The little prince

I read this book when I was in my teens, too young to understand the meaning behind the characters and their stories. I only remember that it left me feeling slightly lost with a sense of melancholy.

I’ve just re-read it, about 10 years after the first encounter, as a light Sunday read. And boy, what a beautiful beautiful story. It came to me at a perfect time to remind me of an earlier era when I looked at the world with a sense of wonder and curiosity, which has been slowly buried deep underneath everyday worries, you know, matters of consequence.

This book, albeit meant for children, can teach adults a great deal about life and relationships, and the important things that lend them meaning. It must have taken an enlightened soul to write this story, one that is worth re-reading from time to time throughout one’s life.

Ologies

I stumbled upon Ologies on Spotify today while looking for something to keep myself awake in office. Oligies is a podcast hosted by Alie Ward, an actress / writer / artist and a wholesome human being. Each episode looks into a particular -ology (for example, entomophagy anthropology), in which Alie interviews an expert from the field and we get to know them and their field of expertise.

I was immediately captivated from the first episode. Alie leads her interviews with a delightful sense of wonder and curiosity and humour. The conversations seem to wander and carry you with it but still contained neatly within its topic. The podcast reminds me so much of my university time, sipping wine and having long thoughtful conversations with my housemates late into the night.

Yet Ologies is so informative and full of interesting thoughts and ideas that I actually took notes. Below are some notes of (in my opinion) important things I scribbled down from the podcast.

Entomophagy Anthropology

Professor to his student who is struggling to find a specialism:

“You’re interested in everything but you don’t know what you want to do – let’s throw everything at you and see what sticks.”

Ornithology (Birds)

Find and watch a video of a horned screamer bird.

Mixology

Ratio for a good cocktail – 2 (alcohol) : 1 (sweet) : 1 (sour)

Ratio for perfect party punch – 4 (hard liquor) : 4 (soft drinks) : 1 (sweet) : 1 (sour)

There’s no such thing as 2 drinks that do not mix well. Everything goes together as long as they are balanced.

Fallingfruits.org – A world map of where you can find trees with edible fruits.

Note to self – must try Seedlip.

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I highly recommend Ologies to every curious minds out there. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

The little book of Hygge – the Danish way to live well

It’s been a long break from blogging. I recently re-read my old posts and realised how important it is to record down memories and thoughts because of my tendency to forget things, even those really worth remembering. The past year just whizzed by so fast and I was always in such a hurry that I barely had time to sit down and think about what it all meant.

Among other things that I managed to check off my list in the past year, I’m particularly pleased that I surpassed my Goodreads reading challenge (24 books, 4 more than the goal I set for myself). Sadly, I was not able to retain much from those 24 books due to the afore-mentioned forgetfulness. Thus I’m making a comeback on the blog and will try to make it a habit to record down my thoughts every time I finish a book. This is for my own reference and who knows, maybe it can grow into something more?

I’m starting the year off with an easy one: The little book of hygge – the Danish way to live well. I finished this book within 1 day and in the most “hyggelit” setting. My day was the definition of hygge:

• Cold and gloomy London winter day
• Brunch in a small cosy cafe having avocado toast and poached eggs
• Afternoon in with friends, wrapped in a thick blanket re-watching Scrubs and sipping rose tea (while reading)
• Friends made roast meat and vegetables for dinner, we ate in the living room while watching some old school Goku Super Saiyan movie
• After dinner lazing about the living room talking about Harry Potter while watching each other play Wii
• Friends made pizza for supper
• All in all a warm cosy day with good company and simple comfort food and wandering conversations

It was the perfect day and perfect setting to read about Hygge, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It is no wonder that the Danes are the happiest people in the world as hygge is so well embedded in their culture. Yet I feel it is only in Denmark that people are able to lead such a lifestyle. I can hardly imagine myself doing the same in Singapore, or anywhere else for that matter. I simply can’t afford to and can’t see myself living so slowly for such a great part of my day.

Nonetheless, this book reminded me to at least inject more hygge time into my life. As of right now, I’m thinking about chilling in cafes with friends more and going to the beach more often. I hope to have more chill days like today, more warm tea and more wandering conversations in the coming year.

And I hope you, too, will have a year full of hygge ahead!

Cheers,

Thu

York again

Last weekend I spent a day at York with a few friends. I was there October 2012, but York is a lot more beautiful in April, with sunshine, blooming flowers, and crowded little streets basked in glorious spring time.

I took 2 roles of film, more than I’ve ever done in a single day, only to realise that the first role wasn’t rolling *heart broken*. So all the photos I took at the train museum with my film camera wasn’t in there. Luckily my friends took loads of photos and I managed to capture a few with my iPhone.

Us at the train museum. My favourite photo of the day.

Here is the Castle museum. Very Universal Studios-like. The best part is when you enter the shops on these streets, the insides are also decorated consistently with the exterior, and there are even people dressed up in costumes acting as owners of the shops (none of them actually sold anything though).

 

The watch maker’s corner.

 

I really like the design on this book. So luxurious and rich. It is incredible how much attention is paid to such tiny details, and to think all of this is hand-made.

 

 

We went to the prison exhibition at the museum as well, but I didn’t manage to get any photo there because it was very dark. After those dark rooms, we reached the 60s and 70s exhibition. Lots of The Beatles and Marilyn Monroe.

Fashion during this period sure was stunning.

Then we went to a Saturday market, which was so colourful, musical and delicious! I only got this one shot before immersing in all kinds of food and cakes and sweet treats on the streets that day.

Finally, Hong Kong food for dinner.

Of course, being the girly girl that I am, I had to stop by Zara with a friend. Get this, I didn’t get any clothes or shoes (because I’m saving up for the summer), but I came across this amazing fragrance. It’s a very nice floral scent that screams spring! It was the last bottle at the store. Seems like no one really bothers to try out the Zara fragrances but I’ll be keeping an eye out for them from now on. I’ll be using this maybe just to go to school, or on occasions I don’t think fancy enough to wear my Burberry Body. It’s eau de toilette so the scent is more subtle than perfume but still very refreshing.

 

That was my weekend. How was yours? I don’t go out much these days even though it’s the holidays, because I’m investing my time in studying, so I’d love to hear about your adventures!

 

The Night Circus

When I was younger, books were my way of imagining what the world was like. I did not have the almighty Internet to show me places and stories, so I let words and imagination carry me to far-fetch places. I remember being so engrossed by Jules Verne, Mark Twain, Victor Hugo and other novelists I cannot quite recall. I tried to bring myself to places I had never been to and let myself be part of unreal events. The possibilities were never-ending.

I grew up and went places. The world is not quite what I imagined. It is uglier, prettier, happier, and sadder at the same time. I travelled and had my own stories. Reality is so overwhelming that I almost forgot the habit of travelling with my imagination. J.K. Rowling, in her Harvard Commencement speech, has discussed at length the importance of imagination, and I was reminded of it again today, by The Night Circus.

This is not really a book review. I don’t think I will ever do a book review again, as I believe everyone should have the pleasure of finding out for themselves whether a book is worth reading. One thing I know is that this book has awakened my imagination and let it stretch far into the world of impossibilities. A story so rich and magical that it left me bedazzled and at peace all at once, like waking up from a nice dream.

“Stories have changed, my dear boy,” the man in the grey suit says, his voice almost imperceptibly sad. “There are no more battles between good and evil, no monsters to slay, no maidens in need of rescue. Most maidens are perfectly capable of rescuing themselves in my experience, at least the ones worth something in any case. There are no longer simple tales with quests and beasts and happy endings. The quests lack clarity of goal or path. The beasts take different forms and are difficult to recognize for what they are. And there are never endings, happy or otherwise. Things keep going on, they overlap and blur, your story is part of your sister’s story is part of many other stories, and there is no telling where any of them may lead. Good and evil are a great deal more complex than a princess and a dragon, or a wolf and a scarlet-clad little girl. And is not the dragon the hero of his own story? Is not the wolf acting as the wolf should act? Though perhaps it is a singular wolf who goes to such lengths as the dress as a grandmother to toy with its prey.”

Erin Morgenstern – The Night Circus

 

Language crisis

I have been dealing with internship applications lately, and every time, there will always be a Language section. I often get to choose a language in which I am a “native” speaker, and another one which I am fluent at. Even though I always tick Vietnamese as my native language and English as the language I can read and write fluently, I often feel like I am not completely honest.

Technically, my choices logically fulfils the requirements, but deep down, I feel that something is not quite right.

It’s true that I qualify as a native Vietnamese speaker, but I find it rather difficult these days to hold a conversation in Vietnamese without using an English word once in a while, out of convenience and habit. In fact, 4 years in Singapore have given me a unique set of vocabulary that just cannot be translated directly into Vietnamese (or probably any other language for that matter), for example the word ‘kiasu’ (roughly means ‘afraid to lose’). I have to admit, I overuse English sometimes. Quite often, English words just comes to my head faster, making it difficult for me to talk to a non-English speaking Vietnamese. Once I had to pause 3 seconds to try and remember the equivalence for ‘museum’ in Vietnamese. 3 seconds!

The fact that I am writing this blog in English instead of Vietnamese is enough to prove that I am more comfortable expressing myself in English. This is NOT to say that my English is good, it just means that writing in English is easier for me. This has to do with the fact that I left Vietnam early and my Vietnamese writing education stopped at secondary school level (which was mostly “describe a tree/a water bottle” or at best “tell a story about someone that means a lot to you”). I literally just learned how to communicate professionally in Vietnamese during my summer internship last year. It was sad how I had to keep an English balance sheet next to me as reference in order for me to understand a Vietnamese balance sheet.

Still, it wasn’t a complete disaster, I got a hang of the terminologies after a couple of weeks and was functioning like any other Vietnamese university undergraduate. My point is, language is sometimes not as simple as native and fluent, even for basic business requirements. There are always in-betweeners (like me) not belonging in any category. I’m sure any bi-lingual person could relate.

That’s all the ranting I have got for today. Have a great first day of summer (20 March)!

Review: Burberry Brit Rhymth For Her Sample

Today was the first day of snow and also the first day the radiators in our house decided to break down. I had to wear my thick jacket inside the house, on top of a Uniqlo heat-tech top and a sweater. Needless to say, I was sad and inactive for half of the day, until this little pretty thing showed up with the mailman.

Anyone should know that I love Burberry, passionately. The style and vibe that the brand carries resonates so well with my own. I love the sharply cut clothing items, the bags, the dainty shoes. I love the “Burberry Acoustic” idea (a few of the songs have made it to the Top Played list in my iPod). Recently, I have adopted Burberry Body as my signature scent. All of this was why I was thrilled when Burberry offered to sent out Burberry Brit Rhythm samples. I honestly didn’t expect it to be this creative.

The sample came in the form of scented temporary tattoos. There are a total of three samples with instructions at the back.

And a little card with the embossed Burberry Brit Rhythm bottle. Let’s not forget to hashtag #thisisbrit.

Onto the scent itself. This is a flowery with a touch of musty fragrance, very youthful and strong. If I breathe in this scent with my eyes closed, I can almost convince myself that I am catwoman, rocking an all-leather ensemble, riding a motorbike into the night. It would be perfect for fall season!

This also further convinced me that a wrist tattoo is the most elegant kind of body damage.

Morning Yoga

I have to admit that I have commitment issues with any kind of work out and fitness plans, sometimes because my body was not reacting the way I wanted (like that time when my legs suddenly looked bulkier instead of slimmer from running), or just because I could not stick to the plan. The gym and I hence have a love-hate relationship. I do go to the gym but inconsistently, depending on how much free time I have, and when I do, I never seem to enjoy it much. The only motivation I have for going to the gym is to keep myself acceptably healthy.

A few weeks back, I started having back pains from sitting in front of my laptop for too long doing assignments. The situation worried me and that was when I found some yoga poses that are supposed to cure and prevent back pains, especially for people who do office jobs. Many of such poses are in this morning yoga routine by Sunina.

Having done yoga for a couple months back in Vietnam, I decided to practice this morning routine at home everyday. For the past week, I woke up half an hour earlier than I usually do, did my morning wash up, drank a large cup of water and practiced this routine along with a few minutes of deep breathing. After the 5th morning, my back pain stopped. Not only that but I also felt much more refreshed and awake. Most importantly, I truly enjoyed it. The routine is not just for the body, but it is also an exercise for the mind.

I build onto the routine with additional poses for each morning to keep things interesting and to focus on body parts that I feel I need strengthening. I also do toning and strengthening exercises weekly on top of this. However, the morning routine has become an essential for me, like breakfast. Ever since I started doing it, I also noticed that I drink more water everyday, which I take as a good sign. I’ll try to keep up with this routine and will update on my progress.

Italian Lunch

I had a 4 hour gap between my lectures today so I decided to go to Durham for lunch at AskItalian. It was a perfectly sunny afternoon albeit a little cold, perfect for an Italian lunch with a window-side table. The restaurant wasn’t too crowded, quiet enough for a nice private lunch but still cozy with the low humbles and hustles of the other diners.

 

The starter was garlic bread with cheese, so crispy and perfectly cooked, unarguably the best I’ve had.

 

 

The main course was Terrina Frutti Di Mare, which was as beautiful as it sounds. The dish consists of a selection of sea food (mussels, prawns, squid, clams and sea bass) with potatoes in tomato and white wine sauce, served with bread. The soup was delicious and went so well with the sea food. I could not have enough of it!

 

After the perfect lunch I came back for lecture and thus concluded another Friday.

Cheers to the weekend!

Year of the Horse

Lunar New Year is the “real” new year for me. This year is not quite the festive Lunar New Year that I used to have in Vietnam or Singapore, since the Brits don’t celebrate it, nor are they aware of such occasion. It’s the last day of the year and I had 4 consecutive hours of lecture and seminars. Tomorrow, the first day of the New Year, I’ll be attending lectures until 5pm.

Being far away from home in this occasion is one thing, being away from home in a Western country during Lunar New Year is a whole new level of depressing. Nonetheless, the situation forces me to create festivity for myself. Even though I cannot physically be with my family and friends, they’ve been keeping me busy on my phone and on Skype. So I don’t have any “banh chung” this year, never mind, there’ll be a big pot of caramelised pork with eggs (thit kho trung) through out the new year week in my house. No colourful decorations or flowers around to create the festive spirit, that’s okay because I’ll be listening to those annoying New Year songs!

It just happens that my birthday coincides with New Year’s Day, all the more reason to celebrate.

Here’s wishing you a very happy new year, the year of the Horse. May this year be filled with health, happiness and good luck for everyone!