Weekend Affairs
Sunday, July 30, 2006 @ 7:22 PM
I was at National Stadium yesterday night. For NDP Preview 2006. The fireworks display was splendid this year, probably coz I was watching it from within the stadium and I had a pretty awesome view from the press stand. For the first time this year, they are having a 50-second long fireworks display, which would be a visual feast for those who are hoping to catch it somewhere near the stadium. I especially liked the part where they lighted the cauldron firework-style. Don't quite know how to explain; you gotta see it for yourself. My only regret was that I had forgotten to bring my camera, sigh.
This year's NDP is a historic moment for the National Stadium. It will be torn down next year to make way for a brand new sports hub, so this is essentially the last time that the parade will be held on the grounds of the stadium. Being there yesterday brought back memories of my Sec Two days. Slugging it out at the stadium practically every Sunday for NDP rehearsals, running from marker to marker in the ugly flesh-coloured court shoes with my eyes glued to the ground, getting my orange trailing fan to detangle in time as we changed formation (I was a 'fan girl') and listening with fascination to tales about the army guys wooing certain chio schoolmates. I also recall a certain army officer who was also involved in that year's NDP and my, was I surprised when I bumped into him this year during the course of work. We didn't get to speak and I'm sure he had no inkling that I recognised him. I told my colleague about the encounter and he's positive that the Major is a residual longing from those school-girl-crush-days. -_-"
The NDP commemorative book introduced our dress-up then as 'comic superheroes', a phrase which most of us found less than flattering. But for lack of a better word, I guess it kind of aptly described our costume. In a royal blue body suit and silver-sequinned flare skirt, a blue-silver-red-sequinned cape and coupled with two blazing orange fans as props, we were just a step away from being Superwoman. If we could fly, that is.
My primary school, Rulang Primary, was involved in a wushu item with Vincent Ng this year. So lucky! He walked past me twice and I had 3 thoughts:
- He has a smaller build than I imagined.
- So boy-next-door!
- Hot bod! (Coz he was wearing this shoulder-vest-costume which bared his lower torso.)
I also saw Wei Lian, the blind SuperStar idol, some present season's S'pore idol contestants and Jade Seah. My, she is one hot babe.
So, I was real glad I could be present for this year's NDP. Re-experiencing it all over again, though from a spectator's point of view this time round.
~~~
Sometimes I wonder why a certain vest 46 still lingers in my thoughts.
~~~
I am supposed to be twice more likely to be logical than emotional. Or so my lecturer says.
Fri's class was interesting. She brought in this galvanometer which can supposedly measure brainwaves by positioning clippers to each of your big toe. The right foot is linked to your left brain (logic) and the left foot to your right brain (emotional). So we did this experiment by asking this guy classmate to be in the hot seat while we flashed slides of hot ladies in front of him. While he absorbs the imagery of every slide, the lecturer will test out his left foot to see if he has any reaction. But coz we were all ooh-aahing behind, the lecturer concluded that he was trying to repress his reactions. *grinz* We witnessed greater deflections for some of the more sizzling slides though.
After that, many of us went to test out our logic-to-emotion ratio. Mine swung to 40 for my right toe while it only deflected to 20 for my left. Logical, am I? I have no idea.
Mortified
Monday, July 17, 2006 @ 11:50 PM
I went in late for class tonight after a long day at work. The guest lecturer from Australia was at the helm, so I quickly settled down into a seat in the front row.
Sitting beside me was this stout, plump lady with short wavy hair. She was outfitted in a loud, cartoonish tee and waist-high jeans. I found her slightly familiar but was wondering why I had not seen her in class before. But given that it was just the second week into the semester, I thought, perhaps a new classmate?
Said classmate was very vocal in class. The guest lecturer was opening a discussion on the exam format and she stood up and voiced her views with aplomb. I was impressed but that became surprise when we gathered in groups to discuss our views and she went from group to group to join in the discussions. How weird.
It was not till the break before I discovered my folly. I was having a chat with classmates in the cafe when the topic turned to our local lecturer, A.
Classmate 1: "A doesn't really look like a lecturer. You can't tell from her appearance."
Me: "Yah, actually.. the girl who sat beside me in class just now looks somewhat like her."
Classmate 1 & 2: *pregnant pause*
Then they looked at me incredulously.
It finally dawned on me. Shucks, you mean that's lecturer A??
After which, we were consumed by laughter, at my expense.
To think that I had wanted to be hospitable towards this 'new classmate', by introducing myself to initiate a chat. Thank goodness I had not gotten the chance.
Sheesh.
~~~
I just realised that I worked 12 hours today. Maybe that explains my out-of-character-ness.
And I love Class 95 FM at night. :)
More Snippets!
Sunday, July 16, 2006 @ 12:54 AM
I'm glad to say that this time round, I felt like I was rooted in reality after I landed in S'pore. My previous trips overseas were marked by this sense of unreal-ness even after I came back. Was I there? Did I visit this and that? And I'm already back?!
So folks, I hereby declare that I have been to taiwan and back! :)
On a general note, people from Kao Hsiung and beyond were more hospitable than the city folks. Not that people in Taipei were snobs of course, but some were perhaps slightly less helpful to a certain extent. Having said that, we met some unfriendly folks in Kao Hsiung as well, in contrast to the nice folks. But who am I to comment when Taiwan has been ranked above S'pore in the recent Reader's Digest's Courtesy Test?
Fashion wise, I would say that the city girls dressed up more trendily. Better to shop in the city area, especially Wufenpu! We only managed to get some decent shopping done when we visited the place on the last night before our departure. So imagine how deprived we felt before that... But for guys, I certainly can't put a finger as to where they shop for their clothes. Random shops here and there but yf and hd were sure bored stiff.
I saw news on SCV of protests against President Ah Bian before we headed over. But this was the only sign of a political upheaval we spotted, other than being told of a strike held at Nanwan. Whether that had political connotations, we wouldn't know.
One thing that irked me was why the locals were amazed that we could speak fluent Mandarin. But there were some who thought we were Hongkies or even one of their own.
Taiwan's traffic is reckless. You got to give way to the drivers instead of the other way round. So keep your eyes peeled when you cross their roads! I am particularly fond of their traffic lights. Some crossing timings can take up to 90s and as the countdown draws near, the digital green man progresses from his leisurely walk to a literal run. How cute.
Their MRT system, called the Jie Yun, is uncannily like ours. Clean, efficient and speedy. Just that the people have the habit of standing on the right side of the escalator, instead of our left. And without the alert panel for the next train's timing, you can still tell if the train is arriving. Just lift your face and feel for the wind. The breeze can even be felt from the control station! Take a look at this notice they put up:
Betel Nuts Banned! NT$7,500 would roughly convert into S$375.
Taiwan is also the land of the scooters. Lo and behold!
And we rode on one!! The grins of delight on the boys' faces were a gem.
It was definitely more scary than I thought...
As the lady boss patiently explained to me, "It's like riding a bicycle. (And I thought, that should not be a problem?) You press on the brakes to stop and turn the handles to accelerate." But nervous me gripped the handles and the scooter shot forward with no warning. Ahh! Later on, I overturned it with its wheels still spinning madly. Coz I was still gripping onto the handles. -_-"
Not like riding a bicycle at all. Sigh. Looks like I'm not made out to be a biker chick. There goes my dream of owning a little Vespa!
And we went snorkelling and banana-boating at Kenting! We were so glad that we didn't give the place a miss, as originally planned.
The warm folks at the snorkelling shop. We had a great time thanks to them! :)
I'm back!
Saturday, July 08, 2006 @ 1:23 PM
Taiwan was one word - Hot! At one point when we were in Kao Hsiung, temp hit a high of 39 deg. All of us were wilting under the heat. Whoever said S'pore was hot was kidding!
A Sneak Preview:
DanShui - Wo ai Dan Shui, Dan Shui ai wo!
Sunset.
Windblown on the viewing boat.
Caricature Drawing. The artist blessed us with huge boobs.
The famous Tall IceCream! As seen in the Taiwanese Drama, Devil Beside You. :p
Lovely!
JiuFen
This makes me feel very ShangHai-ish somehow.
Funky Aunty! Her dressing sure boosted sales for her.
Yang Ming Shan
Against the backdrop of the hot oil quarry. I felt like I was in the Chem lab, breathing in Sulphuric gas. Or someone had dropped a gallon of eggs down the quarry and left them to rot.
This is quite a popular game in arcades around Taiwan.. and the locals are pretty good at it! *Much to our shame..*
More highlights to come when I've recuperated.. Till then!
