Travelling Back In Time (Part 5): Munich

Munich was a kaleidoscope of sensations, an explosion of cultures, and a motley mix of multi-faceted textures. We were immersed in German high-technology efficiency in the world-renowned Deutsche Museum, charmed by bucolic products in alluring pastoral markets, fascinated by Gothic architecture from the Middle Ages, and were exposed to sleazy casinos and strip clubs in shady back alleys.

Some of our more memorable moments in Munich were:

1) Living in a big, spacious suite for 4 days, where the Bees felt so at home in. We dined in almost every night, after long arduous days of exploring different parts of the beautiful city. It is so important to have a place that is cosy and homey when we had longer pit stops in a bigger city.

Part of our apartment suite - the living and dining areas

We bought cherries from this roadside stall and feasted on them every night! 

The hotel has a "book" theme, and we were bombarded with titles of classics or quotes from books all around us. We love it!

2) Losing ourselves wandering down the colossal Deutsche Museum, the world's largest museum of science and technology.

The regal facade of the Deutsche Museum

The scale of the museum was mind-boggling. We strolled through the birth of technology, witnessing the creation of flight machines, submarines and trains.

Little Bee sitting on a submarine torpedo! 

The Bees walking into a World War 1 bomber. How cool is that!?

We traipsed together with the first men on the moon and the first machines in space, and were awestruck by the evolution of the written and printed words through the ages.

This is only a small segment of a life-size rocket. It was about 8 storeys high! 

We found this fascinating - the sizes of rockets from different countries. Guess which country has the largest rocket? ;) 

We ended our tour of probably just a quarter of the museum with a gratifying traditional German lunch with a beautiful view of the still-swollen Isar River.

3) Sauntering in meandering alleys overflowing with all kinds of cheese, fresh vibrant flowers, succulent fruits, delectable pastries and all kinds of agrarian products in Viktualienmarkt, a delightful farmers' market right in the centre of Munich.

The Bees playing with a refreshing fountain in the middle of the market

4) Doing crazy star jumps in the Gothic city centre of Marienplatz, in front of the inexplicably beautiful city hall with resplendent and breathtaking architecture.

The Bees were awestruck by the sight of the Gothic city hall when we first chanced upon it

Look what we found, nestled at the side of a cathedral!

5) Witnessing hundreds of Munich residents sunbathing beside rivers and in parks under the long, slanted rays of sunshine that stubbornly resisted sinking down the horizon on long summer evenings.

The famous beer gardens of Germany. This place would look insane during Oktoberfest! 

Life in Munich can be rich, fulfilling and leisurely, and I have a feeling that we will be back for more!

Ghoulish Glee

Halloween this year was once again spent with good food, yummy treats and even better company! LP and I brought the kids to PF's house where there was a huge gathering of little ghouls and monsters for tricking or treating.

Before the gathering, Hubby spiced up our day with a trip to a costume shop in Arab Street. And boy, was the shop crowded with everyone looking for the right costumes for themselves! The girls had fun rummaging through costumes that ranged from the bizarre to the most enchanting.

Eventually, the three of them became the following characters: Chucky the freakily scary doll, a kind pumpkin witch and a young ghoul with snow-white long hair!

At PF's place, the kids had lots of fun going around the different houses to have a feel of the ghoulish experiences. Some houses were really decorated elaborately, while others created a haunted ambience just to challenge the kids. The bunch of them were lured into a pitch-dark house with candies strewn on the floor deep in the house, and were scared silly with white figures lurking around the house! That was so funny!

While the kids chilled out together, playing games like trading the candies they received and hide & seek, the adults had a whale of a time chatting over great food! With the kids so much older now (2 of them are into their teens and tweens!), this is the best time for us adults to sit back and relax, and spend good bonding time with friends!

The gang back in their "normal" clothes!

The loot

"I Love Acting!"

Through some connections from Little Bee's kindergarten classmate, she was asked to appear in a short video skit for Class 95 DJs Jean Danker and Mike Kasem for the upcoming Radio Awards gala show. Essentially, Little Bee was supposed to act as a little Jean Danker who was constantly annoyed by a little Mike Kasem. Mediacorp will play this little clip on TV, before the award nomination for Jean and Mike in the Radio Awards.

It turns out that Little Bee's kindy classmate's parents are friends with Jean, and this was a favour for her. And the main reason why Little Bee was chosen was because the little boy told the mummy that Little Bee is the prettiest friend he has! That was hilarious!

Unfortunately, I could not make it to the filming in Mediacorp Studios due to work, so Hubby went instead. How exciting!

After a fun afternoon, Hubby's verdict was that Little Bee does not have an ounce of shyness in her, and that she truly relishes the limelight. She enjoyed being in front of the camera, and her performance improved after every NG ("Not Good" in filmography terms).

After the filming, Little Bee and her kindy friend were then invited by Jean and Mike into the Class 95 studio. There, their curious little selves tinkled about the intricate audio equipment, and Little Bee got to select and broadcast a Taylor Swift song that she thought her jiejie would love! Both of them also did a little recording to introduce Jean's and Mike's radio show, and had the most immense fun in the studio!

At the end of the day when I saw her at home, her only words to me were, "I love acting!!!"

This photo was posted by Jean Danker on her Facebook. We could tell that Little Bee had a smashing time! 

Of Shakespeare And Dickens

Little Bee is not as avid a reader as Big Bee, although she is fairly fascinated by Enid Blyton's Enchanted Wood series and some of her short story collections. She is also captivated by the simpler Princess Posey books, although this series of books had been really elusive. Hence, when she discovered the entire series in the library this past weekend, she was elated and promptly borrowed all she could find!

Lately, she was also mesmerized by the Usborne compilations of Shakespeare and Charles Dickens. I could never thank Usborne enough for bringing the usually inaccessible classics (especially Shakespeare!) to young, inquiring minds - opening up their minds to the literary giants that had enthralled us when we were teenagers.

These 2 books are never far from reach in her bedroom, and she would potter around with them, reading stories that had enraptured so many people around the world. Her favourite Shakespearean stories are the romances - Romeo and Juliet, and Twelfth Night. To be fair, I had not introduced the tragedies like Macbeth and King Lear to her yet, although I would not think she would relish them at this age.

As for the Dickens classics, she really enjoyed Oliver Twist, and would pore over the pages before bedtime on most nights. I must also thank the attractive illustrations in the Usborne series for grabbing the attention of my little visual learner. It is amazing to see some of those stories illustrated in vivid, brilliant colours!

There had been plenty of debates about whether children should be exposed to the original texts of Shakespeare first, or through the live performances of his plays. For Big Bee, she has friends who had started reading the original script of Macbeth, but I wonder how much can 11-year-old tweens absorb in terms of the language, themes, plots and personifications through the original texts? Don't get me wrong - I am a fan of Shakespeare, and would spend hours poring over the scripts, and memorising quotes from Shakespeare's myriad plays when I was a young literature student. But I am just not convinced that the original scripts of Shakespeare could enrich the language competency of younger school children.

This is a more challenging, but still compelling, read - more suitable for kids who are 9-year-old and above. 

This is why I applaud Usborne and Puffin Classics (which Big Bee had devoured since the age of 9) for simplifying Shakespeare into the palatable and riveting stories that they are, so that younger children can now read them, before attempting to enjoy the original scripts when they are older.

Their enjoyment of Shakespeare's works in stages of comprehension can be summarised in one of my favourite quotes from Romeo and Juliet, I think!

"This bud of love by summer's ripening breath,

May prove a beauteous flower when next we meet." 

What are your favourite Shakespeare or Charles Dickens stories? For me, it had been Twelfth Night and Romeo & Juliet from Shakespeare, as well as Great Expectations from Dickens all these years :) 

Young Inventors

In the beginning of the year, Big Bee's teacher announced that their class would have the opportunity to participate in one of 2 special programmes outside of the usual academic curriculum, with the objective of enhancing the students' knowledge in whichever programme they chose.

One of the programmes focuses on critical thinking, with the ability to debate on current affair issues, nurturing the students' creative problem-solving competencies, while cultivating a strong understanding of socio-political issues in the world. Or at least, this was what I gathered after listening to a talk by the teachers in charge. This is a programme that is linked to other similar programmes internationally, and finalists may get a chance to travel to a conference in the USA to present their findings.

The other programme focuses on innovation. A little bit of Science and ingenuity combined, if you were to ask me. Where students would need to think out of their usual square thinking boxes, and create a new invention that would be useful for the community. This is a programme that is linked to the MOE Science Innovation Programme, and is a nation-wide programme for selected students. Finalists would get a chance to present their inventions in a science fair that is attended by selected primary and secondary schools.

The moment I heard about these 2 programmes, the first choice I made for Big Bee was the one on current affairs. As the days passed, Big Bee's strong preference for the other innovation programme came up distinctly, and we had several heated debates about her preference. I thought the first programme would be more useful to shape her understanding of the world, whereas she thought it was a lot more fun to invent new things.

Finally, hubby stepped in and gave me the best piece of parenting advice: "Let her choose what she is interested in, not what you think would be useful for her. Otherwise, she would never feel this is her own choice, and will not have interest in the programme. And will not excel in it."

The normally headstrong and stubborn me took a deep breath and an even bigger step back, and started more open conversations with Big Bee about why she preferred the innovation programme over the socio-political programme.

And then it dawned on me. Parenting is not about living vicariously through our children. It is not about enforcing our perspectives, opinions and preferences on our children. A good parent should listen to the wants and needs of our children with a really open mind. Even if we think they are making the wrong decisions, we should be generous enough to let them go and experiment in whatever ways they want. And learn through their mistakes or experiences. Because after a certain age, they probably know themselves better than we know them. And these are their first strides towards independence.

I admit I was not a very good parent prior to hubby's enlightenment. But thankfully, I was jerked into reality rapidly. And it gave me a warm glow in my heart to see Big Bee smiling contentedly as she filled up her preferred selection in the form. Albeit I still have reservations.

Ironically, my reservations came to naught. 2 of her fellow group mates and her enjoyed the programme so much that they invented something that made it through 2 successful rounds of internal and external judging. They were hence able to display and talk about their invention at their own booth in a nation-wide science fair with other finalists from other schools. She felt gratified and told me she learned a lot from the experience.

As for me, this is a huge wake-up call that I should never impose my preferences on my children.

You can read about her entire experience with the innovation programme (and what her group invented!) here. Enjoy reading!

The poster for their invention, taken by one of Big Bee's classmates on her phone, hence the poor quality of the photo 

Time Flies...

Am I the only one who thinks 2013 sped past us with an incredible speed? This is already October, and it is scary how vividly I still remember the chiming of the hour that gently nudged 2012 into 2013, and all those early days of January thereafter.

And now...we are counting down to the end of the year yet again. With bigger children. Older faces. More experiences. New things to look forward to.

Time is scary. It is even scarier in fast-paced Singapore where we are constantly forced to plan for the future. Our children's exams in the next fortnight. Our job appraisals in the next week. Our parents' birthdays in the next month. Our business trips in the next quarter. By planning for all these way in advance, we are losing precious sight of the current moment, in a bid to chase for the future. And I think that is why time flows exceptionally rapidly for us Singaporeans. It is sad. And somewhat unnerving.

I was reading The Timekeeper by Mitch Albom, and was struck by the poignancy in which the different protagonists in the book wanted to manipulate time to their own agendas - just to grasp that little slice of happiness that they think they desire. Yet, happiness and contentment is within everyone's reach - if only we slow down and appreciate every single moment. But - can we do it? Is this yet another instance of "this is easier said than done"? What can we do to appreciate every moment? To take time for its face value? To have a realistic balance of reminiscing moments long gone, relishing the present and anticipating the future? I have no answers to that for sure, and I am still trying to discover day after day.

Still, one of the tiny ways for me to cherish and remember every moment is to look at past photos. This evening, I was looking through some old photos from late last year, and realised that we had such a multitude of different experiences and activities just in the last quarter of 2012. Yet, at that point, I was probably too busy planning for the year ahead (Little Bee's first time in primary 1, Big Bee's entrance into stressful primary 5 territory, my heavy workload, etc) for me to really savour those moments. Until now.

Because of this, I am trying to play catch-up with time. I might be posting some really backdated posts which I think are fundamental moments in our lives that I would love to document here.

As for now, here is a photo that depicts a special time of the year that we are constantly looking forward to - the imminent year-end Christmas season! Enjoy the moment and look forward to the beautiful days to come :)

Taken at the Tanglin Mall's mock snow fiesta in December 2012 - just before they became wet and soapy!

Travelling Back In Time (Part 4): A Fairy-Tale Castle

Our Romantic Road trip in Germany culminated in the alpine terrain of southwest Bavaria. We were awed by the ice-capped mountains of the Bavarian Alps, and were dumbfounded by stunning vistas of rolling mountain ranges, emerald-green forests and exquisite blossoming flowers on expansive meadows. 

The splendid Bavarian Alps

The architecture of most houses had evolved to that of the traditional wood-framed alpine houses, and we had never felt so distant from home, yet our hearts kept reminding us that this is truly home.

A beautiful castle perched at the bottom of the Alps

My most memorable moment here was seeing Hubby running at top speed with his 2 beloved girls, with the backdrop of the ice-capped Bavarian Alps and a whole herd of contentedly grazing cows to their right. Eventually, they ran so close to the cows, and stopped to admire these gentle animals, much to the Bees' elation.

Can you spot where they are?

A breathless Little Bee after running loads! 

As we ascended higher up into the hills of Hohenschwangau where the magnificent Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau castles reside, we felt a lush silence of awe and wonder, as if the colossal giants of the mountains and forests were holding their breaths for us to appreciate the inexplicable beauty of this region. 

And true enough, our first glimpse of Neuschwanstein Castle perched atop a steep hill in the middle of the incredible Bavarian Alps was magical. To see an actual fairy-tale castle rising up above the craggy mountain tops was unbelievably enchanting. We were struck dumb by the sheer beauty of it all. 

Neuschwanstein Castle is a beautiful castle built in the 19th century, by the famous King Ludwig II of Bavaria, and is so spellbinding that it had been hailed as the inspiration behind Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty castle.

We stayed overnight in Hotel Muller, a quaint yet stately inn situated strategically between the 2 castles and near an alpine lake. What an amazing location! 

Can you see the castle?

We were exceedingly lucky to be allocated to a huge suite with 2 bedrooms and a large living room, with awe-inspiring views of Neuschwanstein Castle from all the windows in our suite! 

The Bees' quaint bedroom, with a view of the castle from the windows

I must highlight how amazed I was with the deep silence. After midnight, when everyone was asleep, I was once again struck by the sheer silence surrounding us, in the mountain region. The silence was so dense that it was deafening, and to some extent, pretty daunting and frightening. We would never ever experienced such silence in any urban areas. 

The lighted windows on the top floor to the right of the building were those of our suite's!

The next morning, we rose bright and early to travel to Neuschwanstein Castle. Unfortunately, the skies were grey and it was raining persistently. Due to the treacherous weather, we took a horse carriage up to the hills near Neuschwanstein Castle so that we did not need to walk too much under the cold rain. The Bees loved being in a horse carriage, at such close range to the majestic horses, listening to the clippity-clop of their hooves, seeing the steam rising from their hot bodies in the cold, and smelling their musky horsey smells. I had mixed feelings though - it was heady to be so close to these brilliant animals, but I felt really bad for them to lug a whole bunch of us up the tedious slopes of the hills. 

We had a few funny moments in the horse carriage though. We were seated right behind the horses, just beside the carriage driver (or coachman, in old English terms). And we were given the privilege to be privy to a few of the horses’ loud, snorty farts! It was hilarious, especially since the horses cleverly manoeuvred their large, bushy tails to one side, before emitting the loud, ever-familiar fart sound, to the shock of the Bees! When the coachman saw their stunned faces, he laughed and said that they were extremely lucky to have perfume right in their faces! Another time, the horses stopped completely just to poop – just like elephants!

The carriage stopped us only midway on the hills near the castle, and we had to trek uphill towards the castle. After some slight tribulations, we were inside Neuschwanstein Castle finally. 

While the weather was cold and wet outside, the interior of the castle was warm and somewhat musty and dark. The castle is not completed by the time of Ludwig’s death, but we were able to visit Ludwig’s intricately designed bedroom, and a somewhat bizarre grotto built into the back of his bedroom. We also visited other parts of the castle like the kitchen and the magnificent throne room. The Bees were fascinated, as this was the first time that they were inside a real castle!

We had a simple lunch in a cosy café with a stupendous view of the surrounding mountains and alpine lakes. It was bewitching just to sit and eat amidst such gorgeous scenery, while breathing in the pure alpine air.

The expansive view of the gorgeous surroundings - our hotel complex is situated in between the alpine lake and Hohenschwangau castle (the yellow castle on a hill)

After lunch, we decided to trek around the mysterious dark woods surrounding the castle, up to an iron bridge (Marienbrucke) spanning a breathtaking gorge with spectacular views of the castle and the surrounding plains. 

Marienbrucke, perched precariously atop the deep gorge

It was heart-stopping to venture onto the bridge with the crowds of tourists, especially when we looked down to the steep drop of the valley many kilometres down below. Can this skinny, ancient bridge truly withstand the weight of so many curious modern-day tourists?

The sensational view of the castle and its surrounding meadows from the bridge

A heart-stopping drop right down the the valley below! 

Still, it was certainly a privilege and a huge blessing for us to be walking in these beautiful woods, to be part of this resplendent scenery amongst the splendid Alps.

Little Bee plodding along the path up the hill! 

Hohenschwangau Castle on the left, where Ludwig II spent his childhood days in

We took a short bus trip down the hills to our hotel, and enjoyed a short stroll around the alpine lake, admiring the blossoming spring flowers in the hills around the lake, before departing this enchanting locale for Munich. What a beguiling day indeed!

Celebrating Mid-Autumn...With Whatsapp!

The mid-autumn festival is upon us again, where the moon shines the brightest and roundest, and where luminous lanterns swing cheerily from the hands of boisterous and merry children. 

We visited Gardens By The Bay's lantern display last Sunday, and was captivated by the multitude of enchanting lights, speckled all around a remote part of the Gardens. However, I enjoyed our leisurely amble into the Gardens in the dark a lot more, as the main lantern display areas were too crowded! There were food stalls emitting all kinds of delicious smells, and we snacked a little while Little Bee dangled her lantern happily. There was also a large stage in which a variety of Chinese performers were taking turns to dance or sing. All very magical and traditional!

Last night, on the actual Mid-Autumn day, I had to be away for work, so guess what? I still managed to "spend" the evening with the Bees, participating in their lanterns-lighting frenzy via Whatsapp!

With the girls being much older now, they were able to record their proceedings on video and sent me lots of audio soundbites - just as if we were beside one another!

So, on a night when I was thousands of miles away from home, I had never felt closer to the girls. And for the first time, I am thankful for the technology that enables us to communicate so freely with our family wherever we are! 

Inspired To Paint

On a lazy Sunday afternoon, Hubby took out paints, easels and canvas, and encouraged the 3 females in the family to indulge in a bout of escapism. Painting, to us, is escapism. The focus it provides is an amazing reprieve from the stress of daily life. Whether we emulate existing paintings, attempt to re-create the great works of old masters, or enact another world from our imaginations, it provides us with a little channel into another world.

Little Bee had previously sketched out a rainforest some time back, and could immediately launched into painting this rainforest alive through mainly verdant shades. 

Big Bee opted to paint a semi-abstract painting comprising of a fairly challenging blended background and a pair of love birds on a beautiful blossoming tree. 

Whereas I decided to re-enact an European countryside scene which I found online. 

We will be displaying our paintings around the house, which makes it so much more meaningful for the Bees rather than us buying paintings from other painters. And I think this rejuvenating exercise will be a regular one for us! 

Heading Towards Popstardom

*This post is by special request of Big Bee!*
As a little kid, Big Bee had undergone many phases of obsessions, ranging from milder ones to more compulsive ones. From young, she had been a devotee of Maizy the Mouse, Barney, High Five, My Little Pony, and The Powerpuff Girls. And now, as she is entering her teens, she has started on the inevitable phase - like many of us - of idolizing pop stars.

She is now crazy over Taylor Swift, and we had been blasted incessantly with her music and songs. However, I am glad she is sharing all these obsessions with us, so that we can participate in her over-zealous expressions of love!

To demonstrate to you the full extent of her devotion to Taylor Swift, here is a snippet of Big Bee's thoughts on her. Pardon the teenage gushings of love ;)

"Oh my gosh her eyes are like so nice... AHHHHHHH. OMG OMG OMG. She is like the best singer EVER!!! And she is like so so so so so nice and her face is like AHHHHSHS. OMG... sigh TEEHEE Her hair is like..... SO AWESOMELY CURLY. And she is sooo pretty. She's sooosoosoosoosoosososososoosoosoososo talented and her voice is TO DIE FOR."
She wrote a whole load of stuff, but I think I will stop here, lest it is an extreme overdose (which it is!). For those of you interested to read more, you can check out Big Bee's blog here!

Colours Of Nature: Strolling Through The Beginning Of Life

Every week, our family of four tries to amble or trek in verdant parks or lush nature reserves. Weekly jaunts in emerald green expanses never cease to rejuvenate and revitalise us, injecting renewed energy and optimism in us, allowing us to look forward to another gruelling week ahead.

Unfortunately, the recent torrential and incessant downpours in Singapore prevented much walks, but we had a most memorable saunter a couple of weeks ago in Botanic Gardens' Evolution Garden Trail. This walk brought us back in time, no, it literally transported our bodies and awareness to the beginning of time, when Earth was first created and early lifeforms were gradually emerging in a young Earth. Yes, we walked back millions of years in time.

We walked along paths where there were signs on the ground indicated that we were rambling in an Earth from 300 million years ago.

We caressed the hard, gritty surfaces of volcanic rocks in an Earth that had just come into being.

We were enthralled by the first flowers on Earth, and enchanted by the ubiquitous dreamy jade-green moss and algae that covered much of Earth in its early days.

We imagined ourselves to be walking alongside colossal dinosaurs when they first walked on Earth.

We were fascinated by antiquated, "petrified" trees that were from eons back.

And then we plunged into the damp humidity of lush rainforests when the Ice Ages on Earth finally ended, and when mammals started to populate the Earth. And all these were not conveyed through big, powerful video screens, but entirely through our imaginations inspired by evolving vegetation cleverly speckled across the path that meandered through the ravages of time. 

It was a beautiful walk, and the Bees were fascinated and captivated by the changing faces of Earth. They had a wonderful time hopping on giant boulders, admiring volcanic rocks, gazing at strange exotic plants, and observing little (and real!) life forms like exquisite tadpoles on huge lily pads.

What a beautiful world we live in indeed!