Another year has gone by and it's time of the festivities again!
Please don't blame Santa if your christmas presents arrive late, especially if you're in Europe. The weather conditions has caused quite some travel chaos. Even for Santa!
This is just grossly funny. hahaha
White Christmas happening in Paris but i'm not there! :( It's just raining loads here in Brugherio. But its nice here too with family, not to mention i'm being fed loads of good food. An Italian Christmas! (:
I love the Christmas and New Year period cos everything is just so cheery and happy! (:
'tis the season to be jolly!
Getting last minute presents? I just came across these really cool free downloadable gift tags! I guess it's perfect for people like me who aren't exactly the most creative person on earth and would absolutely fail at an attempt at trying to draw something so artsy haha.
Just click on the credit link above and download the pdf files. Then print it on any textured or coloured paper you like and voila! Pretty little 'homemade' gift tags (:
A phrase i try to avoid using too much but sometimes, it's inevitable haha.
The semester is over!
Omg. i can't believe i've survived 2 semesters of sciences po.
As much as i love the profs and classes, the workload can be a bit too much and overwhelming for me. I'm really not used to it, especially after being in the much less competitive system in aussie haha.
So i've been spending the last 2 days going around paris with sg friends! (:
And i haven't had so much fun in ages! Paris was just beautiful, it was snowing so heavily it looked like it was raining cotton puffs. haha.
I spent an awesome 3 days in London! It's really like shopping heaven there. Not very good for the pocket and the bank but great for the soul (: Primark along Oxford Street - is a MUST go!
I went on a shopping spree on friday! Needed to stock up on my winter wear to get through my last 6 weeks here.
i thought this would be warm enough but apparently not. I was still freezing.
So, I bought a longer down jacket, and a pair of new boots! I was going to Uniqlo at Opèra, when i saw a shoe shop inside the metro. That's where i found my lovely boots. for just 35euros! I mentioned before that footwear in paris is really expensive so this is a steal! That shop is actually really cheap and the designs are quite nice too. I nearly bought another one. heh. But i only have 1 more mild winter in sydney after this so i really shouldn't buy too many. Plus, there's 2 ways to wear this boots too.
With the top folded down, and the furry part on the outside...
Or just without any folds!
And that's my new jacket from uniqlo! I feel like a puffy ball in the north pole. I did mention before that Uniqlo here is like 3 storeys right. It's awesome to shop for basics and winter wear! Wasn't easy resisting buying too many winter stuff haha.
Im happy with my buys! (: So i'm not gonna be afraid of the cold anymore! haha.
I realized that i have not blog or uploaded anything about birm! I will do that soon. Most likely when my holidays begin in 2 wks time. I have some backdated saved drafts that i just haven't found the time to finish. So many things i wanna do during my holiday. Can't wait!
Okay. I'm actually off to London for a few days now! (:
So. After some secret balloting, FIFA decided to award the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar, respectively. However, the verdicts came amid allegations of corruption and bribery, and somehow, the English and American took it a lot harsher.
Some interesting stuff in the article by Time:
"TIME sees geopolitical trends at work in the success of the Russian and Qatari bids."
- Hmmmm....
"U.S. soccer authorities have for some time been branding their country as the game's heir..."
I can understand why the UK wants so badly to host the World Cup. But the US?! hahah. Not that Qatar has an excellent soccer team but neither is the US known for soccer.
Petrodollars in Russia and Qatar are "a far cry from the debt-ridden treasury in Washington or the U.K. counting its pennies while putting aircraft carriers up for auction"
Russian bid's key patron is non other than Roman Abramovich - Russian businessman, Forbes 50th Richest man, and owner of Chelsea Football club.
"Who needs a totally free press or fair elections to guarantee a good show?"
- True. North Korea is putting on quite a good show now too haha. But yes i do have to agree with that.
But i'm not too sure on the last point about Terrorism being not so terrifying and apparantly, Osama bin Laden is a fan of the game hahahah. But well, the author is not wrong to say that disrupting an event destined to be a massive source of Arab pride might cause backlash. Come to think of it, it's more likely to face a terrorism attack if it was in the US or UK? Well, let's hope the terrorists think the same way too.
Went to do some shopping for shoes at Rue Meslay, and then a brocante de Noel in the 3rd with Lynn and Evelyn yesterday! Sadly, i didn't find any boots i like, which means i'm still looking. The flea market was pretty cool, but sadly we didn't have much time left to look around. I'm gonna be looking out for more brocantes to go to! (:
I have finally finished blogging about my trip to Istanbul. Yes it took me like a whole month. haha, not that i had a lot to write about. Anyway, words can't really express the experience. It was mainly because i had soooo much work when i came back to Paris, hence the lateness. So if you're interested, click on the link below to see all the posts about my trip and conference there. Mostly pictures so it's easy on the eye! (:
Firstly, because i discovered a new song, and i am hooked! It's such a feel good, happy song. Made me feel so much better after quite a depressing day yesterday. So i'm sharing it here!
Secondly, I had spicy beef la mian soup! Evelyn suggested we meet and go to this chinese restaurant for lunch. My original plan was to have lunch at home, which i'm glad i didn't, cos the noodles soup was soooo gooood! To be honest, i'm pretty sick of sandwiches. Don't get me wrong, i like eating sandwiches, just not everyday, and not for main meals all the time. I felt so sick eating my sandwich for dinner last night, i felt like puking. Just so happen that i have been craving soup for a while now, and it was freezing today, so it was just perfect! Plus i haven't had anything really spicy in a long while so i loved it! Pity i didn't take any photos, but i think i'll be going back there again pretty soon! I'll try to remember the next time i go back. Oh yeah and it came with 2 gyoza on the side. YUM!
Then i went to meet a friend from last semester at Ladurée. Evelyn recommended me to try this dessert and omg. It really is the best dessert they have there. The cream was light and fluffy with a hint of rose, and the pastry just perfect! I didn't bring my camera so the photo below was taken with my bb. The red thing at the top is a rose petal btw. Turns out my friend was there to order the exact same thing!
Saint-Honoré Rose-Framboise
It was really good catching up with her since we haven't met in months (: and halfway through our coffee, it started snowing outside!! It really felt as though we were in a snow globe, except that you know, if you're in a snow globe the snow would be falling on you, and not outside...but yeah. for some reason it just felt that way. It was beautiful. We were warm and toasty in the cafe, and it was just snowing non-stop outside for close to half an hour. The feeling is indescribable. Pity i was too far from the window to take a good photo with my bb, and i didn't bring my camera!! But the snow didn't really stay, the ground was just wet when we left. But on my way back, there was a bit of snow on the grass at the park at Invalides.
So that sums up my really good day. I was honestly feeling quite down yesterday, so today was a good change (: and it's a day of shopping tomorrow with Lynn and Evelyn and then dinner with Cheryl! But before that, i need to get some work done so no more distraction, for the next 4 hours at least.
This is an excellent article written by a friend i met at the recent NATO Afghan Student's Forum, the Canadian delegate, Aneel Brar.
For young Afghans, what will Canada's concern amount to?
"With Canada renewing its commitment to the Afghan mission at the NATO summit in Lisbon last week, a simple yet important question comes to mind: Have we as Canadians been honest about our intentions?
This was also the question in the back of my mind last month as I attended the fifth NATO-Afghan student forum in Istanbul. The NATO-sponsored forum brought together young Afghans and representatives from NATO-member countries, including regional participants from Central Asia and Pakistan, to Kadir Has University for a week-long discussion on the results and limitations of the Afghan mission..."
You just really HAVE to watch this video. omg. it's hilarious! and such a cuteeee baby! It made my day. Enjoy!
I just laugh when i see the baby's face! even though i've watched it like a thousand times. hahaha 'It's the power of Bob Marley and Weed'. Never fails to make any day better! (I'm talking about the Bob Marley part)
Went to visit the Champs Élysées christmas market today! I love markets. But i didn't take any photos because it was so crowded, and it was raining. I was trying to juggle an umbrella on one hand, hot wine on the other, and trying to stay warm haha. oh wells. I should be going back since we only manage to see one side of it. It was mainly food, hats, gloves, and random stuff.
Ferris Wheel at Concorde
There's a ferris wheel that comes up only during christmas time. You can see how dull and dreary Paris is today. Partly because this was taken at about close to 5pm.
This is a special post to my dear best friend, Isabel (and myself haha)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Hope you had a great time celebrating admist all the studying we have to do. and hopefully next year, we'll get to celebrate together again (: i will probably pass your birthday present to peilin and she'll bring it back for you, or i might just mail it. see how it goes. actually, i haven't got the time to get it yet haha. but i already know what to get for you <3 see ya in jan!! can't wait! (:
i have to say that despite being away from home, and trying to breathe under a pile of work, i'm truly happy (: because of you
on another note, i miss blogging. will find time to do so. soon. soon.
Took some photos today as i was on my way to the metro. This is the park at Les Invalides - the area where i live, in autumn. It's prettier in life than in the photos!
And this picture below was actually the same place in January this year when i first arrived. Realized i didn't take one during summer! :( I think i like it with leaves better than bare.
The chilly winds are signs that winter is approaching, so it's time to bring out the big coats. Goodbye leather jackets and trench coats!
Halloween's tomorrow but before that, today is Happy Wicked Day!
It celebrates the anniversary of the Wicked musical, but it also acts as a sponsor for several charities, including Bully Bust and enviromental agencies like Woodlawn Trust. It carries a message of acceptence and trust.
A friend showed me this and i just have to blog about it since it's for a good cause and Wicked is one of my favourite musicals. Saw it in Sydney last year and it was AMAZING. I totally loved it! This is a short post in between getting my work done. I'm blogging about my trip in Istanbul as and when i can as well, and it's backdated. alrights.
It was the last full day i have left in Istanbul and i was so exhausted that day! Mainly because a small group of us decided that after having drinks, to go for a late night shisha, okay nargile, and then a drive around istanbul city at night. It was pretty amazing but i was extremely tired i just slept in the car haha. So my day kinda started at noon. We went to Taksim, to have baklava, turkish coffee and some turkish delight!
Then we had tea at this really cool cafe in the middle of nowhere. haha okay not exactly. iI was just tiny stools and tables out onto the cobblestone pavement.
Then we ended off the day with dinner at a turkish restaurant and then drinks at a 'french' bar. and this was our drawing as a group! (:
I called it an early night as i was so exhausted after a whole week of not having enough sleep. Then i had breakfast and brunch with a few others who were still here. The goodbyes had already begun and was about to end. It was quite sad really. Hopefully we'll all get to meet again, somewhere, somehow.
Beautiful day. View from the rooftop restaurant at the hotel
Our brunch
I couldn't resist buying a set of Turkish coffee so i can make it at home! i must say that it's really strong! I can still feel the caffeine 4 hours after having it, and that includes having lunch in between too. haha. So it's a good study companion.
So yes, it's good to be back home after being away for a week, but i had a blast and i'm sooo glad to have had this opportunity to visit Turkey!! miss all of you people, you know who you are (:
Who said it was just all work and no play?
Here's a picture post about all the great food and fun, etc during the conference! and it was during these times that we all bonded very much (:
Kadir Has University! where the conference was held.
Monday, 18 October 2010: The conference begins in Kadir Has University, Istanbul, Turkey!
I'm going to try to write about what went on during the conference in brief: the topics we discussed, the speakers etc. It's probably not complete as i don't have photos for some and it's not possible to document every single thing that went on! haha. So if IR/NATO/Afghanistan doesn't interest you, it might be a bit boring. But well, there's always photos to make it less so (:
I had the morning to move from my hostel to the hotel for the conference, and then spare time to wander around before meeting a friend i just made. There was a marathon going on! The day was spent visiting mosques, spice bazaar and having apple tea and soaking up the Istanbul atmosphere along the streets (:
Marathon + Hagia Sophia/Ayasofya in the background
The pictures will do the talking in this post, after all, a picture is worth a thousand words right? Enjoy!
Breakfast at the rooftop hostel with a view of all the other roofs in istanbul haha. no photo of that as i couldnt get a good enough view.
Then i visited the grand bazaar! together with an aussie girl i met at my hostel, Nancy. I was tooo busy shopping in there to take any photos. haha. There were tons of accessories being sold, and all sorts of souvenirs and pretty lamps. The place is huge! i didn't have time to finish exploring, sadly. But i bought a pair of earrings for myself (:
Got up super early this morning, 4.50am! just to get to the airport on time. Some partial strikes were still ongoing so i wasn't sure how much time i'd need, so decided to be on the safe side. Since i was worrying about that, i didn't get much sleep. In fact, i woke up at about 3.50am and then went back to sleep. haha.
So i did get to the airport in time, and tried to sleep on the plane but not much. The food on Singapore airlines is definitely a lot better than Turkish airlines haha. But they gave this for snacks.
I didn't know hazelnuts came from Turkey. I'm not a fan of nuts so this packet is still sitting in my bag, stowed away for desperate times and when i have no other food options.
Have been extremely occupied with packing and trying to find out as much about Istanbul as i can before i leave. This is the first time i'm travelling alone (for the first few days at least), hence the need to be EXTRA prepared, at least as best as i can.
Halfway there...
I pretty much just sat through both my Thursday classes without actually really being there. haha. I was physically there but i had no idea what was going on. I really wanna go see the Ephesus but it's too far from Istanbul to do a day trip and i don't think i have the time to stay overnight there. Archealogical sites, omg, it's like a dream come true to see that! Maybe next time i'll do Greece, Turkey and Egypt travel altogether. So looks like i'll just be exploring just Istanbul this time around.
All done!
and i managed to actually close that haha. It also means i wouldn't have much room for shopping...but i really am hoping to do some of that.
To do while in Istanbul:
1. Visit the Bazaars for shopping!
2. Turkish Bath
3. Shisha/hookah whatever you call it. (though i find it rather choking but still)
4. See belly dance and folk dance.
i think that's about it. oh yeah how can i forget. the main purpose i'm going there.
On another note, I am stressing out about my trip to Istanbul at the moment. I'm leaving on Friday and it's the first time i'm actually going to be on my own for a couple of days, and i'm not going to know anyone at all during the conference. Usually that's fine but for some reason, thinking about everything is sending me into fits of anxiety attacks. HELP!
I went for a day trip to Bayeux, a small town in Normandy area yesterday, and i really had a great time! It was soooo good to get out of the city. Small town, lots of greenery, blue sky, and the beach = ♥
My main goal was to see the D-day beaches, where the Allied troops landed on 6 June 1944, and proceeded to free Europe from there in WWII.
We did encounter some hiccups, which included being rejected twice to be taken on a tour of the d-day beaches. Who rejects a chance to do business?! Though it was understandable for the second person, the first was just bizarre. haha. But everything turned out well in the end so alls good (: But we were all really exhausted by the end of the day as it was about 2.5hours away from Paris and we all got up really early. Time for photos!
Had dinner with some Singaporeans who are studying music here in Paris yesterday night, at an italian restaurant that was supposedly the best in Paris. I was not disappointed! (:
starters - some cheese thingy. yumm!
The menu was a bit hard to read though, they had italian names and french descriptions, i was quite confused, not to mention my brain wasn't working very well as i was starving. The portions were rather huge so we ordered 3 pastas to share between 5 of us.
Squid ink pasta
This was the BEST squid ink pasta i've ever had. It's wayyyy better than the one at donna carmela. As usual, we all look very 'glam' after eating that. haha.
some seafood pasta which tastes a lot like curry based hokkien mee!
There was another pasta we had that was tomato based with eggplants, forgot to take a photo of that. it was AWESOME. Loved that one too!
I am definitely going back (:
Okay, shall blog about Normandy tomorrow.
Bonne nuit!
*i forgot to bring my camera so these photos were taken with my bb, and it had this flash thingy, hence the beam of light.
I bought a new pair of heels! Need it for the conference as i didn't manage to find a pair after i brought the other one back home to throw it out. wait, i think it could still be sitting in the shoe cupboard at home...hmmm....haha.
For the price i paid for this pair of shoes, i can get a SOO much better one in singapore, i think even in sydney too. Stuff in Paris are reallly too expensive :( that's why i still shop online here. Except for H&M of course. But i don't buy shoes online as i'm really particular about it. But i did make a mistake with this one, i tried it on in the shop when i was wearing stockings so, it's not as comfortable as i thought. oh wells. Chances are i'll probably be wearing stockings with it most of the time anyway.
I really like the colour though! i don't think it is very clear in these photos.
and remember, bite your shoes before it bites you! ;)
A few days ago, while walking back home from the metro, i heard some singing and this was what i saw outside the Invalides.
I have no idea what the ocassion was actually, haha. But the building behind, is where Musée de L'Armée (Army Museum) is. Also, Napoleon's tomb is in that dome shaped building behind. Ferdinand Foch is there too. This whole compoud is called Hôtel des Invalides, and its orginal purpose was a hospital as well as to house all the war veterans that had no place to go after the war ended.
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