My first (and probably last) core leave

The perks of working in a bank is... you HAVE to take 10 days of core leave in a row in accordance with the guidelines set by the government. The fact that you need to be physically away from the office and you can't access emails during this period makes it all the more appealing. No obligations to log in remotely from time to time to check on work emails and answer queries etc. (Did I hear a woohoo?)

My first (and probably last) core leave started out pretty well with an once-in-a-year reunion with the boys. It's almost a tradition to celebrate their birthdays together. This year, I particularly noted how much we have aged. We needed to squint at the screen and sit really close to see what songs to tick for the KTV session. It's just wonderful... seeing each other grow for the past 18 years. Hope to have many, many more birthday celebrations together.

Bert gave Mr. Jang and I tickets to the Harry Potter exhibition. Although the experience was somewhat marred by Art Science Museum staff constantly trying to milk money from us, it was still fantastic seeing all the exhibits from the Harry Potter movies. I am a major HP fan and was rather depressed after the series ended. This exhibition helped to fill the void.

 

 

And then I was off to Hong Kong, just in time for Baby Jovan's "press conference". It certainly felt like one as all the relatives were extremely anxious to meet the boy and the dinner became a major phototaking session for the baby, the parents, and whoever wishes to queue up for a photo. If Baby Jovan could hold a pen, they'd probably ask for an autograph.

 

 

As a detour, I flew to Shanghai from Hong Kong with Mom so that we could spend a few days with Dad and see where he was staying. From Shanghai, we drove around to many other places. One of which is a quaint little town called 周庄 which is essentially a 水乡 in China. It's almost like what you would see in a Chinese 武侠小说 - red lanterns, stone houses, wooden boats, worn and narrow pathways.

 

Also met up with Adel who's been working in Shanghai for the past 3.5 years. She has the best recommendation for food in Shanghai! And entertainment too... she brought us to this new KTV outlet in town which has a mini platform and standing mic. A favourite with Dad who loves to sing to an audience.

 

On my last night in Shanghai, Dad brought us to this place called 老外街 which is an area lined with pubs and eateries with live music. The atmosphere was good and he said it's better than 新天地 - the prices are also more reasonable.

Hence, thus far my core leave has been great. Loads of shopping, eating, and spending time with friends and family. Five more days to go before heading back to work (and before I have the talk with boss)!