Feb 16th, 2009

Hey you guys ^.^

Sorry for not blogging in a while.......things have been so hectic =S plus my internet is messed up......i'm using a cable and they randomly do maintenance in the building ><" So when I have the internet, I'm doing bookings first =P lots to research! lol

On friday, we did an opera tour.......no big deal since I went to the opera already =P It was a pretty chill day......I went shopping with some friends....there are like cheap clothing now althoguh I'm probably going to stop buying winter clothes soon and buy some nice work clothes for Toronto ^.^

On saturday, we went to Graz =P GORGEOUS!!! On the way, we visited a chocolate factory =P The chocolate factory was like 4/5 rooms of taste testing....I tried cocoa beans and 100% pure chocolate ><" kinda gross lol also I purchased some for you =P it's pretty good.....Graz is a beautiful city....but I think I would only do it once ><" Not a bad way to spend Valentine's Day ^.^ lol

Sunday I went to church w. a friend....really pretty and the people were friendly =P After the service, there was tea/coffe and snacks.....sundays are relaxing bc everything is CLOSED and there's nothing to do ><" we just lounged around cafes.....did laundry ><" oh! and I got my internet back =P

On Monday, there was a lot of snow ><" originally there is supposed to be a scavenger hunt but I didn't do it =S all outdoors and it's cold ><" lol Joy and I went to a shopping mall......and I bought 20 euro boots!! tall black, suede, flat boots ^.^ also, found 10 euro short boots but i don't know about it yet ><"

In the evening, we watched the Giselle ballet =P Instead of sitting seats, we had to stand.....it was a different experience ^.^ I luved the ballet b/c it was art w.o borders....you don't need to understand German, English, Italian, etc to appreciate it..........it was just breath taking.....

I miss you guys!! there's nothing much to do here...my classes start on the 25th so just doing some pre class stuff =P

In the pics, the first two are of Graz. We had to climb up the stairs in the second picture to get the GORGEOUS view from the first pic. The other pictures are of the chocolate factory =P

Feb 12, 2009

hey you guys =P

Ok so this week we had orientation...and i started meeting some new people =P I made some friends from all over.....Singapore, HK, the States....there wasn't much to do on the first day (Monday) except acquaint myself w. others....the orientation program I'm in has me doing something almost every afternoon!! I met up with my buddy to have a little talk and she also showed me around the university. We went to "Ride club" that night for free drinks....not bad....I only paid 1 Euro for coat check but I somehow got 2 shots and sex on the beach ;) I danced w. two very nice American girls and some other gurls from a different rez. I took the bus home and even though I had to walk, it was SOOOO safe =P (no, it wasn't the alcohol giving me a false sense of security lol)

Tuesday we had a walking tour of Vienna, in the First District....it would've been such a nice walk but it was raining/snowing =S oh wellz....like my friend said, it would've been so romantic if we could have forgotten the cold....seriously, it was so picturesque *sigh*........

I also cooked for the first time that night =P it was a lot of fun bc my Singaporean friends were there...all of us were running around the kitchen ><" I finally had veggies ^.^ so happy! lol

Wednesday was a free day so I went skating w. my friends in front of city hall.......GORGEOUS!! First of all, their building is so historic! so much prettier than ours ><" In addition, there's two rinks so when they zamboni one rink, you can use the second one.....and how would you get to the second one? there are little walk ways where you can skate from one rink to another ^.^ I would honestly go everyday but rental and pass to get into the rink...it's like almost $20 each time ><" but fun times!!

Skating made me miss you guys so much!! lol skatin on the rideau...."someone" drilling me to learn cross overs (you know who you are!!!!) and other great times at angus glen ><"

Thursday we went to the schonbrunn palace.....breath taking! There's also this place in the garden where they originally planned to build the palace that over looks vienna.......*sigh* I'm in luv you guys ^.^

I've included some pics.....enjoy!

From the top: A gorgeous view of Vienna in the garden of the palace.....the picture after it is where I got the view from

The 3rd picture is one of Joy and I skating at city hall.....there was like 10 of us scattered around the rink ^.^

The 4th is my first cooked meal!! yummy ^.^

Finally, the 5th is the famous Sacatorte, an Austrian dessert. My little treat for the long 2 hour outdoor walk lol

My First Weekend

Hi you guys =P

I have been w.o internet for like 2 days ><" so I have been sooooo bored =S just watching shows on my laptop.....On Friday, we just walked around the city, looking at sites....then we went into a pub for like food.........i had pasta w. mushrooms, green peppers, and egg. We all talked and walked around the city. Honestly, Vienna is not even cold -_- it's like above 0 and if anything, it's windy (w.o windchill!!) and i don't need gloves/hat. I'm not close with these girls but i'm glad that they've included me in everything. If i'm by myself during the day, I think i will finally break down =( I haven't cried yet! and I refuse to =P

My buddy is sooooooo nice (shown in the pic). Apparently I was like one of few who got a female buddy (my other friends all have male buddies) and she's just constantly texting/calling me to see that I'm ok. Sundays all the stores are closed so she might take me skating or to see a palace. She doesn't speak mandarin to me (my mando is embarassing) but she constantly texts me; it's comforting to see that =P

Saturday we had schnitzel!!! It's like breaded pork and a traditional Austrian dish..the best part is that there was a student special =P works w. my budget lol Afterwards, we all went back to the Erasmaus residence where I met other exchange students (from Peru, serbia, the States) and we were just talking......then around 11.30pm we went to a club called the "Titanic"...honestly it was THE sketchiest place lol probably cuz it was free cover (minus coat check).....the club name isn't even located outside.....u have to walk up to these two body guards lolz.....and they were trying to convince us to go "ya ya, the club is downstairs, just come down"

It was Ana, Anna, Victoria, Whitney (aa girl from Calgary), and an Austria and a Serbian guy.....anyway the club was soooooooo smokey =S but the music was good.....n I thought clubs in Toronto filled up late....the club wasn`t packed until like 1am ><" I had a good time though (what to do about the smokey clothes though.....)

On Sunday, I slept in =P It rained all day (literally ALL day) plus the stores close so I couldn't do much....I had a lovely chat w. my room mate and then checked out the laundry room, exploring the rest of Panorama.....Around 6pm, the exchange stuents from Finland and Sweden asked if I wanted to join them for dinner....which was VERY sweet and nice of them =P Then I met some Thai students and a Vancouver gal who was about to leave after her year long exchange....

I *was* getting home sick (a little bit) today just cuz I hadn't really met anyone but in the evening, everything worked out =P It feels good to see so many different people from different cultures ^.^ Can't wait until orientation tomorrow!!

I uploaded some pics of my room, my buddy Li Zhen and I (yes Tim, I do *have* eyes ok), the opera house and schnitzel and potato salad =D

oh!! sorry you guys

add "shirleybsoon" for skype......not the other one ><"

thnx =P

Initial Shock =P

The first thing that happened when i arrived was that I was greeted by my buddy, Li Zhen, Tomas, and Joseph. They were all very welcoming.....as they discussed how to get back to our residences, they all began speaking fluent German! =P My first taste of the German language *le sigh*

We took the train from the airport to the city =P GORGEOUS SCENARY!! The whole time Li Zhen was apologizing for the weather...but i didn’t care cuz it was ABOVE 0!! Lol such a refreshing change =P

Then Anna, Tomas, Li Zhen and I went to Panorama, our residence.....the room is kinda small, reminds me of a pond room, and the washroom is even smaller =S Oh well, I’m only there to sleep anyhow...

My buddy then took us to WU, our university, to grab student IDs. BTW they’re AMAZING because they convinced the admin to give us our student IDs earlier so we can purchase the cheap train passes...also to get into clubs for free =P In one day, we got SIM cards, opened a bank account, got metro passes, and went grocery shopping, unpacked, got internet......and this was only within an 8 hour time span =P Very efficient lol...Glad I’ve been keeping busy cuz I don’t want to be alone in my lil dorm room, alone w. my thoughts....I had the whole Brandstorm team when I was stressed but here I haven’t really met anyone yet....
Speaking of which, most of the people I have met are Chinese lol How ironic.....At least I won’t forget my Canto and I can practice my Mandarin.....I also realized how important it is to have some knowledge of German (yes Cream, you were right....) so i’m going to try to get enrolled into the German course here

In the evening, we went to a club/lounge call “Loco” around 10.45pm...pretty cool except it was smokey...that’s probably going to take some getting used too...everyone was smoking in the club....bleh =S Oh wellz you don’t notice it after a while but the stench is still on my clothes =S Does that mean I have to wash my clothes EVERY time after I go clubbing??? =S Oh boy......lol or I can take my friends advice n wear the same clothes each time I club =P My buddy was so nice....she told me that she doesn’t typically go to the student events but if I wanted to, she would meet me there. Honestly, she’s been so helpful and I couldn’t have asked for a better friend =P

By the second day, I finally got the hang of the city. I've figured out the metro system...during Day 1, I took the bus to the station like 5 times w. my friend...and we're always on the run so I know how to use the metro =D you know me, i'm good w. navigating things =P Today, we went to Ikea.......I bought salmon, bread and pasta for nights where I cannot go out to eat. Everything here closes at 7pm and Sundays ><" so I thought I’d stock up cuz we have been out late during the past two days....

By the time we came back, we had to get ready....we were meeting my friend's buddy to try to get cheap opera tickets. The five of us arrived at the opera house at 6.30 and lined up. There were already lots of people standing there but we tried anyway. By the time it got to us, there were 5 tickets left!!! Tomas kept telling us how LUCKY we were.....BTW, the tickets were AMAZING!! they were in the center right in front of the stage. Our buddy told us that this is where politicians sit during the opening night...we ONLY paid 12 Euros but they retail for 170!!! -_-

When we finished, we took lots of pictures in and around the opera house......I had lots of fun and I plan to go again to see a ballet and Carmen and La Boheme. I wished we had more time to take pictures but seriously, once the show is over, they like literally shove you out the door....we couldn’t even take more pics....in fact, when we went to get our coats out of coat check, they turned off the lights -_-

I'm keeping busy so I forget that I am home sick (I am also a little jet lagged.......i don't sleep until 1am and wake up around 10am....) But I miss all of you guys =P all your e-mails/msgs warm my <3 thanks so much ^.^

Pre Departure Sentiments =P

Take off day =P Finally, after about a year of waiting and fantasizing about exchange, the day’s finally here.

Leading up to today, there have been some crazy adventures. In addition to working in Dec/Jan,(what’s up with the crazy Euro?!), I’ve been trying to see as many friends as I can. In the beginning of January, it was quite relaxing after a crazy, emotional December; I would go to work (while PM-ing Lon Lon hahaha) and relax in the evening. Most of the time was spent going to yoga, skating (remember, Karim, Saima, Andrew, and Tims how much fun that was =P) or even playing squash for the first time. It never really hit me that I was leaving for exchange....it felt like the calm before the storm.....

I guess I should’ve known how hectic it was going to get when Saima helped me plan a gathering at the Lobby. Honestly, I was so touched that everyone, in an evening where the windchill was about minus 25 degrees Celcius, came out downtown in formal attire, to see me and each other. While the party should have been the evening to see everyone before i left, the week that followed made it seem that I was never going to come back. I think I have so many precious memories in those last two weeks that I think i was a little sad to leave you guys behind....
The crazy skiing experience (thanks to Andrew for being sooooooo encouraging)....the hectic one-day Ottawa trip where I didn’t get my visa but I met so many new friends instead =) .... the long talks I had with my girlfriends of European life, our childhood and precious memories that we shared.....I couldn’t have asked for better friends to see me off =D

Even up to the day I left, I still received many well wishes: text messages, voicemails, e-mails, phone calls, etc. I have never felt so blessed in my life. I think you finally realized how lucky you are when your girlfriends drive to your house and see you for as little as two hours because they were unable to attend other events....or when she’s been to the hospital because she fainted but the only thing on her mind was making sure you knew she was going to miss you (i <3 you!!!)...or a gf who wakes up bright and early to pick you up to go all the way to Markham to ensure that you’re completely ready for ANYTHING (and she meant ANYTHING!!! Lol) that life was going to throw my way during exchange.

You guys ALL know who you are....I will miss you but it`s only 5 months =P If anything, come visit me in VIENNA!!! *mwah*