Skiing!!

Had a very tiring but fun weekend. I finally went skiing!! Have been wanting to do that since Nov/Dec when the winter began. Now, finally have a chance to do that. I left home here on Friday to take the train to Yongsiang and Yueping’s house in Beacon, NY. It was a tiring ride. From Fairfield, CT to Grand Central in NYC takes 1hr 15mins, then straight from Grand Central to Beacon, which takes another 1hr 30mins. By the time I reached their home, I was ready to turn in and get enough sleep for the next day of skiing.

Saturday - 4/3/06

We woke up at around 6am so we can get an early head start for the mountain. We decided to go to Hunter mountain, NY for the skiing. It took about an hour plus to drive up there. It was so cold when we got there. Good thing the 3 of us were prepared and wore layers, complete with hat and gloves. The buying of tickets and wearing the ski boots and renting process took some time. By the time we were ready to go out on the mountain, it’s already 9.30am. The ski boots are so heavy!! After I put it on, I went to the restroom and by the time I come back from that, I’m already exhausted! Can’t imagine how the ski teams or pro can do this everyday. No wonder they’re so strong! Anyway, the good thing about Hunter mountain is that they offer free skiing lessons to first-timers. Yueping and I went for it, while Yongsiang wanted to try out by himself what he learnt the last time he went. The instructor was very good. He made sure we got the hang of the technique before he brought us up to the slope to try out the real skiing. It was very good to be able to ski all by myself. Of course, I did fall down countless times.

When I got confident and satisfied of my progress at the lower and gentler slope, I decided to try out a higher and steeper one. From the bottom, the slope didn’t look that bad, but when we got to the top, it looked real scary and steep. And as expected, it was! I wasn’t able to control my skis and I just went down so fast! That’s when I always panic and I will try to make myself fall down to stop myself. It’s pretty hard to get up when you have your skis on a steep slope. Imagine that your legs are so long and you can’t bend it as usual and as you please and because they’re slippery, when you try to stand up, all you can do is to slide down the hill. Pretty helpless and scary sometimes. Of course, it takes some skills and help, but most people on the lower hills are amateurs and they really can’t help you much. And falling down from such a fast speed is pretty bad for the lags and kness and everything. Have to be careful of where you fall down too.

I did come back with bruises and aches and soreness all over. At one point, I was even afraid that I might break my knee or even hurt it, but I’m glad that now it turned out okay. I did hit my right eye and cheek on the ski pole when I first fell down. Was so afraid that I would get a blue-black on it. Good thing there’s nothing showing but it still hurts when I touch it.

Overall, the trip was very fun but tiring. On Sunday, Yueping had a big blue-black on her knee from when she fell down. I didn’t have any bruises that can be seen, but whenever I walk up or down the stairs, I have to do it slowly as all the muscle aches would act up. I actually would not mind going again, but it’s just too far and expensive to take the trains and I don’t have any free weekends in March anymore. Winter is coming to an end soon too, so I don’t think there’s any chance of going again.

Sunday - 5/3/06

Went down to NYC from Yongsiang and Yueping’s place for the musical, Hairspray. It was a cluster meeting with the other au pairs. The show was at 1.30pm and I reached there at 12.15pm. Decided to get some lunch. Went to the KFC restaurant near GCT as I had a craving for fried chicken(not good for my diet!). The dining area is down in the basement and when I went down, I was all alone there. Then, another middle age guy came down to eat. He was by himself too. We sat on separate tables, but facing each other. It was a little awkward and we just kept smiling at each other. I was thinking of asking him to join me but I don’t really want to sit with a guy when I’m eating fried chicken with my hands! That’s not how I want to impress a guy, so I didn’t. When he left, he said bye to me and wished me a good day. After that, I had to walk from 42nd and 5th Ave to 52nd and Broadway, where the theater is. On the way, a hot dog seller smiled at me, so I smiled back. He started to ask me where I’m from and where I live. I told him from S’pore and live in CT. He asked me for my number! I can’t believe it! I think it’s not that I looked pretty or cute, I know that I’m not. I think he’s just teasing me or just horny. Anyway, I told him I’m living with somebody, so it’s not convenient to give away their home number. He asked if he would see me again, I told him maybe and went on my way.

The musical was okay. Was so tired during the show, I just want to sleep! Also, my whole body is in pain that I can’t sit still for so long. Just kept wishing that the show would finish up soon. Didn’t know that the storyline would be about standing up against segregation and set in the 60s. Why did they call it Hairspray? Other than some parts of the show that refers to hairspray, I don’t really see any connections between the title and the story. I think the message is to stand up for what you believe. That by itself is a good message, so why did they call it hairspray, which is such a wacky title and totally off-line with what the show is trying to get across.

After the show, met up with Sylvia in Chinatown for dinner. She could see straight away that I’m tired and pale. Didn’t know that it shows on me. We went to a Shanghai restaurant together with 2 of her friends. Had Shanghai ‘xiao long bao’. It was good and tasty. Also had pork moo shu. Didn’t know what that was until I saw it and tried it. Not bad. I liked the dessert best. It was ’shu bing’ with red bean paste. Very crusty, crispy and sweet. Yummy! But I didn’t really had a lot to eat, so was not very full actually. I think I was more tired than hungry. I still like S’pore/M’sian food. Next time maybe will try the ‘mee siam’ at Jaya restaurant. Have been wanting to eat that. I guess I may have been spoiled by my mum’s ‘mee siam’. Nothing can compare to what she cooked!