CyberGlove

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3 months

Without realizing I have already been in Europe for 3 months. Today my friend, Yihan, asked me what has living in Europe taught me or how have it changed me?

I can safely say for sure that my stay in Europe, especially Germany has made me realized the importance of punctuality. Well, I do know the importance of punctuality before I come here but its only here that I realized that I must really be early or on time if not, I'm dead!

One, the trains and buses leaves on the dot, not very often to see a late bus/train. Second, the Germans are very punctual people, very much so compared to Singaporeans. However the presence of a fixed time system for public transport has taught me to appreciate the convenience and high frequency of the Singapore's public transport. Here I could easily wait up to 20 or 30mins for missing a train/bus. The train from my hostel to TUM ME faculty only comes once every 20mins. It not the regional trains we are talking about here, but the U-bahn, Munich's subway.

I also appreciate how the Europeans value family life. On Sunday, families throng to the parks or some nice places of interest and spend time together. You will not see families hanging around shopping malls because the malls are not open on Sundays. It probably will be unthinkable for many Singaporeans to survive a Sunday with practically everything closed, supermarkets and malls, etc. I have yet to see a convenience store in Europe, no 7-11 or whatsoever. You either stay at home on Sunday, head out to one of the few restaurants and cafes opened or go to a park. I felt that it would be great if Singapore have something like that but probably not every Sunday though, that would be too much for a generation of window shoppers to take. Maybe once a month or even once a year would be great.

Cook more, ride more is what I think I would do when I return. Its fun to try out different recipes and healthier as well, though the washing dishes part is not fun at all. I would miss the opportunities I have when I can just organize an impromptu dinner at my place and within minutes everyone would arrive or having a BBQ in my backyard under the tree I only recently realized is a cherry tree (We plucked a few cherries today!). Maybe I should review this post again 3months later when I would already be back in Singapore and reflect upon what have changed and what I miss about Europe.

Summer

When I first arrived in Munich, it was snowing, the trees were bare and there wasn't much greenery in the city. Spring came and filled the city with greenery. Flowers shed their petals amid the breeze like snow. Now spring is leaving, the flowers developed into fruits as the season enters into summer. I realised that my backyard has a cherry tree when I saw the little red fruit on the tree and the ground below. You know summer is here when mosquitoes bigger than 50 sg cents appear out of nowhere. Yeap, they are THAT big here in Europe. Another hint that summer is here is when you see people sunbathing nude in the Englischer garden. Europe is always full of surprises!



Someone once said that there are 2 groups of people in the Literature world, those who have read the Lord of the Rings and those who will read it. I belong to the former with the trilogy lying in my room in Singapore now but I wished they were here with me in Munich right now.

I have heard from other people saying the LOTR is a boring book with excessive description of the environment and surroundings. Description, yes.... excessive, I don't think so. I felt that it was ok and a pretty good read for someone who hardly does. So do take a browse if you have the chance, you will be surprised.

It is said that 'The Hobbit' is coming soon on the big screen, it largely revolves around Frodo's uncle, Bilbo Baggins. It will talk about how Bilbo got the Ring from Smeagol and the most interesting part would probably be the Battle of Five Armies. It should be more interesting watching it than reading it though.

A dying Lust

These days as I speak to my fellow exchange students in Munich, it is inevitable to hear them talk about travel fatigue. Oh yes, you can get tired from travelling. Some of you reading this blog might find it hard to understand, especially if you have not spent more than a month holidaying.

If you have been keeping track of my 'Wanderlust' list on the left, I have been travelling quite a lot myself since I arrived in Europe in March. As you see more cities, been to more places of interest, its hard not to compare new ones with those you have already been to. European cities are pretty standard, there is always a city center with an administrative building (Rathaus in deutsch). Then there is always one or two churches/cathedrals that are more well-known. A few must-see museums which houses nothing but paintings and/or sculptures. The paintings get pretty boring after you been to a few museums, a large portion of the paintings always depicts the life of Jesus or important events for the Christians. At least one of the churches/cathedrals will almost always have a tall tower where people will be queuing to go up to have a panoromic view of the city. Then there is the palace where there is nice and pretty stuff to look at, e.g. Hall of mirrors (saw 3 of it already), some nice murals on the wall or bedroom and furnitures in gold, etc.

So when we travel to 10 cities, we do not generally see new things in all 10 cities. Many times its just the same old kind of places, maybe better maybe not. Thinking back, I once met 2 Malaysians on a Europe tour for 2 months, I wonder now how they can travel non-stop for 2 months.

After looking at Fussen, I am now more inclined towards discovering the nature side of Germany. Visiting mountains and forests, hiking and cycling, discovering the other side of Europe. Anyway the word Lust in german means interest.