Happy Folkss!: July 2014

DAY1

San he gu zheng

Through today's trip, I have really learnt a lot of things on China's history. Visiting the former residence of famous people like Yang Chen Ning, Sun Li Ren, gave me more idea on the lives of people in China were like in the past. I got to know more on these people as their story was told by the photos in the houses. The people there lead simple and peaceful lifestyles. They were all working hard by themselves. This is in contradiction with Singapore, where everyoneHowever, I did not enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I feel that even though we are here to learn, which I agree, we should still be given chances to take pictures. Afterall, we paid for all these. We were told that we will be given time to take pictures. But I don't think that we were given any. We listened to the tour guide, and we had to take pictures while she was talking, as there was no time for us to take pictures after she ended. We always left the place immediately and we would need to follow up quickly. Where is the time given? When we wanted to take pictures with our friends and group(There's a mission), we are asked to stop taking pictures and keep moving. Yes i agree that listening to the tour guide is important, but at the same time, we all want to enjoy this trip, we want to capture photos with our friends, to capture these moments. But the fact that we were not given much chances to take photos really disappointed me and killed the joy. I hope that in the upcoming days, we will be given some spare time to take photos, instead of rushing for everything.

DAY2

Exchange programme at Hefei 45 Middle School

It was unexpected that the school would appear in the middle of a row of shops. I was really shocked and couldn't believe it because it was too random. But after that I found out that it's in the middle because of the idea that if it was in the middle, everyone in that area will be able to go to school. The class experience was really great. I feel that the students there was kind of different from RV. For example, they gave you the feeling that they have the strong urge and want to learn. When asked a question, they all respond to the teacher (unlike our class). They take the initiative and read their texts' proudly. If it was us, we wouldn't read it ALOUD like them. They all listen attentively in class and i think that they do revisions by themselves everyday even before the teacher teaches them about the topic. They knew all the answers to the teacher's question to them and they were all perfect answers. Hence, i really admire their passion to learn. The school was small as compared to RV, the classrooms were really tiny, squeezing in 60 students. The room was stuffy, with the stench from the toilet floating in the atmosphere. The tables were small, the chairs were old. But the students looked like they enjoyed themselves very much and did not complain about anything. In fact, they were really happy, they kept laughing. I think it is one aspect that we should learn from them.

DAY3

Museum and China Intangible Cultural Heritage Park

The museum was not as boring as I thought it would be. As compared to Singapore, the Anhui museum was far more interesting than Singapore's probably because of its long history. In Singapore, all you can see is pictures that tells you about the story of Singapore. But in the Anhui Museum, it is different. I was really attracted by the 'real thing' that was being showcased. With all these 'real things' i feel that it is a lot more cooler and attractive than simply words. These showcased items told us more about China, more than what we can know from simply books.

At the heritage park, I didn't learn anything much, except for the kind sides of my classmates. The circus that we watched, which was the first for me, left a huge impression on my mind. Initially, I was excited for the circus, since it was my first. During the show, I couldn't help but make sound effects._. Even though the 'assaults' on the animal conflicted small amount of pain on the animals(they have thick skin and bones don't they?) we couldn't help but treat it as a pain that was unbearable. A few of our classmates cried bitterly after witnessing animal abuse, and my mood was sour. That night, the teachers apologised to us. I hope to say this to the teachers: Teachers, you need not apologise to us. We understand that this is not yor fault, for it was unknown to you too, that we would witness such a scene. I feel that you are not to be blamed, as you also feel the same way as we do, after witnessing such a show. At this moment, you are also a student like us, experiencing the same pain as us. Therefore, I hope that you will not blame yourself for this matter that had happened (:

Even though a lot of things has happened today, I managed to see the kind side of everyone in our class despite their 'mean' teasing in the usual days. To see the true character of our friends is something invaluable that I had seen today.

DAY4

Huangshan

The view from Huangshan was magnificent, but it was cold. There were many flights of stairs that never seems to end. The uphill journey was tough and long, but the sweat and cries were definitely worth it. Many of us sang songs and encourage one another when climbing. Through this, I feel that we have bonded together a little more. If it was the past us, we wouldn't have bothered. To be honest, without the encouragement, I would take a really long time to climb up the mountain. Also, some of us said 辛苦了 to the people who were carrying things that we need up and down the hill. It was heartening to see our classmates being appreciative of these workers' hard work and sacrifice. After looking at these workers, I felt really blessed that I do not have to do this kind of tough labour, and at the same time admired these people. Carrying just a tiny bag, we were complaining about how tough and tiring it was. But what about these workers? They carried items on their shoulders that can be as heavy as 100kg, so as to meet our demands. Therefore I really respect them. At Huangshan, I felt as if i wasn't afraid of anything anymore. When I was young, I was afraid of heights, even at a height of 15-storey. However, up in Huangshan which was higher than 15-storey, I was no longer afraid. Even without any barrier by the sides, I dared to walk. Maybe the reason was because my friends were there with me, or I have grown up. I used to find monkeys fierce and scary, but at Huangshan, I didn't find them scary and walked quite close to it. At that time, I wondered if I was insane, going close to a monkey. But it didn't matter at that time. I found comfort and courage being together with my friends. Is this what it means to be bonded?(: However, I never managed to conquer my fear of insects. Honestly, I found it embarrassing screaming in public, attracting all eyes on the mountain on me. >< I even cried! Even though the experience of interacting with these insects were terrible, I am glad as I got to see a different side of my friends-- Zhan Ting, Nigel, Bao Bin, Serena, Boya, Sin Yee, Raphaela, Jia Rong, Mei Ling, Ivan and Carissa. They really comforted me and helped me a lot throughout the whole OELP trip (not only in Huangshan). Today, I'm extremely glad to have these friends by my side.

DAY5

Huangshan and Hongcun

A visit to villages in China was interesting, but not very productive. All the houses were similar, with the "天井" in every house. The thing that left a deep impression within me were the pig trotters and pig heads hung outside the houses of almost every household. It seems that these dried products were to be sold and drying it under the sun helps to prevent it from spoiling fast. I think that it's one of their current tradition. However, to a tourist like me, especially vegeterians, it's unsightly. Everytime I saw a pig, I would block my own view and walk past it quickly. Although it's their way of life of using natural things such as sunlight to make a living, I think that they should practice more hygienic ways of doing such a thing, in case any tourists or passers-by touch it with dirty hands.

DAY6

Xidi, Big Mansion, Chinese Cultural Talk

THE BIG MANSION IS COOL!!! It would be great if I could live in it :D However, I feel that the guide was not detailed, as we were told only: this is the _____ room. (Who who who) would work here.

I do hope that a more detailed explanation could be given to us. At night, the cultural talk was informative,but was kind of uninteresting. I am the kind of person who has to sleep early, and after several nights of sleeping late, my energy was drained completely. A night class was a nightmare to me, for I was battling with my heavy eyelids, struggling to keep my eyes and ears open. I hope that in the future we can be spared from night classes :/ Later on, the circle time made me think about what I did to my classmates on usual days and that kept me thinking on my bed before i slept. It also helped me reflect upon my experience the few days before. I hope to have more circle time in the future (:

DAY 7

Tunxi

We got to shop for souvenirs, which was what we all wanted on the first day. However, it did not particularly made me happy as it reminded me that we would be leaving Anhui, back to Singapore. It was really sad to know that a week has passed by us so quickly without us knowing. I thought about what I had learnt for the past 6 days and realised that it was not only about Anhui that I have learnt, but also the people around me. I wished that time would rewind back to Day 1 and I can revisit the places which has now become a memory. Part of the trip, I wasn't learning but now I really wished I had paid more attention and learnt more :( This day made me think a lot and learnt about my actions in the past 6 days. To others, day 3 may be the saddest day, but to me, today was the saddest day. Goodbye Anhui :(((

-Bei Xuan (8)

(PS) Sorry Mr Wong, I saved my post as a draft, hence the delay. Sorry!><

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