Dec 2006 travels

Some memorable pictures of my travels.. (Sussex, London, Brighton n Paris)

Baking mincepies, pasties n cherry cakes with Hannah and her mum.
Walking The Downs in Sussex.
(my 1st time wearing wellington boots!)


Some snapshots of Paris. C'est magnifique!


The Notre Dame
Versailles Chateau


Me with Aidan's family during Christmas time.

 

can't sleeep

Couldn't sleep properly last night; due to a combination of factors..

1) Seriously overate last night during the CU social at Red Hot. Chinese-Thai-Italian-Indian fusion buffet. Soooo good!! I was so high! :) Haven't had hot off the wok stir-fry since I got here. Ahhh.. and excellent desserts! Cost me 15pounds though.. Hao gui ah!

2) Damn fire alarm went off for at least half an hour non-stop at 3am. I didn't want to get out of bed so I spent the whole time with my fingers in my ears. -_-"

3) Thinking of the multitude of things I have to do today b4 I leave tmr morning. Worrywart!

And so here I am, at 8am in the morning when the sky is still surprisingly dark.
It feels so surreal- Yesterday during lunch Fifi and I were talking about it; how it feels so unreal even being right here in Nottingham. And in a few days time, Europe beckons. :) It's hard to believe that I've been here for 3 months- it seems like it has been such a short time; I still remember so clearly my farewell departure at Changi Airport, landing at Heathrow and taking that bus down to the University of Nottingham where life started anew. Touring the beautiful University Park campus for the first time and saying "Lovely!" or "So nice!" at least 20 times. Being enthralled by the splendid display of nature right before my eyes- squirrels! swans, geese, sucks by the lake! gently swaying willow trees outside my room. The vastness of The Downs. Breathing in the crisp, fresh air and thinking of how Mummy would have loved to be there too. All the fu li zi! Haha.. Exploring little pockets of beauty- the gardens dotted all around the campus. Thanking God every morning for allowing me to be here. Reading a Psalm every morning..

A new whole chapter of my life has begun and it's steadily gaining momentum. People have left and are leaving, some for good and whom I may never see again. Bare rooms all around. SQ was recounting his memories with me a few hours before he left- taking a taxi down to Notts from the airport for the first time, The Downs, people... 1 term has just flown by, so much to do, so little time. Surreal. Paradoxical- In some ways I feel like I've barely arrived- Some things, like speaking in the British accent, finding my way about town are still alien to me. And yet in other ways, I feel like I've settled into a comfortable routine that has been part of my life all this while- Classes, a firm group of friends in hall, trusting in a God who never leaves me nor forsakes me.

And tomorrow morning I leave Nottingham for Sussex and Paris. It's mind-blowing. Hannah was telling me the things we'll do at her place- baking, shopping, going for a carol service, decorating a real christmas tree, going for short trips around the region... Another set of new experiences. Then it's Paris! Aidan stays really near the Versailles Palace! ^^ Then London; meeting up with Grace Chong, from Dunman High and VJ and maybe JiaChuan. Nice to see familiar faces again. :)

Thankful.


-Carol

Things I have to do

1. Finish up speech for the last Constitutional law tutorial.
Role-play for human rights lawyer. AGAIN! Haha.. I just have this affinity for human rights.

2. Impt- Finish up Christmas cards; so that Min can post it for me in Singapore.

3. Start Understanding Law coursework- Aim to finish at least the readings b4 I get kicked out of halls on Sat.

4. Map out routes for my Sussex/Paris/London trip.. Sure don't wanna get lost when I'm travelling alone! I'm not even sure where the Nottingham train station is. -_-"
Research on what I wanna do at Hannah's and Aidan's.

5. PACK.

6. Stay off the internet- Number 1 source of distraction + tiredness.

7. Call home. :)

hall formal

Sherwood Hall Formal DinnerThe Asian girls
HK, Singapore, S Korea unite!
Me and Fifi
SQ and me
Gwen me Milad

 

Swan Lake

Swan Lake by the St. Petersberg Ballet Company
An enchanting night
Outside Nottingham's Theatre Royale
KyungHee, JaYoung, me and Fifi

The Dance of the Virgins

Sheer Opulence!

The Prima Ballerina (extremely graceful)

 

Bonfire Night

Guy Fawkes Day

Bonfire Night at Forest Fields recreation grounds

(I wished I were a child again!)

Milad and his beard! lol
The carousel:)
Fireworks exploding right above us. INCREDIBLE!

Me and Fifi- again! :)

Pictures

Stratford-upon-Avon

The Birthplace of William Shakespeare

I like this quote.. poignant.

me and the korean girls

english cream tea.... mmmmm :)

A tribute to SQ

SQ ( A Singaporean on exchange from the USA) left for good in the wee hours of the morning...
There was some closure at least- But will miss him so much! He's one of the few people whom I trust and can open up to. He's also a very good listener who gives solid advice! D Block just won't be the same without SQ- no more hearing his LOUD singing in the shower or LOUD laughter which reverberates through the whole block. Or his popping by into my room to chat- so convenient, he stays upstairs, right above me. Don't really want to go upstairs anymore or hand in his keys at the hall reception..

Didn't really wanna talk about it this morning- It is very sad when someone leaves after having lived together..Painful goodbyes are part and parcel of communal hall life I guess, and a drawback of being close to exchange students. =(
Next term it's Gwen and Milad's turn and it's even worse because the chances of ever seeing them again are even lesser! I'll miss the crazy French and German.

Still, I won't trade getting to know them for anything; the past 3 months toegther have been simply awesome!