Welcome to Zurich

...where someone's bags get to sit on the shuttle bus while people stand.

Can you tell I'm annoyed? The people seated behind us on the plane kept bumping the backs of our seats. Hope the next leg of this trip goes better.

To The Brother and The SIL

Looky what finally arrived!

It's a Christmas coffee miracle

Got my toffee nut fix at Starbucks Arlanda. Not as toffee nutty as in Manila though.

Merry Christmas!

Caption contest in the newspaper

The paper publishes a random picture everyday and the reader who submits the winning caption receives a scratch card.

Guess where these pictures were taken.

The view from the ski lodge

...er, from the classroom.

The time now is 0121

I went to sleep at around 1900 and woke up shortly after midnight.

Have just finished making pasta salad for lunch. I usually buy my lunch, but I'll be at the clinic today and figured that this way I could skip changing into my street clothes, rushing to the store and back, and changing back into my uniform. Why didn't I think of this before?!

Dinner!

Haven't eaten anything today other than the movie snacks. Oops!

Movie time!

I finally get to watch The Deathly Hallows (1/2).

In other news...this morning, I dictated my first journal and examined a patient while my mentor observed. We usually fly solo, but he has to observe each of us once this semester and it was my turn today despite my wheedling. Jitters!

First attempt

The Big Niece and I just completed our first gingerbread house.

The gingerbread pieces came in a kit and you were supposed to stick them together using melted sugar. The sugar melting part didn't go so well, so the icing had to do double duty.

If you're wondering which parts I worked on and which parts the niece did, you will just have to keep wondering.

Amping it up?

A CD or a code for the website is pretty much standard for course literature now, but how many come in a box and with a ruler?

Maybe that explains the ouchy price? We scored a hefty discount by ordering through the school though and we have yet to be billed. The course administrator joked that the doctor in charge of the course would shoulder the cost if our individual invoices never arrive.

Now to study for the oral exam tomorrow...

Badass!

Don't cross Da Bunneh!

This fake tattoo came with the gum I had after lunch. The Big Niece insists it's a piggy.

[Photo taken at 1248.]

The Official Wedding Series lives on

[A number of products were launched for the wedding of the Crown Princess last June with a part of the proceeds going to charity. Was surprised to discover that these products are still being sold.]

Just call me Grabbing Goblin*

As if I didn't already have way too much to read, I felt compelled to grab a copy of all the free reading material I came by at the hospital.

[*Want to know who the Grabbing Goblin is? Clickety-click here!]

The remains of the day

Two gift certificates ended up in the laundry and here's what's left of them. Wasn't a huge amount, but still...

Marketing dream

I'm a sucker for seasonal/limited-time-only products and other ploys.

Gooey chocolate cake + gingerbread = winter...or so they tell me.

Impressive TV dinner?

The brother thought so.

'Tis the season

...or not. It's a good thing I have oodles of Christmas wrapper left over from last year because the stores here apparently haven't started selling them yet.

If you know me well enough, you can probably figure out why I'm wrapping Christmas presents in October.

Can you figure out

...what's wrong with this getup?

Counterintuitive much?

Meet McDonald's Sweden's new product. 'M' is their attempt at a homestyle burger. While it looks different, I don't think it really stands out taste-wise.

[Photo taken at 2200.]

Cuppycakes!

Managed to satisfy cupcake cravings...for now. Tried the carrot and red velvet cupcakes. Thought the carrot one was yum-o, but would have preferred less nuts. The red velvet was just okay.

Got by with just milk and no sugar in my coffee...yay me! Oh, okay...yay coffee!

P.S. The flash on this phone sucks eggs.

[Photo taken at 1824.]

I could be wrong about this, but...

I have a sneaking suspicion that it just might be time to get the winter stuff out.

[Photo taken on my way to school this morning.]

Picture from the Philippines

This was in the local paper today along with a blurb on the most recent typhoon. I'm guessing that roof used to be horizontal.

Lookie, what arrived in the mail today!

Bones Season 5 DVDs!!!

The best part is the package was delivered directly to the apartment, so no need to pick it up in the middle of nowhere (which, to be fair, I've only had to do once...so far).

Unfortunately, I will have to stay away from the DVDs until after the exam on Friday.

One of the Little Niece's Christmas presents also arrived today. Am excited to see how she'll react. Only 2 months to go! :p

Chicken and mango pasta salad

Pressbyrån stopped selling my favorite pasta salad a while back and I think I've found a replacement. Was skeptical about the mango part but it's actually mango salsa. Good stuff!

Am eating this at the school library while trying to study the pathology handouts.

Are all sugars created equal?

I consume way too much sugar, but since I don't have the will to cut back, I though I'd look into other solutions starting with my coffee, which brings us to...

The Sugar Cube Faceoff
Reigning Champion White Sugar Cube: 1700 kJ/100g
Contender Brown Sugar Cube: 1680 kJ/100g

I may actually consume enough sugar cubes for that to make a difference, but even I have to admit that this experiment is pretty much a dud. Back to the drawing board!

Go ahead and embrace your inner child

The little brat could use a hug every now and then. :p

Kanelbullens dag

Happy Cinnamon Roll Day!

Hummingbird cupcakes

Needed to use up desiccated coconut and was intrigued by this recipe which also includes pineapples and overripe bananas.

Was curious about the rationale behind the name, but my search didn't yield anything definitive.

Incentive

Bright and happy stairwell + pedometer on phone =
me taking stairs x 4 flights of stairs x (2 down + 1 up)

KI shuttle

Who knew their fleet included doubledecker buses?! Am now sitting in the front row of the top deck.

For 4 days this week, classes are held in Huddinge in the morning and in Solna in the afternoon.

My final cupcake post of the day

Methinks this one survived transit much better.

[This was okay, but I prefer the vanilla/lemon over it. Thought there was maybe too much cocoa and too little sweetness, but that could just be because I want stuff to be sweet to the nth degree. There was some filling incorporated and while I thought it was a nice touch, I wasn't really keen on the choice. May have been almond paste or marzipan, I think, and while I like them on prinsesstårta, I would prefer it if they stayed away from chocolate.

No home runs so far, but I will be dropping by again next week. Have already set my sights on the flavors: red velvet and carrot.]

Reinforcements

Waaah! Pen died on me mid-lecture and I didn't have any spares.

Shrooms!

Just because it's fall.

They're baaack!

Well, I think one is back at least.

At the exhibit in Waldemarsudde, I was tempted to ignore the wall of Vesalius drawings because similar ones line two of the walls of the Vesalius lecture hall at the Solna campus.

Apparently, they weren't just similar, they were the exact same ones because when classes started last week, the walls were bare.

Not sure if this one has been hanging there all along and I just missed it somehow (not likely though) or if they're returning them one at a time.

Oopsy!

Looks like I didn't handle the box carefully enough.

[Thought this was good, but too lemony since I'd ordered a vanilla cupcake. I'm generally not big on the citrusy cakes. Later googling would reveal that they don't offer a plain vanilla flavor, only a vanilla/lemon combo...so suddenly it makes sense. Frosting was cream cheese-based.]

Anticipation!

My lunch setup

Precious cargo

One of the shop owners was working the register and cautioned me to handle the box with care.

Sugar detour

Found out about the first cupcake shop in Sweden while googling on Sunday night. Have been planning to go since Monday, but stuff has gotten in the way.

Since the first class of the day wouldn't start until 1015, I made a beeline for the shop. It's within walking distance of Solna campus.

Was almost late for class because I thought they didn't accept cards and couldn't find an ATM. Priorities! :p

Seeing red

For the longest time, I've said that my favorite color is green, but perhaps it's time to reassess?

Specially if you take this, these and this into account.

And I forgot these.

New phone has arrived

Main criterion was water/splash resistance of course.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

...with ornaments on random streets...

Muchos thankies, Dudie Mia!

...for my new lollipop holder. Okay, I realize that's not what it's meant for, but a girl's gotta have her sugar.

Thanks again, Dudie! Many thanks to your courier as well!

Sorta paying it forward

Ended up with two copies of the same magazine because I bought one without realizing that The Brother had extended my subscription while I was away.

Left the extra copy on one of the benches at a train station today.

Animal sighting for today

Couldn't get close to this one either, but this time it was the bunny that wanted to keep its distance.

Impulse buy for the day

Spotted this at the grocery and was all "Mmm!"

Done voting

Am I not the most responsible citizen you ever did see? :p

It's not everyday

...you see a white/albino pigeon at the station. Given my fear of all things avian, this is the closest I was willing to come.

Where retail therapy and school spirit meet

Paid a visit to the gift shop and got myself a backpack and two shirts from the 200th anniversary collection.

In celebration of its 200th year, methinks Karolinska should do a logo revamp...particularly replace that rooster with a pig. Just saying. :p

Afternoon snack

Fruit vs. Pastry 1-0