Spinning: The Corrs - Only When I Sleep
I'm just going to do a daily-life in Uppsala kind of post. At first I thought it'd be boring; who'd want to know the mundane details of my life? But you know what? It is the so-called mundane and routine which paints a story of how I lived (and how I am going to live) out these 5 months. And again, I don't want to forget.
Ladies and Gentlemen, presenting my humble abode for these 5 months...
The interior looks like the above. Very Ikea, eh? Well one thing about Swedish homes in general is that they can be very woody and homey, and that's one element that's present even in offices. Arlanda airport also has a very woody theme, and I think that really adds a bit of warmth in the midst of all the modern architecture. We should take a leaf or two from them!
This is my kitchenette. It's inside my room, and I am lovin' it because it means I can experiment all I like with cooking AND baking. There's nothing more embarrassing than going into a shared kitchen and looking like a lost sheep whilst your blockmates are baking quiches and pastas and you're like, okay, so do I use a pot or a pan?
Taking you closer to the kitchenette, notice all the ready-made mixes? Those are for the days where I really crave Chinese food. So far though I haven't really used much.
Public transport here - there's no other way to put this - is plain expensive. It's about 3 SGD for a one-way trip; 1.50SGD if you plan really carefully (that means, you hop on a bus back to where you came from within 1.5 hours of getting on the bus the first time round). In any case it'd bleed your pocket dry if you keep taking buses here, so the cheaper alternative is to invest in a bike and sell it back at the end of your stay. So one of the first things my friends and I did was to get a bike. I got mine for about 120 SGD, it's no mountain bike, quite lau pok, but it gets me around and the brakes work, so I guess no complaints. Anyway, you wouldn't want to get one of those mountain-bike pro looking ones because bike thefts happen all the time. So the more shabby looking, the better in a sense :). The guy standing with us is Magnus, owner of the bikeshop we went to. He puts together all the bikes from scratch! (and spare parts).
We cook for ourselves all the time, so that means we have to get groceries yeah? We get it every week, and unfortunately, the supermarket's not that nearby so we have to cycle to it (it's about 15-20 minutes cycle away) The picture above is what we saw when we first walked there (the lonnnnnnnnng way round).
We'd grab our backpacks along when we go grocery shopping so we can cycle with both our hands, and carry back all the stuff on our backs. We'd place small items in a basket hanging off the side of our bikes! So everytime, we'd get in, shake off whatever snow we have on our hair, and then with backpack on, start shopping! :)
So we've been cooking quite a lot to save (to use the money for travelling instead!) and the first time round was hilarious. I mean, at least it was edible but I don't even know what is that. It's kind of like pasta with this garlic cheese spread we bought. More salad than a meal. Haha! But but but...
Our food has been evolving, getting more yummilicious these days! Haha!
I even cooked curry on one occasion...
Ginger chicken... (with the help of a insta-mix lah.)
Meatballs with spaghetti. Trying to incorporate the Swedish diet into our meals.
MILO. MILO. I MISS MILO.
And every so often we'd have these Singaporean food gatherings, and we'd also invite our International friends to come and taste Singaporean food; it's quite funny to see what everyone brings.
CHAP CHYE
TOM YUM! With Amande's lemongrass, no less, hahaha!
We sorta had like a Chinese New Year Reunion thing in my hostel the other day when Amande dropped by to visit. Man I loved the Tomyum!
Amande the head chef is in the house!
More of these potluck gatherings...
As for lunch in school, we try to pack it ourselves most of the time, because the food in school (even the Swedes say so) is expensive and not even worth the price. So we try to pack whatever we can using whatever we have in the fridge.
Speaking of school, this is the graveyard we pass everytime on our way to school. Not to be morbid, but I'm just saying it's a landmark. It's actually quite peaceful and nice.
Frozen Bicycles!
And *GASP*, we do study... sometimes.
I found a small church here that does Swedish sermons (translated to English for us with the help of one translator), so every Sunday when I'm in Sweden and not out and about gallivanting in other countries, I go to service. The church is really homey and nice, it serves coffee and biscuits before sermon starts and I really love their pancakes! Which are piping hot and delicious in winter! OK but that's not the point. hahaha. Above is Lotta, the pastor's wife and half of the team who set up the church plant in Uppsala.
Oh and this is totally random but I want to show you guys my laundry room:
HAHA. OK we were just foolin' around. The washing machine was all in Swedish and initially we were like what?! and just randomly turning dials and hoping our clothes wouldn't come out all shrunken and stained with colours. We've become experts by now and we do laundry fast and quick!
Well that's about all I have to say for now about daily life in Uppsala, I'll return with more pictures of my culinary achievements, hehehehe.
Labels: exchange, food, photolog, sweden, travel
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