Autumn. A time for change.

I love Autumn. Possibly because it always feels like a new year to me.

From as long as I can remember, Autumn has always been a special time. When I was growing up, it was the end of another long, hot Summer. Perhaps after a seaside holiday, lazy days by the pool perfecting swim strokes, hanging out at home cleaning the house, dancing to music... not a care in the world. By September, the Hanoi sun is less intense, phượng flowers blossom, the city becomes more serious. I can never forget those beautiful very-late-Summer-early-Autumn days when my childhood friend and I would bike to school for the opening ceremony of the new academic year. We are happy, excited and hopeful for a new school year. Thanh Nien street in between the two lakes were magical early mornings. I love the beautiful red of phượng  flowers against the clear blue sky. The wind blowing in our hair. I always filled my lungs with those fresh air and felt so alive (that was before all the pollution of the day kicked in).

Summer is leaving London, leaving Londoners a bit nostalgic. Where did our Summer go? We barely had a decent month of sunshine. But we did have several weeks. Most of us probably have just forgotten. Or we  choose to moan about the rain? However, I have to say the rain in London these days are terrible. Continuous, pissing rain at some point and then light and spring-like at other times.  We haven't gone a day without seeing the rain these days.

I have a love-hate affair with the rain. Sometimes it really pisses me off (when I have to walk in it with tons of things in my hands). Today after being pissed off with walking in the rain and running late, I decided to take a cab. Mr Driver simply said to me, "It's an end to our Summer, ain't it?". It sure is. But most of the time I love listening to the sound of the rain, seeing the deserted streets. Something so soothing, so calm, so clean and fresh. It suits this busy city life.

I love Autumn. And not just because my Vietnamese name means just that. I love Autumn because it signifies changes, usually exciting changes. You reboot your system in this season. Nicely rested after lazying days in the sun and alfrescos, now time to really concentration and work hard. To start something new. To achieve something new. This is also why Calendar New Year almost means nothing to me, apart from another reason to party.

There will be numerous changes in my life this Autumn. I have always been a person who champions change. And even though I appreciate and enjoy life as it is now, I think it's time for a new phase. So I embrace change with all my hope, my dedication, my joy and my hard work. I wish you all the same.

 London sky & skyline. New & Old. 

Happiness? Happiness!

I don't know what happiness is because it comes in so many forms. I just feel it.

You must love me

Where do we go from here?
This isn't where I intended it to be
We had it all
You believed in me
I believed in you

Certainty disappeared
What do we do for our dreams to survive?
How do we keep all our passions alive
As we used to do?

Deep in my heart I'm concealing
Things that I'm longing to say
Scared to confess what I'm feeling
Frightened you'll slip away

Why are you at my side?
How can I be any use to you now?
Give me a chance and I'll let you see how
Nothing has changed..

But you must love me


London 11.06.2010
2
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Get.Carried.Away.Faraway

There are way too many reviews out there already I won't even bother with criticising it. But I want to say how much I enjoyed it.

The reviews were horrible. Racist. Who-do-they-think-they-are-it's-nothing-feminist. And I get all the criticism but lighten up critic, the film wasn't made for all those purposes. Though ok I can see why it can offend people.

I thought the whole thing was funny and entertaining. It was aimed at fans and that's exactly what we wanted. It also didn't feel that long... everyone seems to notice time but I didn't (though I did yawn a lot as I was tired). Of course there are the cringing moments and so political incorrect at times but Sex and the City is about political incorrectness! Carrie and the girls, as usual, were over the top with their costumes. But they WERE also over the top in Sex and the City series? Remember that episode where she ran to get orange juice with just her bra and the skirt on "causing quite the stir" (scene with Aidan) or when she wore that whole ball gown to a restaurant with Big? But Carrie can do that cos she's fictional. Though I must admit, the movies are over-the-top extravagant. Exactly like what a girlfriend of mine says, the movies are like a caricature version of the series. But critics, that's what we like about it!

To be honest I didn't even really care about the storyline so much. We all know what it will be about. I just wanted to see my girls on the screen again with Samantha's inappropriate jokes, whose tongue is sharper than a knife as someone said; Carrie being annoying with all her nagging but so witty; Charlotte so conservative & traditional it's unreal she can tolerate such liberal girlfriends and Miranda as sarcastic as ever.

 Carrie was annoying as usual (but I do like her)... she's always worried about her relationship with Big (oh look who's talking!). She reminds me of reading Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert... Like Gilbert having so much doubt on this institution of marriage, Carrie was always sceptical about it. She was always afraid the sparkle would go away...  I think her concern is only right, people do get too comfortable and gradually get bored of each other's company. We gotta keep the romance going. Though her excessive need to go out and eat out all the time doesn't really create a family/marriage like atmosphere either. And why does it always take a mistake for people to realize that they appreciate what they have? Isn't that so f***** up? She and Aidan really let me down...

Samatha was hilarious. All those pills she was taking to trick her body into thinking it was 35 was just out of this world. So funny! It's so crazy you don't even judge it. And what's wrong with what's she's doing anyway? It's her personal conviction... lots of other people trick their bodies into thinking it was younger by having cosmetic surgery or botox, no one is telling them it's wrong. So leave Sam alone :)

Charlotte wasn't that entertaining but her nanny was certainly a handful... (ehem!). Charlotte's problems with her baby girls were a bit over the top. And why is she wearing all those pretty clothes while making cupcakes, only Sex and the City knows! (Also Carrie wearing her high heels all the time in the apartment, what is up with that?). Neither Charlotte nor Miranda stood out in this film apart from the "to all those women who don't have help" scene as they talk about the difficulties of motherhood. They both didn't really stand out possibly because Abu Dhabi kinda took away their limelight. The city itself was already so fabulous and so dramatic. There were moments when I cringed at the cultural jokes with Samantha's somewhat lack of respect to a culture.. and then save-by-the-bell Muslim women who wore the latest collection under their hijab (and they really do), that was American tacky.

One of the things that cracks me most was Carrie's old apartment... because of the recession they didn't put it on the market. But they didn't even bother renting it out because they had so much money. Just so (again) out of this world for the majority of us. The writers try to incorporate the recession but it so backfired! She could have rented it out for two years and save up for the $22,000/night hotel room.?And the other thing was Stanford Blatch and Anthony Marantino. Oh my god that was funny.

Overall an entertaining night with the girls, both those who went with me and those on the screen.

The thought of living on Love Lane...

BBC Radio1 Big Weekend

Vaynol Estate, Bangor

Dydd Sadwrn Mai 22ain 2010

(Sat. May 22nd 2010)

What can I say. It was the big weekend. The weather has certainly made it big across the country. British summer is here at last and we hope here to stay for a little while.

I was at the Big Weekend for the Saturday line-up. It was long-time dream came true. I have applied for a couple of years now but never managed to get tickets til this year. I love going to summer gigs. The line up, as usual, was contemporary and fab! That's what we love about Radio 1.

This year it was hosted in the Vaynol Estate, Bangor, Wales. Hence my previous post about going back to Wales :) Main stage for Saturday was Scouting for Girls, 30 seconds to Mars, Chipmunk, all of whom we missed as we were still too busy with the outdoor stage w/ DJ Westwood. Kelly Rowland was also there with her new single "Commander"... A great comeback song. She's still as tall, slim and pretty with gorgeous big hair! Loved it.

I had wanted to try different tents but we didn't want to miss the Main stage line-up. I did manage to squeeze in Hadouken!, who was rock'n'roll and so good looking. We were listening to them while re-energizing for the main stage. We decided that we would go in to see Justin Bieber. I hadn't even know the boy until the line-up and I'm awfully surprised he made it there. That was probably the ten minute of satisfaction for the teens. To be honest he was the only act whose banners I saw (DJ Westwood had one from a cute twin). I was standing next to a lady who was holding up her kid so the babygirl could see her idol better. She wasn't a tall person but certainly did hold her babygirl up high for at least 10 minutes non-stop. Moms will do anything for their babies. Bless. I can't remember those days of mine.

Cheryl Cole was sweet, cute, sexy and extremely popular! She's truly the British sweetheart. Only afterwards when I saw the videos, did I realize her voice was really weak during the performance, something we didn't really notice then. But we all know from ages that her voice isn't her strength. I enjoyed her performance anyway esp with all her catchy pop songs like Parachute, Fight for this love, 3 words...

Lostprophets, the sons of Wales, had the biggest reception and energy ever! I have never really listened to their rock album properly. But they were great! Fab energy!

Alicia Keys was one of my highlights. Disappointingly her grand piano wasn't working so she came on stage late and had to played on the keyboard for the Empire State of Mind number (I wonder if it was really her grand piano shipped all over the place for performances?). Alicia was wearing a jumpsuit with low V-neck and somewhat baggy around the waist. From the beginning I could tell she was pregnant as you could really see her belly was sticking out! And come on it's Alicia, she usually doesn't wear something like that. I love her new album "Elements of Freedom" and she did various numbers from there. Her voice, despite the bad technical sounds, was amazing! True diva. Cheryl Cole is the little town-girl star next to Alicia.

After Alicia, it was hitting 7pm and it was another 2 hours to go before the next much awaited act Florence and the Machine. We couldn't stand anymore (it had been 4 hours by then), so we decided to enjoy it in the sunshine from afar. Dizzee Razcal was next. He was so full of energy. Not a huge fan of his but the boys were going crazy about him.

Florence and the Machine was the most magical. Flo was fab on stage, so theatrical. I love her music, her style, her voice, her songs... She's one of a kind. She opened with Dog Days are Over, which got the whole packed tent went wild!!! Surprisingly she did her own rendition of Halo (Beyonce), followed by numbers from her Lungs album. It was such a highlight for me! Not to mention we all went wild with Razcal on stage with her @"You've got the Love". Raz got into his rap ...


Everybody wants to be famous
Nobody wants to be nameless, aimless
People act shameless
Trying to act like entertainers

... then all of a sudden he lost his element and stopped the band and announced something like he couldn't go on. haha. So funny. Flo gave him a bit of encouragement and they restarted the whole thing. The last act was a lovely ending to the first day.

We missed out on a lot of great acts like Tinie Tempah, Ellie Goulding, MGMT, Faithless on the InNewMusicWeTrust stage and didn't check out on anything in the Introducing stage. But I already caught up with it on the Radio 1 website here Big Weekend Videos

If there is anything I have learnt from this festival, it is that I do not want to be close to the stage. It's nice to see the artists up-close in person but the heat and the pushing was so not worth it. As long it was live music it was fine by me. I'd rather be able to dance along with it.

Unfortunately, that was also it for us. We didn't have tickets for Sunday, the line-up of which was also fabulous. We made our way back to Caernarfon. On our way back we were approached by some lovely locals who were pissed but friendly and very entertaining. Again I cannot stressed the beautiful spirit of people in this country of Wales!

Fantastic day!

Photo credit to my fab travel companion *h.o.a

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Journey back to North Wales

Our journey started with me sitting on the platform station at Euston eating Burger King waiting for the Virgin train service to Holyhead. It felt familiar. Only it was a familiar feeling from 8 years ago, coming on to 9!

I first came to the UK to study in 2002 and Llandudno, North Wales, was my first point of arrival. An eighteen-year-old girl totally ready for the challenge. Anywhere as long as it was in the United Kingdom. I have a life-long desire to be in this country again. Each month I would make this journey to Kent and back to visit my then sweetheart, of course changing at Euston. And I always remember that feeling of relief as I wait for my train at Euston. London was like a stranger back then. The only area I know was from memory.

I haven't been back to Wales ever since. I never had the chance to. I honestly didn't make much use of my time in Wales as I was doing my last year of IB (excuse). And I truly regret that. It was more of a place I had to be than I wanted to be.  Besides I was a bit of a scared little kitten back then. The first summer I was away from my parents. But for some reasons today I felt like a little girl coming home. After all this was where I started off my journey into adulthood. Girl from small town now trying to make it in the big city, cliché hollywood setting in the United Kingdom. I really have come a long way.

The Virgin train is comfy enough. It has gotten a lot busier during the last decade. I remember never having to worry about seats. These days you should book in advance if you don't want the floor to be your friend for a 3 hour+ journey to Chester. We chose the quiet coach but it was the same as any other. Absolutely nothing quiet about it! There were a few groups of ladies and their chatterbox was loud and annoying. On more than one occasion I had wanted to point out the Quiet Coach sigh to them. The British are generally famous for their politeness and I was surprised at how inconsiderate these women were. Maybe I have gotten more British than them as I minded my own business, put on my music and fall asleep.

The journey to Chester was fast. I had a good nap since I didn't sleep at all the night before. The platform to Holyhead was busy. Though I remembered it had always been busy with people going to Anglesey and all, only when the two-coach train arrived did I realize how manic it was going to be this weekend! We almost didn't have a place on the train. After much confusion and struggle we got on only to find our seating reservation totally irrelevant. I gave up trying to get to our seats so me and HH stood in the aisle like the rest.

One thing made it less painful of a journey was how nice people are in this part of the world! Gwynedd railway company certainly did not make a good welcome but the people made up for all the inconvenience. They were commodating and understanding to these spoilt & moaning Londoners, who of course voiced frustration immediately at the fully packed train and their staff who almost wanted to kick some of us off due to "safety reasons". But when we refused to, they proceeded on with the journey anyways.

People here talked to you. Give you advice on how to get around. Teach you how to pronounce Welsh station names. After a few simples like Rhyl or Llandudno, it was all llswannellifff ffisslll to me. I was happy to be back in a place where people seem content, nice and friendly. What a breath of fresh air! (Only at Chester it was really really distinct manure smell but that was still England).
We passed the beautiful landscape of the north bay. Green fields with sheep and horses roaming about without any care in the world. Golf course right next to the coast line. And then vast and vast of water land. Flat but serene. My travel companion noted how the water here aren't blue here. Well of course it's not. None of the coast in the UK is apart from maybe Cornwall is azure. I don't have an explanation to its geographical structure but this greyish colour has always been my impression of the british coast.

I have never travelled past Colwyn Bay so I was pleasantly surprised how much more beautiful the landscape becomes. The Snowdonia arrived mighty on one side and on the other vast bodies of water. As one of the welsh native pointed out, there was Anglesey, from my view was a little floating island. From afar you can even see the light house, standing tall and majestic on its own at the coast. Just beautiful. The sky was clear and even though it was approaching 8pm. It was still sunny. We had the most peaceful moment. We arrived at Bangor and continued the journey by bus to Caernarfon!
So far so good!
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