The Credit Card Strikes Back

You know how they say when a woman is depressed, she shouldn't go shopping? Well, today, I've discovered that when a woman is annoyed, there is even more reason to prevent her from seeking the all-so-familiar retail therapy..

I went to town today to run a few errands and to hunt for a few nice spring jackets. (I don't believe I have enough spring jackets to cater for different occassions and therefore, need to complete my wardrobe) Unfortunately for me, not only did I not manage to find any suitable jackets, I ended up splurging on a whole load of unnecessary items! Sigh.. the UK economy will certainly benefit from my little problems..

Let's see.. Ah yes, I spent a whopping 20 pounds in Boots today.. on what, you say? (Ok, so you don't say but I'll say anyway.. hehe) On hair dye products. Wanted to redo my hair cos' it was growing out and looked a bit weird.. Now, I've been wanting to do this for some time, but have always stopped myself in the midst of time simply because I do not have the disposable income. (Literally, disposable, in this case..) But well, I needed to feel better today and what better way to feel happier than to buy myself lots and lots of stuff?!! (I bought loads of other stuff too, but we shan't dwell on that now..)

I do admit trying very hard to think logically and weigh out the benefits and disadvantages of my purchases.. But I don't know why, something so deep inside me kept chanting, "Buy, buy, buy it all!!" Wonder if it was just my subconcience, or my credit/debit cards..

So the whole evening has been wasted on 'doing' my hair.. and guess what? It wasn't just me.. No, no.. it was a whole house affair!!! Haha.. My poor unfortunate housemates, S and JC had to spend 4 hours plus turning 28, Marlborough Street into the 'S & J Saloon'! I'm truly very grateful to them for this as I couldn't possibly have done what I wanted done to my hair on my own..

So yes, to the world out there, an important lesson to be learnt: never let an unhappy woman leave the house with a credit card.. (or any cash for that matter..) unless you, as an innocent bystander, desperately want or need to have a taste of disaster..

Ignore this, I'm just ranting..

So what do you do when you're just so darn fed up with somebody? When you're completely annoyed, dissatisfied and just downright tired of someone's behaviour about something? Even after telling them, talking to them, taking some time to 'cool down', at the end of the day, nothing changes and you're so so goddamn fed up with them?

Everyone has a different way of dealing with this. Some people clean (go figure!), some people curl up in bed and go to sleep, some go for a run, some just ignore it and continue with life and some just deal with it. Me, I tend to turn to the people around me.. Close friends, that is.. Unfortunately for me, I'm stuck in boring ol' UK now and my closest of closest friends are not anywhere near me..

Let's see, there's MY, who's one of my best friends from home, but she's stuck at home. Can't really call her right now cos' of the time difference, and I don't think she'll appreciate a 6am wake-up call about my problems.. so that's out.. I could call VL in Ireland, she's a good listener and probably really good for the kinda talk I need right now, but then again, it'll cost a lot to call her in Ireland and I don't have that many free minutes left. Next on my list, KC, but he's all the way across the world and again, time difference and money do not permit. Now he would be a great guy to talk to as well.. just to let it all out... Sighh..

BH would be good too but he's at home too.. He'll probably not really appreciate it very much though, even if I could spare the money and the time difference was alright, cos' he's a very busy man.. Ol' friend TS? He'd cheer me up and make me feel better, but he's in Aussie now.. as well.. DL is a good friend too and he'd be good to talk and yet again, he's in Malaysia.. How about my 'ex'? Hmm.. that may not be a good idea cos' don't think he's THAT interested in my life right now.. Besides, he's stuck in Bangkok for some work-thing. So, the only real person I have left in the UK to call is WS. But as you can already guess, since the problem lies with him, I guess, that's not going to do the job..

So that's why I've resorted to ranting here... at the keyboard. Seems to me that this is one of my few companions left.. Sad huh? Oh well.. you can't have it all.. (Well, technically, you can have it all, but my 'all' is stuck on different continents!)

Ah well.. What can u do? So, I guess this time, I'll just do the healthy thing and ignore it.. Hope this discontent of mine goes away and if it doesn't, too bad.. I don't usually do this but hey, I can't play marriage counsellor all the time now, can I? I've always said, there's only so much one can take.. and my patience is running out.

Moving on..

Wow.. what a day! (Yes, it's 12.10pm on a Monday afternoon and I'm not in school yet.. :P) It's barely afternoon and already lots have happened..

Well, as of this morning, I am ok about the whole 'dance' incident. :) Hehe.. The people involved have so kindly apologised to me and I am happy to accept that it was all a horrible coincidence. It's funny though.. I didn't expect anyone to be reading my blog in the first place then coming to talk to me about it! I was actually all ready to make some calls and tell them exactly what's on my mind! Heehee.. Guess there's no need for that now!

So, as of now, my official statement is "I am no longer upset/angry/annoyed about what happened on Saturday night." So to those of you out there who really care about me (hah!), thank you but there is no need to dwell. We can move on to dwell about the next important thing in my life, like the Orlando Bloom movie that's coming out in two weeks time! (Yes, I know I sound like a completely self-involved b*tch but oh well, I'm going to allow myself this luxury this time.. heehee!)

Thanks again.. to all who put up with me while I ranted and to all that was involved. :) Hehe.

Moving on...

Too angry to care..

I am enraged! I am furious, livid and just downright mad!!! (not just using lots of words for fun here.. I mean it!)

As I mentioned in my previous entry, I attended a formal function (that involved dinner and a show) this weekend, together with WS and a group of friends. I had quite a nice time dressing up and getting prepared (see accompanying photos) with PY and was quite excited about the night. (I also had a great weekend with WS but that's a story for another day, I promise!)

So there I was, with WS, having a pleasant dinner and watching the show, (and looking forward to the Chinese dance since I am a Chinese dance 'expert', having choreographed many myself over the years.. hehe..) minding my own business. I was generally happy and enjoying myself.... UNTIL the Chinese dance was actually performed.

Boy, was I outraged!!! I realised, from the moment the music came on and as the dance progressed, that it had actually been ripped off the dance that I choreographed for Nottingham's Malaysian Night in 2003!

Ok, I know what you're thinking. I must be completely 'perasan' (i.e. arrogant) to think that someone would actually imitate my dance. Sure, the song is a popular one that could have been chosen by anyone (Coco Lee's 'A Love Before Time'), and the steps are fairly universal (there are only so many things you can do with Chinese fans) but there were more reasons than that:

1) The opening sequence of the dance was exactly the same as mine. Right down to onset, tempo and formation.

2) There were too many sequences in that dance (50-75%) which were same as my dance for it to be a coincidence. (By sequence here what I mean is a specific step that is being danced at a particular bit of the song.. i.e. they were dancing the same steps to the same bits of the song as my dancers did)

3) Not only were the sequences the same, but most of the formations were too dammit!

4) Finally. the dead giveaway was seeing my own steps being used in the exact same way as I used it. You see, there are a few steps in my original dance that was so-called 'created', or should I say modified-from-the-usual by me, i.e. I've never seen it being used anywhere else (and I have seen many Chinese dances in my day..) And there it was, being performed before my very eyes!!!

So you can imagine how infuriated I was! Not only did I get to experience a live performance of my 'baby' being pirated, but I had to also watch it being performed poorly! And all I could do was sit there, seething, and ranting to my friends around me. (Rest assured though, I'm fairly well brought up and therefore, tried my very best to be gracious about it and not make a complete fuss. I would have walked up to the choreographer and confronted her, but she herself was busy with the whole night's performance. This issue may be too trivial for her to be concerned with..)

And yes, I have so-called 'proof'. I later found out that the choreographer (who has a few good friends in Notts, of which I know) had managed to borrow a copy of our Nottingham Malaysian Night 2003 production, "Irinah", and therefore, had access to all the dances and performances on it. So, this goes to prove that I'm not making this up!

As much as I can understand the possible reasons to why the choreographer did what she did, (lack of time to fully choreograph a dance, lack of manpower, and seriously, what are the chances that the original choreographer from Nottingham's production 2 years ago would be here to witness this?) and how S said that "Imitation is the highest form of flattery", nevertheless, I am still completely enraged!

I am enraged that the people involved lacked the courtesy to just kindly inform me that they're intending to rip off my dance. I mean, I know I didn't copyright the dance or anything, but wouldn't you think it's not only common courtesy, but basic decency to just let the original choreographer know anyway? I'm not asking for any acknowlegement of any sorts, I had that in my day, I'm merely asking for some respect and perhaps, gratitude for my 'help'.

Ok, so maybe they didn't have a clue where the dance came from and who choreographed it. But it's not as if they saw it once on the night it was first performed, had it memorised by heart and reproduced it from pure memory. Cos' that would be a decent excuse since it would be impossible to find out who the choreographer was.

But that's not the case at all, is it? They managed to get hold of the VCD so they must have the access to such information. They could have easily informed the party who lent them the VCD, then the party could have easily come let me know. Is it so hard to just ask? After all, it wouldn't matter what I said, but at least I would be in the know!

I bet all of you out there think I'm being selfish and self-involved and self-everything. But I think I'm allowed to be possesive, and therefore, certainly have the right to be angry. To be honest, in this case, it doesn't matter what people think. If you've never been in my position, you wouldn't understand. And even if you have been, and did not react the same way I did, then that makes you a better person than I am.

All in all, my blood pressure was pushed up momentarily thanks to this episode. Let this be a lesson to all - don't count on luck being on your side if you intend to do something you're not supposed to. Chances are, it'll turn around and bite you in the arse, as it did with the other 'choreographer' (and me, for that matter)

Dinner at the Manchester Malaysian Night 

A new addiction

Sorry I've been MIA lately.. (not that many of you out there are that bothered anyway.. hehe.. I don't think I've got any devout followers to begin with!) I've been very busy with going to hospital, studying and working hard generally.. Hah! Yeah, right! Like that's going to happen..

In truth, I haven't done any work or anything productive at all this whole week. Instead, I've started with a new project now, and that's taking a lot of my time! Hehe.. It's not that I really enjoy doing it or anything.. it's just that it's highly addictive! Hehe.. Guess what it is?? You'll never believe it!

Cross-stitching!

Yeah, thanks to my marvellous friends who gave me a cross-stitch kit/set for my birthday so now I have no choice but to do it. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy it. It's just that I really should be doing some proper work.. Sigh.. I've got an addiction and I admit it. Teehee!

Well, I'm off to Manchester this weekend to spend some time with WS and attend a function. So hopefully, after I come back to good ol' Notts, I'll be able to break this newfound habit and go back to my daily routine of attempting to study. :)

Until then..

Look what I've got!

(Yes, it's been a boring morning..)

Easily satisfied?

Today is definitely my favourite day of the week! Friday.. Fabulous, fantastic and fun Friday! But most importantly, with the arrival of Friday, the wonderful weekend that ensues is so surely promised!! Woohoo!!!

As you can probably tell, I've had a great (albeit busy) day today.. I think I can attribute it to the fact that I received 2 compliments ("Very good" and "Well done") from my consultant cardiologist today for a case presentation. (The very one who called me daft twice on Wednesday, then shooed me away from his clinic afterwards, who pounded me on Tuesday for not knowing all the knowledge in the world (Hello... I'll be doing your job if I knew everything!), then said that I must be a bad student since I only had a 48-hour memory and well, you get the idea..) Anyway, I was delirious with ecstasy when he said that and felt as if I could fly!! (Ok, so that sounds a bit stretched.. but nevertheless, I was happy!)

You see, the consultants on my firm are very stern and blunt when it comes to teaching us students. They're really nice about it though, and not at all arsy, so we don't really feel THAT incompetent or stupid. We just feel that we've got lots to learn and need to do more studying. (Sigh..) Sorry, digressing. My point is, because we are constantly bombarded by these doctors, every single day, we turn up at the hospital expecting to experience unending verbal assaults due to our inability. It has in fact, come to a point where the lack of criticism is considered to be highly positive thing and can be taken as a compliment!!! (It's good for us, and we develop a thick skin at the same time! Double score!)

I started to think about people and expectations. It's amazing how the frameshift of mind that you're in can influence so many things in your life, most importantly, perception and the corresponding emotions that follow. It's not so much a matter of belief anymore, it's about anticipation and the endless possibilities that life promises..

My dear WS never believes in getting excited and all hyped up for an upcoming event. I, on the other hand, am always an over-enthusiastic hyperactive fool who not only looks forward to every little thing, but play it up and hype it up so much in my mind that even a simple get-together meal can be turned into a regata gala in my head!

Because of that, more than once, I've been bitterly disappointed with the outcome of the event and always return home with a heavy heart, vowing never to see these people again. (Yes, slightly overdone, but I'm allowed to be when I'm emotional!) Of course, this rapidly recovers with the promise of a new occasion and the same cycle happens all over again.. Sighh..

So. I've learned the hard way to have low or zero expectations in whatever I do.. if I'm already at a level of 'no expectations', there's really nowhere else to go but up right? It may seem pessimistic, but it's really, the only pragmatic approach (for me) to life.. This way, I'm kept constantly happy and upbeat about the things that happen around me and (almost) never have to feel down in the dumps..

What do you think? How do you deal with it?

Smarty pants? I think not..

I know lots of people.. and they know lots of other people.. and these other people know lots of other people.. plus the fact that my parents know lots of people.. and these people know lots of other people.. and of course, these other people know lots of other people.. (Sorry, got a little carried away with that one..) My point is, I get to meet lots of people, whether I'm in Malaysia or I'm in the UK.

The beauty of meeting new people is well, meeting new people. (not in the most eloquent state today) Unfortunately, when we first make new acquaintances, you open up a whole new avenue for judgement, purely based on what you appear to be, and of course, what you say. I've always said that living in this modern world, judgement is inevitable, so I'm not too bothered about it.

Having said that, I believe that the reason I'm not that distressed about being judged by my 'cover' is because my answer to the orthodoxed second-question-upon-meeting-someone is an extremely impressive one - afterwards, usually responded to by a wow, ooh, aah or gasp. (Ok, so it would have just been simpler to type out the actual question "So what do you study?" rather than go on and on, but hey, I've never been known to be concise. Ok, digressing. By the way, the answer to that is "Medicine.") Hold on, let me clarify. I don't think it's impressive at all, but apparently the rest of mankind thinks that it is.

I strongly believe that doctors (and hence, medical students) are overglorified. We are perceived as being extremely smart, highly intellectual and of supreme character - purely based on the profession that we've chosen to follow. (I could go on listing the many ways in which doctors are great, as said to me by people I've met, but that's not the point of this entry)

The thing is, I admit that obviously, there are many highly-qualified and brilliant doctors out there, and most of the ones I've encountered through my clinical experience have been amazing. However, there are equally as many intelligent and accomplished scientists, engineers, lawyers, accountants and more. So why is it then, that doctors are perceived to be superior to others? Why is it, that doctors are regarded as admirable superhumans? Yes, it is a noble job, but not that many people I know are really doing it for the greater good. At the end of the day, we're all just doing our jobs. A doctor's job, just so happens to be saving lives.

The reason I've brought this up is this: I believe that many people, especially medical students, abuse this knowledge. Because society has constantly made us believe that medical students are far smarter than any other student, we are beginning to accept that too. As a result of this, medical students are becoming increasingly arrogant and truly believe that we are superior to the rest of mankind. It's almost as if God himself hand-picked us from a world of mere mortals and made us supreme.

Yes, doctors do work very hard to be good at what they do. Not many other professionals need to be on-call for 24 hours; need to study for 5 long years before qualifying, followed by another 5-10 years to become fully competent; need to cram their brains with voluminous amounts of information all the time (since medicine is, irrefutably, the hardest subject to study) and most important of all, are responsible for another human being's life.

But other people work hard too.. I personally, admire nurses and teachers, for their nobility and virtue. Pilots and transport drivers hold the lives of the public in their hands too, and thus have to be vigilent in what they do. We wouldn't survive if it wasn't for contractors, carpenters, electricians and plumbers and they are often forgotten. Life without cashiers, janitors and porters would be difficult too, and so would life without rubbish collectors, sewage workers and road cleaners.

So the question is: Why is it that being a doctor (and hence, a medical student) is basis enough for us to be considered preponderant? More importantly, why is it that this is basis enough for us to be an egotistical, conceited and pompous lot who look down on others considered inferior to us?

Where does it stop?

Growing up in a relatively urban and big city, somehow, the concept of 'kiasu'-ism does not elude me and has in fact, been widely accepted as just being human. I wouldn't blame it on my parents, as they've never really bothered with academic competition in school (I mean, after all, I was the best for most of my life, so there wasn't really an issue at all.. muahahaha! *eyes rolling*) and all they've ever wanted was for me to do my best in all that I can. In fact, can't really pinpoint any particular person or event which has helped this notion seep into my very veins but I guess where I picked it up doesn't really matter. What matters is the fact that I did pick it up..

As a kid, I think I was fairly competitive (this being the civilised word for 'kiasu'.. I mean, let's face it, 'kiasu' is such an ugly word!), going around from person to person when exam results were released, just to find out how everyone else faired. I didn't think it was necessarily being competitive at that time. To me, it was just very important to find out simply because if I didn't do well, I could just say to my parents, "But everyone also got around the same marks as me so it wasn't my fault!"

As the years have gone by, I'd like to say that I'm less competitive than I used to be. (Well, at least I hope I am.. Hey, I said 'less competitive' not 'completely not competitive' so you can't catch me there. However, if you think I am an uncontrollable 'kiasee', do let me know.. discretely, please, of course.. hehe) I can safely proclaim this because I asked my housemate JC who knows me relatively well and she doesn't think I'm too competitive, so that's a good sign.. (unless of course, she's just trying to be nice, in which case, I'll probably receive 1000 comments to this post telling me that I'm not only combative, I'm also ignorant and arrogant!) Anyway, digressing again. I believe I am just 'kiasu' enough to ensure that I try hard in certain areas of life in order to produce results which are at par with my peers.. so that I don't look so daft.. (I think, in actual fact, my biggest weakness is my brontosaurus-sized ego, but let's not get into that..just yet)

Now.. what was my point? Ah yes.. competitiveness. As I was saying, I am a relatively not-so-competitive person... EXCEPT when I am pushed. I am very sorry to say that I have had the misfortune of experiencing many many instances in my life where my friends have this irrepressible need to shove everything they can into my face. Every little thing becomes a contest.. every little thing becomes important. The greatest achievement in a day is to make the other party feel bad about the hairclips that she's wearing. (Fortunately though, it's not just me.. these people have some sort of mental disturbance and do it to everyone. So in many ways, I pity them)

To be honest, I am getting extremely weary of such infantile behaviour. Don't get me wrong, I'm not using this blog of mine to become an outlet to bitch at people.. I don't need to do this here, I can just tell people off.. You know what I'm like.. :) (In this sense and many more, I have done that!) I'm just tired of having to deal with such people and am just doing some self-reflection.

In the beginning, I just ignored them. Being the bigger person by making the bigger gesture. Unfortunately, it doesn't work. These people see this as an opportunity to push it into your nose further.. So, I have no choice but to retaliate. And retaliated, I have.. Obvious risks to that, I admit, but you win some, you lose some. What can ya do? I won't kid myself by pretending I have incredible patience to continue being the bigger person and ignoring them.. Sorry peeps, but I'm not that great a person.. (JC says that some people just have an ingrained gift to bring out the worst in you..)

The reason I brought this up is this: Being competitive is an exceedingly selfish trait, as its ultimate aim is to make one feel better about oneself. Nevertheless, this could prove highly advantageous, especially in this fast-moving world, as it drives you to work harder and hence, go further. It could also possibly be helpful for the people you're competing with as well, as they could be motivated to attain greater distances. (This of course depends on whether the other party can stomach such attempts of 'kiasu-ism')

The question is: Should we entertain such attempts to crush our self-confidence and view it as an opportunity for us to reach further heights, even though it may well be at the expense of our sanity? Or should we just shut up, suffer their blows in silence and most of all, feel extremely sorry for these people (whose actual problem is just an extreme lack of self-confidence and therefore, needs desperately to trample on ours just to feel good about themselves) ?

Isn't this choice yet another one of 'between the devil and the deep blue sea'?

I'm the king of the world!

Snowy spring?

That's it. It's official. It's unmistakable, undeniable, irrefutable and down-right certain. British weather is indeed.. crazy!

Bet you think it sounds like an epiphany or something similar to that.. in actual fact, it isn't, really... I am merely reinstating a well-known fact simply because I have now, thanks to personal experience, come to fully believe in this and have therefore, officially become part-British. Yes, I do believe, with all of my heart, that there is nothing normal with British weather!

For many many years now, the British have been well-known to be obssessed with the weather; it being the customary question that follows "How are you today?". When I was in Malaysia, amongst my British teachers in college, I never understood why they always seemed so preoccupied with discussing weather conditions. I was told back then, that it was a natural thing for the Brits, and that I will inevitably, come to experience that when I get to the UK.

And experience that I have.. No wonder people can't stop talking about it.. it's so crazy and fluctuating, there are loads to talk about!! There's rain, wind, sunshine, hail, gale, snow and on the worst days, a combination of them all! I mean, back in Malaysia, we only have hot and sunny or rainy and wet. Doesn't really give much room for deep conversations, eh?

Why have I brought it up? Well, simply because, it's the middle of April now, and as I was walking home from the hospital today, it started to snow! Hear that? Snow! It was utterly ludicrous and more importantly, ridiculously cold!! I was shivering all the way home and couldn't wait to get inside, where warmth awaited me..

Anyhow, I am furious.. simply for the reason that such a long, crazy and cold winter only promises one thing (apart from the cold, of course): an equally long, crazy and hot summer.. I am not looking forward to experiencing and afterwards, bitching about the heat in summer. I'm going to be here almost all throughout, for crying out loud!

Pots of gold

I saw the most wonderful thing today, walking back from school... a rainbow!!! It was beautiful and had all the 7 colours.. red, orange, yellow, green, everything! It was a really huge one as well as I could see both ends of it! (Well, not really ends, but just u know, the whole archy thingie..)

Seeing the rainbow made me recall one particular childhood memory of mine. I remember that not too long ago, I saw this really huge rainbow near home and decided to follow it to the end, where I hoped to find a pot of leprechaun gold. (I needed new nail polish!) Unfortunately, after walking quite a distance, I realised that there was no way that I would ever reach the end of the rainbow on foot and decided to give up. Until today, everytime I see a rainbow, I wonder if anyone would follow it and find the huge pot of gold that we are so solemnly promised.

I started thinking about people and their beliefs.. ever since we were kids, we are constantly told millions of different stories - fables, fairy tales, myths etc; all to remind us ever-so-gently that it is important for us to be good and grow up well. But as we grow up, we tend to grow out of these stories (and hence, go in different directions) and develop our own set of beliefs and values which we so religiously live by, consciously or not.

This is the very basis of diversity in mankind. It is undoubtly, necessary.. after all, variety is the spice of life. But what happens when beliefs clash and disagreements ensue? Do we expect the other party/parties to shed their beliefs and accept ours just because we think that we are right? Or do we give in and compromise just to make life a little bit easier to deal with? I've seen many friends around me fight over the smallest things... but equally as many who argue about huge issues... (me included, of course!) And I always wonder.. why is it that we all find this uncontrollable need to impose our own convictions on others around us? Do people really care?

I guess it all boils down to how strong we hold on to our individual beliefs as these will affect what we do in life. We are all raised in a way to always think. To always think of what we're doing and why we're doing it. We are all educated in a way to ensure that we make right decisions in life, regardless of how major or minor they are, and to make sure that we all live well.

That in itself raises another question: Are our actions actually dictated by what we choose to do, rationally, consciously and with much thought? Or are they a mere manifestation of our beliefs, drilled into us by our surroundings as years go by? If so, why should it matter to the people around us? Does it really affect them? And vice versa, does it really affect us?

The question is, why is it that we all believe that our beliefs matter? Do they, really?

Paris holds the key to my heart..

Yes, yes.. as the title suggests, I did enjoy Paris!! In fact, I enjoyed it so much that it's officially my favourite city in the world!!! Haha.. ok, maybe there's a morsel of exaggeration in that, but seriously, I thoroughly enjoyed being in Paris!

Let's start from the very beginning.. I went to Paris with WS (naturally! Can't possibly go to the Romance City without him, can I?) and a couple of other friends (NT and WT, whom are actually WS's friends from 'kampung' Segamat, but I've known them since our Taylor's days..) and their respective girlfriends, K and B. So yes, this was a super-duper romantic kinda trip. (My dear ee-ee said it was a pre-honeymoon, but since no one's promised to marry no one yet, I'll just ignore that remark)

Well, we went to all the touristy places, as expected.. (What to do? We are after all, tourists.. d'oh!) We went to the Eiffel Tower, by the River Seine, which was indeed, a remarkable structure. (7 wonders of the world, no less..) I know it's stating the obvious, but it's really really really tall! It's quite unique as well and not at all just a pile of metal planks, as the French claim. Anyway, we went to the second floor and then, all the way to the top floor.. actually, didn't enjoy that bit too much as I'm terrified of heights and therefore, was clinging on to WS for dear life. Hope it didn't ruin his experience! :) (In my defence, it's not my fault! I didn't want to go up but the rest all forced me too! :P) We went back another day to see the tower at night, and to view the hourly displays of light on it.. it was amazing!!! Lots of snapshopts involved!

We went to several museums, including the prestiged Louvre and slightly less renowned, Musee d'Orsay. I enjoyed both very much, but definitely preferred Musee d'Orsay, as I can appreciate Impressionist art much more than any other forms of art. (Big fan of Monet over here.. ;) And after Musee d'Orsay, am beginning to appreciate Renoir and Manet too!) Ooh, pieces from the neo-Impressionist period were very interesting as well, as they used the pontissini-type of brush strokes (i.e. dots) Little fact, Musee d'Orsay was actually a train station which was built in 1900. Nevertheless, the Louvre was still quite good.. a bit too big to handle so we did the touristy thing and homed in on the important pieces including the Mona Lisa (too small a painting, too many people surrounding it..), Venus de Milo (intriguing piece..), Michelangelo's Dying Slave (quite alright, but will take David in Italy anytime of the day!), Madonna on the Rocks (not the greatest fan of Da Vinci, but still, they looked good..) and the Winged Victory of Samothrace (this one was definitely good as it's presentation was so grandeur!) Saw the Gates of Hell and The Thinker at Musee Rodin too, so that was nice..

We also saw the Cathedrale du Notre Dame, which was indeed, magnificient in all its splendour! I thought the artists who drew it in the Disney cartoon, the Hunchback of Notre Dame was exaggerating but when I saw the real cathedrale standing in front of me, I was truly, truly enthralled. However, to my slight disappointment, it wasn't as large as many of the cathedrales that I've seen in other places.. (Obviously not as huge as St Peter's in Vatican City, but not even nearly as big as St Paul's in London and York Minster in York!)

The Basilique du Sacre Couer, on the other hand, was huge!!! Unfortunately, I did not enjoy myself around the Montmartre area at all, as it was really a very rough area, and I for one, definitely could feel it. Plus, seeing lots of Afro-Carribean men trying to tug on your hand to tie some friendship band and witnessing someone getting mugged and a few kids caught seconds later doesn't exactly contribute to the overwhelming uneasiness that engulfed us..

Apart from the Montmartre area, went walking around the Latin Quarter as well.. Such a difference, I must say! It was a lovely area, and certainly felt far safer than the rough Montmartre.. People were far nicer as well.. (Though at this point I have to say, that I spoke French throughout my stay in Paris.. Hardly anyone answered 'Oui' when I asked 'Parlez vous anglais?'!!!)

Ooh.. we also went on a lovely cruise down the River Seine.. very very relaxing, nice and utterly romantic.. would have been lovelier if we weren't so preoccupied with the sights around us and the commentaries given. Oh well, we wanted our 7 Euros worth! We also went walking along Champs Elysees, the main shopping street and saw the marvelous Arc de Triomphe. We saw it both in the daytime and at night, and it was quite remarkable! Also went shopping in Galeries Lafayette, a most impressive shopping centre! And I got a lovely Swarovski brooch from WS as a present! Teehee! Ooh, we also went to take pictures of the famed Moulin Rouge at night. I really wanted to go watch the Cabaret show but unfortunately, was not willilng to part with 100 Euros just for that... Sighh.. next time, next time.

We also went to many gardens like the Jardin des Tuileries and Jardin du Luxembourg. Unfortunately, not many flowers had blossomed since we had a long winter this year.. Oh well.. We also took a day out on an excursion to the Versailles Palace and it was certainly worth the trip! And gosh, the gardens were humongous!!!

Didn't eat too much in Paris, which could be a good thing.. We had a pastry spree on the last day and bought so many different French speciality pastries like fruit tarts, macaroons, creme brulee, eclairs and so much more!! Yum!!! Apart from that, we usually spent our meals eating crepes and baguettes, both of which were French specialities and quite nice. Tried the most famous ice-cream in Paris, Berthillion.. very unique and lifelike! We had a good sit-down meal on the last night.. a romantic dinner in Paris for two.. where we enjoyed French delicacies like escargots, French onion soup, sauteed rabbit and of course, cafe au lait! Really regretted not drinking coffee from the first day because it was very very good! I mean, I'm not really a coffee drinker myself and I really loved it!

Ok, I think I've rambled enough about Paris.. would love to go on and on but if u're really that intrigued, get in touch with me and I'll tell you more.. :) Please do visit the link to this entry, which contains the main pictures taken while we were in Paris... (You can do this by clicking the title of this entry) Otherwise, just click on the blue/purple-coloured words to be linked directly to the pictures! So for now, Au revoir!

Nightime view of the Eiffel Tower.. Lovely, isn't it?