To the uninitiated (which included me before i googled it): Before Sunrise is a passionate and intelligent romance between a young American Jesse/Ethan Hawke and a French student Celine/Julie Deply. A chance encounter on the train to Vienna (i was on a train to graz n tt's in austria too!) incites intrigue and Jesse provocatively suggests that Celine postpones her return to France (graz) and embark instead on a spontaneous expedition to Vienna. In the course of their 14-hour (2hour) relationship, the two share in their love for the unrehearsed and their appreciation for the unexpected as they explore in a powerful meeting of hearts and minds. Dawn breaks. Sad in silence, they make their way to the station. As they bid each other farewell .. (alright.. that part didn't happen for me..but it could have)

Reality check: the guy was no ethan hawke and i'm definately not half as beautiful as Julie but it really did happen to me! Last friday, on my train ride to graz to meet gerald.. a guy got on the train one stop after the czech border and into my empty carriage where i was studying for my finance test.. he asked me about my notes and we started talking--started with the usual..i'm from singapore.. he from vienna but working as a researcher in this math institute in the countryside solving algorithms and programming the computer to do the same (god he's a genius!-soo john nash) ..we carried on about singapore politics (he has read/heard alot about singapore) about austria's history, the EU, about life in a small town (no TV or cinema or shopping(!!) can u imagine?!) , about the breath-taking scenery in the austrian countryside..n then it started getting weird......he said today the scenery was exceptionally beautiful and he thinks it because---i cut him off.. 'look at the cows!' i say...''yes cows, aren't they cute' he says.. i veer off to talk about farm life...he trys the line a few times more-- though not without me finishing his sentences with something else..once with me getting desperate and blurting out " is this your stop?" (boy i'm making this difficult-aint' I?) until-- until he just said No..no..no it's cos i really like you! you're beautiful! (i was definately not! it was a 6am train- no makeup/messy hair/eek)... awkward silence and his arm is around me shit... 'how could you, i've only known you for 2 hours ?' "and i'm exchange prague.. due back in January" "that's not a problem, i could visit" he said "but i need to know who's the guy you're meeting in Graz (gerald)., is he your boyfriend?"

After some not so quick calculative thinking i gave an unconvincing "yes" (while at the back of my mind i was thinking--gt--please,not in this lifetime).. and then he asked the unthinkable:" what did that guy do to make you love him so?" -still not believing i said yes- "erm..cos' he's nice" ..."He's a lucky man" "erm..right" I've got goosebumps all over and i try to focus all my interest on the passing meadows..i catch glimpses of him looking at me with sad eyes... "i'm sorry" i say..." I'll never meet another girl like you" (i swear i'm not making this up) " There will be others".. "but they won't be you"..." tt's sweet..sorry again"..more scenery gazing and the longest 30minutes of my life later.. it was -finally- his stop.. i said my goodbyes..and breathe a sigh of relief when he left..then i looked in the mirror (shit i looked ugly.. what the hell is this guy thinking)..for the next 2 hours i let my mind wander on silly little fanatasies..what if i had said no..but what was i going to do.. alight at his stop, have a whirlwind romance and end up living in the country- unthinkable-how did it end in before sunrise anyways?...oh well, so i did make it to graz:

The below street sign is funny: cos' that exactly how we were standing (me in a knee-length skirt too) we decided to interpret the sign as no black people allowed and walked on..
Above:GT was suppose to be doing the juliet balcony scene Above: City hall
Modern architecture in Graz

And to the largest abbey in Europe in Melk, austria

not quite the happy gelato stained postcard.
--7:15 AM--