title":"How To Make Japanese Pickled Ginger"},{"content":"Sydney Bridge Climb - the experience John has bought me a ticket for a full 3 hours of Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb for my birthday this year (thank you John!! 💕 ). I have to say that I have always thought the bridge climb is an overpriced tourist thing. Why would I ever do that if I live here?! :) Nevertheless, I was excited to wake up at 3am to get ready for the bridge climb.\nWe were very lucky that we were in a 5 people group, instead of the usual 10-15 people groups. I guess that it might has something to do with the higher price for the morning climb - for the sunrise view. Everyone got to know each other pretty quickly and we were able to complete the pre-climb training ahead of schedule. The training was to give you an idea of what to or not to do on the bridge. We then had to change into the overall provided by the company. We were not allowed to take anything with us to the bridge.\nA bigger group would waste a lot of time on waiting for slow walker etc., because everyone has to be chained to the side of the bridge and has to walk in a line the whole time. With only 5 people, we were able to chat with each other with or without of the headphones. We could yell at each other if anyone wanted to stop for a quick photo - yes, only the guide has a camera and the camera is chained to him as well. The guide was a cute young guy. 😂 He told us lots stories and history about the bridge. For example, did you know that a diamond ring was lost during a proposal on top of the bridge? Every since then, if one plan for a proposal on top of the bridge, one need to chain the ring on the wrist. If the girl says yes, then the ring will be transferred to her finger without leaving the chain. 😅 FYI, the lost diamond ring was not recovered so look carefully when you walk on the bridge. haha…\nThe view on top of the bridge was amazing! I was in love with it. We could see the rain on the left hand side of the sky yet on the other side, the sun rose behind the clouds. I was very impressed! It was so beautiful! It was so worth the money! I\u0026rsquo;m going to tell everyone to do this! No wonder so many people have marriage proposals here! 😂\nIt was very windy on the top of the bridge. I really understood why everything has to be chained to the hand rail. We were given “survival packs” to be chained on ourselves. I was so glad to find a jumper in it because it was freezing too.\nThere were plenty time on top of the bridge for photos, stories, history talk and time to just enjoying the view. The walk down the bridge is on the other side of the bridge. We enjoyed the different view and marveled the structure of the bridge. It was said that it takes 3 years to maintain the bridge and even more to repaint. It was said that when one round of work completes, its most likely time for the next round to start again! It makes you appreciate the design and the engineering of the bridge even more!\nThree of us (Steve \u0026amp; Sam), we have had such a good time that I was totally shocked that the whole climb took more than 2 hours! It was time for pancakes and coffee!\nThe Verdict It\u0026rsquo;s great, do it! If you plan to visit Sydney, book for a Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb and ask the guide to tell you the story about how they made it happen for Oprah in 2010.\nSide Notes I stayed in the city because I wanted a short walk to the bridge in the early morning. I\u0026rsquo;ve not walked around the city of Sydney at 3am before. Relatively safe, interesting people hanging around the streets at this hour, very different from the day! This 3.5 star hotel needs thicker walls and windows! I\u0026rsquo;ve asked for a higher level and a quiet floor as usual. I kept waken up by the noise from the street - they do travel up. The room next door kept you know what going for the whole night and from the noise, you could tell that there were a few people there! LOL I\u0026rsquo;ve hardly slept at all between downstairs and the next door. This is why after the climb and breakfast, even with all the sugar from the pancakes, I wanted a nap! I won\u0026rsquo;t stay in this hotel again! Food Highlights All pretty good, enjoyed them all! Photos ^^\nDinner at The Rocks Breakfast/brunch at Pancake on the Rocks Sam’s chocolate challenge 😂 Drinks and dinner at Bavarian Bier Cafe, really enjoyed it ","permalink":"https://huatuostudio.github.io/posts/20130406harbourbridge/","summary":"\u003ch1 id=\"sydney-bridge-climb---the-experience\"\u003eSydney Bridge Climb - the experience\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Sydney Bridge Climb Trip\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!TGJX!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5ae67adc-7a93-4dc9-8e38-eb25e8dff78a_434x423.heic#center\"\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJohn has bought me a ticket for a full 3 hours of \u003ca href=\"http://www.bridgeclimb.com/\"\u003eSydney Harbour Bridge Climb\u003c/a\u003e for my birthday this year (thank you John!! 💕 ). I have to say that I have always thought the bridge climb is an overpriced tourist thing. Why would I ever do that if I live here?! :) Nevertheless, I was excited to wake up at 3am to get ready for the \u003ca href=\"http://www.bridgeclimb.com/\"\u003ebridge climb\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e","title":"Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb"}]