Sarah and Bear Bear return home

Yesterday at 12.15 pm my daughter Sarah arrived home, or rather at KLIA. We had been texting each other since she was in Moscow airport - me because I was concerned about Bear Bear, her cat which she was bringing home to Malaysia finally. A lot of preparation had to be carried out before Bear Bear was actually allowed to come to Malaysia. The Russian authorities were very strict - his vaccinations and other documents had to be in order and he also had to take his anti -rabies shot exactly one month before departure. Then on the Malaysian side we had to get the papers from the Veterinary Department - import permit and so on. So finally the cat was allowed to be taken back here but first he had to undergo the journey - 6 hours by van from Nizhny Novgorod to Moscow, a stop at the Malaysian Embassy to get his permit stamped, then to the airport where there was a wait of another 5 hours before boarding. Bear bear had his own ticket, which costs us RM1200 - he would be in his cage in the plane with Sarah!

According to Sara he was a really good traveller - he was quiet most of the journey,only miawing for food early in the morning just before they were to arrive in Bangkok. In transit he was the centre of attraction - being a big cat (8 kg) and black a few people thought aloud whether Bear Bear was in fact a cat or a small lynx! In fact quite a few took pictures of him on the leash, walking around Bangkok airport.

Then here in KL, he had to be quarantined - luckily for a week - but much to Sara's disappointment because she had heard from a friend that her cat was not quarantined at all!  Anyway after some tears (from Sara) Bear Bear was finally released to the vet and taken to the Quarantine Department, a few kilometres away from the airport.

Of course to day we had to visit him at his quarantine place - and it was quite ok - spacious and airy. There were a few other cats with him (all in their own rooms) some were quite noisy and attention seeking.



Poor Bear Bear in the quarantine place



Bear Bear was quite stressed, judging from the furballs rolling off his back and his very quiet demeanor. In fact at first he wouldnt even acknowledge Sara who felt terribly guilty. We spent half an hour gently petting him and trying to make him relax. Looks like I will be driving to the Veterinary Department every day until he is released. Sara says she must visit him every day!

Jill Mansell's newest book

Ellie and  her husband Jamie seem to have it all - they are desperately in love and married! Jamie is fun, gorgeous and the perfect husband, until fate takes its hand and jamie is killed in an accident on the way to a class gathering. How can Ellie cope, can she cope? She is devastated and at first just goes on from day to day without even knowing whether she has eaten or not. But sooner or later she has to go on living, and she does - she changes job, moved from a louzy apartment to a very nice neighbourhood and gets the perfect boss!

 She definitely doesn’t need a new man, not while she has a certain secret visitor to keep her company...

Ellie's boss, entrepreneur Zack McLaren seems to have it all, but the girl he can’t stop thinking about won’t give him a second glance. Why can’t she pay him the kind of attention she lavishes on Elmo, his time-share dog?

Having moved to an exclusive flat in North London, Ellie becomes friendly with neighbour Roo who’s harbouring a secret of her own. Between them, can both girls sort out their lives? 

This is just the sort of book to lift you out of your doldrums - Jill Mansell's newest certainly does that and more! A funny, yet touching romance with characters that are lively and personable. I enjoyed most of her books and this one is yet another of her romances that are full of humour and humanity. A really good book that you wont be able to put down until you've finished reading it!

I'd recommend it to anybody who enjoys chick lit once in a while and for those who love light romances. 4 out of 5!

Moscow

After the graduation ceremony we all decided to go to Moscow - Repin and I will take a flight back to KL from there and Sarah and her room mate, Zakiah will go for a short trip to St Petersberg, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Stockholm, after which they will fly back to Malaysia, tghis time for good, with Bear Bear in tow. Bear-bear's permit and visa had been prepared months ago and he will travel back to KL with Sarah on the plane! I wonder how he will take it, he being so shy and a bit of a scaredy cat.

From Nizhny Novgorod we all boarded the train at around 10.30pm. Sarah had booked two compartments - one for us and the other for Dr Mansor, Zakiah and her sister Zawiah. The train was quite okay - maybe bigger than our KTM and smoother too. It was very punctual and left NN exactly 10 minutes after 10.20, which was the boarding time. We all had sleeping berths so we quickly settled in and soothed by the swaying movement of the train, I nodded off soon after!



a tired looking Repin at the railway station



Before we knew it, it was already dawn. Here in Russia, dawn comes very early in the summer (as early as 3.30am) and dusk is as late as 10.00 pm! I had slept the whole way and soon at 6.00 a.m we could see the outskirts of Moscow already. It was rather like any other large city in the world - buildings that have not much character, industries and manufacturing areas, bits of farm land and by 6.30 we had already reached the station. There are 3 main railway stations in Moscow and this one, where we are is supposed to be one of the largest and the beginning of the Trans-Siberian Railway. As soon as we could we left the train and dragged our bags out. Together our bags numbered 11 - more than our group of six! This was why we took the train anyway - because we could never go on the S7 which had a baggage limit of 15kg.

Sarah then called the apartment but the landlady said we could only go in at 11 am so we decided to stop at the railway station and have our breakfast, which consisted of buns and a cup of coffee each.

view from our bedroom

By the time we could check into the apartment, it was already 12 noon! But the apartment was quite nice - fully furnished with 3 bedrooms and a kitchen which had a stove, an oven, a fridge and a washing machine! Now we were all set! First thing to do was explore the area so after putting away our stuff we all trooped down and took a walk. It seems the train station is just across the river which has a lovely covered walk way. The view from our bedroom is quite fantastic!

Giant Matrushka




Sarah at the walking street



We took a walk across the covered bridge and discovered that there were shops along it. Right across was a huge new shopping centre which had the giant matrushkas ( Russian nesting dolls). Zakiah and Sarah were so excited they ran all over the exhibition area to view the different matrushkas. They were simply gigantic and really beautifully painted.



The Kremlin at the Red Square