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After working and studying hard for the first half of the year, it was time for the family to take a break and what better way than to take a family vacation and sail away on a cruise over the Vesak Day long weekend, which also coincided with the start of the mid-year school holidays.

We went onboard the SuperStar Virgo which was like a floating hotel with non-stop entertainment, dining, sports activities, and casino gaming all under one roof. Here are some of the pics I took onboard this mega leisure cruise:

There is a basketball court and Golf driving & mini golf on the top deck which is on deck 13.

The main attraction for us would be this main pool (on deck 12) with attached water slide that overhangs the sea!

There is a children’s pool at the stern of deck 10. My kids had tons of fun at the water slide.

And like all mega cruises are suppose to have, SuperStar Virgo comes with its own helipad!

The interior of the main lobby is guarded by 3 golden horses!

We made a port of call at Port Klang, Malaysia. The morning mist made the place looked so mysterious!

Here’s a look at the exterior of the cruise.

After the sneak preview in February, Universal Studios Singapore was officially Soft Open on March 18th at 8:28 am amid much fanfare.

Lucky me was able to try out some of the rides and watch a live stun show “Water World” a few days before the soft opening.

This first video is a walkabout in the theme park where I walked through the Far Far Away Castle from the world of Shrek, explored The Lost World of Jurassic Park and ended in the world’s tallest duelling roller coasters – Battlestar Galactica. Join me as I take in the sights and sounds and practically soaked myself in the fantastic atmosphere of Asia’s first Universal Studios theme park.

Join me in this next video as I soared above The Lost World with my videocam and enjoy a prehistoric bird’s-eye view of Jurassic Park.

Along with the opening of Singapore’s first casino at Resorts World Sentosa, Universal Studios Singapore – Southeast Asia’s first Universal Studios theme park – also welcomed its first visitors on Sunday for its 8-day sneak preview of the theme park. The official opening of the theme park is expected to be in first quarter of 2010.

Lucky me was fortunate to score an invite to the theme park and although no rides will be opened during the sneak-peak period, the roller coaster junkie in me was raring to go! I’ve been to Warner Bros. Movie World in Gold Coast, Australia and Disneyland in Hong Kong, but this was the first time I was going to a Universal Studios theme park, so naturally I was very excited about the trip.

Let us “walk through” the various themed zones of the park as seen from my camera lens.

Hollywood

Upon entering the park, visitors will experience the famous Walk of Fame through Hollywood Boulevard in the Hollywood zone.

Madagascar

Inspired by the hit DreamWorks Animation franchise, Madagascar, this zone featured a river ride and a crazy carousel with King Julien.

Far Far Away

This zone is inspired inspired by DreamWorks Animation’s hit Shrek franchise. The highlight of the zone is the Far Far Away Castle which is a world’s first, it hosts attractions such as Shrek 4D Adventure.

The Lost World

This zone contains two themed areas: Jurassic Park and WaterWorld. Unfortunately, I kinda got “lost” in dinoland and did not venture into WaterWorld.

Ancient Egypt

The land of the Mummy featured gigantic warrior mummies standing guard at the Pharaoh’s tombs. The star attraction of this zone is The Revenge of the Mummy indoor roller coaster, which is an extremely popular attraction at other Universal Studios around the world. It is based on the popular film franchise, The Mummy.

Sci-Fi City

This futuristic zone is based on the popular television series, Battlestar Galactica, and features the world’s tallest Dueling roller coaster. The red rail is for the ‘human race’ and its seats are mounted in traditional roller coaster fashion. The blue rail is for ‘Cylons,’ with the seats suspended below the rail, leaving legs to dangle freely.

New York

The New York zone featured the trademark New York city skyline, neon lights, façades and sidewalks as well as the romantic atmosphere of the Big Apple.

That concluds the sneak-peek of the 7 themed zones of Universal Studios Singapore, all based on Universal movie hits and franchises. And if you are feeling hungry after all the walking, screaming and being thrown about in those wild rides, there are plenty of F&B outlets and restaurants in the park to recover and replenish your energy.

Betshopboy.net wishes its Chinese readers a Happy Lunar New Year filled with rich blessings of peace, prosperity, abundance and good health. May you have roaring good times in the year of the Tiger!

It is time to bid goodbye to an interesting and eventful 2009. As I look forward to usher in 2010 with hopes and plans for a better year ahead, it is also time to take a step back and reflect on the past twelve months and contemplate those experiences, lessons and accomplishments.

On a global scale, many people were frantically adjusting to living life in a world plagued by a near-perfect economic storm and besides the gloomy financial outlook, it seem like there was an inordinate amount of natural disasters in 2009?

Fortunately, it was more subdued on the home front but no less daunting economically. Job looses abound and for those who managed to keep our jobs, we were faced with wage cuts, freeze and overall reduction in earnings.

Shifting aside these gloomy news, many personal milestones and achievements were accomplished for myself and my families. On top of being blessed with the immense joy my two wonderful children gave me, some highlights in 2009 include attending my first Formula 1 race and cumulating in completing my first ever marathon race.

Short of wishing for world peace (world leaders couldn’t even agreed on how to save the climate), my hopes for 2010 would be for less lives lost and children orphaned through natural disasters, good health always for my families and friends and wishing lots of warmth, laughter and love for my children to grow up in. On a personal note, since I’m still on a high for completing my first full marathon, I’ll challenge myself to take on 2 marathons in 2010!

On that note, I wish you a Healthy & Happy New Year that’s fill with passion, energy and vitality to celebrate life!