Thoughts beyond my life & my travel - Bel

My living space is very plain with white walls, no pictures or any decorations. I bought a small plant to bright up the living room early this year but the plant died after 2-3 months. Small plants are cute but there are very limited choice of tiny flower plants. I walked around the flower market and had a search at a flower fair but I couldn't find any sweet small plant with lovely flowers. Not till two weeks ago, I started to buy bunches of flowers and a tall vase. Flowers usually won't last more than 5 days, but they cheer me up and bring some positive energy to the house. I also feel I will have better luck with flowers, too. So, I bought my third bunches of flowers today. Unexpectedly, the flowers brought along conversations with the guard and my neighbour. I was given a suggestion to add some bleach water in the vase to make the flowers live longer. Why bleach water? My neighbour said it could kill the germs and let the flowers live healthy. Of course, I won...

"Beyond the satiation level of income, you can buy more pleasurable experiences, but you will lose some of your ability to enjoy the less expensive ones." I read this quote from the book, " Thinking Fast and Slow " by Daniel Kahneman. I'm never rich but I can relate this idea to what I experienced when I travelled first time. I sat by the window seat, feeling excited to see the plane flying among the clouds. A simple experience was a mere pleasure when I saw Paris, Greece or Italy. The enriched culture, exotic appearance of people and even the night train had become very sexy! I could survive with baguette for a few days, or sample cheese and skip my lunch. After years of travel, I start to look for something more "fascinating" to stimulate the senses, or just lie on the beach in a resort enjoying sunshine and good food. The book talks about measurement of well-being by U-index. What's well-being? Health? Happiness? This index refers to the p...

I heard the shocking news this evening. Centre for Health Protection (CHP) Controller Dr Thomas Tsang decided to leave CHP for good. I don't usually watch any press conference live on TV, but I was amazed with the press conference held by CHP. Dr Tsang seemed to study the "infection" issues in detail, and was ready to answer every single question with genuine response, data or research. He's like a super hero to me. I always think that maybe I will have a chance to work in CHP and learn from this great doctor one day. His departure is quite a surprise since he has been serving the public sector for almost 20 years. Nevertheless, he set a good example for his successor, and hopefully CHP can respond as fast as it is now in the future. After all, tackling super bugs or SARS is not an easy job! He said that he had no intention to work overseas or explore his career in the private sector. Will he be teaching in a university then? I will hope to become his student if he...

He is an ordinary old man, sitting close to the driver seat on a tram. Every time he sees some passengers getting on the tram, he is waving hard and tries to let people know that there is an empty seat next to him. He is simply eager to tell people his story. When a woman finally takes the seat, he rolls up his pants in no time, and shows the woman that he lost one leg as he fell from a 5-storey building. "I get used to it and I can carry 5-kg pack of rice up to the floor." He said. He seems to be proud to share about what happened to him, even initiates a conversation to an Indian business who is not interested at all but just shows him a smile anyway. Another old man who walks around a small park and proudly talks to a westerner who is taking photos of the lantern displays. "Are you a tourist?" He asked. "The display is the same as that of last year." To my surprise, he seems to be familiar with American politics and connects to the western guy by ...

It's an online era. We make friends online, we find travel partners online and we even spend a night in a stranger's place. I first read about couch surfing from a travel magazine. Young people in their 20s grouped together and spent 2-3 weeks in Europe. They learnt to perform in the street, and slept in a stranger's couches. They have an open mind to pursue this unique travel experience. Today, I met a guy who actually loves couch surfing. He was a host to two girls travelling to Asia, and he also travelled to Xian by couch surfing. The idea is quite scary, but if I had a second thought, I got to know a few kd lang fans on a message board over a decade ago, and I stayed at their places, too. Of course, they gave me a bed instead of a couch to sleep. But same as couch surfing, some do actually give you a proper bed or even a room instead of a couch. The idea of couch surfing is definitely interesting, intriguing and fascinating, but it's always a matter of trust ...

My friend's son is a 12-year-old boy, half a head shorter than I, but he is as tall as that of many grown-ups. His parents brought him to play badminton at a sport centre the very first time. But he couldn't quite hit the ball. Everyone can see he doesn't seem to have any ball sense. Badminton is a popular ball game here. Booking a government court is almost like a dream except the public holidays. Kids of my generations played badminton in the street with neighbours and friends. It's a game that we picked up when playing with friends as well as a popular social activity, just like guys playing football and basketball. I asked my friend, "how come your son doesn't know how to play badminton at all?" "Many parents prefer their kids to learn piano, drawings or dancing as these skills give them advantages of getting into a good school. Few kids excel in sports that can help them enrol in fine schools, so what's the point?" He said. ...

An article about night running captured my attention two months ago. More people have become fascinated by the idea of running at night and enjoying the quiet moment themselves. It is always a challenge to me for even running in a gym, so the idea of running in the street dreads me a lot. I was in my favourite park near the sea in Mid-Autumn festival. It was very packed but the weather was perfect with cool sea breeze. Apart from families lighting up candles and savouring moon cakes, runners were crazily running in circle. The weather is perfect for one to lie on the grass reading or watching people having fun. Of course, the article I read moves me a bit but I still need a stronger force to push me going out and running on the street. Maybe the perfect weather combined with the beloved park inspires me to start running. So after I bought the "gear" - new lighter sports shoes with better cushioning, and an arm belt for putting my iphone, I was willing to give it a try. ...

"What's your zodiac sign?" someone asked. "I'm Sagittarius. You really look like one." I'm not a fan of zodiac. Occasionally I read these columns for fun. A friend of mine used to stretch out her creativity to finish her weekly zodiac column in a newspaper, so I always doubt whether I can trust what it says in the newspaper. I was surprised more people mentioned to me how they describe their personalities with their signs of zodiac: I'm a Librian and I'm a naturally born lover of beauty and elegance. I'm a Piscean, I love living in a big space and I am creative. My partner and I are both Aquarians. That creates simple problems sometimes, like we couldn't make up what we eat at a restaurant and we start to quarrel over the choice of food. Maybe zodiac does give some hints of the personality traits of a person, just like some academic researchers try to research on the personality of someone being the eldest in the family or the only s...

He is young, energetic and open a new world to me. It's like a breath of fresh air in a crowded city full of skyscrappers. I got to know many pop songs that I'd never heard. Goyte's hit song, "Somebody I'm used to know" was the first song he introduced to me. The video is brilliant and the lyrics touch the emotion of heart-broken couples. "...So when we found that we could not make sense Well you said that we would still be friends But I'll admit that I was glad it was over But you didn't have to cut me off Make out like it never happened and that we were nothing And I don't even need your love But you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough No you didn't have to stoop so low Have your friends collect your records and then change your number I guess that I don't need that though Now you're just somebody that I used to know..." Things can change overnight. We said we could still be friends. I thought he still en...

We sometimes envy people who have good friends, a happy family and lovely children. How could people be so lucky, spending wonderful time with their loved ones. One day, a married guy told me his wife has mental problem but refuses to have medications that tarnish their marriage. He has become an unhappy man despite the success in his career. Another man tells me a story of living in an island where he feels distant from his friends but he stays there because of his daughter. Today, a promising young girl feels lonely and cannot sleep when she's facing the lost of her loved one and maybe more. We bear the imperfection in life by every means. Can we save the "positive energy" and "happiness" in life to offset all the loneliness and unhappiness that we might feel. It's like a woman who forgets all about her career when seeing her lovely daughter grow day by day. Spending time with someone whom I care, no matter how short the time is, makes me feel no reg...