Let it snow, let it snow...

But let me go over, let me go over too...

The sight of Europe covered in white is so beautiful, but unfortunately not at all advantageous for the commuters. With flights cancelled and delayed for days, and the airports transformed into campsites, it doesn't sound at all exciting. Trains broke down, people trapped. Road blocked and cars abandoned. I hope my friend is able to fly back in two weeks' time without any hassle and I am able to make my trip there in a month's time! Snow, how can I not love you and hate you at the same time?

it is from the trivial we find significant comfort in our life -- potatoe

Just a list of random words, names, places, etc that reminds me of my days in UK/Europe...

Pretzels baked with cheese. Felix. Old witch. Christmas market. Sheeps. Green frog. Snow shower. Summer. Autumn. Wise guys. Becks Lemon. The dark mirror. Adidas. Nazi. Grey wild rabbits. German language course. Ducks feeding. Rum ball. DVDs. Hot bath. Accessorize. Marks & Spencer. H&M. Lush! Thai curries. Carrot cake. Der Harz. Emma. Richard. My baby, Tommy. Edinburgh. Nature. Ireland. Guinness. Wild in Scotland. Nakis. Rubber boots. Nellie. Italy. Venice. Masks parade. Angela. Ryan air. Bahn. Marcus. Riyaad. Phantom of the Opera. Misato. Four seasons duck rice. River Rhine. Thomas. Sheng Liang. Chrispin. Eurotunnel. Ferry. York. Ghostwalk. Squirrels. Loch ness. Coral beach. Winter. Gluehwein. Nils. Bedtime donald duck comics. Ananas. Housemates. Ealing Broadway. British farm. Taschen. Latte. Flea market. Maoz falafel. Gaudi. Swedish. BCN Backpacker. Popeye. Lindt chocolate. Musical box. Kinder Surprise. Homework. Design. St Christopher's Inn. Mueller drinks. My heart pillow. Netto. Morrisons. Cherry brandy. My easter bunny, Anna. Sale. Sisley. Pizza. Tomato soup. Mensa. MSN. Tugba. Pig-faced snow. Snowman. Bicycle hunting. Brokeback mountain. Alex & Ian. British airway. Glamour. Cosmopolitan. Sudoku. Metro. London underground. Oyster. Crazy Glyn. Harrods. Little James. Weetabix. Kensington. Covent Garden. George. Coldplay concert. Whittard. Orange. Soho. Potatoes.

Italians.... best of them all

My stay in Milan is coming to an end... I'm still enjoying my resort-holiday-style living in Anson's hotel. Thanks to Syndy, that Anson is now also our friend, so we can enjoy such privileges. It's such a pity I missed the FREE Alegria performance, because we spent that fateful night in Venice. So... no regrets at all!

Let's talk about Milan! Or rather Italy. It is a very "rich" country and I feel so much that these italians are people very proud of their own food, culture and language. Italian is a beautiful language, so much as the italians as well... italian men are good looking - really. The people here are so approachable than anywhere else I have been to. The moment I stepped into this country, I already sense how these people are into their own country!! Something which I really like about them.

Milan itself is just a huge shopping paradise, packed with tourists coming for Cartier, LV, Prada, D&G, Armani... You name it all, it's all down the streets. I am not fascinated about the branded as much as my friends are... not even window shopping, because I wonder if I will have that luxury life to carry a few of these brands in my hand!! However, the visit to Duomo and the famous Opera house, Theatre Alla Scala, was interesting... I didn't go for the well-known "Last Supper" though. Instead I found an antique market that is held every last Sunday of the month, it was good atmosphere and really showed me the non-tourist place of Milan! I like it!

I followed the locals queueing for an italian speciality, later on one guy (some acquaintances) told me it's called "Florence meat". My friends were in Florence while I was alone eating Florence meat in Milan - how irony! Anyway I didn't join them due to my limited time left in the country, was a pity but it wasn't bad to spend time alone, I kind of miss walking about on my own.

Next, I shall introduce you to Venice! It is the most romantic place in the world, someone said so. It didn't strike me hard till I arrived there. Venice is a city surrounded by water, how magnificent can it be... One has to travel by what they called the boat taxi, transport isn't the cheapest thing. But you really got to pay a price to visit Venice, and it will forever remain in your memory. My friends were all saying it was simply too unbelievable - like a dream.

We were there 2 days 1 night, a little short but enough to make us yearning to be back again! It was a shame as all hotels were fully booked, else we would be there for 3 days!! It was the perfect timing, when the Mask Carnival was going on (it still is, till coming Tuesday!!)... We witnessed the mask parade, snapped too many pictures, to be honest we can never finish shooting... just too many. Not forgetting, we got our own masks as well!! The architecture in Venice, I call them elegant. At night, you see those buildings lighting up by the water... oooooohhhh.... ;)

We went to infamous Basilica and the clock tower, both are great. Up the tower, you get such a paranomic view of everything, the only shortcoming is that it was freezing up there!! We also found a good Pizza restaurant, made a chinese friend whom lunched with us. San Marco is where everything is happening, but believe me, venture into the less touristy places, you get much more, like Rialto, Campo S. Polo and Campo S. Margherita...


It was a short trip but definitely worth so much more in my heart ;) A hug from an italian man, an awesome time in Venice, a good time with my friends, a lovely stay in the hotel, a wicked time tasting some italian food, need I say more...??

Little netherlands - Eindhoven

Only been there a couple of hours... in the citycentre. It really reminds me of Cologne, the shopping districts I meant. Eindhoven has a funky airport, small but pretty. I didn't feel it has a lot to offer but perhaps its just like every small town with their own characteristic and flavour. But Netherlands really gives one a good feeling, relaxed country to be in!

Soak in it - Barcelona has it all***

Coming next, Barcelona was superb...

Name it, it has it all. Culture, yummy food, Gaudi architecture, the right atmosphere, lovely beach, affordable shopping, good weather, efficient transport... So far, I haven't got a complaint. Even map-reading for me is easy, remember girls are supposed to be bad at map-reading! It might be the "squares" plan of the city, it makes things a lot easier, street names a lot simpler.

Oh, perhaps one thing... nothing is almost free in Barcelona. It is a "clever" money-making city, it makes money out of anything. A few visits to the Gaudi building can certainly burn a hole in your pocket, probably a free and fantastic option is Park Guell. We were/I was in the Park Guell, Sagrada Familia, La Pedrera (Casa Mila), Barcelona FC Museum, walked down Las Ramblas... watched the Magic Fountain of Montjuic, been to the Port Vell and across to Maremagnum shopping mall, happened to visit church Santa Maria del Mar when there was an ongoing service. We also walked about a lot of places, to the former Olympic Stadium (but didn't get to go in), near Picasso Museum, along Placa de Catalunya to Passeig de Gràcia and up Avenue diagonal... I love the shopping street in Passeig de Gràcia, even though I didn't get anything there. El born is my favourite area, where the Picasso Museum is situated, or the gothic area as well. It is mostly lined up with stylish restaurants and pubs.

I was at Icària beach (they have a total of 4 beaches), wasn't a long stay due to the short daylight. However they have some pretty shells, calm sea and some pretty sight. I bet in summer it will be a blast!

For accomodation, I should say we had the finest picks. The hostel I booked was fabulous, its location and atmosphere and the really cheap prices made it all worth. It was just 3 nights we stayed at Backpacker BCN before we moved to my next selected choice, Hostal Central. It was almost like a hotel with free towels, sink in the room and a neat double bed. The room looks very sweet, the hostal has friendly service, it is really a bargain for its quality and location.

Day trip 1: Figueres -- Dali Museum
A short train away, Dali Museum certainly is worth the hour of travelling. I read even though it does not contain Dali's best works, but they featured most of the works he had created when he first started off or made him popular. It is situated in this town, Figueres, where Dali used to be for a while, it certainly has its own character and we were at a mid-day market.

Day trip 2: Montserrat
Montserrat is slightly more difficult to get to, with the train timing at every half or an hour. We didn't realise the Cable car to the mountain wasn't working (what a luck, just began the maintenance work the day we embarked). So we had to wait for an hour for the next train to get to the next station where we can take a train up to Montserrat. Up there you can visit the Monastery or its museum, go for an audio-visual show, take two different funicular rides up or down the mountain, do a bit of trekking and walking in the nature which is very relaxing but tense if you're rushing for time. It has short visiting hours in Winter, I think it has more than a day's worth of visit if you are really into "a spiritual place" and nature.

To sum it up, even a heart-broken person like me can enjoy Barcelona, it really says something about it... doesn't it!!

Zuuuuurich

Despite being infamous for bringing me bad memories... I am still going to talk about this place, Zurich.

There is nothing spectacular about this city. A lot like London because of its comsopolitanism, something good about getting around is most of them speak or understand English. Well, German is still the main language there but doesn't give you a problem if you do not speak the language.

The museums aren't the most interesting things about in the city, but the Zurich Pass does make a lot worth. The boat trip around Lake Zurich is cool, I recommend that. A trip up to Uetliberg gives a fantastic view, you can even sit and watch the alps - which you probably only see on a "The Alps" Calendar. There is the chocolate factory that produces Lindt chocolate, for those whom are obsessed by Charlie & the Chocolate Factory! Sadly, there is no visit allowed in the chocolate-making factory, all you can do is to shop at its Lindt's chocolate warehouse.

Food is incredibly expensive, shopping is extensive but only for the rich, weather is extremely cold, city is safe and people are quite helpful... Visit it because it's famous but not to expect something extraordinary or romantic.

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 ;)

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 -----

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.

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***

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 ;)

Hamburg... hamburger... hamburg

Yeaa...

After what seemed like a day long of traveling, the plane finally landed its 'ass' on the runway. I'm in Germany, a new place I have never been to, Hamburg. The plane from Heathrow departed really late and it was really bad. How can so many planes be delayed?? How can they just take off from one runaway!! They must be making lot of money from a single runway (at one termainal) packed with countless number of flights.

Hamburg airport was at least more impressive!

Flo and I had a small tour of Hamburg city, to me, it is less exciting than Berlin and almost like Frankfurt. At the same time, it reminds me of Amsterdam somehow - the river cruise and buildings. Oh but we must have missed a lot, because it's not a weekend. No extra busy night-life, no morning wet market, and of course there should be a nice harbour view from this city which resides by the sea. However... however, I'm too exhausted to enjoy, oh well, we did have an ice-cream - nice in warm spring! We went to the famous red-lights district (Reeperbahn), Amsterdam is still more advanced ;)

Okay, another 3 hours drive back home... arghhh.

Oh boring oh...

What can I say about Frankfurt, just a financial city... To be frank, I didn't see much in an evening, looks boring, feels boring... Just nice cosy places to eat/drink maybe - at least the ones we been to.

Posh and Proud

This is how I would describe Paris and its Parisians.

I didn't have a good impression of the French and visiting Paris hasn't left me a better impression. One of my friends was agreeing with me,"Paris will be beautiful if only the French weren't there..."

Eiffel tower was one of the best things Paris is magnificient for. We visited at night, shivery at the top of the tower, it can be quite an experience!! I wasn't interested in its history, I didn't think Paris was romantic, I didn't think the French were nice. That somehow sums it all. France again for me??? I'll think twice.

It was a little like London. But museums in London are mostly free, british are friendlier (at least they speak English, the French just pretend not to understand), they sell baguettes everywhere instead of fish and chips. Many parts of Paris are actually too touristic, too many fancy restaurants and cafes, too many blacks residing, uneconomical transport system that still uses paper tickets... They still have some nice shops and classy clothes, I just didn't get around to do any shopping this time!

We paid Musée du Louvre a visit, it was like British Museum, so it wasn't fascinating! The pyramids (La pyramide) were more interesting, and make great pictures :) Biggest museum in the world?! Oh well, a tour on the exterior will do I reckon unless of course you are there for Mona Lisa portrait (which I'm not). But I wanted to visit a decent museum at least.

One thing I do really like is PAUL Pâtisserie. I can't seem to get enough of their melting chocolate cake -- bottom of page. That probably is the only thing I miss about Paris! He he he...

Red-lights Amsterdam

No one wants to see its Heineken brewery, even the windmill tour package seems so commercial. At least I saw the windmills nonetheless. We stayed with Bulldog Hostel right in the middle of the red-lights district area. Walk down an alley with all the skimpy dressed chicks posing in their glass cabins, you could almost imagine what would happen next. Sex shops are at every corner, museums claiming about sex and erotica lined along the street, souvenir shops filled with wooden clogs - if you are to ask me what I've seen.

Besides its legal to smoke pots (or etc), its infamous porn industry, postcards with explicit illustration, some scary strangers whom stopped you in the way and asked for money; Amsterdam is a rather chilled out city.

If you didn't know this, this is what the guide explained, Holland is a state (just like England) but Amsterdam (just like London) is the city. Netherlands means "Flat land". All the land/houses are built under sea level, they have countless canals (what they are again famous for) and dams to keep the water back. So visit the city before one day the sea is going to drown this "underground" land.

I'm starting to love history, I never liked it anyway. We visited Anne Frank Museum, a house which has simply bewitched me. It tells of the second world war and how the Jews has suffered. The real encounter and diary of this Jewish girl (whom died at 15) has since moved the world with her writing. The house which the family hid during the war is now the Anne Frank Museum, named after her. Just like how I knew about the history of Germany before the east and west came together in 1990, and how they were imprisoned in their home country and restricted to travel. Now I'm being to love things you came to learn about when you move about...

What I <3 about Holland/Amsterdam:
Nice small shops
Farm houses (out of Amsterdam)
Beautifully painted clogs
Sex shops (look at the toys!) plus their sex humor
Canal cruise
Heineken beer
Maoz falafel

Something interesting, "Coffeeshop" in Amsterdam are for drugs, unlike Singapore's coffeeshop! Oh, "Magic mushroom" are drugs!

No windmills, no tulips, no big flower garden

Just a Heineken brewery and maybe the canals, yea Holland, here I come. Even though all the best things might be in Rotterdam, I've chosen the usual popular Amsterdam. Sometimes in life, the better thing is just not in the limelight! Then again, I do get to see the Eiffel Tower soon too - oh romantic paris... :)

Happy holidays to me, I will be back to update you guys again!