Bentley Ball

29th Feb, Westin Hotel... Bentley Ball
although there was only 4 of us who were exchange students..
and everyone kinda needed to have a date.. (we didn't care)
4 of us went..
daniela(Vienna), birgit(Vienna), yeng yong and me
$35 nia.. got decent hotel food..
then can bio all the za bor in their gowns..
good deal.. haha

This is me in my cheap buy dress..
USD$ 24 nia... from Ann Taylor leh..
ooh.. plus the shaw.. USD$9
and the pearl earrings USD$7 from the outlet..

I think this is the interesting bit abt going to a ball during winter..
no matter how much u dress up..
to get to the Hotel.. u need to put on a coat and keep warm..
Then when you reach the Hotel..
wah seh.. then you see everyone reveal their each unique gowns..
similarily.. if you clash (meaning same gown as other kuku).. you will only know at the Hotel.. waha

That's us..
at the Cocktail reception..
Me, YengYong and Daniela
Notice.. although we hate the idea of wearing stockings in SG..
Stockings are a life saviour here..
It is amazing how such a thin piece of meshy stuff can actually keep u warm..

Me, Daniela and Birgit...
The Austrian girls.. brought gowns in their luggage lah..
when I was packing..
gowns were the last thing in my mind..
then again.. never bring gown.. then got opportunity to buy new one leh...

Haha.. the dining etiquette class ytd was useful leh..
this was the table setting..
confusing lo..
the glass and coffee cup on the right is mine..
but the butter plate and knife on my left is mine..
The boy boy sitting next to me used the wrong butter knife..

see here..
when chefs get lazy they just put unchopped lettuce and a piece of bread like biscuit artistically on a plate...
and they call it ART..
drip some sauce over..
and they call this Caesar's Salad.. "Chef's Special"
Then this girl across the table..
in a very elegant gown..
picked up the lettuce with her hand and chewed on it..
mar chiam Bugs Buddy sia..
And i tot only Ah Dot eats rabbit food.. tsk tsk

This was the main course..
Artistic hor..
definitely a better attempt of being "French" by the Chef
But I must give him credit..
it was good..
I personally dun like potatoes..
but because the gravy was good.. I ate my vege and potatoes.. *winks*

Dessert..
who doesn't love dessert..
Warm chocolate cake with chocolate flowing out from inside..
Ooo LA LA..
Oh btw.. Val, whipped cream in the US is alot creamier..
personally.. i think it's nicer too.. haha

I thought I needed to be vain..
I mean since I got myself all dressed-up..
Why not rights?
Ooooh.. btw..
little secret: I wasn't wearing a bra...
1stly.. I didn't have a suitable bra
2ndly: The dress had some support...

Us at the table..
The tables were Oval shaped btw..
weird hor...

me and YengYong..
acting cute..
That's all folks..

table manners

i went for a dining etiquette seminar
"Bread, Butter and Business"
So cool can..
Plus it's free..

but it was an interesting concept to sit down and get taught how to eat properly step by step..
how to use each of the almost 18 things on the table...
The food served was not too bad either.. haha

Few lessons I took home..
1) everything on the table gets passed from left to right
2) if someone asks for the salt, give both the salt and pepper
3) if a lady gets up from her chair, all the gentlemen on the table need to stand until she leaves the table or until she gesters for the men to sit down.

And I had a good time constantly pretending that I was going to stand up...

black

i'm feeling moody today..

maybe its the monday blues spilling over to tuesday
maybe i'm just very tired
maybe i'm just thinking too much

some problems come back to haunt you

some issues revisit you

some mistakes get repeated

perhaps it's innate

perhaps i never learn

perhaps someone up there screwed up

Weekend trip 2: NYC

Probably did the most paranoid/exciting/dangerous trip in my life...
(mum.. this is where you stop reading this blog)

3 of us.. wanted the cheapest available accomodation for a night...
the more u save on hostel.. the more u can watch broadway and buy coach..

we book mxx hostel online for $20 per head..
when we got there the hostel was not there..
it had converted into a hotel..
OMG can..

but the hotel staff was very nice..
they help us find another hostel under them at the same cost...

8 bed room.. mixed..

We had to keep our money and valuables inside our shirt...
zip up our jackets..
hug our bags..
share one toliet btw like 40 ppl..
etc etc..
oh.. I even had a snoring orchestra from the 2 men in the room..

exciting hor..

plus for Broadway.. we caught Chicago..
all the feeling of sleazy red and lace black only made us more paranoid when we got back to the room...

now to my woodbury outlet trip..
almost all the things I bought weren't for myself..
haha.. coachy agains...

but my good buys.. Armani Exchange was having this mega sale..
bought a $19 jeans, $9 shirt and a $5 necklace.. from A/X
Woodbury is soooo huge.. i think i only covered less than 15% of the shops..
oooh... I saw a pretty pretty GUCCI wallet... $169... how..how..

conquer-ing

I'm going to NY again...
Broadway and Woodsbury Premium Outlet Stores here I come..

valentine's party photos... and Harvard cuties

Yeng Yong, me & Willa

Me, Adeline & Maggie

Note:
last friday.. I finally met guys from Harvard on the T... *drools*
I have such a weakness for intelligent men... *aWWww*
When they started speaking among themselves.. u can already tell the difference..
and because it was sooo crowded in the train..
me and Yeng Yong were just squash in the middle of their group.. *melts*

I must be stupid

i m u s t b e s t u p i d . . .

KTV at Boston.. (16th Feb)

KTV-ing at boston is expensive..
no drinks.. no food..
just for the room.. 4hrs+ abt USD25 lor..
but we had fun lah..
for the experience lor..
then can sing all the chinese songs.. omg
we had like a whole full dose of maybe say 15 Jay songs in a row.. haha


Our KTV king of the night..
William Ho!!!

William, me and Yeng Yong

Cherie, Meredith, Me, William

Me and Willa

All of us.. mixed of SG, HKU and Bentley Chinese students..

Kelvin, me and willa
they only had beer..

Meredith, Willa and me

valentine's party...+ Adeline, Maggie and Vanessa's Visit

Adeline just msn me the night before and said the 3 of them were coming down from Canada the night before V day..
the 3 of them are NTU friends doing an exchange at Queens, Canada..

(I don't have all the photo with me now.. so keep a look for another update..)

Harry, a Bentley student brought all of us plus Yeng Yong and Willa to a Mantra Club near Park Street..
it was soo cool lah.. they were having this mega V day party..
and Harry knew the organisers..
we had feather blowers.. great music.. great drinks..

Then the next day I brought them out..
Harvard, Quincy Market, North End..Boston Harbour..

Vanessa, Adeline, me, Maggie..
@the Habour..

Yeng Yong, me and Maggie
@ Mike's pastry at North End

Happy Lupercalia Day

Do you know that Valentine's day orginated from a festive in ancient Rome called Lupercalia..

where men sacrificed goats..
tear its skin into strips, run around the village naked and whipping women with these blood dripping, skin-made lashes...

and women loved it because getting whipped ensure fertility and ease of birth...

Feb 14th must have been so much fun in the 5th century...

pretty similar to the $400 flower slurges, couples openly making out, girls carrying huge V day gift hampers (yesh... something u don't see in SG), guys looking slighty embarrssed yet smiling through their teeth while holding a bouquet of flowers..

My first class today, the Prof gave out Valentine's tootsie rolls bearing the words,'Kiss Me' on it..

then he gave us recommendations of which sites can help with last min online V day shopping..

one of which was a 100 roses bouquet on a champage bucket... $400

My 2nd class.. the Prof was wearing a red stripe shirt, that he called his party shirt..

then he asked the class if the flowers selling at Season's (the school caferia) was ok..

then he went on about his wife..

That's my V day for you..

Oh.. I recieved the POSTCARD le..
wahaha..
very prompt timing sia..
I lup you big big

Weekend Trip 1: NYC

*ta dan*
My first "over-the-weekend" trip
9 of us!! (8 HKU and yesh.. 1 N'TU)
NY is huge.. and I thought Boston was big.. *tsk tsk*
it'a about a 4 hour ride to NY and I was there for abt 2.5days..
I only got to see the tip of the iceberg..
definitely going back..

me and Willa in the Hostel..
note that she's already wearing the "I LOVE NY" tee..

There's a mega big M&Ms and a mega Hershey's at Times Square..
This is for u lah.. Ms. Sandy Ang..
The yellow one reminded me alot of u..
*winks*

Me and all the M&Ms...
They are sooo colourful.. but actually all taste the same de..

Haha.. this is the closest I have for u for V day..
If I could, I'll send you the entire tube.. haha

*claps*

*cheers*

We watched Mamma Mia..

Broadway ROCKS!!!

I regret indulging in movies all my life in SG..

for every 5 movies I don't watch, I can watch 1 broadway musical..

I can't explain the experience in words for you..

but by the end of the musical EVERYONE in the theatre just stood up..

Metropoliotian Museum of Art..

It is huge.. we spent the entire day there..

I like this particular piece very much..

in the hostel room..

goofing around..

Sophia, Willa and me

still goofing... (only me thou)

Meredith, Elyse, Willa and me

Janet, Sophia, Me, Elyse, Willa

Ivy and her amazing KFC chicken..

People here don't like thigh and drumstick parts...

It's sold at a cheaper price than breast and wing parts..

*weirds*

the chicken here is bigger in size too..

oh.. the coleslaw here is actually very nice..

Me and Willa

Shoe socks..

cute hor..

Lily, Ivy, me & Doris

Chinatown was having a mega CNY celebration...

there was a parade and floats.. and poppers...

the entire street was covered in streamers..

Decent egg tarts..

These HK mirgants made a good choice to bring their good egg tarts to NY..

better than the ones in SG..

comparable to the ones in HK..
*grins*

On the bus back home..

super tired..

but I had fun..

Where to next..

Toronto? Niagara Falls? Broadway? Skiing?

New York City Sights