Chritmas roast turkey from Maria's

Our 3rd Christmas in Ipoh, and this year Christmas dinner was held at our house instead of at my inlaws' place. The menu consisted of the traditional roast turkey, mashed potatoes, salad, fried broccoli and cauliflower, grilled lamb shoulders and fried rice (a bit weird I know, but it was on request).

Father-in-law bought the roast turkey from Maria's Cafe, which has quite a good reputation. And indeed the main dish of Christmas dinner did not disappoint. The turkey was tender and moist while the stuffing was the best I have ever had (I usually detest turkey stuffing). The bird that FIL ordered was about 4.9kg, small if you compare it to the larger sizes Maria's has - the turkeys go up until about 8kg.

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Our 4th Christmas in Ipoh (2011) was celebrated with a Christmas lunch instead of dinner, and with a roast chicken instead of roast turkey!

Not all the family was around, hence the smaller scale of celebration.

Lost World of Tambun - surprisingly good fun

It's been a great year-end vacation. And I managed to bring the kids to the Lost World of Tambun, almost 2 years after moving to Ipoh!

We went with 3 other moms and their kids so we had very good company for the day. I went with extremely low expectations, so when we got there, I was rather impressed with the Lost World, finding it way above my expectations.

While it is smaller than its big brother Sunway Lagoon in KL, its smallness lent it its own charm, cosiness and ease of getting around. I like that. And its location is far, far superior to that of Sunway Lagoon as the Lost World is cradled by lush green mountains on all sides, giving it a very tranquil, picture-perfect setting. Wonderful.

The kids had their squealing fun on the dry rides (very few, but enough for me), the wave pool, building sand castles on the artificial beach, bobbing along the canal in our rented rubber tubes, and of course swooshing down the 2 large water slides. I went with my 5-year old girl on one of the big slides and I admit that I was scared! Yiikkess!!

The train ride around the perimeter of the Lost World is a great way for you to see what else you would like to do there. We got off at the Petting Zoo and the kids enjoyed some close contact with the furry and scaly kind. We didn't have time to visit the cave or paddle boats. Next visit.

We ended the day with a dip in the famed hot spring pools of Ipoh. Something that Sunway Lagoon does not have. Highly recommended for a day of family fun.

(picture from http://www.dromoz.com/community/place/?id=986)

Teaching by example.....

.... is really more powerful and effective.

On our recent holiday to Australia, I had the chance to demonstrate kindness and consideration.

My family and I were on a tram which was rather packed. There was only standing room left. Not a problem for most people used to commuting and for the young. After several people got off and others got on at a stop, there were spaces enough for my kids and I to sit. But just then, an elderly Australian lady came on board.

Naturally, I got up and offered her my seat. She was carrying a large handbag which I offered to hold for her while she made her way slowly to my seat. I noticed a middle-aged but still-fit Australian man who was seated (he should have been the one to get up!) eyeing the exchange, and several other commuters in the tram smiling at me. When it was time for us to alight from the tram, the elderly lady thanked me again and wished us a lovely day.

As were walking the streets of the city, my 5-year old daughter said, "Mommy, you were kind to that old lady. She was old. People thought you were nice. Next time I will be kind too".

My heart warmed. Lesson taught and learned.