yep, this was the chicken soup we cooked! was quite nice. We tot it had 'mama de wei dao'... haha. All felt very xin fu when we drank it. The rice didn't turn out very well cos it was too sticky, but i like it all e same. Cos its very nice aft adding the sausages etc in.

This was the night where we planned a birthday surprise for Veron, Wan Teng and Lionel - the June babies. It was quite funny the way we popped up at Ade's place (where the zhu jiao of the nite were there) cos it didn't turn out as it worked. Someone was supposed to switch off the lights aft we entered the door so the person with the cake (& lighted candles) can come in for e surprise. But the person who was supposed to off the lights didn't do it properly cos the switch there is a bit funny. To off/on both the lights, the switches are supposed to be in opposite position de. Not like in Singapore, where you have them both flipped back or both front. So he was there, flipping the switch back n forth, and the lights were going on and off... Trying to figure out how to off them both. And the rest of the people in the room were just staring and waiting... and Veron asked: "Why are u playing with the lights huh?"

She seriously had no clue it was a surprise... LOL. but it was a great nite! Had cake and chips plus some wine and coke... =D



our cookout cum pot luck! This is actually the 2nd time we're having such a major cooking project. This was when we're at Compeigne, the 2nd hostel where we have a kitchenette in each room. Me & Veron were in charge of the porridge (since the 1st time was very successful hehe =P ) then the other gals cooked pasta. Vincent brought some beef and potatoes, then Lionel & him roomies got pizza! we also had ice cream for dessert... needless to say, another wonderful night...



One of my fave shot! Becos it was at night, not many of our cams were 'powerful' enuff to take gd shots, yet the scene was too nice... this was the only clear one I could get, from Veron's cam. Love it! You can even see the light beams from Eiffel... It scans the area around it by just going round and round... like a lighthse.

Anyway, we were all rushing to the front and back, again and again... To make full use of the 10-15 mins of the Eiffel Tower light up to take as many pics as we could. Trying not to block others also. haha. there's like 2 or 3 grps of pp taking at the same time lo...

I just had a tooth extraction appt in the morning and now I am back, with this irritating piece of cotton in my mouth, hindering my speech and I cant really eat or drink now... Gotta wait for the bleeding to stop, or at least lessen b4 I can do sth abt my lunch. Today seems worse than last wk, though I did not feel as giddy. I bled a lot, to begin with... Spat out quite a few mouthfuls of blood when I was changing out the cotton. Yucks.

Anyway... there's some pics I want to upload in Friendster but cant cos the size is too big... So here goes... And I realised there are some random events I like to bring up which I didn't. Cos too many things happened... Seeing Ade's blog made me realised I've missed up some memorable events. Haha. Ok, those are coming right up with the pics.

Met up with the NH crowd last nite. Finally! Havent seen you all for so long, we've all been busy with our own life. Kor asked me how come i seemed so hyper last nite, well... of cos la. So long nv see you all. And its not easy to get everyone out when most of us are busy ma. Of cos, as usual there were the many laughs over dinner and our chat...

Pong and Thong Ler was very interested in the amt of alcohol we drank during the France trip. haha. Seriously... Learnt more abt wine after the trip in France. Like how long it takes for a bottle of champagne to be ready to sold to the market. From the moment the grape seeds are being sown (er, I nv visit the vineyard, I dunno if they are really grown tt way ah...) to the moment where the fermented deposit is being removed and capped back to be packed and sold... Its at least 5-6 yrs. Throughout the whole process, alot of work is done by human labour... Can really imagine the effort put in hor?

Btw, only champagne produced in the Champagne region in France can be called 'champagne'. all other areas in France doesn't count. That's the thing i learnt from the lesson... =P maybe will be useful in future.

Here goes... I'll be uploading pics and some slips of info here and there abt my trip...

Not that I'm going to neglect this blog... =P but been keeping in touch in France through Friendster since its easier... I think not many would have expected this blog to be updated? hehe.

Met the gals today to exchange photos and have lunch tog. Girls from the GSS-France whom we spent a mth tog. Had a great time laughing at certain photos... And also updating each other, gossiping too I guess? haha...

anyway... finally fixed my hp and IE7. I'm so glad I can have my internet back. Its so inconvenient when there's so much photos to look thru etc...

well... in case you all have not read my Friendster blog, I have reached Troyes safe and sound and alrdy started my 2nd day of classes. shall upload the pics n some updates about life n people here as soon as i can go online thru my wireless. I got them all ready n typed out on my laptop in my free time back in the motel.

hmm... weather these 2 days were a bit warmer. otherwise, it was quite cold especially in the night when we just got here last fri. i could walk around with a sleeveless top feeling comfy today. haha... but there is the sun. which has been quite glaring... i forgot my sunblock of all things! hehe. should noe how much i dont like tans n being in the hot blazing sun...

so yup... i am fine... pls send my regards to all of you guys there if they happen to ask about how i am doing over here n say i am fine. and kelly... tell our kakis i al fine ya... upload my pics asap. muacks all... au voir... (bye...)

OMG I can finally blog... is it heaven's will... I thought I want to try since it'll be my last nite online most probably...

I'll be leaving guys... You all take care in Singapore ya... And do miss me!!! haha... I'll miss u all de, brought the pic we took at pizza hut with me. Hope can get u all some souvenirs there... Cos I've been hearing lots abt how exp things are over there. And I've been weighing my luggage to see if i overshot the 20kg limit. I'm almost nearing the mark... dangerous hor... I'll see tml if I can take out anything. hehe.

Feel quite bad abt Eugene cos, well... we're just abt one month together and there I go flying off to France for abt the same duration... Oops.

Ah well... I'm a bit disoriented now, thousands of things on my mind... bring this and that... take this and that... Shall leave it at here for now... Take care guys

well... today is stay home day. currently the plan is to learn some french, just bought a phrasebook ytd. read a few pages n was learning some useful words & phrases n how topronounce them. but i think I nd to go online n search for those audio aids that help pronounce de. I dont think my pronunciation is accurate. hehe.

ytd went to shop in JB. for stuff that i nd for the trip. First shopping trip. things on my shopping list were shoes and a dress for the Gala dinner. BUT. no dress... only bought one pair of shoes cos the rest didn't seem nice. but i did saw one pair of heels which had me tempted to buy. VERY tempted. Its white, strappy. tried it on and its quite nice except for the fact that its 2.5 inches with those pointed heel. not wedges or anything easier to walk with. but its nice leh... wa. so in e end, mainly cos of its height i didn't buy lo. KIV ba...

these few days had been trying to get used to my contacts. Now I'm getting more comfy with them. but still a bit inconsistent in removing them. esp my left eye. its ok, i guess practice makes perfect is a saying there for a reason. another I'm afraid of is scratching the lens. cos i only have a pair - perm ones. Starting to a bit regret why nv use disposable ones... haha. but then... heard its less drying. aiya, both got its pros and cons i guess. for now I shall kp my nails shorter so that i wont risk scratching my 130 bucks down the drain!

this morning went to collect my contacts... just now had to try putting on and removing them in e shop. ok la, was smoother than i expected. except, of cos, my left eye wasn't as easy to handle as my right.

just now after lunch and a little nap, I tried it on again. Wa... i think it was for about one hour plus to two... cannot, I felt I had to take them out. Cos my eyes were getting tired... hopefully, tml I can manage to put them on slightly longer. So that by the time I'm supposed to set off for my trip, I am comfy with them.

Now that i just removed them and put on my glasses, feel more confortable. but can feel the difference. my eyes are tired! haha... okok. go take a short rest for my eyes now. have a great wkend guys...

woke up in the morning to this stupid mess. really pissed off now. How come these few days got so many things to ruin my mood. puis. that time borrowed a dress from cousin for my presentation and after that i had asked mum to help me return to her. But mum came back with it saying aunt say, leave it here first, I might need it. I was pretty sure i wouldn't, that's y i return wad. But mum still brought back.

And goodness knows where she put it. Now I'm abt to go return my cousin her jacket then my aunt say oh.. then maybe u return the dress also ba. SHIT. now my mum dunno where she hang it, she said she put it in my room. Now its in neither of my cupboard ok. I even went to chk hers and MY BRO's. where is the stupid dress now... ?!@#?%$^

dont worry, wasn't cursing. Just that those symbols described exactly how i feel now. like a shit. (phrase borrowed from Min)

I got caught in the crossfire during dinner... was just an innocent chat between me n my bro. asking him if he wanna freelance for my friend and he said he might not be that pro enough to be paid for his editing cos so far he learnt only e basics. end up my dad picked up this line and asked him why not learn etc. Aiya... boils down to the fact that my dad doesn't understand our way of lives and studies. And when we try to explain he cant get it, so end up getting hot and bothered. my bro also lost his patience trying to explain to him. And worse... dad brought in my bro's gaming issue again... and there u go, that's the catalyst to *boom*

by then... u alrdy have 2 angry men at e dinner table. me n mum ate our dinner, once in a while chipping in trying to make peace. there was once my mum n i were talking to each other, with my bro n dad practically shouting at each other at the other side of the table. haha... we were so zai right. We could still CHAT. then another time was when my bro and I were talking by ourselves while dad was raising his voice at us. we were, of course, talking in english... now dont u wish sometimes ur parents can dont understand wad u're trying to say while saying stuff under their noses... wahaha. this is when ur parents dunno english is actually a good thing. (but mind u, my mum noes a bit so we still try to use chim eng when we nd to talk ourselves)

Me: This is why I am starting to feel rebellious nowadays.

Bro: Ya la, I dont care alrdy... I will just talk back, he just dont understand.

(Dad: (in the background) You always use the computer to play play play...)

well... I know its rude la, haha... but how to calm him down when he's blasting right. the only thing i can do is distract my bro so he wont talk back anymore. and at the end, when my bro walked off feeling pissed, I tried to explain to my dad wad my bro had been doing n wad his game is abt. But aiya... he fuming alrdy where got listen, ended up getting shout at. Then my mum also give up... now we have one angry father, one couldn't-be-bothered son, one helpless mother and one caught-in-between daughter lo...

Hmm... not feeling sad or depressed abt this la. Kinda used to this occasional tiff cos of my bro's gaming. What I am trying to say is this time its really not his fault. This kind of thing is not just one incident... its snowballed from the past. Cos of the generation gap between us. At least mum has aunts and my cousin to discuss and tell her more abt our sch and life inside. And though she's still old-fashioned in her thinking sometimes, most of the times she understand. But dad, being outside working most of the time, and is those kind of dad who doesn't and dunno how to show concern to his kids. (you noe... those olden days where fathers have ego lots bigger than the size of their fists) Its hard to communicate.

So what is the moral of the story? I knew long ago, and that is why I wont want to repeat this 'mistake' when it is my time. I'll want to have kids early so there's no communication barrier and age/generation gap. And the magic word is - communicate...

called cousin back this morning and he asked if I need travellers' cheque. Hmm... another thing to check out for my trip. Actually... there's loads to do, and I have abt 2.5 wks left. Hearing it now seems ok right? But actually... its very fast... excited over the trip of cos, it'll be fun to do the shopping and doing up lists of places to visit, food to try or places to visit.

you know, lately I am feeling rebellious. or shld i say my mum is getting over protective, paranoid. am starting to feel it get to my nerves. and then this little voice in my head will go "relax, dont quarrel with her". but of cos... there's also this lil devil that we are all so familiar with from movies we watch that goes "tell her how you feel, you deserve better!"

argh. eugene was telling me I shld think of the brighter side that she is bothering to get worried with me, at least she cares. But aye... there's a limit to everything. Maybe as I am drawing nearer to 21 - which signifies adulthood - I am starting to feel there are some changes that I need in my life? Of cos, I wont turn rebellious over this. to want to have my way. Just cos I'm 21 I need my way? Nono, of cos not... just want her to see things the way I do. the way me n my bro do.

Last night both of us 'ganged up' together for a moment. which surprised me. haha. well those with lil bros shld noe why the surprise. But I guess he is feeling the same way. But lucky him, being a guy, naturally all mothers( or maybe I shld say some huh) are more laxed with them. Puh-lease... well, I wanted to go out for supper. If I had to worry abt public transport, of cos I wouldn't go. But if my fren(which happens to be eugene but since she still dunno...) can drive me home then I dont see why not. And she gives the same reason - gals shldn't be going out so late. If I weren't concerned abt ruining e date, esp when he is alrdy on his way over, I might really have retaliated. LOOK AT ALL THE FREAKIN' GALS IN NIGHTCLUBS! aren't they gals?!?!

okok. simmer down. simmer down...

finally... the long awaited day came, exams over as of this monday. WOOHOO!

anyway, monday spent the time with my classmates. Going to Bugis with them since they wanna go temple to bai bai. We had lunch there and i dropped by my kaki's wking place at the pet shop. Hmm... the claypot rice at this little shop is not bad. Quite fragrant and healthy i shld say, cos they cooked the rice then place it in the claypot so there is no burnt rice. Well. of cos if u are those who attack the burnt rice once the claypot rice is served, u might not like it. =P I forgot the name of the shop, but its called Cha(2) Xuan(1) sth... it sells bubble tea too.

yesterday was havoc, haha... honestly I never come out so early in the morning for a date b4 la... but since its a holiday and we're both very free, we just tot we could meet for breakfast at vivo and just slack the rest of the day away. You know, the ba chor mee and hokkien mee in food republic is not bad. You guys shld try it... ya lo, u guys asked how come since we know each other from sec sch, now then start right... I guess sometimes things just take one big round to happen ba...

And to end the day was Spidey! *spoiler ahead those who havent watch* I really like this movie, was totally worth the 9.5 bucks i think haha... spiderman movies, besides action, always seem to give some thought-provoking or meaningful statements. this time it revolves around everyone having a choice in everything they do. Be it the Sandman, Spidey etc... And i really didn't expect Harry to die, and so patriotic too. After he knew the truth abt his dad's death, he didn't blame anyone and came out of it to help Peter. Wa... this kind of friend is hard to come by sometimes dont u think...

hmm, today have to prepare for the interview tml alrdy. a bit nervous, cos it makes a difference to whether we can go into the THM course which is very competitive. Make or break us. and after the exams... I'm hoping fervently it can make it for me!

=P count down count down... tml is the last paper alrdy... but my progress is rather slow la. still havent practise yet. And got so much gd stuff on tv - so tempting... ah! Twin dragons and Condor Heroes...

of cos for now... try not to think about the results first ya... next wk i got interview for the tourism course thingy. But till now the person havent call me to confirm the timing and day leh... she said will help us to arrange earlier cos we're flying off and wont be able to make it for the designated interview wk... maybe shld call n double chk... hmm...

finally... one more paper. just one more!!!

ytd paper came as a shock. Cos i nv expect to write so much for those qns, although i braced myself to. Its even more than OB. today too... who would expect my lecturer to set some qns EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE QUIZ... *faint* we had e ans but i dont recall all, well.. its a small percentage.

now just hope FM paper is like those past yr papers. Quite straight fwd. if FM also hard... then wa piang... gone is my hope to get into tourism. *cross fingers*

can you find the man among this pile of coffee beans? Its not a trick, there really is a man there =P try it!

happy birthday shuxian~ our 'misery' ending soon then u can fully enjoy yourself ya!

well... the IT grades are out. the project, participation etc. hehe... my participation is C+ very bad cos we all seldom speak up during IT seminars. when i saw his comments on the projects, wa... seriously tot my grade will be lousy cos he is quite sacarstic and the few major mistakes he point out, i seem to have one or two.

but turn out... I got A, wahaha... so happy. must tell my MJ kakis and thk them for helping me techinical problems. yay! hope it can help pull up the overall paper grade lo, cos i think my IT paper is cui... hai.

well... as usual when aunt comes, she brings the korean twins also. they refused to turn around, too busy playing with my saga seeds, haha... hmm, uncle ho told me alot of things to take note or prep for the trip. Cos he went to Europe a few times alrdy, told me to go get a map b4 i fly. and also of some places i shld visit... (SX... when i get the eng names i tell u, he told me in chinese, haha. some castle in Paris i think =P ) uncle said the streets will be filled with cafe selling pastries and bread that smells and taste fantastic. he told me some money cannot save one, go find one that sells not so exp de and get one to try... haha... okok, noted.

really thkful to both of them - my aunt and uncle ho( the family fren who's a photographer) for helping me so much on this trip too. aunt brought 2 big bags of clothes for me to see whether can use for the trip. and she's also bringing some bags over next time for me to use over there. Wa... and they both gave me some money too... haha. Really really touched... cos my aunts usually dont give me money de. I guess cos mum usually takes care of them so they in turn help us out ba. Glad that I have their help =)

heh heh... we seldom take pics after me n bro grew up. much less to have a family portrait. If it was not for our family fren at e wedding dinner, we wouldn't have this shot. He 'forced' every family to take a pic tog... but thks uncle =)

ever since thursday, alot of things happened. unexpectedly. hmm, really caught me by surprise. But its for the good, so I'm not complaining, hehe... well, after exams when we meet up for the movie or sth then i update u all ba.

so far these few days after the paper on thursday passed by in a whirl. I had no mood to study for FM(tot of studying it first but its e last paper not e next) and Blaw... feeling the urge to slack immensely. hehe. ytd went back to sch to print some 'manual' which my frens and the rest of NBS is passing around. I thought it is quite useful and since its open bk, just print and bring ba. I mean... I'll really be letting myself down if the whole world is having that 'manual' and bringing it in; I know its useful and did not?! Makes no sense right... =P

this evening my aunt is coming over. I tot it wasn't for real. but yeah, she's coming over with some clothes for my trip like i said, and bags I heard. and she's also buying in dinner, so its like a small family dinner... =D