i think im falling sick soon. I've been having this annoying sleepy pangs happening. But i do get sufficient sleep every night.
Air con has been on every night since the fan broke down. I seriously prefer fan then aircon the whole night. Aircon should be used to cool the room only! I need the circulation more than the cold air.
Anyway, the house's internet is FINALLY fixed. Had to ask the technician down and reset the bloody modem. 9am somemore. Disturb my beauty sleep. MSN at night. wo lai le!
Been extremely uneventful. I want to explore vietnam the proper way. But it has been 3weeks here. I know theres more to vietnam, but seriously, im bored of this city. Its not even like a city in the first place. gosh. I miss roads dominated by cars.
Anyway, call me the road crossing pro. I'm proud of it. haha.
Knowing im only 150km away from the border to China, I want to head over to China! grrrr.
Im still puzzled by the fact that the fare difference between SIA and Vietnam Airlines for a return ticket to Hanoi from Singapore is only $50. How can VN charge $550 to Hanoi when SIA only charges $600?
Weird.
Smaller plane, no personal entertainment, suckier food and lousy english speaking flight attendants, i really don't get it.
Anyway, been big drops in temperatures lately here in Hanoi. 3 days ago it was at about 38degrees. 2days ago it dropped to 20-24, Today is about 25. Cooling, but the sun is still a merciless killer.
6 weeks more before i can leave this place! I surely won't miss it. Singapore pwns Hanoi any time on any day. this week theres gonna be a 4 day long holiday. A much needed one. Been working on a 6day work week for the past 3 weeks. Haven't got a chance to visit, or even rest as a matter of fact.
I will take pictures. I want to TRY to capture Hanoi in its most simplified state, the hustle of the city, the freakishly polluted air and the really non-scenic lakes.
I will make do if the camera i brought. Its not that bad, but olympus should really get a life and change their team. Not only are the cameras ugly, its definitely NOT even comparable with other brands.
Hope it proves me wrong this weekend when im out visiting.
And i have a non-local look! YEAH. Vietnamese can immediately identify me as a foreigner. I like that. Singaporean got status one okay. Mai siao siao.
To vietnamese,
Soup = water
Gravy = Soup
I got nothing to say...
Tried most of the food this country is famous for.
Pho bor, mee sau, bun cha, that rice roll thing, larvae, mien chok(?). Nothing much! But damn, its really really really delicious.
Still waiting for this country to surprise me.
Will post again once i have pictures! Definitely a looker i promise. no more act arty farty slanted shots. The camera xiaxue posted on her website thats black in colour was once a camera i really liked. Tried to get my brother to buy it as a replacement but nahhh.
thats damn nice.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Internet is back and im so happy!
No more watching repeat shows and being able to update myself with the latest episodes of the best shows simply ROCKS MY SOCKS.
Today is an off day. Basically just stoned in the house and just watch Friends and then stone abit more and ironed all my freaking clothes.
Shahirah fell sick. What a chore.
Finally whipped out the camera and took some pictures that are not exactly professional but not too bad.
Blank bullet casing from the magazine of an M1 rifle right here in Vietnam.
My old razer mouse rofl. No more rubbery pad thing. Scrapped it off!!
The hype of the spiral staircase:
During the first lunch buffet thing. Last picture!:
bahhhhhhhhhhh
No more watching repeat shows and being able to update myself with the latest episodes of the best shows simply ROCKS MY SOCKS.
Today is an off day. Basically just stoned in the house and just watch Friends and then stone abit more and ironed all my freaking clothes.
Shahirah fell sick. What a chore.
Finally whipped out the camera and took some pictures that are not exactly professional but not too bad.
Blank bullet casing from the magazine of an M1 rifle right here in Vietnam.
My old razer mouse rofl. No more rubbery pad thing. Scrapped it off!!
The hype of the spiral staircase:
During the first lunch buffet thing. Last picture!:
bahhhhhhhhhhh
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Kinda cool to know that there are people as irritating as me last time by "advising" you to put pictures into your blog.
Err HELLO. Im not pointing fingers here, but seriously, telling somehow HOW to blog is crossing the line. Telling someone to update is okay. But if I was interested in the trouble to actually post some pictures, I WILL do it. But if i don't, just read. If its too wordy, the big fat red cross on the top right hand corner of the window isn't there for fun. CLICK IT.
Left, for the mac users. But if u didnt know that and u thought i was WRONG for assuming that all the big fat red crosses are at the top right, u can EAT SHIT.
SCREW YOU. I like it wordy. My pictures are considered gifts, they come when they come. Dont expect any. Im the kind of person that reads anything even its too wordy. If you can't, then LEARN to. duhhhhh
But since im SO free now because everyone is slacking, here are some of the pictures that i might or might not have stolen from someone else. TEHEHE.
Here is the inside view of the living room with the 4 stories high spiral staircase that has a really suspicious support structure. On the left is all the teak-y furniture with cable TV.
Discovery and National Geographic Channel FTW. HBO too. Star Movies do help sometimes.3
Some random pictures while out on a little lunch organized by the company out to steal my very first day off. Kena sai!
Some stupid lake. It looks cold, and misty. HELL NO. Its just SOOT and just HEAT. The subsequent rain did clear the skies abit, but the road got real dirty.
hmmmmmmm....yellow umbrella..shahirah fails at colour matching...
But as you can see, im the most dashing of them all. HAHAA
Im obviously not bothered...In this picture is a couple and 2 lesbians and one completely straight guy.
Before lunch. Must wait for dua pai CEO. Reached at 1030. they arrive at 11:30 instead of the planned 11am and they blame us for being 2mins late for the subsequent mini meeting cum training. HAHAHAHH HELLO! Be fair dude. At least we arrived and we were waiting downstairs because none of us knew what to do. BAHHHH. Bullshit.
The CEO had a great speech on timeliness. It was pretty cool. Learned some new stuff. I like him. He doesn't exude the kind of ranking barrier although to tell u the truth, i didn't even know his name. HA!
But still, he was late for lunch... about his timeliness...i've got...no comments. Its just irony. Pure plain irony.
CEO: Yes, i agree with Allan how important time is. One shouldn't be late bla bla bla. Im now 65 and I bla bla bla
Juan: err OKAY NOTED.
Somehow his speech was about timeliness. So i guess we actually helped make his lesson work out just fine. Nv thank me. basket.
The barley minty sweet he gave did help soothe everything out abit!
Something interesting is that the main office of the company is in a highly regarded hotel called the Horison Hotel that once hosted the Asean Summit in 1996 but the actual operation center is err....improvement needed much?
Vietnam's national day is coming. Its gonna be a full 4 days off from work! yay!
And i still dont know when im gonna start teaching Mathematics. Not so soon they say...
Shahirah bought a full 10 original seasons of FRIENDS. Yes!
Gonna leech off her.
Me ishhh genius w0rhx. muawahhahahaheheherofllmaowtflol
Err HELLO. Im not pointing fingers here, but seriously, telling somehow HOW to blog is crossing the line. Telling someone to update is okay. But if I was interested in the trouble to actually post some pictures, I WILL do it. But if i don't, just read. If its too wordy, the big fat red cross on the top right hand corner of the window isn't there for fun. CLICK IT.
Left, for the mac users. But if u didnt know that and u thought i was WRONG for assuming that all the big fat red crosses are at the top right, u can EAT SHIT.
SCREW YOU. I like it wordy. My pictures are considered gifts, they come when they come. Dont expect any. Im the kind of person that reads anything even its too wordy. If you can't, then LEARN to. duhhhhh
But since im SO free now because everyone is slacking, here are some of the pictures that i might or might not have stolen from someone else. TEHEHE.
Here is the inside view of the living room with the 4 stories high spiral staircase that has a really suspicious support structure. On the left is all the teak-y furniture with cable TV.
Discovery and National Geographic Channel FTW. HBO too. Star Movies do help sometimes.3
Some random pictures while out on a little lunch organized by the company out to steal my very first day off. Kena sai!
Some stupid lake. It looks cold, and misty. HELL NO. Its just SOOT and just HEAT. The subsequent rain did clear the skies abit, but the road got real dirty.
hmmmmmmm....yellow umbrella..shahirah fails at colour matching...
But as you can see, im the most dashing of them all. HAHAA
Im obviously not bothered...In this picture is a couple and 2 lesbians and one completely straight guy.
Before lunch. Must wait for dua pai CEO. Reached at 1030. they arrive at 11:30 instead of the planned 11am and they blame us for being 2mins late for the subsequent mini meeting cum training. HAHAHAHH HELLO! Be fair dude. At least we arrived and we were waiting downstairs because none of us knew what to do. BAHHHH. Bullshit.
The CEO had a great speech on timeliness. It was pretty cool. Learned some new stuff. I like him. He doesn't exude the kind of ranking barrier although to tell u the truth, i didn't even know his name. HA!
But still, he was late for lunch... about his timeliness...i've got...no comments. Its just irony. Pure plain irony.
CEO: Yes, i agree with Allan how important time is. One shouldn't be late bla bla bla. Im now 65 and I bla bla bla
Juan: err OKAY NOTED.
Somehow his speech was about timeliness. So i guess we actually helped make his lesson work out just fine. Nv thank me. basket.
The barley minty sweet he gave did help soothe everything out abit!
Something interesting is that the main office of the company is in a highly regarded hotel called the Horison Hotel that once hosted the Asean Summit in 1996 but the actual operation center is err....improvement needed much?
Vietnam's national day is coming. Its gonna be a full 4 days off from work! yay!
And i still dont know when im gonna start teaching Mathematics. Not so soon they say...
Shahirah bought a full 10 original seasons of FRIENDS. Yes!
Gonna leech off her.
Me ishhh genius w0rhx. muawahhahahaheheherofllmaowtflol
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
HAHA!
yesterday the taxi to work cost only SGD1 ! HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA. But the trip back was $4.60 -.-. Thats the thing about Hanoi.
Hanoi has a million and one shortcuts. But the traffic is SO messy and SO unorganized that turning or missing a turn isn't something shocking. The trip to work costs only $1 because it was a shortcut. It isn't even a proper road. But its vietnam, no roads are improper for even the biggest cars. Thats kinda like a beauty of Vietnam. Very flexible.
Shahirah beat me to it. We took a cab today and it cost only 90cents cos it was her turn to pay. ZZZZ.
Didn't have a proper lunch today. The girls went to change money and the guys thought i was with the girls cos they saw the girls left. But i was all alone in the room doing my work! So the guys went to have lunch without me! HURRR. So in the end there was no one that could speaking vietnamese and i knew ordering vietnamese food is gonna be a HUGE challenge. Furthermore the 2 girls are not taking meat which means they basically cannot eat anything other than seafood. TSK.
Settled my lunch with cup noodles and chewing gum. LOL.
Today in the change i got back, was a 2000dong coin, equivalent to 20cents SGD, approx. I coincidentally had 4 pieces of SGD1 coins in the pouchy section. and the 2000dong coin was the same shade of colour. So i braved up and did the ULTIMATE hand signal to get it changed to a note so that i wont be confused. And i cant believe it...I MADE IT! HAHAHAHAHA
And yes, i fell a few days back. It was funny, so i laughed. Its been some time since i last fell. Since like primary 6? I remember i fell once in primary 6 while training for a sports day event. I had to juggle a ball with my legs through a series of cones ( i know, lame sport) and i accidentally stepped on the ball and fell.
I think i fell on my spinal cord or something and i was in shock. Not the frightened kind of shock. My shock was the MUTED kind. I could not speak or make any noise for a few minutes and that seriously scared my teacher. Considering the fact that i fell in P5 too during PE on the field, effectively scarring my hands and legs which bled a considerably bit, he got alittle worried.
Plus i hated to take part in sports day, so i kept telling him i dont want to take part anymore, and somehow, he agreed! Not that because i was lousy okay. haha.
Been marking the Pre-iPSLE papers for the vietnamese on both days. Im quite shocked at their level of competency. Its BAD. real BAD. The simplest of Mathematics Volume question that involves only ONE step and they can get it wrong.
someone thats of sec 3 level doing a PSLE paper and not be able to do it. sigh...
Been told that i would be teaching Pri 5/6 Mathematics too. I'm quite excited! I want to do it! I want to see if i can change someone's life. HAHA. But i need to warm up, need to start to recover back some of my lost skills. Mai siao siao.
Weather has been warming up gradually, today is slightly cooler than yesterday. Its just the air. Its extremely polluted. GOSH. I cant wait to get indoors just to get out of the carbon monoxide filled air. The air is always effectively GREY. Never once clear. I remember when we landed in Hanoi, the plane's TV system showed that we were about 300m above sea level. And when we looked out of the window, we saw NOTHING. THATS HOW GREY THE FREAKING SKY IS.
And a bottle cap just kinda exploded on me. It was filled with coke and i was shaking it to get the gas out cos coke doesn't taste as good as pepsi when filled with gas. THATS MY OPINION. So i was shaking and i swear i opened it slowly. For some reason, the cap decided to burst out with alot of force. Shocking everyone. Had a great laugh. lol
Then I accidentally knocked over a 1.5L bottle of coke and it got so hard and filled with CO2. I swear i was seriously scared cos i was afraid it would explode on me. And i was alone in the room. haha. Again, i manned up. I DID IT! I released it real slowly and then half way the sizzling of the air coming out just stopped. LOL. i backed off and then waited for awhile. Luckily it sizzled again. if not, wish me luck.
Haven't been taking any pictures so far. No point leh. Go around taking pictures. haha. I always find taking pictures really lame unless its for art. I just dont like the idea of concentrating on taking pictures and capturing the scenery to show others than to actually take the time wasted to experience what u should actually be experiencing.
Even so if u take pictures only after u've experienced it, you would have wasted far too much time. let the girls take the pictures of me. HAH! im genius. I know that.
Been spending fast because of home cooked dinner. I don't get why its so expensive but its gotta stop. I'd rather not eat or just eat vegetables then to let money flow out of my pocket so easily.
Gonna sit in in suzzana's class today. Gotta see how she teachers so i can pattern pattern in class when its my turn too. ha!
CYA. Im fine, btw. Im used to Hanoi already. Singapore is still the best.
yesterday the taxi to work cost only SGD1 ! HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA. But the trip back was $4.60 -.-. Thats the thing about Hanoi.
Hanoi has a million and one shortcuts. But the traffic is SO messy and SO unorganized that turning or missing a turn isn't something shocking. The trip to work costs only $1 because it was a shortcut. It isn't even a proper road. But its vietnam, no roads are improper for even the biggest cars. Thats kinda like a beauty of Vietnam. Very flexible.
Shahirah beat me to it. We took a cab today and it cost only 90cents cos it was her turn to pay. ZZZZ.
Didn't have a proper lunch today. The girls went to change money and the guys thought i was with the girls cos they saw the girls left. But i was all alone in the room doing my work! So the guys went to have lunch without me! HURRR. So in the end there was no one that could speaking vietnamese and i knew ordering vietnamese food is gonna be a HUGE challenge. Furthermore the 2 girls are not taking meat which means they basically cannot eat anything other than seafood. TSK.
Settled my lunch with cup noodles and chewing gum. LOL.
Today in the change i got back, was a 2000dong coin, equivalent to 20cents SGD, approx. I coincidentally had 4 pieces of SGD1 coins in the pouchy section. and the 2000dong coin was the same shade of colour. So i braved up and did the ULTIMATE hand signal to get it changed to a note so that i wont be confused. And i cant believe it...I MADE IT! HAHAHAHAHA
And yes, i fell a few days back. It was funny, so i laughed. Its been some time since i last fell. Since like primary 6? I remember i fell once in primary 6 while training for a sports day event. I had to juggle a ball with my legs through a series of cones ( i know, lame sport) and i accidentally stepped on the ball and fell.
I think i fell on my spinal cord or something and i was in shock. Not the frightened kind of shock. My shock was the MUTED kind. I could not speak or make any noise for a few minutes and that seriously scared my teacher. Considering the fact that i fell in P5 too during PE on the field, effectively scarring my hands and legs which bled a considerably bit, he got alittle worried.
Plus i hated to take part in sports day, so i kept telling him i dont want to take part anymore, and somehow, he agreed! Not that because i was lousy okay. haha.
Been marking the Pre-iPSLE papers for the vietnamese on both days. Im quite shocked at their level of competency. Its BAD. real BAD. The simplest of Mathematics Volume question that involves only ONE step and they can get it wrong.
someone thats of sec 3 level doing a PSLE paper and not be able to do it. sigh...
Been told that i would be teaching Pri 5/6 Mathematics too. I'm quite excited! I want to do it! I want to see if i can change someone's life. HAHA. But i need to warm up, need to start to recover back some of my lost skills. Mai siao siao.
Weather has been warming up gradually, today is slightly cooler than yesterday. Its just the air. Its extremely polluted. GOSH. I cant wait to get indoors just to get out of the carbon monoxide filled air. The air is always effectively GREY. Never once clear. I remember when we landed in Hanoi, the plane's TV system showed that we were about 300m above sea level. And when we looked out of the window, we saw NOTHING. THATS HOW GREY THE FREAKING SKY IS.
And a bottle cap just kinda exploded on me. It was filled with coke and i was shaking it to get the gas out cos coke doesn't taste as good as pepsi when filled with gas. THATS MY OPINION. So i was shaking and i swear i opened it slowly. For some reason, the cap decided to burst out with alot of force. Shocking everyone. Had a great laugh. lol
Then I accidentally knocked over a 1.5L bottle of coke and it got so hard and filled with CO2. I swear i was seriously scared cos i was afraid it would explode on me. And i was alone in the room. haha. Again, i manned up. I DID IT! I released it real slowly and then half way the sizzling of the air coming out just stopped. LOL. i backed off and then waited for awhile. Luckily it sizzled again. if not, wish me luck.
Haven't been taking any pictures so far. No point leh. Go around taking pictures. haha. I always find taking pictures really lame unless its for art. I just dont like the idea of concentrating on taking pictures and capturing the scenery to show others than to actually take the time wasted to experience what u should actually be experiencing.
Even so if u take pictures only after u've experienced it, you would have wasted far too much time. let the girls take the pictures of me. HAH! im genius. I know that.
Been spending fast because of home cooked dinner. I don't get why its so expensive but its gotta stop. I'd rather not eat or just eat vegetables then to let money flow out of my pocket so easily.
Gonna sit in in suzzana's class today. Gotta see how she teachers so i can pattern pattern in class when its my turn too. ha!
CYA. Im fine, btw. Im used to Hanoi already. Singapore is still the best.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Hanoi!
Long post alert.
So anyway, Im in Hanoi now. Its in Vietnam for you retards that don't know where it is.
Its been quite an adventure since i arrived. Many things have already happened. LOTS of things.
Okay, let me start from the departure date.
I arrived at the airport, waited 1hr for the girls to arrive and checked in. I was not abit excited at all for what that is coming up for me. I was not eager to go to Hanoi for the internship. 2months isn't a short time and I had absolutely no information on what im going to do over there. I don't even know what the people are like there. The only exciting thing that actually makes me look forward to that day is the plane ride!
Its been 2 years since i had a plane ride and im darn excited. I've also grown to like the liveries aka colour scheme of Vietnam Airlines. I was also excited to take the best of the small-classed planes - the Airbus A321. It met my expectations very well. I was amazed at the seat pitch available. It was very very good. I loved it. It was quite an enjoyable ride. Best part was the ride in the air.
The engines were thrusted to such force i thought i was sitting beside a thunder as the plane roared down the runway. SHIOK feeling. How many times do you get to speed down somewhere in Singapore so fast and so smooth? I just love the feeling of the G force as it speeds up for take off.
I also felt the most amount of turbulence ever. It was extremely bumpy. Constantly in fact. Once we crossed KL and above the South China Sea, the air got really bumpy. It was on and off which was fine. But from the route from Ho Chin Minh to hanoi, it was the bumpiest. Fun. The seatbelt light came on for about a good 30mins.
Food sucked, btw.
Arrived in Hanoi on time. Loved the landing. Exited the plane and was amazed at what i saw. Right in the transit area, directly after the aerobridge linking the plane and the terminal, was a guy holding a card seeking attention of one of the passengers. I mean, how did someone enter the air-side like this?! Interesting sight.
It was a small airport. Basic. Extremely basic. I don't know about the departure hall, but the arrival hall was mediocre. One duty free shop and a little bar plus some money changer and thats all you get. Swatting flies with the electrical net thing was apparently a past time there. Sparks flew around as those buggers get electrocuted. It was a sight.
Somehow when i exited the airport, there were lots of taxi drivers waiting to fetch passengers. Its as if they knew that I wasn't local. Im quite happy I dont look local. The vietnamese guys are really a bunch of ugly freaks. The girls are a mile from the guy's looks.
So currently my apartment is about 4 stories high, completely dedicated the 7 people. It was comfortable and cozy. Just that i had no pillow. I miss my pillow and bolster.
Best part is that the wireless connection is finally settled! So i can use the internet 24/7. HAHA.
Adventures have also been a common thing here now. From the most basic of crossing the road to the most crazy thing of actually being locked out outside of the terrace house all because there was a bolt that no one could reach. Received lots of stares, but i think because we were all well dressed and we had lots of groceries and probably because of my TIMBUK2 bag so they knew we were not burglars. haha. It was done in the end after about 15mins of tugging here and there on the big metal gate.
Taking taxis in Hanoi is easy, but not cheap. A typical ride of about 3 to 4km can cost about $3.50? Been taking it for 2 days already. Money is gonna flow out fast. Singapore's taxi costs about $4+for about the same distance? Food isn't cheap too cos im living and working in an area where its considered alittle "up-market", supermarkets are quite common, not a difficult sight. Been on a chocolate milk and redbull rampage. SHIOK. Water here is dirt cheap. Really dirt cheap. A 5L tub of mineral water costs SGD1.50. YAY. But because of all my rampages, i hardly ever touched mineral water.
Food wise its awesome, selectively.
Have you eaten something thats considered like an intestine kind of dish that has pig blood? in it. It was cold, tasted raw and bloody. I spat it out immediately. I was completely disgusted at it. I had to drown myself in rice to remove the taste. I was told it was very popular among the vietnamese. CRAZY ASS. 3 meat 1 veg for SGD1.50 =))).
Also tried the famous vietnamese sauce made up of 100% fermented anchovies. The anchovies are mixed with salt and put in a tub to ferment for a few months to form a clear brownish liquid. Honestly, it tasted just like vinegar. Don't know whats the hype about it.
Tried Pho aka beef horfun. IT ROCKS LIKE HELL! I've never tasted something so delicious before. It was inexpensive and it had a really great taste to it. Filled with tons of onions and beef with the sweetest natural tasting soup. Its no wonder its the most popular dish in Vietnam and the equivalent popularity of Singapore's efficiency. Approx SGD2. Coke was 50cents for 300ml=)
Its the original vietnamese dish thats cheap. Other food prices are comparable with Singapore's. Vietnam's food is really good.
I miss home alot. I knew im gonna miss home before im leaving. But last night i really missed home so much. Home is so much more comfortable. I was so adamant that i refused to call where im living now home. The girls do that, but i don't. You can only have one family, one home.
The weather has been increasingly warm. It isn't gradual at all. The day i arrived it was as cold at night as hell. The next day, it was still cold. But for the 3rd day, GOSH. It was warm already. Not singapore's warm, but still warm. Today is ULTIMATE warm. I really hope the next day will help us to cool off.
Life isn't cheap here. I did not even splurge or spend on anything other than necessities and im already $50 poorer. Real fast. Im gonna have to control myself if i want to survive without withdrawing more money.
And im called cute! HA!
So other than the food here, i've been looking forward to looking around. I was invited by the guys to go to Halong Bay for a day. I WANT TO! But it was a rush. We had to go and come back in a single day. I don't want to rush an enjoyment. Might go visiting around tmr instead with the staff, mostly females.
And i saw something i've always wanted to see. A 3/4 developed chick in an egg. HAHA! It was OMG AWESOME. Our staff in the apartment was cooking it and peeled the shell off infront of me. I could identify everything! From the head to the tail, the beak, eyes, nostrils, everything! I was offered a taste of it and OMG. It tastes just like egg yolk LOL.
Now whats left is the fried insects. i HAVE to try it. I don't care.
On a side note, i've already had my first fall in Hanoi. LOL. The kerbs here are different from the ones in Singapore. The kerbs here are slopy and meant for bikes to go up and mark along the pavements. So i was trying to board a taxi i just flagged and i lost my footing and fell down right on my butt. I thought it was quite funny and turns out everyone laughed with me. Even the taxi driver. haha. He was kind, he tried to help me up.
My brother also told me about the uses of sidewalks here. The sidewalks here so far from what i've seen, is for playing badminton, sitting down to have a meal, chit chatting by squatting and for stall owners to spit their tea around. Interesting culture...
Crossing the roads have also been fun. Not scary at all. Just walk normally and you will get past just fine. Its like water in a river, the water will just take another route to avoid the rock in it's path. me, being the rock and the bikes being the water.
Im counting down till the days i leave Hanoi. I want Singapore.
Im contactable at 01672314420 if you want. Charges is your tai ji. I dont know about your charges. HAHA.
CIAO
So anyway, Im in Hanoi now. Its in Vietnam for you retards that don't know where it is.
Its been quite an adventure since i arrived. Many things have already happened. LOTS of things.
Okay, let me start from the departure date.
I arrived at the airport, waited 1hr for the girls to arrive and checked in. I was not abit excited at all for what that is coming up for me. I was not eager to go to Hanoi for the internship. 2months isn't a short time and I had absolutely no information on what im going to do over there. I don't even know what the people are like there. The only exciting thing that actually makes me look forward to that day is the plane ride!
Its been 2 years since i had a plane ride and im darn excited. I've also grown to like the liveries aka colour scheme of Vietnam Airlines. I was also excited to take the best of the small-classed planes - the Airbus A321. It met my expectations very well. I was amazed at the seat pitch available. It was very very good. I loved it. It was quite an enjoyable ride. Best part was the ride in the air.
The engines were thrusted to such force i thought i was sitting beside a thunder as the plane roared down the runway. SHIOK feeling. How many times do you get to speed down somewhere in Singapore so fast and so smooth? I just love the feeling of the G force as it speeds up for take off.
I also felt the most amount of turbulence ever. It was extremely bumpy. Constantly in fact. Once we crossed KL and above the South China Sea, the air got really bumpy. It was on and off which was fine. But from the route from Ho Chin Minh to hanoi, it was the bumpiest. Fun. The seatbelt light came on for about a good 30mins.
Food sucked, btw.
Arrived in Hanoi on time. Loved the landing. Exited the plane and was amazed at what i saw. Right in the transit area, directly after the aerobridge linking the plane and the terminal, was a guy holding a card seeking attention of one of the passengers. I mean, how did someone enter the air-side like this?! Interesting sight.
It was a small airport. Basic. Extremely basic. I don't know about the departure hall, but the arrival hall was mediocre. One duty free shop and a little bar plus some money changer and thats all you get. Swatting flies with the electrical net thing was apparently a past time there. Sparks flew around as those buggers get electrocuted. It was a sight.
Somehow when i exited the airport, there were lots of taxi drivers waiting to fetch passengers. Its as if they knew that I wasn't local. Im quite happy I dont look local. The vietnamese guys are really a bunch of ugly freaks. The girls are a mile from the guy's looks.
So currently my apartment is about 4 stories high, completely dedicated the 7 people. It was comfortable and cozy. Just that i had no pillow. I miss my pillow and bolster.
Best part is that the wireless connection is finally settled! So i can use the internet 24/7. HAHA.
Adventures have also been a common thing here now. From the most basic of crossing the road to the most crazy thing of actually being locked out outside of the terrace house all because there was a bolt that no one could reach. Received lots of stares, but i think because we were all well dressed and we had lots of groceries and probably because of my TIMBUK2 bag so they knew we were not burglars. haha. It was done in the end after about 15mins of tugging here and there on the big metal gate.
Taking taxis in Hanoi is easy, but not cheap. A typical ride of about 3 to 4km can cost about $3.50? Been taking it for 2 days already. Money is gonna flow out fast. Singapore's taxi costs about $4+for about the same distance? Food isn't cheap too cos im living and working in an area where its considered alittle "up-market", supermarkets are quite common, not a difficult sight. Been on a chocolate milk and redbull rampage. SHIOK. Water here is dirt cheap. Really dirt cheap. A 5L tub of mineral water costs SGD1.50. YAY. But because of all my rampages, i hardly ever touched mineral water.
Food wise its awesome, selectively.
Have you eaten something thats considered like an intestine kind of dish that has pig blood? in it. It was cold, tasted raw and bloody. I spat it out immediately. I was completely disgusted at it. I had to drown myself in rice to remove the taste. I was told it was very popular among the vietnamese. CRAZY ASS. 3 meat 1 veg for SGD1.50 =))).
Also tried the famous vietnamese sauce made up of 100% fermented anchovies. The anchovies are mixed with salt and put in a tub to ferment for a few months to form a clear brownish liquid. Honestly, it tasted just like vinegar. Don't know whats the hype about it.
Tried Pho aka beef horfun. IT ROCKS LIKE HELL! I've never tasted something so delicious before. It was inexpensive and it had a really great taste to it. Filled with tons of onions and beef with the sweetest natural tasting soup. Its no wonder its the most popular dish in Vietnam and the equivalent popularity of Singapore's efficiency. Approx SGD2. Coke was 50cents for 300ml=)
Its the original vietnamese dish thats cheap. Other food prices are comparable with Singapore's. Vietnam's food is really good.
I miss home alot. I knew im gonna miss home before im leaving. But last night i really missed home so much. Home is so much more comfortable. I was so adamant that i refused to call where im living now home. The girls do that, but i don't. You can only have one family, one home.
The weather has been increasingly warm. It isn't gradual at all. The day i arrived it was as cold at night as hell. The next day, it was still cold. But for the 3rd day, GOSH. It was warm already. Not singapore's warm, but still warm. Today is ULTIMATE warm. I really hope the next day will help us to cool off.
Life isn't cheap here. I did not even splurge or spend on anything other than necessities and im already $50 poorer. Real fast. Im gonna have to control myself if i want to survive without withdrawing more money.
And im called cute! HA!
So other than the food here, i've been looking forward to looking around. I was invited by the guys to go to Halong Bay for a day. I WANT TO! But it was a rush. We had to go and come back in a single day. I don't want to rush an enjoyment. Might go visiting around tmr instead with the staff, mostly females.
And i saw something i've always wanted to see. A 3/4 developed chick in an egg. HAHA! It was OMG AWESOME. Our staff in the apartment was cooking it and peeled the shell off infront of me. I could identify everything! From the head to the tail, the beak, eyes, nostrils, everything! I was offered a taste of it and OMG. It tastes just like egg yolk LOL.
Now whats left is the fried insects. i HAVE to try it. I don't care.
On a side note, i've already had my first fall in Hanoi. LOL. The kerbs here are different from the ones in Singapore. The kerbs here are slopy and meant for bikes to go up and mark along the pavements. So i was trying to board a taxi i just flagged and i lost my footing and fell down right on my butt. I thought it was quite funny and turns out everyone laughed with me. Even the taxi driver. haha. He was kind, he tried to help me up.
My brother also told me about the uses of sidewalks here. The sidewalks here so far from what i've seen, is for playing badminton, sitting down to have a meal, chit chatting by squatting and for stall owners to spit their tea around. Interesting culture...
Crossing the roads have also been fun. Not scary at all. Just walk normally and you will get past just fine. Its like water in a river, the water will just take another route to avoid the rock in it's path. me, being the rock and the bikes being the water.
Im counting down till the days i leave Hanoi. I want Singapore.
Im contactable at 01672314420 if you want. Charges is your tai ji. I dont know about your charges. HAHA.
CIAO
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)