Well, even though it is over, I am here to give some thoughts and reflections for you guys to learn....well, what leaves the deepest impression in me is the exchange programme with Jian Guo High School....it is a all boys school and is one of the top school in Taiwan.(I feel like I need to add this every time I write about this school, it is becoming a habit!!!)
During my time there, I really enjoyed myself. The lessons, the weird yet interesting English debate, the students there ( which are not really 'shuai' tbh) and of course,the lunchbox.mThroughout the lesson I attended, I have see a huge differences between river valley and there. The most obvious point will be them able to sleep, eat, use phone in class without getting scolded. Unlike in River valley or Singapore, we are not supposed to do any of that in class or we may get detention, warning or just a punishment. We then went to ask the principal and were told that they believe in the students. If they are able to get into this school, they must be clever and will definitely know when to study, sleep or just relax. For example, if they feel tired in class, they can take a nap and the teacher will still go on with her lesson. LIKE WHAT? Such a different environment....* sobs sobs* I want it too!!!
Despite the differences, I actually learn something from it. In life, we must know when to relax and when to be serious. Don't always be serious. Laugh, joke or even a smile. Your mood will defintely be liften. So start right now, wear a smile and continue to spread the joy!
Your smile buddy,
Kelly
Jiufen:
It was our last day in Taiwan and i was looking forward for our last tourist destination, Jiu Fen. I had high expectations for it for i had heard of good remarks of the place from friends and relatives. I intended to spent all of my money here, buying souvenirs and food of all kinds to bring home to Singapore. From what i had heard, Jiu Fen was filled with good food to taste and was a rather good shopping venue.
As i entered the little street, pineapple cakes, mochi and typical taiwan jellies caught my eye. The smell of smelly toufu was strong and pungent, and the smell of herbal eggs, herbal soup and pancakes wafted into my nostrils. As we ventured deeper into the street, i caught sight of a stall selling ice creams wrapped in popiah skin, completed with tons of peanuts spread around on the inside. My mouth started watering as i couldn't wait to purchase it and start savouring my ice cream. I felt a wave of excitement as though i had entered a food haven where one could help themselves to unlimited amount of food.
There was also a variety of shops selling different souvenirs, ranging from taiwan's famous sky lanterns in miniature versions to purses and bags of different interesting designs. A shop had caught my attention, selling prank toys such as cameras that squirt water on the faces of peole upon the push of a button or chewing gum wrappings which caused a fake cockroach to land on your hand upon pulling a gum out. It was something unique, something i have not yet seen in Singapore.
Despite the many variety of shops to walk and shop, there were some points which disappointed me greatly. I realised that there were hardly any dustbins along the street for people to dispose their waste and furthermore, there was only 1 restroom along the whole of Jiu Fen, at a rather secluded part of the street. I feel that the layout of Jiu Fen was planned rather poorly, for the lack of dustbins would result in a higher number of littering cases and the limited toilets were inconvenient for visitors. Furthermore, the place was rather dirty and messy, and appeared rather unhygienic.
Done by: Jin Hui^^
My all-time favorite attraction: Sky Lanterns! ๐๐๐((at Shih-fen))
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Forever etched in my memories, I still can remember vividly the moment our hands let go of the sky lantern, with hope only a little bit of regret as the sky lantern floated strongly away. It was a mixed feeling, because I didn't want to let go of the sky lantern which we had spent almost half an hour writing our wishes on. The sight of sky lanterns soaring in the skies were not a common sight in Singapore, for fear that it might catch fire and burn any of our tall HDBs hat seemed to be taking over our country.
It was great when we finally got a chance to touch the sky lantern, I had been itching in my seat and chattering absentmindedly at Laet as we neared our destination: Shih-fen. When we finally made it out of the flight of stairs we had to climb, we were greeted with an amazing scene: the beautiful mountains which seemed to be enveloped by fog and clouds mixed together ๐, and the beaten tracks of the cute Pingxi station๐, the trees that provided us with shelter from the light pelting of the raindrops ☔️. There isn't a better time to visit Shih-fen, just as the sun was visible above the mountains ๐, basking us in a soft sunlight and the drizzle cooling us down at the same time. It just got us in the mood for the sky lanterns.
((Wished I could share the picture....... I can remember every single detail because the scenery was really so perfect๐))
When we were given the colorful sky lanterns, I dove in with my other friends and hovered over the four sides before choosing the pale pink side of the paper. I picked up the brush excitedly: but what was I going to write? I realized that I hadn't thought about what I would write before jumping straight into grabbing the brush. Shrugging, I passed the brush over to xin and retreated into a corner while I watched them write their wishes confidently. Whatever was I going to write?
Being bilingual and a bit desperate by the promptings of my classmates, I penned down: "่ฎฉไธๅ้ฝๅผๅพ", and proceeded to decorate the border with messy doodles and scrawling ➰➰ last minute illegible wishes. Then we were good to go!
At first I was reluctant in stepping unto the train tracks: if we had dared to jump unto the tracks of the mrt in Singapore ๐, we would risk being squashed or decapitated by the high speed trains. But seeing all my other classmates climb over the tracks and standing in the dead centre of the tracks, you could say I was 'peer pressured' into steeping in. Besides, it would make a cool photo. ๐
The releasing of the sky lanterns were done in a short span of time, but I still had to resist the urge to grab on to the sky lanterns tightly and not let it go. Posing for a photo that would be the only proof of the event and a constant memory, the heat ๐ฅ soon warmed our hands and got all puffy from the heated air, as if a mischievous child wanting to break free. But it had to reach the skies ☁️ before the diving being could read them and grant them right?
I glanced at the shrinking figure, before it joined its fellow brothers and sisters excitedly in the journey to reach the skies, before burning out and landing somewhere. Speaking of which, where do all the iced sky lanterns usually end up? Wouldn't it be embarrassing to have a stranger read your wishes?
Ps. Germany won yay~๐ฉ๐ช๐ฉ๐ช๐ฉ๐ช
-juen who had to redemn herself ๐
Through my Taiwan trip, the visit to Wulai left me with the deepest impression. I felt relaxed and at ease there. The lessons were at a slow and leisure pace and with the hospitality I was treated with, I didn't feel pressurized at all! Their teachers taught the class by just speaking with the help of visual representations on the projector. In contrast to what I thought originally, they were just as mordernised as us to use technical devices, except that they do not use iPads and they don't have a proper science lab or computer lab. However, year after year, students who graduated from the school still managed to go to university or get a job. I feel that advanced technology and the fast paced school life that come along with it is not important and that we can do well without them. Technology is here to aid us but the more advanced ones aren't exactly necessary. My main takeaway from the trip is that sometimes we do not have to worry too much about our results or get too stressed out over our studies because after all, we go to school to learn new knowledge for future use. Instead of getting stressed about something that is supposed to bring us fun and develop our interest in a particular area, why not take things slowly and enjoy the process every student has to go through?
Qing
The world changes, so do us, and sometimes we forget about the simplest things in life. Due to different reasons, we don't share love with strangers, not even just a smile, or any of those beggars out there, we choose not to see them.
I believe that goodness still lies in everyone, and it's an instinct for all of us to be nice and kind. And it's all because of the circumstances, we don't get the chance to be nice or good to anyone, because we can't stop in this fast-paced society.
There was this stall at Raohe that caught my eye. Not only was it the only stall that sold pork-belly rice, the stall holder was friendly, talking to us in a light hearted, yet polite tone. Because of the food wrapper that i always holding on to, i looked around for rubbish bins, but to no avail. Just then, the stall holder politely asked me to pass him my food wrapper so he could throw it in the bij for me. I was stunned for a moment, but passed him the wrapper directly after.
Nowadays, where would you see this? Who would notice such little details? You won't remember what your mum wore to work this morning, how can you be able to pick out this small detail from your customer?
From noticing these details to lending a helping hand, it's a rare sight these days, as we live in a far-too-fast-paced society. Many times it isn't that we don't want to stop to help, to notice, but time doesn't allow us to do that. We are always rushing for events, our minds wondering to the things we have to tend to instead of spending a little more time to look out for our peers or opening our eyes a little bigger to see differences. Yes, we would stop to donate a few coins to the old auntie selling tissues down the road, but who would notice that the old auntie's plastic bag is actually slowly slipping down, and who would help? Sometimes, it isn't the "big" things we do that are commendable, but the unnoticeable things, that are really the ones that deserve some attention and recognition.
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