The Egg Has Dropped

A diary of my life, my travels to various places and my many interests.

Monday, January 30, 2006

Happy Chinese New Year!

Wow, time really flew this month! After a month of lull in December, work really started up at my workplace… and I have been keeping myself busy! I started going to driving class here and the lesson plan is 30 hours of theory and 6 hours of on-the-road driving. So I went to a 3-hour theory class for two weeks straight after work in the middle of this month… It was a tiring two weeks but it was really fun! Basically, Maryland’s driving laws require all to go driving school and you get a lot of kids in class! Those kids from high school are really funny… I almost felt like I am going through secondary school all over again!

Finally, over this Chinese New Year weekend, I started my on-the-road driving. There are three 2-hour on-the-road sessions. God… my first lesson was on a Friday night (27th Jan), and after an hour of forwards, reverses, left-turns and right-turns, I was out on the road!! This is really a throw-you-in-deep-end kind of training! It was really exciting though and I think motorcycling is still easier than driving!

Saturday was another driving class and I was out on the main roads driving! I also did perpendicular parking and parallel parking. Whoa… one more lesson (highway driving!) and I’ll be done with driving class… but will it be enough to drive on the road? I also had a nice dinner with my housemates and some of their friends… really impressed with the cooking… I was really full =)

Finally, I went with my boss and his son to the Washington Auto Show in DC today. The style of the show is a bit different from what we get in Singapore… no pretty girls posing with pretty cars! It is all functional, for sale cars on display where you can jump into most cars and fiddle around with the controls (except the ignition obviously!). It was not bad… and I was lucky enough that a security guard passed me a free ticket while I was waiting in the line! Nice guys do have their day sometimes! =P

Once again, Happy Chinese New Year to all my friends and readers! Gong Xi Fa Cai! May our year be properous and happy! And full of joy and love heheh!


The Washington Auto Show 2006, Washington Convention Center, DC Posted by Picasa

The National Air and Space Museum (15th Jan)

Went to DC on a Sunday, the weekend of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This is a public holiday in the United States on 16th Jan, which is on Monday. This time, I was here to see the National Air and Space Museum. Needless to say, it was great... I think I probably like this museum best out of all the museums I visited!


The National Air and Space Museum Posted by Picasa


The first plane that flew: The Wright Brothers' 1903 Flyer Posted by Picasa


WWII fighter planes! Posted by Picasa


The first hypersonice plane, X-15. The 2 missles behind are Russian nuclear missiles. Posted by Picasa


The original Neil Armstrong's spacesuit! Posted by Picasa

Monday, January 09, 2006

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes!

Well, this was another uneventful weekend for me… supposed to go to Bethesda to watch an American football game (they call it football here, soccer is soccer!). My supervisor didn’t call me so I guess he didn’t manage to book his condo’s party room.

Basically, I slept a lot and went walking around window-shopping. Guess what… I am looking at all that home stuff: furniture, crockery and bedding (desperately needing a comforter or at least a blanket!)

Sunday was the same… I decided to take a long walk around my neighborhood and get used to the roads and surroundings… I realized the sidewalks are really filthy, tons of rubbish and cigarette butts… no road sweepers here mind you. People here probably don’t know about it because they drive everywhere.

Still the beauty of the suburbs is still there… the clear blue unobstructed sky, a lot of trees, nice carpet grass, streams and small ponds and wild geese which shit a lot on the sidewalks (by the way, their shit looks like dog poo!).

Finally on my way back, I went to do some grocery shopping. I bought a dozen eggs and some turkey ham. The innocent looking tomatoes cost like $4/LB, and I just threw in nine, the lousy weighing balance gave like half a pound (sadly I didn’t do my conversion right… how can 9 big tomatoes weigh 200g?). I was hugely surprised when I got billed for $10 for my tomatoes! Good god, it cost more than my meals for a day!! Can you imagine paying SGD$17 to eat tomatoes? Lesson learned… now you know why they made a movie ‘Attack of the Killer Tomatoes’!

Sunday, January 08, 2006

A Trip to Woodley Zoo, DC (30th Dec'05)


TianTian in Woodley Zoo... CUTE! Posted by Picasa

A Little Slice of Singapore in DC (29th Dec'05)


The National Museum of Natural History Posted by Picasa


Fossil replica of a giant Diplodocus. The other one is the T-Rex fossil replica.
Posted by Picasa


Egyptian mummy! Posted by Picasa


A little slice of Singapore in DC: Singapore Bistro Posted by Picasa

The Capitol Building & the Hirshhorn Museum (27th Dec'05)


The Capitol Building Posted by Picasa


The Hirshhorn Museum
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Potrait of Dora Maar by Pablo Picasso! Posted by Picasa

A Trip to DC (26th Dec'05)


How can you say you have been to DC without a picture of the White House? =P Posted by Picasa


The National Christmas Tree! Posted by Picasa


The Washington Monument Posted by Picasa


The Lincoln Memorial Posted by Picasa

Memories of Winry

My last surviving hamster of the 6 hamsters I have two years ago has finally passed away. My dad told me that it died of natural causes (old age) two weeks after I left for Singapore... (maybe it missed me?)

Hopefully it will be happy and have all the sunflower seeds it can have in hamster heaven!


Last held my Winry on the day I left Singapore Posted by Picasa

Monday, January 02, 2006

Rainy Christmas (25th Dec'05)


Rainbow after a whole day of rain Posted by Picasa

First Time to DC! (23th Dec'05)


This is Washington DC's Chinatown! Posted by Picasa


NHL hockey game in the MCI Center, Washington Capitals vs Montreal Canadiens! Posted by Picasa

A Walk in Rio (10th Dec'05)


A kid feeding seagulls on a bridge in Rio Posted by Picasa


Beautiful picture taken while walking around Rio Posted by Picasa

First Day in Maryland (6th-7th Dec'05)


First night in Maryland... snowing... Posted by Picasa


Next morning... cars all blanketed by snow Posted by Picasa


Touched snow for the first time... Posted by Picasa