Next Phase

I have a lot to be excited about recently. I'm moving onto my next phase in life soon - the working world! Gone will be my summer holidays - then again they were never there since I've been interning every summer. Nevertheless, it still feels good!

The only thing I'm left with at school is picking up some of my official certs before I get no more access to school systems, receive my final grades for this semester on 8th May (*pray for the best*), and my graduation ceremony on 15th July! Yippee!

Went cycling with my dad today. Met an extremely cute poodle along the way who wanted to play with us. At first she came to our feet with a small branch but left when her owner called. After they walked one round, she came back again, this time with a bigger branch which she placed on my feet, desperate to play a game of fetch. I didn't play with her, but passed her owner the branch to throw instead. Such a cute little playful one. (:

Cycled along a long stretch of park connectors for the first time today and I must say, the government really put in a lot of effort to make the stretches of park connectors so scenic and relaxing. Singapore is so small yet all these are places I've never been to before, and it doesn't even feel like an urban area, it really feels like a big green park.

Later in the evening, I went for a BBQ dinner with the diving team. Almost walked into my friend's pond because it was in the middle of the house. Haha! Lucky for me I stared a bit longer and harder to see if there was really glass over the fishes - there wasn't, before I continued walking.

It's been a long and fulfilling day today. Glad I got to spend so much time with so many people today. (:

Good night.

November

It's the 1st of November! Since I last blogged, I wrote a few time-sensitive posts that are outdated now. Too lazy to go through with publishing them because they were just ramblings and nothing much.

Decided to blog today because I haven't had a proper outlet from all the stress I've accumulated in school. I don't have any final exams this semester and that is why, all my assignments and projects play a big part in deciding my grades, with 70% of my grades dependent on my performance during my last 3 weeks of school. I have about 2 weeks to go!

Going to be blogging about my October this year! Did a few things last month including ice skating, watching a dance concert, attending Pokemon Day and visiting Google Singapore as part of a class excursion!

I went ice skating with SMUX skating team during recess week. It was one of the rare days where I did not touch any form of school or project work.

With Sam!

Hehe riding for free!

SMUX Skating Team booked the whole rink for our event Frolic on Ice and we were split into groups to play some games. Our group came in 2nd but didn't win anything. Oh well! It was fun anyway! :D

Group picture!

Then I went for NUS's Shut Up and Dance before my recess week ended.

Bumped into Apple!

Picture with the BFF. (: You were awesome!!

The girls from Council. (:

Think we kind of went mad because of How Sun's kickass performance. Haha!

Probably the only normal picture we took that night

28th Council! (:

Then I went for Pokemon Day at Jalan Besar Stadium some time ago which happened to coincide with a soccer match between Singapore's Home United and Japan's Albirex Niigata. Bro asked Sam and I along using Pokemon Day as a pretext so we definitely weren't expecting a soccer match! First soccer match I've watched in Singapore!

Waited so long to take pic with this guy

Happy bro got what he came for!

Finally, at the end of October, I paid a visit to Google on the eve of Halloween as part of a class excursion. Now everyone wants to bid for this class next semester. Hahaha.

My groupmates and I! Spirits were all very high that day and we all became kids again.

Our class. (:

It was a really fun day we spent at Google, learning what they do in the Singapore office and of course, taking a tour around the area. The mood was so fun! I guess I ended my October on an awesome note! Time to get back to work! :D

Birthday

I celebrated my birthday last Saturday and woke up late because I was trying to finish as much work on Friday so that I wouldn't have to worry about Saturday. Met Sam at around 1.30pm. The first thing he did was to blindfold me while he drove us to a mall, and carried me across the carpark because he was afraid I walked too slow and cars were coming. Finally he sat me down, removed my blindfold but asked me to keep my eyes closed and then donned this pair of raybans on me!

I contemplated getting this on exchange last year because it was cheaper in Europe but didn't because it didn't fit me well - I think the pair I tried on was also tried on by many others before me so it was kind of loose. The first time I saw it was on a woman at Niagara Falls whom we asked to help us take a picture. When she was helping us take the picture, I was looking more at her sunnies than at the camera. Hahaha. So when the bf bought me this after my extremely long contemplation, needless to say, I was ecstatic! :D Thank you baby!

After that, we shared some XXL chicken for a light lunch and went to buy some paint supplies because he was preparing to paint his house the next day. I thought all the surprises were over because we were chilling but I was wrong. 

He blindfolded me again as we drove and after that leaned me against a wall by myself while he went somewhere. It was scary because I didn't know if someone would come rob me in daylight because I couldn't see so I held onto my bag super tightly... Anyway, while waiting I heard some plastic bag rustling on my left and felt the need to shift more to the right because I didn't know who this person was.

After what felt like forever, the bf came back and while we were walking away I said "Dear, there was someone beside me just now, who was it?" I thought it was my brother because it sounded like a guy. I said "I know that person is following us, I still hear a plastic bag sound that I heard just now" and he bluffed me saying that it was an ang moh drinking bubble tea (hence the plastic bag rustling) who walked in front of us and went away already. 

Anyway, we navigated and after stepping up a few steps, he made me turn around, carried me up and placed me on a chair which I figured felt pretty awkward for a chair. Then someone started to strap me up and I panicked and asked "Omg where are we??!!" The guy who was strapping me answered "River Safari" and it got me confused because since when did River Safari have such rides right? It took me awhile to realise that I had sat on this before and the only place that would have me strapped like this was.... The GMax Reverse Bungy Jump! Because I was still wearing my blindfold I said to Sam "Omg you are so dead" hahaha.

I swear my heart was beating quite fast and I was panicking because I was afraid that I would have to ride this alone AND with the blindfold on. Imagine not knowing when you're going to shoot into the sky PLUS shooting into a pitch black sky. THANK goodness Sam told them to tell me to take the blindfold off.

After taking them off I had multiple curious stares from onlookers - I'm guessing because I was wearing the blindfold earlier and they were wondering what my reaction would be to all of this. Hahaha. Many times while walking with the blindfold, Sam would say "walk faster, a lot of people are staring" and then he would proceed to walk ahead of me and pull me along behind him and I would go "Don't walk ahead of me! You walk beside me then I have more confidence to walk faster". Other times I'd go "Doesn't matter if they are judging me, I can't see them anyway" and just continued walking at a snail's pace hahaha.

Anyway, I was delighted to find that Sam was beside me all along, not making a single sound. He bought the package with the video (Gopro strapped to the ride) and so everyone who watched it on my FB said that Sam looked more surprised than me on the ride. This is because this is my second time taking this ride (the first time was 10 years ago). Nevertheless, Sam did enjoy it too! After our heads were kind of spinning a little I asked him "How did you know I wouldn't freak out?" and he said "Because that time you say you like these kind of things" hahaha. My smart bf - if it was something I wasn't comfortable with I don't know what I would have done!

After the ride, I finally found out who the "plastic bag person" was - Yvonne!! She was the person beside me all along when I was waiting for Sam earlier and was my "protector" from my imagined daylight robbers. Hahaha. Was too caught up with the surprise that I didn't spot her taking pre-ride shots of me. Hahaha. My sneaky bestie!

So anyway, we headed to Tony Roma's - a placed that Sam predicted I wanted to eat at. My bf can read my mind, or for that matter, my stomach's mind. Major love for the potato skins. Yum. Since my blindfold days were over, I thought all surprises were over! But when I reached Tony Roma's, Olivia appeared!! It was a big surprise for me and I asked Sam "Who else is coming?" Was glad to find out that she was my last surprise for the day. :D

Because we were hungry and wanted to get rid of our dizzy spells from the ride, we shared some ribs and sides and finally dessert - a cake that I told Sam I'd like to try, but didn't know what it was called - something crunchy and praline. The bf drove all the way down to Sheraton Hotel to order it for me and Olivia helped pick it up. (': Feel so loved.

And so that sums up my awesome birthday!! (:

Hehe. Feel so much love today. Thank you all for the wishes. (:

Belgium - Ghent, Brugge, Brussels and Antwerp

I'm back! Well, homework in Iceland is very much like in SMU. The only good thing I would say is that I think there are less group projects than there is back home. Readings on European history and philosophy or such have been killing me.

Anyway, because I'm too burnt out to continue mugging for my test tomorrow, I decided to dig up some old pictures of my travels in August, continuing from my previous post of travelling in Germany. Here's much of the beautiful Belgium that we visited. We had day trips to Ghent and Brugge and it was so very worth it.

Leaving the Cologne Cathedral as we walked to the main train station.

In Ghent/ Brugge

The Marriott

Sam and I took a boat tour and we saw the beautiful buildings of Ghent, including a narration of them by the boatman.

This is something I would recommend anyone to do!

I can't remember the story behind this angel with a gas mask.

90 mussels we shared. 

We made it a point that wherever we went, we would ask a local about the best places to eat. 

So this was one of them!

Back in Brussels at Grand Place to find this little guy.

Not many people know but they actually created a girlfriend for Mannekin Pis and her name is Jeanneke Pis. She is so hidden at the back of an alley just beside a bar that we had to ask for directions countless times just to get there.

Also, we are always on the lookout for cheap meals and we make it a point to share every meal. 

This was $12 Mussels! (:

The Atomium. Pretty much a waste of time if you enter. Don't enter, just take pictures from outside. (:

The Mini Europe theme park that we could see from the top of the atomium.

Among all the structures, buildings, places and events they recreated on a miniature scale, I'm most fascinated by how much detail they give to every single tiny person in the park.

Arc De Triomphe of France

Visited the Chocolate Museum in Grand Place. It was interesting to see how they made chocolate but I kind of expected more. This is also not a fantastic place to buy chocolates. It is better to look for chocolate shops along the streets.

They did have some chocolate statues like the chocolate Mannekin Pis and some chocolate dresses and hats but I think that pretty much sums up everything in there.

When we got to Antwerp, the train station felt so majestic. It's a century old! Such an old beauty.

We only had 1 day in Antwerp and so we didn't venture out much.

We went to this super long tunnel that stretched far below a river to the other side of Belgium. It took too long to walk so we decided not to cross. There wasn't anything on the other side anyway.

Wooden escalators

There you have it.

Something we really enjoyed about Belgium was the food. Belgian food was the most palatable of all the food we've tried on our trip. I think maybe we are just more used to the taste of it as Singaporeans.

This restaurant was recommended to us by our Airbnb hosts. I would recommend it to anyone!

Tavern restaurant

We had Flemish beef stew if I'm not wrong. It came with apple sauce and it was so delicious!

This was us leaving Antwerp the next morning. 

Our Airbnb hosts prepared a breakfast feast for all their guests! What a spread!

That morning, as the hosts were going out, they decided to walk with us to the train station. When we reached the train station, we realised that we had missed our train. We wanted to take a later one but couldn't because someone jumped down to the tracks and the trip was cancelled. Then, I realised that I had left my jacket in the house containing our train tickets. Timur ran all the way back (about 15mins) to get it for me. Since the next train was not coming for another hour or so, they treated us to some ice cream at Mcdonald's! Pity we only stayed one day with them. I would loveeeeee to go back there someday.

If you are heading to Belgium, please do visit Antwerp, and if you do visit Antwerp, please stay with Timur and Sonja. They are the best Airbnb hosts I've ever had. <3

Okay, sadly my time is up and I have to head back to the books. I shall update when I have time again soon! (: