Castle

New Beginning

 I set foot on new grounds, unfamiliar sights and sounds...

 ...setting aside all fears and anxieties, going against the flow, defying the odds...

 Pubs, beers, cheers, they come hand in hand...'Guinness' being the key word.

 In this place, old meets new, double-Decker buses streaming everywhere!

Here, Coffee reigns supreme

...and so begins, my life in Dublin, cheers!

The Beginning of the End?

Today, I browsed through my own blog. I haven't been posting in recent times.

In the comment box, I saw this...

Guest: Update please

And so, this anonymous 'guest' deserves some return for his/her efforts.

For the past month Starbucks has been my second home. I was preparing for a gap year.

 Why I chose Starbucks?
1. Free Coffee
2. I get to improve my interpersonal skills
3. learn how to make a good cup of coffee
4. Try out something I will never get to do for the rest of my life

 Spot the Grande mugs...

Top secret syrups...extremely concentrated. May prove fatal to diabetics.

Thermometer to ensure perfection of steamed milk.

Many friends took up higher earning jobs such as data entry, working in some financial firms, working as clothes salesperson etc. One friend pointed out the hassles of being in the food business. Getting messy was one thing, serving the ignorant and bashful customers was another. What they do not understand is that I'm not working for the money, I am here to learn. Enough said, the Starbucks journey was good despite me having to do closing shifts most of the time.

Most unforgettable moments in Starbucks:
-Hey, you have teh tarik arh?...yes we do, we call it black tea latte.
-One hot Milo please...only signature hot chocolate here
-One Cappuccino without foam....WTF, you mean a flat white?
-One Cappuccino...turns out they wanted a Frappuccino.
-during the Raya season...tons and tons of customers, it was like they didn't have to pay a sen for their drinks, bloody rich people!

I shall now educate you on the different types of customers:
-the first timers, stares at menu blankly, does not know what to order, usually depends on baristas suggestion
-old china men, gei wo yi ge hei kafei!
-regular customers, come almost everyday, baristas know their customised drink by heart
-Mainland Chinese tourist, babbling, noisy, thinks Starbucks is a market
-Hongkies, generally fussy, rich looking, also noisy.
-Singaporeans=Hongkies + mainland chinese + a tons of Kiasu-ism.
-Dickheads trying to act smart...dunno what they are ordering...stuck up!
-Baristas from other Starbucks branches...this one you must beware off
-Mat Salleh - they know what they want, usually order hot drinks


The gap year was almost certain, I registered for UKCAT(an aptitude test for admission to UK universities). I already rewrote my personal statement, all ready to apply to UK for the 2012 intake. Then one day, I received a phone call from IUMC(agent in charged of Irish Consortium of Universities), they had a vacant seat for one more medical student in Trinity College Dublin. I applied for this particular university earlier in the year, but got rejected. I did not know whether to jump for joy or remain silent. All these happened less than a month ago. You can imagine the amount of preparation and forms to fill in that short time span. As I type, I am halfway through sorting out my luggage, trying to fit all the medical textbooks and clothes into the many bags.

This month, many people will be flying overseas to further their studies to countries such as the UK and US. Many others got places in local IPTAs such as MU, USM, UKM...All the best to you guys and I hope to see you soon in the near future...Always remember, when you are over there, you are carrying the Malaysian flag, never forget your roots and do come back home for that occasional bowl of Asam laksa...