My 2nd trip to Belgium - Aug 18th - 20th

What am doing again in Belgium, you ask?
Does Eric really need a testosterone filled companion on the weekend?
Or was it because travelling to Leuven didnt hurt my wallet much...or was it the other way round?

Well, head to bonniearthur.blinklife.com to get the heads up of my 2nd trip in 2 weeks to Belgium, trust me...after this trip i ll never think of heading there anymore, unless if i do get a position in Brussels, of which i dont mind really!

This time round, we toured Brugge, the Venice of the North...famous for being touristy because of its medieval feel, rivers and waterways running through the city, the usual waffles and fries...and get this, LACES!



The waterways running through the city, hence the nickname of "Venice of the north"












The famous City Hall, part of the huge central square called the Markt, which is one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites.











Brugge is also famous for laces...


















Ok,laces...the real thing.

My trip to Belgium 11th – 14th Aug.

I was looking forward to this trip since Eric’s first visit to Bonn. I timed this to fit the Marktrock, one of Europe’s biggest urban music festival. Stupid thing is the event only starts on the 13th, simply because it has to end on the 15th, which is a national holiday in most parts of Europe, except Bonn! Its Mary’s ascension to heaven on that day…and perhaps country’s that feel more religious makes it a public holiday. Damn Bonn!


Here is the poster for the music fest that was Marktrock, most of them we dont know



My Belgium Itinary (work - Koln - Liege - Leuven - Gent - Brussels - Leuven - Marktrock - Koln - work)

So what is famous in Belgium? Having been there during my Euro trip back in summer 04, my 6 hours in Brussels gave me a very bad impression of the capital. I hope to change this mindset with this trip. Besides fries (which apparently originated here rather than France…but still we call it French fries), waffles and really nice chocolates…what else makes Belgium…Belgium?! What do they speak…Belglish? (ok…its either Flemish or French or Dutch…depending on the region). We had a conversation during my Baltic trip about what makes Belgium tick…and sadly the outcome of it was that yes…Belgium as a country seems like a land that is neither here nor there (vague…but put in terms of economy, people wise, culture and traditions). But it definitely was something which I want to find out too…which made this trip all the more like a mission! All the more because I originally wanted to go to Belgium for my internship, having lost out a really cool position to a crappy guy (yes, I am still bitter!), ironically the same place where Eric is doing his internship now, the world’s largest brewery. So in a way I am coming full circle with this possible scenario which I missed…living a life in Leuwen, through my trip here to Belgium.

So I ve got Dee (my travelling partner lately) and introducing to Portuguese Tart’s blogosphere, Jonathan Lustgarten. This Venezuelan dude arrived recently and we hit it off instantly, from the moment we were “selecting” him if he fits the bill to replace Claudia in her room. Don’t ask me why I was involved…but yeah, maybe its cuz he has like the coolest surname since de Souza!! You could do like heaps of bed talk with a surname like this! “…allow me to show you around the garden of lust!” So cool! Anyways I’ve christened him John Lusty from the day we met! Amen…!

(Left - right); Portuguese Tart, Dee, John Lusty and the host for the weekend.





And thus our journey begins…with a transition to my sister site of course to begin with.

Baltic Sea trip

This trip was planned randomly, thanks to Jennie Chinita Lee...and with the idea of renting a car, we needed to get 2 or 3 more people. ROAD TRIP!!!! I immediately said yes to Jen at the mere mention of "we thought of renting a car"!

Thanks to my many sweet sweet road trip experiences with my MC mates, i am sure this trip would generate as much fun too! Putting 4 or 5 zany individuals in a car for a ride of over 6 hours (not sure how long if we get lost), we needed specific people with specific characteristics! Which explains the rigourous selection process (which me and Jen were a bit uncomfortable with at first) of who will we ride with.

The Zany Selection Process

So we tried with the zaniest of them all...at least in Bonn, some say Slovakia, New Zealand, Rotterdam and India too...Amit. Alas...he felt his zaniness doesnt really suit our personalities (perhaps he was afraid he needed to navigate the map, of which we probably might end up in the Balkans instead of the Baltics) so he rejected the trip.















Zany person number two- Piyush...of which Amit might beg to differ; also rejected us solely on financial reasons and him wanting to focus on his CV. He thinks he cant be zany when he isnt in the mood, which i agree.













Zany person number three...Dee...just needed a little 'motivation' to get her to agree. Great...her zaniness can count for two actually.








Zany person number four...Segala...despite initially agreeing to come, at the end decided to pull out, saying he needs to stay at home. My guess is he and Amit just wants to spend some quality time together, develop their own little "housemate" relationship which heaven knws goes beyond arranging your bed and mine, cleaning your clothes and mine etc...















Well...then with nearly no one else in the rostrum, due to lack of zaniness and also more rejections (Sandra Mexican/Dutch and Steve Kenyan...who ironically are housemates and have had discussions about conceiving a blonde, black baby...hmmm), i bumped into one of the MBA Interns of whom i 'coordinate', a Taiwanese living in Canada and studying in Spain (mi llama Sharon y yo bonita, kannineh ho sei boh, do you understand my Spanish Taiwanese lingo,eh?).

She readily agreed to the road trip after i asked her if she was interested...and if zany could be measured by how loud she was...she is SUPERCALLIFRAGILISTICALLY ZANY!

The line up was complete...3 girls and a guy, 3 Hokkien speaking(again, the crassiest language in the speaking world) people and a 3 in 1 girl that represented the Balkans, Scandinavia and UK alltogether, 3 poor AIESEC interns and one financially stable MBA Intern (ok Jen is in between both)...

Join me in my trip update at Portuguese-tarts sister site... bonniearthur.blinklife.com.

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On another note, this Friday evening i ll be heading to Belgium to visit Eric. No selection process for this as what was supposed to be a solo trip turned out to be a trip for 3, me, Dee and Jonathan Lustgarten; him of which i would call John Lusty from now on! To welcome John Lusty into Portuguese Tart's world, here is a short intro of him. From Venezuela but speaks with an American accent, he took over Claudia's room just after she left. Even Clau is happy we got along well...not that i ll be sleeping with him though!

So Eric Yap...thanks in advance for your 'excitement' in hosting me and the gang! Aku tahu kita manyak cerita to share...tapi kita boleh cari masa untuk berbincang la k.

Reason for the Belgium trip, or Leuven to be exact; to experience one of Europe's biggest urban music festivals. Its called the Marktrock...and the annual celebration is usually held around August. Sad thing is its only beginning on Sunday till Tuesday...so not sure bout our return plans. Nevertheless i ve got my dancing shoes, looking forward to hip hop, r&b, house and pop, world and techno...!!!

In loving memory...

Only recently i begun wearing my yellow band for cancer awareness which i thought i lost it here in Bonn. As much as i am big on advocating HIV/AIDS awareness as well, on a personal level this disease have affected me emotionally many times...some going wayyy back when i was in primary school. I think the last count of family members that passed away from the dreaded 'C' was 8 or 9.




Throughout my time in Germany, i have only seen Jenny 'Chinita' Lee wearing it religiously, although hers differ from mine (my msg says "Celebrate Life", its the Malaysian Cancer Society version vs Jens original "Livestrong" one). For those not in the know, the yellow band idea was pioneered by Tour de France legend and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong as part of his Wear Yellow Live Strong educational program intended to support cancer victims and survivors and raise awareness about cancer. The whole "coloured band" craze took a wild turn when capitalist companies (read: the clown that sells burgers and fries) began selling them and targetting teens and youths with each coloured band having a moral booster phrase or something similar. It was so sickening to see that none...none goes to charity whatsoever, and silly consumers buy like heaps of them! I am sparing the company with the 'swoosh' for its black and white band to raise awareness of preventing racism in football...although selling it expensively just looses the cause big time!

Anyways it was just this Monday me and Jen were having a discussion about cancer, how it affected us and who did it effect. The following day at work...while checking my mails, there was a mail through our AIESEC Malaysia community announcing the demise of one of its member. As heart wrenching as it is to realise the reality of such news...its even worst when you actually know this person very well! She was from the LC which me and my MC team helped form.

Turns out the cause of death was OVARIAN CANCER... the girl, a charming, lovely person, a passionate AIESEC member and very bright kid...i dont think she was even 20 yet. I always remembered as someone inquisitive, always asking questions relevant to AIESEC nonetheless. Shocked...disbelief...a moment of emptiness...stunned...

My condolences to her family, friends and all members of Taylor's Business School Local Committee. Stay strong...live strong...the passing of someone dear just reemphasises the message for us to celebrate life, and to celebrate the life of Rosline Lam.

You ll be remembered Rosline...rest in peace.















Then there was another shocking news from Eric, who told me the trainee he was closed with in his company who only recently returned to his country....met with an accident and passed away. He was obviously too distraught to even talk to me about it. I can imagine...i would be devastated the same knowing the trainee friends whom i grown to be sooo close with were to encounter the same fate.

And no...it wouldnt stop there. Until recently my MC team have not really been in the loop in terms of communication...and with my latest initiative of sending mails to everyone in the team, i would expect at least some nostalgia to follow suit in terms of all of us communicating once again, what with each and everyone of us leading different and separate lives. I wouldnt have imagined a reply from Anisha to include another passing of a dear friend.

This is by far the worst one to hit me...as this woman was not only a dear friend, but a fighter and champion of the HIV/AIDS awareness cause. She pioneereed the idea of having a shelter for women and children with HIV/AIDS, or orphaned because of it...and thus Rumah WAKE (Wanita & Kesihatan...Women & Health) was born. She fought for government support financially, and through corporate support as well. That was the point of first contact for me, during my stint with AIESEC and Standard Chartered Bank's Corp Affairs Dept, when we were championing a HIV/AIDS project together. She was a very dedicated women who knows the dirty business of HIV/AIDS awareness, the politics surrounding it...and a very direct, in your face person. I got really fond of her, and we kept in touch through sms throughout the time till i left the bank and AIESEC even. Malaysia has lost a very charismatic champion of HIV/AIDS...i have lost a dear friend in her...gosh Catherine, i cant believe you re not around anymore. I wish that Rumah Wake will continue its cause and support of the victims...i wish that Catherines soul and cause will not be lost...i wish life wont be too cruel to take away people who had a reason to live...

Rest in peace Catherine...I ll never forget you.

Its just another reminder that life is short...and be it in my life here in Bonn, or Malaysia...i ll always wanna live it to the fullest.