Birthday dinner, Marina Bay and Avalon
A lot of birthdays in our little crew during this semester. The latest one was yesterday and we celebrated by going to Banana leaf. A spacious and welcoming family and friends restaurant with some of the best food I have had in Little India so far. Aside from the amazing lunch markets! (Can I hear you say Alo Gobi and freshly-baked Naan for a total of 2 SGD?!). We ate a lot of yummy Indian food, with stews, naan bread, meats and veggie plates, definitely ordered plenty so all of us could try everything and share a nice meal for Christian's birthday!
One food coma later we went to the bayfront at Marina Bay and enjoyed the view of the skyline by night. And then we headed out for a spontanious dance session at Avalon. Since I finally went to the uni health care and got two sets of pills subscribed for my sandfly bites from Indonesia, I am partying without alcohol these days - but I definitely did not have less fun than usual! Sure, free drinks on wednesdays (Ladies night) are fun, but they can not beat a good night out with all of my new friends from NUS! ♥
Sentosa student beach party pictures
The 3SOME Tri-university party of fall 2012 at Sentosa island really was an awesome student party. Had so much fun with my friends from university! Some of us even escaped and snuck in on another party that was held at Sentosa beach. We took a nice swim in their pool, then another swim in the ocean and later finished off with some rock climbing...which resulted in some "it-seemed-a-good-idea-at-that-time"-party bruises for some of the guys, haha. ♥
Now I'm going to start my insect bite medications (because of the sandflies in Indonesia). That means ointments, two sets of pills and no alcohol for two weeks. Fine by me, I can enjoy partying without booze as well! Here are some pictures from the night of the beach party by the way, we are all in the crowd, dancing and partying!
Bintan local life through a camera lens
While I am busy studying... Welcome back to our first getaway of this semester: Bintan in Indonesia. This time the travel photos center around local life through my camera lens, with snapshots from the market.
One day we booked a boat-ride and another we got a driver and visited the city and the markets with yummy fresh fruit (and the special smell of durian fruit and fermented coconuts) and all locals we met were very welcoming. ♥
A happier you, a happier me
I felt a little bit uneasy when I woke up, as I have been, under the surface for some time now. I have been talking to my sister who also needed some guidance and somehow we helped each other seeing things in a new perspective.
For a while now, I have been feeling that I need to get my act together. I thought it was about the bigger picture of what I want with my life. The thing is, trying to figure out a huge question like that is too much on a slow sunday, or any day really. So I decided to read and think. Among a lot of articles, such as the news about Neil Armstrong, as well as some on the finding of the Higgs boson particle, I read a blog post about being a better you, and I read a Forbes article with 20 tips for Millennials. And now I also have put some energy into thinking about my education, which is one important step. Some interesting excerpts below:
"Why Should You Become a Better You? I am assuming you are an amazing person right now. You have accomplished many great things and done a lot for others in your life. However, I feel that if we aren’t striving daily to be a better person, we begin to feel comfortable in the daily norm. Like many of you, I hate the daily norm. I love making everyday different than the last and experience something different as often as possible. With that, we should all challenge ourselves to be better so that we continue to grow and develop at whatever point we are in our lives.
What are the Benefits of Being a Better Me? By attempting to be a better you, you will be happier, more productive, and fulfill more dreams than if you chose to be stagnant. You will start to see new opportunities that once were never a reality nor a possibility. You will meet new and exciting people that may give more meaning to your life. These benefits just touch the surface of the positiveimpact of attempting to be a better you can have."
“Look deep inside your core for what makes you light up, that’s the ultimate happiness and financial success,” says Preston J. Ephraim II. “[That’s] where your true job is."
And Cornell Economics professor Robert H. Frank offers this advice to his M.B.A. students: "The most important thing is to find something you like to do, because only then will you have the passion to get good at something…And then you might have a chance to make a lot of money out of it."
The day after the beach party
What a great night we had at the Tri-University Beach Party at Sentosa Island! Now I do need a break however. I want to get myself all set up for uni and my studies next week. I have to go and print and read all of the course material for this week, that seems like a good job to do on a Sunday! But first - we are going to look for a good brunch or breakfast place in Singapore that fits our mood for the day - PANCAKES!
Beach party on Sentosa Island tonight!
Since this post was written two hours before it was published, right now I'm at an early preparty. Tonight we're going to the fall 2012 3SOME tri-university party, a huge beach party on Sentosa Island here in Singapore. Thousands of students from all three major universities in Singapore are expected to show up. Sounds good to me! :D Last time looked something like this!
Ready for the NUS charity run!
Yesterday I went to pick up my race kit on campus for the 2012 NUS charity run here in Singapore. On September 2nd it's time to run for a good cause, in 31 degrees heat and 100% humidity :D Let's go!
Travel photography on Bintan, Indonesia
Bintan ♥ I am madly in love with travel photography right now, especially when I get to go to amazing places like this beautiful tropical island in Indonesia.
Bye bye PhD course!
Sometimes you gotta admit that even if you would work your ass off, it would not be enough. Sooo...goodbye to you, Master-level-research-methods-course-that-turned-out-to-be-a-PhD-level-course!
Margarita hangover, gym & scary course
Great mexican dinner and a spontanious night out here in Singapore at the nightclub Avatar last night. I woke up with a margarita hangover and went to the gym. Best session ever: running to warm up, some muscle pumping at the machines and another run with a proper speed after that. I finished my workout session with some stretching and felt alive again!
Lunch and Skype with my dear big sister back home in Sweden afterwards made me even happier ♥ I actually have class now, the first one of my Graduate research methods course. The diagnosis test was insane, a tough one! I'm scared already. :-( The joy of getting your Masters degree...
Uni life & Viva Mexico!
Todays lecture of Ethics in PR and Communication Management went really well. Since I had done a lot of reading up front we had an interesting discussion before all of us were divided into our project groups. I'm alone with the local Singaporean students in this class and in my group, this will be fun. :) And tonight is Ladies night - we are starting with Mexican food and margaritas!
Snapshots from Bintan
We had some wonderful beach days during our weekend getaway to Bintan in Indonesia! Such a short trip from Singapore and a great trip with friends from uni. Here are some snapshots. ♥
Kenny's Birthday at Zouk
It was my friend Kenny's birthday and we celebrated at Zouk! I love that club. Especially because of the way my favourite neon party flats look in the entrance UV light. :D A fun night with good friends!
Bintan, August 16th-20th
Don't worry, be happy! We are going on a trip to the island of Bintan! ♥
Tonight is Ladies Night!
Every wednesday it is Ladies Night in the whole city of Singapore, which means no cover charge for women everywhere and free drinks, of course. During the weekend it is free entrance everywhere and drinks and shots are either very cheap or free as well. You get so spoiled - Singapore is insane with its top notch nightclubs!
My club life is very different here. I've been to Pump Room and Aquanova at Clarke Quay, Avalon at Marina Bay Sands, New Asia at Swissôtel and 1Altitude at One Raffles Place. An open air, roof top club on the 71st floor? Yup! The worlds highest is right here in the city of Singapore. You need to take two different elevators to get up there! I love my new city! ♥
"I work out!"
Everyone is insanely disciplined and doing all kinds of sports over here. Who would have thought: it got to me as well. I am going for a run and some muscle pumpin' at the gym after class! And I have signed up for the NUS charity run in the beginning of september. Yes, it's still me. Just a bit more inspired :o) We also have two lovely pools here, I love my NUS life! ♥
Dear blog readers ♥
150 new visitors today! Welcome in :) Why don't all of you sneaky bears who step in and have a look at my Singapore blog leave a comment next time, I'd be glad to read them. Drop me a line or two :o)
Real student life: My uni courses
To prove that I'm not only having a blast over here but actually am studying at uni, I can inform everyone at home that I finally got a spot on all the courses I wanted to join for my exchange semester here at NUS. Some of them required a bit of persuasion since they were not originally open to exchange students, this means I will be the only person not from Singapore in those classes. :)
I am taking courses in Managing Communication Campaigns, Communication in Culture and Health, Ethics in PR, Graduate Research Methods and a Horror Film class at the Film studies faculty! :D Here is my weekly schedule for the semester - with Fridays off, wohoo!
Singapore Sling at Raffles
To celebrate the start of uni and my first two weeks here on exchange in Singapore, the girls and I went to have a famous cocktail at a famous hotel - a Singapore Sling at the historical Raffles. As tradition wants, we also ate loads of peanuts and threw the empty peanut shells over our shoulders onto the floor, just as people always have done at Raffles hotel.
2 weeks in Singapore: Uni life begins
Now is the course add/drop period II. Today I have been here at NUS in Singapore for 2 weeks and one day. My first class out of three courses will be in a few hours and before that I have a meeting with a professor at the Sociology department which might result in a fourth course. Fingers crossed! *Update: YES, I got it! This will save an extra course at my home university next year! :o)
First day at uni is done!
Our first day of coursework at NUS is now done and that means celebrations are in order! Tonight the girls and I are heading to Raffles hotel to drink Singapore sling and throw peanut shells around. Just like they did in the good old days!
A city for dessert lovers
Singapore has got it all! Not only are they great at food and drinks here, but the city is full of perfect little treats and desserts as well. Yesterday we went to Marina Bay Sands and had both extraordinary tea-based ice cream at TWG and a fantastic chocolate cupcake at Au chocolat. ♥ Everything is so beautifully wrapped at that place, it was almost sad to actually unwrap and eat the cupcake. They also had some pretty macarons, but we are saving those for another day. I'm sure we'll be back soon :o)
Running in Singapore
Why do you always bump into everyone when you least want to? :D Seriously, I think I've never been sweating more than today ever before! Does not help that Singapore has like 100% humidity - and 31 degrees all year round. But you gotta look at the bright side, at least I did as planned and went to for a fast run at the gym today. Halfway there, see you soon NUS charity run 2012!
"Hej" from Singapore!
There's so much I wanna show and tell and write about, so keep your patience up and follow me here to see part of my new life experience while I am on exchange in Singapore. But for now - I gotta go, its almost 4 pm here (Good Morning to all of you in Europe!) and it's definitely time for some food! Gonna check out the wonderful show by the water at Marina Bay tonight. It's amazing: lights, laser, holographic images and music. Click here for a video. Happy sunday everyone! ♥
Singapore Day 2012
National day celebrations in Singapore. August 9th was the 47th Birthday of Singapore! The whole city was celebrating Singapore Day and had been for a while before, decorating the whole city with flags etc.
Later we were all in awe over the beautiful fireworks at Marina Bay. If you were not there yourself, have a look and see my photos from the National day - and night in Singapore!
Introduction week at NUS
Now I have been here for half a month already and I have taken so many pictures. Time to share some moments from my first weeks here on exchange in Singapore!
The introduction week or kick-off has taken us all around Singapore, both day and night. Went on a city tour and got to know the different areas such as Marina Bay, Chinatown and Little India.
I have enjoyed meeting new people, eating good food at hawker centres (foodcourts) both in the city and on campus, attending cultural events, seeing new sights, swimming in the sports pool on campus, visiting the Eastern beaches and Sentosa island.
And the fun does not stop after the sun has set after yet another warm and humid day. Naturally, we have had the chance to try the restaurants and the nightlife of the city as well!
One day we went to the spice markets and had lunch in the city. I had the best Indian food for like two dollars in Little India, vegetarian Alo Gobi with freshly baked naan bread! The local students are happy to introduce us to their respective cultures and my friends and I got both Mehndi (decorative Indian hand painting) and had our names written in Chinese as a memory.
I met up with a friend from Australia that I know from studying back home in Sweden. He was travelling and came to Singapore for a stopover, so we went to have amazing chili crab with another friend from uni back home! We enjoyed the sun and played volleyball at the beach on Sentosa, went shopping and explored the city on our own. I love Singapore already! ♥
Exchange in Singapore: Penthouse tour!
Welcome to my home in Singapore. I am on an exchange semester at NUS - National University of Singapore. I live in a 5-room apartment in the South tower of my student residence in Utown. Our apartment is on the top floor so we call it the Penthouse. :o) The view from my room is amazing at day and absolutely enchanting at night. Come along for a house tour! See our lawn, the kitchen, the living room, my bedroom and my view - at day and especially my 25th floor penthouse view at night! :)
