My family and I flew to Hanoi for CNY 2008. We spent about 4 days there including a trip to Halong bay.

Ma wants to get out of the same old routine: giving out red packets of money and waiting for visitors at home.

Hanoi is a very fascinating place. It is nice to see how the locals celebrate Tet and how they lead their simple life.
They speak limited English but we were very touched by the help they offered especially by the hotel operators.

It was a free and easy trip. We only booked a budget hotel room and a boat trip to Halong Bay.
We did not want to get around too much. Just some sight seeing and enjoy our evening with drinks at the cafe by the Ho Kiem lake.

Lots of street vendors selling roses, tulips, lavender.
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After a much stressful project review before we leave for home, Mr Metzschke offered to drive us to Altenberg to see snow!!

So, leaving the work behind (and the work to bring over to Msia :(), we leave for Altenberg on Friday afternoon.

Altenberg is a town in the Weißeritzkreis district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated in the Ore Mountains, close to the border with the Czech Republic, 15 km northwest of Teplice, and 32 km south of Dresden. The surname “Altenbaugh”, which means old town, originated from Altenberg.

(taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altenberg,_Germany)

According to Mr Metzschke, it is a popular place for Winter Sport with the hilly area.

As soon as we reach Altenberg, we look for a nice cozy restaurant to have our late lunch.

Tough luck, it’s closed lah. Not many people on weekdays…

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Moritzburg is more of a Schloss (chateau) than a Burg (castle). The place is completely surrounded by a lake, which gives it an elegant feel. Moritzburg was originally built in the 16th century, but was completely remodeled in the 18th century as a hunting lodge. Inside, it’s decorated with paintings and hunting trophies in a way that does not reflect modern tastes at all. Outside is more interesting, with a very nice park around the lake.(taken from http://www.castles.org/castles/Europe/Central_Europe/Germany/germany6.htm)

Andre drove us to the Moritzburg Castle today. It’s a public holiday today in Germany!

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