No time no time

Sigh. School is starting again. I have a lot of things on my holiday to-do list that are unchecked, again. I always wonder why people repeat their mistakes.

I have only one pathetic photo of our BBQ on tuesday. The rest of the photos that you really want to see (the sexy ones plus the ones with half a drumstick sticking out of people's mouths etc are with alvin).

You notice that the charcoal are shaped like round soaps? New age charcoal that releases ammonia. I generally dislike BBQs because 1. its labour intensive to cook 2. i never escape unscathed....my throat is as sexy as a whole beach of sand stuck in my throat.

With the school term starting, weekends need to be nothing less than AMAZING.

Switzerland- St Gallen (27 & 28 May 2008)

I had so much inertia to blog about my post-sem travelling but once i started doing the collages on picasa, i was on FIRE. haha. The pictures brought back so many fond memories...gosh, i feel like tearing!

My last few days at St Gallen were spent snapping shots of my favourite places in a frenzy...so let me show you my running route. Truth be told, i only ran for 2 weeks i think. Haha! The thing i really miss about running in St Gallen is the amazing sights and sounds along the way.

First, i had to climb this loooooooooong flight of stairs- see the picture below for an idea of the degree of incline...

Upon reaching the top, i would be greeted by this .... plain/meadow? i honestly dont know the difference (see below)

Then i would run along the footpath...there are only 2 cows in this picture but there were usually more. Its quite disturbing to be honest when you are panting away and these cows are staring at you...but after a while you get used to it. heh. Oh and not forgetting the sound of the cowbells...going ting-ting-ting...Along this stretch, i would also meet many other runners and EVERY SINGLE ONE of them would exchange greetings with me- "Gruezi" or "Guten tag"...
Next i would see many people, young and old, lying on the green suntanning or having a nice little picnic.
Then i would pass by 3 lakes- one of them is featured below. We saw this lake during winter when it was frozen. When we returned in Spring, it was unrecognizable. People were swimming and just sitting around the lake! So that concludes the running trail. Next, we are moving on to the University of St. Gallen. There were not many places worth taking in the campus really...

Ok look at the photo carefully. Now look again. Do you see the sign "Helvetia". Yes the university shares the same entrance as Helvetia. So this state-of-the-art like building you ssee here with the square glass panes belong to Helvetia (Switzerland's biggest insurance company i believe), not the university. On the first day of school...innocent mice like myself were fooled into thinking that we had such a nice campus. What lies behind....is what you get.

Next up, the town center of St Gallen. Serene and i had lunch at this place called Schutzengarten, which apparently has many other outlets all over the country. They serve the authentic stuff...authentic meaning food that you get in Switzerland = food you get in Germany/ USA...like bratwursts...rosti...fried nuggets...yea.

This is a power rosti enveloped with cheese, ham and egg:

The St Gallen Bahnoff (train station)...

Well, I wouldnt say that St Gallen was a really interesting place to live in for 4 months, but it was a good place to live in for sure!

Glorious food

We had a cookout at Jeremy's place..his kitchen is so nice! i really like the whole island- kitchen concept thingey!

Wei made this: a really yummy bowl of sausages. ok i dont know what its real name is but she followed Jamie Oliver's recipe. It was so good!

The salad which was made by serene and i..!

Jeremy's pulled pork and the pulled pork bun below! basically, i have run out of adjectives to describe the food but everything was just so yummy..and we had like a 4 course meal for about 10 bucks?

This is a bread and butter pudding that serene made. She said it was painfully easy but i didnt believe her until i saw her doing it myself! the end product was amazing!

Carol we should do sthg like that with smu ppl when you come back!

Tattered, not torn

Ok so i have been too lazy for too long- I will be updating my blog with pictures of my travels during the month of June...soon! haha for now...i shall just do the 'my life now' for a bit...to update my friends who are still overseas...actually its just for carol la..haha..!

Just a few weeks back, my travel kakis (ie. siewjin, kian leong, serene) and i met up at clarky quay. Val lee came too cos i kept harrassing her to do so since i hadnt seen her in ages. We went to THE PUMP ROOM. its this really nice chill place..that serves real food (meaning portions bigger than finger food) and drinks of course! Best part is their live band- Jive talkin'! They are so so so good. Serene and i love this place. They play modern RnB, oldies or rock and roll and spanish songs! Its a perfect place for a weekday chillout!

So last last sunday, my mom actually baked some stuff as well. On the left you see Lemingtons (or Lamingtons) which are actually butter cake thingeys coated with thin chocolate and coconut shavings. At first glance it looks very sweet but its not...(ok i think my mom just added less sugar la). And on the right you see Harum Manis (but i call it by the more glam name- Steamed banana muffins) haha. its really nice when they pop out of the metal baking cups like little fatties and they are so springy and light to eat...Mmmmm

Ok a friend of mine currently works here part time during her hols so ive been to this place a few times. Its so near SMU..just opposite the national library. A really nice, warm and cosy eatery with equally nice, warm staff. The food is also very reasonably priced and they serve pretty good stuff like sandwiches, salads, pastas...their desserts are yummy too. Go down and try it soon?

Well before my blog turns into a full-fledged food blog (because food is just so my passion) i should talk about some other stuff. I was talking to another good friend of mine whose mum does some community service and she told me stories about how there are actually young children who commit petty thefts like stealing toothpaste because their parents are not around and they dont have money. Now its not like as if ive never heard of stories about the less fortunate in singapore. Its just that after being away for some time, enjoying myself in europe and then coming back and getting all stressed out because everyone else in this world seems to know their career directions and goals except me...kind of made me take so many things for granted.

I know that i need to be stressed out a bit as well..to push myself to do better in life. And learn to extend my life plan beyond a booking horizon of 2 weeks. But instead of always lamenting on what i dont have and start feeling sour..to really just thank God for everything and be grateful for what i have. I am really fed up with being caught in this pre-rat race warm up crap. In addition...i should start doing some community service. not just to fulfil the SMU requirement but sthg more sustainable in the long term...we might not realise it but sometimes a little help goes a long way..think about how much a tube of toothpaste costs?

So why this title for the post? I had lunch with fangwei at kenny rogers last week and you know how you get to choose your 3 sides? so i said "ok i'm torn...i cant decide between A....B.....C....D....or....E....F" and he looks at me and says "you're not torn..you're tattered!" haha. The paradox of choice. if they had only served mac and cheese and baked rice for example, i would have been perfectly happy. But no...they give you so many choices and after you decide what you want...you keep thinking if you are missing out on the stuff you did not choose. So how does more choice give consumers more value i wonder...

ok the weather is purrrr-fect. i shouldnt be sitting at home like a granny. tata.

Spain again

I could get used to life in spain, really....! You will know why after i update my blog haha!

Life is a journey that is homeward bound

Time flies! I have been so busy packing up...so, thank you everyone...for all the love you guys gave me when I left for exchange- all the letters, emails etc! I'll be back to return it to you when i come back to HOT and SUNNY Singapore on 6 July! ;)

Will update my blog only after i return to Singapore because I'm going to be taking a sabbatical from my laptop..haha!

CIAO...hasta la proxima!

Luyi!

Last episode of Top Chef

This was how it looked like in St Gallen last week- temperature was way above 20 degrees. This week however, the temperature dived below 10 degrees again..just as we were all about to put away all our winter clothes!

I feel this inexplicable sense of duty to take a photo of my last cooked-from-scratch dish here. (Over the next few days...i will be distributing or using up excess premixes, pastes, chicken stock cubes WHATEVER..its all systems go). So yea, we had this packet of plain flour, a tap which presents a never-ending source of fresh Swiss water and a whole lot of vegetables in the fridge....

Voila...deep-fried aubergine/ red peppers/ mushroom! the batter is really really simple. you just put any amount of flour..and gradually add in water until you get the right consistency.

And i also wanted to use up all the excess pasta which explains the mix of penne and spaghetti...after finishing our wonderful meal and starting to wash up...i realised that i had forgotten all about the poor fish i had put into the oven to bake! It was one of those you know 35-minute wonders from supermarkets..where you just put the whole thing into the oven and it comes out nice and tasty...so i dragged everybody back to the dining table just. to. eat. that. tasty. fish.

Pray for us

This whole week, i have been busy wallowing in misery and self-pity. Over stupid reasons...like the lack of leafy vegetables in st gallen and exam stress, just to give you some examples of how stupid they are. And all this time i was aware of the natural disasters in myanmar and china.

Shame on me.

It only hit me today after a friend reminded me, that we should be looking at the bigger picture...and be grateful for what we have and what we dont....instead of languishing in our self-created misery which honestly, is a sheer waste of energy.

If you can and want to, lets do this together:

For all the families that have been displaced by bad weather, we pray for shelter and a new beginning for them.

For all the families that have been torn apart by death and grieving, we pray for your hand of comfort and healing to be over them.

For all the rescue workers, we pray that you grant them perseverance and all the help and resources they need to save as many lives as they can.

Dear Lord, please hear us.

**

I am seriously overcome by morbid thoughts...earlier during dinner while watching CNN on TV:

Bingkai: shit...Nigeria oil pipeline explosion! You know what that means?

Me (without hesitation): that the world is coming to an end...

Bingkai: NO....oil price is gonna go up tomorrow!!!

**

Ok i know this is not helping myself in any way, but i just logged onto straitstimes.com and i have just been overwhelmed by even more bad news. Like Mrs Lee Kuan Yew being in a serious condition after suffering a stroke...

Dearest Mummy & Yi-po

Happy Mothers' Day!

If I had a single flower for every time I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden...

Rhine Falls - the largest plain waterfalls in Europe

They are located in the High Rhine upper course of the river Rhine, in the municipalities of Neuhausen am Rheinfall and Laufen-Uhwiesen, near the town of Schaffhausen in northern Switzerland and close to the German border. They are 150 m (450 ft) wide and 23 m (75 ft) high. In the winter months, the average water flow is 250 m³/s, while in the summer, the average water flow is 600 m³/s. The Rhine Falls were formed in the last ice age approximately 14,000 to 17,000 years ago.-wikipedia.org

Today we went on this 'excursion' organised for the exchange students to see the Rhine Falls...

Pictures!

So...we were at this...place where we had a really good view of the falls...and i wanted to take a nice video. I did manage to take a video but there was some well...interference...

Schaffhausen...a really nice small town

This week in some pictures and words

On tuesday, it was Bingky's birthday so we had a birthday party! It was real fun and his birthday cake...was an apple crumble baked by a friend of ours, Samuel and his candle was this huge-ass lavander one bought from IKEA! haha.

Today, Bingky treated us both to Sunday brunch...how lovely! It was at this place called 'Stars and Stripes'- best chicken wings and bircher muesli ever!

Spring weather is fantastic!

And yesterday we were at our Thai friends' place for dinner...Maccann managed to take a photo of both of us in our classic/ evergreen poses...

Our friend, Samuel made these pork springrolls from scratch...remarkable!

On Friday and Saturday, we had school from 8 to 4pm! It was a small class of about 13 people...? Oh dear...it was so boring. I hardly say that classes are boring you know seriously. But this class was really....mind-blowingly boring.

So anyway part of this course is about writing...and below is something from one of the readings..i found it quite humorous: (Yes i was that bored!)

Keep it short

Keep the paper as short as possible. Every word must count. As you edit the paper ask yourself constantly, “can I make the same point in less space?” and “Do I really have to say this?” Final papers should be no more than 40 pages. Drafts should be shorter. (Do as I say, not as I do!) Shorter is better.

Don't repeat things. In other words, if you’ve said it once, you don’t have to say it again. Most of all, it uses up extra space and reader’s patience to have to see the same point made over and over again. So, once again, repetition is really a bad idea. (Get the picture?!) “In other words” is a sign of trouble. Go back and say it once, right.

This is the start of the walk back home from school... pretty nice eh? (To walk down not up)

Other funny conversations

One of the days this week, i think it was wednesday, Bingkai's buddy- Kristine, brought us out for dinner at this mexican place...it was really nice! i dont think Singapore has a mexican restaurant thats equally good!

I can't remember if i have mentioned this before, but Kristine is EXTREMELY GENTLE. She speaks very softly, mildly and slowly. Its like, everytime we talk to her, we have to speak very gently as well...because she might just evaporate into thin air if we spoke any louder. Its quite hilarious really...when i see Bingkai and Mac talk to her. For myself its really an effort, shes so nice but i have to like keep my hands to myself and not wave around animatedly like how i always do.

Ok so coming back to the main point, can you see the rattan basket below? Yea it contains this roti-prata like thingey that we use to wrap the meat and vegetables (Fajitas) so Bingkai just jokingly said that the rattan basket looked like those that kept snakes. Oh my, Kristine was visibly shocked and she was like "oh no...please dont scare me with that" or something along that line. She was quite serious you know...so cute. haha.

This is actually my bed's headrest..dont you think it looks like a waffle! and my pillow case looks like the honey droplets on the waffle...i was changing my bedsheet when i suddenly noticed it! haha and i called the guys over to see 'something important' and they trooped over only to see my bed's headrest...oh and everytime they ask me about something or ask me if i can do something and my reply is a yes, ill say "yes sir yes sir three bags full", i dont know why!!!

And yes, this is the melted plastic chopping board i was talking about. This never ever happened to me before ok. But well, yea when i was cooking with wei, i got so engrossed that i didnt realise that part of it was touching the heated electric plate ...so yea...

and again some random msn coversations:

1. mac and i -- this happened when i was talking to my mother on the phone..haha!

is back in St Gallen! says:
(1) I've transferred the washings to the dryer le. Inside got one of my shirts
(2) the whole world can hear you talk
(3) thanks for advertising me, but I'm really only interested if the girl (assuming thats a girl u're talking to) is my taste

(actually i have to be honest and tell you guys that bingkai also msged me the same thing about being able to hear me talk from their rooms...oh well..the perils of living with me)

2. bingkai and i -- this was pretty long ago...i still remember my similies! haha. (im the black words)

oh and if you have time, please click on the link below and watch this video regarding the Mas Selamat saga. its not trashy ok, its from straitstimes.com. i just found the comments of one interviewee especially funny...

http://www.straitstimes.com/Video%2BNews/Singapore/STIVodcast_4058.html?playid=4058&type=Singapore

last but not least, i suddenly remembered this funny incident. When i was in spain, i exchanged some books at the hostel for spanish books. So i got hold of this book of Chinese myths, but in spanish! How cool is that! So Mac was leafing through the book and when he saw this title "Nu Wa Crea Al Hombre y Restaura La Boveda Celeste", instead of making an educated guess...he said, "Oh! i know Nu Wa created man and a restaurant in heaven!!!"

(it really means Nu Wa creates man and recovers the celestial vault, literally at least)

Stocks, Notts and more

This post is so named because this post is going to be about Dee and Wei who visited me from Nottingham and Stockholm respectively. I was really really really really happy to see them...so Dee and Wei..thanks for spicing up my life for those 2 days, literally! Dee- with your sweetness and Wei- erm with your acidic comments! haha.

Dee and Wei. Somehow i don't know why, when i saw this picture above right, it looked as though Wei was holding onto some weapon on Dee's shoulder...which in turn made me think of the picture below...

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/clipart/clip/ridinhod.html

HAHA! OK i'm so sure that Wei is so going to like..flame my blog and like start some verbal war with me, which i will ultimately lose because she is a lawyer and she is very good at tricking and confusing people...ok...erm...i think this last paragraph just made things worse...

So anyway Dee only stayed for 1 night so i was alone with Wei for another day...oh my goodness oh my goodness...haha seriously we abuse each other verbally like nobody's business and shout at each other (even when we are not quarrelling..so you can imagine how loud we are when we are). Tough love ok...trained up from St Nicks hockey days.

But really, it was nice albeit nostalgic when Dee and I recalled RJ hockey days and when Wei and I recalled SN hockey days...hmmm....haiyayayaya. It was really funny because 3 of us got really excited talking in the living room..and after a while, Bingkai and Mac just suddenly said that now they knew why I was like that...because my friends are the same! Haha.

Ok so this is an MSN conversation that took place between Bingkai (Brown words) and Wei (Black words); ok Bingkai thought he was talking to me until somebody came and took over my side of the laptop...haha

Ok look i don't starve my room mates ok, i was just feeling lazy and Wei deduced that i was trying to starve all of them...heh but when i was looking through my MSN history, i found this (below)..which doesnt help to vindicate Wei's claim in any way:

The first line and the grey small words are from Bingkai; the bigger black words are from me.

... ...

So finally i start cooking and due to some miscommunication, i ended up destroying Wei's vegetable recipe (or so she says) because i preboiled her vegetables when she wanted to slow cook them. And i finally got the chance to make use of Carol's chicken rendang prima premix! It turned out more like curry though but anyway both dishes were super yummy!

When i was grocery shopping with wei, it was really funny. I took one packet of chicken parts (6 huge parts) and she kept saying it wasn't enough for 4 people...so she bought another packet of chicken parts! You see, in stockholm she gets to eat really good food everyday- she told me that she and her friends each eat 1 cup of rice each time and they always have a lot of food! Apparently theres this girl, Crystal, who can cook really good, elaborate stuff.

OK i have to admit that her vegetables look much nicer than mine...

And the yummy rendang-turned-curry! haha..ok it doesnt look THAT nice because of the photo quality and the ladle right in the middle but yea it was really thick and nice!

You have ABSOLUTELY NO idea how much pain weiling and i both went through to whip up these 2 dishes i tell you. The kitchen was like world war II or something. I think the guys were quite scared of the commotion and decided to like stay far far away. To give you a hint of the gravity of the situation then, I shall just tell you that like 1/10 of my plastic chopboard melted away, and Weiling and i BOTH got burnt cos of splattering hot oil! HAHA.