A walk in the Park

Just this saturday, June 7th, was the CharlotteDragon Boat Race Festival at Ramsey Creek Park. It's an annual Celebration of Asian culture that brings not just Asians together, but all races, in all walks of life. Indeed it was a melting pot! - melting in the heat! - The heat was on its' record high that day( about a 104 F), and it didn't help that there was concrete generating additional heat below our feet, and no breeze to fan it away. It was like walking in an open oven! Nonetheless, we were there to watch the race and have fun, so sun or no sun, we were up for the game! This is our 1st this year so the thrill of anticipation was way more apparent than our petty heat concerns. We left the boiling hot, main staging area and walked towards the grassy part of the park leading to the edge of the water. It was cooler there and breezy, huge difference! And it was literally just about a stone's throw away from that concreted spot in the park. I was relieved! There were also a lot of trees that shaded us from the sun. So, finally the fun begun...or maybe not...hubby forgot to put the SD card inside the camera ( he said I did of course) ! oh no! oh well, thanks for my N95 (never fails me),I managed to capture some precious moments before,during the race and after.

The boat farther out is the Peaceful Dragon going back to the dock after winning the race.

As for the festival, it wasn't all that bad. I guess the heat element damped all the festival-goers spirit a bit. But to us, it was a whole new experience. It was a first for us and a first for The Peaceful Dragon who joined the race for the 1st time this year. And to show our support, we went. Indeed, it was a fun trip for my princess and our friends who went with us, including their teenage relatives from Arizona who enjoyed the scenery by the lake. I had fun cheering! And being at the edge of the water was refreshing. All that cool breeze blowing had energize my cheering spirit to cheer louder! (",) Which paid off ! - Our team won 1st place in the B Division. Not bad for a 1st-timer. So much to say, We were all hyped-up with happiness. Inside me, I was proud( emote daw ako!). I literally put the team together. Oh those crazy days, trying to get the team complete and looking for replacements...*sigh*... it's all worth it.

The Champions!


The best part of it all is that my princess( who was cranky early that day- pati ulo ko sumakit sa inis- drama bah!- dahil yata sa init), along with her best friend, had fun playing by the lake- throwing rocks and pebbles in the water (we all joined in after a while) , wading in and out, after finally commencing the day, by turning themselves into little beavers with their own "dam" built to boot! "twas a good day...and to end the day- we went to eat some good locally-made Ice cream. Mocha almond fudge - Yummy!