New floor

Yup, that’s what I’m up to at the moment. Putting in a new floor in my room at my grandfather’s. He decided to change the floor boards, so here we go.

I went to the cinema with a friend today. We saw Angels and Demons, the second Dan Brown film. It was actually really good. It wasn’t very true to the book all the time, but I wasn’t very fond of the book come to that. The film wasn’t as explanatory as the book, is was more of a good action flick. Just like the two latest Bond films, good action but nothing more than that. Still, the priest was hot.

I’m working most days. And meeting up with friends I haven’t seen in a while. It still feels good to be home.

The first semi final of the Eurovision Song Contest was yesterday. Me and another girl were working until 10 pm, so after closing the shop we sat down in front of the telly in the cafe and watched the first ESC semi. It was all right. Some good song, some not so good. Finland got to the final, as did Sweden.
I usually like the Swedish contestants and their songs very much but not the Finnish ones. This year neither was very brilliant, but I do prefer our Valdo’s People over Sweden’s Malena Ernman and “La Voix”. I did like the Icelandic song, tho’.
Well, it’s going to be nice to watch the second semi finals tomorrow and the final on Saturday. I’m crossing my fingers for Finland, although I don’t think it will go very well this year.

Take care!
Love, Frida

Frida 5:40 pm, Wednesday, 13th May ’09 link

Working nine to five

Nah, not really. But yeah, I am working all right.

I came home last Thursday at 11 pm. Took a whole 17 hours before I had to go to work. Worked four days in a row, had one day off and now I’m working two days again. Then two days off, work one day and after that I have no clue.
So basically four days a week. That’s all right.

I’ve got a new car! Well, new for me anyway. A small black VW Gold from -89. Just two years younger than me, that is. But it was cheap and I really needed a car for the summer.
I got my driver’s licence last September, but hadn’t driven since. So it was about time I got behind the wheel again. I don’t like changing gears, but otherwise it’s fine. It takes me where I need to go.

Next week I’m going with a friend to see the new Dan Brown film, Angels and Demons, with a friend. I haven’t seen the Da Vinci Code, but I’ve read both. The books were all right, but I think they were all pretty much the same. Same plot, same guy, new girl. A bit like an academic Bond that keeps repeating itself. But, hey, I haven’t seen the film yet. It might surprise me.

My last day in Manchester, Wednesday a week ago, was fun. I went to the Museum of Science and Industry. It was really good. And it was huge, they had five large buildings. There was quite a lot of interactive stuff, which I enjoyed. And they had some old trains and planes and everything. It was really fascinating.

There’s not a lot left of the ice hockey match tonight. Finland is playing the US. I got a message from a friend, saying that it was 3-2 to USA a while ago. I think I’m going to go down and turn on the telly for the last period. It’s gone very well for Finland this far. So, of course, I’m hoping for a remake of the World Championships in 1995, when we won. But our Achilles’ heel is Sweden. We never have the nerve to keep our strength up when playing them in any sport. But I think the guys on the team do their best. And they have played well this far. I’m going to cross my fingers for them tonight.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 7:50 pm, Wednesday, 6th May ’09 link

Sleepyhead

I woke up at nine this morning. Looked out the window. What did the sun have in store for me today? I had planned to take a very long walk in the sunshine. Nope, the sun wasn’t with me today. Cos’ it was pouring down. After a long debate with myself on the pros and cons of ... Scratch that. I went back to sleep immediately.

Somewhere far away in the land of dreams, I became a ballet dancer and met genius hunk CJ from The Eggheads on BBC2. We flew away into the sunlight and would have lived happily ever after. Had there not been a weird sound a few meters from my head, I think we would have led a very happy life together. But someone thought it was about time I got up and was therefore knocking on my door.

To be fair, they were right about the getting up part, because it was 11.45 already. So I hurriedly got into a pair of trousers before jumping the three steps to my door. Smiling guy in grey overall. “Hiya, I’m here to disinfect your shower.” That’s when I could feel the dream world, and most importantly CJ, fly away.

Now I’m completely CJ-less. I miss him a bit, we had a good time. The few seconds that it lasted, that is.

On the other hand, my shower head is clean. I guess it could be worse.

I’ve had a good year here. Manchester is a nice place. And school’s been interesting. Some units have been very good, others not so good. But the teachers have been very nice.
Best of all, thought, have been where I live. It’s relatively expensive and the flat is not luxury. But it’s cozy. And it has felt like a bit of a home. We’ve all gotten on well and I’m going to miss the girls a lot.
And they do really take care of you here. They even clean your shower heads ... The people working here are very nice and very efficient. As soon as something is broken, they have already fixed it. And they are nice to chat with. I’m going to miss them.

Two and a half days left in Oxford Court. It’s a bit sad. But it’ll be good to get home as well.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 10:58 am, Monday, 27th Apr ’09 link

Four to go

Hiya!

I’ve only got four days left in Manchester. And I’m planning to make the most of them.

Today I went to Ashton-under-Lyne, a small town outside Manchester. Every last Sunday of the month they have a Farmer’s market, that’s what I went to see. I bought a piece of mature cheddar and a salami, they were very good.
I went walking around town to take some photos and then I walked to a nearby park and watched some ladies play bowles. Bowles is like French boule or Italian boccia, but with larger balls that have a small weight inside, so they are more difficult to roll. I’d never seen it played before and it was really interesting.
Then I walked on to Stalybridge, the next little town. I had never been there before and didn’t know what to expect. It turned out to be a nice little town as well.
I took the bus back to Ashton and onwards to Manchester. Just got back.

Tomorrow I’m thinking of going to a botanical garden, Fletchers Moss. And on Thuesday I want to walk to Chorlton again. When I’ve felt good or bad or just felt like seeing something else for a while, I’ve been walking to Chorlton. It’s a really nice place, probably my favorite part of Manchester.

I’m going to try to spend a lot of time with my friends these last days. And go back to some places that I’ve liked. I might take a round through the Manchester Museum or the Manchester Art Gallery. They have a da Vinci exhibition that I’d like to see.

Now I’ve got to go, got food in the oven.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 2:30 pm, Sunday, 26th Apr ’09 link

All done

I finished my last essay for this academic year about two hours ago. Finally. It feels so good.
I started writing at 22.30 in the evening. And then I just kept going and going until 5 am.
And at five, there was no point in going to sleep anymore. So I had some breakfast and called my mum instead.
Now, she’s got to got to work and I’m going to watch some telly before taking a power nap.
Sleep tight!

Frida 5:49 am, Wednesday, 22nd Apr ’09 link

Epiphany

That’s what I had today. An epiphany.
I suddenly realised what the two single most important words in any language are: ‘ice cream’ and ‘please’.
I mean, that’s all you need, isn’t it!?
An ice cream, please! What more can you ever want?

So, here come a short list of the important two words in a few other languages:
Glass and Tack. “En glass, tack!” This will earn you an ice cream in Sweden and should also work just fine in Norway and Denmark.
Jäätelö and Kiitos. “Yksi jäätelö, kiitos!” One Finnish ice cream coming up.
When going to Germany, there is a slight variation: instead of ice cream I suggest you try the baked apple cake, but without any wipped cream which just makes it soggy. The two words are Apfelstrudel and Bitte. “Ein Apfelstrudel ohne schlagsahne, bitte!”
And in France I propose you eat chocolate mousse. Mousse au chocolat and S’il vous plaît. This is where I find myself in trouble. I don’t know weather it’s un or une mousse au chocolat. But even to that I’ve found the solution. “Deux mousse au chocolat, S’il vous plaît!”

Now I’m going out for a meal with my flatmate.

Take care and don’t eat to much dessert!
Frida

Frida 6:19 pm, Saturday, 18th Apr ’09 link

Pic

I think that I finally worked out how to upload pictures. Just took me half a year ...

This is a picture I took in Bakewell, Peak District when I was visiting whit my uncle a month ago. It’s a very beautiful place. But since I had to resize the image to get it uploaded, all you can is a three. But it’s a beautiful three.

Frida 2:29 pm, Friday, 17th Apr ’09 link

Two weeks left

It’s Wednesday morning. And I still haven’t written very much yet. But I will. I will.
Today I’m planning to write ten pages of a film script for the Scriptwriting Workshop unit. I’ve already written the first part of it, which is about ten minutes as well. So I just need to write the second part, which takes place a few days later then the first part.
I’m hoping to get it all written by midnight. It shouldn’t take more that a few hours to do, as long as I can find the inspiration somewhere. That’s what I’ve been trying to do these last days. It hasn’t worked very well yet, but it feels better today.
Tomorrow I’m going to start on the Culture of Britishness project report. I’ll have to go to the library and then I’m going to conduct an interview or two. It’s going to be about the British heritage in Mauritius. I hope this won’t take more than two days, Thursday and Friday.
During the weekend I’ll write either an essay about the body as a medium of identity and culture or an essay on Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre and Jane Austen’s Persuasion. I’ll finish one of them on Sunday and start with the next one on Monday.
Well, that’s the plan. Let’s see if it goes accordingly.

If it works out like that, I’ll have enough time do all the packing and also take some time to just enjoy myself.
I’m planning to take some time off work and take a mini-break in one and a half week’s time, just before I’ll leave for Finland. Thought I might celebrate my last days of being a UK resident by relaxing somewhere nice.
Yeah, ‘cos this last year has been so tough, so much to do. Riiiiight ...
I’t been a different year and a good year. But I can’t honestly say that it’s been tough. I haven’t had to go into school very much and I haven’t had very much homework. I’ve had no exams. I’ve had to write about fourteen essays, that’s true. But, to be fair, how hard is it to write an essay? How much time does it take? A day or two at the most. Which means two to four weeks of working hard in a school year. That’s not very much.

But exchange studies are so much more than the studies. It’s a different life, away form everything you’re familiar with. It has felt like a year-long experiment, somehow. A successful experiment.
It’s been a good year.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 10:03 am, Wednesday, 15th Apr ’09 link

Countdown

I’m back in Manchester. For now.
Arrived at the flat about an hour and a half ago. I’ve had time to take a shower, unpack, start the laundry and go to the shop to buy a pizza and a beer. Now I’m eating said pizza and drinking said beer. I’m enjoying it.
I got up at 4 am this morning. That is, 1 am British time. And now it’s about 10 pm. I slept for half an hour on the flight to Paris. But apart from that power nap, I’ve been awake for 22 hours. Getting to the first stages of drowsyness soon. That’s why I was in desperate need of pizza and beer.
The laundry won’t be done for another hour or so. Which gives me time to check my mail and relax for a while.
Then I’m going to go to bed with a dvd on the laptop. Nice!

I’m only going to stay in Manchester for another two weeks or so. Two very stressful weeks, I’m afraid.
There is a lot to arrange with the move. I haven’t even figured out what day I’m leaving yet.
Need to book the tickets, need to find somewhere to stay overnight in Helsinki, need to sort through everything and pack it all down, need to get some boxes to pack in, need to contact a company that can deliver all my stuff to home, need to buy everything I haven’t bought yet, need to see some things I haven’t seen yet. Need to spend some time with my friends!!!
But the whole first week is going to be dedicated to school work, unfortunately. I’ve got five deadlines coming up next week, so I’m going to spend all week in front of my computer. All day, every day.

But tonight is relaxing time. Tonight is taking it easy and doing nothing but eating pizza and watching a dvd. Tonight is still Easter holidays.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 8:58 pm, Sunday, 12th Apr ’09 link

Report from paradise

On Tuesday, a week ago, we drove around the island one day. We drove straight across to Blue Bay and Mahebour and then we drove up by the coast. It was a nice trip, we went to places we had never seen before. Exploring is always fun.

But Mauritius has changed a lot during the ten years since we came here the first time. Mum’s been back every year and I every second. And every time, you can see the differences. There are a lot more tourists here now. Or maybe there are not more than before, but everybody used to stay on the hotel beach. We were among the few going where the locals go. Nowadays, there are tourists everywhere.
There are a lot of souvenir shops all along the streets today, that wasn’t there in -98. And more international restaurants.
But at least there’s not a hamburger place in every corner here. Mauritians, like everybody else, love take out. Mostly pizza, chicken and traditional Mauritian food. There’s only one international hamburger diner on the island, in the capital Port Louis. But on the other hand, there are pizzerias and chicken restaurants in every small town.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying it was better in the old days. I’m just saying it’s changed a lot.

Today I spent an hour on the beach. I went swimming a few times and was only really working on my tan for about twenty minutes. But that was sufficient to give me a burn. The back of my legs, my shoulders, my back and my face is red like a cooked crayfish. And it stings a bit.
Apparently, sunblock 20 wasn’t enough.
Oh, well, it’ll feel better in a few days time. And at least, I should be nicely tanned when I get back to Manchester on Sunday.

Now I’m going to do some homework. No rest for the wicked, eh? I need to read a novel, write a ten page script and strant an essay while I’m here.
I might be in paradise, but it’s still not no work and all play. Sadly.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 1:37 pm, Tuesday, 7th Apr ’09 link

Soaking up the sun

Greetings from Mauritius!
It’s lovely seeing my mum again! I’ve missed her a lot.

It’s hot. Very hot. To hot. About 28 °C. And no breeze to talk about most of the time.
The sun is out every day, but it usually rains for half an hour in the morning at this tie of the year. But it’s a warm rain, so it doesn’t matter that much.
There are large green leaves and all kinds of different colourful flowers everywhere you look. It’s beautiful.
The ocean is light blue and turqoise. The water is warm and nice and the beach is sunny. But remember to put on an efficient sunblock!!!
The downside is that the mosquitoes seem to like me much more than I like them. I’ve got bites all over my legs. And they itch a lot. But the mosquitoes only come out in the evening when it’s dark.

Back at home, everybody changed the time on their clocks last weekend. So did we. But in the other direction. So when my friends got one hour less to sleep, I got one hour more. They have summertime back home, I’ve got wintertime. It’s funny.
But it’s good, because now the time difference between Mauritius and Finland is one hour, not three as before. And the difference between Mauritius and England is three hours, not five. It makes it so much easier to find a time when me and my mum can talk on Skype.

Now I’m going to go outside. I’ve been for a short walk today, but I might go down to the beach later.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 8:11 am, Wednesday, 1st Apr ’09 link

Tomorrow, I’m off

Hiya!

I just had my last lecture at MMU. Right now, it feels mostly like “finally over!!” but I will miss it. And the work isn’t done yet, I’ve still got five essays to write. Being an Erasmus student, I don’t have to write exams. But insted I have to do extra essays. Sixteen essays or big assignments in one year. It’s quite a lot. But since I haven’t had many lectures or seminars, it hasn’t been very difficult. Yet. Still got five essays to write, I might change my mind ... 

I had quite a bad headache for about a week, so I went to see a doctor. He told me I needed to drink more. No wonder, I usually son’t even drink half a liter a day. He told me to drink 2.5 liters every day for two weeks and see how it felt. I managed it for one day. And I can’t remember when I last felt so ill. It was really bad. So I called him and asked if I could drink 1.5 every day instead, which he agreed to.
I’ve kept it up for almost a week now. My headache is gone. But I’m bloated and feel like a blowfish. Well, I’ll give another week, then I’ll try to take it down to about one liter and see how that goes.
However, during the next couple of weeks I will probably need to drink a lot because I’m going to Mauritius and it’s very hot over there.

I’ve got an early start tomorrow. Just booked a cab for 4 am. 
The plane to Paris leaves really early, so there are no trains running yet and just one bus every two hours. So I had to call a cab. I tried to ask my mates how much it will cost. They told me it could be anything from £20 to £40. But the man at the cab company said about £17, so I live in hope.
The problem with British cabs is that they don’t accept any cards, so it’ll have to be cash. So you have to take out enough beforehand, even though you might not know how much it’s going to cost. Difficult. Brits ... 

So tomorrow morning I’m flying to Paris. Then I’ve got six hours to spend in France - I’m going into town to go to a museum that was closed last time I was in Paris and , of course, for a coffee at a parisian café - before I get on the plane to Mauritius.
I’m going to fly with my favourite airline from Paris to Mauritius. The planes are enormous, about twelwe people sitting in a line with two asiles. They serve three course meals and very good breakfeast. And everyone have their own little tv monitor where you can choose from about six films, two tv serials and ten radio stations. I love it. But on the way back I’ll be flying with another airline, a much larger one, that isn’t as good at all.

It’ll be nice to see mum and everyone else again. And I’ll be nice with some sun and warmth.
Allthough spring in Manchester is very nice and we’ve had warm weather for quite some time now. I heard that they still have snow back home in Finland, which is hard to imagine when you’re here in Manchester and all the trees are starting to turn green again.
And the flowers in my room smell wonderfully. It’s the largest bouqette I’ve ever had. Full of orchids. Lovely. I’m giving it to my flatmate tonight, because they wouldn’t survive unitl I get back anyway. But I won’t like parting with it.

Now I have to go, I promised to talk to my uncle on Skype today.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 3:25 pm, Thursday, 26th Mar ’09 link

Lack of inspiration

That’s what I’m suffering from at the moment, a lack of inspiration. It’s probably “spring fever”. The sun is shining and the Easter holidays are starting in just a few days. And I’m sitting in front of the computer. I should be writing about English literature, but at the moment I’m mostly playing games. The deadline for my essay is on Thursday, so I need to get going. But I don’t seem to be able to.

Spring in Manchester is beautiful. There are spring flowers on every little lawn and all the trees are starting to blossom. We’ve got a couple of magnolias outside of our kitchen window and they make me very happy every time they catch my eye.

On Friday I’m going on holiday to Mauritius! I’m really looking forward to it. It will be good to soak up some sun on the beach and eat all kinds of delicious samosas and fish and other good foods. And it will be great to see everyone again. Mum, Vivek, Viveks mother and brothers with family and all friends. And my mothers cousin will be there at the same time as me, it’s going to be nice to see her as well.

Now I think I should try to force myself to write for a while. Booooring, but it needs to be done.

Talk to you later. Take care!

Frida 2:18 pm, Monday, 23rd Mar ’09 link

studies

Yup, I’m working as usual. Writing a “Comparative Study of Critical Material”. Simply put, that means that I’m writing a critical review on two critical reviews of a classic novel. Not the most rewarding exercise, but it’s got to be done.

I spent last weekend at my flatmate’s parents house in Yorkshire. Me, my flatmate and her boyfriend went up there on Friday and I came back yesterday. We went to my favourite town, Whitby, on Saturday. It was great, as always. Charming, cozy, warm and welcoming. Yesterday we went climbing in a place I can’t remember the name of anymore. It was fun. I hurt my left knee a bit, but we had a good time anyway.

Tonight I’m doing something, don’t know what yet, with a friend. You’ll never know what the two of us will get up to. But we always have fun.

In a week and a half I’m going on Easter holidays. I’m really looking forward to it. It’ll be great to see mum again.
But before that, I have three essays to write. 8,000 words. So I’d better get going. And there’s no time like the present, is there!
I’ll be off writing.

Take care!
Frida

Frida 4:54 pm, Monday, 16th Mar ’09 link

going to bed

Hiya!

I have kept busy the last week or so. Working a lot and watching dvds even more. Life’s good.

I held my presentation last Thursday. It went all right. I was quite nervous, but it was okay. The teacher laughed in the right places and he was probably the only one that listened. So I guess it was good.

Then I was working at the International Office at MMU a couple of days. It was fun. I just did mechanical work on a computer, copy-paste:int codes from one document on to another. Not very challenging work, but better than staying at home doing nothing. And it pays the bills. Some of them, anyway. 

On Saturday I went out for an Indian meal with the usual people: a flatmate, another flatmate and the other flatmate’s boyfriend. It was fun. The food was very good and the company was even better. Perfect!

Out electric kettle in the kitchen gave up last week. The guys at the Accomodation Office came to check it out and said that they would buy us a new one as soon as possible. But we haven’t got it yet. So every time I want to make myself a cup of tea, I have to boil the water on the stove. Complicated.
This is an example of what is called ‘developed country problems’. Just like the batteries running out in the remote control.

I’ve been writing an essay today. Still got a conclusion of about 500 words to do, but I’ll leave it until tomorrow. I’m to tired to do it tonight. And, what’s more important, to bored. Diasporas is an interesting subject, but having to write 3,000 words is enough to loose interest in most things. And the unit is a bit boring. Well, sociology clearly isn’t my thing.

One of my neighbours is playing music quite loudly tonight. And singing. Not very well, I’m afraid.
But I can’t blame her, I can sing aloud from time to time as well. And I’m not the best of singers either.

It’s only 10.35 pm, but I think it’s time for bed. Bed, laptop and dvd. One of my favourite combinations! 

Sweet dreams!!

Frida 10:16 pm, Monday, 9th Mar ’09 link