Travelling to beat dementia

The writer and her friends in Chinatown, London, last year

VISIT new places discover new treasures, embark on a new adventure – and keep dementia at bay.

Dementia is a dreaded disease. Staying active and socialising with others will keep it at bay.

My group of former classmates of Klang Convent decided to travel as a way to keep active. Last September, six of us embarked on an adventure to visit Scotland and England, and at the same time meet up with other classmates in London.

With Whatsapp and email, Henrita, the organiser, planned the itinerary. Initially, six of us – Connie and Henrita from Australia; Siew Peng from Holland; Margaret, Hui Ching and myself from Malaysia – would tour Scotland. Then three others – Say Kim from England, Rosalind from Canada, and Noreen from Germany – would join us. The nine of us would then tour England, and finally meet up with Susan from England for a reunion in Chinatown.

This three-week adventure was unique as the 10 classmates hailed from four continents: Europe, North America, Australia and Asia. It was a dream holiday!

We were aged 70 to 72. Travelling at such a mature age was challenging! Margaret got us all hyped up by presenting us with T-shirts embossed with the words “Adventure before Dementia”. It attracted a fair bit of attention when we wore these during our tour.

6 of us in our embossed t-shirts, in Edinburgh
From left: Henrita, Margaret, Hui Ching,
Siew Peng, Connie, Myself

She drove us in a rented Volkswagen Sharan along the highways of the two countries, aided by Henrita the navigator. The rest of us, backseat drivers, sometimes gave wrong directions which confused the driver!

We stayed in Airbnb lodgings where we could do our laundry, prepare breakfast and sometimes cook dinner. Sometimes we did exercises (tai chi) together in the Airbnb accommodations and at other times, we played cards and drank Scottish beer when we were home early.

Food was not a problem. We happily savoured local Western cuisine but occasionally cooked Malaysian favourites like curry chicken, noodles or nasi lemak. 

Western: Fish and chips

Western food 

Western food -Pizza

Malaysian food: Nasi lemak (coconut rice)

Malaysian food: Curry chicken

One member, a vegetarian, had ample choices in the eateries there. We have a sweet tooth and were spoilt for choice with the array of cakes, pastries and ice creams available.

We travelled at a comfortable pace, starting out only after 9am, with tea breaks and leisurely lunches. We moved slower, talked louder, and at every place, hunted for toilets.

We revelled in shopping together, especially for souvenirs and gifts.

The best part of our holiday was the camaraderie among us. Staying together made our friendship stronger.

Scotland

Our holiday started in Edinburgh, the capital city. We got on a Hop-on-and-hop-off bus to tour Edinburgh, shopped along the Royal Mile and explored Edinburgh Castle. This and a Hairy Coo tour gave us a taste of Scotland’s rich history and stunning scenery.

Inverness and Fort Augustus were charming because of their natural landscapes, crystal-clear lakes and quaint houses. Glasgow is a bustling modern city with high-rise buildings and high-end attractions. We got lost in Debenhams but after we found one another, we enjoyed a satisfying lunch in Lychee, a Chinese Restaurant. We left Scotland with lasting memories of castles, churches, museums, Victorian buildings and men clad in tartan kilts playing bagpipes.

Duone Castle in Edinburgh

St Peters Church, Wooton Wawen

Man in kilts playing bagpipes

England

England was a country we had learnt a lot about from our geography, history and literature books in our schooldays.

In the Lake District, we visited Dove Cottage in Grasmere, where poet William Wordsworth lived. I love the picturesque honey-coloured stone buildings in the Cotswold villages.

Cotswold viillages

In Stratford-upon-avon, we were mesmerised by all things associated with William Shakespeare. It brought back memories of the plays we had studied in English Literature classes all those years ago.

Pictures of Shakespeare's plays in Stratford-upon-avon

London was a city familiar to all of us, whether from watching films and television, or reading travel books. While visiting Windsor Castle, I was excited to be in St George’s Chapel, the venue of the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. We took a cruise on the Thames from the city to Greenwich, enjoying the river panorama with its iconic bridges and buildings: Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, the Houses of Parliament, and Canary Wharf.

Tower Bridge, London

The climax of our holiday was a dinner with Susan in Chinatown. We were a noisy group, hugging, eating and chatting non-stop. It was nostalgic for some members who had not seen Susan since leaving school in 1965. Never in our wildest dreams – certainly not when we were teenagers in a small town in Malaysia – did we imagine meeting up in our seventies, in London!

Dinner in Chinatown, London
Clockwise from left: Myself, Margaret, Siew Peng, Say Kim,
Henrita, Noreen, Susan, Connie, Rosalind, Hui Ching

Travelling together in Scotland and England was a memorable experience. After the holiday ended, we continued to re-live it, sharing it from back home. Looking through our photos – of ancient castles, historical houses, cathedrals, monuments, gardens, parks, natural wonders and heritage towns – brought back sweet memories of this epic journey: certainly our adventure before dementia.

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This article was published in the Star (Malaysian newspaper) 

on 24 January 2020. More photos are added here.

Please check out: kathkuan.blogspot.com for more photos and description of my travels in Scotland and England.

Coupons of goodness

 

Coming down the escalator, I met a teenager with wholesome 

goodness

Many people walk into our lives. While some make us laugh or cry, a few leave lasting impressions in our mind. Recently, I met a young girl whose honesty and sincerity touched my heart.  

It was a hot afternoon. I was in the cool comfort of the top floor of a supermarket. Browsing through the car accessories section, I found a special mat with lumbar support. It could be placed on a car seat or on a chair. “I wonder whether it would be good for my aching back,” I mused.   

As I pondered on the item, a girl in school uniform, Ping Ping (not her real name), approached me. She greeted me in Mandarin. From her badge, I noticed that she came from a school nearby.  

Waving a piece of blue paper in front of me, she proceeded to talk about an event in her school.   

Now, as a former teacher, I have a soft spot for children in uniform. But my Mandarin vocabulary is limited to simple greetings and shopping terms. I could not make head or tail of what she was saying. I requested Ping Ping to speak in English, asking her what Form she was in, to get her started. She looked worried and nervous, but she gritted her teeth and tried her best.   

“Standard One ? no, no, Form One,” she corrected herself. I listened patiently as Ping Ping spoke in halting English, spiced with some Mandarin and Malay. A friend, who accompanied her, giggled and prompted her whenever she struggled for words. After about 10 minutes of explanation, I gathered that her school was holding a fun fair, with lots of activities and many items for sale. It was to raise funds to build more classrooms.  

I looked at the blue paper, all printed with Chinese characters. It had a picture of a building in the centre and detachable portions (of pictures of diamonds) at the sides. “Each diamond is equivalent to one ringgit,” Ping Ping explained. “The centre portion qualifies for a lucky draw.”  

Finally, I understood – Ping Ping was trying to sell me a RM20 coupon!  

“Is your friend selling her coupon too?” I asked Ping Ping.   

“Every pupil has to sell two coupons. My friend sold her coupons to her parents. My parents are not with me. They are living in another state, Pahang, so I’m selling my coupon to the public here,” elaborated Ping Ping.  

Ping Ping reminded me of my schooldays in the 1950s. I had to sell little flags for the Red Cross Society. The flags were 20 cents apiece and when the tin, used to collect the coins, started to fill up, I was overjoyed. It was tough work approaching total strangers along the roads in the hot sun. I had to swallow my pride every time someone declined.   

That flash from the past helped me make up my mind. I purchased the coupon from Ping Ping. Then nonchalantly, I told her to keep the coupon and buy something for herself.  

Incidentally, my friends and I often do that. Whenever we are offered tickets for charity, we would purchase one and then give the ticket back to the seller to buy something for the needy.   

However, I was totally unprepared for Ping Ping’s reaction. She was aghast at my suggestion.  

“No, no, you must keep the coupon yourself,” she said in perfect English this time. “You can buy many things in my school. Please come and visit my school,” she pleaded.  

“I’m sorry, I cannot. On that day, I have to send someone to the airport,” I told her. “Instead of wasting the coupon, you make use of it to buy something for yourself.”  

“No, no, I cannot keep it,” reiterated Ping Ping. Then she added: “Why don’t you give it to one of your friends?”   

It was getting late and I had no time to argue. I needed to finish my shopping before the evening rush hour. I pressed the coupon into her hands and hastily walked away.  

An hour had passed when I finished shopping. As I descended three floors via the escalators, all thoughts of Ping Ping were forgotten. However, as I came down the escalator to the ground floor, there she was, at the foot – with the coupon in her outstretched hand!   

Determined to catch me at the exit point, the decent girl had waited one solid hour. She insisted vehemently that I keep the coupon.  

I was impressed – such honesty and maturity in a young mind. Was it pride or her sense of righteousness that made her wait so long for a total stranger?   

It is refreshing to note that in these times of snatch thefts and armed robbery, a girl could have such integrity. Credit also goes to her school for instilling such good values in its pupils.  

While many children of Ping Ping’s age are having fun (playing computer games, watching movies or “lepak-ing”) at their parents’ expense, here is a role model who not only saves money for her parents, but spends her time wisely to help raise funds for her school.   

As I drove home, I kept thinking of Ping Ping. Her sense of righteousness would have pleased our Prime Minister who advocates such moral virtues in our daily life. Ping Ping’s action has restored my faith in the young generation.  

Her wholesome goodness still resonates in me.

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This article was published in the Star (Malysian newspaper) on September 23, 2004. This teenager’s act of integrity renews my faith in the young generation.

Creating greeting cards

A personalised card

It’s your colleague’s wedding anniversary

Your friend is celebrating her birthday

A family friend just passed away

A festival is coming your way

            How do you wish someone or tell him you care on special occasions?  Say it with a card! 

It is fashionable to send a card all types of occasions in countries abroad.  In Malaysia, we send cards 

during festive seasons like Hari Raya, Deepavali, Christmas and Chinese New Year.  Young people 

like to send birthday cards to each other.

A greeting card is short and sweet and very easy to pen.  It takes a little effort on

the giver but it gives immense pleasure to the receiver. Cards with special messages are very expensive in the market.  Many people turn to electronic cards which are hassle-free and convenient. But after some time, the novelty wears off. 

Why not make your own greeting cards?  Use your creativity and ingenuity to bring joy and happiness to someone far away or give special meaning to someone with a personalised message.  
 

A card made from cut-out peacock picture

 I have been making greeting cards for family and friends on festivals and special occasions.  I find it relaxing and I get my rewards from the happy faces and exclamations.

Making cards requires some sacrifice and effort - something original for someone special.

One of my favourites is making cards from pressed flowers- beautiful preserved works of nature.  Let me share some simple steps of card making with you.

A card made with pressed flowers

          The materials you need are: white paper, hard cover paper (purchase from book shops, recycle from book covers), paper cutter or scissors, glue, double sided tape, fine forceps and your pressed flowers.

            For the pressed flowers: pick your flowers in the morning while they are fresh.  Choose small petal coloured ones (yellow, red or purple). Place them between newspapers, making sure they do not overlap.  Insert these folded newspapers in thick books.(share reports or the telephone directory ).

After about a month, when they are completely dry, sort them out into flowers and leaves that make compatible pleasing designs.  Use a fine forcep for easy handling of such delicate dry flora.

            Arrange your design on to a prepared cut-to-size white paper. Use glue to make them permanent.  Let’s call this (a).

          Cut your coloured hard paper to size.  Fold it into two, the front is top face and when this is 

opened, you have two interior faces.  Let’s call this (b).

Place the completed design (a) on the front face.  Use double-sided tape to glue it.  A finished self-made personalised card is ready.

Use your creativity to write a phrase on the cover – the fewer the words the better.  Words like, for someone special, thank you, happy birthday etc.  Then write simple verses or messages on the folded interior.  The personalized messages inside your card is the one that will give pleasure to the receiver.     

A pressed flowers card with words Thank you

Hey presto, you have created a special card. Send it to someone special. Have fun!    

Start a new hobby of creativity

Use unique ideas and ingenuity

Touch someone’s heart today

And bring joy in a special way

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This article was published in ehomemakers.com
Photos are added here.

Update in 2019:

Nowadays people use social media - like facebook, twitter, whatsapp or email - to send greetings to
each other. Sad, but making or sending greeting cards is a dying art.