Students attack Prince Charles' car after fee hike

Not a good time to go to Britain then, what with the cold snap and Camilla's even colder sense of humour.

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Furious student protesters attacked a car carrying Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, vandalized buildings and battled riot police Thursday as a controversial hike in university fees triggered Britain's worst political violence in years.

In a major security breach, demonstrators set upon the heir to the throne's Rolls Royce as it drove through London's busy West End on its way to a theater. A group of up to 20 struck it with fists, sticks and bottles, breaking a window and splattering the gleaming black vehicle with paint.

In the frenzy, some chanted "off with their heads!"

Adnan Nazir, a 23-year-old podiatrist who was following the protesters, said Charles, 62, kept his calm, gently pushing his 63-year-old wife toward the floor to get her out of the line of fire.

"Charles got her on the floor and put his hands on her," Nazir said. "Charles was still waving and giving the thumb's up.

"It was just a surreal thing," he said. "It was completely manic."

Charles' office, Clarence House, said the royal couple was unharmed. But the attack took police completely by surprise and raises serious security questions.

The chief of the Metropolitan Police, Paul Stephenson, said the force would launch an investigation into Thursday's violence.

Prime Minister David Cameron said the violence against the royal couple was "shocking and regrettable."

"It is clear that a minority of protesters came determined to provoke violence, attack the police and cause as much damage to property as possible," Cameron said. "They must face the full force of the law."

Police said it was unclear whether the royals had been deliberately targeted, or were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The couple arrived looking somber but composed at the London Palladium theater, where they were attending a Royal Variety Performance.

Camilla later managed to shrug off the ordeal, saying there was "a first time for everything," the Press Association news agency reported.

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http://www.mail.com/intl/Article.aspx/world/europe/APNews/Europe/20101210/U_EU-Britain-Tuition-Tangle?pageid=1

End-of-year hols 2008

My plan for the end-of-year hols:

So here's my to-do list:

1. Plan Pros Retreat in early-2009
2. Long-term plan for Students
3. Get credit card [UOB/POSB Everyday/DBS/Maybank]
4. Buy semi-SLR @Funan [Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX3 @$799]
5. Download songs
6. Watch borrowed movies [I Am Sam, Pursuit of Happyness, Pulp Fiction, Aviator]
7. Plan for wedding [plan brothers & sisters' New Year's Day party]
8. Read Spencer Kagan's Cooperative Learning, JK Rowling's Harry Potter, Neil Humphreys' Be My Baby, Gary Chapman's Five Love Languages, Bill Hybels' Axiom

Zikai's 21st birthday gig at Music Garage, Bugis Village

7 sessions of gruelling practice finally came to fruition where our gig passed without any major cock-ups. In fact, I really enjoyed playing with a wonderfully-talented bunch of musicians, and the pressure dissipated after the first 2 songs.

I think Zikai's testimony resonated with the audience, even his army friends. It really was a cosy atmosphere where they interacted with us and I'd love to do it again. '80s rewind perhaps? =]

Managed to get Jasmine, Valerie, Zoe, and Yinglei+friends to come so they can get the gist of what it means to have a non-threatening evangelistic event.

So all in all, I really enjoyed it and I think we achieved our objective where the seeds were sown and everyone enjoyed themselves. Let's do this again sometime, especially the impromptu fusion instrumental at the end. =]