Errands and severe jet lag

I finally have access to internet and am able to tell you, so far, my 2 days of adventure in Syracuse. First, let me just share with you briefly my serendipitous encounter with a familiar face during my flight en route to Syracuse. Guess what?! Jem (my bestfriend) and I met in Narita airport! What are the chances of that?! Although we left Asia on the same day, our points of exits and destinations were entirely different. Anyway, we had a good hour of chat before he boarded for his flight to Toronto.

My 26 -hr travel was okay, but a bit bumpy along the way. Well, on the first leg of the flight, I was sandwiched between a group of loud american high school jocks. Next, I was seated beside a mom who was rearing her infant on a stroller that occupied what was already a tight leg room space (so goodbye to toilet breaks!) Then when we arrived in Chicago, it took us 2 1/2 hours to clear immigrations and customs! It was then followed by an hour delay in our syracuse flight (O'Hare is definitely NOT like Changi). To top it all up, the luggage was left in Chicago and UA was only able to send it to me the following day. This rough start really left a bad impression on me, but it was later on saved by a few things which kinda lifted my spirit again:

1) the domestic plane flew over the Chicago skyline just when the sun was about to set. It was a beautiful scene, expecially when all the buildings reflected the golden sunlight;

2) the cab driver was so nice and polite and he drove me a little further around Syracuse downtown just to show me some more places;

3) and the highlight, of course, is seeing my apartment. Below are just some of the photos I took early in the morning just after dawn. I woke up at around 4 (blame it on jet lag), but honestly I was just excited to see the morning sunlight penetrate through the windows of the attic. That really made my day. Of course, the visit to SU and SUNY ESF was likewise splendid. I decided to show photos of the campus later on, when it's fall and the leaves have changed colors. They said it's the most beautiful time of the year to take photos of the campus.


908 Westcott (rightmost house) -- our home. Owned by an indian american and managed by a nice american fellow named Pete, who lives with us.


My bedroom, which is bigger than I thought, is definitely so much nicer than our bedroom in Singapore. I have a window beside my bed, which you can only open if you wedge it up with a stick. The previous tenant was kind enough to leave his/her junior baseball bat behind just for this purpose. How did I know? Well, the baseball bat was actually wedged there when I arrived.


I have 2 sets of wardrobes and 2 drawer cabinets. You see that thing on the floor? Nope, it's not a rug. It's the heating vent!


This is the living room with the definitive triangular-shaped attic ceiling near the window. Surprisingly, the place doesn't feel empty at all. The owner was kind enought to leave quite a few furnitures, including a sofa (which they apparently recycled from the road trash), old 1980s tv set, and antique-looking coffee tables and cabinets. It smells a bit stuffy though, but I'm sure it will have a homey scent soon.


There's a nice chair there around the corner, which I imagine using while reading a book. I'll probably put a floor lamp beside it. There's also that table lamp on the lower right hand that's nice to exploit.


The kitchen is so lovely and cozy. Everything's included: dining set, stove, ref, microwave, cupboards, and lots of drawer cabinets. All it lacks are cooking utensils and the appliances that every vegetarian needs (i.e. toaster, water heater, and griller). Well, at least I have an oven I can use to prepare the thanksgiving turkey. haha! Dream on Marvin...


The bathroom is small, but very clean and well maintained. I love the fact that it has it's own cupboard and a mirror that functions as a cabinet. Remember those hollywood films where they always put pills in the bathroom mirror cupboard?


View from my living room window. A lot of the houses around the university area are gorgeous. They all have patios and some have their own terraces. Most of the people living around these areas are students. Usually, you'll see them drinking their hearts out on the patios and terraces at night.

There you have it! Please feel free to comment as to how I can design and further improve the attic. I'll take photos whenever I make changes in the interior design, expecially when I start decorating the place with my sentimental stuff.