Turning Point

Turning Point
Finally, I’ve finished 20 years of school. In this year of Monkey, everything seems to be out of order; everything falls apart. Well… yea, I don’t have to worry about assignments and exams no more. BUT I did enjoy school coz sometimes I guess I do have that kind of luck (especially in the multiple guess part). =P

July 2, 2004
I went to HK via Vancouver. A pretty long flight, but it was enjoyable with my little silvery Gameboy (Sword of Mana + Mario Kart). Just missed my friend (Ping) ‘s wedding ceremony by 1 day. It was good to see her finally found her Mr. Right.

Hong Kong, surprises:
– Bumped into my aunt on the road while deciding where to go for a drink w/ Holy, and suddenly got rich because of her red envelope.
– Visited another aunt and lived at her place for the whole summer… She’s become my second mom now.
– Finally I’ve seen my first Harry Porter’s series and found it damn good. (Thx Bede for giving me that chance)
– Hotel night talk w/ Ruby and Kini. That was memorable. Love you girls…
– Unexpectedly got introduced to Tarot and got into it.
– Met my girlfriends and managed to see most of them.
– Saw the CLSMSS gang twice (Bazilian BBQ and “Dai Foon Hei”)… especially got to see Carol Fung (surprise, surprise) w/ her bf; had a long chat w/ Katrina before her leaving for UK; and met ar Yuen and ar Chuen and felt like we were back to high school again.
– Jessica managed a new pub, Cupid (on Minden St., TST).
– lots and lots of other surprising and memorable moments….

Went to Shenzhen and Guangzhou, mainly for relatives:
– Had a good time playing lots of MJ
– Went to ar Chuen’s university and got to taste the good stuffs – lots of seafoods and 蒜泥白肉 (result is my sore throat and sickness for a week, but it still worths it.)
– Saw my baby boy-friends (I mean my good friends when we were still babies) and their present girlfriends
– Of course, lots of good foods… =P~~~

Went to 青島, 煙台, 蓬萊, 嶗山, 濰坊, 淄博, 濟南, 曲阜, 泰山, 大連 (Late-July to Early-August):
– Remember there was a chapter in HK high school Chinese course which described 趵突泉? Yea, this is the one.
– The trip to 泰山 would be a really good one if the fog wasn’t that thick… My hair was all wet and I couldn’t see anything beyond 15 feet!
– I really like 大連 – good weather, good infrastructure, tall and pretty girls, a very clean city. You can see different styles of street lamps on different major streets.

Beijing Trip (Late-August to Early-September):
– A good start thank to good Jessica! I still smelt alcohol when I arrived the airport that morning!
– 天壇, 頤和園, 故宮, 明代十三陵(長陵), 萬里長城, 體育大學, 三里屯, 王府井大街…
– The first time I’ve ever joined a tour alone. (coz it was really a bargain! only HKD 1899, 5 days w/ 4 nights 5-stars Hotels)
– I had never imagined that my room-mate would be a German.
– Made some parent-to grandparent-age friends, but they are real cool… lots of story-telling (I mean police stories)
– Climbed the Great Wall and became a 好漢!
– Lots of walking, climbing and sweating!!!

Tokyo Trip (Early-September)
– Another good start thank to Jessica again! (How come I always went to Cupid the night before my trip?! Weird)
– 東京迪士尼, 日光, 東照宮, 華嚴瀑布, 熔岩, 池袋, 銀座 (+品川, 新宿, 涉谷 along the subway lines)
– It was a bad but not too bad trip.
– How would you imagine being stuck in Japan without knowing when you can leave? Plus, without enough cash nor enough visa limit. This September would be another memorable one after the one in 2001 when I was stuck in Vancouver for 3 days due to 911.
– Luckily, with help from all my friends, my mom and I finally got back to TO on Sept 15th, 2004. Here I gotta say THANK YOUs to the tour guide John, who has helped me a lot in this crisis; Mrs Poon in HK for coordinating lots of stuffs; Kelvin in TO, who introduced me to his “sister” in Tokyo and indirectly helped me manage to book airplane ticket to TO; Kini, her family and ar Yuen for the locker key; my aunt for packing the important stuffs; Ruby and her colleague Florence for bringing me back all the important IDs!!!; all my friends and relatives’ supports; and of course, my Dad and Erix’s support!

The time I spent in Japan was bitter yet memorable. There were lots of worries, but this simple-minded margaret always tries to find joy in every moment. Without this crisis, I would not have a chance to travel alone in Tokyo, taking different subway lines, meeting Japanese people, and getting a taste of the lifestyle in Japan. Unfortunately, I’ve almost returned all my Japanese language skill to my teacher. Otherwise, this trip would be even more “enjoyable”.

Sept 21, 2004: mom’s operation was successfully completed. Thank God. I know there’s more coming… But health is the most important.

Back to Toronto. Finally, I’ve finished most of the filing and all those paper-work. Without school, suddenly I feel so empty. No more essay-writing, no more forced-BS. Maybe that’s why I’m starting this weblog.

I always think it’s good to have a personal web page. BUT since it’s a public thing, will I be true to myself and type down my stuffs here? I don’t know. It’s always good to have a way to let my feelings come out. At least, as a record in case I’ve lost my memory?! You never know. Oh well, maybe I’ve watched too many movies.

Late night, but don’t feel like sleeping.

Trip to Shan-dong…

趵突泉 (“bubbling spring?!”)