A HONG KONG woman has given birth to her second child at the age of 58 and hopes her story will inspire older childless couples.
According to the South China Morning Post, Lilian Chan Lai-lai welcomed daughter Gia Wong Hay-kiu on Aug 22 after undergoing two rounds of in-vitro fertilisation in Taiwan, spending about HK$200,000 (RM108,000).
Once she conceived, she received fortnightly injections until delivery.
Chan, a part-time Muay Thai coach for children, and her husband Brian Wong Chak-fung, also 58, married at 43 and had long dreamed of a family of four.
After years of trying, Chan finally conceived and gave birth to their first daughter five years ago. They named her Miracle.
Now, with their second child, Chan said: “I am happy, my family feels complete now.”
Wong said Gia’s birth comes against the backdrop of Hong Kong’s ageing population and declining birth rate.
> Two wooden houses in Sibu, Sarawak, were razed in a fire while onlookers filmed and live-streamed the incident instead of calling for help, Nanyang Siang Pau reported.
The fire broke out in Kampung Usahajaya Baru at around 11am on Wednesday.
It was firefighters conducting a drill nearby and policemen on patrol who spotted thick smoke before rushing to the scene.
The firemen alerted their station and confirmed that no distress call was received.
By the time rescuers arrived, both houses had been destroyed.
> Major Chinese dailies reported that mooncake manufacturers in China have launched unique flavours for the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Oct 6.
One shop in Shandong introduced a distinctive mooncake with cricket filling, made by grinding dried farmed crickets into powder before mixing it with black sesame and five types of nuts – sesame, walnut, almond, melon or pine seeds and olive kernels.
Other companies unveiled specialities such as long beans with meat, pepper soup and black vinegar as unconventional fillings.
Many Internet users shared their own encounters with unusual mooncakes, including versions stuffed with bak chang (rice dumpling), crayfish, mala rabbit meat, fermented bean curd and even stinky tofu.
The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a, it denotes a separate news item.
