Going to Singapore!

Finally getting really excited about the trip to Singapore. Haven't thought about it much until now, since wasn't sure if we'd be really going - pending the visas approvals. But now that they are (what a relief!) we are going to Singapore!

So now a geography lesson:

Singapore is one of the only few city/states in the world. It's located in Southeast Asia, on the Malaysian peninsula and literally on the equator. See map here. So the weather is sunny, hot and really humid! Sounds fab to me, although I'll probably pass out from heat stroke since it's been awhile since we've been in weather like that. Singapore is a former British crown colony but has been independent since the mid 1950s. Therefor there is a lot of British influence and why English is spoken there.

It's a very westernized society in Asia, so we've been told it's a great place to go for a first experience in Asia. The locals are made up of people from China, Malaysia and India. But lots of expats have also moved there for good job opportunities. So English is spoken quite easily there, as well as Mandarin Chinese and Malay.

We've also heard the food is fantastic - Chinese, Thai and India abounds - which we love all of it.

To explain why we are going there:

Brian's funding from the Royal Society has ended as it was a two-year contract only. As the research Brian has been doing at Oxford is going well and he'd like to continue with it (so he can write more papers to publish) he's taken up funding provided by the National University of Singapore. There is a reciprocal agreement between the NUS and Oxford to have a researcher do the work at Oxford, but also so Singapore can have their name on the publications. Brian will need to visit Singapore probably 2-3 times in the year for collaboration work, but we will continue to be based in Oxford. Next week I'm going along for a number of reasons: both of our plane tickets will be paid for, we receive more money initially if Brian's dependent (his wife) travels with and, hey, it's Singapore!! How cool!

We are leaving together next Saturday 21st, and I'm returning on March 31st. Brian is staying on until about April 4th. The University is putting us up, so we're not quite sure what our level of accommodations will be, so I'm not expecting much. But it will be extremely clean I know, as that is a huge thing in Singapore also. We've all heard the stories, you can be jailed or caned for spitting gum on the ground! They have extremely harsh laws for cleanliness so we just have to be careful to follow the rules. (We read that it's illegal if you don't flush the toilet! Yikes!)

I'll definitely blog and post photos post trip and possibly during if I have access. Cheers!

Birthday weekend

Hi all,

It's my birthday today and I'm celebrating by not doing a whole lot except enjoying a chill weekend like usual. We did pop to the pub (as you'd expect) and my hubby's in charge in the kitchen, so all is well! The sun has been shining for the day which is great to see, and all the daffodils are popping up everywhere. The main focus is our trip to Singapore next week - so packing is top of mind (although I hate packing and always leave til last minute.) But have been doing laundry and ironing to prep and realizing that my summer clothes are pretty limited and borderline out of fashion! Guess will have to do some shopping when in Singapore!

Thanks for the Bday messages and I'm going to blog more about Singapore next!

Visas are renewed!

Good news - we don't have to leave the UK in 10 days -our visas were renewed! This allows us to stay in the UK for another 3 years if we want. Our visas now are also not dependent on one particular employer, so Brian can change up jobs if he needs to as well (although we don't really foresee him needing to do that). So it is a bit of a relief to know that we can stay put until we get our next big move sorted. Ideally we are looking for permanent positions for Brian in academia back in the US. It's interesting to learn however, that the economy is even affecting academic jobs in that a number of high-level universities are putting faculty searches on hold, due to their own economic constraints. But all is currently well for us in the Oxford bubble, and we're just plugging along like usual.

The other good news to our visa renewals, is that now Brian will be funded by the University of Singapore, and we're going there to visit in two weeks! Brian will mainly be working, and I am taking holiday. But it's beneficial that we both go, as both our plane tickets will be paid for, and we also both receive "moving" expenses (even though we will live in Oxford officially). Never did us two midwesterners think we'd be hanging out in Singapore! So we'll have lots to report back on the blog.

St Andrews Scotland

Two weeks ago now, we were in St Andrews Scotland (thinking of you Meg K!) where Brian was conducting some collaborations with a fellow physicist at the University. St Andrews University is the third oldest in the UK (after Oxford & Cambridge) and also famously known to us celebrity trackers as the Uni that Prince William and Kate Middleton went to and where they met! And of course, for my golf-loving family, St Andrews is where golf was basically invented, and has the oldest golf course in the world, which is still being used.

We just made a 3-day weekend out of it, which was nice to get out of Oxford for a bit. Brian went up on Thursday on the train, and I followed on Friday afternoon. St Andrews is just Northeast of Edinburgh, in the Fife Kingdom, on the ocean. It took about 7 hours on the train to get there - but that didn't feel too long with good reading material.

It's a small village town really, and has 3 main roads to explore. There is an amazing castle ruin with tunnels dug underneath from centuries ago during a attempt to storm & overthrow the monarchy; there is an amazing cathedral ruins with an enormous and elaborate (still being used) graveyard; and then currently, seven different golf courses, golf shops, members-only old boy golf societies, and men wandering about town with their golf kit (stuff).

We stayed in a nice local trendy hotel b&b and enjoyed our hot breakfast every morning. Especially since we were in Scotland, Bri was pumped about his scrambled eggs & salmon. I went for the traditional Scottish breakfast (which is pretty much the same as full English or Irish breakfast) but with the addition of a slice of Haggis. (Which if you really want to know is seasoned sheep's stomach, and I will say is pretty tasty, but only in the context of a little bite.)

Before I arrived on Friday, Brian was taken to a neighboring village for lunch - and he got to experience the best Chippy in all of the UK! There are annual awards for the Fish & Chips shop throughout the country, and this particular one had just won the award. I was a bit envious I have to admit that I missed out. He claims they were pretty good . . . but it was still just deep fried fish & chips!We enjoyed our full day Saturday wondering really - seeing all of the 3 main areas I mentioned above. I enjoyed the golf stuff and took some photos by the key St Andrews Golf spots. These pics are from the Old Course, where golf began 600 years ago. The Old Course sustains around 42,000 rounds of golf a year. 50% of tee times are by lottery, Saturdays can't be booked, and it's closed on Sunday, so we were able to walk around right on the course. There are an additional six golf courses in and around St Andrews, catering to all skills and pockets. I went into the main Clubhouse and it was pretty impressive!

Dinner was more yummy salmon at just a local restaurant, including some of the best beer we've found in the UK. There is the craft brew pub in Scotland in the Cairngorms region, and it had some tasty stuff! Was very pleasantly surprised to learn that the Scots also have a better palate for beer, than their Southern English counterparts!

Sunday was really just a travel day back home - although much less enjoyable than Friday's trip. Fewer trains run on Sunday, but everyone else is trying to head home too, so it was packed sardines for most of the way. But all in all it was a great little trip.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I'm awaiting for the hubby to wake up, so we can go up the street for breakfast. Latte for me and tea for Bri of course. We'll prob go to the British coffee shop chain called Costa, since they have nice cozy sofas and good chocolate croissants. Mmm! Hope you have a loving day with your fave people!

(I just realized that Blogger is set on US West Coast time, so even though it's the 14th here while I type, it doesn't say that on the entry!)

STEM in the US

Just wanted to share an article I read in Newsweek regarding science & technology in high education in the US. I guess that is what I get for being married to a physicist and working in HE for the University of Oxford. But the article hits the nail on the head from the perspective over here. Oxford & Cambridge for example, are really putting in strategic plans for more engagement with India & China.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/181392

Snow Update

Well, the snow keeps coming down. It's pretty and wet. I will admit, the walk to the office on Friday was really slushy, wet - like walking on a big slurpy. People here don't have snow shovels, nor are there any large snow blowers or snow plows to move the snow. So it just builds up and makes a huge mess. Those who venture out in their car drive very slow (which is good) but they also burn rubber a lot, not used to being on slick roads. Many of my co-workers still couldn't make it into work, since they live in outlying villages and the public transport wouldn't run from there. I think they are all enjoying "snow days" from the office. More snow to come too in the next two days. I have learned that the Brits use gritting salt, actual salt minerals from mines that looks pinkish/orange on the roads. And they go "sledging" instead of "sledding"!