Day 75: Strategy Essay Sunday

Because this day is a Sunday, I think you guys who actually read this blog have figured out what I did today.

Yep, that's right. I wrote an essay until 2 pm. If I wasn't as sick as I was (I'm starting to recover. I'm way better than I was last Thursday), I would have volunteered at the Gatehouse. However, I cancelled that one too for this Sunday because of the cough and the cold.

I went to mass at 5:45 and then headed back home. The picture above is taken from my window. I needed a picture and I think that describes my Sunday. Mostly nothing but paper writing.

Day 74: Vow of Silence and More Reading

Still keeping the vow of silence today. I gargled salt water that morning and left for the Bod after I had lunch. I stayed there until around 3:30 (they close at 4:00 on Saturdays). I passed by Tesco on my way home and got myself some 2 2L bottles of water. I was almost done with the one I had at home.

On my way home, I saw that sight as pictured above. I remembered smiling to myself when I saw it. Oxford is so gorgeous, even if you are coughing your lungs out and blowing your nose like you want to pull it off.

Day 73: Recovery Day

It's a Friday and I don't feel any better from yesterday. In fact, I feel worst. My head is heavy and my whole body feels like a brick. So today, I decided I was going to stay inside and read. I let go of my shift at the Rainbow House because there is no way I'm handling food when I'm blowing my nose like there's no tomorrow and I'm coughing my lungs out.

Pictured above is my survival kit: Water, Vitamin C, Kleenex, ginger, tea and cough drops. I need to get better. I spent the whole day keeping a vow of silence and reading stuff for my Strategy tutorial. I can't quite afford to just sleep. I have work to do and an essay due on Sunday. I gargled warm water with salt the night before. My voice kind of came back. Will gonna do that some more tomorrow.

Sleeping at 10:00 tonight (yep, you know I'm sick).

Day 72: “Happy Birthday to You”-<3 Laryngitis

November 11 is the day of my birth. My birthday rituals include going to mass, talking to the family, eating some form of long noodles, having cake with my friends and eating a slice of cheesecake with a latte.

Granted that I was losing my voice the night before, I woke up this morning with me being able to talk with a decibel of a whisper. Yep, laryngitis had officially taken over my whole body. I was lucky that my Marketing tutorial cancelled because if not, I wouldn't have been able to carry a conversation during our tutorial.

My day officially begun when I went to mass at 1:05 pm. There is a funny story behind mass but I'll save that for face to face conversation. Nonetheless, if you have laryngitis and the cold bug, I suggest you lug a bottle of water around. Fr. Simon gave me a birthday blessing afterwards.

I was walking towards the Bod when I saw the Thai kitchen in the Old Tom open on St. Aldate's. I don't really have an appetite. But I figure, if I can eat something from my usual birthday ritual (I can't have anything sweet or dairy because my throat is already killing me), I can eat the long noodles. Filipino tradition calls to have long noodles such as spaghetti or what we Filipinos call "pancit" for long life. I grew up with it and I've lived it every since so I walked into the place and ate Pad si eew and had some ginger/lemon tea.

I force fed myself. I was done after 2 bites. That's how sick I was. I was feeling a bit more sick by the minute. I needed to go home but I had to read for my essay due on Sunday and I also had the Adviser drinks party that night.

I headed to the Bod afterwards. When my coughing fit begun at around 5:45, I left the Bod, headed to Tesco and stocked up on ginger and cough drops.

I went to the Adviser drinks and was barely able to socialize. I can't talk and I felt bad for being a virus-carrying individual at that party. I left and headed home. I really didn't feel like celebrating. I wanted to curl up in bed and drink some ginger tea. I headed home, made myself some soup dinner and then boiled ginger tea (or, as we Filipinos call it, Salabat). I put my stuff upstairs as the ginger tea was boiling and I saw my door as pictured above, decorated by Suzanna with messages from my flatmates.

Thanks so much Suzanna, Joanne and Debra. Even if I didn't actually get to enjoy my birthday (nor was I up for it anyways) I was very happy inside. For everyone who greeted me as well. Thanks so much. Those who matter remembered and I'm so very thankful that you guys did, even if I'm way across the pond with laryngitis. :]

Day 71: Stay at home Wednesday

In a very typical fashion, the sun was out and shiny today as Suzanna and I stayed inside writing our paper. I started croaking like a frog and coughing like a mad woman. Yep, I am definitely sick.

Nonetheless, the marketing paper just flew out of my fingertips, for some reason. I really enjoyed writing the paper. How strong my argument is, I'm not quite sure but it was definitely one of my favorite papers.

Post essay ritual is cooking so pictured above is the "lumpiang togue" or Beansprout Eggroll that I made. I loved it. I absolutely love improvising. To top it all off, I don't have a tutorial tomorrow. My marketing tutor moved it to next Monday at 10. I already turned my paper in so it's all good.

Typical Wednesday, nothing special.

Day 70: Romeo and Juliet

I'm coughing like crazy and I'm starting to get a cold. I finished "No Logo" at around 3:30 in the afternoon at the Upper Reading Reserve in the Bod and began an outline for my paper. However, I cannot focus. I got another free ticket that night for Romeo and Juliet and I just can't wait to see it.

By 5:30, I headed to the Central Library and grab a quick read to pass the time. However, I left at around 6:30, got myself a cup of tea and headed to the Oxford Playhouse and waited for Suzanna for about 15 mins. I was absolutely excited. When she and I got up to the circle (we weren't sitting together), that pictured above was the stage and I can't help my jump up and down my seat.

The play began and I can tell it was opening night. However, after the intermission and the 2^nd part of the show began, I was brought home. It made the play all better for me and have thus made it memorable. It was a modern take on Shakespeare but it wasn't quite the Leonardo diCaprio version either. It walked the fine line between the Shakespeare version and the Modern version, if that makes any sense at all.

I got home and started on my paper. Guess it gives you a clue on how I'm going to spend Wednesday, yea?

Day 69: “No Logo”

I only have one book to read for my marketing essay due on Wednesday and that is the book pictured above. Thus, the bane of my existence for this day was spent reading this book at the house and in the Bod. It's a fairly interesting read but there were 500 pages worth of text talking about, I guess what one can call, the dark side of branding.

Besides reading, I had my Business Strategy tutorial today. It went well enough although there were glitches. I wasn't surprised. I didn't write the best paper. However, he didn't completely hate it. We even had a very nice discussion. But I need to step my game up next week. And the week after. I'm going to pwn this.

Day 68: Usual Sunday Blues

I barely finished my essay on time today. However, I did.

I went to the chaplaincy in the afternoon for mass and then came back, read a bit of my designated reading for my marketing essay, watched a movie and then started reading Fight Club as you can see on the picture of books above. I checked out a couple of books last Friday to serve as my relax-ers so there you go.

I'm starting to feel sick. My throat is sore. This weather is starting to get to me.

Day 67: BBQ sauce splatter and Chocolate Crinkles

I spent the good part of my Saturday morning finishing up the reading for my essay due on Sunday at 2pm. I decided to go grocery shopping for a bit that afternoon. I also had an inch to bake chocolate crinkles. Joanne had some of the stuff I needed so all I needed from the grocery was cocoa powder, powdered sugar and eggs.

I went to Aldi's and on my way back, with my bags in hand, a bus passes by and then I suddenly feel this solid stuff hit my arm. At first I was like "wth?" so I look at my arm and I saw there was this gooey substance on it and then I prayed hard to God that it wasn't some pigeon that hit my arm and it was its blood splattered all over me. I then smelled it and it could have been either bbq sauce or ketchup. I saw Debra on my way back and she was just as in surprise as I was. I was completely splattered with BBQ sauce by someone who I did not know and I can't even give him or her a piece of my mind. I went in the house, cleaned up my sweatshirt and jeans and threw it in the laundry.

While it was going through a cycle, I prepared the chocolate crinkles. I was still infuriated and I needed to force myself to relax in order to be able to do them right. Cooking or baking has become my pre and post essay ritual. The chocolate crinkles, as pictured above, turned out wonderful. I was fairly happy with the result and it successfully calmed me down. The flat mates loved it too. Successful baking venture :]

Day 66: My “Day-off”

I love Oxford. I love how I have all the time in the world to read and study [even if that's not enough time, in all honesty]. However, I truly miss being able to have an organization, a job or something to do other than studying. I want another obligation besides submitting myself to my studies. Maybe that's just my nature. It's different for every single person but that's how I roll.

And because of how I roll, I somehow ended up from not having any other obligation to have 3 on this day.
My browsing around the day before brought me more than the one that was on my calendar the past 2 weeks.

I was suppose to do a Soup Run in the morning which I slept through. Well, I woke up at 6:30, got up at 6:45 and I knew I wasn't gonna make it into the city by 7:00 to help Sylvia out. So I texted her and hopefully she forgives me. As my punishment, I stayed up and did some reading. I then left the house at around 10:15 for my 2^nd volunteer work opportunity, the Rainbow House which is located at that picture up there.

In the Rainbow House, I got to help out in the kitchen and the counter as we sell food to the parents who bring their kids to play there. It's sort of a refuge for them. Especially since it was a rainy day so it was nice to have somewhere to bring their kids 5 and under. The volunteer coordinator there had the same name as the one who I was meeting tonight. And I finally made the connection so I asked her. And yep, she's the same one.

So when I got to The Gatehouse that night, which is a homeless center, she knew what to do with me. Usually, they put all new comers in the kitchen for the whole night. However, she put me in the kitchen for the first hour and had me serving tea afterwards. I got to interact with the homeless in Oxford from behind the counter that was a tad too high for me. It was truly a rewarding and humbling experience.

Suzanna and I then met up and stood in the queue for the play Cyrano de Bergerac. The tickets were sold out but we took a chance and we got in! We felt so lucky that night. The play was nice. It wasn't the conventional performance by the actor who played Cyrano was totally brilliant. He was fun to watch and listen too. Although, I still want to watch the play with a conventional performance.

I had a nice day off, even if I did some reading in the morning and the 2 hour gap between Rainbow House and the Gatehouse. Volunteering just makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.

Day 65: SVP and the Chaplaincy

Today was absolutely gorgeous, at least in my opinion. It's not sunny-gorgeous. It's the dark-kind of gorgeous. It was cloudy and gusts of wind blew the leaves all over the place. I love it.

I had my marketing tutorial in the morning, at 10. Not a bad tutorial. I knew my paper wasn't so good but we had a good discussion on the whole topic and I felt like I learned a lot for it. I can't get over the fact that learning here is so inspiring because of that. I love being able to just have an academic discussion and learn. It's brilliant.

Afterwards, I checked out some fun read books at the Central Library. I then headed to New College for lunch then after that to the Bod to start reading for my Strategy paper. I read, looked at the question, read again and then looked at the question and then spent a good couple of hours staring at the question for my next paper. I still don't know how I am going to tackle it but I'll figure something out. I spent an hour afterwards reading Fight Club. By 5:00, I decided to head out and walk around a bit before my 6:15 meeting at the Chaplaincy with the SVP. I walked towards the Westgate Center because I figured, since it's Thursday and most places are open later, I can stop by Primark and entertain myself with their products. I wanted to buy myself a headband and a couple of hairclips but I stopped myself from doing so.

Please note that on the picture above, the clock says 5:15. Yep, that picture was taken at 5:15 pm and it seemed as if it was 7:00 here across the pond. The Fall season has definitely come and along with it the early darkness that befalls the city.

At 6:00, I headed down to the Chaplaincy for the SVP meeting. SVP is the Saint Vincent de Paul group which is basically the volunteer work group. I start volunteering at The Gatehouse tomorrow which is an institution that serves as a homeless refuge for a bit. It was a nice meeting. I got to meet some nice people. I stayed for the Pasta dinner and the talk about Pilgrimage. I let go of the Union for the night. I needed something less mind engaging at the moment.

Overall, a good night.

Day 64: Punk Rock

As with almost every Wednesday, the bulk of the day was spent writing my marketing paper (unless you count the fact that I spent an hour walking from my flat to the OPUS office to the Carphone Warehouse to the Oxford Playhouse and then to Gloucester Green Market then back to the flat. I don't know how I did it but I did).

This paper, I absolutely hated. I didn't quite think I made a very convincing argument but I turned it in with the knowledge that the tutorial the next day is not going to be smooth.

Nonetheless, that night, Suzanna and I headed to go see Punk Rock. The Oxford Playhouse offers free tickets to those under 26 on days that they call "A Night Less Ordinary." Hence, I took advantage of it and when I told Suzanna she did too. Only foil in this plan is that we weren't sitting together. But we went together, if you know what I mean.

Punk Rock was ABSOLUTELY amazing. Suzanna and I went in expecting something mind numbing. But it wasn't. The characters in that play were so fantastic that they haunt you even after the show. It's a play that people should definitely see. We stayed for the postshow talk as well wherein we got to listen to the cast and their experience with the whole play.

Afterwards, I just can't get over the fact that I got to see such an amazing show for free. Suzanna and I talked about the play on our way home. That's how much we were in awe. Such a brilliant play. I'm not lying.

Day 63: Hard Day’s Work

I'm not even going to lie that I spent all day working. This picture was a last minute attempt to take a picture because I almost forgot that I had to take one. I took this picture 30 minutes before midnight and it shows my new laptop and what I've been working on, Marketing.

I have a marketing paper due the next day at 6pm and I'm absolutely not certain on what I wanted to write about. I read all that was on my reading list and yet I needed to know more. I'm really at the point that I just can't make enough time in order to put information in my head.

Besides the fact that I went into Coffee Republic for a bit and had a chai latte plus a berry cheesecake, nothing really happened today but a whole lot of reading about KPI, customer satisfaction, perception and expectation.

Day 62: United at last

My tomato red dell and I are finally reunited. The picture above is basically a representation of what I did after my tutorial that afternoon.

I was reading in the SBS library all morning, ate lunch at New, headed to the Bod to register for classes and then headed to Hertford for my Business Strategy tutorial. My tutor was fairly happy about my paper, which I was totally surprised about because of the whole fiasco the day before. We had a good discussion, although abrupt, about industry analysis. He told me that I was asking all the right questions and that when I take my MBA, I'm going to have a hard time relearning all these because I already learned it, at least that's what I understood.

Anyways, at 3:00 I headed to Gloucester Green and availed the 1 GBP return ticket to London (return means round trip). I headed to London on the Oxford tube bus, rode a bus towards Cricklewood and met with Melissa's wonderful aunt who kindly brought my laptop for me. We had a quick bite to eat and then I headed back towards the city, rode the Oxford Tube again and got back into Oxford by 9:30. I got myself a wrap from the Botley Kebab man because I was starving by the time I got home.

The trip was worth it though. I am finally united with my tomato red Dell (w/c is represented by that black laptop sleeve in the picture)

Day 61: Essay Crisis 3

Top 10 Reasons Why Not to Put off Your Essay until 9 Hours Before it's Due:

1. It's not a very comfortable feeling.
   
2. You don't have time to edit your paper.
   
3. You can't eat properly.
   
4. You munch too much
   
5. You lose track of what exactly it is you're writing about because you're more focused on finishing
   
6. You have a dead line for a reason and you might not make it.
   
7. You might end up on the floor writing your paper.
   
8. You might end up on the floor writing your paper and putting it against the edge of a drawer.
   
9. You might end up on the floor writing your paper and putting it against the edge of a drawer with a sock right behind it.
   
10. You might end up on the floor writing your paper and putting it against the edge of a drawer with a sock right behind it because if you don't it will look like the picture above.
    

And I did get to turn in my paper at 2 pm. Well, 2:05 but that's 2pm Oxford time (this argument doesn't work with tutors, by the way) and I forewarned my Business Strategy tutor about my laptop problems by having Joanne hold the screen while I typed up a short email telling him what I was going through. Nonetheless, because of the kindness of my flatmate, Debra, I was able to type up my paper using her laptop and turn it in at 2. It was highly uncomfortable typing your paper sprawled at the floor because that's the only position that the laptop screen would make you see what you were typing.

3^rd major essay crisis so far. Rawr.



P.S It was daylight saving time today which totally helped out my cause. Fall back baby!

Day 60: A Night with the Flatmates

The picture above is the Honeypot which is one of the places that my flatmates and I went too that night.

I was stuck in the house all day attempting to write my paper for my Business Strategy tutorial. Was pretty successful, but not complete. However, I went out with my flatmates (Debra, Joanne and Suzanna) that night for a couple of hours and I was glad I did. It was the eve of Halloween and everyone was pretty crazy. People are dressed up all over. Most common costumes are clowns, zombies and cats.

We got home super tired but none of us regretted it. Def digging myself a whole for an essay crisis but I'm going to deal with that later.

Day 59: Jeffrey’s Birthday

It was Jeffrey's birthday today. And it was the Friday of Halloween Weekend. Go figure.

Jeff, Mike and I had dinner at O'Neill's which is an Irish Pub and Grill. When we walked in, those people you see up there in the picture, dressed in the blue (most of them are. Only that guy was the only one in pink) were all by the front door. Then we finally realized that it is Halloween weekend.

We had a crazy encounter with the bar tender (it is part pub afterall so you order your food from the counter) and this is a story to tell when you guys meet me. I'd love to give a full encounter of the whole exchange between him and Jeffrey, him and me and him and Mike. The smurfs, as Jeffrey called them, hung out there for a while even after we finished our dinner. The three of us then walked around and somehow ended up at the Union. Suzanna met as there and we all talked for a bit, British-student style. Mike left early so the three of us ended doing some more English style rendezvous.

The night didn't end until about 11:45 and the Union bar rang the bell for closing.

Happy Birthday Jeffrey! You're old now XP

Day 58: And I see that it’s Fall

When I walked to the New College Library on this lovely Thursday, I finally realize that Fall is coming. I absolutely love the red, gold and yellow leaves covering the ground and swirling around me when a gust of wind passes by.

Nothing much happened today. Except, I had the MOST AMAZING tutorial in Marketing. Definitely a pick me up from what happened with my Strategy tutorial last Monday. And it was a nice change from how I felt from my first marketing tutorial.

We had the usual Fire & Stone dinner and I tried to get the waiter to out cake for Jeffrey but he didn't get my signal and there was a miscommunication between him and the hostess. But whatever. My attempt failed. If I realized that I was going to the dinner that night earlier in the week (I thought I had a meeting w/c turned out was next week), I would have picked a cake up for them to bring out. We went to the debate afterwards and I think y'all my clap for Suzanna because she spoke at the pre debate. I was a proud flat mate. Hahaha.

Day 57: Spamalot at New Theater

I spent all day writing my Marketing essay, just like I do every Wednesday. That night, however, Suzanna, Jeffrey and I watched Spamalot because that's what he wanted to do for his birthday.

For 20 GBP we got seats that are usually 30 GBP and it was a pretty enjoyable performance. Let's get this straight. I'm not a fan of Monty Python. I didn't get the movies at all. However, I actually enjoyed the play. And so far, I prefer the play over whatever Jeffrey, Donal, Carmen, Chris, Eleanor, Grace and I watched that one night. It might be because I was brain dead and I just wanted a break from academics or it was really good. King Arthur was kind of a lame actor, I admit, but I still enjoyed it.

Oh, and one thing. The British thing is to have ice cream during intermission. The people sell ice cream at the front of the stage where people queue in to get some. It was quite a culture shock for the three of us. I was wondering what they are and when we found it was ice cream, we can't help but be like "oh wow", if that makes sense at all.

Day 56: Munchies for a Champ

It's Tuesday so I was gearing up to write a paper for Marketing. Pictured above is a typical munchies mix for me. Cookies, sugar and gummi stuff.

I spent the day, however, in the Central Library reading. There was this man who sat next to me and he asked me how to make his resume be formatted like it is on the paper. I told him that he needed to know how to work MS word in order to do that, or play around with it. He dutifully typed up his resume and did all the spacings by pressing on the space bar. Afterwards, he tapped me on the shoulder again and asked me how it would look like printed. I did the print preview and all that and told him that the 100% version of it is what's going to come out of the printer up front. I wanted to fix his resume for him but he told me not to worry about it since he didn't want to take over my time.

I also fixed myself a schedule so that I could have some sort of structure to my life. It's difficult having only 2 real obligations when you're so used to have 6 and then some. Hence, that's a tip for you aspiring Oxford goers. Make a schedule for yourself. It's helps life become easier.

Day 55: Essay Tip: Answer the Freakin’ Question

So my business strategy tutorial didn't go so well. He liked my essay, sure. However, he would have preferred that I answered the question. I honestly thought I did but that wasn't the case. It was a very humbling experience to sit there and talk through the topic with him after he just creamed you. Nonetheless, it's a part of it. It's one of those things you get in a tutorial and it was definitely a learning experience for me. Pushed me to be better right there.

Nonetheless, I did nothing but read for marketing. The picture above is my wall which is being filled with "signs" of my topics and post it notes with my notes on them. It helps me think through some of the things, granted that I don't usually supplement the white paper with post it notes (w/c is probably why this essay didn't work out so much) but I like it. It's making some sort of mosaic or graffiti on my wall.

But yea. Answer the flippin' question.

Day 54: Essay writing and Turon

Pictured above are the turon I made after I had my dinner. I spent the whole day writing my Business Strategy paper. It's not the best paper but I wrote it. I 'm not pulling the same stunt I did this weekend, which is going out of town on a weekend when I knew I had a paper due on Sunday at 2pm and I haven't finished the reading. I swear, don't do that.

If you're keeping the list of things not to do, do put this on there. Also, don't put your tutorials on Mondays if you know your papers are due 24 hours before. Especially if you're a procrastinator like me, having to write a paper on Sunday morning at 5 am is not fun. NOT FUN AT ALL. (I really don't mind having my tutorials on Mondays. It's the Sunday 2pm deadline that is hard. Old habits are difficult to break).

Let's see how tomorrow goes.

Day 53: Blenheim Palace and Warwick Castle

The benefits of being an OPUS student is that there are about 2-3 trips that they offer over the course of the term. Blenheim Palace and Warwick Castle is the first of the four we have. The last one is a party and thus does not count as a trip. The 2^nd one is to Bath and Stonehenge and the 3^rd one is to Cambridge.

Nonetheless, we spent the first half of the day in Blenheim Palace where in this picture was taken. If you look straight down the railing, you see the entrance of the palace. It was hard for me to pick a picture for this day and this was the one I chose.

The 2^nd half was spent on Warwick Castle. This was more of a tourist haven castle. However, I did get to see a "witch" shot off the trebuchet and it was an amazing sight.

When we got back, I grabbed myself a latte from the Missing Bean and I was in love. Their coffee is amazing. Café Nero and The Missing Bean by far have the best coffees I have tried in Oxford.

Words from the wise, however, is that don't go to the OPUS trip if you have a paper due on Sundays at 2pm and haven't finished the reading yet. Whenever you find yourself enjoying, you're brought back to the fact that you have a paper due. Not fun. Not fun at all.

Day 52: Reading and Cafes

Nothing much to say about today besides the fact that I spent a bulk of it in Coffee Republic reading. The picture above is a reflection of my table against the window as I did my work. Didn't get as far as I wanted too but then I have come to realize that we don't always get what we want.

Day 51: Marketing and the Missing Bean

I had my first marketing tutorial for the term. And I have never felt so stupid in my life. I realized that work was cut out for me for marketing. I have never taken a marketing class in my life. And I'm an accounting major. Accountants and marketing are not exactly sugar and water.

Nonetheless, I cheered myself up by having a chai latte from the Missing Bean, which is pictured above. Best one I had tried so far. It was phenomenal. Tasted just the way I like it and I won't be surprised if their coffee tasted just as good too. It's on Turl Street. Although its not the street with the most traffic, the Missing Bean is pretty packed but you should all try it when you get a chance. You're not going to regret it.

We had dinner with the usual gang at Fire & Stone and headed over to the Burqa debate at the Union.

The topic of the debate was "This House will Ban the Burqa" and it was by far my favorite debate (out of the two that I've been too). The speakers were amazing and convincing. I felt so pumped up afterwards. It was at this debate that I felt the magic of the Union and debating. I was completely in awe by the personalities of the debaters and their speeches and I give my props to them.

Day 50: Classical Music Concert at the Antechapel

I basically spent most of the day writing my first marketing paper. I was planning on going to a piano and violin concert at New College's antechapel that night. However, when I finished, I was hesitant to go. It was dead cold outside and I was too lazy to walk.

Joanne, nonetheless, in her own way, convinced me to go. So I got my butt up and walked over to New College. On my way, I passed Suzanna and the two of us ended up going together. I'm so glad we went! It was phenomenal. The pianist and the violinist had chemistry with each other and with their pieces. I was blown away by their talent and the emotions emanating from the notes they were playing. The whole venue of the New College Antechapel, which is pictured above, added to the whole feel of it.

One of the best decisions I've made in my life. Besides, it's a nice relief. After writing a paper all day and being stuck in the house, it's nice to go out and see or hear things like these. It relaxes your mind and eases your brain.

Day 49: Dining in Hall, the 2nd time around

Above is my lame at a picture of the dining hall. I didn't want to stand out too much so I rushed taking the picture.

I had my lunch at New College again today and I met an international student from Notre Dame. They're staying in Oxford for a year and I can't help but feel a bit jealous. Other than that, I spent most of my day reading for my first marketing essay at the Central Library again. I think this is going to be a typical activity from now on. Reading, that is. Not dining in the hall.

Day 48: Business Strategy, Dining in Hall and the Central Library

Because of my laptop dilemma, I've been spending a lot of time at the Central Library using their computers. They have computers available that do not have internet access but has Microsoft Word. Therefore, I save the articles I get from the Oxford database system into a jumpdrive and read them there where I have time and a desk to utilize. I was in that library from 10 in the morning until I left at 12. Came back at 3:30 and didn't leave until around 6:30 that evening which explains why it is the picture of the day.

When I left at 12, I had lunch at the New College dining hall (called "Hall) for the first time. It was quite interesting. The way New College works is you basically top up your Bod card/University card for breakfast and lunch and you need to pre-book your dinner. I met Joyce there (another girl from the OPUS programme) and the two of us ended up having lunch together. Afterward, I headed to the Said Business School (SBS) for my first tutorial for the official term.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect. My tutor picked me up from the SBS lobby. There was a bit of a mixup with the rooms so we ended up having our tutorial in the SBS library. The tutorial went way better than I expected it would. He was fairly impressed with my paper and the style I utilized. I can't help but smile. I was glad that the paper went well. The tutorial itself was fun. I was able to fully express my views and ask the questions I've been meaning to ask. Definitely a great first tutorial

I went back to the Central library afterwards because I had a lot more readings to do for my marketing essay and I wasn't quite close to being done. Thus, I spent the rest of the day reading. But what else is new?

Day 47: Typical Sunny Sundays in Oxford

I finished my paper that morning at 10:00 am but I didn't turn it in until around 1:00. I was totally hesitant to do that but I did and I leave the rest up to fate.

I met up with Jeff afterwards because I have been commissioned (for free) to take his picture to send to CUA for one of the UHP brochures. It was a nice sunny Sunday but it was difficult to find a spot that would just scream Oxford so we walked around and took pictures at a couple of places. When we deemed that we had enough, we had some Moo-moo's and then we separated. I was waiting around for mass while he went to go do some work.

I walked down Cornmarket which was where the picture was taken. There were about 3 or 4 street musicians scattered across the street. Because it was a nice sunny day, everyone was out and about basking in the light. The musicians create such a lovely atmosphere as one walks up and down the street hearing one musician and then the next as one goes further down. I love it. I guess, this is the "artsy soul" in me. It makes me absolutely happy to hear street musicians as they do their craft in a very raw setting. Also, it helps the whole aura, which is probably why people don't make such a big fuss about them here.

I then went over to Primark and got myself a belt and then headed over to mass which pretty much marked the end of my sunny Sunday.

Day 46: Free Pizzas and Essay Writing

I think, the highlight of this day was the fact that I got 2 free pizzas instead of 1. At the Fresher's Fair, Domino's gave out a bunch of coupons for free personal pizzas, one per student. Suzanna and I availed ours today. However, they messed up my order so they ended up giving me two. That explains the picture above. And the fact that I paid 0GBP for it made me very very happy.

Other than that, I spent the nice sunny day inside writing a paper. It was a difficult feat and I didn't quite finish like I would however I was fairly productive with it. The first paper is always the hardest, I think. I don't know what my tutor is expecting from me yet so I have a lot of apprehension writing the paper. But it'll get done. I promise.

Day 45: Reading, reading and MORE reading

Spent the day reading and attempting to write a paper. There's really nothing much to say about this day. Unless you count my topping up of my Bod card exciting, then there is nothing else that happened. I topped up my Bod Card/ Pink University Card so that I can eat breakfast or lunch at New College.

The rest of the day was spent doing more reading. I did some of it at the Greens Café but I was mostly at home, hence the picture. I also attempted to start the paper but that didn't happen. Not surprising at all. Haha.

Day 44: Café Nero and Business Strategy

I did not wake up until 11:30 today and that is absolutely weird for me. I have not done that the past six months, at all. When I left the house, I headed down to Blackwell's and sat at Café Nero reading Contemporary Strategy Analysis. I had their latte and I loved it. Best coffee I've had in Oxford so far.

I had dinner with the Catholic U students at Fire & Stone that night. We then headed over to the Union for the first ever Union debate. I guess it is expected that that would be the picture I would use for this blog. However, I thought that the picture is more appropriate because it's a better representation of what the hum of my life has become. Reading, coffee and cafes are such a normal part of my day now that it's amazing to me that I don't get tired of it.

The Union was exhilarating. Even if I didn't really get into the debate, nor did I recognize the MP's that were present, I was still amazed by the intelligence and prominence that surrounded me. The debate began with a predebate which was a debate regarding the recent increase in tuition. The activism and the opinions expressed by the students was just…WOW. There's nothing else more inspiring that a room full of students debating with other students regarding current events. The debate proper itself was amazing. I really enjoyed the experience and I was glad I was able to see it.

Suzanna and I headed over to Kings Arms afterwards just to chill a bit and then we headed home.

Day 43: Gloucester Green Market

Every Wednesday, there is a Farmer's market in Gloucester Green. The whole square is filled with stalls selling fruits, vegetables, pastries, cheese, cured meat, etc. It's quite a fun place to go to on Wednesdays and is definitely a nice entertainment in the middle of the day. There's also one on Thursday. However, the Thursday market is more of the antiques and the bric-a-brac, which is also a nice one to go to just to look and see.

Thus, I bought myself peaches (which is a current addiction) and some plantains. The stall where I bought my plantains from were kind of playing around with me, kidding me about free cabbage but really, it wasn't.

Nonetheless, the day was spent reading. What else is new? Haha. My paper is due on Sunday but I really want to get the reading out of the way.

Day 42: The Bodleian “Bod” Library

That picture was taken from the other side of one of the passages into the Bod courtyard. As I exited from reading in the Lower Reserve room, I saw a married couple preparing to take a photograph in the awe inspiring architecture of the old Bodleian library quad. If I were braver, I would have stayed there and taken a picture right behind their professional photographer. Haha.

Because this blog is about the Oxford culture, I will now begin to enlighten you, my dear readers, about how exactly it is.

Yesterday, after I met with my Strategy tutor, the hum of my life changed. It is definitely time to live the "Oxford life". I am only required to be in a tutorial 2 hours a week, 1 hour for each tutor. The rest of the time is yours.

Although that sounds so alluring, I need you to trust me to say that it's not. It's absolutely difficult, especially coming from our school system, to understand the concept of independent studying. The tutors give you a reading list and an essay prompt. Which you read and how you answer the question is always up to you. If that's not enough, the essay prompt isn't exactly a close ended question. It is usually one that can be taken one way or the other. In other words, it is open enough for however you want to answer it, as long as you are prepared and could discuss it with your tutor.

I was at the Bod that day because I was reading one of the books on my reading list that is only available there. The Bod is a reference only library. I was at the old Bod (The new Bod is actually closed for renovations at the moment). You use this search engine called SOLO to look for your books and if says its on the "stack", you need to request it and they are going to deliver it to the reading room you chose. As it happens, the reading room I chose for this time is the Lower Reading Room. I ended up reading a bit there but in all honesty, the Bod aura is not for me. At least, not the aura in the lower reading room. It was massive and…old. I don't mean that in a bad way. It's actually gorgeous. It's just that it makes me feel sleepy and exhausted.

I went back that afternoon, however, and discovered the Upper Reading Room which was more my style. Thus, I have found my place in the Bod library and learned to send my books to the Upper Reserve the next time around.

Day 41: The Beginning of the End

Today was the day I met with my Business Strategy tutor for the first time. It was only an introduction meeting wherein we talked about the syllabus, his expectations of me and the basics of how the next 6 weeks are going to be. We met at the Said Business School (SBS) lobby before he bought me into the hallways that are restricted to non-SBS students. The business school is such a sharp contrast towards the other schools. As you can see in the picture, it's very modern. I feel like I'm walking into a hotel whenever I walk into the lobby. My business strategy tutor and I decided that our tutorials are going to be at 2pm on Mondays. He wants me to turn in my paper 24 hours before which means that my paper is due on Sundays at 2pm. It was a very appealing idea. But I don't really want to think of a different date. Besides, my Marketing tutor emailed me that morning and told me our tutorials are going to be on Thursdays at 10 while my papers are due on Wednesday at 6pm. W/c means I just have to stick it out.

Afterwards, I went into the city and started looking for my books. We were supposed to get our Union cards today but it got moved so I wasn't able to check out the textbook for my strategy class. Nonetheless, I found out that I can use the SBS library (aka, the Sainsbury Library) which was nice because when I walked in there, I was immediately in love with it because of its very corporate office like setting.

I went home and then went out with Joanne and Debra for the night. After meeting with my strategy tutorial, I can't help but feel that it's the beginning of the end for me.

Day 40: The Chaplaincy and a Glorious Sunny Day

Suzanna and I decided to go to mass at the chaplaincy that day. This is their first mass for the year so we decided to check it out. The chaplaincy is basically the student-oriented Catholic Church here in Oxford.

Guess who we saw there? Jeffrey of course. So we all went to mass together and was able to partake at the lunch that they had out for the attendants afterwards. It was a sung mass and has become a favorite for us three. Picture above is the lunch being refilled as Jeffrey, Suzanna and I were in line. We met a couple of people as Fr. Simon, in his terms, “bombarded” us with Americans.

Suzanna had to write a paper and Jeffrey was taking a day off. He and I ended up sweatshirt hopping and “sneaking” into colleges that are closed for visitors. WE aren’t visitors anyways. We’re Oxford students. And we had burgers that night. Not quite an American burger but a burger, nonetheless.

Very relaxed Sunday.

Day 39: Jackie

Pictured above is the neighborhood cat, Jackie (we decided that the cat’s a she), who seems to have the affinity of jumping into our backyard when I’m in the kitchen or the living room.

Her first appearance, a couple of days ago, was when I was washing the dishes. Our sink was facing a window so imagine my surprise when I see two green eyes suddenly staring at me as I look up from scrubbing the plate? This appearance, her second or third appearance, happened at night with me looking out the window in the living room and her jumping out of nowhere. And yes, I jumped and it was complete entertainment for Joanne, Debra and Suzanna.

Debra and Suzanna both went outside and petted her. That’s how we found out she’s a “friendly” cat b/c none of them have gotten bitten or scratched yet. Nonetheless, I am fairly certain she’s out to get me. I don’t mind cats. I just don’t like them scaring me and not having a barrier between them and me.

That’s basically the most exciting part of the day, besides my lovely reading and sleeping day in the house.

Day 38: Last C. S. Lewis Tutorial and Idle Time

None of my tutors have emailed me yet so I was not worrying much about anything which was how I had time to get those two books pictured above. I had nothing to do so I decided to hang around Central Library and figure out what to read while waiting for the go.

I then had a tutorial, my final C.S. Lewis tutorial, at St. Peter’s at 3:00 that afternoon. It was a fairly good tutorial. I still loved the 2^nd one more. But this was my 2^nd favorite out of all my C. S. Lewis tutorials, hands down.

Afterwards, I just went home and made dinner. Pretty light and quiet day. It doesn’t help that I was starting to feel under the weather.

Day 37: Fresher's Fair

Fresher’s Fair: n. Oxford’s massive Club fair.

Today was the day I decided to go to Fresher’s Fair. Deepak has already warned us about how massive and daunting the whole affair was but you always take things like those with a grain of salt. If you’re anything like me, I always like to see it before I believe it.

And I did.

Fresher’s fair was absolutely crazy. It took the whole Examination School to host all the clubs that are in Oxford. The event was in 2 floors, dispersed by type and classification of the club. People who are manning the tables were handing out flyers, organization merchandise, pens from their sponsors, etc while calling out to you and asking you to sign up for their club. There was also a huge tent in the end for the sponsors of the whole event. There they give out a lot of free things, from shopping bags to coffee to pens to pizza. They pretty much bombard you with information and offer you a lot of discounts because you’re a fresher.

Absolutely mad but it was a good time.

Afterwards, I ventured out in the city for a bit and then headed home before we headed out for £4 pizzas. That was basically it for the day.

Day 36: Libraries and Formal Dinners

How more Oxford and British can you get?

Today was the day that we were to be given our Bodleian (Bod for short) library cards. The Bod is basically a reference only library which boasts of numerous collections of books from the beginning of time (maybe not, but it’s close enough). It has an extensive collection on every single subject. Most of the life here in Oxford is to be spent in libraries (I’m writing this about 3 weeks later so I can attest to that) so the Bod card is a great representation of the Oxford life. After swearing to not burn the library and deface the books (they unfortunately took the goat out of the pledge), Suzanna and I (because we both packed our lunches) headed to the University Parks again for lunch.

We then split up after because we get a tour of our colleges from the JCR president and a tour of our library from our librarians. New College looked way better from a student’s perspective. We met our JCR President and he brought the OPUS students around the grounds with interesting little tidbits about the locations he showed. He handed us over to the library and there we got to learn how to work SOLO and how the library system works.

I headed home afterwards and relaxed before getting ready for my OPUS dinner. Deepak basically hosts a dinner for the OPUS students. New College and St. Catz associate students get to have their dinner at St. Catz and the attire is smart. The picture above was taken at the end of the night wherein I took the menu card and positioned it with my heels.

The dinner was pretty amazing. It started with a cocktail reception and then we headed over to the hall for a formal dinner at the high table. We got a 3 course meal with a cheese plate in the end and was served by the wonderful waitresses at St. Catz. There was a “toast game” in the end which was an awkward, social, ice breaker where in everyone got to speak. Some people headed out afterwards but I called it a night.

Overall a wonderful evening.

Day 35: Postcard mailing, Parks and the Union Tour

Not really much of the day today. I began by mailing off the postcards I wrote on the day before, which is basically the picture that represents today. I think it’s the most exciting thing I have done. Hahaha.

We went to pick up tickets for the Fresher’s fair later in the week. Suzanna and I then headed over to the University Parks because I packed my lunch that day. We sat there for a bit reading. It was slightly freezing so we headed over back into town and waited around the Union for the tour.

The Union Society tour was interesting. We basically got a feel for the place and what exactly our advantages are as a member. You would think that that would make it into this blog, but I decided against it. I didn’t get a compelling picture anyways.

When we got home, I made dinner and bought myself the cappuccino shortbread that Joanne was raving about from Eggs Etcetera. It was really worth it.

That’s it for the day!

Day 34: Of 1st and 2nds

The day “officially” began with heading down to the OPUS office to give our names and course of study for the Bodleian. Afterwards, there was really nothing to do (unless your tutor has contacted you already which is not the case for me). Nonetheless, I had my 2^nd tutorial for the C.S. Lewis class that afternoon at 5:00.

It was a nice day so I decided it was a “smoothie day”. It also doesn’t help that people walking around Bonn Square were all carrying a Moo-moo’s cup. Thus, Suzanna and I headed to the Covered Market and I got myself my first Moo-moo’s w/c is a Kinder Bueno milkshake. Not quite the smoothie I thought of getting, but wonderful nonetheless [hence, my switch in the end]. Kinder Bueno is a chocolate that is ferrero rocher-ish. It is a wafer filled with hazelnut spread and covered in chocolate. Reminds you a lot of a ferrero. While there, we smelled Ben’s Cookies so we decided to get one as well. Suzanna and I split it. We got whatever was hot which, if I remember correctly, was double chocolate chunk.

Suzanna and I headed to Bonn Square and sat on the books, which was the pedestal for the goodies in that picture. Afterwards, we separated b/c Suzanna has her dinner that night and she needed to get ready. I, on the other hand, need to wait for my 2^nd C.S. Lewis tutorial at St. Peter’s. I decided to get a couple of postcards so I did and then I headed to the Westgate Center to sit down and write. I headed over to St. Peter’s then.

This 2^nd tutorial was my favorite out of the two I had so far. I was completely engaged in the conversation and in the topic. I loved every single moment of it and it made me realize how tutorials are really suppose to be. This is why there is this system and it still ceases to exist to this day. Definitely a tutorial I’ll never forget.

Day 33: Blackfriars and the Laptop Hunt

Today began with mass. Suzanna and I headed down to Blackfriars for mass. We attended the kid’s mass and I was absolutely pleased that we did. I felt more at home at Blackfriars because of the small church and the cozy atmosphere. (picture above, not exactly great but i deleted all the laptop pictures before I got the chance to save 'em)

I grabbed a crepe and Suzanna and I went to Primark in order to purchase her a belt. Afterwards, we went back home, had some lunch and headed down towards the Aldi’s area. I wanted to go to PC world and Curry’s to look at laptops. I found one that I am beginning to love. However, I can’t quite fall in love with it yet because of the price. UK keyboards are slightly different and there’s also the issue of the power cord. Afterwards, we went to Aldi’s because we wanted to get some juice. (I was beginning to feel like I was getting sick so I got myself some good ‘ol orange juice)

We went home afterwards and we kinda just chilled for the rest of the day. It was a very chill beginning to 0^th week.

Day 32: Groceries, Laptops and an Asian Store

Because I've been living on cheese since I got back from travelling around Europe, I needed to do my grocery shopping. Which I did, first thing in the morning, at Aldi's. I bought a lot of stuff and Suzanna teases me by asking if I left food for the other grocery shoppers in the store.

I also decided that I needed to buy myself a new laptop. I asked PC world how much it would cost to fix the one I have right now and they told me that it will be £229. I was better off buying a new one! After talking it through with my mother, I gave Jeffrey a call. I don't know much about laptops. I haven't purchased one, ever. Because he works with computers, I figured he can help me the most. So, he and I went around and he schooled me a bit on what the configuration stuff really are. I must say, I understood those enough to get myself by.

Because there are limited choices in the city center, I decided that I was going to go back to PC world, check their selection out and also go online and browse around. I'm going to get married to this laptop for another five years so I need to actually like it. Stores close at around 5:30 so we parted around that time. As I was heading back to our flat, I walked a different way to check out the Asian store that Joanne told me about. And it is pictured in that photo above.

I walked in and I felt so happy. Definitely the lift I needed. I was still down because of the laptop fiasco and I needed to something to get it off my head even for just a bit. I didn't buy anything in there but I savored being in it. I was looking at their shelves and selections and it reminded me so much of being home. I guess this was really the first time I felt homesick. I just wanted my laptop problem solved and buying one from here makes it so complicated because 1. It's in GBP, 2. Their keyboard's slightly different and 3. Their power cord is different. And it doesn't help that laptops are not exactly in my area of expertise.

Thus, this Asian supermarket was my cheerer-upper. It was wonderful.

Day 31: A Very Uninspired Picture

I had a horrible morning. It was a rainy, dreary day in Oxford and, as seen in the previous entry, my laptop was not exactly in the best condition. To make things worst, my laptop suddenly got itself some sort of virus or spyware whatever which basically ruined my whole day.

I didn't have to deal with whatever happened with it because I needed to leave in order to make my adviser appointment all the way at Christ Church (which was my planned picture for the day but because of my ruined spirits, I was very uninspired to take a picture of anything).

I met up with Freyja and I basically got all four of my subjects. It's combined into the two tutorials but the focus is more on my 2^nd choices, which is Strategic management and Marketing. She also gave me advice with regards to my laptop and all the other things I want to do. I met up with Debra and Joanne at Greens and the three of us went over to the OPUS office to ask about some stuff. I headed back home with Joanne because I needed to figure out what to do with my laptop.

Having friends who work with computers is one of the assets one person can have. Special shout out to Jeffrey who walked all the way to my flat in order to kill whatever it was that impaired my computer. Thank you so much! I really really appreciate it! I can't move my computer out of my flat because of the high chance that it will get worse.

I barely had any groceries in the house and I needed to make myself dinner, which is what is pictured above. I realized that night, when my spirits have finally been lifted up, that I didn't have any pictures for the day so I took a picture of my dinner. That is basically deep-fried tofu tossed in red peppers and red onions. A humble dinner. I'm glad I had that tofu in my cupboard ( I know that sounds weird but that was how that tofu was sold so I bought it as a safety net staple) and that Eggs Eggscetera had a few veggies I could use. It tasted great with rice. I was very proud of myself.

Yes, I do cook. Surprised? Haha.

Day 30: Essay Crisis I

Top 10 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Pull the Same Stint I Did

[Travelling for 12 days when you know you have essays due, even if it's via email]

10. You should know your responsibilities. You're in Oxford to study.

9. It puts a limit to what you pack in your suitcase. Half of my suitcase consisted of books.

8. It's absolutely exhausting

7. Trying to read your assigned reading on the coach just isn't fun if the alternative is sleep.

6. If that doesn't convince you, trying to read in your hotel room after a full day of walking around and seeing beautiful places isn't much more fun than reading in the coach.

5. It makes you self-conscious because everyone in your tour is on a holiday and there you are looking like you're on a business trip.

4. You don't get to hang out with your tour group much and enjoy the free nights because you are trying to fulfill your responsibilities like responsible adults should.

3. There's always that nagging little voice in your head reminding you that you have an essay to do.

2. So that you won't end up in a frenzy trying to save yourself from the Essay Crisis you sunk yourself into.

1. Because your laptop could possibly give up on you and end up in a vegetable/coma-ish state and you'd end up trying to write your essay with a screen just like that picture above.

In spite all of that, why did I do it anyway?

Two Words: Carpe Diem.

And I got to turn in my paper at 11:30pm, 30 minutes before it was due.

But I'm not pulling this stint again. I did it once, and that's enough. I really don't recommend it. It's not a very good feeling, going through the whole essay crisis.

Day 29: London-Oxford

Today was just one big day of traveling. That's basically all I did. I rode on a bus, or some sort of public transportation and made my way back to Oxford.

I woke up in France at around 6:30 (the picture was taken somewhere during the drive from Paris to the ferry), got rained on in London at 3:30 and ended up in Oxford at 7:30 pm (when I got on the bus in London at 4:30 in the afternoon. It only takes 1 hour and a half to get from London to Oxford). The rain was absolutely horrendous and the Victoria line being shut didn't help the situation.

I was very happy I took on the tour even if I have an essay due on the 30^th at midnight. I got home very exhausted. Joanne and Debra were already back from their travels and we ended up chatting for a bit. It was nice to see familiar faces and places once again. After 12 days of travelling, it was nice to be back "home", even if I can't fully rest yet.

When I got back that night, I basically unpacked my stuff, had whatever I had in the fridge and tried to outline my paper. The next day's not going to be a good day.

Day 28: Paris, France (Paris Day 2)

Day 2 in Paris!

The day begun with a visit to Fragonard Parfumeur. I got my self a French perfume! :] I'm so excited to use it. I can't wait for it to become my signature scent. I have never fallen in love with a scent before. Paris is the city of love. I fell in love with my first perfume, EVER! :] Afterwards, we had a free day. Besides the cabaret excursion that night (which I opted not to go to), we have all day to ourselves.

Rina, Amanda, Tatiana, Sharon and I all ended up spending the day together. Our first stop, because we were around the area, was Galleries Lafayette. We basically just went around and was able to say we went in the Galleries. We then decided to visit Notre Dame, go to Laduree and get some French macaroons, hunt for crepes and take pictures by the Arc de Triomphe in the daylight. And we did it in that order. The five of us figured out the Parisian metro, which I absolutely adore. It was so exciting to be in it. Never have I been so happy to be in the metro. It was sooo…artsy. There were street musicians playing music in the train and on the tunnels to get to the platforms. There were works of art everywhere! It was so interesting to be riding it. And it's also not that hard to figure out, at least in my opinion.

Our first stop was Notre Dame. I LOVE Notre Dame. I was in awe of it. It simply took my breath away. The pictures I got of the church does not give justice to how it looked inside. As we walked around the cathedral, the organ was playing which just made the most perfect atmosphere. We went to Madeline street afterwards and walked all the way to Laduree and got some French macaroons. It was all Sharon's idea which I bought into. And I'm glad I did. I have never had macaroons like this and am absolutely craving it. They were expensive but sooo worth it. We walked towards Champs Elysees from there in order to get to the Arc. It was quite a walk. But it was alright because the view was interesting and nice. We also had crepes along the way. Walking along Champs Elysees is so distracting! I don't think a girl can walk straight down to the Arc without getting distracted by the shops and whatnot. We headed back to the hotel afterwards because they all needed to get ready for the cabaret.

While they were in the cabaret that night, I met up with Anna! We walked all the way to Sacre Coure, which was kind of a walk from where we met up but it was totally worth it. Most amazing view of Paris, in my opinion. I'm so glad we decided to go there. It was totally worth it. Special shout out to you. I apologize for making you late for dinner but I'm glad we got to see each other. I was craving Asian food that night so I had Chinese at a restaurant near our hotel and then I called it a night. It was my last night of travelling and the exhaustion dawned to me.

Back to London tomorrow!

Day 27: Paris, France (Paris Day 1)

Because the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays, our tour manager and tour driver decided that they were gonna do what they call "A Louvre Run" which basically meant that we were going to leave at the crack of dawn in order to get to Paris with enough time to get into the Louvre.

We left Lucerne before the sunrise, at around 6:45. I was asleep for most of the time. The drive would have been gorgeous but it was pretty dreary when we got to Paris. I was sort of disappointed with the drive into Paris. When our tour manager went, "Welcome to Paris", I wasn't really impressed (but I guess it doesn't help that it was the last leg of the trip and it was a dreary day). We went into the Louvre and I got to see Da Vinci's Mona Lisa and few other works of art. I absolutely adore the architecture of the Louvre. To be honest, and don't stone me for this, I was more in love with the architecture of the place than the works of art in it.

We spent about two hours in the Louvre and then we drove down to our hotel and had dinner. There was an included River Seine cruise that evening. Thus, after dinner, the coach drove around the Arc de Triomphe and then took us by the River Seine. On our way to the cruise, we were walking by the Eiffel Tower which is totally way better than the one they have in the Las Vegas Strip. Hahaha.

We rode the river cruise and saw Paris by night. I was totally impressed by it. Paris, in my opinion, is way better at night. The whole aura and mood of the city was just different. It felt more alive at night when the Eiffel Tower was glistening on the hour (as shown in the picture above) than when I saw it that morning. After the River Cruise, we climbed up the Eiffel Tower and saw the city. I loved it. Paris won my hear with how beautiful it looked after the sun went down. Third favorite destination right here.

We went back to the hotel via their metro system which wasn't half bad. Free day in Paris the next day. First in the agenda: Macaroons. Hahaha.