Comfy Shoes
In
The Netherlands now!!!! Wow, I don't think Rohit and I have have stayed in one place for more than 1 night. So thank god for the comfy shoes :) Plus it helps us when we need to think on our feet ;-)... there's actually a story to that but I'll tell a bit later.
So Manchester was AMAZING!!! Camilla showed us a good time as always. She picked us up from the train station and took us straight to Manchester's version of Little India,
The Curry Mile. A lot of kebab shops there. Rohit ate meat!!!!... hahah, jk (although don't blame for a lack of trying). In the evening we went out for a nice meal with her brother (Niki) and a couple of friends (Tess and Andreas). After we went to Andreas' house to smoke some sheesha... just like ol' times :D Thx for a wonderful time Camilla. It was awesome seeing you again and I miss your company dearly :(
The next day (yesterday, Friday) we went to Newcastle to catch a ferry to Amsterdam. But it wasn't an average ferry... it was a freakin' cruise ship!!!!! After enjoying a wonderful meal of some delicious Old Cheddar Cheese with Italian Bread, English Sausage and South African Wine we explored the 10 deck ship in all it's magnificent glory. There was entertainment, a casino, 2 clubs/discotheque and even a cinema!!! Ok the truth is we bought our dinner from the groc. store before we had boarded, the entertainment was cheesier than a Las Vegas lounge show and the casino was just a string of VLT/slot machines but it had its charm.
But there was a club and we did go to it. At first we were just sitting by ourselves, but then Rohit used his charm and next thing we know we're known around the club as "The Canadians"!!! I could make the entire night into one seperate blog post (I will later) but I'll skip to the best part. So most of the people on the cruise were "
Geordies". These guys speak possibly the worst English in the world. Here's an example:
Arvind: So, what's your name?
Guy: agheanvaouigoighaaano
Arvind: Oh
Guy: aobnerhi jb;oihj abjiapoti g9ogae0vo afbehoabb aoia
Arvind: Ummm... no we play Ice Hockey in Canada
haha. Ok in Rotterdam right now. Check out
rohit's blog for today's activites. Tomorrow I'll try and put up a post with some photos!!! Chow for now :)
ps - the "free stuff" list continues to grow. It now includes cans of beer and trips in first class ;)
Left London...
And in Manchester right now. We're here to see the always bubbly and beautiful Camilla :) The computer at the hostel has a USB port so we'll try and upload some photos later on.
London was amazing. Sarah (here's your mention :P) I totally understand why you'd love to stay there. It's such an amazing city with so much life and energy. And I love all the sandwhiches here!! Talk to you soon :)
ps - Rohit learned two new 'british' words today:
1) boot
2) pull
He still can't understand what the hell they are saying though :P
Welcome to..
LONDON!!! Rohit and I arrived a couple of hours ago. So far we have recieved the following items for free:
-"Borrowed" the blankets from Air Transat
-2 free shots of Baileys @ the Duty Free in Gatwick. Remember the Duty Free in Singi Camilla :P
-A box of granola bars
-10kg of Cocaine
Ok so I'm lying about the granola bars :P
Rohit and I are going to freshen up and then hit the town: London Eye, Big Ben & Covent Garden. Mission for the day: Get Rohit to eat Fish & Chips (w/ out the chips). Queue the Mission Impossible music...
Another Perspective
So if you'd like to get the same story about Europe but from a slightly different (read: Vegetarian) perspective feel free to to check out Rohit's blog (http://rohitineurope.blogspot.com/)
Off in a couple of days
Ok, I know it has been a while since I've posted... 4 months to be exact. I think that's a new record for me!!! But I was quite busy with "school work" in the final semester of my undergrad so I didn't get too many opportunities. And when I did I usually took a "break" ;)
But alas, undergrad is over :( I have to say I had an AMAZING undergrad experience. 4.5 yrs ago I left Winnipeg not knowing what I was getting myself into. I was scared to be moving away from home, my family, my friends.... my entire comfort zone. And things weren't easy at first either. My marks in first year plummeted, I had absolutely no luck finding a decent co-op position (I ended up volunteering for my first one) and I had very few friends in my first year (apparently there are very few white-washed Indians @ Waterloo :P). But I was still enjoying it. I was enjoying what I was learning @ Waterloo, I was enjoying the lifestyle I was leading and I knew I was surrounded by good people who were going to push me to acheive my potential.
Well, 4.5 yrs later I hope I can say I acheived some sort of potential. For me, one of the greatest realizations has been that the world is a pretty big place; and I don't mean that in a physical sense. There are so many opportunities out there for... well everything!! To learn, to travel, to make new friends, to love... these are all things that I have done in only 4.5 yrs and yet I feel like I'm on the vanguard (thx for the vocab Aasthaa :P) of so much more.
I've realized that life is a series of Arventures... some macro and some micro. Going to university was a macro-Arventure. It was made up of a number of micro-Arventures, like Bomber Wednesdays, an exchange to Singapore, 6 co-op semesters, trying to secure a full-time job, living in a house with your best-mates and have them become like a second family. University isn't about going to school to learn how to solve equations, or memorize anatomy or study great works of Western Literature... university is about living a series of Arventures, enjoying them for what they are worth (whether they be up or down) and then moving along. I don't know if I'm completely ready to move on yet from my university Arventure but I'll have to.
But that doesn't mean I can't go down in a blaze of glory... on another continent!!! So pack your bags and saddle up your horses boys & girls 'cuz it's time for another Arventure... EURO STYLE ;)
