Friday, December 30, 2005

The Complete Holiday Photolog

7th Jan 2005 - 5th Jan 2006


7th to 12th Dec -
Preparing for worship at home and in church, attending church, shopping around for christmas gifts with kenny and then with later sue, caroline, phuiyee and yinru - all medics i got to know when i was visting glasgow from jan-jun05. I didn't take many pictures till the 13th of dec when kenny's parents arrived so i guess the photolog'll just start from there :).

Other than all the activities covered here, we were also attending church, window shopping, playing either monopoly or risk, watching tonnes of dvds (crappy shows included), cooking, slacking, shopping for groceries and taking walks.


-- 13th Dec --

Dinner!
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Sushi dinner ken and i prepared for his family the day they arrived in Glasgow. Preparation took 3 1/2 hours in total.


-- 14th Dec --

Our Transportation
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Car kenny's parents rented. Nicknamed "Kenny Lim 05 - No Xtra Features" - omgosh... so lame.


Church at Balloch
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We woke up early the next morning and headed for Loch Lomond. We stopped along the way to get drinks for the trip and chanced upon a duck pond where we fed the ducks bread. Balloch - a small town near Loch Lomond, with kenny's bro, nicholas, and dad.


Church at Balloch
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Kinda looks like a school though.


Loch Lomond
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Huge Huge lake.


The Lodge at Loch Lomond
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Had lunch here.


-- 15th Dec --

William Wallace Monument, Stirling
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Entrance to the Monument.
Ken's dad drove all of us out of Glasgow to Stirling. We stopped by a tourist information centre to get directions to the monument.


Viewing the Exhibits
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We climbed hundreds of stairs to reach the top, stopping along the way to view the exhibits. Handheld sets were provided to aid us in our tour of the place.


Wallace Sword
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I can't remember if this was a replica or not.


View from the Top
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Edinburgh Castle
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We drove to Edinburgh after lunch.


Katana Drama
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Ken and Nick disappointed that they couldn't get them.


-- 16th Dec --

At the Burrell Collection, Pollock Country Park, Glasgow
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We visited the park mainly to see the Burrell Collection - one that belonged to an extremely wealthy Glaswegian businessman. Nicholas took this pic. heh..


Lamentation of the Crucified Jesus
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One of the many exhibits


In the Kitchen
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Godma taking a peek in the kitchen while ken and i were preparing our early Christmas dinner.


The Xmas Fare
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Ken's flatmates joined us for dinner.
Ken's family left for Singapore the next day.


-- 19th Dec --

Window Shopping at Princes Square
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-- 20th Dec --

Joined ken's cell group for carolling at Monklands Hospital's Psychiatric Ward where Aaron works. We sang a few carols and i must say the patients enjoyed it completely. i was told the psychiatric patients are very lonely and deprived because not many people visit their wards and also because few activities, if not at all, are planned for them. There isn't really any cure for them because their condition cannot be simply explained and cured by medicine (both senses of the word). that's so sad... :( I was glad that we could actually do something to brighten up their christmas. (p/s they aren't extreme cases who have to have straightjackets put on them). It's a pity i didn't manage to get any pictures at the ward.


Risk
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After the carolling session, the cell group returned to kenneth's flat for a chinese takeaway dinner and a game of Risk.


-- 24th Dec --

Christmas Eve Party!
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Ken's flatmates, ken and i headed over to victor and kerwei's place for a Christmas Potluck dinner. Our contributions were peanut butter pie and kenneth's mass (ken's own invention).


Group Photo
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Managed to get a group photo after 3 rounds of 'Taboo', which was great fun.


-- 25th Dec --

Christmas Baptisimal Service at GCCC
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Group Photo of the incomplete English Ministry after the Service.


Dinner
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Christmas dinner that the church provided. Turkey, sausages, Curry pasta, carrots, brusselsprouts (hate them..) and potatoes. Never had such tender turkey in my life!


Foggy Christmas Day
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Ken and i walked home after dinner since the subway was closed. The air was so cold that i could see ice particles shimmering in mid-air. i would say visibility was 80m at most.


-- 27th Dec --

Coffee at Starbucks
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Met sheryl (now a JHO) for coffee at starbucks on byres road, near ken's place. She didn't want to have her photo taken so she took one of us instead.


-- 28th - 30th Dec --

Ken and i took a short trip to Lancaster (where i spent my exchange semster!)to meet my ex-flatmate Anna who was visiting from Bath. She kindly arranged free accomodation for us on campus. Father Jonathan (an Orthodox Priest a the Chaplaincy centre on campus and also Anna's spiritual father) took all 3 of us to Heysham (29th, the day it showed heavily in Glasgow.. shucks, missed it) and treated us to lunch at a chinese restaurant there after that. nice! Anna made us lunch before we headed to town the next day (30th) for some light window shopping. We also visited the Roman Bath, Lancaster Castle, The Priory, Millenium Bridge (what anna calls the ugliest bridge ever constructed) and the Lune River before we left.


Heysham, St Patrick's Chapel
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One of the most beautiful places in England. Heysham used to be a small fishing village. well it's still a small village but has developed since then. It now also houses 2 of the few nuclear reactors in the country. There are even tours conducted in the plants and around the estate!


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The remains of an ancient monastry.


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Anna and i near what used to be a doorway.


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Ken climbing down the stairs.


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Lancaster, Roman BathImage hosted by Photobucket.com


Millenium Bridge
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Lancaster Castle
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Anna and I at Lancaster Castle before we left. Lancaster is one of the 2 Duchy's of the United Kingdom. The other is the duchy of Cornwall. The castle belongs to the Queen and its rent makes up about 20% of her annual income. It still houses about 200 prisoners. The castle is also famous for having the most number of executions in the country (even more than London!). The Pendle witches were executed here in the 1640 (i think... =P).


-- 31st Dec --

New Year's Eve!!
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Had a small gathering at ken's place to celebrate the new year. Had a game of Monopoly after dinner.


Happy 2006 !!!


-- 3rd Jan --

Ken and i took a trip to Edinburgh in celebration of our special day. Although we didn't manage to climb Arthur's Seat again due to "unforseen circumstances", we had great fun!


Buchanan Bus Station
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Where we caught the bus to the Scottish Capital.


900 Service to Edinburgh
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Christmas Carnival At Princes Square
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Picturesque Edinburgh
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Yummy Fudge from Fudge Kitchen!!
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=)
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-- 4th & 5th Jan --

Some Random Photos from the last 2 days

Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
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Hillhead - our nearest Subway Station
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At the Glasgow Botanic Gardens
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Non-functional Water fountain.


Us!!!
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Well, that's it! I enjoyed myself very much. Praise God!
Thanks dear for making this holidays a blast :)

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