Week 6

Day 7

The day of liftoff...

A sad day and a happy day too for many.For those that missed home they were really happy to finally be back in their own comfort zone, for those who did not like the feeling of going back were sad and unrelectant, but i guess the majority was of mixed feelings. They had finally gotten use to the lifestyle here in China and they were also missing home at the same time.

We got up early to get our things packed up and waited for the weighing of our luggages to begin. When my luggage was weighed, it read 29.5 kg!1.5kg more than when I arrived here.

During this time, Tom cme over and gave me a pendant with a real wolf tooth on it. It is a buddhist necklace of blessing that could protect the wearer as well as the people around it. We also gave Tom the pictures we took with his family and we wished him luck and vice versa.

We dragged all our oversized and overweight luggages to the awaiting bus where we gave out hugs and last wishes before leaving. The girls cried and we were sad. But this is the way of life, all good things will have to come to an end some day.

We slept through the bus ride and arrived at the airport 2 hours later. We waited approximately an hour before boarding the plane to Guang Zhou. There we quickly got our bags checked it.You know sometimes fate just love to drop by, and thats where we had a miscommunication with our teacher and alomost missed our flight. We mixed up the gates with the 1 outside and there we rushed nby the airport staff to the plane. We were told to pay 10 yuan each to take the car there, but we already apent all of it so we had to give 10 singapore dollars instead.

Thankfully we made it there on time and other than the stares we got, we had a safe flight back to Singapore where it was to many...HOME SWEET HOME!

This ended our misadventures, trip, journey whatever we call it.A meaningful trip I would say, but a misadventure likely I would conclude.

Goodbye China,at least for now...=D

Week 6

Day 6

The 2nd last day of our 42days here in Wuhan. We woke up later than usual this morning and left for our most expensive lunch of all...the buffet luch we talked about right at the start of our stay here in Wuhan!

The buffet was not much of a spread and having limitations like no beef and pork, there was so few choices and all of them had really small appetites, so I was left to finish many things. They had no Chicken too, so being a meat lover or carnivore as Hwee Ping would call me, I ordered loads of mutton and fish till the fish ran out.

We had our last minute shopping there at Luxiang before taking a taxi back to school fearing that we were gonna be late. We took 2 taxis, having 5 of us here. The really contradicting part of the people here in China is that almost every single rule here in China is broken, and here they are not breaking the rule that only 4 adults can sit in the taxi. after we boarded the taxi then we found out why. It seemed that there was a camera in all taxis viewing everything that happens in the taxi so I think thats the reason why they dared not break te rules.

We enjoyed a photo shoot with the whole group that left for Wuhan before laving for a reception at th language school. There 10 minutes before the event started, I was told I was going to be the MC along with Hwee Ping. I quickly drafted a little speech along with Hwee Ping and the reception soon got under way. We ahd a little speech by both the Dean and Mr Ma before a games session and interaction session. After which we enjoyed fireworks and sparklers next to the school. This caught the attention of the uninformed security guard and we had to wait for quite some time before we were allowed to play it.

We left for KFC after that and that ended our day.

I really hope I can 1 day be back here along with a really warm group of friends or even better family.The experience here has taught me much about friendship as well as kinship. The bonds forged between them is really so strong that I really get jealous sometimes thinking about my own family. I really hope I can foster this kind of bonds between my own family and live as happily as they do here.

Week 6

Day 5

Our last day in Tom's hometown.

Woke up early to have breakfast, our last country side breakfast with his family. After that, we gave them a little souvenir, our own currency while they bought for us bread, some local deicacies to bring back to Singapore.

We took the same route back to the bus station where we had to wait fo an hour for our bus back to Wuhan. During that time, we were constanly showered with stares, questions, beggars,etc.The toliet there was the worst I have ever seen. there was a long drain where u did your buisiness and after which it would be flushed by a powerful stream of water and there were also buckets not urinals for us to pee in. Fortunately we got on the bus soon enough and made our way back to Wuhan.

The guys were surprised by everyone's haircut except mine and we left forthe night market to get whatever things we still need to buy back home.

Time reall flies too fast,sometimes too fast indeed, the feeling of not wanting to go home became the strongest feeling of all, especially with the warm feeling of home from Tom's family.

Week 6

Day 4

2nd day in An qing.

We had a typical chinese breakfast in his house after our bathes in Tom aunt's home which supplied hot water for both drinking as well as bathing and it really tasted like home. I really hope to be able to have this feeling for a long time.

The breakfast consisted for many things like eggs, salted eggs, vegetables, peanuts. It looked almost the same as those in Wuhan, so i guess these must be the staple breakfast for people in China.

We headed for the Famous Buddhist Temple, Zhen Feng Da(Tower), Yingjiang Temple in Anhui Province right after breakfast in a van hired by his dad. The Tower which was created during the Ming Dynasty. It was once used to trap enemies as well, in times of war. This idea was thought of by Zhuge Liang. We also walked around the temple paying our respects to the deities as well as had our fortunes told.

After visitng the temple, we went to the shopping area in Anqing and shoppd around especially for the local specialties and sauce. after shoppinge went to Tom's aunt's hous to leave ou hoppin stuff there before leaving for the local zoo.

The animals were caged in a very inhumae way. In fact very badly housed. other than a roof over their heads and a little rocks here and there, most of the cages were just bare concrete for the animals to live in. Th sadness in their eyes could easily be seen. Really pitied them and wished I could free them. We also saw how bdly the zookeeper treated the horse, so we did not see why he not treat the other animals the same way.

We left soon after and went to see the laser show on the lake. we initially did not want to go to the area and to stay from the other bank to catch it, but we decided to go there in the end.

We took a taxi there and just as we settled down, the show ended, so we made our way back again and went back to Tom's house after collecting our stuff.

We had a wonderful dinner with his family where they whip up enough dishs to be served in a wedding!9 courses of good dishes!

After that we went next door to get our hair cut. the girls had perm and a reborn while Satish for a dye and a cut and myself a cut with a shanghai look to it. We went to sleep in Tom's house after that and here ends our day.

I really hope the animals can live in a better environment.the same animals the same objective, but a different environment.

Week 6

Day 3

The day for the trip to Tom's hometown.

We had breakfast with the whole group before leaving to take a bus to the bus station for the long trip bus to his hometown.

The stars seem to be smiling as us as throughout the whole journey to his hometown, we mange to get onto the buis without much waiting and everything was going on fine.

The bus trip to his hometown was 5 hours long where we had a little discomfort and the worst was just someone smoking in the bus.

Upon arrival, we took a taxi to the ferry terminal to cross the YangTze river to the other bank where we would continue of journey on bus to his house. The ferry was also used for transporting small vehicles like motorcycles. We learnt that there was another type of ferry that crosses the river and it transports mainly buses and cars.

The later on bus journey was filled with stares of the local people as they had even less foreign visitors as compared with Wuhan. His house was near the bus stop and we were welcomed warmly by Tom's mother who kept offering us tea and to be seated down. A warm welcome indeed. After settling down, we were brought on a tour around his house and we learnt and saw many things which cannot be found in Singapore anymore.

The house was really old and even around the area this was 1 of the oldest. They had a well which was very deep and the water was used as drinking water last time but now just for washing clothes and dishes. It was really clear and if I had the chance, would try it. They reared chickens, both the chicks and the grown up ones. Everyday they would collect the eggs from the chickens and they would feed them with the left overs of their meals mixed with chicken food. their house was 2 storeys high with roof excess so that makes 3. They had 2 rooms to themselves and the rest were rented out to a hairdresser and a cook. They had had a solar cells on their roof tops and we were told only well of families could afford it. Next we went to have a tour around their cotton factory which was just round the corner. It was quite big and since the season was over empty as well. They still had a few packages of the processed cotton left and it was really soft. We left for the viewing of their cotton fields was was now planted with other kinds of plants. Tom told us it was small, but when we got there...WOAH it was very wide with the size of many football fields on end!We left foe the last visit and that was the primary school that Tom and his dad hd attended when they were both young...imagine how old the school is! We took pictures of the classroon with the students in them and the condition that the tables and chair was in really looked like how it was back in Singapore when we were in primary school.

After all our visits, we went the best motel around the area which was also round the corner to have dinner there. this was wear we felt the hospitality of Chinese families. we were treated to nic spread of dishes where we also learnt the manners of the chinese. they loved toasting to each other not to mention their passion to drink! last but not least, the chefs came out to have a picture with us, saying that it was their honour to be able to cook for us. we were really treated liek kings and queens there.

We left for bathe and the girls stayed at Tom's parent's room while the boys stayed at the motel that we dined.

The chinese hospitality is something which cannot be matched with hotel services. it is really filled with warmth and they really gived their best to us...For the first time, i'm actaully pleased with the people in China.

Week 6

Day 2

The day of submission for our APPG miniproject.

I stayed up the whole night to complete this assignement adding features here and there. people ask me "why bother to do so much for a thing that only gives you just 10% of your grades of APPG?"

Well, this has been the mindset of many, and sad to say even myself as well for a few occasions. having been through so much from primary school to now, polytechnic, I have seen all the ups and downs of either my peers or myself. This has really made me want to be able to do the best that I can. Especially with my recent deproving of last semester's results, I have decided that doing my best in everything is the only option that I can have.

Interview went smooth and we all were glad that we had a big burden removed finally. We went to get a cake for Sasi's sister and we singed her a birthday song through the webcam as we not able to be there to celebrate her birthday with her. Sasi cried instead of her sister but her sister still cried later on an hour later. This really proved to me how kinship really mattered to anyone despite being so far from home. Treasure this family as much as you can for one does not know how long can one still treasure it.

We left for the shopping area half an hour away form school to purchase uor door gifts for Tom's family as we were leaving for his house the following morning. We ended up geting tea leaves and honey for him.

At night, we received a call from Tom saying that the trip to his hometown might have to be cancelled due to the Dean's concern for our safty as we were leaving the province. We did not mind having to waste money, just the experience of being to a country side was now so far away.

Week 6

Day 1

A free an easy day or maybe not so free. we had to finish up all our assignments on this day and be ready to hand up our assignments inn the next few days. the assignments were few but thorough so we had to really put in our efforts and get it properly done before we could really enjoy ourselves.

the day started out slow and we continued our assignments. lunch passed and we were still at it. at night we had dinner at the little food house near the school. Wuchang fish, vegetables,etc. this would be 1 of the last few times that we could savour the food from China so we put aside of our thoughts and enjoyed our meal.

We had briefing after our dinner where we had to return our meal cards. This in turn really gave us the feeling that we would be flying off real soon and the 42 days in Wuhan would be over.

Time really flies when you start to enjoy and have fun. I still can remember the first few days here in Wuhan where everyone wanted to go home because of the infamiliar and bad conditions that we were facing, and now...we all dont really want to go home as yet.