Rob put together a video of the shots and clips we've taken during the summer holiday - going on outings with the kids, learning new things together at workshops and eating lots!
The background songs are by Tim Hughes...!
Enjoy :)
Showing posts with label Celebrations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Celebrations. Show all posts
Tuesday, 22 June 2010
Friday, 8 February 2008
Happy Year of the Rat
February 7th marked the first day of the Year of the Rat in the Chinese Lunar Calendar. As per our custom, all my relatives from my father's side gathered at my grandma's and had a sumptuous and noisy meal. As we are no longer children, my cousins and I restrained from doing what we did when we were little, ie running to the toilet straight after we received our red packets (see further below for an explanation) to see how much money we've got this year...
We still had a good time anyway.
For the curious, here are a few must-haves for Chinese New Year:
Beautiful daffodils - my mum's favourite. In Chinese we call them Shui Xian which translates Water Fairies - what a lovely name! Many families put them in shallow dishes around Chinese New Year. They give out an amazingly pure and refreshing scent.
Everyone's favourite!! These red packets containing a token of money are usually given by married persons to relatives/friends of a generation younger than yours, or younger relatives/friends of the same generation. If you're not married you can escape this duty, and apparently when you first get married you receive a one-year grace period during which you are not obliged to give! These colourfully decorated red packets were given to me and my sisters by my aunt.
Collection of sweets and goodies - sweet lotus seeds at the top, followed by (going clockwise): sweet mellon pieces, sweet coconut pieces, sweet lotus roots, random japanese sweets, sweet melon again, with dried water melon seeds in the middle.
In recent years this particular "dish" has become popular with the general public in Hong Kong, though it used to only be consumed by certain groups of residents in the New Territories. Normally it is made up of: Chinese mushrooms, dried beancurd, prawns, abalones, fried pigs skin(!), dried oysters, dried scallops, sea cucumbers, turnip, all braised in a yummy thick sauce.
It may look small but it can easily fill the stomachs of 15 people!
Glutinous Rice Cake - okay, it may not look like the ones you see in the shops but this is my first attempt of a homemade Chinese pudding, and judging from my parents' reaction so far I think it's quite good!!
---
I leave for Cebu, the Philippines on Tuesday for 3 weeks to work with Christ for Asia, a Christian charity that works with street children in Cebu City. It will no doubt be very challenging but I'm excited... so watch this space!
Thursday, 10 January 2008
Some Observations about an English Christmas
This past Christmas I had the absolute pleasure and privilege of spending it with Rob and his family in Shropshire in the UK midlands. (Aussies: yes, it is indeed the Shropshire featured in the coffee ad back home!)
I had never spent Christmas with an English family before so I was very excited just thinking about it (and the many sumptuous meals of which I had heard so much)!
While spending time in the lovely house in Shropshire I became quite fascinated by a number of things:
1. The Aga
Apparently this stored-heat stove and cooker is very common in the UK, especially in the countryside. You can use the oven compartments as well as the "hobs". It runs on gas and seems permanently hot. I loved standing next to it warming myself while waiting for the kettle to boil. I discovered that there is also an Aga cookbook!
The Aga was invented by a Swedish physicist in the 1920s.
2. Walks in the countryside in your wellies
I first came across wellies when I was about 4. They were yellow and there was a cartoon figure on each one facing outwards. I wore them to kindergarten during rainy seasons. I had not seen them since my childhood days.
This Christmas I re-discovered the simple joy of marching (!) through the beautiful but often muddy fields wearing your wellies. This time my wellies are lilac, a lovely pair of Hunters from Rob.
3. Brussel sprouts and parsnips
Apparently you either love or hate these. Usually those who love Brussel sprouts hate parsnips and vice versa. There were lengthy negotiations over how many one must have, deals were struck to trade one for another....
I have yet to decide whether I love or hate them.
4. Stockings
Before Christmas arrived Rob kept telling me about the "stockings". I had thought, from memory of watching western cartoons, that stockings are where you put your Christmas presents. It turned out that you deposit the "main" presents under the tree and what you find in stockings are smaller presents which are either more practical things or fun things. I had become quite obsessed with the stocking business by midnight on Christmas Day and I was thrilled to receive my very long stocking from Father Christmas (Americans: read - Santa Claus) stuffed with 15 presents!
5. The turkey
For someone who is quite into food, I was quite embarrassed to find out that the turkey is actually very big compared to a chicken! I was told it weighs at least 4 times as an average chicken. Because of its size, it was able to feed us for many meals. Rob's mum was most talented in making different dishes out of the same bird! Apart from impressing the family with my lack of knowledge on turkeys, I must have left an equally deep impression having devoured a whole huge turkey leg over lunch one day.
Rob is a big fan of the Queen. Growing up in Hong Kong meant I saw the Queen on notes and coins and official documents, until the handover in 1997. But there was never much attachment or connection with the smiling and kind-looking royalty.
The Queen's speech on Christmas Day used to attract a lot more audience but with apparently half of the adult population in the UK falling asleep by 3pm due to the excessive consumption of food and alcohol (so I read), I doubt many actually watch the speech these days. However, it is part of the Lilwall tradition so we switched on the TV at 2:55pm! In her 50th televised Christmas speech, she spoke about caring for the marginalised in society, which wasn't exactly very cheery but it resonated with the central Christmas message. So I thought she did really well!
If you missed it, you can watch it at www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0nmkYGCljE
I had never spent Christmas with an English family before so I was very excited just thinking about it (and the many sumptuous meals of which I had heard so much)!
While spending time in the lovely house in Shropshire I became quite fascinated by a number of things:
1. The Aga
Apparently this stored-heat stove and cooker is very common in the UK, especially in the countryside. You can use the oven compartments as well as the "hobs". It runs on gas and seems permanently hot. I loved standing next to it warming myself while waiting for the kettle to boil. I discovered that there is also an Aga cookbook!The Aga was invented by a Swedish physicist in the 1920s.
2. Walks in the countryside in your wellies
I first came across wellies when I was about 4. They were yellow and there was a cartoon figure on each one facing outwards. I wore them to kindergarten during rainy seasons. I had not seen them since my childhood days.
This Christmas I re-discovered the simple joy of marching (!) through the beautiful but often muddy fields wearing your wellies. This time my wellies are lilac, a lovely pair of Hunters from Rob.
3. Brussel sprouts and parsnips
Apparently you either love or hate these. Usually those who love Brussel sprouts hate parsnips and vice versa. There were lengthy negotiations over how many one must have, deals were struck to trade one for another.... I have yet to decide whether I love or hate them.
4. Stockings
Before Christmas arrived Rob kept telling me about the "stockings". I had thought, from memory of watching western cartoons, that stockings are where you put your Christmas presents. It turned out that you deposit the "main" presents under the tree and what you find in stockings are smaller presents which are either more practical things or fun things. I had become quite obsessed with the stocking business by midnight on Christmas Day and I was thrilled to receive my very long stocking from Father Christmas (Americans: read - Santa Claus) stuffed with 15 presents!
5. The turkey
For someone who is quite into food, I was quite embarrassed to find out that the turkey is actually very big compared to a chicken! I was told it weighs at least 4 times as an average chicken. Because of its size, it was able to feed us for many meals. Rob's mum was most talented in making different dishes out of the same bird! Apart from impressing the family with my lack of knowledge on turkeys, I must have left an equally deep impression having devoured a whole huge turkey leg over lunch one day.
6. The Queen's speech
Rob is a big fan of the Queen. Growing up in Hong Kong meant I saw the Queen on notes and coins and official documents, until the handover in 1997. But there was never much attachment or connection with the smiling and kind-looking royalty.
The Queen's speech on Christmas Day used to attract a lot more audience but with apparently half of the adult population in the UK falling asleep by 3pm due to the excessive consumption of food and alcohol (so I read), I doubt many actually watch the speech these days. However, it is part of the Lilwall tradition so we switched on the TV at 2:55pm! In her 50th televised Christmas speech, she spoke about caring for the marginalised in society, which wasn't exactly very cheery but it resonated with the central Christmas message. So I thought she did really well!
If you missed it, you can watch it at www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0nmkYGCljE
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)