I didn't know articles from the reader would be tested on the exam 2 Mondays ago, so for 16 marks I relied on my memory of the presentations and my ingenuity. Gah. And I wasn't the only one to do so. The mark spread of this exam was amazing, ranging from 0.2 to 9.2 (upon 10).

Before the other exam (the hard one), almost no one was studying - not even the PRCs. Wah. But then maybe this explains why everyone did badly.

My exam at the ice skating rink was funky for more reasons than its venue. We also got free coffee/tea, poured by the invigilators. What a nice venue to have an exam in, which goes some way to making up for its distance from the other University buildings.

Exams here have no seating arrangement, you write when you get the paper (not when someone says "start writing") and you can leave your bags beside your table. Also, you get a choice of answering questions in Dutch or English, though the questions are in English. There're also no stupid rules about not leaving in the first hour or in the last 15 minutes - it's all OTOT. For one, the invigilator said anyone with dyslexia should tell her - presumably no doctor's letter was required; in contrast, at the Premier Institution of Social Engineering I can see how even a doctor's letter might not help.

I wonder how Dutch students stand 3 hour long exams, given that they need a break every hour or so (supposedly even the cinemas stop in the middle of the film so people can have a break). No wonder they let students bring in food and drink, and so many people leave early.

"Give reasons and arguments for your answers. (A brief "yes" is no answer)." Heh.

You get to see your exam if you sign a statement saying you won't appeal. This makes for good pedagogy. Then again there's no bell curve here.


On the menu for the Educatorium cafeteria for 2 Thursdays ago: "Vegetarische schotel: Shiatake en Chinese groenten in oestersaus". Hmm.

The weather is either hot and dry (for the first 2 weeks of May) or cold and wet (every time else). At least it's not hot and wet (Singapore), but why can't it be cold and dry?!

One reason why many places are closed early on Friday (Vrijdag aka Free Day) might be because they employ low cost labour and/or immigrants, the males of which have something to do on Friday.

One of the Koreans was saying that when you learn a new language in Korea, they play the tapes at a slow speed and gradually speed it up. Whereas in our course they gave us a fast tempo right from the start. I remember German was like that too. Gah.


One cute thing about buying eggs at Aldi is that the carton comes with some feathers (presumably chicken ones) inside. Heh.

Sate babi from a frozen packet goes remarkably well tossed with spaghetti.

One reason why the cream may not have made much difference to my Coq Au Vin is that it might've settled in the packet, so what I poured was the watery part of the cream. I must remember to shake it next time.

I made modified carbonara, making sure not to repeat the disaster that was my first attempt. Chiefly, I assiduously measured out only 30ml of cream so I didn't get overloaded. I also threw in lots of onions, a yellow pepper for sweetness and crunch, the last of my chive cream cheese spread and lots of parsley. So although I forgot the garlic, it turned out even better than someone's slightly more authentic version. Maybe my quick frying of the spaghetti (about 30s) also helped.

I was asked to make General Tso's chicken again on the Thursday before I left, since the Korean housemate hadn't properly enjoyed it on Saturday, having to leave for a game. When I returned he made allusions to it again, but I told him I wasn't going to make it again - one gets tired of even such things.

I don't buy nice bread because it's more expensive, and because it loses its crustiness after one day so there's no point; I chuck it into the freezer when I return home anyway. I dislike black/brown bread, and the funny bits inside bread are optional for me.