Going thailand - part 2

Day 6 - BKK d2

Since we were taking the evening train
We tried our best to stay in hotel till checkout
I even went to 7-11 to get breakfast
And waited till last moment to take our precious shower for the day.

We went to the Jim Thomson house
And was surprised that entrance fees include a tour
We both enjoyed the tour despite the hot weather
When we were leaving, I saw there was a shuttle tuktuk to the main street
And I pulled husband along to satisfy my tuktuk wish
And the ride ended in 5min haha

We then went to mbk to hide from the sun
I managed to buy a fake gopro selfie stick
Which served us well for the trip.
Because of husband's xl size
We tend to pay more for clothes
Sales are often for size s-l
Husband saw a tee that he really like
And I managed to use my "candy bargain" method

The owner wanted to sell the tee and shorts for 400baht
After bargaining awhile,
She agreed to sell at 330baht
I only wanted to pay 300baht and tried persuading her
But she wont budge
In the end I told her to sell me at 300baht
And I will give her a candy
Which I pick up at the massage parlor
She laughed and agreed
And husband was so impressed! Haha

We then had lunch at an unknown fast food restaurant
Took the bts and metro to the train station
Is near and not so near
We went to collect the train tickets which I booked online opp the station.
It was early so husband decided to walk to the Chinatown nearby
Which seems near on map
With the luggages, hot weather, bad traffic and getting lost
We didn't managed to find it
And settled to have coffee

We went to 7-11 to buy dinner and snacks
And board the train shortly
The train left promptly at 1840.
A French couple were our top bunks
And their friends were next to us
Suddenly we were surrounded by French!
Although we feel bad taking the better lower bunks
We can't bear to give it up to the French couple
The lower bunk was really spacious and convenient compared to the top.
And my father in law warned us about how he was freezing through the night in the top bunk previously.

We didnt eat the train dinner set
Dinner was 190baht per pax
As we start eating our 7-11 dinner
Husband didn't bought enough and I was greedy
And we spent 120baht to buy the expensive chips in train!

The beds were set up at 2100
And I was happy to retreat into my bed
The only bad point was my phone was low batt
While husband enjoyed his book
Being the smart wife, I bought a pack of baby wipes to clean ourselves in the train.
Which saves husband's life haha.

I fell asleep short after using the mosquito patch
It's like sleeping in a moving car
Initially it was quite hot but cold in the middle of the night
I think it was a nice way to travel despite being 13hrs ride and small simple toilet
But we save hotel for the night!

going thailand - part 1

Day 5 - bkk d1

We were carrying our new backpack as hand carry for tiger airways
I think we were worried that the bag will be too big to classify as hand carry
But all went went and husband was happy that we were assigned to the exit row.
Again, I came down with a migraine
And spent the flight trying to sleep.

I think the last time I went Bangkok was many years ago before my sis had kids!
I'm glad they developed the airport city rail
So easy and cheap to reach the city center!
I think we paid about 90baht each and 1hour to our hotel at national stadium bts
Near to mbk to start my shopping haha.

Despite my mum's warnings
I still indulged in the street fruit stalls and charmed husband with the delicious mangoes.
And I lost count of the times we ate from street stalls but luckily no tummy pain.
For lunch, I managed to convince husband not to eat Japanese or pizza
And we ate at the mbk food court
Stew pork rice that tastes very teochew style
And tom yum soup with instant noodles
Food was not bad
And we got hooked on Thai milk tea for the rest of the trip.

I think I have been away from BKK for too long
I was constantly searching for the 100bahts kind of good buys from my memory
While everything was more 200bahts now
Thankfully husband was nice enough to accompany my shopping
Although we didn't buy much
And paid for an expensive Thai massage in mbk at 700bahts each!
Oh well I needed the massage and husband needed the experience

After a short rest
I bought husband to the infamous patpong night scene
Initially I wanted to take a tuktuk
But the hotel estimated it will be 200/300bahts
So we took the metro for 25bahts each.
We took time to walk a little at the night market

Before I was lured into naraya and convinced husband to start buying gifts
I wasn't interested in watching the Thai girls show
Especially after reading online how they can extort money at exit
After compromise, we had a drink at the a go go pub instead
With girls/"girls" dancing in their bikinis.
At least we just need paid for our drinks.

Then was a trip to the 7-11 for snacks, rice with mango,
And buy some BBQ sticks outside hotel for dinner.
Husband was not really into the BBQ
But I was happy to eat a good supper.

back to singapore!

Day 1 -arriving sg

It's the first time we are taking British airlines
With a transit at London
Normally I have difficulty sleeping in flight
And it didn't helped that 2 rows behind us
There were 2 ladies speaking loudly till 3am
They were so loud that I can hear clearly their conversations
Husband was surprisingly sleepy
That he slept 10hrs out of the 13hours flight!
Anyway arrival was smooth and we arrived at sis home shortly.

After we settled down and took a shower
We went for dinner with Aven
And ate the long-missed Xiao long bao
And ended our first day in sg.

Day 2 - cny eve

Due to my visa issues,
My sis and family booked a cny trip
Before I could inform them that I can fly back
So this year we had a relatively quiet reunion dinner at bro home.

In the morning,
We went for breakfast and food shopping with mum
Had some very desparate bad overpriced fried carrot cake because no shops were opened
At least husband had a taste of carrot cake.
The whole day was practical spent eating, watching tv, lying around and doing nothing.
Husband commented that every cny eve we do nothing at bro home
Well, I guess my purpose was to accompany mum when the others leave for reunion dinner at in laws homes
But she always MIA somewhere.
I can spend some quality time with the aged nono....

Usually, I will watch the cny eve show on tv
But I don't know is it because it was so bad or we were tired
We managed to fall asleep before cny countdown, haha.

Day 3 - cny d1

Since sis and family were not around
There was not enough car seat for us to bai nian with them
I think I don't miss seeing my relatives
And good to save the ang baos
So we just had breakfast at bro home
And went for a tourist day with Aven.

I had been telling husband that he must taste a good fast food burger
And spoke to him about Carl juniors
And we managed to have it for lunch!
Husband agreed that the burgers were much better than what we can have from fast food in Paris.

Next was visiting the touristy river hongbao
To me, it felt exactly the same as 2015
Or maybe just me being uninterested
Then we took the very expensive duck tour.
It was $37 for 30mins per pax!
There was a little discount for locals
But still very expensive to me!
It was a good information ride for husband
And a history lesson for Aven and me.

Through the day was just drinking coffee
and wandering around
It amazed me how many shops were opened!
I remember that when I was young
The only shops opened on cny will be fast food restaurants
Sg must be really becoming a shopping city
To attract people to spend even on cny d1.

We ended the day with dinner at four fingers.
My first try at Korean fried chicken.
Well, I think the trend started when I was leaving
With a few outlets in sg so I didn't tried
I think the chicken is nice but I prefer my fried chicken with no sauce
So I think I will stick with popeyes chicken.

Sis and family returned from their trip
And we came home to excited kids
Trying to tell and show us everything
From ice skate moves to Taekwondo...
Trying to have our attention as they can
Soon we all went to bed to save energy for next day.

Day 4 - cny d2

During our planning for Thailand trip
Husband mentioned that he wants visit the Chiangmai zoo
I'm always wary of zoos because of all the stories I heard about how animals are not well cared in some zoos
And I don't want to be the tourist paying for them to encourage the operation of bad zoos.
After I googled about Chiangmai zoo
Most reviews were not great
Many suggested visiting Singapore zoo instead!
Since we only visited night safari here
I asked sis and family along for a zoo visit.

I dont know is it I'm still recovering or I'm unable to adjust to the weather
I was definitely not as enthusiastic as husband or the kids
And I kept getting mirgraine
That only stopped a few days after
I blame all the flight trips.
I think only husband tried to speak to all the animals, haha

After the long hot day,
We had Japanese food for dinner
Husband was totally impressed by nabe and sukiyaki
He kept reminding me how limited choices we can have in Japanese restaurant in Paris.
How he is going to miss the variety here.

At home, husband get to entertain the kids
While I packed for our Thailand trip
Knowing that it will be a shopping trip
I brought stuff that I can throw away through the trip and less than enough clothings.
Husband being husband insist on bringing his best and enough clothings
That I told him I'm sure he will regret his choice.

A little drama happened at home.
Since husband joined the kids at the zoo water playground
I told him to wash his shorts and Han outside to try to bring for the trip
My mum being my mum insisted I do it for him
But I was busy packing
Suddenly I heard loud noises in the kitchen
And I knew husband must have dropped the hanging bamboo
Because he is the icon of misfortune! Haha
I scolded husband a little but he must be feeling so bad
Worried that he may killed someone
Well, we managed to find the shorts 1 level down
But mum can't find any bamboo or dead body.
So I guess no one was killed.

being sick

whenever i catch a cold in france
it will take me at least a week to recover
it seems the virus is more powerful here!
so when i started to have a fou and cough for a week
i didnt think much about it.


suddenly Thursday night I developed high fever
and it kept staying high
despite the panadols I was popping
on Friday evening, husband brought me to the doc
and he commented that its a flu virus
I was given some medication


despite the medication, I didn't feel better
fever was still around
and I started vomitting from coughing
I even started to vomit my medications
since the doc mentioned that the fever will go up and down
I just stayed in the bed for the weekend
I even vomitted blood!


on Monday, husband decided to take off to care for me at home
I became worse with high fever
and decided to call for an ambulance
after I was vomitting 4x in 30min


the ambulance came in 45m
and we waited in the a n e for about 2 hours
as I was having 40deg fever
the nurse gave some soluble panadols to bring down my fever


finally, I got to see the Dr
and he thinks is a flu virus but put me on a drip
while sending me to blood test and xray
after 2hrs, doc informed that I had lungs infection
I was allows to return home
the antibiotic worked and I felt really well next day on


since I was not supposed to fly with lung infection
we went to a doc to check whether I was fit to fly
and was happy that I was good to go
is scary how we almost didn't make it again for the flight
I think this is the worst illness I had in france
I hope I will stay healthy for 2016...

Going back to the prefecture

Since our appointment was at 9am,
we left home at 730am
in case of traffic jam or long queues
yes, even with appointments, there's the queue to get into the prefecture
surprisingly there was no jam and queues,
we reached at 805am
and need to stand and wait in the cold
my toes were freezing at 2deg
and we definitely pitied the babies and kids with their parents.


after we entered, we handed in our appointment letter and waited to be called
unlike in Paris, there was no separate seated counters, just standing counters,
where you can hear everyone.
suddenly we realized how luxurious it was in Paris.
probably 10mins later we were called
all went well, we submit our documents
and received a letter to indicate we are in midst to renewing my visa
but they did gave me a temporary visa
in Paris, they gave us without us requesting
here, we asked and they referred us to another counter
anyway, we asked when I can request for my 10years visa,
he answered that he is unsure, maybe 3/5 years after marriage but better for us to check at next counter.

when we went to the new counter,
the lady informed us that her computer is down
lucky we had a note from the previous counter
and she told us to come back in 10mins
she then prepared for my temporary visa
and it was done!
we asked about the 10year visa and she said the same, she is unsure is 3/5years.
ehm..then who will know??!!

well, at least all is done and we can fly back sg
for the 10year visa, I guess we will stress in the 2nd half of 2016...

New year eve 2015

Every year, we normally spend new year eve
at one of the friend's home till wee hours
This year, the friends voted to have the party at our home!
Which is really strange because we have the smallest home of all.
As usual, i gamely accepted the challenge 
while husband was getting nervous to host his first party.

At the same time,
my friends were in paris 
while its good that the party will be our home
that it will be less awkward for them to join
I was split between spending time with friends, being tour guide and prepare for the party.
And husband also came along when we went to the Christmas market and effiel tower
To spend some Singaporean time with us.

So, on the new year eve day
I was out by 10am to start the day with friends
and only reached home at 6pm to help with food preparation
Thankfully, husband did a very good job in preparing the food
While I was out with my friends.
And all was well prepared (including us) by the time people in at 8pm.
Apart from the usual food and drinks,
We set up a temporary photo booth and
Im glad that no one didnt kill me for suggesting to play twister

Despite the amount of leftovers,
1 friend insisted to cook his special burgers after midnight.
Who can say no to burgers at midnight?!

The party ended earlier than the past years
Maybe because we have a pregnant lady with us,
we arent good hosts,
our home is far,
or our home is too small for a big dance party
Whatever the reason, I think we still did well for hosting our first party at home.
And it is definitely more special for me because i have my friends with me!

PS: Last saturday, we invited the family over and host a lunch!
Everything went well with husband as the main chef
It was a little too squeezy to have the dining table in middle of our living room
But we were proud and happy to show everyone how well settled we are in the new home
I guess the next party will be BBQ in summer?

The worst that can happen

I wanted to take time to blog about the new year eve party and resolutions
but end up what happened today deserved to be blog immediately
Yes, i cant go back to Singapore as planned (5Feb)
we have to postpone our travel plans 
because of the "famous" french administrations
Argggh

So, the story started in November
that I being kiasu told the husband that we should go change the address on my visa
to ensure that when its time to renew my visa
at least ill be included in the new area and not in paris.
Yes, i know i shouldnt wait till november to change my address 
I should be more kiasu to change asap after we shift
Since my visa expires on 10 Feb,
the person told us that we can come back in december to renew my visa and change address at the same time
or change address now and they will mail me in mid december for the renewal appointment
changing address first gives me a better sense of security, so we did,
which took a month to collect my card with the new address but same expiry date

Since the person advised us to wait for the letter,
we did and based on her advice to only go by the prefecture to take an appointment in January
if we did not receive the letter,
we went down today
and it suddenly all became our fault,
well surprise surprise...

No 1: Although my address was changed, my info was not in their system
thats why no letter was sent

No 2: I was to take the renewal appontment 2 months before the expiry date
which means in december
but we heed her advice and only came in January
and it became our fault to come too late to ask for an appointment

No 3: We book a flight on 5th Feb to be back for CNY
and is our fault to book a flight near my visa renewal date
based on the nasty lady who spoke to us
I should never book a flight near to my visa renewal date
thanks for telling me that we should give up visiting my family for all the CNY from now on

It didnt help that the lady was really insisting thats its our fault 
and really really rude
I was so afraid that husband was going to quarrel with her
and we end up in jail for being argressive towards public servant
Anyway, we were at a losing end, no point engaging in a losing battle.

Finally, she gave us a choice of 8 feb or 11 mar for the appointment
Given like 30s to choose, husband went ahead to choose 11 mar so that we can continue our travel.
Even though it will mean my visa will expire and we will have no idea what to do then
I put the husband aside to convince him that 8 feb will be better 
as it will still be within my valid visa and things will proceed as how we did it last year
and giving up airfares etc will be much easier to handle
then to take on 11 mar appointment
unsure whether the france embassy in sg can give me some sort of visa to return to france by 11 mar
or miss my holland trip
And i cant decide which is of the lesser evil between the france embassy or prefecture
but im sure the airline will be much easier to handle
Any problem that can be solve by money is not a problem.

So, we decided to go back to the lady to change to 8 feb
she was damm pissed off
claimed we should have made the decision just now in that 30s
or we should retake a queue ticket (we queue for 1.5hrs to see her before)
She was so nasty that she said she will put a note on our appointment
that we will not be able to change again because we pissed her off.
I was just holding husband to prevent him from getting upset with her.
Well, the famous french administration at full bloom.

The whole news made us feel really bad
but i wondered if the lady was nicer or more respectful
maybe we will feel much better 
than her style to add salt to our wounds...

I guess we have no time to self pity 
We need to move fast to reduce the money damage.

Updated:
Husband decided to write a complaint letter
I guess for us, it was to give a feedback and hope it wont happen to others
We definitely don't expect them to reply us 
or rather reply us in 2 weeks
but end up, we received a reply in a day...
To our surprise, they emailed us a new appointment for 20/1!
Which means we may still be able to proceed to return SG as planned.

We should be happy but I think we kinda persuaded ourselves to go back in june 
that we are kinda having confused emotions
I have cancelled some stuff but the main airtickets are still here
I guess I will only truly celebrate after Wednesday
Just in case we will be disappointed again

*Fingers and toes crossed*