Share a Moment: Do Not Worry

An extract from "How to overcome your difficulties" by Ven.K.Sri Dhammananda:

"The secret of happy, successful living is to do what needs to be done now, and not worry about the past or the future. We cannot reshape the past, nor can we anticipate everything in the future. There is but one moment of time over which we have some conscious control and that is the present.

Many people just worry about the future. They have to learn to adjust themselves to the circumstances. Whatever castles they may build in the air, whatever dreams they may have, they must always remember that they are living in this world of constant friction and change.

There are no stars which we could trust, There is no guiding light, And we know that we must BE GOOD, BE JUST, BE RIGHT!"

28 Oct 2007 (12.55pm)

My Vacation on Star Virgo: Special Dedication

My hubby had wanted this picture to be taken to remind him of how fortunate he has been to be able to enjoy a wonderful meal as we sail on the ocean. The view of the moving waters, the blue sky and the sparkling ocean is not something we get to enjoy everyday.

We feel so blessed for the opportunity.

Psst, see the 2 kids? We think they are twins. :)

28 Oct 2007 (12.45pm)

My Vacation on Star Virgo (Final): The Before and After Disappointments

From the bottom of my heart, I have nothing to complain about the cruise. Everything was good and enjoyable from the point I stepped onto the gigantic ship.

Perhaps the nature’s way of conveying that nothing’s ever perfect, our almost perfect vacation was marred by the procedures of checking in, boarding in and immigration clearance.

To me, the whole process was chaotic and it seemed like the cruise centre was not designed to cater for the over 2000 passengers. Can you believe it took us about 3 hours to get into our cabin from the point we reach the cruise centre?

But strangely, when I spoke with friends about this, they seemed to be surprised with my encounter as their own experience were not so bad. Frankly, I couldn’t remember such bad scenario during my previous trips too.

Or was I so ‘suay’ (unlucky) to the core that day?

Here’s our experience:

About 7.50pm: Reach Singapore Cruise Centre at Level 2. There were already long, long and still long queues (apparently more than 1 queue). I did a brief survey and found the queue for World Cruiser (our booking category). We started queueing.

(It said Boarding Time was 8.30pm so we just stayed in our stationary queue)

About 8.30pm: I noticed some movement somewhere in from of the queue, so I went forward to check things out again. I got more confused as there seem to be more queues. Saw a staff who was on duty and asked (apparently lots of people was confused as everyone seemed to be asking the same question – WHICH QUEUE?). Finally I got it – first, queue for the checking in, then moved to another queue for the boarding in. (I almost freaked out)

Anyway, I went back to my father and hubby and told them we were in the wrong queue and ushered them to the correct one. So we waited……

Close to 9.30pm: I think it was around this time (or later) that I finally reached the counter for the checking in. I was starting to feel tired. After checking in, we went to the queue for boarding, and gosh, that queue snacked through one pillar after another. We decided to go for dinner at the food court first. We were dead hungry. ( We had earlier thought we could board the ship by 9pm, and have our dinner on board thereafter – how naïve!)

About 9.45pm: We went back to the queue for boarding. The queue was long but we could see we were among the last passengers in the queue.

I thought once we get pass the boarding in gate, we were saved! But wow, I was wrong!!! And how wrong!

After we passed through the board in gate, there was this usual luggage scanning which we need to go through. The crowd was already packed up to where the scanning equipment and sensors were.

Looking further in, we almost fainted. The queue was a queue no more. It was just crowd!! It was like a 3 lanes converging to 2 lanes and people started messing up the lines.

The worse was at the peak as we need to get clearance from the immigration counters. God knows how long we spent here because I had totally ‘switched off’. We couldn’t see the front anymore, and were just moving along whatever space was ahead of us.

Close to 11.30pm: The last I did a check on the time was when we finally got into our cabin and well, it was about 11.30pm!

How frustrating. But the time we spent on the cruise made up for it, until we return, again!

The checking out part was fine. Again, the bottleneck came from the customs. I really wonder what’s wrong!!!!

28 Oct 2007 (12.20pm)

My Vacation on Star Virgo (Part 3): Really Cruise for the Soul

At one point, the sky turned dark, with strong winds blowing. It was a little scary but only for a while. It did rain a moment later but who cares. We did our indoor walk. The rain stopped after a while.

I think this was the first time I encountered dark clouds on cruise. Another experience...

If it rained outside, we could just step indoor to fill our tummies! Eat while we looked at the weather outside. Whatever we did, they were enjoyable. :)







Even the library provided a cosy environment for relaxation. It wasn't too crowded and the sofa were very comfortable. Even when there is really nothing one can do, just pop into the library and read or just sit and stare and the moving waters.





Finally an opportunity for us to step out of our cruise at Port Klang, Kuala Lumpur. We did not join the city tour but just ventured out to look-see-look-see. We managed to buy some tidbits (finally a chance to spend some Ringgit).





How fast time flies when one is enjoying....We are getting closer and closer to Singapore again. The mood tend to sink a little. Haha, I was busy visualising our next trip. What to do...got to motivate myself a little. Good thing, my hubby was still happy. Looked like I was the more discontented being!

Finally finally, the familiar places and icons were within our sight. Getting nearer and nearer. Wish I could carry on with the cruise...

So much for this trip (but not quite the end yet. I have yet to make my complains which will come in Part 4!) and looking forward to another one soon!


For now, I just have to look back at the 300 plus photos I had taken and salivate from time to time. OK, BACK TO REALITY!!

24 Oct 2007 (9pm)

My Vacation on Star Virgo (Part 2): Still Soul Good

A luxurious setting for a good meal. What more can I ask for? We had our first lunch at the Chinese restaurant, The Pavillion, which is of course included in our package.

We went in, sat down and food was automatically served. There were 6 dishes (incl one chicken soup). I was pretty satisfied with the meal but of course, one of the reasons for the good appetite was the environment we were in. Just watch the view behind me!




A good form of therapy for the mind. Even when there is really nothing (and I mean activities) I can do, I can simply stare out into the open space and relax. Seriously, it's one of the great enjoyment for the mind, and in my 'cluttered' life.


If you love the sea, this is perhaps one of the ultimate things, other than diving and fishing in the open sea. At least, that's what I think.






You can get a similarly good view of the ocean and the breeze and the sky while sitting or lying on the resting 'couch'. Also a good idea to do some reading and then dozing off.

Look how 'shiok' dad was. I would do that too!








A gigantic screen of the sunset. Even the camera couldn't take all of it!

If you care to spend some moments to observe, you would see the amazing things from natural settings. The sky changed - from darkness to sunrise glow, to the clear blue sky, to the ever changing clouds (and most of the times you could see interesting pictures forming above), to the setting sun. Every moment was unique.

One moment it's a piece of gold, and the next moment, you see a field of glittering diamonds.

If you are a person who go for natural phemonenon, then this is one experience you shouldn't miss......

Part 3 coming up!

22 Oct 2007 (9.35pm)

My Vacation on Star Virgo (Part 1): Soul Good

It has been a long wait! We had booked for this trip about a month ago and had been waiting eargerly for this day to arrive. It's both an agony and excitement having to count days for the trip to materialise (17 - 19 Oct 07)! Hahaha....

This time, I went with my dad and hubby. Dad was with me on the previous cruise vacation. This is the first time my hubby had a vacation on a cruise. I was worried he might not enjoy, but he ended up feeling 'high' too.


I had been on the Star Cruises about 3 times before this one. And no doubt about it, I still enjoy cruise each time. It is not an everyday affair that you get to be so near the ocean and what's more, we are in the middle of it! I feel so peaceful and calm. The ocean, the sky, the sound of the waves, the sunrise, the sunset, the breeze. I feel so blessed to be able to enjoy these all at one go!


We were so fortunate to have a cabin which faced the front of the cruise. Each time we pulled open the curtain, we would enjoy the scenary as the cruise sailed forward.


Imagine sleeping on the upper deck of the bed with the curtains opened. The moment I opened my eyes, that's what I see (window view in the left pic).





Couldn't help it, folks. The breeze was simply intoxicating. One tends to get euphoric with just a dose of the whooshing wind. Wish I could fly like the swallows...










What's more enjoyable than having a meal (or meals) surrounded by the great ocean. The view and the feeling cannot be described in simply a few words. Eating onboard the cruise increased one's appetitite at all-time high.



We enjoyed our meals both indoor and outdoor. The most importing thing was, everywhere we were eating, we could see the sea and the clear blue sky.

PS: Looks like Blogger is giving me problem downloading more pics. Continue with Part 2 when I resolve this.

21 Oct 2007 (8.50am)

Snapshot!

Another proud picture I had taken off my Star Virgo. I love this one, though would be somewhat better if it is a little closer.But well, I am satisfied!

20 Oct 2007 (8.30pm)

Share a Moment: A Happy Married Life

An extract from "How to overcome your difficulties" by Ven.K.Sri Dhammananda:

"In a true marriage, the husband and wife think more for the partnership that they share than for themselves. Marriage is a bicycle made for two. A feeling of security and contentment comes from mutual efforts. Impatience and misunderstanding are responsible for most family problems. A wife is not her husband's servant. She deserves respect as an equal. Though a husband has the breadwinner's duties, helping out with household chores does not demean a husband's masculinity. At the same time, a nagging and grumpy wife is not going to make up for shortages in the home. Neither will her suspicion of her husband help to make a happy marriage. If her husband has shortcomings, only tolerance and kind words will help him to see the light. Right understanding and moral conduct are the practical aspects of wisdom.

Marriage is a blessing but many people turn their married lives into a curse. Poverty is not the main cause of an unhappy married life. Both husband and wife must learn to share the pleasure and pain of everything in their lives. Mutual understanding is the secret of a happy family life."

13 Oct 07 (9.00pm)

A blissful marriage wish

17 Oct 07: A special day for the couple. Here's my niece, finally tied the knot! May their new life be filled with love, joy and happiness.

Congrats, Peter and Yvonne! You've just started on a new chapter of your lives. Cherish each other forever.

A sisterly pose. Aren't they cool? So, er....when's your turn, ladies?

In my confusion, I thought this is a 3 generation pose. But actually only 2 generations here. Haha.

Another sisterly pose...By the time their turns come, I wonder how many strands of grey hairs (or perhaps uncountable) and wrinkles I would have!

13 Oct 07 (12.17pm)