Besides falling sick, there was a bunch of eventful stuff over the past 3 weeks. I moved into my new apartment last week – it’s not perfect, but surely much better than the previous one. I have my own bedroom and closet at last, not to mention balcony (with a pleasant 14^th-storey view of Rotterdam), clothes dryer rack, iron with board, large dining table and 5 chairs, thanks to my flatmates’ reclusive nature and our mutual determination to avoid and ignore each other. Well, no problem, I get to sequester over half the apartment, and besides, they seem pretty comfortable cooped up in their own rooms. One might say I’m adopting the wrong attitude, and I would agree; unfortunately, ignoring them is the best I can do at the moment. May I never have to mention them ever again in future updates. The apartment also comes with an oven, which I’m very grateful for as the option to bake enables a slew of easy meal solutions. I’m less thrilled about the shower – the pressure from the hot water valve seems to be really low, I never feel like I’m really washing myself clean!

Anyway, had this update been posted last week, a major topic would be about the absence of internet (and TV, but I’m not bothered about that) in the new apartment. Internet is not included in the rental contract, and, to cut things short, obtaining a connection would’ve been prohibitively expensive (in my opinion). After contemplating the issue for a few days, I decided I’ll make do with using the internet in school during the daytime. After all, the internet proves to be more of a distraction usually. Still, in my heart, I was fussing about how inconvenient it would be to have to go to school on weekends just to Skype my loved ones. So, I left the matter in God’s hands, since He knows best if internet would be more of a boon or a bane. I’m glad to report that last Thursday while speaking to one of my neighbours, he very kindly offered to share his wireless connection. He lives 2 units down, so the signal is awful, and it’s only active when he has his computer on at night and over the weekend. However, I’m thankful that I’m wired about 4 hours every night and most of the weekend. Now I just need to block sites like Facebook and Youtube!

I had my spring break two weeks back, which afforded me some time to visit the rest of NL, and catch up a little with my schoolwork. I am still rarely able to pay attention and actively follow lectures, so I really need to read up on my own. Anyway, I went to Amsterdam, The Hague, and Kinderdijk, which is a windmill farm. Amsterdam is a very scenic city, largely due to the canals and waterways that break up the monotony of what would otherwise be another dense, hectic European capital, lending it a certain organic quality. I was less impressed with its attractions – it may have the largest number of museums per square metre, but most of these museums appear really rudimentary and lacklustre. My friends and I only spent a day there so we couldn’t really check out most of the attractions, which close around 5pm. It didn’t help that it was a Saturday – the queue at the Anne Frank House was at least an hour long! I will probably visit again on a weekday to see it, along with other missed attractions such as the Rembrandt and Van Gogh museums and the Heineken Brewery.

The Hague was, quite simply, boring. Despite the presence of the ICJ, the Binnenhof, and Madurodam, a miniaturized city, there isn’t really much to see. The main draw for coming back would be its Chinatown (well, China-street, more like, despite being the second largest Chinatown in NL), although a large portion is Chinese Indonesian rather than “authentic Chinese”. Kinderdijk was much better, although it was raining and the windmills weren’t spinning at that time of the year. In any case, I’ve already uploaded what photos I took onto Facebook.

Also, I’d like to thank everyone who has written back to me in one way or another. Although I don’t reply to these, I’m very glad to hear from you guys, especially as I don’t have many opportunities to msn friends back home due to the time difference. I’ve made a couple of friends in rather unexpected ways; and the curious natures of how I met them – too lengthy to describe here, unfortunately – lead me to believe they aren’t due to simple chance. The most interesting must be David, from Papa New Guinea, who has surprisingly stayed in Singapore – Potong Pasir, to be exact – for a few months, and is even thinking of returning there to work if he obtains a diploma. It’s nice that I’ve been able to meet so many people, Dutch and international alike, in the past few weeks. I hope this will continue to be the case even as exams draw nearer! Ok, I’m sure I’ve missed something, but this will have to do for now... take care, everyone!