I have set myself a goal to achieve this year that is to take Discovery Scuba Diving course. Most probably I will do this in Redang after coming back from Angkor Wat, Cambodia in August. Or if my impeding trip to Bandung, Indonesia does not happen, then I may take the course in Phuket, Thailand instead. Besides scuba diving, another of my lifelong goal is to ski. I did go to Mount Buller in Australia a couple of years back. But I have to admit back then; I played with the snow more than skiing. In fact, I did not even put on the skis! Now that I have to plan my ski holidays!
I found Directline Skiing, which provides ski holidays packages to skiing destinations all over the world. All the packages are departing from United Kingdom. You can depart from London, Manchester or even Northern Ireland and Scotland. And some of the most popular destinations featuring on the website are Austria, Canada, France, Italy and Switzerland.
You can book online your ski holidays with various tour operators at Directline Skiing. Ski holidays packages are offered by established tour operators at Directline Skiing. One of many tour operators that caught my eyes is Inghams Ski Holidays. Established in 1934, Inghams Ski Holidays features 94 ski resorts in 14 countries. I would like to go skiing in Switzerland, and glad to find out that Inghams Ski Holidays has an office in Switzerland. I have been dreaming of Zermatt when I first heard of this Switzerland’s most popular ski resort a couple of years back. In case if you do not know, Zermatt is a village situated at the feet of Matterhorn, which attracts many mountain climbers and hikers around the world to come here every year.
Another ski holidays tour operator worth mentioning is Crystal Ski Holidays. Crystal Ski Holidays offers skiing trips to over 17 countries including Austria, France, Italy and Switzerland. I am particularly impressed with the childcare options available with packages booked through this tour operator. Crystal Ski Holidays is definitely your preferred ski holidays tour operator if you are to bring your children along!
Have you tried skiing before? Are you ready to do so? Are you planning your ski holidays too?
Previously, we were visiting the 5 spots in Yangshuo on a tour bus. After the Jianshan Temple, we proceeded on to visit the Big Banyan Tree on the west bank of Jinbao River. Located approximately 7.5 kilometers south of Yangshuo town in the village of Gaotian, this Banyan Tree is said to have a history of nearly 1,400 years old! It was planted in the Sui Dynasty (581-618) and is now 17 meters high, 7 meters around the trunk and covering an area of nearly 1 square kilometers.
Big Banyan Tree from afar
Closer look on Big Banyan Tree (click for wallpaper size)
The Big Banyan Tree has become one of the major attractions in Yangshuo over the years. The tree is well protected with fencing around it. No one is able to get near to this king of all banyan trees, let alone touching it! When look closely, I could see many twisted roots and gnarled branches. One could see huge branches just 1 meter above the ground stretching out straight. And there are branches spreading out in all directions, some even rooted to the ground! I could imagine a demon extending out its claws toward you on a full moon night! I sure would not dare to be here alone at night!
Branches rooted to the ground
Branches extending in all directions
The Big Banyan Tree is also known as one of the filming locations of the “Liu Sanjie” besides Daxu Ancient Town. It was under this tree that Liu Sanjie declared her love to Brother A Niu. My parents had seen the movie when I was still young, not for me. But I did go for the Impression Liu Sanjie show when I was in Yangshuo. The scenery surrounding the Big Banyan Tree is beautiful too, with lots of karsts peaks in the background. I could see many people rafting in Jinbao River. I did not feel interested as we had Yulong River rafting installed for us the very next day!
Scenery around the Big Banyan Tree
Rafting in Jinbao River
Lots of bamboo rafts
After visiting the Big Banyan Tree, we were supposed to visit the Moon Hill. To our surprise, the bus did not stop to let us down. Our tour bus just bypassed the area while our tour guide merely pointed out from afar where the Moon Hill is. No photos on Moon Hill to share then. Failure to see the Moon Hill remains one of my biggest disappointments for the entire Guilin/Yangshuo trip! And I bet you feel the same, Foong…
Yangshuo is a small cozy town for your long stay. If you are looking for a break away from the hustle and bustle of big cities, this is the place for you. Many expatriates spend months here and some of them love Yangshuo so much that they stay back to open a restaurant, hostel or pub on West Street. Some of them join the Volunteer English Teachers program to provide the students in Yangshuo with an opportunity to learn English. In return, they get free meal and free accommodation.
Talking about tutoring, did you attend tuition classes during your schooling days? I remember math as one of the most important and difficult subjects to do well in school and college. TutorVista is a renowned online tutoring provider which can help your younger one to simplify expressions, solve fractions and equation and many other algebra problems. Besides, TutorVista also offer tutoring on how to solve problems of various branches of math such as geometry, trigonometry, calculus, statistics and many more.
TutorVista is now offering an unlimited tutoring package at $99.99 per month for all subjects. Students can schedule tutoring and homework help sessions anytime they want and as many times they need. Their tutors are available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
What? Did I attend any tuition class when I was young? The answer is a NO. I have never attended a tuition class in my life! Because I never face any problem when solving equation!
Our Li River Cruise ended in Yangshuo (阳朔) at around 1410 in the afternoon. In Yangshuo, we proceeded to visit 5 other tourist spots. The land tour is part and parcel of our Li River Cruise package. Li River Cruise without the land tour costs 210 Chinese Yuan per person while Li River Cruise with the land tour costs 240 Chinese Yuan per person. As you can see, only 30 Chinese Yuan discrepancy in it, so why not?
Arriving in Yangshuo
Before I bring you to the 5 spots we had visited in Yangshuo that afternoon, I think it would be a great idea to do a brief introduction on Yangshuo. Remember the tale of 3 sisters? I once referred Guilin (桂林), Yangshuo and Xingping (兴坪) as the 3 sisters on the bank of Li River (漓江), Guilin as the eldest sister, Yangshuo the second and Xingping the youngest sister. If one is to travel to Guilin, you shall also not miss out on Yangshuo and Xingping! Yangshuo is a small tourist town situated on a plain surrounded by limestone karsts peaks and bordered on one side by the Li River. It is approximately 1.5 hours away from Guilin by bus or approximately 4 hours by cruise. Over the years, Yangshuo has become increasingly popular with foreign backpackers.
Before Foong and I boarded the cruise in the morning, the Chinese tour guide told us to get to the tourist bus station immediately we got off the boat in Yangshuo. We were instructed to get on a kind of electric minibus (电瓶车), which can only be found in this part of the world. I was told all transports within Yangshuo town are powered by electricity. Kudos to the local authorities for their efforts in preserving the environment!
Electric minibus
The first tourist spot we visited in Yangshuo is the Jianshan Temple (鉴山寺). Jianshan Temple was built in the year 713 and is said to be the oldest temple in the whole of Guangxi Province (广西). It was constructed in the architectural style of the Tang Dynasty (唐朝). The temple is located within the Moon Hill Scenic Area (月亮山景区). Jianzhen (鉴真), the famous great monk in China had spent some time here before making his way to propagate Buddhism in Japan. With a total area of approximately 5.6 square kilometers, the Jianshan Temple houses quite a few Buddha statues inside its many halls. I opted not to go inside those halls as the crowd visiting the temple that afternoon was huge! Instead, I took a stroll around the temple while waiting for my friend and Foong to come out. I found interesting sculptures on top of the roof as well as some Buddha statues erected on the slope of the hill. Trust me; the scenery around the temple is breathtaking!
Entrance to Jianshan Temple
Sculptures on rooftop
Buddha statues on the slope of the hill
Buddha statues on the slope of the hill
Buddha statues on the slope of the hill (click for wallpaper size)
Buddha statues on the slope of the hill
Scenery around Jianshan Temple
Scenery around Jianshan Temple
Scenery around Jianshan Temple
Scenery around Jianshan Temple
After Jianshan Temple, we proceeded to visit the Big Banyan Tree (千年古榕). This is a 1400-year-old banyan tree planted in the Sui Dynasty (隋朝, 581-618)! Stay tuned to find out more on this king of all banyan trees!
It is going to be a light and shorter post today. Do you realize Chinese New Year (also known as Lunar New Year) is just round the corner? Yes, it is less than 2 weeks away from now! How is your New Year preparation? Have you cleaned and decorated your house? Have you bought your new shirts and trousers? Have you bought your Chinese New Year cakes and cookies? Or you are going to make yourself some?
As in all the previous years, shopping malls in town are nicely decorated, both interior and exterior. I went for photography trip around the town last night. Here are some of the pictures I took. I know these are not as grand as in the big city like Kuala Lumpur, but hell don’t you think these lanterns are stunningly beautiful? Looking at those lanterns, my Chinese New Year mood is certainly up in the air!
Big red lanterns inside the shopping mall
Big red lanterns inside the shopping mall
Big red lanterns hung in the alley
Big red lanterns
Big red lanterns
Big red lanterns decorating the street at night
Since I was young, I always think that Malaysian Chinese New Year songs are the best around, even surpassing those composed in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Don’t you dare to disagree? Well, we Malaysians do not get a lot of number ones, so do feel proud about this, okay? I do not count, but I believe there are at least 5 new Chinese New Year albums released this time around.
2 albums worth mentioning for your listening pleasure. Okay, this is just my personal opinion. The first one is “My Astro 舞虎扬威大日子”, an album co produced by MY FM and Astro. My favorite song from this album is “大日子”, literally means “big day” in Mandarin.
My Astro 舞虎扬威大日子
大日子
There is also this movie “大日子 woohoo!” released in conjunction with the album. We finally have our very own Chinese New Year movie. This is the first ever Chinese New Year movie 100% produced locally in Malaysia! I have yet to watch this movie in the cinema, is it great?
大日子 woohoo!
The second album I like is “7势one千威虎年” co produced by ntv7 and One FM. My favorite song from this album is “气势万千”, which literally means “of great momentum” in Mandarin.
7势one千威虎年
气势万千
Do you listen to Chinese New Year songs too? If yes is your case, do you prefer traditional or modern Chinese New Year songs?
jam | 
February 8th, 2010 | 
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