To Give Is To Receive (Day 1)

Yangon, Myanmar

Day 1

[caption id="attachment_2611" align="alignnone" width="584"] Jason & Me :)[/caption]

This is our 6th overseas trip together and I am really glad that my boy took out time from his busy schedule to join me on this meaningful overseas volunteering trip with 5Cs to Full Moon Orphanage. I have always wanted to join such overseas volunteering trips back in my school days and I finally got this checked off from my to-do list. :)

[caption id="attachment_2612" align="alignnone" width="584"] My dearest darling Jason :)[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2613" align="alignnone" width="584"] Me with the lovely children :)[/caption]



Our lunch - Aglio olio. :)

[caption id="attachment_2614" align="alignnone" width="584"] Building the base for the toilets[/caption]

One of our missions at Full Moon Orphanage is to build toilets for the children.



I set up the DVD player for the children to watch Tom & Jerry and it gathered so much attention from the children. There is NO TELEVISION, NO COMPUTER and NO INTERNET in this village. The home has to rely on solar energy for its source of electricity. Whereas in Singapore, children are so fortunate..so pampered..so sheltered..so protected.  Toddlers are already using iPad and you can be amazed how good they are with it and most of the primary school kids own the latest iPhone models, etc.. And over here, a small DVD player can bring so much joy to the children.

[caption id="attachment_2616" align="alignnone" width="584"] Watching Tom & Jerry :)[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2630" align="alignnone" width="584"] Cheeky boy[/caption]

He is one of my favorite boys in the home and his nickname is cheeky boy. He likes to play with the volunteers and always give us a silly cheeky smile.



Cheeky boy and his handsome little good friend.



I made them do this heart-shaped pose for me. Heehee..



They are in "Grade 1" and they are the youngest children in the home. And of cos the cutest ones too. :) The little boy with the red checkered shirt has a nickname from us and he is called boy gek (no teeth). Lol!



I love this pic a lot! Heehee.. I asked them to do this cute cute pose for me.





They are washing their hair with the anti-lice shampoo provided by the sponsors.

[caption id="attachment_2625" align="alignnone" width="584"] The Girls' Dormitory[/caption]

The children do not have proper bed and they have to sleep on wooden planks.







My boy is bringing his expertise to good use. :)

Lake Tekapo

Lake Tekapo, New Zealand

[caption id="attachment_2584" align="alignnone" width="584"] Sean, Kylie, Charlene, Doreen, Sherwin & Me[/caption]

It was my first time to Christchurch and we went on a road trip to Lake Tekapo which is about 3 hours drive away from Christchurch.

[caption id="attachment_2585" align="alignnone" width="584"] Me, Charlene, Doreen, Kylie & Sherwin[/caption]



I am not sure what mountain is this but I find that the landing into Christchurch airport is one of the best I have seen so far. The landing into Christchurch airport is so beautiful and you get to enjoy the picturesque view of the mountains and lakes above the skies. Forget about the aisle seat when you travel to Christchurch, get the window seat man!

[caption id="attachment_2587" align="alignnone" width="584"] Church of the Good Shepherd[/caption]

We were pretty lucky to witness a wedding ceremony at the Church of the Good Shepherd.



It is a very small church but it is a unique place to exchange your love for each other.



Visitors can enjoy a nice view of Lake Tekapo while the wedding is ongoing.







I am practicing chinese kungfu. HAHA.



Still trying my best to balance... Lol!

[caption id="attachment_2591" align="alignnone" width="584"] Me, Sherwin & Kylie[/caption]

We are trying to make a heart-shape pose but failed.

[caption id="attachment_2592" align="alignnone" width="584"] Me, Sherwin & Kylie[/caption]



It was SNOWING but it is just a little. Such a lovely surprise though.. :)



One of the activities that I find it interesting that you can do here is stargazing. According to reviews, the Mt John Observatory in Lake Tekapo is one of the world's best places to star gaze.

[caption id="attachment_2602" align="alignnone" width="584"] Credits: http://blog.lensjournal.net/tag/dark-skies/[/caption]

This is a photo I took from the net. Oh my goodness... It is so pretty! Another to-do list added - Stargazing at Lake Tekapo! I will be back... I WILL DEFINITELY BE BACK!!

Venice Revisited.

Venice, Italy



This is my second time to Venice and you can view the post on my first trip here. This is a place where you will want to come with your partner and of cos, I wish my boy was with me. Venice is one of the places that I want to bring my boy to visit one day.

[caption id="attachment_2545" align="alignnone" width="584"] Gondola ride[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2546" align="alignnone" width="584"] Magnets[/caption]

I have a hobby of collecting fridge magnets and I have collected many different types of magnets from around the world. My collection is still expanding... :)

[caption id="attachment_2547" align="alignnone" width="584"] Rialto Bridge[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2548" align="alignnone" width="584"] My batch girl Wei Li[/caption]



We settled our dinner at one of the restaurants by the water. Lovely ambience!

[caption id="attachment_2550" align="alignnone" width="584"] Our main course[/caption]



[caption id="attachment_2552" align="alignnone" width="584"] Tiramisu[/caption]

This is one of the best tiramisu I have tried so far. The tiramisu was soft and melts in my mouth and it goes well with the chocolate sauce. Yums!



This strawberry dessert was surprisingly delicious!

[caption id="attachment_2554" align="alignnone" width="584"] Piazza San Marco (St. Mark's Square)[/caption]



Venice at night is absolutely stunning and romantic. I just wish my boy was with me, holding hands and walking around aimlessly in this land of romance.



There are lots of restaurants on the square playing live classical music.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="584"] Villa Delle Palme[/caption]



We stayed one night at Villa Delle Palme which is a B&B in Lido. It costs 100 euros for two for the one night stay. There was a strike and it shuts down much of the public transport network. It was also a real hassle to get to this island from the main island which takes about 30 minutes ferry ride. The hotel concierge recommended this B&B saying it was good and affordable but with the time and effort spent, we would rather pay more to stay in the main island.



We took the ferry back to the main island on the next day.







This cruise ship looks so nice!





[caption id="attachment_2571" align="alignnone" width="584"] Me & Wei Li[/caption]





Venice - The holy shrine for lovers. I love you Venice... Will definitely be back for you again...