New Year Celebrations !

For New Year's Eve, we had lots to celebrate. Tonight, over at KC's family get-together dinner, Theresa triumphantly produced her very own Singapore-style chicken curry, much to everyone's delight. After 32 years, she had suddenly discovered her innate culinary talents. In concocting her pièce de résistance, she took advice from everyone around her, including multi-racial (Maly-Indian-Chinese) tips for her secret recipe :-)

Since 4 months ago, after firing the maid and revamping the kitchen, she has been tinkering around with different recipes. Daryl, Yihan & myself were willing subjects and unanimously declared her curry to be our favourite dish! Daryl next added much cause for jubilation by announcing his official engagement to his beloved Yihan. She happily showed everyone her uniquely designed diamond ring, modelled after Theresa's engagement ring. Way back in 1982, it was specially created by grandma & grandpa's personal jeweller to bless our marriage, 3 decades and counting.

Good news to round it all up was Daryl & Yihan's successful bid for government-subsidised housing after a lucky first-try ! Somehow they had the good fortune of securing a high-floor, brand-new apartment nearby, currently being built right next to the MRT (mass rapid transit) train & bus station. In order to qualify for a bid in the first instance, Daryl showed his foresight by starting his job in insurance/financial planning more than one year ago, while doing part-time university studies. Bravo!

Japan in the Autumn 2015

After experiencing spring last year, Japan in autumn was added to to our bucket list of places to visit. Thus 2015 ushered in our much-anticipated "koyo viewing" adventure, beginning in Mt Fuji & Kawaguchiko where we had ended our cherry blossom chase in 2014.

When Theresa and I lived in Boston over 1991-1992, we couldn't imagine any other place more beautiful in autumn than New England, with it's famous Swift River-Kancamagus Highway and many other scenic waypoints. Now that we have seen momiji or the Japanese maple, we feel doubly-blessed for each region has its own beauty.

Mt Fuji and Kawaguchiko lake district, Yamanashi Prefecture

As I told Theresa, what can be more iconic of Japan than it's tallest mountain to serve as the backdrop to autumn leaves? And since Kawaguchiko was where we stayed the last time in spring, we re-visited some old, and some new places around the Fujigoko or "Fuji five lake district".

In celebration of Theresa's birthday & our 32nd wedding anniversary, we splurged out on a modernised ryokan called Ooike Hotel, in a mountain view upper-floor room with its own private onsen or springwater-fed hot tub. Staying for 6 nights in a row, we were rewarded with 3 consecutive blue sky days, enough to capture forever, the face of Mt Fuji in some of our most memorable pictures.

On this trip, we specially drove up to the Subaru 5th Station on Mt Fuji. Although the official climbing season ended in August, the first 1 km of the "Yoshida" summit trail was still open for the public to explore. We also did a part of the "Ochudo-meguri Trail" which means the boundary between heaven and earth, encircling the mountain between the 5th and 6th Stations. On the volcanic scree slopes we saw numerous stunted Japanese larch (karamatsu). This is the only conifer to change colour (and lose its needle-shaped leaves) in autumn. The Japanese larch rivals the ginkgo tree with its brilliant yellow colour.

Shiraito Falls, Shizuoka Prefecture

Since we had rented a nice Subaru Imprezza with 4WD, we decided to drive the 50km from Kawaguchiko on one of the blue sky days we enjoyed in the first week of this vacation. Along the way, we stopped by Lakes Motosuko & Saiko, each of which had their own beauty.

Waterfalls have always had a magical aura about them. Wherever we travel in the world, Theresa & I will seek them out, especially if it doesn't entail significant danger! After all, where there's water & green moss, a careless slip can translate into a trip to the hospital.

When we finally cast our eyes on this amazing waterfall, we understood why Shiraito Falls is a national treasure. There were throngs of people but the parking wardens were able to handle traffic flow smoothly. We were impressed that the walking paths were nicely paved. Inspired by the natural beauty, Theresa decided to step gingerly amongst the rocks to pose for some really cool shots.

Hakone & Lake Ashinoko

By the time we moved on to the Green Plaza Hotel in Hakone, the weather system had changed dramatically. Light drizzles, mist and fog were the order of the day and Mt Fuji hid her face. As we had anticipated this, we did 2 earlier side trips down the Fuji express toll road from Kawaguchiko and managed to capture bright sunny images on the famous Skyline Highway & on the pirate ship cruise around Lake Ashi.

Contrasting with the sparkling blue days were moody and mysterious ones which had their own special beauty.

We enjoyed hiking through shifting fog in the Sengokuhara Susuki fields (Japanese Pampas Grass).

Next we climbed from the famous lakeshore Tori gate up to the Hakone Shrine of the nine-headed dragon.

We also walked through a reconstruction of the Hakone Checkpoint (Hakone Sekisho) located between Moto-Hakone and Hakone-machi along the shore of Lake Ashinoko.

We then ambled in awe through a grove of magnificent 300-year old cedar trees.
These trees can rival California's Redwoods and giant Sequoias in grandeur. Theresa, an avid tree-lover, feels that we are greatly privileged to have seen these Californian giants on our previous travels.

Historically, Hakone used to be a very important checkpoint to control traffic along the Tokaido, the highway which linked Tokyo with Kyoto during the feudal Edo period.

(Please click the sidebar links to our online Picasa albums).

Shinjuku, Hotel Century Southern Tower

They say that Shinjuku has the world's busiest railway station. Add on the fact that the Station is being continually upgraded & it follows that one is bound to get lost in its labyrinthine passages.  No wonder we took much longer to find our final hotel destination.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained is so true when it comes to choosing a room with the best view. Technically speaking, we had pre-booked a corner panoramic room with "Mt Fuji view". But seeing how the weather was inclement, we asked instead for a highest floor room and gained so much more, as can be seen from these panoramas.

Shinjuku has everything and more for the avid shopper. Theresa was delighted to find her favourite Cath Kidston shop while my search ended at "Map Camera", an amazing storehouse of good-as-new secondhand cameras & accessories.

Every morning, we had a hearty buffet breakfast with a view in Hotel Century's 22nd floor Tribeks Restaurant but by dinner-time, we hungered for our favourite Hakata Ramen shop in Tokyo Station's restaurant mall called Kitchen Street. Using our Japan Rail 5-day flexi-pass to book reserved seats on the Narita Express, the journey was a zippy 20min ride each way.

Calvin's Exhibition, Melbourne 2015

Midway through his Master's programme, Calvin non-chalantly told us of his sterling project being exhibited in the newly constructed Design Hub of RMIT in downtown Melbourne. Mum took the opportunity to organise a quick getaway holiday to witness his creation & round it up with a roadtrip to the countryside.

It was happenstance that Daryl & his partner, Yi Han were having their  term / end of Uni breaks respectively, hence they happily came along . As luck would have it, I managed to book accommodations for everyone in our favourite lodgings - the Quality Hotel Downtowner on Lygon and Lonsdale Views, on the Bellarine Peninsula.

At the exhibition hall, Mum surprised Calvin with a few choice pieces of his childhood artwork creations, drawn 20 years ago when he was just 6 years old, while attending fun classes at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in Singapore. Truth be told, there was never any coercion by us parents on both boys for any particular profession. Suffice it to say, art appreciation from a young age may indeed have influenced Calvin in his chosen field.

Lonsdale Views & the Bellarine Peninsula

 Michael Hanley, farm-owner cum chief steward of Lonsdale Views introduced us to his charming wife, Sue who checked us into cosy accommodations & treated us like family. As one of only 2 parties lodging over 2 nights, it really felt like a home away from home. This time round, we had the Ruby Apartment with its full kitchen, which allowed us to really cook up a storm. Daryl & Yi Han enjoyed exploring the walking trails on Michael & Sue's 200-acre farm while the billiards table was popular with everyone.

We all strolled down to the sand dunes & the beach to breathe in fresh sea breeze, feeling really close to Nature. Upon check-out, we introduced Yi Han to the family tradition of playing a round of minigolf on the Bellarine.
Amazingly she did commendably well as a first - timer.

Jigokudani Yaen-Koen, Nagano Prefecture

Last month, Theresa (a.k.a. Sayuri) and I visited the Jigokudani snow monkey park in central Japan, which was established in 1964. It is a place where the interesting lifestyle of the Japanese macaque can be observed up close. Here the monkeys enjoy onsen baths.  

The park is located in the valley of the Yokoyu River which flows from Shiga Kogen in the northern part of Nagano Prefecture. People named the area Jigokudani or Hell's Valley because the steep cliffs & hot water bursting from the Earth's surface resembled Hell. In reality, it is a winter paradise for a few hundred snow monkeys.

They are so used to being photographed that they go about their monkey business oblivious to the hordes of camera-toting paparazzi. The Japanese macaque has a highly structured society. In their lives, they form close relationships with each other and each monkey fulfills specific roles within their group.

Human visitors have to hike a scenic 2km (treacherous when icy) forest trail into the park. They are strictly prohibited from touching or feeding the monkeys. Only the park rangers can supplement the monkeys' winter diet by throwing them grains several times a day, much to the delight of park visitors.

Tsubakino Hotel, Yudanaka Onsen Village

To make our odyssey in wild snow monkey terrain less of a hellish ordeal, we decided to "camp" for 6 nights in the nearby onsen village of Yudanaka. We found a comfortable, modern ryokan hotel Tsubakino, with a unique rooftop onsen.

The hotel pipes hotspring water up to 3 different bathing facilities on its rooftop, comprising a women's only, men's only and a cosy private onsen. After hours of trekking in the freezing cold, imagine us soaking away our aches and being invigorated while watching snow fall in the evening light. Ahh, no wonder the monkeys know how to "onsen" in winter ! All in, we hiked into the park on 4 different days & saw the cute fluffballs under all kinds of wintry conditions.

To complete the ryokan experience, every night we had gastronomic multi-course Japanese meals served by an affable personal waiter, Kodama Takanori. And despite full reservations every night, the chef Ichimura Tatsuya lovingly created exquisite items of freshly-prepared local produce as well as delicacies from far-flung regions of Japan. For example puffer fish, smoked duck, wild vegetable tempura and sakura ice-cream !

The hotel manager, Shozo Tagawa and the CEO Hideaki Yumoto were exemplary in their leadership & management, giving us such personal attention. Late one morning, Shozo himself drove us in the hotel's minivan to the monkey park when we couldn't catch the local bus or available taxi. On that particular day, we wanted to time our hike to coincide with a predicted mid-afternoon snowfall.What could be more praise-worthy? Service par excellence :-)

Each afternoon, after a strenuous hike, we also found time to enjoy the freshest salmon-avocado sushi & salad at our favourite Enza Café just outside the monkey park. Good food, good hiking and wonderful relaxation in an onsen hotel just about sums up our idea of a real vacation in Japan.

The Metropolitan Marunouchi Hotel, Tokyo

We chose to stay at the Metropolitan Marunouchi for the simple reason that it was adjacent to Tokyo Station with great food and shopping.

Every night, we would head out to our favourite ramen shop, Hakata Umauma in the Kitchen Street of Tokyo Station. Given the inclement weather in winter, it was also reassuring to know that most times, pedestrians could walk along sheltered pathways and the underground. At night, from our 31st floor corner hotel room, we could gaze upon the twinkling lights of metropolitan Tokyo, all the way to Tokyo Bay.

Interesting places like the Ginza and the Imperial Palace were just 30minutes away on foot. Our JR Pass could grant us even more mobility further afield if we had the inclination to do so.

Theresa was delighted when she located her favourite Cath Kidston outlet. She bought herself 2 pairs of limited edition designer Gola-Cath Kidston trainers which she was unable to get in Singapore or through the internet.

Just a few blocks further down the road, I was equally thrilled to locate the giant Bic Camera retail outlet where they stocked up an impressive range of Panasonic lenses like the ultra-compact 12-32mm wide-angle zoom.

Calvin's Graduation in Melbourne on 17th December 2014

 

Every parents' dream is to see his or her offspring get ahead in Life. Coming from a meritocratic society like Singapore, graduation days are indeed milestones to remember fondly. What better way then, to kick off that important day with a street parade by graduands, cheered on by proud parents, siblings & well-wishers !

In Australia, RMIT University has a unique all-morning affair, where graduands of all faculties celebrate together by marching down Swanston Street, in the middle of the city, to Federation Square all dressed in their academic gowns, to hear keynote speeches. Heading the parade is a rousing Scotch College drum & bagpipe band which lends a carnival atmosphere to it all.

The very same night, 25,000 people filled the Etihad Stadium in the Docklands city-fringe, to witness the simultaneous presentation of degree & diploma scrolls to the graduands of all the various faculties involved. Everyone had his/her moment, as real-time video telecasts were projected onto huge screens for each faculty, complete with full name and degree overlay ! Amazingly, the whole ceremony, including commencement speeches, presentations and closing address all lasted a mere 3 hours.