Starting afresh in Boston

Probably the last post

2007-06-19T23:36:00.000-07:00

Came back from Yellowstone yesterday. Yellowstone was great! There's just so many things to see there. 2 days was just not enough. I would say you need maybe at least 4 days to see best of Yellowstone and if you're the hiking type perhaps 1 and half weeks. Yellowstone is probably the best trip i had in the states so far. But I'm not uploading any photos here as connection is just too slow. I uploaded them to facebook instead. You guys can see them if you're interested when i get back. Anyway I'll be hanging around Davis for a week before heading down to San Francisco for 3 days and then it's home sweet home! I guess I'll be catching fantastic 4 and ocean 13 here and figure out how to pack my luggage. And yes this is probably my last post since i wouldn't be blogging after i go back. Good bye to all those who actually bothered to read this crappy blog of mine!

Exams

2007-06-09T19:52:00.000-07:00

You either loathe them or you hate them.

Packing

2007-06-06T19:43:00.000-07:00

With less than a month to my flight back, i decided to do some packing today to gauge how much luggage space i have left. Remember when i said i have tons of luggage space to buy stuff? I take back my words. haha

Happy Birthday Chen Qingyi!

2007-06-06T00:00:00.000-07:00

Remember to book the Bangkok hotels! haha

Big Sur

2007-06-04T00:40:00.000-07:00

On the 25th of May 2007, I went on my first ever backpacking trip to the mountains! I signed up for the trip with Yoora and Youngju and later they asked two of their friends to go as well. So i ended up with 4 korean gals. Managed to pick up some korean from the trip as well. haha. The hike up was tough, especially with the heavy backpack weighing us down. But the view was worth it! The feeling of standing top of the mountains looking down at the clouds was just awesome! haha. The three days was tiring though. And there's no toilets or showers. So we went 3 days without bathing and i guess no one had to dig a hole. First thing everyone did at the end of the 3 days when we hiked back down to the carpark was to go to the toilet. haha

At the carpark before we hiked up. From left to right: Conrad(our guide), Hae Yoon, Grace, Yoora, Young Ju and me.

After about 4-5 hrs of climbing, we finally reached the camp site. Everyone's tired.

Me blowing my inflattable mattress. Tough work. Took me more than 10 mins.

Hae Yoon taking a nap.

Camping beside the river! How nice! At night you could really hear the sound of water flowing down the river.

Us resting at the tent.

Mike filtering the river water. Yup, we had to drink river water.

Preparation for dinner

Waiting for food. hungry.......

See the red piece of cloth? That was my sleeping bag. Nearly froze to death at nite. haha

Hae Yoong and Young Ju doing yoga in the morning.

And so we continued our hike up the mountain but without our backpacks, it was much easier.

Everyone enjoying the view

Standing above the clouds. woohoo!

Lake Berryassa

2007-06-03T22:13:00.001-07:00

Nothing much to say, just nice scenery. Too bad we were in a rush to see grace and floris's dance competition. If not I could have stayed there all day. A great place to picnic. And somehow i think i really suck at taking photos. The place looks so much better in person. Or maybe it's just hard to capture beauty on camera. Ok but i still suck at taking pictures. haha

Berkeley + Stanford

2007-06-03T04:35:00.000-07:00

Berkeley

This guy's asking Bush and Blair to commit suicide for the "war crimes" they have committed.

Stanford

Really nice campus. makes you wonder how much they spent on it.

New York 19-24 April

2007-06-02T23:41:00.000-07:00

Columbia University. My second visit in 8 months? haha

Times Square!!!!

The famous naked cowboy in Times Square.

Protest of Armenian genocide in Times Square

Singapore Day!

They freaking fly the Singapore hawkers over!

One of the most expensive apartments in New York. According to mike's fren, JJ, just one apartment can cost 20 over million USD. Pure madness.

Singapore Cafe in Chinatown. Don't remember seeing this the last time i came. Guess it's new.

I guess the Singapore embassy is somewhere here. I couldn't find the entrance. Maybe it's inside the bank.

Topless model in A&F

Trump Tower

New York public library. Came here to use their wireless to catch Man U vs Milan. haha

This is for Janet. haha

And this is for Wanlin. Juz kidding!

M&M World

Nah. i din watched this.

I watched this instead! Current best musical in Broadway. Tix were sold out til june when i was there in April but i was real lucky to get the lottery tix!

No photography allowed....

I watched 4 muscials in Broadway! haha. it's all the rush/lottery tix which cost abt 20 plus each except pirate queen where i paid half price(60usd)

Mike's room where i spend my 5 nights

Oh oh i set up a facebook account! Add me! Internet connection is damn crappy. Had a hard time uploading these pics. I'll try to upload the berkeley and stanford pics 2morrow.

Happy Birthday Wanlin!

2007-06-02T00:00:00.000-07:00

Be happy but stay away from drinks! haha

Updates

2007-05-29T12:42:00.000-07:00

Just came back from backpacking to Big Sur last night. Taking a break from rushing my project report in an hour's time. Will post pictures of my New York, Berkeley, Stanford, Lake Berryassa and Big Sur trips this weekend. Yes yes, i have been to all those places and not posting about them. Don't worry, I haven't been slacking on my touring. haha. Ok, back to my report.

DKNY watches

2007-05-15T21:45:00.000-07:00

Ok this is the best pic i could take. Just tell me what you want. Not sure whether they'll be around the next time i go but i'll check. Don't worry about baggage space for me. i have tons of it. haha

Misc photos

2007-05-15T21:34:00.000-07:00

These are photos that i got from the rest of the gang. not sure whether i posted them b4 though. haha

Somewhere in LA. Forget where though. hehe

NBA match@Staples Center! Washington Wizards Vs LA Clippers

Tired....

Me and my winning jackpot machine. haha

Me and my winnings! haha lost most of them in the end though.

Happy Birthday Carmen Yang Xueyin!

2007-05-14T00:22:00.000-07:00

yes, dun worry. i'll get your dkny watches and coach bags. haha

new post soon

2007-05-09T20:34:00.000-07:00

okok i promise i'll blog about my new york trip and about the ucd open house this weekend plus all i had done so far, after i'm done with my tests. haha sorry for not blogging for so long.

Why no new post?

2007-04-27T20:39:00.000-07:00

So why are there no new posts lately? The answer is simple. I'm lazy.

San Diego

2007-04-17T21:54:00.000-07:00

San Diego's the start of the crazy slackers' trip(those who were brave to skip the first week of school). And it turned out to be the best part of our trip! Shows in seaworld were nice, the zoo was good and the beaches were great! It 's a much better place than Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Not being too touristy, San Diego downtown gives you a more "homely" feel. A very nice place to sit down and relax at the beaches. Anyway our first night was spend at usa hostels. And like the Los Angeles usa hostel, we were split up. We were of course not happy about it since I had specifically booked one room 6 people. SO we decided to stay one night and look for accommodation elsewhere. Wenchun told us about priceline and we decided to give it a try. I jokingly put 100usd for a 4star and above deluxe hotel( a normal budget hotel could cost that much already). And guess what? We got Omni Hotel, a 5 star hotel in downtown! haha. It was great and by squeezing 6 pple, we actualli paid less than if we were to stay at the hostel. Big room, cable tv, nice bed and free wireless!

GasLamp quarters in downtown. The restaurants have these gas lamps outside to keep customers warm. Forgot to take a picture of the gaslamps though.

Dinner at Friday's. Shrimp and chicken. It was good!

Toilet of our 5 star hotel.

Pics from seaworld

No joke man, The dolphin really jumped very high over the rope.

Pics from San Diego Zoo

Very nice looking wolf. Wish I could have it as pet. haha

Ah Meng???

We had a breakfast at Hash House, a famous place for brunch in San Diego. We had to wait like erm...40mins? to get seated. The food was good and the servings were huge.

Just look at the size of the pancake man!

Old Town San Diego. A fire broke out here before the residents moved to downtown.

Yes yes! Indication that it's Spring!

Joyce and Floris. The sign says "City's Best 2007 Pizza"

The "Best" pizza. It was ok but not realli fantastic.

Pacific Beach

Mission Bay

Sunset@Coronado island

Sunset in San Diego was really beautiful!!!

We bought a whole Godiva Chocolate cheesecake from Cheesecake factory! It was damn nice!

But one cake was too much for 5 of us. It became a torture towards the end. It was super sinful as well! I think each of us had like 1500 calories!

Mass shooting in Virginia Tech

2007-04-16T21:23:00.000-07:00

Deadliest mass shooting in US history.

To all PKD people: Let's hope that all our friends there are safe and sound.

Grand Canyon

2007-04-12T22:44:00.000-07:00

Grand Canyon was nice! But the day trip cost 90usd. And if you asked me, I don't think it's very worth it. Why? We spend like probably more than 10 hrs on the bus and less than 1.5 hrs at 2 locations for some phototaking. Can't really see much with the limited amount of time. By the time we reach the place, I was like so drained out from the long bus ride and by the time i recover it's probably time to get back to the bus. Those thinking of going should probably spend at least 1 night in Grand Canyon. Anyway, here are the pictures from Grand Canyon

Las Vegas- Land of extreme extravagance

2007-04-11T23:40:00.000-07:00

Las Vegas is truly a land of extravagance. You have to be there to see it. The kind of things the hotels do to attract customers is just incredible. All the hotels have different themes and they realli make sure their hotel fits the theme.

For The Venetian, they really make it look like venice with a fake sky.

For Paris, they freaking build an Eiffel tower!

And yes New York New York, what else but our dear Statue of Liberty!erm... Brooklyn bridge?

And yes... there's a pyramid in Vegas as well.

SO for those who are too lazy to travel, you can go Vegas. They have all the famous landmarks around the world all at one place! Oh for those of you wondering, i did gamble in Vegas. Something realli funni happened. I started with 5 bucks on jackpot and was happily pressing max bet all the time, thinking that i was betting 15cents a game. I thought i was winning like 15 bucks when Marn Chi came over and i told him i'll stop when i hit 10 bucks. He was watching me happily pressing away until he noticed that the credits seem a bit too much for 10 bucks. he told me and I decided to cash out and the reciept wrote 107 dollars! I was betting $1.50 a game with a starting capital of 5 bucks! haha. But well, i lose the bulk of my winnings to blackjack. haha

View from the flight to Vegas.

My hotel, Treasure Island

Free performance by treasure island. Scantiy dressed female pirates. hmm.....

Fountain performance by some hotel(forgot which hotel)

The Bellagio

Madamn Tussaud's at The Venetian. I din go in. This was what was displayed outside.

Blue man group model

What is Vegas without buffet? Vegas has one of the best buffets at a relatively cheap price. The food was good and the variety plenty. Overate like hell. Turned out to be one of the worst buffets of my life. hahaha

We stayed in Treasure Island for 2 nights and the non-crazy slacker's gang(those who din want to miss school) went back. The rest of us moved to downtown on the 3rd nite. Four Queens is where we stayed. It was cheap. It cost 49 per night for 2 queen size beds. Well...it was the rate for 2 people but actually we sneaked in 3 extra. haha. Downtown looks pretty interesting but too bad we din have much time to explore it. It looked like a poorer version of the Strip.

Los Angeles 2!

2007-04-11T19:48:00.000-07:00

Just before the Jurassic Park ride

Santa Monica beach

Venice Beach

Staples Center! Watched LA Clippers Vs Washington Wizards! Pic of me inside will be uploaded next time.

Vote for G5 S.H.A.G.!!!

2007-04-10T23:10:00.000-07:00

Everyone please vote for G5 S.H.A.G at http://www.brother-contest.com.sg/stardust/stardust_main.html

There's prizes to be won! Vote for S.H.A.G 3 times everyday and stand a chance to win a MP3 player! I want a celebrity friend!

Los Angeles!

2007-04-05T20:23:00.000-07:00

Yes! Finally my internet connections back! Have been tapping into another block's connection for the past few days since i came back from my extended spring break. The connection was very bad. Surfing was extremely slow and kept getting disconnected. Not saying that the current internet is fantastic but still it's much better now. So what have i done for spring break? Went to Los Angeles, Las Vegas and San diego. San Diego was part of the crazy slackers' trip for those who skipped the 1st week of school. And boy, are we glad we skipped school. San Diego's the best part of the trip! Los Angeles was extremely disappointing. I expected Hollywood to be more lively and glamarous. Instead it looked pretty run down with nothing interesting at all. Transportation was horrible. Perhaps the best part of LA is santa monica beach and venice beach but if you ask me, i'll think Virginia beach is better. Anyway here are the pics for LA. Will post pics of Vegas and San Diego later.

The hostel we stayed in. It claimed to be the number 1 hostel. If you ask me, I wouldn't go there again.

Opposite our hostel

Crazy students running against the direction of the escalator. I took no part in it.

My governor!

Walt Disney concert Hall

Universal Studios

Universal City

Singapore Cafe in LA downtown!

Grauman's Chinese theatre

hmm....

Filming of "the man". Don't ask me. I have no idea what show it is also.

Approved vandalism?

Happy Birthday Lester Lee Song Ze aka Chao Ah Beng!!!!

2007-04-03T22:40:00.000-07:00

Looking forward to our mahjong sessions again and please stop looking beng. haha

Happy Belated Birthday Lay Siew Ling!

2007-03-30T22:22:00.000-07:00

Sorry for being late! Travelling now and only just managed to get proper internet connection!

Spring break!

2007-03-20T23:59:00.000-07:00

It's the Spring break! Weather's getting warm but can still be cold sometimes. Cycled to watch a movie today and was shivering in the cold. Anyway, will be travelling to Los Angeles, Las Vegas and San Diego tomorrow! Hope it will be fun! And wish me luck in Vegas! Whether i have a summer vacation depends on it! haha. just kidding.

A day to remember.....

2007-03-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

On March 18 2007, the day before my last paper, I, Quek Swee Lye, finally felt like a student in the United States of America for the first time.

I just want to pass......

2007-03-16T00:02:00.000-07:00

2 papers tomorrow. Have never been so unprepared and yet still so heck care. Found that fox tv broadcasts some of their tv show episodes online. So on the day before my papers i spend 3/4 of the day watching a whole series of The Winner(new sitcom by creators of family guy) plus American Dad. And now here i am reading through the chapters for the first time the day before the paper. Can you believe that? First time i'm saying this before exams. JUST LET ME PASS.....not an A or B. Just PASS. :)

Exams next week?

2007-03-09T17:58:00.000-08:00

Been having too much junk food to my liking. So much that i'm forcing myself to a diet of vegetables only for dinner. Wonder how long this will last. haha

Anyway...time flies! It's exams next week yet i never felt like i had realli started studying. it's been a quarter of sub standard homeworks(if i did them) and last min preparation for tests. Can't imagine myself doing this in NUS. Just unthinkable. Have not been attending classes and have no idea what's my class about and YET i still don't feel like studying. Perhaps i like the challenge of last min preparation? That's bullshit. I'm just lazy.

Nice mtv

2007-03-06T11:35:00.000-08:00

Mike recommended this mtv from youtube. Liked it a lot thats why i'm posting it here!

Augustana-Boston

PS: The lyrics has no relation to what i feel about california.

$3 Haagen Daaz and Ben & Jerry's

2007-03-05T18:28:00.000-08:00

This is what happens when you have 3 dollars Haagen Daaz and Ben & Jerrys.

Yosemite!

2007-03-04T12:10:00.000-08:00

WARNING: Lots of pictures! Uploaded the pictures in school which has fast connection so just went into upload frenzy haha. Yosemite was a great experience. First time camped out in the mountains. Was pretty worried about the cold but it turned out pretty alright! We were provided with great sleeping bags which protected us very well from the cold. Anyway most of the pics are from grace's camera since i din bring mine. Thanks Grace! I was scared that my compact camera might be too fragile to withstand the cold. Afterall i only bought it one week before i came. So decided not to risk it. Anyway thanks to all those who brought theirs and took pictures for me and sorry for jumping into every phototaking i saw. haha.

4.30am in the morning...waiting for the van to bring us to Yosemite!

Squeezing in the van to keep warm while waiting for the other van to arrive

Arrival at Yosemite!

Yosemite falls

Act cute

Meditation under the falls. Reminds me of a similar pic taken in a park somewhere in Richmond.

Me and Hanyang with a large "snowball"

Our failed attempt to throw it. It was too heavy. haha

Me, Stella and Lindsey(our guide)

This looks so christmasy

Phototaking opportunity. haha

Another phototaking opportunity

Just stand in front of any cameras

Pitching our tent

Happy face after setting up our tent

Tents set up and good to go!

Beautiful scenery. Pictures can only tell so much. You have to really witness it yourself.

Nice pic of Hyery. Timing was perfect. haha

Nice warm dinner. Anything that can keep us warm taste good.

Snug in our cozy sleeping bags

It snowed throughout the night!!!! Our tents were covered with snow!

Check out the thick layer formed on the table

Snow storm casualty?

It snowed the whole of the 2nd day. I even had to wear my beanie

We rolled a snowball. It started small.....

It ended up humongous. So large that it even digged out the soil below the snow.

Hot chocolate to keep us warm

Frisbee is another good way to keep warm

Ice age!

The snow made it hard to hike and we had no choice but to wear snowshoes! It didn't make it any easier. The hike up was pure torture. Especially since i have not been working out lately. It was a really tough hike for everyone but everyone survived!

Snowshoes!

Food.. please give me some food....

Tiring!!!!

One tree decided it could not hold on to the snow anymore and decided to let go when i was passing by.

History in the making

2007-03-03T12:02:00.000-08:00

It's the weekend but i'm at home! Feels kinda weird not to be out travelling. Anyway, went to watch UC Aggies men's basketball team's second last home match on thursday. Was going to the stadium when i read something interesting in the californian aggies(uc davis newspaper). Quoting, "Did you know? The UC aggies are one loss away from breaking the program's 97 year old record for most losses in a single season." I was there to witness the record breaking feat.

Cheerleaders

Half time performance by a group of small kids. Not very clear in youtube though.

Record breaking score

San Francisco basking

2007-03-02T23:04:00.000-08:00

A group singing on the streets of San Francisco the last time i went there. How nice if Singapore were to have this kind happening in orchard road.

Happy Birthday Ng Meiyan!!!

2007-03-02T00:00:00.000-08:00

Gal ah, old liao. Don't cheong/club so much! hahaha

Happy Birthday JEAAAAAAAAAN TAN BOON CHIN!

2007-03-01T00:00:00.000-08:00

Be happy and stay pretty!

Lake tahoe day 3

2007-02-27T23:26:00.000-08:00

It freaking snowed at night! Our cars were covered with snow! Had to use water to remove the snow from the windscreen before driving out. Anyway the last day some of the gang were too tired to ski again and so we took one car out for a day of sightseeing and shopping!

Snow-covered cars

View of the lake and snow capped mountains

Sooo windy! My face almost froze

Welcome to lake tahoe....haha

Me and hua doing a communist type pose.

Enjoying the wonderful scenery

Check out wat i found at one of the shops!

So thats it for lake tahoe! Will blog about yosemite later when i get the photos from everyone.

Lake Tahoe day 2

2007-02-27T22:01:00.000-08:00

2nd day i went fishing! Left early in the morning to go to the lake and took a boat out to fish! The fishing wasn't great. The captain told us the weather today wasn't good for fishing. Only caught one fish. But the fishing was secondary. It's the view around the lake that was great! But sorry didn't take much pictures though. Hands were full on the rod and it was real cold that day. Hands were shivering. It snowed can!

Heavenly valley. Looks a bit crappy on picture but trust me, it looks great

Me on the boat

Dinner time was bbq! We proved that it's alright to bbq in winter! Everyone else tink that we were crazy to bbq when it's so cold out there but we did it! Even the chalet owner was a bit puzzled when i emailed her about the bbq pit. This is what she said:" People usually barbecues in Summer because they have to do it outside the house, in the back deck, but now it has about 6" of snow, but it is up to you" haha! She must have thought we're some crazy asians. We went around looking for a grill but the stores all say they don't sell them in winter. In the end we make do with an oven rack and alumunium foils. Well...it was sub zero when we bbq but the heat from the charcoals were enough to keep us warm. In fact i think it's better to bbq in winter. Why would you want to bbq in summer when it's already so warm?!?! First time i didn't sweat from bbq! And just look at how much i wear. I din even wear my jacket!

Solution to teary eyes from onions? Ski goggles!

bbq is tiring!!! the pit was too low( had to bend down to grill)

Hot chocolate by the fireplace! woohoo! erm...above pic is posed. the mug is actually empty

Lake Tahoe day 1

2007-02-27T19:43:00.000-08:00

As promised, pics from lake tahoe! It's the first time in my life that I celebrated CNY away from Singapore. So i needed to make it special. Chalet by the lake is not a bad idea huh? hehe.. Well... we went there thinking it will be very cold since it's in the mountains and it snows, but we were wrong.The sun was up and it was rather warm. We end up wearing too much on the first day and had to remove a number of layers. Think i was actually sweating in the snow. The rest of the gang went ski/boarding while i waited for them and take pics of them. My shoulder hasn't fully recovered so i can't ski. Original plan was to drive out to the lake to take some pictures but by the time the gang got ready it was rather late so i just decided to hang out for a couple of hours at the resort and take pictures of them in their ski suits. The first day was chinese new year eve and we had steamboat! Not realli a steamboat anyway. We used 2 rather small rice cookers and with 14 people eating the rate at which food came out was just not fast enough! In the end we ended up cooking some stuff at the stove haha.

Group photo @ Sierra at Tahoe ski resort

Marnchi and Minzhi

Stella

Yenling(scary mickey mouse)

Hua

Floris

The gang having ski lessons

Me! haha

Our chalet! It's nice i tell ya.

There's a fireplace! haha

Wanton made by Hua. They look damn pro man!

Our steamboat feast

Chinese New Year reunion dinner? haha

Chinese New Year Video

2007-02-27T11:20:00.000-08:00

You can always expect the WAT folks to do things like this. haha. Anyway it's still cny so 恭喜发财 everyone! but sorry no ang pow!

Steak!

2007-02-26T21:25:00.000-08:00

Steak is perhaps the most value for money here. But i don't like my steak well done and it's not easy to get it medium done. Its as easy to get it well done as to get it uncooked. After numerous tries and some diarrhoeas, i'm finally starting to be able to get it right!

Nice huh?

Potlucks + food and more food!

2007-02-23T15:37:00.000-08:00

This was the first potluck we had some time ago. It was sunday where everyone was free and did not have any plans to go out. Not really planned, everyone just sort of brought what they had in their fridge and cooked. For some, it was the first time cooking. haha

Fried rice. a bit soggy. but still not bad

Wenchun frying chicken. Sort of his first time cooking

Allen cutting onions

Me cutting pork

Fried salmon on the outside......

Sashimi on the inside. How cool is that?!?!

Presenting our first potluck! not a bad attempt! hehe

The second potluck was a big one. It happened the week after the San Fran trip and we invited some of our neighbors as well as other nus students living in other parts of davis. Sort of an international feast. haha. The kitchen was full of people and everyone was trying to prepare all sorts of dishes. The whole process took a few hours to get everything done!

Floris with Dutch garlic soup

Yenling with Malaysian potato salad. haha

Yoora and sis and Youngju with korean bbq! Woohoo!

Stella's Singaporean stir fried sesame chicken

Me and Hanyang's Singaporean roast pork. Yeah, it looks bloody. Grace got stomach flu the next day......

Presenting our feast.....

And happy faces!

Ok. lake tahoe and other pics will be uploaded next week. Will be away in Yosemite for hiking this weekend! It's forecasted to snow! Just hope that it wun be too cold! hehe

Hell week

2007-02-21T16:02:00.000-08:00

Tests, reports and homework all happening this week. I'm so darn screwed! haha. anyway going hiking in yosemite this weekend. Forecast of low of -4 fahrenheit! That's about -20 degress celsius! Woohoo! Hope i don't freeze to death man. Will upload photos of potlucks, lake tahoe and yosemite next week! This week is just crazy! K back to studying for 2morrow's test!

In need of salvation (non-spiritual)

2007-02-16T18:16:00.000-08:00

Someone please liberate me from all these crap.....

Miscellaneous photos

2007-02-12T14:44:00.000-08:00

I really should be studying now. Got below average for one of my midterm and apparantly that is below a C grade. haha. But anyway, here are some photos i got from the rest of the gang.....

Nice mexican meal in San Francisco

In the Muni Bus

At the Golden Gate recreational park

Group photo in the Muni bus

Don't remember where this is taken(Castro?)

Limo at fisherman's wharf. Limos are just everywhere man. haha

Fisherman's wharf

Lousy meal at a San Francisco downtown restaurant. The food really kinda sux.

Me and Floris advertising for starbucks. Free from museum day. They're the sponsors for it.

Alright, i guess i better get back to studying. Midterm this week, can't only start studying for it the night before like i did the last time. I don't want to go back NUS with any U grades! Anyway we're going lake tahoe this weekend! Can't wait for it! Hope it'll be fun! Will post pictures of our potlucks next time!

Registration for Spring classes

2007-02-09T20:45:00.000-08:00

Registration for spring quarter has started.
My registered classes for next quarter:

1)ENG190 - Professional Responsibilities of Engineer (boring....)
2)EME154 - Mechatronics (zzzz......)
3)STS120 - Religion Magic and Science (hmmm....interesting...)
4)PHE001 - Flycasting-Beginnner (Fun!)
5)PHE001 - Soccer-Beginner (AWESOME! hahaha)

With some careful planning, no more early morning classes! I have learnt my lesson. 730am class is just pure torture. So now friday is a free day while monday i only have a 50 min soccer session! So if I skip that soccer session i can have a super long weekend! woohoo. Weekend trips here i come!

Birthday in 2 continents

2007-02-07T20:45:00.000-08:00

How many people can boast celebrating a birthday in 2 continents? I can....

IN USA

Birthday jelly that grace and allen made! Nice rite!

2 Korean girls living on my level,YoungJu and Yoora. And no, they don't know Rain personnally. Asked liao. But they're crazy about rain also.

IN SINGAPORE

Video clip of my birthday celebration in Singapore.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-lyeiJPFQI

Free museum day(Sacramento)

2007-02-04T20:14:00.000-08:00

Last saturday was free museum day! Chance not to be missed since i'm not the type who's willing to pay to go into a museum. haha. Didn't take much pictures though. Only took some at the first museum we went to, the Railroad museum.

Anyway think i better start to study. Been lazying around too much. In real danger of failing haha. Thanks to those who wished me happy birthday. Will post pics of my bday soon plus a hilarious video. haha. And a bit early but Happy Birthday Xinyan!

Vacaville + women's basketball

2007-02-01T22:30:00.000-08:00

Last saturday went down to Vacaville. We were in a rush. Only had about 4 hours at the place cause of the bus schedule. Din managed to take much pics or shop. We were more interested in going to the Walmart nearby haha. Only got one pic from there. The signboard. haha

Evening we went to support the school's women's basketball match. Turnout was pathetic. Maybe cause it's saturday and everyone's out? Or probably cause it's women's basketball. Those who went to support the Men's basketball team last thursday said the stadium was packed and everyone was cheering wilding. It was pretty quiet for our match. We lost.

Our gals practising shooting during halftime. Our team's shooting is really rather bad....

Half time performance

The cheerleading team. It's blur. But trust me, they look better this way.

Aggies mascot!

By popular demand

2007-01-29T22:10:00.000-08:00

Ok the other time i forgot to take pictures of krispy kreme. This time all of us happen to pass by and we got a dozen. So here's the picture you guys wanted! especially Wanlin. haha. i had the raspberry and original wan. i still prefer it if they put less sugar coating. The aftertaste just makes me felt like i had drank one whole cup of sugar coating.

Miscellaneous pics

2007-01-28T20:46:00.000-08:00

Feeling bored. Everyone else seems to be studying. I tried to read my textbook but couldn't get past the first page. So here i am posting some bo liao pics haha.My room "study" desk before i got my desk. Had to use a drawing and sit on bed to read and use laptop.

And after i got my desk and did some rearranging.....

ok still messy, but i'm a guy afterall....

I cooked steak for dinner! A bit too well done, but still it was not bad! the steak cost about 1 buck.

San Francisco Day 3

2007-01-27T00:40:00.000-08:00

Pictures from San Francisco day 3: Venture into Castro(Gay neighbourhood)

Rainbow city

Some of the books found in the bookstore. These are the ones that are already more suited for public viewing.

A bubble tea store in Castro!

ZQ's concert

2007-01-24T09:17:00.000-08:00

Hey guys! ZQ singing this saturday for the Sheares ge yao in XQRJ finals. Go support! It's only 12 dollars to listen to some brilliant live singing. It's this saturday 730pm@UCC. Go and support and make all the noise you can to make sure he gets a lot of attention. This way he might be talented spotted and i'll have a celebrity friend!

zhiqian, yicui, cynthia, xueying, wanlin, jamie: this is for you!

2007-01-22T20:17:00.000-08:00

Today I missed my bus stop and had to alight one stop later. And guess what? Opposite is a petrol station mart with a big banner saying "Krispy Kreme: now available" Most of you know by now that i don't really like Krispy Kreme donuts. I find the sugar coating too sweet. Knowing that you guys are crazy over them, i decided to give it another try.

Know what? I still don't like it.

San Francisco Day 2

2007-01-19T23:10:00.000-08:00

Me, Yenling and Han yang went for an early morning stroll before everyone woke up. San Francisco is full of slopes. But unlike NUS, they look much nicer.

Nice tree. Apparantly there's a story behind it.....

Yes...it's really cold out there...

The REAL Golden Gate Bridge!

Night scenery. The photo doesn't do it justice.

The Martin Luther King jr memorial hall

Yerba Buena Gardens(it's just a children's playground)

Birthday ice cream. It's damn hard to find a cake!

Birthday boy and birthday gal

Pictures from day 3 will probably come a bit later. 2 mid terms plus reports and homeworks due this week. And i still don't have a proper desk to write on and not even the textbook to study. haha. I'm dead.

San Francisco!!! Day 1

2007-01-18T16:17:00.000-08:00

San Francisco was great. Definitely gonna go back there again. Had lots of fun, the scenery was great, company was good, just perfect haha.
As promised....pictures from San Francisco

At the Amtrak station

On the way to San Francisco

Goddess of Sleep

the challenger.......

Bay Bridge. Can anyone tell me how izzit possible to think that this is Golden Gate bridge?!??!

Arrival at San Francisco. Wonderful view

Ghirardelli square....home of world famous chocs and ice cream

Way past lunch time....the 3 hungry faces

Pissed

Worried

Happy. Coz hungry means sleepy?

Alcatraz island

Sealions at Pier 39

Just one of those days....

2007-01-16T20:39:00.000-08:00

Had 3 AWESOME days at San Francisco. But it had to be followed by a lousy day in school. Haha. Just one of those days when you just feel lousy and everything doesn't go the way you wanted it to be and you're looking for some company. Walked around school hoping to see some familiar faces but wasn't that lucky. But a bad day can always be saved by listening to some wonderful songs! Was feeling horrible til I remembered about my soon to be spoilt mp3 player and it totally cheered me up. Hehe. Shall post the San Fran pics during the weekend after I'm done with all my homework that's all due end of the week. It sucks when i still don't have a desk to do my work! haha

Yosemite cancelled! But San Francisco here i come!

2007-01-10T18:32:00.000-08:00

We had plan to go Yosemite this weekend for snow-shoeing for the long weekend(Monday's Martin Luther King Jr day) but it had to be cancelled coz the weather forecast predicted that it will hit a low of -4 Fahrenheit. Not advisable for 1st timers. Yes, Fahrenheit. Not celsius. After converting, it will be a whoppping -20 degrees celsius. The organiser told us to go during the next long weekend which will be Feb 17-19! Haha! Chinese New Year is a public holiday here too! But it's called President's day here. haha. Chinese New Year out in the mountains! Anyway, after some discussion we decided to go San Francisco instead! Hehe. So those of you who been there before please give some sugeestions of places to visit!Ok..off to copy my homework. No idea why the prof still wants us to hand in the homework when he released the solutions already. Just a waste of my time haha.

Sacramento

2007-01-07T08:58:00.000-08:00

It's the first weekend since school started! haha. We took a bus to downtown Sacremento. The journey there had to be carefully planned. Bus on Saturdays only comes once an hour and we had to take a bus to the bus stop for the Sacramento bus. Tim and I had to look through the bus schedules and find the best possible timing to make sure our wait was minimal but not too late to make sure we don't miss the bus. Sacramento was freezing. It was minus 1 degress celsius! But don't expect snow. It seldom goes below 0 degrees and it had to coincide with rain to have snow. One of the ladies at the orientation told us it only snowed like once in 30 years. haha. Have to be real lucky to see snow i guess. Sacramento's the capital of California and is the first time i see tall buildings since i arrived in USA. Oh! There are malls here. Something Davis don't have haha.

The Capitol. Is Arnold working inside?

Dr Sun Yat Sen memorial. eh no. I didn't go Taiwan. This was in Chinatown of Sacramento. Anyway their chinatown is pathetic. It's made up of just 2 buildings. And it's not even solely Chinese. It's shared with Thais and Viets. Really sad and pathetic place. An insult to Chinese.

Finally we had a group photo after several tries with the timer.

VERY sinful.....

haha GOVENATOR!!!

sexual harrassment education programme

2007-01-06T07:45:00.000-08:00

hmm...interesting.....

Around davis+school

2007-01-01T09:35:00.000-08:00

So i have been in Davis for about a week. Been exploring the town and sad to say, you probably need just 2 days to cover the whole place. It's the 2nd day of school now and somehow the UC davis(UCD) system gives me the feeling that I'm in for a hard time. I'm known to be the last minute type of worker but the system here focuses on continuous learning with heavy weightage on CAs. Textbooks are ridiculously expensive. It costs like usd$133 for my textbook and usd$100 for a 2nd hand one. In Singapore usd$100 would probably be enough to cover the cost of all my textbooks for a year. The module is open book but I'm still trying to find a way out of this. I even contemplated air mailing textbooks from Singapore for a cost of S$105 for 5 kg.

Lectures here are very different from NUS engine. The lectures are held in small classes which could accommodate anything from hundred over to 50. My heat transfer class is conducted in a small classroom with less than 20 students enrolled. Yes...less than 20. This is probably like a tutorial session in NUS. NUS engine lectures typically have probably 300 students in a lecture hall. For all those who know me well, you'll probably be laughing right now. Yeah....no way I'll be able to sleep(if i attend) or even skip lectures with such a small class. And so far there's no real notes provided. The professors write what they teach on blackboards(yah it's blackboards not whiteboards. the ones you use chalk to write on). They don't seem to have a habit of using powerpoint presentations or computers. It somehow just reminds me the days when I was still in primary school when blackboards were still in use.

Anyway I have finally moved out of the studio and into my permanent room. It's the same level as Allen and Grace. No pictures of that. Another day perhaps. lazy to do that right now. haha. My level is rather quiet compared to where stella, hanyang and wenchun lives. Guess it's cause my level consists of a few graduate students. Haven got a chance to talk to them yet. Maybe things will liven up when I get to know them. Managed to meet up with the rest of the Singaporeans during the orientation and got their contacts and set up a yahoo group. But those staying in Pacifico forms the bulk of Singaporeans in Davis. There's Timothy who's always looking for a bike and finally got it, Hanyang who's always trying to buy alcohol and still trying, Stella who's always sleeping and probably is right now and me who's always finding stuff to do to kill time. There's also Allen and Grace, Marn Chi, and Wenchun staying in Pacifico. So that's 8 of us. Haha. Anyway below are pictures of what I had done the past few days.

Drew circle...just behind the hostel

Hehe....check out who's my Governor!!!!

Christmas decorations! Nice!

Amtrak station

Activities and recreation center of UCD

Looking at maps...a common sight haha

Grocery shopping. how familiar.....

Oh New Year's eve we went to a Mexican restaurant to sort of celebrate the new year. There's not much else to do really since it was still holidays and most students are not back yet. The town was pretty quiet.

What I had.....

What Grace had.... hmmm.......

Arrival at Davis

2006-12-30T21:38:00.000-08:00

On the way to Davis

My Hostel

Tim and I were suppose to be staying at a normal large double room. But apparently our room is being taken by some guys and they will only move out on the 31st. So they gave us a studio room to stay in first! Complete with our own kitchen and bathroom! How lucky! haha. But the downside is that the internet connection sux. haha

Spacious huh?

ohhh... check out the stove, fridge and microwave!

Hotel standard bathroom! haha

On a side note, this is juz soooo wrong......

Farewell@airport

2006-12-30T20:57:00.000-08:00

The five who actually bothered to send me off at an "unearthly" hour of 4am.

Thanks a lot guys! You guys rock!

Farewell plus Birthday of a 寿星

2006-12-28T12:34:00.000-08:00

Yummy...last meal of GOOD Chinese food before i leave for USA again. Sigh..it's back to junk food in USA. A country who consolidated junk foods around the world and make it their staple food.

The wonderful WAT gang

A unique birthday "cake"

寿星 ZQ

Just hope that we didn't ruin a couple's wedding celebrations from our singing of the birthday song. Haha.

p.s. Don't complain. just be glad there are pictures. haha

testing

2006-12-25T03:41:00.001-08:00

testing 1 2 3....