pisa and florence: 26-27 may, day 3 and 4

pisa

pisa is a small little town an hour plus train ride from florence. soon after arriving in florence and settling our accomodation in the lao pok hostel, we set off for pisa and spent the rest of our evening there. weather was cool. nice and quiet town...

beautiful sunset at the train station




the leaning tower of pisa, and the leaning gf of...eh..singapore! it's really to see everyone taking photos of themselves 'pushing the tower'.




duomo


a couple taking their wedding photos

florence

teeny weeny smart car on the streets. they are rather common sights in europe. i wouldnt mind owning one of them! easier to park and drive!


ponto vecchio, the oldest surviving bridge in the city


michelangelo's very famous david. photo taken illegally! this was where my bf got caught by the museum person in charge haha.


postcard. italian artists during the renaissance period had a fascination with human anatomy. there are many sculptures of naked people in the museums.



florence's duomo, a humongous church!






the kawaii italian girl that ventured into my room and started speaking to me in a long string of italian. i tried asking her for her name and her age but obviously both of us had no clue what each other are talking about...oh well..but we managed on fine haha. she was adorable! but kind of creepy to have someone suddenly coming into my room. she was the landlord's daughter i think.


streets lined up with vendors selling over priced souvenirs and fake goods. it's like those in hk and bangkok.


stumbling upon a wedding! everyone stood waiting, but i dont see the groom or the bride.

venice: 24 -25 may, day 1 and 2

venice is truly a city that stands unique. no other place comes close!

arrival at the hotel in venice we stayed at. it's called villa dori, and is located on the venice mainland. not everyone might know that the venice that is popularly known as with all her famous canals and gondolas, is actually an island! an island perhaps the size of pulau ubin. it's possible to finish exploring the island in a day, by foot, and by taking the water buses. anyway the hotel we stayed at had a very venetian/european design to the rooms. very pretty!

the main 'highway' of venice, the grand canal. you can see people having dinner by the river everywhere, roses are plentiful, decorating balconies and cafes.


pretty gondolas, but we didnt get one..because it's supposed to be really expensive


a fishing market ashore, boats parked alongside


beautiful venetian masquerade, they are sold everywhere in venice.


me and the..erm..3 white angels!


the busiest bank in venice, near st mark's


taken on another small island called murano, slightly further from venice


tranquility




i ate gelato everyday when i was in italy!


hot gondola man!! whoo hooo~ most of the gondola men and the store vendors are young, tanned, and very good looking. a very strange sight! not the usual lao ah pek that i had expected.


pigeons, pigeons everywhere




dearie trying to tempt a pigeon to fly onto his hand.


st marks. packed with people!




doge's palace






on the left you can see a water taxi stand. the white motorboats are the water taxis. behind it is the gondola stand, and behind that is the water bus stop.


venice at night..even lovelier than it was in the day

venice has got to be one of my fav cities. the roads are canals, the public transport is boats, and their zebra crossings are kind of like the stairs and small bridges everywhere. it's a pretty place, but there isn't really much to do there. i think the entire city is just catered for tourists that's all. it's a place to visit, but probably not a very good place to live.

4 seasons, it's summer!

spring, summer, autumn, winter..may has passed and june has came. it was warm when we touched down to eindhoven a few hours ago. the weather is similar to singapore's.. i was just thinking how nice it would be if i could stay at a place with 4 seasons.. your mood will change will the season... cold and depressing in winter, bright and sunny in summer! it's summer! true, blue summer! and i was happy just strolling in the park, enjoying the warmth and greenery around me. then one may ask, how about singapore, it's summer all year round..so are we always happy?? nah..i think one needs a 'low' occasionally to appreciate the high, when it comes that is.

musical delights

caught les miserables at the queen's theatre in london today. it was fantastic!!! totally awesome..we watched the matinée show and surprisingly, it was full. we were lucky to get very good stall seats, 5th row from the front, at 22 pounds only, student prices. there was even a standing ovation at the end. the sets, the costumes, the music..it was just amazing. they put the plays in singapore to shame. i've watched mamma mia and oliver twist in singapore before, but the feeling and atmosphere is just so different. everyone here is like totally into it. you can tell...i love the songs especially.. the actors were so good that some of the angmohs sitting next to us were moved to tears.

the final battle

take my hand
and lead me to salvation
take my love
for love is everlasting
and remember that the truth was once spoken
to love another person
is to see the face of God

i just think it's damn cool that you can buy a tic anytime and watch a play as and when you like. it's as convenient as watching a movie in singapore. why cant we have more of that!!! i totally love plays!

i'm getting out of here tmr. happy because i do not have to endure the exorbitant prices anymore, sad cos i feel that there are a lot of things i've yet to discover about london, but can only do so if i stay here for a longer duration. it's a love-hate relationship really.

anyway it has been a long day. tired. nitey.

london blues

it's 11.40pm now in london, am feeling rather bored cos the guys are playing a modified version of bridge. 5 is a crowd, so here i am blogging.

anyway current position is london, kensington area. thanks to tianxiang, dearie's ex classmate from rj, we managed to save on accommodation, which is a big thing here! he is here on internship, and his company sponsored him a beautiful fraser service apartment for the time he'll be working here. the apartment is fantastic! it's like a hotel, possibly even nicer than one. a living room, a small kitchen, a bathroom, a bedroom and a balcony. there are people to clean the apartment everyday and there is dishwasher provided. the rent here is 1000 pounds per week! it's crazy.. i honestly wouldnt mind living here haha..

but having said that, london is unimaginably expensive. you really cant imagine how expensive it is until you stay here. a BK meal is 5 pounds, a single trip on the subway is 4 pounds, a bus trip is 2 pounds, an ice cream is 4 pounds.. 1 pound is around $3, start converting. an average decent meal here we have is 10 pounds. note, it's just an average meal. if we're downgrade a little, we can find food for 5 or 6 pounds. we had crepes with tianxiang for 15 pounds yesterday, and dinner with the other rj pple at this chinese restaurant, which cost us 68 pounds for 5 people. but when we're alone, we hardly eat anything. we rather go hungry than part with our precious money! we walk most mostly, because every trip on the tube means more money down the drain. nothing is buyable here. we spend every penny carefully.

it's a tough life. i'm a irritated, because i cant eat as and when i like. i'm starting to appreciate hawkers centre in singapore more and more. even if singapore seems too distant, just give me holland or italy, buying in euros is still a more attractive notion than pounds.

nonetheless having said all that, i DO like london. it feels...alive! no big deal about the architecture..buckingham palace, westminster abbey, london eye, st paul cathedral...what is it that i've seen here that i havent seen in the other european cities? it's not the buildings; it's the people and the feeling the entire city gives me. everyone walks very fast and purposefully, if you know what i mean. they dress very well too. limos and big car names litter the roads. there's a tinge of anticipation in the air, as if something exciting is about to happen any minute.

or maybe it's just me. haha. not everyone thinks like me.

i've heard numerous people telling me before that london is bleak and gloomy, and therefore they hate this place. it's either pure luck, or it must be the month of june, we had only bright and sunny weather here since i've arrived. not a drop of rain or grey skies! not what i've imagined, i think we're just lucky.

we also realised many of our friends are studying in london, especially the imperial college, and probably 3/4 of them are from rj. we visited this 'hdb' somewhere in kensington too, which is occupied entirely by singaporean students. met up with rachel, still as amusing as ever. kailun, my ex classmate is staying there too. siwei was visiting on holiday, and there are at least 5 or 6 other rj guys around. i felt 'singaporeanised' last night. haha. we call them the atas gang. rich and smart. how can anyone survive in london seriously, i think i'll just stay at home and eat bread everyday if i were to stay here.

oh but one thing abt this place is that london has many nice parks. the hype park, the green park and the st james park. nice, big green pastures, ponds, pelicans, pigeons, geese, swans, benches, memorial structures...how nice it would be to be able to take a stroll in the park after a stressful day at work! especially during this period of time when it's cool, but not too chilly. i like that sort of tranquility that the city has to offer despite its crazy pace of life. it's where you find peace from all the buzz and bustle from the business centre.

i'm really sleepy now..when are these guys ever going to finish playing spade?? *yawns*

europe is getting warmer. a good sign. i'm starting to appreciate the sun more and more.

munich facts

just back from a 8 hour journey from munich to eindhoven. wasnt exactly a fantastic experience travelling on ice, the german express train cos we were allocated a smoking carriage initially and the smell was just unbearable! it was nothing less than torturous, so after enduring for 45 mins, we decided to find some empty seats. we managed to find one at the train cafe, yes they have some sort of restaurant on the train that serves beer and food. strangely the waitresses on board didnt chase us away cos we didnt buy anything, but they chased some other passengers away, germans i presume. maybe they dont know how to speak english!! or feel that their english is too lousy to convey what they want to say to us! haha..anyway i dont care..we had the seats to ourselves the entire journey. btw on our way there it was even more ridiculous, we actually had the exact same seats as another couple! a double booking! what a flaw in their system! i was damn pissed off, luckily we managed to find empty seats.........

the ICE on the right, colours a little similar to the mrt eh.....


but it's 3 times faster! haha..

anyway we attended this really good free munich walk tour this morning. it was very enlightening, i feel i know so much more about munich after that! after you've learn about the history, that's when you can truly appreciate the city..appreciate i'm walking down the street that the nazis marched decades ago, standing on the spot that hilter's bodyguards took 11 gun shots for him..blah blah..

that's the very humourous tour guide in red! his name is dave!

so before i forget, just some interesting facts i've learnt today that i think would be cool to share with you!

1. oktoberfest which is held in munich began as a form of celebration for the marriage between king ludwig and his wife, theresia. it was basically just a month long of drinking and partying. everyone had so much fun that they decided to do it every year, until now. it used to be held in the month of oct, as the name suggests, but now it has been brought forward to the 3rd week of sept because of climate changes. this festival attracts many tourists, particularly the aussies. when these aussies tend to get drunk and lose their passports, wallets etc, and it became just a major problem every year that the australia decided to set up a temporary embassy in munich every year just during the period of the oktoberfest! the only aussie embassy in germany is in berlin. they drank 6 million litres of beer at oktoberfest every year!

me and the bavarian lion, drinking beeerrrrr!

2. most buildings are built in a dome shape, functional in the sense that it can drain off water. however the opera house in munich is built in such a way that is entirely opposite: it curves in, an anti-dome, collecting water so that in the case of a fire, they can turn on a tap and water will just flow from the roof to put out the fire. 12 yrs after it was built, finally a fire broke loose!!! the moment they've all been waiting for!! however....this happened in the month of jan, and there was only ice on the roof...-_-...so how now brown cow?? all liquids were frozen...what other choices do they have in abundance which is in the form of liquid..? BEER!!! so the people formed a human chain from the opera house to the city's brewery, hofbrauhaus (which wasnt far), and passed barrels of beer along to put out the fire, and it worked. like..WOW.

the opera house..looking pretty much ordinary


marienplatz, munich's busiest district, especially for shopping!

3. apparently germany has the highest beer consumption in the world..on national level, a german drinks 0.5 litres of beer every day. in munich, it's 3 times that of the national level, they drink on average 1.5 litres of beer every day. that's a lot if you think about it.....i'm not sure i even drink that much water everyday haha.

consumes 10 thousands litres of beer every day!

4. the crime rate in munich is very low and the police are basically bored people with nothing much to do. so when you do get caught committing a crime, there are simply no excuses. a man was fined 30 euros for putting one of his foot on the train seat. haha. from observation, germans are very law abiding people! in the subway stations, you dont need to scan a card or insert any ticket to enter. it's all down to your own integrity to buy tickets, and conductors supposedly do appear on trains to check but so far i have never encountered any. germans DO buy the tickets..unlike us, singaporeans...if this is the situation in singapore, i think there'll be chaos. we already have aunties going up buses pretending they have tapped their ez link cards when they didnt.

park your dog here!! erm...

5. hilter didnt 'seize the land by force'; he was elected, legally by the people. however, at the height of their so called 'popularity', the nazis party only obtained 44% of the votes. so the majority of the people were actually opposed to them. we dont hear much of the german resistance because they exist mainly in passive form, like taking a route to avoid the nazis every day, get caught and get sent off to concentration camps..

6. berlin and munich have very different ways of coping with their ugly past. after WWII, much of germany's buildings were destroyed. berlin recovered the city by erecting new, modern looking buildings. huge, open memorials for the jews. lots of glass symbolising transparency. they are open, and they make a big show to let everyone know that they are open about their guilt. however munich coped with the past in a very different way. buildings were reconstructed as how they looked like before the war, as a matter of fact, close attention was paid to small details. there is hardly any memorials around..and there arent much clues that the war has even existed before. i'm not sure, but i guess they probably cope with it by coming to terms with the past..and moving on. dont they always say that hardest person to forgive is always yourself..?

a small plaque to commemorate the 6 munich police who were killed during the first clash between the nazis' party and the state police

anyway like my bf says, the new generation of germans has no links or whatsoever with whatever that happened during WWII, and i dont think cruelty is heritable. in conclusion, i do quite like germany, or rather munich, since i've only been there. it feels much like singapore...modern, efficient, everything runs like a clockwork. clean, organised, and very safe! definitely not something you would conclude from paris or italy!

a panoramic picture of munich from the top of the clock tower!

wa sey didnt realised i've typed so much. hope i didnt bore you guys to death. okay got to catch the plane to london in 7 hours' time. yawns.

münchen

am in munich now. hmm it's a little disappointing! yes yes it's still nice and everything, it has all the characteristics of a typical european city, you know, the usual museums, churches, beautiful neo-classical buildings, comfy chilly weather that only gets irritating when the wind blows, buskers on the streets..wah okay that's quite a bit eh...haha.. anyway what i'm trying to say is that after visiting so many european cities, munich feels like just another one of them. there's nothing to make it stand out..at least that's how i feel as of now!

still still..it's romantic, just being here with my dearr dearrr..:)

and oh oh...i forgot to mention there's a whole long long shopping street full of boutiques! yay! zara, mango, h&m and all the funny funny german brands. shopping paradise!! but no time to shop leh, they close really early, at 7.30pm sigh. and it seems a little stupid to come all the way here just to shop when i can do that at home and get lower prices. oh wellies....

off to füssen tmr to see the fairy tale castle! apparently it was the one that inspired walt disney castles...sleeping beauty...whee~

round western europe in 30 days

may
18 : arrival in amsterdam
19-22: paris
23: back in eindhoven, holland
24-25: venice
26-27: florence/pisa
28-30: rome
31: back in eindhoven, holland

june
1-3: munich, maybe fussen (my bf wants to see the fairy tale castle in fussen, which is 2 hrs away from munich)
4-7: london
8: back in eindhoven
9: possibly brussels, belgium (chocolates! yum yum..)
10-13: barcelona
14: eindhoven, maastricht/den haag/rotterdam (the rest of holland)
15: 11am morning flight back to singapore
16: arrival back in singapore at 6am! home sweet home.....

so it's to munich tmr morning! it was a very last min decision. we booked our train tics and accomodation only a few hours ago. we'll be taking the german ICE, a beautiful white bullet train. it's a mad rush, but i guess we'll manage! :)

i love my dearie..he has spent so much time and effort planning this trip and so far, it has been a rather smooth ride. thank you my dear! may the insipid understand one day that love comes a long way beyond face value.