Goodbye on a Rainy Day

December 16, 2010 2 Comments

I have lost count how many times we have said goodbye to one another. (Perth, Shanghai, Singapore and now here in Hong Kong). And I thought I am so used to saying goodbye to both of them. I thought to myself that this was only a short 6-month separation and it won’t be as bad as the one in 2006. I was so wrong about my thoughts. Goodbyes are painful – no matter how many times we have been through.

Thankfully, my Singapore buddies (Yifu, Meijie and Lilian) were in town to lend their support. Harshad and Tracy (and dad) also came to send them off. It was a big happy (and noisy) farewell. I thought their company will help to ease (and distract) the sadness. It was pretty okay from our house to the airport. Elkan was very happy today, he was looking forward to go home to meet his granny and cousins. Normally, he was the one crying at the departure gate and Felicia and me had to comfort him. It was the adults who were in tears and he comforting both of us.



Elkan was acting pretty different (very sensible and mature) today. He knew he was leaving Hong Kong for good and he said many nice things to cheer me up. He is always a happy kid. When I asked him if he will missed me, he said I will miss him more. He said he will behave well so he fly back soon to play video games with me. He also left me with a lot of written “I love you, daddy” notes. Minutes before the departure, Elkan and me went to the loo. My mind was so occupied with my work and their departure that I left my pouch in the loo. I left the loo first. Elkan saw the cleaner picked up my pouch. He instinctively guessed it was my pouch and took it from the cleaner. He passed the pouch to me and said “Is that yours? I saw a uncle holding it and I told him it is yours. Daddy, please be careful, can?”

At the departure gate when we bid farewell to them, the smile on Elkan’s face slowly diminished. He dropped his backpack and started whining for me “I want daddy, I want daddy”. It was an unbearable moment. Holding back the tears, I gave him a tight hug and told him I will be back very soon. Do well, my son and take care, I said. I looked at Felicia, her eyes were wet. So were Tracy (and Harshad). It was an emotional moment for all of us. After all, we have been through so many good happy days in Hong Kong. For me, it was goodbye to my son and wife – Elkan is starting school in 2 weeks’ time – they had been on the road with me for 3 years. For Tracy and Harshad, it was goodbye to their favorite buddy. Some one who they doted so much during their stay in Hong Kong.

Meijie came to give me a hug while Felicia and Elkan went through the gate. They say big men don’t cry. I can’t help it. It breaks my heart to see my son and wife so sad. Harshad kept patting on my back, comforting me. Tracy’s dad tried to calm the situation with a good joke. “Hey, those weren’t tears of sadness. It’s tears of joys. You are a free man now!” Yes, today is my Independent Day!

I hate goodbyes. Especially on a rainy day when Christmas is just around the corner.

————————————————————————————————————————————————

(Thank you all who came for the farewell office lunch and wrote us all those encouraging notes on Facebook and sms. We are really touched and blessed to have you guys around. It is moment like this that teaches us to cherish and appreciate each other more. And thanks Harshad, Meijie, Tracy, Yifu, Lilian for popping by our house today. Our Pink Christmas Tree is completed now – with all the farewell Polaroids!)

Filed under Family, Jo's Thoughts, Life in Hong Kong, Wahbiang

90% Wahbiang!

December 15, 2010 Leave a comment

After waiting for more than 4 years, I finally get to see Yifu and Lilian (our 116th Visitors) in Hong Kong! And what a special day it was – It was Lilian’s birthday and also on the eve before Felicia and Elkan headed home for good. And through God’s blessings, Meijie flew in from Taiwan too! Just want to let you guys know that it is so good to have all of you here with me – especially during my gloomiest day. There is never a better timing.

Now, the Wahbiang Reunion is complete. Felicia asked me to trace back all the Wahbiang visits and posts on my blog. From our 1st visitor Joanne (in June 2008), there were 23 of you in total – evenly spread over 30 months. Imagine all of you came at the same time, that will be a big gathering! Either way, we are very glad that you guys made your way here to visit us.

Filed under Life in Hong Kong, Wahbiang

Time to go Home

December 12, 2010 5 Comments

In less than 72 hours, Felicia and Elkan are leaving for Singapore. Over the last 2 days, we have been packing and shipping our stuffs back home. Reality starts biting into my heart. I tried telling myself that this won’t be a long separation and everything will be okay. It is really quite difficult for me to handle their absence. Especially Elkan, he is the life of the house. His voices, his laughter and all his pranks – I am going to miss all of these. At the same time, I am happy that he will in the arms of many loved ones back home. Family comes first for me.

4 years… that is how fast time flew by. Felicia and Elkan have been on the move with me – from Shanghai to Hong Kong. So fast, my little baby is already 6 and he will be attending Primary One in less than 2 weeks. While it is a short-term separation for us in Hong Kong, they will be reunite with the family and friends back this Christmas. Unlike my previous re-locations, Elkan is the main reason why we are moving back to Singapore. (For his education and the reunion with the old folks.) Hopefully, he will get used to his new life back home. Indeed, this will be a new chapter for everyone – not just for Elkan but more for Felicia and me. Life will be very different again. And honestly, I have no idea how things will turn out in the next 3-6 months. Many of my friends have moved back to Singapore and most of them regretted the move.

I am not the only one who will be missing their presence. Elkan’s teacher Jas, his Korean & Hong Kong school mates and his weekend buddy, Harshad will miss him a lot. Last week, Felicia organised a mini farewell party for the children. His teacher, Jas came by specially last Wednesday and spent the afternoon playing with Elkan at the amusement center. Nursing a fractured shoulder, Harshad came by this afternoon and played PS3 with his favorite “Rock-Star” buddy the entire evening. Before he left, he gave Elkan a farewell gift – a very nice “Wolverine” headphone.


Elkan knows that he is leaving Hong Kong and he is looking forward for his new life in Singapore. Over the past few weeks, he has been telling everyone about his new school in Singapore. Since last week, my boy has been tugging in our bed, spending his last Hong Kong nights, snoring beside me. (And he will be tickling me every morning to wake me up!) Yes, I am going to miss all his pranks. 2 months ago, they weren’t around for only 1 week and the house was so empty and different.

This is not our first separation but my heart tells me that it will be another painful one for me. Just like our first. It won’t be a long one, I am sure.

Filed under Family, Jo's Thoughts, Life in Hong Kong

Library on Wheels

December 12, 2010 Leave a comment

(Photo Taken: Mobile Library at Soho East, Hong Kong – From Mobile Clinic to Mobile Pet Spa, you can get almost everything on wheels here in Hong Kong.)

Filed under Life in Hong Kong

Hold the Lift Door

December 12, 2010 Leave a comment


(Photo Taken: Old Lift at Causeway Bay, Hong Kong – When I was young, mum would scold me for meddling with the lift door. Well, here is one lift door that you have to push and pull.)

Filed under Life in Hong Kong

Rooftop BBQ Party

December 12, 2010 Leave a comment

Last evening, my boss, David threw a rooftop BBQ party for the whole department. It was another new Hong Kong experience for the Singapore family. We had never been to a rooftop BBQ party before. And it was a great experience for all of us.

David’s house is a 20-minute steep walk hike up at the Mid-Levels. His house and rooftop are big – at least 2,400sqft in total! The night view overlooking Soho, Central and the harbor was beautiful. The atmosphere (music, candles, weather) and settings were just perfect! There were lots of food, drinks and even toys for the kids. This is really the kind of life I never get to enjoy back in Singapore.  Strangely, we always had that impression that Hong Kong is too congested and over-crowded. But there are always space for us to roam and chill out (the hills, the beaches, the forests and many many rooftops!)

It was pretty windy and cold last night. I had to give Felicia my own sweater. Braving through the chilly December wind with only a t-shirt, I am surprised my body was able to regulate itself and kept me warm throughout the night.


There is no argue that the French has the world’s greatest chefs! Barbecuing with the French was an eye-opening experience. It is an art! This is something we Singapore BBQ-lovers should learn from. David has invented a peculiar way of barbecuing. And his secret? The hair-dryer. He demonstrated the ease of starting and keeping the fire consistent with no sweat. Forget about those fire-starters and all that tiring fanning. All he needed to do was to press that button – out came the hot air and rise the fire! Simply innovative! And the food tasted so good!

As usual, Elkan was the loudest kid in the group. He was playing, screaming and running wildly with his new French girl (David’s 2-year old daughter) on the rooftop. Not forgetting Harshad (who just messaged me about his broken bones), he was loud, tipsy and stole the show last night. (He was so loud that the estate security guard came up to check on us!) At midnight when all of us were leaving, Harshad started drinking vodka with our French hosts. I got this strange feelings he slept on the rooftop last night – just like the show “Hangover”.

This was the last big gathering party for me this year. Most of us are clearing leaves and departing for work. I am clearing my outstanding leaves for the year – leaving only 4 working days till the end of 2010. Chowpo and Paul are leaving for their work assignment in Japan next Monday. Subu, Mike and Tracy are leaving Hong Kong for their holidays. And sadly, Felicia and Elkan are heading home to start their new life in Singapore. (Well, on the bright side, my Wahbiang Clan brothers from Singapore are on the way here in less than 48 hours!)

Just 3 more weeks to the end of 2010. Lots of departures and reunions. This is going to be quite an unusual Christmas for me. Maybe it is a good time for me to make short trips to visit my friends in China and Taiwan.


Filed under Life in Hong Kong

Coke-Jamming Christmas!

December 11, 2010 Leave a comment


(Photo Taken: Coke Mascots at Causeway Bay, Hong Kong – Causing today’s jam – The not-so-fat Santa Claus, the crumbled and recycled-looking Giant Coke Can, the sad Polar Bear, the made-of-paper Vending Machine-Transformer and a snobbish looking Red-Nose ReindeerMan. Where are the pretty angels? No free coke. Just free entertainment. And causing lots of jam. Where is Pepsi when you need them?)

Filed under Life in Hong Kong

Sign Off

December 6, 2010 Leave a comment

(Photo Taken: Interesting signs outside a property at Sai Wan Village, Hong Kong New Territories)

Filed under Life in Hong Kong

A Very Rocky Hike

December 6, 2010 Leave a comment

For the last 4 Sundays, we have been hiking pretty short and gentle tracks. None of our previous hikes exceed 5km. In fact, we have been building good momentum and stamina. We are hiking at a faster pace without any difficulty. It is time to test our limit. Perhaps a tougher and longer track. I decided to pick a rocky terrain for the family. We headed off to explore the rocky Sheung Luk Stream today.

The Sheung Luk Stream is well hidden along Maclehose Trail (at Sai Kung Sai Wan Cove Village). It stretches about 1.6km inland and consists of 7 sections of water falls and deep pools. To go there, we took a cab all the way to the end of Sai Kung Sai Wan Road (inside Sai Kung Country Park East). From there, it was a tiring 3km hike to the Sai Wan Cove Village – where there are a couple of nice beach restaurants. There isn’t any indicators pointing us to the stream. Luckily, a boyscout overheard our conversations and gave us the direction to the area. (See our trail below: http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=901699)

This is a beautiful hike. The mountain trail is well-paved and the scenery from the top is fantastic. The Sai Wan Cove is great! Most of the popular Hong Kong beaches are dirty and have coarse sands which make it too painful to walk on barefoot. The water at Sai Wan Cove is clear and its sand is surprisingly white and powdery. This is a great place for beach activities.


At the cove, we couldn’t find the trail leading to the Sheung Luk Stream. A kind farmer pointed us to the track and warned us about the rocky terrain. She saw Elkan and cautioned us about the dangers ahead. She was right. The terrain isn’t suitable for children. It is pretty steep and slippery at some spots. We had 2 minor casualties today. Elkan and Harshad slipped and had a nasty abrasion on the rocks.  I had some difficulties climbing down slope – my Converse shoes aren’t made for rock-climbing. In the end, we left the ladies and boy behind and went on to explore the upper sections of the rocky stream.



The rock pools are big and deep. This is the perfect place to dip (or skinny dip) during the hotter season. I can imagine the dare-devils doing cliff-diving down these water holes. It will be fun to come back during summer. Harshad and I didn’t manage to explore all the 7 sections of the stream. As it is the dry season now, we didn’t see any waterfall at the first 2 sections. The sun was also setting and we still have to hike 3km back to where we started.

I must say – Our hikes are starting to get more interesting and strenuous. And yes, we crossed the 5km mark today. We hit 6.3km, up 167m and hardly breathless.


Filed under Life in Hong Kong, Travel

Let’s dine at the…

December 5, 2010 Leave a comment

(Photo Taken: The “Very Good Restaurant”, North Point, Hong Kong – Risky to name your restaurant this manner. If it doesn’t lived up to its name,  simple just add the word “NOT” before the name.)

Filed under Life in Hong Kong

← Older posts

Newer posts →