Episode 565: Window-shopping In Amsterdam

Today, we left Berlin for Amsterdam. One final comment on Berlin though: The public transport system there is so trusting. There are no ticket gantries at the metro stations. Instead, you have ticket validators, which people are supposed to insert their tickets into. Of course, the whole system is predicated on the belief that Germans would never try to cheat it, and for that matter, said belief is probably true. I just wonder how much revenue is lost to dishonesty. We stopped just outside Amsterdam to see Edam and clogs being made. In one of those bizarre intercultural things, the young lady talking about the cheese told us her name was Jamie, which is hardly a Dutch name by any stretch of the imagination. The reason? Her parents love the name. She, on the other hand, doesn't like it so much because she sometimes gets mistaken for a guy when people see her name on a list. The cheeses we tried afterward were nice, although I generally prefer cheeses with a softer texture, like Camembert. We took a short walk around the (in)famous red-light district, which made me reconsider how liberal I think myself to be. (I shouldn't need to clarify, but I do mean I'm more straitlaced than I thought.) Managed to get an idea for a poem out of it at least!

Episode 564: I Bought A (Presumably) Real Piece Of The Berlin Wall

We did a walking tour of Berlin in the morning, which made World War Two history come alive for me in a way that my lessons in school never could. I saw bits of the Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie, and it's just so strange to think that about two decades ago, part of the city was entirely cut off from the area surrounding it. Powerfully symbolic stuff. I mean, the Communists went so far as to sever metro connections by preventing access to the stations. The Wall went up practically overnight as well. Just think of the psychological impact of that. We also saw a really cool memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe. That literally is the name: Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, or the Field of Stelae. It's a vast field of concrete blocks, all different sizes, and as you walk among them, the ground rises and dips, and by the time you reach the heart of the memorial, all these blocks are towering over you. The effect is alienatingly labyrinthine and yet not, as the placement of the blocks basically marks out a regular grid of paths. Fascinatingly abstract, but there's not a lot to tell you the significance of the memorial. Ironically, within sight of it is the carpark under which lies Hitler's bunker. Only a recently erected signboard gives any indication of the location's connection to the Nazi regime. The underground Information Centre of the memorial is well worth a visit. One room is particularly haunting. It's dimly lit, large screens on all four walls with the names of Holocaust victims projected on them, as their stories are recounted. We did a sort of pub crawl after dinner, but I didn't go to the club at the end of it. Headed off with a couple of people back to the hotel instead. (My golden rule when it comes to clubbing is to only go out with people I can trust to take care of themselves.)

Episode 563: Terzanelle Success!

I wrote today's poem in under an hour, right after getting on the bus. It's an extended terzanelle (one additional tercet), which gives 14 unique lines, so I've written it such that these form a sonnet. Probably will have to indent the repeated lines on the page, just to make the sonnet obvious. (Or I could just make it a throwaway remark in my commentary?) The poem came quite easily, and it scans almost perfectly as iambic tetrameter. I've treated it more as a technical experiment than anything else, so in that respect, it's pretty damn good, I personally think. We stopped for lunch in Dresden, but didn't see much else. Not too bothered really. The hotel in Berlin supposedly has free Internet access, but possibly due to the electrical outage an hour before we got here, it's completely on the fritz. Oh, and an update regarding the tooth, it's definitely sensitive (ate ice-cream today and it ached), but I can't work out why. Crack? Am I going to need a filling? Oh no! We were going to head to the Reichstag tonight for the view, but the queue was so long, we were told that there'd be no point in our waiting tonight. Might go back tomorrow, I guess. So I'm back in the hotel room, catching up on The Vampire Diaries. I think it's definitely my favourite show from The CW right now, as the writing actually seems to be pushing the plot somewhere purposefully, rather than in Gossip Girl, where the plot is too tangled while still trying to ground itself in a semblance of reality, or in Melrose Place, where it's never meant to be taken realistically in the first place, but the stories have been pretty dull until now.

Episode 562: Mojitos And Me

Although I'm not much of a breakfast person in general, I've decided that if I could eat scrambled eggs for it everyday, I'd be cool with that. Late start to the day again, so I had a bit of a lie-in. We did a river cruise on the Vltava at lunchtime, which was pretty nice, although I've been on so many over the years that the views don't really surprise me anymore. The Nationale-Nederlanden building, nicknamed the Dancing House because the shapes of the two towers look like a man and a woman, designed by Vlado Milunić and Frank Gehry, was impressive though. We've had the rest of the day free, so I wandered around for some time, visiting the Museum of Torture with some people. It wasn't very big, but we got in on a discounted price anyway, so it was okay. Came back to the hotel and decided to try doing some submissions, but only sent one out in the end, as I think it's too early (i.e. only a month) to try again for some places that've rejected me. Went out tonight, but a bunch of us got separated from the main group right at the start. It was still cool though, as we decided to head to the terrace of the Hotel U Prince, where we had a gorgeous view of the city by night. Having had three Mojitos tonight, I feel that I can safely declare them my favourite cocktail. Real men, of course, are not afraid to drink cocktails and enjoy them.

Episode 561: Revisiting Prague

Stayed up last night to watch the Series 5 premiere of Doctor Who and catch up on Gossip Girl. I actually enjoyed the new Doctor's performance far more than I thought I would, and I'm really appreciating the Doctor-companion dynamic that's been set up. Ending scene of the episode? Brilliant. Incidentally, to my ears, Matt Smith's vocal intonations sometimes resemble David Tennant's. Not identical, but I'm pretty sure the resemblance isn't just my imagination. Whether it's deliberate or not is the question, I suppose. So overall, I think this is going to be a smashing series for the Doctor. Feel free to disagree, but hey, no one's forcing you to tune in, right? Gossip Girl, on the other hand, continues to disappoint. The plotlines are getting out of control, and hasty resolutions seem to have turned into a bad habit. That and as Vaish has pointed out, the dialogue has completely gone downhill. It feels like the writers can't figure out how to develop stories that work with an ensemble cast, so all the couples have their little intrigues going on at the same time but with no interaction among them. At this rate, I give it the one more season it's already been renewed for, tops. (Although if Blair transfers to Columbia, perhaps the snark will return? Am not amused by the prospect of revisiting the Nate-Jenny pairing, which the writers apparently think is a great idea to just throw in. Ah, all the couples on this show are borderline incestuous anyway!) We're in Prague today, and I had a moment of déjà vu when standing in front of the Prague Orloj because I recognised my surroundings from years ago when Raffles Voices toured Prague and Germany. We did a walking tour, led by Petr Berka, one of the guys who co-wrote Xenophobe's Guide To The Czech. He's also a guy with a sense of humour, big enough to laugh at his own country and people. If more people were able to do that, the world would definitely be a more peaceful place!

Episode 560: Concentration Camp & Beer

We began the day with a visit to Mauthausen, the last concentration camp to be liberated by the Allies at the end of World War Two. Not an extermination camp like Auschwitz, but still pretty harrowing nonetheless. Maybe it's my overactive imagination, but I think you can still sense the evil that has taken place there. It's an experience that everyone should have at least once in their life, visiting a concentration camp, just to witness how brutal we as a species can be. How anyone can come away from it and not be moved is beyond me, and Holocaust deniers are just appalling. Even in our postmodern era when we like to think everyone's truth is equally valid, there are some things which are just false, plain and simple. Did a short walking tour around the city centre of Munich, ending up in the famous Hofbräuhaus. Ended up at a table with people including Brek and his friends, so banter for the win! Had a shot that was vile, so I totally had the Asian glow going, but I was nowhere near being tipsy. I admit that I was also drinking Radler, a 50-50 mix of beer and lemonade, so that would hardly have been incapacitating either! (Creative writers seem to be planning a messy one for first night of term, after the EN232 deadline, so might get hammered then for the first time since Zouk last year.) Not really a fan of beer anyway, so drinking tonight was more about the atmosphere than anything else!

Episode 559: Austrian Craziness

We had breakfast under the glass pyramid of the hotel, which was pretty cool, if a bit far to walk to. I think I've chipped a tooth because I get a slight twinge when I chew on my right side. Caught the ending of Mass, so I did make it into a church on Easter despite being on holiday. Later went back to do a tour of the catacombs beneath, which was creepily fantastic. All those bones piled up in there, bodies of the bishops, really amazing stuff. Also went into a museum housing the imperial treasures, so lots of gold and jewels all about the place. Am still ill though, so walking about the whole afternoon was quite exhausting. We also visited the famous Fischer schnapps museum. The man who showed us around was really humorous! We also got to try all sorts of stuff, including an absinthe cocktail that actually tasted pretty delicious. Would've bought a bottle, but I didn't have enough cash on me, and having to carry it back would've been a bit of a pain anyway. Also got to try a liqueur with gold in it, which I could actually feel on the tip of my tongue. It's supposed to be good for your health! Dinner was at this restaurant with wacky decor, where they rolled out the red carpet for us, even with a ribbon to cut. I've turned into a big fan of schnitzel in just two days. Never thought I'd actually find tender turkey, but hey, there's a first for everything. The restaurant has played host to loads of famous people, so being there was great. Ended the night with a party on the bus, which was quite funny because it was mostly people bumping into each other in the aisle, trying to dance without falling over.

Episode 558: Three Cheers For The Germanic Countries!

Finally, a hotel with free WiFi! Guess Germanic countries are better after all. This hotel is apparently a converted Club Med, so its facilities are fantastic. I'm talking an indoor swimming pool and saunas here, way better than anything we've encountered so far actually. The Internet access, however, is the best part. Only trouble is that we're staying on a floor that doesn't have WiFi access, so to use it, I'll have to go downstairs. Not a big deal, when you consider that it's free. Also, finally a hotel with adapters! It's item one on their information list. They charge a deposit of €50 though, which seems irrationally exorbitant. Surely people who can afford to stay in a place like this don't need to be deterred so strongly from making off with an adapter? We attended a Mozart and Strauss concert given by the Vienna Residence Orchestra in Palais Auersperg, which was incredible! During the intermission, instead of just going out to the foyer, we were led to another part of the palace, where we could take pictures of (and with) the musicians, as well as the palace rooms. Pretty damn cool. Listening to the music sent me back to adolescence because after my dad's CDs, classical music was the next thing I spent a lot of time listening to, before I sold out to pop music. I think it trained my ears for life though, as I reckon I have a pretty good ear for music given my comparatively limited formal training (that began later in life as well than for most Singaporean kids these days).

Episode 557: Ciao, Venice!

So in Venice, it shouldn't be too surprising to find a pinup calendar of gondoliers. Since this is Italy, it's also not surprising to find one of Catholic priests, right? My question is simply this: How do those fresh-faced priests reconcile being the objects of just with their vow of chastity? If I were being facetious, I'd say this contradiction about sums up the slightly bizarre nature of Catholicism. (I suppose the rationale is that as long as they're fully clothed, since the priest on the cover was definitely in a cassock, it's okay.) Anyway, Venice is a really pretty place, with no vehicular traffic to mar it. We had a look at frightfully expensive Venetian lace, as well as a really cool glassblowing demonstration. We also took a tranquil gondola ride through the canals, sipping Prosecco and Bellini, and taking lots of photographs, of course. A lot of stuff in Venice seems to undergoing restoration at the moment though, including the famous Ponte dei Sospiri, or the Bridge of Sighs if you don't speak Italian. Sort of spoils the pictures, just a little. I also think I'm on the verge of falling ill, although my condition hasn't worsened after one day, so I'm hoping that lots of water will help to stave off whatever I'm coming down with.

Episode 556: Insane Drive

Late, relaxed start to the day, which we spent practically the whole of driving, partly because we were mired in a traffic jam, which made the CTE during peak hour back home look like smooth sailing. Truly, it takes a continental state of mind to be able to cope with driving in Europe! It was okay though, as I got to spend time reading Elizabeth Bishop. I think 'Arrival At Santos' definitely merits a mention somewhere in my commentary on the portfolio, just because it's the poem in which Bishop comes closest to the scepticism that most of my poems seem to be displaying so far. I'm hoping that I won't write something cynical about Venice though, as this is the one city in the world that I really wanted to visit when I decided on this trip. I know it's supposed to be really commercialised and touristy now, but I can't help it. It's freaking Venice! We shall see. If something evocative strikes me, like this picture of the Sistine Chapel that was focusing on the hands of Adam and God reaching towards each other, conveniently drawing attention to the fact that their fingers don't actually touch, and it just happens to lead to something critical, then so be it. (I have subsequently discovered that this is a depiction of the creation of Adam, which just makes that tiny gap even more telling, in my opinion.) Otherwise though, just writing about Venice itself is interesting enough, this city in which there are no vehicles and water takes the place of concrete. The hotel we're staying in is probably the lowest in standard so far, but it's decent enough and it would probably cost a fortune to stay somewhere better anyway. The quality should go up once we get back into Germanic countries like Austria and Germany anyway. Hopefully, somewhere will have free WiFi!