Today, I realised how worried parents can get and how helpful friends are.
As today was the first trip to Beijing since the start of the OIP, we went to the Summer Palace and Temple of Heaven. When we went to the Summer Palace and Temple of Heaven, I had a weird sense that I've been here before. So I thought back and remembered that I've actually been here with my family before! It really brings back good old memories from 4 years ago and I still remember the incident where I quarreled with my older brother.
Now as everyone grows older and becomes much more sensible, you would laugh back at all the silly things you've done and ask yourself why did you do it. Really nice memories.
Later in the day when we got back to the hotel, I was feeling slightly feverish so I opted out to go for dinner and stay back to take a nap. Tresca was also not feeling to well so we stayed in the room to rest. When we both woke up, I saw 2 bowls of porridge placed on the table so I asked Tresca who bought them. He told me Chia Chun went around to buy them for us. I was really touched by his care and concern even though we were not very close.
Next, I called and told my mum that I fell sick and so her nagging started over the phone. It has been very long since I last heard here nag and I felt warm inside as she scolds because she cares alot. Most of the time, she would be the one who keeps calling me to take my medicine and even bring it to me. That motherly love can never be replaced by anything or anyone. ♥
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
13 more days! - 30th March 2011
Finally! One module is cleared and we finally have a much more relaxed schedule. It being Mr. Tan's birthday today, all of us were busy preparing for his birthday celebration. 2 days back, we went around to look for a bakery and found one which has a 3 layer cake! In Singapore, a 3 layer cake would cost about 200+ but the one we saw cost 260... RMB! That equates to about 52SGD which is 1 quarter of Singapore's price. Immediately, we all agreed and took the 3 layer cake. Here's a picture of it!
As we are going to Beijing tomorrow, the role call was pushed earlier to 2200. Therefore, Mr. Chua helped us along for the night mini party at Buddy's Cafe in the Basement by dragging Mr. Tan to the cafe. Everyone had an enjoyable time and the person who has the most fun was Mr. Tan. He told us that every year, his family would buy a cake and sing a birthday song to him. But this year, it was different. We celebrated with him on behalf of his family and we could see tears in his eyes. That was the first 3 layer cake anyone bought for him for his birthday and the biggest one ever!
As a student, it feels really good to see our lecturers having a big smile on their faces and knowing you are the one who put it there. That sense of accomplishment is totally heart warming.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
14 more days! - 29th March 2011
Today was a day that I hope would only happen this time and never again. The reason I say this is because I did something terribly wrong today and I understand how Mr. Tan and Mr. Chua feels. For the OIP trip, they are like our parents to us and to them, we are their kids.
The days goes like this... As tomorrow's the final paper for APPG, everyone was busy mugging really hard for the paper. But during lunch time, I went to the hairdresser to get my hair cut, thinking that it would just take a while, which in turn took much much longer than anticipated.
Not to push the blame around or anything but I had the decision in my hands. I could have when to get a haircut after APPG and not during lunch time instead. Totally terrible terrible mistake I've made which made both the lecturers upset and made everyone's moral drop too. That feeling of knowing what my actions have brought upon also makes me upset and feel lousy.
Therefore, during the roll call in Mr. Tan's room, I shared how I truly felt about the incident. As I'm brought up in a way where leaving things unsettled causes me to be in a very depressed mood, I really shared and told everyone to not follow my footsteps. After sharing, he said this to me which really made me feel better. Mr. Tan looked at me and said "Being accountable is one thing but learning from your mistakes is the biggest thing". What is past is past, the only thing you can do is to learn from the mistakes and not repeat them again.
It almost brought tears to my eyes as I never expected Mr. Tan to even forgive me the slightest bit for doing what I've done today. I guess not every lecturer are willing to give a second chance and this was a real close call to be sent back because of today.
The days goes like this... As tomorrow's the final paper for APPG, everyone was busy mugging really hard for the paper. But during lunch time, I went to the hairdresser to get my hair cut, thinking that it would just take a while, which in turn took much much longer than anticipated.
Not to push the blame around or anything but I had the decision in my hands. I could have when to get a haircut after APPG and not during lunch time instead. Totally terrible terrible mistake I've made which made both the lecturers upset and made everyone's moral drop too. That feeling of knowing what my actions have brought upon also makes me upset and feel lousy.
Therefore, during the roll call in Mr. Tan's room, I shared how I truly felt about the incident. As I'm brought up in a way where leaving things unsettled causes me to be in a very depressed mood, I really shared and told everyone to not follow my footsteps. After sharing, he said this to me which really made me feel better. Mr. Tan looked at me and said "Being accountable is one thing but learning from your mistakes is the biggest thing". What is past is past, the only thing you can do is to learn from the mistakes and not repeat them again.
It almost brought tears to my eyes as I never expected Mr. Tan to even forgive me the slightest bit for doing what I've done today. I guess not every lecturer are willing to give a second chance and this was a real close call to be sent back because of today.
Monday, March 28, 2011
15 More Days! - 28th March 2011
2 more days and APPG would be over! It's shocking how time flies when you're balancing Studies and Play at the same time. For the whole day, all of us were mugging very hard for the last few chapters as it wasn't so easy to pick up the logic on how Methods and Arrays works. Mr. Chua saw us struggling with the chapters and so, he went through line by line, word by word to make sure we get everything right.
His teaching methods are quite different from other lecturers. At first, we would do it on our own and he would monitor our progress. Only when the exam date is near, he would try to clear up any doubts we have. I feel this way is effective as when the exams are near and you still don't understand, the mind would go all out to remember things that are needed. So by clearing the doubts a few days before, it would still be fresh in our heads. Our lecturers are fun people and at the same time caring which is rare as from what we hear from the other groups.
His teaching methods are quite different from other lecturers. At first, we would do it on our own and he would monitor our progress. Only when the exam date is near, he would try to clear up any doubts we have. I feel this way is effective as when the exams are near and you still don't understand, the mind would go all out to remember things that are needed. So by clearing the doubts a few days before, it would still be fresh in our heads. Our lecturers are fun people and at the same time caring which is rare as from what we hear from the other groups.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Day 20 - 27th March 2011
Well, this being a Sunday, I've quite sometime on my hands so I've decided to blog about the things that makes me think. Even though it is the weekend, all of us are busy trying to finish up the Wine Factory Presentation and study for the upcoming test on Wednesday. The weekend is to give us free time but how we use that free time is another thing.
It doesn't mean that when there is free time, we have to go out and shop or watch TV. That is the wrong mindset and till that changes, it never gets you far. The reason is because if the hunger for knowledge or the responsibility of completing your assignments on time doesn't affect you, survival in the real world is impossible under these circumstances.
Day 19! - 26th March 2011
Today, I had the longest sleep in 19 days! It felt so refreshing after being quite deprived for sleep after so long. This shows how important sleep is and how much more energetic one can be after having a proper sleep. But, there was another thing that woke me up. It was Gary and he said "Dean! Bad News! For the Lab Test, everyone might have to retake it as there were problems!" The moment I heard that, I jump out of the bed and asked him why.
He told me Mr. Chua texted him to pass the message on a retest for those who didn't get their checkpoint signed. I thought back and remembered that I had mine signed so I wasn't as worried but I'm still worried for the rest who didn't have theirs signed. We are taking this module as a group and not individually, those who are in need shouldn't be left hanging. I was thinking, since there's the soft copy of the test in the thumbdrive, wouldn't that be fine? After thinking that way, Gary said his thumbdrive was EMPTY so Mr. Chua is going to discuss the issue with him. It's like nothing seem to be going his way!
Later in the day, Gary and I went over to 古文化街 to get his faulty watch changed. Apparently, the shopkeeper still remember us! The reason is because Gary slashed 50% off the opening price. So after that, while on our way back,we had to change to bus 643 at 滨江道. When the bus came, there were alot of people who wanted to board the bus and it's practically quite full so we waited for the next. Normally, the back door would be open so that more people could also board.
Now, some interesting happened. There's the bus conductor standing at the exit door asking the bus driver to not open it, so everyone has to pay for the ride. When he went to flag the other buses to stop, the driver immediately opened the door and a few people rushed up the bus! He saw it and quickly ran towards the front door of the bus, told the driver to stop opening the exit door and drive away. A really funny and rare experience!
He told me Mr. Chua texted him to pass the message on a retest for those who didn't get their checkpoint signed. I thought back and remembered that I had mine signed so I wasn't as worried but I'm still worried for the rest who didn't have theirs signed. We are taking this module as a group and not individually, those who are in need shouldn't be left hanging. I was thinking, since there's the soft copy of the test in the thumbdrive, wouldn't that be fine? After thinking that way, Gary said his thumbdrive was EMPTY so Mr. Chua is going to discuss the issue with him. It's like nothing seem to be going his way!
Later in the day, Gary and I went over to 古文化街 to get his faulty watch changed. Apparently, the shopkeeper still remember us! The reason is because Gary slashed 50% off the opening price. So after that, while on our way back,we had to change to bus 643 at 滨江道. When the bus came, there were alot of people who wanted to board the bus and it's practically quite full so we waited for the next. Normally, the back door would be open so that more people could also board.
Now, some interesting happened. There's the bus conductor standing at the exit door asking the bus driver to not open it, so everyone has to pay for the ride. When he went to flag the other buses to stop, the driver immediately opened the door and a few people rushed up the bus! He saw it and quickly ran towards the front door of the bus, told the driver to stop opening the exit door and drive away. A really funny and rare experience!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Day 18! T.G.I.Friday! - 25th March 2011
T.G.I.F! Amazingly this week passed even faster! As the number of the tests gets lesser and lesser, the time flies faster and faster. Today, we went to visit a wine factory! It's a collaboration between China and France. I have only seen the bottled wine but not the actual bottling process. One bottle of wine might seem to be a drink adults enjoy but the whole process of growing, culturing, and bottling is not simple.
Here are some photos of the making process!
Not only did we get to see the general overview of the making process, we also got to try an expensive bottle of red wine. Not any ordinary bottle but one that cost 4980RMB per bottle! Even though they know that we are students and can't really buy much items or even nothing, they still serve us with top quality products. That is the service that is really commendable. The company is really generous and the Quality of Service is top notch!
Here are some photos of the making process!
Not only did we get to see the general overview of the making process, we also got to try an expensive bottle of red wine. Not any ordinary bottle but one that cost 4980RMB per bottle! Even though they know that we are students and can't really buy much items or even nothing, they still serve us with top quality products. That is the service that is really commendable. The company is really generous and the Quality of Service is top notch!
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