Life Challenges – Count your blessings
When the first discovery of suspected cases of pneumonia of unknown cause in Wuhan City, China in December 2019, the world was never expected to suffer and to endure such a difficult pandemic of Covid-19. Hundreds of millions of people have been infected with the deadly virus and millions of victims have succumbed to such an infectious disease.
The pandemic has caused a chaotic situation on earth, everything suddenly changed to what it called a new norm / the new way of life. The world economy, homes, lifestyles, social life, education, tourism, and even religious routines all have altered and at the same time experiencing tremendous challenges striving to survive during this period of uncertainty.
Among challenges that are happening now are; the world is mourning and grieving when many families have lost someone they loved dearly. It is a heartbroken situation to witness when young children are searching and asking the whereabouts of their parents who have passed on and not be able to come back to give them a loving hug. A spouse who suddenly lost their only hope and support when their partner leave them behind without warning. Healthcare workers who have been unceasingly contributed their life and efforts to fight the disease to provide the best medical service to their ill patients, and the downturn of the world economy due to economic lockdowns to curb the spread of the virus.
In this article, I will tunnel down the topic of the general challenges to a more personal aspect of an individual. I would like to tell a true story to better explain what are the common challenges faced in one’s life, introducing Miss Sarah my childhood friend, who is also my next-door neighbor as the main character.
**Childhood**
Miss Sarah, I would prefer to call her Sarah, had her humble start in her early life, she comes from a low-income family, her father works as a bus driver with a transportation company, her mother was a full-time housewife taking care of 6 children, and the whole household matters while his father was away working to earn money to support the family. Since young, as the eldest child in the family, Sarah was forced to shoulder the family’s burdens by helping out to mend the house chores and also need to deliver homemade cake to their regular customer at the nearby market every morning.
Apart from waking up early in the morning to do house chores, she also needs to help her young siblings to get ready for school, and only after that, she will tend to her beloved ailing bedridden grandmother. After spending most of her morning time inside the house, she got herself ready to ride a bus to the nearby school to attend class. In the late evening, after returning from school, she again will diligently rend a hand to help her mother to prepare dinner for the family and helping out for preparation for customer’s order the next day. Later only around midnight, she has some time for herself to do her homework and do some study revision.
**The climax**
Sarah was always dreamed to become a doctor, I once asked her why she choose the medical pathway as her future career. She replied she wanted to help more people because witnessing how her grandmother suffered from her sickness breaks her heart. I still remembered that year when I saw her crying at her house balcony, later only I come to know that she had lost her beloved grandmother and at the same time she has received the news that she did not manage to get the offer to study medicine despite her excellent result. However, she still managed to gain entry to a local university to study in the course of telecommunication. She graduated and later works at one of the popular telco companies in the city.
Even though we both had our careers to tend, we continued our friendship through phone calls and some time hanging out together occasionally for a high tea. At times, she will complain to me about the working challenges that she faces in her office; about office bullies, being falsely accused, and slander by toxic co-workers. She has to go through a lot of hardship from the unfair treatment of her superior due to one-sided judgment. Apart from facing life challenges from her workplace, she is also having to put aside the issue of the romantic relationship due to commitments & responsibilities to the family, as she has to care for her old and ailing parents.
**The triumphant**
Currently, Sarah is the chief executive of a leading telecommunication company and was awarded the best leader of the year 2019. There is five hundred staff working under her administration, despite her success she had triumphed from all the life challenges that in her life until she reaches her present status.
Seeing where she is now in the cooperate hierarchy, I have once asked her how she overcame the various life challenges, obstacles, hardships, sweats, tears, and broken-hearted situations that have put a “foot” in her life so far? After taking a sip from her favorite cappuccino, she lift her head, and then she offered me the usual sweet smile of hers, saying God is god all the time. Adding to her statement, she said she believed there always be an opportunity for her to learn and to grow behind each hurdle that occurs in her life, and bravely she quoted encouraging words taken from Joshua J Marine *“challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful”*.
She later gave an elaboration on the secrets that have ushered her out from all her difficult situations and before parting to our way that blissful evening, looking at the Mercedez that fetching her to her next destinations. I felt proud of her achievements and at the same time thanking God for her faith in Him and His bountiful blessing that has carried her through.
*Life is like a road journey,*
*Sometimes we travel on a smooth concrete road,*
*Sometimes we have to be more cautious when the road having winding and sharp turns,*
*Sometimes we need to make a U-turn when we missed the expected junction,*
*Sometimes our body hurts when we pass through the rough and bumpy path, but*
*We know difficult roads often leads us to a beautiful destination,*
*So, take heart and be courageous anyway,*
*Put your trust solely in Him and be confident that you will never be lost your way there.*
Sarah has her story to tell, how about yours?
*The lead image is taken from Unsplash*
To Forgive & To Forget – It is a choice.
Tak… Tak...Tak…
The sound of raindrops hitting on the house roof. I walked towards the windows to double confirmed what I have heard. “Ah! It’s raining again”, it has been raining every evening for the past two weeks.
It is 5 pm, I noticed the outside temperature dropped and turned to a cooler and refreshing environment. Resting lazily on the sofa, I recalled back to an incident that happens sometimes recently. A heated argument caused by an officer from another section created a stir in the office. It is all about an officer, who has been acting rude and unprofessional in handling an inter-departmental issue. Words uttered out from his mouth are like a double edged-sword that pierced deep into one’s heart. It is an embarrassing moment for our colleague to be caught in such a situation especially when it occurs in front of her colleagues and friends. Thanked God that the incident did not end up in a serious argument as he just walked away from the scene without a word of sorry. Honestly, as a close friend, I was annoyed to witness that unexpected event and I felt sorry for my friend because a gentle and humble person like her does not deserve to be treated that way.
Picking up my cup of hot brewed coffee for another sip, the delicious taste from the hot coffee keeps my mind working, thinking about that incident despite the cool temperature from the evening's heavy downpour. After dealing with the issue and thinking about how it’s happened, and obviously, it must not be an easy situation for my friend after that incident, I guessed she must be feeling angry and emotionally hurts at the same time.
Hurts can be defined as emotional stress or pain according to the Cambridge dictionary. It is an unpleasant feeling, caused by harsh words, damaging critics, and past bad memories. It can be associated with anger when hurts are not being handled and deal with properly. American Psychological Association claimed that *Anger is an emotion characterized by antagonism toward someone or something you feel has deliberately done you wrong.* Anger can be triggered when one experienced an act of injustice, unfairness, humiliation, not being appreciated, or being treated beyond one patience. Other contributing factors can be due to past traumatic memories or an unforgiveness of personal encounters. They also reported that the long-term effects of anger are associated with many serious health problems, to mention a few: increase blood pressure, anxieties, chronic headaches, musculoskeletal issues, and other unwanted health issues.
As a grown-up and after going through many phases of life journeys. Feeling hurts and anger are parts of life training experiences. Often they have educated me to be a “stronger” person when facing many life unexpected challenges. It’s also taught me about the need for constant self-reflection and self-improvement. I thanked God for those encounters that have helped me to grow to know Him more.
I admit it is not an easy moment whenever it comes to the situation of being emotional hurts and being angry. I do have multiple encounters to deal with my mind on how to get rid of those negative feelings, to learn to forgive and forget of what had happened and to reflect and do a self-correction towards a better person. As a human, it is always an impossible mission to learn to forgive and to forget.
After much thinking, suddenly God’s word came to my mind: Mathew 6:12 New Living Translation says *“and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us”.* Some might ask, how do one sin against God? The bible says, one sinned against God when one has done things that are wrong to God and others in the sight of God through thoughts, words, and deeds, through negligence, weakness, or through one own deliberate fault.
It reminds me again, my daily confession to God when I asked for forgiveness for the sins that I have done against God. God's gentle reminder has awakened me to constantly cleared my unhealthy “baggage” that can jeopardize my relationship with Him. Every day, I have to search my heart to make sure that there is no space to store and to hid my hurts, anger, and unforgiveness. I need to choose to forgive first those who have sinned and done wrong to me before I said the Lord’s Prayer.
In conclusion, to forgive and to forget. It is easily said than done, often it’s required guts, determination and the willingness to let go of those negative feelings that have haunted one's minds, to trust that His grace is always sufficient, and to accept that God will restore the broken-hearted and heal their wound.
Thank you for your time to drop by at this article, to forgive and forget, it’s one's choice to make. Are you convinced?
*The lead image is taken from Unsplash.*
Travel Guides 2: Choosing the right traveling bag for your trip, Part 2
This chapter is the continuation of the previous article on choosing the right traveling bag for your trip, Part 1. I will share some insights from my past traveling experiences on how to select the size, color, and extra features on choosing for your right traveling luggage.
**What size luggage do I need?**
There are three commonest sizes for traveling luggage available on sale in the market: small (25 inches Height x 14 inches Width), medium (26 inches Height x 18 inches Width), and large (30 inches Height x 19 inches Width). The size allowance is uniform across all the airlines, the maximum size for checked bags allowed is 62 linear (total) inches, example: for luggage that measures 27 inches by 21 inches by 14 inches, it will work out to 27+21+14 = 62 linear inches. Checked luggage should not exceed twenty-five to thirty kilograms in total weight. However, all airlines’ companies allowed for different weight allowances for a checked bag but it often comes with a specific cost, and the fees are not the same between domestic and international flights.
Normally, I will choose a duffel bag for a short domestic family trip, and a medium-size cabin suitcase for my short outstation official duty meeting. I usually traveled with a backpack, a medium-size cabin bag, and a piece of checked-in luggage for all my international vacation/holidays just to ensure that I have brought enough all the essential items that are needed for the vacation, and at the same time to prepare some space allowance to allow for souvenirs packing.
**My color choice for luggage?**
Classic black is the common preferred color that normally will not easily show the sign of wear and tear compared to other colors. However, if you have to choose black, then it is advisable to put a tag or some special sign for an easily seen. Choosing a brighter color or a different design will assist in fast recognition and to avoid the incidence of mistook other traveler’s belongings. For me, I prefer both methods: putting on an identification tag and purchased different colors suitcase.
**Extra features that caught my attention?**
**Anti-theft Travel Backpack**
After experiencing many international vacations/holidays and after hearing news from fellow travelers concerning personal safety while holidaying overseas. I have purchased an anti-theft travel backpack for my previous international tour. I look for a secure, well-made, modern design, waterproof and stainproof bag. Other features that I considered crucial include a padded and ventilated back panel, a protected pocket and zip with latch for anti-theft on the back of the backpack, and a separate laptop compartment for 17 inches laptop.
**Handles**
A good, sturdy, and ergonomically designed luggage handle is crucial for easy bag maneuver, and an inbuilt type handles is protected from any potential damage. It is advisable to test out the luggage before purchasing, extend the handle to its full length, make sure the handle is locked perfectly, and take the suitcase for a spin to get maximum satisfaction.
**Zippers**
The life span of a piece of luggage depends on its usage. Abrasion, torn bag fabrics, and damaged zippers are among the commonest luggage breakdowns due to the suitcase mishandling process in any airport or during luggage transport into or from an airplane. It is advisable to choose a metal zipper to the plastic-type, as metals are stronger and tougher.
**Waterproof and stain-proof**
It is advisable to get a soft bag made from another type of ballistic nylon to protect the luggage from wear and tear. It is important also to make sure that the bag’s fabric is waterproof and stain-proof for an easy free outdoor adventure.
**Exterior pockets or compartments**
Most of the soft luggage comes with large exterior pockets or compartments, but this advantage of exterior compartments can become a concern especially when traveling internationally except if it comes with security locked.
**USB Charging Ports**
The latest suitcase design does come with built-in USB charging ports, these extra features making phone charging tasks easier.
**Conclusion:**
There are other considerations to be made before choosing the right traveling luggage for one dream vacation/trip:
**i. International or domestic trip**
- An international trip, for safety, security, and convenience purposes it is advisable to choose a hard, sturdy, and without exterior compartment suitcase rather than a piece of soft luggage with exterior pockets. Furthermore, a hard bag is easy for plastic wrapping service.
**ii. The category of your vacation plan.**
- A family tour traveling might need extra more bags to fits in all the necessary travel essentials for each family member. For guided tours, the amount of available luggage weight will be determined ahead by the travel agency, and for solo travelers, the maximum one afford to carry is one backpack and one duffel bag in addition to one large size suitcase.
**iii. The season or climate of your traveling destination**
- The best time to travel light will be during the summer season, then springtime and autumn followed by winter vacation. If you are a snow admirer like me, you might need to bring enough bulky and warm winter gear to keep you warm especially during the mid-winter period.
**iv. The length of your trip**
- The length of your vacation also sometimes does influence the choice of the right type of traveling luggage for your trip. A wheeled duffel bag or medium size backpack is the commonest selection for a two days’ vacation stay. Whilst, a large and a medium-hard suitcase is sufficient to keep all your essential travel items for a longer two-week stay.
**iv. The primary holiday activities**
- Shoppers cum travelers usually prefer to bring along large size bags to store all their purchased merchandise. Meanwhile, for a skiing tour, large luggage is needed to keep all the necessary winter and skiing gear.
**v. Warranty**
- The final important detail to choose for the right vacation bag is the warranty period issued by the manufacturer. Branded suitcases normally tag with a better warranty assurance and this type of luggage is not cheap.
That’s all for my sharing on how to choose the right traveling bag for your dream vacation, for your work-related or leisure trips. In my next article, I will share the topic: Travel Guides 3: Organize your clothing packing list.
Lead images taken from Unsplash
Travel Guides 2: Choosing the right traveling bag for your trip, Part 1
**Previous experience**
After you have confirmed your vacation destination, chosen your tour category, and after making the necessary pre-arrangement. Then, the next task that you need to do is to buy a piece of suitable luggage for your trip or to take out the traveling bag that has long rested inside your house’s storeroom.
Have you ever experienced while during the process of luggage claiming, you were being asked by another traveler whether you have claimed the wrong bag, or you were unable to recognize your bag as it has the same material type and color as other luggage owners? You can’t find extra space to fit it into the luggage bag for the souvenirs that you have bought, or you wish you have chosen the correct wheeled bag to ease your worries to carry your luggage along the rough city sidewalks.
**The common types of travel bags that I usually use**
Listed below is the information on the various types of traveling luggage or bags that I usually choose for my different types of trips, tours, or vacations. Which include either a short meeting trip, joining in a paid guided tour, travel as a single adventurer, or attending a month-long overseas practical training. I will prefer to;
a. Rolling luggage - It comes with either 2 or 4 wheeled bags, this type of rolling bag will help to ease my worries about carrying all my gear inside my backpack, especially when my travel destination includes city road or when there is a need to travel inside a huge international airport to get to the boarding gate.
b. Duffel bag - is a large size bag, made from natural or synthetic fabric, usually, comes with top closure using a drawstring. It is easily adaptable due to the lack of rigidity and stable frame. Sometimes it is used as a sling bag. I love to bring along a duffel bag whenever I make one or two days domestic trip.
c. Wheeled backpack - I will select a wheeled bag when my trip includes traveling through different types of terrains, or when I am engaged in an outdoor activity like hiking or mountain climbing. It gave me the flexibility option of either rolling the pack or wearing it as a backpack.
d. Travel backpack - travel backpack is usually smaller in size than a suitcase. Traveling on a backpack means that there is no need for me to bring along the extra weight, especially for a short travel trip.
d. Carry-on luggage - a carry-on bag, hand luggage, or cabin luggage, is usually allowed to be carried onboard and kept inside the overhead compartment. Normally, this extra space allows me to safely keep my personal belongings: laptop, important documents, or a place to keep my bulky winter gears for an easy change before landing.
**Situations when I choose either for a hard or a soft luggage**
Choosing between hard vs soft luggage is depending on the traveler's personalized traveling plan and packing style. The pros of the soft bag are it is easier to squeeze into the tight cabin compartment, and it can absorb shock much better than the hard bag, Soft bags are more common on sales, especially for a duffel bag, travel backpack, or carry-on suitcase. It is also lightweight and makes it easier to sling over the shoulder.
Meanwhile, the hard suitcase quality and performance have been improved and upgraded consistently to fulfill the customer’s satisfaction. The quality has evolved not only from a lightweight bag to an ultra-lightweight suitcase but also it has become extremely strong and durable. That is why a hard suitcase is my perfect choice for checked-in baggage because of its large size and the hard suitcase can protect my fragile items from being damaged during transporting process to or from the aircraft.
I am an organized person, I choose hard luggage because of its unique design and innovations. Unlike the soft suitcase, hard luggage is designed in a clamshell style, comes with two equal compartments that fold together which allowed more space for my desired packing style. Apart from that, hard luggage are easy to clean compared to soft bag.
**Two wheels or four?**
When it comes to choosing whether to get two wheels or four wheels bag? It pretty much depends on the geographical landscape of my vacation destination. If my vacation holidays plan only involved city travels; transferring luggage from one hotel to another hotel, then a four-wheeled type will be my best choice.
Furthermore, a four-wheeled type will allow for an easy maneuver even with a fully packed bag. It is also an excellent option for travelers who are experiencing musculoskeletal conditions, to mention travelers with back pain or mobility disability, or for solo travelers.
However, when my vacation plan required me to travel along rough or uneven paved roads or sideways or I may need to carry my bag up the curb or stairs, then a two-wheeled bag will help me to keep the bag in a stationary position even on an uneven surface. The main drawbacks for two-wheeled luggage are that I need to drag the bag behind me and sometimes the pulling motion causes sprain and soreness to my wrists and shoulders
Do stay tuned for more details on my travel guides on choosing the right traveling bag for your trip, Part 2.
*The lead image is taken from Unsplash*
Everything changed
***Before the pandemic***
***Our lifestyle***
We were all live a carefree, wonderful, and happy life.
We work day and night to earn more money for our family, the word rest does not exist in our work diary.
We served and substitute fast food to our family for healthy home cooking just because we are busy.
***Our Home***
We are happy to welcome our guests whenever they came for a visit.
We visited our elderly parents whenever we want, and enjoyed the family moment.
Weekend family gatherings are the time to promote family closeness and a sense of togetherness.
***Our Children***
We teach our children to wash their hands before food.
Schools filled with school children, joy and laughter echo along school’s corridors.
Our children spend their time mostly with technology gadgets because we have no time for them.
Homeschooling only adopts by a minority group who are confident of its efficacy.
***Health***
We have no worries when we are having symptoms of sore throat, fever, and flu as it is just the manifestation of another virus infection.
***Business***
We greet our acquaintance with a friendly handshake, the word close contact has never existed.
Business never closed. Malls, supermarkets, and restaurants are packed with non-stop customers.
We will be treated as “suspicious” people if we enter a bank wearing a face mask.
***Sport***
Parks and recreation centers are always filled with sportsmen/women who came to exercise to maintain good health.
We enjoy being physically present to cheer and to support our soccer team at the stadium.
***Tourism***
The tourism industry blooms like never before, homestays are mushrooming everywhere.
The sky is congested with non-stop travel of cargo, commercial, and passenger planes.
We visit and fly to any dream vacation without the issue of entry restrictions.
***Events***
We practice open houses to celebrate all festivals and celebrations regardless of religion or race.
We invite friends and relatives to celebrate baby showers, full moon, and birthday parties for our loved ones.
On one wedding day, the bridegroom and bride’s facial reactions confirmed the I Do declaration.
Friends and family still have the opportunities to gather and pay their last respect for their loved ones who have passed on.
***However, everything changed after the pandemic.***
***Our lifestyle***
Our previous carefree life has forever changed and we do not know whether it will return to what it used to be before.
We have to learn how to work from home, and surely we will miss the office’s environment when we are trying to keep ourselves busy in the office.
Lipstick is no longer a must makeup before going out from the house, social distancing is as crucial as wearing a face mask.
***Our Home***
We were advised to close our house doors for visitors to prevent any cross-infections
We have to think twice before we decide to pay our elderly parents a long waited visit. We will be at fault if the sickness of our parents was the outcome of our unexpected arrival.
Culinary books and youtube will be the most admires medium by housewives who are trying to learn how to cook for his/her family.
***Our Children***
Parents have to learn the new AI technology and commit their time to teach their children at home.
The children will be the happiest as they will have the chance to enjoy homemade meals prepared by their parents.
***Health***
We were scared to death even when we started to experience the mildest symptoms of a virus infection.
Authority commanded us to do frequent handwashing, with or without food.
Apart from hand washing, wearing a mask, physical distancing is a demand.
Hand sanitizer spray and solution become our closed companion whenever we are outside of the house.
***Business***
We will be denied entry even at the bank entrance door if we refuse to wear a face mask.
Lockdown enforced, the business closed, and many employees lose their job and income.
***Sport***
We shout and cheer for our football team, but echoed only heard in front of the television.
No body-contact sport is allowed until the pandemic is over or under controlled.
***Tourism***
Many countries closed their international borders for the tourism industry.
No tourist, no tourism activities, hotel, motel, and homestay closing their operation.
***Events***
When two or three people gather together to meet, the enforcement officer will come with a compound fine.
No family members are allowed to attend the funeral, no chance to pay the last respect, no griefing moments, no mourning, and not even the final goodbye for Covid-19 patient who has journeyed alone to the afterlife.
Everything changed. Everything has changed after the covid pandemic. Whether we liked it or not, we are willing to accept it or not, we are convinced or not, we have no other choice, and we have to learn to adapt to the new normal to ensure our survival during this critical and challenging time.
**-------------------------- Stay safe -------------------------------**
Leads image from Unsplash
Swimmer Puppy Syndrome: My Experience Part 2
Swimmer puppy syndrome is generally considered an untreatable disorder, but nowadays, the management of this disorder has improved with many new innovative techniques. I have shared some information on the treatment of Swimmer puppy syndrome in Swimmer Puppy Syndrome: My Experience Part 1, among others, are medical interventions and home therapies.
In part 2, Whoopi’s Swimmer puppy syndrome treatment has consisted of a combination of environmental modifications, a healthy diet, and physiotherapy interventions. I will give more focus on physiotherapy interventions and nesting techniques.
Whoopi’s medical management commenced as early as his diagnosis is confirmed. Bedding and environment modifications, nesting technique, and supplement therapy are given concurrently with physiotherapy treatment.
Physiotherapy pre-interventions examination at aged of three weeks old:
**On observation**
- No evidence of spine/body structure abnormality.
- Whoopi raised his front chest off the ground with the support from his two front legs.
- Both hind legs are positioned in external rotation, splayed laterally out from the body.
**On physical examination**
- Both front and hind legs passively full range of movement and no joint abnormality seen.
- No spine abnormality at the pelvic region
- Both front legs muscle tone and sensory are intact.
- Both hind legs are reduced in muscle tone.
- On stimulation assessment, both hind legs sensory is intact.
- No leg length discrepancy was seen over both hind legs.
- Actively, both hind legs can be position in normal anatomical posture.
**Mobility and transfer**
- Whoopi was unable to weight bear on both hind legs.
- Forward movement by dragging the lower body forward.
**Aims of Physiotherapy management**
- To increase hind legs muscle tone and strength.
- To increase muscle length and flexibility.
- To activate hind legs coordination and joint proprioception awareness.
- To improve blood circulation and lymphatic return of immobilized limbs.
- To institute weight-bearing on all four legs.
- To facilitate walking, running, and jumping.
**Physiotherapy interventions**
- Use of harness to keep chest wall off the ground surface, 15 minutes daily, preferred 1 hour after nursing.
- Use of sling to institute weight-bearing awareness over the legs. Fifteen minutes daily preferred 1 hour after nursing.
- Taping techniques to keep the legs in normal functional position to facilitate proper developmental growth, 15 to 20 minutes, two to three repetitions daily.
- Massage therapy stimulates muscle and nerve function, improves blood circulation and venous return. Effleurage and kneading techniques for 20 minutes each leg.
- Passive exercise to maintain normal range of movement and muscle properties over the affected and unaffected limbs. Three to four repetitions daily for 20 minutes.
- Weight-bearing exercise over the hind legs to institute weight equally distributed from the hips to the knees and foot. Developmental milestone technique, 30 minutes twice daily.
- Tactile stimulation exercises to improve sensory stimulation using a soft toothbrush or a China calligraphy brush. Twenty minutes, Two repetitions daily.
**Nesting technique**
The main objective of the Nesting technique application in Neonate Intensive Care was to minimize physiological instability and to reduce stress levels among preterm babies. This so-called developmental supportive positioning promotes midline orientation, hand-to-mouth activity, and fetal flexor pattern.
Whoopi’s current medical situations are:
- Both his hind limbs, no evidence of joints abnormality.
- Both his hind legs splayed out from the body, no flexor pattern seen.
- Both his hind legs can put back manually to midline position.
- He is unable to stand on all four legs.
- No ambulation was seen (walking/running).
Therefore, the indications of nesting technique for Whoopi’s treatment was:
- To induce midline orientation of both hind limbs.
- To prevent external rotation of both hip joints
- To institute weight-bearing awareness, proprioception stimulation, and facilitate ambulation.
- To assist in chest wall elevation
**Nesting technique application**
**Preparation 1**
Material: 1 piece Bath towel, moderate size, soft texture.
**Preparation 2**
“Nesting” can easily customize by folding bedding into the shape of a thick, sturdy, fitted Ring, step 1 to step 3.
**Instruction:**
- The “nest” needs to be deep enough (depends on the body size of the puppy), to keep both its front and hind limbs in midline orientation and provides postural stability.
- The sides of the “nest” need to be close enough around both its hind limbs to ensure both the hind legs are tuck inside in a normal anatomical position.
- The puppy’s neck should be kept in an extension position to prevent neck flexion.
- The puppy can be position either prone (lying on the stomach) or in side-lying.
- The nesting technique can be applied when the puppy is sleeping.
**Outcome**
After three weeks of environmental modifications therapy, a healthy diet workout, and an intensive physiotherapy sessions. Whoopi, the puppy that once was unable to stand or walk, has grown to be an active and happy puppy.
**Conclusion**
Early medical intervention will lead to a higher recovery rate.
The owner’s commitment plays a crucial role in ensuring consistency and timely delivery of treatment.
Patience, dedication, persistence, and hard work are the key elements of successful therapy.
Please check with your veterinarian first before commencing the nesting technique and check out for red flags.
Nesting technique, another creative and innovative intervention measure in the treatment of Swimmer puppy syndrome. It works for my Whoopi. I do hope it works for yours too.
Thank you.
Paris at a Glance, Eiffel, and Versailles
Part 1: Lunch at Eiffel and Small group tour (by coach)
Paris at a glance, lunch at Eiffel and Versailles is another popular tour package that is available for tourist who plans or has the chance for a visit to the city of love. This tour package can be pre-book from a travel website. Name a few: Trip advisor, Agoda.com, Skyscanner, Trip.com, Lonelyplanet.com, and many others.
My hotel pick-up was scheduled at 09:10 am, and we were pick-up from different hotels in Paris for the prepaid sightseeing tour, a tour from a different perspective view of the city of Paris. The driver brushes through the early morning traffic and made a few brief stops at Parisian landmarks: Les Invalides, Notre Dame Cathedral, Place de la Concorde, Avenue des Champs Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe.
**Les Invalides**
The scheduled first stop was at the Les Invalides. Les Invalides was formerly known as the House of the disabled. The original purpose is to function as a treating hospital and as a retirement home for war veterans. It houses museums and monuments which are all related to the military history of France. Adjacent to Les Invalides was the former Royal Chapel, which has converted to be the final resting place for France leading military figure, Napoleon Bonaparte.
**Notre Dame Cathedral**
Notre Dame Cathedral also refers to simply as Norte-Dame. This unique Gothic architecture stands out due to its beautiful colorful rose windows, houses the giant size of a historic organ, and church bells. Norte Dame Cathedral is considered one of the iconic symbols of the city of Paris and making it one the most visited monument in Paris.
The next few stops include Place de la Concorde, Avenue des Champs Elysees, and the Arc de Triomphe before the lunch at Eiffel Tower.
**Eiffel Tower**
The purchase of Paris at a glance tour package will include a much-awaited lunch break after the morning sightseeing tour in the capital city. The lunch reservation will be at 58 Tour Eiffel restaurant, located on the first-floor platform, 58 meters or 190 feet above ground level. The Iron Lady entrance points were fully packed with tourists as there were two long queues at each site of the tower waiting for their turn to purchase an access ticket to get an experience to mark a footprint at the Eiffel Tower.
The lunch reservation at 58 Tour Eiffel includes a skip-the-line ticket to the first level of the Eiffel Tower. We were leads through the centerline to get our direct access to the elevator avoiding the long lines and wait.
The restaurant menu served consisted of Parisian cuisine: Grilled salmon, cream dessert, pumpkin soup of the day, and a glass of wine. It is a great blessing to enjoy the delicious lunch meal while experiencing the spectacular view of the magnificent city of Paris from the Eiffel. We adjourned to our next destination that afternoon to the Palace of Versailles.
**Part 2: Palace of Versailles**
Google scholar refers Palace of Versailles as the Jewel of French Baroque architecture, and together with its royal garden, a must-visit bucket list. The day-trip Versailles also includes a skip-the-line entry, and at the main entrance gates, we were ushered from a different entrance gate to get our direct access into the palace building.
The Versailles visitor brochure stated that the main palace consists of 2,500 rooms, and visitors are allowed to visit some of the famous rooms inside Versailles palace and to name a few are the Hall of Mirrors, Marie-Antoinette's bedrooms, and the King's Apartments and Royal Bedchamber. Walking along the massive and high ceiling halls and rooms, together with all the well-preserved interior designs, wall decorations, and antique furniture, one can fantasizing as if one was present at the same timeline in history.
After two hours of a guided tour around the palace, we continued our journey back to the city of Paris, as the royal gardens and musical fountain shows were closed and postponed for maintenance and repair process.
**Are you planning to go for a visit to Paris after the pandemic is over? If yes, then listed below are few travel tips and learning points that you may need to take note of to ensure a smooth and enjoyable vacation.**
**Travel Tips**
- Do take note of the specific dress code requirements as stated in your tour voucher.
- Bring along your payment receipt or printed tour voucher as proof of purchase if you are travel as a single traveler or a group tour.
- Do bring along some sandwiches, snacks & a bottle of water because guided tours are usually on a tight tour schedule.
- Do bing some moisturizing sunscreen to protect your skin from dryness.
**Learning points**
- Again, be more vigilant in crowded areas.
- If you were a person who loved to enjoy and admire flowers, then you may need to check when is the best time to visit Versailles to avoid disappointment.
- Be observant to follow instructions given as some tourist attractions do not allow for photo or video taking.
- Try to purchase a tour package that includes some special offers: skip-the-line ticket, lunch or evening tea, and most important is that they do provide free transportation.
**Things to avoid**
**-** None
**Thank you for reading.**
(Lead image from Unsplash)
Swimmer Puppy Syndrome: My Experience Part 1
Last 10th of May 2021, we welcomed another “newcomer” into our home. A male puppy, we named him Whoopi. After three weeks of life, we discovered that there was something amiss. His gait was not like other ordinary puppies at his age that they should have already learned how to stand on their own four legs, even though it might be an unstable gait at first. We noticed that he has difficulty pulling himself up in a standing position, and he is trying his efforts to crawl or forward movement by dragging his lower body along. He cried aloud whenever he is trying to pass urine, and his lower abdomen often soiled with his urine.
I have tried searching for more information wanting to know what has gone wrong with him. I found out that his symptoms fitted with a condition called Swimmer Syndrome.
**Introduction**
A case report done by Sun-A Kim et al, 2013 on Home-care treatment of swimmer syndrome in a miniature schnauzer dog claimed that Swimmer syndrome is an uncommon developmental deformity of newborns pups. They also reported that Swimmer syndrome is also known as Swimming-puppy syndrome, flat-puppy syndrome, Swimmer puppy syndrome, twisted legs, or Turtle pups.
**Causes**
Together with another author from Thedogplace.org and animalso.com, the authors all stated that the cause of Swimmer puppy syndrome is idiopathic. However, it stated that the factor listed below may be the contributing cause:
i. Hereditary – a genetic disorder.
ii. Congenital – deformity happens due to in-vitro viral or fungal infections.
iii. Environmental factors causing the pups to become lazy and immobilized, therefore it leads to undeveloped muscle properties.
**Clinical features**
- Flattened thorax/chest.
- The flattened chest, causes the heart and other organs to be pushed upward into the pleural cavity, making breathing difficult.
- Pups become lazy and lethargic due to a lack of energy.
- Both hind legs splay outwardly from the body.
- Weak hind limb muscles make standing is impossible.
- When moving forward, the pups paddle their hind legs like the turtle.
**Suggested treatment**
Generally, Swimmer syndrome is considered untreatable, and therefore dogs or cats that have been diagnosed with Swimmer syndrome will be advised or opted for euthanasia. However, together with the advice from the veterinarian. Nowadays, the management of Swimmer puppy syndrome has been improved, many creative, innovative techniques and home remedies were introduced to ensure all the loving owners that there is still hope for their little fur friend. Among options of interventions are:
**Environment factor:**
- Make sure the bedding is comfortable, fluffy, and soft to avoid chest compression over the hard flattened surface.
- Sock method to keep the chest elevated.
- Use of non-slippery mat to help the pup to gain traction in his effort to stand.
- Regular cleaning to keep the pup clean from urine and feces.
**Diet**
- Ensure the pup is being regularly fed, however excessive nursing can lead to overweight which will impose more pressure over the weakened legs.
- Get advice from your veterinarian for supplements support.
- Keep the pup in an upright position after feeding to prevent regurgitation.
**Physiotherapy**
- Use of harness to keep chest wall off the ground surface.
- Use of sling to facilitate or to train for standing posture apart from to institute weight-bearing awareness over the legs.
- Taping techniques to keep the legs in a normal functional position to facilitate correct developmental growth.
- Massage therapy stimulates muscle and nerve function, improves hind limb blood circulation, and assists in the digestion process.
- Passive exercise to maintain a normal range of movement over the affected and unaffected limbs.
- Weight-bearing exercise over the hind legs to institute equal weight to be distributed from the hips to the knees and foot.
- Tactile stimulation exercises to improve sensory stimulation using a soft toothbrush or a China calligraphy brush.
After gathered sufficient details about what is Swimmer puppy syndrome. I carried out a physical assessment on Whoopi and applied the plan of treatments as suggested. In addition to the methods of treatment listed above, I have included a technique called nesting technique in which I have found out that it works for him, as he has shown a fast recovery rate.
To all fellow dog lovers, have you:
- Ever experienced being told about the poor prognosis of your newborn fur friend?
- It’s must be heart-breaking news to know that you have to make a hard decision if euthanasia is the only choice given.
- It is sad to see how he or she paddles its hind legs to drag his/her motionless lower body forward.
- Maybe you have managed to successfully heal your puppy, and you have your story to share.
For me, this is my first experience treating Swimmer puppy syndrome, and I am happy to see Whoopi’s developmental milestone was not affected by his past medical issue.
Do stay tuned, I will share more on my treatment interventions on Whoopi in Swimmer Puppy Syndrome: My Experience Part 2.
Cruise and Illuminations of Paris
Cruise and Illuminations of Paris is one of the two prepaid tour packages that have been plan during my Paris short stay. The night illumination tour includes the combinations of the Seine River cruise and the Paris night panoramic tour by minibus.
I was informed about my night tour pick-up at eight. While waiting for the pick-up, I noticed outside the hotel is still bright daylight even at seven o’çlock at night. After I have done a quick search, I found out that the city of Paris will be experiencing a long day length in May. The sunrise time is 06:30 in the morning, and the sunset time is 21:06.
Later at eight o’çlock sharp, I saw a gentleman, who is in what I called “inspector gadget” attire walked into the hotel, he politely introduced himself as my tour guide-cum-driver for the illumination night tour. After fetching a few other tourists from other hotels, we finally reached Pier 3 near the Eiffel Tower, the main starting point for our Seine River Cruise tour.
The cruise deck was crowded with tourists who were waiting in their queue. I assumed that evening, there about a few hundred tourists like me, who have booked a tour to have a personal experience with the much spoken Seine River Cruise.
The Seine River cruise started at 8:30 pm after all the passengers were well seated at their desired seat, and the whole trip will take about one to one and a half-hour journey. The tour interpreter began his engagement with his audience when the boat starts cruise down the Seine River. He fascinates his audience with his ability to converse in multilingual languages and fluent commentary as the cruise boat passed through each significant monument, bridge, and famous building along the River Seine.
After one hour cruising the River Seine, the bright evening sky slowly turned into darkness. All buildings, monuments, and bridges lighten up with bright lights, then the city of Paris suddenly brightened up into what they always claimed, the city of lights.
As the boat returned to the starting point at Pier 3, the Eiffel Tower displays a “magic lights show” for almost fifteen minutes in duration. At the foot of the magnificent Eiffel Tower, our group was given some time to take few pictures for remembrance.
The second part of the Paris night illumination tour included a different view of Paris, an experience of Paris panoramic city tour, as the driver journeyed through Garnier Palace, Louvre Museum, Notre Dame Cathedral, Arc de Triomphe**,** and along the street of Champs-Elysees.
The coach offers an audio commentary in many different languages, allowing the passenger to learn about the history and culture of every monument, bridge, and building located at the heart of the city. The night illumination city tour finished at midnight after a three-and-a-half-hour tour.
**********
**Travel Tips**
- Family with young children or senior citizens, for safety concerns, choose a daylight Seine river cruise.
- Bring some snacks and water, there is no convenient shop nearby Pier 3.
- Bring along a quality camera, as you might not be able to visit the city of Paris again in a long time.
- Beware of pickpocket particularly in crowded areas.
- Remember to ask for the hotel business card, you might need it if you get disconnected from the group.
-Do bring extra pair of gloves, Paris night temperature might drop.
**Learning points**
- Be sharp on time, according to the tour time stated in the voucher.
- Be physically fit before the trip.
- Arrange a more carefree tour package, not too packed.
**Things to avoid**
- None
Lead image from Unsplash
Paris: The City of Love
The Air France plane landed safely at Charles de Gorge’s Airport after 10 hours of flight from Bogota, Colombia. The immigration clearance and luggage claims were uneventful. I then took a shuttle service from the airport for my airport transfer to my accommodation in Paris central city. I have booked a short stay at Best Western Hotel Opera Drouot, formerly known as Comfort Opera Drouot Hotel, a 3-star hotel located at 4 Rue de la Grange Batelière, 75009 Paris.
Later that afternoon, I went for a walk around the hotel surrounding after checked-in my luggage in my hotel room. I changed to my sweater as the outside temperature was speculated around 16°c that day. I bought a simple Japanese Bento from the Sushi restaurant situated in front of the hotel for my dinner costs around 10 euros.
The next day evening, I have met up with my local tour guide, Mr. Lim. I am so blessed that the Paris trip was an extended blessing from Colombia’s trip. Mr. Lim was the elder brother of my friend who worked as a sushi chef and has been staying in Paris for more than 10 years. He was so kind that he brought me a bowl of delicious sashimi (come with fresh salmon, tuna, and sea bass) which I am so grateful for.
He then gave me three hours of a guided walking tour around the city of Paris, but before the short tour, Mr. Lim gave me the advice to keep all my valuables inside my sweater to avoid unnecessary trouble such as the incident of a pickpocket. The evening tour includes various place as listed below:
**The Evening Walking Tour**
After 10 minutes of walking distance from the hotel, we reached our first stop:
**Palais Garnier or Garnier Palace**
(Photo taken from Unsplash)
This expensive piece of architecture was planned and designed by the well-known architect, Charles Garnier and it has become famous for being the setting for “The Phantom of the Opera (1986 Musical)”. I took a photo for remembrance as its unique design caught my attention.
**The Ritz Hotel**
The moment when we passed through The Ritz Hotel, suddenly I recalled back to the news that Princess Diana and her companion were last seen before their fatal accident on 31st August 1997. Mr. Lim confirmed the originality of the news.
**Jardin des Tuileries Garden**
Upon reaching Jardin des Tuileries Garden, I noticed the whole garden was undergoing a regrowing process after the long winter. It was not like the usual beautiful garden that one might be expected to admire especially in May in Paris but yet I saw the garden was packed with tourists like me as well there were many Parisians families come out from their house to enjoys their evening stroll and relaxed moment in the garden.
**Place de la Concorde**
(Photo taken from Unsplash)
Not far from the garden, I was excited to see something that was so familiar that I saw in the Transformer movie. It was the Fontaines de la Concorde, I managed to take few posts as a shred of evidence to prove my presence there.
**Pont Alexandre III**
(Photo taken from Unsplash)
We continued our journey until we reached a deck arch bridge, named Pont Alexandre III. It is the resemblance of the same Westminster Bridge, London that I have visited years earlier. The bridge was crowded, people are traveling on SegWheel scooter and electric bicycles above and cruises that worked non-stop ferrying tourists through the Seine river below.
**Avenue des Champs-Élysées**
I remembered my tour agent, who has helped me arrange the whole Colombia trip, she mentioned to me that I should consider getting myself an original brand handbag if I happened to visit the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.
As I walk along the two-kilometer sidewalk of the avenue, I observed there were many shops and department stores that sell the most luxurious and expensive brands of adult/children fashion and leather goods, watches, jewelry, cosmetics, perfumes, and others. At that moment, I can only admire and maybe just enjoyed the window-shopping experience, because the price of a piece of a lady's garment selling price is equivalent to the price of one-third of the total cost of my flight ticket.
**Arc de Triomphe**
(Photo taken from Unsplash)
The final tourist destination of my walking tour was the Arc de Triomphe, located at the western end of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées. Arc de Triomphe was among the most iconic tourist attractions in Paris apart from Eiffel Tower, The Louvre Museum, and des Champs-Élysées. Seeing there was no traffic marking lines on the road, I asked myself how the Parisian road user managed to keep themselves from hitting each other on that busy road.
After the three hours tiring-cum-enjoying evening walk, I returned to my hotel room, enjoying my sashimi on the comfortable bed while watching France television broadcasting news with the natural cold spring breeze filled the room.
***********
**Travel Tips**
Do buy/stock some food (energy booster) in the room (tip bits, snack, etc) if you happened to visit Paris during the cold season.
Be at good stamina if you want to enjoy Paris tourist attractions on foot.
Do wear a sweater with a hood or bring an umbrella, just in case its rains.
Bring along a quality camera, as you might not be able to visit the city of Paris again in a long time.
Do separate your money into 2 separate portions, do not show your cash in the public.
**Learning points**
It is safe to drink water directly from the hotel water tap, it is drinkable.
Beware of pickpocket particularly in crowded areas.
Be ready with enough cash, especially in euro currency.
If you need to bring along your small backpack, please make sure do not keep any valuable belongings inside.
**Things to avoid**
No staring/exchange eye contact with the unknown opposite sex, even if you are curious as it might signal a wrong body language.
**Do not forget to follow my next Paris series, Cruise and Illuminations of Paris (by Minibus).**
*(Lead image taken from Unsplash)*
Travel Guides for Your Vacation Planning
Whether you are a seasonal traveler or the one who just loved to travel. The recent COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown have placed many activities on a halt. The majority of the affected nations closed their international borders hoping to curbs the spread of deadly diseases. It might take another few more months or maybe years to ensure that the virus was eradicated or when a herd immunity situation was achieved.
When the traveling and holiday vacation activities are allowed to reopen again, I am pretty sure that the tourism industry will rise high to its peak again as everyone would like to be the first one to witness the "new birth" after nature has rejuvenated anew to its most beautiful display.
Like all my fellow readers in the travel committee, who may have been a frequent traveler to many tourist destinations locally and abroad. They will agree with me that to ensure a smooth and successful holiday vacation, proper and careful planning is a must.
All these years, I thanked GOD for granting me the opportunities to travel globally whether for a mission trip to the Lichfield United Kingdom, family vacation to Thailand and Taiwan, guided group tour to Guilin China, South Korea, and Japan, a worked-related trip to Colombia and Christchurch New Zealand, or as a solo traveler to Paris, Melbourne Australia, and Tasmania. Here, I humbly would like to share with you some traveling tips that I have learned from my traveling experiences. Not forgetting to cite some useful travel tips from Eagle Creek in its article: *What to pack for your vacation.*
In this travel guides series, I will try to provide as much information, tips, and an explanation on the pro and cons, benefits and risks, safety, and potential dangers when decision-making is crucial. It will cover a broad range of the entire preparation levels from the very first moment when the destination was confirmed until the safe return to your home. The full 8 series travel guides are listed below:
**Travel Guides 1: Where to start**
**Travel Guides 2: Choose the right travel bag**
**Travel Guides 3: Organize your clothing packing list**
**Travel Guides 4: Packing for your toiletry bag/travel health bag**
**Travel Guides 5: Packing for personal item carry-on bag**
**Travel Guides 6: Packing for important travel documents (Passport/ cash/ credit cards/travel insurance)**
**Travel Guides 7: Consider travel security**
**Travel Guides 8: Prepare your home**
(Photo taken from Unsplash)
**Travel Guides 1: Where to start**
The whole vacation planning started from the moment a destination is confirmed. It is important to determine whether it is a family vacation holiday, group holiday, or a single traveler. The reason behind this is that the strategic and comprehensive planning will be much different between all the three categories like in the issues of:
**Holiday budget**
- The solo traveler will have to pay extra compare to the family and tour group as bulk expenditure is much cheaper in big quantities. Usually, a discount will be given to the family who is traveling with kids or senior citizens and travel agencies.
**Itinerary**
- The single traveler will have the total freedom to arrange and change his or her itineraries anytime even during the holiday without getting worried about any suggestions or objections from others.
- As for traveling in a group, itineraries will have to plan well ahead and each member in the group will have to give their agreement beforehand. Any last-minute amendments will incur penalties in terms of money.
As for single traveler and family tour groups. There is a need to do some internet searching to get more information on the destination of their choice. For my past single traveling experience, I like to log on to Wikipedia and TripAdvisor to get to know more about my vacation destination before the departure.
(Photo taken from Unsplash)
Wikipedia and TripAdvisor are among the best websites that will provide more thorough details on:
- History
- Destination geographical location.
- Climate and when is the best time to visit.
- Political ideology/situation (current political updates as you do not want to get involved unknowingly. )
- Available airlines (budget airlines)
- Pre-entry requirement.
- Tourism board
- Culture
- Transportation services available
- List of things to do (tourist attractions, local tour packages, etc.)
- Traveling tips
- Things to avoid
After getting sufficient information and details about the vacation destination, only then you can proceed with:
**For family tour and single traveler**
- Purchasing of airlines tickets
- Arrange for pre-booking (hotel, hostel, homestay, and other accommodation).
- Arrange for airport transfer and sightseeing tour.
- Start a packing list for your dream vacation.
- Prepare other essential travel documents.
**For group tour through the travel agency,**
all the above arrangements are handled by the travel agency, except:
- Start a packing list for your vacation.
- Advanced payment is required
Now, you are ready to proceed to **Travel Guides 2: Choose the right travel bag** after you have confirmed your vacation destination, chosen your tour category, and after making the necessary pre-arrangement.
Hu Lee, the “boy” in the family
It has been a busy day at the office, with documents piling up on my office desk, few important phone calls to make, and a webinar meeting to attend. Finally, only after dinner, I can sit down and relax, taking my time to have a look at my phone’s WhatsApp application to check if I have missed any important messages. I recall a WhatsApp picture send by my sister earlier today. After locating her message, it was the snapshot of our “domestic animal friend” taken by my sister. Photo (above) taken showing how he enjoyed his sleep using a pineapple fruit as his’ pillow, on seeing how comfortable he was and the satisfying posture portrayed in the picture, I assume you have the same agreement with me. Then, I am sure you will ask yourself how can it be? How can he be that relaxed while resting on a hard solid and thorny pineapple? Yes! That is his unusual habit that we have found out lately.
*(Picture taken from Unsplash image)*
First, before I continued my story, let me give a brief introduction to our beloved domestic animal friend. His name is Hu Lee, in the Chinese language it means “fox”, he was welcomed into our home in November 2018. According to my sister, Hu Lee was a stray kitten that she found wandering around her workplace at the sundry shop. He was maybe about one month old at that time, he looks haggard, skinny, frightened, and meowing loudly to informed that he was hungry looking for food.
*(Picture taken from Unsplash image)*
Despite his humble appearance and condition, what caught my sister's attention was that he had a long furry “fox” tail that made my sister decided to adopt him that day.
He was later introduced to his two other siblings, an older, and a younger sister. After few weeks of the introduction process, we were glad to know that they were able to blend well with each other.
Months later, he developed to be more active, playful, and more mischievous like a kid, running around and chasing each other marking the whole house as their playground.
A year goes by, his developmental milestone was uneventful. He grows bigger than his previous size and also gradually he started to develop into his unique character.
Despite being the “young boy” in the house, he was able to present himself well behave especially when it comes to dinner time. He will patiently wait behind the line until his elder sister gets her portion.
As he grows older, he turned to be a bit more grumpy like an old man. He will show you one kind of a look to tell you of his dissatisfaction about; the latest brand of wet food that is being served, not being given enough attention from my younger sister, his favorite, not being entertained when he demands a pat or being disturb when he wanted a rest.
At one time, our neighborhood was hit by a virus that attacks house pets, and to keep them safe, he and his siblings were kept indoors. He becomes more attached to my younger sister ever since.
Lately, we noticed he becomes curious about his surrounding especially concerning things that happened outside the house. Sometimes together with his younger sister, they will climb up to the window frame to listen and to investigate the source of the sound or movements produced by the birds, insects, or others. An act of curiosity that results in a habit that he will at least spend some time every day sitting either at the window or entrance door to observe what happened outside the house.
Pineapple
We also discovered that he is having an unusual interest in fruits, it occurs when we found out that he likes to sleep beside the fresh fruit that we bought from the market. Among his favorite was;
Banana
Pineapple
Again the Pineapple
During the day, he spends most of his time to be near his favorite pineapple, sometimes he loved to cuddle, rubbing his body against the rough spikes of the fruit, or bringing his cheek to brush his whiskers over the butt of the pineapple. He also loved to bite the ripen pineapple butt and lick the sap.
Maybe we might not be able to understand the reason behind his love for pineapple or why fruit, but at least we know that even an animal is courageous enough to show what its preference is.
Cartagena, Colombia (End): The Blessed Trip.
Hi! I am back again. I have finally reached the concluding chapter of Cartagena’s trip. The Cartagena trip has been a fruitful one even though it was just a short working-cum-holiday stay. It was my first solo adventure traveling abroad, and it was also my first long-distance travel visiting the other part of the world.
*(Image download from Unsplash. The photo was taken by Vladimir Fedotov)*
Since young, I have loved to watch the global Miss World competition played on television. I admired the natural beauty of each contestant has, how they performed, and the insights that they have shown when they were given a difficult question to answer. Since then, I have a dream that to visit South America one day (I admit that I am a dreamer and a person with a high curiosity level, I like to adventure new and interesting things that capture my attention), the land that produced many Miss World winners, to mention a few: Venezuela, Argentina, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and others. My dream came true as I had the opportunity to visit Colombia and had a personal experience to witness and to enjoy their local culture, food, architecture and above all be able to meet with a true Latin American (indeed, the majority of them were pretty and handsome!)
In my first article Cartagena, Colombia: Part 1, I have mentioned the many unpleasant doubts and anxieties about traveling alone, furthermore to a far distant country. After taking a few preparatory measures (I agree with what being written by @Eylz2021 in her article about: Things to remember when you are traveling alone), equipped with some useful traveling tips, I embarked on my first solo journey with prayers and with the assurance of HIS presence.
My Cartagena’s challenge started two days after the Avianca plane landed safely on Cartagena’s soil. The world was put on an alert phase when Panama has confirmed with 1 positive Influenza A (H1N1) case (source from research article archived from PubMed search engine). According to reports derived from the WHO archive, the 2009 Swine Flu pandemic was originated from animal influenza viruses and the mode of transmission was when a healthy person exposes by inhaling to infected droplets that expelled by coughing or sneezing, or exposure by contaminated hands or surfaces. WHO reported that the new 2009 Influenza virus has caused a significant illness, hospitalization, and the virus also has caused the death toll rise to an average of 150,000 to 575,000 people globally?
*(Image download from Unsplash)*
Colombia, as one of the neighboring countries, was put on high-security alert for this aggressive virus, each day we the congress delegates were being brief with the latest updates of the H1N1 outbreak. On the final day of the congress, the local national broadcast station announcing that Colombia was having the first suspected H1N1 case, 2 days after the first confirmed case was reported in Panama. On hearing that, many of the international delegates took their chance to pack and travel back home immediately after the congress ended. I have to decide on the impending critical situation, being alone in a foreign country and knowing the news of the fast spread virus has already declared his presence in Colombia. I am too, panicked and called up my home country travel agent regarding the issue, sadly she said that it will cause me more money to buy a new ticket off Cartagena as my scheduled flight was already confirmed for the next day. What came to my mind at that time was to kneel down and humbly pray and ask for HIS divine intervention to keep me safe until I reached my next stop, the metropolitan city of Paris. The next morning after breakfast, I took a taxi and headed to the airport for my next flight to Bogota.
Upon arriving at the airport, I noticed the airport was packed with travelers. Maybe they are the same congress delegates like me who are trying to catch the next early flight home or maybe they are the existing tourist who is also trying their luck to get out from the affected region. After checking in my luggage, I went into the airport washroom to answer my nature’s call before proceeds to the boarding hall. Inside the washroom, I found out there was a long line of travelers who are waiting in their queue.
I walked out of the washroom after completed what I have to do, and while walking towards the boarding hall, there was a soft voice-prompted inside my ear saying that “Hey! You have left something behind inside the washroom”. My answer was “No!” but suddenly, I discovered that the file that I kept for my boarding pass was not with me. My immediate response was to run back as quickly as I can to the same washroom and tried to locate back my file.
*(Image download from Unsplash)*
When I reached the washroom’s door, the first scene that I saw was there was a “sexy” lady who placed her right foot over the lower bar of the washroom’s tabletop while putting on her lipstick, and to my relief, I noticed my file was resting safely in front of her against the washroom’s mirror. I grab the file as fast as I could and run out of the room. On my way walking towards the boarding hall, in my heart, I gave thanks to HIM for HIS soft-prompting voice and sending the mysterious lady to safeguard my boarding pass while in my absence. If it is not because of that wonderful lady which I called “the human angel”, I might have been stranded in Colombia.
*(Image was taken from Google Scholar)*
After enjoying another short stop-over adventure trip in Paris, the Air France plane that carried me onboard flew off Charles de Gorge’s runaway and landed safely at Changi’s Airport on the 3rd of May. In concluding my whole Cartagena trip, I thanked HIM again and again for the blessed trip, for HIS presence, and protection. France Health Minister announced that two cases of H1N1 Influenza Flu have been detected in France on the 1st of May and the Colombia government has its first confirmed H1N1 case on the 3rd of May. So, do you think all that happened because of coincidence, or it is indeed a miracle?
I hope my fellow readers are being blessed after reading through all the three articles on my Cartagena adventure trip, dont's forget to hit that like and subscribe button if you have enjoyed reading my stories. Yes! As a new member in Read.Cash and for a beginner like me in this platform, I wish to thank @heartbeat1515, @MizLhaine, and @Eylz2021 for their encouragement by giving me an upvote reward. Not forgetting to my three anonymous subscribers.
So, stay tuned. I will continue to share more about my adventure stories and things that I have learned in my coming traveling series.
My next tentative traveling series will be Paris, the city of romance: Part 1.
Cartagena, Colombia Part 2: The Walled City of Old Cartagena
Warmest greetings to all fellow readers, as promised I will continue my sharing my experience visiting the Walled City of Old Cartagena. You can log on to my username: Matterhorn, in case you have missed Cartagena, Colombia part 1.
In continuation from my previous article…….
The next morning, before the congress starts, I took the opportunity to join a small group of delegates for a short visit to a nearby Cartagena’s tourist attraction. We managed to grab some useful brochures and some important tips from the customer service counter before we start our visit. Our first destination was Plaza San Pedro Claver which was located inside the Walled City of Old Cartagena.
**Plaza San Pedro Claver**
Upon reaching our destination, I noticed we were required to journey past the security post before entering the plaza. One of the group members raised the concern about safety issues, the taxi driver politely assures us that we were safe as long as we stayed within the strongly guarded Walled City.
After getting out of the taxi, our mini-tour begins with the Plaza of San Pedro Claver. The first few sights that caught my attention were the high secure walled, metal sculptures, and colorful buildings all around. I felt excited and managed to take a few nice photo shots of those interesting people, structures, and scenery that I have come to encounter. Suddenly, I saw there were 2 bronze statues at the center of the plaza and I remembered from the short glance on the brochure that I took from the hotel. It was the statue of San Pedro Claver ministering to a slave and there was others metal sculpture beside the 2 bronze sculptures, like that metal sculpture playing chess.
I also noticed the surrounding was being beautified by many colorful colonial buildings with overhanging balconies. The structures were painted with a bright and vibrant color such as dark yellow, dark blue, medium orange, pure white which easily attracts tourist attention, and I think these colors look suitable to Colombian hot and humid temperature.
Then we continued our tour following the direction shown in the brochure until we reached San Pedro Claver Church. We decided to go into the church for a brief visit, my newly met Syrian friend was busy take few pictures for remembrance.
After San Pedro Claver Church, we reached a small garden square. It looks like an entertainment venue, there were many street art performers, a beautiful song sung by the singers filled the morning serene atmosphere then I saw there were many colorfully dressed ladies walking around with a bowl of tropical fruits balanced on their heads. I managed to ask for permission from one of the ladies for a snap, she happily posed for me, and after I have finished taking her photo suddenly she held out her hand asking for payment. At first, I was caught by a surprise but later I quickly grab a small tip for her. The lesson learned from that incident was that I should be more observant to know maybe that was the decent way how they earn money for a living.
There were many souvenirs shop alongside the street towards our last destination, The Plaza Santo Domingo. We stopped by one of the shops, and I bought a small handmade souvenir for 6 USD for my traveling collection.
**Plaza Santo Domingo**
Finally, we reached our last destination for that morning. Plaza Santo Domingo was one of the tourist attractions that was also located inside the vicinity of the Walled City, I discovered the business activity there were much more active compared to Plaza San Pedro. Some shops offer food and drinks services apart from shops selling local handmade souvenirs. While my two new friends were busy getting themselves occupied, I was also busy adjusting my camera to take a view of a statue that lies at the center of the plaza. A scene of a cute, chubby naked woman lying on her right side. Later, I only come to know from the receptionist who worked at Hilton hotel that was the statute of La Gorda Gertrudis, the iconic statute of Plaza Santo Domingo.
My Walled City tour at the Old Cartagena town comes to an end that late morning, as we need to rush back to the hotel for the congress plenary opening speech that afternoon. I will conclude my Cartagena’s trip in my next article, Cartagena, Colombia (End): The Blessed Trip.
Cartagena, Colombia Part 1 : The journey
Are you a big fan of ***Yo soy Betty, La Fea,*** a popular Colombian television drama series, which was also famously known as ***Betty, La Fea***? For me, yes! I am and I have followed through all the 169 episodes. It is a story about Betty, a sweet, kind-hearted young lady who falls deeply in love with her superior, Don Armando. I remembered there is a scene that Armando frantically searched for the runaway Betty, who was on a job assignment to Cartagena.
Being a loyal fan of ***Betty, La Fea***, the talented crews, the beautiful scenes, and the plots have captured my heart. There and then, inside my heart, I have a wish that “How nice if one day I can visit Cartagena”. Indeed, years later I was blessed with an opportunity to attend an international academic congress and guessed what, the hosting venue was at Hilton Cartagena Hotel, Colombia.
At first, I was delighted upon receiving the news but also at the same time there was a fear in me because it means that I have to travel all alone for the first time for a long-haul flight from my home country to Colombia. Suddenly, all unpleasant thoughts and doubts arise inside my head. I need to think about my safety when I am alone in a foreign land, especially when I have to stay alone in an unfamiliar hotel room at night. Among others are that I have to manage my travel arrangements at foreign busy and chaotic airports when language might be the main potential barrier, I have to always be on guard of my valuable belongings even when I have to use the washroom and not to mention rumors that travel luggage went missing when it involved multiple transit points.
To ease my concern, I have done some homework to search for more information on the selection of a more safe and suitable itinerary plan. I can recall that was the first time that I have learned how to apply for an entry visa, learned about the requirement of Yellow fever vaccination, currency exchange, and learned how to search for more traveling information/tips through Trip-Advisor website/Booking.Com.
My journey to Cartagena started from Changi Airport Singapore, onboard Air France Flight to Paris. After a short transit at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, I continued my journey to Bogota, the capital of Colombia. Even though I can be considered as a frequent flyer but the whole Cartagena trip was the first time that I have ever experienced flying with an internationally renowned airline like Air France. I was glad that I had the first-time experience of enjoying such a big and spacious 3-4-3-seater aircraft, an onboard self-service on food and beverage, a self-service cabinet offer soft drink and liquor.
Finally, after another 1 hour and 30 minutes flight from Bogota, The Colombian-owned Avianca plane landed at Cartagena at 1915 hours that evening. I took a taxi and reached my destination at Hilton Cartagena Hotel after a 15 minutes taxi ride. Upon arriving at the hotel check-in counter, I had met up with several international delegates who have arrived much earlier before me.
I later checked myself in for a room at the hotel. After short scouting around inside my hotel room, I am satisfied with the facilities provided by the hotel. Facilities include a flat-screen TV, Free WIFI, air conditioning, minibar, ironing service, hairdryer, a safety deposit box, and a coffeemaker facility. What caught my attention was when I noticed there were packets of male contraceptives placed on top of the minibar cabinet, a scene which I have not seen before during my previous hotel stay so far.
Standing from my hotel room’s balcony, witnessing the beautiful late evening view and looking at a part of the beautiful city of Cartagena. I thanked God for the safe journey and HIS blessing that finally, I managed to put a foot on Colombian soil. Colombia, a wonderful and vibrant country that it never crossed my mind that I have the chance to visit in my lifetime. I called it for the night after dinner and after a long 2-day journey.
So, stay tuned I will share more on my experience visiting Plaza San Pedro Claver in Cartagena, Colombia - Part 2
Introduction
Greetings to all fellow readers. Are you still awake? My wall clock is pointing at 16 minutes past 1 am, and I am in the morning, and I here still struggling on what to write for my introduction.
To begin with, I would like to introduce to you a person with whom I am familiar. She was born into a family of very loving parents. She was raised and nurtured with the teaching of good moral values. Her mother had taught her about social interpersonal skills while her father had educated her about what it means by perfection and the importance of self-discipline.
Her primary and secondary academic achievements were considered excellent but for her, it was not good enough as her grades did not guarantee her her dream to become a medical doctor. Somehow, she relented and accepted God’s will for her to offer her service and commitment in another field of medical service.
All these years, even though she has experienced many ups and downs in her life yet she knows that everything happened for a purpose. Maybe that was the reason why she was optimistic with every situation and circumstance that crossed her path. She was contented and blessed with an interesting personal life, a happy family, and a good career advancement. Juggling between her hectic job demand, her busy family life, and her personal life.
She managed to rescue, refresh and rejuvenate herself by participating in overseas holiday trips. She was blessed to be able to visit many popular tourist destinations, among others: England, Colombia, France. Taiwan, South Korea, China, Japan, Australia, Tasmania, Thailand, and New Zealand either traveling in a group or a single traveler. She has gained many new insights, experiences, strengthen her confidence in traveling alone, learning about other ways of living and culture, and above all she was grateful that she was able to witness, enjoy, admire, experience HIS wonderful, magnificent, and marvelous creations. Memories and personal experiences that we all aware of often did not come with a price tag.
Lately, she has discovered a newfound interest that she has never come to notice before. A friend has introduced her to Read Cash, a platform where she can share her thoughts, her life stories, teaching others about what she has learned, sharing of her ideas, learn from other expert writers, meeting new friends, and broaden her views about life. At first, she was skeptical and she was not confident whether her article will be able to meet the reader’s expectations. Should she give herself a try? Your support will be her source of encouragement.
Gazing back at the wall clock again, it is almost 3 am. I think I should stop here for now. Wait! I am sure you are curious to know who is the person mentioned here in this introduction.
I guess you know the answer.
@Matterhorn
