SINGAPOOOOOOOOOORE

Today is April 7th. It's been a long time since I last wrote. I was too busy having a great time in Singapore. I hope that's a good enough reason for you all.

I arrived in singapore on the friday the 25th of march at around noon. After getting settled in and getting a sim card/MRT card, I made my way to the NUS campus where Haomiao lives. This is where i found out there were parties almost every day for the next week.

Singapore is located 1 degree north of the equator, so as you can imagine, its hot all the time. Daytime highs are around 35C and night time lows are around 28C. You'd find yourself taking at least 2 showers a day. Sleeping simply involves putting the fan on a less noisy level and lying on your bed uncovered. I love it, it takes a while to get used to but the heat is oddly satisfying, at least more so than winter. That's not to say I don't like seasons, having no change in seasons must kind of suck.

Clarke Quay, Singapore

Anyways, I don't really know what to write here about singapore, i saw a lot of the people i met a week earlier at the full moon party. We had barbeque with Haomiao's familia out here, and went out a lot. One of the clubbing events was at the top of swissotel - a skyscraper - from which you have a great view of Clarke's Quay where all the bars are located. Nearby you can see the amazing Marina Bay Sands hotel (which looks like a boat ontop of 3 skyscrapers). This is one place I have to go to in the future, a room costs around 300$ but you get access to the infinity pool on the roof. Some of the NUS students went and showed us photos and it's breathtaking.

My experience in Singapore left me feeling like an idiot. I've always known I love asian metropolises, but I chose to go on exchange to a tiny town in europe. What on earth was I thinking? Everything about Singapore/HK/Shanghai/Tokyo plays to my tastes. Food costs nothing, weather's warm, the setting is more adventure-centric than museum-centric, and excursions don't cost an arm and a leg. Oh the things I'd do for a time machine. Mistakes have to be made I guess, else I wouldn't have known just how much I identify with asia had I not come to europe.

Speaking of mistakes, my flight back to paris was at 1am on Friday Apr 1, and... i missed that cause I'm an idiot and thought it was the night of friday. The best part was I only realized in the middle of dimsum on friday. When I got to the airport, they told me i could either rebook for the 4th, or leave the same night and wait on standby in Sri Lanka (HAHAHA im not that stupid). 3 extra days in Singapore? I'll take it! I even tried to change my paris->mtl flight to singapore->mtl with no luck.

Anyways, I don't dislike europe, the pastries are to die for, and the sights are beautiful. But it's a much quieter continent with tourism focused more on "observing" than "experiencing". I just have a hard time dealing with the cost of living, the retarded amount of urban sprawl, and the early closing hours here (shit's NEVER OPEN HERE, while nothing ever closes out east). I'm busy stuffing my face in Barcelona currently, and will continue to do the same in Paris before i head home.

Crossing my fingers for an internship. Need money to buy RX-7. That baby will be mine!

Amusing things in asia

Asian food in asia is amazing, as you would expect, i've been stuffing my face full of curries and other thai food of late, not to mention the amazing mangos and pineapples that are everywhere. However one of the other food highlights of asia might be a little unexpected: it's McDonalds. Good old mcdo and KFC in asia are DELICIOUS. Those of you that have been here know exactly what i'm talking about, not only is everything crispier, its also tastier, and i wish we could get those regional specialties back home. Mcdo serves spicy crispy chicken wings here... it's so freaking good i could eat it everyday (...i did for 4 days straight).


Also, in asia you'll see tons of street carts serving food, typically they'll get you sick the first few times you have them. But after you evacuate your bowels a couple of times and adjust to the bacteria zone, street carts are the cheapest, and sometimes the best food you'll get out here. NYC streetcarts are shit compared to this, skewers actually have taste, and cost like 20cents. Ok, the cleanliness part might be a bit off putting, but you can guess your way around the good carts. Some carts you should obviously avoid, unless you have a death wish:


Speaking of sushi, im friggin excited to be headed to singapore later this week. Ending 'trips' in large cities has become a de-facto tradition for me now. Can't wait to have sushi and dimsum and everything else that i can't have in thailand. Also theres the bit about visiting haomiao & fan, who i already met with at full moon party. Full moon party was insane, easily 20k people on a beach hopping up and down to techno. You can find long stretches of guys taking a piss in the ocean, people doing the nasty in the ocean itself, and tons of fire dancers. At one point, we found someone who was waving a canadian flag, which led us to a huge group of canadians all singing the anthem, which attracted even more canadians. It was definitely a unique experience that had to be done at least once. Probably wouldn't go again unless i'm with a lot of friends though.

Anyways, i'll end this post with a funny picture of what the stray dogs here do. They're literally everywhere on this island, and because its so hot and they're furry (duh), you'll find them in 7-elevens doing this:

Consumer ABUSE

So back in bangkok, where its muggy and smoggy and you can't really see the sun, sunblock costs like 3usd for a nice sized bottle.

Down here on Ko Tao, an isolated island, a small 100ml bottle will cost you 12USD minimum.... so im just going to try and get dark slowly so i dont need to buy it. Crossing my fingers i don't catch on fire here. It's seriously hot.

Hope you're all jealous muahhahaaahah.

:)

Quick update

So for those of you who are wondering where I am, i'm in bangkok right now. I came down to thailand for the diving and to visit some friends on exchange in singapore so it should be a fun and relaxing couple of weeks.

I know it sounds mental that i'd leave europe... to come to asia, but according to my math, its cheaper for me to come here for a few weeks than to stay in europe. Living costs in europe are prohibitively elevated, plus who could turn down a chance to enjoy the sun, beach and cheap food?

Anyways, on my last day in Rome, this really sneaky brazilian fucker waited for me to go brush my teeth before nabbing 200euros from my jacket pocket. I only realized once i got back to paris and wanted to buy something to eat. I figured it was him and not one of the other ppl at the hostel cause he gave off a sketchy vibe, I felt like he was watching my every move. At least he was too retarded to steal my passport, i'd much rather give up 200euros than to lose that. What goes around comes around, he'll probably have a nasty encouter in the favelas or something...

On the way to asia, i had a layover in Dubai, and oh my god is dubai ever beautiful. From the plane at first all you see is the sea, then these strange man made islands, and then all of a sudden you see a city that doesnt look like it belongs in the desert. Not only that, but the burj khalifa more than doubles the nearby skyscrapers in height. the buildings are all on one main street, so from the sky you just see a row of tall structures, and then its just sand huts. It's too bad i don't have time to exit the airport and look around. Even in the airport, you could see and smell the wealth, there were emiratis circulating about on segways, and a huge fountain/waterfall in the airport!

Lastly, I don't really hate bangkok as much as i did last time, maybe it's cause it was my first destination last time around. It still isn't anywhere near my preferred cities, its a sprawling megacity with 11 million people and some serious sanitation issues. However, it's close enough to asia to make me feel comfortable right now. It's an odd thought that despite how similar europe is to canada, I still feel like i have an easier time navigating and doing things in asia.

Anyways, no pics in this update, maybe there'll be some in the next one!

Rainy Rome

Bongiorno!

This has been my fourth day in Rome, and only the first day i've seen blue sky and the sun. Up until last night, Rome had been a dreary wet place where people keep trying to sell you umbrellas and roses. I came here with my friend Ziyi and met her friend Debbie who gave us a pretty amazing tour of the heart of Rome. This city is OLD. There's ruins scattered everywhere in the Roman sector, it's a shame theres no way to let you just roam around on the grounds next to still standing pillars, i think it would make for a great park. To keep the ancient taste, they've decided to make most roads out of cobblestones, and theyre never flat. Walking is a bloody effort here, roads are rough, and people walk slower than an amputated tortoise. The cracks between stones are practically an inch apart too. This makes me wonder how women in heels dont fall in and snap their shoes. Anyone care to enlighten me?

Anyways, unlike Paris, all the sights to see in Rome are outdoors, it's kind of nice how everything somewhat free to see, but the outdoorsyness results in an obscene amount of tourists in the city. There's probably a piazza every few streets, yet each one manages to be filled to capacity with tourists. A latte in hotspots like piazza navona costs 6euros instead of 1.50! Despite this, they are absolutely beautiful, especially the Trevi fountain. Like most fountains, you toss in coins for certain reasons, 1 coin brings you back to rome, and 2 ensures you find true love. I threw in 3, we'll see what happens.

The Vatican is a whole other sight to behold, despite my "lack of culture" according to ziyi, I can still appreciate the art and architecture and history behind these sights. Plus she bombards you with history and art facts anyways so theres no point reading it up yourself. The vatican is huuuuuuuuuuuge, its just a shame the only time it's empty is at night, when you're not allowed onto the grounds. I haven't seen the sistine chapel, don't really plan on it after seeing all of michaelangelo's other works. La Pieta is a BEAUTY. Absolutely stunning, no wonder no one believed he sculpted it when he was 23.

The other highlight of Rome is the food of course! The only downside is its freaking expensive, sooooooooooooo expensive to eat here. I've had pizza an obscene amount of times, i actually find it greasier here, but the ingredients taste better. And gelato, i had 3 cones in 1 day, on a rainy cold day. That's canadian right there. After a while, the 3 of us finally found some decently priced trattorias to dine at. We ordered enough to stuff a family. Buffalo's milk mozzarella is delicious, it's probably my new favourite cheese. Having bread anywhere after having it in Paris is going to be a disappointment. The meals are amazing though! An antipasti + primi + secondi will kill you, I'm sure the waitress stared at us in disbelief when the food vanished into our tiny asian bodies. Here's a photo of pasta with lobster ziyi had, i wish i had ordered it...

(she eats like a monster.)

Withdrawl from EPFL

Just a quick update for those of you who read this, I've officially withdrawn from my exchange semester at EPFL. I feel disappointed for not having completed the experience, however I am incredibly relieved that I no longer have to deal with McGill dep of ECE<->European credit transfer system. Instead of giving a convoluted reason as to why I'm withdrawing, it's probably better if I just tell you I trust my gut, and my gut was telling me that shit was becoming too bothersome to deal with.

On the bright side I get to travel now until I come back for the summer session. I will return bearing many gifts, mostly consumables. I'm off to Rome soon too! Can't wait.

Paris, je t'aime

Alright folks, it's time for an update. I got myself out of Switzerland and into Paris yesterday. For some reason I feel like most of the comments about paris aren't very positive. So I was expecting dirty streets with dog/human poop everywhere on the sidewalks. But what a pleasant surprise! Very little human and dog poop to avoid!

My hostel for the time being is in the city core right around l'Hotel de Ville. I went for a short walk the day i arrived, and in front of HdV was some fountains, a massive carousel... along with a skating rink packed with people in it. Safe to say it left a pretty awesome impression of the city.

The whole core is absolutely beautiful, the buildings have immaculate exteriors that just scream "Paris!". It's almost as if you took the old port from Montreal, widened the streets and ctrl+v'ed it a hundred times over the city. Very picturesque. The city regulations prevent residents from hanging things outside their windows and balconies to protect the image of the city, they also regulate the maximum height of buildings. This results in a pretty uncommon cityscape where almost everything is of the same height.

As a side note, old european cities are impossible to navigate, theres no grid overlay here at all, you could take 2 rights and end up back where you were. Nothing is consistent! "sense of direction" is absolutely USELESS now. This even translates into their metro system. New yorks looks complicated but is easy to figure out, tokyo has seperate rail and metro lines and is in a FOREIGN LANGUAGE but you can figure it out easily. However, looking at paris' metro map is asking for a brain hemmorage, it feels like they just blindly tunneled wherever they wanted to go and then put a bunch of rails down and proclaimed "voila! metro."

I'm so happy to be in a city that offers real food at decent prices. Switzerland is for rich people that wear rolexes and drive R8s. It's also mostly for german's who primary diet consists of sausages of varying colours and beer. Paris is a more for me. I like food. I like paris.