travel photos

Hua Xia clinic, Church St. London

My friend Ms Bing who runs the clinic is always very helpful, Her clinic enjoys such a huge following among the local clientele which is very much a mix of white and people from the Middle East. Two very capable TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) doctors usually practise here on alternate days. Both have over twenty years experience under their belt. A lot of chronic illnesses can be treated here. I intend to have a course of slimming session here in a few weeks time. The other friend YQ has been such a dear friend for so long that we often talk on a daily basis and on any subject. She is off to Beijing next month (August) to be with the Olympic crowd part of the time as her college has some business association with a college in the outskirt of Beijing. I have to say it is so important to have friends so close to you especially when you are far away from home. Vive mes amis!

比利时 Belgium 之行

I have been so lucky to be able to take the Eurostar from its brand new St Pancras International Station to Belgium on a mini-break. The journey to Brussels Midi (ie, Sud in French-speaking Brussels) was just short of 2 hours. We (my friend and I) dashed off the Eurostar and walked to the main concourse and found the next train to Antwerp was a mere 5 minutes wait. So we quickly got to the right platform and happily boarded the semi-fast train to our destination Antwerp. The train was nearly empty. We enjoyed the smooth ride crossing the countryside heading north.

Having checked into a super-efficient business travellers hotel on the station plaza Agora, we decided to go out and check out the town. Immediately we stepped into the diamond district of roughly 1 square kilometre with jewellery shops mainly manned by Jews. Nowadays there seem to be a lot of Eastern European Jews are running the trade. Antwerp got rich from its trade being a port offering services to Northern Belgium - the Flemish-speaking Flanders. There were the Hanseatic League around the North Seas, hence at the river front (Schelde River) there are some magnificent merchant houses as well as the stone fortification which serves as the Maritime Museum now (See the picture with the castle building ). Of course there is more to Antwerp than just the Diamond. The Diamond trade can trace its history back to the 19th century and was made famous for cutting the Cullinan Diamond into the 4 Stars of Africa for the British Royal Family in the early part of 20th century.

If you want to see to Stars of Africa, you have to come to London. The biggest cut diamond in the world is 530 carats in weight and is set on the gold Royal Sceptre housed in Tower of London - the old British Royal's residence by river Thames. In Antwerp though you can all kinds of superb quality diamond jewellery. In case you need some serious education on diamond you can visit the Diamond Museum at the Station Plaza.

From Antwerp a trip by train takes you to Brugge - another delightful town which is known as the Venice of the North. However with their canal streams and higgledy-piggledy houses you feel more like being in Cambridge. The Town Square is a good spot to stop for lunch or coffee, or simply just watching the world go by. There is a market held at the square every week. Make sure you are there before 12pm otherwise you'll miss all the hustle and bustle of the local market. (See the picture with the gabled houses)

Ghent (Gent in Flemish) is another Medieval town one can explore at leisure. It's usually very busy at Christmas time for the Christmas Fair. There are still small workshops dotted about town. We accidentally found a leather goods shop where the owner still makes some of his own leather goods such as shoes, handbags in his workshop. If you are there try them http://www.leder-reyne.com/ is their website. I got a beautiful patent leather bag there while my friend got a lovely black soft leather shoulder bag.

Antwerp itself demands a minimum of two days to appreciate it fully. The area around the National Museum of Fine Art is very much like Parisian streets and the museum itself has a fine collection of Flemish masters although it is rather poor with its collection of Sir Peter Paul Rubens paintings. For that you have to pay a visit to his own house just off the main shopping street. The house was requisitioned and opened as a Rubens House in 1937. The garden is particularly nice with grapevine twining around a pergola as well as a lot of cottage-types of flowers in blue, white and red. While we were there there was a filming crew filming the house and garden to publicise Antwerp's quality museums and art galleries.

Trip to the Pyrenees法国俾勒纽斯山区

This is Thuir, France. It's a very pretty little town with a population of 4000. The people here are rather laid back. Housing price is still relatively. A typical town house of 3 stories costs around 100,000 euros. You might have to do a bit work on it. It's so quaint and peaceful and only becomes lively on a Saturday morning when the market is held at the town square. However if you are thinking of relocating there, you must learn the lingo and have a trade. Otherwise the cost of living is rising, soon it will be as expensive as England. Of course you can always do your main shopping in Spain which is about 1 hour's drive.

If you are in need of a holiday break or want that perfect holiday home, why not log on http://www.anglofrenchonline.com/ or http://www.countrycousins.co.uk/ to check it out. Happy hunting! Bonne journe!

Trip to the Pyrenees法国俾勒纽斯山区

The French Pyrenees is a rather magnificent region with so many pretty stone houses and castles in abundance. The weather is brilliant and the sunshine is fantastic. Whether it's the fresh mountain air or the beautiful sea you are after, this region has got it all. the French do seem to know how to live the good life. There are so many pretty houses with big gardens and swimming pools. One is simply so charmed by all the villi ages and vineyards and orchards alike. What I like most is the beautiful apricot trees and the marvelous nectarine and peach trees. The fruit on the trees are so inviting that you just want to stop and admire and taste them straight off the trees. If all these sceneries become a bit too tiring you can while the hours away in the well-hidden little gem of an open-air natural thermal spa, St Thomas Les Bains.

Beautiful Weekend in London

We are enjoying this fantastic hot weather in London. Yesterday it was 26 Celsius degrees in London. Today it's about the same. I arranged to meet a Friend N in Richmond. He's got very nice eyes, used to be a firefighter with the Isle of Man services. He's got 3 children - Robert 25 working with Bruno Brooks, 2nd son - 23 working in the Algarve, Portugal. Daughter has just finished GCSE and is going to stuffy 3 subjects before doing a nursing course. We had a pleasant walk along the river - fast flowing with all the rain water rushing down from the Cotswold area making the river water peaty brown. We then had a cold drink - one ice latte and one ice orange with mango sorbet - not enough sorbet in it. We watched the world go by including a group of Canada geese in formation 6 and 2 moving upstream. Got the train home and it was 6pm and finished my cat painting eventually after supper. I feel very happy and positive. Life is good especially when the sun is shining.

My friend MT & my cat Katkin

My friend MT is originally from Rome, Italy. He's been living in London on and off for about 10 years now. He's such an avid fan of Italian football that he was almost gutted when he found out that he did not get any allocation tickets for the forth-coming UEFA championship in Switzerland and Austria. He is now off to Milan to see his family and watch football games with them. He is leaving tomorrow and won't be back until 18th June while I will be travelling to southern France to see Pete and Josep in Thuir. Mt is doing a P/T course in plumbing and is doing quite well so far. He of course needs to work a bit harder like the rest of us. The Italians don't like the French - it's so simple and plain. They won't holiday in France in stead they all go to Spain. Now that the French President Nicholas Sarkozy has married an Italian-born singer Carla Bruni, one does wonder how do they manage in their private quarters. We shall all live and learn or just be contented like my cat Katkin who is so adorable. She loves the warm sunshine and absolutely hates the wet rain. I remember once I had to hold an umbrella out for her to go out to do her business. But she is very cute and intelligent and wants to be noticed and pampered. She only eats the jelly of her wet food, which is so bizzaar or the manufacturer has put something in the jelly to make the cat addicted. C'est la vie.

Cheers!

Happy Times!

Hua Xia clinic, Church St. London

I'm so pleased with the TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) treatment I've received from for my health problem. I thought you would all like to know about this particular TCM clinic. The two TCM doctors Dr Gao and Dr Meng are both brilliant. I'm rather taken with Dr Meng's insight to illnesses in the body. She has definitely got my vote of confidence any time. The treatment she administered is also impressive. So if you have any illness or health problem, do get in touch with either the clinic directly or send a note to this blog page and I will pass it on. Best wishes. Happy life means healthy body and healthy mind. Your health is your wealth.

True Friendship

We often work so hard and sometimes forget what is really important in life. The motto health is wealth seems to be rather apt for my situation. In fact I think it is applicable to most people. I have had a very long relationship which broke down eventually a couple years ago. As I was not ready to deal with the aftermaths, I suffered not only emotional turmoils but also health problems. I discovered that I was very prone to catching any cold that is going around and any other illnesses that happen to be just hanging around at the corner. In May 2007 I found a lump in my right abdomen which eventually was diagnosed as fibroid. In fact the ultrasound scan suggest that there are two quite big fibroids - one growing outside the uterus the other near the ovary on the fallopian tube. The consultant gynaecologist Mrs Cochrane said these could be removed through operation. I was not quite ready for that. I tried to eliminate all the bad things from my diet, ie no drink, caffeine, little red or white meat, little diary products and plenty exercises. It seems that the fibroids haven't grown too much and there might be shrinking slightly. Because of a work situation I happened to be seeing an old friend of a friend BJ. She runs a Chinese TCM clinic. Although not 100% convinced I decide to give acupuncture a try. I had needles put in to the liver qi meridian line especially around the fibroid area. Having then been wired up with electric current stimulation, I felt this strange sensation which went from the needle points to the fibroids then to the pubic bone as well as the lower back. After the treatment, I felt rather weak around the knees as I also had needles in the xuehai points. After I got home, I prepared the herbal medicine I was given. I had to first of all soak the herbs in water and then after 2 hours boil it for 30 minutes, Collect the first brew and then top up with water for the second boil. Mix the two and divide it into two potions and drink portion 1. with a four-hour internal you then drink portion 2. After all this work I all of a sudden felt that the lumps seem to be getting smaller and softer. I quickly rang BJ to tell her the good news. She is really pleased for me and told me to think out of the box and treasure life and friendship. I have to say that I really admire this little lady who is like an iron lady with a determination. I will go back to her for some more treatment after consulting with my own consultant next week. Long live friendship whether old or new.

Aiping's Journey to France 法国之行

The beautiful coast of South France is always a delight to the eye, especially to the English. The azure colour of the sea and the steep hills on the coast with lovely stone houses or villas are such a feast to the senses. One simply just want to soak up the sheer atmosphere.

Aiping's Journey to France 法国之行

I shall be visiting the French Pyrenees bordering Spain in the middle of June 2008. An old friend of mine has been relocated there from London back in the 1990's. He is happily settled down with a lovely partner and some funny cats. The place is Thuir near Perpignan. This is going to be a rather interesting adventure for me to explore a region I have heard so much about and flown over many times. My itinerary is to arrive at Girona in Spain on the 18th and spend 6 days there before heading back on the 24th. Will keep you posted. Ciao for now!