4:49 AM
Cookies!Woo~ I can bake cookies now! Nice to know that I can finally do something in the kitchen well. I mean, I'm functional in the kitchen, I can cook to feed myself and the dishes taste not bad, but cooking is not something I can boast about, like tell people that "I think I'm a good cook" kind.
I have very high standards for myself. Lol. But I can say proudly that I think my cookies now are not bad! I am finally able to know the amount of flour to put in to get the right mix without consulting a recipe, and just the right amount of time so that the cookies I bake turn out to be crunchy on the sides and still retain a certain degree of softness in the middle. Yay!
Finally something I can be proud of. :D
PS: Oh yeah, no pictures cos I didn't bake alot this time, and we ate most of them already. Haha.
Kay Key
Tuesday, April 29, 20084:44 PM
Posting about nothingI'm bored! Seriously. Yes, I have lots of activities every weekend (and lots of food, but that's besides the point), but still! I need to do work, and I have totally zero motivation to even start. Its just really annoying, because I don't feel like I'm here to do work at all. The classes are interesting and I really enjoy them, its just the work that makes me really sian.
Well, most classes are interesting, except the econs class. I can't seem to muster enough enthusiaism for it no matter how I try, and it astounds me to see how people around me are always seemingly very attentive. Econs just do not interest me, unless they include math or political situations. Lol. I sound like a nerd now.
But what to do? This is what happens when you want to skive off school and decide to transfer a credit for an econs module that is compulsory at home. At least its pass/fail here.
To give you a glimpse of how bored I always get during econs class, I will post a poem I wrote in class. Yes, so bored, until I have to resort to such measures. Not very good, but I think its quite funny, and hey, first one I have written that rhymes! Lol
今天下午天气晴
早上却没好天气
懒洋洋的sian心情
只想赖在被窝里
啊我好闷啊
啊好想睡觉
发呆 睡觉
吃饭 睡觉
超爱 睡觉
现在如此好天气
却被困在教室里
教授虽然蛮风趣
还是闷得听不进去
wahaha I write until I also laugh at myself. This is boredom at its most creative I guess. Not very good I know, but it very effectively shows exactly what I was feeling at that time!
Ok seriously I am also getting bored of writing this post. Shall go back to watching shows. (See how there's totally no mention of "work" or "study"?) Ja ne!
Kay Key
Sunday, April 27, 20088:06 PM
One thing I hate about posting picture entries: formatting always refuses to follow my command. Rargh. Just keep that in mind when reading the post below!
Kay Key
7:14 PM
Chocolate FondueOnce again, I thank whoever is up high for blessing me with this exchange, and this place to stay. Having seen people beset with problems with others on the floor they live in, I am really grateful that we were assigned to the 12th floor in Tscharnergut. People here are great. We come from all walks of life, from opposite ends of the world, but somehow, we all gathered here, in Bern. And its really incredible how we can become a group of friends who always get together and have dinner, then talk about anything under the sun until late at night.
Such is the dynamics on our floor. Everyone is friendly to each other, and it is rare that you see open animosity. In fact, I have never observed it in my time here. How great is that?
Ok ok, I bet many were expecting a light-hearted picture post with that kind of title, and it was originally supposed to be. (But sorry, i don't really like to do picture posts, haha) But I really wanted to express my gratitude for getting to stay where I am right now, since I almost did not get permission to even stay in the student hostel. (Erm, very long story, will only talk about it when I am in the mood. lol)
But yeah. Now for the light-hearted part! Hope people are still reading. Haha.
Charlene had the idea of having a chocolate fondue dinner with our fellow 12th floormates, and so we started to gather people, and buy all the groceries. And alot was bought: 4 bars of 300g chocolates, 2kg of bread, 6 apples, 2 bunches of bananas, and loads of baking stuff (to bake cookies for dipping).
So on saturday afternoon, I met with the korean girl on our floor to start baking the cookies.
I'm mixing everything together
We started with some chocolate ones (personal consumption, not enough to go round), and then the plain ones, and next were some hazel nut ones. Baked trays and trays of the stuff, as you can see here:
More were to come.. see all the cookie dough?Yep, did ALOT of baking yesterday. And I realized that its really easy, I can almost remember all the amounts of the various ingredients needed already. No more cookie mixes for me! But I have not succeeded in baking cakes yet though, think I wasn't too familiar with the oven controls then. But I'll definitely try it before I leave Bern, since I found a fellow baker in the 12th floor as well! Haha.
So we had our ingredients ready, and then melted the chocolate into the fondue pots. Really easy actually, just break the chocolate up, and melt it over a low fire if you are scared that it would be burnt. Add some butter and milk to make the chocolate more runny, and a bit of alcohol. We had Bailey's, so it was doubly good - milky alcohol.. didn't even need too much of milk in this case.
And so everything was done, coupled with wine that the japanese guy went to buy, we were all set. And the dinner was great. Never thought I would have chocolate fondue for dinner, since it is supposed to be a dessert. Haha. Great food nonetheless. No need for expensive chocolate fondue packs or in restaurants when I get back to Singapore! Everything can be done at home. :D
After dinner, we just sat there and talked. Its really interesting how we are all just able to click somehow, and simply talk about anything and everything. I always laugh alot when I am with this group. Definitely something I will miss when its time to go home. We then started to play a game, which lasted us well into the night. We started the dinner at almost 8pm, and only started to disperse at nearly 1am. If it was not so late at night, I believe everyone would have wanted to continue the session.
But its always like this isn't it? A group of strangers get thrown together by some chance, and they click really well, and form a great bond. But once taken out of that context, this great dynamic is gone, mostly because the group almost never has a chance to fully reunite. That's life I guess, 天下无不散之筵席. With any meeting there will be a parting sometime.
Ok, I guess the knowledge that in around 1 month's time, I would be ending the school term here and going travelling almost immediately after is affecting me. Starting to think of what I would miss already!
But this floor will definitely remain one of my best memories of exchange. Thank you guys!
Kay Key
Friday, April 25, 20086:21 PM
UpdateCurrently loving this song: 传说 by 林宥嘉 and 刘力杨. Thanks to Aries for introducing it to me! We are both yoga fans, haha. And totally envious of Jerena who's going to watch his concert in taiwan soon. :( I want to go too...
MV of the song here:
ok lah, enough whining. But I reccommend him to anyone who like chinese music. A really good voice and talent for singing.
But anyway, I realize that I miss bridge alot. The St Gallens guys who came over for 2 nights brought cards, and since they were only 3, I joined the game. I didn't even know that I wanted to play it until we started. Even though it was quite late at night already, I still wanted to continue. Reminds me of all my JC times and our overnight mahjong/bridge sessions during chalet. Haha. HC really machiam gambling school, not many go through HC without learning how to play bridge and mahjong at the end of the 2 years. And loving it. So what can I say? I'm a typical product of HCJC. LOL.
The weather these few days is getting better, its quite warm already, sometimes we don't even need a coat when we are outside. Hope this continues for a longer time.. Summer is great and all, but I guess it will be hotter. Haha. And I don't really like hot weather.
And we went shopping yesterday, not many sales leh, but H&M was selling stuff at unprecedented low prices (so far in switzerland, other places keep having 1 Euro items. -_-") So yes, could not resist, and bought some things again. I swear the most amount of things I bought here are H&M things. Really don't know what to say about that. Haha. But well, I'm a girl and like pretty clothes! Lol.
Actually, I'm supposed to start on my work today, but I've spent the entire time chatting, blogging, emailing, watching shows and facebooking. Everything except what I'm supposed to do. Haha. So I should probably try to start something now, if not I won't be able to complete my work before the term ends.
Kay Key
Tuesday, April 22, 20087:31 PM
Fondue!Yes, fondue. Haha. My nice buddy had a voucher for a fondue meal at a restaurant, and invited me. Definitely much better than the prepacked fondues from migros that I have been eating. But hey, the price is also much higher, so no reason not to have good quality! Anyway, it was really good food, and the 2 of us finished one big pot of the cheese fondue. Felt damn bloated after I got back. And I think she was rather shocked to see me eating so much, perhaps she was worried that I would not be able to handle fondue, but well, I had training beforehand on the 12th floor of Tscharnergut already. So no problems for me, other than the terribly full stomach. Lol.
That was how I spent my monday evening, really nice not to have to cook and think of what to eat. Running out of ideas + feeling lazy = fuss-free and repeated menus. But I'm not aiming to be a gourmet cook here, and I'm in no mood to experiment and stuff. Still feeling nua. Haha.
And I should stop here, since I need to get to school by 2pm. And the train will be arriving at the station in less than 10 min. So, have to get out, even though the weather sucks, still raining and howling wind, makes me want to just go back to bed and sleep it away. But well, you can't have all you wish for, so I'll bid everyone adieu! Till next time!
Kay Key
Friday, April 18, 20089:17 PM
HelloWell, nothing much to update right now actually, just that Charlene has gone on a trip with this club she joined in Bern, while I'm just sitting back and enjoying the alone time this arrangement has afforded me. Quite nice actually, just that there is no ready-made company right now. haha. But its nice like this, I can blast my music out loud without worrying about bothering someone else in the room. Missed this. Haha.
Oh anyway, one of the guys at st gallens will be coming over next week, maybe staying over at our room. But we definitely would be playing host to him, and hopefully we will get to eat Chew's Famous Fried Rice! (He say one, not me! lol) Then we'll be going to st gallens with him to visit for a few days and to meet the numerous singaporeans on exchange there. There's like a mini-singapore over at st gallens lah, 21 i think, including a few from ntu and 1 from nus. lol. While here in Bern there're only 3 singaporeans! What a contrast man, lol.
And I booked my tickets to London already! Going to visit Nuha at her sister's place in the 3rd week of may, so looking forward to that man, to see a friend so far away from home! Time passes real fast, we've known each other for 3 years already, and its always good to see a good friend again in a foreign land. :)
But ah, I think I'm not cut out for this living abroad thing. Travelling is really great, broadens your horizons and expands your world view, but somehow my thoughts keep going back to that tiny island back in SEA. Living so far away from home for the first time perhaps, but I don't think I'm strong enough to live so far away from family long-term. I've always grown up in a close-knit and large family which has always lived close to each other. So I guess I'm not used to having only email and phone calls as the only contact with them. Of course I have good times here without them, but to me coming home means seeing my family, and not seeing them everytime I come back from a trip just feels weird.
Perhaps I'm too sheltered and all. Perhaps. But I'll definitely be looking forward to going home. Because home is where the heart is, and going away for 6 months has just convinced me that my heart lies right where my family is.
Kay Key
Tuesday, April 15, 20084:18 AM
Back!Sorry to leave everyone hanging with such an emo post, but was off in a hurry to Poland. (Yes, I know the Austria pictures are still not up on webshots yet, but i'm working on it!) Didn't really take alot of pictures this time, cos Charlene lost her camera, and well her need to take pictures is always greater than mine, so I lent her my camera, and used my sony ericsson phone's cybershot.
Not that I'm complaining, cos my phone's camera is really rather good, it really takes nice pictures. Not for the real pros, but its good enough for me. The only thing is that it can't zoom in camera mode, only in video mode. Sony Ericsson, this is the one flaw you have to eliminate. After this is corrected, nothing will get in your way for handphone market world domination (except perhaps bad marketing plans).
So yeah, Poland. It was quite fun actually, met up with the people we got to know from german class back in singapore, the 2 guys from St Gallens and the 2 from Graz. They are hilarious people, and I'm really tickled by them. Haha. But the plan to go both Krakow and Warsaw turned into just Krakow, so we were stuck there for an extra 2 nights, during which we just went and sampled more traditional Polish food.
Quite fun, actually, even the journey to and from Poland. Had to take train from Bern to Bergamo, Italy, then change to a plane, which landed in Krakow. Had to do the entire thing again when we were coming back. Even though travelling is tiring, but somehow I really like Swiss trains. They are nice and clean, and the seats are really comfortable, especially for my size, where i get alot of room to maneuver. Best thing is, they are usually quiet and rather empty, so you can take an entire row of seats if you like (seats here are arranged on 2 sides, and there will be 4 seats arranged in the configuration you see around a table. Not sure if I'm getting the description right, hope you get the idea). So you will get some quiet time to yourself to sleep, read, or basically stone. Which is what I do best. So I just plug in my mp3 and i'm good to go.
Love travelling on Swiss trains. But right now, reality calls. I have to finish my powerpoint for my presentation tomorrow, and I really shouldn't be doing this blog entry right now. Haha. So, look out for the pictures on facebook! Will be back real soon. :D
Kay Key
Monday, April 7, 20086:29 PM
A responseBlogging is therapeutic, I think. Once I let my frustrations out, I feel better already. But I only usually blog when there are things I'm unhappy about. Perhaps the characterization is too one-sided, I apologize. But its what I was feeling at that moment. I don't apologize for what I have said because it is one side of you, albeit the less desirable side. Everything I write online, every word I use, I think it through many times before posting it up. I hope you understand.
I can't help feeling like a blithering idiot everytime we discuss things, even when I know I'm right. (Bear with me, I just need to get this out.) I'm sure there are many things that are irritating about me as well, and I totally understand the fact now that living with another is tough. Maybe now its PMS period, so tempers are short, I don't know. I just didn't think I was being snappy at that point. I guess you are going through a bad patch right now, and I should be more understanding. Just happened that today wasn't one of my best days either since I woke up with a sore throat.
When it comes to such matters, articulation of my thoughts don't come easy. And I hate confrontation. All I know is right now, bad times seem more frequent than the good, and I have no idea how to fix it. Perhaps the clash of personalities is much more than we expected, huh?
Actually wanted to post up the 2nd thing I wrote just now, but was still not in the mood, cos it sort of talked about friendship, and the relationship we are sharing now. But here it is. A peace offering of sorts, I guess.
旅程
旅程的收获
需要知音欣赏
行程的疲惫
需要爱人抚慰
过程的精彩
需要同类一起感受
启程的青涩
需要时间慢慢淡化
回程的感触
唯有同行者了解
© Kaykey Teo
Kay Key
5:25 PM
Another postWow, seem to be posting up alot of entries at one go. None of which are about Austria though, sorry for those who have been looking forward to that! The internet's too slow for me to endure uploading pictures here, so just go facebook and see lah. Those who don't have facebook, well, ask me for the link to the albums. Haha. But they will be up on webshots as well, perhaps later. Hee. Sorry for being such a horrendously slow updater!
Anyway, congratulations to Winston and the other performers on Friday night! Sorry I wasn't in the hostel for a live broadcast though, was out on a day trip to Konstanz, which is a German town bordering Germany and Switzerland. :D
But I miss doing such performances leh, call me weird, but I enjoy rehearsals even more, cos we always have fun, and the littlest things crack us up, well, me at least - Winston might strum a funny chord, or I'll sing off-key suddenly or get words mixed up, or someone else will make a weird comment. The smallest things set me off lah, basically.
The best part is that we accomplish stuff while having fun. It's really rare, especially in today's cutthroat world, to be able to make such a claim. Music just has this magic about it, that makes everything seem better. I may not be the best around, but I really enjoy it because it makes me happy. And sometimes, that's all that matters. I can totally understand why some people give up everything to pursue a career in music, but at the same time, I'm not sure if I have the tenacity to become one of them. Money and security is still something I have to think about. I can't help it, I am a true-blue Singaporean. Haha.
But nonetheless, I hope there will be other chances to perform when I get back to Singapore. I miss all the jamming sessions man!
Kay Key
5:21 PM
Random!Random inspiration on the train the other day. Actually wrote 2, but I just wanted to post this one up this time.
I Saw A Lonely Cross Today
I saw a lonely cross today
It seemed aloof yet welcoming
No words accompanied it
Yet a feeling of calm pervaded
I saw a lonely cross today
Set up upon a a small hill
It must have weathered winds and storms
And sat through countless sundowns
Yet it still stands
Erect and sturdy
I saw a lonely cross today
A monument perhaps?
Whose secrets will long outlive man.
© Kaykey Teo
Kay Key
5:07 PM
BahPhotos are up on facebook, do check them out.
Damn cold today, apparently its 0 degrees outside and it snowed yesterday while I was sleeping. And yahoo weather says it feels like -6 degrees outside. I rather agree, stupid winds keep howling and banging against the shutters.
And well apparently I'm being snappy again today. Can't seem to say anything right can I? Or maybe its just my face that pisses people off first thing in the morning. I don't know. Weather is getting me down, and I just want to go back to sleep. Don't feel like going for class, but later people say I copycat again. Fine lah, whatever.
This is MY blog. I shall whine about whatever I want. No justifications on the tagboard please.
Kay Key
Wednesday, April 2, 20087:35 PM
Rotting in schoolok this is weird, i think there's something wrong with the computer in school, cos I did write something in this post.. but nothing was published apparently. Bah. whatever. I'm now back in the hostel and I'll try to resize the rest of my photos now and hopefully some will be up on facebook soon.
Some people from st gallens will be coming over today for 1 night, so we'll see if i have time to post them up!
And no, not rotting in school anymore, now i'm rotting in bumpliz! lol
Kay Key
4:49 AM
Back from Austria!Hello everyone! No, I have not disappeared into thin air after Austria; I just have not been in the mood to blog! haha. Anyway, this is just going to be a short post, still busy resizing my photos and sieving out the ugly ones. So photos will be slowly uploaded, but hopefully at a faster pace compared to Munich. Lol. Check out facebook for the abridged version, and my webshots for the entire set (when they are up, anyway).
But Austria was fun! Especially Graz, where we got to sample Kenneth's cooking and met many new people. Nice to see friends in a foreign land, I must say. Details will come soon in another post when I have finally settled back into life @ bumpliz nord. So not looking forward to school everyday man, even the interesting classes seem boring to me. Bah. AND i have another presentation to prepare for next week. Double bah.
But well, I think I'm more fortunate than my friends back home who are experiencing the SMU hell week. Good luck everyone!
Kay Key