20080718
Oh my goodness!!!!!! I am going to Laos in another half an hour's time!!!!!!
This whole week has passed super fast. Went shopping, played badminton, went to pray at temple, shopping for the trip, dinner with the clique, mahjong session and off to Laos now!!
I am getting excited for the trip, especially after having packed my bag. I took 1.5 hours to pack it lah! Haha too many things to bring.
Alright, let me say some things before I embark on my trip.
Thanks alot clique!!!!!!! Haha thanks for spending so much time with me over the past one week and also helping me to prepare for the trip. Special thanks to Seet Ee and Denise for the special "amulet" that you gave me. It's really touching! I am bringing it with me! Thanks Ben for lending me ur torchlight. I will miss you people!!
Thanks Wei Ching for lending me so many things! I am really grateful to you!!! Girl, I owe you one!
Sorry QB for not being able to attend your birthday party. You have my best wishes!!!
Alright, that's all...see you in 2 weeks time!!!! 31 Aug!!!
Feathers
10:13 PM
20080712
Yesterday, Denise, Wei Ching and I went to Little India. Esther could not join us as she had something on last minute. Haha we planned to go to Little India together since before the exams started but because of our different schedules, we could only meet yesterday. It has been exactly 1 month since we last met Ching! Wow I could not recognise her at first at the mrt station. She had cut her hair short and I think she looks great in this new hairstyle. At least her face seems smaller haha.
Our first stop for the day was Komala's Vila. The place that I always frequent when I go to Little India. We had bhattura, poori and also teh tarik. We spent some time there chatting too. After that, we walked along the lanes of Little India and we found a shop that sells really cheap travelling bags. Me and Denise bought a waist pouch each for $6. Really much cheaper than other shops. Along our way, we took some photos as well. Our last stop for the day was the Mustafa Centre. Hm, I could not find the way to the old Mustafa Centre and hence, we only walked around the newer part. Denise bought a pair of sunglasses for Gerard there as well. However, on our way back to teh mrt, we passed by some sops that sell sunglasses for $1.90 each! Really unbelievable! Haha but we did not stop to look at them as we were racing against the rain.
Here are some photos taken yesterday. 
First up is poori!
Next is bhattura. Haha our bhattura seems quite deflated.
Teh Tarik! This is yummy!
Me and Ching!
Denise!
The 3 of us with nice background.
A closer look at our background. Aren't the buildings nice?
Alright, more photos coming up from Denise's birthday party!!
Feathers
11:00 AM
20080707
On Saturday, I went for a OVE pre-trip camp. There, we got to know our group members and also had a short briefing. During the briefing, there are things to rejoy and also things to worry about. The good things first...we will be staying in a lodge for the first 8 days and it seems to be in a good condition. There's air-conditioning! The school at the capital, Vientiane, looks quite alright too, equipped with white board and proper tables and chairs. Not too bad. Here comes the worrying part...we will be staying at the villagers' houses for 4 days and the toilets are...I think I will try to restrict my big business when I am in the village. Haiz, I am not in the same group as Priscilla too. The only person who I know in my group is Esther's sister.
Oh some interesting things to share. In the booklet that we were given, we were advised not to drink their tap water and not even to use it to brush our teeth! Use mineral water to brush teeth?? We were also told that the office hours in Laos are from 8am to 4pm. Yes 4pm!! Wah I think even slacker than Europe side. And we have to stay inside our lodge or village house after 10pm - "unspoken rule to cease daily operations before 2200hrs"! We have to be careful not to anyhow touch things as well as there could be grenades or some other explosives!
Today, I went for vaccinations with Priscilla at woodlands polyclinic. We had 2 jabs, influenza and typhoid, one on each arm. It's quite painful, especially for us who are afraid of injections. We had some anti-malaria pills as well that we have to take for 7 weeks. We have to start the medication 1 week before the trip and can only stop 4 weeks after the trip. Haha at first I was quite stunned. Take pills for 7 weeks?! Luckily we were told that we just have to take one pill per week. In total, the jabs and medication cost close to $50. So ex lah! Somemore I am not done with it. I still have to consult my GP for some pills to delay my menses and Pris said that hers cost $43. Oh man! $100 gone just like that! This trip is making me poor.
Feathers
10:25 PM
20080704
Today had a chaotic time planning my timetable. We had actually planned our timetable beforehand. However, in the race of the fastest finger, we lost. And we paid dearly for that. We had to re-plan our timetable and it was not an easy feat, considering the limited choices and vacancies that we have. In the end, we had to make do with it. I am hoping that the add drop period will help me greatly. I need an earlier timeslot for one of my modules otherwise I am so dead for tuition.
Hm, yesterday went out with Denise for some shopping. She bought her party dress and some party stuff while I bought my party shoes. Haha while shopping for her party stuff, I had an idea for my party's door gift, if I am having a party. It will be very nostalgic and erm...maybe fun haha. Best of all, it's quite affordable.
After shopping with Denise, she went off to meet Gerard while I met up with Pei Kiat, Ailing and Jia Xin for dinner and also some present shopping. We had Korean dinner at Food Republic. The food was quite average only. Oh! Ailing recommended Korean cuisine at one of the halls in NTU. She says its cheaper and taste good. The owner of the stall even has a Korean restaurant of his own. I shall go try that one day. After dinner, I received a call from my mum. She has been running a fever for a couple of days and yesterday evening, she went to see a GP. The doctor advised her to go to hospital for fear that she could have caught Dengue. So, I left the girls and went to the hospital with my parents.
It was my first visit to the Emergency department at a hospital. I would say that it's quite depressing over there. Every 10 or so minutes, someone would walk in looking sick or being pushed in by paramedics. Most of them are elders though. We reached the hospital at around 9pm. After doing the registration for my mum, only my dad could enter with my mum as they only allow one accompanying person. I waited for them at a seating area outside. It was a horrible wait. There was nothing that I could do and I was quite worried about my mum too. Sometimes my Dad would come out and update me about the situation. When I heard from him that my mum's blood test does not seem ok, my heart sank. I was really worried and scared. I waited for them until around 12.30am before my mum was given the clear sign to go home. However, she is still suspected of dengue and has to go back tmr for another check-up to see if she really has caught Dengue. Hope she's alright.
Feathers
3:26 PM
20080702
Turn on your speakers!
Haha I have added a background song to my blog. This is a song that I came across while watching a HK drama called tang xin feng bao. I was watching this HK drama online this afternoon and this song was played several times in the serial. I think it's a nice song and hence I have included it in my blog.
Enjoy!
Feathers
12:26 AM
