Update on Project Europe

I'm in research mode for my Europe Trip next year. In fact, that is all I can think about for the last two weeks. So, I already made up my mind that I'm going with Kelana Convoy Highlight of Europe from 4 May to 12 May. I might be going as early as 29@30 April and coming back on 17@18 May. 

So, my draft plan would be to go to Fussen, to visit my dream castle and back to London for the tour. Then after tour will be staying back in London for sight seeing and shopping of course. Ok, so I got draft plan right but I'm so nervous and quite frighten right now, why? well, I found out that there is big possibility that I might be travel London by myself. Well, it seems that my brother maybe will not be there during my trips because until now his doesn't graduate yet. Yeah, talking about all the bureaucracy in his university that he might not be flying to UK soon. So, I need to increase my accommodation budget and face possibility to go by myself.

On top of that, I also will be going to the countryside, yeah Cotswold. I fell in love with this place when one of the senior traveler in Forum Cari told be about this place. Cotswold has the most beautiful English cottages villages in England and one of them is Bibury Village. I want to visit the place such as Stow-in-the Wold, Bourton-in-the-Water and Broadway. I even got the photos of the villages as my wallpaper.

Bourton -on-the Water

My dream castle, Neuschwanstein castle

Stow-on-the Wold (I guess)

Combe Castle

Broadway (My current Wallpaper)

At first, I wanted to go a day tour as the place is only 90 minutes from London by train. Then, I was thinking,  why not I just stay, I mean to wake up to the beautiful English village and having scorn and English Tea would be lovely. I love to walk in the village and see how people live. Then, of course thanks to Mr. Google, I manage to get some tours and it is expensive, like 169 pound for 2 days (~RM900) and for day tour is around 79 pound which is around RM 400. I should take tour guide package as I don't know how and where to go and how to take the public transportation. However, there is something in my heart feeling that I should do this on my own. I love to wondering around and take time as much as I want to without any restrictions. I love to soak the environment and take pretty pictures of the village and scenery surrounding the area. 

For some reason, I found to go around Cotswold might be more difficult than to go to Fussen on my own even though there will be language barrier in Fussen compared to Cotswold. That is why I keep researching for Cotswold rather than Fussen. Another dilemma would be should my arrival destination to be Munich or London? If I arrived Munich, then I can go Fussen immediately and travel back to Munich, then London by train. If not, I should arrive in London, then take train to Munich, Fussen then back to London again. What I'm worried the most is about the luggage, you know to go around with big luggage and if I left in the storage in London train station it would be around RM 50 per day. I'm not sure about the low budget flight because of the strict baggage requirements.

So now, I have rough idea where I want to go and now I need to plan the budget part, which is quite stressful. I just wish I save something this year but now at all. I really hope that I can afford this trip and I don't want to postpone as I already told everyone and I really really want to make it happen. 

Wordless Wednesday

Wreck-It-Ralph & Paperman

Just watched Wreck-It-Ralph today and it was not disappointing. During the last scenes in the movie, it bring tears to my eyes. It just touch my heart so much and it doesn't need a handsome hero to make your eyes glue to the screen. 

The story is about the titular arcade game villain of Fix-It Felix, Jr, Ralph who rebels against his role and dreams of becoming a hero. In order for everybody to like him, and to change his destiny, he travels between games in the arcade, to get medal and to prove that he is not a bad guy. First he met, Sergeant Calhoun (who really looks like the voice actor, Jane Lynch aka Coach Sue) in Hero's Duty game, then he manage to get the medal before some thing happen and he was somehow transferred to Sugar Rush game. Here he met Vanellope von Schweetz, a glitchy character who makes off with the medal, planning to use it to buy entry into an after-hours race. King Candy, the leader of the Sugar Rush realm, and the other racers refuse to let Vanellope participate, claiming that she is not really part of the game. Realizing that Vanellope winning a race is the only way he can get his medal back, Ralph helps Vanellope build a kart and teaches her to drive. At her home, Diet Cola Mountain, he discovers that she is a natural racer. Meanwhile, Felix is set to find Ralph because if not, the game will be unplugged and they will be shutdown. So he met Sergeant Calhoun which he fall in love with her. So sweet and funny. So, I need to stop here if not it will spoil somebody who wants to watch the movie. 

I guess the story is about, wanting to do something for yourself and just not accepting your fate just like that, yes, Ralph is a bad guy in the game but that is not all what he is. Yes, he is good in wrecking things but perhaps it is hard to love you job when everybody hates you. But, if you good in wrecking things perhaps you can make it to your advantage, so make it your strength. That is what I learn from the movie.So, although perhaps I was the only adult without children in the cinema but I will still recommended and I give 6.5/10 star.

Before the movie start, there is a short movie title Paperman. It is a black and white movie and it is great. It is a guy meet a girl in the train station and sparks fly and before anything, the girl leave for her train. The guy arrives at work, despondent over the fact that he will never see the woman again. That is, until, he looks out his window and sees the woman at the building across the street. After failing to get her attention by waving his arms, the man uses a stack of contracts to get her attention by turning them into paper airplanes and throwing them into her open window despite repeated warnings from his boss. Unfortunately, his efforts are met with only varying levels of failure. 

But in the end, the guy meet the girl again, how? then you should find out. I try to find it in youtube but no avail. It just a heartwarming and romantic.

Again, the same learning, go get what you want and I will try it this year. I'm going to my dream trip and I can't wait for next year to come. I hope I'm ready.

Reference:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wreck-It_Ralph

http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/11/paperman/

http://www.cartoonbrew.com/cgi/a-little-more-about-disneys-paperman-63782.html

Recap for the week...

Morning in KK

Yeah, I know. It has been a long week and that is why I'm not post any entry. I have been busy with my study where I need to prepare 2 group assignments and 3 individual assignments all due today. So, go figure.   Oh, that's not including things happen in my work place, yeah I got to travel to Sabah again, plus Kedah so I will be travel a lot. A lot. I need to upgrade my credit card's limits, I guess.

So let me recap what happen to me last week. 1 Dec, I managed to watch football live for the first time, thanks to free tickets sponsored by my company. It is AFF Suzuki Cup, Malaysia vs Indonesia. I got 12 tickets, thanks to colleagues who cannot make it and I ask by brother to offer to his friends and we managed to use up all the tickets. Actually, I really don't know the rule of the game, just each team need to score goal and boy, I do scream when we score. To feel the spirit of 1Malaysia, it was worth it even though when we were going back using LRT, it was quite hell as so many people want to get into LRT station at the same time. It was so crammed and luckily, there were some people who still value women and children and let us go in first. It was an experience, especially with my colleague as we whole each other hand as we are afraid to be lost in the sea of people.

Get our tickets

No one shall pass

Malaysia Boleh!

We won!

What else, yeah of course preparing for assignments which could be confuse especially for group where there are a-lo- of-who-says-what-to-do-what and to edit videos for my Mandarin presentation. But I guess, all that finished today but still there is final exam coming out in January. Still a lot to prepare.

So that is story so far for the week. I dis some research for Europe Trip and hasn't make-up my mind yet where to enter Europe. Hopefully, I can make it up soon as I need to buy flight ticket already.