I know, I know! This is waaaaaaaaay overdue. Apologies! Remember I'm a student ok--we students have a lot of essays and annoying tests and crabby response papers to write. :D

I have decided to split the Guelph weekend getaway update into three parts, in true saga style! So here it is, Tale of Two Cities: Part I. (Why "Tale of Two Cities" will come later, aye? :D )

Ok. Part I will be about Friday! Get your popcorn and chips, or celery and carrot snack sticks, and get comfy, because this is gonna be a long long loooooong entry.



{{Classes}}

Because I was bubbling with excitement about the weekend, and because I had procrastinated my packing, I slept at the very decent hour of 4am on Friday morning. Woke up, bundled up in layers and buckled up with backpack, and went for my Victorian Literature class at 9.30am and Romantic Literature class at 10.30am. After my classes, I walked around and got a little somethings for Don and Grace.

Thereafter, I met Cindy, Kailin, and Daph to go to her house for hotpot! (aka, steamboat!).

It was a loooooooong walk. I was in my silly boots (as Don calls them), and Cindy decided that she wanna try the railway route.

Railway route! In my silly boots!! @#$%#@$@%!$#@@ !!!!!!! My poor babies.....!!

Well, they were all in sensible tracking shoes, so they sauntered on.

I don't have pictures from the hotpot, so I'll update that another time!! :D

{{Bus}}

So we overestimated our kitchen skills and took tooooo long to prepare hotpot. By the time we all got down to eating, it was 2.25pm. I have to leave at 2.45pm Latest in order to catch the 2.52pm bus downtown to Kitchener in order to catch the 3.30pm Greyhound to Guelph. Seems there's no way I can gulp down all that food, so with most reluctance, I called Grace.

"I'm so sorrrrry, Grace!! We just started eating (etc. etc. etc) so I can't make the 3.30pm bus... Can I take the later bus and meet you??"
"What time is the next bus?"
"Ummmm. I think it's 4? 4.15?"
"Hold on, I'll just check the schedule. (loads up website. wait. wait. wait). What number are you calling from, Catharine?"
"(gives number)"
"Ok, I'll call you back ok? I'll just check this and get back to you."
"Ok!"

Minutes later she calls me back:

"Catharine, the next bus is at 4.15pm. Take that one ok? And I'll still meet you as we have arranged."
"Ok!!! I'm so sorry! Thank you!"
"Ok, byebye!"

So. In order to catch the 4.15pm Greyhound to Guelph, I have to catch the 3.37pm bus from Cindy's place to downtown Kitchener. In order to catch the 3.37pm bus, I have to leave her place LATEST 3.30pm.

I started to prepare to leave at about 3.25pm. Waited for Kailin and Daph. And Kailin's superbly good banana milkshake. Ugh. Looks like I can't make it if I waited any longer. Said a hurried goodbye and ran out of the house.

Run, run, run! It was tough to run in my silly boots with a huge backpack and the wind determinedly rushing at you! Yet, I ran, ran, ran!

Wah, unfit. Out of breath, finally, I brisk walked. Saw the bus coming in from the junction. RUN!!!!!

The bus pulled in.

I ran for the bus bay.

Passengers boarding.

I reached the bus bay.

And.

THE BUS TOOK OFF WITHOUT ME!!!

OMG!!!!!!! NOoooooooo! It just left! Like that! Poof! Into the distance!

I tried not to pull my hair out in complete desperation.

Checked the schedule, even though I knew the next bus was at 3.52pm, and I will never make the Greyhound now, nevertheless, I checked the schedule. Hoping that maybe, Maybe, I had seen the numbers wrongly.

Well, it's 3.52pm alright. It'll reach the terminal at 4.21pm.

Kailin and Daph strolled leisurely into sight. I told them we missed the bus (they wanted to catch the same bus as me). Because they were in less of a hurry than me, they were not terribly ruffled.

But I was completely frantic. I had a sudden brilliant idea. Hitch a ride!!

With that brilliant idea in my head, I moved further down the road and waved like a mad woman to the next oncoming car. It stopped. Amazingly, it actually stopped.

"Hi!! I'm so sorry, but are you going to Charles Street terminal??"
"Charles Street... Oh, no. I'm just going down the street..."
"Oh.... It's alright then, thanks... (attempts megawatt smile)."

I stopped car after car. And car after car stopped for me. I must have stopped about, what, I don't know how many cars. Now, sitting rationally in my room, I cannot fathom where I got the guts to stop those cars in the middle of the road. Haha. Distraught, that's what gave me all that bravery.

Kailin was pretty shocked. She lent me her handphone to call Grace again.

"Grace!! The worst thing ever has happened. I missed the bus!!!"
"What? You missed the bus?"
"Yes! It just pulled away without me!!"
"But Catharine, it's not 4.15pm yet!"
"I know, but it just left!"
"Catharine, it's not 4.15pm yet."

(sudden realization that we are talking about different buses. Haha.)

"Oh, no, Grace, I know it's not 4.15pm yet, but I have to catch the bus to Kitchener, and I missed it!!"
"Ohhh."
"I'm sorry! I'm trying to hitch a ride down. Or get a cab!"
"Ok, Catharine, (she checks the schedule), if you miss the 4.15pm, take the next one."
"When's the next one?"
"5.30pm. Take the 5.30, ok? If you miss the 4.15. I'll meet you at the terminal instead. Listen, I'll do my groceries first, then, and meet you. Ok?"

(Omg we were supposed to do groceries together? Oh no, oh no. I feel so so awful.)

"Ok, ok. I'm so sorry, Grace. This is so bad."
"It's alright. Call me if you do get on the 4.15 though, ok?"
"Ok."

Sigh. In the end, the 3.52pm IXpress bus came. I pleadingly asked the driver if he can make the terminal at 4.15pm. And he stoically, doggedly, lifelessly, said, "No."

Poor guy. I pulled upright and strode purposefully to a seat. I couldn't help looking at him with such condescension. If he had explained to me that he can't, because they have to keep to the schedule, I would have completely understood, and thanked him for wanting to try. But, he didn't. He gave me that lousy, uncompromising, why-should-I-do-you-a-favour "No".

Yucks.

So then I got to the terminal. The long ride placated me. I still harboured a tiny flicker of hope when I reached the terminal, hoping perhaps the Greyhound was still waiting for boarding passengers. I had also made up my mind that I'll take a cab down to Guelph if I missed the Greyhound.

I asked a guard there if the Greyhound was still in. He said it's probably gone. Stupid, right, me. I should've just gone down and checked for myself. Aye, but never mind that.

I was really, quite completely, shattered. I tried to call Grace again on the payphone, but it'll cost me C$3.65. Can you imagine? That's ridiculous. I sank down onto a random bench, and called her.

I tried not to cry.

"Hello, Grace (last name). Can I help you?"
"Grace..... It's Catharine."
"Oh, Catharine! (voice changes immediately). Did you make the bus?"
"No...."

(I cannot help it. My voice broke.)

"I'm sorry, Grace... I missed the bus..."
"But it's not 5.30 yet, Catharine. Can you still make the 5.30?"
"(5.30 sounds eons away) 5.30? Yes, yes, I can still make the 5.30... but Grace, that's an hour away! And you have to wait so long..."

(My voice totally betrayed me. I started crying.)

"Catharine," she said firmly, "it's ok, Catharine. Don't worry about it. Take the 5.30, ok? I'll see you at the terminal."
"Ok... I'm sorry...." (Cry, cry, cry. Really! I should get a grip on myself!)

She changed tactic, and lowered her voice to a whisper, and tried to soothe me.

"Catharine. Don't worry, ok? We're going to have a good weekend. Don't worry."
"Ok... *sniff*. Ok, Grace. I'll see you."

I wondered if Grace knew I was crying, after I hung up. I was really sorry, and I wanted her to know. Anyhow, I sat in the bench limply, a loud, empty roaring in my head.

After a long while, I noticed the girl who's been shifting restlessly beside me. I smiled at her. She smiled back. She heaved her bag. There was an awkward silence.

"My bag's heavy," she offered.
"Yeah?" I smiled.

More awkward silence.

"You're waiting for the Greyhound?"
"Yeah."
"Where're you going?"
"Oh, I'm going to Guelph."
I brightened. "Really?! I'm going to Guelph too! I missed the earlier bus.."
"I know! Me too! You know, the bus pulled out as we pulled in!"
"Really?? Oh man.......... That really sucks."
"I know.... I can't believe it! It left early, you know......--"

And on and on. We decided to get a drink. Chocolate milk, for some comfort theraphy. Haha. And so we got talking and talking. She told me about her family, her brother, her mom, her dad, she lives with her grandma... about school, how she stopped for a year and a half, and had just decided to go back. I told her school's compulsory in Singapore, until you're 12, and you had to pay. She said it's stupid. Canadians get free, compulsory education until the age of 16. She told me she wants to go New York to dance. Modern, jazz, ballet.

Amazing how people can just talk like that.

It was a long ride to Guelph, and I dozed off with the lights from the low-shops zooming past me, and my new friend plugged into her discman, with a CD that she sneaked from her brother.

{{Guelph!}}

I reached Guelph. With fresh worries. Where would I find Grace? How long has she waited? What would we say?

I alighted, forehead furrowed.

And the first person I saw, was Grace, with a big warm smile.

"Grace!"

She opened her arms, and I hugged her gratefully.

After that were just flustered emotions and incoherent explanations, fragmented because some of it got snatched by the wind.

"Oh, wait! You must meet my new friend."

So Grace met my new friend, and we met her mom, and then we said goodbye.

"I was so upset, Grace, just now."
"I know, I could hear it in your voice."
"Really? Oh, I was crying. I couldn't help it."
"Oh, I know..." And I got another hug.

Canadians are so polite! Let me tell you, they won't refer to your crying as 'crying' if you don't refer to it yourself first. They'll say "upset". I wonder if they have a lot of such euphemistic expressions and ways of speech.

Anyway, yay yay. :) So we strapped in and got to her place. Ahhhh. Finally. I feel better already. :)

We had chicken casserole that night. With baby spinach salad, tossed with sliced almonds, pears, onions, and mango chutney dressing. I loved the salad. Yummy!

Don was glad we were home.

Grace asked if I was an early-riser, or do I like to sleep in. I must admit I blushed. Hahahahah. I Like to be an early-riser when I do rise early, but often I just sleep in. Pisses me off sometimes too, when I sleep in too much. :S So I really didn't know how to answer. Haha. I told her I'm fine with both. (I realize I keep telling her I'm fine with anything alot during the whole trip). Don't like that lah, very embarrassing if I say I'm a sleep-in-ner if they're early-risers, or that I'm an early-riser if they sleep in right? I'm good at accomodating. :D:D Haha.

After dinner, Grace and I baked some raisin bran muffins! I really don't like raisin bran--but the muffins were awfully delicious.

Grace showed me my personal washroom, and the room where I'm supposed to sleep. The washroom was perfect and looked right out of the movies, with all the little touches. Grace had put some clean towels that had some of her cross-stich embroidery and I was so impressed. So she showed me more of her cross-stich projects. There was one as big as a painting!!

My room was just as lovely. I had two pillows and a duvet!! A DUVET!!! Wah. I felt so spoiled, and felt slightly sheepish about my own makeshift blanket. Hahaha. Plus Grace also included a peachy-pink house robe for me, and I borrowed a minty-teal-green nightgown from her. Lovely!! I loved the house robe!!

Confession also: I forgot my toothbrush. Can you imagine?!?!?! Luckily, Grace had an extra one--those complimentary airplane toothbrushes. :D

We watched a bit of TV, and they asked me about Singapore exports. I really, really felt like a dumb-blonde then because I was completely clueless. National Education down the drains, man. Hahhaa. I gave some half-baked answers of what I do know, and resolved to find out more so I won't appear so clueless.

Let me tell you, in contrast, Grace and Don really knows loads about Canada and her history. She would tell me of the early settlers of Canada, why some things are the way they are because of what happened in the past, the wheat and corn fields peppered along the way to her place... etc.

And then, we called it a night. I snuggled into the duvet (!!!) (oh, by the way, it's pronounced du-veh), and drifted off to a lovely slumber.

Very long entry, isn't it? But it's mostly all about the stupid bus. Most of the melodrama is all in the bus. Growl!! The buses here are SO punctual. 4.56 means 4.56. The maximum is give or take a minute. But that's about TOPS. :S:S But it's good for planning stuff so... I shall learn to be punctual. Haha. Grace actually said she's just worried I'll miss my flight home. Hahaha. Don't worry, Grace--Jeremy is SUPER punctual. *wink*

Hee. Ok. In Part II, I'll tell you all about the Guelph Market, ARMOURY (!!!!), my fabulous haircut @ New Images, the impending winter storm, and an unexpected surprise.

:D Tata!