In a previous post I mentioned that Danika was arriving Friday and that Kylisha and I were taking the day off to go and get her from Hong Kong. That was a lie. Sorry. The truth is that she arrived on Thursday and I snuck to Hong Kong on my own to get her. We hid her in our living room and then called Kylisha out. Amanda still can't watch it without tearing up...
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
3, 2, 1... Action!
Over the past 8 months, we have not only taken hundreds and hundreds of photos, but we have also been taking video clips during our adventures around SE Asia. Amanda figured it was time to compile these and I spent a good 3-4 hours yesterday (yes...I have no full time job) and put this little diddy together.....We hope you enjoy it and that it makes you all feel a little closer to us over here!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Sweet 16!
Who knew Kylisha would be celebrating her sweet 16 here in Macau? For her birthday, we let her take off the afternoon and I took her to 360 Cafe for lunch. It is the revolving restaurant at the top of the Macau Tower. It is exactly like the top of the Calgary Tower or LaRonde in Edmonton. Her and I pigged out for a couple hours up there as there was no shortage of food. I personally was a little disappointed that there was no seafood at all, but maybe at the dinner buffet there is! It was also too bad that it was so hazy, because the views from the tower are amazing when it is clear (not very often).
Later that evening we/she had some friends over for her requested rib dinner, so we stuffed our bellies with meat and had some cake as well.
The night before her birthday, Dane and Kirsten snuck over like gorillas in the mist, and decorated the outside of our door for Kylisha's birthday. Kylisha was surprised and loved it when she went to leave for school the next morning!
On March 25, Klash's best friend and Amanda's BFF (they are tangled in a messy BFF triangle right now) Danika, is arriving here for a couple weeks! Huge kudos to Danika's parents for sending their baby to see us all by herself! Yes, it is literally around the world, but after being here, we can honestly say that it is very similar to back home and in fact, we feel much safer here than we would back home! It's funny because it seems so silly that before we came here we were a bit scared-that's how much of a bubble we lived in!! Thank goodness we (like Danika's parents) were smart enough to take the leap! Kylisha is so excited for Dani to get here and we are taking the day off Friday to go pick her up in HK. For their sweet 16th's, Amanda has planned an exclusive surprise filled girly weekend in Hong Kong for the 3 of them...they should have a blast. Based on Amanda's history of going out in HK, I'm a little worried!
Later that evening we/she had some friends over for her requested rib dinner, so we stuffed our bellies with meat and had some cake as well.
The night before her birthday, Dane and Kirsten snuck over like gorillas in the mist, and decorated the outside of our door for Kylisha's birthday. Kylisha was surprised and loved it when she went to leave for school the next morning!
On March 25, Klash's best friend and Amanda's BFF (they are tangled in a messy BFF triangle right now) Danika, is arriving here for a couple weeks! Huge kudos to Danika's parents for sending their baby to see us all by herself! Yes, it is literally around the world, but after being here, we can honestly say that it is very similar to back home and in fact, we feel much safer here than we would back home! It's funny because it seems so silly that before we came here we were a bit scared-that's how much of a bubble we lived in!! Thank goodness we (like Danika's parents) were smart enough to take the leap! Kylisha is so excited for Dani to get here and we are taking the day off Friday to go pick her up in HK. For their sweet 16th's, Amanda has planned an exclusive surprise filled girly weekend in Hong Kong for the 3 of them...they should have a blast. Based on Amanda's history of going out in HK, I'm a little worried!
61. Fly a Kite
When we were in Bali, we bought some kites at a shop. We sent some to the Nellis clan and kept one for Kaidyn. Since we were heading to Hac Sa Beach for dinner, we decided to bring the kite along for a test run. It took Dane and I awhile to figure out how to assemble the dragon kite, but-we persevered! It is usually pretty breezy at the beach so we were anticipating a successful trial run. Due to the direction of the wind, location of trees and buildings and possibly the cheapness of the kite, the flight was somewhat successful, but short lived. When we have more time, we will take the kite to the far end of Hac Sa and really let er rip!
38 Down....62 to go!
38 Down....62 to go!
23. Eat at Fernando's
After reading all the travel books and info related to Macau, they all have one "must eat" restaurant in common: a Portuguese place called Fernando's. Last week was Daney Dudey's birthday and we headed out to Coloane for dinner after work. For some reason, we have not gone there for dinner since we have been here, but I guess it is a long ways away by Macau standards. 
It was a good thing Dane and Kirsten were with us as they eat there every second night (sarcasm) and they knew exactly what to order! Either that or they're really bossy! Fernando's is definitely not a vegetarian's delight, as it is a meatfest...just the way I like it. We ordered ribs, roast chicken, suckling pig, garlic prawns. My my, was it ever delicious.
D & K raved about the chicken, and it did not disappoint! It was the best roast chicken I had ever had. All the food was delightful and if any of you come to visit, we are heading there for sure. You'll have to ask Amanda if she recommends the soup.
This illustrates how good the chicken actually is:
Meatfest Out!
37 Down...63 to go!
It was a good thing Dane and Kirsten were with us as they eat there every second night (sarcasm) and they knew exactly what to order! Either that or they're really bossy! Fernando's is definitely not a vegetarian's delight, as it is a meatfest...just the way I like it. We ordered ribs, roast chicken, suckling pig, garlic prawns. My my, was it ever delicious.
D & K raved about the chicken, and it did not disappoint! It was the best roast chicken I had ever had. All the food was delightful and if any of you come to visit, we are heading there for sure. You'll have to ask Amanda if she recommends the soup.
This illustrates how good the chicken actually is:
Meatfest Out!
37 Down...63 to go!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
57. Golf
Yesterday was the last day of Student Led Conferences for all the teachers, so Dane organized a golf excursion to the mainland for 8 of us. Everything here in China seems to be pretty cheap, except for the golf. There are 2 courses here in Macau, Caesar's and The Westin Golf Clubs. Each of these courses is well over $200 CAD/round and that is definitely not in many of our budgets! I complain about the green fees back home being too rich, but here it is even worse. We decided to golf in Zhuhai because it is much cheaper and at $110 CAD/round, Chinese Les thinks this is a deal!
We started out having to exit Macau, took a bus across the river to the China side, then went through immigration in Zhuhai. Once we entered China, there was absolutely nothing around the border crossing, so taxis were not readily available. Through the help of Dan (who knows 100 times more Mandarin than the rest of us), we hired 2 private cars to take us to the Zhuhai Orient Golf Club and also arranged for them to pick us up after the round. Driving to the course was like driving through an apocalyptic war zone with dirt roads and what seemed like abandoned industrial machinery everywhere along the roadside.
Upon our arrival at the course, we pulled up and a bunch of female caddies instantly grabbed our bags and carted them off to some mysterious location. I had no idea what was going on and was honestly confused!
we finally registered with the clubhouse, we bought every beer they had in the cooler and we were ready to roll! The carts were 4 seaters with room for 4 bags and 2 spots for the caddies to ride along with us. The green fee included 1 caddy per 2 golfers. This was my first caddy experience, and it is definitely the way to go! I rarely had anything in my hands except for a beer, as they give you your club just before you hit, and instantly take it back as soon as you shank it! They marked and cleaned every ball, lined up your putts, took out the pins, raked the traps and looked for stray balls. Our girls were fantastic and we had a blast with them. During many errant drives, the girls would say "OH NO....Dangerous!" They had very limited English, but were competent enough to know how long you hit each of your irons, so you just hit what they gave you....pretty amazing if you ask me! They would even laugh at us if we hit the water or missed a putt. One of the girls even made a fart sound as Dane missed a putt!
After the round, we hit the clubhouse for some grub, and wouldn't you know, they were all out of rice! Really? Out of rice in China? C'mon! So we opted for some clubhouses, awesome spicy calamari and spring rolls.
We determined the day was a success despite the drizzle, cool weather and the number of strokes played. We will definitely be returning for the next Tsing Tao Open! I had to touch up someone's butt crack in order to make the photo below "family friendly".
36 down...64 left
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
9. Go to a concert
The Kiat ladies have been busy concert goers the last month.
On Valentine's Day Amanda, her friend Lynn, Kylisha, and a friend of Kylisha's headed over to Hong Kong after school for the evening. They went for dinner and then went to the Janet Jackson concert. Originally, Amanda had bought the 4 tickets for me and her and Lynn and Lynn's boyfriend Dan. However, Dan didn't end up coming with Lynn. So basically Dan saved me from having to go to Janet Jackson. Haha! Also, I was anticipating "big bonedy" Janet as opposed to "hot Janet". The girls said that Janet can still dance and that she put on a good show.
A week after Janet Kylisha and a bunch of friends headed back to Hong Kong for a Taylor Swift concert. I'm sure there was lots of screaming and craziness. Taylor apparently touched their hands as she ran by. I don't really understand the hype. Now if that had been my girlfriend Katy Perry...
Last Friday someone named Michael Buble came to town. This has been a MUCHLY anticipated event for my wife. For one thing, she loves him. A LOT! "He's so charming!" "He's so hot!" "He's so funny!" BLAH BLAH BLAH!!!
But, the other reason why she was so looking forward to this concert is because her cousin Craig is the sound guy for the supposedly charming, hot, funny Canadian crooner. Amanda and her friend Gill went to the concert, got to go back stage and then took her cousin out in Hong Kong after the concert. I took a pass on this one too as I know my wife and Gill, and would not have been able to keep up with them apres concert. Mind you if it was my girlfriend Katy Perry.....I would have been on it like white on rice.
Here's a nice shot I found on Amanda's camera of two "friends" the trio made. Amanda tells me the gentleman on the left was a bartender at one of the establishments the three visited. I think given Amanda's "state" at the time she probably thought that he was actually Michael Buble. You may notice that the gentleman is not wearing a shirt-Amanda bought his shirt from him as a souvenir for her cousin. I'm sure the girl on the right is now my wife's BFF...or Facebook friend.
Amanda's cousin had a lobby call at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday since the tour was heading on to Kuala Lumpur, so the trio had to wrap up their festivities slightly before that. Needless to say, Amanda had food poisoning on Saturday. And Lan Kwai Fong will never be the same.
35 DONE...65 left to go!!!
On Valentine's Day Amanda, her friend Lynn, Kylisha, and a friend of Kylisha's headed over to Hong Kong after school for the evening. They went for dinner and then went to the Janet Jackson concert. Originally, Amanda had bought the 4 tickets for me and her and Lynn and Lynn's boyfriend Dan. However, Dan didn't end up coming with Lynn. So basically Dan saved me from having to go to Janet Jackson. Haha! Also, I was anticipating "big bonedy" Janet as opposed to "hot Janet". The girls said that Janet can still dance and that she put on a good show.
A week after Janet Kylisha and a bunch of friends headed back to Hong Kong for a Taylor Swift concert. I'm sure there was lots of screaming and craziness. Taylor apparently touched their hands as she ran by. I don't really understand the hype. Now if that had been my girlfriend Katy Perry...
Last Friday someone named Michael Buble came to town. This has been a MUCHLY anticipated event for my wife. For one thing, she loves him. A LOT! "He's so charming!" "He's so hot!" "He's so funny!" BLAH BLAH BLAH!!!
But, the other reason why she was so looking forward to this concert is because her cousin Craig is the sound guy for the supposedly charming, hot, funny Canadian crooner. Amanda and her friend Gill went to the concert, got to go back stage and then took her cousin out in Hong Kong after the concert. I took a pass on this one too as I know my wife and Gill, and would not have been able to keep up with them apres concert. Mind you if it was my girlfriend Katy Perry.....I would have been on it like white on rice.
Here's a nice shot I found on Amanda's camera of two "friends" the trio made. Amanda tells me the gentleman on the left was a bartender at one of the establishments the three visited. I think given Amanda's "state" at the time she probably thought that he was actually Michael Buble. You may notice that the gentleman is not wearing a shirt-Amanda bought his shirt from him as a souvenir for her cousin. I'm sure the girl on the right is now my wife's BFF...or Facebook friend.
Amanda's cousin had a lobby call at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday since the tour was heading on to Kuala Lumpur, so the trio had to wrap up their festivities slightly before that. Needless to say, Amanda had food poisoning on Saturday. And Lan Kwai Fong will never be the same.
35 DONE...65 left to go!!!
Saturday, March 5, 2011
75. Celebrate Chinese New Year
Before our CNY holiday the school had a concert. All the Mandarin classes performed a dance or song. Here's a little sample of the concert. Kaid is in the number that has the giant mascots dancing around. He's on the far right side.
When we returned from Bali there was still some celebrating to do. One night after dinner we headed down to the fireworks zone. Basically the city blocks off a lane of traffic in Taipa down by the river and fireworks vendors set up shop. People can walk down the street and barter with the vendors to buy huge packages of fireworks. You then proceed to the launching area, light your fireworks and enjoy the show. It felt like we were in the middle of a huge war-as you can imagine we weren't the only ones there. All around us there were people launching their goods and there was even a special "just for kids" area! We saw a few rogue rockets and stood in disbelief as the explosions went off around us! GOOD TIMES! You can hear Kaidyn yelling "FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!!"
34 down....66 left to go!!
When we returned from Bali there was still some celebrating to do. One night after dinner we headed down to the fireworks zone. Basically the city blocks off a lane of traffic in Taipa down by the river and fireworks vendors set up shop. People can walk down the street and barter with the vendors to buy huge packages of fireworks. You then proceed to the launching area, light your fireworks and enjoy the show. It felt like we were in the middle of a huge war-as you can imagine we weren't the only ones there. All around us there were people launching their goods and there was even a special "just for kids" area! We saw a few rogue rockets and stood in disbelief as the explosions went off around us! GOOD TIMES! You can hear Kaidyn yelling "FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!!"
34 down....66 left to go!!
Ooops!
Amanda just realized last week that I neglected to post our Singapore slideshow. It is on Facecrack, but now consider it officially posted!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
SILVER for the TIGERS
If you've been following our blog you'll know about the basketball team. This is the very first year the school has had a girls' basketball team. When the team started back in late November the girls had never played basketball and the only knowledge they had about basketball was through their PE classes.
They went to a tournament in Hong Kong and another in Shenzhen and on both occasions they lost all their games. BUT-they've been working hard. Very hard. 7 hours a week they have been practicing. They've had fitness sessions on Saturdays. They've learned how to dribble, pass and shoot in the span of a few months.
The school hosted an International basketball tournament the weekend before last and 8 teams from as far away as Mongolia attended. This was wonderful news because it meant the girls would have fans. And did they ever have fans! Almost the entire school of roughly 880 students came out to watch the games that were during the day on the Friday. I got to bring Amanda's class over to watch since she needed a sub in order to coach. It was unbelievable. The crowd was filled with kids who had made posters and painted their faces. They chanted and cheered. And I got to watch Kylisha play and win two basketball games in front of the huge crowd.
The next morning they won again and this put them in the championship game late on Saturday. A pretty amazing feat for a group of girls who had never played before.
Unfortunately they lost their last game, but walked away with silver on a weekend when they weren't even expected to win a game. Pretty unbelievable!
Amanda and her co-coach just can't stop gushing about how proud they are of their little team. Trust me-I hear about it FREQUENTLY.
Kylisha was also nominated as a member of the "All-Tournament Team" at the banquet and awards dinner they had on the Saturday night. Now it's my turn to be proud.
Amanda and Kylisha at the tournament banquet:
P.S. Soccer started Monday.
They went to a tournament in Hong Kong and another in Shenzhen and on both occasions they lost all their games. BUT-they've been working hard. Very hard. 7 hours a week they have been practicing. They've had fitness sessions on Saturdays. They've learned how to dribble, pass and shoot in the span of a few months.
The school hosted an International basketball tournament the weekend before last and 8 teams from as far away as Mongolia attended. This was wonderful news because it meant the girls would have fans. And did they ever have fans! Almost the entire school of roughly 880 students came out to watch the games that were during the day on the Friday. I got to bring Amanda's class over to watch since she needed a sub in order to coach. It was unbelievable. The crowd was filled with kids who had made posters and painted their faces. They chanted and cheered. And I got to watch Kylisha play and win two basketball games in front of the huge crowd.
The next morning they won again and this put them in the championship game late on Saturday. A pretty amazing feat for a group of girls who had never played before.
Unfortunately they lost their last game, but walked away with silver on a weekend when they weren't even expected to win a game. Pretty unbelievable!
Amanda and her co-coach just can't stop gushing about how proud they are of their little team. Trust me-I hear about it FREQUENTLY.
Kylisha was also nominated as a member of the "All-Tournament Team" at the banquet and awards dinner they had on the Saturday night. Now it's my turn to be proud.
Amanda and Kylisha at the tournament banquet:
P.S. Soccer started Monday.
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