Blind Dates..

Nah..sorry to disappoint but it's not me who going on a blind date : Þ

Here's an article i picked up from the newspapers here..

College students in Singapore have broken the world record for the most blind dates in 24 hours. Organisers at Nanyang Technological University paried 268(so auspicious sounding!) couples who spent at least an hour together during a single 12-hour period, beating the previous record of 123 couples set in London in 2001.

Erm..well done, NTU!

All About Sasha

A bit xian after the stupid website decided to wipe out 2 hrs of my typing..oh well, i shall re-type my strawberry experience when i have the urge again..now it seems like it took place so long ago though it was just about 4 weeks ago tat i was bending over rows & rows of strawberries..

And so, i decided to talk about our caravan mate, Sasha instead..

When we were shown our caravan, Sasha was sitting in his corner..he must be about least 6ft 2in? Quite 'dua jiak'(read : a bit on the plump side, wif a beer belly).first impression of him is tat of a 'guai guai zai'..mummy's boy pattern..wif rosy cheeks somemore..

Why do i say so? Well, he has this little teddy bear by his bedside..(yes, i'm not kidding) & he carries this small little gu niang bag when he's out picking strawberry..the kind of bag tat even i will think twice about carrying..

And oh, like the time, he bought a new handheld game(machiam western bar kind leh)..& he was really excited about his new toy..how do i know? Cos he woke me up at 1.30am(!) to show it off to me..tried to show me how it was played..or so i think..he was gesturing but i wasn't wearing my glasses so can't see clearly lah..fu-yaned him for a while before i finally signalled to him tat i wanted to sleep liao..

There was, however, one particular incident which changed our image of him..i will get to tat later..

We had guessed he was about 25 yrs but found out he's actually 30(or was it 33?)..hmm..first time i underestimate an ang moh's age..

As i've mentioned before, he's from Latvia..seriously speaking i din hear of this country before i came to this farm(it's next to russia)..he couldn't speak much english (his std of english is sama sama of my malay..meaning can only count up to 10..) He has this english-russian dictionary wif him & sometimes we would just flip to the word & point to him..but mostly, our communication was based on sign language..

Since i was sleeping in the living room wif him..i had the most contact wif him..which is why i found him to be a rather interesting character..

A few days after we arrived, he bought a new radio(i wonder if it's to drown out our noises?!) We're quite surprised since he couldn't understand english & true enuf, everytime the DJ starts to speak, he would turn the dial..quite exasperating for us cos sometimes we're trying to listen out for the weather forecast..(not forgetting the few times, we'd secretly turn on his radio when he's out)

Actually he's quite a nice guy..like he would try to tell us where to get the wage slip..or where we could get the pck boots for wet weather(he must have assumed we're staying for long)..he's also quite considerate..like he would lower his the volume of his radio at night when he saw tat i'm sleeping..

He also made some efforts to communicate wif us..the times when he saw us playing cards, he would just hang ard & watch us play..he also attempted to teach us his game but after several rounds, we still have no clue as to the rules & objectives of the game..

BUT there were a few habits tat we're..err...not very used to it..

#1. He doesn't bathe very often..i think he only bathed twice during the time we were there?! Instead, he uses this body spray which isn't exactly very pleasant-smelling to me(i was sharing the room wif him, rem?)

#2. Related to pt 1, he doesn't change his clothes much..or as often as we would like him to..we can't be sure if it's him or his clothes tat smell..anyway, we only saw him wash his clothes once..& it was in the dirty sink..which brings me to the next pt..



#3. He doesn't washes his dishes..AT ALL..he would use the pan to fry his fave fish fingers, then leave the pan & bowl there till the next time he uses it..oil & all..imagine tat..

The time has come to talk about THE incident..Sat was our day off & many of them spent the night partying(apparently this is the norm)..on fri nite, Sasha had gone over to our neighbour's caravan to party(never knew he was the 'partying' sort)..anyway, we were all sleeping soundly when he came back at about 1.30am to drag a bewildered cordell out of bed to the party next door. Needless to say, she was dumbfounded..somehow, she managed to talk her way out & escaped back to our caravan..

Watever came into him to drag her out, we never knew for sure..all i knew was he dead drunk when he stumbled back heavily into our caravan..not too sure about the time(din check my watch)..& i could hear him puking the whole night..thank goodness he still had the sense to run into the toilet to puke..i would have given him a piece of mind had he puked in the living room..the best thing is? he was up & out the next morning even before i woke up..& i think there was just this bit of 'awkwardness' between us(or at least him & cordell for tat matter) after this incident..

I think it was 2 days before we left when we saw some words on his towel tat made us go 'hmm..??!!'. The words? 'Neurologikal Klinik'

Aiya..i really regretted not taking a photo wif him before i left..really quite an interesting character..i think he's the closest thing to a 'russian roommate'(not including those whom i've met in hostels) i'll ever have in a long while..

Watever it is..i wish him all the best..be it in strawberry picking or watever he might be doing now..

Wat the f***!!

Damn it..i spent the whole afternoon typing my strawberry story & for some reason, i lost two-thirds of it..arrgghhhh!!!!!!!!!

Yes, i'm safe..

I'm typing this in real time..as in i'm watching the news on tv at this very moment & i've just put down the phone with my family back in Sg..

Yes, there had been a series of incidents in London(again)..apparently there were some attempted explosions in the tube but not as serious as those a fortnight ago & no casualties(yet)..

Y'know something? I was out in central london just yesterday where i met cordell before she flew back to Sg today..

Aiyo..really seems like everywhere i go, something sure happen..

Xiu Xi Shi Wei Le Zou Gen Chang Yuan De Lu..

Wednesday, 20th July 2005

Wat i'm trying to say is..i'm back in my woods now..having a break..oh, i mean a break from the break tat i'm having for the past 2 months..does tat make sense? Anyway, i'm sure u all know wat i mean lah hor..

Yea..back from North Wales..where i had my fair share of adventures..would have continue my journey if not for the fact, the mountain region was no good for mobile phone reception(& i mean NO GOOD) & i couldn't really get internet access, except for the occasional 30min slot in the library..so much so tat i resorted to hopping into libraries at the various towns tat i made daytrips to..so it was kinda difficult for me to plan my next move..gotta rem it's summertime now & EVERYBODY is out on holiday..which makes cheap accomodation as rare as..yu yuan mian here?! *xiao liao..craving for my yu yuan mian is setting in..again*

Anyway, i just met cordell yesterday..she's back from Scotland and staying in London for a nite before flying back to Sg today..

We just wandered about..went to Portobello Market..fruits were really cheap, esp the strawberries..but err..i decided to pass on tat..we bought cherries instead : Þ

We also managed to meet JM, a JC mate of ours who's working in London now, for dinner. Think it's almost 3, 4 years since i last met her?!

With FAQ back in Sg since last week & cordell flying off..it's now officially left with me, myself & zxl..

How long more will i be able last leh..financially?..before my mum summons me home after the series of bombings??

Only time will tell..(haha..damn corny hor)

Lost..again?!

Tuesday, 12th July 2005

Yea, i was kinda lost again today..but it was really no big deal compared to yesterday..

Woke up at 9-ish today..had my breakfast & packed my lunch..intend to go for a 2 hours walk starting from behind my B&B..

Well, according to the 2 pounds map tat i have..it's supposed to be a 2 hours hike..hmm..we shall see about tat..

Ahh..directional posts..shouldn't get lost this time eh..walk walk walk..met this old couple along the way..as there's only 1 trail (so far), we sort of kept overtaking each other along the trail..we chatted a bit & then we decided to walk together..

They're actually holding on to a different sort of map..well, not really a map, it's more of a directional guide tat they printed off the internet..one thing about the old folks here..quite independent & always willing to learn..but i digress..so wat they have a long para of words, telling them how long to walk, where to turn & so on..

Anyway, we later learnt tat our maps are slightly different..theirs is a slightly longer loop..about half an hour longer..they invited me along & since i have some spare time before i catch my bus, i said ok..

Hmm..there was this point where we're supposed to 'swing left when we pass the powerline posts'..but somehow, none of us managed to spot the posts..& we ended up going round the lake..

I then referred to my map & we sort of figured our way out..so we managed to navigate between our 2 CMI maps..haha...i think it's quite a funny incident..

It wasn't as scary as yesterday..prob cos i had company & it was still early in the day..yesterday was really me alone in this big mountain trail..

******************************************************************

Caught the 2.20pm bus to my next destination - Porthmadog. It was one of the friendliest driver i've ever came across. He was very helpful..told me everything i needed to know about transportation in the area..

En route to my destination(there was only 1 other uncle on the bus), he gave a running commentary on the sights along the way..even passed me a postcard & pointed out which are which peaks..the best thing was, he even stopped by the road so tat i can take pics..really nice chap..

He dropped me off right in front of my hostel(which is like 20m from the actual stop). It's quite a nice hostel..clean & not too cramped..it's called Snowdon Lodge, it's apparently famous for being the birthplace of Lawrence of Arabia(siang lai?). It's quite ok-priced too, 13.50 pounds per nite & includes breakfast.

Asked the lady there for some info on Mt Snowdon as that's the main reason i'm here..there're 2 ways - the easy way, ie. the train or the not-so-easy way, ie. trekking (quite a few routes). She recommended tat i go to Pen-y-Pass where there are 2 routes to trek up. Both are popular routes and are quite safe, esp when i'm trekking alone(yea, esp when i had 2 nearly-lost experiences in just as many days)

Oh well, it's a simple dinner of microwave dinner(something i dun really like, but the most convenient when travelling solo) & then it's lights out at 11pm to prepare for the next morning..

I'm lost!

Monday, 11th July 2005

Literally. I got lost hiking on a trail in this village called Betws-y-coed(see wat i mean when i say the welsh language is unpronounceable)..

I arrived from Llandudno in the afternoon..checked in at my B&B..then went to this waterfall 'Swallow Falls'..wah biang..walked about 40 mins there, paid 1 pound to enter..then realised it's such a small area tat u can walk round the whole place in <5 mins..felt a bit cheated..

Anyway, i a bit buay gan wan..walked so far just to see this tiny waterfalls..so i tried to locate this trailhead about 500m away..according to the map i have, it's an 1-hr medium-grade trail..quick check at the time 4.45pm..should have enuf time lah hor..so i went ahead..

It's still ok at the beginning..cos only 1 trail..then it split..wif no clue on the map, i just anyhow humtum..see which one looks more well-trodden & more uphill..walked³..came across this farm..dun care, climbed over the gate..then realised it's private property..climbed back out again..beginning to suspect i'm a little lost..

Walked somemore..shit..5.50pm liao..i figured i'm somewhere near the top liao but dunno how to get down..according to the map, it's supposed to be a loop..but it somehow just din feel like one..

Boh bian..had to continue walking..quite glad tat the sun sets only about 9-ish, 10pm here..

Uh-oh..6.15pm..still lost..i'm almost prepared to spend the night here liao..and then, i heard a car..i flagged it down & asked for the directions down..the driver said it's quite a far way to go & then asked if i would like a lift..there were already 5 of them in the car but wat the heck..dunno how long i'll need to walk out of this place & i still needed another 45mins to walk back to my B&B..

They managed to make some space for me & I squeezed in gratefully..can u imagine 3 big ang moh guys & me in the back seat? It's a normal sedan car..so not exactly very roomy..

Found out 4 of them were from Liverpool & 1 from Manchester..heng ah, can still talk cock wif them since i stayed in Liverpool from about 2 weeks..

Anyway, they showed me the map they're using & it's those real topo map..& me, a 2 pounds map from the TIC..those machiam World Walking Day kind..just the agar-shape of the route..they must be thinking, this xiao geena thinks she can navigate using those maps..

When we reached the foot of the hill, they offered to send me back to my B&B..of cos i was very grateful..

Finally reached 'home' at about 7pm..

There u have it..my first hitch-hiking adventure..a bit scary i must admit..but oh well, thanks to my lucky stars..i survived it..

Stay tuned for more adventures coming up..