A 'Movie''' X-m-a-s

When it's cold, freezing and too slippery to walk outside... It also means it is a perfect time for inhouse movies!! Germany broadcaster is definitely overly generous with good films on such an occasion. Imagine with cable, you could have more than 2 or 3 good movies going on at the same time at various different channels. And well all in GERMAN...

I caught an incomplete version of Aschenputtel (Cinderella, heard it's more the original version compared to the Hollywood kinda), also incomplete version of Vanilla Sky (starring Tom Cruise. Well it is a bit complicated to understand the story, even more in German:S), incomplete version of Sleepy Hollow (I really like this movie, I don't understand why people do not appreciate such "horror" films;))... The Whole Ten Yards (starring Bruce Willis, an OK killer-plot-comedy), Nightmare before Christmas (by Tim Burton, lovely songs but why in german:(((() and Wasabi (French-Japanese-Combi can be quite an eye-opener and a good laugh). Ooo, if you wonder why it's incomplete, it was because I didn't watch it from the beginning... only caught it half-way or something. :))

Oh I did caught bits and pieces of an OLD (really old) film starring Bruce Lee. It was quite funny to watch a "Chinese" film in German, but I fell asleep... it was already 2am so...

A 'White''' X-m-a-s

Imagine the beautiful white snow falling outside the window... you watch as the flakes drift about in the air before it lands on the warm ground and melts away... They seem like little insects flying all over, but they gave your skin such a tickle that you will shiver with its tenderness. You hold out your hands hoping to collect enough for a little snowball, those little flakes quickly condense with your warmth and quickly enough you are infested with his coldness. As your hands fondle the white snow laying all over, they are soon stinging from the numbness. Your poor fingers feel like they will break apart from that tightness, yet your little fanaticism has kept you going... and going.... and

... daaaa.....ng...

Du meine Güte!

Ich habe zu viele Schokolade erhalten. Ich wirdewerde zu dick werden.

As I was saying in German, I have received a lot of chocolates... this is going to be a FAT christmas for me:(

~ * Warmest greetings to Üuuuu * ~

No white christmas this year again... another warm Christmas day probably because it also means with the warmest greetings;)

For all of those whom are not in my emailing list, for whatever reason -- most likely, I haven't got your email address or it is not in my address book just yet... hereby, wishing you and friends/ family/ loved onessssss...


A superb time getting fat with all the festive goodies & a big feast...
A better new 2006 ahead with more things accomplished...
Wishing most of you an enjoyable time exchanging presents...
OR receiving "ang pao" from parents, grandparents...


p.s: "ang pao" means $$$$$ in the Chinese tradition...

Oh, so sad...

I didn't manage to win the bid on the Fisheye camera!!:( But I had my highest bid up and someone more stupid than me actually got it for €35 (plus postage) when the new one with 2 year guarantee costs only €5 more... yes, with postage included. I only wanted to pay a maximum of €25 for a second hand one, now I think I might as well save that for a new one!!

I'm also thinking of purchasing a new digital camera, my best travel companion Canon Powershot S30 has accompanied for over 3 years or 4... now it is old and a little crippled. But it still works. I guess it is time to hunt for a new one at the next PC fair in Singapore;)

Guess what...

It snowed today... just after I was complaining in the last entry. It is not the first encounter with snow, but this time it wasn't brief. Not just a minute nor just a passing moment. It was snowing exactly for some time. It is beautiful!!

Fortunately, we have a small balcony where I can always dash out for a shower in the flakes. For a lot of people in Singapore whom have not encountered snow, they are little "ice flakes". Remember those nice snowflake "design" you always encounter as a christmas font or an ornament, just like the one I show below... If you carefully examine one that falls on you, you can see that it looks exactly like it. How magical_{*********************}

It is snowing, it is snowing, it is snowing, it is snowing... hurrrayyyyyyyy.... YES,YES,YES!!! Wooooweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.....

Describe a bad winter day

The wind is blowing hard, the trees swaying like they are dancing... I can hear the howling through the thick window panels that are shielding me from the horrible cold. The pot of plant in the balcony that I pity, is trembling like a nude beggar in the street. So defenseless. The currents in the water surging like they can sweep you along effortlessly. I fear to stand like those trees with the wind piercing into my face, the coldness seeping through every leakage in my layered clothing. It rained so hard that you could hear those splattering against the glass. I can't believe how nice and warm it is to be in a house now, sitting by the heater and sipping hot tea.

The sky is so blue, yet the wind is killing, the christmas songs are singing yet the Santa is not here, the tea is turning cold yet I am still feeling cold, it is winter yet why isn't it snowing!!!!!!!!!!

Zertifikat

I received my certificate for the German Language Level A1. It says, "1.3" for the grade. I guess this is the overall grade inclusive of the oral examination then! I didn't expect I'd be so good... It was a lot of stress, a lot of fun and a nice experience to do it in Germany itself. Let's hope it comes to good use later on;)

Lomo for Luna-me

My craziness over Lomo cameras recently has a relapse!! I was once fascinated by the artistic pictures these cameras could take, but wasn't keen enough to buy one. But these few days, I accidentally chanced upon one of the Lomo cameras again. And.... this is going to be serious. I want one!!

Check out Lomography.

I am aiming for the Fisheye Lomo now. It does absolutely adoring shots... how can I not love it;) Hope to bid it at eBay. I don't know if it is a designer point of view, some people think these are just toys or a stupid infatuation with these things. I think I am infatuated somehow!

Nürnberg, my 2nd Luv

The best in Bavaria!!!!

I am not kidding, people whom like to see Germany should make a "must go" destination to the Bavaria part of Germany. Nürnberg is the only city down there that I've been to, I really like to see München too but didn't have the money and time permitting. However, thanks to Nürnberg, Bavaria has since left a deep impression and I definitely like to see more again. Then thinking of it again, it could be the Christmas festive that does so much for the city too - it certainly has the atmosphere.

My favourity city still remains Edinburgh (in the UK & Ireland) and now I've to categorize another of my favourties... My favourite city in Germany is Nürnberg. I'll do a brief summary of what we did there;)

On the first night, Angela and her brother whom flew from London met us up, so did one of Flo's buddy. It was a good crowd, we done the Christkindlesmarkt and showed off our big appetite!! Kartoffelpuffer, Fleischkäse, Lebkuchen, Nürnberger Würstchen, Kirsch Gluhwein, Heidelbeere Gluhwein... It was really fun going around eating and eating... no wonder I have a tummy now:( Then we proceeded to 2 pubs later on to have a little drink.

The second day was mainly sightseeing: Kaiserburg and its museum, which is already fascinating without entering. The guided tour in the castle was in German, even though I have since learned a bit, it didn't help me enough to understand:( Next, Lochgefängnisse is where they used to held prisoners. This one is more visually entertaining and you can imagine how they were locked up, tortured and had to live and shit in a confined space. On the last day, we visited Dokumentation Zentrum where they showcase the history about Hilter, the Nazis, the poor Jews... It was a tedious audio guided tour, it took us a couple of hours but not much went into my head. It shows that I'm not so much of a HISTORY person;)

We also had a traditional pub lunch, Eisbein mit Sauerkraut. OH MY GOD, yummy but fatty!!! This is the occasion you should give up all the sausages for such a delicacy!! The second night was followed by endless eating at the Christkindlesmarkt again.

On the last day right after the "historic sightseeing", his friend brought us to Adidas warehouse. As he is an intern with Adidas Germany, we get 30% off the usual price in the warehouse, got priority to enter the employee's shopping arena where the latest Adidas fashion is. What an opportunity eh!!! Don't be too envious because Adidas stuffs afterall aren't cheap (in Euros somemore!). I did bought myself a "cool" bermudas, cool in the sense that it's thin and good for hot weather! Not for this winter. And... a top as well, which looks more fashionable than practical - this is the problem with girls. They always prefer pretty things to practical ones;)

Just an hour before we left Nürnberg, his friend had a surprise for us (such a darling). He got us both a free pair of shoes each - from Adidas, of course. Now you've the rights to be jealous. But for your consolation, the size of the shoes are not the right fitting as they are sample pairs and come in only fixed sizes for men and women. Mine is only half a UK size bigger so I figure I can manage with thick socks, hehe... Afterall it is better to be bigger than smaller!!

My little story of Nürnberg has come to an end, hope you've enjoyed ;)

Surprising results =)

I was grieving over my test the whole of yesterday, after counting and realizing a couple of stupid mistakes. Yet today, a miracle happened;)

WOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

We had a oral test with our teachers in group (me and two other students together). Surprisingly, one student who just finished before us came forward and told me," Hey Trixy, die Prüfung, du hast eins komma sieben punkte!" I didn't understand initially how the grades work... I think it wasn't as bad as I thought. And when we entered the room for our oral test (think this will contribute to the final score), we had a short conversation to test how fluently we could speak. I made a few mistakes but I just had to, instead of staying mute. The teachers then revealed our results to us...

I scored 1.7, so did the other guy in my group. And the highest grade someone scored for this test is actually 1.7, but of course that person is not me. But I'm glad enough, in fact overwhelmed by my results. We have a total score of 70 for the paper, and I got 62.5. Ahh, so much better than I predicted. The girl who scored the highest actually got 73 out of 80 (but they are in the faster class so they had 10 questions more than us in the same test). So we can't really compare.

Fehler, fehler... fehler...

People always copy because they are in search of the right answers... however I am getting all the wrong ones :(((((

Fehler deutsch = Mistake english

Copying is also a Fehler!!! Sobs.... But it has to be my fault, can't blame the guy who has kindly offered me his answers... can I? He's so kind to share, yet he's giving me his mistakes as well. So now we can be wrong together. LOL. OK, in case you are lost somewhere. I am talking about the German test I had this morning. I just realized a lot of stupid mistakes... A few times I wrote EXACTLY the right answers and I choose to edit them. So now, more fehler!!! Stupid me :(((

For e.g. there's the feminine, masculine and neutral for the nouns... this particular word I had the correct gender but I was hesitating between the two (female or neutral). I decided to ask my neighbour ;) He shrugged but finally reluctantly chose the former. So I followed along... haizzzz. I need to bang my head on the wall!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously....

I'm not kidding....

Seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously, seriously I think my brain is rusting after years of leaving school.

I can't seem to remember words. Teach me how to memorize.

Kinder Mix for a "kind"... like me

This is for my countdown to this year's Christmas ;) With 6 Überrachungeier!!!
Actually I would prefer the one with 24 x Kinder Surprise, but not good to get so FAT for xmas ;)

A happy Friday

Besides the fact that I am going to have my Deutsch test in 4 days' time... I had a pretty pleasant week. School is fine, it makes all my time disappearing too fast -- wonder if that is good or bad!! One, it kills the boredom that usually bugs me when I have nothing to do. Second, I am learning something new and perhaps useful. Thirdly, I am running out of time for my own leisure -- taking things at my own pace, e.g. reading... and picking up new skills, thinking about improving my illustration!!

Oh ya, before I run too far away from my topic today, I was saying about "A happy Friday". My new friend, from Taiwan, joined me for lunch at the Mensa (Uni. canteen). Let's call her Lily. She's very easy-going and I think we hit off pretty well. She met Flo, my bf, and now there's at least someone I can speak to, gossip with... practise my Mandarin and German with. How nice! We used Mandarin on MSN and I enjoyed it, though I had to pause for some seconds thinking up the "han yu pin ying" for the Chinese characters. The fact that most of my Singaporean friends do not feel comfortable writing and reading Chinese made me lost touch with it. But now, it's back on!!

Hurrayyyyyy!!!

I hope my new friendship with Lily is something fruity, merry and jolly... ;) I'm not pinning hope about making a long-lasting friendship but it can be nice to find someone you can get along after over a year of constantly being on the move.

p.s: BTW, Blog-city, I agree too you did a really fantastic job on the text editor menu :))) Now it is far more flexible. Thumbs up!

A thing called "FRIEND"

I made a chinese friend in class. Not that I didn't have one earlier, there is already this particular guy from the northern part of China (Mongolia). But like always, a friend of the same gender somehow seems to be a better fit for me. And.... DANG!!!

She joined our class recently, she's from Taiwan. I am so glad someone can make me practise my poor Mandarin again. The last time was with Angela and then this Mongolian guy, however he is always asking me political questions or about the lessons. There wasn't much we would discuss about. But a girl is different, I can do all the gossip or girlish talk - just like the men talk about car, women and football :))

I feel very lousy with my supposedly Mother Tongue Language, I'm ashamed. I need to brush it up, and kick the habit of having a "rojak" sentence combining Mandarin and English. Or worse, even german! This can sound pretty awful I imagine...

Random thoughts:
A good friend of mine just texted me from Singapore, telling me what a loner she is and all her friends are not there for her when she needed them. She sounds miserable and having little faith in this thing called "Friendship". I have no idea what to say, friendship has to be mutual and be reciprocated. If it only goes one-way then the person is not deserved to be called a friend. Just like in Friendster, you can fucking hell have a list of 500 friends... but how many are there in real that you can actually say they are my friends... Good friends?? I think real friends you can count with your fingers, not with the calculator please...

German ist making me mad...

It ist... just like this! -- Did you just notice it?

Very simple words like "is" in English is "ist", "tea" is "tee"... "also" has another meaning, "what" is "was", "was" is "war", "banana" is "banane", "orange" is "orangen", "tomato" is "tomate", "litre" is "liter", "babies" is "babys", "kid" is "kind".... Are they enough to make one's English bad?? I'm wondering if I will start making silly mistakes like this, I was writing once to my friend about Tea and almost typed as Tee, I wonder if she'd have understood.

But there are some things I like about this difficult language... besides all those Grammatik (Grammer) that I still can't get into my head. Combined words like "Überraschung" + "Ei" = "Überraschungsei", it is very adorable when you translate them --- "Surprise" + "Egg" = "KinderSurprise" or you can opt to call it "Surprise Egg" ;)

Oh for your information, what do you call a Singaporean in German ;) I'm a Singapurerin, while a male would be a Singapurer.

Ich probiere mein deutsch aus

Ich finde Deutsch schwer. Es gibt viele wörter zu merken. Ich habe Koptschmerzen. Deshalb ist mein Kopf überlastet. Kannst du mir helfen???? Deutsch lektionen sind lustig, ich mag meinen Lehrer und die Mitschüler. Die, der, das, ein, eins, eine, einer, einen, kein, keins, keiner, keinen, keiner... argggggggghhh. Scheiße! Ich vergesse es immer. Es ist ermüdend, aber findet ich die Sprache interessant. Ich hoffe, ich kann bald gut Deutsch sprechen;)

p.s: Lernen schon 8 Tage

I baked this today

Carrot cake with walnuts and raisins. Bit of a task. A little too sweet. But goes well with a nice cuppa tea ;)
p.s: Picture does look a little too yellow because of the lightings.

Ü

Life beyond Singapore

chanced upon another girl's blog. She recently graduated from a local university in Singapore, and all her blog entries were complaining about herself and trivial things in her new working life. Part of me sympathizes with her, yet another part wanted to give her a tight slap...

I felt as if I was just like her when I first finished my school (but at least I was 19, not 22). It suddenly dawned on me that leaving Singapore is a good thing. There is suddenly so much optimism in life and you wouldn't complain about why you missed the bus, why your boss has given you this shit or that... You begin to take it as it is, deal with it better, instead of coming back home and venting to the person nearest to you. Or worse, swallow in self-pity and start ranting on your poor blog... although I have to admit sometimes I like to rant for the sake of sharing but definitely writing happier cheery entries means much more for me. I am glad to say I'm much more contented in life than I was... and you will too... if you watch this film called "Be with me" by Eric Khoo. A very good film and proudly by a Singaporean ;)

Oh well, growing up is part of life, what can I complain about...

Have a smoke~

I tried this the other night at an Arabian couple's place - our neighbor. We had the strawberry flavor. It feels like cigarette smoking, but much more fun and I hope less harmful to the lungs - not too sure about this! I found a very nice article describing how it works, so enjoy :) (BTW you should be able to try this too in Singapore's Arab street!!)

"Famous Middle Eastern long, brass water pipes with glass base are one of the most popular spare-time pleasures for many Arabs. Almost everyone has a nargillah at home to smoke with family or friends. Nice, better quality argille are also used as a decoration, proudly displayed by owner. In street cafeterias one can order a coffee or tea and a shisha. Usual choice for a pipe (nargilla) order would be a very light tobacco mixed with aromatic fruits - apple, cherry, etc. You can see people spending hours over nargillah and a drink of tea or coffee. Very pleasant, relaxing experience helps socializing and making new contacts. If someone offers a nargillah to you, you can be sure of his friendly intentions towards you. The smoke itself is very light and pleasant, even for those who don't normally smoke! Specially constructed water pipe additionally filters the smoke through water, and cools it down in long brass tubes, offering rather a tasty "dessert" than a smoking experience."
QUOTED FROM HERE

Oh yes, singaporean food, oh yes, oh yes!

Beef Kway Teow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you never heard or even tried before, then you should really. It's one of the famous delicacy down Geylang, besides the fact if you know what Geylang is famous for. Haha, I'm trying to speak about the food, but can't help to think of something else. *brainwashing in progress* Okay, back on. Along the many districts of Geylang, you also shouldn't miss the soya beancurd with crullers (they called it "Deep-fried Devils" online...mmm or "you tiao" in chinese) or the porridge with frogs' legs or the D24 durians. Yummmmm...

Back to the topic, my boyfriend just reminded me about this dish we just cooked 1 day ago. It's supposedly Singaporean, wasn't the type you can get in Geylang. But I think it's far better... hahah, okay, I think it has a very good taste itself, even though I can't remember the Geylang's one anymore - only had it once. Here's the link to the original recipe... I did substitute a number of things we couldn't get or can't be bothered to buy here.

Potato-es

I've been having a lot of meals consisting of potatoes lately... E.g. Beef curry with potatoes, Fried chicken with fries, Mushrooms with herbs plus roasted potatoes, Shepherd's pie, Sauerkraut rosti with potatoes and broccoli, Fish fillet with potato salad...

The best was my Shepherd's pie. Why?? Because I made it myself ;) I think the secret lies in the mashed potato... how to make it tastesssssssssssssss.... soo........... good! I shall share a little - add milk and butter and a little sour cream ;) I copied bit and pieces from friend's recipe, cookbook and past mashed-potato-making experience, heh. For the meat, I think the marinating process is very important, I substituted lamb with beef, and it tastes as fabulous!! I just don't eat lamb - not in big portions ;)

A talented bunch

I went for a concert ^_(27.10.05) by the Wise Guys which was in German. Yes, I can't understand but it was entertaining and these guys are really good with their mouths... or should I say throats. No sound equipment used, they can produce music with just the five of them. How great ;)

Scottish travels IV

My favourite city award goes to...... EDINBURGH!!!! *loud applause*

Chapter 8 It is not finished yet!

End of the tour doesn't mean end of my travel blog, just hang on for a few more Chapters okay?? I'm not going into Cologne, because the only thing I saw was the Dom and the river Rhine. It is just another shopping city!! So let me speak about Edinburgh and you're free to go thereafter ;)

Chapter 9 St Christopher in Edinburgh

Just in case you're wondering, that's the name of the hostel I was in. It wasn't the best but satisfactory. A number of us from the tour were staying 3 more nights in Edinburgh, all of us have got different hostels booked. I was the only staying at St Christopher since I've pre-booked. Budget backpackers would be a better choice, I was told to believe! We met up for a "post-tour-dinner" at Castle Arms which offered really cheap food and beer for the travellers :D

The guys decided to make a day trip to Glasgow the following day to catch up with the 2 aussies whom have gotten there the night before. I made up my mind to stay rooted to Edinburgh because 2 days is not enough lah. I am so glad I did, Edinburgh is the best city I ever saw, and it has now become my favourite city!

It has so much to offer. A visit to Edinburgh castle will be worthy for every single cent you paid; a climb up Calton Hill or Arthur's Seat (Holyrood Park) will give u a stunning view of the city; the old town with its narrow or long alleyways called closes or wynds (can't miss this, they're all over -- as seen on picture above), good choices of pubs and small shops with their own distinctive character; the Georgian new town with fantastic shopping, the fine Scott Monument, galleries and much more. Overall, Edinburgh is just so.... perrrrrrrrrrrrrfect for me!!! Even though it has a lot of steps and steep slopes everywhere, I don't mind as it keeps me fit.

My favourite street is the HIGH Street, there's a rounded about corner where they have very individualistic shops ;) I heard Grassmarket is good too, but I only saw the area at night when all is closed. So check it out when you're there!

Chapter 10 'Open Mic' Night

The good thing about travelling alone is meeting new people, and I realised I can open up more to Americans. I fit in better than with the typical beer drinking aussies or kiwis (no offence at all).

At my hostel, I met my bunk-mates Kelly and Shane (a canadian). Shane's the backpacker with a guitar, someone suggested him doing a song or two at the Open Mic which happened every Monday at this pub. So a couple of us from the hostel went to support him, even we knew each other for barely an hour! But it was totally cool, there were really some good ones out there ;) So were the Scottish pair we met.

It was really a shame when I had to leave Edinburgh... The sky was pouring, I know they wanted me to stay! Edinburgh, I love you :))))))))))

----- The very End -----

Did I forgot about Cologne... I think I just did. I was by the famous river Rhine, and the dom. In fact I think I have seen too many churches along the way but they do not appeal much to me anymore. The hostel stay was so-so, could be better and cleaner... but oh well, I still very much miss the cosy one up in Scotland. Sometimes in Germany, I'd prefer the much smaller places than the cities... I love the peacefulness.

Scottish travels III

WOOoooo... weather is getting better, we're singing along in the bus... life can't be much better than this!!

Chapter 5 SKYE magic

When I first heard about Skye after Angela's return from her scotland visit, it occurred to me as a really tiny island, with high mountains or hills as they called it the highlands. You can only walk on those paths and no more... But danggg I was wrong, very wrong! Skye is huge, big enough to drive around and actually occupied with residents. I can imagine it must be expensive, and the lack of a lot of facilities unlike the city. Can't be such a bad thing too to live with the greens, highlands, cattles...

I wouldn't say Skye is exactly special, but it is something not to be missed in Scotland!! One full day at Skye with a stroll at the Coral beach, adding new additions to my shell collection - from faraway Scottish Highlands, how proud can I be :P

Our next two dinners consisted of Pasta Bolognese and Mexican beans wrap with Tortillas, again prepared by the aussies... We have too many of them in the tour, so it's not that we are not rotating the duties ;) Only 1 Singaporean, can't expect me to cook up a feast eh!! Seriously they did suggest me doing for the last night, I can't think of any ONE dish I can do up for 16 people! I just had a lucky escape as we decided for the last night to go with Haggis - popular scottish delicacy, with some sausages and mash. I figured it was my turn to chip in some effort ;)

We also played lots of card games, board game, celebrity guessing game in the house :)))

Chapter 6 Loch Ness "Skinny Dip"

The sun is shining, the winds tamed... The perfect time for a picnic lunch on a sandy beach where all of us had a mini storytelling session! We would write 2 sentences on separate pieces of paper, someone will read it out and we have to guess whose life story is that! Fun eh!

The last night we were in Loch Ness Backpackers, cosy small hostel with some other travellers, but our tour group turned out to be pretty dominating in the hostel. Tell you more later... (next Chapter)

Before settling into the hostel, we came to Loch Ness for a "preview" - we are doing that tomorrow anyway. We sneaked into Urquhart Castle (by the Loch Ness), it was locked. We headed over the gates, stormed into the castle!! No, just kidding, we didn't storm in, we took our own sweet time walking about. Scotty, an aussie in our tour group, was the first to suggest and promised that he shall do a dip in Loch Ness. We didn't take much of that in, till a group of them decided to join him in his mission! WOW. I would have loved to, but it didn't strike me at that time. It was cold!!!! I was unprepared, especially to strip down to the under wear! No towel. Nothing to dry. I guess I'll just do my part of taking pictures, LOL.

Oh yes, if you want to ask me about Loch Ness monster, there is none ;) Click here for more info.

Chapter 7 Jump, Hump, Pump

The last night was more crazy, for me. I think everyone would have to say that, because they never encountered me dancing on the couch. "That little shy Trixy is on the couch, can you believe that!!" They didn't say this, alright, I figured it myself as they were talking about it on a "post-tour-dinner". We had a party in the hostel lounge blasting with music till probably 3-4am... oooo... I had my share till 2.30am!

The last day we had a short stop at coast of Loch Ness to take beautiful pictures with the glaring sunlight! A visit to Culloden Battlefield with some storytelling behind it, plus a visit to a smallest distillery. You can't leave without getting a bottle of whisky.

It was the end of the tour, time flew fast. Too enjoyable to notice it flying quick...

----- End of Scottish travels III -----

Scottish travels II

Weather sucks in the UK - unpredictable in London, wet and rainy in Scotland...

Chapter 3 I think I spot a PARADISE

On the train up to Edinburgh, I sat besides a chick looking like a punk and was learning French - what a combination! But I think I've weird judgement on this! I didn't talk to her except trying to offer her my Haribo gummies, but she wasn't keen. So I rather kept my eyes out of the windows... Then I spotted this paradise, the most magnificient sight of my life... seahouses lit up among the dusky sky, sitting on this fine looking stretch of beach - like a majestic piece of painting. Simply breathtaking!! And I know I want to go there someday ;)

The nearest main rail station should be Berwick-Upon-Tweed, it's the east coast of North England also named Northumberland... I can't be too sure, but I bet it's the seahouses! Edit: Looks like I found it but its not England, its Scotland! North Berwick coast.
 

Weather sucks in the UK - unpredictable in London, wet and rainy in Scotland...

Chapter 4 Wet in Scotland

The night I arrived was raining quite heavily, I decided to rest my feet for the coming 5 day tour. The next 2 days aren't better. Guess what's the most horrific thing - I wore my lovely new PUMA shoes for this crap. I haven't got a choice, I threw away my old Adidas sneakers and the only replacement to a good walking shoes is this pair which I just gotten as a present!! My new leather shoes was soaking wet in mud for the first two days of the tour - I'm terribly upset.

We did a lot more trekking than I expected; we had a few slippery climbs where some people had a slip or two. I was fortunate enough not to have a "four limbs on the ground" position or a "backside landing" with my pair of shoes which is neither for trekking or running!! We stopped in a couple of lovely towns, e.g. Stirling, even though we did not have much time to wander about, it was enough to get an idea ;)

We stopped at Inveraray, where our tour guide Kate bought a bottle of Whisky for the crews onboard. I just had a sip, knowing my limit ;) The rest of them seemed to hold their alcohol far better, can't blame them for being aussies, can you?? Not forgetting to get myself a mouthwatering pack of whisky fudge!!

For our first dinner, we had Scottish Salmon (can't compare the standard as they were cooked by our very own "aussies' chefs"). We stayed in Oban backpackers which has pretty rooms, cute nicknames for every bed and girlie bedsheets (because they are in red, I call them girly). I'm on Popeye for the night :) The second day of the tour was still gloomy, even though not as bad as the first... my poor shoes was again victimized. Fortunately enough, we had a stop at Fort William's little shopping street, I could just randomly picked a pair of sports shoes. And yes, very luckily, I found a cheap one going at ten pounds. I slipped them on, paid and ran back to the bus, phew - very happy thereafter! I stopped complaining about slippery climbs now - give me more give me more!! :)

We also visited Eilean Donan Castle at dusk, which is really really bewitching... The next two nights we had a house at Stromferry (belonging to the company's boss) to ourselves; it's a big house with kitchen, 4-6 rooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 toilet and a big lounge. If you're an earlybird, you will notice a fisherman and his boat by the small pier when you take a peep.

----- End of Scottish travels II -----

Scottish travels I

"Aaahhemmm..." now I can finally pat the dust off my hands and exercise those fingers. Yes, I'm finally back on blogging, sorry to keep you guys waiting... Likewise, I'm pretty anxious and eager to share my stories again!! This time is going to be a long one I'm afraid, take your time - test your patience ;)

Chapter 1 Train Journey to York

I thought Bath was the loveliest city in England... until I came to York. Before I go on about how beautiful historical York is, I shall speak of an interesting event on the train again. It becomes an exciting place to meet people in the train now (lot more easier than being on a plane)!!

I boarded the GNER train to York, the journey was 2 hours, I found my seat and it was besides this old lady. She's definitely an oriental lady, I didn't know how it got us started... Probably I did flash just a tiny smile ;) She was heading to Edinburgh to visit some friends, another 3 hours more than me. We were talking about how she first came to England (she holds a British passport) and why I was here... blah blah blah. Slowly we moved on to a lot of her past, it was when I began to get curious and asked a lot of questions. My only grandma couldn't speak to me in English or proper Mandarin so I never had this chance to hear about her World War II stories. This is amazing when she actually related her experience to me, how she escaped from the Japanese, joined the British, got a scholarship in England, married her husband... and now her children and family are all over the world! She must be in her 80s... and I've now one more person in London to visit. Also got contacts of her kin who are in Singapore, whom are doctors or entrepreneur. Her brother was the first Chief Justice in Singapore, wow, must be someone influential then!

Chapter 2 Haunted York

York is a beautiful, can't think of a better word to replace beautiful! The city itself says a lot of its history and that's what makes it so special. I love the city walls surrounding the city centre, walking around them gives you a good view of York and at the same time you can probably imagine how it was used for defence during the wars.

The little streets, little shops... really got me there. I was in a bookshop for soooo....... long, I couldn't remember because they have such fascinating and unusual book collection. I bought one titled "101 things to do before you're old and boring". York minister was worth a visit and a climb to the top of its tower; you can't miss the St Mary Abbey remains in the Museum Gardens; and of course the usual museum sightseeing.

York is said to be the most haunted city, so did they say the same about Edinburgh!! They have a couple of ghost walks going on, I picked one rumoured to be the scariest. It turned out to be more entertaining in fact, the guide was hilarious ;) And the rare coincidence is I actually bumped into a group of people on this ghost walk whom are later going on the same Scotland 5 day tour!!

Going around York nearly made me crippled, but I can't get enough of those "gates" they have around the city. The last 2 hours before my train up to Edinburgh, I decided to chill out in the hostel lounge and watched a video - such a good idea!!

----- End of Scottish travels I -----

Oh my gosh.... I am 24...

Damned... No use cursing now...



HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE....
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!!!!

That's my new PUMA sneaker-shoes, thanks to my piggy! Finally an end to my months of shoe-hunting.
Never ends though, now I need a boots... kekeke

Little trip to Marburg

It wasn't anything fascinating about the trip, but it was really nice to meet a friend again. The first and the last time I met him is 2 years ago in Singapore, he has since returned back to Germany to continue his studies in Marburg.

Travelling alone in a country where I can hardly speak their language is an exciting one... not speaking about places like thailand. But Germany can be quite a task, had a couple of people talking to me in German, but I didn't get a single word. The thing is they don't speak English - so tough luck. Just keep the mouth shut lor! I did try to reply in English leh, not that I didn't even try. :S

I took 2 trains to get to Marburg, which is 2.5 hours away from where I am. Marburg doesn't seem as interesting as Braunschweig; imagine I said Braunschweig was boring, can't think of what else you can do in Marburg. It's a really old town, though there's a magnificient view looking up at the castle from the lower city ground. The castle looked new to me, unlike the old ones made of grey rocks like what I saw in Ireland.

Oh Marcus, thank you for showing me around... Marburg is not so boring with your company.

**************************************************************************************
I wanted to share this particular incident on the train journey there... I sat besides a woman who later spoke to me. She is thai and married to a german since she was 19, living in Berlin for 5 years since - sounds like she's my age. After speaking to her for some time, I began to become suspicious with her gender. Was she a man???!! I couldn't help noticing how big her fingers with the almost perfect french manicure and how thick her wrist was... and the hoarse voice. I witnessed her digging her nose, not that we girls don't do that... but it disgustingly reminded me that she might be a transexual... eeeeekk

Signs to look out for that "SHE" might be a "HE"... so I tried to spot if "she" has an 'apple', but "she" had this scarf wrapped round "her" neck, enough to hide any evidence. She was carrying a branded handbag (I remember seeing it somewhere because I liked it as well!!) and very well groomed, accompanied by a CELINE (some upper-class FRENCH brand) shopping bag. She is unbelievably busty for a thai woman! (Someone please tell me its the sex change operation!!!)

If you're curious of our conversation, she was encouraging me to get married here on hearing I've a german partner. I couldn't believe my ears and her reason for her marriage was to get her citizenship here; her ridiculous way of telling me how much having an european citzenship can make your life so much better and easier! I don't seem to agree to that %&!#*$&

Note: Singlish added in red.

Let's ask the tarots

How do I meet The One?
Judgement In a lecture or class, at a bookshop, in a waiting room, at a graduation, over the internet or in an interview.

What will they like about me?
Strength Your sweetness, your inner strength, your charm, your determination, your ability to get what you want.

So far, it's pretty accurate :))

I'm starting to miss...

"Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.... it's less than a week now" - not calling my mum, just an exclamation ;)

I'm not about to say "London" just in case you're wondering, yea probably I was about to go on about things in London, but I can't say it's London itself - is this contradicting??

I'm really starting to miss...
1. working life, it's routine (alright) but it makes days go by...
2. living with my housemates (where most are lovely people with the exception of one)...
3. the crazy shopping, I bet nowhere else I'm able to get so many brands in one location...
4. people speaking proper english (not singlish, not german)...
5. angela speaking mandarin to me, complaining about her work, bringing back freebies from her office ;)
6. all the carnivals, festivals, events going on - there is almost never nothing to do... then again, I'm looking forward to beautiful christmas markets (in Germany) :)
7. the wacky fashion sense, at least nobody looks at you with the "YOU'RE CRAZY IN THIS OUTFIT" kind of stare...
8. the biggest bath tub I ever used, and that's in our bathroom...
9. the scottish salmon which I've to eat at least once every month!!
10. the better asian food (yummy duck rice and japanese curry :D~ ) than in Germany, but not Singapore of course - no where is better than home...

** A mesmerizing musical **

I have been a fan of its music since I was 14?? I fell in love with that drama I could see through them - imagine I had them in casette. 17.09.05 Angela and me each bought a £30 ticket for the MUSICAL in London Her Majesty theatre. It wasn't a great seat for that price but I couldn't afford to miss it. Wonderful cast, impressive props, good setting, enchanting music... It has already prepossessed me. I say I love it!

On the move ---o---

Exactly 2 weeks left...

Then I'm off on another flight... I can roughly estimate the number of times I'm going to be on a plane by this year end, definitely more than 10! I'm already on my 6th flight by the time I'm writing... 4 more on the upcoming travelling cum holiday.

A friend, BS, recently asked me,"What's the difference between holiday and travelling?" Maybe it was the same to me and still is to many of you. But recently I began to separate them, holiday to me is stress-free, no planning, just have a wacky time, and more importantly going along with someone else. Travelling has become like a challenge or a task, I feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of it, especially if it's on my own. It has more to do with backpacking style, really seeing and touring the place than just e.g. going to paris, finding a nice cafe to sit down, relax, drink a latte... having a good french cuisine for dinner. Travelling is like "I-am-going-to-see-the-real-place" kind of thing... well, at least to me this is travelling ;)

WAaaaaaaaaaaaaa.......

When I used to see people going around on their backpacks, I was green with envy and at the same time I admired the freedom and relaxing lifestyle they were having...

Until I start to plan my own, I realize the hard work behind all these. Travelling can be such a task!! A 10 days journey required me to do 8 bookings - train tickets, flight tickets, inland tour package, hostel accomodation, etc... I'm not the most relaxed person to go with the flow, just book a 1-way ticket, let everything sort out by itself - I'll freak out when I can't find a night to sleep or the flight is fully booked... But I'm not done with my bookings, I'm leaving the last couple of days unplanned and see as the time comes nearer or who knows what might be coming up...

This can be stressful, I certainly hope it pays off in the end!!

This is so true... ;)

You're a sentimental romantic.

When it comes to romance, you're definitely wearing rose-colored glasses. Horse-drawn carriage rides, perfume-scented love letters, and multi-tiered wedding cakes all put you in a tizzy. You've been known to get weepy over long-distance telephone commercials and to sigh wistfully when you see an elderly couple holding hands. Your love of romance can sometimes get in the way -- like when you find yourself daydreaming about your wedding plans in the middle of a board meeting. And your infatuation with the traditional trappings of romance means that you sometimes fail to appreciate it when your man expresses his love in less flowery ways -- for example, by changing the oil on your car. But so long as you don't let yourself get too swept up in your champagne-and-roses fantasies, by all means enjoy those picture-perfect romantic moments.

Take the quiz

Will I miss you, London?

Well, I hardly think so...

I said too many times that I don't love this place - like I don't hate it as well. It's just a big city, characterized by its cosmopolitan factor, which happened to be the only thing I'll definitely miss. And probably the reason that attracted me here the first place.

I'll be out of UK (and definitely London) by end October, supposedly to return back to Singapore. However, due to some reason, I am heading over to Germany and should be taking up a language course over there - if that is possible. In fact, just 3 more weeks to stay in london, I'm counting... Not that I look forward to leave, but time really is going fast.

My rent for September was due yesterday. No more money goes to rent;) In fact, I'm going to Germany for a 2 weeks holiday which is really silly to think of it now since I'll again go back soon for a much longer time. But I don't have much of a choice, I booked my flight long ago - you don't really get refund when you cancel these cheap flights - instead you might have to pay for administrative cost. So, heck it, just go...

I am planning quite a few destinations to go when I return to London from my holiday - no where to stay, so I should just hop about for another 2 weeks before.... yeahh going back to Germany again :S

p/s: But London, don't worry, you're always on my holiday destination list again :P

Bad days... shoo...

There are days you just feel miserable, even when nothing went wrong. No bad hair day, not the time of the month (women!), not the extra love handle. But you just feel like shit.

I don't know how many people out there has experienced this, is this called the "Mood swing"??

I think it's like a terminal illness - very destructive. You feel bad about yourself, you feel blue and miserable, yet nothing is really the cause of it. You get ultra-sensitive with words' usage, with the tone of speech, and most importantly you take things seriously. <-- That is mad!!!

I am glad it is over!

Nottinghill crazy

YES!!! This year's festival is much better than the last...

Reasons being:
1. Weather is superb - sunny, unlike the drizzle the year before.
2. Crazy companions. This time I didn't go alone, I have at least 2 friends ;)
3. Nok, my Thai friend lives in Nottinghill (off the carnival route), we can always go back up for a tea, and rest.
4. We got freebies from the carnival - even though they aren't really anything useful, they are something worth to preserve the memory.
5. Great music, great crowd, nice food and most importantly it didn't take us ages to get home!!! I'm surprised it's pretty orderly.
6. I managed to snap lot of beautiful close-up photographs *.*

Thee Solo adventures to the irish towns II

~~ If you're Irish come into the parlour ~~
~~ There's a welcome there for you ~~
~~ If your name is Timothy or Pat ~~
~~ So long as you come from Ireland ~~
~~ There's a welcome on the mat ~~
~~ If You come from the Mountains of Mourne ~~
~~ Or Killarney's lakes so blue ~~
~~ We'll sing you a song and we'll make a fuss ~~
~~ Whoever you are you are one of us ~~
~~ If you're Irish, this is the place for you ~~

THE GOOD WILL FOLLOW

I think I'm getting some irish luck now... Thank God for that!

Things just get better, on the first night in Galway, I joined the fellow travellers for dinner. It was a beer and food night, I had Smithwicks. Oh yea, I was very hungry - it's my first meal since! I met the tour guide, Eric, a bald funny Irish man; I was introduced to the tour mates whom were very sympathetic with my misfortune. A lot of females, I would say... Australians, Americans, Spanishs, Canadians, Italian, Singaporean (just me) <-- Note: Named in order of number of people, so you can probably guess the majority are australians eh! 3 married couples among them, and a few unknown nationalities... lol

The next day was packed with activities along with my great enthusiasm, it's my official first day of the tour afterall!! (We have a couple of stops over the 2 days, but I'd mention only the more memorable ones...) The weather wasn't permitting, we went to the famous Cliffs of Moher filled with unfavorably white fog. Luckily though, we managed to take lovely pictures of The Burren - the limestone landscape or nicknamed "Moonscape". <-- My favourite!!

I'm not fascinated too much by high cliffs and mountains, I think I've a little fear of extremely high height. Castles are OK, they are high but at least its in a confined environment, just need to be careful with the stairs. Blarney Castle was lovely, just didn't have enough time for it. I didn't kiss the Blarney stone which was said to bless you with the gift of eloquence. Look, and tell me if you'd do it - when you face down, you see the height of the castle!!

On the second night, the last night apparently for 7 of us whom are on 3days tour, the rest will continue their journey for 3 more, we had a drink and party night in Killarney. I had a Long Island tea but I couldn't resist to buy myself a Guinness - so I did, just half a pint. We were really out late (though I really wanted to go already at 0130am, lol)... by the time we got all cosy in our beds, it was 0300am. As I'm writing this, the rest on the tour should be home or somewhere else around the world ;)

I have to say IT'S SIMPLY WICKED (in the english way of expressing) - even it was 1 day short for me. I bet the others have twice the fun - whole loads of fun!!

My last day was spent in Dublin alone (well in the morning, Chris* was still around), I met another 6 italian guys whom were sharing the dorm. These guys are mad (in the good way), they drove from Rome to Ireland - incredible. I wish I could join them, their 10 days around Ireland, camping and hostelling!! Woah! But sorry, I've got my flight back :( I visited GUINNESS storehouse (was worth the pricey admission!), Trinity College, outside of Dublin Castle, National Portrait Gallery and History Museum... I walked around quite a bit, got lost and started asking lots of people - very friendly and helpful Irish!

The street looks identical to Amsterdam's, just not as much "porn" industry going on... but traffic is horrible horrible horrible. Getting out of Dublin on a bus is like the bus going down Bond St in London - it stops every minute, bad jam!!

I love Ireland (not very much of Dublin though)

*Chris - an American guy I met on my Paddywagon Tour

Thee Solo adventures to the irish towns I

Exactly the same title as the email I mass-mailed to friends... Hold on, as this will be a much longer one for those interested about my holiday to Ireland.

A NIGHTMARE BEGINNING

A disastrous start to my first "solo" travelling, I was almost freaking out. Let's exclude coming to London for working holiday alone - that's not really travelling, is it!! Here's what happened... I decided to book an overnight coach to Dublin where I will start my tour at 0800am as it will probably save a night accomodation and a good experience to get there on the ferry. The bus journey was supposed to be 12 hours, I could sleep in there, somehow I got bus-sick on the way because the driver was making too many turns, slowed down then sped up... It was awful, imgaine I took 5 travel-calm pills onboard.

I was drifting in and out of sleep, when the driver finally stopped at a Park & Ride station. He stood up in the centre of the front, and announced,"Sorry guys, but we are going to miss the ferry." That's it! It was 1230am, our scheduled ferry was at 0100am. He couldn't make it in time - BUMMER!! Everyone was in shock, some thought it was a joke, the others just started panicking, like me!! Of course, I have a tour next morning and now the next ferry is 0900am - FUCK, but yes I'm going to miss my tour! I was stressed out, I couldn't possibly sleep now... I needed to talk to someone. So I called my bf in the middle of the night, should be 0130am in Germany. I was almost on tears... :( Some people are lucky to be not on my speed-dial ;)

After some minutes of settling in and calming down, I decided to speak to the driver. He advised me to hook up with the tour (which is going to be somewhere on the road) when I arrived in Dublin... I figured that would be a better idea than missing out the whole thing, which I paid! The following morning before 0800am, I rang up the hostel notifying of my late arrival, the bus was supposed to pick me up there, damned!

On-board the ferry, I was sea-sick - crap!! This is really a lousy start, for 2 hours on the ferry, I kept walking rounds and then I went to the deck where I felt less stuffy. I was trying to stay positive,"It'll be OK when I get to Dublin..." I was very displeased with the bus service which provided no help to the affected passengers - we're fucking 6 hours late!!

Later on, I realized I need to take another 4 hours bus journey to Galway where the tour group will stay for the night. I missed the first day totally :( Strange, but I began to believe everything will be running smoothly after I get to Galway, and it did - I'm so glad. After 22 hours of travelling on bus, FINALLY... The first thing I did when I checked into the hostel - shower!!!

**to be continued***

Ooo la la

Back from beautiful Ireland, I'll write more descriptive entries soon... in the meantime, enjoy the pictures (check out my links).

Say goodbye

Tonight we have a last dinner with my South African mate, Riyaad, I met nearly a year ago - right here in London. I'm the one supposedly to be leaving after him, but due to unforeseen circumstances, it's the other way round. He has a job offer back home which requires him to start in September, he is not in love in London anyway, which is a sufficient reason to leave. We had some memorable time going out here - I guess I'll miss someone just randomly calling me up and asking me how are things going!

Another German friend, Markus has since left after his studies in London. Just nice, when I arrived for a superb Japaneses dinner together... Now it is getting lonely again. Oh well, I have nice colleagues at least :)

In 6 more weeks, I'll leave for Germany for a holiday... I can't really see the road ahead, but I want to pack it with a Scotland tour and maybe do a language course in Germany - let's see. Maybe it is my turn saying BYEBYE to London and oh, poor Angela.

Down it goes...

Venezuela crash, Cyprus crash,...

I've been hearing a couple of plane crashes these days. All passengers killed. Co-pilot unconscious. Pilot missing. What is happening to this world - scary!

What is home??

Is everyone out there, away from home, supposed to be thinking of home?? Missing home?? Should we be getting all the warm fuzzy nice feelings when you think of where you belong to...??

I am having doubts about how I should feel. So does a lot of people I see around me. People who don't miss home, is there a problem with them, or with their home?? Do they not want to return; do they fear to be going back? I think I am beginning to dread of the idea of going home once again.

Love. Parents. Siblings. The flat. My bed. My tarot cards. My book collection. My... I can't think of any more things. Aren't they supposed to be lovely?? But all I get is a lot of pressure about returning home, about a huge responsibility to carry, and that horrible life of being stuck in Singapore forever!! It is not that Singapore is not the place for me, I can imagine myself there... but not being burdened with responsibilities towards my home for the rest of my life.

I can't possibly imagine my dad retiring at 56 and sits at home for the rest of his life, not going out. I do not want to think of my mum playing mahjong for the rest of her life. My sisters and me, will be earning hardly enough to pay for ourselves and everyone's expenses. And to do that for the rest of my life, no way! I want to support them, so does every children... but not the idea of "leeching" and totally dependent on us to survive. I can't imagine.

Is it me, or is it cultures?? Is Singapore really like this - so traditional, so close-minded!! Or is that just my family?? It is horrible to say so, but I don't look forward to life back in Singapore again! Not anymore...

Feeling disturbed

I had a very good sleep which I considered it very sound, except for the fact that I had a very bad dream with it. It was very disturbing, and it made me even wearier when I woke up - later than usual!! I dreamt about my work contract being terminated suddenly and the company has hired an agency instead to do up the design. I haven't been lazy, how could them do that!! So scary dream:((

It must be all the stress and the really busy weekend, I can't even find time for myself to breathe properly - relax.

Friday to Saturday was lot of traveling on the buses; Sunday was a good day to The London Mela festival. Good weekends are always packed with meaningful activities like these, but they wear me out easily... The weekend was wonderful, with the exception of the very temperamental weather. The coming one, I'm off to Ireland all by myself - how exciting!! I hope I don't get nervous breakdown :))) **Relax a bit, take it easy**

I've been spending a bit of £££ again on days out like this... oh man! Curb it, curb it, curb it....

Oxford and Christ church

For those whom love Harry Potter, we have made a trip to the little town called Oxford. The place where they filmed Harry Potter in Christ Church University and also where the legend of The Adventures of Alice in the Wonderland ((which I really like when I was younger)) started out.

Oxford is an old town, rich in history. There are many famous universities, stories and history behind them. It might not be beautiful as Bath/Cambridge, but it holds its own kind of charm!! Just a day trip to its city centre, I can't say much... But I believe there's much more beautiful sights and greens around. I'll love its nature ;)

Stress.stress.stress.

I can't stress enough how much stress I've this week...

Is it those hormones, or the bloody hag I have to face back home, or my workload, or the upcoming travel planning, or the nasty people I've encountered of recent... It is all coming at once, and it gets quite scary. I just feel so exhausted everytime I lay on the bed - I could just doze off in minutes...

God, can you share part of my load... can you grant me an easier way out??

One old hag

Hag (hăg) n. An old woman considered ugly or frightful. A witch; a sorceress. Obsolete. A female demon.

There is one living in my houseshare. Ugly. Old. Disgusting. Rude. Hostile. B****. The more I see her, that seed of hatred in me grew rapidly, almost like a Jack's bean stalk. I need to chop it down, and to do this, I need to deal with this evil old woman. I don't want to name her a witch, she's too fat to be one - too big of an ass to sit on that poor tiny broom!

Monday is supposed to be a nice start for work, however her charcoal black face has ruined my beginning. I tried to greet her nicely, and was taken invisible - how rude is that! Her words of "Hello" are miserably stingy and only to people whom she seems to want to share her very bad English with. Who cares - maybe she can't even understand my English and it would be such a waste of time/saliva to speak to her. Old hag!

This evening onwards, I shall make her invisible for the rest of my stay...

Welcome to the world where the eyes never meet

My MSN block list has increased to 40, just two recent members, and quite disappointingly these were the people I never thought will be reduced to that category. Well, at least with their disappearance, my day has less risk of being ruined - so does my good mood! Get off, sometimes there are certain things you just need to get rid of, and it makes a whole world of difference :D

**back to hippy happy me***

I'm bit stressed out

...from the f****** I met recently. Where are all the nice people, good people????
SHOW UP!!!!!!!!!!!

La la la la la...

We're watching Charlie & The Chocolate Factory tonight. This is officially our first movie in London since my return!! It's not as cheap as Singapore, but you know, I think it's free seating over here :))

I hope it will be Good & Chocolate-y, like I love the book!! Gotta bring some nice chocolate-y biscuits to go with it!!

Arrghh...

I'm in the shopping mood!!!!!!

One of a kind Singaporean guy

I am not going to penalize all the men in Singapore, but just pinpointing to this 'friend' of mine. Actually 'friend' in fact is too nice a word to be used on him, I rather call him an acquaintance... Or in fact, not knowing him might have made my life easier.

It is disappointing to meet or know someone from home whom can be such tactless and selfish. Hey men, are you all like this, or hey Singaporean men, or even just you??

I have had this holiday-making friend right here in London. The kind of man whom keeps the good things to himself, comes chat with you with his fucked up problem about girls, only wants to hang out if he's bored to death and can't think of anything else to occupy himself, gets green with envy when you share nice things with him... I still recall trying to send him job links and tell him all the temporary jobs I was applying, so he could get his ass on something and earn some pathetic bucks. But he was all the while secretly keeping those he had to himself - such a stinking bastard! When he has no need to speak to you, he will brush you off with his tactless remarks.

He has to go to hell... And I hope he will. *Don't never return to Singapore and disgrace the male population!!* Right now, off my list, lesser a pest, my life will be better.

I actually forgot to..

apply make-up this morning and left for work - how incredible! I reckon most women are not likely to forget this important step which they take everyday. But I actually did. I just put on my moisturiser after washing up, did my breakfast, changed and packed - get out of the house! On my 20 minutes walk, just 10 metres away from the office, it suddenly dawned on me that I forgot something! Yes - to make up! Oh well, fortunately or not, I feel comfortable in my own skin (a little naked feeling)... but I can't be too bothered. I have one or two spots there, but who cares - as long as I don't!

Can I be a man, sounds easier...

Are you sure this is summer??

Maybe a Londoner will tell you,"If its not crappy weather, this is not London".

A week or two of sunshine has been over, the hot scorching sun that makes me sweat and detesting it is now missing. Suddenly, I am missing it - just a little. That weather reminds me of Singapore, but a little sun is always good. This week, it has been cloudy, rainy - far too much!! I woke up with the rain, walked to work in the rain, came back and slept with the 19 degree weather; the next morning I woke up watching the rain pouring again :(

True enough!!

Can you buy some luck, this is something I am wondering... What can you do to make it happen, how do you change your luck... I wish it is as easy as turning the table around, but it isn't.

Friday afternoon, my lovely time with Flo was over. Short and nice. I was upset for a bit, I shopped impulsively I did tell you that didn't I. Ended up spending some £22 pounds to lift the spirits up, damned the new shoes hurt - I threw them against the wall and it still doesn't help:(

Monday, a job contact I emailed some weeks ago rang me up, I went in for a short discussion - there I started straight away. I can't believe my luck this time, hope it lasts though. I'm contracted till Friday and will see if more projects land in my hands:)

3Bs - Bristol, Bath, Bbbebe

What's Bbbebe if you're wondering? Just a term to call my boyfriend/partner/lover/sweetie. I don't want get all mushy here, but it's pretty obvious huh!
So... Bbbe was here supposedly just for 3 nights, an unfortunate event happened that I should reckon as a blessing in disguise, he actually missed his flight, so he was back for another night;) Poor him though - a little hole in his pocket! And poor me though - making trips here and there!

We had a last-minute decision to do a night away from London after all the terror attacks!! Horrible story, you should have heard it over the news, don't be alarmed - London is OK now. So bristol - why? I don't know, just 'click and book'!

Bristol turned out to be more a university town and old industrial place, it wasn't beautiful but a calm and slow place nonetheless. It was a big place, not much we'd like to see though... ended up having a 1 for 1 cocktail which nearly made me pissed! I'm a lousy drinker, goodness!
The following day we planned a 30 minutes bus journey to Bath - absolutely no regrets. It was lovely, romantic, a classic old town I called it. They said it's an old roman town. We found a cheap lunch deal at an indian restaurant - which was unbelievable for its price. GOOD food! Shopping is fantastic however being a fussy shopper like me ended up with nothing:( Flo found a pair of shoes though.

Roman bath (an attraction) was so.... expensive, imagine £9.50 just for admission, we decided to skip it and save the money for other worthy purchase (e.g. FOOD). Someone playing entrancing music outside a cathedral, it has such a mesmeric charm... I felt like in another world. Magical! I almost believe our luck will change after the trip... yah, except the fact that he has to fork out money to re-book that return flight!
I love Bath, and will recommend to anyone looking for a nice chill-out...

Hurrayyy??

London won the bid for hosting Olympic Games 2012, I should be happy. Oh yes, just for a moment!!

Lucky bastard

Somebody is just jealous of the good luck i had recently... but can you see it? can you see anything else besides that bloody hell jealousy streak you have been possessed with! It is once in a blue moon and God is not giving me enough, why do you complain! I'm depressed.

How to define my happiness!

I am very disappointed to say I took a while to realize... I mean the kind of happiness when you are together with someone, be it a lover, a boyfriend, a friend, a sister, mum or dad.

And it doesn't come alone. If you're happy, and people around you aren't, then that is not happiness. If it happens vice versa, then it is not either. (Oh, as I am writing, the rain has started to pour heavily - the heaviest I ever seen since I'm here.) Happiness has to be shared, and only in that way, we benefit - or well I benefit from it. I can't say I can define it, but I realize time and distance shouldn't compromise happiness. You can't say you have a good relationship with someone because you're in it for 5 years, 10 years or you can't have a good relationship because you're living 1000 miles away. I was thinking like that though - oh you must have such a perfect life with your partner because you stayed in it for 10 years!! But I realized again this is not it. Happiness somehow can't be deduced from external factors, sometimes not even by that smile on the face. But when we are really happy with someone, in something, we glow - we radiate a kind of glow, thats what I personally think. Some people said being too honest is not good, better not knowing the things that had happened and would bound to upset you - "correct or not" --> so singlish! But it can be quite impossible to me, I need to know; I guess I am just naturally more curious and inquisitive than most people. In a way, I suspect I can make a very good investigator! And sad to say, this can be affecting my happiness. Why would you want to know these?? But I rather not know them later when it has to come to the light eventually?? Do you not agree? I think to be truly happy, it has to come naturally deep within you, when you're contented, 'it' will find you more easily...

I think I've been mumbling too much, have I? If you have your own perspective of happiness, please share...

Short, sweet and Superb

Woohooo... yes yes yes, we watched free coldplay concert in London, everything was perfect except the weather and the nightmare of getting home...

Hypnosis

Work. Work. Work. I must work. Casual work. Full time work. Part time work. Seasonal work. Contract work. Temporary work. I need to work. Work work. I have to work. Summer job. Work work work.I will find work. I will be working. I need a nice summer job. I have to work. Work. Work. Work. I need work. I must work. I want a job. I will work. Work is coming. I must find work. I will find work. I want a nice summer job. I have work. I have found work. Work is looking for me. I am looking for a nice summer job.

Like a sour lemon sweet

Besides the transport I am complaining about... the weather being far too hot on some days... everything being so expensive...

This experience is like having a sour lemon sweet. Everything is so sour at the initial moment, it makes you wanting to pull your own hair, shutting your eyes and squeezing those tears at the corner of the eyes. That thrill of sourness however will only be this long - short-termed.

Once that is over, the sweet part lingers and it really feels wonderful. I am thinking I am really taking it easy now, a little more optimistic than I have expected myself to be.

Jobs are coming in really slow, I am beginning to lose a bit of hope every sunny day that passed by. I need a job, a summer job, a lousy job, a job that pays enough to let me survive till autumn... I have to say I am trying very hard, already!

Someone needs to pray for me...

Oyster sucks

I hate the london transport, I seriously hate it. It's horrible. Expensive, delays and not organized. Oyster is a very clever invention and I wish I can ask that person who invented it to "eat shit", yes, it's that stupid. I had this incident today where I used my oyster pre-pay (just like ez-link in Singapore), I alighted at the station, switched another train home... Upon alighting, there is no machine at the exit for me to tap my oyster card - IT IS NOT I AM AVOIDING TO TAP IT, THEY JUST FUCKING DON'T HAVE ONE AT THIS STATION!! So what now?? I returned home then I read that I have to pay a penalty if I did not tap out! Oh yah right, now it is not my fault, and I literally had to make a trip back to tap that damned card! What did I get? Yeah, a penalty plus waste of time, walking out there to take that damned train back to the next station and tapped it, paid 1/3 more than I should, and then go back home! London transport seriously... shitty!

I can't believe it, I don't like caramel!

UNCANNY CASHEW! You scored 66% SWEET, 81% CHUNKY, and 74% UNIQUE!

sweet cream base with caramel-coated cashew pieces & swirls of caramel What a nutty person you are...with an ice cream flavor to match! But there's more to you than just being crazy and 'out there'...you have a good heart and you can be creative when the mood strikes. You could stand to calm down a bit, but overall, you're a good person to have around.

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender!

Link: The Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Flavor Test written by weered1 on OkCupid Free Online Dating

How I wish for an air-conditioned room "^ ! ^

So hot... Angela is like my weather reporter, she told me it will be 32 degrees today!

Finally, things are turning for the better...

Tax refund for the previous tax year is here, so I'm rich enough to pay my upcoming rent, but... need more to survive :(

The postman has arrived with my long awaiting mobile number!

Yeaaaaa!! We found a room somewhere around the corner. In fact, it's the same area we are putting up for now, but it's nearer to the tube station. £300 per month and in fact it sounds reasonable enough, bundled with cool smoking housemates plus a domestic male cat as the freebie. Actually, the night before we were to get a confirmation about this room, I had a dream. In it, we got the room, each of us has our own double bed and one additional bed for our visiting guests! How great!! Mmmmm... for your information, we will only move next month.

On Saturday, we wore skirts out for shopping in the city, ooooooooo the weather is finally permitting us to wear lesser and lesser! I realized I did not bring much fanciful clothes and bag for the summer - so there, I spent £20. But hey, Angela is the shopaholic, I have no means of stopping her at all. So as long as I can spend within my limit, I feel lucky to buy! I think she might need to hire me as her financial controller ;)

Next for me, a cool summer job and some traveling will do... *crossed my finger*