an epilogue to maastricht
An epilogue to MaastrichtIt has been a good 5 months. I still remember the excitement of travelling in italy and greece and the sense of returning home when we first arrived in Maastricht. We were so exhausted from travelling and coming to Maastricht just felt like we had found rest.
I remember seeing the guys for the first time in the lecture hall and I wondered why these guys were so "poseurish". :X I remember the first time we played hold'em together in yh's and kenneth's room as well. I remember the final party of the introduction week where jo and I got drunk and you guys had to drag, carry, piggyback us back. It's been 4 months but it seems like yesterday.
Time has passed us by so quickly. Together we have explored a huge part of Europe. Our first trip together was to Brussels/Brugges where we were all so in love with the mussels and the chocolates. Then there was Oktoberfest. Then came our whole spate of travels: first to Eastern Europe where there were so many tranportation screwups. Next was Paris with Jo and Melvin. Then it was Spain/Portugal with Jo. Then Copenhagen. Then Nice and Monaco where we first formed what i call the "psychic gambling gang" winning 11 times in a row at Casino Rhul. Not to mention our OC photo shots at the beach and at Monte Carlo. Our last trip together was in Scandinavia where we all braved the cold for a shot to see the Northern Lights which we got to see in the end, on the plane.
I'll always remember the times we've spent together. The gigglish laughter and jokes with the girls. The looks and laughters of recognition. ;) Grocery shopping at Albert Heijn, planning what to eat for dinner. Preparing dinner together and eating around the table standing with a plate and either a fork or spoon! The surprise birthday celebrations. The excitement and looks on our faces when we ate something with a taste of home.
It has been an amazing whirlwind heck of 4 months. Never thought much of it while it lasted. But I miss it so much when it's ending. It has ended for most of us. And for some of us still here, the snow today seems to be saying goodbye. It has not snowed in Maastricht for a few years but it snowed today, and it's not even winter yet. It's a great white Christmas gift from Maastricht but yet brings with it a tinge of 伤感. It's a beautiful ending to a wonderful experience.
I'm tearing as I'm writing this. It's the close and the end of this chapter of our lives. Probably one of the most exciting thus far. At least for me. Maastricht already feels like home now. Leaving it now is like leaving the place I've called home.
I pray that one day I'll return to this place that I have grown to love so much. And I too hope that the friendships forged will remain. Bonded by the common experience of Maastricht! :)
it's ending..
Haven't had the time to blog at all in the last month. Been too busy travelling, catching up with work and preparing exams.
The travelling was amazing! Though I think that I've only been in Maastricht for 10 days the last 2 months. But it has been an amazing time. Despite the ridiculous amount of money spent. It is the dream I have always wanted to live - travelling and experiencing the world. And it's funny how I only realised it close to the end of the whole journey in Scandinavia. Some think that I had given up certain things or think that the decision for exchange meant that other things were not as important but it really wasn't the case. So.. Even though I might have lost some along the way, I think I have gained a great deal as well. Stronger is definitely something I've become. New experiences and new perspectives. I must say that this is probably the best short period in my life. It's what they call an experience of a lifetime. Definitely will miss it. Already do.
Btw, I got pickpocketed in london and lost a whole shit load of money. Like 100euros and 180pounds. F***! Surviving on whatever cash ppl have returned me. Am REALLY worried about spending the next few days on my own with only cash to rely on. Must be the retribution for being so mean. YUCKS.
Am too lazy to post up photos from all my travels because there as been really a lot of it. Let me begin by drawing up the time table!
The whole journey started on October 26th.
26th Oct - 1st Nov: Prague, Vienna, Salzburg and Krakow in Eastern Europe
3rd Nov - 5th Nov: Paris
Wouldn't elaborate on these 2 trips since I've already blogged about them
10th Nov - 15th Nov: Madrid, Lisbon and Barcelona in Spain and PortugalSpain was somewhere I have always wanted to go. And I finally made it. It was nice. A break from the cold of Holland and the first time I saw palm trees in Europe. It was also Jo's and mine first trip alone. We always had at least a guy with us on all the previous trips. 2 girls alone in a foreign land. A tad scary especially in Lisbon but we made it back safely however.
Madrid was nice. Very spanish but a tad boring. We only spent one day there though so only manage to have see Palacio Real which was nice because of its overextravagant decorations. We weren't supposed to take pictures but being the Asians we were, we of cos secretly took some shots and even followed behind a Hong Kong tour group to get a free tour of the place. HOW FA!!! (FA stands for Fucking Asian, a term the guys came up with to describe our oh-so-asian-can't-stand-it actions). But well. We weren't too impressed because of the tremendous amounts of palaces we have alr seen in our 2 months in Europe. Looks similar after a while
Lisbon was really quiet and quaint. Small winding upsloping roads from the city centre. Had lots of cod there. Almost every meal.
Barcelona was my favourite of the trip! Lively. A little scary at the small roads but really good atmostphere. We had Dunkin Donuts there and a really really good fine dining meal at La Fonda. And it was amazingly cheap for European standards honestly. We also had the experience to go to this really traditional spanish bar we had tapas and a bottle of cava. Totally yummy. To top it off, we met this really cute spanish guy who brought us to a salsa club. Fun fun fun!! The sights were great! La Sagrada Familia was amazing. I still can't fathom how Gaudi could conceive such an amazing architectural idea! And I loved the Picasso museum in Barcelona. It's in my opinion one of the best I've seen. After the Academia in Florence and Van Gogh in Amsterdam.
I would love to post the photos up. But i'm kinda lazy to cos blogger really isn't photo friendly and there are just too many photos. Maybe I'll try it later on slideshow if I have time! Basically, the Spain/Portugal trip was very gastronomical. We ate at a restaurant almost every meal and I had wine every meal! OOPPS..
17th Nov - 19th Nov: CopenhagenThe highlight of it all was Kulorbar as I mentioned in one of my previous posts.;)
24th Nov - 26th Nov: Nice/MonacoThis is one of my favourite trips. Nice is VERY nice. HAHA. REALLY. If you ever go there, you should walk along the beach. The cote 'd azur is just really nice. A little like Greece with all the buildings build on the hills. IT's AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING. Monaco is totally for the RICH. Lots of private boats docked there. Beautiful. Also it has the world's most famous casino - Monte Carlo which inspired the Monte Carlo simulation that we all learn in finance. At the Monte Carlo was the first time I tried my luck at the tables. Was up by quite a bit but lost it all to break even later. But we went to Casino Rhul at night in Nice and I won about 15 euros. WOOHOO. Nice/Monaco is really really worth going. It's totally beautiful. If you do go, take the bus from Nice to Monaco and check out the views! Absolutely stunning!
27th Nov - 3rd Dec: Oslo and Tromso in Norway and Stockholm in Stockholm
We didn't do much in Oslo but it was in Oslo that I caught my first snow in Europe. Really beautiful! Tromso is a place in the Artic circle that is supposed to be great to see the Northern Lights. Tromso was COLD. It's covered with snow everywhere! 5cm thick worth of snow. Pity we didn't REALLY get to see the full blasts of northern lights but we did see the greenish things on the mountains and some more from the plane. We also got to play with reindeers!! Norway is disgustingly expensive though. A meal at a snack bar would set you back by 40sgd. Takeaway costs 20sgd. WTH.
Stockholm was much much better. Cheapest of the Scandinavian countries and home to everyone's favourite IKEA and H&M. We just had to go to one of the IKEAs to eat the meatballs which in fact can't be compared to Singapore's. OH. And we had 2 buffets. The thai buffet the first day totally killed me and some of the others. I ate till I literally PUKED. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?! Probably had something to do with the vodka i drank at icebar which was really cool by the way. Everything in icebar is made from ice!!
4th Dec - 5th Dec: Amsterdam That was another Jo and I trips. To the sin city of Amsterdam. We only made it there after like 4 months in Holland. We just had to go there. Amsterdam is quite boring actually apart from the red light district and a few museums. The Anne Frank and Van Gogh musuem were great though! Amsterdam totally REEKS of weed. Stinks like mad. Food was the highlight of our trip. We had roast duck noodles, char siew rice and wantan soup at Chinatown. Happy like mad!!!!
11th Dec - 13th Dec: LondonLoved it loved it loved it. Despite being pickpocketed. The atmostphere is just entirely different. And I loved the dim sum lunch at Royal China that Fern brought us to! And it was nice meeting up with JJ and Christine there as well! We managed to catch Wicked there which was really WICKED. We also had one of the best fish and chips in London that JJ had ever had at Seafresh, a take away restaurant on Wilton Road near where we caught Wicked.
These past 5 months especially the last 2 months have just been amazing. 1 day left in Maastricht. I am really really treasuring it now. Then it's to Amsterdam for 1 night, to London and then home. I am looking forward to home now really. But I will really miss this place. Maastricht is one of the most beautiful places I have been to. I might be biased but it has after all been my home for 5 months. Many new memories, many new friendships, many new experiences created here. I will always always always miss it. I'm sure that I'll be back one day. Soon hopefully.
Goodbyes have always been hard for me. This time is not exceptional. Watching everyone leave one by one, I suddenly feel the pang of loneliness. As well as the recognition and it is really coming to the end. I guess what I could bring back from this whole experience would be the friendships forged and the memories and experiences created. I've loved every moment of this. I wished it wouldn't come to an end so quickly but I guess it's time to walk back to reality. And back to those at home - without whom this could not have been possible.
I'm missing everything already.
Please dun cry.
