It's been really enjoyable living in Wolfson College. I enjoy the proximity to classmates. We can easily arrange for weekend brunch discussions like this one with Axel (Germany) and Wontak (South Korea/US).

I will remember the kitchen discussions.

BM: *looks at the chef, Wontak* Are you gonna make the omelette now?
Wontak: We are having omelette? *looks at Axel*
Axel: Yeah! *points at carton of eggs he bought in the morning.
Wontak: Ok... But we have nothing...
BM: Erm... *looks at 'Good Fren'* We have some sausage left, right?
Axel: Where's the cheese I left here the last time?
BM: It's in the fridge.
Axel: *looks at Wontak* Use the cheese. We have cheese.
Wontak: Ok, cheese.
GF: Something is burning.
BM: *points at oven and starts jumping* OH! OH!!
Axel: Ah!!! The baguette! *opens the open and pulls out the rack, revealing burnt baguettes*
BM: It's ok. It's not so bad. We can eat the unburnt parts.
Axel: You really think we can eat that?
Wontak: Yeah. We can eat that.
Axel: *removes the baguette from the oven and starts shaving the burnt bits off in the sink* Oh! I am making a mess.

Staying in Wolfson College has another advantage. That we could leave the apartment at 7.20pm and still make it for Music and Madeira on time.

Sorry the overexposure by my failing digicam whited out a couple of faces. From left: Walther (Austria), David (US/China), David (UK), Carlos (Spain), 'Good Fren' (Singapore), Francisco (Argentina) and Cesar (Peru).

First we had food...


Then we had Music and Madeira.


The Square Piano is 200 years old and still going...
Though a little cranky according to Mr Hollick.

I'd wanted to explain what it means to attend a formal, but Wikipedia has all the answers.

50-60 MBAs turned up for Music & Madeira. While some MBAs have been attending formals regularly, e.g. Erik (US) is attempting to have at least 1 formal per college (31 colleges in University of Cambridge), the general attendance of formals by MBAs has gathered a lot of momentum recently. I read it as a symptom of the beginning of the end. People realise that classes will be ending in a few weeks and are trying to 'make more out of the remaining time'.

It is interesting to explore how different people react to the same idea, i.e. inviting many classmates to the formals. Because this is a Business School context, I have to draw a 3D diagram to illustrate the scenario.

I have yet to fully understand whether the yellow is better than the blue, or vice versa, or it doesn't matter at all.
If it doesn't matter, why the mad rush now?

Perhaps the explanation at the individual level doesn't really commensurate at the group level. Perhaps it is the group affecting the individual.
Perhaps it is the individual leveraging on the group to make memories while the sun shines.

We will never know the intentions, but we like to guess at them.


On Sunday, we had a small cookout in our apartment. Some time ago, Erik asked if he was gonna cook at our place again. Last week, Janet (Taiwan), who stays in the same building, said she cooks. Frederic (France) made this delicious chocolate cake which I haven't tried.

So we put together a tiny lunch and invited 4 other classmates.


As usual, I made the chicken curry and abused the rice cooker to the max.

Janet made the stir-fried veges with cashew nuts and mushroom with chicken soup. Mmmmm....
Priscilla (Canada) commented that the soup tasted like home.

Meanwhile, Erik was in the kitchen steaming salmon and prawns, while Bora (Turkey) looked on with his broken ankle. I thought I, with body aches all over, was the greatest casualty of the basketball practice, until I looked at his ankle. It's really bad!!!


I think the last time I had steamed fish was during Chinese New Year at Hong Kong Fusion?!


Here we see Frederic distributing his delicious chocs... John (Australia/UK) looks happy.

In the background, Bill (US/UK), Priscilla (Canada) and Bora (Turkey) were speechlessly enjoying the chocs...

Absolutely fantastic.

The conversation must be the weirdest yet. We spoke of business schools, a day in the life of a french gigolo, someone digging up a freshly-dead baby only to have its toe to complete a Korean witch doctor's recipe for cartilage growing in live men, online escort services, how longans saved a guest's life, camdoc, housing options in cambridge, post-MBA gatherings etc.

Towards the end, we were stroking the kiwis as a newly established ritual.

Yeah... Erik was holding a branch of longans. We found the Oriental Shop along Mill Road selling Thai longans in a huge A4-size x 15cm deep plastic container, costing GBP10. That's not too bad!

Janet looked very nostalgic when she saw the longans. Her hometown in Taiwan is filled with orchards and she used to help her folks harvest longans during summer. =)))

And the american CHINESE swordswokman flewcycled home with his swordwok sticking out of his backpack.