Last day of CNY

Chinese New Year is officially over (but it's still CNY to me which means the non-stop eating frenzy continues :P)... 

Last night, we had a simple meal at home. When the sky turned dark, the firecrackers and fireworks show began until it started to rain at around 10pm.  The whole neighbourhood was so alive! It really felt like we were at war or something, except this is the sound of excitement and happiness... Of course, at times I worried too coz we were also polluting the air :S

Tiger didn't really find it amusing at all though. When our neighbours played firecrackers, he started to bark.. It's like, he was yelling "BE QUIET!!!" haha... When fireworks explored above his head, he looked up and barked at them as well... At the end, he got really tired and just ignored everything and rested himself in the garden... I bet he must be thinking " since i can't beat them, I might as well ignore them" hahaha....

The scariest thing after CNY is my weigh. After all the uncontrollable eating, I wonder how many KGs I have put on! It is pretty hard to resist those high fat high calories food during CNY you know. They are just on the table right in front of me and it's not polite to reject them... So, I joined everyone else and ate and ate and ate..*weak will power*.. til now, I still haven't had the guts to weigh myself. I'm just not ready to accept the truth >__<  but judging from my skirt and pants, I think the outcome will not be so pleasant.... T___T Jane on the other hand is the brave one for she weighed herself on the 7th day of CNY and found herself heavier by 4kg... She reckoned that 4kg is on her face instead of her body.. what do u think? haha

Yay... waiting for our Vietnamese hor-fun!

Looks like both of us have really round face... but i like to think of it as 福气满满！ *self-consoling* I have to put the blame on my sister... because from the very first day we arrived Perth and entered her house, all of us were 'blessed'.

Like other Chinese, my sister has words of good luck hung at her front door... It is said that, by hanging these at your main entrance, these blessings will come to you all year round... So, what happens when these words were hung by one of my nieces who doesn't understand Chinese? It's still a blessing to all who lived at or visited her house BUT in a different way... 

You see, my sister asked for "getting rich"  and "good fortune"... which sound very good on their own... unfortunately when you combined the Chinese words, they actually mean "getting fat" (發福) haha... Spotted it and told my sister.. She explained it to her daughter and we all laughed hysterically.... 

Getting Rich on the left

Good Fortune on the Right

發福 = Getting Fat

Thanks sis for the extra pounds! Would be great if these were actually British Pound which she enclosed in the angpow! 

CNY Down Under

I'm back! .... to reality >___<

How was your CNY? I had too much fun and had to drag myself back.. so, where have i been?

Just like all our previous CNY, my parents made last minute decision on the country where we will be celebrating CNY. This year, they picked Perth. Golden CNY... Hmm...

I thought airfare to Perth would be cheap since it's summer at the moment and everyone would want to escape from the heat instead of flying there to be baked... haha, i was wrong. Flights were quite full and as usual, we ended up with expensive airfare... well, it's alright because spending time with all my loved ones during CNY is gonna be priceless!

I took a midnight flight to Perth this time... I was planning to fall asleep and wake up in Perth but... my plan didn't happen because I was surrounded by babies and toddlers who didn't need to sleep for 5.5 hours T___T You see, half way thru my sweet dreams, I got woken up by their cries.. or them knocking into me when playing at the aisle, or they accidentally pulled my hair while trying to stand up.. or they kept screaming for their parents to play with them... Good that I only need to deal with them for 5.5 hours.. I can't imagine how their parents do it everyday! Well, i guess if they were my kids, i would put up with their naughtiness too... but with limits :P

Then I decided to hide myself under my shawl, blocking myself from all the insanity... Then in my little sanctuary, i fell asleep... BUT not for long because I got woken up again... Darn! This time by the captain's announcement! Seriously, I don't really care how you fly your plane. I don't need to know details of how far I've flown, how many metres I'm above the ground, how fast the plane is travelling at.. I just want to SLEEP and reach my destination safely and on time.. haha, i can see you nodding your head in agreement. I don't usually complain because I am grateful that the pilots take me to where I need to be but it's midnight.. we want to sleep... You know what? It would be great if their announcements could be made in writing so I could read when I want to and best of all, if things don't turn out the way they say, at least I have black and white as evidence buahahhaha... Ok, i was just kidding. I think I am still insane after the 5.5 hours of torture....

I arrived Perth at the crack of dawn. 5.20am to be exact. The rising sun created layers of colours in the sky. It was beautiful! While waiting for Jane who would only arrive at 645am, I stood outside the airport feeling Perth, the place I used to call home...

Fooling around at 530am

Everything felt so familiar. The heat, the summer breeze, the smell of air and the scenery are just the way I remembered... The air is fresh and smells of dried grass.. The sun was so bright that I could hardly open my eyes... The wind was a bit warm and dry and I felt my skin started to tighten up... Nothing has changed, even the toilet smells just the way I remembered, in a good way la hahaha... Well, I don't know how to describe it to u.. I can show u pictures of things/ places I remember but not the smell, taste and the feeling.. I guess there are certain things that just cannot be substituted by technologies.. you see, we can take pictures and videos to remind us on wonderful or not-so wonderful events.... but not the smell, taste and our feelings.. Hmmm... there, this is an idea to the inventors out there...

Memories of my teenage years flooded back.. This airport used to be my happiest and saddest place... Happiest when I came to pick my parents and saddest when I sent them off....

Clear blue sky

Our family reunion was super duber great! We had dim sum and dinners together... these were the craziest times because getting a place for 25 people is almost impossible. With such big crowds, we were the noisiest in the restaurants because to talk and to be heard, we practically had to scream haha... We totally disregarded others in the restaurants.. Yup, we lived in a world of our own. A few times, I felt envious eyes on us.. I bet people wish they had a big family like ours too.. We could throw a party without having to worry that it would be a boring and quiet one haha... Don't believe me? Just take a look below...

p/s: no reunion is complete without good food :P it's cny so naturally, red is the theme!

I really love that there are so many of us in the family.. Although I didn't enjoy the heat (42 degree celsius), I really enjoyed spending time with my loved ones.... so many of us but too little time!

The colour of happiness

The unfortunate has happened.... I know it will happen one day but i didn't expect it to happen so soon... oh well, there is nothing I could do to stop it anyway... but I know i could have been nicer to lengthen its life... 

Guess what? am now typing with a laptop which i borrowed to use.. my trusty old friend was sicked 2 weeks ago.. Initially, i didn't think it was gonna be anything serious coz i only had problem connecting to the internet. So i called Dr. Network to help. He spent a few minutes clicking here and there and doing a whole lot of tests which i had no idea what they were... then he said "there, u can now connect to internet...But......" great, i love and hate that word! "...but, i think u should send it to the workshop for more checking coz there is something weird about your laptop." huh? serious? something weird about my laptop? well, at least i wasn't the only weird one! ha! Like user, like laptop i guess :P

So i obediently sent my laptop to the workshop for diagnosis... 2 days later, i got a phone call... Dr. Workshop asked me if i have backed up my stuff. Yes, i have! Countless of time... on countless HD to be exact so in case one fails, i still have other back-up... Everyone must have a plan B right? 

He said "good, coz your laptop needs to be retired...." @___@ I was devastated! I really love my laptop! Because it hasn't given me any trouble at all for the past 3 years! Sigh, life is strange.. one second you are strong and healthy, another second you are pronounced dead! :S

Okie, it's CNY soon,  let's  talk about something cheerful and ... RED like....

Big and sweet strawbies my friend bought for us.... And also fresh strawberry milk! yummo!

They scream "EAT ME!" haha

Strawbies milk~~ Must try!

These are very yummy...! Some people said red colour will immediately brighten up your day... I didn't know that eating and drinking something red can also cheer u up! 

Also, i bought myself a pair of pink shoes for CNY! Aren't they charming?

Do u like my new shoes?

Even Tiger gets something red!!

Be happy everybody! ^^

Ready to say I'm ready!

I'm so ready for CNY!

I must give all the credit to mum this year. She is the one who decorates the house with red lanterns, ang pows, new curtains, cushions, new flowers by the corner of our living room, new door mats for the main and side entrances, new table clothes... ow, my dad and i did lend a hand too... like cleaned the car porch with super water gun and washed the balcony... 

Mum is very very efficient... one day 3 weeks before CNY, when i came home from work, i found a cupboard full of CNY titbits. I gotta admit, mum is a super woman.. how did she manage to get so many things done in so little time? 

it's a torture to see them everyday and not allowed to eat!

Last year, my mum made me a cute bed sheet... Guess what I get this year? 

In the year of snake, my mum decided that my bedsheet should be more romantic...  like a Secret Garden! 

Like Like! Got CNY Feel~~

Gong Xi Fa Cai! 

May you stay healthy and happy forever!