Highlands here i come..

Time to clear my backlog..

Friday, 5th Aug 2005

After eight and a half hours sitting next to this jap lady who kept nodding off on my shoulder on the overnight coach, i arrived in Edinburgh.

Stepped out of the bus station..wooh..the crisp cold air reminded me tat i'm now in scotland..a couple of degrees colder than in London..the streets were still quiet at 7.15am..

I had joined a tour to the Highlands..yes, it's a package tour..a bit touristy but i figured it's the best way to see the highlands by myself..not economical to drive and too ulu to risk getting lost/stranded in the mountains(me kiasi mah)..

Check-in time for the tour is 8.30am so i roamed about a bit..not tat there's much to see since the shops are not opened yet..spied a O'Briens & went in for some juice..

Strolled over to the Haggis office at 815am & was greeted wif this looong queue of pple..settled the admin stuff then went out to wait for my coach # to be called..

'Bus #3 pple follow me pls' shouted this guy in kilts..we were led to this big yellow coach..after dumping our luggage at the back, we climbed aboard..this group is bigger than i expected..38 pax..i was kinda expecting those small van kind..a quick scan..hmm..a couple of aunties & uncles..2 china-looking men..3 chinese girls(couldn't tell where they're from..must wait till they open their mouths then i can guess)..& the rest are all ang mohs..

The guy in kilt introed himself, 'I'm Tony & i'll be your guide cum slave over the next 3 days'

When everybody's settled down in their seats..off we go..

This tony guy quite good..can drive & talk at the same time..all the while, he'll be pointing out the places as we pass them..telling us some stories & jokes..basically tok cork lah..some of his jokes quite corny one..sample joke : Wat did van gogh say when offered a sweet? No thanks, i've got one 'here' (one ear) Geddit?

We sort of entered into the highlands after 2 hours of driving..and i began to snap furiously away on my camera..after about 30 mins, i gave up cos i realised i am AMONG the highlands..which means everywhere i turn my head also soooo beautiful..no point taking so many shots..besides dun think my amateur skills can capture the magnificence of the highlands..

We had a couple of stops along the way..some were tea break stops..yea, there were coffee/tea & biscuits provided..others were for us to take pics. According to Tony, scotland accounts for >50% of the coastline in UK despite occupying only about 1/3 of the land area..which means u're never >5miles away from the coastline when u're in the highlands..well, for those interested, can check out the UK map..scotland really does have a very jagged outline..

That nite, we stayed in this town called Kyle of Lochalsh, which is at the tip of Isle of Skye..with not much of choice for dinner..i went for fish & chips..but it was a good choice cos the fish was really fresh & the chips were chunky good..

After dinner, it was a quick shower & then it was off to dreamland..

Third Month Anniversary

After spending 90 days in UK..there're things i'm still getting used to..

1. The way time is read here..how would u tell the time in the following case :

a) 5.15 b) 9.50 c) 12.30

The correct answers(over here anyway) :

a) quarter past five (not 'five-fifteen')

b) ten to ten (not 'nine-fifty')

c) half past twelve (not twelve-thirty)


2. There are very few dustbins in London..even fewer after the July bombings(for fear of bombs being dropped in them). Which means if u're out on the streets & u have finished a packet of drink & u want to throw it, u'll probably need to carry it for 27 mins & 4.8 miles before u spot a dustbin..


3. Plastic bags here have holes punched in them..u know those kind of NTUC 'zua long' back in Sg? 9 out of 10 bags used by retailers here have holes in them(scared children suffocate wor)..this is esp irritating when u use them for trash bags..& u kinda forget & u happily pour away ur leftover gravy..this action is usually followed by a string of expletives while mopping the floor..


4. There IS a need to slang..sometimes. The other day, i was having lunch at a cafe & the waitress came over for my order..i wasn't quite ready & so i said in my typical sporean accent(some of u would call it monotone) 'could u give me another minute please?'..only to have the waitress stare back blankly at me & say 'sorry, i can't speak ur language' @.@


5. Summer in the UK is still cold..at least to someone from the tropics..esp at night when the temp drops to about 12-14 degrees..i always go to bed feeling nice & warm(ie. kicking the blanket to one side)only to wake up in the middle of the night grappling in the dark for the blanket..


6. Travelling alone means if i buy a loaf of bread/pack of biscuits, i will have to eat it for breakfast, lunch & dinner so tat i can finish them before the expiry date..not tat i can't finish them lah..but sometimes u just feel like having variety in ur meals mah..


7. Roundabouts. There are at least a gazillion roundabouts on UK roads..& i hate them all..i must have driven past 100 roundabouts in my 3 days of driving here(& gone on full circles on at least 10 of them cos i got confused abt my exit) The most ultimate roundabouts are those double roundabouts..where u exit from one only to find yourself right smacked in another roundabout..


8. Related to driving here..the people here really drive a lot faster..i can be cruising along on the motorways(or wat we call highways) at 80mph(130km/h) & i will still be overtaken by vans/motorcycles/coaches...


9. My diet/lifestyle. I dunno if i'm really eating a lot more..or cos of the fact i'm exercising less..but i do know tat i'm putting on A LOT of weight..so much so tat i can barely squeeze into the jeans i brought over..& most of u would know..my jeans were never tight..& i could fit into them perfectly when i first came over..fastforward to 2 mths later..i have to hold my breath just to zip them up..


10. The cost of living here is DAMN high..i know i blogged about this before but tat doesn't mean i've gotten used to it..i still cannot get over the fact tat i have to pay 60penny for a packet of Ribena..& i'm toking about one packet, not one pack of 6 packets..


Case closed.

Quick Summary

Received some feedback..'demanding' to know why there were no publications of the ZXL Times over the past week or so..tat's cos yours truly was on holiday..ok, so i'm pertually on holiday..but this time it's more of a holiday holiday than my usual backpack holiday..u get wat i mean??

Many would have realised..coming back to reality(ie. work for most of out there) after a holiday means u have a lot of backlog to clear..well, i'm no exception..i need to catch up on the past few issues of ZT(ZXL Times lah) too..

A quick preview of wat's to come..

5 - 7 Aug : Skye High Adventure

8 - 10 Aug : Edinburgh & Ard

11 - 13 Aug : Driving to Rye (but ending in Reading instead)

14 Aug : Day out at Thorpe Park

Watch out for this space!

Back in the woods..

It had been a very packed one and a half weeks..going to the highlands..meeting up with ex-colleague..driving away for a weekend getaway..celebrating birthday..screaming my head off at the amusement park..

All the above have made me a very tired zxl..at the risk of sounding 'qian4 bian3'..me long time never feel so tired liao..

K, let me catch up on my sleep first & then..i will be back..

Off to scotland..

Be back to celebrate my 3rd month anniversary..


P.S. Is Adidas really buying over Reebok??

Multiplier effect?

I was chatting online to ONE pax the other day..as u would expect from an online chat..it's about some wu-ah-boh-eh stuff..like wat i'm having for breakfast & how i 'destroyed' a door..

Fastforward to the next day : Another pax commented on my breakfast menu..

Fastforward to next next day : Yet another pax asked me about my door...

Hmm..is this wat they call the multiplier effect??

Smoking to be allowed in limited areas at hawker centres ..??

Did i read the news right? Tat smoking is gonna be allowed at hawker centres from July 06? Why why why? Why are we taking a step back towards eradicating smoking??

Here in UK, they're already moving towards smoke-free pubs(which is where the british hang out) & we're doing the opp for our hawker centres(where singaporeans hang out?!)..

Why like tat..