France Vacation

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

Its been a long time since I updated my blog... Its about time to do something about it... Well, I shall update my blog with my entire 2weeks journal of my trip in France... Happy reading people... I may or may not post pictures of my journey here... If you have Facebook, find me and look at the pictures from there... Enjoy!


JOURNAL ENTRY
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Day 1 – Friday June 12

After sleeping at 4am, I woke up rushing for time. I was suppose to meet my good old pal Yong Sheng at 8.30am, but I woke up at 8.25am... 5mins to get to 302 bus stop.. Reasonable I guess... Rushed off to the bus stop and we took the 302 bus to Yew Tee to meet my other good pal, Nicholas... We went off for breakfast at Yew Tee Point where we had an exceptionally filling meal at Long John Silver... I ordered 2 meals, which explains why I was so full... On the way out, I saw my cousin Esther with her family walking about in Yew Tee Point... Her husband came to chat with me for awhile and soon we left for our separate ways... Nicholas, Yong Sheng and I went to have an ice cream from McDonalds. Soon after that, we bid each other goodbye and soon left for home...

I was supposed to sleep to get used to the timing in France but instead, I ended up playing games, uploading songs to my External Hard Drive and chatting with friends.. Soon enough, evening came... I went off for dinner at Keat Hong with my family... The food quality was not there today... Nonetheless, it was a simple yet filling dinner... Went back home after dinner and I played Lord of the Rings again... Before I could even attack the enemy forces, I had to leave... Shut down my computer and bid my friends goodbye before I rushed out of my house...

Changi Airport was very far from my house and it appeared to be even further when my brother drove... My mind was not with me then, I was thinking of other things... Eventually, I messaged someone... I’m so glad I did... Keeps me happy along the way to the airport... When I reached there, I was greeted upon by my relatives... We chatted awhile before Checking In our luggage... You must first check in using some computer where a lot of people were queuing up… After checking in, we met up with my other relatives as well as my cousin whom I saw in the morning… I chatted with them for awhile before we had to go… As we entered the Duty-Free shopping centre, my family bid us goodbye… I scanned my new biometric passport and moved on… We were window shopping through the Duty-Free shopping centre when suddenly we realized that the Gate was already open, so we decided to go straight to the gate after a short toilet break… Security checks were smooth and fast, we eventually entered a waiting area and soon entered the plane...

The seats on the plane were quite uncomfortable… Not only was it hard, it was slightly small… Even the French guy next to me found it incredibly difficult to fit into… I was glad I could lift up the hand rest for excess space… After a few minutes, the plane started to move and eventually it took off… Dinner onboard the plane was always an unpleasant one for me… The smell of the fish that they serve never fails to turn my stomach inside out… It just turns me off and I lose my appetite immediately… Ordering anything but fish, I said I will just consume a few parts of my meal… Surprisingly, I ate everything but the noodles… Watched ‘Valkrie’ and ‘Yes Man’ before falling asleep… The French guy next to me kept nudging me awake without knowing it… I seriously wanted to ‘accidentally’ knock him out…

~ The plane took off leaving behind half my heart which I gave to you... ~

Day 2 – Saturday June 13

I eventually had an hour of rest before waking up by myself… 12 hours flight seated down is not a good idea… I decided to excuse myself to the washroom… At the same time, I decided to get myself a drink… I drank Perrier but the weird feeling in my stomach did not go off… I decided to get a cup of water but I ended up drinking Indian Tonic… Amazingly, the weird feeling went off and I was 100% alright… Freshened up in the toilet before going back to my seat… Watched ‘Coach Carter’ and soon enough breakfast I was served… I played a lousy version of ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’… The questions revolve around the French culture… I merely made it to 100,000 dollars before I gave up… I played hangman for awhile before the pilot announced that he will begin the descent to the Paris Airport… I turned off the game and proceeded to the front view of the plane which is only available during take-off and landing… I watched the plane touch down from front view… Good landing I’d say…

We left the plane and checked out of the terminal… We walked towards terminal 2D from 2E… Its just 1 kilometer away… Upon arrival, we walked in and waited for our next flight to Bordeaux… We grabbed a sandwich and a drink… The sandwich was delicious… It was the French baguette with fillings inside… I would not mind eating like this for the rest of the journey… After waiting for 3 hours, the plane arrived and we took off for Bordeaux… A short 1hour journey with WIDER and BETTER QUALITY seats… It could be because it was an Airbus… When we reached Bordeaux airport, everything went smoothly… I saw my mum for the first time in 3years… I was so glad to see her… We had to use 2x1Euro coins to be able to use the trolley… Eventually, we managed to get a trolley to push all of our luggage with a total weight of 100kg… When we came out to the open, my mum’s old friend Daniel greeted me with a jab to the shoulder… We exchanged greetings and moved on… He brought along his dog ‘Jay Dee’ which I had no interest… My sister and I took Daniel’s car and my dad took my mum’s car…

The journey to the hotel was long and ridiculous… Daniel led the way to Arcachon but we took the wrong road as he didn’t really trust his GPS… He thought it was outdated and didn’t want to listen to its direction… Eventually, we turned around and followed the GPS… We stopped at the nearest McDonalds for lunch… McDonalds here was terrible… Not only was it expensive, it was also small and not filling at all… We chatted with Daniel outside as he could not bring his dog in… After awhile, we drove back to the hotel… This time, no mistakes were made… Instead, we took a detour that was supposed to get us to the hotel faster… We ended up in a traffic jam and eventually reached the hotel by 3pm… We took some time to check in and moved our stuff up… The hotel was not the 5 star hotel you can imagine… It’s the standard living room with attached kitchen and balcony with sofa, television and kitchen utensils included… The so-called hallway actually consists of my bedroom where I slept alone with all the baggage… There is a toilet in the apartment which is rather small and is ‘conveniently’ located next to my bed… After awhile, we slowly unpacked our stuff and revealed to my mum the various stuff that we bought for her… She merely just asked several questions and tried some consumable stuff…

After awhile, my mum decided to go to Carrefour with my sister and me… Carrefour is not just a standard supermarket just like Singapore’s version… The Carrefour here is like their mega shopping mall… It consists of almost EVERYTHING… Somewhat like the big Giant in the east side of Singapore… After buying some stuff, we left Carrefour for my mums’ home… For the first time, I entered her house and it’s really true when her friend Daniel said ‘she has a lot of stuff’… I felt as if I was walking through a mine field… We took some stuff and I had to be the one carrying them because I was the only guy around… My dad was left back at the hotel where he unpacked everything else…

Dinner in hotel apartment was not really what you would expect… We had Mutton Curry with an extremely large bread… It is really amazing how the people here can just consume such a large bread by itself… I enjoyed my mum’s mutton curry together with the bread… Surprisingly, we ate dinner at 8pm and the sun was still up… My mum told me that the days would last longer during summer… Never did I expect the sun to rise at 5.30am and set at 9.30pm… After dinner, I unpacked some stuff and washed up before turning in… However, I ended up not being able to sleep as I am always used to sleeping at 2-4am… I played Orochi Warriors on the PSP before getting bored of the storyline as I have already completed the game on my PS2… I tossed and turned on my bed for awhile before falling asleep…

~ It was only a day overseas and yet I have already missed you… ~

Day 3 – Sunday June 14

I woke up to a bright start due to the early sun… However, it was not as early as I thought… It was already 7.30am and church would start at 8.30am… I got ready by changing and eating the butter cake we bought from Carrefour before rushing off to church which was a good 20mins away… We entered on time and followed the mass in French… The only thing that keeps me awake and interested in church is the storyline… Without subtitles or any familiar language, I was totally turned off and became bored… After church, we were supposed to rush back to my mums’ apartment for her friend to ‘fix’ the television… Instead, my mum and sister went to the Sunday Flea Market and bought themselves some stuff… I tried to avoid the glancing stares from the French people… When we reached her home, I tried to fix her television for her… Apparently, her television has ‘mood swings’… When it feels like revealing the television screen, it does so… We kept turning on and off the television with the screen showing the program only once or twice… My mums friend came, saw the television, tried to fix the television, couldn’t fix the television, apologized for not being able to fix it, claimed that he will call the serviceman to help fix it and left… Somehow, he failed to call the service repairman… Nonetheless, my mum trusts him, so Ill let it be…

We went back to the hotel apartment, my dad had already steamed rice for us to consume with the mutton curry… You might find it quite nice and filling to consume mutton curry but it becomes quite a turn off if you eat it for two days straight… After dinner, we sat down and watched the television for awhile we couldn’t understand a thing they said but it was alright... Action speaks louder than words I guess… I got bored of watching the television and before long, we were out of the apartment and walking along the nearby beach… It’s not really far, about 5-10mins walk away, but we took my mums car instead… She drove us uphill and near some woods where we took a short stroll before reaching the beach… It started to drizzle but we took some photos… We got back in the car and traveled along the main road before parking near the same beach but slightly further down… This time, we took a longer stroll since the drizzling had stopped… We arrived at a café and settled down for some bread and drinks… They served a nice dish which was bread with hotdog coated with cheese and tomato sauce… I loved it a lot… The flavor was brilliant… Come to think of it, it actually tasted somewhat like pizza…

After tea, we took a short stroll around the roadside stores before proceeding back to the car… My mum drove us to Carrefour again but this time, we went to eat dinner at an Asian restaurant which was called ‘Delicies Asie’… It was Asian Buffet at the cost of 15,90€ per person… Yes, the prices here separate dollars and cents using a comma and not a dot… The variety was limited to approximately 100+ dishes but all were of poor quality… It doesn’t even taste Asian... The taste must have been altered to fit the French… After dinner, we proceeded back to the hotel where I showered before playing my PSP till 2-3am again…

~ Was kept awake thinking of you… My nights grew longer, my days grew shorter… ~

Day 4 – Monday June 15

Monday morning, I woke up with a shock… I saw my watch and it showed me 3pm… I got up immediately and rushed off to wash up and asked my parents what they have for the day… It was then that I realized my watch was still in Singapore time and that it is only 9am in the morning… Without delay, breakfast was prepared… Maggie Noodles in the morning, what a feat… My mum decided that we should go out… Of all places, Carrefour again… She drove there and upon reaching, we went to Crescendo, a subway like café… We enjoyed a cheap and simple meal before entering Carrefour… We then left for home where I borrowed the games Scrabble and Monopoly from the hotel counter… We went up and enjoyed the game of Monopoly… Its not really very tedious because they have this credit card system… So the banker just has to add money and remove money from each player’s card… A very simple yet tedious concept since I was both player AND banker… Soon enough, my dad and I got tired of playing and we kept the entire set to clear the table for dinner… Dinner was another simple meal, home cooked ‘herbal chicken’ with rice… The meal tasted quite bad and was quite a turn off… In the end, we realized that we did not cook herbal chicken, we used 2 packets of Bah Kut Teh spices to cook with the chicken… I felt glad that I was not greedy enough to consume the entire chicken… After which I took out the PSP and started ‘reading my bedtime storybook’…

~ There is so much I’d like to tell you, yet so little things I can say… ~

Day 5 – Tuesday June 16

This morning, I took a walk along the beach with my family again… This time, it was much warmer, much brighter and definitely not very pleasant… My sister started to cough and had the flu again… She is always like that, getting down with flu and the irritating cough… It just highlights the fact that I would most probably be quarantined on my first week back from France… No doubt I would be enjoying an extended holiday but I need to study and keep up with my work… I’m not exactly scoring my best for the time being... I need to get back on track...

After the walk at the beach, my dad decided my sister should stay back at the hotel with him due to her cough and flu... I went out with my mum to another Mega Shopping Mall called Hyper-U… It’s somewhat like Carrefour but with some slight difference in prices and variety of stuff... Its quite a sight but my mum loved shopping so much, she practically didn’t realize that and hour or so had passed while I had to tolerate the long boring hour standing and looking around at things that didn’t appeal to me in any sense... We soon took off for the hotel with some cough medicine from a local Pharmacy... my sister’s cough and flu didn’t get any better... It just seems to get worse and worse... In the end, we settled down for dinner with some seafood which we bought from Hyper-U as well as the REAL Bah Kut Teh with pork ribs... I guess the dinner had an effect on my sister’s cough and flu... It got so much worse, she started complaining that she could not breathe properly... I kept insisting its all in her mind but she refused to control her thinking and breathe easy... I ended up playing Scrabble with my father while she tries to calm down... Bad enough, she did not calm down but started to panic instead... We then suggested bringing her to the hospital since the clinics were not open at night... In fact, all shops close at 7pm except restaurants and eateries which also had a time limit of 11pm... My sister was brought to the hospital while my parents left me at my mum’s house where I was suppose to look after the washing and drying of the clothes... Using the washing machine and dryer, I managed to escape the tedious work and used the computer instead... Went online and very few people was online due to the fact that it was 11pm in France and 5am in Singapore... I soon got bored of using the computer and transferred the clothing from the washing machine to the dryer before proceeding to my mum’s room to get some rest on the bed... My parents came to pick me up at around 2-3am and we proceeded back to the hotel... I changed and went to bed with 5-10mins lag due to the fact that I slept in my mum’s house...

~ A twinkle of hope but turns out to be a reflection of light... ~

Day 6 – Wednesday June 17

Early in the morning at about 8am, I was nudged awake by my mum who told me to follow her to check out her old car... I stumbled out of bed realizing that I slept for 4 hours... Thinking about it, it’s not as bad compared to the fact that I used to sleep less than that... Just wondering why I felt so tired... I took a shower and ate some bread... Over breakfast, I asked my mum what happened to my sister... It seems she has asthma but it just means the same thing as thinking to much and losing control of her own breathing... That is, after all, what Asthma is all about... My mum and I took off in her Mercedes to her house where her old (and small) Renault sat quietly... We took the small car out for a ride to the mechanic because her petty buyer was complaining that there was a small tiny winy crack on the right headlight... The buyer was Singaporean and ‘asked’ my mum to use her insurance to cover the cost... Apparently, my mum’s insurance could not cover the full cost, so my mum decided not to do anything about it... I guess the buyer would be damn pissed off to hear that... Oh well, ‘take it or leave it’ I’d say... Since we didn’t fix the problem, it merely took us 10-15mins at the repair store... So we decided to drive around ‘looking’ at stores again... I nearly went back to sleep in one store...

Soon enough, my mum and I ate at an Indian restaurant... The Indian taste was still in touch, the flavors were still there and the spiciness is still burning... Good food at last... I paid for the meal and we left the restaurant... My mum drove back to the hotel while I bought two sets of baguette sandwich meals back for my dad and sister... Surprisingly, her cough and flu went down together with the asthma... I ended up playing scrabble with my dad again before we proceeded for dinner...

Dinner was an easy Asian meal at a Vietnamese restaurant... We have been to the restaurant a few times before as we stayed in a little beach cottage nearby during my last trip to France... The food was as good as usual and the service was still as friendly and kind... Hard to find waiters like these nowadays... After which we took a walk along the beach before proceeding back to the hotel where I watched television before sleeping...

~ If I brought you around the world and showed you its wonders, will you change your mind? ~

Day 7 – Thursday June 18

Today I woke up when the sun was still down... 5am and I started playing my PSP... Soon enough, the sun rose and my family started to wake up one by one... I grew sleepy instead... We showered and left for McDonalds for breakfast before proceeding to the Thursday Flea Market which sold cheap stuff at, well, cheap prices... We didn’t see much before the clock hit 12noon which meant lunch time... During lunch hours, 12noon to 2.30pm, majority of the stores would be closed for lunch except supermarkets, restaurants and food outlets... For lunch today, we ate lunch at some dining outlet near my mum’s home... My dad and I ordered beef while my mum and sister ordered duck... The beef was terrible but the duck was exceptionally delicious... Bad call I guess... I can’t really recall the name of the store but I call it the Big Black Dog Restaurant as there was a big black dog which the restaurant owner kept as a pet... After lunch, we proceeded next door to purchase 2 baguette for tomorrow’s breakfast... We went back to my mum’s house and I played around with Facebook as well as chat with some of my friends online before letting my sister use the computer... Before long, it was dinner time (7pm)... We went back to the hotel where my mum cooked some random dishes which tasted alright... After which, I went to play PSP before turning in...

~ The nights grew colder but my flame grew stronger for you, for me… ~

Day 8 – Friday June 19

Today my mum went to work... So I get to sleep longer... In fact, I’m proud to say I slept a total of 10hours from 12midnight to 10am... I woke up to eat my ‘sandwich’ which my dad made using the baguette together with ham and cheese as well as egg mixed with mayonnaise... The whole day was wasted with me planning ahead for what souvenirs to buy as the prices here were INCREDIBLY EXPENSIVE! Yes people, its expensive so please appreciate it if you got yourselves a gift from me... The prices here are just the same as Singapore except in Euro currency... Before long, I almost planned everything out and got bored... I ended up playing my PSP for the entire day...

Dinner was a very delicious meal at an ALL OUT AMERICAN restaurant called ‘Westerner’... It’s not really all out American, only the food was... I ate mixed grill which pretty much had EVERYTHING on it... Nice and filling meal together with entertainment after dinner with the French people line dancing away through the night... I could only laugh quietly thinking ‘So this is where everyone disappears to after 7pm’... This is very true... After 7pm, everyone goes for dinner and the entire Arcachon is like a Ghost town... Totally deserted... After dinner, we proceeded back to the hotel whereby I was told to have an early night as tomorrow we will be heading for a road trip quite far away at 8am... So I decided NOT to play my PSP for tonight...

~ This is not a holiday… It’s a long painful trip away from you… ~

Day 9 – Saturday June 20

Today will be a short entry... Today, I woke up at 7am to get ready to meet the entire group of people proceeding to Remy Martin’s Cognac Factory... We went to McDonalds as the meeting point and consumed breakfast... We took a long 3hours journey to the factory... When we arrived near the place, we got a little lost due to all the French signboards... We eventually found the place and toured around the area taking some photos in the process... Soon enough, we left for lunch at some nearby place... The lunch was FANTASTIC... I ate duck and enjoyed it a lot... Well cooked and tender... You have to taste it to know it... After lunch, we proceeded to another Cognac Factory belonging to Hennesy taking some photos in the process... We then traveled another 3hours back to Arcachon before we went our separate ways... Dinner was my recommendation to the Indian Restaurant... We tried different menus and grew liking to my curry... It was butter masala curry... Delicious, creamy and not so spicy... After dinner, we proceeded back to the hotel for a good rest... As usual, I proceeded to play my PSP before turning in...

~ All I want is for you to be happy and smiling forever... ~

Day 10 – Sunday June 21

Another short entry... Sunday morning, I woke up at 10am... Today I decided NOT to go to church... I felt like a fool in church the last Sunday so I decided not to go there again today... I had plain porridge for breakfast... My mum and sister went to church and came back around 1pm plus... We hang around in the hotel for sometime before my sister and I went to the first storey of the hotel to play table-tennis... Quite fun I’d say... We went up before dinner time to bathe and came out in time for dinner... We had curry and rice again... This time, it was pork and curry... After dinner, my mum was restless and we went to my mum’s apartment before she drove out to give away some souvenirs we brought for her to give to her friends... My mum and sister gave away the souvenirs while I stayed in my mum’s house tending to the laundry again... I ended up going online and chatting away... Before long, my mum came back and told me about the street concerts that were going on... I was glad I didn’t go... Apparently it was the French Music Festival and the locals were flocking the streets to see the music performance which music amateurs played the night away... It seems that they had until 11pm to do what they had to do... On the journey home, my mum was looking for food outlets to buy back for supper... Apparently none of the stores were open or willing to sell us any food... We went back empty handed and tired... Again, I played my PSP before going back to sleep... It’s starting to become a habit I guess...

~ Why must I endure? Why not give up for someone else? Because its love… ~

Day 11 – Monday June 22

This morning I had a weird delicacy for breakfast... It was Spaghetti... It kind of made me too full for lunch... Oh who am I lying to, I eventually had lunch at Crescendo again... We then went to Hyper-U to buy some groceries for the next few days... This time, we managed to focus more on souvenirs... It gave me more ideas of what souvenirs to buy but I guess I manage to settle down for some... After calculating and lots of thinking through, I came up to a list of 25 people... I am so going to be broke... After Hyper-U, we moved on to Carrefour... Again, we looked out for good products for souvenirs... Chocolate seems to be a hot favorite... After going through the souvenir hunt, we proceeded to my mum’s house where I rushed through some survey which CCKSS sent me to complete... It was actually quite simple and I gave my best thoughts and comments to it... Took me almost 30mins... Dinner was simply curry, egg, calamari rings, herbal chicken and fragrant rice... It was simple yet filling... The day soon became dark and it meant PSP time... Warriors Orochi is getting more interesting and boring at the same time...

~ Even far away from you, I can hear your voice, your call, your flame... ~

Day 12 – Tuesday June 23

Early in the morning, I realized that day by day, I have been getting long hours of rest but keep waking up tired the next morning... Today was no exception... Nonetheless, I moved on to eat butter cake and some leftover bread from yesterday... I slacked the entire day trying to transfer and elaborate all my Journal notes to the computer by typing... Very tedious process but it’s my own laziness that caused this stack up of work...

Lunch came early today... It was fried rice with Chinese sausage... My mum just loves to cook... It’s the same thing in Singapore... I just pity all the leftovers that went bad and had to be thrown away... After lunch, I played scrabble with my mum and dad... My sister gave up half-way saying that it was too difficult...

The simple game of scrabble ended and we drove out to find more good souvenirs but to no avail... We ended up playing bowling... My sister doesn’t know how to play bowling and I realized that my bowling skills had also dropped... I couldn’t even lift a 12-pound ball properly... I figured its time to buff myself up again... (Ernest, you may have a new gym partner soon) We went off to a nearby pond where some fishermen were busy fishing... They look professional but I was no one to judge... After awhile, ducks started to move over from a small lake to the pond... They traveled in one straight line... They were really cute...

Dinner was at Asie Gourmete which was supposed to mean Asia Gourmet... It was buffet styled Asian food... The quality was just as bad as the other Asian buffet... However, the quantity and variety was much better... At least here, the dessert looked appealing... I enjoyed myself to a few rounds of dessert... I just love lychee and vanilla ice cream... Especially since they are somewhat free-flow... After dinner, we bobbled back to the hotel in my mum’s Mercedes... I took a short shower before turning in... I woke up an hour later only to realize everyone was still ‘getting ready for bed’... I then started playing PSP until 2-3am... I finally got back the Level 99 Nobunaga Oda...

~ Life is full of unexpected surprises... I wish to deliver you with pleasant surprises every single day of your life... ~

Day 13 – Wednesday June 24

Today, I felt rested for the first time in the entire vacation... After counting backwards, I realized that I slept for 10hours... Guess it really helped if you put your mind into it... Branch (breakfast + lunch) was the butter cake again... The cake is actually quite delicious but if you eat it too often, it will start to lose its effect... Somewhat like rice... Eat it everyday and it will slowly lose the taste...

My mum cooked chicken curry and sweet noodles for lunch actually but I preferred to eat the butter cake as it is more convenient... My mum came back from her hairdresser and took me and my sister out... First place she brought us to was McDonalds... I was speechless because there was still chicken curry and sweet noodles at the hotel... So we just ate the McDonalds meal and left for Auchan, another supermarket... This time, Auchan actually had cheaper and more reasonable prices... I started to target some chocolates for souvenirs... There were a lot of people at Auchan... It’s not the fact that it’s very popular, it is because the French summer sale had just begun...

Dinner was at the hotel because I insisted that we finish the chicken curry and sweet noodles instead of throwing it away... The chicken curry was warmed up and together with the sweet noodles, it tasted incredibly different... Nonetheless, we did not complete the curry and noodles and had to throw away the remainder... After dinner, at around 9pm, I decided to go out to take pictures of the sunset... My dad and sister tagged along while my mum stayed at home to rest... I took some pictures of the sun setting and watched some old fishermen chat at one corner of the jetty... They smiled at us and continued to chat... There was this rather young guy who had good equipment and appeared quite professional but turned out otherwise... He was very clumsy and bad at fishing that the old fishermen kept laughing at him... Another fisherman came to the jetty as well, he appeared calm with good equipment set... True enough, he did his job swiftly and caught a few big fishes before we left... I figured that the old men fished to pass time while the young man was learning how to fish... After the sunset walk, we turned back and went back to the hotel where I watched a show called Fringe... Very interesting... It’s all about weird scientific stuff... After the show, I went to bed and played PSP for awhile... Managed to get the third weapon for many characters in Orochi Warriors... I’m dying to play Orochi Warriors 2 (English Version) on my PSP... Maybe I might go all out to even buying the game...

~ My days revolve around the thought of you... It keeps me calm, keeps me alive, keeps me awake... ~

Day 14 – Thursday June 25

After a few hours of sleep, I woke up and had butter cake for breakfast again... I totally lost the want to eat it... After awhile, we left the house to put the laundry in the washing machine... I was brought to a cheap shop called Netto... I bought a few good souvenirs here... The things are good and cheap but like Sheng Siong, the ‘fresh’ products are not really fresh... So we bought canned and packaged products...

Eventually, we moved on to some Home Deco store... It was full of reasonably priced items... I was hoping to find more souvenirs for my friends but failed to do so... In the end, I found a corner in the store which sells ‘adult stuff’... Now, I merely just saw it and turned away... Don’t think otherwise...

Lunch was a delicious meal at some fancy restaurant across the Home Deco store... I had roasted beef and it was delicious... They even put the beef shank there together with steamed onions in olive oil... It was very delicious as it came together with buffet salad which I tried every single dish... Some were too sour, too sweet and both at the same time... There wasn’t a single dish that was simply just nice... After the main course, we were served cheese of different flavors... They all STINK! Almost felt like puking... After chucking the cheese one side, we had ice cream... It was quite heavenly despite the fact that we had cheese before that...

We then moved on to my mum’s place to dry the clothes before we came back to the hotel... I spent the entire afternoon typing in all my notes from my small book into Microsoft Words... Dinner came by car… My mum went to the Indian restaurant and packed dinner for us… 2 Cheese naan, fragrance rice and 2 different flavored curries... Simple yet delicious meal... By the time we finished eating, time became tight as my entire family started to pack up and get ready our stuff for Saturday... We packed up nicely and with the help of the vacuum bag, we managed to stuff a lot of stuff into one luggage...

After the entire process, I was about to reach 9pm... My dad suggested the sunset walk again and soon, we were back at the jetty taking photos and enjoying the sunset... One of the fisherman who was there yesterday came back to fish again... After the sunset, we drove over to an Irish Pub where we drank non-alcoholic cocktails while my mum enjoyed her warm cup of cappuccino... The night was young but we decided it was time to leave... I quickly took the free bread they gave us and hid it under my jacket as we left the place... Back in the hotel, I ate the bread before proceeding to start the WEI Orochi Warriors story...

~ Throughout all the fun times I had, there was always a portion deep in my mind that kept thinking of you... How long will it last? How much more can I take? ~

Day 15 – Friday June 26

Today, I woke up near noon... My family was busy packing away their stuff while I ate my breakfast... Instant noodles for breakfast... Not really what you would expect in the French country... It was supposed to be my lunch actually... Nonetheless, I ate quickly and cleared up the mess before getting ready to leave the house with my mum and sister...

We first went to Lidl, a convenience store which sold stuff at reasonably good prices... I got A LOT of souvenirs from here... After paying the prices and leaving, we went to my mum’s home where I stayed behind to use the computer AND look after the laundry work... Up till now, I am still using the computer and uploading pictures in FACEBOOK and soon, this entry will be posted on my blog... Dinner will be at Westerner again... Enjoy!

~ Thoughts of you all over my head... Although going home does not mean seeing you, I just feel much closer to you... It just makes glad to be home I guess... ~

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End of Journal Entry

Thats all folks... Do look out for my pictures on Facebook! I leave you with a song which kept repeating itself in my head during my trip as well as during O-levels period... Good and meaningful lyrics especially at times like this...

Lucky - Jason Mraz (feat. Colbie Caillat)

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Do you hear me,
I'm talking to you
Across the water across the deep blue ocean
Under the open sky, oh my, baby I'm trying
Boy I hear you in my dreams
I feel your whisper across the sea
I keep you with me in my heart
You make it easier when life gets hard

I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again
Ooohh ooooh oooh oooh ooh ooh ooh ooh

They don't know how long it takes
Waiting for a love like this
Every time we say goodbye
I wish we had one more kiss
I'll wait for you I promise you, I will

I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again
Lucky we're in love every way
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed
Lucky to be coming home someday

And so I'm sailing through the sea
To an island where we'll meet
You'll hear the music fill the air
I'll put a flower in your hair
Though the breezes through trees
Move so pretty you're all I see
As the world keeps spinning round
You hold me right here right now

I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again
I'm lucky we're in love every way
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed
Lucky to be coming home someday

Signing out,

~ Joseph