Let me begin by.. I can’t stand the cliché statement ‘music plays an important part in my life’. I mean, in whose life does it not??

I’ve always been a bit picky with the kind of music I like to listen to. But there really is only one broad criterion I go by: it has to be happy or FUN!

I basically only listen to tunes that are very melodic, happy-sounding, or upbeat. I love quirky sounds and if you had a look at my current playlist, you’ll probably only recognise one or two names at most. I don’t have a favourite band but I enjoy a variety of small/lesser-known ones (I can’t stand pop music or anything that’s on the Billboard top whatever).

DANCING MAKES ME HAPPY

And as long as the music invokes in me a happy feeling, I will dance! There’s not much in life that I love more than dancing to my favourite tunes. I can dance for hours. Until my toes are blistered (this happened in Tanzania) or until there is no music left other than what’s in my head and I’m seen bopping around to silence (this happened in Portugal).

I have no qualms about dancing to music that other people cannot hear. Once, I was awarded the prize for ‘best dancer’ at a silent disco competition (on a Monday morning). This meant I snagged a trip for two to Las Vegas – where of course I attended a dance music festival so that I could dance even more!

Since a lot of the music I love is more on the obscure side, I tend to indulge myself using earphones if I’m out in public. There’s pretty much no chance that I’d catch my happy songs at an event/party/bar/club – sometimes, I jam my earphones in even if there’s already music playing around me (that I don’t like).

SO, because I’m stupid and a bit slow to the game, I finally got my first pair of noise-cancelling headphones a couple of months ago! They’re a beautiful pair of Libratone Q Adapt On-Ear headphones.

I’ve been travelling with them all  over South-East Asia. I really don’t know why I never thought to get a pair earlier. On flights, they are a LIFESAVER. They help block out the crying babies and I can listen to my music (or movies) SO MUCH BETTER.

Obviously, I’ve also been dancing with them..

Dancing at a flower festival where I didn’t like the music playing at the event

As now I am *WIRELESS*, haha.

My life just got a lot better  😎

The only thing I can’t do is jerk my head around too much. I’ve tried it (got too excited) and the headphones swung right off and I looked like an idiot.

I pack them in my backpack together with my camera and laptop. It comes in a really neat case!

The outline of the little bird LIGHTS UP and glows when it’s on. I love anything that lights up!

As this was my first pair, I can’t compare it with other types of noise-cancelling headphones, but I can tell you that I love them. They have a sleek, clean design and they work wonders. There are three levels of noise-cancelling you can choose from – I didn’t even realise that such technology existed  😮

I especially love them because they enable me to enjoy my fun tunes more often. Which means more dancing. And more happiness!

Leaving you with two little videos of me.. dancing 😀 :

*this post was created in collaboration with Libratone

The post How Music Makes Me Happy appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

Since I relocated to Portugal, I have been lazy. Or lazier.

It’s mostly because being here serves as downtime from travelling. When I was in London I’d suffer from FOMO (fear of missing out) as there were so many things happening – so much to be curious about and so much to.. eat! I’d end up exhausted a lot.. but happy and full, haha.

Here in Porto I’ve had the opportunity to really just be a slob. I’ve realised that I like staying in too! I mean, life is slow here. I get the opportunity to just BE. No big-city things to lure me out! I live a very relaxed home life.. on the sofa.

Luckily for me, I actually love the sofa in our apartment. It’s not the most trendy looking and it certainly wouldn’t be called  a quirky nor cool piece of furniture; in fact it’s not even colourful at all – it’s boring flat navy blue – but it’s comfy and home to many fond (and not-so-fond) memories of my time in Porto. The best one being..

IT’S WHERE I FELL IN LOVE WITH RICARDO

This may or may not be old news to you, but Ricardo and I met via trusty ol’ Tinder a couple of summers back when I was spending a month in Porto with my friend Emma. I came here a lot before I moved over (it’s really a lot more fun as a tourist).

Anyway, when we met he appeared with a big beard. I didn’t and don’t like beards. Hence, we stayed just-friends. And when I returned on my regular pilgrimage a few months later, Ricardo kindly offered me a place to stay in his apartment (now mine!!! 😆 ok ours..). Oh hey just realised that I spent my first night at this apartment on the aforementioned sofa!

Back to the story though. So we spent a nice few days together. Getting closer and stuff. We had wine. He made bland soup (why do Europeans like to blend their soup into baby food?). We sunbathed on the terrace. We went swimming at the beach in winter weather. He talked about bicycles a lot. I zoned out a lot.

On the day that I was leaving, the button on my pants (or trousers; whatever) fell off. As I retrieved it from the floor, I was mentally resigning to the fact that I would never wear those pants again. It was the end. The button was gone – what could I do?? What DOES one do with buttonless pants? Do not answer this question.

The next thing I knew, Ricardo, 21st-century domestic superhero, whips out his FULL SIZED SEWING KIT (the big plastic box kind with lots of multi-sized compartments containing a variety of sewing things) and saves my pants from a lifetime of uselessness in my Pile of Broken Clothes. He even picked out the matching thread colour.

It may sound like a menial task, but there sat a fully grown man on the sofa, repairing my pants with a needle and thread that came from his own cupboard. I watched over his shoulder like a child being impressed by some basic thing.

I mean.. he was a man who could sew (and cook)! Isn’t that rare in today’s society?? I thought so anyway. I couldn’t help but reach out to hug him in appreciation.. and affection. It was in that moment that I decided I would try to look past the beard.

Luckily for me, Ricardo shaved it off completely not long after and he has kept it off to this day. Phew! It’s really a lot easier for me to get close to someone without having to think about tackling a jungle of wiry hair.

I don’t have any photos of that special moment (I was too busy hugging). I have some other ones of us jazzing up our boring but beloved sofa. The sofa which has been the centrepiece of our home and relationship since I started living here more permanently  🙂

He’s so happy he’s found his playmate! That’s what I like to think..
Reality: I made him sit there and hold my plane.

We don’t own a TV (I haven’t owned one myself since 2011) and so we find other ways to entertain ourselves! I prefer that the primary purpose of sitting on the sofa not be to look at a screen.

You know what’s funny? I had the exact same sofa seven years ago at my flat in London when I lived with my ex-boyfriend (in a world with IKEA..). Except that sofa-time there was always hand-in-hand with TV-time. It was boring and terrible and frustrating.

The frame on the wall behind us displays a vintage map of Malaysia (just the peninsular area) – my home country. Around it is my travel hoop. It’s foldable. I don’t use it much. I just like to look at it. But sometimes I take it out, because it’s nice to look at with a different background.

If I had the rest of my toys and props and travel souvenirs brought over from my London emporium (read: self storage container).. that wall would be SUFFOCATED!

Not only can he sew – he can also cut perfect watermelon slices.

The sofa really is the only place we have in our living room to relax. We mostly sit there after lunch to enjoy an ice-cream or some fruit together. Sweet things taste sweeter when there is someone else ingesting the sweet things with you. They say it is the taste of love..  😯

Sometimes we cuddle and nap a little. Other times, we have deep conversations about life. Like about how chickens have sex and whether insects can close their eyes (no they can’t – they don’t have eyelids).

With blankets it is easy to hide the fact that no pants (like trousers, not knickers) are being worn

Sometimes we pretend to do work on our laptops. Mostly it is me pretending and Ricardo actually doing something productive. He’s a lot more motivated than I am.

Sometimes he makes me feel better by watching mindless YouTube videos out loud so that I am aware that he, too, is wasting time. Usually it is the sound of a Brazilian guy speaking very enthusiastically in a most irritating way about something mysterious, because my Portuguese is terrible.

Him: Have you pressed the shutter yet?
Me: Stay there and keep looking at me.

Sometimes, we fight. In fact, we fought on this sofa moments before this picture was taken. Something about not pressing the shutter quickly enough..

If we fight in the bedroom, one of us usually comes to the sofa for refuge. If that person is me, Ricardo likes to follow suit and try to get me to ‘talk about it’. But if that person is him, I usually prefer to enjoy my newfound peace and extra bed space.

Unless he appeases me with a foot massage..

Isn’t this what boyfriends are for?

In short: I love our sofa. It’s BIG and spacious and I love hanging out on it. I love hanging out on it most with a glass of wine and Ricardo on it. The sofa makes our home feel like home. 

If I had a cat it would be even better. But I’m not allowed to have a cat.. (travel problems!) so I have Chestnut – that smiley little brown thing in all the photos. He doesn’t need to be fed and he sits still for the camera.

What do you love about your sofa?

This post is in conjunction with DFS but all thoughts are my own.
Visit their website to find out more about their great range of DFS Sofas

The post Why I Love My Sofa (When I’m Not Travelling)! appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

STARTING 2015 IN SPAIN & FRANCE

After having spent Christmas 2014 in Porto, I continued on to Granada, Spain. My friends, Fytra, Reena, and Flo met me there from London. Ricardo, whose family are from Granada, played host and tour guide to us. We went snowboarding at Sierra Nevada,  visited the Alhambra, watched flamenco, went to a choir show, and had a seafood paella cooked and eaten outdoors at a rustic old country house courtesy of Ricardo’s parents.

We counted down the to 2015 whilst stuffing ourselves with 12 grapes – 1 per second during the last 12 seconds of 2014 – as per the Spanish tradition. This was HARD! AND you’re meant to make one wish with every grape you consumed. I could barely fit them in my mouth once I reached #4, what more think about what I wanted in life. By the time the clock struck midnight I had grape juice dripping down to my neck.

On January 2, I jetted off to Paris to spend a few days with another close friend of mine, Melissa. We had the best time goofing around at Mama Shelter Paris, where we stayed, and spent most of our time wandering around the city and lounging at some pretty cool spots. She introduced me to Bella, who was at acting school in Paris. The three of us laughed SO MUCH! The year was certainly getting off to a good start.

A LITTLE ACCIDENT & A BIT OF ROMANCE…

On impulse, only a couple of weeks after returning from Paris, I decided to go to Chamonix for some awesome snowboarding. Or what I thought would be awesome. In the end, I broke three of my ribs..

I don’t regret going, however!

Bottom left: atop Arrabida Bridge in Porto / Bottom right: in Aveiro, Portugal

Feeling rather poorly from the pain meds I was prescribed for my cracked ribs, I caught a flight to Porto – as you know, a city close to my heart. I got to spend more time with a friend of mine, Ricardo, whom I’d met the year before while on an extended summer holiday there, and kind of fell in love with him in the process. Well not kinda, I did fall in love with him – I even missed my flight back to London on purpose! But that’s a story for another post 🙂

LONDON LIFE

Eventually, I had to return to London, where I caught up with work.. and finally went to see the annual pillow fight that takes place at Trafalgar Square!

Ricardo also paid me a short and sweet visit, during which time I fell for him even more, but I didn’t have too much time to miss him before starting my next big trip.

ROUND THE WORLD IN 3 WEEKS

I had a lot of flights to catch. First – to Singapore and Malaysia to visit family, then onto Los Angeles, to New York City, and then back to London. Not forgetting stopovers in Tokyo and Iceland.

Malaysia was a food haven as usual. It was great to see my family again after so long. It’s always great to see them. This was also the last time I got to see my sister together with my family, as she left for the states in August to start at university.

The pic of the trees on the right was taken from my front garden. My mom loves plants and so our house is filled with all sorts of greenery.
Left is a pic of our national dish, ‘nasi lemak’, which my mom prepared. She cooks this pretty much every time I’m home.

After a food-filled week, it was time to visit LA for the first time and I was excited.

I spent the first couple of days at an Airbnb in Los Feliz, wandering around by myself. I did a hiking tour of Griffith Park which I loved. My beautiful friend Pamela took me to Universal Studios and to what she told me was the original chicken & waffles restaurant – this was amazing.

I got to live my childhood dream of walking along Venice Beach on the boardwalk, watching people at the skate park, and I even got a little surf session in. I also discovered Hawaiian poke salad – SO GOOD. You must look this up if you don’t know it!

Best of all, I got to hang out with some of my favourite people from the travel world – Calan (who came from Dubai), Lola (who came from Boston), MaryAnneBeen, and Arnette. Memorable moment – ogling at slinky gogo dancers at The Abbey.

NYC HERE I COME!

Some people were surprised to hear this, but it was my first time to NYC and naturally.. I was so. so. excited. I was especially looking forward to meeting Anna for the first time. She’d managed to hook me up with an apartment in Hell’s Kitchen – an amazing location.

Anna was an absolute joy to be with. She made such a big effort showing me around. We did loads – the Staten Island ferry, Times Square on superhero day (we dressed up), dollar pizza (had to be tried), the Highline, partying at a rooftop bar, the lobster boat tour, a Sofarsounds gig in Brooklyn, boozy Sunday brunch, and a sunny picnic at Washington Square Park. I can safely say that Anna is the best person I’ve met in 2015 – what an inspiration and such good energy.

I also met Cha Nel, a fellow travel blogger. We spent a day at Smorgasburg Market in Brooklyn trying out a few things including the very hyped ramen burger (it was ooookay). The races were going on so we went to a bar to have mint juleps (apparently it is the thing to do), followed by ice cream, and a chilly walk across Brooklyn Bridge. What a beautiful day it was – thanks Cha Nel!

LONDON AGAIN…

By this time, it was already May and I started to miss Ricardo, so he came over and we spent a blissful ten days together. My favourite moment was a dreamy afternoon laid on the grass amongst hundreds of daisies at Regents Park, bathed in the springtime glow created by sunshine filtered through wisps of cloud in the sky. Well, there were many favourite moments.

The weather was starting to warm and London was a lot of fun with my friends after he left, which helped a lot!

SUMMER IN PORTO

Not long after, I found myself back in Porto. It was Ricardo’s birthday. We went to Primavera Sound Festival on the day, and we had a picnic with friends.

There were a few visits to the beach too, of course. Being in Porto is always easy – life slows down and there’s more time to enjoy the little things. Also, I don’t get FOMO like in London (haha) since there’s just a lot less happening!

Before I knew it, it was time to pack for yet another big trip across the Atlantic..

VEGAS FOR ELECTRIC DAISY CARNIVAL!

Joyce flew in from Malaysia and we were off to Vegas – both our first times. The flight there felt like we were on a bus; it was full of noisy, drunk people. What you see in the movies is true! At one point people got so drunk that they had to stop serving alcohol for a while.

We were meeting a few friends there for Electric Daisy Carnival, a huge, crazy, electronic dance festival held in the Nevada desert. I’m not a big fan of rave music, but I wanted to see all those lights after watching a promo video of the festival last year. And it was amazing. We partied hard. I ended up in hospital for dehydration – thank you Dani Blanchette for rescuing me.

Joyce and I then got a Camaro and went on a road trip, covering Zion and Bryce National Parks, Page, Antelope Canyon, Horseshoe Bend, and The Grand Canyon.

Top: Horseshoe Bend / Bottom: The Grand Canyon

We climbed up Angel’s Landing (one of the most fun hikes I’ve ever done – so hot though) and hiked The Narrows. We watched the stars and listened to wild coyotes in our isolated Airbnb at the Grand Canyon National Park. We drove into a what seemed like an eternally purple sunset as we headed back towards Las Vegas.

Best moment: Arriving at the Grand Canyon at dusk.

Worst moment: Not knowing where we parked our car after a sweltering descent from Angel’s Landing, at 45 degrees Celcius. I’d never felt such heat before.

Notable moment: Missing our flight back to London because we spent too much time at a sex shop. To our credit, it was an ‘award-winning sex shop’.

SUMMER IN PORTO PART 2

Lots of people decided to visit Porto in 2015 because of me (ahem), and Joyce was one of them. Of course, knowing that she would be in the pretty city meant that *I* wanted to be there at the same time. And so we continued our big summer adventure relaxing with good seafood and wine and a customary trip to the beach.

THE ANNUAL VISIT TO ITALY

I’ve been going to Italy at least once a year since 2008, and 2015 was to be no different. Fortunately, I was invited by the guys at Visit Tuscany to spend one week in Tuscany, attending a few summer events and festivals. I made great new friends and the experience was so enriching.

We bathed in hot springs, watched actors and dancers perform on a hill lit by the moon as part of a street theatre festival in Certaldo, visited decades-old family-run businesses in little Lucca, frolicked in sunflower fields, and of course indulged in a lot of pici (traditional Tuscan pasta).

THE BIG DECISION!

By this time, it was the end of July and I was tired of all the travelling back and forth. I wanted to be able to spend more time with Ricardo, but how? I’d never been in a long-distance situation before. Yet I knew that most of the time we were apart it was because I travelled so often, rather than the fact that we lived in two different cities.

I decided that I would leave my flat in central London and with the money I’d save, I’d be able to commute between London and Porto more often. This was more difficult than it sounded at first! I had to declutter – A LOT. It took me forever.  But was thankful for my job, which allowed me to work from wherever I was. All my stuff eventually went into a storage facility near Maida Vale, and so it was done. Since that point, I’ve been spending more time in Porto, returning to London about once a month to check in at work and with friends.

BEING IN PORTO ‘LONG TERM’

I was a bit nervous in the beginning – what if I didn’t like it? what if I’m not as into Ricardo as I thought I was? I wasn’t one to uproot for love but somehow this felt completely right..

Thankfully, it’s been going a million times better than I expected and I hope it continues this way *fingers crossed*.

August and September were super:

I got to attend my first big medieval festival in Portugal with my close friend Dani. It’s amazing! So much effort goes into it. If you’re in Portugal over the late summer, definitely check it out.

There were many beach days with beautiful sunsets and dips into the cold water.

And more balloons!

There was a road trip to Lisbon and Sintra.

And beautiful yellow walls, which I love (this is obvious if you follow me on Instagram).

MISSING LONDON…

I did of course miss my bustling London life. The shopping! The food! My friends! It was tough sometimes, being in a much smaller city. I was happy for each time I made a trip back to London.

The pic above was taken at the infamous balloons installation at Covent Garden. Oh it was so pretty!

ITALY YET AGAIN..

Soon I was packing my bags again. I was to meet Kym there, who designs adventures all over the world for small groups of special people. I helped design the Italy trip and I was to learn the trade from her. Such an enriching experience and I met some very inspiring women. And of course, it was Italy. It was my 9th time to the country, yet there was still so much more to see and learn.

I couldn’t believe that I was in Cinque Terre for a third time! What a charmed life I was leading.

We went horse-riding through the Tuscan countryside, attended a cooking class in a rustic farmhouse far away somewhere, strolled along the cobblestoned streets of Siena, and bathed in natural hot springs we had to hike down a hot river to (see bottom right pic above!). There was also a no-music dance parties on a deserted train platform, live music at my friend’s bar in Manarola, and beautiful sunsets.

My favourite moment was us five girls singing ‘Part of Your World’ from ‘The Little Mermaid’, whilst enjoying the warm waters of a hot spring balcony that was formed on the hardened silica wall. Such joy!

ICELAND FOR A THIRD TIME

I had one month to rest, spending three weeks in Porto and one in London, before it was time to go again. This time, I was to meet Kym in Iceland for our second adventure together, where in one week we circled the whole of Iceland in a campervan with 8 wonderful people and collected some pretty rad photos:

The bottom pic of the Northern Lights features Kym and I shaping our arms into a circle. In the few seconds after we joined hands, the lights formed a ring much like ours. Kym has a much more profound explanation for this, including the universe and the soul and whatnot, but I like to think of it as simply a magical coincidence. Thank you Mike Malz for the great capture (edited by me) !

I learnt a painful lesson after this trip, and that is to value myself and be more confident in my own abilities and skills. I also hope that I can and will avoid being taken advantage of in the future. For now, I focus on all that I have gained from the adventure.

By this time, I had seen the northern lights a total of seven times!

Soon, I had to swap those waterproof hiking boots for flip flops..

MALAYSIA, THAILAND, & SINGAPORE

I had never travelled with Ricardo before, and this had to be fixed. So, a three-week trip to South-East Asia was planned and he was to meet my parents. The latter went extremely well, except for the moment he told my mom how he felt about marriage (“I don’t believe in marriage”) while my brother and I nearly spat our drinks out.

We had a little romantic getaway to Koh Lipe, and island paradise in Thailand. It didn’t disappoint:

Even recollecting the memories from this trip feels as though we were caught in a dream. The sunrises and sunsets were surreal, the food was all deliciously spicy (papaya salad come to me!), and the waters always comfortingly warm. We had a great time snorkelling. I tried to hold his hand in the water when snorkelling but I was pushed away; apparently I caused too much drag.

We went island-hopping and played with monkeys.. in Monkey Island. They loved watermelons!

The following pics from top to bottom: 
– The Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur.
– Chicken rice balls for lunch in Malacca. Often people travel to Malacca just to eat this!
– The Singapore skyline as seen from the impressive Marina Bay Sands Skydeck.

And in a flash, three weeks went by just like that! Ricardo loved his first time in Asia. He loved all the food – no matter how weird – and my mom enjoyed watching him eat.

I got to catch up with a couple of close friends including Joyce, who fed us super tasty ‘wan tan mee’ (a type of local noodle dish) on the streets at 2am after too much drinking.

We road-tripped with my parents from KL down to Singapore, with a one-night stop in Malacca. My parents were excited to show him the Portuguese Settlement, which turned out to be just a few streets but which retained Portuguese names (albeit with slightly different spellings).

The only bad thing that happened was… our  live-in house maid at home decided to leg it – she stole a lot of cash (including from me), my dad’s iPad, and various other things. Worst of all, she stole my New Balance sneakers that I’d only bought recently. I WAS SO MAD…

OK MOVING ON..

ENDING THE YEAR IN PORTO

I decided that after leaving my family (which is alway a slightly tearful affair – it’s difficult when you only get to see your family once or twice a year), I would rather be here in Porto than in London. At least I’d have lots of cuddles from Ricardo!

And thus I spent December at a very relaxed pace. We spent many nights in, and lesser nights out. I even managed to cook a few meals (I normally almost never cook). Ricardo enjoys cooking more, and he’s pretty good at it. There was a weekend away up north in Barcelos (the town in which the famous legend of the Portuguese cock originated). I caught up with (just a bit of) work. We watched a few weird movies at home including A Serbian Film (so sick that it was almost laughable) and a Japanese one about a sex-crazed couple which eventually ended in the woman cutting off her dead partner’s penis because she was obsessed with it. Anyway!

Top: At Ponte De Lima, north of Porto
Bottom: Christmas lunch at Ricardo’s parents’ – lamb roast with rice soaked in a delicious wine sauce.

I spent Christmas in Porto for the second time. The eve was spent at my friend Dani’s house, just like last year, as I’d promised her and her parents after the previous year’s festivities. We were up opening presents from midnight until 3am. There were SO MANY!

And this time, instead of jetting off somewhere else, I stayed to celebrate the coming of 2016. We did the typical thing – join in the crowds at the main square to watch the fireworks and then make the best of the cheesy live music that followed until verrrry late. But hey it was novel to me! All in all it was lots of fun, with all my favourite Portuguese people :p

ONTO MORE TRAVELS..

I’m starting 2016 with a trip in ten days’ time, to a new continent for me – South America! And I’ll be making a stop in NYC to see Anna to discuss our upcoming adventure to South Africa that we’re both designing. So I’m very excited 🙂

If you’ve written any posts about your 2015 please share them with me as I would love to know what you did and also what you’re looking forward to this year!

I have no New Year’s resolutions. Just a huge to-do list.

In the meantime, HAPPY NEW YEAR! It is of course January 2.. as if I’d be on time and post this on the 1st. Haha!

PS – Catch me on Instagram or follow me on Snapchat (SMLCRZY) 🙂

The post 2015 – A Fantastic Year! appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

Although I learn very quickly (I’m one of those annoying people who’s ‘good at everything’), up to last month I was a pretty novice snowboarder, having only had about six days of experience.

One evening, my friends Shah and Fay said, “Hey, we’re going to Chamonix in two-and-a-half weeks and there’s a spare spot, wanna come?”

“Okay!”

I hadn’t been to Chamonix before and I was super excited. I was thrilled about being able to get on the snow again. We were going to Les Grands Montets, which I knew nothing about so I thought I’d do some Googling. My research led me to reading things like:

“..the home of professional extreme skiing”
“..notoriously steep and not very beginner-friendly”
“..the blues are pretty much reds and reds are pretty much blacks”
“..has a reputation for offering some of the steepest slopes in Europe”

What……………

I started to get bit nervous. So I went ahead and bought a good pair of Dainese padded shorts, made sure to include a helmet in my equipment hire, and paid for winter sports insurance. I was set!

I never knew getting to Chamonix was so easy. London to Geneva in about 1.5 hours, and then a ground transfer for about €30 – also about 1.5 hours long. Boring info: I used AlpyBus going and Mountain Dropoffs returning – both were good.

I got there earlier than my friends, so I chilled out at our Airbnb apartment while I waited. Well, actually I was getting some work done. Contrary to popular belief, I DO work. The bonus is that I can work remotely so this is how I get ‘soooo much time off”, for those wondering. I’m also not bound to annual leave allowance.

Anyway! Our accommodation was situated at the foot of Les Grands Montets (super easy access to the lifts), in Argentière. It was a magical scene from the balcony:

If you thought that was good, this is what it looks like on a sunny day:

On our first day out, we decided that we should take the shuttle to the next resort, Domaine De Balme, so we could get accustomed to our hired boards/boots/skis. This resort was meant to have ‘kinder’ slopes.

We arrived quite early in the morning, when the pistes were freshly groomed. It was really slippery and with the new board that I wasn’t quite used to, I caught an edge and had a mighty fall quite early on. I landed on my front like a rag doll, banging my head (or rather, helmet – see, good decision!) onto the hard snow. I was in a daze for a minute and the pain was a shock, but naturally I picked myself up and continued snowboarding the rest of the day.

The rest of the beautiful day!

I loved Domaine de Balme. It wasn’t too challenging and had offered some peaceful yet fun runs surrounded by pine trees.

And at the top of the mountain.. it was stunning. Ignore the skiers :p

Below the clouds, the scene was magic in its own way..

There’s a certain excitement in snowboarding or skiing in low visibility. It’s scary = it’s fun! See what I said about my finding a LOT of things fun..

The next morning..

I woke up with the right side of my ribs feeling soooo bruised from the fall I had the previous day. So I just popped an Ibuprofen and off to the slopes I went!

I had a three-hour private lesson that I booked through ESF (€180) so I could improve more quickly. It was excellent. I requested ‘an instructor who’s cool and funny’. Freddie was cool and funny. I was happy.

By the afternoon, I was having so much fun coming down the difficult slopes at Les Grands Montets. And the VIEW! Descending through the clouds.. it was freaking awesome.

I fell a few more times.. but they were fun falls! It was more painful doing up my bindings because being in that position squished my bruised ribs. Sometimes I had to pathetically ask Shah to do them up for me. Luckily, he’s such a patient guy that he always obliged.

I am aware that I look like a boy child on a ski trip with his parents.

We stayed on the slopes until it closed and I had to be rushed down by one of the staff through the fog at the bottom. I looooooved it!

Oh here are some snaps of food: confit de canard, rillettes de canard (our daily staple), and french onion soup. It was great to be in France.

Anyhow, I am so grateful for that day because, turns out it was my last day of snowboarding for the season. That evening, I was beginning to have trouble breathing – it started to hurt each time I inhaled deeply.

WHAT IS THIS PAIN

After a terrible night’s sleep STILL with pain around my rib area, I awoke in the morning thinking ok MAYBE.. something is wrong.. maybe it’s not just a bruise after all because, there is in fact, no visible bruising.

So instead of putting on my gear as usual, I sadly had to stay back and wait for an appointment at the clinic nearby. And waited I did. It took bloody three hours in the waiting room before it was my turn! Eventually, this was the situation:

“You’ve cracked two of your ribs”

“So what do I do now?”

“I’ll give you some painkillers”

“If I take enough painkillers can I go snowboarding tomorrow?”

“No”

“Are you sure”

“Well you can but it will be painful”

“Aha! But you said I CAN.”

“Just stay at home and read a book”

So yeah that was that. Turned out I cracked some bones with that fall on the first day. But hey at least I did enjoy two fantastic days of snowboarding (with fractured ribs yes but ah.. ignorance really is bliss isn’t it??).

I proceeded to the pharmacy, picked up my meds, and went back to the apartment. I guess I was pretty excited to take the meds because the pain was getting pretty sharp and awful, and I couldn’t breathe comfortably.

ALMOST-DEATH BY TRAMADOL

I was prescribed a combination of Dafalgan (1g Paracetamol) and something called Tramadol. I’ve lived pretty much a medication-free life, so I’d never even heard of Tramadol. Little did I know that it was about to make my life HELL.

It was too strong for me! I barely even weigh 50kg and I was given 50mg tablets.. Obviously at the time I didn’t even consider that it might have been too much so I took one, got high off it, then went to bed.

By early morning, I was DYING. I was so nauseated I could barely even move. Also added one more item to my Life CV – projectile vomiting. That was interesting. But try vomiting with TWO CRACKED RIBS.. it’s fucked up man. I pretty much spent the entire day crawling between sofa and toilet and feeling like death. I couldn’t even hold down two sips of water. I was drowsy. Being horizontal so much of the time made me lethargic and left me feeling like absolute shit.

Eventually I recovered from the sickness, but I never touched another tablet of Tramadol since.. I’d rather put up with the pain than to go through THAT again.

Fortunately, the next day I was on a flight to my favourite Porto for some recovery-time in the sunshine 🙂

BONUS STORY – GENEVA AIRPORT NIGHTMARE

If you like hearing about bad things happening to other people, here’s one for you:

So I got to Geneva Airport to catch my flight to Porto, still feeling weak and unable to carry anything heavy (y’know, it’s a bit difficult when you’ve cracked your ribs). I could only take very shallow breaths, too, and without any strong pain meds this was a real challenge.

I get to the check-in desk and inform the lady at the counter of my situation and asked if I could get any assistance should I need it. She says ‘no’. No big deal, I thought.. I’ll just go really slow.

I approached the security check like an old lady, dragging my heavy backpack along the floor since I couldn’t really carry it with the straps. Sometimes, I could carry it in front like a baby, but for brief amounts of time. By the time it got close to my turn, I was feeling awful and out of breath; face pale. The staff could see me clearly struggling, but no one so much as asked me if I was okay or if I needed any help.

No matter, I thought. I’ll manage. Then I got told to hurry up. Other passengers, instead of helping me, started to cut in front of me. I stayed patient and didn’t let it bother me.

Once I got through, I looked for my gate and saw that it was a 20 minute walk. And that mean 20 minutes or normal walking, not 20 minutes of my old-lady-walking.  I saw an information counter just ahead, so I thought I’d better ask for some help. Breathing was getting really difficult and painful.

“Hi, do you think I could get some help with my bag? I’ve had a snowboarding injury so I can’t really lift it and I have trouble breathing. I’ve cracked my ribs.”

“Sorry, no. You should’ve asked earlier at check-in.”

“I did tell the lady but she said she couldn’t help me there, and I did think I could manage.”

“I can’t do anything, sorry.”

“Is there a trolley I can use at least?”

“No, no trolleys are allowed here.”

“Please, I only need some help with my bag. I can still walk, I just can’t lift my bag.”

“Exactly, I can’t call for assistance for you. It’s not like you broke your leg! You can still walk!.”

I was looking so pale and pitiful at this point that the best this mean lady could do was tell me ‘the fastest route’ to my gate. I could barely even understand what she was saying because I’d started to feel lightheaded. Actually I felt bullied. And helpless. I hated this lack of independence.

I nodded my head and walked a few steps away and hid behind a pillar. In a moment of weakness, I started to cry. BAD DECISION. The sobbing made it even more painful, and my breaths even more shallow. I tried to slow down and compose myself, but I couldn’t. I felt SO BAD.

Eventually, a French family saw me and came to ask if I was alright. In my amateur French I managed to tell them about my injuries and how I couldn’t get help. I’m still grateful for them because they then went over to the mean lady at the desk and demanded that she request assistance for me.

I did get help in the end, but not before the mean lady came over to me to say, “I’ll call for someone, but there’s no guarantee, so if you miss your flight don’t blame me.”

THANK YOUUUUU mean people of Geneva Airport.. I’m now a much stronger person. But bigger thanks to the kind family who cared enough to check on me.

The post Went to Chamonix and Had a Great Fall appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

Yeah right! London is so fantastically awesome that almost eight years later, here I still am. It didn’t happen overnight, but after all this time I’ve come to realise that ‘damn, I love this place!’

It seems not everyone is a fan of London.. and yeahhhhh I admit, there was a period when I wasn’t too fond of it either. From the stories I’ve heard from my many fellow immigrants (haha), most start out hating it!

BUT. Here are the three big things I LOVE about the city I now call home. This is the stuff I blab on about – very animatedly and very loudly – whenever I get asked why I live here

London has no nearby sandy beaches, but we have some of THE MOST BEAUTIFUL parks and green spaces! A multitude of them too, despite the city being so dense with concrete.

In the summer, I pretty much live on the grass. Some of my friends in Europe think it’s silly to wear a bikini at the park. But do Londoners care? Nope! We need all the sunshine that we can get and if the sun’s blasting then.. all plans cancelled; we’re having a picnic. And when you find long grass to lay on, your bed (and life) is made.

^I like my picnics colourful. Photo taken in leafy Richmond, where there are plenty of picnic spots by the river.

Being ever-so-fortunately born in the summertime, my birthdays in London are also celebrated with a big picnic at the park.
Photos above taken at Hyde Park in 2013 😉

Speaking of Hyde Park, there is this AMAZING UMBRELLA/WATERFALL TREE that you can climb all the way to the top. I love it and always make a stop whenever I’m there skateboarding as it’s near the Serpentine lake, where a lot of people skate ‘cos it’s flat and wide.

Anyway, the tree. Enter the curtain of leaves and it’s like a maze of old twisted, warty branches going upwards.. like something out of The Enchanted Wood! It’s magic. The view from the top of course is delicious. You can see my friend Luis poking out in this pic:

^And this is what the tree’s like during the cold season..  just.. bare branches. Haha! And squirrels! I LOVE the squirrels of London.. some of them are so bold and have no qualms about walking all over you like a mat and trying to steal your food. I really enjoy that.

Of course, I enjoy other things outdoors as well..

..Like playing with my ukulele on a tree. This was at Regents Park.

Sometimes I sing, too. Or fly a giant kite with friends. Or.. swim in the Thames and get sick subsequently. Do not go swimming in the Thames.

^Playtime with the lovely Emma. Last winter we spent an afternoon at Hampstead Heath. It’s my favourite natural space, after Regents Park/Primrose Hill as they’re my local ones (local bias, right?).

When the leaves fall, the Heath is a feast for all your senses. The ground is thick and the air rich with the smell of fallen leaves. Crispy leaves! Ohhh how I would love to be rolled around on that crunchy bed of autumnness.. like a sausage being tossed around in a pan of sizzling chopped garlic. But without the heat. Or the oil. Sorry I’m so weird.. let me get back on topic..

No doubt maximum park enjoyment is during the summer.. when there are loads of festivals, and other events/pop-ups going on.
For example, Rekorderlig built a Swedish summer house in Victoria Park once, and it was superb:

You could get food and cider served by cute boys dressed in shorts and suspenders 😀

Other than these huge parks, there are also smaller, more intimate places to enjoy some greenery. E.g. the Dalston Eastern Curve Garden, nestled between the two Dalston overground stations. In their garden they have soil beds for local residents to plant food! There is a kind of hippie, chilled-out vibe to it. And if I remember correctly there was a quirky old rocking horse at the back, too.

^The wooden pavilion is sometimes used for creative workshops, food markets, or kids’ programmes. I’ve created some rad crayon art there myself..

There’s always stuff to do in London’s bazillion open areas, even during the freezing winter. There are the obvious Christmas markets and fairs. Then there are the less touristy activities too, like climbing up to Parliament Hill (at Hampstead Heath) to set off fireworks on Guy Fawkes’ Night (SO MUCH FUN), or trekking south-west to Syon Park to see the Enchanted Woodland (SO MANY LIGHTS). The low temperatures don’t stop people from swimming in the icy park lakes, either!

As for the summer.. hmm, this could take ages. Let’s skip to Thing #2.

This is the beauty of London.  There is SO MUCH COLOUR in its inhabitants. You’re free to express yourself creatively no matter how ridiculous it may look or sound and I LOVE THAT. The variety of characters you can find here is immense.. The whole world is here! Whatever language you speak, you’re quite sure to find someone else who speaks it. Whatever weird, obscure activity it is that you enjoy doing, you’ll find a club for it. YOU CAN BE WHOEVER YOU WANT. 

Most importantly, freedom of expression yields… crazy people. My favourite kind of people. Why do I love being in a city full of crazy people?
Because..

I can walk into a theatre and meet a bunch of smurfs:

^And get photobombed by a ‘normal‘.

I can wear this hideous, freaky, big-nosed mask that I got from Venice (it’s actually part of a plague doctor’s costume worn in centuries’ past), and prance around Piccadilly Circus at night like a mad tourist:

I even managed to get my caricature drawn!

We also went into a busy McDonald’s to see if we could successfully feed each other fries through the gaps in our beaks. It was not a success.

^The real tourists loved us 🙂

I can get on the tube wearing my fox onesie:

^No one gives a shit!

I can have a picnic with a bag over my head (and walk around the park chasing strangers with it on – I have a video somewhere) and have fruits as my guests, but hey it was my birthday:

I did have human guests too but they weren’t quite as exciting as the fruits.

And then there’s this scary clown putting down his newspaper to have a conversation with a cyclist passing by:

^Oh and me traipsing around Oxford Street with a guitar and balloons tied to my bag.

You can find restaurant menus like this:

^And end up in places where they teach you how to crochet… a sperm.

Now THIS is how you ‘Boris Bike’:

Oh I love that mask. It still sits in my desk drawer now. I do like Boris (for those unaware, he’s our Mayor) – he seems to enjoy getting involved with the community and isn’t afraid of looking silly. I don’t have enough knowledge about politics so I can’t say much more than that..

>>

But YES, being surrounded by so much creative energy, openness, an eccentricity in London has helped shape who I am today. I can be ME! I can be as silly as I like. Strangeness is mostly embraced here. I could start a one-person dance party on my street with no music wearing only my underwear and it’s fine. I could pull out a potato from my handbag and have a dance with it next to a street jazz performer – I have, in fact, done this (video is also somewhere..).

This freedom of expression was particularly instrumental in my personal development. I grew up in Malaysia, where society was a lot less accepting and less.. exposed. I felt rather limited there. Being in London OPENED UP THE WORLD TO ME.. It was like.. the drug of life (does that even make sense?).

Onto Thing #3!

When there are so many wild/crazy/creative people.. there will be special occasions for us all to be crazy together, OBVIOUSLY.

My favourite?  LONDON SANTACON!
When else can you have a Christmas dance party on the streets, dressed as Santa, with thousands of other people also dressed as Santa?

Just look at these weirdos! I love them:

You can read about my first Santacon experience here.

My second favourite? WORLD ZOMBIE DAY!
It’s pretty much the same as Santacon, except you dress up as zombies instead, and the music is less cheerful..

Some of the costumes you see on the day are freakin’ AMAZING. I really need to up my game next year, man..

^What a beautiful bunch of dead mimes!

The kind of things you can see at an East London club on Halloween weekend:

^A super cool bloodied fox. And then there’s me, with two My Little Ponies and.. a box of Pocky. Haha!

There are SO. MANY. EVENTS. There’s a day for you to ride the tube with no pants. Race people while flipping pancakes (next month!). Run 5k in an inflatable sumo suit. Get your dance on at a silent disco festival. Cycle naked. Go to the Science Museum to be a cockroach. You can even smash stuff up for fun. 

And here, play with a insane amount of coloured powder at one of London’s Holi Festivals (there seem to be a few now – Google will disclose details):

^THAT was so much fun..

In Sweden and other Nordic countries, they celebrate the crayfish harvest season by throwing a Crayfish Party. So why not have one in London too, right? I went to a Swedish Crayfish Party last year organised by Ocado and it was hilarious!

Basically, everyone gathers to eat mountains of crayfish together. Along with other stuff, like a delicious selection of herring, salmon, cinnamon buns, and Swedish candy. Washed down with cider. And schnapps. You also have to wear crayfish hats and bibs, and sing some funny Swedish songs!

Life in London to me has been extremely enriching. There is an endless amount of learning and experiences available. So many different cultures and people to EMBRACE! Oh and the diversity of food that that comes with..  we really are spoilt for choice. If I had to narrow down London’s best quality to one word, it would be OPTIONS.

THANK YOU LONDON for being such a fantastic playground and classroom. I have grown so much while living a such a vibrant, full life. So obviously, you’re my favourite city 🙂

The post Three Things I FREAKIN’ LOVE about London appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

Sitting in a beautifully sunny garden in Milan right now.. and about to tell you a story about an afternoon spent in Bordeaux during one of the last days of 2013, in the winter!

My best friend from home, Joyce, had come to France spend the Christmas period with her partner Clem, whose family lives in Bordeaux. I joined in for one week.

^This is my favourite photo of the city that I’d taken during the trip.

Bright circle lights hanging over the streets illuminate the city at night.. it felt magical!

^The fleuve

Coat – Isabel Marant x H&M

Jumper – Vintage

Skirt & Bag – Topshop

Boots – Urban Outfitters

And I’m wearing a pink Buff on my head.. :p

I just liked the look of these naked, leafless trees. And then ME! In hindsight I should’ve worn something more along the lines of.. neon yellow.

^Me, Joyce, Clem.

It was SO GOOD to see these two again! It’s always a funny/fun/crazy time think it’s cos we’re all so mad..

We took one day out of the week that we spent together to go out and have a wander around Bordeaux. Started with lunch at some brasserie which name I sadly don’t remember – but it was nothing super special so I thought it unnecessary.. haha

^Joyce’s steak tartare

^Stuffed eggs and oysters

THE TREE BRANCH

So, after lunch, when we went out to where all the naked trees were…. I found this tree branch with bright orange leaves still attached, lying lonely on the ground. Naturally, I befriended it and invited it to join us on our city stroll.

I introduced it to Joyce. She was receptive.

Unfortunately, Clem refused to be friends with an inanimate object. I had to chase him down so many streets with the branch, pestering him.

“SAY HELLO to the branch!!!”

Clem said he was embarrassed to be seen with us.

Eventually, with a LOT of annoying behaviour by Joyce and I, Clem relented and ACTUALLY SAID HELLO TO MY TREE BRANCH!!! HA ha hahahha

I pushed it by trying to make him say more, but I think that was his limit.. but it’s ok, we got the whole thing on video.. 🙂

*******

It was a rather grey gloomy day that afternoon. But the sunshine was in US!

We went to a couple of beautiful toy stores and I bought myself a plush.. banana. What else, right?

Saw this cool art installation near the church:

At first I thought WOW what a cool tunnel thingy.. that’s somewhat like a ball..

We went inside and took some photos

BUT THEN AT NIGHT!

Isn’t it so cool! I hope to have something similar in my own garden. Umm someday.

^Joyce brought her Carebear out.

And here’s a little behind-the-scenes shot:

>

HAHA!

^I thought there was a certain beauty in the monotonous colour palette that was seen in Bordeaux that day. Quiet, peaceful, and a little bit mysterious! A perfect setting for someone like me to come prancing about with a brightly dressed tree branch..

And oh yeah, I also learnt that you can buy a model of Picasso’s nose. My favourite is the watermelon one – seen on the bottom row, far right.

I like the idea of having a colourful Picasso’s nose in my handbag or pocket. That way I can pull it out at random times.

“Hey, look what I have here, a NOSE”

It’s a good way to meet people, I think.

While I can’t say that I ‘fell in love’ with Bordeaux – like I do with many places I go to – I did have a lot more fun than I anticipated! The people were fairly friendly.. there was even a night when we ended up at some random dude’s flat to share a few drinks.. but that’s a story for another day.

The city itself was also more vibrant than I imagined. Admittedly I didn’t spend too much time exploring it since most of the week was spent with Clem in the suburbs with his family and friends.

Wanna go to Bordeaux? Check Monarch for cheap flights from London! They’ve got a concise little guide to the city too.. !

The post An Afternoon in Bordeaux.. With a Tree Branch appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

AKA 

How to Have Too Much Fun / Embarrass Yourself / Go Crazy at a Festival

This is way overdue, but BANG here’s my post about my time at Wilderness Festival 2013, held last August in beautiful Charlbury near the Cotswolds. It was a rather last-moment decision to attend (like many of my big life decisions..) and omg it was THE best decision ever! SO here are about 50 photos and some accompanying text in an attempt to best share with you my experience at what I frequently describe to my friends as ‘The Best Festival Ever’ 🙂

The THING about Wilderness is that.. it’s not just a music festival. I like to say that it’s a festival that celebrates LIFE! Because there’s so much to see and to. It’s full of stimulating activities and experiences which enrich your life.

There’s fantastic FOOD, art, beautiful people, poetry readings, dance classes, cricket, circus shows, fire twirlers, wild swimming, archery, crafts, hula hooping, a BUBBLE STAND, night-time raves in the forest, lanterns, fancy dress, face painting, books hanging from trees which you can take and read, a SPA, science lessons, horse-riding, cooking classes, speed dating… there’s just SO MUCH that I get overwhelmed and excited just trying to recollect it all! Just imagine ALL THIS set upon rolling green hills and big beautiful trees..

I borrowed a Cath Kidston tent from my dear friend Hannah – and set it up ALL TO MYSELF. If there’s one festival camping tip I can divulge it’s HAVE YOUR OWN TENT. Having the space and privacy is amazing! Also I get to lay around naked without a care then the sun gets in and tries to burn me alive during the late mornings.

There were three of us in the group who were originally from Malaysia one of the girls actually brought a Malaysian flag to the festival! We were wondering if there were any other people there who were from Malaysia as well.. we concluded: probably not. They set up the flag at our campsite. How cute!

FOOD

2013 headlined by Polpo, Hix, and Ottolenghi – i.e. they catered the nightly banquets.

There was also food by Moro, St John, and J. Sheekey.

I had most fun eating throughout the day from the many stalls that served the festival all day! I have to say, it was rather refreshing not to see the usual crappy kebabs and other junk food that you’d usually find at other music festivals :p

^pulled pork meal

^freakin’ awesome cheeseburger.. drooling right now. RIGHT NOW.

^salt beef on fries topped with cheese

^edible flowers

Yeah, EDIBLE FLOWERS. From one of those health food thingies. Of course I had to at least try it, so up to the counter I went and collected my free cup of.. flowers and other plants. There was some kind of dressing drizzled on top but you know what? IT SUCKS. That’s the truth. So dry and.. tasteless..hmm.

Eating that enriched my life in terms of introducing to me what it’s like to be a wild grazing herbivore (one tick off the life-experience list!), but nothing more..

^a little teatime section complete with big red London bus!

^Having breakfast at the Moro tent

There were lots of haystacks to lounge on.. isn’t that so hipster cool? Hahaha

SUNSHINE / PLAYTIME

We were SO lucky. The sun LOVED us and showed itself all through the festival! Needless to say everyone was in a great mood. It was truly a festival full of love (fuelled and encouraged by sunshine).

During the day, people would just laze around on the grass. You’d never get bored because there’d be so many quirky people to watch. Art to see. Books to read. Music to listen to. Games to play. You just can’t be bored.

We were happy just to BE on the grass!

^Linda, Me, Aishah

We’d spend ages on this particular hill near the lake, soaking it up. Every day.

It was one of the quieter areas. I thought of rolling down the hill, but fortunately I had enough brains to restrain myself for fear of rolling all the way into the cold water.

SO, I went to a water-free zone to do my rolling and land-hugging instead:

^dry swimming here.

My friends were so embarrassed that they stayed away and used the camera to document my actions instead.

I did all sorts of rolls – forwards, backwards, sideways.
I was SO HIGH ON SUNSHINE. HIGH ON LIFE. I couldn’t stop!

I started talking to random people passing by, trying to persuade them to join me on the ground.
I crawled around like an animal. I felt like an animal. I slithered around like a worm.

It was one of the funniest/happies afternoons I’d ever had. You know when you can just LET GO and not CARE what anyone in the world thinks (they think I’m crazy).

But hey, look at these cool chicks:

Aishah later indulged in my madness (how could you resist really) and then got bitten by me.

^I also met a bee! And look how our colours match.

I’m wearing: Top from Malaysia // F21 shorts // Saltwater sandals

I thought it was a good idea to collect pieces of confetti from the ground in an attempt to recycle/re-throw them.

I thought wrong. Don’t try this. It’s not worth the effort.

^Yeah I know you can see a little something orange but it’s just a spot of my bikini, ok?

My dress was designed/made by Joyce. Shoes are Converse. Headband from Topshop.

FESTIVAL STUFF

We would pass this little breakfast section every morning when walking to the main festival grounds from our campsite (there are more unpictured).

Lots of great food to choose from AND free Innocent smoothies on your way out.

The camping facilities were all great – clean and sufficient to meet demand.

A hula hooping area! Too bad it seemed to be only for kids.
I for one happen to be pretty good at the hoop. Haha!

  

^Group/cooperative art to get your creative brain working!

You can also make your own festival headpiece using REAL LEAVES AND VINES AND FLOWERS! Nature! YES! No plasticky, gimmicky stuff! Hehe

Write your deepest wishes on a paper leaf and pin it unto The Wishing Tree! Or be really nosey and read what other people wrote (I chose this option).

^One of the random books you can find around the festival. Free for you to read! And full of love <3

^Happy swings for the kids!

Oh and then there was this weirdo playing guitar with a beatbox and singing weird stuff. And mad girls dancing. I loved it:

SUNSET / NIGHTTIME

A magnificent sunset presented above us every evening. Wait maybe I missed one evening. Not too sure there.

The headliners in terms of music included Empire of the Sun, Noah and the Whale, Rodriguez, and Tom Odell. I loved the first two most!

We decided it was most comfortable and warm to roam around after dark wearing our animal onesies from Kigu.co.uk.

^The Bubbles Inc Stand

OMG this was one of my favourites ever! It just blows bubbles ALLL DAY AND ALL NIGHT LONG. Small ones, big ones, smoke filled ones, etc.

Here’s a clip of the quirky umbrella dude spinning bubbles:

There was a nightly flying trapeze theatre/dance thingy going on.. it was amazing!! I forget the name of the company which runs it.

Oh and here’s a clip of Empire of the Sun performing one of their biggest hits, Walking on a Dream:

Making our way into the valley in the forest every night was an adventure in itself. You’d see scores of people in their crazy impressive fancy dress/costumes.. some draped in LED lights or smothered in paint and glitter. Lanterns and flags and other lights adorned the trees. A whole variety of music coming from different sources. People dancing. People rolling around on the ground (see? i totally belong).

You could feel a definite ENERGY. PARTY ENERGY! Haha.

Then you’d past certain areas, like the green one above, where people would be chilling out or milling about as others weaved between them, heading towards the parties. Somewhat like a pre-party drinking area.. I suppose.

^There are two pics of the same scene cos I couldn’t decide which coloured light was better? Haha

Who knew that partying at in the forest could be SO FREAKIN’ AWESOME? Well the festival organisers knew but anyway.

I was outta control! The music was so good! I ran up and down the hills. I jumped around till my knees hurt. We brought a shitload of glow sticks with us and shared them with strangers – who then became our dancing friends of course. I smiled till my face hurt.

And.. No festival is complete without a pair of Prizmeyez diffraction glasses! I take mine with me everywhere. EVERYWHERE.

On the last night, I decided I wanted to party the entire night until I was absolutely pooped. I ended up at some after-party somewhere. I shared a bonfire with some randoms. I made some new friends. We laid on the ground together atop a hill and watched the stars glow in the night sky above. We hugged. We rolled on the ground. We talked about serious things. Ridiculous things. About food.

Soon, I felt the sun starting to rise and I thought, ‘ok, time to locate my tent’.

It was a long walk across the festival grounds. BUT SO BEAUTIFUL! Everything was shut and empty; void of people.

I realised I had my camera with me. Why not use it, right?

I took some pictures of the festival emptiness. It was rather surreal.

Then I took a picture of my face.

I came across some haystacks under one of my favourite trees that I’d lay on to watch the fairy lights above the previous nights.

‘I’m coming!’, I said to the haystack, as I set the camera on self-timer.

^Result!

I also took this..

And then I made this video..

HOW did I think that it was a good idea to roll UP a hill???

All I know is.. if I was happy enough to have done that AND recorded it, it must’ve been a damn good night.

THANK YOU WILDERNESS FESTIVAL FOR A MOST SPECTACULAR WEEKEND! 

See you again this summer. And you guys, get your tickets HERE. 

The post My First Wilderness Festival! appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

This is a VERY LONG POST – well of course, it’s a whole YEAR painfully compressed into 50 or so photos. Here are some highlights of my 2013.. I hope you enjoy reading about them as much as I had fun reminiscing 😉

If you’re not using your mobile, PLEASE LISTEN TO THIS SONG as you go through the post!
JUST DO IT

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It snowed in January and London was beautiful.



And when it snows, I can never behave myself.



I also kidnapped a pedestrian signboard (it wasn’t even snowing).

 

I went to Venice with the funnest Venetian I know – the only one with whom I would sit on a bench at 5am, when it’s 2 degrees, drinking champagne from a bottle.



I celebrated La Befana on Lido island, an annual Italian tradition.



We went kite-running in Richmond.



The Chinese New Year arrived – and so did a 14-course meal.



I switched from skiing to snowboarding, and experienced my first ski festival (Snowboxx) with one of my best friends.



I finally got to wear my retro ski jacket.



I went to Porto for the second time, with three of my best girlfriends. It was crazy fun.



We said goodbye to one of our gang – Jeremy, who was moving to Sydney for sun and surf.

There were a lot of parties.



I started rollerblading again.



I saw The Courteeners in concert.



It started to get warmer, and the days longer.



My best friend from home, Joyce, came to play!



I decided to pick up skateboarding.



I was happiest in the sunshine.



I started practising my ukulele again.



I attended my first ever travel blogging conference in Rotterdam.
(With Goliath)



I went surfing in Scheveningen – look at all that spume!
It was very cold and a little disgusting. 
But I made a great new friend.



My luggage and passport were stolen in Rotterdam. 

But this woman rescued me and I love her.



I won a trip to Toronto to attend my second travel media conference.



I met a heap of cool people. And the amazing Lola, who helped make it all happen.



Back in the UK, I went cycling in the New Forest.



I learnt how to decorate cupcakes. Like ’em? 🙂



I had a bazillion picnics at the park. 
Everyone thought I was obsessed. Possessed by the sun.



London was blessed with a fantastic summer, I couldn’t help it!



I enjoyed my third Lovebox Festival. It got a bit crazy.



I spent a day in Brighton, and it was lovely (not crazy).



I travelled to Lisbon for Optimus Alive festival.



I made some unusual friends there. Know what they gave me?

Back in London, I sat at Primrose Hill and enjoyed a magnificent sunset with friends while waiting to see the full moon.



It was one of many beautiful sunsets I enjoyed around the city.



A lot of evenings were spent outside pubs.



I learnt to play and sing my first full song with my ukulele. 
Looking back at this video, it’s TERRIBLE. I’m much MUCH better now (just believe me)!



I celebrated my birthday.. with a huge picnic at Hyde Park, of course!

 
I went to the best festival of my life – Wilderness Festival. 
It got really crazy. I got really crazy. WILD, some might say.
I MUST write a post on this festival ASAP!



These glasses contributed.



Then I almost blinded myself at the Holi Festival in London.



I travelled solo in Portugal for two weeks and attended surf camp in Sagres. WANT TO GO BACK!



I made a multitude of new friends. Happy friends.



Then I went to Porto for the third time and made even more friends.

I finally got to see the Douro Valley.



After over six years living in this country, I said ‘Fine, I’ll go to Stonehenge’. 

Then I took this photo.



I celebrated Halloween with a wig.



World Zombie Day arrived.



Things got a little crazy that night.



I attended my first World Travel Market.



I went to Romania and stayed with a friend I had met at surf camp.



I went to Porto for the fourth time and reconnected with my friends. 

I decided the city was to be my second home.



I enjoyed the sunshine in Aveiro.



I visited Guimarães, ‘the birthplace of Portugal’, with my adopted family for the day.

 

I had a very English Christmas spent in Surrey. 
I mean, just look at this house!



Then I flew to Bordeaux to spend a week ushering in the New Year. 



I was reunited with great friends. And a lot of cheese.



The first few hours of 2014 were spent with a bunch of random French people. And a unicorn.



The unicorn tells me that 2014 will be yet another enjoyably odd, delightfully crazy, and colourfully happy year.

AND THE UNICORN IS CORRECT.If I had to summarise my 2013 in a sentence, it would be ‘The year my social life exploded, and I spent too much time in Portugal.’

I have had a FANTASTIC year. I’ve had so many days when I was filled with such happiness that my body couldn’t contain it and I end up skipping along the street – no matter that I’m on the way to work. Sometimes I want to jump into the air and tell a tree that I love him/her!

Last year I learnt to snowboard, surf, and skateboard.. amongst other things. This year I’m going to learn to drive (even though I already have a licence.. don’t ask..), get back into swing dancing, and take some flying trapeze classes.

I love life so much and I can’t wait to see what more it has to offer!

Btw Happy New Year Everyone

If you don’t mind sparing a minute, please tell me what your favourite/happiest moment in 2013 was 🙂

The post My Happy Colourful 2013 appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

It was my first time visiting Canada. Took this pic as the the plane was getting ready for landing. How GREEN, right? It’s like.. a garden of little broccoli tops.
^This was taken a bit earlier. I love it because it captures pretty much the full gradient of the sky from top to bottom.

I was so excited to be crossing the Atlantic again. I’d only been once before – in 2007 when I spent three weeks in wonderful San Francisco. Really I was just so RELIEVED that I was actually ON that flight at all, having received my visa only 12 hours prior… so much drama.

A big THANK YOU to WeHostels again for the opportunity. And also thank you my lucky stars that this all ended up happening..

You see, the reason I even knew about the comp was because of a bouncy, happy, pink-loving, jetsetting girl called LOLA. We’d been internet-friends (is that a term) since earlier in the year – drawn together by our similar personalities: positive, optimistic, and FUN-LOVING. She encouraged me to enter the comp so we might have a chance to meet in Toronto.

“I’m gonna enter it, win it, and see you there!”

And I did! I couldn’t wait to meet her!

  

One of the first things I did upon arriving in Toronto was get a cheap eat from a hot dog stand.. I love that shit. ‘Street meat’, they call it.. hmm. Totally unglam. But for $1.50, fine. Haha! (Thank you Karla)

As soon as Lola heard I was coming, she arranged a place for me to stay: a room in an awesome four-storey townhouse on Bleecker Street (somewhere north-east of downtown Toronto). With a bunch of other travel bloggers. We nicknamed it the ‘Real World TBEX’ house, complete with our own hashtag (#RWTBEX). Social media geeks….. …

  
^Left: Outside of the house / Right: Bleecker Street

^Bay window in the top floor room, where I slept. It was a massive room that took up the whole floor. It had two queen beds and its own toilet.

The house was organised and provided by Flipkey, a holiday rental service not unlike Airbnb (the one I use most). I’ve been discovering more and more of such websites lately.. I should make a list soon as it’s such a fantastic alternative to hotels! And then there are higher-end options as well, such as renting luxury villas, amongst others.. these I’ll save for when I make more money 🙂

^Crossroads and tram tracks at the south end of Bleecker Street.

I sent Lola a link to the Build A Dream ‘Snack Shack’ a couple of weeks before the trip. Of course, that crazy mofo (I mean that in the most lovable, endearing sense) only went and BOUGHT IT. I think it was the knowledge of this fact that fuelled my determination in getting that visa and making sure I got my ass over there..

I mean.. A CARDBOARD PLAYHOUSE WHAT MORE COULD I WANT REALLY?? 
This woman KNEW ME before she even MET ME!

It wasn’t long before it was set up.. do you see all the bottles on the countertop? That’s how sturdy that thing was. Build A Dream Playhouses – not just for kids for sure! We turned ours into a bar, pretty much. And named it The Confessional (it wasn’t me – I just provided the toys and props, obviously).

Above pic is of Chris of Captain and Clark, and me in clearly the best hat ever.

The following pics are an accumulation of about three occasions of mucking around the house/’snack shack’:

  
^Left: Chris and Gerard / Right: Craig, Tawny, & Erin

  
^Sharpies! Needless to say, I did the majority of the doodling..

^Love my little drawing of Chris? Hahaha

  
^Right: Ted on the guitar. I decided to give him a kind of mohawk..

Ted was so drunk when he brought his guitar out and attempted to serenade us. I don’t even know WHAT he played.. or if it was even anything that was really music at all. Poor him, he kept saying that he didn’t normally sound like that. The next morning when he was sober, he sported the guitar again to show us that he REALLY COULD play and sing. Awh, it’s not like we didn’t believe you the first time! Haha 😉

^With Lola! She came bursting through the front door fashionably late. As you can see, I’d already changed into my sleeping t-shirt..

^I brought face paint, too!

  
^Lola of course brought moustaches.. or should I say ‘mustaches’.. / Erin appreciating the floor.

^Lola, Erin, & Ted. Ted can play guitar, don’t forget!

Now THAT is a moustache.. I have a particular friend in London *ahem* who keeps pointing out the tiny little baby hairs on my upper lip and making me conscious about it. So conscious that I actually looked up and considered laser hair removal (see, I even found a clinic near me!) for a while.

These stick-on moustaches were rather reassuring.

  
^Craig.. (whose hat was that?!), and Erin pouting probably cos she was craving poutine. Pouting for Poutine! 

^Moustaches are not limited to silly humans!

Lola brought a bunch of merit badges for us to assign to each other. We had a ballot box and everything! I can’t remember which one I got.. but I know I swapped it for one that depicted a shoe with a piece of gum stuck to it. It just looked funny and I felt it represented me rather well.. haha.

  

As you can see, The Confessional never stopped evolving! More and more dumb doodles started to adorn its exterior… (by yours truly..), and it even boasted a bed sheet roof. It was a bar. It was a glowstick-shop. It also smelt of Chris after a while cos he just WOULD NOT GET OUT OF IT.

^Tawny, Me, & Kieu

^With the most beautiful (not just on the outside!) Alex, who bunked with me on the top floor.

 
^Left: CALAN and one of my new toys! / Ted: Supposedly, he’s playing guitar.. you just can’t see it, ok?

Here’s a video I put together – it’s basically just all the Vines I took at the house..

From the video, you’ll notice a couple of things:

1. Flat Deej
I was confused about what ‘Flat Deej’ was at first. Let me explain to you my non-American readers.. First of all, Deej is actually a blogger. He was meant to come to TBEX but for some reason couldn’t, and was really bummed about it. So Lola created Flat Deej to make him feel like he was there. It’s based on the award-winning Flat Stanley Project, in which school children are encouraged to write letters to their friends documenting the whereabouts/activities of a cut-out paper character called Stanley (from a storybook called Flat Stanley).

2. Banana
Actually I just wanted to explain Flat Deej and nothing else.

^Our one group photo! Thanks Alex for this 🙂

I admit I hardly attended any sessions at the conference due to late nights etc – because this bunch were so much FUN to hang out with. It was the first time meeting each other for most of us. In fact I hadn’t even heard of half these people before I got there. But it was the best thing ever..

There’s something so amazing about meeting people who also LOVE to travel! I’d never met so many people who were entirely immersed and so passionate about exploring the world before. It was like MAGIC! Kinda like a special, natural connection. Everyone was so POSITIVE, receptive, EXPRESSIVE, encouraging, and socially adventurous. It was super awesome that I didn’t need to explain (unlike when I meet erm, ‘normal’ people.. for lack of a better word, please, it’s 2am..) my desire to travel and and make it my life’s priority – cos everyone shared that same desire. AUTOMATIC FRIENDS.

SO, at the house, there was:

Craig of StayAdventurous
Craig loves being on the road and his favourite country appears to be Mexico! He’s full of shit and will encourage you to step out of your comfort zone. See the world! STAY ADVENTUROUS! And maybe you’ll end up in his imaginary (but one day hopefully real) Hall of Fame..

Erin of The World Wanderer
Erin is a sweetie who has an immense love for the Vine app, and poutine. She’s a teacher and travels as much as she can during the school holidays. Really she’s just so lovely that I can’t even call her a ***** for having so many days off in a year.

Chris & Tawny of Captain and Clark
Erm, only the most awesome couple ever! ‘Met on Kilimanjaro; Engaged at the Taj Mahal’. They’re both hilarious and witty and make fab videos. Why can’t I speak as naturally and smoothly as them on camera? Ugh anyway. Adventurous, energetic, and fun.. if we lived in the same country they’d be my best friends for sure!

Alex of CrazySexyFunTraveler
I truly admire Alex for her dedication and commitment to her cause. She’s been travelling full time for a few years now and she looks like she should be on a magazine cover! She’s so down-to-earth, helpful, and I love her honesty. She’s outgoing and adventurous.. and of course, a little crazy. My kinda friend!

Gerard & Kieu of GQTrippin 
Why are some couples just so cute? WHY? Recently (or not so recently) back from a year-long round-the-world trip, G & Q are now settling back to life in California.. or trying to I suppose. Haha. They are both SO NICE I wish I could shrink and squash them into a little ball, which I then toss to the ground, releasing them into full-sized human existence….. yes like Pokemon..

Ted of Traveling Ted
Ted’s passion is everything outdoors and adventure travel. He’s a camping expert (who packed some sort of miniature/foldable SHOVEL in his backpack.. haha) and of course, he plays the guitar. I would LOVE to go on a trip with him and do some crazy stuff! TED let’s go sea kayaking! Caving! Skiing! Snowboarding! Canyoning! Everything!

Carolyn of The Lazy Travelers
There’s only ONE pic of this girl in this post.. and it’s of the back of her head. Other times she was probably passed out somewhere whilst the rest of us smiled for the camera! She’s one-half of The Lazy Travelers.. ‘The Wino’
Then of course there’s Lola.. I love her. That is all.

THANKS FLIPKEY for housing us!

The post Toronto – The ‘RWTBEX’ House! appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

Waking up in Haarlem was a delight. Anja’s guest room was comfortable, inviting, and bright! I had these two large windows next to the bed, allowing lots of sunshine which I needed. A lot. I woke up HAPPY and wished that I could spend the day exploring Haarlem with Anja. But no. I had grown-up things to do.

See how thoughtful my wonderful host was?

She left me two options for pjs – a nightie and a set of trackies. I chose the nightie. There were towels, a glass for water, and she also provided a toothbrush.

It was not until that morning as I was getting dressed that I felt the effects of losing all my stuff in that  suitcase. From the unfamiliarity of the strange new toothbrush I had to use and  having to wear the SAME CLOTHES, to the fact that I had to go out with.. no eyebrows.. (hey I’m just not very hairy, ok) – it all started to become annoyingly real.

My make up. My expensive Shu Uemura makeup palettes. My vintage sequinned jumper (you can see it here). All my CLOTHES. My best underwear! My kaleidoscope from Porto. The lovely new French Connection shoes that were gifted to me in time for the trip (luckily I did take pics, you’ll see them soon. Thank you Spreaditfast). My favourite parka from Copenhagen. My best bangles from SEA. All my funky headbands and ACCESSORIES. Macbook/camera chargers and Apple magic mouse. All the business cards I’d collected at the conference. ETC ETC ETC.

It was just so sad to think about it. 

And so there I was – dressed in yesterday’s clothes and looking blah. You know when you look just terrible, you kind lose the bounce in your step? I lost my bounce that day.

That is, until Anja pulled out a mysterious pink carrier bag from the backseat of her car as she dropped me off at the train station.

“It’s a little goodie bag I put together to cheer you up”

Seriously how sweet is this woman?? I LOVE HER! We then hugged goodbye. I wish I could’ve hugged her for longer!

^The contents of Anja’s goodie bag.

There were some of her own handmade jewellery, compact mirror, a couple of Estée Lauder eyeshadow palettes, a holographic postcard, pretty paper towels, toys, and even biscuits!

It reminded me of my high school days when my friends and I used to exchange gifts of random items we thought would make each other happy – be it crayons, a pot of fake slime, sweets, earrings, or simply a card that read ‘I Love You!’.

BACK TO THE HAGUE

I was lucky enough to have a friend from London make some calls to the Malaysian Embassy at The Hague for me, so they were expecting my visit and assured me that I would be able to obtain an emergency passport on the day.

One of the plus sides of this tragedy (I like to be dramatic) is that I got to see The Hague on sunshiny day.

I enjoyed the tram rides towards the Embassy. The whole city was rather green.. so green that the air smelt green. Do you know what I mean?

^Just outside the Malaysian Embassy. Like in London, it was located in a nice area full of.. other embassies.

It was about noon when I arrived. Just like back home, everything was rather informal.. there weren’t many people there. I had to fill in this form that was completely in Malay, and where the date field had a pre-printed ’19 _ _’ . THAT’s how old the form is. Of course, my Malay is so terrible that I had to ask the officer if I could please write my answers in English.

Then.. I had to take a 20-minute walk to the nearest studio for some passport-sized photographs.

^On the way there, I stumbled upon The Peace Palace (Vredespaleis), which houses the International Court of Justice (the principal judicial body of the United Nations).

It was so pretty, especially the grounds. There were a couple of groups of tourists crowding around the gates with their cameras.

Once I had my photographs taken and dropped them back at the embassy, I took a tram back into the city. I wanted to go back to the Escher Museum (I love that guy.. his art is so trippy!) to re-buy some souvenirs that I’d lost in my luggage. I had to! There was a cool 3D viewer and  large, colourful feather pens. If you know Escher’s work.. just imagine seeing those in 3D. Whoa man.. I couldn’t leave without it.

^I was so lucky that it was a beautiful day with blue skies.

I thought this photo was just so Dutch, with the bicycle, the tram tracks and the bazillion windows in grid formation typical of their architecture.

^This is Lange Voorhout, lined with lots of trees and leading up to the Escher Museum.

^Russian art sculptures being set up.

The Hague is hosting over 100 contemporary sculptures from Russia’s best known artists until 9 September 2013 on Lange Voorhout, as part of Russia-Netherlands Year 2013.

^Me, not really looking by best, with some of the sculptures.

I was so excited to find that a big flea market was taking place in the area. I browsed like EVERY STALL.. picked up a couple of cool things too 😉

^Front of the Escher Museum (will write about this in another post).

Do you think they should clean the walls?? Looks rather black to me.

After my little half-day sightseeing walk, it was time to journey back to the Embassy to collect my emergency document (€15). And do other crappy things, like ring up my insurance company to see if I could make a claim. I got into a bit of a fight with the operator – you know how these people are horrible; they try and make it as difficult as possible for you when it comes to making a claim.

I also contacted British Airways. Unlike the insurance company (it was INSUREANDGO, btw), they were extremely helpful and supportive. I explained that I’d missed my flight to London and why. For only £27, I was given a new ticket for a flight departing that same night. THANK YOU BA for your understanding and kindness – it definitely made my ordeal much easier to deal with!

HELLO AGAIN ROTTERDAM

Feeling much better knowing that I’d be on my way home soon, I arrived in Rotterdam again. It was my fourth time that trip/that week…

Above you can see construction going on around Rotterdam Centraal Station. It was cool! I took some time to walk around and marvel at their tall, shiny buildings.

I admired the buildings for a long time. Very long time. Just couldn’t get over how shiny this building was, too!

I had some time to kill, so I turned to Twitter and asked this girl (Kim) that I met during the conference who worked with Rotterdam Marketing. She mentioned a place called BAR (NEW BAR) that recently opened at Schieblock (a < ten-minute walk from the station). So off I went…

The vibe was really cool and relaxed, kinda like the cafes we have here around East London. There were only a few people.. or hipsters rather, lounging around with their juices and MacBooks.

Naturally, I joined in.

I had an AMAZING meal.. I love how it’s a lot more normal in the Netherlands to have a fried egg in your sandwich/burger. It sealed the deal, you know?

I hung out and had some Me Time at BAR until it was REALLY time to go. I was so exhausted from the last 24 hours and I’d been carrying my heavy pink backpack with the whole time. So, as I was on the way to the bus stop to get the airport shuttle, I pulled out what had been my saving grace that day: a joint (hey I was in Rotterdam hehe). It saved me all the way until outside the airport.

^Goliath posing for a goodbye pic.

Despite the shitty circumstances, it really was a beautiful day when I left.

I pretty much passed out completely during my short flight.

Had no problems whatsoever at Heathrow Airport immigration. I only had to wait for about five minutes while the officer went to check on the system to verify my UK residence visa.

It was kinda strange to arrive home from a week away without a suitcase. When I got into my room, I just thought, “Hmm, at least I don’t have to unpack!”. That night seems a blur to me right now.. but I think after having a shower, I crashed into bed straightaway.

THE BEGINNING OF A NIGHTMARE

It wasn’t until the next day (Thursday) when I tried to get back into London life that I had the opportunity to reflect and put some real thought into the consequences of having my luggage + passport stolen.

These were the problems I now faced:

• I had a flight to Toronto departing in less than seven days.
• I had no passport.
• The Canadian Embassy had not even approved my SECOND application for a visitor visa, which I re-submitted in Rotterdam based on my OLD passport number.
• The coming Monday was a bank holiday (i.e. the embassies would be closed).
• The cost of replacing my UK visa sticker was £860. 
• Completing the tedious paperwork for my insurance claim.
• I had to go shopping (i.e. go broke) for new toiletries, makeup, clothes, MacBook/camera charger, etc.
• I lost my online banking security key.

The first thing I did that morning was go to the Malaysian Embassy in London. I was hopeful. So you can imagine my face when the officer there told me bluntly, “There’s no way you can get your new passport in time. It normally takes at least four weeks. You need these supporting documents to apply *pulls out LONG LIST of documents I could never secure at such short notice*. I advise you to cancel your trip to Canada”

Literally, I burst into tears outside his office. I was just so STRESSED from everything! I sat on a bench outside for ages, not wanting to leave and still refusing to believe that I COULDN’T get my way. With tremendous help of a great friend who made some calls and found out the name of a person I should speak to within the Embassy, I dried my tears and marched back inside.

I asked for this person and we spoke in a private room about my situation. With the help of my very pathetic face, I got the list of supporting documents cut in less than half, and the permission to email electronic copies of what they needed directly to his email address. He said that if I could get it all through by Tuesday (after the public hol), I could have my new passport by Wednesday. My flight departs on Thursday morning.

OKAY. I took a deep breath and went on my way to work.

When I got home that evening, it was cold and rainy. I got to my flat and attempted to open the door with the set of keys that my flatmate had kindly copied for me in advance. THEY DIDN’T WORK.

The frustration and dejection at this point were so much for me to take that I just slumped onto the floor and sat there staring into space for a while before my face was covered in my angry tears. I was so ANGRY. WHY was this happening to me? WHY did I have to encounter such an asshole of a person who had nothing better to do than steal my ENTIRE SUITCASE and RUIN EVERYTHING for me??? I HATED HIM. I HATED HIS GUTS and his STUPID FACE and wished him all sorts of horrible things.

So there I was on the floor: terribly dressed (feeling ugly), with flat hair, no makeup, puffy eyes, and wet from the rain. I was like this wet scraggly rat with no home.

I let myself cry for a few minutes until I just couldn’t bear the patheticness of my own behaviour. I had to pull myself together. I knew I WASN’T an angry, sad person. I was a happy, positive person.

Once I was done crying, I rang my friend Reena and went to her house to wait for my flatmate to get home. I was fine. I just had to wait a bit, that’s all. I had to focus on my one main goal for the week:

Get what I need to make my trip to Toronto.

This was only the beginning..

*Next up: My (HELLISH) Journey to TBEX Toronto 

By the way, you can find me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let’s connect!

The post Losing My Luggage & Passport in a Foreign Country – Part 2 appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.