January 30, 2013

What a morning


First of all, I once again could not get up this morning! All I wanted to do was snuggle under my covers and just go back to sleep!! Once I managed to drag myself out of bed and get on with my morning routine, I was fine. There was no sun outside and no snow either. I guess that is a sign that the weather is going to improve. Or not! Everything was wet. L

When I reached my bus stop, I noticed that there was a sign stuck to the pole. Of course it was in German and there was no one around whom I could ask to translate! I sort of figured what the sign was saying coz I saw the word “nicht” which means ‘no’, so it had to be something to do with the bus not stopping or there will be no bus. And true enough, the bus did not stop!!! It went straight pass me! So I had to walk to the other stop which is about 100-150 metres away, and finally, the next bus stopped there! And…it was drizzling, which turned into quite a heavy drizzle. Thankfully, I was already at my work place by the time the heavy drizzle started. I asked Bibiana about the sign and she told me that she didn’t notice it! Lol! She said she saw a red sign which means that the bus stop is not working. Hmmm….looks like I’ll have to walk to the other bus stop from now on. Hopefully the date I saw on the sign (it said 5.02.13) is the date that the bus stop will be available again.

By the way…I don’t know which temperature reading to trust anymore. The faulty one (once I have added 2C to it) says it’s 7C; one site on the net says it’s 3C; while another says its 4C! I’ll probably just take the average of all and agak lah!

So a funder called me at work today, asking to set an appointment for a meeting. Oh God! This is a funder that funds our organization! I don’t like doing these meetings for fear of saying the wrong thing or even appearing to be lack of knowledge. My boss said she can brief me but still!! It’ll probably be a short meeting, with me presenting/giving a short overview of our work in PAN AP, as they said my boss doesn’t have to join us through Skype and that they do not have specific questions. Great! J

“Working” and being integrated here is quite an experience because most of the people here are from different parts of the world; and sharing and listening to their experiences is great. Over lunch today, we talked about the different ceremonies when it involves a birth, coming of age, marriage etc. It’s funny how some things/ideologies are similar but just practiced in a different way. For example, for Indians, when a girl comes of age, there is this coming-of-age ceremony that is compulsory. Traditionally, it was to inform people that this house has a daughter who is of marriageable age. In Spain, they “celebrate” girls and guys aged 30 who are still single! It’s more of an embarrassment thing but it seems the tradition is still being practiced! I didn’t say it was the SAME, but the idea that these single people needs to be “advertised”…!!

Tomorrow, I’ll be attending an exposition/exhibition called "Believers", which is on the right to blasphemy. The exhibition explores the right to blasphemy as a human right. It should be an interesting visit. This sort of things never happens back home; but I guess, here it’s easier to do so as it’s a learning organization as well and there are people to organize such outings.

I’ve started the habit of buying hot chocolate, coffee or even cappuccino on my way home. I also get donuts or croissants and eat them as pre-dinner meals. Lol! It’s cheap and since the shops/cafes are so near my place, it’s so convenient. It’s not a good habit to start especially since I won’t be indulging like this back home. Argh!

Haven’t opened my bottle of wine yet. Maybe tomorrow…hehe…I just had a long chat with my hsemate about religion, marriage, traveling, while having chocolate pancakes that she made. Lol! Her son was here earlier (!) and she wanted to introduce us but he was in a hurry. I told her that I didn’t know she was married; but she didn’t explain whether she was married, divorced or never married. She’s in her mid-50s I found out.

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By the way…I just realized that the dates on my blog entries are a day ahead! Lol!

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