To Hogwarts we went!

The day started with me panicking because after sleeping for "5 more minutes" after my 7am alarm went off, I woke up at 7:30 instead and had to get ready in 15 mins as the bus was coming to pick us up then! But all was good and I managed to make it in time:) 

Saturday was the day of exploring! We went to Alnwick Castle where they filmed the first 2 films of Harry Potter!! We had a little film tour of the area and the guide was telling us which specific scene was filmed at which area and it just made me want to watch the film again and go " OMG I WAS JUST THERE!!" Downton Abbey was filmed here as well along with a couple other films but I think Harry Potter is still the coolest one of them all 

This arch was the entrance to Hogwarts!! 

We had a broomstick flying lesson but it started to rain 5 mins into the lesson so we all had to stay indoors :( But we managed to take a couple of shots with the brooms when the rain stopped!

The castle was absolutely stunning :')

 

It was freezing at Alnwick Castle as it was raining and slightly windy! and I keep forgetting that I do own a pair of gloves which is so bad because my fingers were literally numb :( But despite the cold, we still had a great time and I would say it's definitely worth a visit!

We then had a 1hr bus ride to Newcastle! I loved the atmosphere here, it feels more like London than Edinburgh does! and what was great was that THE SUN WAS OUT!! Though it was still freezing at least the sun helped a little 

The architecture here is so beautiful! 

We went to Chinatown for lunch!! I was so incredibly happy to finally have some white fluffy Chinese rice unlike the thin rice served in the JMCC (cafeteria in pollocks)

Me, Zen, Beverly, Tessa!

After going back to the bus at 4:45pm, we had a long 1.5 hour bus ride back to Edinburgh. I love long bus rides when you can just chill, listen to music, look out the window, sleep and think about life hahah After getting a neck ache from my head continuously bobbing and rolling around as I was sleeping, I decided to just look out the window and enjoy the scenery and I managed to catch the sunset! 

After getting back to Pollocks, we all left for Kampong Ali - a Malaysian and Singaporean restaurant for Beverly's birthday dinner! ASIAN FOOD AGAIN and I had another bowl of fluffy white rice!! hehe I was soooo happy :):) even though I spent quite a bit of money eating out that day it was all worth it! 

This was the best Saturday I've had here yet :') 

The past week

FaceTimed Natalie and Kim!! I was holding up my phone and getting to classes looking like an idiot laughing and talking to a screen but I didn't care!! 

I also decorated my board more! I really want to get fairy lights but I don't know what's counted as cheap/expensive so I think I'll just ask around first before making a purchase!

So after the gym on Wednesday, I headed down to Sainsbury's and got some food - including glorious Avocados! They were quite expensive as they were a pound each but I couldn't resist! They were so delicious :))))

Love the architecture here 

" Architecture is life, Life is architecture " - Jasmine Hussain

Spot the bird

More fall photos!! I absolutely love the transition into fall with all the leaves changing colour! But at the same time, the hours of daylight are significantly getting shorter which is rather depressing :( I woke up at 7:15am and it looked like it was 5am in the morning as it was pitch black!! I was so confused and was even tempted to text my friend just to check if it was really 7 in the morning

Skyped jie too!! :)) I wish I could just teleport back home !! 

Before!

There was a Colour Bomb party at Silk that night and basically it had the same concept as the colour run! But what sucked was that we had to go outside the club to get the powder paint ?? So everyone was in a t-shirt and shivering in the 9 degrees cold weather, queueing up (more like in a huge mob) to get sprayed with paint!

After!

I managed to get some colour on me and you can't really see but Niamh behind me was spotless hahahahah

I really missed painting and had such strong feels to paint something on a Saturday morning and so I did! I felt so satisfied and happy after!! 

Aren't these flowers pretty?? They are compound flowers! During our practical sessions for the biology course, we had field trips to the Botanic Gardens twice! It was great finally getting to do something outside of the classroom and not having to get a headache or getting shocked by my spidery looking eyelashes when looking at a microscope for 3 hours.  

I am constantly thinking about how my life would be different if I were to be studying in Singapore. I could imagine myself developing friendships easily where conversations flow smoothly (based solely on the fact that being from the same culture is in itself a common topic) and also being able to see my friends and family on an everyday basis, but I guess that's the perk of studying overseas - that the experience is entirely different and it's literally a whole new world. It's only been 5 weeks since I've been here but many of my friends agree that it feels like we've been at university for such a long time but at the same time it feels like time has passed really quickly?? I can't explain the feeling but that's just how it is. I need to constantly tell myself to think positively and be grateful for the things I already have because I've not been in the bestest of moods lately especially at night when I'm alone in my room :( I miss how comfortable life was in Singapore and I think homesickness is starting to creep up on me day by day ( unfortunately, the weather is not helping ), yet I do not wish that I was back home yet because Edinburgh has got so much to offer and I absolutely love the city!

Note To Self : Keep looking on the bright side and to be thankful for all that I have.

I didn't draw this

Hope that everyone enjoys their October!!

(2 months left till the end of the year! WHAT EVEN)

xoxoxoxo

11/10/15

I caught the Lunar Eclipse!! A couple of us woke up at 2 in the morning and walked to the meadows where we were joined by another 100 people ( I was pleasantly surprised by the number of people who were willing to sacrifice sleep and warmth for this! ) and everyone was just anticipating the special moment where we'd experience the "blood moon". I took this photo through a telescope brought by the astrology society and whilst I was attempting the shot, one of the members of the society kept saying "You're never gonna get that shot, it's almost impossible" and that made me even more determined that I was going to get the shot - and I did!! :) 

Marina baked a plum, fig, ginger and lemon vegan tart and brought a slice for me during Muay Thai on Tuesday! It was delicious and also a perfect treat after class! :) It was so sweet of her to offer me a slice, I was so touched :') 

On the way to Princes street after school to get a phone contract, I passed by Sainsbury's and went to the "reduced-to-go" section and grabbed the mangoes the minute I saw them! I love mangoes and I really miss fresh fruits that are not provided in the cafeteria :( 

One thing that I find unique to Edinburgh is that even in the city, you get a beautiful balance of the view of natural landscapes and the grand architecture of buildings!

You can see the hills on the left but this picture is not a very good image of what I described earlier on 

This is my first time experiencing fall and I am so incredibly excited for it!! Though it means stronger winds and lower temperatures, I can't wait for all the trees to turn to different shades of red,orange, yellow and brown! 

On a side note, my german tutor and finally decided to speak English when teaching! Thank you very much, that is much appreciated!! I can now learn better and not be all frustrated and lost during the lesson! Not so fun fact : fruits have genders in german and so the grammar changes... 

For example, when addressing an orange it's die Orange and to address an apple its der Apfel, where die is the feminine article for "the" and der is the masculine article. You then have to memorise which fruits are female and which are male which is ridiculous (I'm sorry but it is) There are also 3 gender groups in German - feminine, masculine and neuter, which just makes everything so much more confusing! 

Love and miss you guys terribly :'(

Natalie's birthday was yesterday ! and I remember in sec 2 it was a cool date cos it was 10/10/10 hahaha So the photos above were taken on the day of the colour run! Kim and I surprised her that day knowing that the both of us weren't going to be in Singapore on her birthday :( It was a huge success though!! The huge balloon that says " tap to play " actually sings happy birthday in the most cheerful tone ever!! But I really wished I could've been back in Singapore then :((( 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NATALIE AND HOPE YOU HAD A SPLENDID ONE!!! <3

I just boiled some water and I'm going to drink a nice cup of green tea whilst doing some work. Have a super sunday everyone! :)