Fabien and I were celebrating getting our appartment last night. It started with champagne and ended with Tequila shots. I also managed to talk to Liyi last night, and even though we stumbled home slightly wasted, I don't think any amount of alcohol could take away from the fact that I was really happy to hear from her.
Jean Nie emailed to say she just dropped by this blog (*waves*) she said you can use www.skype.com to call me because it is cheaper. I cannot use it to call any of you guys because I am on a public computer.
My phone number is on this blog! Scroll to the entry of 29 March.
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
Muggers and Misconceptions
Okay before I start on today's topic, I need to clarify the last post about our appartment. In case anyone is confused, the appartment that we got, is the one which required an interview with the picky Piedmontese Landlord. I think he prefers to call himself "selective" but at least he is not completely ignorant, and he realises that Singapore is not a hotbed of terrorist activity (or whatever his concerns were) and actually let us have the appartment we wanted for a reasonable price, and we are very happy about it.
Moving onto the first topic of today - I conclude that I am currently a shameless mugger. What do I mean by this? Well, I am a mugger because I study with consistency and enthusiasm. After working for 4 years, I now appreciate study of the law in a way that I never did whilst I was in university. For those of you that knew me in either Notts or NUS, you would know that I usually didn't even have a copy of the reading list. It would therefore surprise you to know that I am now reading ahead of the lectures! This means that I usually put up my hand and get all the questions right in class, ask questions and make what I hope are reasonably intelligent comments. I don't get much flak from my coursemates, because my comments/questions are usually simple and easy to understand (bearing in mind that most of my coursemates have English only as a second language). I cannot say the same for some of the responses recieved from some of the lecturers. I suppose they can make the excuse is that their first language is not English.
So where are my coursemates from? This class is about 40 percent Italian, and the rest come from the rest of the world. And we learn so much from each other, and take away a lot of preconceptions about other places in the world. For instance, Talal is my friend from Beirut. We had a reasonably long walk to the ticket shop to try to buy tickets for the Juventus - Liverpool match tommorrow. So on the way there, he gave me a quick history lesson on Lebanon, dispelled any myths about Beirut being a war zone, and invited me and Fabien to his house this summer. It is supposed to be a wonderful summer, because Lebanon will gain what Talal calls "actual" independence as opposed to the original powerless government which allowed Palestinians to force their way into Lebanese homelands (you can tell which angle this history lesson comes from).
If you walk through the classroom during a break, and you can hear Mira, the girl from Khazakstan, Murud from Uzebekistan, and Vitaly from Ukraine all speak Russian to each other. Listen to the 3 swiss guys talking to each other. Pierre will ask a question in French, Luca will answer in English and Manuel will object in Italian. After a few drinks, everyone automatically assumes that the rest of the world understands whatever language we are carrying on in, and I have had entire conversations in French to someone answering in Italian.
Okay, I will stop here because I have to finish reading this article on La loi applicable a l'arbitrabilitiè du litige (the law applicable to the issue of arbitrability). Did I tell you that even though the course is conducted in English, the reading list is in English, French and Italian?
Moving onto the first topic of today - I conclude that I am currently a shameless mugger. What do I mean by this? Well, I am a mugger because I study with consistency and enthusiasm. After working for 4 years, I now appreciate study of the law in a way that I never did whilst I was in university. For those of you that knew me in either Notts or NUS, you would know that I usually didn't even have a copy of the reading list. It would therefore surprise you to know that I am now reading ahead of the lectures! This means that I usually put up my hand and get all the questions right in class, ask questions and make what I hope are reasonably intelligent comments. I don't get much flak from my coursemates, because my comments/questions are usually simple and easy to understand (bearing in mind that most of my coursemates have English only as a second language). I cannot say the same for some of the responses recieved from some of the lecturers. I suppose they can make the excuse is that their first language is not English.
So where are my coursemates from? This class is about 40 percent Italian, and the rest come from the rest of the world. And we learn so much from each other, and take away a lot of preconceptions about other places in the world. For instance, Talal is my friend from Beirut. We had a reasonably long walk to the ticket shop to try to buy tickets for the Juventus - Liverpool match tommorrow. So on the way there, he gave me a quick history lesson on Lebanon, dispelled any myths about Beirut being a war zone, and invited me and Fabien to his house this summer. It is supposed to be a wonderful summer, because Lebanon will gain what Talal calls "actual" independence as opposed to the original powerless government which allowed Palestinians to force their way into Lebanese homelands (you can tell which angle this history lesson comes from).
If you walk through the classroom during a break, and you can hear Mira, the girl from Khazakstan, Murud from Uzebekistan, and Vitaly from Ukraine all speak Russian to each other. Listen to the 3 swiss guys talking to each other. Pierre will ask a question in French, Luca will answer in English and Manuel will object in Italian. After a few drinks, everyone automatically assumes that the rest of the world understands whatever language we are carrying on in, and I have had entire conversations in French to someone answering in Italian.
Okay, I will stop here because I have to finish reading this article on La loi applicable a l'arbitrabilitiè du litige (the law applicable to the issue of arbitrability). Did I tell you that even though the course is conducted in English, the reading list is in English, French and Italian?
Monday, April 11, 2005
We got our Appartment!
Whoopee! We got the appartment! thank you, thank you for all your thoughts and prayers. Apparently the landlord liked us enough to have us live opposite him...
So we FINALLY have a place to live, and I can start Italian Lessons! The two issues are linked because I wanted to sign up for language class not far from home. So I have found an inlingua school near us so that I can stop using my "survival Italian" and start learning the proper conjugates and proper grammer rules and so on.
The next step is to learn how to drive...Heh heh heh. It will be a pre-condition to accomodation in our appartment that I get to drive any would-be guests in my car for at least one long journey (e.g. from airport to home). In case you are wondering, this is not meant to discourage you from being coming to visit, but an incentive!
So we FINALLY have a place to live, and I can start Italian Lessons! The two issues are linked because I wanted to sign up for language class not far from home. So I have found an inlingua school near us so that I can stop using my "survival Italian" and start learning the proper conjugates and proper grammer rules and so on.
The next step is to learn how to drive...Heh heh heh. It will be a pre-condition to accomodation in our appartment that I get to drive any would-be guests in my car for at least one long journey (e.g. from airport to home). In case you are wondering, this is not meant to discourage you from being coming to visit, but an incentive!
Living in a Postcard
I hope you had a good weekend because mine was great!
Turin is the site of the 2006 winter games, the discovery of this weekend was why it is considered an appropriately picturesque location.
The weather had been both rainy and cloudy on Saturday. On Sunday, we went to the park which is up a hill, when the sun came out and we saw the Alps. I felt like we had just stepped into a postcard! There were places where you didn't know where the mountains stopped and the sky began, but the rest of the Alps could clearly be seen as snowy mountains and grassy slopes. I felt like Heidi was going to appear any minute and start yodelling with lonely goatherds.
Then we went to a restaurant above the Piazza Grand Madre (where our original first choice tiny appartment was) and had this "carne a la pietro" which is essentially beef served on a hot stone. You can order the local wine in a demi-carafe (about half a regular bottle). It costs 4 Euros or about the same as one glass of wine in Singapore. After dinner, we went to a bar for coffee. You can go to a pub or bar here and order hot beverages instead of wine or beer. The local speciality is chocolate. Apparently Turin has more master chocolatiers than either France or Belgium! So when you go into a bar and order hot chocolate, you get stuff you can literally stand a spoon in. It is so thick and creamy that me and Fabien take all night to finish a tiny little cup. It is especially addictive when the weather is 7 degrees outside at night, and you can see your breath.
Turin is the site of the 2006 winter games, the discovery of this weekend was why it is considered an appropriately picturesque location.
The weather had been both rainy and cloudy on Saturday. On Sunday, we went to the park which is up a hill, when the sun came out and we saw the Alps. I felt like we had just stepped into a postcard! There were places where you didn't know where the mountains stopped and the sky began, but the rest of the Alps could clearly be seen as snowy mountains and grassy slopes. I felt like Heidi was going to appear any minute and start yodelling with lonely goatherds.
Then we went to a restaurant above the Piazza Grand Madre (where our original first choice tiny appartment was) and had this "carne a la pietro" which is essentially beef served on a hot stone. You can order the local wine in a demi-carafe (about half a regular bottle). It costs 4 Euros or about the same as one glass of wine in Singapore. After dinner, we went to a bar for coffee. You can go to a pub or bar here and order hot beverages instead of wine or beer. The local speciality is chocolate. Apparently Turin has more master chocolatiers than either France or Belgium! So when you go into a bar and order hot chocolate, you get stuff you can literally stand a spoon in. It is so thick and creamy that me and Fabien take all night to finish a tiny little cup. It is especially addictive when the weather is 7 degrees outside at night, and you can see your breath.
Thursday, April 07, 2005
Interview for Appartment
okay Mike thinks option one and Kiddo thinks I will appreciate a safe interior better with a rough exterior -- keep those replies coming.
Actually there is a new development on the housing issue.
We went to see this GREAT appartment, which was well located and reasonably spacious, and a lovely courtyard. The landlord's agent very frankly told us that Price is not an issue, but the people who live there must fit in well. So in order to do this, we had to have an interview of sorts. Where we went to school, exhibit our latest employment letters to show our salary and other kinds of nonsense. The only reason why we put up with this is because we REALLY want this appartment.
Anyways, Fabien is bringing all our documents to show the landlord's agent today. The landlord is this grandfatherly looking old man who apparently owns ALL the flats in this beautiful and historical building (meaning he either is mafia or inherited the entire building), he takes one floor, and kept insisting to us that he only wanted to preserve the "family atmosphere" of the building, where people could leave their stuff unlocked in the main courtyard, and the common areas. In a way, you can see where he is coming from, but I was really annoyed when he looked at me and said "but you are not French!" in this shocked voice. (GRRRRR)
Anyways, we are sooo desperate for this place that we would jump through all hoops he has set up, so we try to persuade him that we are wonderful people. Wish us luck!!
Actually there is a new development on the housing issue.
We went to see this GREAT appartment, which was well located and reasonably spacious, and a lovely courtyard. The landlord's agent very frankly told us that Price is not an issue, but the people who live there must fit in well. So in order to do this, we had to have an interview of sorts. Where we went to school, exhibit our latest employment letters to show our salary and other kinds of nonsense. The only reason why we put up with this is because we REALLY want this appartment.
Anyways, Fabien is bringing all our documents to show the landlord's agent today. The landlord is this grandfatherly looking old man who apparently owns ALL the flats in this beautiful and historical building (meaning he either is mafia or inherited the entire building), he takes one floor, and kept insisting to us that he only wanted to preserve the "family atmosphere" of the building, where people could leave their stuff unlocked in the main courtyard, and the common areas. In a way, you can see where he is coming from, but I was really annoyed when he looked at me and said "but you are not French!" in this shocked voice. (GRRRRR)
Anyways, we are sooo desperate for this place that we would jump through all hoops he has set up, so we try to persuade him that we are wonderful people. Wish us luck!!
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
Dry Skin, Driving Lessons and Big Decisions
As can be seen from the header I am going to tell you about 3 things.
First, a general anouncement that my skin here gets really dry - much worse than when I was studying in Notts. Either I forgot how my skin reacted to English weather or (*gasp) my skin is showing my age! In any event, the next time I am in Singapore, Elaine's Natural Source discount card is probably going to be useful.
Secondly an update on the Driving Lessons. It costs about 1000 Euros to get a driving licence-- and I don't mean by illegal means. About half of the costs of obtaining a licence is eaten up by the paperwork involved. You need Document X in order to apply for Document Y and so on. Not to bore you with details, but the process is going to be long and painful and I will probably whine regularly about it on this blog = Akan Datang.
Finally, the Big Decision I have to make now is whether or not we rent this lovely apartment in the Borgo Po, which we viewed yesterday. The appartment is situated in the Bukit Timah of Turin -- a very lovely safe area with views of Piazza Grande Madre, and the Alps in the distance. The only problem is that it is just a little bit small. Originally we wanted to rent an appartment with at least 2 bedrooms, so that we would have enough room to put up guests. However this appartment is small, so guests have to sleep on the sofa. There is another appartment which is much larger, has enough room to put up guests, but is located nearer the train station, so you may have to jump a few dead bodies on the way in (just kidding).
I am not going to canvass the opinion of family and friends on this issue, unless you first declare any vested interests! However I think we are probably going to take the first appartment. This is simply because any discomfort felt by cramped guests will be only over a few days, but Fab and I would have to suffer the daily stress of walking through less pleasant surroundings on a longer term.
Okay == What do our family and friends think?
First, a general anouncement that my skin here gets really dry - much worse than when I was studying in Notts. Either I forgot how my skin reacted to English weather or (*gasp) my skin is showing my age! In any event, the next time I am in Singapore, Elaine's Natural Source discount card is probably going to be useful.
Secondly an update on the Driving Lessons. It costs about 1000 Euros to get a driving licence-- and I don't mean by illegal means. About half of the costs of obtaining a licence is eaten up by the paperwork involved. You need Document X in order to apply for Document Y and so on. Not to bore you with details, but the process is going to be long and painful and I will probably whine regularly about it on this blog = Akan Datang.
Finally, the Big Decision I have to make now is whether or not we rent this lovely apartment in the Borgo Po, which we viewed yesterday. The appartment is situated in the Bukit Timah of Turin -- a very lovely safe area with views of Piazza Grande Madre, and the Alps in the distance. The only problem is that it is just a little bit small. Originally we wanted to rent an appartment with at least 2 bedrooms, so that we would have enough room to put up guests. However this appartment is small, so guests have to sleep on the sofa. There is another appartment which is much larger, has enough room to put up guests, but is located nearer the train station, so you may have to jump a few dead bodies on the way in (just kidding).
I am not going to canvass the opinion of family and friends on this issue, unless you first declare any vested interests! However I think we are probably going to take the first appartment. This is simply because any discomfort felt by cramped guests will be only over a few days, but Fab and I would have to suffer the daily stress of walking through less pleasant surroundings on a longer term.
Okay == What do our family and friends think?
Monday, April 04, 2005
Ciao Karol
There is national mourning in Italy, and especially in Poland. BBC and CNN provide 24 hour live coverage of St Peters Square. Is the world ready for an African, Latin American or Asian pope? I am not sure, but for the moment, we bid him a fond farewell, and headlines in all the major newspapers here have nice eulogies about him.
The sun appears in increasing spells although it is pretty chilly and I can see my breath in the morning when I walk to school. What I am learning? Well, the first lecture last week was on Economics issues in Trade Law and Policy. Prof Enrico is in the 5 percent who do not believe in neo-classical economics, and he has some pretty contreversial views - I love it! Today we have Global Trends in something or another.
As you can see I have not really commenced with my reading list. Will of course have an Essay Crises later in the course. This is difficult to do because apart from looking for permanent accomodation, Fab and me went to the Impressionist Exhibition yesterday at the Valentino Musesum yesterday.
The sun appears in increasing spells although it is pretty chilly and I can see my breath in the morning when I walk to school. What I am learning? Well, the first lecture last week was on Economics issues in Trade Law and Policy. Prof Enrico is in the 5 percent who do not believe in neo-classical economics, and he has some pretty contreversial views - I love it! Today we have Global Trends in something or another.
As you can see I have not really commenced with my reading list. Will of course have an Essay Crises later in the course. This is difficult to do because apart from looking for permanent accomodation, Fab and me went to the Impressionist Exhibition yesterday at the Valentino Musesum yesterday.
Friday, April 01, 2005
stupid keyboards and other annoyances
One more thing I forgot about being in Europe -- the keyboards! They don't use the normal QWERTY keyboard, because there are all these letters with strange symbols and then to make matters worse, people go and diddle around with the keyboard settings so that it no longer is what you see is what you get. Does anyone know how to go back to normal QWERTY setting?
Other than that, the food is great, the weather is lovely and the drivers are still crazy. There are lots of interesting people from my course, a bunch of lovely lasses from Brazil, and some gorgeous Latin American men {i bet you my friends from back home are now dying to visit when they read this). There are 5 China students. They wear suits to class and take down everything the lecturer says.
Oh yeah, I was thinking of doing some April Fool joke on you all, like announcing that I am pregnant or something. But then given that people actually take this blogsite quite seriously, I decided against it! Tell me how April Fools went in Singapore or anywhere else in the world?
Other than that, the food is great, the weather is lovely and the drivers are still crazy. There are lots of interesting people from my course, a bunch of lovely lasses from Brazil, and some gorgeous Latin American men {i bet you my friends from back home are now dying to visit when they read this). There are 5 China students. They wear suits to class and take down everything the lecturer says.
Oh yeah, I was thinking of doing some April Fool joke on you all, like announcing that I am pregnant or something. But then given that people actually take this blogsite quite seriously, I decided against it! Tell me how April Fools went in Singapore or anywhere else in the world?
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