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I know I have been 'religiously' neglecting this blog.. but time really didn't allow me much luxury to pen my thoughts down.. I apologise.
My Return to UK, and Sojourn to Greece
9th March till 17th March
Oxford
I guess when you miss someone to a great degree, you wouldn't mind splashing out that cash to fly over just to be with her. I've tried to upload photos, but its taking a really long time with the lousy 3G connection I have at home.
So back to my story, I landed in UK with that familiar feeling of 'home', a place where I have spent 4 years of my life so far, where I spent 2 great years where Hui Min is always there fer me. I found myself remembering where the ATMs in Heathrow are, how to find the coach stands, and even the coach ride to Oxford keeps me smiling :) I'm back, and I'm seeing Hui min soon!
Rested a while, and Hui Min brought me around parts of Oxford that we weren't allowed to visit when we came by in 2005. (Its been 2 years already??) But yea~ met a couple of her good friends in Oxford - Eunice and Amna.. And this time round, Hui Min is well armed with the knowledge of where the good food are :) Places covered in the first day: QEH, New college, the libraries, covered market, primark, cornmarket, highstreet, tea at Rose Cafe and lunch at Georgina's Cafe
But I think it could be because of age that causes jetlag (which I used not to have a problem with), and coupled with the Squadron working me too hard the week before, I was extremely tired that afternoon, practically falling asleep as I walked around with Hui min. So in the end, she had to abandon her plans for me that evening and let me sleep from 1730 till 730 the following morning. What a pig!
Back to London~
My dear girl did most of the packing while I was recuperating my sleep debt, and we left for London early the following morning. As the coach reached Nottinghill Gates, I know how to get back to my 'home' even though I have not been here for half a year.
It was a familiar walk back home. Past the familiar scent of Hyde Park. The familiar bend into Gloucester Road. The familiar penthouse on top of 41 Gloucester Road. The familiar, lousy dodgy lift. And the familiar sight of lazy edwin still sleeping at 12 noon when i entered my room. Haa.. thanks for coming back here with me hm :)
Hui Min: Off we went to London the next day (Sun), where he visited his household at Gloucester Road, walked along high street ken, looked at yummy food, went to Giraffe, got stuck in the tube for 1h 30 mins, had coffee and nice cake at Pauls near his house etc. Oh we also went to the National History Museum!! Basically just very simple things but it was great because it was as if we had never left london and were still studying there. Met his housemates at Four Seasons for dinner, afterwhich he went back to their plc and played a penguin soccer match with them =D It was too short a time in london, with too many ple we couldn't meet.
To Greece (Athens)
It is just a coincidence that I am going to the city where Liverpool will lift their 6th Champions League Trophy. (yea, I know that will happen :)) We left for the airport in the wee hours, leaving Eunice's hotel for Luton (or issit Gatwick?). But anyway, the two of us had so little sleep that we concussed through the four hours of the flight to Athens, and we woke up to a sunny Greek weather. We checked into our hostel, which to our dismay happened to be in a rather dodgy area of town. Were pretty exhausted by the time we arrived, so we thought we'll just rest till dinner before we move around again. Dinner was settled at a nearby (recommended) kebah shop. The food wasn't exactly fantastic, which led to Hui Min and I speculating that perhaps the shop owner and our hostel lady had a fling, and thus the recommendation =P.
Hui Min: But the next day (Tues) was glorious! Went to do all the touristy sightseeing places - Acropolis, Temple of Zeus (from afar), flea markets, national parks, a very strange Greek restaurant that served starters and desserts (on the house) that we didn't know how to eat (very very very strange indeed - like nougat in water (huh!!!) and a shot of ouzo with nuts). we did some shopping too cuz joseph was freezing (it's really cold) and got 2 jackets from zara *yay* =D oh yes and we found a nice little shop that sells very yummy greek sweets. we ended up returning the next day and bought alot.
So - the following day (Weds) was qt a waste of time because the sights that we went to was really not much sights at all. The coast wasn't great, the Piraeus Port area was so horrendously messy and dodgy that we left after half an hour. but it was nice to be a the coast looking at the sea again. I actually rather enjoy it, barring the strong winds. OHOH we had a very delicious dinner at Diros restaurant that night =) Nice baklava and greek yogurt!!
ok so that's it for greece. We had our flight on thursday back to gatwick, went to london again to revisit his Imperial college and housemates (cuz Imperial was v empty on sunday) and lucky for him, it was one of his housemates' birthday and some guys from another household came over. So he got his long overdue-very -noisy-people-filled farewell which he termed as "the missing closure" to his 4 years in london when he left in June 06.
And indeed, that was what I told Hui Min that night we left London. Perhaps when I left in June, everyone wasn't around, hence it wasn't the unwilling 'teary' sad departure of London which I imagined and dreaded would happen when I was still in school. It simply felt as if my time in UK had not ended. This time round though, as I baded farewell to my housemates and pseudo housemates, I felt the pinch of sadness gnawing away. This is indeed, the long overdue-very noisy people filled- closure to my time in Imperial.
Hui Min: Friday in Oxford was more sightseeing - Christ Church, Covered market (guess why we keep going back - FOOD), Trinity, Meadows, Oxford Castle, some shopping. Then we went to new college for dinner (supposedly formal hall), and then the Luximo fire display along Broad street meant to celebrate the 1000years of establishment of Oxfordshire. Went to Eagle and Child briefly but was too smoky so didn't stay for long.
By the way, Eagle and Child is the pub which J K Tolken and his good friend who wrote The
Chronicles of Narnia frequent.
Saturday: It simply didn't feel like a week has passed. I've missed Hui Min so much, went to UK to look for her, and there it goes.. a week passed and another 4 months worth of wait ensues. Both of us just wanted to spend some time together on Saturday without the interruption of others, and the walk to the coach station sure wasn't pleasant. I had nearly forgotten the feeling of hot tears welling, and the goodbyes before I boarded the bus sure did refresh my memory of that. July will be a long wait.
It was a beautiful week, with lovely memories and alot of traveling. Thank you so much for coming over, inspite knowing that it'll be very tiring. Thanks for letting me revive that joy and comfort along London Streets and with your friends, and Thanks for giving me more memories in the little streets in Oxford.
I feel the same way too dear.
I know I have been 'religiously' neglecting this blog.. but time really didn't allow me much luxury to pen my thoughts down.. I apologise.
My Return to UK, and Sojourn to Greece
9th March till 17th March
Oxford
I guess when you miss someone to a great degree, you wouldn't mind splashing out that cash to fly over just to be with her. I've tried to upload photos, but its taking a really long time with the lousy 3G connection I have at home.
So back to my story, I landed in UK with that familiar feeling of 'home', a place where I have spent 4 years of my life so far, where I spent 2 great years where Hui Min is always there fer me. I found myself remembering where the ATMs in Heathrow are, how to find the coach stands, and even the coach ride to Oxford keeps me smiling :) I'm back, and I'm seeing Hui min soon!
Rested a while, and Hui Min brought me around parts of Oxford that we weren't allowed to visit when we came by in 2005. (Its been 2 years already??) But yea~ met a couple of her good friends in Oxford - Eunice and Amna.. And this time round, Hui Min is well armed with the knowledge of where the good food are :) Places covered in the first day: QEH, New college, the libraries, covered market, primark, cornmarket, highstreet, tea at Rose Cafe and lunch at Georgina's Cafe
But I think it could be because of age that causes jetlag (which I used not to have a problem with), and coupled with the Squadron working me too hard the week before, I was extremely tired that afternoon, practically falling asleep as I walked around with Hui min. So in the end, she had to abandon her plans for me that evening and let me sleep from 1730 till 730 the following morning. What a pig!
Back to London~
My dear girl did most of the packing while I was recuperating my sleep debt, and we left for London early the following morning. As the coach reached Nottinghill Gates, I know how to get back to my 'home' even though I have not been here for half a year.
It was a familiar walk back home. Past the familiar scent of Hyde Park. The familiar bend into Gloucester Road. The familiar penthouse on top of 41 Gloucester Road. The familiar, lousy dodgy lift. And the familiar sight of lazy edwin still sleeping at 12 noon when i entered my room. Haa.. thanks for coming back here with me hm :)
Hui Min: Off we went to London the next day (Sun), where he visited his household at Gloucester Road, walked along high street ken, looked at yummy food, went to Giraffe, got stuck in the tube for 1h 30 mins, had coffee and nice cake at Pauls near his house etc. Oh we also went to the National History Museum!! Basically just very simple things but it was great because it was as if we had never left london and were still studying there. Met his housemates at Four Seasons for dinner, afterwhich he went back to their plc and played a penguin soccer match with them =D It was too short a time in london, with too many ple we couldn't meet.
To Greece (Athens)
It is just a coincidence that I am going to the city where Liverpool will lift their 6th Champions League Trophy. (yea, I know that will happen :)) We left for the airport in the wee hours, leaving Eunice's hotel for Luton (or issit Gatwick?). But anyway, the two of us had so little sleep that we concussed through the four hours of the flight to Athens, and we woke up to a sunny Greek weather. We checked into our hostel, which to our dismay happened to be in a rather dodgy area of town. Were pretty exhausted by the time we arrived, so we thought we'll just rest till dinner before we move around again. Dinner was settled at a nearby (recommended) kebah shop. The food wasn't exactly fantastic, which led to Hui Min and I speculating that perhaps the shop owner and our hostel lady had a fling, and thus the recommendation =P.
Hui Min: But the next day (Tues) was glorious! Went to do all the touristy sightseeing places - Acropolis, Temple of Zeus (from afar), flea markets, national parks, a very strange Greek restaurant that served starters and desserts (on the house) that we didn't know how to eat (very very very strange indeed - like nougat in water (huh!!!) and a shot of ouzo with nuts). we did some shopping too cuz joseph was freezing (it's really cold) and got 2 jackets from zara *yay* =D oh yes and we found a nice little shop that sells very yummy greek sweets. we ended up returning the next day and bought alot.
So - the following day (Weds) was qt a waste of time because the sights that we went to was really not much sights at all. The coast wasn't great, the Piraeus Port area was so horrendously messy and dodgy that we left after half an hour. but it was nice to be a the coast looking at the sea again. I actually rather enjoy it, barring the strong winds. OHOH we had a very delicious dinner at Diros restaurant that night =) Nice baklava and greek yogurt!!
ok so that's it for greece. We had our flight on thursday back to gatwick, went to london again to revisit his Imperial college and housemates (cuz Imperial was v empty on sunday) and lucky for him, it was one of his housemates' birthday and some guys from another household came over. So he got his long overdue-very -noisy-people-filled farewell which he termed as "the missing closure" to his 4 years in london when he left in June 06.
And indeed, that was what I told Hui Min that night we left London. Perhaps when I left in June, everyone wasn't around, hence it wasn't the unwilling 'teary' sad departure of London which I imagined and dreaded would happen when I was still in school. It simply felt as if my time in UK had not ended. This time round though, as I baded farewell to my housemates and pseudo housemates, I felt the pinch of sadness gnawing away. This is indeed, the long overdue-very noisy people filled- closure to my time in Imperial.
Hui Min: Friday in Oxford was more sightseeing - Christ Church, Covered market (guess why we keep going back - FOOD), Trinity, Meadows, Oxford Castle, some shopping. Then we went to new college for dinner (supposedly formal hall), and then the Luximo fire display along Broad street meant to celebrate the 1000years of establishment of Oxfordshire. Went to Eagle and Child briefly but was too smoky so didn't stay for long.
By the way, Eagle and Child is the pub which J K Tolken and his good friend who wrote The
Chronicles of Narnia frequent.
Saturday: It simply didn't feel like a week has passed. I've missed Hui Min so much, went to UK to look for her, and there it goes.. a week passed and another 4 months worth of wait ensues. Both of us just wanted to spend some time together on Saturday without the interruption of others, and the walk to the coach station sure wasn't pleasant. I had nearly forgotten the feeling of hot tears welling, and the goodbyes before I boarded the bus sure did refresh my memory of that. July will be a long wait.
It was a beautiful week, with lovely memories and alot of traveling. Thank you so much for coming over, inspite knowing that it'll be very tiring. Thanks for letting me revive that joy and comfort along London Streets and with your friends, and Thanks for giving me more memories in the little streets in Oxford.
I feel the same way too dear.
posted by Joseph at
Monday, April 02, 2007
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