1st weekend in Kelowna ...

Kelowna is really a very beautiful place, all around the city you can see Mountains, Mountains & more MOUNTAINS. Up in the hills & mountains you can even see Farm & Houses, it is really beautiful.

On the 1st day of the weekend, the 1st thing I did was to shop for the Child Seat at SEARS. I was really happy that we got a great deal from the Child Seat I bought. The discounted price for each of the Child Seat is CND 89 but we still need to add in GST & PST which rounded up to abt CND 95. Hence in total I spent CND 190 for 2 Child seat which was a great deal compared to the average pricing of CND 150 each for other brands.

Then my aunt brought me & my family out for a tour around Kelowna. We went up the hill top & had a great view around. But the weather was cold.



On the 2nd day, my Aunt's former Boss came to Welcome Us to Canada & brought us some goodies. (i.e. 2 Bunny rabbits, 2 Bottle Jam, 2 Mugs & some biscuits).



Then we went to the Public Library to borrow some books. Although the Library looks Big on the outside but the selection of reference books is limited. However, they have a room for Story Telling to Kids Luckily I was able to apply for a Library cards with my passport & landing papers which indicates my Aunt's address in it.

Then we went to the City Park, it has the view of the Okanagan Lake & the Bridge to the West Bank.





In the City Park, it has a Playground & also a Water Park for Kids during the Summer.



Peaceful ....

1st day in Kelowna.

It was a busy 1st day in Kelowna, luckily my aunt was on leave hence she brought me around town for some errands. My wife & kids have to stay at home cause we have yet to buy Child seat for both of my kids. Due to the regulation here both my kids are below 40lb hence they each need to be in a Child Seat if we were to travel in my aunt's car.

1st stop was actually to purchase the Child Seat at Sears, we saw the child seat on promotion online. The regular price was CND 119 but was reduced to CND 99. We were actually going to get the Child Seat but the Sales person was nice enough to advise us to come back tomorrow as there will be an extra CND 10 off for the early birds who managed to get a voucher tomorrow.

From there we went to open a Bank Account with the Bank Draft that we acquired from Malaysia. The Banking Officer who help to open an account for me was really nice & friendly, she gave us much advise on the account we should open. However, the money from the bank draft requires a 30 days hold for the money to be able to be used.

Then we proceeded to the Service Canada Centre to process my Social Insurance Number Card. This Number is needed in order for a person to work in Canada, this number enables the employer to check with the Govt Dept to see if the person they were going to employ is eligible to work in Canada.

A lot still need to be done but at a later stage. (i.e. application for Health Insurance Card, Register my daughter for Kindergarten, application for Child Tax Benefit)

The Actual Journey .......

On D-day 25th Mar 2010, we woke up at 4 am to get ready for the arrival of our transportation. Finally, it reach at 5:15 am.(abt 15 mins earlier as committed by the transportation company) We have booked an 11 seater MPV to help bring us and our 8 Large Luggage, 4 backpack & 2 Hand Carry bags to the Changi Airport. We loaded all the luggage & said our final farewell to my parents.

The traffic condition at both JB & S'pore custom was very good. Hence, we reach Terminal 1 of Changi Airport around 6 am. We managed to check-in all our 8 Large Luggage which was below the MAX Limit 23 kgs per bag, therefor we didn't have to pay any overweight charges. We boarded the Plane abt 10 am & is on our way to Hong Kong.

2 pm - reach Hong Kong Airport & have to wait for another 2 hours until our next flight to Vancouver. Finally we reach Vancouver after the 12 hrs flight, which was a tiring journey. Once we reach Vancouver Airport, we 1stly went into the Immigration Ofiice to process our landing papers & apply for the PR card which would reach my place of residence in 4 to 6 wks time.

With my wife busy handling my kids & me alone to handle the 8 luggage .... which was a nightmare. We finally made a decision to employ the assistant of the Red Hat Bell Boy. He help to drag all my 8 large luggage with his BIG TROLLEY to the Domestic Terminal & help us check in an well. (all of this with a small payment)

The tightest security check that we have encountered (even tighter than at Changi) is at the Domestic Airport .... we have even remove all our belongings & shoes & laptop out from the bag for the stringent check.

Finally after another 4 hrs of wait, we are on the domestic flight to Kelowna our final destination. When we reach the airport, we yet again got on the Airport Shuttle that my Aunt help us make a booking of.. all the way to the my Aunt House.

OMG... it is finally over....

Reach Safely at Kelowna !!!!

Finally after a drilling long 17 hrs flight & 6 hrs Transit time.... me & my family has reached Kelowna, BC, Canada safely. It was a really tiring journey .... & will update the blog in a few days time regarding my journey's experience.

So keep a look out for new updates .... Now all I need is a good REST.

Final Eating Frenzy !!!

OMG!!! I can't help noticing the BIG BULGED around my waist & the extra weight I have gain from the past month. Me & my wife have been going on an eating frenzy, as we know that we will really miss all the great food & our favorite local food. Below are some pictures of our GLUTTONY ADVENTURES .......


BBQ Pork & Pork Floss in "Chu Cheong Fun" @ Taman Sri Tebrau Food Court


Pumpkin Sago Dessert @ Taman Sri Tebrau Food Court


Fried Egg with Oyster @ Taman Sri Tebrau Food Court


"Ma La" Syabu Chicken Set @ Arashi Syabu Syabu, Tebrau Jusco City


Japanese Soup Chicken Ramen @ Arashi Syabu Syabu, Tebrau Jusco City


BBQ Session @ Home


Spicy Sambal Stingray during BBQ Session @ Home


Minestrone Soup @ Gianni's Trattotia, Taman Pelangi


Parigina Pizza @ Gianni's Trattotia, Taman Pelangi


Petto Pollo @ Gianni's Trattotia, Taman Pelangi


Smoked Duck Spaghetti @ Anna Kitchen


Grilled Chicken with Mexican Salsa @ Anna Kitchen


Home Cooked Sze Chuan Vegetable Soup @ Home


Home Cooked Pandan Chicken @ Home

YUMMY !!!!!!!

Financially Ready !!!

12th Mar...

Finally, after selling off the House & Car we are financially ready & have prepared enough proof of funds when we reach in Canada. (minimum needed abt CAD 21K)

It has been a long & enduring months, as we anxiously wait for final release of the house payment & selling of the car at the good price. We were anxious & worried .... but we can now breathe a sigh of relieve.

Point to take note when buying Overseas Bank Draft, it is best you have an account with the Bank & better still with an Overseas Own Bank. (i.e. OCBC, CITIBANK or HSBC) The reason why is that they are more willing to sell you instead of the Local Banks. My uncle did encounter once with CIMB which refuse to sell the Draft to him, hence he have to transfer the fund to OCBC for the transaction. Moreover, today my personal experience is that the local bank (Public Bank) ask a lot of questions & seems not willing to sell but I still got the transaction done.

Yippeeee .... we are now ready to go..... except that our luggage is only 80% pack .... haa haa haaaa.... a bit too lazy to pack....