October 24, 2007
Packing Up
Very short update from me:
1. Was in Bath on Saturday. Went on my own since I couldn't find any travel companion. Spent the day walking around the city. My third time there but still a nice getaway from London nonetheless.
2. Spent Sunday helping my flatmate move to her new place. Didn't do anything much after that except to spend some time in Kensington Park reading a book and just watching the world go by. Very chill. Found a Spanish bistro in Bayswater that made the thick, molten chocolate that I absolutely love. And they had churros too!!!! That really made our day. Slurping on that potent chocolate was just pure bliss. Happiness.
3. One of my best mates from SPC (Singapore Paddle Club) arrived in London on Monday for a week's long visit. Haven't seen her in ten months as she's been working on a cruise ship and travelling over the high seas to the world's loveliest beaches since February. Was so nice to see a good friend from home.
4. Busy packing up all my stuff and having them shipped off this Saturday. Am leaving London in about two weeks!
October 15, 2007
Salisbury Weekend
Darn...company policy to block out certain websites (many websites in fact...Facebook, Flickr, blogspot, Couchsurfing etc) has disenabled me to upload my photos to Flickr and hence post them on the blog. So no pictures from me for awhile.
Anyway, went to Salisbury for the weekend. Saw the cathedral with the tallest spire in the UK. Paid homage to Stonehenge and went to see some old castle and cathedral ruins at Old Sarum.
Spent Saturday night at the Salisbury YHA. It was a nice big house with a big cedar tree right in front of it. It looked so homey! My flatmate and I slept in a 8-bedroom dorm. I really like these hostels.
Nice and relaxing weekend away from London. And now back to the grind of a new work week.
October 12, 2007
Mr Big
A dinner conversation with some girlfriends the other day somehow spiralled into a sharing session of tragic personal love stories and led to the conclusion that every woman (OK, almost every woman) has a Mr Big in her life. For those who don't know, I'm referring to Carrie Bradshaw's Mr Big in Sex and the City.
So the Mr Big in a woman's life is the guy who has this mysterious hold on you. He hurts you time and time again; you hate him yet love him at the same time. He leaves you and you go on with your own life. Yet if he ever said he wanted to be with you or asked you to go back to him, you'd drop everything and be by his side in a split second. Your mind and heart know no logic when it comes to any matters that pertain to him – no matter what happens, there's always a corner in your heart that loves him even though he's the person who has made you shed the most tears and inflicted the most pain and heartache. You try to forget, but thoughts of him still haunt you like a ghost from the past. You know you shouldn't love, but you still do anyway.
Can you ever forget the past? And if you could, would you want to? Would you want to have the situation like what was depicted in The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind? That is, have your memories completely erased? It would probably be less painful but would that make you a blander person? Or a less matured person?
Sara Bareilles' Gravity best epitomises the Mr Big situation.
Gravity
Something always brings me back to you.
It never takes too long.
No matter what I say or do
I’ll still feel you here ’til the moment I’m gone.
You hold me without touch.
You keep me without chains.
I never wanted anything so much
than to drown in your love and not feel your rain.
Set me free, leave me be.
I don’t want to fall another moment into your gravity.
Here I am and I stand so tall, just the way I’m supposed to be.
But you’re on to me and all over me.
You loved me ’cause I’m fragile.
When I thought that I was strong.
But you touch me for a little while
and all my fragile strength is gone.
Set me free, leave me be.
I don’t want to fall another moment into your gravity.
Here I am and I stand so tall,
just the way I’m supposed to be.
But you’re on to me and all over me.
I live here on my knees as I try to make you see that you’re
everything I think I need here on the ground.
But you’re neither friend nor foe though I can’t seem to let you go.
The one thing that I still know is that you’re keeping me down.
You’re on to me, you’re on to me and all over…
Something always brings me back to you….
It never takes too long.
October 9, 2007
Silverware for Souvenirs
As you can see, I had a very memorable and rewarding weekend of racing in Nottingham in the British Dragonboat National Championships (full results below). The cups belong to the club but I get to keep the medals. This is a great souvenir for me.
I love travelling around to different places to paddle and even though I didn't get to see Nottingham apart from its regatta centre, I had a great weekend. I always enjoy racing and I just love the adrenalin rush of being at the start line, getting ready to make that dash down the stretch of water, and in those few minutes you feel like your heart's going to burst, your lungs are screaming for air, your blood can't pump through your veins fast enough, yet you're filled with that desire to win and beat other teams. Well, at least I hope everyone in the boat has that burning desire to win. More often than not, it's that desire which makes that little bit of difference between the winners and losers when two equally strong teams are pipped against each other.
Nothing makes it more satisfying when your boat crosses the line first and when the whole team has fought a good battle. The camaraderie and team spirit that permeates the whole atmosphere is fantastic. Friendly rivalry exists between teams and when a good race is fought, winners and losers come and pat each other on the back for a race well fought.
I LOVE THIS SPORT!
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Premier Open Competition
200m - 3rd
500m - 2nd
1000m - 3rd
Premier Mixed Competition
200m - 1st
500m - 1st
Premier Women Competition
200m - 1st
500m - 1st
BDA League Awards
200m - 1st
500m - 2nd
October 6, 2007
Hot Chocolate
Pun intended in entry title by the way!
The hotbod was spotted in the window display of chocolaterie Jean-Charles Rochoux.
Anyway, am off to Nottingham for the weekend for a dragonboat race. Let's hope I meet some human hotbods there! If not meet, at least get to see and feast my eyes on some!
October 5, 2007
Hermé NOT Hermès
Fashion divas may pay homage to Hermès, but as food divas, the Skinny Epicurean and I had to pay homage to Hermé. Note the difference in the accent and the extra 's'!!! Those two elements make a whole lot of difference!
While the latter is a haute couture house, the one both of us paid homage to is a haute patisserie. Yes, judging by its prices, it is haute pastry alright.
Skinny Epicurean was utterly ecstatic and over the top when she saw this street sign. She couldn't wait to rush cross the road to get over to that street, because what lies there is famed patisserie Pierre Hermé.
With its very sleek signage, who would have guessed what lies inside are a heavenly assortment of cakes and pastries??? Just as Hermès boutiques are decked out in beautiful clothes and accessories, the cakes and pastries are equally gorgeous in their colours and appearance...a testament to the skilled pastry chefs who churn out these heavenly delights!
The staff are all smartly dressed in black, immaculately tailored uniform and they handle the cakes and pastries with the utmost care. It's almost like some venerable touch!
Go on, feast your eyes!!!
I tried the Praline MilleFeuille (5 Euros) which had so many fine and delicate layers of pastry that were freshly crunchy. The richly flavoured praline mousse just melted in the mouth. It can rival Sadaharu Aoki's Macha MilleFeuille for my favourite MilleFeuille so far. I think both are on equal standing 'cos they are very different in their own right!
Anyway, as you can guess, the Skinny Epicurean and I were very happy about having our teatime pastry fix!
October 3, 2007
Do-Re-Mi
This flight of steps in Salzburg is affectionately known as the 'Do-Re-Mi steps' because it was where the Von Trapp children and Maria sang the Do-Re-Mi song in the Sound of Music!
And the fountain which they ran around!
October 2, 2007
Parisien Philistine
OK, culture vultures will beat the crap out of me and the Skinny Epicurean when they learn that we did not visit a single museum during our time there. I mean, nine days is a decent amount of time to at least pay homage to Mona Lisa. Ostensibly she wasn't our top priority as we preferred paying homage instead to markets, restaurants, boulangeries, patisseries and other eateries around Paris. After having our fill, we walked it off by wandering around the lanes and alleys of this lovely city which is best explored on foot or bike.
The pictures below are potentially incriminating pictures which I hope culture vultures will never use as evidence against me as cause for arrest!
An absolutely to-die-for gelato from La Pozzetto in an area called Marais. The pistachio, hazelnut and chocolate combo was so richly flavoured it was just heavenly. I couldn't stop smiling as I ate it.
Sinking my teeth into a sugar crepe made by an eccentric crepe maker who takes his own sweet time making crepes even when a long line of people are waiting.
The diva's eating her macha millefeuille at Sadaharu Aoki. Do not disturb!
Many thanks to the Skinny Epicureans for the pictures!
October 1, 2007
Back in London
Am back in London! Got back last night and am now swamped with work and lots of matters to attend to in the month of October. Pictures to come later...hopefully! Am much going be extremely busy from now on because I'm planning to pack up and leave London to head home.
Well, I've realised that London isn't the city for me due to several reasons. I've got to tie up matters here and plan a bit of travelling before I return home so that's all going to take up a lot of time from now on.
This blog will probably be very silent henceforth, but will try and put occasional updates!