Dutching Veechinooga.

I'M BACK! hahhaha.

2008-02-06T14:57:00.000Z

... after 1 year, to finish up this travel blog hahha.

I guess its time I get down to finish this. A bit late la I know, but better than nth haha. (:

Ok, mostly pictures, lazy to write.

04-09 Apr: Luxembourg/Belgium (4)

2007-04-28T18:47:00.000+01:00

09 Apr>> THIS IS ANTWERP (:

This was the last day of our trip, and there was basically nothing much to do there besides shopping. But guess what, it was Easter Monday and all the shops were closed! Yay. I guess we were just there on the wrong day. So once again, we just walked around, and then decided that we shall return home early, YAY!

How we love reflective surfaces haha.

Kids Easter Party. The Easter bunny even hopped up to us to give us chocolate eggs haha.

The mega shopping and high fashion street where all the shops were closed?! Anyway, I believe the street could span almost 1km!

And of course, everybody loves the sun (: This pic was taken at noon by the way. Who on earth does this in Sg?

Ok yay, THE END!

04-09 Apr: Luxembourg/Belgium (3)

2007-04-28T18:28:00.000+01:00

08 Apr>> THIS IS BRUGES (:

I somehow liked Bruges a lot, I guess it was a very refreshing change from Brussels. Maybe cos it kinda looked similar to Delft… similar to home. I guess I just wanted to go home. Travelling can really be very tiring.

We took it easy in Bruges. Didn’t felt like navigating with the map much. So we just signed up for The Chocolate Walk where we just went round the city centre collecting chocolates from various shops to taste. And on the way, we just snapped a few pics. That was about it. And oh, we also went to the chocolate museum. Yea, so it was very much a chocolatey day. Chocolate is one of the main highlights of Belgium anyway haha.

Choco-Story – the Chocolate Museum.
Chocolate lovers, I’m sure you would wanna know the answer to the following haha.

… haha well, I guess this doesn’t exactly help. Can’t they just simply replace the answer with “Of course, it makes you fat!!!”

To be continued…again.

04-09 Apr: Luxembourg/Belgium (2)

2007-04-28T13:38:00.000+01:00

Moving on to Belgium…

06-07 Apr>> THIS IS BRUSSELS (:

The Brussels Town Hall

The Grand Place

Manneken Pis. The famous peeing boy of Belgium. Don’t even know how it came about.

Ouch.

Brussels Waffles. Shiok! But mega ex.

Galeries Royales St Hubert

The pulpit in the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula

The Belgian Centre for Comic Strip Art. Now I know Tintin and the Smurfs originated in Belgium.

Which of these was your favourite? Haha.

Muziek Instrumenten Museum

The Mont des Arts

The Atomium. This structure represents an iron crystal, magnified 165 billion times!

Inside the Atomium.

Brasserie Cantillon – A tradition family-run brewery.

Cheers! Having a taste of the Brussels beer – gueuze. It is a blend of lambic beers which has the dryness and sparkle of a good champagne. A rather unique taste, I must say.

Ok, that’s about it for Brussels. Didn’t quite like that place actually. Maybe I was just bored of seeing buildings after buildings which are all of the same architectural style.

To be continued…

04-09 Apr: Luxembourg/Belgium

2007-04-27T19:35:00.000+01:00

This period’s supposed to be the exam week followed by Easter hols, so we decided to take the opportunity to make our first trip outta the Netherlands to Luxembourg and Belgium. Ok, wont talk much, so just look at the pics (:

04-05 Apr>> THIS IS LUXEMBOURG (:

The Casemates of a fortified castle.

Rue du Marche aux Herbes. Palais Grand-Ducal on the right.

Vianden, a small medieval town in the Ardennes.

The Castle of Vianden. Picture totally ruined by the crane.

From the top of the castle.

What on earth went through my head when my head went through.

Self-entertainment (:

I thank God for my crazy friends.

Keep seeing many of these creatures (I believe they are antelopes?) in Luxembourg. I think its for promoting the region as a European capital of culture.

Quick Burger. This picture forever makes me hungry.

The cleanest, the newest, the BEST hostel we’ve stayed in so far.

All in all, Luxembourg is a very beautiful city with magnificent landscape. But its really small (populated with 0.5 million people), so you can finish it in a day. Anyway, just a side, I found SUVs and station wagons characteristic of Luxembourg. I guess the people really need more powerful vehicles to conquer the steep slopes.

Next up: BELGIUM.
To be continued…

30 Mar: 91/100

2007-03-31T03:38:00.000+01:00

Took a Dutch entrance test yesterday after my exam in the morning, so that I could qualify for the Dutch language course. Don’t ask me why a test is needed. Guess cos they are giving the course for free to exchange and masters students (while others needed to pay), so they wanted to make sure that we’ll put in effort, and that cld be shown by studying for and passing the first test with 75% or more.

Results were out today, and I got 91/100. Haven’t gotten this kinda grade since primary school! Haha. Feels good. Sorry I need to boast about it for a while, cos I’ve been getting lousy grades like Bs and Cs at NUS ):

Well, hopefully I can sustain, cos its gonna be an intensive two-month course.

29 Mar: Shiok exam

2007-03-31T03:34:00.000+01:00

My first exam in TU Delft! Also, this is the first time I’ve ever had to study a design book for a design exam. In NUS, I needed only to study notes.

Anyway, I think this exam was an eye opener for me. I loved the experience. Im thankful I had the chance to take an exam at the school. Haha. Let me describe what I went through:

Upon entering the examination room, this pretty girl from the Student Association gave me sweets and wished me good luck.

I could choose to sit anywhere I like, and bring my bag with me even though it’s a closed book exam.

It was a 9am-12nn paper. Only at about 9:05am, the invigilators started handing out the papers. Whoever received first could just begin.

While doing the first paper, the invigilators continued giving out the second and third sets at their own time. If you had a missing page, just walk to the front and get a new set. If you don’t have enough paper, get it yourself too. Wanna go toilet? Just leave the room.

On my desk, there was a slip of paper, which allowed me to order coffee/tea, with or w/o milk. I just needed to tick my preference, and leave 25 cents on the table with that slip, and in the middle of the exam, two handsome guys pushed the beverage cart around and served us our orders.

And actually I only needed to do half the exam (again another long story), so by right I should be handing in at 10:30. but at 10:40, I was still writing. Then the invigilator came up to me and said, “Hmm, I think your time is up, but how many questions have you left?”

“One,” I said.

“Ok, maybe I’ll give you another 10 mins? You try and finish up.”

I finished at about 10:55, invigilator came to me to take my paper, I slowly packed my bag, put on my jacket, and walked out happy (:

Such a stress-free exam. I think NUS Student Union should also aim to provide this kinda service man.

24 Mar: Den Haag again

2007-03-31T03:15:00.000+01:00

This weekend, our friends who are on exchange in Germany came to stay with us. And we decided to visit Den Haag, again! Anyway Den Haag is so big, compared to Delft, and even after today, we still haven’t finished exploring it. So we’ll probably be visiting it again sometime soon (:

Anyway since Den Haag is only half an hour away by train, we decided to save the cost of travelling and cycle there! Haha. By right, it should only take us an hour by bike, but cos we were unfamiliar with that place, so we spent a lot of time on navigation, and I think in all we were on the bike for about 4-5hrs? And so I took the chance to learn cycling single-handed, and now I can proudly say that I can do it with either hand! Haha, just that right hand off needs a bit more practise. Anyway, it was really a nice experience cycling along the canal, seeing sheep, getting lost. And it was definitely great workout. Both my thighs sng until cannot sng already. Dead tired when I reached home.

Yimin and Grace on the bikes.

Noordeinde Paleis.

We were at the Paranoma Mesdag Museum, but because we didn't want to spend money to enter, we just self-entertained with the reflection from the hemispherical top of the rubbish bin!

Vredespaleis.

Gemeente Museum: featuring the Sixties.

21 Mar: Piano Exam

2007-03-31T03:07:00.000+01:00

…or at least it feels like one.

I was actually offered by a prof in my faculty to do and individual study with him, following the module “Experimental Form Study of Visual Information”. Erm, it’s a very very long story how I got here, so I shan’t go into it.

Today was my first appointment with him. I was supposed to show him some initial research and analysis of my assignment. I was kinda gan jiong as I didn’t know how much I was expected to prepare for this first meeting, and I guess the main reason is cos it’s a one-to-one thing, not like a group discussion or sth. Guess it feels a little intimidating.

Actually this teacher is a very nice guy, gentle and polite, just that he reminds me too much of the examiners I used to get when I went for piano exams. And piano exams are SCARY. He’s, well, not too old, maybe in his 40s or 50s; wears a black suit, looks through a pair of reading glasses, has a pair of large hands, sits upright at his desk, plus he’s ang moh. That really makes him look like the typical piano examiner. And that’s scary, to me at least.

Anyway, though I somehow felt that my preparation was insufficient, I just showed him whatever I had. And surprisingly, he was very impressed with the information I had found and ideas I had. Phew!

As we were making the next appointment for a discussion again, he said to me, “I am really excited to see what you can come up with in the next meeting. I like what you showed me today.” Hais, that just made me even more stressed. Somehow feel that I wouldn’t be able to meet his expectations of me and would disappoint him.

Anyway, besides the normal assignment discussion the next meeting, I am also supposed to take an “exam” with him. Supposed to read a book called “Communication Design”, then he’ll ask me questions based on the book and my view on the author’s stand. How stressful is that! If it’s a written paper, I can still think it through, plan a structure and write an essay, but it’s gonna be verbal! Man. I just hope I don’t get too gan jiong until I start talking nonsense. But is really feels like the aural part of the piano exam, if not worse! Pray for me!

Sigh, I guess this is part of life. Eventually I’ll hafta go through interviews, which is similar to this, in order to get a job. So I guess this is good training for me. Anyway, I think im really very privileged to have a personal tutor. He actually has to fork out an hour each time just to do this assignment with me. And I think I can really learn a lot from these sessions. So I should really work extremely hard so that I won’t put this opportunity to waste.

18 Mar: “Your Mandarin is in vogue!”

2007-03-31T03:04:00.000+01:00

... said to me by a girl from China, “and it sounds good!”

Haha, today in church, I was just speaking to 2 China students who are also studying at TU Delft. At first we were speaking in English, then one of them suggested, “Hey, since we’re all Chinese, why don’t we converse in Mandarin?” So that was just what we did.

Well, I uttered a line or two (couldn’t remember what though), and after that quickly apologised if they couldn’t understand me, since most people wld tell me to shut up once I started speaking in Mandarin in S’pore.

Then, one of them said to me, “No, your Mandarin sounds really good! Don’t worry!”

For a moment, I was thinking that she must be fu-yan-ing me, until she added, “You know, nowadays people in China are actually trying to speak like the way you do! Cos when they watch too much Hong Kong or Taiwanese serials, and hear the pop stars speak in a slang different from that in China, they think its fashionable and want to imitate.”

Whoa, I was surprised to hear that, but anyway, hey hey, my Mandarin is cool k! haha. Who are you to frown and tell me to shut up now when I speak. Haha.

Then she continued, “…while it is actually your English that sounds kinda weird.”

-____-

Oh well, Singlish marh, what to do. Hahha.

17 Mar: International Sports Day

2007-03-31T02:36:00.000+01:00

This is an annual event organized for all international students from various schools in Netherlands. Its like a friendly competition between schools. It would last for a whole day, with a dinner and prize presentation at the end. Coincidentally, this year’s is hosted by my school, and Hun signed me up as a supporter haha, so I just decided to go and take a look.

Was thinking what they wld make us do as supporters, like practise and shout some cheers together or sth. In the end, they only gave us each a party thing (don’t know what you call that, the one which you blow and the “tongue” unrolls while making a sound) to blow and make some noise. So we ended up not actually really playing the roles of supporters, but just going round to watch the different events, and occasionally blow the thing for fun haha.

How supportive I am. Haha.

Badminton.

800m race.

Chess.

...and more.

Well, the best part of this sports day is that we get FREE lunch and FREE dinner when we participate in it, and supporters are also counted! (isn’t that the whole point about signing up for it anyway?) Haha. So, since we’re we done watching all the various sports by morning, we grabbed our FREE lunch, then went to the city centre walked one round, went home took a nap, then returned for the FREE dinner haha. Hey, we’re showing our Singaporean spirit in this int'l event ok, haha. Not that we so kiasu or what, but we’re just really sian of cooking our own meals larh.

Then at dinner, after some of the people were done eating, they just gathered round where the DJ played and started dancing. The whole thing was really amusing larh, cos it was more or less like a racial harmony gathering, so the DJ would occasionally play, say an Indian song, then quickly the Indians wld come forward to take the floor and dance some Indian dance. Then when the African one played, then suddenly everyone started dancing a routine, and it seemed like everyone, but us, knew it! Anyway, throughout they just played weird music larh, so we all just shake shake a bit for fun.

Yeps, that’s all for the day (: Free lunch and free dinner felt good haha.

Happy are we (:

14 Mar: The day I washed my clothes

2007-03-31T02:28:00.000+01:00

…is also the day I built an obstacle course in my room.

Well, its my first time using the washing machine and dryer in 21 years! Whooo. By the way, not that I didn’t wash clothes since the day I arrived, but I handwashed them all to save money. Anyway, despite using the dryer, my clothes still came out wet! How loser am I. And because I didn’t want to waste another Euro drying my clothes, I had no choice but to do this:

And, oh, wait, that’s not the end. I lost my towel too. Maybe in the wash, or dryer, or on the way to the washer, or during the transfer from the washer to dryer… The best thing is I’ve really no clue how it could even disappear. I checked everywhere but just couldn’t find it ):

10 Mar: Den Haag

2007-03-31T00:46:00.000+01:00

Den Haag is the 3rd largest city in the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Its only about half hour by train or tram from Delft, while Amsterdam 45mins and Rotterdam 12mins away by train. Ain’t I fortunate to be in Delft? Though small, yet every other happening place is so near! (:

Anyway, back to Den Haag. Zhang Rui , Hun and I decided to go there for a day trip.

Ok, just see pictures. Lazy to write. Haha.

Het Binnenhof - the centre of Dutch political life.

Mauritshuis

Escher in het Paleis. I love Escher's works!

Other random pics.

Look at how they just pile the bread against the window.

Sunbathing in the park??

Look at the pillars.

Look at our happy faces.

Dinner finally.

Yay, in train, going home!

10 Mar: I Just Can't Stop

2007-03-10T22:05:00.000Z

SHOPPING!!!
Cos it just feels really SHIOK!

Oh man, someone stop me from becoming like Juls. Haha (:

Cheap kids wear which I can fit in!

Tank top: E2.50!

Skirt: E3.00!

Le Coq Sportif turtleneck pullover: E9.95! (originally E39.95)

Forecast denim jacket: E15.00! (originally E64.95)
Boots: E19.95 (oh well, not exactly v cheap, but i wanted v much a pair of boots so, haha)

Forecast battle cuff 3-quarts: E15.00! (originally E59.95)

Here comes my favourite! The blouse! I think its the best buy! and I really love it!

Forecast blouse: E5.00! (originally E49.95)

Forecast 3-quarts: E10.00! (originally E49.95)

Benetton belt: E8.90 (well, not cheap again, but i really like the patterns)

And I got most of these stuff from this Forecast shop, which I kinda like cos of their cuttings which most of the time fit very nicely. And everything in the shop is super ex except for those on sale, where after some mad digging can find really good buys! And also, I usually will hafta buy XS (and sometimes they are even still too big), which makes me feels small, which makes me feel happy hahha! (:

And im really really v happy with all my buys! Wheeeeeee! Yay! (:

05 Mar: Where is my money!!!

2007-03-07T06:42:00.000Z

Before the exchange, I’ve already transferred money to the sch, as a proof that I’ve sufficient money for living expenses throughout my entire stay in Delft. Can you imagine how much money that is. By right, they shld subsequently open a Dutch bank account for me when I arrive here, and then transfer all that money into the bank. Yes, they did open the account, but didn’t transfer the money! for 1 whole mth I had to live on the cash that I brought. The school (or in general, the culture here) is ridiculously slow in handling all these admin matters. I kept bugging the sch for my money but just didn’t get it. To make matters worse, all payment made in sch is through this Chipknip (sth like cash card), so I cant pay by cash at all. And to top up this chip card, I can only transfer money into it from a Dutch bank acct (which has currently no money). So I basically cant buy anything from sch.

I was about to blow today (cos I haven’t been able to get my course material for an exam coming up in less than a mth), till I checked my account and saw that they’ve finally put the money in. Really felt like killing the sch.

26 Feb: Bike!

2007-03-07T05:52:00.000Z

Haha, finally bought a bike today. For 50Euro, a 2nd hand. Well, the cheapest I can find already. It’s a kiddy’s city bike! Haha, thought the adults’ were too huge for me, especially when I sometimes cant even cycle straight in Sg, I guess a smaller one wld be easier to handle. And I love the colours! But but but, I don’t know if it’s the bike, or just me, I just cant go fast at all. Compared to all other bikes on the lane, im as good as crawling, especially uphill, I can hardly move. To sch is only 10mins, but my legs are already wobbly when I reach. So, I better return home with slim thighs after half a year!

My bike (left) and Neighbour's (right). Notice the difference in size haha.

Trying out the bike. Its really hard to cycle with the bag cos it keeps dropping!

25 Feb: Church

2007-03-07T05:02:00.000Z

Christelijke Gemeete Levend Water, Delft.

In English, Living Water Christian Church.

The first time I went to a church in Delft. I found this church on the web and decided to go have a look since its only 5 mins walk from my house.

The moment I stepped in, it just all seemed so strangely familiar. I felt like I was back at home. I now understand how God is the same everywhere and connects all His people from all over despite the differences in race, nationality and culture.

This church is very much like church back home, small and cosy, with about 150 people. And its now raising funds for new church building because it can no longer grow in this current one (which is only temporary). There is only one service which is in both Dutch and English, so I get to learn some Dutch while worshipping God, not bad uh haha. The people here are very warm and friendly, and quite a number are from TU Delft (my sch) too, which is good (:

Worship.

Sermon Time.

Pastor (left), with English translator (right).

The column on the left is a measure of the funds they have raised. Once they've reached a mark, they'll colour it.

This church is of no denomination, but so far, their doctrines seem sound, and amazingly, both sermons I’ve attended actually coincide with the QT I’ve been doing. God is good! So I guess, this is where I shall be continuing to go to receive God’s Word and for Christian fellowship, and I thank God for bringing me here! (:

24 Feb: Ikea

2007-03-07T04:35:00.000Z

Took a bus to Ikea today, and hey, buses are free on Saturdays from 11am-6pm! Anyway, Ikea here is super huge, compared to Singapore’s. Inside is pretty much the same, though they have a wider variety. And meatballs are cheap!–er than in Sg! Only 5.25 Euro per kg! I believe in Sg its about 15SGD? And its cheaper than chicken (7.29Euro/kg) or pork (7.99Euro/kg) here, can you believe it. Meatballs shall replace all other meat during my stay here. Haha.

22 Feb: Dutch cheese, Dutch cheek.

2007-03-07T03:49:00.000Z

Tasted them both today.

Dutch Cheese.
I had my little piece...

...from the many reels of cheese!
SHIOK stuff! (:

Dutch Cheek.
I’ve a dutch guy as a partner for one of my modules. We were supposed to meet up today to do up our storyboard for tmr’s class. Was standing near the canteen waiting for him, and then saw him walking towards me. Like I always do, I waved and said “Hi”. Then I turned around to look for a table when I saw his arm stretched towards me. Was thinking, what’s he doing man? Seeing me turn away, he said, “Kiss?” Then I, “OH, ok…”

(Hmm, hairy cheeks.)

First time, a cheek kiss. Didn’t know how to go about doing it, but just did as I vaguely recall from TV. I hope I wasn’t blushing, but I sure couldn’t concentrate on the storyboard for at least the first 10mins. Think he must have felt super malu-ed when I just turned away. Guess its just their culture, definitely not mine.

16-18 Feb: Eindhoven

2007-03-02T00:46:00.000Z

My long awaited trip out of Delft for the first time! Hun and I went to Eindhoven (south of Netherlands) to join the other IDiots there for Carnival and CNY! but oh, guess what, I actually forgot to charge my cam batt, bring extra batt or the charger! so frustrating, didnt get to take many photos.

Dinner immediately after arrival in Eindhoven. Thanks Kitty and MunYee for cooking for us!

Eindhoven Station

Public urinal? oops, sorry man, I didnt see you peeing behind there.

Flea Market. Sg pasar malam equivalent.

Carnival
The Dutch Carnival is like a huge street party and parade where everyone will dress up in weird costumes just for the fun of it. It usually lasts for about 4 days, starting Saturday and ending the day before Lent starts. And the purpose of it is to drink and party and be merry while they still can, before fasting starts during Lent. Well, I thought this is totally missing the point about Lent, but hey, since I’m here, I’m just gonna join in the fun anyway! Haha.

Float for the parade. Its spongebob, dont know what, and Bob the Builder, right?

Getting into the mood for the carnival. Dont we just look cuckoo. Haha.

Party on the streets. Super crowded and squeezy.

Why didn't anyone tell me I look absolutely spastic?!

Reunion Dinner at President’s place
After the Carnival, all of us rushed back to cook a dish each, in preparation for tuan yuan fan! President’s place was too small to accommodate so many of us, so by the time we took turns to cut the veg, chop the meat and cook at the stove, we were only ready to begin nearing 9pm.

8-course dinner can! haha. havent seen so much food in a while. mines the dish below the soup. not bad eh haha.

International Gathering over Chinese Reunion Dinner. with Turkish, Spanish, Dutch and Polish friends (:

Lo hay! but w/o raw fish haha, cos not fresh over there. But was super shiok. Thanks to Hun for contributing this. Can I have it again when im back in sg pls? (:

I guess it was really nice to be able to gather as one big Chinese family in a foreign land to celebrate CNY together and I thank God for that, though I really miss all the new year goodies, festive mood, gatherings and angbaos back in Singapore.

Both of us returning to Delft by train on Sunday. Sians still had school on Monday. I was super tired.
Oh, and Happy Birthday Tinsley on 18Feb! Your dearest friend remembers. Haha.
Not forgetting you too, Cassisie, on 14 Feb! (:

15 Feb: Here comes Hun!

2007-03-02T00:16:00.000Z

YAY! You are finally here! After 2 long weeks! Finally I see a familiar face, with whom I could leh-lor-lah all I want and actually understands me! Though I’ve never said this to you, I’m really glad you are here with me now, and I am lonely no more! After you came, I definitely had better and more regular meals, more fun shopping, and walking on streets taking as many pictures as I like w/o having to feel paranoid abt the possibility of getting robbed! And my parents also said that after you came, I sounded more cheerful over the phone haha. I guess we cant run from the fact that we’ll be Neighbours Forever! Hahahhaboohoohaha.

Yeps, this is YOU! haha. [aka Hun aka Neighbour aka Huiqian]

11 Feb: I Made It Through.

2007-02-11T12:45:00.000Z

I made it through.
11 days in Delft and 1 week in school (:

Room.
When I first entered my room, thought its really small. But now im starting to wish it could be a little smaller, so there isn’t so much surface area to clean. I just don’t understand why the room gets dusty so quickly. Sigh. I hate cleaning up!

Anyway, my room’s a studio apt, which is really ex, €426 per month!?!?! Anyway, that’s besides the point. Yea, I have a kitchen and a toilet all to myself, which is good, cos I don’t really like sharing places like this, oops. Haha. But the bad thing is that I don’t get to see my neighbours cos the weather is cold and everyone hides at home. Moreover, in my block of flats, there isn’t like a communal space or anything. Yea, so most of the time, im in my cosy little quiet room (:

I kinda like the location of my apt (though its 2km or 20-25min walk from sch!), cos ive got Albert Heijn (supermarket) and the ABN.AMRO Bank just adjacent to my block. And if I cross another few streets, there are more shops and supermkts around, so its really convenient where im living.

My workstation. Haha.

Messiness = Homeliness (:

Food.
Im eating well everybody, don’t worry (:

Vegetables from the supermkt is really ex.
4 tomatoes = SGD 1.50 !!!
1 carrot = SGD 1.00 !!!
Tou gay is the ultimate (they call it “Touge” here, haha sounds classy eh), I didn’t buy, but I think if I didn’t remember wrongly, its like SGD 4.00 per kg?!?! isn’t it only a few cents in Singapore?! I think I needa go to the flea mkt on Sundays, cos I heard its way cheaper there? But it isn’t a strong enough motivation for me to leave my warm little sty, especially when its about 3km away plus its raining and the wind’s really strong. Maybe next week.

Stroopwaffels! A thin layer of caramel btwn 2 slices of waffles. My favourite! But I think im already getting sian of it. And Dutch Spiced Cookies!

Milo was what i brought, Hot Chocolate was what i bought. Milo was running out, so i hoped the same Nestle brand Hot Choc could be a close substitute. But unfortunately, not anywhere near ):

Tasteless cheap fake CocoCrunch ): Couldn't take it, went to buy Frosties to make myself happier for €2.55.

Did I buy the wrong kinda rice?

Erm, I didn’t take pictures of the food I cook (not that I don’t cook ok), maybe next time!

City Centre.
Went there last weekend on a city tour organized by the sch with other exchange students. It was good as we learnt about the history of the town, the canals and the buildings.

And the place is really very pretty! It’s a medieval town with much ancient architecture and I really felt as though I was in the town Harry Potter was living in! I took some pictures but somehow they cannot capture the magical experience you’ll get when you are standing in the town square or walking through the town. So come and experience it for yourself (while im here, that is, haha)!

Anyway, took such lousy pics because I was scared to take out my camera. Quickly took a few shots and kept it. Didn’t want others to know that im a tourist, cos im afraid that they’ll take the chance to rob me or sth. Oh well, maybe im just too paranoid. But i’ll definitely take more and proper ones when Hun comes over. Hurry come!!!

Friends.
The Introduction Day the school organized for us was quite good, cos I got to meet other exchange students. They welcomed us with 2 glasses of beer each! How cool is that! Though I don’t exactly like beer haha. Well, managed to get to know a few nice people, those whom I can chat with when I see them in sch or on the way to sch. But that’s about it, no close friends whom I can hang out with yet, but that’s ok, I know it takes time (:

School.
School started for a wk and its really stressful! 1stly, there is so much work. 2ndly, the lectures are short and the lecturers want to cram so much info within that hour plus, and so they go at train speed. And plus their slang, it isn’t helping ): and 3rdly, whatever they are teaching is kinda cheem to me. I think that just shows how much NUS has taught me. Im glad im here.

Weather.
I don’t like it. Its been cold (below 6 degrees these few days) and I have to put on so many layers before I leave the house, and it takes so long to do that!

Saw snow on Tuesday and Thursday. Yes, for the first time in my life, but I didn’t exactly like it. 1, my toes were frozen. 2, the snow kept slapping on my face and melting on my eyes. 3, the wind kept blowing my hood off. 4, I was in a hurry to get to sch. 5, its very tiring to walk on ice.

From my window.

But I think I dislike rain even more. Cos the winds were so strong even in a drizzle, that my umbrella kept flipping! I had totally no ctrl over it. Now I see why people here hardly use umbrellas. They just walk in the rain with their waterproof jackets.

All in all.
Im ok with living here, but I still prefer Singapore anytime!

People here smoke like it’s the norm, and I really don’t like that.

The streets are not very, but still dirty. And the thing I cant stand the most is that people bring their dogs out to shit everywhere! Even in the shopping centres! I kenna-ed once cos how on earth wld I expect shopping centres to have shit everywhere!

Really don’t like the cold weather, makes the day so dreary ): Singapore’s climate’s still the best (at least for me)! Though humid and hot sometimes, it beats having to dress up daily in thick layers just to step outside.

And bikes here are the main form of transportation. People here cycle since they were 3! And if you need help with taking public transport, they cant really help cos they don’t know either. Their bikes take them everywhere. I haven’t got myself a bike, and I don’t think anytime soon, cos I think its too dangerous for me. Really bad at cycling. Confirm will get into accidents often. Plus its been snowing and raining. So guess I’ll just hafta resort to walking at least 4km a day. We’ll see.

And I miss.
My bolster!

My maid! Well, not exactly her, but the things she does haha. Its really tiring to cook, do housework, laundry and stuff. Arghs.

TV! No tv here, but at least I’ve Friends (not friends, but Friends, haha) here with me. All 10 seasons. They really are my friends who keep me in good company!

Good food! Haven’t eaten sth which I really like since the day I arrive, except for my all-time favourite IndoMie instant Mee Goreng! and its weird that they dont have instant noodles here.

Chinese New Year! At least I’ll be celebrating with my Eindhoven counterparts so it isn’t too bad. But it’ll definitely not be the same as having it at home ):

And everyone at home! At least now ive net access at home, it isn’t as miserable as in the first few days after arrival.

But never mind. Im gonna be home soon. Just 139 more days to go, or hopefully less! ):

01 Feb: The Dutching Begins.

2007-02-09T20:55:00.000Z

Departure. 31 Feb 07. Wednesday.
It was crazy. An 11:15pm flight.

8:00pm Still packing! Thank God mom was helping me.

8:30pm Dad carried luggage down stairs and the handle broke! Panic. Thankfully grandma has got an extra one to spare. And I think in fact, it’s a blessing in disguise. Cos hers is actually bigger than my original one, so repacking wasn’t too difficult. Plus, the broken one was a hardcase (heavy), with only a little handle by the corner (ie I’ve gotta bend a little low to drag my luggage along); while grandma’s was a softcase (lighter), with a pull-out handle so I could drag it while standing straight. And most thankfully, it broke at home, not at the airport, or in Delft or anywhere else for that matter.

9:00pm Left home, finally.

9:25pm Arrived at Changi Airport. Rushed to check-in. Got a seat far from all my friends. Plus it was a window seat. Usually I would have loved that, but wasn’t too good a time for that then, if you know what I mean ):

9:35pm All’s done. But heart was still unsettled. Maybe it was due to all the rush and anxiety before that. Maybe I was worried about the window seat. Or maybe I just wasn’t prepared to leave. And I didn’t know how to. Especially with all my friends and family with me at the airport.

Tried to keep cool, since there was no turning back.

I think it helped when bunch of church friends tricked those who were coming to send me off but late, by telling them that I’ve already left. The victims were Dorcas, Jeannette, Fuwei and Mell, Kevin and Andrea. Anyone else? Sorry victims! And thanks too, for sth so memorable. Haha. Who was the mastermind by the way?

10:15pm Time to leave. Thanks for the help, for the gifts, for the well wishes, for the prayers, for just coming. I really appreciate all of them. Wanted to give everyone a huge hug, especially those with tears in their eyes, but my Eindhoven counterparts were already waiting for me and so I had to go ): A big THANK YOU to all once again (:

In The Plane. 12.5hrs.
Surprised that the stewardesses did not bother to check if we’ve fastened our seatbelts. Anyway, it was a long flight, but they only served 2 meals. Soggy stuff.

Slept a large part of it, about 7-8hrs? Which was good. But getting to the toilet was a little tricky. Window seat as I’ve mentioned, 2 other guys to my right, both sleeping. Didn’t want to wake them, so was waiting for both to be awake before making my way to the loo. But they kept taking turns to wake up and fall back asleep! But finally, I managed to get to the toilet of cos, just in time. Haha.

The next few hours weren’t too hard to pass with a nice little chat with the guy sitting next to me. He’s also from NUS, flying to NL for the same purpose. Too bad, he was yet another going to Eindhoven. Why? Why is everyone going there?! Why am I going to Delft alone? This is so so unfair.

Arrival. 01 Feb 07. Thursday.
6.25am Thankful that my aunt has arranged for her brother-in-law who’s been living in Amsterdam 7 years to pick me up at the airport. He’s really nice and have helped me a lot – met me 6+ am at Ams Schiphol Airport, carried my bags, bought me train tickets, took the train with me to Delft, bought me b/f, and dinner later.

7.30am Arrived in Delft. But had to wait for DUWO housing office to open to sign contract and get my keys. Had b/f in the meantime.

8.30am Went to housing office, signed contract, but told me to go back at 3pm again to get my keys?! What the. And my uncle had to return to his office, so I took a map, together with my haversack (my uncle brought my luggage along with him to his office), and started walking. Decided to find the way to my apt first. While holding the map, a guy approached me to see if needed help. “NO” I said, rudely, thinking he probably had sth up his sleeves. But felt bad after that – what if he sincerely wanted to help?

Continued walking and a 2nd guy came along to offer help (are Dutch guys really this helpful??). This time, I said “OK” (since he looked quite decent, and was an old Asian man, and I really needed help), but still not letting my guard down. And it turned out to be that he really was sincere about helping me. He walked me all the way to my place even when it was out of his way. Really thank God for him.

Continued exploring the vicinity till…

3.00pm Finally got my keys!

4.00pm Stepped into my room, checked inventory. Immediately after, set my bed and SLEEP! That was much needed after all the walking.

8.30pm Uncle arrived at my place with my big case and we went for dinner at this Chinese/Indonesian/Vietnamese restaurant (he said usually this kinda mix serves lousy food, and it was true, unfortunately) just diagonally across my block. That was expensive – each plate of rice/noodles costs €10?!!?

10.30pm Back in room. Crashed the bed, again.