Season's Greetings from Joanna (2006)

Visiting San Francisco, Great Ocean Road (Melbourne) and Scheveningen (Netherlands)

I hope you’ve all had an exciting and enriching year in 2006. I’ve had heaps of fun, as usual :-)

As you’ve probably guessed from the photo spread above, the theme of this year’s newsletter is the RETURN OF THE NOMAD. I have again succumbed to the lure of the suitcase and spent much of the year working and holidaying abroad.

2006 began on a bittersweet note when my little sister Julie flew off to California search of greener pastures. She has happily settled into the American way of life, but we still miss her very much. In May, I also took a big step and bid farewell to life at Genting, choosing to return to consulting – this time with Shell Global Solutions, which is based in the Petronas Twin Towers in KL. This new job gives me the opportunity to travel again. Trips to USA, Australia, Netherlands, Philippines and Singapore means a lot of frequent flyer miles and I’m loving it!

Allow me to share some other highlights with you

• Inspired by lots of exhibitions this year including “Monet in Normandy”- Legion of Honor San Francisco, “Picasso & Dora Maar” – Victoria Art Gallery Melbourne and “The Golden Era” – Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
• Visiting the hideout of Anne Frank in Amsterdam evoked many emotions ranging from sadness, anger and despair to hope, courage and awe - all of which culminates in my belief that discrimination, however well-justified, cannot be right
• A vacation in San Francisco saw me traipsing around Fisherman’s Wharf, Chinatown, Napa Valley and every single premium shopping outlet within a 100-mile radius. I love COACH handbags!
• I've certainly had some gastronomic adventures this year such as learning to cook an authentic Spanish paella, enjoying Filipino delicacies like balut (15-day old duck embryo – beak, feathers and all) and sisik (pig snout fried with vegetables), all-American fare like IHOP and Denny’s pancake breakfasts and authentic Mexican fajitas and tortillas…yummy to all
• It was a rather strange experience watching the World Cup in the States, listening to insipid comments from US commentators. I much preferred watching matches on the passionate Spanish channels although the only word I understood was GOOOOAAAAAALLLLL!

Most importantly, here are the people who made 2006 sparkle with special moments….

• Playing godma to Kiersten & Katelynn and watching them grow up is an absolute delight. Another little Australian bub named Alyssa Joanna Wong was also added to my list of godkids in July – she’s a darling!
• Lovely farewell karaoke party with my Genting mates saw us polishing off 6 bottles of wine, 2 bottles of whisky and a couple of jugs of beer …it was a good night J…and a rather painful morning after L…
• A return trip to Australia saw me catching up with good friends, and making new ones. Also took the opportunity to see more of Australia and sample some lovely new wines.
• My dad was awarded the Pingat Jasa Kebaktian (PJK) by the Governor of Penang for community service and we’re all very proud of him.

Countries I'd love to visit

Here's a list I love even more. Sure to add to it as I watch more Discovery - Travel & Living, or as I meet different people and want to figure out what makes them tick!

1. Egypt
2. Jordan - Petra
3. Turkey
4. Israel (visited in 2012)
5. South Africa
6. Vietnam (visited in 2014)
7. Burma
8. India (visited in 2014)
9. Nepal
10. Japan (visited in 2013)
11. Spain
12. Portugal
13. Nice
14. Czech Republic
15. Poland
16. Russia
17. Caribbean (there are over 35 islands with multiple classifications so I'll count them as one!)
18. Tahiti and other Polynesian islands
19. Mauritius
20. Seychelles
21. Canada - especially Prince Edward Island

Countries I've visited

I love lists and here's one that I pull out quite often. It's the list of countries I've lived in / visited in chronological order. I hope to keep adding to it and hitting 50 countries by 2010. Too many you say? Well, there are about 190 countries so it's actually quite a conservative target.

1. Singapore
2. Sweden - 1982
3. Denmark - 1982
4. Norway - 1982
5. England - 1982/95-96
6. Thailand - 1994
7. Scotland - 1995
8. France - 1995/96/98
9. Netherlands- 1996 / 2006/7
10. Germany - 1996
11. Austria - 1996
12. Italy - 1996
13. Switzerland - 1996
14. Indonesia - 1997
15. Australia - 1998 - 2002/06/08/09
16. New Zealand - 2000
17. USA - 2000, 2006/07/08/09
18. Colombia - 2000
19. South Korea - 2002
20.Hong Kong - 2005
21. Philippines - 2006
22. Belgium - 2007
23. Taiwan - 2007
24. China - 2007/8
25. Cambodia - 2008
26. Morocco - 2010
27. Israel - 2012
28. Japan - 2013
29. Vietnam - 2014
30. India - 2014

 

Who's Aunty Jo-Jo?

Aunty Jo-Jo is the nickname given to me by a little boy named Justin. Since that pronouncement, that's what all my leetle godkids call me. Will share more about them in subsequent blogs (if their mums allow me to post their photos online that is!)

On my non-clucky days, I'm an independent Leadership & Organizational Development consultant based in Singapore. I've been actively involved in the development of human capital AMD, Shell, Genting & PricewaterhouseCoopers for over 15 years.

My love for travelling was sparked at the impressionable age of 12 when my family spent 6 months living in Scandinavia when my father worked for Ericsson. That love slowly became a passion when I went to study in the UK, and then took on jobs that required extensive travel.

This blog is intended to record the humble observations of an intentional nomad, and to answer the question most often asked by family and friends - "Where in the world are you"???