2nd day of chinese new year gathering

this chinese new year gathering of about ten of my former students with two or three of their teachers has been going on for more than a decade. most of the years, i have been the sole representative for the teachers; it was no different this year.

the group comprises two alberts - albert koh and albert poh, wing choy, seck yeong, hiang kwang, chye kiat, mun wai, see thiam and puay heian. li choo, who lives in chicago, would join us whenever she was back in singapore. hiang kwang could not be with us this year as he is in sydney looking after his restaurant.

this year's gathering was hosted by puay heain who moved into a brand new bungalow house at dunsfold drive in december last year. she had sold her corner terrace at lentor to upgrade to this bigger house.

it has five large bedrooms, with attached bathrooms. on the middle floor are the lounge and dining-room, and a kitchen with direct access to the lap pool. the large rumpus-room or family-room is on the ground floor. she has a pool table and a drum set in the family room. her own personal gym is also located on this level. a roof terrace completes the many features of this attractive home.

when i arrived at the house, there was a lion dance troupe performing at the porch. i did not dare make my entrance lest i was mistaken for the 'big head clown'. when mun wai arrived, albert poh and i joined him on a tour of the whole house.

mun wai, who will be fifty soon and who is a senior education officer, is already contemplating retirement in five years' time.