Singapore wedding

With less than 3 months to our sg wedding,
the difficulty of long-distance planning
and a forever-cant-decide mum,
i really need to start work my ass off to start the preparations
Im glad that i managed to create the invitation card
and sent it to my friends 
i was giving myself a little too much pressure
to create a nice wedding invite
since i hand-drew the one for france
and didnt want to short-change sg wedding
despite all the hair-pulling moments
im glad that the final result was great!

I have recruited my siblings to help deal with my mum
but as expected, progress is slow
i have an estimated number of relatives to be invited
and no news about the food for the lunch...
anyway family is in Taiwan now
i shall pester them when they are back..

and im very thankful that my friend's husband
who is a professional photographer
is helping us with photography
at a nominal rate or i should say friendship price
i guess i will try to do free advertising for him
and try "lure" my friends to get him for their future shoots
haha

some stuff on my to-do list..

- book hotel for eve of wedding and actual day
I think we will end up in a budget hotel
that is near my brother's place
a bit strange for newly weds
but i rather save the money

- flowers
again, we will need to buy the flowers 
on valentine's day
arghhhh expensive flowers again

- home decorations
I have not been to my brother's new place
all i know is that it is bigger but older
since it is in a home
i do wish to make the decorations more interesting
so i need crack my little head for ideas
and maybe diy stuff to bring over
yet do-able within a day decorations
yes, we only have 1 day to prepare and complete the decorations

- finalised the actual day planning
although we are not doing gate-crash
there are still all the minor details to be planned out
by the control freak in me

- wedding photos and videos
i want to share with the guests on our france wedding
so i shall create a video summary of photos and videos
on what happened
another diy project...

- wedding car decorations
to be done on the eve of the wedding

Lastly, to hope that my mum dont get strange ideas
to add in at last moment....

School and Work

So officially on Monday,
I completed my required hours for my french class
Before i can enjoy my holiday
i received a call on Wednesday from my previous teacher
and she informed that we can continue for level A2
for 150hours for free!
and i was to attend the orientation on thursday

So after the orientation, the following was mentioned:
basically, all the foreigners are to attend free french classes
sponsored by the government (immigration dept)
after we attend the required hours, 
we are to pass the required exam
thereafter, if we want we can continue for higher level of classes
however, the gov only fund for a physical year
for me, it means only for 2014
anything after, i will need to pay on my own
so initally, im quite sure that i will be paying for future classes
since i will only sign up for classes after i receive my results
and after our trip back to SG

but apparently, the school was so keen to help us
which i think is more an attempt to take money from gov
the school requested for gov to fund us 
to continue the higher level of class
to the end of december 
I am definitely keen to continue the classes
but there are 2 concerns

first, the level A2 is much more difficult than what i attended
the teacher emphasized like 24541234654321 times
and we will be having the same teacher
ehh.. the one who never seems interested in teaching
and i never really learnt much since she took over
despite my classmates' complaints
it seems we have no choice

secondly, the class will require 4 full days per week
in order to complete 150hours by end of december
or rather before christmas
this reinforce my idea that the school just wants money
because they insisted that level a2 is really difficult
and after some calculation, 
i realise it is impossible to complete 150 hours before christmas
The classes will be 9am to 3pm
on Monday, tuesday, thursday and friday
since i will be working on tues and thurs
i can leave the class at 2.30pm.

However, i am really concerned my ability to work 
after a long day in school
well, the youngest girl under my care
still treats me like i killed her father
and im still getting super stressed up at the thought of seeing her
yes, im trumatised by a 3 year old girl
during my previous class,
i end class at 1pm and get to rest a little before my work
and i was still exhausted
so, how is it possible for me to attend a longer and more difficult class
and go straight to work?

I guess there are 2 choices
i quit my job or the class
and definitely the class is more important than my job
i admit im really happy if i can quit my job
and this seems like a good excuse
opps

so last evening, i told their mum
that i may not be able to work 
from monday to end of december
and to my surprise,
she offered to give me a month off from work till Jan!
She is such a nice boss 
when im just trying to quit my job...

i told her that it is unfair for her to be without a babysitter 
for a month
and i understand if she needs to hire a new babysitter 
to replace me
but she assure me that it may be alright
that she will speak to her husband
and confirm with me on monday

although, it seems i didnt get the chance to quit my job
and i will be stuck with the girls
im still looking forward to being just a student 
till the end of the year...

31 and counting...

Is my first birthday in france!
but with the cold autumn
and to save money for our upcoming trips
i didnt want a big celebrations
or expensive gifts
okay..maybe im just becoming old..
haha

anyway since my birthday was on a Saturday
is kinda hard for the husband 
because of there is no excuse to not go out!
husband's ide of a good celebration
must include a trip to the restaurant
and im thankful that my in-laws bought me a groupon voucher
that we can go for a good meal
without burning our pockets!

So on Friday,
i went to class and thereafter, 
went shopping with my classmate
birthday is always a good reason for shopping!
haha

Thereafter, i met husband to go dinner at the restaurant 
We have a beer at the nearby pub
and were shocked when we arrived the restaurant
well, when it is totally empty on a friday night
we should know the food will be bleahhh...

I dont really know what kind of cuisine it was
husband mentioned that it some sort of french island cuisine
well, it tasted more like aeroplane meals
and microwave food
we had different plats to share
but strangly, everything tasted like they were cook in the same sauce!
And it was the fastest meal we ever had in a restaurant!
I was shocked that if we didnt had the voucher
the meal would easily costed us 100euros

After the restaurant,

we met husband's friends for a quick drink

and went home early

another sign that we are getting old...

The next morning,

we literally took our own sweet time

for breakfast and receiving my birthday gifts!

Husband got me a tablet and a french book..

The tablet is of a lower range 

but i think it will be great for our upcoming trips

the book was part of my new year resolution

to be able to read a french book by end of the year

flipping through, i think it is still a little difficult for me

its recommended for 9 years old

and i think i only have 6 years old level of french

Finally, it was the highlight of the day

We went to visit les puces

which is a big flea market in Paris

i think it is quite famous because Aven wanted to go

when he was here

basically it was similar to bugis street

with plenty of clothes, shoes etc stalls

but we were more interested in the antiques areas

where old furnitures, posters, pots etcs were sold

praying that we may accidently buy something for 5 euro

and turns out that it is worth 2millions euro

but it didnt happen...

however, there were plenty of interesting shops and things..

Before we left,

we found a cute jewellery shop

making personalised jewellery for 5euro

so ended up i have a new bracelet from husband!

although i dont really think my name was obvious

haha

oh by the way,

im really bad at reading cursive writing

that the only time i wrote cursive

it was in primary school for some english classes

and i realised that almost all french writes in cursive!

even in their comics!!!

and the girls that i am babysitting

and writing in cursive...

apart from trying to understand french,

i have to decode the writing..

AHHHHH

For dinner,

husband was nice enough to cook korean food

despite his lack of love with it

we had a nice kimchi soup and beef bulgogi

which i forgot to take photos

hehe

and that sums up my birthday!

i admit that i was feeling a little blue being 31

it seems i havent achieve much in my current life

no house, no car, no huge savings

no career, no kids...

but i guess i should be thankful that

i have a wonderful husband

i have the time to learn a new language

and to live in a new country

I guess next birthday will be better?

So, how is my french?

I lost count of the times, 
im being asked "How is your french?"
by husband's friends and family
and people from Singapore
Definitely the french asked more often..haha
and my constant answer is "Un peu"
which means a little.
I definitely improved compared to 6 months ago
but i still repeat the same answer
because im afraid of great expectations
well, low expectations from others is always good
haha

Just to summarise my current level of french,
i can do the following:

- the usual helo, bye, thank you
which i guess any tourist can do so

- vulgarities
the most initial and important part of french
that i learnt since i arrived
hahaha

- introduce myself 
name, address, personal info...
answer questions on a typical form

- Make sentences of 10 words
only in the present and near-future form
but not in the past and future form

- count to 100 
as if french prononciation is not difficult,
the french count differently!
eg 70 is said as 60+10
95 is said as 80+15
apart from knowing french, you need mental sums

- daily life stuff
Okay, i still need to improve on this
but for the basics,
eg ordering food, supermarket
it is much better than before
I do recall the times that i would wear my earphones
at the supermarket's cashier
so that i can ignore what the cashier says
opps

- simple conversations with husband
im happy that we can at least converse in french
for 30 minutes or more 
as compared to before, 
1 of us will give up to speak in french after 5 mins
well, most of the time that was me..
the problem is, husband insisted that my french is good
that i can converse well
but i often stressed up when i want to speak to others
i guess its always easier to speak to someone close
because i need not fear to look stupid
it is still very difficult for me to converse in french
with husband's friends and in-laws
especally when i need to translate english thoughts into french
before i can speak
and during the moment of processing
i get stressed out...

- writing/ reading in french
Since i can form sentences, i can write and read
To force me to write, i tried to text in french
and my phone is switched to french
the problem is,
i think im losing my english
i lost count of the times 
i rewrite a word because i wrote it in french
when whatsapping with my friends and family
I guess husband's english may be affected in long term
if we begin to speak more french than english
haha

The main problem is still understanding/ listening to french
i tend to need time to listen and translate in my head
and often the conversation is too fast for me to do so
nowadays i can briefly understand what people are speaking
but with the speed, different accents
 and "shortcuts" (a little like singlish, where grammar is ignored at times)
it is still difficult for me
but i guess i see a little more light at the end of the tunnel..

I will like to take the official exam
for my level of french.
However, i can only do so after i receive the results 
of the first offical exam
since my exam is in december,
i guess i will probably receive my result only in 2015

After, i will probably check the procedures to take the next exam
i guess i may need to attend class again
before i can take the exam (thats how schools earn money)
even though i completed the required level
Although im not required to take another exam,
unless i want to become a french citiwen where i need at least level B2
but i think it will be good for me to be certified in higher level
for future job opportunities.
at least, i suceeded in completing 1 new year resolution...

End of my french class

Today is the last day of my class
Is strange how I was kinda looking forward for it to end
because it is quite tiring to be in class daily
from 9am to 1pm
and 9am to 4pm on Mondays
But it did felt like 105 hours flew pass
without my notice

Before my class,
I had self-studied french with husband's help
i thought i was doing well
since i have quite a good memory 
but it was really difficult for me to use form sentences
be it to write or speak
i guess i was able to form a few phrases of less than 5 words

I guess i benefitted a lot from the classes
it really boosted my confidence to speak,
increased my vocabulary,
improved my writing,
and made a new friend!
Well, is no joke to be drill in french on a daily basis.
i guess it really helped me to be in a structured learning..

It is great to be surrounded by people of the same situation
I dont feel stupid if i speak bad french
or i have no idea of what is being said
and i do enjoyed the accompany of my classmates
from the different parts of the world
and im really thankful to meet my new buddy!
It is really nice that we enjoyed each other's accompany
be it for shopping or meals
and both of us are putting in effort to meet up after class
Even as the class comes to an end,
I hope the friendship continues....

alright, my teacher was really great!
I really appreciate her humor, 
expressive body language
and her ability to explain in french.
Husband and I noted that i was able to converse in french
within a week or 2 of classes!
Sadly, 2 weeks before the end of the class
she had to return to administrative work
and we had a replacement teacher for the last 2 weeks.

With the new replacement teacher,
my learning seemed to stalled.
Maybe because the previous teacher learnt french as her 2nd language
she was able to teach at a speed and way
that helped us understood well.
I have problem even listening to the replacement teacher
and i get the feeling that she doesnt wants to be here
as much as i dont want her to be here
haha

Thankfully i had a great teacher for more than half of my required hours
and i have improved more than what i expected
We had a trial DILF A1.1 exam in class
and I shocked myself by scoring 93/100
which means i should have no problem in passing the required exam on 2 december
since only 50/100 is required.

Like i mentioned in my previous post,
I am in the class of level A1
but the exam required for my visa is DILF A1.1
which is a level lower than my current class
anyway, the teacher made us go through the trial exam for our level
and i double shocked myself by scoring 95/100
I must be a weirdo who score higher for a more difficult test
nevertheless, it is a big boost to my ego.

For now till the 2 december,
i guess i shall try to be discipline to self-study
and continue to improve my french!!

Keeping in touch

I do envy husband

for his ability to regularly stay in touch with his family

be it with his sisters, parents and grandparents

it neve amazed me how often they are on phone,

SMS, skype, emails and met up

even when they are be staying near us

or at least in the same country

 

While for me,

I am guilty for not keeping close contact

with my family.

With the ease of whatspp, blog and facebook,

it is relatively easy to update with my brother and sister

however, i am terribly bad with keeping contact with my mother

frequently, i have many excuses for not keeping in touch

time differences

kids are around that we cant skype

my mum is not IT-savy

Expensive phone calls

but at the end of the day,

it boils down to me

I am not putting in enough efforts

I met enough foreigners in Paris

to know that most of them tries to skype or call

their family once a week

some even do so on daily basis 

Anyway yesterday was my mum's birthday

as usual, i whatsapp my sister

to help me wish my mum 

Whild i was casually telling husband that it was her birthday

husband asked whether i called her

i started to come up with the usual excuses

and i realized I didnt even called her on her birthday

is not as if a 5min phone call will make us bankrupt

so i decided to give her a call this morning

the call ended in less than a min

I cant believe how nervous i was before the call

-.-"

my mum was definitely surprised as well to answer my call

the first thing she asked was

"call all the way from there?"

after i wish her happy birthday

and she reminded me that she is going taiwan with my sister

she asked whether i wanted to speak to Shauna

which i declined and insisted i called for her

and not others

thereafter, we ended the call

i felt better calling my mum

but guilty that i should have done it more often

we are in the era where calls are so accessible

and cheap compared to 20 years ago

I cant continue to pretend that i cant give her regular phone calls

So, i am going to try to try call my mum

once a week

Thinking back,

my mum always called me while in Singapore

be it to ask whether im coming back for dinner

or whether im meeting them on weekends

and we do meet quite often in a month

i never needed to put in effort to contact her

and i guess i took it for granted

maybe we wont be used to the calling

and the phone calls will be short

but i guess is a small step to keeping in touch

with my mum

comfort food cooking

Mee hoon kuay
but the dough was a lil sticky
and end up thick pieces.

Karaage chicken
I never knew diy fried chicken
can taste so good!!!
I think we indulged in this 
at least once a week
all thanks to the secret of tapioca flour
to make them crispy!!

Sambal prawns and squid
husband was just curious
about the taste of the premix from sg
it was great.. 
Reminds me of good old zi char..

Laksa
another premix from sg
that is soooo good
and husband likes the sauce..
im hoping the remaining sauce can stay well
in my fridge for as long as possible
too good to become waste

Baked potato coquette
fried is definitely better
but we choose the healthier option

Why so much cooking this week??
because today is veterens day
a public holiday
so most people take leave on monday
husband included
to enjoy "le pont" - the bridge
Long weekend in sg terms
so we have been crashing on movies
and cooking!!

Probably will put on 2kg
for this weekend.. Haha

tomato rice

One late night I was surfing net
and came across the article
of making tomato rice in rice cooker
it seems so easy and fast
And with extra tomatoes at home
we tried it the next day

First, wash rice and add water
add olive oil, pepper, salt
and a tomato (remove stem)
and cook it as per normal
in rice cooker!

After its cooked

the tomato is soft

And mix everything up!

im not a fan of tomato

so I tried my best to mash it up

Ill say the end result is great!

hint of tomato in rice

but not too strong

and definitely healthier 

than my usual tomato fried rice

I shall try to add ham and cheese

the next time...

Halloween 2014

According to husband,
halloween is not really celebrated in france.
and start to gain popularity few years back.
I didnt had much chance to go
for halloween parties in singapore.
so, we decided to go this year!

I wasnt keen to spend lot on costumes
So we decided to dress up as wally
and wenda (wally female version)
since husband loves the books
and is easy to diy
anyway in france,
is known as charlie and felicie.

For the tops,
I just got them from the market.
yes, probably some uncles and aunties
have the same tops
haha
Since we dont want to buy beanies
I diy the santa claus hats into beanies
although a few persons mistaken 
husband as santa claus instead 
haha..

I needed a light blue skirt
and was glad to squeeze into my cjc skirt
but the whole night I felt I cant breathe
time to lose weight!!

Thankfully weather was cold

and we had our coats on

for the way there

else we will look crazy!

We met husband's friend at the pub

although friends were not really dressed up

There were plenty of people dressed up

and is funny 

how people will come to us

said "i found you!"