Frankly, i think Christmas is too over-rated in Singapore. The decorations here in Europe cannot compete with the elaborate ones along Orchard Road. The only thing that we do not have are the Christmas markets. I can't imagine Singaporeans drinking mulled wine in the hot weather. I will just LOL at the sight of people burning their tongues and perspiring non-stop!
Yes, I'm not a big fan of Christmas, purely because it is a religious celebration. Nowadays, Christmas is too commercialised/Americanised.
Anyways, to all my Christian friends, Merry Christmas.. and Happy Holidays to the rest of you! :D
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
marlene's visit
I was very excited when Marlene told me she was coming over to Budapest. I was set to leave the house to pick her up from Nepliget when I received a call from her. Apparently, she didn't know that she needed to bring her passport for the checks before boarding the bus. So the plan was to take the first bus the next day. About 2 hours later, I received another call from her telling me that she was going to board the bus headed for Budapest. I wrapped myself once more as I prepared to leave the house.
The bus was 1/2hr late, not surprising wince we're in Hungary. Anyways, I was really happy to meet Marlene again. She's like an elder sister to me. It started to rain on our way back home. I heated the pasta which I cooked that evening and was glad it was still edible!
I woke up, prayed and went online. I noticed Tom mentioning about snow and quickly looked out of my window and YESSS SNOWW!! I quickly got dressed, grabbed my camera and snapped pictures. Yes, winter is officially here people. ((:
The next 2 days were really fun as I got to hang out with Marlene.We did the usual touristy stuff. I got tickets for a ballet show at the opera house and it was definitely better than the first ballet I watched.
Hey Marlene, hope you had fun in Budapest!! See you again in January! (:
The bus was 1/2hr late, not surprising wince we're in Hungary. Anyways, I was really happy to meet Marlene again. She's like an elder sister to me. It started to rain on our way back home. I heated the pasta which I cooked that evening and was glad it was still edible!
I woke up, prayed and went online. I noticed Tom mentioning about snow and quickly looked out of my window and YESSS SNOWW!! I quickly got dressed, grabbed my camera and snapped pictures. Yes, winter is officially here people. ((:
The next 2 days were really fun as I got to hang out with Marlene.We did the usual touristy stuff. I got tickets for a ballet show at the opera house and it was definitely better than the first ballet I watched.
Hey Marlene, hope you had fun in Budapest!! See you again in January! (:
ISTANBUL, ROMA, PRAHA
istanbul:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=566368&id=703490296&l=3c84ab0fce
roma:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=566889&id=703490296&l=edf52a2a23
praha
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=569518&id=703490296&l=cdf54ef4bf
it would take me ages to type my experiences. (:
Friday, October 22, 2010
Beautiful Bulgaria.
During my free time in the evenings, I would sit in front of my laptop, searching for cheap flights and train tickets to various European countries. That was when I chanced upon Austrian Airline's red ticket promotion. I made a couple of fake bookings and finally found a really good bargain to Sofia for Euro 69/125 SGD (return, tax included). SInce Austrian Airlineis the national carrier of Austria and a member of the Star Alliance, I would assume that I'm paying a very good price for the mentioned route, although it was only a 1hr long flight. I booked a seat on eurolines to Vienna International Airport because it was the cheapest option (2900Ft/20 SGD).
A couple of nights before flying off, I sent a message to Vania (a fellow CSer who stayed over at my place when she was in Singapore) to tell her of my plans. She was extremely excited when she heard I was coming over. She told me of the plan (hitchhiking, hiking, camping, caving) and that got me extremely eager to set foot in Bulgaria. I had all my tickets printed out the night before I left for Vienna and on the day itself, it was difficult for me to concentrate during Human Physiology practical. I went straight to Nepliget bus station as soon as the lesson ended at 1400. I had lots of buffer time because I was taking the 1630 bus to Vienna. The bus ride was uneventful as I slept through most of the journey. I was happy to set foot once more in Austria. The first thing I did when I got to the airport was to head over to the mama shop to buy a toothbrush and toothpaste as I had forgotten to pack them in my backpack. I spent a couple of hours rotting at the airport and taking free airline magazines and baggage tags from the respective airline counters. My flight was at 2330 so I had lots of time to waste.
It wasn't a surprise that I was the only Singaporean and Asian on board the flight to Sofia. I shall not write about the plane ride itself because I wouldn't want to potray myself as a plane geek.
The plane touched down in rainy Sofia slightly after 0100. I tried to find a good spot to sleep at the airport but was awaken numerous times by annoying taxi drivers who asked if I needed a taxi to the city. Later in the day (0700), I withdrew 20 lv (approximately 20SGD), bought a single bus ticket at the newspaper stand and headed over to the bus stop which was located just outside the arrival lounge.
The weather didn't improve any bit. It continued raining and the worse part was I did not have any umbrella or raincoat with me. So it was no surprise that I was all wet. ): Nonetheless, I told myself that I will not let the weather dampen my holiday mood.
With only the map from the chui lonely planet guidebook my uni friends gave me as a gift, I walked round Sofia and snapped lots of pictures. I especially love taking pictures of the signs which were of course in Cyrillic. At about 1300, I followed Vania's instructions to get out of the city and start hitchhiking to her place.
Hitchhiking to Haskovo was simply an experience I could never forget. (:
I was really happy to meet Vania and her bf. The next day, she brought me to see her mother at her workplace (which was one of the 6 houses which her family owns). I was fed with lots of cakes when I was there! (: Haskovo is a very small town which is totally unlike Budapest.
The hitchhiking trip to Dupsina Magarasi was totally out of this world. I think I'll bore all of you so I'm just going to provide a link to the pictures.
A couple of nights before flying off, I sent a message to Vania (a fellow CSer who stayed over at my place when she was in Singapore) to tell her of my plans. She was extremely excited when she heard I was coming over. She told me of the plan (hitchhiking, hiking, camping, caving) and that got me extremely eager to set foot in Bulgaria. I had all my tickets printed out the night before I left for Vienna and on the day itself, it was difficult for me to concentrate during Human Physiology practical. I went straight to Nepliget bus station as soon as the lesson ended at 1400. I had lots of buffer time because I was taking the 1630 bus to Vienna. The bus ride was uneventful as I slept through most of the journey. I was happy to set foot once more in Austria. The first thing I did when I got to the airport was to head over to the mama shop to buy a toothbrush and toothpaste as I had forgotten to pack them in my backpack. I spent a couple of hours rotting at the airport and taking free airline magazines and baggage tags from the respective airline counters. My flight was at 2330 so I had lots of time to waste.
It wasn't a surprise that I was the only Singaporean and Asian on board the flight to Sofia. I shall not write about the plane ride itself because I wouldn't want to potray myself as a plane geek.
The plane touched down in rainy Sofia slightly after 0100. I tried to find a good spot to sleep at the airport but was awaken numerous times by annoying taxi drivers who asked if I needed a taxi to the city. Later in the day (0700), I withdrew 20 lv (approximately 20SGD), bought a single bus ticket at the newspaper stand and headed over to the bus stop which was located just outside the arrival lounge.
The weather didn't improve any bit. It continued raining and the worse part was I did not have any umbrella or raincoat with me. So it was no surprise that I was all wet. ): Nonetheless, I told myself that I will not let the weather dampen my holiday mood.
With only the map from the chui lonely planet guidebook my uni friends gave me as a gift, I walked round Sofia and snapped lots of pictures. I especially love taking pictures of the signs which were of course in Cyrillic. At about 1300, I followed Vania's instructions to get out of the city and start hitchhiking to her place.
Hitchhiking to Haskovo was simply an experience I could never forget. (:
I was really happy to meet Vania and her bf. The next day, she brought me to see her mother at her workplace (which was one of the 6 houses which her family owns). I was fed with lots of cakes when I was there! (: Haskovo is a very small town which is totally unlike Budapest.
The hitchhiking trip to Dupsina Magarasi was totally out of this world. I think I'll bore all of you so I'm just going to provide a link to the pictures.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=559564&id=703490296&l=691b31de89
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
4th budapest opera visit & travel plans for the weekends
Booked a return flight on Austrian airline to Sofia, Bulgaria from Vienna last night. It was cheap (60 euro tax incl) because there was some promotions going on. I'm pretty excited cause I'll get to meet Vania once more and together with her boyfriend, we'll be going to Turkey to do some caving. According to her, it will not be very challenging. That's good news for me since I've never tried caving before. I've booked my bus ride from Budapest Nepliget to Vienna too. I'd probably hitchhike from Sofia to Haskovo.
Kenji came over to my flat after school. He was brave enough to eat the pasta I cooked the night before. We watched a couple of funny Japanese pranks on youtube before leaving for the opera house. Fetched Sara and Caro at Oktogon and decided not to walk because it was cold and we were just lazy.
Anyways, the concert by Budapest philharmonic orchestra was awesome. Partly because we paid more and got the less crappier seats. The front row of the circle seats weren't that bad afterall. Glad the rest enjoyed it and it was definitely worth the 1000ft (approx S$6.50).
Kenji came over to my flat after school. He was brave enough to eat the pasta I cooked the night before. We watched a couple of funny Japanese pranks on youtube before leaving for the opera house. Fetched Sara and Caro at Oktogon and decided not to walk because it was cold and we were just lazy.
Anyways, the concert by Budapest philharmonic orchestra was awesome. Partly because we paid more and got the less crappier seats. The front row of the circle seats weren't that bad afterall. Glad the rest enjoyed it and it was definitely worth the 1000ft (approx S$6.50).
Sunday, October 10, 2010
hello sofia
Ok, I've been neglecting this blog but just a quick update today to inform you guys that i'm still alive yo.
Past 2 weeks have been real fun. I celebrated my 22nd birthday with new friends I made in Budapest, went to pecs, met couchsurfers etc. What is more exciting is that I've booked myself on a rather cheap flight on austrian air to sofia. Cool or what. :D
School's good. Weather was aweful last week but according to yahoo weather, it's gonna be sunny fo the coming week. However, maximum temperature will be around 10 deg cel thank you very much.
Past 2 weeks have been real fun. I celebrated my 22nd birthday with new friends I made in Budapest, went to pecs, met couchsurfers etc. What is more exciting is that I've booked myself on a rather cheap flight on austrian air to sofia. Cool or what. :D
School's good. Weather was aweful last week but according to yahoo weather, it's gonna be sunny fo the coming week. However, maximum temperature will be around 10 deg cel thank you very much.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Bratislava
Ok, lets talk about Bratislava for this entry.
I went to Bratislava last weekend. Left my apartment at 6am to ensure that I will be at the bus station on time. The bus left Budapest Nepliget bus station at exactly 7am. It was a 3 hours bus ride on orangeways. A return ticket costs euro 20. I could have paid lesser with student's agency bus company but I had problems paying for the ticket online. Anyways, it was an uncomfortable bus ride as it was a 60+seater bus! -.-
I arrived in Bratislava slightly before 10am. The initial plan was to walk to the city centre but I was too lazy. So I ended up buying a 15 min trip ticket for 50 cents. Got onto the bus but decided not to validate the ticket because it was a short bus ride (2 stops). Luckily for me, there wasn't any ticket conductor on the bus.
Bratislava's old town is a sweet small one. It's easily walkable. People here seemed friendlier then their Hungarian neighbours. The streets are cleaner too. The only thing I hated was the 987654321 tourist groups that crowd the streets. urgh!
Decided to go for a CS gathering in the evening and boy was it a good idea. I had lots of fun chatting with the CSers both from Bratislava and from abroad. We shared interesting travel experiences and I invited some of them over to Budapest. Some of them who were travelling showed interest and we'll probably meet again sometime next week.
I went to Bratislava last weekend. Left my apartment at 6am to ensure that I will be at the bus station on time. The bus left Budapest Nepliget bus station at exactly 7am. It was a 3 hours bus ride on orangeways. A return ticket costs euro 20. I could have paid lesser with student's agency bus company but I had problems paying for the ticket online. Anyways, it was an uncomfortable bus ride as it was a 60+seater bus! -.-
I arrived in Bratislava slightly before 10am. The initial plan was to walk to the city centre but I was too lazy. So I ended up buying a 15 min trip ticket for 50 cents. Got onto the bus but decided not to validate the ticket because it was a short bus ride (2 stops). Luckily for me, there wasn't any ticket conductor on the bus.
Bratislava's old town is a sweet small one. It's easily walkable. People here seemed friendlier then their Hungarian neighbours. The streets are cleaner too. The only thing I hated was the 987654321 tourist groups that crowd the streets. urgh!
Decided to go for a CS gathering in the evening and boy was it a good idea. I had lots of fun chatting with the CSers both from Bratislava and from abroad. We shared interesting travel experiences and I invited some of them over to Budapest. Some of them who were travelling showed interest and we'll probably meet again sometime next week.
Friday, September 10, 2010
SELAMAT HARI RAYA
Selamat Hari Raya people.
Went to the mosque early morning but somehow it's closed. Maybe other mosques are open but I've yet to find their locations. oops. Anyways, i was standing on the pavement minding my own business when this toot toot man from across the street shouted "HALO YOU". I had a feeling he was trying to get my attention so i ignored him. He continued shouting blah blah kinai blah blah. (kinai=chinese in Hungarian). I was like wth you ignorant man, im not a kinai ok.. So after a while, he left when realising whatever he was doing is useless. It was then that I realised I was standing in front of a Kinai Bufe. -.-
Went to the mosque early morning but somehow it's closed. Maybe other mosques are open but I've yet to find their locations. oops. Anyways, i was standing on the pavement minding my own business when this toot toot man from across the street shouted "HALO YOU". I had a feeling he was trying to get my attention so i ignored him. He continued shouting blah blah kinai blah blah. (kinai=chinese in Hungarian). I was like wth you ignorant man, im not a kinai ok.. So after a while, he left when realising whatever he was doing is useless. It was then that I realised I was standing in front of a Kinai Bufe. -.-
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
new stuff
I've finally moved into my new apartment. Everything's fine except that there's no internet connection yet. The tenant, who is a fellow flatmate will be calling up the telephone company so the internet will probably be up in a couple of days time. The other flatmate is a French student who I have yet to meet. Anyway, had a feast with Charles last night. He cooked rice while I cooked chicken curry from the can. LOL!
And in the day, I met up with my prof at the university. Lucky me Porf. Bela Boddi is a very friendly person. He personally introduced me as the new exchange student who flew all the way from Singapore! haha! He showed me the labs which I feel was of a standard similar to SBS labs, or maybe even better.
And in the day, I met up with my prof at the university. Lucky me Porf. Bela Boddi is a very friendly person. He personally introduced me as the new exchange student who flew all the way from Singapore! haha! He showed me the labs which I feel was of a standard similar to SBS labs, or maybe even better.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Erd
Ok, what an awesome evening it was last night.
The day started out when I left the hostel, took the tram to the terminus, took another tram to one of budapest's main train station before hopping onto a bus to Erd. Erd is a small town which is about 20km outside of Budapest. And as usual, I got off the wrong bus stop so I had to walk back 3 bus stops before continueing on the righ path leading to Michel's place.
The was going to be a couchsurfing gathering at a yurt which was in his garden. Yes people, a yurt. How cool is that? Anyways, it was real nice meeting other couchsurfers, especially Andras who shared the same interest as me (planes). He works for Turkish airlines as a station manager and has criss-crossed the world many time!
Dinner was nice. I had pasta with tuna and baked beans. More people came later in the night and we all sat round the campfire sharing stories.
In the morning, I left Michel a note saying I was leaving before making my way to the main road. This was when I decided to hitchhike back to Budapest. I told myself that I will continue to stay put with my thumb out no matter how long it is. And yes, it oook me 1 hr before I got a ride from this family of 5. They're probably on their way to visit a friend or relative as the dad stopped by a florist to buy 3 flower bouquets. And thank's to that, I'm now addicted to hitchhiking,
The day started out when I left the hostel, took the tram to the terminus, took another tram to one of budapest's main train station before hopping onto a bus to Erd. Erd is a small town which is about 20km outside of Budapest. And as usual, I got off the wrong bus stop so I had to walk back 3 bus stops before continueing on the righ path leading to Michel's place.
The was going to be a couchsurfing gathering at a yurt which was in his garden. Yes people, a yurt. How cool is that? Anyways, it was real nice meeting other couchsurfers, especially Andras who shared the same interest as me (planes). He works for Turkish airlines as a station manager and has criss-crossed the world many time!
Dinner was nice. I had pasta with tuna and baked beans. More people came later in the night and we all sat round the campfire sharing stories.
In the morning, I left Michel a note saying I was leaving before making my way to the main road. This was when I decided to hitchhike back to Budapest. I told myself that I will continue to stay put with my thumb out no matter how long it is. And yes, it oook me 1 hr before I got a ride from this family of 5. They're probably on their way to visit a friend or relative as the dad stopped by a florist to buy 3 flower bouquets. And thank's to that, I'm now addicted to hitchhiking,
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Day 3
1. Had sahur with German room mate whom I accidentally woke up while getting to the kitchen. Blame it on the squeeky floor.
2. Went to do Friday prayer at mosque near ELTE.
3. Went to real estate agent.
4. Went to look at the district where I might stay for the next 5 mths.
5. Walked down Vaci Utca. Watched street performers.
6. Broke fast at hostel.
7. Went to buy bread in slippers and t-shirt. BAD BAD BAD IDEA.
That sums it up for day 3.
2. Went to do Friday prayer at mosque near ELTE.
3. Went to real estate agent.
4. Went to look at the district where I might stay for the next 5 mths.
5. Walked down Vaci Utca. Watched street performers.
6. Broke fast at hostel.
7. Went to buy bread in slippers and t-shirt. BAD BAD BAD IDEA.
That sums it up for day 3.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Day 1 & 2 in Budapest.
Day1:
The Railjet train which I took from Vienna arrived at Budapest Keleti 15 minutes late. As I stepped out of the carriage, I was approached by several people asking if I wanted a room for the night. Several taxi drivers were there too to offer their services. Now, that scene reminded me of Indonesia and Cambodia.
I had several options to reach the hostel from the train station.
a) take a cab.
b)take the underground (need to change lines)
c) take tram (then walk)
d) walk
And option d was what I chose, mainly because I did not want to waste money and trouble myself going up the stairs as there are no lifts in the metro. -.- It took me some time to find the hostel. It's not an easy feat too while dragging one large trolley bag and carrying 2 other bags. I was thankful I arrived safely at the hostel but the receptionist informed me that I couldn't go into my room yet as they only had 2 keys and both keys were with the other two future roommates who were out. Luckily, one came back about 1/2 hour after I checked in. Oh and she was flexible enough to let me pay the whole amount of my stay when I've confirmed the number of days I'm staying there. ( currently finding an apartment).
After dumping my bags, I took a stroll towards Oktagon and the opera house. Reached Deak Frank Ter station and bought the monthly student's transportation ticket.
Day 2:
Similar to day 1 except that I went to the computer shop to get my laptop fixed (for free). And went to WestEnd shopping centre to get my Hingarian prepaid sim card. Apparently, that's the only place you can get it. Weird but oh wells.
The Railjet train which I took from Vienna arrived at Budapest Keleti 15 minutes late. As I stepped out of the carriage, I was approached by several people asking if I wanted a room for the night. Several taxi drivers were there too to offer their services. Now, that scene reminded me of Indonesia and Cambodia.
I had several options to reach the hostel from the train station.
a) take a cab.
b)take the underground (need to change lines)
c) take tram (then walk)
d) walk
And option d was what I chose, mainly because I did not want to waste money and trouble myself going up the stairs as there are no lifts in the metro. -.- It took me some time to find the hostel. It's not an easy feat too while dragging one large trolley bag and carrying 2 other bags. I was thankful I arrived safely at the hostel but the receptionist informed me that I couldn't go into my room yet as they only had 2 keys and both keys were with the other two future roommates who were out. Luckily, one came back about 1/2 hour after I checked in. Oh and she was flexible enough to let me pay the whole amount of my stay when I've confirmed the number of days I'm staying there. ( currently finding an apartment).
After dumping my bags, I took a stroll towards Oktagon and the opera house. Reached Deak Frank Ter station and bought the monthly student's transportation ticket.
Day 2:
Similar to day 1 except that I went to the computer shop to get my laptop fixed (for free). And went to WestEnd shopping centre to get my Hingarian prepaid sim card. Apparently, that's the only place you can get it. Weird but oh wells.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
innsbruck
And so I stayed another night in murnau. I was invited to attend a german bbq. Yes, you may think that it's not really exciting when you don't get to try the bbq sausages and meat but only eat salads, cheese, bread, cakes, muffins etc. So what. I'm just thankful for the whole experience of sitting round the fire, listening and not understanding what the Germans were talking about. (: Having said that, I felt sad having to leave Murnau. There's something about this small town that I really liked.
The next morning (noon), Andi drove me to the train station and helped me purchase my onward ticket to Innsbruck. There was no train service from Murnau to Innsbruck so I had to take the SEV busses which were parked just outside the train station, bringing me to Patrick station where I then boarded the train which took me to Innsbruck.
Alighted at Innsbruck hbf and walked towards the famous olimpic ski jumping arena.A very nice view of the city with the mountain range at the background. Took a night sleeper back TERRIBLE IDEA.
Reached Vienna at 7am, walked around and met Ms Oh and her mom at 2.30 before playing tour guide to them.
Last day in Vienna and it rained non stop. major sian-ness. It was museum day as we visited 3 museums, schloss schonbrunn, hous of music, sisi museum. The eat all you can pay any amount pakistani restaurant was closed so SIANS.
The next morning (noon), Andi drove me to the train station and helped me purchase my onward ticket to Innsbruck. There was no train service from Murnau to Innsbruck so I had to take the SEV busses which were parked just outside the train station, bringing me to Patrick station where I then boarded the train which took me to Innsbruck.
Alighted at Innsbruck hbf and walked towards the famous olimpic ski jumping arena.A very nice view of the city with the mountain range at the background. Took a night sleeper back TERRIBLE IDEA.
Reached Vienna at 7am, walked around and met Ms Oh and her mom at 2.30 before playing tour guide to them.
Last day in Vienna and it rained non stop. major sian-ness. It was museum day as we visited 3 museums, schloss schonbrunn, hous of music, sisi museum. The eat all you can pay any amount pakistani restaurant was closed so SIANS.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
murnau
Murnau is a relatively small town 1hr away from München by regional bahn. I've decided to visit it because I wanted to couchsurf at a place where there are mountains in the surrounding. And I was lucky enough cause Andi, Sabine, Lisa and Hanna offered me a couch for 2 nights.
Oh, yes, Schloss Neuschwanstein was simply stunning. I was gald I made the decision to visit that castle. The only think that I hated was the additional hour that it would take to get to füssan due to some railway works. And on the way back, the train just had to break down, so there was a slight (30min) delay. That made me panich as I had a 1hr connecting time for the next train to Murnau.
And so I arrived at the Lichtenstern's 2 hours later that the planned timing. Their home was a good 5 min walk away from the train station so that was good. Had home-made apple struddel which was YUMMY!
Today me and Sabine went to Schloss Linderhof, which was a good 45 min drive from Murnau. I simply love the fact that all you see in the surrounding area while driving are endless mountain ranges. However, luck wasn't on my side cause it was raining. ): In my opinion, of all 3 castles, I love Schloss Linderhof the most. I love the gardes, labyrinth and the venusgrotte. Simply awesome la.
My feet were aching by the time we finished going round the large compound and boy was I glad to return home and nap. LOL. But as soon as I got out of the car, Andi who welcomed us back suggested that we go cycling round the lake. Er, ok, it's not always I get to cycle round a lake in Bavaria, so why not. And hohoho, it was a 1.5 hrs, approx 20+km cycling trip. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it cause it's simply nice to be close to nature. Came back home to delicious Bavarian dinner. Another YUMYUM moment.
Oh, yes, Schloss Neuschwanstein was simply stunning. I was gald I made the decision to visit that castle. The only think that I hated was the additional hour that it would take to get to füssan due to some railway works. And on the way back, the train just had to break down, so there was a slight (30min) delay. That made me panich as I had a 1hr connecting time for the next train to Murnau.
And so I arrived at the Lichtenstern's 2 hours later that the planned timing. Their home was a good 5 min walk away from the train station so that was good. Had home-made apple struddel which was YUMMY!
Today me and Sabine went to Schloss Linderhof, which was a good 45 min drive from Murnau. I simply love the fact that all you see in the surrounding area while driving are endless mountain ranges. However, luck wasn't on my side cause it was raining. ): In my opinion, of all 3 castles, I love Schloss Linderhof the most. I love the gardes, labyrinth and the venusgrotte. Simply awesome la.
My feet were aching by the time we finished going round the large compound and boy was I glad to return home and nap. LOL. But as soon as I got out of the car, Andi who welcomed us back suggested that we go cycling round the lake. Er, ok, it's not always I get to cycle round a lake in Bavaria, so why not. And hohoho, it was a 1.5 hrs, approx 20+km cycling trip. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it cause it's simply nice to be close to nature. Came back home to delicious Bavarian dinner. Another YUMYUM moment.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
münchen
Yesterday was my first day in Munich. Got a free ride as Hans also had to drive up north to settle his university application and also to pick up his brother who was coming back from Turkey with his family. That saved me euro20+!
As usual, I nearly got lost when trying to find the hostel (easy palace hostel). Luckily there were kind people around who helped me out. Well, I felt really uncomfortable when walking from münchen hbf to the hostel cause of so many Turkish people, beggers, xxx clubs. And I was thinking to myself, wth. It's really funny because on one side of the street you have sofitel, le meridian and on the other you have xxx clubs!
And so I dumped my bags and went straight to dachau concentration camp. It was really easy to get there cause all you need to do is to follow the large groups of tourists. (more abt dachau concentration camp when i have the time to blog)
After that, i headed to Karlsplatz and walked, walked walked, taking in the sights along the way. Oh, and I saw this group of Singapore airline cabin crew. Thy were like trying to slang angmoh but cmi cause will of the singlish that would subconsciously come out of their mouths.
Tried finding the mosque in the evening but failed. So I ended up breaking fast at the nearby turkish restaurant (euro3.50 for kebab) and praying at the hostel.
Ok, I've decided to go to Schloss Neuschwanstein.
As usual, I nearly got lost when trying to find the hostel (easy palace hostel). Luckily there were kind people around who helped me out. Well, I felt really uncomfortable when walking from münchen hbf to the hostel cause of so many Turkish people, beggers, xxx clubs. And I was thinking to myself, wth. It's really funny because on one side of the street you have sofitel, le meridian and on the other you have xxx clubs!
And so I dumped my bags and went straight to dachau concentration camp. It was really easy to get there cause all you need to do is to follow the large groups of tourists. (more abt dachau concentration camp when i have the time to blog)
After that, i headed to Karlsplatz and walked, walked walked, taking in the sights along the way. Oh, and I saw this group of Singapore airline cabin crew. Thy were like trying to slang angmoh but cmi cause will of the singlish that would subconsciously come out of their mouths.
Tried finding the mosque in the evening but failed. So I ended up breaking fast at the nearby turkish restaurant (euro3.50 for kebab) and praying at the hostel.
Ok, I've decided to go to Schloss Neuschwanstein.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
münchen
I´ve just arrived in munich an hour ago. Finding the hostel wasn´t easy. That was because I didn´t follow the directions i noted down yesterday.
Anyways, Ruhpolding was simply awesome. I love Hans´s house. His mom and aunt were very welcoming even though they could not speak any english. Hans had to become the intepreter for those two days. Food was good too as usual. Had pasta with home-made cream sauce for buke. Our plan was to hike up a mountain on the second day but we had to change plans as it started to drizzle in the morning. Instead we went to Lake Chimsee and visited the Herrenchiemsee Palace which was almost an exact replica of the Palace of Versailles in Paris, only if King Ludwig II had not ran out of money!
So we thought we were lucky cause the weather seemed to have improved and decided to climb a plateau once we got back from Chimsee. Walked for about 15 minutes into the forest and it started raining. Major =.=!!
Nonetheless, I still had an awesome experience couchsurfing at Hans´s.
Anyways, Ruhpolding was simply awesome. I love Hans´s house. His mom and aunt were very welcoming even though they could not speak any english. Hans had to become the intepreter for those two days. Food was good too as usual. Had pasta with home-made cream sauce for buke. Our plan was to hike up a mountain on the second day but we had to change plans as it started to drizzle in the morning. Instead we went to Lake Chimsee and visited the Herrenchiemsee Palace which was almost an exact replica of the Palace of Versailles in Paris, only if King Ludwig II had not ran out of money!
So we thought we were lucky cause the weather seemed to have improved and decided to climb a plateau once we got back from Chimsee. Walked for about 15 minutes into the forest and it started raining. Major =.=!!
Nonetheless, I still had an awesome experience couchsurfing at Hans´s.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
wien day 3
Woke up early again and this may probably be due to jet lag. Was trying hard not to fall back to sleep after breakfast but the ZZzzz monster won. Woke up again and joined Marlene at the living room where whe watched Into The Wild. Brainstormed on where to head next and ended up at a super cool museum which biology geeks would love. There was also an exhibition on charles darwin and his theory of evolution. Had dinner at a turkish restaurant before heading back home.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
wien day 2
On the second day in Wien, we set off rather late (noon) to our first destination. The Flohmarkt (flea market) was located above the U-bahn station Kittenbruckengasse. It was similar to our thieves market at bras basah road, except that this place was even larger in scale and people sold even more nonsense stuff. However, there are a few stalls which caught my eye. Those are the ones that sell old cameras and photographs of Wien/Austria. Some of the stall owners weren't too happy when I snapped pictures of their stalls. Oh wells.
Beside the flea market, there was the food market which sells everything from olives, to halal meat, to candies etc. There were a couple of Asian minimarts that sold 'exotic' Asian food. And surprise surprise, they even sold durians there. 1/2 kg durian costs euro 6.50!! and the insides doesn't look durian-y enough to be eaten. I pity those ang mohs who have not seen real durians. So you see, it's really not difficult to survive in Europe as an Asian. You'll easily find black soy sauce, chili sauce, curry powder, even banana leaves!! at the Asian minimarts. Just that you probably have to pay 3 times of what you would normally pay back home in S'pore.
We headed over to schonbrunn palace at around 3+ and had to squeeze our way though the 823503253 million tourists who were there to see one of the highlighted attraction in Wien. The schonbrunn palace reminded me of the palace of versailles. It probably had the same grandeur interior. We only walked through the gardens as it was free. I'll probably enter the palace when I meet up with ms oh sometime next week.
From the palace, one had to walk up a hill so as to observe the spectacular view of the palace and the city of Vienna in the background. This was when me and Marlene decided to do jump shots which according to Marlene was an Asian thing. HAHA!
I think we walked along the danube afterwards where we say lots of nice and interesting graffiti.
Sorry but I still cannot upload pics because the internet connection here is really wols to the max.
Oh, and it was so hot yesterday that wore slippers out and sweat a couple of times throughout the day.. LOL!
Beside the flea market, there was the food market which sells everything from olives, to halal meat, to candies etc. There were a couple of Asian minimarts that sold 'exotic' Asian food. And surprise surprise, they even sold durians there. 1/2 kg durian costs euro 6.50!! and the insides doesn't look durian-y enough to be eaten. I pity those ang mohs who have not seen real durians. So you see, it's really not difficult to survive in Europe as an Asian. You'll easily find black soy sauce, chili sauce, curry powder, even banana leaves!! at the Asian minimarts. Just that you probably have to pay 3 times of what you would normally pay back home in S'pore.
We headed over to schonbrunn palace at around 3+ and had to squeeze our way though the 823503253 million tourists who were there to see one of the highlighted attraction in Wien. The schonbrunn palace reminded me of the palace of versailles. It probably had the same grandeur interior. We only walked through the gardens as it was free. I'll probably enter the palace when I meet up with ms oh sometime next week.
From the palace, one had to walk up a hill so as to observe the spectacular view of the palace and the city of Vienna in the background. This was when me and Marlene decided to do jump shots which according to Marlene was an Asian thing. HAHA!
I think we walked along the danube afterwards where we say lots of nice and interesting graffiti.
Sorry but I still cannot upload pics because the internet connection here is really wols to the max.
Oh, and it was so hot yesterday that wore slippers out and sweat a couple of times throughout the day.. LOL!
Saturday, August 21, 2010
wien
The flight from DXB to VIE was much better than first leg of the journey. The cabin crew were motivated to serve us so that's good. Waited for everyone to disembark from the plane before approaching the cabin crew stationed at the door and asked her if it was possible if I had a quick look at the first class suites. She led me to the first class section and left me alone. As I was smapping pictures, another cabin crew came and asked if I wanted to have all the small stuff pop out from their storage compartments. Of course I said yes la. haha! She then left me alone before another came and asked if I wanted my photo to be taken. And I just had to say YES. Oh, and this stewardess was Singaporean and she was surprised when I told her I was too. It's obvious she's Singaporean because her ang moh slang seriously cannot make it. Passed through immigration in less than a minute, grabbed my luggage before making my way to the S-bahn station which was strangely not connected to the arrival halls via any link way. Oh, and at the immigration area, there was this man with an interesting character who was shouting so loudly that everyone looked at him. He probably drank a little too much alcohol during the flight.
This was where I met the second funny person. There was this group of 4 chinese tourists just sitting down, waiting for the train to arrive when this woman shouted, 'ching ching chong tao tiong she she'. All heads turned towards her. She then approached the validation machine and said something in German which make people laugh. This local who was standing beside me signalled me, telling me that she's just a little crazy. haha!
Took the S-Bahn (cheapest option to get to the city centre for euro 3.60, 2 zones) to Westbahnhof and dumped my luggage into one huge locker (euro 3.60, pls pay exact cause they don't return you any change hor) before walking down the stretch of shopping district which was obviously packed with locals and tourists. Met Marlene back at the train station at 5.15pm before heading to Stephansdom and walked around the city centre for about 2 hours. It was nice meeting Marlene and it was now her turn to show me her beautiful city.
At about 8pm, we headed back home. She cooked dinner while I was upstairs checking the foodstuffs (especially the tin cans), making sure that they didn't explode. LOL. My bag is probably 1 kg lighter after passing Marlene her kaya and some other 'exotic' Asian food stuff. haha!
This was where I met the second funny person. There was this group of 4 chinese tourists just sitting down, waiting for the train to arrive when this woman shouted, 'ching ching chong tao tiong she she'. All heads turned towards her. She then approached the validation machine and said something in German which make people laugh. This local who was standing beside me signalled me, telling me that she's just a little crazy. haha!
Took the S-Bahn (cheapest option to get to the city centre for euro 3.60, 2 zones) to Westbahnhof and dumped my luggage into one huge locker (euro 3.60, pls pay exact cause they don't return you any change hor) before walking down the stretch of shopping district which was obviously packed with locals and tourists. Met Marlene back at the train station at 5.15pm before heading to Stephansdom and walked around the city centre for about 2 hours. It was nice meeting Marlene and it was now her turn to show me her beautiful city.
At about 8pm, we headed back home. She cooked dinner while I was upstairs checking the foodstuffs (especially the tin cans), making sure that they didn't explode. LOL. My bag is probably 1 kg lighter after passing Marlene her kaya and some other 'exotic' Asian food stuff. haha!
Friday, August 20, 2010
ahlan wa sahlan
I'm currently in transit at dxb. 2 more hours before my next flight. I didnt change any dirhams so I'm just going to sit quietly at one corner. Dubai T3 is seriously packed with ALL emirates passengers in transit. No quiet corner to chill. Nonetheless, I like the design of the 'new' airport terminal. The last time I was in transit here was in primary 5 and the airport then was erm, yar. Ok, batt low, will update when I reach Wien.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
bye singapore. hello wien.
This is it. Off to the airport after Isyak. InsyaAllah everything will go smoothly. (:
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
wednesday.. thursday.. wienday..
Hello friends! It's Wednesday today, which means that in 2 days time I will once again set foot in Europe! How exciting is that? Haha! I've more or less settled everything I need to. Just need to deposit some money into my other bank account, exchange SG into EURO and USD. I doubt I can get HUF here so I'm probably going to get them in Vienna.
I really can't wait to start couchsurfing once more. Will be crashing at Marlene's house in Vienna for a couple of days before heading over to Salzburg (a day trip). Will then be heading north to Ruhpolding where I will do some hiking, hopefully. And the planning stops there. haha!
Oh, and I will be bringing over some kuih raya. Kuih tart confirm will hancur berderai by the time I reach Vienna. LOL!
During the past week, I've been packing and unpacking my stuff. Will be bringing 1 trolley luggage, 1 puma sports bag and one small backpack. (:
I really can't wait to start couchsurfing once more. Will be crashing at Marlene's house in Vienna for a couple of days before heading over to Salzburg (a day trip). Will then be heading north to Ruhpolding where I will do some hiking, hopefully. And the planning stops there. haha!
During the past week, I've been packing and unpacking my stuff. Will be bringing 1 trolley luggage, 1 puma sports bag and one small backpack. (:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)