Family

This morning, I went to visit my maternal grandparents with my bro. Things really change when we grow up. When I was younger, I used to visit my grandparents with my entire family almost every week. But as I grow up, my parents no longer request that I go visiting with them. Nowadays, my bro and I will visit them alone. But I guess that's part and parcel of growing up - everyone are busy with their own lives and we learn to be independent. And it's not restricted to my family. My cousins, uncles and aunts, too, become so busy with their lives that everyday, my grandparents have lunch by themselves. And that's one thing I really can't stand. I don't know why, but I just can't stand seeing my grandparents eating alone. I just get this strange and uncomfortable feeling. Yupz, so I ended up having lunch with them. And it's really amazing how happy the elderly are when we do simple things for them, like having a meal with them. As such, it made me realize how easy it is to make someone so happy. I feel that no matter how busy everyone is, every family needs to have regular meals together to feel like a family. If not, to put it crudely, the house just feels like a hotel. Maybe it's just me.

Oh and I realized  how influential a grandson's words are to grandparents. My parents were trying so hard to convince my grandparents to retire, but they simply refuse. But the moment I mentioned it, they agreed immediately. Such influence indeed. Yupz, but I agree that they should have retired long time ago, lay back and enjoyed life. If not for my grandfather's recent operation, I'm pretty sure they would not even consider retiring. I guess that's the problem with the older generation. They work, scrimp and save for the next generation. They never really get to enjoy life. Or put it in another way, their definition of enjoying life is different. All they want in life is to see their kids, and they grandchildren grow up and become happy people. It's that simple. I feel that they should want more in their lives. Enjoy while you still can - that's how my father puts it. Yes fight hard to push your career to greater heights. But at the end of the day, think about why you're working, or what/who you're working for. That's how to maintain work-life balance.

If there's one thing that I've learnt about myself this year, it's that I realized that I'm a very family-oriented person. To me, my family is more important than anything else. Orion played a huge part in me understanding more about myself. Through this trip, I've thought about many things in my life - my priorities, my family and my life as a whole. Just take a step back and you really get to see your life from a whole new perspective.

BBQ, CIP and CORS!

Yesterday's GEP BBQ! This time it's held at Zhiyang's place. Pretty posh estate at 6th Avenue. Haha. The turn-up rate was awesome - almost all the year 1's turned up. There were fewer year 2's though, but Prof Quek and a few of the staff turned up too. Haha. Anyway, had great fun at the BBQ. Oh the new guys turned up too! Haha. Welcomed the new peeps into GEP! Haha. Anyway, it wasn't exactly a BBQ so to speak, coz we cheated and used the electric hot plate to cook the stuff instead of the regular one. Haha.

But the food was pretty good ! (coz me and Pei Yi did most of the cooking! =D). Oh and you get to eat the freshest foods too! =D

And the group of vultures forever camping beside BBQ - to always get the freshest food! Hahaha. But yeps, had quite a bit of fun cooking. I think I should just quit school and go into cooking! =X Anyway it was really fun hanging out with them. And yes at every gathering these days, monopoly deal is a must. Haha. I think I'm addicted to that game. Haha. Oh and how can I forget the super sweet fudge that Yan Tian bought. Haha. It redefined the term "sweet". Haha. I think all of us were high on sugar sia. Haha. But yea, really appreciate the thought. =D Oh and thanks Jia Mei for sending the East people home after the BBQ! Anyway, I think we should have more outings! The year 2's are all leaving for exchange le! But yupz, wish them all the best for the trip. My turn will come. Argh so looking forward to it. A good break away from NUS. Haha. But after they're gone.. Oh no! I think I'm gonna be really lonely for lectures after they're gone. =( Oh well. Haha.

Anyway today went over to Woodlands to help out for the Post-Orion CIP preparation. Tested out the amazing race and yupz, gave some suggestions to improve the activity. I think organizing CIP activities is really fun! Haha. But yeps, I guess it's also because of the people helping to organize it. Seriously, Orion peeps are a great bunch of people to hangout and work with! Haha. Really fun and sporting people. Haha. Yeps, looking forward to the actual CIP day! =D

Ok now for the not so fun part. CORS is back! But this time I do not need to wreck my brains to think of which modules to read this semester. I've got all 6 modules pre-allocated to me! Haha. But damn. 6 core modules! Pray hard everything will turn out really well! But yeps, timetable looks pretty good so far..

It's gonna be really heavy on the preparation work with CN2116 and Lab. Looks like I will take the risk again. But hope it pays off this time round! =D

Oh and looking at the date, I'm suddenly reminded that the holiday's ending! Damn. I haven't really started much of all the fun and stress relief activities that I intended and the holiday's ending! So sian. Oh well. But at least I can say that this semester break has been unexpectedly meaningful and fruitful for me! Damn awesome!  Haha. Looking forward to enjoying the week or so of vacation I have left! =D

Boxing Day!

Boxing day's been a pretty hectic day. The day started off early as I needed to attend my uncle's wedding. Ritz Carlton again. It's a small wedding buffet lunch reception. Not your typical grand Chinese wedding dinners, but it felt way more meaningful and comfortable. I liked it really much. And  the food was damn awesome. Haha. It was an International buffet, with super fresh seafood and super nice desserts. Really enjoyed it. Oh and I found out that one of my students is gonna be my relative! LOL. Anyway gatherings with my cousins are always damn awesome. =D

Ok, anyway got home in the late afternoon, changed, then went out again. Wearing formal attire out for gatherings' really very weird, so yupz, gotta go home first. TMS family gathering! Ok this time round to celebrate the last of our 21st birthday this year! Li Wen's 21st!

Xiaolongbao buffet at Crystal Jade Holland Village. There seems to be a trend that we go there every 2 years and eat so much xiaolongbao that we won't go there for the next 2 years. LOL. Anyway today's attendance is good coz Meiying's back from exchange! Haha. =D

We ate 35 trays of xiaolongbao! Hahaha. Now I'm damn xiaolongbao-phobic. Haha. Spending a lovely night with lovely people in a lovely place. Awesome. Next up went to Starbucks to have coffee and settle Li Wen's presents. Haha.

I always enjoy gatherings with my TMS family. They're always full of nonsense and we always have good food! Haha. Thinking back, I don't know how exactly we got so close, coz back in sec school, not all of us were so close. But after sec school, everything just clicked and yupz, here we are! Haha. Amazing. Anyway this Boxing Day's really well spent!

P.S.(not my name!): I'm super full from the 2 buffets today! I think I've gained back the 2 kg that I lost during OCIP! LOL.

Christmas!

Alright it's the time of the year again. Christmas is coming (I'm not lying like Nan always is, but to be more accurate, Christmas IS HERE.. LOL). But somehow it doesn't feel like Christmas. Hmm.. probably it's because it doesn't have much significance to me (not even as a public holiday coz it's during the school holidays anyway -_-"). I think it's Singapore. During the trip, although it wasn't exactly Christmas yet, but it felt like Christmas - the warmth, the joy and that should be what Christmas is all about. Back home, Christmas is nothing more than a day where everyone shops and eat out... that's about it? So cold indeed. Oh well, that's exactly what it is in this concrete jungle called Singapore. And because it's a stay home Christmas this year, I've decided to change my blogskin a little. New blogskin for the new year. A fresh start - that's exactly what I need now.

Ok coming back from OCIP, reality strikes you. I haven't performed up to expectations in school (in fact, I missed it by quite a long shot). So that really calls for some soul-searching. What are my mistakes and what haven't I done enough for this semester. Ok these couple of days at home has been really fruitful - straightening my thoughts and trying to get my motivation back. Yes the sky seems pretty dark at initial glance but looking ahead, there still seems to be that little light at the end of the tunnel. Really like to thank the many people around me for being so understanding and supportive. And when times get really rough there are small and simple things that help you get through. So yeps, I really appreciate it. And yes, I'm back to normal!  =D

However bad things get, at the end of the day, everything happens for a reason. Rather than complain abut life, why not embrace it? Life's still beautiful! ( I think the double rainbow at Mount Hope is damn beautiful! Don't you agree? )

On the brighter side, next couple of days will be really packed. Gotta attend my uncle's wedding tomorrow, before heading over for xiao long bao buffet with my TMS family! Haha. Haven't meet up with them for quite a while, so yupz, really missing them. Supposed to have a CE Club/Orion chalet tomorrow, but yeps, looks like I can only go for one. =( Haha. Anyway I have a Keppel Site visit on Monday and GEP BBQ at Zhiyang's place on Tuesday! Haha. Awesome days ahead. So looking forward to them. =D

Operation Orion 2010!

Back from 15 days without facebook, my com and away from civilization. Without the luxuries of modern society and everything else we take for granted. After this experience, I can safely say that Operation Orion is the single best decision I have made this year.

Where strangers become family!

 I joined Orion, knowing only Gim Hoe, Vionna and Jiamei at the start. But as we go through the planning and fund-raising, met up with more great people and it turned out that we were a really fun bunch of people that clicked really well! It all started when a random group of people just gathered for a single purpose - to make Operation Orion a success.We were all engineers in the making, but came from various departments with different characters and specialties, but like Xiying puts it, through this trip, "... strangers become family". I'm just gonna mention a few of the very important highlights of the trip (there're just too many! =D):

Somewhat the main attraction there. Mind you this place is not like SG at all. But the people are way better!

The trip to Mount Hope Training Centre in Balaikarangan, West Kalimantan, Indonesia was indeed an arduous one. First we had to fly to Kuching, Malaysia, before taking a bus to the Malaysia-Indonesia border. We have to clear the customs again, before taking another bus to Balaikarangan. Super long and tiring trip, but it was all worth it, the moment we stepped into Mount Hope. We were greeted by enthusiastic cheers and warm hospitality by the staff and children there. From that moment on, it suddenly struck me that this is gonna be a really meaningful experience for me, and as expected, it turned out far better than what I had expected. Simply awesome.

Daily Routine!

The day usually starts really early as breakfast's at 6am, while the day ends really late, usually around 11 to 12. But I never really feel as tired as I am in Singapore. So the day begins with breakfast, followed by some programmes activity (e.g. chiildren interaction), followed by construction, then lunch, then construction again. All the way to the evening, then some games with the kids. Next up is dinner, followed by some free-and easy activities (though somehow we always had things to do.. whether programmes preparation or more activities.

Preparing for the Christmas Dance

Preparing the singing!

Preparing the logistics for the next day programmes!

On a nice day, we get free time for some cards or Monopoly Deal!

And as the days of construction work has taken its toil on us, free time became... zZZZ

Yes we talk everyday! =D

At the end of the day, we always have a sharing by the welfare IC for the day, as well as some HTHT. I think Behind all the friendly faces, there's so many stories and experiences. I've gotta admit that I've learnt quite a lot from others sharing their experiences. So thanks people for being to open and sharing! =D

Children Interactions!

Secondary School:

One of the 3 classes of awesome kids at the secondary school. The programmes team planned some interesting science experiments for them. They are pretty bright kids and could actually follow what we're doing. And I felt that they really enjoy them so much more than what we expected. So it was an awesome experience for both the kids and us. Many thanks to the translators - Adeel and the class teacher (oops I really can't remember her name - extreme right of photo). Also, we played a few orientation games with them and they were so fun despite the imperative language barrier.

Primary School:

Morning Exercise!

Snowman making!

Started off with some random aerobics exercise conducted by the staff there. It was really fun. They should teach our primary school kids the exercise too! Hahaha. Had loads of fun early in the morning. Basically the programme was to make origami and paper plate snowman. I thought that it would be a disaster since I couldn't converse much using Bahasa. But a big thanks to Pey Mun for helping me ALOT with the translation and helping to control the kids. Haha. And this showed me how appreciative the kids are of the little things that we did. I'm sure that if we were to do this back home, we would probably get snubbed at. Haha. And the kids are so cute lah! Haha. =D

Kindergarten:

The kids are sooo cute!

My first programme at Mount Hope. The kids are soooo hyperactive! Haha. They are so accommodating and cute despite me struggling to even remember my colours in Bahasa. Haha. Anyway a great job by the team in getting the kids to do some colouring and spotting-the-difference (which became colouing template in the end coz it was too tough! Haha). But I was so glad that the kids enjoyed what I prepared for them, and also a big thanks to the teachers for helping out a great deal! =D

First Weekend Break: Trekking and Ayam Penyet!

The TV Tower!

Me on top of the TV tower!

It's the first weekend and we'd decided to do some trekking up a nearby hill where the TV tower was. We got to climb up the super tall TV tower! Through the trek, I got the most ever number of mosquito bites per unit time - in the 20s. Haha. But it was really fun singing our way up the hill. And climbing up the TV tower was even scarier. But once u get to the top, everything seemed worth while. The view was breath-taking. I could see the entire Mount Hope Training Centre from there, as well as the entire town of Balaikarangan. Awesomeness. Anyway a refreshing morning indeed.

For lunch, we decided to give ourselves a good treat - Ayam Penyet at a local stall. The chilli was super spicy, but super nice. Teared while eating it, but it was just too good. The Kampong Chicken was awesome too. Haha. Anyway I think we enjoyed all the retarded games (which Sid introduced) we played at the table more than anything else - and the loser had to eat quite a bit of the super potent chilli (while we hid the bottles of water =D).

Christmas Celebration!

Just a bit later on that evening, the people at Mount Hope had their annual Christmas and the programmes people (which includes me =D) had organised a sing and dance segment with the people there as well. 

Xiying with the balloons!

I would really like to thank the Orion team for being so sporting and actually learning to make sculpture balloons and making an awesome 200+ of them to give to the people. I know many of you all had to endure the bursting balloons and the fear of twisting and turning the balloons, but you guys were simple awesome! Just by looking at the kids faces, you could really tell how thoroughly they enjoyed themselves. 

Dance rehearsal!

Christmas Party!

And many thanks to the team for being so enthusiastic that night (and throughout the entire trip), and the performance was a roaring success!

Staff Interaction!

Chicken Rice!

Jeremy and gang prepared Hainanese Chicken Rice for the staff at Mount Hope, which was delicious and the staff enjoyed it thoroughly as well. I think that its really thoughtful of them to think of cooking for the staff. I think food transcends all boundaries and they can really feel the love and appreciation that we put into preparing the food for over 50 people.

Many of us tried very hard to interact with the staff over almist every meal and I think its really a job well done for the team. And when language barrier's a problem, hand signs work best! Haha. At least that's what I've learnt through this trip. And you will be surprised at how appreciative others will be of you if you put in the little bit of effort to try to learn their language. Great learning experience indeed.

Damn awesome shot by Adeel!

After that Programmes team planned a bit of fireworks for the staff and kids at Mount Hope. Apparently they were much more experienced in playing with them so yupz, a million thanks to the many kids who helped me with the fireworks. And the display was awesome. Had a really fun night indeed!

Construction Work!

Rehab Team!

Rehab Team Again!

Bumming after loads of hardwork!

On somedays we're so shag and wet that we do stupid things =D

But at the end of the day, we (especially johnny) still love our sieving machine!

We left our mark at the place! 

Tree Planting!

Was part of the Rehab Team for construction and our main job was repairing the many damaged pathways, drains, planting trees and whatnot there. Really really tough work, especially for the girls with lots of digging and sieving of the sand. But awesome job team! Big thanks to Kean (Boss), Adeel (2nd Boss), Johnny (Foreman) and the team, Jiamei, Vionna, Winnie, Xiying, Shin Yen, Tze Yuen, Xia Lang, Mei Xian, Kok Ann for the hard work. I'm sure we're damn proud of what we've achieved in this short period of time! =D

Sid's favourite concrete mixer!

Step 1 with the team name carved into it =D

Staircase!

And in the true spirit of teamwork, we went on to help the staircase team and the final product was sometime all of us were so proud of. The staircase team was plagued with much difficulties but the amount of flexibility and tenacity that the team exhibited was just awesome. Big thanks to Linda and Wenying for being such good leaders. =D (Oh and by the way in this pic we were preparing for the visa dance! Haha. Will probably upload it once jeremy's done with the editing. Haha!)

Telematch/Dance!

We also organised a telematch for all the kids. We played Captain's ball and it was great fun indeed! Credit has to go to Mei Xian for getting the names of all the kids and organising them into groups for the games. We had lots of fun despite the rain and stuff. But as the rain poured to heavily, we switched to our wet-weather plan - dance!

We taught them our Christmas mass dance which they enjoyed so much. The rain dampen our plans, but it sure didn't dampen our spirits! Khai and Xiying are amazing to be able to multi-task and teach the kids the dance. I'm sure the kids enjoyed it as much as we did! =D

Soccer!

Don't be fooled, these kids are pros. And the ground is super muddy! =X

Team Spirit!

The super co-ordinated Orion Lady's Team!

Soccer game at the indoor Futsal court!

To the people at Mount Hope, soccer's like part and parcel of everyday life. You can see them engaging in friendly soccer games everyday and we decided that that's a good way to interact with them. Yupz, so we regularly have friendly soccer games with them. Oh we did not stop at soccer. We had captain's ball and stuff so everyone could join i the fun. Obviously we were always losing, but that's not the point. The most important thing's that all of us had fun, and sure we did. =D

Prayers! 

Although I'm not a Christian like the kids and staff at Mount Hope are, I really appreciate their prayer sessions. They cordially invite us and although we do not pray like they do, it is just amazing to see how devoted these people are to their religion. So much belief and trust. It's inspiring. Oh and we celebrated Mingzhe's 22nd there as well. Awesome.=D

Balaikarangan!

Yikes! Goldfish Rice! =X

The town's really old, resembling 1960's Singapore. But the people there were really helpful. I think they knew that there was a bunch of Singaporean students entering the area so they were extremely understanding to our lack of proficiency of Bahasa. The town sold nothing more than some basic necessities, but I guess that's enough for the locals. Things there, especially food items are super cheap, but there are some items that are even more expensive than in Singapore. e.g. football, watermelon! LOL. I guess these stuff are imported so that should explain the price - luxury items. 

Donni and Yuli!

At Donni and Yuli's place!

Donni and Yuli leaving for a short trip back home!

They are the 2 nicest people I've ever come across. Right from the start, they were the first 2 people that greeted us and they are ever so helpful during our stay at Mount Hope - from preparing us simple but delicious and morale boosting tea breaks, to meals. One night, they invited us over their place. Although its only a small place, they were so warm and hospitable. And it was a really good bonding night for the team. Really had an enjoyable night there!

The Little Things that Made All the Difference!

The super cute kitten!

The dog which trained all the other animals to run like it -_-"

Once again, the goat that runs like a dog -_-"

The Last...!

The Last Sunset!

The Last Dinner

The Last Day!

The last sunset was just awesome! And so was the last night. As you know the kids there aren't rich, and meats for them were indeed luxurious. But on the last night, they prepared us a feast of BBQ fish and chicken. I was so touched! It was especially delicious coz it represented the people's efforts and love. *goosebumps*. And on the last day, it was so touching to have everyone left at Mount Hope to send us off. They went the extra mile and sent us all the way to the Malaysia-Indonesia Border lah. So touched! Oh and I'm gonna miss Craig and Linda as well. They are the only 2 ang moh's in the photo. They're retirees from New Zealand and they are doing some social and technical work in the area. Lovely people. Had a really eye-opener talking to them and thanks them for teaching me so much! =D

R&R

Our R&R was in Kuching instead. It's a nice place, it's more like 1990 Singapore at best. Still pretty under-developed, but the things are really much cheaper! Haha. Big thanks to Chris's dad for providing the accommodation for us. We really enjoyed our stay at Kuching. And so we went holidaying for a day...

Kuching Laksa!

Some shopping! (wan ren mi! =D)

K-Box!

In the largest K-Box room with the most number of people ever!

And definitely out to irritate Wei Long!

Lady Boss in action!

Oh and not forgetting Movie! Johnny's expression is epic!

And finally penning down some thoughts we had about each other through this trip

The Super Big Pow for my last breakfast for the trip! =D

Overall I've gotta say that this trip is really a great experience for me. I've learnt so much from every single member of Orion and I really appreciate everyone on the team. Oh and I really appreciate what you guys painstakingly wrote on my reflection booklet. It's really nice of you guys. Thanks to my buddies from the Orion Programmes Team - Gim Hoe, Wei Long, Tze Yuen, Khai and Xue Wei (back home)! And bunk buddies Kok Ann, Pei Wei, Choon Keat, Sid (Sha Bi! =X) Xia Lang, Adeel! And special thanks to my good buddies Gim Hoe, Wei Long, Kok Ann, Pei Wei for being such great friends! A big thank you to you guys for making my first OCIP trip such a meaningful one! Starting to miss you guys already! Haha