Tonight I was kissed by a French guy.And even though I didn't give in to his repeated requests for a French kiss, technically I was...French Kissed.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Cultural exchnage at its best
Tonight I was kissed by a French guy.And even though I didn't give in to his repeated requests for a French kiss, technically I was...French Kissed.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
A very Ang Moh Meal
My dinner today was very simple, but it was absolutely delish!
I just threw in chopped onions and mushrooms into some hot olive oil, added butter, salt and cumin for taste and just sauteed it till it was soft. Then I boiled and mashed a potato with salt, butter and milk. And finally I got some knackerbrod and cut up some camembert just so my plate would not look so empty.
Thats's all there was too it, and it really got me feeling so satisfied. I'm just happy that a yummy meal without any real cooking is not impossible and I have my nice platter to prove it.
Breakfast at Katalin's - Post, eat your <3 out
Over the weekend, while I was away on my crazy hike to the arctic circle, my dear neighbour and suana buddy, Katalin found a good blueberry picking spot and managed to fill up an entire bowl with these delicious, juicy morsels.
I have just picked and eaten berries as and when I pass by these low-lying shrubs, but I've never gone out with the intention of filling out any container and keeping them for later consumption, so when I saw just how much she had picked I was quite excited. So Katalin was asking me when we should eat them, and I suggested that I come over at 9:30 for breakfast and we can put the berries in our milk and frosted cereal!
And boy was it yummy! So much better than 'Post's Blueberry Morning', which is probably one of my most favourite cereals to have back at home. The fresh, juicy berries together with the crisp, sweet cornflakes were a perfect blend and the milk just washed it all down while adding just enough creaminess.
We ended up having seconds and thirds, finishing 1/2 a bag of cereal and all the berries :)
And I also had bought some wonderful Camembert cheese that I brought to share with Katalin, so we had that with knakerbrod and ketchup. It was divine, cheese and crackers with ketchup for some zing - SHIOK is the only appropriate word to use here.
So at the 10:05, just before I had to rush out to get on my bike and ride to school on time, I took a picture of two very happy girls who had the perfect start to our day - we should be poster girls for some 'don't skip breakfast 'cos it's important' campaign :p
I have just picked and eaten berries as and when I pass by these low-lying shrubs, but I've never gone out with the intention of filling out any container and keeping them for later consumption, so when I saw just how much she had picked I was quite excited. So Katalin was asking me when we should eat them, and I suggested that I come over at 9:30 for breakfast and we can put the berries in our milk and frosted cereal!
And boy was it yummy! So much better than 'Post's Blueberry Morning', which is probably one of my most favourite cereals to have back at home. The fresh, juicy berries together with the crisp, sweet cornflakes were a perfect blend and the milk just washed it all down while adding just enough creaminess.
We ended up having seconds and thirds, finishing 1/2 a bag of cereal and all the berries :)
And I also had bought some wonderful Camembert cheese that I brought to share with Katalin, so we had that with knakerbrod and ketchup. It was divine, cheese and crackers with ketchup for some zing - SHIOK is the only appropriate word to use here.So at the 10:05, just before I had to rush out to get on my bike and ride to school on time, I took a picture of two very happy girls who had the perfect start to our day - we should be poster girls for some 'don't skip breakfast 'cos it's important' campaign :p
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Journey to the Arctic Circle!
One thing I told myself I must do in Sweden, is reach the Arctic Circle. I could not come home knowing that I was living 200km away from it and not have gone. So I told the guys here about Jokkmokk [say Yok-mok], where the Sami people live, and how the Arctic circle is just 7km north from that little town. The Sami people are an indigenous people to Sweden, their language and way of life is very different from Swedish culture in general and we wanted to see what exactly they are about for ourselves as well.
We left Lulea by bus at 4:45pm on Friday, 4th Sept. It cost us 197 SEK, instead of the 119 SEK the travel agent told us, argh! Anyway, we were not going to let 78 SEK ruin the trip for us, so we got onto the bus which got us to Asgard (say Osgourd) in 3 hours, right in front of our STF hostel. We were hungry and tired, so after a quick dinner at a local watering hole we headed back to our 6-bed dorm room after a game of life-sized chess near a traffic junction. We needed our rest, we knew the next day held a 14km walk to and from the Arctic Circle for us.
We woke up at 8:30, with much resistance, protest and difficulty. But a breakfast of bread/pastry/juice got us rearing to go and after a few detours to look for how Dale could go about fishing we were on the highway to the Arctic Cirlce. It was a real highway, and on the way there and back, when the occasional car went by the passengers or drivers with look us at and laugh or stare in astonishment at these crazy kids attempting to walk all the way. But the weather was great, cool and comfortable, and the company was even better, we laughed, joked and got up to silly antics the entire way. Everything from throwing rocks at signboards, taking photos on the open road, making moose mating calls and sword fighting with the poles stuck by the side of the road.
Even more perfect were the trees, lakes and hills that surrounded us. It didn't matter which direction we looked in, the view was beautiful and the sky that hugged the curves of the land changed hues as the sun plodded along it. As we got 1km away from the Arctic Circle we saw a stunning lake and the hills and forests even more up close. The sunlight danced on the water and we could see the smooth rocks leading into lake and lush, green coniferous forests hemmed in the icy, sapphire waters.
After trudging along we caught sight of a big white sign that read ARCTIC CIRCLE! Then while we all yelled in glee and rejoiced, Vishnu broke into a run made for it at top speed to our great amusement. It had taken us about 2 hours and 30 mins to get there and though exhausted, the sense of accomplishment we felt was pretty immense. Unfortunately the Arctic cafe that sold certificates stating that 'you have come this far north' closed its doors the night before for the winter. We were like "huh? What winter?!", but such was our luck. But we were having fun taking photos so we were still in high spirits. It was a great thing I brought my tripod - group photos!
We were not successful in hitching a ride back so we had to walk ALL the way back to where we began and meet Dale, who had gone fishing instead of go with us. Poor guy didn't catch anything. On a whim we decided to have a BBQ that night so we went to the supermarket to get supplies but because we were so hungry we wanted to eat dinner first as we could not wait 2 hours for a fire to get started and food to be cooked. So we had fake chinese food at Kow Loon and a nice BBQ supper with a newly made German friend [who had hiked 250km from Norway to Jokkmokk!!!] around 11pm.
On Sunday, after a breakfast of left over BBQ food, we headed to the Sami museum for a quick tour so we could find out about Sami culture. I think the boys were kinda bored, but I loved it! I found out about their myths, how they were forced to modernize and their natural remedies among other fascinating things.
Then we had to wolf down a quick lunch before getting our bus number 44 back to Lulea. Well, Jokkmokk is not an exciting town, and really the best time to go is in February when they have the Sami winter market, but I will never ever forget my walk to get to the arctic circle and the feeling that overcame me when I saw signboard telling me that I actually made it that far north.
We left Lulea by bus at 4:45pm on Friday, 4th Sept. It cost us 197 SEK, instead of the 119 SEK the travel agent told us, argh! Anyway, we were not going to let 78 SEK ruin the trip for us, so we got onto the bus which got us to Asgard (say Osgourd) in 3 hours, right in front of our STF hostel. We were hungry and tired, so after a quick dinner at a local watering hole we headed back to our 6-bed dorm room after a game of life-sized chess near a traffic junction. We needed our rest, we knew the next day held a 14km walk to and from the Arctic Circle for us.
We woke up at 8:30, with much resistance, protest and difficulty. But a breakfast of bread/pastry/juice got us rearing to go and after a few detours to look for how Dale could go about fishing we were on the highway to the Arctic Cirlce. It was a real highway, and on the way there and back, when the occasional car went by the passengers or drivers with look us at and laugh or stare in astonishment at these crazy kids attempting to walk all the way. But the weather was great, cool and comfortable, and the company was even better, we laughed, joked and got up to silly antics the entire way. Everything from throwing rocks at signboards, taking photos on the open road, making moose mating calls and sword fighting with the poles stuck by the side of the road.
Even more perfect were the trees, lakes and hills that surrounded us. It didn't matter which direction we looked in, the view was beautiful and the sky that hugged the curves of the land changed hues as the sun plodded along it. As we got 1km away from the Arctic Circle we saw a stunning lake and the hills and forests even more up close. The sunlight danced on the water and we could see the smooth rocks leading into lake and lush, green coniferous forests hemmed in the icy, sapphire waters.
After trudging along we caught sight of a big white sign that read ARCTIC CIRCLE! Then while we all yelled in glee and rejoiced, Vishnu broke into a run made for it at top speed to our great amusement. It had taken us about 2 hours and 30 mins to get there and though exhausted, the sense of accomplishment we felt was pretty immense. Unfortunately the Arctic cafe that sold certificates stating that 'you have come this far north' closed its doors the night before for the winter. We were like "huh? What winter?!", but such was our luck. But we were having fun taking photos so we were still in high spirits. It was a great thing I brought my tripod - group photos!
We were not successful in hitching a ride back so we had to walk ALL the way back to where we began and meet Dale, who had gone fishing instead of go with us. Poor guy didn't catch anything. On a whim we decided to have a BBQ that night so we went to the supermarket to get supplies but because we were so hungry we wanted to eat dinner first as we could not wait 2 hours for a fire to get started and food to be cooked. So we had fake chinese food at Kow Loon and a nice BBQ supper with a newly made German friend [who had hiked 250km from Norway to Jokkmokk!!!] around 11pm.
On Sunday, after a breakfast of left over BBQ food, we headed to the Sami museum for a quick tour so we could find out about Sami culture. I think the boys were kinda bored, but I loved it! I found out about their myths, how they were forced to modernize and their natural remedies among other fascinating things.
Then we had to wolf down a quick lunch before getting our bus number 44 back to Lulea. Well, Jokkmokk is not an exciting town, and really the best time to go is in February when they have the Sami winter market, but I will never ever forget my walk to get to the arctic circle and the feeling that overcame me when I saw signboard telling me that I actually made it that far north.
Friday, September 4, 2009
LUKAS meeting
I had found out about the campus' Christian fellowship group called Lukas, some two weeks ago and I've been excitedly waiting for their first meeting on 3rd September. It was to be a (bring your own food) BBQ at a nearby hill called Mjolkuddsberget. It was a pretty tiring hike uphill as it was very rocky and steep and i had to push my bike up but when we got to the top the view was worth every breathless pant and aching joint.
We began by playing games, the two that I loved especially was called 'imps and giants' and 'samurai'. I'll surely teach these to my youth group when I'm back in Singapore. Soon after it was time to grab a knife, find a good twig to skewer your food with and cut if off the plant. How rustic right? I found a twig on the floor and got it sharpened to a point and pierced my mock-meat patty through it. Then we all stood around a smoking, hot pit and talked while our food cracked, sizzled and burned above the open flame.
I met really nice people - Veronika, Samuel, Frank, claus, Vanessa, Tobias, Jonas....- and I'm already excited about seeing everyone next week. I think it is really sweet that they all made an effort to speak in English when addressing the group even though they were not very comfortable doing so.
There even was a time of praise and worship which got me really excited because I miss that so much. They sang three songs in Swedish but I could easily sing along because all them them were songs I sing back in Changi Baptist. It was wonderful to sing along without language being a barrier and it also reminded me of how big God really was. He is everywhere and he understands every single language/dialect/pidgin there ever was. Whatever your tongue, God hears and knows just what you mean. How amazing.
Even the beautiful natural surrounds were reminiscent of God's planning, fingerprints, creativity. The sun was setting and the whole sky was orange and pink. It slowly intensified into an indigo and pink canvas. The moon was peeking out from behind the tall trees and glowed a nice sherbet orange. I felt like I should be mingling more and snapping less photos but I really could not help myself.
The walk back was really really cold but the hours we spent on the hill were so worthwhile. I promised the guys here that I'd take them there next week...maybe after our swim in the icy lake, why not?
We began by playing games, the two that I loved especially was called 'imps and giants' and 'samurai'. I'll surely teach these to my youth group when I'm back in Singapore. Soon after it was time to grab a knife, find a good twig to skewer your food with and cut if off the plant. How rustic right? I found a twig on the floor and got it sharpened to a point and pierced my mock-meat patty through it. Then we all stood around a smoking, hot pit and talked while our food cracked, sizzled and burned above the open flame.
I met really nice people - Veronika, Samuel, Frank, claus, Vanessa, Tobias, Jonas....- and I'm already excited about seeing everyone next week. I think it is really sweet that they all made an effort to speak in English when addressing the group even though they were not very comfortable doing so.There even was a time of praise and worship which got me really excited because I miss that so much. They sang three songs in Swedish but I could easily sing along because all them them were songs I sing back in Changi Baptist. It was wonderful to sing along without language being a barrier and it also reminded me of how big God really was. He is everywhere and he understands every single language/dialect/pidgin there ever was. Whatever your tongue, God hears and knows just what you mean. How amazing.
Even the beautiful natural surrounds were reminiscent of God's planning, fingerprints, creativity. The sun was setting and the whole sky was orange and pink. It slowly intensified into an indigo and pink canvas. The moon was peeking out from behind the tall trees and glowed a nice sherbet orange. I felt like I should be mingling more and snapping less photos but I really could not help myself.
The walk back was really really cold but the hours we spent on the hill were so worthwhile. I promised the guys here that I'd take them there next week...maybe after our swim in the icy lake, why not?
Freshwater Wading
I got back pretty early from school yesterday as all I had to do was meet some academic advisers regarding courses (which Mel and I finally got settled, so yay!). For once I was home when it was still daylight with nothing to do, and my newest housemate - Kenza from Algeria - asked if I knew how to go to the beach. So I said, "Yes! I can take you there and we can go for a swim!". It was perfect weather anyways - slightly warm and very bright- and we had better stay in the sun for as long as we can before fall barges in and makes our daylight hours shorter and wetter.
So we scrambled to get ready as we only had two hours before I had to go to a meeting at school at 6pm. I had to borrow Kenza's bikini top cos I only had girl boxer bottoms and luckily they matched! Then we asked our neighbour Katalin from Hungary to join us and she gleefully agreed. So we got on our bikes and sped off with me leading the way.
25 minutes later we arrived at what is probably my most favourite spot in Lulea yet. The place I was at alone, reading my book at some days ago. But this time instead of sitting under a tree on my own, I was in the company of two brave girls who wanted to run into the water as much as I did. So the moment we got there, we laid our towels on the chilly sand and stripped to our swimsuits, abandoned our belongings and clothes and ran into the water. But we didn't continue running for long...
Freezing, does not even begin to describe what the water was like. Believe me when I tell you that the outside air which as already a bit cold, was many times warmer than the water. We inched our way further and further out into the icy lake screaming and giggling as we went. Every pore that touched the waters immediately tightened and each patch of skin introduced to the lake burned, went numb and began to tingle. When the water was just halfway up my torso, I couldn't take this method of slow torture anymore and just pinched my nose and disappeared under the sparkling surface, evoking cheers and screams of "She did it!". Eventually we all went under and swam back to the surface. There isn't a current of any waves and we see people swimming and kayaking there there all the time, so it's got to be safe.
We went in twice and swam about, but it's hard to do that when you can't even feel your body and you don't quite know which limbs you are moving and if you are moving them at all! We just laid in the sunshine -that didn't provide heat at all- for about 20 mins and dried off and got changed before leaving. It was great fun - a free thrill, haha!
All we could talk about on the ride home was about coming back, but next time with more people and staying longer. Hopefully next week will be free enough for me to go for a dip in arctic waters again!
So we scrambled to get ready as we only had two hours before I had to go to a meeting at school at 6pm. I had to borrow Kenza's bikini top cos I only had girl boxer bottoms and luckily they matched! Then we asked our neighbour Katalin from Hungary to join us and she gleefully agreed. So we got on our bikes and sped off with me leading the way.25 minutes later we arrived at what is probably my most favourite spot in Lulea yet. The place I was at alone, reading my book at some days ago. But this time instead of sitting under a tree on my own, I was in the company of two brave girls who wanted to run into the water as much as I did. So the moment we got there, we laid our towels on the chilly sand and stripped to our swimsuits, abandoned our belongings and clothes and ran into the water. But we didn't continue running for long...
Freezing, does not even begin to describe what the water was like. Believe me when I tell you that the outside air which as already a bit cold, was many times warmer than the water. We inched our way further and further out into the icy lake screaming and giggling as we went. Every pore that touched the waters immediately tightened and each patch of skin introduced to the lake burned, went numb and began to tingle. When the water was just halfway up my torso, I couldn't take this method of slow torture anymore and just pinched my nose and disappeared under the sparkling surface, evoking cheers and screams of "She did it!". Eventually we all went under and swam back to the surface. There isn't a current of any waves and we see people swimming and kayaking there there all the time, so it's got to be safe.
We went in twice and swam about, but it's hard to do that when you can't even feel your body and you don't quite know which limbs you are moving and if you are moving them at all! We just laid in the sunshine -that didn't provide heat at all- for about 20 mins and dried off and got changed before leaving. It was great fun - a free thrill, haha!All we could talk about on the ride home was about coming back, but next time with more people and staying longer. Hopefully next week will be free enough for me to go for a dip in arctic waters again!
Taste of Grandma's Kitchen
We had yet another dinner gathering and this time it was to bid farewell to Anna, who was here for two weeks visiting her boyfriend. So before she left us to go to back to Paris, we decided to make her a nice dinner. There was roast potatoes, rice, grilled chicken, stir fried vegetables, fried eggs and....
Tomato Rasam -A spicy Indian soup that is a favourite of mine
Ok, so this is not a good picture, but trust me - it is GOOD! I called my grandma on Skype just to get the recipe and then I went grocery shopping just to buy the fresh ingredients needed for it.Attah's Tomato Rassam
3-4 tbsp Oil
2 big white onions, chopped
2 sticks of cinnamon
3 green chillies, sliced
1/2 tsp tumeric powder
1-2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
5 red tomatoes, chopped
water
4 pre-boiled potatoes, cubed
1/2 teacup of evaporated/coconut milk
In a medium sized saucepan, heat the oil and add in the onions. When they soften and become fragrant add in the cinnamon sticks, green chillies, tumeric, chili powder and salt. When everything is well combined, add in the tomatoes and mix well, then taste and see if you need more salt or chili powder. Pour in water gradually till about 1/2 way and leave it to simmer. Don't worry if it looks and tastes dilute once you pour in the water, as the liquid will reduce as it simmers. Once you see bubbles forming at the surface lower the heat, add in the pre-cooked potatoes and milk of choice. Give it a good stir, taste and see if more chili powder or salt is needed. Allow to simmer once more before serving with rice.
Happy cooking!
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