Edinburgh day 1-10th April 2008

For those who don't know where's Edinburgh, make a guess out of this riddle first.
A monk combing his hair-Guess this nation?
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Tada~~ Scotland!
Why? Pronounce the country in Chinese.
It simply means "Su1 Ge4 Lan3"
Anyway, this is just an Old Joke.

Met Kim & 2 of her friends from Singapore directly at Edinburgh.
They were in Bristol, UK prior to this.
First thing for the day-head for the FREE walking tours!
The guide was a "CHOP" one. (Typical singlish)
He's rather cute-looking but he has long hair.
Initially, I thought he was a girl from the back.
He's from Canada actually.

The tour guide.

The thing about Europe is they attract lots of students.artists.foreigners
Who like their country after a few visits.
These people then leave their home for the city they fall in love with.
They work either as receptionists in hostels.tour guides etc.
I guess only the Caucasians are able to do that.
They have an individualistic culture, prepared to leave their family and friends for the life they seek.
In Asia, it's still very much the collectivist culture.
People believe in staying around their family etc.
Listen to my background music.
My brother recommended me this song.
In remembrance of his support for me to pursue my dreams even if it means leaving home.

"THANKS BRO!"

Streets of Edinburgh-The Royal Mile.

St Giles Cathedral in the Background

King Charles Statue.
There's actually a story behind this statue. There were lots of defacts in it, the horse is slanted otherwise rainwater will stay in certain parts of the statue, the King wasn't having any crown, it eroded blah blah, so much restoration works and additions had to be make to it.

One of Scotland's most famous exports

Harry Potter Fans watch out. The cafe J.K Rowling sat in when she first pen Harry Potter. She was facing this college afar and that's how her inspiration came from... National Gallery of Scotland.

A few interesting stories I got out of the tour.
a) French & Scottish Union-Why? Both dislike the English.. :)
b) The spitting spot- Heart of Midlothian
A few variations as to why people spit there.
1) This was an emblem of the tolbooth outside St Giles Cathedral where criminals were hang. People spit on the door in those days as a sign of belittling the criminals. This tradition was then continued when the emblem was engraved on the floor.
2) This is an official spitting spot in Edinburgh since it's an offence to spit anywhere else.
3) Rivalry to a Scottish football club- Heart of Midlothian. Fans of the rival football club, Hibernian F.C spit on this spot to express their dislike for the rival.

Which is true? I don't know but trust me, there's really lots of salivas and pus on this spot! :(

c) Burke & Hare Bodysnatchers
There's this 2 Irish guys, Burke & Hare who work in Edinburgh and the girlfriend of one actually operates a inn. One day, an old lady actually died in one of the rooms. It was bad luck and a No-No to let anyone find out someone died in your inn. Thus, they had to think of a way to dispose the body. Burying carries a risk of someone discovering the body and reporting to the authorities thus they decided to sell it to the medical school.



At that time, the medical school demanded lots of bodies for dissection as training for their medical students but supply was low due to the law which states that no healthy person can be used in any learning or experiments. Those 2 Irish guys successfully sold the body to the medical school and was paid a hefty sum of 20GBP (A lot of money back in the olden times.) Money is the root of all evil. After the first successful sale, murders by them followed so that they could sell more dead bodies to the medical school! However, they were smart. Their victims are usually people who have little or few kin in the city so that their death will not arouse any investigations. They even went to the extent of digging up buried dead. I forgot how news spread but the police started investigating anyway. In total, 34-37 people were murdered.

Because of this, people started to guard the tombs of their family and friends and build some protecting shield call moat-gate or whatever. **Can't remember** It's just a cage that prevents people from digging up graves. The climax of the story is, one of them actually confessed when being interrogated and he was let off lightly, a sentence of only 12-18 months. The other one was sentenced to death and guess what? After he was hung, his body was sent to the medical school for DISSECTION too! haha.. At this juncture,I might introduce some economic theory to you guys. It's called the Prisoner's Dilemma Game theory.

Moat Gate

If both of them did not confess, they would both not go to jail.
If one of them confess, the one who confesses gets off lightly and the other gets a heavy punishment.
If both confess, then they would each get a medium-weighted sentence.
In this case, both refusing to confess is the best outcome but because you are unsure whether the other person will betray you, you choose to confess.
The outcome is that the person who confesses first gets off lightly. wahaha...

d) One o'clock Gun.
At the Edinburgh Castle lies a cannon that is still active. Everyday at 1 p.m, you hear the sound of the cannon, provided that you are at the Castle or near the main shopping street. This was used by people in the olden days where clocks weren't available yet people needed to know the time especially the ships. How it works is that there's a bell tower diagonal to this cannon several miles away. Everyday at 1p.m, someone fires the cannon and once the light is seen, the other person at the bell tower releases the ball on top of the bell tower so that everyone knows it's 1p.m after hearing the sound of the cannon and the fall of the ball. They will coincide because light travels faster than sound so people will see the light of the cannon earlier than hearing the sound. Interesting. But I didn't hear any cannon during my 3 days there. :(

e) Loyal skye terrier Bobby
The true story--> "The Skye terrier was a faithful dog who refused to leave the grave of his master, John Gray, a farmer from Midlothian, upon his death. John Gray took the dog to the market in Edinburgh every Wednesday. After the one o'clock gun sounded, he would have lunch in a restaurant near Greyfriars.

After his death, Bobby would continue to come to the restaurant, but only when he was forced by hunger to leave his master's grave. For 14 years he watched over the grave, stirring the emotions of the people of Edinburgh.

The gardener and keeper of Greyfriars tried on many occasions to evict Bobby but in the end they took pity on him. He was built a shelter nearby and was fed regularly. Bobby never spent a night away from his master's grave even in the most dismal weather conditions.

The story of Greyfriars Bobby -- not Greyfriars Bobbie -- spread and soon, his story became one of Edinburgh's unique stories. When Bobby died, he was buried in Greyfriars. A bronze statue was sculpted for the small dog, which now stands just outside the kirk gates.

Greyfriars Bobby is now one of the many Edinburgh attractions and a testament of a man's best friend. Travellers and visitors come to Greyfriars to learn his story and take pictures beside him."

People actually wanted to bury him next to its Masters but it was not allowed. Apparently, churches are burial grounds for humans only, not animals. So they buried him at a spot outside the church which is of the shortest distance to its Master's grave. Touching yeah?

John Gray's tombstone. See the small shelter next to it that was built for Bobby.

This is a plague placed within the church for Bobby since his body couldn't be buried inside.

See the rubbish dump in the background? That's the burial spot of Bobby.

His statue being mounted.

f) Maggie Dickson
She was an unwed mother. Sinked into depression and resulted in a still-born baby. People found out about it and in those olden days, she had to be hung. Surprisingly, she didn't die due to some issues with the stool that she was standing on or whatever. She survived! Read more about her story online. I can't remember the details well anymore...

The spot where Maggie Dickson was hung. Or rather, this is a hanging spot back in the olden days. It's in the Grass market in Edinburgh. Google it if you want more stories.

Since she didn't die, she actually operated a pub in her later life.

g) Camera Obscura
You've to check out this damn cool place! It's a lot about visual effects. Had whole lots of interesting things to see.. Let the photos do the talking for me :)

The lens in action.

Atop the tower of Camera Obscura

Look at the amount of chimneys atop the buildings? This show how much the people in that house SMOKE? hahaha..

Famous Scottish Monument in the background

It's just nice views all over...

FAT !

Luminous light to capture this image.

See if you can find the 2 different images. Skull & a woman.2 bald men staring at the breasts of one lady? hahaha..

Good Vs

Evil? That's Mankind. We all have 2 different personalities within us. It's our choice who we allow to control our life?

I like this image a lot! Life's all about ME & YOU!

See the lights...

I capture this image from those lights from the previous picture. Amazing yeah?

Can you find the Hidden Tiger? If you find it, tell me. I'll give you a prize. :)

Horses rising out of the water..... ~

See the lady in the video? Isn't she beautiful?

A little bit of shopping here and there before we ended our day. :)

Where the champions are crowned

Yes! Watch tomorrow's Game!
11 May 08 at 22:00hours (Singapore Time)
A decisive one.
It's either Man utd or Chelsea that will be champions.
Let's all PRAY hard!! :)

London again?- 9th April 2008

Yes, I was back to london on 9th April 2008
It was meant to be a transit for Edinburgh, Scotland.
Went to Buckingham Palace to watch the change of guards BUT
Trust me, you can't see anything seriously.
It was extremely packed!
But honestly, the palace is beautiful.

That's Buckingham Palace! Isn't it AMAZING?

New Guards coming in!


Change in progression inside the gates.

Took a walk around Hyde Park, it's amazing!
It's really spring in London.
Weather's cool. ;)
The scene in the park was a preview of what I would see in Stockholm a week later.

Picadilly Circus. Best Shopping Place. :)

Window-shopping for the next 3 hours to be honest.
London is the place for SHOPPING trust me!
Topshop.Gap.Esprit etc.
PRIMARK-the best shopping place ever.
Everything is cheap. 4-8 pounds yet stylish.

I badly wanted to catch a musical-Les Miserables.
But the tix were far too expensive!
42 GBP for one. Actually it was just that night.
Anyway, I am not the musical person otherwise I'd have gotten it despite the price. :)
Instead, I headed to this pub, Cheers to catch the 2nd Leg of Man Utd Vs Roma.
Rather boring game.
Man Utd was already 2-0 ahead from the first leg.
There wasn't any threat.
Plus totti was absent. :)

Italy Trip!

The trip is coming to an end in another 12 hours!
My friend's flying back to Singapore and me to Greece.
A bit indecisive as to whether I should head for Santorini or Corfu.
Typical me. Indecisive when it comes to traveling options.
Of course I'd love to go to both places but time constraints!
I met hell loads of interesting people
I can't finish telling them right now!
Shall update asap! :)

Blog Fast.

Sorry I am still way behind time. I've lots to tell you guys.

1. London-Buckingham.Oxford.Stratford-upon-avon.Warwick
2. Edinburgh
3. My friend's visit in Stockholm.
4. SABF

Blah blah blah....

I am in Rome now!!

There are a lot of things to talk about here.
Can't wait to get back to Stockholm too and blog about it.
Met really nice cool people here.
But before I get to Rome,
I spent a freaking $150/- for TAXI to airport!!
Long story, it was me who didn't hear the alarm at all.
But I need to get to Rome!

Football is my life!

People complain that my blog is mundane.
SO I need to blog more and of course, blog stuff with more substance.

Sometimes I think I am a jinx.
My fav. team always loses when I watch them play.
From Euro 2004 to World Cup 2006
I watched England lost to Portugal twice in a row!
David Beckham missed the penalty!

Then it was Champions League's Final 2004/2005.
I am never on Liverpool's side.
I watched AC Milan giving away their 3-0 lead.
My fav. AC Milan player back then (Kaka wasn't there.) Sheva MISSED the PENALTY again!

Worst was to come.
My maiden soccer match in Man Utd.
They lost 1-2.

Last Saturday, I set off cheerfully to watch the most important match of the season.
One decisive game of who becomes Champions for the season.
Chelsea Football Club VS Manchester United Football Club.
Overjoyed when Rooney converted from Cavalhro's mistake at a freekick.
Michael Ballack tore my day apart.
He twice netted in goal and my heart sank.
Man Utd would have been crowned Champions if they won or maybe draw would be a better result.
I will be away in Italy.Greece for 2 weeks so I will miss the next 2 matches
However, I will keep myself updated.
I want this to be a doubles' season for Man Utd.
I want this season to be remembered by everyone.
So I can tell everyone proudly:
"YES! 2007/2008, the season when Man Utd was crowned Champions of Barclay's Premier League Champions and UEFA Champions League, I was there for a game." :)
At least that will really convince everyone else around me that I am not a JINX.

My brother,"Eh, I think you better don't watch the game and bring bad luck."
Peiliang,"Please tell me who you support on Monday so that I can go to Singapore Pools on Tuesday and buy the opposite team."
"So you were there. That explains why Man Utd lost to Chelsea." .... I can't rmb who said that.

I don't know why but I just love football.
It's part of my life already.

Watched the Man Utd Vs Barcelona plus Chelsea Vs Liverpool game.
Both were INSANELY GOOD!
Yes, it's during games like these that you feel your adrenaline rush!
I was so happy that Man Utd won.
Simply holding my breath towards the last 10 minutes of the games.
Neighbours who were watching with me constantly reminded me not to be complacent.
A goal within the 10 minutes is all it takes to change the outcome.
I am glad I rode through it. :)
Man Utd is on their way to MOSCOW~
That night, I'd pizza but no beer.
My french neighbour totally ordered the famous BIG pizza.
I don't think it's the best. There's another much better one.
I will convince him on that sooner or later.
Anyway, he said,"Pizza + Booze + Soccer. That's the best combination and luxury in life."
Yeah I AGREE!

As for the Chelsea game, I was lonely.
Everyone had gone to Russia.
Fortunately, I've this friend in Amsterdam who's watching too.
So we chatted on MSN as we watch.
I ain't that lonely after all.
Finally, Chelsea had their revenge!
But I think the victory is rather an insult to Jose Mourihno.
Chelsea had failed to beat Liverpool twice under his management.
It's not because Mourihno isn't good enough.
He just had POOR LUCK.
But he's really one of the best managers around. :)
I used to like Chelsea quite a fair bit because of Mourihno.
I like the way he manages the club, the confidence he has.
I love it when fans cheer for him even after he's gone.
That's because he brought unusual success to the club, to the fans.
It's great watching his expressions, his comments.
They usually startle you.

Sorry Liverpool fans, no silverware this season. BLEH! :p

21st May 2008
Moscow
UEFA Champions League 2008
Chelsea Vs Manchester United

It's revenge time!
But I don't deny seeing two English teams in the finals is kind of boring.
That would appear similar to a Premier League game. :(

Prague Day 2-4 April 2008

Woke up rather early to set off for the famous dancing building in Prague. The weather wasn't good, raining as usual and I hate it to rain when I travel because that means I will be wet, the sky will be cloudy and it just sucks !

The Dancing building is a modern architecture and its an office building. So it wasn't that great considering the fact that I walked 20 minutes to get there due to the rain and my pace was extremely slow....

Then I went over to Mala Strana again for a walk because I kind of like the area a lot. I wanted to go up the Petrin Tower to get a good view of the city but folks, forgive me for my laziness. Apparently, the Petrin tower is modeled after the Eiffel Tower but it's not as huge as the ET and it's not on ground! It's on this mountainous area and when I asked the tourist office staff how do I get up, she told me there are many different ways to get up. You just have to take any of the paths and they will ultimately converge to the tower. Goodness! The clock was 09:45 and I had to be at the Old Town Hall for the Right Bank Tour, which means I have 30 minutes exactly to conquer the mountain and down. Well, if I had more time and more concise instructions, I'd have done it.

See how far the Petrin Tower is!

So instead, I went off to Charles Bridge again because I wanted to see the scenery there. It's marvelous and I didn't have a good shot yesterday because it was too crowded. Anyway, I had to pass by Charles Bridge to get to the Old Town Hall as well.

On the Charles Bridge 2nd time. With Prague Castle behind. I really love this bridge a lot!

Saw a couple taking wedding photos! How sweet~~

The Right bank tour was much more interesting, showing more historical sites of Prague.
1) Municipal House
Where the parliament sits today.
Not much Stories to tell since Czech Republic is a relatively new nation like Sing. :)
2) Powder Tower
The gateway to Prague city
Rigid and firm in the ground.
Amazing!

3) Charles University
4) Franciscan garden
It's really beautiful.
You need the photos.

A quick story behind this statue. This guy was mending the roof of this church but he started hurling abuses at a group of "holy ladies". They asked him to stop otherwise he would be punished by being immortalized. He refused so he ended up being frozen as a bronze statue. of course, it's just a story. :)

5) Golden Tiger and beer culture
The most famous place for beer
Czech beer is really nice
I had quite a few of them while in Stockholm
I like them. :)
The Golden Tiger opens at 3 p.m everyday
But my bus back to Stockholm was at 3 p.m
So I didn't manage to get in to get a beer.
If anyone goes to Prague
Please get there, taste it and let me know if it's really GOOD?

The Golden Tiger Bar

6) Jewish Ghetto
The most oppressed racial groups of all times honestly
I don't understand why !?
Hitler didn't like them.
Neither did the Czechs.
Jews are smart in Czech in the past.
They held finance-related jobs in Czech
Advisory to the Kings and monarchs
People didn't like them.
they were rich and had power
So they ended up being confined to the Jewish Quarters
No Jewishs were allowed to trade in the town hall.
Until King Jose decided to free them.
So the Jewish quarter became known as Josefov today.

Old Jewish Cemetery

Jewish Star Synagogue (if I rmb correctly. there are 5.) Look at the clock on the left. It's a Jewish clock so the numbering is different. :)

There's a museum that depicts their lives in Czech
Their sufferings, success, WWII, and a tour of the Jewish cemetery
I could see bits of the cemetery outside.
I can now concur with those 2 czech guys in Berlin about the design of the Holocaust Museum.

It's always confusion when it comes to Eurolines Buses.
When I was in Prague and supposed to book my bus back to Stockholm
I was informed they could only book me till Copenhagen.
I couldn't do anything
People suggested that I go to Bratislava, Slovakia
Or even Budapest, Hungary.
I would love to.
but I will be stuck in those countries again
So I decided to take the risk to go to Copenhagen
And if there's no connection to Stockholm
I will go to Malmo and Lund before I bus back to Stockholm.

Wenceslas Square. Beautiful!

The Czechs are really famous for this art glasses. You see them EVERYWHERE!

Had Czech cuisine before I left.
Recommended by the tourist office.
Not that expensive, $10 for a really filling portion
Dumplings, Pork and mushrooms sauce
DELICIOUS~~

I reached Copenhagen at 5 a.m the next day. I was extremely certain that there's a bus to Stockholm at 5.45 a.m and would say I was lucky because I met 2 old ladies who were also going to Stockholm. So in total, a group of 5 of us from the Berlin bus are heading to Stockholm. I was without a ticket, only my eurolines pass.

The thing about copenhagen which I mentioned before is they don't have a proper bus terminal. It's just some temporary bus stand so we waited till 6:10 a.m and the bus wasn't here. In between the time, there's this Danish guy who's going to Stockholm like us. He's hilarious. I've so many stories about him to tell. But because of his Danish nationality, he kind of helped us because he could converse with some other bus coordinator and guess what? The bus to Stockholm actually left without us!

So the bus coordinator tried to get another bus company to send us to Stockholm first then make the necessary claims from Eurolines but they refused even though they had plenty of seats. Ended up the Eurolines bus which had left turned back to pick us up.

The bus drivers said they waited for us. We were the ones who missed the bus! Come on, if it's just me alone, it could have been my fault but 5 of us were pacing up and down to check whether our bus had arrived. None of us saw it. The bus driver said they were here at 5.15 a.m
but we were here since 5 a.m! Anyway, more arguments wouldn't solve the problem. We just have to get going!

Driving buses isn't easy I understand.
My dad drives a school bus. :)
Long hours on the road. Nasty drivers you meet along the way.

I explained my situation to the 1st driver and he didn't want to let me up the bus. He said "NO TICKET, NO RIDE." I was like,"no, please. You've to help me. The Copenhagen bus office is not opened at this hour.That's why I couldn't get the tickets from them now."

He was adamant on leaving me behind. Fortunately, the 2nd bus driver gave way. I explained my situation to him and he was very nice! If I remember correctly, he drove me from Stockholm to Copenhagen. Either he remembers my Chinese name or my face so when I told them I am a student studying in Stockholm and showed them my visa, he said, "yes, I know you come from stockholm. Just get on the bus. Don't worry."

He was very very nice! I promise if they get me to Stockholm, I will get the office to issue the ticket to them. They need it for accounting purposes. Honestly, ferrying an extra passenger without a ticket doesn't make much difference to them. You are still making the trip there anyway. So off I hop on the bus thanks to that helpful 2nd bus driver.

Along the way at stops or breaks, he talked to me but he can't speak English fluently so we can't communicate much. But I am really grateful to him. :)

Bored after all the reading? Nice scenery I took on the bus journey.

Now the Danish guy. He's HILARIOUS!!
I've to admit I am a rather talkative person, always trying to get into conversations.
But I have a new definition of talkative after meeting this guy.
He never once stopped talking for more than 10 minutes during the journey except when he was sleeping.
Once he got on the bus, he started chatting with this lady beside him
Initially, the lady didn't respond too much but half an hour later, they behaved like they were old friends who haven't catch up with each other for ages

Next, by 7 a.m in the morning, he'd already drunk 2 cans of beers and smoked at least 5 cigarettes.
Once we were on the ferry, he headed straight to the duty free and bought 6 more cans of booze...
He's an alcohol addict, isn't he?
But I am none better. I am a chocolate addict judging from the amount of chocolates I've been eating during these 4 months. It's almost 100g daily. :(

When the lady beside him alighted, he started to get bored so he took a nap.
When he was awake, he started to chat with another old lady in front of him.
The old lady is Swedish and he's Danish however their languages share some similarities so they could still figure out what each other were trying to say.

The old lady got a little bit tired then decided to stop and nap.
Instead, he turned to this married guy beside him and started asking him about his family.
"How many kids do you have?"
"Are they twins?"
"Is it a headache when you have twins?"
As the baby was crying, the guy couldn't really afford to entertain him further
He merely responded to the questions.

During breaks in between, he joined a bunch of girls in smoking.
I assure you that he knows half of the passengers on the bus in those 8-hours.

Here comes the climax of his story.
He was wearing a t-shirt, track pants and a jacket in the morning.
2 hours before we reach Stockholm, he actually went to change
He brushed his teeth.washed his face.change into a fresh set of clothes.GEL-ED his hair.
The little girl sitting next to him looked at him in awe!
He forgot his mirror so he started looking at his reflection in the bus windows.
My goodness! I thought that's what girls would usually do.
To top it up, the girl sitting behind him actually took out her foundation to touch up on her make-up
He was quick and actually turn behind and asked if he could borrow her mirror!
My goodness! I was like "WTH is this guy doing?"
I should have taken a picture of him.
He pales in comparison with his body.

What an interesting character. :)

Birthday Wishes! ~

1) Happy Belated Birthday, Adeline! (Dated 30th April 2008).

I was so busy with my trip that I really had no time to blog about this. Plus, you are using M1. Sorry.. But I wished you ahead plus I got you a present already. So I should be pardoned.

2) Happy Birthday, Ben Chung! (Advance wish, dated 6th May 2008).

I should be around to wish you happy birthday every year. Thanks for forgiving my absence this year. But you know, we are always best pals so you must forgive me. :)

3) Happy Birthday, Jinghao! (Dated 13th May 2008)

Yet another advance birthday wish. But May seems the most popular month to give birth to babies.

4) Happy Mother's Day (to all moms especially MY MOM!) & Happy Birthday also to my GRANDMA!

I will be missing the dinner this year. Away in Italy, I can't skype with them to share special moments on this joyous occasion. I heard lobster is on the menu for the big feast this year. Sad that I am missing out such good food but Italy shall make up for it! Not to forget, GREECE too!

5) Happy Birthday, Wenxiong! (Dated 14th May 2008)

Sorry I've to wish you in advance, my dear Buddy! I will only be back in Stockholm on 14th May but that will be 15th May in Singapore. I don't want to be late. I've never been late for the past 6 years so this year will not be either. :) Have the most joyous birthday, alright?

Guys and Girls, it will be a long time before I blog again! I know I am not done with my Edinburgh trip. I am working to finish the Prague trip tonight though i've a flight in 3 hours time. :) Don't miss me too much...

Out-of-Stockholm: 2 May 08-14 May 08. :)