this'll prob be depressing. but ah well. it was true.

Sweden blog.

Ok so I’m in the plane. The lady next to me doesn’t exactly have nice smelling feet. Thank goodness for travel sized Romance for Men by Ralph Lauren. Don’t I sound like a bimbo?! Haha. Anyway, The trip to Bangkok was uneventful. The Bangkok DFS is open at midnight there! Amazing. But Bought things also, because Had US dollar. Not that I can actually carry any more stuff. Urgh, just 2 bags is bad enough. I hope the train ride to malmo is uneventful.

Anyway, big thanks to En Hui, Ani and Simmy from hall for coming down. Thanks for the flowers and chocolate. I’ll eat the chocolate when lonely at night… and missing u guys.  the endorphins should help. I’ve been getting friendly smiles when pple see the flowers. Some knowing look that I don’t really understand.  thanks for the big effort to get them en hui! Having to hide them from ur customers and all.

Thanks Gill, Reuben, Pri and Janir for coming down too!  It’s been so long since I’ve seen Janir and Gill. And to imagine, u fly all the way from Liverpool (or was it Bath) and hang out in Singapore for at least 2 weeks no? And I see u the day I leave! But better late than never.

 chi. Of course I must wave hi to aunty pat and uncle henry for coming too! (for my friends who don’t know them – Aunty Pat used to be the children’s pastor for the service I help out at. I just love the kids there.  cranky, and so sweet! This one girl who’s usually very quiet calls me all of a sudden and asks if she can write to me in Sweden. Of course she can! I love snail mail.)

Oh, they’re showing friends on the big screen. Laters!

Turbulence Turbulence

19/8/05
In Lund
In my room now. B113. Unfoprtunately, I don’t like the fact that I’m staying on the first floor. Safety camp. People practically can climb into my room if I leave the windows open. Want to move to E5 sth. So that it’s safer, AND I’ll live on the same floor as a Spanish girl I’ve just gotten to know.

You know how people always tell u to go out and meet Swedish people instead of exchange students when they go on these programmes? Well, that’s pretty tough, considering that in the first few days you have almost nothing in common with the Swedes, and the exchange students have so many similair things to relate to – like getting lost, how freaking far away we are from the main uni building, how we desperately need to buy a second hand bike. Argh. There are really a lot of things.

My common kitchen is in a slum like state My corridor head promises that we’ll do a major clean up when everyone gets here. Ah. Ok. But I still hope to move to e5ish.

Honestly, it’s pretty scary being an exchange student – in the midst of a thousand other ones! Yes, there are 1000 odd exchange students. It’s insanity. Not that I don’t like clubbing, but it seems like the way to go here is – to club a hell lot. But that Spanish girl I’ve met doesn’t drink so seems ok so far. Need to meet new people!

Anyway, it’s strange being Asian in a Nordic community. People do look at you differently. And take a longer time to get warmed up.

I miss you guys like crazy. I woke up at 630am thinking, oh it’s noon time there, I wonder what my mum is doing now..friends are probably having lunch in nus. Oh I want that familiarity too.

Oh great! Forgot to bring my hairdryer! Well done. Got to go get clean. Had a jog this morning (amazing eh.)

19th Aug

Honestly, if I had a choice now, and if it weren’t so terrible pitiful, I’d jump on a plane and head home. There’s nothing like the familiarity. And there aren’t enough people staying in my hall right now. And this’ll be rich material for all u peps who want to emotionally blackmail me. I almost cried in the international office because I got a call from my granny. And I’m almost in tears now because I’m writing this. I miss my family so much. I didn’t know that this was possible. So it appears that I’m capable of such emotions without getting overtly angry.

But! There have been good things happening. Got a second hand bike for 125 sing odd. Which is pretty cheap considering that some second hand company was selling terribly old bikes for 700 kronors! (I got mine for 500)Prob will sell it before I leave, maybe to exchange students from Singapore who’ll come to lund. Also have got a phone number! 0730747051.

Shall try to skype with my parents on campus tmr. Internet will be up in a week earliest. So slow! Meeting my mentor group for.. I have no idea what! Tmr at central station.

Attempted dinner tonight. Pretty decent lah. Totally lacking in protein though. Need to find a place that sells fresh meat.

I’m so tired. Feel like sleeping right now. Like now now now. But I need to wash plates. Argh.

Haha but check this out!

Yes! I’m in the news! It’s the second largest newspaper in Sweden (I think) and the biggest one in the south of Sweden. Many thanks to en hui for the lovely flowers! That’s what drew the reporter and this funky photographer’s attention.  I’m so pleased lah! I went to meet my coordinator to ask her some stuff when she whipped out the newspaper and said, “Isn’t this you?”

Haha.. and met another exchange student from my block today!  excellent! Fumi! Japanese chick. I bet she’s lonely too. Should go and visit her for a short while later. 

20th August.
Can I go out in public today? I can’t stop crying. My dad messages me some time during the night and I read the msg this morning. It was such a simple message but my heart is all cracked up. Who crys to “how are u girl?” at 630 in the morninh?! But I miss my mfamily so much, I miss them more than my friends. Which I found surprising considering the amount of time I spent with my friends before coming here. When he called, I couldn’t stop crying. I’m desperately trying to fix my eyes on chores to do like getting a bank account and all. But it’s so hard.

In a way, I’m counting the days till I go home. No one told me this would be so hard. I miss having people to freely hug everyday. I’m crying and hyperventilating at the same time. Everytime I think or write the word “miss” I feel down right awful.

So here I am, slightly undernourished, with no one to run to. I wish tat there was someone here who cared about me. O poor me. I make it sound funny but it’s not.

I don’t want to club, or drink myself silly. Can’t people open up in other ways?

I’ll be so nice to exchange students when they go to Singapore in sem 2. All u nus peps – be nice to them ya. It’s so lonely for them.