Bull-man

I think I've found Teresa's (my fitness instructor when I was in Melbourne) long lost brother.....

The story goes like this.. yesterday as usual I went to the gym for my cycling class. I've skipped the last 2 sessions, mainly because of lazyness haha. When I first arrived there, I was quite bummed cos the usual instructor (Xavier) was off and was resplaced by a guy named Andrew. Then I got more upset when a big ang moh (that's singlish for caucasian) sit on the bike in front of me (I was in the 2nd row), so I couldn't really see the instructor.

But..... once this "Andrew" guy walks in.... everything changes... he's a big bloke, and judging from his accent, he's either aussie or irish (just like Teresa). Before the class begins, he say "You guys better be prepared..... I got 2 cans of RedBull in me right now". Well, I think the RedBull really got into him, cos he grunts like a bull, sweats like a bull, and rides like a bull. Heck, he even looks like a bull haha.... just kidding.

He's GOOOOD..... one of the best instructor I've ever got.... the music rocks! Plus he really push you to give it all you have....

Too bad his class schedule doesn't fit my schedule, so in the meantime I'll just make do with Xavier haha :P

Overdue updates

Yes, I know.... guilty as charged.... I haven't been updating my blog for quite some time now.... well, actually that's because nothing exciting has happened lately, so even if I wrote something, it's just gonna be boring stuff.

I've been well, in case you're wondering. Life is pretty stable (i.e. boring) for the last few months. Work wise, it's still the same thing (the Jakarta thingy sort of died by itself.....)

Key events that has happened since my last entry:
1. My good friend Marcos came to town..... had a blast but at the same time spend quite a lot
2. Lost my camera at Ministry of Sound :(((
3. Celebrated my birthday by learning how to roller blade (not quite there yet, but not bad for 1st try)
4. Bought Harry Potter 7 on the launch day and read it in 2 days
5. Learned how to make rose origami and has been practising at the office



Lately I've come across some interesting blogs on the internet, so check them out if you need some laughter in your life.....
www.kittyhell.com --> a blog about a man's life in hello kitty hell. very entertaining but freaky at the same time
www.kennysia.com --> a malaysian blogger who hails from kuching.... very funny, especially if you know a bit of singlish/hokkian. but still enjoyable even if you don't understand hokkian. i wish my blogging skills are as good as him haha.

What else can I write here? Hmmm.....let's see....

I've also somewhat expanded my group of friends here in Singapore.... but the funny thing is sometimes everyone can be busy or have their own plan at the same time, and I'm left all alone, pathetic and miserable haha.

Apart from all that, I spend most of my time playing Final Fantasy XII on Playstation 2 hahaha..... good deal, considering the game only cost Rp5,000 (about 60 cents US$) and it last for a long time (so far I've played around 70 hours and still have a lot more to go).

All righty then, time to do some work...... yes, people... I DO work.... :P

Seoul Searching

Hey people..... here is my blog entry for my Korea trip that I took last week.... I don't think I will be writing the details here; just the highlights of the trip.

Oh, if you want to see pictures, go to http://picasaweb.google.com/stev4n.

I went to Korea with my good friend Mega.... I've known her since my uni days. We used to be classmates and were both jobless for quite some time after we graduated haha. But now she has been working for almost 5 years in Flextronics, one of the main players in the electronics manufacturing industry. Hmm... time flies really fast....

Anyways, during the whole trip we had a personal tour guide.... Jin! He's Korean, and I get to know him when I was in Beijing, 1st semester. He was the class leader, and we also became roommates during the one week travel that the school organized.
Now, I really need to write this down..... THANK YOU, JIN!! During the time we were there, you have been a perfect tour guide..... picking us up from the airport (and driving us back there), taking us to places, bargaining, taking photos, and much much more....
And he even bought us gifts (which you really shouldn't have to).

In Korea, we spent most of the time in Seoul, but we also managed to visit Busan, which is a port city, and is the 2nd largest city in Korea. However, you can really see the difference..... since almost 25% of the population live in Seoul, it is really big and more developed compared to Busan. Having said that, Busan is definitely worth visiting, especially if you like fresh seafood haha.
We also took a half day tour to DMZ (the border between South and North Korea), and it is really interesting and definitely an eye-opening experience. I didn't really know what was going on there before, but now I know much more.
In Seoul itself, we visited quite a few places.... and bought some things as well haha. The good things about Seoul: Korean food (LOVE IT!!), accessories (girls, you can go mad there....), and nice weather (well, at least it was good when I was there).
The downside: Majority of the people there are not fluent in English (thanks Jin! :), and the living standard is about twice of Singapore. I guess it's ok if you work there, but compared to Singapore, everything is about twice as expensive there. Oh, and the shopping malls are nothing compared to here (one of the few things that I love about Singapore ahahhaaha).

So now I'm back in the office (well, have been back since yesterday), and back to reality. Busy time is not here yet.... will only start to get busy after 15th... so will try to enjoy what I have while I can haha.

Decisions, decisions....

Something big is coming my way, and it’s making me crazy. Where should I begin? Hmmm…. let me start by introducing the characters. The first link in the story is Mr. Cesar Gil. He’s originally from Spain, and is a Regional Project Implementation Manager, and he sits next to me in the office. He has a Spanish friend, who is working in another department, named Xavier Morera. Xavier is a Regional Account Manager for Consumer & Retail customers. He likes to come down to our side of the building to gossip with Cesar, and sometimes we have lunch together. I was never really close to him… I mean, I’ve only talked to him probably 4 or 5 times so far.

Anyway, last Friday suddenly he called me in the morning, and said that he wanted to talk to me. I said OK, although not knowing what he wanted to talk to me about. I thought it would be something related to my work. So he came over and gave me the big news. Basically, there is a position in DHL Jakarta that needs to be urgently filled because the previous person just quit the company. What they are looking for is actually an Indonesian with a Master’s Degree who can speak Bahasa, English, and Mandarin. So, apparently, I am the perfect candidate for the job. The position is to become an Account Manager, handling one of our key customer there : Huawei Technologies (a China company that produces telecommunication stuff).

We haven’t talked about the package just yet, but even before that, now I’m confused of whether or not I should even be considering this. There are just too many factors involved, and it’s going to be a big change. First of all, it’s going to be in Jakarta. I’ve never actually lived in Jakarta before, so I don’t really know what to expect. But people keep on reminding me of the bad things: the dirtiness, the crazy traffic, the sense of insecurity…. On the other hand, it’s going to be a big career jump for me.
Then there’s also the thing about leaving Singapore. Do I just give everything up here and go? I’ve just started here! I’ve just got through my so called probation period.
I also have a feeling of betrayal to my current boss, Lily. I mean, if I go, she’s gonna have to find a replacement, and it’s not going to be easy with her being in Sydney physically. And then she would have to teach the new guy everything again (well maybe I can help her with that, but you get the point…)

So, you see now that even tough nothing’s confirmed yet, I’m already starting to panic. Aaarrrrgghhh…..

Right now I’m just going to try to forget about everything work-related and enjoy my vacation to Korea =D
Will be back next week (Jun 7), so see you guys then….

The secret formula

I've finally found the perfect formula for a bad gym experience...... yes, bad.....

**Bad music + Lousy intructor + Disappointing facility = Bad gym experience**

Today I was supposed to work out with a personal trainer because when I joined the gym they give me 2 free sessions. I don't really need them..... I mean, I'm not exactly a beginner, and most of the trainers are lousy anyway (including this one..... his name is Ramli, a big (as in muscular) malay guy..... quite old, 40+, I think).
Anyway, he texted me early in the morning saying that he can't make it today and have to reschedule to tomorrow. I'm fine with that, because anyway I'm still quite tired from Saturday's BodyCombat and yesterday's bowling session. But after work I decided to go to the gym anyway cos I don't really know what to do if I go home straight from the office.

And so I checked out the class schedule, and there is a RPM (cycling) class at 6.45pm. I didn't know who the instuctor would be.... and so the complaining begins

First of all..... the music was really really bad..... maybe some people like it, but it's just not my cup of tea..... it's a really bad remix of some good songs (Hey Baby - No Doubt, What's Going On - 4 Non Blondes, and some other songs that I don't know).

Second.... the instructor.... hmmm where should I begin? He's Indian (no offense, but I just can't get what he's saying). I don't know whether it's because of the structure of the room/building or it's just him, but somehow his voice just doesn't stand out from the music. Plus his teaching/people skills are not great (well, ok... bad). Most of the time it sounds like he's ordering the people around. Moreover he's as breathless as we are, and so most of his sentences are monosyllabic. Want more bad stuff? He has no sense of rhythm and he's not familiar with the songs, so he was always ahead by 1 beat.

Third.... the facility..... this cycling studio is not the "cosmic" (glow in the dark) kind (the ones at Melbourne and Paragon are)..... maybe it's just me, but I'm quite used to having a cycling class in the dark and not as bright as today..... so it didn't really feel like RPM class..... just cycling with really bad music.

Overall..... very bad. I'm starting to not like this branch more and more (the maind studio is just as bad, and the instructors too). I think I will go to Paragon more often, eventough it's further and they don't provide workout attire.

Too many dreams, too little time

Lately I have been feeling quite overwhelmed with things around me. There’s just too many things that I want to do but there’s just some kind of obstacles to realizing them some way or another.
First, going to the gym. As you know, I have signed up with Fitness First again and I am trying to go there regularly, but it seems that it’s quite hard to make it a reality. When I was in Australia, it was so easy because my schedule is so relaxed there…. I only had classes at night, and that’s not every night. So I’m free during the day and I can go to the gym anytime I want. Furthermore, the gym is so much closer back in Melbourne… it only took me about 15-20 minutes door to door from my place to the gym, whereas here, well it’s also about 15 minutes if I go straight from the office, but from my place it will probably take more than half an hour. Also, the timing is not quite right…. gym classes here starts at either 6.30 or 7.30 pm (compared to 5.30 or 6 in Australia, where people get off work at 5), which clashes with dinner time. 6.30 is still OK… I can eat afterwards, although I will be very hungry by then (because after the class I still need time to cool down, take a shower, change etc etc and by then it would already be 8+). But if I want to go to the 7.30 class, I’m always confused whether to eat first or not. If I eat first, I would be too full to exercise, but if I don’t eat first, well then I’d probably faint during the class. The only option is to have a snack first and then eat again afterwards. But isn’t it not good to eat too close to your bedtime? Dilemma, dilemma…. or am I just a drama king? Hmm….

Second issue…. going out and having a good time…. the obstacle here is twofold…. First, I haven’t found the people who have as much enthusiasm and party spirit as me. Second, it’s not exactly cheap….

Next issue…. I am such a shopaholic!! Oh my God, there’s just so many things that I want to buy (notice the word “want”, not “need”). Seriously, I might need help…. or a bigger paycheck hahaha.

Well, time to knock off now…. don’t worry, more complaining to come, especially when I have too much free time haha…

Stefan's newsletter

OK people, I’m back from the dead…. well, not literally, but I was very very sick for most part of last week. Fever, flu, sore throat, cough, blocked nose… the whole package. Not really sure how I got it, but I suspect it’s from one of my flatmates.

Anyway, I feel much better now, and already went out and about haha. I finally joined the gym again (Fitness First, of course) and yesterday I had my first BodyPump class again. The last one I had was back in December 2005 when I was still in Melbourne. The instructor yesterday was not half as fun as Teresa, and the sound system sucks. But I guess it’s better than nothing. Maybe I have to try other sessions at other branches until I find the good instructor haha.

Another exciting event….. last Monday me and some friends went out to see a comedy show by Kumar, Singapore’s most popular drag queen. I’ve watched his/her (?) show before a few years back (right before I left Singapore), but now he’s only performing Monday nights at Hard Rock Café. Since Tuesday was Labor Day, so I decided to gather some people and see the show.
It was a really funny show, but I think a lot of the jokes are very ‘local’, so if you have never lived in Singapore you won’t be laughing as hard as I did.

On other news…. tomorrow is shaping up to be a very busy day… I got badminton in the morning, and then apparently one of my high school friend has opened a café here in Singapore, so I will check it out with some old friends….. and then there’s a belated birthday celebration for another friend…. well, so far only the organizer is excited about it….. the other people are like “hmmm, I don’t know whether I’ll come or not, let’s just see how tomorrow”. So I got a feeling it’s not going to be a very good party.

Work-wise….. same old boring days…. just trying to get through each day. There’s this new thing coming up, called “First Choice”, and I have been automatically selected to be one of the team members.

Not really sure what I need to do in relation to this yet…. so far there’s only introduction meetings and brainstorming session, but nothing concrete yet. So, hopefully I’ll get to do more things.

"Good" Friday indeed

Hey.... it's now 4.49am in Singapore and here I am writing this blog. Why, you might asked? Well, because.... I just finished showering after I got home from clubbing. Actually, it's the 2nd night in a row that I got home around this time..... well this all happened because Lorraine is only here till Tuesday and she wanted to check out the clubbing scene in Singapore before she left, so......

Thursday - after work I went out for dinner with 2 friends at Din Tai Fung.... had the usual xiao long bao and beef brisket noodle combo. Then as planned before, I went to MoS (Ministry of Sound) at Clarke Quay later that night. There were 6 of us in total....... basically we just want to check the place out since we never been there. It was OK.... there were 4 rooms that we are aware of..... the RnB room which is very very packed, the main room where we hang out most of the time, and on the 2nd floor (they even got an escalator inside!) there were the disco/retro room and a lounge (i think the theme is house music, not really sure). So we spent most of the time in the main room, and that night the DJ was from Hed Kandi with a guest saxophonist named "The Lovely Laura". She was good.... I really enjoyed it. Then we went home at around 3 (although with someone complaining "what? it's only 3!!") --> I won't tell names haha

Today..... at first I realize that my curtain is not thick enough..... it was like "aaaaahhhh.... sunshine!!! nooooooo!!!". Then I finally managed to get out of bed at around 12, but that also only because I had to get ready to leave for church, which started at 3, but it's so freaking far, and I had to get there early because it's Good Friday. Don't have time to have lunch, so I only ate some biscuits. And the mass was sooooo long, and I got really really hungry during that. Afterwards we ate some roti prata, which is just right outside of the church. Then another friend asked me to go watch a movie, so I said OK..... we watched "Shooters", starring Mark Wahlberg. It was OK, much better than "The Number 23" which I watched a few days ago. Then after movies it's on to St. James Power Station. It's THE clubbing scene in Singapore now. It is HUGE. If you think MoS is big..... think again. This place have 9 rooms altogether (although they don't have an escalator haha). We ended up in the room called Movida... there were a band playing Latin music. They were pretty good :)

So yeah, here I am ready to go to bed now since my hair is already dry. Not sure what time I'll wake up later.......zzzzzzzzzz........

FLOOD!!!

So, funny story.... I never experienced flooding when I was in Indonesia, but it happened to me just now.... in Singapore, at a 7th floor apartment. Imagine that!

As I mention earlier, today I got home quite early because of my attachment. So when I reached home, I suddenly feel quite in the mood of cleaning the house. So I swept the floor, but (luckily) I didn't mop it.
Then at 7.50pm, just when I was about to dial in to my conference call, suddenly I felt some strange sensation on my feet.... it was wet. So when I look around, the floor was already flooded. The water came out from my flatmate's room, and the room was locked!!!

So I kinda panicked for a bit... tried to call my flatmate but she didn't answer the phone.... then I call the locksmith to come, then I have to join in the conference call.... so I joined in while trying to get as much water into the other bathroom (with no avail). After about 2 minutes, my flatmate came back, so I decided to skip the conference call tonight and deal with the crisis first.

As suspected, it was the evil bitch (literally) who did it. Leony the bitch, to be exact. The bitch that always scratch and pee on me everytime she sees me. Aaarrrrghhh!!!! I hate that bitch!!! She chew through the bathroom pipe so the water burst everywhere.

In the end, it's kinda funny coz now the apartment looked very clean.... after we mop and mop for about half an hour....
So now I'm exhausted, but American Idol is coming up.... luckily I don't have to come back to the warehouse tomorrow....

Random updates

Yes I have not been updating my blog for quite some time now….. primarily because of laziness haha. So now since I have absolutely nothing to do, here’s some updates…

Work-wise…. I have been bored to death these few days. Nothing much to do because it’s not the peak period of the system (submission deadline is every 15th of the month, so I’m only busy around 1 week after that). The only exciting thing happening was last week when I conducted a training for the Singapore users. There were around 40 people attending the session. Luckily everything went smoothly and there were nothing that I couldn’t handle. Then after that I asked my boss if I can travel around the region to conduct the training, but then she says “errm…. we don’t have any budget for that. Why don’t you just go around Singapore and familiarize yourself with the sites?”. Not really the ideal situation, but how can I say no? So here I am in one of the sites (warehouse). I’m supposed to stay here for 2 days, but I think I’ll skip tomorrow and go back to the office. It’s much much nearer and better than this site (it took me 1 hr 45 mins to go here this morning).

Oh, some exciting news related to work… the HR policies in the company has just been upgraded. Basically last year Exel was bought over by DHL, and now they become DHL Exel Supply Chain…. so they “harmonized” the HR policies. The most exciting point is that I get S$1,500 per year to be spent on dental, optical, specialist/outpatient treatment, insurance and…… gym membership! But the policy will only be effective 1st May, so I still got about 3 more weeks to get fat haha.
I also just got a new work laptop… a Dell Latitude D420…. it’s very small, compact and light, but the downside is that the screen is rather small (12” widescreen)….. maybe I just need some getting used to.

Social life-wise…. have been very active these past weeks. First of all my friend from Bandung (Christina/San2) came to Singapore to look for a job (she already find one now… prestigious company [Jones Lang La Salle], with office in the CBD, no less), and so we have been hanging out quite a lot. And then she introduced me to her friend, who brought along another friend, and the chain reaction goes on….
Also, Lorraine (my former classmate in Beijing) is here until next Tuesday, because her boyfriend is now working in Singapore for 3 months, and since she still haven’t found a job yet in HK, she decided to get the best out of the situation and come here for Easter holiday. We went out to Zouk last weekend, and planning to check out Ministry of Sound and St. James this coming long weekend. Yay! Haha..

Hmm…. what else to write? Oh yeah, accommodation-wise…. well, the last time I wrote an entry to this blog I haven’t even move in to the new place. But now I have lived there for more than a month. It’s a good place, just a tad expensive. Anyway, last time I mentioned that the other room is a Singaporean right? Well, not anymore… coz he “run away”. Long story, not really worth mentioning, so let’s just leave it at that. But the good thing is that his replacement now is a guy from the Philippines, and he is much friendlier and nicer, and around the same age with me and the china couple (the Singaporean was this 40+ weird guy who had problems with his wife, that’s why he moved here).
Anyway, this new guy’s name is Aldwin, and works in a software company. He also travels around the region quite often. And he is a self-proclaimed party boy haha. So I think we’ll become buddies in no time.
But another thing is that now San2 (not Beijing San2, but my friend that I just mentioned earlier) has found a job and she’s still staying with her friend. So she asked me if I want to find a place to share. I don’t mind as long as it’s cheaper than my current place. So we are in the process of apartment hunting now.

It’s now officially 1.25pm, which means I still have another 3 ½ hours to kill….. I think I’ll just go back around 3pm, pop into the office for a while to check email. Till next time then….

A little something extra

As some of you may have known, my job comes with a little something 'extra' on the side : conference calls. Well basically since this 'new' (and by new i mean full of bugs and imperfections) system is used by all DHL sites worldwide, so we have to keep each other updated on the issues that we found on the system. So at least once a week (and by at least once a week i mean on average 3 times a week) we have a conference call. And what better time to have it first thing in the morning when you are still bright and full of energy.......... American time. Which means.... 9 pm Singapore time. =(

And even if I dial in at 9.00, nobody's there yet. They usually comes in at 9.03 to 9.05. But me being me, I always dial in 9.00 and listen to some waiting music until somebody else comes in. It reminded me of a TV ad in Indo.... it's A-Mild cigarette ad (they're famous for their creative ad). The ad shows one native American Indian riding a horse going to war. Then when he reached the front line, facing a whole lot of cowboys, he turns around and notice that his tribesmen are not there yet. Then the ad say "Why would you be on time if everybody else isn't?".... which is exactly how I feel about the conference calls.

Another bad thing about the calls.... since we come from 3 continents of the world, everyone has their own English accent. The Americans and the Brits are still ok, but no matter how hard I concentrate, I just don't understand a thing when the Indians start speaking. No offense, but it seems that it's not only me that doesn't understand. After the mumbling stops, what happens is that it will be quiet, and then the Americans will ask questions until we all understand what the hell is going on. And the worst thing is.... the IT guys are all Indians!

OK I think enough complaining for now. Going to bed now. Ciao.

A new chapter

Starting from next week, everything will be different. Yesterday I finally found a proper place to live for at least the next 3 months. I'll be moving in tonight after work. It's a single room in a condo near the MRT line (Aljunied, for those of you who are familiar with Singapore). It's not far from my workplace.... I can take the MRT (only 3 stops away) or the bus, which is more convenient because I can go down straight in front of the office building :)

There are 3 rooms there. The master bedroom is taken by a Shanghainese girl. She has a Taiwanese boyfriend who sometimes stay there, and a cute little white dog. The other room is taken by a Singaporean man, whom I haven't met because he also haven't move in.

And this weekend my parents are gonna be coming over and bring me some of my stuff that I left in Indo. So..... finally I'll be getting my bedsheet, phone, shirts etc etc.

Next Monday will be the orientation day here in DHL. So I'll be meeting lots of new people, and hopefully some lunch partner, cos lately it's been kinda lonely during lunch hour. Well, first of all, there's not a lot of people in my office. Then most of them are travelling most of the time. Plus my boss and immediate colleague RARELY eats lunch.

So, starting next week, I feel like I'm entering a new chapter.... new job, new place, new flatmates (come to think about it, I've never lived with non-indon in Singapore). Hope it's for the better :)

All soaked up....

In the spirit of Chinese New Year, I got myself something new and red...... an umbrella! Well I got it because on Friday, right when I stepped out of the office, it started raining a little. So i took out my trusty black umbrella and started walking towards the MRT station, which takes about 5 minutes walk. But then suddenly the rain just poured like there's no tomorrow.... plus strong winds. So my umbrella became parabolic, and I got all soaked up from top to toe. Plus.... that day I was wearing my moccasins (sole-less shoes), so bye2 to that too, cos it got drowned and now it's kinda wrinkled after i dried it.

Anyways..... I've officially been 'working' for 3 days now.... enjoying it so far..... nothing much to do in the first 3 days, because I only got my official email on the 3rd day. So for the past 3 days I've only read through A LOT of materials, try to understand it and try to familiarize myself with the system. I don't want to confuse you guys with work stuff here, so I'll just leave it at that.

Oh, and today is Chinese New Year's Eve. So..... 新年快乐！恭喜发财！年年有余，万事如意！For the benefit of you who don't read chinese, it means : Happy New Year, Congratulations and Prosperity, May You Have Surplus/Abundance every year, May Every Problem be Solved!

DHL - All The Way

Yes, it's confirmed..... ladies and gentleman, say hello to the newest Operations Analyst in DHL Exel Supply Chain Asia Pacific..... ME!!!

Haha..... I have been in a very happy mood since I heard the news yesterday..... yes, yesterday was Sunday, but my boss (Lily) called me around 9.30pm and deliver the good news. She said that the 2nd interview is actually just a formality, because her superior wanted to have a chat with me. However, the big man is out of the country (again), and won't be back till after chinese new year. Since she wanted me to start ASAP, so there's no need for another interview.

I will be signing the contract tomorrow, and officially start work on Wednesday.

Oooo.... so excited... it will be a whole new experience for me.... I mean, when I was doing my Industrial Attachement, it was manufacturing environment. My last job was in a small office next to the warehouse. But now it's gonna be a corporate world, where I will be working in an actual office.... and the location could not be better.... not exactly in the CBD, but you can still consider it the business district :) The view is amazing.... you can see the City Hall area from there..... maybe the ocean too.

So now I have to rearrange my priorities.... no more looking at job advertisement, but now the no.1 prority is to find a proper place to stay. Hopefully I can get a place nearer to the office by the end of the month.

Okie then...... gonna take a shower now.

Quite an interesting 24 hours

It started yesterday.... my roommate Edward took a leave (just because he's sick of working..... imagine that!) and so we went swimming in the morning, then got back and laze around, watch DVD ("She's The Man", starring Amanda Bynes..... not too bad). Afterwards I accompany him to get some gym fashion, cos he doesn't really have any sports shorts. Then for dinner he had an idea to have dinner at Esplanade.... he said there's a decent japanese restaurant there. So I contacted some people I know that also have nothing to do (they are also looking for a job), and so in the end 4 of us went for dinner. The restaurant is called Ichiban Boshi.... not too bad, but not nearly as good as Sushi Tei. Anyway, after dinner we decided to walk from the Esplanade to the Fullerton Hotel cos the weather was good (not too hot), and the view is amazing.




--Nighttime view of Singapore CBD--


And then, when I got back, I got a call from one of my friends back in Beijing who is currently in Singapore... this time it's Joaquin Chou.... we almost became flatmates (with Laura Fernandez) last semester, but the plan was cancelled. Anyways, he's only here for a couple of days, and so we met up today. He came here with another guy named Norman (also from BLCU.... seen him before, didn't really know him), but Norman also met up with his Singaporean friend, so we split up, and it was just the 2 of us. And he wanted to see the Merlion, so I took him through the same path that I walked last night. Hahaha..... So here are some day-time shots :)



--Daytime view of Singapore CBD--

We continued to walk down the path and ended up getting some beer at Brewerkz in Clarke Quay..... it was so nice to catch up with him. Or maybe it's just me.... I don't know.... sometimes I'm amazed myself at how I can connect with different people with different background and personalities.

Another interesting story.... just now I decided to take the bus back from Orchard Rd cos I figured that the MRT would be crowded. So I was sitting in the bus, and somewhere along the road, there was a loud "BOOM".... kinda like the bus hit something. Then the bus stopped on the side of the road, the driver got out and checked out what was going on, but there was nothing and we continue the journey. But 2 stops down the road, it started to smell like burning rubber. So all the passengers got out, and left rear wheel was literally smoking.... so I decided to walk the remaining 2 stops back home.

OK then now my roommate's gonna use the internet connection, so till next time....

the countdown continues......

There's so many things that I want to write these days, but I was lazy, eventhough it's only a matter of writing down my thoughts..... this is bad..... must.... try.... harder..... resist.... the..... laziness.... haha

Anyway, first news : job-hunting. So after one week of torment and agony waiting for the result of the interview, and since I haven't heard any news by last Tuesday, I decided to write a follow up email, and it's a good thing I did. Well, when I first send the email, immediately there was a auto-reply saying that she (Lily) was on a business trip to South Africa until the 9th. So I was a bit bummed and thought that surely there had been someone who had taken the job. Then that day, my roommate Edward took a "medical leave" (notice the quote?) and so we went to Orchard Rd cos he wanted to buy a Valentine's Day present for someone he fancies (a 19 yrs old girl... can u believe him???). Anyway, since I was feeling a bit down, I bought S$11 worth of Famous Amos cookies and ice-blended coffee from Coffee Bean. But.... when I got home and check my email again, there was a reply from Lily, and she invite me for a 2nd interview with her supervisors, but I have to wait till they get back, so tentatively the interview will be on Feb 12. And so, the countdown continues..... 8 more days from now...... I am so excited about this and so I have been brushing up on my data analysis skills, just in case they ask me some technical questions.
Other than that, the guy from the recruitment agency called me again, offering me the Sales position again, and I totally bluffed him again (on the phone), saying that I would love to go to sales. But truthfully, I'm not really excited about that.... I mean, even if they offer me the job, I don't know if I will take it.

On other news..... I managed to catch up with 2 Beijing friends..... first was William.... he was here because his mom had an operation in Gleneagles Hospital. And the other one was Caroline..... we met up yesterday and hang out in a coffee shop. Gosh, I've kinda forgotten how bubbly she really is. She really made my day yesterday.



So, I'll write more later when I'm not lazy haha. Just be patient, people....

Coincidence?

Hey, just want to give a quick update about my life right now....

I've just come back from an interview.... my first interview since I started looking for a job here. The company is DHL (for those of you who doesn't know what/who DHL is...... you've got to be kidding!! Hahaha). Actually, the way I got this interview is a little too much coincidence.

As you know, I've been joining a badminton group ever since I got back here. Now, the group has a mailing list, called SaBat (Saturday Badminton). Most of the content are junk, but then one day there is this one e-mail from a "Lily Suryana". It was a job ad, looking for Operation Analyst in DHL. She is the Global Metrics Manager in DHL. After I read the e-mail, well, it can be considered to be a perfect job for me! So I did some asking around, and turns out that she's the same age as me, and she was "the no.1" student when she graduated from high school. Moreover, she is one of my friend's ex. She did play badminton with the group before (when I was in Australia, I guess), but nowadays she doesn't go play that often anymore.

So I applied for the job, eventhough she was looking for someone with a Business/Logistics degree with at least 2 years experience. Yeah, whatever. Anyhow I send the application, and suddenly last Sunday I received an e-mail from her at 7.52am, calling me for interview. So I replied, and within the hour she replied back to me.

The interview itself went well according to my opinion. We conversed in English all the way.... it didn't feel awkward at all. Her English is good with just a slight Indo accent..... no singlish accent at all. I should be hearing from her by next week.

So I was thinking to myself.... IF I didn't go to China last year, and immediately applied for a job after my Master's degree, then I'd probably end up in a different company and not interested in this job. And I only started playing badminton while I was in China, so IF I didn't go.... I'd most probably wouldn't join the badminton group, and wouldn't know about this opportunity at all!! Isn't it strange? A little bit too much coincidence??

Well anyway, fingers crossed... I really hope I can get this job...... it can be my break into the logistics industry and the beginning of my career (my last job doesn't really count as a career). Till next week.....

Bo(RED)

So, I have been here for slightly more than a week now, and what have I been doing everyday? NOTHING!! I know... it's only been a week, but I'm starting to feel the nothingness on my days and nights. Plus the weather has not been supportive at all..... it ahs been raining everyday since I came. Sometimes BIG BIG thunderstorms, sometimes it's just a drizzle, but it's still rain.

I try to keep myself busy.... sometimes I go to the library just to read some random books about engineering or management.... other times it's a novel...I finished reading "South of the Border, West of the Sun" by Haruki Murakami in 2 days. Interesting, but not as good as "Norwegian Wood".

I also have been exercising regularly..... badminton on saturdays, go to the gym 2 or 3 times a week.

Oh, one more thing..... surprisingly I have given up on TV for 1 whole week.... and I don't even download anything (well, I try, but somehow the connection is very very slow, probably because of the Taiwan earthquake OR one of my housemates is downloading something BIG). Oh I forgot to mention that until now I'm still crashing at my friend's room, because the original plan to rent a flat with my other friend failed..... long story, but now it seems that I may have to share this room till end of Feb, and then there will be this one guy who will go to Wuxi, China for 1 year, so I'll be taking his room. I really don't mind just renting a room outside by myself, but the problem is I still don't know where I'll be working, so it's best to delay this for as long as possible.

Hmm.... everything's still kinda blurry right now..... I've been sending out applications like crazy, but so far nobody called me yet, except for 1 recruitment agency that recommended me to be a Sales Engineer in an industrial HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning) company. I don't know.... I mean, it wouldn't be my first choice, but I'll come for the interview, which is supposed to be this week, but I'm still waiting for the call. "WAIT"..... that word seems to be central to my life right now. Aaaarrrgh.... can't wait to get everything settled.

One last thing..... everything is so damn expensive here compared to China!! I don't know why but money seems to just flow out really quickly, even if I'm not doing anything..... I need something flowing in.... fast!

Back in Business

Yep, finally I have arrived safely in Singapore about 3 hours ago hahaha. Business class was good..... I could get used to that hahahaha. First of all, the seat is spaciouos. How spacious? Well, let me put it this way... I have trouble reaching for the screen when I'm sitting upright wearing my seat belt. And the seat is fully adjustable to a full flat position.

At first I chose aisle seat (as always), but then when I sat down, turns out the passanger sitting beside me was carrying a 21 month child and was seated separated with her sister. So I offered the sister to swap seat with me. So in the end I got a window seat, but it was good because from NY-Frankfurt there was nobody sitting beside me. Afterwards, this 30 something business woman sat next to me and she didn't look friendly at all, so we didn't exchange a single word all journey long.

So, back to business class perks. The service was really different.... they always call everyone by their name. And the meals.... oh my God.... it was very different from economy class. Meals doesn't come in one tray, instead they use real china (ceramics), and every meal is like a 3/4 course meal, starting with salad and bread, main course, dessert (ice cream), fruit, drinks.....
Another difference is the headpohones.... way much better. This one are the huge ones, and with noise cancelling technology, so once you plug it in, it is very quiet. And they also provide better blankets and in-flight socks.

During the flight, I managed to watch quite a few things.... 2 episodes of Project Runway...... very good..... Heidi Klum really sets the bar for maternity clothing hahaha. I also watch a very funny episode of Will and Grace..... 2 episodes of Spongebob Squarepants, and a movie called "Step Up". It's basically a dance movie, kinda like Save The Last Dance and Center Stage. It was good.... nobody famous in it, but enjoyable, although some parts were completely irrelevant and can be cut. The music was good too..... very R&B.... maybe I'll download it later :)

Now I am quite sleepy but I hae to make it through today otherwise I'll never adjust to the time difference. Zzzzzz......

Oops... I did it again!

(this is the 2nd part of a 2 part blog. it would be more interesting if you read the 1st part first haha)

When I was checking in to my flight, the guy in the counter explained to me that the situation is that the flight is overbooked and they were looking for 12 people to volunteer to stay back for 1 more day. And I think to myself.... well, I'm not in a hurry to go back... 1 more day of NY? Why not?
And... the most exciting thing is the perks that I get.... firstly, of course, they arranged accomodation for me at the Marriott airport hotel, with allowances for 3 meals :) Then I had some decisions to make.

First, I can either get a US$400 in cash or US$600 in Singapore Airlines voucher, which can be used for my next SIA purchase, valid for 1 year. Since I consider myself to travel quite a lot, I decided to get the voucher.

Second, for today's flight, I can either be on the same flight from Newark-Singapore non stop on economy class, and they will give me a voucher to upgrade my next flight to Raffless (business) class. Or the other choice is to fly from JFK, transitting in Frankfurt, then to Singapore, and use that upgrade voucher. I choose the latter, so here I am.... about to fly business class from New York-Frankfurt-Singapore. Yay!!!

So this morning I wake up quite late, ordered a full breakfast (2 eggs, hashbrown, bacon, muffin, juice, and tea) on room service, and just laze around till about 9. Then I decided to go to Manhattan (again.... I mean, what else is there to do?). But just as I was about to leave, guess what's on TV? It's "The Producers", the movie, and it just started. What a coincidence. So I watched it for a bit. But I really think that the Broadway musical is much better than the movie. There were a lot of big name stars in the movie (Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick as the 2 main characters, Roger Bart as the Carmengia (the gay character), Uma Thurman as Ulla, and... Will Ferrel as the German guy. They are big movie stars, all right, but they don't sing and dance as well as the broadway stars. So I didn't watch until the very end.

Then.... back on the shuttle bus to Manhattan. Once I arrive there, I didn't really know what to do, so I decided to go to Macy's once again since I can get a 11% discount. Oh yeah, great tip : if you ever plan on buying anything on any Macy's in the US, go to the customer service counter and you can get a "international savings card", 11% discount on top of any discount for everything except cosmetics, perfume and jewellery.
But when I was there I guess I have reached my shopping limit. I didn't really have any desire to browse and try things on. So I just walked around aimlessly in Manhattan, enjoying the environment. Then I went back to the hotel, took a nap, and then jumped on the minivan that picked me up to go to JFK airport.

The journey to JFK was quite a long one.... 1 hour plus. On the way here I get to see a part of NY that I've never seen..... Brooklyn. It was very different from Manhattan.... Brooklyn is more.... dark.... and dirty. It was just like in the movies. No wonder they say that Sex and The City didn't portray New York very well... it's all in Manhattan!

Then now I am in the lounge.... very nice lounge indeed. They have everything here.... cookies, chips, fruits, real hot food (fish, meatball, potatoes), and drinks..... Evian, fruit juices, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and alcohol. Yes, alcohol... beer, wines, and spirits. Uncle would be very happy here hahaha.

OK then, I guess that is long enough. I'll tell you all about business class experience later. I'm gonna grab some bananas now haha.