Chinatown, London

Originally uploaded by hanna ira

i miss them superduper much!

I and my sister just come from Paris. We went there on Monday, stayed in a night then back to London the day after, which was Tuesday. It’s been my childhood dream to visit Paris, see the eiffel tower, bla bla bla. And as i’ve come far from Indonesia to London i didn’t want to waste chance to visit Paris. it was my first thinking. but honestly, it wasn’t as good as my imagination. just out of my expectation. i was hoping it could be more interesting. huh. but yeah, no problemo. just Thank God (and mom dad) for making one of my dreams came true and i get new experience of course.

mind if i share some stories about Paris? i know you don’t. hehehe.. well, let’s go then….

Transportations :

1. eurostar. took us from London St. Pancras to Paris Gare Du Nord. it was soooooo amazing. basically it was just a high spped train. but, the design is like plane. we only spent 2.5 hours from London to Paris and the vice versa. hehehe. so cool.

2. Sightseeing bus. i joined a tour from London. and we got free ticket for 2 days journey to get around Paris. but only Paris. there are 9 stops : Eiffel Tower, Champ de Mars, Musee d’ louvre, Musee d’ Orsay, Notre Dame, Opera, Champ de elysee, Royal Palais, Trocadero. yeah, it was nice.

3. Metro. SInce the bus could only take us to get around Paris on those stops, we needed to got on the metro (just like underground in London) to go from Paris to hotel and hotel to Paris. The hotel i stayed in is still in the city of Paris but quite far from Central Paris. It was in Villier. So this was the metro route we took : Opera - Barbes Rouchechuette - (changed metro line) - Villier. I like underground in London better than there. (actually, THE BEST!! hehehe) i don’t know why but i just felt a bit scary there. wasn’t comfortable. even i prefer angkot in Indonesia.

Attractions. Places i visited :

1. Eiffel Tower
2. River Seine, boat trip.
3. Musee d’ louvre
4. Champ d’ elysees
5. Champ d’ Mars
6. Arc du Triomphe
7. Opera
8. Galleries Lafayette
9. Trocadero
10. Notre Dame Cathedral

due to summer holiday, many tourists from various countries came and visited Paris. and there were thousands people there at all tourism attractions. and it was really difficult to get good pictures cos of this. i think you know better than i do about those places i mention above. so, no need to describe okay?? kinda lazy, uhuh. or just googling them and voila, you’ll get many many many informations.

Accommodation :

We stayed in a hotel named Pavillion Villier. it’s about 15 minutes by metro from central Paris (Opera). ehmm, to be frank i didn’t enjoy my stay at all. it was just horrible. let me recall.. first, the building : standard, just like any other hotel in Paris which are not so big. second, the atmosphere : bad (very little light on. isn’t that crazy that hotel have only little light service) and it was really scary. third, the elevator : sooooo badddd. we waited for long long time to have it opened in front of us and worried abot the shaky inside. and to make it worse, it didn’t work very well. tell me who aren’t afraid of being trapped in an elevator! fourth, the room : hot! very little ventilation, no air conditioner, only heater. and it was summer there. just imagine how hot it was.and i truly had a nightmare staying there. no offense at all. well, actually yes. but sorry, it was just horrible for me.

Food :

some are good, some are bad. but there are many choices of foods in Paris. i really wanted to try the very best food but it cost lots of money that i couldn’t afford. hehehe. but i tried something, i forget the name but it was basically a squid with special spices. it was good, about 6 euros for very very very small portion. hehehe. i was shocked when i got the bill. but never mind. hihihi.

that’s all about Paris. i wish i would have chance to go there again and to make it as beautiful as i imagine. maybe it’s just because i didn’t come in the right time ain’t the good mood, hehehe. and i still have one mission isn’t accomplished which is : DISNEYLAND!! sooo, wait for me i’ll be there someday hahahahahaha.

it’s true that rainbow always comes after the rain. good luck always comes after the bad luck, hiihi.

yesterday was really a bad day!! first, we didn’t go on plan to the Oxford because of some reasons. Second, some underground’s line didn’t work due to the reparation. it means, all people suddenly got on the same train and it was sooooo crowded. i hate it really. third, since we couldn’t go to the Oxford we moved on to Camden town. i thought it would be great (from magazines etc). but in fact it wasn’t at all!! too many people, too crowded, i didn’t like the things sold there (and the price also-too expensive for such things), and the atmosphere didn’t make me comfortable. no offense. yeah at least i’ve been there and now i know. fourth, the bloody weather makes me sick. rain and sun come and go. i hate it. i didn’t bring my jacket along with me and my umbrella dissapeared in i don’t know where. all the bad completed.

and Thank God it didn’t last long as today is my lucky day, hihihi. first, i catched the first train and bus just in time. i didn’t wait for them coming even a minute. hehehe. second, the weather was great!! no rain. oh, how lovely. i hate rains here. third, we went to Brighton. and guess what?? we got 50% off for the one day return ticket London-Brighton-London. fourth, Brighton is amazing. love the beach and the BRIGHTON PIER!! it’s sort of theme park. fifth, i got on the Booster (one of the rides there). and it was soooo great. kinda nervous at first because it seemed to be so scary. but then i just can say it was sooo great. the view from the top was so beautiful. it costs 8 pound *quite expensive actually*. but i can say it’s worth it. hehehe. sometimes experience worths more than money.

that’s all for today. syalalalaaa..

it’s been almost 2 weeks staying here. and it gets me thinking and feeling (again and again) Indonesia is still the best of all. no matter what!! the people, the culture, the food, the city, the life, the language *hahahahaha*, the everything ! it is much better ! hehe. yeah maybe it’s because i was born and grew up there. hehehe. well, UK (London esp) is nice but Indonesia (anywhere) is nicer for me. hehehe. living here is really really difficult. okay, visiting London for holiday is a good idea. there are too many interesting places *well, it’s too much actually. not just too many hehe* that i can’t even mention them one by one. and London is totally fascinating. staying here 1 month or even a year is not enough to explore this city and maybe this country. but living here is not a good idea at all. hehe. too difficult. i can figure it out only in 2 weeks, hehe. but, from deep down of my heart i have to say we need to learn many things from this country. hehehe.

hmm, yet i don’t feel like my English is getting better up to this time. i just hope it is. everyday i hang out with my Indonesian friends which are sooo nice. haven’t i told u about this? i think i have hhehe. and, it’s 100% guaranteed that we’ll be speaking Indonesian while we’re together. hehe. and i’ve skipped class twice till now *forgive me mom, dad hehehe*. oya, i wonder why local people always look at us strangely while we’re speaking or laughing. i don’t know why. hehe. what’s exactly come to their mind that time? is it the way we talk and laugh too much? hihihi. or maybe they want to laugh just the way we laugh?? hhahahhaha. i mean do they envy us?? hahahaha. hope too much. hehe. but i do want to say “stop your way of looking at us, please”. bcos we don’t feel comfortable. hehe. anyway, the best thing coming to the country using different language as ours is we can talk and laugh at them, in front of them in our own language. hehehehe. without any worry they understand us. hehehe. enjoyable, really! oopss. hehehe.

hmm. there is another thing i love from this country besides those i’ve written in the previous posts. it is the way they dress. soo fashionable. they look good in everything they wear, even the street style. i bet they have a good sense of fashion. hehehe. and the shops here offer so many good, beautiful, nice stuffs. oh i really can’t resist of them. i’m in the high mood of shopping. but i need to calm down myself. it’s because i have 2 weeks left. and i have to afford myself with those amount of money i’ve brought. Otherwise, i’ll be really really poor at my last week. hehe. FYI, i’ve spent too much hehe for living cost and the attractions. everything here is sooo expensive. it’s summer sale season (up to 70%) now here but the price is still very high for me Indonesian. hehehe. crazy huh? i must be really wise on managing my expenses. huh. i wish i can save enough. soooo… at the end i can shop!!! hihihihi. wish me luck.

i think i’ve written too much. i’m going to bed now. because i need to get up early tomorrow. i’m going to Oxford!! about an hour from London by train. nice trip i wish, hehehe. see ya in the next post.

my very cozy room here. lucky me to get this room, hehehehe.

udah seminggu disini. banyak pengalaman yang menyenangkan maupun gak menyenangkan. hehehe. dan yang paling menyenangkan adalah temen-temen disini bener2 asik, kocak, gila, gokil, dll. jadi kan kami ber-12 tuh ya satu grup dari Indonesia. asli kocak-kocak banget!! ga di jalan, ga di sekolah, gak di bis, gak di tube ketawa mulu. keliatan banget Indonesia nya. hehehe. asik bangett dehh. hehehe. orang sini mah boleh galak-galak, tapi kita ga peduli. hehehe. have fun terus. tapi masalahnya itu, kalo kita ketemuan tuh gak mungkin bisa ngobrol pake bahasa Inggris. hehehe. jadinya ya gitu deh ga maju2 ngomongnya. hehehe.

btw, selama seminggu ini saya udah ke Thames River, House Of Parliament, The London Dungeon, London eye, Manchester, Liverpool, The Beatles Museum, Buckingham Palace, National Gallery, Green Park, Chinatown, Piccadilly Circus, Oxford Street, Portobello Road, Trafalgar Square, Knightsbridge. Hehehe. Itu masih sebagian kecil dari tempat yang harus didatengin di London. Banyak banget tempat yang menarik dan harus dikunjungi. tapi itu dia mahal nya mak nyus bangett! gila. masa sampe saat ini udah mengeluarkan uang sebanyak £370. itu duit juga bukan buat belanja. mahalnya ampun2an. harus kerja dah bener kalo mau tinggal disini. huhh. dan emang orang-orang dari negara lain juga complain tentang mahalnya biaya hidup disini! jadi bukan saya yang aneh. ehehe.

dah ah mau ciao ngantuk hehehe. pengen upload foto nih tapi adobe nya dah dihapus jadi kalo ngecilin harus pake paint. dan kalo pake paint itu hasilnya jadi jeleeekkk. liat aja post sebelumnya hehehe. padahal aslinya jauh lebih bagus daripada itu hehehe. ntar aja deh uploadnya okeh.

p.s. kangen si pacarku itu amatttt sangaaatttt. masih 3 minggu lagi. hiks. masih lamaaaa.

i’m really really done with my previous route from house to school and the vice versa. and now,i found the newest route.

old route (45 minutes) :

• take bus from Arragon Garden (just near my house) to the Greyhound Lane. Its one stop only.
• walk to Streatham Common Station, approx 2 km
• take train from Streatham Common Station - Clapham Junction Station
• take train from Clapham Junction Station - London Waterloo
• Walk from Waterloo Station to EF School, approx 3 km

new route (60 minutes) :

• take bus from Arragorden to Streatham Hill Station. Six stops!
• train from Streatham Hill Station to Clapham Junction Station.
• take train from Clapham Junction Station to London Waterloo.
• Walk from London Waterloo Station to EF School.

Yaayyyy. I finally found the best route to get to school. Finally after several times i’m-lost-in-i-don’t-even-no-where. Hehehe. It takes longer time actually. But it’s much nicer cos i don’t have to walk that long as i used to with the previous one. Besides, the area of Streatham Hill is i think safer than the Streatham Common. Hehehehe. Happy!

today is the first day i go to ef school. woke up so early in the morning, around 6 p.m. then i showered, had breakfast and headed off to school, left home at 7.30 a.m. i went to school with my housemates (basia from Poland, joyce from taiwan and hasan from turkey). and this is the route we took : streatham common station-clapham junction-waterloo station. people here are soooo busy. they all rush that make me feel i have to rush too. hahaahha.

interesting today :

i bought the oyster card. its actually a ticket for public transportation here, valid for train, bus, underground. with the card we can travel anywhere we want by any public transportation. but its only for certain zone. i bought a ticket for zone 1-2-3. because my house is in the zone 3 and the school is zone 1. you’re free to travel around the zone you’re in. there are buy 1 day ticket, 1 week ticket and 1 month ticket. i bought the 1 week one, cost for 28 pound. and the public transportation here are really amazing! hehe.there is another card actually, called traveler card. it is a bit higher in price but i still don’t know what is the different between these 2 cards. one thing for sure, the public transportation system here is really really amazing. i wish indonesia would have it someday.

boat trip passing over the thames river. got some beautiful pictures. hehehe. check them out later

not interesting today :

absolutely the terrible weather!! gosh. sun and rain comes and goes easily. crazy, really! and i really don’t like it. instead, i don’t bring many coats and sweaters. thought it was summer here. but it felt like winter in indonesia.

bought simcard for UK number. i don’t think i buy the good one cos i can’t receive message from Indonesia. huh. i’ll buy the other later.

anyway, the test result put me into the level 5 class, the upper intermediate same as my sister hehehe. i don’t know whether it’s a good job or it isn’t. i don’t really care actually, hehe. the important goal is i’m able to communicate in english fluently and make a huge improvement. i wish. hehehe.

well, at the end of this post i’m gonna share about my opinions of living here. hmm, living here may seem to be very interesting. but it’s not as easy and beautiful as we think. we need to work very hard to afford such a high cost of living. we have to pay for eveything!! even for breathing *no kidding*. and people here work very hard. they seriously cherish time is money. so far different to what i usually see in my country , hehehe. no offense. maybe i need to learn from it and make a little bit change. and i miss my hometown so much now. place where i’m not feeling like a stranger.

OMG, i feel soooo lazy to pack my stuffs. i wish i had that doraemon pocket with me or i had magic spells or device to make everything packed all in a sudden. and i don’t have to take care of this crazy-packing-things. oh, stop wondering. at least, i’ve finally started packing little by little. first, i make what-i-must-bring-list. for the overview, i bring these stuffs below :

• clothes : tees, shirts, sweater & jacket, trousers, dress (formal & casual), underwear, hat, raincoat, swimsuit, rubber shoes, pyjama, slipper.
• gadgets : laptop, camera, handycam, handphone, nintendo dsl, hair dryer.
• souvenirs : batik tie, batik scarf, wayang sculpture, pens,
• medicine : panadol, mylanta, vicks, norit
• beauty kit : shampoo, soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, tampoon, pantyliners, tissue, cottonbud, towel, lotion, sunblock, lipbalm, face paper, face cream, perfume, body spray, roll +comb, loose powder, foundation, lipstick, eye shadow, blush on.

the packing is still 50% done, including clothes, gadget, souvenirs. i’ll do the rest tomorrow maybe. i wish my mum would take care of the rest, hihihi. watch out your belongings. don’t bring too many or you’ll be charged for the overweight. it’s quite expensive FYI. and i really hope i won’t be charged for the overweight at the time i get back to indonesia, hahahahaha. i shouldn’t shop too much hehe.

Hayayaya.

Visa Inggris sudah keluar!! huhuy. Ya, saya dan adik saya, maria berencana untuk mengisi liburan ini dengan sekolah bahasa ke London. Ikut program homestay nya EF. Jika tidak ada aral melintang *mulay jijik hehe*, kita berangkat tanggal 7 Juli 2008 selama 1 bulan. Doakan kami yaaa! hehe. terus udah mulai browsing internet tentang tourism spot nya london, nanya ke orang yang udah pernah kesana juga, dan baca majalah ato buku mengumpulkan informasi. dan akhirnya didapat referensi tempat-tempat di bawah ini. ya, ini masih secara garis besar sih dan sifatnya sangat fleksibel. bisa berubah karena satu dan lain hal, hehe… selamat menikmati

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