Wow, it's been a little more than a month since I last updated my blog. It's pretty dead here. D:
It's just that I've been busy with school and life and such. And trying to set my life back on track due to school. Oops. Maybe that's just a little exaggerated.

I kept seeing updated blogs and I felt the urge to write up some stuff that is not related to my academic studies.
So, here's what I learnt from my Diploma Year 1 school life at Lasalle (dem art schools):


#1 EVERYONE WOWS AT THE ARCHITECTURE



Most people are impressed by the architecture of the McNally campus where most classes are held (mine included). Well, it sure beats looking at white walls all day long and maybe it motivates the students a little, having an aesthetically pleasing campus.



#2 THERE'S NO DRESS CODE

Meaning, you could practically wear anything that you fancy, be it a fancy dress, tees and shorts, slippers, or tube tops (have not seen anyone in birthday suits so far).
And yeah, you could also get any hairstyle if you could pull it off.
The saddest part is, I already gave up dolling up for school after the second week, not that I did much anyway.



#3 THEY AIN'T KIDDING ABOUT THE WORKLOAD



I'm drafting this post at 1.30am on a Monday night. I spend my weekends as well as most nights on homework. The worst thing? I still couldn't finish my work. Same applies to 90% of my coursemates.
Aside from 3 different 3-hour studio classes, there are also workshops and contextual studies. Work will definitely pile up when you stopped giving a damn.
All in all, Diploma Level One at Lasalle has more work than my high school and that is saying a lot since my high school was well-known for stressing out lots of students.



#4 SLEEPING AT 12AM IS CONSIDERED EARLY
It is not unusual for students to sleep at 4am due to work and wake up at 7-8am to attend classes. No sleep for some people when submission deadline is the next day. (Un)fortunately, I couldn't not sleep. 3 hours is better than nothing, right? RIGHT?


#5 WHERE DID ALL MY MONEY GO



And... there's this matter of money. Most food places near Lasalle is not cheap. Period. The cheapest meal nearby are the hawker centre and a chicken rice store somewhere below a HDB flat (~ S$3). When your friends want to have food above S$5, you might need to reconsider if you don't really have a fixed income and when most of your money is converted from MYR (currently around 1:3). AND THERE'S ALSO LLAOLLAO



Also, I never knew that art supplies could be SO DAMN EXPENSIVE. Who knew that a Bristol board around an A2 size costs about S$2.90? Or that 90ml acrylic paints cost about S$6 (and we needed about 11 colours)? Or even 300gsm A3 watercolour pads that are S$16 for 10 sheets?



#6 THERE'S ALWAYS SOMEONE BETTER THAN YOU
Well, to be honest, not everyone is good at every single aspect of life. However, there are some people who excel at almost every subject at art school. Sure, different people have different art styles but there are always times when you doubt yourself and your works.



#7 YOU'RE USED TO PEOPLE GIVING YOU WEIRD LOOKS



As in people looking at you and wondering, 'what is she doing, carrying this huge drawing board on the bus and MRT. Show off issit? Is this the new hipster trend?' Nope. I don't even want to lug an A2 drawing board to school at the first place.
Or during Gray Matters classes where we are all supposed to do stuff in public that will make people turn heads, e.g. walking barefooted on roads, walking blindfolded, "dressing up".



BTW, ever tried spending 45mins in a cargo lift for class?



#8 THERE'S EVEN MAKEUP CLASSES FOR PH
Basically, syllabus not finished = no holidays at all. EVEN THE 1-WEEK TERM BREAK WAS USED FOR MAKEUP CLASSES. And the classes that we missed were for public holidays. Do you not get the word public? :(



Almost 3 months in and I'm super tired most of the days. It is near impossible to perfectly balance schoolwork, social life, relationships, and sanity. Oh, and money.
Not sure if Year 2 will be as bad, or worse. Meh.

Super overdue post (the last time I edited this was 10 Aug 2015, oops) cause art school ain't kidding. Will write up on my back-to-school life soon. This will be more of a photo-blog post.

My cousins asked me to go to a cat cafe in the Bugis area. I was like, why not give it a try? Ever since I went to the Cat Museum the previous week, I realised that not all cats are assh*les.





It's a little hard to find at first. The stairs to the cafe is located in an alley near Burger King at Bugis St.
However, an entrance fee of S$15 is charged per person (inclusive of a soft drink). You could top up to another beverage if you want to.



The good ol' A&W days..









The interior of the cafe is quite cozy. I like the seats very much as they are comfortable to sit in. They also have chairs if you prefer the more traditional table and chairs.



They even have a ledge for the cats to walk on. You can say that it's a skybridge of some sort.

Now, some photos for all the cat lovers.





Both of the pictures above are of the same cat. It was asleep and suddenly woke up and looked at the camera skeptically for some reason.
"Hooman what are you doing?"








Apparently, it was near the cats' napping time (around 7pm) so most cats are asleep. We were warned to not play with the sleeping cats. OR IS IT BECAUSE THAT GROWN CATS ARE LETHARGIC AF.



This cat looks as though it wants to murder someone and/or something.



This must be grouchy cat, cousin of grumpy cat.











And I have no idea as to why this cat kept dragging a blanket around.



Plotting for world dominance.



*acts as though nothing happened when humans pass by*

One last photo.



They do sell food but we weren't in the mood then.
Ended up with Burger King. Heh.

Would like to try other pet cafes too (IF I EVER HAVE THE TIME)


The Cat Cafe
241B Victoria Street, 
Website: The Cat Cafe Singapore 
FB page: The Cat Cafe

When a friend of mine suggested that we go to The Cat Museum at the Bras Basah area, I was like, OK why not give it a try?
Pic above from mothership.sg

Of course, let's not forget one of the most important places in Greece. Athens also played a great part in Greek mythology.
It was said that Athena and Poseidon once competed to become the patron of this wondrous city. Athena won in the end and the city Athens was named after her.

We were in Athens for about 2D1N before we departed for Mykonos and another 2D1N after our trip to Crete.


Changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier



The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Greece is located at Syntagma Square, which houses the Greek Parliament building.
Dozens of tourists gathered around the square around 11am Greek time to watch the ceremonial changing of guards that are stationed in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

EVERYONE WAS SO TALL OMG. AND I CAN'T EVEN WATCH PROPERLY WHILE TIPTOEING. However, there's still some space and I could watch from the gap. Sometimes it's good to be short though.



I had to wiki to find out more about the guards and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as the tour guide didn't say much nor explain more (and also because I was busy watching and photographing under the hot sun).

For those who are unfamiliar with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, there are similar tombs all around the world, remembering those who have fallen in wars or battles. A single soldier without identifications was buried, representing all of the unnamed soldiers in the war.

Dressed in their traditional uniforms, the Evzones guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Greece. The dress-like garment and the shoes.. definitely made them unique.


Panathenaic Stadium



The Panathenaic Stadium is one of a kind as it is the only stadium to be fully built with marble. I suppose sitting there under the sun would be cooling enough.
It hosted the first modern Olympic Games and also the more recent 2004 Olympic Games.

We didn't stay long as we were running late for lunch (ugh, the rush) and also because admission tickets were not included in our package.


Plaka





This has to be my favourite place in all of Athens. Plaka is the old neighbourhood in Athens. It's a beautiful place with shady trees and colourful flowers, somewhat like a garden.
It also has labyrinthine streets like most old neighbourhoods so it's fun to explore and discover (and easy to get lost in).







Pic above creds to aunt. Totally not that camera-ready. LOL







There are lots of different shops, selling myriads of goods, from souvenirs to clothing to edibles. Truly a good place to shop at. The edibles are a little more pricey compared to other parts of Greece (cause 1Euro is almost equivalent to RM4). Olive soap bars are cheap though.





Plaka is not short of taverns (cheaper food places) and restaurants. You could have your meal and continue on with your shopping after that.



People all about, even at night. Was a little crowded at the dining place. Also because it's a small place.


Monastiraki Flea Market



Situated at a walking distance from Plaka, the Monastiraki Flea Market is not really your traditional flea market. Instead, it comprises dozens of shops with low prices (well, most of them are low).



Surprisingly, macarons here are way cheaper compared to Malaysia's as I thought the exchange rate would skyrocket the prices. The macarons were just 0.70Euros each whereas macarons in Malaysia cost an average of RM4 each.
So we bought about 8 macarons. LOL. One of each flavour.



You could find antiques and cheap souvenirs too! Bought a Poseidon figurine for about 6Euros and I'm happy cause he's my fav. Heh.


Street Art / Graffiti



Another thing that I sort-of like in Athens is the street art / graffiti there. Some of them are plain vandalism but most of them brought colours to plain old walls.



Such as this pretty piece in front of a shop (maybe minus the white spray paint).





Some of them deliver strong messages.



Or they are just plain pretty.


Acropolis and the Parthenon





Time to take a tour around the Acropolis of Athens, to go back a few thousand years. The buildings/ruins here are practically ancient and date back to the beginning of civilisation. The once great Greek civilisation is still standing on top of a hill overlooking Athens.
No building in Athens should be taller than the Acropolis of Athens.



The structure is truly fascinating. Restoration in progress though.



The famous Parthenon, dedicated to Athena. The rocks in front of the building is damn slippery though. Be careful to not slip and fall like I almost did.



Technology is definitely awesome as someone developed an app to reconstruct the buildings and let tourists and locals alike see what the place was like thousands of years ago. They even have the details on the top of the temple. It helps a lot, especially to those who lack imagination.
Yep, that's a rented iPad.



The Erechteion, dedicated to both Poseidon and Athena.





The Parthenon still standing magnificently.



You could see the whole of Athens from up here.



That awkward king-of-the-world-every-one-and-every-thing-is-under-me pose.







There's only one way up and down and lots of people about. It is truly marvelous to have seen the Parthenon and the Acropolis with my own eyes. I'm no expert and there are quite a number of temples there that are now ruins and I didn't really go through them one at a time. Oops. I do know, however, that some of the parts were reconstructed while the originals are preserved at the Acropolis Museum.



I still can't read Greek except for the occasional alpha, beta, delta.


Acropolis Museum



The Parthenon from the walkway to the Acropolis Museum.





The original statues on the Erechteion.

Photography is prohibited in most exhibition halls and even when it is allowed, no flash photography is permitted.



The birth of Athena from Zeus' head, I suppose. Greek mythology IS interesting.



You could see the Acropolis from the Acropolis Museum. There's also a cafe at the museum where people could enjoy their afternoons and evenings.

We also went to the McArthurGlen Factory Outlet. Shopped till our boarding time. Heh. I did take some photos on my phone and it died. IT DIED. BEFORE I BACKUP THE PHOTOS. FRIED THE SDCARD TOGETHER WITH IT.
Phone died a second time after repairs. Ohwell. Got a new phone.
Lesson learnt: MUST BACKUP PHOTOS MONTHLY.

I guess that's all for my Greece trip. Greek food are hard to pronounce and I'm kinda lazy to look them all up. Sorry :x
Taiwan posts next? Heh (CAUSE I LOST MY PENANG TRIP PHOTOS TOO. UGH)