Exams starting, Exchange ending

random pics of me around school..
it seems like only ytd that i was frantically pack my things to leave for Boston...
frantically eating all i can eat in SG before coming..

Lobster Feast - 27th April Sun

Lobster is one thing that defines Boston..
like you must have black pepper crab in SG..
(shit.. I do miss those crabs.. I need to go to Geylang for my proper dose of seafood when I get back!!)

anyway..
I decided to troop down to Fish Pier (No Name Restaurant) for cheap lobster..
(for some weird reason it seems that to call your seafood restaurant "No Name" is a common phenomenon.. the "No Name" in SG also no bad de wor..)
However, I heard the nicer ones at Legal Seafood but it is like US$50++

13 of us went to eat..
for the first time in the whole semester..
soo many of the exchange students managed to come together..
(well, I was the one who organised... *blow horn*)
but... yups.. it was nice having sooooo many people..

This is my table of 5...
Elyse, YY, Thomas, Eric and MEEeeeeee
The waiter puts on this plastic bib around us..
all ready for the Lobster Feast.. hoho

This is the "Lead Actor"..
it was good...
hoho.. the table mat below even had instructions on how to settle the lobster..
we were like fighting a mini war with the lobster..
so unglam..

haha..
"I came I saw I conquered.."

The exchange's coming to an end le..
probably less than 10 days left and all of us will each go our way..
and eventually each of us will move back into routine life back in our home country..
*sobs* *sniffs*

Clubbing at Mantra - 24th April Thurs

brought the girls out clubbing...
was introduced to the guy who organised the v day bash..
gave him a call and he managed to get all 9 of us in through the VIP line
and at $5 off the usual cover..
sweet~

plus he offered to pay for my cover.. haha
*winks*

it's a new top I got in Chicago.. haha..
$17 nia.. from forever 21..
(yes don't remind me that i'm 22 this yr le..)

me, daniela, willa & yy
Eva and me

Birgit, me and yy

Bentley Spring Day (25-27Apr)

Spring Day is one big event in Bentley..
yes.. it's a celebration of the coming of spring..
haha.. then again the school's rich and they can afford mega celebrations like these..

the actual thing's on Sat.. but ppl were having mini BBQ parties before that..
and the drinking and partying starting on Fri night..
so when u attend Spring Day on Sat (which starts at 12n btw) you would be sufficiently drunk by then..
that is the underlying message of Spring Day.. "get drunk"


The school sets up an American Style Pasar Malam..
with the big tentage and food and games..
oh.. there was a huge buffet spread too..


so I went to eat... then pop-ed by at Daniela's apartment to have wine..
and even went to an unknown person's room for a party..

That's the set up for the games..
our lovely inflatables..
my first comment was.. "wah soo childish leh"
but when everyone get abit tipsy..
it's actually rather fun to play..

the rest of the day went by..
just lying on the field..
and getting more and more tipsy..

and in the evening there was a concert thingy..
they invited "Common" and "Pepper" to perform..
I have not idea who they are...
then again went your are tipsy...
who cares what they actually sings..


we ended the day with a mega drinking games session..
the Asian way at Bolyston's attic.. (Hui Yi!! your old room..)

what is love?

my cousin sent me this email the other day...

what does love mean to a 4 yr old kid...

1) Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK

2) I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones

3) Love is what makes you smile when you're tired

Tips from a former Bentley student who went to NTU for exchange

I went to an NTU Bentley talk today..
met up with the 2 guys who have choosen NTU for exchange next semester..
The guy who went last sem left this for them..

1) Locals are somewhat reserved, it can be difficult to meet them. They are very polite though.

2) Schedules are kind of confusing, try to get it sorted out early. Go to the Student Services Center and talk to them in person. Then go again 4 days later because they may have forgotten about your request.

3) Bring clothes for really warm, really humid weather

4) Although everyone speaks English, they speak "Singlish" which is different and there still exist a slight language barrier

5) Arrival is easy, get someone to meet you at the airport or take a taxi and hopefully find the International Student Center.

Weekend Trip 5: Chicago

chicago..
this is my longest weekend trip ever.. 5 days
my last one too..
exams are around the corner le..

chicago is known as the windy city
yes.. the weather is indeed very windy..
but the city got it's nickname when the mayor
and his representatives went down to washington to bid for the opportunity to host the world fair 1893 in chicago..
they were soooo long winded in their proposal that they managed to secure the bid eventually..
and thus earning the nickname "windy" city

another interesting thing about the city is the great fire in 1871..
yesh.. it burnt the entire city down..

but on one hand the debris from the fire got pushed into Lake Michigan, which eventually served as land reclamation for the city..

and on the other hand, a whole swam of architects from ard the world came into the city..
each architect with his own school of thought knew that the fire meant tht chicago was an empty canvas and they could try whatever they wanted on it..

modern architecture designs such as steel beams, steal facades, elevators were tried out for the first time in the world at chicago..

pretty rights..
another unique thing about their buildings is that there is regulation for it to be set back from the city street, thus creating pockets of space for natural sunlight to come in..

also, their first mayor strongly encouraged making art available to the public..
so every corner u will see some public art erected..
on whether they are all relevantly placed..
i'm not to comment.. haha

When I travel..
food hunting is not unusual..
haha..
here are my good yummy finds
1) Chicago Deep Pan Pizza

the crust is different from the normal kind..
the fillings mar chiam free de..

2) Chicago's draft beer -Miller

Min ah's studying in UIUC so she came down to see me while I was in Chicago..
Haha.. *poor bin*
I was drinking Chicago's Miller and She was drinking Boston's Sam Adam...
a good exchange experience sia.. haha

3) A group of pretty girls and the PIZZA

yups.. this is the 7 of us who were in Chicago..
*winks

4) Dim Sum

thanks to Min Ah's reccommendations
we actually found dim sum in chicago..
it was good stuff..
although i still think i need to get my dose of crystal jade when i get back... haha

5) Abercombie & Fitch guy

wouldn't u agree that this was yummy too..
one more reason why I like shopping at AF..
he was just standing at the store front for customers to take photo with him..

whee wheet~

6) Chicago Hot Dog

Vienna Beef with everything on it except Ketchup..
it is considered rude to ask for Ketchup with this dog..

7) Ghihradeli Chocolate's ice cream

Chicago or rather the state of Illinois is such a goood place for chocolate..
If you go further north to Winsconsin.. where the moo-s are..
the chocolate is even better..

8) Jambalaya

we went to a sounthern style restuarant called "Heaven on Seven" where they served Cajun food..
Jambalaya is probably one of the more famous southern dishes available..
It's abit char-pa-lan.. like how our SG fried rice came about..
just that the texture abit like "mui fan"

interesting.. but i miss my mum's overnight fried rice with her sambal more... *winks*

next up.. navy pier..
one of the prettier places in chicago
and it's famous ferris wheel..


me and elyse were trying to do the "huan huan ai" scene..
corny la~
but had to try to romanticise things abit mah.. haha


on the ferris wheel..
with the chicago skyline framing me from behind..
awwww....

Then I went Museum hopping..

This is the skull of a graffic..
i never knew those feelers thingy was actually bone part of the skull..
(yesh.. bimbo moment..)

Yuck..

Pretty..

Prettier..

This was the view outside the museums..
blue skies, green grass, beautiful skyline..
I complete the picture.. *wahaha*

How do i bring it across that the view was breaktaking...
It was simply awww..

btw the tallest building there is the Sears Tower..
also the Tallest skyscraper in the US...




I mentioned about public art in Chicago..
this was probably my favourite..

it's called the "cloud gate" by Anish Kapoor
it kinda looks like a metallic bean with a highly reflective surface capturing and transforming the skyline and the downtown cityscape..


That evening..
I went up the John Hancock Observatory..
4th tallest in the US..
i was on the 94th floor..

it's doesn't look that bright while walking on the streets..
but from that view..
it's amazing how every little bit of street light fits nicely to light up the skyline...

That's all folks..

* I N E R T I A *

in·er·tia [in-ur-shuh, i-nur-]

noun
inertness, esp. with regard to effort, motion, action, and the like; inactivity; sluggishness.


i did my laundry..
i packed my things..
i boiled my water..

opened facebook
browsed blogs
cleared emails

laying all the research materials in front of me..
fiddling with the font on my mircosoft word..
changing my bed spread and covers..

eaten a bagel with chives and onion cream cheese
eaten straight from the tub, Ben and Jerry's coffee with heath bar chunks
eaten a bag of self-mircowaved popcorn

my first class' at 8:30
my quiz's at 9:55
my flight's at 17:16

14:00 - the paper is due
19:04 - the plane lands in chicago
4:39 - the time now

that's inertia, redefined my me..

I wanted to carry on defining "Procastination"
nah.. I'll start on my paper..

Clubbing At UnderBar, Sat 12 Apr

It was a nice Saturday..
good weather lo.. (boston's standards thou)
Daniela and Birgit invited me and Eric over for lunch...
Daniela cooked ~ (i'm in the process of getting the Austrian name for it..)

That's Daniela cooking..
In Austria, they all have to go through cooking classes in high school...
And judging from the way Daniela can cook,
it is definitely not like our home-ed classes back in sec sch.. haha

Eric and I then brought the both of them and Shantanu to Shanghai Lou for Chinese dinner..
Cultural experience sia..

Then later that night Shantanu offered to bring the 4 of us out to Underbar..
and we partied..

I had fun..
interesting mix of people...
2 austrians, 1 indian, 1 hk-er and 1 sg-rean..

The rest of the weekend..
I was a good girl in the library working on my assignments..

I could just bury myself under all the articles I need to read..

20 degrees celsius

today was one exceptional day of nice weather..
i went to class in short, tee, cardigan and slipper..
wooohooo...
spring is here lo..
finally some decent sun..

"sun sun, mr. golden sun
please shine down on me...."

Weekend Trip 4: Montreal, Canada

I finally crossed the border..
Boston is nearer to Canada then to the American Capital..
It was going to be a road trip..
rented car..
6 hours drive..
3 days 2 nights

this is me in the car..
notice on my hand..
that is American Food~

This is Willa and Michael..
Michael is our wonderful driver..
none of us had a driver's license..
so other then laughing and cracking silly jokes..
we were basically useless on the road..
haha

That's me and Eric
we didn't take any group photo..
but yes it was the 4 of us on the road trip...
and this being one of the few photos Eric actually smiles..

This is Canadian food..
Not the best.. but..
better than the food here le..
(no.. I did not finish everything.. I shared that with willa.. although I think I ate most of it.. hah)

This is how they sell milk in Montreal...
very european lo
literally packet form..
reminds me of the soy bean milk we get from the market back in SG..
argh.. I miss all the tou huey and bau chou porridge from temasek market la..

This is food..
The all famous Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich..
we travelled and walk quite abit to hunt down this super ulu shop lo..
Schwartz's Delicatessan
it is good stuff..

There is actually xiao fei yang in Montreal..
the chinatown there is alot bigger and better than in Boston..
it was just very nice to find proper decent chinese food here...Rue St. Dominique...
I had to take a picture of it lah..

Basilica Notre Dame..
Neo Gothic Church from 1829
also known for being the Blue Church of Montreal
dedicated to Our Lady

very pretty rights..
it looks like I extracted it from a postcard or somesort of painting..

Sacred Heart Chapel
mainly for weddings...
It cost $2000 to get married in the basilica and $700 to get married in this chapel..
It's a 2 yr long waitlist..
(maybe i shoould book now find later.. haha)

Cathedrale marie Reine du Monde
mapped after the St. Peter's Basilica in Rome

It just give you a very peaceful and save feeling being inside a church..

I climbed.. a million steps..
slung-ed in the snow and frozed in the cold..
to get up Chalet Mont Royal..
wasn't prepared for the climb lah..
I wasn't in boots.. I wore my converse shoes.... haha

And there you have it..
the view..
and my accomplishment..

Not to forget..
my workout for the week..

Burger..
from LA Paryse..
another good find..
the mushroom, carmelised onions and homemade beef pattie..
well compensated the SUPER long wait for a table and food..

Not to forget..
The pretty waitress did make the food taste better..
somehow la..

Montreal hosted the Olyimpics in 1976
this is the olympic tower..
interesting to see such modern architecture in such a old city..

That's all for montreal..