善恩的到来

我美丽的女儿，陈善恩，诞生了。当她哥哥出世时，我叙述了我们为他命名为善樂的由来。 我们希望他這一生萬事都 '以善為本, 為善最樂'. 我們終究無法照顧他的一生。可以做到的就是灌輸他正確的價值觀, 讓他一生受用不盡。我們深切相信, 只要他能以善待人, 他會感覺他的人生是快樂的。

女儿也同她哥哥一样，以"善"为名字重心。"恩"字的来由就有着更深一层的意思。善樂出生候，我们原本不打算再生育。因为奕云在第一次怀孕前候进出医院数次，饱受折磨。我不想她再承受那样的痛苦。可是，当母亲去年离世时，我忽然感觉应该给樂樂一个同胞。 我們虽然無法照顧他的一生，但是我们可以給他一个弟弟或妹妹。我也没有向奕云深入解释。只是在为母亲守灵的第三夜问她是否原意。她没多问便欣然答应了。母亲在天之灵保佑，这胎顺顺利利，没有我们憂虑的病痛。

"恩"字的来由也就是为了感念母亲数十年来的养育之恩。我希望女儿不但能以善为本，也能以感恩的心灿烂她的人生。

驚喜合唱 101 Flash Mob Chorus in Taipei 101, Taiwan

反复看了好几遍。如果妈妈还在世，她也一定和我一样，百看不腻。。。

回锅

我们一家子搬迁回新加坡已经有四个月了。善乐目前在Kinderland at Woodlands Civic Centre 上幼儿班也在Bridge Learning 接受会话辅导。比起半年前的他，现在的善乐可是比较多话了。但还需要多加努力才可以应付小一程度。还有一年的时间他应该能够赶上。奕云现在仍然是全职家庭主妇。照顾善乐和督促他的学习和课业的责任就在她肩上。而我就照样专心的工作，赚钱养家！我在总部的职责为首的是招募和我同类，从理工学院毕业的外交行政专员(Foreign Service Administration Specialist)。过了三个多月的努力，现在已经算是进入状况了。在未来的两三年内，希望可以有所成就，留下有用和牢固的流程及系统。以下就分享一些我们回国之后所拍下的照片。

Final Family Vacation in Egypt - Bahariya Oasis

It's the beginning of summer in Egypt and I have one last slot to go for a family vacation before we bid farewell to Egypt after our three long years in Cairo.  I thought of going to Taba or Dahab in Sinai but it's not quite safe lately over there since the revolution.  We have seen enough of the beaches and we did the Nile Cruise as well.  Where shall we go?

After much thought, I decided to bring Irene and Le Le to the Bahariya Oasis and sleep under the open sky in the White Desert.  I have been there once (see here) and I must say that it was one of the most exceptional places I have been in my life.  We could go to beaches anytime  anywhere but there may not be another chance ever for us to visit the White Desert again.

Le Le enjoyed playing with the sand all day long but Irene was a little uncomfortable sleeping over in the desert for two days without proper toilets and all the creature comfort.  On the last day of the 4D3N trip, we stayed at the International Hot Spring Hotel in Bahariya, which is a simple and nice place run by a German with his Japanese wife.  Unfortunately, they were away in Germany during our trip and we did not have the opportunity to meet them.
Here is the photo album to share!

Curriculum Vitae of Tan Kee Chor

TAN Kee Chor was born in Singapore on 24 June 1977.

He was educated in Chong Boon Primary School, Anderson Secondary School and Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) where he graduated in 1997 with a Diploma in Business Studies. Kee Chor subsequently attained a Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) at UniSIM through distance learning from 2000 - 2006.

An active student leader since his secondary school days, Kee Chor was selected as a student ambassador of Ngee Ann Polytechnic from 1995-1997. Besides organising campus events and leading visitors around the campus, Kee Chor also helped conduct a familiarisation tour of Singapore for foreign students.

In the third year of polytechnic education, Kee Chor co-led a project team to win the 3rd prize of the National Business Strategy Competition (student category) for the year 1996/1997 organised by the Marketing Institute of Singapore.

After completing his secondary school education in 1994, Kee Chor worked for Prime Auto Care (PAC) as a car-grooming technician. He was retained by PAC on part-time employment in July 1995 after he began polytechnic education. Kee Chor was subsequently promoted to assistant sales supervisor in October 1995. Kee Chor ended his employment with PAC after June 1997 to enlist for National Service (NS).

During NS, Kee Chor underwent basic military training before he was deployed to Defence Finance Organisation (DFO) as a finance clerk. In February 1998, He was posted overseas to Taipei to serve as a finance clerk at a military training HQ. Kee Chor's one-year posting was subsequently extended until he was released from full-time NS in December 1999 with certification for outstanding conduct and performance.

Kee Chor began his professional career at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) in February 2000 under the Management Support Officer Scheme. He was first appointed as the Assistant Corporate Affairs Officer championing the PS21 movement in MFA. He also led his team to win an Gold Award at the National Quality Circles' Convention in August 2001.

In September 2001, Kee Chor was posted to the Singapore Embassy in Phnom Penh understudying as the Attaché (Admin & Consular) for four months. The short-term posting was followed by four months of pre-posting training for administrative secretaries.

Kee Chor was posted to the Singapore Trade Office in Taipei in June 2002 as the Assistant Trade Representative (Admin & Consular). During his posting, Kee Chor was also elected to the supervisory committee of the Singapore Association in Taipei from 2003-2006 where he organised numerous events for the Singapore community in Taipei. He relinquished his post in Taipei in February 2006.

Kee Chor was posted to the Internal Audit Unit in MFA HQ as an Internal Audit Officer, a position he held until October 2007.   Thereafter, Kee Chor served at the Singapore Embassy in Cairo from March 2008 to July 2011 as the Second Secretary (Admin & Consular) where he experienced the 25th January 2011 uprising and assisted many Singaporeans depart Egypt during the crisis.

Kee Chor is currently serving as Assistant Director, Recruitment & Appointments, in MFA HQ.  Since joining MFA, Kee Chor was promoted four times in 2002, 2004, 2007 and 2012.  He is now a Grade 3 officer under the Foreign Service Administration Specialist Scheme.

In 2010, Kee Chor received the Excellence in Service Award from MFA and the Certificate of Recognition as an Outstanding Activist from the PS21 ExCEL Committee.

In 2011, Kee Chor received the PS21 Star Service Award and the Efficiency Medal - a National Day Award.

Besides his primary appointments in MFA, Kee Chor also undertook secondary appointments such as assistant editor for the in-house newsletter, member of the S2006 CSO sub-committee and assistant honorary treasurer for the MFA Club.

Kee Chor is married to Mdm Chong Yik Yin and they have a son.

He enjoys bowling, swimming, golf, cycling, travelling, blogging and reading.

The Nile Cruise

Finally, as my posting to Egypt is drawing to a close, I had a chance to take the legendary cruise down the Nile. We had a great time and Le Le enjoyed the sleeper train rides very much!  My Sister Eileen came over with a number of her colleagues in December 2011 and I got them a package with Spring Tours and hopped on the Nile Cruise sector. Here are some photos to share...

Celebrating Shan Le's 4th Birthday at Urban Toddlers

We celebrated Shan Le's 4th birthday at his school on Thursday 14 October 2010.  His birthday is on 18 October 2010 but we decided to do this little party earlier as he needs to attend speech therapy in the afternoon on his birthday.

We had a very close shave on Thursday and we almost missed the time the school allocated for parents to hold birthday parties.  Well, we actually arrived at 1.20pm when we were supposed to start at 1pm.  After 1.30pm, all the kids will start to leave. It was a hectic day really.  Our driver, Samir, had to go for a minor operation and I had to drive down to Maadi with Irene to collect the cake and cookies.  I was held back because of work and left late.  Worse, I could not find find my way to Kum's Cake and spent about 15 minutes circling Maadi looking for the place and got muy bumper dented in the process :-(

The worst part is getting stuck for a good 10 minutes in Kasr El-Nil street in downtown Cairo.  I should not have taken that road! But fortunately, the road cleared up and I managed to get to the nursery in time for the party.  We rushed to place the cake and laying out the plates and serviettes while the teachers and helpers get the kids to sit down.  We sang the birthday song for Le Le in both English and Arabic, blow the candles, cut the cakes and finishing them up all in 10 minutes!!!

The sad thing is that I lost the video clip I took with my Android phone....

拜读三字经

善乐这一个月以来每日上下课在车里都听着朗诵[三字经]的CD。也不知道是他的记忆力好呢还是[三字经]的文字押韵的太好，他已经能背下二十八四句168个字：


人之初，性本善。性相近，习相远。苟不教，性乃迁。教之道，贵以专。
昔孟母，择邻处。子不学，断机杼。窦燕山，有义方。教五子，名俱扬。
养不教，父之过。教不严，师之惰。子不学，非所宜。幼不学，老何为。
玉不琢，不成器。人不学，不知义。为人子，方少时。亲师友，习礼仪。
香九龄，能温席。孝于亲，所当执。融四岁，能让梨。弟于长，宜先知。
首孝弟，次见闻。知某数，识某文。一而十，十而百。百而千，千而万
三才者，天地人。三光者，日月星。三纲者，君臣义。父子亲，夫妇顺。


希望这中华“蒙书之冠”能为他奠定良好的论理，道德以及语言基础。

解读三字经

最近我正在收看百家讲坛钱文忠教授解读[三字经]，感触良多．[三字经]据说是宋朝以来传统中国儿童的启蒙读物．'人之初，性本善．性相近，习相远' 短短十二个字的开头就包含了中国儒家的深层思想．我们先不去争论这哲理是否正确．毕竟，千百年以来人性是否善恶各家一直争论不休．钱文忠教授将［人之初，性本善］论为我们对人类的美好期望的看法，我是非常赞同的．可是我也意识到人的善性是需要后天的教育方能展现的．

回顾我当初为善乐命名的时候，我就是希望他這一生萬事都 '以善為本, 為善最樂'．我們終究無法照顧他的一生. 我們可以作到的就是灌輸他正確的價值觀, 讓他一生受用不盡. 我們深切相信, 只要他能以善待人, 他會感覺他的人生是快樂的. 当初想法至今没变. 可是认识了[三字经]后让我更进一步的思考要如何灌輸他正確的價值觀. '养不教，父之过'. 把孩子生下来却不教育他, 是父亲的过错. 教育孩子可不仅仅是给与他知识而已.更重要的是灌輸他正確的價值觀.


在现今的教育制度, 重心是放在学习知识上. 正确价值观的教育则是次要. 因为我们国家的多元化, 国家教育对于价值观的灌输是相当敏感的. 必须提防以一个种族或一个宗教的观点来设定'正确'的价值观. 基本的是非对错事没什么敏感. 但其他的价值观比如[三字经]及儒家所倡导的孝悌就不一定是所有人所一致认同的. 对我而言, 教育的重心应该放在正確价值观的灌输. 既然校园注重于知识的教育, 家中身为父母的我们就必须加强教育孩子正確的价值观而不是一昧的督促学校课业的得失. 这是我的个人看法也是我对于善乐的教育方针.


要如何实践就得深思一翻了......

忙碌

忙碌！进入任期的最后一年原本应该是可以从容的应付业务上的一切。没想到这第三年是如此的难熬。办公室的装潢工程已经展开，我几乎天天都得加班。周休二日也时常需要回办公室监督工程。能给与家人的时间越来越短。精力都投入了业务也无法提起精神和乐乐玩耍。回头思来，这牺牲是不是太大了？唉！多说没用，谁叫我是个尽心敬业的老实人 ;) 怎么说也不能辜负乡亲父老上司下属的重望吧！做不好我也没脸面对妻儿父母。业务虽然繁重，可是每当完成了一项任务都带来激励自己的动力。就这么埋头苦干下去吧! 总会有海阔天空，日出天明的一天。现在向往的是八月份的短暂假日让我回国稍微喘一口气。埃及还有许多景点我还没去。为了不留下遗憾，我必须精心安排安排，重点的尼罗河轮船古埃及之游我一定得腾出时间落实。原本想从埃及到不远的欧洲捷克布拉格度假。看样子机会渺茫的很。

乐乐随我来到开罗也有两年多了。他也快四岁了哦。说实在，我不该接着份差事。开罗的环境和严重污染对乐乐的早期成长必定有负面的影响。刚来到这儿的时候他还不到两岁。后悔莫及！这是他的命数吧。老天保佑，乐乐他也没有多大的问题，只是语言上迟缓了点。他还是相当开朗和讨人喜爱。幼儿园的老师和校长都很疼爱乐乐，说他每日都带着灿烂的笑容上学堂。除了会话，乐乐其他方面的发展都还算正常。我们也让他到特别学习中心上辅导课程，希望他的会话能力会得到专业的辅导。乐乐的进步虽然不算迅速，可是他现在已经开始领悟到会话的功能。希望他会尽快打开任督二脉，畅所欲言！

Fayoum Tunis Little Swiss Oasis

I have been craving for a break for quite some time and finally I got a short window to make a trip out to the Fayoum Oasis with Irene and Le Le.  I really have no time or energy to plan a long vacation!  A short break will do.  We knew little about Fayoum and I did not plan much as I just wanted to get out of Cairo for some fresh air.  Le Le was not well the day before we were supposed to go but we went ahead anyway.  Some fresh air will be good for him I thought.

And so we headed out to the little village of Tunis on the banks of Lake Qarun where the Little Swiss Oasis is located.  The drive was an easy and scenic one and we had little trouble finding our way to the rendezvous point by the lake.  There we met Doris Frei, the lovely owner of Little Swiss Oasis.  From there, she led us through the village down some unpaved lanes leading to the small but welcoming house overlooking Lake Qarun.

It was beautiful and completely relaxing.  Doris made us a sumptuous lunch of chicken, rice, bread and some really tasty tuna mix.  The wind was so soft and breezy that we spent our afternoon napping away in the nice little room on the second floor.  There is only one guest room at Little Swiss Oasis.  Fortunately we did not round up my other colleagues for the trip.

In the evening, we took a walk around the village well-known for its pottery and had dinner at a small inn next door named Sobek.  As we were getting ready to turn in for the night, Le Le's condition took a worse turn and began nauseating.  His body temperature rose over 38.5 deg C and he could not sleep through the night.  Both Irene and I were also dragged in and out of bed as Le Le struggled with his coughs and nausea.  We have no choice but to abandon the trip to the desert and other sites such as Wadi Rayan and Wadi Hitan on the following day.  Doris was most apologetic though it was no fault of hers.  She was the most gracious host and she made us a delicious continental breakfast to mark a short but memorable stay.  It was a great pity we left in such a rush that we failed to take a photo with Doris.  Nevermind!  We shall return!

More photos in my Photo Album

Here are images of Little Swiss Oasis's brochure:

金虎年！万事大吉!

听说今年是金虎年。希望新加坡的生育率不会跌得太惨。毕竟是金身的老虎，应该不比龙子龙女逊色吧。我们一小家子今年就在开罗过了年。今年没办法回国和家人团圆，心里不乐意可是也别无他法。不过我们还是可以通过电脑视讯和父母及家人拜年也还算不错了。除了到同事的家和其他新加坡同胞聚会，我们也没有什么庆祝，家里也没多加春节的摆设。

不过值得一提的是我们的家在上个月内添了不少的新摆设。所有的画，拼图和电影海报都挂上各处的墙壁。我们也物色了不少家庭装饰比如埃及的木制屏风（Mashrabiya），室内植物，花盆，灯具，蜡烛，等等。。。你可能在纳闷，怎么住进来将近两年后才来布置家内摆设呢？这是因为我们在上个月在寒舍宴请亚西安(ASEAN)各国同辈的外交官。攸关国体所以必须把家里布置一番。也因为如此，在经过一番努力后，我们的家也变得更加亮丽温馨。操劳了一天后，回到家中安坐在舒适的小厅，听着醉人的音乐，闭上双眼，一天的疲劳就减轻了不少了。

上个礼拜我们和使馆所有的同僚及家人们一同到了埃及红海的度假胜地埃因素纳(Ain Sokhna)渡过了美满愉快的家庭日。乐乐玩的很开心。海水虽然冷冰冰，他却一头扑了进去，还不感觉冷。我们耗费了不少功夫才把他从水里就出来。过了不久，他就鼻水直流了，真是伤脑筋！这第二次造访Stella Di Mare，因此我们没有拍下多照片。这有几张照片留作纪念。

有亲自远方来，不亦乐乎

上个月母亲和二姐一同来到开罗度假探亲。在短暂的十天内，我也没能为他们计划些什么节目。实在是太忙了。还好我们聘请了司机，而且乐乐刚好学校放假，所以奕云可以每天带他们到开罗近郊的名胜观光。因为是圣诞节旺季，我们无法安排到南部尼罗河旁的古迹游玩。不过，我们倒是回到了亚历山大城住了两天。虽然我们上个月才到哪儿游玩，因为我们才安排一天的时间，许多名胜没有参观。所以这次就住了两天。饭店Helnan Palestine Hotel地点相当不错，客房也干净舒服。这次短短的相聚十分难得。

多了两个人家里也热闹了多了。乐乐自从回来开罗，上了豆豆班和护理课程，有了显著的进步。他开朗了很多，也会一些简单的会话。他对陌生人也不会排斥。面熟的人他也会打招呼说拜拜。母亲亲耳听他叫声奶奶也高新的不得了。乐乐的发音还不准，“姑姑”他叫成“楚楚”。这次他的收获也不少。二姐从新加坡带来大姐和她的两件圣诞礼物。我们做父母的也预备了一份。圣诞前夕他在小圣诞树下拆开礼物，玩得很开心。

Shan Le First Stage Performance at Urban Toddlers' Christmas Concert

Shan Le gave his first stage performance during his pre-school, Urban Toddlers', Christmas Concert, on 16 Dec 09, just two days before the long winter break.  Sadly, I was not there as I was down with a very bad cold.  Irene managed to take a few video clips of Shan Le's segment but you will probably have a hard time looking out for him.  While he did not really sing, he certainly demonstrated his skill in "taking cover".  All the kids  were probably stunned by the huge turnout.  Not only the parents turned up, but also the grandparents and probably uncles and aunties...

Short Trip to Alexandria

I almost decided to brave the long 8-hour drive to Dahab during the long Eid Al-Adha holidays.  After taking a good look at the map of Egypt, I thought it would not be such a good idea afterall.  I am not used to driving long distances and perhaps I should try somewhere nearer first.  So we went to Alexandria, Egypt's second largest city by the Mediterranean Sea.  It was an easy drive up and my boy had a good time.

My friend Boon Keng helped booked a room night at the newly opened Radisson Blu in Alex West and we also had a short tour of the garment factory Boon Keng was managing in the Alex free zone.  However, the hotel was quite a distance from the downtown and I had to drive for about 30 minutes to get there, including the time taken to trace back my route after missing an important turn.  So on the following day, I got a minibus with a driver to bring us on the half day tour of Alexandria.  We visited the tourist sites - Alexandria Museum, Roman Theatre, Pompey Pillar, Qaitbey Citadel and Bibiliotheca, which was closed during the holidays unfortunately.

But all in all, it was a short but relaxing trip and the drive back to Cairo was a breeze.  I think I will be able to take on the drive to Dahab next and perhaps break the long drive with a night in Sharm El-Sheikh.  I have uploaded the photos taken on the Alexandria trip in my MSN photo album.  Enjoy!

Hi Daddy!

Today is a memorable day of my life.  It is Friday weekend, but I went to work this morning to trim down my to-do list.  I returned home at about 1pm.  As I walked up the stairs to the upper floor of my apartment, I flashed a big smile at Shan Le who was sitting on the sofa of the living area with his mother.  Unexpectedly, he said 'Hi Daddy' to me!  This is the first time ever, since his birth three years ago, that he called me Daddy in a spontaneous and directed manner.  My heart was breaming with joy!

Yesterday, we brought Shan Le back to the Learning Resource Centre in Maadi for the development skills assessment.  Unfortunately, as he was still recovering from his cold and taking anti-biotics, Dr Eman decided to perform the assessment next week after he has fully recovered.  Not to make a wasted trip, we sat down with Dr Eman for 1.5 hours to go through the ADOS results in detail.  The outcome of the assessment puts Shan Le on the Autistic Spectrum but Dr Eman said that the results should not be taken as conclusive.  She commented that she observed quite a lot of improvement in Shan Le's language and social abilities as he played with his mother yesterday.  So, Shan Le will be going for the developmental skills assessment and followed by therapy sessions to help him overcome his developmental difficulties, in particular language and speech.  The eventual diagnosis will depend how Shan Le reacts to the intervention programme.  Personally, after doing a fair bit of research and reading on the subject, I think Shan Le is not autistic but he is displaying some symptoms of the condition, which could be due to other developmental issues.  As his father, I will want to give him all the help he can get to overcome his difficulties so that he can grown up well and go to normal schools.

Shan Le is doing well at Urban Toddlers and also attending some activities at Dados in Zamalek.  The teacher said that Shan Le has been good and he was able to sit with others in a group listening to stories and singing songs.  But he has been missing school quite often for the past two weeks as he fell sick with acute tonsillitis and cold, almost consecutively.  His nose is still dripping today and the anti-biotic is giving him loose stools.  I hope he can adjust quickly to the weather here and rejoin school next week.

Vacation in Hong Kong & Macau

In my earlier posting, I mentioned about the trip to Hong Kong and Macau during my recent relief break.  It was a very tiring break for me having to unpack and pack within a week after touching down in Singapore and unpack and pack again after a week in Hong Kong for my return to Cairo.  Nevertheless, it was a fruitful outing where I spend some good quality time with family.  Here is the photo album on my vacation to share:

新的开始

奕云和乐乐七月底回国后我全心投入工作。虽然无法事事尽善尽美，可我自问已经尽我所能把工作做好。三个月的努力换来了三个星期的假日让我可以享受短暂的天伦之乐。期间，我们还到了香港和澳门游玩。可是我没有想到这段期间的经历会让我打消原本的计划。

这次回国我们带乐乐去看了儿科心里专科医生。他的成长似乎有迟缓。我姐夫和同事也注意到他的某些特殊症状并建议我们求医。在初诊，医生也认为乐乐有自闭症的表现。不过他的症状轻微。医生建议我们让乐乐进行自闭症诊断测验 (ADOS) 或先行语言会话护理 (Speech Therapy)。

因为我们觉得乐乐患有自闭症的可能性不大，我们决定先让他进行护理，看看他的进展再思考下一步该怎么走。第一次护理乐乐表现不佳。护理师也认为他有自闭症的轻微症状。那时我的内心是十分难受，担忧乐乐的未来。护理师在了解我们的家庭环境后建议我们纠正一些不良的习惯。比如，我们得让乐了自己坐定进食，不可四处玩跑的喂他。我们也得迫使乐乐说出他的要求。乐乐也得按时早睡。在全家的配合下，乐乐在短短的两个星期内有了明显的进步。在回开罗的前一天，护理师认为乐乐不是患有自闭症，但他有些语言能力方面的障碍。他建议我们在开罗进行护理并推荐了一家护理中心。

因为乐乐需要一个稳定及健全的家庭环境，我们决定回来开罗从新开始。没有任何人可以取代我父亲的职责。如果按我们的原定计划，乐乐的状况可能会恶化。我独自在开罗也必定无法安心的工作。结果将会是两头不着岸。回来不久后我们就带乐乐到新加坡护理师介绍的护理中心。这里的医生在看了新加坡护理师的报告后建议我们让乐乐进行ADOS。这是为了彻底排除自闭症的隐忧方可对症下药。测试结果还没出炉，不过看乐乐近日来的表现，我相信他是正常的。他近日越来越活泼，语言能力方面也有不错的进步。他也不会像以前那么怕生了。

护理只是辅助，更重要的是让乐乐在开罗的生活过的充实，有优等的学习环境。我们现在正积极地寻找幼儿班还有其他的辅助课程比如唱歌，跳舞或音乐。为了让这一切可以落实，我们也聘请了一位司机，也正在张罗一位全职的家佣。这样一来奕云可以全新的照顾乐乐而我也可以更专心的工作。努力工作留下让后人赞许的基业固然重要，但家庭妻儿还是根本。优先次序我心底必须亮如明镜。

暂时的离别

奕云和乐乐今天乘搭飞机回到新加坡，留下我一个人孤零零的在开罗打拼。原本是安排他们在经济舱，可是前两天想了想，终于决定自己掏腰包让他们升等坐商务舱。这样一来，他们俩母子可以拥有比较独立的空间，奕云也可以舒服点。毕竟，这新航的班机已不再直飞新加坡而是会再度拜停留一个钟头。飞航时间也相对的拉长有两到三的钟头左右。

这次，他们会在新加坡逗留三个月。我预计十月会回国度假然后带他们一起回开罗。其间我们还计划要出国度假。可能会回台湾走走或可能会提前会开罗然后到欧洲某个城市游玩。目前还没有决定。不过，他们十月回来开罗后不久十二月尾又要回新加坡了。那将会是长期的分离了。我们不久前决定让乐乐从明年起在新加坡上幼儿班。奕云自然要陪同乐乐。而我呢，就得忍受长期孤独与寂寞的煎熬，直到我在2011年三月卸任为止。我们自然会有短时间团聚的机会。明年二月份我会回国过华人新年，六月份乐乐放长假使他们可以来开罗，九月我回国，十二月他们又过来。虽然聚少离多，我相信我们会更加珍惜在一起的时间。

这决定来之不易。一项果断的我竟然左思右想了一个多月才下定决心。我相信这是对我们一家人最好的安排。以我在开罗的工作需求与生活环境，乐乐不适合在开罗上幼儿班。开罗虽然不缺乏好品质的幼儿园，我实在无法兼顾好家庭与工作。让他们在新加坡我会感到安心，乐乐会有比较好的成长环境，而奕云也有我们父母和手足的照顾。我在开罗的任期已有半途了。我也希望可以全心投入把工作打理妥当，留下一些可以让后人赞许的基业。

离别是短暂的。

Short Weekend in Ain Sokhna

Summer has officially started and it's daylight saving time now in Egypt GMT +3! After visiting the Red Sea beach resort in Sharm El-Sheikh, I decided to spend a weekend in the opposite coast of the Red Sea, Ain Sokhna, which is only about one and a half hour away from Cairo by car. The Sokhna road connecting the capital to the Red Sea coast was excellent and the drive was a breeze.

But in the end, it still took me over four hours to get to our resort Stella Di Mare. Without a map of Ain Sokhna, I took the wrong turn when I reached the coast and I just keep driving on and on and on... 100 over km down in the direction of Hurghada. The Red Sea was beautiful and we even come across a huge wind farm along the way. All is fine as we have time and our boy is sleeping soundly in his car seat. But when the gas was getting low, I started to feel worried wondering what will happen if we did not have enough gas for the return leg and the next gas station is far away. Fortunately, a gas station was in sight and we stopped for a break, refilled the tank and asked for directions. When I uttered "Stelle Di Mare", the lady was taken aback, "Stella Di Mare is very far from here, at least 100km away"... her finger pointing to the direction I came from. Okay.... so we headed back into the car and started retracing the coastal road... all the way back to the point where the Sokhna Road meets the coast. We stopped a few times for directions to make sure we were not lost this time. Ha, we managed to reach Stella at about 4pm, almost 5 hours after we left Cairo!

We stayed at the 4-star Sea Club Hotel as the 5-star Grand Stella was fully booked. The carpark was full to the brim but I was lucky to find a tight spot with the help of the security. To make up for lost time, we headed straight for the beach. The Red Sea was a very nice view and the water is warm and crystal clear. We had a great time at the beach, had pizza, which was half eaten by scavenging crows. The only pain was from the jelly fish. Both LeLe and I were bitten. The kind waiter at the beach bar gave us some vinegar to apply on the bites, apparently the antidote. The reddish marks healed in a couple of hours later.

So the next day we decided to go for a dip in the pool just outside our villa instead of going to the beach and risk the jelly fish bites. Our boy had a very enjoyable time and I too had a chance to relax and take a break from work. It was a short holiday and we checked out after the swim and headed back to Cairo. Again, we were lost and I wasn't sure of the way to connect to the Ring Road at the end of the Sokhna Road. We spent a good hour circling the New Cairo before I managed to find myself near the Cairo Airport where I can finally find my way to the City Stars for our grocery shopping. Not too bad at all!

Check out the photos we have taken: