airport rituals

it's easter break but as i keep repeating to anyone who can be bothered to listen, it's not a holiday. finals in just over a month (!!!) and meant to get good work done, full throttle etc. unfortunately that hasn't happened and i don't like talking about work nor projecting self-righteous medic that annoys me no end when other people do so i shall stop now. suppose it's different. i've a husband, and family halfway round the world who are a priority. who i won't see much off once i start work in a couple of months. so time with them takes precedence, for now, and i'm wanting to maximise every moment at home. but sometimes it all gets too much and i'm at yet another airport. food is and has always been comfort (uh oh) and i'm partial to kaya toast (with butter!!!) and liang li (two soft boiled eggs). 

god bless you, kiliney kopitiam for being an ever-present salve to the ever-present ache for home.

regent's park

was lucky to spend the night near regent's park and thought to make the most of this handy location in the morning. can't tell if it's age (please, no!) but am waking earlier and finding i've more energy than i know what to do with. anxiety, much? so going for a walk is one way to calm down. london can be icky and smoggy, no love lost and defo not enamoured by the city. the moment i step out at warren street it's this crazy onslaught of people and traffic and i just want to run back to the safe confines of my 'hood. the park was a welcome respite for the busy city and while overcast, was just my kind of weather. give me rain over sunshine, anytime!

peeked at the camels in the london zoo! 

couldn't pass on a visit to primrose hill, my all-time favourite spot in that neck of the woods. have so many happy memories there with so many different friends that it does meld into one big joyous moment whenever i'm back.

the magnolias were just past their prime and i was reminded of when i was at the royal*marsden early last year and they just lined the streets as i walked home. 

have a soft spot for tap coffee. the mister and i used to tag team at the soho branch. one got coffee, the other had a haircut then we'd swap. there was a miscommunication and the girls very kindly gave me an extra slice of banana bread. didn't need to be asked twice!

escape to copenhagen

 

am so completely weaksauce but the first week of final year got to be a bit too much. think i'm unduly anxious about the whole thing and really need to check out to check in, if you get what i mean. didn't take much persuasion to join the crew in copenhagen. T very kindly organised a weekend for the bunch of us and it'd have been silly not to take up his offer. was last there christmas 2012 and long overdue for a visit. am already partial to scandinavia and felt like hipster central upon landing. where were all these good looking people coming from?!

 small plane and felt like private jet as there were about 10 of us on it on my outbound leg haha. SAS and tickets were exorbitant £500 (!!!) but managed to redeem points because it's a star alliance member #winning, although i was disappointed they didn't feed us on the flight. pay for food? never!

T was hosting a house warming that escalated to 90 people. his missus ended up buying a tent in his absence to accommodate everyone! landed too late to join them in the country but satiated my hunger (refused to pay for food in-flight, remember?) at the airport BK before taking the metro to the city. the crew came out post house-warming and caught the tail end of happy hour at katz. was seated next to a quick thinking off-duty policewoman who told me that happy hour was ending and to quickly get my cocktails. why thank you :)

a little worse for wear the next day and more than thankful that T had planned a 1pm start. moseyed through the city to the waterside for a street food lunch! maybe it was copenhagen's idea of a hawker centre haha.

T then took us walking to ward off that post-prandial dip, although that was bound to happen after certain parties who remain unnamed went for double fried goose fat fries when surrounded with a dazzling array of culinary choice. cough texans cough. there was also a fair amount of beer involved because i had not looked into the future and seen the two brewed on site kegs that were to come our way that evening... strolling through christiana was like going back in time. i was reminded of A, a german friend on exchange in stockholm, whose longchamp bag and LV scarf emerged with ciggie burns after her visit to christiana. too opulent, maybe. beautiful cabins and very relaxed vibe in the air.

sao paolo

backlog travelogue but hey, better later than never! the mister had been wanting to go to patagonia since our first south american foray during his grad trip years ago but it took some time to finally get there. flew BA (yay for miles and companion voucher for free flights) and nothing worked. no in flight entertainment because the system was down, the seat didn't recline, the reading light didn't work so one can imagine this was a great 13h (?) start to the holiday. thankfully, i'm like a parrot and sleep once it's darks so with my trusty eye mask, disaster averted. to be fair, the fabulous flight attendant tried to make up for the BAs numerous shortcomings by plying me with double doses of alcohol. questionable coping mechanism right there but hey, whatever floats your boat.

hit the ground running bright and early in sao paolo and were met by L who is so gosh darn movie star handsome he has a nickname that can't be repeated in polite company. seriously. that guy is posterboy for their MBA class and has the clean cut good looks coupled with rogue-ish charm of presidential candidate, albeit less slimy uncle, more young upstart with ideals sort. anyhoos we'd a rapid half day in sao paolo with L before narrowly making out flight (uber fail, cab broke down twice en route to the airport. are you kidding meee...)

L is born and bred brazilian with italian heritage, we share the same values of family and food being paramount in life. so it was only natural that he knew the best places to go, was the best tour guide giving us a running commentary of the three business districts and demographs, culture. all the things that tickle our brains and i felt so familiar with the city after having a whistle-stop tour through it in the sunshine, amidst the capirinha haze. which was, also, life-changing. cashew fruit? amazing.

double bill at somerset house

landed friday evening and hit the ground running. words cannot express how much i hate stansted, but that's another rant for another day. had been away for two solid weeks and felt like i needed a holiday from the holiday, much as i'd enjoyed the break. part of me thinks medsch awoke the sleeping workaholic within, and that addictive personality that makes me obsess with one thing (good if that's work, bad if that's work) because this six week break, ironically the shortest in medsch, has felt wayy too long. was talking to a friend about it and as grads, we're both keen to graduate and start work. but then i catch myself and make a conscious effort to enjoy the process for what it is. to suspend reality and postpone adulthood and its myriad of responsibilities for a couple of years more, not necessarily a bad thing, no? school's much easier than work, and it's such a protected, cosseted environment i've no reason to complain. 

but back to london! it's been a welcome change of pace to take things slow in the city, or pseudo-slow at least. started with a double bill (hairspray and springbreak) at somerset house. funnily enough, it's been over a year (maybe even two!) since R told me about somerset house and how much fun it was in the summer with open air screenings. can't believe it's taken us 2 years to get round to it, just like R's other recommendation of le garrick in convent garden. maybe next year! was too cool to arrive at 6pm when the doors open and paid the price by having to hustle the one last square foot of picnic mat real estate when we waltzed in at half 8 for a 9pm screening. oh summer nights, can't get the movie going any earlier for it was still too light out. 

hadn't watched the original (1988?) version of hairspray but preferred it to the camp john travolta recent release. hm then again i'm in love with michelle pfeiffer so tough call. was also too cool to bring food and drink (brought picnic mat, blankets and extra coats) but there was popcorn ice cream (free because the mister is charming like that) and poshdogs to be had. and beer.

tried not to think about how there was a hotel room in essex with my name on it that same night but that's a story for tomorrow.

aix

so i was a little cheeky and started planning my getaway when i should've been revising for exams. one of the beautiful things about low maintenance friendships is picking up where you left off. J is my closest friend from exchange (gosh, how has that been 5 years ago?!) and we've kept in touch over whatsapp, primarily. have been fortunate to hang out in person when she relocated down under, first to perth then sydney. visited in perth, she came to sg for our sg wedding celebration (albeit from aix where she was back for summer!) and is now moving to KL. jetset, much. haven't seen her for two years but she randomly whatsapped and said she was in aix for summer before the move and if i'd happen to be in france. the funny thing was, yes, i was going to be in france but not the south. one thing led to another and while i'm not at liberty to disclose the exact reason for my haste, we picked some dates and family M was ever so kind as to host me for a couple of days.

for a sentimental sap like me, being back in aix was like a homecoming. i last visited while on my grad trip in 2010 and it's a cliche but so much has changed, yet stayed the same. as if casa M was frozen in time and mama and papa M too. they were the most amazing, inclusive hosts and i've always felt so welcome. wonderful ryanair (NOT) was delayed so i ended up arriving in the evening instead of early afternoon. but landed to the yummiest provencale soup, following champers and canapes in the salon. these Ms, really know how to make a girl feel special! lots to catch up with J about and i'm constantly amazed by what she's doing. hats off!

bright and early (7am!) start the next day as we climbed mt saint victoire with papa M. snapped some photos and it took us a good few hours to get up and down. funny story there - the last time i visited, papa M commented that asians always take photos and he was right! i think my camera was the sad extension of my right hand and i do remember snapping away like there was no tomorrow. this time, however, i like to think i've grown up! was more into enjoying the moment and being absorbed and present. didn't take many photos except a couple to send family over whatsapp. obviously they were incredibly envious and wanting desperately to swap places.

after our bracing morning walk, we had a light breakfast then proceeded to undo the good by going to the nearby vineyards. there's something so rustic and charming about aix that makes it very hard to leave, and despite having yet to start work, i'm already plotting to retire there.

   love how wine is cooled in aix! and something else i really enjoyed about my time with J was the downtime. sounds ironic, doesn't it . but she's a dear friend who knows me inside out, knows how much i like my space and we fell into a nice little routine. had the run of the guest room and plenty of alone time when we'd both be on the phone with our respective +1s (so needy, i know!) then we'd spend the day together, retreat to separate rooms for a nap then emerge for dinner. i liked the casual-ness to it, the absolute relaxation and the sheer joy of being known.

moscow hit the ground running

continuing on my anti-SQ rant from the last post, we are on the verge of transferring our loyalty to BA. especially when BA offers deals like tax-free ticket redemption. you know the drill. redeeming tickets on SQ isn't worth it because there's still at least £350 to pay in tax. so while the ticket is free, it's not really free. not the case with BA! we redeemed the mister's air miles on a tax waiver (?) deal and the tickets literally cost us nothing. moscow was an un-obvious choice, especially with tensions rising in crimea.  but the mister had never been to russia and it was less than 4h away. didn't hurt that we hold passports that the russian embassy is partial to and getting a visa was a doozy. yay singers! i suppose what i mean to say is that russia has a bad rep. and while i was initially against going to a country whose values i largely disagree with (don't get me started!) i was a little curious about its capital. and moscow didn't disappoint. 

the 4h flight and 3h time difference made for some awkward timing. we landed at 4am and arrived at the hotel at 5am. however, the ararat park hyatt (gotta give credit where due!) was superlative. they let us check-in right away, which gave us some much needed shut-eye before we hit the ground running. have nothing but good things to say about the ararat park hyatt. stellar service, amazing location smack in the historic centre, surrounded by lovely restaurants and bars, right next to the bolshoi theatre... i could go on and on!

the first thing we did when we woke up was to join the free walking tour. elena, our siberian guide, was effervescent and cautiously anti-establishment. cracking the odd putin joke in hushed tones while dramatically looking over her shoulder. even more dramatic was the 5 x 4 fly by just as the group gathered round the meeting point. the mister convinced me that the americans were attacking and laughed on the inside as i went into a frenzy, plotting the quickest way out of the country and wondering which diplomatic hotlines to ring. turns out it was merely russian planes rehearsing for their big victory parade on may 9th. 'the underbellies were empty, i don't see why you got so worked up.' sniggered the mister after i let rip into him for giving me a heart attack. didn't hurt that i heard my parents going, "i told you so" soon after thinking moscow was under siege. the rest of the walking tour was less fear-inducing and i would highly recommend it if you're ever in moscow. it was a great way to orientate ourselves and elena had plenty of tips for the city's hidden gems.

obligatory shot of the basilica. gruesome fact: after it was completed, the baddie who commissioned it asked the architects if they could replicate it. they said a resounding yes, and promptly went on to have their eyes gouged out. eerie parallel of the taj mahal where the maharajah had the workers' hands chopped off after its completion, so as to prevent them from ever making another bigger and better :(

"the fountain" at the most famous mall in russian. elena explained quite poignantly how for ages and ages there would not be anything for people to buy, even if they had the money to. and now, the shops are full but the tills are silent. and people would come from far and near to sit at this fountain with its plastic cherry blossoms.

changing of the guard

columns where if you flip a coin up and it remains on the ledge, you're destined to return to moscow. sort of like the trevi fountain in rome but with the added challenge of getting the coin to stay. the russians have a unique sense of humour that rewards skill while the italians seem to value participation.

there's a food court near these horses where we'd lunch on the first day. no one spoke english, all the words were in syrillic and thank goodness for picture menus and an adventurous palate. till now i don't know what it was we ate.

beautiful churches dotted across the city. it's a branch of christianity i'm unfamiliar with. women have to cover their heads upon entering and men have to expose theirs. the devotees are also a tactile bunch, touching and kissing saints' relics, queuing to whisper to and kiss their sarcophagus-es. lots of them were very emotional with tears streaking down their faces as they wrote their prayers and petitions on little sheets of paper.

lago di como

by the grace of God, the mister was soon feeling better and decided to push on with our day in como. an option was to forfeit the rental car and lakefront hotel in favour of spending the night at the milan airport hotel before our afternoon flight. so glad we didn't because wonderful and ever-reliable singapore airlines delayed our flight by six hours. i'm increasingly disenchanted with SQ because, again, paying premium for substandard service just isn't cool. thankful the mister is organised and googles all our flights on the day because we wouldn't have been aware of the delay otherwise. 

this all made for an angsty letter, to which they alleged they'd records of sending text notifications. well let's just push the blame to european telcos and telephone towers, yeah? to be fair, there are probably worse places than lake como to wait out a six hour delay, and the hotel kindly gave us late check out so we made the most of the facilities that we wouldn't have been able to enjoy had we left just after breakfast as planned.

on to happier things - we'd a funny moment over breakfast when we realised once again just how different we were. the mister was reading the papers, eager to engage in discussion on crimea while i was preoccupied by the medical evac choppers winching up and down. despite sharing the same undergrad background, our current pursuits are on such divergent paths.

how to deal

it's not often i swing by this tumblr but occasionally things jump out at me. one of the funny things about taking the path less traveled is the tons of naysayers along the way. the singaporean auntie is one of them. i'm fortunate to have relatively thick skin when it comes to these things, but my poor mister often has (well-meaning?) aunties berating him for 'letting' me go back to school. and after they're done tsktsk-ing me, they turn their talons on him. it wouldn't be fair to generalise and say everyone who tells us we're crazy settled themselves. but it is irksome to feel like we need to repeatedly justify our life choices and that's why i rather say i'm a housewife (most recently on the plane and it worked! instant conversation killer :)) than go over the tired spiel.

and of course there's always the kind soul who's encouraging and tells us we're doing something awesome. we've met quite a few people like that lately and it's always nice to have someone say, "i know it's hard but it's gonna be so worth it!" in fact, we'd the absolute privilege of lunching with one of my heroes last week. he's one of the best neurosurgeons on the planet yet remains humble and unassuming. he's eschewed the siren call of private practice to operate on people who need him but can't afford him otherwise.

shopping for the littles

we're fortunate to have highly fertile cousins popping out babies left, right and centre. while this takes some heat off us to procreate (hello porpor, just pointing you've enough great-grandchildren without our contribution!) it does mean we're constantly buying baby clothes. in fact, my cousin has been sending her mothercare parcels to us for me to mule home and our doorman is starting to suspect that i'm the preggers person. 

most times, i spare the mister the agony because "if (he) wanted to spend saturday at le petit bateau, (he'd) have his own bloomin' baby!" which is very similar to what i snarl on planes ("if i wanted to be kept awake by a screaming baby, i'd have my own bloomin' baby!"). as you might've guessed, we haven't been child-proofed yet. nevertheless, with one little "cousin once removed" (he's not our nephew) turning one, and another just born, LPB presents were in order and the mister was coaxed into the boutique where he stalked off to a corner to reply "important work emails" i.e. be an insta voyeur :)

on the upside, i do think we'd be thick-skinned and ask for hand-me-downs from said fertile cousins eventually. to which the mister mused that, "considering what we paid, even if it's a girl she'll be wearing those bermudas!" methinks it's time to start saving for their therapy...

the horror that is i*berianair

so off we went from london to madrid and then onwards to guayaquil. considering how (relatively) little we paid for the flight, we should've seen this coming. 

1. delayed 2h from madrid to guayaquil because... GET THIS.. they forgot to CLOSE the (auxillary) door. thank goodness they realised this when we were JUST ABOUT to take off and had to back track up the runway, returning to the bay. 

2. completely bypassed quito! it worked for us (final destination guayaquil) and we were on time despite the delay leaving madrid but oh boy there were many unhappy passengers stranded in guayaquil for the night when the plane decided NOT to stopover at quito en route LIKE IT WAS SUPPOSED TO.

3. delayed another 2h when leaving guayaquil for madrid. the plane had come in from quito on time but we weren't allowed to board. saw the captain and crew strolling in about 30minutes after our scheduled departure, and took off late. there was no air con or ventilation on the plane for the first few hours either.

4. late arriving into madrid, almost missed our connection. turns out our connecting flight from madrid to london was similarly delayed so passengers like us could board. took off over an hour late, missed heathrow window, ended up circling FOREVER before we could land.

5. rubbish service - on the 12h flight from madrid to guayaquil the stewardesses were playing on their iPads instead of attending to passengers. same returning from guayaquil. when passengers were boarding, crew just hung around the galley, no help with bags whatsoever.

6. the selling point for our long haul flight was an 'individual front pocket'. i kid you not. by the time you're bragging about a seat pocket, something's seriously wrong.

give me singapore*air any time! we've traveled some pretty dubious airlines. from being told while mid-flight to move to the back of the plane on a malaysian*airlines flight to kunming to "balance" the plane, to air*italia delaying us for 6h in milan without explanation, this consistently disastrous iberian*air service takes the cake.

airline rant aside, the rest of the holiday was rather lovely. will post more tomorrow!

what a week

oh wow, has it already been a week since exams ended? finished on tuesday and what a whirlwind. was in the lake district wed/thurs and then bergen fri/sun. slept the whole of yesterday, a holiday from the holiday if you will, to make up for the crazy traveling. really need to stop blaming age as to why i can't keep up with the mister who's incidentally waaay older than i am. where he gets his boundless energy from is beyond me. and that metabolic rate! life's not fair :(

back to school and our exam results are out. despite the worst jetlag ever (sprung awake at 2am on both exams days and couldn't get back to sleep. boo!) they went well. thank God! it's a slow start to the term. deadlines looming but nothing that can't be efficiently hammered out over a solid weekend in. then again, my problem is staying put in one place over the weekend. lunnon, whinge as i do, is fantastically fascinating and there's always something to see and somewhere to go. speaking of which, i hear the mister has fast booked us up this weekend and uhh this paper-churning is starting to look more pipe dream than reality.

the snow is such a massive inconvenience. you'd think the city would be better able to cope with it but noooo... our BA flight back from bergen was unceremoniously cancelled (good job, BA! have yet to be on an on-time BA flight ever...) but thankful we managed to get last-minute seats on  an earlier norwegian flight. but still! good thing the mister is organised and email-checking that way. would've been so miffed if we'd only found out about the cancellation at the airport.

will be posting some photos from the lakes and bergen over the next few days if you'd like to see!