monday @ montserrat

Hohoho!!! Although I am currently on exchange, I still managed to improve my CAP score! =D

Today was the first day of the NUS S/U Revocation Policy, and I was one of those fortunate ones who benefitted from it.. =P Found out that I got a B+ for my French 3, so I promptly added that into the computation of my CAP. So hopefully now I can join the ranks of the Second-Lowers, instead of being stuck in Third.. Heh.

Academic matters aside, we went to Montserrat today. Its a range of mountains famed for its unusual rock formations, and we spent the whole day eating, chilling, and hiking about. More details at the end of the trip; now just enjoy the preview! =D

after eating squid ink pasta..

rubric cubes

@ nou camp!

¡holas!

Yep.. So I made my way down to Barcelona today.

So far everything´s been great.. Reached here at 1630, settled into our hostel, then headed out to see some sights in the city. The culture´s here very different from France´s, and everything´s still open till very late in the evening/night!!! Even better, the weather here is warmer than Grenoble, so it is perfectly possible to still be out at night dining al fresco with friends! =D

Hence I have just came back from dinner; Will wash up and head to sleep soon.. Sleepy! =)

Will post up photos whenever possible by the way.. No guarantees! =P

in the dumps

Damn.. Dunno why, but I feel pretty stuck in a rut these days.

Everything is as good as can be, but something somehow feels weird. Is it something that I am missing out on? Or is it the multitude of matters which I have going on in my life? Nothing seems to feel right. Quite coincidentally, even the sun has taken leave and gone on vacation as well, and so the weather here is quite a reflection of my mood - gloomy.

Went for a run yesterday to try to shake things off; Ran my usual route along the river but somehow I ran quite far out and I chanced upon a 400m track (which is quite rare here) so I ended up doing a crappy track session with an equally crappy 10:30min 2.4km run. Just couldn't get the speed in the legs, and I couldn't do anything about it. So I started my lonely run back home.

Country road, take me home, to the place, I belong..

Its the long training sessions, when its just you and the long lonely road, that your mind starts to wander. You start to think about both the micro and macro issues in life. You wonder why the sky is blue, and what would happen if you were God. You run fictional conversations/situations in your head, and wonder if things could have turned out differently. Or as Jeanette said, you become over-analytical and a little off-kilter as well.

Maybe that is why I am so weird. Maybe that's why I feel so weird now. Maybe its just me. Jeremy. All alone in some corner of the world. Not caring, not feeling, not loving, not hating, not existing.

Rien.

Sometimes I feel so lonely, but somehow it feels so good as well.

Why do I keep running away from things which I can't run away from? =(

you'd think..

you make forgetting look so easy

laksa love

The parcel came at 1440 exactly. Actually it was already here yesterday, but I had class and so I missed the first delivery. Not wanting to miss the mailman a second time, I gave TD Téchniques de Production a miss today and stayed at home to wait for the box.

I was not disappointed. =)

I did not bring along my wetsuit, and so I had to mail it over here from home. Of course, I took the opportunity to ask my parents to send some food packets over. You wonder with the cold weather and all, why the Europeans have yet to discover the wonders of curry and spice! Haha..

Anyway, I was just happy to tuck into my bowl of steaming hot noodles, Prima Taste or not. Cold weather DOES do wonders to your appetite and the quality of premixed food packets! =P

thanks Moms and Pops for the parcel!!!

while the internet was down..

I became Martha Stewart reincarnated. Totally inspired by Ikea's recent decision to open a megastore in Saint Martin D'Heres, I let loose my creative juices (not the other bodily fluids though) and went about revamping my then-liveable-yet-drappy-looking room.

All of 12m² of it.

To jog your memory, here are some photos of my room at the beginning:

russian utilitarian look

blue + white + wood = urgh

Et voilà the results:

first impressions

egg carton display + cloth from Ikea

a much tidier shelf

much tidier workstation as well.. =)

Life is certainly cosier at home now.. I actually look forward to staying at home and chilling out (or rather, heating up) nowadays!!! =P

internet down

Internet at Berlioz has been on a strike for the past 2 days.. And counting. No choice but to head to the lavarie like the rest of the peasants just to connect to the information superhighway.

No updates till things are up and running again.. Till then, I'll be busy with room improvement! =)

ikea is coming to town

[sung to the tune of Santa Claus is coming to town]

You better watch out
You better not cry
Better not pout
I'm telling you why
I-KE-A is coming to town
You better make a list
And double check it twice;
Gonna find out what's fancy or nice
I-KE-A is coming to town
You fantasize when you're sleeping
You daydream when you're awake
You know you'll buy the whole store soon
So make a list for goodness sake!
O! You better watch out!
You better not cry
Better not pout
I'm telling you why
I-KE-A is coming to town
I-KE-A is coming to town

paralysis in paris

By now (see article below "grieving for la grève), you should have known that besides eating cheese and inventing new grammar rules to confuse les anglais, the French's favourite pastime is striking.

In fact, the strikes are becoming more and more frequent lately such that it is possible to schedule one into your travel itinerary if you are a tourist to France. That is, if your flight is not canceled because the clean-up crew is striking because their equipment are not high tech enough.

The Great Transport Strike (GTS, not GST, which ironically IS something to strike about) officially began at 2000 local time yesterday in France. Buses, trains, metro lines, taxis, and just about any conceivable form of public transport either grinded to a standstill or just maintained a minimum level of service in Paris, which meant that for the Parisians, it was time to indulge in favourite pastime #1 and #2, since almost nobody could head to work anyway.

For the persevering lot, the vehicle of choice was the range of free Velib' bicycles stationed all around Paris. Problem was that demand soon outran supply, and soon well-groomed men in suits could be seen zipping around in rollerblades or skateboarding. Pretty cool if you ask me. =)

By the way, any journalist coming to work in France should learn the word "manifestation", for he or she will be using it alot, for every strike is accompanied by a manifestation, or demonstration for all you anglais. Speaking of which, even if the transport system was still operating, there would be no room to manoeuvre as the masses have taken to the streets in Paris and Marseille. In France just about anyone and everyone is prepared to demonstrate. Strikes and protests are taken very seriously, each has its own character, and there is definitely no group in society which isn't prepared to take industrial action.

So why do the French strike?

Firstly, the French strongly believe in droit acquis, or what that has already been achieved should be defended. That is why Sarkozy's current proposal of increasing the retirement age has gotten everybody hot underneath the collars. The French see their high social protection system as a heritage and something which is worthy of preserving. Not so if you are the Minister of Finance and you are facing a worsening national debt year after year.

Secondly, the culture here is of participation and involvement. Almost every person on the street has his 20-cent take on any topic in the world. It is not uncommon to have 3 hour dinners because everybody has his share on the potpourri available as dinner conversation. Hence, it is usually difficult to negotiate quietly and peacefully; The problem often spills over onto the streets.

Lastly, the strikes have proven to be largely successful: The last major strike in 1995 brought the government to its knees, and then-PM Chirac had to push back its unpopular policies. But now, Sarkozy insists that he will not back down.

So here we are seeing a massive battle of wills. Will the 500,000 energy and transport workers , determined to keep their generous retirement and pension scheme, prevail, or will it be an equally determined government bent on reform?

We shall see.

looking at things in perspective

perfect weather.

60km of open road.

cruising at 35kmh.

bliss.

=)

grieving for the grève

Other than their croissants, the Eiffel Tower, and arguably Jean Reno, perhaps the most well-known Franco-image that the French has ever exported has to be their strikes.

Geddit? Think of gays, and the French come first to mind. Think of strikes, and the French also has to be the usual suspect.

It is amazing that how a country is able to stay so nonchalant when its direct neighbours are like über-efficient to the core. Oh wait, Malaysia DOES come to mind. But its not Malaysia's turn tonight, so let's switch our focus back to the French.

Tomorrow we're going to have a strike by the CROUS-Rhône Alpes personnel. CROUS stands for "Centre Régional des Oeuvres Universitaires et Scolaires", and is basically responsible for the daily lives of all the university students in France. In short, they are the people in charge of my accommodation and school food. Therefore when they strike, we are going to see some hungry people on campus tomorrow. =P

And what are they striking for?

The usual suspects come to mind again: Too much work (hey its a 35 hour work week here) with too little pay, not enough respect given (yes its a legitimate reason), amongst the other more inventive reasons; Although I suspect that it is just to take a day off and have some fun. Who wouldn't like to play a practical joke every now and then just to harass their superiors?

But the good thing is that every strike is pre-warned and the people on strike make it a point to minimize their impact on the innocent populace. I was caught in a transport strike in Lyon last year, but I was still able to get to school (what luck! damn..) as there were nice transport personnel explaining to us the other ways of getting to our destinations. So as you can see below, this was how I found out about the strike which is going to be held tomorrow.

en grève = on strike

the logo of Organised Labour.. doesn't it look like the Ironman M-Dot just raised his hand? =P

The French like these sort of things. A strike smacks of collectivism, of rebelliousness, of lower-class-good against upper-class-evil. And the French likes it when the underdog wins. And so life goes on admist the strikes. Students will still go to school, baguettes will still be baked and eaten, and the next strike will still be planned.

Very uniquely français indeed.

world champions 2007

Congrats to Macca and Chrissie.. you guys worked hard and got the victory that you guys deserved! Macca finally put the money where the mouth is after 7 years and just a simply fantastic win for Chrissie who is just into her 2nd Ironman! Go here for more news..

anybody spot the Singapore connection somewhere? =P

hawaii five-o

Woohoo.. The Ironman World Championships are here again! This year promises to be even more exciting after what "Big Mouth" Macca said last year. Certainly there won't be any lovin' going on along Alii Drive come tomorrow!

Can't wait to see the drama unfold. The show starts 8amPST and 11amEST. That translates to 1am on 14 Oct in Singapore and 7pm for me tonight! =P

Who are you placing your money on? I'm betting on the Normanator to run a blazing 2hr45min marathon after a sizzling 4hr2omin ride through the lava fields. That is, if the bees and tyre punctures do not get to him first. =D Macca, be afraid; Be VERY afraid!!!



VS

game on!

*update at 2330hrs*

Sun finally came out for a while in the afternoon so I went for a nice easy rolling ride to Lumbin and back in the afternoon (60km). After that I headed out for dinner, then watched France get kicked out of the IRB Rugby World Cup by England. What a shame! Sadness was palpatable in the air as I left the pub. The French always seem to have bad luck in these high-profile competitions. But losing to the English?! I thought they were Murphy's pet! =P

Then I got home. And I found out that while both 2006 winners Norman Stadler and Michellie Jones are out of the race, Macca is also nowhere near the Men's leaders on the bike. The current leaders are Torbjorn Sinballe and Leander Cave. What a bizzare day indeed!

how to marry up?

Reproducing this article for all you girls out there who are looking to marry up, especially for a very good friend of mine whose name starts with L. Her ex S***W** showed me this today at the lavarie today and I thought it was rather amusing. Usual dumb blonde question and answer session. =)

THE AD

What am I doing wrong?

Okay, I’m tired of beating around the bush. I’m a beautiful
(spectacularly beautiful) 25 year old girl. I’m articulate and classy.
I’m not from New York . I’m looking to get married to a guy who makes at
least half a million a year. I know how that sounds, but keep in mind
that a million a year is middle class in New York City , so I don’t think
I’m overreaching at all.

Are there any guys who make 500K or more on this board? Any wives? Could
you send me some tips? I dated a business man who makes average around
200 - 250. But that’s where I seem to hit a roadblock. 250,000 won’t get
me to central park west. I know a woman in my yoga class who was married
to an investment banker and lives in Tribeca, and she’s not as pretty as
I am, nor is she a great genius. So what is she doing right? How do I
get to her level?

Here are my questions specifically:

- Where do you single rich men hang out? Give me specifics- bars,
restaurants, gyms

- What are you looking for in a mate? Be honest guys, you won’t hurt my
feelings

- Is there an age range I should be targeting (I’m 25)?

- Why are some of the women living lavish lifestyles on the upper east
side so plain? I’ve seen really ‘plain jane’ boring types who have
nothing to offer married to incredibly wealthy guys. I’ve seen drop dead
gorgeous girls in singles bars in the east village. What’s the story
there?

- Jobs I should look out for? Everyone knows - lawyer, investment
banker, doctor. How much do those guys really make? And where do they
hang out? Where do the hedge fund guys hang out?

- How you decide marriage vs. just a girlfriend? I am looking for
MARRIAGE ONLY

Please hold your insults - I’m putting myself out there in an honest
way. Most beautiful women are superficial; at least I’m being up front
about it. I wouldn’t be searching for these kind of guys if I wasn’t
able to match them - in looks, culture, sophistication, and keeping a
nice home and hearth.

—————————————————————————–

THE RESPONSE

PostingID: 432279810
Dear Pers-431649184:

I read your posting with great interest and have thought meaningfully
about your dilemma. I offer the following analysis of your predicament.
Firstly, I’m not wasting your time, I qualify as a guy who fits your
bill; that is I make more than $500K per year. That said here’s how I
see it.

Your offer, from the prospective of a guy like me, is plain and simple a
cr@ppy business deal. Here’s why. Cutting through all the B.S., what you
suggest is a simple trade: you bring your looks to the party and I bring
my money. Fine, simple. But here’s the rub, your looks will fade and my
money will likely continue into perpetuity…in fact, it is very likely
that my income increases but it is an absolute certainty that you won’t
be getting any more beautiful!

So, in economic terms you are a depreciating asset and I am an earning
asset. Not only are you a depreciating asset, your depreciation
accelerates! Let me explain, you’re 25 now and will likely stay pretty
hot for the next 5 years, but less so each year. Then the fade begins in
earnest. By 35 stick a fork in you!

So in Wall Street terms, we would call you a trading position, not a buy
and hold…hence the rub…marriage. It doesn’t make good business sense
to “buy you” (which is what you’re asking) so I’d rather lease. In case
you think I’m being cruel, I would say the following. If my money were
to go away, so would you, so when your beauty fades I need an out. It’s
as simple as that. So a deal that makes sense is dating, not marriage.

Separately, I was taught early in my career about efficient markets. So,
I wonder why a girl as “articulate, classy and spectacularly beautiful”
as you has been unable to find your sugar daddy. I find it hard to
believe that if you are as gorgeous as you say you are that the $500K
hasn’t found you, if not only for a tryout.

By the way, you could always find a way to make your own money and then
we wouldn’t need to have this difficult conversation.

With all that said, I must say you’re going about it the right way.
Classic “pump and dump.”

I hope this is helpful, and if you want to enter into some sort of
lease, let me know.

like a virgin

Today marks the first time that I have done it in France.

111007.

Woke up all groggy and sleepyheaded.

With absolutely no recollection of what happened.

But it was good: The lightheaded mixture of mischief and relief.

Didn't think that it would be so soon,

but I finally gave in and popped the cherry..










I pontang-ed school today!!! =P

bumblebee

Only 9 days into October, and it has really been the month of the bumblebee. Busy as a bumblebee, that is.

Almost 6 hours of classes per day, endless readings to do (but somehow never done), beaucoup d'emails to write, seemingly endless errands to run, swim, bike, run, travel planning and so on and so forth. All cramped within 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Return me the slack French life I was envisaging before I came here!!!

big day out: Avignon/Orange

Hmm.. Let's see where should I start. Today's reveille activities were simple enough: Wake up at 0500, take the 0541 first tram to the gare (train station) and meet Letch to catch the 0607 TER to Avignon. Or so I thought.

Jolted out of bed at 0525. Couldn't believe my eyes at first, but the truth was that I had indeed overslept (no doubt due to the copious amount of alcohol consumed the night before and now still coursing though my veins). Got up, got dressed, and flew out in record time. Amazingly I managed to reach my tram stop in time and hence I was able to avoid being the saboteur for the trip by the narrowest of margins! Even more amazingly, Letch was already at the gare when I reached. Quite unlike her not to get lost. =P

But the morning excitement was still not over yet!

After buying a train ticket, I guess that most people would expect to take a train. Thus we made our way onto the platforms, but to our dismay we were unable to find our train. And it was already 0605 - 2 more minutes to departure! So we hurriedly went over to the reception counter, and promptly found out that our train service was actually served by a bus, and we had to go to the bus terminus to board our "train"! Well done. The French can be so weird sometimes. Luckily the bus terminus was not too far away and we were still able to catch the bus to Valence, where we ditched the bus for a real train this time to Avignon.

Reached Avignon at a quarter to 10. The sun had risen and the weather looked fabulous. However the morning peace was broken by the many tourists at the gare, no doubt spillover rugby world cup supporters from Marseille who had gone there for the match between France and New Zealand the evening before (France won btw). Upon leaving the gare, it was a pleasant enough walk to the Palais des Papes, our first stop for the day.

The Palais des Papes was the home to the Catholic popes from 1305 to 1377, and it is still regarded as one of the largest and most important Gothic buildings in Europe. Just let the pictures do the talking:

first views of the entrance (top)

entrance (bottom)

Mother Mary at the very top

a crucified Jesus juxtaposed against a serene looking Mother Mary

view of the courtyard

view from the courtyard

feeling on top of the world

We wandered about the massive gardens and parks of the Palais as I did not want to pay the quite princely sum of €7.50 to enter the Palais itself. Anyway the highlight of the day was going to be..

Le Pont d'Avignon! Yes it must be one of the most celebrated and well known bridges in the world, not because it is the longest like the Akashi-Kaikyo bridge in Japan, or it is the most majestic like the Golden Gate bridge, but simply because it is a bridge that leads to nowhere! Yes, le Pont d'Avignon, constructed in 1185, abruptly ends in the middle of the Rhône river because 18 of its 22 arches have collapsed throughout the years due to frequent floods. However extensive restoration works have been carried out to transform it into a safe tourist attraction. =D

aerial view of the bridge

entering the pont

view at the end of the bridge

arches

pont in the foreground and the palais in the background

We picnic-ed as usual, and ended up sleeping at this grass patch opposite the pont. The sun was out in full force, and it felt good to be out there. =) If we could, I think we would have laid there for the rest of the afternoon, but we couldn't because we had a 1621 train to Orange!

Orange was really the hidden gem of the trip. We only found out about it by chance when we googled the map of France, and chanced upon its unique name. No, its not an Orange orchard, and neither is it the capital of Orange SA, the telecommunications company; but rather, it got its name from the Prince of Orange, which ruled the town from 1033 - 1789. Not surprisingly then, that it is particularly renowned for its Roman architecture and it even has the most well-preserved Roman theatre in Europe! Additionally, it is also the warmest city in France, and is also the only city in France to have a Fascist mayor. Truly amazing.

First we headed to the Arc de Triomphe d'Orange. Walking along deserted streets with almost zero traffic was a joy after the more touristy environs of Avignon. The Arc is smaller than its much grander cousin in Paris, but it is particularly fine nonetheless. Nothing much to do there so we headed off to the Théâtre Antique. Its architecture was just so stunning! Unfortunately we could not enter as it was already closed for the day. But I'll definitely be heading back for another visit someday!

train station at Orange

afternoon bazaar

the magnificent Arc de Triomphe d'Orange

below its grand arches

Théâtre Antique

the imposing stone walls

And so that ends my big day out at Avignon and Orange. Hopped on the 1830 direct TER back to Grenoble and reach just in time for Letch to catch the navette back to Rabot and for me to eat some real food. I had gone long enough without proper food. =P

pb&j

cheating confiture

ça va?

After "bonjour", "ça va" has to be the second most commonly used greeting in France. Literally it means "that goes?", and since its response is the same phrase itself, "ça va" is usually posed as a rhetoric question.

Needless to say, for the month or so that I've been here, I've asked and have been asked this question numerous times.

However, the problem lies in what to say after the ça va. Usually some small talk about daily life, interesting things, school, e.g. will follow en suite the opening pleasantries. Preferably, these little banter sessions should evolve into something more substantial like debates of the achievements of Manchester United against those of Liverpool's, good natured ribbing, and maybe even gossip. Sadly though, I am more often then not faced with awkward silence and nerve wracking hem and hawing as I try to think of interesting/common things to continue the brief spark of human contact.

Speaking with the French is not easy. Trying to talk to and fit in with the French youth is even more challenging. I guess the system is pretty much the same around the world: Cliques between youths can be pretty strong and it may be difficult to join in when they are already well cemented. There's also the problem of slang as youths are prone to using another set of words and jargon which are completely different from the mainstream language. Being of another race, colour and culture obviously does not help as well.

So how do I survive?

It sure helps to have a group of Singaporean friends and the ever faithful msn live messenger to fall back on at the end of the day. Not that I am xenophobic, but it sure feels good to be able to add the "la"s at the end of sentences rather than to use them as articles! Also, isn't the look of total comprehension just oh-so satisfying as you share an inside joke with the rest? =) Nevertheless, I still try to converse with my international friends (from French intensive week) and my French classmates as much as possible. After all, that's the goal of a year abroad isn't it?

In the meantime I have to learn how to grin and bear with the anonymity. The learning curve is steep and it can be very harsh at times, but nothing ventured nothing gained!

Maybe one day I'll be able to write something about going beyond the ça va. But for now, ça ne va pas!!! =P