new year's eve

And i wonder, what 2010 has in store.

Dear God, what do you have in store for 2010?

Prague - the lonely city; Vienna - velvet warmth; Berlin - the city for discovery and the unknown.

The past two weeks have flown by way too quickly, and i found myself back on Singapore soil at 3pm this afternoon. It was a good flight, the first ever where i spent most of the time unconscious (hopefully looking not too hideous) catching up on the sleep debt which i've accumulated throughout the trip. Eastern Europe was a lovely place. Cold, but gorgeous. All three cities were unique and attractive in three distinct ways which made my holiday a truly fulfilling one.

Prague is a lonely place. It is pretty, but its beautiful gothic architecture and yellowed walls seem almost to sigh with mourning of past sufferings the city has been through. I liked the huge astrological clock in the Old Town Square. All around were Christmas markets and a massive Christmas tree, with haunting bagpipe music floating about amidst the thick falling snow. I love the massive sausages you get in Eastern Europe. They are sinfully juicy and on a cold night they cannot get any better when doused with ketchup and mustard. We had roasted sugar nuts as well, it was pleasantly enjoyable strolling about the cobbled streets munching on the nuts, pausing every moment or so to snap a photo with our frozen fingers. On the second night there was a massive pillowfight at the clock. I still feel like kicking myself for missing it. We arrived to see the aftermath and people kicking at dying pillows feebly or tossing feathers at each other.

The Prague Castle was huge with sprawling grounds, but it didn't appeal much to me. Perhaps it was because we traipsed about during unbearable weather which made my toes burn and my fingers numb. The snow made everything seem cold and imposing instead of the ho-ho-ho winter wonderland feel you're get in Home Alone or Love Actually.

spot the snowflakes!

We had a nasty scrap with the law in Prague. In a moment of dishonour, we decided to skip out on buying train tickets and had a glorious day or two blending in with the rest of the ticket-buying crowd. Much unfortunately we ended up being stopped by three burly police officers with faces like dinosaur lizards who demanded to see your tickets. We babbled for a good ten minutes or so in Chinese trying to look gormless and pathetic but after they escorted us up to the station's notice boards and threatened to haul us down to the police station we whipped out our wallets and paid meekly.

And Czech food- not quite my cup of tea. Prague is famous for these dumpling things which are universes away from hargao or siewmai or shuigao. They are something between squishy bread and a lump of potato and i suppose they make up the carbo staple in the meal.

One thing i did love about the place, was the multitude of church history and art scattered about the city. The random old cathedrals, the rusty old statues, and the tale of the statue of Mother Mary which came to life and locked a thief's hand in a death grip. His arm was later sawed off and is currently hanging at the back of the church, looking like an eerie shriveled creepy old worm.

To be continued.

home, is love

Yet another post at an ungodly hour, i blame the two cups of coffee i had today. I spent the last few hours budgeting my finances for my upcoming holidays and checking my bank statements carefully after hearing in recent days stories of credit card fraud and with B's mini-lecture today on Banking Law.

I am feeling my first pangs of homesickness. V's mom threw me a farewell/Christmas dinner which included turkey and sausages, and her freshly made (all ingredients) mango pomelo dessert. She gave me the warmest Pashmina in my favourite colour and told me to keep warm from the cold. My youngest brother has been following me about the house, tugging on my arm to ask me when i'd be back and when we should set up Skype dates. I wonder if i'd ever be able to completely free myself from the apron strings of my parents and siblings, when they've been wrapped so particularly tight about my heart.

sexyback

you drug my world

Erugh. I get these random headaches throughout the day which i attribute solely to the lack of caffeine in my bloodstream after my daily diet of 2-3 cups for the past 2 months or so. I'm starting to worry for my health. My mom spent twenty minutes reading aloud from some health magazine about the qi and yang and other TCM mambojambo which was essentially about how i'd be plagued with illnesses if i continued showering in the early hours of the morning and sleeping at unearthly hours. Each time i try to re-adjust into a healthy sleep cycle it always ends up lapsing into my twilight ways. I like the night. It's peaceful, serene, cool.

Must. fight. the. addiction.

Plastic Jungles

My laptop is fixed and my fingers are hungrily punching away at its keyboard once again. I. have. so. many. things. to do. But yet i keep procrastinating and feeling lazy or kicking everything aside to have fun. My suitcase is open in a corner of my room, with piles of clothes and winter wear overflowing at its sides, all waiting to be sorted through and folded and packed neatly into my bag. My exchange documents are all on my desk, where i'm supposed to be figuring out how to transfer my finances over and to confirm my housing. It's all boring tiresome administrative work, all which i should start getting used to if i am to survive for the next semester by myself in cold Canada. I take pleasure in striking off the tasks that i have accomplished off my to-do list. I have finally gotten myself the H1N1 jab. As usual i freaked out upon seeing the needle and M had to hold my hand and talk to me as i whimpered like the frightened goose i was. It's been two days and i've yet to fall sick, though my lymph nodes were feeling swollen and tender this afternoon. I should probably not be awake at 4a.m.

It feels almost surreal when i think of how i'll be in London this Sunday morning. And what better way to start off the Eurotrip than with mass- A is taking me to a little parish with an amazing choir ('They are like something straight out of Sister Act!')-, i'll be needing loads of prayers with all the hidden dangers that may lay ahead in Eastern Europe.

mixtape

My laptop has crashed, after weeks of flickering weakly and whirring of the oddest loudest sounds. I'm feeling the magnitude of my immense dependence on my laptop. I can only thank myself for backing up all my precious files before it all disappeared into virtual oblivion.

I feel like time is running out. I've limited days left and there's so many things to do, so many people left to see. At the same time it's made me discover what my heart ranks in priority of importance. Some of it has surprised me, some have let me down. A part of me has actually started to miss home, which i know doesn't make sense, since i'm obviously still here. The Christmas lights and decorations are up all around town, though most of it looks kind of strange. There's a section with strange-looking snowmen, which used to look pleasant to me until M pointed out that they had feet and ever since then they appeared strange because, snowmen aren't supposed to have feet. The next section is covered in the campiest reindeers i've ever seen. They look male but are decked out in bright red lipstick and high heels and garishly colourful handbags. Not exactly Christmas warmth when Santa's animals are looking like fruitcakes and snowmen have grown extra limbs. Our Christmas tree under our altar makes me sad that i won't be around for Christmas this year. Christmas is one of the biggest events for my family each year. Celebrations are often spread out over a couple of days, with tons of feasts and family reunions and joy and love and laughter all around. Midnight mass is undoubtedly the highlight, where the church is packed to the brim with everyone dressed up to welcome Christmas, the birth of Jesus. This year i will be spending Christmas in London, and for the first time in memory, away from my family.

Today we planned a surprise birthday for FB. It didn't exactly go according to plan due to one drunk friend who let the entire litter of kitties out of the bag, but it turned out to be quite the exciting night, when we spotted this police raid a couple of units away. Like typical Singaporeans, we rushed over to see a huge crowd of plain-clothes policemen brandishing their batons and plastic shields trying to force a door open. All around were fellow kaypoh viewers craning their necks and shifting viewing locations as the action unfolded. There were yells and a lot of movement, with extra policemen arriving as the minutes went by, and even an ambulance pulling up to unload a stretcher and some other complicated-looking medical equipment. We were speculating wildly while the action went on, from theories of mass orgies to druggies. It turned out to be an illegal gambling den, which was a lot less exciting than what it all looked like.

I am getting my H1N1 jabs tomorrow, i hope i don't fall terribly ill. I can't believe i'm leaving next Saturday. London, Eastern Europe, then Canada and the States. I am ready to take on the world.

i'll come out when the war is over

This space has been empty for awhile. I was too busy with exams, and then now too lazy to do anything. I've been toying with this idea of locking up this blog, writing has become a chore when i have to pause every two sentences to think about whether i should censor myself.

Teletubbies are Sorry (Sorry)

OMG. This nearly killed me.