0⃣
24/05/2014
The highly anticipated day and the not-so-official beginning of our journey. A week of independence from our parents, where we are expected to be responsible for ourselves in this foreign land. Farewell singapore!
1⃣
25/05/2014
With high spirits, we kick start our day with a ride on the high speed rail. This is my first hand experience on a high speed rail, something you do not get to experience in singapore. I would say the ride is quite similar to the MRTs we have in singapore when it comes to smoothness of the ride. But it was a new experience as the sights outside the window were different. In singapore, we did not get to see fields of paddy, or houses sitting far apart. In singapore, we have our organized and reliable buildings , and the greenery are trees grown along the roads and the occasional empty field. We passed station after station and the distance between the stations were becoming larger and larger, it felt. This again gave me a whole new sensation, for it usually takes a few minutes to get from one mrt station to another, while here, even on high speed rails, it takes at least ten minutes on average. Living in a small country like singapore, it is thrilling to be crossing large countries like China. In a day, you could go from one end of singapore to the other if you tried hard enough, but it's not so in china .
My neighbors on the high speed rail
We arrived in Hefei to scorching temperatures . Just before we stepped out into the hot day, an old lady approached some of us with outstretched arms . She donned simple , everyday clothes but her back was bent from years of age. We understood her meaning, she was asking for money, but we were at a loss. It was hard to turn away yet we didn't know if it was appropriate to give her money . Many of us felt propelled to want to give her some help but before the trip, we were warned against street beggars .We just didn't expect to meet them so soon. It made me recall the lesson where we were given two photos of beggars, one, a man who asked for help to get a job ;the other a woman with a baby asking for money. We were asked to make a choice to donate to one of them, given that we had 100 dollars in our hands. That lesson gave me insight on the lives of these people in need and that we should not judge everything on appearance itself. Back to reality, many of us found pity in our hearts for the old lady, but realizing that we couldn't help, the old lady walked away. It made me think about the state of poverty in china.
Later on, we proceeded to 三河古镇, where we visited the past residences of many famous people. People such as 杨振宁 , who was the first Chinese man to be awarded a Nobel prize in physics. 孙立人， who survived thirteen shots. But he was not famous for that, he was famous for defeating an invading country. Visiting the residences of these people, we see what influenced them in their younger days.
We also saw toys on display, from wooden crafted toy swords to squeaking rubber chickens. Although 三河古镇 is a old village, reminiscent of the past days, some of the toys sold were very modern, putting them in contrast to 三河古镇, such as the popular(used to be) angry bird figurines. In a place lacking proper facilities and amenities found in cities, without electricity, these villagers have come a long way and have evolved too, to earn their own livelihood. The people selling these items must know that they appeal to visitors, and hence they sell it.
With that, we left 三河古镇。
2⃣
26/05/2014
Today is nerve-wrecking day, for we are scheduled to meet our buddies from China!😁 The bus ride to hefei 45中 was filled excited students. We were welcomed warmly at their school and they were very hospitable, giving us door gifts . Initially, I was nervous about meeting my buddy but that feeling dissolved when my buddy, Grace, welcomed me with a large smile.
We sat in for their lessons and were given a chance to observe them and also to participate.
A student giving a presentation.
It became apparent that these students had a high level of enthusiasm for their classes. They were all fighting to answer the teacher, but in an orderly manner. I think this is something students like us can learn from. In class we usually wait till ms ho 'bombermans' us to answer questions. This is what our principal is always trying to promote, 'pro-activeness'. Today we got to see an example of that.
However, it was also apparent that the classroom conditions weren't very well maintained. The tables and chairs were shoddy and my buddy said that they used to be worse. Her chair was broken and would sometimes sway, as if It might topple. Some other chairs were like that too. And in a classroom nearly the size of ours, they packed in 63 students. The classroom was near the toilet and sometimes the stench of the toilet would waft in during lessons. But that didn't deter the students from learning. I think this is truly what they call a ,'love for learning'.
Once, I felt that the students were lucky that they could wear their own clothes to school and told my buddy about it. Grace was shocked. She thought we were blessed to be able to wear our uniforms which she said made us look very dignified. She confessed that her whole class thought our uniforms were amazing and that the RVians looked good in white. With her response, I was shocked too. What to many of us, was simply a uniform that we had to wear to school, was held in such awe by these students. I started to think a little differently about our school uniform, and appreciated what we had.
After lunch, we headed to our respective buddies' house. Grace and hui wen, Carissa's buddy were close friends, hence we all decided to go together, heading to grace's house first. Without an elevator, we had to climb six stories up to her house. It was not very arduous , but for Grace to do that everyday, repeatedly must have been an inconvenience . Especially if they were carrying heavy loads. It then made me feel lucky that we had elevators in singapore. Upon arrival, we met grace's family. They were very hospitable and gave us many gifts. In return, we gave them our gifts we prepared earlier. Carissa and my gifts seemed so small compared to the gifts they apgave us, but my buddy comforted me by saying it's the thought that counts. Grace's parents were very cheery and they seemed geniunely happy to have us as guests. That really touched me to be welcomed so warmly in a foreign land. I hope someday, I might be able to do the same for them.
Then, we headed to huiwen's house. It was similar to grace's house.
As always huiwen's mother was also very hospitable and invited us in to savor a lot of hefei goodies. She gave us many gifts too. They were so generous with their gifts to the extent that we had to reject some of their gifts. After a whole day of interacting with them, I realised that people living in anhui have a tradition of always being very hospitable to their guests. They are generous with what they have and after a day with them, I felt very homely. They treated the guests like one of their own. It was miserable when we finally had to part with them.
5 things that I love about RV
1) the condusive learning environment
After visiting hefei 45 中, I realised just how lucky we were to have all those facilities we find in our classrooms. Compared to them, we are placed in an comfortable environment to maximize learning. So we should cherish that.
2) facilities like the school pond , Design and technology rooms, home economics rooms, etc
We are privileged to be accessible to such facilities, for us to have a chance to learn a skill needed for life, or just simply a skill.
3) our uniforms
After my conversation with Grace, it made me see the importance of our uniform, and the impression it left on others. If we wore our own clothes, sure, some of us might look better in our home clothes but then we wouldn't stand out as representatives of RV. The uniform gives a sense of identity, it shows unity, and that is why we are lucky to wear uniforms.
4) exposure to various types of CCAs, all-rounded education.
Because we were exposed to many types of CCAs, like the performing arts or the clubs and societies, we weren't entirely lost when Chinese students performed for us. We had background information on what they were performing about. And because of our all-rounded education, it has opened many doors for our futures.
5)school compound
The school compound covers a large area and it's beautiful.
3⃣
27/05/2014
Today we visited the Anhui museum , where we learnt of the history of anhui, china.
This spectacular building houses the history of Anhui.
We saw some objects from the past, and learnt about their origins. It was interesting as China has a rich history, and we were able to learn of the objects the people of the past used in their daily lives.
We were also given a preview of the style of houses in Anhui, where most of its design is open and allows rain to fall in. Initially I thought it was quite silly to leave gaping holes in their houses for rain to enter as the water would flood the floors. But later on I learnt that to them, water is prosperity and allowing the rainwater to enter their houses is inviting prosperity into their house. That is an interesting concept.
For me, one of the more memorable sights at the anhui museum was one of the 文房四宝, the Chinese brush and ink used for Chinese calligraphy or paintings. It was relatable as we also used Chinese brushes in our rv literature lessons. So now we know the origins of the brushes we wield in hand during rv literature lessons.
After we left the Anhui museum, we drove to China's intangible cultural heritage park. It looked like a pleasant country side at first
Later on, we witnessed the cruel act of roosters fighting. Loud , upbeat music played to the pace of the roosters fighting. The roosters were released in a small arena and upon locking eyes, they started clawing at each other. On the carpeted floor of the small arena, there were dried brown blood stains and the rooster's feathers were matted and dropping over the arena. It was cruel, to pit two animals against each other, for the sake of entertainment. I found out later that these roosters would usually fight to the death, but were spared that day because we were there. That, was a sight I'll never forget. Then, we headed to a circus. The lights were dimmed and the beasts were brought out in cages. Various props were placed around the ring. The performer stepped into the cage, circling around the majestic beast, in his hand, a whip. Strategic pacing accompanied with short yells prompted the tiger to perform various circus tricks. When the tiger refused to obey commands, the performer brought his whip down upon its back. It was unbearable to watch and we soon left the circus, not wanting to support the act of animal cruelty any further.
Initially all I had in my heart was pity for the animals. The pain was real and their suffering even more so. Of all career choices, these performers had to make a living through torturing animals?! However, a conversation with my teacher showed me the two sides of the coin, and it made me a little more forgiving to the acts of animal cruelty commited by the people. My teacher showed me that perhaps these people had to do what they did, due to life circumstances that people like me, who lived in an advanced city such as singapore can never understand and likely won't ever go through. Looking past my hatred for animal exploitation, I realised I was guilty of being too quick to judge. Although I still have conflicting emotions about this event, one thing is clear: hate the act, not the person. Animal cruelty IS still demonic, in fact, no one should ever have to do that to another living being. It undermines the sanctity to life, animal or not. Although I still believe that no reason can ever justify animal cruelty, perhaps the reason behind committing the act deserves pity too. I should try to understand more of why they did what they did, before pinning judgement on them for the acts they commited. And to change the history of animal cruelty in china, perhaps changing the life circumstances of the people is the solution.
To comfort us, the teachers brought us to a playground.
Although we were sad and angered, we still forged new friendships through the experiences that we went through together.
The three stages of rock-climbing.
4⃣
28/05/2014
After a well-rested night, we left hefei for huangshan. A four hour trip up to a hotel on huangshan felt like an eternity. The sights on the road up huangshan was picturesque!
As the bus rolled along the winding mountain roads, the people on the bus were getting more and more excited.
When we finally reached, we took a cable car up to a higher point on the mountain. For man to have been able to build cable towers, wires and cable cars on such steep mountains was not an easy feat and we were there to reap from their acheivement. It gave us an overview of the whole of the mountains we passed, and brought us closer to some of the cliff faces.
Soon after we settled down in the hotel, we begin our three hour hike up the mountain. It was not easy as not many of us could meet the physical demands of a hike so strenuous. However, everyone was very encouraging and we motivated each other to keep going on. I felt this brought us closer as a class, as along the path we were all hiking at different paces, but classmates who weren't as close before were there to help out with their peers.
When the students are away, the teachers will play.
At the peak(pun intended) of our hike, some of us were feeling homesick
When we were hiking, we chanced upon workers carrying loads up and down the mountain. Sometimes they would only use poles to balance their loads, and they would prop up the poles on their backs. We were told to always give way to these workers, in order not to make their jobs harder. We were already having a hard time climbing the steep steps, what more about these workers? It was hard money they were earning and we have them to thank for most of the goods and necessities we found on Huangshan.
We ended our hike and our day too.
5⃣
29/05/2014
It was our last day on huangshan and we woke early to witness the 'legendary' sunrise of Huangshan. We heard of many tales of its beauty and today we were to witness it ourselves. We walked to a viewing platform and found it was already occupied by some other tourists. And so the saying 'goes the early bird catches the wom', guess we weren't the earliest birds.
Moments later, dawn came and a golden orange glow crept up from the horizon.
And so the promise was delivered. The sunrise was breathtaking. And viewing it from huangshan , when the birds were chirping and the breeze was blowing, was a great experience.
Reluctantly, we left huangshan and headed to yixian to visit Hongcun.
There, we learnt more in person about what we saw at the museum. The style of hosing , arrangement of furniture, meaning behind it and more. For example, we learnt that a round table was split in two and kept facing the walls when the master was not at home. It was interesting to learn of the customs people of anhui had in the past.
In Hongcun, they utilized large open drains like this to run water through the village. Atop the drains would be a bar only wide enough to stand or squat on. This bar was used for villagers to collect water for domestic use or washing of their clothes. I thought that the villagers were living in poor environments as i noticed there were white mucky substances coating the surface of the water. And to believe that this water was used to meet their daily needs. I feel grateful for singapore's clean and easily accessed water but at the same time, I also feel sorry for the villagers.
6⃣
30/05/2014
Today, we visited Xidi ancient village , a village that was a also national tourist attraction. The style of houses here were similar to the houses we saw in Hongcun but it was more well preserved here.
The richer one was in the past, the more intricately crafted was their doors and walls. A intricate design was a sign of prosperity in the house as the wealthy had the power to get craftsman. Houses like this were usually the residence of a rich family. It is a wonder that people of the past could carve out such beautiful designs and incorporate them into windows and doors. Although they didn't have electricity or clean supply of water in the past, they worked with their hands and created the wonders that we saw today. And not only that, these wonders were function able too, working as dividers or doors.
7⃣
31/05/2014
In the blink of an eye, the week has gone by.
I thought it would be a miserable week, without my parents , in a foreign land, but I didn't expect to receive so much from one week in china. Realizing it's the dreaded last day, i went on with a heavy heart. Sure, I couldn't wait to see my family again, but this one week simply felt too short and it passed us by too quickly. On this last day, we went to Tunxi street to buy souvenirs for our friends and family back in singapore. We saw items unique to china like tea leaves harvested in china. After nearly an hour, we took the bus to 杭州. It seemed the end of our journey was approaching even faster.
After that, we went to take the west lake cruise and we went sight-seeing. It was our last few hor's together as a class and everyone made quite an effort to be bonded.
The waters were calm and the ride was relaxing as the boat was swaying side to side.
After visiting the Yuefei mausoleum, we set off on a long bus ride to pudong airport. It was on this bus ride that we really bonded, or so I felt, where we played and really enjoyed ourselves. The night was falling and gradually, we reached pudong airport. There, we had our last dinner together before finding out that our flight was delayed. Woohoo! One more hour together! Boohoo, getting back to singapore one hour later than intended.
After which, we boarded on flight back to singapore, back to our parents, and officially ended our journey.
One of my favourite part of OELP was the fun and moments we had at the dinner table.
It was at the table that I really felt the closest to my classmates, for sticking through everything together, for challenging each other in games and for all the fun they brought. Everyday, I knew dinner was something to look forward to , not only because of the food, but also because of the people there. At the table, everyone was equals and it didn't matter if you weren't close to the people at the table before. I never realised that zhiyang or jiani or many others were this funny, or this friendly until I sat down and ate with them. I learnt that some of us are very peculiar about table manners, the reason behind why some of us are vegetarians, food preferences , drink preferences, crushes and even the way we held our chopsticks. All these made me feel even closer to my friends and this was truly what I felt ,'a moment of bonding'. They were the ones who made me feel closer to home and I'll always , always remember the times we spent at the table.
A toast to the people at my dinner table , a toast to all my friends who made it better, and a toast to the school and our teachers for this memorable trip!
