My Story in Europe

Finale

2009-08-01T15:54:00.000-07:00

So here it is, the ending of my story in europe. While i look forward to seeing my friends and family in Singapore again, i can't bear to leave them here in Germany. These four and a half months here had not just been a simple holiday, but rather a beginning of a second life. I had not simply visited the tourists attractions, but also lived the life of a german. The german train announcement, the 10 dollars chai fan, the sunshine, the ice rain, the bavarian music in beer gardens, the stupid Sunday no work rule, the crazy beer festivals, the punctured bicycle, the house by the lake, the heart warming smile from Maria, the 2 hours bike ride down south, the strawberry hut, the naked people walking around in the park, the violinist in Hofgarden and the hundreds other if not thousands of new things i saw simply create this undescribable awesome experience. No amount of pictures or videos i record will and can ever reproduce the genuine experience that i gone through here in Munich. While i have pretty much emptied my bank account in these four and a half months, i have never felt that my money was better spent. As a cautious spender, that says alot. My mum and a couple of friends once asked why didn't i use this opportunity to visit more countries while i am here halfway across the globe, but really whats the point? To hop from one attraction to the next? I would rather spend that money on a deck chair and bring it to the countryside and spend the entire day lying on it. Anyway, spent my last day walking through the streets hopping from one tram to another, going through the streets where i first lived, the streets where i first explored. The memory of my very first day, dragging my luggage down the street full of party people going tock tock tock and spending the next 30 mins trying to find the stupid door, which didn't have a number over it, remained frighteningly fresh. All these flashed through my head as i took the tram route through Müllerstraße. Then came this announcement from the tram "Nachste Haltestelle: Müllerstraße" immediately sent a wave of nostalgic feeling through me, the very identical feel when i first took the tram in Winter, all geared up with gloves, winter jacket, beanie worrying if i took the right tram to school. It was as though i travelled back in time. But in the blink of an eye, here am i 4 and a half months later, writing the very last post of my blog. To all of you who did bother to follow up on my story in europe, hope you had great fun as well if not as much as i did. As for the many friends and family that i have met here, thank you for making this trip so memorable. Special thanks to Kan Ern, for inviting me to your homely gatherings and the seriously awesome asian food that you guys managed to cook up. To Yidan, who put up with my continous questions about the universities here. To Frau Anna Scharlipp, who offered her motherly love and ear for my ever same rant in broken german about life, weather and university. And not forgetting you Miss Green, thank you for being such an awesome Friend(in). Vielen vielen Dank für alles. My story in Europe part II? Wir werden sehen....

London

2009-07-31T17:31:00.000-07:00

Wooo! 2 days left. Just got back from a 4 days trip London, and oh my god, i wonder how people manage to live in that city. Its like living in the middle of Bugis Junction and the traffic, human or cars just goes on and on and on and on for the entire day till 2 am, before the cycle begins all over again at 7 am in the morning. Somehow spending the last 4 months in Germany made me cautious of breaking traffic rules, and i don't mean speeding, rather jaywalking. But there in London, you will look like and idiot standing at the lights looking left (there are instructions on the road). In fact the cool thing to do is to walk between 2 moving double deckerbus. These double deckers are not the whinny whimpy double deckers in Singapore, but driven by suspected professional runaway vehicle drivers. For one i have never remembered myself grabbing the handle bars infront of me with so much strengh. So don't bother paying for a ride in a funfair, you get as much thrill riding on the top deck front seat of a London double decker bus. And if you are in for some bouncing fun, hop on the iconic london double decker bus, service 15 and 9 which pretty much goes through the city center. Up the fun by standing, but at your own risk for you might just bounce and hit your head against the ceiling and breaking your neck, losing your conscious before rolling down the back stairs and onto the street as there are no doors. In fact the double decker bus ride was so thrilling that we spent the entire 4 days traveling around on the top deck. But thats of course only possible later in the evening for the streets will be totally jammed between 7am and 9pm. Their solution to the jam is to charge more for people who travel to city center, something like ERP, but i think a better solution is really simply to remove some of the millions traffic lights in the city. I don't see how having one light every 20 m helps the traffic in anyway. As for the weather in London, it is rightly notorious for its unpredictability. So much so that it changes every 20 mins. One moment it looked like its going to pour, with cold wind howling, sweeping up all the dust and dirt from the ground, the next moment its all sunny and warm. There is no way to dress for the weather, you either bring too much, or you shiver in the wind. I picked the second. So much chaos and weather changes and running around that i finally fell sick. breaking my 4 months of sick free record. Spent the whole day after returning in bed. In fact just to ease the mind of my Gast family that its not schwein flu, i walked to the hospital near my place to see if i could find a doctor. Walked into this almost empty half lighted hospital with a couple of nurses sitting behind a counter, i asked for a mask immediately. Didn't want to spread a possible schwein flu. Explained my situation in English as my brain wasn't functioning too well to come up with german terms. Instead of being sent to a quarantined room, i was told that there were no doctors and that i should take the U bahn to main train station where a clinic is opened till 11pm. Take the U bahn!? I was like WTF? anyway, didn't feel too sick after that walk to the hospital so decided to walk back home instead. Its probably exhaustion, plus the chaos and horrible weather and the dirt, altogether making me ill. 1 day later after a good rest and i am back to normal. No medication. Lucky i must say. Don't wanna spend the next 7 days in Aloha man.

Garmish Partenkirche

2009-07-24T06:29:00.001-07:00

Took half a day off from school to go to Garmisch Partenkirche with my Landlady. Initial plan was to visit Zug Spitze, the highest point in Germany. But the cable car ride up cost almost 50 eurs. I would rather spend that 50 eurs on a plane ticket and fly to italy over the weekend. So we chose another summit that is almost as tall but not as costly. My landlady's sister-in-law has a holiday home in the little town overlooking the mountains, so we were invited over. Took just a little more than an hour by car to reach Garmish. Its a little town sitting in the valley of the alps, thus it is surrounded by snow cap mountains (a little left). We first met up with my landlady's sister in law before heading for the mountains. We arrived at the cable car station only to be told that the cable cars go up only to the middle station as the weather is coming in and its no longer safe to go all the way up. Haiz. Built in 1981, the cable car didn't look too solid anyway. The cabin is so small that it can fit at most 4 adults. It did however offer a spectacular view of the small town below. Well not really small if you see the picture. From the middle station, we spent 1 and a half hours trekking downhill before the weather really came in. Unprepared for the shitty weather, other than a water proof bag and a half broken umbrella, we quickened our pace and finally arrived at the little town call partenkirsche. Check out google earth for better pictures. Felt like i entered another world. It resembled one of the middle age little towns in the Final Fantasy game, seriously super cool. Unfortunately it was raining and i didn't really want to bring out my camera. Got a couple of pictures though. But it was more point and shoot kind of pictures. Too bad it wasn't sunny, if not the pictures would be uber cool. Took a short rest before heading out with husband of my landlady's sister in law, Wally to Eisbach. Its a small little water body that looked really harmless, until you soak your legs in it. Eisbach, literally translated to ice stream. I didn't think it was ice cold when i first stepped in it until it felt like there was electricity in the water. And the change was in a matter of 3 seconds. The next moment i was out of the water already while Wally sank almost half his body in the water. Well he has been doing it for the past 17 years. He promised me that tonight i will sleep like a baby. I did indeed, from 11 pm till 9.30am the next day. Yeah my class starts at that time. Back to garmisch, back home, he cooked up a superb meal for us, lamb with baked potatoes and sweet corn. Top Restaurant grade stuff. End of the meal was ice cream with warm hersley chocolate sauce. All these in a cosy bavaria cottage house. Sometimes i really wonder if all these is just a dream..Didn't stay long after dinner as storm clouds were coming in. Super horrible weather was predicted for the evening, thus we had to leave. Halfway back on the autobahn, it started raining ice. Camera was in the back of the car and it was too dark for any good pictures anyway, thus didn't take any. But it was the longest and heaviest rainfall i have encountered so far. 1 hour into the drive and the rain was still as heavy. Rain finally eased as we approached Munich. Cooked myself another plate of spagatti with meat balls as i still felt hungry. That pretty much concludes my last excursion out of munich.

Goodbye Tandem

2009-07-24T05:33:00.001-07:00

My last day in school just ended. An emotional moment for me, to bid everyone the last goodbye. 4 months of lessons, not a single day of absence. Learnt a great deal of german, but burn a big hole in my pocket of course. But over these 4 months, i found out the many things that no money can buy like friendships. I am so glad that i didn't just take home beautiful memories, but also left many behind. A heartfelt thanks to all those who made a difference to my stay here in Tandem. Alda, Andi, Svetlana, Caroline, Jutta, Andrea, Dominica, Gorgio, Tamayo, Hidekasu, Paula, Mindaugas, Tze Shun, Virginia, Peidro and the many others not named here. Thank you all once again. No amount of luxury hotels or number of countries visited can replace the days i spent here in Munich. While cycling home from school the last time, coincidentally or not, came the song "The Last goodbye" in my ipod. Can't help but teared a little...

Goodbye Lindach

2009-07-20T00:09:00.001-07:00

Rain Rain Rain again

2009-07-18T13:57:00.000-07:00

Almost went Berchtesgaden today, but got canceled in the last minute due to shitty weather. Rain rain rain. Its a pity as that is a really nice place and have been wanting to visit it since a month ago, but due to ever changing stupid reasons, the trip was postponed one week after another. Till i have no more free weekends left. Guess i just have to do the visit through google earth. Amazing how fast the weather changes here, in fact i think its faster than Singapore's. One moment is hot like hell, the next i find myself scrambling for the warmth coming out of the oven. Anyway, rained the entire day today, temperature dropped from 29 degrees down to 18 degrees in a matter of hours. Been a while since i went on a photography trip, thus here is yet another rain series. Well today its a little difficult, due to wind and its almost impossible to operate an SLR with just one hand (the other holding the camera). Left my bike at home and walked to town instead.

First times

2009-07-14T11:31:00.000-07:00

Woo! 2 more weeks! Think i have depleted my life's "Holiday credit". Gonna work for the rest of my life.....Anyway, having been here for 4 months, had quite a couple of first times and here is a list of them. Not exhaustive of course, but will add on to it when more comes to my mind.

1. Seeing real snow!
2. Buying a secondhand bike!
3. Cooking my own proper meal!
4. Fixing a puncture on my own!
5. Got really high!
6. Took 400 photos in a day
7. Ate a half a meter long sausage
8. Dancing on a bench
9. Survived a 15 hours flight
10. Lying on the meadows in a park
11. Visited a castle
12. Approached by a gay
13. Watching Spongebob in German
14. Operate a washing machine
15. Made a teacher lose her job =x
16. Stopped by police for cycling on the wrong side
17. Eating a Kebab
18. Paid $10 for Chai Fan
19. Not fallen sick for 4 months (still counting)
20. Ran out of credit on Handphone
21. Cycling while holding an umbrella
22. Cycled 80km in a day
23. Touched a Lamborghini
24. Seen a Mercedes S class as a learner car
25. Tried to push away 2 drunk girls
26. Writing a blog
27. Living in a home with dogs
28. Leaving my keys attached to the lock for an hour unknowingly
29. Spoke german in dreams.
30. Flirted with a waitress
31. Sat in a BMW Z4
32. Watched an Opera

Salzburg

2009-07-11T16:19:00.000-07:00

Ok, this time round i am not going to torture you anymore with German. Anyway the previous post was just a rant from me that is more appropriate to do through german. Good to know a foreign language huh? Anyway, travelled to Salzburg today. Its in Austria, also one of my last final trips here in Europe. Sadly for the past 4 months, i visited only 2 other cities outside Germany. Prague and today Salzburg. And in 2 weeks London! No money no talk. Anyway Salzburg, it is about 2 hours by train from Munich. My school had organised this short excursion and together with 19 others, we travelled through Bayern to the south easten border of Germany. No passport was required. So no visa stamp. sigh.. A little background about the city of Salzburg, it is the city where Mozart was born. I don't think i need to explain anything more about him, if you don't already know him, you should just feed yourself to the Tigers in the Zoo. Anyway, its pretty amazing how one city is build around one person. At least that was the case of the tourism industry. They were selling almost everything with the mozart face printed on, T shirts;Cups, underwear, chocolates (really famous), key chains. Maybe 100 years down the road, Los angeles will be the same. haha. Not going to bore you with details on what i did in Salzburg, but one thing i must say is that i simply love the region. Surrounded by Alps, not hilly Alps but Mountain Alps, with snowcap sumits that rise above the clouds. The streets were truly europaisch as well. Went to yet another castle sitting yet on another hill occupying yet another humongous piece of land offering yet another stunning view of the city that lies below. Kinda the same all over this part of europe. It is pretty much like Germany actually, they speak german, pay by Eurs. In fact the food cost more than those in Munich. Crazy. Took almost 300 photos in 5 hours, only a pity that it was such a short trip. Didn't do much except walking through the city really quickly and spending more than an hour lunching at the top of the hill with a stunning view of the Alps. Sounds cool eh? It was literally. kk. Enough of my bull shit and enjoy the pictures...

Leben ist nicht so einfach, oder?

2009-07-10T16:08:00.000-07:00

Ich soll diese mal auf Deutsch schreiben. Also es ist okay wenn du gar nicht verstanden kannst. Diese Post wird für Leute, die Deutsch verstehen können, ein bisschen komisch klingt. Du hast naturlich recht. Viele falsch grammatik werden gemacht. Auf jedem falls ist es nur eine kleine Übung, um meine Deutsch zu verbessen. So, bin ich hier für fast 4 monaten. Gut genug für einfach deutsch sprechen, allerdings kann ich noch nicht sehr gut sprechen. Trotzdem kann ich im moment ziemlich gut verstehen. Habe gerade über 2 stunden mit meiner vermieterin geredet darüber, ob ich in Deutschland machine bau studieren soll. Früher habe ich auch für 2 stunden mit meiner Mutter gesprochen. Sie sieht sehr stressig aus. Ich weiß wirklich nicht, welche Entsheidung die richtige ist. Ohne Geld, alles sind so viel schweriger. ARGH.. Ich hasse mich. Dann heute habe ich ein neues Problem erfasst, dass wenn ich in Deutschland Machinebau studiert, dann werde ich ein Job in Deutschland finden, und vielleicht bleibe ich hier ewig. Das bedeutet dass ich an meinen Eltern nicht kümmern kann. Und naturlich kann ich nicht an meine älter Bruder abhangen. Er ist schon verandert, seit er von Amerika zurück angekommen ist. So jetzt ist mein Problem noch mehr kompliziert geworden. Leben ist einfach nicht so einfach. Es ist so hart, eine Entschiedung zu treffen. Für die ganze letzte monate habe ich darüber gesorgt. Denke und überlege und mehr denke, schwanke ich von ein Postion bis ein andere. Bisher jetzt bin ich noch nicht sicher. Das macht mir total stressig. Sollte ich hier nicht studieren, würde ich in der Zukunft bedauern? Vielleicht, vielleicht....

Tschüß mein zuverlässige Fahrrad.

2009-07-09T10:38:00.000-07:00

Been procrastinating to do this for at least 2 weeks already. Thats right, i am selling my trusty friend (although she failed me twice), with her together we braved through the stormy and sometimes icy weather. We share hours if not days under the sun, discovering and enjoying every minute details of Munich, speeding down the bicycle paths leaving screaming old grumpy german ladies behind us. Everyday for the past 3 months without fail, whether it rains, snows or shines, we make our way to school as a team. But now that my days here are numbered, it is time to make plans for her future. Listed my offer today in Toytown.com and got a couple of interested buyers. Within half a day, there were already 177 views. Hopefully the deal can be made through here, otherwise i would need to sell it to the second shop, which tried to rip me off by comparing it to a crappy looking bike and claiming that it has better parts. Seriously that guy though i was an idiot. Oh well, two more weeks before we bid each other goodbye, hopefully she will find another owner who will cherish her as much....

Tegernsee III

2009-07-06T11:02:00.000-07:00

Been a while since my last post. Have to admit that i got a little lazy after sometime. Can't remember exactly what i had been doing last week, probably it was nothing much, thus nothing worth writing. Got pretty busy over the weekend due to a friend's visit though, thus have to be a tour guide. In any case, this is probably going to be one of the last few posts for this blog. My 4 and a half months here in Munich is coming to an end. However have got still a couple of places which i have yet to visit, particularly the Alliance Arena, the glowing bubble look alike stadium sitting on the outskirt of the city. Also the windmill next to the stadium. Once those 2 are conquered, i would have finish visiting all the touristy destination here in Munich. But the weather forecast for the week doesn't look good at all. In fact its a catastrophe. Rain, sun rain sun rain sun. And what do we get from that combination?? Yes, Singapore's f*&^ up weather. I think THE "upper being" is preparing me for the weather back home.

Made another trip down to Tegernsee on Sunday. This time round i went with 2 other friends with the train. Goal was to scale the mountains which i fail to conquer the last time. FOCKENSTEIN. Yes, this time round, its a mission. While this week's weather sucks, last week's weather was unquestionable summer weather, meaning 30 degrees and hardly any rain. So the weekend was kinda like in between the good and bad, or rather the beginning of the bad weather, thus it was really unstable. One moment it was bright and sunny, the next we are hiding under a shelter from what appeared like thunderstorm clouds. My landlady recommended another route to the Auer alm (if you still remember, its the restaurant sitting on the mountain top), saying that it offers a better view and gave us a sketchy description on how to find it. And as it was a route less trodden, the signs were not clear. So we had to choose between the route which i had taken before (which wasn't too pretty but i knew the way) or the unknown way, full of risks. Kinda sounded like my real life problem.... anyway, i decided that we should take the risk, which began with a steep climb along a ski lift route. Not long later came this german man from the other way. He saw us heading into the forest and advised us not to continue as the weather was approaching. And getting caught in the weather in the mountains is really a big big problem. Having travelled all the way down from Munich, we decided to continue. I must say the umbrellas we brought along influenced my decision. Not long later came this other group from the other direction. It was a german lady with 2 teenagers, apparently they came from Munich as well but turned back because they were afraid of the weather. By this time, we were already deeper into the forest and turning back down the steep slope looked a little dangerous, thus we continued anyway. Think it rained the previous days, the surface was soft mud and puddles, after much hopping, jumping, screaming, moaning, we successfully manoeuver through this really horribly mud patch. Went through a fence and got an electric shock from the harmless looking gate. By the time we reached auer alm, it was already 3.30pm, 3 hours after we set off from the foot. Took a short break at the auer alm before heading for the summit. At the mountain top, the weather was everything we had hoped for, no rain, thin clouds and sunny. If only we have a walkie talkie with that group of germans who turned back. "hello hello, you are missing out the good stuff here!!" With the cow bells klinging in the distance, we set off again hoping to make it to the summit before 5. I gave ourselves till 5 before we have to head back, whether we make it to the summit or not as i don't want us to be stuck in the mountains in the dark, and who knows what kind of animals come out in the night. As we got higher, the path became even less trodden. They looked more like paths used by cows. Due to the weather, the mountains were pretty much ours. Hardly anyone walked past us in the upper region. And the mud problem got so bad at one point that we couldn't continue anymore. No way i gonna have mud soaked socks , don't care about my SAF shoes, but not my socks. At that point, we were still about half an hour from the top, and we spotted this other "summit". It was already 5 by then, thus we detoured to the lower summit instead. Now between that and us is one last stretch of soft mud green pastures. With pastures come cows, with cows come shit. Tredding through the field was like tredding through a minefield. And the shit looked like they have been there for months. After 5 hours of climb, the shit looked suspiciously like a yellowish coloured stone, something that you would want to step on. Well i didn't. Thank god. After 5 hours of climb, tredding through mud and camouflaged shit, shocked by electric fences, 10 pass 5pm, we finally made it. Although not the highest point, it was enough to see the endless rows of lower Alps that run as far as we could see. The scenery was simply priceless. Didn't dare stay long, thus headed quickly down the mountains. This time round we took the path i knew. 2 hours later, we were back to the foot. I think we were the last group of people leaving the mountains. Overtook a couple on the way down, but we were pretty sure no one else was behind us. After a total of 7 hours, risking getting lost, risking getting struck by lightning or falling trees, defying safety advices, trekking through "minefields", risking getting stuck in the mountains in the night, changed the colour of our shoes, we made it. Maybe risks are worth taking after all?

Down south

2009-06-28T13:45:00.000-07:00

If you have been reading my blog regularly, you would have noticed that my days here are either spent learning german, phtotography or cycling. Well this post is not going to be any different. Done 80km today, down to the country side of Bayern. Initally planned to cycle to Lindach where Maria is staying, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, the meeting was cancelled. In anycase, didn't want to waste the Sunday sitting at home infront of the TV or computer, thus chose to cycle instead. Bad weather again. Nevertheless took my umbrella, my puncture repair kit, camera and my Nalgene bottle. Wasn't too confident in my repair skill, thus brought along the repair kit. Well since i have bought it, might as well. Already planned a route to Maria's the previous night, so thought might as well travel down south and see if there are any interesting sights. Well not really. Probably due to bad weather, so the place was all gloomy and wet. But oh well, how bad can the country side be right? Cycled through a few small towns, 8km through a forest through more small towns and more forest and finally to where i was headed to. It was almost 3 hours later. Got quite hungry after the distance but all the shops were closed. Then it started raining again. Ended up at a petrol kiosk and gobbled up 2 bretzels while waiting for the rain to stop. Craving for KFC, cycled all the way to Olympiad Einkaufzentrum before odering a 3 piece meal. A day to not care about money. Reminds me But it was too much for me. Had to stuff the fries and the last piece of chicken into my mouth. After 3 cups of pepsi, i was too full to even get onto my bike. So pushed it down the street for a kilometer before hopping back on it back home. 80km is no joke..Watching the incredibly stupid hulk now. Wasted 1 and a half hours of my life in Munich.

Small hole Big problem

2009-06-27T04:21:00.001-07:00

Finally after a week of relentless rain, the sun is out and sky is blue. So grabbed my camera once more and headed out for some photo adventure. The past week has been a rather eventful week, big bad events that is, shall not go into details, but together with the horrible weather made it the most awful week since my arrival. Thus headed out for some fresh air. Anyway, this time round i experimented on indoor shooting. So the main train station is a good place to begin. Big and open, but still covered. Kinda crowded as it was a Friday afternoon, many people were heading out of Munich for a short weekend trip. Stood in the middle of the crowded train station, with my SLR sitting on the fully extended tripod. clearly living up to the stereotypes of Chinese with big cameras. What made it worse was my beeping camera when on timer mode. Why is it on timer mode? Well i didn't want to shake the camera while pressing the shutter during its 3 sec shutter opening. And stupidly canon didn't introduce the 2 sec timer mode on this model. (only 10 secs, even my 2 mp cam has a 2 sec mode). so while it goes beeping for the whole 10 secs, i stood there like an idiot trying to ignore the "oh, another chinese tourist with a camera" look. Took a couple of shots before heading to "somewhere" else. Yeah. Its just another one of my random cycling trips. Got a couple of photos here, not too bad i would say, but wasn't too focused on photography as the main point was to get out and stop thinking. Halfway through to the next destination, i felt a little resistance on my back wheel and turned back to see the tyre a little more deflated than what i came out with. Then came this overwhelming wave of shitty feeling. Stuck somewhere in the city center at 8pm with a puncture. Although the sky was still sunny, pushing it back would take about 2 hours. While its remotely possible, i decided to take the train back instead. Its just not worth saving that 5 eurs. The next day i walked to a bike shop near my place. The repair for a puncture at a bike shop would cost 25 eurs. WTF right? You can get a freaking bike at that price la! So spent another 15 on repair kit, including a pump and the plasters and do it myself instead. Took slightly more than an hour and got my hands really dirty. But its done. Nothing is too difficult. Hopefully that is the last shit for the week.

Emo

2009-06-21T13:39:00.000-07:00

Really strange how fast time past here, despite the fact that i spent quite a bit of it sitting infront of my laptop and the small 15 inch Tv that sucks my soul dry. If you thought Singapore's program is boring, you should watch the TV here. Well probably because i still can't fully understand what they are rattling about, but the sub is done really badly, i laughed when prison break was aired. Anyway, back to flying time, having less than 40 days left here, and knowing that i won't be back anytime soon kinda made me a little depress. Especially when BMW commercials appear on tv. "Wir bauen nicht nur ein Auto, sondern ein Zeitmachine" while at the same time showing happy people driving BMWs.

Visited St Peters church today with Maria, where we got to the top of the church tower. It offered a pretty good view of the city, since the buildings here are not tall. Had to pay a euro, although not alot, but was pissed off because the man behind the counter refused to return me my 10 eurs note after i managed to dig out enough coins for him. Instead he gave the "i don't give a damn look" and threw a whole lot of coins back on the counter as change. What an asshole. So took my time picking up the coins one by one, just to piss him back. Well i think it didn't really much work, after all he had spent his entire day sitting in the small pathetic little cabin and don't think anything more can piss the old fucker off..

Took a little walk alone after bidding goodbye to Maria. As it was about to rain, i thought i could use the opportunity to practice more rain shots. Got more than just rain. It was raining ice! Seriously coffeebean sized ice balls falling from the sky. Its so ironic as today, the 21 June is suppose to be the start of summer, whereby the day is the longest in the year. But instead of sunshine, we got a hail storm!! Damn cool. Litereally and figuratively. After the storm, i headed to Macs for dinner as it was too late to cook. Wanted to ask for chilli sauce, but realised that they have no chilli sauce here, only Mayonaise or Ketchup. And the both cost 20cents each. O_O

Still feeling a little emo, i walked back home in the cool munich night, wondering when will i be back again, before the thoughts of mugging and presentations and sleepless nights invaded my head. Well, life isn't always pretty anyway, and the moment adulthood is reached, it gets only worse. Now i just wish that the time slows down a little, not too much to ask for isn't it?

Crossroad

2009-06-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

Today, on the 20th June, a rainy afternoon in the city of Munich, have i made the biggest decision in my life yet : whether to stay in Germany for my studies or not. One of the main reasons why i am here for the 5 months is to find out the possibility and feasibility of staying and having struggled with the options for the past months, i have finally come to the conclusion. Many thoughts went through my mind over the past year, the prospects of studying here, working with BMW, how much more will it cost than an education in Singapore, can SMU offer me something better?What i will become if if take the SMU path? Can i manage with the engineering course in German? Will i be able to finish the language in time? and the list goes on and on and on. For the past 3 days especially, my stance had swayed from one camp to the other. Meanwhile SMU has been breathing down my neck, sending emails regarding orientation camp registration, giro forms etc. Time is running out. I have been pushing back the deadline for the final decision times and times again, procrastinating that one day the decision will just fall onto my lap. But no. It didn't. Spoke to many people over the past months, friends from Singapore, friends studying in overseas, friends who completed studies in Germany, and finally friends studying in Germany so I would like use this opportunity to thank all of you who have provided me the much important information and support, in helping me to form my decision. The decision fell back on my own principle of investing, Risk what you can afford to lose. Having already wasted two years in NS, i can't afford to wait another year and study 1 more to find myself unable to cope with the course. So yup, i am staying in Singapore. Time to search for the next owner for my trusty bicycle! =..(

Little update

2009-06-17T04:42:00.000-07:00

Running out of cash!! left with 100 eurs and i just spent 9 on a book! Almost got sucked into KFC on my way back, but my empty wallet repelled me back home. So made do with my Steam ginger chicken. Took 1 hour to defrost, 20 mins to marinate, and another 1 hour to cook up everything. Worth every minute of it. So far thats the greatest food i have put together.

Anyway, received a good news today, that my thursday and Friday teacher will be CHANGED! Thank God. After 3 months of her lessons, i have had enough. Thought that there is no way the school is going to change the teacher for me, and it was a "THE TEACHER OR ME" situation, i decided to visit another language school instead. So told my school about it and they said NO! I have a "contract" with them till the end of July and i will have to stay till then. Should i wish to drop out, i will still be required to pay the remaining amount. Having paid till this week, my intention was to start my lessons in a new school from next week onwards. In addition to the penalty, i WILL have to search for a new apartment. Meaning i have less than a week to find a new apartment. That was totally ridiculous. Imagine my shock when they told me that. So they asked for the reason and i told them that i could no longer learn from THAT teacher and that i feel that i am wasting my time and money every thursday and friday. Well my ex classmate had once complained about her, and she did change abit for the better, but aftersometime she just went back to her former teaching style, which i fail to learn anything new, but got confused further. So the school administrator told me that she will find a solution and see if she can change the teacher. Which she did two days later! I was soooooooo relieve to hear that. But i think names were mentioned and i foresee that there will be awkwardness the next time i see THE teacher (shit, now i have the urge to write teacherin). However i stand by my decision to "complain" as i believe my rights as a customer. I didn't pay 500 eurs a month to go through an endurance course. That said, the clouds of uncertainty over the past week has finally cleared and now can i enjoy the sunshine of good lessons.

Toytown Biking trip 2

2009-06-14T13:36:00.000-07:00

Aching for some new land exploration, thus decided to participate in this trip. Destination, Schärftlarn, about 26 kilometres south of Munich. Plan was to cycle along the river and we would be there in 1 hour or so. Well, all thing went well till my speedometer registered 70km/h. Battery was running out and thus it was cranky. Throughout the initial part of the trip, i kept fiddling with the speedo, digging the battery and putting it back. Today the "official photographer" wasn't around, so i offered my service. It wasn't the most convenient thing to bring the cam in and out my bag, thus was always the last to start moving off after the break, while promising to catch up. Well i didn't. We took a short pause at the crest of the hill after an uphill struggle (for the others of course) so after the pause, it was a long way down.. Took a little longer to pack my cam as it was so pretty, thinking that i would catch up as always. Then the unthinkable happened when i fiddled with the speedo again. The bottom catch that holds the battery in place fell off while i was speeding down the slope. It was only 100 m later that i realised that the thing had fell off, and i had to choose between catching up with the already gone group or turn back to hunt for the catch. Picked the latter of course. But that also meant that i will be stranded in the outskirts of Munich. Took me a little more than 5 mins to finally spot the circular catch hiding among the grass lining the road. Wooo! Having no means of contact, i didn't bring my phone along, and i don;t have their numbers in the first case. Thus knowing only the name of the town that they are heading to, i could only pray that there are not too many beer gardens. Missed the turn to the town, continued for 5 minutes before realising that there was no way they could have been that fast. ( i was really speeding, think i broke the speed limit for cars at certain stretches..) so stopped and asked. Was redirected back. Then there was the road down to the town of Schärflarn. I can only tell you it was the highlight of the trip. Like the Motor GP but going down a slope..I had to brake so as not to hit the back of the car infront of me. 2 kilometers later, i spotted a group of cyclists stopping at a crossroad. Apparently they have realised that i was missing and stopped for me. Imagine my relieve....Thats when i found out that there was another guy missing. Well, he never made it back to the group....

Night shots

2009-06-14T12:59:00.000-07:00

Ok, got to admit, munich is not the prettiest city for night scenes. First there are no skyscrapers, second the shops close at 8pm. That said, the sun sets at 10pm. So to get dark sky, the streets would have been empty already. Then again, what makes a good night shot? desserted street at night actually sounds good, tried a few, didn't turn out too well. Need more inspirations. Probably night scenes are not as good as evening skies, anyway, here are some pictures.

Aimless Cycling

2009-06-11T14:48:00.000-07:00

Dachau

2009-06-11T13:27:00.000-07:00

One of the first concentration camps built in Germany, initially built for holding political prisoners, but over time, more and more prisoners were sent to Dachau, beggars, Jews, repeated criminals, Homosexuals, and immigrants were all thrown into this camp. Located about 16 kilometers north west from munich, its one of the last few concentration camps left standing in the world. A little more than an hour, i cycled to Dachau on this Holiday (yes once more. There is almost 1 per week..). One of the last few places that i have yet to visit in Munich. The weather turned out much better than what was forecast, not a single drop of rain. Stupid radio and internet forecast strong winds and storm for the entire day. In fact it was so bad that there was a weather warning, thus cancelled all plans with my friends to cycle to Freising. Thus imagine my surprise when it was bright and sunny outside when i woke up. Taking no chances, i prepared my rain gear before embarking on the 1 hour plus journey. The only thing they predicted correctly was the strong wind. By strong i mean really strong. Blowing from northwest, the trip to Dachau was agonising. It was so strong that i was blown off course occasionally. Much of the Camp was already thorn down, leaving just 2 of the 30 bunks standing in the vast open space. The place was not as depressing as i had imagined, nevertheless, it was a solemn place. I had actually hoped that the storm clouds would pass, so that the mood would be right for the photos. Didn't happen. Walking around the compound didn't much stir up any feelings, as it was too bright and sunny, until i arrived at the incinerator standing at the edge of the compound. Its a house consisting of the notorious gas chamber and death rooms. In sequence, the prisoners are brought to the house and told that they will be taking a shower. Having not bathed for a year, the idea of a good wash was too good to resist. Plus i don't think they have a choice. First they would be sent to the waiting room, where they were told of the showers, then to the disrobing room, where they would leave their clothings before heading for the "Showers". then come the Gas chamber room. I have a picture attached, its a dark room with many spouts, on all walls, celling and floor. Thats where up to 150 people were gased by prussic acid for 20 mins. Once all the prisoners fell , their bodies were then thrown into the next room. Adjacent to the body storeroom is the incinerator, where up to 3 bodies were incinerated at the same time. Their ashes were then thrown into 3 different pits located at the back of the house. I left the house with a heavy heart, the very same kind of feeling that you have when you witnessed someone jumping off a building. My tour ended with a tour in the Museum, where i spent 2 hours walking through artifacts and learning how the camp was established and what the prisoners went through. Didn't manage to finish reading as the museum was closing. It was already 5 pm. Probably will make another trip back there someday in the future. Cycling back was slightly easier, for certain stretches, the wind was blowing me at a speed of 12km/h. Just had to hop on my bike and it started moving! Feeling lazy, decided to stop by KFC for a good meal. Didn't taste as good as back home, no Chilli Sauce!!! Nevertheless awesome food.

Portraits

2009-06-10T06:45:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Sunday

2009-06-08T09:47:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Sunday till it started raining down on me and punctured my bike tyre. The Clouds pictures are not HDR btw.. Pure CAMERA POWER!

Rain Series

2009-06-07T03:12:00.001-07:00

Well this series was kinda spontaneous. After a buffet lunch with a couple of Singaporeans and Malaysians, i got stuck in the rain with my bike. This time round it was really raining. Didn't bring along my water proof bag, so my camera bag was out in the rain. So made an unwillingly stop under a shelter, hoping the rain will pass. Half an hour later, the weather got even worse. So instead of standing there like an idiot, i took out my camera and started taking some photographs, looking even more like an idiot. Haven't got any experience with rain shooting, so was just playing around before 2 knights of the present day appeared on their stallions next to me. Sometimes photography is about luck.. so here you go, my series of photos that was made possible because i was stuck under a gate. Pictures are not really sharp, since i was trying to so some panning shot to give some effect. But love to hear your comments on the composition!

Aida

2009-06-05T13:16:00.000-07:00

My first opera in Munich, or rather, my first Opera. Before you start judging me, there aren't too many back in Singapore, plus i don't see the point in paying for something that is equivalent to 10 good meals, to watch fat people singing at the top of their voices. Plus its usually not in the language that i can comprehend. It just not my cup of tea. So why did i go for this one then, when its just like the others? Yeah you got it.. ITS FREE! Ya ya cheapo me i hear.. Anyway, its the Generalprobe, in Singapore terms, its the final rehearsal. My school has managed to get hold of a couple of complimentary tickets, so we went together a group. Being total disinterested in such plays, i have never heard of the so called popular piece "Aida". Perhaps I have heard it before, but i would think the name simply bounced of my anti literature head. Having our seats reserved, we didn't have to join the queue which looked like a snake with its head in the theatre and the ass 200 meters into the open plaza. Seriously..Walking into the theatre with a smug smile on our faces, we attracted a couple of predators with placecards in hand that read "ich suche eine karte!". It was as though they could sense that we had extra tickets. They lingered around persistently until our tour guide (school administrator) handed the last extra ticket to our late schoolmate, then leaving us with a dejected look on their face, off into the unknown hunting for more preys. Inside the theatre, everyone was dressed pretty formally, so wearing a jacket and berms, i knew i was seriously underdressed. So spent my entire evening walking around looking like an Asian idiot. In fact i spotted one man who looked like James Bond in casino royale. No kidding. Oh well, its a rehearsal. So... about the story.

The 3 hours play was splitted into 2 parts, with a half hour break in between. Before i start to regurgitate the story, i must declare that i have no freaking idea what the story was about before it began, didn;t bother to read up or ask around. Also, the play was in italian, so i heard. While there were GERMAN subtitles, its still a foreign language to me. So here is what i have understood from the so called popular piece. Oh last thing to add, we got seats at the top of the theatre. Row 1 it says, got us excited for a while till we saw our seats. Lets just say i had to twist my neck like a tortise stuck in a cage trying to eat a carrot placed on the side of its face. Why am i even complaining...SO please bear with me if my story sounds a little strange..

A little background about the play, the story took place in ancient Eygpt, when kings still wear really tall hats with blue and yellow stripes! ;) The play began with the orchestra playing in the foreground and out came 4 men in body wrapping golden costume standing in attention. Then appeared another man also in tight fitting black costume who walked to one of the four men and tapped on his shoulders. Radames, the fat guy who was tapped is the lead actor, loved by 2 women, Aida, and the daughter of the king of Eygpt. Love rivalry, ain't you excited already?! Anyway, came a war scene and the fat guy remained the last guy standing with his bloodstained sword in the air. Followed by the appearance of a couple on super high golden heels. They were the King and the Queen (i thought) followed by a group of men in black and white robes. Couldn't tell if they were from the same clan. So the king came and rewarded the fat guy (i shall call him that for easy reference) with slaves . Thats when Aida, the lead actress first appeared. I think shes one of the slaves which the King threw out to reward the fat guy for his victorious fight against the Feind (enemy). For a moment, came more men in black tight fitting costumes dancing with swords in hand around the slaves, seemingly doing a slaughtering motion. Couldn't tell if the slaves were killed as they were running all over the place. Oh i think i have forgotten to mention that there was a revolving background setting piece in the middle of the stage which changes shape while it revolved. For the next half hour, i was busy trying to decipher the german subtitles, while men in different coloured robes move around in the background and the fat guy and the 2 women singing at the top of their voices. =x Really abstract eh!

Second part was easier to understand. This time round with a strained neck and numbed arms (had to rest my head on my arms against the rail), i decided to move to another part of the theatre. So now the stage is directly infront of me, but being so high up, i had to bend forward from my seat to get a better view. So it looked as if i was on a racing bike, with my ass almost leveled with my eyes. But it was easier to live with than a strained neck. The curtains drew and came Aida with her father on the revolving center piece. Apparently the fat guy loves her more than the daughter of the king for certain unknown reason. So they had to flee from their country in order to be together like every other love story. However when Aida told her dad about her escape plan, her dad fell to his knees, grabbing his chest and then drop dead. Of course not before a whole lot of singing. Shocked, Aida ran to his side and told him that she has changed her mind. Immediately after that, her dad stood up weakly and went into hiding as the fat guy came into the scene. Not too sure why he had to hide from the fat guy. Aida changed her mind again as fat guy approached, telling him how they two of them should flee into the woods where they can live happily ever after. Being a victorious warrior who was rewarded with slaves by the king, he was full of emotions as he would be a traitor if he runs away. So another 15 mins of pulling and hugging and singing before the troops came. They have been sent by the king's daughter of course who saw them trying to escape. The general of the army came and kept calling the fat guy a traitor, asking why he as a hero, would betray the holy land of Eygpt. The king's daughter (who turned out to be the same girl who walked out with the king in the earlier scene, so she was not the queen, but the daughter..) who was still deeply in love with the fat guy, wanted to save him. For the next 20 mins, the fat guy went about how he could no longer live without Aida, and the king's daughter ranting that shes now the only one who could rescue him from death. Next scene, fat guy was killed and went to heaven, where he saw a bloody Aida. Lots of hugging and singing before Aida died again in heaven. Something which i still can't comprehend till now. With a dead Aida in his arms, the fat guy sang the last line before the lights dimmed out...

ok the ending was a little rushed out as its already 1 am, and i just finished my dinner. haven't bathed and feeling a litte tired. I would say the play was enjoyable, admittedly the high pitch singing was moving (literally my goosebumps). Not forgetting the orchestra which did an excellent job in creating the mood for the play. Must say, a night worth mentioning in my blog.

Railway

2009-06-04T10:08:00.001-07:00

Juli

2009-06-02T07:22:00.001-07:00

She is so tamed that i have never heard a single bark from her since i moved here 2 weeks ago..... Huge and really lovely dog, but leaves a trail of fur infront of my room.. And you should see how she begged me to let her out of the house and into the garden.....

Tegernsee Part 2

2009-05-31T14:54:00.000-07:00

Once again its a long weekend, this time round its Finxter or something, 40 days after easter and the students here enjoy yet another 2 weeks long break. Great for students but not for me. Every holiday here will cost me 50 bucks and since my touchdown, there have been at least 5 holidays. So much so that i stop counting. But that is at least an entire week of lessons. =( Anyway, spent 2 days 1 night over in Tegernsee, with the first day covering the lake, and the second day covering the mountains. The wetter.com forecasted horrible weather on Saturday, so did all the radio channels which went Gewitter und Windig (Storm and strong wind). However on Saturday itself, sky was clear and blue while the sun was high up lighting up the beautiful Munich. Packed a set of sleeping clothes, 2 jackets, my toiletries and of course my camera and tripod. Set off by noon and reached Tegernsee in just slightly over an hour. By the time we arrived, the sky was no longer bright blue and sunny, instead it was covered by storm clouds and got blasted by the wind the moment i stepped out of the vehicle. Did a little shopping with my Guest family for the day's dinner before heading to Macdonalds for a burger. My second time. I must admit the burger did give a nostalgic feeling, wonder how it will feel eating KFC...Anyway, spent the first day wandering along the coast. Walked quite a distance down the coast before the scenery became repetitive. Headed back through another way, past a couple of ice cream shops. Was very tempted to buy one, but wearing berms in such windy weather and eating ice cream at the same time will prolly freeze up my balls. So opted to walk on instead. Just as i turned around, caught sight of this really fat guy, who bought a cone with at least 3 scoops on it. He was so huge that he looked like he had difficulty getting into the driver seat of his BMW 7 series. IMAGINE THAT. In fact i wasn;t the only who noticed. A couple of pedestrains waiting at a bus stop where the BMW was parked next to were staring with amazement as well. After dinner, Lucas and friends decided to go for a short drive up the forest, and since there was still another seat in the Mini, i tagged along. Got a few cow shots that turned out pretty nice. Wasn't expecting it to turn out nice as i didn't bring my tripod and it was pretty dark already. My 400D does surprise me at times. After we got back, i headed to the coast again. The lights on the other side of the lake is too pretty to resist. Grabbed my tripod and headed quickly to the coast before everything turn too dark. I think thats the prettiest photo of the day. Listened to some music before i fell asleep, thus i was partially awake till 3 am before the battery ran out. Woke up at 630 the next morning, and it was already bright and sunny, missed the sun rising part. Damn. Took another couple of photos before heading back for more sleep. Woke up once more at 11 am. Ate my breakfast before heading out to the mountains. After the short mini trip the previous day, i thought the mountains would look really great in the day. So trekked back again, only this time on foot. Make a few turns before the route looked too desserted, thus headed back towards a stream. From which i spent the next 2 and a half hours trekking upwards. The intial part was alright, a little gradient and i thought it was no kick, till i reached the sign post which says "Auealm 1h 15 mins". So i thought 1 h 15 mins is probably for exaggerated since there were so many people from different ages. 1 hour into the hike before i came to the next sign that says "Auealm 45 mins". Then path got even steeper. It is amazing how some cyclist manage to continue cycling up that never ending slope, as the slope continues at that gradient into the forest after every bend, and it just went on and on for the next hour before i finally see light. Light from an open space. The view in place was stunning. It looked exactly like the picture from Ricola advertisments. Blue skies, green fields dotted with flowers, and of course the triangular outline of the Alps' peaks. As i got higher, the wind got stronger and the air gets even cooler. In fact i was so high up that there was some remnants of snow (Got pictures to proof) and my bottle was depressurised. Unfortunately had to turn back before i could reach the peak (Fockenstein) as i had promised my Gast family that i will be back before 6. Its only about 20 mins away, but what goes up must come down. Didn't want them to get worried unnecessarily. It was already 3.30 and i had to start heading down. Way down was as bad as way up, granted that it was faster, but after 3 hours of trekking uphill, my skinny legs were not cooperative anymore. Because of the steep gradient, i had to descend with caution, if not a slip and down i will roll into the watery grave next to the slippery gravel path. No kidding. My converse shoes are also not the most appropriate footwear for the occasion, thus my soles were numb and my calves were sore. Thank god my knees held on. 2 hours later, i finally saw the glimmer of light reflecting off what looked like cars. I can't tell you how relieved i was. Hungry and exhausted, i expended the last drop of energy in me crossing the final stretch of road that led back to the holiday home. Sitting there on the table were Applecakes baked by my landlandy. Ate at least 4 pieces of cake and half a loaf of bread before my hunger dissipated. Oh did i mention that i exhausted my memory card again.. meaning 350 photos. I had to delete some to make space for more. So heres some for your pleasure....

Nymphernburg Again

2009-05-29T14:58:00.000-07:00

Do you know what is better than Nymphernburg Castle? Its Nymphernburg castle without Tourists! And how the hell is that possible? On a rainy evening of course! Its friday evening and i was bored. Ate "Dunch" at 5 pm before getting a little drowsy from digesting. So opted for exploring my new area instead of taking another time-wasting nap. It is strangely cold today, even with sunshine, the temperature was around 10 degrees in the morning. By evening, the sky was overcast and i thought it would be a wonderful skyline for a majestic place like Nymphernburg, which is approximately 5 mins from my place. Got my gear and moved out. Except for a few joggers, the place was pretty much empty. Thus an awesome photo opportunity. That said, it means i have to endure the cold again, but i must say the trip was worth while. Please enjoy.

Bier Bauerein

2009-05-27T08:28:00.001-07:00

It is very likely that i have got the spelling wrong, then again i don't think it matters, does it? Paid 9 eurs for a visit to the Sparten beer factory located fairly close to where i am living, no i am not living in a factory estate, just that the beer factory happens to be sitting in one of the residential estate. Organised by Tandem, attended by all my classmates, so i thought why not? Plus they did mention that there will be free beer and Bretzels at the end of the tour. Well not exactly free since we paid 9 bucks for it, an equivalent of 3 half litre beers. So unwillingly dragging myself into the sorching afternoon sun to meet up with the group in Karlsplatz. I think for the first time, i dare claim that it was as hot as Singapore. The kind of hotness that leaves your skin burning even after 10 mins of standing in the shade. Made our way on foot to the Beer factory, in the direction of where i came from. 30 mins later, we finally arrived at the factory and were immediately urshered into a room that looked like a lecture hall. It was not air conditioned. Air was still and with our skin still burning from the afternoon "Singapore" Sun, it was far from comfortable. To make matter worst, there was a "supposed" dress code. So no slippers or shorts allowed. We were showed a film about how the factory was started all the way back into the 1500s till the success they have achieved today.., wasn't paying too much attention as i was busy rolling up my jeans, fanning myself and wiping off beads of pespirations from my head. Soon boredom became sleepiness. Very much like the classroom lessons after lunch back in NJC (the yellow room), only differences were, it was dark and with a german film rolling away. Fought off the drownsiness with the occasional fiddling with my camera and fanning. 20 mins never felt longer since i came to Germany 2 and a half months ago. When the film ended and the curtains drawn, you could clearly see the look of relief on the faces of my classmates. Knowing that i am not the only one in the ordeal made me feel much better, only for a moment until the tour guide brought us out back into the sunshine. Could understand much of what she was saying until she began describing the beer making process in technical terms. It was then as if she was speaking a totally foreign language, my mind switched off and the words sounded just like some noise coming out from an animal. Clearly from the confused looks on our faces, she stopped and tried explaining in English. Then it made some sense before my mind drifted off into screensaver mode. After that introduction, we were finally brought into the factory, climbed up several flight of stairs to see some tanks from above, down again to the underground storage facility, back up into another section, through an "exhibition" room, across the car park lined with cartons of beer bottles, up more flights of stairs, to another section of the factory where the used beer bottles are washed, recycled, refilled and repacked and then finally back to where we first started. Only this time with beer waiting for us. By the time we got out into the open area again, the sunny skies were gone and we were greeted by big evil looking grey thunderstorm clouds. No kidding. Got pictures to prove it. Have never experience such extreme weather thoughout my 2 and a half months stay here, not that its long, but such extreme weather together in a day!? The wind picked up and not long later it became real dark and gloomy. We scurried quickly back into the shelter and help ourselves to the "free" flow beer and bretzels. I drank 3 mugs, 2 mugs alcohol free as i had to cycle back. Soon it started drizzling. What really pissed me off was that i took the mudguard off my bike, expecting the weather to stay sunny but here i was, taking it off for the first time and had to cycle back in the rain. So once more, braving the freezing wind, without a jacket and cap, enduring the back spray from the back wheel, swerving and braking avoiding all puddles at all cost before finally arriving home drenched and shivering. Its really one way to redefine what cold really means. Truly a unique day i must say.

Tegernsee

2009-05-23T15:39:00.001-07:00

Weekend outing with my host family to their second home by the Tegernsee. Its a home by the lake with the Alps in the background.. How cool is that!!! Its spring and the fields are covered with flowers of all colours and shape. Took us only a little more than an hour to drive from Munich to this lovely cottage home by the lake. They have a sail, so might go sailing next week when we go back there again. Helped out with a little lawn mowing, kinda sad to mow away all the lovely flowers infront of the house, but they are considered weeds, Weeds for goodness sake! But before i destroyed them under the evil looking lawnmower, took a few pictures of them. This series of (flower) photos are totally non edited. Not bad eh!!

Cycling trip with Toytown!

2009-05-21T13:52:00.000-07:00

Well before i begin describing my trip, i should explain a little what Toytown is. Its an internet community for english speakers living in Germany. The group that i went with was mainly American, a pair of Canadians and British, so i was the only Asian. Anyway, i was surfing the Toytown website the previous night and came across the post about a bike riding trip to a Bier Garten in Aying. With a photo of a delicious Weiner Schnitzel which was bigger than the plate it was sitting on, it was too tempting to resist. Also, a great opportunity to meet more people, rather than spending hours nuahing infront of my computer. So i thought why not?

Woke up at 930am the next morning (today), and the moment when i opened my eyes, i thought to myself if i should really participate in the cycling trip to Aying, since the meeting point was outside deutsch Museum at 10am, about 4 to 5 km and a whole lot of traffic lights away. So i would definitely be late, its a matter of how late. As i had not registered in the forum, they were not expected to be waiting for me. But staying home and sitting infront of my computer in such fine weather is almost sinful. So ate a quick breakfast (stuffing my mouth with bread cheese and milk) and dropped a pack of chocolates into my bag. Averaging 30 km/h, and beating a few red lights, i managed to reached at 1010 am. Fortunately they were still around. Minutes after i arrived, we headed off into the south, toward Neperluch Süd or something where we met up with another group. Total of about 20 riders, tearing down the quiet streets of Munich on this holiday, can't remember what its called, but its not important anyway. Didn't lug my SLR this time as i knew it was going to be a long ride, and the extra weight from the SLR DOES make a difference between sore shoulders and REALLY sore shoulders. Wise choice. On the way to "Neperluch Süd", one of the riders broke his bike chain. So it pretty much ended his journey. As it was some Fixed bike, it has only 1 gear, 1 brake, and it doesn;t free wheel (got to pedal even when going downhill, or the pedals will pedal you) the chain couldn't be shorten. Anyway, we moved on and met up with the other group, 45 minutes late. The sheer size of the group attracted every curious stares we could get, from the passing cars, pedestrains, other cyclists, admittedly some angry since we were so big and slow that we hogged up the entire path. And for several times while crossing the roads, we resembled clueless sheeps crossing the country roads. As we were doing it, someone suggested that we ring our bell, so that speeding drivers will notice. So imagine a group of about 20 cyclists crossing a road in the country going Ding Ding Ding. So everytime we crossed a street, we did that, it was hilarious. Anyway, destination was Aying, 18 kilometers south east from Neperluch Süd. Aying is one of the little town scattered around the outskirts of Munich, thus its surrounded by farm lands and forests and together with the sweet looking country cottages, the sight was priceless. Route there was pretty flat, but not everyone had a good bike, thus we just cruised along the roads, through small towns, across the highway through more small towns and crusing down a long stretch of highway before finally arriving at Aying. Because of the chain broke delay, we arrived slightly later than planned and the bier garten was already filled with other holiday goers. I was pretty sure i was the only Asian in that part of Germany at that very moment. Seriously i have never imagined myself cycling down the country roads lined with fields and corniferous in Europe with a group of Americans. Spent about 2 hours or so eating drinking and chatting before someone suggested that we should start going as grey clouds began to form overhead. The highway route we took was slightly dangerous, as there were no bike paths and it was a 2 way road. The German automobiles were going pretty fast as well. Thus one of us suggested to go through the forest. It was a good idea, shady, designated bike (off road) tracks, beautiful scenery until we got lost. After a few turns, we decided to head to the nearest bier garten instead. spent another hour or so not knowing where exactly, we were in a bier garten in another town. Being such a big group, i really felt like we were terrorising the small little quiet towns, attracting attention from every single person we passed. Quite cool actually. Continued on our journey back to Munich. Of course once again, we got even more lost, and for a moment we trespassed the backyard of a small housing community, before finally arriving in the Grunwald. Its a forest with beaten track and the ride was really cool. With the storm closing on us, we cycled a little faster before noticing a flat in one of the bicycles. The group stopped once more in the middle of the forest and tried to fixed it with all the complicated tools they brought along. But to no avail, the tyre remained flat. Thus the poor guy hitched a ride on the back of another ( a deutsche bahn bicycle) while two other cyclists pulled the broken bike along. They were upfront and the rest of the group followed behind in rows of 2 at a slow pace, not long before Alex the britsh shouted in british accent of course, "Are we in a Funeral procession or what". It really did look like one.. and everyone broke out in laughter. Stopped a few times, checked the map, asked the natives, and we found ourselves closer to the city. In fact for a short stretch we could see the city across the field. After several kilometers, later, the leader suggested that we head to the next bier garten along the ISAR, stayed till 9pm, sky was still bright then. Chatted as usual and finding out what the stereotypes of Singapore are. When they hear Singapore, the first thing that comes to their mind is CHEWING GUM. Everyone whom i spoke to heard of the crazy chewing gum rule. It sticks to the country like Sausages are to Germany. Left the bier garten at around 9. Not long before it started to drizzle . Riding back in the dark cold windy night in a polo T and berms is the not best way to experience the cooler climate in Europe. It can only get worse if you were naked. Technically legal. So today, i covered a total of 80km, reaching home at 10pm. So i was out for 12 hours riding from one bier garten to the next. It was not very exhausting as we were always cruising along, but 80km is nevertheless far. That pretty much sums up my day and i am so glad that i chose to go cycling instead of sitting infront of the computer. Made some new friends and surely got a good workout.

Bubbles

2009-05-17T04:40:00.000-07:00

Ok, this sounds really stupid, but i spent my last hour here in the current apartment shooting bubbles, while making a big watery mess on the table. Nothing about my story in Europe, just some fun with my camera. Love the effect though..

Evening Shots.

2009-05-17T03:25:00.000-07:00

ok, i know you have seen these photos already, but please bear with me. These shots are kinda different from the past ones for the simple fact that they have been taken in the evening. Well at least i missed my dinner stayed till 9pm before the sun really started setting.

On another note, i will be moving to my new apartment in approximately 2 hours. Everything is kinda packed up already, however got a few bottles of sauce in the fridge still. If my english is starting to sound weird, please let me know. The german grammar is really creeping into my English. Haven't really got the opportunity to speak English here in germany. Back to the topic of moving, i will be moving to a new family, this time a mum with 2 teenage children. Oh well, all i hope is that the amenities are the same as what i have right now, kitchen for cooking, keller for parking my bike and unlimited internet access. All the packing reminds me that i will eventually leave munich, which i will really can't bear to. This whole experience here feels like a dream, i can only hope that the pictures i took here, will remind me of the beautiful memories i went through with all my friends here....

Demonstration!!

2009-05-13T12:01:00.000-07:00

My first live demonstration! So what are they demonstrating against? The 500 eurs that they pay per semester. Well, works for me as well! hahah. Well i didn't dare take part in the demonstration as they were literally surrounded by the Polizei. Plus the idea of demonstrating hasn't really gotten into the "legal actions" department of my head yet. Thank you Singapore =) However the weird thing was the Polizei merely surrounded them. Unlike the usual thugging and dragging with bulletproof shields and withdrawn baton, like in TV. In fact i spotted a few officers chatting with the demonstraters. I suppose their job was not to end the demonstration, but to ensure that the demonstration does not turn violent. So what did the students do? They marched down Sonnenstraße with banners and signboards in hand(one of the main artery in the heart of munich's network of roads) before sitting down in the middle of the busiest juntion. Literally clogging the traffic. Oh yes, the police were they to guide traffic as well. So i was there, with my camera, happily clicking away, while at the same time keeping a safe distance, in case i get mistaken as part of them. After half an hour of sitting in the middle of the junction, the police finally made some announcement and chased them away. So they stood up and headed to the next junction. I, being still curious tagged along. After a few more shots, i headed to Marianplatz, where the main demonstration was. There in the middle of the platz was a rented truck with speakers and a few students in Orange on it. They ranted something in german and the crowds before them cheered. I too in the middle of the crowd cheered, that was my only participation in the demonstration against school fees. So much for my effort huh. hahah. Oh well, to be frank, i don't think the demonstration is going to make a difference to the system. Its not a lot to begin with!

Praha (Prague)

2009-05-11T04:51:00.000-07:00

Ich liebe München!!!

2009-05-07T13:38:00.001-07:00

As part of my "save money" effort, i chose to rely on my bike instead on public transport. It takes less time to cycle to school than taking the tram, despite it being direct. Thus rain or shine, its biking to school whether i like it or not. At least that would be the plan till i become bored. Not sure that will be because saving money is always so exciting!! Anyway for the past 2 days, it was really dreadful when i had to wake up to the cold gloomy morning, drag myself from the warm and cosy bed, and prepare myself for the wet, windy and really cold morning ride to school. Imagine the dread when i found out from wetter.com that yesterday would be a windy day. In fact the wind was so strong that i was blown off course a couple of times. Cycle a little faster and your face freezes up. Cycle slow and get wetter. And when the wind starts blowing, you can feel the raindrops icing up on your face.

Anyway, the weather got much better today. Its no longer cold and gloomy, back to the sunny spring weather. In fact the sun was shinning so brightly that i felt uneasy staying home. So after finishing my homework, i picked up my camera and hop onto my bicycle and began my city tour, again. Didn't plan any route, just wanted to get out and suck in the pollen filled spring air. Oh yes, it has began. The transition is finally in the last stage. =x For those who don't know what i am talking about, please ignore my last statement. For those who do, i didn't take any photos. Not the prettiest sight though. Yet. Anyway, cycled along the ISAR again. Speeding along a gravel path at 40km/h is pretty fun actually, until when another cyclist comes cycling at 40km/h in your direction. Almost crashed into another cycling as i was distracted by the beautiful sight along the river. Got an "OOI!" from him. Made my way to the northern part of Englisher Garten, where i spotted a herd of sheeps. YES, HERD OF SHEEPS, with a sheepherder and his sheep dog, in a public park!! Imagine my astonishment. There were at least a hundred of them. Took quite a few photos, and got on my way. Spotted a field of flowers not far from the sheeps, so stopped to take some more photos. There i met this other photographer with a D700 who was so engrossed that he was literally proning on the grass! Truely pasionate. haha. Chatted with him abit (in german of course) and he offered his D700 to me to play with. He had a macro lens on, awesome stuff seriously. Felt like an idiot using a telephoto lens shooting flowers. Had to stand a meter away from the flowers as that was the minimum focus length. Was about to leave when we heard the "Meeeeeaaaahhhhing". And like a swarm, we were soon surrounded by the sheeps. As quickly as they came, they ate up the entire field of flowers. Even my bicycle tyres were not spared. Got licked by at least 5 curious/hungry sheeps. Looking like an idiot with a big camera standing in the middle of the field fighing off sheeps from my bicycle, i took a few more pictures before making a quick escape. When i finally got out of the field, a german lady on a bicycle approached me and started talking to me! Asked me if i took a picture of her. O_O Couldn't quite get what she was saying intially, so asked if she speaks english. That was how i realised what she was asking. Chatted with this other german cyclist later that evening, whom i overtook at high speed =x. He asked me how i managed to cycle so quickly with the mountain bike tyres, but it was just a short conversation done at the traffic light when he finally caught up. My point here is that the germans are so friendly! Always willing to strike a conversation with you!! Beginning to love this city even more already!

Technik gegen Natur

2009-05-05T15:46:00.000-07:00

Nur für dich, mein dicker Freund..

2009-05-02T05:32:00.001-07:00

Well, so much happened over the past 3 days that i reach home at 1 am every night. Haven't had much opportunity to sit down and regurgitate out my experiences. However, there is only one word for them, incredible. As i am writing, it is almost 2 am in the morning, but i don't want to delay any longer in writing this, as i am afraid that these awesome experiences will just disappear in my head. Unfortunately i have not had my camera with me all the time, so this post is mainly for my own record.

So, the past few days have mainly revolved around sending my Italian (Croatia) friend Gorgio off. He is flying back to Croatia or Italy on Saturday for good. Must say he is one of the few awesome friends i made here. My classmate for 2 months, he has touch the lives of everyone in the school, even the sales girl from the Bakery below our school. Always zest for life, you will see him explaining, talking, hugging, laughing, interacting with every person he meets. When he leaves, the atmosphere of the entire school will change and my class will surely never be the same again. Well, he had been full of energy all the way till his last day in class, when even our teacher noticed his quietness. Sad to leave, but who wouldn't? Anyway, a little about him. Well, his life mainly revolves around Mädchen, german word for girls. He had learnt 4 other langugages, all for the sake of wooing girls. Truly talented and charismatic and crazy guy i must say. But seriously, i have not met anyone as crazy as him, not even close. In fact, he is someone who can simply pick up the coasters in a restaurant, and convince the entire table to start playing "Heart Attack" with him, after going all over the restaurant to find the right set of coasters. Over the past 2 months, i have done a few things which i would have never done in the past 20 years of my life (not smoking dun worry). Well, he had forced me to tell the waitress that her eyes were beautiful, forced me to sing an italian Song loudly with him down the street, forced me to go to a pub to dance. Those who know me well enough, know that i am not someone who does things like that. But he managed to convince me to. Looking back the times we had, kebabing, museuming, going to class late together every morning, Mädchen meeting, drinking, partying, and walking down the street late and a little high. He will sorely be missed, not just by me, but everyone whose path he has come across. Vielen Dank mein dicker Freund.

Nur für dich, mein dicker Freund.

2009-05-01T16:25:00.000-07:00

Met up with Maria on Friday. Couldn't decided on where to go, thus accepted Gorgio's offer to meet up with him and his italian friends again (we partied till 1 am the previous day). Paid a visit to the BMW museum. Never been there before, thus i was pretty excited myself. The museum was uber cool. Really felt like i was in a dreamland surrounded by the shiny glittery loves of my life. In fact there was one room of Engine exhibits that comes with headphones, so that you can listen to the orgasmic grunts from the different BMW ENgines!!! Unfortunately i have not brought my camera along as i wanted to travel light (didn't expect to visit BMW museum), thus no photos from there (actually 2 from my Handphone camera). After the museum, we headed across the street to BMW welt. Went to this other section which i have never visited before. Sitting inside this particular section were 4 latest generation BMW Z4s. We asked the person in charge if we could have a sit in a Blue Z4, who happily unlocked the door. So in i went with Maria!!! The roof was opened when we entered, so asked if we could retract the roof, and he went NATURLICH!! So pop came the roof and dunno for how long (was too excited to be counting the time taken to retract the roof) it took to close completely. And of course lastly, we asked if we could shut the windows!! Up came the windows and both of us enclosed in the little space call Z4 interior!!! HAHA. In my dream car with Maria! =x Gosh it really felt like i was dreaming...

After the BMW tour, we headed back to city center for a drink at Hof brauhaus, where we drank and chatted till 7 pm. Gorgio had to meet this other friend, and Maria had to go back for more studying (exams coming up), and i had to go back to cook dinner. After dinner, i went for Gorgio's last farewell party and it was craziest party i have ever attended. The beer house was situated in the Fruhling's fest funfair. When i finally arrive outside the beer house, i didn't dare to step in. Band Music was blaring inside, people were dancing on the benches with mugs of beers in their hands, and it was smoky. Literally, half the Beer house were dancing and singing and jumping on the bench. Super Chaotic. Well, not surprised since most of them drank like 3 litres of Beer. I on the other hand drank just a little. Sips from here and there, didn't want to as i had cycled to the funfair. Getting caught drunk on a bicycle is as serious as getting caught drunk when driving. And the polizei here really stop cyclists with roadblocks to check if they are drunk. Anyway, didn't want to be a wetblanket, so i was up on the bench dancing and singing away too!! WOOHOO! PArtied till 11 before they started switching off the lights and chasing all the party goers out. ALL MY FRIENDS were drunk. After 3 mugs, who wouldn't! With the lights shutting out in the fair, we all stood there in the dark for the last time, after a firm handshake and hug, we bidded farewell to our wonderful friend Gorgio. Perhaps in the near future, will we make our way to Venice, to meet our wonderful friend Gorgio again.

Dinner with Wei Ting

2009-04-27T16:37:00.000-07:00

First thing in the morning, noticed a new message in my phone. Finally a reply for an apartment search!! Set an appointment with her at 1pm for checking out the apartment. Why? Because soon i WILL BE EVICTED!!! =( My landlady as she claimed, wants to go for a month long holiday in May. Thus she doesn't want anyone around when shes not around. That being said, i got a month to look for a room. The new apartment was further from what i am living in now. It looks a little untidy, and there is not really a proper place to park my bike. Also, the total cost will be same as what i am paying now, so being further, dirtier, smaller, without a writing table, and without a proper parking spot, i dun think i will be picking that. Gosh its so freaking hard to find a proper decent price worthy apartment here.

On my way back, i decided to survey the surrounding, finding out what supermarkets are available and how far it is from the tram stations etc. Spotted a Flohmarkt. Its the Pasar Marlam equivalent, except that it feels higher class with all the german delicacies and potteries, funfair for kids and of course bier garten. Bought myself a currywurst (well their so called must try delicacies). Its basically a grill sauage cut into pieces, dipped in ketchup and sprinkled with curry powder, side dish was a Bun. Cost me 3 eurs. Tried, checked, not trying again.

Met up with Weiting and her friend for dinner. Munich is one of the first destinations they are visiting in their europe tour, so i offered to show them around. Well not really since they covered almost everywhere else on their own earlier that day. So i brought them through the shopping district, Marianplatz, then to Englisher garten before we went searching for dinner. It was cool outside, but pretty windy. It was already quite late when we met up, no plans for tour intially, but since the sun here sets at 830pm, we took the opportunity to make full use of the day light hours. Went for dinner in an Italian Restaurant after walking miles after miles looking for the "suitable" food. Got a little sick of saving and saving, so though i should spurge abit on food just for that day. Ordered some Fish wollen thinngy, haven't eaten a single Seafood since i arrived. As usual at the same time, asked if they have ice water. The waiter came back with a wine glass with a piece of lemon inside. Came together was this bottle of "unknown drink" and when the waiter poured the contents into my wine glass, i knew it was going to be the most expensive meal, indeed it was. Had always wanted to spend a little more on food, like on my Birthday, however it felt sad to eat alone, thus been cooking all the while. So this was an opportunity and was an enjoyable dinner nevertheless. By the time we were done, it was already 11pm. Headed back to Marianplatz through the empty streets of Munich. The night stroll offered a totally different view of munich. Cars no longer fill the streets, beer tables no longer line the pavements, cyclists no longer tear down the bike paths. It would be a perfect photography opportunity. Only brought along my 2 mp camera, so the pictures you see after the Rocket, they are all from my 6 year old 2 megapixel camera. By the way, thats a V2 rocket in Deutsch museum. Anyway, by the time we finally bidded farewell, it was already 12pm. Got home showered and watched an episode of House (while waiting for my hair to dry) before finally sleeping at 2am.

Frühlings Fest!

2009-04-24T15:38:00.000-07:00

Its just another name for many the Beer fests. Infact there are sooo many in a year, stark bier fest, Fruhling fest, sommer fest, october fest to name a few. Well this one is a celebration for the coming of Spring. Chanced upon this fair when i was cycling around aimlessly yesterday. My first trip to an amusement park since i got my cam, so here are some photos. Most of the are blurred, because of the longer shutter, but if you enlarge the phot, some of the parts are sharp. My first proper use of my Tripod. Really love the swing chair photo, think its the best photo i have taken so far. At 10pm, the lights went out at the fair. Thought it was a trick to get people out of the fair, not surprise if they do that since Germans dun really work at night. Turns out there was a short 15 minutes fireworks display. Took some photos, but they were all horrible. So not going to upload them here. Fireworks are meant to be enjoyed, not photographed. So here are the pics, please enjoy.