T&T : UWI - Splash!

When someone asks me why I chose to come to Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) to do my elective, my answer will be : The Carnival.

If you asked me how I found out about the carnival, the answer is: I was randomly searching Carribean countries and stumbled across this 'Carnival' that's apparently T&T's biggest celebration every year.

So I arrived on a rainy Sunday night to Port of Spain International Airport.

If you have lived a month in silence, which is what I did in New York (well not quite, in fact not at all, but I went there alone) you will understand the joy of meeting a familiar face where you can start yabbering away every second instead of spending silent nights facing your laptop with no internet.

Yes, I was pretty glad to finally see Margaret.

What followed was discovering that we were suppose to share a room, at the back of our landlady's house, with a tiny kitchen, tiny toilet complete with a tiny dog called Sparky.

After going through the process of registration at the hospital, skipping through all the boring details of settling in, we finally looked into the Carnival celebrations that were already going on full swing.

Fetes.
Fete - a French word that means festival or holiday that has passed on to the English language to be used as a label meaning certain events.

First we looked up the different fetes on the carnival website.

Now one piece of advice.
If you were to come like us to T&T and expect to go to a fete, THAT would be a bit of a problem. Not only have you got to know where to purchase tickets (most tickets are purchased from people that you have to call up), you must also know where the venue is AND how to get there.

Not having a car obviously posed as a problem, and not knowing what fete to go for... an even bigger issue.

Thank goodness for here is where our newly befriended housemate steps in.

Born and raised in T&T, she is well versed in fete-ing.

Oh yeah.

So, she suggests we go with her to a Thursday night fete : UWI (University of West Indies) - Splash! and managed to get cheaper tickets for us (TT 160 compared to 240) plus kindly arranging transport with her friend (that drives at 180 km/hour).


Upon arrival at the venue, we were greeted with crowds of people, scores of cars, and TONNES of security.

To enter, all bags were searched and people scanned with a metal detector. Just like entering the departure hall in the airport.
Thank goodness I decided to leave my bazooka at home.

Then what met my eyes when I entered was an open field with a huge dome shaped stage at the end adorned with house-like speakers at the sides.



Boom ... Boom... BOOM...

I actually felt my sternum and ribs vibrating to the beat. I was pretty sure if I was another 50 years older, my heart myocardium would have vibrated along too, I'll get an arrythmia, throw off a clot, block my anterior cerebral artery and probably die from a stroke. If a heart attack doesn't happen first. That is why old people do not go for fetes.

What the area offered were bars - actually make shift tables with bottles of alcohol on them, food stalls and freebies stalls where you can get Lucozade and tattoos for nothing.

No points for guessing where we headed first.


Covered with our respective tattoos and also officially the spokesperson for Lucozade, we headed out into the crowd, waiting for the concert to start.


Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Machel Montano stepped out on stage.



Machel - who?!

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Wikipedia yourself.

So he appears decked in a tight red suit and all, bursting into his lastest soca hit Antz. Yes, the music the people here jive - sorry, wine - to is the genre Soca.

Machel and another soca singer

Within the 1 week I am here, I can almost memorise the soca songs: Antz by Machel Montano, Bacchanal by Destra Garcia and Tusty by Blaxx. That is because they play the same song over and over again on the radio and over and over again on the TV. Sort of like Hitz.fm back home no?

Mr. Montano appears, struts all his stuff and the crowd goes wild. Apparently, he is T&T's biggest star, and also, according to my local friend, the world's most famous. He performed for a good 1-2 hours and yes, the songs were catchy and his vocals and music was great, but having never heard this type of music before, I found them enjoyable, but not able to fully immerse myself in the pounding beat.

So I try to imagine that MY biggest star of all time: Jay Chou - up on stage.


Singing his songs that I know so well and jumping to his beats that are so familiar.

Fine.

Siti Nurhaliza also can.

Halfway through it rained, but the party continued

After Machel, a whole lot of other stars came out, including Destra Garcia and Chinee, the winner of Synergy TV - a reality Soca singing competition a la American Idol style.

Why Chinee? Because they pronounce Chinese as Chinee - without the 'ese' at the back.

Dressed as a supposedly gaming character

The music and beat went on and on and on and on and on and on up until 5.30 in the morning when we finally decided to leave.

The drive back where we stopped to buy Doubles for breakfast

11.30pm til 5.30am. What in our dear heaven's name made me stay all those hours listening to music I do not know and not having ingested even a drop of alcohol?

One thing.

The wining- grinding.

Watching ok, not doing.

Girls in short SHORT shorts, tight as a stocking and boobs bigger than my head, wining away to the music. Men all young and old, short and tall, thin and fat, handsome and ugly... wining away to the beat.

Let's just sum it up, the way I view it.

A huge orgy with clothes on.

Even the singers themselves, shows the crowd how the shake your booty.

Oh yeah...

It's their way of dancing, it's their way of partying, it's their way of fete-ing, wine they did while I just stared the night away.

While imagining that the singer up there is Jay Chou.



And Jay Chou wining grinding.

No No..

NO.

Stockholm

After Oslo, we took a 30pound bus ride to Stockholm.

Sweden, the home of H&M.

Sorry, told you I am a shopaholic.

The whole problem is, this trip happened so long ago, I cannot in my life remember what are the places I went to even after looking at the pictures.

That is why one should really write about their trips AS SOON AS THEY RETURN but for someone as important and busy as me, that is always not really possible.

Which leads me to the fact that yes, I have still not finished my Madrid trip yet. And that trip was way back in October 2008.

But oh well, Stockholm it is.

Much, much prettier than Oslo, we arrived in Stockholm's bus station on the fair day of December 22 2008 at 6am.

As our hostel only allow check in at 9am, we sat and shared one cup of coffee between 7 people at the cafe in the station.
Yes, Malaysians are cheap.

The first day was spent exploring the Old Town, where, quoting Mr Darren Ting directly : "First time in my life I do not know what I am looking at. Passed by important landmarks also dono that that is the significant building."

Why?

Because, we had NO GUIDEBOOK!

You see the importance of a guidebook?


We spent the whole day exploring the cobblestoned streets of the city, entertaining each other with silly antics.


Yes, kissing a statue starts to be fun after awhile.


The next day was spent looking for the famed Vasa Museum that houses the world's only surviving 17th century ship. The pictures in books and websites spoke of wonder beyond imagination, the fine carpentry, magnificent oak chosen, the sail poles that still stand proud...

Our mind was filled with wondrous images as we made our way there on the 23rd of Dec only to find upon arrival that the museum is shut and reopens on Boxing Day.

Right.

Open on Boxing day but shut on the 23rd which is a....
er... not significant day at all in this Christmas period!?!?!

Our only consolation outside the museum

The next day saw us doing something more useful - going to Drottningholm Palace, famed for its beautiful lawns and resplendent gardens which...

we did not see.

Because...

Don't want to pay to go in.

-_-"'

Never mind, still can take pictures from outside.

Skipping through the days and other non significant events (mostly ambling down different streets and generally getting lost), the highlight of Stockholm is ------







*****DRUMROLL******







The ICE BAR.



180kroners to enter (18pounds), we get a blue-silvery cape that made us look extremely futuristic and includes an Absolut Vodka drink served in a cup carved out of ice.
Or moulded out of ice.


Everything in the ice bar is made out of ice,

the bar:

the chandelier:

the throne:


the tables:

You can stay there as long as you want, the only downside is that the place is uber small. Small. It can probably hold at most 20 obese humans and that is about it.

Absolut Vodka Ice Bars are also found in a lot of other cities, so maybe you don't have to go into it when you come to Stockholm, but hey, where's a better place to visit than the country of its origin?

I rest my case.

Belem Egg Tarts

3 months after I returned from Portugal...


Once again, I get to savour man's decadent creation...

Thank you!!!

Oslo

You know, there are so many places I have been and want to write about.
Oslo, I went back in December before Christmas, and really did not have any time to talk about it. In fact, my blog entry regarding my trip to Madrid is still halfway through construction, but as I am always 三分鈡热度, I have yet to finish it.

This trip was the brainchild of none other but 2 very ambitious medical students in Edinburgh. After a day of researching options (obviously not done by me), we set the dates, 兵分两路 : booked the tickets/hostels etc and found all the potential playmakers to make this trip a worthwhile one.

Arrived at Oslo Torp airport, 110km away from the city centre. Bus fare was NOK180 one way, NOK300 return. Although the EasyJet flight was mega cheap, the fare to the city was abominable. We stayed at Sentrum Pensjonat, this hostel that had like 7 beds crammed into one room, arranged in a circle. It was pretty comfy when the 9 of us squeezed together to watch the Bourne Ultimatum movie chosen from a library of DVDs available, most obviously boasting 'Petaling Street'. And to everyone's expectations, it decided to jam midway through the movie. In fact, I would say Petaling Street's DVDs are probably of much better quality.

However, to my utmost chagrin, I emerged 3 days later from Sentrum Pensjonat with 4 damned bites that after much evaluation and internet research - I concluded to be BED BUGS.


ICKY DASTARDLY CREEPY CRAWLIES PLANTING THEIR FORSAKEN FANGS INTO MY BEAUTIFUL SKIN?!?!??

and have I told you of the ITCH it gave? I felt that I was scratching off all my epidermis layers!
I was so paranoid when I got home that I immediately changed all my bed sheets and soaked all my clothes in hot boiling water.

So, if you ever want to go to Oslo, Sentrum Pensjonat is NOT the place to be. I am only so grateful that those insects that has got NO USE AT ALL IN LIFE (even MORE USELESS that cockroaches - cockroaches can be seen and stamped on hence wiping out their pathetic, inadequate and utterly miserable existence) did not decide that they needed to tour the world by hopping onto my clothes or baggage and travel all the way back with me to Edinburgh.

Yes, I am bed bugs free okay. Imagine my disgust when I finally came to the painful conclusion that it was puke-able bed bugs that was the cause of my excess histamine release (I was amd still am trying to self deny that I had slept with the damned creatures).

Well, bed bugs are just a passing thought.

Let's get back to Oslo Oslo Oslo.

Oslo is a city that is just.....





A







City.


With the high streets and a small Christmas Market and a skating rink, I would have to say Oslo itself fell way below my standards of stereotypical European cities. Besides Berlin that I have stamped to remain at the bottom of 'The Rachel Hung Guide to Beautiful European Cities', Oslo might actually come to a close 2nd last.

We trekked up to the famous Vigeland Park to see the the sculptures and the centre piece monolith that is constructed of 121 human figures all towering towards heaven.
Beautiful park? Yes.
And so alike the other 10000 parks across the continent.




The park was also filled with human sculptures of differing actions and facial expressions that served as an unending source of entertainment for the more adventurous of the group.

Not quite what the sculpture is trying to depict

We also took a several tube rides to the Viking Museum but after much debate, the powers to be decided not to go in.
#$%^&*!!! Go so far d still don't wanna go in?!

So just take picture from outside the ticket counter lorh...

But fine, since it costs a fair bit and also I am not a very museum-y person, I adhere to what the general population decides.

Instead, we entered the Munch Museum for NOK 40. Looking for the famous "Scream" painting, we were very much annoyed when they told us after paying and entering (want to ask for refund also cannot), that the world famous painting was under restoration or it was travelling or something to the same effect, the same conclusion prevails... IT IS NOT THERE.


So, we decided that we will paint our own picture.

Hm, if only Edvard Munch drew a picture of us...

The last place worth mentioning in Oslo is the Nobel Peace Museum. Educational and also fun, we spent more hours that we expected in this building.


Besides running highly interesting and informative documentaries regarding how the Peace Prize came about, we also had the chance to write Peace messages and string our own Peace Bracelets.


I was able to hold Peace about as long as the evening stretched. When night time ensued, my bracelet had disappeared, Peace being lost in the depths of modern human civilization that is shrouded with distrust and disharmony.

Besides visiting the required places like the palace and places that are not even worth mentioning, our 3 day stint at Oslo ended.

SAD RIGHT.

I heard that Bergen is much nicer. So if you plan a trip to Oslo in the future, please include Bergen and the Flam Railway that gives magnificent views of the fjords. The Flam Railway-Bergen thing requires at minimum 3 days to go to and yes, I know because I tried buying tickets to the Flam Railway for one a day trip and was told that it costs about NOK 1300 per person and also we will reach Flam at 3.30pm and have to leave at 5.30pm to catch the last train back to Oslo.

Seems like buying the Flam Railway tickets way ahead and doing much better planning is what is required of visiting the famous fjords of Norway.

Which is what I should have done instead of spending all these time in Oslo.

Well, next time my dear, there is always a next time.

Bring It On NYC!

Mt Sinai is on Fire

The sirens are going outside, mixed with the mumble of the subway as I sit on the 2nd step in Stairway A of the 10th Floor.

Yes Mt Sinai IS on fire.


Update: 22/01/09

Feedback

This feedback was not for me, but a fellow Malaysian.

Background info: we write essays ever so often about useless stuff that takes even too long to explain here. In short, it is all the 'humanity' side of medicine that consultants nowadays seem to lack, hence medical schools across the UK has decided that their students should really receive proper teaching (in the form of writing crappy essays) of things connected to medicine but not, medicine.

I know that didn't make sense.

Anyway.


Also, just you know, all papers are anonymous so the marker does not know who it belongs to, and they are all marked by doctors.

The comments said:

"Thoughtful and original approach - good. Some language problems and unusual use of language suggesting that English (or 'British English') is not writer's first language. I had not met the word 'anhedonia' before, but found it in an old medical dictionary (and had worked out from the Greek, what it means). Subheadings to break up text could be useful."


Ok.

If you are involved in medicine in any way, and have done psychiatry, not knowing the word 'anhedonia' is as bad as not knowing what 'myocardial infarction' stands for.

If you are not of the medicine-y people, please Google it.
Which leads us on to the markers comment that he had to find the word in an OLD MEDICAL DICTIONARY.

Firstly, what's wrong with Googling?
Secondly, OLD medical dictionary means that that word has been around for a - bingo! LONG time.
Thirdly, what's wrong with Googling?
Fourthly, aren't you a doctor? (this has lead me to believe that the marker might not actually be a medical doctor. Maybe just the PHD type, which I find confusing because being a doctor in philosophy doesn't make you a doctor that can cure diseases, but they are both - doctors. I think some law should be implemented on the term 'doctor' and its uses.)
Fifthly, what's wrong with Googling?
Sixthly, what's wrong with Goo- , ok I think we all agree how convenient Google is nowadays.

I also do not know what to make up of the comment that 'British English' is not the writer's first language. Er, sure it's not. But the best part is, some ang mor also get the comment from markers that their English is not their first language when in reality, most ang mor's can only speak.. let's see... English.

I suppose at the end of the day and from the point of a student, receiving some form of feedback is better than receiving no feedback although the feedback received would not quite help me improve in my... er, English.

The Male and Female Brain

I was browsing through Google Images trying to look for a diagram of the brain lobes because I just cannot remember where the parietal, occipital or temporal lobes are. (I remember where the frontal lobes are, thank you very much and at least I still remember what the name of the other lobes are despite not knowing their exact location.)

Due to my zealous enthusiasm, I clicked on the first thumbnail image that had the most words on it and was rewarded with another form of education altogether.

from: http://www.pagetutor.com

They even have the version of the XX one:

from: http://www.pagetutor.com

How accurate is that?!
Lol.

Portugal - Spain

Darren Ting. Margaret Lee. Rachel Hung.

Off to the country of Portugal and Spain.

1st day: Edinburgh-Madrid-Lisbon.

Don't ask the obvious question why. It is way cheaper travelling through Madrid to get to Lisbon thank Edinburgh TO Lisbon.

First of all, I have to, have to, have to rave about the hostel we stayed in.

Living Lounge Hostel Lisbon

The best hostel I have stayed in since I came to Europe.

It has a private video room with an array of films that you can watch, a bar, an old style kitchen with long wooden tables (very Harry Potter-ish) and it's bedrooms are ALL themed.

Yes.
THEMED.


Ours is 'Blow' by Dirty Cop (no idea who on earth that is) and it is covered in multi coloured spots which looks good to lick off the wall.

Colourful baubles = happy dreams

The kitchen

The toilets are first class, almost like a 5 star hotels with its squeaky clean and smooth white porcelain sinks, matching coloured hand towels and glassed interiors.

There are 3 floors in total and each floor, I repeat, Each Floor... has a common room that is stylishly decorated.

Our floor was entitled 'Friends' - The Garden, and yes, they had faux grass, park chairs and also a bird cage.

An indoor garden - what more can you ask for??

We stayed one night and left the next morning for Sintra.

The UNESCO world heritage site - apparently it's castle is second to none.


Let's compare it to MY favourite castle of all time - the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany.


Hm...


Ok, now let's compare a postcard shot of both places...



Hmmm...

Based on the mere fact that Disney modelled his Magic Kingdom castle out of Neuschwanstein Castle, I think the latter wins.


After 3 hours of photo taking in the castle (yes, over the top I know), we headed of to the next stop which as Quinto de Reguilera.
Not expecting much, I was very much bowled over when we entered this DOTA- like map.


Full of secret passages and underground pathways, we got ourselves very much lost in its large terrain.
Fountains sprouted in the most unlikely places, we came across an unused well called the 'initiation well' that seemed to sprout out from the centre of the earth. We also stumbled upon a water basin with flowers, tendrils, and greenery covering every inch of it.


Lovely.

We stayed the night in Sintra, at this rather dodgy hostel that was above a bar called 2 Squared Hostel. It was €17 per night for a 6 bed-mix dorm. Not the cleanest nor the brightest hostel unfortunately and the toilet is eww... but alright for students who are travelling on a budget.

The next day dawned and saw us putting our organisational and planning skills to the test.

In one day, we had to visit 3 places, all accessible only by bus and also according to a very rigid timetable. It did not help with the fact that as soon as we stepped out of our hostel, the sky began to pour.

My hair! Destroyed.

The first place was to Moor Palace, a supposedly beautiful building with huge interiors, 1000 doors and rooms (or something like that, you get the idea) that seemed almost impossible to pass it up.

However, according to the timetable we had, we only have about 1 hour and 30 mins to spend in Moor Palace in order to catch our next bus which is to, Capo Da Rocha, the most Western point of the Europe continent. If we missed that bus, we can wave bye bye to Capo Da Rocha and also our final destination Cais Cais. In fact, we will have to start devising another way to get back to Lisbon as Moor Palace is right in the middle of nowhere.


Made it to Moor Palace we did, and also to Capo Da Rocha with the one and only bus that day.

To be honest... don't come here. Ain't worth the increased adrenaline and cortisol levels.

Capo Da Rocha Explained:



After Capo Da Rocha, we took the final bus to Cais Cais which is a very popular beach during the summer months. October is no summer month and with the rain, yes, the beach was deserted.

Oh, how much we love you Edinburgh!

But we were there anyway, so please do not complain.


The final stop was Lisbon, checking back into our lovely, lovely hostel.


The next day saw us going to Belem.


City of the famous Portugese Egg Tart and also the Monument of Discoveries that symbolises Henry the Navigator and his voyage across the world. It was €1.50 for students to ride the elevator up to the top of the monument where we got a bird's eye view of the area. Imagine how happy we were with the perks we get with our student status.


Until we went to the Belem Fortress and climbed to the top.



And saw the exact same view.

For Free.

#$%^&*!!!!


€1.50 can get me 2 Portugese Egg Tarts!!! Bah.


But of course I had to get my money's worth out of the €1.50 I paid.


We got back just before sunset and wondered down the tiny streets of Alfama, getting lost in its sea of mazes.


This is another good reminder that I should never grow fatter than what I am now - God forbid, I will get stuck in one of those alleyways and die a slow and hungry death.

Castelo de Sao Jorge which is situated right in the middle of Alfama was easy enough to find- Not, but worth every bit of the effort put in. Lots of turrets and courtyards to walk into, stones and rocks of different shapes and sizes, stairs that lead to a inch-wide platform overlooking the city... in conclusion, every corner was a photo taking opportunity.

Which is exactly what we did until the light faded too much to support our photo taking frenzy.

The last day in Lisbon was spent wondering around the city at such a leisurely pace that we even had time to stop at a cafe to have tea. I can get use to this money spending, easy peasy lifestyle - pronto.

Most of our meals were eaten in restaurants, aiming for seafood and yes, seafood is abundant in Portugal.

With all my travels, I have to say, the best seafood I ever had is still in Hokkaido, at 10 times the price of other places.

Snow crab in Portugal... Mmm.. Delish:-




Snow Crab in Hokkaido... Alive and kicking...


How to fight?!??!?!