Gate-way to Malaysia

Friday, May 17, 2019

Cooking Class in Vietnam

By Child 1

From Thursday May 9th to Sunday May 12th, we vacationed in Phú Quốc, Vietnam. Vietnam has a unique culture that attracts tourists from all over the world, and has maintained itself for decades. One of the highlights well worth exploring is the food.

Screenshot courtesy of Google Maps

Vietnam's food is diverse, with everything from big, steaming bowls of phở (noodle soup) to chả giò (fried spring rolls) wraps in lettuce and herbs. Yet at the same time, it all upholds that Vietnamese signature taste of fish sauce, sugar and herbs.

While at the resort in Phú Quốc, we had the fortunate chance to take part in an exclusive Vietnamese cooking class. We also signed up to go to the market, fish sauce factory, and pepper farm before hand to see where our ingredients came from.

We drove to the market, and walked around trying not to get killed by motorcycles and soaking in the cultural essence of Vietnam. We saw fruit stands with mangos, bananas, dragon fruit, pineapples, mangosteen and little plums. We saw whole fish being chopped and live shrimp in buckets, herbs, meats, frogs, and trash lying around.

Then we went to see the fish sauce factory. It was by the sea, so boats could bring in fresh fish. Then the fish is left to ferment in huge tanks with plenty of salt for a year. It is then let out through taps in the bottom into bottles, and then it is processed and has sugar added before they sell it.

The barrels where the fish ferment and liquify.

The boats that bring in fish.

The finished fish sauce being sold nearby.

Next we visited the pepper farm. We got to see pepper plants growing. I ate a pepper, and it tasted exactly like black pepper. The pepper is picked and left in the sun to dry, and it becomes black pepper. Red pepper is made from the special red peppers, which are hand picked off of the plant. That is why it's more expensive. White pepper is made when they leave it in water.

After that we headed back to the resort and had a short break before we went to the restaurant for a cooking class. The chef came out and showed us how to cook pomelo salad, fresh spring rolls, fried spring rolls, Vietnamese pancake, and chicken curry. First she demonstrated, then we got to make it. The next day the other tour guide wrote out the recipes for us so we could cook it again.

And that concluded the cooking class.

My grandmother is from Vietnam, so it was interesting to see it for myself. I enjoyed the tour, the cooking and the eating! Overall, it was a truly delicious taste of Vietnam, and every taste bud in me is wondering what could possibly come next.

Thursday, May 16, 2019

The Vietnamese Awesome Resort in Phú Quốc

by Buster

I went to an awesome resort in Phú Quốc, which is in Vietnam, by the way. And also, it's AWESOME!!!

This is Mom, Child 2, Child 1 and I sitting on Mommy's bed in our fancy awesome villa with a private pool.

The is the roof of Mom's room. It's cool because you can see the tiles of the roof of Mom's room.

This is Mom's giant tub. Child 2 took a lot of baths in it. It took like ten thousand ga-gillion hours to fill it up with water!

This is Mom's view of the beach. By the way, the beach is really awesome, except for the fact that Child 2 and I got a lot of foot pokings. By the way, "foot pokings" means that we got a lot of pokes on our feet in the ocean.

It was really rainy while we were there but there were a couple of nice days.

This is the non-private pool. It was deep though! I preferred swimming in the ocean because it had waves. This is a very, very surprising thing: the ocean is warmer than the pool! Normally you'd think that the pool would be warmer than the ocean!

Child 2, Child 1, and I tried to make a sand fortress a the beach but it collapsed on me a lot. We never succeeded. Child 2, Child 1, and I collected a lot of shells and dead coral. I collected one piece of pottery.

This is our private pool. It's very small though.

This is us eating breakfast at the restaurant. It was scrumptious. I got to eat brownies and toast with delicious jam. For dinner every night I had Vietnamese beef noodle soup and it was the best beef noodle soup I ever had! And Child 2 thought the pizza was really good, which it was. I had vanilla ice cream for one dessert, and the other two days I had chocolate lava cake...which is very tasty, if you've never had it.

This is Child 2 and I in one of the swings that are in the restaurant. I really want one in my own house back in Somerville! They're really cozy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Monday, April 1, 2019

I, Buster, Went to Indoor Skydiving!!!!!!!!!!

by Buster

Well, it was my birthday last week, and we went to an indoor skydiving place at a mall. Mom was like, "Where is the indoor skydiving? Where is the indoor skydiving?" And then we met our friends, as you may see. We wandered around the mall. Then we found the indoor skydiving place. It was called "Air Rider".

The first thing we did was check in. And then we went in to the place, waited for 5 minutes, and then watched a training video of someone doing it. And then we got all geared up, as you may see.

This is Child 2 skydiving:

This is Child 1 skydiving:

And this is me skydiving!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In this glass tube, you see, there was a lot of air coming up. That's how we flew. It felt very cold.

As you may not see in the pictures, I did get to fly to the top of the tube.

And please read the other blog posts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Monday, March 25, 2019

The Singapore Flyer

By BUSTER

Well, you see, this is a Ferris Wheel. Have you ever been to the Fourth of July Fair? There is usually a Ferris Wheel there. But, the Singapore Flyer is ten thousand times bigger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And I got to see the whole of Singapore from the tippy top of the Singapore Flyer!!!!!!!!!!

This is a picture of me in one of the pods of the Singapore Flyer. The pod is about the size of a bus and it's air-conditioned. It could fit about 20 people, but when we went we only had 10 people.

This is a view from almost at the tippy-top of the Singapore Flyer. You can see what look like some giant worms sticking out of the ground. Those are the Gardens By The Bay. And inside those giant worms is an air-conditioned greenhouse. In the tall one is a giant waterfall! Together they are about a mile long!!! Behind the Gardens By The Bay is the Singapore Bay. As you might see, there is quite a bit of shipping happening!!!

This picture includes me, Child 1, Dad, and Child 2. Too bad Mom couldn't get in it! Mom isn't in it because she is taking the photo.

Goodbye!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Friday, March 22, 2019

Batu Caves

By Child 1

On Saturday, Mar 16, we went to the famed Hindu shrine, tourist attraction, and natural wonder the Batu Caves. Our friend Connie was in the area, so she visited us. Since she was there, we felt obliged to do something touristy with her.

Batu Caves are formed by limestone, and are said to be around 400 million years old. Indigenous peoples used them as shelters. Many people collected accumulated bat poop and bird remains to use as fertilizer. But K. Thamboosamy Pillai, a rich Indian trader, was inspired by the shape of the mouth of the cave. He thought it look like the vel, the divine spear of the Hindu War God Murugan, so he created a temple dedicated to Lord Murugan inside the caves.

Here is the enormous 140ft high statue of Murugan.

The Batu Caves are also a big rock climbing site, and have many wild animals. On the way up the 272 steps, wild and not-so-friendly monkeys grab people's food right out of their hands. Up those steps, there are two caves you can see. The one with the Hindu temple, and another one called the Dark Caves, which extends further into the mountain and isn't as touched by humans. The Dark Caves were closed on the day we went though. On the ground nearby, there are also little ground-level art gallery caves and food places.

It was extremely hot when we got there, so it was a relief to get in the cool shade of the caves after all those steps. Inside, there were two "rooms." The second one was slightly higher up, and its top was open.

Picture of the first room, taken from the second room.

Picture of the second room, taken from the first room.

Before we went, we also went to the Art Gallery Cave, and happened upon a dance show that was going on.

It was a long way down!

Us in the Art Gallery Cave.

Here is the dance show.

In all, it was a hot, tiring, and exciting experience. Although we did not get to see the Dark Cave, the main cave was magnificent. We ate and drove home, and that was the end of our Batu Caves journey.

Art class - Update I

If you have not read my previous article "Art Class", do so here now!

Ahem. Ice Cream Rain here! If you have read my previous article (If you haven't, go to the link above) then you know all about the art class we're taking! I told you I would update you when we made more art, and I am going to keep my word!! Also, remember that our teacher helped us with these!

Art - Group 1

"Sunflower" by Child 2

This is an art piece by me, "Sunflower". I worked very hard on it! You can see an "M" on the bottom right. I love the color!

"The cats" by Buster

This is an art piece by Buster. He worked very hard on it. I think it's really, really, really cute!!!!!

"Sunset in the woods" by Child 1

This is an art piece by Child 1. She worked very hard on it. I think it looks awesome, don't you?

Art - Group 2

"Starry Night" by all of us

This time we each made a picture, so that when placed side by side they all line up. Can you guess which one was made by who?

Hint: from youngest to oldest

Answer: Buster's is the one on the left, mine is in the middle, and Child 1 made the one on the right.

Art - Group 3

"Happy on the outside" by Child 2

I worked EXTREMELY hard on this art piece. The blue background on the left and the calmly smiling lady shows calmness and happiness. The left is the outside. The brilliant orange background on the left and the sad colors of the crying girl shows fear and sadness. The right is the inside.

"Two faces" by Child 1

Child 1 worked very hard on this art. I think, in my opinion, though I am not sure what she thinks, the left side emanates Happiness, Joy, and positivity. I think the right side shows mystery, beauty, and eeriness. Great work, Child 1!

"Make it up" by Buster

This is a wonderful art work! I love how the shoulders shrug in a calm way, how the multicolored eyes stand out and the styled rosy cheeks. The left shoulder is the same color as the right background, and the right shoulder is the same color as the left background. "Make it up" is wacky, colorful, and fills you with wonder.

Art - Group 4

"Harmony island" by Child 1

Harmony island is a calm, peaceful work just as the name suggests and makes you smile. The ocean is filled with different shades and looks fantastic against the colorful island. Fish swim in the waters along with a whale, and a sun peeks out from the clouds.

"Hidden island" by Child 2

The jagged floating piece of rock sets this artwork's theme and mood. A strange, impossible thing. A killer whale bigger than a tree? A colorless sky with no sun at all? The whale seems to jump from the water, but who knows... It might be floating.

"Apple" by Buster

"Apple" is a wonderful art piece. It's simple and calming. An apple atop a table, a shadow emanating from it across the table. A blue background, and butterflies flitting around. Instead of a frame a sketchy black line has been painted around it for borders.

It's been so long, it seems, since we started this class. Art covers our walls, each piece better than the last. I think we've improved, don't you?

❤︎ The end❤︎

Looking for more? Check out more of my articles!

Malls in Malaysia

House tour

The balloon festival!!!

Art class

PALM TREES & MONKEYS!!!!!!!

District 21
Singapore - The Night Safari

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-Ice Cream Rain

Art class update II is out!!

https://gatewaytomalaysia.blogspot.com/2019/05/art-class-update-II.html

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Singapore - The Night Safari

by Child 2

So, Last week we went to Singapore. It was clean, and you should've seen the airport- but that's a story for another day. Today we're going to dive right into THE NIGHT SAFARI.

We arrived at about 9:00.

That's Nine in the morning for you people in Boston, but that's really nine at night in Singapore. This is normally about the time we brush our teeth and put our PJs on, but I'd napped for four hours before coming here (Nope, not kidding!) and I was feeling pretty rested. Connie, who was visiting us, came too. We got some things to drink. I got an ice lemon tea.

A picture of us. Mom's taking it so she isn't in it.

We boarded the night safari at about 9:30.

The safari was a big tram sort of thing with the walls open. The night was dark and I was at the edge of it. I held onto a metal bar, like one on a bus, on the dark bumpy road. We rolled down the Night Safari. A booming voice above us said something. I leaned forward. In a clearing to our right there were some deer-like animals. They were really pretty!

I can't remember the order, but here are some of the animals we saw on the safari:

Elephants

Bears

Rhinos

Tigers

Lions

We got off the Night Safari at about 10:00.

We were all hungry, so we got some things to eat and drink. My brother Buster and I got some delicious freshly-made fruit smoothies. We all ate at a delicious restaurant, eating bread, soup, and other wonderful things. Suddenly we heard a sound, the sound of fire. We finished our dinners and went to take a look.

They were on fire. Like, literally.

From over the heads of the crowd, we saw fire. We saw people.

People holding sticks that are on fire. The girls are wearing outfits I don't like.

I pushed up to the front of the crowd. I watched in wonder as people twirled fire, threw fire, and even spit fire. The picture we took isn't very high resolution, so here are a few I got from the internet:

Like I said, the girls are wearing very bad outfits.

and

You know what, the men aren't very modestly dressed either.

Yuuuuuuuk. Bad senses of fashion. But the show was amazing.

At 10:30, the creatures of the night show started.

We entered an area with a stage and sat down. The night show was about to begin. Colored lights danced across the stage. Finally a lady came out. She talked for a bit then left the stage. Suddenly a small, furry animal dashed across it, got some food, and ran back off. A large animal, hidden in the shadows, came up on the hill, took a drink, and slunk back off. Soon a lady came up, holding an extremely cute animal on her shoulders.

The picture is kinda blurred

Aww!!!
Next, there were owls. They flew around the stage as quiet as a mouse (Actually, quieter.).

Owls!

A little later in the show they called for some volunteers. The volunteers went off the stage. For a few minutes, quiet. Then they came back out, but they weren't alone.