One of the huge advantages of living in a condo, is the facilities that are available to residents. For us, that includes barbecue pits by the pool, barbecue pits on the roof, and barbecue pits in the garden. We are rationed to one BBQ per calendar month, but we have been steadily using our quota since arriving! 

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Back in the UK for Christmas, it was time to take Maw to a panto - first time in Oakengates - but a nice little theatre and a really good show... even if the main duet between the lovers was out of Phantom of the Opera!

Christmas this year was at my sisters. The first pic is Shanhong and I in front of our lovely tree - and the second of Shanhong and Mum with their chocolate tree decorations. Then - over to Lynn and Chris for a fantastic lunch and some lovely pressies!

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Christmas saw us back in the UK - a time to visit mum, catch up with family news and visit some new places. The pics here were all taken over the Christmas holiday.

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Both of my nephews have recently had kids!
Ella is my older nephew's child, and Eden is my younger nephew's child.
It was good to see them both - they are beginning to grow!

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Always good to see the family!  David and Teresa came over to see Stephen and Christine - which made it a bit easier, and then we popped over to see Lynn and Chris. 

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A visit to UK would not be the same without visiting family - so we had mini trips over to see Lynn & Chris (and Kimberley) and to see Stephen & Christine. We did see David & Teresa too - but obviously forgot to take pics!  A big welcome to the latest niece... Scarlett Olivia Darcy Hughes!  

We also got the keys for the apartment we bought to rent out - so were in to tidy up after the last owners pretty much trashed it - and Shanhong got her first taste of painting!

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It doesn't really matter where we go, one of the things Shanhong loves to do...   ... is feed the ducks.
Summer 2023 saw us home in the UK visiting Lincoln, Norfolk and the Isle of Wight, and in all three places, Shanhong was enjoying ducks and swans! Enjoy some pics of Shanhong in her 'happy space'!

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For Chinese New Year, I booked something a little different! We caught a local ferry over to an Indonesian Island, where we checked into a wigwam on the side of a man-made lagoon! The ultimate glamping experience. I loved it, Shanhong, perhaps not as much! I think you'll agree there are some lovely photos though!

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What would three middle-aged people do to celebrate a birthday? Go to the ice-cream museum, of course! Ball pits, swings, bouncy castles, and ice-creams to try at each station? Who says it is for kids? We had a great time as the pics will testify.

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We had a great summer in the UK, meeting a niece and seeing the family. The main purpose of the trip was simply to spend some time with mum, particularly as she had unfortunately moved into a nursing home. She did love her days out, and so, given the season, we went to one of the rose gardens nearby.

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As you can see, it's a beautiful place when the flowers are in bloom. It was an indication of mum's dementia however, that having spent a good few hours there, when we returned two days later, mum was convinced she had never been before. Little were we to know these would be our last photos with mum as she passed away just a few weeks afterwards.

It is extremely rare that we get to go out with members of the family - so when a 50's/60's music show passed through Telford, we persuaded my brother and sister-in-law to join us. It would just happen to turn out to be the same night as a World Cup England game.. poor Stevie! Fun show though - plenty of "singing along" !

It is always special to surprise Shanhong on holiday. For Summer 2022 it was a Llama Hike in the Peak District. Organised through Alpacaly Ever After (Outstanding Alpaca and Llama Experiences - Alpacaly Ever After) this was a very simple but lovely day, enjoying gorgeous scenery with adorable animals. Shanhong was grinning all day!

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Another holiday surprise for Shanhong... let's jump off a clifftop together!
Queensland is the "adventure capital" of New Zealand, so, something had to be done. Organised through GForce Paragliding (GForce Paragliding – Tandem Paragliding Queenstown), these were tandem flights - so, nothing to do but hold on and enjoy!  I don't think Shanhong wants to do it again - but it was one of those things it was great to do once! For me, I'd love to do it again somewhere else. I have to say though, given Shanhong is afraid of heights - she really does get involved in more than I would expect.

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Singapore is a beautiful place - as you'll see in the many great walks on this site. This was one of many trips to Sentosa - an island in the south connected by a walkway (as well as by tram and by cable car!). The island is home to Resorts World Sentosa, a major centre with hotels, casino, universal studios theme park and seaworld etc. However, it also has beautiful nature walks, and glorious sandy beaches as can be seen below.

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Christmas 2015 saw us back in the UK - a time to visit mum, catch up with family news, and take Shanhong to some new places. The first few pics are with the family

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It is always the case that when we go away on holiday, we try to see everything, and yet when at home, rarely go out. So, this year we made the conscious decision to see a couple of new places. First on the list was a drive to Shakespeare Country - Stratford upon Avon - where the Bard was born. The following pics are all from Stratford, either at Anne Hathaway's cottage or at the Shakespeare Museum.

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Having enjoyed Stratford it was time for another nice day out and a moment of realisation that although I had driven all the way to Scotland with Shanhong, we had never crossed the much nearer border into Wales! So, it was time to cross that border and see the nearest castle in Welshpool.

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After Christmas, it was back to Beihai in China for the Chinese New Year and the chance to see Shanhong's family. Oh... and... have some great food!!

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So, there you have it, another lovely festive season visiting both homes and both halves of the family. Here's wishing you all a happy and blessed 2016.
With Love and Best Wishes,
Trevor, Shanhong, Teddy.

Easter saw us back in Beihai, our China home. For those who don’t know Beihai, it is a city on the South Coast of China, not too far from Vietnam and Halong Bay, with a 25km sandy beach that stays empty most of the year. We have a lovely house here, with plenty of room for visitors! Shanhong’s parents are in the same city for the winter months, so it is a good chance to catch up, and go fly a kite! The Beihai barbecued chickens are the best in the world. Try one, and you won’t disagree! We spend quite a bit of time sorting out the overgrown back garden, and I planted some cacti – so we’ll see if they survive!

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In April, my back went again – a recurring problem, but unfortunately one that seemed to be happening more frequently. When it didn’t recover as quickly as usual, it was time to see a specialist. X-rays and MRI’s later revealed a slipped disk from years ago, that was now completely dead and impinging on a nerve. I booked the op to take out the dead disk, put in a spacer, and bolt two bits together and was in hospital for two nights. Unfortunately, a complication (leaking spinal fluid) meant I had to go back in – but I am pleased to say Singapore hospitals are good, insurance paid (over $70000), and my back is doing well! If you want to see what I had done, you can watch this video! http://www.spine-health.com/video/spine-fusion-surgery-video. It worked… in July I was kayaking for a full day, horseback riding, and did the longest zip-line over water in the world!

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We had a visit from Shanhong’s niece’s husband to be, and another musical in Singapore, and that brought us to summer. Our main holiday of the year was to be in USA, but on our way over, we did visit the UK to see Mum, to meet the newest member of the family (Scarlett, seen here with her big sis Eden, and Shanhong) and to spend a bit of time in our apartment there. Mum had unfortunately moved into a nursing home since our last visit at Christmas - not a place she loved, but there were some good days – and here she is singing along with a visiting entertainer! What she did love was getting out, and a favourite trip, given the season, was to the Rose Gardens nearby.

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As you can see, a beautiful place when all the flowers are in bloom. It was an indication of mum’s dementia however, that having gone once and spent a good few hours, when we went back two days later, mum was convinced she had never been before. Little were we to know these would be the last photos with mum.

So, that’s all for this report – that brings us up to our departure for USA – and the next set of reports will be on that main summer holiday – hope you are looking forward to making that journey with us!

All the best, take care and keep writing

Love as always Trevor, Shanhong & Teddy (and friends) xx

Returning from America, we had the bad news of mum’s second major stroke, and although I flew back as quickly as I could, mum passed away as I was transiting in Paris. I am happy that mum is now in her new heavenly body and reunited with dad, so is in a better place – but it is still hard to lose someone you love.

Routines have returned – life is busy at school, as always, and with my course. We did reinstate the ‘Saturday Walks’ – this is a chance to simply go out into the Singapore countryside. So, the first set of pics is from a treetop walk in one of the many national parks.

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The second, another Saturday walk, was in the Chinese Gardens, another park in Singapore, but also home to a Turtle Museum - a great place to be when the sun is shining!

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I had a mini health scare in the Autumn, blood in the urine made me go and see the local doctor, who sent me to a specialist with suspected kidney stones. Specialist was pretty sure that was not the case – but recommended an MRI to be sure. The MRI was done with a colour dye, which revealed my left kidney was completely blocked with no dye getting through the system. I was in hospital and operated on the very next day for stage 4 kidney failure☹.  Good news is, operation was a full success, kidney is working fine again, and all is well (and medical insurance paid!).

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Winter saw us heading back to Beihai to spend some time with Shanhong’s parents. We spent Christmas in our own home, putting up the tree and inviting friends around!, including unwrapping pressies on Christmas morning!

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The big ‘surprise’, however, was going to the island of Hainan for New Year, where it turns out Shanhong’s parents had bought a new apartment! So – we arrived, and on day 1 had contractors in fitting the shower and doing the plumbing while we put together beds and other furniture! Three days later – almost everything had arrived, been built, and they were settled in. It’s a beautiful place with a fantastic sea view – so will finish this report at their new home!

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That’s all for today – take care and keep in touch!   Love n Hugs,  Trevor, Shanhong & Teddy xxx

After Christmas, Shanhong had a friend come to stay - and so, together with Maw, we were out exploring. On the 27th we went to Warwick Castle, one of the finest castles in the UK and now beautifully restored and fitted with Mdm Taussaurd's waxworks.

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We do enjoy a good cruise. Summer 2019 saw us cruising in Europe, from UK, via Norway, Sweden and Estonia to St. Petersburg, and then back via Finland and Denmark. The travel pics are going in the travel blog - but here we are playing dress-up!

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