3 Things about Guifeng Mountain National Forest Park

1. It is located in Xinhui District, Guangdong Province, China.

2. It houses a blooming flower-like pavilion at the centre of a lake (Jade Lake).

3. It has a perfect spot overlooking Xinhui.

Will you climb up the Great Wall of China on a winter?

It was winter time when we went to Beijing so we were loaded with clothes and accessories such as stockings, long john, sweater, coat, ear muffs, gloves, socks, boots, scarf, and heat pack. With all of these, we survived a week of low temperature even as low as negative 6 or 11.

Unique experiences in China

- International terminal is so huge that you need to take a train to claim your baggage. In fact, on the day of our departure, we were at the airport for 2 and a half hours before the flight schedule, but still, we were 30 minutes late due to long queues in immigration and security check; train-ride, walk, bus-ride before we got in the plane.

- Sumptuous food: Watermelon, brocolli, and chysim were some of the food always on the menu be it for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

- Wonderful cultural heritage: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, Great Wall of China, Hutong Area, and the Language.

- Sales ladies who had “excellent” selling tactics. They were to sell stuff up to the point that they pressured buyers till they would buy it. They would block costumers by stretching their hands. They would give big discounts even if you were not asking for it; if you did not buy the item at the discount they offered, they would nag at you for not buying the discounted product. They charged really really high; 450 yuan could be down to as low as 100 yuan.

- Tour guide who would limit our time in sight-seeing but would let us take our time when buying things. Also, the tour guide offered 5 sights to see for 80sgd. To our disappointment, only 1 of the sights had to pay (and it is only for 1sgd)... All the rest were for free!

But... regardless of those both good and bad experiences, I enjoyed my overall experience because I got to go up the famous "Great Wall of China"!

Here are some of the places you should see when in Beijing:

Temple of Heaven - where people ask for Good Harvest

Summer Palace - a popular tourist destination and recreational park

Tinanmen Square - a large city square named after Tiananmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace)

Forbidden City - Chinese Imperial Palace from the Ming to Qing dynasty, and now houses the Palace Museum

And the highlight of the trip, climbing up the world famous...

GREAT WALL OF CHINA!

So, will you climb up the Great Wall of China on a winter? Absolutely! I thought, it would be cooler and cooler as I went up... But, it was not! The more stairs I took, the more clothes I removed! Of course, I still had clothes on when I reached the top! :)

Evidence?

End of the climb without my thick jacket... I had to remove it because it was getting warm!

Five reasons you should visit Chengde, China

1. Take a photo with that frozen waterfall in your background.

2. Lie down on that frozen lake... But, be careful... Be extra careful! It is slippery!

3. Be dazzled by Rehe Spring!

4. Take a picture of the octagonal brick pagoda with 70 meters height known as Sarira Pagoda.

5. Have a warm night sleep in a yurt.

Why Phuket is Awesome?

Why Phuket is awesome? Do I still need to answer that? Well, because of Phi Phi Island and Maya Bay to name a few! :)

Maya Beach - where Leonardo De Caprio's "The Beach" was filmed

Phi Phi Island - where we spent most of our time

Mekong River will never be the same years from now

My friends and I set off to the capital city of Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City or Saigon. My Vietnam experience was awesome that made me want to come back again and again.

Day1

On our first day, we had a trip to Cao Dai Temple and Cu Chi Tunnel. The trip was about two to three hours away from the city.

Cao Dai Temple is the place where people worship their God. Their religion is a combination of Confucianism, Protestantism and Buddhism.

After that, we headed to the Cu Chi Tunnel.

This is the place where tourists will have a glimpse on how the Vietnamese people lived and fought for their freedom during the Vietnam War.

There were a lot of tunnels that served as their secret passage. I was able to pass through the 100m tunnel. The tunnel was so small and there were dark areas. Hurray! An achievement for me that I was able to do it!

Day 2

On our second day, we cruised along Mekong Delta. If I could remember it right, it was three hours away from the city. But sad to say, the Mekong River would never be the same years from now according to our tour guide. Perhaps, because the river was already polluted because of dumping.

Mekong Delta is the source of life of the Vietnamese people.

Day 3

We spent our third day touring the city of Ho Chi Minh.

Here at the War Remnants Museum we reminisced the past events happened during the Vietnam-American War

Chinese Temple

Handicapped Handicrafts - Run by the government to help those people with special needs

Independence Palace - The building built by French, but then, later on destroyed by the Americans

Bin Thay Market - The biggest market in Ho Chi Minh

Notre Dame Cathedral

That's it folks! Our last two days was spent shopping and pampering ourself! :)

Will you spend Christmas in an Islam country like Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia?

This was my first Christmas away from home. So, together with my friend, we decided to spend our Christmas in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. KL is near to Singapore, which is approximately 6 or 7 hours away by bus. I thought, I wouldn't hear Christmas songs in KL. I was wrong! In Berjaya Times Square, there was a choir singing some Christmas songs. There were also some Christmas decorations in few places. Christmas was alive in KL!

Here are the other activities that we did while in KL:

Of course, no one would miss taking picture with the tallest twin towers in the world, the Petronas Twin Towers.

Batu Caves is a popular Hindu Temple outside India. It is reachable by mrt from the city.

We wanted to go to Genting when we met this Filipino Family in Puduraya Station. We went to Genting together via taxi or rented van (I couldn't remember... Oopps!)

Yeah, it's that cold in Genting! We could not even see what's inside the theme park.

The Start of Singapore Adventure

Singapore was the first country I visited. It has a very small area, but it belongs to the top ten richest countries in the world. It is also one of the cleanest countries. True enough! You will encounter no dust and no car smoke as you walk around Singapore. The people are much disciplined. They follow traffic rules. The drivers are courteous enough to give way to the people to pass in the pedestrian. There are so many things to know about the country, and surely you will love the place like me.


On our first day, we explored the Marina Bay area. Tourists who travel around Singapore should not miss to see the place. It is where the famous Merlion Park and Esplanade were built. There are two lions in the park – the big and the small. Near the park are different cafes and restaurants which can feed your hungry stomach. At the opposite side of the Merlion Park is the newly constructed mall called The Shoppes at Marina Bay.


Prepare your feet for a long walk. The Shoppes at Marina Bay may seem near from the Merlion Park. Yet, when you go to the other side, you will know how far it is. However, it worth the walk! On the way, you will see more beautiful places. The Fullerton Bay Hotel, Raffles Hotel and other establishments are some of these places you will encounter.

Marina Bay, Singapore
With Teacher Halzi
May 2010