Because I loike.

Day started out bad because somebody PROMISED me something but due to unforeseen reasons or whatnot, that somebody could not hold to his end of the deal. -.-

Things didn't look up till after I got my Physiology credit from Ionkina. Then I rushed all the way back home only to be greeted by an unmade bed and an intimidating pile of dirty dishes.

After fulfilling my role as my own personal Indonesian maid, housemate ajak-ed me to the market to buy chicken. 

But we came back with :

MANGOES! Why am I excited? Because its usually hard to find and is normally ridiculously expensive.

Apples. -.- Buy this all the time but gatal take pics. nvm, layan. 

Same -.-

And alot of other weird stuff la. Yay to new fruits besides the usual banana, apple, pear mishmash. Mini peaches (?!), kumquats and some green small fruit which was very cute but VERY sour. No pics because I couldn't be bothered. Either that, or they were gone before I became gila terlompat-lompat taking pictures of fruits.

dammit. -.-

But its okay, know why?

PROOF that (1) I do go for lecture (I do, MOM) and (2) I DO pay attention (I do, MOM).

This is a graph of power/intensity of emotions against time. As you can see, negative emotions dissipate at a much slower rate than positive emotion la ha. So that why I was feeling down and blue for most of the day. That is until I got my credit (refer to 2nd pink curve-POSITIVE EMOTION AMAGAD) and that is able to alleviate most of my negative emotions(refer to detached lines). PLUS my market escapade made me forget about my sissy melancholy completely.

So today, because of my fruits, I am a happy camper :)

Victory Day

Actually this day bears no significance to me as Russian and various other military bodies brought out their tanks and guns and bombs to parade. I still fail to see the benefit in doing so but hmmmm yeah.

Still excited from the picnic the previous day, I was itching to go out and not waste the bulk of my time at home sleeping so I made it a point to wake up early the next day and go to Victory Park to witness the festivities Russians look forward to all year.

Was supposed to meet up at Kievs at 10 but I ended up waking up at 10am. So I rushed all the way to Park Pobedy only to be one of the earliest. :)

At the end of the day, I was tired, burnt and broke (ended up shopping after that). Plus, I wore out my flats from all the walking. Meeeeps.

Some of the not very nice pics from the day. Wasnt in the mood, really. I also managed a nap on the grass while the others were busy snapping away, enjoying themselves. Bahhhhh

One of the 1827360000000 war veterans present at the park. Look at them medals! Its customary for citizens to hand these veterans flowers as a token of respect and appreciation. -.- I do not condone flower massacre. 

Managed to sneak in a nap like this fella here. And I went back home with a stiff face. Burnt and peely. 

Poser kid. 

I heart tulips. (eeeyer, I never thought i'd say I 'heart' something. I'm tired so yala wtvr)

OK bai, I edited the pics to look all moody and somber because thats how I feel right now :( I want to go home and hug my mummy and daddy.

Today In History

Today in History : 
Don Evana dropped her contact lens into a cup of coffee.

Update: Lens and coffee were harmed in this uncommon occurrence. 

When you wish upon a starr

Paris offers such a tantalizing menu of sights, entertainment, attractions and events, you'll be tempted to overload your schedule. Word to the new visitor - DON'T do it! Be sure to allow time for a few uniquely Parisian experiences in your vacation itinerary. For me, one of it would have to be Disneyland Paris! (even though we went in the bleakest of winter -.-)

To tell you the truth, I spent my entire childhood waiting to be taken to Disneyland, the place where I thought a glowing and all-powerful fairy godmother would wave a magic wand and transform me into the princess I always wanted to be. As a child, it's impossible not to get swept away on the tidal wave of fairy dust that surrounds this incredible establishment, and though many of us outgrow our innocence, the enchantment of Disneyland lives in our hearts forever. So it was, that with an elated sense of excitement, last January, at the ripe old age of nineteen, I hopped on the train to the 'Magic Kingdom' for the very first time.

You cannot imagine how hard it was for me to keep control of my childlike jitters. I was seven years old again and grinning from ear to ear. My excitement was contagious! teeheenyehehekehkeh

Not counting those with motion sensitivity la. But we HAD to ride the teacup! C'mon, teacups!

We were blessed with good weather.

Scratch that, EXCELLENT weather actually :)

The boys managed to get us on all of the thrilling rides at the end of the last roller coaster, I felt like soggy bread. Arf. However, we unanimously concluded that this: 

Its right there at the back, hollywood tower hotel was the best ride of the day :) Imagine solero space shot but with cooooooler effects.

But I shall never forget it, my first sight of the most fabulous fairy castle in all the world. It was more enchanting than my childhood fairy tale books. My imagination was sparked to life with a myriad of magical creatures and I just stood there, camera in hand, snapping away as if to capture every bit of it within that little black box. And in that small, inconsequential moment in the fabric of time and space, I was a princess at last.

Ok, I'm such a loser.

Urfffff....

Its as if the Sun knew.

YOU KNOW!

The weekend flew by at such a confounding speed, it made me doubt that today is actually Monday.The second year schedule has been extremely forgiving, I momentarily forgot what it was like to be busy once again.

In truth, I quite fancy being busy. It makes me feel like I am in control over the things I do and I am not wasting my time doing things that benefits no one, especially myself. We are after all, living on borrowed time. Yesterday I was on my feet all day and yet I still managed to sneak in an hour of baking, that is the only thing I did for myself yesterday.

Funny thing happened. Actually, its not funny at all, if it had to be something, it was annoying. So as usual, I went to the kitchen to preheat the oven and went back to my room to make the batter. So when I was done with that, I went to the kitchen with the mix, ready to be baked. So I opened to oven door when I saw A BIG FAT CHICKEN LYING ON A BED OF ONIONS AND POTATOES JUST SITTING THERE, ROASTING! Urh hello? Where did YOU come from?! I preheated the oven so that YOU can stuff your chicken in it? 50 minutes later, I went back to the kitchen to check on the cake when the culprit walked out, carrying his perfectly browned chicken with a smug expression on his face. Sankkyouuuuuu very machhhhh. Haha, ohwell. I'm glad I perfectly and exquisitely preheated the oven for you which resulted in a beeeyooooooootiful, golden, juicy (how would i know? well, sure looked it) roasted chicken.

Totally unrelated. ANYWAYS... (I have the attention span of a kangaroo, I'm sorry).

---

The two shocking metro bombings this morning (read here), got everyone thinking I bet. To me, it intelligibly reassured the fact that death is dogging you and I abidingly every second of everyday. It only takes one "GO" from God and detach we shall, from our mortal parts. Life, is definitely not ours to claim ownership to and it is merely a resting place along the road to sweet eternity. So, spend it wisely and spend it well.

Enclosed is one of my favourite poems, found underneath the pillow of Imam Al-Ghazali, one of the greatest thinkers of all time, upon his death. Don't skip it, read it!

 

"Say to my friends, when they look upon me, dead
Weeping for me and mourning me in sorrow
Do not believe that this corpse you see is myself
In the name of God, I tell you, it is not I,
I am a spirit, and this is naught but flesh
It was my abode and my garment for a time.
I am a treasure, by a talisman kept hid,
Fashioned of dust, which served me as a shrine,
I am a pearl, which has left it's shell deserted,
I am a bird, and this body was my cage
Whence I have now floron forth and it is left as a token
Praise to God, who hath now set me free
And prepared for me my place in the highest of the heaven,
Until today I was dead, though alive in your midst.
Now I live in truth, with the grave - clothes discarded.
Today I hold converse with the saints above,
With no veil between, I see God face to face.
I look upon "Loh-i-Mahfuz" and there in I read
Whatever was and is and all that is to be.
Let my house fall in ruins, lay my cage in the ground,
Cast away the talisman, it is a token, no more
Lay aside my cloak, it was but my outer garment.
Place them all in the grave, let them be forgotten,
I have passed on my way and you are left behind
Your place of abode was no dwelling place for me.
Think not that death is death, nay, it is life,
A life that surpasses all we could dream of here,
While in this world, here we are granted sleep,
Death is but sleep, sleep that shall be prolonged
Be not frightened when death draweth night,
It is but the departure for this blessed home
Think of the mercy and love of your Lord,
Give thanks for His Grace and come without fear.
What I am now, even so shall you be
For I know that you are even as I am
The souls of all men come forth from God
The bodies of all are compounded alike
Good and evil, alike it was ours
I give you now a message of good cheer
May God's peace and joy for evermore be yours."

-Imam Al-Ghazali 

I'm elated that Spring is finally here but I can't wait to be done with April.

Paris est une sorciere

There is just something about Europe that is enchanting, so much so that almost every winter break, students flock its many countries. Previously, I had the chance to spend the night on the floor of a train station in St Petersburg after missing our train (mind you, it was -23 outside), brave a skinhead experience, and gallivant aboard a massive cruise liner crossing the Baltic Sea from Helsinki, Finland only to end up in Stockholm, Sweden the next morning for a brief Swedish expose.

This time around, I figured: PARIS! - If not now, when else?

I would be lying if I said that I went to Paris with no expectations. But worry not, the city definitely did not fail me in any way.

 This city and all of its subtle beauty takes a frikking long time to capture, but since we only had a few days, we worked out a very very biased timetable to make the most of our sightseeing limitations, which included:

The outside of the Louvre. It was unfortunate that the museum was closed on Tuesdays. Blame bad planning. We made it a point to go the next day though. But we didn't. haha. Being cheapskate students on budget, we weren't willing to fork out 15 euros just to see the Mona Lisa.

The Notre Dame. Nothing historically spectacular about this cathedral, but I HAD to see it. I half expected a gypsy come up to me, start dancing, and later on threaten me to give her all the money I had. Alas, no gypsies were in sight. :(

Can you imagine Quasimodo there? hurhurhur

Arc du Triomphe. We weren't exactly blessed with good weather, so by this time, I was shivering beyond control, hence I did not really have the energy to take in this monument fully.

And last but not least: The Eiffel - the very symbol of Paris. We enjoyed it thoroughly, we went twice!

Paris in the winter, I found to be a city of soft colors and simple comforts. Her legendary buildings, under a grey sky, exhibit a muted brilliance of cream and blue. The pale yellow awnings of the boulangeries remind you only of the warm, golden croissants and baguettes sold inside.

I didn't however, get the chance to stop by Laduree for their adorable macaroons. :( Sobs.

And all along the mud-brown Seine, the cafes serve cups of coffee and chocolate that pour like syrup. These are among the real masterpieces of Paris, these pleasures of the every day that have been celebrated by artists, travelers, and Parisians alike as part of the city's spirit for centuries.

The architecture extended even to our hotel. Pretty, but tiny. And they cheated us. Urf. I do not recommend this place. alkdjfhaksljfdh. So heres a tip, do THOROUGH hotel reviews to help you find the right hotel for your Paris dreams.

There are so many more attractions to visit on a trip to Paris, but if you start with these, you will get a good sense of what makes up the city of Paris. I for one, still yearn for more of it.

Paris est une sorciere (Paris is a witch - bewitching?) If you live there, you want to leave, but the minute you leave, you want to return. Everyone knows that living in any city can be stressful at times. Visiting Paris however, is quite a different mattter.:)

Some pictures are off Balboa. Eh, actually just one. Arc du Triomphe. My fingers were dead by then. 

edit: I am bereaved however, for I did not get to get the most out of my trip. It was all hoohaa and less 'oohahhwow'. If you know what I mean ;)

Dandy

Hello :)

I actually woke up early this morning to drag myself all the way to the Taganskaya hospital IN THE SNOW, to : put on white coat, put on meshki (shoe covers, which I had to PAY for), go up to the waiting room, waited for an hour for the teacher, say hello to the teacher who subsequently asked us for our credit books then signed our credit books (which took like another hour) to signify that we have completed the course, take off white coat, throw away meshki and then leave the building.

Surgical care taught me: NOTHING. that plenty of hospitals in Moscow have pianos. -.- Seriously, WHY?

---

Then, groups 13, 14 and 15 decided to head over to Universitet for a lighthearted bowling session after getting our surgicalcare credits!

Its definitely a refreshing break from the routine: wake up, go class, stone, go back home, stone, sleep.

Watching their balls slide into pins sending them tumbling and crashing to the floor definitely brought smiles across everybody's faces! Almost as exciting as the bowl itself is was the laughter and the amazing spirit everyone sported in spite of everything.

I'm interested to see what develops from this bond after 6 years of strife and struggle :)

Skip this kalau allergic love love.

So self absorbed in my ways today, I almost missed at a chance that comes by pretty seldom. I saw love. Growing up under the HEAVY influence of princesses and knights in shining armor, I quickly was also in pursuit of 'happily ever after' for all the princesses in their pretty dresses ended up in a beautiful place somewhere somehow with their prince charmings.

Fifteen years down the road, with all the relationship problems of the 'real world', our minds our now flooded with the down sides of relationships. The 'happily ever afters' are, sadly, no longer attached to love stories.

Today, I saw love. This was the 'eternal' kind of love that I was a witness to. The kind of love that proves that maybe, just maybe, fairy tales do come true. This is the kind of love that is rarely witnessed and many times overlooked.

I couldn't help but smile as I watched a couple, well into their 70's I assume, as they sat comfortably on the train, side by side. They talked of things that made no sense, yet to them, they made perfect sense (Not like I understood the things they were talking about anyway). Moments later, both dozed off into a peaceful nap as they held each other's hand. And like clock work, they later woke up nearly at the same time. They sat there, content on just being together, side by side.

They sat in silence, no words needed. Just the re-assurance of being together, holding hands. She looked over at him, he winked, causing her to smile as a hint of pink rose crept into her pale, withered cheeks. The look in their eyes as they exchanged glances clearly spoke of the love they had for one another. She then reached into her bag and pulled out half a bun and further halved that and handed one half to the old man. As they sat enjoying their bread in a near unison rhythm, I witnessed him give her hand a tender squeeze.

Then, no words exchanged, the two, still hand in hand, dozed off again into a peaceful nap.

Tenderness. Togetherness. Understanding. The ability to be content side by side. That is what it's mainly about. Love is still remembered, even when other memories are far from the mind. This love I seen today, was one of the more beautiful love I have yet to witness. (never more than one's love for Him though haha).

The heart was beautifully crafted to hold the kind of love that is built around forever. I hope to be old and grey, sitting beside my true love, being content to just hold his hand. To need no words and to know by the look in his eye and tender squeeze of his hand that he still loves me and finds pleasure in being by my side after all the years have passed.

Aiyak so mushy pulak. I might muntah at my own post. HAHA. 

So friends, the moral of the story is... don't put your music on MAX and pretend that you are some hotshot rockstar while discretely banging on your imaginary guitar while tapping kaki loud-loud sampai makcik sebelah buat bunyi 'tsk tsk' and tarik beg plastik die kuat-kuat nak tunjuk annoyed.


Gudbai!

Foul Fowl.

Dear Friends,

Please be informed that I have no liking whatsoever for feathered creatures. One very good example:

This pigeon is French. Not very toilet trained. English pigeons on the other hand, are too wussy. They just waddled away from me when I chased them in London. How uninteresting. It is fact, however that they are undoubtedly more well behaved then the RUSSIAN ones.

Soviet pigeons have absolutely no manners and discretion. Usually birds flutter around but bother you, they do not. So there was this one time, I got out of the Barrikadnaya metro station - which is LITTERED with pigeons and also people handing out flyers - and made my way to the Physio building about 5 minutes away when WHOOOOOOOSHH, a big fat mother of a pigeon landed on my head.

Reflex told me contract my facial muscles into the most hideous contortion one can ever imagine. I also, ashamedly, screamed loud enough for a couple of heads to turn around. Aiyak.

The bird, shocked at the decibel of my voice, and also realising that my cranium did not quite resemble a tree branch, fluttered away to regroup with the rest of the flock.

Bugger.

Leave me alone. akdjsfhaksdfh

Grateful

Back, tired from the 9am - 4pm Friday norm.

Thank you God for being gracious to bestow me with His protection today.

On the way back home today at Borovitskaya station, history ALMOST repeated itself. I waited for the train whilst lugging my humongous bag (stupid Lippincott book la) with 'Hey Soul Sister' blasting on the ipod. I was barely aware of my surroundings as I was mulling over what to cook for diner later tonight. After 10 seconds or so, the train arrived and we all filed by the door waiting to get in when I felt something.

In curiosity, I turned around only to see A FRIKKING GYPSY WITH HER HAND IN MY BAG!

askdjfhlajsdfhakljdsfhalkjdhfalkjsdfhakljsdhfakljsdfhakljsdf

Her eyes were the size of golf balls (I bet mine were too at the time --.--) shocked to see my awareness, but that did NOT stop her from pushing her hand further into my bag searching for something I could only assume to be my wallet. So I tugged at my bag and she took out her hand. BUT WAIT. The best part is, she actually had the cheek of a bull to actually SCOLD me, shouting nonsense and even threaten to PUNCH me! She did try to punch me but I backed into the train and the doors closed before she could get in.

 The things people do for 70 rubles and worthless discount cards. (Yes mom, I am broke.)

Piece of advice: Go for karate classes. In case one day you need to front-kick a Gypsy.

Bye -.-

Hairee Pawter

Caught the movie on the opening day (geek much) with old friends, Kai Sheng, Liyian, Ta, Weng, Wenjun, Dak, Sen and Hj. I was quite excited to see it. Really, I was, even though I'm not a huge fan of the fifth book.
The show was allllllright. I guess I placed my expectations a tad too high for the movie. I wouldn't choose to say that I disliked it. But rather, it didn't hit me with as much impact as the other installments did :) The scene in which Dumbledore was Avadakedavra-ed did not manage to draw out tears from my super sensitive saccus lacrimalis and I was expecting the waterworks run like how it did when I first read the book.

Bahhhhh..... we shall wait for the seventh one heh.
Disappointed.
Though many liked it.

5/10

Ditz

I shall dedicated this post to LOUIS:)

Evana, hates to admit that she, like any regular girl does get her occasional ditz moments from time to time. At 7 pm this evening, she tried to sign in to blogger to update her blog. So, like any regular day, she typed her username, password and hit enter. Somehow, blogger denied her access claiming that she got the username password combo wrong. :( She tried and tried and tired and tried x15000 times. She got frustrated and IM-ed lulu. Lulu simply said:

[Louis] is bald again says: (9:29:25 PM)
reset the password la!
[Louis] is bald again says: (9:29:30 PM)
got secret question and all right
evana says: (9:29:38 PM)
yes ha
evana says: (9:29:40 PM)
oops

And so she did. And enter did she. Oops? :)