Bali Day 2: Green Bike

The alarm clock rang at 6.50am. I jumped out of the bed and peacefulness greeted me. I like the quietness before the kids come bouncing around. Daddy Lim joined me thereafter and continue to laze around.

I had the chance to take some pictures of the quiet villa.

It was still raining since the night before and we had booked a bicycle tour with Green Bike. Bcos of our group size, it was just by ourselves, which was great when we have so many kids. We opted for Green Bike bcos they were so fast with their responses as compared to the other 2 bicycle tour companies. Also bcos of our size, we had a good discounted price.

We were still struggling with bfast when the Green Bike representative knocked on our door. It was afterall the 1st morning in the villa and the caretaker needed to adjust to our schedule. It was a full day tour and the cycling would take only 2 hours. Though raining, there would be a chance that the sun would shine when we start cycling. Otherwise, ponchos would be provided. We decided to proceed than to be stranded in the villa and in the rain.

There was a car ride to some places for the kids to test and pick up their bike. It was drizzling hard while the selection went on. The original plan was for kids to be on their own bike; that was what all the "training" in Singapore were for. Zaky complained of knee pain and we thought it would be better for him to go on tandem bike. However, what they had were the double bikes and it was way too big for the boys. Zaky also got excited when he saw the girls choosing their bike and declared his knee pain gone. He  eventually got his  own bike. Ground zero.

After the selection, we were brought to the coffee plantation. We saw the cat that poo poo the coffee bean and none of us wanted to try poo poo coffee. The animals eat everything but opted for the best, which is why the coffee beans that they consumed and pooed are the best.

These are how the poo looks like. Who would drink That?!

The guide explained the process for coffee making and there were hands-on too.

We were invited to bfast part 2 - pancakes and more interestingly, coffee and tea tasting.

It was also a great place for pictures taking.

We had our 1st group picture less Daddy Lim, who was stuck in the toilet poo pooing. Lol.

Enroute to the cycling start point, we visited a volcano for more pictures. Finally all in for group picture.

Finally, we started the cycling tour at about 11am. The rain finally stopped! Yeah!

The moment we started, I realised that it was a wrong choice for Zaky to be on his own bike. Apparently we were driven to somewhere at a high attitude and we were cycling down a huge slope. What we had to be was more control and braking than actual cycling, which is super difficult for the kids. Barely started, AN crashed into my bike bcos I had to stop as Boo was going slowly and Zaky had to stop to avoid crashing into her and I was behind Zaky. Chain effect and she ended up being the victim. We changed tactic to alternate the adults and kids. Zaky also was banished to the end so that he would be less of a hazard to the rest.

It was a tiring journey. For the entire way, I was riding behind Zaky, yelling at him to slow down, to brake, to keep left/ right... whatever. I was just constantly yelling. I had to be very alert as well bcos the little boy had the tendency to suddenly brake and stop to sneeze or scratch his head/ face/ hand/ leg/ whatever. He had so many itchy spots when he rode. Faint. It didn't help that a large part of the journey was on roads that we had to share with cars and many motorbikes.

There were a couple of pit stops along the way. This one, we visited a local home. They had cats and puppies and the kids went crazy.

At the main pit stop, I tried to coax Zaky to take the tandem bike with Daddy Lim. He refused and I wanted to cry bcos it was so mentally tiring. The staff gave us biscuits and bananas to replenish our energy.

We went on for a while more and were so far behind from the rest bcos Zaky was stopping so frequently. I couldn't take it anymore and realised that the bicycle mechanic was on a motorbike following us. I suggested for Zaky to take the motorbike instead and he took the bait. Muahahaha. The remaining 30 mins was truly the "bicycle tour" for me. I easily caught up with the rest and got the opportunity to enjoy the scenario; for the 1st part, all I saw was Zaky's rear tire.

Zaky did grow bored as the pillion. My job from yelling at him to slow down had changed to yelling at him to hold tight. My poor heart. Finally we arrived at the end point.

Lunch was provided. We were sent to a restaurant that sat next to a padi field for buffet lunch. The kids didn't eat much bcos everything was spicy even though they claimed that it wasn't but the adults had amazing appetites.

The kids went to explore the padi field after that. It wasn't that great an idea now quite a few of the adventurous kids had their shoes in mud.

We headed back to the hotel after the tour. It was finally swimming time and it was freezing cold!

We had arranged for the cook to prepare dinner for us at IDR6.5k per pax. It was a nice spread but almost everything was spicy. Kids ended up with instant noodles as supper.

Much of the time left was spent in front of the TV. The staff arranged for massues to come to the villa for messages. When asked who wanted massages, Lil Shauna's hand went up really quickly. Lol. Well, it only cost about S$12 and the little girl had her wish.

The massage must be heavenly after a whole day of activities bcos the little girl fell asleep midway. She was barely awake after that and willingly slept in our room; Daddy Lim was banished to the other empty room. Sleep was so much easier than the 1st night.

How was the bicycle tour? It wasn't too bad. The route was well planned out. I was hoping for a workout though but I didn't get any bcos it was downslope all the way. Lol. Zaky likes it though and asked to do it again! I don't think my poor heart can take that in the near future. Lol.

Mummy Lim

Bali Day 1: Ubud Rise and Shine Villa

Finally, after waiting for forever, it was Bali Day. Hohoho. Our flight was at 4.50pm but we decided to meet early at 1pm to have lunch and to let the excited kids bounced around. With companion, they could play the entire day.

We had a simple lunch but the objective was to let the kids burnt off some energy at the playground. They were so excited and bursting with energy to the extent of being irritating. Arrgghhh.

While the kids tumbled, we sat a distant from them to enjoy some peace.

Time passed so quickly and soon it was time to board. Excited was too mild to describe us.

The Liow family was beside us while the rest were in the front.

We took KLM this time. After the last few budget flights, I just knew that I must take a full fledge flight this time. The previous flights were too painful.

The flight was comfortable. Daddy Lim was quick to praise the leg space after being squeezed like sardine the last few budgeted flights. Lol.

On the way to Bali! The kids were very well entertained by the flight entertainment and meals and so were the adults. I managed to watch Beauty and the Beast and started Harry Potter. Woohoo! Even the kids lamented that the flight was too short bcos there were so many movies to watch. Hohoho. The food was nothing to shout about though and I wouldn't even talk about the service, give me SQ anytime.

We touched down on time but there was a long wait at the custom and an even longer wait for the luggage. When we finally got out, we easily found the driver with my name card.

The mini bus that they insisted could carry all of us all was a little of a squeeze with the luggage. Zaky was on my lap and ER had to squeeze with his parents. It was a 1 - 1.5 hr ride to the 6 BR villa in Ubud. Zaky fell asleep on the way and so did my poor legs. I am quite sure my already flat butt has been further flattened through the process; the boy is now a 25kg. Finally, we arrived and I was hoping that I would be able to revive my dead legs. Fortunately, the villa was a stone throw from where we were let off.

The website advertised that the villa was 3 mins' walk from civilisation. I didn't believe it given the last experience and we were all well stocked with snacks and instant noodles. It would be bad to be stuck in the villa with no food and hungry little people.

There was a short walk on a narrow walkway to the villa. We all went "oooooo" and "ahhhhh" upon setting foot in the villa. We were soon settled in while the kids explored. It was then supper time! Dinner was too early and instant noodles were a hit.

Zaky was too tired to eat and asked to turn in early instead. Lil Shauna opted to sleep in the extra bedroom with AN and Boo.

Sleep was difficult for me. It started raining heavily in the night and I was awoken by the water gushing off the roof. Then the dogs were barking and the sound proofing was so bad. I had a nightmare too about the haunted villa. Zzzzzz. Roooaaaarr.. I am tired.

Mummy Lim

Morning Ride

The usual routine is to hit the treadmill. However, I had been toying with the idea of a morning ride with the kids for a long time. Moreover, it was Bali Day and we had a late afternoon flight. It is only right to tired the little people out so that nobody bounces around at home and irritates me. Muahahaha.

Actually, none of the kids wanted to wake up. Lol. It was with much reluctance that they finally got their butt off the bed.

The idea was to loan an Obike for Daddy Lim. Lil Shauna then said that she wanted my foldable bike and we ended up with 2 Obikes. Hehehe. We found an Obike right outside Centris lobby but realised that we couldn't unlock it. We had to walk to the bicycle parking space outside Boon Lay MRT station and finally found our Obike. After we got our Obike, we saw so many more park illegally at the weirdest places.

The 1st stop - bfast at the Jurong Park Mac. We needed the energy. Haha.

We took off and used the Park Connector to cycle all the way to Chinese Garden. It was a nice ride though a bit slow bcos Zaky's bicycle has really small wheels.

The kids didn't enjoy the ride as much as I did. Zaky said that we should ride to JE and then take the MRT back bcos he was too tired. LOL. We took a rest at Chinese Garden and the kids decided to explore the green field. Unfortunately it was filled with big angry red ants. Zaky got bitten a couple of times and he ended up crying hysterically. That was when we decided to turn back.

On the route back, Lil Shauna banged into one of those barriers meant to slow down cyclists entering the Park Connector. She ended up breaking one of the brakes and a cut on her palm.

Oh well, we made it back alive though. We will try again another time. Haha.

Mummy Lim

Ho Chi Minh and Back

It wasn't too long a trip. I started day 2 really healthily; a trip to the treadmill. I was impressed with the equipment bcos I could watch what was on the TV on the treadmill too. There is also an air vent blowing air to keep me cool. I wish Centris has the same. Haha.

In my exercise gear, I had a quiet bfast while I cool down. There were no little people asking for cereal or apple juice. Nice.

Though a lousy night, I think I was still very much alive.

The day in the office past very quickly and I was glad to be able to avoid dinner. Goodness, I was beat. 

I did attempt to walk to the Saigon Centre in hope to do some cheap shopping. I did arrive at the venue but didn't find anything to buy. On the way back, it took me a while to find a convenience store. Ice cream and chips accompanied me for the rest of the evening. Sleep was so much better on the 2nd night. 

The last day was no difference from the 2nd day except that I was going home! The day past uneventfully and I was getting excited with every passing hour. I can't wait to go home. Hohoho.

Finally, welcome back to Singapore. I was dead tired.

There were interesting episodes that littered the returning home journey. On the plane, I saw for the 1st time how the air steward had to convince a passenger who had too much of a drink that he cannot be offered more. 

My taxi home was very "exciting" too. The moment I boarded the taxi, I already regretted - the uncle was stepping on and off the accelerator every few seconds and I predicted that it would be a dizzy ride. Additionally, he was adjusting the steering wheel constantly and the whole car was shaking left and right on top of the front and back jerking. Can cry. Then, he did 80km/hr on the extreme right lane of PIE throughout the entire ride and I lost count of the cars that had to overtake us on the left. I don't know if I should pity the other cars more or I was the one being pited by the other motorists given how slow and jerky the taxi must had been.

Several times, he swerved back to the lane after going into the other lane. Sob. I feared for my life. Then there was a road work at the Corporation exit and he missed the exit but almost come to a halt while still on the expressway! Luckily, there weren't many cars. I can't tell if he was contemplating to reverse on the expressway but I encouragingly asked him to move on and take the next exit. I think I would waste a few minutes and some taxi fare then my life. 

You can tell how glad I was to be home; both from the trip and surviving the taxi ride. Home sweet home.

Mummy Lim

Ho Chi Minh Alone

It is another business trip to Ho Chi Minh City on my own. I had a morning flight and was on the way to the airport early in the morning.

It was kind of lonely on my own.

The loneliness was all forgotten once the shopping starts. Woohoo! My loot!

The flight from Singapore to HCMC was only slightly more than an hour and I was happily catching up on movies. It is so enjoyable taking flights without kids. Hohoho. Even the view outside the window looked exceptionally good. No

Hello HCMC! Land of Motorcycles.

I had time to drop my luggage at the hotel, had a nice shower and even a mask before heading to the office. Roar... or should it be a "meow"?

I survived my 1st day but was dead tired by the late afternoon. Not only flying is tiring, I also refused to go to bed until after midnight the night before. Backside itchy lah.

My Vietnam colleagues were very nice to bring me out for dinner; I was totally beat. I thought sleep would be easy but I didn't have a good night. Like the 1st night on most of my work trips, I was so exhausted but my mind was alert and I didn't fall asleep. Yes, I lost sleep; me who usually drift to lala land within minutes (sometimes seconds) upon hitting the pillows. It was antagonizing. I also woke up frequently in the night. Zzzzzz. I missed my bed.

Mummy Lim

Red Belt Already

I was looking back my blog and found that Zaky had started his TKD in July 2015. He hasn't missed a grading test since and after almost 2 years, I proudly declared him a Red Belt!

As I was with Lil Shauna at her off ice class, Daddy Lim sent Zaky to his TKD class. I was waiting anxiously for his updates and reminded him to take pictures. Hohoho.

Zaky was confident of passing; I thought he would do fine too since he remembered all his steps during grading test. The next step would be the black tip and then finally the junior black belt (I think).

I have no idea if he has to do anything special to get his black tip or what would be tested. I heard he is supposed to learn 4 patterns and would be randomly tested on 1 of them. Zaky said that he revised on his red tip and blue belt test patterns during class. Daddy Lim has been tasked to find out when he picked the boy from make up class this evening.

We haven't decide as well on what happens after he achieved his junior black belt. Would he continue or switch to something else? He is still uninterested in ice skating despite seeing jiejie dance on ice and join competition. The boy had been particularly interested in basketball and Daddy Lim would be signing him up for some NBA something lessons. Maybe that would be next.

Mummy Lim

Blind Bats X 2 + Mega Heartache

I have perfect eyesight. When I was a kid, I do wish that I could wear glasses bcos that was like so cool and fun. As I grow older, I realised how common myopic has become and how troublesome glasses are. Shortsighted people around me are either using contact lenses or have gone for Lasik in hope to regain their perfect sight. I now pride myself for my perfect eyesight.

It is not that I did anything in particular to protect my eyes; I lie down to read and watch TV, I watch TV in the dark too. I accrue the good eyesight to good genes. Nobody in my family is shortsighted.

I was hoping that the kids would inherit my good genes but my genes proven to be not strong enough. Both kids were tested in school and came back with 9/6 vision. I know it is a matter of time but I am in denial.

Lil Shauna had been complaining that she cannot see properly. I had been ignoring her and hoping that the problem would go away by itself. Of course it doesn't. I know that glasses are inevitable but wanted to delay them for as long as possible. Once she gets them, there is no returns.

D day is finally here. Daddy Lim thinks that the issue can no longer be avoided; I would continue to pretend things are ok if he hasn't stepped in. He brought his little girl for her very 1st pair of glasses. Sob. I am so sad.

We now officially have 2 blind bats at home. Lil Shauna, like any other kids, is pleased to have glasses. She said she looks like a teacher. She has of course hasn't experienced how inconvenience can glasses made life be. For now, we agree that she will only wear glasses when she needed to study.

Mummy Lim

Ice Skating 85: Landing her 1st Flip Jump

We were quite late today bcos I procastinated too much. Then, we were stuck in the MRT for a while. It was a mad rush to get some practice before class.

By the time Lil Shauna was ready, she could almost go into the 1/3 Ice, which also mean that she didn't have much time for practice. She has improved on her scratch spins and needed to work more on her sit spins. Her loop jumps are fairly consistent now but she hasn't landed her flip jumps. She tried a few but wasn't successful. Her only response to me was "cannot". I want to bite her.

Class started with footwork as usual.

It was jump day today! Teacher Raymond revised a few of the jumps that she was previously taught and then went on to work on her flip jumps. Of course she didnt dare tell Teacher Raymond "cannot" lah. The 1st few weren't successful and he went on to correct her posture.

I was feeling bored and decided to take a video of her flip jumps, maybe through videos we could improved.

Guess what? She landed her 1st flip jump in that video! She too was surprised and estastic at her success. That look on her face was priceless. Whatever that it was, she got it and went on to do a few more flip jumps. Teacher Raymond tried to teach her combined waltz jump and loop jump thereafter but she couldn't lift her butt for the 2nd jump. Lol.

The girl was so happy at her success. Teacher Raymond was pleased too and said that she can soon start working towards axle jumps. Eerrr... I think she can work on being good in her jumps 1st.

She was talking excitedly non-stop after class. Lol. She must be really happy. She even went back willingly after class for more practice. Yeah!

Mummy Lim