2nd weekend

finally managed to do something constructive today, against overwhelming inertia, i managed to drag myself together with wing-mate jeremy to go for a jog along the swan river. it was probably the first time i attempted to run in such a cold weather (and in many months as well). the view was great, if swan river despite all its glorious clear blue water is simply just river, comparably east coast park would seem more like drainwater. we really have to be ashamed of the level of eco-awareness and conservation we have back in singapore. swimming in the sea back home, is literally swimming in a sea of effluence.
the most interesting part of the day came in the evening when we (a couple of singaporeans) and shaddi (a lebanese) relax-one-corner in the common room. shaddi, in his usual curiosity, stumpled upon a sex-toy catalogue. in his excitement, he happily flipped through the pages. it was probably a classic and normal psychological response considering his strict upbringing in a conservative society. what totally surprised us was when he nonchalently removed his sweater and started wipping each page of the catalogue after he was done with it. after making sure that no fingerprints was left on the book, he then took the catalogue by his sleeve and put it back. apparently the lebanese government offer rewards to people (or rather bao toh kias) who provide tip-off on lebanese citizens who engage in 'morally questionable' deeds. well i'm not too sure if browsing through a catalogue showing 'electric devices' which serves a specific 'physiological purpose' qualifies as 'morally questionable', but to shaddi, in his own words 'I'm not taking any chances....'
now aren't you glad that you're born in a first world liberal democracy...even though singapore hardly qualifies as the latter.

born again

Burswood hotel and casino, the place fortunes are made and more often lost. this is perhaps one of the best photos i've ever taken

and so it is, almost 2 weeks into my stay in my adopted home, and barely 2 days into my new found status as a born-again student. perth has been great so far. can't say the same for the weather though, it's been drizzling since late morning, and the winter chill certainly doesn't help. it's amazing how things have changed and not changed since the last time i came. well not that i have a superbly vivid recollection of what was perth like 12 yrs ago, but at least it seems less sub-urban and very much more cosmopolitan than the perth i first knew. change. cousins whom i met as a kid have all grown, pearly, justin and alan, esp alan, he's no longer the toodler i fed haw flaks too haha. it's interesting to note that while perth is sorta reknown for its idle and laid-back lifestyle, the education system seems more progressive than that back home. kids go to uni as young as 17 here, there's a med undergrad in my residential undergrad who is only 17. at 21, most aussies like justin have already graduated, and its kinda weird having to call your younger cousin senior in school haha. but's its not that i'm complaining. after all, i guess we all have to face up to the real world sooner or later, so why not live for the moment, and enjoy the last bastion of my carefree life? it's great to know that i've relatives and friends here whom i can depend on in the time of need. uncles, cousins and esp tom. i probably could survive even if i chose to go sydney, but i guess without a doubt, i would certainly be a lot more lonely.
 
 after all these years, i still never managed to muster the courage to pursue my interests. i guess i could never see existence beyond material terms, nor the intrinsic value of learning for learning's sake. like shawn said, we all yearn to be bohemian, but deep down, we're very much in the rat race. i'm the quintessential singapore. so here i am, taking a commerce degree with the intention of majoring in investment finance - an uber-capitalist major that serves no apparant purpose other than the generation of personal wealth - and in a weak response to pacify my teeming subconscious, a unit in political science. if all goes well, and by that i mean nothing less than a distinction in all subjects, i should be taking a double degree in commerce and arts. but before that, grand plans aside, let me complete my stats tutorials first.



view from the king's park, the landmark of perth. the view overlooking the city with swan river beside it is simply panaromic



another landmark of perth, the clock tower of the university of western australia. since i didn't make it to the hallowed grounds of oxbridge which are endowed with classical architecture, i'll gladly settle for this. beside, dun it look like hogwarts?



my cousin pearly, her boyfriend greg, me and tom. i'm really lucky to have all these wonderful ppl with me. tom for opting to come to uwa instead of curtin, pearly and greg for showing us around and teaching us the aussie version of dai dee. friendships are something we so often take for granted. life can be really lonely without friends

a stranger in moscow (perth)

so here is it, the scenario that i felt so surreal has realised...i've left the place i called home for the past 21 yrs. came here yesterday with uncle bill n tom. i really can't imagine how i can ever settle so quickly without uncle bill's help. spent my first night in trinity college last night. the rooms were really not what we imagined it to be...unfortunately. room's pretty spacious, but the facilites are less than perfect. Perth in general however, pretty much exceeded my expectations. though it's pretty much unchanged since the last time i came which was a whooping 12 yrs ago, it's still a scenic city with a healthy mix of a metropolis and a sub-urban town kinda feel. guess it really helps that there're many familiar faces here. met an ex-bravo pc LTA Low whom i just found out is called Justin, who is coincidentally yinting's friend whom i met in the burswood casino where my uncled stayed. it certainly feels a lot better to even see familar faces even though some of them many be acquaintances more than frens. things are pretty expensive here compared to back home with the exception of houses and cars. sure it's a nice place, but surely to call a place home, it's more than just bungalows that cost 1/2 the price of a 5 room flat, or a car that is just the price of a singapore COE. I'm glad to be able to experience a different culture and life in my adopted nation, but nothing can ever replace the attachment i have for a place that called 'home' since i was born. 'Singapore our homeland, it's here that we belong'....