Goodbye My Friends

Dear Friends,

I will be leaving Singapore today and relocating to Cairo for the next three years. The run-up to my departure has been a very busy time for I and my family. This is the first time I am going on a posting with my wife and son in tow. Preparation has never been more tedious and time-consuming. Hence, I was unable to catch up with many of you before I depart.

As I have written in the introduction of this blog, "living a nomadic lifestyle, I have more friendships than the time I have to nurture them. I hope you will understand. Do stay in touch and continue to keep me posted on the major happenings in your lives.

In the past one month after I returned from Cairo from my language studies, I managed to make a trip to Taiwan to catch up with some old friends there. Sorry I was unable to announce my visit earlier or contact many many good friends I have in Taiwan. The trip was a short one and I had to set aside a few days to visit Tainan and 溪头. I will post the photographs taken on the trip on my MSN Space after I settled down in Cairo.

The taxi will be coming in about an hour time. It's going to be another emotional time of separation. This time it's not just about me, but also my wife and our son. His grandparents naturally cannot bear to see him go but I have to bring them along. I think it is important for us to stay together as a family. I believe we will survive this posting well and enjoy our stay in Cairo, leaving behind beautiful memories that we will cherish for the rest of our lives.

Wish us well my friends. If you plan to visit, do drop us an email and we will gladly play host.


Kee Chor, Irene and Shanle

回家

开罗就快开春了。不在感觉到那寒风刺骨也没再下那冷酷细雨。我要回家了！和家人离别已有四个月了。不知道我那年幼的孩儿是否依然记得我这个爸爸。为了这次驻外的机会，我的牺牲不小，错过了我儿子初学逐步的宝贵光阴。现在他走路已稳健了不少，不再摇摇晃晃招人欢笑了。可惜呀可惜。他最近生病了。病得不轻以至在医院住了三天。到现在他还没完全康复，叫人牵肠挂肚。初尝为人父的酸甜苦辣的我心里五味杂陈好不难受。真希望能在他身边用心呵护。这几天来也苦了孩子的妈了。我于心不忍却也无可奈何。回家团聚后我必须好好的补偿补偿她的辛劳。我要回家了。下个月，家就会暂时迁移到开罗了。到时候，我就能天天回家了！

Days Without the Internet

About three days ago, a break in two fibre optic cables in the Mediterranean Sea disrupted communications across the Middle East and into India and neighboring countries. Suddenly, I wasn't able to video call my wife in Singapore, no Facebook updates, no Youtube, no online newspapers, no movies download and no otlob.com for home delivered meals.

I understand perfectly how my life has been and will continue to be entwined with the Internet. But when reality hits, it was simply too painful to bear. The blessing in disguise was the greater amount of time I put into revision. Being too lazy to cook my own meals, I had to drag myself outside for meals. I hate to dine alone outside the comfort of my home.

Fortunately, the breakage was repaired and here I am back into the virtual world. Two weeks from now I will be on my flight to Singapore. Much has been accomplished so far and I have found the apartment to stay when I returned to Cairo with my family in Mar 08. I am glad that I can do away with the prospects of househunting around the chaotic city with my wife and toddler. With the accommodation settled, I will be able to concentrate on taking over the work and get off on a good start.

The Lunar New Year is drawing near. This is not the first time I will be missing the reunion dinner. But I never wanted to be at the table with my family so badly in the past. This will be my son's second reunion dinner but sadly his Daddy will not be there to give him his big angpow.