* Tina's adventures in Prague or rather misadventures

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Laptop Woes...
while trying to remove "popcorn.net" from my computer by starting it up in safe mode, my Windows log-in totally got screwed and I'm left without my comp for the 2nd time in less than a month...the biggest obstacle now is that I can't seem to get an English edition of Windows, let alone MSoffice,so I'm freaking out (estimated breakdown point in 2 days)..my only other means of keeping myself from going insane ~~are~~ were-shopping and traveling but with the cash stash in my drawer rapidly depleting i have no idea what i'm going to do (though one of the first things i'm going to do in SG is to visit CIT!!!)..for my dear friends going on exchange next term..please remember to bring your system recovery Cds with ya & back up your precious files

Anyhows i wrote this "updates on prague" entry like last wednesday(before my lappie died that very night) and had it not been for gerald coming to visit prague on thursday and plans for the weekend with mook,cha and fon -the sweetest and most entertaining- thai girls from gerald's dorm to visit Bratislava, plus a day to hangout at vienna and watch gerald fussing and being smitten over Rob, i would probably have flung myself off charles bridge(see below) days ago..

UPdates on Prague..
My Professor just cut the 4 hour lesson short which leaves me a good hour to blog.. been putting off blogging cos' my mind is just brimming with stories,idea and layouts for my long overdued entries about Italy,Vienna and Prague but I lack the discipline to sit down at my laptop to write them, often straying off to steal precious chat time with you guys on msn..

tough stuff about being in Europe: Prague has not been agreeing with my skin, I have tiny red dots on my cheeks that refuse to go away even after 2 weeks..Not a pretty sight..I have big bumpy red bites on my arms which either comes from some weird strain of mosquitoes(but the windows in my room are closed!), allergeries or bedbugs!(!!!just searched the web for images of bed bug bites n they are suspiciously similar to mine--eek!) and sometimes it all feels too surreal --to realise that you are surrounded by chatter but not hearing anything but noise because conversations are held in myriad of Czech,German, Spanish, Dutch and rarely English.

Un-seen & un-heard:
-The average Czech person has 2 dogs,breathes more ciggiesmoke than fresh air & drinks more beer than water
-16,000 students, 1 canteen, 8 servers = long queue(20mins) just to get into the canteen
-On the streets: 0.5 l of beer for S$1.50 vs 0.3l Coke for S$2
Ketchup for S$0.80
Ciggies for S$4
Pasta for S$12
-One professor wearing socks and slippers to class and teaches in a sing-song voice
Another professor hides ppt.slides n files behind an icon on his webpage fearing that it may be illegal to publish them outright
The craziest professor breaking a chair after putting his 2 feet on it and pulling it towards him(he was sitting on the desk)...swears he did "absolutely nothing" to the chair right after..

Scenes from Prague:
view of the castle from the city(below

)

Prague's communication tower(above).. u'll get a great view from the top but somehow, the exterior of the tower seems to be infested with babies--yes black marble babies- what's up with that? Little Eiffel in Prague(below)...it takes 299 steps to get to the top and at the ticket booth my american friend reasons:" if we're going to pay 40 korunas($3) to enter there had better be an elevator" and when we asked.. the counter personnel replied "just ahead of you, a 60 year old lady is taking the steps.." clearly embarrassed, we climbed to the halfway mark at whichtime my Dutch friend reasons that the view would be exactly the same here as above and there we stayed...

not quite the happy gelato stained postcard.
--9:20 PM--

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

I am who I am..
wish i could change it but i can't

Yesterday i went to my first Nation2Nation party- for exchange students- and the verdict is out.. clubbing is just not my thing..i don't enjoy it-you can't talk, you're hot n sweaty,you can hardly hear anyone,you can't remember half the people you meet,you get bumped around...the only fun part is watching people dance but even tt is kinda weird i guess.. to just sit n observe

For some time now, i always felt that i'm not the typical teenager now bordering on young adult-- i'm seriously missing the need to party,dance,drink and date gene-- i have never had the desire to do it n i don't see any point to doing so. It gets worse cos" i don't have any strong religous beliefs that can hold as a shield... you know like being a nun sounds better than being a spinster... still there's no point pretending so i'll just have to wait till everyone outgrows this phase maybe in a decade or so..

Anyhows... my roomate just moved in today.. n this is when the real test begins because for the past 5 days i had the dorm mostly to myself-- free to do my secret single behavior.. haha

Updates on what i had done: mostly boring stuff.. the fun stuff was mostly when i was travelling but i'm too lazy to blog about it now =p
Day one: Buddy picked me up and we went shopping at Tesco(equivalent to carrefour) for stuff to furnish the room with..
Day two: buddy had this tennis tournament which sounded pretty fun-- it's tennis with vodka whereby the winner of each match has to drink a shot before the next game..i went to ikea! and bought lotsa useless stuff like bedsheets(the white ones provided are just too dreary), rugs, blankets, hangers...
Day threee: Orientation, 200 exchange students, 1 computer terminal for student id cards.. you do the math.. had to stand in the queue for like 4 hours.. on the bright side tt's when i got to meet people!
Day four: We went to the Zoo--of all places..personally - i think Singapore Zoo is better but the interesting thing about this zoo has an open concept where bats are free to fly in your face, where animals have ample space to roam (far away from humans) and a cool( but dangerous looking) chair lift...and then to the Nation2nation party
Day five: City rally- otherwise known as a crappy savenger hunt-- visited the little effiel tower which was nothing like the one in Paris..

more details later...

not quite the happy gelato stained postcard.
--4:17 PM--

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

this was what i wrote about 4 days back when i thought i would be able to get an internet connection...
Back to Vienna
*blows dust off keyboard* It has been a loooong twelve days, I know. The idea was to bring my lappie along for my Italian adventure but due to my dramatic first day in Vienna - which involved my “laptop’s master reboot being fucked up”, a mad rush to a repair shop (the ticket to Rome was for that evening!) followed by a huge sigh of relief (more details later) --- laptops stayed safely locked up in the hostel closet…a good thing too --cos’ Italians haven’t quite grasp the concept of wireless internet yet.

To sum up the journey:
For Better or Worse
Best Sight: Sistine Chapel at the Vatican museum
Worse Sight: A tie between i) Ticket prices to enter museums that house the birth of Venus and Michangelo’s David at 9.50 euros each! & ii) GT modeling his Bottega Venetta bag originally meant for his mum
Best experience: Taking in Rome’s skyline at sunset from the top of the Spanish steps
Worst experience: A toss up between i) Having to hike up at least 500m up a steep hill in Sienna after a wrong turn & ii) having a full bladder at night while on board a shaky train/plane but seated at the top bunk/window seat
Best meal: A hearty Florentine three course lunch/dinner: pasta; meat with a side; wine
Worse meal: Takeaway lasagna/ Ham sandwich from a butcher shop in sienna
Best ride: Sitting at the bow of a water taxi navigating the canals of Venice with the icy wind blowing in your face as you admire old palaces and roosting sea gulls that go zipping by.
Worst ride: The sweltering bus journey from sienna to Florence when the air conditioning insisted on blowing hot air in an already boiling sun-baked bus.
Best Sleep: The Roman B&B – spacious, clean, and comfortable -- comes with extra pillows and to top it all off a nice Italian grandma who bakes!
Worst Sleep: Hotel Sabotino in Milan – dusty floors, no air conditioning, noisy streets below, dark toilets and buzzing mossies- need I say more

Budget& Budget busters
Cheapest transport: Milan (3 euros for a day ticket)
Most expensive transport: Venice (12 euros for a day ticket)
Cheapest eats: Close contest between Venice (Colossal slice of pizza for 2.50 euros & bar snacks starting from a euro at the devil n e holy water) & Milan (6 euros for a cocktail & free buffet of bar snacks)
Most expensive: 17.50 euros+++ for a Florentine T-bone steak, bread, service & tax
Cheapest sleep: Florence hotel Montréal -65 euros a night buys you a room for 2 with CNN and a great bath room (even though it’s shared)
Most expensive sleep: Was actually in Venice but it came with an attached bathroom so the winner was Hotel Sabotino booo
Cheapest shops: a) Branded goods- Florence the mall b) Souvenirs-Venice c) Memories- Rome
Most expensive shops: Shops that line the Spanish steps at Rome
Standard rates: Internet-1.50 euros, Football jersey 10 euros, Service 12%

Records setters: Seen & Heard
Most expensive gelato: Rome 6.50 euros a cup
Most expensive bottle of water: Rome 1.50 euros for 500ml
Holiest water: Free water fountains within Vatican City
Longest queue to get in: Vatican Museum with Sistine chapel
Longest queue to get out: Museum at Saint Mark’s square
Most common bank: Bank Intesa
Most common eatery: McDonald’s
Most bruises: Florence-my Knee from running into the bed frame- my Arm from colliding with a moving bicycle-my Dignity from falling face flat with my luggage when crossing the cobblestone road outside the Firenze station

Last Look
Italy: great food: dusty: grand palaces: sculptures: frescos: outlet shopping: Hot!: graffiti: Free sights: marble everything!: scooters& smart cars: bright red flowers: tight tops: the sweet smell of fruit vendors: trams: murano glass: Boob parade: expensive eats: public marble fountains with icy cool natural water: bridges: pigeons : high ceilings: Nice people: Ray Ban: trenItalia: Ciao grazie

Now before mahdi & kenneth complain: look, pictures!!!