=Journey of Self Discovery=

XMAS & New Yr Celebration

2007-01-29T10:23:00.000Z

After such a long period of absence, im finally back again! ahaha... just to recap what happened in the past 12 weeks... I will be going to Spain in 4hrs time.. i hope i can finish as much as possible... ok here it is...

Steph, Wenying, Me, JL in steph's room during xmas...

This is an entry regarding the first xmas and new yr celebration that I experienced in London.. hahah it's entirely different compared to those I had in previous yrs.. When I came back from France, I spent the next 10 days doing project.. What really kept me going at that time was the show @One Litre of Tears@.. It has become a rountine to watch at least two episodes a day.. i woke up at 9.30 am everyday and I would bring my breakfast to my room so that I could eat and watch simultaneously in a bid to save some time... and I would sleep at 2am... usually i will treat myself to one more episode as a form of reward for a day's hard work.. This was the kind of life I was leading for the second wk of my holidays in dec...What a twist!! good workout! hahah... sweating like mad!

It can get a bit depressing to stay in ur small confined area(room) for the whole day working on the project... staring at the lappy 's screen for long hrs was qutie sianz too.. whenever I feel like giving up, one litre of tears never failed to lift my spirits up.. it made me realise life is just more than a rat race.. the female lead was determined to strive on despite her illness and she inspired so many others around her.. including me.. ok, i did drop some tears from the 6th episode onwards.. the story plot together with the background music provided the perfect ingredients for watery eyes.. ahha but im sure i manage to influence MANY others to watch the show too!

hhaha the dog is so so cute!

During XMAS, LONDON was so DEAD!!! hahah.. everyone stayed at home.. and refused to come out.. well, there was no tube services... and very few bus services too.. it was terrible.. now i believe what wenying said... she warned me that londoners spend xmas at home with their families... and no restaurant will be opened on that day.. in fact even on 26th dec, not all the shops were opened yet.. true enough.. sigh.. on 25th... i was so hungry.. so i decided to order pizza.. i searched through the entire net for a list of pizza delivery companies.. i called them one by one.. nobody answered!!! went to the nearby restaurants.... none was opened too! so in the end i had to settle for milo and discuits.. how pathetic!! BUT xmas was fun in the hall.. haha we had gift exchange and i got a manchester keychain and mug from wenying.. a mug from steph... so now, i have a lot of mugs in my room.. haha.. i bought darts for steph.. so that she can vent her anger on it whenever her mood swings are in activation.. haha.. we played twister and articulate.... ya lah.. in the end, my body almost got twisted.. haha getting old.. what a test of flexibility after the army days.. for articulate, we had to describe to our team member what was the word/phrase that we were trying to convey.. quite hilarious.. with all the funny expressions and ways of describing those words..

Having XMAS hats add spice to the celebration!

London had incredible sales after xmas.. esp on boxing day.. 26th dec.. hahah the streets were so packed with shoppers!! and ya... the girls were so enthu about it... hahah i managed to buy xmas presents for each of my family memeber and yingyan.. i hope all of them like the presents.. erm.. i bought chocolates for my dad.. a handbag for my mum.. oh this is damn funny.. i went to the handbag section, and this old lady came to me to tell me that it doesn't suit me when i was choosing a handbag *faint*... haha.. i bought nike shorts for my sister... and a cute tiger soft toy from Hamleys.. haha it's a famous toy shop in London.. when i bought it, the salesgirl at the counter was stroking it and said it was so cute.. hahah.. and for dearie, i bought a pair of table tennis bats.. with special additions inside..

I was in HAMLEYS!!

Counting down to year 2007 was a traumatizing experience.. Jien Loong, Steph and I went to London Eye to countdown with the rest of the londoners... it was so packed...to the extent where pushing and shoving become part of the skill that we had to acquire.. everyone was so HIGH when the clock struck 0000hrs.. the fireworks were awesome.. but i must stress again that the crowd size was horrible.. lots of pushing here and there.. and i think steph was molested several times.. but Jl didn't seem to mind being touched all over.. haha.. i hope all our new yr resolution will come true.. well, ppl were shouting on the streets.. the police were merely there to remind the crowd that rules and regulation still prevail.. and they were just blocking out certain roads and lanes.. other than that, the crowd was allowed to do whatever they want.. some even climbed up the lamp post, with the rest surrounding him.. some climbed onto the bus stops.. dunno for what.. but i guess when ppl are feeling high, they dun even know what they are doing.. haha of course, we were still sober.. had a hard time squeezing ... and i treated the two of them to ice-cream and chips after we managed to find some breathing space.. haha.. well.. it's just like rioting.. i think if the crowd turn wild, the police won't be able to handle all of them.. i dun think i will join a new yr countdown/celebration in London again... it's just so.. erm.. TERRIBLE.. HAHAH ....

After Shen Onn came back from Singapore, we decided to tour London before the start of spring term .. haha this time round, we went to London Bridge(again!) and from there onwards, we walked and visited several places of interest before walking all the way back to hall.. actually, london isn't that big lah.. hahah everything seems to be within walkable distance after our tiring day trip... well, i think it's a great outing! haha we seldom have the chance to go out together.. we visited Tate Modern.. ok, i must admit i dunno how to appreciate arts.. coz i think any junk can also be put inside for exhibition.. maybe my torn converse shoes can do the job too.. haha.. i think we had the most fun inside... playing with the tunnel.. i also went to the BIG BEN and the parliament house.. and this is when i realise that i have put on weight! i look so chubby in the photos.. can't imagine that happening.. i looked fat lah.. wah piangz... how can that be right? and somehow wenying's weighing machine showed that i was indeed erm.. xx kg... i put on a whopping 5 kg!!! what the BEEP... hahha... oh ya.. i also managed to find the statue of Faraday.. sigh.. During college days, i used to be writing "According to FARADAY's law.. " blah blah blah.. why do u wan to make our lives so miserablE with all ur laws.. haha..

The "tunnel" at the back was our playground in Tate Modern

My future household mate!

Bang!!!!!

Bear all these in mind!

UNCLE FARADAY.... hahaha.. presenting to u!!

Collage of our London outing

Yeah.. only the four of us went!

Look at me!!! SO CHUBBY!!! OH MY GOD!

hmm.. i suddenly cannot rem what happend after that... hmm.. let's not talk about sch stuff here.. but a lot of ppl turned up with dyed hair.. different hairstyles.. blah blah.. ahha oh ya.. a lot of Singaporeans got attached after 1st Jan... haha.. somehow they went to countdown together.. and as they were counting down.. knots were tied.. and they were together!! hahah.. for one period of time, we were simply in love with Haagen-Dazs.. we bought several tubs.. so cheap.. 2 for 5 pounds.. haha just buy loh.. but i rem we fell sick after eating the ice cream.. sore throat.. and JL was the first one to get it.. i think we really had a lot of fun back then.. playing lame beer games.. testing the knee jerk reaction... and slapping each other's hands.. hahah.. so violent.. but.. it's really great to have such a great bunch of hall mates around.. Through them, i get to know a lot of more ppl too.. like sanny... rebecca.. eddie... blah blah...

Whose hands were the most red? hahah none other than JL's... mine is the one with the veins protruding.. hahah

Sanny.. I know her through Wenying.. She is from Warwick UNi..

Let's our powers combine!! we are captain planet!! hahah..

On Valentine's day, i bought a necklace from Swarvoski for Yingyan.. i think i managed to catch her totally off guarded... hahah luckily u like it a lot! ok lah, no date for V day in London this year.. hahah... i rem having dinner in hall that night with my hall mates.. and not a lot of ppl were present then.. those who were around were probably the lonely souls for that night! haha.. i think the following equation V Day=Friendship Day originates from Singapore and Malaysia.. nobody here seems to agree with me on the equation.. but it's really how we celebrated it back in VJC leh!!! ... JL, u better read this!!! ahhaha actually shopping for a v day present is quite fun.. initially i wanted to buy a pair of watches from SWATCH.. but somehow their design for V day was so SCREWED and WEIRD! i managed to buy two Zara shirts along the way.. at 12 pounds per piece.. hahah what a good bargain...

Necklace for Yingyan!

Ticket to FA CUP match

I think the next most impt even is the trip to MANCHESTER... u know, i have never thought that i would be able to stand in front of Old Trafford and be in the stadium to see how my favourite team play.. and of course along with the rest of the stars such as rooney, ronaldo, neville, rio, scholes and most importantly giggs!! .... i went with ben and terrence.. it was such a pleasant trip to Manchester.. along the way, we heard that ronaldo would not be featuring as he was given an extended break by fergi.. we were so disappointed.. couldn't see him in action.. with the dazzling dribbles... it was a 5hrs bus ride there.. haha actually we were quite silly.. paying for the coach ride there.. watch a match and come back to London... but still, it was a worthwhile trip.. to see MAN U live!! everytime when u read match report.. the words "old trafford" always appears and u will somehow start to dream about sitting in the stadium, cheering and shouting with the rest of the supporters... yes, it's a dream that come true for me...Manchester was much colder than london.. aiyar, dunno why london is protected with a firewall.. it doesn't snow as frequent as the other cities... taking a tram ride in manchester is erm... a brand new kind of experience... why? because u dun really have to pay for the ride.. commuters are reminded to buy tickets... BUT nobody is checking after u alight.. so basically it works mainly on a trust system with the manchester citizens..

Security was so tight.. hahah imagine 75000 ppl rushing to watch the match.. the roads nearby Old Trafford were closed.. police patrolling on horses were seen everywhere.. so u could expect to see horse faeces all over the place too... we were so excited when we were outside the stadium.. haha... the match was between MAN U and PORTSMOUTH for FA CUP.. didn't manage to see Fergi in real person... but as for the other players, i managed to catch a glimpse of them.. and to see them in action, wow!!! esp carrick.. i like the way he run.. haha.. and vidic.. i think he is the most handsome in the team... we were quite noobs initially coz we didn't know what to cheer.. there was a special cheer for solksjaer. rooney was on the bench... until the 70th min when everyone was chanting for his name, he came on... and scored two sensational goals.. incredible!! haha the whole stadium ERUPTED!! .... of course i shouted too... but i knew ben was a bit stunned when rooney scored the 2nd goal by chipping over david james... awesome!! what a night to rem.. we had dinner at the KFC opposite the stadium hoping for the team to appear.. hahah but i was just being naive lah.. they earned so much every week.. why would they settle for KFC... after e match, i had the urge to buy the whole set of jersey from the megastore but it was certainly overpriced.. but i wonder why so many ppl were still willing to pay for it.. hahah... consumers' irrationality..

Towards the end of the term, I received news that my maths teacher in DHS had passed away...I was shell shocked.. Ms Chan was merely in her early 40s... and i rem 6 yrs ago, when i was still in DHS, she was such a dedicated teacher... she came to work even when she felt sick.. she was always so concerned with 4F and although we (4J) was her better class, she didn't really show favourtisim.. if not for her, probably i won't be who i am today too... even though she wasn't our form teacher, she treated us like her form class... yes, she was the Maths HOD... i couldn't really accept that news when I heard from Yingyan... why must this happen to her? Her fighting spirit was evident even when she was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer.. she continued to go to work... the doc said she only had 6 mths left.. BUT she went on to live for the next 18 mths... Ms Chan, u have my utmost respect! *SALUTE*.... and in the end, she didn't lose the battle to cancer... but pneumonia instead.. what a great loss to Singapore education system...none of us was aware of her illness and it was indeed saddening... if only we oculd see her for the last time.. i suddenly feel that life is indeed very fragile.. actually i think the cliche "live life to the fullest" is not really true and complete... "live with no regrets" shld be a more comprehensive version... yes, there is a fine line between these two.. as we grow older, i think this kind of news will become more common and it's impt to be able to take it in our strides.. life and death are predestined.. we won't know what is going to happen next ... so.. treasure everything that we have now.. esp the loved ones around us... i promise myself that i will make a trip to DHS and VJC.... to thank all my teachers once again.. really, without them, we won't be what we are today.. we owe a lot a lot to our teachers.. even if he/she is not a good one, no matter what, they are still worthy of our respect... because i know we will definitely learn sth from each and every one of them in one way or another... Ms Chan, you will always be fondly remembered by all of us!

Immediately after this news, i went for a victorian gathering in UNiversity college london... it was then that i broke the news to several ex dunmanians... everyone was upset about it... ya... anyway the gathering was a great initiative by the VINE (Victorians in Europe) committee.. i think it was a great afternoon and it was very very nostalgic looking at video clips of vjc... brings all of us back to our college days.. my batch started with 02Sxx... now it's alr 07sxx... it's really nice to see victorians in UK coming together for a short afternoon session... we had a lot of fun... had a quiz.. hahah with the MAYO uncle story... and we realised that those batches after the 1985 batch created many video clips... that were both hilarious and ridiculous.. i was pleasantly surprised to see how the PE teachers were bring conned and tricked... and Mrs Chan even appeared in one of the clips as a secret agent.. hahah.. so funny... the food was good too.. haha fantastic lah.. coz it was sponsored by KIASU restaurant... had mass dances after that... wah lau.. cannot dance anymore lah... Max and the rest of the councillors could still rem the dance steps.. *applause*... after the event, the guys came to my hall to drink and chill out... great evening!

Oh ya... winter should have ended.. but somehow london snowed twice recently.. so screwed! the weather is so weird... and when it snows in London, be prepared for a lot of problems in transportation... the tube services will suffer from severe delay.. actually it's still ok coz i can choose to pon sch... BUT ... it is so cold... what the BEEP>... hahah...

i shall stop here for now.. stay tuned for how we celebrate chinese new year and birthday updates.. it is the best birthday ever in my life!...

Turbulent week + ski trip

2007-01-22T02:16:00.000Z

I had had so much disappointment in this week... Things took a change since last sunday and from there onwards, I just found myself falling non-stop and now I need to pick myself up again.. Im glad there is a dip because i know it will provide the impetus for me to bounce back and I will CERTAINLY come back STRONGER.. Though Im still at negative gradient region, I will strive to change the tangent into a positive one.. hahah.. ok since i can afford a smile here, it means that im still alright.. yeah, i will stay strong.. dun worry... i think i will start to be complacent and take things for granted if life is too smooth sailing.. so all that happened this week proves to be a wake up call for me..

Ziyang, Terrence, Lipen ,Ben, Me!
My DSTA buddies during e ski trip!

The ski lift(chair)... look at the clouds!

It all started on sunday... when i had some relationship problems... and then i received a threatening email from the technical communication tutor who claimed that 10% of the students were guilty of plagiarism in the 1200 words essay that we had written in the previous term.. obviously everyone was taken aback and i went to read my essay several times and did cross reference to all the sources.. she gave an amnesty since this was the 1st essay... those who were caught and didn't own up would suffer from maximum penalty together with a bad record.. this issue kept ringing in my mind for the rest of the week.. until thursday when we were told to collect the essay from the undergraduate office.. i managed to find mine but i did really badly.. I wasn't expecting that kind of score at all.. and after looking through the marking scheme, i was certain that the marker was too strict... yes, i went to look for the tutor to ask for marks... haha.. my sister couldn't believe that i actually did that.. i succeeded in pushing the grade up one level after 40 mins of wartime with her... but still i was disappointed with myself and i know it's time that i am more careful with my words before submission of any piece of work..

Taking a picture against the backdrop; My first time wearing a beanie!

First session of skiing... tired.. taking a rest.. hahah the snow was quite hard!

Ever since the start of this yr, the weather has been blowing hot and cold.. and on one of the weekdays, london's transport came to a standstill.. the wind was so strong that several trees fell and there was damage to public facilities... as a result, the road was severely congested and the tube lines experienced severe delalys.. i almost couldn't get back to hall in time for dinner.. and i was almost blown off the pavement when i was walking on the street!!... and today, it's so cold that the weather station forecast snow rain in the next few days... haha.. my bad luck didn't help in the poker game session with Jien Loong... losing an average of 8 games out of 10...

My ski boards and boots... waiting for the bus to come to send us to the skiing area..

I kept seeing things at night.. in my room to be exact.. yesterday, i saw someone crawling out from the window panel and i felt paralysed.. i couldn't move so i tried to shut my eyes hoping for the best... the next moment when i tried to struggle free, everythin went back to normal... these few days, i couldn't sleep... my usual sleeping pattern is disrupted severely.. i would feel very awake at 2am then in the end i had to read e notes as a form of lullaby... only managed to sleep at 4am... this is so detrimental to my health... and the worse thing is i have been dreaming everyday... there seems to be a dream bug going around...

On the first day, upon arrival... walking around waiting for the resort to be ready..

Yesterday, I watched the heart wrenching man u match against arsenal.. i was so excited prior to the match.. and i was looking forward to it.. when rooney scored, only a few of us celebrated in the bar.. at that very moment, i knew there were a lot of arsenal fans.. but deep down, i was extremely delighted at the goal.. because it would mean that man u can widen the gap from chelsea by 9 pts... when arsenal equalised, the arsenal fans were jumping up and down.. nvm, a draw would suffice... and i think it's quite a fair result.. towards the last 2 minutes, inspirational arsenal captain, henry scored a fine goal with a header.. the guess what? the whole bar ERUPTED!!! the arsenal fans were cheering while ppl like me were shaking our heads in disbelief... yes, that sums up my luck for this week.. and i really believe that im a jinx of man u.. up till now, whenever i watch man u, either they draw or they lose.. and the record stands at 100%.. im going to old trafford in manchester to watch a live match between Man u and Portsmouth this saturday in the showdown for FA cup.. i will be there to ask players like christiano ronaldo to wake up his idea!!

Lap Hang and I at the top of the mountain

Spent the last morning shopping at Zara.. i guessed i was one of the last few to do post-xmas sales shopping.. hahha managed to buy two zara shirts that cost 12 pounds each.. all of us bought sth each and it was quite a fruitful shopping trip.. haha.. somehow i felt happier after the trip.. retail therapy i guess... hmm... Once the inertia is overcome, u will just keep flashing ur debit card.. and the shopping decisions become somewhat irrational.. u just keep buying and buying..

Poor trees....

Beautiful!

About the SKI trip in Les Arcs, France... hahah.. I went skiing in mid December for 8 days.. I actually took a 22hrs coach from London to the southern part of France... my backside and neck was damn painful after the long ride!! haha.. I rem spending the last 45 minutes packing and I left my hall in a hurry, forgetting to chain my laptop.. because i was busy with the project then.. it was the least prepared trip ever.. and not surprisingly, i forgot to bring shampoo there.. haha.. we had to cross the English Channel to get to France and it was really cool.. the entire coach got into the ferry and we could go onboard for a drink/arcade session... We got a bit sea sick after that.. so we went to the top deck..FANTASTIC!!.. . the wind was so strong... but at least it made us feel much better and the dizzy spell dsiappeared... Somehow we didn't need to alight at France's customs.. maybe because we were holding the Singapore passport... hahah it was pretty tiring.. spent the time in the coach sleeping, watching movie, playing cards, eating chips and sleep and sleep...

Look at the clouds! below eye level! It was snowing at night! look at the white spots

Most ppl in France can't speak English.. so it's like a chicken talking to a duck.. it was my first time seeing snow... and the moment we reached the resort, we were snow fighting.. hahah... quite fun actually... but it was extremely cold.. -6 degree celsius.. gloves are an essential item.. since i do not have any roller blading or ice skating experience, i took quite some time to grasp the basic moves and turns... hahah but overall, it was a very positive experience... Since i have acrophobia, getting down a slope esp thsoe steep ones, is a daunting task for e.. haha.. but there is no way else to get down.. so i just had to pluck up my courage and ski down... if not, i would freeze at the top of the mountain!! .. the fun lies in picking and planning our routes and navigating through the various mountains.. great sense of satisfaction when u succeeded in conquering a particular slope...

My group instructors.. having a cup of hot wine!

The life in those 8 days is one of the best moments so far.. we had ski lesson for half a day and then we would go skiing on our own for the other half.. so essentially, we skied the whole day and we would go back to the resort at 5+pm for high tea... played cards... chilled in common room... we had a feast every dinner.. with red wine.. blah blah.. after that , we would drink beer or any hard liquor that we bought... there was no ice available so we had to chill the drinks with the snow.. hahh... and it's not surprising that after all these, i put on 5kg when i came back to London....what a break after one busy term in electrical faculty...

A video of how i skiied...

Our daily drinking session in the room.. CHEERS!!

I fell several times at the initial stage.. it was like learning how to cycle.. hahah.. but it was really fun coming down the slope at fast pace.. and of course the rest were more pro, they dared to take the intermediate slopes towards the last few days.. i think it's better to play safe and do what is within my capability.. so in the end i stick with the beginners slopes.. hahah.. we have heard of sand storm.. how about snow storm? it happened on the last day.. the wind was so strong that the snow started hitting my face.. i had to wear googles then... our instructors brought us to a small restaurant located at one of the chairlift stations to enjoy hot wine.. it was my first time trying hot wine.. not too bad.. hahah apparently, they added oranges too! amazing... and my instructor taught me a few words in french.. which of course were meant to woo girls.. but i cant really rem how to pronounce them now..

Zhonghan, me, zhengyuan, caroline... hahah well.. the last two are a couple now... hahah love sparks were seen during the ski trip!!

We scaled the highest mountain on the 5th day.. the view was breathtaking! at that time, i was a bit scared.. coz i knew i had to ski about 1km in altitude down to our resort... it was really beautiful... with the sun shinning brightly on u... the clouds were underneath our feet... basically we were above the clouds!! We shared the same slopes with those who were ski boarding... their stunts looked more cool though.. haha.. but there were two occasions when they whacked me from behind which ended up in a serious collision... quite painful though.. hahah... the feeling was just like learning how to walk when we were young... walk walk.. fall fall.. learn learn... hahah..never in my life have i felt down so many times before...

hehehehe.. scuba diving??

Somehow when u go to an overseas country, u are more willing to spend and there ia a greater tendency to splurge..for the first time, we shook off the student identity and took on the tourists role.. i bought food at every stopover in France... hahah.. and on the ferry back to London, i spent a lot on breakfast too.. hahah since we were on a holiday, i thought it would be a better idea not to be so frugal... just spend... spend.. when i was taking the ski chair up to the mountain, i wanted to take photos of the scenery.. but... it was so cold that i couldn't even take off my gloves... and at the peak of the mountain, my jaw muscles were quite numb... we had difficult pronouncing our words clearly.. especially with words like 'probably'.. it went like 'pro...bbaaa.... be...".... hahah

Happy Family!! My hair was frozen!!! Snow can be a form of natural gel!!

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Stay tuned for xmas celebration updates...

TOUCHED

2007-01-22T01:56:00.000Z

I can recognise ur handwriting on the parcel!! ahahah.. gotcha Audrey!

This post is specially dedicated to my family.. Thank you so much for the parcel..Once again, I wasn't expecting it at all.. hahah how come i always end up being the last one to know? My sisters had certainly done a good job in keeping me in the dark.. and that includes my mummy too... claiming that they didn't have the mood to celebrate xmas + new yr...

Though it was just a small parcel, in fact it is one size smaller than yingyan's, the postage was twice as expensive... coz my mum had chosen the express delivery option so that i could receive it within the shortest possible time... yes, i was really touched.. When I found the paper saying that I had a parcel for collection in my pigeon hole, I thought it was from DSTA again... I was taken aback when i saw my mum's name on the parcel... it came out of nowhere... haha.. and i knew immediately that they had ganged up to play a trick on me!!! hahah... thanks!!!

I was complaining to my mum that i could not find sugary cream crackers here... those that are available are plain cream crackers and they are too hard for my liking... i like to dip them into MILO... esp when im feeling hungry late at night...i also can't find the type of green tea that we have back in Singapore.. so without me knowing, she sent these items for me.. i merely told them during the weekly webcaming sessions.. and they were actually taking notice of it.. the feeling was ineffable.. i know im still a small kid in mum's eyes.. and she will always be there to take care of me even when im thousands of miles away from her... To Xinting and Audrey, thanx for your cards... and the encouragement... hahah.. Kor Kor is fine here... just that he needs more fats to keep himself warm.. Study hard too ok? I hope the two of you will enjoy your time in NUS and VJC respectively...

Kor Kor will take care of himself here... both of u must take good care of daddy and mummy when im not around ok?

Stay tuned for ski and XMAS celebration photos!! haha.. ya i know.. im lagging behind time again... one + mth late... hahaha

Oxford Trip + MAny many...

2007-01-08T00:39:00.000Z

Phew.. i have been procrastinating to create new entry in my blog because there are just too many things to be updated. Let me go all the way back to yr 2006 Nov and I will try to follow the sequence of events.. haha.. ok currently, i just feel the sudden urge to blog because this shall be my first entry for the yr 2007! and i have a list of new yr resolution... most importantly, i want to be a good student, son, brother and bf.. i think i have done a pretty bad job in the first and last.. haha..

Shan(Steph's bf), Steph, Shen Onn, ME!, Jien Loong, Wenying outside Four Seasons... hahah they sell the best duck rice in London and it's affordable!! ok lah, converting back, it costs around $15 sing ...

I just completed my project one week ago.. it took me a very2 long time to complete coz my other group members were not doing their fair share of work. In the end i did almost 90% of the work. Yes, the workload was supposed to be splitted fairly amongst the five of us.. but in the end only two were working on it.. the rest have been warned!... dun ever think of messing around with me...because of this project, i had to sacrifice my time on other things such as my social life and I knew I had neglected some ppl.. Really sorry.. The moment I clicked "submit", i felt like a prisoner released from the jail. I was so happy after the submission of the project and of course this translated to late night playings for the rest of the week with my hall mates.. I must say I have a bunch of fun loving ppl here.. ppl with different personality.. some like to ask questions... like Jien Loong... some like to argue with me... like Wenying and Shen Onn... some like to emo.. like stephanie... some are full of crazy ideas.. like Jamie.. hahah basically these are the few ppl whom i hang out with in the hall.. and not forgetting Fengyi.. he just came back from Singapore.. well done.. he's the only DSTA peeps from UK who went back during holidays.. haha..

Well, ok where should i start from... anyway i jsut did 50 pumpings... 10 diamond pumpings.. let me side track again.. i put on weight... can u guys believe it? a whopping 5kg of fats deposited at my tummy!!! wah!!! time to do some serious workout.. if not, i won't even be able to recognise myself.. i was only aware of this when i took photo the other day.. what a chubby face !!! my god!!! i couldn't believe my eyes... and at first i thought gravity no longer stands at 9.81... should be 10++ now.. haha.. erm back to the topic... i went to oxford in November.. went with all ex victorians.. Recently, this committee called VINE was set up... by Maximilian, my batch student council president who is currently studying in Imperial as well.. and he organised this trip for us.. haha not a bad turnout... 30++ of us... and we were warmly welcomed by ex victorians who are studying in oxford... This is what happened to me when i go bonkers.. talking to a dog.. haha

the bus ride took about 2hrs from London.. i had a good chat with Ben who told me things about his mum and sister... hahah Oxford is a really nice place for ur undergrad studies.. i mean the environment is condusive for studying.. it's a very peaceful and quiet town.. it's small no doubt...but this makes ppl living there more cohesive.. ppl were walking at a much slower pace.. parks are everywhere... the way oxford is run is similar to cambridge but different compared to imperial.. they have many colleges and in each college, tutorials are conducted... for lectures, u have to go to the departmental building.. u stay in the college.. u mingle with ppl taking different courses... it's like a house system.. haha and apparently, different colleges have their own strengths too... and the level of fundings in the college determines the amoung of facilities and the general comfort level.. and in the Harry Porter show, the dining hall is actually modelled after one of the colleges'...

personally, i would rather study in London... simply because it's a more vibrant city... and i still prefer the system that imperial adopt (similar to Singapore).. hahah... oh ya, on the roads in oxford, they have a special lane catered for bicycle users.. amazing!! and the width was almost half of that for the cars.. i think we finished touring the town in about 4hrs time.. and in the late afternoon, we ended up shopping at Primmark where clothes and winter wear are sold at unbelievable low prices.. i dun like to shop but i ended up buying a few pieces... hahha just imagine.. a normal G2000 long sleeve shirt only cost 3 pounds (9 sing dollars)... and a suit cost only 20pounds... worth it.. worth it.. haha.. anyway this oxford trip is really an eye opener.. esp when u can compare the life in london with that of oxford.. there is a vast difference.. and i got to know ppl from my batch in VJ whom I saw before but never had a chance to know personally.. Oh ya, we will be having our very first VJ night this yr.... to rival that of HCJC!! hahha ... thanks to VINE! ok, i think i will be visiting Cambridge soon.. Ppl claimed that there are more things in Cambridge than oxford and it's a more interesting place too..we shall see!

Slideshow of Oxford Trip:

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Next up, we had our christmas party in hall.. i think it was held in early dec. i dunno why such an early date but i guessed they jsut wanted to get everyone together first before ppl started going home... yes, homeland.. the dinner for that night was special... turkey... and some exotic vegetables.. hahah each of us was given a xmas package with a paper crown that couldnt even fit the size of my head.. arrgghhh... haha.. the most interesting thing was the party.. i loved the santa claus standing outside... too cute... ppl were throwing snow flakes all over ... for one moment, i prayed for xmas to come quickly.. the brits went down in nice attire but i went there wearing my OCS shorts together with my favourite sweater.. i know my sisters are going to laugh at me again.. hahah lao cock cock...

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erm.. i also attended a function organised by the Overseas Christian Fellowship (OCS) somwhere in dec... actually just to support one of my hall mates, mayling, who was performing in the play that night.. though i am not a Christian or rather a firm believer of Jesus, I could feel the unity and cohesiveness portrayed by all the Christians that night... esp when they were singing the xmas carol.... and certainly, the event made me realise the true meaning behind christmas.. i think xmas has been commercialised to such a great extent that ppl are just following the motion by celebrating it.. the same goes for several other chinese festivals... i think it's important to remind ourselves the actual meaning behind all these festivals.. everyone of them has a story to tell and it is of great significance that ppl are celebrating it annually..

in order to save money that night, we walked for a few km to King's college Strand campus to watch the play... and i met the ex Victorians again.. those who went for the oxford trip... the world is just too small.. basically they are made up of Malaysians and Singaporeans who are studying in London.. oh ya, i went with steph and wenying.. we ended up fooling around in Mac.. Mac in London offers very few seats... but they have a lot of space allocated for standing... such that u can eat while standing... i think the concept is very different compared to Singapore's... perhaps this is the way to go in a big country like UK.. u can't afford to have too many seats.. if not, u wont be able to handle the crowd during peak hours...

Miscellaneous photos for OCF, electrical outing and steph's birthday:

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just before the end of the term, the Singaporeans in my course came to my hall to watch American Pie.. i was simply awed by the sheer nude scenes in the show... wah!! hahah .. Lipen's idea to watch it.. it was quite a pleasant night.. we drank while watching... and had a good laugh at the show.. apart from the nudity and a few pickup lines that we learned, the show is really quite funny.. haha i think it was a good opportunity to bond that night... and to relax esp after such a long and tedious term... and of course, we had a good time digging up Edsel's sweetie in the course.. we spent some time interrogating him in my room... and we had a video clip on that.. haha...

oh ya, not forgetting the surprise birthday party for Steph.. we specially arranged for her boyfriend to come to london to see her.. well he's in UK.. so it was easier to organise.. haha she was totally kept in the dark... she only knew it at the last minute... had a great time in the piano room that night... eating ice-cream at the same time.. i think she was almost touched to tears.. totally didn't expect us to throw a celebration.. let alone making her bf appearing right in front of her... haha..

Stay tuned... more stories to come.. esp on xmas...

I miss yan! and of course my family!

=THANKS DEAR=

2006-12-27T15:24:00.000Z

This post is specially dedicated to dearie.. thanks for your parcel.. i finally received it from London Central Depot.. hahah and apparently, it wasn't checked by the custom officers so i guess the festive season must have delayed the delivery. The box looks really nice and Im going to hang it somewhere.. I bought a similar jacket too! It's brown.. u are always so thoughtful, knowing all my needs.. i like the idea behind giving the blanket and i will DEFINITELY reply to your letter soon..

I miss you lots!

:::Long Overdue:::

2006-12-04T15:16:00.000Z

Having a feast in hall... but two of the bowls do not belong to me.. "someone" just dumped them to me... haha

Hello!! It feels so good to be back here again!! hahah, i just finished my 1200 words essay... erm this is my first essay ever since A levels? i spent almost 8hrs on it... can't believe it!! i wasted so much time on it .. i want to reward myself so here i am.. i promise myself i will play squash tml... as a form of celebration.. hahah

This is what i do in school everday... attention span is 20 mins during lecture...

This is how our lecture theatre looks like in Electrical Department.. three chalk boards that slide up and down.. yes, chalk boards.. hahaha

And apparently, the last row is always occupied by Singaporeans... who are fond of zzzzz... im not the only one who makes friend with the zzZz monster!!

well, im suffering here... i have a lot of things to do everyday and 24hrs is simply not enough.. i have been sleeping VERY well every night since the first day here BUT i am losing sleep for the past few days.. i slept at 4+am and couldn't wake up the next morning for breakfast / lesson... haha used to laugh at ppl for not being able to wake up... now i have become the victim of the zzzz monster!! strangely, this monster goes around knocking on the doors of my friends too... and poning lectures is becoming a norm... we 'skipped' the last lecture today coz it's really tiring... imagine ending lesson at 6pm.. and the sky looked like 9pm in Singapore.. the day is really short here... darkness start to fall from 4pm onwards...

This is how i looked after a drinking session at the Electrical Depart Potluck.. yes sober? haha...

I must really say a BIG sorry to those ppl whose emails have not been replied. Pls pardon me.. i will try to reply them asap.. there are just too many things to do here.. I can't sit down and study for long hours and even if i promise myself to study for the whole day, i will end up playing squash downstairs or chatting on msn.. what happened to the once disiplined soldier of RECRUIT PEH?? hahah... I can't explain it either.. somehow, I take longer hrs to understand new concepts.. in fact, there is one topic which I spent 20 hrs on it.. and ended up still not being able to comprehend the contents.. it's tough here alright... erm.. i even have to reduce the time spent on webcaming.. either that, or i will webcam and study at the same time... yes, it's ineffective.. haha

This is International Hall, where i will be spending my 1st yr in... shamelessly ripped off from google earth..

This is what i do when im feeling bored.. taking pic of myself using the integrated webcam.. haha..

The bunch of fun-loving hall mates.. From left: Wenying, Shen Onn, Steph, Jien Loong, and Mr Will.. see they are cam whores too.. haha

NOV is a very very happening month.. We celebrated fengyi's 21st birthday as well as Steph's 18th birthday.. I went for LSE Mambo Night and certainly, it was the first clubbing session for me.. haha.. I had my first computing test which was the first assessment in Imperial .. I had to write a 1200 words technical essay which was only completed a few days before the dateline.. I went to swim for the first time at Imperial 's Sports Hall and was greeted with weird stares.. haha guess wat? the locals wear those boxer type of swimming shorts while the asians, typically the Singaporeans , wear the triangular type of swimming trunks.. it does look a bit out of place but still, it serves us well, by providing cover and concealment for the most important area.. haha..

Decheng came down specially from Manchester to celebrate Fengyi's birthday.. shot taken in the tube station while waiting for a train to get to Bayswater for his birthday treat...

It can be quite sianz during the long journey.. so here is a shot with the birthday boy.. ahah yes, he's spending his 21st birthday in London!

We gave him a surprise in his room... Happy 21st Birthday.. yup, 21 candles lighted.. haha

The cast... hahah cake cutting in the common room! ...

Yoz!!! 02S64 buddies.. haha it's so nice to see Decheng here in London.. Im going to visit u in march next yr!

No!!!! It's not my fault.. hahah i was FRAMED...

Jia Yun and I... Both Victorians!! hhaha she came to join the fun too...

This is really funny... haha

This is how we usually behave in the hall... hahah amusing..

And our common target is usually Steph.. because her actions are very dramatic..

And yes, i went for the first hair cut here.. erm, i brought along my photo just in case i was served by someone who couldn't understand my requirements.. hahah ok, not as if i can have a lot of variations judging from my hairstyle.. but still, i thot it would come in handy... surveyed the entire chinatown and realised that 5 pounds is the cheapest rate that we could find.. BUT ... it was an uncle.. not much trust and confidence in his saloon ... in the end we settled for a 8pound one.. the hairdresser commented that my hair was dirty!!! wth... haha.. i wash everyday.. im sure he just wanted to psycho me into washing my hair and paying additional charges for it... i didn't cut my front.. coz i still wan my golden hair.. haha can't bear to trim the front actually... my hair has curled back... anyway, it feels good to look different from the past 2 mths.. at least much different from last time... straight hair rulez...

Another fight yet again.. haha..

In my hall, there are a lot of people who are SO talented in music.. almost all of them are grade 8 in piano.. ok i know.. im grade -8... haha that's the grade they gave me.. stephanie, only 18, is able to play a piece by just listening to the music once.. haha currently she is my piano teacher.. together with wenying... the fiercer one.. haha.. im learning how to play.. with right hand.. and guess how i learn? i tried to memorise the sequence of the keys.. and there was a part when they gave me the wrong keys... den in the end i had to re-memorise the whole sequence again!! ... but still, the sessions in the piano room were pretty enjoyable.. listening to sad music.. and EMO-ing.. and yes, jien loong, my heart did melt at certain pieces... BUT NOT ALL THE TIME!!

A lot of ppl have been saying that i look rather stressed these days.. but the truth is im not.. i guess i do look stern when i dun laugh... to many others, i may be seen as a joker.. someone who can't stop cracking jokes.. but still, i think everyone needs some breathing space.. and sometimes i just feel like keeping quiet and taking on an observer role.. it's hard to be a joker all the time.. haha..

Taken during guy fawkes day. Jamie, Michelle , Fengyi, me! , Shen Onn, Jien Loong, It's cold!!

Guy Fawkes and Bonfire night. This is the day which the British gather around bonfires to commemorate the capture of Guy Fawkes who tired to blow up the parliament. So we get to see fireworks across London at certain parks and open fields.. We took 45 minutes to travel all the way to Battersea Park which is near Chelsea to watch 30minutes of fireworks.. haha.. i would nv do that in SIngapore.. haha.. but somehow, i tend to be more willing to travel here.. spirits were high... and ppl were partying on the streets... the fireworks were not fantastic but it was enough to make some pp bewildered... hah...

Collage of the fireworks display at Battersea Park.. haha they should be much nicer.. thanks to my 'superb' shooting skills... they look like laser... haha..

I tried to be a NICE guy by calling frens back home to wish them HAPPY birthday... but most of them refused to answer the call... haha.. u all must be thinking that it is a prank call right???? so now, if u see a call from +44........... , do pick it up! because it could be me!! hahah.. usually it's only when i call the second time that ppl start answering...I called Mr Shawn to wish him happy birthday but he didn't pick it up on the first try... I called KaiJing... and my four mentees...(pearl ning, qiao ping, hui ru, xuanyi) hahah all refusing to pick up calls..

Me and Fungus... hahah.. that's what he call himself..

This is extremely silly.. we thought it's in the shooting mode.. haha

Whenever it comes to the night, I tend to miss my parents, my sisters and of course you! ... my mum showed me a plate of duck rice the other day.. which made me drool in front of the webcam.. christmas is coming and i know i can't spend it with my good frens back home... and this applies to new yr, chinese new yr... it's a totally different feeling... i wonder how it will be like to celebrate christmas here.. to all those who are going back to Singapore, enjoy the 3 weeks of holiday... send me xmas greetings from Singapore! haha..

I MISS YOU!!!

2006-11-24T01:43:00.000Z

I MISS YOU!!!!!

New Pastime

2006-11-09T00:58:00.000Z

Squashing!!! hahah i have started learning how to play squash.. a few of us in the hall are getting v interested in squash and we have been playing quite frequently.. there was once when we even played till 2am!! can u believe it? ahaha... but that was greeted by cold water in the shower room subsequently .. brr brr....

I love squash!

Our hall food! looks like a feast after removing all the blue trays...

Squash buddies Have u ever seen anyone in this 'sporting gear'?

Have a Break!

2006-10-30T00:05:00.000Z

Im so sick and tired of reading notes.. because I dun understand them.. sigh... why is it so tough? As I am typing this mail, I am actually taking a break.. is it a well deserved break? hahah... i dunno... I have been slacking.. spending my time in MSN... MSN... can be the greatest invention, at the same time, it can be the worst too.. a lot is dependent on the user i guess.. ahaa

Yes, dun blink!! it's..... Wesley, Lipen and Chun Han!!!... walked in the rain to Wesley's hall just to chill out... his room is more squarish than mine.. facilities are about the same though... his cooking is not bad.. i wonder whether i can ccok as good as him... played bridge in the kitchen... and we drank again... i turned into a lobster after that.. it was v nice, meeting up with old frens in this foreign country..

Daylight savings has finally ended and the time difference will be 8hrs from now onwards.. i was quite curious about this daylight savings issue and my queries were answered through a search in wikipedia.. it's v interesting.. i wonder whether it really helps to save electricity... the amazing discovery for today is that it gets v v dark at 5pm... meaning, I will be leaving and coming back to my hall in the dark... when my lessons end at 5 or 6pm, and by the time i come back, it will be total darkness alr... sigh... no wonder ppl say winter can be rather depressing... hahah the clock automatically tuned back to the correct time after 2am.. incredible... i have to reset my watch and alarm clock manually though...

Red!!

I was so happy when i was turning my clock back one hr!! coz this is the only time when we gain time!! u know.. one additional hr!! for nothing... haha but it also means that when daylight saving starts in march next yr, we will lose an hr again... but well, wait till next yr den we talk about it... at first i thot the time difference is due to the Earth's rotation.. hahah partially correct only...

This is Maria... my maid in the hall... hahah no lah.. actually, she is one yr younger than me.. i always ask her to clear my plates during meal time... why is she called maria? it's seriously a long story that started from her picture on the hall card.. haha i feel like she's older than me.. she knows about London.. the best bargains... offers... anythin u dunno , u just have to knock on her door and ask! she seems to know everythin... haha well , im quite evil to call her maria.. I took these photos when I went to disturb her in her room.. she has all sorts of rubbish... hahah just by looking at the pic, u will understand why... she was the one who bought egg tarts for us the other day.. v kind hearted.. hahah...

Went to a restaurant called "the Kiasu Restaurant" the other day when the DSTA seniors treated the freshers.. hahah i wanted to order several dishes, such as laksa, bak ku tek and many more.. coz they are simply irresitible.. in the end, had to settle for hainanese chicken rice.. haha it cost 7 pounds.. S$21 worth of chicken rice.. well, not filling as usual... hahah.. im getting used to the life here... and v soon, i will get used to the cold too... and den wat else... erm the night life?? ookok enuff...

Time to go back to my notes again!

My hair is curling back!

2006-10-26T00:36:00.000+01:00

sigh.. my hair keeps growing and i need to find a barber soon.. if not it will seriously go out of hand, and i will look like a scientist with unkempt hair.. if only i have a shaver of my own, den i can do it myself.. DIY, and if i choose a bald head, it's even better, just shave till i look like a recruit in BMT.. i heard of this old man in chinatown who provides the cheapest haircut service in London, at a cost of 5 pounds.. hmm... my hair is curling back at an exponential rate, there are two segments, one straight and the other curl.. and if i cut now, i will lose my colour.. i like gold... perhaps i shld try green this time.. hahah but i need to DIY, if not it's going to cost me a bomb in the hair saloon here!

Beautiful isn't it? tower of london is on the left!

Student Price - what more can i expect? haha discounted rate

sigh... from next week onwards, daylight savings will commence in London, which means the time difference with Singapore will become 8hrs instead! and I will miss the MSN peak period.. 12midnight in Singapore will then coincide with 4pm London time.. but I will still be in sch at 4pm!! arrrggghhh... why why why? talking abt MSN, i feel like strangling it! it's giving me endless problems.. either i get kicked out for nothing, or my text messages can't be delivered to the recipients! and it's intermittent too which makes it even more sickening.. and MSN is such a distracting source... frens out there, we need to be more decisive and self disciplined... it's time to log off when u intend to study!! take my advice!! if not, u will end up like me! spending hrs in front of the comp, accomplishing nothin haha..

The white tower in Tower of London. This is where the kings and queens live... at the top level..

The Yeoman Warden - tour guides in the Tower
Stoic,uncomprising ...they were from the army... so it's hard to steal a smile from them!

Shot taken outside tower of London.. in fact, it was the first shot on that day.. hahah

Over the weekend, we visited London Bridge, Tower of London and the Tower Bridge!! haha, i felt like a tourist indeed~! I have the london guide and im starting to cross out the places i have been and London Zoo,Buckingham Palace, London Eye are in my plans too! im getting really excited... of course it means spending more money.. but it's better to do it in the early days of yr1.. haha

The view of Tower of London from outside

Glimpse of how a prisoner cell looked like!! hahahah fantastic... but only for nobles..

This is what happens when it is sunny.. standing outside, looking important... BUT...

when it is raining!! he's seeking shelter in such a confined space!! gotcha!

Tower of London is founded by William the conqueror in the dunno wat century, and ever since, it has been a Royal Palace, prison, mint, arsenal and home to the Crown Jewels. It has a rich history.. queens, princesses were imprisoned there.. some got executioned in a horrifying manner.. it was a guided tour and the Yeoman Warder brought us ard... we get to see how criminals were tortured in the olden days.. and the differents towers inside were named for some particular reasons.. bloody tower, as the name implies, was named after a bloodshed.. two princes disappeared mysteriously and we get to vote what exactly happened to them after reading some evidence and accounts.. quite fun... erm, and of course the crown jewels.. if only i can take one out from the tower. hahah i felt like i was living in a castle den.. tall and majestic buildings all around..

The voting device. Two suspects with their faces... and the third option on the right says that the two princes disappeared without any reason... and i chose that!

This is the layout of the Tower of London, a lot of features were built over time

I am in tower of London!

The arsenal of weapons... u name it, they have it.. bows... rifles.. short guns.. gun powder...

Trying to take a pic with the guard... hahah..

Hiding in their shell again...

This is where they housed all the crown jewels! photo taking is thus forbidden!! too bad..

A torturing device used in the olden days.. pu

Posing just in front of tower bridge... dunno why i wasn't wearing jacket even though it was v cold..

The view of tower bridge is breathtaking... The middle segment can actually be lifted.. it is a fine architecture... London Bridge is rather disappointing.. i expected it to be sth more grand but it's just a normal highway.. hahah.. "London Bridge is falling down....".. we walked a lot on that day.. from the tube station to Tower of London and within the tower itself.. den we walked across the whole tower bridge... and then across London Bridge.. now i can proudly say that I have stepped foot on both bridges!! hahah.. extremely tiring.. it's just like shopping..

Tower Bridge, excellent scenery isn't it? taken in the evening..

Tower bridge, taken from Tower of London in the afternoon...

Walking across the tower bridge...

Too happy... Do i own it?

Tower Bridge from another view...

AND THIS IS ...... THE LONDON BRIDGE!! LOOK AT THE DIFFERENCE!!

Lipen and the rest were busy taking photos throughout... and sometimes they took self shots too.. hahah London ah London... when will i finish exploring?? the weather is getting colder too.. ard 8 degrees celsius at night. i wonder how are we going to survive during winter.. haha and the heater was spoilt yesterday... i bathed with cold water so i was jumping up and down!!! hey army dudes, it was colder than New Zealand!!!

RIVER THAMES, seemingly the only river flowing in London...

Walking acorss London Bridge... so cold... brrbbrbrbrr

ok, i bought ham from supermarket today.. which means that i have another variety for my sandwich.. hahah time to make 'standard' sandwiches.. if not , i will be suan by other ppl again.. basically, im too lazy to slice the tomato.. so i eat it straight after i finish my sandwich... it's so troublesome to put everythin under two slices of bread.. why not eat them separately?? haha that's my style!!

My fav pic for the day, look at the structure of that building.. haha looks exactly like a HE round!

Im not posing with a battleship! it's one of the places of interest... but we need to buy tix to get inside to view the exhibits..

Each of us took a pic at the exact same spot! haha

Most of my frens are sick... some are falling sick... the flu bug is spreading like wild fires.. imagine the germs within the LT, when everyone starts coughing... sore throat is common too... though i dun have sore throat yet, i can sense it coming.. a bit of irritation... once i have gone for the gym induction course, i will start to go gym on a regular basis! haha this is a promise i made to myself.. i need to draw up a training regime and it's time to build muscle mass!! and the swimming pools too... they have SPA,steam room and sauna. It's time to make a visit to the pool pool... i wan to swim!!

Tower Bridge, night shot taken ...

I am back!

2006-10-21T01:25:00.000+01:00

i didn't realise i haven't been updating the blog for almost 2 weeks! incredible.. what happened to the initial momentum and enthusiasm? haha.. well, i m still alive and kicking though my kicks are not as powerful as before.. Of course, I have many stories to tell again.. hmm.. so where shld i start first?? I know i have to blog today, if not, i will just forget what i wan to post and perhaps by the time i publish my entry, the impact won't be as great anymore..

we had a room crashing session just now... and thanks to all these ppl, they have certainly made my stay in the hall more enjoyable!! hahaha... let's continue to have fun!!

Time passes very quickly, it's almost three weeks since i left Singapore.. I wan to give a hug to the person who invented MSN and webcam. I think these two components have certainly made me feel less distant away from home and in fact, i still feel v much in contact with some of my frens.. n webcaming can be really fun.. hahah.. we even webcam wif ppl who are staying in London.. somehow it has become an obsession.. i dunno.. yes, i used it to take photos of myself.. that day, my fren peeped at my folders and saw self taken shots.. ok i know im going to get a lot of arrows again! haha.. but really, i miss Singapore... everythin is just so efficient.. though it's small, it's BEAUTIFUL!! but im used to the hiccups, glitches, and inefficiency here.. well, u are in London.. what more can u expect? haha..

Talking about webcaming again, it's the first time that my dad says he misses me!! i was kinda touched .. in fact i was V TOUCHED... my dad belongs to the stoic type of person... and he has never said that to me back in Singapore.. i webcam wif my family every weekend.. i guess that is the time when all of them are at home.. and my mummy opened an MSN account just to chat and webcam with me!! haha.. i couldn't believe it when i received her email yesterday!! it was a pleasant surprise indeed!!

I subscribed to the O2 network here and I was kinda conned into signing up for what i thought was the best deal for student. That guy even offered to give me a instant cashback of 50 pounds.. hahah who will give u SGD150.00 for signing up a line? i thot it's an offer not to be missed and with all the rebates, i only need to pay 11 pounds a mth.. n guess wat? now the same shop, is offering a deal at 3.5 pounds per mth!! my god!!! i feel cheated!! seriously.. the deals here change quite frequently.. i heard there was a time when the deal was going at 1 pound per mth!! amazing isn't it? the plans here are so flexible that u can configure/mix and match ur mobile monthly plan... ok finally one plus pt here.. flexibility.. hahah and my new phone is sony ecrission k750i... hahah i have been a fervent Nokia supporter... but no choice lah, since it's free, i just take it.. sony ecrission is so user non-friendly... need some time to get used to it... the camera function is fantastic.. very sharp with its 2 MP capability..

I also applied for the student OYSTER card with my boy boy face on it... hahah... ok, erm.. over here, when u need to 'top up' , u call it "recharging".. haha sounds like recharging a bettery... and the student oyster allows me to have unlimited travel in London but of course , i need to pay a monthly season ticket for it.. sth like our bus stamp.. n i take tube to sch everyday... encountered a lot of funny incidents.. esp the drunkards.. when they board the tube, they will shout.. make noise.. scold vulgarities... and laugh like nobody business... they even took photo with us... imagine!!! i think if this happens in Singapore, they would have been sent to Woodbridge... hahah and one fine day, one of the stations was flooded!! and it couldn't be operational... travelling in UK depends a lot on luck.. as in minor delays are expected on the various lines and u need to check the board at the station for the latest update... if not, u will most likely end up making a wasted trip...oh ya, and the train can't move properly when too many ppl are standing at one side of the train.. somehow it will become lop sided and the train won't be able to move forward... hahah so funny...

I realise I brought a lot of clothes over when i only need eh.. perhaps 4 sets? During the first week, i wore a tshirt for 3 days and a jeans for a week!! hahah but now, i try to force myself to change just in case my sis starts calling me a dirty cow again.. haha .. and i think im quite well equipped... ok except for the cereals and milo, i counted.. and i have to ration them... 1 packet of cereal every mth, 1 packet of milo every fortnight.. haha other than that, i have most of the essential stuff here.. my fren even have to borrow nail clipper lah... scissors lah... blah blah... but den, i didn't bring LIQUID PAPER here!! and i need it badly for my lab log book... my god... hahah and i forget to bring my BIORE PORE PACK!!!! i need it too... hahahah

Let's talk about food... yes, i feel hungry every day.. even after my meal in the hall, i still feel hungry... so i eat a lot of potato chips.. i have spent a lot on them and in fact, i manage to try almost all the flavours alr.. hahaha ... maybe i shld start buying biscuits... food here is expensive.. but it won't be if i stop converting back to sing dollars... one bowl of laksa here costs SGD 19.00!! ahhaha same for duck rice... hor fun.. tell me ppl, will u eat it? perhaps it's cold here, so i get hungry easily... and i realise the portion served in the hall canteen can't satisify my stomach anymore.. that day i ate my share, together with my fren's share and i still felt hungry.. i ate one packet of chips and it didn't help too.. in the end, i had to open one of the cereal packets... sigh... which means i can't open another packet this month alr... potato chips are my babies now... hahah

The weather here is like a temperamental girl.. when it decides to throw tantrum. it can rain for 5 minutes and den stop and rain and stop and rain and stop.. continuously... i also dun bother to use an umbrella when it's raining anymore.. i just grab my jacket... and run.. or use newspapers to cover my head.. haha.. London, being a cosmopolitan city, is blessed with great scenery and infrastructure... also, u see different nationalities here... when i see chinese , i get excited.. hahah.. dunno why also... actually till now, i have v few local friends.... mostly are chinese from malaysia or hongkong...

Oh ya, i have started to prepare my own lunch.. haha i bought lettuce, tomato and tuna mayo from the supermarket... and my first sandwich was greeted with boos and boos... someone even gave me 2/10 marks.. my god! hahah is it really that bad? it tasted quite ok lah.. hahah i think yr1s students tend to save... wait till yr2, i shld be spending my time in the sch dining hall eating the main meals at ard 3pounds per meal... we like to visit this sandwich shop which is about 10 minutes walk from sch, coz they offer the cheapest sandwich or baguette at 1pound... they also give u an apple for free... hahah where else can u find such deal? u can see students flocking there during lunch time everyday...

I wanted to join many CCAs... but i realise i dun really have the time.. I played floorball with the Singapore Society at Hyde Park last week... there was the only session which i sweated so much... i have not sweated much till that day.. everythin was soaking wet... but the sweat evaporated v quickly.. though the throat felt v dry perhaps due to the dry weather here.. u get to see ppl riding on horses in the park too.. hahah amazing... ya, i sprained my neck that day.. somehow i could only turn right.. there was an acute pain when i turned left.. but it's getting better now.. hahah.. and i didn't do warm up or cooling down.. guess wat? i kept having cramps that night and the v next day...

School... yes, Imperial's world ranking is now 9th... im still trying to get used to their style of teaching... hmm.. it's basically independent learning and no spoon feeding at all.. it's challenging... and i must admit during the initial stage , i couldn't get used to it.. esp the first day, i was totally overwhelmed... i felt it was tough... it's not an easy course at all.. and we spend long hours in sch.. unlike ppl from King's college... hahah only 13hrs per week... i guess electrical n electronic eng is a v demanding course... the professors are funny ppl... always trying to inject humour during lectures... i think going to sch is quite fulfilling now... esp when we have to learn so many new things everyday... and either u get it or u dun... when u grasp the concepts, u feel so happy.. when u dun, u panic... either that, or u give up... and end up feeling that the day is sucky.. lab sessions are a torture too....

I think im not used to a life as a student... im not used to using pens... and pencils... and rulers... im more used to holding rifles... hahah.. and my handwriting is getting from worse to worst... and i can't seem to write properly... can't spell some words too... arrrggghh... and yes, it's time to buy textbooks!! hahah talking abt textbooks, i haven't visited the sch's central library yet.. shld start going....

ok i admit i have flu now... *sneezed*what they termed as the freshers' flu.. it only gets worse in the night...n i feel perfectly fine in the morning... hmm... i have this fren in hall, who got herself a flu vaccination in Singapore and now she is suffering the same fate as me!! hahaha.. so happy... oops...

DSTA !!!! hahaha so many of us!

alright, my weekends are quite packed sometimes... for the past week, we had two potlucks over weekend.. at the same place!!! hahah imagine!! but with different groups of ppl.. on sat, it was with the Singapore electrical students... on sunday, it was with the DSTA ppl.. hahah we baked pizza for the first potluck... it was snapped up within 5 minutes.. i think it's nice to have such gatherings... make u feel at home ... and at ease.. since u know that so many ppl are suffering here with u.. okok enjoying life.. hahaha i guess suffering is part of the enjoyment here.. hahah

I need at least 8hrs a sleep everyday... in army, i will spring up from my bed once my alarm clock rings... here, i start to snooze!! arrrrgggghhh why.... i.e set alarm at 8am, alarm rings at 8, snooze... tell myself 10 minutes later, i will wake up... 8.15am, struggled to wake up...nvm 5 more mins... 8.20 wake up to brush teeth... sleep again... 8.30am.. nvm 10 more minutes coz really tired... 8.40am!!! hahah terrible!!! i sleep v soundly every night... till recently, when i started to dream... of course i dream of those ppl whom i miss... probably that's why i refuse to wake up... hahah

i tried their pizza hut buffet the other day... i ate about 12 slices... fantastic.. though they are generally more salty... hahah ok lah... still not too bad... i really wan to learn how to cook... so that i can whip a few nice dishes next yr when i move out of the catered hall... i have done my laundry twice.. the first time was a rather bad experience.. coz the washing machine that i used wasn't working properly!! it didn't perform its spinning function.. and the clothes were so wet... even after putting them in the dryer for 50 minutes, they were still wet.. doing laundry here is like playing 4D... u need to choose the right machine or dryer.. hahah and it's all about LUCK!

We also visited their version of night market.. just that theirs is in the day.. till 2pm.. went with fengyi, lipen and jianloong.. haha with wesley too!! and we met pinky there... they bought some bikes at a discounted price... coz... they are stolen goods... hahah basic necessities are sold at a v cheap price... and lipen got himself quite a lot of things... hahah.. why did i mention about this trip? because we found the following pic on one of the lanes.. i guess thats where the hooligans hang out at night..

and yes, we are going to visit Tower of London and the tower bridge tml!! hahah.. alright, that's all for now.. my bed is calling me....

Am I up for the challenge?

2006-10-10T20:00:00.000+01:00

This pic perhaps sums up the life as a student in Electrical & electronic eng in Imperial... I am overwhelmed by the lab session as well as the three lectures today... A levels knowledge is totally not adequate at all... im struggling now.... and im tired... after a long day of lesson in sch..

My Response

2006-10-10T00:11:00.000+01:00

Thanx for tagging... i shall respond today...
hahah sorry ah, a bit slow... but here it is!

Siling: hahah sounded real bad? it is! ok, i will organise an outing when i go back in june next yr.. be sure to attend!! why not organise a squad outing where u guys treat me to a meal? hahaha

Galvin: hahah i like ur msg... that's e way it should be.. but apparently, u are studying so hard that u dun have much time for other things...

Huijun: it's so difficult not to compare.. i guess it's interesting here because things are so much different in relative to Singapore.. keep me updated with all the squad gossips! haha

Zabird: my dear sister... im not always drinking lah.. just that my face will get flushed whenever i drink.. hahah urs too! next time we can have a drinking competition! study hard!!! haha

Lik Sin: Hey dude!!! drop more comments... i love them... ur blog is cool too.. but maintaining it requires a lot of effort... hahah thanks for the help on tagging..

Lip En: well, u are with me here in London... so let's enjoy.... and slog.... and drink... and work hard... and party!! hahah

Evelyn: wah, ur sister is having a great time here... and she has moved out of intercollegiate halls... thanks to her incessant pleas in the accomodation office.. dun worry about her, she's so street smart.. no prob... haha

To the fake shawn: i know u are not the real shawn coz he seldom uses such abrasive language!! hahah u are exposed!!

Junbin: u could have come here .... arrgghh den we can form the musketeers.. dun be envious lah, NUS is seriously much better... and u better study hard.. hahah im going to rely on u next time for lawsuit. And the censorship board was drunk too.. I was semi conscious when i was typing that entry and uploading that x-rated photo of mine.. hahahah

Yuh Jiun: hahhah do visit here more often to check out whether im facing the same problems as u last time.. give me some advice too! will meet up with u in lONDON some day...

Sniff sniff: i really feel like asking ppl to knock it down.. hahahh but some of them are stronger than me... so i decided to retract that statement.. msg/msn me when u are free.. i have sth to tell u!

Yan: hahha u know what im going to tell u!! thanx for being there for me

QiaoPing: oh so sorry, i left u out of the equation.. hahah thanks a lot for that gift... really very touched... u four rockz.. including laura.. nvm i will rock her in SF... hahah study hard for A levels... do ur mentor proud! haha

The real Shawn: i realise our friendship goes all the way back since sec 1, wat u said in the card is true... but i will keep in touch with u... hope to buy a spurs jersey for u... hahah if i have the chance, i will get one of the players to autograph it.. hahah

Steph: my newly acquainted fren who always bullies me... hmm... im going to make u my MARIA from now onwards.. hahaha... stay lively and cheerful... im looking forward to more crap and jokes from u!

Pearl Ning: stop calling me auntie!! auntie william? u heard before? hahah wah, i mus really thank you and the girls for that wonderful night and the gifts... must have put in a lot a lot of effort... very touched... i hope u guys can do well in As and get into the course u wan... rem, our team rockz!! and all the NO.3s too.. hahah

Orientation Week

2006-10-09T07:10:00.000+01:00

Star troopers on the way now! hahah..

Freshers week has officially ended and school is starting today... the orientation week is somewhat similar to that in NUS/NTU, just that there isn't any stayover camp held in sch.. for our department, we had to build a flying car using scrape materials such as napkin, toothpicks, elastic bands, cardboard, polo mint, pencils and paper clips..we are divided into groups of 6 to accomplish this daunting task.. and throughout the entire freshers week, we had to meet up to finish this project.. purpose is to let us have fun, and enjoy the process of working together... eventually, a competition was held, and my group's flying car, which looked just like an aeroplane, flew a whopping distance of 7.6m, quite an achievement, considering the time we spent on it, hahah probably that's why we still didn't win anythin in the end!

CCA Walkabout... so many ccas for u to join.. but u have to pay a nominal fee for all applications.. i joined quite a few but now, I am kinda lazy to turn up for the meetings or practices.. hahah.. in fact, i went for the archery trial, and it was simply amazing! I could shoot well with a rifle but not with a bow and arrow.. hahah.. somehow, i had to use a lot of strength and the first few rounds, my shots were all over the place, some even went off target... didn't hit the bull eye but some shots were close.. the bow has to be zeroed as well, similar to rifle.. of course, e satisfaction of hitting the bull eye is immense.. forgot to bring camera on that day, so there isn't any photo to show my 'fantastic' archery skills... if that's the kind of standard in army, i probably have to go through tonnes of remedial training.. hahaha I also signed up for bridge club, fitness club, frisbee, arts, film club and gold cart... if there is a eating club, i will definitely join too.. hahah

I couldn't get onto the tube for the v 1st time.. It was so crowded.. and basically there was only a nose distance between everyone... imagine how packed it was.. and the waiting time displayed on the screen was so misleading.. 1min seemed like 3 minutes.. now im starting to appreciate the warmth inside the tube... every time i walk to the tube station, i just can't wait to get into the tube because it is really cold outside.. brr bbrbr...

I got to know two Malaysian girls from my hall and they are really friendly. One of them reminds me of my starhub colleague and she is always smiling and making fun of me.. They brought us to Chinatown and I was so happy when I reached there... so many nice faces ard, i mean most of them are asians.. and u feel at home when u see them.. u can buy all sorts of spices over there and things like chinese tea, tiger beer, chilli sauce.. the maggie chilli sauce costs SGD$4.20!!

hahah.. i was so tempted to buy the mooncakes.. we dined at a Malaysian cruisine restaurant and we had curry chicken and lamb.. it was fabulous.. i think Im seriously missing chi delights.. like carrot cake and fried kway teow.. i wanted to buy laksa but it costs 6.50 pounds, equivalent to $19.50 sing dollars!!! hahah okok, i know i should just stop converting.. i guess I really walk a lot in London, ever since I reached here.. and trust me, im walking faster and faster... building up my stamina at the same time..

Basically chinatown is just a very small area in Leicester Square. It's only a few streets but there r many resturants.. looking at the ducks and chickens, i can't help but start to salivate.. haha we also explored the areas and streets nearby, and we walked to Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square where we had a lot of fun..teasing and playing a fool with one another... the buildings were great... and the pigeons too! haha..

Pigeons delight... ahahhah

I feel really homesick yesterday but luckily there were a bunch of v supportive Singaporean group and I was offered a mooncake with egg yolk.. There are actually about 10+ Singaporeans in my hall, most doing law in King's college... and they know lulu too... wat a small world! i guess talking to ppl from Singapore helps and I think i feel much better after that... hahaha... my god.. why am I so emotional?

had a crush on the trooper.. what a kiss!

*this is an edited version... i am typing this paragraph in the school computer lab.. Just attended the first lecture on lab introduction. i fell asleep 20 mins after the lecture.. the seat was simply too comfortable and the zzZz monster came knocking on my door! Now, I have found a new place to sleep and if this continues, I am going to get into deep trouble... there isn't much room to maneouver my long legs.. so it's a bit uncomfortable at times...

My timetable is out... all of us have slightly different schedules as we are splitted into different groups... i guess i am really lucky... practically, i study 4 days a week but my tue and thurs are packed, from 9am to 6pm... average about 25hrs a week...

I am still trying to get used to carrying a bag to sch and spending hrs in the lecture theatres and labs.. gone are they days when we carry rifles, field packs, sbo and helmet... it's a much lighter load now... hahah

Boy in Orange!

2006-10-07T01:29:00.000+01:00

At the electrical building main lobby, first day in sch! haha

Well, I am seriously lagging behind and I hope after this post, I can bring everythin back on track. I didn't expect myself to update this blog so diligently.. I mean I dun even see myself writing a diary, let alone maintaining this blog.. hopefully it won't become defunct.. and to all those who have tagged so far, thanx.. i love ur comments.. hahah..

I am not a dirty boy!! i do wash clothes.. in fact, i did my laundry today.. 1st time.. it cost me SGD$6 to wash and dry.. my god.. but I really wore that jeans of mine for a week.. hahah until i felt a bit itchy which I knew it was time to change!! hahah.... shouldn't have brought so many clothes here.. probably just three t shirts will do... i will be giving that advice to the freshers next yr.. hahah.. and luckily i didn't manage to buy a fan eventually.. it's so cold now... every night, I have to wear full armor! long john, thermal socks and sweater on, become i can go to sleep.. if not, i think i will jsut become a frozen log on bed.. sleeping under the duvet is so nice..

Within the school campus, it's a really cool cathedral

a few days ago, i decided to wear my orange t shirt to sch, in fact it was on registration day.. the colour was so striking that u could look for me easily on the street or in sch.. i realise UK ppl dun wear bright colour.. and if i were to continue wearing that t-shirt, im sure i will be answering a lot of questions in lectures.. hahah.. and i become known as the orange boy..

Electrical department is in this v tall building.. served by two lifts which took ages to come and go up.. climbing e stairs has become a daily exercise.. 4 plasma screens showing e latest news which nobody even bothers to sit down and watch.. I seriously think my orange was too bright on that day... arrgghh...

Cinema in oxford street area.. one ticket costs 8.5 pounds!

U can see this at every traffic juncture.Press to allow green man to show up later...

hahahah we went out for a walk at night... initially i wanted to sleep but since e rest were so enthu abt it, i gave in and once again, i wore my armor, this time round it's only a jacket..walk walk walk.. i thot we were only walking in the vicnitiy of the hall... den in the end we walked for 2hrs to oxford street, somewhere far far away.. my god.. along the way, there were so many things to see...dunno why it felt so nice to walk against the wind, brushing against ur face all the time... cooling and refreshing.. have u ever seen a car reversing at full speed for half the stretch of the road? have u ever seen ppl flagging for cabs in the middle of the road? yes, u can see them in lONDON...hahha...

This is the most hilarious part.. since we walked for so long, naturally we would feel thirsty.. so we picked a bar nearby and decided to drink (again!).. my fren ordered a pint of STRONGBOW.. i followed suit.. but the bartender refused to sell the beer to me.. He asked,"do u have any idea what alcohol has an influence on u boy?".. i said"yes i am aware, i would like to have one pint of strongbow." "Are u sure?".... "yes, very sure".. "show me ur ID pls.." oh god, i forgot to bring my wallet out...so i told them I am 21 yrs old.. "U better dun lie to me.." "the law states that we cna't sell beer to underaged (18) kids". "Yes, I am really 21 yrs old... I am a student here"... "But u look so young... "..... Can u believe it? I was turned down outright for a pint of beer... and the most ridiculous thing is that he said i looked young.. is it because of my hair colour? He simply didn't believe that I am 21 yrs old... how can i be under 18 yrs old?

After coming back from the drink..simon, another imperialist.. from HK

though in the end he sold e beer to me very reluctantly, the whole arguing process was just too hilarious.. i was laughing uncontrollably when he said i looked young.. probably that increases his doubts and suspicion..

Drunk, Drunk, Drunk.....

and pls nv drink strongbow again.. i was seriously drunk that night.. i couldn't even walk properly.. it is indeed STRONG! ... it's actually a cider, 8% alcohol... nv in my life have i felt my head so heavy before... and it tasted like lemonade... nice at the beginning... u get v sick of the taste and smell after drinking half a pine...

I accidentally touched my tummy today... and to my horror, it's becoming rounder and bigger too.. one united nation is in the midst of formation... help!

When u are drunk, u do silly things.. unknowingly

Imperial College

2006-10-05T21:44:00.000+01:00

Imperial College, the sch which im going to spend 4yrs with, sits nicely in the heart of south kensington. There are so many museums nearby and Hyde Park is just 5 mins walk away. even though i can't appreciate arts, i may drop by to visit the Science Museum as well as the Victoria & Albert museum since it's free admission for students! haha.. Imperial is smaller than NUS/NTU.. trust me.. but i still can get lost on the first day.. there r many entrances and I just couldn't find the right building.. some parts of the school are undergoing some forms of refurbishment and i dunno y i kept ending up at the construction area..

The facilities may be slightly backward too... but e toilets are cleaner... the urinals are higher too.. hahah probably coz the males here are so much taller than asians! we use chalks here!! can u imagine? e good old days back in ur secondary sch...it's best to be a security officer in sch esp in imperial.. so many of them r doing e same job... looking after students? .. hahaha....nv attempt to take lifts in sch too.. u probably need to wait at least 10 mins.. so once again, it's walking e stairs.. n i think i will get used to it..

I need to get a fan for my room.. It is rather stuffy since there is no fan/air con.. and i can't stand the poor ventilation as my window can only be opened 6 inches! ... imagine... getting a cushion is top of my list too... dunno y whenever i sit on the chair, my butt will feel v itchy.. better get a cushion to protect my butt butt.. haha.. and that's y i ended up going to IKEA... It is a long trip up north, together wif my seniors.. we almost got lost once again... after some directions from e locals, we ended up in this mega STORE! so frens out there, if u dunno anythin, u MUS be inquisitive and ASK!

London IKEA is almost identical to that in Singapore.. e concept is e same but u end up with no plastic bags when u shop here.. probably they are trying to save the Earth, getting a plastic bag can easily cost u 25p..we had to squueze our cushions and the covers into our bags at the counter.. it's incredible, judging from the number of items and designs that they are selling.. BUT they dun sell FAN! i guess very few shops sell fans here since it's so impractical... no wonder some are being sold at such a high price.. haiya, gonna endure for the next few days... FAn, to me, is indeed a luxury good here...

Btw, there is this outlet called Argos in London, it's a All-in-One shop that sells everythin.. but the purchasing method is quite unique. They give u a very thick catalogue to showcase all their products together wif a brief description of each one..u dun have a chance to take a look at the product.. neither can u touch it.. it's based on illustration in the catalogue and u need a bit of imagination as well.. key in the product no. to check for stock. Subsequently u pay at the counter and u collect the goods at the collection pt. End of story... short, sharp, straight to the pt... hahah..

In sch, there was this doc, who was one of the speakers too, talked about sex in sch.. "I know some of u are here for sex, some for more sex, some for 1st time sex.... but sex translates to HIV... AIDS and lastly it translates to BROKEN HEARTS."... Hahahha and if u wan to do it, rem to adopt protective measures.. and they can be purchased easily in the sch's TOILET!!! my god... hahah

I am quite glad that i stay in catered hall.. going down for meals is alr a chore, let alone preparing, cook and washing after every meal in non-catered hall.. hahah.. at least i dun have to think so much in that aspect.. i eat a lot in every meal, but i get hungry v easily.. probably due to the high metabolic rate to keep warm.. Thirst is v common and after learning my lesson, i always carry my water bottle around... u always feel thirsty for dunno wat reason.. n in London, u will walk so much to get to ur destination.. hahah.. next time i go shopping in Singapore, i won't be complaining about fatigue and looking for a seat whenever i visit the footwear shops..

The weather here is analogous to that of a temperamental child.. when they r happy, e sun will shine brightly at u... and 5 mins later, their tears can drown u!! Despite all the complaints I have, London is quite an interesting place to live in... need to explore more.. and the journey will have to start REALLY SOON!! hahaha...

How ah? My tummy is getting bigger and rounder... I need to burn my fats...

i hardly sweat ever since i come here... and Im still wearing the same pair of jeans which I wore on the day I left Singapore!! hahahah dun faint please.....

What a day!

2006-10-05T01:50:00.000+01:00

To my dear frens with blogs out there, why is it that u guys can update it so frequently while i find myself lagging behind by so many many days? hahah.. this is my first time blogging and im finding a bit difficult to keep up wif the momentum.. there r just so many things to write and i can't rem all e weird things which i have seen.. perhaps, i need a notebook to write down everythin.. haha

The food in my hall is quite fantastic, in contrary to what i have heard from my seniors.. hahah finger pointing time.. it's like SFI in the army.. we will have two menus per meal and we get to choose.. small servings but there r a lot of items to choose..sometimes i feel like taking more but the lady at the cashier always check the quantity!! see whether we take more items than it's allowed..so u have to give e most radiant smile to her n everythin will be alright! basically western meal everyday... cereals, salad, a choice of 3 dessert everyday.. the eggs here are v v small.. if i were to open my mouth, i think i can put 5 inside.. makes me wonder how malnutrition e chicken here are.. yoghurt has almost become my staple food .. i swear i won't eat yoghurt when i go back to Singapore! haha

U know, it's ALWAYS v nice to meet ppl u know on the street esp when it's overseas! it was such a coincidence that my fren's fren turned out to be my JC classmates too, DECHENG!! can u guys believe it? decheng is in england too!! no wonder i couldn't contact him back in Singapore.. so he's hiding here...

hahah, to 02S64 guys, if u think dat he's slacking den u are absoutely wrong! he's e most hardworking student here, n guess wat he said to me? he needed to mug ! that's sth which we will never hear from him in JC.. and he's a Chinese translator for a china girl in his flat.. my god! from someone whom e chi teacher has virtually lost all hopes to a chi translater!! I guess UK's style realy suits him n i can see dat he's enjoying himself.. clubbing everyday.. that's y he treated us to a drink.. beer in Uk is like plain water in Singapore.. This is the first time im drinking in UK, why is my face always so red after such a small intake of alcohol?

Rainbow!

Milkshake, sth which i need at least twice per week, cost so much here! SGD $4.50 for one cup in MAc over here... at night, we were so happy to find a Chinese restaurant in my hall's vicinity..it's so nice to be able to eat chi food here.. im starting to miss my fried kway teow, carrot cake n cai fan!! haha e serving was so large that I couldn't finish.. but the cooking is no where near my mum's standard.. sigh, n all they do is putting more spices to make it more delicious.. a simple plate of hor fun cost SGD $15.00... well done! who will buy it at this price in Singapore? hahah, ok i know, i shld stop converting right.. next time when i go back to Singapore, i think i won't even hesitiate to spend anymore.. everythin jus seems so cheap... so guys, dun complain!

Taking e tube. Singaporeans always like to stand in MRT... esp the young ppl.. in London, ppl can't wait to sit down!! topping up my Oyster card is called Recharging in the local terms.. sounds really funny.. recharge battery? and the word stoning means high on drugs here.. the word fit means u are cool, hunky, or pretty... London, is truly a city of ROJAK... but rojak can be spicy rite? chilli sauce in London is a rarity.. nobody uses that!! my god... even KFC.. imagine eating chicken without chilli... mac also.. and the chi restaurant which I mentioned.. it's so cold here, doesn't it make sense to eat more chilli to keep warm!!! ketchup is all they care.. hahah

This pic shows e parking fees here.. doesn't that make u think twice abt owning a car?

Transit at Dubai

2006-10-03T00:29:00.000+01:00

7 hrs of flight to Dubai... AFter the hiccup wif the baggage allowance, Emirates finally proved its worth with its excellent services and FOOD!! dat's e most impt thing.. basically we just sleep, eat, watch movie, sleep , eat , sleep , eat and go toilet... we r trying to beat the jet lag.. tried e red n white wine (13.5% alochohol), that proved to be the best lullaby.. haha Dubai Airport is quite nice, worthy of a fight to Changi Airport..BUT, the layout is haphazard..have u ever seen ppl lying down to sleep just outside the gate?the dubai ppl were doing that! amazing... some looked like they had been camping down there for a few days...

Now i understand why some ppl like to shop at Dubai... it's so cheap! one bottle of mineral water cost SGD0.40..although they r using their own currency, we can still pay sing dollars.. we were like tourists... taking photos whenever we could.. and tapping e wireless network was indeed a chore.. 6 of us tried to get the best possible signal by sitting at strategic locations but it wasn't strong at all.. and it kept changing channel.. downloading a yahoo page took 10 mins! imagine.. wasted 50% of our battery power just to try logging in to msn... well done! haven't even reached london and our lappies are alr half dead..

Emirates is such a renowned name in Dubai.. Wherever u go, u can see Emirates name appearing.. Emirates Bank... Emirates here n there.. the information screens were mostly in Arabic.. how i wish i know that language... and we had to ask to check e gate of our transiting flight...

I guessed i was a bit allergic to the wine on board... i turned into a chili crab immediately after finishing the bottle.. n i had red spots on my limbs n neck.. once again, we kept sleeping and eating... it was truly non-stop action.. dis time round we had three meals, ate until i couldn't stand the food anymore.. played battlefield coz it was simply too boring... my god...But it's indeed v fun to travel with frens.. hahah.. and helping one another along the way..

London Heathrow Airport Terminal 3. Sigh, what a disappointment. Im sure the airport is in due time for refurbishment.. It was almost identical to the New Zealand one.. just that there weren't many dogs sniffing around... they just had one big fat dog standing at the entrance, doing the job as a detective..Fengyi lost his baggage and had to file a report.. nice job by Emirates once again! haha.. First impression of the airport was not a v pleasant one as i was greeted by a water cooler that had no water at all!! another (+) point of the airport..

I wasn't expecting the airport to be in such a rather run down state.. hahah and ben's luggages were detained as the 'detective' managed to sniff out his "hei bee hiam"... and his milo.. hahah my god.. i also had a pack of 3-in-1 milo in my possessions.. luckily the dog liked me better.. see, another security loophole. Immigration clearance was also a breeze, unlike what e seniors had told us.. The health screening department ppl talk more than they do work.. n i really admire those three aunties, serving passengers and chatting amongst themselves at the same time.. yeah UK ppl take things REALLY easy...

Now, it's time to take a tube... so what's it really like? basically u can try to imagine it as our MRT in its 1st version.. And of course, travelling with so many luggages proved to be a challenge.. It was even heavier than a full battle order gear in the army... doing a quick calculation, i had about 70kg load with me... no wonder now my biceps are bulging! We were not allowed to take photos even in the tube station... in the airport too.. we were ordered to delete the photos on the spot.. i seriously feel like asking her to KNOCK IT DOWN! haha ...

Same thing, we need to buy a travelling card, sth like ezlink... but it has a special name.. "OYSTER"... in hongkong, u call it "OCTOPUS".. why do countries like seafood so much? i wonder.. up to now , still wondering.. it's so expensive to travel in London.. but we dun have a choice.. a trip from e airport to my hall cost SGD13.50... imagine singaporeans paying that for a ride back home, LTA and CASE's hotlines will be flooded! haha..

Our luggages were enuff to occupy almost half a carriage. Ppl who boarded e tube must have thought that we were moving houses.. hahah The outskirt of London is really backward, sth like what u see in Yio Chu Kang? Seletar area? undeveloped land.. like those in OCS training area.. the tube stations are like our train stations.. not v modernised.. In Singapore, ppl can't wait to get onto the MRT because it's so much cooler inside. In London, ppl can't wait to get oout of the tube because it's so warm inside... the electricity flow is not v efficient too, occasionally the light or ventilation will turn off by itself due to the inefficient distribution of electricity. The tube has cushion seats but there r handles (arm rest) in between. definitely not welcomed by couples taking the tube... hahah..

Finally, i reached Russell square.. the station which I need to take tube from.. everythin was ok until this flight of stairs that were staring right in front of me. Why do the other stations have escalators except for russell square??? my god! I had to carry my 40kg luggage up the stairs, one stair at a time... it's worse than doing SOC or IPPT...wat a welcome gift from London.. after that, we still need to take a lift up to the ground level... guess wat? the lifts are automated but it's so slow that I can run up and down the various levels if stairs are provided..

London's tube is indeed "efficient". Out of the 10 lines, u can expect 5 to experience minor delay or other major renovation work.. If one day, u see on the Straits Times headlines that London tube workers are on a strike, u know that ur fren here can't get to sch anymore!! or if any accidnent happens on a tube, u know that it will be another off day for me, slacking at hall alr.. haha

International Hall is indeed a v nice place.. when things are new, they r really different n u feel good living at this place.. e very 1st thing on my mind was to offload all my luggages and give my overworked muscles a well deserved rest.. internet, so essential in our lives now, was high up on my priority list too..BUT the lan cable that they provided was faulty!! another "excellent" service once again.. feel like strangling them..

Last Day in Singapore

2006-10-01T00:24:00.000+01:00

I will never forget 29th Sept 2006, the day when I was so overwhelmed with emotions that I just couldn't think properly. All these while, I have been preparing for this big day, getting the documents for overseas studies ready and buying e essential items like luggages, toiletries n clothes. I just couldn't believe that the day has come so quickly and I was truly at the mercy of time. Why can't I have a few more days ? Time is cruel, it refused to listen to my plea and it was ticking away at an alarming rate. After spending 21yrs of my life in this small island, I just couldn't bear to leave everythin behind esp when I have a close knitted family and some great frens here.

I spent my last day in Singapore preparing farewell gifts for my family. The thought of coming back only 1 yr later made me really sad. It's so weird, I suddenly have the urge to stay and study locally but I know everythin is too late. It's been a long time since I cried but every time when I talked to my mum about the trip, my eyes just couldn't help but become teary.I can't even imagine me crying, oh man, im such a big boy alr!

I want to thank my parents for taking such good care of me for the past 21yrs, my sisters for bullying me as well as the fun and laughter.. and yingyan for her love and concern. I managed to have a taste of most local and asean delights before i left for London. My mum even made it a point to whip a few of my fav dishes such as curry fish head and chili crab. I wonder when n where would I have the chance to eat local seafood again.

I think I had irregular heartbeat on that day and it was beating so fast that I felt I had just completed a 2.4km run. My inbox was flooded with well wishes and e incessant calls from frens were greatly appreciated. When I reached the airport, I felt like taking a cab to go home. A lot of frens came to send me off and I was really touched. I was kinda in a daze too coz there were too many ppl and I regretted not being able to spend more time talking to all of you who turned up . There were just so many photos to take, msgs to reply and calls to answer. I really wan to thank all of you for making the trip down, no matter how long u had stayed there. For those who couldn't make it, thanks for the care n concern, hope to see you guys soon!

I encountered some baggage problem due to overweight and I spent about 1 hr trying to check in. Exceeded by 8kg so had to repack everythin and my hand luggage was almost as heavy as my backpack! Emirates refused to budge and most of us had to try all sorts of ways to reduce the weight of the checked in luggages. Never trust STA Travel! I kept checking my watch and time seemed to be slipping away very quickly.. Finally at ard 0100hrs, it was time to bid farewell to all my loved ones.. sigh... decided to go in early so that my frens could go home.

I was indeed thankful that some of my frens stayed throughout even after the small hiccup during check in. I could have spent more time with you all if not for the overweight issue. Though some of u left to catch the last bus/train home, I am really grateful that u guys turned up and I just wan to tell all of you that I treasure the friendship from each and everyone of u. I also got to see some ppl whom I haven't seen for ages and the feeling was really great!

The parting scene was nothing without tears. I thought I could control myself until my sisters started crying. It was kinda painful to see her weep.. I gave all my buddies a farewell hug and I lost control when it was my mum's turn. And I cried in front of the policeman!! Thanks to all my frens who stayed on and accompanied me through the last few moments in Singapore. I really feel appreciated coz I know some of u had to take cabs home and some had lesson the next morning.It took me a lot of courage to walk towards the immirgration counter.. i left with a really heavy heart.. I dare not look back.. As I cleared the immirgation, I kept thinking abt the good times and memories that I had in my homeland!! I had a lot of questions and uncertainties in mind, but no matter how daunting the path is, I know there's no turning back..

This is a place where true and strong friendships are forged and I really can't wait to go back to Singapore. You guys will be sorely missed!

DSTA frens to send us off

My Luggages & Little William!

Liheng, one of my favourite bridge partners back in the JC days.. hahha we even played bridge in front of our maths tutor during lesson!

Huiru, thanks for the photo frame with all our photos.. Work hard for A levels!

Pearl Ning, my No.3, thanks for organising that wonderful kbox session and dinner... Must pass ur maths papers!

Xuanyi, Gonna work hard to be a teacher! Must get 4As!

The NA Team, hahahah im the No.1 this time since Laura is absent.. Wishh miss u girls!

Norman, Bingliang, thankx for coming! What a surprise!

Yingyan, Shijia, Zhihao, John (4J)

John Tan! ahhah luckily u made it! All right man!

Zhihao san, getting stronger everyday... remember the promise ah!

Shijia, my starhub colleague, u know what i wan to tell u.. haha

Jeremy, A man of your word, Work hard in Medicine! Dr Mong!

JunBin, Thanks so much for making e trip down... must have a hard time convincing ur mum... e cookies were great! haha.. if not i would have starved..

Huiying, for making a guest appearance! didn't see her for yrs.. thanks for coming! Is this photo really that nice? haha

Weiloong, one of my best buddies back in SJ.. will never forget what u wrote inside the card... that's for I wanted to tell u too!

Liheng and Thian Seng... u guys rockz! hahah dude, u forgot to give me a hugz!

4J guys.. John, Zhihao, Jeremy and Weileen! miss the good old days...

02s64 guys... licheng, liheng, tienfa ge! hahah dun worry, ur captain won't let u all down... u guys study hard too! funky !!

Sorry to make u wait! had problem with luggages.. won't forget u.. hahah charlie battery officers! hope ur relationship get stronger each day! take care!

Weiloong, dun let me go!! we gonna be best buddies next time! hahaha... two lovable cocks!

Edwin, im going to miss ur edwin goh syndrome.. very soon i will have mine too... 23SA OFFICERS!

Norman, Yonghui, Edwin, Shawn, Weiloong, Bingliang
The SJAB Legacy.... hahaha can't believe we were first aiders before

2C Spirit! Yonghui, Lipen, Stanley, Zihua, Junbin... very touched that u guys came.. all the best.. keep me updated with all the cock stories.. hahah

Confronting Session... hahah stanley and zihua looking on.. I didn't do anything wrong!

Shawn and norman... The three standard coordinators... those were the days! Maris, sedi.. ye

Duxian, fellow SjAB squadmates.. hahah u gonna study hard man! junbin posing for a shot

Reynard. My Primary sch fren... what a coincidence to see him in the airport.. hahah

Who suggested taking this shot? hahaha Japanese class frens.... haiya, junbin, wenbin, kah pin.. all the pin pin pin... hey john! odd one out..

And FINALLY, THANKS SO MUCH FOR COMING, WAITING, ACCOMPANYING and SENDING ME OFF for the last stretch!

I miss home!